London, Sept. 1 (Reuters): The right to roam across the English countryside will be enshrined in law for the first time this month, ending a century-long battle for access to rural Britain.

Around six million acres of private land will be opened up when the Countryside and Rights of Way Act comes into effect from September 19.

While many of these green swathes are already popular with hikers, this month will mark the first time that landowners will no longer be able to demand they leave. “This is a significant legal step which pushes back centuries of landowners’ dominance of our countryside,” said Nick Barrett, chief executive of the UK’s Ramblers Association.

The protest has its roots in the Industrial Revolution era and the beginnings of democracy, when in the late 19th century Britain’s workers began to demand more access to the countryside around their towns and cities. The first freedom to roam bill came before Parliament in 1884, where it was knocked back yearly until 1914, when access to the countryside was allowed if landowners gave permission.

Now, with or without permission, people can walk on all land mapped as mountain, heath, down and moorland, provided it is not cultivated, they are on foot, and they behave responsibly.