Hatfield, Doncaster
Encyclopedia
Hatfield is a town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster
Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster
The Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster is a metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire in Yorkshire and the Humber Region of England.In addition to the town of Doncaster, the borough covers Mexborough, Conisbrough, Thorne and Finningley....

 in South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...

, England. It has a population of 16,184.

Geography

It is located within the historic boundaries
Historic counties of England
The historic counties of England are subdivisions of England established for administration by the Normans and in most cases based on earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and shires...

 of the West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...

 on the border of Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...

 and Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

, and is bisected by the M18 motorway. Junctions 4 and 5 of the M18, and Junction 1 of the M180 motorway
M180 motorway
The M180 motorway is a short but major motorway in England from junction 5 on the M18 motorway in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster to a point close to Humberside Airport some from the ports of Immingham and Grimsby and the east coast and provides access for major routes to Cleethorpes,...

 are all within the parish. Hatfield forms part of the parliamentary constituency of Don Valley.

Anglo-Saxon history

Hatfield (also called Heathfield historically) near Doncaster is an ancient settlement and a Palace of the Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...

n Kingdom
Petty kingdom
A petty kingdom is one of a number of small kingdoms, described as minor or "petty" by contrast to an empire or unified kingdom that either preceded or succeeded it...

 called Meicen
Meicen
Meicen was supposedly a post-Roman petty kingdom in the then-British North of England, believed by some to have been located in the area around Doncaster in modern Yorkshire....

  (may also be referred to as Meigen).

On October 12 633 AD, King Edwin
Edwin of Northumbria
Edwin , also known as Eadwine or Æduini, was the King of Deira and Bernicia – which later became known as Northumbria – from about 616 until his death. He converted to Christianity and was baptised in 627; after he fell at the Battle of Hatfield Chase, he was venerated as a saint.Edwin was the son...

 was killed in battle at Hatfield near Doncaster by Penda
Penda of Mercia
Penda was a 7th-century King of Mercia, the Anglo-Saxon kingdom in what is today the English Midlands. A pagan at a time when Christianity was taking hold in many of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, Penda took over the Severn Valley in 628 following the Battle of Cirencester before participating in the...

, King of Mercia. Penda was assisted in the battle by the Welsh under the leadership of Cadwallon ap Cadfan
Cadwallon ap Cadfan
Cadwallon ap Cadfan was the King of Gwynedd from around 625 until his death in battle. The son and successor of Cadfan ap Iago, he is best remembered as the King of the Britons who invaded and conquered Northumbria, defeating and killing its king, Edwin, prior to his own death in battle against...

, Welsh (British) King of Gwynedd
Kingdom of Gwynedd
Gwynedd was one petty kingdom of several Welsh successor states which emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain in the Early Middle Ages, and later evolved into a principality during the High Middle Ages. It was based on the former Brythonic tribal lands of the Ordovices, Gangani, and the...

. Osric
Osric of Deira
Osric was a King of Deira in northern England. He was a cousin of king Edwin of Northumbria, being the son of Edwin's uncle Aelfric...

, a possible successor to Edwin, was also killed in the battle. Edwin’s son Edfrith also surrendered to Penda. See Battle of Hatfield Chase
Battle of Hatfield Chase
The Battle of Hatfield Chase was fought on October 12, 633 at Hatfield Chase near Doncaster, Yorkshire, in Anglo-Saxon England between the Northumbrians under Edwin and an alliance of the Welsh of Gwynedd under Cadwallon ap Cadfan and the Mercians under Penda. The site was a marshy area about 8...

.

It is thought that this battle gave rise to the name of Slay Pit Lane in Hatfield where it is rumoured that the battle took place and the bodies of soldiers lay close by.

Dunscroft

Dunscroft lies on the A18 road, about six miles (10 km) from the centre of Doncaster
Doncaster
Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...

. It is located at approximately 53°34′10"N 1°1′0"W, at an elevation of around five metres above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...

. There is the Sheep Dip Lane primary school. The church is dedicated to St Edwin.

The village was enhanced in June 2005 by the addition of a pharmacy.

Dunsville

Dunsville lies on the A18 road, about five miles (8 km) from the centre of Doncaster. It is located at approximately 53°33′40"N 1°1′30"W, at an elevation of around five metres above sea level.

Hatfield

Hatfield lies on the A18 road, about seven miles (11 km) from the centre of Doncaster. It is located at approximately 53°34′40"N 1°0′0"W, at an elevation of around five metres above sea level. It is served by the Hatfield and Stainforth railway station
Hatfield and Stainforth railway station
Hatfield and Stainforth railway station serves the Doncaster suburbs of Hatfield and Stainforth in South Yorkshire, England.The original station, known until the 1990s as "Stainforth and Hatfield" and was built in 1866 as a replacement for the South Yorkshire Railway's Stainforth when their line...

 in Stainforth and Thorne.

The Domesday Survey of 1086 mentions a church at Hatfield but nothing of that building remains to be seen. The present imposing parish church of St. Lawrence was probably begun in the twelfth century. The south and west doors are Norman and so is the lower part of the outer walls of the nave. The Norman pebble construction can be seen quite clearly outside.

Hatfield has numerous public houses, including The Bay Horse, The Hatfield Chase, Hatfields, The Blue Bell, The Ingram Arms and The Green Tree. The original building known as the Abbey or Dunscroft Grange was demolished in 1966–7. For the final twenty years, this building was owned by Mr Harry Lewis. The old Abbey was possibly a dormitory to Roche Abbey at Maltby. Unfortunately, it had to be demolished because the 12th-century masonry and stonework were unstable. The main school for the area is Hatfield Visual Arts College
Hatfield Visual Arts College
Hatfield Visual Arts College is an Arts College on Ash Hill Road between Hatfield and Dunscroft in South Yorkshire England.Based in Ash Hill, Hatfield, South Yorkshire, to the east of Doncaster near the A18 and M18, it educates 11–18 year olds from the areas of Hatfield, Stainforth,...

. There is the Hatfield Manor C of E
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...

 junior school and Hatfield Crookesbroom primary school.

Hatfield Woodhouse

Hatfield Woodhouse lies on the A614 road
A614 road
The A614 is a main road in England running through the counties of Nottinghamshire, South Yorkshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire.Beginning at Redhill, near Calverton in Nottinghamshire at a roundabout with the A60, the road meets the A6097 at a junction which looks like a roundabout but...

, about seven miles (11 km) from the centre of Doncaster. It is located at approximately 53°34′10"N 0°59′0"W, at an elevation of around five metres above sea level. One and a half miles (2½ km) south of the settlement are the Lindholme
Lindholme (HM Prison)
HM Prison Lindholme is a Category C men's prison and Immigration Removal Centre, located near Hatfield Woodhouse in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England...

 and Moorland prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...

s, while to the north, on the A1146 road, is Hatfield Prison.http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/397060

Hatfield Woodhouse also gave rise to RAF Hatfield Woodhouse two miles south of the village. The airfield was later named RAF Lindholme
RAF Lindholme
RAF Lindholme is a former Royal Air Force base near Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England and was initially called RAF Hatfield Woodhouse.-Early years:...

 and is now the location of the aforementioned prison.

The village pub is called the Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....

 and Little John
Little John
Little John was a legendary fellow outlaw of Robin Hood, and was said to be Robin's chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men.-Folklore:He appears in the earliest recorded Robin Hood ballads and stories...

(and has probably always been called this, and certainly since the 1960s). This is consistent with the many Robin Hood legends suggesting that he roamed not only Sherwood Forest
Sherwood Forest
Sherwood Forest is a Royal Forest in Nottinghamshire, England, that is famous through its historical association with the legend of Robin Hood. Continuously forested since the end of the Ice Age, Sherwood Forest National Nature Reserve today encompasses 423 hectares surrounding the village of...

, but also Barnsdale Forest
Barnsdale
Barnsdale, or Barnsdale Forest, is a relatively small area of South Yorkshire, England which has a rich history and the region is steeped in folklore. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire...

. The new Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield
Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield
Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield is an international airport located at the former RAF Finningley airbase at Finningley, in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster within South Yorkshire, England. The airport lies southeast of Doncaster and east of Sheffield.The airport is operated by Peel...

 is nearby, at Finningley
Finningley
Finningley is a village and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster, in South Yorkshire, England. Historically part of Nottinghamshire, Finningley lies along the A614 road, about six miles from the centre of Doncaster, at , and at an elevation of around seven metres above sea...

 close to the border with Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...

. Although there has been much debate surrounding the use of the name Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....

in the name of the airport, the longstanding existence of the pub helps to justify the case for the name.

Recently an application has been proposed to allow the demolition of the pub and several flats to be built in its place. This application has recently been denied due to rallies by locals to have the plans rejected. There is the Hatfield Woodhouse primary school.

West End

West End is a small village to the south-west of Hatfield Woodhouse. It is located at approximately 53°33′40"N 0°59′40"W, at an elevation of around five metres above sea level.

External links

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