Octavia Hill believed in the life-enhancing virtues of “pure earth, clean air and blue sky”. Her Larksfield home in Kent became the base for campaigns to save nearby open spaces from building development and both local and national footpaths.
She was the first to use the term “Green Belt” for London. Three Kentish Hills (Mariners Hill, Toys Hill and Ide Hill) that Octavia saved from developers before her death, became part of that belt.
The purchase of Alfriston Clergy House in 1895 marked the beginning of the National Trust’s building conservation work.