Cotheridge is a village and civil parish in the district of

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 af ...

in the county of

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

, England. It is west of the city of

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

and a mile north-east of the Leigh Court railway station on the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...

on the opposite side of the

River Teme The River Teme (pronounced ; ) rises in Mid Wales, south of Newtown, and flows southeast roughly forming the border between England and Wales for several miles through Knighton before entering England in the vicinity of Bucknell and continu ...

.
The

flows on the southern and south-western part of the village where the land is low-lying and is susceptible to flooding. The soil content is loam and clay with the

subsoil Subsoil is the layer of soil under the topsoil on the surface of the ground. Like topsoil, it is composed of a variable mixture of small particles such as sand, silt and clay, but with a much lower percentage of organic matter and humus. The su ...

being Keuper Marl. The village is small with most of its residents being widespread. It is noted for its 12th century St. Leonard's Church and manor house. There have been many variations of the name over the centuries including ''Coddanhrycce'' (10th century); ''Codderycce'', ''Koderie'', and ''Codrie'' (11th century); ''Kodere'', ''Coddarycge'' (12th century); ''Codrigg'', ''Coderigge'', ''Codrugge'' (13th century); Coterugge (14th century); ''Coderych'', Coderiche (15/16th centuries); ''Cotheridge'', ''Cowtrige'', ''Cowderidge'' (17th century).

History

At the time of the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

it was known as ''Codrie''. In 1086 it was mentioned as having a church, a mill, and a timber-framed court. The mill descended with the manor until the 16th century. The manor house known as

Cotheridge Court Cotheridge Court is a Grade II* listed ancient manor house situated in the south-western part of Cotheridge, in the county of Worcestershire, England, and birthplace of Herbert Bowyer Berkeley. The house bought in 1615 by William Berkeley, ...

which dates back to at least the 16th century stands at the south-western part of the village. The 12th-century church of St. Leonard's stands not very far away, and is to this day a visitors centre. Cotheridge was in the upper division of

Doddingtree The Hundred of Doddingtree was granted to Ralph Todeni, or ''Ralph de Toni'', a relative of the Duke of Normandy, in 1066 by William the Conqueror as a reward for his services as Standard bearer during the Norman Conquest. It consisted mainly of ...

Hundred. Following the

Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 (4 & 5 Will. 4. c. 76) (PLAA) known widely as the New Poor Law, was an Act of Parliament (United Kingdom), act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed by the British Whig Party, Whig government of Charles ...

Cotheridge Parish ceased to be responsible for maintaining the poor in its parish. This responsibility was transferred to

Martley Poor Law Union Following the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 individual parishes ceased to be responsible for maintaining the poor in their parish. Poor law unions were established. In west Worcestershire the Martley Poor Law Union was established to take the po ...

.''Worcestershire Family History Guidebook'', Vanessa Morgan, 2011, p68 The History Press, Stroud, Gloucestershire.

Agriculture

In 1304 there were two vineyards belonging to the manor. In the late 19th century the chief crops were wheat, beans, and hops with some land used for pasture.

References

External links

Cotheridge web site Villages in Worcestershire Civil parishes in Worcestershire Malvern Hills District {{Worcestershire-geo-stub