A HISTORY OF HERTFORDSHIRE 



south front on this side, is the dining room, the wall* 

 of which are lined with painted panelling. The 

 original kitchen probably occupied the corresponding 

 portion of this front to the west of the entrance. 

 The offices ate now principally contained in a 

 building added to this side of the house at the 18th- 

 century reconstruction. South of the dining room 

 and separated from it by the main staircase hall is 

 the oak parlour, the ceiling of which appears to be 

 of the original date. Opposite the main entrance, 

 leading out of the hall or vestibule, is a short pas-age 

 connecting with the south or garden entrance. Some 

 17th-century panelling is preserved here. Over 

 the fireplace of the small room to the east of the 

 garden entrance is a view of the house, painted, to 

 judge from the figures introduced into the fore- 

 ground, about the middle of the 17th century. The 

 lay-out of the surrounding gardens has completely 

 disappeared, but in other respects the house presents 

 much the same appearance as now, with the excep- 

 tion that casement frames take the place of the sashes 

 inserted later. The remaining rooms on the ground 

 floor contain little of architectural interest. A later 

 staircase has been formed on the west side of the 



on the north, and the long gallery on the east, over 

 the dining room and oak parlour, are more nearly in 



their original condition than any of the principal 

 rooms on the ground floor. Their panelling it 

 divided into compartments by fluted Corinthian 

 pilasters, having the lower third of their shaft* en- 

 riched with arabesque designs. The panelling of the 

 long gallery is now painted, and, with the exception 

 of the pilasters, is probably 18th-century work. The 

 ceiling of the drawing room, with its wreatht of fruit 

 and flowers in comparatively shallow relief, appear! to 

 be of original date with the house. In the principal 

 bed room on the south side of the house i> a fine 

 marble chimney-piece of the late 1 8th century, which 

 was formerly in the vestibule. The corridor communi- 

 cating with the apartments here has an original planer 

 ceiling on which is the Harrison crest. Generally the 

 interior has been much modernized, but sufficient detail 

 remains to show that the building is substantially that 

 which was erected by Sir John Harrison about the year 

 1640. 



The church of HOW TRINITT, 

 CHURCH Little Amwell, was built and endowed 

 about the year 1863. It is in 13th- 

 century style, and consists of chancel, nave, transept, 

 north porch and eastern spire. The advowion is 

 vested in trustees.' 



The history of the parish church of All Saints and the 

 charities for that parish are given under the borough. 



GREAT AMWELL 



Bmmewcll or Emwell (xi-xiv cent.) ; Ammeweli, 

 Amewell or Amwell (xiii-xiv cent.) ; Amwell Magna, 

 Much Amwell or Great Amwell (xvii cent.). 



The parish of Great Amwell lies on the right bank 

 of the River Lea to the south of Ware and the south- 

 east of Hertford. A detached part surrounded by the 

 civil parishes of Little Amwell and St. John's Rural 

 lies to the north-west of Little Amwell. It includes 

 Gallows Plain, and its boundary passes through a 

 tumulus of unknown origin on the western side of 

 ' Barrow Field.' ' 



The parish contains 2,264 a eres - but was formerly 

 of greater extent. A considerable portion of the 

 hamlet of Hoddesdon lay within the ecclesiastical 

 parish of Great Amwell' until 1844, when Hoddes- 

 don itself was consolidated into a separate parish.' 

 This part of Hoddesdon was known as 'Amwell 

 hamlet in Hoddesdon." The 'vill' of 1086 appa- 

 rently included a part of Hoddesdon* and the lands 

 of Ralf de Limcsy in Hertford. 6 The hamlet of 

 Amwell End, notorious for a disorderly fair estab- 

 lished without licence in 1 768,' was transferred to 

 the civil parish of Ware in ]8;8. 6 



About one-quarter of the parish is atable land. 

 The woods at Amwell Bury, Hertford Heath and 

 Hailey cover some 500 acres. Richard of Hailey 

 gave 5 acres of woodland in Amwell to the friars of 

 Easton, co. Wilts., 5 in 1301. Characteristic features 

 of the parish are the meadows or ' holmes ' of the 



1864, p. 



Lea Valley. Several of these were attached to houses 

 in ' Nethenhostret ' in the 14th century." Star 

 Holme belonged to the house called 'the Star' in 

 Ware." Hedenhoo Marsh and Amwell Marsh also 

 provided considerable pasturage." 



The parish lies at the junction of the Chalk with 

 the Reading Bed of clay and pebble." The surface 

 soil is clay, chalk and gravel. The village is situated 

 on the western slope of the valley of the Lea, a little 

 to the east of the main road to London from Ware, 

 where Izaak Walton promised to meet 'Venator' for 

 an otter-hunt." The village is on an 'outlier' of 

 the Reading Bed. On the hill-side above is the 

 church with the stocks now much repaired, and close 

 by are the vicarage, Home Lodge, the residence of 

 Rev. R. S. Mylne, F.S.A., and the school built in 

 1875. The Quaker poet John Scott built a grotto 

 near his father's house at Amwell End and entertained 

 among others Dr. Johnson." The grotto is in the 

 grounds of a house called the Grotto, now the 

 residence of Mr. Sidney Harrington. In writing of 

 Great Amwell Scott describes how the 

 ' Roofs of russet thatch 



Rise mix'd with trees, above whose swelling top* 



Ascends the tall church tow'r and loftier still 



The hill's extended ridge." 6 

 Another poet connected with Amwell i* William 

 Warner, author of Alliens England, who died suddenly 

 in the parish I March 1608-9." 



to, 6 5 , 



Mill Holme are mentioned in the agre 

 ment at to tithei in [399 (Lond. Epi 

 Reg. Grinds]!, fot. 95). 



I! Add. R. 26828 ; Aug. Off. Proc. 

 65. » See V.C.H. Htm. i, 13 e( 



" Complete Angltr (ed. Dohn), 88. 



" Diet. Nat. Bug. 



"■ J. Scott, Am-wAl (ed. 1 ? 7 6), r8. 



" Pitt. Nat. B,„g. 



,,... 



