St Paul's Walden
| St Paul's Walden | |
|---|---|
All Saints' Church, St Paul's Walden | |
St Paul's Walden Location within Hertfordshire | |
| Population | 1,381 (Parish, 2021)[1] |
| OS grid reference | TL193222 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Hitchin |
| Postcode district | SG4 |
| Dialling code | 01438 |
| Police | Hertfordshire |
| Fire | Hertfordshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
St Paul's Walden is a village and civil parish in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. The village lies about 5 miles (8 km) south of Hitchin, its post town. The largest settlement in the parish is the village of Whitwell, and the parish also includes the hamlet of Bendish. At the 2021 Census, the population of the parish was 1,381.
Geography
The village of St Paul's Walden itself is relatively small, comprising a few houses around the parish church, which is dedicated to All Saints. There is one public house in the village, being the Strathmore Arms.
The wider parish also includes the village of Whitwell in the valley of the River Mimram, which flows through the centre of the parish. The village school in Whitwell is called St Paul's Walden Primary School, taking the name of the parish.[2] The parish also includes the hamlet of Bendish, as well as surrounding rural areas, including the two large estates of Stagenhoe and St Paul's Walden Bury.[3]
History
After the Reformation the manor belonged to St Paul's Cathedral; the name St Paul's Walden serves to distinguish the parish from King's Walden, although the Dean and Chapter sold their property in the 17th century.
Notable estates
St Paul's Walden has two 18th-century mansions.
Stagenhoe
Stagenhoe was once owned by the Earls of Caithness
Sir Arthur Sullivan rented the property in the 1880s around the time he composed The Mikado.[4]
St Paul's Walden Bury
St Paul's Walden Bury is owned by the Bowes-Lyon family, of which Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother was a member. While the details of her birth in 1900 are uncertain, the house is one of the locations that has been posited as her birthplace.[5] Whether or not she was born at St Paul's Walden Bury, she was baptised at All Saints' Church in St Paul's Walden.[6][5]
On 23 January 1923, the then Prince Albert, Duke of York, later to become King George VI, drove up to St Paul's Walden in his sports car, and proposed to Elizabeth in the woods at the Bury.[7]
The gardens of St Paul's Walden Bury are listed as grade I on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.[8] They are occasionally opened to the public under the National Garden Scheme, a charity of which the Queen Mother was patron.[9]
Governance
There are three tiers of local government covering St Paul's Walden, at parish, district, and county level: St Paul's Walden Parish Council, North Hertfordshire District Council, and Hertfordshire County Council. The parish council meets in Whitwell, either at the village hall on Bendish Lane, known as the New Fellowship Hall, or at the pavilion at the recreation ground on Bradway.[10]
Population
At the 2021 census, the population of the parish was 1,381.[1] The population had been 1,293 in 2011.[11]
References
- ^ a b "2021 Census Parish Profiles". NOMIS. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 31 March 2025. (To get individual parish data, use the query function on table PP002.)
- ^ "Contact". St Paul's Walden Primary School. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
- ^ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
- ^ "Stagenhoe" (PDF).
- ^ a b "Welcome to the history of All Saints, St. Paul's Walden". St Paul's Walden Parish Magazine. Archived from the original on 24 August 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
- ^ Whitelaw, Jeffrey W. (13 October 1988). Hidden Hertfordshire (First ed.). Countryside Books. ISBN 9781853060250.
- ^ Express, Britain. "Queen Mother Biography". Britain Express.
- ^ Historic England. "St Paul's Walden Bury (1000150)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
- ^ "St Paul's Walden Bury". National Garden Scheme.
- ^ "St Paul's Walden Parish Council". Retrieved 13 May 2025.
- ^ "St Paul's Walden Parish". NOMIS. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
External links