Hertford is an historic county town, set at the meeting place of four rivers (the Lea, Mimram, Beane and Rib), and a royal borough for more than 1,000 years.
The castle which stands in attractive gardens is a Grade I listed building originally built on the site of a Norman castle - the mound and remains of the 12th C. flint/stone curtain walls can be seen. James I of Scotland was once a prisoner, whilst Queen Elizabeth I spent part of her childhood here.
Largely a conservation area, the town centre has many Georgian shop-fronts and delightful old pubs. Look out for the impressive 18th C. Shire Hall, the pargeting on The Salisbury Arms, and the world’s oldest purpose-built ‘Quaker’ Friend’s Meeting House (c.1670) still in continuous use. The town has also become famed as an antiques centre, especially along St. Andrew Street.
The Lee Navigation runs south from the town to London’s East End - and narrow-boats are a common sight. Much of Hertford’s development as a thriving market town was linked to the transpotation of goods (mainly crops) along the waterway. Whilst another local crop, barley, was used in the town’s many breweries - today only one survives, McMullen and Sons.