Every year millions of people visit the New Forest. They are drawn to the Forest by the magic of its timeless landscape. A landscape, which is a combination of ancient and ornamental woodland, timber inclosures and heathland. It is special, but it is not natural; it has been shaped by centuries of human intervention. The New Forest has an ever-growing population of newcomers and tourists, but it is steeped in ancient history. William the Conqueror created the New Forest as a medieval deer hunting ground in 1079. Centuries later, agreement between the Crown and local people meant the Crown grew timber for ship building and local people received rights, including the right for their ponies, cattle and donkeys to graze the Forest. These ancient 'rights of common' led to a form of extensive farming called commoning. The people who farm the New Forest are known as commoners and their unique way of life has remained unchanged for nearly a thousand years. The browsing and grazing of the commoners' animals has created the characteristic New Forest landscape. It is a landscape that is rich in rare wildlife habitats. The animals are known as the 'architects of the Forest'. Today approximately 500 practising commoners are responsible for the 7,000 animals on the forest, more than half of which are ponies.