Historic county, western England.
It extended from the Welsh borderland to the industrial Midlands; its county seat was Worcester . It was formed in 1974 by the amalgamation of the former counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire; in the 1990s, however, the county was once again divided, into the counties of Herefordshire and Worcester. It includes lowland plains, the Forest of Dean plateau, the Black Mountains, the rich valleys of the Rivers Avon , and the Cotswolds. There are remains of Norman strongholds, Benedictine abbeys, and a perfectly preserved priory church. Agriculture is a major activity; there is some heavy industry.