Herefordshire, County of

Herefordshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England, administered as a unitary authority. The landscape is largely rural, made up of market towns such as Hereford, Ledbury and Ross-on-Wye and a patchwork of orchards and pasture. The River Wye runs through the county and supports canoeing and riverside walking; apple and pear orchards supply local cider presses, and the Hereford breed of cattle is associated with the county’s farming economy.

Hereford city is the administrative and cultural centre, and its cathedral houses the medieval Mappa Mundi and the chained library. Small towns and villages on the Black and White Villages Trail, including Weobley and Pembridge, show a concentration of timber-framed houses. Long-distance routes, including the Offa’s Dyke Path, follow the western edge of the county. Local services and food production remain important to the economy, while the low population density gives prominence to agriculture and outdoor recreation.