A HISTORY OF HERTFORDSHIRE 



ARDELEY 



Erdelei or Erdele (xi-xiii cent.) ; Erdele or Ardley 

 (xiveent.) ; Yerdley {xv-xvi cent.) ; Yardley (xvicent. 

 to about 1850). 



The parish of Ardeley was included in Odsey 

 Hundred until 14 October 1843, when it was 

 transferred to Edwinstree Hundred. 1 It consists of 

 scattered hamlets lying on the southern slope of the 

 chalk hills of north-east Hertfordshire, at about an 

 equal distance from Stevenage station on the main 

 line of the Great Northern railway and the terminus 

 of Buntingford on a branch line of the Great Eastern 

 railway. The River Beane flows through the northern 

 part of the parish, and the numerous lanes connecting 

 the outlying parts of the parish 2 are carried across it 

 and its tributaries by means of fords. It is recorded 

 that the water did great damage to the roads early 

 in the last century. 3 



The village ot Ardeley lies on the western edge of 

 the hill overlooking the village of Walkern and the 

 valley of the River Beane. It consists of the church 

 and the vicarage (a rectangular plastered house built 

 in 1685,* having a carved wooden fireplace on the 

 ground floor) and a few cottages around the farm 

 known as Church End. The manor-house called 

 Ardeley Bury, the residence of Col. HansC.M. Woods, 

 R.A., is situated a little to the west. 



North of Ardeley Burv the village street of Cromer 

 lies on the road from Walkern to Rushden. It has 

 its own church and a hall, now converted into two 

 cottages, and is surrounded by its 01 

 fields. To the south is Cromer F 

 plaster house on a brick base, 1 

 end of the 16th or early in the 17 

 -shaped in plan and has two original chimney sta 



ick bearing the date 1630, 

 and the letters R.L. The 



L-east of Crc 

 : of the ant 



In the hall i 

 a pheon, an e 

 outbuildings are probably original. Another timber 

 and plaster house in the middle of Cromer Street, 

 now divided into two cottages, is of about the same 

 date. On the higher ground n 

 is a windmill probably on the 

 manorial mill of Ardeley Bury, which was built on 

 land acquired by exchange from the lords of Cromer. 5 

 LufTcnhall Street is a hamlet also surrounded by unin- 

 closcd common fields and is partly in Clothall parish. 

 Wood End, a considerable hamlet in the timbered 

 district in the south of the parish, contains the modern 

 church of St. Alban, a Congregational chapel 11 and 

 several farm-houses, including Lite's Farm, possibly 

 the old manor-house. 7 Two of the farm-houses are 

 of timber and plaster and apparently date from the 

 I 7th century. The manor-house of Moor Hall, now 



1 Hardy, S/ss. R. (Herts. Co. Rec), Si 



"The 



converted into a farm, is about a mile north of Wood 

 End. At Gardner's is a homestead moat surround- 

 ing farm -buildings near the road from Great Munden 

 to Rushden which here forms the boundary between 

 Ardeley and Cottered and further north passes through 

 the hamlet of Hare Street. 



These considerable farms and houses in a purely 

 agricultural district doubtless represent the tenements 

 of the well-to-do yeomen freeholders, who ' dealt much 

 in the making of malt.' 8 Chief among these were 

 the Halfhide family, members of which lived at 

 Gardner's End, 9 Moor Green 10 and Wood End, 11 

 and the Shot bolt family which occupied the tenement 

 called 'Cowherds' or 'Cowards,' afterwards called 

 ' The Place.' ls By I 700, however, the prosperity of 

 these families had much diminished. 13 



In addition to barley, wheat and beans are the 

 chief crops grown. Of 2,424 acres, rather more than 

 half is arable land. The permanent grass covers 660 

 acres. 13 " Some of the grass-land consists of open 

 greens such as Parker's Green, Munches Green 

 and Moor Green, and in the 17th and preceding 

 centuries the inhabitants depastured cattle along the 

 roadside and on the 'balks' dividing the holdings in 

 the common fields. 1 * The woodland (about 80 acres) 

 is chiefly about Ardeley Bury and in the south of 

 the parish. In 1649 seven 'groves' appertained to 

 Ardeley Manor ; among these were Deereloves, 

 Rooks, Cockshott, and Great Sprosewell." 



The public elementary school dates from 1834, 

 and was enlarged in 1845. Ifl 



The manor of ARDELEY was held 

 MANORS in 1086 by the canons of St. Paul's, 

 London. It had belonged to the church 

 before the Conquest," and possibly the tradition that 

 the canons acquired it of the gift of King Athelstan 

 (924-40 *.d.) is correct, although the charter re- 

 cording the gift must be rejected as a forgery. 18 



Apparently the manor included the whole parish 

 in 1086, and the canons owned also 2 hides in the 

 hamlet of Luffenhall, which lies partly in Clothall, 

 partly in Ardeley. 10 In 1086 Ardeley was assessed at 

 6 hides, of which 3 were in the demesne. 20 In the 

 time of Henry I the manor was assessed at 7 hides, 

 but only 6 of these were accounted for ; 2 hides were 

 in the demesne, I hide having evidently been alienated 

 to tenants since the time of the Domesday Survey. 21 



The manor was allotted for the maintenance of 

 the keeper of the brew-house of St. Paul's. 82 The 

 manor-house and demesne lands were let on lease as 

 early as the 12th century. The rent due from 

 Osbert of Ardeley, to whom a lease for life was granted 



■oiled on Close, 

 je of Ardeley 



264. 



* Chnuncy, Hist. Antii. of H, 



5 Dom. of Sr. Parti (Camd. s,< 



21; but the mill was accounted ps 



of Cromer Manor in 1576 (Ct. 



St. Paul's, B Box 5-). 



64. 



7 In 1674 the horn 

 Manor returned that thi 

 and land called Lights and a cottage ti 

 the left of the highway leading to th. 

 church ' (Ct. R. of D. and C. of St. Paul' 

 W.C. 1). 



« Chauncy, op. cit 65. 



9 Add. R. (B.M.), 27169. 



"= Str.ti-,r. 



» Add. R. 



" Close, 1649, pt. L, 



K Cf. Trust D. Enr. 



l.ofAgricOoo;). 



"Ibid, 



:. (Ser 



n Ch.iunc, 

 194 



1 Kimble". Cod. D,pl. 

 e'. mil. of St. Part; 



» r.C.II. titro. i, j,m. " Ibid. 



n Bom, if Si. Parti {Camd. Soc), 140. 

 ™ C a l. P al . ij-13-17, P . g. - Dom.of 

 Si. Part, (Camd. Soc), 160. 



