TALON — The Oldest Bond Between Man and Raptor

The Three Pillars

Philosophy of the Mews

I ◈

Patience

The raptor does not submit — it chooses. Manning a bird of prey requires weeks of silent presence, building trust across a threshold no human demands. We teach the ancient art of waiting without losing authority.

II ◈

Precision

Every gesture carries weight. The angle of the fist, the timing of the whistle, the set of the lure — falconry is a vocabulary spoken in movement. We teach you to speak it fluently.

III ◈

Partnership

A trained hawk is not a pet nor a weapon. It is a partner bound by mutual respect and mutual hunger. The highest achievement of the falconer is the bird that returns not from habit, but from choice.

Programs

Choose Your Path

Four disciplines. One lineage. Each program is shaped by three thousand years of unbroken hawking tradition.

Foundation

Beginner Course

An immersive introduction to the ancient art. You will learn the essential vocabulary of the glove — manning, weighing, feeding, and your first lure flights with a Harris Hawk under master supervision.

3 Days Duration

2–4 Students Group Size

All Levels Prerequisite

Advanced

Advanced Hawking

For those with foundational experience. Week-long field work across moorland and forest with Peregrines and Red-tails. Hood training, telemetry, and free-flight at altitude above 400 metres.

7 Days Duration

1–2 Students Group Size

Prior Experience Prerequisite

Experience

Medieval Hunt

A full-day excursion into the tradition of medieval hawking. Period dress, mounted escort, and Golden Eagle flights across our private estate. The hunt as it was conducted in the courts of Henry II.

1 Day Duration

Up to 8 Group Size

None Prerequisite

Private

Private Sessions

Bespoke one-to-one training with our most senior falconer. You choose the raptor, the terrain, the pace. From half-day introductions to a full season of ownership preparation. No schedule but your own.

Flexible Duration

1:1 Group Size

Any Level Prerequisite

View All Programs

Our Facility

The Mews &
Weathering Ground

Built on the foundations of a 12th-century hunting lodge, our facility houses 34 birds across three species groups. Every structure is designed to honour the raptor's instinct while enabling the finest conditions for training.

Traditional stone mews with individual screened chambers for each bird
South-facing weathering ground with natural perch systems and shelter
Open moorland flight area across 180 acres of private estate
Lure field and creance lines for early training phases
On-site falconry veterinary suite and resident avian specialist

Explore the Estate

The Method

How We Train

Five stages. The same sequence used by Arab falconers before the Crusades, Persian court hawks before the Silk Road.

Manning

The bird learns to accept the falconer's presence without alarm. Gentle exposure to voices, movement, and the glove. No coercion — only gradual trust built through consistent, calm proximity over many hours.

Week 1–2

Jessing

Introduction of anklets and leash. The hawk learns to step to the fist and return. Equipment is fitted by hand, checked daily. Traditional aylmeri jesses in natural leather — the same pattern used since the 13th century.

Week 2–3

Lure Training

The lure is swung to simulate prey. The hawk is recalled over increasing distances on a creance — a long line that allows freedom without the risk of loss. Speed, arc, and timing are calibrated to each bird's temperament.

Week 3–5

Hood Training

The Dutch hood is introduced incrementally. A hooded hawk is a calm hawk — essential for transport, for settling in the field, for the hunt itself. Hooding and unhooding becomes a mutual rhythm, not an imposition.

Week 4–6

Field Work

Free flight on the estate. The bird is flown at quarry under close supervision. Telemetry monitors every sortie. The falconer learns to read wind, terrain, and the hawk's mood — the full vocabulary of the ancient art.

Week 5+

Full Training Details

HERITAGE

Since 1147

Nine Centuries of an Unbroken Line

Falconry has been listed by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It is one of the oldest recorded relationships between human and animal — predating horses as working companions and outlasting the empires that practised it.

TALON traces its lineage to the hunting lodge of Lord Aldric de Falco, who received his first gyr falcon from the Norwegian court in 1147. The mews that house our birds today stand on the same ground.

"There is no animal on earth that a nobleman may keep that does the nobleman so much honour, or is so worthy of a prince, as a noble goshawk."
— The Book of St. Albans, 1486

Discover Our Heritage

Student Voices

From the Field

"The Advanced Hawking week was unlike any experience I have had. Flying a Peregrine at altitude across the moor, watching it stoop at two hundred miles an hour — nothing in sport hunting approaches this. The instruction was meticulous, patient, and deeply knowledgeable."

James Hartwell-Moore Advanced Hawking — Autumn 2024

"We brought twelve guests for the Medieval Hunt Experience as part of a corporate retreat. The theatricality, the landscape, the birds — it was extraordinary. Three of our guests enrolled in the Beginner Course the following month."

Sophia van der Berg Medieval Hunt — Corporate Group

"Two private sessions with Master Falconer Edmund Crane changed the way I understand patience. He never raised his voice. The hawk did everything. I am now preparing my own Harris Hawk and return to TALON each month for ongoing supervision."

Richard Ashford Private Sessions — Ongoing Member

"I arrived knowing nothing. By the end of three days, I was recalling a Harris Hawk from fifty metres. The instructors are remarkable — they read both the bird and the student with extraordinary accuracy. TALON is in a class entirely its own."

Margaux Lefebvre Beginner Course — Spring 2025