THE BCH ARCHIVE
LOCAL HISTORY FOR
BIRTSMORTON
CASTLEMORTON
HOLLYBUSH
And The Surrounding District
Castlemorton
Castlemorton Motte
Castlemorton is a village and civil parish close to Malvern in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England.
It consists of a village centre, a large common and many farms and houses within the area. To the south of the village are the earthwork remains of a medieval motte-and-bailey castle.
Castlemorton Common was once part of the vast Royal hunting grounds of the Malvern Chase. James I split up much of this hunting ground (examples are Eastnor Castle Estate, Bromsberrow Estate) and Castlemorton Common is the largest remaining tract of unenclosed public land. Much of Castlemorton is today within a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) due to ome very rare fauna and flora living within its boundaries.
The Common was the location of the controversial Castlemorton Common Festival, a week-long free festival and rave held in 1992, that led to the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.[1][2] The event made national headlines.
In 2012 the Worcestershire Wildlife Trust signed a lease to manage and restore 16 hectares (42 acres) of meadow at Hollybed Farm near Castlemorton.[3
Wikipedia Entry