This collection of essays offers a historical glimpse into the lives and happenings in Hertfordshire from the 13th century to the present. Topics range from graffiti evidence of medieval music. King James's connections with Hertfordshire, settlements in the Connecticut Valley, art traditions in the 19th century, and the history of Christ's Hospital. This compilation was designed to honor Lionel Munby, one of Hertfordshire's leading 20th-century historians.

This second volume of Hertfordshire garden history considers how Hertfordshire s historic parks and gardens have been influenced by, and reflect, the social and economic history of their time. Beginning with the hunting parks and Renaissance gardens of the Bacons, Cecils, and Capels in the 16th and 17th centuriesand their gradual replacement by designed landscapesthis book shows how, in Hertfordshire, individuals have long sought greater space and comfort within easy reach of the capital, London. With examples from both well-known and less-visible or vanished gardens from the past 500 years, it is sure to delight garden enthusiasts."

Dividing the county of Hertfordshire into four broad regions--the "champion" countryside in the north, the Chiltern dip slope to the west, the fertile boulder clays of the east, and the unwelcoming London Clay in the south--this volume explains how, in the course of the middle ages, natural characteristics influenced the development of land use and settlement to create a range of distinctive landscapes. The great diversity of Hertfordshire's landscapes makes it a particularly rewarding area of study. Variations in farming economies, in patterns of trade and communication, as well as in the extent of London's influence, have all played a part during the course of the postmedieval centuries, and Hertfordshire's continuing evolution is followed into the 21st century. Lavishly illustrated with maps and photographs, this authoritative work is invaluable reading for all those with an interest in the history, archaeology, and natural transformation of this fascinating county.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1882.