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Ware is a town in
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 gov ...
, England close to the county town of
Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, n ...
. It is also a
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 authorit ...
in
East Hertfordshire East Hertfordshire is a local government district in Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Hertford, the county town of Hertfordshire. The largest town in the district is Bishop's Stortford, and the other main towns are Ware, Bunti ...
district.


Location

The town lies on the north–south
A10 road This is a list of roads designated A10. Roads entries are sorted in the countries alphabetical order. * A010 road (Argentina), a road in the northeast of Chubut Province * ''A10 road (Australia)'' may refer to : ** ''A10 highway (South Australia ...
which is partly shared with the east–west A414 (for Hertford to the west and
Harlow Harlow is a large town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a new town, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire and London, Harlow occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the uppe ...
to the east). There is a large
viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...
over the
River Lea The River Lea ( ) is in South East England. It originates in Bedfordshire, in the Chiltern Hills, and flows southeast through Hertfordshire, along the Essex border and into Greater London, to meet the River Thames at Bow Creek. It is one of ...
at Kings Meads. The £3.6m two-mile bypass opened on 17 January 1979. At the north end of the bypass is the Wodson Park Sports and Leisure Centre and
Hanbury Manor Hanbury Manor, centred on the multi-wing Hanbury Manor Hotel, is a converted late-Victorian country house and adjoining golf course in Thundridge, north of Ware, Hertfordshire, some north of Greater London. It is part of a leisure retreat and co ...
, a hotel and country club. The former route of the A10 through the town is now the A1170. The
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...
is on the
Hertford East Branch Line The Hertford East branch line is a railway line in Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom, running between Hertford East and . The line follows the route of the Lea Valley, serving intermediate towns and villages. It branches off the West Anglia Ma ...
and operated by Greater Anglia and is on a short single track section of the otherwise double track line.


History

Archaeology has shown that Ware has been occupied since at least the
Mesolithic The Mesolithic ( Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymo ...
period (which ended about 4000 BC). The
Romans 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 ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
had a sizeable settlement here and foundations of several buildings, including a temple, and two cemeteries have been found. Ware was on
Ermine Street Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London ('' Londinium'') to Lincoln ('' Lindum Colonia'') and York ('' Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earn ...
, the Roman road from London to Lincoln. A well-preserved Roman skeleton of a teenage girl was found beside the road and nicknamed 'Ermintrude'. It has been said that Ware is one of the oldest continuously occupied sites in
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
. 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 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
of 1086, the town was named ''Waras'' from the natural weirs in the River Lea. The historic rivalry with nearby Hertford can be traced to 1090 when the Lady of Ware (Petronilla de Grandmesnil, Countess of Leicester) diverted Ermine Street from the Roman ford to create a High Street and new bridge over the Lea. The bailiff of Hertford tried to destroy the new bridge before it was recognised as part of the King's Highway by Henry III in person. In 1381, during the so-called
Peasants' Revolt The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Blac ...
, 42 prominent Ware townsmen, led by the Vicar, joined others in destroying
Hertford Castle Hertford Castle was built in Norman times by the River Lea in Hertford, the county town of Hertfordshire, England. Most of the internal buildings of the castle have been demolished. The main surviving section is the Tudor gatehouse, which is a Gr ...
, then owned by
John of Gaunt John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399) was an English royal prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the fourth son (third to survive infancy as William of Hatfield died shortly after birth) of King Edward ...
. Many inns were established in the High Street, reflecting Ware's importance as a coaching stop on the ''Old North Road''. Chaucer mentioned Ware twice in ''
The Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' ( enm, Tales of Caunterbury) is a collection of twenty-four stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. It is widely regarded as Chaucer's '' magnum opus ...
''. The Great Bed of Ware, cited by Shakespeare and other playwrights, was housed in a succession of Ware inns.
Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She ...
had Thomas Fust burned at the stake in Ware marketplace for refusing to convert to Catholicism. In the 17th century, Ware became the source of the New River, constructed to take fresh water into London. The Ware Mutiny occurred on 15 November 1647, between the First and the
Second English Civil War The Second English Civil War took place between February to August 1648 in England and Wales. It forms part of the series of conflicts known collectively as the 1639-1651 Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which include the 1641–1653 Irish Confed ...
at Corkbush Field, when soldiers were ordered to sign a declaration of loyalty to
Thomas Fairfax Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron (17 January 161212 November 1671), also known as Sir Thomas Fairfax, was an English politician, general and Parliamentary commander-in-chief during the English Civil War. An adept and talented command ...
, the commander-in-chief of the
New Model Army The New Model Army was a standing army formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians during the First English Civil War, then disbanded after the Stuart Restoration in 1660. It differed from other armies employed in the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Th ...
(NMA), and the Army Council. When some with
Leveller The Levellers were a political movement active during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms who were committed to popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. The hallmark of Leveller thought was its populis ...
sympathies refused to do this they were arrested, and one of the ringleaders, Trooper Richard Arnold, was court-martialled and shot. 62 children were sent to Ware after the
Great Fire of London The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through central London from Sunday 2 September to Thursday 6 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old Roman city wall, while also extending past th ...
. In 1683, the
Rye House Plot The Rye House Plot of 1683 was a plan to assassinate King Charles II of England and his brother (and heir to the throne) James, Duke of York. The royal party went from Westminster to Newmarket to see horse races and were expected to make the ...
involved assassinating Charles II after he passed through Ware. It failed. England's first
turnpike Turnpike often refers to: * A type of gate, another word for a turnstile * In the United States, a toll road Turnpike may also refer to: Roads United Kingdom * A turnpike road, a principal road maintained by a turnpike trust, a body with powe ...
(toll) road was established at Wadesmill, two miles north of Ware, in 1633 in an attempt to control the malting traffic into and from Ware. The town had become a major maltmaking centre during the Civil War and soon became the most important supplier of malt to the Common Brewers of London, with its own quoted price on the London grain market, particularly for brown malt, used in brewing porter beer. The Ordnance Survey First Edition of 1880 showed 107 malt kilns in Ware, more than twice as many as in any other Hertfordshire town The last working malting in Ware, Pauls Malt at Broadmeads, closed in 1994. In November 1999, the bronze Maltmaker statue by Oxfordshire sculptor, Jill Tweed, was unveiled outside St Mary's Church to commemorate the end of the industry and the Millennium. The unveiling was done by Hugo Page Croft, member of a famous Ware malting family; others involved in the project were Guy Horlock, chairman of the Stanstead Abbots maltsters, French & Jupps Ltd, and David Perman, curator of the Ware Museum Two legends associated with the 17th century are sometimes mentioned. One is that bargemen born in Ware were given the "freedom of the River Thames" — avoiding the requirement of paying lock dues — as a result of their transport of fresh water and food in during the great plague of 1665–66. In fact, Ware barges were freed from having to carry a pilot in the Port of London as a result of their relieving the Dutch blockade of the Thames in 1667, by bringing in coal brought overland from the Wash. The other legend is that Ware bargemen brought plague bodies out of London in 1666 and interred them at the Buryfield. The truth is that the Burymead was mentioned as early as 1513 and referred to the present Glaxo site where a number of Roman cemeteries have been found; the Buryfield Recreation Ground was established in 1931 on charity land, the Bell Close, now partly covered by the GSK multi-storey car park. At the end of the 19th century, malt-making in Ware was joined by two other industries. In 1886, Dennis Wickham, member of a brewing family, established a bottling plant which in 1900 moved to Viaduct Road and became an engineering company. The world-famous firm of D. Wickham & Co. became manufacturers of railcars and construction equipment, closing eventually in 1991 In 1898, the pharmaceutical company, Allen & Hanburys, acquired a lease on the Ware corn mill and began building a medicines, dried milk and health foods factory at the nearby Buryfield. A new plant for pharmaceutical research and development was built in Park Road during World War II. Allenburys, as it was known, was merged with Glaxo in 1958 and is now part of
GlaxoSmithKline GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the tent ...
(GSK). The Ware Town Council coat of arms was issued in 1956 by the College of Arms to Ware Urban District Council, and transferred to Ware Town Council in 1975. The arms are derived from matters with which Ware is associated — the barge rudders reference the bargemen of Ware, with the red and white striping on the rudders being the livery colours of the City of London, associating the Ware bargemen's free entry rights to that City (q.v.); the crossed coach horns reference the town's long history as a coaching town; and the sheaves of barley reference the malting history of Ware. The motto of the town, "cave" (Latin for "beware") was suggested by the College of Heralds, with the intent of its being a pun on the town's name.


Features

Ware has 202 listed buildings including fourteen grade II* and three grade I, one of which is the remains of a fourteenth-century friary, now the offices of Ware Town Council and a conference, wedding and function venue called Ware Priory and Fletcher's Lea. Recent restoration work has shown that it dates from the thirteenth century. Opposite the priory is the large fourteenth-century parish church of St. Mary. It is known for its elaborate font with large carved stone figures. The town is also famous for its many 18th-century riverside
gazebo A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands. Etymology The etymology given by Oxford Dictionaries is "Mid 18th c ...
s, several of which have been restored recently. Ware is also known for the Great Bed of Ware, which is mentioned in Shakespeare's
Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Vi ...
and is reputedly able to accommodate at least four couples. It is in the
Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
in London, but from April 2012 until April 2013 it was loaned to the museum in Ware. Ware is mentioned in ''
The Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' ( enm, Tales of Caunterbury) is a collection of twenty-four stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. It is widely regarded as Chaucer's '' magnum opus ...
'' and was also the unintended destination of
John Gilpin John Gilpin (18th century) was featured as the subject in a well-known comic ballad of 1782 by William Cowper, entitled '' The Diverting History of John Gilpin''. Cowper had heard the story from his friend Lady Austen. Gilpin was said to be ...
in
William Cowper William Cowper ( ; 26 November 1731 – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and sce ...
's comic poem. Some of the buildings along the High Street date back to the 14th century. Ware used to have many coaching inns and passageways between some shops lead to their stables. Many of these passageways also have former maltings. Crib Street has a good sequence of timber-framed buildings which have been restored since the 1970s. Today the town's main employer is
GlaxoSmithKline GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the tent ...
which has large manufacturing and research plants in the town. The Ware company was formerly Allen & Hanburys and has a long connection with the town, with many historical items on view in a section on the company in the Ware Museum. There are also many other small factories. It is also a commuting town for London, with regular
Abellio Greater Anglia Greater Anglia (legal name Abellio East Anglia Limited) is a train operating company in Great Britain owned as a joint venture by Abellio, the international arm of the state-owned Dutch national rail operator Nederlandse Spoorwegen, and the J ...
services between Ware railway station and
London Liverpool Street Liverpool Street station, also known as London Liverpool Street, is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, in the ward of Bishopsgate Without. It is the t ...
.
Fairport Convention Fairport Convention are an English folk rock band, formed in 1967 by guitarists Richard Thompson and Simon Nicol, bassist Ashley Hutchings and drummer Shaun Frater (with Frater replaced by Martin Lamble after their first gig.) They started o ...
's 1971 album ''
"Babbacombe" Lee ''"Babbacombe" Lee'' is a 1971 album by British folk rock group Fairport Convention, which tells the life story of John Babbacombe Lee, a Victorian-era alleged murderer who was condemned to death but was reprieved after the gallows failed o ...
'' was inspired by an old newspaper story that fiddle player
Dave Swarbrick David Cyril Eric Swarbrick (5 April 1941 – 3 June 2016) was an English folk musician and singer-songwriter. His style has been copied or developed by almost every British and many world folk violin players who have followed him. He was ...
bought in an antiques shop in the High Street of Ware when the band lived at The Angel former public house in nearby Little Hadham.


Places of interest


Ware Museum

Ware has its own museum which in 2008 received full accreditation from the Museums, Archives and Libraries Council. The museum is independent and run completely by volunteers. In 2012–2013 Ware Museum was home to the Great Bed of Ware on loan for one year from The Victoria and Albert Museum in London. The bed is reputedly haunted by the ghost of its alleged maker, Jonas Fosbrooke, who is said to harass any non-royal person who attempts to sleep in the bed. The museum is partially housed in the former Priory Lodge and partly inside a Second World War Command Bunker used to co-ordinate local defences and respond to air-raids; this part was refurbished for 2010. The museum contains many interesting items from the history of Ware, including Roman archaeology, exhibits relating to the Second World War and Allen & Hanburys pharmaceuticals. There are also a number of exhibits for children and many special activity days throughout the year.


Scott's Grotto

Ware is home to
Scott's Grotto Scott's Grotto in Ware, Hertfordshire, is a Grade I listed building and with six chambers the most extensive shell grotto in the United Kingdom. "It is, although on a small scale, far more complex than Alexander Pope's at Twickenham. Compared wit ...
, built for John Scott, an 18th-century poet who owned Amwell House from 1768. The grotto, the largest in the UK, is a series of chambers extending over 65 ft into the chalk hillside. The chambers are decorated with shells, stones such as flint and coloured glass. The grotto was restored in 1990 by the Ware Society and is now owned and managed by the Scott's Grotto Trust; it is Grade 1 listed.


Bluecoat Yard

In Bluecoat Yard is Place House, Ware's oldest extant surviving building. It dates from the early 14th century, with additions in the 16th and 17th centuries, and was once Ware's Manor House. It has a crown post roof.


Governance

Ware has three tiers of local government, at parish (town), district and county level: Ware Town Council,
East Hertfordshire District Council East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...
, and
Hertfordshire County Council Hertfordshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Hertfordshire, in England, the United Kingdom. After the 2021 election, it consists of 78 councillors, and is controlled by the Conservative Party, ...
. Historically, the parish of Ware was included in the
hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to des ...
of
Braughing Braughing is a village and civil parish, between the rivers Quin and Rib, in the non-metropolitan district of East Hertfordshire, part of the English county of Hertfordshire. Braughing gave its name to a county division in Hertfordshire, know ...
. Prior to the sixteenth century Ware was sometimes called a
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...
, but it never had a borough charter from the monarch nor sent members to Parliament. In 1835 Ware became the centre of a poor law union, and the Ware Union Workhouse was built in 18391840 on Collett Road (then called Musley Lane). The town was made a
local board of health Local boards or local boards of health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate environmenta ...
district on 1 August 1849. The local board of health district covered the built-up part of the parish of Ware plus an area known as Amwell End, a southern suburb of the town which was in the neighbouring parish of
Great Amwell Great Amwell is a village and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in the county of Hertfordshire, England. It is southeast of Ware and about north of London. History On a hill above the church there are some traces of an Iron Ag ...
. After elections, the Ware Local Board held its first meeting on 1 September 1849 at the boardroom of the Ware Union Workhouse, when William Parker was appointed the first chairman of the board. Under the
Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...
, the Ware Local Board became Ware Urban District Council on 31 December 1894. The Act also directed that parishes could not straddle urban and rural districts, and so the parish of Ware was split with effect from 4 December 1894 into two parishes: Ware Urban for the part within the urban district, and Ware Rural for the part outside it. Ware Rural parish was included in the
Ware Rural District Ware Rural District was a rural district in Hertfordshire, England from 1894 to 1974, covering an area in the east of the county. Evolution The district had its origins in the Ware Rural Sanitary District. This had been created under the ...
and was renamed Wareside in 1991. Ware Urban District Council was initially based at the Town Hall at 8 West Street (not to be confused with the former cornmarket that had previously been called Town Hall at 70 High Street overlooking the market place). The Town Hall on West Street comprised an early eighteenth house on the street frontage, behind which were a large public hall and meeting rooms which had been built in 1867, initially as a Corn Exchange. The Corn Exchange business failed in 1875. The following year the building was bought by a new company called the Ware Town Hall and Assembly Rooms Company. The urban district council rented rooms there to serve as its offices and meeting place. In 1920 the urban district council was effectively given Ware Priory; its owner, Anne Elizabeth Croft, gave the council a 999year lease at a nominal rent of 3 shillings a year. The council then used Ware Priory as its offices and meeting place until its abolition. Most of the former Town Hall at 8 West Street was demolished in the 1950s, retaining only the original house at the front, which is now known as Rankin House. Ware Urban District Council was granted a
coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...
on 26 March 1956. Ware Urban District was abolished under the
Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...
, merging with other districts to become
East Hertfordshire East Hertfordshire is a local government district in Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Hertford, the county town of Hertfordshire. The largest town in the district is Bishop's Stortford, and the other main towns are Ware, Bunti ...
on 1 April 1974. A
successor parish Successor parishes are civil parishes with a parish council, created in England in 1974. They replaced, with the same boundaries, a selected group of urban districts and municipal boroughs: a total of 300 successor parishes were formed from the ...
was created covering the former urban district of Ware, with its parish council taking the name Ware Town Council. Ware Town Council is now based at The Priory.


Education facilities


Nursery and Primary

There are fourteen primary schools in Ware and surrounding villages as of March 2022. There are also many preschools and nurseries, including long established Orchard House Preschool and the newest Riverside Nursery School.


Secondary

There are two secondary schools in the town; Presdales School and Chauncy School. Presdales School opened in 1906 as Ware Grammar School and became a fully comprehensive school in the early 1970's. It admits girls aged 11-18 and admits boys into the sixth form. It is one of nine Lead Language Hub schools in England. Chauncy School is co-educational throughout.


Post-Secondary Education

The Creative & Enterprise Campus of Hertford Regional College is also based in the town. A new £10.5-million building opened in 2015 and is used to teach 3D Design, Graphic Design, Fashion Design, Visual Merchandising, Set Design, Photography, Art & Design, Fine Art, Animation & Multimedia and Creative & Digital Media.
All Nations Christian College All Nations Christian College is an English missions college, located on the Easneye estate near Ware, Hertfordshire, and validated by the Open University. Aims Unlike some Bible colleges, the focus of All Nations Christian College is prim ...
is located in nearby Easneye. This
missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...
training college offers a variety of programmes ranging from short unvalidated courses to
Open University The Open University (OU) is a British Public university, public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by List of universities in the United Kingdom by enrolment, number of students. The majority of the OU's underg ...
validated post-graduate qualifications.


Culture


Sports and leisure


Wodson Park Sports and Leisure Centre

Wodson Park Sports and Leisure Centre is located on the north side of Ware. It is owned and operated by the Wodson Park Trust which is a community based charity providing sports and recreation facilities for the people of East Hertfordshire. It has an extensive range of sports and entertainment facilities including indoor sports halls, restaurants and an external athletics facility. It is also the home to the Ware Football Clubs.


The Ware Drill Hall

The Ware
Drill Hall A drill hall is a place such as a building or a hangar where soldiers practise and perform military drills. Description In the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, the term was used for the whole headquarters building of a military reserve unit, ...
was constructed in 1899 at a cost of £5,250 and is a
Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ir ...
in the centre of Ware. The building was listed due to its early use of a steel parabolic roof structure. It is home to many sporting clubs and community facilities and hosts many sporting, cultural and music events throughout the year. The facility is currently operated by The Ware Drill Hall Association (WDHA).


Cricket

There is evidence to suggest that cricket has been played in Ware since before 1770. The present Ware Cricket Club has its grounds at Bell Lane in Widford.


Bowls

The Ware Bowling Club was founded in 1926 and is located in grounds behind the Ware Priory. In 2008 it became
Bowls England Bowls England governs the game of flat green outdoor bowls for men and women in England. It was formed on 1 January 2008 following a merger of the English Bowling Association and the English Women's Bowling Association. The English Bowling Ass ...
Club of the Year.


Football

Ware has two
non-League football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is s ...
teams.
Ware F.C. Ware F.C. is a football club established in 1892 and based at Wodson Park in Ware, Hertfordshire, England, currently members of the . History The club was founded in 1892 and although first called Ware Town soon changed its name to plain Ware ...
was founded in 1892 and play their home games at Wodson Park sports centre in the north of the town. The other non-League team is Wodson Park F.C., founded in 1997, who also play their games at the sports centre but on a separate pitch. Ware also has two youth football teams. Ware Lions FC was founded in 1968 and is based at Woodson Field in Thundridge. Ware Youth FC, founded in 1973, based on Fanhams Hall Road, Trinity Playing Fields.


American flag football

The Ware Wolves
flag football Flag football is a variant of American football where, instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier ("deflagging") to end a down. The sport has a strong amateur following ...
team, the most popular flag football team in Hertfordshire, takes its name from the town although it actually plays in Hertford.


Golf

The Chadwell Springs Golf centre is located in Ware and completed a major refurbishment programme in 2019.


Rugby

Hertford Rugby Football Club Hertford Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union team based in Ware, Hertfordshire. The club runs five senior sides, the full range of junior teams and a women's section which includes three women's teenage teams. The first XV currently pl ...
was formed in 1932 as the Old Hertfordians by a group of enthusiasts from Hertford Grammar School. The club played at six different venues until moving to their present location at Hoe Lane in Ware in 1949. It is also home to the Old Hertfordians Squash Club which has two courts there.


Running

Ware Joggers is a successful running club with opportunities for all abilities. They organise annual 10 mile and 10 km races at the beginning of July as part of the Ware Festival.


Scouting and Girlguiding

Ware was one of the first places out of
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
to take up the
Scouting movement Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking, ...
and now has many
Scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, secti ...
and
Girlguiding Girlguiding is the operating name of The Guide Association, previously named The Girl Guides Association and is the national guiding organisation of the United Kingdom. It is the UK's largest girl-only youth organisation. Girlguiding is a cha ...
units.Ware and District Scouts
includes eight Scout groups and an Explorer Scout unit and covers an area from
Hunsdon Hunsdon is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. It is around east of Ware and north-west of Harlow. The population of the village taken at the 2011 Census was 1,080. See also * Baron Hunsdon * Hunsdon Airfield *The Hundred ...
to
Buntingford Buntingford is a market town and civil parish in the district of East Hertfordshire and county of Hertfordshire in England. It lies next to the River Rib and is located on the historic Roman road, Ermine Street. As a result of its location, it ...
.


Swimming

Ware has two swimming pools, one indoor and one outdoor. The Fanshawe Pool and Gym is located in Park Road. The Ware Priory Lido was built in 1934 and is one of the few remaining still in regular use in the country. It was substantially altered in the 1970s with new changing rooms and is situated in the grounds of Ware Priory. Following a meeting of "The Townsfolk of Ware" in May 1934, it was agreed that a "swimming club" be formed. This is still running today and is now based at Fanshawe Pool.


Festivals and events


Ware Festival and Rock in the Priory

The Ware Festival Committee organises a wide range of events throughout July, from a lively Carnival Parade, through to an Over 60s Party, Raft Race, Teddy Bears' Picnic culminating in the 'Rock in the Priory' a one-day open-air music festival, performances have the late notable band 'box deluxe', with members including the drummer Chris Barlow. Visitors to Ware during July will find a packed programme of events throughout the four festival weekends, with something for everyone.


Ware fireworks display

For over 30 years there has been an annual fireworks display in Ware on the nearest Saturday to
Guy Fawkes Night Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night and Fireworks Night, is an annual commemoration list of minor secular observances#November, observed on 5 November, primarily in Great Britain, involving bonfires and firewor ...
. The display was originally organised by the Round Table organisation; however, in recent years it has been taken over by the three Rotary Clubs in Ware: The Rotary Club of Hertford Shires, The Rotary Club of Ware and The Rotary Club of Amwell. The event is held in a field off High Oak road and attracts many thousands of attendees. All the profits from the event are donated to local and international charities supported by Rotary.


Dickensian Evening

Dickensian Evening is an annual event that celebrates the work of
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
, in particular, his festive novella ''
A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. ''A Christmas ...
'', and takes place on the first Friday in December each year. The event is run through the town centre and the Drill Hall is also used for pitches and stalls. Some of the festivities include carol singing, fairground amusements and a craft market, making it an enjoyable event for all ages.


Literature

Edward Lear Edward Lear (12 May 1812 – 29 January 1888) was an English artist, illustrator, musician, author and poet, who is known mostly for his literary nonsense in poetry and prose and especially his limericks, a form he popularised. His principal ...
makes reference to Ware in ''
More Nonsense Pictures, Rhymes, Botany, etc More or Mores may refer to: Computing * MORE (application), outline software for Mac OS * more (command), a shell command * MORE protocol, a routing protocol * Missouri Research and Education Network Music Albums * ''More!'' (album), by Booka ...
'': "There was an old person of Ware,
Who rode on the back of a bear:
When they ask'd, - 'Does it trot?'--
He said 'Certainly not!
He's a Moppsikon Floppsikon bear!'"


Religion

Ware has a number of churches, the most prominent being St Mary the Virgin Church, located on the town's high street.


Twin towns

*
Cormeilles-en-Parisis Cormeilles-en-Parisis (, literally ''Cormeilles in Parisis'') is a commune in the Val-d'Oise department in Île-de-France in Northern France. Inhabitants are called ''Cormeillais(e)''. Neighbouring communes * Argenteuil * La Frette-sur-Seine ...
,
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
*
Wülfrath Wülfrath is a town in the district of Mettmann (district), in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography The town is situated on the mountain spurs of the Bergische Land, between the Rhine, Ruhr and Wupper rivers. It is located in the central p ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
* Záhony,
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...


Notable residents

*
Michael William Balfe Michael William Balfe (15 May 1808 – 20 October 1870) was an Irish composer, best remembered for his operas, especially ''The Bohemian Girl''. After a short career as a violinist, Balfe pursued an operatic singing career, while he began to co ...
(1808–1870), composer, owned the country estate Rowney Abbey *
Russ Ballard Russell Glyn Ballard (born 31 October 1945) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Originally coming to prominence as the lead singer and guitarist for the band Argent, Ballard became a songwriter and producer by the late 1970s. His co ...
(born 1945), musician and composer, lead singer and guitarist of
Argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to ...
; lives between Ware and Thundridge *
Charlie Brooks Charlene Emma Brooks (born 3 May 1981) is a British actress. Known for the role of Janine Butcher in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'', she has received numerous awards since her first appearance on the soap in 1999, with storylines inv ...
(born 1981), actress, ''Janine Butcher'' in ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
'' *
Henry Coddington Henry Coddington (1798/9, Oldbridge, County Meath — 3 March 1845, Rome) was an Anglo Irish natural philosopher, fellow and tutor of Trinity College, Cambridge and Church of England clergyman. Life Henry Coddington was the son of Latham Codd ...
(1798/9—1845), Vicar of Ware, 1832–45, FRS and optics inventor * Richard Chartres, Baron Chartres (born 1947), retired
Bishop of London A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
* Peter Clift (born 1966) marine geologist and geophysicist in the US *
Henry Page Croft, 1st Baron Croft Henry Page Croft, 1st Baron Croft (22 June 1881 – 7 December 1947) was a decorated British soldier and Conservative Party politician. Early life and family He was born at Fanhams Hall in Ware, Hertfordshire, England. He was the son of Ri ...
(1881–1947), decorated soldier and Conservative politician. *
Herbert Deveril Albert Edwin Ekins (9 May 1840 - 24 August 1911), known as Herbert Deveril, was a photographer in Australia and New Zealand. Albert Edwin Ekins was born on 9 May 1840 in Ware, Hertfordshire, England, the son of George and Elizabeth. He studie ...
(1840-1911), a photographer in Australia and New Zealand. * Samuel Herbert Dougal (1847–1903), notorious villain hanged for murdering a woman he had conned; was licensee of the Royston Crow public house in Baldock Street *
Sir Richard Fanshawe Sir Richard Fanshawe, 1st Baronet PC (June 1608 – 16 June 1666) was an English poet and translator. He was a diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1661 to 1666. During the English Civil War he supported the Royalist caus ...
(1608–1666), poet, translator, MP, ambassador to Spain 1662-66. *
Nino Firetto Anthony Edward Paolo Firetto (born 30 June 1957 in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire) is a British radio presenter, TV host and actor, currently based in San Francisco, United States. Biography Firetto became known as a DJ in the 1970s, then as a televi ...
(born 1957), radio presenter, TV host and actor *
William Godwin William Godwin (3 March 1756 – 7 April 1836) was an English journalist, political philosophy, political philosopher and novelist. He is considered one of the first exponents of utilitarianism and the first modern proponent of anarchism. God ...
(1756–1836), philosopher; congregational minister in Dead Lane (now part of Church Street) 1778-9 * Sir Nigel Hawthorne (1929–2001), actor, lived in the nearby village of Cold Christmas * William Lister (1756–1830) physician, became Governor of
St Thomas' Hospital St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. It is one of the institutions that compose the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS ...
. * Minnie Minoprio (born 1942) actress, singer and showgirl, mainly active in Italy. *
The Subways The Subways is an English rock band from Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire. Formed in 2002, the band consists of Billy Lunn (lead vocals, guitar), Charlotte Cooper (bass guitar, lead vocals), and Camille Phillips (drums). Founding-drummer Josh ...
(formed in 2002), an English rock band from Welwyn Garden City. *
Brian Wilde Brian George Wilde (13 June 1927 – 20 March 2008) was an English actor, best known for his roles in television comedy, most notably Mr Barrowclough in '' Porridge'' and Walter "Foggy" Dewhurst in ''Last of the Summer Wine''. His lugubrious ...
(1927–2008), actor, played ''Foggy'' in ''
Last of the Summer Wine ''Last of the Summer Wine'' is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke and originally broadcast by the BBC from 1973 to 2010. It premiered as an episode of '' Comedy Playhouse'' on 4 January 1973, and the first series of episodes f ...
'' and ''Mr Barrowclough'' in ''
Porridge Porridge is a food made by heating or boiling ground, crushed or chopped starchy plants, typically grain, in milk or water. It is often cooked or served with added flavourings such as sugar, honey, (dried) fruit or syrup to make a sweet cereal, ...
'' * William of Ware; between 1290-1305 was a Franciscan friar and philosopher


Sport

* Marc North (1966–2001), footballer with
Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
and
Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...
with 185 club caps *
John Pelly Sir John Henry Pelly, 1st Baronet, DL (31 March 1777 – 13 August 1852) was an English businessman. During most of his career, he was an employee of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), serving as Governor of the HBC for three decades. He held ot ...
(1888–1945), cricketer and Royal Navy officer *
Derek Saunders Derek Saunders (6 January 1928 – 3 March 2018) was an English footballer who played for Chelsea during the 1950s. Biography Born in Ware, for whose Spartan League side he made 31 appearances in 1945–46 as its youngest ever captain, Saunders ...
(1928–2018) footballer, played 203 games for Chelsea F.C. *
Stuart Storey Stuart Ellis Storey (born 16 September 1942) is a British sports commentator and former 110m hurdler. Early life Storey was born in Louth, Lincolnshire. He grew up in Holbeach, later helping to coach local resident Geoff Capes at Holbeach At ...
(born 1942), athlete and sports commentator; associated with Ware and the Wodson Park Sports facility.


Nearby communities

*
Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, n ...
*
Hoddesdon Hoddesdon () is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, lying entirely within the London Metropolitan Area and Greater London Urban Area. The area is on the River Lea and the Lee Navigation along with the New River. Hoddesdon ...
*
Thundridge Thundridge is a village and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in the county of Hertfordshire, England. It is about two miles away from the town of Ware and about seven miles away from the large town of Hertford, the county town o ...
* Dane End *
Great Amwell Great Amwell is a village and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in the county of Hertfordshire, England. It is southeast of Ware and about north of London. History On a hill above the church there are some traces of an Iron Ag ...
*
Wareside Wareside is a small village and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in the county of Hertfordshire, England. The population of the civil parish in the 2011 census was 735. It is approximately away from the town of Ware (from w ...


References


External links


Ware Tourism Office


{{authority control Towns in Hertfordshire Civil parishes in Hertfordshire East Hertfordshire District