Chapter II: Section I: (trunk Route)

THE HOLYHEAD ROAD

LONDON TO DUNSTABLE, 32 MILES

DISTANCES ALONG THE ROUTE

Miles.

=London-Marble Arch= to Elstree 11½
=Elstree= to St. Albans 8
=St. Albans= to Dunstable 12½

NOTES FOR DRIVERS

From the =Marble Arch= to =Elstree= the surface is very good, in spite of trams for part of the way.

=Elstree= to =St. Albans=.--A hilly but good road.

=St. Albans.=--Speed limit, 10 miles per hour; dangerous cross-roads in centre of town.

=St. Albans= to =Dunstable=.--Excellent surface, almost level.

PLACES OF INTEREST ON THE ROUTE

=Edgware.=--An old-fashioned village.

=Elstree.=--A charmingly situated village, overlooking Aldenham Park.

The road through Highgate, Finchley, and Barnet passes the following places on the way to St. Albans:

=Chipping Barnet.=--A growing town, much modernized; church,
Perpendicular style, but recently almost entirely rebuilt.

=Monken Hadley.=--A pretty village; interesting church with cradle
beacon affixed to tower; obelisk of Battle of Barnet.

=South Mimms.=--Small village; Perpendicular church, with traces of
Early English; the Frowyke Chapel, with effigy.

=Salisbury Hall.=--A sixteenth-century moated grange.

=St. Albans.=--Cathedral, Early Norman (1077) to Decorated, of exceptional interest; great gateway of the monastery; Roman walls of _Verulamium_ and British causeway; medieval clock-tower; sites of the two battles; St. Michael's Church, Saxon, with monument of Bacon; old timbered houses.

=Redbourne.=--Small village; church, Norman and Early English; fine chancel screen.

=Dunstable.=--Ancient town, with earthworks; Priory Church, Transition Norman, impressive west front.

THE STARTING-POINT

The best and most direct route from London to the finest scenery in Wales, as well as to many of the most picturesque towns and districts in the western half of the central or midland portion of England, is the Holyhead Road. The older route books invariably give the General Post Office as the best starting-point, and this has been indicated on the route map on this page, and that road beyond Barnet is described, but as the Edgware Road is so much preferable in many ways, the distances by that way are given at the head of this section. From the Marble Arch the road goes as straight as an arrow, passing through Maida Vale, Brondesbury, and Cricklewood. The Welsh Harp Reservoir is crossed, and the villages of Edgware and Elstree passed through, and the road from Barnet is joined at St. Albans.

[Map: (TRUNK) No. 1. LONDON TO DUNSTABLE.]

By the older route shown in the map the first open country is not reached until Barnet is passed. Barnet itself is now a suburban town without any interest.

MONKEN HADLEY

Upon leaving Barnet, a slight detour to the right, occupying a few minutes, leads to Monken Hadley Church, of varied styles of architecture. It stands upon high ground near the road, and is picturesquely surrounded by trees and pleasantly situated old houses on a village green. The iron cradle beacon affixed to the tower is an object of great rarity. It was used in past times to signal the approach of disturbers of the peace. A tall obelisk near the church was erected early in the eighteenth century to mark the site of the battlefield of Barnet, 1471, immortalized in Bulwer Lytton's 'Last of the Barons,' and memorable for the death of the great King-maker. A road with a few easy turns in it leads back to the main route. It passes ~Wrotham Park~, the seat of the Rev. the Earl of Strafford, whose family name is Byng. Within one of the rooms the oak cabin of the flag-ship once occupied by Admiral Byng has been erected, conveyed thither when the vessel was broken up. Since 1757, when the Admiral was shot upon his own quarter-deck, _pour encourager les autres_, no Byng has entered the navy, the family having transferred its allegiance to the army as a mild protest.

SOUTH MIMMS

The church contains traces of Early English architecture, but the main features are Perpendicular. In the Frowyke Chapel, separated from the church by a Perpendicular parclose screen, is a well-preserved effigy of the Transition period and an interesting brass let in the floor. The door to the vanished rood-loft is in good condition, and a low-side window may be found in the chancel. Thomas de Frowyke, died 1448, is buried under the tower; the inscription states that six sons and twelve daughters furnished the matrimonial quiver. The ecclesiologist with time upon his hands will find an interesting church at North Mimms, about two miles across country (see map), standing in the grounds of an Elizabethan mansion. From South Mimms a long and easy ascent leads to the summit of Ridge Hill, where the massive tower of St. Alban's fane comes into view in the midst of a beautiful landscape. An equally long and easy descent leads to a turn, where a cottage stands upon the left, at some white gates. This is the entrance to ~Salisbury Hall~, a picturesque moated grange of exceptional interest, with quaint gables, twisted chimneys, and beautiful surroundings. Originally built in the time of Henry VIII. by Sir John Cutts, Treasurer of England, it subsequently was occupied by the well-known Sir Jeremy Snow. Nell Gwynn was often here, recouping from Court revels, and tradition asserts that Prince Charles sought refuge within its walls after the Battle of Worcester. Visitors are generally permitted to walk up to the farmyard to see the front of the house. At ~London Colney~ a piece of water is crossed. ~Tyttenhanger~ lies to the right, at a distance of about two miles; it was the country house of the Abbots of St. Albans, and has been adapted to modern requirements. The road from here to St. Albans is easy, but care should be exercised at the cross-roads in the centre of the town, where a policeman generally regulates traffic.

[Map: TOWN PLAN NO. 1--ST. ALBANS.]

ST. ALBANS

A walk through the cloisters opposite the Great Red Lion Hotel affords a striking view of a considerable part of the vast Abbey Church, the most ancient of the great churches in England. It stands upon higher ground than any other cathedral in the British Isles, and is the longest next to Winchester. It possesses, moreover, the longest Gothic nave in the world. The Norman tower, dating from 1077, is composed of Roman bricks from the neighbouring _Verulamium_, and flints, bricks, and stone from the same site may be detected in the walls. The walk leads round to the southern part of the church, through the ancient sumpter-yard, with its fine old cedar, and thence to the west front, the site of the demolished monastery showing in irregular heaps upon the left.

_The nave is open to the public free of charge. Sixpence is charged for entrance to the eastern portions (threepence each for a party of ten). Open from_--

_November 1 to February 28_ _10 a.m. to 4 p.m._
_March 1 to April 30_ } _10 a.m. to 5 p.m._
_September 16 to October 31_ }
_May 1 to September 15_ _10 a.m. to 6 p.m._

_Building Dates._

_Roman Period._--St. Alban was executed upon this spot, presumably in the amphitheatre, in 303, and a church was erected to his memory by the Christians of Verulam in 313, which was still standing in Bede's time.

793. Offa the Great, King of Mercia, founded the monastery, and either repaired and enlarged the Romano-British church or built a new one.

1077. Shortly after the Conquest, Paul de Caen, a relative of Lanfranc, was appointed the first Norman abbot, and proceeded to demolish the church, subsequently erecting a great Norman building in its place, the remains of which--viz., the tower, transepts, parts of the nave and the presbytery--still remain.

On entering by the west front, which has been rebuilt by Lord Grimthorpe, the first part of the nave is Early English, dating from _c._ 1214, and one of the best examples in England. Farther on Norman bays, dating from 1077, are upon the north, while opposite them are Decorated Gothic bays, built _c._ 1323 to replace the Norman work which had fallen. The screen has been despoiled; it was erected in 1350. Passing through the door, the abbot's entrance from the cloisters is seen upon the right, and the south transept is reached, having a curious feature, the slype of Transition Norman work at the south end. The tower dates from 1077, and is the largest and heaviest of the Norman towers now remaining in England. Eight of the baluster columns round the triforia are from the former Saxon church, and date from 793. The choir-stalls are new, and above them is a remarkable ceiling, the panels dating from 1368 to 1450. The north transept is the reputed site of St. Alban's martyrdom. In the presbytery is the high-altar screen, only rivalled by that at Winchester, and dating from 1484. It is the work of Abbot Wallingford, was despoiled at the Reformation, and recently restored by the late Lord Aldenham. South of it lies the chantry tomb of Abbot Wheathampstead, and north that of Abbot Ramryge. Leaving by the north door, the presbytery aisle is reached, partly Norman and partly Early English. The old doors from the west front preserved here date from the time of Henry VI. Proceeding eastwards, the entrance to the Saint's Chapel is on the right. Here is the far-famed shrine of St. Alban, or rather the pedestal of the shrine, since the shrine itself was portable, and rested upon the top of the structure. It dates from 1306, was demolished in 1539, and built up in the three lancets at the east end of the chapel. When the arches were opened some time since, the fragments were recovered and put together. The tomb of Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester (died, or murdered, 1447; see Shakespeare, _Henry VI._,