Hatfield

Town in Hertfordshire, southeast England, on the River Lea, 8 km/5 mi east of St Albans; population (2001) 32,300. Designated a new town in 1948, it has light engineering industries. It was the site of the 12th-century palace of the bishops of Ely, replaced by the Jacobean mansion Hatfield House (1607-11). The University of Hertfordshire (previously Hatfield Polytechnic) was established here in 1992.

Hatfield grew as a modern new town around the aircraft industry, close to its historic original town. British Aerospace was the district's largest employer until it closed in 1993; the site is now undergoing redevelopment.

Hatfield House The palace of the bishops of Ely was seized by Henry VIII and inhabited by Edward VI and Elizabeth I before their accession. James I gave it in part exchange to Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, who replaced the building with the existing Hatfield House. In its grounds is a surviving wing of the old royal palace.