| Berkhamsted | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 Coat of arms | |
  Berkhamsted Location withinHertfordshire | |
| Population | 21,245 [1] |
| OS grid reference | SP993077 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BERKHAMSTED |
| Postcode district | HP4 |
| Dialling code | 01442 |
| Police | Hertfordshire |
| Fire | Hertfordshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Berkhamsted (/ˈbɜːrkəmstɛd/BUR-kəm-sted) is amarket town inHertfordshire, England. Located in theBulbourne valley, it is 26 miles (42 km) north-west of London and had a population of 21,245 at the 2021 census.[1][2][3] The town is acivil parish within theborough ofDacorum which is based in the neighbouring largenew town ofHemel Hempstead.[4] Berkhamsted, along with the adjoining village ofNorthchurch, is surrounded by countryside, and theChiltern Hills, anArea of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).[5]
Berkhamsted was first mentioned in 970 CE and was recorded as aburbium (ancient borough) in theDomesday Book in 1086. A (now ruined)motte-and-baileyNorman castle was built shortly after theNorman Conquest and remained a royal possession and residence for four centuries. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the town was awool trading centre, with a busy local market. The oldest-known extantjettied timber-framed building in Great Britain, built between 1277 and 1297, survives as a shop on the town's high street.[6][7]The town's literary connections include the 17th-century hymnist and poetWilliam Cowper, the 18th-century writerMaria Edgeworth and the 20th-century novelistGraham Greene. Arts institutions in the town includeThe Rex (a well regarded independent cinema) and theBritish Film Institute'sBFI National Archive at King's Hill, which is one of the largest film and television archives in the world.[8] Schools in the town includeBerkhamsted School, a co-educational boardingindependent school (founded in 1541 byJohn Incent,Dean of St Paul's Cathedral);Ashlyns School, a state school, whose history began as theFoundling Hospital established in London byThomas Coram in 1742; andAshridge Executive Education, a business school offering degree level courses, which occupies the Grade I listed neo-GothicAshridge House.
The earliest recorded spelling of the town's name is the 10th centuryAnglo-SaxonBeorhðanstædæ. The first part may have originated from either theOld English wordsbeorg, meaning "hill", orberc orbeorc, meaning "birch"; or from the olderOld Celtic wordBearroc, 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 the hills" or the "homestead among the birches".[9][10]
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 theDomesday Book (such as: "Berkstead", "Berkampsted", "Berkhampstead", "Muche Barkhamstede", "Berkhamsted Magna", "Great Berkhamsteed" and "Berkhamstead".)[11][12] In 1937 the name was changed by the local council from Great Berkhampstead to Berkhamsted.[13] The town is known locally as "Berko".[14]
Neolithic,Bronze Age,Iron Age and Roman artefacts show that the Berkhamsted area of theBulbourne Valley has been settled for over 5,000 years.[15][16][17][18]
A major iron production aroundNorthchurch is considered to be one of the most important late Iron Age and Roman industrial areas in England,[19][20] and led to the settlement of a Roman town atCow Roast,[21] about two miles (three kilometres) northwest of Berkhamsted. Other evidence of settlement includes a pottery kiln on Bridgewater Road.[22][23][24] The town's high street still follows the line of the Roman-engineeredAkeman Street, which had been a pre-existing route fromSt Albans (Verulamium) toCirencester (Corinium).[25]
During theRoman occupation which lasted until 410 CE, the Berkhamsted area appears to have been divided into two or three farming estates havingvilla buildings,[26] and remains of a villa were found close to the river,[27][28] A Roman-British villa, dyke, and temple were found 1.25 miles (2.0 km) near the castle at Frithsden. Excavations in 1954 revealed masonry foundations andtesserae floors. Together, the villa, dyke and temple form a unique complex, suggesting occupation in the late Iron Age and Roman period.[29][22][30]
The earliest written reference to Berkhamsted is in the will ofÆlfgifu (died 970 CE), the wife of KingEadwig of England (r. 955–959), who bequeathed land including Berkhamsted.[31] RareAnglo-Saxon pottery dating from the 7th century and 9th century water mills demonstrate the existence of Anglo-Saxon settlement.[32] The church may have been an importantminster, which became part of the medieval manor of Berkhamsted after theNorman Conquest.[31][33] By the 14th century the adjoining village of "Berkhamsted St Mary" or "Berkhamsted Minor" had become "North Church", later "Northchurch".[34][11][27][33][35]
In the 13th and 14th centuries, the town was awool trading centre, with a busy local market. The oldest-known extantjettied timber-framed building in Great Britain, built between 1277 and 1297, survives as a shop on the town's high street.[6][7]The Domesday survey records that there was enough land for 26 plough teams, but only 15 working teams. There were two flour mills, woodland for 1,000 pigs, and a vineyard.[36] The population was calculated at either 37 or 88 households.[37][38][Notes 1]From 1066 to 1495,Berkhamsted Castle, of which only ruins exist, was aNormanmotte-and-bailey castle.[40] was a favoured residence of royalty and the nobility, including KingHenry II,Edward the Black Prince,Thomas Becket andGeoffrey Chaucer.[41]Radiocarbon dating indicates that it was probably built post-1066.[42][43] The castle was a high-status residence and an administrative centre it contributed to the growth of the town.[44][45][46][47]In 1227,Richard of Cornwall, was given the castle,[48][49][Notes 2] redeveloped it as a palatial residence and the centre for the administration of theEarldom of Cornwall. In 1317, the castle was given to Edward II's queen,Isabella of France.[50]
Edward III gave the castle to his son,Edward, the Black Prince under whom Berkhamsted become a centre ofEnglish longbow archery,[51] making the longbow a decisive factor in the English victory at theBattle of Crécy. In 1400,Henry IV lived in the castle after he deposed Richard, and during this time,Geoffrey Chaucer – later famous for writingThe Canterbury Tales – oversaw renovation work on the castle in his role as Clerk of the Works at Berkhamsted.Henry V andHenry VI owned the castle and in 1469,Edward IV gave the castle to his mother,Cecily Neville, Duchess of York who had a significant social and financial impact on the town and was the last person to live in the castle.[52][50]
In 1833, the castle was the first building in theUnited Kingdom to receive statutory protection. The castle ruins are managed by theBerkhamsted Castle Trust, in partnership withEnglish Heritage, for theDuchy of Cornwall, and are open to the public.[50][53]
From the 12th to the 15th centuries 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.[54][55] In 1156,Henry II officially recognised Berkhamsted as a town in aroyal charter, which confirmed the conditions enjoyed underEdward the Confessor, and also decreed that no market could be set up within 7 miles (11 km) of the town.[45]
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 the town from all tolls and taxes everywhere in England,[56] and the growingwool trade brought prosperity to Berkhamsted from the 12th century until the earlyTudor period.[57][58] In 1217, Henry III recognised Berkhamsted's market by royal charter.[56][59][Notes 3] In the mid–13th century, the wealthy banker Abraham of Berkhamsted, financier to the Earl of Cornwall, lived in the town; this was unusual for a small town in atime of heightened persecution of Jews.[60]
At this time, larger houses were built on the south side of the high street including173 High Street, the oldest known extantjettied building in England). In 1307 Berkhamsted was alarge town by English medieval standards with an estimated population of 2,000 to 2,500.[61] In the 14th century, Berkhamsted (recorded as "Berchamstede") was considered to be one of the "best" market towns in the country.[62] In 1440, there is a reference to lime kilns.[11]
The town benefited whenEdmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall, foundedAshridge 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. In the 15th century, the town was reaffirmed as 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 13th and 14th centuries, the town was awool trading centre, with a busy local market. The oldest-known extantjettied timber-framed building in Great Britain, built between 1277 and 1297, survives as a shop on the town's high street.[6][7]
In 1495 after the castle was abandoned, the town went into decline losing its borough status in the second half of the 17th century. Around 1583, 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 byHenry Frederick, Prince of Wales for £4,000. Henry died later that year, and bequeathed the house to his brother Charles (laterKing Charles I),[63] 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. Born in Berkhamsted, ColonelDaniel Axtell (1622 – 19 October 1660), played an important part in theEnglish Civil War and participated as inPride's Purge of theLong Parliament (December 1648), arguably the only militarycoup d'état in English history. During Cromwell's Protectorate, he appropriated Berkhamsted Place. Shortly after theRestoration of the monarchy Axtell washanged, drawn and quartered as aregicide.[64] After the Restoration, the town lost its charter granted by James I and its borough status. The population of the town in 1640 and in the 1690s was estimated at 1075 and 767, respectively.[65] The town was a centre of religious nonconformity from the 17th century: over a quarter of the town wereDissenters in the second half of the century.[66]
With the coming of theIndustrial Age, Berkhamsted became a gateway through the Chilterns, between the markets of London and the industrialMidlands and the town's population to expand again.[67] In 1868 middle-class villas began to appear south of the High Street.[68][69][8] In 1887, John Bartholomew'sGazetteer of the British Isles recorded the population at 4,485.[70][68]
In the mid-18th centurywood milling andwoodturning were the town's most prominent industries,[71] with brush making as an offshoot of the timber industry.[71] The canal trade stimulated the economy of the town,[71] and Berkhamsted became a centre for the construction of the barges needed for the canal trades.[72] Aboatyard for building canal barges and other boats was one of three important boatyards in Hertfordshire. This site, next to the canal, is the location of theBerkhamsted Canadian totem pole. The construction of the canal had helped to drain the marshy areas along the valley of the River Bulbourne and the area was developed intowatercress beds.[73]William Cooper was avetinary surgeon who arrived in Berkhamsted in the early 1840s and experimented in treatments forscab in sheep. He formulated an innovative arsenic and sulphursheep dip.[71] Henry Lane'snurseryman business, founded in 1777, became one of the largest employers in the town in the 19th century. Wood's Ironworks was set up in 1826 by James Wood.[73]
Utilities in the 19th century included aGasworks installed to provide street lighting in 1849 and later closed in 1959.[74] The Great Berkhamsted Waterworks Company was set up in 1864 on the High Street and mains drainage was first supplied in 1898–99, when effective sewerage was installed.[74]
In 1725 "An Account of Several Workhouses" records a parishworkhouse in Berkhamsted, and a parliamentary report of 1777 refers to a parish workhouse.[75] The workhouse system was ended in 1930, and control was given to local council with the workhouse finally closing in 1935.[75][76] In 1841, the Countess of Bridgewater built asoup 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.[77]
In 1866 theBattle of Berkhamsted Common played an important part in the national preservation of common land.[78] In an action similar to that of many other large estate holders, Lord Brownlow of Ashridge House, attempted toenclose BerkhamstedCommon by erecting 5-foot (1.5 m) steel fences in order to claim the land as part of his family's estate. In response to the enclosure action and in defence the historic right of the public to use the ancient common land, on the night of 6 March, in what became known nationally as the Battle of Berkhamsted Common, men from London's East End to dismantle the fences.[56][79][80][81] The decision ofLord Justice Romilly in the ensuing court case, along with theMetropolitan Commons Act 1866, helped to ensure the protection of open spaces nationally threatened with enclosure. In 1926 the common was acquired by the National Trust.[82][83][84]
In 1909 Sunnyside and later in 1935 Northchurch were added to Berkhamsted Urban District. Shortly after 1918 much of 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.[85] In the second half of the 20th century, many of the old industrial firms in Berkhamsted closed, while the numbers of commuters increased.[86]
Berkhamsted is situated within theChiltern Hills, part of a system ofchalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England, believed to have formed between 84 and 100 million years ago in theCretaceous Period when the area was achalk-depositing marine environment.[87] 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 the southernmost limit of thePleistocene glaciation ice erosion throughout the Chiltern scarp, giving it a smooth rounded appearance, withalluvial soils in the valley bottom and chalk, clay and flint on the valley sides.[19][88] In the earlyMesolithic period (Middle Stone Age, mid to late 8th millennium BCE), the local upland was mostlypine woodland and the low area of central Berkhamsted probably a grass-sedge fen. In the 6th Millennium BCE the dense deciduous forest became well established. By the Mid to late 3rd millennium BCE during theNeolithic period (the New Stone Age) human activity can be seen in wood clearances; the woodland being then dominated bylime trees, withalder trees growing on theflood plain. TheRiver Bulbourne, achalk stream, runs through the valley for 7 miles (11 km) in a southeast direction, starting atDudswell and the adjoining village ofNorthchurch and running through Berkhamsted,Bourne End andBoxmoor, where it merges with theRiver Gade at Two Waters inApsley, near Hemel Hempstead. It was fast-moving and full, and prone to frequent localised flooding.[15] The river created a marsh environment in the centre of the valley.[89][54] The river powered the watermills (recorded in 1086) and fed the threemoats of the largeNorman castle, that stands close to the centre of the town.[90]
The countryside surrounding the town includes parts of theGreen Belt and the ChilternsArea of Outstanding Natural Beauty (ANOB). The Urban Nature Conservation Study (UNCS) recognises 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 mixedoak,ash andbeech woodland. On the northeast side of town are the Berkhamsted and Northchurchcommons, the largest in the Chilterns at 1,055 acres (427 ha), and forming a large arc running from Northchurch, throughFrithsden and down toPotten End. Ownership of Berkhamsted Common is divided between theNational Trust and Berkhamsted Golf Club. Beyond the common is the 5,000-acre (2,000 ha) historic wooded parkland ofAshridge; once part ofBerkhamsted Castle's hunting park, it is now managed by the National Trust. Ashridge is part of the ChilternsBeechwoodSpecial Area of Conservation (SAC), a nationally important nature conservation area, and is also designated as aSite 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 andRossway. The ancient woodland at Dickshills is also located here.[91][92][93]
The centre of Berkhamsted is typical of a medieval market town with its long, straight High Street (aligned on the Akeman Street) forming the east–west axis, from which extend medievalburgage plots to the north and south.[58][38] The town centre slowly developed over the years and contains a wide variety of properties that date from the 13th century onwards.The canal intersects the river at numerous points, taking most of its water supply and helping to drain the valley. The townscape was shaped by the Bulbourne valley, which rises 300 feet (91 metres) on either side at its narrowest pointy.[91][94]
Along the Bulbourne valley towards London, are the village ofBourne End and the largenew town of Hemel Hempstead. To the south south-east is the large village ofBovingdon and south from Berkhamsted, along theChiltern Hills intoBuckinghamshire is the hamlet ofAshley Green and themarket town ofChesham. Further southwest is the village ofGreat Missenden and to the west is the small market town ofWendover.[95]
Northwestwards are the village ofNorthchurch, and the hamlets ofDudswell andCow Roast,Wigginton and the small market towns ofTring andAylesbury, thecounty town of Buckinghamshire. Following the Chiltern Hills northwards, to the north-northwest is the village ofAldbury; situated to the north of Berkhamsted are the villages ofRingshall andLittle Gaddesden; located to the north-east of the town are the villages and hamlets ofPotten End,Frithsden andGreat Gaddesden.[95]
Like most of the United Kingdom, Berkhamsted has anoceanic climate (Köppen climate classificationCfb).[96]
| Climate data for Berkhamsted | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 6 (43) | 7 (45) | 10 (50) | 12 (54) | 16 (61) | 19 (66) | 21 (70) | 22 (72) | 18 (64) | 14 (57) | 9 (48) | 6 (43) | 13 (55) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 3 (37) | 3 (37) | 4 (39) | 5 (41) | 8 (46) | 10 (50) | 12 (54) | 13 (55) | 11 (52) | 8 (46) | 5 (41) | 3 (37) | 7 (45) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 69.3 (2.73) | 59.4 (2.34) | 46.5 (1.83) | 70.1 (2.76) | 58.1 (2.29) | 58.9 (2.32) | 46.0 (1.81) | 68.9 (2.71) | 51.7 (2.04) | 84.3 (3.32) | 93.9 (3.70) | 80.9 (3.19) | 788.0 (31.02) |
| Source:[97] | |||||||||||||
Near-real-time weather information can be retrieved from Berkhamsted Weather Station page on theMet Office Weather Observation website.[98]
Berkhamsted is withinHarpenden and Berkhamsted, a constituency newly created by the2023 review of Westminster constituencies. In the first election to be held in the constituencyVictoria Collins won the seat for theLiberal Democrat party in the2024 General Election.[100]
Berkhamsted town council, represents the local people to two higher tiers of local government,Dacorum Borough Council andHertfordshire County Council. The modern district of Dacorum based inHemel Hempstead was formed in 1974 under theLocal Government Act 1972; thelocal government district's main population centres include Hemel Hempstead,Tring and the western part ofKings Langley. Berkhamsted accounts for just over 12 per cent of the district's population of 153,300 in 2017.[101]
Berkhamsted has three local governmentWards—East, West and Castle. The result of the 2023 town council elections wasLiberal Democrat11; Green 2; Labour 2.[102]
Berkhamsted was anancient borough, but lost this status in the 17th century.[103] The town was then governed by its parishvestry until the 19th century. In 1835 Berkhamsted was made the centre of apoor law union which covered the town and the surrounding parts of western Hertfordshire, as well as parts of Buckinghamshire. Under thePublic Health Act 1872,sanitary districts were created, and theboards of guardians of poor law unions were made responsible for public health and local government for any part of their district not included in an urban authority. As Berkhamsted had nolocal board or other urban authority, it was therefore included in the rural sanitary district.[104]
In 1893 the town petitioned for the creation of a local board covering both Berkhamsted and Northchurch parishes, which would make it independent of the rural sanitary authority. An inquiry was held by a government inspector in December 1893, but he advised against the scheme. Hertfordshire County Council therefore did not pursue it, although did comment that an urban authority covering just the town itself rather than the two whole parishes might be more favourably received.[105][106]
Under theLocal Government Act 1894, rural sanitary districts became rural districts on 28 December 1894, and so the town became part of theBerkhampstead Rural District. Parish councils were also established under the act, to take over the civil functions of the old vestries. The new parish councils came into being on 31 December 1894 if an election had been needed to choose the first parish councillors, as was the case at Berkhamsted.[107]
| Berkhamsted Great Berkhampstead (1898–1937) | |
|---|---|
| Urban District | |
 Berkhamsted Civic Centre, 161 High Street, Berkhamsted. | |
| Population | |
| • 1901 | 6,371 |
| • 1971 | 15,255[108] |
| History | |
| • Created | 15 April 1898 |
| • Abolished | 31 March 1974 |
| • Succeeded by | Dacorum |
| • HQ | Berkhamsted |
| Contained within | |
| • County Council | Hertfordshire |
In 1898 the parish was split into a "Great Berkhampstead Urban" parish, which became an urban district, and a "Great Berkhampstead Rural" parish, which remained in the Berkhampstead Rural District.[109][110] The Great Berkhampstead Rural parish ceded land to the urban district in 1935 and in 1937 was split betweenNettleden with Potten End, Northchurch, andGreat Gaddesden.[111][112] Older municipal buildings were demolished in 1938 and newBerkhamsted Civic Centre was built on the site.[113][114]
Until 1937 the official name of the council's area was the "Great Berkhampstead Urban District". A change of name to "Berkhamsted Urban District" came into effect on 19 July 1937. A few months later the neighbouring Berkhampstead Rural District became Berkhamsted Rural District.[115][13] Under theLocal Government Act 1972, Berkhamsted Urban District was abolished to become part of thenon-metropolitan district of Dacorum in 1974. Berkhamsted Town Council was created as asuccessor parish to the former urban district council.[116]
The Hertfordshire Local Information System (HertsLIS) website (based on data from theOffice for National Statistics and other UK government departments) has the following data regarding the 7,363 households in Berkhamsted in 2011. 72 per cent of homes were owner occupied (34 per cent owned outright and 38 per cent owned with a mortgage) compared to 63 per cent for England. 26.5 per cent of homes were rented (13 per cent each for social rented and private rented) compared to a national figure of 34.5 per cent.[117]
In 2021 according toRightmove the average cost of a home in Berkhamsted was £696,949. The majority of sales in the town were detached properties, with an average selling value of £1,076,244. The average terraced dwelling price was £563,291 and the average semi-detached properties went for £657,436. Overall, in 2021 property house prices in Berkhamsted were four per cent up on the previous year and five per cent up on the 2018 peak of £661,336.[118]
In mid-2016, theOffice for National Statistics estimated the working age population of Berkhamsted (males and females aged 16 to 64) as 11,400, i.e. 62 per cent of the town's population. People from Berkhamsted were employed as follows: 17.5 per cent worked as managers, directors and senior officials; 27.5 per cent professional occupations and 8.5 per cent in associate professional and technical occupations; 10 per cent were employed in administrative and secretarial occupations; 7 per cent in skilled trades; 6 per cent Caring, leisure and other service occupations; 5 per cent were in sales and customer service occupations; 3 per cent were in process, plant and machine operatives; and 5.5 per cent worked in elementary occupations.[117]
According to HertsLIS in 2011, 76 per cent of Berkhamsted residents between the ages of 16 and 74 were employed (of which: full-time, 43 per cent; part-time, 13 per cent; self-employed, 14 per cent); and 24 per cent economically inactive (retired, 13 per cent; long-term sick/disabled, 2 per cent).[117]
From the 2021Office for National Statistics (ONS) census for the Berkhansted built-up area, the population was recorded at 21,245 with a near equal number of males and females. Ethnicity: White individuals make up approximately 93–94% of the population, with Asian (~2–2.5%), Black (~0.6–0.7%), and mixed/multiple (~2–3%) being modest minorities. Of residents who stated a religious affiliation, 46.5% were Christian; other faiths included 0.52% Buddhist, 0.49% Jewish, 0.64% per cent Muslim, 0.68% Hindu, 0.17% Sikh, other religions 0.47%. The remaining 9,179 residents reported no religion.[119]
Originally proposed in the 1930s, a bypass was opened in 1993 to relive town traffic and the mainA41 road now passes south-west of Berkhamsted. Local bus routes passing through Berkhamsted town centre provide links to Aylesbury, Hemel Hempstead, Luton, Watford andWhipsnade Zoo.[120] Since 1999 buses are managed byHertfordshire County Council'sIntalink transport service.[121]
Berkhamsted railway station is located just besideBerkhamsted Castle, overlooking theGrand Junction Canal. The station is 28 miles (45 km) north west ofLondon Euston on theWest Coast Main Line. As of 2025 all services at Berkhamsted are operated byLondon Northwestern Railway and run between London Euston andMilton Keynes Central, with additional trains running toNorthampton andBirmingham New Street and many other destinations.[122]
In 1986, farming, service and light industry were characteristic local employers.[123] In 2015, schools and retail (predominantlyWaitrose) were the town's largest employers; these are both situated in Berkhamsted Castle ward.[124] Of the employed residents living in both Berkhamsted and Tring, 35 per cent live and work in the towns, while 65 per cent commute to workplaces away from the towns, particularly to London.[125] Of the 7,100 people who work in Berkhamsted, 58 per cent commute to Berkhamsted to work. In 2011, 9.5 per cent of Berkhamsted residents (aged 16 to 74 in employment) worked mainly at or from home; 52 per cent drove to work by car (2.5 per cent as a passenger in a car); 22 per cent travelled by public transport; and 13 per cent cycled or walked to work. In 2011, an average commute to work was 21 kilometres.[117]
In 2014 Berkhamsted's High Street had 100 per cent retail occupancy of independent traders and a "cafe culture".[126] Coming top in the south-east region in Sunday Times 2018 Best Places to Live, Berkhamsted was described as "affluent and attractive; its medieval centre is filled with chic shops and great places to eat", with 76 per cent of shops being independent stores. Berkhamsted has an activeTransition Town community.[127][128]
State schools in Berkhamsted provide education in a two-tier system. Elementary education is offered by the six primary schools in the town: Bridgewater, Greenway Primary & Nursery School, St Mary’s Church of England Primary School, St. Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Swing Gate Infant School and Nursery, Thomas Coram Church of England Primary School, and Westfield Primary School and Nursery.[129]
Ashlyns School, is aFoundation school andsixth form with 1,200mixed pupils aged 11 to 19 years.[130] The school was begun in the 18th century, when a philanthropist,Thomas Coram, was granted aroyal charter "for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Children" in 1739. The school is located in a Grade IIlisted building and is an example ofneo-Georgian architecture.Since 2003, Ashlyns School building and its chapel have been a Grade IIlisted building.[131]
Primary and secondary education is also provided by two independent schools: theBerkhamsted School, aprivate fee-paying school for around 1,850 pupils aged 3 to 18,. The present school was formed in 1997 by the amalgamation of the original Berkhamsted School, founded in 1541 byJohn Incent,Dean of St Paul's Cathedral, Berkhamsted School for Girls, established in 1888,[133] and Berkhamsted Preparatory School.[56][134]
Egerton Rothesay School is a small independent fee-paying school for around 150 Special Educational Need (SEN) pupils between the ages of 5 and 19.[135] The school is the result of the merging of two Berkhamsted independent primary schools, Rothesay, founded in 1922 and situated in Charles Street, and Egerton School, founded in 1950.[136]
Hult Ashridge (formerly Ashridge Business School/Ashridge Executive Education) is located inAshridge House, the former stately home of the Duke of Bridgewater.[137] In 2015, Ashridge merged withHult International Business School, to become Hult Ashridge.[138]
The oldest extant church locally is St Mary's in the adjacent village of Northchurch. Between 1087 and 1104, there is reference to a chaplain called Godfrey and to a chapel of St James with parochial status within St Mary's Berkhamsted's parish. A chapel situated close to St Johns, located close to St John's Lane, was the base for a small community of monks, the Brotherhood of St John the Baptist, in the 11th and 12th centuries.[139][140][Notes 4]
DuringKing John's reign,Geoffrey Fitz Peter, was instrumental in the foundation theparish church of St Peter, and in 1222, Robert de Tuardo, was registered as the first known rector.[141] Because of the church's proximity to the castle, the reigning monarch waspatron of Berkhamsted rectors for several centuries. In 1648, St Peter's Church was requisitioned during theEnglish Civil War byGeneral Fairfax as amilitary prison to hold soldiers captured from thesiege of Colchester.[142] The poetWilliam Cowper was christened in St Peter's,[66] where his father John Cowper was rector.[143]
The parish church of St Peter on the High Street, is one of the largest churches in Hertfordshire.[144] Two otherAnglican churches in the town – 'St Michael and All Angels' (Sunnyside) (original building 1886) and 'All Saints' Church & St Martha's' (built in 1906) on Rectory Lane.[145]
Several non-conformistdenominations are represented in Berkhamsted. TheBaptist community has a chapel on the High Street.[66] AQuaker meeting house was opened in 1818 on the High Street.[146] TheCongregationlists worship together with aPresbyterian congregation at St Andrew's United Reformed Church on the corner of Castle Street and Chapel Street.[146] TheMethodists share All Saints' Church with Anglicans.[147] TheEvangelist (Latter Day Saints) began life has part of thePlymouth Brethren, their Hope Hall opened in 1875, which was renamed Kings Road Evangelical Church in 1969.[148] ARoman Catholic church, the Church of the Sacred Heart, a modern 1980 church building is located on Park Street.[149]
Geoffrey Chaucer wasclerk of works at Berkhamsted Castle from 1389 and based his Doctor of Phisick inThe Canterbury Tales on John of Gaddesden, who lived in nearby Little Gaddesden.William Cowper was born in Berkhamsted Rectory in 1731. Although he moved away when still a boy, there are frequent references to the town in his poems and letters. In theVictorian era, Cowper became a cult figure and Berkhamsted was a place of pilgrimage for his devotees.Maria Edgeworth, a prolific Anglo-Irish writer of adults' and children's literature who was a significant figure in the evolution of the novel in Europe, lived in Berkhamsted as a child in the 18th century.[23] Between 1904 and 1907, theLlewelyn Davies boys were the inspiration for the author and playwrightJ. M. Barrie'sPeter Pan.[150] A little later, novelistGraham Greene was born in Berkhamsted and educated at Berkhamsted School, alongside literary contemporariesClaud Cockburn,Peter Quennell,Humphrey Trevelyan andCecil Parrott.[151]
The Rex cinema, built in 1937, is recognised byEnglish Heritage as a fine example of a 1930sart decocinema.[152] The cinema was designed by architectDavid Evelyn Nye for the Shipman and King circuit.[153] Closed in 1988, the cinema was extensively restored in 2004 and has become a thriving independent local cinema.[154] The cinema features luxurious seating and two licensed bars. Prior to the cinema's construction, anElizabethan mansion,Egerton House, had occupied the site for 350 years.[155]
Rarely open to the public, "The J. Paul Getty, Jr. Conservation Centre" is the location of much of the film restoration work of theBFI National Archive of theBritish Film Institute.[156] With over 275,000 feature, non-fiction and short films (dating from 1894) and 210,000 television programmes, it is one of the largest film archives in the world. Two of the archive's collections were added to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) UK Memory of the World Register, in 2011.[157]
The town has a large National Trust Common and woodland on its long north-east edge.[158][159][160] Running east–west through the centre of the town, along the town's length theGrand Union Canal provides an open space with recreational opportunities, with the small River Bulbourne it creates awildlife corridor through the town.[161][162][163]
Other public green spaces include the castle and Butts Meadow. In 2016 The Friends of St Peter's Berkhamsted received £907,000 in a grant from theNational Lottery Heritage Fund and theBig Lottery Fund from theNational Lottery (United Kingdom) to repurpose the Rectory Lane Cemetery and for restored heritage features and create a new green community space in the town.[164][165]The Berkhamsted Bowmen are the oldestarchery club in England.[151] Founded in 1875 BerkhamstedCricket Club competes in the Herts League and in 2025 celebrated its 150th anniversary. The club is based at the Berkhamsted Community Cricket and Sports Club, Kitcheners Field, Castle Hill.[166]
The nine Berkhamsted and Hemel Hempstead Hockey Club teams are based just outside the town atCow Roast, playing their matches on their astroturf pitch[167] at the club grounds inCow Roast. There are twoBowls clubs, Berkhamsted and Kitcheners.[168]
Berkhamsted Football Club, play in theSouthern Football League Division One Central,[169] part of the 8th Level in the English League. The team was formed in 2009 after the demise ofBerkhamsted Town F.C. which had been established in 1895. Founded in 1996, Berkhamsted Raiders CFC football club was recognised as the FA Charter Standard Community Club of the Year at theEnglish Football Association Community Awards in 2014 and awarded theUEFA Grassroots Silver Award in 2015 for their work across the local community. The club, in 2023, had more than 1,300 affiliated players, including 250 girls in 94 youth teams plus Senior, Veterans, Ladies, Walking Football and Inclusive Football sections. In 2022, the Club was awarded the Herts FA Grassroots Club of the Year.[170][171]
A sports centre near Douglas Gardens, comprises a large indoor multi-purpose sports hall,squash courts, swimming pool, and outdoor all-weather pitch. This facility is complemented by dual use of the leisure facilities of Ashlyns School and Berkhamsted Collegiate School. Berkhamsted and the surrounding area has a variety of roadcycling andmountain biking routes, including traffic-free off-road routes in Ashridge Estate.[172]
Berkhamsted is within theBBC London andITV London region. Television signals are received from theCrystal Palace TV transmitter[173] and the local relay transmitter situated inHemel Hempstead.[174]
Local radio stations areBBC Three Counties Radio on 103.8 FM serving Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire,Heart Hertfordshire on 106.9 FM broadcasting across Hertfordshire,Greatest Hits Radio Bucks, Beds and Herts (formerly Mix 96.2) on 92.2 FM and community based stations, Radio Dacorum[175] and Tring Radio.[176]
The town is served by the regional newspaper,Hemel Hempstead Gazette & Express which covers the towns of Hemel Hempstead, Berkhamsted and Tring, and the surrounding area in Hertfordshire.[177]
The majority of Berkhamsted's 85 listed or scheduled historical sites are half-timbered houses on the High Street with some on Castle Street and other locations. Castle Street began life as the medieval lane from the town's High Street to the drawbridge of the royal castle. At the other end of the lane was the parish church of St Peters. Berkhamsted school was founded In the 16th century, while in the 17th century there were seven public houses among the street's trade outlets.[178]Four are scheduled, one is Grade I, seven are Grade II*, the remaining 75 are Grade II.[179][180][181] To the northwest of Berkhamsted stand the ruins of Marlin's Chapel, a 13th-century chapel next to a medieval fortified farm. The walls and moat surrounding the modern farm still remain and are reputed to be haunted.[56]173 High Street, is a Grade II* listed building, with a Victorian façade hiding what is considered to be the oldest extantjettied timber-framed building in Great Britain, dated bydendrochronology to between 1277 and 1297.[179][6][7][182] The shop was restored on a £250,000 grant from English Heritage, and provides an insight into how the High Street would have looked in medieval times.[183]
TheDean Incent's House at 129 High Street is a 15th-centurytimber-framed house which is reputed to be the birthplace ofJohn Incent (c. 1480 – 1545), adean in theChurch of England who held office atSt Paul's Cathedral from 1540 to 1545.[179][184] 125 High Street, a house and shop, is a timber-framed building. This was an unusually large house, its size and central position suggesting a manor house or other high status house, possibly supporting the castle.[179][185] The Swan, a pub at 139 High Street, contains the remains of a medieval open hall.[179][31] The Court House, next to the church, dates from the 16th century, and is believed to lie on the site of the medieval court where the Portmote[Notes 5] or Borough Court was held.[31]
Sayer's Almshouses, were the legacy of John Sayer, chief cook to Charles II, at 235–241 High Street, comprise a single-storey row ofalmshouses built in 1684.[189] The Bourne School, at 222 High Street, was the legacy by Thomas Bourne (1656–1729) (Master of the Company of Framework Knitters) to build acharity school in Berkhamsted for 20 boys and 10 girls. The front was rebuilt in 1854 in Jacobean-style red brick.[190] The site now occupied by the Pennyfarthing Hotel dates from the 16th century, having been a monastic building used as accommodation for religious guests passing through Berkhamsted or going to the monastery at Ashridge.Berkhamsted Town Hall, a Victorian gothic market house and town hall, was built in 1859.[179][191] When Berkhamsted became part of the newDacorum Borough Council (based in Hemel Hempstead) plans to demolish the building were stopped in the 1970s and 1980s by a citizens' campaign, through the High Court.[191]
The BerkhamstedCanadiantotem pole stands next to the canal, near Castle Street Bridge. In the early 1960s, Roger Alsford, a great-grandson of the founder of the timber company, James Alsford (1841–1912), went to work at theTahsis lumber mill onVancouver Island. During a strike, he was rescued from starvation by a localKwakiutl community. Alsford's brother, William John Alsford, visited the island, and in gratitude for the local people's hospitality, commissioned a totem pole from the CanadianFirst Nations artistHenry Hunt.[192] Thewestern red cedar pole, 30 feet (9 m) high and 3 feet (1 m) in diameter, was carved by Hunt atThunderbird Park, a centre for First Nation monuments. The completed pole was shipped to Britain and erected at Alsford's Wharf in 1968. It is one of only a handful of totem poles in the United Kingdom, others being on display at theBritish Museum andHorniman Museum in London,Windsor Great Park,Bushy Park and theYorkshire Sculpture Park.[193] The carvings on the totem pole represent four figures from First Nations legend: at the top sitsRaven, the trickster and creator deity; he sits on the head ofSunman, who has outstretched arms representing the rays of the sun and wears acopper (a type of ceremonial shield); Sunman stands on the fearsome witch-spiritDzunukwa; at the base is the two-headed warrior sea serpent,Sisiutl, who has up-stretched wings.[194]
Ashridge is acountry estate andstately home with a largeGothic Revivalcountry house built between 1808 and 1814. The surrounding country estate is a 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) park managed by theNational Trust and has been used as a film location forSleepy Hollow andHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.[195] A monument toFrancis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, a tall Doric column with urn (a Grade II* listed building), stands in a grove within Ashridge.[196]
Poet andhymn writerWilliam Cowper (1731–1800), one of the most popular poets of his time, was born and raised in Berkhamsted. Cowper changed the direction of eighteenth century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and scenes of the English countryside. two stained-glass windows in St Peter's Church are dedicated to memory of Cowper.[197][198]
NovelistGraham Greene (1904–1991), whose father was headmaster ofBerkhamsted School, which Greene attended. One of Greene's novels,The Human Factor, is set there and mentions several places in the town. In his autobiography, Greene wrote that he has been 'moulded in a special way through Berkhamsted'. Greene's life and works are celebrated annually with a festival organised by the Graham Greene Birthplace Trust.[199]
Sir Hugh Carleton GreeneKCMG OBE (1910–1987) was born and educated in Berkhamsted. Green was a British television executive and journalist and brother of Graham Greene. He wasdirector-general of the BBC from 1960 to 1969.[200]
Dame Esther Louise RantzenDBE (b.1940) is an English journalist and television presenter who presented theBBC television seriesThat's Life! for 21 years, from 1973 until 1994.[201] Ranzen becameDame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2014 for services to children and older people through Childline and The Silver Line.[202]
Nick OwenMBE (b.1947) is an Englishtelevision presenter andNews presenter, known for presenting theITV breakfast programmeGood Morning Britain,Good Morning with Anne and Nick,ITV Sport, and theBBC's regional news showMidlands Today since 1997.[203][204][205]
Through Dacorum Berkhamsted istwinned with:Beaune, Burgundy, France andNeu-Isenburg, Hesse, Germany.[206]
The coat of arms was granted to the Borough of Berkamsted St Peter byWilliam Camden on 25 September 1618, transferred to the Berkamsted Town Council byCharles III on 13 May 2024.and are described as: escutcheon Or a castle of three domed towers Azure the portcullis raised Or flying from each outer tower a banner Argent charged with a cross Gules all within a bordure Sable charged with fifteen bezants.[207]
Great Berkhampstead Urban District renamed to Berkhamsted Urban District, 19 July 1937.
Water mills were the main source of power
Local Government Board Order 37,522: The County of Hertford (Berkhampstead Saint Peter) Confirmation Order, 1898, coming into operation 15 April 1898
County of Hertford (Berkhampstead Rural District Parishes) Order, 1936
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