A History of St Albans

Learn how St. Albans - Hertfordshire's oldest town - has risen from an Iron Age settlement into a vibrant modern city over the course of 2000 years of human occupation.

St. Albans is Hertfordshire's oldest town, a modern city shaped by over 2000 years of human occupation. The town first appeared as Verlamion, a Celtic Iron Age settlement whose name means 'the settlement above the Marsh'.

After the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43, it developed as Verulamium and became one of the largest towns in Roman Britain.

Built mainly of wood, it was destroyed during the revolt of Boudicca in AD 60-61 but was rebuilt and grew to feature many impressive town houses and public buildings. It was encircled by gated walls in AD 275.

Fall of a Roman City

After the departure of the Roman Army in AD 410 the town slowly declined and the fine Roman City fell into decay.

Its ruinous buildings provided building materials to build the new monastic and market settlement of St. Albans which was growing on the hill above, close to the site of St. Alban's execution.

In the Norman Abbey Tower, you can still find the Roman bricks removed from the Verulamium. The Saxon settlement grew up around the precincts of the Monastery, founded in AD 900-950 by the Abbot Ulsinus, the acknowledged founder of St. Albans.

He established a market, encouraged settlers and built three churches - St. Michael's, St. Peter's and St. Stephen's - on the approaches to the town. It developed into a town of significance with a powerful Abbot and was one of the five chosen venues by the barons and clergy in 1213 for the drafting of Magna Carta.

Peasant's revolt

St. Albans played a major part in the Peasant's revolt in 1381. There had been growing conflict with the Abbot over milling rights and a surge of popular feeling that the townspeople should have more control of their affairs.

Fifteen of those taking part were tried at the Moot Hall, the site of the present day Town Hall. The Abbey Gateway and Clock Tower symbolise the conflict between monastery and town. The Abbey was surrounded by walls, to keep livestock safe and townspeople out, revealing the church's need for security from the town outside.

The Clock Tower, built between 1403 and 1412, was constructed by the townspeople as a symbol of their independence from the church. This tension between the church and town was not resolved until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1529.

The town prospered during the Middle Ages, catering for travellers and pilgrims. Many inns grew up around the Abbey. The Fleur-de-Lys, the George and the Tabard Inn were all built in the 15th century. Others on Holywell Hill and George Street survived, no longer as inns but as shops and offices.

Reformation

After the Reformation, the town continued to prosper with the growth of the stage coach service from London.

Until 1539 the town was dominated by the Abbot, but with the suppression of the church, the right to a Mayor was granted by a Charter of Edward VI in 1553. The Charter also formalised the right to hold markets.

A town hall was built on the site of today's W H Smith in the Market Place. The reformation also had the extra advantage of releasing church land, which was good for trade and industry. The Abbey Church was brought from a courier by parishioners to become the parish church of the town.

St. Albans sided with the parliament during the English Civil War (1642-45). A minor skirmish took place in 1643, when the royalist High Sheriff proclaimed for the King outside the Clock Tower, at the same time Cromwell and a detachment of men rode up Holywell Hill! The unfortunate Sheriff was chased, captured and dispatched to the Tower of London.

The 18th and early 19th centuries saw continuity and change. St. Albans remained a market town with industries such as brewing and straw hat manufacture.

Rise of a modern city

The decline of the coaching trade in the 1840's was eventually offset by the arrival of the local railways especially the main line to London in 1868. St. Albans was now an attractive place to live and it began to develop into a modern city, a process marked by civic and sanitary improvements.

In 1877 it received a Royal Charter giving the town City status and the Abbey Church became a Cathedral.

The 20th century has seen St. Albans continue to develop as a commuter town while maintaining a distinctive character. It attracted industries such as printing and Ryder & Son seed merchants. Samuel Ryder is better known today as the founder of the golfing trophy the Ryder Cup.

The 1920's and 1930's brought expansion in the electrical and aircraft industries, a process that was further stimulated by the Second World War.

The growth in road traffic has also influenced St. Albans in the latter part of the 20th century; the district is now encircled by the M1, M25 and A1 motorways.

It has continued to attract commuters and tourists, for St. Albans retains many things which remind us of both the City's rich and varied history, as well as providing an attractive place to live today.