Breinton lies just to the west of Hereford - the name Breinton appears to be a modernised form Bruntone, meaning a village near a flowing stream.
Breinton is a collection of hamlets including Warham, Upper Breinton, Lower Breinton, Breinton Common and Veldifer; with a church (St. Michael’s) and Village Hall. It is very rural though very close to the city, and changed little in the last 1000 years. One reason for that is the high quality of the deep red loam soils for agriculture and horticulture so relatively few new buildings have been built on the valuable land and secondly the beauty of the landscape, with vistas across hills, orchards, woods, and the valley of the River Wye. The long history of Breinton remains visible in the landscape. A mound with a moat, probably a moated building belonging to the Dean and Chapter of Hereford Cathedral around 1150AD, lies close to the Church at Breinton Springs owned by the National Trust. Nearby, the undulating ground in an orchard is thought to be a deserted medieval village, and a medieval settlement at Warham. Other archaeological features include trackways, ridge and furrow, and evidence of old irrigation leats on the meadows that flood, close to the river Wye. St. Michael's church originated around 1200 AD, but was substantially rebuilt between 1866 and 1870 by Kempson, with architect James Cranston. A few Norman parts remain, including the west doorway. Churchyard memorials include those of Dr. Henry Graves Bull (major contributor to an encyclopaedia of local apples and pears, the Herefordshire Pomona in 1884) Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club), Canon Charles Vincent Gorton (1854–1912, friend of Sir Edward Elgar), and Charles Dodgson (relative of Lewis Carroll, died 1941). More evidence of the historical ways of life is shown in the works of the artist Brian Hatton (1887–1916). The locations of many of his rural scenes of Breinton that include old farm buildings and views of the countryside are still easily recognisable today. The natural history of Breinton also reflects the ancient landscape. Field boundary hedges have rich flora, and many notable and ve
Size: 4912px × 6521px
Location: Breinton, Hereford, UK
Photo credit: © Philip Chapman / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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