Hertfordshire Part 16

William I. gave it to Robert Earl of Ewe, and Stephen kindly bestowed it upon the monks of Faversham, "in perpetual Alms for the Health of the Souls of Maud his Queen and all faithful People". Edward II. granted to Tring market rights.

_Tring Park_ (property of Hon. N. C. Rothschild) is surrounded by perhaps the most exquisite woods--largely of beech--in the whole county.

Much altered in modern times, it is said to have been designed by Wren, and to have been visited by Charles II. The park is well kept, and contains many living curiosities placed here by Lord Rothschild, a lover of natural history. The _Museum_, at the top of Akeman Street, containing a fine zoological collection, is the outcome of his lords.h.i.+p's energy and benevolence. The _Museum House_, to which it is attached, is a prettily designed structure of red brick, with gables.

_Tring, Little_, is a hamlet 1 mile N.W. from the town, and Tring Grove, a hamlet 1 mile N.E. The former is near the large reservoirs, upon which several of the rare birds mentioned in the Introduction (Section IV.) were observed.

_Trowley Bottom_ (3 miles N.W. from Redbourn Station, M.R.) is a hamlet a little S. from Flamstead, in one of the most thoroughly rural districts in the county. The Roman _Watling Street_ (St.

Albans-Dunstable road) is 1 mile N.E.

_Turnford_ (1 mile S.W. from Broxbourne Station, G.E.R.) is a hamlet in Cheshunt parish, on the New River. _Broxbourne Bury Park_ is 1 mile N.

_Two Waters_ owes its name to its position at the junction of two small rivers--the Gade and the Bulbourne. It is in Hemel Hempstead parish, and about 1 mile E. from Boxmoor Station.

_Tyttenhanger._ (See t.i.ttenhanger.)

_Upwick Green_ (4 miles N.W. from Bishop's Stortford) is a hamlet on the Ess.e.x border. _Hadham Hall_ (see Little Hadham) is 1 mile S.

VERULAM. Of the old Roman _municipium_ (_Verulamium_) there now remains above ground little more than some large fragments of crumbling wall in the valley of the Ver, immediately S.W. from St. Albans. Pa.s.sing under the old Gatehouse and crossing the bridge at the Silk Mill the visitor, instead of turning right and following the course of the Ver, should keep straight on and pa.s.s the small gate into Verulam Woods. On his right as he follows the broad footpath will be the outer E. wall of the Roman city; on his left what appears a long gorge, overgrown by bushes and trees of many species, was once the _fosse_. Note the great thickness and solidity of the walls, and the tile-like bricks, similar to those in the Abbey tower, mingled with flints. Presently both wall and fosse turn sharply W. and may be followed in that direction for a considerable distance. The walls may also be traced at other spots farther W., particularly a large ma.s.s known as Gorhambury Block, believed to mark the boundary of the _municipium_ in that direction.

It has been mentioned in the Introduction (Section IX.) that the only Roman theatre known to have existed in England stood in this neighbourhood. Its remains were discovered rather more than seventy years ago in a field immediately W. from St. Michael's Church; nothing is now to be seen, for the excavations have been again covered. The discovery included that of the stage, somewhat narrow, the _auditorium_, with many rows of seats, and portions of the frescoed walls. Many coins were found among the ruins.

Mention must be made of the fact that the Roman _Verulamium_ was the scene of the awful ma.s.sacre in the time of Boadicea, when the Queen of the Iceni, with a great number of followers, slew alike the British and Roman inhabitants and partially destroyed the city (A.D. 61). An account of this is in the _Annals_ of Tacitus. The place was subsequently rebuilt and occupied by the Saxons, who called it _Watlingceaster_, or _Werlamceaster_.

_Wade's Mill._ (See Thundridge.)

_Wakely_ (2 miles W. from Westmill Station, G.E.R.) is a hamlet in Westmill parish, consisting of a farm and a few cottages.

WALKERN (4 miles E. from Stevenage) is a large village, with many picturesque nooks and cottages. The river Beane skirts it on the E.

side. The manor is very ancient; Chauncy speaks of "Walkerne" as a town, and mentions a mill which stood in his day (1632-1719) at its S. end, presumably where Walkern Mill now stands. The church, on a knoll sloping to the Beane, is mostly Perp., but retains Norman work in the S. aisle; the chancel is modern, E.E. in style. The effigy in Purbeck marble in a recess of S. wall, of a knight in chain mail, is thought to represent one of the Lanvalei family. If so, it forms an interesting link with a remote past, for in the reign of King John one Alan Ba.s.set paid a hundred marks to that monarch, and gave him a palfrey "that his daughter might marry the heir of William de Lanvalley". There are also effigies on bra.s.s to the Humberstone family (sixteenth century). _Walkern Hall_ (1 mile S.E.) stands in a small but pretty park; _Walkern Bury_ (1 mile E.) can still show some remains of a castle.

WALLINGTON (3 miles E. from Baldock) lies in one of the most quiet districts of the county, a district almost entirely agricultural. The village is small; a few cottages are ancient and picturesque, but there is little to notice. Take the lane opposite the Plough Inn to reach the church, which can show a good Perp. roof and screen, and some mutilated monuments and bra.s.ses in the chapel. The main structure is Dec.; but the chancel was rebuilt forty years ago. A walk affording views very characteristic of Herts may be taken from the footpath near the walled pond adjoining the church, by bearing S.S.E. to Red Hill, Rushden and Cottered.

_Walsworth_, a hamlet, is almost a suburb at the N.E. end of Hitchin, mile from the station.

[Ill.u.s.tration: WALTHAM CROSS]

WALTHAM CROSS, on the London-Cambridge road, owes its name, as is well known, to the Cross which Edward I. erected to the memory of Queen Eleanor about 1 mile W. from Waltham Abbey. The cross stands a little W. from Waltham Station (G.E.R.), where the above-mentioned road meets that which leads E. to the Abbey. Although frequently restored it is perhaps even now more complete than any other Eleanor Cross still existing. (That erected at St. Albans, as already stated, was destroyed about 200 years ago.) It is, I believe, disputed as to whether it was designed by Pietro Cavalini or not; it was completed in 1294. It is hexagonal in shape, of three stages, diminis.h.i.+ng from bas.e.m.e.nt to summit; the details of its sculpture can be readily seized by examining Mr. New's drawing. The restoration of 1833 was worked in Bath stone; this was largely replaced by new material, in Ketton stone, only a few years ago, at which time the Old Falcon Inn, which projected almost to the cross, was pulled down, thus affording a view of the monument from all sides.

The Four Swans, close to the cross, dates from 1260, as is testified on the large, quaint sign-board which swings above the road; but only a few portions of the present structure are of any great antiquity. There is a modern church a little N. from the cross; but much of the district commonly called Waltham is in Ess.e.x. Of great interest to visitors, however, and about 1 mile W. from the Cross, is _Theobald's Park_, a brick mansion erected about 150 years back by Sir G. W. Prescott, Bart.

At one of the entrances to the park stands Temple Bar, brought here from Fleet Street and erected in its present position in 1888. The house does not occupy the site of the historic manor house visited by so many sovereigns, which stood on a slight eminence some distance to the N.W.

It was William Cecil, afterwards Lord Burghley, who commenced to build that famous mansion in 1560, and enlarged it considerably when he found it pleasant in the eyes of many persons of high degree. Queen Elizabeth was frequently a visitor at Theobalds. It was Burghley's son, Robert Cecil, who entertained James I. here as that monarch was on his way to London and the English Crown, and James became so pleased with the house and its surroundings that he obtained it from Cecil, giving him the royal manor of Hatfield in its stead. It was from _Theobalds_ that Charles I. set out to raise his standard at Nottingham (1642). The house was partially destroyed during the turmoil that ensued; after the Restoration it was given by Charles II. to George Monk. It was subsequently the property of the Earl of Portland and of several other persons.

WARE was for a long period, and is perhaps now, the centre of the malt trade in Herts, but brickmaking is also extensively carried on. The river Lea skirts the town on the S. side, and is crossed by an iron bridge near the Barge Inn. The High Street displays many new houses and shops, but by turning into the smaller by-ways visitors may find quaint cottages and picturesque nooks and corners. The town is very ancient, but contained only a few persons at the time of the Conquest.

The cruciform church of St. Mary has been much restored; the body of the present structure is Dec.; but the tower and chancel are Perp. Note (1) the carved oak screen separating the S. transept from the Lady-chapel; (2) sedilia, piscina and ambries in the chapel itself; (3) octagonal font (_temp._ Henry IV.), bearing figures of saints on its panels; (4) mural monument in S. transept to Sir Richard Fanshawe; (5) bra.s.s to W.

Pyrry or Pyrey (d. 1470) and his wives Agnes and Alice, the inscription was apparently never completed; (6) curious bra.s.s figure near pulpit.

There is also a modern church in the New Road, E.E. in style, of Kentish Rag and Bath Stone.

There was a Franciscan Priory a little W. from the church, which, although sometimes said to have been founded by Margaret, Countess of Leicester (_temp._ Henry III.), was probably of much earlier foundation, though doubtless enlarged by that lady. It fell into decay after the Dissolution, but some remains of the old buildings are still to be seen at _Ware Priory_, a mansion occupying the site. The property formed a separate manor, which was given to the Countess of Richmond by her son, Henry VII.

Ware is not without literary a.s.sociation. The Johnny Gilpin, on the road to Amwell, commemorates the hero of Cowper's ballad; Pepys mentions his visits to the town on several occasions; d.i.c.k Turpin, as the story runs in Ainsworth's _Rookwood_, pa.s.sed through Ware in his famous ride to York; G.o.dwin, who figures so largely in the Lamb literature, was for some years the Independent minister of the town. By a long ascent N.

from the town, we reach, by turning right, the hamlet of _Ware Side_, picturesquely scattered over a slight depression close to _Widford_ (_q.v._). W. from the town is _Ware Park_, a mansion on a beautiful eminence.

_Warren's Green_ (about 4 miles N.E. from Stevenage Station, G.N.R.) is a small hamlet.

_Water End_, on the river Gade, is on the S.W. confines of Gaddesden Park. There are also hamlets of the same name (1) close to Ayot Station, G.N.R.; (2) at the E. extremity of Mimms Park, 2 miles N.W. from Potter's Bar Station (Middles.e.x).

_Waterford_ and _Waterford Marsh_ are in Bengeo parish, on the river Beane. On the marsh is some grazing common, free to all paris.h.i.+oners.

_Waterside_ is the name of a few cottages (1) on the river Gade, near King's Langley village; (2) at Mill Green, 1 mile N.E. from Hatfield.

WATFORD, including its quickly rising suburbs, is much the largest town in Hertfords.h.i.+re. The Colne crosses the high road where it dips before rising towards Bushey, and Chauncy says that the town derives its name from the Wet Ford by which the river is crossed. The building of the Junction Station (L.&N.W.R.), N.E. from the High Street, did much to facilitate the growth of Watford and extend its trade; the railroad diverges S.W. to Rickmansworth only, and N.E. to Bricket Wood, Park Street and St. Albans; the main line from London pa.s.ses through a long tunnel before reaching King's Langley Station. The antiquities of the town itself are less interesting and indeed less known than those of other towns in the county, and Chauncy, _e.g._, finds little to say about it. The manor was long held by the abbots of St. Albans; then it became Crown property, and after several changes of owners.h.i.+p pa.s.sed to William, fourth Earl of Ess.e.x, whose descendants are still lords of the manor.

The parish church, on a small yard adjoining the S. side of the High Street, is Perp., and was well restored about fifty years ago; with its _Katherine-_ and _Ess.e.x Chapels_ it forms a large and imposing structure. The latter chapel was built in 1595 by Bridget, Countess of Bedford. Its monuments are very numerous and comprise (1) to Sir Charles Morison, Kt. (d. 1599), and Dorothy his wife; note the fine kneeling effigies; (2) to Sir Charles Morison, K.B., son of the foregoing (d.

1628), and the Hon. Mary (Hicks) his wife, with rec.u.mbent effigies one above the other, and attendant figures of a daughter and two sons (note the Corinthian columns which support the canopy overshadowing the whole); both these Morison monuments were the work of Nicholas Stone, mentioned in Walpole's _Anecdotes_; (3) altar-tomb to the founder of the chapel (d. 1600); (4) altar-tomb with Tuscan columns and rec.u.mbent effigy to Elizabeth, wife of Sir William Russell (d. 1611). Among the bra.s.ses are those to (1) Henry d.i.c.kson (d. 1610); George Miller (d.

1613) and Anthony Cooper, "servants to Sir Charles Morryson, Kt."; (2) imperfect, Hugo de Holes, Justice of the King's Bench (d. 1415), and Margaretta his wife (d. 1416); (3) Henry Baldwyn of Reedheath (d. 1601), Alice, his wife, and three children; (4) James Moss, a messenger to George II. (d. 1758).

There are modern churches: (1) St. John's, in the Sutton Road, a Gothic edifice completed in 1893; (2) St. Andrew's, near the Junction, E.E. in design, with a good stained gla.s.s window in the S. aisle, and a beautiful Roman Catholic church by Bentley, architect of Westminster cathedral. In Beechen Grove is one of the finest Nonconformist (Baptist) chapels in the county; it dates from 1878 and is Italian in design.

Market day is on Tuesday.

CAs.h.i.+OBURY PARK stretches from the N.W. end of Watford, reaching--together with Grove Park, which it joins--to the parting of the ways at Langleybury Church (4 miles N.W. from Watford Old Church).

It is crossed from N. to S. by the river Gade. The present mansion dates from 1800; it was built by Wyatt for the fifth Earl of Ess.e.x. Disposed around an open courtyard, its many handsome apartments make a n.o.ble appearance; what was formerly part of the N. wing of the old mansion built by Sir Richard Morrison and his son Charles in the sixteenth century is still retained, although that house was largely rebuilt by the first earl, from designs furnished by Hugh May. There is a fine library, and three smaller ones, the collection of books being very valuable; but in the estimation of many the pictures are still more so.

Among them may be named: (1) Arthur Lord Capel and his family, C.

Janssens; this was the Capel who defended Colchester and was beheaded in 1649; (2) Charles II., by Lely; (3) fifth Earl of Ess.e.x as a boy with his sister, by Reynolds, in frame carved by Grinling Gibbons; (4) Countess of Ranelagh, full length, by Kneller; (5) portrait by Rubens, probably of Charlotte de la Tremouille, afterwards Countess of Derby; (6) "Moll Davis" (actress), by Lely. There are many others, especially further portraits of the Capel family. The park and grounds are beautifully laid out. The park is open to the public; but the house is shown only by special request.

WATTON or WATTON AT STONE is a large village on the Hertford-Stevenage road and the river Beane, 3 miles S.E. from Knebworth Station, G.N.R.

Its position is very central, the roads from Ware, Hertford, Great and Little Munden, Walkern, Stevenage, Welwyn and Tewin all converging within the area of the main street. The church, at the S. end of the village, is Perp.; it was entirely restored in 1851. Note (1) piscina and triple sedilia in chancel; (2) doors formerly leading to rood loft; (3) curious tombstone, E.E., in the churchyard; (4) E. window of stained gla.s.s, dating from the Restoration; (5) memorial window in the S. aisle to Lady Catherine Barrington. The bra.s.ses are unusually old and interesting, _e.g._, (1) with canopied effigy, to Sir Philip Peletot (d.

1361); (2) to Sir E. Bardolf (d. 1455); the effigy is that of his wife, his own having been long missing; (3) to John Boteler (Butler) and family (1514). The Boteler family, to whom there are many other memorials in the church, lived for many generations in the manor house of Woodhall, burnt in 1771. The house stood on high ground in the beautiful _Woodhall Park_, E. from Watton Church, on the site occupied by the present fine mansion (Abel Smith, Esq., J.P.). The Beane flows through the park and has been widened to form a large sheet of water S.

from the house.

_Welham Green_ is between Hatfield- and Mimms Parks, 2 miles S. from Hatfield Station.

_Wellbury_ is 3 miles W. from Hitchin. _Wellbury House_ (modern) stands in a small park; two small places of few inhabitants, called "Old" and "New" Wellbury, lie on the N.E. outskirts of the Park.

WELWYN, a small town in the Maran Valley, can show little of interest beyond many quaint cottages, and the church, famous as that in which Dr.

Edward Young, author of _Night Thoughts_, officiated from 1730 to 1765.

He was buried in the church; the mural memorial to him was erected by his son. The church is Dec., with E.E. portions; the piscina in the chancel is ancient, the sedilia is modern. An inventory of the church furniture, taken in 1541, shows that there were formerly three altars in it. The avenue of limes in the rectory grounds was planted by Young; there is a Latin inscription to the poet on a pedestal at its upper end.

His son was visited here by Dr. Johnson and James Boswell.

The walk S.E. to the station (1 mile) commands a fine view of the Great Northern viaduct of forty arches over the deeper portion of the Maran Valley. On the opposite (left) side of the road is _Locksleys_, a good mansion by the river side, surrounded by charming grounds. One mile S.

is _The Frythe_, long the residence of the Wilshere family; at a rather less distance N. is _Danesbury_, a prettily designed mansion in a small park.

"King Etheldred ... willing to relieve his people from the barbarous usuage and the inhuman actions of the insulting Danes ... sent instructions to the Governors of all cities, boroughs and towns in his dominions, commanding, that at a certain hour upon the feast of St.

Brice, all the Danes should be ma.s.sacred; and common fame tells us that this ma.s.sacre began at a little town called Welwine in Hertfords.h.i.+re, within twenty-four miles of London, in the year 1012, from which Act, 'tis said this Vill received the name of Welwine, because the Weal of this county (as it was then thought) was there first won; but the Saxons long before called this town Welnes, from the many springs which rise in this Vill; for in old time Wells in their language were term'd Welnes."

One of the springs in the neighbourhood, now disused, was famous in Young's day for its chalybeate waters.

_West End_ is a hamlet 2 miles S.W. from Cole Green Station, G.N.R. It lies close to the N.W. corner of _Bedwell Park_, with the river Lea 1 mile N.