Researching a Public House - When did the Tyrant's Arms become the Alford Arms - and why

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Lewis is interested in the history of the Alford Arms and I was able to fill in some details from the 1841-1861 census and some newspaper accounts on the British Newspaper Archive - see Alford Arms, Frithsden, mid 19th century for full details. However I was unable to find out why it was called the Tyrant's Arms in 1851 (and possibly for long before that) or who the tyrant was.  In addition I was unable to date the fire that apparently led to a rebuild in Victorian times. Can any of you help by commeting below.

The Alford Arms is buried in the countryside behind Berkhamsted, and I have heard the food is excellent. The hamlets of Frithsden, and nearby Nettleden, are harder to research than many places because of the parish and former county boundaries. Even if the pub you are researching is somewhere else my answer to Lewis may give you some ideas as to where information may turn up.

Just popping into Buckinghamshire to get married

While this site concentrates on Hertfordshire it is important to remember that, with the exception of parts of the rivers Lea and Stort, the county has no significant natural boundaries. Typically the county boundaries were based on tracks and hedgerows which formed the boundaries of Saxon estates over a thousand years ago.  Before the boundary was rationalised Ashridge House (centre of this map) was half in Hertfordshire and half in Buckinghamshire. 

From Cary's 1811 map of Hertfordshire

Most of the narrow finger of Buckinghamshire that runs down to Nettleden is part of the parish of Pitstone, Bucks, although some is actually a detached part of the parish of Ivinghoe, Bucks. Needless to say many of the people who lived in Nettledon preferred going to the nearby church of Great Gaddesdon, Hertfordshire.

What this means is that if you are to take researching your ancestors seriously you must remember that in some cases, when your ancestor crosses the county boundary to get married, his bride-to-be will be living in the house next door. So can you answer the question below the fold:

Hertfordshire Countryside - November 2012

The November Issue of Hertfordshire Countryside contained a number of articles of potential interest.. 

• The Time Machines looks at some mid-29th century buses that ran in the county.
• There are some interesting biographical notes on Ernest Squires (1878-1933), the local historian who was actively involved with the East Herts Archaeological Society.
• The New River describes the 17th century waterway that was built to carry fresh water from Hertford to London
• There is an article on Bushey with pictures of a number of interesting buildings.
• Keeping within the Boundaries looks at some of the county's old hedgerows, which often relate to parish or other boundaries.
• The tiny village of Nettleden gets a couple of pages.