Hardingstone
Encyclopedia
Hardingstone is a village in Northamptonshire
, England. It is on the southern edge of Northampton
, and now forms a suburb
of the town within the Northampton Borough Council area. It is about 3 miles (5 km) from the town centre. The Newport Pagnell
road (the B526
, formerly part of the A50
) separates the village from the nearby village of Wootton
, which has also been absorbed into the urban area.
.
showed there were 2,015 people living in the parish: 978 males and 1,037 females in 885 households.
supermarket chain at one of their warehouses, but this was rejected by the planners.
The village has two pubs - "The Crown" and "The Sun" along with a post office, supermarket and several hairdressers.
es.
The cross commemorates the resting at nearby Delapré Abbey
of the body of Queen Eleanor of Castile
; King Edward I
stayed at nearby Northampton Castle. The cross was begun in 1291 by John of Battle; he worked with William of Ireland to carve the statues; William was paid five marks
(£3 6s. 8d. or £3.33) per figure.
The cross is octagonal and set on some steps, the present ones being replacements. The cross is built in three tiers and originally had a crowning terminal - possibly a cross. It is not known when this was lost, but it had been lost by the time of the second Battle of Northampton
in 1460.
The cross is referred to in Daniel Defoe
's Tour through the whole island of Great Britain
, where he reports on the Great Fire of Northampton in 1675:
Its bottom tier features open books. These probably included painted inscriptions of Eleanor's biography and of prayers for her soul to be said by viewers, which are now lost.
considered that the body of the church had been over-restored.
Many members of the Bouverie family (owners of nearby Delapré Abbey
) are buried in the vault - the family used this as their family church because the Abbey, after the dissolution of the monasteries
, lacked its own church.
During the war the stained glass windows were removed for safety but afterwards could not be found; some people believe that they might be in the Bouverie family vault - unfortunately this is bricked up and so no-one has tested the theory.
, was tried at Northampton Assizes and subsequently hanged in Bedford Gaol
on 10 March 1931. The male victim has never been identified and was buried at Hardingstone church.
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, England. It is on the southern edge of Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
, and now forms a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of the town within the Northampton Borough Council area. It is about 3 miles (5 km) from the town centre. The Newport Pagnell
Newport Pagnell
Newport Pagnell is a town in the Borough of Milton Keynes , England. It is separated by the M1 motorway from Milton Keynes itself, though part of the same urban area...
road (the B526
B roads in Zone 5 of the Great Britain numbering scheme
B roads are numbered routes in Great Britain of lesser importance than A roads. See the article Great Britain road numbering scheme for the rationale behind the numbers allocated.-Zone 5 :-Zone 5 :...
, formerly part of the A50
A50 road
The A50 is a major trunk road in England. It runs from Warrington to Leicester; however, it was once a much longer route.-Current route:...
) separates the village from the nearby village of Wootton
Wootton, Northamptonshire
Wootton, Northamptonshire is a village about south of Northampton town centre and now part of the Northampton Borough Council area.The village is separated from Hardingstone by the Newport Pagnell Road the B526, formerly part of the A50 road...
, which has also been absorbed into the urban area.
Governance
As a former village distinct from the town it has its own parish council, unlike more recent 20th and 21st century suburbs of the town. The parish includes part of the Brackmills Industrial Estate, and borders Delapre AbbeyDelapré Abbey
Delapré Abbey , or more properly, the Convent of St Mary De La Pré, was founded as a Cluniac nunnery about the year 1145, situated in the meadows of the River Nene to the south of Northampton ....
.
Demographics
The 2001 censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
showed there were 2,015 people living in the parish: 978 males and 1,037 females in 885 households.
Brackmills
To the north-east of the village is the large Brackmills Industrial Estate. The estate was chosen as the site of a 400 ft wind turbine erected by the AsdaAsda
Asda Stores Ltd is a British supermarket chain which retails food, clothing, general merchandise, toys and financial services. It also has a mobile telephone network, , Asda Mobile...
supermarket chain at one of their warehouses, but this was rejected by the planners.
Facilities
The original village school was built around 1860-70 by General Bouverie; this building remained open until the 1960s or 70s when the primary school was transferred to a more modern building in Martin's Lane, and the old school was transferred to Northampton County Council (Social Services) who now let it to the Hardingstone Village Hall Association.The village has two pubs - "The Crown" and "The Sun" along with a post office, supermarket and several hairdressers.
Queen Eleanor's Cross
On the edge of the village, on the road going into Northampton, can be found one of only three remaining Eleanor crossEleanor cross
The Eleanor crosses were twelve originally wooden, but later lavishly decorated stone, monuments of which three survive intact in a line down part of the east of England. King Edward I had the crosses erected between 1291 and 1294 in memory of his wife Eleanor of Castile, marking the nightly...
es.
The cross commemorates the resting at nearby Delapré Abbey
Delapré Abbey
Delapré Abbey , or more properly, the Convent of St Mary De La Pré, was founded as a Cluniac nunnery about the year 1145, situated in the meadows of the River Nene to the south of Northampton ....
of the body of Queen Eleanor of Castile
Eleanor of Castile
Eleanor of Castile was the first queen consort of Edward I of England. She was also Countess of Ponthieu in her own right from 1279 until her death in 1290, succeeding her mother and ruling together with her husband.-Birth:...
; King Edward I
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
stayed at nearby Northampton Castle. The cross was begun in 1291 by John of Battle; he worked with William of Ireland to carve the statues; William was paid five marks
Mark (money)
Mark was a measure of weight mainly for gold and silver, commonly used throughout western Europe and often equivalent to 8 ounces. Considerable variations, however, occurred throughout the Middle Ages Mark (from a merging of three Teutonic/Germanic languages words, Latinized in 9th century...
(£3 6s. 8d. or £3.33) per figure.
Battle of Northampton (1460)
The Battle of Northampton was a battle in the Wars of the Roses, which took place on 10 July 1460.-Background:The Yorkist cause seemed finished after the previous disaster at Ludford Bridge...
in 1460.
The cross is referred to in Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe , born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, and pamphleteer, who gained fame for his novel Robinson Crusoe. Defoe is notable for being one of the earliest proponents of the novel, as he helped to popularise the form in Britain and along with others such as Richardson,...
's Tour through the whole island of Great Britain
A tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain
A tour thro' the whole island of Great Britain is an account of his travels by English author Daniel Defoe, first published in three volumes between 1724 and 1727....
, where he reports on the Great Fire of Northampton in 1675:
... a townsman being at Queen's Cross upon a hill on the south side of the town, about two miles off, saw the fire at one end of the town then newly begun, and that before he could get to the town it was burning at the remotest end, opposite where he first saw it.
Its bottom tier features open books. These probably included painted inscriptions of Eleanor's biography and of prayers for her soul to be said by viewers, which are now lost.
Church
The parish church of St Edmund dates back to the 12th century and is mentioned in documents from 1107. PevsnerNikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
considered that the body of the church had been over-restored.
Many members of the Bouverie family (owners of nearby Delapré Abbey
Delapré Abbey
Delapré Abbey , or more properly, the Convent of St Mary De La Pré, was founded as a Cluniac nunnery about the year 1145, situated in the meadows of the River Nene to the south of Northampton ....
) are buried in the vault - the family used this as their family church because the Abbey, after the dissolution of the monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
, lacked its own church.
During the war the stained glass windows were removed for safety but afterwards could not be found; some people believe that they might be in the Bouverie family vault - unfortunately this is bricked up and so no-one has tested the theory.
Alfred Rouse
Hardingstone Lane was the scene of the Blazing car murder of 1931 which attracted sensational national interest. The felon, Alfred RouseAlfred Rouse
Alfred Arthur Rouse was a British murderer. It was theorised, though never proved, that Rouse, seeking to fabricate his own death, picked up a hitch-hiker, knocked him out, and then burnt his car with the man inside...
, was tried at Northampton Assizes and subsequently hanged in Bedford Gaol
Bedford (HM Prison)
HMP Bedford is a Category B men's prison, located in the Harpur area of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service.-History:...
on 10 March 1931. The male victim has never been identified and was buried at Hardingstone church.
Other links
- Pevsner - The Buildings of England - Northamptonshire. ISBN 0-300-09632-1
- Northamptonshire County Council