Kings Langley is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

, former manor and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

, England, north-west of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and to the south of the

Chiltern Hills The Chiltern Hills or the Chilterns are a chalk escarpment in southern England, located to the north-west of London, covering across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire; they stretch from Goring-on-Thames in the south- ...

. It now forms part of the

London commuter belt The London metropolitan area is the metropolitan area of London, England. It has several definitions, including the London Travel to work area, Travel to Work Area, and usually consists of the London urban area, settlements that share London' ...

. The village is divided between two

local government districts The districts of England (officially, local authority districts, abbreviated LADs) are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. As the structure of local government in England is not uniform, there ...

by the River Gade with the larger western portion in the

Borough of Dacorum Dacorum is a local government district with borough status in Hertfordshire, England. The council is based in Hemel Hempstead. The borough also includes the towns of Berkhamsted and Tring and surrounding villages. The borough had a populati ...

and smaller part, to the east of the river, in

Three Rivers District Three Rivers is a local government district in south-west Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Rickmansworth. The district borders Hertsmere, Watford, St Albans, Dacorum, Buckinghamshire, and the London boroughs of Hillingdon and Ha ...

. It was the location of Kings Langley Palace and the associated King's Langley Priory, of which few traces survive. It is situated south of

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England. It is located north-west of London; nearby towns and cities include Watford, St Albans and Berkhamsted. The population at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 cens ...

and north of

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

. The earliest mention in surviving documents of the manor of ''Langalega'' is in a Saxon charter dated ''circa'' 1050. It appears as ''Langelai'' in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

of 1086, and is recorded as ''Langel' Regis'' ("Langley of the King") in 1254. The name means "long wood or clearing".

History

Roman villa A Roman villa was typically a farmhouse or country house in the territory of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, sometimes reaching extravagant proportions. Nevertheless, the term "Roman villa" generally covers buildings with the common ...

has been excavated just south of the village.Site of Kings Langley Roman Villa
at Online Archaeology – UK Archaeology Resource. accessed 5 April 2010 The manor was probably a possession of the Abbey of St. Albans, the records of which have been lost. Following the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

of 1066 the manor was one of hundreds given to

Robert, Count of Mortain Robert, Count of Mortain, first Earl of Cornwall of 2nd creation (–) was a Norman nobleman and the half-brother (on their mother's side) of King William the Conqueror. He was one of the very few proven companions of William the Conqueror at t ...

, uterine half-brother of King

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

. His tenant was a certain Ralf. The present village developed as a

linear village In mathematics, the term ''linear'' is used in two distinct senses for two different properties: * linearity of a '' function'' (or '' mapping''); * linearity of a ''polynomial''. An example of a linear function is the function defined by f(x)= ...

along the old road from London to Berkhamsted and beyond to the Midlands.Lionel M, Munby, ''The History of Kings Langley'' In the Domesday Book of 1086, Langley was in the hundred of Danish. By 1346 the place was known as ''Kyngeslangley'' and by 1428 as ''Lengele Regis''. In about 1276 the manor was purchased by Queen

Eleanor of Castile Eleanor of Castile (1241 – 28 November 1290) was Queen of England as the first wife of Edward I. She was educated at the Castilian court and also ruled as Countess of Ponthieu in her own right () from 1279. After diplomatic efforts to s ...

(1241–1290), wife of King Edward I, and Kings Langley Palace was built on the hill to the west of the village with a deer park extending to the south. King's Langley Priory, of the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic Church, Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilians, Castilian priest named Saint Dominic, Dominic de Gu ...

, of which remains survive, was founded next to the palace. The palace and the grand priory church fell into disrepair at the Dissolution of the Monasteries and little remains above ground level. The Church of All Saints was built during the 14th century on the site of an earlier church. It was the birth-place of

Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York (5 June 1341 – 1 August 1402) was the fifth son (fourth surviving) of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault. Like many medieval English princes, Edmund gained his nickname from his birthplace: ...

(1341–1402), 4th surviving son of King Edward III (grandson of Edward I), whose tomb survives in All Saints Church.Kings Langley Local History and Museum Society The body of King

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward, Prince of Wales (later known as the Black Prince), and Joan, Countess of Kent. R ...

, eldest grandson and successor of King Edward III, was buried here after his probable murder at

Pontefract Castle Pontefract (or Pomfret) Castle is a castle ruin in the town of Pontefract, in West Yorkshire, England. King Richard II of England, Richard II is thought to have died there. It was the site of a series of famous sieges during the 17th-cent ...

in 1400. It was later removed to

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

, next to the

Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

. The 18th century Sparrows Herne turnpike road (later the A41 trunk road) traversed the Chilterns via the valley of the River Gade and ran down the village high street. The 16th century Saracen's Head

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

is a

coaching inn The coaching inn (also coaching house or staging inn) was a vital part of Europe's inland transport infrastructure until the development of the railway, providing a resting point ( layover) for people and horses. The inn served the needs of t ...

which flourished in this period. The

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the Canals of the United Kingdom, British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another to Birmi ...

dating from 1797, and the 1838,

London and Birmingham Railway The London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom, in operation from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway (L&NWR). The railway line which the company opened in 1838, betw ...

which later became the

West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...

, (the main railway line from

to the north west) pass just east of the village at Kings Langley railway station. There are many businesses located near the station in Home Park Industrial Estate which is also the site of the Construction and Engineering Centre of West Herts College. 20th century housing developments have led to the village spreading out on either side of the main road. The A41 has now been diverted west of the village leaving the high street to local traffic for the first time in centuries. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the village was home to the secret headquarters in Britain of the

Polish Underground The Polish Underground State (, also known as the Polish Secret State) was a single political and military entity formed by the union of resistance organizations in occupied Poland that were loyal to the Government of the Republic of Poland ...

army based at Barnes Lodge just off the Hempstead Road near Rucklers Lane. Kings Langley was the site of the factory making

Ovaltine Ovaltine, also known by its original name Ovomaltine, is a brand of milk flavouring product made with malt extract, sugar (except in Switzerland), and whey. Some flavours also have cocoa. Ovaltine, a registered trademark of Associated British ...

chocolate drink; the listed factory facade, designed c.1923 by James Albert Bowden is now all that is left and still stands alongside the railway line among a new housing development. The Ovaltine factory itself has been converted into a series of flats and duplexes. The former Ovaltine Egg Farm was converted into energy-efficient offices which house Renewable Energy Systems. The complex incorporates a highly visible 225 kW

Vestas Vestas Wind Systems A/S is a Danish manufacturer, seller, installer, and servicer of wind turbines that was founded in 1945. The company operates manufacturing plants in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Taiwan, India, Italy, Romania, the Un ...

V29

wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that wind power, converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. , hundreds of thousands of list of most powerful wind turbines, large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over ...

, nicknamed "Lofty" alongside the M25. Kings Langley School is the local

comprehensive school A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

, situated on Love Lane to the west of the village.Kings Langley was also the site of a

Waldorf School Waldorf education, also known as Steiner education, is based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of anthroposophy. Its educational style is holistic, intended to develop pupils' intellectual, artistic, and practical ski ...

, the Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley which closed in 2019. This was built on the grounds of the old palace. There was a small display cabinet of finds from the palace period in the school entrance foyer. The village became twinned with Achiet-le-Grand in France in November 2009, in honour of

Christopher Cox Charles Christopher Cox (born October 16, 1952) is an American attorney and politician who served as chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, a 17-year Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the United States House ...

from the village who won a

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

in fighting near Achiet-le-Grand in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Roads

The M25, the London orbital

motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...

, passes just south of the village on an imposing viaduct across the River Gade valley. To the north of junction 20 with the A41, a dual-carriageway bypasses Kings Langley and continues to the south of Tring where it flows into the original motorway-standard by-pass. The old route through Kings Langley is now classified the A4251.

Rucklers Lane

Just to the north of Kings Langley is a small village called Rucklers Lane, named after the road it is built on. The origin of the settlement in the early 20th century was the construction of a number of mock tudor houses for the workers on the nearby Shendish Manor estate. A

community hall A community centre, community center, or community hall is a public location where members of a community gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may be open for the whole community or for a sp ...

was also built for the workers in 1909 as a memorial to Arthur Longman, the owner of the estate; it was originally intended as a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

to avoid the long walk to the parish church. Further west along the lane is Phasels Wood Scout Camp and Activity Centre which opened in 1937.

Mentions in literature

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's''

'' (1595), Act III, Scene IV, is set in the garden of the palace at Langley. * Emily Sarah Holt's novel ''The White Rose of Langley'' (1875) has many scenes in the palace.
Download available
at

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital li ...

) * In the 2010 book ''Beautiful Darkness'' the character Olivia Durand is from Kings Langley. * Mentioned by housekeeper Mrs Swabb in the 1973 play ''

Habeas Corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...

'' written by Alan Bennett

Sport

Football

Kings Langley FC, as of 2023/2024, play in the Division 1 (Central) Division of the

Southern Football League The Southern League is a football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from East Anglia, the South and Midlands of England, and South Wales. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven a ...

Cricket

Kings Langley CC currently play in Divisions 2B, Division 7 West and Division 10 South, of the Saracens Hertfordshire Cricket League.

Bowls

Kings Langley Bowls Club is situated in Green Park at the end of the Nap car park. It is a popular lawn bowls club with club and district competitions for bowlers of all abilities. It includes a club house with licensed bar and good social programs.

Notable people

*Ancestors of U.S. President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

(1924-2024) with the Carter surname lived in village 1361–1588 *

Christopher Augustus Cox Private Christopher Augustus Cox VC (25 December 1889 – 28 April 1959), was a British Army soldier and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC) the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can ...

VC (1889–1959), soldier decorated for working as a stretcher bearer under heavy fire in France, 1917 *

(1341–1402), the fourth surviving son of King

Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

and

Philippa of Hainault Philippa of Hainault (sometimes spelled Hainaut; Middle French: ''Philippe de Hainaut''; 24 June 1310 (or 1315) – 15 August 1369) was List of English consorts, Queen of England as the wife and political adviser of King Edward III. She acted a ...

and the founder of the

House of York The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York ...

*Captain Alan Rice-Oxley DFC (1898–1961), RAF officer, First World War

fighter ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

Griff Griff may refer to: People * Griff (name), a list of people with the given name or surname * Griff (singer), stage name of English singer and songwriter Sarah Faith Griffiths (born 2001) * Nickname of Guy Griffiths (1915–1999), British Secon ...

(born 2001), singer and songwriter * Benny Green (1927–1998), saxophonist and radio personalityKings Langley Information page
*

Bruce Grocott, Baron Grocott Bruce Joseph Grocott, Baron Grocott (born 1 November 1940) is a British politician who has been a Member of the House of Lords since 2001. A member of the Labour Party, he served as a Member of Parliament for four terms between 1974 and 2001, ...

(b. 1940), former Labour MP for

The Wrekin The Wrekin ( ) is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire Council, Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising above the Shropshire Plain to a height of ...

and

Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...

and current Chancellor of the

University of Leicester The University of Leicester ( ) is a public university, public research university based in Leicester, England. The main campus is south of the city centre, adjacent to Victoria Park, Leicester, Victoria Park. The university's predecessor, Univ ...

Graham Taylor Graham Taylor (15 September 1944 – 12 January 2017) was an English football player, manager, pundit and chairman of Watford Football Club. He was the manager of the England national football team from 1990 to 1993, and also managed Lincoln ...

OBE, (1944–2017), former England football manager and former manager and chairman of

Watford F.C. Watford Football Club is a professional football club based in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. The club competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The team played at several grounds in their early history, includ ...

Luke Donald Luke Campbell Donald Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 7 December 1977) is an English professional golfer and former List of World Number One male golfers, world number one. He plays mainly on the U.S.-based PGA Tour but is also a member of ...

(b. 1977), professional golfer and former world no.1 lived in Kings Langley and attended the Rudolph Steiner School * Frank Toovey Lake, (1849–1868) a member of the mill-owning Toovey family and a Victorian sailor who died in Japan while a member of Richard Henry Brunton's lighthouse survey party *

Steven Finn Steven Thomas Finn (born 4 April 1989) is a former English cricketer. He was a right-arm fast bowler, who also bats right-handed. At the age of 16, he became Middlesex County Cricket Club's youngest-ever debutant in first-class cricket. He mad ...

(b. 1989), former England cricket international *

Anthony Joshua Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua (born 15 October 1989) is a British professional boxer. He held the unified champion, unified world heavyweight championship twice between 2016 and 2021. At regional level, he held the British Boxing Board of C ...

(b. 1989), former World Heavyweight Champion attended Kings Langley School * Stuart Slater (b. 1969), former

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

footballer *

John Milbank Alasdair John Milbank (born 23 October 1952) is an English Anglo-Catholic theologian and is an Emeritus Professor in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Nottingham, where he is President of the Centre of Theolo ...

(b. 1952), Anglican theologian * Ondine Achampong (b.2004) British artistic gymnast world, European commonwealth medalist

Notes

See full reference details below.

References

* * *
Kings Langley, its history and local architecture
Kings Langley Local History and Museum Society. Accessed January 2008
Kings langley Roman Villa
at UK Archaeology Map. Accessed January 2008 *Hertfordshire Federation of Women's Institutes; Ann Roxburgh (Forward) (1986). The Hertfordshire Village Book. Countryside Books. Section on Kings Langley. .

External links

Kings Langley Secondary School
*

Kings Langley Churches

Kings Langley and Bakau (Gambia) Link
{{authority control Villages in Hertfordshire Dacorum Civil parishes in Hertfordshire Burial sites of the House of York Burial sites of the House of Plantagenet Burial sites of the Mortimer family