Hardwick is a village with a population of 2630 in 946 households (2001 census) situated about 5 miles (8 km) west of Cambridge very close to the Greenwich meridian at 52°13’N latitude 00°01’E longitude (National Grid Reference TL3759), and at an altitude of 60 m above mean sea level.
There has been a settlement here for centuries; at the time of the Domesday Book in the 11th century, six teams of oxen and their handlers with 20 pigs were recorded as living in Hardwick.
Today the village boasts a church, community primary school, pub (the Blue Lion), village green with village sign and the old pump, village post office and store, playing field and pavilion, all-weather sports pitch, children’s playgrounds, scout and guide hut, and a number of small shops and businesses.
The name of the village is believed to be derived from the old English Herd meaning a herd or flock, and wick or wyk (dwelling or village), on account of the flocks of sheep once herded in the area. There are several other Hardwicks in Britain and around the world.
