Hatfield, Hertfordshire facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hatfield
The Old Palace at Hatfield House
Hatfield
Population	41,265 (2021 Census)
OS grid reference	TL2308
Civil parish	Hatfield
District	Welwyn Hatfield
Shire county	Hertfordshire
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	HATFIELD
Postcode district	AL9, AL10
Dialling code	01707
Police	Hertfordshire
Fire	Hertfordshire
Ambulance	East of England
EU Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Welwyn Hatfield
List of places UK England Hertfordshire 51°45′49″N 00°13′33″W / 51.76361°N 0.22583°W / 51.76361; -0.22583

Hatfield is a town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. It's part of the Welwyn Hatfield area. In 2021, about 41,265 people lived there.

Hatfield started as a Saxon settlement a very long time ago. The famous Hatfield House, home to the Marquess of Salisbury, is at the heart of the old town. For many years, from the 1930s to the 1990s, making airplanes was the biggest job in Hatfield, thanks to companies like de Havilland and British Aerospace.

After World War II, Hatfield became one of the "New Towns" built around London. This means it has lots of cool, modern buildings from that time. The University of Hertfordshire is also located here.

Hatfield is about 20 miles (32 km) north of London, right next to the A1(M) motorway. You can catch direct trains to London King's Cross railway station and other London stations, making it easy for people to travel for work. In fact, in 2022, a TV expert named Hatfield as the second best place to live for people who commute to London regularly!

History of Hatfield

Hatfield has a long and interesting history. In the early 900s, a powerful man named Ordmær and his wife Ealde owned the town. Later, it was given to the Abbey of Ely. Hatfield is even mentioned in the Domesday Book from 1086, which was a big survey of England.

In 1226, King Henry III gave the Bishops of Ely permission to hold a yearly fair and a weekly market in Hatfield. This is why the town was once called Bishop's Hatfield.

Hatfield House and Elizabeth I

Hatfield House is a very important historical building in Hatfield. It belongs to the Cecil family, who are the Marquesses of Salisbury.

Did you know that Elizabeth Tudor (who later became Queen Elizabeth I) was kept here for three years? She lived in a part of Hatfield House called The Old Palace. A famous story says she found out she was going to be queen in 1558 while sitting under an oak tree in the park! She even held her very first meeting as queen in the Great Hall of The Old Palace.

In 1851, the main road (now the A1000) was changed so it wouldn't cut through the beautiful grounds of Hatfield House.

St Etheldreda's Church in Old Hatfield.

The town of Hatfield grew up around the gates of Hatfield House. The older part of town, called Old Hatfield, still has many historic buildings. These include The Old Palace, St Etheldreda's Church, and Hatfield House itself.

The Old Palace was built in 1497 by Cardinal Morton, during the time of King Henry VII. One part of it is still used today for special banquets that feel like they're from Elizabethan times!

St Etheldreda's Church was started by monks from Ely. The first wooden church was built in 1285, probably where the current church stands, looking over the old town. The church has some very old parts and has been restored over the years.

Hatfield's Aerospace Industry

The Comet Hotel, with a carving by Eric Kennington.

In 1930, the de Havilland company opened an airfield and aircraft factory in Hatfield. By 1949, it was the biggest employer in town, with almost 4,000 workers! The company later became part of Hawker Siddeley and then British Aerospace.

In the 1930s, de Havilland made small biplanes. During World War II, they built the amazing Mosquito fighter-bomber. They also developed the Vampire, which was the second jet aircraft made in Britain. After the war, Hatfield became famous for building the Comet airliner, which was the world's first jet passenger plane! They also made the Trident airliner and the DH125 business jet.

Sadly, British Aerospace closed the Hatfield site in 1993. The land was then used as a film set for big movies like Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan and the TV show Band of Brothers. Today, the area has been developed into homes, university buildings, shops, and businesses.

Hatfield's aviation past is still remembered in the names of streets and pubs, like Comet Way and The Airfield. The Comet Hotel, built in the 1930s, is another reminder. You can also visit the de Havilland Aircraft Heritage Centre nearby to see many historic de Havilland planes.

Hatfield as a New Town

Hatfield New Town centre, looking west.

After World War II, a plan was made to build new towns around London to help with housing. Hatfield was chosen in 1946 to be one of these "New Towns". The government set aside land for Hatfield New Town, aiming for a population of 25,000 people.

The people in charge of building the New Town decided to create a completely new town centre. They didn't use Old Hatfield because it was on the wrong side of the railway and didn't have enough space to grow. They wanted a new centre that would be easy for traffic to move around, without cars taking shortcuts through the town.

Hatfield still looks like a New Town today, with many modern buildings from the 1950s. It also has lots of trees and open green spaces, just as planned in the original design.

How Hatfield is Governed

Birchwood Leisure Centre, where the town council has its offices.

Hatfield has three levels of local government that help run the town:

• Hatfield Town Council: This is the local council for Hatfield itself. It has offices at the Birchwood Leisure Centre.
• Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council: This council covers Hatfield and the nearby town of Welwyn Garden City.
• Hertfordshire County Council: This is the largest council and covers the whole county of Hertfordshire.

Hatfield is also twinned with a Dutch town called Zierikzee. This means they have a special friendship and often exchange visits.

Hatfield is part of the Welwyn Hatfield constituency, which is the area represented by a Member of Parliament (MP) in the UK government. The current MP for Welwyn Hatfield is Andrew Lewin from the Labour Party.

Sports in Hatfield

Hatfield has several sports teams and facilities:

• Hatfield Town F.C. is a football club that plays at Gosling Sports Park.
• The Welwyn Garden City Hockey Club is a field hockey club based in Hatfield.
• Hatfield Athletic Football Club plays in the Herts Senior County League.

The town also has a public swimming pool and four sports or leisure centres, two of which have indoor swimming pools.

Climate in Hatfield

Hatfield has an oceanic climate, which is typical for most of the United Kingdom. This means it has mild temperatures and rainfall throughout the year.

Culture and Fun in Hatfield

The south wing of The Galleria shopping centre.

Hatfield has lots of places for fun and entertainment:

• An Odeon cinema with nine screens.
• The famous Hatfield House.
• The Mill Green Museum, which also has a watermill.
• The Art and Design Gallery, showing modern art.
• The Weston Auditorium, a theatre and cinema.
• The Forum Hertfordshire, a popular music venue.

For shopping, you can visit The Galleria (an indoor shopping centre), The Stable Yard at Hatfield House, and several supermarkets like ASDA, ALDI, and Tesco.

Hatfield also hosts a vegan market twice a year, in June and November, at Hatfield House. Students at the University of Hertfordshire even organized their own vegan market in 2023!

Education in Hatfield

Hatfield has many schools for different age groups. Some of the primary schools include St Philip Howard Catholic Primary School, Howe Dell Primary School, and Countess Anne School. For secondary education, there's Onslow St Audrey's School and Bishop's Hatfield Girls' School. There's also an independent school for girls called Queenswood School.

A big part of Hatfield's education scene is the University of Hertfordshire. A large section of the old airfield site was bought by the university. They opened the amazing £120-million de Havilland Campus in 2003, which includes a £15-million Sports Village. The university has moved all its faculties to this campus.

The equine (horse) branch of the Royal Veterinary College is also based in Hatfield.

Places to Visit

• Hatfield House
• Hatfield War Memorial
• The Forum Hertfordshire (a music venue at the University of Hertfordshire). Did you know that the music video for Ed Sheeran's song "Lego House," featuring Harry Potter actor Rupert Grint, was filmed here in 2011?
• Mill Green Museum and watermill
• Art and Design Gallery (at the University of Hertfordshire)
• The Weston Auditorium (theatre and cinema at the University of Hertfordshire)
• The Galleria shopping centre
• Hatfield Business Park, which was once the de Havilland aircraft factory. This area was used as a filming location for the movies Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers.

Transport in Hatfield

Hatfield is located about 20 miles (32 km) north of London. It's also about 14 miles (22 km) from London Luton Airport. The A1(M) motorway runs through a tunnel under the town, and the M25 motorway is also nearby.

The East Coast railway line, which goes from London to York, passes through Hatfield. This line separates the old and new parts of the town. There's a regular train service from Hatfield railway station to London King's Cross, which takes about 21 minutes on fast trains. There are also trains that stop at all stations to Moorgate in the City of London.

Hatfield has good bus services that connect it to nearby towns and villages, and even to north London.

In October 2000, a train accident called the Hatfield rail crash happened here. A garden was built beside the railway line as a memorial to those who lost their lives.

Local Media

If you want to know what's happening in Hatfield, here's where you can find local news:

• TV: You can watch BBC London and ITV London. You can also get BBC East and ITV Anglia.
• Radio: Tune into BBC Three Counties Radio on 90.4 FM, Heart Hertfordshire on 106.9 FM, or Radio Verulam on 92.6 FM.
• Newspaper: The local weekly newspaper is called the Welwyn Hatfield Times.

Famous People from Hatfield

Many interesting people have lived in or come from Hatfield!

Business

• Michael Birch (born 1970), who started the social network BEBO.
• Geoffrey de Havilland (1882–1965), who founded the De Havilland Aircraft Company.

Music and Dance

• Babe Ruth, a rock band from the 1970s.
• Colin Blunstone (born 1945), from the band the Zombies.
• Martin Carthy (born 1941), a folk musician.
• Sandra Conley (born 1943), a main dancer with the Royal Ballet.
• Donovan (born 1946), a folk musician, spent his childhood here.
• Barbara Gaskin (born 1950), a pop singer who had a No. 1 hit with "It's My Party".
• George Martin (1926–2016), the record producer for the Beatles.
• Mick Taylor (born 1949), a guitarist for the Rolling Stones.
• Tracey Thorn (born 1962), the lead singer of Everything But The Girl.

Science and Learning

• John Tradescant the elder (c. 1570s–1638), a famous botanist and gardener, was the head gardener at Hatfield House.
• Michael Ventris (1922–1956), who figured out the ancient Linear B writing system.

Sports

• Samir Carruthers (born 1993), a footballer for Sheffield United.
• Matthew Connolly (born 1987), a defender for QPR.
• Iain Dowie (born 1965), a former West Ham player and QPR manager.
• Rodney Marsh (born 1944), a famous footballer for QPR.
• Billy Joe Saunders (born 1989), a world champion boxer.
• Korey Smith (born 1991), a footballer for Bristol City.

Stage, Media, and Film

• Sanjeev Bhaskar (born 1963), a comedian and broadcaster.
• Pippa Haywood (born 1961), a television, stage, and radio actress.
• Diane-Louise Jordan (born 1960), a television presenter.
• David Kossoff (1919–2005), a broadcaster.
• Derek Martin (born 1933), an actor known for playing Charlie Slater in EastEnders.
• Guy Ritchie (born 1968), a film director famous for movies like Snatch.
• Letitia Dean, an actress also known for EastEnders.

Writing

• Moniza Alvi (born 1954), a poet and writer.
• Barbara Cartland (1901–2000), a very famous author of romance novels.
• Nathaniel Lee (c. 1653–1692), a poet and playwright.

Nearby Towns and Villages

Images for kids

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  The south wing of The Galleria with the connecting bridge.

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  EE Head Office in Hatfield Business Park.

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  The memorial garden built alongside the East Coast Main Line.

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  Hatfield railway station viewed from the public footbridge.

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  Statue of Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury in front of the park gates of Hatfield House.

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  Old council offices, 16 St Albans Road East.

See also

In Spanish: Hatfield (Hertfordshire) para niños