Herefordshire () is a county in the

West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

counties of

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, with ...

and Powys to the west.

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

, the

county town In the United Kingdom and Ireland, a county town is the most important town or city in a county. It is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county and the place where the county's members of Parliament are elect ...

of Herefordshire has a population of approximately 61,000, making it the largest settlement in the county. The next biggest town is Leominster and then Ross-on-Wye. The county is situated in the historic

Welsh Marches The Welsh Marches ( cy, Y Mers) is an imprecisely defined area along the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods. The English term Welsh March (in Medieval Latin ...

, Herefordshire is one of the most rural and sparsely populated counties in England, with a population density of 82/km² (212/sq mi), and a 2021 population of 187,100 – the fourth-smallest of any

ceremonial county The counties and areas for the purposes of the lieutenancies, also referred to as the lieutenancy areas of England and informally known as ceremonial counties, are areas of England to which lords-lieutenant are appointed. Legally, the areas i ...

in England. The land use is mostly agricultural and the county is well known for its fruit and

cider Cider ( ) is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom (particularly in the West Country) and the Republic of Ireland. The UK has the world's highest per capita consumption, ...

production, and for the

Hereford cattle The Hereford is a British breed of beef cattle originally from Herefordshire in the West Midlands of England. It has spread to many countries – there are more than five million purebred Hereford cattle in over fifty nations worldwide. The bre ...

breed.

Constitution

From 1974 to 1998, Herefordshire was part of the former non-metropolitan county of Hereford and Worcester. Herefordshire was reconstituted both as a new district as "County of Herefordshire" (effective 19 July 1996) and as a new county (coextensive with the area of the aforementioned district) (effective 1 April 1998) by

Statutory Instrument In many countries, a statutory instrument is a form of delegated legislation. United Kingdom Statutory instruments are the principal form of delegated or secondary legislation in the United Kingdom. National government Statutory instrument ...

as defined in ''The Hereford and Worcester (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996''. This Order established Herefordshire as a unitary authority on 1 April 1998, combining county and district functions into a single council. Herefordshire is also commonly called a ''unitary district'', but this is not official nomenclature. Herefordshire is officially known as a unitary authority for local government purposes. It is governed by Herefordshire Council which was created in 1998 with the new unitary district that absorbed the previous administrative areas of Hereford City Council, South Herefordshire District Council, most of Leominster District Council, and part of

Malvern Hills District Council Malvern or Malverne may refer to: Places Australia * Malvern, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide * Malvern, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne * City of Malvern, a former local government area near Melbourne * Electoral district of Malvern, an el ...

, all within the previous non-metropolitan county of Hereford and Worcester, whose functions the new authority inherited within its area. The remainder of Malvern Hills district absorbed the Worcestershire part of Leominster district (the area around Tenbury Wells) and continued to constitute a (smaller) district within the new two-tier county of Worcestershire. The Lieutenancies Act 1997 made Herefordshire a

, covering the exact area of the unitary district. For

Eurostat Eurostat ('European Statistical Office'; DG ESTAT) is a Directorate-General of the European Commission located in the Kirchberg, Luxembourg, Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Eurostat's main responsibilities are to provide statis ...

purposes it is a NUTS 3 region (code UKG11) and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region.

Physical geography

The

River Wye The River Wye (; cy, Afon Gwy ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn estuary. For much of its length the river forms part of Wal ...

, which at is the fifth-longest in the United Kingdom, enters the county after briefly being its border with Powys. It flows through both

and Ross-on-Wye before returning to Wales. Leominster is situated on the River Lugg, a tributary of the Wye. There are two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the county. The Wye Valley is located in the river's valleys south of Hereford, while the Malvern Hills are in the east of the county, along its border with Worcestershire.

History

Herefordshire is one of the 39 historic counties of England. Herefordshire County Council was created in 1889. In 1974, the administrative county formed in 1889 was merged with that of neighbouring Worcestershire to form Hereford and Worcester. Within this, Herefordshire was covered by the local government districts of

South Herefordshire South Herefordshire was one of nine local government districts of the English county of Hereford and Worcester from 1974 to 1998. History South Herefordshire District was formed on 1 April 1974 as part of a general reorganisation of local admini ...

, and part of Malvern Hills and Leominster districts. However, the county was dissolved in 1998, resulting in the return of Herefordshire and Worcestershire as counties. The current

and

unitary district A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

have broadly the same borders as the historic county.

Demographics

Population growth

Herefordshire's growth rate has, in recent decades, been higher than the national average, with the population increasing by 14.4% between 1991 and 2011; the population of England as a whole increased by only 10.0%. However, this has been from a lower base, with only Northumberland and Cumbria having lower population densities than Herefordshire. In the late 19th and early 20th century the population of the county declined steadily.

Ethnicity

The population is White 98.2%, Asian 0.8%, Mixed 0.7%, Black 0.2%, Other 0.1%.

Travellers

Gypsies and Travellers have historically been Herefordshire's largest minority ethnic group. They are made up of three main groups: *

Romanichal Romanichal Travellers ( ; more commonly known as English Gypsies or English Travellers) are a Romani subgroup within the United Kingdom and other parts of the English-speaking world. There are an estimated 200,000 Romani in the United Kingdom; ...

or Romany "Gypsies" * Irish Travellers *New Travellers or New Age Travellers Romany Gypsies and Irish Travellers fall within the definition of a minority ethnic group under the Race Relations Amendment Act (2000). They have contributed to the development of the county, for example through seasonal working in orchards. There were approximately 400 people (0.2%) within this minority group in the county at the 2011 Census.

Cities, towns and villages

The major settlements in the county include

, which is the

and Herefordshire's only

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

, as well as the towns of Leominster,

Ledbury Ledbury is a market town and civil parish in the county of Herefordshire, England, lying east of Hereford, and west of the Malvern Hills. It has a significant number of timber-framed structures, in particular along Church Lane and High Street ...

, Ross-on-Wye, Kington and Bromyard.

Economy

This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Herefordshire at current basic prices published by the Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling. includes hunting and forestry includes energy and construction includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured Components may not sum to totals due to rounding Many well-known cider producers are based in Herefordshire. These include Weston's cider of

Much Marcle Much Marcle is a village and civil parish in Herefordshire, England, located north-east of Ross-on-Wye. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 660. The name ''Marcle'' comes from the Anglo-Saxon word for a boundary field, ''mearc-l ...

, and Bulmer's cider, from Hereford, which produces the UK market leader Strongbow.

Employment

Most employment in Herefordshire is in agriculture, manufacturing and services. According to Herefordshire Council's online document "worklessness", 10% of people are unemployed in Herefordshire including out-of-work, homeless, ill and disabled and their carers. Cargill Meats and H. P. Bulmers are two of the largest private sector employers, with the Council and NHS being the largest public sector employers.

Politics

Westminster Parliamentary

There are two parliamentary constituencies in Herefordshire. , Bill Wiggin represents North Herefordshire and Jesse Norman represents Hereford and South Herefordshire. Both politicians are members of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

Council

The council operates a

cabinet-style council In England, local authority, local authorities are required to adopt one of three types of executive arrangements, having either an "elected mayor and cabinet", a "leader and cabinet", or a "committee system". The type of arrangement used determin ...

and has been independently controlled since 2019. The chairman is Councillor Sebastian Bowen and the leader of the council is Councillor David Hitchiner. The Cabinet Leader is appointed yearly by the full council of 53 councillors. The Cabinet Leader then picks their deputy and up to 8 other councillors to form the executive cabinet. Each cabinet member makes the decisions about the portfolio that they are allocated. Elections to the council are held every 4 years. Elections are conducted under the FPTP system with the 53 wards returning 1 councillor each. Elections have been held in

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2019, with the next election due in 2023. In the 2019 election, the Conservatives lost control of Herefordshire Council.

Education

Herefordshire has a comprehensive education system that also includes several independent schools. Most state secondary schools are for ages 11–16. Colleges of further and higher education in the county include Hereford College of Arts,

Hereford College of Education Hereford College of Education was a teacher training college in the English city of Hereford. The college was established in 1902 and was the only higher education institution in the county of Herefordshire throughout its existence. It provided ...

, Hereford Sixth Form College,

Herefordshire and Ludlow College Herefordshire and Ludlow College is a college of further education (FE) based in Hereford, Herefordshire, and with a separate sixth form college campus in Ludlow, Shropshire. The majority of students, mainly adults, follow courses in health, p ...

and the

Royal National College for the Blind The Royal National College for the Blind (RNC) is a co-educational specialist residential college of further education based in the English city of Hereford. Students who attend the college are aged 16 to 25 and blind or partially sighted. ...

Agriculture

The agricultural economy has changed greatly in recent years within the county. The county is on the western edge of England which has been historically pastoral as opposed to the east which was more arable.

Beef

Probably Hereford's most famous export is its Hereford beef cattle. Herefords are docile but extremely hardy creatures and these attributes have led to their proliferation across the world, particularly the US, Canada, South America and Australia. The breed is so gentle that a Hereford bull was used as the mascot for Hereford United Football Club for many years, led around the club's Edgar Street ground before major matches.

Fruit

The county is famous for its apple and pear orchards, and its cider. There are many orchards around the county but not as many as there once were. In the last few years, soft fruits such as

strawberries The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

have become a new and rapidly expanding area of the agricultural economy of the county. One of the main reasons for this was the introduction of the polytunnel or French tunnel. This allows the strawberries to be grown for a far longer season and with a higher quality (with no blemishes from the rain). The strawberries are mainly picked by Eastern European workers who come over for the season and often earn more money, more than they could working in their own country and with the bonus, for many of them, of learning or improving their English. The polytunnels have been a major issue in the county, as some people see them as a "blot on the landscape". Although some polytunnel sites are illegal, Herefordshire Council has turned a blind eye in the belief that agriculture must be allowed to innovate; otherwise it will stagnate and the county will suffer.

Dairy

Previously, most farms in the county had dairy cattle. Due to the cost of investing in new equipment, long hours, BSE,

foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids. The virus causes a high fever lasting two to six days, followe ...

and mainly falling milk prices, the county's milk production has drastically reduced, with only a few farms still in dairy farming.

Potatoes

The county is historically pastoral. The soils are mostly clay, meaning that large scale potato production was very difficult, as tractors were not powerful enough to pull the large machinery required to harvest the crop. Around the early 1990s new technology and more powerful machines overcame this problem. Potato production started to increase, fuelled by a few other key factors: The previously pastoral soils had not had potatoes grown in them; consequently they were not infected with eelworm (''Heterodera rostochiensis'' and ''Heterodera pallida''), which in the east of England had to be sprayed against weekly (a large cost). Also, the clay soil produced an unblemished potato of the highest grade. The intensive nature of the crop meant that potatoes could be grown viably on a given field in only one of every five years. Because potato growers always needed more land than they owned, they rented extra. This demand for rental fields came at a time when the rest of the industry was struggling and in serious decline. The potato farmers' rents of £300–500 per acre (as opposed to normally £80 per acre) were very helpful to many farmers in a difficult period.

Emblems

Coat of arms

Herefordshire County Council was granted a coat of arms on 28 February 1946.Geoffrey Briggs, ''Civic and Corporate Heraldry'', London, 1971 The arms became obsolete in 1974 on the abolition of the council, but were transferred to the present Herefordshire Council by Order in Council in 1997. The arms are blazoned as follows: ''

Gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). In engraving, it is sometimes depict ...

on a fesse wavy between in chief a lion passant guardant argent and in base a Herefordshire bull's head caboshed proper, a bar wavy

azure Azure may refer to: Colour * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 ...

; and for a

Crest Crest or CREST may refer to: Buildings *The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York *"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York *Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...

on a wreath of the colours a demi lion rampant gules holding in the sinister claw a fleece or; and for Supporters, on the dexter side a lion guardant or gorged with a wreath of hops fructed proper and on the sinister a talbot argent gorged with a collar or charged with three apples proper.'' The red colouring ("gules") of the shield is taken from the arms of the City of Hereford. The red colour also represents the red earth of Herefordshire. The silver and blue wave across the centre of the shield represents the River Wye. The lions that form parts of the arms, crest and supporters are also taken from Hereford's arms. The agricultural produce of Herefordshire is represented by the bull's head, fleece, hops and apples. The talbot dog comes from the heraldry of the Talbot family, Marcher Lords of Shrewsbury and also from that of Viscount Hereford. The Latin motto is: ''Pulchra terra Dei donum'' ("This fair land is the gift of God").

County flower

As part of a competition organised by the charity Plantlife to raise awareness of conservation issues, the public were asked to vote for " county flowers" that they felt best represented their county.

Mistletoe Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemiparasitic plants in the order Santalales. They are attached to their host tree or shrub by a structure called the haustorium, through which they extract water and nutrients from the host plant. ...

was announced as the winning choice for Herefordshire in 2004. The emblem has no official status and has not been widely adopted. Herefordshire Council uses a logo consisting of a green apple.

Sport

Perhaps the most famous sporting team in Herefordshire is

Hereford United Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'The ...

football club, who were members of the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

and played at Edgar Street stadium in the city of Hereford. The club was founded in 1924 on the merger of two local teams – St Martin's and RAOC – and became members of the Birmingham Combination League. The club then made its way upwards to the

Southern Football League The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English fo ...

, finally gaining election to the

in 1972 – the same year that the club famously defeated First Division side

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

in an FA Cup tie. Two successive promotions saw the club reach the Second Division in 1978, but two successive relegations followed and saw the club side back into the

Fourth Division Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

. Despite being situated within England, the club has competed in the Welsh Cup on a number of occasions, winning the trophy in 1990. The club suffered relegation from the Football League in 1997 and fell into the Football Conference, not regaining its Football League status until 2006. The club then played in Football League Two – the fourth tier of English football – for six years before once again being relegated out of the Football League at the end of the 2011–12 season. The club was wound up in 2014. A new

phoenix club The Phoenix Building and Cincinnati Club are two historic buildings in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. The membership of these two clubs was chiefly Jewish. Located at 812 Race Street, the Phoenix Building was constructed in 1893, desi ...

Hereford F.C. Hereford Football Club is an English association football club from the city of Hereford. They were founded in 2014 as a phoenix club for Hereford United, and inherited their Edgar Street stadium. They are nicknamed 'The Whites' after their pre ...

was set up competing in the Midland Football League Premier Division (9th tier) for its first season, 2015–16. The club lost to

Morpeth Town Morpeth Town Association Football Club is a football club based in Morpeth, Northumberland, England. They are currently members of the and play at Craik Park. History The club was established in 1909. They joined the Northern Alliance in 193 ...

at Wembley Stadium on 22 May 2016 in the final of the

FA Vase The Football Association Challenge Vase, usually referred to as the FA Vase, is an annual football competition for teams playing in Steps 5 and 6 of the English National League System (or equivalently, tier 9 or 10 of the overall English footbal ...

. Cricket is widely played within the county, and Herefordshire County Cricket Club compete in the

Minor Counties Championship The NCCA 3 Day Championship (previously the Minor Counties Cricket Championship) is a season-long competition in England and Wales that is contested by the members of the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), the so-called national cou ...

, having been elected in 1992 to take Durham's place, when that county joined the First-class structure. The leading club sides in Herefordshire are Brockhampton CC and Eastnor CC, who both compete in the Birmingham and District Premier League, the ECB accredited Premier League for cricket clubs in the West Midlands, and one of the strongest cricket leagues in England. Below that in the cricketing pyramid system 7 other leading Herefordshire clubs compete in the

Worcestershire County Cricket League {{more citations needed, date=June 2011 The Worcestershire County Cricket League (WCL) is an English club cricket league, and consists of club teams primarily from Worcestershire, as well as several other clubs from bordering counties Herefordshir ...

, with the remaining 25 or so cricket clubs within the county competing in the Marches League, or just playing Sunday or mid-week 'friendly' matches.

Places of interest

Abbey Dore Court Abbey Dore Court is a country house in Abbey Dore, Herefordshire, England. It was built in the Golden Valley in 1861 for Thomas Freke Lewis. It includes the former public house, the Red Lion Inn which was built in the early 1800s. The property ...

* Arthur's Stone *

Berrington Hall Berrington Hall is a country house located about north of Leominster, Herefordshire, England. During the 20th century it was the seat of the Cawley family. It is a neoclassical country house building that Henry Holland designed in 1778-81 f ...

Brockhampton Estate The Brockhampton Estate is a National Trust property in Herefordshire, England, and is to the north of the A44 Bromyard to Worcester road, opposite the northern edge of Bringsty Common and east from the town of Bromyard. The significant aspect o ...

* Courtyard Centre for the Arts – Hereford's main theatre and art performance centre *

Croft Castle Croft Castle is a country house in the village of Croft, Herefordshire, England. Owned by the Croft family since 1085, the castle and estate passed out of their hands in the 18th century, before being repurchased by the family in 1923. In 1957 ...

* Dore Abbey * Eastnor Castle * Edgar Street (Football Stadium Home to

) *

Eye Manor Eye Manor, Eye, Herefordshire, England is a Carolean manor house dating from the late 17th century, and was built for Ferdinando Gorges. Noted for its interior plasterwork, the house is a Grade I listed building. History Ferdinando Gorges (c.1 ...

* Goodrich Castle * Hampton Court *

Hellens Manor Hellens Manor, also known as Hellens House or simply Hellens and located in the village of Much Marcle in Herefordshire is one of the oldest dwellings in England, primarily composed of Tudor, Jacobean and Georgian architecture, but the foundati ...

Hereford Cathedral Hereford Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford in Hereford, England. A place of worship has existed on the site of the present building since the 8th century or earlier. The present building was begun in 1079. S ...

Kilpeck Church The Church of St Mary and St David is a Church of England parish church at Kilpeck in the English county of Herefordshire, about 5 miles from the border with Monmouthshire, Wales. Pevsner describes Kilpeck as "one of the most perfect Norman church ...

* Malvern Hills * Herefordshire Beacon *

Priory Church A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of mon ...

Sutton Walls Hill Fort Sutton Walls Hillfort is an elongated ovoid Iron Age Hill fort located four miles north of the city of Hereford, England. It was added to the Sites and Monuments Record in 1988. History The Sutton Walls hillfort dates back to the Iron Age. By ...

Wigmore Castle Wigmore Castle is a ruined castle about from the village of Wigmore, Herefordshire, Wigmore in the northwest region of Herefordshire, England. History Wigmore Castle was founded after the Norman conquest of England, Norman Conquest, probabl ...

Welsh Newton Welsh Newton is a small village and civil parish in the county of Herefordshire, England. It is located close to the border with Wales to which the parish extends towards Monmouthshire. It should not be confused with Newton, a township-chapelry ...

Transport

Road

The M50, one of the first motorways to be built in the United Kingdom, runs through the south of the county and, with the A40

dual carriageway A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...

, forms part of the major route linking

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

with the

and the north of England. The A49 runs north–south through the county and is a strategic route between North and

as well as catering for local traffic.

Railways

The Welsh Marches Line also runs north–south with passenger trains operated by Transport for Wales offering links to Manchester as well as to North and South Wales.

is the western end of the Cotswold Line which runs via Worcester with through services to Oxford and

London Paddington Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a London station group, Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services pro ...

(operated by

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

) and to Birmingham (operated by West Midlands Trains). The rural Heart of Wales Line linking Craven Arms in Shropshire to Llanelli in southwest Wales passes through the extreme north west of Herefordshire with stations at Knighton and Bucknell near the meeting point of the boundaries of Herefordshire, Shropshire and Powys. The majority of passengers between North and South Wales use the Marches line. Former lines which are now closed were the Ledbury and Gloucester Railway; Ross & Monmouth Railway; Hereford to Hay-on-Wye; Pontrilas to Hay-on-Wye; Hay-on-Wye to Brecon; Leominster to New Radnor;

Eardisley Eardisley () is a village and civil parish in Herefordshire about south of the centre of Kington. Eardisley is in the Wye valley in the northwest of the county, close to the border with Wales. The village is part of the "Black and white villa ...

to Presteigne; and Leominster to Worcester via Bromyard. Part of the Titley Spur is opened annually by enthusiasts and a steam train is run along the track. There has long been talk of a new station at Rotherwas, in the south of

Air

There are no airports with Scheduled air transport in Herefordshire. Birmingham Airport,

Cardiff Airport Cardiff Airport ( cy, Maes Awyr Caerdydd) is the only airport offering commercial passenger services in Wales. It has been under the ownership of the Welsh Government since March 2013, operating at an arm's length as a commercial business. Pa ...

and

Bristol Airport Bristol Airport , at Lulsgate Bottom, on the northern slopes of the Mendip Hills, in North Somerset, is the commercial airport serving the city of Bristol, England, and the surrounding area. It is southwest of Bristol city centre. Built on ...

are the nearest. The RailAir

RailAir RailAir describes a number of airport bus and coach services designed to connect the National Rail network to airports in the United Kingdom. Services are currently concentrated on Heathrow Airport, with one other from Luton Airport. RailAir s ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

operated by First Berkshire & The Thames Valley provides connections to

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...

via

Reading station Reading railway station is a major transport hub in Reading, Berkshire, England. It is on the northern edge of the town centre, near the main retail and commercial areas and the River Thames, from . Reading is the ninth-busiest station in th ...

or passengers can change at Reading station and then go all the way by train via Hayes & Harlington to Heathrow Airport. Shobdon Aerodrome near Leominster is a centre for general aviation and

gliding Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is al ...

. Hot air ballooning is also popular with Eastnor Castle being one of the favourite launch sites in the area.

Waterways

Historically, the rivers Wye,

Teme The River Teme (pronounced ; cy, Afon Tefeidiad) rises in Mid Wales, south of Newtown, and flows southeast roughly forming the border between England and Wales for several miles through Knighton before entering England in the vicinity of ...

and Lugg were navigable but the wide seasonal variations in water levels mean that few craft larger than canoes and

coracles A coracle is a small, rounded, lightweight boat of the sort traditionally used in Wales, and also in parts of the West Country and in Ireland, particularly the River Boyne, and in Scotland, particularly the River Spey. The word is also used of s ...

are now used. There are canoe centres a
The Boat House
Glasbury-on-Wye (in Powys, Wales)
the Hereford Youth Service
an
Kerne Bridge
in Ross-on-Wye, as well as rowing clubs in Hereford and Ross-on-Wye. The early 19th century saw the construction of two canals, The Herefordshire & Gloucestershire Canal and The Leominster & Stourport Canal but these were never successful and there are now few remains to be seen. The Herefordshire & Gloucestershire Canal is currently the subject a restoration project, which includes the construction of a new canal basin in

city centre as part of the regeneration of the

Edgar Street Grid The Edgar Street Grid is a redevelopment project in the north of Hereford, England, estimated to cost almost £1 billion and intended to restore the city as a key shopping and business destination in the region. Work was expected to start ...

. The project, however, is being undertaken by a small voluntary group and there is no expected date for any part of the canal to re-open for boating.

Notable people

* Jarrod Bowen, footballer *

Simon Carr Simon Carr may refer to: * Simon Carr (tennis) Simon Carr (born 7 November 1999) is an Irish tennis player. He is Ireland's No.1 player. Carr has a career high ATP singles ranking of No. 512 achieved on 3 February 2020. He also has a career hi ...

, cyclist * Frank Oz, Actor and voice actor, producer, director * Matthew Hall, writer * Dennis Potter, writer *

Elizabeth Barrett Browning Elizabeth Barrett Browning (née Moulton-Barrett; 6 March 1806 – 29 June 1861) was an English poet of the Victorian era, popular in Britain and the United States during her lifetime. Born in County Durham, the eldest of 12 children, Elizabet ...

, poet *

Richard Hammond Richard Mark Hammond (born 19 December 1969) is an English journalist, television presenter, mechanic, and writer. He is best known for co-hosting the BBC Two motoring programme ''Top Gear'' from 2002 until 2015 with Jeremy Clarkson and Jame ...

, '' Top Gear'' and '' The Grand Tour'' presenter *

Mary Duggan Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, cricketer *

Noele Gordon Joan Noele Gordon (25 December 1919 – 14 April 1985) was an English actress and television presenter. She played the role of Meg Mortimer (originally Richardson) in the long-running British soap opera '' Crossroads'' from 1964 to 1981, wit ...

, actress * Mike Oldfield, musician *

Mick Ralphs Michael Geoffrey Ralphs (born 31 March 1944, Herefordshire) is an English musician, vocalist and songwriter, who was a founding member of rock bands Mott the Hoople and Bad Company. Career Ralphs began his career as a teenager, playing with b ...

, Mott the Hoople and Bad Company guitarist * Richard Ashcroft, songwriter and lead singer of The Verve *

Thomas Britten Thomas Johnson Britten (6 March 1858 – 24 October 1910) was an international footballer. Though born and raised in rural Herefordshire in England, his birth was registered in the nearest town Presteigne across the Welsh border and he was deeme ...

, 19th-century footballerThe English players in 1870s Scottish football
Andy Mitchell, Scottish Sport History, 12 April 2021 * Monty Don, BBC TV presenter * Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, favourite of Queen Elizabeth I *

Conroy Maddox Conroy Maddox (27 December 1912 – 14 January 2005) was an English surrealist painter, collagist, writer and lecturer; and a key figure in the Birmingham Surrealist movement.Morris, Desmond (2018), ''The Lives of the Surrealists''. He wa ...

, artist * Beryl Reid, actress * Jessica Raine, actress * Sir Edward Elgar, composer *

Sir Roy Strong Sir Roy Colin Strong, (born 23 August 1935) is an English art historian, museum curator, writer, broadcaster and landscape designer. He has served as director of both the National Portrait Gallery and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. ...

, art historian *

David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1717 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil and friend of Sa ...

, renowned actor of the 18th century * Lady Godiva, wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia * Harold Godwinson, Earl of Hereford and last Anglo-Saxon King of England *

Ellie Goulding Elena Jane Goulding ( ; born 30 December 1986) is an English singer and songwriter. Her career began when she met record producers Starsmith and Frankmusik, and she was later spotted by Jamie Lillywhite, who became her manager and Artists and ...

, musician *

Nell Gwynne Eleanor Gwyn (2 February 1650 – 14 November 1687; also spelled ''Gwynn'', ''Gwynne'') was a celebrity figure of the Restoration period. Praised by Samuel Pepys for her comic performances as one of the first actresses on the English stag ...

mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...

of King Charles II of England *

Terry Jenkins Terry Jenkins (born 26 September 1963) is an English former professional darts player who was nicknamed The Bull, having previously used the name "Tucker" for his matches. He reached number three in the world rankings and was a runner-up in nin ...

, professional darts player * St.

John Kemble (martyr) John Kemble (c. 1599 – 22 August 1679) was an English Roman Catholic martyr. He was one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. Early years and ordination John Kemble was born at Rhydicar Farm, St Weonards, Herefordshire, in 1599, the s ...

Catholic priest * Francis Kilvert, 19th century diarist and Church of England clergyman * Mark Labbett, one of five Chasers on '' The Chase'' as well as its Australian counterpart * Albert Lee, guitarist * Peter Mandelson, politician and former resident of Foy * John Masefield, poet laureate *

Sidney Nolan Sir Sidney Robert Nolan (22 April 191728 November 1992) was one of Australia's leading artists of the 20th century. Working in a wide variety of mediums, his oeuvre is among the most diverse and prolific in all of modern art. He is best known ...

, Australian artist * John Oldcastle, Lollard leader and basis for

Shakespeare's William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

character

Falstaff Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...

Blanche Parry Blanche Parry (1507/8–12 February 1590) of Newcourt in the parish of Bacton, Herefordshire, in the Welsh Marches, was a personal attendant of Queen Elizabeth I, who held the offices of Chief Gentlewoman of the Queen's Most Honourable Privy C ...

lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but of lower rank than the woman to whom sh ...

to Queen Elizabeth I * Peter Scudamore, jockey * James Honeyman-Scott, guitarist The Pretenders *

Pete Farndon Peter Granville Farndon (12 June 1952 – 14 April 1983) was an English bassist and founding member of the rock band the Pretenders. In addition to playing bass with the group, Farndon sang backup vocals and co-wrote two of the group's songs ("T ...

, bass guitarist The Pretenders * Martin Chambers, drummer The Pretenders *

Tom Spring Tom Spring (born Thomas Winter) (22 February 1795 – 20 August 1851) was an English bare-knuckle fighter. He was heavyweight champion of England from 1821 until his retirement in 1824. After his retirement he became landlord of the Cast ...

, bare-knuckle boxer, champion of England in the 19th century * Thomas Traherne, 17th century poet * Alfred Watkins, pioneering archaeologist and photographer * Richard Johnson, jockey *

Sir Walter Roper Lawrence Sir Walter Roper Lawrence, 1st Baronet, (9 February 1857 – 25 May 1940) was a member of the British Council of India and an English author who served in the Indian Civil Service in British India and wrote travelogues based on his exper ...

, author * Allan Leonard Lewis Posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, Died 21 September 1918, commemorated on Vis-En-Artois Memorial, France *

Richard Hakluyt Richard Hakluyt (; 1553 – 23 November 1616) was an English writer. He is known for promoting the English colonization of North America through his works, notably ''Divers Voyages Touching the Discoverie of America'' (1582) and ''The Pri ...

Elizabethan writer and geographer who recorded contemporary voyages of exploration and promoted the settlement of North America *

Ronald Pennell Ronald Pennell is a British artist, engraver, especially in glass engraving, and sculptor. Early life Pennell was born and grew up in Birmingham. He received early training at the Moseley School of Art, and subsequently at Birmingham School of ...

, artist, engraver and sculptor

References

External links

* * *
Herefordshire CouncilVisit HerefordshireFull Guide To HerefordshireThings To Do In HerefordshireWhere To Eat In HerefordshireEvents & What's On In Herefordshire
{{Authority control * Ceremonial counties of England Local government districts of the West Midlands (region) NUTS 3 statistical regions of the United Kingdom Unitary authority districts of England West Midlands (region) Counties of England established in antiquity Counties of England disestablished in 1974 Counties of England established in 1998