116-494: Midsummer Hill is situated in the range of Malvern Hills that runs approximately 13 kilometres (8 mi) north-south along the Herefordshire - Worcestershire border. It lies to the south of Herefordshire Beacon with views to Eastnor Castle . It has an elevation of 284 metres (932 ft). To the north is Swinyard Hill . It is the site of an Iron Age hill fort which spans Midsummer Hill and Hollybush Hill . The hillfort
232-471: A cantata in 1898 entitled Caractacus , which alludes to the popular legend of his last stand at British Camp. In 1934, during the composer's final illness, he told a friend: "If ever after I'm dead you hear someone whistling this tune [from his Cello Concerto ] on the Malvern Hills, don't be alarmed, it's only me." Composers Herbert Howells and Ivor Gurney used to take long walks together through
348-654: A 40-mile (64 km) drive passing some key landmarks from Elgar's life, passes through Malvern. Malvern Concert Club, founded in 1903 by Elgar, holds concerts are held in the Forum Theatre, Malvern Theatres. Its programmes focus on in renaissance, baroque, classical, romantic and contemporary music. In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the Malvern Winter Gardens was a major regional venue for concerts by popular rock bands, including T-Rex , The Jam , AC/DC , Black Sabbath , The Undertones , and Joy Division . Many of
464-506: A 500-acre (2.0 km ) estate near the Malvern Hills in Ledbury , Herefordshire. Her time at Hope End would inspire her in later life to write Aurora Leigh . In Early British Trackways Alfred Watkins theorised that a ley line passed along the Malvern Hills through several wells including St Ann's Well, Holy Well , Walms Well and St. Pewtress Well. Interest in Watkin's theories subsided in
580-513: A Herefordshire building or structure is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Malvern Hills The Malvern Hills are in the English counties of Worcestershire , Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucestershire , dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern . The highest summit affords a panorama of the Severn Valley ,
696-601: A book". The novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by Lewis later used that image as the characters enter the realm of Narnia . J.R.R. Tolkien found inspiration in the Malvern landscape which he had viewed from his childhood home in Birmingham and his brother Hilary's home near Evesham . He was introduced to the area by C. S. Lewis, who had brought him here to meet George Sayer ,
812-434: A coeducational public school , founded in 1865. Until 1992, it was a school for boys aged 13 to 18. Following a series of mergers from 1992 to 2008 with private primary schools in the area it has become coeducational with pupils from 3 to 18 years old. Among its alumni are two Nobel Laureates ( James Meade and Francis William Aston ), an Olympic Gold medallist ( Arnold Jackson ), and leading politicians. Malvern St James
928-569: A commercial hotel, the Assembly Rooms and Gardens, and many excursions on foot, pony and by carriage. Other descriptions of the diversions mention bands, quadrilles, cricket (residents vs visitors) and billiard rooms. The Duchess of Teck stayed, with her daughter Mary (later queen consort of George V ), in Malvern in the Autumn of 1891, joined by Lady Eva Greville. and the Duke of Teck . The Duchess
1044-598: A dry period. The Malvern Hills have been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) by Natural England and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty by the Countryside Agency (now Natural England). Features of the Malvern Hills AONB include wide areas of acid grassland and heath on the summit and mixed broadleaved woodland and Ancient Semi-Natural Woodland on the lower hills and valleys. There are three areas of Ancient Semi-Natural Woodland in
1160-505: A former hotel directly opposite Great Malvern railway station, has a dedicated (now derelict) tunnel to the basement of the building, which is clearly visible from both platforms of the station. In 1900 the former urban districts and towns of Great Malvern and Malvern Link were merged and the area forms the current six (parish) wards that constitute the civil parish of Malvern, which has a town council (based in Great Malvern). In 1951
1276-518: A key role in ensuring that the area of the AONB is larger than that originally proposed. The AONB Partnership work together to conserve and enhance the Malvern Hills AONB. The Partnership has a formal structure including representatives from private and public enterprises, officers from local authorities, the Countryside Agency and the Malvern Hills Conservators. The Malvern Hills are home to
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#17328546309981392-504: A large area in the centre of the town. The Winter Gardens complex is home to the Malvern Theatre , a leading provincial centre for dramatic arts, a cinema (film theatre), a concert venue/banqueting room, bars and cafeterias. For almost half a century, the Malvern Winter Gardens has also been a major regional venue for classical music, and concerts by legendary rock bands of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The Splash Leisure Complex flanks
1508-484: A natural means of scrub management and restore several water features. The project was spearheaded by the Malvern Hills AONB Service, in partnership with Worcestershire County Council, Herefordshire Council, Malvern Hills Conservators, Malvern Spa Association, English Nature , Countryside Agency, National Trust and English Heritage . Members of the public were concerned that by erecting temporary fences on
1624-415: A nineteenth-century antiquarian from Worcestershire, speculated that -vern derived from supposed Brittonic words sarn or varn meaning "pavement" or "seat of judgement". The town developed around its 11th-century priory , a Benedictine monastery , the remains of which make up some of the early parts of Great Malvern Priory , now a large parish church . Several slightly different histories explain
1740-468: A regular venue of the Malvern Fringe Festival. The theatre has hosted a range of famous actors over the years including Simon Callow, Nicholas Hoult and Jane Asher. William Langland 's famous 14th century poem The Visions of Piers Plowman (1362) was inspired by the Malvern Hills and the earliest poetic allusion to them occurs in the poem And on a Maye mornynge on Malverne hylles . Langland,
1856-672: A residential spa. Several large hotels and many of the large villas in Malvern date from its heyday. Many smaller hotels and guest houses were built between about 1842 and 1875. By 1855 there were already 95 hotels and boarding houses and by 1865 over a quarter of the town's 800 houses were boarding and lodging houses. Most were in Great Malvern, the town centre, while others were in the surrounding settlements of Malvern Wells , Malvern Link , North Malvern and West Malvern . Queen Adelaide visited St. Ann's Well in September 1842. "Throughout
1972-469: A rest cure in 1809. Chambers, in his book about Malvern, praised Elizabeth, Countess Harcourt (daughter-in-law of the 1st Earl Harcourt ), whose patronage contributed to the development of hillside walks. Bottling and shipping of the Malvern water grew in volume. In 1842, Dr. James Wilson and Dr. James Manby Gully , leading exponents of hydrotherapy , set up clinics in Malvern (Holyrood House for women and Tudor House for men). Malvern expanded rapidly as
2088-733: A school, is one of the largest buildings in Malvern. It was built in 1860 by the architect E. W. Elmslie who also designed the Great Malvern railway station , and the Council House on the plot where Dr. Gully's original house stood. The Grove in Avenue Road in 1867, originally to be his private residence in 1927 became part of the Lawnside School for girls, and in 1860 Whitbourne Hall , a Grade II* listed building, in Herefordshire. The Imperial
2204-400: A series of faults and folds which have the effect of bringing old Malvernian rocks to the surface. Being largely hard igneous rocks, they have resisted erosion better than those of the surrounding countryside and result in a striking line of hills of which the Malvern Hills are the most impressive. This line is considered to mark the edge of two terranes – two once separate fragments of
2320-465: A site closer to the river Severn. There is therefore no evidence that Roman presence ended the prehistoric settlement at British Camp. However, excavations at nearby Midsummer Hillfort , Bredon Hill and Croft Ambrey all show evidence of violent destruction around the year 48 AD. This may suggest that the British Camp was abandoned or destroyed around the same time. During the medieval period,
2436-471: A spa, with resources for invalids and for tourists, seeking cures, rest and entertainment. Local legend has it that the curative benefit of the spring water was known in mediaeval times. The medicinal value and the bottling of Malvern water are mentioned "in a poem attributed to the Reverend Edmund Rea, who became Vicar of Great Malvern in 1612". Richard Banister , the pioneering oculist, wrote about
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#17328546309982552-418: A wide range of outdoor sports and leisure activities, including walking, mountain biking, horse riding, orienteering, hang-gliding, paragliding, model aircraft flying, fishing, climbing and diving. The Worcestershire Way is a waymarked long-distance trail located within the county of Worcestershire . It runs 50 km (31 miles) from Bewdley to Great Malvern . It is an important recreation resource in
2668-410: Is a tiny, man-made cave near the ridge of the hills called Clutter's Cave (or Giant's Cave or Hermit's Cave or Waum's Cave, after Walm's Well which is located on the boundary of News Wood below). The cave has been excavated into pillow lavas . Some of the rounded 'pillow' shapes are still visible around the entrance to the cave. The quality of Malvern water is attributable to its source. The rocks of
2784-572: Is also a public library that includes access to many community services. On the Worcester to Hereford railway line is the Victorian Great Malvern station , a listed example of classical Victorian railway architecture close to the nearby former Imperial Hotel by the same architect, E. W. Elmslie. There are many specimens of mature trees in Great Malvern. When Lady Foley, the widow of Edward Thomas Foley , sold off parts of her estate in
2900-534: Is an area of the civil parish of Malvern , in the Malvern Hills district, in the county of Worcestershire , England. It lies at the foot of the Malvern Hills , a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty , on the eastern flanks of the Worcestershire Beacon and North Hill , and is the historic centre of Malvern and includes its town centre. It is a designated conservation area in recognition of
3016-451: Is buried in Great Malvern cemetery. The Malvern Hills were the inspiration and setting for the famous 14th-century poem The Visions of Piers Plowman (1362) by William Langland , who was possibly educated at the priory of Great Malvern. The earliest poetical allusion to the Malvern Hills occurs in the poem: " And on a Maye mornynge on Malverne hylles ". The poet W. H. Auden taught for three years at The Downs School , Colwall , in
3132-564: Is protected as a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is owned by Natural England . It can be accessed via a footpath which leads south from the car park at British Camp on the A449 or a footpath which heads north from the car park in Hollybush on the A438. The hillfort is very unusual in that the ramparts enclose two hills and the intervening valley. Bowden speculates that the spring within the valley "enhance[s]
3248-589: Is the centre of a circular alignment he called the "Circle of Perpetual Choirs" and is equidistant from Glastonbury , Stonehenge , Goring-on-Thames and Llantwit Major . The theory was investigated by the British Society of Dowsers and used as background material by Phil Rickman in his novel The Remains of an Altar (2006). "Malvern Hills" is the third short story in Japanese-English author Kazuo Ishiguro 's collection Nocturnes (2009). The legend of
3364-618: The A38 road between Tewkesbury and Malvern. The AONB has four railway stations inside or very close to its boundary: Malvern Link , Great Malvern , Colwall and Ledbury . These railway stations lie on the Cotswolds & Malverns Line which operates between Oxford via Worcester Shrub Hill and Worcester Foregate Street to Hereford . Direct trains to the area are available from Birmingham Snow Hill or Birmingham New Street and London Paddington . Several local bus services connect Malvern with
3480-812: The A449 which forms Malvern's western extremity along the flank of the hills. In the heart of the town is a statue of the composer Edward Elgar , while other statuary is dedicated to Malvern water. Among the many shops are two large modern supermarkets, both in Edith Walk, formerly a steep and unmade lane that served the rear entrances of the shops in Church Street. As well as traditional high street shops such as butchers, bakers, grocers etc., there are also cafés, bookshops, health food shops , art and craft shops, galleries, antique dealers, delis, restaurants, complementary therapists, charity shops, law firms, and estate agents. There
3596-514: The Dissolution of the Monasteries the local commissioners were instructed to ensure that, where abbey churches were also used for parish worship, they should continue or could be purchased by parishioners. Accordingly, Malvern Priory survived by being acquired by a William Pinnocke and with it, much of its 15th-century stained glass windows. The monastic buildings were taken apart and anything usable
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3712-509: The Duchess of Kent (mother of Queen Victoria ) in 1828, all quoted in a review by the medical historian W.H. McMenemy. In his lecture about Malvern at the Royal Institution , Addison spoke of "its pure and invigorating air, the excellence of its water, and the romantic beauty of its scenery". Similar views appeared in the press, Nicholas Vansittart brought his wife Catherine to Malvern for
3828-606: The Eye Well , close to the Holy Well , in a short poem in his Breviary of the Eyes (see Malvern water ), in 1622. In 1756, Dr. John Wall published a 14-page pamphlet on the benefits of Malvern water, that reached a 158-page 3rd edition in 1763. Further praise came from the botanist Benjamin Stillingfleet in 1757, the poet Thomas Warton in 1790, and William Addison , the physician of
3944-465: The Malvern Hills . Before the beginning of academic place-name studies, the name attracted some fanciful explanations. William of Malmesbury 's Gesta Pontificum suggests that the name comes from the Latin words male ("badly") and vernat ("flourishes"), implying that it meant "thrives poorly" and that this was used ironically because spiritual life in Malvern was so successful. Jabez Allies ,
4060-557: The "Metropolis of Hydrotherapy", a Malvern Hills Act had been secured in parliament in 1884 and later Acts empowered the Malvern Hills Conservators to acquire land to prevent further encroachment on common land and by 1925 they had bought much of the manorial wastelands. Towards the end of the 19th century, the popularity of the hydrotherapy had declined to the extent that many hotels were already being converted into private boarding schools and rest homes, and education became
4176-459: The "mother and father of England", is set on the Malvern Hills. A famous historic Virginia Landmark, Malvern Hill was a house built in the 17th century by an English settler, Thomas Cocke, later the site of an American Civil War battle. Cocke named his home after Malvern Hills in England. A list of the hills in their order from north to south is shown below: Great Malvern Great Malvern
4292-465: The "town to be crowded with 'the most curious specimens of the British shopkeeper and artisan on an outing' ". Following Malvern's new-found fame as a spa and area of natural beauty, and fully exploiting its new rail connections, factories from as far as Manchester were organising day trips for their employees, often attracting as many as 5,000 visitors a day. In 1865, a public meeting of residents denounced
4408-410: The ' Shire Ditch ', a late Bronze Age boundary earthwork possibly dating from around 1000 BC, was constructed along part of the crest of the hills near the site of later settlements. The Wyche Cutting, a mountain pass through the hills was in use in prehistoric times as part of the salt route from Droitwich to South Wales. A 19th-century discovery of over two hundred metal money bars suggests that
4524-543: The 1800s, she stipulated that all plots around the town centre should be planted with trees. The name Malvern is first attested in a charter of around 1030, as Mælfern , and then in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Malferna . The name derives from the Common Brittonic words that survive in modern Welsh as moel ("bare") and bryn ("hill"); thus it once meant "bare hill". The name perhaps applied originally to
4640-420: The 1800s. In 1884, the Malvern Hills Conservators were established through an Act of Parliament to preserve the natural aspect of the hills and protect them from encroachments. However, by this time large-scale quarrying had already begun. Quarry works were set in motion in the 1870s at Tank Quarry and at Little Malvern by Pyx Granite Company. The Hills Conservators lobbied parliament to pass an Act limiting
4756-536: The 1840s and 1850s Malvern attracted a stream of celebrated visitors, including royalty." Patients included Charles Darwin , Catherine, wife of Charles Dickens , Thomas Carlyle , Florence Nightingale , Lord Lytton , who was an outspoken protagonist, Lord Tennyson and Samuel Wilberforce . The hydrotherapists came under heavy criticism from Sir Charles Hastings (a founder of the British Medical Association) and other physicians. The extension of
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4872-412: The 1929 English première of The Apple Cart , and the world première of Geneva in 1938. In 1956 Malvern held a Shaw centenary week. In February 1965 a Malvern Festival Theatre Trust was set up, and extensive refurbishment was undertaken. J B Priestley presided over the opening ceremony of the first summer season. In 1998, a further £7.2 million major redesign and refurbishment took place with
4988-517: The 1930s but saw a revival in the late 1960s. In The Ley Hunter's Companion (1979) Paul Devereux theorised that a 10-mile alignment he called the "Malvern Ley" passed through St Ann's Well, the Wyche Cutting , a section of the Shire Ditch , Midsummer Hill, Whiteleaved Oak , Redmarley D'Abitot and Pauntley. In City of Revelation (1973) British author John Michell theorised that Whiteleaved Oak
5104-559: The AONB were also renovated. The Malvern Hills Trust is the working name for the Malvern Hills Conservators and manages most parts of the Hills and the surrounding Commons, some other parcels of land and many roadside verges. They were established in 1884 and are governed by five Acts of Parliament , the Malvern Hills Acts 1884, 1909, 1924, 1930 and 1995. They are a voluntary body of twenty-nine members. Eleven are directly elected under
5220-585: The AONB. The Geopark Way is a 175 km (109 miles) long-distance trail which runs from Bridgnorth to Gloucester and passes through the Abberley and Malvern Hills Geopark. The route was devised to highlight geology, landscape and associated heritage. The Malvern Hills Geocentre is located halfway along the Geopark Way , at the Wyche . This official visitor centre gives more information on interactive iPads about
5336-761: The Confessor, had petitioned the Earl of Gloucester for the original site (of the Priory) in the wood, and cites his source as "Gervase of Canterbury, Mappa Mundi (Rolls ser.)". Large estates in Malvern were part of crown lands given to Gilbert "the Red" , the seventh Earl of Gloucester and sixth Earl of Hertford, on his marriage to Joan of Acre the daughter of Edward I , in 1290. Disputed hunting rights on these led to several armed conflicts with Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford , that Edward resolved. Nott states that Gilbert made gifts to
5452-557: The Countryside Agency to take the temperature of rural tourism in the wake of the crisis. In 2006, Worcestershire County Council was awarded £770,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund for restoration work and preservation of the area by fitting cattle grids to roads across the Hills and encouraging local landowners to allow sheep to wander across their land. As part of the Malvern Heritage Project nine water features within
5568-823: The Earth's crust now joined as one – the Wrekin Terrane to the west and the Charnwood Terrane to the east. The main face of Gullet Quarry shows a cross-section through the Precambrian rock and exhibits many rock types including diorite , granite , gneiss , schist , pegmatite and dolerite . The evidence of the complex history of earth movements which formed the Hills can be seen by multiple joints, fractures, faults and shears, which make identifying changes in rock types difficult. Mineral deposits such as haematite , calcite and epidote can be seen within these features. There
5684-572: The Head of English at Malvern College . Sayer had been a student of Lewis, and became his biographer, and together with them Tolkien would walk the Malvern Hills. Recordings of Tolkien reading excerpts from The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings were made in Malvern in 1952, at the home of George Sayer. The recordings were later issued on long-playing gramophone records . In the liner notes for J.R.R Tolkien Reads and Sings his The Hobbit & The Fellowship of
5800-769: The Local Elections ( Principal areas ) Rules by the residents of the wards who contribute to the Conservators' funds through a levy in their Council Tax , seventeen are appointed by local authorities and one by the Church Commissioners . The total area under their jurisdiction is over 1,200 hectares (3,000 acres). The Malvern Hills were designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in 1959. The designation covers 105 square kilometres (41 sq mi) and includes parts of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. The Malvern Hills Conservators played
5916-646: The Malvern Hills SSSI: Hollybush Roughs between the boundary of Castlemorton Common and the Midsummer Hill fort, Park Wood in West Malvern and an area near Holy Well above Malvern Wells . Key AONB species include dormouse , barbastelle , skylark , high brown fritillary butterfly , great crested newt , adder and black poplar . Flint axes, arrowheads, and flakes found in the area are attributed to early Bronze Age settlers, and
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#17328546309986032-476: The Malvern Hills and decided that there were enough facilities in the immediate area and that St Ann's Well cafe should be enough provision on the hills, so the application to rebuild was turned down. In 2000, a £1.3 million project to reintroduce grazing animals to the Malvern Hills and restore part of its historic network of water spouts was given significant backing of National Lottery funds. The Malverns Heritage Project aimed to reintroduce grazing animals as
6148-448: The Malvern Hills are amongst the oldest and hardest found in England; the geology is responsible for the quality of Malvern's spring water. The hills consist of Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rock , the oldest of which are about 670 million years old. The rocks are characterised by low porosity and high secondary permeability via fissures. Malvern water is rainwater and snow meltwater that percolates through fissures created by
6264-438: The Malvern Hills the Conservators would be straying from their core duty of keeping the Malvern Hills unenclosed as open spaces for the recreation and enjoyment of the public. Although the conservation officer said any enclosures would be small and temporary there were worries that leisure activities that could be affected and that "the feeling of freedom associated with 'just being' on the Malvern Hills" could be lost. In 2001,
6380-461: The Malvern Hills were officially closed to the public for the first time in history. Walkers were told to avoid the area as part of the effort to prevent the spread of foot and mouth disease . As a result of the closure the economy of the Malvern Hills faced serious damage. In 2002 the Malvern Hills were named the most popular free tourist attraction in the West Midlands in a survey commissioned by
6496-554: The Malvern Hills. He spent three years at the school in the 1930s and wrote some of his finest early love poems there, including: "This Lunar Beauty"; "Lay Your Sleeping Head, My Love" ('Lullaby'); "My Love, Fish in the Unruffled Lakes"; and "Out on the Lawn I Lie in Bed". He also wrote a long poem about the hills and their views, called simply The Malverns . J.R.R. Tolkien found inspiration in
6612-468: The Malvern landscape which he had viewed from his childhood home in Birmingham and his brother Hilary's home near Evesham . He was introduced to the area by C. S. Lewis , who had brought him here to meet George Sayer , the Head of English at Malvern College . Sayer had been a student of Lewis, and became his biographer, and together with them Tolkien would walk the Malvern Hills. Recordings of Tolkien reading excerpts from The Hobbit and The Lord of
6728-735: The North East (1797), now in the British Watercolours collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum and J. M. W. Turner 's Porch of Great Malvern Abbey . Elgar , a drama documentary made in 1962 by the British director Ken Russell , was filmed on location in Malvern and Worcester. Several scenes were filmed in Malvern at locations including the Bluebird Tea Rooms in Church Street and St Ann's Well in Great Malvern. Made for BBC Television's long-running Monitor programme, it dramatised
6844-509: The Priory, and describes his "great conflict" with Thomas de Cantilupe , Bishop of Hereford , also about hunting rights and a ditch that Gilbert dug, that was settled by costly litigation. Gilbert had a similar conflict with Godfrey Giffard , Bishop and Administrator of Worcester Cathedral (and formerly Chancellor of England . Godfrey, who had granted land to the Priory, had jurisdictional disputes about Malvern Priory, resolved by Robert Burnell ,
6960-572: The Rings were made in Malvern in 1952, at the home of George Sayer. The recordings were later issued on long-playing gramophone records . In the liner notes for J.R.R. Tolkien Reads and Sings his The Hobbit & The Fellowship of the Ring , George Sayer wrote that Tolkien would relive the book as they walked and compared parts of the Malvern Hills to the White Mountains of Gondor . The poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning spent her childhood at Hope End ,
7076-630: The Rings , George Sayer wrote that Tolkien would relive the book as they walked and compared parts of the Malvern Hills to the White Mountains of Gondor . Great Malvern is the setting for several episodes in Jonathan Coe's 2004 novel The Closed Circle . In 1969 Great Malvern was designated a Conservation Area by the Local Authority in recognition of the architecture which includes Stuccoed , Classical , Victorian , Regency , Edwardian , Gothic Revival and Italianate styled buildings. Many of
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#17328546309987192-522: The Saturday before the May Bank Holiday since 1993 and various musical and other live events throughout the year. The Fringe aims to be inclusive; bridging the generation gap by providing a varied programme of events for the local people of Malvern aimed at all ages. Works of art in Great Malvern include fountains, statues, and Malvern water spouts by the sculptor Rose Garrard . Among her sculptures are
7308-404: The Shadow of the Ragged Stone, a shadow appearing to arise from the hilltop under particular meteorological conditions said to bring ill-fortune to those on whom it falls, features in many literary sources. It is the subject of the novel "The Shadow of the Ragged Stone" by Charles F. Grindrod, which tells the story of a monk who in punishment for breaking his vow of chastity was compelled to crawl up
7424-444: The Splash leisure and swimming complex, the main library, the police station, the tourist information centre, and the main post office. Great Malvern is approximately 8 miles (13 km) south-west of the city of Worcester , on the eastern slopes of the Malvern Hills. The elevation of the town ranges from about 50 to 200 metres (164 to 656 feet) above sea level. The River Severn runs roughly north-south about 4 miles (6.4 km) to
7540-434: The Sport of England (Lottery) and the Lawn Tennis Association . Malvern Theatres , housed in the Winter Gardens complex in the town centre, is a provincial centre for the arts. The first Malvern Drama Festival, which took place in 1929, was dedicated to Bernard Shaw and planned by Sir Barry Jackson . A number of works have had their first performances at Malvern, six by Shaw including In Good King Charles' Golden Days ,
7656-425: The actual founding of the religious community. Legend tells that the settlement began following the murder of St. Werstan , a monk of Deerhurst , who escaped and fled through the Malvern Chase , finding sanctuary on the Malvern Hills and establishing a hermitage near St. Ann's Well . St Werstan's oratory is thought to have been located on the site of St Michael 's Chapel, which is believed to have stood on
7772-402: The area had been inhabited by the La Tène people around 250 BC. Ancient folklore has it that the British chieftain Caractacus made his last stand against the Romans at the British Camp , a site of extensive Iron Age earthworks on a summit of the Malvern Hills close to where Malvern was to be later established. The story remains disputed, however, as Roman historian Tacitus implies
7888-407: The area has been recognised for many years with 13 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and 179 Local Geological Sites (LGS) present. The A449 road runs through the centre of Malvern, connecting it to Worcester and Ledbury . The M5 motorway to the east of Malvern is accessible at junctions 7 and 8. The M50 (also known as the Ross Spur ) to the south can be accessed at junction 1 on
8004-403: The area is the responsibility of the Malvern Hills Trust . The name Malvern is first attested in a charter of around 1030, as Mælfern , and then in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Malferna . The name derives from the Common Brittonic words that survive in modern Welsh as moel ("bare") and bryn ("hill"); thus it once meant "bare hill". The name perhaps applied originally to
8120-406: The backdrop for Penda's Fen , a 1974 British television play written by David Rudkin and directed by Alan Clarke for the BBC's Play for Today series. It tells the story of Stephen, a pastor's son who has visions of angels, Edward Elgar, and King Penda , the last pagan ruler of England. The final scene of the play, where the protagonist has an apparitional experience of King Penda and
8236-406: The basis of Malvern's economy. By 1865, the town already had 17 single-gender private schools, increasing to 25 by 1885. The area was well suited for schools due to its established attractive environment and access by rail. Children could travel unaccompanied with their trunks by rail to their boarding schools near the stations in Great Malvern, Malvern Wells, and Malvern Link. The Girls College , in
8352-402: The current Chancellor. A discussion in 2005 about the stained glass windows of Great Malvern Priory in terms of the relationship between Church and Laity stresses the importance of Malvern in the development of stained glass. It refers to "the vast and strategically important estates of which Malvern was a part" in the 15th and 16th centuries, to a widespread awareness of Great Malvern Priory, to
8468-401: The decline in Malvern's popularity as a spa town, many private boarding schools were established in Great Malvern, often occupying the premises of former hotels and large villas. Two large independent 'public' schools – Malvern College for boys and girls and Malvern St James for girls – now remain following mergers of Malvern's many private primary and secondary schools. Malvern College is
8584-565: The early century were part of the music of the town. The opera singer Jenny Lind lived and died in Malvern, and is buried in Great Malvern cemetery. Julius Harrison (1885–1963), who was a contemporary of Elgar and Professor of Composition at the Royal Academy of Music , lived in Pickersleigh Road for most of the 1940s. He was music director at Malvern College and director of the early Elgar Festivals in Malvern. Malvern Fringe Festival
8700-474: The east of the town. Belle Vue Island (a public terraced garden on an "island" between roads) is the finishing point for the Worcestershire Way , a waymarked long-distance trail that runs 31 miles (50 km) from Bewdley to Great Malvern. The town centre comprises two main streets at right angles to each other: the steep Church Street and Bellevue Terrace, a relatively flat north–south extension of
8816-638: The eastern boundary of Priory Park and has an indoor swimming pool and gymnasium. Located between the former community hospital and the Malvern Hills College are the grounds and buildings of the Manor Park Club Multi Sports Complex that provides the Malvern area with extensive indoor and outdoor sports facilities. It is assisted by grants and loans from various bodies, including the Malvern Hills District Council ,
8932-543: The events were promoted by Cherry Red , a London-based independent record label formed in 1978. The Chandos Symphony Orchestra, under the professional direction of Michael Lloyd, has over 100 players. It specialises in performances of major works of the 19th and 20th Centuries. The Autumn in Malvern Festival is an annual event featuring performances of artists of music, poetry, writers and film makers held during October every year. The Colwell and other brass bands of
9048-526: The exploitation, and although a second Act was passed in 1924 its provisions were largely ineffective. Quarrying continued until 1966. The landscape itself was irrevocably changed; but there is some debate whether this has enriched or damaged the ecology of the Hills. Certainly the quarrying has changed the Hills forever, including creating habitats for frogs, toads, newts and other small animals. The new cliffs provide nesting sites for certain birds. The quarries, especially North Quarry and Tank Quarry, have over
9164-449: The geology, nature and history of the Geopark and the Malvern hills and Malvern in particular, as well as large wall maps of the area. The Abberley and Malvern Hills Geopark was launched in 2004. It falls within the counties of Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Shropshire and Worcestershire and covers 3,240 km (1,250 square miles). The geological and geomorphological significance of
9280-674: The help of contributions from the National Lottery Distribution Fund (NLDF) , administered by the government Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The Theatre of Small Convenience entered the Guinness Book of World Records in 2002 as the smallest theatre in the world. Located in a former Victorian public convenience in the centre of the town in Edith Walk in, the theatre has a capacity of 12 people. The theatre regularly hosts puppetry, professional and amateur actors, drama, poetry, storytelling and opera, and has become
9396-477: The hill every day on his hands and knees, and died cursing the hill and all on whom its shadow should fall. Paintings of the Malvern Hills include Henry Harris Lines 's The British Camp and Herefordshire Beacon (1872), now in the Worcester City Museums. David Prentice , founder member of Birmingham 's Ikon Gallery , has been painting the Malvern Hills since 1986. Paul Nash made paintings of
9512-493: The hill now called Worcester Beacon, after which Great Malvern was then named; Great Malvern in turn then gave its name to the whole range of hills beside which it lies. The name Malvern Hills is first attested in the fourteenth-century poem Piers Plowman . The Malvern Hills are part of an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with scenic views over both Herefordshire and Worcestershire. The Hills run north–south for about 8 mi (13 kilometres), in between Great Malvern and
9628-526: The hill now called Worcester Beacon, after which Great Malvern was then named. Additions corresponding to the Great part of Great Malvern , made to distinguish the settlement from Little Malvern , are first attested in 1228 ( Magna Malverna , using the Latin word for "great") and 1521 ( Moche Malv'ne , using the English word much ). Great Malvern in turn then gave its name to the whole range of hills beside which it lies,
9744-466: The hills and surrounding area were part of a royal forest known as Malvern Chase . Riots by commoners and legal challenges from land owners ensued when King Charles I attempted to disafforest the Chase in 1630. Ultimately, only one third was disafforested, and commissioners were appointed to ensure any further encroachments did not leave the common lands as the most meagre in quality. This system lasted until
9860-544: The hills from 'Madams' in Gloucestershire and from the 'Rising Sun' hotel on Cleeve Hill near Cheltenham . Dame Laura Knight painted in a studio near Wynds Point below British Camp. The opening scene in Elgar , a drama documentary made in 1962 by the British director Ken Russell , depicts a young Elgar riding a white pony over the Malvern Hills. Made for BBC Television's long-running Monitor programme, it dramatised
9976-686: The hills of Herefordshire and the Welsh mountains, parts of thirteen counties, the Bristol Channel , and the cathedrals of Worcester, Gloucester and Hereford. They are known for their spring water – initially from holy wells , and later the spa town of Great Malvern , which led to the production of the modern bottled drinking water. The Malvern Hills have been designated as a biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest , and by Natural England as National Character Area 103 and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty . Management of
10092-519: The hills they surround and several villages, are collectively referred to as The Malverns . Great Malvern is a seat of local government , being the location of the headquarters of Malvern Town Council, the Malvern Hills Conservators and Malvern Hills AONB Partnership, and Malvern Hills District Council . It has many of the town's amenities including the Malvern Theatres complex, the Priory Park,
10208-492: The houses were built during the Industrial Revolution, and Malvern's boom years as a spa town, by wealthy families from the nearby Birmingham area. Following the collapse of the spa industry, many of the hotels and villas became schools, and some have since been further converted to apartments, while some of the smaller hotels are now retirement homes. The Imperial Hotel in red brick with stone dressings, which later became
10324-449: The legend of St. Werstan, with details of his vision, the consecration of his chapel, Edward the Confessor granting the charter for the site, and Werstan's martyrdom. An 18th-century document states that in the 18th year of William's kingship (probably 1083), a priory was dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. Victoria County History describes how a hermit Aldwyn, who lived in the reign of Edward
10440-478: The life of the composer Edward Elgar. The film significantly raised the public profile of the composer. Great Malvern railway station featured in 1975 as the commuter-belt railway station in the first episode of Survivors (1975 TV series) , the post-apocalyptic fiction drama television series created by Terry Nation and produced by Terence Dudley at the BBC . In the late 19th and early 20th centuries following
10556-462: The life of the composer Edward Elgar. The film significantly raised the public profile of the composer. The Tank Quarry on North Hill and West of England Quarry on the Worcestershire Beacon were used as locations in the Doctor Who serial The Krotons , starring Patrick Troughton . The serial was broadcast in four weekly parts from 28 December 1968 to 18 January 1969. The Malvern Hills are
10672-496: The likelihood of a pilgrimage route through the town. The discussion also mentions Thomas Walsingham 's view that Malvern was a hiding place of the Lollard knight Sir John Oldcastle in 1414. Chambers wrote, in relation to the stained glass, "the situation of Malvern was so much admired by Henry VII , his Queen ( Elizabeth of York ) and their two Sons, Prince Arthur , and Prince Henry " that they made substantial endowments. During
10788-526: The nearby Cotswold Hills and the natural beauty of the area, including the magnificent views of the Malverns, was a profound inspiration for their music. Howells dedicated his first major work, the Piano Quartet in A minor (1916), to "the hill at Chosen ( Churchdown ) and Ivor Gurney who knew it". The Swedish singer Jenny Lind spent the last years of her life living at Wynd's Point near the British Camp. She
10904-585: The parish of Great Malvern had a population of 9954. On 1 April 1974 the parish was abolished. As Great Malvern is no longer an area with an administratively-defined boundary, it straddles the wards of Priory and (to small extents) Pickersleigh and Chase. The other tiers of local government that cover Great Malvern are Malvern Hills District Council (also based in Great Malvern) and Worcestershire County Council (based in Worcester). The Priory Park with its adjoining Malvern Splash pool and Winter Gardens occupies
11020-661: The position of the hillfort as a site of symbolic value". The rampart and ditch were built around 390 BC and it is thought that the settlement was occupied by 1500 people until it was destroyed by fire in AD 48. In The Ley Hunter's Companion Paul Devereux theorised that a 10-mile alignment he called the "Malvern Ley" passed through St Ann's Well , the Wyche Cutting , a section of the Shire Ditch , Midsummer Hill, Whiteleaved Oak , Redmarley D'Abitot and Pauntley. 52°02′07″N 2°21′02″W / 52.0353°N 2.3505°W / 52.0353; -2.3505 This article about
11136-552: The pressures of tectonic movements about 300 million years ago when advancing sedimentary layers of Silurian shale and limestone were pushed into and under older Precambrian rock. When the fissures are saturated, a water table forms and the water emerges as springs around the fault lines between the strata. Depending on rainfall, the flow can vary from as little as 36 litres (7.9 imp gal; 9.5 US gal) per minute to over 350 litres (77 imp gal; 92 US gal) per minute. The water permeates through
11252-470: The railway from Worcester to Malvern Link was completed on 25 May 1859. The following year, "Besides middle class visitors ... the railway also brought working class excursionists from the Black Country with dramatic effect ... At Whitsuntide ... 10,000 came from the Black Country to the newly opened stations at Great Malvern and Malvern Wells. Throughout June to September, day trips were frequent, causing
11368-560: The rising rail fares – by then twice that of other lines – that were exploiting the tourism industry, and demanded a limitation to the number of excursion trains. The arrival of the railway also enabled the delivery of coal in large quantities, which accelerated the area's popularity as a winter resort. The 1887 Baedeker 's includes Malvern in a London–Worcester–Hereford itinerary and described as "an inland health resort, famous for its bracing air and pleasant situation" and "a great educational centre", with five hotels that are "well spoken of",
11484-400: The rock which, because of its hardness, leaves little or no mineral traces in the water, while at the same time the very fine cracks act as a filter for other impurities. Rainfall on the Malvern Hills is thought to be sufficient to account for all the water that runs out of the springs, reflected for example in some spring flows six to eight weeks after heavy rainfall, and in reduced flows after
11600-515: The shape of the hill. The Malvern Hills are formed of some of the most ancient rocks in England, mostly igneous and metamorphic rocks from the late Precambrian , known as the Uriconian , which are around 680 million years old. The Malvern Line or Malvern Lineament is the name applied to a north–south aligned lineament which runs through the Malvern Hills and extends southwards towards Bristol and northwards past Kidderminster . It consists of
11716-418: The site of Bello Sguardo, a Victorian Villa . Bello Sguardo was built on the site of Hermitage Cottage. The cottage was demolished in 1825 and ecclesiastical carvings were found within it. A Mediaeval undercroft , human bones and parts of a coffin were also uncovered. Although the legend may be monastic mythology, historians have however concluded that St. Werstan was the original martyr. The first prior
11832-410: The special architectural and historic interest of the area. The growth of Great Malvern began with the founding of an 11th-century priory . During the 19th century, it became a popular centre for hydrotherapy and swelled to include the bordering settlements of Barnards Green , Malvern Link with Link Top , Malvern Wells (South Malvern), North Malvern , and West Malvern . This urban area, along with
11948-709: The statue of Sir Edward Elgar and the Enigma Fountain (Unveiled by Prince Andrew, Duke of York on Belle Vue Terrace, Malvern on 26 May 2000). and the drinking spout, Malvhina , also on Belle Vue Terrace, which was unveiled on 4 September 1998. A sculpture of two buzzards by Walenty Pytel was installed in Rosebank Gardens, Great Malvern to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in November 2012. Paintings of Great Malvern include Joseph Powell's Great Malvern Priory ... from
12064-509: The surrounding area. Long-distance direct bus services connect Malvern with other cities in the country, including the National Express route 321 through eleven counties from Aberdare, South Wales, via Birmingham and other major cities to Bradford, West Yorkshire, and route 444 from Worcester to London (Victoria). English composer Edward Elgar , who was from the area, often walked, cycled, and reportedly flew kites on these hills. He wrote
12180-479: The village of Colwall , and overlook the River Severn valley to the east, with the Cotswolds beyond. The highest point of the hills is the Worcestershire Beacon at 425 metres (1,394 ft) above sea level (OS Grid reference SO768452). The hills are famous for their natural mineral springs and wells, which were responsible for the development of Great Malvern as a spa in the early 19th century. Malvern water
12296-574: The years been the sites of several accidents requiring the Emergency Services. In 1989, the cafe on Worcestershire Beacon burned down. As the Malvern Hills Acts state that no building should be erected on the Conservators' land or on land under their jurisdiction, the Conservators put a bill through Parliament to get the power to build a new one but the House of Lords opposed it. When the cafe
12412-411: Was Aldwyn , who founded the monastery on his bishop's advice, and by 1135 the monastery included thirty monks. Aldwyn was succeeded by Walcher of Malvern , an astronomer and philosopher from Lorraine , whose gravestone inside the priory church records details that the priory arose in 1085 from a hermitage endowed by Edward the Confessor . An ancient stained glass window in the Priory church depicts
12528-513: Was "perfectly enchanted with Malvern and its surroundings" and, with the Duke, visited Malvern College. The Duchess returned to open the new waterworks at Camp Hill in 1895. In 1897, the painter Edward Burne-Jones came to Malvern for the "bracing air", on the recommendation of his doctor, but stayed in his hotel for a week. The 7-year-old Franklin D. Roosevelt visited in 1889, during a trip to Europe with his parents. Fearing that Malvern would become
12644-635: Was bottled commercially on a large scale and sold worldwide. There are three passes over the hills, the Wyche cutting, the A438 road north of Raggedstone Hill and the A449 road just north of the Herefordshire Beacon , the site of the British Camp , an Iron Age hillfort at the top of the hill, subsequently extended by a medieval castle . The extensive earthworks remain clearly visible today and determine
12760-457: Was burned down, the Conservators had plans to replace the building but were advised that they risked prosecution for rebuilding as the original cafe building was an encroachment on common land. The Malvern Hills Bill was in preparation to modernise some of the clauses in previous acts a clause was inserted to gain authority to rebuild the cafe. Five members of the House of Lords Select Committee visited
12876-406: Was formed in 2006 by the merger of Malvern Girls' College and St. James' School, West Malvern (formerly St James' and The Abbey) and other mergers with local private schools over the last thirty years. It is now the last of the independent girls' schools in the Malvern area. The main building of Malvern St James on the campus of the former Malvern Girls' College is the former Imperial Hotel, built in
12992-569: Was officially founded in 1977 as a reaction to the Malvern Festival which was perceived to be biased towards classical music and appealing towards a national and international audience rather than a local one. It takes place over three days in June as a fringe to the Elgar Festival. The Fringe also organise the Malvern May Day and Parade, an annual community event which has been held in Priory Park on
13108-401: Was possibly educated at the priory of Great Malvern. C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien are among the authors that have frequented Malvern. Legend states that, after drinking in a Malvern pub one winter evening, they were walking home when it started to snow. They saw a lamp post shining out through the snow and Lewis turned to his friends and said "that would make a very nice opening line to
13224-517: Was sold off. With the exception of the church building (of which the south transept adjoining the monastery's cloisters was destroyed), all that remains of Malvern's monastery is the Abbey Gateway (also known as the Priory Gatehouse) that houses today's Malvern Museum . The health-giving properties of Malvern water and the natural beauty of the surroundings led to the development of Malvern as
13340-493: Was the first hotel to be lit by incandescent gas. It was equipped with all types of baths and brine was brought specially by rail from Droitwich. Much architecture and statuary in the town centre is dedicated to Malvern water, including the St Ann's Well, which is housed in a building dating from 1813. The drinking spout, Malvhina , by the sculptor Rose Garrard , was unveiled on 4 September 1998. The Enigma Fountain, also by Garrard,
13456-583: Was unveiled by The Duke of York in 2000. Sir Edward Elgar , British composer and Master of the King's Musick , lived much of his life around Malvern and is buried in Little Malvern Roman Catholic churchyard. A sculpture group by artist Rose Garrard comprising the Enigma fountain together with a statue of Elgar gazing over Great Malvern stands on Belle Vue Terrace in the town centre. The Elgar Route ,
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