Eaton Bishop: Church and Iron Age Eaton Camp
Accommodation in Eaton Bishop
Eaton Bishop brings together striking traces of its history with themes of landscape and nature. The Church of St Michael and All Angels and the Iron Age Eaton Camp represent different historical traces; the River Wye, a designated nature area and walking opportunities complete the picture. When looking for a holiday rental, it may help to decide whether historic landmarks, nature or walking should be the focus of your trip.
Church, windows and churchyard
The Church of St Michael and All Angels is a Grade I listed church. Parts of the building date from the 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th centuries; restorations took place in 1885 and 1927. This means that parts from different centuries stand alongside later restorations. The church also has a shingled broach spire.
The east window is particularly notable: it contains one of the oldest completely preserved examples of medieval stained glass in England and was installed around 1320. The Grade II listed churchyard cross stands about 10 yards south of the chancel. It may date from the 14th or 15th century. The window and cross add two further historical details to the church’s building history, clearly distinct in date from the 19th- and 20th-century restorations.
Eaton Camp and the landscape
Eaton Camp is an Iron Age hillfort and a Scheduled Monument in the parish of Eaton Bishop. Visible earthworks and buried remains of a promontory fort and a mound survive. The camp overlooks the confluence of Cage Brook and the River Wye. Alongside the church’s architectural history, this is an archaeological subject connected with a distinctive river landscape.
The River Wye forms the northern and northeastern boundary of the parish of Eaton Bishop. Cagebrook forms the southern, southeastern and eastern boundary; to the west, Stoney Street, a Roman road, marks the parish boundary. Littlemarsh Common, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), lies on the boundary between the parishes of Eaton Bishop and Clehonger. The area has a mosaic of wet grassland, woodland and scrub.
Walks and practical information
The Golden Valley Walking Club organises 38 guided walks each year. The programme includes riverside, countryside and mountain walks; the listed routes range from 4k to 30k. These programme details may change. If you would like to include walks in your travel plans, check the latest information in advance.
A 2016 draft report by Herefordshire Council places the Wye Valley Walk at the edge of the parish. On the Golden Valley Pilgrim Way, Eaton Bishop Church serves as overnight accommodation, with a kitchen and toilets, when it is open. If you plan to use this option, check in advance whether the church is open.
When choosing your holiday rental, the kind of holiday you want may be the deciding factor: Eaton Bishop offers historic buildings and archaeological sites as well as landscape and walking opportunities. You can consider whether your trip will focus mainly on history, nature or guided walks.
Discover more destinations: Bringsty, Ross-On-Wye, Eardisley, Burghill, Whitchurch, Mathon, Eardisland, Kington
For the wider travel overview: County Of Herefordshire.
