Bishop's Stortford
| Bishop's Stortford | |
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 Looking down Windhill towards the town centre |
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 Bishop's Stortford
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| Bishop's Stortford shown within Hertfordshire | |
| Population | 37,838 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | TL495215 |
| Civil parish |
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| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BISHOP'S STORTFORD |
| Postcode district | CM23 |
| Dialling code | 01279 |
| Police | Hertfordshire |
| Fire | Hertfordshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. It is just west of the M11 motorway on the county boundary with Essex and is the closest sizeable town to London Stansted Airport. Bishop's Stortford is 27 miles (43 km) north east of Charing Cross in central London and 35 miles (56 km) from Liverpool Street station, the London terminus of the line to Cambridge that runs through the town. Bishop's Stortford has a population of 38,202, adjusting to 37,838 at the 2011 Census.
Nothing is known of Bishop's Stortford until it became a small Roman settlement on Stane Street, the Roman road linking Braughing and Colchester. The settlement was abandoned in the 5th century after the breakup of the Roman Empire.
A new Saxon settlement grew up on the site, named Steort-ford, the ford at the tongue of land. In 1060, William Bishop of London bought Stortford manor and estate for eight pounds, leading to the town's modern name. At the time of the Domesday Book the village had a population of around 120. The Normans built a wooden motte-and-bailey edifice known as Waytemore Castle (see below).
Only the baptismal font survives from the Norman church of St Michael's, which was rebuilt in the early 15th century and altered and restored in the 17th and 19th centuries. Its conspicuous belfry and spire were built in 1812.
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Wikipedia