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St Albans City

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THE CITY OF ST. ALBAN

"The city of St. Alban now comprises the whole of the parish of St. Alban, and extends into the parishes of St. Peter, St. Michael, St. Stephen, and Sandridge. The bounds of the borough were first recorded in 1327, although as early as 1142 its limits appear to have been defined by a ditch afterwards called Tonmans Dike, which can still be traced. Crosses were at an early date erected at important points in the line of boundary, and at each of the entrances to the town, namely, the Stone Cross or North Gate Cross at the north on the Sandridge Road, the Red Cross in Sopwell Lane, at the entrance by the old road from London, the Cross with the Hand in Eywood Lane, the Black Cross, probably at the angle where Tonmans Dike goes from the boundary of the houses in Fishpool Street towards the Claypits, and St. John's Cross at an angle of the boundary in what is now known as Harley Street, but lately as Mud Lane.

There seems to be no evidence that the town was ever walled. In the time of Abbot Roger de Norton it was secured with bars at the various entrances, which continued under the name of the barriers or burglays and are described in the charter of Edward VI as the Bars in Sopwell Lane, the Bars at Kingsbury Lane, the New Bars on the north—that is, at the Sandridge Road, and the New Bars near the house of Sir Ralph Rowlatt, which stood at the bottom of Holywell Street. The boundaries described in 1327 were again ascertained in 1635, and continued unchanged as regards the municipal boundary till 1835. In 1832 the bounds of the parliamentary borough were laid down, which included an area east and west outside the old municipal borough, and these bounds were adopted as the municipal boundary under the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835, and confirmed under the Municipal Corporations Boundaries Commission of 1837. In 1879 the bounds were enlarged under 'The St. Albans City Extension Act,' which, except for some land on the north-west of the town belonging to Lord Grimthorpe, fixed the boundary at points radiating from the Town Hall at distances of three-quarters of a mile.

The town appears to have been divided at an early date into four wards. Abbot Richard de Wallingford (1260–1291) appointed four constables of the peace, each with two chief pledges, to take charge of the four parts of the town. These were named St. Peter's Ward, which corresponded to the part of St. Peter's parish within the borough; the Middle Ward, or roughly the Abbey parish; Holywell Ward, comprising the portion of St. Stephen's parish within the borough and somewhat more; and Fishpool Ward, or approximately so much of St. Michael's parish as was within the borough. Constables were chosen for each ward down to the time of the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835, when these divisions of the town were abolished.................................." A History of the County of Hertford: Volume 2. Originally published by Victoria County History, London, 1908. (British History Online)

"In 1877, in response to a public petition, Queen Victoria issued the second royal charter, which granted city status to the borough and Cathedral status to the former Abbey Church. " (wikpedia)

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