Weston Beggard is a small
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
and
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
in
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 Monmouthsh ...
, England.
It is located between the villages of
Shucknall and
Bartestree and lies approximately 6 km east of
Hereford. It is on the north bank of the
River Frome. The population of this parish at the
2011 Census was 214.
Weston Beggard comprises a series of farms, houses, and a Medieval church dating to c. 1200. Most of the current property dates from the Victorian era; however, the manor house at Hillend is c. 1600, and various barn buildings are of a similar age. It is mentioned in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...
, and though almost a thousand years have passed it has only slightly grown in size and importance.
Weston Beggard, like other agricultural villages in the region, reached its peak during the Victorian era where
hops were farmed and milled to be made into beer. This industry is almost dead. Most hop fields have been converted to alternative agricultural uses and the hop barns dotted around the hamlet are either derelict or have been converted into houses.
References
External links
Villages in Herefordshire
{{Herefordshire-geo-stub