Shatterford Hill is an English

geographical Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...

feature that extends from

Bewdley Bewdley ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Wyre Forest District in Worcestershire, England, on the banks of the River Severn. It is in the Severn Valley, and is west of Kidderminster, north of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham. It ...

in north

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 ...

to Birdsgreen near Alveley, just over the border in

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

. The hill is a long ridge running up the east side of the Severn Valley and peaks at 202 metres (663 ft) near the village of Shatterford on the

A442 road The A442 is a main road which passes through the counties of Worcestershire and Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. __TOC__ Route From Droitwich in Worcestershire it runs towards Kidderminster where it meets the A449 from Wor ...

between

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a market town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester, England, Worcester. Located north of the River Stour, Worcestershire, River Stour and east of the River Severn, in th ...

and

Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the United Kingd ...

. The ridge offers unhindered views across the Severn Valley out west to the

Clee Hills The Clee Hills are a range of hills in Shropshire, England near Ludlow, consisting of Brown Clee Hill , the highest peak in Shropshire, and Titterstone Clee Hill . They are both in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Geogra ...

Caer Caradoc Caer Caradoc (, the fort of Caradog) is a hill in the English county of Shropshire. It overlooks the town of Church Stretton and the village of All Stretton and offers panoramic views to the north towards the Wrekin, east to Wenlock Edge, a ...

, the

Long Mynd The Long Mynd is a heath and moorland plateau that forms part of the Shropshire Hills in Shropshire, England. The high ground, which is common land and designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, lies between the Stiperstones range t ...

and on clear days to the hills of

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. To the east is

and the

Clent Hills The Clent Hills are a hill range in Clent, Worcestershire, England. The closest towns are Stourbridge and Halesowen. The Clent Hills range consists of, in order from north-west to south-east: Wychbury Hill, Clent Hill (and Adams Hill), and Wal ...

, and the urban West Midlands areas of

Dudley Dudley ( , ) is a market town in the West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically part of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley. In the ...

beyond. To the north the Wrekin dominates the horizon near

Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...

, whilst to the south are the

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 ...

. Although the triangulation pillar that officially marks the summit of the hill is in a field with no public access, next to a small mast, a viewpoint is provided on the Shatterford-Trimpley road with a small layby opposite. Villages along the hill include (south to north), Trimpley, Shatterford and Romsley. The road following the crown of the ridge was probably the ''Micclan strete'' (great made-road), mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon bounds of

Wolverley Wolverley is a village; with nearby Cookley (1 mi northeast), it forms a civil parish in the Wyre Forest District of Worcestershire, England. It is 2 miles north of Kidderminster and lies on the River Stour and the Staffordshire a ...

. This may have been part of an ancient road from

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

and

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 ...

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

. From Shatterford through Romsley and

Quatt Quatt is a small village in Shropshire, England in the Severn Valley. The civil parish, formally known as Quatt Malvern, has a population of 219 according to the 2001 census, reducing to 200 at the 2011 census. It lies on the A442 south of Bri ...

, thus became part of the

turnpike, until an easier road (now A442) was built in the 1830s. The ridge comes to a fairly abrupt end to the south, capped by Wassell Wood, where earthworks can still be seen from fortified enclosure of unknown date. The name "Wassell" is derived from the Anglo-Saxon "''Weardsetl''" meaning a watchplace. This was the westernmost of a chain of such watchplaces, also including Wassell Grove (near

Wychbury Hill Wychbury Hill is a hill situated off the A456 Birmingham Road, at Hagley, Stourbridge, on the border of West Midlands and Worcestershire. It is divided between the parish of Hagley and former parish of Pedmore. It is one of the Clent Hills ...

), Waseley Hills and Wast Hills in

Alvechurch Alvechurch ( ) is a large village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Bromsgrove (district), Bromsgrove district in northeastern Worcestershire, England, in the valley of the River Arrow, Worcestershire, River Arrow. The Lickey H ...

. Below Wassell Wood to the east is Habberley Valley, a local nature reserve of lowland

heathland A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and is characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a coole ...

, which is a popular picnic site locally.

References

{{Reflist Hills of Worcestershire Hills of Shropshire