Pictures of Hodnet

About Hodnet

Shropshire is a beautiful old county with a wealth of ancient and historic villages, some, like Hodnet, retain wonderful 'gems' from an old and illustrious past. Hodnet is particularly noted for its impressive sandstone church built in the 14th-century and dedicated to St.Luke. The church has an octagonal tower and the wide south aisle was once the nave. The font is carved and in Norman style but is thought to date only from the 17th-century. Some restoration work was carried out to the church in the 19th-century, this included the addition of the Heber Chapel in 1870. There are old tombs of the 18th and 19th-centuries including one to Bishop Heber (d.1826) by Sir Francis Chantry and one by John Carline. The church is quite splendid and among its many treasures is a chained Nuremberg Bible, dating from 1479.

Interestingly, another beautiful feature of Hodnet are the magnificent gardens of Hodnet Hall, once the home of the Vernons and more laterley the home of the Heber-Percys, among whose ancestors was Bishop Heber, who was rector here and whose tomb lies in the parish church. Brigadier Heber-Percy created the first water garden in the valley in 1921 and he followed this with a lake in 1923. Not much more was done until the mid 20th-century but today, these fabulous wooded gardens are interspersed with numerous pools, wide sweeping lawns and glowing flower beds. There is a beautiful rose garden and masses of rhododendrons and azaleas. These delightful grounds are open to the public and are well worth seeing.

Of the village itself, it is surely one of the prettiest black and white half-timbered villages in the region which together with its ancient church of St.Luke and fine Hodnet Hall Gardens, is well worth a visit.

Delightful Market Drayton is within easy driving distance and Hawkstone Park is just a stone's throw away. The county town of Shrewsbury has interesting buildings and a museum which records the history of the town and villages.