Much Hadham

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Much Hadham
Much Hadham shown within Hertfordshire
Population	2,000 (roughly)
OS grid reference	TL42622088
Parish	Much Hadham
District	East Hertfordshire
Shire county	Hertfordshire
Region	East
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Much Hadham
Postcode district	SG10
Dialling code	01279
Police	Hertfordshire
Fire	Hertfordshire
Ambulance	East of England
European Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Hertford and Stortford
List of places: UK • England • Hertfordshire

Coordinates: 51°52′04″N 0°04′18″E / 51.8678, 0.071754

For another area in Hertfordshire called "Perry Green" near Luton, see Peters Green

Much Hadham is a village in east Hertfordshire, England, formerly known as Great Hadham. It is situated on the B1004 road, midway between Ware and Bishop's Stortford.

The parish contains the settlements of Much Hadham (population 1147), Dane Bridge Lane (population 23), Green Tye (population 200), Kettle Green (population 31), Perry Green (population 175) and South-end (population 75).^[1]

The village is stretched along the mile long length of its main street (High Street, Tower Hill and Widford Road). Few retail outlets remain apart from two public houses, a small supermarket with a post office, a hairdressers, two garages and a nursery. Recently the radio shop next to the Red Lion closed, though 'Much Hadham Radio Ltd' is still operating. In the High Street, residential house names show former commercial or public use, eg, "Old Bakery", "Collarmaker's House" and "The Forge" Museum. The village was served by a station on the Buntingford branch line, but this closed in 1964, as part of a wider review of rail services.

There is a Church of England maintained primary school and two churches - the parish church and a Congregational church. Much Hadham's parish church, built largely between 1225 and 1450, is notable for being shared between the St. Andrew’s Church of England (Anglican) congregation and the Holy Cross Roman Catholic congregation. The entrance to the church is adorned with two sculptures by Henry Moore, who was also a resident in the village until his death in 1986. Other celebrity residents have included Bob Monkhouse, The Pet Shop Boys, Chas & Dave and Bob Carolgees.

Adjacent to the church, is a palace that had been the country home of the Bishops of London for 800 years. It may be that the Tudor dynasty began here, for Henry V's widow, Catherine of Valois, (Shakespeare's Katharine) gave birth here (or at similarly named Hadham in Bedfordshire) to Edmund Tudor, whose son Harry won the throne on Bosworth Field.

Former Red Lion public house, Much Hadham

The Red Lion coaching inn, now converted into private houses, has existed in the village since the fifteenth century. It was a stopping point on the old road from London to Cambridge. Legend has it that a tunnel connected the pub to St. Andrew's, possibly built during the time of Oliver Cromwell to serve as an escape route for the clergy. The skeleton of an eighteen-year-old woman was discovered bricked up into a fireplace in the inn. It is thought she died after being incarcerated, some time during the nineteenth century.

The Henry Moore Foundation can be found in the nearby hamlet of Perry Green. It was the victim of a theft in December 2005 when one of the statues on display was stolen from the site by opportunistic thieves.

The village has an active sports association which includes Much Hadham Cricket Club, Much Hadham Football Club and Hadham Villa Football Club.