The tree is named due to the story of Queen Elizabeth I having allegedly shot a deer from beneath its branches, while visiting the Cowdray Estate in 1593 (Questier, 2006: 170-174; Miles, 2013). They are also one of the rarer examples of trees that bare royal association with monarch’s, in that there is evidence of Queen Elizabeth I indeed travelling to the estate and staying for several days (Questier, 2006: 170-174). Whether or not this was the tree she stood against, if the event even occurred, or if indeed she did shoot a deer at all, remains a myth.

According to the Woodland Trust, the tree is the third largest sessile oak to be recorded in the U.K, having a girth of around 41.9 feet in circumference (12.8 meters) and standing at 28 feet tall (8.54 meters). Additional, or corruptions, of the tree's name include the 'Queen Elizabeth Oak' or 'Queen Elizabeth's Oak'. The latter, however, is more likely a confusion with a deceased oak whose dead wood resides in the grounds of Greenwich Park, London, alongside a descendent oak planted by the late-Prince Phillip in 1992, to commemorate the late-Queen's Ruby Jubilee.

One of the Queen Elizabeth I Oak's major characteristics is a huge split down the centre of its trunk. The interior of the tree is entirely hollow and, to give a sense of scale, is said to be able to house around twenty people. Found in the historic deer park a short walk from the car park just off the A272, there is no discernible signage to direct interested parties to the tree (as of May 2021), however the plaque to mark it a ‘Great British Tree’ in 2002 remains as a form of identification, once discovered.