Little Hereford and Richard's Castle

Sunday 10th July, 2011
Walk led by Steve Southwick (SWAG)

map

Behind the church of St Mary Magdalene at the hamlet of Little Hereford, a few miles west of Tenbury Wells, a gate from the churchyard leads into a large field with the remains of a motte and bailey earthwork with defensive ditches. This is thought to have been enlarged or reinforced by King Stephen when he and his forces came here to quell rebellion in December 1139. They stayed here for some weeks, ostensibly to tackle Miles Gloucester, who was attacking Hereford Castle. The army seems to have stayed put, however, as the Castle eventually fell to Gloucester in February 1140.

St Mary Magdalene church

Site of King Stephen's castle

The church itself, very large for the current local population, indicates that the original estate was substantial. The broad, square tower is out of proportion to the rest of the structure; possibly it was used or at least intended to be used as a fortress or refuge.

The site of King Stephen’s 12th century army camp		The double raised mounds of King Stephen’s temporary castle, just to the left of the Norman church

Little Hereford was part of the demesne of Richard Fitz Scrope, a Norman knight granted land in England by Edward the Confessor. A short drive away is a castle he is thought to have founded in about 1050, now known as Richard's Castle. This is high up on a ridge, reached by a steep, narrow road which leads up to a clearing with a couple of houses and a grassy space for parking. This was probably the site of the market place as there was once a town here with 100 burgages. The town does not seem to have lasted for long and few traces remain now.

Nearby is the now redundant St Bartholomew's Church surrounded by its graveyard. Dating from the 12th century, with later additions, it also has a detached bell tower which was probably built as a defensive structure in the 14th century. The interior of this very wide church revealed something unexpected: numerous Georgian box pews and traces of frescoes on one wall.

The bell tower		St. Bartholomew’s church, now in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust

Through the churchyard and further up the slope is the site of the castle, very overgrown but with one section of wall, secured by scaffolding, still standing and a large mound with rubble spilling out of it. A sheer drop on one side marks the original town ditch. Almost certainly, this is the castle named as Auretone in Domesday Book. No doubt much of the original stone was taken away for other buildings after the castle fell into disuse. It was recorded as "going to ruin" in the 16th century.

Steve Southwick indicates the remains of FitzScrob's castle

Edited from a report by Wendy Gillespie in newsletter no. 114, December 2011.
All photos © 2011 Rob and Denise Lythe

Further information