Stoke Edith is a village in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands 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 counties of Monmouthshire ...

, situated on the A438 road between

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 ...

and Ledbury. The population in 1801 of Stoke Edith parish was 332. The 14th-century church of St Mary is a grade I listed building. It has an immaculate needle spire set behind a parapet recess. The Foleys rebuilt the stone church completely in 1740. It has five bay arcades in the nave ended by large Tuscan columns. The church has a communion rail, pews and font in the same period with an impressive wooden pulpit in three decks. There remains an alabaster image of a 15th-century noblewoman with a distinctive headdress. The monument dated 1699 is to Paul Foley, the first to move from Great Witley, co-leader of the Tory Party and Country Whigs. There are tablets to a Henry Wolstenholme and his wife. The church is currently being transferred to a private trust, but is temporarily closed over safety concerns.

Stoke Edith House

The estate and the manor house known as Stoke Edith House belonged formerly to the Wallwynes, Milwaters and Lingen families. It was the principal estate of Sir

Henry Lingen Sir Henry Lingen (23 October 1612 – 22 January 1662), Lord of Sutton, Lingen and Stoke Edith, was a Royalist military commander in Herefordshire during the English Civil War, and later a member of parliament. He was the son of Edward Lingen a ...

, a Royalist officer in the English Civil War, who was buried in the church in 1662. His widow sold the estate in 1670 to Thomas Foley, who settled it on his second son

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

. Paul obtained a licence from James II to empark up to 500 acres at Stoke Edith. He rebuilt the timber-framed mansion Stoke Court from 1695, when he became

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

. The house, renamed Stoke Park, remained in the family until the death of Thomas Lord Foley who, having inherited the Great Witley estate from his distant cousin Thomas 2nd Baron Foley, settled Stoke Edith on his second son

Edward Foley (1747–1803) Edward Foley (16 March 1747 – 22 June 1803) was the second son of Thomas, 1st Lord Foley. Like his brother, he was profligate with the great family wealth. His father's will settled the paternal estate at Stoke Edith, Herefordshire together ...

. Many of the family were members of Parliament. Stoke Park remained their principal residence until it was burnt down in 1927. The building currently known as Stoke Edith House was previously the

Rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically ow ...

and this, together with the park and extensive agricultural and woodlands, remain in the ownership of the Foley family.

References

External links

Villages in Herefordshire {{Herefordshire-geo-stub