Abbots Langley
Encyclopedia
Abbots Langley is a large village and civil parish
in the English
county of Hertfordshire
. It is an old settlement and is mentioned (under the name of Langelai) in the Domesday Book
. Economically the village is closely linked to Watford
and was formerly part of the Watford Rural District
. Since 1974 it has been included in the Three Rivers
district.
The first traces of human habitation in the area were recorded by renowned archaeologist Sir John Evans
(1823 – 1908). The village sits on a saucer of clay covered by a layer of gravel, and as a result water supply has never been a problem; records show that in earlier times water could be drawn from a well just 20 ft deep
In 1045 the Saxon
thegn
Ethelwine 'the black' granted the upper part of Langlai to St Albans Abbey
as Langlai Abbatis (Latin for Langlai of the Abbot, hence 'Abbot's Langley') the remainder being the king's Langlai. By the time of the Domesday Book
in 1086 the village was inhabited by 19 families.
The area was split into four manors, Abbots Langley, Langleybury
, Chambersbury, and Hyde. In 1539, Henry VIII
, seized Abbots Langley and sold it to his military engineer Sir Richard Lee. The Manor of Abbots Langley was bequeathed by Francis Combe in his will of 1641 jointly to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
and Trinity College, Oxford
.
The manors of Langleybury
and Chambersbury passed through the Ibgrave and Child families, and in 1711 were conveyed to Sir Robert Raymond
then Solicitor General
later Attorney General
and Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench. On the death of his son without issue in 1756 the manors passed to the Filmer
family.
The Manor of Hyde passed to Edward Strong in 1714, through his daughter to Sir John Strange
, who left the manor to be shared between his children and their descendents (including Admiral Sir George Strong Nares
) and then to the possession of F.M. Nares & Co which sold the estate to the British Land Company in 1858.
Kitters Green developed as a separate hamlet by Manor House. The land between Kitters Green and Abbots Langley was bought from the estate of Sarah Smith by the British Land Company in 1866. It laid out plots for development along Adrian, Breakspear, Garden and Popes roads. The development of these plots led to the merger of the two settlements and the loss of Kitters Green's separate identity.
The recent Katherine Place development has brought in some high class retailers to the centre and was sold for £2.93 million in December 2005. To the south of the village are Leavesden Film Studios
, on the former Rolls-Royce
airfield, where scenes from movies including Goldeneye
, Sleepy Hollow
and the Harry Potter
series have been filmed.
, the only Englishman ever to have become Pope
, was born as Nicholas Breakspear in Abbots Langley around the year 1100. Therefore, Abbots Langley village includes a number of roads named after its famous son (Adrian, Breakspear, Pope), and at one time included activities of the Brakspear
brewery
.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
. It is an old settlement and is mentioned (under the name of Langelai) in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
. Economically the village is closely linked to Watford
Watford
Watford is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, situated northwest of central London and within the bounds of the M25 motorway. The borough is separated from Greater London to the south by the urbanised parish of Watford Rural in the Three Rivers District.Watford was created as an urban...
and was formerly part of the Watford Rural District
Watford Rural District
Not to be confused with the Watford Rural civil parish.Watford was a rural district in Hertfordshire, England from 1894 to 1974. It originally consisted of contiguous land to the west, north and east of Watford, which was a separate urban district...
. Since 1974 it has been included in the Three Rivers
Three Rivers (district)
Three Rivers is a local government district in Hertfordshire in the East of England. Its council is based in Rickmansworth.It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of Rickmansworth Urban District and Chorleywood Urban District with part of Watford Rural District...
district.
History
This village has had a long history of successful human habitation.The first traces of human habitation in the area were recorded by renowned archaeologist Sir John Evans
John Evans (archaeologist)
Sir John Evans, KCB, FRS was an English archaeologist and geologist.-Biography:John Evans was the son of the Rev. Dr A. B. Evans, headmaster of Market Bosworth Grammar School, and was born at Britwell Court, Buckinghamshire...
(1823 – 1908). The village sits on a saucer of clay covered by a layer of gravel, and as a result water supply has never been a problem; records show that in earlier times water could be drawn from a well just 20 ft deep
In 1045 the Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
thegn
Thegn
The term thegn , from OE þegn, ðegn "servant, attendant, retainer", is commonly used to describe either an aristocratic retainer of a king or nobleman in Anglo-Saxon England, or as a class term, the majority of the aristocracy below the ranks of ealdormen and high-reeves...
Ethelwine 'the black' granted the upper part of Langlai to St Albans Abbey
St Albans Cathedral
St Albans Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral church at St Albans, England. At , its nave is the longest of any cathedral in England...
as Langlai Abbatis (Latin for Langlai of the Abbot, hence 'Abbot's Langley') the remainder being the king's Langlai. By the time of the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
in 1086 the village was inhabited by 19 families.
The area was split into four manors, Abbots Langley, Langleybury
Langleybury
Langleybury was a country house and estate in Hertfordshire, England situated 2 miles north of the town of Watford on a low hill above the valley of the River Gade.-Raymond 1711-1756:...
, Chambersbury, and Hyde. In 1539, Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
, seized Abbots Langley and sold it to his military engineer Sir Richard Lee. The Manor of Abbots Langley was bequeathed by Francis Combe in his will of 1641 jointly to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England.The college was founded in 1596 and named after its foundress, Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex. It was from its inception an avowedly Puritan foundation: some good and godlie moniment for the mainteynance...
and Trinity College, Oxford
Trinity College, Oxford
The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope , or Trinity College for short, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It stands on Broad Street, next door to Balliol College and Blackwells bookshop,...
.
The manors of Langleybury
Langleybury
Langleybury was a country house and estate in Hertfordshire, England situated 2 miles north of the town of Watford on a low hill above the valley of the River Gade.-Raymond 1711-1756:...
and Chambersbury passed through the Ibgrave and Child families, and in 1711 were conveyed to Sir Robert Raymond
Robert Raymond, 1st Baron Raymond
Robert Raymond, 1st Baron Raymond PC was a British judge.Robert Raymond was the son of the judge Thomas Raymond. He was educated at Eton and Christ's College, Cambridge. Said to have been admitted to Gray's Inn aged nine, he became a barrister in 1697 and was admitted at Lincoln's Inn in 1710...
then Solicitor General
Solicitor General for England and Wales
Her Majesty's Solicitor General for England and Wales, often known as the Solicitor General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown, and the deputy of the Attorney General, whose duty is to advise the Crown and Cabinet on the law...
later Attorney General
Attorney General for England and Wales
Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales, usually known simply as the Attorney General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown. Along with the subordinate Solicitor General for England and Wales, the Attorney General serves as the chief legal adviser of the Crown and its government in...
and Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench. On the death of his son without issue in 1756 the manors passed to the Filmer
Robert Filmer
thumbnail|150px|right|Robert Filmer Sir Robert Filmer was an English political theorist who defended the divine right of kings...
family.
The Manor of Hyde passed to Edward Strong in 1714, through his daughter to Sir John Strange
John Strange (English politician)
Sir John Strange KC PC was a British politician and judge. He was born to another John Strange and his second wife, Mary Plaistowe. He became a student at the Middle Temple on 11 July 1712 before starting a pupillage at the chambers of Charles Salkeld, who trained Lord Hardwicke. He was called to...
, who left the manor to be shared between his children and their descendents (including Admiral Sir George Strong Nares
George Nares
Vice-Admiral Sir George Strong Nares KCB FRS was a British naval officer and Arctic explorer. He commanded both the Challenger Expedition and the British Arctic Expedition, and was highly thought of a leader and a scientific explorer...
) and then to the possession of F.M. Nares & Co which sold the estate to the British Land Company in 1858.
Kitters Green developed as a separate hamlet by Manor House. The land between Kitters Green and Abbots Langley was bought from the estate of Sarah Smith by the British Land Company in 1866. It laid out plots for development along Adrian, Breakspear, Garden and Popes roads. The development of these plots led to the merger of the two settlements and the loss of Kitters Green's separate identity.
The recent Katherine Place development has brought in some high class retailers to the centre and was sold for £2.93 million in December 2005. To the south of the village are Leavesden Film Studios
Leavesden Film Studios
Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden , is a film and media complex owned by Warner Bros.. The studios and backlot sit on the site of the former Rolls-Royce factory at Leavesden Aerodrome, which was an important centre of aircraft production during World War II...
, on the former Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce plc
Rolls-Royce Group plc is a global power systems company headquartered in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s second-largest maker of aircraft engines , and also has major businesses in the marine propulsion and energy sectors. Through its defence-related activities...
airfield, where scenes from movies including Goldeneye
GoldenEye
GoldenEye is the seventeenth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was directed by Martin Campbell and is the first film in the series not to take story elements from the works of novelist Ian Fleming...
, Sleepy Hollow
Sleepy Hollow (film)
Sleepy Hollow is a 1999 American period horror film directed by Tim Burton. It is a film adaptation loosely inspired by the 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving and stars Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Marc Pickering, Michael Gambon, Jeffrey Jones,...
and the Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
series have been filmed.
Nicholas Breakspear/Pope Adrian IV
Pope Adrian IVPope Adrian IV
Pope Adrian IV , born Nicholas Breakspear or Breakspeare, was Pope from 1154 to 1159.Adrian IV is the only Englishman who has occupied the papal chair...
, the only Englishman ever to have become Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
, was born as Nicholas Breakspear in Abbots Langley around the year 1100. Therefore, Abbots Langley village includes a number of roads named after its famous son (Adrian, Breakspear, Pope), and at one time included activities of the Brakspear
Brakspear
WH Brakspear & Sons Ltd is the name of a brand of English beers and pubs, based in Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire. While the beer brewing and pub management sides of the business were originally unified, the brewing has since been sold to Wychwood Brewery owners Refresh UK.-History:The Brakspear...
brewery
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
.
Cricket
Football
A number of teams play locally:- Ecocall F.C. in the Olympian Sunday Football League
- Evergreen (Sunday) in the Watford Sunday Football League
- Evergreen Youth in the West Herts Youth League and Watford Friendly League
- Everett Rovers (Saturday) in the Arlon Printers West Herts Saturday League
- Abbots Youth in the West Herts Youth League and Watford Friendly League
- Bedmond FC in the Herts Senior County LeagueHertfordshire Senior County LeagueThe Hertfordshire Senior County League or Herts Senior County League is a football competition based in England. It was founded in 1898. It currently has two divisions for first teams along with two divisions for reserve teams and is a feeder to the Spartan South Midlands Football League...
, Watford Friendly League and Mid Herts Rural Minors League - Langleybury Cricket Club (WHL) in the Arlon Printers West Herts Saturday League
- Langleybury Cricket Club (WOSL) in the Watford Sunday Football League
Notable people
- Manuel AlmuniaManuel AlmuniaManuel Almunia Rivero is a professional footballer. He plays as a goalkeeper for Arsenal.-Early career:Born in Pamplona, Navarre, Almunia started his senior career with Osasuna's reserve team in 1997, playing two seasons with the team in Segunda División B...
(b. 1977), professional footballFootball (soccer)Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
er. - Nick BlinkoNick BlinkoNick Blinko is a British musician, lyricist, and artist best known as the lead singer, lyricist and guitar player for the British band Rudimentary Peni...
(b. 1961), artist and singer/songwriter/guitarist of Rudimentary PeniRudimentary PeniRudimentary Peni are a British anarcho-punk/deathrock band formed in 1980.-Line-up:*Nick Blinko - guitar, vocals, artwork, lyrics*Grant Matthews - bass guitar, lyrics*Jon Greville - drums-History:...
. - Pope Adrian IVPope Adrian IVPope Adrian IV , born Nicholas Breakspear or Breakspeare, was Pope from 1154 to 1159.Adrian IV is the only Englishman who has occupied the papal chair...
(c1100-1159), born in Abbots Langley as Nicholas Breakspear. - Chris BrooksChris BrooksChris Brooks may refer to:*Chris Brooks , Australian guitarist*Chris Brooks , American football wide receiver...
Afternoon DJ at Capital RadioCapital RadioCapital London is a London based radio station which launched on 16 October 1973 and is owned by Global Radio. On 3 January 2011 it formed part of the nine station Capital radio network.- Pre-launch :...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, grew up in Abbots Langley. - James Cecil, 1st Marquess of SalisburyJames Cecil, 1st Marquess of SalisburyJames Cecil, 1st Marquess of Salisbury, KG, PC , styled Viscount Cranborne until 1780 and known as 7th Earl of Salisbury between 1780 and 1789, was a British politician.-Background:...
(1748–1823) probably lived at Cecil Lodge 1760s–80. - Violet Cressy-MarcksViolet Cressy-Marcks-Personal life:Violet Cressy-Marcks was born Violet Olivia Rutley on 9 June 1895, in West Wickham, Greater London, the only daughter of Ernest & Olivia Rutley. On 13 October 1917 she married Maurice Cressy-Marcks, a captain in the North Lancashire regiment with whom she had one son...
(1895–1970), explorer and journalist, lived at Hazelwood (now Hunton ParkHunton ParkHunton Park is a large country house and estate near Abbots Langley, just north of Watford in Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom. It was originally called Hazelwood House when first built in the early 19th century. The original house was destroyed in 1908 and completely rebuilt...
) 1930–70. - David CrightonDavid CrightonDavid George Crighton FRS was a British mathematician and physicist.- Life :...
, (1942–2000), mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
, educated at Abbots Langley primary school. - Joan Evans (art historian)Joan Evans (art historian)Dame Joan Evans, DBE was a British historian of French and English mediaeval art.Born at Nash Mills, Apsley, Hertfordshire, she was the daughter of antiquarian and businessman John Evans and his third wife, Maria Millington Lathbury...
(1893–1977), historian of mediaeval art. - John Evans (archaeologist)John Evans (archaeologist)Sir John Evans, KCB, FRS was an English archaeologist and geologist.-Biography:John Evans was the son of the Rev. Dr A. B. Evans, headmaster of Market Bosworth Grammar School, and was born at Britwell Court, Buckinghamshire...
(1823–1908), archaeologist and geologist, married and buried, St Lawrence Church, Abbots Langley. - Elizabeth Greenhill, (1615-1679), mother of 37 single births and one set of twins.
- Thomas GreenhillThomas Greenhill (surgeon)Thomas Greenhill was a surgeon who worked in London and was also author of a book "Νεκροκηδεία" or "The Art of Embalming" on embalming. He was also surgeon to His Grace Henry Howard, 7th Duke of Norfolk...
(1669-1740), surgeon to Henry Howard, 7th Duke of NorfolkHenry Howard, 7th Duke of NorfolkHenry Howard, 7th Duke of Norfolk, KG, PC, Earl Marshal was a politician and soldier. He was the son of Henry Howard, 6th Duke of Norfolk and Lady Anne Somerset, daughter of Edward Somerset, 2nd Marquess of Worcester and Elizabeth Dormer.He married Mary Mordaunt, the only daughter and heiress of...
and 39th and last child of Elizabeth Greenhill. - Michael Gregsten (1924-1961), physicist at the Road Research Laboratory, victim of James HanrattyJames HanrattyJames Hanratty , a petty criminal with no history of violence, was the eighth-to-last person in the United Kingdom to be hanged after being convicted of the murder of Michael Gregsten at Deadman's Hill on the A6, near the village of Clophill, Bedfordshire, England, on 23 August 1961...
in the 1961 "A6 murder" for whose death he hanged. - Robert Kindersley, 1st Baron KindersleyRobert Kindersley, 1st Baron KindersleyRobert Molesworth Kindersley, 1st Baron Kindersley GBE was an English businessman, stockbroker, merchant banker, and public servant who organised the National Savings movement.Kindersley was born in Wanstead, Essex...
(1871–1954), businessman, stockbroker, merchant banker, and public servant, lived at Langley House 1906–23. - Hugh Kindersley, 2nd Baron KindersleyHugh Kindersley, 2nd Baron KindersleyHugh Kenyon Molesworth Kindersley, 2nd Baron Kindersley CBE, MC was a British businessman, banker and soldier. His father was businessman Robert Kindersley, 1st Baron Kindersley GBE.Kindersley was born in Knightsbridge, London...
(1899–1976) - Joe LaneJoe Lane (footballer)James Charles "Joe" Lane was an English professional footballer. He played as a forward.After spells with Hungarian club Ferencvárosi TC and English side Sunderland, Lane signed for another English club, Blackpool, in 1913 for ₤400. He made his debut for the club on November 22, 1913, in a 2–2...
(1892–1959), former professional footballFootball (soccer)Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
er. - Marghanita LaskiMarghanita LaskiMarghanita Laski was an English journalist, radio panellist and novelist: she also wrote literary biography, plays and short stories.- Personal life :...
(1915–88), journalist and novelist, lived at Abbots House 1937–45. - Eryl McNallyEryl McNallyEryl Margaret McNally, , is a former Labour Member of the European Parliament from the East of England United Kingdom.-Personal life:...
, former Labour MEPMember of the European ParliamentA Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
. - Henry Montagu, 6th Baron RokebyHenry Montagu, 6th Baron RokebyGeneral Henry Robinson-Montague, 6th Baron Rokeby GCB was a British soldier.-Military career:Born the son of the 4th Baron, Rokeby was commissioned into the 3rd Foot Guards in 1814. He fought at the Battle of Quatre Bras and the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815.He fought in the Crimean War as...
(1798–1883), soldier, lived at Hazelwood 1838–86. - Robert Raymond, 1st Baron RaymondRobert Raymond, 1st Baron RaymondRobert Raymond, 1st Baron Raymond PC was a British judge.Robert Raymond was the son of the judge Thomas Raymond. He was educated at Eton and Christ's College, Cambridge. Said to have been admitted to Gray's Inn aged nine, he became a barrister in 1697 and was admitted at Lincoln's Inn in 1710...
(1673–1733), politician and judge, lived at Langleybury 1711–33. - Haile SelassieHaile Selassie I of EthiopiaHaile Selassie I , born Tafari Makonnen, was Ethiopia's regent from 1916 to 1930 and Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974...
(1892–1975), spent the early part of his exile from EthiopiaEthiopiaEthiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
at Hazelwood. - Edward SkoylesEdward SkoylesEdward Skoyles was the first quantity surveyor employed in the UK to research costs and practices in the construction industry. He did his research from 1960 until 1984 at the Building Research Establishment. Among his research projects was developing a new type of tending for construction...
(1923–2008) researcher and quantity surveyorQuantity surveyorA quantity surveyor is a professional working within the construction industry concerned with building costs.The profession is one that provides a qualification gained following formal education, specific training and experience that provides a general set of skills that are then applied to a...
. - William Henry Smith (politician) (1825–91), member of the W H SmithW H SmithWHSmith plc is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It is best known for its chain of high street, railway station, airport, hospital and motorway service station shops selling books, stationery, magazines, newspapers, and entertainment products...
station newsagent and bookselling family, lived at Cecil Lodge 1864–70. - George TurnbullGeorge Turnbull (civil engineer)George Turnbull was the Chief Engineer responsible for construction from 1851 to 1863 of the first railway line from Calcutta : the 541-mile line to Benares en route to Delhi...
(1809–1878), civil engineer (the "first railway engineer of India"), retired to Rosehill, Abbots Langley. - Bradley Walsh (b. 1960), entertainer.
- Mark Walsh (b. 1965), professional darts player within the Professional Darts CorporationProfessional Darts CorporationThe Professional Darts Corporation is a professional darts organization, established in the United Kingdom during 1992, when a group of leading professional players split from the British Darts Organisation to form what was initially called the World Darts Council...
.
See also
- BedmondBedmondBedmond is a village in Hertfordshire, England.Bedmond is the birthplace of Nicholas Breakspear, the only Englishman to ever be Pope. Nicholas Breakspear was born at Bedmond Farm around 1100 AD, and the site where his home stood is marked by a plaque....
- Garston Manor, a grade II listed GeorgianGeorgian architectureGeorgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
Country HouseEnglish country houseThe English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a London house. This allowed to them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country...
located within the parish - Hunton BridgeHunton BridgeHunton Bridge is a small settlement near Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire, England with a historic royal connection. Its population in the 1991 census was 327....
- Kings LangleyKings LangleyKings Langley is a historic English village and civil parish northwest of central London on the southern edge of the Chiltern Hills and now part of the London commuter belt. The major western portion lies in the borough of Dacorum and the east is in the Three Rivers district, both in the county of...
- LangleyburyLangleyburyLangleybury was a country house and estate in Hertfordshire, England situated 2 miles north of the town of Watford on a low hill above the valley of the River Gade.-Raymond 1711-1756:...
- Leavesden Mental HospitalLeavesden Mental HospitalLeavesden Mental Hospital was founded in 1870 on the outskirts of Abbots Langley by the Metropolitan Asylums Board as the Metropolitan Asylum for Chronic Imbeciles. At the same time the St Pancras Union Workhouse established an Industrial School across the road. In 1920, the asylum was renamed the...