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St Albans 1650-1700: A Thoroughfare Town and Its People This study of St Albans covers the period from the Commonwealth to the accession of Anne which embraces religious and political changes of great interest in the life of a town of strongly dissenting opinion. Curiosity about this critical period in the growth of the city led the St Albans and Hertfordshire Architectural and Archaeological Society to establish its Seventeenth Century Research Group whose members set out to discover what the town's churches and houses looked like, changes in population, how people earned a living, social structure, religious beliefs and political attitudes.

Alban's Buried Towns: An Assessment of St. Albans' Archaeology Up to AD 1600 St Albans has a long tradition of archaeological investigation dating back to the 18th century. What has been lacking however, is a detailed synthesis and interpretation of the accumulated information. This book is intended to meet that need, and comes out of a project set up by English Heritage in 1992 designed to promote 'intensive' urban archaeological strategy. This volume is a critical assessment of the current archaeological information from an area of 12 square kilometers centred on medieval and modern St Albans and its Roman predecessor, Verulamium. There is evidence of scattered occupation in the area from the Mesolithic period onwards, but it was only towards the end of the 1st century BC that a settlement was established to the south of the modern town. This was superseded by the development of the Roman town of Verulamium on the south side of the River Ver, but by the 8th century settlement had become focused on the shrine of the late Roman martyr, Alban, on the hill to the north of the river. In the late Saxon period an Abbey was established close to this shrine, and after the Norman conquest, settlement concentrated in the area north of the Abbey. Most of the monastic buildings were demolished shortly after the dissolution of the monastery in 1539, but on the whole St Albans retained its medieval form until the 19th century.

St. Albans is an ancient town of much historic interest, being built close to the site of the old Roman city of Verulamium. West of the town; by a little stream, the Ver, some remains of the old Roman wall may be seen, and the frequent discoveries made there are placed in the museum in the town. St. Alban, or Albanus, who has given his name to the town, was the first British martyr. He lived in the reign of Diocletian, and was beheaded on the site of the abbey raised in his honour. The Benedictine monastery which arose became the wealthiest and most popular in England through the fame of the saint. Most of the kings from Saxon times until the dissolution of the monastery in Henry VIII.'s reign, visited this shrine. In later times the Abbey Church was made parochial, and finally a cathedral. St. Albans owes some of its importance to its situation on the famous
northward road; Watling Street runs through it. Owing to its proximity to London, it was the scene of two battles in its High Street during the Wars of the Roses. The cathedral occupies the highest site of any in England. The square Norman tower owes its red hue to the Roman bricks used in its construction. One remarkable feature is the length of the nave, which is only exceeded by Winchester. Every style of architecture is represented
in the interior from Early Norman to Late Perpendicular, and in the triforium of the north transept are to be seen some Saxon balusters and columns. The shrine of St. Alban is in the Saint's Chapel, with the interesting watching-loft on the north side. The west end has been very much renovated by Lord Grimthorpe. At Gorhambury can be seen the tower of the ruined house formerly
occupied by Sir Nicholas Bacon, and visited by Queen Elizabeth. In the antique church of St. Michael in Verulamium is Lord Bacon's monument.

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