The road to Leominster passes due north out of Hereford by, or rather through, the racecourse, and directly afterwards Holmer Church is seen upon the left side of the road. It belongs to Early English times, and has a detached tower.

Moreton-on-Lug has a church which has recently been restored, but it contains some altar-tombs of the Dauncer family. From this point onwards Robin Hood's Butts and the Sugar Loaf Hills become prominent objects in the landscape on the left, their rugged summits of sandstone resisting the action of the weather better than the soft marls through which they protrude.

Sutton Walls lie to the right upon a wooded hill, and are of great historical interest. Offa, king of Mercia, had a palace there, and to it Ethelbert, king of the East Angles, was invited, the ostensible object being his marriage to the daughter of the Mercian king. The young prince was foully murdered by the connivance of Quendrida, Offa's queen, and East Anglia annexed to Mercia in A.D. 782. In expiation of this deed Offa founded the great monastery at St. Albans. There is a large encampment upon the hill, with four entrances, apparently of Roman origin, and containing an area of about thirty acres.

Entering a low-lying district, upon which stands Wellington Marsh, Marden Church is seen upon the right, the place of Ethelbert's first interment, the original building having been erected by Offa. Wellington Church, lying to the left of the road, is chiefly of modern construction. Two miles farther on a bifurcation occurs, and the road to the right may be taken if one wishes to avoid the rather steep way leading over Dinmore Hill. Bodenham is the next village on the route. It possesses a large church of the Early English and Decorated Periods, containing an alabaster tomb of Sir Walter Devereux, 1401. In the village will be seen the remains of a large cross and a well. A sharp turn to the left at England's Gate leads back in a few miles to the junction with the main road near Hope-under-Dinmore, crossing the River Lug just before the junction. Hope Church, standing on the hill-side, contains many tablets to the Coningsby family. About two miles to the right of Ford lies Risbury Camp, of an oval form, with deep ditches surrounding it, and containing an area of about eight acres. Hampton Court was built by Sir Roland Lenthall in the time of Henry IV., and much enlarged by ransoms subsequently obtained from prisoners at the Battle of Agincourt. It was once the home of the Earl of Coningsby. Mr. J. H. Arkwright, a descendant of Richard Arkwright, is now the owner. The Court has been partially rebuilt.

LEOMINSTER

This town presents an exceedingly picturesque aspect, a number of medieval or Renaissance buildings having survived. It was a place of importance in the days of the Heptarchy, and a monastery was instituted by Merewald, king of the West Mercians, in the seventh century, which, however, disappeared subsequently in the Danish invasions. A residence of the Saxon kings, together with a stronghold, was also raised here, only to be destroyed in a Welsh raid in 1088. In 1125 Henry I. established a Benedictine cell under the rule of Reading Priory, and the buildings now form part of the workhouse!

The Church includes examples of almost every style of architecture. The nave is Norman, and originally formed part of the Priory Church standing upon this site. The monuments are very numerous, and some of the finest window tracery in any ecclesiastical building in the British Isles exists here. A fire in the eastern parts of the church in 1699 led to a restoration in a very debased style. The Butter Cross is an object of interest, and in the Bargates are Georgian almshouses dating back to 1736. They have an effigy with an inscription containing an admonition against the exercise of charity without discrimination. The road to Ludlow lies upon the eastern side of the railway, and a sharp turn to the right occurs in the town. Ivington Camp is a British earthwork, but was considerably strengthened by Owen Glendower when he retreated from Leominster and was vigorously pursued by Prince Henry. One mile to the right lies Eaton Hall, now a farmhouse. It was erected in the time of Henry V., and was once occupied by the old family of Hakluyt.[1]

Eye lies to the left of the road, and has a church with some fine alabaster monuments in it—one figure with the collar of SS. Berrington Hall and Park, the seat of Lord Rodney, are close by. The country passed through for some miles past is a cider district, and numerous orchards can be seen on every side. Near Woofferton is a fine open stretch of country, in which the highlands upon the left, wooded to their summits, form a welcome break. Richard's Castle, of the motte and bailey type, lies under the hills. It was erected in the reign of Edward the Confessor, and stands upon a mound 60 feet in height, with some peculiar earthworks adjoining. It is a matter for remark that this stronghold was erected and occupied by a Norman, Richard, the son of Scrop, before the Conquest, and thus is one of a little group of castles of peculiar interest. An old church at the town of Richard's Castle has a detached belfry.

[1] A Welsh family, of whom Richard Hakluyt (1552?-1616), the famous geographer, is the best known.

LUDLOW