Castlemorton
| Castlemorton | |
| Worcestershire | |
|---|---|
| |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SO795372 |
| Location: | 52°1’60"N, 2°18’-0"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 617 (2021) |
| Post town: | Malvern |
| Postcode: | WR13 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Malvern Hills |
Castlemorton is a tiny village in the west of Worcestershire, two miles east of the Malvern Hills (which mark the border of Herefordshire. The parish has the village itself, surrounded by a large common and many farms.
In 2013 the Worcestershire Wildlife Trust purchased 42 acres of meadow at Hollybed Farm as part of a project to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and restore the meadows as a nature reserve.[1][2]
In 1992 the Common was the location of the controversial Castlemorton Common Festival, a week-long free festival and rave. The event made national headlines.[3]
The 2015 Second World War film Our Father was filmed on location on Castlemorton Common.
History
A mediæval motte-and-bailey castle stood to the south of the village, the earthwork remains are still present.[4]
Castlemorton Common was once part of the vast Royal hunting grounds of the Malvern Chase. King James I split much of this hunting ground up (examples are Eastnor Castle Estate, Bromsberrow Estate) and Castlemorton Common is the largest remaining tract of unenclosed public land. Much of Castlemorton is today within a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to some very rare fauna and flora living within its boundaries.[5]
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Castlemorton) |
References
- ↑ Hollybed Farm Meadows Worcestershire Wildlife Trust
- ↑ Castlemorton Common Worcester (25 September 2013) Worcester News
- ↑ BBC Hereford and Worcester - Castlemorton Rave (6 June 2007) BBC Hereford and Worcester
- ↑ A History of the County of Worcestershire - Volume 4 pp 49-53: Parishes: Castlemorton (Victoria County History)
- ↑ AONB Designation and Purpose - Malvern Hills AONB Malvernhillsaonb.org.uk