Hadleigh has been split into two Wards, North & South. 600 years ago Hadleigh was among the most important wool and market towns in the area, and by the 16th century only nearby Ipswich and Bury St. Edmunds were richer. At the heart of Hadleigh is a rich and important architectural history with origins in Saxon times. Once a royal town for the 9th century Danish King Guthrum, the council for British Archaeology placed Hadleigh amongst the 51 towns "so precious that ultimate responsibility for them should be a national concern". Hadleigh won an award for the best high street in East Anglia.