Shire England is not a theme park; it is a living, breathing place where ancient hedgerows still mark the same boundaries set by Saxon kings. It is the England of The Archers , of Midsomer Murders, and of lazy Sunday roasts.

Classic characteristics of Shire England include:

To walk through a shire is to walk through the deep memory of England itself. Whether you are hiking a ridge in the Peak District or buying a pork pie from a village deli, you are participating in a tradition over a thousand years old.

The suffix -shire comes from the Old English word scir , meaning "care" or "official charge." Historically, a shire was a division of land governed by a sheriff (literally "shire reeve"). While modern administrative boundaries have changed, the cultural identity of these shires remains incredibly strong.