Holme Lacy is a village in the English county of Herefordshire. The population of the civil parish was 466 at the 2011 Census. [1]
It is a primarily rural village.
Holme Lacy is not from Old Norse holmr "island" like other places of the name Holme, but from the fairly similar Old English hamm "land in a river-bend". The name was recorded as Hamme in the Domesday Book in 1086. [2]
The name has varied through history; it has also been known as Homme Lacy (1396) [3] Hamlayce (1648), Humlachie (1701) and Hom Lacy (1836).
The town was an estate of the Bishop of Hereford and held by Roger de Lacy, which is where the "Lacy" affix comes from. De Lacy was a Lord of the manor, indicating that a feudal system was in existence during the Middle Ages.
William I of England had returned Hamme to Bishop Walter and in 1086 the total population included:
The priest shows there was a church at Holme Lacy. There were also two ploughs under the lordship's tenure in existence.
The village comes under the jurisdiction of the West Mercia Constabulary.
Holme Lacy Village Hall is located in the heart of Holme Lacy, Hereford. This charming black-and-white half-timbered building features a stunning hall with high vaulted ceilings and elegant wooden floors.
Originally built in the 1920s, the hall was a gift to the village from Lord and Lady Lucas-Tooth of Holme Lacy House, in honour of two of their three sons who were tragically killed in the First World War. It now stands as a registered war memorial. [4]
Holme Lacy Village Hall is registered with the charity commission under the Register of Charities and Digital Services. The trustees, committee members, and volunteers come from diverse backgrounds, all working together to support the Holme Lacy community. The committee are responsible for setting the overall strategy and direction of the organization, and all members generously volunteer their time. The trustees oversee the work, management, and administration of the charity on behalf of its beneficiaries.
As a charitable community facility, the hall is open to the public for various recreational activities. It regularly hosts events such as coffee mornings and line-dancing classes, and serves as the home of the Holme Lacy Football Club. In addition, it has gained popularity as a venue for wedding receptions.
The hall can accommodate up to 100 people and offers parking for 25 cars, with additional space available if needed.
Holme Lacy was for some centuries in the ancient family of Scudamore. Philip Scudamore settled here in the 14th century, [3] and his descendant John Scudamore esq. was created a baronet in 1620, and in 1628 Baron Dromore and Viscount Scudamore, of Sligo. His successor, the second viscount, commissioned Anthony Deane in 1674 to build a new country mansion on the estate.
Holme Lacy House continued to be the principal seat of the family till the year 1716, when on the death of James, the 3rd and last Viscount Scudamore, the estate was vested in Frances Scudamore (born 1711-died 1750 in childbed), his only daughter and heiress. In 1729 Frances married Henry Somerset 3rd Duke of Beaufort, who in 1730 assumed the name and arms of Scudamore. Frances was divorced in 1744 and there were no children of the marriage.
Frances then married as her second husband Charles Fitzroy esq. He also assumed the name and arms of Scudamore, and had by her an only daughter and heiress, Frances (1750-1820). Frances married Charles Howard, 11th Duke of Norfolk to whom the property then in part descended, and, together with other valuable estates in this county and Gloucestershire, was added to the princely domain of the Howards.
The Duke and Duchess died without surviving children and after extensive litigation the Holme Lacy estate devolved in 1819 upon Capt. Sir Edwyn Francis Stanhope, Bart., R. N., who assumed the additional name and arms of Scudamore and whose son succeeded in 1883 as 9th Earl of Chesterfield. [5]
The mansion of Holme Lacy built by the 2nd Viscount Scudamore remained, renovated in 1828-31 and again in the early 20th century, the family seat of the Earls of Chesterfield until 1902, when the contents were sold. In 1909 the house was sold to Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth, an Australian brewing millionaire. He sold it in 1924 to Noel Wills, on whose death in 1929 his widow donated it to Herefordshire County Council. For some years it was used as a training college and psychiatric hospital. Several owners later it was leased to the Warner Leisure Hotels group. [6]
A Grade I listed building, [7] it is now a Warner Leisure Hotel. [8]
Perry pear trees can live to a great age, and can be fully productive for 250 years. They also grow to a considerable height and can have very large canopies; the largest recorded internationally at the time, the Holme Lacy Pear which still partly survives, covered three quarters of an acre and yielded a crop of 5–7 tons in 1790. [9]
Holme Lacy was located on the Hereford to Ross-on-Wye section of the Hereford, Ross and Gloucester Railway. It was opened on 1 June 1855 as a 7 ft (2,134 mm) broad gauge line, it was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway in 1862. In 1869 the railway was converted to 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge. [10] The railway was closed to passengers on 2 November 1964.
Hereford is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is situated on the banks of the River Wye and lies 16 miles (26 km) east of the border with Wales, 23 miles (37 km) north-west of Gloucester and 24 miles (39 km) south-west of Worcester. With a population of 53,112 in 2021, it is the largest settlement in Herefordshire.
The known history of Herefordshire starts with a shire in the time of King Athelstan, and Herefordshire is mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 1051. The first Anglo-Saxon settlers, the 7th-century Magonsætan, were a sub-tribal unit of the Hwicce who occupied the Severn valley. The undulating hills of marl clay were surrounded by the Welsh mountains to the west; by the Malvern Hills to the east; by the Clent Hills of the Shropshire borders to the north, and by the indeterminate extent of the Forest of Dean to the south. The shire name first recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle may derive from "Here-ford", Old English for "army crossing", the location for the city of Hereford.
Fownhope is a village in Herefordshire, England, an area of outstanding natural beauty on the banks of the River Wye. The population of the village at the 2011 census was 999.
Charles FitzRoy-Scudamore was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons for 49 years from 1733 to 1782.
Viscount Scudamore was a title in the Peerage of Ireland held by three generations of the Scudamore family. It was created on 1 July 1628 for the diplomat and politician Sir John Scudamore, 1st Baronet. He had already been created a Baronet, of Holme Lacy in the County of Hereford, in the Baronetage of England on 1 June 1620, and was made Baron Dromore at the same time as he was granted the viscountcy, also in the Peerage of Ireland. Scudamore was the son of Sir James Scudamore and the grandson of Sir John Scudamore. Lord Scudamore was succeeded by his grandson, the second Viscount. He represented Hereford and Herefordshire in Parliament. On his death the titles passed to his son, the third Viscount. He was also Member of Parliament for Hereford and Herefordshire. The titles became extinct on his death in 1716.
Edwyn Francis Scudamore-Stanhope, 10th Earl of Chesterfield,, styled Lord Stanhope between 1883 and 1887, was a British peer and courtier.
Beningbrough Hall is a large Baroque mansion near the village of Beningbrough, North Yorkshire, England, and overlooks the River Ouse.
Henry Edwyn Chandos Scudamore-Stanhope, 9th Earl of Chesterfield, DL, JP was a British peer.
John Scudamore, 1st Viscount Scudamore was an English diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1629. In 1628 he was created Viscount Scudamore in the Irish peerage.
Sir James Scudamore was a gentleman usher at the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Born at Holme Lacy, Herefordshire, he was the eldest son of John Scudamore, Custos Rotulorum of Herefordshire and his first wife Eleanor Croft, daughter of former Lord Deputy of Ireland James Croft. He would assume that title in 1616, and remained Custos Rotulorum for two years until his own death in 1619. Scudamore was respected for his tilting skill and his embodiment of the ideals of chivalry.
James Scudamore was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1642 and 1668.
James Scudamore, 3rd Viscount Scudamore, was an English landowner and Tory politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1705 to 1716.
St Cuthbert's Church is a redundant Anglican church about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the southeast of the village of Holme Lacy, Herefordshire, England. It stands in an isolated position at the end of a lane in a bend of the River Wye. It is designated in the National Heritage List for England as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.
Sir Giles Brydges, 1st Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1629.
Scudamore is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
Warner Hotels is a hospitality company owning 14 country and coastal properties around the UK in North Wales, Somerset, Herefordshire, Berkshire, North Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Isle of Wight, Suffolk, Hampshire and Warwickshire. Founded in 1932 as Warner Holiday Camps, later known as Warner Holidays and has been adult only since 1994. In the 1990s Warner's started developing country house hotels and changing their existing 'camps' into coastal resorts and hotels.
Frances Scudamore, Duchess of Beaufort (1711–1750) was a noblewoman and heiress. The only child of James Scudamore, 3rd Viscount Scudamore, she was his sole heir upon his death in 1716. Her mother, Frances née Digby, had introduced the family to Alexander Pope. Frances married, on 28 June 1729, Henry Somerset, 3rd Duke of Beaufort, who the following year took the surname Scudamore by Act of Parliament. The marriage was not a happy one, leading the Duchess to have an affair with William Talbot, 2nd Baron Talbot. In 1742, the Duke filed for divorce due to this affair; the Duchess countersued, claiming that the Duke was impotent. When the Duke disproved her claim before court-appointed examiners, the divorce was granted in March 1743, followed by the Duke suing Lord Talbot for damages.
Frances Scudamore (1750–1820) was the second wife of Charles Howard, who became the 11th Duke of Norfolk in 1786. She spent her married life confined to Holme Lacy in a mentally deranged condition.
The Scudamorefamily is an English noble family. The family settled in Herefordshire at two seats, Holme Lacy and Kentchurch Court, before lines moved to Devon, Somerset and Derbyshire. The family first gained prominence in the 15th and 16th centuries, before becoming ennobled as Viscount Scudamore and Baron Dromore in the 17th century, and were granted two baronetcies in 1620 and 1644. The family married into several noble dynasties including the Cecil, Beaufort, and Howard families, and became ancestors to the Earls of Chesterfield.
Llancillo is a civil parish in south-west Herefordshire, England, and is approximately 13 miles (20 km) south-west from Hereford. The parish borders Wales at the south in which is the nearest town, Abergavenny, 7 miles (11 km) to the south-southwest. In the parish is the isolated Grade II* listed 11th-century Church of St Peter.