Royston is a town and civil parish in the district of North Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire, England. It is situated slightly west of the Greenwich Meridian, and at the northernmost apex of the county on the same latitude of towns such as Milton Keynes and Felixstowe. It is located some 43 miles (69 km) north of central London in a highly rural area of the county. Before the boundary changes of the 1890s, the boundary between Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire ran along the middle of Melbourn Street.

History

The town grew up at the crossing of two ancient thoroughfares, Ermine Street and the Icknield Way (cum Ashwell Street); the former was created after the Roman conquest, while the Icknield Way has long been accepted as a prehistoric routeway. These roads are sometimes called military roads as they were prepared or improved by Roman soldiers to facilitate their access to the hinterland of Britain. The modern equivalent to Icknield Way is the A505 (which now bypasses the town to the north). The A10 follows the alignment of the Ermine Street south of the town, but diverts before it reaches the crossroads. The A1198, known as the Old North Road follows the alignment of Ermine Street northwards.

A cross, variously known as Royse's, Rohesia's or Roisia's Cross, was erected by the crossroads at an unknown date. The cross gave the settlement its earliest name of Crux Roesia or Roisia's Cross. By the 14th century this had become Roisia's Town, Roiston or Royston.. A large boulder of red millstone grit, bearing a square socket, is supposed to be the base of the cross, and has been placed by the cross roads at the northern end of High Street.

Until 1540 the "vill" of Royston was divided between five parishes: Barkway, Reed and Therfield in Hertfordshire and Melbourn and Kneesworth in Cambridgeshire. In that year it became a separate ecclesiatical parish, partly in each county.

Ralph de Rochester founded the Augustinian priory which came out of a chapel for three canons, later expanded to seven or more regular canons. Royston also had two hospitals, or free chapels, as well as the monastery.

The hospital of St John and St Thomas was founded for lepers in 1224 by Richard Argentine, Sheriff of Cambridgeshire on the south side of Baldock Street.

The hospital of St Nicholas was situated in the Cambridgeshire side of Royston. It was founded in about 1200 probably by Amphelise, a daughter of Richard the Chamberlain. In 1213 King John granted them a fair to celebrate the feast of St Nicholas (May 8 - 9). The patronage of the hospital subsequently descended to Sir Giles Argentine, lord of the manor of Melbourn, who also held the patronage of the other hospital. In the 14th century, St Nicholas' Hospital was put under the same jurisdiction as that of St John and St Thomas. The whole was suppressed in 1547.

The town having lost is monastic charter, the site of the priory was obtained by Robert Chester, a gentleman of the bedchamber to Henry VIII, who set up a market. Much of the town was given over to inns catering for travellers mainly going between London and York.

On April 29, 1603 James VI of Scotland was travelling down to become King James I of England, pausing overnight at the Chester residence. Attracted by the suitability of the area for hunting, James later hired the house for a year. In 1604 the king decided to create a hunting lodge in the town by demolishing the "Cock" and "Greyhound" Inns. The king's lodgings were completed in 1607, and were described in 1652 as "all of brick well-tiled double-built, in length 78 ft., breadth 43 ft., height from eaves to ground 24 ft., thickness of walls 24 inches." The buildings were never extensive enough to cater for a full court, but which provided a suitable spot for hunting, near enough to London for convenience and sufficiently far away to deter intrusion. Indeed he created a strict prohibition on anyone else from taking game within 16 miles of Royston, and an elaborate infrastructure was established to support the King in the pursuit of his sport.

Queen Anne and Prince Henry only visited the town once, in 1611-1612. Next year the queen opposed the marriage of her daughter, Princess Elizabeth to Frederick V, Elector Palatine, but the king came to Royston with the Earl of Rochester to negotiate the dowry which was signed there. Following the marriage, celebrated on St Valentine's Day 1613, the king, Prince Charles and Frederick came to stay at Royston.

James' successor, Charles I visited Royston less frequently than his father. In June 1647 he was brought through the town as a prisoner of the Parliamentary army. After Charles's death the royal buildings fell into disrepair. The Crown sold its last interests in the town in 1866.

Cobbett mentions the town (somewhat gloomily) in his Rural Rides:

After you quit Ware...the land grows by degrees poorer; the chalk lies nearer and nearer to the surface, till you come to the open common-fields within a few miles of Royston [which] is at the foot of this high poor land; or, rather in a dell, the open side of which looks towards the North.

It is a common market town.

Not mean, but having nothing of beauty about it...

Governance

Royston has three tiers of local government at parish (town), district and county level.

Town council

Royston Town Council was formed in 1974 as the successor to Royston Urban District Council. The council consists of 15 councillors headed by a town mayor. The councillors are elected for three wards named Heath, Meridian and Palace. Among the town council's responsibilities are allotments, Royston Cave, Royston Museum, local festivals, public halls and the town's war memorial.In December 2007 Royston Town Council was awarded the nationally recognised status of Quality Town Council. This Award confirms that Royston Town Council is run in accordance with the high standards required by the National Association of Local Councils and other government bodies.

Coat of arms

The town council uses the coat of arms granted to the urban district council in 1952. The blazon of the arms is:

Argent a fesse gules thereon another chequy of the first and sable in chief two Tudor roses barbed and seeded and in the base a stag trippant the whole surmounting an archiepiscopal staff, all proper. And for a crest on a wreath of the colours, perched upon a representation of the Royse Stone, a hooded crow proper.

The symbols on the shield briefly illustrate the history of the town. The staff is for Royston Priory, the roses for Tudor connections, while James I is represented by the checky fesse of the Stewarts. The hart represents Hertfordshire. The crest depicts a hooded crow, known within the region as a "Royston crow". He stands on the "Royce Stone" in the town centre.

District council

Since 1974 Royston has formed part of the non-metropolitan district of North Hertfordshire. The council is based at Letchworth, and also includes the towns of Baldock and Hitchin. There are 49 district councillors elected for 24 wards. The three wards of Royston Heath, Royston Meridian and Royston Palace return 2 councillors each. As of 2008 four councillors are members of the Conservative Party and two are Liberal Democrats.

County council

Hertfordshire County Council has 77 councillors, of which one is elected for the Royston electoral division. The current councillor (as of 2008) is a member of the majority Conservative group.

Geography

The town lies on the northern slopes of the Hertfordshire Chalk Downs. The Greenwich Meridian passes through the point where the bypass meets the original A505 alignment. The town centre is just 1 minute 27 seconds west of the meridian.

Economy

Today Royston enjoys a diverse economy, a large number of businesses are located both in the town and surrounding villages, and there is an active Chamber of Commerce.

Transport

Royston sits at the junction of the A10 and A505 roads, both of which are important road links through Hertfordshire and beyond. The town is also convenient for fast links to London and the north, as it is only a short distance from both the A1 and M11 motorways.

Air transport links located nearby include both London Luton and London Stansted airports, both of which are major air hubs in the south of England.

The Royston railway station provides direct commuter links to both London and Cambridge. It is on the Hitchin-Cambridge Line and is a stopping point for regular services operated by First Capital Connect.

Royston railway crossing

A proposal has been put forward to build a new rail crossing for pedestrians and cyclists. The crossing will link the northern part of the town with the leisure centre and the main complex of schools. Two options were proposed, a bridge with an estimated cost of £1.5m and a subway estimated at £3.25m. Two locations were also under consideration; one at the ‘Coombes Hole’ allotment gardens area and a second connecting Green Street and Morton Street. Sustrans elected to build a subway at 'Coombes Hole' allotment gardens. The scheme has been recommended in an effort to reduce severance for local residents and to provide safe, high quality routes for pedestrians, cyclists and the mobility impaired. There is also a history of school children crossing the railway line to avoid a long detour to the only crossing point within the town which the scheme aims to combat.

In 2007 the scheme became one of 79 Sustrans Connect2 projects to receive Big Lottery funding. The Connect2 project makes reference only to the subway option.

Schools

Royston's school are arranged as...

First Schools (Years 1-4) : Icknield Walk First School; Roman Way First School; Studlands Rise First School; Tannery Drift First School.

Middle Schools (Years 5-8) : Greneway Middle School; Roysia Middle School

Upper Schools (Years 9-13) : The Meridian School

Additionally there is St Mary Roman Catholic Primary School (Years 1-10)

Landmarks

The public open space and nature reserve of Therfield Heath (also known as Royston Heath) overlooks the town from a hill to the south-west.

Royston Cave

In 1742 a strange cave carved out of the chalk was discovered in the centre of Royston. Royston Cave is located underneath the central crossroads of the town. The carvings in the cave have led to much speculation about the origin and function of the cave.

Notable people

• Henry Andrews 1744 - 1820, astronomer and astrologer, moved to Royston in 1766 and is buried in the graveyard of St John's Church.
• Alison Balsom, born 1978, trumpet soloist. Grew up and attended school in Royston. Also played in the town band
• Robin Belfield, National Theatre Staff Director, grew up and attended school in Royston.
• Thomas Cartwright, 1534/5 - 1603, theologian and founder of presbyterianism in England, probably born in Royston.
• Habbakuk Crabb, 1750 - 1794, dissenting minister. Became minister of John Street Chapel, Royston in 1790. Buried in the town.
• Carrie Grant, born 1964, singing coach and television personality. Attended school in Royston.
• Thomas Peyton, 1595 - 1626, poet. Born in Royston.
• Edward Stallybrass, 1794 - 1884, missionary and translator of the Old Testament into Mongolian. Born in Royston June 8, 1794.
• Joseph Towne, 1806 - 1879, anatomical modeller. Born in Royston November 25, 1806.
• William Willymott, 1672 - 1737, grammarian and vice-provost of King's College, Cambridge, born in Royston.

References