| May Hill | |
|---|---|
May Hill from Perrystone Hill |
|
| Elevation | 296 m (971 ft) |
| Prominence | c. 217 m |
| Parent peak | Worcestershire Beacon |
| Listing | Marilyn |
| Location | |
| Location | Gloucestershire, England |
| Topo map | OS Landranger 162 |
| OS grid | SO695213 |
May Hill is a hill between Gloucester and Ross-on-Wye. Its summit is on the western edge of Gloucestershire, though its northern slopes are in Herefordshire. The hill is made distinctive by a clump of trees on its top.[1]
Contents |
May Hill forms part of a low range of hills separating the River Severn from the River Wye. The summit is 296 metres (971 ft) above sea level, and located there among the trees are several benches from which one may study the views, which are extensive in all directions. They include views to the Welsh borders, and the lower reaches of the River Severn, bypassed for shipping by the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal.[2]
There is an unverified story that May Hill was named after a certain Captain May who used it as a landmark when navigating the Severn estuary, but documents from a couple of hundred years ago relate that the hill was known as Yartleton Hill and was renamed because of the May Day events held there.[3] Each May Day, morris dancers dance in the new dawn on the top of May Hill and hundreds of observers join in the celebration.[4] A ceremony on May Day morning has been carried out for several centuries; originally it included a mock battle between youths.[5]
An area of 30 ha of the hill is owned by the National Trust,[6] though the very top is vested with Longhope Parish Council. On the summit is a plaque erected to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 1977. It reads; "This plaque was erected by the parishes of Longhope & Newent as a tribute to a gracious and beloved monarch. "God Save the Queen"". The summit is reached by three public footpaths, two of them forming the Gloucestershire Way and Wysis Way.
John Masefield describes May Hill in his poem "The Everlasting Mercy".[7] Ivor Gurney eulogised "May Hill that Gloucester dwellers 'gainst every sunset see". Composer Gerald Finzi's ashes were scattered on the top in 1973[8] as have been the ashes of other local residents. One of the benches on the summit is dedicated to the Forest of Dean chronicler Winifred Foley and her husband, who moved in the 1970s to the nearby village of Cliffords Mesne.[9]
The top of the hill is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.[10] Much of it is wooded, both coniferous and deciduous, though the summit area is grassland and heath, with a small amount of heather and gorse. The immediate summit is topped with mature pines which were planted in 1887 to mark Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee.[11] These trees make May Hill as easily identifiable landmark from many miles away. The younger trees around were planted to mark Queen Elizabeth's Silver Jubilee. Early maps and accounts show a clump of trees on the top before these plantings.[12] Birds to be seen on the hill include meadow pipit, tree pipit, redstart and raven, whilst the woods below have a good population of woodcock.[13]
May Hill is formed of sandstones and siltstones known as the May Hill Sandstone, consisting of the Huntley Hill and Yartleton Formations. These rocks date from the Early Silurian period and are formed into a dome, cut through by several faults. The most significant of which is the Blaisdon Fault which forms the eastern boundary of May Hill and separates it from the younger rocks of the Severn Vale.[14]