Little Gaddesden

Little Gaddesden

Saint Peter and Saint Paul's church at Little Gaddesden
Little Gaddesden
Little Gaddesden shown within Hertfordshire
Population 1,125 (2011)[1]
OS grid reference SP997127
Civil parish
  • Little Gaddesden
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Berkhamsted
Postcode district HP4
Dialling code 01442[2]
Police Hertfordshire
Fire Hertfordshire
Ambulance East of England
EU Parliament East of England
UK Parliament

Little Gaddesden (pronounced /lɪtl ɡædzdən/) is a village and civil parish in the borough of Dacorum, Hertfordshire 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Berkhamsted. As well as Little Gaddesden village (population 694), the parish contains the settlements of Ashridge (population 53), Hudnall (population 139), and part of Ringshall (population 81).[3] The total population at the 2011 Census was 1,125.[4] Little Gaddesden is an area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB) and a conservation area protected by the National Trust.

Little Gaddesden and the surrounding area of the Ashridge Estate is owned and managed by the National Trust. This area has been used in many films, notably: First Knight, Stardust,[5] the Harry Potter series,[5] Son of Rambow [6] and more recently Robin Hood starring Russell Crowe.[7] TV programmes filmed here include the Netflix biographical drama The Crown, Marchlands, Midsomer Murders,[5] Lewis, Cranford,[8] and a Jamie Oliver advertisement for Sainsburys.[9]

There is a vigorous community life with over 25 different clubs and societies.[10]

Local residents are kept updated on events in Little Gaddesden through the Gaddesden Diary, published seasonally. The Parish News also provides a further summary.

History

Little Gaddesden has many period properties, of note: Ashridge House, (designed by Sir James Wyattville along with gardens and grounds designed by Humphry Repton and Capability Brown), The Manor House situated on the Green along with John O’Gaddesden House and Marian House, Little Gaddesden House along Nettleden Road heading towards the hamlet of Nettleden and the Old Rectory past the village shop heading to Ringshall.

In the early 17th century, Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley, had purchased Ashridge House, one of the largest country houses in England, from Queen Elizabeth I, who had inherited it from her father who had appropriated it after the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539. Ashridge House served the Egerton family as a residence until the 19th century. The Egertons later had a family chapel (the Bridgewater Chapel) with burial vault in Little Gaddesden Church,[11] where many monuments commemorate the Dukes and Earls of Bridgewater and their families.[12] Among those buried here is the 3rd Duke of Bridgewater,[11] famous as the originator of British inland navigation and the Bridgewater Canal.

Hudnall was formerly in the parish of Edlesborough, Buckinghamshire until it was transferred to the parish of Little Gaddesden in 1884.[13]

Geography

Nearby villages and Hamlets of Little Gaddesden include: Aldbury, Great Gaddesden, Gaddesden Row, Frithsden, Nettleden, Potten End, Ivinghoe, Northchurch, Ringshall, Studham, Dudswell, Wigginton, Dagnall and Flamstead.

Environment

The Ashridge Estate that surrounds the village is a 5,000-acre (20 km2)[14] area of open countryside and woodland on the edge of the Chiltern Hills, with a rich variety of wildlife including fallow deer and muntjac.[15] There are large areas of mature woodlands with carpets of spring bluebells and fine autumnal displays, along with the panorama from the Bridgewater Monument.

Economy

Local amenities include the Alford Arms public house, Bridgewater Arms public house, Little Gaddesden village shop and post office, Munn's Farm Shop, Ivinghoe Beacon, Pitstone Windmill, Frithsden Vineyard, Gaddesden Place, the Gaddesden Estate, Walter Swinburn racing stables, Stocks House, Ashridge Business School also known as Ashridge House, London Gliding Club, Dunstable Downs and Whipsnade Zoo.

Education

Little Gaddesden Church of England Primary School, seen in 2009.

Little Gaddesden Church of England primary school is a primary school with approximately 100 students (aged 4-11).[16] The school is voluntarily aided and is linked with the Diocese of St. Albans.[16] Vicars Bell was headmaster of the school for 34 years (1929-1963).[16][17]

Sport

Little Gaddesden plays host to a variety of sports clubs, this includes badminton, Little Gaddesden bowls & croquet club,[18] Little Gaddesden cricket club (which has both senior and junior teams), a junior football club,[19] a tennis club, and Ashridge golf club.[20]

Notable People

References

  1. ↑ "hertsdirect.org Population and household counts for Hertfordshire settlements - 2001 census". 2007-03-10. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  2. ↑ "Little Gaddesden Telephone Code. Little Gaddesden Area Code". www.ukphoneinfo.com. Retrieved 2018-07-24.
  3. ↑ Population figures are taken from Hertfordshire County Council: Population and household counts for Hertfordshire settlements - 2001 census.
  4. ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 "The Gaddesdens: Midsomer murders and a monastery". Hertfordshire Life. 26 July 2010. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  6. ↑ "Son of Rambow finds action in Hertfordshire!". BBC. 1 April 2008. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  7. ↑ "Robin Hood (2010) - Filming & Production". IMDb. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  8. ↑ "Cranford (TV Series 2007-2010) - Filming & Production". IMDb. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  9. ↑ "VIDEO: Jamie Oliver in TV advert filming". Hemel Today. Hemel Gazette. 14 May 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  10. ↑ "The Gaddesden Society | Clubs". www.littlegaddesden.org.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  11. 1 2 "The Bridgewater Chapel". www.littlegaddesdenchurch.org.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  12. ↑ "Monuments". www.littlegaddesdenchurch.org.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  13. ↑ "Hudnall Lane, Little Gaddesden, [Bucks > Herts], 19th century". www.hertfordshire-genealogy.co.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  14. ↑ "Ashridge Estate". National Trust. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  15. ↑ "Wildlife on the Ashridge Estate". National Trust. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  16. 1 2 3 4 "About Our School | Little Gaddesden Church of England Primary School". www.littlegaddesden.herts.sch.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  17. ↑ "New life for Bells' books". Berkhamsted Today. Berkhamsted & Tring Gazette. 12 December 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  18. ↑ "Club Details". www.croquet.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
  19. ↑ "The Gaddesden Society | Junior Football". www.littlegaddesden.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
  20. ↑ "Home :: Ashridge Golf Club". www.ashridgegolfclub.ltd.uk. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
  21. ↑ "Class act as Motty joins influential figures to talk football and business at Tring School". Hemel Today. Hemel Gazette. 16 November 2016. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  22. 1 2 3 "Where Angells Tread!: Nettleden". whereangellstread.com. 27 November 2016. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  23. ↑ "John Walker MOTSON - Personal Appointments (free information from Companies House)". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  24. ↑ "Home in Berkhamstead". www.early-sarah-brightman.com. Retrieved 2018-05-31.
  25. ↑ "The Most Beautiful & Luxurious British Celebrities' Houses - We Hope They Saved Enough for A Proper House Insurance - Page 47 of 113 - Loan Pride". Loan Pride. 16 April 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2018.

Further reading

  • J. Leonhardt, A Century Remembered: The Millennium Book for Little Gaddesden, Ringshall, Hudnall and Ashridge, Rural Heritage Society, 2002, ISBN 0-9542174-0-3.
  • Roger Bolton, The Witch, Poet and Spy: And Other Little Gaddesden Lives, ISBN 9781781488850
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