Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With a population of 61,900 in 2024, it is the largest settlement in Herefordshire.
An early town charter from 1189, granted by Richard I of England, describes it as "Hereford in Wales". Hereford has been recognised as a city since time immemorial, with the status being reconfirmed in October 2000.Beckett, J. V. (2005). City status in the British Isles, 1830–2002, Historical urban studies. Aldershot: Ashgate. Hereford has been a civil parish since 2000.
Products from Hereford include cider, beer, leather goods, nickel alloys, poultry, chemicals and sausage rolls, as well as the Hereford breed of cattle.
Toponymy The Herefordshire edition of Cambridge County Geographies states "a Welsh derivation of Hereford is more probable than a Saxon one", but the name "Hereford" is also said to come from the Anglo-Saxon "here", an army or formation of soldiers, and the "ford", a place for crossing a river (cf. Herford, Westphalia, with the same Saxon etymology). If this is the origin it suggests that Hereford was a place where a body of armed men forded or crossed the Wye. The Welsh name for Hereford is Henffordd, meaning "old road", and probably refers to the Roman road and Roman settlement at nearby Stretton Sugwas.
History
Hereford became the seat of Putta, Bishop of Hereford, some time between 676 and 688 AD, after which the settlement continued to grow due to its proximity to the border between Mercia and Wales, becoming the Saxon capital of West Mercia by the beginning of the 8th century.
Hostilities between the Anglo-Saxons and the Welsh came to a head with the Battle of Hereford in 760, in which the Britons freed themselves from the influence of the English.Annales Cambriae Hereford was again targeted by the Welsh during their conflict with the Anglo-Saxon King Edward the Confessor in 1056 when, supported by Viking allies, Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, King of Gwynedd and Powys, marched on the town and put it to the torch before returning home in triumph. Hereford had the only mint west of the Severn in the reign of Athelstan (924–939), and it was to Hereford, then a border town, that Athelstan summoned the leading Welsh princes.J and M Tonkin, The Book of Hereford, 1975
The present Hereford Cathedral dates from the early 12th century, as does the first bridge across the Wye.J. Hillaby, Bishop Richard de Capella and the foundation of Herefordshire's market towns, in Woolhope Naturalists Field Club, Essays in honour of Jim and Muriel Tonkin, 2011 Former Bishops of Hereford include Saint Thomas de Cantilupe and Lord High Treasurer of England Thomas Charlton.
Hereford was home to a small but relatively important Jewish community until 1290, when Jews were expelled from England by Edward I. Jews from Worcester and Gloucester moved to Hereford after their expulsion in January 1275 by the Queen mother, Eleanor of Provence. The Bishops of Hereford campaigned against the presence of the community, including Cantilupe, and Richard Swinefield, who tried to stop social contact between Christians and Jews.; esp pp. 463–466
The city gave its name (translated to French) to two suburbs of Paris: Maisons-Alfort (population 54,600) and Alfortville (population 36,232), due to a manor built there by Peter of Aigueblanche, Bishop of Hereford, in the middle of the 13th century.
A base for successive holders of the title Earl of Hereford, the city was once the site of Hereford Castle, which rivalled that of Windsor in size and scale. This was a base for repelling Welsh attacks and a secure stronghold for English kings, such as King Henry IV when on campaign in the Welsh Marches against Owain Glyndŵr. The castle was dismantled in the 18th century and landscaped into Castle Green.
After the Battle of Mortimer's Cross in 1461, during the Wars of the Roses, the defeated Lancastrian leader Owen Tudor (grandfather of the future Henry VII of England) was taken to Hereford by Sir Roger Vaughan and executed in High Town. A plaque now marks the spot of the execution. Vaughan was later himself executed, under a flag of truce, by Owen's son Jasper.
During the English Civil War, the city changed hands several times. On 30 September 1642, Parliamentarians led by Sir Robert Harley and Henry Grey, 1st Earl of Stamford occupied the city without opposition. In December they withdrew to Gloucester because of the presence in the area of a Royalist army under Lord Herbert. The city was again occupied briefly from 23 April to 18 May 1643 by Parliamentarians commanded by Sir William Waller, but it was in 1645 that the city saw most action. On 31 July 1645, a Scottish army of 14,000 under Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven besieged the city but met stiff resistance from its garrison and inhabitants. They withdrew on 1 September when they received news that a force led by King Charles was approaching. The city was finally taken for Parliament on 18 December 1645 by Colonel Birch and Colonel Morgan. King Charles showed his gratitude to the city of Hereford on 16 September 1645 by augmenting the city's coat of arms with the three lions of Richard I of England, ten Scottish Saltires signifying the ten defeated Scottish regiments, a very rare lion crest on top of the coat of arms signifying "defender of the faith" and the even rarer gold-barred peer's helm, found only on the arms of one other municipal authority: those of the City of London.
Nell Gwynne, actress and mistress of King Charles II, is said to have been born in Hereford in 1650 (although other towns and cities, notably Oxford, claim her as their own); Gwynn Street is named after her. Another famous actor born in Hereford is David Garrick (1717–1779).Text of plaque on site of Garrick Theatre, Hereford.
The Bishop's Palace next to the cathedral was built in 1204 and is still in use today. Hereford Cathedral School is one of the oldest schools in England. The Harold Street Barracks were completed in 1856.
During World War I in 1916, a fire at the Garrick Theatre killed eight young girls who had been performing at a charity concert.
Governance
The main local government body covering Hereford is Herefordshire Council. Hereford has a city council, a parish council with city status, and has only limited powers.
Historically, Hereford has been the county town of Herefordshire. In 1974, Herefordshire was merged with Worcestershire to become part of the county of Hereford and Worcester and Hereford became a district of the new county. It was originally intended for there to be 1 single district for Herefordshire, it was later decided to split it into 3. No successor parish was formed, so the former borough became unparished. Hereford had formed a historic borough and was reformed by the Municipal Corporations Act 1835.Vision of Britain – Hereford MB On 1 April 1998, the county of Hereford and Worcester was abolished; Herefordshire and Worcestershire were re-established as separate counties.
However, the new Herefordshire was a unitary authority without any districts and so Hereford lost its district status (although, confusingly, the authority's full legal name is the County of Herefordshire District Council). Charter trustees were appointed to preserve mayoral traditions until a civil parish council could be set up, which happened on 1 April 2000 when the unparished area was parished as Hereford and Belmont Rural, part also went to the existing parish of Clehonger. Hereford is one of only eight civil parishes in England which have city status. It is based at Hereford Town Hall.
Hereford was the name of a parliamentary constituency that was centred in the city from 1295 to 2010, when it was renamed Hereford and South Herefordshire. The current Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons is Jesse Norman of the Conservative Party. He has represented the constituency since May 2010.
Geography Climate As with all of the UK, Hereford experiences a maritime climate, with limited seasonal temperature ranges, and generally moderate rainfall throughout the year. The nearest Met Office weather station, for which 30-year averages are available, is Credenhill weather station, about north west of the city centre. Before 2001, the weather station at Preston Wynne (7 miles, 11 km to the north-east) provided the data.
Since 2001, extremes at Hereford Credenhill have ranged from during July 2006, to as low as during December 2010.
In February 2020, many houses in Hereford were evacuated due to floods.?
On 17 February 2020, the River Wye rose to 6.11 metres, the highest ever recorded, as a result of the weather pattern created by Storm Dennis.
Demography In 2021 the built-up area had a population of 60,475, the urban area had a population of 61,014, the agglomeration had a population of 63,346 and the parish had a population of 53,112.
The following statistics were recorded for the parish of Hereford at the 2021 Census:
Hereford: Ethnicity: 2021 Census Ethnic group Population %White50,42795%Asian or Asian British1,1672.2%Mixed7181.4%Black or Black British3190.6%Arab1270.2%Other Ethnic Group3500.7%Total53,112100%
The religious composition of Hereford at the 2021 Census was recorded as:
Hereford: Religion: 2021 Census Religious Population %Christian28,09257%Irreligious20,02940.7%Muslim4260.9%Hindu1960.4%Buddhist1730.4%Other religion3450.6%Total53,112100%
Transport Roads
Hereford, as an ancient crossing over the River Wye, has long been important within the regional and national transport network. Today, the city is served by several major routes, including the A49, A438, A465 and A4103. The nearest motorway is the , which passes to the south of Ledbury.
Along the northern rim of the city, the A4103 is named Roman Road, running in a straight line from east to west. Only one major route crosses the River Wye: the A49/Victoria Street, which is carried by Greyfriars Bridge.
The Hereford Link Road was completed in December 2017, costing around £34,000,000 to build.
In 2017, Hereford was named Britain's second slowest city, with an average traffic speed of 14.09 mph. Cambridge topped the list, whilst London came third with vehicles travelling at an average 14.59 mph.
Future Following completion of the Hereford Link Road in December 2017, there are plans to add new homes, a university building and a transport hub to this area.
Plans for a north–south bypass were scrapped in February 2021.
Railways
Hereford railway station lies to the north of the city centre. It is a junction of two lines: the western terminus of the Cotswold Line and a through station on the Welsh Marches Line between and .
Services are provided by three train operating companies:
Transport for Wales operates services between , , and ; services continue either to and or to and . Great Western Railway runs regular services to London Paddington, via , and . West Midlands Railway operates services to , via , and .
A second station, , served the city between 1854 and 1893.
Buses Since the decision of First Midland Red to pull out of the city in 2015, the majority of local bus routes have been operated by Hereford bus and coach operator Yeomans Travel. Longer routes include: 23, which runs to Abergavenny and Newport, run by Stagecoach South Wales 33 to Gloucester is operated by Stagecoach West 66 to Monmouth is run by Newport Bus T14 links Hereford station to Hay-on-Wye and Brecon, operated by TrawsCymru. In 2023, Hereford City Council introduced a free, electric, inter-city bus service. As of 2025 the service is set to be axed by Hereford City Council, owing to the rising costs of the service.
Cycling Cycling infrastructure in Hereford is maintained by Herefordshire Council and Sustrans.