St Paul's Walden is a village about south of

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

, England. The

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 below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

of St Paul's Walden also includes the village of Whitwell and the hamlet of

Bendish Bendish is a hamlet located in the parish of St Paul's Walden in Hertfordshire. In the 18th century, Bendish was a small town. It is about 3 miles east of Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshi ...

. At the 2011 Census the population of the civil parish was 1,293. After the Reformation the manor belonged to

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

; the name St Paul's Walden serves to distinguish the parish from

King's Walden King's Walden is a civil parish in the English county of Hertfordshire. The name includes an apostrophe, but this is often omitted. The main settlement is now Breachwood Green, and there are also the hamlets of King's Walden, Ley Green, Darleyh ...

, although the Dean and Chapter sold their property in the 17th century.

Notable residents

St Paul's Walden has two 18th-century mansions.

Stagenhoe

Stagenhoe Stagenhoe is a Grade II listed stately home and surrounding gardens located in the village of St Paul's Walden in Hertfordshire. It is approximately south of Hitchin. It was the family seat of the Earl of Caithness. Socialite Lady Euphemia Sinclai ...

was once owned by the

Earls of Caithness Earl of Caithness is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland, and it has a very complex history. Its first grant, in the modern sense as to have been counted in strict lists of peerages, is now generally held to have ...

Sir

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

rented the property in the 1880s around the time he composed ''

The Mikado ''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan, operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, whe ...

''.

St Paul's Walden Bury

St Paul's Walden Bury St. Paul's Walden Bury is an English country house and surrounding gardens in the village of St Paul's Walden in Hertfordshire. The house is a Grade II* listed, and the gardens Grade I. A home of the Bowes-Lyon family, it is possibly the site of ...

is owned by the

Bowes-Lyon family The Bowes-Lyon family descends from George Bowes of Gibside and Streatlam Castle ''(1701–1760)'', a County Durham landowner and politician, through John Bowes, 9th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, chief of the Clan Lyon. Following the marriag ...

. Members include

Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was the l ...

. While the details of her birth in 1900 are uncertain, the house is one of the locations that has been posited as her birthplace. It is accepted that she was baptised in All Saints' church, St Paul's Walden. On 23 January 1923, the then

Prince Albert, Duke of York George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

, later to become King George VI, drove up to St Paul's Walden in his sports car, and proposed to Elizabeth in the woods at the Bury.

Gardens

The gardens of St Paul's Walden Bury are listed as grade I on the

Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England The Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England provides a listing and classification system for historic parks and gardens similar to that used for listed buildings. The register is managed by Historic England ...

. They are occasionally opened to the public under the

National Garden Scheme The National Garden Scheme opens privately owned gardens in England, Northern Ireland, Wales, and the Channel Islands on selected dates for charity. It was founded in 1927 with the aim of "opening gardens of quality, character and interest to th ...

, a charity of which the Queen Mother was patron.

References

External links

St Paul's Walden BuryListed Buildings in St Paul's Walden
Saint Paul's Walden Civil parishes in Hertfordshire North Hertfordshire District {{Hertfordshire-geo-stub