Roisia's Cross

Last updated

The Royse Stone, the remaining footstone of Roisia's Cross The Royse Stone - geograph.org.uk - 374839.jpg
The Royse Stone, the remaining footstone of Roisia's Cross

Roisia's Cross was a medieval cross in Royston, Hertfordshire, England. It was erected at the crossroads of Ermine Street and the Icknield Way (cum Ashwell Street). Only the base of the structure survives. [1]

Most likely it was in the southeast angle of the crossroads in the parish of Barkway. This was in the fee of the Lordship of Newsells. The first recorded owner was Eudo Dapifer, steward to William the Conqueror. Whether there was some monument predating this remains a matter for speculation.

The Royse Stone

The footstone, a glacial erratic, still exists. The 18th century antiquarian Reverend William Stukeley described it as:

"A flatish[ sic ] stone, of very great bulk, with a square hole or mortaise, in the centre, wherein was let the foot of the upright stone or tenon, which was properly the cross."

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eleanor cross</span> Any one of a series of monuments to Eleanor of Castile in England

The Eleanor crosses were a series of twelve tall and lavishly decorated stone monuments topped with crosses erected in a line down part of the east of England. King Edward I had them built between 1291 and about 1295 in memory of his beloved wife Eleanor of Castile. The King and Queen had been married for 36 years and she stayed by the King’s side through his many travels. While on a royal progress, she died in the East Midlands in November 1290. The crosses, erected in her memory, marked the nightly resting-places along the route taken when her body was transported to Westminster Abbey near London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ermine Street</span> Roman road from London to York, England

Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London (Londinium) to Lincoln and York (Eboracum). The Old English name was Earninga Strǣt (1012), named after a tribe called the Earningas, who inhabited a district later known as Armingford Hundred, around Arrington, Cambridgeshire, and Royston, Hertfordshire. "Armingford", and "Arrington" share the same Old English origin. The original Celtic and Roman names for the route remain unknown. It is also known as the Old North Road from London to where it joins the A1 Great North Road near Godmanchester.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royston, Hertfordshire</span> Town in Hertfordshire, England

Royston is a town and civil parish in the District of North Hertfordshire and county of Hertfordshire in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baldock</span> Town in Hertfordshire, England

Baldock is a historic market town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. The River Ivel rises from springs in the town. It lies 33 miles (53 km) north of London and 14 miles (23 km) north northwest of the county town of Hertford. Nearby towns include Royston to the northeast, Letchworth and Hitchin to the southwest and Stevenage to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Hertfordshire</span> Non-metropolitan district in England

North Hertfordshire is one of ten local government districts in the county of Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Letchworth Garden City and the largest town is Hitchin. The district also includes the towns of Baldock and Royston and numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. Part of the district lies within the Chiltern Hills, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A10 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A10 is a major road in England which runs between The City of London and King's Lynn in Norfolk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North East Hertfordshire (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1997 onwards

North East Hertfordshire is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1997 by Oliver Heald, a Conservative.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Therfield Heath</span>

Therfield Heath is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and Local Nature Reserve on the chalk escarpment just north of Therfield, Hertfordshire. Since it lies south-west of the town of Royston, it is also known locally as Royston Heath. The heath is a common on which sheep are still regularly grazed. The site offers views towards the north, over the valley of the Cam as far as Cambridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge line</span> Railway between ECML and WAML via Cambridge

The Cambridge line runs from Cambridge junction north of Hitchin on the East Coast Main Line to Shepreth Branch Junction south of Cambridge on the West Anglia Main Line and forms part of the route between London King's Cross and East Anglia. The line is part of the Network Rail Strategic Route 5, SRS 05.05 and is classified as a London and South East Commuter line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royston Cave</span> Cave in Royston, England

Royston Cave is an artificial cave located in Katherine's Yard, Melbourn Street, Royston, England. It is located beneath the crossroads formed by Ermine Street and the Icknield Way. It is protected as both a scheduled ancient monument and Grade I listed building. It has been speculated that it was used by the Knights Templar, who founded nearby Baldock, but this is unlikely, despite its enormous popular appeal. There are numerous theories about the Cave covering Freemasons and Templars as well as possibilities that the Cave was a prison or an anchorite cell. However, none of these theories have enough hard evidence to warrant their being adopted by the Cave Trust. It is open to the public in the summer months on Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holiday afternoons between Easter and October.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melbourn Rural District</span> History of Cambridgeshire

Melbourn Rural District was a rural district in Cambridgeshire, England, from 1894 to 1934.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baldock railway station</span> Railway station in Hertfordshire, England

Baldock railway station serves the historic market town of Baldock in Hertfordshire, England. It is on the Cambridge Line, 36 miles 47 chains (58.9 km) north of London King's Cross, and is located on the outskirts of Baldock on Station Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royston railway station</span> Railway station in Hertfordshire, England

Royston railway station serves the town of Royston in Hertfordshire, England. The station is 44 miles 72 chains (72.3 km) from London Kings Cross on the Cambridge Line. Trains serving the station are operated by Thameslink and Great Northern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flint Cross</span>

Flint Cross is a hamlet and crossroads in South Cambridgeshire, in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It is in the south of the district, where the east–west A505 road meets the B1368 road, which leads north to Fowlmere and south to Barley, Hertfordshire. In both main definitions of parish, in England, it is in Melbourn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fox Covert</span> Nature reserve in England

Fox Covert is a 2.9-hectare (7.2-acre) nature reserve near Royston in North Hertfordshire. It is owned and managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust.

The Greneway Middle School was a middle school in Royston, Hertfordshire, England, which has been combined with Roysia Middle School and Meridian School to form King James Academy Royston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashwell War Memorial</span>

Ashwell War Memorial is a war memorial cross in the village of Ashwell in North Hertfordshire, England. The memorial was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and unveiled in 1922, one of 15 war crosses designed by Lutyens to similar designs erected between 1920 and 1925. It is a Grade II listed building.

King James Academy Royston (KJAR) is a through school located in Royston, Hertfordshire, England. It is an academy, and opened in September 2019, as a result of the merger of the town's two middle schools, Roysia and Greneway, and its Meridian upper school. The school is spread over 2 sites, with the Meridian site now being the Senior site and the Greneway site being the Junior site.

Ashwell Rural District was a rural district in Hertfordshire, England from 1894 to 1935, covering an area in the north-east of the county.

References

  1. "Royston". North Hertfordshire District Council. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 17 June 2009.

52°02′53.06″N0°01′26.83″W / 52.0480722°N 0.0241194°W / 52.0480722; -0.0241194