Ratlinghope (, ) is a hamlet and civil parish in Shropshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 138. It is situated west of Church Stretton and south of Shrewsbury.

Historically it was located in the hundred of Purslow. In the Church of England it is in the rural deanery of Bishop's Castle, archdeaconry of Ludlow, and diocese of Hereford.

The village is scattered around a valley in the hills of the Long Mynd and Stiperstones, an AONB (area of outstanding natural beauty).

Nearby is the hamlet of Bridges, which falls within Ratlinghope civil parish, and where there is a youth hostel and a public house.

Castle Ring, the earthwork of Ratlinghope Hill, is the fort described by Mary Webb in her novel Golden Arrow.

History

The area of the parish is , of which, at the start of the 20th century, 3,756 acres were arable and pasture, 200 acres woodland, and about 1,500 acres common. The population in 1901 was 197. The land is hilly, and the soil is sand and clay, on a rocky subsoil. An old Roman road, the Portway, runs between Ratlinghope and Church Stretton, and is continued along the crest of the Long Mynd in a north-easterly direction. In the neighbourhood are some British camps (Iron Age hillforts) and tumuli.

Ratlinghope, in Domesday Rotelingehope, means the hope or valley of the people of Rotel, Rotel being the Saxon name from which the County of Rutland's name was derived. At the time of the Domesday survey, Rotelingehope was a manor of two hides, which were waste, and was held by Robert fitz Corbet of Earl Roger de Montgomery. In Edward the Confessor's reign, Seuuard had held it. Robert fitz Corbet was a younger brother of Roger, the builder of Caus Castle; he left two daughters, his heirs, Sibil (or Adela), and Alice. Sibil, who had been one of Henry I's mistresses, married Herbert fitz Herbert, whilst Alice became the wife of William Botterell. Before 1209 Ratlinghope was acquired by Walter Corbet, an Augustine Canon, and a relative of Prince Llewelyn ap Iorwerth, who gave him a letter of protection. Walter Corbet founded here a small cell or priory of Augustinian Canons of St Victor, in connection with Wigmore. Nothing is known of its history, but at the dissolution there was a Prior and 29 Canons; and the possessions of the Priory, valued at £5 11s 1½d per annum, were sold in May 1546 to Robert Longe, a member of the Mercers Guild of the City of London.

Filming location and music festivals

Ratlinghope appears in an episode of Dalziel and Pascoe.

In 2005, the village acquired a further degree of fame when it became the main filming location for the BBC sitcom Green Green Grass.

Between 1980 and 2013, John C. Williams and Frances Williams ran the Music at Leasowes Bank festival featuring both jazz and classical performers.

It also featured on the Paul Heaton Pedals & Pumps Tour of 2010 when he came by bicycle and played the Horseshoe Inn/Bridges.

The village has an annual music festival nearby, usually held in August by a local farmer. Farmer Phil's Festival is run by the family who allow camping before and after the festival ends.

It also has a smaller more eclectic festival that takes place around the Midsummers Soltice (Litha) called the Sin eater although it does not appear to be an annual event – this is a more low key event with Drum workshops and more local bands and is a more laid back affair than Farmer Phil's

See also

  • Listed buildings in Ratlinghope

References

  • This article incorporates text from "The Register of Ratlinghope", a publication in the public domain.
  • The Register of Ratlinghope, by W. G. D. Fletcher from Project Gutenberg, giving details from the parish registers from 1755 to 1813