Leominster
| Leominster | |
|---|---|
Leominster Priory | |
  Leominster Location within Herefordshire | |
| Population | 11,959 (2021 Census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SO496591 |
| Civil parish |
|
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LEOMINSTER |
| Postcode district | HR6 |
| Dialling code | 01568 |
| Police | West Mercia |
| Fire | Hereford and Worcester |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Leominster (/ˈlɛmstər/ ⓘ LEM-stər) is a market town in Herefordshire, England; it is located at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is 12 miles (19 kilometres) north of Hereford and 7 miles (11 kilometres) south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of 11,700,[2] Leominster is the largest of the five towns in the county; the others being Ross-on-Wye, Ledbury, Bromyard and Kington.
From 1974 to 1996, Leominster was the administrative centre for the former local government district of Leominster.
Toponymy
The town takes its name from the English word
Contrary to certain reports, the name has nothing to do with Leofric, an 11th-century Earl of Mercia (most famous for being the legendarily miserly husband of Lady Godiva).[citation needed]
History
During the
During the 8th and 9th Century, Danes (or Vikings) frequently raided the area. In 2015, two individuals (operating without landowner permission), using metal detectors, found a large hoard near Leominster (the Herefordshire hoard) consisting primarily of Saxon jewellery and silver ingots but also coins; the latter date to around 879 AD. According to a news report, "experts believe it was buried by a Viking during a series of raids", while Wessex was ruled by Alfred the Great and Mercia by Ceolwulf II of Mercia. [5]
According to the
The priory was ransacked by the Welsh forces of Owain Glyndŵr after their victory at the Battle of Bryn Glas near Pilleth in 1402, along with several local manor houses.
Investigations to the north of the
Leominster is also the historical home of Ryeland sheep, a breed once famed for its "Lemster" [sic] wool, known as 'Lemster ore'. This wool was prized above all other English wool in trade with the continent of Europe in the Middle Ages. It was the income and prosperity from this wool trade that established the town and the minster and attracted the envy of the Welsh and other regions.[citation needed]
From approximately 1748 to 1754, Pinsley Mill in Leominster was home to one of the Paul-Wyatt cotton mills, the first four cotton mills in the world, employing the spinning machines of Lewis Paul and John Wyatt.[10] The mill was financed by Lancashire native Daniel Bourn, and was partly owned by other men from Lancashire. Bourn introduced his own version of the carding engine to work at this mill, and of the four Paul-Wyatt mills, it may have been the most successful, as shortly after the fire that destroyed the mill, it was reported that the cotton works "had been viewed with great pleasure and admiration by travellers and all who had seen them."[11]
One of the last ordeals by ducking stool took place in Leominster in 1809, with Jenny Pipes as the final incumbent.[12] The ducking stool is on public display in Leominster Priory; a mechanised depiction of it is featured on the town clock.[13]
Climate
The town has a
| Climate data for Preston Wynne, elevation 84 metres (276 ft), 1971–2000 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 6.9 (44.4) |
7.3 (45.1) |
9.9 (49.8) |
12.3 (54.1) |
15.9 (60.6) |
18.7 (65.7) |
21.5 (70.7) |
21.2 (70.2) |
18.0 (64.4) |
13.9 (57.0) |
10.0 (50.0) |
7.8 (46.0) |
13.6 (56.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 1.1 (34.0) |
0.9 (33.6) |
2.4 (36.3) |
3.3 (37.9) |
6.0 (42.8) |
8.7 (47.7) |
10.8 (51.4) |
10.6 (51.1) |
8.6 (47.5) |
6.0 (42.8) |
3.0 (37.4) |
1.7 (35.1) |
5.3 (41.5) |
| Source: YR.NO[14] | |||||||||||||
Transport
The town has a bus station which is the focal point for its bus services. Routes are operated by Lugg Valley Travel and First Worcester, which link Leominster with Hereford, Ludlow and Ledbury.[16]
Leomister is served by the north-south A49, which runs between Bamber Bridge and Ross-on-Wye, and the east-west A44, linking Aberystwyth with Oxford.
Schools
Earl Mortimer College, is a state comprehensive school providing secondary education for about 650 pupils. It was formerly known as the Minster school. There is also Leominster Primary School and Westfield's Special School. Primary schools in the villages around the town include Ivington, Kimbolton, Kingsland, Luston and Stoke Prior.
Media
In print, Leominster is served by the
Notable people
- Saint Cuthfleda was the abbess of Leominster nunnery and the patroness of the region.[18] She was known for her holiness and her chaste life.
- Anglo-Saxon Saint[citation needed]
- Leofric, Earl of Mercia and his wife Godgifu Lady Godiva – are commemorated as benefactors of the monastery at Leominster[19]
- John Abel (1578/9–1675), an English carpenter and mason, granted the title of 'King's Carpenter', who was responsible for several notable structures in the ornamented half-timbered construction, notably the market house known as Grange Court (1633) in Leominster, which originally stood in Broad Street, but was rebuilt in 1855 near to the Priory Church. It is widely regarded as one of Abel's finest works.[20]
- theatre manager.
- John Scarlett Davis (1804–1845), artist, was born at 2 High Street. A number of his works are in Leominster Museum.[21]
- Arthur Peppercorn (1889–1951), locomotive designer[22]
- Jarrod Bowen (born 1996), footballer for West Ham United and the England national football team.[23]
Twin towns
Leominster is
in Tanzania.Local attractions
See also
References
- ^ "Leominster". City population. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- United Kingdom Census 2011. Office for National Statistics. 2011. Archived from the originalon 12 January 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
- ^ J. & C. Hillaby, Leominster Minster, Priory, and Borough c.660–1539 (Logaston Press, Almeley, Herefs. 2006), 4–5.
- ^ Stowe MS 944 Archived 3 January 2014 at archive.today, British Library
- ^ "MILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF VIKING TREASURE THAT COULD REWRITE HISTORY STOLEN, METAL DETECTORISTS CONVICTED". Newsweek. 22 November 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
An example of a rare two emperor coin, hinting at a previously-unknown alliance between the kingdoms of Wessex and Mercia.
- ISBN 9780862432652.
- ^ Hillaby, 53-7
- ISBN 0-14-071025-6
- ^ "Our History". Leominster Priory. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
- ^ Wadsworth, Alfred P.; Mann, Julia De Lacy (1931). The Cotton Trade and Industrial Lancashire, 1600–1780. Manchester: Manchester University Press. pp. 433–448.
- ^ Manchester Mercury, reported on 5 November 1754
- ISBN 978-0691143330.
- ^ "Herefordshire clock on go slow". Hereford Times. 5 August 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
- ^ "Climate Normals 1971–2000". YR.NO. Retrieved 2 March 2011.
- ^ "Timetables". Transport for Wales. May 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Leominster Bus Services". Bus Times. 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Full Freeview on the Ridge Hill (County of Herefordshire, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ Cuthfleda, Oxford Dictionary of Saints, 5th ed, 2011. Accessed 5 January 2014.
- ^ The Chronicle of John of Worcester ed. and trans. R.R. Darlington, P. McGurk and J. Bray (Clarendon Press: Oxford 1995), pp.582–3.
- ^ "John Abel, King's carpenter", Grange Court website. Accessed 5 January 2014.
- ISBN 1904396151.
- ^ "Arthur Peppercorn", A1 Steam Locomotive Trust. Accessed 5 January 2014.
- ^ Fisher, Ben (16 January 2019). "Jarrod Bowen: from playing without pay to scoring for fun at Hull" – via www.theguardian.com.
External links
- Leominster Town Council
- Leominster Town Website
- Leominster History from Archenfield Archaeology (this site is not available)
- Leominster at Curlie
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