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92-465: Gillian Rubinstein (born 29 August 1942) is an English-born children's author and playwright. Born in Potten End, Berkhamsted , Hertfordshire , England, Rubinstein split her childhood between England and Nigeria, moving to Australia in 1973. As well as eight plays, numerous short stories and articles, she has written over 30 books. Her award-winning and hugely popular 1986 debut Space Demons introduced

184-515: A Site of Special Scientific Interest . Agriculture is more dominant to the south of the town; close to the Buckinghamshire border there are two former large country estates, Ashlyns and Rossway . The ancient woodland at Dickshills is also located here. The layout of Berkhamsted's centre is typical of a medieval market settlement: the linear High Street (aligned on the Akeman Street) forms

276-477: A pelter , a tanner , five cloth dyers, six wheelwrights , three smiths , six grain merchants, a skinner and a baker/butcher. In the 14th century, Berkhamsted (recorded as "Berchamstede") was considered to be one of the "best" market towns in the country. In a survey of 1357, Richard Clay was found to own a butcher's shop twelve feet (four metres) wide, William Herewood had two shops, and there were four other shops eight feet (two metres) in length. In 1440, there

368-887: A Baptist and a grocer 's apprentice, played a zealous and prominent part in the English Civil War , both in England and in the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland . He participated as a lieutenant colonel in Pride's Purge of the Long Parliament (December 1648), arguably the only military coup d'état in English history, and commanded the Parliamentary Guard at the trial of King Charles I at Westminster Hall in 1649. During Cromwell's Protectorate, he appropriated Berkhamsted Place. Shortly after

460-426: A German, well tried in warfare, made a brave resistance against them and caused great slaughter amongst the excommunicated French. —The contemporary chronicler, Roger of Wendover , based at St Albans abbey , 12 miles from Berkhamsted, describing the siege During the siege, Prince Louis introduced a new destructive siege engine to England at Berkhamsted, the counterweight trebuchet (or mangonel ) . After

552-453: A borough by a royal charter granted by Edward IV (1442–1483), which decreed that no other market town was to be set up within 11 miles (18 km). In the 16th century, the town fell into decline after abandonment of the castle following the death of Cicely Neville, Duchess of York , in 1495, and the rise of the nearby town of Hemel Hempstead (which was granted a Charter of Incorporation by Henry VIII on 29 December 1539). The population of

644-584: A co-educational boarding independent school (founded in 1541 by John Incent , Dean of St Paul's Cathedral ); Ashlyns School a state school, whose history began as the Foundling Hospital established in London by Thomas Coram in 1742; and Ashridge Executive Education , a business school offering degree level courses, which occupies the Grade I listed neo-Gothic Ashridge House . The earliest recorded spelling of

736-539: A fair proportion of handsome residences". The town's population increased as "hundreds of men arrived to build the railway line and needed lodging"; by 1851, the population was 3,395, From 1850 large estates around Berkhamsted were sold, allowing for housing expansion. In 1851 the Pilkington Manor estate, east of Castle Street, was sold, and the land developed both as an industrial area and for artisans' dwellings. In 1868 streets of middle-class villas began to appear on

828-577: A grass- sedge fen. In the 6th Millennium BC the dense deciduous forest became well established. By the Mid to late 3rd millennium BC during the Neolithic period (the New Stone Age) human activity can be seen in wood clearances; the woodland being then dominated by lime trees , with alder trees growing on the flood plain . The River Bulbourne , a chalk stream , runs through the valley for 7 miles (11 km) in

920-491: A new market house was erected west of St Peter's Church at the end of Middle Row (alternatively named Le Shopperowe or Graball Row). The market house was destroyed in a fire in 1854. In 1612, Berkhamsted Place was bought by Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales for £4,000. Henry died later that year, and bequeathed the house to his brother Charles (later King Charles I ), who leased the property to his tutor, Thomas Murray, and his wife, Mary Murray, who had been his nurse and Lady of

1012-583: A parliamentary report of 1777 refers to a parish workhouse for up to 34 inmates in Northchurch. A small "wretched, straw-thatched" house was used to house poor families in Berkhamsted, on the corner of what is now Park View Road, until it was demolished in the 1820s. In 1831 a bequest of £1,000 by the Revd George Nugent led to a new parish workhouse being set up on the site of a workhouse which had operated in

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1104-647: A row of tenements on the High Street (at the Kitsbury Road junction) known as Ragged Row. The "Berkhampstead Poor Law Union" was formed in June 1835 covering ten parishes centred on the town. The Union took over the existing Berkhamsted parish workhouse, and by August 1835 it had become the sole workhouse for the union. The workhouse had no schoolroom, so in 1849 the Poor Law Board recommended that pauper children be sent to

1196-477: A seller of salt and a huntsman. At this time, larger houses of merchants and castle officials appeared on the south side of the high street (including 173 High Street , the oldest known extant jettied building in England). In 1307 Berkhamsted was a large town by English medieval standards with an estimated population of 2,000 to 2,500. In 1355, there were five butchers, two bakers, nine brewers, two cobblers ,

1288-458: A siege of twenty days the young new King ( Henry III ) ordered his constable to surrender the castle to Louis on 20 December. Following the siege at Berkhamsted Louis suffered several defeats. 11 September 1217 Louis signed the Treaty of Lambeth , relinquishing his claim to the English throne and surrendering French-held castles including Berkhamsted. Walerand went on to hold several other posts including

1380-525: A southeast direction, starting at Dudswell and the adjoining village of Northchurch and running through Berkhamsted, Bourne End and Boxmoor , where it merges with the River Gade at Two Waters in Apsley , near Hemel Hempstead. Rich in eels and other fish, it was fast-moving and full, and prone to frequent localised flooding. The river created a marsh environment (at times referred to as an 'unhealthy swamp') in

1472-526: Is a reference to lime kilns. The town benefited when Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall , founded Ashridge Priory in 1283, two miles (three kilometres) away and within the castle's park. At the foundation of the abbey, the Earl donated a phial claimed to contain Christ's blood. Pilgrims from all over Europe passed through the town to see the holy relic. The abbey grew quite wealthy as a result. Edward I held parliament at

1564-470: Is based in the neighbouring large new town of Hemel Hempstead . Berkhamsted, along with the adjoining village of Northchurch , is encircled by countryside, much of it in the Chiltern Hills which is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The High Street is on a pre-Roman route known by its Saxon name: Akeman Street . The earliest written reference to Berkhamsted was in 970. The settlement

1656-596: Is divided between the National Trust and Berkhamsted Golf Club. Beyond the common is the 5,000-acre (2,000 ha) historic wooded parkland of Ashridge ; once part of Berkhamsted Castle 's hunting park, it is now managed by the National Trust. Ashridge is part of the Chilterns Beechwood Special Area of Conservation (SAC), a nationally important nature conservation area, and is also designated as

1748-415: Is elongated and follows the valley's topography. The southwest side of the valley is more developed, with side streets running up the steep hillside; on the northeast side, the ground gently slopes down to the castle, railway, canal and small river, was less available for development. Today, Berkhamsted is an affluent, "pleasant town tucked in a wooded fold in the Chiltern Hills "; with a large section of

1840-495: Is her first work to reach an adult audience. The name 'Lian', comes from a childhood nickname and 'Hearn' apparently refers to herons which are a prominent theme in the series. It has also been suggested that the surname is most likely borrowed from Lafcadio Hearn ; one of the first Western writers to tackle Japanese mythology. Gillian Rubinstein currently resides in Mullumbimby, New South Wales . The Tale of Shikanoko series

1932-509: Is included in Berkhamsted's coat of arms. Richard's wife, Sanchia of Provence , died in the castle in 1260. Richard was succeeded by his son, Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall , who founded Ashridge Priory , a college of the monastic order of Bonhommes , in 1283. In 1300, after Edmund died, Edward I took the castle; he subsequently granted it to his second queen, Margaret of France . In 1309, Edward I's and Margaret's son, Edward II , granted Berkhamsted to his favourite, Piers Gaveston . In 1317,

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2024-494: Is not clear. Rare Anglo-Saxon pottery dating from the 7th century onwards has been found between Chesham Road and St John's Well Lane, with water mills near Mill Street in use from the late 9th century, show that an Anglo-Saxon settlement existed in the centre of modern-day Berkhamsted. The nearest known structural evidence of the Anglo-Saxon period are in the south and west walls of St Mary's Northchurch, one mile (two kilometres) to

2116-601: Is set in the Otori universe, several centuries prior to the Tales of the Otori . Berkhamsted Berkhamsted ( / ˈ b ɜːr k əm s t ɛ d / BUR -kəm-sted ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire , England, in the Bulbourne valley , 26 miles (42 km) north-west of London. The town is a civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which

2208-467: The Chiltern Hills into Buckinghamshire lies the nearby hamlet of Ashley Green and the fellow market towns of Chesham (4.7 miles (8 km) distant) and Amersham . Further southwest is the village of Great Missenden and to the west is the small market town of Wendover . Along the A4251 and valley northwestwards is the adjoining village of Northchurch , and the hamlets of Dudswell and Cow Roast ,

2300-463: The Chiltern Hills , part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England, believed to have formed between 84 and 100 million years ago in the Cretaceous Period when the area was a chalk -depositing marine environment. The town is located in a narrow northwest to southeast valley falling from 590 feet (180 m) above sea level to 344 feet (105 m). The valley is at

2392-552: The National Trust in 1895) and the Commons Preservation Society . Lord Justice Romilly determined that pulling down a fence was no more violent an act than erecting one. The case, he said, rested on the legality of Brownlow's action in building the fence and the legal right of people to use the land. He ruled in favour of Smith. This decision, along with the Metropolitan Commons Act 1866 , helped to ensure

2484-562: The Privy Chamber to the prince's mother. John Norden wrote in 1616 that the making of malt was then the principal trade of the town. In 1618, James I reaffirmed Berkhamsted's borough status with a charter. Following surveys in 1607 and 1612 the Duchy of Cornwall enclosed 300 acres (121 ha) from the Common (now known as Coldharbour farm) despite local opposition led by Rev Thomas Newman. In 1639

2576-565: The Restoration of the monarchy under Charles II , the unrepentant Axtell was hanged, drawn and quartered as a regicide . After the Restoration, the town lost its charter granted by James I and its borough status. The surveyor of Hertfordshire recommended that a new tenant and army officers were needed at Berkhamsted Place "to govern the people much seduced of late by new doctrine preacht unto them by Axtell and his colleagues." The population of

2668-545: The Western Front . Their training included trench digging: 8 miles (13 km) of trenches were dug across the Common (of which 1,640 feet (500 m) remain). The Inns of Court War Memorial on the Common has the motto Salus Populi Suprema Lex —the welfare of the people is the highest law—and states that the ashes of Colonel Errington were buried nearby. In 1909 Sunnyside and later in 1935 Northchurch were added to Berkhamsted Urban District. Shortly after 1918 much of

2760-485: The 17th-century hymnist and poet William Cowper , the 18th-century writer Maria Edgeworth and the 20th-century novelist Graham Greene . Arts institutions in the town include The Rex (a well regarded independent cinema) and the British Film Institute 's BFI National Archive at King's Hill, which is one of the largest film and television archives in the world. Schools in the town include Berkhamsted School ,

2852-619: The 20th century, many of the old industrial firms in Berkhamsted closed, while the numbers of commuters increased. After the Second World War, in July 1946, the nearby town of Hemel Hempstead was designated a New Town under the New Towns Act ("New Towns" were satellite urban developments around London to relieve London's population growth and housing shortages caused by the Blitz ). In February 1947

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2944-520: The 52 burgesses were involved in trade, but it is unknown if the burgesses existed before the conquest. Berkhamsted Castle is a (now ruined) motte-and-bailey Norman castle. Radiocarbon dating of organic remains from within the motte indicates that it was probably built post-1066 (a dyke builder is recorded in the town at the time of the Domesday Book). The castle was a high-status residence and an administrative centre for large estates (including

3036-592: The Black Prince, Berkhamsted become a centre of English longbow archery. A decisive factor in the English victory at the Battle of Crécy (1346) was the introduction of this new weapon onto the Western European battlefield. The longbow was a superior weapon to the cumbersome and slower crossbow. The Berkhamsted bowmen successfully took part in this significant battle in medieval Western European history. The Black Prince

3128-572: The Chapel of St James was a small church near St John's Well (a 'holy well' that was the town's principal source of drinking water in the Middle Ages ). The parish of this church (and later that of St Peter's) was an enclave of about 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) surrounded by Berkhamsted St Mary's parish. By the 14th century the adjoining village of "Berkhamsted St Mary" or "Berkhamsted Minor" name had become "North Church", later "Northchurch", to distinguish

3220-501: The Duchy tried to enclose a further 400 acres (162 ha) of the Berkhamsted and Northchurch Commons, but was prevented from doing so by William Edlyn of Norcott. The castle's park, which had reached 1,252 acres (507 ha) by 1627, was broken up over the next two decades, shrinking to only 376 acres (152 ha), to the benefit of local farmers. In 1643, Berkhamsted was visited by a violent pestilential fever. Born in Berkhamsted, Colonel Daniel Axtell (1622 – 19 October 1660),

3312-511: The Earldom of Cornwall). Through the High and Late Middle Ages the close proximity of the royal castle and court helped fuel Berkhamsted's growth, prosperity and sense of importance. It created jobs for the local population, both within the castle itself and also, for example, in the large deer park and in the vineyard , which were maintained alongside the castle. After Robert, Count of Mortain,

3404-527: The Earls Brownlow, a branch of the Egerton family. In 1866, Lord Brownlow of Ashridge House (encouraged by his mother, Lady Marian Alford ) in an action similar to many other large estate holders tried to enclose Berkhamsted Common with 5-foot (1.5 m) steel fences (built by Woods of Berkhamsted) in order to claim the land as part of his family's estate. In response to the enclosure action and in defence

3496-563: The French laid siege to Berkhamsted Castle (only a quarter of a mile from the town centre) in late December 1216. The queen's constable of the castle was the German Walerand Teutonicus . After reducing the castle of Hertford, Louis marched on St Nicholas's day (6 December) to the castle of Berkhamsted and surrounded it with his engines of war. Whilst the English barons, after pitching their tents, were employed in setting them in order,

3588-666: The Government purchased 5,910 acres (2,392 ha) of land and began construction. As a result Hemel Hempstead's population increased from 20,000 to over 90,000 today, making it the largest town in Hertfordshire. In 1974, the old hundred of Dacorum became the modern district of Dacorum formed under the Local Government Act 1972 , based in Hemel Hempstead. Berkhamsted is situated 26 miles (42 km) northwest of London within

3680-517: The abbey in 1290 and spent Christmas there. Berkhamsted burgesses sent two members to parliament in 1320, 1338 and 1341, but the town was not represented again. In the mid-14th century, the Black Prince took advantage of the Black Death to extend the castle's park by 65 acres (26 ha), eventually producing a park covering 991 acres (401 ha). In the 15th century, the town was reaffirmed as

3772-574: The area near the Market House was used for butchery. In the 17th and 18th centuries Hemel Hempstead, with its thriving market, eclipsed Berkhamsted as the major town in the area. Georgian Berkhamsted barely extended beyond the medieval triangle and the High Street. With the coming of the Industrial Age , Berkhamsted was well placed at a gateway through the Chilterns, between the markets of London and

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3864-432: The barons in confusion, they carried before them the standard which they had taken a short time before, and thought to come on them unawares, but the latter were forewarned of this, and drove them back to the castle. When the following day dawned Louis ordered the petrarie (stone-throwing machines) and other engines of war to be erected around the city, which being done, they kept up a destructive shower of stones: but Waleran,

3956-467: The castle after he deposed Richard, and he used the castle to imprison others attempting to obtain the throne. During this time, Geoffrey Chaucer – later famous for writing The Canterbury Tales – oversaw renovation work on the castle in his role as Clerk of the Works at Berkhamsted. It is unknown how much time he spent at Berkhamsted, but he knew John of Gaddesden , who lived in nearby Little Gaddesden and

4048-487: The castle passed to his heir William, who rebelled against Henry I and lost the castle to the king. In 1155 Henry in turn gave it to his favourite Thomas Becket , who held it till 1165. Becket was later alleged to have spent over £300 on improvements to the castle, a claim that led Henry to accuse him of corruption and may have contributed to his downfall. Henry II extensively used the castle, making it one of his favourite residences. Both King Richard I and King John gave

4140-552: The castle to their queens, Berengaria of Navarre and Isabella of Angoulême , respectively. In King John's reign, Geoffrey Fitz Peter (c. 1162–1213), Earl of Essex and the Chief Justiciar of England (effectively the king's principal minister) held the Honour and Manor of Berkhamsted from 1199 to 1212. During his time in the castle he was responsible for the foundation of the new parish church of St Peter (the size of which reflects

4232-503: The castle was abandoned in 1495, the town went into decline, losing its borough status in the second half of the 17th century. Colonel Daniel Axtell , captain of the Parliamentary Guard at the trial and execution of King Charles I in 1649, was among those born in Berkhamsted . Modern Berkhamsted began to expand after the canal and the railway were built in the 19th century. In the 21st century, Berkhamsted has evolved into an affluent commuter town . The town's literary connections include

4324-467: The castle was given to Edward II's queen, Isabella of France . Edward III further developed the castle and gave it (as part of the Duchy of Cornwall) to his son, Edward, the Black Prince , who expanded the hunting grounds. The castle was used to hold royal prisoners, including John II of France . In 1361, Edward the Black Prince and Joan, the Maid of Kent , spent their honeymoon in Berkhamsted. Under Edward

4416-601: The centre of Berkhamsted. Several settlements dating from the Neolithic to the Iron Age (about 4500–100 BC) have been discovered south of Berkhamsted. Three sections of a late Bronze Age to Iron Age (1200–100 BC) bank and ditch, sixteen feet (five metres) wide by seven to thirteen feet (two to four metres) high and known as Grim's Ditch , are found on the south side of the Bulbourne Valley. Another Iron Age dyke with

4508-598: The centre of the valley. The river powered the watermills (recorded in 1086) and fed the three moats of the large Norman Motte and Bailey castle, that stands close to the centre of the town where a small dry combe joins the Bulbourne valley. The countryside surrounding the town includes parts of the Green Belt and the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty . The Urban Nature Conservation Study (UNCS) recognises

4600-478: The construction of the Grand Junction Canal in 1798. The canal intersects the river at numerous points, taking most of its water supply and helping to drain the valley. The locality became further urbanised when the London to Birmingham railway was built in 1836–37. The townscape was shaped by the Bulbourne valley, which rises 300 feet (91 metres) on either side at its narrowest point; the residential area

4692-530: The end of the Roman period. Other evidence of Roman-British occupation and activity in the Berkhamsted area, includes a pottery kiln on Bridgewater Road. The town's high street still follows the line of the Roman-engineered Akeman Street , which had been a pre-existing route from St Albans ( Verulamium ) to Cirencester ( Corinium ). During Roman occupation the countryside close to Verulamium

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4784-460: The extensive estate belonging to Berkhamsted Hall, at the east end of the High Street, was sold; many acres west of Swing Gate Lane were developed with council housing. More council housing was built at Gossoms End. Development on the north side of the valley was limited until the sale of the Ashridge estate in the 1930s, after which housing appeared at each end of Bridgewater Road. In the second half of

4876-621: The growing prosperity of the town); two hospitals, St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist (one of which was a leper hospital), which survived until 1516; and for the layout of the town. Following the signing of Magna Carta (1215), King John's reneging on the royal charter, the castle was besieged during the ensuing civil war, known as the First Barons' War , between John and barons supported by Prince Louis (the future Louis VIII of France ),

4968-535: The hill south of the High Street. Lower Kings Road was built by public subscription in 1885 to join Kings Road and the High Street to the station. In 1887, John Bartholomew's Gazetteer of the British Isles recorded the population at 4,485. Industries in the 19th century included: Utilities in the 19th century included: In 1725 "An Account of Several Workhouses" records a parish workhouse in Berkhamsted, and

5060-471: The hills" or the "homestead among the birches". Through history spellings of the town's name have changed. Local historian Rev John Wolstenholme Cobb identified over 50 different versions of the town's name since the writing of the Domesday Book (such as: "Berkstead", "Berkampsted", "Berkhampstead", "Muche Barkhamstede", "Berkhamsted Magna", "Great Berkhamsteed" and "Berkhamstead".) The present spelling

5152-505: The historic right of the public to use the ancient common land, Augustus Smith MP and George Shaw-Lefevre organised local people and 120 hired men from London's East End to dismantle the fences on the night of 6 March, in what became known nationally as the Battle of Berkhamsted Common. Lord Brownlow brought a legal case against Smith for trespass and criminal damage, Smith was aided in his defence by Sir Robert Hunter (later co-founder of

5244-414: The industrial Midlands . The town became a link in the growing network of roads, canals and railways. These developments led Berkhamsted's population to expand once again. In 1801, the population of St Peter's parish had been 1,690 and by 1831, this had risen to 2,369 (484 houses). An 1835 description of the town found that "the houses are mostly of brick, and irregularly built, but are interspersed with

5336-403: The knights and soldiers of the garrison made a sally, seized the baggage and conveyances of the barons and gained possession of the standard of William de Mandeville with which they returned to the castle, regretting that they could do no further injury to them. On the same day, whilst the barons were sitting at table, the knights and soldiers of the garrison again made a sally, and, in order to put

5428-550: The largest landholder in the country. Robert built a wooden fortification that later became a royal retreat for the monarchs of the Norman and Plantagenet dynasties. According to the Domesday Book , the lord of Berkhamsted before the Norman conquest was Edmer Ator (also referred to as Eadmer Atule), thegn of Edward the Confessor and King Harold. The Domesday survey records that there

5520-417: The laws and customs enjoyed under Edward the Confessor , William I and Henry I, and freed the town's merchants from all tolls and dues. The charter also stated that no market could be set up within 7 miles (11 km) of the town. The town became a trading centre on an important trade route in the 12th and 13th centuries, and received more royal charters. In 1216, Henry III relieved the men and merchants of

5612-401: The local National School . However in 1858 the school complained about the state of the children attending from the workhouse. A fever ward was erected in 1855, and a full-time nurse was engaged in 1868. The workhouse system officially came to an end in 1930, and control over the workhouse was given to local council. Nugent House, the Berkhamsted workhouse, finally closed in 1935 and its function

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5704-406: The mid–13th century, a banker, the wealthy Abraham of Berkhamsted, financier to the Earl of Cornwall, lived in the town; this was unusual for a small town in a time of heightened persecution of Jews . A 1290 taxation list mentions a brewer, a lead burner, a carpenter, leather workers, a fuller , a turner , a butcher, a fishmonger, a barber, an archer, a tailor, a cloth-napper, a miller , a cook,

5796-409: The most important late Iron Age and Roman industrial areas in England. Iron production led to the settlement of a Roman town at Cow Roast , about two miles (three kilometres) northwest of Berkhamsted. Four Roman first century AD iron smelting bloomeries at Dellfield (one mile (two kilometres) northwest of the town centre) provide evidence of industrial activity in Berkhamsted. Production ceased at

5888-436: The north-west of modern Berkhamsted. The church may have been an important minster , attached to a high status Anglo-Saxon estate, which became part of the medieval manor of Berkhamsted after the Norman conquest . The parish of Berkhamsted St Mary's (in Northchurch) once stretched five miles (8.0 km) from the hamlet of Dudswell , through Northchurch and Berkhamsted to the former hamlet of Bourne End. Within Berkhamsted,

5980-402: The number of 52 burgesses in Berkhamsted was a clerical error, as it is a large number for a small town. Berkhamsted was described in the Domesday Book as a burbium ( ancient borough ) in the Tring Hundred . ( ) Marjorie Chibnall argued that Robert, Count of Mortain intended Berkhamsted to be both a commercial and a defensive centre; while John Hatcher and Edward Miller believed that

6072-408: The protection of Berkhamsted Common and other open spaces nationally threatened with enclosure. In 1926 the common was acquired by the National Trust. During the First World War , under the guidance of Lt Col Francis Errington, the Inns of Court Officers' Training Corps trained men from the legal profession as officers. Over the course of the war, 12,000 men travelled from Berkhamsted to fight on

6164-437: The royal court. In 1217, Henry III recognised by royal charter the town's oldest institution, Berkhamsted's pre-existing market. Trades within medieval Berkhamsted were extensive: early in the 13th century the town had a merchant, two painters, a goldsmith, a forester, two farriers , two tailors, a brewer of mead , a blacksmith, carpenters, wood turners , tool makers, a manufacturer of roofing tiles and wine producers. In

6256-399: The same name is on Berkhamsted Common, on the north side of the valley. In the late Iron Age, before the Roman occupation, the valley would have been within Catuvellauni territory. The Bulbourne Valley was rich in timber and iron ore. In the late Iron Age, a four-square-mile (ten-square-kilometre) area around Northchurch became a major iron production centre, now considered to be one of

6348-448: The senior position of Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports . In 1227, Henry III's younger brother, Richard of Cornwall , was given the manor and castle, beginning the long association of the castle with the Earls and later the Dukes of Cornwall . Richard redeveloped the castle as a palatial residence and the centre for the administration of the Earldom of Cornwall . Richard's coat of arms as Earl of Cornwall, along with bezants ,

6440-409: The settlement protected as a conservation area. Traveling on the high street away from the town, along the Bulbourne valley south-eastwards towards London, the A4251 road passes through the village of Bourne End and the large new town of Hemel Hempstead (8 miles (13 km) distant). To the south south-east is the large village of Bovingdon . Taking the A416 road south from Berkhamsted, along

6532-406: The site), and are freely open to the public. The town continued to develop separately on the old Akeman Street 0.4 miles (0.6 km) to the south of the castle and to the west of St Peter's Church; with a triangle formed by Mill Street, Castle Street and Back Lane pointing towards the castle. In 1156, Henry II officially recognised Berkhamsted as a town in a royal charter , which confirmed

6624-509: The southernmost limit of the Pleistocene glaciation ice erosion throughout the Chiltern scarp, giving it a smooth rounded appearance, with alluvial soils in the valley bottom and chalk, clay and flint on the valley sides. In the early Mesolithic period (Middle Stone Age, mid to late 8th millennium BC), the local upland was mostly pine woodland and the low area of central Berkhamsted probably

6716-462: The spine of the town (roughly aligned east–west), from which extend medieval burgage plots (to the north and south). The surviving burgage plot layout is the result of a comprehensive plan carried out at the beginning of the 13th century, most probably instigated by Geoffrey fitz Peter. The town centre slowly developed over the years and contains a wide variety of properties that date from the 13th century onwards. The modern town began to develop after

6808-542: The surrender of Edgar the Ætheling (heir to the English throne), Archbishop Ealdred , Earl Edwin , Earl Morcar and the leaders of London. It is not known why the town was chosen as the meeting place, except that it was in a defensive location north-west of London. William was crowned in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day, 1066. After his coronation, William granted the "Honour of Berkhamsted" to his half-brother, Robert, Count of Mortain , who after William became

6900-510: The themes of growing up and fantasy worlds which emerge often in her other writings. Books such as At Ardilla , Foxspell and Galax-Arena all received critical acclaim and multiple awards. In 2001, Rubinstein published Across the Nightingale Floor , the first of the best-selling three-book series Tales of the Otori series under the pseudonym Lian Hearn . The series is set in a fictional island nation resembling feudal Japan and

6992-461: The town and inside the ruins of the historic castle is unknown. The Battle of Berkhamsted Common played an important part in the preservation of common land nationally. After 1604 the former Ashridge Priory became the home of the Edgerton family. In 1808–1814 Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater , demolished the old priory, and built a stately home, Ashridge House . In 1848 the estate passed to

7084-570: The town from all tolls and taxes everywhere in England, and the English Plantagenet possessions in France, Normandy , Aquitaine and Anjou . The growing wool trade brought prosperity to Berkhamsted from the 12th century until the early Tudor period . Four wealthy Berkhamsted wool merchants were amongst a group in Bruges to whom Edward III wrote in 1332, and Berkhamsted merchants sold cloth to

7176-427: The town in 1563 has been estimated at only 545. In 1580, the castle ruins and the park were leased by Elizabeth I to Sir Edward Carey, for the nominal rent of one red rose each year. Stone from the castle was used to build Berkhamsted Place , a local school, and other buildings in the late 16th century. Brewing and maltings was noted as one of the town's principal industries in the reign of Elizabeth. Around 1583,

7268-481: The town in 1640 and in the 1690s was estimated at 1075 and 767, respectively. The town was a centre of religious nonconformity from the 17th century: over a quarter of the town were Dissenters in the second half of the century, and in 1700, there were 400 Baptists recorded as living in Berkhamsted. Three more shops are mentioned in the row next to the church, and the Parliamentary Survey of 1653 suggests that

7360-463: The town's hinterland as a biodiversity resource. The hills gently rise to an undulating and open plateau, which has a mix of arable farmland, common land and mixed oak , ash and beech woodland. On the northeast side of town are the Berkhamsted and Northchurch commons , the largest in the Chilterns at 1,055 acres (427 ha), and forming a large arc running from Northchurch, through Frithsden and down to Potten End . Ownership of Berkhamsted Common

7452-516: The town's name is the 10th century Anglo-Saxon Beorhðanstædæ . The first part may have originated from either the Old English words beorg , meaning "hill", or berc or beorc , meaning " birch "; or from the older Old Celtic word Bearroc , meaning "hilly place". The latter part, "hamsted", derives from the Old English word for homestead. So the town's name could be either mean "homestead amongst

7544-637: The village from the town of Berkhamsted. The Anglo-Saxons surrendered the crown of England to William the Conqueror at Berkhamsted in early December 1066. After William defeated and killed Harold II at the Battle of Hastings in October, he failed in an attempt to capture London from the south. William led his army around London , crossing the River Thames at Wallingford , "laying waste" while travelling through southeast England. At Berkhamsted, he received

7636-481: The village of Wigginton and the small market town of Tring (6.7 miles (11 km) distant) and the county town of Buckinghamshire Aylesbury at (13.9 miles (22 km) distant). Following the Chiltern Hills northwards, to the north-northwest is the village of Aldbury ; situated to the north of Berkhamsted are the villages of Ringshall and Little Gaddesden (5.4 miles (9 km) distant); finally located to

7728-477: Was a favoured residence of royalty and notable historical figures, including King Henry II , Edward, the Black Prince , Thomas Becket and Geoffrey Chaucer . In the 13th and 14th centuries, the town was a wool trading town, with a thriving local market. The oldest-known extant jettied timber-framed building in Great Britain, built between 1277 and 1297, survives as a shop on the town's high street. After

7820-419: Was enough land for 26 plough teams, but only 15 working teams. There were two flour mills (Upper and Lower Mill), woodland for 1,000 pigs, and a vineyard. The total population was calculated to be either 37 or 88 households; the families included 14 villagers, 15 smallholders, 6 slaves, a priest, a dyke builder (possibly working on the earthworks of the castle) and 52 burgesses . Some historians have argued that

7912-488: Was officially adopted in 1937 when the local council formally changed its name from Great Berkhampstead to Berkhamsted. The town's local nickname is "Berko". Neolithic , Bronze Age , Iron Age and Roman artefacts show that the Berkhamsted area of the Bulbourne Valley has been settled for over 5,000 years. The discovery of a large number of worked flint chips provides Neolithic evidence of on-site flint knapping in

8004-546: Was recorded as a burbium ( ancient borough ) in the Domesday Book in 1086. The most notable event in the town's history occurred in December 1066. After William the Conqueror defeated King Harold 's Anglo-Saxon army at the Battle of Hastings , the Anglo-Saxon leadership surrendered to the Norman encampment at Berkhamsted. The event was recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle . From 1066 to 1495, Berkhamsted Castle

8096-459: Was relocated to Hemel Hemspstead. In 1841, the Countess of Bridgewater built a soup kitchen for the local poor within the ruins of Berkhamsted Castle. The soup kitchen was used by an estimated 15 per cent of the population of Berkhamsted (about 500 people) during the winter months, until at least 1897. The building still stands connected to the cottage in the castle grounds; why it was placed outside

8188-518: Was subdivided into a series of farming estates. The Berkhamsted area appears to have been divided into two or three farming estates, each including one or more masonry villa buildings, with tiled roofs and underfloor heating. The earliest written reference to Berkhamsted is in the will of Ælfgifu (died AD 970), queen consort of King Eadwig of England (r. 955–959), who bequeathed large estates in five counties, including Berkhamsted. The location and extent of early Saxon settlement of Berkhamsted

8280-477: Was supported at the Battle of Crecy by local bowmen Everard Halsey, John Wood, Stephen of Champneys, Robert Whittingham, Edward le Bourne, Richard of Gaddesden and Henry of Berkhamsted (who was rewarded with 2 d a day and appointed porter of Berkhamsted Castle after he saved the prince's baggage at the Battle of Poitiers ). Richard II inherited Berkhamsted Castle in 1377 and gave it to his favourites, Robert de Vere and John Holland . In 1400, Henry IV lived in

8372-619: Was the last person to live in the castle. In 1833, the castle was the first building to receive statutory protection in the United Kingdom . In 1834, construction of the railway embankment demolished the castle's gatehouse and adjacent earthworks. Today the castle ruins are managed by a charitable trust, the Berkhamsted Castle Trust , in partnership with English Heritage , on behalf of the Duchy of Cornwall (which still officially owns

8464-818: Was the model for the Doctor of Phisick in The Canterbury Tales . Henry V and Henry VI owned the castle, the latter making use of it until he was overthrown in 1461. In 1469, Edward IV gave the castle to his mother, Cecily Neville, Duchess of York . The arrival of Neville and her household at Berkhamsted had a significant social and financial impact on the town. Men and women from the town joined her service, such as Robert Incent who became her secretary and whose memorial brass can still be seen in St Peter's Church in Berkhamsted. Mother to both Edward IV and Richard III , grandmother to Edward V , and mother in law to Henry VII , she

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