Britannia, volume the first, or, An illustration of the Kingdom of England and dominion of Wales by a geographical and historical description of the principal roads thereof, actually admeasured and delineated in a century of whole-sheet copper-sculps : accomodated with the ichnography of the several cities and capital towns, and compleated by an accurate account of the more remarkable passages of antiquity : together with a novel discourse of the present state / by John Ogilby ...

The Road from Hereford to Leicester.

• 1. THE Point of Bearing E. N. E.
• 2. The direct Horizontal Distance 71 M.
• 3. The Vulgar Computation 67 M.
• 4. The Dimensuration. 86’6.

From HEREFORD	Comp.	Measure.
to Fromshil	10	10	11’7	11’7
WORCESTER	10	20	12’5	24’4
Droitwich	05	25	06’1	30’5
Bromsgrove	05	30	05’4	36’1
Alchurch	03	33	04’7	41’0
Solihul	07	40	09’0	50’0
to Meriden	05	45	06’4	56’4
COVENTRY	05	50	06’2	62’6
Woolvey	07	57	09’1	71’7
Sharnford	03	60	04’4	76’3
Leicester	07	67	10’3	86’6
	67		86’6

Herefordshire, Worcestersh. Warwicksh. and Leicestersh. include the whole Road; and the Lug, Loadon, Frome, Temd, Severn, Salwarp, Arrow, Blossomfield, Blith, Sherborn, Sow and Sour, are the principal Rivers crost over; affording but a bad Way to WORCESTER, thence to COVENTRY indifferent, and bad again to Leicester, yet recompenc'd with the several good Towns and other Places of Accomodation you pass through.

Forward Turnings to be avoided.

• At 1’4. The Left to Shelwick.
• At 2’1. & 2’2. The Left to Bromyard.
• At 9’4. The Right to Espach.
• At 15’6. The Left to Suckley.
• At 25’6. The Left to Shrewsbury.
• At 36’4. The Right to LONDON.
• At 36’7. The Left to Birmingham.
• At 38’1. The Right to LONDON
• At 50’1. The Right to Warwick.
• At 53’6. The Right in Hampton on the Hill.
• At 64’3. The Left to Nuneaton.
• At 65’3. The Left to Hinkley.
• At 65’7. The Right to Rugby.
• At 72’3. The Left to Hinkley.
• At 74’2. The Right to LONDON the Watling-street Way.

SEtting forward from the Town-Hall in HEREFORD, you pass out at By∣strers-Gate, and leave the City at 5 Furlongs; whence at 1’7. over a Stone-Bridg of 3 Arches you cross the River Lug, and leave Lugwardine Church 4 Fur∣longs on the Right; then by several disperst Houses and Wethington Church on the Left, you are convey'd at 5 Miles through Shecknal a long discontinued Village, and at 7’5. over a Stone-Bridg to cross the small River Loadon, and pass through Lower Ingleton a disunited Village; thence again you pass by several scattering Hou∣ses on the Road, and are brought at 10’3. over a Wooden-bridg to cross the Ri∣ver Frome, and 3 Furlongs farther, to ascend a Hill of 6 Furlongs Height, and after by some Houses call'd Frome's Hill, you descend again 5 Furlongs, and at the Bottom, cross a small Rill.

At 14 Miles crossing a small Rill you enter Worcestershire; whence by several dis∣perst Houses, and 2 repeated Descents, you are convey'd by Ausrick Church on the Right, and Esq Sands House on the Left, through a Wood, and by a Park on the Right; at 19’2. to Sinton a small Village, and at 20’7. to Braunsford a dis∣continued Village of 3 Furlongs Extent; then at 21’6. over Braunsford-Bridg of Wood you cross the River Temd, which arising in Radnorshire, passes by Knighton, Ludlow and Tenbury, and about 2 Miles below this Place falls into the Severn, re∣ceiving into it first the Bradfield; 2d. the Clune, and therein the Onk; 3d. the Ony, and therewith the Warren and Stradbrook; 4th. the Corve; 5th. the Ledwick, and 6th. the Rea.

At 24 Miles you enter St. John's, or Part of the Suburbs of the City of WOR∣CESTER, and 4 Furlongs farther, over a Stone-Bridg cross the Severn, and en∣ter the City it self, which we have Illustrated in LONDON to Aberistwith, pag. 3.

At 25 Miles you leave the Suburbs call'd Forestreet, and at 25’5. over a Stone-Bridg cross a small River; thence by several repeated Houses on the Road, you are brought at 27’6. to Fennal Green a discontinued Village, where you have Hen∣lip House, the Seat of Esq Abbinton, about 3 Furlongs on the Right; then through Part of Marton, a straight Way leads you at 30’4. to Droitwich alias Durtwich, Saline perchance a coenoso Situ; seated on the Salwarp; a Town-Corporate, Noted for it's excellent White-Salt here made; it contains about 400 Houses, and 4 Churches, St. Peter's, St. Nicholas, St. Andrew's, and Dodderhil; hath Privilege to Arrest for any Sum; is Govern'd by 2 Bailiffs and 4 Justices; has a Market on Fridays, and 3 Fairs annually, viz. St. Thomas Day, Good Friday, and St. Simon and Jude.

At 31’3. over a Wooden-Bridg you cross the River Salwarp, and at 33 Miles pass through Upton or Henbrook a discontinued Village, and after leave the Church on the Left; then by Grafton Park on the same Hand you re-pass the Salwarp over a Stone-Bridg, and a Furlong beyond enter Bromsgrove a Market-Town of 6 Fur∣longs Extent, [for which vid. LONDON to Buckingham, &c. pag. 25.]

In the Town you again cross the foresaid Salwarp; thence through Burcote a small Village at 37’7. an indifferent straight Way leads you at 41’0. to Alchurch of 2 Furlongs Extent and some Entertainment, which hath a Fair each St. Lawrence Day: At the End of the Town you cross the Arrow, and at 43’2. pass through Witho a small Village.

Hence over Witho Heath at 45’2. you enter Warwickshire; then over Dickens Heath and Shirley Heath, and by several disperst Houses, you come at 49’6. to Solihul, a Town of 2 Furlongs Extent, formerly enjoying a Market, which was dis-us'd by occasion of a great Sickness; it enjoys at present a Fair each Lammas Day: then again by several scattering Houses, through Hampton on the Hill at 53’6. crossing the Blith at 55’5. you come at 56’2. to Meriden a discontinued Village of good Accomodation: hence over some small Ascents and Descents, through Ausley at 60 Miles, and COVENTRY at 62’6. as in LONDON to Holyhead, pag. 43.

From COVENTRY at 65’2. you pass through Forkshul, and cross the Sow, and at 69 Miles leave Sheldon a little on the Right; then through Woolvey at 71’7. a Village of 2 Furlongs Extent, and over Woolvey Warren, you come at 74 Miles to the Watling-street Way that leads from LONDON to Shrewsbury, and pass through Smockinton a little Village, yet affording very good accomodation, where you enter Leicestershire; then by Troutsworth on the Right and Aston on the Left, pass through Sharnford at 76’3. a Village of 2 Furlongs Extent, where you cross the Sour, which accompanies your Road on the Right to Leicester.

Hence you pass by Sapcoat and Croft on the Left, and over several small Waters, and by Narboro and Elson on the Right; you come at 86 Miles to a Stone-Bridg of 4 Arches, where you cross the foresaid Sour, and enter Leicester a Corporation, Market, and Shire-Town, [as in LONDON to Darby, pag. 79.] Adding this, That it is a Place of more Antiquity than Beauty, said to be Built by King Leir 844 years before the Birth of Christ, and call'd Caer-Lerion, where he likewise built a Temple of Janus, and plac'd therein a Flamin or High Priest, according to Jeoffry ap Arthur; but certain it is, that it was in Request in the time of the Romans, and was made an Episcopal See Anno 680. by Ethelred King of the Mercians, re-edify'd and encompast with a Wall by the Lady Edelfled, Anno 914. which with it's Castle are long since Destroy'd.

Backward Turnings to be avoided.

• 1. 4 Furl. short of Smockinton the Left to Little Wilston.
• 2. 2 Furl. beyond Smockinton the Right to Shrewsbury the Watling-street Way.
• 3. At the End of Hampton the R. to Coleshil.
• 4. 10 furl. beyond Hampton the R. to Coleshil
• 5. At the end of Solibul the R. to Birmingham
• 6. In Alchuch the Right to Kederminster.
• 7. 2 Furlongs beyond Burcote the Right to Kederminster.
• 8. In Droitwich the Right to Kederminster.
• 9. In WORCESTER the forward to LONDON.
• 10. In St. John's the Right to Bromyard, the Left to Lidbury.
• 11. In Braunsford the Right to Lye.
• 12. 8 Furlongs from Sinton, the Right to Lulsey.
• 13. 5 Furl. short of the entring Herefordsh. the Left to Lidbury.

Notes

• Counties past through. Rivers crost over. The quality of the way.
• Acute turnings to be a∣voided.
• HEREFORD, N. E. b. N. [1’5. E.]
• Shecknal, 5 Miles.
• Lower Ingleton, 7’6.
• Fromes-Hill, 11’7.
• [18 Miles E. N. E.]
• Sinton, 19’2. Braunsford, 20’7.
• WORCESSER, 24’4 N. N. E.
• Fennal Green, 27’6.
• Droitwich. 30’5.
• Ʋpton, 33 Miles.
• Bromsgrove, 36’1.
• [37’4. E. N. E.]
• Burcote, 37’7. Alchurch, 41 Miles.
• Witho, 43’2.
• Solihul, 50 Miles.
• Hampton, 53’6.
• Meriden, 56’4. E. Ausley, 60 Miles. COVENTRY, 62’6. N. E. [64’3. E. N. E.] Forkshul, 65’2. Woolvey, 71’7. [73’7. E.] Smockinton, 74’1. [74’6. N. E.]
• Sharnford, 76’3.
• Leicester, 86’6.