Huntingdon and Peterborough

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Huntingdon and Peterborough

Huntingdon and Peterborough was a short-lived administrative county

Administrative county

An administrative county was an administrative division in England and Wales and Ireland used for the purposes of local government. They are now abolished, although in Northern Ireland their former areas are used as the basis for lieutenancy....
in East Anglia

East Anglia

East Anglia is a region of eastern England. It was named after one of the ancient Heptarchy, the Kingdom of the East Angles, which was in turn named after the homeland of the Angles, Angeln, in northern Germany....
in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
. It existed from 1965 to 1974, when it became part of Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire is a Counties_of_the_United_Kingdom#England in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex, England and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west....
.

Local Government Act 1888

Local Government Act 1888

The Local Government Act 1888 was an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which established county councils and county borough councils in England and Wales....
created four small neighbouring administrative counties in the east of England: Cambridgeshire, Isle of Ely

Isle of Ely

The Isle of Ely is a historic region around the city of Ely now in Cambridgeshire, England but previously a county in its own right....
, Huntingdonshire

Huntingdonshire

Huntingdonshire is a Non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire, covering the area around Huntingdon. Historic counties of England it was a Counties of England in its own right....
and the Soke of Peterborough

Soke of Peterborough

The Soke of Peterborough is an historic area of England that is traditionally associated with the Peterborough and Anglican Diocese of Peterborough, but considered part of Northamptonshire....
. Following the Second World War, a Local Government Boundary Commission

Local Government Boundary Commission (1945 - 1949)

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Encyclopedia

Huntingdon and Peterborough was a short-lived administrative county

Administrative county

East Anglia

United Kingdom

Cambridgeshire

Formation

The Local Government Act 1888

Local Government Act 1888

Isle of Ely

The Isle of Ely is a historic region around the city of Ely now in Cambridgeshire, England but previously a county in its own right....
, Huntingdonshire

Huntingdonshire

Soke of Peterborough

Local Government Boundary Commission (1945 - 1949)

The Local Government Boundary Commission was established in 1945 to review the boundaries of local authority areas in England and Wales outside the Counties of County of London and Middlesex....
was formed to review county-level administration in England and Wales. The commission was of the opinion that counties needed to have a population of between 200,000 and one million in order to provide effective services. Accordingly, they recommended the amalgamation of all four counties into a single entity. The commission's recommendations were not carried out, however.

The reform of local government was returned to in 1958, with the appointment of a Local Government Commission for England. The four counties were included in the East Midlands General Review Area, and the LGCE made its draft proposals in 1960. The commission identified particular problems in the administration of the Soke of Peterborough, where 80% of the population of the county lay within the City of Peterborough, which was itself seeking county borough

County borough

County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control....
status. The LGCE concluded that the Soke was too small to continue as a separate county, and needed to become part of a larger authority. Accordingly, the draft proposals were to combine the Isle of Ely, Huntingdonshire and the Soke of Peterborough with Cambridgeshire (less the City of Cambridge).

There was considerable opposition to the draft proposals, and the LGCE instead opted in its final report in 1961 to create two counties: Huntingdon

Huntingdon

Huntingdon is a town in the county of Cambridgeshire in East Anglia, England. The town was town charter in 1205. It was formerly the county town of Huntingdonshire, and is currently the seat of the Huntingdonshire non-metropolitan district....
and Peterborough, and Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely

Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely

Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely was, from 1965 to 1974, an administrative county of England. In 1974 it became part of an enlarged Cambridgeshire....
. The Huntingdon and Peterborough Order was made on February 14, 1964, and placed before the House of Commons on 9 March 1964. The amalgamation was welcomed by David Renton, MP

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative of the voters to a parliament. In many countries the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a unique title, such as senate, and thus also have unique titles for its members, such as senators....
for Huntingdonshire

Huntingdonshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Huntingdonshire is a former United Kingdom Parliament of the United Kingdom constituency. It was a United Kingdom constituencies of the British House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1885....
, who felt that "The new county will have very good communications and a great community of interest. It will be a compact and convenient local government unit." The order was approved by 143 votes to 83.

The new county was formed on 1 April 1965 from the areas of the administrative counties of Huntingdonshire and Soke of Peterborough (with minor boundary changes) and Thorney Rural District

Thorney Rural District

Thorney was a rural district in England from 1894 to 1974, situated to the east of Peterborough.It was created under the Local Government Act 1894, covering the parishes of Thorney, Cambridgeshire and Stanground....
from the Isle of Ely

Isle of Ely

The Isle of Ely is a historic region around the city of Ely now in Cambridgeshire, England but previously a county in its own right....
. As well as becoming an administrative county, Huntingdon and Peterborough also became a county for other statutory purposes. Accordingly the Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdonshire

Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdonshire

This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdonshire. Huntingdonshire became part of Huntingdon and Peterborough in 1965; see Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdon and Peterborough....
became Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdon and Peterborough

Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdon and Peterborough

This is a list of those people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdon and Peterborough during that county's short existence from 1965. The office was preceded by that of the Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdonshire, also taking part of the jurisdiction of the Lord Lieutenant of Northamptonshire, who continues to exist....
, with Peterborough ceasing to be part of the geographical county of Northamptonshire. A High Sheriff

High Sheriff

The High Sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement position in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. In England and Wales, the High Sheriff is an unpaid, partly ceremonial post appointed by The Crown through a Warrant from the Privy Council....
was also appointed to the new county, and a single commission of peace and court of quarter sessions established.

The county's population, as recorded at the ten-yearly census, was 202,622 in 1971.

Emergency services

On the creation of the county an order under the Police Act 1964

Police Act 1964

The Police Act 1964 was an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that updated the legislation governing police forces in England and Wales, constituted new police authorities, gave the Home Secretary new powers to supervise local constabularies, and allowed for the Consolidation of existing forces into more efficient uni...
came into force creating the Mid-Anglia Constabulary by merging the Cambridge City Police, Cambridgeshire County Constabulary, Isle of Ely Constabulary, Huntingdonshire Constabulary, and the Peterborough Combined Police Force (created in 1947 from the Liberty of Peterborough Constabulary and the City of Peterborough Constabulary). On further local government reform in 1974, the present Cambridgeshire Constabulary

Cambridgeshire Constabulary

Cambridgeshire Constabulary is the Home Office territorial police force responsible for law enforcement within the ceremonial counties of England of Cambridgeshire, England....
was formed with the same boundaries.

The Huntingdon and Peterborough Fire Brigade was formed on the same date by the merger of Huntingdonshire Fire Brigade and the Soke of Peterborough Fire Brigade. Since 1974 this has formed part of Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service is the statute Fire service in the United Kingdom for the metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England of Cambridgeshire and the unitary authority of Peterborough....
.

Districts

The county was divided into thirteen local government districts: three municipal borough

Municipal borough

Municipal boroughs were a type of local government which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002....
s, three urban district

Urban district

In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....
s and seven rural district

Rural district

Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the Administrative county....
s. Each of these existed as subdivisions of the predecessor counties.

District	Area (acres) 1961	Population 1961
Huntingdon and Godmanchester Huntingdon and Godmanchester Huntingdon and Godmanchester was a municipal borough in Huntingdonshire from 1961 to 1974. It was formed in 1961 by the merger of the boroughs of Huntingdon and Godmanchester.... MB†	7,057	8,821
City of Peterborough Peterborough Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of as of June 2006. For ceremonial counties of England purposes it is in the Counties of England of Cambridgeshire.... MB‡	10,023	62,340
St Ives St Ives, Cambridgeshire St Ives is a market town in Cambridgeshire, England, around north-west of the city of Cambridge and north of London. It lies within the Historic counties of England of Huntingdonshire.... MB†	2,326	4,082
Old Fletton Old Fletton Old Fletton was an urban district in the county of Huntingdonshire and then Huntingdon and Peterborough. The urban district was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 and now forms part of the city of Peterborough in Cambridgeshire.... UD†	3,029	11,677
Ramsey Ramsey, Cambridgeshire Ramsey is a small Cambridgeshire market town, north of Huntingdon and St Ives, Huntingdonshire. For local government purposes it lies in the district of Huntingdonshire within the local government county of Cambridgeshire.... UD†	15,980	5,697
St Neots St Neots St Neots is a town of about 29,000 people on the River Great Ouse. It is the largest town in Cambridgeshire, England, . The town lies in Huntingdonshire and is named after the Anglo-Saxons monk Saint Neot whose bones were housed in the nearby St Neots Priory of the same name.... UD†	1,390	5,554
Barnack RD Barnack Rural District Barnack was a rural district in the Soke of Peterborough and later Huntingdon and Peterborough from 1894 to 1974.It was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894, from that part of the Stamford rural sanitary district which was in the Soke .... ‡	15,256	4,426
Huntingdon RD†	69,937	12,494
Peterborough RD Peterborough Rural District Peterborough was a rural district adjoining the city and municipal borough of Peterborough from 1894 to 1974.The rural district was created under the Local Government Act 1894, from the part of the Peterborough rural sanitary district that was in the administrative county of Soke of Peterborough .... ‡	28,186	7,992
Norman Cross RD Norman Cross Rural District Norman Cross was a rural district in Huntingdonshire from 1894 to 1974.It was formed in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894 from the part of the Peterborough rural sanitary district which was in Huntingdonshire .... †	35,795	8,738
St Ives RD†	45,912	15,358
St Neots RD†	52,559	7,503
Thorney Thorney, Cambridgeshire Thorney is a village about 8 miles east of Peterborough in the City of Peterborough unitary authority, England, on the A47 road. Historically it was part of the Isle of Ely, which was considered part of Cambridgeshire but was transferred into the former county of Huntingdon and Peterborough and remained part of the Peterborough district i... RD¶	22,895	2,159

† Formerly in Huntingdonshire ‡ Formerly in Soke of Peterborough ¶ Formerly in Isle of Ely

Source: Vision of Britain

Coat of arms

Huntingdon and Peterborough County Council was granted armorial bearings

Coat of arms

A coat of arms, more properly called an armorial achievement, armorial bearings or often just arms for short, in European tradition, is a design belonging to a particular person and used by them in a wide variety of ways....
by the College of Arms

College of Arms

The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland....
on 3 April 1965. The blazon was as follows:

Barry argent and azure on a fess embattled vert a cornucopia between two garbs or; and for a crest issuant from a mural crown or a demi lion gules gorged with a collar flory counterflory and supporting a staff or, flying therefrom a banner vert charged with two keys in saltire or; mantled azure, doubled argent. And for supporters on the dexter side a pikeman of the New Model Army
New Model Army

The New Model Army was formed in 1645 by the roundhead in the English Civil War. It differed from other armies in the same conflict in that it was intended as an army liable for service anywhere in the country, rather than being tied to a single area or garrison....
supporting with the exterior hand a pike, and on the sinister side a nitred abbot in processional vestments for st Peter's Day supporting with the exterior hand a crosier and sudarium all proper. Badge: Two keys in saltire surmounted by a buglehorn or the strings azure interlaced with the keys.

The arms and crest were a combination of the arms previously used by Huntingdonshire and Soke of Peterborough County Councils. To these were added supporters

Supporters

In heraldry, supporters are figures usually placed on either side of the Escutcheon and depicted holding it up. These figures may be real or imaginary animals, human figures, and in rare cases plants or inanimate objects....
: a pikeman of the New Model Army for the Cromwellian

Oliver Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell was an English people Military history of the United Kingdom and Politics of England leader best known for his involvement in making England into a republican Commonwealth and for his later role as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
associations of Huntingdonshire, and a mitred abbot for the origins of the Soke as territory administered by Peterborough Abbey

Peterborough Cathedral

Peterborough Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral – the seat of the Bishop of Peterborough, is dedicated to Saint Peter, Paul of Tarsus and Saint Andrew whose statues look down from the three high gables of the famous West Front....
.

The Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
motto

Motto

A motto is a phrase meant to formally describe the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used....
adopted by the council Cor Unum, or One Heart, was formerly that of the Soke.

Abolition

The county only had a nine-year existence. In 1974 the Local Government Act 1972

Local Government Act 1972

The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, that reformed local government in the United Kingdom in England and Wales, on 1 April 1974....
completely reformed administrative structures throughout England and Wales excluding Greater London

Greater London

Greater London is the top-level administrative subdivision covering London, England. The administrative area was officially created in 1965 and covers the City of London , the City of Westminster and the other 31 London boroughs....
. A system of metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties, each divided into districts was introduced. Huntingdon and Peterborough was merged with neighbouring Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely to form the new enlarged non-metropolitan county (and lieutenancy) of Cambridgeshire, first proposed in 1947. Peterborough

Peterborough

Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of as of June 2006. For ceremonial counties of England purposes it is in the Counties of England of Cambridgeshire....
and Huntingdon

Huntingdon

Huntingdon is a town in the county of Cambridgeshire in East Anglia, England. The town was town charter in 1205. It was formerly the county town of Huntingdonshire, and is currently the seat of the Huntingdonshire non-metropolitan district....
became two of the county's six districts and in 1984, following a resolution of the council, the latter district was renamed Huntingdonshire.

Huntingdon and Peterborough

Formation

Emergency services

Districts

Coat of arms

Abolition

See also