HEMEL HEMPSTEAD, a town and municipal borough in Hertfordshire, England, 25 m. N.W. from London. Pop. (1931) 15422. Settlements in the neighbourhood of Hemel Hempstead (Hamalamstede, Hemel Hampsted) date from pre-Roman times, and a Roman villa has been discovered at Boxmoor. The manor, royal demesne in io86, was granted by Edmund Plantagenet in 1285 to the house of Ashridge, and the town developed under monastic protection. In 1539 a charter incorporated the bailiff and inhabitants. A mayor, aldermen and councillors received governing power by a charter of 1898. It is situated in the Gade valley, near the Grand Junction canal. The church of St. Mary is a Norman building with Decorated additions. Industries in clude the manufacture of paper and iron founding.