Hereford played host to famous historical figures in its time. Several festivals are hosted in Hereford including the Beer on the Wye festival, the Hereford Food Festival, and the Three Choirs Festival Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester. With a population of 58,896, it is the largest settlement in the county. The name "Hereford" is said to come from the Anglo-Saxon "here", an army or formation of soldiers, and the "ford", a
History of Worcester their fort at Worcester was chosen—in preference to both the much larger Gloucester and the royal court at Winchcombe—to be the seat of a new bishopric, suggesting there was already a well-established and powerful Christian community when the site fell into English hands. The oldest known church was , which was certainly British; the Saxon cathedral was dedicated to St Peter. Worcester appears frequently in the historic records prior to the Viking era, often with reference to the church and monastic communities, and showing evidence of extensive ecclesiastical ownership of lands. During King Alfred's reign, the earls of Mercia fortified