St Albans () is a
cathedral city
City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the the Crown, monarch of the United Kingdom to specific centres of population, which might or might not meet the generally accepted definition of city, cities. , there are List of cities in the Un ...
in
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, east 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 west of
Hatfield, 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 ...
, south-west of
Welwyn Garden City
Welwyn Garden City ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London. It was the second Garden city movement, garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first New towns in the United Kingdom, new towns (designated 1948). It is ...
and south-east of
Luton
Luton () is a town and borough in Bedfordshire, England. The borough had a population of 225,262 at the 2021 census.
Luton is on the River Lea, about north-west of London. The town's foundation dates to the sixth century as a Saxon settleme ...
. St Albans was the first major town on the old
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
road of
Watling Street
Watling Street is a historic route in England, running from Dover and London in the southeast, via St Albans to Wroxeter. The road crosses the River Thames at London and was used in Classical Antiquity, Late Antiquity, and throughout the M ...
for travellers heading north and became the city of
Verulamium
Verulamium was a town in Roman Britain. It was sited southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, England. The major ancient Roman route Watling Street passed through the city, but was realigned in medieval times to bring trad ...
. It is within 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' ...
and the
Greater London Built-up Area
The Greater London Built-up Area, or Greater London Urban Area, is a conurbation in south-east England that constitutes the continuous urban sprawl of London, and includes surrounding adjacent urban towns as defined by the Office for National Sta ...
.
Name
St Albans takes its name from the first British saint,
Alban.
[ The most elaborate version of his story, in Bede's '']Ecclesiastical History of the English People
The ''Ecclesiastical History of the English People'' (), written by Bede in about AD 731, is a history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the growth of Christianity. It was composed in Latin, and ...
'', relates that he lived in Verulamium
Verulamium was a town in Roman Britain. It was sited southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, England. The major ancient Roman route Watling Street passed through the city, but was realigned in medieval times to bring trad ...
, sometime during the 3rd or 4th century, when Christians were suffering persecution. Alban met a Christian priest fleeing from his persecutors and sheltered him in his house, where he became so impressed with the priest's piety that he converted to Christianity. When the authorities searched Alban's house, he put on the priest's cloak and presented himself in place of his guest. Consequently, he was sentenced to endure the punishments that were to be inflicted upon the priest, unless he renounced Christianity. Alban refused and was taken for execution. In later legends, his head rolled downhill after execution and a well sprang up where it stopped.
History
Iron Age
There was an Iron Age
The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
settlement known as[Rosalind Niblett, ''Roman Hertfordshire'', Wimborne: Dovecote Press, 1995] Verlamion
Verlamion, or Verlamio, was a settlement in Iron Age Britain. It was a major centre of the Catuvellauni tribe from about 20 BC until shortly after the Roman Empire, Roman invasion of AD 43. It is associated with a particular king, Tasciovanus.
...
, or Verlamio, near the site of the present city, the centre of Tasciovanus
Tasciovanus (died c. 9 AD) was a historical king of the Catuvellauni tribe before the Roman conquest of Britain.
History
Tasciovanus is known only through Numismatics, numismatic evidence. He appears to have become king of the Catuvellauni c. ...
' power and a major centre of the Catuvellauni
The Catuvellauni (Common Brittonic: *''Catu-wellaunī'', "war-chiefs") were a Celtic tribe or state of southeastern Britain before the Roman conquest, attested by inscriptions into the 4th century.
The fortunes of the Catuvellauni and thei ...
from about 20 BC until shortly after the Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
invasion of AD 43. The name "Verlamion" is Celtic, meaning "settlement over or by the marsh".[ The town was on Prae Hill, to the west of modern St Albans, now covered by the village of St Michael's, ]Verulamium Park
Verulamium Park is a park in St Albans, Hertfordshire. Set in over of parkland, Verulamium Park was purchased from the Earl of Verulam in 1929 by the then City Corporation. Today the park is owned and operated by St Albans City and District Coun ...
and the Gorhambury
Old Gorhambury House located near St Albans, Hertfordshire, England, is a ruined Elizabethan mansion, a leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house.
History The old house
It was built in 1563–68 by Nicholas Bacon (courtier), S ...
Estate.[ Although excavations done in 1996 produced finds which include silver coins from the Roman Republic era dating from 90/80 BC. There was evidence of trade with the republic and that a settlement already existed on the site 50 years before Julius Caesar attempted to invade Britain. However, it is believed that the tribal capital was moved to the site by Tasciovanus (around 25 to 5 BC). ]Cunobelinus
Cunobeline or Cunobelin (Common Brittonic: *''Cunobelinos'', "Dog-Strong"), also known by his name's Latin form , was a king in pre-Roman Britain from about to about Malcolm Todd (2004)"Cunobelinus (d. ''c''. AD 40), king in ...
may have constructed Beech Bottom Dyke">ymbeline/nowiki> (d. ''c''. AD 40), king in ...
may have constructed Beech Bottom Dyke, a defensive earthwork near the settlement whose significance is uncertain.
, the second-largest town in Roman Britain after Londinium, developed from the Iron Age settlement