A HISTORY OF HEREFORDSHIRE Whitbourne Court. — This work, situated 4J miles north-east of Bromyard, stands upon ground a few feet above the Teme (in a bend of which river it stands), which winds an eighth of a mile south. The position is naturally de- fended on the east and south-east by a stream and the river. The work belongs to a class which includes Leeds Castle in Kent, Hanley Castle in Worcestershire, and others which possess little in the way of earthworks, but a large amount of water protection. Whitbourne Court was from an early date in the possession of the Bishops of Hereford, and was sufficiently defensible in the 17th century to attract the attention of the Parliamentarians. Whitbourne Court WiLTON CasTLE. See BriDSTOW. Sc<- -^ ^ %rr/i# Fawlky ■ Camp,' Brock- HAMPTON MISCELLANEOUS EARTHWORKS (Class X) AsHTON. See Eye. Brockhampton : Fawley ' Camp.' — Four miles north-north-west of Ross. This entrenchment (if such it is) occupies the highest part of a hill about 200 ft. above, and within a bend of the River Wye, which flows a quarter of a mile north and east. The work is named upon the Ordnance Survey a ' Camp,' but has a much greater resemblance to a pond. As will be seen by the section, the base of the supposed rampart is wide, and the height insignificant, in fact, in its present condition it is difficult to trace the faint outline, and a rampart of so great a width defending so small an inclosure is very rare in any county. Earl of Gloucester's Ditch. — A ditch extends all along the top of the Malvern Range which is said to have been constructed by Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, who married Joan of Acre, daughter of Edward I. The Earl resided at Hanley Castle and received the rights of Malvern Chase as his wfife's dower, so, wishing to separate this from the lands of the Bishop of Hereford, he constructed a ditch . . . This ditch ... is cut upon the Worcestershire side of the range, and is in some places very sharp and deep, notably on the high peak over Malvern Wells . . . The dyke may be traced on to the Wind's Point ... it then apparently makes use of the outer ditch of the Beacon camp past the place of assembly, and at the south end goes off at right angles above the valley by the Thorn Tree, keeping along the top of the hills, crosses the Silurian Pass (where many old British roads or trackways may be clearly traced, the principal of which runs into the Ridgeway), over the Levinyard Hill up the side of Midsummer and Hollybush Hills, through the north side of the ditch of Hollybush Camp, down the declivity on the south out of the Camp, over the Hollybush Pass, and top of Ragged Stone Hill.'* "Trans. Woolhope Field Club (1877-80), 220. Referring to this ditch or fosse we find the following entry : — ' An agreement (19 Edw. I) between Godfrey, Bishop of Worcester, Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester and Hereford, and Johanna Countess of the same, whereby the Earl and Countess make promise to render certain tribute of deer to Godfrey in consideration of his allowing the foss made by the Earl on the top of Malvern Hill (on the land of the Bishop) to remain.' Trans. Woolhope Yield Club (1898-9), 72. 256
