This brief history of the Forestry Commission was commissioned by the Royal Scottish Forestry Society as a key component of their 2019 Annual Study Tour which took place in Argyll to celebrate ‘100 years of State Forestry’ by visiting some of the oldest Forestry Commission forests.

James Ogilvie BA, MA, MSc, FICFor, CEnv, started working for the FC as a student in 1978 before joining as an Assistant District Officer in 1980 and finally retiring in 2018. Formerly President of ICF, he has raised over £50k for Tree Aid through climbing the 7 summits. Now a non-executive Director of the Woodland Trust and the Borders Forest Trust, he is also the hands-on owner of an award-winning woodland in Northumberland.