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.-1 1< 
 
HANDBOOK FOR TRAVELLERS 
 
 IN 
 
 WILTSHIRE, DORSETSHIRE, 
 
 AND 
 
 SOMERSETSHIRE, 
 
 FOURTH EDITION, 
 mitt) Cralielltng Mnv anif \BXmi. 
 
 JOHN 
 
 LONDON: 
 MUEKAY, ALBEMAELE 
 1882. 
 
 STEEET. 
 
L0ND05J : 
 
 PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, 
 STAMFORD STRIiET AKD CH; RING CROSS. 
 
INTRODUCTORY NOTICE. 
 
 Since the publication of the last Edition of the Handhooh of Wilts, 
 Dorset, and Somerset, some new lines of railway have been opened, and 
 other local changes made, which have rendered necessary some re- 
 arrangement and many alterations. 
 
 The routes have been made, as far as possible, to follow the great 
 lines of railway in unbroken continuity, disregarding the county 
 divisions which are of no practical importance to the tourist. The 
 object aimed at throughout has been the real utility of the Handbook, 
 and the convenience of those who use it. 
 
 Additions have been made to every department of the work. Great 
 care has been taken to furnish complete and trustworthy informatioD, 
 corrected as far as possible up to the date of publication. Those 
 who discover mistakes or deficiencies will confer an obligation on the 
 Editor if they will have the goodness to communicate them to him 
 through the Publisher. It is only thus that local Handbooks can 
 attain that degree of accuracy which may be reasonably expected by 
 those who make use of them. 
 
 Whatever superiority the present may exhibit over former Editions 
 is chiefly due to the ready co-operation of the numerous friends and 
 correspondents who have aided the Editor by answering his inquiries 
 and transmitting information, to whom he takes this opportunity of 
 tendering his grateful acknowledgments, 
 
 E. Y. 
 
 Lincoln, July, 1882. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 1'age: 
 
 Introduction vii 
 
 EOUTES. 
 
 1. London to Bath, by Swindon 
 [HighwortK], Wootton Basset, 
 [branch line to Malmeshury], 
 Chippenham \_Bowood, Calne'], 
 Cor sham, and Box (Gt. West. 
 Kly.) 
 
 2. Swindon to Cheltenham, by Pwr- 
 ton, Cricklade, and Minety 
 
 (%•) 
 
 3. Swindon to Andover, by Marl- 
 borough [^Avehury, Silhury 
 Hill\ Savernake, Coding- 
 bourne, and Ludgershall (Rly.) 
 
 4. Chippenham to Frome^ hjMelks- 
 ham \_Lacock\ Trowbridge, 
 Bradford {^Monkton Farlcigh, 
 Farleigh Castle^ Hinton Char- 
 terhouse], and Westbury 
 (G. W. Kly.) 
 
 5. Hungerford to Bath \_LittIecote, 
 Ramsbury~\ by Great Bedwyn, 
 Saver nake, Pewsey [ Valley of 
 the Avon to Ames bury], 
 Devizes, Bradford, Freshford, 
 Valley of Claverton (G. W. 
 Rly.) 
 
 6. Hungerford to Salisbury Tid- 
 worth, the Winterbourn Valley, 
 Winterslow, 3 Rtes. (Road).. 
 
 7. Devizes to Salisbury (two Rtes.) : 
 
 (a) Potterne, Market Lavington; 
 
 (b) Urchfont, Salisbury Plain 
 (Road) 
 
 8. Romsey to Salisbury, [Old 
 Sarum, Amesbury, Stonehenge, 
 Wilton, Longford, Clarendon] 
 (S. W. Rly.) 
 
 27 
 
 29 
 
 46 
 
 62 
 
 77 
 
 82 
 
 84 
 
 9. Salisbury to Wimborne, by 
 
 Downton and Fordingbridge 
 \_Cranborne, Cranborne Chase] 
 (S. W. Rly.) 135 
 
 10. Salisbury to Shaftesbury, by 
 
 the Ffi^e 0/ C/ia^/j (Road) .. 140 
 
 11. Salisbury to Westbury, by 
 Wilton, Heytesbury, and War- 
 minster [Longleat] (G. W. 
 Rly.) .. 142 
 
 12. Salisbury to Yeovil, by Din- 
 ton, Tisbnry [ Wardour Castle, 
 Fonth il I, Hindon] , Semley 
 [Shaftesbury], Gillingham 
 [Mere, Stourhead], Temple 
 Combe, Milborne Port, Sher- 
 borne (S. W. Rly.) ..155 
 
 13. Southampton to PV^(?//mowM, by 
 [Abbotsbury]^ Wi m borne 
 Minster, Poole, Wareham 
 [Corfe Castle], and Dorchester 
 (S.W. Rly.) 183 
 
 14. Salisbury to Lyme Pegis, by 
 Blandford, Puddletown, Dor- 
 chester, Bridport, [Beamin- 
 ster], and Ckarmouth (Road) 217 
 
 15. Dorchester to Yeovil. Maiden 
 iV^MJto to Bridport (G.W.Hly.) 235 
 
 16. Dorchester to Sherborne [Cerne 
 Abbas] (Road) 240 
 
 17. Isle of Purbeck — Swanage, 
 Fast and West Lulworth . . 242 
 
 18. The Isle of Portland .. ..252 
 
 19. Wimborne to Dorchester by 
 Corfe Mullen, Charborough 
 Park, Bere Regis, Tolpuddle, 
 Puddletown (Rosid) ..258 
 
Contents, 
 
 20. Wimborne to Highbridge, by 
 
 Blandford, Sturminster, Stal- 
 bridge^ Temple Combe, Win- 
 canton, Glastonbury \_Wells] 
 (Som. and Dors. Rly.)-- 262 
 
 21. Bath to Wellington, by Bris- 
 tol and Clifton \_Kingsweston, 
 Leigh Court, Portishead~\, 
 Yatton^ [Clevedon'] [^Brock- 
 ley Comhe'], \_Westo7h-super- 
 Mare'], Highbridge [Burn- 
 ham'], Bridgwater [Sedge- 
 moor, Isle of Athelney], 
 Durston, and Taunton (G. W. 
 Ely.) 307 
 
 22. Yatton to Wells, by Banwell, 
 Axbridge and Cheddar, The 
 Mendips (Rly.) 392 
 
 23. Frome to Yeovil, by Brut on 
 and Castle Cary (G. W. Rly.) 400 
 
 24. Witham to Weils, by Shepton 
 Mallet (G. W. Rly.) .. ..416 
 
 25. Bath to Evercreech Junction, 
 by Wellow, Badstoch, and 
 Shepton Mallet (Som. and 
 Dorset Rly.) 419 
 
 26. Bristol to Frome, by Brisling - 
 
 EOUTE PAGE 
 
 ton, Pens ford, [Stanton Drew ^ 
 Clutton and Radstock (G. W. 
 Rly.) 422 
 
 27. Bristol to Yeovil, by Wells, 
 Glastonbmy, Somerton, and 
 Ilchester (Road) 425 . 
 
 28. Yeovil to Axminster, by Crew- 
 kerne [Ford Abbey] Chard 
 Junction (S. W. Rly.) .. ..429 
 
 29. Chard Road Station to Taunton, 
 by Chard and Ilminster (G. 
 
 W. Rly.) 435 
 
 30. Durston to Yeovil, by Lang- 
 port [Muchelney], and Mar- 
 tock (G. W. Rly.) .. .. 439 
 
 31. Taunton to Porloc'k, by 
 
 Williton, Watchet, Washford, 
 [ Cleeve Abbey], Dunster, Mine- 
 head (G. W. Rly. and Road) 445 
 
 32. Bridgewater to Williton, by 
 
 Cannington, Nether Stowey, 
 [the Quantocks], Stokecourcy, 
 Crowcombe (Road^ 2 Rtes.) 465 
 
 33. Taunton to Dulverton and 
 Barnstaple, by Milverton, 
 Wiveliscombe, and Bampton 
 
 (G. W. Rly.) 471 
 
 ILLUSTEATIONS. 
 
 Plans of Avebury 37, 38, 39 
 
 Ground-plan of Salisbury Cathedral , .. 91 
 
 Plan of Stonehenge 118, 119 
 
 Ground-plan of Wells Cathedral .. 287 
 
 Bristol „ 337 
 
 St. Mary Redcliffe Church 347 
 
 Map at end. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 " For who, indeed, at one trait, and from his own small treasury of observance, shall verit- 
 ably depict even the loveliness of these dumb and thoughtless glades, bosques, and rivulets 
 which surround us ? This man seeth them when Phoebus is smiling, and that man, when the 
 God of day is obnubilated ; — not to speak of the various moods of men, which moods, whether 
 they are gladsome or melancholy, fanciful or dull, do enchant or disenchant, for the men 
 themselves, the outward forms and shows of nature. Therefore, always am I desireful to 
 hear what my friends will say upon any matter that doth admit high and various discourse." 
 — An tmpublishedfraginentfrom the MS. of * Ane Aunciente Gierke * 
 
 General Account op the three Counties in respect of — 
 
 Page 
 
 A. Physical Features and Geology 
 
 
 vii 
 
 
 
 xiv 
 
 Separate Account op each County in respect 
 
 op — 
 
 
 Wilts. 
 
 1. Physical Features .. xx 
 
 Dorset, 
 xxxii 
 
 Somerset, 
 xlii 
 
 
 XXXV 
 
 . xlv 
 
 III. Description, Communications,)^ . 
 
 Industrial Resources ../ " 
 
 xxxviii 
 
 xlviii 
 
 IV. Antiquities — British, Eoman xxvii 
 
 xxxviii . . 
 
 xlix 
 
 V. Architecture AND Churches xxix 
 
 xl .. 
 
 li 
 
 VI. Places op Interest . . . . xxxii . . 
 
 xli .. 
 
 Iv 
 
 A. Physical Features and Geology of the three Counties* 
 
 It is of importance, in acquiring a knowledge of the natural features 
 of a district, to bear in mind that every acre of ground owes its form 
 to physical agencies, the like to which may either be found at the 
 surface, or may reasonably be supposed to be at work below the super- 
 ficial crust, in some part of the globe at the present day. 
 
 These ag-3ncies may be classed primarily in a general way under two 
 divisions (1) External and (2) Internal. Those of the first division 
 are continuilly lowering land-surfaces by wearing aAvay rocks and trans- 
 porting the dehris so formed to lower levels on the sea-bottoms, and 
 thus are sin.ultaneously destroying old and forming new rocks. They 
 comprise rail and rivers, frost and glaciers, some of which are always 
 at work over the whole surface of the land, and the sea which works 
 at the marg n only of the land, and possibly in a lesser degree by cur- 
 rents in the ocean's bed. 
 
 Each of ttiese groups of denuding forces (subaerial and marine) acts 
 
viii 
 
 Physical Features and Geology Introd. 
 
 upon rocks, less or more, according to their hardness or softness, but the 
 diti'erence of the result is more appreciable in rocks subjected to the 
 former, for the action over the whole surface is more uniform, whatever 
 be its shape. Headlands composed of harder rocks on the sea margin, 
 on the other hand, at the same time protect more or less the softer 
 portions of the beach, and themselves receive the brunt of the attack of 
 the waves. Thus the general tendency of the sea is to form plains, 
 and that of rain and rivers to cut out valleys in those plains (when 
 raised above the sea-margin) and so to form hills. 
 
 The 2ncl division of forces which influence the form of the ground 
 may be called internal. It comprises two groups, Istly, those which at 
 certain places on the earth's surface eject material from below through 
 fissures in the crust (with which in this district we have little to do), 
 and 2ndly those which from time to time raise districts above the sea- 
 level so as to expose them to denuding agencies, or depress them below 
 that level and so protect them from their influence. 
 
 Few of our English counties, perhaps, can illustrate so well as the 
 three under our notice how much the form of a country is dependent 
 on what may be called its anatomy, that is, the range of its hard and 
 soft parts relatively. 
 
 A traveller entering the district from the east is at once struck by 
 the two great ranges of hills which sweep across it continuously in a 
 S.W. direction, preserving a more or less parallel course throughout 
 their length. Each in turn presents a bold and somewhat abrupt face 
 towards the west looking down upon wide but undulating plains formed 
 of the strata next below, and eastward slopes away gradually in a wide 
 plateau, less and less intersected by deep valleys as it loses itself be- 
 neath the overlapping rocks of the next great series of beds above. 
 These two ranges are only a small portion of the great north-west; 
 escarpments of the Cretaceous and Oolitic rocks, which run across the 
 whole of England, from the north coast of Yorkshire to th^ east of 
 Devonshire. They may be roughly said to run in a curve of one-fourth 
 of a circle, the centre of which will be somewhere about the island of 
 Holyhead, and the rocks of which they are composed have a general 
 dip or declination towards the south-east. On the west thef rise from 
 plains of the older rocks on which they lie, and towards tie east are 
 concealed in turn by newer rocks which lie upon them. Egch of these 
 great groups is composed of several members, which in thar turn are 
 constituted of different materials, or of the same materials in different 
 proportions, some of which are better adapted for resisting tlje attacks of 
 disintegrating forces. Consequently the harder rocks stand/out in high 
 relief whilst the softer crumble away beneath the attacks pf time, and 
 so a succession of parallel ridges is produced with intervening valleys or 
 plains. The two most striking of these ridges are that of he chalk in 
 the Cretaceous rocks, and that of the Great, or Bath CDlite in the 
 Jurassic series ; but all the other alternations produce features which 
 are more or less marked and continuous in their range, an(. fill up the 
 minor details of the landscape. 
 
Introd. 
 
 of the three Counties, 
 
 ix 
 
 The Tertiary Formations in this district are confined to Wilts and 
 Dorset, and consist of the Bagshot beds which form a wide tract of 
 barren sandy heaths. They rest upon the London clay, and this again 
 in turn upon the Woolwich beds ; these last two formations forming a 
 fringe around the Bagshot beds. The range of their boundary with 
 / the chalk is marked by a trough, the south side of which runs south 
 of Poole Harbour. Its western extremity is near Dorchester, and hence 
 it runs in a N.E. direction by Wimborne Minster and Cranborne to 
 Eomsey. 
 
 The Clialh and Greensand escarpment enters the county of Wilts 
 'from the N.E., near Swindon, as a portion of the Chiltern Hills, and 
 sweeps thence in a south-easterly direction above Calne to Devizes in a 
 bold row of headlands. Here the chalk is cut back, and exposes the 
 underlying Greensand through a broad tract extending along the deep 
 valley of Pewsey to Burbage, not far from the east Wmdary of the 
 county. It returns to its former range near Westbury, thence to War- 
 minster, and by another indentation to Heytesbury, Maiden Bradley, 
 and Mere. Here the boundary is again thrown some distance to the 
 east, by a fault which brings down the Chalk against the Kimmeridge 
 Clay, and ranges still further to Barford, near Salisbury ; and not only is 
 the Greensand exposed in the lower ground between, but also Purbeck 
 and Portland Oolite. From hence its direction is again S.E., passing 
 above Shaftesbury, and by the prominent hill-camp of Jiawlsbury, to 
 Binghams Melcombe. Hitherto we have followed a generally S.W. 
 direction, but the main mass of the Chalk now runs due W.N.W., and 
 after a few miles ceases altogether, its former extent being shown only by 
 detached outliers resting on the Greensand. Other changes now come on. 
 The Greensand has been resting chiefly on the uppermost Oolitic rocks ; 
 but it now lies on lower and lower beds in succession" as it runs west, 
 passing, one by one, over the edges of the Oolitic and Liassic rocks, and 
 resting west of Chard on riassic marls, at the same time attaining 
 greater thickness, and forming the bold range of the Blackdown Hills. 
 It lies in more and more detached masses as it goes west into Devon- 
 shire, and one little outlier of this formation is knowm to exist on 
 " Carbonaceous " rocks so far away as Orleigh Court near Bideford in 
 North Devon, a fact of most interesting significance, as showing the 
 former extent of Cretaceotis rocks over the whole of the intervening 
 area, and probably further. The main body of the Chalk now ranges 
 south in an irregular line to within 3 miles of the South coast. It here 
 enters a very troubled country, full of disturbances and faults, and 
 after making a curve to the east which brings it within 1 mile of the 
 sea at Abbotsbury, its entire course for more than 15 miles to E. Chal- 
 don, near Lulworth, is determined by a great east and west fault, 
 which brings up against it Kimmeridge Clay, Portland Sand and Stone, 
 the fresh- water beds of the Purbeck and Wealden series, and the 
 Greensand. The fault dies out here, but where the Chalk, Greensand, 
 and Wealden come to the coast near Lulworth other faults again come 
 in and create great confusion in the rock masses. They range at a high 
 
X Physical Features and Geology Introd. 
 
 angle all the way to tlie Foreland Pinnacles south of Studland Bay, 
 opposite to the Needles, their representatives in the Isle of Wight. 
 
 The Great Oolitic escarpment in this district presents a much more 
 reo-ular range than that of the Chalk. At the Eacecourse on Lans- 
 down, near Bath (where a most magnificent view of the surroundmg 
 country in every direction may be obtained) we stand on the escarp- 
 ment, and see it running away N. by E., forming the range of the 
 Cotswolds, and S. by W. in like manner, in a Ime almost uninter- 
 rupted as far as the Mendips, against which it rests, but mtersected by 
 narrow and deep river-valleys, the streams of which have cut their way 
 down through the Oolitic rocks in succession to the Lias (and in sonie 
 cases the Trias), and carry out the waste so formed into the Triassic 
 plain. Perhaps no view in the three counties gives one so good an 
 idea of their Physical Geography as this. Standing on a lofty plateau of 
 the Great Oolite, you may see it sloping away from you towards the 
 S.E. and disappearins; beneath the higher beds, these m turn doing 
 likewise, and in the dim distance the Chalk downs, with their rounded 
 softness of outline, capping the whole : to the W. the Oolitic outline of 
 Dundry, flat-topped, but, like the main mass, sloping east and standing 
 out in sharp contrast with the more rounded contour of the great range 
 of the Mendips beyond : to the N.W. the busy port of Bristol and, 
 almost at our feet, the Bristol and Somersetshire coal-field, concealed 
 for the most part by the Lias and New Red, but having its extent well 
 shown by the distant Carboniferous Limestone hills, which rise from be- 
 low it in almost every direction. The distant view embraces the Bristol 
 Channel and the mountains of South Wales beyond. 
 
 The Oolitic range, after running S.S.W. to where the Mendips meet it 
 at rio-ht angles, there rests on Trias, Coal-measures, Carboniferous lime- 
 stone and the Devonian axis in turn. The Paleozoic rocks passed, it 
 continues its course in pretty much the same general direction as before, 
 with a tolerably regular range but jagged outline to near Yeovil. L. and 
 W faults now come in, and the range takes a westerly course to near 
 Crewkerne, then through a much faulted and broken country to 
 Beaminster, whence it pursues its old direction to the coast near 
 
 "^^TAel/^'as— although by fossils more nearly allied to the Oolites in its 
 creooi^aphical range in this country— is rather to be classed with the Trias, 
 Spon which it lies over the greater part of the low country of the Coal- 
 measures to the N. of the Mendips, and also of the low country on its 
 southern flanks, and beneath the Blackdown Hills to the Dorsetshire 
 
 But when we have followed these formations through the range of 
 their main mass, and seen the bold front which in their whole length 
 they present towards the W. or N.W., and noticed how on that side m 
 every little combe and on each exposed bluff they are crumbling away 
 beneath the hand of time, we have not yet done with them, in tra- 
 versino- the district of the older rocks, which runs away m an undulatm g 
 ]plain from beneath them, we still come upon isolated remnants ot them, 
 
Introd. 
 
 of the tJiree Counties, 
 
 xi 
 
 which tower boldly above the surrounding country, silent but im- 
 pressive monuments of a state of things existing in ages long gone by, 
 when the whole area was covered by them as by a sheet, which con- 
 cealed, and at the same time preserved from waste, the underlying forma- 
 tions. In the Oolitic rocks, we may mention as instances the long scarp 
 of Dundry Hill, and to the S.E. around Farnborough the outliers of 
 Stantonbury (with its camp), Wilmington, and those of the Sleight and 
 Barrow hills. These all consist of inferior Oolite resting on the sands. 
 Outliers of the sands upon the Lias marlstone are to be seen at Glaston- 
 bury Tor with its commanding view, and to the E. between E. Pen- 
 nard and Ditcheat. A marked outlier of the Lias marlstone on the 
 lower Lias is that of Brent Knoll S. of the Bleadon Hills. 
 
 The Trias of the three counties is found for the most part in com- 
 paratively low ground resting on the denuded edges of the Carboni- 
 ferous and Devonian rocks. It is composed of several members. Great 
 masses of magnesian conglomerate full of fragments of Carboniferous 
 limestone, along the flanks of the Mendips, would apjoear to point to a 
 shore deposit, and the marls are so interbedded with them as to imply 
 a contemporaneous origin. The analogous shore-de^^osits resting on the 
 sides of the Devonian hills are in like manner full of fragments of the 
 slate and shale against which they lie, and from which they have been 
 undoubtedly derived. 
 
 The Rhoetic or Penarth beds (the highest member of the Trias in 
 England) were formerly supposed to belong to the Lias, and were co- 
 loured accordingly on the maps of the Government Geological Survey. 
 A careful examination of their fossils a few years ago rendered it neces- 
 sary for them to take their place with the Triassic rocks. They are 
 well shown on the beach near Watchet, Somersetshire ; patches occur 
 on the top of the Mendips, and great treasures in the shape of mamma- 
 lian remains have been extracted from a fissure containing these beds 
 near Frome, by Mr. Charles Moore. 
 
 The Carboniferous Bocks. — "The northern i3art of the Bristol and 
 Somersetshire Coal-field forms a trough lying N. and S., narrowing 
 towards its northern limits and eximnding towards the opposite direction, 
 till E. of Bristol it reaches a width of seven miles, the beds rising at high 
 angles along and beyond the edo;e of the basin. South of Bristol the 
 boundary of the Coal-field, marked by the range of the Limestone hills, 
 sweeps round to the westward and is lost under the sea beyond Nailsea 
 Moor, near Clevedon, in Somersetshire. South of this the Coal-measures 
 underlie the Liassic formation of Dundry Hill, and encircle the large 
 mass of Carboniferous limestone near Congresbury. Over the greater 
 part of this area the Coal-formation is buried at moderate depths under 
 newer horizontal strata." * 
 
 On the E. the Coal-measures pass beneath the Oolitic escarpment, 
 but have been proved by borings, &c., not to XDass eastward of a line 
 joining Bath and Frome. The succession and thicknesses of the Car- 
 
 • ' The Coalfields of Great Britain,' by Edward Hull. F.R.S. 
 
xii Physical Features and Geology Introd. 
 
 boniferous strata near Bristol, are thus given by Mr. D. Williams, in 
 the publications of the Geological Survey of Great Britain : — 
 
 Feet. 
 
 f Upper series, with 10 coal-seams . . . 1800 
 ' Coal Measures ^ Central or Pennant Grit, with 5 ditto . 1725 
 
 I Lower Shales, with 36 ditto 1600 
 
 Millstone Grit, Hard Siliceous Grits, &c 950 
 
 Carboniferous limestone 2338 
 
 The Carboniferous Limestone forms the long chain of the Mendips, 
 with its picturesque combes and crags, and lies in the form of an anti- 
 clinal or arch, its beds turning over to the N. and passing under the 
 Coal-measures, and also turning over to the S. beneath the Trias and 
 Lias formations; and, it is thought, possibly bringing on the Coal- 
 measures in that direction also. The Devonian rocks are to be seen at 
 several places appearing from beneath the limestone in the centre of 
 the arch. 
 
 The Limestone is full of caves and fissures, produced by the action of 
 rain-water full of carbonic acid gas dissolving its substance ; and in 
 several of these cavities bones of extinct animals have been found, as at 
 Banwell and Wookey Hole. Ores of lead, iron, zinc, and manganese 
 are to be found in several localities. 
 
 The Devonian Bocks of the 3 counties are chiefly confined to West 
 Somerset, and form the beautiful country which comprises in its 
 borders the Forest of Exmoor and the fine hills of Brendon, Croydon, 
 and lastly, the Quantock, separated from the rest by a belt of Triassic 
 rocks. The beds of Devonian are composed of a large series of sand- 
 stones, grits, slates, shales, and limestones. Professor Jukes was of opinion 
 that these rocks represent the Carboniferous slate of Ireland, and that 
 by an inversion of the beds the series is repeated.f Mr. Etheridge 
 maintains that they are all distinct, and from consideration both of 
 their fossils and their range,{ divides them into Lower, Middle, and 
 Upper. The wild beauty of some parts of these moors is very fine, 
 and the rich contrast of colour produced by the redness of the soil and 
 the bright green of the luxuriant pastures, very striking. 
 
 Having now traced the principal ranges of hills in the 3 counties, 
 and seen how they depend upon the extent and direction of rock masses, 
 w^e shall better be able to understand the drainage of the area by means 
 of its rivers. The great watershed of England which divides the sources 
 of rivers flowing N. and W. from those which discharge themselves on 
 the S. and E. coasts, enters the W. side of Somerset on the heights of 
 Exmoor, and runs with a wavy line towards the S.E. to a point JST. of 
 Cerne Abbas, in Dorsetshire, and in its course crests the Devonian 
 heights of the Brendon Hills, thence across the Trias to the Greensand 
 hills of Blackdown by Chard, and above Crewkerne to near Cerne Abbas, 
 dividing in the first part of its course the lesser streams of W. Somerset, 
 
 * ' Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain,* vol. 1. p. 207. 
 f 'Notes on South Devon and Cornwall.' Dublin. 
 
 + * On the Physical Structure of W. Somerset and K Devon,' &c., Quart. Journ, Geol, 
 Soc, December, 1867. 
 
Introd. 
 
 of the three Counties, 
 
 Xlll 
 
 which enter the Bristol Channel, from the greater rivers of Devonshire, 
 the Exe and the Otter, which run to the S. coast, and afterwards the 
 lesser streams of Dorsetshire from the larger basin of the Parrett on the 
 N. Thence its course is N. by Sherborne and Wincanton, along several 
 Oolitic scarps dividing the waters of the Stour from those of the Yeo, a 
 tributary of the PaiTett. From near here the great Chalk escarpment 
 forms the division all the way to Swindon, near which it runs round 
 to the N.W., encircling the sources of the Thames. 
 
 Those who wish for fuller details of any particular locality, will do well 
 to consult the maps, sections, and other publications of the Government 
 Geological Survey.* The maps, on the scale of 1 inch to a mile, will be 
 found useful to pedestrians, as, in addition to all the topographical 
 details of the Ordnance Maps, they have geological lines and colours 
 superadded. 
 
 The following Table of Sedimentary Eocks occurring in Wilts, 
 Somerset, and Dorset, may be useful : — 
 
 {Bagshot and Bracklesham beds. 
 London and Boguor Clay. 
 Plastic Clay series. 
 
 Cretaceous 
 
 ( Chalk. 
 Chalk Marl. 
 Upper Greensand. 
 
 Gault. 
 Lower Greensand. 
 ^ Wealden, 
 
 MESOZOIC 
 
 Oolitic 
 
 Purbeck beds. 
 Portland beds. 
 Kimmeridge Clay. 
 Coral Rag. 
 ( Oxford Clay. 
 
 Cornbrash. 
 Bradford Clay. 
 Great, or Bath, Oolite. 
 , Inferior Oolite. 
 
 LlASSIC 
 
 Upper Lias. 
 Marlstone. 
 Lower Lias. 
 
 Rhoetic or Penarth beds. 
 
 ^ Triassic 
 
 Dolomitic Conglomerate. 
 
 * Professor Eamsay's Geological Map of England and Wales may be found useful in 
 gaming a knowledge of the general run of the country. 
 
xiv History of the three Counties, Introd, 
 
 Caeboniferous 
 
 Devonian 
 
 I Coal Measures. 
 Millstone Grit. 
 Carboniferous Limestone. 
 Lower Limestone Shale. 
 
 PALiEOZOIO / i^Pilton and Barnstaple beds. 
 
 Braunton beds. 
 Croyde beds. 
 
 Baggy and Marwood Slates. 
 Pickwell Down Sandstones. 
 Grey Unfossiliferous Slate. 
 Calcareous Slates. 
 Hangman Grits. 
 Lynton Slates. 
 \^Lynton Sandstone. 
 
 B. History of the three Counties. 
 
 At the time of the Koman invasion, Wiltshire and Somersetshire 
 were occupied by the immigrant Belga3, of whose territory the Wans- 
 dyke was the N.E. boundary, reaching from the woodlands of Berk- 
 shire to the Bristol Channel. 
 
 We have no details of the Koman conquests in the S.W. of England, 
 but it is probable that Yespasian made himself master of this district, 
 and carried the Imperial eagles over the Wansdyke. The Eoman roads 
 that intersected this part of Britain, and the number and extent of 
 remains of military and domestic architecture which it presents, prove 
 a widespread and permanent occupation of the country. It has been 
 thought that a College of Armourers was established by Hadrian at 
 Aquas Solis (Bath), where it is certain from the character of the baths 
 and. temples, &c., that have been excavated, that the Eomans had a 
 populous and opulent colony. Other Eoman stations in this district 
 were Sorbiodunum (Old Sarum), Vindogladia (Gussage Cow Down, near 
 Blandford), Durnovaria (Dorchester), Clavinium (Jordan Hill, near Wey- 
 mouth), Ischalis (llchester), Uxela (Bridgwater), and Abona (Bitton 
 on the Avon ?) . The hills show many marks of Eoman military occu- 
 pation, often combined with the strongholds of the earlier inhabitants. 
 
 The retirement of the Eomans left the country once more in the 
 hands of the native Britons and Eomanized Britons, who in the sixth 
 century were called to defend their country against the invading hordes 
 of Cerdic and his sons. " Step by step, from a small settlement on the 
 Hampshire coast, the West Saxons had won their way, fighting battle 
 after battle against the Welsh (the native Britons), and after nearly 
 every battle extending their borders by a new acquisition of territory." 
 —Freeman, In 520 the battle of Mons Badonicus (Badbury Eings, 
 near Wimborne), in which the Britons under Arthur were victorious, 
 gave a temporary check to Cerdic's advance, and led to a treaty between 
 him and Arthur, followed by a period of comparative peace. Cerdic 
 died in 534, and Arthur in 542 (Guest), War broke out again, and in 
 552 Cynric totally defeated at Old Sarum a vast army of Britons raised 
 
Introd. 
 
 History of the three Counties, 
 
 XV 
 
 against him. In 556 the desperate battle of Barbiiry Hill (near 
 Swindon), fought by Cynric and Ceawlin with the Britons under 
 Aurelius Conan, decided the fate of the country of the Wilsaetas, which 
 thenceforward formed part of the kingdom of Wessex. Twenty-one 
 years later (577) the decisive battle of Deorham (Dyrham in South 
 Gloucestershire), won by Ceawlin the Bretwalda, sealed the fate of 
 South Britain. The Britons lost their three great fortified towns of 
 Gloucester, Cirencester, and Bath, and were thus cut off from their 
 brethren in what we now know as Wales. Divided and weakened, all 
 hope of making head against the enemy was gone. They retired west- 
 wards, where, separated from the kingdom of Wessex by the Somerset- 
 shire Axe and the forests of Somersetshire and "Wiltshire, they long 
 maintained their independence. " This was the last heathen conquest 
 waged by West Saxons against the Britons. During a space of 300 
 years the conquest still went on. Step by step the English frontier 
 advanced from the Axe to the Barrett, from the Barrett to the Tamar ; 
 Taunton at one stage, Exeter at another, were border fortresses against 
 the Welsh enemy." — Freeman. Wiltshire saw the sun of its 
 conqueror's prosperity set when at the battle of Wanborough (near 
 Swindon), a.d. 591, Ceawlin was defeated by the Welsh headed by 
 his rebellious nephew Ceolric, and compelled to abdicate his throne. 
 Two years after he died in exile. This defeat reduced Wessex to a 
 state of great weakness, from which it revived under Cenwalh, who 
 fought with signal success against the Britons at Bradford, a.d. 652, 
 and at " Peonna " (identified b}^ some with Penselwood), a.d. 658, and 
 effected the final subjugation of Somersetshire as far as the Barrett. 
 This victory, which made the district for ever after English ground, 
 was followed by a lasting peace, in which the conquered sat down 
 side by side with the conquerors. Struggles for supremacy now 
 began between Wessex and Mercia. In 675, Wulfhere of Mercia was 
 defeated by (Escwin of Wessex at Great Bedwyn. In 715 a still 
 fiercer battle was fought between the same powers in the same district 
 at Wanborough, between Ina and the forces of Mercia, without any 
 decisive result. The power of Mercia continually increasing, Ethelbalcl, 
 king of the Mercians, in 733 penetrated into the heart of Wessex, 
 and invested Somerton, which fell under his power, the enfeebled 
 Ethelard being unable to relieve it. About this time also the Western 
 Welsh became troublesome. In 721 they had risen and seized on 
 Taunton in Ina's absence, but his queen recovered it, and rased it 
 to the ground. After Ina's abdication the Welsh succeeded in great 
 measure in casting off the Saxon yoke, but were reduced to subjec- 
 tion once more by Cuthred in 753. An expiring effort for supre- 
 macy on the part of Mercia was effectually crushed in 823, when 
 Egbert defeated Beornwulf, king of the Mercians, at Ellandun, identi- 
 fied by many authorities with Wilton. Four years later Mercia sub- 
 mitted to the conqueror, and Egbert assumed the title of Bretwalda. 
 
 We now come to the epoch of Danish invasion. These inroads had 
 commenced in the reign of Beohrtric a.d. 787, on the coast of Dorset- 
 shire. A successful landing took place in 833 at Charmouth. The 
 
xvi 
 
 History of the three Counties, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 reigns of the son and grandsons of Egbert were almost wholly taken up 
 by the struggle against these piratical marauders. Ethelred himself 
 fell in a battle with the heathen northerners near Wimborne, where he 
 was buried as a saint and martyr. Alfred was summoned from the 
 funeral to meet the Danish army at Ellendun (Wilton?), where a long 
 and obstinate conflict left the enemy masters of the field. In 876 
 Wareham was surprised by them. Alfred purchased their retirement, 
 together with a pledge that they would not invade Wessex again. But 
 the next year saw tliem attacking Wareham, on their retreat from 
 which they fell in with Alfred's fleet near Swanage, and were driven on 
 shore with great loss. The year 878 saw the most tremendous attack 
 on Wessex that had yet been witnessed. With largely increased forces 
 Guthrum's army from Gloucester burst into the territory of the Wil- 
 saetas, took the royal town of Chippenham, from which, as their head- 
 quarters, they made themselves masters of the whole country. For the 
 time all seemed lost. The marshes of the Sumersaetas alone remained 
 free from their ravages. Thither Alfred retired, and with the aid of 
 the faithful Somerset thanes, raised a fortress in the Isle of Athelney, 
 strong in its natural defences of morass and forest. At the end of 
 8 months he issued from his fastness, gathered round him a large 
 army, and dealt a crushing blow on the Danish power at Ethandun 
 {perhaps Edington, near Westbury). The Northmen were forced to 
 conclude the disgraceful peace of Wedmore, and their leader, Guthrum, 
 had to submit to the rite of baptism, which he received at AUer. 
 
 The feeble reign of Ethelred saw the wearying spectacle renewed of 
 incessant landings and skirmishes of the Danes. In 988 Watchet was 
 attacked, several thanes were killed, but the enemy were at last beaten 
 off. Nine years later (997) they cruelly ravaged Somersetshire, and 
 the next year Dorsetshire. To avenge the atrocious massacre of St. 
 Brice's Day, Swend invaded England in person 1003, and after storming 
 and plundering Exeter he marched into Wiltshire, and sacked Old 
 Sarum and Wilton. In 1015 he made Bath his head-quarters, where 
 he received the submission of the Western thanes. Canute's first landing 
 in England in 1015 was at Frome Mouth, the port of Wareham, whence 
 he proceeded to harry the shires of Somerset, Dorset, and Wilts, while 
 Ethelred lay sick at Corsham. On Ethelred's death the next year, Wessex 
 acknowledged Edmund as king. The wisdom of their choice was soon 
 confirmed when Edmund's small force met and routed the army of 
 Canute at Penselwood. In 1051 Bristol, which was rising into import- 
 ance chiefly as the seat of the Irish slave-trade, was selected by Harold 
 and his brother Leofwine as the place of embarkation for Ireland. On 
 their return in 1052 they landed at Porlock. The men of Somerset and 
 Devon met them in arms, and Harold began his enterprise of deliver- 
 ance by being compelled to do battle with those he came to deliver. 
 More than 30 thanes and a large number of meaner folk were slain, 
 and Harold returned to his ships victorious, to join his father Earl 
 Godwin's fleet at Portland. The year succeeding the Norman Con- 
 quest, 1067, Harold's three sons, who had taken refuge with Dermot, 
 king of Leinster, attempted to enter England by the Avon, but were 
 
Introd. 
 
 History of the three Counties, 
 
 xvii 
 
 driven back by the people of Bristol, who knew that domestic tran- 
 quillity was essential to their commercial prosperity. In 1086 William 
 the Conqueror held his Court at Old Sarum, During the insurrection 
 in support of Duke Robert's claims to the throne of England under the 
 leadership of Odo of Bayeux, 1087, the district was much distressed by 
 the predatory excursions made by his supporters, Bp. Geoffrey, of Cou- 
 tances, and Robert de Mowbray, from Bristol. Their followers burnt 
 Bath and attacked llchester, where they were repulsed. 
 
 lii the 12th century the counties of Wilts, Somerset and Dorset were 
 the scene of many of the most stirring events during the struggle between 
 Stephen and the Empress Maud. The castle of Bristol was held by 
 Robert Earl of Gloucester, its lord, a.d. 1138, for his half-sister. That city 
 became the head-quarters of her partisans, from which they ravaged the 
 ; country round, which became a prey to their outrages and depredations. 
 Bath was held alternately by the forces of the two contending parties. 
 Maud's cause was supported by William Louvel at Castle Cary, and Wil- 
 liam Fitz-John at Harptree, Stephen having vainly attempted to take 
 Bristol by siege, turned his attention to these two castles, both of which 
 surrendered. This success was followed by the submission of Wareham 
 which had been occupied for Maud in this year. The warlike Bp. Roger 
 of Sarum, the chief builder of castles as well as of churches, of his day, was 
 at this time, with his nephews the Bishops of Lincoln and Ely, secretly 
 favouring the Empress's cause, and had furnished his castles of Devizes, 
 Sherborne, Malmesbury, and Sarum with provisions and munitions to 
 support her claims. The three prelates being summoned to a Council 
 at Oxford, 1139, Roger and Bp. Alexander of Lincoln were arrested by 
 Stephen ; but Bp. Nigel of Ely escaping, took refuge at Devizes, which, 
 with the other strongholds, was soon surrendered to the king as the 
 price of the liberation of the two captive bishops. 
 
 The atrocities and devastation committed by the lords of the castles 
 on their unhappy neighbours were renewed by William of Mohun from 
 his castle of Dunster. Stephen, having vainly attempted to take it by 
 assault, surrounded it by his forces to hold him in check, and succeeded 
 in restoring tranquillity to the harassed district. 
 
 In 1139 Baldwin de Redvers landed at Wareham, and occupied Corfc 
 Castle, being speedily followed by Maud and the Earl of Gloucester. 
 From Arundel the Empress proceeded by way of Calne to Bristol, where 
 she summoned the barons to her aid, and, as at Gloucester subsequently, 
 assumed royal state, and, unfortunately for her hopes of success, more 
 than royal imperiousness. Trowbridge Castle was held by a strong 
 garrison for her by Humphrey de Bohun. The castles of Devizes and 
 Malmesbury, with others, were continually being taken and retaken by 
 the contending parties. 
 
 When Stephen was taken prisoner at the battle of Lincoln, a.d. 1141. 
 he was transferred for safe custody to Bristol Castle. Maud, who was 
 now recognised as " Lady of England," celebrated the Easter festival 
 this year in royal state at Wilton. The same year Maud, on her escape 
 from Winchester, fled first to Ludgershall and then to Devizes, and 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, c&c, 1882.] b 
 
Mistory of the three Counties, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 Hteplicn left Lis prison by exchange for the Earl of Gloncester, who had 
 been taken at Stockbridge. Bristol Castle soon became the home of 
 Mand's young son, afterwards Henry II., who remained there for four- 
 years. Mand's sovereignty w^as generally acknowledged by the western 
 counties, a.d. 1143, after the disastrous defeat of the royal forces at 
 Wilton, while Stephen held London and the eastern and central parts. 
 Sherborne, w^hich was regarded as a principal key of the kingdom, was 
 surrendered to her, and at one time she made her temporary home at 
 Devizes. The chief strongholds in Wiltshire being held by the 
 adherents of the contending j^arties, that district became a prey to 
 rapine, bloodshed, and wide-spread misery, which was only terminated 
 by the treaty of 1153. 
 
 During the 13th and. 14tli centuries these three counties had a 
 breathing time, taking little if any share in the events which were 
 shaping our national history. At the period of Jack Cade's rebellion, 
 1450, the Bp. of Salisbury's tenants rose and barbarously murdered the 
 prelate at Edington. In 1471 Margaret of Anjou and her son landed 
 at Weymouth and took refuge at Cerne ; shortly afterwards Edward IV. 
 passed through Malmesbury on his way to Tewkesbury. In 1497 the 
 peace of the western counties was again disturbed by the invasion of 
 the pretender Perkin Warbeck and his adherents. Being confronted 
 with Henry YII. and his forces at Taunton, Perkin fled, and his forces 
 surrendered to the royal mercy. 
 
 In the great civil war of the 17 th century the western counties were, 
 with the exception of the great towns, Arm in their loyalty to Charles I., 
 and they became the scene of active warfare. In the early part of 1643 
 the Cornishmen took up arms for the king, defeated the Earl of Stamford 
 at Stratton, May 16, and advanced into Somersetshire. Numerous 
 sieges and engagements with various issue occurred. In May, Wardour 
 Castle was taken by Sir Edw. Hungerford, and garrisoned by Ludlow, but 
 retaken by the royalists in March of the next year. In Sept. the Earl of 
 Essex was unexpectedly attacked on Aldbourne Chase by Charles 1. and 
 Prince Kupert, and defeated with great loss. The same year the royalist 
 garrison of Malmesbury surrendered to Sir W. Waller, who had recently 
 made himself master of Chichester ; but it was speedily retaken, and in 
 July Waller was defeated at Lansdown near Bath, and at Devizes a few 
 days afterwards, by the royalist General Lord Wilmot. Shortly after 
 this serious loss, Prince Kupert made a fierce attack on Bristol, which 
 surrendered to him in three days. Corfe Castle sustained a determined 
 but unavailing siege irom the Parliamentary forces. The following year 
 the sun of the king's prosperity began to set in the west. Taunton 
 was taken for the Parliament by Col. Blake, but was soon afterwards 
 invested by the royalist forces. Lyme was besieged by Prince Maurice, 
 whose military reputation was seriously tarnished by the unsuccessful 
 issue of the attack, and in 1645 the Parliamentary forces of the new model 
 animated by the sternest fanaticism, under the nominal command of Sir 
 Thomas Fairfax, but whose real leader was Cromwell, swept through 
 the west in an unbroken tide of conquest. Sherborne fell after an 
 
In trod. 
 
 History of the three Counties. 
 
 obstinate defence of 16 days. Taunton, after enduring a siege of the 
 most extreme severity under Goring, was relieved, July 3, by the mere 
 tidings of their approach. Goring was defeated at Langport and Aller 
 Moor July 10 : Bridgwater fell July 23, Bath July 30. These successes 
 cooped up the royalist forces in Devonshire and Cornwall, and precluded 
 them from sending any assistance to Charles. They were crowned by 
 the surrender of Bristol, after a very feeble defence by Prince Kupert, 
 Sept. 10. Devizes fell Sept. 23, and Cromwell, having done his work, 
 marched his forces to Donnington. Before this period armed associations 
 of ' Clubmen had been formed in the western counties, attaching them- 
 selves to neither party, with the object of protecting their property and 
 checking the depredations and violence of both armies. A large body 
 of these were routed by Cromwell on Hambledon Hill at the outset of 
 his western campaign, Aug. 4, 1645. 
 
 The peace generally prevailing through the Commonwealth was tem- 
 porarily broken by the abortive insurrection of Penruddock at Salisbury 
 in 1655. 
 
 These counties were the theatre of the landing of the Duke of Mon- 
 mouth, his brief success, and disastrous defeat, followed by " the Bloody 
 Assize " of Judge Jeffreys. Monmouth landed at Ljnne, June 11, 1685, 
 was proclaimed king at Taunton June 20, marched onwards by Bridg- 
 water June 21, Glastonbury June 22, Wells, Shcpton Mallet, with the 
 view of seizing Bristol. Foiled in that hope, and finding the gates of 
 Bath shut against him, he turned towards Wiltshire, and, after a 
 skirmish at Philip's Norton, reached Frome, his forces wearied and 
 dispirited. Without any settled plan of a campaign he returned to 
 Wells, and re-entered Bridgwater July 2, to sustain a complete overthrow 
 atSedgemoor, July 6. The infamous cruelties of Kirke and the judicial 
 barbarities of Judge Jeffreys are inseparably connected with Taunton, 
 Dorchester, and the other towns which had the misfortune of welcoming 
 Monmouth. 
 
 Three years later these counties witnessed the triumphal progress of 
 William of Orange, and the last feeble attempt of James II. to secure 
 his throne and crown. Having landed at Torbay, Kov. 5, 1688, the 
 beginning of December saw William at Salisbury, occupying the same 
 apartments in the episcopal palace that James had left only a few days 
 before, on the resignation of liis vain scheme of meeting the invader in 
 the field. The first blood spilt Avas shed in a skirmish at Wincanton. 
 On Oct. 6 he reached Hungerford, and held a conference with the Eoyal 
 Commissioners at Littlecote Hall. 
 
 The annals of the counties ^during the last 180 years have been 
 happily uneventful. 
 
Introd. 
 
 WILTSHIRE. 
 
 1. Physical Featuees. 
 
 The clialk downs are so characteristic of Wiltsliire, that the popular 
 notion of that county is one vast Salisbury Plain. But this, like other 
 rapid generalisations, needs considerable modification. If a line be 
 drawn from Bishopston in N.E. to Cley Hill in S.W. of the county, 
 for the most part parallel to, and about 4 miles distant from, the rail- 
 way from Shrivenham to Frome by Chippenham, all to S. or S.E. 
 of that line will be chalk and the kindred formations, and all to the 
 ]Sr.W. of it, will be more or less Oxford clay and Cornbrash — three- 
 fifths of the one to two-fifths of the other. 
 
 These are the two great natural divisions of the coutity, the one 
 " chalk," the other " cheese." 
 
 The monarch of English chalk hills, Inkpen Beacon, is on the 
 very confines of the county, 972 feet ; and from his throne radiate two 
 great masses of chalk, one extending northwards from Marlborough 
 Down to the north of Norfolk and the Wash ; the other extending from 
 Salisbury Plain southwards as far as Dorchester, and eastwards over 
 the whole of the central part of Hampshire, with two long and distended 
 arms, the North Downs reaching to Deal, and the South Downs reaching 
 to Beechy Head, embracing between them the vale country of the 
 Kent and Sussex Weald. 
 
 The chalk in Wilts is divided into a N. portion (Marlborough Downs), 
 and a S. (Salisbury Plain). 
 
 The Marlborough Downs have a bold escarpment on each side. 
 Some of the eminences on N. are Charlborough Hill, Liddington Castle, 
 Barbury Castle, Hackpen, Oldbury, Round way ; and overlooking the 
 vale of Pewsey on S., St. Ann's Hill, Walker's Hill, Golden Ball Hill, 
 He wish Hill, and the picturesque bluff of Martensell. Salisbury Plain 
 has no such bold outline. The most striking points in its N. and W. 
 circuits are Easton and Pewsey Hills, which command the vale of 
 Pewsey; Cheverill, Edington, Bratton, and Westbury hills, with the 
 striking outlier of Cley Hill, Battlesbury, and Scratchbury camps; 
 Mere, Fonthill, Chilmark are on N. of Nadder valley, and Chiselbury 
 Camp and Whitesheet Hill on S. of it. 
 
 The North-western or Cheese " valley rises gradually towards the 
 Cotswolds, a spur of which thrown out from the main range by way of 
 Eodmarton into the clay vale of Minety, between Tetbury and 
 Cirencester, is the watershed between the sources of two considerable 
 rivers, turning the Avon to W. and the Bristol Channel, and the Isis, 
 or rather the Thames, to E. and the German Ocean. The former, the 
 Avon, with its affluents, drains almost the whole of the north-western 
 valley, Pising in a piece of ornamental water in Estcourt Park, it winds 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Physical Features, 
 
 xxi 
 
 through a narrow tortuous valley to Malmesbury, where it is joined by 
 the Newnton stream, a not inconsiderable brook, from Badminton 
 through Easton Grey ; it next passes through Dauntsey and Christian 
 Maiford, is joined above Chippenham by the Marden (a stream from E., 
 which gatliers contributions from the western slopes of the Marlborough 
 Downs, communicates with the lake at Bo wood, and flows by Stanlej^ 
 Abbey), and with a wide loop reaches Chippenham ; then, with many 
 a bend, passes Lacock Abbey, Melksham, Broughton Gifford (where 
 it receives the brook of that name from the west), Whaddon (where it 
 receives the brook of that name from the east), Bradford (receiving in 
 the interval the Biss from Trowbridge), and so passes out of the county 
 by Limpley Stoke and Frcshford. The scenery of the higher portion of 
 the river is of a tranquil, and, as compared with that lower down, of a 
 tame character. The stream, strongly coloured by the alluvial de- 
 posit through which it eats its way, flows between meadow banks ; the 
 reaches now straight, now winding ; the volume of water, the dipping 
 willows, and bulky elms by the side ; the banks gay with the purple 
 loosestrife, bulrushes, and broad flags ; the level meadows dotted with the 
 large dairy cows, grazing beasts, and a few sheep ; the gentle slopes 
 which lead the eye to the distance beyond, on the right hand to the 
 offshoots of tlie Cotswolds, on the left hand to the barrier of naked 
 downs, for the most part regular in outline, but sharp and angular at 
 lioundway, straighter along the plain, terminating at last in the 
 unmistakable tumulus of Cley Hill ; the mid landscape on either side, 
 consisting of different farm home-steads, factory chimneys, and church 
 towers, — reminding of the business of this life and the haj^piness of 
 a better — 
 
 " In the mixture of all these appears 
 Variety that all the rest endears." 
 
 As the Avon approaches Bath, it passes through deep and green 
 valleys ; further on still, at Clifton, through rock and wood. The 
 interest gradually increases, and culminates at the Leigh Woods. 
 
 The best points from which this north-western valley can be seen 
 are Liddington Castle, the descent of the road near Chiseldon, Bar- 
 bury Castle, the road above Cherhill, or Eoundway. Spye Park and 
 Monkton Farleigh look face to face, the one W., the other E. ; they 
 are two of the finest positions in N. Wiltshire, and command the most 
 beautiful part of this valley from Lacock to Bradford. 
 
 There are two other valleys in Wilts, both in shape not unlike those 
 ancient stone celts which are found on these dovnis and in the gravel 
 beds of the rivers ; their broad ends are towards the W. The vale of 
 Pewsey extends across the centre of the county nearly to its eastern limit 
 at Hungerford, and divides the chalk, while the Nadder valley in the ex- 
 treme S. reaches from Donhead to Salisbury. 
 
 The chalk streams themselves do not follow the course of these 
 valleys ; the streams run from JN . to S., the valleys from E. to W. 
 This seemingly perverse habit of chalk streams flowing in gorges or 
 
xxii 
 
 Physical Feaiures, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 transverse fissures, obtains here as furtlier eastward, where the Chiltern 
 Hilis are pierced by the Thames ; the north downs by the rivers Wey, 
 Mole^ Darent, Medway, and Stour ; while the south downs are broken 
 through by the Test, the Itchen, the Arun, the Adnr, the Ouse, and the 
 Cnckmere. 
 
 Thus in "Wiltshire the central plateau of chalk called Salisbury Plain 
 is pierced by the Bourne Brook, by the Southern or Hampshire Avon, 
 by the Wylye, and by the Nadder — all of which meet in the neighbour- 
 hood of Salisbury (profanely called " the Sink of the Plain "), and there, 
 sometimes divided into two or more channels, sometimes united, 
 
 " Like friends once parted. 
 Grown single-hearted, 
 Ply their watery tasks," . 
 
 in a tolerably straight line southward through a single valley, under 
 the name of the Avon, into the sea at Christchurch. 
 
 We have already seen how a low watershed in the N. turns the 
 streams E. and W. 
 
 But perhaps the most interesting hydrographical point in the county 
 is near its centre, where the Wansdyke so boldly crosses St. Ann's 
 Hill. From this spot the waters reach three different seas. Three 
 miles IST., Wellhead, near Silbury, may be considered the permanent 
 (the brook which springs from Cleveancy fields is intermittent) and 
 therefore the real source of the Kennet, which joins the Thames, and 
 at last reaches the German Ocean: at Bishop's Cannings, two miles S. 
 is the source of the Hampshire Avon, which empties into the English 
 Channel : Blackland Brook rises four miles W. at Calston, and flows 
 through the Somersetshire Avon to the Atlantic. The sources of these 
 three streams are the three points of a nearly equilateral triangle, of 
 which each side is about 5 miles long. 
 
 John Aubrey, the Wiltshire naturalist and antiquary, whose name 
 must ever be held in the kindly remembrance of Wiltshire men, for 
 using his eyes and making his memoranda, where others were blind or 
 idle, noted these streams thus taking their courses " three several 
 waies." 
 
 The road which runs from E. Knoyle to Shaftesbury, in the extreme 
 S.Yf . of the county, marks another watershed, dividing the sources of 
 the Nadder and the Stour, though these streams ultimately unite, 
 after a severance throughout almost the whole of their course, just 
 above their outfall into the English Channel at Christchurch. 
 
 The natural and moral influences of North and South Wiltshire, the 
 "cheese^' and the "chalk," leading divisions of the county, cannot be better 
 summed up than in Aubrey's words — " According to the severall sorts of 
 earth in England (and so all the world over) the indigence are respec- 
 tively witty or dull, good or bad. Tn North Wiltshire (a dirty clayey 
 country) the indigence or aborigines speake drawlinge ; they are phleg- 
 matique, skins pale and livid, slow and dull, heavy of spirit; hereabout 
 is but little tillage or hard labour ; they only milk the cowes and make 
 cheese ; they feed chiefly on milke meates, which cools their brain es too 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Geology, 
 
 xxiii 
 
 much, and hurts their inventions. These circumstances make them 
 melancholy, contemplative, and malicious; by consequence whereof 
 come more law suites out of North Wilts, at least double to the 
 southern parts. And by the same reason they are generally more apt 
 to be fanatiques ; their persons are generally plump and feggy ; 
 gallipot eies, and some black ; but they are generally handsome 
 enough." " Contrariwise on the Downes, &c., the south part, where 'tis 
 all upon tillage, and where the shepherds labour hard ; their flesh is 
 hard, their bodies strong. Being weary after hard labour, they have not 
 leisure to read on or contemplate of religion, but goe to bed to their 
 rest to rise be time the next morning to their labour." 
 
 II. Geology. 
 
 The geology of Wiltshire is simple. The range of the rocks extends 
 to none older than the upper beds of the lias, nor to any newer than the 
 white chalk, except it be those small but important portions of tertiary 
 clays, sands, and gravels, the highest strata of which are some Brackles- 
 ham sands near Bramshaw, and the largest portion of wiiich overlies the 
 chalk in Savernake forest. Moreover, there has been very little disturb- 
 ance in the strata, which lie one over the other in parallel beds, or, as 
 it is termed, " conformably." But within this comparatively limited 
 range of rocks lie the oolites and the greensand, which are so fully dis- 
 played and easily studied in the railway cuttings and quarries. 
 
 The North-western valley belongs to the oolitic system, the several 
 beds of which show themselves throughout its length from Highworth 
 in the E. to Bradford in the W. 
 
 The broad bend of the lead-coloured Oxford clay, sometimes less than 
 four, sometimes eight miles wide, extends over the Avon valley ixom 
 Westbury northwards to Minety, and thence eastward over the valley 
 of the infant Thames by Cricklade and Castle Eaton. The railway for the 
 most part runs along it from Wootton Bassett to Chippenham, and 
 thence to Westbury ; and on the Gloucester line from Burton to beyond 
 Minety. Much trouble it gave the contractors by the slips which took 
 place in the cuttings. It contains in great numbers the ammonite and 
 belemnite, the straight dart-like guard of which last animal, vulgarly 
 called the " thunderbolt," continually occurs in the gravel drift which 
 comes from this formation. Below it lies Kellaway Eock, so called 
 from its being well developed at Kellaways, north of Chippenham. 
 Above it on E. are beds of a ragged and crystalline limestone, called 
 coral rag, which lie between the upper and lower calcareous grit. 
 These formations compose a country of moderate elevation, stretchiug 
 away E. of the Oxford clay basin, from Westbury, through Steeple 
 Ashton, Keevil, Sandridge, Calne, Lyneham, Lydiard Millicent, the 
 Blunsdens, and Hi^jhworth. This range of coralline oolite is again 
 bounded on E. by Kimmeridge clay, of which we shall hear again in 
 Dorsetshire. As the coralline rag country was comparatively elevated, 
 so the Kimmeridge clay ruus parallel to it, in a continuous depression 
 
xxiv 
 
 Geology, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 between it and the escarpment of the chalk, from Westbury to Eowde, 
 and from Calne to Shrivenham Station. Swindon Junction lies in the 
 midst of it, and the railway passes through it from Shrivenham to 
 Wootton Bassett. This clay is overlaid by strata of sand and lime- 
 stone, which, from their large development further south, are called 
 Portland oolite: these are found at three spots in the county — Old 
 Swindon, Potterne, and the Nadder valley — where they are quarried at 
 Fon thill Gifford, Tisbury, and Chilmark. A bit of Purbeck limestone, 
 the highest bed of the oolitic series, is quarried at Old Swindon. But 
 the finest quarries are those of the great oolite which yield those mag- 
 nificent blocks of cream-coloured freestone, which are sent from Box 
 and Corsham all over England. These, several feet in thickness, and 
 without a joint, are the true oolite, being generally composed of small 
 rounded grains, resembling the roe of a fish. The cornbrash and forest 
 marble are full of fossil shells, much broken ; near Bradford thick beds 
 of clay occur between oolitic limestone beds, and in these are found the 
 crinoids, or lily-like animals now in stone ; the rayed body or lily itself, 
 is mounted on the long tender stalk, which is still attached to the rock, 
 where the creatures were undisturbed, when potted in clay for our 
 exhumation and admiration. The slaty or flaggy beds of the forest 
 marble are much quarried for roofing tiles, and their surfaces frequently 
 show the mark produced by the ripple of the waves upon them, as 
 they were being deposited. Drifted shells, the casts of sea-worms, 
 the tracks of crabs, the bones, teeth, palates, and scales of fishes and 
 saurians are also found in the forest marble, as may be well seen in 
 the quarries about Wormwood, between Box and Atworth. 
 
 Eather more than half the surface of the county consists of chalk, the 
 upper beds being soft and with flints, the lower harder and without 
 flints. The lower beds of chalk contain some clay, and often form a sort 
 of lower terrace for that upper and thicker pure calcareous mass, which 
 consists almost wholly of carbonate of lime. Among the fossils of the 
 chalk are sponges, corallines, sea-urchins, bivalve and other shells ; and 
 many forms of oyster, fishes' teeth and palates are embedded in it, but 
 no bones of land animals, or land or river shells. 
 
 The upper greensand, gault, and lower greensand are disposed in 
 bands more or less parallel round the northern and western borders of 
 the Marlborough Downs and Salisbury Plain, and on the north and 
 south margins of the Nadder Valley. But the upper greensand is 
 more than a mere margin to the chalk. The whole of the Pewsey 
 Valley (a remarkable section is in the railway cutting E. of Devizes), a 
 considerable portion of that of Nadder, as well as the small but broad 
 indentation which runs up from the Wily Valley by Warminster to 
 Maiden Bradley and S tour ton, are scooped out of the upper greensand : 
 the latter makes Cley Hill a peninsula, and at Stourhead reaches an 
 elevation of more than 800 feet ; on the edge of the escarpment King 
 Alfred's Tower is built. 
 
 The lower greensand in Wiltshire contains so large a proportion of 
 iron as to render many of its beds capable of smelting ; thus traces 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Geology. 
 
 XXV 
 
 of old furnaces have heen found at Seend, Bromham, and Sandy Lane, 
 and these could be worked successfully as long as the neighbouring 
 forests of Melksham and Pewsliam supplied the necessary fuel. That 
 being exhausted, the ore, however rich, became valueless, till the rail- 
 way afforded means of conveyance, either of coal to the iron or iron to the 
 coal. Accordingly smelting furnaces have been erected at Seend, where 
 John Aubrey found iron more than 200 years ago. " Underneath this 
 sand," he says, speaking of Seend, " I discovered the richest iron ore 
 that I ever saw or heard of. Come there on a certain occasion, at the 
 Kevell 1666, it rained at 12 or 1 of the clock very impetuously, so that it 
 had washed away the sand from the ore, and walking out to see the 
 country about 3 p.m., the sun shining bright, reflected itself from the 
 ore to my eyes. The forest of Melksham did extend itself to the foot 
 of this hill. It was full of goodly oaks, and so near together that they 
 say a squirrel might have leaped from tree to tree. It was disafforested 
 about 1635. . . . Now there is scarce an oak left in the whole parish, and 
 oaks are very rare all hereabout, so that this rich mine cannot be melted 
 and turned to profit." Furnaces have also been erected close to the 
 Westbury Station, where the ore is found in the coral rag, which, 
 through a fault there, had been brought into contact with the greensand. 
 
 In the neighbourhood of Alderbury, Platford, and Damerham are 
 tertiary remains — a spot of Bracklesham sand at Bramshaw being the 
 highest and most eastern stratum in the county. 
 
 Flints are, as usual, found everywhere on the upper white chalk. 
 On many parts of the summit levels of the great chalk platform, parti- 
 cularly on the north, is plastic clay, notably in Savernake forest, and at 
 Great and Little Bedwyn : overlying this are insular beds, sometimes of 
 London clay, and sometimes of Lower Bagshot sands (on elevated points 
 of wliich last are placed Lord Ailesbury's obelisk and Chisbury Camp). 
 All these are the remains of that wonderful aqueous action which has 
 uncovered all else in the whole of this district. 
 
 But the most obvious results of this denudation, in some of the 
 hollows in the downs, about Marlborough and Kennet particularly, are 
 those well known and singular masses of hard white siliceous grit, 
 known provincially as Sarsen stones. Grey Wethers, or Druid sandstone, 
 from their having been employed in the construction of the supposed 
 Druidical temples at Avebury wholly, and Stonehenge for the most 
 part. These, no doubt, once belonged to the lower tertiary strata that 
 formerly covered the chalk, and were left stranded in the hollows, when 
 the looser materials of those beds were swept onward. They are almost 
 peculiar to the Wiltshire Downs, and their appearance is most striking. 
 One trail of them may be seen about four miles from Marlborough on 
 the Bath road ; nowhere are they more thick than in the hollow which 
 leads up to and beyond the Devil's Den, but perhaps they show to 
 most advantage mixed with trees in Lockeridge Dene. They are now 
 largely used for paving and other such purposes, the means of accu- 
 rately splitting them by breaking the outer skin being a recent 
 discovery ; the old. mode was b}' fire and water. 
 
xxvi 
 
 Description^ Communications, &c. 
 
 Ii;Ltrod. 
 
 In the immediate beds of the streams are drift or alhivial deposits of 
 gravel, flint and chalk rubble in the chalk streams, and of these mate- 
 rials, togetlier with oolitic gravel, in the Lower Avon. In this last mam- 
 malian drift, so called, are the remains of red deer, ox, horse, elephant, 
 hippopotamns, and rhinoceros, together with land and freshwater 
 shells. These remains are characteristic of the gravel of the valleys, as 
 distinguished from the drift of the hills. The railway west of Melkshani 
 runs through this gravel for two miles, and has conveyed it thence for 
 the purposes of ballasting the line down to Weymouth. The geological 
 collections of Mr. Cunnington at Devizes, a local geologist with more 
 than a local reputation, of the Wiltshire Archasological and Natural 
 History Society, also at Devizes, and of the Blackmore Museum at 
 Salisbury, are of the greatest interest. A large, varied, and well-selected 
 series of specimens from different countries, belonging to the earliest 
 period of human occupation, or the Stone Age " of antiquaries, renders 
 the Blackmore Museum unrivalled in this country. 
 
 HI. Description, Communications, Industrial Kesources. 
 
 Wiltshire, in the Saxon Chronicles Wiltimscir, in Domesday Wilte- 
 scire, derives its name through the town of Wilton, from the Wil-saetas 
 (scetan = settlers or inhabitants), the West Saxon tribe, who made it 
 their home. Its shape is that of a parallelogram, with its longest 
 diameter from N. to S., and its northern corners rounded off. It is an 
 inland county, without any seacoast ; bounded on N.W. by Gloucester- 
 shire ; N.E., Berkshire ; E., Hampshire ; S., Hampshire and Dorsetshire ; 
 W., Somersetshire. Its greatest length is 54 m., from N. to S; its 
 greatest breadth, 37 miles, from E. to W. It includes an area of 
 859,303 acres, or about 1350 sq. m. Its population amounted in 
 1871 to 257,177 ; in 1881, to 258,967 persons. 
 
 Wiltshire is now almost entirely an agricultural county ; dairy 
 farming in N., corn and sheep in S. The N.W. portion was formerly 
 one of the chief seats of the clothing trade ; but this has migrated 
 in great part to the northern tov/ns of England. The manufacture is 
 still carried on with some activity in the towns on the river Avon 
 and its affluents, which supply the water-power, as at Trowbridge, the 
 chief seat of the broad-cloth manufacturers, Bradford, Westbury and 
 Melksham. At Wilton are carpet works. Swindon is a vast railway 
 workshop and depot. There is a good deal of malting and brewing 
 carried on in several of the large towns. The curing of bacon is 
 carried on largely, principally at Calne. Kennet ale is famous. Iron 
 ore is dug in some places, and there are works for smelting at Westbury, 
 and were formerly at Seend. Altogether, the trade of Wilts is consider- 
 able, though it cannot compete with the great manufacturing districts. 
 
 The county is well supplied with railway communication. The 
 Great Western Eailway enters the county near Swindon, and runs S.W. 
 by Chippenham and Corsham to Bath. A branch runs from Chippenham 
 \)j Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury, and Frome to Weymouth, meeting 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Antiquities, 
 
 xxvii 
 
 the line from Hungerford by Pewsey and Devizes, at Holt, near Melk- 
 sham.; and at Westbury, that by Heytesbury and Warminster from Salis- 
 bury. The Great Western throws off branches from Swindon by 
 Minety to Cheltenham, by Marlborough and Savernake to Ludgershall 
 and Andover; by Stratton and Stanningtonto High worth; and from Chip- 
 penham to Calne. Salisbury is a railway centre, communicating, besides 
 the Westbury line already mentioned, w- ith London direct by the South- 
 AVestern Eailway by Andover, and with Exeter by Yeovil ; with South- 
 ampton and Portsmouth by Piomsey and Bishopstoke ; and directly with 
 Weymouth, Poole, and the whole of the S. by Fordingb ridge. 
 
 In the northern part of the county are three great lines of canal : 
 the Thames and Severn, the Wilts and Berks, and the Kennet and 
 Avon. The two former are joined by the N. Wilts Canal, between 
 Cricklade and Swindon ; and the two latter unite S. of Melksham. 
 S. Wilts is almost entirely destitute of canals. 
 
 IV. Antiquities — British, Roman. 
 
 'No county in England can exhibit more numerous and more 
 interesting remains of its aboriginal inhabitants than Wiltshire. The 
 early population dwelt chiefly upon the hills, which everywhere 
 show evident marks of having been densely peopled, and subjected to 
 cultivation. The valleys, obstructed with dense forests and undrained 
 marshes, were as little suited for tillage as for defence, and would be 
 less salubrious than the uplands. Over the downs are scattered, in 
 profusion, British camps and earthworks, boundary ditches and track- 
 ways, and foundations of the groups of huts which formed the primaeval 
 villages. These elevations are also everywhere tumid with sepulchral 
 barrows and mounds, of varied shapes and dimensions, attesting the long 
 occupation of these grassy hills by the Celtic tribes who are supposed 
 to have first colonised Britain. Traces of their agricultural activity 
 are to be noticed in the lynchets," or terraces, with which the sloping 
 sides of the downs are scored, evidencing the action of the plough. 
 
 The primaeval antiquities of Wiltshire and the adjacent counties may 
 be briefly enumerated under the following heads : — 
 
 Stone Circles. — Avebur}?-, with its avenues (the chief monolithic 
 example in England) ; Stonehenge. 
 
 Circles, formed by a bank and ditch, the ditch, being inside the 
 rampart. 
 
 Cromlechs, e. g, " the Devil's Den," and Temple Bottom, near Marl- 
 borough (now destroyed) ; Littleton Drew, near Castle Combe ; the 
 sepulchral structures at Lanhill, Luckington, and Shurdington. 
 
 " We habitually call the megalithic monuments Druidical, but it is 
 hardly necessary to mention that there is really no sufficient reason 
 for connecting them with Druidical worship " though " both Avebury 
 and Stonehenge were, I believe, used as Temples " {Sir John Luhhock). 
 
 British Boundaries. — The most remarkable are the Wansdyke and 
 Bokerley-ditch. The Wansdyke enters Wilts at Great Bedwyn ; goes 
 
xxviii 
 
 Antiquities, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 through Savernake, and over Marlborough Downs (on St. Ann's Hill it 
 is most perfect) by Calstone, Heddington, Spy Park, Neston Park ; 
 crosses the Avon valley at Bathford ; makes a circuit on the high 
 ground to S. of Bath, over Claverton Down to Prior Park and English 
 Combe, where it is very conspicuous in the fields W. of the church. It 
 continues, marked by deep lanes, to Stantonbury, of which it formed the 
 N. boundary ; and thence by Publow and Bulleton to Maes Knoll ; 
 crosses Highb ridge Common, runs along Deep Combe Lane and across 
 the meadows to Wonesditch Lane ; crosses the Ashton Koad at Piay- 
 mond's Cross, enters Portbury Hundred, traverses Clapton Hill, and 
 ends at Portishead. 
 
 British lioads : particularly the Eidge Way, which runs N.E. from 
 Avebury by the camps of Barbury and Liddington. They generally 
 pursue a course along the high land, which the Komans avoided as 
 much as possible. 
 
 British Villages, the sites of which are still to be traced on the slopes 
 of Marlborough Downs and Salisbury Plain. The British pit dwellings, 
 a mile N.W. of Sahsbur}^ on the Devizes road ma}^ be mentioned. 
 
 Banhs and Ditches, which marked out the lines of communication 
 from village to village. 
 
 Barrows^ studding all the chalk hills and valleys : which have been 
 classed in four divisions — the Long-barrow, probably the earliest form 
 of sepulchral mound in Britain, Bowl-barrow, Bell-barrow, and Druid- 
 barrow — the three first so named from their shape, the fourth consist- 
 ing of one or more tumuli, enclosed within a circular ditch, sometimes 
 100 ft. in diameter. The Wiltshire barrows, particularly those which 
 surround the temples of Avebury and Stonehenge,rank amongst the most 
 ancient in England, and are supposed to date from a time preceding 
 the arrival of the Pomans. They are also very remarkable for the 
 variety and symmetry of their forms. Nearly all the long barrows 
 stand E. and W., the wider end being towards the E. Out of 11 
 opened by Mr. Cunnington, 9 had skeletons reposing at the E. end. 
 In chalk districts, where stone was scarce, the bones usually rest on 
 the natural surface of the soil, after the removal of the turf; but where 
 stone is plentiful, the body was deposited in a chamber at the E. end 
 formed of large slabs, as at Littleton Drew and West Kennet. In a 
 few instances a rough pavement of flint nodules was found under the 
 bodies. At Winterbourne Stoke round hollows v/ere found sunk in 
 the chalk, near the bones — perhaps as receptacles for food and drink. 
 Many of these sepulchral mounds were opened by Sir R. C. Hoare, who, 
 in his ' History of Ancient Wiltshire,' has given us an interesting 
 account of their contents : how in one he found the skeleton of the 
 child clasped in the mother's arms ; in another the hunter, with his 
 faithful dog ; in a third the maiden still encircled by her little beads 
 and trinkets ; in a fourth the warrior in the midst of his weapons, and 
 with the diinking-cup by his side. Three modes of interment appear 
 to have been pursued. In the first the skeleton reposes on the right 
 side with its head to the W. or N.W., and its legs drawn up ; in the 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Architecture, 
 
 xxix 
 
 second it is extended at full length ; in the tlnrd the body has been 
 burnt, and the ashes deposited cither in a cist cut in the chalky ground, 
 or within a funereal urn. With these relics of mortality are found the 
 arms and the personal ornaments of the dead — arrowheads of flint, rude 
 axes of stone, beads of glass, jet, or amber, and, occasionally, articles of 
 brass, gold, or iron. These have been more usually found in the bowl 
 or bell-shaped barrows ; the interments in the long barrows were more 
 rude. Sir K. C. Hoare's collections are now to be seen in the museum 
 at Devizes. 
 
 Entrenchments J viz. : 1. rectangular enclosures, probably the rude 
 defences of villages ; 2. camps on elevated points, varying in size and 
 construction, and of which Old Sarum, Battlesbur}^, and Scratchbury, 
 near Warminster, are remarkable specimens. 
 
 Other camps that deserve mention are, Barbury and Badbur}^, near 
 Swindon, Bratton Castle, Figbur\^ (or Clilorus' Camp), Ogbury, Sid- 
 bury, Casterley Camp, and Yarnboruugb. 
 
 The two great centres from which lioman roads diverged were Aqua3 
 Solis (Bath), and Sorbiodunum (Old Sarum). They ran thus : 
 
 1. From Bath one road (the Fosseway) went N.E. to Corinium 
 (Cirencester), and S.W. to Wells, where it divided into two branches, 
 one of which passed by Uxela (Bridgwater) to Isca (P]xeter), the other 
 by Ischalis (Ilchester) to Moridunum on the S. coast (perhaps Seaton). 
 2. Another road (Via Julia) from Bath went E. by Verlucio (Sandy 
 Lane, near Heddington) and Cunetio (Folly Farm, near Marlborough) 
 to Calleva (Silchester), and W. by Abona (Bitton), across the Severn 
 estuary to Yenta Silurum (Caerwent). 3. From Sorbiodunum one 
 road went N.E. to Silchester; another due E. to Venta Belgarum 
 (Winchester) : the continuation of both (Via Iceniana) passed through 
 A^indogladia (Gussage Cow Down near Blandford), Durnovaria (Dor- 
 chester), along the S. coast to Moridunum and Exeter. 4. Between 
 Cirencester and Cunetio. 
 
 V. Architecture akd Churches. 
 Architecture. 
 
 I. Military. — Of the castles of Wiltshire, so famous in the wars of 
 the 12th and 13th centuries, and invested once more with a temporary 
 interest during the Parliamentary wars, little remains beyond their 
 foundations and earthworks. The mounds of Old Sarum, Devizes, 
 and Marlborough are conspicuous for their bulk, and of the two 
 former some small fragments of building in walls and vaults still exist. 
 Castle Combe is reduced to a heap of'rubbish. Trowbridge has com- 
 pletely passed away. Of Ludgershall only a small fragment survives. 
 
 The only castle of which there are any considerable remains is that 
 of Wardour, and it is of considerable architectural interest. Farleigh 
 Castle, being just over the border, is claimed by the county of 
 Somerset. 
 
 II. Domestic. — Of domestic architecture few, if any, counties possess 
 
Churches, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 so many and such admirable specimens. Besides the more remarkable 
 examples, of the chief of which a list is given below, a vast number of 
 old manorhouses are scattered over the county, usually degraded into 
 farmhouses, and more or less dilapidated, and, we regret to add, yearly 
 diminishing before the march of modern improvement. In N. Wilts 
 nearly every parish possesses one or more such specimens, with a long 
 gabled front, two-storied porch, stone-muUioned and labelled windows, 
 stone- tiled roofs, and the remains of handsome oak panelling within. 
 The following list gives the more important domestic ^'emains : — 
 
 Fourteenth Cent. — Stanton St. Quentin ; Place House, Tisbury ; 
 
 Woodlands, Mere ; Barton farm, Bradford ; Wardour Castle. 
 Fifteenth Cent. — Great Clialdfield ; Norrington ; Pottern ; Salisbury, 
 
 houses in the Close and City; South Wraxall (remodelled in the 
 
 reigns of Henry VIH., Elizabeth, and James). 
 Sixteenth Cent, and later, — Bradford, Duke's House ; Charlton ; Cors- 
 
 ham ; Littlecot ; Longleat ; Longford ; Wilton. 
 
 The magnificent modern mansions of Bowood, Wilton House, 
 Grittleton, Stomiiead, Trafalgar, and Wardour, are celebrated as well 
 for their architecture as for the works of art some of them contain. 
 
 III. The Monastic foundations of Wiltshire have been almost 
 entirely swept aw^ay. Malmesbury preserves a large fragment of its 
 magnificent church, and some small portions of the conventual 
 buildings. Lacock retains its conventual buildings, including refectory, 
 kitchen, dormitory, chapter-house, of the original foundation, among 
 modern alterations, and the beautiful cloisters of the 15th cent., 
 Bradenstoke has some excellent remains of domestic buildings of the 
 14:th cent. The traces of Monkton Farleigh are very insignificant. 
 
 Churches. 
 
 This county presents at least two different kinds of churches, 
 varying according to the locality and the nature of the mxaterial. 
 In the northern part, and some parts of the south-western district, 
 good stone abounds, and consequently the churches are large and fine, 
 wdth well-finished exteriors. In the southern and eastern parts, where 
 there is a chalk soil, flints are the common material, and the churches 
 are smaller and more homely in character. Wooden belfries or 
 diminutive steeples often occur ; but the latter are sometimes un- 
 usually situated. Many are interesting from presenting early archi- 
 tectural features, both Norman and Early English. In some parts we 
 find both chalk and stone combined, and a very mixed character in 
 the churches. 
 
 In the north and western districts are several large churches, 
 approaching in their general features those of Gloucestershire and 
 Somersetshire ; and even in smaller examples the work is often good 
 and well finished. Among these are several which have the exterior 
 chiefly of Perpendicular character, and some lofty and rich towers, as 
 Cricklade St. Mary, Calne, and Devizes St. Mary. 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Churches, 
 
 xxxi 
 
 Cruciform churches are not very imcommoa in this county ; some 
 on rather a large scale, as Crickladc St. Sampson, Bishop's Cannings j 
 Devizes St. John, Purton, Down ton, Heytesbury, Great Bedwin. 
 
 Two churches in the county, Purton and Wanhorough, present the 
 imusual feature of two steeples, one in the centre, the other at the west 
 end. An elegant pyramidal bell-turret is not uncommon in the north- 
 western district, as at Acton Turvill, Sutton Benger, Corsley, Bidde- 
 stone, and Great Chaldfield. 
 
 Though in the district where good stone is used the prevailing 
 external features may be Perpendicular, there is abundance of work in 
 the earlier styles, of the best character. 
 
 There are some steeples of the " packsaddle " form, as at North and 
 South Wraxall and Winsley. Stone spires are not very uncommon, 
 but, excepting the magnificent one at Salisbury, not remarkable for 
 height or beauty. Examples are at Chilmark, Salisbury St. Martin, 
 Lacock, Trowbridge, Chippenham, Box, Purton, Bishop's Cannings, &c. 
 
 The finest Norman work is at the Abbey Church, Malmesbury, but a 
 good deal of this church is of transition to the next style. There is 
 also good Norman work at Devizes St. John, Devizes St. Mary, Cors- 
 ham, and Preshute; and transitional in Ogbourne and the nave of 
 Great Bedwin. At Britford and North Barcombe is some work of 
 Saxon character. 
 
 Salisbury Cathedral is of course imrivalled as an Early English 
 example, on a very large scale. Bishop's Cannings and Potterne are 
 fine churches of this style, almost unmixed ; and very good work may 
 be seen also at Purton, Downton, Amesbury, Crickladc St. Sampson, 
 Collingbourne-Kingston, Salisbury St. Martin, and the chancel of Great 
 Bedwin. 
 
 There is very fine Decorated work in Cricklade St. Sampson, where 
 the windows have beautiful tracery, and the tower and transepts of 
 Lacock, but there is probably less of this than of the other styles in 
 this county. 
 
 Of Perpendicular work are the nave and tower of Devizes St. Mary, 
 the nave and chantry of Lacock, Cricklade St. Sampson, Salis- 
 bury St. Thomas, the tower of Marlborough St. Peter, and the 
 principal part of those of Bradford, Trowbridge, and Mere. In the 
 northern district a rich canopied niche crowning the apex of a gable is 
 not uncommon, as at St. John's, Devizes, and St. Mary's, Lacock. 
 
 Stone groining is not uncommon in this county — of Norman 
 date in the chancels of St. John and St. Mary, Devizes. Early English, 
 at Bishop's Cannings, Urchfont, and Marlborough St. Peter. At 
 Urchfont is also a porch entirely of stone. There are groined W. 
 porches at Westbury and Lacock. There are several Norman fonts. 
 Sedilia are not very frequent, but piscinae of various kinds and 
 aumbryes are common. 
 
 Churchyard crosses are not unfrequent, and at Salisbury, Castle Combe 
 and Malmesbury are very good examples of market crosses. 
 
xxxii 
 
 Places of Interest, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 YI. Places of I^^teeest. 
 
 Swindon. — G. W. Ely. Works ; Camps of Barbury and Liddington Castle ; 
 Wanborough Cli. 
 
 Chippenham. — Bradenstoke Priory ; Draycot Cerne ; Bowood (pictures) ; 
 
 Malmesbury Abbey ; Charlton Park (pictures) ; Castle Combe ; Grit- 
 
 tleton House (pictures). 
 Calne. — Bowood ; Lansdown Column ; Maud Heaths Column ; Bremhill ; 
 
 Lacock Abbey and church. 
 Mdksham. — Lacock Abbey; Spye Park; Bromham; Great Chaldfield; 
 
 South Wraxhall. 
 Corsham. — Corsham Court. 
 Crichlade.— Down- Ampnej. 
 
 Marlborough. — Churches, College, Castle Hill ; Savernake ; Tottenham 
 
 House ; Littlecote ; Avebury ; Silbury Hill ; Devil's Den ; Wansdyke. 
 Devizes. — Churches, Castle Hill, Museum ; Koundway Down ; Bishop*s 
 
 Cannings ; Pottern ; Urchfont. 
 Bradford. — Ch., Old Ch. ; Duke's House ; Bridge ; Barton Farm ; Monkton 
 
 Farleigli ; S. Wraxall ; Great Chaldfield ; Westwood ; Farleigh Castle ; 
 
 Hinton Charterhouse ; Norton St. Philips. 
 Trowbridge. — Ch. ; Steeple Ashton Ch. ; Farleigh Castle. 
 Salisbury. — Cathedral; Close; Bishop's Palace; Churches; Cross; Old 
 
 houses; Museum; St. Mcholas' Hospital. Old Sarum; Amesbury ; 
 
 Stonehenge. Wilton House (pictures) and Ch. ; Bemerton ; Longford 
 
 Castle (pictures) ; Wardour Castle (pictures, ruins) ; Clarendon ; 
 
 Trafalgar House ; Bishopston Ch. ; Groveley Works ; Yarnbury ; 
 
 Compton Housp. 
 Tisbury. — Wardour Castle ; Hindon ; Fonthill. 
 
 Heytesbury. — House (pictures) ; Ch. ; Cotley Hill ; Knook Castle ; Scratch- 
 bury ; Battlebury ; Oldbury ; Boyton Ch. 
 
 Warminster. — Cley Hill ; Longleat (pictures) ; Horningsham ; Maiden 
 Bradley. 
 
 Wesfbury. — Ch. ; Iron Foundries ; Bratton Castle ; Edington Ch. ; Hey- 
 wood House. 
 
 DORSETSHIRE. 
 
 I. Physical Features. 
 
 Dorsetshire has been justly described as perhaps in a small compass 
 the most representative of Southern English counties." Its classical 
 division is into Felix, Petraea, and Deserta, — the happy vales, the stony 
 heights, and the deserted heaths. The only doubt is as to the classifi- 
 cation of the chalk ; but if we may place it under the second head, we 
 have a general description of the physical features of the county ; and 
 the three Latin epithets may be geologically translated into the clays, 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Physical Features, 
 
 xxxiii 
 
 the chalks, and the sands. Between Lyne and Sherborne, scenery of 
 this kind popularly associated with Devonshire occurs, such as Devon- 
 shire itself can only provide on a larger scale ; while the chalk downs 
 of the East are equally characteristic, and the coast line presents at 
 Lyme, Portland, and Purbeck curiously independent beauties. 
 
 Felix, — The county has been blessed, perhaps, above measure. It 
 boasts of the title of " the garden of England." It has been described, 
 "both for rider and for abider, one of the pleasantest counties in 
 England and a royal critic, who had seen many lands, and never said 
 a foohsh thing, declared, on returning from Plymouth, " that he had 
 never seen a finer country in England or out of it." Charles II. was 
 returning from Plymouth — that is, took a western view of the county ; 
 and it is in the west that the eulogy is most deserved. There are the 
 rich genial marlstone soils in the neighbourhood of Bridport and Bea- 
 minster, drained by the Brit, in which no system of cropping is observed 
 because they can bear anything and grow anything. Nor need the 
 Marshwood Vale, drained by the Char, be excepted, though its clay be 
 cold and distinguished above all others in the county in stiffness, for it 
 is thence that the best Dorset butter is sent to London. The wheat is 
 excellent, and there is not a stone in the whole vale. "They are 
 obliged to send for stones to Bothenhampton to mend their roads." 
 The oak timber in it is of a large growth and excellent quality. There, 
 too, is the vale of the Dorset feeders of the Yeo about Halstock, 
 Chetnole, and Yetminster, of the Yeo itself at Sherborne. There, 
 too, is the vale of Blackmoor, or the country between the hills about 
 Lillington, the Caundles, and Stalbridge on the N. and W., and the 
 Dorset chalk heights on the S. and E., watered by the W. and E. 
 branches of the many-branched Lidden, with the Cale between them ; 
 a fine rich grazing and dairy district, which will rear oxen as bulky as 
 those in the rich sandstone vales and alluvial marshes of Somerset, and 
 grow such oaks as may be seen at Hermitage, Middle Marsh, Glanville's 
 Wootton, Buckland, Mappowder, and Melcombe Park, and hardly else- 
 where in the W. ; iDut in the centre of it more suitable for hunting 
 than for residence. No towns, hardly any villages, are in it. Buckhorn- 
 Weston in N., Lidlinch at the bend of the valley, Hoi well, Holnest, 
 Leigh, Chetnole in S. portion of it, complete the catalogue. 
 
 At Parnham, near Beaminster, at Dewlish, Bingham's Melcombe, 
 and round Bridport, very fine elm timber is grown, which implies a lighter 
 soil than the oak. At West Woodyates is a magnificent walnut tree, 
 planted more than a century ago by the then Lord Londonderry, which 
 the tenant used to call his hundred-pound tree, as it yielded him a 
 per cent, in walnuts annually. 
 
 The river system corresponds with its vales; that of Blackmoor 
 watered by the Lidden and Cale ; those of the Yeo^ which flows N. into 
 the Parrett and the Bristol Channel; of the Axe, which bounds the 
 county on W. for some miles ; of the Char, which rises near Pillesdon 
 I^en and empties at Charmouth ; of the Brit, which rises on the S. 
 chalk slopes near Beaminster, and flows into Bridport Harbour ; of the 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] c 
 
xxxiv 
 
 Physical Featured, 
 
 iiitrod* 
 
 Bredy, which has a similar origin, and joins the sea at the W. end of 
 the Chesil Bank. " Felix " is perhaps one-fourth of the county. 
 
 Petrcea, — The chalk enters the county between Cranborne Chase and 
 Shaftesbury in N.E., extends to Beaminster in the S.W., thence to 
 Abbotsbury in S., and touches the sea at Swyre Head (near Lul worths 
 and Ballard Down (separating Swanage and Studland bays), two note- 
 worthy points, 18 miles apart, on either side of the Isle of Purbeck. The 
 central mass, about one-third of the county, is divisible, like that in 
 Wilts, into N. and S. downs, the river Stour being the boundary, and 
 Blandford the capital of the N., Dorchester of the S. portion. The chief 
 eminences on the N, escarpment are Hod Hill, Hambledon Hill, Okeford 
 Hill, Bell Hill, Bulbarrow (927 feet). White Hill, Great and Little 
 Ball, Bevels, Dogberry, High Stoy (891 feet), Evershot, Eampishani 
 Down, Horn Hill (this, with the exception of some outlying masses, 
 indicating its former more extensive prevalence, is the W. extremity 
 of the chalk). x\long the S. escarpment are Chilfrome Down, Eggar- 
 don. Little Bredy Down, Black Down (817 feet), Whaddon Down, 
 Bincombe Down, Chalbury, Chaldon Down. The highest hills in 
 the Purbeck portion are Swyre Hill (669 feet). Nine Barrow Down 
 (642 feet). Corfe Castle is, from its isolation, the most striking. Lewes- 
 don Pen (960 feet) and Pillesdon Pen (940 feet), W. of Beaminster, are 
 the highest points in the county. The chalk hills, though to some 
 extent similar in feature to those of Wiltshire, have not the same broad 
 flat downs, but consist of comparatively narrow ridges, from the tops 
 of which the sea can be seen to the south, and the hills of North Dorset 
 and Somerset to the north. They are crowned, as elsewhere, with 
 camps and earthworks, such as Maiden Castle and Poundbury, near 
 Dorchester ; Weatherbury Castle, near Milborne St. Andrew's ; Hamble- 
 don and Hod Hills, not far from Blandford; Badbury Kings, near 
 Sturminster Marshall ; Eawlsbury near Bulbarrow, and others. 
 
 If to the chalk you add the sea-coast, S. of a line drawn from Bridport 
 in W. to Ballard Down in E. (though you must except and assign to 
 Deserta the belt of 'Hastings Sand between Worbarrow and Swanage 
 bays) you have " Petrcea^^ or half of the county. 
 
 As usual, the streams intersect the chalk ridges. The Stour is the 
 chief river of the chalk, and of the county. Kising on the borders of 
 Wilts, Somerset, and Dorset, at Stourhead, it receives the two branches 
 of the Bidden and the Cale, and enters the chalk by a transverse fissure 
 between Okeford Hill and Hod Hill at Stowerpaine, passes directly 
 through the chalk by Blandford to Wimborne, where it is joined by 
 the Allen, which also has made its way through the chalk from Cran- 
 borne Chase and Pentridge Hill in N. by St. Giles and the Crichels. 
 Almost parallel with the Stour, 10 miles W., is the Trent or Piddle, 
 rising in Alton on the S. side of the N. escarpment by Little and Great 
 Ball Hill, giving its name to Piddle- trenthide, -hinton, and -town, Tol-, 
 and Aff-piddle, in its course. Again, further W, the Frome, similarly 
 rising in S. side of N. escarpment between Corscombe and Evershot, 
 receives tributaries from B^impisham Down on W. ; and the Cerne from 
 
JOorsetshire* 
 
 Geology, 
 
 xxxV 
 
 Revels Hill on E. passing Dorchester, unites with the Piddle on entering 
 Poole PI arbour, the common estuary of the two rivers, having between 
 them Wareham, which gives to them the name of the Wareham N. 
 and Wareham S. streams. 
 
 Bes&rta is another quarter of the county on E., "a thousand fur- 
 longs [once] of sea, [now] of barren ground, ling, heath, furze, any- 
 thing." It is an equilateral (18 miles either side) triangle, of which 
 the points are Cranborne, Dorchester, Studland. Wareham is in the 
 centre of it. The N. portion of it drains through the Stour into 
 Christchurch Bay, the remainder through the Piddle and Frome, all 
 chalk-streams in their origin, into Poole Harbour. 
 
 II. Geology. 
 
 In one particular Dorsetshire geology is noteworthy. Three purely 
 provincial names — Kimmeridge clay, Portland oolite, and Purbeck 
 stone — are typical formations, and have taken their place among 
 geological terms. The range of rocks is not so extensive as that of 
 Somersetshire, but is perfect and continuous, as far as it goes, from the 
 Bagshot sands down to the lias — that is to say, throughout the lower 
 eocene, the cretaceous, and tlie oolitic systems ; there is not an important 
 member of the series missing. The economic uses of these rocks are 
 various. The quarries of Portland have provided a breakwater at their 
 foot, the casing and forts of which are also built of it. They have given 
 to London many of its finest buildings— St. Paul's Cathedral, and many 
 other of Sir Christopher Wren's churches, Goldsmiths' Hall, and the 
 Pteform Club House. The dark colour and high polish of Purbeck shell 
 marble may be seen in the slender shafts and columns of the Temple 
 Church, St. Mary's Redcliffe, Wells, Gloucester, and Salisbury Cathedrals, 
 in which last, however, though not exposed to the outer air, it has been 
 found to scale, and is being replaced by Devonshire marble. The free- 
 stone at Marnhull has been used in the neighbouring churches, and the 
 greensand of Shaftesbury, Cerne Abbas, and elsewhere on the margin of 
 the chalk, affords good building materials. The chert is used for rough 
 building purposes, and is excellent material for roads. The clay pits 
 between Wareham and Corfe yield annually thousands of tons of fine 
 clay to the manufacturers of Staffordshire and Scotland, and even of 
 Spain and Holland. The Smedmore shale of the Kimmeridge clay 
 used to furnish both naphtha for lamps and carbon for the disinfection 
 of manure ; but in the former respect it has been superseded by the 
 American oils. The chalk makes the best of lime. The lias also has 
 an economic use in making hydraulic cement. But it is in its fossil 
 remains, whether animal or vegetable, such as the saurians in the lias 
 at Charmouth and Lyme, or the oolite bed of Portland, that the geo- 
 logy of Dorset is most interesting. 
 
 The lower lias and marlstone are found in the W., flowing round the 
 chalk of the Blackdown Hills, Pillesdon Pen, Lewesdon Hill, Coneygore 
 Hill, Stonebarrow Hill, and some other such islands, to the sea from 
 
 c 2 
 
xxxvi 
 
 Geology. 
 
 Ilitrod. 
 
 Lyme to Bridport. To tins belong the valleys of the Char and Brit. 
 The lower oolitic sands, rubbly freestone, forest marble, and cornbrasli, 
 in the E. of the county, descend from Somerset in a waving band 
 between Stalbridge and Sherborne. A low line of hills E. of Yeovil, of 
 which Babylon Hill is the centre, belongs to them. They pass south- 
 ward by Bradford Abbas, Lillington, Byme, Yetminster, Closeworth, 
 Melbury, and Halstock, skirb the chalk by S. Perrot, Mosterton, Bea- 
 minster, and Powerstock, and so to the sea at Burton Bradstock ; then 
 along the coast by Puncknoll, Langton Herring, and Eadipole. 
 
 At the halfway house between Yeovil and Sherborne there is a 
 quarry, which should be visited for its intrinsic interest, and as offering 
 a tjq^ical section of the lower oolite in Dorset. Underneath the super- 
 ficial mould are 9 feet of freestone, called by the quarry men " white 
 lamas," and beneath that a fossil band of about 2 feet ; then a bed 
 of hard blue stone about 4 feet, with sands underneath them. 
 
 The line of road, from 2 miles N. of Wincanton, in Somersetshire, to 
 1 mile S. of Stalbridge, in Dorsetshire, about 12 miles, traverses 
 exclusivel}^, with two unimportant exceptions, a narrow^ band (less than 
 half a mile broad) of cornbrash, passing through the villages of North 
 and South Clierington, Horsington, Templecombe, and Henstridge. 
 
 There is a valley, about 4 miles broad, stretching from Wincanton 
 soutliAvard for 9 miles ; then turning westward ibr 11 miles as far as 
 Melbury Osmund, and lying for 15 miles between oolitic hills, — the 
 cornbrash road just mentioned on the W., and coral rag where the 
 Stours (W. E.and Provost), Marnlmll, Sturminster Newton, and Plasel- 
 bury are situated on the E. ; and for 5 miles between oolitic hills 
 on N., and chalk and greensand on S. This valley, in fact the Black- 
 moor vale, watered by the Gale, in the portion leading southward, by the 
 western branch of the Bidden in its western portion, is Oxford clay. 
 There are inconsiderable spots of Oxford clay on the S. — indeed, Mel- 
 combe liegis is on it — but this favourite watering-place ow^es its popu- 
 larity to other causes than its geological position. Weymouth and 
 Wyke Eegis, close by, are on the coral rag. 
 
 In the N. bulge of the county, and between coral rag and chalk, is a 
 mass of Kimmeridge clay, in which Gillingham, Motcombe, and Shilling 
 Okeford are situated. Here is the E. branch of the Bidden, uniting 
 with the Gale at Stalbridge Mill, and with the W. Bidden at King's 
 Mill, and thence pursuing its course through Sturminster Newton and 
 Biandford. But the spot from which this rock derives its name is on 
 the E. part of Weymouth Bay, reaching as far as St. Aldhelm's Head. 
 It is also the base on which the Portland stone rests, and is seen at 
 Portland Ferry and in N. of the island. It contains an inflammable oil, 
 which renders it so combustible that it is called Kimmeridge coal, is 
 used as fuel, and even sometimes takes fire spontaneously. 
 
 Besides the coral rag and calcareous grit already mentioned, there 
 are sections of these strata on the coast at Weymouth and Wyke Regis, 
 and a band of it about a half mile broad, overlooking Weymouth Bay 
 from Abbotsbury on W. to Jordan Hill on E. 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Geology. 
 
 xxxvii 
 
 The Portland ooHte, with the Portland sands underlying it, is found 
 in the island whence it takes its name, in spots of Weymouth Bay, at 
 Kingstead, Durdle Door, and the portals of Lulworth Cove. The fossil 
 contents of the Portland oolite — shells, saurian bones, and coniferous 
 wood — are of the highest interest. The Purbeck marble next occurs in 
 the so-called isle of that name, first in a narrow band on the W., then 
 spreading from Kingston and Worth Matravers to Durlstone Bay and 
 Peverel Point. To the N. it is bounded by a band, about a mile broad, 
 of Hastings sand and Weald clay, from Worbarrow Bay on W. to 
 Swanage Bay on E., with Corfe Castle in the centre. Between them 
 the chalk, greensand, and Weald clay are parallel and nearly straight 
 lines, running W. and E. across the Isle of Purbeck. 
 
 The greensand makes well-nigh the circuit of the county, in the 
 usual irregular and ragged fringe to the chalk. Entering from Wiltshire 
 at Shaftesbury in N., it proceeds S. for 9 miles as far as the bottom of 
 Hod HUl and the 2 Okefords (Child and Fitzpaine), thence westward 
 for 34 miles to the very limits of the county at Lewesdon and Pillcsdon 
 Pen, the highest points in the county ; then turning S.E. b}^ Beaminster, 
 and running for 48 miles, it makes its exit at the N. side of Swanage Bay. 
 A line drawn from this }X)int to Hod Hill measures 22 miles. In the 
 N. slopes, where it enters the chalk, the fertile nooks and valleys of 
 the greensand are full of interest and beauty. One such valley is 
 traversed by the railway from Evershot to Maiden Newton, whence 
 branch others to the W. ; another such valley extends from Minterne 
 to Cerne Abbas ; another contains the two Melcombes. The central mass 
 of Dorset chalk occupies one-third of its area, extending from Pentridge 
 in the N.E. to the neighbourhood of Beaminster and Abbotsbury in the 
 S.W. (this country is full of faults) ; thence proceeding S., it touches 
 the sea at Swyrehead and Ballard Down. Its course from Abbotsbury 
 to Swyrehead, 15 miles, is determined by a great W. and E. fault, 
 which brings it into contact with Purbeck beds, Portland stone and 
 sand, and Kimmeridge clay. These two points, 18 miles apart, are 
 noteworthy. Thence, with a curve inland, it reappears and forms the 
 bold head of St, Aldhelm, extending along the coast as far as Diuiston 
 Head. 
 
 The tertiary system corresponds with Deserta, which has already been 
 described as an equilateral triangle, of which the sides (each 18 miles) 
 are from Cranborne to Piddletown Heath (within 2 miles of Dorchester), 
 thence to Studland, and thence to Cranborne again. It consists of 
 plastic clay bordering the chalk all the way from Cranborne to Piddletown 
 Heath, and thence to the sea at Swyrehead and Studland. To this 
 succeed London clay and Bognor beds, also in bands and spots, 
 Wimborne Minster occupying" one of them. In the centre of the 
 triangle, with a base extending along the coast from Studland to Poole, 
 are Bagsliot sands. 
 
 The local museums at Dorchester, Weymouth, and Corfe Castle 
 3houl(l be visited, 
 
xxxviii 
 
 Description, &c.- — Antiquities, 
 
 Introd, 
 
 III. Descriptiojt, Communications, Industrial Eesources. 
 
 Dorsetshire — in the Saxon Chronicles Borsceta, in Domesday 
 Dorsete — takes its name from the original inhabitants, the Dorsaetas ; 
 who, in turn, derive their appellation in its Latinized form of Duro- 
 triges, waterside dwellers, from the two British words, Dwr = water, 
 and tre, a place or dwelling ; probably because the head-quarters of the 
 tribe were by the side of some inlet or piece of water ; perhaps the Poole 
 inlet, running up to Wareham. On the N.E., it is bounded by 
 Wiltshire ; on the E., by Hampshire ; on the N.W., by Somersetshire ; 
 and on the W., by Devonshire. The sea is its southern boundary. 
 The length from E. to W. is 55 m., and its breadth from N. to S., 
 owing to its irregular outline, varies from 5 m. to 40 m. It contains 
 an area of 615,783 acres, or about 962 sq. m. Its population in 1871 
 was 195,774 ; in 1881, 190,975 persons. 
 
 The chief resources of Dorsetshire are agricultural. The dairy 
 produce is large; and there is a great deal of corn grown. About 
 13ridport hemp is much cultivated, to supply the rope and twine works 
 of that town. There are silk-throwing mills at Sherborne, and else- 
 where. The ship and yacht builders of Poole are favourably known. 
 Poole is the chief port of the county. Its trade is almost entirely 
 coasting. The quarries of Purbeck and Portland are of great celebrity 
 for their excellent building stone. There is a very extensive manu- 
 facture of pottery and tiles in the vicinity of "Wareham and Poole, and 
 potters'-clay and pipe-clay are largely dug, and exported from the same 
 district. 
 
 The southern part of the county is traversed from E. to W. by the 
 South- Western Kailway, which runs by Wimborne and Wareham to 
 Dorchester ; where it is joined by a branch of the Great Western from 
 Yeovil, which continues S. to Weymouth and Portland. Branches are 
 thrown off to Poole, and at Maiden Newton to Bridport. The Somer- 
 set and Dorset line traverses the western part of the county from N.W. 
 to S.E., running from Temple Combe, by Sturminster and Blandford, 
 to Wimborne. The main line of the South- Western Kailway runs 
 through the N. of this county for a short distance, in the neighbour- 
 hood of Sherborne. 
 
 IV. Antiquities— British, Koman. 
 
 Few parts of England can show so many remnants of primitive 
 antiquity as Dorsetshire, or indicate so clearly what Britain must 
 have been before the invasion of the Komans. No less than 25 
 hill fortresses of (probably) pr£e-Eoman date are enumerated by 
 Hutchins. The grandest specimen of these — hardly to be equalled 
 in England — is Maiden Castle, near Dorchester- After this, we may 
 jnention Badbury Rings, near Wimborne (Mons Badonicus), Eggardon, 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Antiquities. 
 
 xxxix 
 
 near Bridport ; Flowers Barrow, near Lulwortli ; Rawlsbury Eings, near 
 Bulbarrow ; Hod Hill and HamlDledon Hill, overlooking the valley of the 
 Stour ; Woodbury and Weatherbury ; and Pillesdon. 
 
 The hills are studded with sepulchral barrows, which have been, 
 almost without exception, opened and ransacked. A full account of 
 them may be found in Mr. Sydenham's paper on 'The Dorsetshire 
 Barrows ' ('ArchaBologia,' vol. xxx.), and Mr. C. Warne*s ' Celtic Tumuli 
 of Dorset.' The " Cerne Giant " may also be mentioned as probably of 
 Celtic date. The Dorsetshire tumuli are distinguished for the paucity 
 and simplicity of their contents ; some few, which are non-sepulchral, 
 are simple cenotaphs. The body was either buried entire or burnt, 
 and the few whitened bones encased in a cist or urn, and placed in the 
 centre of the mound, sometimes covered by a flat stone, or packed round 
 with flints. The prevailing form is the bowl-shaped tumulus, 
 frequently surrounded by a shallow fosse, with a slight external vallum. 
 The bell-shaped tumulus is less common. Twin barrows are of 
 occasional occurrence. The most beautiful form is the Druid or disc- 
 shaped barrow, of which the best examples are at Woodyatcs, Long- 
 bredy, and Winterbourne. The long barrow is seldom seen, but it is 
 found at Bere Kegis, Blandford, and Pimperne, at Chettle and the 
 Gussages. The whole are purely Celtic. A complete iNccropolis at 
 Eimbury, in the parish of Sutton Poyntz, was examined by Mr. 
 "Warne, when nearly 100 urns were exhumed, and a large number of 
 skeletons found placed singularly under the urns. This was evidently 
 thg burial-place of the powerful tribe which occupied the adjacent 
 hill-fortress of Chalbury. 
 
 Dorsetshire abounds in the traces of the dwellings of the original 
 Celtic or British inhabitants. These are sometimes mere pits or 
 hollows in the turf, which formed the base of a wattled hut. The best 
 examples are found at Bondsleigh, Ibberton Park, and near Jackman's 
 Cross. The traces of more extensive villages are seen at Melcombe 
 Horsey, and on the downs of Affpiddle, Askerswell, Cattistock, East- 
 bury, or Tarrant-Hinton. Those on Blandford Down, E. of the old tele- 
 graph, and the site Vindogladia (Gussage Cow Down), may be dignified 
 with the appellation of towns. Of fortified towns the best examples 
 are Badbury, Bindon Hill, Buzbury, and Chalbury. 
 
 Roman remains are frequently to be met with scattered over the 
 county. The Via Iceniana (Icknield way) traversed the county from 
 Sorbiodunum (Old Sarum) to Durnovaria (Dorchester) and thence 
 westwards to Exeter, with vicinal ways to Ischalis (Ilchester) on the 
 Fosseway, Moridunum (perhaps Seaton), and Clavinium (Jordan Hill, 
 near Weymouth), and Lyme. The best preserved castra are at 
 Cattistock, Duntish, Hod Hill (within the Celtic camp), and Milborne. 
 Dorchester, by its plan and the remains of its fortifications, declares 
 itself Roman "castra stativa." The amphitheatre of Maumbury is 
 undoubtedly a Roman work. Poundbury Camp may be so also, but is 
 perhaps Danish. The tessellated pavements at Dorchester, Weymouth, 
 Sherborne, Dewlish, Rampisham, and Frampton, speak of a long and 
 
xl 
 
 ArcMtecture, 
 
 Introd 
 
 peaceful Roman occupation. Mosaic pavements have been also dis- 
 covered at Lenthay Green, Halstock, Preston, &c. 
 
 There are few unmistakeable marks of the Saxon settlement beyond 
 the local names, and there is still less that can be assigned to the 
 .Danish marauders, though Wareham and its vicinity so frequently 
 suffered from their devastating inroads. The finest Saxon tumuli are 
 on the downs at Woodyates. The walls of Wareham have been attri- 
 buted to the same period, but are more probably British. I 
 
 Poundbury is ranked by Mr. Warne among Danish camps, and the 
 Long Bury Barrow near Slaughtergate in Gillingham parish among 
 Danish barrows. 
 
 V. Aechitectuke and Churches. / 
 Architecture. 
 
 L Military. — With the magnificent exception of Corfe, one of the 
 very finest remains of military architecture in England, and Sherborne, 
 which still preserves considerable remains of Bishop Roger's Norman 
 IJeep and Gatehouse, the castles of Dorsetshire have almost en- 
 tirely passed away, leaving little beyond grassy mounds and some 
 fragments of walls. At Dorchester and Shaftesbury we have merely 
 the site ; at Wareham one angle of a rectangular enclosure, and slight 
 remains at Sturminster-Newton. A considerable portion of Bow- 
 and- Arrow Castle, Portland, is standing. Portland, Sandsfoot ^nd 
 Lulworth castles are of the 16th cent. 
 
 II, Domestic. — Dorsetshire is very rich in picturesque stone houscjs. 
 Almost every village ofiers some examples of more or less value, nor are 
 there wanting buildings of high architectural interest. The chief are-*- 
 
 Fourteentli Cent. — Woodsford Castle, a most interesting and perfei^t 
 example, sufficient to atone for the absence of others of this date. 1 
 Fifteenth Cent. — Parnham ; Sherborne. \ 
 Sixteenth Cent. — Athelhampton ; Bingham's Melcombe, Canford Manoi' 
 (part) ; Clifton Maubank ; Maperton ; Melbury ; Melcombe Horsey ; 
 Sherborne, Almshouse, &c. ; Wimborne St. Giles ; Winterborn^ 
 Herringstone ; Wolveton, Hanford, Cranborne, Lower Walterston, 
 Chantmarle, Upper Cerne. 
 
 Of more modern mansions, some of much architectural value, we 
 may name Bryanston, Canford Manor, Charborough, Kingston Lacy, i 
 More Crichel, Over Compton, Sherborne Lodge. j 
 
 III. jMoms^^'c— Sherborne Minster deserves the first place among [ 
 the monastic foundations of Dorsetshire. The magnificent church ' 
 is perfect, and some interesting remains of the conventual buildings are 
 incorporated in the grammar school. Of Wimborne only the church 
 exists ; of Milton Abbas, the church and the abbot's hall. The 
 foundations alone remain of Bindon Abbey. Of Cerne Abbey we have 
 part of the abbot's house, a fine gatehouse, and barn. At Abbotsbury, 
 the barn and part of the gatehouse. Ford Abbey preserves, in the 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Churches — Places of Interest, 
 
 xii 
 
 fabric of a modern house, large portions of the cloister and conventual 
 buildings of a Cistercian foundation. 
 
 Churches. 
 
 Here the prevailing style is Perpendicular. Many churches seem 
 at first sight to exhibit this style alone, in which specimens of the 
 other styles may be found in individual features. In some jDarts of the 
 county there is abundance of good stone, and the churches are often 
 well finished externally ; but in others flints are much used, sometimes 
 chequered with stone. 
 
 In the Isle of Purbeck, and near the coast, Norman work often 
 occurs, and there are a few small churches, which are pretty complete 
 specimens of that kind, as Studland and Worth. There is also good 
 Early English work to be found, especially in chancels, as at Buckland 
 Newton. 
 
 Of Decorated there seems to be less than of any other style, though 
 there is a fine example of it in portions of Milton Abbey. 
 
 On the borders of Somersetshire, the Perpendicular is richer 
 and the execution better. The towers approximate to the orna- 
 mental character peculiar to that county, but they are generally of 
 a good style throughout Dorset, almost invariably having a turret on 
 one side and often pinnacles. The sj^ire is very rare. Iwerne Minster 
 and Winterborne Stecpleton are perhaps the only ancient specimens. 
 Panelled belfry arches with groined tower ceilings are very common 
 in the western district, and also rich and elegant pierced parapets. 
 
 The churches are not generally very large, with the exceptions of 
 the minsters of Sherborne and Wimborne, which last has a central and 
 a western tower, and they often have but one aisle. There is usually 
 a chancel arch, but in most cases the clerestory is wanting. The 
 roofs are often coved, and arc sometimes of a rich character, as at 
 Bere Kegis and Marnhull. There are crosses at Eampisham, Sher- 
 minster Marshall and Stalbridge. There is not mach screen-work, 
 and perhaps no rood-loft, though the rood-steps are generally found. 
 There are several instances of hagioscopes, but the sedilia, piscin£e, &c., 
 are not usually of remarkable character. Some tolerable pieces of 
 painted glass are to be found, and several early fonts. 
 
 Sepulchral brasses are rare, but there are some fine tombs and some 
 good monumental effigies. 
 
 VI. Places of Interest. 
 
 Shaftesbury — St. Peter's Ch. ; Views from Park, and Castle Hill ; Cran- 
 borne Chase. 
 
 Wimborne. — Minster; Canford Manor; Kingston Lacy (pictures); Bad- 
 bury Rings; Charborough House More Orichel; St. Giles' Park; 
 Woodlands ; Monmouth's Ash ; Horton. 
 
 Foole. — Harbour ; Tile Works ; Branksea Island ; Bournemouth. Excur- 
 sion to S\yanage and Corfe. 
 
xlii 
 
 Phjsical Features, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 WareMm. — Ch. ; Engraved Stones ; Walls. Corfe Castle Creech Barrow ; 
 Creech Grange ; Swanage. 
 
 Wool, — Bindon Abbey ; Lulworth Castle ; Winfrith ; Lulworth Cove. 
 Bere Kegis. Pits on Affpiddle Heath. 
 
 Dorchester. — St. Peter's Ch. ; Fordington Ch. ; Tessellated Pavement in 
 Gaol ; Museum ; Walks round Walls ; Amphitheatre ; Poundbury ; 
 Wolveton ; Charminster ; Maiden Castle ; Herringstone ; Blackdown ; 
 Hardy's Monument ; Nine-Stones ; Hellstone ; Bridehead ; Kingston 
 Kussell. Woodsford Castle (near Moreton Station). Cerne Abbas, 
 Remains of Abbey ; Puddletown ; Athelhampston. Walterston. 
 
 Weymouth. — Sandsfoot Castle ; Wyke Ch. ; Chesil Bank ; Isle of Portland ; 
 Verne Ford ; Breakwater ; Quarries ; Convict Establishment ; Port- 
 land Castle ; Bow and Arrow Castle ; Caves Hole. — Abbotsbury, 
 Swannery, Decoy, St. Catherine's Chapel.^ Chalbury; Osmington. 
 Excursion to Lulworth Cove, and Swanage. 
 
 Isle of Purhech. — Swanage ; Studland Ch. ; Agglestone ; Corfe Castle ; 
 Godlingstone ; Quarries ; Tilly Whim ; St. Aldhelm's Head and 
 Chapel; Encombe; Kingston Ch., Kimmeridge; Gadcliff; Worbarrow 
 Bay; Lulworth Castle; Flower's Barrow; Arish Mell; West Lul- 
 worth Cove ; Durdle Door. 
 
 Brldport. — Ch. ; Old Houses ; Rope Walks. Eggardon Hill ; Burton Brad- 
 stock ; Charmouth ; Whitchurch ; Vale of Marshwood. 
 
 Beaminster. — Ch. ; Parnham House ; Broad Windsor ; Lewesdon and Pil- 
 lesdon hills. 
 
 Lyme Begis.—Ch,; Cobb; Saurian Remains; Pinhay Landslip; Conie 
 Castle ; Lambert's Castle ; Uplyme. 
 
 Maiden Newton. — Ch. ; Frampton Ch. and House ; Wynford Eagle ; Ram- 
 pisham Ch. ; Chantmarle House ; Melbury House and Park. 
 
 Blandford. — Bryanston ; Camps of Hod Hill, Hambledon Hill, Buzbury, 
 Crawford Castle. Iwerne Minster ; Fontmell Magna ; Milton Abbey ; 
 Bulbarrow ; Rawlsbury. 
 
 Sturminster.—CeistlG ; Marnhull Ch. ; Nash Court (pictures). 
 
 Stalhridge. — Ch. ; Cross ; View from Park ; Vale of Blackmoor. 
 
 Sherborne. — Minster ; Grammar School ; Hospital ; Castle ; Lodge (pic- 
 tures) ; Cemetery. Lewston Park ; Dungeon ; Round Chimneys ; 
 Glanville's Wootton Ch. 
 
 SOMERSETSHIRE. 
 
 L Physical Featuees. 
 
 The county, though its physical aspect is much varied, naturally 
 arranges itself in three main divisions; a central hasin between two 
 hilly districts, one on the W., the other on the N.E. The Mendips and 
 Quantocks are the E. and W. boundaries of the central portion, which is 
 in fact co-terminous with the physical basin watered by the Parrett, the 
 
Somersetsliire. Physical Features. 
 
 xliii 
 
 Brue, and the Axe, or the Bridgwater Level, as it is sometimes called ; 
 and contains no elevations other than the low-lying Polden Hills (about 
 300 feet high, and 20 miles long), and such islands as Brent Knoll, 
 Glastonbury Tor, Wearyall Hill, Wells Tor, and the like, rising out 
 of the flat alluvial deposit. It is generally describable as an irregular 
 parallelogram, about fifteen miles either Avay, divided into two parts by 
 the Poldens. The division between the Polden Hills and the Mendips 
 includes Glastonbury turf-moor, while the other division, to the west of 
 the Polden Hills, contains King's Sedgemoor. 
 
 The hilly district on W. consists of the Quantock Hills, of which 
 Will's Neck, the highest point, reaches 1270 feet. The other chief 
 heights are — Thorncombe Barrow, Huxley Beacon, Danesborough (1022 
 feet), Fire Beacon, BagbaiTOw Station, Cothelston (1060 feet), and Ban- 
 combe Hill. The Quantocks are about 14 miles long, and 4 or 5 wide. 
 The steep escarpment on the western face is in a great measure occupied 
 by woods and plantations. The eastern slope is more gradual, and is 
 intersected by the beautiful valleys of the Seven Wells and Hunter's 
 Combe. Also in W. are the Brendon Hills, among which are Haddon 
 Hill (1140 feet) and Dimkery Beacon, the highest point in Somerset 
 (1697 feet). The Brendons are connected on N. with the bold head of 
 Bossington Beacon, Porlock Hill, and the coast line ; on the W. with 
 the forest of Exmoor, the connecting ranges of which arc the Winsford 
 and Hawkridge hills. 
 
 The elevation of Dunkery, though in itself inconsiderable and of an 
 easy gradient, is relatively commanding. From its top you may see 
 right through Somersetshire, from end to end, some 60 miles. The 
 curious physical feature of central Somerset — islands of hill rising from 
 the flat, such as Brent Knoll, Glastonbury Tor, Brean Down, and Worle 
 Hill — is conspicuous. The entire coast line from Weston to Lynton is 
 traceable, except where Minehead interrupts it. 
 
 The N.E. hilly district is very different in its character from that in 
 the West. With the exception of the Mendips, it does not consist of 
 distinct lines of hill, but of irregularly disposed heights which gradually 
 slope away to the rivers Frome and Avon, which drain the district on 
 the north. The Mendips from Whatley, near Frome, in E., to Brean 
 Down in W., are about 34 miles long, rising in some parts to more 
 than 1000 feet. Their chief heights are Worle Hill, near Weston, 
 Banwell, Sandford, Dolberry, Burrington Ham, Wavering Down, Shut- 
 shelve, Blackdown, North Hill, Pen Hill, Milton Hill (above Wells), 
 Maesbury Castle, and Beacon Hill (above Shepton Mallet). The straight 
 sky-line of the Mendips, interrupted in W. by the Cheddar gorge, is one 
 ot the most striking features to the eye. The chief of the irregular hills 
 are in the neighbourhood of Bath and Bristol, such as Falkland Knoll, 
 near Norton St. Philip ; Lansdown (813 feet), Claverton, Combe, and 
 Odd Downs, near Bath; .Dundry (790 feet), Broadfield Down (with its 
 Cleve and Brockley combes), S. of Bristol, and Leigh Down W., with 
 its St. Vincent's Eocks. 
 
 What Dunkery is in the W., Lansdown Racecourse is in the E, The 
 
xliv 
 
 Physiccd Features, 
 
 Introd. 
 
 great oolitic escarpment trends thence l^.E. along the Cotswolds, S.W. to- 
 wards the Mendips, which meet it at right angles : due W. the eye rests 
 on the outlier of Dundry ; due E. it passes over the N.W. Wiltshire valley 
 to the chalk downs hung like a curtain on the horizon. Along the 
 sea coast there are not many bold headlands, but rather easy lines of 
 beach and bay ; sometimes wooded, as at Quantock's Head, almost to 
 the water-line, or ending in a face of low cliff, as at Watchet and Cleeve. 
 The point of Brean Down, a bold bar of mountain limestone, running 
 athwart the six miles of sandy beach which begins at Burnham Church, 
 and Minehead Hill, with its tongue-like termination of Hurlstone Point, 
 are exceptions, to this series of soft scalloped curves of coast line. 
 —(Sat. Rev.) 
 
 The watershed line, sometimes in Somerset, sometimes in Dorset, 
 enters the former county at Alfred's Tower, on the chalk ; passes on the 
 oolites between Wincanton and Bruton by Bratton ; turns south at 
 Milborne Port by Purse Caundle and Glanville's Wootton ; rejoins the 
 chalk again above Glanville's Wootton, and follows it by Evershot, 
 Corscombe, Mosterton, Shave-lane Hill, Wind-whistle Hill, Chard, 
 Combe St. Nicholas, and the Blackdown Hills on the kindred green- 
 sand ; where, leaving the cretaceous series, it passes through the new 
 red sandstone to White-ball Hill, through carboniferous limestone at 
 Hockworthy, joins the Devonian rocks at Clayhanger, and so by the 
 Brendon Hills to Dunkery Beacon and Porlock. Thus are the waters 
 which flow through Somerset and Dorset divided between the Bristol 
 and English Channels. 
 
 The main system of drainage is that of the central basin watered by 
 the Barrett (the principal river in the county, and rising 1 mile beyond 
 its S. border), with its tributaries : — 1. The lie on the left bank ; 2. The 
 Yeo (one source being in Dorset, and the other in Somerset) on the 
 right bank; 3. The Tone (rising in the S. slope of Brendon Hill, and 
 flowing through Taunton Dene) on the left bank ; 4. The Cary (rising 
 near Castle Cary) on the right bank. The Brue, also rising on the 
 border of Dorset and Somerset, and flowing by Bruton and Glaston- 
 bury, cannot be truly called a tributary of the Barrett, but empties 
 into the same estuary as that river, from which it is separated by the 
 low line of the Poldens. The Axe may be said to be appurtenant to 
 the Mendips, rising in Wookey Hole, flowing at their foot, and passing 
 into the Bristol Channel between Uphill and Brean Down. 
 
 The W. hills are watered by the brooks which flow into the sea at 
 Watchet, Dunster, and Porlock. The two sources of the Exe (the 
 Barle and the Exe) are in Exmoor on the very confines of the county. 
 The IST.E. district is drained by the Avon and its tributaries. On 
 entering the county, and before reaching Bath, it receives the Box 
 Brook, the Midford Brook, and the Frome, The Chew joins below 
 Bath above Keynsham, 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 Geology^ 
 
 II. Geology. 
 
 The geology of Somersetshire includes specimens of nearly all the 
 formations which appear on the surface of England from Wales to 
 Norfolk — the Devonian in the hills of Exmoor, Brendon, and Quantock ; 
 the old red sandstone and mountain limestone in Mendip ; the coal- 
 measures among the hills south of Bath; the new red sandstone and 
 marls in the vale of Taunton Dene and at the base of many of the hills ; 
 the lias, which hounds the Bridgwater level like a sea-cliff, or rises out 
 of it in patches like islands, as Brent Knoll; the oolite formations, 
 extending over the south and east of the county ; the greensand and 
 chalk, which appear yet further S. in the Crewkerne and Chard hills, 
 in the Blackdown Hills, and in the tableland between Somerset and 
 Devon; and, lastly, an extensive alluvial deposit, partly covered by 
 peat and fen land, which fills up the Bridgwater Flat. 
 
 This alluvial deposit is partly marine (though this part is small and 
 intermittent), flat mud-banks by the sea-shore, such as the Bridgwater 
 Flat, properly so called ; but chiefly estuarine and fluviatile, such as the 
 Burnham Level, Huntspill Level, the flats from Portishead to Aust 
 Passage, Nailsea and Kenn moors, and others, which extend from 
 Weston to the inland ranges. 
 
 The chalk formation in Somerset occurs but in three outlying 
 patches, extending into the county from Wilts and Dorset, one of 
 greensand just capped with chalk (Koddenbury Hill) on the east side 
 of the Somerset and Weymouth Railway between Frome and Bruton ; 
 another more considerable, of which Cricket St. Thomas is the centre, 
 to the west of Crewkerne, separated by the tributaries of the Axe 
 from the third and larger mass of chalk and greensand, which occupies 
 the country about Chard, and extends over the Blackdown Hills. 
 In these last are found concretionary layers 12 or 18 feet thick, 
 affording the scythe and hone stones which form an important branch 
 of manufacture, and are sent all over the kingdom. Kimmeridge clay 
 forms a narrow ribbon, bordering the chalk from north of Witham 
 Park to south of Pen Selwood. The Oxford clay occupies a considerable 
 extent of the eastern part of the county, from Stand er wick E. of 
 Frome to Henstridge and Stalbridge^ though nearly cut into two parts 
 at Wincanton by the approximation of the cornbrash and coral rag. 
 The lower oolites are found in the isolated hill of Dundry in the 
 north, in the district round Bath, descending in a band, more or less 
 interrupted and irregular, between the Oxford clay and the lias, enter- 
 ing Dorset between Stalbridge and Sherborne, and passing to the south 
 by Yeovil and South Petherton as far as Ilminster. Tney make eleva- 
 tions rounded or flat topped, such as Dundry crowned by its church, 
 Lansdown to the north of Bath, Odd Down to the south of it, Small 
 Down N.E. of Evercreech, and Cadbury Castle, both of which last, capped 
 with Roman entrenchments, overlook the vale land of Mid-Somerset. 
 The lias occupies an important position in the centre of the county ; 
 the flat lands around Dundry, Keynsham, Bath, Timsbury, Stone 
 
xlvi 
 
 Geoiogy. 
 
 Introd* 
 
 Easton, N. and S. of the Mendips, Shepton Mallet, Pilton, Glastonbury, 
 Somerton, Curry Eivell, are a large semicircle of places on the N. edge 
 of the lower lias, which stretches back to the S. as far as Bruton, Castle 
 Cary, Yeovil, Crewkerne, and Ilminster. The Poldens are a tongue of 
 lower lias mounds, rather than hills ; while there are upper lias eleva- 
 tions in the Pennards, Glastonbury Tor, Brent Knoll, and the higher 
 grounds about Yeovil, South Petherton, and Ilminster, all more or less 
 outliers which indicate in their isolation the extensive denudation to 
 which this whole district has been subjected. 
 
 " The district round Ihninster presents considerable variety in its 
 geological character. A bird's eye view, taken from N.W. of the town, 
 would show at no great distance the lofty range of the Quantocks of 
 Devonian age, while at their base, stretching towards Ilminster, might 
 be found the variegated and red marls of the Keuper. On these, 
 5 miles distant, at Beer Crowcombe, are Khoetic beds. Ptesting on the 
 latter succeed the Saurian and other limestones and marls of the lower 
 lias, which, though in great part covered by drift, reach to the foot of 
 the hill W. of Ilminster. Within half a mile E. the middle and upper 
 lias, on which the observer stands, may be seen passing under the 
 oolitic sands and the inferior oolite, while 2 or 3 miles to the S. the latter 
 are covered by the range of greensand and chalk, which, passing from 
 the neighbourhood of Crewkerne round Chard, is then continued in the 
 
 Blackdown hills of Devonshire The best districts for a study 
 
 of the upper members of the Triassic group in the W. of England are 
 along the numerous escarpments bounding the moorlands of Wedmore, 
 S.W. of the Mendips, along the whole line of the Polden Hills to Bridg- 
 water, and again from Compton Dundon by way of Somerton, Langport, 
 and Hatch Beauchamp, towards Taunton. Throughout the greater 
 part of these districts the lower lias occupies the table-land, the Rhoetic 
 beds coming in immediately beneath, and skirting the edge of the 
 escarpments." — ( C. Moore.) 
 
 The stones in the lower lias are quarried, the large fiat slabs at 
 Kineton are used as sides to cowsheds or piggeries, floors to barns and 
 farm-kitchens, and pavements to streets ; there is a fine grained blue 
 limestone, which will take a j)olisli, and is handsomely marked ; below 
 it is a bed of hard whitish limestone or white lias, belonging to the 
 Rhoetic beds, which is used for mantelpieces by us, and Avas fashioned 
 by the Romans into the tesseree of tessellated floors. 
 
 An important section in the railway cutting at Queen Camel shows 
 a succession of 260 beds, 375 feet thick, every one of which may be 
 identified, and where at one view is seen the passage upward of the 
 Keuper, Rhoetic, and Liassic beds. " The distinction between the two 
 last is so marked, that you may at once place your hand on the upper- 
 most Rhoetic white lias. It extends uninterruptedly from Lyme Regis 
 throughout Somersetshire, and a geologist travelling by express train 
 may readily detect it in the railway cutting at Saltford near Bath." — 
 ((7. Moore). 
 
 The new red sandstones (upper and lower) occupy the country 
 
Somersetshire. Geology, xlvii 
 
 between Dnnclry and the Meiidips ; the Upper Yeo and the Chew flow 
 through them. Crossing the Mendips on the south of the range, they 
 contain Wells, Westbury, Cheddar, and Axbridge ; then, running along 
 the southern base of the Poldens and bordering the lias, they envelop 
 the Quantocks, extend to the N. beyond Minehcad, occupy the country 
 of which Taunton and Wellington are the centres, and finally leave the 
 county, mapping round the edge of the Blackdown Hills^ and filling a 
 great part of the fine vales which are seen stretching in every direction 
 from those heights. The dolomitic conglomerate is found at Bristol, in 
 patches IST. and S. of the Mendips, and at Milverton. 
 
 The Somersetshire coalfield extends from Bristol to the neighbour- 
 hood of Frome on the one hand, and from the suburbs of Bath to the 
 Mendip Hills on the other, covering in all an area of about 150 square 
 miles ; the chief pits are in the Nailsea (now out of work), the Ead- 
 stock, and Fault on districts. Colcford, N. of Leigh-on-Mendip, rests 
 on a band of the millstone grit, nowhere a quarter of a mile broad. 
 " The northern part of the Bristol and Somersetshire coal-field forms 
 a trough lying N. and S., narrowing towards its northern limits, and 
 expanding towards the opposite direction, till E. of Bristol it reaches 
 a width of seven miles ; the beds rise at high angles along and beyond 
 the edge of the basin. South of Bristol the boundary of the coal-field, 
 marked by the range of the limestone hills, sweej^s round to the west- 
 ward, and is lost under the sea beyond Nailsea Moor, near Clevedon, 
 in Somersetshire. South of this the coal-measures underlie the liassic 
 formation of Dundry Hill, and encircle the large mass of carboniferous 
 limestones near Congresbury. Over the greater part of this area the 
 coal- formation is buried at moderate depths under newer horizontal 
 strata."— Hull.) 
 
 The carboniferous limestone is one of the most striking formations 
 in the county ; in the north it occurs on the coast from Portishead 
 to Clevedon, then turning east to Leigh Down, and bending in a 
 northerly direction, leaves the county at Leigh Woods, where it is 
 pierced l3y the gorge of the Avon. There is a group of limestone hills 
 between Blackwell and W^ington ; but the great stretch of this rock 
 is in the Mendips, from Frome on the E. to Brean Down, Worle Hill, 
 and Middle Hope, on the W. by the sea ; continued to the Flat and 
 Steep Holms now actually in the sea ; and to difierent points in Gla- 
 morganshire on the other side of it. The limestone is full of caves and 
 fissures, produced by the action of rain-water full of carbonic acid gas 
 dissolving its substance ; and in several of these cavities bones of extinct 
 animals have been found, as at Banwell and Wookey Hole. The old 
 red sandstone is seen at Little Elm, on the E. extremity of the Mendips, 
 whence it is continued W. for some miles, and is the oldest formation 
 and most elevated portion of this range. Its largest development is 
 N". of Shepton Mallet and Cranmore, and, again, on North Hill and 
 Blackdown. 
 
 The backbone of the Mendips, corresponding to what is now called 
 the " Ridgeway," consists of Old Red, and extends from Shepton Mallet 
 
xlviii 
 
 Descrij^tion^ Communications^ &c» Introd. 
 
 on E. to Wliatley on W. Against this saddleback rests carboniferous 
 limestone at a great angle, in some places vertical. To this succeed the 
 coal-measures at the same angle, with numerous faults running through 
 them ; Old Eed, Khoetic, and Liassic beds are successively deposited 
 horizontally on the upturned edges of the limestone. The mighty 
 agent which caused this disturbance, and uplifted these formations, 
 some 20,000 feet thick, in one place upheaving and doubling back the 
 coal-measures on themselves, so that the coal is worked heneath carbo- 
 niferous limestone, was a volcanic dyke, of which the discovery belongs 
 to Mr. Moore. It emerges from beneath the old red sandstone at E. 
 end, near Stoke Lane ; and E. and W. of a line of which that place is 
 the centre, there is for a distance of 7 miles an uninterrupted anticlinal. 
 From the general physical character of the Mendips, the dyke is pro- 
 bably coextensive with the range. 
 
 To old red sandstone also belon<r the Quantock Hills and all the 
 country W. of Stogumber and Wiveliscombe, including Haddon Down, 
 Brendon and Croydon hills, and so westward to Exmoor. 
 
 The geological collections at Bristol, Taunton, and Bath, should be 
 visited, particularly the latter, which owes its existence and excellence 
 to Mr. C. Moore, a distinguished geologist, no mean " citizen of no mean 
 city." 
 
 HI. Description, Communications, Industrial Kesources. 
 
 Somersetsliire, in the Saxon Chronicles Sumersetescir ; in Domesday 
 Siimersete — derives its name from its early inhabitants, the Sumersaetas. 
 It is a maritime county, bounded on the N.W. by the Bristol Channel ; 
 on the S.W., by Devonshire ; on the S.E. and S., by Dorsetshire ; and on 
 the E., by Wiltshire. Its form is so irregular that it is difficult to 
 give any just estimate of its length and breadth. It comprises an area 
 of 1,083,282 acres, or 1677 sq. m. Its population was in 1871, 463,483 
 persons ; in 1881, 469,010. 
 
 Somersetshire is rich in agricultural produce. Its dairy farms are 
 celebrated, and its cheese, especially that which takes its name from 
 Cheddar, of high excellence. The warmer valleys, especially towards 
 the W., near Taunton, abound in orchards, and a large quantity of 
 cyder is produced. The principal manufactures are those of woollen 
 cloth, worsted, and silk, at Frome, Twerton, and Wellington ; of 
 gloves, at Yeovil, Martock, and Taunton ; of lace, at Chard ; of linen, 
 at Crewkerne ; crape, at Dulverton and Shepton Mallet ; of glass, at 
 ISTailsea ; of bricks, draining-tiles, and the celebrated Bath-brick, at 
 Bridgwater, where are also large engineering works. 
 
 The northern part of this county is traversed by the Great Western 
 and Bristol and Exeter Eailways from Bath to Wellington, by Bristol, 
 Bridgwater, and Taunton; which send off branches N. to Portishead, 
 Clevedon, Weston-super-Mare, Burnham, and Watchet; and S.E. from 
 Yatton to Axbridge, Cheddar and Wells; from Durston to Yeovil; 
 and from Taunton to Chard. The centre of the county is intersected 
 by the Somersetshire and Dorset line from Highbridge, by Glastonbury 
 
Soinei-set shire. Antiquities, xlix 
 
 to Temple Combe, whence it proceeds to Wimborne and Poole, uniting 
 the Bristol and English Channels. The S.E. part of the county has 
 rly. communication by means of the Great Western branches from 
 Frome to Yeovil and Axminster, and from Witham, by Shepton Mallet 
 to Wells. There is also a line from Bristol by Glutton and Badstock 
 to Frome, and one from Bath by Radstock to Shepton Mallet and 
 Evercreech junction. 
 
 The Kennet and Avon Canal enters the county from Bradford, and 
 joins the Avon at Bath. The Somersetshire Coal Canal has two 
 branches, one commencing at Paulton, the other at Radstock, and both 
 communicating with the Kennet and Avon Canal. 
 
 Somersetshire is rich in quarries and mineral productions. The 
 Bath quarries supply one of the best building-stones in England. There 
 are lead-mines near Wellington, and on the Mendip range, where also 
 calamine was formerly dug. Coal is found at and near Radstoke in 
 East Mendip. There are slate quarries at Wiveliscombe. 
 
 IV. Antiquities — British, Roman. 
 
 This county is excelled by very few in the number and interest of 
 its primasval and Roman remains. The crests of many of the hills 
 are strengthened with earthworks forming encampments, often of great 
 extent. It is difficult, if not impossible, to assign a date to these 
 works ; but it is probable that many of them are of immense an- 
 tiquity, long anterior to the Roman invasion, in their original form- 
 ation, and have been occupied in succession by the forces of the various 
 contending parties duiing the early ages of English history. Con- 
 spicuous and characteristic examples of these encampments may be 
 seen at the three Cadburys, Dolbury, Maesbury, Hamdon Hill, Neroche 
 Castle, and Orchard Castle. The vestiges of British villages are to be 
 seen on Ben Knoll above Wookey, Worlebury, and Pen Selwood, &c. 
 The Wansdyke may be traced in its course in many places, especially 
 at Englishcombe, near Bath. The stone circles of Stanton Drew are 
 monolithic, with avenues of the same type as that of Avebury. The 
 other (so-called) Druidical remains that deserve mention are the 
 Fairy's Toot in Nempnett parish and the Littleton Sepulchre. 
 
 The chief vestiges of early habitations are those on Worle Hill, 
 above Weston-super-Mare, on Hampton Down above Bath, on Dundry 
 Hill, S* of the ch., at Charterhouse on Mendip, on the hill above Bleadon 
 and Hamden Hill. 
 
 Groups of sepulchral barrows stud the ridges of many of the hills. 
 Near Priddy, on the Mendip, are two groups, one of 9, another of 8 
 barrows. Maes Knoll, on Dundry Hill, is a barrow of immense size. 
 
 British roads traversed the county in the form of ridgeways, many 
 of which can still be traced. 
 
 (1.) Crossed the Avon between Burgh walls and Stokeleigh camps, 
 and pursued its way along Leigh Down to Cadbury camp above 
 Tickenham, where it was joined by a road from Portishead, and 
 proceeded S. across the vale to a camp above Yatton ; thence crossing 
 
 [ Wilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] d 
 
I 
 
 Antiqiiiiies, 
 
 Introd* 
 
 the marsh, it traversed Mendip from Sandford by Shutshelve to Cross ; 
 thence over the Axe by Brent Knoll to Pawlet, at W. extremity of 
 Polden Hill, where it joined a branch of the road from Old Sarum to 
 Uphill. Here it crossed the estuary of the Parrett to Combwich, and 
 near the fort on Cannington Park Hill it coincides with the turnpike 
 road from Bridgwater to Stowey, and climbs by a valley S. of Over 
 Stowey to the top of the Quantocks ; descended and climbed Willet Hill, 
 and ran along the ridge of Brendon Hill, and thence into the valley 
 of Exe, and to Barnstaple. 
 
 (2.) The British trackway from the Humber to Axmouth entered the 
 county at Threeshire Stones, 1 m. W. of Colerne, Wilts, and went by the 
 base of Little Solsbury Hill to Bath, where it crossed the Avon under 
 Beechen Cliff, and climbed the hill by Hollo way, crossed Wansdyke 
 near Odd Down turnpike, and, ascending and descending, ran along the 
 high ground to Ead stoke, near which it took the line of the turnpike- 
 road to Shepton Mallet and Wells. It descended into the great vale 
 of Somersetshire, and took a direction to Ilchester, leaving the Belgic 
 and British fort on Hamdon Hill to 1., crossed the Parrett, and split at 
 Watergore ; one branch ascended Whitedown, near Windwhistle, and 
 proceeded l3y Tytherleigh to Streetford Bridge over the Axe, and to 
 Axminster. The other crossed the He to Hton and Broadway, and 
 thence to Castle Neroche. 
 
 (3.) Another trackway went from Minehead to Neroche, and thence 
 over Buckland Down to Streetford. 
 
 (4.) The last to be noticed led from Neroche to Honiton. This was 
 paved, and was dug up some years since, and the material used for the 
 turnpike road. 
 
 The chief British fortresses are those of Stantonbury, Maes Knoll at 
 Dundry (both on the Wansdyke), Cadbury Camp, those of Portbury, 
 Portishead, Dolsbury, Dinghurst, and Brent Knoll. The camps of 
 Hampton, above Bath, Little Solsbury, Blackness Hill (near Mells), 
 Tedbury, Wadbury, and Newbury, the Beacon on Mendip, Maesbury, 
 Worlbury, Danesbury commanding the Parrett, Dunkery Beacon, 
 Cadbury, Hamdon, and Neroche. 
 
 The Komans availed themselves of the old British trackway to cout 
 struct the Fosseway through Bath and Ilchester, to Moridunum on the 
 S* coast. The via ad Axium, connecting Axium on the Bristol Channel 
 with Sorbiodunum or Old Sarum, runs from Uphill to Oldmixton, is 
 very indistinct over Bleadon Hill, on S. side of Wen thill. It crosses 
 the road from Bristol to Bridgwater at 14 m. between Churchill and 
 Cross, and runs beneath Banwell Hill direct to Shipham, leaving Dol- 
 bury 1. ; shortly after, it arrives at a rocky cleft, cut to allow it to 
 pass, traversing a valley carried alongside of the ; Blackdown ridge, 
 then to Charterhouse, where it makes an angle to S., passes many 
 tumuli, and leads direct to a solitary inn, known as the " Castle of 
 Comfort," near which are 4 large British circles, a group of 9 barrows 
 and a group of 8, crosses the road to Wells at Green Ore Farm, goes 
 by Maesbury camp, crosses the Fosse at Beacon Hill. Here it is vei-y 
 
Somerjsetshire. 
 
 Architecture. 
 
 li 
 
 indistinct for a considerable distance, but is supposed to go by 
 Gear Hill, Maiden Bradley, Kingston, and Monkton Deveril, and 
 crosses the road from Shaftesbury to Warminster, near 6 m. from W. 
 JS^ear this it goes round the tumulus N. of Lower Pertwood Farm. 15 m. 
 from Old Sarum the road is perfect. It runs through Great Ridge 
 Wood, crosses the Western Road between Deptford Inn and Chicklade 
 in extensive earthworks at Stockton Wood corner, thence through 
 Grovely Wood ; crosses the river Wylye ; proceeds through Chilhampton ; 
 crosses the Avon, running through Stratford to Old Sarum. 
 
 The Roman remains at Bath are of unusual magnificence, and have 
 been found in great abundance. Ilchester supplies copious marks of 
 its Roman origin, and the traces of Roman occupation are plentifully 
 scattered over the surface of the county. Tessellated pavements 
 have been found at Camerton, East Coker, Pitney, Whatley, &c. 
 The lead-mines of Mendip were worked by the Romans, of which 
 we have evidence in the pigs of lead with Roman inscriptions found at 
 Wookey, Blagdon, &c. 
 
 V. Architecture and Churches^ 
 Architecture. 
 
 I, Military, — The castles of Somersetshire, always a peaceful county, 
 were few, and they have almost entirely disappeared. Of Bristol, 
 just over the border, for many centuries one of the strongest and most 
 important in the kingdom, no more than the name and site, and some 
 few fragments of walls and buildings, remain. Of Castle Gary, famous 
 in the civil wars of Stephen's time, nothing is to be seen beyond 
 some grassy mounds. Taunton preserves its gateway and hall, and 
 other portions among modern alterations. Of Bridg^vater all has passed 
 away but the name. Dunster was chiefly rebuilt in the reign of 
 Elizabeth, but preserves several portions of earlier work. The chief 
 remains are at Nunney, of the 14:th cent., and Farlei^h Hungerford 
 (very scanty) of the 15th. 
 
 II. Domestic. — This is the richest district in England for domestic 
 remains, especially those of the 15th cent. In some parts of the county 
 every village has one or more houses, or parts of houses, worthy of 
 notice. Owing to the excellence of the stone, they have been better 
 preserved than in many parts of England. The following list gives the 
 most remarkable examples, to which the unrivalled specimens at Wells 
 must be added : — 
 
 Fourteenth Cent, — Meare (manor-house and fish-house), Martock ; 
 
 Compton Dundon ; Doulting ; Lytes Gary ; Chapel Gleve ; Cleve- 
 
 don Court ; Clapton-in-Gordano (partly destroyed). 
 Fifteenth (7en^.— Ban well Court; Beckington; Blackmoor, near Car- 
 
 rington ; Chew Stoke (parsonage) ; Congresbury (parsonage) ; Cros- 
 
 combe ; Glastonbury ; Hinton St. George ; Hutton ; Kingston Sey- 
 
 d 2 
 
lii 
 
 Churches^ 
 
 Introd, 
 
 ^ mour; Lytes Cary (part); Nailsea; Norton St. Philips (George 
 
 Inn, &c.); Norton-sub-Hamdon ; South Petherton; Stoke-under- 
 
 Hamdon ; Tickenham ; Yatton. 
 Sixteenth Cent, — Barrington Court; Brympton; Bristol (houses); 
 
 Dunster ; Halsway ; Stogumber ; Montacute ; Nettlecombe : Quaii- 
 
 tockshead ; Sandford Orcas. 
 
 III. Monastic, — Of the magnificent foundation of Glastonbury the 
 remains are lamentably small. A portion of the church ; the abbey 
 gateway ; abbot's kitchen, and barn, comprise the whole. The less 
 important religious houses of Cleeve Abbey, Hinton Charter-house, 
 Muchelney, and Woodspring, retain a larger portion, comparatively, 
 of their buildings, and deserve more attention (especially Cleeve 
 Abbey) than till lately they have met with. A small fragment is all 
 that stands of the Priory of Taunton. The chapel of the small 
 Austin priory of Stavordale is incorporated with a modern farmhouse. 
 
 Churches. 
 
 The churches of Somersetshire, previous to the Perpendicular period, 
 appear to have been of no great pretensions. They seem usually to 
 have wanted both clerestories and aisles. They were often cruciform, 
 with a central tower. An octagonal tower, sometimes central (as at N. 
 Curry and Doulting), sometimes at one side (Somerton), was frequent 
 in some districts. 
 
 There is abundance of fine stone used in the churches of this county ; 
 but in several cases a coarser material of blue lias is employed, which 
 does not admit of fine work. These two materials often appear in the 
 same church. In the south-east district, it is the fashion to white- 
 wash the whole of the exterior. 
 
 Some churches have only one aisle, as Pilton, Huish, &c. ; and 
 there are specimens in which the tower is between the nave and the 
 chancel, yet without indications of Norman work, e, g, Butleigh and 
 Shapwick. Sometimes there are two transeptal chapels, of the same 
 height as the aisles, as Glastonbury St. John ; and sometimes there 
 is only one, as Shepton Beauchamp, Fivehead. When the tower is 
 situated on the side, it is generally of Perpendicular character. There 
 are some cruciform churches, with central towers, as Bath Abbey, 
 Crewkerne, Yatton, Milborne Port, Ilminster, Dunster Ditcheat, 
 South Petherton, &c. Barrington is also cruciform, with a central 
 octagonal tower. Others are cruciform, with a western tower, as 
 Bridgwater, Weston Zoyland, &c. Octagonal towers may be seen at 
 Somerton, Doulting, and Barrington ; at Barton St. David, Tintinhull 
 (on N. side), Ilchester (west end of the nave), South Petherton (in 
 centre of cross), Podymore (at west end), and Bishop's Hull. Taunton 
 St. Mary Magdalene is remarkable for having double aisles on each side. 
 The chancels frequently belong to an earlier building of an inferior 
 scale, and harmonise badly with the later and more stately nave and 
 chantries. 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 Churches. 
 
 liii 
 
 This county has a peculiarly distinctive character in its ecclesiology, 
 displaying itself in a general prevalence of Perpendicular work, often of 
 a richly ornamental character, but esiDecially so in the towers, many of 
 which are noted for their magnificence. The more elaborate have often 
 pierced battlements and pinnacles, the latter of very exquisite work- 
 manship, and occasionally multiplied to the number of twelve or sixteen. 
 The belfry windows are generally double, and sometimes triple, and 
 fi-Ued with elegant stonework pierced with quatrefoil panelling — an 
 arrangement which, if not quite peculiar to this county, is scarcely 
 found except in those which adjoin it, as Gloucester, Dorset, and Wilts. 
 
 " The Perpendicular work of the county," writes Mr. Freeman, " is 
 of the most magnificent character. The typical form is a lofty and 
 elaborate W. tower, disengaged from the aisles, often vaulted within, 
 and nave and aisles with or without clerestory ; very commonly a S. 
 porch as high as the aisles, a high roof, and a comparatively insigni- 
 ticant chancel of earlier work, with Perp. chapels on each side. Poly- 
 gonal turrets are frequent. The roofs are various, but different forms 
 of the coved roof are typical. The interiors are rich in screens and 
 other wood work. The work is generally superior in the N. to that in 
 the S. part of the county, owing to the superior quality of the stone 
 admitting moi-e delicate chiselling. The towers, which are the great 
 glory of the county, may be ranked under three typical forms. (1.) 
 The Taunton type, with a staircase turret at one corner, and double 
 buttresses at the others, all the pinnacles being of equal height, the 
 tower being divided into stages by horizontal string-courses. Examples 
 — St. Mary Magdalene and St. James, Taunton, lie Abbots, Bishop's 
 Lydiard, and Huish. (2.) The Bristol type, with a prominent turret, 
 crowned with a single spirelet rising above the rest, St. Stephen's and 
 St. Werburgh's, Bristol, Yeovil, Ban well, Cheddar. (3.) The Wrington 
 type, which dispenses with the staircase turret and horizontal divisions, 
 and is panelled with two enormously lofty belfry windows, with pin- 
 nacled turrets of the same height; Wrington, St. Cuthbert's Wells, 
 St. John's Glastonbury, and North Petherton. Spires are very un- 
 frequent, and where they exist are often imperfect, as (formerly) at St. 
 Mary's Eedcliffe, Yatton, Shepton Mallet, Minchinhampton. Perfect 
 spires exist at Congresbury, Bridgwater, I'rome, Groscombe, Castle 
 Gary, Trent, Whatley and Doulting!" 
 
 But though the Perpendicular is the prevailing style of Somersetshire, 
 and most churches, externally at least, seem to belong to it, there will 
 often be found early work in the chancel, generally a transition from 
 Early English to Decorated ; and some chancels are wholly of that char- 
 acter. Norman work is uncommon ; but there are a few fine specimens. 
 
 There is some singular work in Milborne Port, which exhibits some 
 ribs and straight-sided arches, apparently Saxon. There is Early 
 Norman work in the same church ; some of a rich and singular 
 character, at Compton Martin, and portions of the same style at Stoke- 
 under-Hamdon, East Stoke, West Harptree, Bath ford, Montacute, Swell, 
 and Uphill, 
 
liv 
 
 Clmrches. 
 
 Introd. 
 
 The tower of Clevedon, and portions of West Harptree, partake of 
 "both Norman and E. E. character. 
 
 There is E. E. work in the transepts of Barrington, at Montacute, 
 Tintinhull, Shepton Beauchamp. Of the same sty]e are Pilton, Ched- 
 zoy, Portishead, Portbnry, Keynsham, East Stoke, West Quantocks- 
 head, St. Martin Fivehead, the chancel of Martock, the arcades of 
 Shepton Mallet and St. Cuthbert, Weils. Transition to Decorated 
 appears in the chancels of St. Decuman's, Wellington, Ruishton, &c. 
 The Decorated work in this county is not generally of a very rich 
 kind. Specimens will be found in the churches of Frome, Ditcheat, 
 Evercreech, Shapwick, Butleigh, Meare, Priddy, West Charlton, Shepton 
 Beauchamp, Wookey, Compton Dundon, Somerton, parts of Yatton, 
 and a fine porch at Bridgwater. In many of the Early English and 
 Early Decorated windows the interior arch has a kind of feathering, 
 like that which sometimes occurs in Oxfordshire. 
 
 The Perpendicular examples are so numerous that it is difficult 
 to specify them. The finest and most considerable churches of this 
 style are Bath Abbey, Taunton St. Mary Magdalene, Glastonbury 
 St. John, Yeovil, Crewkerne, Ilminster, Cheddar, Martock, Kings- 
 bury, North Petherton, Bridgwater, Long Sutton, Leigh-on-Mendip, 
 Mells, Dunster, which last has, however, some earlier indications. At 
 Low Ham is a chapel, built in 1624, having a chancel, aisles, and rood- 
 screen. 
 
 The parapets are usually embattled, sometimes with good open panel- 
 ling. The arrangement of the Perpendicular piers is very uniform. 
 They are lighter than in Devon, but the capitals of the shafts are 
 less richly sculptured. Large porches are very common, sometimes 
 with good groining. Panelled arches are of constant occurrence. 
 
 The rood-turret is generally a marked external feature; and this 
 county has several fine rood-screens of wood with parcloses to the 
 north and south aisles, on some of which the loft still remains. Ex- 
 amples are found at Kingsbury, Long Sutton, Norton Fitzwarren, 
 Bridgwater, Curry Rivell, West Quantockshead, &c. 
 
 Very fi ne and rich specimens of carved bench-ends are found at Bishop's 
 Lydiard, Crowcombe, Croscombe, Stogumber, Kingsbury, Curry Rivell, 
 Norton Fitzwarren, Weston Zoyland, Cheddar, &c. At Croscombe is a 
 good deal of wood screen-work, and carved benches of later character. 
 Enriched wooden pulpits remain at Bridgwater, Long Sutton, Queen's 
 Camel, North Petherton, and stone pulpits at Cheddar, Stogumber, 
 Meare, Glastonbury St. Benedict, Shepton Mallet, Baltonsborough, 
 Shapwick, &c. 
 
 There is some good late stained glass at Cheddar, Kingsbury, Curry 
 Rivell, and of earlier character at St. Decuman's. 
 
 Enriched roofs abound, as at Taunton St. Mary Magdalene, Martock, 
 Shepton Mallet, Somerton, North Petherton, Long Sutton, &c. 
 
 The lychnoscope, or low side-window, is rare, as the aisles are so often 
 continued along the chancel ; but the chancel arch is generally wide 
 and springing from corbels. There are some instances of hagioscopes. 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 Places of Inter esL 
 
 Iv 
 
 There are several early fonts, and a good many of the Perp. 
 period, but there is no very distinctive character about them. 
 
 There are not many sepulchral brasses, but at St. Decuman's are 
 some curious examples of late date. The place occupied by sepulchral 
 brasses in other counties where good and durable stone is rare, is 
 here taken by incised slabs and other stone memorials. The variety 
 of these is great, including raised effigies in high and low relief, incised 
 figures, and raised ^nd incised crosses. (See R. W. Paul's Incised and 
 Sepulchral Slabs of N. W, Somerset. 
 
 Some fine and rich tombs occur at Yatton, Cheddar, Back well, 
 Dunster, Long Ashton, &c., but chiefly of Perpendicular date. 
 
 There are sacristies at the east end of the chancel, and below the cill 
 of the east window at Langport, Ilminster, Crewkerne, North Petherton, 
 Kingsbury, &c. 
 
 The county/ affords an interesting field to the campanologist. Most 
 of the churches contain at least six bells of large size and fine tone. 
 Many of these have been recast but some remain of pre-Reformation 
 date. 
 
 There are many excellent examples of churchyard crosses, as at 
 Bishops Lydeard, Spaxton, Montacute, Doulting, Chewton, Mendip, <K:c. 
 
 Market crosses of mediasval date are found at Sliepton Mallet, 
 Crowxombe, Hinton St. George, Taunton, Cheddar, Croscombe, &;c., 
 and of later style at Dunster, Somerton, Martock, llchester. 
 
 VI. Places op Interest, 
 
 Bath. — Abbey Ch. ; Baths ; Pump Room ; Literary Institution ; Romm 
 Remains ; Assembly Rooms ; Circus : Crescent. Lansdown ; Prior 
 Park; Combe Dowu ; Kelston Round Hill; Wick Rocks; Clavertoii ; 
 Wellow ; Stony Littleton ; Bitten. 
 
 Bristol. — Cathedral : St. Mai y Redcliffe ; Mayor's Chapel ; St. Stephen's ; 
 St. James's; Blackfriars; Museum; Old Houses; Walls; Floating 
 Harbour ; Basins ; Blind Asylum ; Miiller's Orphan House ; Clifton 
 Downs ; Suspension Bridge ; Gorge of the Avon ; Leigh Woods ; 
 Leigh Court (pictures) ; Blaise Castle (pictures) ; Kii)gs Weston ; 
 Penpold Point. Dundry ; Stanton Drew ; Chew Magna. Ashton 
 Court; Portbury; Portishead. 
 
 Clevedon. — Clevedon Court ; Old Ch. ; Walton Castle. Weston-in-Gordano ; 
 Clapton-in-Gordano ; Tickenham; Cadbury Camp; Brockley Combe; 
 Cleeve Combe. 
 
 Yatton. — Ch. ; Parsonage. Congresbury Ch. and Parsonage. Wrington 
 
 Ch. ; Barley Wood. 
 Weston-super-Mare. — Worle Hill ; Kewstoke ; Woodspring Priory ; Uphill 
 
 Old Ch. ; Brean Down. Banwell Ch. ; Bone Caves ; View from hill. 
 
 Hutton Cave. 
 
 Axhridge. — Ch. ; Cheddar Ch., Caverns and Cliffs. The Mendips, mining 
 operations ; Combes ; Burrington ; Blagdon ; Wedmore ; Brent Knoll. 
 
 Wells. — Cathedral ; Bishop's Palace ; Deanery ; Archdeaconry ; Close ; 
 Vicars' Close; St. Cuthbert's Ch. WookeyHole; Ebber Rocks. 
 
Ivi 
 
 Places of Interest, 
 
 Intrcd. 
 
 Glastonbury. — Abbey Ruins ; Abbot's Kitchen and Barn ; Tor ; Wirrel 
 Hill ; Churches ; George Inn. Sharpham ; Meare Manor-house and 
 Fish-house; Street, manufacturers and Saurian remains; Butleigh 
 Court. 
 
 Somerton. — Ch. ; Lytes Cary ; views from Kingadon Hill, Somerton Hill. 
 Ilchester. — Ch. ; Roman remains ; Limington. 
 
 Yeovil. — Ch.; Old Houses; Summerhouse Hill. Trent, Old House, Ch., 
 Brympton; Montacute, House, Ch., Priory, St. Michael's Hill. 
 Hamhill ; Stoke-sub-Hamdon ; Bradford Abbas Ch. ; Clifton 
 Maubank. 
 
 Martock. — Ch. ; Old House. Kingsbury Ch. ; South Petherton, King Ina's 
 
 Palace ; West Stoke. 
 Langport. — Ch., Huish Episcopi Ch., Hanojing Chapel, Museum. Mu- 
 
 chelney Abbey ; Low Ham Chapel ; High Ham ; Aller ; Parkfield. 
 Bridgivater. — Ch. ; Bath-brick Works ; Eager. Sedgmoor ; Chedzoy ; 
 
 Weston Zoyland ; Cannino^ton. Nether Stowey ; the Quantocks ; 
 
 Enmore Castle; Halswell House. Boroughbridge ; Othery; Isle of 
 
 Athelney; Burnham. 
 Taunton. — St. Mary Magdalene's Ch. ; St. James's Ch. ; Castle; Museum; 
 
 Shire Hall. • Hatch Court ; Cothelstone ; Crowcombe (pictures) ; 
 
 Willsneck ; Watchet ; Blue Anchor ; Cleeve Abbey ; N. Curry. 
 Wellington.— Ch.. ; Monument on Black Down; Robin Hood's Butts; 
 
 Nynehead Court ; Cothay Manor. 
 Uminster. — Ch. ; Barrington Court ; Donyatt Ch. and Manor ; Jordans ; 
 
 Dowlishwake ; Broadway; Castle Neroche ; Ilton; He Abbots. 
 Chard. — Ch. ; Lace Factories ; Ford Abbey ; Snowdon (view) ; Straya 
 
 Hill (view). 
 
 Crew1:erne.—Ch. ; Hinton St. George ; Cricket St. Thomas. 
 Frome.—Ch.; Cloth Mills; Card Mill; Vallis ; ISTunney Castle ; Lulling- 
 
 ton Ch. ; Longleat ; Mells ; Ammerdown (view) ; Marston House ; 
 
 Orchardleigh ; Witham. 
 Bruton. — Ch.; Grammar School ; Hospital. Redlynch ; Stourhead; Alfred's 
 
 Tower ; Batcombe ; Jack's Castle. 
 Wincanton. — Stavordale Priory ; Roundhill ; Pen Selwood ; Penpits ; 
 
 Orchard Castle. 
 
 Castle Cary. — View ; Alford Ch. ; Cadbury Camp ; Korth Cadbury Ch. ; 
 
 Queen's Camel Ch. 
 Sliepton Mallet. — Ch. ; Manufactories ; Cross. Doulting Quarries ; Ch. ; 
 
 Barn. Evercreech Ch. ; Pilton Ch. and Barn ; Maesbury Camp ; 
 
 Gurney Slade. Croscombe Ch. ; Old Houses. 
 Dunster. — Ch. ; Cross ; Castle ; Grabhurst Hill (view) ; Conegar Hill 
 
 (view). Minehead ; Holnicote ; Porlock ; Dunkery Beacon ; Bossing- 
 
 ton Beacon ; Culbone ; Exmoor. 
 Dulverton. — Mount Sydenham ; Exmoor ; Pixton Park ; Haddon Down ; 
 
 Bampton ; Waterwood. 
 
HANDBOOK 
 
 FOR 
 
 WILTSHIKE, DOESETSHIRE, AND 
 SOMEKSETSHIRE. 
 
 KOUTES. 
 
 *^* The names of places are printed in italics only in tliose routes where the 
 places are described. 
 
 IJOIITE PAGE 
 
 1. London to Bath, by Swindon, 
 
 lllighicorth'], Wootton Basset 
 [branch line to Malmesbury'], 
 Chippenham [_Bowood, Calnc\, 
 Corsham, and Box (G. W. Rly .) 2 
 
 2. Swindon to Cheltenham, hj Pur- 
 
 ton, Cricklade, and Minety 
 (%.) 27 
 
 3. Swindon to Andover, by 
 
 Marlboroujh,'] Avehury, Sil- 
 bury Hill'], Savernake, Colling' 
 bourn J and Ludger shall ( Rly.) 29 
 
 4. Chippenham to Frome, by Melks- 
 
 ham \LacocK\, Trowbridge, 
 Bradford \Monkton Farleigh, 
 Farleigh Castle, Hinton Char- 
 terhouse], and Westbury ( Hly.) 46 
 
 5. Hungerford to Bath [^Littlecote, 
 
 Ramsbury] by Great Bedwyn, 
 Savernake, Pewsey [ Valley of 
 the Avon to Amesbury], Devi- 
 zes, Bradford, Freshford, Val- 
 ley of Claverton (G. W. Rly.) 62 
 C. Hungerford to Salisbury, Tid- 
 worth, the Winterbourn Valley, 
 Winter slow, 3 Rtes. (Road).. 77 
 
 7. Devizes to Salisbury (two Rtes.): 
 
 (a.) Pottenie, Market Laving - 
 ton; (b.) Urchfont, Salisbury 
 Plain (Road) 82 
 
 8. Romsey to Salisbury [Old 
 
 Sarum, Amesbury, Stonehenge, 
 Wilton, Longford, Clarendon] 
 
 (S. W. Rlv.) 84 
 
 [Wilts, Bond, d-c, 1882.] 
 
 10 
 
 11 
 
 12 
 
 9. Salisbury to Wimbonie, by 
 Downton and Fordingbridge 
 [Cranborne, Cranborne Chase] 
 
 (S. W. Kly.) 135 
 
 Salisbury to Shaftesbury, by 
 the Vale of Chalk (RoQ.d) 140 
 Salisbury to We>tbury, by 
 Wilton, Heytesbury, and War- 
 minster [Longleat] (G, W. 
 
 Rly.) . ..142 
 
 Salisbuiy to Yeovil, by Din- 
 ton, Tisbury [ Wardour Castle, 
 Fonthill, Hindon], Semley 
 [Shaftesbury], Gillingham 
 [Mere, Stourhead], Temple 
 Combe, Milborne Port, Sher- 
 borne (S. W. Rly.) .. ..155 
 
 13. Southampton to Weymouth, 
 [Abbotsbury] by Wimborne 
 Minster, Poole, Wareham 
 [Corfe Castle], mdi Dorchester 
 
 (S. W. Rly.) 183 
 
 14. Salisbury to I^yme Regis, by 
 Blandfbrd, Puddletown, Dor- 
 chester, Bridport [Beamin- 
 sfcr], and C7/ian?20W^A (Road) 217 
 Dorchester to Yeovil. Maiden 
 Newton to Bridport (G. W. 
 
 %.) 235 
 
 Dorchester to Sherborne [Ceme 
 
 ^66as](Road) 2-10 
 
 Lsle of Purbeck. — Swanage, 
 East and West Lulworth . . 242 
 
 18. Tfw Lsle of Portland .. 252 
 
 15 
 
 16, 
 
 17 
 
2 
 
 EOUTE PAGE 
 
 19. Wimbonie to Dorchester, by 
 Corfe Mullen, Charhorough 
 Park, Bere Regis, Tolpuddlo, 
 and Puddletown (Road) . . 258 
 
 20. Wimborne to Highbridge, by 
 Blandford, Sturminster, StaU 
 bridge J Temple Combe , Win- 
 canton, Glastonbury, \Wells'] 
 (Som. and Dors. Rly.) .. ..262 
 
 21. Bath to Wellington, by Bris- 
 tol and Clifton \_Kingsweston, 
 Leigh Court, Portishead'], 
 Tatton, \_Clevedon] [_BroGkley 
 Combe'\,\_ Weston-super-Mare\ 
 Highbridge\_Burnham'], Bridg- 
 water \_Sedgemoor, Isle of 
 Athelney], Durston, and 
 Taunton J,)., .. 307 
 
 22. Yatton to Wells, by Bamvell, 
 Axbridge and Cheddar, The 
 Mendips (R\j.) 392 
 
 23. Frome to Yeovil, by Bruton 
 and Castle Cary (G. W. Rly.) 400 
 
 24. Witham to Wells, bv Shepton 
 Malet (G. W. Rly.) .. ..416 
 
 25. Bath to Evercreech Junction, 
 by Wellow, Radstock and 
 Shepton Mallet (Som. and 
 Dorset Rly.) 419 
 
 EOUTE 1. 
 
 LONDON TO BATH, BY SWSNDON, 
 WOOTTON BASSET, [MALMES- 
 BURY], CHIPPENHAM [BOWOOD, 
 CALNE], CORSHAM, AND BOX. " ' 
 
 {Great Western Rly.) 
 
 After an almost uninterrupted 
 ascent from London by easy gra- 
 dients, shortly after leaving the 
 Shrivenham Station, the Rly. crosses 
 the little river Cole, and enters Wilt- 
 shire 73f m. from Paddington. 
 
 [Just outside the Wiltshire border, 
 in the county of Berks, on the road 
 from Farringdon to Swindon, 2 m. 
 E, from Highworth, stands Coleshill 
 House (Earl of Radnor), built 1650, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 ROUTE PAGE 
 
 26. Bristol to Frome, by Brisling- 
 ton,Pensford\_Stanton Drenf], 
 Chitton and Radstock (G. W. 
 Rly.) 422 
 
 27. Bristol to Yeovil, by Wells, 
 Glastonbury, Somerton, and 
 Ilchester (Road) 425 
 
 28. Yeovil to Axminster, by Crew- 
 kerne [Ford Abbey'], Chard 
 Junction, (S. W. Rly.) .. .. 429 
 
 29. Chard Road Station to Taunton, 
 by Chard and Ilminster 
 
 (G. W. Rly.) 435 
 
 30. Durston to Yeovil, by Lang- 
 2Jort [Muchelney'], and Mar- 
 tock (G. W. Rly.) .. ..439 
 
 31. Taunton to Porlock, by Willi- 
 
 ton, Watchet, Washford, 
 ICleeve Abbey], Punster, 
 Minehead (G. W. Rly. and 
 Road) 445 
 
 32. Bridgwater to Williton, by 
 Cannington, Nether Stovmj 
 [the Quantocks], Stokecourcy, 
 Crowcombe (Road, two Rtes.) 465 
 
 33. Taunton to Dalverton and 
 Barnstaple, by Milverton, 
 Wiveliscombe, and Bampton 
 (G. W. Rly.) 471 
 
 one of Inigo Jones's latest and least 
 altered works, containing a fine hall, 
 and many good family portraits, 
 including several by Sir J. Reynolds. 
 The adjoining Church contains a mo- 
 nument, by Rysbraeck, to one of the 
 Bouveries, and some marble effigies 
 of the Pleydells and Pratts, Lord 
 Radnor's maternal ancestors. It has 
 a handsome Perp. tower, an excellent 
 W. door, and in the nave some late 
 Norman and good Dec. architecture. 
 In the Bouverie aisle window are a 
 pedigree of the family and a view of 
 Coleshill in coloured glass. The E. 
 window, representing the Nativity, 
 was brought from Angers, in 1787. 
 (See Hdbk, for Berks.) The village, 
 in which no house for the sale of 
 intoxicating beverages is permitted, 
 consists mainly of cottages erected 
 
 Bouts 1. — London to BatJi. 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 1. — New Swindon, 
 
 3 
 
 by Lord Radnor, conspicuous for 
 their pleasing design as well as their 
 size and comfort. 
 
 2 m. from Coleshill, 6 m. from 
 Swindon, is Highworth {Inn: King 
 and Queen), (to which there is a short 
 branch rly. from Swindon), an ancient 
 town, belonging at the time of the 
 Domesday Survey to the royal 
 demesne, standing, as its name implies 
 (the high " worth " or protected en- 
 closure), on a lofty hill, commanding 
 views over the counties of Glouces- 
 ter, Berks, and Wilts. The Ch, (St. 
 Michael's) is on an elevated site, like 
 most churches dedicated to the arch- 
 angel. It is chiefly Perp., with a 
 western tower, and good pierced 
 parapets. There is a chantry on the 
 S., which contains some pieces of 
 armour hung over the monuments of 
 the Warnefords of Wameford Place, 
 near Sevenhampton, popularly known 
 as Sennington. Highworth Ch. was 
 fortified and held for the king in the 
 Civil Wars, but was taken by Fair- 
 fax's army on their march from 
 Naseby westwards, Juue 27, 1645. 
 
 The soldiers," writes Sprigge, ''had 
 good booty in the ch., took 70 pri- 
 soners, and 80 arms." Some weeks 
 later a skirmish took place, with 
 considerable loss. A large number of 
 skeletons were found in a field to the 
 W. of the ch. 2 m. N.W. of the 
 town is Hannington, a pretty village, 
 built in the form of a Y. The Ch. 
 has a Norm. S. doorway. Hau- 
 nington was the birthplace, 1638, 
 of Narcissus Marsh, Primate of 
 Ireland, whose father had migrated 
 hither from Kent. 2 m. W. is 
 Blunsdon Castle Hill, so named from 
 a small circular British camp.] 
 
 74 m. the rly. crosses the Koman 
 road from Silchester to Cirencester, 
 and J m. rt. passes Stratton St. Mar- 
 garet's, taking its name from its posi- 
 tion on the Roman Street, where was 
 an alien Benedictine priory, granted 
 by Henry VI. to King's College, 
 Cambridge. 
 
 77j m. Swindon Junction Station, 
 
 the summit of the main line, 270 ft. 
 above the Paddington Terminus, and 
 292 ft. above that at Bristol. The 
 South Wales division of the railway 
 here branches off rt. to Gloucester, 
 37 m., and to New Milford, 208 m. 
 and having numerous branches con- 
 necting it with various towns on the 
 route, with the northern division of 
 the Company's lines, and with the 
 various South Wales coalfields. 
 
 Upwards of 200 trains on an aver- 
 age pass through the station daily. 
 Nearly all the passenger trains make 
 a 10 min.'s halt to enable passengers 
 to avail themselves of the refresh- 
 ment-rooms. 
 
 There is a branch rly. S. to Marl- 
 borough and Andover (Rte. 3) which 
 is being extended N. to Cirencester 
 and Cheltenham, thus connecting 
 Birmingham, and the midland and 
 northern districts, with Southampton 
 and Portsmouth and the south of 
 England. 
 
 Swindon Station takes its name 
 from the old market town of that 
 name on the high ground to the 1., 
 now practically united to its younger 
 namesake, New Susindon, Pop. 17,669, 
 which has grown up round it since 
 the opening of the Gt. Western line 
 in 1842 in what was previously a 
 rabbit warren and pasture land. The 
 Gt. Western Rly. Co. has here esta- 
 blished the headquarters of the Loco- 
 motive and Carriage Departments or 
 the whole of their system. Their 
 premises include an area of about 
 106 acres, the buildings alone occu- 
 pying 28 acres. The works are divided 
 into 3 departments: the Locomotive 
 Factories; the Carriage and Wagon 
 Works ; and the Bail Mill. 
 
 The Locomotive Works consist of 
 various large Shops for different de- 
 partments of the work, each distin- 
 guished by a letter of the alphabet. 
 The whole of the operations con- 
 nected with the construction of the 
 locomotives and tenders are here 
 carried on, from the forging of the 
 large cranked axles (weighing in 
 B 2 
 
4 
 
 Boute 1. — Old Swindon, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 some cases nearly two tons) with 
 steam-hammers, to the actual trial 
 of the locomotive. 
 
 The number of men employed is 
 about 5000, who receive nearly 
 300,000/. a year in wages, exclusive 
 of the salaries of the chief officers. 
 Visitors are permitted to visit the 
 works on Wednesdays after 3 p.m. 
 The departments best worth visiting 
 are the Iron Foundrij (J); the General 
 Smithy (Y) ; the Brass Foundry (U), 
 and Brass Fitters (T) ; the Tamers 
 and Fitters of wheels (D) and (N), 
 and the Wheelsmitli s Shop (S). In 
 (B) and (C) disabled engines are re- 
 paired. One of the most attractive 
 is the Steam-hammer Shop, where 
 several large hammers of immense 
 force are at work in welding the 
 metal fresh from the furnaces into 
 compact masses for the parts of the 
 gear requiring extra strength and 
 tenacity. 
 
 The Bail Mill contains furnaces, 
 steam-hammers, &c., for the entire 
 process of manufacturing rails, from 
 the puddling of the pig-iron to the 
 final punching and straightening, and 
 is capable of supplying 400 tons of 
 rail per week. 
 
 The Carriage and Wagon Works cover 
 an area of 12,483 square yards; the 
 floor is laid out partly for machinery 
 and partly for sidings, with self-acting 
 traversing-tables for carrying the 
 vehicles in and out of the shop. 
 
 The Mechanics' Institution is a fine 
 building, and contains a large lecture- 
 room and library comprising 1050 
 volumes, with a circulation of about 
 50,000 in a year — a commodious and 
 well-supplied reading-room, and 
 sundry class-rooms, chiefly for even- 
 ing instruction. 
 
 Every workman in the Company's 
 works at Swindon contributes to a 
 medical fund, which secures the 
 services of medical men, maintains 
 an Accident Hospital, and provides 
 washing, swimming, and Turkish 
 baths, and other sanitary arrange- 
 iiieiits, 
 
 The rate of disease and mortality 
 is less than in its apparently- 
 more healthily situated neighbour, 
 Old Swindon, owing in great measure 
 to the efficient system of drainage 
 laid down by the Great Western 
 Ely. Company. 
 
 The Church, built by the Company 
 at the cost of 6000/. (Sir G. G. Scott, 
 arch.) is in the Decorated style, with 
 a tower and crocketed spire 140 ft. 
 high. The vicarage and school-house 
 adjoining were built by the Company 
 at a cost of 1700/. Near the ch. a 
 large piece of ground is laid out as 
 a park and cricket-field. 
 
 The new red-brick ch. of St. PauVs, 
 by Mr. E. B. Ferry, was consecrated 
 June 28th, 1881. 
 
 [1 m. 1., on the summit of the hill, 
 is the old market-town of Sioindon 
 (Inn : Goddard Arms : Pop., includ- 
 ing New Swindon, in 1841 only 2400, 
 but now 22,36.5), a rather picturesque 
 town with old houses of red brick and 
 stone, commanding extensive pros- 
 pects over Berks and Gloucestershire. 
 The Church was rebuilt on a new site 
 by Sir G. G. Scott, with a fine spire. 
 Abp. Narcissus Marsh was vicar 
 here in 1662. There is a Town-hall, 
 Market- house, and Corn-exchange. 
 The Laun (A. L. Goddard, Esq.) is 
 a handsome Italian residence. Ij m. 
 S.E., on the Liddington road, the 
 reservoir of the Wilts and Berks 
 Canal forms a fine lake of 80 acres, 
 abounding in fish, in a beautifully 
 wooded district. The quarries of 
 building-stone (Portland oolite con- 
 taining fossils), and the view from the 
 tower of the Corn-exchange, both 
 deserve notice. The view is very 
 extensive, commanding to the E. 
 the great chalk ridge, with its 
 entrenchments and barrows, '*the 
 scene, probably, of the early Celtic 
 settlements, of the final struggle of 
 that people against the Saxons, and 
 subsequently of some of the most se- 
 vere contests between the Saxons and 
 the Danes." Four camps are visible : 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 1—Old Swindon— Wootton Basset. 
 
 5 
 
 2 to N., Blunsdon and Ringsbury, near 
 Purton; 2 to S., Badbury or Lid- 
 dington Castle, and Bar bury. This 
 ground forms the N. limit of that 
 range of chalk which extends in a 
 compact mass as far as Salisbury, 
 and branches thence through Dorset 
 to the sea, including among its lonely 
 hills some of the most stupendous 
 Celtic works now extant. In the 
 plain to the N.E. will be observed 
 Coleshill (Earl of Radnor), and 2^ m. 
 S., on the flank of the Marlborough 
 Downs, Burdrop Park, seat of the 
 Calleys; 5 m. distant are Barhury 
 and Liddington Castle, fine specimens 
 of British castrametation, the one on 
 the old and the other on the new 
 road to Marlborough (see post). On 
 the Lambourn Downs, E., is Weland's 
 Srryithy (see Hdbk, for Berks), a cham- 
 bered sepulchre of some ancient 
 chieftain. It is commonly called 
 Wayland Smith's cave, from an old 
 legend of which Sir Walter Scott 
 makes a romantic use in *Kenil- 
 worth,* about an invisible smith re- 
 placing lost horse-shoes there. We- 
 land was the Vulcan of the Anglo- 
 Saxons (see Dr. Thurnam's Memoir, 
 Wilts Archxol. Mag. vol. 7). The 
 White Horse is distant 1 m.] 
 
 Proceeding on our route — at 
 80 m. 3 m. 1. is Basset Down House, 
 once the residence of Dr. Maskelyne, 
 the astronomer-royal, and afterwards 
 of his daughter, the late Mrs. Storey 
 Maskelyne. 
 
 I2 m. rt. Lydiard Tregoz (4 m. 
 from Swindon, 3 from Wootton Bas- 
 set), so called from its ancient 
 owners, the Tregoz family ; from 
 the reign of Hen. VII. the seat of 
 the St. Johns, Viscounts Boling- 
 broke and Barons St. John. The 
 plain stone mansion stands in a park 
 finely wooded with old oaks. The 
 Church deserves notice. The windows 
 of the chancel contain a good deal of 
 stained glass, among other devices an 
 olive tree, in allusion to Oliver St. 
 John, from the boughs of which 
 
 hang the shields of the different 
 heiresses through whom the estates 
 came to the St. John family. One of 
 the monuments, to Katharine, d. of 
 Sir John St. John, wife of Sir Giles 
 Mompesson (said to have been the 
 original of Sir Giles Overreach of 
 Massinger, himself a Wiltshire man), 
 is over the chancel door. There are 
 gorgeous monuments of the St. John 
 family, one enclosed within folding 
 doors, painted with life-size figures, 
 and the family pedigree. Among 
 them are those of Nicholas and Eliz. 
 St. John, 1589, kneeling figures, 
 under a Corinthian canopy. Edward, 
 d. 1645, in gilt armour; Sir John 
 and his two wives and children ad- 
 joining the altar ; John Viscount 
 St. John, d. 1748. From the number 
 and richness of its monuments it is 
 called by the common people " Fine 
 Lydiard." The great Lord Boling- 
 broke was buried at Battersea. 
 
 1 m. W. is Midghall Farm, an old 
 moated house, once the Grange of 
 Stanley Abbey. 
 
 83 Wootton Basset Stat. The 
 town (Lin : Royal Oak ; Pop. 2300) 
 occupies the summit of a hill ; it was 
 once the inheritance of the Bassets of 
 Wycombe, its first name being cor- 
 rupted from Wodeton, " Woodtown." 
 It is a small market-town of a single 
 street nearly ^ m.Qong, disfranchised 
 by the Reform Act of 1832. Lord 
 (Clarendon, the historian, was first 
 returned to Parliament as its mem- 
 ber. 
 
 The Church was of a very unusual 
 plan, of 2 long aisles spanned by one 
 roof, without distinction of chancel. 
 But in 1871 the church was restored 
 and enlarged by Mr. Street, at the 
 cost of the trustees of Sir H. Meux, 
 and the building of a N. aisle has 
 changed the original arrangement. 
 The old church now serves as a S. 
 aisle to the new church: the stair- 
 case to the roodloft has been pre- 
 served on the S. side. The roof is 
 panelled, and has the original paint- 
 ing. The tower, at the W. end of 
 
Route 1. — Wootton Basset, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 the S. aisle, is low and small. The 
 prevailing features are Perp. The 
 S. porch has a parvise and good 
 groining. 
 
 In the town-hall was formerly 
 preserved the Cucking or Ducking 
 Stool, now removed to the museum 
 at Devizes, bearing the date 1668, 
 once 
 
 " The dread of every scolding quean." 
 
 This was an arm-chair on wheels, 
 with 2 long poles or shafts, to the 
 ends of which were fastened ropes. 
 The woman who was supposed to 
 have merited immersion was tied 
 into the chair, and the machine 
 wheeled to a pond. The shafts were 
 then released, and the chair with its 
 unfortunate occupant tilted into the 
 water. When the ducking had been 
 duly performed, the stool was again 
 raised by a pull on the ropes. An 
 old man living in 1869 remembered 
 witnessing the penalty inflicted on 
 one Peggy Lawrence about 1787, 
 in the Weir-pond to the west of the 
 Angel and Crown Inns. 
 
 A great number of septaria or 
 cement-stones are found here in the 
 Oxford clay, a stratum of the middle 
 oolite. Farther N. are the coral-rag 
 hills, and, bounded by their woods, 
 the camp of Ringshury, 1 m. W. of 
 Redstreet, 3 m. on the road to the 
 Purton Stat. (Kte. 2.) 
 
 [Broad Hinton, 5 m. S.E. towards 
 Marlborough, was the residence of 
 the great lawyer Sir John Glanmlle, b. 
 1590, Speaker of the House of Com- 
 mons, 1640. *' His seat," says 
 Evelyn, in his * Diary,' 1654," is at 
 Broad Hinton, where he now lives, 
 but in the gatehouse ; his very fair 
 dwelling having been burnt by his 
 own hands, to prevent the rebels 
 making a garrison of it." In the 
 (7/mrc7i,an interesting building beauti- 
 fully restored in 1880, chiefly E. E., 
 with a Perp. tower, is a tablet to 
 him, and an alabaster effigy of Col. 
 F. Glanville, killed at the siege of 
 Bridgwater, 1645, and a huge monu- 
 
 ment to Sir T. Wroughton, his wife, 
 and 8 children, d. 1591. 
 
 The ch. of Winterhoum Basset, I 
 m. S. situated on the downs, 2 m. 
 S., of the time of Edw. III., was re- 
 stored 1857. The tower is Perp., 
 and the N. window of the N. chapel 
 of the best period of Dec. Here are 
 two small (so-called) Druidical stone 
 circles.] 
 
 Ujjcot Hall^ IJ m. E., and 5 m. S. 
 of Swindon. Here in 1850, the 
 Ordnance surveyors erected a station 
 at 890 ft. above sea -level, from 
 which the Mendip Hills are distinctly 
 visible. 
 
 Cliff e Pypard, 4 m. S, of Wootton, 
 on the slope of the steep greensward 
 cliff running W. by S. from Lidding- 
 ton to Highway, commanding lovely 
 views, was severely visited, Sept. 
 1856, by a remarkable whirlwind, 
 which, descending from the high 
 land, destroyed several hundred trees 
 on the grounds of the Manor House, 
 an Elizabethan house (H. N. God- 
 dard, Esq.). The Ch. (restored 1874) 
 is a fine Perp. edifice, with a good 
 western tower. The chancel has 
 recently been brought back to its 
 original E. E. design. There are 
 good oak screens painted in the 
 original colours and a fine oak roof. 
 The monuments are numerous and 
 interesting. The S. aisle contains a 
 brass, with effigy of a knight, pro- 
 bably a Quintin of Bupton. There 
 is a large marble monument to a 
 native worthy and benefactor, Thos. 
 Spackman. 
 
 Leaving Wootton Basset, the line 
 proceeds at first along an embank- 
 ment, descending 50 ft. in a mile, 
 commanding a wide view of the 
 valley of the Avon, with its com- 
 panion canal, and then enters a deep 
 cutting, crossed by a bridge carry- 
 ing a road from Malmesbury towards 
 Clifie Pypard. 
 
 87f m. Dauntseij Stat. On the 1. is 
 Bradenstoke Hill, one of the highest 
 oolitic ranges of N.Wilts, crowned 
 
Wiltshire. Moute 1. — Bradenstoke — Dmntsey. 
 
 7 
 
 by the remains of the priory (now a 
 farmhouse), and the fortified position 
 of Ciack Hill within a stone's throw 
 of the priory. A deep fosse cuts off 
 a headland between 2 valleys, on 
 which is a square earthwork with 
 high banks and a deep ditch, enclos- 
 ing a beacon mound in the centre. 
 The view from the hill and from the 
 Abbey northward is of great extent 
 and beauty. 
 
 Bradenstoke or Broadstoke, better 
 known as Clack Abbey, was one 
 of 4 religious houses which stood 
 here in early times on or near the 
 banks of the Avon ; the others were 
 Malmesbury, Stanley, and Lacock. 
 " Its remains," says the poet Bowles, 
 "yet appear conspicuous on the edge { 
 of that long sweep of hills which 
 formed the S.W. bounds of the 
 ancient forest of Braden, from whence 
 the Danes descended like a storm to 
 lay waste the country about Chippen- 
 ham and Lacock." Bradenstoke 
 was founded, A.D. 1142, for Augus- 
 tine or Black canons, by Walter 
 d'Evreux, father of Patrick Earl 
 of Salisbury, and great - grand - 
 father of Ela, Longespee's wife. At 
 the Dissolution, it was granted to 
 Rich. Pexhall, and afterwards be- 
 longed to the Danvers, and Methuens, 
 now to Sir G. Goldney. The re- 
 mains of the priory are well worth 
 inspection. They consist of the 
 Refectory range, on the N. side of 
 the cloister court, with the prior's 
 house at the E. end, and the domestic 
 offices to the W., the whole supported 
 on a vaulted undercroft, with octa- 
 gonal piers, an admirable example 
 of Early Decorated work, c. 1320. 
 The hall is lighted with three beau- 
 tiful 2 -It. windows of curvilinear 
 tracery, set between bold buttresses, 
 connected (since 1732) with a screen 
 of round-headed arches. The interior 
 is cut up by partitions, and the very 
 finely carved oak roof, with the 
 Dec. ball-fiower on the beams, can 
 only be seen in the garrets. At the 
 west end of the Refectory are the 
 
 usual 3 doors openinginto the kitchen, 
 cellar and buttery, respectively. At 
 the other end of the hall are the 
 prior's chambers, with corner stair- 
 case and garderobe turret, with a 
 so-called '*holy thorn" growing out 
 of the parapet, as in Buck's view. 
 A large carved stone chimney-piece, 
 of a late style of Perp., has been 
 removed to Corsham Court. A boss 
 in the ceiling of the chief room 
 bears the initial of W. Snow, the last 
 prior, who became the first Dean 
 of Bristol. Close to the house is a 
 plain 15th cent, barn with modern 
 roof. Of the conventual church on 
 the opposite side of the cloister court 
 there are no remains. Many stone 
 1 coffins and ancient interments have 
 been dug up on the site of the ceme- 
 tery. A new Church has been built by 
 Sir G. Goldney, in the village. 
 
 The pillar seen conspicuously on 
 the ridge of the hill 1. commemorates 
 Maud Heath of Langley (see post, 
 p. 14). 
 
 [At Dauntsey Stat, a short branch 
 diverges rt. to Malmesbury, 6 m. The 
 line pursues the course of Avon 
 through pleasant green meadows, 
 leaving 2j miles at Dauntsey. 
 
 Dauntsey lies 2 J m. to rt., 4^ m. 
 S.E. of Malmesbury. The Ch., the 
 chancel of which was restored 1879, 
 contains a brass to Sir John Danvers, 
 died 1.514, with his wife, and one 
 also to the lady Anne herself, who 
 was daughter to Sir John Dauntsey, 
 c. 1535, also an interesting monument 
 to Sir Henry Danvers, d. 1644, created 
 Baron Danvers by James I. and Earl 
 Danby by Charles I. He and his 
 brother Sir Charles Danvers were the 
 principals in the extraordinary assas- 
 sination of Henry Long at Corsham 
 (see Wilts Arch, Mag, vol. i. p. 316), 
 for which, from some unexplained 
 cause, they were never brought to 
 justice. Sir Charles was afterwards 
 attainted and beheaded for his share 
 in Essex's plot, 1 600. Lord Danvers 
 was a patron of George Herbert, and 
 it was to Dauntsey (" A noble house 
 
8 
 
 Boute 1. — Malmeshiiry. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 which stands in a choice air — ; 
 Walton's Lives) that the poet retired : 
 in 1629, when threatened by con- 
 sumption, and here he met his wife, 
 daughter of Mr. C. Danvers of 
 Baynton. (Lord Danby founded 
 the Botanic Garden at Oxford, and 
 built the entrance gateway from a 
 design of Inigo Jones.) The monu- 
 ment records that he died full of 
 *' honours, woundes, and daies," 
 The epitaph on the E. side is from 
 Herbert's pen, though as Herbert 
 died in 1633, more than ten years 
 before Lord Danby, it was written 
 by anticipation. He was succeeded 
 by his brother John, one of Charles 
 I.'s judges, whose estates, being for- 
 feited to the Crown, formed part of 
 Mary of Modena's dowry, and were 
 granted by Queen Ann to Mordaunt, 
 Earl of Peterborough. The last Earl 
 was buried here in 1814. The Manor 
 belongs to Sir H. Meux, Bart. 
 
 The line crosses the Avon and 
 reaches 
 
 2 m. 1. Great Somcrford Stat, with 
 its grey pinnacled CA.-tower peering 
 out from the trees. Little Somerford 
 lies a little further on to right. 
 
 Passing through a short tunnel 
 before reaching the station there is 
 a very striking view of the Abbey 
 ch., and a stately gabled house 
 crowning the steep green slope above 
 the line. The stat. is to the N. of 
 the town. 
 
 6 m. Malmesbury (Pop. of Pari, 
 borough, returning 1 member since 
 the first Reform Act, 6866, of sani- 
 tary district, 3133) {Lnns : King's 
 Arms ; George ; the Earl of Radnor) 
 is a decayed place, chiefly remark- 
 able for its Abbey Church, one of the 
 most valuable architectural relics 
 in England, picturesquely situated 
 on a peninsular ridge flanked on 
 either side by running streams 
 which unite at the S. extremity 
 of the town to form the lower 
 Avon, answering to Leland's de- 
 scription, " the toune of Malms- 
 burie stondeth on the very toppe of 
 
 a great slaty rock, and ys wonder- 
 fully defended by nature, for Newton 
 water comith 2 miles from N. to 
 the town, and Avon water comith 
 by W. to the town, and meets about 
 a bridge at S.E.'' 
 
 The view of the town and abbey 
 ruins is good from almost all points. 
 There is a steep slope to the N., and 
 from the rising ground opposite the 
 effect is very fine. 
 
 Malmesbury in British times was 
 known as Caer Bladon ; under Anglo- 
 Saxon rule it became Ingelburne, 
 and was an important frontier mili- 
 tary post of Wessex. The name of 
 Malmesbury (Maidulfesburgh) is 
 derived from an Irish missionary 
 named Maidulph, or Maldulph, who 
 in the early part of the 7th century 
 planted a hermitage underthe shelter 
 of the fortress, and gathered a school 
 around him. Among his scholars 
 was the famous Aldhelm, afterwards 
 first Bishop of Sherborne (a.d. 705), 
 a member of the royal stock of 
 Wessex, who, after pursuing his 
 studies in the schools of Hadrian 
 the African, and Theodore of Tarsus, 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, returned 
 to Malmesbury, and became the first 
 abbot of the monastery founded 
 there, a.d. 680, by the grant of Leu- 
 therius. Bishop of Winchester, to 
 whom the land round Ingelburne 
 Castle belonged. Aldhelm' s is one 
 of the greatest names in the early 
 ecclesiastical literature of England. 
 He was the first Anglo-Saxon on 
 record who wrote in Latin, and the 
 fame of his classical knowledge, 
 *' vestrse Latinitatis panegyricus ru- 
 mor,'' was widely spread not only 
 in his native land, but on the con- 
 tinent, and reached the ears of 
 dwellers in remote Prankish pro- 
 vinces. Bede says of him, that he 
 " was a man most learned in all re- 
 spects, for he had a clear style, and 
 was wonderful for ecclesiastical and 
 liberal erudition." Though so skil- 
 ful in the composition of Latin verse, 
 " in which," says Bede, *' he wrote a 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 jRoute 1. — Mahneshury, 
 
 9 
 
 uotable book on Virginity," he did 
 not altogether neglect vernacular 
 poetry ; and seeing with sorrow 
 the little effect the services of reli- 
 gion had on the peasants, who 
 listened to sermons with indifference, 
 and forgot them as soon as heard ; 
 he placed himself on the bridge 
 over the Avon which they had to 
 cross on their way home, in the 
 garb of a minstrel, and when he had 
 arrested the crowd and fully en- 
 thralled their attention by the sweet- 
 ness of his song, he gradually intro- 
 duced into his popular lay some of the 
 solemn truths of religion, and thus 
 won many hearts to the faith " (Mil- 
 man, * Lat. Christ/ ii. 96). On his 
 death, at Doulting, in Somerset, 
 (Rte. 24), in 709, his body was 
 brought to the monastery he had 
 founded, and buried in St. Michael's 
 chapel; but was afterwards trans- 
 lated and placed near the high altar. 
 William the Conqueror instituted a 
 feast of four days in his honour, still 
 observed in Leland's days, 5 cen- 
 turies afterwards, which drew such 
 crowds from all the country round, 
 that soldiers were required in the 
 town to keep order. 
 
 Another early teacher, ** John the 
 Scot," Abbot of Athelney, a.d. 887, 
 met with a far less favourable recep- 
 tion at Malmesbury, "being," says 
 Leland, *'slayne of his own disciples 
 thrusting and striking hym with 
 their table pointelles." " This," he 
 adds, " is John Scott that trans- 
 lated Dionysius out of Greek into 
 Latin." He was also author of ' A 
 Treatise on the Division of Na- 
 ture.' The great patron hero of 
 Malmesbury is " the glorious Athel- 
 stan," who rebuilt the monastery 
 from the ground, and enriched it 
 with large grants of land and the bones 
 of St. Samson, besides a portion of 
 the True Cross and Crown of Thorns. 
 The *' commoners" of the borough 
 still hold a large tract of land, said 
 to have been granted to them by 
 Athelstan for their services in his 
 
 battles against the Danes. Athel- 
 stan' s Day" is observed annually on 
 the second Tuesday after Trinity 
 Sunday. At his death, in 941, he 
 was buried near the altar of St, 
 Mary in the Tower. Another bene- 
 factor was St. Dunstan, who, out 
 of love for St. Aldhelm, presented 
 the Ch. with an organ with metal 
 pipes. Bishop Roger of Sarum, the 
 all-powerful favourite of Henry I., 
 built a castle, to the " great indigna- 
 tion of the monks," in the very 
 churchyard, not a stone's throw from 
 the church. In the civil wars of 
 the 12th centy. Stephen held Malmes- 
 bury, which, after various changes 
 of fortune, was attacked by Henry 
 of Anjou, A.D. 1152, and taken, with 
 the exception of the keep, in Ste- 
 phen's absence. The king hastened 
 to relieve his fortress, but '* the stars 
 in their courses fought against him," 
 and the snow driving in his men's 
 faces determined the day in Henry's 
 favour, and the castle fell. It was 
 razed to the ground by the monks 
 in the reign of John, to enlarge 
 their monastery, the lauildings of 
 which at the Dissolution extended 
 over — not 45, as absurdly stated— 
 but 6 acres. In the reign of Edw. III. 
 the Abbot received a seat in the 
 House of Peers, and a mitre was 
 added by Richard II. 
 
 The Abbey Ch. (S.S. Peter and 
 Paul) is the fragment of a building 
 which, when perfect, must have 
 stood very high among our eccle- 
 siastical edifices. Its plan was of 
 the fullest cathedral type, and its 
 scale surpassed several churches of 
 cathedral rank, while its architecture 
 is of a very high degree of merit. 
 Originally it was a complete cross 
 ch., with central and W. towers. The 
 central tower, crowned with a lofty 
 spire, "a marke to al the countrie 
 about, fell daungerously," according 
 to Leland, in hominum memorid c. 
 1500, and since was not re-edified." 
 The other, " a greate square toure at 
 the west end of the chirche" was 
 
10 
 
 ttoule 1. — Malmeshury. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 erected in the centre of the W. end, 
 in late Perp. times, as at Christ- 
 church Twynham, Bolton, Wim- 
 borne, Shrewsbury, Furness, &c., 
 and appears to have fallen soon after 
 Leland's time, crushing the whole 
 western portion of the nave. The 
 portion now in use consists of the 6 
 eastern out of the 9 bays of the nave, 
 walled up at the E. end ; thus exclud- 
 ing to the W. the remains of 3 bays, 
 with the relics of the W. front, and 
 to the E. 2 of the Norman lantern 
 arches, originally supporting the cen- 
 tral tower, with a portion of the 
 W. wall of the transepts. Of the 
 eastern limb the merest fragment 
 remains attached to the N. lantern 
 arch. The W. front of rich Norman 
 work was a show facade (the proto- 
 type of that of Lincoln and Salis- 
 bury), with angular turrets and a 
 screen-wall masking the ends of the 
 aisle. ^ A large Perp. window had 
 been inserted in the centre. The 
 external elevation of the nave is 
 very fine, chiefly from the great 
 height of the clerestory, a Decorated 
 addition, and the fine series of .pin- 
 nacles and flying buttresses. Ver- 
 tical bands of circular medallions 
 break the wall on either side of the 
 clerestory windows in the 3 Eastern 
 bays. The N. side, being concealed by 
 the cloisters, was plainer. The most 
 striking feature of the ch. is the S. 
 porch of surpassing richness, the 
 profusion of ornament-work exceed- 
 ing that of any other part of the 
 building." — Rickman. It is of the 
 same character as the W. door of 
 Iffley, near Oxford, and instead of 
 shafts with capitals supporting the 
 arch, it has 8 concentric boutells; 
 three covered with continuous bands 
 of sculpture of the most elaborate 
 character, and 5 with interlaced pat- 
 terns. The sculptures, which have 
 been fully described by Prof. Cock- 
 erell (' Sculptures of Wells Cathe- 
 dral ') appear to represent on the 1st 
 arch — the history of the Creation, 
 Fall, Cain and Abel ; on the 2nd the 
 
 Deluge, Offering of Isaac,'scenes from 
 the history of Moses, Samson and 
 David ; on the 3rd, scenes from the 
 history of our Lord, the Annuncia- 
 tion, Nativity, Flight into Egypt, 
 Last Supper, Crucifixion, Burial, Re- 
 surrection, &c., with intervening 
 bands of elaborate foliage. The inner 
 doorway has "a Majesty'' in the 
 tympanum, and the Apostles on either 
 side of the arcaded porch. The whole 
 was recased externally in the Deco- 
 rated age. There is a smaller and 
 plainer Norm, door to the N., origin- 
 ally opening into the cloisters. 
 
 The fabric of the ch. is usually 
 ascribed to Henry L's all-powerful 
 favourite, Roger, Bp. of Sarum, and 
 is placed by Mr. Parker between 1115 
 and 1139. It is a very early ex- 
 ample of Transition-Norman work, 
 with as yet but few traces of the 
 approaching change, beyond the ob- 
 tusely pointed arches of the nave. 
 The hood mould is ornamented with 
 the billet mouldings, and terminates 
 in grotesque heads. The piers are 
 massive cylinders, about 2 diameters 
 high, with imposts hardly deserving 
 the name of capitals, from which 
 vaulting shafts rise, spreading out 
 into an elaborate groined roof with 
 rich bosses, a Decorated work of 
 the same date as the clerestory, the 
 windows of which are of a somewhat 
 unusual pattern. The triforium 
 shows a semicircular arch embracing 
 4 smaller ones. The whole eleva- 
 tion must have been one of the very 
 grandest in England. It has all the 
 solemn majesty of a Romanesque 
 building, combined with somewhat 
 of Gothic aspiration. The bays are 
 tall and narrow, the triforium large, 
 the clerestory still larger." — E. A. 
 Freeman. The aisles retain their 
 Norman vaulting, and, for the most 
 part, their windows. In the 4th bay 
 of the N. aisle a tall Dec. window 
 has been inserted, rising above the 
 aisle vault, and to accommodate it a 
 little Dec. vault with ribs and 
 bosses has been substituted for the 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Route 1. — Malmeshury, 
 
 11 
 
 Norm, vaulting cell, covered by a 
 gable on the outside. This change 
 probably marks the site of an altar, of 
 the reredos of which there are traces 
 in the capital of the column beyond. 
 Two curious but coarse Dec. win- 
 dows in the S. aisle deserve notice. 
 There is curious drop-tracery in 
 the centre light. A clumsy stone 
 chamber, perhaps a watching chamber 
 or for the exhibition of relics, of 
 Perp. date, projects from one of the 
 bays of the S. triforium. 
 
 At the crossing 2 of the Norman 
 lantern arches remain; that to the 
 W. blocked, and that to the N. 
 (singularly stilted to bring its apex 
 to the same height with its wider 
 neighbours) standing free, and form- 
 ing a striking object in all views 
 of the abbey. The rood-screen re- 
 mains, its central door being blocked, 
 and forms the reredos of the present 
 ch. At the S. end of each aisle is a 
 screen of Perp. date, but with Dec. 
 tracery. A tomb supporting a mu- 
 tilated crowned effigy, called Athel- 
 stan's, and which may very possibly 
 be his, though of a much later age, 
 and removed from its original site, 
 stands to the S. of the present altar. 
 Some incised coffin-lids are still pre- 
 served in the ch., and in the vestry 
 are some specimens of encaustic 
 pavement. 
 
 The preservation of the abbey re- 
 mains is mainly dae to one Master 
 Stumpe, "an exceeding riche clothiar 
 that boute them of the king," who 
 gave the nave to the parish and 
 erected his looms in the vast de- 
 serted monastic offices, not sparing 
 even "the little church" to the S. 
 of the transept (the traditional scene 
 of John Scot's murder by his pupils), 
 where Leland found them busily 
 working c. 1538. Stumpe should 
 live in the memory of every lover 
 of architecture as "the chef causer 
 and contributer to have the abbey 
 chirch made a parish chirch." This 
 was carried into effect by Abp. Cran- 
 mer's licence, 1541. The old parish 
 
 church of St. Paul's standing as 
 usual close to the abbey, was dis- 
 used, and the E. end, in Leland's 
 time, served as a town-hall. The 
 tower, crowned with a broach spire, 
 still serves as a campanile for the 
 ; parish. The last remains of the nave 
 were taken down in 1852. 
 
 Malmesbury was continually being 
 taken and retaken by the contending 
 forces during the great rebellion. 
 Aubrey says that one of the pillars 
 of the central tower and part of the 
 superstructure were brought down by 
 the volleys of shot fired in rejoicing 
 on Charles II.'s restoration. 
 
 To the N.E. of the ch. is an Eliza- 
 bethan house built on the substruc- 
 ture of part of the abbey buildings, 
 probably the abbot's house. This 
 substructure was a lofty crypt with 
 a row of pillars down the centre ; the 
 windows have foliated rear arches. 
 
 There are several other fragments 
 of antiquity in and about Malmes- 
 bury. The Market Cross is a very 
 good example of this class of build- 
 ings, displaying good Perp. work of 
 the 16th century. Leland speaks of 
 it as erected " in hominum memorid,'* 
 and describes it justly as " a right 
 faire piece of work." It is octagonal, 
 with angle piers and buttresses, 
 having arches between, and flying 
 buttresses to a central shaft terminat- 
 ing in a canopied pinnacle, decorated 
 with statues, of which only St. Law- 
 rence and a mitred bishop can be 
 made out. The roof within is 
 groined. The Corporation Almshouse, 
 at the S.E. end of the town, close to 
 St. John's Bridge, includes a fine 
 E.E. doorway walled up, and part of 
 a hospital of St. John of Jerusalem. 
 In this building Henry VIII. was 
 entertained by Stumpe the clothier, 
 and Charles I. feasted by the corpo- 
 ration. The White Lion Inn, lately 
 destroyed, was an hospitium of the 
 abbey. 
 
 The historian William of Malmes- 
 bury derives his name from having 
 
12 
 
 Boute 1, — Mdlmeshury ; Charlion Parh Wiltshire. 
 
 1)een educated in the monastery here, 
 of which he became librarian and 
 precentor, and refused the dignity of 
 abbot, d. c. 1143. 
 
 Oliver of Malmeshury, a Benedictine 
 monk and astrologer, d. 1060, is men- 
 tioned by Fuller as having attempted 
 a flight from one of the abbey towers. 
 He had fastened wings to his hands 
 and feet, but they proved unequal to 
 his weight, and he fell, breaking 
 both his legs. 
 
 Malmesbury was the native place 
 of Thomas Hobhes, the philosopher, 
 author of the 'Leviathan,* b. 1538, 
 at Westport, a suburb of the town 
 of which his father was vicar. A 
 small house, with a low arched door- 
 way, opposite the W. end of West- 
 port Church, is erroneously pointed 
 out as his birthplace. 
 
 2 m. N. of Malmesbury is 
 Charlton Pa/'A- (Earl of Suffolk and 
 Berkshire), a stately mansion, of 
 Jacobean architecture, of which the 
 oldest part was built by Sir Thos. 
 Knyvet, temp. James I. The E. 
 front was added in 1773 by Henry 
 Lord Suffolk, Secretary of State in 
 the American war. The W. front 
 is attributed to Inigo Jo7ies. The 
 I open court in the centre has been 
 roofed over and converted into a hall ; 
 : The interior is modernised, excepting 
 one long gallery with oak panelling, 
 and the original stucco roof with 
 pendants. This is hung with interest- 
 ing portraits, curious as historical 
 memorials rather than fine as works 
 of art, excepting the 3 children of 
 Charles L (a sketch — half-lengths), 
 and Elizabeth Countess of JNorth- 
 umberland, by Vandyck. 
 
 Here are Richard Sackville, Earl of 
 Dorset, My tens ; Sir Jerome Bowes, 
 ambassador to the Czar of Muscovy, 
 L, de Heere ; Sir Edward Sackville, 
 Earl of Dorset, who slew Lord Bruce 
 in a duel, and fought at Edgehill, 
 Mytens ; James_^L, Mark Gerard^ 
 (Queen TTIizabetlv Charles L, Lady 
 Emily and Gertrude Howard, Corn. 
 
 Jansen ; George Villi ers, first Duke 
 of Buckingham, Van Somer ; Diana 
 Countess of Oxford, Mytens ; Maria 
 d'Este, queen of James IL, Lely ; 
 John Hampden; and many more. 
 Here is a roomful of Charles II.'s 
 beauties, by or after Lelyj including 
 Moll Davis, who originally, it is said, 
 was the daughter of a villager at 
 Charlton. 
 
 There are, besides, some very good 
 paintings by old masters. That 
 by Leon, da Vinci, so well known by 
 the name of" La Vierge aux rochers," 
 of which there is a repetition in the 
 Louvre, is now in the National Gal- 
 lery. Domenichino, St. Cecilia ; 2, 
 whole-length portrait of the widow of 
 Cosmo II., Grand Duke of Tuscany. 
 Ann. Carracci, a large landscape, with 
 the Flight into Egypt* ; 2, a male 
 portrait. Guido Reni, the Adoration of 
 the Shepherds*. Holbein, Catherine 
 Howard, queen of Henry VIII. 
 Bagnacavallo, the Virgin borne by 
 Angels to Heaven. Pietro F. Mola, 
 a landscape with Hagar and Ishmael. 
 Agost. Carracci, a landscape, with the 
 Baptism of Christ. Claude, 2 small 
 landscapes. Caspar Poussin, 2 small 
 landscapes'^. D. da Volterra, Christ 
 lamented by his Disciples. Murillo, 
 the Ascension of the Virgin ; 2, the 
 Coronation of the Virgin. W, Van 
 der Velde, a calm sea*, of singular 
 delicacy and transparency." Van der 
 Heyden, interior of a Dutch town with 
 figures* — the latter by A. Van der 
 Velde. F. Milet, a landscape, *' in 
 the taste of his great model Caspar 
 Poussin." G. Poussin, a landscape, 
 with the Temple of the Sibyl at 
 Tivoli, and the Flight into Egypt*. 
 Paul Brill, a large poetic landscape. 
 Paul Veronese, a " Flight into Egypt, 
 here called a Lorenzo Lotto, I uni 
 inclined to attribute to this master." 
 — Waagen, The 8 pictures marked 
 with asterisks, together with an Ecce 
 Homo by Guido, and a Virgin and 
 Child by Proccaccini, were stolen out 
 of the two drawing-rooms in a most 
 daring manner on the night of Oct . 
 
Wiltshire. Itoute 1. — Great Sherston — ChijppenJiam. 
 
 13 
 
 10, 1856, by a discarded servant. 
 Fortunately they were recovered, and 
 in the summer of 1858 were among 
 the works of the Old Masters exhi- 
 bited at the British Institution. 
 
 Dryden, who married a daughter 
 of the Earl of Berkshire, was a fre- 
 quent visitor at Charlton. His letter 
 to his wife's brother, the Hon. Sir 
 Robert Howard, giving an account of 
 his * Annus Mirabilis,' is dated from 
 Charlton, Nov. 10, 16G6. 
 
 Great Sherston, 5^ m. W. of 
 Malmesbury, is considered to be the 
 Sceorstan of Henry of Huntingdon, 
 where, in 1016, Edmund Ironside 
 fought an obstinate but indecisive 
 battle with the Danes under Canute. 
 It was a place of some consequence 
 in early times, and has a large Nor- 
 man C/i. with a debased central 
 tower. Great part of the picturesque 
 village is built within a fortified 
 earthwork on a point of land be- 
 tween 2 streams, the most perfect 
 part of which is to the W, of the ch. 
 
 At a short distance N.E. is an en- 
 trenched camp, probably constructed 
 at that time by the Saxon army. 
 Near the village is Pinkney Far/:, 
 W.H. Cresswell, Esq. ; and 27^- m. S., 
 close to the Roman road, a spot called 
 Ulm and Ask, from 2 trees which appa- 
 rently grew from one root, and in the 
 popular belief had sprung from the 
 stakes driven through the body of 
 a suicide who had been there in- 
 terred. 
 
 West of Malmesbury runs the Ro- 
 man Fosse Way, almost in a direct 
 line from Cirencester to Bath. The 
 station of Mutuantonis, or White Walls, 
 occupied the high ground near Easlon 
 Grey, 3 m. due W. 
 
 Foxley, 2 m. S.W., gave the title 
 of Baron Foxley to Lord Holland. 
 
 Bradfield, S. of Foxley, is an old 
 manor-house with pointed windows. 
 One of its former owners was Wm. 
 Collingbourne, author of the rhyme 
 reflecting on Richard HI. and his 
 ministers Catesby, RatclifFe, and 
 Lovel — 
 
 The Cat, the Rat, and Lovell the Dog, 
 Kule all England under the Hog, 
 
 for which he was executed.] 
 
 90 m. rt. Christian Malford, on the 
 Avon, which the rly. now crosses 
 and keeps it on the 1. The Ch. has 
 a fine Dec. S. aisle, with some 
 ancient stained glass in its E. win- 
 dow, and a Perp. screen. 
 
 91^ m. Tytherton Kellaways, 1., 
 giving its name to the Eellaways rock, 
 one of the limestone beds of the Oxford 
 clay, almost entirely composed of 
 fossil shells. 
 
 94 m. Chippenham Junction Stat, 
 [Here the Wilts, Somerset, and Wey- 
 mouth Railway passes off on 1, to 
 Dorchester and Weymouth. Another 
 short branch goes to Calne, p. 18.] 
 
 Chippenham {Inns : Angel, George; 
 Pop. of Pari, borough, 6776; of 
 municipal borough, 1352). This 
 is an agricultural and manufactur- 
 ing town, sending 1 member to 
 Parliament, situated on the Avon, 
 here a clear winding stream, work- 
 ing various mills. It is celebrated 
 for its cheese and corn markets. 
 The former, now one of the 
 largest in England, is held under 
 an extensive covered building, erected 
 for the purpose by the late Joseph 
 Neeld, Esq., of Grittleton. The 
 cloth made at Chippenham was 
 deemed worthy of the first prize in 
 the Great Exhibition, 1851 ; its silk- 
 weaving is still a considerable busi- 
 ness; and its two large iron-fofmdries, 
 now closed, once supplied not only the 
 Great Western but several lines of 
 railway in the N. of England. The 
 town has also 2 tanneries on a large 
 scale, and a large establishment for 
 condensing milk. 
 
 Chippenham is a town of great an- 
 tiquity and historic interest. As its 
 name implies (A.-S. ceapan, to buy), 
 it was a market-town in Anglo-Saxon 
 times, and having a large royal forest 
 round it was sometimes a residence of 
 the kings of Wessex. Here Alfred 
 resided, and his sister Ethelswitlui 
 
14 
 
 Boute 1. — Chippenham, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 was married to Burlied, King of 
 Mercia. Chippenham was taken 
 by the Danes in 878, who made it 
 their head-quarters, whence they 
 ravaged the whole adjoining country. 
 Alfred's reappearance from his retreat 
 at Athelney (see Rte. 21) and his 
 victory at Ethandun was followed by 
 his return to Chippenham, which he 
 bequeathed to his daughter Elfrida, 
 wife of Baldwin, Count of Flanders, 
 for life. It came back to the Crown, 
 and was one of the manors held by 
 Edward the Confessor " in his own 
 hand." 
 
 It was the birthplace of Dr, John 
 iS'co^^jb. 1688, author of* The Christian 
 Life,* who upon personal scruples 
 twice refused a bishopric. The 
 old Bath and London road passes 
 through the town. In 1742 Sir 
 Robert Walpole, finding himself in 
 a minority of 16 on a quest* on re- 
 lating to a Chippenham election, 
 resigned, having been then Prime 
 Minister of England for 21 years. 
 
 The old Town Hall stands near the 
 market-place. The JSew Town Hall 
 was erected at the cost of Joseph 
 Neeld, Esq., of Grittleton, M.P., 
 d. 1856. 
 
 \i The Church (St. Andrew), enlarged 
 and partly rebuilt in 1878, is a large 
 edifice of mixed architecture. The 
 tower, which bears the coat of arms 
 of Lord Hungerford, lord of the 
 manor temp. Henry VI., in 1633 was 
 taken down and rebuilt with a 
 spire, at the cost of 320L, to which 
 Sir F. Popham, M.P. for the borough, 
 contributed 40Z. ; commemorated by 
 a shield containing his arms over the 
 W. door. The spire is early Dec. ; 
 the W. door is Early English ; both 
 rebuilt. The recent repairs have ob- 
 literated much of the original work 
 of the chancel, c. 1120. An early 
 window has been removed to another 
 position. The elaborate Norm, 
 chancel arch, c. 1120, has been re- 
 chiselled, and re-erected on the N. 
 side of the chancel. There is a 
 rich Dec. squint, and a Perp. 
 
 chapel on S., covered with the cog- 
 nisances of the house of Hungerford, 
 and another S. chapel of 2 stories, 
 opening by one arch into the ch. 
 Sir Gilbert Pry nne's monument, 1627, 
 deserves to be noticed. The view 
 from the E. end of the churchyard 
 is very pleasing. 
 
 The Gh. of 8t, PauVs, built in 
 1853 from Sir G. G. Scott's designs, 
 in the Decorated style, with a tower 
 and spire 176 ft. high and a peal 
 of 8 bells by Mears, stands on high 
 ground near the railway station. 
 
 Maud Heath's Causeway, leads from 
 St. Paul's Ch. N.E. for 4^ miles by the 
 village of Tytherton Kellaways [where 
 is a Moravian establishment founded 
 by Cennick], to the top of Bremhill- 
 wick Hill, traversing a low tract of 
 heavy clay land and crossing the N. 
 Wilts Avon. It is a stone pitched 
 path, made and still maintained by 
 the benefaction of the individual 
 whose name it bears (popularly said 
 to have been a market woman), of 
 the adjoining parish of Langley 
 Burrell, c. 1474. Her memory is 
 preserved by rhymed inscriptions 
 on stones at either extremity of the 
 path, and on the bridge midway, as 
 well as by the monumental column 
 on the ridge of Bremhillwick Hill, 
 crowned with a rude statue of Maud 
 Heath herself, erected in 1838 by 
 Lord Lansdowne and the Rev. W. 
 Lisle Bowles (see paper by Canon 
 Jackson, Wilts Arch. Mag. i. 251). 
 The couplet on the stone at the 
 Chippenham end of the causeway is, 
 
 "Hither extend eth Maud Heath's gift 
 For where 1 stand is Chippenham clift." 
 
 This position and the adjoining drive 
 on Wick Hill command one of the 
 finest and most extensive views in 
 Wiltshire, including W,, Monkton 
 Farleigh Tower, and Beckford's 
 Tower at Bath, and the Badminton 
 Woods; and E., Roundway Down, 
 Compton House, the White Horse, 
 the Cherhill Column, and the Wans-^ 
 dyke. 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Monte 1, — Bowood ; 3Ianmn, 
 
 15 
 
 In the vicinity of tlie town are 
 Ivy House; Monkton House, Graham 
 Moore Esmeade, Esq. ; Notion, (late) 
 Rt. Hon. Sir J. W. Awdry ; Lackham, 
 formerly the seat of Lieut.-Col. 
 Montagu, the naturalist ; now of the 
 Stapletons ; and Hardenhuish Park 
 (commonly called Harnish). The 
 church of Hardenhuish was built by 
 Wood of Bath. The cemetery con- 
 tains a monument to the financier 
 David Ricardo, father of the late 
 Mrs. Clutterbuck, buried here 1823 ; 
 and to John Thorpe, the learned edi- 
 tor of the ' Registrum ' and ' Custu- 
 male Rolfense.' 
 
 About 4 m. N.E. at Foxham, stands 
 Cadenham, formerly a manor-house 
 of the Hungerfords, whose arms, 
 with the Seymours', it bears on the 
 garden front; a small and rather 
 poor house, erected in the 17th 
 century. Evelyn was a visitor here 
 in 1652, and was *'long and nobly 
 entertained." Among the outbuild- 
 ings the dove-cot remains in fair 
 preservation. A excellent example 
 of a village church was erected here 
 in 1879 by Mr. Butterfield. 
 
 [4 m. N. is Dray cot Cerne (Earl 
 Cowley) an ancient seat of the Cernes 
 and Longs. The house contains 
 many objects of interest, paintings, 
 Sevres china, curious fire-dogs, and 
 candelabra presented to the Longs 
 by Charles II. after the Restoration. 
 The park is one of the finest in N. 
 Wilts, richly studded with ancient 
 oaks, crowning a hill commanding an 
 extensive prospect. The monuments 
 of the Cernes and Longs in the Ch. 
 are interesting, including a knight in 
 chain-armour said to be Sir Philip 
 Cerne, a brass to Sir E. Cerne and 
 lady, c. 1393, and a rich altar-tomb 
 to Sir Thomas Long, and some mo- 
 dern monuments. The chancel is on 
 a lower level than the nave. 
 
 2i m. N.W., at Lanhill Farm, in 
 the hamlet of Allington, close to the 
 Bristol road, is a tumulus known as 
 Hubba's Low, and traditionally known 
 
 as the barial-place of the Danish 
 leader Hubba, but considered by 
 Dr. Thurnam to be a British work. 
 It was constructed of stones laid with 
 the hand, and contained rude sepul- 
 chral cists formed by large rough 
 slabs of the stone of the country.] 
 
 [3^ m. S.E. of Chippenham is the 
 Marquis of Lansdowne's seat, -Sor6-oocf. 
 It is also accessible from Calne, from 
 which it is distant 2 m. S.W. It is 
 a mansion in the Italian style, com- 
 bining splendour and taste with com- 
 fort, originally erected by the Earl of 
 Shelburne from designs by the bro- 
 thers Adam. It is not shown except 
 by a personal order from Lord Lans- 
 downe. The gardens are, however, 
 accessible during the absence of the 
 family, and the park is freely open. 
 Bowood owes many of its most inter- 
 esting associations, as well as much 
 of its beauty, to its late distinguished 
 owner, Henry 3rd Marquis of Lans- 
 downe (died 31 January, 1863) ; who 
 not only enlarged and embellished the 
 ornamental grounds, and filled the 
 kou«e with a noble collection of pic- 
 tures, books and various works of art 
 and taste, but made it the hospitable 
 resortof those who were distinguished 
 in science, literature, and art. The 
 principal entrance of the park is from 
 Chippenham, by an arched gateway, 
 flanked by a tower after a design by 
 Barry, and ornamented on the inner 
 wall by two reliefs by M. L. Watson. 
 Opposite the gilt gates is the pretty 
 little village of Berry Hill, full of 
 modern half-timbered houses, a nice 
 small Hotel, and a Ch. with lofty spire 
 built in 1848. The drive to the 
 house is nearly 2 m. through luxu- 
 riant woods, an occasional view being 
 obtained of the Lansdowne Column 
 and the white horse cut on the slope 
 of the Cherhill downs. Fj om Calne 
 the park-road skirts the garden for 
 the distance of a mile. The principal 
 front, with a Doric portico, faces the 
 S., and attached to it is a long low 
 wing, containing a conservatory open- 
 
16 
 
 Boute 1. — Bowood; Pamtings, Wiltshire. 
 
 ing on a succession of terraced gar- 
 dens, and built in imitation of a wing 
 of Diocletian's palace at Spalato. 
 The view from this S. front is exceed- 
 ingly beautiful ; the lake winding 
 through the woods, the ferry to the 
 rustic cottage just peeping from the 
 trees, the prospect over the forest 
 upland to the purple hills of Kound- 
 way and Beacon Down. 
 
 Among the various apartments are 
 distributed the pictures, which in- 
 clude specimens *' of the best masters 
 of the Italian, Flemish, Spanish, 
 French, and English schools. They 
 are arranged upon walls of crimson 
 silk, which has an excellent effect." 
 — Waagen. Among them may be 
 enumerated — 
 
 Inthedrawing-roj3m: SalvatorRosa, 
 [portrait of himselfj 2. portrait of 
 the Marchese 'RiQcmviiXXiY^Remhrandt, 
 his famous mill, viewed at sunset ; 
 the finest landscape Rembrandt ever 
 painted; there is a dark solitary 
 grandeur about itTt L. Carracci, 
 the Virgin and Chill. Domenichino, 
 a small landscape.^ * W«^^^aw, 2 pic- 
 tures. G. Bassano, the Entomb- 
 ment. Gainsborough, cattle returning 
 at sunsel. Sir Joshua Reynolds, 1. 
 An imaginary portrait of Dr. Johnson 
 in infancy; " Puck in the Sulks :v" 
 2. the Strawberry Girl, " with all 
 his glow of colour 3. Love 
 nourished by Hope \ 4. Mrs. Bald- 
 win, in a Turkish dress, pur- 
 chased at the sale of Sir Joshua's 
 pictures by Phillips, R.A., as a study 
 of colour;^' J5. Mrs. Sheridan (Miss 
 Linley, the singer) as St. Cecilia] 
 /. Piuysdaely a storm at sea, repre- 
 sehting a vessel beating in' to a har- 
 bour. " Among the few pictures 
 of this class by Ruysdael, this, in 
 point of grandeur of conception and 
 astonishing truth, is one of the 
 finest." — Waageii ; 2. view of a town 
 upon a stream, of charming light and 
 shade." F. Wouvennans, a landscape. 
 J, F. Kcwarete,- QdM^d. JEl Mudo, head 
 of Donna Maria de Padillas ; a por- 
 trait of exquisite beauty. " This 
 
 brings before us in a most lively way, 
 and with a Rembrandt glow of colour, 
 the genuine character of those Spa- 
 nish women whom Calderon loves to 
 describe." — Waagen.^ A, Cuyp, 2 | 
 charming seapieces ; 3. sunset view- ' f 
 on the Maas, cost 12501^ TitiaUf^tAj^, 
 Virgin and Child, " painted in the 
 clear golden tones of his earlier 
 period." \J^ohhema, a landscape, most > ' 
 harmonious and^ beautiful ; also 2 
 small landscapesT} B. Luim, a Mag- 
 dalen. Hogarth; portrait of Peg 
 vVoffiugton, the actress. Murillo.^ 
 Portrait of an ecclesiastic; a very 
 fine example of the master. Berghem^'' 
 a landscape. A, Carracci, landscape, 
 
 a grand composition of mountains, 
 sea, and lofty trees." Claude] view of 
 a seaport by the morning-light ; a con- 
 centration of the painter's excellences. 
 Wilkie, a Capuchin monk confessing. 
 
 In the library: Raphael, '^X, John 
 the Baptist preaching in the wilder- 
 ness ; perhaps the most valuable 
 picture in the collection. It is a spe- 
 cimen of Raphael's transition from 
 his Perugian to his Florentine style, 
 painted in 1505. *'The youth in a 
 green cap is evidently the portrait of 
 Raphael himself." — Waagen, The 
 figures are in the . costume of the 
 time. ' ^S'. del Fiombo, a monk with a 
 skull. Giorgione, a shepherd, evi- 
 dently a portrait of the master him- 
 self. I>omenich{nd,2i small landscape, 
 with Abraham and Isaac going to 
 Mount Moriah. The poetic com- 
 position, fine transparent colour, and 
 singularly careful execution render 
 this a perfect jewel." — Waagen. 
 
 In the cabinet : Wilkie, the Jew's 
 harp; 2. Grandmamma's lap. L.Back- 
 huysen, a seapiece. der Hey den, 
 
 a Dutch town, remarkable for depth ^i^-^ 
 of colour; 2. A town gate^ with 
 figures by A. Van der Velde^^ F. 
 WouvermanSf a silvery landscape, a 
 perfect gem. "^eniers, the Tempta- 
 tion of St, Anthony^ and 3 other pic- 
 tures. A» Cuyp, a landscape with 
 cows; full of sunshine,. Greuze, a 
 girl watching a cat playing with a 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Itoute 1. — Bowood ; Paintings. 
 
 17 
 
 ball. N.Mcm, a child in its cradle. 
 
 ^emhrandt^ a landscape in rainy 
 Ayeath^, of astonishing truth of 
 effect.^ '^Velasqncil two horsemen ; 
 
 2. a lady seated, and other figures. ''and ahanchn of nature, 
 
 island with a heronry, is a pretty 
 object, issuing from the Great Wood, 
 It terminates in a cascade, which, 
 tumbling over mossy stones, very 
 fairly represents the variety, grace, 
 
 W. Van der Veldc, a calm sea. " J. 
 Ihujsdacl, a hilly landscape ; " this 
 picture shows the intensest feeling 
 for nature."— Waagen.'^ 
 
 In the corridor : E, Landsccr, the 
 Deerstalker's return, a procession 
 over a l)ridge. Va7i der Capella, 
 ^ " one of' his best pic- 
 
 t in*es. -^^^^^Hy aa^/6'?i . Jan Both, build- 
 ings, with figures. ^ Teniers, a peasant 
 , woman approaching over a hill. 
 )^J{emhrandt, a landscape.,.^ . W. Van der 
 Velde, a calm sea, with shipping; 
 *' of singularly delicate aerial per- 
 spective." ' A. Calcott, tjie Thames, 
 with shippinj£~one of his 1)est works. 
 Tjrbodall, a sick room. Cope, going 
 to church. Hnrlstone, Cupid. Ett}i, 
 the Prodigal Son. Leslie, Sir Roger 
 de Coverley going to church. *S'. 
 Newton, the Vicar of Wakefield re- 
 ceiving back his daughter Olivia; 2. 
 Captain Macheath ; How happy 
 could I be with either." E. W, Coohe, 
 view of Mont St. Michel. Albo.ao, 
 St. John preaching in the Avilderness. 
 
 In the dining-room : Stansjield, G 
 landscapes, chiefly views of Venice 
 and of the coast about Naples. East- 
 lake, pilgrims in sight of Kome. 
 
 Among the sculpture are Camilla, 
 and a bust of the 3rd Marquis, pre- 
 sented by his friends in 1853, and 
 Westmacotfs celebrated Hagar in the 
 Desert, with the fainting Ishmael in 
 her lap. The cabinets contain a col- 
 lection of miscellaneous china. 
 
 The Gardens are admirably kept, 
 and abound with the noblest and 
 choicest trees, such as the cedar of 
 L'Cbanon, the oak, and the cork. 
 The Park derives beauty from the 
 undulations of the ground, its bound- 
 ary including as many as nine dis- 
 tinct valleys. Hill and* dale are 
 intersected in every direction by 
 green roads. The Lake, containing an 
 [Wilts, Dorset, ^x., 1882.] 
 
 Bowood, in early times, formed 
 part of the royal forest of Pew sham, 
 which adjoined that of Chippenham. 
 The estate was purchased by John 
 Earl of Shellxirne, father of the first 
 Marquis, from Sir Orlando Bridge- 
 man : it had belonged to the crown 
 till the reign of Charles I. 
 
 On Home Hill within the woods 
 near the Devizes road is a mausoleum, 
 the private burial-place of BoAvood. 
 It was built in 1764, from the design 
 of Mr. Adam, one of the " Adelphi." 
 
 Outside the Park to the W. in a 
 little glen, is a prettily situated old 
 house called Lock's-well, from a 
 most copious spring which there 
 rushes forth. Here was the original 
 site of Stanley Abbey, afterwards 
 removed to the vale below, of which 
 nothing now remains. The spring 
 was at that time called Eons iJro- 
 gonis," or Drown-font. 
 
 Beyond the Park on the S. is 
 Whethani, an old seat of the Ernie 
 family, and beyond, adjoining the 
 old London road that formerly went 
 by Sandy Lane to Beacon Hill, 
 stood old Bromham House, the seat 
 of the Bayntons. It was so injured 
 in the wars of Chas. I., that the 
 family never restored it, but built 
 a new one at Spye Park.] 
 
 [From Chippenham a branch line 
 goes 1. to Calne, 6 m., following the 
 course of the river Marden, an afflu- 
 ent of the Avon. 2 m. from Chip- 
 penham it passes 1. the site oi Stan- 
 ley Abbey, founded by Hen. II. and 
 his mother the Empress Maud, for a 
 body of Cistercians from Quarr in 
 the Isle of Wight, in 1151, at Locks- 
 well (see ante), and removed 1154 to 
 Stanley. The only remains are a few 
 fragments of walls in the farmhouse » 
 A chain of fish-ponds, connected at 
 c 
 
18 
 
 lloute 1. — Calne. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 each end with the Marden, can still 
 be traced. 
 
 Calne {Inns: Lansdowne Arms; 
 White Hart ; Population of municipal 
 borough, 2474). A parliamentary 
 borough returning one member, 
 which has been represented by Dun- 
 ning, Lord Henry Petty (afterwards 
 Lord Lansdowne), Mr. Abercromby, 
 sometime Speaker of the House of 
 Commons, T. Babington Macaulay, 
 and Robert Lowe, now Viscount 
 Sherbrooke. 
 
 Calne has the aspect of a place 
 decidedly past its prime. It had once 
 a busy manufacture of cloth, but 
 this has left it for the northern coun- 
 ties, and its numerous factories are 
 closed. The chief business carried 
 on now is bacon curing. 
 
 Calne is a borough by prescription, 
 and dates its origin from the time of 
 the Saxons ; but the only historic 
 event at all connected with it is a 
 council held here in 978 to decide 
 the questions between the celibate 
 regulars and the married secular 
 clergy, whose causes were respec- 
 tively maintained by Abp. Dunstan 
 and Bp. Beornhelm of Winchester, 
 at which the floor of the council- 
 chamber gave way, and all were pre- 
 cipitated among the ruins except 
 Dunstan and his supporters. The 
 chief influence in the borough has 
 long been exercised by the lord of 
 the neighbouring Bo wood. 
 
 The Castle House keeps up the me- 
 mory of the Castle, of which all re- 
 mains have long since disappeared. 
 
 The Cli, is a fine large building with 
 double aisles to the nave, and aisles 
 to the chancel, N. and S. porches, 
 and a tower on the N . side, and a cor- 
 3*esponding transeptal chapel to the 
 S. The tower, which was origin- 
 ally central, fell on the chancel and 
 crushed it c. 1645 ; both were rebuilt 
 in a much better style than we 
 should expect from the date. The 
 piers and arches of the nave are 
 massive Trans. -Norm. Some of 
 
 the arches are plain, others have 
 the billet and dogstooth ornament. 
 The whole ch. was admirably re- 
 stored by Slater, 1864, mainly 
 through the exertions of its late 
 vicar, Canon Guthrie, and contains 
 several fine memorial windows. The 
 great W. window was the gift of Lord 
 Crewe. 
 
 Dr. Priestley, the chemist, resided 
 at Calne between the years 1770- 
 1780, nominally as librarian, but 
 really as literary companion to the 
 Earl of Shelburne. 
 
 Li 1814-1816 S. T. Coleridge 
 spent some time at Calne as the 
 guest of a Mr. Morgan, the son of a 
 wealthy spirit merchant of Bristol, 
 " a witty, kindhearted man," writes 
 Cottle, *' who ruined himself hy 
 thoughtless generosity in lending 
 money to men who never repaid 
 him.'* This, writes his son Hartley, 
 was *'the unhappiest period of my 
 father's life" from the tyranny of 
 opium. " Calne," says Hartley 
 Coleridge, *'is not a very pretty 
 place. The soil is clayey and chalky ; 
 the streams far from crystal; the 
 hills bare and shapeless; the trees 
 not venerable ; the town itself irre- 
 gular, which is its only beauty. But 
 there were good, comfortable, unin- 
 tellectual people, in whose company 
 I always thought S. T. C. more than 
 usually pleasant.'' 
 
 The "sights" of Calne, are Bowood 
 and the view from the Lansdowne 
 Column. Avebury may be conve- 
 ently visited from Calne, from which 
 it is distant about 7 m. (Rte. 3.)] 
 
 [The Lansdowne Column crowns a 
 lofty promontory of the chalk range, 
 distant 3-2- m. It is erected within 
 the area of Oldbury Castle, an en- 
 trenchment, to which, in the opinittn 
 of Milner, the Danes retired after 
 their defeat by Alfred in the battle- 
 field of Ethandune, which this an- 
 ti(iuary places at Heddington. On 
 the adjoining slope is the CherhiU 
 White Horse, cut on the chalky 
 ground about the year 1780, by Dr. 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Mouie 1 . — Bi'emhilL 
 
 19 
 
 Alsop, 'a physician resident at Calne. 
 It is in a spirited trotting attitude, 
 157 ft. from head to tail, and visible 
 at a distance of 30 m. The Wansdyke 
 will be observed on the downs to the S. 
 2Iaud Heath's Column (see ante) is about 
 2 m. from Calne across the fields.] 
 
 ^Brcmhill, 2 m. N.W., was the liv- 
 ing of the poet Bowles (d. 1850), 
 whose residence has been thus de- 
 scribed by Moore in his * Diary — 
 
 His parsonage-house at Bremhill 
 is beautifully situated ; but he has 
 frittered away its beauty with grot- 
 toes, hermitages, and Shenstonian 
 inscriptions : when company is com- 
 ing he cries, 'Here, John, run with 
 the crucifix and missal to the her- 
 mitage, and set the fountain going.' 
 His sheep-bells are tuned in thirds 
 and fifths. But he is an excellent 
 fellow, notwithstanding." The **her- 
 mitage" is now in ruins, but the 
 vicar courteously allows any who 
 care to do so to visit the very pic- 
 turesque grounds, where they may 
 still see some of the columns erected 
 by Bowles; some fragments from 
 Stanley Abbey ; and the dripping 
 well whose waters are received into a 
 shell given him by Rogers, the author 
 of ' The Pleasures of Memory.' The 
 Ch, will repay a visit. The N.E. 
 angle of the tower shows " long and 
 short work," presumed to be Saxon. 
 The chancel arch and the arcade of 
 the nave (rebuilt with the old stones 
 when the ch. was "restored" in 
 1850), and the cylindrical font are 
 c. 1180. The beautifully carved rood- 
 loft and its staircase, described by 
 Bowles, were unfortunately destroyed 
 at the restoration. There is a good 
 stone groined Perp. S. porch, with 
 room over, and a sancte bell-cot 
 on the extremity of the nave roof. 
 Several epitaphs and inscriptions in 
 the churchyard are from the pen of 
 Mr. Bowles. A flat slab in front of 
 the altar commemorates John Town- 
 son, vicar; ejected during the civil 
 wars and returning to his benefice 
 
 at the Restoration, he lived till 1687, 
 and founded the almshouses at Calne, 
 S. of the Church.] 
 
 [2i m. N.R., Compton Basset, 
 
 C. Basset Mouse (Major Heneage), 
 beautifully situated on a wooded 
 slope of the downs, was built by 
 Sir John Weld, who d. 1674, and 
 has been restored by subsequent 
 owners. There are some good family 
 pictures; one of Mary Button, an 
 heiress, in curious costume. In the 
 Ch. is a remarkable double rood- 
 screen of stone, with modern figures 
 of the Apostles. The vaulting be- 
 tween the 2 screens supported the 
 rood-loft ; an hour-glass in its frame 
 is attached to the pulpit. The chancel 
 was restored 1865. 
 
 Hilmarton Ch., 3 m. N., was restored 
 by the late Mr. Street. The columns 
 are E.E. ; the stone chancel-screen 
 and timber roof Perp. There is a 
 chained Bible of the edition of 1611. 
 
 Highiraij Ch., 4 m. N.E., rebuilt 
 1867 by Mr. Butterfield, at the cost 
 of the late rector, the Hon. C. A. 
 Harris, afterwards Bishop of Gib- 
 raltar, preserves a stone rood-screen 
 and the rood-beam. The hills above 
 the village command fine views. 
 
 'Thomas Moore, the poet, passed his 
 later years in this neighbourhood, at 
 Sloperton, a cottage near Bromham. 
 He was a frequent guest at Bowood. 
 He died at Sloperton 1852, and is 
 buried in Bromham churchyard.] 
 
 [_Lacock Abbey is 6 m. W. from 
 Calne, 4 m. N. from Melksham, 
 3 m. S.E. from Corsham, and 3 m. 
 S. from Chippenham, from which it 
 is most easily visited (for descrip- 
 tion see Hte. 4). The road to it from 
 Calne runs between the parks of Spye 
 and Bovcden, and commands a fine 
 view to the W. The old gatehouse 
 of Spye is an excellent subject for 
 a sketch, and it is a pleasant walk 
 through it to Bowood park and Great 
 Wood, distance 5 m. 
 
 The country about Calne is pretty. 
 Those who explore it will be charmed 
 c 2 
 
20 
 
 Moute 1. — Kingley Langley—Corston, Wiltsliire» 
 
 by the picturesque irregularity of the 
 cottages.] 
 
 [From Chippenham the traveller 
 may diverge to Malmesbury, 10 m. N. 
 by road. It is a pleasant excursion 
 through pretty country. 
 
 1 m. 1. Hardenhuish Park, p. 15. 
 
 2 m. The cross roads, Plough pub- 
 lic-house. 
 
 1 m. rt. stands the hamlet of 
 Kington Langley, very prettily scat- 
 tered on a hill, with a new chapel, 
 St. Peter's. The rise to the village 
 is called Fitzurse Hill, from an ad- 
 joining farm so called, which was 
 anciently held under Glastonbury 
 Abbey by the Fitzurse family, one 
 of whom was one of the murderers 
 of Thos. a Becket. 
 
 1 m. 1. from the Plough is the vil- 
 lage of Kington St. Michael. The 
 manor-house has been rebuilt by H. 
 Prodgers, Esq. An old Almshouse in 
 the street was founded by a native, 
 Isaac Lyte, Alderman of London, d. 
 1672. His arms are over the door. 
 
 The Ch. of 3 equal, gabled aisles, 
 restored 1857, has a good Tr.-Norm. 
 chancel arch, and an E. E. North 
 arcade, with other remains of early 
 work. The tower, blown down in 
 the great storm of 1703, was re- 
 built in a meagre style in 1725. It 
 contains a monumental window to 
 Aubrey and Britton, who, living at 
 an interval of 150 years, were re- 
 markable for similarity of taste and 
 pursuits. Kington St. Michael had 
 formerly a nunnery, of which there 
 are some remains. *'01d .Taques," 
 says Aubrey, ''who lived on the 
 other side, hath seen 40 or 50 nunnes 
 in a morning spinning with their 
 wheels and bobbins." 
 
 Farther on, 1 m., in this parish is the 
 small hamlet of Easton Piers (^com- 
 monly now called Percy), in which, 
 on the site of a farmhouse now called 
 Zower Easton Pe?'cy, was formerly a 
 house, the property of John Aubrey, 
 the antiquary (1626), who, though 
 btigmatised by Anthony Wood as 
 
 *^a shiftless person, roving and mag- 
 goty-headed," has left us many valu- 
 able topographical and biographical 
 works. He lived through the Civil 
 War, Commonwealth, Restoration, 
 and Revolution, and for some time re- 
 sided at Broad Chalk in S. Wiltshire. 
 John Britton, the antiquary, to whose 
 labours English Gothic architecture 
 and antiquities are so much in- 
 debted, was born at Jungton St. 
 Michael in 1771. His father was a 
 baker, maltster, shopkeeper, and 
 small farmer. 
 
 4 J m. on 1. Stanton St, Quintin. 
 The Ch., restored a few years ago, 
 contains good Norman arches, door- 
 way, and font. The estate belongs 
 to the Earl of Radnor. A curious 
 old manor-house of the St. Quintins 
 has been taken down. The park 
 that belonged to it was afterwards 
 planted, and is now a well-known 
 cover in the Duke of Beaufort's hunt. 
 In this wood in 1764, Geo. Hartford, a 
 sailor, was murdered by Wm. Jaques, 
 a shipmate, who was hanged for it on 
 Stanton Common, now enclosed. At 
 the back of the Rectory House 
 are some stone shields. 1. See of 
 Wells impaling Thos. Beckington ; 
 2. Fitzhugh, and 3. One like 
 Pulteney, with an ear of barley 
 in chief. At the farther side of the 
 parish towards Draycote is *'The 
 Hermitage," a square piece of ground 
 with old moat about it, the history 
 of which is unknown. 
 
 6 m. Corston. Here is a little church 
 with a remarkable Perpendicular Bell- 
 turret rising upon the west gable. 
 
 To rt. 1 m. on the hill Rodhourrte 
 (Sir R. Hungerford Pollen, Bart.). At 
 this house is a curious painting of Sir 
 Walter Hungerford, of Farley Castle 
 near Bath, temp. Q. Eliz., inscribed 
 to the effect that " he had challenged 
 all England for 3 years together to 
 produce a better war-horse, grey- 
 hound, or hawk than he possessed, 
 and were refused for all." This is 
 engraved in Sir R. C. Hoare's ^ Mo- 
 dern Wilts/ 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 1. — Castle Comhe, 
 
 21 
 
 8 m.,on 1. Burton Hill (C. W. Miles, 
 Esq. M.P.). The house having been 
 burnt down some years ago, was re- 
 built by the late owner, John 
 Cockerill, Esq. 
 
 [From Chippenham the traveller 
 may visit Castle Comhe, 6 m.N.W., 
 and 2^- m. further Grittleton Home, 
 with its interesting collection of 
 pictures. 
 
 Castle Comhe originally belonged to 
 the Dunstanvilles, from whom it was 
 purchased by the Badlesmeves ; thence 
 by marriage it passed c. 1322 to the 
 Tiptofts, and c. 1385 to the Scropes, 
 whose seat it had been for nearly 
 500 years, until 1867, when it was 
 bought by E. C. Lowndes, Esq. 
 Here lived Lord Scrope of Bolton, 
 Lord Chancellor in the reign of 
 Richard II., and in our time William 
 Scrope, author of * Days of Deer 
 Stalking," and ' Days and Nights 
 of Salmon Fishing,' and till 1867 
 G. Poulett Scrope, Esq., M.P., 
 author of the ' Extinct Volcanoes of 
 France.' The situation is romantic. 
 
 The house lies deeply embosomed 
 among steep and wooded slopes, in 
 an angle of one of those narrow cleft- 
 like valleys which intersect and drain 
 the range of limestone hills called in 
 Gloucestershire the Cotswolds, and 
 which extend southwards as far as 
 Bath. A small but rapid stream runs 
 through the village, and after a 
 course of some miles joins the Avon 
 near the village of Box, whence it is 
 known as the Box brook.'* Above 
 this stream rises the wooded hill on 
 which the original castle was built 
 by Hhe; Dunstanvilles, now reduced 
 to mere mounds of rubbish. In 
 the village stand an ancient market- 
 cross ^ square, with high-peaked roof 
 and terminal pinnacle ; and numerous 
 old limestone houses retain the gabled 
 fronts, the labelled and muUioned 
 windows, and the wide stone fire- 
 places of early times. Of these the 
 Manor-house, with its terraced garden, 
 and the Dowry-house, are very in- 
 
 teresting specimens ; the one on the 
 old road to the castle, the other at 
 the end of High-street, on the road 
 leading up the hill to the N. 
 
 The earthworks of the castle con- 
 taining 9 acres, with strong ditches 
 and banks, seem to prove that a 
 British stronghold existed here, cen- 
 turies before the Norman castle was 
 built. The Ch. was rebuilt 1851, with 
 the exception of the fine pinnacled 
 tower with fan-traceried roof, erected 
 in the first half of the 15th centy., 
 partly at the expense of the wealthy 
 clothiers of the place, partly of Sir 
 J. Fastolf, second husband of Ladv 
 xMilicent Tiptoft. The E. E. east 
 window, a fragment of the original 
 ch., deser-ves notice, as well as the 
 chancel arch with 6 figures sculp- 
 tured in high relief, and an altar- 
 tomb with an effigy in chain-mail. 
 
 Near Nettleton, 1 m. W. of Castle 
 Combe, is a very interesting tumu- 
 lus, known as Lugbury, 180 ft. by 90, 
 containing stone cists with skeletons, 
 and a cromlech with a table-stone 12 
 ft. by 6, leaning against 2 uprights. 
 
 About 1 m. W. of Castle Combe, 
 and the same distance N.E. of North 
 Wraxall, in 1859, the remains of a 
 Roman villa, with baths and hypo- 
 caust, and a cemetery were dis- 
 covered by Mr. Poulett Scrope. 
 
 2 m. S.W. Mrth Wraxall Ch. has a 
 Norm, door, and E. E. chancel and 
 tower, the latter covered by a saddle- 
 back roof. It contains the monu- 
 ments of the Methuens. 
 
 2 m. beyond Castle Combe, by a 
 pretty drive through the grounds, is 
 West Kington, Bp. Latimer's rectory. 
 
 In the waJk at the parsonage house," 
 says Aubrey, is a little scrubbed oak 
 where he used to sit." The oak is 
 gone, but in the lately restored Ch. 
 is the pulpit from which he used to 
 preach. He used to see **the pil- 
 grims come by flocks out of the west 
 country along the Fossway to many 
 images, but chiefly to the Blood of 
 Hailes," i.e., Hales Abbey, Glouces- 
 tershire, 
 
22 
 
 Boute Ic' — Grittleton House ; Paintings, Wiltshire. 
 
 2 1 W. of Castle Combe is 
 
 Grittleton House, purchased of Col. 
 Houlton, 1828, by the late Joseph 
 Neeld, Esq., and now the property 
 of his brother Sir John Neeld, Bart. 
 The present mansion, (Thomson, 
 arch.) completed 1857, contains a fine 
 collection of works of art, including 
 a gallery of sculpture, a large collec- 
 tion of paintings of several schools, 
 some beautiful bronzes, &c. Per- 
 mission to see them is given on appli- 
 cation at the house. The principal 
 pictures are as follows : — 
 
 Entrance Hall. — Some animal paint- 
 ings by Ward; Orgueil Castle, Jer- 
 sey, by J, T. Serres ; and a curious 
 picture of a cock, at Titherton Lucas, 
 that changed its plumage three times. 
 
 West Gallery. — Some very choice 
 Dutch cabinet paintings : Temptation 
 of St. Anthony, Tenicrs ; the Bird- 
 catcher, Berghem ; Travellers at Door, 
 J. Ostade ; the Waterwheel, Decker 
 and Ostade;' Potiphar's Wife, 
 Eemhrandi; Portrait of Rembrandt, 
 by himself ; Dutch Family, and 
 , Burgomasters ' of Amsterdam, Fcm 
 c^^r iTe^^^^ and Pomona, 
 
 ^etscher ;\ Sir Thos. Gresham holding 
 — a pomanaer, Sir A. More \ Lady Jane 
 Grey the Night before hFr Execution, 
 Northcote ; Ann Boleyn, Holbein ; and 
 many others. ■ ^ ^ 
 
 Vestibule between Galleries. ~Coy- 
 naro Family ; Dr. Johnson without 
 his Wig, Opie; Tenducci, a singer, 
 Gainshoroug/i ; Spanish Family, Gon- 
 zales; President West, by himself; 
 Joseph Neeld, Esq., Sir M. A. Skee ; 
 Sir John Neeld, and others of the 
 family. 
 
 East Gallery, — Chiefly Italian pic- 
 tures : Intexior of St. Peter's, Pan- 
 niiii ; Venus (from Villa Borghese), 
 Titian ; Mater polorosa, Guido ; Vir- 
 gin and Child, Andrea del Sarto ; an- 
 other, Garofalo ; another, Paduanino ; 
 Presentation in the Temple, L. Sa- 
 hatiini ; Tivoli, Orizonte ; Landscape, 
 S. Rosa ; Magdalen, L. Carracci ; 
 Battle Piece, Borgog^ione, Sec. 
 
 Shield Vestibule, and the one ad- 
 
 joining. Raising of Brazen Serpent, 
 St. Peter Preaching, Baptism of our 
 Saviour, Magicians before Pharaoh, 
 B, West. Some beautiful enamels, 
 Bo7ie. 
 
 Dining-7'oom. — Dignitary seated 
 holding a Letter, Bubens ; Spanish 
 gQXiilem'Sin, { Velasquez ; Duchess of 
 Ferrara, N€ii:Gwyn, &c. Sijmv e^k- 
 
 Drawing-room.-^Th.Q Mall in St. 
 James's Park, Gainsborough ; Vale of 
 \yedih2im^ Constable I DoveT3ale, Der- 
 T^ysIiiFe, Glover; Hero and Leander, 
 Etty ; also paintings by Zoffamj, 
 Morlandf Reynolds, &c. 
 
 Staircase, — Coronation of Hen. VI., 
 Opie ; Hotspur and Owen Glendower, 
 Westall ; Cordelia Cursed, Fuseli ; 
 Death of Cordelia, Barry ; Madame 
 de Maintenon,and a Lady of the Court 
 of Bohemia, Mignard; Christina, Q. of 
 Sweden, Bourdon ; Spirit of Prophecy 
 "conveyed to"Isaiah, B. West. 
 
 Sculpture. Small Library Vestibule 
 — The Listening Eve, and Maternal 
 Love, Baily ; Musidora, Severe. In 
 Shield Vestibule — The Surprise, E. 
 Papworth, and several others. Large 
 Gallery — Nymph preparing for Bath, 
 and the Tired Hunter, Baily; 
 Bacchus and Ino, Wyatt ; Eve after 
 the Fall, Raff aelle Monti ; Venus Vic- 
 trix (the original), Gibson; Early 
 Melancholy, Obici; Venus and Cupid, 
 and La Pescatrice, Scipio Tadolini, 
 In Gallery Vestibule — The Graces, 
 Baily. In West Picture Gallery — 
 Adam Consoling Eve after her Evil 
 Dream, Baily ; Bust of Jos. Neeld, 
 Esq., Sir F. Chantrey. 
 
 Among the bronzes are Flaxman's 
 Shield of Achilles, Hercules and 
 Busiris, Boreas and Orithyia, Pluto 
 carrying off Proserpine, II Fidele (a 
 Middle Age work), and many 
 others. 
 
 2 m. E. of Grittleton is the small . 
 but highly decorated church ofLeigh- 
 Delamere, entirely rebuilt 1846, at the 
 sole expense of the late Mr, Neeld. 
 The ancient and peculiar bell-turret 
 was re-erected on a schoolhouse at 
 Sevington, a hamlet in this parish.] 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 1. — Corsliam Court, 
 
 23 
 
 Proceeding on our route we reach, 
 98i m. Corsham Stat. (Inn : Me- 
 thuenArms) (Pop. 2660). The town, 
 or rather village, lies f m. on the rt. 
 It was a residence of the Saxon Kings, 
 and afterwards of the Earls of Corn- 
 wall. Corsham was in 1594 the scene 
 of the murder of Henry Long, who 
 was shot while sitting at dinner with 
 his brother Sir Walter Long, of S. 
 Wraxall, and other friends, by Sir 
 Ch. and Sir H. Danvers,of Dauntesey. 
 The cause of the murder was never 
 accurately known. The assassins 
 took refuge at Lord Southampton's, 
 at Titchfield, and were never brought 
 to justice (see antCf p. 7). It was the 
 birthplace of Sir Richard Blackmorc, 
 physician to Will. III., d. 1729, who, 
 according to Leigh Hunt, "composed 
 heaps of dull poetry, versified the 
 Psalms, and, by way of extending 
 the lesson of patience, wrote a para- 
 phrase of the ' Book of Job.' He 
 was the son of an attorney, and in 
 early life a schoolmaster : — 
 
 " By nature form'd, by want a pedant made, 
 Blackmore at first set up the wliipping 
 trade ; 
 
 Next quack commenced." 
 
 However, says Gibber, he was " a 
 Avorthy man and a friend to religion." 
 
 The Church is a fine building, once 
 cruciform, restored by the late Mr. 
 Street, who removed the central 
 tower, and built a new tower and 
 spire to the S. of the original S. 
 Trans., now absorbed in the aisle. 
 The nave arcades and N. door are 
 Norman, the chancel Per p. There 
 is a stone screen, elaborately carved, 
 with a canopy of fan-vaulting at 
 the entrance of the fine N. chapel, 
 where are 2 altar-tombs, one of 
 great size, to Thomas Tropenell and 
 his wife Agnes, the builders of Great 
 Chalfield manor-house late in the 
 reign of Henry VI. There is a fine 
 groined S. porch. In the street of the 
 town is a small plain house of the 
 1 5th century, if not earlier. 
 
 Corsham Court (Lord Methuen) is 
 4 m, W. of Chippenham. The S. 
 
 front, which has been judiciously 
 preserved through the successive al- 
 terations undergone by the rest of 
 the mansion, is a charming example 
 of the Elizabethan style. It was 
 built (Aubrey says) by *' Customer 
 Smythe,'* (an ancestor of the late 
 Lord Strangford), so called from 
 being " farmer of the customs,'' and 
 bears date 1582. The N. front, and 
 other parts of the house remodelled 
 by Nash, were reconstructed from a 
 good Italian design by Charles Bel- 
 lamy. The staircase is spacious and 
 stately. In the surrounding park are 
 trees of magnificent growth, particu- 
 larly cedars and oriental planes, one 
 of the latter being probably the 
 largest of its kind in England. In 
 1602 this estate became by purchase 
 the property of the Hungerford 
 family, of Farleigh Castle. Sir 
 Edward Hungerford, commander of 
 the Wilts forces for the Parliament, 
 resided here, and his widow Marga- 
 ret, daughter and co-heir of William 
 Halliday, Lord Mayor of London, 
 built and endowed in 1672 the 
 Almshouse and Free-school adjoin- 
 ing the park ; of which hospital 
 Edward Hasted, the historian of Kent, 
 was for some years master, dying 
 1812. In 1746 Corsham House was 
 purchased by Paul Methuen, Esq. 
 It contains a gallery of very valu- 
 able paintings, in great part collected 
 by Sir Paul Methuen, the ambas- 
 sador to Madrid, who died 1757, 
 Sir Paul was son of John MethueU; 
 who was Chancellor of Ireland, Am- 
 bassador to Portugal, and the framer 
 of the " Methuen Treaty " with that 
 country, who, dying unmarried, be- 
 queathed his London gallery of pic- 
 tures to his relative, the purchaser oi 
 Corsham. They are arranged in the 
 state rooms built by Lancelot, or 
 " Capability " Brown, and include a 
 number of family portraits by Lely, 
 Kneller, Dohson, C. Jansen, Yoxid-yck, 
 Riley, Reynolds, Gainsborough, Romney, 
 and others. Strangers are kindly 
 permitted to view these pictures, of 
 
24 
 
 Route 1. — Cor sham 
 
 Court; Paintings, Wiltshire. 
 
 which the following may be noticed 
 as the most remarkable : — 
 
 J.aii Van-^Eyak-. (?) — Virgin and 
 
 Child, with Joseph, St. Catherine, 
 and another female saint ; a beautiful 
 Flemish painting, probably by an 
 artist younger than Van Eyck.^ A. 
 Elzheimer.-i-l, St. Paul at Malta]; 2. 
 Death of Procris ; very fine speci- 
 inens of an exceedingly rare master. 
 \Mich. Angela (?)— The Rape of Gany- 
 mede?] Carlo Dolce. — 1. Christ break- 
 ing bread, known as the " Salvador 
 Mundi," and corresponding with the 
 picture by the same painter in the 
 Dresden Gallery. 2. Our Saviour 
 at the house of the Pharisee, Mary 
 bathing his feet ; said to have been 
 designed by Lud. Cigoli, and painted 
 for the Barberini family at Rome, 
 from whom it was purchased, 1737 : 
 the portrait of the count is intro- 
 duced as a servant. 3. An angel 
 showing a child the way to heaven. 
 Bourguignon. — A landscape, with rob- 
 bers. ^ Mabuse. — 1. The 3 children of 
 Henry VII., from the collection of 
 Charles I. % Margaret, the mother 
 of Henry YU^^lbert Durer (?)— The 
 Adoration ojf the Shepherds ; *' an 
 early picture by Lucas Van Leyden." 
 — W.*lft^2^or^2Wi6 (?) — Portrait of 
 Scanderbeg ; an admirable paint- 
 ing by Holbein.'' — WTJ Lionello Spada. 
 — David with the head of Goliah. 
 Giiido Meni. — The Baptism of our 
 Saviour, from the Duke of Bucking- 
 ham's collection, 1684. Rubens. — 
 The Boar-hunt, a well-known picture. 
 Vandyck.—\ . ^ The Betrayal of our 
 Saviour, *'a painting of the earlier 
 time of the master, and of extra- 
 ordinary effect." — W. Portrait 
 of James Stuart, Duke of Richmond 
 and Lennox. 3. Charity.":; 4. Charles 
 I. on horseback, the sizS^ of life. [J, 
 Massacre of the Innocentsl Lesueur. 
 — Pope Clement blessing St. Diony- 
 sius ; remarkable for depth and 
 purity of feeling, and for powerful 
 colouring. \Carlq Cignani. — The Ma- 
 donna and Child. Guercino. — Christ 
 
 * Tl', si<rnifio=5 Waagen's • Art Treasures.* 
 
 and the Samaritan woman at the 
 well. ^iJ^ietro da Cortona. — The Vir- 
 gin in glory, *'a first-rate picture by 
 the master." — Waagen. Albano. — 
 Holy Family ; in a silver frame by 
 Alessandro Algardi. The arms of 
 Pope Innocent X. are on the back7 
 Zucchero. — A curious portrait of 
 Queen Elizabeth. According to the * 
 account handed down, it was painted 
 for her, after the death of Essex, to 
 symbolize her grief at his loss. Two 
 angels are removing the crown from 
 her head : the hour-glass on the 
 table is broken, and Death stands 
 behind. 
 
 The original collection at Corsham 
 — said to be one of the oldest private 
 collections in England that has re- 
 mained nearly perfect — consists of 
 upwards of 150 pictures, besides the 
 family portraits ; and to these about 
 70 have been added from the gallery 
 of the late Rev. John Sanford, father 
 of Lady Methuen, selected with 
 great judgment during a residence 
 in Florence. 
 
 ,_7. N. Poussin. — A landscape, ** with 
 the blind giant Orion meeting the 
 rising sun, in order to regain his 
 sight. A picture of the loftiest po- 
 etry of sentiment." — W. Painted in 
 1658, and formerly in the possession 
 of Sir Joshua Reynolds?! 8. A. del 
 Sarto. — A portrait. 0. (Paido Peru'. — 
 Portrait of Paul J. 15. S. 'M 
 '^Icmbo. — Portrait of Francesco Al- 
 bizzi ; grandly conceived, but poor 
 in colour.~J'J7. Tintoretto. — Portrait 
 of a Procurator of St. Mark's. 18. 
 J. Sustennans — Portrait of Galileo. 
 25. P. da Volterra,^A Mater Dolo-f 
 rosa. — 28. G. da Fabriano. — Coro--^ 
 nation of the Virgin. 29. Fiesole. — 
 Death of the Virgin. " In richness 
 of composition, and variety of the 
 most refined and beautiful heads, 
 this is one of the most admirable 
 works I know of the master, and at 
 the same time in marvellous preser- 
 vation." — W, 30» Fra Bartolomeo. 
 — Virgin and Child. 31, 32. Uher- 
 tini. — The History of Joseph ; 2 of 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 1. — Slaughter ford — Box Tunnel, 
 
 25 
 
 the best works of the mas ter : from the 
 Gaddi collection. 33. ^ Domenichino, 
 —St. Catherine ; grand in concep- 
 tion. '_34. Ghirlandajo. — Virgin and 
 Child. A charming picture. 36. 
 L. Garracci. — The Annunciation^ 39. 
 Pontormo. — Virgin and Child, with 
 St. John. 44. His own portrait. 
 40. Fra Filippo Lippi — The Annuuci- 
 atToh. 41. G7'dr''^anGiovannr.—Y\V' 
 giii and Child;, with St. John, in 
 fresco. Particularly fine. 42, 43. 
 8, Rosa. — 2 remarkable landscapes. 
 47.^^ Guercino !~^Th.e infant Christ 
 bearing the Cross. 48. Claude. — 
 Landscape, with St., John in the, 
 desert. On tin. 49.' I>. da Volterra. 
 — Study for the fresco at Rome. 
 On the back the Crucifixion. 50. 
 L. Fontana. — SS. Cecilia and Sebas- 
 tian. 52. L, di Credi. — Virgin and 
 ChildJ 53. Gorrcggio.— The Fall of 
 Phaeton. 55. Cartoon of an^nggj, 
 in the Cupola atT^arma. Graceful 
 Th motive, and soft an'Tgrand in the 
 forms." — W. Alhano. — Landscape 
 with Salmacis and Hermaphrodite. 
 J?a/ae?/^.— Madonna dell' Impan- 
 nata. 
 
 S. of the Stat, are Monks' Park and 
 Neston Parh^ the latter the seat of 
 G. P. Fuller, Esq. Hartham Park, 
 Mrs. Dickson, 1^ m. N., was built 
 by Wyatt in 1790. Pickwick Lodge 
 is U "1. W. 
 
 [3^ m. N.W. of Cor sham Stat., on a 
 branch of the Avon, lies the hamlet of 
 Slaughterford. Eaton-Down^ the hill 
 immediately above it, in the parish 
 of Yatton or Eaton, is supposed by 
 Whitaker and others to have been 
 Etkandune, the scene of the defeat of 
 the Danes by Alfred, placed by others 
 at Edington (Rte. 4, p. 61). In Bury 
 Wood^ 3 m. further W., in Golenie 
 parish, \ m. from the Foss Way, are 
 the remains of a strong camp of 
 bout 25 acres, secured on S.W. by a 
 deep double rampart, and on the 
 other sides by a precipitous ravine 
 and small stream. Within the area 
 is a small subsidiary earthwork of 
 ;;bout an acre, A tower erected by 
 
 Mr. P. Scrope on the hill above 
 Slaughterford commemorates this 
 victory. 
 
 Piddeston, 3 m. N. of Corsham, 
 consists of 2 parishes, St. Nicholas 
 and St. Peter's, each once remark- 
 able for a ch., with an ancient and 
 very picturesque bell-turret. St. 
 Nicholas' still remains, with a Nor- 
 man turret over the chancel arch, 
 and a S. doorway and font in the 
 same style. It contains the tomb of 
 Edmund, or " Rag," Smith, trans- 
 lator of Longinus, the friend of Steele 
 and Addison, who d. at Hartham 
 House, 1 709. St. Peter's was Perp., 
 but was demolished some years since ; 
 the bell- turret is preserved in the 
 garden at Castle Combe. 
 
 Old Aubrey notes that this dis- 
 trict " inclines people to zeal. Here- 
 tofore nothing but religious houses, 
 now nothing but quakers and fana- 
 tics. A sour woodsere country, and 
 inclines people to contemplation, so 
 that, and the Bible and ease (for it 
 is now all up with dairy grayzing, 
 and cloathing), set their witts a 
 running and reforming."] 
 
 Proceeding on our route, a cutting 
 2^ m. long and with an average 
 depth of 30 ft., in the cornbrash, 
 forest marble, and great oolite, leads 
 to the mouth of the 
 
 Pox Tunnel J in length 3199 yards, 
 or about If m., and in places 300 ft. 
 below the surface. The strata dip E., 
 and are all pierced in succession, 
 viz. the great oolite, fuller's earth, 
 inferior oolite, blue marl, and lias 
 limestone. The E. end stands with 
 its natural roof, other parts are lined 
 with brickwork. The cost of the 
 tunnel was upwards of 500,000?, 
 
 *' The stone- quarries here are cu- 
 rious. A shaft is sunk through the 
 forest marble and rubble beds, and is 
 then carried in every direction. The 
 galleries, are sometimes of great 
 extent, and from 20 to 50 ft. in 
 height. The stone is cut with a 
 saw, and blocks containing 200 cubic 
 
26 
 
 Moute 1,—Box. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 ft. are sometimef^ raised to the sur- 
 face." There are 3 quarries in Box 
 Hill ; the lower one is subterranean, 
 and of considerable size, having 3 
 m. of tramway. The space quarried 
 out varies from 12 to 20 ft. between 
 the side-walls or pillars left to sup- 
 port the roof. Into Boxjielcl Quarry 
 the workmen descend by shafts 1 00 
 ft. deep. The roof of the quarry is 
 intersected by vertical cracks in a 
 manner that appears extremely dan- 
 gerous to an observer unacquainted 
 with the nature of the rock ; but 
 these fissures have remained in the 
 same condition for 20 years, with 
 the labourers working continually 
 beneath them. 
 
 102 m. Box Stat. On 1. are the 
 Church and village of Box, the former 
 an E. E., Dec, and Perp. build- 
 ing, with a Perp. tower and spire 
 between the nave and chancel. Mrs. 
 Bowdler, the mother of the editor of 
 the ' Family Shakspeare,' and herself 
 an authoress of some note, is buried 
 here. Near the vicarage garden was 
 found a Roman pavement. The site 
 is marked by some lofty poplars. 
 
 Coleridge once lodged at a grocer's 
 at Box, but was frightened away on 
 discovering a barrel of gunpowder 
 stored below his bedroom. 
 
 Within reach of the stat. are 
 several points of interest. N. are 
 Cheyney Court, a mansion of the 
 Spekes of the time of Eliz. or James 
 I., with fine old chimney-pieces ; 
 Coles Farm, ^ m. N.N.E., built in 
 1645; and the little church of Dit- 
 teridge, J m. N._. than which few in 
 the neighbourhood vfill afford more 
 to interest the archaeologist, with its 
 Norman nave, and S. door, the im- 
 post curiously sculptured , narrow 
 chancel arch, of 13th cent., with a bell 
 gable over it ; curious piscina and 
 shelf ; and sq. Norman font. Mural 
 paintings were discovered, c. 1857. 
 k m. E. is Hazelbury House, of Eliz. 
 date ; S. Chapel Plaster, probably 
 Pley-stow (Sax.), playground or vil- 
 lage green — " the Kirk on the green," 
 
 a small desecrated chapel, c. 1460, 
 formerly a resting-place of pilgrims 
 to the Abbey of Glastonbury, and in 
 the last cent, the retreat of a noto- 
 rious highwayman, one John Baxter, 
 hung on Claverton Down ; the farm- 
 house of Wormwood, built in the 1 7th 
 cent. ; and 3 m. S., S. Wraxall, a 
 manor-house of the Longs, described 
 in Rte.4 . 1 m. W. is Shockerwick, seat 
 of the Wiltshire family. 
 
 ^ 2 m. N.W. of Box Station is the Q 
 village of Colerne, where a Roman 
 villa was discovered in 1838, and 
 hidden again. The Ch. deserves a 
 visit ; the tower is a bold, lofty struc- 
 ture of 3 stages, of the 15th cent. 
 Nave, Norm, ; N. aisle, Perp., c. 
 1450; chancel, E. E., c. 1240; N. 
 aisle to chancel, Dec, c. 1280. No- 
 tice the rich 1 4th cent, sedilia, and 
 the traces of the original E. E. se- 
 dilia and sepulchre behind them. 
 On a promontory of Colerne Down 
 is Burywood Camp (see ante~), 
 
 Bannerdomn, where is a British 
 camp, is traditionally said to have re- 
 ceived its name of the "holy hill" 
 from having been the place where St. 
 Augustine met the delegates of the 
 Celtic church. 
 
 About 1 m. beyond Box the rail- 
 way enters the county of Somerset, 
 where the Avon comes winding from 
 the beautiful valley of Claverton (Rte. 
 5). The churches of Batheaston, 
 Bathford, and Bathampton will be ob- 
 served rt. and 1. as the traveller is 
 hurried towards 
 
 104;J m. Bathampton Stat. 
 
 107 m. Bath Stat. (Rte. 21.) 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Route 2. — Sivindon to CheltenTiam. 
 
 27 
 
 KOUTE 2. 
 
 SWINDON TO CHELTENHAM, BY 
 PURTON, CRICKLADE, AND MSNETY. 
 
 (^Great Western Union Bailway.) 
 
 This branch connects the Great 
 Western, and Bristol and Birming- 
 ham Railways — trunk lines that meet 
 at Bristol. It runs to Gloucester 36f 
 m., and Cheltenham 44j m., from 
 Swindon, and thence communicates 
 Avith Hereford and Shrewsbury, N., 
 and Newport, and Cardiff, and S. 
 Wales. 
 
 77 J m. (from Paddington) Sinndon 
 Stat, (Rte. 1). 
 
 81? m. Ftirton Stat. The village of 
 Purton, or Periton (i.e. Pear-tree en- 
 closure), stands on rising ground to 
 the 1. The Ch. is cruciform, re- 
 markable for two steeples ; one in 
 the centre surmounted by a stone 
 spire, and at the west-end a tower of 
 more ornate character, with open 
 parapet and pinnacles. The church 
 is chiefly Perp., but the arcades of 
 the nave have circular pillars of 
 earlier character, and there are a few 
 Dec. windows. The N. transept is 
 larger than the S. ; there is good 
 groining under the central tower, 
 and in some windows large remains 
 of tine coloured glass. Purton be- 
 longed to Malmesbury Abbey till 
 the Dissolution. A portion of it 
 came afterwards into the possession 
 of Mr. Henry Hyde, father of Lord 
 Chancellor Clarendon (who was, 
 however, born at Dinton in S. Wilts, 
 see Rte. 12). In 1625 the future 
 Chancellor, then in his 18th year, 
 was here for the recovery of his 
 health, injured by his severe legal 
 studies, when the news of the assas- 
 sination of the Duke of Buckingham 
 by Felton reached him. Mr. Hyde's 
 house is still standing. On one of 
 the chimnej-pieces are the arms of 
 
 the Chancellor's grandmother of the 
 Sibell family, a tiger regardant in a 
 mirror. Aubrey records that Anne 
 Hyde, mother of Queens Mary and 
 Anne, was born here. Purton was 
 the seat of the Maskelyne family 
 (whose monuments are in the church), 
 ancestors of Dr. Maskelyne, astro- 
 nomer Royal, and projector of the 
 Nautical Almanac, born in London, 
 1732, and buried here, 1811. (Por 
 the once famous Purton Fair, see 
 Hone's " Everyday Book," vol. ii. 
 pp. 1207, 1379.) 
 
 Purton Spa, 2^ m. on the Cricklade 
 road, a spring of bromo-iodated water, 
 has some not undeserved fame as a 
 medicinal spring. 
 
 1. o m. S.W. is Bingsbury, a quad- 
 rangular Roman camp, and Bcstrop, a 
 picturesque Elizabethan house. 
 
 3 m. N. Cricldade {Inn : White 
 Hart. Pop. of Parliamentary borough 
 5l,95(S ; of registration district, 5563), 
 situated on the Isis, lOi m. from W. 
 Crudwell, one of the sources of the 
 Thames, and about as far from St. 
 John's Bridge near Lechlade, the 
 terminus of the river navigation. 
 Cricklade is a place of great anti- 
 quity, being mentioned in an Anglo- 
 Saxon charter as " crecca-gelad," or 
 " creg-lad," signifying a " stone ford," 
 from the British " cerrig," stone, 
 and lad," ford. It has been absurdly 
 derived from a supposed university 
 of Greek philosophers, planted here 
 before the Roman invasion, quasi 
 " Greeklade teste Drayton — 
 
 " Greeklade, whose great name yet vaunts 
 that learn< d tongue, 
 Where to Great Britain first the sacred 
 muses sun^:'—Folyolbion. 
 
 It stood on the Roman street, which 
 passed through this county from 
 Spene near Newbury to Cirencester. 
 In 905, and again in 1016, it was 
 plundered by the Danes, and it was 
 here that, according to tradition. Bp. 
 Wulstan appeared at the hour of his 
 death to Robert Bp. of Hereford, to 
 warn him of his end. In 1144 it 
 was held against Stephen, by Wm. 
 
28 
 
 Boute 2. — Cricklade, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 of Dover, and after he had assumed 
 the cross in expiation of his crimes, 
 by his son Philip who carried fire 
 and sword all round. Its churches, 
 Down-Ampney, 2 m. N., and the 
 Camp of Castle Hill, 4 m. S.E., are 
 the only points of interest. 
 
 St, Samson's is cruciform, with 
 pinnacled central tower. The lantern 
 is internally decorated with armorial 
 shields, one charged with the " bear 
 and ragged staff" of the Earls of 
 Warwick, and contains a curious 
 clock, and the Widhill aisle belong- 
 ing to the Earl of Eadnor. The W. 
 window of the N. aisle is Dec. ; that 
 of the nave, E.E. with plate tracery. 
 Sir Walter Hunger ford, in the reign of 
 Henry VI., gave the advowson of this 
 church, with the manor of Abingdon's 
 court, to the dean and canons of Salis- 
 bury, to maintain a chantry chapel, 
 and assist in keeping in repair the 
 "campanile" of their cathedral. The 
 school adjoining was founded by 
 Kob. Jenner, a London goldsmith 
 in 1652. 
 
 St. Marifs Ch. is very small, with a 
 semicircular Norman arch between 
 the nave and chancel, and a sculp- 
 tured Cross in the chu.rchyard. There 
 is also a cross Avith canopied niches 
 in the main street. 
 
 Down-Ampnejj, the property of 
 Lord St. Germans, is situated on the 
 border of the county, the gardens 
 being partly in Gloucestershire. 
 Between the reigns of Eichard 11. 
 and Charles I. it was a seat of the 
 Hungerfords, and before that of the 
 family of Vilers, or Valers. The 
 Great HaU., now a kitchen, bears date 
 1537 ; and the gatehouse, said to have 
 been built by Sir Anthony Hunger- 
 ford, is apparently of the age of 
 Henry VIII. Contiguous to the 
 mansion is the 6%., in part the origi- 
 nal building, and containing, in the 
 S. transept, the tomb of Sir Nicholas 
 de Vilers, or Valers, who is repre- 
 sented in his armour by the side of 
 his lady. His feet rest upon a lion, 
 and on his arjn is a shield bearing 
 
 the cross of St. George and 5 scallop- 
 shells. The supposed date of this 
 monument is 1294. 
 
 N. of Cricklade is the canal which 
 connects the Thames and Severn 
 (completed in 1789), and W. the N. 
 Wilts canal, which joins the Wilts 
 and Berks canal at Swindon. 
 
 85i Minety Stat. 1. 5 m. W. 
 Charlton Park (Earl of Suffolk and 
 Berkshire), and 7 m. W. the town 
 oi Malmeshury (Rte. 1). 
 
 Minety Ch., late E.E., has a 
 brass to Nicholas Poulett, 1620, 
 nephew to Q. Elizabeth's dainty 
 Arnias." The family of William 
 Penn were long resident in the pa- 
 rish, holding the office of stewards 
 to the Abbots of Malmeshury. Sir 
 W. Penn was born here, his father, 
 according to Aubrey, being a keeper 
 in Braden Forest. 
 
 The parish of Minety is partly 
 situated on some outlying acres of 
 Gloucestershire, islanded by Wilt- 
 shire. The church and neighbouring 
 houses belong to the hundred of 
 Malmeshury. S. and S.W. of it is 
 the district of Braden Forest, which 
 once covered the greater part of N. 
 Wiltshire. Braden Pond, 1. of the road 
 to Malmeshury, is the largest sheet of 
 water in the county, f m. by ^ m. 
 
 From Minety the rail runs onward 
 through an undulating country to- 
 wards the border, near which it ex- 
 tends a branch on the rt. to Ciren- 
 cester and then passes into Glou- 
 cestershire at i\\Qliom2iXi Fosse Way. 
 
Wiltshire, 
 
 Bouts — Swindon to Andovevt 
 
 29 
 
 ROUTE 3. 
 
 SWINDON TO ANDOVER BY MARL- 
 BOROUGH [AVEBURY, SILBURY HILL], 
 SAVERNAKE,COLLINGBOURNE, and 
 LUDGERSHALL. 
 
 {Swindon^ Marlborough, and 
 Andover Bly.) 
 
 This rly., 36j m. in length, forms 
 a link in the system intended to 
 connect Southampton, vi'd Ciren- 
 cester and Cheltenham, with Bir- 
 mingham, Wolverhampton and the 
 midland manufacturing districts, as 
 well as with Manchester and Liver- 
 pool, via Crewe, and with South 
 Wales vm Gloucester. The first 
 section from Swindon to Marlborough 
 was opened July 20, 1881, the second 
 section between Savernake and And- 
 over will speedily be ready for 
 traffic. 
 
 Commencing at Swindon Junction 
 (Rte. l)the line passes, 3 m., the town 
 of Old Swindon on the S., and leaves 
 on the 1. the reservoir of the Wilts 
 and Berks Canal, a sheet of water 
 nearly a mile in length. 4h m. rt. 
 Burdrop (Burythorp) Park (Henry 
 Calley, Esq.) stands on the first rise 
 of the high chalk downs, which com- 
 mand an extensive view over an 
 open country, embracing the greater 
 part of N. Wilts, with Swindon 
 crowning an outlying eminence. 
 
 6 J m. Chiseldon Stat, The Ch. con- 
 tains monuments to the Mellishes 
 and the Calleys. 1 J m. 1. is the very 
 conspicuous strong circular earth- 
 work of Badhury or Liddington 
 Castle, a British entrenchment, con- 
 taining 7J acres within a rampart 
 40 ft. high. An erroneous theory 
 identifies this fortress with the 
 " Mons Badonicus'* of history, 
 where King Arthur, with his Round 
 Table knights, defeated the Saxons 
 
 under Cerdic, a.d. 520 (see posty 
 Badbury Fangs, Rte. 13).. 
 
 1 m. N. is the little village of Lid- 
 dington, occupying the summit of a 
 projecting bastion of the chalk 
 downs, insulated on 3 sides by valleys. 
 } m. further N. by a rough road 
 over the downs, also crowning a hill, 
 is Wanborough, the hurh or strong- 
 hold of Woden, formerly the key of 
 Wessex, where in 591, "after one of 
 the fiercest and bloodest battles re- 
 corded in our annals, Ceawlin was 
 defeated by his nephew Cedric, and 
 two years after died in exile " {Dr. 
 Gv.cst), Here also, in 714, there was 
 a drawn battle between Ine of Wes- 
 sex and Ceolred of Mercia. The 
 importance of the position is evident 
 from a consideration of the topogra- 
 phy. *'A11 tbe great high ways of Wes- 
 sex converge to a point in the neigh- 
 bourhood of Wanborough. When 
 posted at Wanborough, the King of 
 Wessex had Roman roads whereby 
 to communicate with Winchester and 
 Old Sarum, the capitals of his two 
 principal shires; while another 
 Roman road came to him from Sil- 
 chesterthroughthe heart of Berkshire, 
 and the Icknield Street brought him 
 the men of Chiltern and of Oxford- 
 shire." 
 
 Fairfax's army halted at Wan- 
 borough, in their march westward, 
 June 28, 1645. 
 
 Wanborough Church is remarkable 
 as having two steeples ; one with a 
 small spire at the E. end of the nave, 
 and at the W. end a later sq. tower, 
 erected (as recorded by a tablet affixed 
 to the wall) a.d. 1435, by Thomas 
 Polton and Edith his wife (to whom 
 there is a stone in the S. aisle, giving 
 the date *' Anno Virginis"), and their 
 son Philip, Archdeacon of Gloucester; 
 for whom and their 1 5 other child- 
 ren, and other contributors to the 
 building, the prayers of the faithful 
 are requested. The village tradition, 
 groundless, of course, is to the effect 
 that the church was erected by two 
 maiden sisters, who being unable to 
 
30 
 
 ^ouie 3. — JBarhury- 
 
 ' — Marlborough. Wiltshire* 
 
 agree wlietlier it should have a tower 
 or a spire, decided the point by build- 
 ing both. 
 
 The riy. continues through a high 
 chalky district, the hills unenclosed 
 and bare of trees with the exception 
 of some beech clumps, the Roman 
 Boad by Mildenhall (Cunetio) to 
 Winchester (Venta Belgarum) being 
 its companion on the 1. to 
 
 9f m.Ogbourne St. George (^Ol^ehvLYn), 
 or Greater Ogbourne, the seat of an • 
 alien priory founded as a cell to Bee 
 in Normandy, by Maud of Walliug- 
 ford, c. 1149 ; the property of which 
 passed, on the suppression of alien 
 priories, partly to St. George's Chapel, 
 AVindsor,and partly to King's College, 
 Cambridge, and the Charter-house, 
 London. The C/i. has a fine old tower 
 and a brass, 1517, to Thomas God- 
 dard and wife, in the N. chantry. 1 J 
 m. S. by the Marlborough Road is 
 Of/bourne St. Andrew (2 m. N. of 
 Marlborough), or Lesser Ogbourne. 
 Nestling in a valley wailed in by 
 lofty downs, through which runs the 
 little stream of the Og Bourn, empty- 
 ing itself into the Kennet, just E. of 
 Marlborough. Leland thus notices 
 this tiny watercourse : **About half a 
 mile or I cam into Marlebyri I passid 
 ovar a broke that cam down north- 
 west from the hills, and so ran by 
 suth-east into the streme of Kenet 
 obut half a mile byneathe Marle- 
 byri." 
 
 From Ogbourne Stat, the tourist 
 should diverge across the open 
 downs, traversing Burdrop Race- 
 course to the very remarkable and 
 historic hill-fort of 
 
 Barhury. This is a large (British) 
 camp, in excellent preservation. It 
 is nearly circular, \ m. round, and 
 girdled by a double ring of ditch and 
 rampart, nearly J m. in circuit, enclos- 
 ing 12i acres ; the inner line is very 
 strong, the massive rampart sloping 
 full 50 ft. to the bottom of the ditch. 
 The entrances are E., defended by a 
 half-moon or barbican, and W., where 
 the steepness of the hillside rendered 
 
 any additional defence needless, and 
 the diam. of the area 2000 ft. Tor- 
 ques, spear and arrow heads, coins 
 &c., dug up within the area of the 
 camp, are preserved in the museum 
 of Marlborough College. There is 
 a pleasant walk along the crest of the 
 hills, commanding wide views, past 
 the *^Four mile clump" to Marl- 
 borough. 
 
 Beran Byrig, or Barbury, is con- 
 sidered to have been the scene, in 
 556, of an obstinate and sanguinary 
 battle between the Britons and the 
 Saxons under Cynric and Ceawlin, 
 resulting in the defeat of the former. 
 This decided the fate of Wiltshire, 
 which became a province of Wes- 
 sex. 
 
 At Hesskk Barn, midway between 
 Ogbourne and Barbury, is the culmin- 
 ating point of the road, in a country 
 wild and lonely. Around us are the 
 grassy sides of the hills, down which 
 we may trace the long descent to Marl- 
 borough, and at a little distance the 
 plantations of Rockley House (rt.), for- 
 merly the seat of the Baskerville 
 family. The hamlet of Rockley, 
 where a little Ch. has recently been 
 built, was the seat of a precep- 
 tory of the Knights Templars, the 
 memory of which is preserved in the 
 Temple Farm, to the W. of which lies 
 a stony valley, called Temple Bottom, 
 containing the remains of a cromlech 
 (broken up v^dthin living memory). 
 On the heights of Hackpen, overlook- 
 ing the remains of Avebury, near 
 Glory Ann, is a curious concavity, set 
 with stones, called Balmore Pond. 
 
 \\\m. the rly. reaches 
 
 Marlborough {Inns : Ailesbury 
 Arms ; Castle and Ball ; Pop. 
 of municipal borough, o34H ; of Par- 
 liamentary borough, including Pre- 
 shute, 5180), a quaint old-fashioned 
 town, pleasantly situated in a valley 
 of the chalk range, on the River Ken- 
 net and the old great Bath Road. It 
 is an agricultural centre, with a 
 weekly market. The trades carried 
 
Wiltstire. 
 
 Route 3. — Marlhoroiigli. 
 
 31 
 
 on are brewing, malting, rope and 
 sacking making, tanning, and wool- 
 stapling. Its prosperity suffered con- 
 siderably at first by the diversion 
 of traffic caused by the opening 
 of the Great Western Ely., before 
 which 42 public conveyances passed 
 through it daily; but it revived 
 again with the opening of the branch 
 line, and the extension of rly. com- 
 munication N. to Swindon and S. to 
 Andover cannot fail to increase its 
 prosperity ; while the establish- 
 ment of the college, which has long 
 ranked among our very first public 
 schools, has materially added to 
 the well-being of the place. The 
 toAvn consists principally of one fine 
 wide street of large and well-built 
 houses, chiefly built after the dis- 
 astrous fire of Ap. 28, 1653 (originat- 
 ing in a tanner's yard), which nearly 
 destroyed the whole town, greatly 
 injuring both St. Mary's and St. 
 Peter's Churches, and unhoused 300 
 families. It again suffered from 
 fire in 1679 and 1690, after which 
 an Act was obtained making it an 
 indictable offence to have a house 
 covered with thatch in the town. 
 Evelj^n visited Marlborough the 
 year after the fire, and remarked 
 that " having been lately fired it 
 was new built." In 1668 Pepys 
 visited it, and found it "a pretty 
 fair town for a street or two. On 
 one side the pent houses supported 
 with pillars, which make a fair 
 work.'* The colonnade mentioned by 
 Pepys extends some distance along 
 the N. side of the street, and gives a 
 character to the town. At the W. end 
 stand St Peter's Ch. and Marlborough 
 College; at the E. St. Mary's Ch. and 
 the Tonm Ha l, rebuilt after the fire 
 of 1653, and again rebuilt in 1793, 
 in which are preserved the Corpora- 
 tion maces, 1652, bearing the arms 
 of the Commonwealth; the town 
 measures, 1670, and the pillory, last 
 used in 1807. On the N. side of the 
 street are several old houses that 
 escaped the. fire, with picturesque 
 
 gables, carved timbers, and scaly 
 coats of tile. 
 
 The antiquity of Marlborough is 
 fully proved -by the " Castle Mound,'' 
 which though inferior in size to its 
 colossal neighbour, Silbury Hill, is 
 so similar to it as to be probably a 
 work of the same date. The name, 
 of which " Merleberg " is an early 
 form, is popularly, but incorrectly, 
 derived from the enchanter Merlin, 
 who is supposed to be buried beneath 
 the Castle mound, and the motto of 
 the borough arms runs, " Tibi nunc 
 sapientis ossa Merlini," with the 
 mound as a crest. At 3Iildenhall 
 (pronounced iT//;ia//), l^^m. E. (where 
 in a dry season the lines of the 
 main streets may be discerned, and 
 where bricks, tiles, pottery, glass, 
 coins, and other objects of Roman 
 date are constantly ploughed up), 
 and the adjoining hill of Folly Farm, 
 was the Koman military station 
 Cunetio, where were dug up the 
 " Marlborough Bucket," preserved 
 in the Stoiirhead collection, now at 
 Devizes, and the " Eudge Cup," 
 figured in Gough's Camden. 
 
 The Conqueror had a stronghold 
 at Marlborough, in which he im- 
 prisoned several Saxon ecclesiastics, 
 and established a mint. Henry I. kept 
 his Easter here in 1110. The castle 
 was built in this reign by the warlike 
 bishop Roger of Salisbury, the great 
 castle and church builder of his day. 
 It was held for the Empress Maud 
 by her half-brother Robert Eaii of 
 Gloucester, and his castellan John 
 Fitz-Gilbert, called by William of 
 Malraesbury *' a very firebrand of 
 wickedness." Hen. II. granted the 
 castle to his son John Lackland, 
 who was married here to Isabella 
 the heiress of the Earl of Gloucester, 
 in 1189. This monarch appears to 
 have been much attached to Marl- 
 borough, frequently sojourning here, 
 and making it a repository for his 
 treasures. At the close of his luck- 
 less reign it was surrendered by its 
 warden, Hugh de Neville, to Louis 
 
32 
 
 Boute 3* — Marlborough. 
 
 Wiltshire* 
 
 of France, but soon opened its gates 
 to the friends of Hen. III. This 
 sovereign was often at Marlborough, 
 probably led thither by the ample 
 opportunities for hunting afforded 
 by the royal forests of Savernake 
 and Aldbourn Chase. For this mon- 
 arch's accommodation considerable 
 additions were made to the castle, 
 with the view or improving its 
 comfort as a residence. A kitchen 
 was built for the king's special 
 use ; the queen's room was to have 
 a chimney ; new rooms were built 
 for the priest behind the chapel, 
 which received the addition of a 
 bell-tower. A Florentine architect 
 was employed, and 100/. borrowed 
 from the Bishop of Salisbury to pay 
 him. In 1245 all the poor clerks of 
 Oxford were feasted here on the 
 occasion of the funeral of the king's 
 mother. In 1267 Henry's last Par- 
 liament was held here, and passed 
 the Statute of Marlborough," con- 
 firming some of the chief demands 
 of Simon de Montfort. On Henry's 
 death it formed part of the dowry 
 of his widow Eleanor, on whose de- 
 cease it was granted by Edward I. 
 to his queen. Edward II. granted 
 it to his favourite Hugh le Despencer 
 in 1308. On his fall Queen Isabella 
 obtained it. In the next reign it 
 was held for the king's sister Joanna 
 of Scotland, by a succession of war- 
 dens. Richard II. granted it to 
 Sir Wm. Scrope, on whose execution 
 in 1399 it reverted to the crown. 
 From this point the history of the 
 castle becomes obscure, but in the 
 reign of Henry VI. it was held 
 by " the good Duke Humphrey " 
 of Gloucester, and according to Hall's 
 ' Chronicles,' on the landing of Queen 
 Margaret and the raising of the Lan- 
 castrian forces in the western coun- 
 ties, Edward IV. *' removed straght 
 to Marlborow." When and why the 
 castle was dismantled there is no re- 
 cord ; but it was still used as an 
 occasional residence by the Sey- 
 jnours, into whose hands it had 
 
 passed by a grant from the crown to 
 the Duke of Somerset, temp. Ed- 
 ward VI., from which family it was 
 purchased 1779 by the Marquis of 
 Ailesbury. 
 
 Marlborough had its full share in 
 the disasters of the Great Rebellion. 
 Clarendon speaks of it as *' the most 
 notoriously disaffected of Wiltshire," 
 remarkable for "the obstinacy and 
 malice of the inhabitants.'* As there 
 was danger of its cutting off Charles 
 I.'s communications with the West, 
 it was stormed and partly burnt 
 by the Royalists under Wilmot, 
 Dec. 5, 1642, of which the shot-bat- 
 tered tower of St. Mary's is standing 
 evidence, when John Franklyn, the 
 popular member, and several of the 
 chief townsmen were sent prisoners 
 to Oxford. The taking of Marl- 
 borough marks an epoch in the Civil 
 wars as the first garrison taken on 
 either side. The town was sacked 
 by the King's troops, 53 houses 
 were burnt down, "the soldiers en- 
 quiring little who were friends or 
 foes ; " the market wagons were filled 
 with plunder, and driven off in 
 triumph to Oxford, damage to the 
 amount of 50,000/. being done to the 
 townspeople. At this time the castle 
 and town were at variance. The 
 former then belonged to Francis 
 Lord Seymour of Trowbridge, a de- 
 termined adherent of Charles I., by 
 whom the old fortress was put in a 
 state of defence to support the royal 
 cause. Lord Seymour's wife and 
 daughter were made prisoners by 
 the Parliamentary leader, who filled 
 the buildings with his musketeers, 
 and occupied the mound as a place 
 of retreat in case the town were 
 taken. In 1643 we find the castle 
 held by Sir Neville Poole for the Par- 
 liament. The same year the King 
 and Prince Rupert defeated the Earl 
 of Essex on Aldbourn Chase; and 
 Marlborough Castle twice, in April 
 and November, afforded quarters to 
 Charles I. and his retinue. He was 
 agaiR quartered here in 1644. when 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 3. — Marlborough. 
 
 33 
 
 he reviewed his army on Aldbourn 
 Chase. During all this time the un- 
 lucky town was perpetually suffering 
 from the marauding exploits of Major 
 Dowett, commander of the Devizes 
 troopers, who seems to have looked 
 upon Marlborough as an unfail- 
 ing object of attack and depreda- 
 tion. 
 
 The civil wars over and the royal 
 line restored, Marlborough Castle 
 opened its doors to Charles II. and 
 his queen and James Duke of York, 
 who in a progress to the West were 
 received here in great state by the 
 above-mentioned Francis Lord Sey- 
 mour, who had built the house now 
 forming the nucleus of the college. 
 The design is said to have been fur- 
 nished by Webb, son-in-law to Inigo 
 Jones. After this, wars ended, and 
 the ordinary occupations of a noble- 
 man's family in a large country house 
 began. 
 
 The most remarkable mistress of 
 Marlborough during this period 
 was Frances, granddaughter of the 
 1st Lord Weymouth, Countess of 
 Hertford and afterwards Duchess 
 of Somerset, whose energetic inter- 
 ference in behalf of Kichard Savage 
 when convicted of murder, is re- 
 corded in Johnson's ' Lives of the 
 Poets.' She was a great patroness 
 of the spurious picturesque and bom- 
 bastic pastoral, which characterized 
 the early part of the 18th century. 
 Under her auspices the Castle gardens 
 were altered, and as was supposed, 
 beautified, while Nature was twisted 
 into grotesque and hideous forms. 
 The cascades were widened, fresh 
 ruins dispersed over the grounds, a 
 still existing grotto made under the 
 mound, which her ladyship com- 
 pares with Pope's at Twickenham. 
 Two of the principal heroes of 
 Lady Hertford's entertainments were 
 Dr. Watts, the hymn writer, and 
 Thomson, author of ' The Seasons.' 
 To Dr. Watts she writes about 
 the education of her son. Lord 
 Beauchamp, bewailing his inability 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, c&c, 1882.] 
 
 to learn repetition, a difiiculty ap- 
 parently smoothed away by the 
 kindness of his tutor, who gave him 
 very little of it^to do, and "was 
 very favourable to him in his im- 
 positions of this kind." Thomson 
 she regarded with such favour that 
 he dedicated to her his poem on 
 Spring, in the following prosaic 
 verses : — 
 
 " 0 Hertford, fitted or to shine in courts ^ 
 With unaffected grace, or walk the plain 
 With Innocence and Meditation joined 
 In soft assemblage, listen to my song, 
 Which thy own season paints ; when,Nature 
 all 
 
 Is blooming and benevolent, like thee." 
 
 Indeed it would appear that a great 
 part of * Spring,' was composed 
 during a visit to the Castle. But 
 " Hertford," as he somewhat fami- 
 liarly calls her, found that the poet 
 was little better than a drunkard, 
 and that he preferred carousing with 
 her husband to pastoral meditations 
 with herself, and he was not invited 
 a second time to Marlborough. 
 Another of her literary protegees 
 was Elizabeth Rowe, who is said 
 to have written some of her poetry 
 in the grotto under the mound. 
 
 Lord Beauchamp, whose repeti- 
 tion was so bad, died young: and 
 his sister. Lady Elizabeth Seymour, 
 married Sir Hugh Smithson, repre- 
 sentative, through his mother, of the 
 great house of Percy, and afterwards 
 created Earl of Northumberland. 
 
 But the Northumberland family 
 felt no hereditary attachment to the 
 old manor-house of the Seymours. 
 They preferred the Thames and 
 the Aln to the Kennet, and deserted 
 Marlborough for their princely 
 palaces of Alnwick and Sion. We 
 find evidences of its desolation in a 
 series of letters directing a few ne- 
 cessary repairs in the house, forbid- 
 ding any expense in the garden, and 
 at last agreeing to let it on lease to 
 Mr. Cotterell, who was to open it as 
 an inn. It was sold by Charles, 4th 
 Duke of Rutland, to Lord Ailesbury. 
 The house itself remained an inn for 
 
 D 
 
34 
 
 Boute 3. — Marlborough, Wiltshire. 
 
 almost another century, and as the 
 "Castle Inn" long maintained the 
 character of one of the best in Eng- 
 land. Being on the great Bath road 
 it received a large number of the 
 chief personages of the land on their 
 way to or from the medicinal springs. 
 In 1767 it was lor a time the quar- 
 ters of the great Lord Chatham, 
 who had been attacked by the gout 
 on his road to London. " When 
 he reached the Castle Inn," runs 
 the story, " he stopped, shut him- 
 self up in his room, and remained 
 there some weeks. Everybody who 
 travelled that road was amazed by 
 the number of his attendants. Foot- 
 men and grooms, dressed in his 
 family livery, tilled the whole inn, 
 though one of the largest in Eng- 
 land, and swarmed in the streets of 
 the little town. The truth was that 
 the invalid had insisted that during 
 his stay all the waiters and stable- 
 boys of the Castle should wear his 
 livery." It closed its doors finally 
 as an inn, January 5, 1843. 
 
 Among the natives of Marlborough 
 are Ilennj Sacheverell, the political 
 divine, b. 1672, — 
 
 *' the sentinel 
 
 Who loudest rang his pulpit 'larum bell." 
 
 Wordsworth. 
 
 whose father was Rector of St. 
 Peter's. Sir Michael Foster, a Judge 
 of the King's Bench, b. 1689, d. 1 763, 
 Walter Harte, the poet, friend of 
 Pope, and biographer of Gustavus 
 Adolphus,d. 1774, and John Hughes, 
 a contributor to the Spectator, Tatler, 
 &c., d. 1720. Stephen Duck, d. 1756, 
 the poet, was originally a farm 
 labourer at St. Margaret's, where 
 his rhymes attracted the attention of 
 the Countess of Hertford, who in- 
 troduced him at Court. 
 
 In a "Mr. Danieirs house, St. 
 Margaret's," when on a journey from 
 Bath, died Robert Cecil, Earl of Sa- 
 lisbury, Lord High Treasurer to 
 James I. 1612. 
 
 Marlborough was constituted a 
 Suffragan see by Henry VIII., to 
 
 which Thomas Morley was conse- 
 crated 1537. In Queen Mary's reign 
 two husbandmen of this place, John 
 Hunt and Richard White, were pre- 
 sented at Salisbury as heretics, and 
 condemned to be burnt; but the 
 under-sheriff, " Master Michell," 
 says Fuller, " instead of burning the 
 prisoners, burnt the writ, and before 
 it could be renewed both Dr. Geoffrey, 
 the bloody Chancellor of Salisbury 
 who procured it, and Queen Mary, 
 were dead, to the miraculous pre- 
 servation of God's poor servants." 
 
 St. Peters at the W. end of the 
 main street, is a Perp. church of 
 some character, mostly of good stone, 
 but some small portions are of flint. 
 The porch has stone groining, as 
 also has the chancel. The arcades 
 are light, and the windows have good 
 tracery. It was restored in 1864. 
 The tower, 120 ft. high, is late and 
 situated at the W. of the S. aisle ; it 
 has large heavy pinnacles and too 
 much of blank wall. 
 
 St. Mary's, behind the Town Hall, 
 was much injured by the fire of 1653, 
 and partly rebuilt in a debased style. 
 It was restored in 1844, and the 
 chancel, by Street, was added in 
 1874. There is a good Norman door- 
 way at the W. end ; the S. aisle has 
 some tolerable Perp. windows, and 
 the tower is of the same character, 
 but very plain. A library is attached 
 to the ch. 
 
 The ch. of Preshute, just beyond 
 the college, has been partially re- 
 built, but preserves its Norman pillars 
 and sculptured capitals, and a curious 
 piscina. It contains a black basalt 
 font of remarkable size, of the early 
 half of the 12th cent., in which 
 a long standing tradition mentioned 
 by Camden tells us that Kine John, 
 and other royal personages were bap- 
 tized. It is by no means improbable 
 that the font may have been trans- 
 ferred hither from the chapel of St. 
 Nicholas in Marlborough Castle on 
 the dismantling of that fortress. 
 A fragment of St. Margaret's 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 3. — Marlborough. 
 
 35 
 
 Priory of White Canons, converted 
 into cottages, is to the 1. on leaving 
 the rly. station. 
 
 The Grammar School, founded by 
 Edward VI., 1550, is a red-brick 
 building overgrown with ivy ; among 
 its alumni were Dr. Sacheverell and 
 General Picton. 
 
 Marlborough College was opened 
 Aug. 26, i843, as a school de- 
 signed to offer an education of the 
 highest class to the sons of clergy- 
 men and others ; the former receiv- 
 ing special advantages. The idea 
 originated with the Rev. Charles 
 Plater in 1842. The first head- 
 master was Dr. Wilkinson, after- 
 wards Vicar of Melksham, d. 1876. 
 By the original charter, dated 1S45, 
 two-thirds of the pupils were to be 
 sons of clergymen ; but by a second 
 charter in 1849, the number was 
 reduced to one-half. Under the man- 
 agement of the second nead-master, 
 Dr. Cotton, the lamented Bishop of 
 Calcutta, and his successors, the Kev. 
 G. G. Bradley, afterwards Master 
 of University College, Oxford, now 
 Dean of Westminster, and Dr. Farrar, 
 as well as its present head-master, it 
 has gained a very high place among 
 the educational establishments of the 
 country. The nucleus of the College 
 is formed by Lord Seymour's old 
 brick house, afterwards the ''Castle 
 Inn," now known as *' C." House 
 (see ante); other blocks of build- 
 ing called after other letters of the 
 alphabet have been added in the 
 same style, forming 3 sides of an 
 irregular quadrangle. The **Brad- 
 leian," erected as a testimonial to 
 Dean Bradley, houses the classes for 
 art-teaching, and its hall is used for 
 examinations, lectures, concerts, &c. 
 The *'Adderly Library," founded 
 1848, is placed in the old "C" 
 house. The dining-hall contains 
 portraits of the successive head- 
 masters. In 1848 a chapel from 
 Blore's designs was consecrated, 
 which contains memorial windows to 
 Bp. Cotton, and others, masters and 
 
 scholars. The principal entrance 
 to the College is from the Bath 
 road, and beyond it is seen the figure 
 of a ichite horse, in a trotting attitude, 
 cut on the chalky slope of the valley. 
 It is the work of no Celt or Saxon, 
 but of the schoolboys of one Mr. 
 Greasley, in 1804, who had seen the 
 white horses of Cherhill and Bratton. 
 
 [The neighbourhood of Marlbo- 
 rough contains suflScient objects of 
 interest to engage the attention of the 
 traveller for 3 or 4 days. The views 
 from the clumps of fir-trees on the 
 Common and the Granham Hill are 
 wide and fine: (1.) The Cromlech, 
 known as the DeviVs Den, the gigantic 
 mound of Silbunj Hill, and the re- 
 mains of the wonderful earthwork 
 and megalithic monument of Ave- 
 bury; (2.) Martensell Hill and the 
 Wansdyke; (3.) Savernake Forest; 
 (4.) Littlecote. 
 
 The DcviVs Den, Avebury and SiU 
 bury Hill may be taken in a day's ex- 
 cursion from Marlborough. The dis- 
 tance to Avebury is 6 m. The ex- 
 pedition by carriage usually takes 
 about 3 hours ; but by far the best 
 way of seeing the remains is on foot. 
 
 Leaving the town by the Devizes 
 road, with the Kennet on the 1., we 
 pass Preshute, and at 1 m. reach 
 Manton, where are preserved two 
 rickety specimens of antique coach- 
 making. They are a carriage and a 
 phaeton with harness, built for one 
 of the Baskerville family on his being 
 appointed high sherilf of the county 
 either in 1698 or 1736. The arms 
 of Baskerville, quartering Ward and 
 Danvers, are painted on the panels. 
 At If m. we have the entrance to 
 Glatford Bottom on our rt. through a 
 gate opposite the farmhouse of Clat- 
 ford ; ^ m. up this winding grass-clad 
 combe is the cist or sepulchre called 
 the Devil's Den. It is 8 ft. 9 in. high, 
 consisting of a stone slab 9 ft. by 
 8 ft., originally resting on 4 up- 
 rights, of which only one remains 
 
36 
 
 Boute 3. — Avebury, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 in position. Part of the once-en- 
 veloping mound exists. Proceeding 
 up the valley the traveller will 
 soon find himself among the Grey- 
 wethers/* boulders of sarsen, or sili- 
 ciousl sandstone, which extend for 
 upwards of a mile, and present 
 one of the most remarkable geo- 
 logical phenomena in the country. 
 They are believed by Mr. Prest- 
 wich to be consolidated portions 
 of the sands and quartz of the 
 Plastic clay series. He will thread 
 this labyrinth of stones, and, hav- 
 ing passed a ride from the Marl- 
 borough race-course, which crosses 
 the vale obliquely, ascend Overton 
 hill on the 1., and proceed direct 
 for Avebury. The vantage ground 
 of this hill will afford him an ex- 
 cellent view not only of the sur- 
 rounding country, but of the inter- 
 esting spot he is approaching. He 
 will look upon an extensive basin, 
 containing in the centre, wuthin a 
 grassy ring or rampart, the remains 
 of the great circles of stones and 
 the modern village of Avebury ; and 
 towards the S. upon the culminat- 
 ing ridge of the Marlborough Downs, 
 sweeping from Bowood to Savernake, 
 and scored by a long waved line 
 marking the course of the Belgic 
 boundary, the Wansdyke, 
 
 The village of Avebury or Abury, 
 "like some beautiful parasite, has 
 grown up at the expense and in the 
 midst of the ancient temple " (Si?- J. 
 Lubbock) , is chiefly built with the frag- 
 ments of the huge stone circles, which 
 have been used as a quarry for cen- 
 turies. More than 650 stones have 
 been destroyed, and even the walls 
 and roads have been formed of their 
 ruins. The village occupies an area, 
 once partitioned into circular spaces 
 the enormous stones, but now cut 
 into quadrants by roads from the 
 four cardinal points, and still girt 
 by the original earthen mound and 
 inner ditch. Outside the mound, at 
 a distance of ^ m., are scattered 
 
 British barrows, many of large size 
 and sharp symmetrical outline. 
 
 The visitor should climb " the 
 earthen rampart to obtain a gene- 
 ral view of Avebury and its remains. 
 The scene is one of great singularity ; 
 but the area within the earthwork is 
 now so covered by the village that it 
 is difficult, even with a plan of the 
 ancient appearance of the place in 
 one's hands, to understand its ori- 
 ginal arrangements. But if the vi- 
 sitor will suppose for a moment every 
 house and hedge, tree and wall, &c., 
 to be effaced, he may perhaps be able 
 to form a general notion of it. There 
 was in the first place an enormous 
 earthen rampart about 40 ft. high 
 from the bottom of the fosse, 4442 ft. 
 in circumference, circular, but not a 
 perfect circle. Within this is a deep 
 fosse; and the fosse being on the 
 inner side of the rampart, it is at 
 once clear that it was no military 
 work. This rampart and fosse en- 
 closed a level area of 28 acres 27 
 perches. Immediately on the inner 
 margin of the fosse, forming a kind 
 of coronet all round the level area, 
 was a row of unhewn stones supposed 
 to have been 100 in number, placed 
 27 ft. apart. Of these 9 only are now 
 erect, 10 are prostrate, and 16 are 
 known to be buried. A number of pits 
 mark the sites of stones. The dimen- 
 sions of 2 stones standing near the 
 turnpike are — the one 13 ft. high by 
 16 ft. wide and 4 ft. thick ; the other 
 13 ft. 10 in. high/ 18 ft. wide, and 
 5 ft. 6 in. thick. The longer diam. 
 of the circle is 1 260 ft. ; the shorter 
 diam. 1170 ft. Within the large 
 outer circle or oval, were 2 smaller 
 ones, each originally composed of 30 
 stones. Of the southern of these 
 circles 2 stones remain erect, 3 pro- 
 strate. Of the northern circle 2 
 stones are erect and 2 prostrate, 
 and one known to be buried. With- 
 in each of these 2 circles was pro- 
 bably a concentric circle of 12 
 stones, of which there were indica- 
 tions. Within the northern, in its 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boiite 3. — Avehury, 
 
 37 
 
 centre, were 3 large stones which 
 formed an adytum or cove ; of these 
 2 remain ; the taller 17 ft. high, 7 ft. 
 7 in. wide, and 2 ft. 4 in. thick. At 
 the present time, out of the 650 
 great stones there are within the 
 
 entire enclosure only 15 stones re- 
 maining upright and 16 recumbent, 
 and 18 known to be buried. 
 
 The circular earthwork, with the 
 circles of upright stones enclosed by 
 it, was approached (according to 
 
 Hakpen Hill. 
 
 To Marlboro' 
 
 Plan of AvEBURY and surrounding Country. 
 
 A. The Kennet Avenue of Stones, leading to Overton Circle, O. 
 
 B. Dr. Stukeley's supposed Avenue to Beckampton. No trace remains. 
 
 c c. Komanlload. d d. British Trackway. c. Beckampton. ^. West Kennet Long Earrow. 
 h. East Kennet Long Barrow. 
 
 AvEBURY (from the North), with Silbury in the distance. Its general appearance in the 
 original state, as conjectured. 
 
 N.E.— The Circles, hoth Earthwork and Stones, were mtich more irregular in shape than here repreeente. 
 For the more exact form, see the other Plans. 
 
38 
 
 Boute 3. — Avehury. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 Dr. Stukeley's fanciful and now ex- 
 ploded idea) from the_' S.W. and S.E. 
 by a double avenue of upright blocks, 
 each about 72 ft. wide, and con- 
 sisting of 200 stones placed in pairs 
 at intervals of about 48 ft., and about 
 li m. in length, curving so as to give 
 the idea of a serpent. That from 
 the S.W. (of which there is really 
 no evidence) ended, as he supposed, 
 at Beckhampton in a single stone, 
 that from the S.E. in an oval group 
 on Overton Hill (more probably a 
 distinct monument) : these two 
 extremities, representing, according 
 to Stukeley, the tail and head of 
 his hypothetical serpent, of which 
 
 j the avenue formed the body, trans- 
 j fixing the great central circle. 
 I Stukeley gives engravings of the 
 I stones as they remained in 1724, and 
 mentions when portions were re- 
 moved. Of the S.W. avenue, to- 
 wards West Kennet, 15 stones re- 
 main; 2 near Beckhampton, in a 
 field to the N. of the road, of larger 
 dimensions than the stones of the 
 S.W. avenue (one of them is 16 ft. 
 high by as many broad and 
 thick), are the sole ground on which 
 Stulieley built his notion of a S.E. 
 avenue. In Aubrey's time there were 
 3 stones called the " Devil's Quoits." 
 They are now known as the Long 
 
 AvEBUEY. The oldest known Plan : made by John Aubrey, about a.d. 1660. 
 
 Showing the irregularly Circular Earthwork and Ditch ; the arrangement of the Large Stonea within ; 
 and one Avenue only of Stones leading to Kennet. 
 
 A. The earthen vallum. B. The ditch inside the vallum. 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Route 3.- — Avehury, 
 
 39 
 
 li^ Kennet Avenue. 
 
 AvEBURY, As surveyed by Sir R. C. Hoare, a.d, 1812. [Roads and houses being omitted.] 
 
 The Area contains 28 acres and 27 perches. The circumference on the ridge of the vallum, 4442 feet 
 The seven stones marked -}- were removed between 1819 and 1857. 
 
 Stones," and probably formed part 
 of a circle. 
 
 The stones of which the circles 
 and avenues are composed are called 
 sarsens. They are found in the im- 
 mediate neigbourhood. The weight 
 of the largest stone at Avebury is 
 about 62 tons ; one of the stones now 
 destroyed weighed 90 tons. 
 
 Wansdyke passes to the S. of Ave- 
 bury, and approaches within 4 m. of 
 it, but Avebury is outside this earth- 
 work, which is supposed to mark 
 
 the extent of the last Belgic conquest, 
 prior to the coming of Julius Caesar. 
 
 Many are the theories respecting 
 Avebury. There can be little doubt 
 that it dates from a period anterior 
 to the Eoman conquest of Britain. 
 It is considered by most antiquaries 
 to be older than Stonehenge. 
 
 Stukeley gives Avebury a very re- 
 mote date, about the time of Abra- 
 ham. The Rev. Mr. Lisle Bowles 
 supposes it to be Phoenician. Mr. 
 Bathurst Deane considers it a Ser- 
 pent Temple, and compares it to the 
 
40 
 
 Boute 3. — Avehury, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 remains at Stanton Drew and at 
 Carnac in Britany. The Rev. E. 
 Duke regards it as part of a vast 
 Planetarium described on the Wilts 
 Downs. Mr. Herbert and Mr. Fer- 
 gusson ascribe it to a post-Roman 
 period. 
 
 The discoveries of similar remains 
 in India appear to throw a side light 
 upon its object and the mode of its 
 formation. 
 
 The following passage is from Dr. 
 Hooker's address to the British Asso- 
 ciation, Aug. 1868 (see also Col. 
 Yule's memoir, ' Bengal Asiatic Jour- 
 nal/ 1844) : — There exists within 
 300 miles of the British capital of 
 India a tribe of semi-savages who ha- 
 bitually erect dolmens, menhirs, cists, 
 and cromlechs, almost as gigantic 
 in their proportions and very simi- 
 lar in appearance and construction 
 to the so-called Druidical remains 
 of Western Europe. . . .The method 
 of removing the blocks is by cutting 
 grooves, along which fires are lit, 
 into which, when heated, cold water is 
 run, which causes the rock to fissure 
 along the groove. The lever an d rope 
 are the only mechanical aids used in 
 transporting and erecting the block. 
 The objects of their erection are se- 
 pulture, marking spots where public 
 events have occurred, and the like. 
 The Khasian word for a stone, ' man/ 
 is the same as commonly occurs in 
 names of their villages and places, 
 as the word 'maen' does in those of 
 Brittany, Wales, Cornwall, &c.'* 
 
 It is somewhat remarkable that 
 there is no historical account whatso- 
 ever of this great work nor any 
 mention of it by name, and the only 
 allusion to it is the one discovered 
 by J. M. Kemble in the ' Codex ^Evi 
 Saxonici,' in the words " along the 
 stone row" (^Kennet Avenue), "thence 
 to the burial-places." (? Avebury 
 Circle.) 
 
 As to its having been a *' Druidi- 
 cal Temple,'* there seems to be no 
 trustworthy evidence that the Druids 
 ever made use of such places for 
 
 temples; and of " serpent temples," 
 the very name is unknown in ancient 
 history. 
 
 The earliest existing notice of 
 Avebury is in the writings of John 
 Aubrey, the Wiltshire Antiquary, 
 who came upon it unexpectedly 
 whilst hunting over the down in 
 1648, with Mr. Charles Seymour of 
 Marlborough Castle House. He was 
 at that time only 22 years of age, 
 but had been from a boy observant 
 of the antiquities of his native county. 
 He was so much struck with his disco- 
 very that he left his hounds to follow 
 their game and paused to pursue his 
 own. In his MS. work called 
 *Monumenta Britannica,' (now in the 
 Bodleian Library, Oxford) he has 
 left an interesting plan and descrip- 
 tion of it, as it appeared to him at that 
 time. 
 
 Aubrey's account, reported by 
 Lord Brouncker and Dr. Charlton to 
 Charles II., induced the king to halt 
 at Marlborough on his way to Bath, 
 accompanied by the Duke of York, 
 under his guidance. Pepys also came 
 upon it and Silbury unexpectedly on 
 one of his journeys on horseback to 
 Bath, with " great admiration,'* and 
 describes it in his Diary, June 15,1668. 
 
 Avebury Ch. stands to the W., just 
 outside the huge earthen rampart 
 which has been levelled at this point. 
 
 It was originally a very rude, 
 aisleless building of Saxon or early 
 Norman date, to which Norman 
 aisles were added, c. 1112, and a 
 very good Perp. Tower. In Oct. 
 1880 two of the original windows 
 were discovered, towards the W, 
 end. They had evidently been 
 closed with shutters, without glazing. 
 The Norman arcade was replaced by 
 a semi-classical one in 1811. The 
 chancel was rebuilt 1879, preserving 
 the chancel-arch, c. 1280. The early 
 porch, the Norman doorway, the 
 large squints, the rood-loft coloured 
 and gilt, above all, the very curious 
 leaden Norman tub-font, deserve 
 notice. Avebury House, the Eliza- 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 3. — Silbury HilL 41 
 
 bethan Manor-house of the Dunches, 
 stands close to the ch. among fine 
 hills, with a very picturesque gabled 
 front. The circular dovecote re- 
 mains. Avebury was a cell of St. 
 George Boscherville in Normandy, 
 founded here in 1110. 
 
 Silbury Mill rises from the valley 
 of the Kennet, about a mile S.S.E. of 
 Avebury church, close to the Roman 
 road from Bath to Marlborough, and 
 to its modern successor, the once 
 thronged but now almost deserted 
 Great Bath road, which here coincides 
 with it. It has been warmly debated 
 whether Silbury is posterior or 
 anterior to the Roman occupation of 
 Britain ; but there can be no reason- 
 able doubt that it stands on the 
 Roman road which here makes a 
 slight deviation from the straight 
 line to avoid the hill. Professor 
 Tyndall remarks that Silbury Hill 
 afforded " a splendid landmark to the 
 Roman engineers," the Roman road 
 from " Cunetio " to "Aquae Solis " 
 being carried in a straight line to the 
 base of the hill, and there slightly 
 deflected to avoid it. This is called 
 in question by Mr. Fergusson, who 
 considers that the hill is posterior to 
 the Romans, and that it was raised 
 to commemorate a battle, probably 
 *' Arthur's 2nd andlast battle of Badon 
 Hill." His opinion also is that 
 Avebury was nothing more than a 
 burying-place, and was a " full-sized 
 plan of a battle lithographed on the 
 field Avhere it was fought." The 
 earlier date is supported by Sir John 
 Lubbock, Professor Tyndall, and 
 Dr. Thurnam. During the autumn 
 of 1867 the exact course of the 
 ancient road was ascertained by re- 
 moving the surface of the ground in 
 the field above the turnpike road S. 
 of the hill, and the question was set 
 at rest, though the actual date of the 
 monument remains as deeply shroud- 
 ed in mystery as ever. 
 
 This gigantic mound is probably 
 the largest artificial hill in Europe, 
 and if we may derive its name from * 
 
 the A.-S. sel "noble," and hiwh 
 " stronghold," its proportions accord 
 completely with its designation. 
 Others have identified the first sylla- 
 ble with the goddess, " Sul Minerva " 
 who presided over the hot springs of 
 Bath '* Aquae Sulis," or with a 
 mythical king Scale buried beneath it. 
 The shape of Silbury is a truncated 
 cone, 1657 ft. in circumference at 
 the base, which occupies upwards of 
 .5 acres with a diameter of 552 ft. 
 A circle of sarsen stones, 3 or 4 ft. 
 across, set at intervals of about 18 
 ft., surrounded the mound at its 
 bottom ; but few of these are now 
 visible. Its sides slope regularly up- 
 wards at an angle of 30°. Its height 
 is 170 ft, and the diameter of the 
 circular area of its summit 104 ft. 
 Its cubical volume is computed at 
 nearly 468,170 solid yards of earth. 
 The object of this enormous work 
 has been a frequent subject of dis- 
 cussion, and investigations have been 
 undertaken with the view of deter- 
 mining whether the ordinary view 
 which considers it to be a sepulchral 
 mound raised over some mighty hero 
 of old time is correct. In 1777 the 
 hill was opened from the top by 
 Cornish miners under the direction 
 of the then Duke of Northumberland 
 and Col. Drax ; and again in 1849, 
 under the superintendence of Dr. 
 Merewether, Dean of Hereford,when 
 the mount was tunnelled at its base, 
 and a space of 12 ft. in diam. in the 
 very centre of the mass examined. 
 On neither occasion was any trace of 
 interment discovered. But the 
 apertures hitherto made have been 
 so insignificent compared with the 
 size of the hill that the question can- 
 not be considered to have been 
 settled by these excavations. As 
 with Avebury, we are completely 
 destitute of any information as to 
 when, by whom, and for what pur- 
 pose it was formed. 
 
 The visitor should ascend to the 
 top for a view, and call to mind 
 Southey's ' Inscription for a tablet ' : 
 
42 
 
 Boute 3. — Yatehury — West Kennet. Wiltshire. 
 
 " This mound, in some remote and dateless 
 day 
 
 Eear'd o'er a chieftain of the age of hills, 
 May here detain thee, traveller ! from thy 
 road 
 
 Not idly lingering. In his narrow house 
 Some warrior sleeps below, whose gallant 
 deeds 
 
 Haply at many a solemn festival 
 The Scald hath sung; but perish'd is the 
 song 
 
 Of praise, as o'er these bleak and barren 
 downs 
 
 The wind that passes and is heard no more. 
 Go, traveller, and remember, when the 
 pomp 
 
 Of earthly glory fades, that one good deed, 
 Unseen, unheard, unnoted b}^ mankind. 
 Lives in the eternal register of Heaven." 
 
 Bristol, 1796, 
 
 Yatehury, 2^ m. N.W., on the 
 broad plateau of the Marlborough 
 downs, 536 ft. above the sea. The 
 Ch. has a good Perp. tower, Transition 
 arcade, j&ne Norman font, and rood 
 stair- turret. The chancel and screen 
 are modern (1854). One of the nave 
 windows contains some roundels of 
 E.E. glass. There is a fine yew in 
 the ch.-yd. The parish contains 
 many sepulchral barrows, which have 
 yielded the usual objects. Dec. 30, 
 1859, the village was visited by a 
 tornado of astonishing violence. 
 
 Wmterhourne Monkton, \\ m. N. The 
 Ch., carefully restored by Butterfield, 
 1878, has a good Norm, font, and on 
 the W. side of the chancel arch a 
 reredos of 3 rude shallow niches and 
 a piscina mark the place of 2 side 
 altars. 
 
 Berwick Bassett, f m. N., has a 
 good E.E. font, a rood-screen and 
 rood-beam, Perp. and a small brass, 
 1427, to a priest, William Bayly, who 
 left 100s. to the ch. 
 
 The turnpike road from Marl- 
 borough passes on 1. the villages of 
 Fy field (where the Ch,, with a pin- 
 nacled tower, is very picturesquely 
 situated among tall elms, with a lych 
 gate in the ch.-yd., and is worth a 
 visit. The font is Norm, with inter- 
 secting arches). West Overton (the 
 Ch. conspicuously crowning a hill, 
 
 was rebuilt in 1878, preserving most 
 of the old windows, and using the 
 chancel arch as the entrance to the 
 organ chamber), Fast Kennet and 
 West Kennet, devoted to the brewing 
 and storing of the celebrated West 
 Kennet ale, where the river Kennet 
 turns N. at right angles to its former 
 course, parallel to which the road to 
 Avebury diverges from the main 
 road. Near West Kennet is the 
 Long Barrow, a tumulus of consider- 
 able interest, 336 long by 40 ft. 
 broad at the W. end, and 75 ft. at 
 E. end. The walls of the chamber 
 are formed of six great slabs of stone, 
 opening into a passage. When opened, 
 it contained two human skeletons in 
 a sitting posture, and two laid hori- 
 zontally. Shortly after passing 
 Fyfield a valley to the rt. of the 
 road will be noticed completely filled 
 with sarsen stone or " grey wethers.'' 
 They look like a river of stone, if 
 T may so speak ; as if some mighty 
 flood had rolled them along down 
 the valley, and there left them 
 behind as it sunk" (Kingsley'), 
 The few survivors of the giants of 
 the eastern avenue will be seen, rt., 
 at West Kennet. " Tens of thou- 
 sands of sarsen stones," writes Dean 
 Merewether, are " still scattered 
 over these hills and their valleys: 
 some having evidently formed 
 *cistvaens' with the gallery of ap- 
 proach to the chamber, some crom- 
 lechs, some avenues of approach 
 to consecrated spots, some circles 
 round the sepulchral deposits, some 
 lines of demarcation." It is to be 
 regretted that the number of these 
 interesting relics of a former age is 
 being rapidly diminished by the re- 
 quirements of the builder. The rly, 
 bridge at Windsor is built with stone 
 from Clatford Bottom. At Beck- 
 hampton is an Inn, the Waggon and 
 Horses, where refreshment may be 
 had.] 
 
 At Marlborough the new line forms 
 a junction with the old branch rly., 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 3. — Tottenham Park. 
 
 43 
 
 and running mainly in chalk cuttings 
 reaches 
 
 19 J m. Savernake Station (Kte. 
 5), where is a neat hotel, built by the 
 Marquis of Ailesbury. 
 
 Savernake Forest, Drayton's shade- 
 ful Savernake," and Tottenham Park, 
 the domain of the Marquis of Ailes- 
 bury, occupy a district 16 m, incir- 
 cumf. E. of Marlborough. No travel- 
 ler should neglect an opportunity of 
 visiting this sylvan tract, thrown 
 freely open to all, which still dis- 
 plays a magnificence of forest scenery 
 peculiarly attractive to the artist, 
 who, among its majestic oaks and 
 graceful beeches, may realise the 
 paintings of a Gainsborough or Hob- 
 bema. It is said to be the only forest 
 in this country in the possession of a 
 subject. It formed part of the join- 
 ture of Queen Eleanor, and was in 
 after times granted to the family of 
 Seymour, Dukes of Somerset, from 
 whom, in 1676, it passed by marriage 
 to the Bruces. The objects of chief 
 interest are the shattered remnants 
 of the King Oak, or the Duke's Vaunt, 
 an oak of wonderful antiquity, so 
 called from Protector Somerset ; 
 the Creeping Oak, behind the keeper's 
 lodge, with a huge limb stretched 
 along the ground ; the Avenue of beech, 
 which is 4 m. long, and probably the 
 finest in the kingdom ; in the spring 
 the gorgeous banks of rhododendron 
 and azalea ; and Savernake Forest 
 House, formerly called Tottenham 
 House, which is accessible to the 
 stranger during the absence of the 
 family. 
 
 A delightful walk, of some 5 or 6 
 miles, may be enjoyed from the Sa- 
 vernake station through the Park to 
 Marlborough. On entering the Park 
 gates go straight on towards the 
 great avenue, gaining in passing on 
 the right a view of Tottenham House, 
 and on the left a view of the Ailes- 
 bury Column; cross the avenue and 
 bear off across the turf a little to 
 the right to the very beautiful church 
 
 of St. Catherine. The spire will 
 serve as a sufficient guide till the 
 church itself comes into view. Ee- 
 turn to the avenue, and continue 
 down it till you reach the open space 
 opposite the ruins of Savernake 
 Lodeje, walk down the open grassy 
 glade to the left as far as you feel 
 inclined, for the sake of seeing several 
 fine oaks which grow here. By 
 keeping parallel to the avenue the 
 King Oak may be reached without 
 returning to it, but if there is thought 
 to be any risk of losing the way, 
 come back to the avenue and follow 
 it on a little further to the Eight 
 Walks, then take the Green Drive to 
 the left which is nearest to the main 
 avenue, and after examining the 
 glades about the King Oak, make your 
 way out of the Park by the gate at 
 the end of the main avenue, and go 
 down the hill to Marlborough. 
 
 Savernake may also be conveni- 
 ently visited from Marlborough. It 
 is 2 m. from Marlborough to the 
 entrance of the forest ; 3 to the Eight 
 Walks, from which the King Oak is 
 distant \ m. ; and 6 to Savernake 
 Forest House. The traveller will 
 proceed by the Hungerford road, 
 and in 1 m. will be climbing Forest 
 Hill, with Marlborough and the vale 
 of the Kennet before him ; and to 
 the 1. on Folly Farm, the site of 
 the Eoman station of Cunetio. After 
 a steep ascent he will enter the 
 forest, and turn rt. to the Grand 
 Avenue of beeches, which runs in a 
 straight line by the Eight Walks to 
 the House. It is of considerable 
 width, and bordered by beech-trees in 
 thick-set ranks, their towering trunks 
 and interlacing limbs forming a vista 
 of singular grandeur and beauty. 
 In about a mile its continuity is 
 interrupted by an open space ; and 
 here, from the centre of a clump of 
 firs, the Eight Walks diverge to as 
 many points of the compass, 5 lead- 
 ing over grass to distant forest glades, 
 1 S.E. to the ruins of Savernake Lodge 
 (burned down Mar. 9, 1861), and 2 
 
44 Boute 3 —Tottenham ParJc. Wiltshire. 
 
 formed by tlie avenue, whose course 
 is N. and S. The walk, running S. W., 
 will lead yon to the King Oak, a hnge 
 hollow trunk, 24 ft. in circumference, 
 fast hastening to its ruin. Around 
 are grouped many other noble obi 
 trees, a stalwart band, arrayed like 
 the monarch in the elegant drapery 
 of moss and fern. Close to the King 
 stands the Bound House, a spacious 
 shed, where the visitor may find a 
 welcome shelter. He can regain the 
 avenue by another path, and proceed 
 to Tottenham House. This is a large 
 plain building, originally designed 
 as a hunting-seat, and erected on 
 the site of a palace of the Seymours, 
 injured in the Great Rebellion. The 
 view from the interior extends over 
 a wide and noble domain. It was 
 begun in 1781 by Thos. Bruce, first 
 Earl of Ailesbury, and completed by 
 the late Marquis. Among the pictures 
 at Tottenham are the Marriage Feast 
 at Cana by Murillo, "Samson and 
 . Delilah by Vandyck'Ad. landscape by 
 >(jvv^**^ -Qa&par. I^oussJji, an old copy of Ba- 
 A^i^— 4>ters School of Athens, and por- 
 traits of Lady Jane Seymour, Chris- 
 tian Bruce, Countess of Devonshire. 
 XVandi/ck); the Earl of Elgin {Corn. 
 Jansen), and the first Earl of Ailes- 
 bury {Sir P, Lely), In the library is 
 preserved an ivory horn, silver- 
 mounted and very curiously orna- 
 mented with subjects of the chase. 
 It belongs to the hereditary keeper 
 of the forest, and has been handed 
 down for many generations through 
 the Seymours. The N. front com- 
 mands the Ailesbury Column, through 
 a long perspecti've formed by de- 
 tached masses of elm and beech ; the 
 S. front a vista cut through woods 
 over a double line of hills, the farthest 
 of which must be 4 m. distant. The 
 column crowns a lofty height. It 
 was erected in 1781, by Thos. Bruce, 
 first Earl, commemorating the re- 
 covery of Geo. III. and various 
 other circumstances. 
 
 The Marlborough troop of yeo- 
 manry, originally raised in 1794 by 
 
 the Marquis of Ailesbury, was nick- 
 named " The Potato Choppers," 
 from the custom of training the 
 cavalry to the use of the broadsword, 
 by putting potatoes on sticks in one 
 of the rides of Savernake Forest, to 
 be cut off as they rode by at full 
 gallop. 
 
 A pleasing Ch., called Christ Church, 
 with parsonage-house and school, 
 was built in the forest by the late 
 Marquis of Ailesbury ; as well as 
 the very beautiful and richly orna- 
 mented St. Catherine's, from T. H. 
 Wyatt's designs, by the Marchioness, 
 in memory of her mother the Coun- 
 tess of Pembroke, about J m. from 
 the house. 
 
 From Savernake the new Andover 
 line pursues its way to 
 " 2 If m. Grafton Stat. The Ch, of 
 East Grafton was built by Ferrey in 
 18j44 in the .JLorman stjj^ chiefly at 
 the expense of the then Marquis of 
 Ailesbury. The painted glass in the 
 chancel is by Willement. From 
 Grafton extend the exposed uplands 
 of Collingbourne Heath, and the 
 rly. reaches at • ' 
 
 26 m. Collingbourne Stat. The two 
 little villages of Collingbourn Kingston 
 and Collingbourn Diccis, connected by 
 the hamlet of Collingbourn Sutton 
 (South Town), lie about h ni. apart 
 on the little streamlet from which 
 they derive their name. 
 
 Collingbourn Kingston, has an E.E. 
 Ch., of flint and stone with Perp. 
 additions, restored in 1862, contain- 
 ing an elaborate canopied monument 
 to Sir Gilbert Pile of Collingbourn 
 and his wife, 1626, and a brass to 
 Const. Darell, 1495. It is a scattered 
 village with some picturesque cot- 
 tages of red brick and flint orna- 
 mentally worked. Joh7i Norris, the 
 mystical divine, known for com- 
 bating the opinions of Dodwell and 
 Locke, was born at the parsonage, 
 1657, and died at the rectory of Be- 
 merton, 1611. 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 3. — ColUnghourn Kingston — Liidgershall, 45 
 
 ^ m. rt. is ColUnghourn Ducis, so 
 called from having belonged to the 
 Duchy of Lancaster; granted by 
 Henry VIII. to Protector Somerset, 
 and re-granted by Elizabeth to the 
 Earl of Hertford. In the Ck., also of 
 flint and stone with a square embattled 
 tower, is a small brass to Edw. St. 
 Maur, son of the Earl of Hertford, d. 
 1631, with a curious inscription. 
 
 3 m. E. is the village of Chute, 
 bearing the name of a forest once 
 extending from Savernake deep into 
 Hampshire. Conliolt Park is the seat 
 of Lady Charles Wellesley ; Chute 
 Lodge of T. E. Fowle, Esq. 
 
 [2 J m. rt. in the open country, over 
 which the eye ranges freely, is East 
 Ucerley {Inn: Crown, most excellent), 
 traditionally the residence of King 
 Ina, whose hunting-lodge is said to 
 have stood near the encampment of 
 Sidbury. The Ch. was re-built in 
 1813, but retains the Trans. Norm, 
 font. Everley was a market-town 
 in comparatively modern times. It 
 stands on the old road from Marl- 
 borough to Salisbury, which ran 
 most of the way over the turf. The 
 lordship belonged to the Duchy of 
 Lancaster, and was granted by Hen. 
 VIII. to Sir Ralph Sadleir, afterwards 
 Falconer to Queen Elizabeth, d. 1 587, 
 a worthy knight, appointed to guard 
 the unfortunate Queen of Scots at 
 Tutbury, but so fond of hawking that 
 he could not refrain from it, or from 
 allowing his prisoner to participate in 
 the amusement, for which he was 
 severely reprimanded. His portrait 
 still hangs on the walls of 
 ' Everley House (Mrs. Curtis), prob- 
 ably built by Sir R. Sadleir, formerly 
 the home'of the Sir Francis D. Astley, 
 whose electioneering exploits in 
 1818 occupy a conspicuous place in 
 the annals of Wiltshire, and now the 
 property of Sir John Dugdale Astley, 
 Bart., containing some good pictures ; 
 one, life-size, of Sir F. D. Astley and 
 Lady Astley with her horse and dog, 
 
 by Sir J. Reynolds. Another repre- 
 sents two duels fought on horseback 
 by Sir John de Astley in the reign 
 of Hen. VI. : one with a French- 
 man in the street of St. Antoine in 
 Paris ; the other with a knight of 
 Arragon in Smithfield. The house 
 was much injured by fire (1881), but 
 the pictures, &;c., were saved. The 
 gardens retain their ancient charac- 
 ter, with curious examples of the 
 topiary art in box and yew. 
 
 28J m. the rly. reaches the little 
 town of 
 
 Ludgershall (the Ijuis are but 
 village alehouses, Queen's Head and 
 Crown), pleasantly situated on high 
 ground, over which sweep invigora- 
 ting breezes from Salisbury Plain. 
 It was formerly a borough town, re- 
 turning 2 members, and of some im- 
 portance in early times, but is now 
 only a village of thatched cottages, 
 built of red brick and flint. The 
 ancient name was Lutegar's Hall, 
 from some Saxon owner. The 
 Empress Maud took refuge here 
 in her wars with Stephen a.d. 1141. 
 The seal of her chief partisan, Milo 
 Earl of Gloucester, was found in the 
 neighbourhood some years ago. 
 INIariborough and Ludgershall Castles 
 were sometimes held under the crown 
 by one and the same Governor. 
 Among these officers we find the 
 name of Geoff'ry Fitzpiers, Earl of 
 P^ssex and Chief Justice of England, 
 at whose death John is reported to 
 have exclaimed, "Now, indeed, I 
 shall be king and lord of this realm ! " 
 In 1464, Edw. IV. granted it with 
 200 acres of park at CoUingbourne to 
 George Duke of Clarence. Soon after 
 Edw. VI. it became the property of 
 the Brydges family, ancestors of the 
 Duke of Chandos. The castle was 
 " clene down " at Leland's visit, 
 1540. Subsequent owners have been 
 Selwyns, Sidneys, and Sir James 
 Graham. The Castle is at the N. 
 end of the village, but there is little 
 
Boute 4. — Cliippenham to Frome. Wiltshire' 
 
 46 
 
 more than a fragment of the Norman 
 keep, now forming part of a farmyard 
 wall, encompassed by an earthen 
 rampart and two deep ditches. A 
 pleasant view is gained from the spot, 
 the eye ranging in a northerly direc- 
 tion ovQV Collinghourn Wood, 2 m. in 
 extent. 
 
 On the roadside, by the Queen's 
 Head, is the foot of an ancient Cross, 
 rudely sculptured. 
 
 The Ch. is of flint, and contains 
 the Jacobean tomb of Sir Eichard 
 Brydges, Knt., and of his wife, whose 
 effigies repose within an archway 
 between the S. transept and nave. 
 
 Biddesden House, IJ m. E. (Rev. 
 Thos. |Everett), was built by Gen. 
 Webb, who served in. the Duke of 
 Marlborough' s campaigns, and was 
 once occupied by the Duke of Chandos. 
 Crawlboys Wood preserves the name 
 of an ancient Norman owner, Croille- 
 bois. 
 
 The railway soon crosses the Wilt- 
 shire border, and reaches 324 m. 
 
 Weyhill Stat., and 36i m. 
 
 Andover Junction Stat. 
 
 Should the route be taken about 
 the beginning of October, the tourist 
 should be reminded that Weyhill 
 Fair, one of the largest in England, 
 commences on the 10th of that 
 month, when, in the language of 
 Carlyle, assembling from all the 
 four winds come the elements of an 
 unspeakable hurly-burly.'' 140,000 
 sheep have changed hands on the first 
 day. The staple commodities of the 
 fair are Dorsetshire sheep, Farnham 
 hops, and the cheeses of the neigh- 
 bouring couuties. In 1784 great 
 damage was done at this fair by fire, 
 which destroyed many booths and 
 much property. 
 
 * t 
 
 ROUTE 4. 
 
 CHIPPENHAM TO FROf^HE BY MELKS- 
 HAM [LACOCK], TROWBRIDGE, 
 BRADFORD [MONKTON FARLEIGH, 
 FARLEIGH CASTLE, HINTON 
 CHARTERHOUSE], AND WESTBURY. 
 
 ( Wilts and Somerset Ely.) 
 
 94 m. from Paddington, CMpjjenham 
 Stat. (Rte. 1). Between Chippenham 
 and Corsham the flank of the chalk 
 hills, and in front of them the green- 
 sand, which for many a mile has 
 limited the view from the railway, 
 turns abruptly towards the S., where 
 the railway throws off a branch in 
 the same direction. 
 
 After leaving the main line the 
 traveller may observe on the heights 
 to the 1. Bowden Park and Spye Park, 
 and in the vale, by the side of the 
 Avon, 3 m. Lacock Abbey (see post). 
 ^ m. beyond Lacock the railway 
 crosses tlie line of the Roman road 
 from Bath to Marlborough. 
 
 100 Melksham Stat. (Pop. 2182, a 
 decrease from that in 1871, attri- 
 buted to the diminished activity of 
 the clothing and dyeing trades). 
 {Inns : King's Arms ; Bear.) The 
 town lies j m. to the 1. on one of the 
 old mail-coach roads from London to 
 Bath. It is seated on the left bank 
 of the Avon, and on the Wilts and 
 Berks Canal, and gives name to the 
 hundred in which it is situated. It 
 consists principally of one street 
 nearly a mile long. Melksham is a 
 clean old-fashioned town. A Town- 
 hall in the Italian style was erected 
 in 1847, by a company of share- 
 holders, at a cost of 3000/. The 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 4. — Melksham ; Lacock Abbey. 
 
 47 
 
 principal manufacture is that of cloth. 
 The Avon is crossed by a handsome 
 bridge of 4 arches, near which is a 
 very large corn-mill, and a cloth- 
 factory and dye-house. 
 
 Melksham in Norman times was 
 a populous town, although sur- 
 rounded by Melksham Forest, a fa- 
 vourite scene of the hunting exploits 
 of Edward I. At a later age it had 
 evidently much declined in import- 
 ance, as Leland has passed it without 
 notice in his description of this 
 neighbourhood. Near the town se- 
 veral mineral springs, a sulphureous 
 chalybeate, and 2 saline, well up 
 from the beds of the Oxford clay. 
 On the discovery of a saline spring 
 in 1816, high anticipations were 
 raised, and a pump-room, baths, and 
 other accommodations for visitors 
 were erected, but the wells proved 
 unattractive, and have fallen into 
 disuse. 
 
 The Ch. was originally a Norm 
 cruciform building, traces of which 
 style appear in the pilaster buttresses, 
 and billet moulding at the E. end, 
 and the mouldings at the W. end of 
 the aisles. The central tower, on 
 low Norm, arches, was taken down 
 in 1840 by Wyatt, and rebuilt at the 
 W. end, preserving its old summit, 
 The nave arcade is Early Dec. with 
 low cylindrical piers. There is 
 very fine Perp. chapel, S. The 
 chancel was fitted with choir stalls 
 and a new oak ceiling by the late 
 Mr. G. E. Street in 1881. Atithebarn 
 to the W. of the Ch. is used as the 
 parish schoolroom. 
 
 [The visitor may well pause at 
 Melksham to examine the places of 
 archaeological interest in which the 
 neighbourhood is peculiarly rich, 
 including Lacock Abbey (which may 
 also be reached from Chippenham, 
 3 m.), Spye Park, Bromfiam, and the 
 manor houses of Great Chaldfield and 
 South WraxalL 
 
 Lacock Abbey is 3 m. N. on the 
 
 road to Chippenham. The hill which 
 rises abruptly from it commands one 
 of the finest prospects in the county 
 embracing woodland heights, form- 
 ing the parks of Bov:den and Spye,- 
 which, with the Great Wood " of 
 Lord Lansdowne's extensive domain 
 of Bowood contrast finely with the 
 naked slopes of the chalk which are 
 seen across an intervening valley. 
 
 Lacock Abbey, long the property 
 and residence of the late W. H. Fox 
 Talbot, Esq., the well-known inventor 
 of the " Talbotype," and now of his 
 son, C. H. Talbot, Esq., is situated 
 on the Avon, below the heights of 
 Bowden Park. Lacock is a place of 
 great antiquity. Here stood one of 
 the 3 "Castella" founded by the 
 British king, Dynwal Moelmyd. 
 Another was at Malmesbury, and 
 third at Tetbury. Lacock was 
 founded as an Augustine nunnery 
 in 1232 by Ela Countess of Salis- 
 bury, who, in 1238, entered the 
 establishment as a nun, and shortly 
 afterwards was elected its abbess. 
 She founded it in memory of her de- 
 ceased husband William Longespee, 
 the natural son of Henry II. and in 
 his wife's right Earl of Sarum. In 
 the reign of Henry VIII., 1539, after 
 a 3 years' reprieve, as one of the 30 
 lesser monasteries, Lacock was con- 
 fiscated to the king. It was sold 
 (1541) to Sir William Sherington, 
 who adapted the conventual build- 
 ings to form a residence for himself; 
 and, dying without issue, his brother 
 Henry's daughter carried the estate 
 by marriage to the Talbots. During 
 the Rebellion the Abbey was fortified 
 and garrisoned for Charles I. ; and 
 in 1G45 was besieged by a detachment 
 of Fairfax's army, to whom it sur- 
 rendered by capitulation, Sept. 24, at 
 the first summons, the garrison being 
 alarmed by the fall of Bristol and 
 Devizes. 
 
 The Talbots are said to owe their 
 inheritance of Lacock to a roman- 
 tic incident, which, however, is pro- 
 bably fabulous. Olive, one of the 
 
48 
 
 Boute 4. — Lacock Abbey. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 daughters and co-heiresses of Sir 
 Henry Sherington, being in love with 
 John Talbot of Salwarpe, Worcester- 
 shire, contrary to her father's wishes, 
 and " discoursing one night with him 
 from the battlements of the abbey 
 church, said she, * I will leap downe 
 to you.' Her sweetheart replied he 
 would catch her then: but he did 
 not believe she would have done it. 
 She leapt down, and the wind, which 
 was then high, came under her 
 coates, and did something break the 
 fall. Mr. Talbot caught her in his 
 armes, but she struck him dead ; she 
 cried for help, and he was with great 
 difficulty brought to life again. Her 
 father thereon told her that since 
 she had made such a leap she should 
 e'en marrie him." So runs the tale, 
 as reported by Aubrey, who was per- 
 sonally acquainted with the grand- 
 son of the lady, whose assumed por- 
 trait is still preserved in the abbey. 
 
 The present house retains nearly 
 the whole of the monastic build- 
 ing, variously adapted by Sir W. 
 Sherington and subsequent owners to 
 suit domestic requirements, and still 
 presents one of the most perfect re- 
 maining examples of conventual 
 arrangement. The modern mansion 
 surrounds the ancient cloister court. 
 To the S., by a somewhat unusual 
 arrangement, of which Canterbury, 
 Gloucester, and Malmesbury are 
 examples, stood the conventual Ch., 
 long and narrow, and apparently 
 aisleless, 120 ft. in length, of which 
 only the N. wall remains, pierced 
 with modern windows to light the 
 long gallery over the S. wall of the 
 cloisters, enlarged and improved by 
 Mr. Fox Talbot. Traces of the 
 original lancets are to be seen on the 
 western bays. The site of the Ch. 
 forms a terrace walk. The cloister 
 ambulatories surround 3 sides of the 
 court, E., N., and S. They are of 
 excellent Perp. design, vaulted 
 throughout with a rich lierne roof 
 with elaborate bosses. The 2 W. 
 bays on the S. side are the earliest 
 
 and have the richer groining. The 
 windows are of Perp. tracery. To- 
 wards the W. end of the N. walk 
 are traces of the E.E. lavatory, and 
 of the E.E. door to the Eefectory. 
 
 On the E. side of the cloisters (be- 
 ginning from the S., or ch. wall), 
 we have first the Sacristy, and then 
 the Chapter-house. Both have E.E. 
 vaulting carried by a row of central 
 pillars. Then follow the Slype, or 
 passage, with an E.E. doorway, and 
 the Calefactory, or Day Room, erro- 
 neously called the " Nuns' Kitchen," 
 vaulted in two alleys, with a fire- 
 place. Two rooms with a plain 
 barrel vault succeed. The whole of 
 the upper story on this side was 
 occupied by the Perp. Dormitory, 
 138 ft. by 26 ft., still covered by its 
 fine timber roof, which may be seen 
 in the upper rooms ; a large pointed 
 window may be traced in the N. 
 gable. The N. side of the cloister- 
 court is occupied by the undercroft 
 of the Refectory^ also vaulted in two 
 alleys, and a passage. The Refectory 
 roof is Perp. and there have been 
 rose windows in the S. wall. The 
 present Kitchen at the W. end, oc- 
 cupies the site of the conventual 
 kitchen. Both Eefectory and Dor- 
 mitory have been divided by floors 
 at the springing at the roof, and 
 converted into chambers below. 
 Those in the j Dormitory open out 
 of a long stone gallery formed by 
 Sir W. Sherington, which has a very 
 beautiful Renaissance chimney piece, 
 and is full of curiosities and works 
 of art. Among these are some 
 carved oak chairs bearing the Talbot 
 lion, a bronze pestle and mortar 
 bearing Sherington's name, and a 
 pair of elk antlers of remarkable 
 size. The Libixiry adjoins the gallery 
 to the S. One of the chambers is 
 supposed to have been that in which 
 Queen Elizabeth slept when she was 
 here in 1574 and knighted her host, 
 Sir H. Sherington, but it has been 
 much modernized. At the S. E. 
 ^ angle of the house adjacent to the 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 4. — LacocJc AVbeij, 49 
 
 Lihraru is an octagonal tower, built 
 by Sir W. Sherington, containing 3 
 rooms, one above the other. The 
 two lower have vaulted ceilings, that 
 of the Mimiinent-room on the first 
 floor of very singular design deserv- 
 ing notice. Both this room and that 
 above contain very remarkable stone 
 tables richly carved in the Re- 
 naissance style, with the initials 
 W. S. All Sherington's work, though 
 thoroughly pagan in feeling, is ex- 
 quisite in design, and will reward 
 close attention. Among other valu- 
 able documents preserved in the 
 Muniment -room is an original copy 
 of the Great Charter of Henry 
 III., 1225, sent to Ela, Countess of 
 Salisbury, as hereditary Sheriff of 
 Wilts. On the W. side of the clois- 
 ters! is the Hall in Batty-Langley 
 Gothic, the work of J. Ivory Talt)ot, 
 c. 1748, who also made the present 
 Dining Boom, a handsome Palladian 
 apartment, containing some good 
 pictures: Henry VIII., Holbciiij 
 Charles I. and Henrietta Maria, 
 after Vandyck ; and a very singular 
 composition, " The Arts and Scien- 
 ces,*' Cornelius van Haarlem. Beneath 
 the hall are some ancient apartments, 
 including one vaulted from a single 
 central pillar. The Base Court, 
 N.W., built by Sherington, is very 
 picturesque with enormous dormers, 
 and a very quaint clock tower and 
 bell turret. 
 
 In the cloisters are several monu- 
 mental slabs, including that of the 
 foundress, Ela, removed from the 
 church, bearing the following in- 
 scription : 
 
 Infra sunt defossii EIjb venerabilis ossa, 
 Quaj dedit has sedes sacras monialibus aides, 
 Al3batissa quidem quai sancte vixit ibidem, 
 Et comitissa Sarum virtutum plena bona- 
 rum. 
 
 In the Chapter-house is the me- 
 morial slab of Ilbertus de Chat, 
 brought from Monkton Farleigh (see 
 post, p. 56). 
 
 In the last century the doors from 
 the cloisters into the Chapter-house 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, ^c, 1882.] 
 
 and other roorns on the E. side Avcre 
 walled up, and* the end walls towards 
 the garden demolished, converting 
 them into alcoves and garden-houses. 
 To the N.E. lie the ponds or stews 
 for fish. Beyond stands the so-called 
 Nuns' Caldron, a huge vessel of bronze 
 or bell-metal, cast at Mechlin, in 
 1500, by Peter Wagheuens, esti- 
 mated to hold 67 gallons, bearing the 
 inscription: "A Petro Waghevens 
 in Mechlinia effvsus factvs ve fveram 
 Anno Domini millesimo qvingen- 
 tesimo. Deo lavs et Gloria Cristo.'' 
 The Abhe>j Barn of the 14th cent, 
 and the restored 3Tarket Cross deserve 
 notice. 
 
 Lacock C'l. (St. Cyriack, an al- 
 most unique dedication) is a very 
 interesting cruciform building. The 
 W. tower and spire and transepts 
 are Dec. The spire is late Perp. 
 The nave Perp. and very rich. A 
 groined Perp. porch has been added 
 to the W. of the tower, and there is 
 a highly ornate and highly coloured 
 Lady Chapel, with elaborate fan- 
 traceried ceiling, of the time of 
 Henry VII. The chancel is modern, 
 1776, and the transepts were un- 
 fortunately raised in 1861. In the 
 S. transept there is a brass to Kobert 
 Baynard and wife, 1501, and in the 
 Lady-chapel there is a rich Renais- 
 sance canopied tomb to Sir W. Sher- 
 ington, 1566, and a sumptuous 
 Corinthian marble monument to Sir 
 John Talbot, d. 1713. The canopied 
 niche in the N. wall of the chapel, 
 and those at the apex of the gables, 
 as at St. John's, Devizes, deserve 
 notice. The sacramental plate in- 
 cludes a mediaeval ciberium now 
 used as the chalice. 
 
 At Lacock Ch. Bp. Jci-el, in 1571, 
 preached his last sermon, when mak- 
 ing a visitation to the churches of his 
 diocese. It was from the text " Walk 
 in the spirit." He went from the 
 pulpit to his bed at Monkton Far- 
 leigh, and died there in a few days, 
 1571. 
 
 Rather less than 2 m. W. of Lacock 
 
50 
 
 Boute 4. — - 
 
 ■Bromham. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 on tlie top of the hill, commanding 1 
 an extensive view, is the embattled 
 entrance - gateway to Spyc Park, 
 brought from old Bromham House. 
 The old house, for many years the 
 residence of the Bayntuns, and after- 
 wards of the Star keys, was built 
 about 1650 by the Bayntun family, 
 after the destruction of Bromham 
 House in 1645. It was of brick, and, 
 witli the exception of one room, of 
 no great size, but it rested on the 
 verge of a charming hill. Evelyn 
 visited it, 1654, and describes it in 
 his* Diary' as "a place capable of 
 being made a noble seat ; but the 
 humorous old knight has built a 
 long single house of 2 low stories 
 on the precipice of an incomparable 
 prospect." This house was taken 
 down, 1868, by J. W. G. Spicer, Esq., 
 and a new house built by him near 
 the old site. The Roman road from 
 Bath to London crosses the park 
 of 500 acres, containing every ele- 
 ment of the picturesque. If bound 
 to Bromham the stranger will find 
 a delightful path to that village 
 just below the gatehouse. It runs 
 across the" fields, behind Spye 
 Park old house, and by the ham- 
 let of Chittoe : the distance about 
 2 m. 
 
 Bromham can be visited either 
 from Melksham or Devizes, being 
 equidistant (4 m.) from these towns. 
 It consists of a group of picturesque 
 cottages. The Greyhound Inn de- 
 serves notice. 
 
 Old Bromham House was erected, 
 temp. Hen. VIII. with the spoils of 
 Devizes Castle and Corsham Manor 
 House, and is described as being 
 "nearly as large as Whitehall, and 
 fit to entertain a king." Standing 
 close on the old Western Road it 
 became one of the usual halting- 
 places for the nobility and gentry on 
 their way to "the Bath.'' Royalty 
 sometimes sojourned there. James I. 
 visited Bromham in 1616, and again 
 1618 and 1621, and hunted in the 
 
 park. The house was burnt by the 
 forces of Col. Lloyd and the king in 
 1645. Only part of one wing re- 
 mains. Some of the stones vf ere used 
 in erecting the lodge in Spye Park. 
 Sir Edward Bayntun of Bromham was 
 Latimer's patron. He died in France 
 in 1544 while attending Henry VIII. 
 as Vice-Chancellor. 
 
 The Ch. is a fine building with 
 a S. aisle to nave and chancel, and 
 a central tower with stone spire. The 
 prevailing style is Perp. ; but the 
 nave wasj originally Norm. Small 
 Norm, windows, walled up, exist in 
 the N. wall. The chancel (rebuilt) 
 is E. E. with a shafted eastern 
 triplet. The S. aisle adjacent to 
 the tower has flat stone groining 
 with a large pendant. The chancel 
 aisle or Bayntun Chapel, temp. Hen. 
 Vll., is very rich both within and 
 without, with a fiat panelled roof 
 painted and gilt. This chapel con- 
 tains the monumental effigies, pen- 
 nons, and rusty armour of the 
 Bayntuns of Bromham. A canopied 
 tomb with a brass to Sir Edward 
 B. and his 2 wives, 1578; a brass 
 to John B., 1516; and a Purbeck 
 marble altar-tomb, with a full-length 
 effigy of I Sir Roger Tocotes, 2nd 
 husband of Lady St. Araand, and a 
 tablet to Henry Season, M.D., author 
 of an almanac which he whimsically 
 entitled 'Season on the Seasons.' 
 On the N. side of the churchyard 
 is the grave of Thomas Moore, the 
 poet, who died 1852 at his cottage at 
 Sloperton, between Bromham and 
 Chitway. The stained glass in the 
 W. window, representing the Last 
 Judgment, was put up in 1879 to 
 the poet's memory. 
 
 Bromham in the time of Edward 
 the Confessor was the lordship of 
 Earl Harold. In the reign of Henry 
 VI. it belonged to William Beau- 
 champ, Lord St. Amand, and from 
 the son of that nobleman it passed 
 to his cousins the Bayntuns. Brom- 
 ham was the birthplace of George 
 Webbe, Bp. of Limerick, d, 1641, 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 4,— Great and Little Chaldfield, 
 
 51 
 
 and of the Eev. J. Collinson, the 
 historian of Somerset, d. 1793. 
 
 1 m. N. of Bromham, near Wans 
 House, the Roman station of Verlucio 
 is supposed to have stood, on the Ro- 
 man road which ran by Bath and 
 Marlborough, indicated by such 
 names as Hawh-street and Nether- 
 street. Nonsuch Park is a pretty spot 
 near this -village. Seend Manor-house 
 (see Rte. 5), 3 m. S.E. of Melksham, 
 is now a seat of the Awdrys. 
 
 At Great Chaldfield, 3 m. W., are 
 the very beautiful and interesting 
 remains of a fine manor-house of the 
 15th centy., presumed to have been 
 built by Thomas Tropenell, who 
 died 1490, and, with Agnes his wife, 
 is buried under a rich altar-tomb 
 in Corsham Ch. " The N. front is 
 nearly perfect, with the porch and 
 its groined roof, the hall in the centre 
 flanked by a gabled building at each 
 end, each with an oriel, that nearest 
 the ch. being of singular beauty. 
 The whole front is one of the most 
 elaborate and finest that we have." — 
 /. H, P. Unfortunately now, this 
 front is nearly all that remains ; the 
 " guest chamber " behind the eastern 
 oriel was pulled down, the hall cut 
 up into rooms, the screens and gal- 
 lery destroyed, and the whole in- 
 terior ruthlessly modernized some 
 years since. Engravings of the hall 
 in its former state, with the curious 
 masks of stone through which a view 
 might be obtained of the hall from 
 the upper chambers at either end, 
 and which are still preserved, may be 
 found, vol. iii. Walker's 'Domestic 
 Architecture of the Middle Ages ' 
 (which also contains engravings of 
 Wraxall), and vol. iii. of Pugin's 
 * Examples of Gothic Architecture.' 
 The little ch. adjoins the house to- 
 wards the N.E., and may almost 
 be said to form a part of it, as it 
 is within the moat which encircles 
 the whole. This also has suflPered 
 greatly from alterations, but much 
 
 remains of beauty and interest : the 
 bell-turret, with its spire crowning 
 the W. gable, and the hooded groined 
 W. porch are probably of the date 
 of Henry VII. The S. chapel and 
 the very fine stone screen were 
 erected by the builder of the manor- 
 house, and, as at Corsham Ch., bear 
 his arms and motto, '*le joug tyra 
 belement." The stone screen has 
 been removed, and now separates the 
 chancel from the nave ; and an addi- 
 tion was made to the S.E. in the last 
 centy. The register dates from 1545, 
 and contains hardly any name but that 
 of Eyre. The house was occupied as 
 a military post in the civil wars, 
 traces of which may be seen in the 
 loopholed gable. A round tower of 
 defence stands at the N.E. corner 
 of the churchyard. The water of 
 the moat turns a mill whicli occupies 
 the site of one which existed here 
 at the time of the Domesday 
 Survey. 
 
 Little Chaldfield, further W., be- 
 longed at one time to the Eyres, but 
 the house is quite modern. 
 
 2 m. further W. is the manor-house 
 of .S'. Wraxall, a very beautiful and 
 interesting example of mediaeval do- 
 mestic architecture. The buildings 
 surround 3 sides of a court, with the 
 gatehouse to the S. and the hall 
 facing W., with Perp. windows and 
 a square one flanked by huge gabled 
 drawing-room, added by Sir Walter 
 Long c. IGUO. The gurgoyles are 
 singularly large and hideous. The 
 oldest portions are the entrance gate- 
 way and the fine oriel of the room 
 over it, and the hall with its porch 
 and bays, probably a work of the 
 time of Henry VII. (/. //. P.) or 
 perhaps built by Walter Long, M.P. 
 for Wiltshire, 1433. The roof of the 
 hall was partly hidden by a plaster 
 ceiling, and a rich fireplace inserted 
 in 1598. A covered way leads from 
 the hall to the kitchen. The draw- 
 ing-room is very large and hand- 
 
52 
 
 Boute 4,~Trowhridge. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 some, with a richly ornamented plas- 
 ter ceiling and an elaborate chimney- 
 piece with carved figures of Pru- 
 dence, Justice, Geometry, and Arith- 
 metic, with Pan in the centre and 
 quaint inscriptions. Opposite the fire- 
 place is a singular projection to carry 
 the wall-plate of the old roof. Out 
 of this a short flight of steps leads to 
 a bedroom of the same date, the 
 most remarkable feature of which is 
 the fireplace with a baboon on a 
 bracket and its three mottoes, " Faber 
 est quisq. fortunse suae," iEqua laus 
 est a laudatis laudari et ab improbis 
 improbari/* Mors rapit omnia." 
 Some time may be pleasantly spent 
 in rambling over this old mansion. 
 
 At a short distance from the house 
 are the remains of a very curious 
 *'hospitium" of the I3th century, 
 dedicated to St. Audoen (or Owen), 
 consisting of a chapel, hall and 
 dwelling-house, for the reception and 
 entertainment of wayfarers, turned 
 into a house of the 17th centy., and 
 still further modernized. A stone 
 screen of foliated arches remains al- 
 most concealed in modern partitions 
 and floors. ! 
 
 The Ch, of S. Wraxall (in course 
 of restoration 1882) has a tower 
 with a pack saddle roof and of some- 
 what foreign character. The late 
 Perp. porch and Long chapel ad- 
 joining are of almost debased cha- 
 racter,] 
 
 Keturning to our route the rly. 
 descends the valley of the Avon, and 
 reaches 
 
 101 4 m. on rt. Broughton Gifford, 
 which gave a title to the late Lord 
 Broughton, formerly known as Sir 
 John Cam Hobhouse, Lord Byron's 
 fellow-traveller and friend. It has 
 a Ch. with E. E. portions and a Perp. 
 tower. 
 
 103 m. IToU Junction, where a 
 branch strikes off 1. by Seend to De- 
 vizes and Hungerford (Rte. 5), and 
 
 a little further rt. Staverton with its 
 large factory. The ch. is modern. 
 
 105^ m. Trowbridge (Inn : George. 
 Pop. 11,041), where a line diverges 
 W. to Bradford and Bath. It still, 
 as in Leland's days, " standith on a 
 rocky hill" above the little river 
 Biss, a tributary of the Avon, and 
 " fiourishith by drapery," «. e. the 
 manufacture of cloth, which is carried 
 on with great activity, employing 
 many hands ; but it cannot now be 
 said to be "very well buildyd of 
 stone," the streets being irregular, 
 and the houses ill-built. In 1100 
 Trowbridge was among the 38 manors 
 in the county of AVilts, of a Norman 
 noble, Edwardof Salisbury. Through 
 the marriage of his daughter Matilda 
 to Humphry de Bohun (the founder 
 of Monkton Farleigh Priory in 1126), 
 Trowbridge passed to that family, 
 the lordship of the manor, however, 
 remaining in the family of Edwarcl 
 of Salisbury, and through the mar- 
 riage of Henry IV. with Mary de 
 Bohun, the two became again united 
 in the Crown ; the manor was granted, 
 1536, by Henry VIII. to Edward 
 Seymour, his brother-in-law, after- 
 wards Protector Somerset. 
 
 Trowbridge, like many of our 
 country towns, was first built around 
 a Castie, which, during the Norman 
 period, stood on an eminence now 
 called Court Hill. One of the first 
 notices of Trowbridge Castle occurs 
 in the reign of Stephen, when, the 
 place being held for the Empress 
 Maud by Humphry de Bohun, it was 
 besieged by the king. We find it 
 next mentioned in the time of Edward 
 III., when it was held by John of 
 Gaunt, by whom the castle is said to 
 have been rebuilt. When Leland 
 visited Trowbridge in Henry VIII.'s 
 time it was clene down." Not a 
 fragment of the castle now remains, 
 but the contour of the moat and val- 
 lum may still be traced in the principal 
 street (Fore St.), to which it gives its 
 curved outline. In 1861 a market- 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 4. — Troiohridge — Steejple Asliton. 53 
 
 house was built by Wm. Stancomb, 
 Esq., the lord of the manor. The 
 manor was bestowed by Henry VIII. 
 on the Somerset family, from whom it 
 passed by marriage to the Duke of 
 Rutland, and after sundry changes by 
 sale to the present owner. The name 
 Trowbridge has perplexed etymolo- 
 gists. Leland calls the place Tho- 
 rough bridge : Camden Trubridge : 
 Gough Trolbridge. The true etymo- 
 logy is Trolehyricj, the castle by the 
 Trowle. Beyond the town W. are a 
 tithing called Trowle and Trowle 
 Common. The bridge over the Biss 
 was called Trowle bridge, but the 
 castle existed many centuries before 
 the bridge was built. 
 
 The Ch, (St. James), known as 
 " the New Church" till the erection 
 of Holy Trinity Ch. in 1830, is a fine 
 Perp. building, unmixed with any 
 earlier style, of excellent masonry, 
 erected c. 1475, James Terumber, a 
 rich clothier, being the chief con- 
 tributor to the fabric; restored in 
 1848, and almost entirely rebuilt on 
 the old plan. The toicer stands en- 
 gaged at the W. end and supports a 
 lofty stone spire, and has fine groining 
 within, as have the 2 large porches. 
 The open roof of the nave is one of 
 considerable beauty. The font is 
 lofty, carved with the emblems of the 
 Crucifixion. The whole building de- 
 serves Leland's character of " light- 
 some and fair.** From the year 1814 
 to 1832 the Rev. George Crabbe, the 
 poet, was rector here. He lies in 
 the chancel, under a monument by 
 Baily. Crabbe spent a lusty old age 
 at Trowbridge, and was in the habit 
 of rambling for hours together, ham- 
 mer in hand, among the quarries 
 near the town. His firmness and 
 mildness gained him the respect and 
 esteem which the character of his 
 preaching had at first denied him : — 
 
 " ' A moral teacher/ some contemptuous cried, 
 He smiled, but nothing of the fact denied." 
 
 Tales of the Hall, 
 
 There is a chapel, built ] 852, in the 
 hamlet of Studley. 
 
 Rood Ashton (W. H. Long, Esq.), 2 
 m. S.E., takes its name from a famous 
 crucifix or "holy rood" that stood 
 here. The Ch. at West Ashton was 
 built by Mr. Walter Long, 1846. The 
 manor of Ashton was bestowed by 
 King Edgar Avith that of Edington, c. 
 959, on Romsey Abbey. It remained 
 abbey property to the Dissolution, 
 when, in 1538, it was granted by 
 Henry VIII. to Sir Thos. Seymour 
 Lord Sudeley. About 2 m. further 
 is the village of Steeple Ashton, 
 properly Staple" or J\lurket Ashton 
 — (the right of holding a market 
 there having been granted by 
 Royal Charter to the Abbess of 
 Romsey in 1387) ; Leland speaks of 
 it as "a pretty little market-town. 
 It hath pretty buildings. It standeth 
 much by cloathiers.'' Early in the 
 IGth century it suff'ered much by 
 fire, and its trade was transferred to 
 IVlarket Lavington. In the middle of 
 the street a column supporting a 
 ball indicates the site of the market 
 cross, erected in 1679. The interest- 
 ing Ch., was erected between 1480 
 and 1 500 : the N. aisle was built at 
 the cost of Robert Long, a clothier, 
 and Edith his wife ; the S. aisle at 
 the cost of Walter Lucas, also a clo- 
 thier, and Maud his wife. The ch. 
 is Perp. with lofty clerestory, and 
 the whole of the exterior is of the 
 finest masonry and well finished. 
 The S. porch is large, with a parvis 
 and good groining. The chancel, 
 with its aisles, is also groined, the 
 ribs intricate in pattern, with fine 
 bosses. In the chancel the ribs spring 
 from clustered shafts standing upon 
 the capitals of the pillars of the 
 arcade : in the aisles the ribs rest on 
 niches set upon angel figures. The 
 nave has wood groining, the ribs 
 springing from stone shafts. The 
 tower is engaged with the aisles, 
 and once had a spire, which 
 had the misfortune of being 
 twice destroyed by lightning. The 
 arcades are lofty and imposing, the 
 windows large and good, and con- 
 
54 
 
 Boute 4. — . 
 
 Bradford, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 tain some fragments of ancient glass. 
 The chancel was rebuilt in 1853. A 
 very elaborately carved wooden pul- 
 pit was added 1874. 
 
 The picturesque ruins of Farleigh 
 Castle (seepos^,p. 57) are about 4 m. 
 W. from Trowbridge. 
 
 4:^ m. S.W., on the confines of 
 Wilts and Somerset, is the village of 
 Road, of sad celebrity for the Con- 
 stance Kent tragedy." The parish 
 Ch. is a fine one ; one corner of the 
 battlements of the tower is known 
 as " the King's Chair," from a tra- 
 dition that on his flight from the 
 field of Worcester Charles II. recon- 
 noitred the country thence. 
 
 From Trowbridge a short branch 
 of 3J m. runs to Bradford, and thence 
 by the valley of Avon to Bath 
 (Rte. 5). 
 
 Bkadfoed-on-Avon {Inn: Swan. 
 Pop. 10,860), an ancient town of much 
 historical interest, formerly the seat 
 of an important woollen manufac- 
 ture, Leland (temp. Henry VI II.) 
 describing it as " standing by clooth- 
 making ; but from various causes, 
 partly from the close vicinity of 
 Trowbridge, partly from greater fa- 
 cilities of coal, &c., in the West 
 Kiding of Yorkshire and elsewhere, 
 its business declined, failures be- 
 came frequent, the factories were 
 closed, the population rapidly dimi- 
 nished and distress was general. Its 
 condition has been for some time im- 
 proving. The handsome Town Hall 
 (Fuller, J. rc/«.) was erected in 1855. 
 Bradford is most prettily situated in 
 the hollow and on the steep slopes 
 and terraces of the valley of the Avon, 
 up which the houses straggle in pic- 
 turesque confusion ; and, being all 
 built of grey stone, without being 
 blackened by the usual smoke of an 
 overcrowded manufacturing hive, it 
 is not only cleanly and pleasantly 
 liabitable, but decidedly picturesque. 
 
 Bradford takes its name from " the 
 broad ford " over the Avon, which , 
 
 was used by all wheel-carriages to a 
 comparatively recent date ; the bridge 
 having been originally much nar- 
 rower than now. 
 
 The first event in the history of 
 Bradford is the victory gained by 
 Cenwealh, king of Wessex, over the 
 revolted Britons, a.d. 652. "The 
 first conquest which was not one of 
 extermination, but which allowed 
 the vanquished Briton to sit among 
 the fellow subjects of his English con- 
 queror."— (i7. A. F.) The next is the 
 foundation of a monastery by Aid- 
 helm, Bp. of Sherborne, c. 705. After 
 this Bradford gradually rose in im- 
 portance until in 957 the Witanage- 
 mote was held here at which Dunstan 
 was appointed Bp. of Worcester. The 
 manor was conferred by Ethelred in 
 1001 on the abbess of Shaftesbury, in 
 order that in those unquiet times 
 she and her nuns might have a place 
 of refuge from the insults of the 
 Danes, and a safe hiding-place for the 
 relics of St. Edward the Martyr. 
 The increasing wealth and pros- 
 perity of the town is indicated by the 
 erection of a large ch., in the 12th 
 cent., which, though altered and 
 enlarged, remains to the present day. 
 In 1216, Bradford received the 
 dubious honour of a visit from John, 
 within 2 months of the close of his 
 reign. From 1300 to 1500 the town 
 gradually rose in prosperity. The 
 woollen manufacture was established 
 here, and large fortunes were accu- 
 mulated by several of the more en- 
 terprising townsmen. In the 17th 
 cent. Paul Methuen, the leading 
 clothier of his day, raised the 
 character of the manufacture by 
 the introduction of " Spinners" from 
 Holland, from whom the secret of 
 producing the finer kinds of cloth — 
 the staple produce of Bradford up to 
 this time having been merely a 
 coarse kind of drugget — was ac- 
 quired. The part of the town where 
 these " Spinners " lived, at the W. 
 end of Church Street, is still known 
 as Dutch Barton," 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 4. — Bradford. 
 
 55 
 
 The Ch. (Holy-Trinity ,well restored 
 1865-6, by the exertions of the Vicar, 
 Canon Jones) stands low, and 
 though not highly distinguished for 
 architectural beauty well deserves a 
 visit. It consists of a nave, with N. 
 aisle, chancel, chantry to S.E. of nave, 
 and W. tower with low spire. The S. 
 wall of the nave and western portion 
 of the chancel are Norman of the 
 middle of the 12th cent. ; one of the 
 original windows is to be seen in the 
 nave and another has been re-opened 
 in the chancel. In the Dec. period 
 the chancel was lengthened. The in- 
 terior is spacious and effective. The 
 arcade is entirely new, the 2 W. 
 arches, the piers of which are 
 wreathed with an inscribed band, 
 were the gift of a lady of the town. 
 The stone pulpit is a memorial of 
 Canon Harvey, a former Vicar. In 
 the N. aisle wall is a richly pan- 
 elled recess for a crucifix. The 
 Hall chapel or Kingston aisle is at 
 the S.E. of the nave. The roof of 
 the chancel is modern, 1881. The 
 E. window is a very elegant 
 example of the Dec. style. The 
 N. aisle shows marks of having been 
 built at two different dates. The 
 tower, groined within, is of the latter 
 part of the 15tli cent. In the chancel 
 are 2 remarkably curious recessed 
 tombs with mutilated effigies of 
 members of the Hall family — on the 
 N. side of a female (probably Agnes 
 Hall, d. 1270), on the S. of a 
 cross-legged knight, under canopies. 
 A fragment of another female 
 effigy, discovered in the N. aisle, is 
 placed in the chancel. There is a 
 brass of the 16th cent, to a clothier 
 of the town, Thomas Horton, the 
 probable builder of the tower, and 
 his wife Mary ; and another to Anne 
 Long, 1601. A pretentious marble 
 monument with full-length effigies 
 in the costume of the reign of 
 James II. commemorates Charles 
 Steward," a son of Dr. Steward, 
 provost of Eton and successor of 
 Bp. Williams as Dean of West- 
 
 minster. There are also monuments 
 to the Methuens and Threshers. An 
 erection resembling an altar-tomb 
 outside the S. door of the chancel 
 is probably a " dole stone," used 
 for the distribution of alms or doles 
 to the poor. William Byrd, Vicar 
 of the parish, was attainted in the 
 reign of Henry VIII., a.d. 1539, for 
 traitorous words against the king 
 as a heretic. He was chaplain to 
 Walter Lord Hungerford (see post, 
 Farleigh Castle), who fell under the 
 king's displeasure at the same time 
 and for the same act. 
 
 Closely adjacent to the ch. on the 
 N. is a very remarkable and interest- 
 ing building, formerly used as the 
 free school, but now cleared of all 
 encumbrances, and restored to its 
 sacred purposes by the energy of the 
 Rev. Canon Jones, " probably the 
 most ancient unaltered ch. in Eng- 
 land, showing the singular analogy 
 between the earlier and later imita- 
 tions of Roman architecture." — 
 (E.A.F.) There can be no reason- 
 able doubt that it is the actual church 
 built by Aldhelm at the beginning of 
 the 8tli cent., dedicated to St. Law- 
 rence, described in the early part of 
 the 12 th cent, by Wm. of Malmesbury, 
 who says of it : "Est ad hunc diem 
 in eo loco (apud Bradeford) ecclesiola 
 quam ad nomen beatissimi Laurentii 
 (Aldhelmus) fecisse prsedicatur." It 
 consists of a chancel, nave and N. 
 porch, and has most of the features 
 of the class of buildings called 
 Anglo-Saxon. There is an incised 
 arcade along the outside, walls and 
 on either side of the chancel arch 
 are sculptured figures of angels. 
 
 On the summit of Tory Hill, 
 the highest part of the town, just 
 above the "Lady Well," which sup- 
 plies the town with water, is a small 
 Perp. chapel dedicated to the B. V. 
 Mary, long in ruins but recently 
 restored by its owner. 
 
 The river Avon is crossed by two 
 Bridges, That in the centre of the 
 town is ancient 9,nd deserves notice. 
 
56 Boute 4. — Bradford — Monkton Farleigh. Wiltshire. 
 
 Aubrey, 200 years ago, described it 
 as ''a strong handsome bridge in 
 the midst of which is a chapel for 
 mass/' This chapel, though much 
 modernized and formerly degraded 
 to the purpose of a lock-up house, is 
 still to be seen on the central pier 
 on the E. side. 
 
 The town abounds in antique- 
 looking gable-fronted houses, built 
 and roofed with stone. The most 
 I'emarkable of these (conspicuous 
 from the railway), known as the 
 I)uke*s or Kincjsto7i House, was built by 
 one of the family of Hally rich cloth- 
 iers here, probably John Hall, head 
 of the family at the beginning of the 
 17th cent. It is a noble specimen of 
 the Jacobean style, with an excess of 
 window, arabesque battlements, and 
 classical details, and may have been 
 a work of the same hand as Long- 
 leat, of the character of which it 
 partakes. The house takes its mo- 
 dern name from the Pierrepoints, 
 Dukes of Kingston, to whom it passed 
 by marriage. The notorious Duch- 
 ess of Kingston, the bigamist, is said 
 to have resided here occasionally, and 
 old people still tell traditional tales of 
 her eccentricities. At her death the 
 estates passed to the last Duke's 
 nephew, afterwards Earl Manvers, 
 but the house was sold to Mr. Divett, 
 and by him to its late owner, S. 
 Moulton, Esq., by whom it was most 
 carefully restored. Some of the 
 mantelpieces, rich with heraldic 
 insignia, and ceilings deserve notice. 
 
 The archaeologist should cross 
 Barton Bridge and visit Barton 
 Farm, famous for its gigantic barn, 
 of the 14th cent. It has two arched 
 entrances, like transepts, and its roof 
 is so framed as to be independent of 
 the walls. Part of the farmhouse 
 and a small bridge belong to the 
 same period. 
 
 Next to the Halls, the Methuens 
 are the most noteworthy family con- 
 nected with Bradford. Their an- 
 cestor John Methuen, a member of 
 the historic Scotch fcimily of th9,t 
 
 name, driven from Scotland by 
 religious persecution, found a favour- 
 able reception from Q. Elizabeth. 
 His grandson, Anthony, was Pre- 
 bendary of Wells and Vicar of Frome 
 1609-40. It was his son Paul who 
 settled at Bradford and raised the 
 character of its manufactures by 
 the introduction of weavers from 
 Holland. He was the father of 
 John, and grandfather of Sir Paul 
 Methuen, distinguished diplomatists, 
 buried in Westminster Abbey, and 
 ancestor of the present Lord Methuen 
 of Corsham. 
 
 Woolleij House, ^ m. E., was the 
 property of the Baskervilles. Tiu-ley 
 House, N.jWas an occasional residence 
 of Ediiuind Burke. In the neighbour- 
 hood of the town are many pleasant 
 valleys, embosomed in lofty hills, es- 
 pecially that of the Avon. A short 
 ride by rly. (or the path by the 
 canal) will bring you to Fresliford, 
 Limpley Stoke, or Claverton, three of 
 the prettiest spots in the Avon 
 valley. 
 
 [4 m. N.E. of Bradford is Monkton 
 Farleigh, on very high ground above 
 the valley of the At on, commanding 
 a magnificent panoramic prospect. 
 The best points of view are a clump 
 of trees known as Farleigh Clump, 
 and the Prospect Tower, erected by 
 Mr. Wade Brown, on the top of the 
 precipitous hill above Bathford. 
 Monkton Farleigh was the seat of a 
 Cluniac priory, founded as a cell of 
 Lewes, 1125. At the Dissolution it 
 was granted to Protector Somerset, 
 who in 1550 exchanged it with the 
 Bp. of Salisbury. The remains of 
 the priory are of the scantiest. In the 
 outhouses behind the mansion (Sir 
 Charles Hobhouse, Bart.) are some 
 lancet windows, and there are several 
 stone effigies including one of a cross- 
 legged knight, one of the Dunstan- 
 villes. The monumental slab of II- 
 bertus de Chat, discovered in 1744 
 when the pavement of the chancel 
 
Wiltshire. Boiite 4. — FarleigJi Hungerford, 57 
 
 was laid bare, is at Lacock Abbey (see 
 ante). The Monks' Conduit, a small 
 stone-roofed building, lies } m. N.W. 
 of the house. The mansion was once 
 the residence of Lord AVebb Seymour. 
 Bp. Jewel died at his manor-house of 
 Monkton Farleigh, where he took to 
 his bed after preaching his last sermon 
 at Lacock. The Ck. is modern, but 
 retains the old tower and a Norman 
 door. A fine avenue, 1 m. long, leads 
 from the house towards S. Wraxall. 
 The quarries of Bath-stone are worth 
 a visit. (See supra. Box, Rte 1.)] 
 
 [Fai'leigh Castle, 3 m. S.W. {Tiin: 
 Houlton Arms), is one of the most 
 interesting objects to be seen from 
 Bradford. The visitor can either go 
 by road, or take the rly. to Freshford 
 Stat., from which the castle is 2 m. 
 It is 4 m. W. of the Trowbridge 
 Stat., and 6 m. N. from Frome. 
 Farleigh Castle is a favourite ex- 
 cursion from Bath, 8 m. by road, or 
 by rly. to Freshford. 
 
 The road from Bradford to Far- 
 leigh passes through 
 
 2 m. S.W., Westi.vood, where the 
 Ch. deserves attention. It has a 
 "wildish sort of tower" (E. A. F.) 
 of the Somersetshire type, with a 
 difference. The large belfry windows 
 are filled with perforated stonework. 
 At the S.E. corner is a large turret 
 with a domical cap. The chancel 
 shows some lancets and contains some 
 very beautiful stained glass of the 
 15th cent., including the Crucifixion, 
 St. Peter, St. Paul, St. Michael 
 and St. John Baptist. Part of 
 the ceiling is very fine. The oak 
 pulpit (1609) and carved work was 
 brought from Norton St. Philip and 
 other places. The Manor House, 
 a picturesque mansion of the 15th 
 cent. , built by the Hortons, has 
 ceilings added by the Farewells, 
 exhibiting the shells borne in their 
 arms. The most picturesque external 
 feature, is the cylindrical staircase- 
 
 turret in the angle between the two 
 ranges of building. 
 
 Farleigh Hungerford. The Castle 
 is picturesquely situated above a 
 wooded ravine, called Danes* Ditch. 
 It is a complete ruin, consisting of 
 fragments of the wall, and of 2 
 towers and a gatehouse. The gene- 
 ral plan appears to have been an 
 oval double court, with 4 towers at 
 the angles of the inner court. Far- 
 leigh was for 300 years the chief 
 mansion in Somersetshire of the 
 Hungerfords, from 13G9 to 1G89, 
 and had been previously held by 
 the Montforts, by whom it was 
 sold, 1337, to Bartholomew Lord 
 Burghersh, and by his son, 1369, to 
 Sir Thomas Hungerford of Heytes- 
 bury. It was converted into a castle 
 in the reigns of Kich. II. and Hen. 
 IV. by Sir Thomas H. and his son 
 Walter, High Treasurer of England 
 in the reign of Hen. VI. Leland 
 asserts that it was built "by the 
 prey of the Duke of Orleans whom 
 Sir Walter had taken prisoner." 
 This must have been Charles D. of 
 Orleans, who was captured at Agin- 
 court 1415. The Hungerfords were 
 great supporters of the Lancasters in 
 the wars of the Uoses, " and in that 
 cause liberally lost both their heads 
 and their estates." — Canon Jackson, 
 Farleigh was at one time given to 
 Geo. Duke of Clarence. His daugh- 
 ter Margaret, the last of the Planta- 
 genets, judicially murdered by Hen. 
 VIII., was born at the Castle. She 
 married Sir R. Pole, and had by him 
 4 sons, the youngest, Reginald, after- 
 wards Cardinal Pole. In the Rebel- 
 lion it was held for the king, though 
 its owner, Sir Edw. Hungerford, was 
 commander of the Wilts forces for 
 the Parliament. It surrendered 
 15th Sept. 1645. Sir Edward, his 
 nephew, wasted his fortune in the 
 dissolute court of Charles IL, and 
 was obliged to sell Farleigh. It was 
 I bought by Mr. Henry Bayntun, of 
 Spye Park, who with his wife, Lady 
 
58 Boute 4. — Farleigh—Hungerford Gahle, Wiltshire. 
 
 Ann (Wilmot, sister of the Earl of 
 Eochester) seems to have been the 
 last who resided here. The Castle 
 was purchased by the Houltons in 
 1730. 
 
 The principal entrance to the 
 Castle was to the S.E., where the ivy- 
 clad shell of the gate-house remains. 
 Over the arch of entrance is the 
 sickle of the Hungerfords, and higher 
 still a shield of their arms, with the 
 initials E. H. From the entrance a 
 narrow moat, dammed up at either 
 end, went halfway round ; the castle 
 being elsewhere protected by the 
 steepness of the ground. On passing 
 through the gate-house the visitor 
 enters the upper court, containing the 
 guard-rooms, stables, &c., and has 
 before him, rt., the chapel and the 2 
 remaining of the 4 towers of the 
 lower or inner court, where the habit- 
 able part of the castle was situated. 
 The principal front faced E., rising 
 directly from the edge of the knoll. 
 In one of these rooms the head of 
 the family, temp. Henry VIII. (Sir 
 Walter, afterwards Lord Hunger- 
 ford of Heytesbury), imprisoned the 
 last of his 3 wives, a daughter of 
 Lord Hussey of Sleaford, for 4 years. 
 The unfortunate prisoner, in a still 
 extant letter, thus states her forlorn 
 case ; " here I have byn these 3 or 
 4 years past without comfort of any 
 creature, and under the custodie of my 
 Lord's Chaplain, which hath once or 
 twice poysoned me. He hath pro- 
 mised my Lord that he would ' soon 
 rid him of me,' and I am sure he in- 
 tendeth to keep his promise ; for 
 I have none other meat nor drink 
 but such as cometh from the said 
 priest and brought me by my Lord's 
 foole. So that I have been well 
 nigh starved, and sometimes of a 
 truth should die for lacke of sus- 
 tenance had not poore women of the 
 country, knowing my Lord's demayne 
 always to his wives, brought me to 
 my great window, in the night, such 
 meat and drink as they had, and 
 gave me for the love of God; for 
 
 money have I none wherewith to 
 pay them, nor yet have had of my 
 Lord, these 4 years, save four groats." 
 This ill-conditioned husband was 
 beheaded in 1540 for treasonable 
 connivance at the Lincolnshire re- 
 bellion of 1536, for which his wife's 
 father, Lord Hussey, had previously 
 suffered death, as well as for other 
 abominable crimes, and his lady 
 found a second, and let us hope, a 
 more amiable husband in Sir E. 
 Throckmorton. She d. 1571. 
 
 The Chapel of St. Leonard, on the 
 site of the original parish ch. within 
 the inner court, has been preserved. 
 The windows are Perp. In Grose's 
 time^it was half roofless, but was re- 
 paired in 1779 and again in 1806. Upon 
 wooden bosses of the porch roof are 
 the family coat and badge of 3 sickles 
 interlaced. The altar-slab is a hand- 
 some block of breccia from Draycot 
 near Wells. A quantity of armour, 
 together with a miscellaneous assort- 
 ment of curiosities — ^jack-boots, stir- 
 rups, spurs, old keys, antique chairs, 
 &c. — has found a resting-place here. 
 A copy of a letter of Oliver Cromwell 
 to his " honnoured ffriend Mr. Hun- 
 gerford th' elder," dated July 30, 
 1652, stolen in 1798, hangs in a frame 
 on the S. wall. There is a northern 
 addition, the wall of which has been 
 painted with the coat-armour of the 
 alliances of the Hungerfords. The 
 monuments are many and curious. 
 (1) Beneath the arch opening into 
 the side chapel are effigies of Sir 
 Thomas Hungerford, the purchaser, 
 d. 1398, and his wife Joan, d. 1412, 
 on an altar-tomb. (2) In the 
 centre of the outer chapel, to the 
 W., an incised slab to a Chantry 
 priest. (3) In the S.E. corner of 
 the same chapel, an altar-tomb to 
 Sir Walter Hungerford, d. 1596, and 
 his son Edward. The inscription is 
 curiously cut, and, on the further 
 side, must be read backwards. (4) 
 An altar-tomb in N.E. corner of side 
 chapel to Sir Edward Hungerford, 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 4. — Hinton Charterhouse, 
 
 59 
 
 d. 1607, and Jane his first wife. 
 
 (5) In N.W. corner an altar-tomb, 
 standing N. and S., to Mrs. Mary 
 Shaa, sister to Sir Edward Hunger- 
 ford, d. 1613, with kneeling effigies. 
 
 (6) In centre, effigies of Sir Edward 
 Hungerford, died 1648, commander 
 of the Wilts forces under the Com- 
 monwealth and the besieger of War- 
 dour Castle, and Margaret his wife, d. 
 1672. Beneath the chapel is the vault 
 where six corpses, with that of a 
 baby, repose sheathed in coffins of 
 lead. At the E. end of the chapel 
 a house for the Chantry priest, built 
 by Walter Lord Hungerford, 1430, 
 still remains. 
 
 The Parish Ch. (St. Leonard's) was 
 built by Walter Lord Hungerford, and 
 consecrated on the day of its patron 
 saint, Nov. 6, 1443. It is a plain 
 Perp. edifice with a tower at W. end 
 terminated with a short spire. Over 
 the S. door is' a stone, probably 
 brought from the older ch., bearing 
 the inscription, 
 
 Muniat hoc templum cruce glorificans mi- 
 
 crocosmum, 
 Qu£e genuit Christum miseris piece fiat 
 
 asylum ; 
 
 The windows of the chancel con- 
 tain some remains of stained glass. 
 
 The present Farleigh House is an 
 old manor-house refronted and mo- 
 dernized.] 
 
 [2 m. from Farleigh, 1 m. from 
 Freshford Station, by a pretty foot- 
 path, are the ruins of the Carthu- 
 sian Priory of Hinton Charterhouse, 
 founded 1232 by Ela, Countess of 
 Salisbury, in pursuance of the will 
 of her deceased husband, William 
 Longespee. 
 
 The remains consist chiefly of 2 
 very picturesque detached groups of 
 buildings, in the E.E. style, origi- 
 nally connected by a cloister. One 
 group of buildings contains the Chap- 
 ter House, of 3 vaulted bays, lighted 
 by a triplet at the end, and lancets 
 
 in the side walls. It contains a tre- 
 foiled piscina with a fluted basin. 
 Above the western part of this build- 
 ing are 2 bays of quadripartite 
 vaulting rising from wall shafts on 
 lovely corbels. To the N. of the 
 Chapter-house," between it and the 
 Ch., is a 2-storied building, the lower 
 vaulted in 4 bays, on octagon piers, 
 with a large fireplace in the western 
 wall. The only fragment of the Ch, 
 is a portion of the S. wall exhibiting a 
 trefoiled piscina, and a noble clus- 
 tered E.E. vaulted shaft. On the S. 
 wall are the hook corbels of the 
 cloister. The other group contains 
 the vaulted Ficfectonj, with the usual 3 
 doors at the E. end, and a very curious 
 square serving-hatch at the S.W. an- 
 gle, opening into the kitchen. Around 
 are numerous old elms, and under 
 the adjoining road an archway, from 
 which there is a pretty path to Fresh- 
 ford. Among the monks of Hinton 
 in the early part of reign of Henry 
 VIII. was Nicholas Hopkins, the 
 " ghostly father " of Edward, the 
 magnificent but weakly credulous 
 Duke of Buckingham, the last of 
 the noble line of Stafford, who by 
 his false forged prophecies, promising 
 Buckingham on the faith of a reve- 
 lation of God " that he should be a 
 king and the progenitor of a line 
 of kings," lured his unfortunate 
 patron to destruction, May 1521. 
 
 Hinton House (Hon. Mrs. Jones) 
 was a manor-house of the Hunger- 
 fords, built out of the ruins of the 
 abbey.] 
 
 Returning to the rly. From Trow- 
 bridge we continue up the valley of 
 the Biss,with the grounds of Eood 
 Ashton and Hey wood House to the 1., 
 and passing North Bradley, rt., reach 
 
 109 J Westbury Stat. {Inns: Lopes 
 Arms, White Lion, Crown. Pop. 
 of Pari, borough, 6014), where a line 
 branches on the 1. to Salisbury and 
 Southampton, An ancient town, 
 
60 
 
 Boute 4. — Westbury. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 straggling and ill-built, once busy [ 
 in the cloth manufacture,, which is 
 now giving place to that of iron, 
 a fine vein having been discovered 
 at Ilam, close to the station, where 
 several large blast-furnaces have 
 been set up. It is situated on the 
 small stream of the Biss at the foot 
 of the chalk hills, of Avhich West- 
 hnry Down rises to the height of 775 
 ft. above the sea. It now returns 
 one member, formerly two. In 1766 
 it was represented by Sir William 
 Blackstone, the lawyer. Bryan 
 Edivards^ the historian of the West 
 Indies, was born in the vicinity of 
 Westbury, at Charlcott^ formerly 
 the manor-house of the Mauduits, 
 and purchased by his father. West- 
 bury belonged to the family of 
 Pavely, from whom it passed by 
 marriage, 1361, to the St. Loes, and 
 then to the Chedyoks. The borough 
 subsequently belonged to the Earl 
 of Abingdon, who sold it, 1810, to 
 Sir Massey Manasseh Lopes for 
 6500/. Beyond the Ch. it contains 
 little to interest the traveller, but it 
 is within reach of Longleat, of the 
 camps of Scratchbury and Battlesbury 
 above Warminster, of the camp and 
 White Horse at Brattoii, and of the 
 church of Edington. 
 
 The Church (All Saints) is a fine 
 building standing among large chest- 
 nuts, originally Norman, but Perpen- 
 dicularized something after Wyke- 
 ham's fashion at Winchester. It is 
 cruciform with a central tower, 
 which, like that of Bath Abbey, is 
 not square. The masonry through- 
 out is excellent. At the W. door is 
 a groined porch. The nave is very 
 stately, the aisles narrow, crossed 
 with transverse stone arches with 
 interpenetrating mouldings; the 
 chancel is low. The E. and W. 
 windows are each of 7 lights, and are 
 filled with rich modern stained glass. 
 A groined chapel stands to W. of the 
 N. transept. In the S. transept is a 
 Corinthian monument with effigies 
 
 of Sir James Ley, Earl of Marlbo- 
 rough, and his wife — 
 
 " That good Earl, once President 
 Of England's Council and her Treasury." 
 
 Milton's Sonnets. 
 
 Born at Teffont, his father having 
 served Henry VIII. at the siege of 
 Boulogne with his own men, he 
 became successively Lord Chief Jus- 
 tice, Lord Treasurer, and President 
 of the Council in 1629, and was 
 created Baron Ley, of Ley in Devon, 
 by James I., and Earl of Marl- 
 borough by Charles I. To the S. of 
 the chancel is the Willoughby de 
 Broke chapel, temp. Henry VI., to 
 the N. that of the Mauduits. West- 
 bury was chosen for a title by Sir 
 Richard Bethell, Lord High Chan- 
 cellor (of a Bradford-on-Avon fa- 
 mily) when raised to the peerage, 
 1861. 
 
 At Westbury Leigh, a moated site 
 called the Palace Garden is pointed 
 out by tradition as the residence of 
 one of our Anglo-Saxon kings ; and 
 in a field, known as the Ham, in the 
 vicinity of the railway stat., many 
 remains of Roman pottery and coins 
 have been discovered. Brook, 2 m. 
 N.W., was the seat of the Pavelys, 
 lords of Westbury at a later period. 
 It derived its name from a small 
 stream which runs past it towards 
 the Avon ; and " in its turn," says 
 Camden, " Brook gave the title of 
 Baron to Robert Willoughby, who, 
 on account of his descent from the 
 Pavelys by the family of Cheney, 
 was advanced to it by King Henry 
 VII., with whom he was a special 
 favourite." To this may be added 
 that it also gave title to the Earls 
 of Brooke and Warwick, by descent 
 through Elizabeth, eldest daughter 
 and coheir of Lord Willoughby de 
 Broke the 2nd baron, and wife of Sir 
 Fulke Greville. 
 
 [Bratton Castle, about 3 m. E., 
 crowns a promontory of the chalk 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 4. — Bratton —Edington, 
 
 61 
 
 down (the Ordnance Stat, is 754 ft. 
 above the sea-level), cut off from the 
 main chain by a rampart and ditch. 
 It is an irregularly shaped camp of 23 
 acres, formed in part by a double 
 rampart, in some places 36 ft. high. 
 Camden, Gibson, Gough, and Hoare 
 consider Bratton camp to have been 
 the entrenchment to which Guthrum 
 the Dane retired after his decisive de- 
 feat by Alfred in the battle of Ethan - 
 dune, in 878, which is placed by them 
 at the village of Ediiyiton, 1 ni. W. ; 
 and there is a tradition that the 
 Danes were posted in the little valley, 
 thence called Dane Leys, situated 
 under the hill. The locality of this 
 battle is much disputed, and is placed 
 by Bp. Clifford at Edington on the 
 N. side of Polden Hill (Rte. 27). 
 Below the camp, on the S. slope of 
 the hill, is the figure of a colossal 
 ^\hitc Horse, formed by removing 
 the turf : originally a very rude 
 design, and perhaps a memorial of 
 Alfred's victory,butheldby others to 
 be of much later date, and certainly 
 restored in 1778. Its dimensions 
 are 175 ft. from head to tail, 107 ft. 
 high at shoulder, the eye is 25 ft. in 
 circumference. 
 
 Bratton Church, sheltering close 
 nmder the slope of the down, isPerp., 
 with an E. E. chancel. 
 
 Edington, 3§ m. from Westbury 
 Station, 1^ m. from Bratton Castle, 
 should be visited by every archae- 
 ologist for the sake of the beautiful 
 Ch. erected by Bishop Edington, a 
 native of the place, the predecessor 
 of William of Wykeham in the see 
 of Winchester, and the originator of 
 the great work of the restoration of 
 the cathedral completed by him. 
 It is a most valuable example of the 
 transition from the Decorated to the 
 Perpendicular style. The first stone 
 Avas laid in 1352 and it was dedi- 
 cated in 1 361 . In 1 347, Bp. Edington 
 founded a college l^ere for a dean 
 and 12 prebendaries, which, at the 
 
 request of the Black Prince, was con- 
 verted into a monastery of the order 
 of Bonhommes, of which this priory 
 and that of Ashridge in Bucks were 
 the only seats in England. 
 
 In Jack Cade's rebellion, 1449, 
 Ayscough Bishop of Salisbury was 
 murdered by a body of Wiltshire 
 peasantry, who dragged him from 
 the altar of this church, and stoned 
 him to death on the neighbouring 
 hill, on the plea that he was always 
 absent with the king, Henry YI., 
 as his confessor, and kept no hospi- 
 tality in his diocese. His head was 
 struck off' and his bloodstained vest- 
 ments divided among his nmrderers. 
 
 The Ch., surrounded by a rich 
 fringe of gigantic elms and walnuts, 
 challenges attention by its almost 
 cathedral proportions and rich out- 
 line. It is cruciform with a ceritral 
 tower on 4 noble arches, with the 
 Pavely cross fiory in the belfry win- 
 dow, and a lofty S. porch well groined 
 with a parvise over. The nave is 
 75 ft. long, and has 6 lofty arches. 
 The windows deserve special notice 
 as the forerunners of Perpendicular 
 tracery. The W. front is singularly 
 noble ; in the window the Perp. 
 style is fully established. In the S. 
 transept is an anonymous effigy of 
 an ecclesiastic under a richly coloured 
 canopy, supposed from the rebus to 
 be that of J ohn Bayntun ; and in the 
 chancel are canopies of rich Avork 
 between the windows, two of which 
 contain their original statues though 
 headless. There is a monument to 
 Sir Edward Lewys, gentleman of the 
 Privy Chamber to Charles I., and 
 his lady Anne, daughter of the Earl 
 of Dorset and widow of Lord 
 Beauchamp, singularly rich and well 
 carved, with a fine alabaster effigy, 
 1630. The Cheney monument on 
 the S. of the nave, an altar-tomb 
 under a canopy bearing the Pavely 
 and Cheney arms, forms a small 
 chantry chapel. The monument to 
 Sir Simon Tavlor is by Chantrey, 
 
62 
 
 Boute S.—Hungerford to Bath. Wiltshire. 
 
 The roofs are plastered in imitation 
 of Gothic work, the date 1658 is on 
 that of the N. aisle. The consecra- 
 tion crosses are to be seen in the 
 N. aisle, and the E. wall both inside 
 and outside. The College buildings 
 stood to the N. of the ch., as is shown 
 by the height of the sills of the win- 
 dows from the ground. To the N.W. 
 of the ch. is a very picturesque em- 
 battled house, with irregular pro- 
 jections. The buttressed wall of the 
 orchard deserves notice, and the site 
 of the monastic fish-ponds. A yew- 
 tree, 21 ft. in girth, stands to the 
 E. of the ch. 
 
 At the time of the Dissolution the 
 priory was granted to Lord Seymour 
 of Sudeley, the Protector's brother. 
 On his fall it was re-granted to 
 William Poulett, first Marquis of 
 Winchester, then Lord Treasurer, 
 from whom it passed to the Dukes 
 of Bolton. It is now the property 
 of S. Watson Taylor, Esq. 
 
 An avenue of noble elms leads 
 from Edington to the adjacent village 
 of Tinheacl. 
 
 About 7 m. E. of Westbury is the 
 park of Uarl Stolte or Stoke Comitis, 
 so called from having belonged 
 to Edward d'Evreux, Earl of 
 Sarum, temp. William I. The 
 house, a fine classical structure, 
 (Simon Watson Taylor, Esq.) Iwas 
 built, 1788, by .Joshua Smith, M.P. 
 for Devizes. The Ch. was built 
 from Mr. Street's designs, 1880. The 
 situation and grounds are very beau- 
 tiful. 1 m. N., Ileijuiood House, Sir 
 Henry Lopes, built in the reign of 
 James I. by Lord Ley, afterwards 
 Earl of Marlborough, and rebuilt 
 by its late owner. Leighton and CharU 
 cott, the residences of J. L. Phipps, 
 Esq., and his nephew, C. Phipps, 
 Esq., are in this neighbour- 
 hood ; and 6 m. S., the splendid park 
 and mansion of Longleat (Marquis of 
 Bath) (Rte. 11) shown on Wednes- 
 days and Fridays. 
 
 At Westbury the rly. bends west- 
 
 ward, and at 112 m. passes rt. Stander- 
 wick Court, and 2 m. N.W., Becking- 
 ton, at 113f m., Berkley, and reaches, 
 1155 m., Frome Station (Rte. 23). 
 
 KOUTE 5. 
 
 HUNGERFORD TO BATH. [LITTLE- 
 COTE, RAMSBURY] BY GREAT 
 BEDWYN, SAVERNAKE, PEWSEY 
 [VALLEY OF THE AVON TO AMES- 
 BURY], TO DEVIZES, BRADFORD, 
 FRESHFORD, VALLEY OF CLAVER- 
 TON. 
 
 (Great Western Eaihvay.) 
 
 6li IIungerfo?^d Stat. (^Inns : Bear; 
 Bell ; Three Swans). ^ {Hdhk. for 
 Berks.), thence excursions may be 
 made to Littlecote, 4 m., Savernake 
 Forest and Tottenham House. 
 
 S. of Hungerford, at the junction 
 of the 3 counties of Wilts, Hants, 
 and Berks, rises Inkpen Beacon, the 
 loftiest chalk down in England, 1011 
 ft. above the sea, commanding 9, ^ 
 wide ' 3J:id,^beiaitiful, p To 1 
 
 the' N.W/ it overlooks' Savernaife' 
 Forest, to the S.E. the woods of 
 Highclere (Ld. Carnarvon). (Jldbk. 
 for Hants.') The village of Swallow- 
 field stands in the 3 counties. ' ' 
 
 4 m. from Hungerford is Littlecote, 
 renowned not more on account of 
 the venerable architecture and fur- 
 niture, than on account of a horrible 
 and mysterious crime perpetrated 
 there in the days of the Tudors — 
 Macaulay — the seat of the Pophams 
 (shown when the family is away), 
 situated in its well-wooded but 
 gloomy and neglected park in the 
 valley of the Kennet. It is a re- 
 markable specimen of an almost un- 
 altered mansion of the 16th century, 
 built by the Darells, and sold by the 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Route 5. — Littlecote, 
 
 63 
 
 last of that family to Judge Popham 
 in the reign of Elizabeth. The great 
 hall is hung with armour, cross-bows, 
 &c., and the buff jerkins and steel 
 caps of Cromwell's Ironsides; the 
 gallery, which is upwards of 100 ft. 
 long, with family portraits, including 
 those of Judge Popham and Nell 
 Gwyn. In one room the visitor is 
 shown the chair of Judge Popham, 
 and the finger-stocks, a curious in- 
 strument of torture for punishing 
 servants, and in another a piece of 
 needlework representing a Roman 
 pavement found in the park. At- 
 tached to this old house is the story 
 told in a note to Scott's * Rokeby.' 
 A midwife was fetched out of Berk- 
 shire, at dead of night, to deliver a 
 woman, with a promise of high pay, 
 but on condition that she should be 
 blindfolded. After a rough ride on 
 horseback behind the messenger, she 
 arrived at a house, and was conducted 
 up-stairs, where she performed her 
 duties to the lady ; but no sooner 
 were these ended than a man of fe- 
 rocious aspect, seizing the new-born 
 infant, threw it on the back of the 
 fire that was blazing on the hearth, 
 and destroyed it. The woman re- 
 turned to her home, and long brooded 
 in secret over her singular adven- 
 ture; but the crime to which she 
 had been privy at length produced 
 its fruit. Her mind grew ill at 
 ease ; so, disregarding the bribe 
 which she had received, she went to 
 a magistrate, and confessed to him 
 all that she knew. She had reasons 
 for believing that she could identify 
 the house. On ascending the stairs 
 she had counted the number of steps, 
 and from the bedside she had brought 
 away a piece of the curtain. 
 
 This story has been also preserved, 
 with some slight variations, by 
 Aubrey and others, and the tradition 
 of the neighbourhood has for 200 
 years invariably connected it with 
 Littlecote House, and William Darell, 
 commonly called " Wild Darell," 
 then its proprietor. Tt has also been 
 
 currently handed down that Darell 
 was tried for his life, escaped by 
 bribing the officers of the law, and 
 especially Sir John Popham, by the 
 gift to him of the estate : that after- 
 wards, by a judgment of Heaven, he 
 broke his neck over a stile out hunt- 
 ing, which stile still bears his name, 
 and that the spectre of the wild hunts- 
 man and his hounds has occasionally 
 terrified the natives. 
 
 An attempt was made a few years 
 ago to disprove the whole story , which 
 brought to light the actual statement 
 in writing by the magistrate, Mr. 
 Bridges, of Great Shefford, in Berks 
 (about 7 miles ofi'), who took down 
 the deposition of the midwife on 
 her death-bed. Her name was Mrs. 
 Barnes, of Shefford. She does not 
 say that she was blindfolded, but 
 that, having been decoyed by a 
 fictitious message pretending to 
 come from Lady Knyvett, of Charl- 
 ton House, she found herself, after 
 being on horseback several hours in 
 the night, at another house, and the 
 lady she had to attend to was masked. 
 She does not say what house this 
 was, and seems not to have known. 
 Her deposition gives the fullest par- 
 ticulars of the atrocity committed, 
 but fails to identify Littlecote as 
 the house, and Will. Darell as the gen- 
 tleman. The subsequent discovery, 
 however, at Longleat, by the Rev. 
 Canon Jackson, of Leigh Delamere, 
 of an original letter dated 2nd 
 January, 157|, has set the 'matter at 
 rest. Sir John Thynne, of Longleat, 
 had in his establishment a Mr. Bon- 
 ham, whose sister was the mistress 
 of W. Darell, and living at Littlecote. 
 This letter is from Sir H. Knyvett, 
 of Charlton, to Sir John Thynne, 
 desiring "that Mr. Bonham will 
 inquire of his sister touching her 
 usage at Will. Darell's, the birth of 
 her children, how many there were, 
 and what became of them : for that 
 the report of the murder of one of 
 them was increasing foully, and 
 would touch Will. Darell to the 
 
64 
 
 Boute 5. — Littlecote — Bamshury» Wiltshire. 
 
 quick/' How Darell escaped does 
 not appear ; but it is quite certain 
 that in 1586 he sold the reversion of 
 his Littlecote estate to Sir John Pop- 
 ham ; that upon DarelFs death, in 
 1589, Sir John took possession of it, 
 and Avas made a judge in 1592. Fur- 
 ther, that Darell was certainly a 
 spendthrift, and in various serious 
 difficulties from time to time ; and 
 that in 1583 he made a very suspi- 
 cious ofter of a bribe of 5000/. to 
 Lord Chancellor Bromley, to be " his 
 good friend." 
 
 Wra. IIL, on his progress from 
 Salisbury to London, after the con- 
 ference with James's commissioners 
 at Hungerford, Dec. 8, 1688, retired 
 to Littlecote, where the following 
 day, Sunday, Dec. 9, the Commis- 
 sioners dined. " A splendid assem- 
 blage had been invited to meet them. 
 The old hall was crowded with peers 
 and generals. Halifax seized the 
 opportunity, with his dexterous 
 diplomacy, of extracting from Burnet 
 all that he knew and thought. * Do 
 you wish to get the king into your 
 power?' said Halifax. * Not at all,' 
 was Burnet's reply, * we would not do 
 the least harm to his person.' * And 
 if he was to go away ?' * There is 
 nothing so much to be wished.'" — 
 Macaulay. 
 
 At Littlecote in 1730 one of the 
 largest Koman pavements ever dis- 
 covered in England was laid bare, 
 and unfortunately speedily des- 
 troyed. It represented, among other 
 devices, Apollo in the centre, and 
 female figures riding on animals 
 emblematic of the four seasons. 
 
 Adjoining Littlecote, in the parish 
 of Chilton . Foliot, is Chilton Rouse, 
 and the quiet town of 
 
 Eamshury, originally Ravensburg, 
 A.-S. Hvaefensbyrig, which was a 
 seat of the bishops of Wiltshire for 
 more than 100 years, from Bp. 
 Ethelstan, 909 a.d., when the see 
 of Eamsbury was separated from 
 that of Winchester, to the Lothar- 
 ingian Bp. Herman, by whom (1058 
 
 A.D.) Ramsbury was united to Sher- 
 borne, on the death of Bp. Elfwold, 
 and the united see was transferred 
 to Old Sarum 1075. The quiet and 
 tidy village shows small signs of its 
 former ecclesiastical importance. 
 
 The Church is large, having a nave 
 and aisles of great width and a long 
 chancel, but is of no great beauty, the 
 arcades very irregular and inelegant. 
 The tower is low and heavy, with un- 
 usually large buttresses. The roof 
 of the nave is a good piece of oak- 
 work. It contains a fine canopied 
 15th-century tomb, and a slab with 
 Norman - French inscription, to 
 William de St. John, parson of 
 Ramsbury c. 1322, and stately mon- 
 umental effigies of the Joneses, from 
 the Attorney-General of Charles H.'s 
 time, who purchased the estate, to 
 the last male possessor. North of 
 the chancel, blocked otf from the ch., 
 is the rich but neglected " Darrel's 
 Aisle," containing three tombs of 
 that family. Ramsbury Manor be- 
 longs to Sir Robert Burdett, Bart., 
 and here the celebrated Sir Francis 
 Burdett lies buried. The manor 
 passed by marriage to the Burdetts 
 from the Jones's. The house was 
 designed by Webb, the son-in-law 
 of Inigo Jones. It contains oak- 
 panelled rooms, decorated with carv- 
 ings of the school of Gibbons, family 
 portraits, and a good full-length of 
 Charles II. The park is a fine one, 
 and the river Kennet flows through 
 it, forming an artificial lake abound- 
 ing in trout, in which Tom 
 D'Urfey was invited every year to 
 fish. This celebrated wit is said to 
 have angled for a trout the best of 
 any man in England." Aldbourn, 
 N.E. of Ramsbury, gave name to a 
 Chase, a favourite hunting-ground of 
 King John, and in 1643 the scene 
 of the defeat of the Earl of Essex by 
 the King and Prince Rupert, who 
 drove the Parliamentary general as 
 far as Hungerford. In 1815, in 
 making a road, some 60 skeletons, 
 lying pell-mell, were disinterred, a 
 
Wiltshire^. 
 
 Route 5. — Great Bedwyn. 
 
 ghastly memorial of that day's 
 slaughter. 
 
 Aldbourn Church is a fine build- 
 ing with transeptal chapels, nearly 
 wholly Perp., with a grand and beau- 
 tiful tower, and Norm. S. doorway, 
 and Trans.-Norman arcade with 
 pointed arches. There is one E.E. 
 lancet in the chancel, but all the 
 other windows are Perp. 
 
 At Froxjield, rt., is the Somerset 
 Hospital^ founded in 1686 by Sarah 
 Duchess of Somerset, affording an 
 asylum to 50 widows of clergymen 
 and laymen. 
 
 65 m. Little Bedioyn. The chapel 
 of St. Michael deserves a visit. The 
 nave is Trans.-Norm., with round 
 arches on N., and pointed on S., the 
 rest, Perp., with a beautiful roof to 
 W. aisle. The tower and spire are 
 admirably proportioned. 
 
 1 m. N. the encampment of 
 Chisbury, an oval camp, taking its 
 name from Cissa the son of ^lla, 
 of 15 acres, and one of the finest 
 specimens of British castrametation 
 in the county. It is situated on 
 the Wansdyke, and girt by a rampart 
 45 ft. in height, which in some places 
 is double and in others triple. Within 
 the enclosure is a chapel (St. 
 Martin's) of the Decorated style, 
 now used as a barn, 
 
 66 Great Bedwyn Stat, 
 
 Great Bedwyn, now, as in the time 
 of Leland, *'but a poore thing to 
 syght," but under Saxon rule an 
 important place, the residence of 
 Cissa, ealdorman of Berks and Wilt- 
 shire. In 675 it was the scene of an 
 engagement between the kings of 
 Wessex and Mercia, in which the 
 latter was defeated. Bedwyn was 
 a Parliamentary borough, returning 
 2 members till the first Reform Act. 
 Among its representatives were Sel- 
 den, the antiquary, and Sir Vicary 
 Gibbs. It is still a market town. 
 
 The flint-built Ch., restored 1854, 
 is very interesting. It is cruciform, 
 with a low central tower ; the chan- 
 
 {Wilts, Dorset, ^c, 1882.] 
 
 eel E.E. ; the transepts Dec. with 
 rich flamboyant windows, built bj 
 Sir Adam de Stokke (d. 1312), who 
 lies in the S. transept in an arched 
 recess containing a cross-legged effigy 
 in chain mail. Another recess con- 
 tains a Purbeck slab, with an incised 
 cross to Sir Koger de Stokke. The 
 nave arcade is Trans.-Norman, with 
 curiously carved capitals, all different. 
 The interior of the chancel is very 
 imposing. There are fine Dec. pis- 
 cinas there and in the Transept. 
 The encaustic tiles deserve exami- 
 nation. In the chancel is a fine 
 altar-tomb, with an effigy in full 
 armour, to Sir John Seymour of 
 Wolf Hall (father of Queen Jane 
 Seymour and the Lord Protector 
 Somerset), brought hither in 1590, 
 from Easton Priory, by his grandson 
 Edward, Earl of Hertford. There is 
 also a monument to Frances, daughter 
 of Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, 
 and widow of William, 2nd Duke of 
 Somerset; and a brass memorial to 
 John Seymour, eldest son of Sir 
 John. Great Bedwyn was the birth- 
 place of Thomas Willis, 1621, the ana- 
 tomist, and founder of a philosophical 
 society at Oxford, from which arose 
 the Royal Society of London. He 
 was buried in Westminster Abbey. 
 About 1 m. S. of this village is the 
 height of Castle Hill, so called from 
 an entrenchment, in which have been 
 found large quantities of tessersc, 
 bricks, and other evidences of Roman 
 habitation. 
 
 68 m. 1 m. 1. is East Grafton 
 (Rte. 3, p. 44). 
 
 69 m. Close to the rly. on 1. are the 
 small remains of Wulfall, the Ulfela 
 of Domesday, commonly but wrong- 
 ly changed into Wolf hall, which be- 
 longed in early times to the Estur- 
 mies, wardens of Savernake Forest, 
 whose heiress Maud brought it to the 
 Seymours, temp. Hen. VI. Sir John 
 Seymour, father of Lady Jane Sey- 
 mour, queen of Henry VIII. and 
 mother of Edward VI., lived here. 
 The old house was partly destroyed 
 
66 
 
 Houte 5. — Pewsey — MarienselL Wiltshire. 
 
 circa 1662, and its materials used in 
 building the j&rst Tottenham House, 
 and nothing now remains but the 
 " Laundry," a picturesque building 
 with tall chimneys at the foot of the 
 hill. Adjoining the farmhouse is 
 an ancient barn, which traditionally 
 was the scene of a bridal feast on the 
 king's marriage with Jane Seymour 
 in 1536, on the day after the execu- 
 tion of the unfortunate Anne Boleyn. 
 In Aug. 1539, the royal widower with 
 his court came to Wulfall on a visit 
 to Edward Seymour, Earl of Hert- 
 ford, his brother-in-law, afterwards 
 Lord Protector. He was again there 
 in 1543. In proceeding from Wulfall 
 to Tottenham the traveller obtains a 
 good view of the steep side of Mar- 
 tensell Hill, nearly 1000 ft. high. 
 
 69f m. Savernake Station, where is 
 a neat little hotel built by the 
 Marquis of Ailesbury (branch line 
 rt. by Marlborough to Swindon; 
 1. to Ludgershall and Andover, 
 Ete. 3. For Savernake Forest and 
 Tottenham Park see same Rte.). 
 
 The rly. continues from Savernake 
 Stat, up the valley of the Avon 
 between the escarpment of Marl- 
 borough Downs N., and Salisbury 
 Plain S., passing at 
 
 70 J m. Burhage Stat., a picturesque 
 straggling village. The church, re- 
 built 1854 excepting the tower, con- 
 tains a memorial window to Bp. 
 Denison, and another to 4 soldiers, 
 natives of this parish, who fell in the 
 Crimea. The S. aisle was added in 
 1876 in memory of Archdeacon 
 Stanton. Enormous sycamores shel- 
 ter the church on the S.W. 
 
 72 m. the flint and stone Ch. and 
 village of Wootton Rivei^s on the other 
 side of the river. 
 
 If m. S. is the village of Easton, 
 on the round chalkhill above which 
 is a circular entrenchment and 
 British village. To the S. are also 
 Milton Hill with a group of barrows, 
 and Pewsey Downs on which are 
 traces of British villages. 
 
 75 m, Pewsey Stat. {Inns: Phoenix, 
 
 Royal Oak), a smalltown pleasantly, 
 situated on the Avon, between which 
 and Savernake the huge mass of 
 Martensell Hill rises like a wall to 
 the rt. The Ch. is a fine and in- 
 teresting building, with an arcade of 
 massive sq. piers and plain unmoulded 
 arches, but much of the work is of 
 the 13th cent. The oblong tower 
 is Perp., and groined within. The 
 sedilia, piscina and font all deserve 
 notice. 2 m. N.W. is the pretty 
 village of Wilcot, 
 
 The chalk range is here divided by 
 the Vale of Pewsey , which separates 
 the Marlborough Downs from Salis- 
 bury Plain. Martensell and St, Ann's 
 are elevated points on the steep es- 
 carpment, commanding a most ex- 
 tensive prospect, including Salisbury 
 Plain and the Forest of Savernake. 
 
 Martensell is situated about 3 m. 
 S. from Marlborough. The name 
 is a corruption of the A.-S. Mser- 
 thorn " " the boundary thorn," and 
 has nothing to do with St. Martin. 
 It is a fine bold hill, descending 
 sheer on the E., and throwing out a 
 spur to the S.W. The ditch and 
 ranjpart of a Celtic camp gird the 
 summit, enclosing an area of 31 
 acres, and commanding a distant 
 view of the entrenched heights of 
 Sidbury, Clearbury, Bratton, and 
 Cley Hill, of Salisbury Spire, and 
 Alfred's Tower ; on the N.E. slope of 
 the hill, banks and hollows indicate 
 the site of a British village. If we 
 proceed W. from Martensell along 
 this ridge of high land, we shall reach 
 in succession Ilewish Hill, remark- 
 able for extensive vestiges of a 
 British village ; Knap ITill^ crowned 
 by an earthwork of high antiquity 
 enclosing 2 tumuli, with a third 
 outside it ; Walker's Hill, above Alton 
 Priors, conspicuous by its long bar- 
 row ; and beyond Walker Hill, 5 m. 
 W. of Martensell, /S'^. Aim's, the high- 
 est point of the Marlborough Downs, 
 and known throughout Wilts and 
 the neighbouring counties as the site 
 of Tan Hill Fair (i.e. St. Ann's Hill, 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 5. — Tlie Wansdyke, 
 
 67 
 
 cf. Took j J St.f South wark, from St. 
 Olaf ), held annually for pleasure and 
 business on the 6th of Aug. (St. 
 Anne's Day, old style). On the pro- 
 jecting buttress of St. Ann's, S. rests 
 the elliptical camp of Myhunj, formed 
 by a single bank and ditch, and 
 evidently the work of a primitive 
 people. On his march northwards, 
 before the battle of Naseby, Lord 
 Goring appointed Tan Hill as the 
 rendezvous for the Royalist forces, 
 whence he marched to Marlborough. 
 Along this northern verge of the hill 
 runs lhat interesting relic of anti- 
 quity, the Wansdylie, or Wodens 
 dike, 
 
 " For a mighty mound sith long lie did re- 
 main, 
 
 Betwixt the Mercians rule and the West 
 Saxon reign." — Drayton. 
 
 seen in its pristine state on the 
 downs between Savernake Forest 
 (W. of Martensell) and Heddington. 
 It is generally considered to have 
 been constructed by the Belgse, as 
 they gradually expelled the British 
 tribes before them, and like the other 
 ditches of the same origin, the Old 
 Ditch N. of Amesbury, and Bokerly 
 Ditch S. of Salisbury, has the fosse 
 to the N. Dr. Stukeley mentions 4 
 great ditches as marking the ad- 
 vance of this people from the S. 
 The 1st extended through Dorset- 
 shire from Shaftesbury to Wim- 
 borne ; the 2nd, called the Bokerly 
 Ditch, skirted the N. side of Cran- 
 bourne Chase (these two Dr. Guest, 
 the first authority on such points, 
 combines in one as parts of one con- 
 tinuous boundary) ; the 3rd traversed 
 Salisbury Plain, about 2 m. N. of 
 Wilton (Dr. Guest denies this the 
 character of a Belgic earthwork at 
 all) ; the 4th was the Wansdyke, 
 which at this day may be traced 
 through Wiltshire for 19 m., includ- 
 ing gaps. This magnificent earth- 
 work extended from the woodlands 
 of Berkshire to the Severn, and was 
 the last frontier of the Belgic pro- 
 vince, and Dr. Guest does not forbid 
 
 the belief that it may have been Di- 
 vitiacus who here fixed the limits of 
 the Belgic dominion. It consists of a 
 huge rampart and ditch, the ditch on 
 the northern side, and runs in a waved 
 line along the summit of the hills, 
 which being unenclosed and solitary 
 contribute much to the eJffect of this 
 rude bulwark of a race so long passed 
 away. " OfFa's Dyke in Wales and 
 the Wansdyke in England," says Sir 
 R. C. Hoare, " are the most con- 
 spicuous examples of the ancient ter- 
 ritorial boundaries." 
 
 A person walking from Marl- 
 borough to Devizes can pursue a 
 delightful route along this dyke. 
 He will proceed by the Calne road 
 as far as Fy field (some 2 m.), there 
 turn to the 1. (by the Fighting 
 Cocks) to the churchless village of 
 Locker idgc^ situated in a bottom among 
 masses of sandstone, and thence direct 
 his way to the summit of the downs. 
 4 m. from Lockeridge he will reach 
 the dyke, about 1 m. E. of St. Anne's 
 Hill, from which a valley running 
 N.E.contains 2 rows of sarsen stones 
 of large size, standing 3 or 4 feet out 
 of the ground. In the same valley, 
 more to the S., are the remains of a 
 cistvaen, with the larger chamber, 
 and passage traceable; another monu- 
 ment of the same kind is on the top 
 of the hill to the S.E. These are 
 locally known as the Hares Holes. 
 From this point he can follow the 
 dyke N.W. unchecked by hedge or 
 other impediment, to Shepherd's Shore, 
 a lone house formerly an inn, on the 
 Devizes and Marlborough road, or 
 farther to Morgan's Hill, the heights 
 N. of JRoundway Down^ the scene of 
 the rout of Waller in 1643. He will 
 then quit it and turn S. over Round- 
 way to Devizes; or if bound for Calne, 
 he may follow the Wansdyke till it 
 ends near a fir- wood, where it is 
 crossed by a white chalk road, by 
 turning down which, to the rt. (N.) 
 he can descend by Blackland to Calne. 
 Beyond this point, W., the dyke is 
 destroyed for a long distance, but 
 F 2 
 
68 
 
 Boute 5. — Amesbury — Fittleton. 
 
 Wiltshire* 
 
 reappears at Engiislicombe above 
 Bath. 
 
 [A very agreeable detour may be 
 made from Pewsey, down the val- 
 ley of the Avon to Amesbury (Rte. 
 8), 16 m. The road is good, and 
 the scenery, though possessing no 
 striking features, of a quiet English 
 beauty. The valley now expands 
 to a dell, now narrows to a winding 
 glen. The road runs for a consider- 
 able distance by the side of the 
 stream ; now descending to its very 
 edge ; now ascending halfway to the 
 summit of the treeless down, and 
 diversified with a picturesque village 
 and ch. at almost every mile. 
 
 Leaving Pewsey and skirting the 
 rounded sides of Pewsey Down we 
 reach 2 m. Manningford Abbots and 
 Manningford Braose. The Ch. of the 
 latter (probably of Saxon date) has 
 an apse, and contains a tablet to Mary, 
 wife of Edward Nicholas, and d. of 
 Thomas Lane of Bentley, Stafford- 
 shire, who, with her elder sister Jane, 
 aided Charles IL's escape after the 
 battle of Worcester. Crossing the 
 Avon at Woodbridge we reach in 2 m. 
 JiushaU, a picturesque spot at the 
 foot of the downs, where once stood 
 a splendid mansion of the Poores, 
 now pulled down. The C/i. has a 
 Norman tower, and other portions of 
 that style. Eushall Park is the pro- 
 perty of Lord Normanton, The land 
 has been divided into farms, but much 
 fine timber remains. 
 
 ^ m. up the Avon is Charlton, 
 The C/i. is of flint and stone, with some 
 good screen-work, and a mural brass. 
 Here was born Stephen Duck, " the 
 thresher," whose poetry having re- 
 commended him to the notice of Q. 
 Caroline, he entered holy orders, and 
 became preacher at Kew and Rector of 
 Byfleet. He drowned himself in me- 
 lancholy madness at Reading, 1750, 
 bequeathing the rent of a small piece 
 of land to be expended in an annual 
 dinner for threshers. 
 
 Rushall is followed by Upavon, 
 now asmall village, butamarket-tOAvn 
 
 in the time of Edward IL's favourite, 
 De Spencer, to whom it belonged. The 
 once celebrated demagogue " Orator 
 Hunt " was born 1773 at Weddington 
 Farm, in this parish. The Ch. is large, 
 E. E., with a square Norman tower. 
 This was once the seat of a cell of 
 the Abbey of Fontanelle in Nor- 
 mandy, afterwards granted by Henry 
 VL to that of Ivy church. On the 
 top of the hill 2 m. W. is 
 
 Gasterley Camp, an area of 64 acres 
 surrounded by a single vallum 28 ft. 
 in height. It was probably a British 
 town. " It will be found," says Sir 
 R. C. Hoare, " to be one of the most 
 original and unaltered works of the 
 British era which our county can pro- 
 duce." In the centre is a circle. 
 
 2 m. brings us to Chisenbury de la 
 Folie, a hamlet in Enford parish. 
 Chisenbury Priors, now the property 
 of Miss Chafyn Grove, was the 
 residence of Henry Grove, exe- 
 cuted at Exeter, 1655, for an at- 
 tempted rising in favour of Charles 
 II. 1 m. E. is Chisenbury Camp or 
 Trendle (A.-S. circle), a circular work 
 formed by a bank 16 ft. high. Some 
 antiquaries have thought it was a 
 British amphitheatre. 
 
 ^ m., W. by S., distant, the small 
 camp of Lidbury, girt by a rampart 
 40 ft. high. A bank and ditch lead 
 from it to the site of a British village 
 in the valley. The Tmn Barrows 
 are 1 m. to the S. 
 
 -J m. further down the Avon is the 
 village oi Enford (Avonford), one of 
 the meets of the late Mr. Assheton 
 Smith's hounds. The Ch, was one 
 of the finest in the diocese, with a 
 lofty spire, which was struck by 
 lightning in 1817, and fell, crushing 
 the ch. The whole has been rebuilt. 
 The country round is studded with 
 numerous barrows. 
 
 1 m. S. is Fittleton, where is a good 
 small Ch, with a spire, containing a 
 singular punning brass inscription 
 to the Jays. The road here crosses 
 the river to Nether Avojij taken by 
 
Wiltshire. Route 5. — Figheldean — Beechingstohe, 
 
 69 
 
 Henry III. from Gilbert Basset for 
 adhering to R. Marshal, Earl of Pem- 
 broke, and given to Peter de Maulay, 
 causing a great popular outcry. The 
 Ch. retains traces of its Norman struc- 
 ture in the chancel and belfry arches 
 and W. doorway. This was for 
 2 years the curacy of Sydney Smith, 
 who is said to have here under- 
 gone the most imminent risk of 
 starvation, both mental and bodily. 
 " Once a- week," writes Lady Hol- 
 land, " a butcher's cart came over 
 from Salisbury ; it was then only 
 that he could obtain any meat, and 
 he often dined on a mess of potatoes 
 sprinkled with a little ketchup. Too 
 poor to command books, his only 
 resource was the squire, and his only 
 relaxation long walks over these in- 
 terminable plains, in one of which 
 he narrowly escaped being buried in 
 a snow-drift." 
 
 1 m. lower down on the opposite 
 bank stands Figheldean. The Church, 
 prettily surrounded with trees, is 
 more considerable than most of its 
 neighbours, which are mostly small 
 flint buildings, and has been well 
 restored. It has Norman portions, 
 and contains crossed-legged effigies, 
 probably of the Hussey fkmily, and 
 in the chancel some monuments of 
 the Poores. 
 
 1 m. further brings us to Milston, 
 a group of very pretty cottages where 
 the river makes a loop. This manor 
 was forfeited by John Lord de Zouch, 
 for having sided with Richard III., 
 and granted by Henry VII. to his 
 uncle Jasper, Duke of Bedford, son 
 of Owen Tudor and Queen Katha- 
 rine. The Church is small, but not 
 without interest. The old rectory 
 in which the celebrated Joseph Ad- 
 dison was born, May 1, 1672, has been 
 pulled down, and a new house erected 
 a few yards from the former site. 
 Addison's father, Lancelot Addison, 
 was made rector of the parish on the 
 loss of his chaplaincy at Tangier. 
 
 On the opposite side of the Avon 
 is Bvrrington, where the Long Walls 
 
 are considered by Sir R. C. Hoare to 
 mark a British village. The Ch. is 
 fair, of flint and stone, and contains 
 an old pulpit and seats of oak. Again 
 crossing the stream we come \ m. to 
 Bulford, with its pretty church, and 
 is l a- m. to Amesbury (Rte. 8).] 
 
 Returning to the main route we 
 reach 
 
 78^ m. Woodborough Stat. This is 
 an increasing place with a handsome 
 new church. 2 m. N., immediately 
 under Walker Hill, nestling be- 
 neath the downs," lie the little vil- 
 lages of Alton Barnes, or Berners, and 
 Alton Friors. The former manor was 
 bought by William of Wykeham, 
 and bestowed on his foundation of 
 New College. Among its rectors 
 may be named the Rev. W. Crowe, 
 1812-29 (author of ' Lewesdon Hiir 
 and other poems, and for many years 
 public orator at Oxford, in which 
 office he introduced the Allied Sove- 
 reigns on their visit in 1814), and 
 Augustus W. Hare, author of ' Ser- 
 mons to a Country Congregation,' 
 preached in these churches, and with 
 his brother Archdeacon Julius C. 
 Hare, of the ' Guesses at Truth.' 
 On the S.W. slope of the chalk 
 down is a white horse, cut in 1812 
 at the expense of Mr. Pile, of the 
 Manor Farm, which may be seen 
 from Old Sarum. Its dimensions 
 are : — height 180 feet, length 165 feet, 
 circumference of eye 12 feet, super- 
 ficial area 700 yards. 
 
 80 m. rt. is Beechingstoke, with a 
 small Dec. Ch., 1 m. S. of which is 
 Marden. The Ch. has a fine Norman 
 chancel arch, and S. door and pin- 
 nacled west, tower. On Wivelisford 
 Hill, U ni. further S., is Broadway 
 Camp. The Ridgeway runs along 
 the crest of the hill, dotted with 
 barrows on each side. From Broad- 
 way a British trackway struck N. 
 over the vale by Broad Street and 
 Honey Street, and climbed the Marl- 
 borough Downs between Walker 
 Hill and Knap Hill, crossing the 
 
70 
 
 Boute 5. — All Canmngs — Devizes. Wiltshire. 
 
 Wansdyke at a point where some 
 large sarsen stones are still standing. 
 
 The old cottages in this neighbour- 
 hood, with their long roofs of thatch 
 and frames of woodwork, are exceed- 
 ingly picturesque. 
 
 Proceeding on our route 
 
 1 m. W. Stanton Fitzwarren Church, 
 has a good chancel arch, and font 
 with bas-relief, and Norman porch. 
 
 Stanton House (Hon. H. VV. Ellis 
 Agar) stands in fine park with orna- 
 mental water. 
 
 1 m. further W. is All Cannings, 
 with its fine cruciform Church, with a 
 square Perp. tower rising at the inter- 
 section. There is a S. chantry 
 chapel, with a rich battlement bear- 
 ing the arms of Beauchamp and St. 
 Amand, probably built by Sir J. 
 Baynton. The very beautiful chan- 
 cel was built in 1867 from the de- 
 signs of T. H. Wyatt, by the rector, 
 the Rev. J. A. Methuen, and his sons, 
 " as a memorial of a happy home." 
 The Manor House is now a farm- 
 house, and thoroughly modernized, 
 but some few moulded timbers 
 may belong to the 14th century, 
 when licenses of crenellation were 
 issued to the Bishop of Salisbury. 
 Coleridge was a visitor of the Rev. 
 T. A. Methuen, in 1817. 2 m. S.W., 
 nearer the rly., is the small but very 
 interesting Dec. church of Etchil- 
 hampton (pronounced Ashelton)^ with 
 a Norm, font, and an altar-tomb, the 
 face bearing 12 small figures, men 
 and female, carved in relief, bearing 
 the effigies of a knight and his lady, 
 c. 1400, perhaps one of the family 
 of Malwyn, the lords of the manor. 
 
 2^ m. N.W. is Bishops Cannings 
 (more conveniently visited from De- 
 vizes, 3 m.), with its beautiful cruci- 
 form E.E. Church, one of the most in- 
 teresting churches in the county. It 
 has a central tower of 2 stories, and 
 stone spire. The roof, aisles, and 
 clerestory of nave are Perp. addi- 
 tions. The east, west, and transept 
 windows are fine E.E. triplets. The 
 
 nave is of 4 bays, with low, thick 
 columns. The S. porch is vaulted, 
 with a Dec. doorway. The chancel 
 is vaulted. The Ernie chantry chapel 
 attached to S. transept, dedicated to 
 
 Our Lady of the Bower," contains 
 a large monument to Michael Ernie, 
 d. 1571. The E. window and others 
 filled with glass by Wailes. In N. 
 transept is an almost unique piece of 
 furniture, a very singular moveable 
 chair, still called, for want of a better 
 name, a confessional chair," more 
 probably a " carrel" for meditation. 
 On the back panel is painted a hand 
 outstretched, with inscriptions on the 
 palm and fingers suggestive of repent- 
 ance. The oldest part of the church 
 is the little sacristy, with priests' room 
 over, at the N.E. corner of the chan- 
 cel. It once had a bell- turret. The 
 organ was originally given by Wil- 
 liam Bayley, a native, who sailed 
 round the world with Captain Cook. 
 
 In the 17th century, when old Au- 
 brey tells us *' the parish would have 
 challenged all England for music, 
 football, and singing," it boasted of 
 a musical vicar, one Geo. Ferraby, 
 who entertained James I. and Anne 
 of Denmark, with a r-ustic masque on 
 the occasion of their visit to Bath. 
 The king was received at "the Bush, 
 Coatefiefd," the Queen, in April 1613, 
 at the Wansdyke, when the Vicar, 
 appeared as an old bard, with his 
 scholars "in Shepherd's weeds," who 
 sang a four-part song, composed by 
 himself, "to the great liking and con- 
 tent of the Queen and her company." 
 
 85i Devizes Stat. {Inns: Bear, 
 Castle. Pop. of Pari, borough, 6645). 
 A market and assize town, a muni- 
 cipal and Parliamentary borough, 
 returning one member. It stands 
 nearly in the centre of the county, 
 of which it may be considered the 
 secondary capital, and the chief town 
 of N. Wilts. It has one of the largest 
 corn markets in the W. of England. 
 The manufacture of cioth, for which 
 it was once famous, ceased to be 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 5. — Devizes. 
 
 71 
 
 carried on in 1828. The Gt. W. 
 Ely. affords land, and the Kennet 
 and Avon Canal water communica- 
 tion both with the E. and W. The 
 canal, commenced in 1794 and com- 
 pleted in 1805 at a great outlay, is 
 carried over the hill to the N.W. 
 of Devizes by a series of 39 locks. 
 Devizes forms a curve on the top of 
 a hill, flattened at top so as to form a 
 table-land of considerable extent and 
 elevation. The town stands 500 feet 
 above the sea, and the situation is 
 cold and exposed, but salubrious. 
 
 "At Devizes the escarpment of 
 the greensand is very steep, and is 
 deeply cut into by ravines, two of 
 which so nearly meet at their heads 
 as to leave a peninsular eminence 
 with steep sides attached by a narrow 
 isthmus to the high ground behind. 
 The peninsula was an admirable site 
 for a castle ; and on the high ground I 
 behind grew up a town in the form of I 
 a semicircle, the curve being marked i 
 by the line of New Park Street and 1 
 Bridewell Street."— X>r. Fittoyi. \ 
 
 The main street is wide and airy, ! 
 and the market-place spacious, and [ 
 ornamented by the Cross erected in 
 1814 by Lord Sidmouth, as a mark 
 of esteem for the borough of which 
 he had been for 30 years Eecorder, 
 and which he had represented in 6 
 successive Parliaments. But Leland's 
 observation still holds good, " The 
 beauty of the town of Vies is all in one 
 strete," and that *' it standeth on a 
 ground somewhat clyvinge," but it 
 is no longer "most occupied by 
 clothiers." As in Fuller's days, ** the 
 market is very celebrate, and it is the 
 best and biggest town for trading in 
 the shire." The oldest charter of the 
 town is that of the Empress Maud. 
 
 The name of Devizes has been a 
 subject of much discussion among 
 the learned. Till a comparatively 
 recent time it was always known as 
 *' the Devizes," a corruption of which, 
 '* the Vies," is not yet quite extinct. 
 Its Latin* appellation, Castnm or 
 Villa Dmsarmn, or simply Diviscs, 
 
 and ad Divisas, " at the divisions," 
 clearly shows the origin of the 
 name. The only question remaining 
 is what the divisions or boundaries 
 were on which the town was built. 
 Dr. Guest remarks that " Devizes 
 stands in the middle of the Wans- 
 dyke, and the probability is that the 
 district, where the Roman road from 
 London to Bath stooped down into 
 Welsh territory (i.e. territory occu- 
 pied by original inhabitants of 
 Britain), was known as DivisWy the 
 borders, and that in the I2th centy., 
 when Devizes was founded by Bishop 
 Eoger, it took its name from 
 the district." Canon Jackson, 
 however, informs us {Wiltshire Col- 
 lections) that it has been recently 
 discovered that in the reign of 
 Henry L, when Devizes was founded, 
 the three adjoining manors (viz., 
 Rowde, Cannings, and Potterne) met 
 precisely at the point at which the 
 castle was built. This appears to be 
 the true solution of the problem. 
 
 Devizes, which does not appear in 
 Domesday, owes its origin, as we have 
 said, to the castle erected here, 
 temp. Henry L, by his chancellor, 
 the warlike Bishop Eoger of Sarum, 
 that great builder of churches and 
 castles. The first prisoner of note 
 it received was the ill-fated Eobert, 
 the Conqueror's eldest son. On the 
 outbreak of the struggle between 
 Stephen and Matilda, Eoger garri- 
 soned and provisioned the castle for 
 the Empress, which was held by his 
 nephew, the Bishop of Ely. Eoger 
 and his other nephew, the Bishop of 
 Lincoln, having fallen into the king's 
 hands, he proceeded with all speed 
 to Devizes, where he imprisoned the 
 prelates, one in a cowshed, the other 
 in a wretched hovel, and threatened 
 worse unless the castle was surren- 
 dered. The castle having thus fallen 
 into Stephen's hands he took it from 
 the see of Sarum and made it a royal 
 fortress. During the course of the 
 civil war it was alternately taken 
 and retaken. In 1140 Eobert Fitz- 
 
72 
 
 Moiite 5. — Devizes, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 herbert, a mercenary of the Earl of 
 Gloucester, scaled the battlements by 
 ladders made of leather, and, having 
 surprised the sleeping garrison, 
 seized it for Maud. It again fell into 
 the king's power ; but the next year, 
 after Stephen's captivity, Count 
 Herve, who held it for the king, after 
 a long siege by the peasantry who 
 had risen against him, surrendered it 
 to the Empress. After she had been 
 compelled to raise the siege of Win- 
 chester (Sept. 14, 1141), Maud took 
 refuge here, whence, according to 
 popular tradition, she was conveyed 
 in a coffin to Gloucester ; but she re- 
 turned in 1142 and fixed her tempo- 
 rary abode in the castle. It was held 
 by John during Richard I.'s absence 
 in Palestine. Hubert de Burgh, Earl 
 of Kent, who was imprisoned here by 
 Henry III., escaped by favour of 
 part of the garrison, and fled for 
 sanctuary to St. John's ch., whence 
 he was dragged by the governor and 
 conveyed back to the castle ; but the 
 threat of the Bishop of Salisbury and 
 the dread of excommunication for 
 the violation of sanctuary prevailed, 
 and he was conveyed back to the ch. 
 It was the abode of two royal host- 
 ages, sons of Charles de Blois, great- 
 nephews of the King of France in 
 Edward Ill's, reign. The castle 
 formed part of the dowry of several 
 of our queens— Philippa, Good Queen 
 Anne, Margaret of Anjou, Katharine 
 of AragOn, Anne Boleyn (who 
 visited Devizes in 1530), and Katha- 
 rine Howard. It was the occasional 
 residence of Duke Humphrey of Glou- 
 cester. The castle was granted by 
 Edward YI. to Lord Seymour of 
 Sudely, and afterwards came to 
 William, Earl of Montgomery. 
 
 The Castle stands to the W. of the 
 town, behind the Bear Inn, and is 
 now private property. The walls 
 have almost entirely perished, but the 
 ditch and mound of the keep may.'still 
 be seen. A path winds up through the 
 trees to a modern castellated house on 
 the summit. The ruins remained in 
 
 Leland's time, who speaks of '* dyvers 
 goodly toures all goyng to ruine." 
 "Such a piece of castle wall so costly 
 and so strongly was never afore set 
 up by any byshope of England." 
 After this the Castle became a stone 
 quarry for the vicinity, from which 
 Bromham Hall and the lodge at Spye 
 Park were built. The keep was 
 standing in Charles I.'s time, when 
 it was besieged by the Parliament in 
 1643, and fortified by the King, and 
 after the fall of Bristol stormed and 
 taken by Cromwell, 23rd Sept., 1645, 
 with the loss on his part of five men. 
 He remained here three days, and 
 marched hence to Donnington Castle, 
 near Newbury. The castle was after- 
 wards " slighted," i.e., destroyed by 
 order of Parliament. Stukeley wrote 
 in 1723, the castle is ignobly 
 mangled and every day destroyed 
 by persons who care not to leave a 
 stone standing, though for a wall to 
 their gardens." Mr. Leach in 1839 
 brought to light, by excavation, frag- 
 ments of the walls, the foundations 
 of the keep and a dungeon pit, per- 
 haps Hubert de Burgh's prison. The 
 street known as " the Brittox" derives 
 its name from Bretesque^ i.e. a wooden 
 tower placed on a drawbridge. 
 
 After the site of the castle, the 
 most interesting objects in Devizes are 
 its two noble old Churches, both de- 
 serving careful attention. 
 
 St. John^s, near the Castle, is one of 
 the most interesting in the county. 
 It was originally a cruciform Norman 
 church with central tower, erected 
 towards the middle of the 12th cen- 
 tury, probably by Bp. Roger. The 
 chancel was the sanctuary of Hubert 
 de Burgh. The nave was rebuilt 
 c. 1450. It is a well-proportioned 
 lofty building. It had originally a 
 wagon roof, unwisely replaced by a 
 collar-beam roof in a recent restor- 
 ation, when the ch. was lengthened. 
 The N. and S. chapels to the chan- 
 cel are late Perp. The N. wall 
 of the chancel retains one of the ori- 
 ginal Norm, windows, traces of 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 5. — Devizes, 
 
 73 
 
 which are also to be seen both ex- 
 ternally and internally in the tran- 
 septs. The string' courses of corbel 
 heads in the old outside walls of the 
 chancel well deserve attention. The 
 massive tower rests like that of St. 
 Bartholomew's, Smithfield, on 2 semi- 
 circular and 2 pointed arches, the 
 transepts being narrower than the 
 nave. The lantern, now hidden by 
 a ceiling, is ornamented with a rich 
 intersecting arcade. It is reached 
 by a cylindrical turret at the N.W. 
 angle. The chancel, which retains 
 its Norm, vaulting, is of two bays, 
 divided by a transverse arch spring- 
 ing from richly carved capitals. The 
 walls are ornamented by an intersect- 
 ing arcade. Both the chapels have 
 rich ceilings of oak, and panelled 
 arches and canopied niches. That 
 to the S. may be ascribed to Rich. 
 Beauchamp, of Bromham, Lord St. 
 Amand, temp. Hen. VII. There is 
 a singularly lofty niche capping the 
 apex of the gable. In the church 
 are several monuments to the Buttons 
 and Heathcotes, including one to 
 Sir Gilbert Heathcote, Lord Mayor 
 of London, d. 1768. 
 
 St. Mary's, in the N.E. skirt of the 
 town, commands a view of Round- 
 way Hill. This was also a Norman 
 church like St. John's, and the chan- 
 cel is of the original structure, with 
 groining and transversal arch, but 
 much spoilt by Perp. windows. The 
 nave has been rebuilt in Perp. and is 
 a good but plain specimen of the 
 style, with lofty clerestory and elabo- 
 rately carved roof bearing in the 
 second bay from the E. the name of 
 the founder, '* William Smith, qui 
 istam Ecclesiam fieri fecit, 1436." 
 The chancel arch is panelled, and 
 has a fine niche on either side of it. 
 The east gable of the nave, as at the 
 Beauchamp Chapel at St. John's, is 
 surmounted by a lofty niche con- 
 taining a statue. The tower is of 
 stately proportions. The S. porch 
 is a good specimen of transition, c. 
 1200; repaired 1612, 
 
 St, Jameses, a chapel of ease to 
 Bishops Cannings, rebuilt in 1834, 
 except the fine pinnacled tower, the 
 upper part of which bears the marks 
 of Waller's cannon-balls, stands at the 
 E. end of the town on the Green. 
 
 Devizes contributed martyrs to the 
 persecutions which ushered in the 
 Reformation. Wm. Prior of this 
 town was burnt at Salisbury, 1507. 
 John Bent, of Urchfont, was burnt 
 here, 1533. John Maundrell, of 
 Rowde, after having recanted in 
 Hen. VII I. 's time, and done penance 
 in the market-place here, gained heart, 
 and in 1 556 was burnt witb two friends 
 between Salisbury and Wilton. 
 
 The Tou:n Hull, built by Baldwin 
 of Bath, 1808, with a segmental 
 Ionic portico, contains an Assembly 
 Room, Council Chamber, &c., with 
 a bust of Lord Sidmoutli, and portraits 
 of George III. and his queen in their 
 coronation robes, after Reynolds. 
 The old Toicn Hall, a stately build- 
 ing with a pedimental Ionic front, 
 now Messrs. Cunnington's wine 
 offices, was erected in the last 
 century as a supplementary Guild 
 Hall. At the S.E. corner of the 
 market-place is the Market House, 
 with a clock tower, opened in 1835. 
 The County Assize Court, erected 1835 
 by T. H. Wyatt, has a pedimental 
 portico of 4 Ionic columns. The 
 Spring Assizes, transferred from 
 Salisbury, were first held here in 
 August, 1835.' 
 
 The Corn Exchange of the Corin- 
 thian order (arch. Hill, of Leeds), is 
 142 ft. long, and affords standing 
 room for nearly 3000 persons. The 
 fagade, 46 ft. in length, is orna- 
 mented with appropriate carving 
 and a statue of Ceres. It was opened 
 Dec. 3, 1857. 
 
 In the Market-place, an extensive 
 triangular area, stands the Market- 
 cross, erected from the designs of 
 Benj. Wyatt, the son of James Wyatt 
 " the destructive,'' in 18 1 4 at the cost 
 of Lord Sidmouth. It bears two in- 
 scriptions, one commemorating Lord 
 
74 
 
 Boute 5. — Devizes, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 Sidmouth's " grateful attachment to 
 the town of Devizes," the other re- 
 cording the following remarkable 
 event which occurred here in 1753. 
 
 A woman named Ruth Pierce, of 
 Potterne, having, with 3 others, 
 bought a sack of wheat, and each 
 paid as was thought their part of the 
 money ; a deficiency was found, and 
 Euth was accused of not having 
 paid. To this she replied, ' She 
 wished she might drop down dead if 
 she had not/ She had scarcely 
 spoken the words when she fell down 
 and expired, having the money con- 
 cealed in her hand.'' The adjoining 
 fountain and statue were erected in 
 1879 to the memory of T. H. Sothe- 
 ron-Estcourt, M.P., the founder of 
 the Wilts Friendly Society, and 
 chiefly by the gifts of its members. 
 
 The museum and library of the 
 Wiltshire ArchceoL and Nat. Hist. 
 Society y founded 1853, under the 
 patronage of the Marquis of Lans- 
 downe, have since 1874 been placed 
 in a convenient building in Long 
 Street, near St. John's Church 
 The museum contains many objects 
 of interest, especially the magnificent 
 Stourhead collection of urns, celts, 
 cups, ornaments and other objects dis- 
 covered in the Wilts barrows, formed 
 by Sir Eichard Colt Hoare, deposited 
 here by the present baronet. This 
 collection will repay careful exami- 
 nation. There is also a fine collection 
 of British birds, including several 
 bustards. It also contains the collec- 
 tions of the late JohnBritton, consist- 
 ing of original drawings of Salisbury 
 Cathedral and of the Wiltshire 
 churches ; illustrated copies of Mr. 
 Britton's works relating to this 
 county; and his Celtic cabinet, en- 
 closing models of Stonehenge and 
 Avebury ; and a remarkable collection 
 of fossils, formed by Mr. William 
 Cunnington, local secretary to this 
 society, and grandson to the associate 
 of Sir E. C. Hoare in his Wiltshire 
 investigations. 
 
 The father of Sir Thomas Lawrence 
 
 (b. 1769, at Bristol, where his father 
 was then landlord of the White 
 Lion) was landlord of the Bear, and 
 was famous as " the only man on the 
 road for warm rooms, soft beds, and 
 for reading Milton" (Graves' Colum- 
 ella), often mentioned by tourists 
 with praise, together with his " in- 
 genious family." Madam D*Arblay, 
 who lodged at the Black Bear with 
 Mrs. Thrale, in April 1780, ex- 
 presses herself as " much pleased 
 with our hostess, who seemed some- 
 thing above her station." She was 
 in fact the daughter of the Eev. W". 
 Eead, vicar of Tenbury. The 
 "public-spirited" landlord of the 
 Bear erected at his own expense 
 signal posts 12 ft. high, painted white, 
 to guide travellers by night over 
 Salisbury Plain. He fell into em- 
 barrassed circumstances and left 
 Devizes for Weymouth soon after 
 Mrs. Thrale's visit. At the Bear the 
 youthful artist first learnt to draw 
 likenesses, as well as to repeat 
 poetry for the entertainment of cus- 
 tomers. His father would introduce 
 him to his visitors with, " Gentlemen, 
 here's my son ; will you have him 
 recite from the poets, or take your 
 portraits ? " His first picture was 
 painted here when he was about 7 
 years old. Devizes was the birth- 
 place of Joseph Alleine, the eminent 
 Nonconformist minister of Taunton 
 (see Ete. 21, p. 886), b. 1633. He was 
 several times imprisoned for preach- 
 ing, and is best known by his ' Alarm 
 to the Unconverted.' Boh. Nicholas, 
 of All Cannings, M.P. for Devizes in 
 the Long Parliament, was an active 
 manager of the impeachment of 
 Laud, whom he is accused of having 
 treated with "unseemly insolence 
 and insult, using foul and gross 
 language." His name appears as 
 one of Charles I.'s judges, but he 
 prudently abstained from attending 
 the trial. He subsequently became 
 a Baron of the Exchequer under 
 Cromwell. 
 
 The once notorious demagogue, 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 5. — Boundway Hill — PoulshoL 
 
 75 
 
 " Orator Hunt," married the 
 daughter of the landlord of the Bear 
 Inn, and became chairman of the 
 Ordinary there, which gave him 
 frequent opportunities for declama- 
 tion. Devizes was the scene of not 
 a few of his turbulent meetings. 
 
 Devizes is the head-quarters 
 of the Royal Wiltshire Militia, 
 (xibbon the historian visited Devizes 
 in 1761, when captain of the Hants 
 Militia, and entertained an un- 
 pleasing recollection of that " popu- 
 lous and disorderly town." 
 
 1 m. S. is the Wilts County Asyluin, 
 a plain but handsome building, by 
 T. H. Wyatt; opened in 1851. 
 
 Neio Farh, N., under Roundway 
 Down (now called Roundway Park), 
 was built by S. Wyatt. The park is 
 commended by Repton as combining 
 " all the materials of natural land- 
 scape." It was the seat of Wm. Sut- 
 ton, Lord Sidmouth's brother-in-law. 
 
 Potterne, Ij- m. S., is a pic- 
 turesquely situated village, with a 
 good ch. and ancient houses (Rte. 7). 
 
 Roundway Hill, which rises imme- 
 diately from Devizes, was the scene 
 of the defeat of Sir William Waller 
 by Lord Wilmot, 1643. After the 
 battle of Lansdown, the Royalists, 
 under the Marquis of Hertford and 
 Prince Maurice, retreated to Devizes, 
 closely followed by Waller, who soon 
 invested the town and erected a bat- 
 tery against it. He, however, was 
 repulsed in many desperate efforts to 
 force an entrance, and the news soon 
 arrived that Lord Wilmot was ap- 
 proaching with 1500 horse to the 
 succour of the besieged. Waller drew 
 off his men to oppose the coming foe, 
 and took up a position on Roundway 
 Down ; but when he had descried the 
 advancing troop, and perceived the 
 smallness of their number, he de- 
 scended from the hill and charged 
 with his cavalry, confident of success. 
 He had, however, much miscalculated 
 the strength of the Royalists, for after 
 a severe struggle his troopers were 
 
 overthrown, and his infantry, assailed 
 on one side by Wilmot and on the 
 other by the garrison of Devizes, were 
 obliged to surrender. Waller himself 
 put spurs to his horse and fled towards 
 Bristol (from which this was styled 
 by the Royalists "Runaway Hill"), 
 leaving behind him his artillery, 
 ammunition, and baggage, and 2000 
 men, either killed or prisoners. The 
 view from the brow of Round- 
 way should not be missed by any 
 visitor to Devizes. A path leads 
 from the church of St. Mary to the 
 Quaker's Walk, which, skirting the 
 grounds of New Park, seat of the 
 Colstons, runs direct to the foot of 
 the hill, whence the ascent is steep 
 to the top. In a westerly direction 
 the prospect is very extensive ; to 
 the S. it is limited by the chalk 
 range of Salisbury Plain ; E. it em- 
 braces the bold heights which abut 
 upon Pewsey Vale ; and N. it ex- 
 tends to the blue distance of N. 
 Wilts and Gloucestershire. If in- 
 clined to extend his ramble, the pe- 
 destrian will find, a little way to the 
 N.W., the Roman camp of Oliver's 
 Castle, marked by a straggling group 
 of beech- trees ; and N.E., at the dis- 
 tance of 2^ m., the Wansdyke nearly 
 as perfect as on the day when it was 
 first thrown up. 
 
 Leaving Devizes, 
 
 87 m. is Rowde, 1 m. rt. : the Ch., 
 rebuilt in 1833, except the tower 
 and part of the chancel, contains a 
 font designed by Sir Digby Wyatt, 
 who was born here. 
 
 2 m. Lis Poulshot, the houses inter- 
 spersed with trees standing pic- 
 turesquely round the village-green, 
 of which Dr. Blayney, Hebrew Pro- 
 fessor at Oxford (d. 1801), was in- 
 cumbent. Izaak Walton, the son of 
 the famous angler, was rector here in 
 1688, and hither Bishop Ken, his 
 uncle, retired from Wells in 1688, 
 "with all my coach-horses and as 
 j many of my saddle-horses as I well 
 I could" tc prevent their being seized 
 
76 
 
 Boitte b. — Seentl—Limjpley Stoke, Wiltshire. 
 
 by the invading force of William of 
 Orange. When the great storm '* 
 swept over the county in November 
 1703, which brought down the 
 chimneys of the episcopal palace of 
 Wells, and crushed the intruding 
 Bishop Kidder and his wife, Ken 
 was sleeping in his nephew's rectory 
 at Poulshot, and escaped all harm, 
 ^' although," as he writes in a private 
 letter, "the beam which supported 
 the roof over my head was shaken 
 out to that degree, that it had but 
 half an inch to hold, so that it was a 
 wonder it could hold together." The 
 Cli. is a picturesque little building 
 (unrestored) with two low side win- 
 dows. The tower is modern, 
 erected in memory of the wife of a 
 former rector, Canon Fisher. 
 
 89J m. /feme? Stat. A manor-house 
 belonged to Humphry de Bohun, E. 
 of Hereford and Essex, who, 1347, 
 received a licence to fortify it. It 
 is now a seat of the Awdrys. The 
 manor in later times belonged to Lord 
 Berners, the translator of Froissart, 
 who directed his executors to sell it 
 " for his soul's health.'' 
 
 Beautiful chalcedonized casts of 
 ammonites are found in the ferrugi- 
 nous sand in this parish. The view 
 from the churchyard is pretty. In 
 the Ch., formerly a chapel-of-ease 
 to Melksham, is a brass to John 
 Stokys and his wife, 1498. The N. 
 aisle is said to have been built by 
 him : and in the moulding of its W. 
 window is his device, a pair of shears. 
 Many Walloon families settled about 
 here temp. Henry VII. The same 
 vein of iron ore as at Westbury has 
 been found and worked here, but 
 the operations are now suspended. 
 
 93 J m. is Holt Junction, where lines 
 diverge N.E. by Melksham to the 
 main line of the Gt. Western (Rte. 1), 
 and S.W. to Trowbridge (Rte. 4). 
 96j m. Bradford (Rte. 4). 
 From Bradford the rly. follows 
 the course of the Avon. The valley 
 soon becomes very narrow, hemmed 
 ill between hills, in some places 
 
 rising almost precipitously, clothed 
 with hanging woods and orchards. 
 The frequent stations give the tra- 
 veller opportunity of halting and ex- 
 amining the country more leisurely. 
 He may do so with the assurance of 
 being well repaid for the delay. The 
 Kennet and Avon Canal accompanies 
 the river through the whole of the 
 valley, and crosses it by an aqueduct 
 below Monkton Combe. The two 
 counties of Wilts and Somerset meet 
 in this valley, so that the traveller is 
 sometimes in one and sometimes in 
 the other. He commences in Wilt- 
 shire at 
 
 96^ m. passes rt. Winsley, said to 
 have been the scene of a battle be- 
 tween Alfred and the Danes. Here 
 is a house, a good work of Wood, 
 the architect of Bath. The Ch. is 
 new, but preserves the old tower 
 with a saddleback roof. The little 
 hamlet of Conkwell, 1^ ;m. N., pictu- 
 resquely planted in a wooded cleft of 
 the rock. 
 
 97f m. 1. Freshford Stat. (co. Som- 
 erset) (^Charter House Hinton Abbey 
 is 1 m. distant, Farleigh Castle 2 m., 
 by very pleasant footpaths, Rte. 4). 
 Here Sir W. Napier wrote his ' His- 
 tory of the Peninsular War.' The 
 Ch. is modern. The high ground, 
 known as Sharpstone and Mount Plea- 
 sant, commands views up the 2 val- 
 leys, the White Horse at Westbury 
 in the far distance in one, and the 
 town of Bradford in the other. A 
 path leads from Mount Pleasant to 
 the ruins of Hinton Abbey. 
 
 We re-enter Wilts, and reach 
 98j m. 1. Limpley Stoke Stat., a 
 romantic village with hanging woods 
 and gardens, and a wild hillside well 
 suited for picnic or sketching parties. 
 The small Ch. has a Norm, door in 
 the S. wall, and a stone pulpit. The 
 chalice and paten bear the date 
 1577. In Stoke Wood above Chatley 
 House is a celebrated holy well 
 known as Shingle Bell Well. Here is 
 2i Hydropathic EstahNshment . A short 
 
Wiltshire* Boute 6. — Hungerford to Salishary, 
 
 77 
 
 distance beyond the Stat, the Avon is 
 crossed by a fine well-proportioned 
 bridge. Wiltshire is left again at 
 
 99 m. 1. Monkton Combe. At the 
 Viaduct Inn the road to Frome is 
 carried across the valley by a stone 
 viaduct of 11 arches; ^ m. further 
 the Dundas Aqueduct carries the Ken- 
 net and Avon Canal over the rly. and 
 river. Combe Down, above the vil- 
 lage, overhanging Bath, is honey- 
 combed with quarries. 
 
 100^ m. 1. Claverton (originally 
 Clatfordton), a very pretty village, 
 standing in a most picturesque part 
 of the winding valley. Opposite, 
 reached by Warley Ferry, is the 
 Gothic mansion of Warley House (H. 
 D. Skrine, Esq.), embowered in the 
 hanging woods that clothe the lower 
 slopes of Monhton Farleigh Down. At 
 Claverton are the stone terraces of 
 a former mansion of the Bassets. 
 The existing house, seated high on 
 the hill, was built from a design by 
 Sir Jeffrey Wyattville. The old 
 house, which stood lower down the 
 hill, and was flanked by terraced gar- 
 dens, was besieged and taken by a 
 Parliamentary force in the Civil War. 
 Claverton was for 60 years the living 
 of liichard Graves, d. 1804, author of 
 the * Spiritual Quixote.' He is buried 
 in the CA., which was rebuilt 
 and enlarged 1858. In the church- 
 yard, a pretty enclosure, full of roses, 
 is the tomb of Balph Allen of Prior 
 Park, interred here 1766. An 
 agreeable walk leads to Bath by the 
 road over Claverton Down, whence, 
 from the summit of the hill, there is 
 a fine view up the wooded valley to 
 the distant oolite escarpment. 
 
 The geologist will find in the 
 Avon valley and its branches many 
 examples of the subsidence of the 
 strata. On the hills bounding the 1. 
 bank of the river the effect of land- 
 slips may be observed in the inferior 
 oolite, and from the commanding emi- 
 nence of Hampton Bocks the spectator 
 looks down upon rugged masses of 
 oolite, which, having slipped from 
 
 the cap of the hill, now lie in pic- 
 turesque confusion among the trees. 
 
 On the opposite side of the river, 
 near the point of union of the Avon 
 and Box valleys, stands Monkton Far- 
 leigh Toirer (Kte. 4, p. .56) looking 
 down on Bathford, and commanding 
 a magnificent view of Bath and the 
 heights and valleys around. 
 
 102 J m. BatJiampton Stat. 
 
 105 m. Bath (Rte. 21). 
 
 liOUTE G. 
 
 HUNGERFORD TO SALISBURY, 
 TIDWORTH, THE WINTERBOURN 
 VALLEY, WINTERS LOW [threi: 
 
 routes]. 
 
 Hungerford, (See Handbook for 
 Berks.) 
 
 The road runs through the edge 
 of Berkshire to 
 
 4 m. Shalbourn, partly in Berks 
 and partly in Wilts, in a valley 
 surrounded on the N., E., and S. by 
 the chalk hills, across which the 
 road stretches, crossing the Roman 
 Road from Marlborough at Marton, 
 6 m., and at 7 m. leaves on 1. the 
 little village of Tidcombe, perched on 
 the down, and the Long Barrow close 
 by. Further to E. is the entrench- 
 ment of Hay don Hill Castle and the 
 hamlet of Fosbury. Leaving to the 
 1. Chute Heath and the village of 
 Chute, which bears the name of a 
 forest which formerly extended far 
 into Hampshire and in a northerly 
 
Boute 6. — East Everley — Sidhimj Hill, Wiltsliire. 
 
 direction to the skirts of Savernake, 
 the road crosses the exposed uplands 
 of Collingbourn Heath, passing rt. the 
 villages S. of Collingbourn Kingston 
 and Collingbourn Diicis (Rte. 3, p. 45). 
 
 m. a road crosses that we are 
 pursuing, leading rt. by ^ast Everley 
 andUpavon to Devizes 18 m. : m. 
 1. to the little town of 7 m. Ludgers- 
 hall (Rte. 3, p. 45). 
 
 [2 J m. rt. in the open country, over 
 which the eye ranges freely, is East 
 Everley and Everley House (Sir J. D. 
 Astley) (Rte. 3). The surrounding 
 hills abound in remains of earthworks 
 in the shape of hut-circles, camps, and 
 barrows. The latter are especially 
 frequent. Sir R. C. Hoare remarks 
 that no tract of country in his know- 
 ledge presents so many British tu- 
 muli as that between Everley and 
 Amesbury. One near Everley, when 
 opened by him, presented first the 
 skeleton of a small dog, and nearly 
 6 ft. below, at the bottom of the 
 barrow, the following very perfect in- 
 terment collected on a level floor. 
 The body of the deceased had been 
 burned, and the bones and ashes 
 piled up in a small heap, which was 
 surrounded by a circular wreath of 
 horns of the red deer, within which, 
 and amidst the ashes, were 5 beauti- 
 ful arrow-heads, cut out of flint, and 
 a small red pebble. Thus we most 
 clearly see the profession of the Briton 
 here interred. In the flint arrow- 
 heads we recognise his fatal imple- 
 ments of destruction ; in the stags' 
 horns we see the victims of his skill 
 as a hunter ; and the bones of the dog 
 deposited in the same grave, and above 
 those of his master, commemorate his 
 faithful attendant in the chase. 
 
 On Milton Hill, to the N. of Everley, 
 is a group of 8 barrows, arranged in 
 2 parallel lines, one of which is' re- 
 markable for a form more pointed 
 than any other in the county ; 2 m. 
 S, is the bold entrenchment of 
 
 Sidbury Hill, crowned by a heart- 
 shaped entrenchment, formed by two 
 
 ramparts and ditches, the inner 46 ft. 
 deep, and enclosing an area of 17 
 acres, gorgeous in the early summer 
 with a profusion of the Rosebay 
 willow herb. From the principal en- 
 trance a raised causeway runs N. 
 towards E. Everley, intersecting a 
 barrow in its course, and passing 
 W. of a British village. At other 
 points banks and ditches diverge 
 like rays from the earthwork, and 
 lead either to the remains of British 
 villages or to groups of tumuli ; S. W. 
 2 m., the Twin Barroios, enclosed by 
 a ditch ; and W. Lidbury and Chisen- 
 bury. 
 
 In the neighbourhood are traces of 
 no less than 9 British villages : 1. on 
 Easton Hill,N.; 2.onMilton Hill, N.; 
 3. on Pewsey Heath, N.W. ; 4. at Lid- 
 bury, W. ; 5. on Comb Hill, S.W. ; 6. 
 in a vale adjoining Bulford Field, 
 S.W. ; 7. on Haxton Down, W. of 
 Sidbury; 8. between Everley and 
 Sidbury ; 9. on Westdown Hill, S. of 
 Sidbury. 
 
 The old road from East Everley 
 to Salisbury (15 m.) passes over the 
 bare open downs, and, until recently, 
 existed as a turnpike-road only as 
 far as East Everley, beyond which 
 it was linked together by tracks on 
 the turf.J 
 
 To resume our route : 
 
 Ih m. beyond the road to Ludgers- 
 hall the Salisbury road divides ; that 
 to the rt. traversing the lonely downs, 
 which are known as Salisbury Plain. 
 
 1 m. rt. is Sidbury Hill. 
 
 3 m. the road crosses West JDovm, 
 and beyond it runs for about 3 m. 
 below Beacon Hill, a ridge 690 ft. 
 above the level of the sea, the sum- 
 mit bearing the mark of the ordnance 
 corps. Numerous large barrows are 
 disposed in groups about the valley 
 and the neighbouring hills. 
 
 3 m. the traveller crosses one of 
 the great western roads from London 
 to the Land's End, skirted by an 
 ancient bank and ditch, between the 
 
Wiltsliire. 
 
 ttoute 6. — Tidwortk. 
 
 79 
 
 75th and 76th milestones, and at the 
 74th joined by another, which de- 
 scends to it from Beacon Hill. 
 
 [1 m. to the rt. is the town of 
 Ameshunj, and about 2 m. beyond 
 Amesbury, Stonehenge (Rte. 8).] 
 
 3 m. About 1 m. to the rt. is 
 Oghury Camj?, a circular entrench- 
 ment of 62 acres, regarded as an un- 
 altered. The rampart, which is 
 destitute of a fosse, is more than 
 30 ft. high. 
 
 3i m. Old Sarum (Rte. 8). 
 
 J_m. Salisbury, 
 
 Returning to the l.-hand road, which 
 runs through a valley enlivened by 
 numerous villages, we reach in 
 ^ » 2 m. North Tidworth {Inn: Ram). 
 The Ch, late Perp., with earlier work 
 in the tower, contains a monument 
 to Thos. Pierce, Dean of Salisbury, 
 ejected from his Fellowship at Mag- 
 dalen, 1648. It is a village pleasantly 
 situated in a valley below the wood- 
 lands and prospect tower of 
 ' ' Tidworth Park, now the property' 
 of Sir John Kelk, Bart., but formerly 
 the seat of T. Assheton Smith, Esq. 
 This gentleman was distinguished 
 for his ardent love and pursuit of the 
 chase, and as the proprietor of a 
 kennel and stables which were the 
 admiration of sporting men. They 
 accommodated 3 packs of hounds 
 and about 30 hunters, which here 
 led no life of luxurious ease ; as the 
 squire, before his great age inca- 
 pacitated him, took the field on 
 every week-day during the season. 
 The gardens are very beautiful. They 
 were the creation of Mr. Smith, who, 
 on succeeding to the paternal pro- 
 perty in 1826, rebuilt the family 
 mansion, and remodelled the grounds 
 on a grand scale. A conservatory, 
 now removed to Pokesdown, Bourne- 
 mouth, connected with the house and 
 stables by a corridor, measured no less 
 than 310 ft. in length by 40 in breadth. 
 At the death of Mr. A. Smith in 
 1858, he had hunted the Tidworth 
 country for the long period of 31 years. 
 
 He commenced his career in North- 
 amptonshire ; then purchased the 
 Quorn in Leicestershire, and after- 
 wards worked the Burton Hunt in 
 Lincolnshire. He was a bold and 
 excellent rider — in his youth quite a 
 miracle on horseback." His love of the 
 chase remaining to the last, he erected 
 a lofty tower in his grounds, from 
 which he would watch the running 
 of his hounds, when unable to follow 
 them on the saddle. In memory of 
 xMr. Smith, the "Tidworth Hunt" 
 has been preserved : but a large 
 portion of Mr. A. Smith's stables and 
 exercising-house have been taken 
 down. The present proprietor has 
 had the old mansion refronted in 
 the Italian style, and greatly im- 
 proved the general condition of the 
 estate. A very beautiful Ch. has 
 been erected in the Park from the 
 designs of Mr. G. Hamilton Gordon, 
 in the Transition style, at the cost of 
 12,000/. The mansion occupies the 
 'site of a manor-house, then owned 
 by Mr. John Mompesson, reputed to 
 have been haunted, in lG61,by an 
 "invisible drummer," of the same 
 character as the one at Hurstmon- 
 ceux Castle, immortalised by Addi- 
 son in his comedy. North Tidworth, 
 in 1607, was the birthplace of Ilohert 
 Maton, an eccentric millenarian di- 
 vine. In passing through the village 
 notice the slate railing by the road- 
 side, from Mr. A. Smith's Welsh 
 quarries. 
 
 ' At a spot called Hampshire Cross 
 our route enters Hampshire, in which 
 it continues for 3 m. 
 
 1 m. The road traverses Tidv:orth 
 Park ; the house may be observed on 
 the rt. To the 1. is the hamlet of 
 
 South Tidicorth. ^ ^ 
 
 1 m. Shipton to the rt. If on foot, 
 and bound to Amesbury (6 m.) or 
 Stonehenge (8 m.), you may take a 
 green road which strikes into the 
 downs from this village. 
 
 1 m. Our route crosses the high 
 
80 
 
 Boute 6. — Choldertoii — Chloruss Camp. Wiltshire; 
 
 road from Andover to Amesbury 
 (6 m. W.), and re-enters Wilts. Fark 
 House^ an inn, stands at the crossing, 
 and near it an ancient bank and 
 ditch traverse the neighbouring 
 fields. In a S.E, direction is the 
 oblong camp of Qucirlcij Hill, close 
 above Grately Station. 
 
 ^ m. Cholderton, with a manor- 
 house, was formerly the residence 
 of the family of Foyle, by whom it 
 was probably built in the 17th centy. 
 The Church, erected 1844 (Wyatt and 
 Brandon, architects), is in the Perp. 
 style, constructed to carry an ancient 
 timber roof ,^.J)rought from' one "of 
 the Eastern ^OuntieSv with an oc- 
 tagon tower and spire at one of 
 the angles of the W. front. 
 
 [2 m. S. of Cholderton the London 
 and S. W. Rhj. enters Wilts at the 
 Ilampahirc Gap, 74j m. from London, 
 and runs side by side with the Koman 
 road, rt., from Silchester to Old 
 Sarum, to 
 
 78 m. Porton Stat., and 
 
 83 m. Saltsbiir)/.'] 
 
 The road we are pursuing follows 
 the course of the Winterbourn stream, 
 passing through pretty villages al- 
 most every h mile, and running in 
 the main parallel to the rly. 
 ' ^- m. S. of Cholderton is Wilhury 
 Park ( Hon. P. Scawen Wyndham), 
 built in the reign of James 1. by 
 Auditor Benson, and purchased by 
 Sir Charles Malet in 1803. The 
 east wing was formerly a chapel. It 
 is in the parish of Newton Toney, S. ; 
 the Ch. rebuilt 1844. 
 
 1| m. Allington. The Ch., rebuilt 
 1851, stands in a little retired dell 
 surrounded with chalk hills. When 
 Nicholas Fuller, a very learned di- 
 vine, was rector here, he was sud- 
 denly sent for by Lancelot Andrewes, 
 Bp. of Winchester. The poor man 
 was very much afraid, not knowing 
 what hurt he had done. A dish was 
 put before him at dinner, and on 
 raising the cover he found in it a 
 
 presentation to a Prebend. The 
 Koman road from Old Sarum to Sil- 
 chester in Hampshire pursued its 
 course along the hills to the 1. 
 
 i m. East Boscombe. Of this place 
 Eichard Hooker, author of * The Laws 
 of Ecclesiastical Polity,' was rector, 
 1591-95, by the presentation of Arch- 
 bp. Whitgift during the vacancy of 
 the see of Salisbury ; and here he 
 wrote the first 4 books of his great 
 work. Part of Hooker's Rectory- 
 house still remains. The Ch. is small 
 and mean. 
 
 1 m. Idmiston. The Rev. John 
 Bowie, a scholar in Spanish literature 
 and vicar of Idmiston, lies buried in 
 the church, b. 1725, d. 1788. He 
 edited an edition of * Don Quixote' 
 in 6 vols. 4to., and was familiarly 
 known as Don Bowie. The Ch. has 
 a W. tower and spire, a good E. E. 
 chancel with triple lancet, nave and 
 aisles Perp., with a fine roof. It is a 
 very good specimen of a village 
 church. There is a monument of the 
 family of Rowbach, 1533. 
 
 ^ m. Porton (stat. of S. W. Rly.), 
 has a small Ch., rebuilt on a new 
 site, 1877 from Mr. J. L. Pearson's 
 plans. 
 
 1 m. Winterbourn Gunner, named 
 from Gunnora, wife of Henry De la 
 Mere, the lord of this place in the 
 reign of Hen. III. 
 
 1 m. further down the stream are 
 the villages of Winterbourn Dauntsey, 
 so called from the Dauntsey family 
 (Rte. 1), to whom it belonged temp. 
 Edw. L, and Winterbowm Earls. The 
 mean and dilapidated churches of 
 these villages were pulled down, and 
 a new one for the two erected 1868 
 from designs by T. H. Wyatt. 
 
 1 m. Winterbourn Ford, where the 
 Roman road from Winchester forded 
 the stream on its way to Old Sarum. 
 About 1 m. to the 1. on the other 
 side of the rly. is the conspicuous 
 earth wwk known since Stukeley's 
 days as 
 
 Chlorus's Camp, but more truly 
 Figbmj or Fripsbury Ping, an entrench- 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 6. — Winter slow. 
 
 81 
 
 ment of 15 acres, remarkable for 
 containing a deep ditch within the 
 ramparts. The outer vallum gird- 
 ling this circular camp is 46 ft. in 
 height, and pierced by 3 entrances, 
 pointing E., W., and S. ; that to- 
 wards the E. is fortified by outworks. 
 On the S. are remains of the Roman 
 road from Old Sarum to Winchester ; 
 and towards the N. and N.E. a net- 
 work of Celtic banks and ditches. 
 The supposed connection with Con- 
 stantius Chlorus, the father of Con- 
 stantine the Great, is a baseless fancy, 
 resting on an impossible derivation 
 of "Clarendon." Old Sarum is a 
 very conspicuous object to rt. 
 
 1 m. Lavcrstock, the C/i. of which 
 was rebuilt in 1844. Lavcrstock 
 House is a large private lunatic 
 asylum. The Hill is the residence 
 of Lord Edward Thynne. 
 
 ^ m. Salisbury, 
 
 The old road from Andover to 
 Salisbury enters Wilts at Lobcombe 
 Corner, on Salisbury Plain. 
 
 Ij m. ThQ Pheasant Inn or Winter- 
 slow Hut. Numerous banks and 
 ditches and barrows to the rt., in- 
 eluding 2 of the largest in the county. 
 1. Winterslow. The manor was held 
 by John de Eoches in the reign of 
 Edw. III. by a singular service. 
 Whenever the king should be staying 
 at Clarendon the lord of Winterslow 
 should go to that palace, take from 
 any vessel he chose as much wine as 
 would be needful for making " one 
 pitcher of claret," which he should 
 make at the king's charge ; that he 
 should serve the king, and then keep 
 for himself the cup, the wine that 
 was left, and all the wine that was 
 left in the vessel from which he 
 drew it. 
 
 Wintersloio House, in W. Winter- 
 slow, formerly a residence of the 
 family of Fox, was burnt to the 
 ground in 1774, on which occasion 
 Henry Richard, 3rd Lord Holland, 
 then only 6 weeks old, had a narrow 
 escape of his life, being borne through 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, ^c, 1882.] 
 
 the fire in the arms of his mother. 
 The second Lord Holland had pur- 
 chased the estate of the Thistle- 
 thwaytes. The father of the late Sir 
 Benj. Brodie, as a friend of C. James 
 Fox, was presented to the living, and 
 here the eminent surgeon was born, 
 1783. 
 
 Wm. Hazlitt during a considerable 
 portion of his life spent several 
 months of each year at Winterslow 
 Hut. The chief attraction was 
 the thorough quiet of the place, the 
 sole interruption of which was the 
 passage to and fro of the London 
 mails. The Hut stands in a valley 
 equidistant about a mile from two 
 tolerably high hills, at the summit of 
 which on their approach, either way, 
 the guards used to blow forth their 
 admonition to the hostler. After 
 his marriage in 1806, Hazlitt lived 
 in the village, where Charles and 
 Mary Lamb paid him frequent visits, 
 " thorough Londoners in a thoroughly 
 country place, delighted and wonder- 
 ing and wondered at," walking from 
 8 to 20 miles a day, and heartily 
 enjoying the " quiet delicious lazy 
 holiday.'" Hazlitt's * Winterslow 
 Essays ' were written here. 
 
 In Oct. 1816, on a dark still night, 
 Winterslow Hut was the scene of a 
 curious incident. The Exeter mail, 
 on its road to London, was in the act 
 of pulling up, when, to the dismay 
 of tne affrighted passengers, the off 
 leader was seized by a lioness, which 
 had escaped from a caravan on its 
 way to Salisbury fair. A large mastiff' 
 bounded to the rescue, but the lioness 
 left the horse, which had fought with 
 great spirit, and pursued the dog, 
 which it killed within 40 yards. 
 The keeper of the animal, however, 
 soon arrived, and, with consider- 
 able risk to himself, contrived to 
 drive it into an outhouse, and there 
 secured it. There is in the parlour 
 of the inn a painting of the scene. 
 
 G 
 
82 
 
 Boute 7. — Devizes to Salisbury. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 EOUTE 7. 
 
 DEVIZES TO SALISBURY (TWO ROUTES). 
 POTTERNE, MARKET LAVINGTON: 
 URCHFONT, SALISBURY PLAIN. 
 
 From Devizes there are two roads 
 to Salisbury. That to the W. leads 
 by comparatively sheltered valleys 
 and through villages, and is the more 
 picturesque and agreeable. That to 
 the E. conducts the traveller over the 
 bleak rolling surface of Salisbury 
 Plain. The length of both is nearly 
 the same, about 24 or 25 m. To 
 commence with that to the W. Start- 
 ing from the S. end of Devizes. 
 
 2 m. PotternCy in a small sheltered 
 valley, remarkable for the mildness 
 of the air and picturesqueness of its 
 position. Mrs. Gaskell describes it 
 as " a quiet little village, far inland, 
 nestled beneath the stretches of Salis- 
 bury Plain." A long- since forgotten 
 inhabitanthas obtained' wide celebrity 
 in the saying, **like old Ross of Pot- 
 terne, that lived till all the world was 
 weary of him.'' Potterne was a manor 
 of the bishops of Salisbury, who had 
 a house here, which received Henry 
 III., July 12, 1255, which Bishop 
 Rob. Wyville obtained license to 
 crenellate, 1237, and where Bp. Mit- 
 ford died in 1407. The noble parish 
 church, standing high above the vil- 
 lage, is of about the same date as the 
 Cathedral of Salisbury, and may 
 very probably owe its erection to 
 Bp. Poore. Like that cathedral, it 
 was erected from the ground on a 
 new site. The old site is still known 
 as the old churchyard." The Ch. 
 is an aisleless cruciform building w ith 
 N. and S. porches, and is a fine 
 example of E. E. on a large scale, 
 well preserved and unmixed. It has 
 a square central tower with fine Perp. 
 gtone lattice work in the E.E. belfry 
 
 windows. The characteristic of the 
 building is extreme simplicity and 
 regularity ; sculpture is almost en- 
 tirely wanting, and mouldings are 
 used very sparingly, but the want of 
 elaboration is fully compensated by 
 good proportion and refinement of 
 detail. There are triple lancets in 
 the E. and W. gables, and double 
 lancets in transept gables. The 
 Eastern group is singularly beautiful. 
 The Gh. was restored in 1871 by Mr. 
 Christian. A very curious tub- 
 shaped font, probably of Saxon date, 
 was found during the repairs buried 
 beneath the then existing font. Round 
 the upper rim is Ps. xlii. 1 : sicut 
 cervus desiderat ad fontes aquarum, 
 ita desiderat anima mea adte Deus,'* 
 in very early characters. The win- 
 dows contain some good modern 
 stained glass. The picturesque vil- 
 lage contains some good half-timbered 
 houses with ornamental bargeboards 
 and projecting upper story. One of 
 these, called the Porch^JlQuse, has.So<^ 
 been carefully restored by its owner, »^ i'f'J' 
 G.Richmond, Esq.,R.A. It contains*)<'^t*^' 
 a dining-hall with an oriel, and an^^. 
 open roof, paved in mosaic. ^^^^^^'^^jJ^J^ 
 Court is the seat of W. Stancomb,^' ' / 
 Esq. 
 
 4 m. Market Lavington (sometimes 
 called Steeple Lavington, by mistake 
 for Staple i.e. Market Lavington) plea- 
 santly situated in a fertile valley at 
 the base of the chalk-hills, which 
 form the N. boundary of Salisbury 
 Plain, consists chiefly of one street. 
 It was the birthplace, 1674, of Bp. 
 Tanner of St. Asaph, author of the 
 Notitia Monastica, whose father was 
 Vicar of the parish, and to whom 
 there is a monument in the Ch., which 
 stands on elevated ground W. of the 
 town. (Rte. 4, p. 53.) 
 
 West or Bishop's Lavington Vies 1 m. 
 S.W. ; in a house still standing here, 
 Captain Henry Penruddocke, son of 
 Sir J. Penruddocke, was brutally 
 killed as he was sleeping in his chair 
 after 2 nights of hard service, by a 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 7. — Salisbury Plain. 
 
 83 
 
 party of Ludlow's troopers, Dec. 1644. 
 An inscription in the Ch, specifies that 
 he was " slain by a soldier of the con- 
 trary party." In the Lords' aisle are 
 2 altar-tombs, to members of the 
 Danvers family. 
 
 [2 m. W. are Great and Little 
 Cheverell, of the former of which 
 Sir James Stonehouse, the friend of 
 Hannah More, and the " Mr. John- 
 son " of her * Shepherd of Salisbury 
 Plain,' was incumbent. The cha- 
 racter of the shepherd was drawn 
 from a poor man named Saunders, 
 whose cottage is still pointed out 
 on Cheverell Down. The Ch. of 
 Great Cheverell is ancient E.E.; that 
 of Little Cheverell was rebuilt 
 1850.] 
 
 J m. beyond Market Lavington 
 the road climbs the down, and enters 
 on Salisbury Plain, crossing on the 
 crest of the hill the Ridgeway, It con- 
 tinues over the exposed surface of 
 Tilshead Down and by the village of 
 Tilshead, where the Norm, or Tran- 
 sitional church deserves notice. 
 Tilshead Lodge in the midst of the 
 downs was built by Wm. Duke of 
 Cumberland as a racing establish- 
 ment. Crossing the embankment 
 known as the Old Ditch between the 
 White Barrow rt., and Silver Barrov^, 1. 
 it descends into the valley of Winter- 
 bourne, with its almost continuous line 
 of villages. The first of these are 
 
 7 m. (from Lavington) Orcheston 
 St. ^Mary and Orcheston St. George^ 
 which are succeeded by Shrewton ( Ch, 
 rebuilt, 1855), Maddington, and Rol- 
 leston, each with an ancient Ch. not 
 undeserving of a visit. 
 
 1| m. S. of Rolleston is Winter- 
 bourne Stoke. The Ch. is cruciform 
 but aisleless, with a central tower 
 and turret. The N. transept has 
 been rebuilt. There are good Norm. 
 N. and S. doors, an E. E. triplet at 
 the E. end and an hourglass stand. 
 
 I m. is Berwick St. James. The 
 cruciform Ch. has a Norm. N. door 
 and tower, and a stone pulpit entered 
 through the wall. 
 
 Ij m. Staple ford. 
 
 If m. Wishford Stat. 
 
 2i m. Wilton Stat. 
 
 21 m. Salisbury. (See Rte. 11, 
 Salisbury to Westbury.) 
 
 The other road to Salisbury leaves 
 Devizes at the E. end of the town, 
 and for 3 m. runs nearly parallel with 
 the rly. to Hungerford (lite. 5). 
 
 4 m. rt. lies Urchfont, which has 
 a highly interesting cruciform CA., 
 chiefly Decorated, with E. E. re- 
 mains, and Perp. sq. tower at W. end 
 crowned with a belfry turret. The 
 chancel and S. porch are both vaulted 
 in stone, and are of excellent work- 
 manship. The porch is very curious, 
 being roofed externally in stone, with 
 arched ribs enriched by finials at the 
 ridge. The ridge of the chancel roof 
 has also a flowered ornament. 
 
 Beyond this Salisbury Plain proper 
 is entered. The tall poles set up, 
 every ^ m. along the road, by the 
 father of Sir T. Lawrence (Rte. .5, 
 p. 74), have given place to ordinary 
 milestones. At the present day 
 clumps of trees are to be seen on 
 almost every hill (planted chiefly as 
 shelter for game) and even here and 
 there along the road. Large tracts 
 have been brought under cultivation. 
 Farm-buildings are seldom out of 
 sight, and the farm-houses are usu- 
 ally provided with well-kept gardens. 
 The Plain presents a difierent aspect 
 from when *' Thomas Ingoldsby" 
 wrote : 
 
 " 0 Salisbury Plain is bleak and bare, 
 At least so I've beard many people declare. 
 For I fairly confess 1 never was tbere : 
 
 Not a shrub nor a tree, 
 
 Nor a bush can we see, 
 No hedges, no ditches, no gates, no stiles. 
 Much less a house or a cottage for miles. 
 It's a very sad thing to be caught in the rain 
 When night's coming on upon Salisbury 
 Plain," 
 
 0 3 
 
Boute 8,~Bomsey to Salisbury. Wiltshire. 
 
 1 6 m. Redhom Turnpike, where the | 
 road crosses the ancient Ridgeioay. 
 
 Broadway Camp is 2 m. E. The 
 wild open country which the road 
 crosses is appropriately known as 
 
 Black Heath." 
 
 184 m. 1. Ell Barrow (JEll A.-S. 
 strange, foreign). A large bank and 
 ditch traverse the country to the E. 
 of it. N.E. 1 m. is a small entrench- 
 ment called Castle Bitches : and 3 m. 
 in a similar direction, 
 
 Casterley Camp, an area of 64 acres 
 surrounded by a single vallum 28 ft. 
 in height. It was probably a British 
 town. " It will be found/' says Sir 
 E. C. Hoare, " to be one of the most 
 original and unaltered works of the 
 British era which our county can 
 produce." In the centre is a sup- 
 posed sacred circle. 
 
 21 1 m. The Bustard Inn, as an 
 inn, exists no longer. It is now a 
 private residence. [As no accommo- 
 dation can now be had either here 
 or at the Druid's Head (also no longer 
 an inn) tourists wishing to explore 
 Stonehenge, 4 m. S.E., or the earth- 
 works of Salisbury Plain, must make 
 Amesbury or Wilton their head- 
 quarters, or provide themselves with 
 refreshments from one of those 
 places.] The Great Bustard was for- 
 merly common on the Wiltshire 
 hills, but is now almost extinct. 
 In 1801 one of these birds attacked 
 a horseman in the country near Tils- 
 head ; and in January, 1858, a line 
 male specimen was captured near 
 Hungerford. 2 were seen near New- 
 bury, Berks, in 1864, but escaped 
 capture. In 1871, 5 were seen, one 
 being shot at Berwick St. James, 
 and a second at Haddington. The 
 Rev. W. Chafin, in a book written 
 48 years ago, mentions that once 
 between Andover and Salisbury, he 
 put up 25 bustards at once. 
 
 1 m. 1. ancient earthworks ; near a 
 clump of trees called Robin Hood's Ball 
 is an earthen circle without ditch or 
 entrance, with another within it, and, 
 
 at a distance of 2 m., Knighton Long 
 Barrow. 
 
 24 m. Stonehenge Ij m. to the 1. 
 The view on all sides is wild and 
 dreary : 
 
 " the spacious plain 
 Of Sarum. spread like ^Ocean's boundless 
 round, 
 
 Where solitary Stonehenge, grey with moss. 
 Ruin of ages, nods." Dyer's Fleece. 
 
 27 m. The Druid's Head or Wood- 
 ford Hut, formerly resorted to by 
 visitors to Stonehenge, is no longer 
 an inn ; S.W. of it, on the slope of 
 a hill, is a large ancient enclosure 
 formed by a bank. 
 
 31 m. rt. the Field of the Tourna- 
 ment (see Rte. 8). Adjoining is the 
 Salisbury Cemetery. On 1. a noble 
 view of Old Sarum. 
 
 33 m. Salisbury. 
 
 ROUTE 8. 
 
 ROMSEY TO SALISBURY [OLD SARUM, 
 AMESBURY, STONEHENGE, WIL- 
 TON, LONGFORD, CLARENDON]. 
 
 The South-Western Railway from 
 Southampton by Bishopstoke and 
 Romsey enters Wiltshire at 
 
 20J m. West Dean, partly in Hants 
 and partly in Wilts. 
 
 West Dean House, now pulled down, 
 was formerly a seat of the Evelyns, 
 and afterwards of the first Duke of 
 Kingston, and is mentioned in the 
 letters of his celebrated daughter, 
 Lndy Mary Montogn. The Ch. is 
 
Wiltshire. Route 8. — Milchet Park — Whitepuriish. 
 
 80 
 
 rich in monuments of the Evelyns and 
 Pierreponts; among them are those 
 to John Evelyn and his lady, 1625, 
 their kneeling effigies being repre- 
 sented in the costume of the time of 
 James I. ; Sir J. Evelyn, 1685, and 
 a very conspicuous and eccentric pile 
 of white marble, with long and strange 
 epitaphs, to R. Pierrepont, 1669. In 
 the village a mosaic pavement was 
 discovered 1741. 
 
 [3^ m. S. on the other side of Dean 
 Hill, which stretches its long chalk 
 ridge dotted over with yews along 
 the line of the rly. S., is 
 
 Mildiet Fark (or Melcliet), formerly 
 a royal Forest, purchased in 1821 
 by Lord Ashburton. The house, now 
 residence of the Hon. and Rev. Fred. 
 Baring, occupies an elevated site 
 commanding a wide and beautiful 
 view : on an eminence in the park 
 stands a Hindoo temple, erected 
 1800 by its then possessor. Major 
 Osborne, in memory of Warren 
 Hastin^jjs. It was desig;ned by Tho- 
 mas Daniell, R.A. Over the portal 
 is the figure of Ganesa, the genius 
 of wisdom, and within the temple a 
 bust of Warren Hastings rising out 
 of the sacred flower of the lotus. 
 " Sacred to the genii of India, who 
 from time to time assume material 
 forms to protect its nations and its 
 laws, particularly to the immortal 
 Hastings." 
 
 6 m. S. of West Dean is 
 
 Landford, where a Ch. has been 
 built from designs by Butterfield. 
 Landford Manor Bouse, the seat of 
 the Lyghs and Davenants, was pur- 
 chased c. 1720 by John Eyre, from 
 whom it has descended in the female 
 line to Earl Nelson. Its chief front 
 Avas modernized towards the begin- 
 ning of the 1 8 th cent. Landford Lodge, 
 originally Breach House, belonged 
 to Dodington Egerton, and was 
 bought 1776, by Sir W. Heathcote 
 of Hursley, who rebuilt it. 
 
 To the W. of Landford 8 m. is the 
 wild wood of the Earldoms^ originally 
 
 granted by King Edmund to Wulf- 
 gar his Thane, which derives its name 
 from having anciently belonged to 
 the Earls of Pembroke. In its re- 
 cesses is an entrenchment called 
 Castle Hill, undoubtedly of British 
 or Saxon origin, formed by a single 
 rampart and ditch, which encircle a 
 little spring which wells up in the 
 enclosure. On the southern verge 
 of these woods is Hamptwortli Lodge, 
 G. Morrison, Esq. 
 
 To the N.W. of the Earldoms is 
 New House or Ti/c/iebourne Fark (G. E. 
 Matcham, Esq.), erected c. 1619, and 
 enlarged by Chief Justice Eyre, 1689. 
 
 3 m. S. is Whiteparishy in which 
 there stands, W. of the church, a 
 manor-house of the Lynches of the 
 time of James I., with some carved 
 work in wood on the outside, and at 
 the entrance of the village, N.E., in 
 a pretty position, Whelplcij, an an- 
 cient farmhouse, and very interest- 
 ing relic of the old yeoman's esta- 
 blishment;'' and on an adjoining 
 knoll, commanding a view over the 
 New Forest to the sea, the remains 
 of a chapel to St. Leonard. E. of 
 Whiteparish is Cowsfield House, man- 
 sion of the Lawrences, partly rebuilt 
 1815, but still preserving the traces 
 of its Eliz. date. 2 m. W. is Brick- 
 worth House, a Jacobean mansion, but 
 modernised and much injured by 
 fire, for many years a seat of the 
 Eyres, and lately of the Countess 
 Dowager Nelson. 
 
 In Whiteparish Ch. are monuments 
 of the St. Barbes, and Eyres of Brick- 
 worth. There is one to Giles Eyre, 
 Sheriff 1640, who resisted forced 
 loans to Charles I., was plundered by 
 royal troops and imprisoned. He was 
 the father of Rev. Wm. Eyre of St. 
 Edmund's Sarum, " a rigid Calvinist, 
 enemy to tithes, and a purchaser of 
 church revenues ; in those sad times 
 he by his doctrine advanced much 
 the blessed cause at Sarum as Com- 
 missioner for scandalous ministers." 
 — Anthony a Wood,"] 
 
86 
 
 Boute 8. — Salisbury, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 22 J m. W. East Gr instead, 1^ m. 
 N .Farley, birthplace of Sir Stephen 
 Fox,^ b. 1627, founder of the noble 
 families of Fox and Ilchester. The 
 Alms House or Hospital at Farley 
 contains a portrait of Sir Stephen, 
 by Lely. In the brick Ch. erected 
 by Sir Stephen are mural monuments 
 to himself and his two wives, a tablet 
 to his distinguished grandson, Charles 
 James Fox, and a monument to Henry 
 Thomas, Earl of Ilchester, by the 
 younger Westmacott. 
 
 23 m. 1. West Grinstead. 
 
 23f m. 1. Alderhury Junction Stat., 
 where an E. Eng. Ch. with a spire 
 was built in 1858. 
 
 Alderhury House, G. Fort, Esq., 
 was erected with the materials of 
 the ancient belfry of Salisbury Ca- 
 thedral, pulled down by James 
 Wyatt. [Here a line diverges 1. 
 by Downton to Wimborne (Kte. 13).] 
 Proceeding along the line we have 
 Clarendon Lodge rt. and Ivy Church L, 
 and reach 
 
 26f m. Milford Junction, connect- 
 ing the S.W. and G.W. railways, 
 where the line strikes N., and piercing 
 Mizmaze Hill by a tunnel reaches 
 
 28i m. SALISBURY (Inns: White 
 Hart, capital and clean ; Red Lion ; 
 Three Swans). Pop. of Pari, borough, 
 15,659. [Railways diverge from 
 Salisbury: the Great Western by 
 Heytesbury and Warminster to 
 Westbury : the South- Western by An- 
 dover and Basingstoke to London ; 
 by Sherborne and Yeovil to Exe- 
 ter ; by Romsey and Bishopstoke to 
 Southampton; and the Salisbury and 
 Dorset Junction by Downton to Wim- 
 borne. The Stations are at Fisher- 
 ton N. W. of the city.] 
 
 This cathedral and county town is 
 situated in a valley at the confluence 
 of 3 streams, the Upper Avon, Bourn, 
 and Wylye, and near the junction of a 
 4th, the Nadder, from which, for- 
 merly, copious rivulets flowed un- 
 covered through the principal streets : 
 
 fromwhich Salisburyhas been absurdly 
 likened to a " heap of islets thrown 
 together," and, with a bolder fancy, 
 to Venice. The epitaph to Mr. 
 Francis Hide, who died while secre- 
 tary to the Embassy at Venice, 
 mns, 
 
 " Born in the English Venice, thou dost lie, 
 Dear friend, in the Italian Salisbury." 
 
 After the fearful visitation of cholera 
 in 1849, a thorough system of drain- 
 age was carried out in the years 
 1853-4, at an expense, including the 
 water supply, of 27,000^. Salisbury 
 is now one of the best drained and 
 healthiest towns in the kingdom. 
 
 The plan of the city is remarkably 
 regular, an advantage due to the fact 
 of its being a new town laid out in 
 its entirety at its first foundation, 
 and not allowed to grow up without 
 system, as is usually the case. Be- 
 fore the buildings were commenced 
 the ground was very wisely parti- 
 tioned into squares or " chequers," 
 as they were called, and to this we 
 owe the regularity and airiness of 
 the place, the houses being arranged 
 in rectangular groups, which face a 
 thoroughfare on each side, and en- 
 close in the centre an open space for 
 yards and gardens, the streets run- 
 ning in straight lines — 5 from N, to S., 
 and as many from E. to W. It was 
 once famous for clothing and cutlery, 
 but both these manufactures have 
 now dwindled to nothing. 
 
 Salisbury owes its origin to the re- 
 moval of the episcopal see from Old 
 Sarum by Bp. Poore. The situation 
 of Old Sarum, naturally strong and 
 rendered almost impregnable by its 
 formidable lines of entrenchment, 
 was in many respects inconvenient. 
 There was a scarcity of water ; and 
 the cathedral stood so high and ex- 
 posed that, according to an old tradi- 
 tion, " when the wind did blow they 
 could not hear the priest say mass." 
 
 " Est ibi defectus aquae," 
 run the verses of Peter of Blois, him- 
 self a canon of Salisbury, — 
 
Wiltshire. Boute S. — Salisbury; Sistory. 87 
 
 " . . . . sed copia cretas, 
 Saevit ibi ventus, sed Philomela silet." 
 
 In addition to this, after the fall of 
 Bishop Roger, the castle of Old 
 Sarum, which up to that time had 
 been in the custody of the bishops, 
 was Iransferred by the King to the 
 keeping of lay castellans ; and the 
 ecclesiastics complained of suffering 
 much insult and annoyance from the 
 castellans and their rude soldiery. 
 On ore occasion, after a solemn pro- 
 cessioi, they were shut out from 
 their precincts, and compelled to re- 
 main without shelter during a long 
 wintei's night. At other times, even 
 on solttnn festivals, they were re- 
 fused access to their own cathedral. 
 
 What has the house of the Lord to 
 do with castles continues Peter of 
 Blois : *it is the ark of the covenant 
 in a tenple of Baalim. Let us, in 
 God's nane, descend into the level. 
 There artrich champaigns and fertile 
 valleys, ^bounding in the fruits of 
 the earth, and profusely watered by 
 living strams. There is a seat for 
 the Virgirpatroness of our Church to 
 which th( whole world cannot pro- 
 duce a paillel." 
 
 Accordiigly, license having been 
 obtained J-om Pope Honorius, the 
 long-expresed wishes for a removal 
 were carr}d into effect by Bishop 
 Poore. lie site of the new cathe- 
 dral, accoling to one tradition, was 
 determine by an arrow shot from 
 the rampats of Old Sarum ; accord- 
 ing to anoier, the site was revealed 
 to BishopPoore in a dream by the 
 Virgin heself. There is evidence, 
 however, lat the lay inhabitants of 
 Old Sarunas well as the Churchmen 
 were begining to find the limits of 
 the castle omewhat too narrow, and 
 that theyi^ere already removing to 
 new habi.tions in the meadow of 
 Merryfieh i.e. the Maer or boundary 
 field : wh^e three ancient Hundreds, 
 Underditi, Alderbury and Cawdon 
 formerly net ; and where, on the 
 festival / St. Vitalis (April 28, 
 1220), te first stones of the 
 
 existing cathedral of Salisbury 
 were solemnly laid by Bishop Poore. 
 The strong defences which at the 
 period of the Conquest had rendered 
 the castle of Old Sarum a desirable 
 place of refuge, were no longer so 
 greatly needed ; and the land on 
 which the new town and cathedral 
 were building was the actual pro- 
 perty of the Bishop. 
 
 Salisbury soon increased in extent 
 and grew into importance. In 1227, 
 Henry in. , in the eleventh year of his 
 reign, granted a charter to incorporate 
 the new town, making it a free city, 
 with the same extensive immunities 
 and privileges as Winchester enjoyed. 
 In 1278 Edward I. granted a charter 
 confirmatory of the original one. 
 
 In 1244 Bishop Bingham availed 
 himself of the royal charter granted 
 to his predecessor, and brought the 
 Icknield Street, or great western 
 road, through Salisbury. [The 
 original course of this road was 
 over the hill from Old Sarum, 
 through the rectory garden at Be- 
 merton, and across the meadows 
 towards the race-plain. Bishop Bing- 
 ham diverted its course to the New 
 City, and built the bridge over the 
 Avon at Harnham.] This proceed- 
 ing, so advantageous to the interests 
 of the rising community, was most 
 injurious to Wilton, and fatal to Old 
 Sarum. In 1295, the city first sent 
 members to Parliament. In the year 
 1310 a deep fosse was made by the 
 citizens (by permission of the Bishop ) 
 for the defence of the city on the 
 north and north-east sides, it being 
 sufiiciently defended by the rivers 
 on the south and south-west. 
 
 The new city soon began to take 
 the place of the old one as an im- 
 portant centre of the national life oi 
 England, and its annals are illustrated 
 with many stirring events. From 
 its position on the great western 
 road it was in times of civil com- 
 motion a place of importance, and 
 particularly exposed to the passage, 
 of troops. Here, in 1289, the Com- 
 
88 
 
 Boute 8. — Salisbury ; History. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 missiouers met to arrange a match 
 between Prince Edward and the 
 Princess Margaret of Scotland, the 
 Maid of Norway," when 4 ambassa- 
 dors from Eric, King of Norway, were 
 also present. A Parliament of the 
 Barons of the Eealm was held here 
 in Feb. 1297. Bigod, Earl of Nor- 
 folk, Earl Marshal, and De Bohun, 
 Earl of Hereford, Lord Constable, 
 being required by Edward I. to com- 
 mand the forces setting sail for 
 Guienne, refused to comply, and 
 withdrew from the assembly, which 
 broke up, nothing done. A Parlia- 
 ment Avas held here April 20, 1384, 
 when the Duke of Lancaster Avas ac- 
 cused by a Carmelite friar of a design 
 of killing Richard IL A day was ap- 
 pointed for hearing the charge, but 
 the day before the friar was found 
 murdered. Salisbury was visited by 
 Richard IL before his first expedi- 
 tion to Ireland. The citizens es- 
 poused the cause of Henry IV., and 
 received letters of thanks from him 
 for their attachment to his cause. 
 The city w^as honoured by the pre- 
 sence of Henry VI., in 1434 and 
 1438, and his Queen in 1445, when 
 all householders were ordered to pro- 
 vide themselves with " a good gown 
 of blood- colour and a red hood." 
 After Jack Cade's execution one of 
 his quarters was sent here. The 
 year 1484 witnessed a visit from 
 Richard III., and the execution of 
 the Duke of Buckingham, who had 
 been brought hither from Shrews- 
 bury, where he had been betrayed 
 and arrested. Without arraignment 
 or judgment'' (i.e. by martial law, 
 having been taken in arms), he was 
 in the open market-place, on a new 
 scaffold, put to death." This death 
 he received at the hands of King 
 Richard (III.), whom he had before, 
 in his affairs, purposes, enterprises, 
 liolden, sustained, ^ and set forward 
 above all Goddes forbode." — ffaU's 
 Chronicle. The fact is "The deep- 
 revolving witty Buckingham" had 
 become dangerous : — 
 
 "The first was I, that help'd thee to the 
 crown ; 
 
 The last was I that felt thy tyranny : 
 0, in the battle think on Buckingham, 
 And die in terror of thy guiltiness ! " 
 
 Richard III., Act v. sc. 3. 
 The execution is said to have taken 
 place in the yard of the Blue \Boar 
 Inn, which stood on the. site of the 
 present Saracen's Redd. A heidless 
 skeleton, wanting the right arm, 
 exhumed in the kitchen of this inn 
 in 1838, is supposed to havejbeen 
 Buckingham's, but more trustworthy 
 accounts state that he was burifed at 
 the Grey Friars, London. The then 
 Bishop of Salisbury, Lionel Tood- 
 ville, was brother-in-law to th^Duke, 
 and his death, which occuriSd the 
 next year, is supposed to ha/^e been 
 hastened by the bloody end of his 
 relative and the accumulateosorrows 
 of his house. Salisbury yas now 
 frequently honoured by vi,lts from 
 royal personages. Henry ^11. was 
 here in 1491, and again, accompanied 
 by his Queen and his mothe, in 1496. 
 Heniy VIII. and Anne ]oleyn in 
 1535. Edward VI. in 1551. In 
 Mary's reign the fires of i^-rtyrdom 
 were kindled here, and tree men 
 were burnt as heretics at fisherton- 
 field, March 23, 1556. Elizabeth 
 was here on her progress jo Bristol, 
 1574, and received a presnt of "a 
 cup of gold, and 20^. in go^, whereat 
 her majesty was both iferry and 
 pleasant." Salisbury was ^favourite 
 place of retirement of Jams I., who 
 liked the freedom from restraint, 
 and facilities for the chasthe found 
 here. His first visit wasin 1603, 
 soon after his coronationwhen he 
 received, not a gold, buta silver- 
 gilt cup, and 20/., and his ^een 20/. 
 also. James always occbied the 
 Palace during his visits, irthe Hall 
 of which, in 1618, he creap. Kobert 
 Viscount Lisle Earl of Leijster, and 
 William Compton Earl I North- 
 ampton. Sir Walter Ral^h spent 
 a few sad days here on his last 
 journey to London. Jamesfas here, 
 and Raleigh sought to gaiitime by 
 
Wiltshire. Boufe 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral, 
 
 89 
 
 feigning sickness by the aid of a 
 Freiich quack named Manourie. Here 
 he wrote his * Apology for the Voy- 
 age to Guiana.' Charles I. came here 
 in 1625, when Bp. Davenant declined 
 to resign his Palace to him, and the 
 king moved on to Wilton. The year 
 1627 saw a much less welcome guest, 
 the plague. A general panic and 
 flight ensued. The excellent Mayor, 
 John Ivie, proved himself a true 
 Christian hero, and relieved the poor, 
 checked insubordination, and re- 
 pressed rapine and excess. At the 
 period of the Rebellion it was alter- 
 nately occupied by either party as 
 they marched through the country 
 — by Ludlow, then by Dodington, 
 and next by Waller, who in turn 
 retreated before the King and Prince 
 Maurice. In 1645 Ludlow with a 
 few horsemen held the Close against 
 Sir Marmaduke Langdale, and for 
 several hours maintained an unequal 
 fight in the market-place and adjoin- 
 ing streets, his troopers on one occa- 
 sion charging through the narrow 
 passage by the Poultry Cross. Oct. 
 17 of the same year Cromwell was 
 here after the siege of Basing House. 
 After the battle of Worcester Charles 
 IL lay concealed for a few days near 
 Salisbury, and at the King's Arms, 
 St. John-street, his friends met in 
 secret and successfully planned his 
 escape. The city then regained the 
 tranquillity it had lost, but in 1655 
 it was once again disturbed by the 
 abortive rising of Penruddocke and 
 his companions, who entered it in 
 considerable force at the time of the 
 Assizes, captured the judges and 
 sheriff, and proclaimed Charles II.; 
 but meeting with no sympathy, re- 
 tired, and were soon afterwards 
 seized and executed. The memoirs 
 of the excellent Lady Fanshawe 
 present us with a pleasing picture. 
 She and her family were accom- 
 panying Sir Richard, who was on 
 his way to Portugal, charged with 
 an important public mission, August 
 1662. "My husband and I and our 
 
 children,'' she writes, " having beg- 
 ged of the Bishop (Humphry Hench- 
 man) a blessing at his own house, 
 dined at Blandford." Charles II. 
 took refuge here from fear of the 
 plague in 1665. The last event of 
 moment of which this city was the 
 scene occurred at the memorable 
 crisis of the Revolution of 1688. 
 The army had been concentrated at 
 Salisbury to oppose the Prince of 
 Orange, but, his landing having been 
 effected in Torbay, it hastened for- 
 ward to welcome him, and James, 
 who had taken up his quarters in the 
 Palace, November 19, found it neces- 
 sary to retrace his steps. On the 4th 
 of December the Prince of Orange 
 triumphantly entered the city, " with 
 the same military pomp he had dis- 
 played at Exeter, and was lodged in 
 the Palace James had occupied but a 
 few days before." — Macaiday. A few 
 days later William removed to Little- 
 cote, where he received the welcome 
 intelligence of the King's flight from 
 London. 
 
 The Cathedral is the chief object 
 of attraction to every visitor to Salis- 
 bury. In some respects it may be 
 considered the first of our English 
 cathedrals, and, taken as a whole, it 
 must always hold a very high place 
 among them. 
 
 *' In this church," writes Mr. Fer- 
 gusson, *' we have a plan not only 
 extremely beautiful, but perfectly 
 original. There is scarcely any trace 
 of French or foreign influence; 
 everything is the result of the native 
 elaboration during the previous cen- 
 tury and a half. The apsidal ar- 
 rangement, so universal in Norman 
 cathedrals, has disappeared never to 
 return (except in Westminster Abbey 
 and Lichfield) ; and the square E. 
 termination may henceforth be con- 
 sidered as established in this country 
 — the early symbol of that inde- 
 pendence which eventually led to the 
 Reformation. When viewed from 
 any point E. of the great transept, it 
 
90 
 
 itoute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral. Wiltshire. 
 
 displays one of the best proportioned 
 and, at the same time, most poetic 
 designs of the middle ages. The spire 
 is among the most imposing objects of 
 which Gothic architecture can boast." 
 
 The ground plan shows the fully- 
 developed arrangement of a second 
 or choir transept, found also at 
 Canterbury, Lincoln, Worcester, 
 Beverley, and Rochester, and at 
 Clugny in France. The Lady-chapel 
 projects at a lower altitude at the 
 E. extremity, and there is a lofty 
 and dignified N. porch. To the S. 
 of the nave are the Cloisters and 
 Chapter-house, and beyond them the 
 Bishop's palace. 
 
 The foundation was laid by Bishop 
 Poore, April 28, 1220 : the first stone 
 for the Pope, Honorius IIL, who 
 had consented to the removal of the 
 church from Old Sarum ; the second 
 for Stephen Langton, Archbishop of 
 Canterbury, then absent with the 
 young king, Henry IIL, in the 
 marches in Wales ; and the third for 
 Bishop Poore himself. The fourth 
 stone was laid by William Longespee, 
 Earl of Salisbury; and the fifth by 
 the Countess Ela, his wife. Others 
 of the nobles and clergy who were 
 present then added to the founda- 
 tions ; and when the great body of 
 the nobles returned with the King 
 from Wales, many of them visited 
 Salisbury, " and each laid his stone, 
 binding himself to some special con- 
 tribution for a period of seven years.'' 
 In five years' time (1225) the work 
 was so far advanced that three altars 
 were consecrated by Bishop Poore. 
 Bishop Poore's immediate successors, 
 Robert Bingham (1229— 1246), 
 William of York (1246—1256), and 
 Giles of Bridport (1256 — 1262), 
 carried on with great zeal the 
 building of the new cathedral, 
 which in 1258, during the epis- 
 copate of Bishop Giles, was "new 
 hallowed " by Archbishop Boniface 
 of Savoy, in presence of Henry III. 
 and his Queen. Its final dedication 
 took place, Lady Day, 1260. Before 
 
 the completion of the cathedral, Wil- 
 liam Longespee died, and was buried 
 in it ; and the bodies of three bishops 
 — Osmund, Roger, and Joscelyn — 
 were brought to it from Old Sarum, 
 Elias de Dereham, a personal friend 
 of Bishop Poore's, acted as clerk of 
 the works for the first twenty years, 
 and a certain " Robertus " for the 
 twenty following. The cost of the 
 whole work is said to have been 
 40,000 marks, or 26,666^. 13s. 4d, 
 This sum was collected by contribu- 
 tions from the prebendaries them- 
 selves, by collections from different 
 dioceses, to each of which a pre- 
 bendary of Salisbury was duly des- 
 patched, and by liberal grants from 
 various benefactors, such as Alicia 
 de Bruere, who gave all the stone 
 necessary for the work during twelve 
 years. 
 
 The cloisters and chapter-house 
 were commenced during the episco- 
 pate of Walter de la Wyley (1263— 
 1270), and perhaps completed in that 
 of his successor, Robert de Wick- 
 hampton (1270—1284). . The spire 
 (which seems, however, to have 
 formed part of the original plan) was 
 erected in the time of Bishop Robert 
 de Wyvil (1330—1375). 
 
 The history of no English cathe- 
 dral is so clear and so readily trace- 
 able as that of Salisbury. With the 
 exception of St. Hugh's Choir at 
 Lincoln (commenced 1192), it was 
 the first great church built in Eng- 
 land in what was then the new, or 
 Pointed style (Early English) ; of 
 which it still remains, as a whole, one 
 of the finest and most complete 
 examples. The cathedral is built 
 throughout with freestone obtained 
 from the Chilmark quarries, situ- 
 ated about twelve miles from Salis- 
 bury, towards Hindon, and still 
 worked. The stone belongs to the 
 Portland beds of the oolite. The 
 pillars and pilasters of the interior 
 are of Purbeck shell-marble. The 
 local rhyme in which the cathedral 
 is celebrated may here be quoted ; it 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral, 
 
 91 
 
 REFERENCES. 
 
 A. Nave. 
 
 B. North Transept. 
 
 C. South Transept. 
 
 D. Choir. 
 
 E. North Choir-aisle. 
 
 F. North-east Transept. 
 
 G. Eastern Aisles and Lady- 
 
 chapel. 
 
 H. South Choir-aisle, 
 J. South-east Transept. 
 
 1. North Porch. 
 
 2. Monument assigned to 
 
 Bp. Herman. 
 
 3. Bp. Jocelyn. 
 
 4. Bp. Roger. 
 
 5. Unknown tomb. 
 
 6. Bp. Beauchamp. 
 
 V. Robert Ix)rd Hunger- 
 ford. 
 
 8. Lord Stourton. 
 
 9. Bp. de la Wyley. 
 
 10. Longespee, the first Earl 
 
 of Salisbury. 
 
 11. Sir John Cheney. 
 
 12. Walter, Lord Hunger- 
 
 ford, and his wife. 
 
 14. Sir John de Montacutc. 
 
 15. Unknown tomb. 
 
 16. Unknown tomb. 
 
 17. Longespee, the second 
 
 Earl of Salisbury. 
 
 18. Boy Bishop. 
 
 19. Unknown tomb. 
 
 20. Bp. Blythe. 
 
 21. Bp, Woodville. 
 
 22. Staircase leading to tower. 
 
 23. Bp. Mitford. 
 
 24. Doorway to Cloisters and 
 
 Chapter-house. 
 
 25. Bp. Audley's Chantry. 
 2G. Lord Hungerford's Chan- 
 try. 
 
 27. Sir Thomas Gorges. 
 
 28. Bp. Roger de Mortival. 
 
 29. Bp. Bingham. 
 
 30. Bp. Poore. 
 
 31. Brass of Bp. Wyvill. 
 
 32. Edward, Earl of Hert- 
 
 ford. 
 
 33. William Wilton. 
 
 34. Bp. William of York. 
 
 35. Bp. Giles of Bridport. 
 
 ' 36. Doorway to Munlment- 
 room. 
 
 37. Sir Richard Mompesson. 
 
 38. Bp. Hamilton. 
 
 39. Altar. 
 
 40. Bp. Osmund. 
 
 Ground Plan op Salisbury Cathedral. 
 
D2 
 
 \Route 8. — Salishury ; Cathedral. Wiltshire. 
 
 is attributed by Godwin, who gives a 
 Latin version of it, to a certain Daniel 
 Kogers : — 
 
 " As many days as in one year there be, 
 So many windows in this church you see. 
 As many marble pillars here appear 
 As there are hours through the fleeting 
 year. 
 
 As many gates as moons one here does 
 view, 
 
 Strange tale to tell, yet not more strange 
 than true." 
 
 The usual alterations took place in 
 Salisbury Cathedral at the Reforma- 
 tion, when much of the painted glass 
 is said to have been removed by 
 Bishop Jewell. Although desolate 
 and abandoned, it escaped material 
 profanation during the Civil War; 
 and workmen w ere even employed to 
 keep it in repair, replying, says Dr. 
 Pope (' Life of Bishop Ward when 
 questioned by whom they were sent, 
 — Those who employ us will pay 
 us ; trouble not yourselves to en- 
 quire ; whoever they are they do not 
 desire to have their names known." 
 On the Restoration, a report of the 
 general condition of the cathedral 
 was supplied by Sir Christopher 
 Wren, and certain additions for the 
 strengthening of the spire were made 
 at his recommendation. The great 
 work of destruction was reserved for 
 a later period, and for more compe- 
 tent hands. Under Bishop Barring- 
 ton (17S2 — 1791) the architect James 
 Wyatt was, unhappily, let loose upon 
 Salisbury. He swept away screens, 
 chapels, and porches ; desecrated and 
 destroyed the tombs of warriors and 
 prelates; obliterated ancient paint- 
 ings: flung stained glass by cart- 
 loads into the city ditch ; and levelled 
 with the ground the campanile — of 
 the same date as the cathedral itself 
 — which stood on the N. side of the 
 churchyard. " It was multangular 
 in form, surmounted by a leaden 
 spire with walls and buttresses similar 
 to the chapter-house and cloisters, 
 and a single pillar of Purbeck marble 
 in the centre, supporting the bells and 
 spire with its leaden covering."— 
 
 His operations, which at the time 
 were pronounced tasteful, effective, 
 and judicious,'* will be noticed more 
 at length in their proper places. 
 
 The Close, within which the cathe- 
 dral stands, was first surrounded 
 with an embattled wall in the reign 
 of Edward III, who in 1326 granted 
 a licence for this purpose, and in 1331 
 issued letters patent to the bishop 
 and canons empowering them to re- 
 move for the building of the Close 
 wall and of the tower, the walls of 
 the cathedral of Old Sarum, which 
 was still standing. A large number 
 of carved bosses of Norman date, 
 supposed with reason to be fragments 
 of this cathedral, may still be seen 
 over the N. gate of the Close, and 
 in the wall S. of that leading into St. 
 Anne's Street. 
 
 The Close has 4 gateways : Ham- 
 ham Gate to the South ; St. Anne's to 
 the N.E., with a chapel over it ; the 
 Cemetery Gate at the end of the High 
 Street, ornamented with a statue of 
 James L by Beckwith, on the S. 
 front ; and Bishop's Gate fronting 
 Exeter Street. 
 
 Passing into the Close, the visitor 
 finds himself confronted by the great 
 cathedral, rising grey and time- 
 honoured from the broad lawn of 
 greensward that encircles it, and well 
 contrasted by groups of fine trees, 
 here as ever increasing the effect of 
 noble architecture. The position is 
 unusually clear and open ; Nor can 
 the most curious, not to say cavilling, 
 eye," says old Fuller, " desire any- 
 thing which is wanting in this edifice, 
 except possibly an ascent, — seeing 
 such who address themselves hither 
 for their devotions can hardly say 
 with David, ' I will go up dnto the 
 house of the Lord.' " The best point 
 of view is from the north-east, which 
 Rickman has pronounced "the best 
 general view of a cathedral to be had 
 in England, displaying the various 
 portions of this interesting building 
 to the greatest advantage." " The 
 bold breaking of the outline by the 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Route 8. — Salishurif ; Cathedral, 
 
 93 
 
 two transepts, instead of cutting it ; 
 up by buttresses and pinnacles," to 
 which the N. porch may be added, 
 ** is a master-stroke of art ; and the 
 noble central tower, which, though 
 erected at a later age, was evidently 
 intended from the first, crowns the 
 whole composition with singular 
 beauty/' — Fergusson. 
 
 The point to which the attention 
 of the stranger is at once drawn is, 
 of course, the grand peculiarity of 
 Salisbury, the "silent finger" of its 
 spire. This is the loftiest in Eng- 
 land, rising 404 feet above the pave- 
 ment (Chichester, said, but very 
 doubtfully, to have been built in imi- 
 tation of it, is 277 feet in height; 
 Norwich, 313 feet), and its summit is 
 48 feet above the top of St. Paul's. 
 The central spire of Amiens, a mere 
 fleche (422 feet) is 22 feet higher than 
 Salisbury ; and that of Strasburg 
 (468 feet), the highest in the world, 
 08 feet. It may well be doubted, 
 however, whether in general effect 
 and in grace of proportion Salisbury 
 should not occupy the first place. 
 
 The Early English portion termi- 
 nates with the first story, about eight 
 feet above the roof; the two additional 
 stories and the spire above them date, 
 as has already been stated, from the 
 reign of Edward III. At each angle 
 of the tower is an octagonal stair- 
 turret, crowned with a small crock- 
 eted spire. The great spire, itself 
 octagonal, rises from between four 
 richly-decorated pinnacles. Its walls 
 are two feet in thickness from the 
 bottom to a height of twenty feet ; 
 from thence to the summit their thick- 
 ness is only nine inches. The spire 
 is filled with a remarkable frame of 
 timber-work, which served as a scaf- 
 fold during its erection. Whilst 
 making some repairs in 1762, the 
 workmen found a cavity on the south 
 side of the capstone, in which was a 
 leaden box, enclosing a second of 
 wood which contained a piece of 
 much decayed silk or fine linen, no 
 doubt a relic ! :)()ssibly of the Vir- 
 
 gin to whom the cathedral is dedi- 
 cated) placed there in order to avert 
 lightning and tempest. 
 
 Owing to a settlement in the two 
 western tower-piers, the spire, as a 
 plumb-line dropped from the vane 
 indicates, is twenty-three inches out 
 of the perpendicular. Great fears 
 were in consequence entertained at 
 one time for the safety of the build- 
 ing, but no further movement has 
 been detected for the last two cen- 
 turies, and it has been recently 
 strengthened by the late Sir Gilbert 
 Scott. 
 
 The West Front, recently restored, 
 is not a little striking. It w^as no 
 doubt the portion of the cathedral 
 last completed, as is especially indi- 
 cated by the occurrence among its 
 mouldings of the ball-flower, charac- 
 teristic for the most part, of the 
 Decorated style of the 14th cent. 
 The front itself consists of a central 
 compartment, rising into a steep 
 gable, and flanked by a screen wall, 
 the angles of which are supported 
 by square buttress towers, capped by 
 small spires. In the central com- 
 partment is a triple porch with cano- 
 pies, and the Avestern window, a 
 triplet divided by slender clustered 
 columns. The entire front is divided 
 into five stories by its mouldings, and 
 the canopies of its blind arcades 
 originally sheltered a host of more 
 than a hundred statues, most of 
 which are being restored to their 
 places. Our Lord in Majesty fills 
 the apex of the gable. Below the 
 sculptures are ranged in five tiers, 
 embodying the divisions of the " Te 
 Deum laudamus.'' (1) Angels; (2) 
 O. T. patriarchs and prophets; (3) 
 N. T. apostles and evangelists ; (4) 
 Doctors of the Church — virgins and 
 martyrs ; (5) Bishops and monarchs 
 of the Ch. of England, connected 
 with Salisbury. In the niches of the 
 ' W. portal are statues of the B.V.M. 
 with angels, and above the doorway 
 the Virgin and Child. The Conse- 
 cnitfr>.i ('rosscSf on different parts of 
 
94 
 
 Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral, Wiltshire. 
 
 the exterior, are large and numerous. 
 
 The North Porch, which serves as 
 the usual entrance to the cathedral, 
 recently restored by his widow in 
 memory of Dean Hamilton, under 
 the late Mr. G. E. Street's care, is 
 lofty and fine, lined with a double 
 arcade, and having a chamber in its 
 upper story. 
 
 We now enter the Nave, and the 
 visitor, if he has passed into it through 
 the north porch, should proceed at 
 once to the western extremity, for the 
 sake of the general view, which, in 
 spite of a certain coldness arising 
 from want of stained glass, is ex- 
 ceedingly beautiful, the perfect 
 uniformity of the architecture con- 
 tributing not a little towards it. 
 Even Wyatt's arrangement of the 
 monuments, on the continuous plinth 
 between each pier, monstrous in its 
 principle, and altogether inaccurate 
 in its execution, has a certain solemn 
 grandeur. The nave itself is divided 
 into ten bays by clustered columns 
 of Purbeck marble. Above the nave- 
 arches runs the triforium ; and above 
 again the clerestory windows (triple 
 lancets) are placed, each in a bay of 
 the vaulting. This, which is plain, 
 without ridge-ribs, rises from clus- 
 tered shafts with foliated capitals. 
 The windows in the nave-aisles are 
 double lancets. 
 
 A certain plainness of mouldings 
 and deficiency of elaborate orna- 
 mentation may be observed through- 
 out the cathedral. The plate-tracery 
 of the triforium is characteristic of 
 the first period of Early English 
 architecture. 
 
 The height of the nave of Salisbury 
 is 84 ft. ; the width 82. 
 
 The greater part of the ancient 
 stained glass throughout the cathedral 
 which had survived Jewell's Protes- 
 tant zeal, was removed and destroyed 
 during Wyatt's 'restoration.' The 
 scanty fragments that remain were 
 collected and placed about 30 years 
 since in their present situations, in 
 the west triplet of the nave, in the 
 
 west window of each aisle of the 
 nave, and in some other parts of the 
 cathedral. 
 
 The western triplet is filled with 
 glass of dates ranging from E.E. to 
 cinquecento. The E. E. glass is of 
 two periods, and consists of the 
 remains of a Jesse window in the 
 lower part and sides of the central 
 light of the west triplet, c. 1240, and 
 of some medallions removed from 
 the windows of the chapter-house, 
 not earlier than 1270, with other 
 later portions. 
 
 The present arrangement of the 
 monuments in the nave was made by 
 Wyatt in 1789. Not only have they 
 been displaced from their original 
 positions, by which their historical 
 interest has materially suffered, but 
 the tombs on which the effigies are 
 lying " are ignorantly made up of 
 fragments evidently belonging to 
 totally different erections, and to 
 distinct periods from those to which 
 the sculptured figures they support 
 are attributable." Beginning at the 
 W. end they are as follows : — 
 
 On the S.side (2) a fiat coffin-shaped 
 stone, said to have been brought 
 from Old Sarum, and to have co- 
 vered the remains of Bishop Herman 
 (d. 1078). (3) (4) Immediately be- 
 yond are two slabs with figures in 
 low relief, which are among the 
 earliest examples of their class in 
 England, their only rivals being the 
 sepulchral slabs of two abbots (dates 
 1086 and 1172) in the cloisters of 
 Westminster Abbey. They were 
 brought from Old Sarum, and are 
 supposed to represent Bishop Eoger 
 (d. 1139) and Bishop Joscelyn (d. 
 1184). 
 
 In the slab of Bishop Roger " the 
 treatment of the drapery and other 
 parts is very characteristic of the 
 rudest era of sculpture, closely re- 
 sembling, in many respects that will 
 occur to the antiquary, what is called 
 the Etruscan style."—^. W. The 
 foliage and ornaments are of early 
 E. E. character. 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Salishury ; Cathedral, 
 
 95 
 
 "The head of Bishop Joscelyn, 
 though of very early work, is evi- 
 dently a later addition to the ori- 
 ginal figure ; the action of the right 
 hand displays great feeling and con- 
 siderable power of art." — i?. West- 
 macott. On what appears to be the 
 central ornament of his cope are 
 the words " Afier opem : devenies in 
 idem ; " on the vertical edge of the 
 slab is an inscription, commencing at 
 the head of the figure. 
 
 (5) An altar-tomb of the 15th 
 cent — unknown. (6) An altar- tomb 
 removed from the north transept 
 aisle, and now containing the remains 
 of Bishop Beauchamp (d. 1482), 
 whose chantry was destroyed by 
 Wyatt, and whose own tomb was 
 'mislaid* during the operations of 
 the same great destructive. (7) The 
 effigy of Robert Lord Hungerford 
 (d. 1459), who served in France 
 under the Regent Duke of Bed- 
 ford, and whose widow, Margaret, 
 daughter of Lord Botreaux, founded 
 the Hungerford Chapel, destroyed, 
 like Beauchamp' s, by Wyatt. The 
 tomb on which the effigy rests was 
 made up from portions of that chapel. 
 The figure has a collar of SS. round 
 the neck, and is in plate-armour, — an 
 excellent example, showing an ap- 
 proach to that extreme splendour 
 which was attained under Richard 
 III. All the pieces of armour are 
 beautifully ridged, the origin of the 
 fluted style so prevalent during the 
 reign of Henry VII. — (^Meyrick.) The 
 highly-ornamented sword (now lost) 
 and dagger are suspended from a 
 jewelled girdle. (8) Charles Lord 
 Stourton, the original place of which 
 was at the east end of the church, near 
 the Somerset monument. The 3 aper- 
 tures on each side, representing wells 
 or fountains, are emblematic of the 
 six sources of the Stour, which rise 
 near Stourhead, the ancient seat of 
 the Stourtons, and occur in their 
 armorial bearings. Lord Stourton 
 was hung March 6, 1556, in the 
 market-place at Salisbury, for the 
 
 murder of the two Hartgills, father 
 and son, for thwarting his design of 
 extorting a bond not to marry again 
 from his mother, the dowager Lady 
 Stourton, over whom they had con- 
 siderable influence. 
 
 The only concession made to Lord 
 Stourton's noble birth was that he 
 should be hung by a silken cord. 
 A twisted wire with a noose, em- 
 blematic of the halter, was hanging- 
 over the tomb as a memorial of his 
 crime as late as the year 1775. 
 
 (9) The next effigy, much muti- 
 lated, is that of Bishop De la Wyley 
 (d. 1270). The base is made up of 
 fragments of much later date. (10) 
 Last on this side, on his tomb, is the 
 fine and very interesting effigy of Wil- 
 liam Longespee (d. 1 226), first Earl of 
 Salisbury of that name, and natural 
 son of Henry II. "The manly, war- 
 rior character of the figure is particu- 
 larly striking, even in the recumbent 
 attitude, while the turn of the head, 
 and the graceful flow of lines in the 
 right hand and arm, with the natu- 
 ral, heavy fall of the chain-armour 
 on that side, exhibit a feeling of art 
 which would not do discredit to a 
 very advanced school."—^. Westmcf- 
 cott. The effigy is entirely in chain- 
 mail, covering the mouth as well as 
 the chin in an unusual manner. Over 
 the mail is the short cyclas or sur- 
 coat. On the earl's shield are the 
 six golden lioncels also borne by 
 his grandfather, Geoff'rey Count of 
 Anjou. Longespee acquired the earl- 
 dom of Salisbury through marriage 
 with its heiress, the Countess Ela. 
 The earl and his countess, as has 
 already been mentioned, had assisted 
 in laying the foundation-stones of 
 the cathedral in which he was now 
 interred. The slab and effigy of this 
 monument are of stone, and the 
 effigy shows the traces of the colour 
 with which it was enriched. The base 
 is of wood, and all has been richly 
 painted and gilt. The wood within 
 the arcade was covered with linen, 
 on which was laid a white ground 
 
96 
 
 Eoute 8. — Salisbury; Cathedral. Wiltshire. 
 
 for gilding or silvering. On the N. 
 side, the linen, with its silvering, re- 
 mains, and each arch has a different 
 diaper pattern hatched with a point 
 on the silver. 
 
 On the iV. side of the nave, returning 
 westward (11), opposite William 
 Longespee, Sir John Cheyney (d. 
 1509). Round the neck, appended 
 to a collar of SS, appears the port- 
 cullis-badge of Henry VII. Sir John, 
 who was of extraordinary size and 
 strength, was the standard-bearer of 
 Henry of Richmond at the battle of 
 Boswortli, and was unhorsed by 
 Richard III. in that desperate final 
 rush, when the King killed Sir Wil- 
 liam Brandon, and making a savage 
 blow at Richmond himself, was over- 
 powered by numbers, thrown from 
 his horse, and killed. When the 
 remains of Sir John Cheyney were 
 removed by Wyatt from their ori- 
 ginal resting-place, the traditions of 
 his great size were confirmed, the 
 thigh-bone measuring 21 inches, 
 nearly 3 inches longer than ordinary. 
 (12) The tombs below Sir John's are 
 those of Walter LordHungerford and 
 his wife. The brasses have been re- 
 moved. (13) [The memorial, if not the 
 actual tomb, of Bp. Osmund (d. 1099), 
 the sainted patron of Salisbury, has 
 been removed to the Lady-chapel, its 
 original place.] (14) The effigy of Sir 
 John de Montacute (d. 1389) , younger 
 son of William, the first Montacute 
 Earl of Salisbury. He was present 
 at the battle of Cressy, and served 
 in Scotland under Richard II. His 
 effigy affords a good specimen of 
 highly - ornamented gauntlets, of a 
 contrivance for the easier bending 
 of the body, at the bottom of the 
 breastplate, and of the elegant man- 
 ner of twisting the hanging sword- 
 belt, pendent from the military girdle, 
 round the upper part of the sword/' 
 — Meyrick. The two next altar-tombs 
 (1 5, 1 6) are unappropriated. (1 7) The 
 elBgy of the second Longespee, Earl of 
 Salisbury (d. 1250), son of Earl Wil- 
 liam, already noticed. It is cross- 
 
 legged; and the chain-armour has 
 elbow-plates, and "poleyns," or small 
 plates of mail at the knees. Earl Wil - 
 liam II. was twice a crusader; in 1 240, 
 returning in 1242 ; and again in 1 249, 
 when he joined St. Louis of France 
 at Damietta. Early in the follow- 
 ing year he accompanied a body of 
 Christians, led by the brother of 
 Louis, towards Cairo. They were 
 surprised and surrounded by the 
 Saracens ; and Longespee, with his 
 standard-bearer, fell fighting vali- 
 antly. His remains were at length 
 delivered to the Christians, who de- 
 posited them in the Church of the 
 Holy Cross, at Acre. This monument 
 is said to have been raised by his 
 mother. (18) Beyond is a curious 
 monument of E. E. character, usually 
 called that of *'the Boy Bishop," 
 but more probably merely a diminu- 
 tive episcopal effigy, placed here c. 
 1 680, when it was found buried under 
 the seating of the choir. [The boy, or 
 choral bishop, was elected by the boys 
 of the choir on St. Nicholas day (Dec. 
 6) ; and until Holy Innocents' day 
 (Dec. 28), he sustained the dignity 
 of bishop, the other choristers repre- 
 senting his prebendaries. A solemn 
 service, with a procession, was per- 
 formed by the children on the eve 
 of Innocents' day. The custom, 
 which was not confined to Salisbury, 
 was forbidden by Henry VIII., and 
 finally abolished by Elizabeth.] ( 1 9) 
 The last tomb on this side — an 
 ancient coffin-shaped sarcophagus 
 — is that of some unknown per- 
 sonage. Against the west wall of 
 the nave, on either side of the en- 
 trance, are — north, a monument for 
 Dr. Turbervile, an oculist of Salis- 
 bury, died 1696; and south, a monu- 
 ment of Rysbrack for Thomas, Lord 
 Wyndham, died 1745. 
 
 From the nave we enter the North 
 Transept, passing under the wide 
 Perp. arch, which (as at Canterbury 
 and Wells), was inserted early in the 
 1 5th centy. by way of counter-thrust 
 against the weight of the central 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral, 9? 
 
 tower, under which the central piers 
 had already given way to some ex- 
 tent, as Avill be at once perceived. 
 The triforium and clerestory of the 
 nave are carried round the transept ; 
 the triforium, on the N. side, being re- 
 placed by two-light windows of very 
 elegant character. The clerestory 
 window above, with its slender pi- 
 lasters and graceful flow of lines, de- 
 serves especial notice. Each transept 
 has an eastern aisle divided by clus- 
 tered piers into three chapels. The 
 screens which formerly enclosed them 
 were swept away by Wyatt. 
 
 The monuments to be noticed in 
 this transept are three by Flaxman, 
 — the most important to William 
 Benson Earle, the bas-relief on which 
 represents the Good Samaritan. The 
 other two are to Walter and William 
 Long. "There is nothing extraor- 
 dinary in the design, but the work- 
 manship is good, and there is real 
 feeling in the heads." — Waafjen. The 
 monument to James Harris, author 
 of * Hermes,' is by Bacon ; that to 
 his son, the first Earl of Malmesbury, 
 by Chantrei/, The seated figure of 
 Sir Richard Colt Hoare, the his- 
 torian of Wiltshire, is the work of 
 Lucas, a native of Salisbury. Re- 
 mark also, against the W. wall of 
 the transept, a memorial of John 
 Britton, one of the fathers of modern 
 archaeology, placed here, in the ca- 
 thedral of his native county, by the 
 Royal Institute of British Architects, 
 in 1857. Against the N. wall is the 
 mutilated efiigy of a bishop, pro- 
 bably Bp. Blyth, d. 1499 (20) ; and 
 partly in the eastern aisle is a large 
 tomb with canopy, assigned to Bp. 
 Woodville, d. 1484 (21). 
 
 A staircase in the angle of the 
 transept leads upward to the toicer, 
 which may be ascended by staircases 
 in each of its corner turrets. The 
 top of the tower is called the " Eight 
 Doors," from the double doors on 
 each side, through which the visitor 
 will obtain magnificent views over 
 the town and surrounding country. 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, 4c„lS827\ 
 
 The first story of the tower is of 
 E. E. date, and originally formed a 
 lantern, open to the nave. It is sur- 
 rounded by an arcade of slender pi- 
 lasters. The ascent of the spire — 
 which is a formidable undertaking 
 — is made internally by a series of 
 slender ladders as far as a little door 
 about 40 ft. below the vane; and 
 from that point the adventurous 
 climber has to scale the outside by 
 means of hooks attached to the walls. 
 The interior is filled with a timber 
 frame, consisting of a central piece 
 with arms and braces. This entire 
 frame, the arms of which were made 
 to support floors which served as 
 scaffolds whilst the spire was build- 
 ing, is hung to the capstone of the 
 spire by iron cross bars, and by the 
 iron standard of the vane, which is 
 fixed to the upper part of the central 
 piece. Great additional strength is 
 thus given to the whole shell of the 
 spire, and especially to its summit. 
 The arms and braces are not mor- 
 tised into the central piece, but are 
 so fitted as to be removed at plea- 
 sure, for the sake of easy repair. 
 
 The South Transejyt is in all re- 
 spects a counterpart of the north. 
 The windows of the S. end of this 
 transept are filled with grisaille 
 glass; that in the two uppermost 
 lights being E. E. The rest con- 
 tain glass by Bell, in memory of 
 the late Dean Hamilton. The prin- 
 cipal monuments in this transept 
 are, between the S. choir-aisle and 
 that of the transept, — the very fine 
 altar-tomb, with effigy, of Bishop 
 Mitford, d. 1407 (23). The panels 
 and arches of the tomb deserve 
 notice ; and the effigy itself, of white 
 marble, is unusually solemn and im- 
 pressive. In the hollow moulding 
 of the canopy are birds bearing 
 scrolls, with the inscription, " Honor 
 Deo et gloria." Against the E. wall 
 of the aisle is a small quatrefoil in 
 Caen stone., enelosinga floriated cross, 
 designed by Fugin, for Lieut. Wm. 
 Fisher, killed at Moodkee, Dec. 18, 
 U 
 
98 
 
 Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral, Wiltshire. 
 
 1845. In the middle chapel is a very 
 elaborate altar-tomb, within an open 
 arcade, richly ornamented with mo- 
 saics and coloured marbles, designed 
 by Street to Major Jacob, d. 1862, 
 erected by the Wilts Eifle Volun- 
 teers; and near the S.E. angle, a 
 modern memorial of unusual cha- 
 racter, for Bp. Fisher, tutor of the 
 Princess Charlotte of Wales, d. 1825, 
 and buried at Windsor. It consists 
 of an altar-tomb beneath a canopy, 
 on which repose the pastoral staff, 
 mitre and Bible. Against the S. wall 
 is the monument of Edward Poore, d. 
 1780, and his wife; and on the W. 
 wall, the monument with bust of Lord 
 Chief Justice Hyde, Lord Claren- 
 don's first cousin, d. 1665. At the 
 S.W. angle is a good double piscina. 
 A door at the S.W. angle of this 
 transept leads into the Cloisters and 
 Chapter-house (see post), 
 
 Eeturning to the central tower- 
 arches (the lierne vault above which 
 is Perp.), we enter the Choir, which 
 has been restored as a memorial to 
 the late Bp., W. K. Hamilton, and 
 reopened in 1876. The organ-screen, 
 formed of fragments from the Hun- 
 gerford and Beauchamp chapels, de- 
 stroyed by Wyatt, has given place 
 to a very elaborately- worked, light, 
 open screen of brass, by Skidmore, 
 terminating in a lofty cross, the gift 
 of Mrs. Sidney Lear. The organ, 
 built by Green, of Isleworth, the 
 gift of George III. in the character 
 of a Berkshire gentleman" (until 
 1836, Berkshire formed part of the 
 diocese of Salisbury), has been re- 
 moved to St. Thomas's church, and 
 a very large instrument by Willis, of 
 immense power and great sweetness 
 of tone, the gift of Miss Chafyn 
 Grove, has been erected, half on the 
 N. and half on the S. side of the 
 second bay of the choir. The 
 bellows and the machinery for work- 
 ing them (a gas engine) encumber 
 the chapels of the N. transepts. 
 
 The architecture of the CAo/r, — 
 piers, triforium, and clerestory,— 
 
 differs in no respect from that of 
 the nave. Above the 3 arches at 
 the eastern end, the triforium, in- 
 stead of its ordinary grouping, is 
 formed by 5 small arches with 
 cinquefoil headings. Above is a 
 triplet window, with a blind panel- 
 ling on either side. The glass in 
 this window, by Pearson after a 
 design by Mortimer, the subject of 
 which is the elevation of the brazen 
 serpent, was given by the Earl of 
 Radnor in 1781, and is not without 
 merit. " The colouring is lively, and 
 the picture has~a certain degree of 
 brilliancy." — C. Winston. 
 
 The marble and stone work of the 
 choir has been restored, and the 
 exterior of the chantry chapel of 
 Bishop Audley has been made good; 
 the floor of the choir being lowered 
 10 in. to its original level. The 
 pavement of the choir is a combina- 
 tion of encaustic tiles, copied from 
 old tiles found in the cathedral, and 
 of Purbeck and foreign marbles. 
 The steps are placed in the old 
 positions as indicated by the remains 
 of the paving and by the references 
 to them in the Sarum Office. The 
 canopied tombs of Bp. Bingham, N., 
 and of Bp. Yorke, S., which had been 
 hidden by wooden screens, have been 
 laid open and repaired. The paint- 
 ings on the ceiling of the choir, 
 which were plainly discernible 
 through Wyatt's colour-wash, nave 
 been carefully and skilfully repro- 
 duced by Messrs. Clayton and Bell. 
 These paintings were executed in 
 the latter part of the 13th century, 
 shortly after the consecration of the 
 cathedral. The design consists of 
 a " Majesty," painted in a vesica, 
 or oval, over the centre of the 
 small transept. Our Lord is sur- 
 rounded by the four Evangelists and 
 the twelve Apostles. To the west 
 each section of the groining contains 
 8 medallions, representing patriarchs 
 and prophets, each bearing a scroll 
 with a Messianic prophecy. The 
 series ends Avith John the Baptist 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral 
 
 99 
 
 at the S.W. corner. To the east- 
 ward of the figure of the Saviour 
 are 12 medallions representing the 
 seasons of the year. 
 
 The E. end of the choir and the 
 W. bay on the S.side have had their 
 original colouring restored. But the 
 experiment can hardly be called 
 encouraging. 
 
 The stalls and bishop's shrine, 
 dating from the episcopate of Bishop 
 Hume (1766—1782), remodelled by 
 Wyatt,have been replaced by stalls in 
 carved oak, the upper row being 
 mostly original, the rest from the 
 designs of Sir G. G. Scott. The 
 absence of canopies gives a singularly 
 naked aspect to the choir. The new 
 Bishop's Throne was also designed by 
 Scott. 
 
 The altar, which had been removed 
 hy Wyatt to the extreme end of the 
 Lady-chapel, has been replaced in 
 its old position, and a magnificent 
 reredos erected by Earl Beauchamp 
 in memory of Bp. Beauchamp, d. 
 1482. The 3 arches behind the 
 reredos have been screened with 
 light iron grilles. The pulpit is E. E., 
 of Tisbury stone and Purbeck marble. 
 
 Opposite each other, in the second 
 bay of the choir counting from the 
 E., are the chapels of (25) Bp. 
 Audley, and of (26) Walter Lord 
 Hungerford, the latter removed in 
 1778 by the Earl of Radnor, who 
 claimed descent from the Hunger- 
 ford family, Bp. Audlei/s chantry 
 (d. 1524) is one of the few monu- 
 ments occupying their original places 
 in the cathedral. It is a very fine 
 example of late Perp. The arms 
 and initials of the founder appear on 
 the shields projecting from the cor- 
 nice, and supporting the episcopal 
 mitre. The interior, which retains 
 much bright colouring, has a rich 
 fan-vault. The Hungerford Chapel 
 (c. 1429) opposite, interesting as 
 an example of early ironwork, has 
 suffered more serious degradation, 
 in spite of its restoration and 
 blazoned shields. It has been con- 
 
 verted into a pew for the Radnor 
 family, for wluch purpose it was 
 removed from its proper situation 
 in the nave. The upper part is 
 entirely of iron, with the projec- 
 tions gilt. The arms on the dif- 
 ferent compartments of the base are 
 those of the founder and his two 
 wives. On the ceiling within are 
 a series of bearings, illustrating the 
 descent of Lord Radnor from the 
 Hungerfords. Iron chapels, such as 
 the present, are rare, especially of so 
 early a date. The finest and most 
 elaborate example is the chantry of 
 Edward IV. (died 1483), in St. 
 George's Chapel, Windsor. 
 
 On the N. side of the altar is the 
 effigy, attributed to Bishop Poore, 
 under a canopy, restored to its ori- 
 ginal place from the N.E. transept, to 
 which it had been removed by Wyatt. 
 The effigy, in many respects a strik- 
 ing one, may very well be of his 
 period. Over the centre of the arch, 
 is an angel supporting the circle and 
 crescent of the sun and moon. The 
 leafed heading of the bishop's staff is 
 unusually graceful. 
 
 Opposite, on the S. side, be- 
 neath a canopy designed by Mr. 
 J. O. Scott, is a white marble effigy of 
 Bishop Hamilton (d. 1854), modelled 
 by the Rev. Hon. Bertram Bouverie, 
 son of Lord Radnor. The window 
 above it is to the memory of Lady 
 Radnor. 
 
 From the choir we pass into the 
 low eastern aisle behind it. This 
 aisle is narrower and of less im- 
 portance than the " procession paths " 
 of either Winchester or Exeter ; but 
 the slender clustered shafts which 
 separate it from the Lady-chapel 
 give it an unusual grace and beauty. 
 The height of each shaft is 30 ft., 
 and the diameter little more than 
 10 inches. The Lady-chapel is di- 
 vided by similar clusters and by 
 single shafts, into a central and two 
 side-aisles. The slender, and almost 
 reed-like columns assist in carrying 
 the vault. At the E. end is a triple 
 
100 
 
 Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral. Wiltshire. 
 
 lancet, with an additional light on 
 either side ; the intervening space 
 being occupied by an exterior 
 buttress. All five lights have 
 been filled with stained glass in 
 commemoration of Dean Lear, 
 representing the principal events 
 in the life of our Saviour. The 
 painting of the vaulted roof has 
 been restored by Messrs. Clayton and 
 Bell, and new pavement laid down, 
 and the Purbeck marble shafts 
 cleansed and restored. The altar-piece, 
 below the window, is a curious com- 
 position. The three central niches 
 formed the original altar-piece of 
 the Beauchamp Chapel (date 1481), 
 whilst those on either side were con- 
 structed from the entrances to that 
 and to the Hungerford Chapel (date 
 1470), both of which were destroyed 
 l^y Wyatt. Both were rich and 
 highly decorated, as their remains 
 fully prove. The canopies of the 
 niches under the side-windows of 
 the Lady-chapel were formed by a 
 cornice from the Beauchamp chantry. 
 In this chapel, after his canoniza- 
 tion in 1456, stood the magnificent 
 shrine of St. Osmund, whose tomb 
 in the nave has already been noticed. 
 
 On the N. side of the altar, but 
 without any memorial or inscription, 
 are interred six Earls and four 
 Countesses of Pembroke, the first 
 laid here having been Earl Henry, 
 d. 1601; his countess, d. 1621, 
 
 " The glory of all verse, 
 Sidney's sister, Pembroke's mother," 
 
 also lies here, unrecorded like the 
 rest. Her epitaph is written on pages 
 more enduring than brass or marble, 
 in the * Arcadia,' and in Ben Jonson's 
 (or Browne's) verses. Her son. Earl 
 William, d. 1630, and Earl Philip, d. 
 1669 — the unworthy original of the 
 wonderful picture at Wilton — also 
 repose here. 
 
 At the E. end of the North Choir 
 Aisle is the monument of Sir Thomas 
 Gorges (27), of Longford Castle, 
 and of his widow, Helena Snachen- 
 
 berg, a fine example of " the very 
 worst taste of design." Four twisted 
 pillars support the entablature with 
 its ornaments, — obelisks, globes, 
 spheres, and the cardinal virtues. 
 The efiigies of the knight and his 
 lady lie beneath this " heavy load." 
 The latter accompanied the Princess 
 Cecilia of Sweden to England, where 
 she became one of Queen Elizabeth's 
 maids of honour, and married, first 
 the Marquis of Northampton, and 
 afterwards Sir Thomas Gorges. The 
 monument was erected in the year 
 of her death by her son, Edward 
 Lord Gorges, Baron of Dundalk. 
 The monumental slab of Bp. Osmund 
 (d. 1099), removed from the nave, 
 to which Wyatt had transferred it, 
 is now placed on the plinth in 
 the last bay Eastwards. Under 
 an arch in the north wall of 
 this aisle is a tomb with a cross 
 fleury in relief, assigned to Bp. 
 lloger de Mortival (28), d. 1227. The 
 stone slab on which it is set is said 
 to have covered the remains of 
 Bp. Longespee, d. 1396, son of the 
 second Earl William Longespee. In 
 front of this arch stands a huge 
 cope box. In the same aisle, at the 
 back of the choir, occupying the 
 bay W. of Audley Chapel, is the 
 tomb assigned — but questionably — • 
 to Bp. Bingham (29), d. 1246. The 
 existing structure seems of later date. 
 The crockets of the cinquefoiled arch 
 are enriched with figures of angels ; 
 and from the centre rises a lofty 
 tabernacle in 3 stories. The slab 
 was inlaid with a brass, which has 
 disappeared. 
 
 The N. E. Transept or the Chapel 
 of the Close, was till recently used 
 for early service. Across the en- 
 trance of this and the opposite S. 
 transept inverted strainer- arches, 
 similar to those at Wells, have been 
 introduced to resist the eastward 
 thrust of the spire. 
 
 Immediately within the entrance 
 to the transept is the very curious 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 8. — Salishimj ; Cathedral. 
 
 101 
 
 brass (removed from the nave) of (31) 
 Bp. Wyvil (d. 1375). This bishop 
 recovered for the see Sherborne 
 Castle, which King Stephen had 
 seized from Bishop Roger. It had 
 been granted by Edward III. to 
 William Montacute, Earl of Salis- 
 bury, against whom the bishop 
 brought a writ of right. The dis- 
 putants agreed to abide by the 
 trial by battle, and both produced 
 their champions in the lists. But 
 the matter was compromised, the earl 
 ceding the castle on payment of 2.500 
 marks. The brass represents the con- 
 tested castle, with keep and portcullis. 
 At the door of the first ward appears 
 the bishop with mitre and crosier, be- 
 stowing the episcopal benediction on 
 his champion, who stands at the 
 gate of the outer ward in a close- 
 fitting Jack," with a battle-axe in 
 liis right hand and a shield in his 
 left. The rabbits and hares before 
 the castle gate refer to the chase of 
 Bishop's Bere within Windsor Forest, 
 a grant or restitution of which was 
 also procured by Bishop Wyvil. 
 
 The gravestone of Bishop Jewel 
 (d. 1571), from which a small brass 
 has been removed, and that of Bishop 
 Gheast (d. 1576), still retaining his 
 effigy, lie near the great brass of 
 Bishop Wyvil. Both were removed 
 from the choir, 
 
 A lavatory, of early Perp. charac- 
 ter, which formerly stood near the 
 vestry, and is now placed in this 
 transept, should also be remarked ; 
 also the exquisitely beautiful screen- 
 work, removed by Wyatt from the 
 entrance of the choir on the W. 
 wall. The sculptured heads and 
 foliage are of the most delicately 
 beautiful design and execution. 
 
 Returning through the E. aisle we 
 enter the S. choir-aisle, at the E. end 
 of which is the stately though taste- 
 less monument (partly blocking the 
 windows) of the unfortunate Edward 
 Earl of Hertford (d. 1621), and of 
 his still more unfortunate Countess, 
 the Lady Catherine Grey, who died 
 
 in 1563, nearly sixty years before 
 him. The Earl of Hertford, was 
 long imprisoned by Elizabeth for 
 his private marriage with the sister 
 of Lady Jane Grey, who had cer- 
 tain claims to the royal succession. 
 His wife, after her release from the 
 Tower, was separated from her hus- 
 band, and died in the following 
 year. "It is worth while to read 
 the epitaph on his (Lord Hertford's) 
 monument, an affecting testimony to 
 the purity and faithfulness of an at- 
 tachment rendered still more sacred 
 by misfortune and time. Quo desi- 
 derio veteres revocavit amores."* 
 Charles Duke of Somerset (the 
 *' proud" duke) and his wife, the 
 famous heiress of the Percys, are 
 also interred here ; and the monu- 
 ment, which is gilt and painted, 
 was restored by the late Duke of 
 Northumberland. 
 
 In the S.E. angle of this aisle is 
 the altar-tomb (formerly assigned to 
 Bishop Wickhampton) of (33) Wm. 
 Wilton, Chancellor of Sarum, 1506- 
 1523. The shields on the cornice 
 bear the device of Henry VIII. 
 (a rose) and that of Catherine of 
 Aragon (a pomegranate) ; the arms 
 of Bishop Audley, Wilton's patron ; 
 and of Abingdon Abbey, to which he 
 may have been formerly attached. 
 Other shields display his rebus, the 
 letters W. 1. L. on a label, and a to7i 
 or barrel. Immediately W. of the 
 Hungerford chantry is a tomb from 
 which the brass has been removed, 
 (34'j ascribed, but most improbably, to 
 Bishop William of York (d. 1267). 
 The very broad ogee canopy, with 
 a heavy finial, is certainly of much 
 later date. 
 
 The monument (35) opposite, be- 
 tween the choir-aisle and the eastern 
 aisle of the transept, is one of the 
 most important and interesting in 
 the cathedral. It is that of Bishop 
 Giles de Bridport (d. 1262), during 
 whose episcopate the cathedral was 
 
 * Hallam, ' Const. Hist. Eng.,* chap ii. 
 
102 
 
 Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral, Wiltshire. 
 
 completed and dedicated. All the 
 details of this remarkable monu- 
 ment deserve the most careful ex- 
 amination. The effigy, at the head 
 of which are small figures of cens- 
 ing angels, lies beneath a canopy, 
 supported, north and south, by two 
 open arches, with quatrefoils in the 
 heads. Each arch is subdivided by 
 a central pilaster, and springs from 
 clustered shafts, detached. A trian- 
 gular hood-moulding, with crockets 
 and finials of leafage, projects above 
 each arch ; and between and beyond 
 the arches pilasters rise to the top of 
 the canopy, supporting finials of very 
 excellent design. " The sculptures 
 of this monument are indeed remark- 
 able productions for the time of their 
 execution, and in many respects are 
 well worthy the study and imitation 
 of artists of our own day/'^ — West- 
 macott. The sculptures both here 
 and in the chapter-house must have 
 been executed by artists who were 
 contemporary with Niccola Pisano 
 (born circ. 1200, d. 1276). 
 
 The S.E. transept contains memo- 
 rial windows of stained glass for the 
 officers and men of the 62nd or 
 Wiltshire Regiment, who fell during 
 the campaign of the Sutlej, 1845-46, 
 and for those of the same regiment 
 who fell in the Crimea. Both win- 
 dows were the gift of surviving com- 
 rades. Here is also a tablet for 
 Bowles the poet (a canon of Salis- 
 bury), d. 1850; and two small ones, 
 erected by him for Hooker and Chil- 
 lingworth, both prebendaries of this 
 cathedral. Remark also the monu- 
 ments of Bishop Burgess (d. 1837), 
 and of Bishop Seth Ward (d. 1689). 
 On the floor is the gravestone of 
 Dean Young, father of the poet. 
 
 On the W. wall is a memorial for 
 Dean Clarke (d. 1757), the friend 
 of Newton. 
 
 The muniment room, which is 
 entered from this transept, is a 
 dimly-lighted octagon, the oaken 
 
 roof of which is supported by a cen- 
 tral column of wood. In the chests 
 and presses contained in this room 
 are deposited a contemporaneous copy 
 of Magna Charta, supposed to be the 
 transcript committed to the care 
 of William Longespee, Earl of Salis- 
 bury, as one of the original witnesses, 
 and the various charters and other 
 documents connected with the cathe- 
 dral and its property, in admirable 
 preservation and order. 
 
 In the S. choir-aisle, which we now 
 re-enter, are the monuments of 
 Bishop Davenant (d. 1641); of the 
 turncoat Bishop Salcot,or Capon (d. 
 1557); and of (37) Sir Richard 
 Mompesson and his wife (d. 1627). 
 This last is a good example of the 
 time. The grapes and vine-leaves 
 which cluster about the black marble 
 pillars are coloured green and gold. 
 
 We may now return to the S.W. 
 transept and pass into the cloisters, 
 above the E. walk of which is the 
 library, a long room, built by Bishop 
 Jewel, 1559-1571, and fitted up by 
 Bp. Gheste 1571-1576. The number 
 of printed books is about 5000, and 
 130 manuscript volumes are also 
 preserved here, many of which are 
 of considerable importance. The 
 earliest is the Gregorian Liturgy, 
 with an A.-Saxon version. The pen- 
 drawings of the capital letters are 
 remarkable. 
 
 The Cloisters themselves, which are 
 of later date, and exhibit a more 
 developed style than the rest of the 
 cathedral, are among the finest in 
 England ; and nothing can be more 
 beautiful than the contrast of their 
 long grey arcades and graceful win- 
 dows with the greensward of the 
 cloister-garth, or ^'Paradise," the 
 " layers of shade " of the dusky 
 cedars in its centre, and the patch of 
 bright blue sky above. The length 
 of each side is 181 feet. The ar- 
 rangement of the windows, with their 
 large six-foiled openings above, and 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Salishury ; Cathedral. 
 
 103 
 
 the double arches below, again sub- 
 divided by a slender column, is very 
 striking. The upper part, above the 
 mullions, was originally glazed, and 
 fragments of the stained glass still 
 remain. A blind arcade fills the 
 opposite side, between each bay of 
 the vaulting, which, like that within 
 the cathedral, has no ridge-ribs. 
 The clustered columns at the angles 
 of the cloisters have enriched capi- 
 tals, the rest are simply moulded. 
 The building of the cloisters must 
 have immediately followed that of 
 the cathedral, since the chapter- 
 house, which opens from them, and 
 is perhaps of slightly later cha- 
 racter, dates early in the reign of 
 Edward I., many of whose pennies, 
 during the restoration, were found 
 in those parts of the founda- 
 tions which required under-pinning. 
 The cloisters were restored by Bishop 
 Denison, who d. 1854, and is buried, 
 with his first wife, in the central en- 
 closure. The original Purbeck shafts 
 were then replaced by common stone, 
 *'to the no small detriment of the 
 general effect." 
 
 In the centre of the E. walk of the 
 cloisters is the entrance to the Chap- 
 ter-house, dating early in the reign of 
 Edward I. It is a noble octagonal 
 building, having an internal diameter 
 of about fifty-eight feet. Each side 
 is occupied by a large window of 
 four lights, with an arcade of seven 
 bays below it ; the vaulting-ribs fall 
 upon a central pillar, and their filling- 
 in is composed of the same light 
 concrete found throughout the cathe- 
 dral. Whether there was or was not 
 anciently a high-pointed roof remains 
 a disputed point. All we know is, 
 that the present roof is modern, and 
 that the poin9on has evidently formed 
 part of an older roof contemporary 
 with the building. The great defect 
 of the structure is its want of bold- 
 ness ; externally the buttresses do 
 not project far enough, and inter- 
 nally the small columns at the angles 
 look flat, and resemble reeds. Alto- 
 
 gether, the impression is left on the 
 spectator that the architect, whoever 
 he might have been, was by no means 
 up to the mark of the designers of 
 Westminster, Canterbury, or Wells.'' 
 — W. Burges. A plinth of stone, 
 supporting 42 niches for as many 
 prebendaries, runs round below 
 the windows ; and at the east end 
 is a raised seat, divided into seven 
 compartments, for the bishop and his 
 principal dignitaries. The arcade, 
 on this side alone, has double shafts. 
 The restoration of the entire build- 
 ing, which had fallen dangerously 
 out of repair, was commenced soon 
 after the death, and as a memorial 
 of, Bishop Denison, under the super- 
 intendence of Mr. Glutton ; and was 
 reopened with a solemn service, July 
 1856. The Purbeck shafts have been 
 cleaned and polished ; the floor has 
 been laid with Minton's encaustic 
 tiles ; the walls of the arcade have 
 also been diapered (though through 
 a much-to-be-regretted defect in the 
 preparation of the colouring much 
 of the ornamentation has peeled ofi") ; 
 the colouring and gilding of the 
 roof has been restored ; the win- 
 dows have been newly glazed ; and, 
 most important of all, the sculp- 
 tures, which had been much muti- 
 lated, have been carefully restored, 
 and are resplendent in all the glories 
 of polychrome. 
 
 These sculptures fill the voussoirs 
 of the arch in the vestibule, and 
 the spandrils of the arcade below the 
 windows in the chapter-house itself, 
 and are among the most interesting 
 remains of early Gothic art which 
 exist either in England or on the 
 Gontinent. The doorway forming 
 the entrance to the chapter-house 
 from the cloister is of great beauty. 
 The niche in the centre of the arch is 
 at present empty, and it is impossible 
 to determine the subject of the sculp- 
 ture with which it was filled. (A 
 coronation of the Virgin, as Mater 
 justitise, misericordige, caritatis," and 
 other virtues, has been suggested,) 
 
^oute 8. — Salisbury ; Cathedral, Wiltsliire. 
 
 In the voussoirs are fourteen small 
 niches, containing figures of the 
 different virtues trampling on the 
 vices. This subject, partly owing to 
 the popularity of the Psychomachia 
 of Prudentius, was an especial fa- 
 vourite throughout the middle ages, 
 and almost every large church had 
 its pictured or sculptured virtues and 
 vices. " Canterbury has them in- 
 cised on the stone historiated pave- 
 ment round the shrine of Becket ; 
 Chartres has them sculptured on the 
 west portal of the N. transept, but 
 without the vices.'* — W. Burges. 
 These at Salisbury are not very 
 readily interpreted. 
 
 Within the chapter-house, starting 
 from the quatrefoil above the en- 
 trance, as a centre, run first a 
 series of heads, representing the 
 various conditions of life at the time 
 the edifice was constructed. Thus 
 we see the shaven monk, the in and 
 out-door costume of the fine lady, 
 the nun, the merchant, the sailor, 
 the countryman, and many others. 
 Then, above these, and filling in the 
 spandrils of the arcade running be- 
 low the windows, is the history of 
 man, from the Creation to the de- 
 livery of the Ten Commandments on 
 Mount Sinai. It will thus be per- 
 ceived that the series begins and ends 
 with the ministrations of our Lord." 
 
 The subjects in the arcades are as 
 follows : — 
 
 West arcade (left of doorway). — 
 1. God creates the light. 2. Crea- 
 tion of the firmament. 
 
 North-west arcade. — 1. Creation of 
 the trees. 2. Creation of sun and 
 moon. 3. Creation of fishes and 
 birds. 4. Creation of beasts, and 
 of Adam and Eve. 5. God rests 
 on the seventh day ; He is blessing 
 the earth. 6. God shows Adam the 
 tree of good and evil. 7. Adam 
 and Eve eating of the fruit of the 
 tree. 8. Adam and Eve hide them- 
 selves. 
 
 North arcade.— I. The Expulsion. 
 Bemark the door of Paradise— yellow. 
 
 with black foliated hinges. 2. Adam 
 working a spade. Eve suckling 
 Cain. 3. Sacrifice of Cain and Abel. 
 4. Murder of Abel. .5. God sen- 
 tences Cain. Abel's blood crying from 
 the earth is represented by Abel 
 buried in it up to his arm-pits, pray- 
 ing. 6. God commands Noah to 
 build the ark. He is at work with 
 an auger. The ark has the figure- 
 head of a dog. 7. Noah enters the 
 ark at one end ; at the other he re- 
 ceives the dove with the olive-branch. 
 The raven is seen feeding on the 
 dead bodies. 8. Noah prunes his 
 vineyard ; the vines are trained on a 
 trellis in the Italian fashion. 
 
 North-east arcade. — 1. The drunk- 
 enness of Noah. 2. The building of 
 the tower of Babel. An inclined 
 plane with pieces across is used in- 
 stead of a ladder. 3. Abraham im- 
 plores the three angels to stay with 
 him. He is on one knee, and the 
 angels are in albs with the amice. 
 4. Abraham waits on the angels at 
 table. One of them has his hand on 
 a fish. 5. Destruction of Sodom 
 and Gomorrah. 6. Lot's departure. 
 His wife is turned into a pillar of 
 salt. 7. Abraham leading the ass, 
 with Isaac on its back. 8. Abraham, 
 about to slay his son, is stayed by 
 the angel. 
 
 East arcade. — 1. Blessing of Jacob. 
 Rebecca listening at the door. 2. 
 Blessing of Esau. 3. Rebecca sends 
 Jacob to Padan Aram. 4. Jacob 
 takes the top off the well to give 
 water to Rachel's cattle. One beast 
 is a camel. .5. Rachel brings Jacob 
 to her father. 0. Jacob talks with 
 the angel. Two others are near. 7. 
 The angel touches Jacob on the 
 thigh with a stick. 8. Meeting of 
 Esau and Jacob. Leah and Rachel 
 behind with the sheep. 
 
 South-east arcade, — 1. Joseph's 
 dream. 2. Joseph tells his dream 
 to his father, mother, and brothers. 
 3. (1) Joseph seized by one of his 
 
Wiltsliire. 
 
 Route 8. — Satis] 
 
 ibury ; Cathedral, 
 
 105 
 
 brothers. (2) He is put into the 
 well. (3) A kid has its throat cut 
 over Joseph's garment. 4. (1) Joseph 
 is sold to the seneschal of the King 
 of Egypt. (This variation from the 
 biblical narrative occurs also in the 
 magnificent Cottonian MS. known as 
 Queen Mary's Psalter.) (2) The 
 seneschal on horseback with Joseph 
 behind him, 5. The brothers bring 
 back the coat. 6. The seneschal pre- 
 sents Joseph to Pharaoh, who gives 
 a stick into his hand. 7. Tempta- 
 tion of Joseph by Pharaoh's queen, 
 not, as in the Bible, by Potiphar's 
 wife. 8. .loseph accused. 
 
 South arcade. — I. Joseph is put in 
 prison. 2. (1) The baker is hung. 
 (2) The butler offers the cup to 
 Pharaoh. 3. Pharaoh's dream. 4. 
 Pharaoh consults a magician (?). 
 6. (1) Joseph delivered from prison ; 
 (2) kneels before Pharaoh. G. Joseph 
 seated, presiding over the threshing 
 of the corn. A man throws straw 
 into the Nile. In the MS. Joseph 
 communicates the intelligence that 
 there is corn in Egypt by throwing 
 straw into the river, which thus 
 reaches his father, " com il est en 
 soun chastel." 7. (I) Arrival of the 
 brothers. (2) One of them on his 
 knees before Pharaoh. 8. (I) Pre- 
 sentation of Benjamin to Joseph. 
 (2) The cup is put into his sack. 
 
 So'dth-ivest arcade. — 1. The cup 
 found in Benjamin's sack. 2. (I) 
 The brethren on their knees before 
 Joseph. (2) Joseph falls on Ben- 
 jamin's neck. 3. Jacob and his 
 family going into Egypt. They are 
 on foot. 4. The brethren imploring 
 Joseph not to take vengeance on 
 them after Jacob's death. 5. The 
 subject very doubtful. It possibly 
 represents Joseph embracing his 
 family and assuring them of his pro- 
 tection. 6. Moses and the burning 
 bush. 7. Passage of the Red Sea. 
 8. Destruction of Pharaoh and his 
 host, Armed figures with shields 
 
 (one of which is kite -shaped) and 
 banners in a carriage. 
 
 West arcade (right of doorway) : — 
 1. Moses strikes the rock. 2. God 
 gives the Law to Moses. 
 
 An ancient table, which stands in 
 the chapter-house, and is apparently 
 of the early Dec. period, should be 
 noticed. It has been carefully re- 
 stored. 
 
 A door from the cloisters opens 
 into the grounds of the Episcopal 
 Palace, a very long, irregular, but 
 picturesque pile of building, the 
 chief feature of which is the gateway- 
 tower, Avith its staircase-turret and 
 spirek't, at the N.E. extremity, now 
 disused. The palace is now entered 
 through the original dining-hall, of 
 late Perp. date, over which is the 
 chapel of the same style, with some 
 Jacobean woodwork, and a very 
 beautiful alabasteraltar-piece, erected 
 as a memorial of the late Kev. Sidney 
 Lear. The drawing-room at the W. 
 end is a very beautiful and well- 
 proportioned room of the last cent., 
 hung with portraits of the bishops 
 since the Restoration, chiefly copies. 
 Those of Hyde, Burnet, Sherlock, 
 Barrington, and Douglas, are ori- 
 ginals. Beneath the living apart- 
 ments is a range of E.E. vaulted 
 cellarage now divided by cross-walls. 
 The Palace was sold by the Puri- 
 tans to one Van Ling, a Dutch tailor, 
 who did much harm, converting part 
 into an inn, and letting out the rest 
 into tenements. A good view of the 
 chapter-house is obtained from the 
 lovely garden ; and a very fine one 
 of the cathedral itself, from a seat 
 nearly opposite the gateway of the 
 palace. The wonderful height of 
 the tower and spire here shows to 
 the greatest advantage. The palace 
 was entirely remodelled by Bp. Bar- 
 rington, who made the new entrance. 
 Before this it is described as " one 
 of the most gloomj mansions that 
 can be imagined," 
 
106 Boute 8. — Salisbury 
 
 ; Parish Churches. Wiltshire. 
 
 DIMENSIONS OF THE CATHEDRAL. 
 
 iNsroE. ^. T„ 
 
 Length of Nave, 229 ft. 6 in. ; ) 
 
 Choir, 151 ft. ; Lady VTotal 449 0 
 Chapel, 68 ft. 6 in. j 
 
 ,, Principal Transept . . . 203 10 
 
 Eastern Transept . . . 143 0 
 
 Width of Nave and Choir from pillar ^ ^. ^ 
 
 to pillar.. . . : . I ^ 
 
 ,, Aisles from pillar to wall .11 6 
 
 Principal Transept, with Aisle 50 4 
 
 , , Eastern Transept, with Aisle 38 10 
 
 Height ofVaultingofthe Nave, Choir, 7 q, „ 
 and Transepts . . .5 
 
 , , Aisles and Lady Chapel , 39 9 
 
 OUTSIDE. 
 
 Extreme length 473 0 
 
 Length of Principal Transept . . . 229 T 
 
 , , Eastern Transept . . . 170 0 
 
 Width of West Front Ill 4 
 
 , , Nave and Aisles ... 99 4 
 
 Principal Transept, with^ ^ . 
 
 its Aisles ....]" * 
 
 , , Eastern Transept ... 65 0 
 
 Height from pavement to top of Spire 400 0 
 
 , , to top of parapet wall of Nave 87 0 
 
 , , , , Aisles 44 0 
 
 ,, Eoof 115 0 
 
 , , , , West Front . . , 130 0 
 The admeasm*ement round the exterior is 
 880 yards, or half a mile. 
 
 DEMENSIONS OF THE CHAPTER-HOUSE. 
 
 Out to out of the walls, diameter . , 78 feet. 
 In the clear withinside . , . . 58 „ 
 Height of the vaulted ceiling . . 52 „ 
 
 Several of the houses that sur- 
 round the Close are of architectural 
 or historical interest. That to the N. 
 of St. Anne's Gate was the residence 
 of James, or *' Hermes" Harris, who 
 used to give concerts and private 
 theatricals in the chapel over the 
 gate. The house to the S. of the 
 gate was once occupied by Fielding 
 the novelist, who wrote a large por- 
 tion of his * Tom Jones ' in a man- 
 sion at the foot of Milford Hill. The 
 residentiary house, formerly tenanted 
 by Archdeacon Coxe, and afterwards 
 by Canon Bowles, is a gabled build- 
 ing to the N.E. of the Close, with 
 some remains of a Hall, and an 
 E. E. chapel. Another residentiary 
 house, at the N.W. corner, also 
 preserves some portion of its chapel, 
 and of a hall w ith a good roof which 
 may be seen in the attics. 
 
 The Deanery is an irregular pile of 
 
 building containing ancient portions, 
 opposite the W. front. The King's 
 House, a very picturesque gabled 
 mansion, originally built at the 
 end of the 14th cent., the occa- 
 sional residence of Eoyalty when 
 journeying to the West, in which 
 Richard III. is said to have sojourned 
 at the time of Buckingham's exe- 
 cution, is now a Training College 
 for Schoolmistresses. The King's 
 Ward robe, N. of Deanery, is a 
 gabled house of great beauty, pro- 
 bably of the I5th cent., but contain- 
 ing much earlier portions. Leydyn 
 Hall was once the residence of Abp. 
 Chichele. 
 
 Near the N. entrance into the 
 Close from High-street 1. is the Ma- 
 trons' College, a long low red-brick 
 building in the fashion of the time, 
 which was founded and endowed by 
 Seth Ward, Bishop ofSarum, in 1682, 
 for the maintenance of 10 widows of 
 clergymen of the dioceses of Salis- 
 bury and Exeter. 
 
 The Parish Churches of Salisbury 
 are not very remarkable. 
 
 St. Thomas's of Canterbury, founded 
 by Bp. Bingham 1240, rebuilt in 
 the 15th cent., and restored with 
 new woodwork by Street, 1868, in 
 the centre of the city, close to the 
 Market Place, is a very good speci- 
 men of a rich Perp. Town Church, 
 with light arcades, very wide aisles, 
 roofs of carved timber, and panelling 
 over the nave arches of which the 
 clerestory windows are merely pierced 
 portions. The S. aisle was the chan- 
 try of W. Swayne, whose name and 
 arms appear on its ceiling. That of 
 the N. aisle was repaired by Wm. 
 Ludlow ; butler to Hen. IV., V., VI., 
 to whom is ascribed an altar-tomb 
 in the chancel. The chancel is 
 nearly as long as the nave, and has 
 wide side-aisles and a clerestory. 
 It is well fitted with oak seats and 
 light parcloses, and a stone reredos, 
 with a relief of the Crucifixion. 
 The former classical reredos and 
 beautiful iron gates are preserved at 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 8. — Salisbury ; Parish Churches. 107 
 
 the end of the S. aisle. The organ 
 is that given to the Cathedral by- 
 George III. as a " Berkshire gentle- 
 man.*' In the chancel are monu- 
 ments to the Eyres of New House, 
 and on the exterior wall, near the W. 
 door, there is a rude bas-relief repre- 
 senting the reconciliation of Jacob 
 and Esau, flanked by the Sacrifice 
 of Abraham, and Jacob's Vision, 
 carved by Humphrey Beclmith, a self- 
 taught sculptor of this city, d. 1671, 
 as a monument to himself. The 
 tower projects to the south of the 
 S. aisle, and contains a peal of bells 
 transferred from the campanile of the 
 Cathedral destroyed by Wyatt. In 
 the Vestry is preserved a fine ante- 
 pendium. 
 
 St. Edmund's, at the N.E. extremity 
 of the city, was originally a Collegiate 
 Ch. founded for Secular Canons by 
 Bp. De la Wyle in 1268, and dedi- 
 cated to the recently canonized Ed- 
 mund Rich, Abp. of Canterbury, 
 who had been Treasurer of Salis- 
 bury. In 1653 the central tower 
 fell, and so completely crushed the 
 transept and nave, that it was found 
 necessary to take them down. The 
 choir was retained as sufficient for 
 the wants of the parish, and forms 
 the nave of the existing Ch., to 
 which a chancel has been added, 
 from Scott's designs, replacing one 
 of debased character. The whole 
 Ch. has been exceedingly well re- 
 stored, and now, with light and 
 elegant arcades, very broad aisles, 
 and spacious and unencumbered area, 
 is a model of a well-arranged town 
 church. The painted glass by Messrs. 
 Clayton and Bell is good. The fall 
 of the tower is commemorated by a 
 tablet with a curious inscription 
 above the W. door. 
 
 St. Edmund's Ch. is historically 
 interesting from its connection with 
 one of Abp. Laud's most notorious 
 acts of arbitrary power. One Sher- 
 field, then Recorder of the city, being 
 offended with the pictures in some 
 of the painted windows of the Ch., 
 
 especially one of the Creation, in 
 which the Deity was represented as 
 an old man, broke them with his 
 staff. For this act of Protestant zeal 
 he was proceeded against in the Star 
 Chamber 1632-3, and sentenced to 
 be deprived of his office (this was 
 not carried into effect), to pay 1000/. 
 to the King (afterwards lowered to 
 500/.), and to make a public acknow- 
 ledgment of his offence in the church. 
 
 St. Edmund's Schools (Woodyer, 
 Arch.) form a picturesque group of 
 buildings W. of the churchyard, 
 which is overshadowed with avenues 
 of limes. The chief schoolroom has 
 a fine chimney-piece and wooden 
 roof removed from an old hall on 
 the site of the new market house. 
 
 To the east of the church is St. 
 Edmund's College, a fine red-brick 
 mansion of Queen Anne's style, 
 adorned with leaden busts and stone 
 dressings. It stands on the site of 
 the residence of the College of 
 secular priests attached to the ch., 
 and maintains its old sacred charac- 
 ter as a place of education for the 
 sons of clergymen and others. In 
 the grounds adjoining is preserved 
 the cathedral porch, removed by 
 Wyatt from the front of the N. 
 transept. The spire and pinnacles 
 are modern. The old fosse of the 
 city crossed the site of the pleasure- 
 ground, and in levelling it 1771, 
 nearly 30 skeletons and rusty wea- 
 pons were found. This is supposed 
 to have been the scene of the fierce 
 struggle in which Old Sarum was 
 captured by the Saxons under Cynric, 
 A.D. 552, and commemorated by an 
 urn and Latin inscription. 
 
 St, Martin'' s, at the E. extremity 
 of the city, removed, according , to 
 Leland, from the meadows near 
 Harnham on account of " the moyst- 
 ness of the ground often overflowen," 
 has a nave with gabled aisles, of 
 equal height, and large Perp. win- 
 dows. There is a tower and a spire 
 at the W. end of the S. aisle. The 
 chancel has some lancet windows, 
 
108 Route 8. — Salisbury ; St. Nicholas' Hospital. WiltsMre. 
 
 and there is a Norman font and a 
 brass eagle. 
 
 The Roman Catholic Chapel, dedi- 
 cated to St, Osmund, was erected 
 from the designs of the elder Pugin. 
 
 Harnham and Fisherton, though 
 generally considered as suburbs of 
 Salisbury, are much more ancient 
 than the city itself. Harnham was 
 a pretty village ere Salisbury was 
 builded," writes a chronicler; and 
 Fisherton is mentioned in Domesday 
 book as Fiscartone, held in the time 
 of Edward the Confessor by Godric. 
 
 The old church of Fisherton has 
 been pulled down and a new church 
 erected not far from the Railway 
 termini, in the style of the close of the 
 13th century. 
 
 The Church of E. Harnham^ on the 
 hill beyond the limits of the city S., 
 was erected (1854) by Mr. Wyatt as 
 a memorial to the late Dean Lear. 
 It is a small but very beautiful struc- 
 ture in the Dec. style, with porch 
 and bell-turret, and, in the interior, 
 some good carving and painted glass. 
 
 West Harnham Ch. (restored 1872) 
 contains a good Norman N. door; 
 an E. E. chancel arch ; an early 
 font; and a singular squint in the 
 chantry. The old part of Harnham 
 Mill, tenip. Hen. VH. or VHL, is 
 very curious. 
 
 St, Nicholas* Hospital forms a very 
 picturesque and interesting pile of 
 building between the S. wall of the 
 Close and Harnham Bridge. It was 
 founded under the auspices of Bp. 
 Poore 1227, by Ela, the widow of 
 Wm. Longespee, Earl of Salisbury, 
 for poor men and women. The 
 buildings form 3 sides of a quad- 
 rangle : on the N. are the apartments 
 for the brothers and sisters, 12 in num- 
 ber, showing much original work ; 
 the domestic offices to the E. ; and 
 the chapel and chaplain's apart- 
 ments to the S. The chaplain's lodg- 
 ings are formed out of the W. end of 
 the original church. The west gable 
 shows 2 lancets and a quatrefoiled 
 circle. The eastern gable has also 
 
 2 lancets and an octofoil over. The 
 whole is pure E. Eng., and has been 
 well restored by Mr. Butterfield. 
 
 Harnham Bridge was built over 
 the Nadder by Bp. Bingham, 1244. 
 The central pier built on an islet 
 supports the remains of an E. Eng. 
 chapel of St. John the Baptist, now 
 incorporated with a dwelling-house, 
 and divided into 3 stories. The E. end 
 still shows 3 lancets, and 4 may be 
 traced on each side, and a piscina 
 basin within. The chaplain's dor- 
 mitory is on the opposite side of the 
 bridge. 
 
 The Market Place is a large open 
 square near the centre of the city. 
 This was the scene of the execution 
 of the Duke of Buckingham 1483, 
 described above. At the S.E. corner 
 stands the Council House, a heavy clas- 
 sical building, erected 1788-1794, 
 from designs by Sir Robert Taylor, by 
 Jacob Earl of Radnor, Recorder of 
 the city. The Council Boom, 75 ft. by 
 24 ft., contains the following por- 
 traits : — Charles I. and II. ; Queen 
 Anne, by Dahl; the Earl of Radnor, 
 founder of the building ; and the late 
 William Hussey, Esq., M.P. (bearing 
 in his hand the Report of the Com- 
 mittee of the House of Commons, 
 which resolved that *'the influence 
 of the Crown had increased, was in- 
 creasing, and ought to be dimini- 
 shed"), by Hoppner. The Grand Jury 
 Boom also contains some good original 
 portraits of various benefactors to the 
 city : viz. King James I. ; John, Duke 
 of Somerset ; Bishop Seth Ward ; Sir 
 Robert Hyde, Chief Justice of Eng- 
 land; Sir Samuel Eyre, Justice of 
 the King's Bench ; Sir Thomas 
 White, founder of St. John's College, 
 in Oxford ; Chiffinch, Master of 
 the Wardrobe to King Charles 
 II. ; Bishop Douglas, and Bishop 
 Fisher. 
 
 In front of the Council Chamber, 
 on a pedestal of polished Cornish 
 granite, is a bronze statue, by Baron 
 Marochetti, of the late Lord Herbert 
 of Lea, who as Mr. Sidney Her- 
 
Wiltshire. Boufe 8. — Salish 
 
 ury ; Buildings^ 
 
 109 
 
 bert for many years represented the 
 Southern Division of Wiltshire in 
 Parliament. 
 
 The new Marhet House, erected by 
 a Joint Stock Company, was opened 
 May 24th, 1859. It is connected by 
 a branch line with the London and 
 South- Western Railway. The fagade 
 consists of 3 arches, corresponding 
 to the 3 aisles of the building, divided 
 by rusticated Tuscan piers. 
 
 Leaving the Market-place by a 
 narrow passage at the S.W. corner, 
 we come to the Poultrij Cross, of 
 Avhich mention is made in the re- 
 cords of the chapter in 13G5, where 
 poultry, fruit, vegetables, &c., are 
 sold. It consists of 6 arches be- 
 tween as many massive buttress-piers, 
 forming an open hexagon. In the 
 centre is a pillar, square at the 
 bottom, but towards the top of 6 
 sides, round ^vhich are clustered 
 demi-angels holding blank shields, 
 said to have once borne inscriptions. 
 A square pillar with sun-dials has 
 been appropriately replaced by a 
 canopy surmounted with the cross. 
 
 Salisbury still contains many in- 
 teresting remains of mediaeval archi- 
 tecture, though the number is dimi- 
 nishing every year with the march 
 of modern improvement. 
 
 One of the earliest and best speci- 
 mens is to be seen in a house with 
 carved gables, adjoining the Poultry 
 Cross, now occupied by a watch- 
 maker. 
 
 The finest example of medieval 
 domestic architecture existing in the 
 city is the Hall of John Halle, now 
 the show-room of Mr. Watson, china 
 merchant, on the Canal. This noble 
 banqueting-room was built, c. 1 470, by 
 John Halle, an eminent woolstapler. 
 who flourished in the reigns of Henry 
 VI. and Edward IV. It is open to 
 the lofty roof, which is of dark oak 
 or chesnut, the compartments formed 
 by the intersection of the timbers or- 
 namented with white fans of plaster 
 beautifully contrasting with the dark 
 
 wood. The south end of the hall is 
 occupied by a large oak screen or 
 cabinet, the carving and figures of 
 which are extremely elaborate and 
 curious. Above it is a painting by 
 the late A. W. Pugin, who, gratui- 
 tously, began and finishea it at once, 
 in 6 hours. In the S.E. corner is a 
 low pointed door, formerly the only 
 entrance into the apartment. On the 
 opposite side is the massive stone 
 fire-place. High up on the walls 
 are busts of angels holding shields, 
 on which are painted arms and the 
 merchant's mark ; lower down hang 
 some fine stately portraits. A bril- 
 liant series of armorial bearings run 
 through the lofty mullioned windows, 
 which are glazed with stained glass. 
 
 The George Inn stands in the High 
 Street at the end of the Canal. A 
 passage under a carved gateway con- 
 ducts to a court, round which ran one 
 of those covered galleries often seen 
 in the court-yards of old inns, which 
 has now entirely disappeared. These 
 premises are mentioned as far back 
 as the year 140t'», in the city Domes- 
 day or Register as the " George Inn.'' 
 It was visited by Pepys in 1668, who 
 writes, " Came to the George Inne, 
 where lay in a silk bed, and very 
 good diet." But he adds, that the 
 reckoning was so exorbitant, particu- 
 larly the charge for horse-hire, and 
 7s. 6d. for bread and beer, that he 
 was *' mad," and resolved to trouble 
 the mistress about it, and get some- 
 thing for the poor.* A large part of 
 this interesting old house has been 
 pulled down, and the whole will 
 probably be soon destroyed. 
 
 Near Crane Bridge, formerly the 
 Citi/ Workhouse, a building early hi 
 the 15th cent, was purchased in 1881, 
 and restored as a " Diocesan Church- 
 house.*' This was formerly called 
 Audley House, and belonged to Mer- 
 Tin, Lord Audley, who suffered death 
 on Tower Hill for infamous crimes, 
 in 1 63 1 . His property was forfeited, 
 
 Pcpys'rf Diary, ii. 237-3, 
 
110 
 
 ^oiite 8. — Salisbury ; Museums, 
 
 Wiltshire 
 
 and his house in Crane-street es- 
 cheated to the Bishop as Lord of the 
 Manor, by whom it was presented to 
 the city as a workhouse and house of 
 correction. 
 
 In St. John's-street, below the 
 White Hart, is a house which bears 
 the name of the Kmrj's Arms, which 
 after the battle of Worcester, while 
 Charles II. lay concealed at Heale 
 House, was the secret rendezvous of 
 the Royalists, where Lord Wilmot 
 and Henry Peters, a faithful servant 
 of Colonel Wyndham's of Trent, 
 found a secure asylum, and concerted 
 measures for effecting the King's es- 
 cape to the coast. 
 
 In St. Ann-street is the Joiners' Hall, 
 The front is all that now remains, the 
 inside having been completely mo- 
 dernized, and fitted up as 2 dwellings. 
 The windows still contain some 
 stained glass, and rest on brackets of 
 grotesque figures. Below runs a 
 frieze, on which are carved roses and 
 griffins with most voluminous tails, 
 said to be the handiwork of Hum- 
 phrey Beckwith. Some of the oak 
 carvings of the Hall are still in the 
 possession of the proprietor. 
 
 The Tailors' Hall is situated at the 
 end of a narrow passage leading out 
 of Milford-street. The Giant and 
 Hob-nob, relics of the Midsummer 
 shows and city pageants, now in the 
 Museum, were formerly kept in this 
 deserted hall. Round the walls are 
 small shields, inscribed with the 
 initials of the members, and the date 
 of their admission. The arms of 
 the Company are over the fireplace, 
 and a mutilated St. Christopher, in 
 stained glass, in one of the wiiidows. 
 There are portraits of Charles I. and 
 his Queen. The confraternity of 
 Tailors is the only one of the ancient 
 chartered companies now existing in 
 Salisbury. 
 
 In New Street, at the last house, 
 called Mitre Corner, being the spot 
 where the first house of New Salis- 
 bury was built, and where Bp. Poore 
 lived, every new prelate is invested 
 
 with his robes of office, and conducted 
 thence to the Cathedral. 
 
 The Salisbury and South Wilts Mn- 
 semn in St. Ann Street is open to the 
 public (free) daily, from 12 to 5 (Fri- 
 days and Sundays excepted), and on 
 Monday evening from 8 to 9. 
 
 The collection is arranged in 3 
 rooms. In the first room is a fine 
 collection of British birds, exhibited 
 by Mr. Henry Blackmore. It is in- 
 tended to devote this room to the 
 display of objects illustrative of the 
 Natural History of the neighbourhood 
 of Salisbury. The second room con- 
 tains the archxological specimens. The 
 mediaeval objects secured during the 
 excavations made in Salisbury for 
 drainage purposes are of great in- 
 terest. These consist of pilgrims' 
 signs, spurs, arroAV -heads, daggers, 
 swords, knives, spoons, workmen's 
 tools, keys, rings, &c. A small but 
 illustrative series of pottery and 
 porcelain is shown. The third (cir- 
 cular) room contains the geological 
 specimens. Especial prominence has 
 been given to fossils derived from 
 the local geological formations, and 
 among these should be noticed a 
 series of fossils from; the upper chalk, 
 exhibited by Mr. C. J. Read, and a 
 slab of stone, obtained by that gen- 
 tleman from the insect bed of the 
 Vale of Wardour, containing a very 
 large number of specimens of Archd&o- 
 nisous Brodiei. 
 
 The Blackmore Museum is open to 
 the public (free) the same days and 
 hours as the Salishitry and South Wilts 
 Museum. This museum was founded 
 by Mr. William Blackmore, of Liver- 
 pool and London, in 1864 ; it is sup- 
 ported entirely at his expense, al- 
 though placed by him under the 
 management of the Committee of 
 the Salisbury and South Wilts Museum, 
 
 The collection, which is wholly 
 illustrative of prehistoric archaeology, 
 is arranged in four groups. 1. Re- 
 mains of animals found associated 
 with the works of prehistoric man. 
 
Wiltshire* Boute S, — Salisbury ; Distinguished Natives. Ill 
 
 2. Implements of stone, 3. Imple- 
 ments of bronze. 4. Implements, 
 weapons, and ornaments of modem 
 savages, which serve to throw light 
 upon the use of similar objects be- 
 longing to prehistoric times. In 
 Group 1 are placed the mammalian 
 remains obtained from the local brick- 
 earth at Fisherton, including teeth 
 and bones of cave lion, cave hysena, 
 wolf, fox, mammoth, rhinoceros, 
 musk-sheep, &c. These have been 
 named and arranged by Dr. Black- 
 more. — Grou2? 2 includes the finest 
 and the most extensive series of flint 
 implements from the "drift" of 
 England to be seen in any public 
 museum. About one-fourth of the 
 specimens have been obtained from 
 the valley-gravels (drift) of the 
 neighbourhood of Salisbury. These 
 drift implements, and the objects ex 
 hibited from the bone-caves of France, 
 belong to the palccolithic or old-stone 
 period. In the neolithic series are 
 stone hatchets, arrow-heads, and im^ 
 plements from various parts of Eng- 
 land, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, 
 Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, Den- 
 mark, and Sweden ; from Algeria 
 and the Cape of Good Hope ; from 
 the East Indies; from the West 
 Indies ; and from Canada and the 
 United States of America. The 
 collection from the sites of an 
 cient lake-villages (Pfahlbauten) of 
 Switzerland claims special notice, 
 as also does the unique series of 
 sculptured stone pipes and other ob- 
 jects, obtained from the tumuli of 
 the Scioto valley, Ohio, and so well 
 known by archaeologists as the 
 "Squier and Davis" collection. — 
 Group 3. The bronze objects consist 
 of swords, daggers, spear-heads, and 
 celts. These have been selected from 
 a very large number, with reference 
 to minor typical peculiarities; and 
 as such, they, and the celts in par- 
 ticular, form a most instructive series, 
 Specimens are shown from England, 
 Ireland, France, Germany, Sweden, 
 and America. — In Group 4 are wea 
 
 pons, implements, and ornaments in 
 use by the Esquimaux, the Ahts of 
 the N.W. coast of America, the 
 Prairie Indians, the Indians of Bri- 
 tish Guiana, the Fuegians, the Poly- 
 nesians, the Melanesians, and various 
 semi-savage tribes of the African 
 continent. 
 
 Few collections are calculated to 
 throw more light upon the habits of 
 prehistoric man than that in the 
 Blackmore Museum. The stone, 
 bronze, and modern groups have 
 been arranged by Mr. Edward T. 
 Stevens, to whose energy and labour 
 the satisfactory completion of this 
 fine collection must be in a great 
 measure attributed. Catalogues may 
 be obtained at the Museum. 
 
 Salisbury can boast of some dis- 
 tinguished natives and residents. 
 
 Horman, the Provost of Eton, au- 
 thor of the Vulgaria, d. 1535, b. in New 
 St. ; Coryat, the author of the Crudi- 
 ties, afterwards rector of Odcombe, 
 d.'l606. Sir Toby Matthew, the Jesuit 
 politician employed by James I. to 
 negotiate the Spanish match, d. 1653. 
 Philip Massinger the dramatist, b. 
 1584; Thomas Chiffinch, the infamous 
 agent of the intrigues of Charles II., 
 b. 1 600 ; and James I/arris, the 
 philologist, known from his cele- 
 brated work as ffeivnes Harris," b. 
 1709, were natives | of the city, 
 ^Yilliam Lawes the musician, the 
 almost equally gifted brother of 
 Henry Lawes (b. at Dinton) (to whom 
 we are indebted for the suggestion of 
 Milton's " Comus,'' and the author 
 of the dedicatory epistle to it), was 
 born in the Close, 1603. Their 
 father, Thomas Lawes, was a Vicar 
 Choral of the Cathedral, of which 
 Matthew Wise, d. 1687, the ecclesi- 
 astical composer, was organist. Chubb 
 " the Deist,'* author of the * Suffi- 
 ciency of Reason in Religion,' de- 
 signated by Pope, in writing to Gay, 
 as "a wonderful phenomenon of 
 Wiltshire," was born at East Harn- 
 ham, 1679, apprenticed to a glove- 
 maker, and became the leading spirit 
 
112 Boiite 8. — Stonehenge 
 
 —Old Samm. Wiltshire* 
 
 of a debating club. He was the 
 original of the Square " of Fielding's 
 *Tom Jones/ while "Thwackum" 
 was drawn from Hele, master of the 
 Close Grammar School. Joseph Ad- 
 dison, born at Milston, near Ames- 
 bury, was educated in the Grammar 
 School here, and Sir Charles Lyell, 
 the geologist, at the Academy of 
 Dr. Kadcliffe. 
 
 To these we may not improperly 
 add 
 
 John of Salisbnnj, born at Old 
 Sarum, 1110, who, according to Le- 
 land, combined in himself " omnem 
 scientiarum orbem," described by 
 Bale as " a good Latinist, Grecian, 
 mathematician, musician, philoso- 
 pher, divine, and what-not,'' who 
 died Bishop of Chartres, 1182, au- 
 thor of " Poly era ti con," dedicated 
 to Becket. 
 
 [Salisbury may be wisely selected 
 by the tourist as the centre for ex- 
 cursions. The chief excursions that 
 may be made from the city are 
 those to ( 1 ) Stonehenge and Amesbunj, 
 including Old Sarum ; (2) Wilton 
 Mouse (shown on Wednesdays) in- 
 cluding Benterton ; (3) Longford Castle 
 (not at present shown to the public), 
 including Trafalgar House and 
 Clarendon ; and (4) Wardour Castle 
 (shown any day).] 
 
 [Stonehenge will probably be the 
 first object selected by the tourist for 
 a visit. This wonderful and myste- 
 rious monument of antiquity lies 
 about H m. W. of Amesbury, 9 m. 
 from Salisbury. The best ,plan is 
 to take a carriage (charge from White 
 Hart, there and back, 10s. 6d, for 
 one horse, 21s. for a pair ; if Wilton 
 is included, an additional 2 miles, the 
 charge is 2s. more), going by Old 
 Sarum, and returning by Lake House 
 and Heale House and the Valley of the 
 Avon, 
 
 2 m. rt. is Old Sarum, Q.\ixxge conical 
 knoll, presenting in the open country 
 a bold outline that instantly attracts 
 
 the stranger's eye. It is now a bare 
 hill encircled with entrenchments, 
 with a central mound peering above 
 them; but for centuries this spot was 
 crowded with buildings, religious, 
 military, and domestic, and was one 
 of the most important cities in our 
 island. Some say (but it is doubt- 
 ful) that the ancient British name 
 was Caer Sarflog, the " City of the 
 Service Tree ; " its Roman name was 
 Sorhiodunuin, the Saxon Scarohgrig. 
 The face of the hill is quite smooth 
 and very steep. The summit is 
 fenced by a mighty earthen rampart 
 and ditch, protected by a lower 
 raised bank, outside of it, the 
 height from the top of the one 
 to the bottom of the other being 
 106 ft. The surface of the hill 
 within this vallum is an elongated 
 circular area of 27^ acres. In the 
 centre of this area is a second circular 
 earthwork and ditch 100 ft. in height ; 
 and within these stood the citadel. 
 On the top of the earthwork sur- 
 rounding the citadel was a very 
 strong wall, 12 ft. thick, of flint im- 
 bedded in rubble, and coated with 
 square stones, of which some portion 
 remains. To the great outer earth- 
 work there were two entrances, one 
 (guarded by a horn work still re- 
 maining) on the western, another 
 (the postern) on the eastern side. 
 The site of the citadel is now over- 
 grown with briars and brushwood : 
 the rest of the area is partly in a 
 state of nature, partly cultivated. 
 Though there may have been a 
 British stronghold here, still it is the 
 opinion of good antiquaries that there 
 is now no British work to be seen ; 
 that when the Romans took pos- 
 session of the hill they defended it 
 by a simple escarpment, without any 
 ditch, but with outworks at the en- 
 trances ; and that the ditch now on 
 the face of the scarp, as well as the 
 central citadel and its defences, were 
 added by the Saxons, perhaps by 
 Alfred, who, in his war with the 
 Danes, certainly paid great atten- 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Old Sarum, 
 
 113 
 
 tion to strengthening the position. 
 Several Roman roads radiated from 
 the city : to Silchester, Winchester, 
 Dorchester, Uphill on the Bristol 
 Channel, and others, it is believed, 
 to Bath and Marlborough. Cynric 
 the Saxon won it by a victory over the 
 Britons in 552. In 960 Edgar held 
 his council here. In 1003 Sweyn 
 and the Danes are said to have 
 stormed it. In the time of the Con- 
 fessor a monastery of nuns was esta- 
 blished. It was not till 1072 that it 
 became the seat of a bishop. The 
 kingdom of Wessex originally formed 
 one diocese, the see being fixed 635 
 at Dorchester (Oxon) and Birinus 
 being the first bishop. In 683, Htedde 
 being bishop, the see was removed 
 to Winchester. In 705 the diocese 
 was divided, a new see for the dis- 
 trict E. of Selwood being fixed at 
 Sherborne. A further subdivision 
 took place in 909, a new see for 
 Berks and Wilts being created at 
 Ramsbury, which was reunited to 
 Sherborne by Bp. Herman 1045, 
 who in 1072 transferred the see to 
 Old Sarum. 
 
 In 1070 William the Conqueror, 
 as the closing act of his conquest, 
 reviewed his victorious army on the 
 plain below Old Sarum, where now 
 the modern city stands, rewarding 
 its leaders with lands and gifts. The 
 castellanship of Sarum he gave to 
 his kinsman, Osmund, who, after- 
 wards taking holy orders, succeeded 
 Herman in the see. In 1086 the 
 king assembled here, the year before 
 his death, all the chief landowners 
 of the realm to swear that ** whose 
 men soever they were they would be 
 faithful to him against all other 
 men," by which " England was made 
 for ever after an undivided king- 
 dom " (E. A. F.). Bishop Osmund 
 finished his new cathedral in 1092, 
 and established the new ritual *' ad 
 usum Sarum.*' The foundations of the 
 cathedral were visible in the very 
 dry summer of 1834. It was in form 
 a plain cross, 270 ft. long by 70 wide: 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 the transept of the same width, and 
 150 ft. long. Its plan is remarkable 
 for having a square instead of an 
 apsidal E. end, and a Galilee or 
 Atrium at the W. end. Henry I.'s 
 celebrated chancellor, Bishop Roger, 
 improved both the church and for- 
 tifications. In the reign of Stephen 
 the place began to decline. The 
 soldiers and priests cooped up in 
 so small a space could not agree. 
 The situation was cold and windy, 
 and water was scarce. Bishop 
 Richard Poore obtained a grant of 
 Merrifield," where a new church 
 (the present one) was commenced ; 
 the citizens migrated ; the great tra- 
 velling road was diverted to the new 
 site, and the days of Old Sarum were 
 numbered. A charter granted to the 
 new town, 2 Henry III., sealed its fate. 
 Very little, however, is known about 
 the real history of the transference 
 of the people from the one place to 
 the other. There are some reasons 
 for believing that a new town had 
 been growing up by degrees long be- 
 fore the cathedral was built at New 
 Sarum. Being only 1600 ft. in 
 diameter, Old Sarum must have af- 
 forded small space for a cathedral, 
 bishop's palace, a garrison, streets 
 and houses. The cathedral had been 
 taken down in 1331 (Edward III.) 
 and its materials used in building 
 the new spire. Close walls, &c. 
 Leland (temp. Henry VIII.), reports 
 some portions of the buildings as 
 visible in his time, but says there 
 is not one house, neither within or 
 without Old Saresbyri, inhabited. 
 Much notable minus building of 
 the castell yet ther remaynith. The 
 diche that envirined the old town 
 was a very deepe and strong thynge." 
 The walls remained till 1608, and 
 served as a quarry. Fisherton Old 
 County Jail (inter alia) was built out 
 of them. The great hollow enclosure 
 of Old Sarum girt by its frowning 
 earthwork (not unlike the crater of 
 a volcano) is certainly a solemn and 
 desolate place. Pepys passing by, 
 I 
 
114 
 
 Boute 8. — Ameshury^ 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 not knowing what it was, alighted 
 to (examine it, but " it being very 
 dark it frighted me to be all alone at 
 that time of night." [A subterranean 
 passage was discovered in 1795. 
 The foundations of towers may be 
 traced, and many Roman coins have 
 been met with.] Old Salisbury has 
 given a title to the families of 
 D'Eureux or Devereux, Longespee, 
 Montacute, Neviil, Plantagenet, and 
 the Cecil family who still enjoy it. 
 The ground ceased to be Crown 
 property in 1447 when it was granted 
 to the Lords Stourton : on forfeiture 
 by them it was granted by James I. 
 to the Cecils. They sold it to Gover- 
 nor Pitt, and the Earl of Chatham 
 sold it to the Earl of Caledon. It was 
 subsequently purchased by the Eccle- 
 siastical Commission. Its dignity as 
 the resort of kings and seat of coun- 
 cils ceased with the growth of the 
 younger city; but it long retained 
 one relic of its former greatness, the 
 right of returning 2 members to 
 parliament, which was duly exercised 
 until the passing of the Reform Bill, 
 although for many a year not a single 
 house had existed. The elections 
 were held at the foot of the hill, on 
 Election Acre, where a tent was 
 pitched beneath the branches of an 
 elm- tree, which is still pointed out 
 as occupying the site of the last re- 
 maining house. 
 
 [The upper road from Old Sarum 
 to Amesbury traverses the bleak, un- 
 sheltered downs of Salisbury Plain. 
 About 1 m. short of Salisbury, beyond 
 the intersection of a cross-road from 
 Wilton, a peculiar hollow may be 
 noticed to the rt., between a copse- 
 wood and the road. It was one of 
 the five places or " steads in Eng- 
 land in which tournaments were held 
 according to a charter of Richard I. 
 An imaginary line from Old Sarum 
 to "Wilton would intersect the actual 
 spot. 8 m. brings the traveller to 
 the little town of 
 
 Amesbury or Amhreshury (^Inn : 
 George, Pop. 1169), prettily situ- 
 
 ated in a fertile bottom embosomed 
 in woods, in the valley of the Upper 
 Avon. It is a place of the highest 
 antiquity, and is reasonably sup- 
 posed to derive its name in the A.-S. 
 form Ambres-hurh (answering to the 
 Welsh Cacr JEmrys), from Aurelius 
 Ambrosius, the British king of the 
 6th centy., identified by Dr. Guest 
 with Natan-leod, ^. e. " the Prince of 
 the Sanctuary:" this sanctuary being, 
 according to the same authority, the 
 Great Monastery which the Welsh 
 Triads inform us was established 
 here in the very earliest times of 
 Christianity. *' The choir or sanc- 
 tuary of Ambrosius was probably tJw 
 monastery of Britain, the centre from 
 which flowed the blessings of Chris- 
 tianity and civilisation." — Guest, 
 An eponymic Abbot Ambrius ap- 
 pears in the not very trustworthy 
 chronicle of Geoffrey of Monmouth. 
 Amesbury is of much interest in le- 
 gendary history as the place of Queen 
 Guinevere's penitential retirement. 
 
 " Queen Guinevere had fled the court and sat 
 There in the holy house at Almesbury 
 Weeping, none with her save a little maid, 
 A novice." — Tennyson. 
 
 A Benedictine nunnery was founded 
 here, c. 980, by Queen Elfrida to 
 expiate the murder of her stepson 
 Edward at Corfe. In 1177 Henry 
 
 II. expelled the nuns for dissolute 
 living, and gave it to the great 
 convent of Fontevrault in Anjou, 
 whence it received a prioress and 
 24 nuns. It increased in splen- 
 dour and in royal favour, and be- 
 came a favourite retreat of ladies 
 of royal or noble birth. Eleanor of 
 Brittany, daughter of Geoffrey Plan- 
 tagenet and sister of Prince Arthur, 
 became a nun here, where she was 
 buried, after her death at St. James's 
 Priory, Bristol. Mary, the 6th 
 daughter of Edward I., in company 
 with 13 ladies of noble birth, in- 
 cluding her younger sister Leonora, 
 took the veil here in 1285; and here 
 in 1292 died Eleanor, Queen of Henry 
 
 III. , having taken the veil here in 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Amesbiiry, 
 
 115 
 
 1287, fifteen years after her hnsband's 
 death. Katharine of Aragon lodged 
 within its walls on her first arrival 
 in England in 1501. Florence 
 Bormewe, the last abbess but one, 
 resisted the attempts of Cromwell's 
 emissaries to induce her to surrender 
 her monastery into the King's hands. 
 ** Albeit we have used as many ways 
 with her as our poor wits could 
 attain, yet in the end we could not 
 by any persuasion bring her to any 
 conformity, but at all times she 
 resteth and so remaineth in these 
 terms, * If the King's Highness com- 
 mand me to go from this house I 
 will gladly go, though I beg my 
 bread, and as for pension I care 
 for none.' " One is hardly sorry to 
 learn that the death of the abbess 
 almost immediately afterwards saved 
 her from further humiliation. 
 
 After the Dissolution the monas- 
 tery was granted to the E. of Hert- 
 ford, afterwards Protector Somerset, 
 who made a residence out of the old 
 buildings, and the Protector's son, 
 Edward E. of Hertford, lived here. 
 His 2nd wife was Frances, d. of Lord 
 Howard of Bindon, of whom Sir Geo. 
 Kodney, of Rodney Stoke (Rte. 22), 
 was so enamoured that on her mar- 
 riage he came to Amesbury, wrote 
 a copy of verses to the countess in 
 his own blood, and then fell on his 
 sword. The property passed by 
 marriage, sale, and inheritance re- 
 spectively to the families of Ailes- 
 bury, Boyle, and Queensberry. Wil- 
 liam, 4th Duke of Queensberry, d. 
 1810, and in 1824 his estate was 
 bought by Sir Edmund Antrobus. 
 Whilst the residence of the Duke of 
 Queensberry and his charming 
 Duchess — Prior's 
 
 " Kitty, beautiful and young, 
 And wild as colt untam'd — " 
 
 it was the retreat of Gay, who here 
 composed the "Beggar's Opera." 
 A curious stone room, built into a 
 bank overlooking the Avon in the 
 grounds so as to form a kind of 
 
 artificial cavern, is said to have been 
 the poet's study. The Duchess's 
 sons died prematurely : Henry, the 
 eldest, from the accidental discharge 
 of his pistol as he was riding before 
 the coach containing his father and 
 brother, near Bawtry: Charles, the 
 second son escaped from the earth- 
 quake at Lisbon, having spent from 
 9 till 2 o'clock clambering over the 
 ruins, but died the next year. 
 
 The House was built from Inigo 
 Jones's, or more probably his son-in- 
 law Webb's designs, but has been 
 since much altered. It is interest- 
 ing," writes Mr. Fergusson, '^as one 
 of the earliest examples of the type 
 on which nine-tenths of the seats 
 of English gentry were afterwards 
 erected." The Avon flows through 
 the beautiful grounds, and is famous 
 as a trout-stream. 
 
 Amesbury was famous in Aubrey's 
 time for the best tobacco-pipes in 
 England, marked with a gauntlet, the 
 name of the maker: many are to 
 be seen in the Museum at Salisbury. 
 The Ch., as at Edington, Arundel, 
 and frequently elsewhere, served both 
 for the parish and the abbey, the 
 monastic body occupying the choir 
 and the parish the nave. It is a 
 large cruciform edifice, of E. E. cha- 
 racter, 128 ft. long, with a low 
 square central tower. There are 
 some rich Dec. windows in the chan« 
 cel. Attached to the N. Trans, is 
 a curious two-storied building of 
 domestic character. The Avon sweeps 
 round the base of the so-called 
 
 Vespasian's Camp (a name imposed 
 by the fanciful Stukeley, but lo- 
 cally known as " the Ramparts "), 
 crowning a densely- wooded hill, 
 which forms the principal feature 
 in the view from the House. Its 
 ancient lines of defence enclosing 
 39 acres, and boldly scarped towards 
 the W., environ the summit in the 
 form of a scalene triangle. It is a 
 British work, but Dr. Stukeley! in- 
 vented the name Vespasian's Camp 
 fancying that it might have been 
 I 2 
 
116 
 
 Boitte 8. — Stonehenge, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 occupied and strengthened by the 
 Romans when engaged in the con- 
 quest of the Belgse. The area of the 
 camp, now divided by the high road 
 which passes Stonehenge. and inter- 
 sected by drives, was entered through 
 two openings, one on the N. and the 
 other on the S. ; and the former, 
 which is still used as a roadway, 
 commands a beautiful view over the 
 subjacent vale, and of the church. 
 
 There are some little villages with 
 their churches near Amesbury 
 worthy of a visit. They lie mostly on 
 the banks of the Avon, which the 
 traveller may explore by an excel- 
 lent road to Pewsey, a distance of 
 14 m. (see Ete. 5, pp. 68, 69). 
 
 At some little distance from 
 Amesbury are three large, detached 
 blocks of sarsen stone, similar to those 
 at Stonehenge. One, 5 ft. in length, 
 may be found on the cultivated 
 open land, 1 m. N. of Amesbury, 
 close to a barn : another in the river, 
 J m. below the Nag's Head at Bul- 
 ford, sometimes under water, but 
 generally above it, close to the 1. 
 bank. A third stone, of small size, 
 stands in Mr. Long's field, E. of and 
 near Bulford. 
 
 Stonehenge is 2 m. W. from Ames- 
 bury, in an angle formed by the high 
 road, where it branches rt. to Heytes- 
 bury, 1. to the late Deptford Inn. It 
 is situated in the midst of Salisbury 
 Plain, an undulating tract of chalk 
 country, which has been aptly likened 
 to the surface of the ocean when 
 heaving after a storm — the long 
 rolling swell, " in fluctuation fixed.'* 
 Until a comparatively recent period 
 this district was entirely in a state 
 of nature. It was coated with a fine 
 turf, which afforded pasture to sheep, 
 the soil in many places but skin- 
 deep, and the whole region bare 
 of trees. But the natural features of 
 this country are now much changed. 
 The genius of the Plain is retiring 
 before cultivation, which has for some 
 time been creeping over the hills, and 
 
 is indeed now advanced to the very 
 precincts of Stonehenge, within a 
 gunshot of which are farm-buildings 
 and cottages neatly slated and white- 
 washed. Stonehenge, as seen from 
 a distance, has generally disap- 
 pointed. Its vastness is lost in the ex- 
 panse of open country. It is only on 
 the spot, and especially by moonlight 
 — when the traveller beholds around 
 him the ponderous masses, some erect, 
 supporting imposts, some leaning — 
 that its true proportions can be ap- 
 preciated. 
 
 Stonehenge when perfect, so far as 
 we can now judge, consisted of 2 
 circles and 2 ellipses of upright 
 stones, concentric, and environed by 
 a bank and ditch, and, outside this 
 boundary, of a single upright stone 
 and a hippodrome or Cursus. The en- 
 trance to the great cluster of circles 
 faced the N.E. ; and the road to it. Via 
 Sacra or Avenue, is still to be traced by 
 banks of earth. The traveller ap- 
 proaching Stonehenge by this course 
 (which commands a grand outline of 
 the ruin when the sun is low in the 
 west) first reaches the isolated stone 
 called the Friar's Heel (b), a block 16 
 ft. 9 in. long, and now in a leaning po- 
 sition. This stone takes its name from 
 a legend of Salisbury Plain : viz. that 
 whilst the Evil Spirit was busy erect- 
 ing the great structure, he made the 
 observation that no one would ever 
 know how it was done. This was 
 overheard by a Friar who happened 
 to be lurking about to watch the ope- 
 ration, and who incautiously replied 
 in the Wiltshire dialect, That's more 
 than thee can tell," and fled for his life. 
 Whereupon the other caught up an odd 
 stone, flung it after the fugitive and hit 
 him fortunately only on the heel. 
 
 From the Friar's Heel it is about 
 66 yards to the low circular earthen 
 boundary — a bank and ditch— now 
 very slightly marked upon the turf, 
 enclosing the area within which 
 Stonehenge stands. Just within the 
 entrance of this earthen ring lies a 
 large prostrate block (c), ridiculously 
 
Wiltslilre. 
 
 Boute 8. — StoneJienge, 
 
 117 
 
 misnamed the Slaughtering StonCf as 
 it evidently once stood upright. On 
 the margin of the earthen ring, one 
 55 yards on the 1., the other about 
 95 yards on the rt.. of the entrance, 
 are 2 smaller and unhewn stones (d). 
 Some have thought that there may 
 once have * been a circular row of 
 stones all round the earthen ring 
 (as at Avebury). Of this there is 
 no proof, and what two solitary 
 stones could have been put there for, 
 must be left to conjecture. 
 
 Upon the inner side of the margin 
 of the boundary ring will be ob- 
 served, one on the south side, the 
 other on the north, the traces of two 
 low tumuli . very slightly raised 
 above the ground, and imperfectly 
 ditched round (e). The one on the 
 N. side, if closely looked at, will be 
 found to abut upon the boundary 
 ring in such a manner as to prove 
 that the tumulus (which has been 
 opened, and was found to contain the 
 burned bones of an interment) was on 
 the spot before the earthen ring. 
 
 From the Friar's Heel to the first or 
 outer circle of the great structure is 
 about 38 yards. 
 
 The outer circle consisted of 30 
 upright stones fixed in the ground 
 at intervals of 3^ ft., connected at the 
 top by a continuous line of 30 imposts 
 forming a corona, or ring of stone, at 
 a height of 16 ft. above the ground. 
 These blocks were all squared and 
 rough-hewn, and cleverly joined to- 
 gether. The uprights were cut with 
 knobs or tenons, which fitted into 
 mortice-holes hewn in the under- 
 sides of the horizontal stones. About 
 9 ft. within this imposing peri- 
 style was the inner circle, which re- 
 sembled one of the simple stone 
 monuments common in Wales and 
 Cornwall, being a circle of un- 
 hewn syenite obelisks, apparently 
 36 or 40 in number, pillars about 6 ft. 
 in height. Within this, again, was the 
 great ellipse, formed of 5, or, as some 
 think, 7 trilithons, or triplets of 
 stones, all certainly hewn, each 
 
 group consisting of two blocks placed 
 upright and 1 crosswise, like the frame 
 of a doorway. These imposing struc- 
 tures rose progressively in height from 
 N.E. to S.W., and the loftiest and 
 largest attained an elevation of 25 ft. 
 Lastly, within the triliihons was the 
 inner ellipse, consisting of 19 obelisks 
 of syenite, similar in character to 
 those of the inner circle. Within 
 the inner ellipse was the so-called 
 altar'stonc. Such seems to have been 
 the original form of Stonehenge. 
 The ruin of to-day presents a very 
 different appearance. It is little 
 more than a contused pile of enor- 
 mous stones, which, according to the 
 saying, cannot be counted twice alike. 
 Yet enough remains to excite our 
 wonder and admiration. Of the 
 outer circle, or peristyle, 16 uprights 
 and 6 imposts retain their original 
 position; of the inner circle, the 
 stones of which are unfortunately 
 of a size very convenient for the 
 spoiler, 7 only stand upright ; of the 
 great ellipse, there are still two per- 
 fect trilithons, and 2 single uprights, 
 part of a trilithon overturned in 
 1620 by the Duke of Buckingham 
 digging for treasure, one in a leaning 
 position, a striking and interesting 
 object with its boldly-cut tenon at 
 top ; another trilithon fell, Jan. 3, 
 1797, on a rapid thaw succeeding 
 a severe frost; of the inner ellipse 
 there are 6 blocks in their places, and 
 in the centre remains the so-called 
 altar-stone. 
 
 The outer circle is all of native 
 Wiltshire stone, viz., the Sarsen or 
 Grcij-ixether, a hard silicious sand- 
 stone, certainly brought to this spot 
 from the Marlborough Downs. The 
 5 great trilithons are of the same kind 
 of stone. The small obeliscal stones 
 of the inner circle and the inmost 
 ellipse are all of primary igneous 
 rock called syenite, except 3 of green- 
 stone and 1 of silicious schist. These 
 smaller stones must ha\e been 
 brought from a great distance, as 
 this formation is not found in the co. 
 
SxONEHENaE* Plate I.— General Plan. 
 
 and ditch. 
 
 B, Standing stone, called " The Friar's Heel." 
 
 C. Large fallen stone. 
 
 D D. Two smaller stones on margin of earthen bank. 
 E E. Barrows, which, being absorbed in the earthen bank, appear 
 have been on the spot when the bank was made. 
 
StoneheNGE. Plate II. — The Circles and Ellipses, of Trilithons and Monoliths 
 occupying the centre of the earthen circle. See A, Plate I. 
 
 1. Ground Plan : as presumed to have been originally. 
 
 A. Small Trilithon of Syenite. That it stood here, is ouly conjectvue. It now lies as marked A below. 
 
 2. Ground Plan. Present state. 
 
 Outer circle. 
 Wiltshire Sarsen 
 stone. 
 
 Inmost Ellipsa 
 
 Second circle. 
 Syenite, and otl:cr 
 primitive rock. 
 
 Great Trilithons 
 Wiltshire Sarsen. 
 stone. 
 
120 
 
 Moute 8. — Stonelienge, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 of Wilts. Prof. Prestwich, without 
 asserting them to have come from that 
 district, says that they are of the 
 same nature as the igneous rocks 
 of part of the Lower Silurian region 
 of North Pembrokeshire and Carnar- 
 vonshire. The large black flat stone 
 lying in the centre is of fine mica- 
 ceous sandstone different from all the 
 rest. Lying on the ground to the 
 left, on entering at the N.E., is a 
 stone (a) with two mortice holes, one 
 certainly used as a horizontal impost. 
 This is also of syenite, and it has 
 evidently been the cap-stone of a 
 trilithon of smaller size than any 
 trilithon now at Stonehenge. This 
 proves that the number of trilithons 
 must have been more than 5, so that 
 we cannot positively say what their 
 original number or arrangement may 
 have been. 
 
 Having examined the ruin of the 
 monument itself, the visitor should 
 direct his attention to the neighbour- 
 ing plain. He will observe the se- 
 pulchral tumuli ranged round at a 
 distance. Within a radius of three 
 miles there are as many as 300, 
 while the rest of the country is com- 
 paratively free from them. The 
 cluster (2 m.) to the N. is called the 
 Seven Barrows, and adjoining it is 
 the western end of the Carsus. This 
 enclosure, bearing a strong likeness 
 to a Roman race-ground, is marked 
 out by banks of earth along the 
 gently sloping plain, E. and W., to a 
 distance of more than a mile and a 
 half. At one end (the E.) it is 
 barred by a high mound, supposed 
 to have been the seat of the prin- 
 cipal spectators; near the other by 
 a low bank, which would appear 
 to have been the goal. But we have 
 no certain knowledge of the purpose 
 this enclosure served. At a short 
 distance farther N. is a much smaller 
 but similar work, likewise barred by 
 a bank at its western end. 
 
 Before the s tranger bids adieu to 
 Stonehenge, he will probably feel 
 desirous of in formation with regard 
 
 to its date, origin, and use. It must, 
 however, be confessed that they are 
 all equally unknown to us. The 
 depths of time transmit but a feeble 
 light for our guidance. We will en- 
 deavour, nevertheless, to collect these 
 rays, such as they are, into a focus, 
 premising that the subject may prove 
 uninteresting, and giving the reader 
 the option of closing the book with 
 Warton's beautiful sonnet : — 
 
 " Thou noblest monument of Albion's isle ! 
 Whether by Merlin's aid from Scythia's 
 shore 
 
 To Amber's fatal plain Pendragon bore. 
 Huge frame of giant-hands, the mighty pile, 
 To entomb his Britons slain by Hengist's 
 guile : 
 
 Or Druid priests, sprinkled with human 
 gore, 
 
 Taught 'mid thy massy maze their mystic 
 lore : 
 
 Or Danish chiefs, enrich'd with savage spoil, 
 '1 o Victory's idol vast, an unhewn shrine, 
 Kear'd the rude heap : or, in thy hallowed 
 round. 
 
 Repose the kings of Brutus' genuine line ; 
 Or here those kings in solemn btate were 
 crown'd : 
 
 Studious to trace thy wondrous origin. 
 We muse on many an ancient tale re- 
 nown'd." 
 
 And Sir Philip Sydney's lines : — • 
 
 " Near AVilton sweet, huge heaps of stones are 
 found, 
 
 But so confus'd that neither any eye 
 Can count ihem just, nor reason reason try 
 What force tbem brought to so unlikely 
 ground." 
 
 There are two opinions respecting 
 the period at which the different 
 series of stones were set up. By 
 some it is thought that the outer 
 circle and the outer oval existed before 
 the smaller stones of the inner circle 
 and inner oval were placed ; by 
 others that the smaller stones were 
 first erected ; but if any inference as 
 to the contemporaneous date of the 
 whole structure may be drawn from 
 the chippings of the various kinds of 
 stones of which it is composed being 
 found mixed together at the bases of 
 the stones, and in the adjacent bar- 
 rows, we are led to assign one date to 
 the whole. 
 
 The first author who makes men- 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — t 
 
 ■Stonehenge. 
 
 121 
 
 tion of Stonehenge is Henry of Hun- 
 tingdon,* who wrote at the com- 
 mencement of 12th cent. In his 
 *' Chronicle" he speaks of it as the 
 second wonder of England, and calls 
 it Stanenges, Geoffrey of Mon- 
 mouth, who wrote at the same time, 
 declares it to have been a monument 
 erected in the reign of Aurelius Am- 
 brosius, King of Britain, c. 460, in 
 order to commemorate the slaughter 
 of the Britons by Hengist, and hence 
 the etymology which has sometimes 
 been assigned to it of " Hengists' 
 Stones but the true etymological 
 explanation of Stanhenges seems to 
 be (A.-S. Stan, used as an adjective, 
 and henge, from A.-S. hon). i. e. 
 Stone hanging-places^ from the groups 
 of stones resembling a gallows. This 
 was long ago suggested by Wace, the 
 Anglo-Norman poet, who writes 
 
 " • Stanliengues ' ont nom en Englois, 
 • Pieres pandues ' en Francois." 
 
 The name given to it by the Saxons 
 themselves evidently shows that it 
 was not set up by that people, who 
 would hardly have bestowed such a 
 title on a work emanating from 
 themselves, and it is almost certain 
 that it is much anterior to the 
 coming of the Saxons. 
 
 Inigo Jones broached the theory 
 that it was a temple erected by the 
 Komans to the god Coelu€. But 
 this has been repudiated by all 
 arcliseologists, and may be pro- 
 nounced baseless. 
 
 It is held by many archaeologists 
 that the large stone circles of these 
 islands were used as j^foces of re- 
 ligious assembly by the ancient 
 inhabitants. In Scotland there ap- 
 pears to have been a general tradition 
 that they were places of sacrifice in 
 heathen times, f Their Gaelic name 
 
 * Secundum est apud Stanenges ubi lapides 
 mirjE magnitudinis in modum portanim 
 elevati sunt, ita ut portee portis superpositse 
 videantur : nec potest aliquis excogitare qua 
 arte, tanti lapides adeo in altum elevati sunt, 
 vel quare ibi constructi sunt. 
 
 t See Hector Boece, Hist. Scotland, a.d. 
 1526. Archaeol. vol. i. p. 315. 
 
 of clachan is equally applicable to a 
 church. They have also the name 
 of law-stones, and there is documen- 
 tary evidence that as late as the 14th 
 cent, they were used for holding 
 courts of justice (see * Prehistoric Ann. 
 of Scotland, p. 113). The laws of 
 Edgar and Canute, in the 10th and 
 11th centuries, show the same vene- 
 ration in England for stones, which 
 were even resorted to as places of 
 sanctuarg. 
 
 In most parts of France stone 
 monuments seem to have been sedu- 
 lously destroyed, but they are abun- 
 dant in Brittany. In our own Island 
 they are found in all parts, from the 
 Scilly Isles to the Orkneys, and are 
 generally ci>CH/a/' in form, and usually 
 surrounded by an earthwork, con- 
 sisting of a foss and vallum, the 
 vallum being on the outside. 
 
 The stones are often of great size, 
 15 ft. and upwards in height, and 
 selected with some regard to sym- 
 metry, some having been hammer- 
 dressed. The diameters of the stone 
 circles vary from 60 ft. to 366, and 
 even to 1200 ft, which is the diameter 
 of the great circle at Abury. The 
 more usual diameter, according to 
 Dr, Thurnam {Cran. Brit. c. v. p. 
 124), is about 100 ft., which is that 
 of Stonehenge. 
 
 Some of the sacred circles were 
 approached by avenues formed of 
 parallel rows of stones, and are of 
 considerable dimensions and rectili- 
 near, as at Ciasserness, Merivale. 
 That of Shap was of large size, and is 
 said to be traceable for 2 m. The 
 avenue is traceable at Avebury, and 
 is most striking atCarnac,in Brittany, 
 where there are from 10 to 13 rows 
 in different aveneus. 
 
 Avebury and Stonehenge, both in 
 Wilts, are the most remarkable so- 
 called Druidical monuments in 
 Britain. Avebury was probably in the 
 district of the Dobuni, and is formed 
 of unhewn stones. Stonehenge is dif- 
 
 Iferent ; it is formed partially of hewed 
 and squared stones. The columnar 
 
122 
 
 Boute 8. — Wilsford — Stratford. Wiltshire. 
 
 uprights are connected with a con- 
 tinuous transom or architrave, and 
 by a system of mortice and tenon 
 joints. That Stonehenge is more 
 recent than Avehury there can be little 
 doubt. If the people who erected it 
 were the Belgse, the period of its 
 erection would be about the second 
 centiLvy prior to the Christian era. 
 
 Fergusson maintains that Stone- 
 henge, Silbury Hill, and Avebury, 
 are of post-Roman date, and were pro- 
 bably erected during the 5th and 6th 
 centuries. Sir John Lubbock, repre- 
 senting the more generally received 
 views of English antiquaries, assigns 
 them all to a pre-Roman period of 
 uncertain date.] 
 
 [On returning to Salisbury, the rte. 
 by the valley of the Avon, locally 
 known as the Bournes, may be advan- 
 tageously taken. Proceeding over 
 Normanton Downs, in 2 m. we reach 
 the village of Wilsford. — Wilsford 
 House is a handsome modern mansion. 
 A little further down the stream is 
 Lake House, Rev. E. Duke, a very 
 picturesque mansion in the Eliza- 
 bethan style, of the time of James I., 
 and a remarkably fine and perfect 
 specimen of the architecture of that 
 period. It contains some valuable 
 antiquities collected by the late Mr. 
 Duke, the antiquary. In the park 
 are some fine barrows planted with 
 fir-trees. 
 
 2 1 m. is Great Durnford Ch., with 
 very rich Norm. N. and S. doorways 
 and chancel arch. The font is Norm, 
 with an intersecting arcade. There 
 is a curious brass to Edw. Young, 
 his wife, and 14 children, 1670. 
 Great Durnford House was once a 
 seat of the Hungerfords. Evelyn 
 notes in his diary, ,Iuly 22, 1654, 
 " We dined at a ferme of my uncle 
 Hungerfords, called Darneford Mag- 
 na, situate in a valley under the plaine, 
 most sweetly watered, abounding in 
 troutes." 
 
 Opposite to Great Durnford is 
 
 Oghury Camp, an entrenched circular 
 British work, with a vallum more 
 than 30 ft. high. 
 
 5 m. At Middle Woodford is Heale 
 House, one of the many hiding-places 
 in which Charles II. found shelter 
 after the battle of Worcester. The 
 house has been altered, but some of 
 the carved work remains. Charles II. 
 came to Stonehenge from his con- 
 cealment at Heale House, to meet 
 the friends who were to conduct him 
 to the coast of Sussex, where they 
 had secured a vessel for his escape. 
 Arriving at the spot before the ap- 
 pointed hour, the king, to beguile 
 the time, counted and recounted the 
 stones, and proved to his satisfaction 
 the fallacy of the vulgar notion that 
 they cannot be told twice alike. 
 
 Heale Hill is remarkable for a 
 circle on the summit, and for traces 
 of a British village on the S. slope. 
 We reach at 
 
 6 m. Stratford, lying close under 
 the hill of Old Sarum, which derived 
 its name from the Roman street or 
 road which here forded the river 
 on its course to Badbury Rings and 
 Dorchester. The manor-house was 
 the residence of William Pitt, Earl of 
 Chatham, who was first returned to 
 parliament (173 5) as member for those 
 vacant mounds on the hill above. 
 Governor Pitt purchased the manor 
 in 1690 for 1500/., and Lord Gren- 
 ville, who had married the sister of 
 Thos. Pitt, Lord Camelford, after- 
 wards sold it for 65,000/., to Lord 
 Caledon. In 1801 John Horne Tooke 
 was returned by Lord Camelford, 
 and in his case the question of the 
 disability of clergymen to sit as 
 Members of Parliament was tried 
 and settled. The door-head of the 
 quaint gabled Parsonage bears the 
 inscription — Parva sed apta do- 
 mino, 1675." A charming lime 
 avenue leads from the parsonage to 
 the Ch,, a debased Perp. building, 
 bearing on the tower in large letters 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Bemerton — Wilton. 
 
 123 
 
 the inscription — " Thomas Pitt, Esq., 
 Benefactor, Anno 1711." It contains 
 an hourglass-stand for the pulpit.] 
 
 [ (6) The second object of interest 
 to be visited from Salisbury is Wilton 
 House, the seat of the Earl of Pem- 
 broke, and celebrated for its marbles 
 and pictures. It may be seen on Wed- 
 nesdays from 10 to 4. It is 3 m. 
 distant. There are stations at Wilton, 
 both of the G. W. and S. W. Rlys. ; 
 but by far the most agreeable way 
 of visiting it is in a carriage, or still 
 better on foot. To the 1. of the road 
 is the hamlet of 
 
 1 J m. Bemerton, interesting as the 
 living of George Herbert (1630-32), 
 so charmingly described by Izaak 
 Walton as ^' the good and more 
 pleasant than healthful Parsonage 
 of Bemerton," in which he died, 
 1632, in his 43rd year. Herbert re- 
 stored the parsonage and old church, 
 within the altar-rail of which he 
 lies buried. According to the tra- 
 dition, an aged fig-tree against the 
 wall of the rectory, and a medlar- 
 tree in the garden, were planted by 
 him. JSforris, the poet and divine, 
 and Coxe, the traveller and historian, 
 were also rectors of Bemerton. The 
 bells in the church turret, the same 
 tolled by Herbert at his institution, 
 are of the 14th century, the S. and 
 W. windows of Dec. date (about 
 1300), the doorway and pulpit can- 
 opy Jacobean, and the font Early 
 English. There is a very good ex- 
 ample of a low side window. A new 
 Ch. has been erected near the old one 
 as a memorial of Herbert by his 
 admirers. One of the earliest paper- 
 mills in England was established at 
 Bemerton.3 
 
 Wilton, 3 m. {Inn : Pembroke 
 Arms, close to the park gates, Pop. 
 of Pari, borough, 8639 ; of urban 
 sanitary district, 1826), is a small 
 quiet town situated on the junction 
 of the Wylye and Nadder. It is of 
 great antiquity, and, as the capital 
 of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of 
 
 Wessex, gave name to Wiltshire, 
 and was the scene of many stirring 
 events. It was here that, according 
 to Palgrave, when Wessex and Mercia 
 were contending for the possession of 
 all England S. of the Humber, Egbert 
 King of Wessex overthrew, in the 
 year 823, his rival Beornwulf in the 
 bloody victory of EUendun, and 
 dwelt here " nine long winters in 
 rest and peace." His successors fre- 
 quently resided here. [The seat of 
 the battle is perhaps more probably 
 placed at Alliiigton near Amesbury.] 
 In 871 the great Alfred here defeated 
 the Danes in a pitched battle, which 
 procured him a peace of 2 years* 
 duration. In 1003 the Danes had 
 their revenge, when under Sweyn 
 they burnt the place to the ground. 
 In Norman times Wilton was con- 
 sidered the first and most valuable 
 of the royal boroughs. Here the 
 Empress Maud kept her Easter fes- 
 tival in royal state, a.d. 1141. Two 
 years later, July 1, 1143, King 
 Stephen came to Wilton with the 
 view of building a castle here, and 
 by this means curbing the rebellious 
 burghers of Sarum ; but the Earl of 
 Gloucester, having assembled a force 
 for the Empress Maud, fired the 
 houses and put the monarch to 
 flight. According to Harding he 
 was aided by K. David of Scotland. 
 
 " The kyng Steplian a castell then began 
 At Wilton, where kyng David with power 
 And Erie Robert of Glocester that was then 
 Him drove awaye -out of that place full 
 clere, 
 
 And bet it downe to the ground full nere." 
 
 During all these early times Wilton 
 flourished as a large and^ busy town, 
 quickly recovering from its disasters, 
 and it continued to prosper down to 
 the year 1244, when it received the 
 blow which was to prove fatal to its 
 importance, in the diversion of the 
 great western road, which formerly 
 passed through it on its way from 
 Old Sarum.* In 1349 the prosperity 
 
 * " The chaunging of this way was the 
 total cause of the ruine of Old Saresbyii and 
 
124 
 
 Boute 8. — Wilton, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 of the town received another severe 
 blow from a pestilence which carried 
 off a third of the population. In the 
 15th cent, it had a brisk trade in 
 beer, and the Mayor was obliged to 
 interfere to settle the claims of the 
 rival brewers, ordaining the days on 
 which they were severally to brew. 
 In 1551 Edward VI. on his fruitless 
 tour for health visited Wilton, which 
 was honoured by the presence of 
 Elizabeth in one of her progresses, in 
 which she is described as having shown 
 herself " both merrie and pleasante." 
 James L paid it frequent visits, in 
 1620 making an expedition from it 
 to visit Stonehenge. In 1627, on 
 account of the plague at Salisbury, 
 the market was transferred to Wilton, 
 and tradition points out a mossy stone 
 by the wayside between West Harn- 
 ham and Netherhampton, where the 
 money of the customers was de- 
 posited in a basin of vinegar. In our 
 times the name of Wilton has been 
 associated with carpets, which were 
 first made in England at this town 
 (by a Mr. Moody), and are still the 
 staple of the place. In the factory 
 of Messrs. Lapworth Brothers the 
 finest Axminsters are manufactured, 
 as well as those called Saxony, made 
 of short-staple wool. 
 
 The Wyh/e and iYcrc?(/(?r, which wash 
 the sides of Wilton, effect a junction 
 below the park of the Pembrokes. 
 The Wylye rises on the high land for- 
 merly bosomed in Selwood, and on 
 its approach to this place flows for a 
 long distance by the side of the 
 ancient forest of Grovely. 
 
 The Wylye, insignificant stream as 
 it is, is immortalised by Spencer in 
 his "Faery Queen" (Bk. iv. c. 11). 
 
 • ' Next him went Wylebourne with passage 
 sly, 
 
 That of his wyliness his name doth talce, 
 And of .himself doth name the shire 
 thereby." 
 
 Wiltown, for afore W. had 12 paroche churches 
 or more, and was the hedde town of Wileshir." 
 — Leland. The 12 churches are all identified 
 by Sir R. C. Hoare. 
 
 The monastery here is usually said 
 to owe its foundation to Alfred, who 
 endowed it with his manor of Wilton, 
 established it in the royal palace, 
 and added an abbess and 12 nuns. 
 But he was really the r<?-founder, for 
 it had been originally founded by 
 Wulstan, Earl of the Wilsaetas, 
 while languishing of his wounds 
 after the battle of Cynemseresford, 
 A.D. 800. This first foundation was 
 merely a chantry or oratory, changed 
 A.D. 830 into a priory of Benedictine 
 sisters, of which Ethelburga, Wul- 
 stan's widow, became first prioress. 
 It was much patronized by Anglo- 
 Saxon kings, and refounded by 
 Alfred at the instigation of his 
 queen. Wulftrude or Wul frith, a 
 noble mistress of Edgar's, and mother 
 of St. Edith of Wilton who had been 
 educated here, became abbess c. 968. 
 Edgar wished to marry her on the 
 death of his wife, but she devoted 
 herself to religion. There is a 
 curious tale told of the relics of the 
 Welsh saint Ivius or Yweg. The 
 clerks who bore the sacred remains 
 were entertained by Wulfrith, and 
 the casket containing them was 
 placed on the altar. The next morn- 
 ing it was found immovably fixed. 
 The abbess gave them 200s., and 
 they departed sorrowful." St. Edith 
 refused the abbesship her father 
 wished her to receive, and died a.d. 
 984, at the early age of 2.3. Miracles 
 were worked by her remains, and 
 she became the patron saint of the 
 convent. A second Edith, daughter 
 of Earl Godwine, and wife of Edward 
 the Confessor, rebuilt the ch., which 
 had been of wood, in stone, and it 
 was dedicated by Bp. Herman 1065, 
 shortly before the consecration of 
 Westminster Abbey, Christina, 
 sister of Edg. Atheling, was abbess 
 of Wilton, and her niece Maud 
 was brought up here, wearing the 
 veil unwillingly to save herself 
 from the insolence of the Normans ; 
 but as soon as she got out of her 
 aunt's presence she would take it 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Wilton Church, 
 
 125 
 
 off, throw it on the ground, and 
 trample it under foot. When Ju- 
 liana de GifFard was abbess, te)np. 
 Edw. I., her relation Osborn de 
 GifFard carried off 2 nuns, for which 
 he was sentenced among other things 
 to be whipt naked with rods 3 
 several Sundays in the ch. of Wilton, 
 and also in the ch. and market-place 
 of Shaftesbury, lay aside all knightly 
 insignia, and wear russet and sheep- 
 skins, and wear no shirt till he had 
 been 3 years in the Holy Land. In 
 1379 the discipline was lax, and Bp. 
 Wyvill .issued an ordinance for its 
 regulation, from which we find that 
 the bread, milk, and beer were so 
 bad that the nuns were obliged to 
 sell them and buy better. The 
 abbess was ordered to supply the 
 same she had herself, under pain of 
 suspension. There are curious letters 
 extant of Henry VIII. to Wolsey, 
 and Anne BuUen, who had a fa- 
 vourite she wished to be abbess, but 
 who proved to be of very low life. 
 ** I wolde not," writes the king, " for 
 all the gold in the world clog your 
 conscience nor mine to make her a 
 raler of a house which is of so un- 
 godly a demeanour, nor I trust you 
 would not that neither for brother 
 nor sister I should so destain mine 
 honour or conscience." At the Dis- 
 solution there were an abbess, w^ho 
 retired to Fovant, and 31 nuns. The 
 abbess, by virtue of her office, was 
 a baroness of England, a privilege 
 shared only by Shaftesbury, Barking, 
 and St. Mary's Winton. 
 
 The so-called see of Wilton, i.e. 
 of the Wiltunensis episcopus " 
 (Wilton was never the seat of a 
 bishopric), was really that of Wilt- 
 shire, established at Ramsbury a.d. 
 909. Ethelstan was the first bishop; 
 Herman the 9th and last, d. 1078 ; 
 shortly after the Conquest the see 
 was removed to Sarum, 
 
 The Hospital of St. John was 
 founded by Bp. Hubert, c. 1189. 
 There are some remains of the build- 
 
 ing^, including a small chapel, with 
 a piscina. 
 
 The former parish church, in the 
 centre of Wilton, has been partly 
 pulled down, but the remaining ivy- 
 clad fragments are very picturesque ; 
 the ancient borough cross remains on 
 the site it has so long occupied by 
 the churchyard wall. 
 
 Wilton received a great ornament 
 by the erection in 1844, by the Right 
 Hon. Sidney Herbert, afterwards Lord 
 Herbert of Lea, of a new Church in the 
 Lombardic style of the N. of Italy, 
 from designs by T. H. Wyatt, which 
 for gorgeousness and beauty of detail 
 stands unrivalled. Elevated on a ter- 
 race, it presents its front to the road, 
 the bell-tower rising on the side to a 
 height of 108 ft. distinct from the 
 ch., after the fashion of the Italian 
 campanile, but communicating with 
 it by a cloister of elaborately worked 
 columns in pairs. The front is ap- 
 proached by a flight of steps 100 ft. 
 in width, and presents 3 deeply re- 
 cessed circular porches, the central 
 and principal entrance being orna- 
 mented with mouldings, exquisitely 
 worked, and with pillars, the fore- 
 most of which are twisted and de- 
 tached, resting on lions sculptured 
 in stone from the Isle of ^lan. 
 
 The usual entrance for visitors is 
 by the door under the campanile, 
 and through the cloister. The in- 
 ternal door has black marble twisted 
 columns, above it the visitor will 
 observe a Jacobean monument skil- 
 fully utilized. On each side of the 
 nave are 8 semicircular arches, sup- 
 ported on cylindrical shafts with 
 richly carved capitals, each of a 
 different design. Between the cle- 
 restory windows [and the principal 
 arches is a kind of triforium arcade, 
 skilfully breaking the bareness of 
 the walls. The roof is open, and 
 needs colour and gilding. At the 
 E. end is a gallery of Painswick 
 stone, supported on marble columns 
 with alabaster capitals, and bearing 
 the motto, ** All things come of Thee, 
 
126 
 
 Boute 8. — Wilton Church. 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 and of Thine own have we given 
 Thee." Below the gallery is the 
 font of variously coloured marble, 
 resting on a polished black slab of 
 the same material, and decorated 
 with the fruit and leaves of the vine, 
 in allusion to the parable of our 
 Saviour : " I am the vine, ye are the 
 branches." 
 
 One window to the 1. is filled with 
 very gorgeous Flemish glass. That 
 opposite is a memorial to the la- 
 mented founder of the ch., erected 
 by the townspeople. There are 
 several other memorial windows in 
 the nave. The pulpit is one of the 
 most magnificent and interesting of 
 the many works of art for which 
 this ch. is conspicuous it is of Caen 
 stone, and is supported on 16 black 
 marble columns, with alabaster capi- 
 tals. In the upper part the visitor 
 will notice some small twisted marble 
 columns, with spiral bands of mosaic. 
 These formed part of a shrine set 
 up in S. Maria Maggiore in Rome, 
 A.D. 1256, and being ejected during 
 some repairs in the last century, 
 found their way to Strawberry Hill, 
 where they were purchased by the 
 builder of the ch. Other larger 
 members of the shrine (of the same 
 shape and pattern) may be seen in 
 and about the chancel. They are 
 interesting as rare specimens of the 
 **opus Grsecanicum," of which the 
 only other ancient examples in 
 England are the shrine of the Con 
 fessor, and the tomb of Hen. III. in 
 Westminster Abbey. A piece of good 
 modern mosaic, formed of porphyry 
 serpentine, and white marble, of 
 Italian manufacture, lies in the pave- 
 ment at the foot of the chancel steps 
 between the pulpit and the reading- 
 desk. This last is ornamented with 
 fine bas-reliefs in wood, executed in 
 Belgium, representing the 4 Evange 
 lists. The lectern is formed by a 
 gilt eagle standing on 3 black marble 
 pillars. The arches dividing the 
 aisles of the chancel from those of 
 the nave are supported by lofty 
 
 shafts of black and gold marble, 
 each of a solid block, from Porto 
 Venere in the Gulf of Spezzia. The 
 shafts supporting the nave arch are 
 imitations in scagliola. The central 
 apse is adorned with an arcade of 
 twisted columns of rich Sienna 
 marble, with alabaster capitals. The 
 communion table, gorgeously vested, 
 stands according to ancient prece- 
 dent in the centre of the chord of 
 the apse. The windows of the great 
 apse are filled with medallions of 
 richly coloured glass of the 13th 
 cent. Many of these are French, 
 and some are fine examples of the 
 best period of glass painting. The 
 side apses have glass of different 
 periods, including some whole-length 
 figures of excellent drawing and 
 colours. The apse to the 1. of the 
 communion table contains a mural 
 brass (1.585), and an alms chest of 
 wrought iron from Venice. In the 
 opposite apse are the monuments of 
 the Pembrokes removed from the 
 old parish ch., one by Westmacott, 
 and another by Rossi; good speci- 
 mens of their style. In far higher 
 taste are the two altar-tombs, with 
 white marble recumbent effigies, 
 sculptured by Francis, lately erected 
 within the altar rails in memory of 
 the late Lord Herbert of Lea, d. 
 1861, and his mother, Catherine 
 Countess of Pembroke, daughter of 
 Count Woronzow, d. 1856. The 
 tombs are of alabaster, arcaded, and 
 inlaid with coloured marbles. The 
 spandrils of Lord Herbert's tomb 
 are carved with subjects illustrative 
 of his public life, especially when 
 as Secretary of War, the British 
 soldier was indebted to him for so 
 many improvements in his moral 
 and sanitary condition. These monu- 
 ments are very successful examples 
 of a return to a better taste in sepul- 
 chral memorials. The floor of the 
 chancel is laid with Singer's tesseraj. 
 The ch. is lighted by hanging lamps 
 of embossed brass, copied from Vene- 
 tian examples. The carvings in pear- 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 8. — Wilton House, 
 
 127 
 
 tree wood, which form the panels of 
 the doors, must not be unnoticed. 
 Beneath the altar is the Pembroke 
 vault, entered from without, and open 
 to the air. The tombstones in the 
 churchyard are nearly all varieties 
 of the memorial cross. 
 
 Wilton House : — 
 
 " Pembroke's princely dome, where mimic 
 Art 
 
 Decks with a magic hand the dazzling 
 bowers ; 
 
 Its living hues where the warm pencil 
 pours, 
 
 And breathing forms from the nule 
 marble start." 2\ Warton. 
 
 occupies the site of the monastery, 
 given, with the lands attached to it, 
 by Henry VIII. to Sir William Her- 
 bert, 1st Earl of Pembroke. The 
 place abounds in interesting associa- 
 tions. " Charles I. did love Wilton 
 above all places, and came there every 
 summer. By his advice the garden 
 front of the house was built in the 
 Italian style." ' — Aubrey, The family 
 of Herbert have been distinguished 
 equally in arts, arms, and literature. 
 They were the patrons of Holbein, 
 Shakespeare, who with his troop 
 acted here before James I. in 1603, 
 Ben Jonson, Inigo Jones, and Van- 
 dyck ; and of Massinger, whose father 
 was a retainer of the family. Sir 
 Philip Sidney wrote part of his * Ar- 
 cadia' on this spot, at the request 
 of his sister. Countess of Pembroke, 
 whose beautiful epitaph, generally 
 attributed to Ben Jonson, was really 
 written by William Browne, author 
 of the ' Pastorals.' 
 
 *' Sidney s sister, Pembroke's mother, 
 Death, ere thou hast slain another 
 Wise, and fair, and good as she. 
 Time shall throw a dart at thee." 
 
 A lock of this lady's hair is pre- 
 served here. 
 
 The present mansion, famed for its 
 marbles and pictures, but particu- 
 larly renowned for its Vandycks, is, 
 for the most part, modem. It was 
 begun temp. Elizabeth. Holbein de- 
 
 signed the porch. The house was 
 altered temp. Charles I. from designs 
 of a Gascon named Solomon de Cans, 
 and was restored, after a fire, by Webb, 
 Inigo Jones's son-in-law. It was 
 
 Gothicised " in questionable taste 
 by J ames Wyatt at the beginning of 
 the present century, but has been im- 
 proved by more recent alterations. 
 
 A Triumphal Arch, surmounted by 
 a cast from the equestrian statue of 
 Marcus Aurelius, leads to the chief 
 entrance. 
 
 The IFall is adorned with suits of 
 ancient armour, which have an in- 
 terest independent of their splendour 
 in being trophies of the victory of 
 St. Quentin, gained by the Spaniards 
 over the French, with the co-opera- 
 tion of a brave band of English 
 sent by Queen Mary, under the com- 
 mand of Wm. Earl of Pembroke, 
 1557. His armour is here, together 
 with the full suits of the Constable 
 Anne de jNIontmorency, Louis de 
 Bourbon, Due de Montpensier, &c. 
 
 The Pembroke Marbles, arranged 
 in the hall and around the cloister, 
 were collected, 1678, by Thomas, 8th 
 Earl of Pembroke, of whom Pope 
 said, 
 
 " For Pembroke, statues, dirty gods, and 
 coins; " 
 
 and include a portion of those of 
 Thomas Earl of Arundell (the rest 
 are at Oxford), and of the collection 
 of Giustiniani, of the Valetta Gallery 
 at Naples, and of Card. Mazarine. 
 They long possessed an undeserved 
 reputation; for, in truth, many of 
 the specimens are modern antiques : 
 among the genuine ancient marbles 
 not a few are mutilated, the limbs, 
 &c., are badly restored; and the 
 greater part are of second-rate value 
 as works of art. The best are — 
 
 In the Entrance- Hall — Statues of 
 Apollo, Jupiter, and athe Elder Faus- 
 tina ; — a Mosaic in relief of Hercules 
 in the Garden of the Hesperides ; — a 
 serpent twined round the golden 
 apple-tree, very curious, and probably 
 
128 Boute S,— Wilton House; Picture Gallery, Wiltshire. 
 
 unique ; — a colossal horse, workman- 
 ship admirable, head noble and deli- 
 cate ; — Curtius leaping into the fiery 
 chasm, a bas-relief in a circle. 
 
 In the Gallerij — No. 1. An altar 
 of Bacchus, the figures in relief. 8. 
 A sleeping Nymph. 23. The Gods 
 summoned by Vulcan to see Venus 
 and Mars taken in the net, an oval 
 relief. 48. Bas-relief of Jupiter on 
 his throne. 61. Death of Meleager, 
 3 bas-reliefs on a sarcophagus, after 
 the Greek model ; the figures finely 
 designed, the workmanship indiffer- 
 ent. 62. Silenus drinking out of a 
 cantharus ; the action spirited. 109. 
 A Cippus : the figures very noble 
 and simple in action." — Waagen. 
 115. A relief of Venus accom- 
 panied by Tritons and Nereids. 
 117. Statue of a female seated. 124. 
 Cupid bending his bow, a copy of 
 the well-known work of Praxiteles ; 
 very delicate, but only the torso is 
 old. 136. An ancient Roman con- 
 sular chair, part bronze, part iron. 
 137. A sarcophagus, with reliefs 
 from the story of Ceres and Bacclius ; 
 the principal subject represents Ceres 
 sending Triptolemus to sow corn ; 
 workmanship indifferent, of a late 
 time. 151. Statue of a young Faun, 
 gracefully twisting back his body 
 to look at a panther at his feet ; a 
 repetition of an often-repeated group, 
 the design good, and of delicate exe- 
 cution. 163. Large sarcophagus, 
 with high relief of the destruction of 
 Niobe's children ; of a late period ; 
 the attitudes very beautiful, and 
 probably from older models. 170. 
 An Amazon defending herself against 
 a horseman. 171. The family of 
 Niobe, *' an elegant bas-relief of the 
 cinque-cento time, and strongly re- 
 sembling the works of the able 
 Florentine sculptor Benedetto da Ro- 
 vezzano, who was for a time in Eng- 
 land.'' — WaagerCs * Treasures of 
 Art.' 
 
 Basts — of Nero ; Julia Moesa ; Lu- 
 can; and a so-called Lucilla, daughter 
 of Marcus Aurelius (wonderfully 
 
 finished). Passavant, however, in his 
 Tour, remarks that those of Ger- 
 manicus, Augustus, and several of 
 the Greek poets, are the finest in the 
 collection. 
 
 Famtiugs : — " The chief strength 
 of the collection consists in works of 
 the German and Flemish schools." — 
 Waagen. 
 
 Alb, Durer (1512) (? /. H, Rhe- 
 nus) : the Descent from the Cross, 
 
 wrought with amazing labour and 
 neatness ; the composition good and 
 well conducted throughout, but the 
 style dry and hard. The expressions 
 poor, but the actions good. The 
 colours are positive, without any 
 attempt at harmony, and yet are well 
 arranged." — T. Phillips, R.A. From 
 the Arundell collection. — Parmegiano : 
 Virgin, Child, St. John, and Ca- 
 therine ; " very beautifully designed, 
 but rather hard in the execution, 
 and inharmonious in colour." — P. 
 It was given by the Grand Duke 
 of Tuscany to Philip E. of Pem- 
 broke. — Spagnoletto : Democritus, 
 whole length, laughing, exceedingly 
 fine, and expression entirely appro- 
 priate. — King Richard II. when 
 young (/. e. about 1377), backed by 
 his patrons, St. John Baptist, St. 
 Edmund King, and St. Edward Con- 
 fessor, praying to the Virgin and 
 Child ; a Diptych, curious from its 
 age and style, and probably by an 
 Italian painter. It is mentioned 
 by Walpole as an early specimen 
 of oil ' painting , whereas it is in 
 distemper, not in oil. It is on a 
 gold background ; the finish care- 
 ful, the arrangement formal, the 
 faces uniform and without expres- 
 sion. The arms of the king, the 
 broom-pod (Plantagenet), and the 
 white hart, derived from his mother, 
 are seen on his robe and on the 
 angels' necks. — Netscher : Portrait of 
 De Witt, — Holbein : the Father of 
 Sir Thomas More ; shows the simple 
 truth of nature ; hands excellent. — 
 Mahuse : the Three Children of 
 Henry VII., same as those at Hamp- 
 
Wiltshire. Boitte 8. — Wilton House ; Pkture Gallery, 
 
 129 
 
 ton Court and Longford, but good. 
 — Honthorst: Prince Rupert; one of 
 the finest paintings here. — And. Man- 
 tegna : Judith with the Head of 
 Holofernes ; her features and atti- 
 tude noble and graceful ; carefully 
 executed." — And, del Sarto : Holy 
 Family. — Baldassare Peruzzi : the 
 Ascension of our Lord. — N, Foussin : 
 two boys playing with a bird. — 
 Miens' s own portrait, capital. — Ti- 
 tian: Head of the Magdalen; has suf- 
 fered much. — Vandyck : Ph. Herbert 
 Earl of P., with his wand of office ; 
 small sketch for the larger picture. — 
 Rubens : Four children, Christ and 
 St. John with a lamb, a little girl, 
 and an angel ; a subject often re- 
 peated by Eubens. — Steenvich : Peter 
 conducted out of prison ; a dark 
 crypt, minutely painted, but with 
 good effect. — Parmegiano : Ceres, ge- 
 nuine, but affected attitude. — Guido: 
 Charity ; must have been beautiful, 
 but is spoiled by rubbing. It be- 
 longed to Charles L — Lucas Van 
 Leyden: Men and women playing 
 cards ; one of the very rare genuine 
 works of this master ; heads ani- 
 mated and spirited, full of expression, 
 though hard in manner. — Sir Josh. 
 Reynolds: Henry, 10th E. of Pem- 
 broke. — An Antique Painting from 
 the Temple of Juno, representing 
 Minerva, Hercules, Diana, Apollo, 
 Ceres, Vertumnus, and Juno ; rude 
 in the treatment, but worthy of no- 
 tice on account of the broad hand- 
 ling. 
 
 In the double Cube, or Great Room, 
 are the Portraits by Vandyck, the 
 pride and boast of the Wilton collec- 
 tion. The finest are — 
 
 The Herbert Family : ten figures. 
 Philip Earl of Pembroke, and his 
 Countess, in black, seated on a raised 
 platform ; on their rt. their 5 sons ; 
 on their 1. their daughter, in blue, 
 and her husband, Robert E. of Caer- 
 narvon ; before them Lady Mary, 
 daughter of George D. of Bucking- 
 ham, betrothed to Charles Ld. Her- 
 bert ; above, in the clouds, as angels, 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 2 sons and a daughter, who died 
 young. This large work stands alone 
 in point of merit. The personages 
 are not dramatically connected to- 
 gether, but they all look out of the 
 picture. 
 
 The late Mr. Phillips, R.A., ob- 
 serves, " I am at a loss for words to 
 convey my admiration of this pic- 
 ture. An air of nobleness reigns 
 over it, with rich and deep colouring. 
 Yet I think the expression bad ; and 
 wish it had an unity of subject, or 
 any subject. But, as it is, when shall 
 we see its like again?" 1801. 
 
 Charles I. in armour, J length, very 
 excellent. Henrietta Maria, inferior, 
 perhaps a copy. 3 Children of 
 Charles I., beautifully painted, par- 
 ticularly the Princess, dated 1635. 
 The Duchess of Richmond and her 
 Dwarf, Mr. Gibson, whole length, 
 very good, especially the dwarf 
 (the Duke is probably by Jansen). 
 The Countess of Castlehaven, in an 
 orange dress. The 2nd Earl Philip, 
 ^ length, not one of Vandyck' s best. 
 Mrs. Killigrew and Mrs. Morton, 
 beauties of Charles I. 's court, " well- 
 painted heads, especially Mrs. Killi- 
 grew' s, which is in his most finished 
 manner — rich, soft, and true, beyond 
 measure." — T.P. Earl and Countess 
 of Bedford, same size of canvas, but 
 very inferior. Philip E. of Pem- 
 broke. Penelope, wife of Ph. E. of 
 P. ("A genuine, carefully executed, 
 and excellent picture.") — Waagen. 
 
 In the Library are portraits of Wil- 
 liam, 1st Earl of Pembroke, the 
 friend of Shakespeare; and founder of 
 the family, with his dog, who pined 
 away at his death : it is called Hol- 
 bein's, but either it is not his, or it 
 has been repainted, the hands very 
 bad. Portraits of Alexander Pope 
 and of St. Evremond. A copy of the 
 ' Arcadia ' contains a lock of Queen 
 Elizabeth's hair, given by her to Sir 
 Ph. Sidney, together with some 
 verses in his hand in acknowledg- 
 ment of the gift. 
 
 The grounds and gardens of Wilton, 
 
 K 
 
130 
 
 Moute 8. — Longford, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 although flat, are exceedingly beau- 
 tiful, owing to the views they com- 
 mand, especially the vista opening 
 on Salisbury spire, opposite the S.E. 
 angle of the house — to the noble 
 trees, particularly the group of 
 cedars, and an ancient ilex, beneath 
 whose branches Sir Philip Sidney 
 may have reclined, when he here 
 composed his ' Arcadia ' — and to the 
 architectural ornaments, such as the 
 triumphal arch by Chambers, and the 
 covered Palladian bridge^ built by 
 Henry Earl of Pembroke, over the 
 water (the Nadder). The Italian 
 garden, tastefully arranged with ba- 
 lustrades and vases, terminates in a 
 pavilion, once a vestibule of the 
 house. This was designed by Hol- 
 hein, in the style of the Renaissance, 
 and consists of a portico of pillars, 
 with busts of Edward VI. and the 
 Earl of Pembroke inserted.] 
 
 [c. Longford Castle, seat of the Earl 
 of Radnor, is situated on the Avon, 
 1. of the road to Downton, 3 m. from 
 Salisbury. It may be seen only with 
 Lord Radnor's permission, The 
 road is that by Downton to Fording- 
 bridge.] 
 
 [Ij m. S.W. is Britford Ch. ; a cruci- 
 form building without aisles with an 
 embattled tower and low spire, well 
 restored by Mr. Street in 1873. ' It 
 is mainly of the 14th cent., but with 
 remains of so-called Anglo-Saxon 
 work, which deserve careful atten- 
 tion. These consist of three arches, 
 one on either side of the nave, to- 
 wards the E. end, and on the S. side 
 towards the W. They have been 
 opened out during the last repair 
 and annexes erected, enabling them 
 to be examined in every part. The 
 E. jamb of the northern arch is 
 elaborately decorated with carving 
 representing a vine. These arches 
 appear to have opened into aisles, or 
 chapels. The Ch. contains a mauso- 
 leum of the Bouveries, and in the 
 chancel is a curious altar-tomb, sculp- 
 
 tured with figures of St. Mar- 
 garet, St. Nicholas, St. Edmund 
 of Canterbury, St. Catherine with 
 her symbols, the sword and the 
 wheel, St. George, and the Virgin 
 and Child, which is reported to have 
 been brought from the College de 
 Vaux at Salisbury a few years since. 
 This tomb was erroneously attributed 
 by Sir R. C. Hoare to the Duke of 
 Buckingham, beheaded at Salisbury. 
 An interesting dwarf effigy of a male 
 figure holding a cup, found in the 
 restoration, is preserved in the chan- 
 cel. The mausoleum of the Radnor 
 family lies to the N. of the chancel. 
 The old parsonage N.W. of the Ch. 
 is a picturesque brick and stone 
 building. A large annual fair for 
 horses, cattle, and sheep, is held 
 here. 
 
 3 m. Longford stands in the marshy 
 valley of the Avon, a little to the N. 
 of its confluence with the stream from 
 the valley of Chalk. It was built 
 about 1591, by Sir Thomas Gorges, 
 buried under a gorgeous tomb in the 
 N. aisle of the choir of the Cathedral 
 (see p. 100), who married a Danish 
 lady, Helena Snachenberg, who had 
 come over to England in the suite of 
 Princess Cecilia, daughter of Eric, 
 King of Sweden. She became a fa- 
 vourite at Court, and her first hus- 
 band was William Lord Parr of Ken- 
 dal, Marquis of Northampton, brother 
 of Queen Katharine Parr, who was 
 induced by her, nearly to his own 
 ruin, to construct his house after the 
 model of the Castle of Uranienberg, 
 designed by Tycho Brahe. He ac- 
 cordingly pulled down an ancient 
 mansion of the Cervingtons, and pre- 
 pared the ground for the new build- 
 ing ; but so great proved the expense 
 of driving piles as a foundation, that 
 Sir Thomas nearly sunk his fortune 
 at the outset. At this juncture came 
 the alarm of the Spanish Armada, 
 when Sir Thomas was appointed 
 governor of Hurst Castle, and, as 
 luck would have it, a Spanish galleon 
 
Wiltshire. Moute 8. — Longford Souse. 131 
 
 was soon wrecked near his post. His 
 wife modestly begged but the hull of 
 the queen, and in this were found bars 
 of silver and other treasure, ample, 
 and more than sufficient, to complete 
 the intended structure at Longford. 
 The work, therefore, proceeded mer- 
 rily, and was completed in 1591, at a 
 cost of about 18,000/. The archi- 
 tect was Thomas Thorp, who built 
 Holland House. The castle, as it 
 then appeared (the " Castle of Am- 
 phialeus" of Sir Philip Sidney's 
 'Arcadia'), had the singular form 
 of a triangle, enclosing a court of 
 a similar shape, and flanked by 
 circular towers at the angles, the 
 whole being surrounded by a moat 
 filled with water from the Avon. In 
 this form it was surrendered in 1645 
 to Cromwell, who had mounted a 
 battery opposite the garden front. 
 (** I shall be at Longford House to- 
 night, if God please. I hope the work 
 will not be long" (Oct. 16,1G45). "I 
 came thither this day" (Oct. 17), 
 " and immediately sent them a sum- 
 mons. The governor desired I should 
 send two officers to treat with him. 
 The meeting produced the agree- 
 ment." — Cromwell's Letters.) In 1717 
 it came into the possession of the 
 present family, the Bouveries, by 
 purchase. The Castle, as it now 
 stands, was altered from the triangle 
 of the Gorges, by a former Lord 
 Kadnor, who had intended to rebuild 
 it in the form of a hexagon, but 
 left it unfinished. It has now been 
 finished by the present earl. At each 
 of the corners is a tower. It is 
 chiefly remarkable for its collection 
 of paintings. "This collection is 
 not only the first in England as 
 regards Holbein, but, considering the 
 master-works of other schools, and 
 also the large number of valuable 
 pictures it contains, generally speak- 
 ing, it may justly Idc considered one 
 of the most important in the country." 
 — Waagen. Among them are the fol- 
 lowing: — 
 
 In the Chapel — A, Diirer (? probably 
 
 by Henry de JBlcs, an old Flemish 
 painter) : Adoration of the Virgin 
 by Saints George, Agnes, &c. ; very 
 good and curious ; the female figure 
 on the rt. painted with great feeling 
 for beauty ; on the wings St. John the 
 Baptist and Evangelist. — A. Diirer (?) ; 
 the Nativity and Salutation. — Ma- 
 buse : Children of Henry VII., a re- 
 petition of the original picture at 
 Hampton Court. It was in the collec- 
 tion of Charles I. — Zucchero: Queen 
 Elizabeth ; very characteristic of the 
 harsh, imperious woman. — Holbein: 
 Edward VI. ; " too poor a produc- 
 tion for the master: " Waagen. — Ma- 
 buse: Virgin and Child. 
 
 In the Long Gallerj/ — Murillo : 
 Ruth and Naomi. — Guido : Head 
 of a Magdalen ; a picture of a most 
 attractive sweetness, painted with 
 great clearness. 2. Europa and the 
 Bull, a masterpiece, the original of 
 many repetitions. — Claude: 2 cele- 
 brated pictures known as the Morning 
 and Evening, or Rise and Fall of the 
 Roman Empire. One represents the 
 landing of iEneas in the Bay of 
 Naples by sunrise, "the morning 
 freshness of nature typifying the 
 beginning of the Roman empire;" the 
 other the ruins of the Arch of Titus 
 and the Coliseum, with the sun 
 sinking towards the sea. " Two mas- 
 terly pictures, with great depth and 
 fulness of colour, combined with 
 softness of gradations:" Waagen. — 
 Rubens : a large landscape of the de- 
 solate country around the Escurial. 
 " Carefully and admirably painted, 
 but not the original of this often- 
 repeated view, which is said to be at 
 Petworth:" Waagen. 2. Diana with 
 her Nymphs returning from the 
 Chase; a sketch for the picture 
 at Dresden. — Seb. del Piombo {?) : 
 St. Sebastian's Martyrdom, after a 
 design by Michael Angelo ; care- 
 fully executed in very clear colour- 
 ing; in the background rocks and 
 ruins of singular forms. — Nicolas 
 Foussin : the Worship of the Golden 
 Calf, and the Passage of the Red 
 K 2 
 
132 Boute 8. — Longford House; Picture Gallery. Wiltshire. 
 
 Sea; capital works, of the artist's 
 best period, scarcely equalled by any 
 in the Louvre. — CotTeggio (?): Venus 
 disarming Cupid ; a picture in 
 the style of those in the National 
 Gallery. — Holbein: the Ambassadors 
 at Vienna, 2 whole-length portraits, 
 apparently of philosophers, with 
 books, geometrical and musical in- 
 struments ; one of the finest works 
 by Holbein in England," says Waa- 
 gen. 2. Sir Anthony Denny, cham- 
 berlain and favourite of Henry VIII. 
 3. (Ecolarppadius. — Velasquez: Adrian 
 Pulido Pareja, admiral of the Spa- 
 nish Armada ; a first-rate portrait. — 
 Titian : a whole-length portrait of a 
 General, his helmet on a table ; care- 
 fully executed in a full, warm, golden 
 tone. — Vandyck : Rubens on a Grey 
 Horse ; 2. Gaston Due d'Orleans. 
 — Carlo Dolce : Christ crowned with 
 thorns ; 2. portrait of himself. — 
 — Gaspar Poussin : 2 small landscapes. 
 — Jan Wynants: a landscape, with 
 figures by Adrian Van der Velde. — W, 
 Van der Velde : 2 sea-pieces. In this 
 gallery stands a wonderful and pro- 
 bably unique specimen of metal 
 work, viz., a steel chair, presented to 
 the Emperor Rudolph II. by the city 
 of Augsburg, where it was made by 
 one Thomas Ruker, in 1574. It is 
 covered by 130 groups of figures in 
 relief, representing events in the 
 history of the Roman Empire from 
 Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the co- 
 lossal image, and from the landing of 
 -^neas in Italy, down to Rudolph's 
 own time. It was carried off from 
 Prague by the Swedes, brought to 
 England in the 18th century, and 
 sold to the Radnor family. "It is 
 the richest and most tasteful work of 
 the kind I am acquainted with." — 
 Waagen. 
 
 In the Green Drawing-room — B^i- 
 bens (?) : his son ; a beautiful portrait. 
 — Titian (?) : Csesar Borgia ; "a most 
 perfidious countenance." Holbein: a 
 male portrait, called Luther ; broad 
 in treatment, and noble in expres- 
 sion. — Giorgione (?), more probably 
 
 Paris Bordone : a portrait of Vio- 
 lante, daughter of Palma Vecchio, 
 commonly designated Titian's Mis- 
 tress. — Velasquez : the Moorish Slave. 
 — Walker : portrait of Oliver Crom- 
 well. — Rubens: Duke of Alva. — Sir 
 P. Lely : his own portrait. — Rubens 
 (?) : portrait of Mary of Medicis, 
 attributed by Waagen to Vandyck. — 
 H. Van Vliet : interior of a church, 
 a capital work. — Vandyck : Countess 
 of Chesterfield ; 2. Countess of Mon- 
 mouth. — Sir Josh, Reynolds : Anne 
 Countess of Radnor, in a cart-wheel 
 hat; 2. Lady Tilney Long. 
 
 In the Long Parlour — Holbein: 
 portrait of Erasmus ; brought to Eng- 
 land by the painter, with a letter of 
 introduction from Erasmus to Sir 
 Thomas More. This picture, says 
 Waagen, *' is alone worth a pilgrim- 
 age to Longford. Seldom has a painter 
 so fully succeeded in bringing to 
 view the whole character of so ori- 
 ginal a mind as in this instance." 
 The execution is most masterly and 
 careful, even to the accessories — the 
 brown fur for instance; and it is 
 evident that the artist here tried to 
 do his best. 2. Portrait of Peter 
 iEgidius, the traveller : " as animated 
 in conception as it is delicate in indi- 
 viduality." — Salvator Rosa : a sea- 
 coast ; a picture remarkable for 
 " happy composition, unusual warmth 
 of tone, and spirited treatment." — 
 Teniers : Return from the chase ; 
 2. Boors playing at bowls. — Sir Josh. 
 Reynolds: James, second Lord Rad- 
 nor, as a boy. — Ruberis: Cupids ga- 
 thering the harvest ; *' one of the 
 great master's most original and 
 attractive inventions." Waagen. — /. 
 Ruysdael: Landscape by moonlight. 
 
 On an eminence nearly opposite 
 Longford, on the E. side of the river, 
 stood Jvy Church, an Augustinian 
 Priory founded by Henry II. within 
 the boundaries of the forest of Cla- 
 rendon. Some remains of its walls 
 may still be seen in a building which 
 occupies its site, and one of its old 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 8. — Clarendon Palace — Harnliam Hill. 1 oo 
 
 fireplaces, 7 ft. in length and cut 
 from a single block of Portland stone, 
 is in the kit-chen of the Green Dragon 
 at Alderbury, a village on the South- 
 ampton road. 
 
 On the return to Salisbury, the 
 small remains of the royal palace 
 of Clarendo7i may be visited, lying 
 2 m. E. of Salisbury. The drive is 
 a most attractive one. This ancient 
 forest was granted by the Con- 
 queror to Humphrey the Bearded, 
 the first of the family of Bohun, 
 and its palace was celebrated as 
 a residence of our kings from the 
 reign of Hen. I. to that of Edw. 
 III., and as the scene of some im- 
 portant events in our history, par- 
 ticularly of the enacting, by a great 
 council of the nation summoned by 
 Henry II. in 1164, of the famous 
 * Constitutions of Clarendon,' by 
 which the King, alarmed by the 
 increasing assumptions of Becket 
 and the ecclesiastical order, sought 
 " to settle beyond dispute the main 
 points in contest between the Crown 
 and the Church; to establish thus, 
 with the consent of the whole nation, 
 an English constitution in Church 
 and State." — MUman, L. C, Its tradi- 
 tional name of Kin'j John's Palace has 
 preserved the memory of its selection 
 by that monarch as his favourite 
 abode, but it attained its greatest 
 magnificence in the reign of his suc- 
 cessor, Hen. III. At a later period, 
 in 1356, Philip of Navarre did hom- 
 age here to our Edw. III., as King 
 of France and Duke of Normandy ; 
 and, in 1357, after the battle of 
 Poictiers, the glades of Clarendon 
 were enlivened by a royal chase, in 
 which the captives John of France 
 and David of Scotland rode side by 
 side with our king. After the reign 
 of Edw. III. the palace of Clarendon 
 appears to have been neglected, but 
 its forest remained for many years 
 a favourite hunting-ground of our 
 monarchs. In the 14th century this 
 royal domain was granted for a term 
 
 to the first Earl of Pembroke. It was 
 mortgaged by Charles I. to Chan- 
 cellor Hyde, who, it is believed, 
 whilst mortgage e only, but in full and 
 not unreasonable expectation that it 
 would be ultimately his own, took 
 the title of his peerage from this 
 place. To his great mortification, 
 however, Charles II. paid off the 
 mortgage, and bestowed the estate in 
 fee upon George Monk, Duke of Albe- 
 marle, whose successor left it by will 
 to his cousin the Earl of Bath. In 
 1713 it was purchased by Benjamin 
 Bathurst, Esq., an ancestor of the 
 present possessor. Clarendon Lodge, 
 a modern Doric mansion (Sir F. H.H. 
 Bathurst), is situated about a mile 
 from the site of the ancient palace, 
 of which there still remains a frag- 
 ment of flint-wall, now propped by 
 buttresses, and bearing an inscription 
 which enlightens the passing traveller 
 as to the many interesting memories 
 connected with the spot. Clarendon 
 is absurdly supposed by Kennet to 
 derive its name from the camp which 
 crowns a hill to the N. of it, which, 
 to bolster up this derivation, is sup- 
 posed to have been constructed by 
 the Roman general Constantius 
 Chlorus. 
 
 [If any one fond of walking should 
 find himself in Salisbury with a day 
 or two to spare, he may be glad to 
 know how to fill up his time by one 
 or two pleasant expeditions. 
 
 1. Hatmham I{ill(^ne view) to Hom- 
 ington, about 3 m. S. of Salisbury ; 
 on reaching the top of Homington 
 Down, before going down the steep 
 hill into the village, turn off a little 
 way on the rt. over the down, and 
 look into and along the valley for a 
 very characteristic view of Wiltshire 
 scenery, with its retired villages and 
 their water meadows, nestled in the 
 valleys between the hills. Passing 
 Homington Ch. (consecrated 1860), 
 go straight on up the hill for nearly 
 2 m., till immediately on crossing 
 
134 
 
 Boute 8. — Wliiclihury — Odstoch Wiltshire* 
 
 Grim's ditch you will come to a fine 
 wood of yews. The road continues 
 on southwards skirting the yews on 
 its left, but it is well worth while to 
 spend half-an-hour or more in ex- 
 ploring this wood. Some of the yews 
 are very large, and the effect is some- 
 times striking to any one standing 
 under the vaulted space made by the 
 meeting of five or six in a group. 
 The botanist may find things to re- 
 ward a search, and late in the year 
 the bright green leaves and scarlet 
 berries of the spindle tree {Euonymus 
 Europ(Bus) will attract notice. The 
 whole district here is wild and lonely, 
 and the wood was some years back 
 the haunt of a gang of sheep stealers, 
 who were at last detected by the 
 smoke made in cooking some of their 
 spoil. [If you have had enough of 
 walking you may strike through 
 *'the yews" towards Odstock Ave- 
 nue, and return to Salisbury by the 
 route to be mentioned directly.] 
 After coming to the end of the yews, 
 on standing at their S.W. corner, 
 you will look over a wide range of 
 open country. Strike off" in a south- 
 westerly direction (or rather S.S.W.) 
 to Damerham Knoll (about 9 or 10 m. 
 from Salisbury), which you will re- 
 cognize by its three clumps of trees ; 
 walk along the knoll and begin your 
 return by striking down from the 
 end of the knoll (N.E.) into the 
 village of Rockhorn, then to Which- 
 hury, about a mile further N.E. ; 
 there is a fine view from Whichbury 
 Churchyard, and from Whichbury 
 Camp or Castle Bitches. Whichbury 
 is a large camp, enclosing, according 
 to Sir R. C. Hoare, fifteen acres and 
 a half, the circumference of the 
 ditch he states to be 1210 yards, and 
 the height of the vallum 39 feet ; 
 part of the site is occupied by a 
 farm, and the ramparts and ditch 
 are overgrown by copses. From 
 Whichbury go on (N.E.) to Mizmaze 
 Hill, on Breamorc Boion, and amuse 
 yourself by following the windings 
 of the circular maze cut in the turf, 
 
 and enjoy the view of the undulating 
 down broken by the frequent clumps 
 of trees, and proceed on (N.W.) to 
 Gallows Hill. The barrow or small 
 knoll bearing this ill-omened name 
 is marked by four Scotch firs, one 
 dead and blasted ; and on reaching 
 the lonely spot you may believe, 
 if you like, the local tradition, that 
 the place was so named because one 
 of the owners of Breamore, in the 
 time of Charles IT., having gambled 
 away great part of his mother's for- 
 tune, shot her in one of the rooms 
 at Breamore House, and was hanged 
 on this mound. Grim's Ditch comes 
 up to this mound, and may be seen 
 stretching away to left (S.) for a 
 long way, as yet undefaced by the 
 plough. From Gallows Hill (N.N.W.) 
 to Clearburjj (marked by its crown 
 of firs), and if the day is fine, you 
 will see easily by the aid of a glass 
 the tower and roof of Christ Church 
 Priory in Hampshire, and the high 
 downs in the Isle of Wight above 
 the Needles, which are more than 
 25 m. off" in direct distance. The 
 red house on the hill side to the left 
 is Trafalgar, the seat of Earl Nelson. 
 From Clearbury make your way to 
 Odstock, a little village in the valley 
 below, about a mile to the N.W. 
 The most pleasant way is to return a 
 short distance back, and to come 
 down through the fine avenue lead- 
 ing from the woods on the hill west 
 of Clearbury down to Odstock Farm. 
 The farmhouse at Odstock is the 
 left wing of the manor-house of the 
 Webbs, the date 1567 is marked on 
 one of the stones, and some fine trees 
 will be noticed about the grounds, 
 especially the maples in front of the 
 house. The Ch. has a picturesque 
 E.E. chancel, and contains a founder's 
 tomb with a mutilated old French 
 inscription, and an altar-tomb without 
 effigies, of the end of the 17th centy. 
 to several of the Webbs ; the pulpit 
 has the date 1580, with a couplet 
 testifying to the popularity of Queen 
 Elizabeth. 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 9. — Salisbury to Wimborne. 135 
 
 " God bless and save our royal queen, 
 The lyke on earth was never seen." 
 
 Odstock is about 2j m. south of 
 Salisbury, and as you come over the 
 hill and down into Salisbury note 
 and enjoy the view.] 
 
 [2. Through Zaverstook, or by seve- 
 ral other routes (if by Clarendon, 
 see below), to the landmark on 
 the down, above the targets of 
 the rifle volunteers. The view i^ 
 very extensive and characteristic of 
 Wiltshire, though not very pictu- 
 resque. Martensell Hill, by the 
 Wansdyke, some 20 m'. distant 
 (nearly due N.), stands out boldly 
 over the valley of the Avon, and a 
 little to the left of Martensell may 
 be seen w^ith a glass the white horse 
 cut in the turf above Woodborough. 
 Clarendon is close by on the next 
 hill below on the rt. (S.E.) ; on the 
 1. the round head of Clci/ Hill, be- 
 tween Warminster and Longleat, is 
 seen rising over the nearer downs; 
 on the S. is Clearhury, marked by its 
 clump of trees ; the cathedral is well 
 seen, and the woods by Wilton and 
 Dinton. From this down you may 
 go straight on across the turf to 
 Chlorus's Camp, or Fighunj Ring, 
 which you will mark by a single tree 
 standing within the ring, and can 
 return by the London road if disin- 
 clined for further rambling over the 
 downs; Figbury Eing is 3 m. from 
 Salisbury by the road.] 
 
 [3. As suggested above, Clarendon 
 may be visited first, and it would not 
 be very much out of the way ; leave 
 Salisbury by Milford Street or St. 
 Ann's Street, and after exploring 
 Clarendon Woods and the crumbling 
 fragments of the castle, strike down 
 across the valley under the castle, 
 and go straight up the hill on the 
 other side in a direction from the 
 castle. {E.P,E.y\ 
 
 2 m. Milford Junction. 
 
 5 m. Alderlury Junction. 
 
 EOUTE 9. 
 
 SALISBURY TO WIMBORNE BY DOWN- 
 TON AND FORDINGBRIDGE [CRAN- 
 BORNE, CRANBORNE CHASEj. 
 
 {Salisbury and Dorset Eailivay.) 
 
 This line runs S. along the valley 
 of the Avon, leaving Wiltshire in 
 9 m. S. of Downton, and joining the 
 Southampton and Weymouth line at 
 West Moors' Junction, 23J m. It 
 passes on its course, 1., Britford, the 
 Moat (F. M. E. Jervoise, Esq.)— in 
 3 m. 1., Longford Castle (see last 
 Rte) ; — and further to the 1. New 
 Hall, residence of Alfred Buckley, 
 Esq,, who has here a valuable col- 
 lection of pictures. The house was 
 burnt down June 1881, but the pic- 
 tures were saved. " The number 
 is considerable, and the majority 
 of them attractive " — Waagen, 
 Among them are fine examples of 
 Vandervelde and Claude. On rt. the 
 village of Nunton, of which the small 
 church, restored by T. H. Wyatt, 
 contains the monument of J. T. Batt, 
 Esq., from whom General Buckley 
 inherited New Hall ; — Odstoch church 
 is also on the rt. (See previous page.) 
 
136 
 
 Boute 9. — Downton. Wiltshire. 
 
 4 m. rt. an earthwork, called 
 Clearhunj Ring, crowns a lofty hill. 
 
 It is of an oblong shape, containing 
 r-)J acres, protected by a single ditch 
 and rampart about 40 ft. in height, 
 and was formerly attributed to the 
 W. Saxons, particularly to Cerdic 
 who fought with the Britons 4 m. 
 below Charford in 519, captured Old 
 Sarum in 552, and finally completed 
 the conquest of Wiltshire. But 
 though occupied by the Saxons, there 
 is little doubt that these and similar 
 earthworks are of British construc- 
 tion. The spot commands a most 
 extensive view. 
 
 5 m. 1. Trafalgar House (Earl Nel- 
 son), built by Sir Peter Vandeput in 
 1733, and purchased in 1814, under 
 an Act of Parliament for the heirs of 
 the conqueror of Trafalgar. The 
 wings were added by Mr. Dawkins, 
 M.P., and a portico by Revett was 
 built in 1766. The hall, a cube of 
 30 ft., is decorated with a profusion 
 of stone carving. The walls of one 
 of the rooms were painted by Cip- 
 riani. In the park are noble woods 
 of beech, and near the river-side is 
 an ancient chapel, said to have been 
 founded as early as 1147. Adjoining 
 Trafalgar House is Barford, now a 
 armhouse, purchased by the late 
 Lord Nelson, and formerly the resi- 
 dence of Lord Feversham. Further 
 to the 1., at the foot of Brickworth 
 Down, stands Standli/ich House, with 
 its prospect house erected by the 
 Eyres, from the foot of which on a 
 clear day Southampton and Netley 
 Hospital may be easily seen. — 6 m. 
 Brickworth House, formerly a Jacobean 
 mansion, was burnt down a few years 
 since, and the present house is modern. 
 It stands in a deer-park of 20 acres. 
 It was for many years the seat of a 
 branch of the Eyres, but now be- 
 longs to Earl Nelson. To the E. 
 of it is the old terraced garden. 
 
 8f m. rt. Downton (Pop. 1900) (6 
 m. from Salisbury by the road), a 
 bright, attractive- looking little place, 
 of great antiquity and early import- | 
 
 ance, and still retaining a vestige of 
 Saxon times in a mound called the 
 Moot, at the E. end of the village. 
 After the Conquest Downton be- 
 longed to the bishops of Winchester, 
 who resided in it for many years. 
 The site of their mansion, Old Court, 
 is still pointed out on the rt. bank of 
 the river, and there they are supposed 
 to have entertained King John, who 
 is known to have visited Downton on 
 three separate occasions. Downton 
 was a borough returning 2 members, 
 disfranchised by the Reform Act. 
 Among its representatives may be 
 noticed Sir Carew Raleigh, Sir Wal- 
 ter's brother ; Sir Charles Pratt, 
 afterwards Ld. Chancellor Camden ; 
 Sir W. Scott (Ld. Stowell) ; and 
 James Brougham. Southey was re- 
 turned in 1826, but declined to sit. 
 
 The Church is a large cruciform 
 building with a central tower, supe- 
 rior in size and character to its neigh- 
 bours, ranging from Norman and 
 E.E. to Perpendicular. The three 
 west bays of the nave are Trans.- 
 Norman, the two east bays are E.E. 
 The E.E. transepts, with triplets in 
 their gable walls, have been altered 
 in Perp. times. The finest feature 
 of the Ch. is the chancel, which is 
 Dec. of excellent character, with an 
 E. window of 5 Its. and side windows 
 of 3 Its., one of which is a very fine 
 specimen of a low side window. The 
 sedilia have been much restored. 
 This chancel may be compared with 
 Edington and Bishopston, being per- 
 haps the earliest of the three. The 
 tower arches are fine, with marble 
 shafts. The bowl of the Purbeck 
 marble font is Norman. There are 
 some sumptuous monuments to the 
 Duncombes, including those to Mar- 
 garet Lady Feversham, by Schee- 
 macker, and (opposite) to her hus- 
 band Anthony Lord Feversham, d. 
 1763, and his second wife, d. 1757. 
 The tower (Perp.) w^as raised 30 ft. 
 by the E. of Radnor 1791, but was 
 reduced to its original height in 
 1860. 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 9. — Fordinghridge — Crarihome, 137 
 
 The old manor-house, of Eliz. or 
 Jacobean date, but now a farm-house, 
 was for a long time a residence of 
 the Raleighs, and also the birthplace 
 of Admiral Sir Roger Curtis, who com- 
 manded the gunboats at the siege of 
 Gibraltar. One of the old chimney- 
 pieces, sculptured with shields, may 
 still be seen in the hall. 
 
 The Moot, will be interesting to the 
 antiquary, presenting to his notice 
 a singular earthwork on which 
 either Saxon parliaments or Saxon 
 courts of justice have been supposed 
 to be held. It is in good preserva- 
 tion, and surrounded by an old- 
 fashioned garden. 
 
 W. of Downton, on Wick Down, 
 are remains of several complicated 
 circles, forming a maze. The hills 
 are crowned by the entrenchment 
 of 
 
 Whichhury, or Castle Ditches (see 
 Rte. 8), from which the 
 
 Grims'ditch may be traced in a 
 winding course of some 6 m. This 
 name occurs in many parts of 
 England, and is generally derived 
 from the Anglo-Saxon grime, an evil 
 spirit, as if it signified the Devil's 
 Ditch, A less romantic derivation 
 has been given by Dr. Guest, — from 
 gruma, a medisBval word meaning 
 boundary. This work has its foss 
 to the S. 
 
 The rly., crossing the Avon, leaves 
 Wilts, and enters Hants, and reaches 
 
 llf m. Breamore Stat. The an- 
 cient house of Breamore (Sir Edward 
 Hulse) burnt down 1850, has been 
 rebuilt. The Ch, with its Norm, 
 doorway is worth a visit. There 
 was a priory of Augustinian Canons 
 here, founded by Bahhvin de Red- 
 vers, in which Isabella de Fortibus, 
 the last feudal possessor of the Isle 
 of Wight, was buried. 
 
 Close to Breamore on the other 
 side of the Avon is Charford, for- 
 merly Cerdeford ; without doubt the 
 Cerdicesford of the A.-S. Chronicle ; 
 the scene of the great battle fought 
 by Cedric and Cynric with the Ro- 
 
 mano-Britons A.D. 519, by which 
 the Celtic power in Wessex was 
 finally broken. 
 
 Proceeding down the Avon valley 
 we reach 
 
 135 ni. FORDINGBRIDGE Stat. 
 
 {Lins: Greyhound, Star, well known 
 to anglers.) (Pop. 3178.) The town 
 is ancient and claims to be anterior 
 to the Conquest. The single object 
 of interest is the Ch., which is large 
 and worth examination. The nave 
 is early Dec. with a good Perp. roof. 
 Perp. clerestory windows, seem to 
 have been inserted in place of the 
 original Dec. ones. There is a small 
 brass to Wm. Bulkeley, d. 1568. The 
 main chancel, E.E. is divided from 
 the N. chancel by early Dec. pillars 
 in groups of 4. The E. window is 
 a triple lancet with singular flat 
 headings to the lights. The roof of 
 the N. chancel deserves especial 
 notice. It is Perp., open, and much 
 enriched. In the churchyard are 2 
 clipped yews of considerable size. 
 (For the neighbourhood of Fording- 
 hridge see Handbook to Hants.) 
 
 Soon after leaving Fordinghridge 
 the rly. enters Dorsetshire, and 
 reaches 
 
 16^ m. Daggcns Road Stat., and 
 crossing Verwood Heath reaches 
 
 19 J m. Verwood Stat. This is the 
 Stat, for the little town of Cran- 
 borne. 
 
 [rt. 4 m. Cranborne {Lin: Fleur 
 deLis; Pop. 2128), an old market- 
 town on the old high road from 
 London to the West, giving the title 
 of Viscount Cranborne to the Mar- 
 quis of Salisbury. It had anciently 
 a monastery, founded as early as 
 980, but its name is best known 
 in connection with Cranborne Chase, 
 an extensive tract of woodland 
 on the borders of Dorsetshire and 
 Wiltshire. Cranborne is described 
 by Leland as " a praty thorroghfair, 
 and for one streat meatly well builded. 
 There rennith a Acting bek thorrogh 
 
138 
 
 Houte 9. — Cranborne; the Chase, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 it, and passid down tliorrogh the 
 streat self on the right hond." The 
 Ch. is one of the largest and most 
 dignified in the county; 141 ft. in 
 length, built of flint and sandstone. 
 There is a Norm. N. doorway. The 
 fabric of the ch. is E.E. ; the heavy 
 sq. tower, 80 ft. high, is Perp. An in- 
 dulgence was granted for its erection 
 by Aiscough, Bp. of Salisbury, 1440. 
 Over the E. window are the initials 
 of Thomas Parker, abbot of Tewkes- 
 bury, d. 1421. There is a good oak 
 carved pulpit and Purbeck marble 
 font. In the chancel is a stately 
 Jacobean monument to the Hoopers, 
 with recumbent efiigies, and a tablet 
 to the mother of Bp. Stillingfleet, d. 
 1647. The parish of Cranborne is one 
 of the largest in the county, being 40 
 miles in circumference. A priory 
 for Benedictines was founded here 
 by Aylward de Meaux, c. 980, which 
 in 1102, when Tewkesbury was re- 
 built by Robert Fitz-Hamon, saw all 
 its monks save 3 transferred to the 
 new foundation, of which it became 
 a cell. There is here a most charm- 
 ing Manor House, a little W. of the 
 ch., belonging to Lord Salisbury, 
 built probably temj:). Hen. VIII., 
 and embellished by Robert Cecil, 
 1st Earl of Salisbury, temp, James I. 
 The Great Hall was the place of 
 judicature where the hundred baro- 
 nial and chase courts were held. At 
 the E. end is the dungeon where 
 offenders were often confined. Our 
 Stuart sovereigns often stayed here 
 when hunting in the Chase. James 
 I. was here Aug. 17, 1609, and killed 
 several bucks, and again Aug. 11, 
 1621, and dated hence three billets to 
 his " sweete boyes " at Madrid, 
 who were there for the Spanish match. 
 Charles I. was here also Oxi a very 
 different business, Oct. 14, 1644, 
 marching with his army " on foot, 
 before the foot" over the downs. 
 
 Castle Hill, about 1 m. S.E., is a 
 large and lofty mound with semi- 
 circular rampart and deep fosse be- 
 
 hind it, considered to be " unique of 
 its kind in the county." A large 
 tumulus of chalk in the centre, visi- 
 ble for many miles round, marks 
 the grave of a favourite hunter of 
 the late L. D. G. Tregonwell. 
 
 Edward Stillingfleet , Bishop of Wor- 
 cester (died 1699), was born (1635) 
 close to Cranborne, on a small estate 
 possessed by his family. 
 
 Cranborne Chase, so named from 
 this town, was in early times an 
 extensive territory, which comprised 
 considerable parts of Dorset, Hamp- 
 shire, and Wiltshire. Its limits were 
 then Salisbury, Wilton, Tisbury, 
 Kingsettle(near Shaftesbury), Bland- 
 ford, Wimborne, Ringwood, Fording- 
 bridge, and Downton, in circuit 
 about 80 miles. For many years it 
 was the property of the Earls of 
 Gloucester, but it belonged to the 
 Crown in the reign of John, and 
 from the time of Edward IV. to that 
 of James I. By the latter monarch 
 it was granted to the Earl of Pem- 
 broke, from whose descendants it 
 passed through several noble fa- 
 milies to its present proprietor Lord 
 Rivers. Cranborne Chase, though 
 disfranchised in 1830 as being a pub- 
 lic evil, having been a nursery for all 
 kinds of vice, profligacy, and im- 
 morality, as a harbour for smugglers, 
 and converting the adjoining parishes 
 into nests of deerstealers, is still an 
 extensive wooded tract, consisting 
 principally of the Wiltshire hills on 
 the border of this county. As late as 
 1828 it contained 12,000 deer, and as 
 many as 6 lodges, each of which had 
 its " walk," and was under the man- 
 agement of a Ranger appointed by 
 Lord Rivers. It presents many a 
 charming scene. "Nothing," says 
 the poet Bowles, " can be more wild 
 than this leafy labyrinth, opening at 
 times, and showing, through the 
 hollies and thorns and hazels, some 
 distant woodland hamlet in sunshine. 
 On the bordering downs no object 
 meets the eye, except here and there, 
 at a distance, a small round clump 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 9. — Cranhorne Chase. 
 
 139 
 
 of trees on summits, called by the 
 people of the country appropriately 
 a hat of treesy Over the hills of 
 this forest ran the British Ridge Way. 
 But the glory of the Chase has de- 
 parted, and to the regret of the lover 
 of woodland scenery, large portions 
 have been cleared and submitted to 
 tillage. The ancient Chase Prison 
 was at Cranborne. 
 
 Craiiborne Chase was formerly fa- 
 mous for its deer-hunters. The un- 
 lawful sport was practised by the 
 gentlemen of the neighbourhood as a 
 knight errantry. From 4 to 20 " we 
 are told '* assembled in the evening, 
 dressed in cap and jack and quarter 
 staff with dogs and nets. Having set 
 the watchword for the night and 
 agreed whether they should stand or 
 run if they should meet the keepers, 
 they proceeded to the chase, set their 
 nets, let slip their dogs to drive the 
 deer into the nets ; a man standing 
 at each net to strangle the deer as 
 soon as they were entaDgled. Fre- 
 quent desperate bloody battles took 
 place ; the keepers, and sometimes 
 the hunters were killed." In Hutchiiis'' 
 ' Dorset ' there is a print of a noted 
 Deer-hunter, in his costume, from a 
 portrait painted by Byng, 1720. 
 
 1 m. S. is .Edmondshaw, with a 
 Transition-Norm. Ch.^ which lost 
 much of its original architecture in 
 a restoration, 1863. The mansion 
 house of the Husseys stands near 
 the ch., a good specimen of the 
 domestic architecture of the period, 
 1589. 
 
 2 m. S.W. is Wimhome St. Giles's, the 
 seat of the Earl of Shaftesbury, and 
 birthplace in 1621 of Anthony Ashley 
 Cooper, the statesman and leading 
 member of the Cabal ministry, created 
 Baron Ashley, 1661, and Earl of Shaf- 
 tesbury, 1672 — and at a later date of 
 the author of * The Characteristics,' 
 here educated by Locke, who came 
 into his grandfather's family as 
 doctor, 1666, and some years after- 
 
 wards found a wife for his father. 
 The house is a long, low, embattled 
 pile, standing round a quadrangular 
 court, and is chiefly Elizabethan, 
 built 1561, and partly rebuilt in 1661, 
 and renovated by the present eminent 
 possessor. The east wing is more 
 ancient, and probably dates from the 
 1 6th cent. It contains many interest- 
 ing family pictures, including those of 
 Ld. Chancellor Shaftesbury mh\s robes 
 of office, the 2nd Earl and his countess, 
 by Sir Peter Lely, Squire Hastings, 
 &c. The manor came into the 
 possession of the Ashleys in the 
 reign of Edward IV. The heiress 
 of Sir Anthony, who was knighted 
 at the siege of Cadiz, brought it 
 to the Coopers of Rockborne, Hants. 
 The river Allen flows through the 
 park. The Ch. is modern, rebuilt 
 1732. It contains a fine crossed 
 effigy of a knight in chain armour, 
 probably Sir John de Plecy, d. 1313 ; 
 a stately Corinthian monument to 
 Sir Anthony Ashley (d. 1G27) and 
 his wife, with recumbent effigies ; 
 also a monument to the author of 
 the "Characteristics," the third Earl 
 of Shaftesbury (d. 1712), on which an 
 erfjHi&it^ female statue executed at 
 Naples represents " Polite literature 
 mourning the death of her most dis- 
 tinguished votary " ; to the first earl 
 (d, 1683), with a white marble bust ; 
 to the fourth earl (d. 1771) by Schee- 
 maker ; to the fifth earl, representing 
 the Fates unwinding the thread of 
 life ; and many later memorials to the 
 same family. The pleasure-grounds 
 contain some noble cedars, and a 
 grotto, which is said to have cost 
 10,000L in 1751. In the kitchen- 
 garden, according to the tradition, 
 that homely but useful vegetable 
 the cabbage was first grown in 
 England.] 
 
 The line runs over a wide, desolate 
 tract of level moor, the peaty soil 
 producing little but heath, ling, and 
 gorse, and reaches 
 
 23i m. West Moors Stat, where the 
 
140 
 
 Boute 10— Salisbury to Shaftesbury, Wiltshire. 
 
 Salisbury and Dorset line joins that 
 from Southampton to Weymouth, 
 midway between Ring wood {Hndbk, to 
 Hants) and 
 
 27| m. Wimhorne Stat. (Rte. 13). 
 
 ROUTE 10. 
 
 SALISBURY TO SHAFTESBURY, BY THE 
 VALE OF CHALK. 
 
 This road leaves Salisbury by 
 Harnham Hill, from which there is a 
 very fine view of the Cathedral, and 
 descends into the Vale of Chalk, 
 through which runs the little river of 
 .Ebele or Stopford Water. The Roman 
 road from Old Sarum to Dorchester 
 traversed this vale, probably taking 
 the line of an old British trackway. 
 
 3 m. Combe Bissett. The C/i., cruci- 
 form, with aisles and a tower over 
 the S. transept, well built of stone, 
 stands picturesquely on an eminence. 
 In the nave are two Norman arches. 
 The E.E. font has been retouched. 
 
 [Below Combe Bissett are the vil- 
 lages of Homington, Odstock, Nunton. 
 See Rte. 8.] 
 
 4 m. Stratford Tony, where is a 
 small mean (7A., taking its distinguish- 
 ing name from the fkmily of Toni, 
 the founder of which, Ralph, came 
 over with the Conqueror as standard- 
 bearer, and fought at the battle of 
 
 I Hastings. Robert, the last baron, 
 was at Caerlaverock, 1300. 
 
 4 J m. Bishopston. The Ch. will 
 well repay a visit: it is cruciform, 
 of some size, and much interest. 
 The chancel and S. transept are 
 very good examples of late Dec. c. 
 1360, with fine vaulted roofs and rich 
 flamboyant windows. Note the E. 
 window with its drip moulding con- 
 tinued up to the unglazed opening (a 
 curved triangle foliated), which 
 lights the roof ; the side windows of 
 unusual length, the unique S. chan- 
 cel door with its ogee crocketed 
 canopy and vaulted recess, and the 
 singular external cloister, or what- 
 ever else it is to be called, on the S. 
 wall of the S. transept : it is part of 
 the original structure, and the visitor 
 may amuse himself with conjectures 
 as to its purpose and intention, re- 
 membering, however, that the two 
 tombs of different dates placed one 
 upon the other inside it will afford 
 him no clue, as they were only a few 
 years ago removed to their present 
 position from the interior of the 
 church. The N. transept, though not 
 equal to the S., contains some fea- 
 tures worth noticing, especially the 
 rich tomb in the N. wall. Examine 
 also the arch which opens into the 
 S. transept, and the apparent remains 
 of a Norman arch above it. The 
 chancel has fine sedilia. The nave 
 is later and inferior. There is a 
 small brass to John de Wykeham, 
 presented to the Rectory by William 
 of Wykeham, 1379. The church 
 has been restored in a careful and 
 loving spirit, though perhaps not 
 quite in accordance with the critical 
 requirements of modern ecclesiology, 
 by a former rector, the Kev. G. A. 
 Montgomery (killed, 1842, by the fall 
 of the unfinished vaulting of East 
 Grafton church), whose elaborate 
 tomb by Pugin is in the S. wall of the 
 S. transept ; the carvings on the pulpit 
 are said to have been brought by him 
 from Spain. The church plate, pre- 
 sented by John Earle, successively 
 
Wiltshire. BoiUe 10. — Broad CJialk — Berwick St John, 141 
 
 Bp. of Worcester and Salisbury after 
 the Eestoration, and formerly rector 
 of Bishopston, is probably of Flemish 
 manufacture. — {E.P.E.) The parish 
 takes its name from the Bishops of 
 Winchester, who were lords of the 
 manor* till the Reformation, when it 
 passed into the hands of the present 
 owners, the Earls of Pembroke. 
 
 8 m. Broad Chalk has a large cru- 
 ciform church, with a central tower 
 and S. porch. The chancel and N. 
 transept are E.E. ; the rest of the 
 church of the 15th century. A me- 
 morial window to Lord Herbert of 
 Lea has been erected by his widow. 
 Broad Chalk was the birthplace of 
 John Bekinsel, a learned Wykeham- 
 ist, a friend of Leland, and author 
 of a work on "Defence of the Supre- 
 macy of Hen. VIII,'* and for some 
 years the residence of John Aubrey, 
 the antiquary. 
 
 Its late incumbent. Dr. Rowland 
 Williams, has left a name as a 
 scholar and theologian which will 
 not soon be forgotten. 
 
 2i m. S.W. lies the little village of 
 Bower or Burgh Chalk, till lately a 
 chapelry to Broad Chalk. The CL 
 is cruciform, with the tower to the 
 S., and is a very interesting speci- 
 men of primitive E. E. The chancel 
 was rebuilt, and an aisle and memo- 
 rial window added, 1866, in memory 
 of Lord [Herbert of Lea by his 
 widow." 
 
 9 m. The church of Fifield Bavent 
 is the smallest in the county, and 
 almost one of the smallest in Eng- 
 land. The parish derives its name 
 from having originally contained 
 five hides of land, and from the 
 family Bavent, who were its Norman 
 owners. 
 
 The road passes through 
 
 12 m. Ehhesborne or Ebeleshorne 
 Wake, which takes its name from 
 the Ebele brook. The Ch., restored 
 1877, has a good W. tower bearing 
 the arms of the Wake family, the 
 former owners. 
 
 13 m. Alvediston, lying in a deep 
 
 hollow under the steep flank of 
 Whitesheet Hill. The Ch.\^ cruci- 
 form, with tower at west end. In the 
 S. Trans, or Gawen's aisle an effigy 
 in complete armour rests on an altar- 
 tomb. 5 m. W.N.W. are the re- 
 mains of Norrington, once the man- 
 sion of the Gawens, one of 'the 
 oldest names in Wilts. Norrington 
 was their seat from 1377 to 1658, 
 when it passed to the Wyndhams. Its 
 ancient importance is attested by the 
 remains of the formal terraces and 
 gardens, and the wreck of the old 
 hall, which appears to have been 
 built about the time of Rich. II. 
 " Norrington," writes Mr. Parker, 
 *'is a tolerably perfect manor-house 
 of the 15th cent., with the hall and 
 porch perfect. The hall windows 
 are good Perp., and the doorway 
 of the porch has a fine set of mould- 
 ings with shafts and deep hollows." 
 The rest is about the time of Eliza- 
 beth. The hall is divided into 
 several rooms. There is a cellar 
 with a good vaulted roof, and a 
 so-called "banquet-chamber" with a 
 fireplace of the date of Elizabeth. 
 
 The road passes under the high 
 chalk down known as Wliitesheet 
 Hill, along the summit of which 
 formerly ran the high London road, 
 and reaches 
 
 17^ m. Berwick St. John, under 
 Winkelbury, an entrenchment of 12§ 
 acres, girt by a single ditch and 
 rampart 39 ft. high. Beyond are 
 the far-extending heights of Cranborne 
 Chase, The Ch. is cruciform (re- 
 stored 1861 by the late rector), with 
 a well-designed, low Perp. tower. 
 The ceiling bears the Tudor rose, 
 and the arms of the Willoughby 
 de Brokes, one of which family was 
 rector here, 1485-1506. In the 
 S. aisle may be seen 2 monuments, 
 with effigies in chain armour. They 
 are supposed to be those of Sir 
 Robert Lucy in the N. Trans., and 
 John de Hussey in the S. Trans., 
 Knights Templars in the reign of 
 Edw. I. 
 
142 
 
 Boute 11. — Salisbury to Westbury, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 A former rector, Rev. John Gane, 
 left a bequest, 1735, for ringing the 
 great bell of the ch. at 8 o'clock 
 every night for J of an hour during 
 the winter months to guide travellers 
 over the Wiltshire Downs. Fern 
 House, the seat of Sir T. Grove, Bart., 
 was rebuilt 1811. The estate has 
 been in the family since 1563. 
 
 3 m. S. in Cranborne Chase is 
 Tollard Royal, The ch. contains a 
 fine effigy in chain mail of Sir W. 
 Payne of East Lulworth, d. 1388, who 
 married the heiress. 
 
 Our route quits the Vale of 
 Chalk ; and leaving the DonJieads and 
 Sticklepath Hill, with the Castle Rings 
 on the rt., enters Dorsetshire, and 
 reaches 
 
 24 m. Shaftesbury (Rte. 12). 
 
 Aslicombe, 5 m. S.E. (in Cranborne 
 Chase), an estate formerly of Lord 
 Arundell, and now of Sir T. Grove, 
 is a very romantic spot. It is in a 
 deep circular dell, from the centre of 
 which rises a small hill. Upon this 
 isolated knoll stands a relic of the 
 old mansion, in the midst of an am- 
 phitheatre of woods. The only out- 
 let is by a steep road carried up the 
 heights. 
 
 EOUTE n. 
 
 SALISBURY TO WESTBURY, BY WIL- 
 TON, HEYTESBURY, AND WARMIN- 
 STER (LONGLEAT). 
 
 (Great Western Hallway.) 
 
 Leaving Salisbury, the Gt. Western 
 Ely. runs side by side with the S.W. 
 Rly. to Yeovil and Exeter as far as 
 
 2i m. Wilton Stat., where it crosses 
 the Wylye, and continues up the val- 
 ley of the river to the watershed at 
 Warminster. 
 
 4i m. rt. is South Newton, The 
 Ch, restored by Lady Herbert of 
 Lea. 
 
 5 J' m.° Wishford Stat. The village 
 of mud-built thatched cottages is 
 prettily wooded. The Ch. is rich in 
 monuments worth notice, particularly 
 the stately tomb of Sir Richard 
 Grobham, steward of the Gorges 
 family of Longford, 1629, and of 
 Thomas Bonham, 1473, a former lord 
 of this manor, whose effigy is repre- 
 sented in the habit of a pilgrim. Ac- 
 cording to the absurd local legend, 
 he was the father of 7 children, who 
 were all born at one birth, after his 
 return from a 7 years' pilgrimage to 
 the Holy Land, and were brought to- 
 gether to the christening in a sieve, 
 which was hung up in the church 
 as a memorial of the event. An 
 unnamed female figure lies in a low 
 recess in the N. wall. 
 
 To the 1. rises the hill of 
 
 Grovely or Graveling Wood, for- 
 merly one of the largest woods in the 
 county, and a forest as late as the 
 reign of Elizabeth. It is remarkable 
 for a number of ancient earthworks. 
 On the down immediately opposite 
 Wishford are Grovely Works, the 
 remains of a British town, in a crescent 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 11. — Hanging Lang ford — Wily, 143 
 
 form, extending a mile in length 
 and occupying 60 acres; further to 
 the W., (to the.S. of Little Langford) 
 are Grovely Castle, encircled by a single 
 ditch and rampart, but, in the opinion 
 of Sir R. C. Hoare, of no very high an- 
 tiquity ; and East Castle, to the S. of 
 Steeple Langford, a work remarkable 
 for its small size (f acre), and for 
 containing a central mound. 
 1 J m. S.W. of East Castle is 
 Hanging Langford, evidently a Bri- 
 tish camp; and Bilhury Ring (due S. of 
 Wylye Stat.), now nearly destroyed, 
 a farm having been built on the site. 
 It was fortified by double and triple 
 ramparts, and enclosed a still older 
 work in its area of 17 acres. On the 
 S. side of Grovely, on BarfordDown, 
 is another entrenched village, called 
 jflarnshill Ditches, and through the 
 heart of the wood runs the Koman 
 road from Old Sarum to Uphill on 
 the Bristol Channel ; 3§ m. from Old 
 Sarum at the E. corner of Grovely 
 Wood the pitched causeway is 
 visible. Grovely is the property of 
 the Earl of Pembroke. " In old times 
 the tenants and others who claimed 
 custom in the wood used to go in a 
 daunce to Salisbury Cathedral on a 
 certain day, and there make their 
 clayme in these words, * Grovely, 
 Grovely, and all Grovely.' " " The 
 circuit of this wood," says Sir E. C. 
 Hoare, '*is an iter rich in food for 
 the antiquary, and interesting to 
 every eye that is not totally indiffe- 
 rent to the many varied and beauti- 
 ful views which it continually af- 
 fords." 
 
 A pleasant excursion for a pedes- 
 trian is from Wishford Station to 
 ascend the Downs to Grovely Works, 
 and then follow the undulations of the 
 Downs, exploring the camps by the 
 way, to Hanging Langford, or further, 
 if he feels inclined ; then to turn into 
 Grovely and walk along the broad 
 open drive to Wilton, and so back to 
 Salisbury ; the view of the Cathedral 
 and the surrounding country from 
 the hill-side is very fine. 
 
 Just beyond Wishford, rt., the 
 valley of the Winterbourne opens 
 and affords a glimpse of 
 
 Stapleford, IJ m. from Wishford 
 Station N. The Ch. well deserves a 
 visit. It is cruciform, and has a fine 
 Norm. N. door and very good Norm, 
 arcade within. The piscina and 
 sedilia deserve notice. Old Castle 
 Ground is a moated site adjoining a 
 meadow called the Park, For the 
 villages up this stream, Berwick St, 
 James, Winterbourne Stoke, the Orches- 
 tons, &c. (see Rte 6). 
 
 7J m. Close to the riy., rt., over- 
 shadowed with elms, is the small 
 Dec. church of Little Langford, re- 
 stored by Lady Herbert, where the 
 Norm. S. door with a rude bas-relief, 
 and a Jacobean tomb, deserve notice. 
 
 8f m. Hanging Langford is close to 
 the line rt., and Steeple (or Staple, 
 i.e. Market) Langford, IJ m. N. This 
 Ch, contains a rich altar-tomb to the 
 family of Mompesson, and a lively 
 portraiture of the Rev. J. Collier, 
 rector, d. 1635. In taking the chan- 
 cel down lately a Purbeck marble 
 slab with the figure of a man with a 
 horn slung round him was found. 
 In tlie troubles in Charles I.'s time 
 the rector, the Rev. J. Collier, was 
 ejected as " ignorant, scandalous, and 
 inefficient," leaving his wife and 11 
 children without provision in a time 
 of deep snow. They took shelter for 
 6 nights in a barn, and the children 
 gathered sticks in Grovely Wood. 
 Two of his sons joined in Penrud- 
 dock's abortive attempt ; and, being 
 taken, were sold as slaves in Ja- 
 maica. 
 
 11| m. Wylye Stat. There is a pic- 
 turesque view of the wooded hill of 
 Bathampton from the bridge over the 
 river. Wylye CA.was rebuilt 1844, but 
 retains a fine E.E. eastern triplet, 
 and contains an oaken pulpit brought 
 from Old Wilton Ch. It has a low 
 pinnacled tower. 
 
 On the old road from Salisbury to 
 Warminster, immediately N., was the 
 once celebrated Deptford Lnn, the 
 
Boiite 1 1 .— Yarnhury 
 
 Camp — Stocldon. Wiltshire. 
 
 halfway house, now pulled down. 
 The garden commands a pleasing 
 view. In the hollow lies Bedliampton 
 (properly Bedliampton)^ the seat of 
 H. N. Jarrett, Esq., and on the rt. a 
 bold and lofty down rises abruptly 
 from the road. 2 m. N.E., on the 
 highway to Stonehenge and Ames- 
 bury, is 
 
 Yarnhury Camp, a very perfect and 
 interesting work, placed on the sum- 
 mit of a solitary eminence of the 
 great Plain, the undulating surface 
 of which is seen from it in a pano- 
 ramic view. It is circular, and of 
 great size, the entrenchments being 
 two banks and ditches, the inner 
 about 50 ft. deep. The principal 
 entrance faces the E., and is defended 
 by a complicated outwork. Another 
 entrance on the S. should be noticed 
 for its complete preservation. E. of 
 Yarnhury are Staple Langford Downs, 
 with singular and diversified earth- 
 works and mounds, probably the 
 sites of huts. On the 4th of 
 October Yarnhury is the scene of 
 an annual fair for the sale of sheep 
 and colts. The old road from Salis- 
 bury to Bath (now but little used) 
 skirted the camp on the E., and its 
 course is still marked by many of the 
 milestones. 3^ m. W. is Oldbury, or 
 Codford Circle, marking the summit 
 of a hill by its earthen bank. The 
 eye ranges over a wide uncultivated 
 country. 
 
 1 m. S. of Wylye is Bllbury Ring ; 
 i m. farther the British camp of 
 Hanging Langford and the Dinton 
 Beeches; and, about 2 m. towards 
 Hindon, Stockton Works, the site of 
 a British town, afterwards occupied 
 by the Romans as a station on their 
 road from Old Sarum. Fonthlll is 
 10 m. distant. 
 
 Fisherton Delamere, ^ m. W,, is so 
 named after its ancient lords, the De- 
 lameres of Nunney Castle, Somerset. 
 Fisherton House, seat of L. Birch, Esq., 
 is said to occupy the site of their 
 mansion. The remains of terraces 
 are to be traced in the garden. The 
 
 rly. continues up the valley, here 
 broad and green, with the chalk hills 
 on each side, to 
 
 llf m. rt. Stockton, Stockton House 
 (Capt. A. G. Yeatman -Biggs) is a 
 fine mansion embowered in woods. 
 It was begun by John Topp in the 
 reign of Elizabeth, and finished in 
 that of James I., the farms of both 
 these sovereigns appearing on the 
 ceiling of the great bedroom. Most of 
 the principal rooms retain their old 
 wainscots, chimney-pieces, and ceil- 
 ings. The drawing-room upstairs is 
 a fine example of Elizabethan deco- 
 ration. The manor of Stockton be- 
 longed in Alfred's days to a noble 
 named Wulfhere, but for some act 
 of disloyalty was forfeited to the 
 Crown. Edward the Elder granted 
 it to an Ethelwulf, who gave it to 
 his wife Deorwith, by whom it was 
 bestowed on St. Swithin's, Winches- 
 ter, and it was held by the Topps 
 under that convent. The exterior 
 is rather plain, and the interior has 
 been partly modernized ; but it con- 
 tains a splendid sitting-room and 
 bed-room with gorgeous plaster ceil- 
 ings, inscribed with E. R. The Ch. 
 Trans. Norm., with an E. E. chancel, 
 with eastern triplet falsified by re- 
 storation, and Perp. clerestory. It 
 contains more monuments than are 
 usually found in a village church. 
 There are no fewer than six in the 
 chancel, but none earlier than 1600, 
 except a female efiigy her feet 
 resting on a dog, found half-buried 
 in the S. wall under a monumental 
 arch of the 14th cent. In the N. 
 aisle there is a fine canopied tomb 
 with recumbent effigies to the builder 
 of Stockton House (d. 1632) and his 
 wife Mary, with other memorials of 
 the Topps. In the S. aisle are an 
 altar-tomb and other memorials of 
 the families of Poticary and Green- 
 hill. There is an almshouse founded 
 by the same John Topp, 1G41, a 
 picturesque group of buildings round 
 three sides of a court, completed by 
 a coped wall and gateway. Stockton 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 4. L 4<xi-t.v-oiA 
 
 Boute 11. — Codford — Boy ton* 
 
 146 
 
 Farmhouse is an interesting house, 
 built about the same time as the 
 Manor House, by Jerom Poticary, 
 one of the family of rich clothiers 
 settled here. It preserves a portion 
 of an older half-timbered building. 
 
 14 1 m. Codford Station. There are 
 two parishes 1., the straggling village 
 ' of Codford St. Marjfs (the CA., nearly 
 rebuilt 1843, has a tomb with effigies 
 of Sir Richard Mompesson, a Norm, 
 font, and a communion-table made 
 out of the old pulpit of St. Mary's, 
 Oxford) ; and the more compact one 
 of Codford St. Peter's. The Ck. of 
 \ the latter is Norman, aisleless, with 
 ] a zigzag moulded chancel arch. 
 \ The Rectory was given to St. John's 
 ' Coll., Oxford, by Abp. Laud. It 
 contains a font coeval with the ch., 
 a piscina and sedilia. 
 
 About 1 m. to the rt. is a curious 
 earthwork, called Oldbury, or Cod- 
 ford Circle. It occupies the summit 
 of a hill commanding a most inte- 
 resting view. E. of Codford St. Mary, 
 on a projecting spur of the down, 8 
 venerable yews mark the site of a 
 hermitage founded by Henry de 
 Mareys, 1317. S., on the rt. bank 
 of the Wylye, lies the pretty little 
 village of 
 
 Sherrington, remarkable for a 
 moated mound, W. of the small Ch. 
 (partly E.E., restored 1844) 100 ft. 
 in diameter at top, on which stood a 
 castle of the wealthy and powerful 
 Giffards, whose property in Plan- 
 tagenet times extended over many 
 parishes in this county. Beyond 
 Codford St. Peter the valley expands 
 considerably. 
 
 Boyton Manor (Edmund D.V. Benett, 
 Esq., lately occupied by H.R.H. 
 the Duke of Albany) will be ob- 
 served on the 1. of Codford Stat. 
 Here, in the days of Hen. II., and 
 for many subsequent years, was the 
 seat of the Giffards. 
 
 Boyton Ch. (St. Mary), well re- 
 stored by the late Prebendary Fane, 
 deserves notice. It is a fine ex- 
 ample of E.E. and early Dec. The 
 [Wilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 tower stands to the N., and has a 
 very fine E.E. doorway. The S. or 
 Lambert Chapel has some fine Dec. 
 windows, especially that to the W. 
 (a circle containing 3 triangles), two 
 altar-tombs, one with the effigy of a 
 cross-legged knight in chain armour. 
 Sir Alexander Giffard, the companion 
 of William Lougespee, the crusader, 
 and one of his knights in the fatal 
 conflict of Mansoura, from which he 
 escaped to fulfil the dying wishes of 
 his friend ; the other, without effigy, 
 but richly adorned with canopied 
 niches, perhaps to Lady Margaret, 
 in whom the house of Giffard ex- 
 pired. A large slab of Purbeck 
 marble, with the matrix of a brass in 
 the N, chancel, on being removed, was 
 found to cover a decapitated skeleton, 
 probably that of the last male Giffard, 
 beheaded at Gloucester for his share 
 in the Earl of Lancaster's rebellion, 
 temp. Ed. II. The ch. was probably 
 built by Bp. Giffard. There are 
 good piscina) and sedilia both in the 
 chancel and S. chapel. The estate 
 afterwards belonged to Maltravers, 
 then to the Earl of Arundell, who, 
 1572, sold it to Rd. Lambert, Aid. of 
 London. The house Mas built by 
 Thos. Lambert, 1618. The late owner 
 was the distinguished botanist, Mr. 
 Bourke Lambert, who discovered on 
 this estate 2 plants previously un- 
 known to the British flora — Carduus 
 tuberosus and Centaurea nigrescens, the 
 former in Great Bidgeicood — and here 
 collected from all parts of the world 
 a most valuable Hortus Siccus, which 
 consisted of more than 30,000 spe- 
 cies. Between Boyton and Cor ton 
 grounds the country people point 
 out a pit called Chapel or Chettle Hole, 
 as the spot where a church was once 
 mysteriously engulfed. A little 
 spring bubbles up from it. (^Cetel is 
 A.-S. for a caldron.) The Corton 
 Beech is a tree 14 ft. in circum- 
 ference. 
 
 14f m. rt., Upton Lovel, bears the 
 name of its ancient lords, the lords of 
 Castle Cary, Somerset. The small 
 
146 Boute 11.— Ujpton 
 
 Lovel — Heytesbury, WiltsMre. 
 
 aisleless CA., with traces of Norm, 
 work, contains the effigy of one (per- 
 haps) of this family on an altar-tomb 
 in his armour ; and also a brass, the 
 demi-figure of a priest, c. 1430, and a 
 circular font. Here is an endowed 
 Grammar School. The Wily is here 
 spanned by an ingeniously con- 
 structed bridge, by J. Chapman of 
 Frome. Each parapet is formed by 
 trussing a beam of red pine. 
 
 15J m. Knook Ch., has a Norm. S. 
 door with carved tympanum, and a 
 Norm, chancel arch. 
 
 17J m. Heyteshurji Stat. {Inns: 
 Angel, Ked Lion ; Pop. 1103.) 
 
 The Anglo-Saxons called it Hegtre- 
 desbyri, which, in Domesday Book, 
 the Norman clerk converted into 
 Hestrebe. Once a parliamentary 
 borough, it is now an inconsiderable 
 place, with a small manufacture of 
 broadcloths and kerseymeres, and in 
 1832 it was disfranchised. 
 
 The property here, under various 
 subdivisions of East, West, and South 
 H., belonged, from Hen. II. to Rich. 
 II., to the families of Dunstanville, 
 MontfortjBadlesmere, and Burghersh, 
 They were then united, and from 
 Rich. II. to Hen. VIII. were held 
 by the elder house of Hungerford. 
 In that reign it was forfeited by the 
 attainder of Walter Hungerford, who 
 had been created "Lord Hungerford 
 of Heytesbury." The Hungerfords 
 possessed this place before they 
 bought Farley Castle; and some of 
 them preferred living here. Their 
 house at Heytesbury has been long 
 since taken down, but in the present 
 offices still remains an old stone shield, 
 bearing the arms of Courtenay im- 
 paling Hungerford. They were fol- 
 lowed by the families of Wheeler, 
 Moore, and Ashe. By marriage of 
 the heiress of Wm. Ashe, the estate 
 passed in 1750 to Pierce A'Court, 
 Esq., ancestor of the present owner, 
 Lord Heytesbury. 
 
 The Ch, (restored by Butterfield : 
 re-opened 1867) was made collegiate 
 by Jocelyn, Bp. of Sarum, c. 1165, 
 
 with a dean and 4 prebendaries. It 
 is cruciform, chiefly E.E. The nave 
 was rebuilt in the Perp. style, pro- 
 bably by the Hungerfords, c. 1404. 
 During the restoration the aisles of 
 choir have been rebuilt, the original 
 pitch of the roofs restored, and the N. 
 transept, which had been turned into 
 a family vault, thrown open to the ch. 
 Across the arch is a stone screen with 
 badges of the Hungerford family. 
 A new font was given by Rev. 
 R. Beadon. The E. window is in- 
 ternally a triplet, with only the centre 
 lancet pierced. In the chancel are 
 14 oaken stalls. In the S. transept 
 is a tablet to the memory of Mr. 
 Cunnington, whose antiquarian re- 
 searches formed the groundwork of 
 Sir R. C. Hoare's * Ancient Wilt- 
 shire.' He resided for many years at 
 Heytesbury, where he died in 1810. 
 
 Heytesbury Hospitcd, a red brick 
 building, forming 3 sides of a square, 
 originally founded for 12 poor men 
 and one woman, and a Custos, by 
 Walter Lord Hungerford, Lord High 
 Treasurer of England, who died in 
 1449, and his son, Robert Lord Hun- 
 gerford, and completed by his widow, 
 Margaret Lady H. and Botreaux, is 
 endowed with lands. The Hunger- 
 ford arms are over the entrance. 
 The Farsonage Farm contains a line 
 room of Jacobean date, now divided 
 into two, with rich plaster ceiling 
 and carved fireplace. 
 
 On the N. side of the town is 
 Heytesbury Farli, the seat of Lord 
 Heytesbury. Its woods clothe the 
 base of Cotley Hill, and sweep in 
 dark plantations of fir to the neigh- 
 bouring heights. The mansion is 
 modern and perfectly plain, but it 
 contains some fine pictures of the 
 Italian, Spanish, French, and Nether- 
 landish schools, particularly of the 
 Spanish. In the dravfing-room — 
 Roger de Bruges: Descent from the 
 Cross. — Guercino : Genius of Painting. 
 — Baphacl: Holy Family (belonged to 
 Card. Mazarin), an early and care- 
 ful copy, somewhat hard in form and 
 
Wiltshire* Boute 11. — Heyteshury Park ; Picture Gallery. 147 
 
 dark* in colour." — Waagen. Panni- 
 giano : Christ and St. J. Bapt., be- 
 longed to Mad. Murat. • — Albano : 
 Cupid bending his bow, a copy from 
 Coreggio. — Teniers : several. — Paul 
 Veronese : Moses in the Bulrushes ; 
 the Baptism, elevated in sentiment, 
 and powerful in colour. — Liica G ior- 
 dano: Philip II. examining the plan 
 of the Escurial, a sketch for the pic- 
 ture in the Escurial, rich composi- 
 tion, conceived as a landscape. — 
 Velasquez": the sketch for los Bor- 
 rachos " in the gallery at Madrid ; 
 full of spirit and expression, in the 
 coarse reality of the powerful pea- 
 sants' heads. — J. Juannes : good copy 
 of the Ecce Homo by Eogier Van de 
 Weyden the younger ; 2. Mater Dolo- 
 rosa; "of portrait-like but noble 
 character; of pale tone and in- 
 tensely moving expression, not a 
 copy. One of the best specimens of 
 the early Spanish school I have ever 
 seen," Waagen (companion picture). 
 — B. Luini : the Baptism ; ** among 
 the few pictures on a small scale 
 by the master, this is the most 
 beautiful I know : " Waagen. — B. 
 Schidone : Virgin and Child, with 
 St. John and Joseph. — Murillo: St. 
 John and the Lamb; 2. painted at 
 Seville for Count Almodovar, *'las 
 Gallegas" (Gallician girls), a well- 
 known picture, " of animated concep- 
 tion and admirable drawing : " Waa- 
 gen. — Zarharan: 2 masterly pictures 
 of Sts. Jerome and Benedict, saints, 
 life-size. — Guercino : the Magdalen, 
 " of unusual nobility of form and ex- 
 pression."— /ari Van Eyck : St. Francis 
 receiving the Stigmata, " a finely pre- 
 served little gem : " Waagen. In the 
 Ante - room — G. Fotissin : a grand 
 mountainous Landscape.— Zwr6ara?z : 
 St. Francis ; 2. a Saint. In the Dining- 
 room — A. Cano: the Magdalen. — Van 
 Belmont: May Day; Condemnation 
 of a Deserter. — Rihera : St. Jerome. — 
 G.Romano: Marriage of St. Catherine. 
 — Murillo : Virgin" and Child, with 
 SS. Joseph and John.—^iY. Poussin: 
 View of Ponte Molle; 2. Herminia 
 
 seeking refuge with the Shepherds. 
 — Claude: 2 small Landscapes, "de- 
 licate and clearly coloured works, of 
 his best time." — S. Posa : portrait of 
 a man. — Zurbaran : the Infant Christ 
 on an ass, with Joseph and St. John, 
 " coarsely realistic in conception, but 
 the heads animated and of masterly 
 treatment." — C. Cignani: Charity. — 
 DomenicJiiiio : a Landscape, with St. 
 John preaching. — Vanni: Flight into 
 Egypt. 
 
 In^the Drawing Boom. is preserved 
 Charles I.'s cap, given by him to 
 Hen. Vernon, Esq. of Faruham, at 
 whose house he passed the night or 
 his way to Carisbrook. 
 
 The Library contains family por- 
 traits of the Ashes and A'Courts ; on 
 the Staircase are portraits of the 
 Worsleys and Holmes from Appul- 
 durcombe, in the Isle of Wight. 
 
 At Greenhill, in the adjoining pa- 
 rish of Sutton (Col. Everett), are also 
 some excellent pictures. By Paul 
 Potter : a Landscape with cattle and 
 sheep, of great power both in execu- 
 tion and colour. — J. Van Ostade : 
 a village scene, with travellers ; "a 
 rich composition, in a deep glow- 
 ing tone, and of solid impasto:" 
 Waagen. — Jan Steen : a domestic 
 after-dinner scene in a garden bower, 
 the dessert on the table, one of the 
 best pictures of the master. — B. 
 Denner: portrait of an old woman, 
 of which there are several repeti- 
 tions. — Teniers : a Dispute at Cards. 
 •— Van dcr Heist: portrait of a young 
 girl. — Ucchterfeld : 2 girls at the 
 piano, "a charming picture by this 
 second-rate master." — Waagen. Of 
 these Dr. Waagen says, " some would 
 take an honourable place even in the 
 largest gallery." 
 
 At Sutton Veny (miscalled Fenmj), 
 about li m. from ffeytesbury Station, 
 is an old parsonage, in which may 
 be recognised the remains of a house 
 of the 14th cent, in the windows of 
 the hall and buttery-hatch. A new 
 Ch. has been built at the expense of 
 the Everett family by Mr.^ J. L; 
 
 L 2 
 
148 Boute 11. — Imher— Battles. Wiltshire* 
 
 Pearson, with a stone-vaulted chancel 
 and a lofty spire, which will repay a 
 visit. The old church is preserved 
 as a ruin. 
 
 Imher, 5 m. N. of Heytesbury, is 
 entombed among the chalk hills, in 
 one of the most lonely situations 
 conceivable. A local rhyme runs — 
 
 Imber, on the Down, 
 
 Four miles from any town." 
 
 It can only be approached by a 
 track-way across the turf, and is 
 almost inaccessible in winter. The 
 little Perp. Ch., which suffered re- 
 storation in 1831, contains 2 cross- 
 legged effigies (perhaps) of the family 
 of Rous. 
 
 At Heytesbury the valley has ex- 
 panded to a considerable width, the 
 downs sweep to it with their grassy 
 sides in bold slopes, and the singular 
 eminence of Cley Hill rises midway 
 where it opens on the plain at War- 
 minster. 
 
 Cotley Hill rises immediately above 
 Heytesbury, and commands one of 
 the finest panoramic views in the 
 county. It is remarkable for a tumu- 
 lus crowning the very summit, and 
 formerly encircled by a low bank 
 and inner ditch, which in part remain 
 to the present day. 
 
 Knock Castle is another ancient 
 work, about 2 m. N.E. of the town. 
 It is a single-ditched entrenchment, 
 supposed to have been originally 
 a British village, afterwards occu- 
 pied by the Romans as a summer 
 camp, British and foreign pottery, 
 native implements, and Roman coins 
 having been found in it. To the 
 N. of it are remains of another 
 British settlement, and the Old 
 Ditch, which runs for 11 m. across 
 Salisbury Plain in the direction of 
 Tilshead and Orcheston. The site 
 of these villages, says Sir R. C. 
 Hoare, " is decidedly marked by 
 great cavities and a black soil ; and 
 the attentive eye may easily trace out 
 the lines of houses, and the streets, or 
 rather the hollow ways conducting to 
 
 them." Long barrows are very nu- 
 merous on these hills. 
 
 Proceeding on our route : — : 
 rt., Scratchhury, a magnificent and 
 well-preserved specimen of a Bri- 
 tish camp, supposed to derive its 
 name from the Celtic word Crech or 
 Crechen, a hill. The area (blue in 
 summer, with campanula and sca- 
 bious) occupies 40 acres. It is of an 
 irregular form, following the outline 
 of the hill, encompassed by a ditch 
 and rampart in places 66 ft. in height. 
 The entrances are three, the prin- 
 cipal one, opening to the S.E., 
 being fortified with outworks. Within 
 the area is an inner camp and several 
 tumuli. The railroad runs at the 
 foot of the hill. Separated from this 
 work by a deep valley is the camp 
 of 
 
 Battlesbiiryy another entrenchment 
 attributed to the Britons. You ascend 
 to it by a giants' stairway, the slope of 
 the intervening valley being formed 
 in a series of parallel terraces, called 
 
 linchets,'' following the ascent as 
 exactly as if made by the hand of 
 man. The precise origin of these 
 "lynchets" (or *' lanchardes," as 
 sometimes pronounced), is not known. 
 That cattle could have made such 
 accurately parallel and regular walks 
 is impossible. These certainly have 
 (as many lynchets have) more the 
 appearance of having been produced 
 by the action of water. It is un- 
 doubtedly to the gradual effect of tides 
 in some ancient geological sea, that 
 the downs themselves owe the grace- 
 ful slopes which they present. Some 
 harder layer of the chalk has re- 
 sisted that action, and hence probably 
 these singular projecting banks. In 
 some instances they may have been 
 formed, or altered by the plough. 
 On the S. and S.E. the height and 
 abruptness of the hill render this 
 camp almost inaccessible ; on the N. 
 it is more easily approached, |and 
 there the defences are double. The 
 area encircled is more than 23 acres, 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 1 1 . — Warminster, 
 
 and the rise of the ramparts 60 ft. 
 In the view, which is most extensive, 
 the pretty knoll of Cophead, the sin- 
 gular outlying eminence of Cley Hill, 
 the town of Warminster, and woods 
 of Loncjleat, are interesting features. 
 
 Near the hamlet of Boreham, 2 m. 
 W., remains of an earthwork called 
 the Berries — a corruption of Bury " 
 —mark the site of a Koman station 
 on the road from Old Sarum to Bath. 
 Pottery and numerous coins have 
 been found on the spot, and at Pit- 
 mead, lower down the river, the tes- 
 sellated pavements of 2 villas. The 
 road is supposed to have proceeded 
 down the valley as far as Stapleford, 
 and thence across the downs to Old 
 Sarum. 
 
 200 yards north of Boreham is 
 the King-Barrow, so called as one 
 of the largest in Wiltshire. It is 
 206 ft. in length, 56 in width, and 
 15 m height. It was opened in 1800, 
 when two human skeletons and the 
 bones of a horse, together with the 
 horns of a stag, the tusks of a boar, 
 and fragments of pottery, were found 
 in it. 
 
 20j m. Warminster Stat., oversha- 
 dowed by the heights of Am Hill 
 and Cophead rt. 
 
 Warminster {Inns : Bath Arms ; 
 Lamb ; Pop. 6998), the seat of Quarter 
 Sessions, Visitations, &c., with a Sa- 
 turday market, to which the ready- 
 money dealing in corn, and a consi- 
 derable malting business, give impor- 
 tance. It is a place of great antiquity, 
 said to derive its present name from 
 a *' minster " or church which stood 
 on the banks of the Were. The site of 
 this ancient church is traditionally 
 supposed to have been at a place 
 called the nunnery, and there is a so- 
 called mins* Path, a track ascending 
 the neighbouring hill ; but there is 
 no record of any monastic foundation 
 having existed here. At the period 
 of the Conquest, Warminster be- 
 longed to and was held by the 
 Crown; but the tenant under the 
 
 140 
 
 Crown held the manor by the service 
 of providing the King and his suite 
 with one night's lodging when they 
 visited the neighbourhood. This 
 right was claimed in 1663 by Charles 
 II., and paid by Sir James Thynne 
 of Longleat, and almost in our own 
 days by George III., who, with the 
 Queen and Princesses, was entertained 
 by the lord of the manor of War- 
 minster at Longleat. Warminster is 
 a clean, airy town with one long 
 street of white stone houses. It stands 
 in a beautiful country, situated at the 
 entrance of a valley under the escarp- 
 ment of the downs, which here ex- 
 pose their flanks in long perspective, 
 or rise from the plain in isolated 
 knolls. 
 
 The Mauduits were lords of War- 
 minster from Hen. L to Kichd. II. 
 
 The cruciform C/i. possesses little 
 interest. It has a low, pinnacled, 
 central tower. The S. or Lady- 
 chapel was built by the Mauduits 
 temp. Hen. VII. In 1626 an order 
 was made to repair the church, 
 " which weeps many a fresh tear for 
 her decayed house, especially when 
 the wind is in the west." It under- 
 went a destructive restoration in the 
 taste of the day in 1723. The chapel 
 of St. Lawrence, on the S. side of 
 the principal street, was a chantry 
 founded temp. Ed. I. by two sisters 
 named Hewitt, bought by the towns- 
 men at the Reformation. It has 
 been rebuilt, with the exception of 
 the late Dec. tower crowned with a 
 spirelet. 
 
 The Town Hall, built by the Mar- 
 quis of Bath from designs by Blore 
 in the Jacobean style, 1830, contains 
 Courts for the Quarter Sessions and 
 other county business. There are 
 other well - designed buildings of 
 public utility, as Savings Bank, Na- 
 tional Schools, &c. 
 
 The Free School was founded by 
 Thomas Lord Weymouth 1707. Bp. 
 Huntingford was one master of it, 
 and at a later period Dr. Arnold was 
 a pupil here, under Dr. Griffith. He 
 
150 Boute 11.— Warminster — Longleat, Wiltshire. 
 
 "long retained a grateful remem- 
 brance of the miscellaneous books to 
 which he had access in the school 
 library at Warminster, and when, in 
 his Professorial Chair, he quoted Dr. 
 Priestley*s * Lectures on History,' it 
 was from his recollection of what 
 he had read there when he was 8 
 years old." — Stanley's Life of Arnold. 
 Hampden, Bp. of Hereford, was also 
 educated at Warminster by the then 
 vicar. 
 
 Two of the royal regiments, under 
 Kirke and Trelawney, were posted at 
 Warminster in 1688, while Church- 
 hill and his chief accomplices were 
 at Salisbury. All was ripe for the 
 execution of the long-meditated trea- 
 son. Churchhill advised the King 
 (James II.) to visit Warminster, and 
 inspect the troops stationed there. 
 James assented. The coach was at 
 the door of the bishop's palace at 
 Salisbury, when a violent bleeding 
 at the nose compelled him to post- 
 pone his journey." — Macaulay. 
 
 Among places to be visited are Cley 
 Hill and the camps of Scratchhury and 
 Battlesbiiry ; and, by the angler, Sheer- 
 water [A.-S. Scir, clear], rt. of the 
 road to Longbridge Deverel, where 
 there is excellent fishing. It is a 
 pretty little lake of 45 acres deeply 
 embosomed in wood, and belongs to 
 the Marquis of Bath, by whose orders 
 permission to fish is readily given. 
 
 The conspicuous barrow on the 
 wooded knoll of Cophead, close to the 
 Stat. N., was opened by Sir R. C. 
 Hoare, who found in it a skeleton 
 with beads and flints, and the horns 
 of deer. There are earthworks on 
 Am Hill, the adjacent eminence. 
 In Southley Wood, S. of Warminster, 
 there is a small square earthwork, 
 called Rohin Hood's Bovoer, 
 
 At Corsley, W. of Warminster, the 
 manor-house, near the church, now 
 a farmhouse, was the dower-house of 
 the widow of Sir John Thynne, who 
 married Sir Carew Ealeigh, brother 
 of Sir Walter. The Ch, was rebuilt 
 1829. 
 
 The Church of Upton Scudamore, 
 2 m. N.E.E., possesses a font and 
 porch of the Norman period. 
 
 Cley HilL There are really two 
 hills, but the principal one may be 
 climbed on the way to Longleat, turn- 
 ing off to the rt, 1 J m. of level road 
 and another J m. of field-path will 
 bring you to the foot of it. It is so 
 singularly shaped as almost to appear 
 at a distance artificial, but it is an 
 isolated outlying member of the 
 chalk range, and is 900 ft. high 
 above low-water mark at Bristol. A 
 bank and a ditch of great antiquity 
 encircle it midway, and at the top, 
 which commands a view as extensive 
 as it is beautiful, are two barrows. 
 The larger one, when opened, pre- 
 sented ears of wheat still recognisable, 
 charred wood and broken pottery. 
 The other decided indications of 
 burnt bones which had been pre- 
 viously disturbed. A beacon was 
 set upon Cley Hill at the time of the 
 Spanish Armada. On the S. the eye 
 ranges over the woods of Longleat ; 
 on the E. along the boundary of 
 Salisbury Plain ; and on the W. over 
 a cultivated country to the distant 
 heights about Bath and the indented 
 line of the Mendips. Cley Hill is 
 thought by some antiquaries to have 
 been the "^cglea" where Alfred 
 halted one night on his way to fight 
 the battle of Ethan dun," supposing 
 that place to have been Edington, a 
 few miles off. 
 
 The chief point of interest near 
 Warminster is Longleat, the seat of 
 the Marquis of Bath, 4J m. distant. 
 It is shown to the public every Wed- 
 nesday and Friday between the hours 
 of 11 and 4. (A carriage from the 
 Bath Arms will take you there and 
 bring you back for 7s. ed) The en- 
 trance of the domain is 2j m. from 
 the house. After entering, the road 
 rises 1 m. between wooded and ferny 
 slopes to the boundary of the Home 
 Park, beyond the gate of which, an- 
 other drive to the 1. leads to the 
 point called Heaven's Gate, where 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 11. — Longleat. 
 
 151 
 
 the traveller beholds spread out be- 
 low a forest region. From this spot 
 the House is well seen, standing in 
 the foreground of the wide land- 
 scape, and in almost the lowest part 
 of the fine domain, and i^ of that 
 mixed Italian and English style which 
 prevailed at the end of the 16th 
 century. Its venerable fronts of 
 lichened stone are pierced by nu- 
 merous large windows, and are orna- 
 mented with pilasters and cornices : 
 and on the roof are turrets and co- 
 lossal statues. The flower gardens 
 lie at the N. and E. sides of the 
 house, divided from the Deer Park, 
 a noble slope of lawn and wood, by 
 a large sheet of water. The stream 
 which feeds this gave the original 
 name to this place. 
 
 Originally a Priory was built 
 where the House now stands ; there 
 was a mill close by, to which the 
 water was brought by a long leat 
 or water-course, from Horningsham. 
 
 The Priory, a very small one, 
 founded by Sir John Vernon, c. 1270, 
 was of the Augustinian Order, and 
 was dedicated to St. Eadegund. It 
 was dissolved 1529, and sold by the 
 Crown to Sir John Horsey, of Clifton 
 Maubank, and by him, 1540, to Sir 
 John Thynne, who owed his advance- 
 ment to Protector Somerset, with 
 whom he was imprisoned in the 
 Tower. He escaped his patron's fate, 
 and was made Comptroller to the 
 P. Elizabeth in Mary's reign. Of 
 John of Padua, as architect of Long- 
 leat, nothing is known. What is 
 known, is, that Sir John Thymic, 
 with local masons, built a fine house 
 which was partly burnt in April 
 1567. From 1568 to his death 1580, 
 ' he was engaged on the present house, 
 assisted by Robert Smithson, who 
 built Wollaton, Notts, and died 
 1614. [J. K J.'] Sir James, the fourth 
 owner, employed Sir C. Wren to 
 carry on the work. By him certain 
 staircases were erected, and a prin- 
 cipal doorway, since removed to a 
 schoolhouse at Warminster. In 1670 
 
 the estates came to Sir James's ne- 
 phew, " Tom of Ten Thousand," the 
 hero of the ''hospitable treats" of 
 Dry den's * Absalom and Achito- 
 phel ;' the entertainer of Monmouth 
 in his Western progress 1680; and 
 second husband of the very youthful 
 heiress Lady Elizabeth Percy. Thos. 
 Thynne was shot by Count Konigs- 
 mark in Pall Mall, and buried in 
 the S. aisle of Westminster Abbey. 
 On his death Longleat passed to his 
 second cousin, created first Viscount 
 Weymouth 1682, *'a person of strict 
 honour, purity, and integrity," the 
 college friend of Thos. Ken, Bishop 
 of Bath and Wells, to whom, after 
 his deprivation, Longleat afforded 
 an asylum, where for 20 years he 
 experienced the untiring kindness of 
 his early companion. On Lord Wey- 
 mouth's death without male issue, 
 the mansion passed to his great 
 nephew the 2nd Viscount, who, to- 
 wards the end of his life, lived in the 
 manor-house at Horningsham. The 
 3rd Viscount Weymouth, created 
 Marquis of Bath, added much to the 
 beauty of the domain by forming the 
 
 Pleasure-ground" and gardens 
 under the direction of the celebrated 
 "Capability" Brown. Before that 
 time the gardens had been laid out in 
 the formal Dutch style. " Longleat 
 is one of the largest as well as one of 
 the most beautiful palaces in England 
 of its day. Far greater purity per- 
 vades its classical details than in most 
 of the buildings of its age. It con- 
 sists of 3 stories, each ornamented 
 with an order — the details through- 
 out being elegant, though not rigidly 
 correct." — Fergusson. The projec- 
 tions that break the faQade, and the 
 large mullioned windows give the 
 whole "a cheerful habitable look, 
 eminently suitable to a country re- 
 sidence of an English nobleman." 
 The N. or Garden front is due to 
 Jeffrey Wyatt, better known as Sir 
 J. Wyatville. The length of the chief 
 front is 220 ft, of the flanks 180 ft. 
 
 The interior of the House presents 
 
152 
 
 Boute 11.' — Longleat; Pictures, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 a series of grand apartments remo- 
 delled by Sir J . Wyatville, c. 1 808 , and 
 hung with a collection of paintings, 
 chiefly limited to portraits, but in- 
 teresting from the celebrity of the 
 persons whose likenesses they pre- 
 serve. The visitor is first ushered 
 into the ffall, a lofty room with 
 noble wooden roof, a screen support- 
 ing a gallery, and surmounted by 
 the Arms of Thomas Ratcliffe, Earl 
 of Sussex, the Protector Somerset 
 (in the middle), and W. Cecil, Lord 
 Burghley ; below are various shields 
 of the alliances of the Thynne family- 
 At the other end of the Hall is the 
 shield of Savile, Earl of Halifax, and 
 over a door, Devereux, Earl of Essex. 
 On the walls are antlers of the stag, 
 and large hunting pictures by Woot- 
 ton, containing portraits of the 2nd 
 Lord Weymouth, his friends and ser- 
 vants. From this apartment the 
 visitor will be conducted through the 
 different rooms in the following order. 
 
 The Lower Corridor, furnished with 
 ebony chairs, cabinets, &c. To 1. 
 and rt. are portraits of Gustavus 
 Adolphus, King of Sweden, and Rob. 
 Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex. In 
 the Western half, are (S. wall) Lady 
 Lansdowne (mother of 2nd Viscount 
 Weymouth), Kneller ; the 2nd Vis- 
 count and his Lady. The W. end, 
 the 2nd Sir J. Thynne and his 
 Lady, Ch. Brandon, Duke of Suffolk. 
 On N. wall, Grace, Countess Gran- 
 ville, Edward, Earl of Jersey, both 
 Kneller. In the Eastern half, are 
 (S. wall) Lady Covert, Jcmsen ; Sir 
 Walter Covert, Mytens; Lady Mary 
 Thynne, Lely ; Lady Isabella Thynne, 
 Dobson; and the two wives of Sir 
 Thomas Thynne, Mytens. On N. wall, 
 Sir James Thynne, Dobson, and Sir 
 Thomas Thynne, his father, Mytens. 
 
 The South Library, portraits of Sir H. 
 F. Thynne, George Granville, [Lord 
 Lansdowne,] Thos. Wriothesley, 
 Earl of Southampton ; Thos. Sey- 
 mour, Lord Sudeley, Holbein ; Henry 
 VIII., do. ; one unknown ; Henry 
 Rich, Earl of Holland, Edward Sack- 
 
 ville, 4th Earl of Dorset, Jansen ; 
 Lord Keeper Coventry, do. ; Lucius 
 Gary, 2nd Viscount Falkland, The 
 Protector Duke of Somerset, Holbein ; 
 First Earl of Shaftesbury, Bishop 
 Ken, Lely ; 1st Viscount Wey- 
 mouth, do. 
 
 D rawing -7'oom, two Camp Scenes, 
 Pinturrichio j Madonna and ' Child, 
 Ghirlandaio ; St. Katharine and St. 
 Lucia, Dosso Dossi; Clelia crossing 
 the Tiber, Andrea Martegna ; two 
 children of Sir John Thynne ; Head 
 of St. Michael, Eaffaelle. 
 
 Long Saloon, an unique Florentine 
 cabinet of coral, surmounted by a 
 clock. There are also some buhl 
 cabinets, and a time-piece which 
 belonged to Louis XIV. 
 
 The Billiard-room. Thomas, 2nd 
 Marquis of Bath, Pickersgill ; Fran- 
 ces Duchess of Richmond (d. 1639), 
 Vandyck; the present Marchioness 
 of Bath ( Watts). 
 
 The Dining-room. Thos. 1st Mar- 
 quis of Bath, Lord Keeper Coventry, 
 1st Viscount Weymouth, 1st Vis- 
 countess Weymouth, 2nd Viscount 
 Weymouth, his Lady, Sir John 
 Thynne, founder of Longleat (d. 
 1580), Sir John Coventry, Dobson; 
 Sir Egremont Thynne, Sir James 
 Thynne, Thomas Thynne, Esq., 
 murdered in Pail-Mall 1682, Henry 
 Coventry, Esq., Sir H. F. Thynne, 
 4th Viscount Torrington, Lady Lans - 
 downe (same as in Corridor), Lady 
 Isabella Thynne (do.), James 
 Thynne, Esq., Duchess of Portland, 
 the present Marquis of Bath. The 
 side-board is of carved ebony. 
 
 The Staircase, which with the 
 upper corridors was constructed by 
 Wyatville, in 1808. The Lion Hunt, 
 after Rxibens ; Bear Hunting, Stag 
 Hunting, Snyders ; Sir Walter Ra- 
 leigh, Zucckero ; Sir Henry Sydney, 
 Geo. Villiers, 2nd Duke of Bucking- 
 ham, Lady Arabella Stuart, Van 
 Somer ; Robert Dudley, Earl of 
 Leicester, and his page, Zucchero ; 
 Henry Fitzalan, Earl of Arundell, 
 Holbein ; James Duke of York, 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 11. — Loivjleat — HorningsJiam, 153 
 
 Countess of Nottingham, Sir Richard 
 Gresham, Charles II., Queen Catha- 
 rine of Portugal. 
 
 On Landing-place. Charles I. when 
 Prince of Wales, Henry IV. of 
 France, Fiombino. 
 
 Upper Corridor f West : on S. wall. 
 Earl of Arlington, Leli/ ; Earl of 
 Nottingham, Lord Keeper, Leli/; on 
 N. side, Thomas Thynne, Esq., Duke 
 of Bedford, father of Lord John 
 Russell. £ast (N. wall), William, 
 Duke of Hamilton, Hen. Maria, 
 Charles I., Thos. Wentworth, Earl 
 of Strafford; (S. wall) Archbishop 
 Laud, and Bp. Juxon. Here also are 
 some fine ebony cabinets and antique 
 furniture. 
 
 Among other pictures are Earl 
 Russell when young, Wm. Seymour, 
 Marquis of Hertford, the 2nd Mar- 
 chioness of Bath and children, Essex 
 Rich, Countess of Nottingham, Lady 
 Margaret Harley, Old View of Long- 
 leat, Henry Prince of Wales, Count 
 and Countess Tekeli, Sir Theodore 
 Mayerne, Viscount Dundee, Thos. 
 Cavendish, the navigator, three chil- 
 dren of Charles I., &c. 
 
 The domestic chapel (consecrated 
 1684) is plain, but its windows con- 
 tain some old German glass. 
 
 It has been long and generally sup- 
 posed that all Bishop Ken's Library 
 is here. That is not the case ; there 
 is only a very small part of it at 
 Longleat. His library was be- 
 queathed to his relatives, subject 
 to the selection of any works that 
 were not already in the library of 
 his friend and protector. Lord Wey- 
 mouth. (/. F. /.) 
 
 There is an approach to Longleat 
 House from the S., on the Hor- 
 ningsham side, through a handsome 
 arched gateway, and by a straight 
 drive of nearly a mile in length, 
 skirted by ancient elms, and bounded 
 on one side by a pleasure-ground and 
 on the other by the water. The highly 
 decorated and stately mansion forms 
 an appropriate finish to the vista. 
 Looking from the house, the view 
 
 on this side is terminated by the bold 
 heights of Bidcombe Hill, otherwise 
 called Brimsdon or Cold Kitchen Hill. 
 In the woods is to be found the 
 Weymouth pine, introduced from 
 N. America by the 1st Lord W^ey- 
 mouth, and first planted by the 
 Duchess of Beaufort in the grounds 
 of Badminton, in 1705, and soon 
 afterwards in considerable numbers 
 at Longleat. The woods and plan- 
 tations cover 2000 acres. S.W. of 
 the park, on rising ground, with an 
 extensive view, is 
 
 Woodhouse, now a farm, on the 
 site of a castellated house of the 
 Vernuns and Stantors, temp. Charles 
 I., belonged to William, brother 
 of Lord Arundell of Wardour, when 
 it was stormed by the forces of the 
 Parliament. According to a local 
 tradition. Lady Arundell, upon find- 
 ing its capture inevitable, contrived 
 to escape in a coffin. The place 
 was subsequently retaken by the 
 Royalists, under Sir Francis Dod- 
 ington, when 12 prisoners, most of 
 them clothiers, were hanged on one 
 tree, and buried under a tumulus, 
 which is still pointed out as their 
 gi'ave. The square outline of the 
 courtyard is marked by a high bank, 
 but nothing remains except a frag- 
 ment of wall. 
 
 Beyond the S. gate of Longleat is 
 the hamlet of Hornimjsham, in a most 
 picturesque district, resembling the 
 best parts of Devonshire ; and, on 
 the slope of the hill, its little well, 
 covered with masonry, partly old, 
 and bearing the inscription, " O ye 
 wells, bless the Lord. With Thee is 
 the spring of life.'' The Ch. was 
 rebuilt, save the tower, in 1844 by 
 Harriet, Marchioness of Bath, at an 
 expense of more than 5000/. (W^yatt 
 and Brandon, arch.) To this ch. 
 Bp. Ken was accustomed to repair 
 during his residence at Longleat. 
 Adjoining the ch. is a house erected 
 by the Arundels, after the destruction 
 of Woodhouse. It contains two 
 chimney-pieces, that probably came 
 
154 
 
 Boute 11. — Bidcombe — Deverel, Wiltshire. 
 
 from Woodhouse. That in the upper 
 room is sculptured with their arms, 
 and reaches from the floor to the 
 ceiling. From Horningsham a lane 
 threads a winding valley between 
 golden furze and broom in the direc- 
 tion of 
 
 Bidcombe, otherwise Brimsclon, or 
 Cold Kitchen Hill, a height remark- 
 able not only for its beauty, but for 
 numerous vestiges of the ancient 
 inhabitants, and for a fine view. On 
 a bright clear day even the Welsh 
 mountains are visible ; but the pro- 
 spect towards the S.W, forms the 
 charm of the landscape, the downs 
 sweeping to a distance in bays and 
 promontories, the fine outliers of 
 Bradley Park Knoll and Long Knoll 
 giving character to the scenery. 
 Towards the S. Alfred's Toicer at 
 Stourhead is a conspicuous object ; 
 and on the N. lies the park of Long- 
 leat. The curious name Cold Kitchen 
 is supposed to be a corruption of Col 
 crechen, the chief summit, Celtic. 
 
 Maiden Bradley, W. of Brimsdon, 
 and on the road from Frome to 
 Shaftesbury, was in early times the 
 site of a hospital founded temp. Ste- 
 phen, by Manasses Biset, for leprous 
 women, with a prior and some secu- 
 lars to manage for them. It was 
 afterwards made a monastery of 
 Augustines. A small portion still 
 exists incorporated with a farmhouse 
 to the N.E. of the village. New 
 Mead, in the parish of Maiden 
 Bradley, was the birthplace of 
 Edmund Ludlow, the Parliamentary 
 General, 1620. The situation is beau- 
 tiful. The village occupies high 
 ground, but is surrounded by the 
 more elevated and isolated hills, 
 Brimsdon Long Knoll and Bradley 
 Park Knoll. The view from Long 
 Knoll is panoramic, and surpasses 
 that from Bidcombe Hill. Park 
 Knoll is so called, as being the 
 ancient deer-park of Bradley House, 
 the seat of the Duke of Somerset. A 
 visitor to this village should notice the 
 old inn, the Somerset Arms, There 
 
 is in this parish a favourite spot for a 
 view called " Kate's Bench," where 
 they say one of the leprous maidens 
 used always to resort; but the old 
 name is only Gate-bench. 
 
 The Ch., which" is Decorated, has 
 lost much of its interest from re- 
 storation. It has a Purbeck marble 
 Norman font, and contains a monu- 
 ment to Sir Edward Seymour, Speaker 
 of the House of Commons in 1672, 
 and who died 1707. Maiden Bradley 
 came into the possession of the 
 Seymours in the reign of Hen. VIIL 
 In a line between Brimsdon and 
 Warminster are 5 small villages, all 
 distinguished by the name of 
 
 Deverel (commonly but very doubt- 
 fully said to mean Live-rill), and to be 
 so called from a stream, one of the 
 sources of the Wily, which dives 
 under ground near one of its sources 
 at Kilmington. Hill Deverel was 
 for some time the residence of 
 the Ludlows, to one of whom there 
 is a fine old monument in the 
 church. The church itself is ' mo- 
 dern and ugly. To the E. of the 
 church is the manor-house of the 
 Ludlows. Brixton Deverel, says 
 Hoare, " was undoubtedly the Petra 
 ^gbryhti, ' ^gbryhts* Stone/ men- 
 tioned by Asser as the spot where 
 Alfred halted for one night on his 
 march towards the Danes.'* A dif- 
 ferent derivation from that adopted 
 by Hoare is suggested by Domesday, 
 Avhere we find one Brictric named as 
 its lord. The name would then be 
 
 Brictric's Town." The church has 
 been much spoilt by restoration, but 
 preserves a Transition chancel arch 
 with clustered shafts. The manor- 
 house almost touches the E. end of 
 the church. Deverel Longh^idge de- 
 rives its name from a bridge supposed 
 to have been built by the Abbots of 
 Glastonbury, its former lords. The 
 church, which has a Norman arcade 
 on the N. side of the nave, has been 
 extensively restored in the Decorated 
 style, and has a Perpendicular N. 
 aisle and W. windows. The old 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 12. — Salisbury to Yeovil. 
 
 155 
 
 altar-slab is still in use. The carved 
 seats are good examples of the last 
 century. The church is the burial- 
 place of the Thynnes, and contains 
 among their monuments one to the 
 builder of Longleat. S. of the church 
 is a picturesque group of almshouses. 
 
 Monkton Deverel Ch. has been re- 
 built, with the exception of the tower. 
 It has a plain Norman font. 
 
 The C/i. of Kingston Deverel, which 
 is modern, in a good style of Deco- 
 rated, preserves its Dec. S. arcade 
 and its towers, between the chancel 
 and the nave. It contains a fine 
 male effigy of E.E. character, to 
 which a^. new head has been added. 
 Over the S. door is a ''vesica" 
 studded with ball-flower, vouched 
 for as ancient, but with a very 
 modern look. 
 
 Lastly, in this description of the 
 environs of Longleat, may be men- 
 tioned 2 small circular earthworks 
 just N. of the park, Roddenhury and 
 Hales Castle, both on Roddenhury Hill, 
 
 Proceeding on our route from War- 
 minster, we reach at 
 
 24j m. Westbury Junction Stat. 
 (Rte. 4). 
 
 ROUTE 12. 
 
 SALISBURY TO YEOVIL, BY DINTON» 
 TISBURY[WARDOUR CASTLE, FONT- 
 MILL, HINDON], SEMLEY [SHAFTES- 
 BURY], GILLINGHAM [MERE, STOUR- 
 HEAD], TEMPLE COMBE, MILBORNE 
 PORT, SHERBORNE. 
 
 (London and S,-TVestem Bailway.) 
 
 From Salisbury the Hne runs side 
 by side with that of the Gt.-Western 
 to Westbury, as far as 
 
 86j m. (From London) Wilton 
 (Rte. 8). The rly. continues up the 
 valley of the Nadder,with a range of 
 high bare chalk downs to the S. 
 dividing it from the Vale of Chalk, 
 This range is diversified with earth 
 works, and terminates in the abrupt 
 slope of White Sheet Hill above Don- 
 head, The line passes 
 
 87i m. 1. Mrth Burcomhe, The E. 
 end of the chancel of the little Dec. 
 C/i., has the long and short quoins 
 characteristic of what is called Saxon 
 work. 
 
 89 m. 1. Barford St. Martin, The 
 Ch, is cruciform without aisles. A 
 curious effigy in a winding-sheet 
 lies under an arch S. of the altar. 
 Immediately to the N. rises Grovely 
 Wood, in which is the crescent-shaped 
 earthwork known as Grovely Works, 
 the remains of a British village. 1 m. 
 S.W. is Hurdcott House, the residence 
 of the Powells, a Jacobean house, 
 c. 1631 ; its terrace commands a 
 pleasing view of the Nadder, which 
 flows through the park. 
 
 90| m. rt. lies Baver stock Ch. (St. 
 Edith) and a little further N. the 
 village of the same name. 
 
 J m. S. is Compton Chamberlayne 
 House (Charles Penruddocke, Esq.), 
 
156 Route 12. — Com/pton House — Dinton, Wiltshire. 
 
 to wliose family it has belonged for 
 300 years. At the time of the 
 Usurpation by Cromwell, the owner 
 was Col. John Penruddock, who 
 lost his life in an unsuccessful 
 attempt to raise the country in 
 favour of the lawful Prince. In 
 the early morning of the 1 1th of 
 March, 1655, Penruddock, in com- 
 pany with Sir Joseph Wagstaff and 
 other adherents of the King, to the 
 number of 200 horsemen, rode into 
 Salisbury, and, seizing in their beds 
 the High Sheriff and the judges, 
 who were then holding the assizes, 
 proclaimed Chas. II. But the bold- 
 ness of this measure failed to produce 
 the desired effect. The citizens re- 
 mained passive, and, after waiting 
 some hours in the expectation of 
 their rising, the discomfited royalists 
 were fain to beat a retreat. The 
 country had, however, been alarmed, 
 and a troop of horse, galloping from 
 Andover in pursuit, captured Pen- 
 ruddock near South Molton in Devon- 
 shire. He was tried with his com- 
 panions at Exeter, and condemned 
 to be beheaded, a sentence which 
 was soon carried into execution. On 
 ascending the scaffold he exclaimed, 
 *' This, I hope, will prove like 
 Jacob's ladder ; though the feet of it 
 rest upon the earth, yet I doubt not 
 but the top of it reacheth to heaven. 
 The crime for which I am now to die 
 is Loyalty, in this age called High 
 Treason." Insignificant as this ris- 
 ing was its consequences were grave. 
 "This little rebellion," remarks 
 Hallam, meeting with no resistance 
 from the people, but a supineness 
 equally fatal, was soon quelled. It 
 roused Cromwell to secure himself 
 by an unprecedented exercise of 
 power. He knew that want of con- 
 cert or courage had alone prevented 
 a general rising. Dividing the king- 
 dom into 11 districts he placed at 
 the head of each a major-general as 
 a sort of military magistrate, respon- 
 sible for the subjection of his pre- 
 fecture," 
 
 Comptoa House contains the portrait 
 of the unfortunate colonel, together 
 with those of many members of his 
 family, some by Lely and Vandyck, 
 They are in frames carved by Grin- 
 ling Gibbons, and fill the panels of 
 an old oaken chamber. The laced 
 cap worn by him at his execution, 
 showing the gash of the axe, is also 
 preserved here. There is a picture 
 representing an unknown person (per- 
 haps Sir John Davies), handsomely 
 dressed in the style of Elizabeth's 
 reign,'but whose rt. hand is withered. 
 In the upper part of the painting is 
 the single word " utinam," (oh that !). 
 
 The park covers both sides of a 
 pretty wooded glen in the greensand 
 formation with a large sheet of water 
 in the hollow. The house has lately 
 been much enlarged. The adjoining 
 Ch., generally of the late Dec. period, 
 with remains of the Norman ^and 
 E.E. styles, contains a tablet of 
 white marble commemorating the 
 Penruddocks, who have been buried 
 here since 1598. 
 
 91 f m. Dinton Stat. 
 
 Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon, 
 Lord Chancellor, and historian of the 
 Great Rebellion, was born here, Feb. 
 18, 160|, in the old rectory-house, now 
 pulled down and a school built on 
 the site. But the tradition of Claren- 
 don's birthplace has been transferred 
 to a picturesque farmhouse E. of the 
 ch. He lived for some time at Hatch 
 House, S. of Fonthill. Dinton was 
 also the birthplace, Jan. 5, 159§, of 
 Henry Lawes, the musician : 
 
 "Harry, whose tuneful and well-measur'd 
 song- 
 First taught our English music how to span 
 Words with just note and accent." — Milton. 
 
 He was the friend of Milton and of 
 Waller, and was shot at the siege of 
 Chester, 1645. Adjoining the vil- 
 lage W. is Dinton House, the seat of 
 the Wyndhams, containing good 
 family portraits. On the hill-side 
 W. of the house is Wick Ball Carnp, 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 1 2 . — GhilmarJc — Tishury, 
 
 157 
 
 a single-ditched entrenchment of 9 
 acres embosomed in wood. The 
 Ch., E.E. and Dec, with Trans.- 
 Norm. portions, is well worth in- 
 specting. It was restored by Butter- 
 field in 1876. It is cruciform, with 
 a central tower, pleasantly situated 
 near Mr. Wyndham's grounds. 
 
 On a promontory of the Downs, 1., 
 is Cliiselbunj, a circular encampment 
 enclosed by a single fosse and vallum 
 27 ft. high, containing 10^ acres. 
 
 93 m. rt. Teffont Evias, a very 
 pretty village, adorned with rich 
 woods, and watered by a pretty brook 
 (more properly Ewyas from its 
 owners the lords of the Castle of that 
 name in Herefordshire). The Manor 
 House (W. Fane de Salis, Esq.) of 
 the age of Henry VII., contains pic- 
 tures by Mabuse, I\ Femgino and G. 
 Romano, with portraits of the Mayne 
 family by Gainshoron<jh, Murland, &c. 
 In the manor chapel attached to the 
 parish Ch. is a monument to Henry 
 Ley, Esq., d. 1574, with effigies of 
 himself and 2 sons. The tower is 
 lofty and richly ornamented and is 
 crowned by a lofty spire. The Bectory 
 is worthy of notice. The E. wall is 
 decorated with Baron de Triquetris' 
 mural mosaics. The rectory was 
 built by Sir G. G. Scott. The 
 quarries which supplied the stone for 
 Salisbury Cathedral form extensive 
 caverns in this parish. 
 
 94^ m., 2 m. rt. is Chilmark, the 
 birthplace, says Fuller, of Jolni of 
 C/iylmark, a famous mathematician of 
 the reign of Rich. II., accounted the 
 Archimedes of that age. It is better 
 known for its freestone (the Portland 
 beds), of which Salisbury cathedral 
 is built. The quarries are 1 m. to 
 the 1., but not seen from the road. 
 The Ch. (magnificently restored by 
 Wyatt, 1856) is cruciform, with a 
 noble tower and spire at the inter- 
 secticm. An old Norm, door forms 
 the entrance to the new N. aisle. 
 The interior is rich in colouring and 
 stained glass. On the rt. rises Chil' 
 
 mark Down ; and close to the rly. rt. 
 is Chicksgrove, where the farmhouse 
 of Gaston belonged to the Abbey of 
 Shaftesbury, and still retains mediae- 
 val doors and windows. 
 
 I m. I. is the village of Fovant. 
 The C7i., restored and partly rebuilt 
 1863, has some points of interest, 
 especially the Norman priest's door 
 and the Tower, the date of which is 
 fixed by an inscription on a small 
 mural brass to George Rede, 1495, 
 "Rector when the new Tower was 
 built;" representing the Annunciation 
 with the legend, " O blessed moder 
 of pite (pity) Pray to the sone for 
 me." 
 
 To the 1. above Sutton Mamleville, 
 where the Ch. is partly Norm., with 
 a fine yew tree in the churchyard, 
 is Buxburg, a promontory projecting 
 conspicuously from the downs. At 
 
 95 m. 1. is Castle Ditches, very in- 
 teresting camp and fine point of view, 
 commanding the valley of the Nadder 
 and the woods of VV ardour Castle. 
 It is an earthwork of great strength, 
 formed by 3 concentric ditches and 
 ramparts 40 ft. in height. The area 
 is 23 acres. 
 
 96i m. Tisburg Stat, (the Stat, for 
 Wardour Castle 2 m. S.W., and for 
 Fonth ill, 2 m . N . W. ) T i sb ury i s a large 
 and important village on a sharp, ris- 
 ing ground, above the river Nadder. 
 Tisbury was granted by Ethelred to 
 the abbess of Shaftesbury, a.d. 984. 
 The Ch., on the lower ground, is one 
 of the largest in S. Wilts, with a cen- 
 tral tower, the piers supporting which 
 and some of the doorways are relics 
 of an earlier building. The chancel 
 is of more modern work, and tradition 
 assigns the windows to Sir C. Wren. 
 The roof of chancel bears date 1616, 
 that and the roof of nave are of rich 
 plaster-work. The aisles and N. 
 transept have rich wood ceilings, 
 bearing the date 1535, and a centre 
 beam, 1569. It contains many 
 monuments of the Arundells, to 
 I 1808. Among them are those of 
 
158 Boute 12. — Place House — Wardour Castle. Wiltshire. 
 
 Lady Margaret, daughter of Lord" 
 Edm. Howard, sister of the unfortu- 
 nate Queen of Henry VIII., wife of 
 Sir Thomas Arundell, d. 1571 ; the 
 heroic Lady Blanche ; Thomas, of 
 Wardour, 1st Lord Arundell, so 
 created by James I., and Count of 
 the Holy Eoman Empire by Eodolph 
 IL, 1595, for his gallantry at the 
 siege of Gran in Hungary, where he 
 captured with his own hands the 
 Turkish standard, afterwards sent to 
 Rome. There is a brass to Lawrence 
 Hyde, grandfather of the Earl of 
 Clarendon, and his wife. In the 
 churchyard is a hollow yew-tree 
 37 ft. in circumference, entered 
 by a rustic gate. Tisbury was the 
 birthplace of Sir John Davies, poet, 
 author of *The Immortality of the 
 Soul,' and ' The Dignity of Man,' and 
 Attorney-General in Ireland, b. 1569, 
 husband of the would-be prophetess. 
 Lady Eleanor Davies, whose anagram 
 of her name *' reveal O Daniel," " too 
 much by and, and too little by an s," 
 was capped by Lamb, Dean of the 
 Arches, by " never so mad a ladie 
 also of the Rev. William Jay, long 
 a popular dissenting preacher at 
 Bath. 
 
 Place House^ at the N.E. end of the 
 village, is an ancient house formerly 
 a Grange of the Abbess of Shaftes- 
 bury, which will repay careful exam- 
 ination. It is a fine manor house of 
 the 15th cent, without much preten- 
 sion to ornament or much fortifica- 
 tion ; but with the buildings of the 
 farmyard perfect. The outer gate- 
 house is perfect and very good with 
 unusually large buttresses ; simple 
 but imposing and very picturesque. 
 The room over it is later and was 
 probably the chapel." — /. H. 1\ 
 Crossing the outer court we come to 
 a second gatehouse, opening into the 
 inner court, with the house on one 
 side and the offices (rebuilt) on the 
 other* The house is a parallelogram 
 with the Hall for the centre. This 
 retains its roof but is divided by 
 a floor and partitions into small apart- 
 
 ments. Behind the Hall is the 
 Kitchen, now the finest and most 
 perfect part of the house ; but the 
 roof is hidden by a plaster ceiling. 
 Above the fireplace which occupies 
 J of the room is a remarkably beauti- 
 ful louvre chimney. At the other 
 end of the Hall are the living rooms 
 of the family. On the rt. of the en- 
 trance court is a remarkably fine 
 Barn of the 15th cent., with good 
 buttresses and transeptal gateway, 
 and plain original timber roof. Op- 
 posite is a row of stables of the 15th 
 cent., remarkably perfect with a 
 row of doorways of the usual Perp. 
 style, and small windows of single 
 lights quite original and very un- 
 common." — /. H, P, Hasledon, now 
 a farmhouse, belonged once to the 
 Lord Delawarr. 
 
 Tisbury has quarries of excellent 
 building stone of the lower Purbeck 
 beds, and upper oolite. 
 
 [2 m. S.W. is Wardour Castle (shown 
 every week day from 11 till 4), the 
 seat of Lord Arundell of Wardour, 
 situated in its park, on a gentle 
 eminence rising from the Nadder. 
 It is a large stone mansion, more 
 remarkable for size than for archi^ 
 tectural beauty, with a Corinthian 
 portico attached to the S. front, but 
 justly celebrated for its collection 
 of paintings and of other rare and 
 curious works of art. It was erected 
 between the years 1770-76, after a 
 design by Payne. The visitor enters 
 it on the N. front, the wings of which, 
 curving outwards, form a crescent. 
 He is conducted to the rotunda stair- 
 case, formed by a peristyle of fluted 
 Corinthian columns supporting a cu- 
 pola, and by this very grand and 
 beautiful approach to the following 
 suite of apartments, which contain the 
 pictures. 
 
 The Drawinri-room, in which are 
 the Storm and Calm by Vernet, b. 
 striking contrast, the latter being a 
 moonlight scene; a landscape, Hah- 
 heina ( ^ Ruysdael) ; the Virgin and 
 
Wiltshire. Boiite 12. — Wardour Castle. 
 
 159 
 
 Sleeping Child, Sassoferrato ; Moses 
 striking the Rock, and the Children 
 of Israel collecting Manna, Breughel; 
 and a landscape by Rembrandt. 
 
 The Little Dr airing -room, with 
 Tobit going to meet his Son, Gerard 
 Dovj^ the largest picture by the master 
 known, measuring 6 ft. by 4, drawn 
 with great care and highly finished, 
 the details executed with the painter's 
 usual minuteness ; portrait of a lady, 
 /S'*> Josh. Reynclds; 2 landscapes. Or. 
 Foussin; a small circular Claude; 2 
 rocky landscapes with robbers, Salv. 
 Rosa ; 2 pictures by Linglehach ; and 
 a large Banditti scene, by D. Tenters 
 — a remarkable picture. 
 
 The Boudoir, containing Christ 
 driving the Money-changers from 
 the Temple, Rembrandt; the Mar- 
 riage of St. Catherine, Correggio ; the 
 Virgin and Child, JDon Alessandro; 
 a landscape with cattle, Loutherbourg ; 
 and some beautiful carvings in ivory, 
 family relics, and other curiosities. 
 Among them are an ivory crucifix, 
 attributed to Mich. Angelo; the 
 Scourging at the Pillar, 3 figures in 
 solid silver on a stand of lapis lazuli 
 inlaid with precious stones, a work 
 made for Pope Alexander VII., and 
 presented by him to Queen Christina 
 of Sweden ; china saucers painted in 
 imitation of Raphael's cartoons ; and 
 the Glastonbury Oup, a very interest- 
 ing relic, but not older than the 
 renaissance," c. 1600. It may take 
 its name from having been carved 
 out of a bit of the Glastonbury thorn. 
 It is a wooden cup resting on crouch- 
 ing lions, the bowl carved in relief 
 with the 12 Apostles, and the lid with 
 the Crucifixion. " The contents,'' 
 says the antiquary Milner, " are just 
 2 quarts of ale measure, and there 
 were originally 8 pegs placed one 
 above another in the inside, which 
 divided the contained liquor into 
 equal quantities of half a pint each." 
 Notice a remarkable silver beaker, 
 enamelled in black, with figures in 
 lavender, of the 15th century. 
 
 The State Bedroom, on the walls of 
 
 which are the Angel conducting 
 Peter out of Prison, M. Angelo ; a 
 Hurdigurdy Player in a Dutch vil- 
 lage, Albert Dilrer ; portraits of the 
 late Lord Arundell, Miss Markham 
 as an Augustine nun, Bartoli; and 
 the Duke of Tuscany, Giorgione ; 
 and 3 small pictures by Schidoni and 
 Domenichino. 
 
 The Small Ante-room, containing 
 Sir Thomas Arundell taking the 
 Turkish standard. Cooper; Constan- 
 tine's victory over Maxentius, Fi- 
 lippi ; a small interior by Teniers ; 
 and head of an old woman, Rembrandt. 
 
 The Billiard-room, with the Mar- 
 tyrdom of Pope Sixtus I., Falma 
 Giovane ; the 3 Children of Charles I. ; 
 Cardinal Pole ; Etna and Vesuvius in 
 eruption (2 paintings by the same 
 master); Pope Benedict XIV. ; and 
 other popes and cardinals. 
 
 The Saloon, enriched by one of the 
 finest pictures in the collection, 
 Our Saviour taken from the Cross, 
 by Spagnoletto — a powerful work ; 
 the despair expressed by the attitude 
 and countenance of the Virgin most 
 touching. Among the other pictures 
 in this room are 2 large landscapes, 
 G. Foussin; a Pietli, Ribera; a male 
 head, Velasquez ; a Boy playing on a 
 Bagpipe, Caravaggio ; St. Bernard, 
 and the Infant Christ sleeping on the 
 Cross (exquisite in colour), Titian; 
 Santa Maria, Carlo Dolce ; St. Jerome, 
 Rubens ; John the Baptist, Guido Reni ; 
 the Holy Family, A. del Sarto ; 
 Christ's Charge to Peter, Ann. Car- 
 racci ; and Joseph relating his Dream 
 to his Brethren, Murillo. 
 
 The Dining-room, hung with por- 
 traits : Hugo Grotius, Rubens ; Sir 
 Thomas More, Holbein ; Card. Pole, 
 a copy of Titian ; Villiers Duke of 
 Buckingham ; [the first Lord Arun- 
 dell of Wardour, Vandyck ; his wife, 
 by the same artist ; Viscount Falk- 
 land, Vandyck; and the 2 daughters 
 of the 1st Earl Rivers, Sir F. Lely. 
 
 The Music-room, with the 8th Lord 
 Arundell of Wardour and his wife, 
 Sir Josh. Reynolds, the latter much 
 
160 
 
 Boute 12.- — Wa7'dour Castle. Wiltshire. 
 
 faded; the 7th Lord A. and his 
 wife, by the same artist; the Holy 
 Family, Giorgione ; Hagar in the De- 
 sert, F. Bartoli ; and the Lady 
 Blanche who defended Wardour so 
 gallantly, a copy from a portrait by 
 Angel, Kaxffman, a most delicate face 
 with small features ; on the ceiling a 
 copy of Guido's Aurora, by F. Bartoli, 
 
 The Chapel is in the W. wing, and 
 contains an Assumption by Caspar de 
 Crager ; a beautiful relief in marble 
 of the Virgin, Child, and St. John ; 
 and a sumptuous altar of agate and 
 marble resting on an antique sarco- 
 phagus, and surmounted by a crucifix 
 of solid silver. Here is preserved 
 the Westminster chasuble, exqui- 
 sitely embroidered with the badges of 
 Henry VIIL and Katharine of Ar- 
 agon. To the rt. of the altar stands 
 the monument of the 2nd Lord Arun- 
 dell and his wife Blanche. The 
 sacrarium was added by Soane. 
 
 The Fark is large and finely 
 wooded, and surrounded by hills : 
 Castle Ditches on the E., White- 
 sheet Hill on the S., and Castle 
 Rings and the high land of Shaftes- 
 bury on the W. The pleasure- 
 grounds bound it N.E., extending 
 more than 1 m. from the house to 
 the ivy-mantled ruin of the ancient 
 castle, standing in the bosom of rich 
 woods. Wardour was the possession 
 of the Lovels; and the castle was 
 built by John, Lord Lovel, a.d. 1393. 
 
 The Lovels lost Wardour in the 
 Wars of the Roses from their adher- 
 ence to the Lancastrian cause, and it 
 was granted by Ed. lY. to John, Lord 
 Audley, and wa s afterwards purchased 
 by Sir J. Arundellof Lanherne 1547, 
 whose grandson Sir Matthew greatly 
 embellished the castle, as recorded in 
 Latin verses above the Great Gate, 
 which also commemorate his singular 
 fate in having to purchase his father's 
 (Sir Thomas's) inheritance of Lord 
 Pembroke, after its confiscation on 
 his execution as an adherent of Pro- 
 tector Somerset. His grandson was 
 the first Lord Arundell, " the valiant," 
 
 whose son Thomas, the 2nd baron, 
 Avas the husband of Lady Blanche 
 Somerset, the heroine of the siege of 
 Wardour. Wardour was attacked by a 
 powerful force under the command 
 of Sir Edward Hungerford, 1643, 
 at a time when Lord Arundell 
 was in attendance on the king at 
 Oxford. But his lady, Blanche, re- 
 fused to surrender, and, with her 
 little garrison of 50, only half of 
 whom were fighting men, aided by 
 the women who steadily loaded the 
 muskets, most heroically withstood 
 the onslaught of 1300 soldiers, 
 and a bombardment which lasted 
 5 days. After defending the castle 
 as long as it was tenable, she capi- 
 tulated on honourable terms^ May 8, 
 1643; but the Republican leader, 
 having once gained possession, did 
 not scruple to violate his engage- 
 ments, and to plunder the mansion 
 of its most valuable contents, and 
 devastate the park and grounds. 
 They tore up the park palings, 
 burnt the lodges, and cut down 
 the trees, which they sold for Ad, or 
 &d, a-piece. They drove away the 
 horses and cattle ; and having 
 left nothing in the air or v/ater, 
 they dug under the earth,"' where they 
 tore up two miles of leaden piping 
 which conveyed water to the castle, 
 which they cut up and sold at 6c?. a- 
 yard. It was then garrisoned by the 
 Parliament, and placed under the 
 command of Col. Edmund Ludlow, 
 who held it from May, 1643, till the 
 following March (see Ludlow's Me- 
 moirs), when young I^ord Arundell, 
 whose father had died of wounds re- 
 ceived at Lansdown, and Sir Francis 
 Dodington invested it, and compelled 
 Ludlow to surrender after a long siege 
 and gallant defence. 
 
 The Castle, which is " very valu- 
 able as an example of a nobleman's 
 house at the beginning of the 15th 
 cent." (/. H, P.) is hexagonal in plan, 
 with an open court, with 2 sq. towers 
 attached to the eastern or entrance 
 point. The walls are nearly perfect 
 
Wiltshire. Boiite 12. — Hindon — Fonthill Ahhey. 
 
 161 
 
 and unusually lofty ; a good example 
 of early Perp. Over the gate of 
 entrance is a Latin inscription. The 
 windows of the dining-hall are on 
 the first floor. The kitchen, with 
 tall narrow windows, was on the 
 same level, behind the hall, with 
 vaulted chambers below. The stair- 
 case from the courtyard remains with 
 its groined roof. 
 
 The visitor, having entered the 
 precincts of the ruin through a 
 gatehouse, stands on a carpet of turf 
 under the shadow of the cedar, the 
 cypress, and the iron-wood tree (the 
 last springing from the ground in a 
 cluster of stems), which combine 
 with the ruins in producing a most 
 picturesque effect. An hexagonal 
 court forms the centre, and contains 
 the well sunk by Ludlow during the 
 siege. Adjoining the ruins, in the 
 buildings of a farm, are the remains 
 of the mansion occupied by the 
 family after the destruction of this 
 castle, and to the time of their re- 
 moval to the present house. 
 
 Wardour was the birthplace of 
 Sir Nicholas Hyde, Lord Chief Jus- 
 tice of the King's Bench 1627-31. 
 
 [3 m. N.W. Hindon (Inns : Gros- 
 venor Arms ; Lamb ; Swan ; Pop. 
 604), an ancient but inconsiderable 
 market-town, on the high road from 
 Salisbury to Taunton, once returning 
 tw^o members, but as a borough, 
 *' memorable only for its venality." 
 — Gough, It is said that a member, 
 returning thanks for the honour of 
 his election, was interrupted by an 
 elector, who bluntly told him he 
 need not trouble himself to thank 
 them ; * for if the squire had zent his 
 great dog, we should have chosen 
 him, all one as if it were you, zur.' " 
 It is needless to add that the first 
 Keform Act deprived it of its Par- 
 liamentary honours. It was repre- 
 sented by Monk Lewis, and Henry Fox, 
 afterwards Lord Holland, and con- 
 tested unsuccessfully at the com- 
 mencement of his career by the late 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 Lord Beaconsfield. It consists of one 
 broad street, planted with trees. Most 
 of the town was destroyed by fire, 
 July 2, 1755. The Ch , commenced 
 by the late Marquis of Westminster 
 and completed by the Marchioness in 
 1871, stands on the site of one built 
 in the reign of Philip and Mary. It 
 is of early French architecture, with 
 a tower and spire. The Inn is excel- 
 lent, and affords convenient head- 
 quarters for an excursion to Font- 
 kill. Stonrhead is Avithin reach, 
 but much nearer the pretty tow^n 
 of Bruton(Ete. 23). 
 
 On the N. and W. Hindon is 
 bounded by a wdld expanse of dow^n , 
 tumid in many places with ancient 
 earth^vorks. The site of a British 
 village may be traced at a little 
 distance to the N.W., and several 
 others on the border of the Great 
 Ridije Yiood, 2 m.N. A Roman road run 
 from end to end of the same wood. 
 
 4 m. E. is the little village of 
 Berv:ich St. Leonards, where are some 
 remains of the old manor-house, 
 built in the reign of James I., and 
 from 1629 to 1735 the seat of the 
 Howes. In 1688 the Prince of 
 Orange slept in it on his road to 
 London. The porch forms the 
 entrance to the kitchen-garden, in 
 which is a sycamore of remarkable 
 size. The little C/iwrA adjoining the 
 house, very carefully rebuilt in i860, 
 contains monuments to the Howes, 
 including one with effigies of Geo. 
 Howe, d. 1647, and Dorothy his wife. 
 
 f m. further E. is Fonthill Bishop, 
 with an ancient cruciform Ch. ; on 
 the rt. is the entrance to 
 
 Fonthill, once so well known as 
 Fonthill Abbey, the seat of the au- 
 thor of 'Vathek,* which has under- 
 gone many changes within the last 
 half-century. The estate has been 
 sold and subdivided; and now be- 
 longs in part to Sir Michael Shaw 
 Stewart, and in part to Alfred 
 Morrison, Esq., the heir of the 
 millionaire James Morrison. As 
 a baronial seat, it dated from a very 
 M 
 
162 
 
 Boute 12. — FontMll Abbey, 
 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 distant period, having been the lord- 
 ship of the GifFards about the time 
 of the Conquest. From the GifFards 
 it has passed in succession through 
 the families of Maundevill, Mauduit, 
 Molyn, Hungerford, Mervyn, Cot- 
 tington, and Beckford. 
 
 The history of Fonthill has been 
 checkered by many disasters. The 
 ancient mansion of the Mervyns fell 
 a prey to the flames ; the second, 
 built by the Cottingtons, 1650, and 
 purchased by Alderman Beckford, 
 shared a similar fate in 1755 ; and the 
 third, Fonthill splendens," as it has 
 been called, erected by the Alderman 
 at a cost of 240,000/., became dilapi- 
 dated, and was sold by his son, who 
 disliked the damp site, for 9000Z. 
 It was then that the author of * Va- 
 thek ' shifted the site, and planned his 
 pretentious (so-called) abbey, upon 
 which more than another quarter of a 
 million was expended. But this fairy 
 palace, having arisen to become the 
 wonder and admiration of all be- 
 holders, was fated to a brief existence, 
 for its destruction commenced Dec. 
 21, 1825, with the fall of the tower. 
 This, however, did not take place 
 until after the sale of the whole 
 estate in 1823, with the abbey and its 
 valuable contents, to Mr. Farquhar, 
 for the round sum of 290,000/. On 
 hearing of the fall of the tower, 
 Beckford is reported to have said, 
 " Well, it has shown more civility to 
 Mr. Farquhar than it ever did to me. 
 He has had it but one year. I had it 
 27, and during all that time it neither 
 bowed nor curtsied." Mr. Farquhar 
 cared nothing for the place, and de- 
 graded it by the erection of a cloth 
 mill on the lake. In the days of 
 its glory Fonthill had been the scene 
 of many splendid fetes, particularly 
 those of 1781, on the occasion of Mr. 
 Beckford's coming of age, when 
 music, dancing, and feasting were 
 continued for a week, when 300 guests 
 assembled at the dinner-table, and 
 1200 of Mr. Beckford's tenants and 
 the people of the neighbourhood 
 
 dined on the lawn, when the sur- 
 rounding ; hills were illuminated by 
 bonfires, and the park by 30,000 
 lamps ; and that of 1797, during the 
 building of the Abbey, when, after a 
 succession of rural sports in the park, 
 and the roasting of an ox and 10 sheep 
 at 11 fires, 700 persons were feasted, 
 and blankets and fuel distributed to 
 all the poor of the neighbourhood. 
 
 But Fonthill was the scene of still 
 greater excitement when the abbey 
 and all its contents were thrown 
 open for sale, first by Mr. Christie 
 in 1822, and afterwards by Mr. 
 Phillips in 1824. For not only had 
 the art treasures of that princely 
 place been sealed against the public, 
 but the park itself — known by 
 rumour as a beautiful spot — ^had for 
 several years been enclosed by a 
 most formidable wall, six miles in 
 circuit. This had been built by 
 Mr. Beckford to exclude poachers 
 and the hounds, but by no means 
 with the object of '^preserving" 
 the game. " I never suffer an 
 animal," he said, "to be killed but 
 through necessity. In early life I 
 gave up shooting, because I consider 
 we have no right to murder animals 
 for sport. I am fond of animals. 
 The birds in the plantations of 
 Fonthill seemed to know me. They 
 continued their songs as I rode close 
 to them ; the very hares grew bold. 
 It was exactly what I wished." In 
 a solitary ride — such as he has 
 described — ^he encountered a whole 
 bevy of men and dogs ranging at 
 full liberty over his land. He at 
 once returned to his house, and sent 
 a notice for a contractor who was to 
 build a wall around all the planted 
 and arable part of his estate, extend- 
 ing about 7 m., within 12 months. 
 It was to be 12 feet high, and to 
 have a chevaux-de-frise on the top, 
 and such a wall was completed in 
 179G. "I found remonstrances/' 
 he said, "vain, and so I built a 
 wall." Mr. Beckford was born at 
 Fonthill, 1759, and on attaining his 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Boute 12. — Pyt House. 
 
 163 
 
 majority found himself one of the 
 richest subjects in England, the pos- 
 sessor of nearly a million in ready 
 money, and an income of 100,000/. 
 a-year. Unfortunately this wealth 
 was derived in great part from W est 
 Indian property, and its depreciation 
 in value obliged the accomplished 
 and magnificent patron of the arts, 
 the millionaire of Fonthill and Cin- 
 tra, eventually to sell his estates and 
 content himself with a house at Uath. 
 His abbey was commenced about 
 1796, and at Christmas 1800, when 
 partly finished, was visited by Nelson, 
 who came by invitation in company 
 with Sir William and Lady Ha- 
 milton. 
 
 About ^ m. from Hindon is a 
 series of beautiful terrace walks, one 
 above the other, overlooking the 
 grounds of Fonthill. The uppermost 
 is much the longest, and runs into 
 Mr. Morrison's grounds. 
 
 The entrance is 1 m. from Hindon 
 towards Salisbury, by an archway, 
 supported by a very handsome 
 wall of great massiveness. Having 
 passed it, the traveller will view with 
 delight the noble expanse of park-like 
 scenery. A lake glistens in the vale, 
 and on either side of it, at some dis- 
 tance, rise finely-wooded hills. To 
 the rt. is the mansion of Mr. Alfred 
 Morrison, with a lofty tower in the 
 Italian . syle (the nucleus of which is 
 a wing of Alderman Beckford's man- 
 sion), full of artistic treasures, seated 
 under a splendid screen of trees. 
 Continuing along the road, the visitor 
 in J m. will reach the now dilapi- 
 dated Hermit's Cavc^ made by the 
 younger Beckford, consisting of sub- 
 terranean excavations lighted by 
 openings in the wood above, and 
 passing under the road. By the 
 water-side, below these caves, stands 
 a cedar of great size, and there is a 
 ferry to the opposite shore, where a 
 landing-place of stone, with balus- 
 trade and vaseS; forms a pretty fea- 
 ture. From the Hermit's Cave the 
 road ascends a hill to an Inn, and 
 
 the little church of Fonthill Giffard, 
 where Beckford's classical structure 
 has been replaced by a beautiful 
 building erected by the late Marquis 
 of Westminster. 
 
 A little beyond the Inn a stone 
 lodge guards the iron gates, by which 
 the privileged visitor obtains admis- 
 sion to the approach, which leads 
 under silver firs of great beauty to 
 the new mansion erected near the 
 lake by the Marquis of Westminster, 
 in the style of a Scotch castle, from 
 the designs of W. Burn, Esq. On 
 the hill, to the north-west of the 
 house, stands one tower of the former 
 abbey, which has been strengthened, 
 and converted partly into a cottage 
 for its guardian, and partly into 
 rooms, furnished with oak. The 
 view from the top of the tower is 
 very extensive, commanding the 
 Dorset hills, the Wiltshire downs, 
 and their highest point, Whingreen, 
 and the woods of Wardour ; and on 
 the west a green glade nearly f of a 
 mile long, which forms the chief 
 approach to the abbey ground, and is 
 one of the many miles of drives 
 which Mr. Beckford constructed in 
 the magnificent woods. The proper 
 name of the lake, which is a very 
 pretty one, is the " Bittern Lake." 
 The "Beacon Hill" is the highest 
 point in the woods.] 
 
 Proceeding on our route, 98^ m., 
 f m. to the rt. is F>jt House, the seat 
 of Vere Fane Benett-Stanford, Esq., a 
 short m. S. of Fonthill, and 3 from 
 Hindon. It is a handsome stone struc- 
 ture of Grecian architecture, erected 
 by Mr. Benett about 50 years ago. It 
 is faced by a portico, and commands a 
 view across the valley of the Nadder i 
 of the hills about Shaftesbury. It ^1 
 contains a few choice pictures — among i-y/iq 
 them the portrait of Francis I., by / 
 Albert Durer; the Rape of Helen, by '9^7 
 Luca di Giordano ; 2 cabinet paintings 
 by Vandcrvelde, a Storm and a Calm ; 
 and portraits of Prince Rupert, King 
 William, and Queen Mary. Behind 
 M 2 
 
164 
 
 Boute 12. — Semlei) — East Knoyle, Wiltshire. 
 
 the house, quite hidden among the 
 woods, is a pretty little chapel, now 
 disused. Adjoining the park- wall is 
 
 Hatch House, an old manor-house, 
 originally a seat of the Hyde family; 
 but now incorporated with the build- 
 ings of a farm. Daring the great 
 jjlague of 1665 every inhabitant of 
 the house is said to have perished. 
 
 lOlJ m. Semleij Stat. The village 
 of Semley, which takes its name 
 from the little river Sem, which here 
 joins the Nadder, lies 1^ m. farther 
 E. It was granted by Edwy to the 
 abbess of Wilton in 955. Its little 
 Ch. has a Norman font, and till its 
 rebuilding in 1875 by the Marchio- 
 ness of Westminster was remarkable 
 for a self-sown apple-tree J growing 
 on the top of the tower. 
 
 [3 m. N. is EastK)ioj/Ie, conspicuous 
 by its windmill on the high ground 
 behind it, the birthplace of Sir Chris- 
 topher Wren (1632). He was the son 
 of the rector. The rectory in which 
 he was born was pulled down 1880. 
 His father, Dr. Christopher Wren, 
 descended from an old family of 
 Danish origin, was a fellow of St. 
 John's, Oxford ; chaplain in ordinary 
 to Charles I., Dean of Windsor, 
 and registrar of the Order of 
 the Garter. He was a learned di- 
 vine, and had even studied the art 
 in which his son so distinguished 
 himself. He got himself into trouble 
 with the Committee for Scandalous 
 Ministers by the stuccos and pictures 
 in his church. The Ch., pleasantly 
 situated on a rising ground, is cruci- 
 form, with a tower at the west end. 
 It was restored by the rector, the 
 Rev. R. N. Milford, in memory of 
 his father-in-law, Bishop Sumner of 
 Winchester, patron of the living and 
 lord of the manor. 
 
 ' Knoyle House, the seat of Alfred 
 Seymour, Esq. The old house, which 
 had no architectural merit, has re- 
 cently been extensively enlarged 
 and improved from the designs of 
 
 Messrs. Carpenter and Ingelow, 
 following the type of the works of 
 John Thorpe, A central hall and 
 picture gallery have been erected 
 on the site of an open courtyard ; 
 a new grand staircase and a circular 
 drawing-room have been built, and 
 the whole house has been raised a 
 story. Italian columns, imported by 
 Mr. Seymour, have been largely used. 
 The picture gallery contains an inte- 
 resting collection of family portraits, 
 among which are Henry VIII., by 
 Holbein, Queen Jane Seymour, Sir Ed- 
 ward Seymour, Speaker of the House 
 of Commons, and others. There 
 is also a small collection of well- 
 chosen pictures, chiefly of the Nether- 
 landish school. Among them are the 
 following : — A. Van der Velde, a pas- 
 toral landscape ; — W, Van der Velde, 
 a sea-piece, the water calm and stud- 
 ded with vessels, a beautiful speci- 
 men of the master ; — /. Vernet, a coast 
 view ; — M. Hondekoeter, a white hen, 
 " of the utmost truth and mastery 
 of painting:" (^Waageii); — /. Van der 
 Heyden, a charming landscape, the 
 figures by A. Van der Velde ; — i>. Vaii 
 Orley, the Virgin and Joseph adoring 
 the new-born Child ; A. Tarchi, a 
 Pieta ; — Luis de Morales, Virgin and 
 Child, a picture of elevated feeling, 
 and of which there is another exam- 
 ple in the Berlin Gallery. Sedgehillj 
 1 m. N. of the Station, S. of Knoyle, 
 is a property of the late Marquis of 
 Westminster.] ^ 
 
 [2i m. S.E. of Semley Stat, lie the 
 villages of Donhead St. Andrew, and 
 Donhead St. Mary, taking their name 
 from the little river Don, which rises 
 here and flows into the Nadder, 
 straggling picturesquely over the 
 steep descent to the park of War- 
 dour Castle. The Ch. of Donhead St, 
 Andrew lies in a deep hollow, badly 
 restored some years back, con- 
 tains a curiously sculptured capital. 
 It represents a shield bearing the 
 emblems of the Crucifixion and sup- 
 ported \by angels. This rests on a 
 
Dorsetsliire. Boute 12. — DonJiead — Shaftesbury, 
 
 1G5 
 
 head of the Saviour which termi- 
 nates the shaft. Ferne, the seat of 
 Sir T. F. Grove, Bart., commauds 
 extensive views. It contains a por- 
 trait of Hugh Grove, beheaded at 
 Exeter with Col. Penruddocke iii 
 1655. 
 
 The Ch. of Donhead St. Manj, 
 standing on rising ground above the 
 little river, deserves a visit. The 
 S. side of the nave is E. E., c. 1220, 
 the N. side, c. 1260. The tower- 
 arch, porch, and side chapels, c. 
 1350. The tower and chancel, c. 
 1500. There is a rude circular 
 Norm. font. There is a fine view 
 of W ardour Castle from the church- 
 yard. An old farmhouse near the 
 spring in the manor of Combe is 
 called the Prior}]," from the fact 
 of a handful of monks of the Carthu- 
 sian order having taken refuge there 
 during the first French Revolution. 
 The monumental slab of one of the 
 number, Ant. Guillemot, may be 
 noticed in the parish ch. 
 
 The scenery here in the higher 
 parts is exceedingly diversified, rising 
 into lofty hills, partly covered with 
 wood, and intersected with deep 
 ravines or combes. In one of these 
 called Chilver-Combe Bolton, near 
 the hamlet of Ashgrove, is a burial- 
 place belonging to the Society of 
 Friends. Below the chalk is a bed of 
 upper greensand, or firestone, exten- 
 sively quarried for building purposes. 
 
 Donliead Hall^ adjoining these vil- 
 lages, was once the property of a 
 grandson of Sir Godfrey Kneller, to 
 whom it came by marriage with the 
 heiress of the Weekes. It is now 
 the property of John Du Boulay, 
 Esq., who purchased it of Mr. 
 Wyndham. 
 
 White Sheet Hill commands ex- 
 tensive views on either side. Below 
 to the 1. lies the village oi Berwick St. 
 John, with a cruciform CA. under Win- 
 lielhunj, or Vespasian'' s Camp (Rte. 8.) 
 
 To the rt. the eye ranges from 
 the park of Wardour Castle to the 
 woods of FonthilU Shaftesbury and 
 
 the far country to the W. are well 
 displayed on the descent from this 
 high tract of land. 
 
 A striking feature of this neigh- 
 bourhood is Sticklepath Hill, an emi- 
 nence of greensand, the W. point of 
 which is cut off by a ditch and 
 rampart overgrown with copse wood. 
 The area thus enclosed is 15i acres, 
 and known by the name of Castle 
 liings. The abrupt slope on the E. 
 side of Sticklepath Hill forms Don- 
 head Cliff. Below the hill to the 
 S.W., is Wi7iconibe Park (Charles 
 Gordon, Esq.).] 
 
 [2:J m. S. of Semley Stat., just with- 
 in the 'Dorsetshire border, perched 
 high on the narrow ridge of a green- 
 sand hill, which pushes itself forward 
 from the chalk down into the low 
 country to the W., stands the town 
 of 
 
 Shaftesbury (Inns : Grosvenor 
 Arms, Abbey Arms. Pop. of par- 
 liamentary borough, 8479; of the 
 town, 4855), or Shaston as it is locally 
 called, a municipal and parliament- 
 ary borough returning one member. 
 " Standing on the extreme verge of 
 a long hill, which seems to form a 
 natural rampart to Wiltshire, it is 
 one of the most remarkable towns 
 in England for its position. It 
 is truly a city set on a hill, below 
 which the fertile and picturesque 
 vale of Blackmore stretches far and 
 wide in every direction. The abbey 
 stood on the southern edge of the 
 bluff, which was walled up from 
 the valley to make the precipitous 
 declivity secure." — Hlihn Burritt. 
 It commands an extensive prospect 
 on every side but the E. To- 
 wards the S. the scarped slope of 
 the hill is curved like a bow. Shaftes- 
 bury has a traditional claim to be 
 one of the oldest towns in England. 
 Geoffrey of Monmouth assigns its 
 foundation to Hudibras, grandfather 
 of King Lear, 950 B.C., and reports 
 that an eagle spoke while the wall 
 
166 
 
 Boute 12. — Shafteshury. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 was being built. Brampton, assigns 
 its origin to Cassivelaimus, a.d. 52. 
 Its ancient name was Caer Fallador, 
 of which Shaftesbury is said to be 
 an Anglo-Saxon equivalent. What 
 is certain is that a Nunnery was 
 founded here in 880 by Alfred, of 
 which his daughter Elgiva was the 
 first abbess. Edmund Ironside and 
 Athelstan were liberal patrons of the 
 abbey, in which Elgiva, the queen 
 of the former, was buried. In 901, 
 the body of Edward the Martyr was 
 solemnly translated here from Ware- 
 ham, by Elphere, E. of Mercia, in 
 the presence of Abp. Dunstan, Alf- 
 wold Bp. of Sherborne, Wulfrith 
 Abbess of Wilton with her nuns, and 
 an immense concourse of nobility 
 and commonalty. The miraculous 
 cures wrought at the saint's tomb 
 brought multitudes of pilgrims from 
 all parts of the kingdom, by whose 
 offerings the abbey soon became ex- 
 ceedingly rich. The town and abbey 
 now became known as Edwardstow. 
 Ethelred in 1001 gave the convent 
 the town of Bradford, that the 
 nuns might have a safe refuge from 
 the Danes." Canute died at Shaftes- 
 bury, Nov. 12, 1035, but was buried 
 at Winchester. By successive dona- 
 tions the possessions of the abbey be- 
 came so extensive that Fuller records 
 an old saying, that *' if the abbess of 
 Shaftesbury might wed the abbot of 
 Glastonbury, their heir would have 
 more land than the King of England." 
 The king on his accession had the 
 right to nominate a nun. After the 
 Dissolution the abbey estates were 
 granted to Wriothesley, E. of South- 
 ampton, and now belong to the 
 Duke of Westminster. In 1 558, John 
 Bradley, abbot of Milton, was con- 
 secrated suffragan Bp. of Shaftes- 
 bury. In the civil wars Shaftesbury 
 was held alternately by the forces 
 of the king and the parliament. The 
 neutral body of Clubmen^ formed to 
 protect the district from both par- 
 ties, met here Aug. 1645, when 50 
 of their leaders were seized by Fleet- 
 
 wood, by which, and their defeat on 
 Hambledon Hill, the party was broken 
 up. In 1672 this town was chosen 
 by Anthony Ashley Cooper as the 
 title of his earldom, which still con- 
 tinues in his family. 
 
 The abbey, which stood to the S. 
 of Trinity Ch. between it and "the 
 Park," appears to have been levelled 
 with the ground immediately after 
 the Dissolution, and few traces of it 
 were knownltoil^exist till July, 1861, 
 when excavations brought to light 
 the foundations of an apsidal choir, 
 with apsidal chapels to the N. and S., 
 contained like those at Komsey in the 
 thickness of a rectangular wall, with 
 an encaustic tile pavement; and other 
 architectural fragments testifying to 
 the style of the ch. A fragment of 
 the Abbey House stands to the S. 
 of Trinity Church. 
 
 Holy Trinity, the chief ch. of the 
 town, was rebuilt 1842 in the E.E. 
 style. The vestry contains a library. 
 The churchyard is ornamented with 
 fine avenues of limes. 
 
 St. Feter's is an ancient building 
 of Perp. character. The aisles and 
 clerestory run the whole length of 
 the ch. There is no chancel arch. 
 The N. wall facing the High St. 
 is surmounted by a remarkably rich 
 battlemented parapet, elaborately 
 carved with pomegranates, roses, 
 portcullises, pointing to the early 
 years of Henry VIII.'s reign, and 
 shields bearing arms. The tower 
 is sq. and massive. On the belfry 
 wall are inscribed some quaint lines 
 which may deserve perusal. 
 
 St. James's Ch., in the liberty of 
 Alcester, was rebuilt in 1867 in the 
 Dec. style, retaining the windows 
 and ornamental parapets of the old 
 church. 
 
 The streets are narrow, and still 
 wear something of an antique ap- 
 pearance, though many improve- 
 ments have been made by the late 
 Marquis of Westminster. A new 
 Town Hall, and a market-house 270 
 ft. long, chiefly for the sale of corii 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Route 1 2 . — Shaftesbury — GilUngham, 
 
 167 
 
 and butter, and cattle market, have 
 been erected. 
 
 In Salisbury Street are some Alms- 
 houses of Tudor architecture, for men 
 and women. The Westminster CoUecje 
 Hospital, to the memory of the late 
 Marquis, was opened 1874. 
 
 The Rev. James Granger, author 
 of the ' Biographical History of Eng- 
 land,' was born at Shaftesbury, 1716 ; 
 also Lord Justice Lush, 1807. 
 
 The entrance to the Park Walk, so 
 called from the abbey park, is close 
 to the Grosvenor Arms. At the E. 
 end are some remains of the abbey 
 wall. It overlooks the country to the 
 S. and S.W. The great eminence to 
 the S. is Melhurij Hill, the boundary 
 of the high land of Cranhorne Chase. 
 
 The Castle Hill is the W. end of the 
 ridge, and commands a most ex- 
 tensive and beautiful landscape. 
 On either side rises a conical hill, 
 singularly alike, and each about 2 m. 
 from Shaftesbury. That on the rt. 
 is Kingsettle, a wooded point on the 
 line of hill which terminates in 
 Castle Hill ; that on the 1., the 
 mitred summit of Duncliff, 
 
 Standing, as the town does, on an 
 elevated ridge, it was formerly but 
 scantily provided with spring- water, 
 and the supply of this necessary arti- 
 cle was brought on horses' backs from 
 Enmore Green, near Motcombe, in 
 the parish of Gillingham, until the 
 liberality of the late Marquis of West- 
 minster constructed engines and re- 
 servoirs in the town itself, conveying 
 a good supply direct to the houses. 
 Hence arose a curious custom which 
 was annually observed here, discon- 
 tinued since 1830. On the Monday 
 before Holy Thursday the mayor 
 proceeded to Enmore Green with 
 a large fanciful broom, or Byzant 
 (besom), as it was called, which 
 he presented as an acknowledgment 
 for the water to the steward of the 
 manor, together with a calf's head, 
 a pair of gloves, a gallon of ale, and 
 2 penny-loaves of wheaten bread. 
 This ceremony being concluded, the 
 
 Byzant, which was usually hung 
 with jewels and other costly orna- 
 ments, was returned to the mayor, 
 and carried back to the town in pro- 
 cession. The Byzant last used is in 
 the possession of Lady Theodora 
 Guest. 
 
 1 m. N.W. Motcombe ^owse (Mar- 
 chioness of Westminster), a plain 
 modern mansion. The original' of 
 Fielding's "Parson Trulliber" was 
 one Oliver, curate of Motcombe. 
 The novelist resided at East Stower, 
 4 m. W. 
 
 In Wincomhe Park, N.E., seat of 
 Charles W. Gordon, Esq., rises the 
 river Nadder, forming at its source a 
 small lake, from which in the olden 
 time the nuns of Shaftesbury were 
 supplied with fish.] 
 
 Returning to the rly. at 
 102 m. we enter Dorsetshire, and 
 crossing the Lidden reach 
 
 105J m. Gillingham Stat. {Inns: 
 PhcBuix, Railway Inn; Pop. 3177). 
 The parish of Gillingham is of 
 immense size; 41 miles in circuit, 
 and containing G 1,000 acres. The 
 land was once chiefly forest, but is 
 now almost entirely dairy pasture. 
 It was a royal forest, often assigned 
 in jointure to the queen consort. 
 It was held by Margaret of France, 
 Margaret of Anjou, Jane Seymour, 
 Katharine Howard, Katharine Parr, 
 and Anne of Denmark. It was dis- 
 forested by Charles I. In early 
 times Gillingham was a town of 
 some importance. The Witan at 
 which Edward the Confessor was 
 accepted as King of England was 
 held here 1042. i m. S.E. of the 
 ch. stood a hunting lodge of our 
 early kings, repaired by John, who 
 frequently visited it, and by Henry 
 III. Edw. I. spent his Christmas 
 here, c. 1270. The foundations may 
 still be traced. The Ch. was rebuilt 
 in meagre Gothic in 1838, except 
 the chancel, which is good Dec. It 
 contains some good open benches, 
 and recumbent effigies of John Jessop, 
 
1G8 
 
 Boiite 12. — East and West Stower. Dorsetsliire. 
 
 M.D., Fellow of Merton, d. 1615, 
 and his brother John, vicar of this 
 parish, d. 1625. Over the tower-arch 
 is the long Latin epitaph of Edward 
 Davenant, nephew of the Bp. of 
 Salisbury, who, dispossessed in the 
 Great Rebellion, lived to regain his 
 vicarage. 
 
 Gildon, Pope's bitter critic, was 
 born here, d. 1724. 
 
 " Yet then did Gildon draw his venal quill, 
 I wished the man a dinner and sat still." 
 
 Gillingham is a thriving and in- 
 creasing town. It contains mills for 
 flour, silk, rope and twine, sacking 
 and flax, bacon-curing establishment, 
 and a large brewery giving employ- 
 ment to many hands. A large 
 number of bricks, tiles, and drain- 
 tiles are also made here. The air 
 is very salubrious, and the neigh- 
 bourhood highly picturesque. 
 
 Wijke Hall (J. Aitken, Esq.) is 
 1 m.'W. 
 
 Milton, J m. N., is a hamlet of 
 Gillingham, with a rather attractive 
 E.E. church, with apsidal chancel. 
 Milton Lodge (Mrs. Matthews), Stock 
 Hill (Col. P. W. Matthews), and 
 Kendells (G. B. Matthews, Esq.) are 
 handsome residences. 
 
 The three rivers, Stour, Shreen 
 water, and Lidden, unite a little be- 
 low the town. 
 
 [2 m. S. is East Stower, the Manor 
 House of which (pulled down 1835) 
 was the property of Fielding the 
 novelist, in right of his mother. 
 On her death he settled here with 
 his first wife, but lived too expen- 
 sively, and in less than 3 years had 
 devoured the whole property with 
 hounds, horses, and entertainments. 
 The Ch, was rebuilt 1842. 
 
 1 m. W. is West Stower, standing 
 on an eminence. The Ch, is an- 
 cient, chiefly E.E. The Eev. Wm. 
 Young, incumbent of West Stower, 
 editor of 'Ainsworth's Dictionary,' 
 was the prototype of Fielding's ** Par- 
 son Adams." As an instance of his 
 
 absence of mind it is recorded, that 
 once when chaplain to a regiment in 
 Flanders he wandered in a reverie 
 into the enemy's camp, and was only 
 aroused to his error by his arrest. 
 The commanding officer, perceiving 
 the good man's simplicity, allowed 
 him to return to his friends. To the 
 N.E. the escarpment of the chalk 
 from Hindon to Bradley Knoll forms 
 the leading feature of the landscape. 
 The wooded cone of Duncliff has a 
 very beautiful appearance. Its sum- 
 mit is encircled by a solitary entrench- 
 ment, partly concealed by the trees, 
 and watered by a spring. 
 
 3 m. N.W. is Silton. The a. 
 stands on a knoll above the Stour, 
 commanding pleasing views. The 
 arcade is E.E. To the N. is a chapel 
 with a beautiful fan-traceried roof. 
 A cumbrous marble monument, with 
 a life-size effigy, commemorates Sir 
 Hugh Wyndham, one of the justices 
 of the Common Pleas, d. 1684. 
 
 4 m. N. of Gillingham (Semley 
 6 m., Wincanton 8 m.) stands the 
 little market-town of 
 
 Mere {Inns : Ship, Talbot ; Pop. 
 2607), on the borders of the 3 
 counties of Wilts, Dorset, and Somer- 
 set, in a wild and bleak down country, 
 with wide views all round. The C/i. 
 is one of the best in S. Wilts, of 
 various dates, chiefly of the 14th and 
 l5th centuries. It has a stately tower 
 with lofty pinnacles, and within a 
 richly carved oaken ceiling, good 
 rood-screen, stalls, and parcloses. The 
 clerestory is continued in the chancel. 
 It is chiefly Perp., but the S. chapel 
 and other parts are transitional from 
 Dec. The chapel contains an altar- 
 tomb and 2 brasses ; one, a large and 
 fine one, to the founder John Bettes- 
 thorne, d. 1398, is remarkable for 
 commemorating the dominical letter 
 of the year; the other, imperfect, 
 is probably for his son-in-law. Sir 
 John Berkeley, d. 1427. 
 
 To the S. of the churchyard is a 
 mediaeval house, known as the Chan- 
 try Home, On entering by the ori- 
 
Wiltshire. 
 
 Bouie 12. — StGurhead. 
 
 169 
 
 giiial entrance on the N. side, the 
 doors opening from the hall to the 
 kitchen and buttery may be seen 
 on the left hand. To the N. of the 
 churchyard adjoining the high road 
 is a mediaeval dwelling, now a barn. 
 The eastern end was of two stories, 
 each with a handsome fireplace. Be- 
 yond was the Hall with a fine open 
 roof. In the street of Mere a me- 
 diaeval shop of plain Perp. character 
 deserves notice. 
 
 The ancient Marltet House was 
 pulled down, and in 1866 a clock 
 tower erected on its site at the 
 expense of the Prince of Wales as 
 Duke of Cornwall, to which duchy 
 Mere belongs. 
 
 To the N.W. is the mound of the 
 castle, which was built 1253 by 
 Rich. E. of Cornwall, to whom 
 Mere had been granted by his 
 brother Hen. III. To the S.W. 
 near the town is Mere Parity and 1 m. 
 S. Woodlands^ where the remains of 
 the 15th centy. mansion of the Dod- 
 dingtons deserve a visit. The ILdl 
 has 2 square-headed windows and 
 a porch with a chamber over it. 
 Adjoining the Hall on the N. is the 
 oldest and most interesting portion 
 of the house, consisting of a building 
 of two stories of the 14th cent. The 
 upper portion, now used as a cheese 
 room, was the chapel. The piscina 
 remains, and on the N. side is a good 
 Dec. square-headed window, with 
 flowing tracery. The E. window has 
 Perp. tracery. At the W. end is a 
 large .Jacobean fireplace. The lower 
 room has also a fireplace and a ceil- 
 ing of this date. The whole has been 
 sadly modernised and spoilt. 
 
 3 m. W. of Mere is Pen-Selwood, 
 and the excavations known as Fen 
 Pits (Rte. 20). 
 
 2 m. N.W. of Mere, on a precipi- 
 tous jutting promontory, is Whitesheet 
 Castle, considered by Hoare as a 
 British work further strengthened by 
 the Saxons. It occupies 15 acres, 
 and is defended on the side most 
 easy of access by triple ramparts. 
 
 Whitesheet Castle is considered by 
 Bp. Clifford to have been the ** Petra 
 iEgbryhti," Egbert's stone, placed by 
 Hoare at Brixton Deverel (Rte. 11). 
 2 m. further N. is Long Knoll. 
 
 3 m. W. is Stourhead, the beautiful 
 seat of Sir Henry Ainslie Hoare, Bart., 
 planted on a range of lofty hills. It 
 is well known for a fine collection of 
 pictures, but more celebrated for the 
 extreme beauty and decoration of its 
 park and grounds. By the liberality 
 of the owner the house is shown 
 on Fridays, and the grounds at 
 all times. The road to Stourhead 
 from Mere passes on the 1. Zecds 
 ILni.se (Miss Chafyn Grove), a manor- 
 house, formerly of tlie Chafyns, 
 where is a carved roof of the same 
 character as that at Woodlands. Zeals 
 Ck. was built 1846. John Grove, 
 who married the heiress of the 
 Chafyns, was beheaded at Exeter in 
 1G55 for his share in Penruddock's 
 rising. In view on the rt. are the 
 heights of Whitesheet Camp and Brad- 
 ley Knoll. 
 
 Stourhead is entered by an em- 
 battled gatehouse, flanked by round 
 towers, and beautifully ivied. The 
 mansion consists of a centre, built 
 after the designs of Colin Campbell 
 in 1720, and of 2 wings added 1800, 
 the former fronted by a Corinthian 
 portico and 2 flights of steps, each 
 terminated by a large ornamental 
 basin, on the rims of which 2 
 sculptured birds lean forward in 
 the attitude of drinking. The 
 view embraces a foreground of 
 beech -trees and Spanish chesnuts, 
 remarkable for the large size of 
 their trunks, and originally planted 
 along the approach to old Stourton 
 House, now destroyed. Of the 
 pictures, and other curiosities, the 
 following may be enumerated : — 
 
 In the Entrance Hall : portraits of 
 the Hoare family, including one of 
 Sir R. Colt Hoare the antiquary, by 
 Woodforde ; a small Landscape, Hob- 
 henia] a Welsh Mill, Ccdcott ; the 
 Cottage-door, Collins ; the Broken 
 
170 
 
 Boute 12. — Stourhead ; Pictures, Wiltshire. 
 
 Pitcher and the Bird's Nest, Wither- 
 ington ; Bust of Pope, by Roiibiliac, 
 
 In the Saloon (or dining-room) : 
 Three Chiklren of Charles I., after 
 VandycJi; Stonehenge and gateway 
 of Malmesbury Abbey in water- 
 colours ; the Judgment of Midas, >S'. 
 Bourdon ; the Death of Dido, after 
 Guercino; the Eape of Helen, after 
 Guido Reni ; Antony and Cleopatra, 
 Raphael Mengs ; Portrait, Angelica 
 Kauffman ; the family arms in gold 
 and precious stones ; a piece of plate 
 of silver-gilt, representing the story 
 of Cyrus and Queen Tomyris, pre- 
 sented by the Corporation of London. 
 On the marble chimneypiece, which 
 is exceedingly handsome, is a head 
 of Medusa. 
 
 In the Cabinet Room : Lakeof Nemi, 
 engraved by Vivares, Claude ; a Sea- 
 port by Moonlight, Vernet ; a Land- 
 scape, G. Foussin ; a Landscape, 
 Nic, Poussin ; a Storm, with story 
 of Jonah and the Whale, copy of 
 Nic. Foussin ; Lake Avernus, with 
 jEneas and the Sibyl, Turner ; a 
 Landscape, F. Tenters ; a Landscape, 
 presented by the artist to his friend 
 Zuccarelli, Wilson; Diana and her 
 Nymphs, in a frame carved by 
 Gibbons, Zuccarelli; 2 small Land- 
 scapes, Bartolomeo ; Views at Ve- 
 nice, Canaletti. Here also is the 
 beautiful Cabinet which gives name 
 to the room, once belonging to Pope 
 Sixtus V. It is made of ebony, agate, 
 and lapis lazuli, fronted by pillars of 
 precious stones, and inlaid with gold, 
 and upon it are the heads of the 
 Peretti family modelled in wax the 
 Pope's forming the centre of the 
 group, and a gold medal extremely 
 scarce and valuable, struck in the 
 reign of Elizabeth to commemorate 
 the defeat of the Spanish Armada. 
 
 In the Anteroom : the Daughter of 
 Herodias with the head of J ohn the 
 Baptist, F, Battoni, after Guido Reni ; 
 St. Peter denying Christ, and the 
 Card-players, Caramggio ; St. Mark's, 
 Venice, Canaletti ; a Field of Battle, 
 Borgognone ; a Holy Family, Palma, 
 
 In the Picture Gallery : Elijahjre- 
 storing the Widow's Son to Life, 
 Rembrandt, engraved by Earlom (con- 
 sidered the finest picture in the col- 
 lection) ; St. John in the Wilderness, 
 a sketch for the picture at Venice — 
 2, a Peasant's head — 3, Portrait of a 
 Girl as St. Agnes, Titian ; the Birth of 
 our Saviour, Lud. Caracci; the Eape 
 of the Sabines, and the Judgment 
 of Hercules, N. Foussin; a Holy 
 Family — 2, Head of St. Francis, 
 Guido Reni; a Holy Family, from 
 theBarberini Palace, Leon, da Vinci; 
 the Virgin and Child with St. John 
 and St. Ambrose, And. del Sarto ; the 
 Magdalen washing the Feet of the 
 Saviour — 2, Sketch of an Apollo, 
 Paul Veronese; the Marriage of St. 
 Catherine, Baroccio; the Virgin and 
 Child — 2, the Good Shepherd, Guer- 
 cino ; the Virgin and Child — 2, St. 
 John with the Lamb — 3, an old 
 man's head, Schidone ; David and 
 Goliah — 2, Tobit and the Angel, 
 Fietro Francesco Mola; the Adoration 
 of the Kings, a fine work, Cigoli ; the 
 Flight into Egypt — 2, portrait of the 
 painter, with the 3 Graces — 3, Hope, 
 Carlo Maratti ; an Old Woman, Mu- 
 rillo ; Distress by sea and Distress by 
 land, Thompson; the Triumph of 
 Bacchus, copy oi Ann. Caracci; Holy 
 Family, Fra Bartolomeo; the Ma- 
 donna, Carlo Dolce ; Democritus, Sal. 
 Rosa ; Madonna and Child, Carlo Cig- 
 nani; a Holy Family, after Raphael ; 
 Introduction of a young Carthusian 
 to St. Teresa, Facchiarotto ; Madonna 
 and Child, Falma Vecchio ; the Em- 
 peror Charles V., after Titian, Ru- 
 bens ; Temptation of St. Anthony, 
 F. Teniers; the Annunciation, Al- 
 bano. 
 
 In the Music-room : St. Peter's, P. 
 Panini ; the Car of Cuthullin (from 
 Ossian), Cooper; Sheep and interior, 
 Iforland ; Cattle, Cuyp ; the Dumb 
 Girl talking, Northcote ; Diana and 
 Actseon, Calcott and Owen ; a storm by 
 land and a storm by sea, Azc/io/sori; the 
 Martyrdom of St. Peter, after Titian, 
 F, Mola; Peasant Children, GainS" 
 
Wiltshire. Boute 12.~Stoiirton ; Pleasure Grounds. 171 
 
 borough; a scene in the East Indies, 
 T. Daniell; Head of a Child, Holbein. 
 
 In the Library are some remarkable 
 drawings by Ccmalctti, representing 
 10 of the most celebrated buildings 
 in Venice, arranged around a portrait 
 of Petrus Landi, Doge in 1538. In 
 this room are also the busts of Mil- 
 ton, when young and old, by Rys- 
 hraeck ; and a window by Egginton, 
 with figures copied from Raphael's 
 School of Athens. 
 
 The Museum of antiquities collected 
 by the late Sir R. C. Hoare and 
 Mr. Cunnington has been transferred 
 by the present Baronet to the house 
 of Wiltshire Archaeological Society 
 at Devizes (Rte. 5). 
 
 A visitor to the Pleasure-grounds — 
 after passing the gate-house, de- 
 scends between banks of turf and 
 hedges of laurel to the hamlet of 
 
 Stourton, a group of pretty cot- 
 tages, ancient church, and Inn, 
 in a little wooded dell. The Church 
 is a small building, with embattled 
 tower, rising from a churchyard 
 decked with flowers, containing a 
 lofty stone cross, the mausoleum of 
 the Hoare family, and a monumental 
 tower enclosing the marble tomb 
 and remains of Sir Richard Colt 
 Hoare. In the church are memorials 
 of the Stourtons, including the effigy 
 of a lady of the 14th cent, inclosed 
 in a kind of box, and the effigies of 
 Edward, the 5th baron, d. 1536, and 
 his lady Agnes Fauntleroy, and a 
 mural monument to Henry Hoare, 
 Esq., 1785, with inscription by the 
 pen of Hayley. 
 
 Opposite the church is the en- 
 trance to the Pleasure-grounds, where 
 the confined scene of Stourton sud- 
 denly gives place to a large and 
 beautiful lake of 30 acres, and 2 m. 
 in circuit, embosomed in wooded 
 hills, which open in distant vistas 
 ascending through the park. Near 
 the entrance stands the High Cross 
 of Bristol, erected in that city about 
 1373. It is an elaborate piece of 
 §tonework, decorated with the statues 
 
 of 8 of our monarchs. King John, 
 Henry III., Edward I., Edward III., 
 Henry VI., Elizabeth, James I., and 
 Charles I., the four last added in 
 1633. It was taken down in 1733, 
 and shortly afterwards given by Dean 
 Barton, whose brother was rector 
 of Stourton, to Mr. Henry Hoare, 
 who re-erected it where it now 
 stands. Descending to the level of 
 the lake, the visitor passes the Temple 
 of the Muses, Paradise Well, and an 
 old font removed from the church. 
 Pursuing the path which follows the 
 windings of the shore, the visitor 
 will observe a silver beech of ex- 
 traordinary beauty, and a thorn-tree 
 on which a mountain-ash has been 
 engrafted. A view now opens on the 
 rt. up Six Wells Bottom to St, 
 Peter's Pump, a plain hexagonal 
 building with coarse sculptures, 
 another relic from Bristol, cover- 
 ing the six sources of the Stour. 
 The path next crosses an arm of the 
 lake, and winding past the Sv:an 
 House dives into the Grotto, where 
 the Stour, conducted underground 
 from the Six Wells, is poured forth 
 from the urn of the river god. A 
 sleeping nymph in marble reclines by 
 a bath in another recess, the follow- 
 ing lines by Pope (from Card. Bem- 
 bo) being inscribed on the rock : — 
 
 " Nymph of the grot, these sacred springs I 
 keep, 
 
 And to the mnrmur of these waters sleep ; 
 Ah! spare my slumbers, gently tread the 
 cave, 
 
 And drink in silence, or in silence lave." 
 
 Emerging from this cavern, the 
 visitor threads a beech-grove to a 
 spring, which, rising under a tulip- 
 tree, flows swiftly to the lake. Be- 
 yond is the portico of the Pantheon, 
 a miniature copy of that at Rome, 
 decorated with several statues, in- 
 cluding an antique marble of Livia 
 Augusta in the character of Ceres. 
 Hercules and Flora, by Byshraeck, 
 In the portico are Alexander and 
 Pompey (antique), and on the out- 
 side Ceres and Minerva. The couii- 
 
172 Boute 1 2 . — Stoiirton ; 
 
 Alfred's Toiver. WiltsLire. 
 
 ties of Wilts and Somerset meet in 
 the centre of the building; and on 
 the hill to the W. of it is an ancient 
 canipf of 7 acres, formed by a double 
 line of ramparts. The path now 
 turns in the direction of the house, 
 and affords a view of the Cascade. 
 Beyond it is reached the foot of a 
 dense wood, first planted on the 
 naked down by Sir R. C. Hoare, 
 where, midway on the hill, stands the 
 Temple of the Han, designed after that 
 at Baalbec, and commanding a bird's- 
 eye view of lake and garden. Trees 
 of fantastic growth next claim atten- 
 tion, and the visitor ascends again to 
 the beautiful Bristol Cross, from 
 which he started. 
 
 Alfred's Ihwer occupies a magnifi- 
 cent point of view called Kingsettle, 
 one of the loftiest of the greensand 
 hills 800 ft. above the sea. It is 
 plainly seen from all parts of the 
 neighbouring counties, and every 
 visitor should ascend it. The key 
 will be found at the adjoining lodge, 
 which commands an extensive view 
 to the S. It is 3 m. distant from the 
 house, but strangers are not allowed 
 to drive to it through the park ; they 
 will pursue the old British road, or 
 Hardway, by which Alfred is supposed 
 to have advanced from the fastnes- 
 ses of Selwood to the attack of the 
 Danes. The tower was erected by 
 Henry Hoare, Esq., in memory of that 
 event, and is a triangular building 
 of red brick, 150 ft. high, flanked at 
 each corner by a slender tower. The 
 entrance is on the E. side, surmounted 
 by a colossal statue of Alfred and a 
 tablet bearing the following inscrip- 
 tion Alfred the Great, A.D. 879, 
 on this summit erected his standard 
 against Danish invaders. To him we 
 owe the origin of juries, the esta- 
 blishment of a militia, the creation 
 of a naval force. Alfred, the light 
 of a benighted age, was a philosopher 
 and a Christian, the father of his 
 people, the founder of the English 
 monarchy and liberty." The roads 
 down the hill are very beautiful. 
 
 1 m. S. of the tower rises an enor- 
 mous mound, vulgarly called Jack's 
 Castle, long considered as a beacon 
 but originally sepulchral. Sir R. C. 
 Hoare having found in it the re- 
 mains of a warrior buried with his 
 weapons. 
 
 Stourhead is the name given to this 
 place since its purchase by the 
 Hoares. It was originally called 
 Stourton, and belonged to a family 
 of that name as early as Edward I.'s 
 reign. John S. was created Baron 
 Stourton in 1448. In Queen Anne's 
 reign Edward the twelfth lord sold 
 it to Sir Thomas Meres, Kt., from 
 whose heirs it was purchased, in 
 1720, by Henry Hoare, Esq., founder 
 of the London banking-house, and 
 ancestor of the present proprietor. 
 
 For the remarkable story connected 
 with the Stourtons — the murder of the 
 Hartgills by Charles Lord Stourton, in 
 the reign of Queen Mary, 1556, see 
 Rte. 8, p. 95. 
 
 Kilmington Ch. lies \^ m. N. of 
 Stourhead. It has a fine lofty tower, 
 groined within. Close to Kilmington 
 S. is Blackwater Spring, one of the 
 sources of the Wylye ; and in West 
 End Wood, 1 m. W., is the source 
 of the Brue, 1 m. N.E. is the Long 
 Knoll, 973 ft. above the sea, the ex- 
 treme W. point of the Chalk of 
 Salisbury Plain.] 
 
 Proceeding on our route we pass at 
 
 109 m. rt. Buckhorn Weston. 
 
 110 J m. we cross the Cale, flowing 
 from Wincanton, and J m. further 
 the Bov^ Brook, which, uniting their 
 waters below, are joined by the Lid- 
 den near Stalbridge. Here we enter 
 Somersetshire, and continue in the 
 county till we pass Milborne Port. 
 
 112 m. Ihnple Combe Junction Stat, 
 — [Here the S. W. Rly. crosses the 
 Somerset and Dorset line from High- 
 bridge and Burnham on the Gt. 
 Western line to Wimborne and Poole 
 (Rte. 19) forming a communication 
 between the Bristol and English 
 Channels,] 
 
Somersetshire. Houte 12. — Stoivell — Sherhorne, 
 
 173 
 
 Temple Combe takes its name from 
 a comraandery of the Knights 
 Templars, the only establishment 
 held by them in the county, to whom 
 it was granted c. 1185. Some small 
 remains are still to be seen in the 
 garden of the Mcmor Ilofise, now a 
 farm S. of the village, confined to 
 portions of the w^alls, some Avindows, 
 and a doorway of the C/iapcl. 
 
 113 m. rt. Stoirell has a manor 
 house retaining many original fea- 
 tures, rewarding notice. It has been 
 despoiled of its oak panelling, and 
 other ancient portions, removed else- 
 where. One of its Perp. windows 
 is to be seen in the dovecot at Hor- 
 sington Rectory. The manor belonged 
 to the family of Hody, one of whom 
 was Lord Chief Justice in 1441. He 
 is classed by Ld. Campbell among 
 those who do not call for any 
 particular remark.*' The Hodys 
 sold it in 1720 to Robert Knight, the 
 cashier of the South Sea Company. 
 On the bursting of the "Bubble" 
 Knight had to liy the countiy, and 
 Stowell was sold to George Dodding- 
 ton in 1723. 
 
 114i m. Milhonie Port Stat,, IJ m. 
 N. of the town of that name. Close 
 to the station is the very large earth- 
 work of Milborn Wich, a natural 
 peninsula fortified by a mound on 
 the only assailable side. {Lm: 
 King's Head; Pop. 1814), a small 
 collection of cottages, with a manu- 
 facture of shoes, and highly respect- 
 able for its antiquity. It returned 
 representatives in the re:gn of Ed- 
 ward I., and not again till that of 
 Charles I., but was disfranchised by 
 the first Reform Act. The Church is 
 a massive cruciform structure of 
 Norman date, with an embattled 
 tower rising from the centre, on 2 cir- 
 cular and 2 pointed arches. The 
 nave and north transept was rebuilt 
 in 1867. There are painted windows 
 by Clayton and Bell, and one by 
 O'Connor. The W. end is of Anglo- 
 Saxon character. The N. side of the 
 tower and S. side of the chancel are 
 
 ornamented with intersecting arcades. 
 The north transept contains the 
 monuments of the Medlycotts. 
 
 The Guild Hall has a Norman door- 
 way. In the street are the socket 
 and steps of an ancient cross. 
 
 Milborne Port during the Rebellion 
 was occupied for some time by Crom- 
 well's soldiers, who, it is said, stole 
 the Bible from the church. This so 
 incensed the inhabitants that they 
 rose to a man and drove the soldiers 
 from the town. 
 
 Ven (Sir William C. Medlycott, 
 Bart.) lies close to the town, S.E. 
 The scene is exceedingly pretty ; a 
 branch of the Yeo winds beneath the 
 wooded crescent of Henover Hill on 
 its course to Sherborne Castle. Ven 
 is a red-brick mansion ; its front 
 inlaid with stone, and its wings 
 pierced by large archways. It is 
 attributed to Inigo Jones. 
 
 lA m. is Charlton Horethorne, the 
 Church of which has a good pinna- 
 cled tower and is worth notice. A 
 N. chapel of superior workmanship 
 belonged to the Prior of Kenil worth, 
 the impropriator of the rectory. 
 
 The top of Bulhtahe Hill, IJ E., 
 commands extensive views E. and 
 W. Shaftesbury and Alfred's Tower 
 are conspicuous in the former direc- 
 tion. 
 
 At the Rly. crosses the 
 
 river Yeo, and re-enters Dorsetshire. 
 
 116f m. 1., site of Obome Church, 
 which has been pulled down with the 
 exception of a chancel window, over 
 which is an inscription, and rebuilt in 
 another position. The woods of 
 Sherborne Castle cover the hills on 
 the 1., which sweep round to Sher- 
 borne in the form of a crescent. 
 Passing through the suburb of Castle- 
 ton, the traveller reaches 
 
 118m. Sherborne (Inns: Digby 
 Hotel, near the station, large, and in 
 every way commendable ; Antelope, 
 excellent; Pop. 5717). A clean 
 town of stone houses, the resort of 
 sportsmen during the hunting season, 
 
174 Route 12. — Sherborne; Abbey Church. Dorsetshire. 
 
 the neighbouring district being 
 hunted by as many as three packs of 
 hounds. It is pleasantly situated on 
 the S. slope of a steepish hill descend- 
 ing to the valley of the Ivel or Yeo. 
 Its general appearance is quaint, and 
 *'the quiet aspect of its grey stone 
 buildings, with stone-tiled roofs and 
 mullioned windows, lying pleasantly 
 among gardens and orchards," im- 
 presses the visitor very favourably. 
 To the archseologist it is very attrac- 
 tive, for besides the church, and the 
 remains of the abbey buildings incor- 
 porated with the school, Sherborne 
 retains a fair number of ancient 
 houses, though too many (includ- 
 ing the famous New Imi figured in 
 Parker's ' Dom. Arch, of the Middle 
 Ages,' ii., 348) have of late years 
 been destroyed, or new-fronted and 
 otherwise spoilt. The principal 
 street, still bearing its A.-S. name of 
 Cheap Street, descends the hill from 
 the N. Long Street intersects it at 
 rt. angles, and runs up E. to Castleton 
 and the gates of the old castle. The 
 ground on the S. side of the river and 
 of the rly. rises rapidly, and is laid out 
 in public walks commanding a wide 
 view. The richly-wooded park and 
 lake to the S.E. is a very agreeable 
 feature in the surrounding landscape. 
 
 The town takes its A.-S. name Scire- 
 hurnivom\h.Q transparent waters of the 
 Yeo, or Ivel {scir hurne A.-S. = bright 
 brook) which flows in the valley. 
 As usual, little is known of its early 
 history ; but it was of sufficient im- 
 portance in the time of King Ine, 
 A.t>. 705, to be chosen as the seat of a 
 bishoprick. The first Bishop of Sher- 
 borne was the learned Aldhelm (see 
 ante, Malmesbury, Kte. 1). Twenty- 
 six prelates succeeded him here, in- 
 cluding Asser, the biographer, and 
 friend of Alfred the Great, a.d. 900. 
 The line ofBishops of Sherborne ended 
 in Herman, who, 1078, removed the 
 see to Old Sarum, but the castle 
 continued to be an episcopal resi- 
 dence until it fell into the hands of 
 the crown after its siege by Stephen 
 
 in 1139. It was dignified by being 
 made the burial-place of two 
 kings, Ethelbald and Ethelbert, the 
 brothers of King Alfred. It suf- 
 fered severely from the ravages of 
 the Danes, by whom it was burnt and 
 plundered. Its rise from its fallen 
 fortunes was so slow, that William of 
 Malmesbury expresses his surprise 
 that so mean a place could have been 
 for so many years the seat of a 
 bishopric. Its prosperity gradually 
 was increased through the establish- 
 ment of the cloth manufacture, and 
 the traffic of the great western road, 
 which made it in Leland's time " the 
 most frequented town in the county." 
 Later on, button and lace making 
 were introduced, and in 1740 silk- 
 throwing, which is now its only manu- 
 facture, employing many hundred 
 hands. 
 
 The Abbey Church of St. Mary the 
 Virgin (5 minutes' walk to the N. of 
 Ely . station) is the chief object of 
 attraction, and will repay a long and 
 careful survey. " It is a Norman 
 church, rebuilt, and recast so that 
 nearly all of it has become Perpen- 
 dicular " {E, A. F.), of which style it 
 exhibits one of the richest and most 
 beautiful examples. Its restoration, 
 by the munificence of the late Earl 
 Digby, and his heir, the present 
 G. D. Wingfield Digby, Esq., of 
 Sherborne Castle, has invested it with 
 a degree of splendour almost unpa- 
 ralleled. 
 
 The whole eh., with the exception 
 of the Lady-chapel, which remains 
 desecrated, was restored with much 
 ability and success by the late Mr. 
 Carpenter and his pupil Mr. Slater. 
 The work of the nave and transepts 
 commenced June, 1848, was com- 
 pleted in 1851, at the cost of nearly 
 14,000/., more than one-half being 
 borne by Lord Digby. The cost of 
 the restoration of the choir and its 
 aisles, nearly 18,000/., was borne ex- 
 clusively by Mr. Wingfield Digby, 
 between 1856 and 1858. 
 
 Sherborne was never a church of 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 12. — Sherborne; Abbey Cliurck 175 
 
 the first rank, either in design or 
 dimensions. Its low central tower, 
 with its insignificant pinnacles, and 
 want of picturesqueness of outline, 
 render the exterior heavy and unin- 
 viting ; nor are the faults of design 
 atoned for by imposing magnitude. 
 The length of the church from E. to 
 W. is only 200 ft., that of the tran- 
 septs from N. to S. 95 ft. ; the height 
 of the tower is 109 ft, that of the roof 
 60 ft. But on a nearer view many of 
 its defects of form disappear, and the 
 exceeding richness of the interior, and 
 the magnificence of its recent orna- 
 mentation, fully redeem its external 
 deficiencies. The whole is built of the 
 rich-tinted and fine-grained Hamhill 
 stone. Sherborne! was constituted a 
 Benedictine Abbey in 1139 by Bishop 
 Roger, of Sarum, to whose passion 
 for building ithe original fabric of 
 the church which still survives in the 
 main under its later accretions may 
 probably be assigned. " It is essen- 
 tially a Norman church entirely 
 transformed, the nave and presbytery 
 into the Perpendicular style. The 
 transepts, tower, and other append- 
 ages still retain Norman charac- 
 teristics, with E.E. insertions and 
 additions, especially a portion of a 
 fine Lady-chapel at the E. end. The 
 Perp. work is of an unusually grand 
 and beautiful chara,cter, and has the 
 advantage of being accurately dated." 
 — Willis. The walls of the transepts 
 show Norman masonry, and one 
 of the round-headed windows may 
 be seen in the clerestory of the E. 
 side of the S. transept. The Perp. 
 clerestory of the nave .and choir is 
 unusually fine and lofty. The latter 
 is supported by flying buttresses 
 springing from rich crocketed pin- 
 nacles. One of the most interesting 
 features of the exterior is — or rather 
 was before the alteration — the Nor- 
 man S. porch attached to the western- 
 most bay of the nave. This was 
 rebuilt from the ground by Mr. Car- 
 penter, during the restoration in 
 1850. In the lower part the stones 
 
 were accurately replaced, but the 
 upper portion or partzst?, which had 
 been made to harmonize with the 
 general design of the exterior when 
 the nave was rebuilt by Abbot Eam- 
 sam, was unhappily restored in the 
 Norman style after a modern design. 
 The W. window is a fine Perp. com- 
 position of 9 lights. 
 
 At the W. end of the ch. are the 
 remains of the parochial ch. of All- 
 hallows, consisting of part of the wall 
 of the N. aisle and four responds or 
 semi-pillars engrafted into the W. 
 front of the minster. The style is 
 Dec. or Early Perp. These remains 
 indicate a three-aisled ch. of 6 bays 
 in length, the easternmost being 
 occupied by a vestibule common to 
 the two churches, communicating 
 by doors now built up. 
 
 At the Dissolution, 1540, the abbey 
 ch. of Sherborne was granted by 
 Henry VIII. to Sir John Horsey, by 
 whom it was sold to the parishioners 
 for 100 marks. On this, there being 
 no further use for Allhallows ch., as 
 we learn from Leland, it was taken 
 down. 
 
 Wherever a monastery existed in 
 a town, quarrels between the monks 
 and the parishioners were of con- 
 stant occurrence in the middle ages ; 
 the former always endeavouring to 
 eject the latter, or embitter their oc- 
 cupation of the church they held in 
 common, and they in their turn were 
 not scrupulous in the means they 
 adopted to annoy their conventual 
 neighbours. Sherborne was no ex- 
 ception. A deadly feud raged in the 
 15th centy. between the monks and 
 townsmen, which ended in the de- 
 struction by fire of the whole eastern 
 limb, and the splendid re-edification 
 of the whole. The cause of quarrel 
 was whether the children of the 
 townspeople were to be baptized in a 
 new font in the parish ch. as of im- 
 memorial custom, or in the Abbey 
 font; this, it seems, had been re- 
 moved to an inconvenient part of 
 their ch. by the monks, who at the 
 
176 Boute 12. — Sherborne; Ahhey Church. Dorsetshire. 
 
 same time had narrowed the door 
 of communication between the two 
 churches (still to be seen at the W. 
 end of the S. aisle), to the great 
 annoyance of the parishioners, who 
 vented their spite by unseemly ring- 
 ing of bells disturbing the conventual 
 services. The matter was referred to 
 Bp. Nevil of Salisbury in 1437, who 
 decided against the parishioners. 
 This did not stop the feud. '* A 
 stout butcher " of Sherborne, named 
 Walter Gallor, siding with the monks, 
 took upon himself to break the illegal 
 font, which exasperated the towns- 
 people so much that in Leland's 
 words '* the variance grew to a plain 
 sedition, until a priest of Allhallows 
 shot a shaft with fire into the top of 
 that part of St. Mary Church that 
 divided the east part that the monks 
 used, from that the townsmen used ; 
 and this partition chancing at that 
 time to be thatched in, the roof was 
 set on fire, and consequently all the 
 whole church, the lead and bells 
 melted, was defaced." This disaster 
 rendered the re-edification of the ch. 
 necessary. The whole eastern limb 
 was rased to the ground, and the 
 present c/iOi>, a fine and magni- 
 ficent design of the period " ( WiUis\ 
 erected in the time of Abbot Brad- 
 ford, 1436-59, the townsmen being 
 forced to make amends for the de- 
 struction they had caused by contri- 
 buting to its building. After the choir 
 was completed, the nave was recon- 
 structed in the Perp. style by Abbot 
 Peter Ramsam^(or de Kampisham), 
 1475-1504. The nave appears to have 
 suffered less from the fire ; the Norm, 
 piers were not therefore taken down, 
 but recased, as at Winchester, in the 
 later style, and surmounted by an en- 
 tirely new clerestory. The transepts 
 retain their Norman masonry, with 
 the insertion of large Perp. windows, 
 and the addition of roofs of the same 
 style. Three of the tower arches ob- 
 trude their plain Norm, semi-circles 
 into the midst of the richness around 
 them. The fourth arch to the east 
 
 was boldly removed by the rebuilders 
 of the choir so as to leave the faii- 
 vaulting uninterrupted. 
 
 The ch. is usually entered by the 
 Norm. S. porch. The interior pre- 
 sents a splendid effect, chiefly due to 
 the unusual magnificence of the fan 
 vaults which cover the whole church 
 with the exception of the S. transept, 
 all ablaze with gilded ribs and bosses, 
 and gorgeous heraldic decorations, 
 among which the arms of the Digbys, 
 of Sherborne Abbey, and the See of 
 Salisbury, may be noticed. The nave 
 is divided into 5 bays by panelled 
 arches of irregular width owing to 
 the retention of the Norman piers, 
 which are simply cased in the Perp. 
 style. Part of the original Norman 
 pier may be seen at the first respond 
 on each side. The vaulting shafts 
 are supported by angels bearing 
 shields, and shields also occur at the 
 apex of the arches, bearing the 
 rebuses of Abbot Ramsam (a ram and 
 the syllable sam). Bp. Langton, and 
 the arms of Sherborne and Milton 
 Abbeys. The S. aisle is known as 
 St. Mary's aisle ; that to the N., the 
 Trinity aisle, has the only Dec. win- 
 dows ^in the ch. The glass of the 
 great W. window was restored by 
 Hardman in 1841. 
 
 Moving eastwards we reach the 
 transepts, and notice the 3 heavy 
 Norm, arches supporting the tower. 
 It will be observed that the transept 
 arches are narrower than the other 
 pair, and are stilted to bring their 
 beams to the same level. The helfry 
 story, now hidden by the rich fan- 
 vault, was originally qpen as a 
 lantern. The Norm, arcades, though 
 walled up, may be seen inside. The 
 huge cylindrical Norm, buttress fill- 
 ing up the E. angles of the W. tower 
 piers, and the Norm, arches opening 
 from the aisles into the transept, 
 should here be noticed. Here we 
 may mention that the great hell, 
 recast in 1866, was the gift of 
 Cardinal Wolsey, who in the early 
 part of his career was rector of 
 
Dorsetshire. Monte 12. — Sherhorne ; Abbey Church. 
 
 177 
 
 Limington, near Ilchester. It was the 
 smallest of 7 brought from Toiirnay ; 
 the others were given to Lincoln, 
 Exeter, Oxford, &c. 
 
 The N. transept contains a magni- 
 ficent organ, by Gray and Davison, 
 the tones of which peal gloriously 
 beneath the vaulted roof. The bosses 
 of this ceiling are the finest in the 
 church. On the E. side of the tran- 
 sept is a small chapel, retaining 
 Norm, walls and traces of work of 
 the same date, known as the Wich- 
 ham Chapel. 
 
 The 8. transept has a framed roof 
 of black Irish oak. The S. window 
 is one of noble dimensions filled with 
 glass by Hardman after a design by 
 Pugin, illustrating the *'Te Deum." 
 On the W. wall is a cumbrous mo- 
 nument to John Digby, Earl of 
 Bristol, d. 1698, with statues of him- 
 self and 2 wives by Nost, an Italian 
 sculptor, and an epitaph by Bp. 
 Hough. Below the *'Te Deum " 
 window a tablet to the memory of 
 2 children of William Lord Digby 
 challenges notice by an epitaph from 
 the pen of Pope. 
 
 The choir presents a tout-ensemble 
 of unusual magnificence with its in- 
 tricate-traceried roof, glowing with 
 rich colour, its painted windows, its 
 panelled walls, gorgeous with poly- 
 chrome, its sculptured reredos, metal 
 candelabra and gates, carved oak 
 stalls, and encaustic tiled floor. The 
 general impression is one of har- 
 monious richness. The visitor will 
 notice the deep Indian -red of the 
 stonework, the effects of the con- 
 flagration, which contributes no little 
 to the general richness of effect. The 
 altar or martyr window, and those of 
 the clerestory, are filled with painted 
 glass by Messrs. Clayton and Bell of 
 London. In the former are repre- 
 sented the Entry into Jerusalem, the 
 Agony and Betrayal, the Ecce Homo, 
 the Bearing the Cross, the Cruci- 
 fixion and Resurrection, and, in the 
 tracery, the various orders of mar- 
 tyrs ; in the latter, life-size figures 
 [Wilts, Dorset, ^c, 1882.] 
 
 of saints, &c., and of the bishops of 
 the ancient see of Sherborne. The 
 reredos designed by Mr. Carpenter, 
 a rich work of Caen stone, forms a 
 frame-work for 2 large subjects in 
 alto-relievo, designed by Mr. Slater, 
 the Last Supper, and Ascension ; and 
 near it is a monumental brass in 
 memory of the late Lord Digby, to 
 whose munificence the present beau- 
 tiful appearance of the nave is mainly 
 due. 
 
 Adjoining the N. choir aisle is an 
 E. E. chapel with an eastern triplet, 
 known as Bp. Roger's Chapel. This 
 is now used as a vestry, and con- 
 tains some of the incongruous monu- 
 ments that formerly disfigured the 
 church. This has been ** ingeni- 
 ously formed by building 2 E. E. 
 walls to form N. and E. sides, and 
 utilising the E. wall of Bp. Roger's 
 Chapel and the N. wall of the aisle, 
 decorated with the external Norm, 
 intersecting arcades." — M'illis. In 
 this aisle are some remains of early 
 monuments, including mutilated efii- 
 gies of several early Abbots and a 
 fragment of the tombstone of Abbot 
 Clement, 1163. In the procession 
 path behind the high altar, lie the 
 Saxon kings Ethelbald and Ethelbert, 
 elder brothers of Alfred. 
 
 The Horsey monument with effi- 
 gies of Sir John, d. 1546, and Dame 
 Edith his wife, d. 15G4, has been re- 
 moved to the Wickham Chapel. Sir 
 Thomas Wyatt, the poet, is said to be 
 buried in the ch., but there is no 
 monument to him. Here also rests 
 Asser, Alfred's biographer. In St. 
 Catherine's Chapel is a canopied 
 tomb with effigies to John Lewston, 
 d. 1584, and his wife Joan. 
 
 The E. E. Lady-chapel to the E. 
 of the choir escaped the conflagra- 
 tion, and is noticed by Leland as 
 " an old piece of work that the fire 
 came not to." The opening of the 
 Lady-chapel to the ch. was by a fine 
 E. E. arch, now blocked : the centre 
 not coinciding with that of the choir, 
 the corbels of the fan-vault of the 
 
 N 
 
178 Boiite 12. — Sherborne; 
 
 Grammar School, Dorsetshire. 
 
 procession patli are out of symmetry. 
 It was of three bays; two were 
 pulled down at the Dissolution, and 
 the remainder, together with a frag- 
 ment of Abbot Kamsam's chapel of 
 " Our Lady of Bow,"' at the E. end 
 of the S. aisle, was converted in 1559 
 into a residence for the master of the 
 recently -founded Free School, with 
 the co-operation of Jewell, then 
 Bishop of Salisbury, whose shield is 
 seen in the very picturesque S. 
 fa5ade of the building, beneath the 
 Eoyal Arms. The E.E. vaults of the 
 Lady-chapel, and the rich fan- 
 traceried ceiling of the later chapel, 
 may be seen in the upper rooms of 
 the house, which is now used as an 
 infirmary for sick boys, a new resi- 
 dence having been built for the 
 master. 
 
 After the Abbey Church, the chief 
 object of attraction to the visitor is 
 the King^s or Grammar School, which 
 has of late years outgrown its original 
 dimensions, and now consists of 
 buildings occupying five courts. 
 This school, founded in 1550 by 
 Edw. VL, when Protector Somerset 
 was residing at Sherborne Castle, 
 contests with that of Bury St. Ed- 
 munds the title to be the earliest of 
 the young king's educational founda- 
 tions. Under a succession of able 
 and energetic head-masters, Sher- 
 borne Grammar School has gained 
 a well-deserved reputation as one of 
 the leading public schools of the 
 S.W. of England. The remains of 
 the Abbey buildings, which lay to 
 the N. of the ch., after centuries of 
 desecration, were in 1851 presented 
 by Edward, Earl E>igby, to the 
 governors of the Grammar or King's 
 School, and have been incorporated in 
 its buildings. They consist of a 
 fragment of the Monhs' Dormitory, 
 attached to the N. transept ; the 
 Guesten Hall (erroneously called the 
 Eefectory), long used as a silk mill, 
 subsequently the School -room, and 
 now the Library, running northwards 
 from the N. angle of the W. front of 
 
 the Abbey Ch. ; the Ahhots' Hall (at 
 right angles to the Guesten Hall), 
 now the School CAap^/— consecrated 
 in 1855, extended 1865 — to which 
 the N. or Harper Aisle was added 
 1878 and prolonged 1881, in com- 
 memoration of Dr. Harper, Principal 
 of Jesus College, Oxford, for 27 years 
 the head-master ; and, to the S. E. 
 of the chapel, the Abbots' Lodging, 
 now converted into studies. The 
 Guesten Hall and Chapel are Perp., 
 with fine oak roofs, standing upon a 
 restored vaulted Norm, substructure. 
 The Abbot's Lodging is a singularly 
 picturesque building, with a fine 
 canopied doorway now blocked, and 
 niches, with remains of the Evangel- 
 istic symbols. The Library contains 
 among other curious and valuable 
 books a remarkable collection of 
 Bibles in Irish, Gothic, Ked Indian, 
 and other languages, the musical 
 works of Orlando di Lasso, &c. 
 
 There are two entrances to the 
 school precincts, that for the general 
 public to the N., where the visitor 
 will find a porter's lodge, and obtain 
 the keys of the chapel, library, &c. ; 
 and a private entrance to the head 
 master's house to the S., close to the 
 east gate of the church close, con- 
 tiguous to the old Lady-chapel. 
 Over this latter doorway is a Latin 
 couplet recording the foundation of 
 the school. Passing through this 
 doorway another curious Latin in- 
 scription may be read, and if possible 
 deciphered by the visitor, on the S. 
 face of the Old School-room, built in 
 1670 (now the dining-hall of the 
 School-house^, and containing a statue 
 of the royal founder. The distich 
 is from the pen of Mr. John Good- 
 enough, head-master 1670-1684. The 
 sum of the capital letters will be 
 found to make up the date of the 
 erection. 
 
 On entering by the porter's lodge, 
 the school quadrangle, formerly the 
 Abbey Litten or cemetery (A. S. lie, 
 corpse, tun, enclosure), we have on 
 the W. side of the area, now the 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 12, — Sherborne; Castle, 
 
 179 
 
 principal court of the school, a very- 
 stately new School-room, with its long 
 line of roof picturesquely broken 
 by tall gabled windows, erected, 
 1879, from the designs of Messrs. 
 Carpenter and Ingelow. Facing the 
 entrance, S., are the School Chapel ^md 
 the Abbot's Lodging (see above). 
 Stretching along the E. side is the 
 Head Master's House, with dormi- 
 tories, &c., attached. Beyond this, 
 E., are the Bell Buildings, erected by 
 Dr. Lyon in 1835, now forming part 
 of the . school-house and connecting 
 it with the old school-room (see 
 above). At the S.W. corner of the 
 court a small inner quadrangle is 
 formed by the chapel, library, and a 
 picturesque block of Class-rooms con- 
 nected with the new school-room by 
 a cloister. Still further to the W. 
 are workshops, a laboratory, lecture- 
 room, museum, fives courts, and a 
 large swimming-bath supplied by a 
 running stream. 
 
 To the S.E. of the ch. is one of the 
 gateways of the Abbey, beyond which 
 at the bottom of Cheap St. stands 
 the Abbey Conduit, erected by Abp. 
 Frith, 1349-71, groined within, bear- 
 ing the escutcheon of Sir John 
 Horsey, who removed it from the 
 centre of the cloisters. The S. side 
 of the Abbey Close facing Half-Moon 
 Street is occupied by the Church House, 
 an ancient but mutilated building 
 deserving notice. 
 
 The old Vicarage, an interesting 
 14th cent, building, has been pulled 
 down. The less that is said of its 
 successor the better. 
 
 After the ch. and school the most 
 interesting object in the town of Sher- 
 borne is the Alms House, or properly 
 the Hospital of St. John Baptist, founded 
 in 1406, on the basis of an older 
 institution. The buildings were 
 erected in 1 448 and are a very good 
 example of their class, including 
 a Hall below, with dormitories over 
 each opening to the E. into a chapel, 
 the whole height of the buildings 
 parted off by a screen. Some good 
 
 glass remains in the S. windows. Ad- 
 ditional buildings in excellent style 
 by Mr. Slater were erected in 1S65. 
 In one of the rooms is a Triptych of 
 the Flemish school, representing our 
 Lord's 3 acts of raising the dead, and 
 other of His miracles. 
 
 St. Thomas-a-Bechef s Chapel, in 
 the higher part of the town, now a 
 School of Art, preserves some traces 
 of antiquity. 
 
 The Yeatman Memorial Hospital, 
 erected 1865 in memory of the Rev. 
 H. F. Yeatman of Stock House, in 
 the upper part of the abbey precinct, 
 harmonizes with the general archi- 
 tectural character of the town. 
 
 Pach-Mondag Fair is held at Sher- 
 borne on the Monday after Old 
 Michaelmas Day, the anniversary 
 of the completion of the nave by 
 Abbot Eamsam, when, according 
 to the tradition, the workmen were 
 ordered to pack and be off by mid- 
 night on Sunday ; and now, annually, 
 the clocks striking 12 is followed by 
 a din of horn-blowing, clattering of 
 tin kettles, and other rude instru- 
 ments of music. 
 
 Sherborne was the birthplace of 
 Joseph Towers, a learned divine, b. 
 1737, and here the tragedian Mac- 
 readg found a retreat from the stage, 
 and devoted himself to the educa- 
 tional improvement of his poorer 
 neighbours. 
 
 After inspecting the ch. and school 
 the traveller should proceed up Long 
 St. to the ruins of the Castle to the E. 
 of the town. The entrance to the 
 Castle is at the lodge by Cast let on 
 Ch., a small Jacobean building. The 
 Castle occupies a rising knoll of rock 
 capped with gravel, at the junction of 
 brooks, forming a natural defence, 
 one of which now feeds the orna- 
 mental water. The Castle was from 
 the 8th century the principal resi- 
 dence of the Bps. of Sherborne, and 
 was confirmed to the see of Sarum by 
 Wm. the Conqueror. The existing 
 Castle was the work of Bp. Roger, 
 1107-42, Henry I.'s warlike Chan- 
 N 2 
 
180 
 
 Monte 12. — Slierhorne ; Castle. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 cellor, the great church and castle 
 builder of his age. The Bp. having 
 espoused the side of the Empress 
 Maud, his Castle was seized by Ste- 
 phen 1139, retaken by Maud, and re- 
 tained in the hands of the Crown under 
 various pleas for 200 years. In 1337 
 it was alienated by Edw. III. to 
 Montacute, Earl of Salisbury, from 
 whom it was recovered byBp. Wyvil 
 in 1355. The Bp. challenged the 
 Earl to wager of battle. The cham- 
 pions were appointed and the day 
 fixed, when a compromise was 
 effected, the Bp. securing possession 
 of the stronghold of his see for the 
 payment of 2500 marks. In 1375 he 
 died at his castle, in defence of which 
 he had proved himself a " pugil in- 
 trepidus,'* as he is styled on his brass 
 in Salisbury Cathedral, which bears 
 a rude representation of this strong- 
 hold. In the spoliation of the 
 Church that followed the accession of 
 Edw. VI. it was made over to Pro- 
 tector Somerset, but restored subse- 
 quently to the see, and finally alie- 
 nated to Sir Walter Raleigh by Bp. 
 Cotton as the price of his promotion. 
 Raleigh before his conviction settled 
 the estate on his son, but an accidental 
 flaw in the deed enabled James I. to 
 wrest it from him and bestow it on 
 his minion, Carr, Earl of Somerset. 
 It is said that Lady Raleigh begged 
 the monarch on her knees to spare 
 her son's heritage, but his only reply 
 was *' I maun hae the lond; I maun 
 hae it for Carr.'' On Somerset's 
 conviction for Overbury's murder 
 the land reverted to the Crown, 
 and was granted by James to 
 Sir G. Digby, twice ambassador to 
 Spain, created Earl of Bristol 1618. 
 In the Great Rebellion it was one 
 of the first fortresses attacked by the 
 Parliamentarians, and one of the last 
 to hold out for the King. In 1642 it 
 was held by the Marquis of Hertford 
 for the King against the Earl of Bed- 
 ford. The Earl's sister. Lady Anne 
 Digby, who was then staying at the 
 Lodge, rode to her brother's quarters 
 
 and told him, if he persisted in his 
 purpose of demolishing the Castle 
 and Lodge, he should find his 
 sister's bones buried in the ruins." 
 The siege continuing, the Marquis 
 was hard pressed, and offered to sur- 
 render on conditions. If they were 
 not accepted, he threatened to place 
 Lady Anne as a flag of defiance on 
 the battlements. On the 5th day 
 the Earl raised the siege. In 1645 
 Sir Lewis Dives, Lord Bristol's step- 
 son, being governor, after a siege 
 of 16 days, it was taken by Fairfax 
 on his triumphant progress through 
 the West, who found in it so much 
 plunder that he held a fair on the 
 occasion. Sir L. Dives, Sir John 
 Strangways, 55 gentlemen, and 600 
 soldiers, were taken prisoners. The 
 castle was then destroyed, in the 
 language of the time *' slighted," by 
 order of the Parliament, and with a 
 part of its materials were built 
 Castleton church and the wings of 
 the present mansion. The last inci- 
 dent of any consequence that oc- 
 curred at Sherborne Castle was the 
 visit of the Prince of Orange, who 
 slept in the modern mansion on his 
 road from Torbay to London, 1688. 
 
 The castle is entered by the Gate 
 House, *'a very peculiar and inte- 
 resting structure, certainly Nor- 
 man" {G. T. Clark), picturesquely 
 clothed with ivy. A Norman chim- 
 ney-shaft at the N.W. angle deserves 
 attention. The windows are Tudor. 
 The remains of the Castle are chiefly 
 confined to the solid walls of the Keep. 
 A very noble cylindrical pillar still 
 stands supporting the floor of the 
 Hall above, which has perished, and 
 there are some dark barrel-vaulted 
 apartments of the substructure. Of 
 the Chapel, which projected at right 
 angles to the N.E., with a vaulted 
 basement for stores, the walls alone re- 
 main ; that to the S., ornamented with 
 an intersecting arcade resembling 
 that in Bp. Roger's work in the 
 minster. On the N. is a good Norm, 
 window, and there are remains of 
 
Dorsetsliire. Boute 12. — Sherborne; Cemetery; Park. 181 
 
 the E. window with a bold chevron 
 moulding. The chapel was on the 
 upper story, and the traces of the 
 projecting staircase are still visible. 
 Another building, also of two spires, 
 projects S. at right angles to the 
 chapel. The basement was barrel- 
 vaulted. The upper room may have 
 been the Hall. 
 
 Passing through the Castle Green 
 verdant banks clothed with wood and 
 shrubbery slope down to the lake, 
 enlivened by numerous swans, on 
 the S. side of which rises the pre- 
 sent Castle (G. D. Wingfield Digby, 
 Esq.) formerly known as the 
 Lodge," a quaint and picturesque 
 structure. The regular way of ap- 
 proach to it and the park is from the 
 other side of the river. The house is 
 not usually shown ; but the exterior 
 may be seen by all, as there is a pub- 
 lic footway through the park. The 
 ground-plan is in the form of the 
 letter H, consisting of a centre and 
 two far-projecting wings, the former 
 built by Sir Walter Raleigh, 1594, 
 the latter by the Earl of Bristol, 
 after the Restoration. The entrance 
 into the court-yard is by an arch of 
 Hamhill stone, surmounted by the 
 crest of the Digbys, an ostrich hold- 
 ing a horseshoe in its beak, a device 
 which originated in the vulgar notion 
 that this bird could digest iron. Over 
 the central doorway appear the arms 
 of Sir Walter Raleigh, with the date 
 1594. The house contains several 
 portraits of the Digby family, includ- 
 ing one of Sir Kenelm Digby, the 
 Countess of Southampton by Corn. 
 Jansen, and a full-length of Dogget, 
 the actor, by Murmn ; also the 
 Procession of Queen Elizabeth, a 
 noted picture by Mark Gerrard of 
 Bruges. It probably represents Eli- 
 zabeth in a sedan-chair, as she was 
 carried to Blackfriars to the mar- 
 riage of Lord Herbert and Anne, 
 daughter of John Lord Russell, 
 June, 1600, by 6 noblemen of her 
 court. Lord Cobham carrying the 
 sword of state before her, Knights 
 
 of the Garter walking in advance, 
 and ladies following in the train. 
 The furniture and fittings of the 
 interior are in admirable keeping. 
 
 The Park, of over 300 acres, rises 
 steeply to the S. and is well wooded. 
 Towards the E. side are a number of 
 huge old oaks, perfect giants of their 
 race. It is a delightful place for a 
 long ramble, every now and then 
 rousing the herds of deer from the 
 fern. The platforms will be noticed 
 among the branches of the trees 
 where the keepers are posted to bring 
 down a stag. The view from Jerusa- 
 lem Hill is very wide and beautiful. 
 The pleasure grounds near the house, 
 where, in the words of Pope, who 
 visited " the good Lord Digby " here 
 and described the place in a long let- 
 ter to Martha Blount " you lose your 
 eyes in the glimmering of the waters 
 under the wood, and your ears in the 
 constant dashing of the waves," were 
 laid out by the famous "Capability 
 Brown.'' A stone seat is pointed out 
 as the spot where Raleigh was in the 
 habit of smoking, with a lower stone 
 for the bowl of the pipe to rest on. 
 The Dairy contains a tessellated 
 pavement discovered on Lenthay 
 Common. 
 
 The tourist should not omit to 
 walk past the school cricket-ground 
 to the Cemetery, h m. W. from the 
 town, for the sake of the splendid 
 Mortuary Chapel, in the Italian 
 Gothic style, of Hamhill stone, with 
 columns of Devonshire, Irish, and 
 Italian marble, erected by Mr. Digby 
 at an immense cost. The arch of 
 entrance is richly carved, and en- 
 closes a bas-relief of the Resurrec- 
 tion. Within is a bas-relief of the 
 entombment of Christ. The windows 
 are filled with stained glass, and the 
 sacrarium is paved in mosaic. 
 
 [The country round Sherborne is 
 agreeably diversified with hill and 
 dale, naked downs and sheltered 
 valleys, and it may be chosen as a 
 centre for rural walks and drives by 
 
182 
 
 Boute 12. — Sherborne; Vicinity, 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 a tourist with time at his [disposal. 
 Trent, the hiding-place of Charles II., 
 with its beautiful Ch, (see Rte. 23), is 
 3-| m. N.W. Sandford Orcas, of which 
 Bp. Godwin, author of the Catalogue 
 of Bishops, was rector, with its fine 
 Elizabethan Manor House, 3 m. N..^ 
 and the fine entrenchment of Cad- 
 bury, 6 m. N. 
 
 . 4 m.'S.E. is Purse Caundk, with a 
 small Perp. church. On the N. is a 
 mortuary chapel of the Longs. A 
 canopy once covering the effigies of 
 William Long, d. 1524, now shelters 
 the^altar-tomb of John Hoskyns and 
 his wife, d. 1714, and several monu- 
 mental brasses. The ingenious " 
 Dr. Nathanael ^ Higmore, celebrated 
 by Boyle for his searches in physio- 
 logy, an eminent physician at Sher- 
 borne, d. 1685, lies buried here. 
 N.W. of the church is a large 
 ancient mansion, chiefly of the time 
 of Elizabeth, absurdly miscalled 
 " King John's House." The hall is 
 entered by an arched porch. Half- 
 way up a stone staircase leading to 
 the upper floor is a well of never- 
 failing water. Dr. Peter Mews, d. 
 1706, the military bishop who com- 
 manded the royal artillery at the 
 battle of Sedgmoor, successively 
 Bishop of Bath and Wells, and of 
 Winchester, was born in this parish, 
 1618. 
 
 2^ m. N.E. Foyntington Ch, has a 
 Norm, door, and the recumbent effigy 
 of a knight of the Cheyney family. 
 
 A caricature of a Gothic apse of 
 foreign design has been unfortu- 
 nately added to the church, which 
 has in other respects suffered much 
 from restoration. There is a Manor 
 House of late Tudor style, with a 
 gate house forming one side of a 
 quadrangular court, and remains of 
 the hall and detached kitchen oppo- 
 site. The Parsonage has four windows 
 of early Perp., once lighting the 
 hall. 
 
 Poyntington was in the 17th cent, 
 the residence of Chief Justice Malet, 
 who, for his loyalty to his royal 
 
 master, suffered severely in purse 
 and person. He was thrown into 
 the Tower, 'where he was kept till 
 the Kestoration. In June 1645 a 
 sharp engagement took place here 
 between the loyal country-folk and 
 the Parliamentary soldiers of Sher- 
 borne. The battlefield is still marked 
 by the graves of the slain. 
 
 4. m. N. on the W. declivity of the 
 Corton Hills is the little secluded 
 village of Corton Denliam. The Ch, 
 has been rebuilt, and the curious oak 
 seats, bearing date 1541, removed. 
 Some of them are in Rimpton Church. 
 
 5J m. S.E. is Bishop's Caundle, with 
 a good small Perp. ch., well re- 
 stored. The ch. of Holwell, for- 
 merly on an island of Somersetshire, 
 I m. further S., stands very pic- 
 turesquely on the bank of a branch 
 of the little river Lidden. The N. 
 aisle has a rich oak roof. Here is 
 Buckshaw House.'^ 
 
 The rly. continues along the valley 
 of the Yeo, or Ivel, and passes close to 
 the noble ch. of Bradford Abbas 1. 
 which may be conveniently visited 
 from Yeovil June. Stat. 1 m., or Yeovil 
 Stat. 2 m. The village takes its name • 
 from the broad ford over the Yeo, and 
 its distinctive appellation from the 
 Abbot of Sherborne, to whom it 
 was given by King Alfred, and who 
 had a mansion at Wyke^ about 1 m. 
 E., the site of which is moated. 
 There is a large stone barn, strongly 
 buttressed, 90 ft. long. The house 
 bears the date 1650. Bradford Ch. 
 which has been carefully restored, is 
 Perp. and well deserves notice. The 
 tower is one of the finest in the county, 
 about 90 ft. high, divided into 4 com- 
 partments, supported by graceful but- 
 tresses, lessening as they ascend, and 
 surmounted with pinnacles. The W. 
 front is richly decorated with 11 
 canopied niches, only 2 retaining 
 mutilated statues. The chancel is 
 poor, but there is a S. chapel with a 
 pedimented doorway which deserves 
 notice. A screen of Hamhill stone 
 
Dorsetstire. Boute 13. — Southampton to Weymouth. 183 
 
 divides the nave and chancel. The 
 panelled roof is ornamented with red 
 and white roses indicating the date. 
 The woodwork is excellent. In the 
 churchyard is a mutilated cross, of 
 rich design. 
 
 This parish is united with that of 
 Clifton Mauhank, 1 m. W. The ch. 
 has disappeared, together with the 
 greater part of the mansion of the 
 Horseys, of which this was the seat 
 from the time of Eich. II., by mar- 
 riage with the heiress of the Mau- 
 banks. The present house, of the end 
 of the 15th cent., is only one wing of 
 the original mansion. It has a rich 
 open parapet along the front, and a 
 good oriel window projecting from 
 the end gable at a very unusual 
 height, ornamented with the Tudor 
 rose and the horses' heads of the 
 Horseys. The front is divided by 
 small turrets. The annexed build- 
 ings contain a loopholed stair turret, 
 and some original fire-places, and 
 a good panelled door. Inigo Jones 
 designed a gateway for the mansion 
 which, when the house was disman- 
 tled, was removed to Hintou St. 
 George (Rte. 28). Some very rich 
 panelled work was transported to 
 Montacute House, where it forms an 
 ornamental screen connecting the 
 wings (Rte. 23). 
 
 122 i m. Yeovil Junction and 
 
 124 Yeovil (Rte. 23). 
 
 EOUTE 13. 
 
 SOUTHAMPTON TO WEYMOUTH BY 
 WIMBORNE MINSTER, POOLE, 
 WAREHAM [CORFE CASTLE], AND 
 DORCHESTER [ABBOTSBURY]. 
 
 {London and South-Western Bailioay.) 
 
 [For the rly . from Southampton to 
 
 Ringwood, see IRuvlbook to HantSy'Rte. 
 23.] 
 
 4 m. from Ringwood Station the 
 rly. crosses the Moors river, which 
 divides the counties, and at West- 
 moors Junction Stat., 30j m. from 
 Southampton West, enters Dorset- 
 shire, and crossing Hampreston Heath, 
 one of the wild desolate tracts not 
 wanting in many elements of the 
 picturesque which characterize the 
 S. E. part of the county, reaches at 
 
 34 m. 1. Little Canford, in the rich 
 valley of the Stour, and at 
 
 35i m. WiMBORNE Stat. (The 
 town lies J m. N. W. Omnibuses meet 
 every train.) {Inns : Crown ; King's 
 Head ; Railway Hotel. Pop. 5938.) 
 The ancient town of Wimborne, the 
 Vindoglculia of the Roman itineraries, 
 more famous in the early West- 
 Saxon annals than in later times, — 
 Leland writes, it hath bene a very 
 large thing and was in price in the 
 tyme of the West Saxon kings," — 
 stands in a valley, the Stour flowing 
 on the S. side of the town, and the 
 Allen or Win to the E., joining the 
 Stour a few yards above Canford 
 Bridge. It is a clean, neat, and 
 pleasant town. The Somerset and 
 Dorset Rly. branches off" here by 
 Blandford to Temple Combe and 
 Glastonbury, and joins the Great 
 Western at Highbridge. 
 
 The Minster^ which gives its name 
 to the town, is a cruciform building, 
 with a Transition-Norman tower of 
 
184 
 
 Boute 13. — Wimhorne Minster, Dorsetshire. 
 
 red sandstone (from quarries near 
 Kingwood) at the intersection, and a 
 second tower of Perp. date (U48) at 
 the W. end of the nave. These 
 towers group most picturesquely 
 from nearly every point of view, and 
 give the church a majesty of outline 
 hardly warranted by its size. The 
 double use to which it was applied is 
 indicated by its form. The central 
 tower of the true minster type, and 
 the western tower of ordinary paro- 
 chial character, point at once to its 
 twofold purpose as a collegiate and 
 parish church. The structure is one 
 of great singularity and beauty, and 
 will repay a lengthened examination. 
 It has suffered restoration, which, 
 however commendable, has wiped 
 out the charm of antiquity. 
 
 The history is soon told. It was 
 founded as a nunnery by Cuthberga, 
 sister of King Ina, c. 7oO. Alfred's 
 elder brother Ethelred was buried 
 here in 871. His son Ethel wald, 
 the pretender, in 901 seized the town 
 and shut himself up in it against his 
 cousin Edward the Elder, who was 
 encamped at Badbury. Hopeless of 
 success, he fled in the night, leaving 
 one of the nuns he had carried otf 
 and married, who was sent back to 
 her convent. In 962 a certain King 
 Sigeferth, possibly a Danish prisoner, 
 killed himself, and was buried here. 
 Secular canons took the place of the 
 nuns before the Conquest: the 
 change is attributed to Edward the 
 Elder, c. 920. It continued a col- 
 legiate ch. till the Reformation. The 
 Deanery was generally held in plu- 
 rality by some ^ bishop or dis- 
 tinguished nominee of the Crown. 
 Among the deans were John Mansell, 
 Chaplain to Hen. III., Kirkbv, Bp. of 
 Ely, 1286 ; Gilbert Keymer,*'Dean of 
 Salisbury and Chancellor of Oxford, 
 d. U63; Oldham, Bp. of Exeter, a 
 great favourite with the Lady Mar- 
 garet, and Hornby her executor ; and 
 in 1517 Reginald Pole (afterwards 
 cardinal and archbp.), then a lad of 
 17. The existing foundation of 3 
 
 priests, with a staff of singing men 
 and choristers, dates from the time 
 of Elizabeth. 
 
 The original Norman ch. consisted 
 of a nave of 4 bays and a choir of 2, 
 and transepts of only half the pre- 
 sent projection. Of this remain the 
 lantern arches, the piers of the nave, 
 and the clerestory brought to light 
 during the late repairs, together Avith 
 the walls of the transept and choir. 
 Both of these last have been extended. 
 The singular cylindrical staircase 
 turret, now projecting into the N. 
 trans., stood originally at its N.W. 
 angle. 
 
 The Central Tower, of Trans. Nor- 
 man, later than the piers which sup- 
 port it, for which it is provin^j too 
 heavy, was originally surmounted 
 by a stone spire, which fell in 1600. 
 It forms a very noble open lantern of 
 2 stories within. The pinnacles and 
 battlements were added after the fall 
 of the spire. The Western Tower, 
 in building, 1448-1468, though well 
 proportioned, is of a commonplace 
 type, and has no elaborate workman- 
 ship. 
 
 The most striking part of the 
 interior is the Lantern, " The small 
 height of the ch.," says Mr. Petit, 
 "which brings this lantern nearer 
 to the eye, perhaps gives it a gran- 
 deur we do not equally recognise 
 in loftier buildings. I do not know 
 an interior more striking in its effect 
 than this portion of Wimborne Mins- 
 ter." Above the lantern the squinches 
 of the spire are still to be seen. The 
 S. window of the trans, is very good 
 Dec. The addition to the N. tran- 
 sept was known as Dean Brembre's 
 chantry, or Death's Aisle, a figure of 
 Death having been painted on the 
 walls. 
 
 The Kave contains 3 pointed Trans, 
 arches richly set with zigzag mould- 
 ings, set on earlier piers. The origi- 
 nal clerestory may be traced above. 
 The present clerestory is of square- 
 headed Perp. windows; the small 
 arch immediately W, of the tower 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 13. — Wimhorne Minster. 
 
 185 
 
 marks the site of the rood-loft, the 
 choir having been, as was usual in 
 Norman churches, under the lantern. 
 Two late Dec. or Perp. bays com- 
 plete the nave to the W. A lunar 
 orrery at the W. end of the nave dis- 
 plays the moon's phases. A quarter- 
 boy notes the lapse of time with his 
 hammer and bell. 
 
 The Choir is raised on a vaulted 
 crypt, constructed in the Dec. style, 
 beneath the existing E.E. work (com- 
 L-'pare St. Joseph's Chapel at Glaston- 
 ^ ^ bury). The walls of the two first 
 j^"^^ bays are Norman, the eastern exten- 
 sion E. E. The eastern window 
 ^.(tilled with rich glass from Italy, 
 given by the Bankes family) is one 
 ^\ of great singularity and beauty: "a 
 f"**' good example of plate tracery, show- 
 C ing germs of tracery of the developed 
 type. It is, I suppose, unique.'' /. L. P. 
 V k The clerestory of the choir is modern. 
 
 ^ I'he S. chapel is known as the Trhiiti/ 
 i^Aisle: the N. chapel as .S'^. George's 
 J Aisle, The choir was fitted with 
 screens and stalls of rich Jacobean 
 work, erected in 1608, to replace 
 those crushed by the fall of the spire. 
 It is greatly to be deplored that in the 
 late repair the supposed necessities of 
 a parish ch. led to the removal of the 
 gates at the W. end of the choir, and 
 the lowering and reconstruction of the 
 very interesting and almost unique 
 exaniples of church fittings. The 
 sedilia and piscina are very good. 
 On the S. side of the choir is a fine 
 altar- tomb with an effigy of John 
 Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, grand- 
 son of John of Gaunt, d. 1444, 
 and Margaret Beauchamp, his wife, 
 erected by their daughter, the Lady 
 Margaret Tudor, mother of Henry 
 VII., who founded a chantry at 
 the E. end of the S. aisle. Oppo- 
 site is another altar-tomb to Ger- 
 trude, Marchioness of Exeter, d. 1556, 
 mother of Edward Courtenay, last 
 E. of Devonshire. In the pavement 
 near the altar a monumental brass 
 with a regal effigy is said to mark 
 the burial-place of St. ^thelred, 
 
 King of the West Saxons, a.d. 873," 
 restored c. 1600. There is also a 
 fine Jacobean monument, removed to 
 the N. choir aisle, to Sir Edward 
 Uvedale, d. 1606. In the same aisle 
 is a mutilated effigy of a mailed 
 knight. Note in the S. chancel aisle 
 also the tomb of Anthony Ettrick, 
 the magistrate who committed the 
 Duke of Monmouth after his capture 
 at AVoodlands. Ettrick was buried 
 in a slate coffin above ground, half- 
 way through the S. wall of the aisle, 
 having, so goes the tale, charged his 
 heirs to bury him neither in the 
 church nor out of it." In the same 
 aisle is the slab of Dean Berwick, d. 
 1 312. On the S. wall within the W. 
 Tower is a brass tablet to the memory 
 of Matthew Prior the poet, "born at 
 Eastbrook in this town, 1664 ; pe- 
 rennis et fragrans." Two daughters 
 of Daniel Defoe, one of whom had 
 married an exciseman here, lie 
 buried in the centre of the N. aisle. 
 The brass eagle bears date 1623. 
 There is a chest hollowed out of a 
 solid oak tree. A fine stone pulpit 
 has been erected in the minster at 
 the cost of Lord Alington. 
 
 To the S. is the Vestry, a groined 
 room Avith sexpartite vaulting, above 
 which is an ancient Librar}/. The visi- 
 tor will remark the iron rods to which 
 the volumes were attached by the 
 chains. Among other curious books 
 there is a MS. of the * Directorium 
 Pastorale,' containing on the fly-leaf 
 the date 1 343 ; a very early example of 
 the use of Arabic numerals. A copy of 
 Raleigh's * History of the World ' has 
 a hole burnt through the leaves from 
 end to end, caused, so the popular 
 tale goes, by a smouldering spark 
 which fell on the volume while 
 Matthew Prior, then a schoolboy of 
 the place, was nodding over the 
 volume by the light of a candle 
 secretly smuggled in. 
 
 The total length of the ch. is 184 
 ft. ; that of the transepts 107 ft. The 
 width of the nave and aisles is 53 ft. ; 
 the height of the central and western 
 
186 Boute 13. — Oanford Manor — Kingston Lacy. Dorsetshire. 
 
 towers to the battlements is 80 ft. 
 and 87 ft. respectively. 
 
 The Grammar ScJiooI, founded by 
 Lady Margaret, Countess of Rich- 
 mond, and re-established by Q. Eli- 
 zabeth, occupies a handsome pile of 
 Elizabethan buildings, erected 1851. 
 The Rev. John Lewis, the historian 
 of the Isle of Thanet and of Wicliff, 
 and Matthew Prior, the poet, were 
 scholars of this school. 
 
 [Wimborne is a good centre from 
 which the tourist may visit Canford 
 Manor, Kingston Lacy, the camp at 
 Badhury Rings, Chai^horough Park, and 
 Monmouth's Ash. 
 
 1 m. S. of Wimborne Stat., ap- 
 proached by pleasant green meadows 
 by the side of the Stour, is 
 
 Canford Manor, the seat of Sir Ivor 
 Bertie Guest (created Lord Wim- 
 borne, 1879) an Elizabethan mansion, 
 built by Blore, in 1826-1836, for 
 Lord de Mauley, and in part re- 
 constructed by Sir C. Barry for Sir 
 John Guest in 1848. It occupies the 
 site of the mansions of the Longe- 
 pees and Montacutes, Earls of Salis- 
 bury, of which the kitchens, usually 
 called John-of-Gaunts, but really of 
 the 16th century, still stand, with 2 
 stupendous fireplaces and curious 
 chimney shafts. The old house was 
 chiefly pulled down in 1765, and the 
 house then erected, that has given 
 place to the present splendid struc- 
 ture, became in 1804 the residence of 
 a society of Teresan nuns from Bel- 
 gium. The tower entrance is re= 
 markably striking, and the hall, with 
 a timber roof, is lofty and well-pro- 
 portioned. The dining-room and the 
 whole of the S. front are by Blore, 
 the remainder of the mansion by Sir 
 Charles Barry. A gallery, connected 
 with the house by a conservatory, 
 contains some Assyrian sculptures 
 brought from Nineveh, and presented 
 to Sir J. Guest, by^Sir A. H. Layard, 
 The gardens are much admired, and 
 beyond them are fir- woods intersected 
 by drives which reach nearly to 
 
 Poole, which was at one time in- 
 cluded in the manor. This manor, 
 held by John of Gaunt, has peculiar 
 privileges, extending over the river 
 from Blandford to the sea, and giving 
 right to a fishery, which is exercised 
 once a-year, under the name of the 
 
 Royal Draft," or "Hawl." The 
 Ch., picturesquely draped with ivy, 
 stands close to the hall, and though 
 small, offers some interesting fea- 
 tures. The original structure was 
 Norm., of which examples may be 
 seen in the chancel-windows, the 
 nave-arcade, the N. and S. door- 
 ways, and the tower, which stands in 
 an unusual position on the N. side of 
 the chancel. The nave was pro- 
 longed, with a new W. front, and 
 the porches rebuilt from Mr. Bran- 
 don's designs, by Sir Ivor Guest 
 (now Lord Wimborne), 1876-8. In 
 a side chapel are monuments by 
 Bacon to the Willetts of Merly. 
 
 Merly House, 1 m., was built 1752-60 
 by Ralph Willett, Esq., from a design 
 of his own in the Vitruvian style. 
 He decorated the Library, containing 
 a well-chosen collection of books, 
 with arabesques and frescoes illustra- 
 tive of the rise of religion and 
 literature, including the figures of 
 Zoroaster, Confucius, Osiris, Manco 
 Capac, Mahomet, and Moses, and 
 " the venerable author of our own 
 most excellent religion." The inte- 
 resting collection of pictures by 
 Hogarth and others has been dis- 
 persed. 
 
 2 m. N.W. from Wimborne, on 
 the upper road to Blandford, a road 
 bounded by elms of remarkable size 
 and beauty, is 
 
 Kingston Lacy, taking its name 
 from its old lords the Lacys, Earls 
 of Lincoln, seat of the Bankes 
 family, one of the oldest (of com- 
 moners) in England. The house, 
 once the residence of James Duke of 
 Ormond, built by Sir Ralph Bankes 
 1663, and renovated by Barry, who 
 added the tall dormers and chimneys, 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute IS, — Kingston Lacy ; Pictures, 187 
 
 is a stately mansion of stone, built 
 hj Webb from Inigo Jones' designs, 
 witli high sloping roof, broken by 
 dormers. The interior exhibits lofty 
 well-proportioned apartments, and a 
 magnificent staircase of white marble, 
 30 ft. wide. The doors have mar- 
 ble frames. Here are preserved the 
 keys and seal of Corfe Castle, so 
 gallantly defended by Lady Bankes ; 
 some beautiful vases, inlaid cabinets, 
 and a small but choice gallery of 
 Italian and Spanish paintings, col- 
 lected with great discrimination and 
 success by the late W. J. Bankes, Esq. 
 " The paintings of the English and 
 Flemish schools have been long in 
 the family — many of them ever since 
 they were painted.'' — Waagen. The 
 frames of some of the pictures are 
 skilfully carved. No private col- 
 lection in England has so many 
 valuable pictures of the Spanish 
 schools. In the rich and tastefully 
 adorned Spanish Room, having walls 
 covered with gilt leather, and of 
 which the ceiling, designed by San- 
 sovino, came from the Contarini 
 palace at Venice, the central com- 
 partment containing the apotheosis 
 of a saint by P. Veronese, are, with 
 compartments containing Cupids by 
 Porclcnone — Velasquez : Philip IV., a 
 whole length, very fine ; (2.) Philip's 
 family, stiffly draped infants, in front 
 a dog, in the background the painter 
 (the original sketch of the celebrated 
 "las Meninas" in the Madrid Gal- 
 lery) : (3.) Head of Cardinal Borgia, 
 Archbishop of Seville : — Spagnolctto : 
 St. Augustine : — Murillo : St. Au- 
 gustine receiving inspiration from 
 heaven : (2.) An angel holding car- 
 dinal's hat over his head, an admirable 
 picture ; a portion cut out of a larger 
 picture, found in the knapsack of a 
 dead French soldier in Spain: (3.) Sta. 
 Rosa and the infant Saviour: — Or- 
 rentes : Moses and the Burning Bush : 
 (2.) Samson and the lion : — Zurha^-an: 
 Sta. Justa, a whole-length, fine: — 
 JRibalta: Virgin and Child with 
 angels -.—Morales ■: Christ scourged : 
 
 — Espinosa: portrait of Francisco 
 Vives (with a dog), a whole length. 
 In the Saloon — liuhens: two fine 
 Avhole-length portraits of the Mar- 
 chese Brigetta Spinola, as the bride of 
 the Doge Doria, and Maria Grimaldi, 
 brought from the Grimaldi Palace, 
 Genoa: — (2.) Rubens and Snegders: 
 Cupids, Fruits, and Flowers : — Vaii- 
 dgck : Charles I. ; Queen Henrietta 
 Maria ; Prince of Wales (afterwards ^ ^ . . » i 
 Charles II.) ; Duke of York (after- f 
 wards James II.) ; Princess Mary J'-'^'T*^ 
 (afterwards Princess of Orange) ; 
 Princes Rupert and Maurice (?) ; 
 Richard Weston, Earl of Portland. 
 [The Jansens and Vandgcks were 
 rescued from Corfe Castle before its 
 destruction] : — Berghem : a hilly land- 
 scape, " a stately picture" : — Raphael: 
 attributed by Waagen to Giulio 
 Romano, Virgin and Child, with 
 St. John ; in the late manner of the 
 artist; the picture bears the mark 
 of King Charles I., and was brought 
 from the Escurial : — Titian: (1.) Om- 
 nia Vanitas, Venus surrounded by 
 jewellery ; (2.) portrait of Marchese 
 Savorgnano : — Salvator Rosa : Mr. 
 Altham, cousin to Sir Ralph Bankes, 
 as a hermit in a desert (painted at 
 Naples): — Grcnie : a child reposing 
 on its pillow; full of sweetness and 
 innocence : — Sir P. Ixlg : a Magdalen. 
 Library — Mrs. Middleton (a dup- 
 licate is at Hampton Court) ; Sir 
 Ralph Bankes ; Lady Jenkinson ; 
 Lady Cullen ; Mrs. Gilly ; Mr. Staf- 
 ford ; Betterton, as Tamerlane 
 (a drawing) : — James, the great 
 Duke of Ormond, who died at King- 
 ston Lacy, 1688; Lord Chancellor 
 Clarendon; and Sir John Bankes, 
 Chief Justice of the Common Pleas : 
 Diefenheck: St. Gregory; St. Jerome; 
 St. Augustine ; St. Ambrose. Dining- 
 room — Guido : a ceiling-picture of 
 Dawn sending forth Day and Night ; 
 "* colossal figures of great power of 
 colour," very badly placed on an up- 
 right wall near the eje:—Annibal 
 Carracci ; — four mythological pieces : 
 — Tintoretto: Apollo and the Muses : 
 
188 
 
 Houte lo. — Badbury Bings. Dorsetshire. 
 
 Giorgione : the Judgment of Solomon, 
 an unfinished sketch from the Mares- 
 calchi Palace, Bologna, " incompa- 
 rably the most important of the whole 
 collection '* — Waagen. Drawing- 
 room: — Corn, Jansen: — Ralph Haw- 
 trey and his lady (parents of Lady 
 Bankes); — Vandervelde : — Sea pieces : 
 — Vandyck : — Sir John and Lady 
 Borlase : — Lawrence : Lady ¥?i- 
 month Bey nolds : Mrs. Woodley: 
 — Romney : Mrs. Bankes : — Weigall : 
 Mrs. Bankes : — H. Bone : A collec- 
 tion of enamel portraits, chiefly of 
 members of the court of Q. Elizabeth. 
 Staircases : — Sneyders : Horse and 
 Wolves ; Bull and Dogs ; taken at 
 Madrid by Buonaparte. The house 
 contains numerous works of art be- 
 sides pictures, including wood carv- 
 ings, marbles, bronzes, inlaid cabi- 
 nets, and paintings in arabesque. 
 The garden front of the houses faces 
 a wide expanse of smooth shaven 
 lawn, bordered with noble trees, re- 
 ceding in deep shadowy glades. At 
 the extreme end of the lawn stands 
 an Egyptian obelisk, transferred to 
 this site from the island of Philse, 
 whence it was removed by Belzoiii. 
 Its base was laid by the Duke of 
 Wellington in 1827. 
 
 Dr. Johnson visited Kingston in 
 company with Reynolds, and asto- 
 nished its master with his uncouth 
 gestures. " The conversation turn- 
 ing on pictures, which he could not 
 well see, he retired to a corner of 
 the room, stretching out his right 
 leg as far as he could before him, 
 then bringing up his left leg, and 
 stretching his right leg still further 
 on. Mr. Bankes observing him, went 
 up to him, and in a very courteous 
 manner assured him that though it 
 was not a new house, the flooring was 
 perfectly safe. The Doctor started 
 from his reverie like a person wakened 
 out of his sleep, but spoke not a 
 word (Boswell, p. 42). 
 
 IJ m. further on is the camp of 
 
 Badbury Rings, This earth- 
 
 work, planted with firs, and set as 
 a crown upon the point of a naked 
 hill, attracts the attention of 
 a traveller approaching it from 
 the W. The stronghold covers a 
 space of about 18 acres, the diameter 
 across the outermost ramparts being 
 about GOO yards, and that of the 
 central area about 300 yards. The 
 principal entrance is to the W.; at 
 this spot the second rampart is 
 thrown forwards so as to form a flat, 
 oblong bastion, about 80 yards in 
 length. In each of its flanks is an 
 opening leading into the outer area. 
 There is a smaller entrance to the E., 
 which is a mere gap in the ramparts, 
 cut straight through. A third direct 
 entrance cut through each bank and 
 through the centre of the great 
 bastion, has been supposed to have 
 been cut by the Romans for the easy 
 entrance of their legions and bag- 
 gage. It is formed by 3 concen- 
 tric rings or ramparts, each with its 
 exterior ditch, from which they rise 
 to the height of 30 or 40 feet, the 
 outermost a mile in circumference, 
 wide spaces intervening between the 
 lines of fortification. It was rather 
 a fortified city than a mere de- 
 fensive stronghold. From the top 
 the panoramic view embraces the 
 Needles and cliffs of Alum Bay, the 
 high land of Purbeck, the woods of 
 Kingston Lacy and Charborough, 
 and the glistening reaches of the 
 Stour. This entrenchment stands on 
 a Roman road which ran hither 
 from Old Sarum, but it was originally 
 a British work. It is identified by 
 Dr. Guest with the famous "Mons 
 Badonicus,'* the site of the great 
 victory gained by the Britons under 
 Arthur over Cerdic and the Anglo- 
 Saxons, A.D. 520, by which the tri- 
 umphant progress of the invaders 
 westward received a serious check. 
 After the death of Alfred the 
 Great his son; Edward the Elder 
 encamped in it. Ethel wald the Pre- 
 tender had seized Wimborne, but on 
 Edward's approach he abandoned 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Boute 13. 
 
 . — Horton. 
 
 189 
 
 it, and eventually joined the Danes 
 in Northumbria. 
 
 Several other seats are situated at 
 some distance round Wimborne : — to 
 the W. 3 m. Henhury House ^ C. J. 
 Parke, Esq. ; 6 m. Lytchet House^ 
 W. R. Fryer, Esq.; 5 m. Ensbury, 
 Capt. J. H. Austen ; and 
 
 8 m. W. Charborough Park, Miss 
 Drax (Rte. 19). 
 
 [To the N. 2 m. is High Hall, on 
 the Allen; 3 m. Uddens House, Sir 
 Edw. Greathed; and Gaunfs House, 
 Sir Richard Glyn, Bart., supposed 
 to have belonged to John of Gaunt ; 
 and More Crichel, l^ord Alington, 
 a fine well-wooded place, formerly 
 belonging to the Napiers, now 
 to the Sturts, burnt 1742, rebuilt 
 by Sir W. Napier, and greatly en- 
 larged by Humphrey Sturt, occupied 
 by George IV. when Regent in 1802 ; 
 6 m. the Woodlands estate, Earl of 
 Shaftesbury, on which the unfor- 
 tunate Duke of Monmouth was cap- 
 tured, July, 1685. (Rte. 8.) ^ 
 
 The circumstances attending the 
 capture of the Duke of Monmouth are 
 thus narrated. Having separated 
 from his companions near Wood- 
 yates inn, where they had been 
 forced to abandon their horses, the 
 Duke, disguised as a peasant, has- 
 tened towards the recesses of the 
 New Forest. Pressed by his pur- 
 suers, he took refuge in some fields 
 called the " Island," in the midst of 
 a heath, in the parish of Horton. 
 The soldiers soon arrived, and, being 
 informed by a woman that she had 
 seen a stranger lurking in the covert, 
 they searched diligently till night- 
 fall, but without success. The next 
 morning, however, when on the 
 point of departure, one of the troop 
 espied the Duke in a ditch, half 
 concealed by the fern. He was im- 
 mediately seized and carried before 
 a magistrate, one Anthony Ettricke 
 of Holt. He was conveyed under 
 a strong guard to Ringwood, and 
 thence to London. The ash-tree 
 
 under which he was discovered still 
 stands on the Woodlands estate, in 
 a field called Monmoutlis Close. At 
 Knolton are the remains of two cir- 
 cular earthworks, possibly of a re- 
 ligious character. Within the smaller 
 stands a ruined church.] 
 
 [Horton, 6 m. N.E., was a cell to 
 Sherborne. Horton Park, once the 
 seat of the Uvedales of More Crichel, 
 numbering many distinguished mem- 
 bers, then of the Sturts, who pur- 
 chased it 1697, and since 1793 the 
 property of the Earls of Shaftesbury, 
 is now occupied by a farmer. An 
 abbey, afterguards a cell to Sherborne, 
 M^as founded here by Ordgar Earl 
 of Devon, father of Queen Elfrida, 
 A.D. 961, mentioned by William of 
 Malmesbury. It is supposed to have 
 been where the church now stands. 
 A singular find of earthen vases and 
 Roman coins took place herein 1875. 
 The Ch.is a quaint-looking structure, 
 almost rebuilt 1720, but retaining 
 some fragments of the earlier build- 
 ing, which appears to have been the 
 priory church. There is a remark- 
 ably fine cross-legged effig)'' in Pur- 
 beck marble (Sir Giles de Braose) 
 much resembling that of Longespee 
 in Salisbury Cathedral, on a low 
 altar-tomb, and an effigy of a lady 
 of corresponding date, both sadly 
 mutilated. In the vestry under the 
 tower is the monument of the not- 
 able Squire Hastings," d. 1650, 
 aged 99, the son of George Earl of 
 Huntingdon, the original of the well- 
 known character drawn of him by 
 Lord Shaftesbury, and inscribed be- 
 neath his portrait at St. Giles's. 
 Woodlands, 1^ m., was his residence ; 
 now all pulled down except some 
 portions of the stables and offices (see 
 * Hones' Everyday Book,* vol. ii. 
 p. 1624). 
 
 I m. S.W. of Horton is Chalbury, 
 with its little Ch., E.E. with Perp. 
 additions, perched on the summit 
 of a very high eminence, command- 
 
190 
 
 Boute 13. 
 
 , — Poole. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 ing an extensive view from the 
 hills beyond Dorchester, W., to the 
 Needles, E. Uddens House in this 
 parish is the seat of Sir Edward 
 Greathed, K.C.B., who with his 
 brothers conferred signal services 
 on this country in the Indian 
 mutiny. 
 
 On an eminence S. of the village 
 of Horton stands the " Observatory/' 
 or Tower built by Humphrey Sturt, 
 Esq. It commands an extensive and 
 beautiful view.] 
 
 [At Little Hinton, 3 m. N., the Ch. 
 has been rebuilt, but the Norman 
 chancel arch has been in part pre- 
 served, containing monuments of the 
 Glyns of Gaunt. Hinton Martel, 2 
 m. farther to the N.E.,had as rector 
 the Eev. Charles Bridges, author of 
 a Commentary on Psalm cxix. and 
 the Book of Proverbs, &c. The Ch, 
 is modern.] 
 
 To proceed on our route : — 
 From Wimborne Stat, the rly. 
 runs due south, and leaving Canford 
 Manor on the 1. and Merly House 
 on the rt., runs over broad black 
 heathy hills, thinly scattered over 
 with firs, crosses the Blackwater, 
 and approaches by an abrupt curve 
 the inlet of Holes Bay, Lytchet Beacon 
 appearing conspicuously on the rt., to 
 
 39f'm. New Poole Junction Stat., 
 whence a branch runs to 
 
 43| m. Poole Stat., whence the line 
 continues to 
 
 44| m. Parkstone Stat., and 
 
 48 m. Bournemouth Stat. {Hdhk, to 
 Hampshire), 
 
 Continuing the main route, we 
 reach 
 
 42 m. Hamworthy Junction Stat, 
 (formerly Poole Junction), where it 
 throws off an arm across the tri- 
 angular tongue of land dividing 
 Wareham Harbour, "W., and Holes Bay, 
 E., on which is the village of Ham- 
 worthy, the Ch. of which, destroyed in 
 
 the Parliamentary wars, was rebuilt 
 1826, to 
 
 45 J Hamworthy Stat, (^formerly 
 Poole Stat.), which, situated on the 
 shore of Poole harbour, an extensive 
 estuary, that has been scooped out by 
 the sea in the yielding tertiary sands 
 and clays, at a comparatively recent 
 period, commands an uninterrupted 
 view of this estuary and its beautiful 
 islands, of the wide heaths which en- 
 compass them, and of the bold chalk 
 range, which, enclosing S. Purbeck 
 like a wall, has a deep cleft in its 
 centre, in which are seen the ruins of 
 Corfe Castle, standing like sentinels 
 in a gateway. ^ 
 
 [N. B. There are now two rly. sta- 
 tions : the Haonworthy Stat, is near the 
 Quay ; the Poole Stat, is at the upper 
 part of the town.] 
 
 43j m. Poole {Inns: London 
 Hotel ; Antelope. Pop. of Pari, 
 borough, 12,303.) Poole, a muni- 
 cipal and Parliamentary borough, 
 returning one member, is an old 
 town of red brick, reminding the tra- 
 veller of such seaports as Sheerness 
 and Portsmouth. It is an intricate 
 cluster of houses, pierced by a High- 
 street a mile in length, and termin- 
 ated towards the water by capacious 
 quays well lined with shipping. 
 Poole is the principal seaport of the 
 county. Its trade for a long period 
 was chiefly with Newfoundland, and 
 thence to the Mediterranean ; but this 
 declined immediately on the fall of 
 Napoleon I., and is now nearly ex- 
 tinct. Its chief activity now is in 
 the coasting trade : its imports being 
 timber, grain, and coal, and its 
 exports potters* clay — about 60,000 
 tons are sent annually to Stafford- 
 shire, London, Seville, Stockholm, 
 and Dordt — and pitwood (fir), for 
 Wales and the North, about 4000 
 tons annually. On the opening of 
 the Somerset and Dorset Railway 
 connecting Poole and Bristol, a 
 steamer ran regularly to Cherbourg 
 (now discontinued), which brought 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Boute 13. — Poole — Upton, 
 
 191 
 
 in a considerab]e number of live 
 stock, poultry, and eggs, and car- 
 ried back some quantity of cotton, 
 tin, and iron. Within the last few 
 years potteries have sprung into ac- 
 tive operation. At Saltern Lake, 
 in Poole Harbour, is the S.W. pot- 
 tery for drain-pipes; at Hamworthy, 
 an architectural pottery ; and one 
 for sanitary pipes, &c., at the W. end 
 of Branksea Island, all of which will 
 well repay a visit. There ^are tAvo 
 iron foundries. 
 
 Poole was originally a member of 
 the manor of Canford, and a portion 
 of that parish. Its name does not 
 appear in Anglo-Saxon or Norman 
 times. The first notice of it is Wil- 
 liam Longespee's charter, long before 
 which, however, it must have existed. 
 By 1224, an embargo laid by Hen. 
 III. on all vessels lying in the port 
 of Poole, amongst others, proves that 
 it was a place of considerable mari- 
 time resort. The town supplied 4 
 ships and 94 men to Ed. III. for the 
 siege of Calais in 1347. It suffered 
 fearfully in 1349 from the "black 
 death," the victims of which were 
 buried on the projecting slip of 
 land known as "the Baiter." Leo 
 von Rosenthal, brother-in-law of 
 the King of Bohemia, embarked 
 here on his return to Germany 
 between 1645 and 1647. In 1483 
 the Earl of Richmond, afterwards 
 Henry VIL, was off Poole with the 
 idea of landing to raise the W. of 
 England, but finding the shores too 
 strongly guarded, made off again. 
 
 Poole was rising in importance in 
 the time of Leland, who speaks of 
 it as "of old tyme a poore fisshar 
 village, in liominiim memoria, much 
 encreasid with fair building and use 
 of marchaundise." 
 
 At the outbreak of the Civil Wars, 
 Poole declared zealously for the Par- 
 liament, and proved a very trouble- 
 some neighbour to the adjacent 
 country. In Aug. 1642 it was sum- 
 moned in the King's name by the 
 Marquis of Hertford, but the deter- 
 
 mined spirit of the townsmen forced 
 him to retire. In 1643 the garrison, 
 aided by that of Wareham, defeated 
 Lord Inchiquin's Irish regiment, and 
 2. days afterwards carried off 3000Z. 
 that Prince Rupert was despatching 
 to Weymouth. 
 
 The same year it had part in the 
 unsuccessful attempt upon Corfe 
 Castle (see pos^), as it had in its cap- 
 ture under Col. Bingham in 1646. 
 In August, 1643, Prince Maurice de- 
 termined to attack the town, but 
 found its preparations too formidable 
 to venture the enterprise. The next 
 month the townsmen found means 
 to decoy the Earl of Crawford who 
 was left in command, and his men, 
 under fire, to their grievous loss, the 
 earl narrowly escaping with his life. 
 In March, 1644, they had their share 
 of disasters, when Sir Thos. Aston, 
 having fallen on 120 of the Par- 
 liamentary horse, drove them with 
 great loss into the very port of Poole, 
 laughing at the cannon balls and 
 bullets that were raining thick upon 
 them from the walls. This disaster 
 was retrieved the following October, 
 when the governor attacked 100 of 
 the Queen's horse, and took 40 pri- 
 soners with 2 colours. 
 
 One of the places of refuge of 
 Charles II. after the battle of Wor- 
 cester was, according to constant 
 family tradition, at Upton, 2 m. W., 
 formerly the seat of the Hileys. 
 
 After the Restoration, Poole had 
 the honour of entertaining Charles 
 II. during the time the court was at 
 Salisbury to avoid the plague in 1665. 
 Another royal visitor was Charles X. 
 of France, who landed here Aug. 23, 
 1830, and passed on to Lulworth 
 Castle. 
 
 From the position of this town on 
 a labyrinth of creeks, it afforded con- 
 venient shelter in former times to a 
 number of very questionable cha- 
 racters^ who obtained a living from 
 the sea by other modes than lawful 
 commerce or fishing. Hence it ac- 
 quired a considerable notoriety, and 
 
192 
 
 Boute 13. — Poole. 
 
 Dorsetsliire. 
 
 became the subject of the following 
 doggrel — 
 
 " If Poole was a fish-pool, and the men of 
 Poole fish, 
 
 There'd be a pool for the devil, and fish for 
 [ his dish." 
 
 One of the most daring and suc- 
 cessful of English buccaneers was 
 Harry Page of Poole, or, as he was 
 more commonly called, Arripay. His 
 enterprises were principally directed 
 against the coasts of France and 
 Spain, where he committed great 
 havoc. On one occasion he brought 
 home .120 prizes from the coast of 
 Brittany. He is said to have 
 " scoured the channel of Flanders so 
 powerfully that no ship could pass 
 that way without being taken/' He 
 ravaged the coast of Spain, burnt 
 Gijon, and carried off the crucifix 
 from Finisterre. At last, in 1406, 
 an expedition was fitted out by the 
 Kings of France and Spain against 
 him, under the command of Pero 
 Nino, Count of Buelna. It sailed 
 along our southern shores, destroying 
 as opportunity offered, until it reached 
 Poole. Here it landed, and a battle 
 ensued, in which the inhabitants, 
 after a brave resistance, were worsted, 
 and forced to retire, leaving the 
 brother of Arripay among the slain. 
 The enemy returned to the ships 
 with some plunder and a few pri- 
 soners, and sailed towards South- 
 ampton. 
 
 The same dauntless spirit subse- 
 quently displayed itself in other ro- 
 mantic adventures. In 1694 Peter 
 JoUitfe, captain of a small hoy, at- 
 tacked a French privateer three times 
 his strength which had captured an 
 English fishing-boat off Weymouth, 
 forced her to give up her prize, and 
 drove her on shore near Lul worth. 
 For this exploit he received a gold 
 chain and medal from William III. 
 The next year William Thompson, 
 master of a fishing-boat, with only 
 a man and a boy, got the better of a 
 privateer of Cherbourg, with 16 men, 
 which was preparing to attack him, 
 
 and brought her safely into Poole 
 harbour, receiving also a gold chain 
 and medal from the Lords of the 
 Admiralty. Nov. .5, 1797, the brig 
 " General Wolfe," of Poole, having 
 been taken by a French privateer, the 
 mate, his man, and a boy, rose against 
 their captors, overpowered them, and 
 brought the brig into Cork harbour. 
 The audacity and determination with 
 which smuggling was carried on 
 along this coast was such that it was 
 with difficulty checked by the Govern- 
 ment after a most desperate resist- 
 ance, marked by some hideous atro- 
 cities. The task was rendered more 
 difficult by the wideness of its rami- 
 fications, and the large number of 
 respectable people who were involved 
 in the illegal traffic. 
 
 Poole furnishes very little to inte- 
 rest the passing stranger. 
 
 The CA., originally a chapel of ease 
 to Canford, a good building of its 
 type, erected in 1820, contains a 
 monument to Captain P. JoUiffe, the 
 Poole hero. Among the incumbents 
 was Thomas Hancock, a bold prea- 
 cher of the doctrines of the Keforma- 
 tion in Edward VI.' s reign, whose 
 autobiography has been published 
 by the Camden Society in ' Nichols' 
 Narratives of the Reformation.' 
 Among the natives of Poole we may 
 notice the Rev. John Lewis, author of 
 ' The History of Thanet,' &c., d. 1746, 
 and Prof. Thos. Bell, the naturalist, 
 born 1792. William Knap, the au- 
 thor of the well-known Psalm tune 
 
 Wareham,"d. 1768, was parish clerk 
 of Poole. The celebrated congre- 
 gationalist minister, J. Angell James 
 of Birmingham, born at Blandford, 
 was apprenticed to a draper here. 
 The antiquary may be interested by 
 an old gateway of the time of Rich- 
 ard HI., and by the long low buttres- 
 sed building at the quay called the 
 Town Cellar, or Wool-house. In the 
 Town Library, Literary and Scientijic 
 Lnstitute there is a Museum, which 
 contains among other thing a good 
 collection of Purbeck fossils, and 
 
Dorsetshire. Bjoute 13. — Poole Harbour — Brownsea Island, 193 
 
 some specimens of the rarer wild 
 fowl shot in the harbour. 
 
 The Guildhall is a red-brick build- 
 ing with stone dressings erected in 
 1761, and contains a portrait of 
 Charles II. in his robes of state. 
 
 Poole is situated in the neighbour- 
 hood of extensive heaths, and all the 
 higher grounds command a prospect of 
 great beauty, seen in perfection when 
 the tide fills the numerous inlets. On 
 the one side there is the sea, on the 
 other the estuary, and beyond it the 
 purple moors extending to the downs. 
 The suburb of Fa?^/istone, on the road 
 to Bournemouth, is a very lovely 
 spot, claiming a climate equal to 
 Bournemoiith. On the high levels 
 and spurs of the hills many beauti- 
 ful villas are erected. At Spring- 
 field (W. Pearce, Esq.) is a good col- 
 lection of ancient and modern paint- 
 ings. 
 
 [Several delightful excursions can 
 be made, viz. — to Brownsea Island, 
 Corfe Castle, Creech Barrow, the Ag- 
 (jlestone, Studland, Bindon Abhei/, and 
 Lidworth Castle. Bournemouth and 
 Wimhorne Minster may also be visited, 
 and the Isle of Furbech (Rte. 17), by 
 a walk round the coast, returning 
 by rail from the Wool Stat. During 
 the summer a steamer runs to Swan- 
 age and back, and several times a 
 week to Bournmouth. 
 
 The harbour of Poole is a beautiful 
 and capacious estuary, resembling at 
 high water an inland lake, which 
 branches in every direction into the 
 heaths which surround it. It opens 
 into a bay bounded at Studland N. by 
 the bastion-like promontory called 
 the Nodes. Beyond this point are 
 the rocks called Old Harry's Wife, 
 and Old Harry. Further round the 
 Foreland is a headland perforated by 
 a rugged archway called Old Harrjfs 
 Gate, then the lofty cavern styled 
 the Parsons Barn, and beyond, the 
 insulated needle called the Pinnacle 
 Mock. Ballard Head forms the N. 
 horn of Swanage Bay ; the oolitic 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 promontory of Peveril Point and 
 Durlston Head the S. This interest- 
 ing chalk range, together with Poole 
 Bay and its islands, is best seen from 
 the steamer which runs in summer 
 between Poole and Swanage. The 
 direction and narrowness of the mout 
 give rise to the phenomenon of 2 
 tides in the time commonly allotted 
 to one. The retreating water runs 
 against the ebb tide of the Channel ; 
 it is driven back and kept ponded in 
 the estuary, until, by its accumulation 
 and the abatement of the Channel 
 current, it obtains an exit. But the 
 rise and fall are very irregular, and 
 even the sailors of the place can never 
 predict Avith certainty the time of 
 high water. 
 
 Broicnsea or Branhsea Island once 
 belonged to Cerne Abbey, and was 
 the abode of a hermit. It was 
 long used as a deer-park by the 
 families who formerly possessed it. 
 Sombre fir-woods clothe its sides, and 
 at its extreme point E. stands Broimsea 
 Castle, first erected as a defence for 
 the harbour in the reign of Hen. 
 VIII., strongly fortified during that of 
 Charles I. by the Parliament, but 
 since occupied as a family residence, 
 and now full of art treasures. A few 
 years ago Brownsea Island was sold 
 to Colonel Waugh, afterwards noto- 
 rious for his connection with the 
 Royal British Bank," so disastrous 
 to himself and others, who, after his 
 purchase, found it to consist mainly 
 of a deposit of potter's clay, in places 
 70 ft. deep, and in ^great part fit for 
 use in Staffordshire. Pits were 
 opened here to a large extent. 
 Potteries, a pier, and a tramroad, 
 were constructed ; and a village and 
 very ornate Dec. Gothic ch. built. 
 Colonel Waugh also added 100 acres 
 to the island by embankment, and 
 made other improvements. After 
 his defalcation, the estate was offered 
 for sale by ; order of the Court of 
 Chancery, and after being for some 
 time in the hands of the mortgagees, 
 was purchased by the Rt. Hon. G. A. 
 
 o 
 
194 
 
 Moute 13. — Wareliam, Dorsetshire. 
 
 F. Cavendish Bentinck, M.P., who 
 has done much to improve its natural 
 beauty. 
 
 The little E.E. chapel of Arne 
 (4 m. from Wareham) stands on a 
 promontory running out into the 
 mud-lands of the estuary, and ter- 
 minating in a long narrow tongue 
 of land known as Patchins or Pagans 
 Point. On the top of the hill is a 
 barrow formerly used as a beacon 
 commanding an extensive view. 
 
 Corfe Castle may be visited from 
 Poole. The ruins stand 2^ m. from 
 Wijch Passage,the usual landing-place; 
 and 4 m. from Ower Passage. Ower 
 was for a considerable period the 
 principal port of the Isle of Purbeck, 
 and the chief if not the only quay for 
 the shipping of stone and marble.] 
 
 After leaving Hamworthy Junc- 
 tion Stat, the rly. crosses Lytchett 
 Bay on a long timber viaduct ; a 
 little beyond which there is a fine 
 view of the Purbeck Hills, with Corfe 
 Castle crowning its mound in the 
 gap. Near this is Lytchett Heath, an 
 Elizabethan house built for Lord 
 Eustace Cecil by D. Brandon. The 
 rly. runs across a richly-tinted 
 moorland, close to the shore of the 
 bay, to 
 
 45 J m. Wareham Stat. Close to 
 the Stat. 1. are the deserted works of 
 the company formed for utilizing the 
 Kimmeridge bituminous earths. 
 
 Wareham {Inns: Red Lion, Bear. 
 Pop. of Pari, borough (including 
 Corfe and Bere Regis) 6192; of 
 urban sanitary district, 2112), a mu- 
 nicipal and parliamentary borough, 
 is a town of remote antiquity, in 
 Saxon times one of the most impor- 
 tant places in Dorsetshire, whose 
 magnificent quadrangular earthworks 
 stood the brunt of many a Danish 
 invasion ; it stands astride the ridge 
 between the rivers Frome, S., and 
 Piddle, N., just above their junc- 
 tion, and a short distance from where 
 their united waters fall into Poole 
 
 Harbour, at Frome-mouth (a name 
 occurring more than once in the 
 A.-S. Chronicle), and forms the out- 
 post and key of Purbeck, as Corfe 
 does its citadel. War or Var, from 
 which it derives its name, seems to 
 have been the Celtic name of the 
 river Frome. 
 
 It is a neat town, with spacious 
 airy streets intersecting it in the 
 direction of the cardinal points, and 
 respectable-looking brick houses; but 
 it is invested * ' with an atmosphere 
 of dulness so powerful as to be op- 
 pressive," and, besides the earth- 
 works and the church, offers little 
 to detain the tourist. The area within 
 the ramparts of about 100 acres, 
 is "a world too wide for the 
 
 shrunk " dimensions of the modern 
 town, and much of it has been ever 
 since Leland's time occupied by 
 gardens. 
 
 S. of the town runs the Frome, the 
 boundary of the Isle of Purbeck, and 
 navigable as far as this. It has a 
 salmon-fishery, let on lease by the 
 proprietors. Above the river stood 
 the castle, the site of which is still 
 pointed out as the Castle Close. 
 
 In Saxon times it was already a 
 place of note, and it is said that Beohr- 
 tric King of Wessex was buried here 
 A.D. 800. During the period of the 
 Danish invasions those piratical ma- 
 rauders continually landed at Ware- 
 ham, and made it their headquarters. 
 In 1015 Canute entered the Frome, 
 and having ravaged Dorset, Somerset, 
 and Wilts, and plundered Cerne Ab- 
 bey, returned hither, and sailed thence 
 to Brownsea. At the time of the 
 Domesday Survey the unfortunate 
 town was in very sunken fortunes, 
 but it revived again under the rule 
 of the Conqueror, who appointed 2 
 mint masters here, the same number 
 it had in the time of Athelstan. 
 The strength of its position brought 
 much misery on the inhabitants du- 
 ring the struggle between Stephen 
 and the Empress Maud. It was 
 seized for the latter by Robert of 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 13. — Wareham — St. Mary's Church, 195 
 
 Gloucester in 1 138. The next year 
 Baldwin de Redvers, one of the 
 Empress's warmest adherents, landed 
 here and seized Corfe Castle. It 
 was taken and burnt by Stephen in 
 1142 during the temporary absence 
 of the Earl of Gloucester, who on 
 his return with young Prince Henry, 
 then a boy of 9, retook the town 
 and castle, the latter after an obsti- 
 nate defence of 3 weeks. In 1146, 
 when Prince Henry was forced to 
 leave the kingdom, he took ship 
 here for Anjou. After this the 
 poor town seems to have enjoyed a 
 breathing time. John landed here 
 in 1205, and again 11 years later. 
 In 1213 Peter of Pomfret, the 
 hermit, who had foretold the king's 
 deposition, was brought out of his 
 prison at Corfe, and after being 
 dragged through the streets of the 
 town, was hanged and quartered here. 
 
 During the Civil Wars of the 1 7th 
 century it again became an object of 
 contention between the two parties, 
 being repeatedly taken and retaken 
 after its first occupation for the Par- 
 liament in 1642. The townspeople 
 were chiefly loyal to the Crown. 
 Their "dreadful malignancy"' was 
 used as an argument by Sir Anth. 
 Ashley Cooper for the complete de- 
 struction of the town, as it would 
 certainly be occupied by the Royal 
 forces on the first opportunity, un- 
 less it was "plucked down and 
 made no town." The ruin averted 
 then was accomplished 120 years 
 later, — July 25, 1762, — when nearly 
 the whole town was consumed by 
 fire ; but two years after it rose 
 from its ashes fairer than before." 
 
 There are some small remains of 
 the Friory, a cell of the Norman 
 Abbey of Lire, between St. Mary's 
 Ch. and the river. The Castle 
 Hill at the S.W. angle of the town 
 above the Frome marks the site 
 of the stronghold in which Robert 
 de Belesme, Earl of Montgomery, 
 one of the most zealous supporters 
 of Duke Rol)ert's claims, was im- 
 
 prisoned and starved to death by 
 Hen. I., 1114. 
 
 The earthworks are of remote anti- 
 quity, and are probably of British 
 construction, but were much altered 
 and strengthened by the Parliament 
 during the Civil Wars. On the W. 
 side is the " Bloody Bank," so called 
 from the execution of some of the 
 insurgents in Monmouth's rebellion 
 by order of Judge Jeffreys. 
 
 Wareham is said to have had 8 
 churches, 3 of which remain, though 
 only 1 (St. Mary's) is used for its 
 original purpose. St. Martin's, pic- 
 turesquely covered with ivy, stands 
 on the bank to the 1. on entering the 
 town. Trinitii Ch. at the S. end is 
 used as a school. 
 
 St, Mavjfs Cli.^ once collegiate, is 
 worth examination. The body was 
 rebuilt in 1841 ; the tower and chancel 
 are remains of the former structure 
 The chief objects of interest are the 
 very curious hexagonal leaden font, 
 adorned with figures of the Apostles, 
 of the 12th centy. ; the double S.E. 
 chapel, with its effigies ; and the in- 
 scribed stones, supposed to belong to 
 a ch. of primaeval antiquity, built into 
 the new walls. One of these last, at 
 the E. end of the N. aisle, has been 
 read " Catug consecravit Deo." An 
 Armorican bp. of that name was de- 
 puted by the prelates of Gaul, with 
 Germanus, to visit Britain to with- 
 stand the Pelagian heresy, a.p. 430. 
 The S.E. chapel deserves notice 
 from the singularity of its construc- 
 tion. It is a low, vaulted room, with 
 aiWE. window of 2 lights, piscina 
 and aumbry, temp. Hen. III., and 
 contains two cross-legged effigies, 
 that to the S. probably that of Sir 
 Wm. de Estoke, 1293, and a stone 
 coffin. This is known as St. Ed- 
 ward's Chapel, and reproduces the 
 little wooden chapel in which the 
 body of Edward the Martyr was de- 
 posited after his murder at Corfe, in 
 the same way as St. Joseph's Chapel 
 at Glastonbury has succeeded to the 
 small wattled church. Above this 
 o 2 
 
196 Boute 13. — Wareham — Creech Barroio, Dorsetshire. 
 
 is a second chapel, entered by an 
 E. E. door high up in the chancel 
 wall, with a pointed window over- 
 looking the high altar. A very re- 
 markable small vaulted room, with 
 piscina and sedilia, is formed within 
 a massive buttress at the S.E. angle. 
 At the outbreak of the Civil Wars 
 Mr. Wm. Wake (grandfather of Abp. 
 Wake), *'an honest, merry, true- 
 hearted parson ; both a good scholar 
 and a good soldier, and an excellent 
 drum-beating parson," was rector 
 here. For his hard treatment by the 
 party in power see Walker's * Suffer- 
 ings of the Clergy.' There is also a 
 monument to the Bev. John Hutchins, 
 author of the elaborate county his- 
 tory of Dorset, formerly rector here/. 
 
 [The following residences stand 
 in the vicinity of Wareham : Creech 
 Grange, Eev. Nath. Bond, below 
 Creech Barrow; Holme Priory (N. 
 Bond, Esq.) ; and Encomhe, Lord El- 
 don, 7 m. ; S.W. SmedmorCf Col. G. 
 P. Mansel, 8 m. ; Tyneham, Rev. J. 
 Bond, Esq., 6 m. ; Lulworth Castle, 
 S. J. Weld, Esq., 7 m., and Lul- 
 worth Cove, 10 ni. ; Bloxicorth House, 
 H. P. Cambridge, Esq., 5 m. ; Lyt- 
 chett House, W. Fryer, Esq., 6^ m. ; 
 and Charborough House, Miss Drax. 
 Exacmn filiforme, or marsh centaury, 
 a plant of some rarity, may be found 
 on the surrounding heaths. About 
 Stoborough and Arne the Ericaciliaris 
 grows, almost to the exclusion of the 
 more ordinary species of heath.] 
 
 [Wareham is the most convenient 
 point for the tourist to diverge to 
 visit Corfe Castle, Swanage, and the 
 Isle of Purbeck (Kte. 17.) There is a 
 daily omnibus from Wareham Station 
 to Swanage, 10 m. Corfe Castle is 
 distant 4 m. S. The road from 
 Wareham runs direct over the deso- 
 late expanse of Creech Heath, formed 
 of the lower Bagshot strata. Here 
 potter's-clay is extracted from nume- 
 rous pits, yielding annually thousands 
 of tons, which are shipped to Stafford- 
 shire and Scotland, to Spain, France 
 
 and Holland, and other parts of the 
 world. Clay which retains its white 
 colour in burning is also largely raised 
 for the manufacture of tobacco-pipes 
 and stoneware. Above it is a bed of 
 lignite, and veins of clay containing 
 fossil leaves. The railway for the 
 transit of this raw material to the 
 water crosses the road (2 m. from 
 Wareham), and leads on the rt. to 
 one of the principal pits, which is 
 about 60 ft. in depth, and provided 
 with a steam-engine to raise the water 
 and the clay. 
 
 Creech Barrow is a conical tertiary 
 hill, almost volcanic in outline, tower- 
 ing over all the other heights, and 
 formerly crowned by a lodge or look- 
 out post for the keepers of the Purbeck 
 Forest. The view from the summit is 
 perhaps the finest for colour in the W. 
 of England, its predominant feature 
 being an expanse of heath, which 
 stretches from the sea to Lulworth 
 Castle, a distance of 10 m. In com- 
 bination with this are the silvery 
 surfaces of Poole Harbour and its 
 numerous ramifications ; a back- 
 ground swelling up to Salisbury 
 Plain, which is visible on the hori- 
 zon ; the blue sea and promontories 
 of Portland, W. and the Needles, E. ; 
 and the rounded masses and grassy 
 flanks of the downs themselves, 
 which, terminating abruptly W. at 
 Worbarrow Bay, and E. at Studland 
 Bay, so completely isolate a part of 
 Purbeck from the rest of the county. 
 At the foot of the hill lies Creech 
 Grange, the Tudor mansion of the 
 Bonds, formerly a possession of the 
 abbot of Bindon. It was built in the 
 reign of Henry YIII. by Sir Oliver 
 Lawrence, and partially rebuilt in 
 imitation of the original structure 
 in 1846. Sir Thomas Bond, of the 
 Creech Grange family, gave his 
 name to Bond St., London, which he 
 built, writes Evelyn, to his great 
 undoing." He was a confidential 
 friend of James II., and left England 
 with him. There is a small chapel 
 at Creech Grange built from Nor- 
 
Dorsetsliire. 
 
 Boiiie 13. — Corfe Castle. 
 
 197 
 
 man fragments of the Cluniac Priory 
 of Uctst EohiCy a cell of Montacute. 
 In the distant woods to the W. is 
 Lidworth Castle, seat of the family of 
 Weld. 
 
 Descending from this airy height, 
 a walk of 2 m. E. along the crest 
 of the ridge, 3G9 ft. above the sea, 
 will bring the traveller to that con- 
 venient gap which forms the gate- 
 way of Purbeck, where, in mid 
 entrance, set as a coronet on a knoll, 
 are the beetling walls and rocklike 
 towers of Corfe Castle. 
 
 CoRFE Castle derives its name 
 from the A.-S. ccorfan^ to cut; its 
 original designation, Corvesgate, not 
 referring to the gate of the castle, to 
 the erection of which it is long an- 
 terior, but to the singular cut or cleft 
 in the line of steep chalk hills which 
 forms the boundary of the Isle of 
 Purbeck, in the centre of which, on 
 a minor eminence, the castle stands. 
 
 The earliest mention of Corfe is 
 in connection with the murder of 
 King Edward the Martyr, a.d. 978, 
 <<the foulest deed/' as the A.-S. 
 Chronicle designates it, " which was 
 ever committed by the English since 
 they came to Britain." No castle 
 existed here then ; but Elfrida, the 
 Queen-Mother, had a " hospitium," 
 or hunting lodge, on the site of the 
 present edifice. According to the 
 received tale, Edward had been 
 hunting in the neighbouring 
 forest, and, having lost his at- 
 tendants, and being wearied, he 
 stopped at Elfrida's lodge to obtain a 
 draught of wine. Whilst raising the 
 goblet to his lips he received the 
 fatal stab, some say from Elfrida 
 herself. His horse, alarmed at the 
 noise, dashed away on the gallop, and 
 dragged the unfortunate prince by 
 the stirrup to the spot where he was 
 found dead and mutilated by the per- 
 sons sent in search of him. Elfrida, 
 however, reaped little benefit from 
 her cruelty. She at once removed 
 to Bere Regis, where she had an 
 estate ** sui juris," says Bramton, to 
 
 avert the suspicion of having been 
 privy to the deed, but she was 
 haunted by the shadow of the mur- 
 dered Edward, and died conscience- 
 stricken at Wherwell ^ which, with 
 Ambesbuiy, she had founded in 
 expiation of her crime. The ill- 
 fated king's corpse was removed to 
 Wareham (see ante), whence it was 
 translated still uncorrupt to Shaftes- 
 bury. 
 
 We have no mention of a castle at 
 Corfe till after the Norman Conquest, 
 nor does it appear by name in the 
 Domesday Record. There was a 
 strong castle here in the reign of 
 Stephen, which was occupied by 
 Baldwin de Redvers in behalf of 
 the Empress Maud in 1139. De 
 Redvers was besieged here by 
 Stephen, who, failing to take the 
 place either by force or hunger, and 
 hearing that Maud and the Earl of 
 Gloucester were on the eve of land- 
 ing in England, hastily raised the 
 siege. In the reign of Henry II., 
 A.D. 1154, and in the following 
 reigns, sums appear in the royal 
 accounts for repairs. It was a fa- 
 vourite residence with John. He used 
 it for the safe custody of his trea- 
 sure of his regalia, and his prisoners. 
 After the suppression of his nephew 
 Arthur's attempt on the throne by 
 the capture of Mirabel in Poitou, 
 24 of the 200 leading nobility and 
 knights there taken and sent to 
 England, were confined in Corfe 
 Castle, Avhere it is recorded all but 
 two died of starvation. Here also 
 were imprisoned Peter, the hermit 
 of Pontefract (see antey Wareham, 
 p. 194), and a fairer and nobler victim, 
 Eleanor " the Damsel of Brittany," 
 Prince Arthur's sister, whose possible 
 claims on the English crown pro- 
 cured for her a lifelong captivity. 
 She was immured for several years 
 at Corfe, having as companions two 
 daughters of William, King of Scot- 
 land, sent as hostages for peace. In 
 the succeeding reign she was removed 
 to Bristol, where she died, after 
 
198 
 
 Boute 13, ~ -Corf e Castle, 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 a wearisome imprisonment of 40 
 years. 
 
 In the rebellion of Simon of Mont- 
 fort this castle was held by the barons 
 against Henry III. for five years. In 
 1326 it was for a short time the pri- 
 son of Edward II., who was conveyed 
 hence to Berkeley Castle, where he 
 was murdered Sept. 21st. His keeper 
 was Sir John Maltravers. The castle 
 was visited in 1356 by Edward III., 
 in preparation for which extensive 
 repairs were made. Passing over a 
 couple of uneventful centuries, it 
 was granted by Edward VI. to his 
 uncle, Protector Somerset, and Eliza- 
 beth sold it to Sir Christopher 
 Hatton. It was again sold 1635 to 
 Sir John Bankes, Lord Chief Justice, 
 the ancestor of the present owners, 
 the family of Bankes of Kingston 
 Lacy. On the outbreak of the great 
 civil war, Sir John Bankes having 
 been summoned to the king at 
 York, his lady and children re- 
 tired to this place for security. They 
 remained here unmolested until 
 1643, when the Parliamentary forces, 
 having captured the towns on the 
 coast, took advantage of a customary 
 stag-hunt on May-day to despatch a 
 body of horse to surprise the castle ; 
 but their plans were discovered in 
 time to close the gates. The com- 
 mittee of Poole, thus foiled, next de- 
 manded the surrender of the cannon 
 which the fortress contained, and sent 
 a body of sailors to enforce it ; but 
 Lady Bankes, assisted by her daugh- 
 ters, serving-men and women, con- 
 trived to mount one of these rude 
 pieces and to fire it against the 
 enemy, who was thus put to flight. 
 She then summoned assistance by 
 beat of drum. But the castle was 
 without provisions or ammunition, 
 and to obtain them she had to 
 beguile the authorities at Poole 
 by the pretence of a surrender. 
 Having completed her arrangements 
 she despatched messengers to Prince 
 Maurice, who had advanced to Bland- 
 ford, urgently pressing for assistance. 
 
 when a Captain Lawrence was sent 
 to take command. The Parliamen- 
 tary forces soon made their ap- 
 pearance. Horse and foot, they 
 took post on the adjoining heights, 
 and cannonaded the castle, but with 
 little elfect. On the 26th of June they 
 made their grand attack. They came 
 streaming up the hill, under the com- 
 mand of Sir Walter Erie and others, 
 to the number of 600, and, favoured 
 by a mist, obtained possession of 
 the town. From all quarters they 
 opened their fire, and advanced 
 against the castle under cover of two 
 engines called the Boar " and the 
 " Sow/' vociferating that they would 
 grant no quarter. The garrison, how- 
 ever, were not to be intimidated; 
 and they not only returned with in- 
 terest the musketry and shouts, but 
 sallied from their walls with great 
 success. But an additional force was 
 now at hand to assist the Republicans. 
 A large band of sailors came with pe- 
 tards and grenadoes to join in the 
 assault, and the fight was continued. 
 Twenty pounds were offered to the 
 first man who would scale the wall ; 
 strong liquors were distributed ; and 
 a brisk cannonade issued from the 
 church, the leaden roof of which had 
 been converted into balls. All rushed 
 to the assault, carrying wild-fire in 
 their hands, and ladders which they 
 planted, but vainly strove to mount. 
 On every side they were met by a 
 shower of stones or hot embers. 
 Their hopes Avaxed faint beneath this 
 storm of missiles ; the fumes of the 
 wine evaporated, and they were at 
 length compelled to abandon the 
 enterprise, Aug. 4, 1643. The same 
 night, an alarm being raised that the 
 king's forces were approaching, the 
 siege was raised by Sir W. Erie, who 
 speedily withdrew to Poole. In 
 1646 Corfe Castle was again besieged 
 by Col. Bingham, and this time with 
 a different result. A gallant re- 
 sistance was made, but the stronghold 
 was captured through the treachery 
 of Lieut.-Col. Pitman, one of the 
 
Dorsetsliirc. 
 
 Boute lo. — Coi'/e Castle, 
 
 199 
 
 officers of the garrison, who admit- 
 ted a number of the enemy in dis- 
 guise, Feb. 26, 1646. The Parlia- 
 ment had no sooner gained possession 
 than it ordered the building to be 
 destroyed, and accordingly the towers 
 and walls were undermined and 
 partly blown up by gunpowder. 
 The keys and seal of the castle are 
 still preserved at Kingston Lacy. 
 (See ante, p. 186.) 
 
 Corfe Castle occupies an irregular 
 triangle, the walls following the crest 
 of the hill, which descends almost 
 vertically on the E., W. and N. sides. 
 It is almost encircled by two brooks, 
 uniting just below St. Edward's 
 Bridge to form the Corfe River ; the 
 rest of the peninsula between the 
 Castle and the town being defended 
 by a deep dry trench. The northern 
 or highest point of the hill is occupied 
 by the keep and principal buildings. 
 The Great Gateway caps the southern 
 or lowest angle. The Buttavant 
 Tower the western. The Queen's 
 Hall, or tower, rises near the eastern 
 angle. The area of about 3J acres 
 is divided into three wards, — the 
 outer, by far the largest, the middle 
 and inner ward. The architecture 
 shows to a practised eye evidence of 
 the three leading periods of its his- 
 tory, corresponding to the epoch of 
 the Saxon " hospitium,'* the Norman 
 castle, and Edwardian fortress. 
 
 The visitor approaches the ruin 
 from the S. by a bridge of 4 arches, 
 probably the work of Sir C. Hatton, 
 thrown across the moat, and enters 
 it through a gateway, grooved for 
 portcullises, and with a remarkable 
 cylindrical pipe with an opening in 
 its side, originally formed for the 
 working of a weight as the counter- 
 poise of the drawbridge, on the prin- 
 ciple of a modern sash-window, and 
 flanked by 2 massive round towers 
 pierced for arrows ; erected, together 
 with the greater part of the first 
 ward, c. 1280. He then finds him- 
 self in the first ward, now a wide 
 area of turf, enclosed by a line of 
 
 ruinous walls and towers, resembling 
 rather a chain of rocks than a work 
 of human hands. The S.W. front, 
 to the 1. of the gateway, is the long- 
 est, extending 270 yards. The cur- 
 tain of the lower ward was strength- 
 ened on this side by 4 towers, now 
 rent and shaken, huge fragments 
 resting on the slope below. The 
 S.E. curtain exhibits two semi-cir- 
 cular towers. The furthermost is the 
 FlukenetTower, so called from a well- 
 preserved shield, on the outer face, 
 borne by two sculptured hands, show- 
 ing the armorial bearings of Alan of 
 Plukenet, constable of the castle in 
 the reign of Henry III. a.d. 1269. 
 Beyond this tower the walls have 
 regular Norman ashlar up to the 
 Gloriette Bastion, the site of the tower 
 of the same name, built by Eich. II., 
 which defended the S. E. angle of 
 the inner ward. From the main 
 entrance the ground rises rapidly to 
 the gateway of the second ward, 
 a very fine structure of Edward 
 I.'s time, reached by a bridge over 
 a fosse, where the force of the 
 powder has produced a remarkable 
 effect. The 1. hand tower has been 
 moved bodily down the hill, but, 
 although 9 ft. below its original po- 
 sition, it is still upright. The arch- 
 way shows 2 grooves for portcullises. 
 The fosse by which the lower ward 
 or baily is traversed towards its 
 upper part is about 20 feet deep, and 
 is attributed to King John. Beyond 
 this the ground rises precipitously 
 into a rough cliff, on the edge of 
 which rise the fragments of the keep 
 and the curtain wall and towers, 
 undermined and riven by the force 
 of the powder, but still held together 
 by the tenacity of the cement. 
 
 Passing through this second gate- 
 way, the curtain of the middle ward, 
 strengthened by a semicircular tower 
 in the centre of its length, runs to 
 the octagonal Biitavant Tower Bout 
 avant," the projecting corner) which 
 caps the western angle, and is a 
 marked object in the outline of the 
 
200 
 
 Bo lite 13. — I 
 
 Corfe Castle, 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 castle. A corbel, once supporting a 
 roof timber, has been absurdly sup- 
 posed to have served as "the gal- 
 lows." The curtain between these 
 two towers displays rude herring- 
 bone work, with three plain round- 
 headed windows and the place of a 
 fourth, closed by the exterior casing 
 of the wall in the reign of Henry III. 
 This wall may possibly be a frag- 
 ment of the Anglo-Saxon palace, the 
 scene of Elfrida's treachery. The N. 
 curtain of this ward also displays a 
 half-round tower, as well as the seat 
 and drain of a large garderobe under 
 an arch in the wall. 
 
 Turning to the rt. we reach the 
 entrance of the Inner Wcuxl, where 
 the gateway is almost totally de- 
 stroyed, which occupied the summit 
 of the hill, and included the Norman 
 keep, the Queen's Tower, kitchen 
 and other offices, and a well. The 
 keep was a quadrangular tower of 
 pure Norman work of the time of 
 Henry I., with an annexe to the S., 
 rising from the precipitous face of the 
 lower ward which contained garde- 
 robes. The stair, 9 ft. broad, starting 
 from the N. is built against the W. 
 face of the tower. Each floor con- 
 tained a chamber 42 ft. by 28 ft., 
 dark and comfortless. 
 
 E. of the keep is the Queen's Tower, 
 a work of the latter part of the reign 
 of Henry III., containing the Queens 
 Hall and Chijoel, constructed on 
 vaulted crypts. Some of the pointed 
 windows of the Hall remain. The 
 tracery is gone. They have deep 
 arched recesses, and stone side-seats. 
 The Chcq:)el vans across the Hall to the 
 N. Two doors, excellent both in 
 design and execution, opened at the 
 head of a staircase into the Hall and 
 Chapel. The former is perfect; of 
 the latter only one jamb remains. 
 One springer of the vaulting of the 
 Chapel may be traced in the angle 
 just within the doorway. A depres- 
 sion close to the east end of the Hall 
 is said to mark the castle Well, 
 which must have been of great 
 
 depth. At the S. E. angle beyond 
 the Queen's Tower are the massive 
 walls, 10 ft. thick, of another strong 
 Tower, identified with that known as 
 La Gloriette. 
 
 The destruction caused when the 
 Castle was " slighted" by order of 
 the Parliament 1646, the county 
 being taxed to pay for it, probably ex- 
 ceeds anything of the kind known in 
 England. Far more injury was per- 
 petrated than was necessary for the 
 object of making the castle untenable. 
 The broken down walls of the keep 
 are an astonishing spectacle, from the 
 huge masses of the fragments, and 
 the firmness of their cohesion. 
 " They lie in the wildest confusion, 
 and some considerable lumps have 
 rolled down the slope, and, bounding 
 across road and brook, rest half-buried 
 in the turf beyond." 
 
 The visitor who wishes for fuller 
 details should consult, for the general 
 architectural history, the admirable 
 essays of Mr. T. Bond and Mr. G. T. 
 Clark in the * Arch geological Journal,' 
 vol. xxii. ; and for the siege 'The 
 Story of Corfe Castle,' by the late Kt. 
 Honourable G. Bankes. The Ch., 
 dedicated to St. Edward the Martyr, 
 is a well-designed and admirably 
 proportioned edifice, rebuilt, with 
 the exception of the plain Perpen- 
 dicular tower, in 1860 (Wyatt, arch?). 
 The Transition Norman pillars of 
 the N. doorway, supporting a De- 
 corated arch ; the side lancets of the 
 chancel aisles, and several of the 
 windows belonged to the old fabric, 
 but have been spoilt by being re- 
 tooled. The W. doorway is flanked 
 by niches. 
 
 The village of Corfe Castle {Inns : 
 Ship, Talbot) consists of three long 
 streets of picturesque stone-roofed 
 houses diverging from a market- 
 place, near the entrance of the Castle, 
 where are the steps and platform of 
 the Cross. It is chiefly inhabited 
 by clay-cutters. On the 1., below 
 the market-place, are some pictur- 
 esque remains of a house of the 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 13. — Church Knoiole — Bindon Abbey, 201 
 
 Uvedales, with muUioued windows. 
 Dachomhs, on the E. side of the 
 Swanage road, is an E-shaped gabled 
 house containing some carved oak 
 wainscoting. Just beyond it stands 
 the Museum of the Purbeck Society, 
 containing specimens of the natural 
 history, geology, and antiquities of 
 the district, which will repay a visit, 
 though, like most local museums, it 
 is not so well cared for as it might 
 be. Corfe Castle formerly returned 
 two representatives to Parliament, 
 who were elected at the base of the 
 old Market Cross. It is now united 
 to Wareham and Bere Regis, the 
 joint constituency returning one 
 member. 
 
 1^ m. W. is Church Knowle, in 
 which parish stands the very inte- 
 resting Edwardian house of Barneston^ 
 preserving the name of Bern, the 
 Saxon thane, who owned it in the 
 Confessor's time. The earliest por- 
 tions are at the back. There is a 
 handsome double oriel ; and an oak- 
 roofed hall, now divided into rooms. 
 
 The once cruciform Gh. has been 
 much modernised. The tower was 
 rebuilt 1740. There is a canopied 
 altar-tomb in the N. transept to John 
 Clavell, 1572. 
 
 At Kingston, 2 m. S.W., there is a 
 most sumptuous Gh., erected at the 
 sole cost of Lord Eldon from the late 
 Mr. Street's designs (see Rte. 17). 
 
 Encombe, the seat of Lord Eldon, 
 is 3 m. S. Itempston House, of the 
 Calcrafts, 2 m. K. towards Studland. 
 Swanage is 6 m., and Studland 5 m. 
 distant (Rte. 17). The shortest route, 
 and a most charming one, to Lulworth 
 Castle is along the top of the downs, 
 about 9 m. W. Lulworth Cove is 2^ 
 m. further (Rte. 17). This range of 
 downs is remarkably rich in barrows, 
 cemeteries and earthworks. 
 
 A beautiful view of Corfe Castle is 
 obtained from the road running up 
 the hill towards Studland and the 
 Agglestone. The walk along the 
 summit of this ridge, over Nine Bar- 
 row Down (642 ft. high), is, in point 
 
 of scenery, one of the finest things 
 in the county.] 
 
 [From Wareham a road leads over 
 the heath \o Bere Regis, 6 m. (Rte. 19). 
 At Ij m. it intersects a row of 7 
 barrows. Beyond Stroud Bridge, 
 4 m. rt., is Wolfsbarrow, or Oldhurg, 
 an isolated conical hill crowned with 
 a small but very conspicuous British 
 earthwork, of great natural strength. 
 5i m. rt. is the remarkable earth- 
 work of Woodbury Hill (Rte. 19). 
 
 From Wareham the rly. runs along 
 the valley of the Frome, and at 53i m. 
 passes close to Uast Stoke Church, re- 
 built 1848, rt. and reaches 
 
 50 J m. Wool Station, where the 
 traveller may halt to visit the ruins 
 of Bindon Abbey, \ m. E., and Lul- 
 worth Castle, 7 m. S. (Rte. 17). Bere 
 Regis with its very fine Gh. (Rte. 19) 
 is 5 m. N. by a fine heath drive, 
 commanding grand views. At Gal- 
 lows Hill, 2 J m., is an earthwork. 
 At Chamberlain's Bridge, 3^ m., 
 the road crosses the river Puddle. 
 The view from Wool Bridge, which 
 is an ancient structure crossing 
 the Frome by 5 arches, is very 
 pleasing ; it commands the woods 
 and obelisk of Moreton. An old 
 Manor House of the Turbervilles, 
 now a farmhouse, stands close to 
 the bridge on the 1. bank of the 
 river, where a barn on the rt. is raised 
 on a basement of 14th-century work. 
 Wool Church is chiefly E.E. and Perp. 
 It contains a curious brown velvet 
 pulpit-cloth embroidered with figures, 
 probably made from a cope. Heth- 
 felton, IJ m. N., is the seat of the 
 Fylers. 
 
 Bindon Abbey lies J m. E. of the 
 Stat., embowered in fine trees, among 
 copious running streams which once 
 fed the monks' fishponds. It was 
 founded for Cistercians in 1172, by 
 Roger of Newburgh and Matilda 
 his wife. At the Dissolution it was 
 granted to Thomas Lord Poynings, 
 from whose heirs it descended to the 
 Earl of Suffolk, by whom it was sQld 
 
202 
 
 Boute 1 3 . — Moretort— Woods ford. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 to the Welds. The buildings have 
 nearly disappeared, but the founda- 
 tions remain, and the ground-plan of 
 the church, cloisters, and appended 
 buildings can be accurately traced, 
 and conform to the usual Cistercian 
 ground plan. The style of the whole 
 is Transitional, of the time of the 
 foundation. The Ch. was of the 
 usual Cistercian plan, with a long 
 nave, transepts of two bays, with 
 square chapels opening from them, 
 and a very short eastern limb and 
 a central tower. A fragment of the 
 W. front is standing, with the jambs 
 of the entrance doorways ; the bases 
 of several of the cylindrical columns 
 of the nave may be seen, and one of 
 the piers of the crossing ; also the 
 walls dividing the transeptal chapels 
 and the bases of their altars, and 
 the foundations of the stone western 
 screen of the choir (which as usual 
 projected into the nave), with two 
 
 ' ^'^'^ side altars. There is a double pis- 
 cina in the N. transept. There are 
 z*' several empty stone coffins, and in 
 w the S. transept is a fine slab, robbed 
 
 iT\: of its brasses, with a Lombardic in- 
 ; scription to Abbot Eichard de Maners. 
 To the S. of the ch. is the cloister 
 court, surrounded with the usual 
 buildings. The buildings on the E. 
 side are the most perfect. We may 
 distinguish the sacristy, chapter- 
 house, containing monumental slabs, 
 with traces of its vaulting, the slype 
 leading to the cemetery, and the cale- 
 factory or monks* day-room, divided 
 by a row of columns. We may also 
 notice the vestiges of the staircase to 
 the dormitory above. To the S. of 
 the cloisters were the refectory and 
 kitchens ; at right angles to the 
 cloisters to the W. the guest cham- 
 bers and the lodgings of the conversi, 
 lay brethren. A story goes that the 12 
 bells of the abbey were stolen by night, 
 and are now in the churches of Wool, 
 Combe, and Fordington, commemo- 
 rated by the following doggerel — 
 
 Wool streams and Combe wells, 
 Fordington cuckolds stole Birdon bells." 
 
 Crossing Moreton Heath, with a 
 view N. of the range dividing the 
 valleys of the Frome and Piddle, and 
 S. of the Purbeck chalk hills, we 
 arrive at 
 
 55} m. Moreton Stat., standing 
 lonely on the heath 2 m. from the 
 village of that name. Moreton House 
 (Mrs. Frampton) is a plain stone 
 mansion. It contains some interest- 
 ing portraits; Charles I. and Hen- 
 rietta Maria ; the ill-fated Henrietta, 
 Duchess of Orleans ; *'Steenie," Duke 
 of Buckingham ; Lady Jane Grey ; 
 and Tregonwell Frampton (d. 1728), 
 a celebrated turfite," keeper of the 
 royal race-horses at Newmarket to 
 William HI.; Anne, George I. and II. 
 Built in 1744, Moreton has belonged 
 to the Frampton s at least from the 
 reign of Edward III., 1365. An obe- 
 lisk stands in the park in memory of 
 James Frampton, 1786. The Ch. is 
 a curious specimen of Batty-Langley 
 Gothic, 1776, with an apse, and 
 jiaiftted windows by Willement. 
 
 u,V 
 
 IWoochford Castle, about 2 m. N.W., 
 the archaeologist must by no means 
 omit to visit. It guards the pas- 
 sage of the Frome, but is more of 
 a manor-house than a castle. The 
 manor belonged to Guy de Brian, and 
 afterwards to the Staffords. It is 
 a long low parallelogram, with origi- 
 nally a sq. tower at each corner. The 
 ground-floor is vaulted; the chief 
 rooms are above, including the King's 
 Hall, with an oratory with piscina 
 attached; a solar, or Queen's room, 
 with a squint into the chapel, guard- 
 chamber, ante-chamber, and South 
 Hall containing an ancient fireplace. 
 The Beacon Tower at the N.E. cor- 
 ner is the only one of the four remain- 
 ing perfect ; it contains a good water- 
 drain. The whole appears to have 
 been built by Guy de Brian, temp. Ed. 
 III. It was admirably restored by 
 Henry Lord Ilchester. The Ch. is 
 E.E. and has been nearly rebuilt.] 
 
 [Affpuddle Heatli, with its singular 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 1 3 . — Wlnfrith — Dorchester. 
 
 203 
 
 conical cavities, is 2 m. to N.W. of 
 Moreton ; and the interesting house 
 of Athelhampton, in the valley of the 
 Piddle, 1 m. further W. (Rte. 19.)] 
 
 [3 m. S. is Winfntli^ a village lying 
 under the chalk downs, with a Cli. 
 partially rebuilt in 1852, retaining 
 its Perp. tower, 2 Norm, doors, and 
 E.E. chancel. Among its rectors 
 have been Lindwood, the famous 
 canonist, d. 1446, and James Atkins, 
 Bp. of Moray and Galloway, d. 1687. 
 A road leads over the downs to Lul- 
 worth Cove, 6 m. from Wool Stat. 
 
 3 m. S.W. of Winfrith is the 
 village of East Chaldon. The Cli. 
 (restored) has a plain Norman chancel 
 arch, and other traces of the original 
 building. There is an early circular 
 font. On the ridge of the hill to the 
 N. are 5 large barrows. 1 m. S.E. 
 is a small earthwork known as the 
 Round Found. 
 
 2J m. S. of Moreton Stat, at Ower 
 Moyne (held by the Moynes by ser- 
 jeanty of the kitchen) are the remains 
 of an ancient house, with beautiful 
 examples of the E.E. style, c. 1200. 
 The most interesting portion is the 
 hall on the first floor, with 3 fine 
 2-light windows. The Ch. has some 
 ancient portions. The arcade is Tr. 
 Norm. On the S. slope of the chalk 
 downs is the figure of George III. 
 on horseback, formed by the re- 
 moval of the turf. 
 
 2^ m. further W. is Warmwell. The 
 Manor House (Captain Foster) is of 
 James I.'s time, but incorporates 
 portions of an earlier mansion. The 
 Ch. is chiefly E.E. and has a Norm, 
 font. 
 
 m. S. is Foxicelt, with an old 
 manor-house of the Hennings with 
 the date 1634 on the porter's lodge, 
 over the gateway, and a curious 
 E. E. Ch. 
 
 I m. N.W., on an elevated crest, 
 are the remains of a stone circle, 
 with indications of an outer circle 
 and of avenues of approach. To 
 reach this, leave the road at the 
 
 lime-kiln, J m. nearer Weymouth. 
 The circle is at the summit of the 
 down on the 1. by the hedge. Tt is 
 about 12 ft. in diameter, and con- 
 sists of 14 small stones. There are 
 also remains of an outer ring (4 
 stones), and some traces of a line of 
 stones running parallel with the 
 hedge.] 
 
 57 m. the rly. passes rt. the 
 ivied tower of West Stafford Ch., 
 rebuilt 1640, with a screen dividing 
 the nave and, chancel, and Stafford 
 House, a picturesque gabled mansion 
 of the 16th century, much altered 
 c. 1720 (J. Floyer, Esq.), and reaches 
 
 59f m. Dorchester {Inns : King's 
 Arms ; Antelope. Pop. of Pari, 
 borough, 7568). The county town, 
 a municipal and Parliamentary 
 borough returning one member. 
 This is a rly. centre. Branch lines 
 of the Gt. Western Illy, from Yeovil, 
 and of the S.-W. from Southampton, 
 meet here. There is rly. communi- 
 cation with Weymouth, S., and by 
 branch from Maiden Newton with 
 Bridport, W. The stations are in 
 the open Fordington Field, S. of the 
 town. 
 
 Dorchester is a thriving town, as 
 an agricultural centre. The cloth 
 manufacture which once was carried 
 on here is now extinct ; and its pros- 
 perity depends on its rank as the 
 county town, and its position as the 
 centre of a wide sheep-breeding and 
 dairy country. About 750,000 sheep 
 are fed on the adjacent downs, and 
 the markets are well supplied with 
 Dorsetshire skim-milk cheese and 
 Dorset butter. The fame of the 
 * ^ Dorset Ale " is of long standing. 
 A large and handsome brewery has 
 been built near the S.-W. Kly. by 
 Messrs. Pope, Eldridge & Co. 
 
 Dorchester is one of the lightest, 
 cleanest and prettiest towns in the 
 W. of England. Its reputation for 
 healthiness is such that Dr. Arbuth- 
 not, who in his early days came to 
 
204 
 
 Boute 13. — . 
 
 -Dorchester, 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 settle here, was driven away, saying 
 that " a physician could neither live 
 nor die at Dorchester." The town 
 lies on a hill sloping on the N. to the 
 valley of the Frome, and extending 
 on the S. and W. to an open country, 
 across which run the straight lines of 
 the ancient roads still used as high- 
 ways. It bears evidence of its Roman 
 origin not only in its name, Dornwara- 
 ceaster, the castra of the Dwrin 
 people, who occupied this district 
 before the arrival of the Romans ; 
 but also in the four streets, which, as 
 is usual with towns of a Roman 
 origin, intersect in the centre of the 
 town; and in the earthworks, which, 
 planted with fine rows of sycamore 
 and chesnut, form beautiful boulevards 
 nearly encircling the town — a fea- 
 ture unfortunately as uncommon in 
 England as it is attractive. The 
 foreign air thus given is increased 
 by the avenues of trees that line 
 some of the roads. 
 
 Dorchester was long prevented from 
 extending its limits by being hemmed 
 in on nearly all sides by Fordington 
 Field, a wide open tract of ground of 
 3400 acres, held under the Duchy of 
 Cornwall in farthings, or fourthings 
 (the quarter of a hide or carrucate), 
 from which it derives its name in its 
 original form of Fourthington. The 
 various holdings are known as a 
 wholeplace, a halfplace, and a farthing. 
 No one holds more than 80 acres, and 
 that dispersedly. The town has much 
 increased lately by the purchase of 
 land outside the old boundaries, from 
 the Duchy. 
 
 The junction of the 4 streets in the 
 centre of the town is marked by 
 St. Peter s Ch. with its fine pinnacled 
 tower, and the modern Town Hall, 
 with its angular spirelet. Walks on 
 the rampart or in the fosse run round 
 the W. and S. sides of the town. At 
 the bottom of High St. a pleasant 
 walk leads along the banks of the 
 Frome, with green water-meadows to 
 the rt. ; from the extremity of it you 
 may climb up into the town by the 
 
 new E.E. ch., and reach the W. walls, 
 or continue over verdant meadows by 
 Frome- Whitfield House (Colonel Hen- 
 ning) — to Charminster. 
 
 The chief objects of interest are 
 the C/u of St. Peter ; the Amphitheatre; 
 and the Camps of Poundhury and 
 Maiden Castle. 
 
 Dorchester has unquestioned claims 
 to'antiquity. It was a British town 
 before the invasion of Csesar, and 
 was long afterwards known by the 
 Romanized form of its British name 
 Dwrinwyr, as Burnovaria. The 
 Romans made it one of their prin- 
 cipal stations. They carried roads 
 from it in different directions ; and 
 fortified it with walls, which re- 
 mained in fragments as late as the 
 year 1802, and of which a portion is 
 still to be seen in Mrs. Stone's garden 
 on the W. walk, a little to the 1. of 
 the W. gate. Under the Saxons its 
 name, we have seen, became Domwa- 
 raceaster. The Danes are said to 
 have besieged it in 1003, and burnt 
 it to the ground, but the fact is very 
 doubtful. Its mediaeval annals are of 
 little interest. John often visited it. 
 
 Several Roman Catholics suffered 
 here in the reigns of Elizabeth and 
 James I., commencing with Thomas 
 Pilchard, hanged, drawn and quar- 
 tered in 1583. Four were executed 
 the same day, July 4, 1594. The 
 visitation of the plague the next year 
 was deemed a judgment for these 
 martyrdoms by the Roman Catholics. 
 In 1613 upwards of 300 houses were 
 burnt, and property amounting to 
 200,000/. was destroyed. Other 
 serious conflagrations occurred in 
 1622, 1725, 1775. The last was got 
 under by the dragoons of Sir John 
 Cope's regiment; a detachment of 
 which was quartered here. Lord 
 Clarendon records that when the 
 Great Rebellion broke out, a place 
 more entirely disaffected to the king 
 England had not. It was the maga- 
 zine whence other places were sup- 
 plied with principles of rebellion. 
 Its deficiency in natural and arti- 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Route 13. — Dorcliester, 
 
 205 
 
 ficial strength was supplied by the 
 malignant spirit and obstinacy of its 
 inhabitants, by whom it was early 
 (1642) fortified against the king. 
 But their courage failed on the ap- 
 proach of the Earl of Carnarvon in 
 1643, and the town with all its arms 
 and ammunition was surrendered to 
 him. After this the town lay open 
 to the mercy of the victors, and paid 
 dearly for its malignity, when Prince 
 Maurice's troops moved hither. In 
 July, 1644, Lord Inchiquin, who had 
 marched hither from Wareham to oc- 
 cupy it for the king, was repulsed by 
 Col. Sydenham, and in a few days 
 the Earl of Essex took possession of 
 the town for the Parliament. Crom- 
 well was here with a large force 
 March 29, 1645, which met with 
 some rough handling from General 
 Goring. Sept. 3, 1685, Judge Jef- 
 freys opened his bloody assize. 
 " The court was hung, by order of 
 the chief justice, with scarlet ; and 
 this innovation seemed to the multi- 
 tude to indicate a bloody purpose. 
 More than 300 prisoners were to be 
 tried. The work seemed heavy, but 
 Jeffreys had a contrivance for making 
 it light. He let it be understood 
 that the only chance of obtaining 
 pardon or respite was to plead 
 guilty. 29 who put themselves on 
 their country, and were convicted, 
 were ordered to be tied up without 
 delay. The remaining prisoners 
 pleaded guilty by scores. 292 re- 
 ceived sentence of death." — Macaulay. 
 1 3 were executed here Sept. 7. The 
 formidable judge's chair is preserved 
 in the Town Hall. He lodged in 
 High West Street (Dufall's glass 
 shop). 
 
 St. Peter's occupies a conspicuous 
 position at the intersection of the 
 4 streets, and with its stately Perp. 
 tower is one of the chief ornaments 
 of the town. The S. door is Tr. Norm, 
 with zigzag. The ch. is Perp. The 
 arcade of the interior and chancel 
 and tower arches are well propor- 
 tioned. It contains several interest- 
 
 ing cross-legged effigies, sadly mal- 
 treated during the last repair in 1857 : 
 some being hoisted on to the window- 
 sills and one banished behind the 
 organ. They have not been identified, 
 though they have been supposed to be 
 Chidioks, removed from the priory. 
 A rich Jacobean monument to Sir J. 
 Williams, of Herringston, and his 
 lady, 1628, has been awkwardly 
 erected against the E. window of the 
 N. aisle. At the opposite end of this 
 aisle is an absurd effigy in full-bot- 
 tomed wig to Denzil Holies, who 
 with Sir John Eliot and others forci- 
 bly held down in his chair Mr. 
 Speaker Finch till the House had 
 passed its famous Kesolutions in 
 1639 ; one of the " five members'' in 
 1642; the impeacher of Laud ; the 
 brother-in-law of Strafford; d. 1679. 
 A brass with female effigy preserves 
 the memory of *' Johanna de Sto 
 Omero, relicta Robt. More," d. 1436. 
 The rood staircase remains, and 
 gives access to a fine Jacobean pulpit. 
 
 All Saints, in High East Street, is a 
 pleasing building, with a lofty spire 
 erected by Ferrey in 1845. The 
 glass in the E. window was a gift 
 from Bp. Denison ; that in the 
 W. window is in loving, remem- 
 brance of Arthur H. D. Troyte, who 
 fell asleep June 19, 1857." The 
 ch. owes its erection chiefly to Mr. 
 Troyte ; much of the work was done 
 by his own hands. Under the tower 
 is an altar-tomb with effigy of Mat- 
 thew Chubb, d. 1625. 
 
 Trinitij Ch. in High West Street, 
 rebuilt in the E.E. style by Ferrey, 
 1875, contains a monument to Dr. 
 Cuming, a physician of the town,'* who 
 desired to be buried in the ch.-yard 
 rather than in the ch., lest he who 
 studied whilst living to promote the 
 health of his fellow- citizens should 
 prove detrimental to it when dead.'' 
 
 Fordington Ch., originally one of 
 Trans.-Norm. style and cruciform 
 plan, has been sadly mutilated, but 
 still preserves features of peculiar 
 interest. The church was restored 
 
20G 
 
 Boiite 13. — 
 
 •Dorchester, Dorsetshire. 
 
 and greatly improved in 1863. 
 The tower is a good one of the 
 Somersetshire style. The tympanum 
 of the Norman S. door retains a 
 curious fiat bas-relief of the Vision of 
 St. George (to whom the ch. is dedi- 
 cated, and who gives its name to the 
 hundred) before the battle of A^ntioch. 
 There is a small holy- water basin at 
 the S. door, of very unusual form, 
 shaped like a small Norman font. 
 The pillars of the S. arcade are 
 Norman, supporting Perp. arches. 
 The stone pulpit bears the date 1 592. 
 Fordington is a stall in Salisbury 
 Cathedral, once held by William of 
 Wykeham and Archbp. Chicheley. 
 
 The County Gaol occupies the site 
 of the Castle on a rising ground on 
 the N. side of the town, above the 
 river. Some small portions of the 
 earthworks may still be traced. A 
 tessellated pavement, 20 ft. sq., which, 
 with other Roman antiquities, was 
 discovered while digging a grave for 
 a murderer, in 1858, has been relaid 
 as an ornamental floor to the gaol 
 chapel. Friorij Lane, hard by, pre- 
 serves the memory of a Franciscan 
 Priory, reported by Speed to have 
 been built out of the ruins of the 
 castle by the Chidiocks. 
 
 The Comity Hall in High West St. 
 is a plain stone building erected in 
 1745. The Toicnllally which stands 
 conspicuously at the intersection of 
 the 4 streets, is a pleasing building of 
 red brick with spired tourelle, by 
 Ferrey. It has an effective open tim- 
 ber roof, and contains Judge Jeffreys' 
 chair. 
 
 The County Museum, ^ a handsome 
 building recently erected in High St., 
 contains a good collection of local 
 fossils, especially the fishes and tes- 
 tacea, «&c., of Purbeck, which is un- 
 rivalled ; and some unique fossils of 
 the Kimmeridge series. It has also a 
 fine archaeological collection, includ- 
 ing British and Roman antiquities, 
 coins found at Poundbury during the 
 rly. works, urns, and other examples 
 of early art from i\\<^. Dorset tumuli, 
 
 &c. The Grammar School in South 
 St. has a fine front. 
 
 The County Hospital, a good Jaco- 
 bean building, by Ferrey, opened 
 1841, has' a chapel built in memory 
 of A. Dyke Troyte by his brother-in- 
 law R. Williams, Esq., of Bridehead, 
 in 1862. Napper's MUe is a small 
 almshouse with a picturesque little 
 cloister, and desecrated chapel, found- 
 ed by Sir Robt. Napper, 1615. 
 
 The Barracks on the Bridport Road 
 have an imposing towered gateway. 
 At Charminster, 1 m. N.W., stands the 
 Dorset County School, a brick and stone 
 building with chapel and dining-hall. 
 The County Lunatic Asylum is at 
 Forston. 
 
 The Amphitheatre, called Mamhury, 
 or Maumhury, and first brought into 
 notice by Sir Christopher Wren, 
 when M.P. for Weymouth, lies to the 
 S. of the town, 1. of the Weymouth 
 road, in close vicinity to the 2 rly. 
 stations. The line of the S.-W. Rly. 
 as originally planned was carried 
 through the amphitheatre ; but it 
 was rescued from mutilation chiefly 
 through the zealous intervention of 
 Mr. C. Warne, F.S.A. It has 
 been generally considered a Roman 
 work of the time of Agricola. It 
 is, however, very different from 
 the amphitheatres existing in Italy, 
 whilst it closely resembles the Bri- 
 tish " rounds," of which there is 
 a specimen in Cornwall. Whether 
 British or Roman, it is equally in- 
 teresting as the most perfect relic of 
 the kind in this country. It is an 
 oval or elliptical earthwork, formed 
 by excavating the chalk and heaping 
 it around to a height of 30 ft. The 
 area thus enclosed is 218 ft. in length 
 and 163 in width. The rampart rises 
 from the ends towards the centre, 
 where it attains its greatest eleva- 
 tion and bread+h, and, according to 
 a calculation by the antiquary Dr. 
 Stukeley, would accommodate as 
 many as 12,960 spectators. Its ca- 
 pabilities were tested in the year 
 1705, when the body of Mary Chan- 
 
Dorsetshire, 
 
 Boute 13. — Maiden Castle. 
 
 207 
 
 ning was burnt here after execution. 
 10,000 persons are said to have as- 
 sembled on that occasion. Up to 
 1767 it was the place of execution of 
 criminals. 
 
 From the walk on the W. rampart 
 is seen the camp of Poundhury, crest- 
 ing the head of a hill which rises 
 from the river Frome, a few hundred 
 yards, from the western gate. Camden 
 and others think it was constructed 
 by the Danes, on their supposed siege 
 of Dorchester, under Sweyn. The 
 late Rev. C. W. Bingham and others 
 maintain that it is a Roman work. 
 It is a tolerably regularly-shaped en- 
 trenchment, protected by a lofty 
 vallum and ditch, double on the W. 
 side. On the N. the steepness of 
 the hill appears to have been the 
 only defence. The summit com- 
 mands an extensive view, in which 
 Maiden Castle is seen to the S., and 
 Hardy* s monument to the S.W., and 
 Wolveton Hall immediately below, 
 E. The hill is pierced by the G. W. 
 Railway. 
 
 [Excursions may be made to 
 
 (a) Maiden Castle^ properly 2Iol- 
 Dun, 'Uhe Hill of Strength," one of 
 the most stupendous British earth- 
 works in existence, enclosing in its 
 inner area about 45 acres, and cover- 
 ing full 115 acres altogether, rising 
 in conspicuous grandeur to the rt. of 
 the Weymouth Road, here coincident 
 with the ancient Ridgeway, 2 m. S. 
 of Dorchester. This hill-fort was the 
 stronghold of the Durotriges, and 
 may be identified with the Dunium 
 of Ptolemy. It occupies the flat 
 summit of a natural hill, entrenched 
 and fortified by human labour. It 
 measures about 1000 yards from E. 
 to W. and 500 from N. to S. The 
 whole is surrounded with two, in 
 some places three, ramparts, 60 feet 
 high, and of amazing steepness. 
 There seem to have been 4 gates, the 
 entrances being defended by the over- 
 lapping ends of the earthworks, and 
 
 additionally strengthened by out- 
 works. The interior area is divided 
 across the middle by a low bank and 
 ditch. There are traces of a tank or 
 pit to catch and retain water. Ac- 
 cording to the opinion of General 
 Lefroy, the people who constructed 
 it cannot have been acquainted with 
 any tools like our modern spades 
 with broad flat blades, but must have 
 employed celts or narrow tools, by 
 which only a small quantity of earth 
 could be removed at a time. It could 
 not be defended in the strict sense 
 of the term, as it would take as 
 many people to defend it as to make 
 it. Other means besides earthworks 
 must have been resorted to, to render 
 the place tenable. 
 
 The view from Maiden Castle is 
 very extensive, but bare and not very 
 beautiful. The chief features are the 
 Roman roads diverging from Dor- 
 chester, and the innumerable barrows 
 that stud the hills. To the S.W. is 
 Black Down with Hardy's Pillar. 
 
 Below Maiden Castle, E., to the 1. 
 of the Weymouth road, stands Her- 
 rimjstone (E. W. Williams, Esq.), a 
 house of much interest, for many 
 generations the seat of the Herring 
 family, which late in the 16th centy. 
 passed to that of Williams. The 
 house, which has been much muti- 
 lated, was built by Sir John Wil- 
 liams, temp. James I. The drawing- 
 room has a curious coved ceiling 
 richly decorated with plaster bas- 
 reliefs, among which may be noticed 
 the initials C. P. and the heraldic 
 insignia of Charles I. when Prince 
 of Wales. 
 
 (6) Um. N.W., in the valley of 
 the Frome, is the very interesting 
 house of Wolveton (Albert W. Bankes, 
 Esq.), rebuilt by the first Sir Thomas 
 Trenchard, who incorporated por- 
 tions of an older edifice. The south 
 front remains entire, the eastern part 
 showing the rich Tudor style of the 
 time of Henry VII., the western por- 
 tion the largp-mulHoned windows, 
 
208 Boiite 13. — Wolveton House — SUnsford, Dorsetshire. 
 
 and semi-classic cornices of James I. 
 added by Sir George Trenchard 
 (d. 1630). The plaster ceilings and 
 carved oak chimney-pieces and door 
 cases are of great magnificence. The 
 gatehouse has circular bastions and 
 conical roofs. There is a good barn. 
 
 Wolveton is of historic interest as 
 the scene of the foundation of the 
 fortunes of the noble house of Bed- 
 ford. Philip the Handsome, Arch- 
 duke of Austria, having with his 
 wife Joanna, the eldest daughter of 
 Ferdinand and Isabella, and heiress 
 of their dominions, been driven by 
 stress of weather into the port of 
 Weymouth, when on their way from 
 the Low Countries to Spain, January 
 1502, they were hospitably received 
 at Wolveton by Sir Thomas Trench- 
 ard. Unfortunately the old knight 
 knew no Spanish and his royal guests 
 no English. In his perplexity he be- 
 thought him of his young neighbour 
 and kinsman, John Russel of Kings- 
 ton Russel (see^os^), who had only re- 
 cently returned from Spain, and sent 
 for him to act as interpreter. It hap- 
 pened fortunately for Mr. Russel that 
 he was gifted with the art of pleasing, 
 for, having ingratiated himself with 
 the royal visitors, he accompanied 
 them to London, and was introduced 
 to Henry VII. as a man of abilities, 
 
 fit to stand before princes, and not 
 before meaner men." Thus established 
 at court, he soon rose to high office, 
 and in the reign of Henry VIII. was 
 created Lord Russel, and at the Dis- 
 solution was enriched with the spoils 
 of the religious houses. On the oc- 
 casion of the marriage of Philip II., 
 the grandson of his royal patron, with 
 Mary I., he was sent to Spain to 
 attend the royal bridegroom to Eng- 
 land, 1544. He died the following 
 year. On leaving Wolveton, Philip 
 presented Sir Thomas Trenchard 
 with two bowls of blue and white 
 oriental porcelain, said to have been 
 the first seen in England, which are 
 carefully preserved as heirlooms, 
 together with fine portraits of Philip 
 
 and Joan, by the Trenchard family 
 at Greenhill House. One of the bowls 
 is mounted in an original Italian 
 silver-gilt setting, curiously hinged. 
 
 At the time of the Great Rebellion 
 Wolveton was the seat of another 
 Sir Thomas Trenchard, who played 
 an active part in this county as a 
 commander on the side of the Par- 
 liament. 
 
 From Wolveton the pedestrian 
 may proceed 
 
 J m. to Channinster, whence he 
 may return by pleasant meadows to 
 Dorchester, 2 m. The Ch. has a 
 very fine Perp. tower bearing on its 
 buttresses the rebus of Sir T. Trench- 
 ard, c. 1500. The chancel arch and 
 nave arcades are of Trans. Norm. 
 In the S. aisle are three mutilated 
 monuments of the Trenchard family. 
 There is a curious earthwork at 
 the extremity of the village on the 
 rt. The travellermay with advantage 
 continue his walk from Charminster 
 along the barrow-studded hills of 
 Cerne Abbas, 5^ m., whence he may 
 strike over Sydling Hill to Sydling St, 
 Nicholas, and mounting the down 
 again descend on Maiden Newton Stat. 
 (Rte. 15), 5 m., and return by rly. 
 to Dorchester — a very agreeable and 
 interesting circuit. 
 
 (c) Another circuit of much in- 
 terest to the archaeologist, and dis- 
 playing wide and varied views, is 
 through the fields to 
 
 1 m. Stinsford, where there is an 
 interesting E. E. church, with a 
 picturesque and highly enriched 
 Perp. S. aisle, and N. aisle rebuilt 
 1630. On the W. face of the tower 
 is a bas-relief of St. Michael. King- 
 ston House, formerly the seat of the 
 Pitts, now of J. Fellowes, Esq., is a 
 classical house, built 1720, and re- 
 faced with stone in 1720. 
 
 Puddletown (see Rte. 19), 5 m., 
 thence to Athelhampton, 1 m., and 
 over the ridge into the valley of the 
 Frome at Woodsford Castle, 3 ni. ; 
 returning to Dorchester either on 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 1 3 . — Bincomhe — Weymouth, 
 
 209 
 
 foot 5 m., or by rly. from Moreton 
 Stat. 
 
 (d) A longer expedition may be 
 made to the heights of Blackdown, 
 789 ft. above the sea, and the Hell- 
 stone, the Nine Stones, and other pre- 
 historic remains on the bare chalk 
 downs about Little Bredy. Rte. 14.] 
 
 From Dorchester the traveller may 
 pursue his way by rly. to Weymouth, 
 7 m., or, which is preferable, he 
 may walk, enjoying the wide pros- 
 pect of down and sea. 
 
 Pursuing the rly., the traveller has 
 a fine view rt. of Maiden Castle, 
 nestling on the S. slope of which is 
 the little village of Monkton, 
 
 3 m. the rly. enters Bincomhe tun- 
 nel, taking its name from a village 
 S. of the hill, J m. 1. of the line. 
 The small ancient Cli. has a circular 
 Norm. font. The view from Bin- 
 comhe harrows is one of the most ex- 
 tensive in the county. A large camp 
 was formed here during the appre- 
 hensions of Napoleon's invasion, often 
 visited by George III. when staying 
 at Weymouth. Two young German 
 deserters lie buried in the church- 
 yard. 
 
 65j m. Upwey Stat. 
 
 In a cleft at the foot of the 
 Downs is the very attractive little 
 village of Upwey, the source of the 
 little river Wey. The Ch. has been 
 much modernised. The N. aisle is 
 ancient, the S. aisle was added in 
 1838 and the clerestory in 1841. 
 The N. arcade is good Perp., with 
 the initials I. P., and A. B. in the 
 foliage of the capitals. On the Downs 
 above, 402 ft. above sea, runs the 
 ancient Ridgeway, from which there 
 is a noble view of Weymouth, Port- 
 land, and the neighbouring country. 
 
 5 m. rt. is the village of Broadixey, 
 where the Ch. has a fine Norm, door, 
 1. the camp-crowned hill of Chalbury. 
 
 The rly. skirts the Backwater which 
 peninsulates Melcombe Regis, and 
 reaches 
 
 IWUts, Dorset, #c,, 1882.] 
 
 69 m. Weymouth Stat. 
 
 Weymouth {Hotels : Royal ; Bur- 
 don; Victoria; Gloucester, formerly 
 the residence of the Duke of Glou- 
 cester and then of George III. ; 
 Golden Lion ; and Crown. Pop. of 
 Pari, borough 13,704). This popu- 
 lar watering-place is very pleasantly 
 situated. The coast here, turning 
 to the S., forms a wide open bay, 
 which is shaped in the form of 
 the letter E., the projection in the 
 centre dividing it into two parts — 
 Weymouth Bay and Portland Roads. 
 N. of this projecting point (called 
 the Notlie) lies the old town of Wey- 
 mouth, and connected with it by a 
 swing bridge across the harbour, for- 
 merly the estuary of the little river 
 Wey, from which it derives its name, 
 is Melcoinhe Beyis, the modern town, 
 extending nearly a mile along the 
 curving shore. In Leland's time the 
 passage was by a bote and a rope 
 bent over the haven, so y* in the 
 fery bote they use no ores." Mel- 
 combe Regis is built on a narrow strip 
 of land, with the sea on one side 
 and an estuary (the Backwcder) on the 
 other, and commands in long per- 
 spective the coast to the E. as far as 
 St. Aldhelm's Head. Its principal fea- 
 ture is the Esplanade, formerly the 
 mixen or lay-stall of the town, dis- 
 tinguished by its length and symme- 
 trical curve, on which stands a monu- 
 mental statue of George III., erected 
 by the townspeople in 1809, in com- 
 memoration of the 50th anniversary 
 of the accession of their great patron. 
 The Esplanade was nearly destroyed 
 by the fearful storm of Nov. 23, 
 1824, when the sea-wall was com- 
 pletely demolished, and small vessels 
 were driven into the centre of the 
 town. At the extremity of the 
 Esplanade a stone pier continued 
 in wood runs out into the sea, afford- 
 ing an agreeable promenade. Be- 
 hind the Royal Monument the two 
 main streets, St. Thomas and St. 
 Mary streets, run westwards to the 
 Bridge and Harbour. 
 
 P 
 
210 
 
 Bouie 1^.— Weymouth. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 Weymouth is" distinguished above 
 many of our modern watering-places 
 by the historic interest belonging to 
 it. Athelstan granted Weymouth to 
 Milton Abbey. In 1042 Edward the 
 Confessor gave the manor to Win- 
 chester, on the. traditional deliverance 
 of his mother from the ordeal ; a 
 grant confirmed by Henry I. and II. 
 In the reign of Edward I., as the 
 town rose in importance, the monks 
 lost the manor, which formed part 
 of the dowry of Eleanor of Castile. 
 Edward III. was driven in here by 
 rough weather on his return from 
 France in 1343. It supplied 20 
 ships for the siege of Calais, 1347, 
 and was in return greatly harassed 
 by the French, whose inroads im- 
 poverished the place. Leland says 
 of Melcombe Regis : " This toune, as 
 is evidently seene, hathe beene far 
 bigger than it now is. The cause 
 of this is layid onto the Frenchmen 
 that yn tymes of warre rasid this 
 toune for lack of defence." To 
 render it not worth the burning, 
 Henry VI. transferred its privileges 
 as a port and its woolstaple to Poole, 
 a measure which deprived it of much 
 of its former trade. Queen Mar- 
 garet of Anjou landed here with her 
 young son, April 17, 1471, the very 
 day of the disastrous defeat at Bar- 
 net ; on hearing of which she took 
 refuge at the Abbey of Cerne. Jan. 
 10, 1505, the Archduke Philip with 
 Joanna of Castile, on their voyage 
 from Holland to Spain, were forced 
 to take shelter here, to the great 
 alarm of the inhabitants, who feared 
 that the squadron came with hostile 
 purpose. (See Wolveton House,p.207.) 
 In spite of its fallen fortunes, 6 ships 
 were supplied by Weymouth to the 
 squadron that met the Armada, and , 
 one of the Spanish ships taken was 
 brought into this port. During the 
 Great Rebellion it was alternately 
 garrisoned by both parties, and be- 
 came the scene of some fighting. 
 In 1G43 it was occupied by Lord 
 Caernarvon and Prince Maurice, but 
 
 in 1644 it fell into the hands of the 
 Parliamentary forces, who success- 
 fully defended it against an 18 days* 
 siege by the Royalists. Coker writes 
 in 1653 : Way mouth as now ytt 
 is, is but little, consisting chiefly of 
 one street which for a good space 
 lyeth open to the S.E., and on the 
 back of it riseth a hill of such steep- 
 ness that they are forced to clymbe 
 upp to their chappell by 80 steps of 
 stone, from whence you have a faire 
 prospect of the toune and haven lying 
 under it. From one side you may 
 see Wyke, and Melcombe on the 
 other side, which much surpasseth 
 the other for conveniency of site, 
 for standing on a flat it afi'ordeth 
 roome for building, with a market- 
 place and convenient streets and also 
 yardes for their wares, by means 
 whereof the merchants have chosen 
 this for their habitation, which of 
 late years is fairly new built. These 
 tounes now united gain well by 
 traffique |into Newfoundland, where 
 they had 80 shippes and barkes, as 
 also by a nearer cut into France 
 opposite to them, whence they return, 
 laden with wines, cloths, and divers 
 other useful commodities with which 
 they furnish the country." As bo- 
 roughs, the two divisions of Wey- 
 mouth and Melcombe Regis were 
 long at open war with each other. 
 The narrow channel of their har- 
 bour was as jealously guarded by 
 the contending factions as the 
 boundary of rival kingdoms; and 
 in the reign of Elizabeth, a.d. 
 1571, their animosity had reached to 
 such a height that the Government 
 interfered and compelled the inha- 
 bitants to coalesce and incorporate 
 for municipal purposes, and from 
 that time to the present day their in- 
 terests have been one, as the united 
 borough of Weymouth and Mel- 
 combe Regis. As parliamentary bo- 
 roughs, however, the two towns con- 
 tinued distinct, each returning 2 
 members till the first Reform Act, 
 which united them, giving 2 mem- 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 13. — 
 
 - Weymouth, 
 
 211 
 
 bers to the new constituency. Sir 
 Christopher Wren, Sir James Thorn- 
 hill, and Sir Fowell Buxton, have 
 illustrated the parliamentary history 
 of the borough. 
 
 The tides on the shore at Wey- 
 mouth differ from those which pre- 
 vail along the coast, the irregularity 
 being most marked at the time of the 
 *' springs." According to the sailors 
 there are 4 hrs. flood, 4 hrs. ebb, and 
 4 hrs. standing water, but this de- 
 scription is scarcely correct. There 
 is generally a secondary tide ■ — a 
 slight flow and reflux — which takes 
 place after the lowest ebb, and is 
 popularly known by the name of the 
 Gulder. Steamers in connection with 
 the Great Western Railway ply be- 
 tween Weymouth and the Channel 
 Islands, and sail daily to Cherbourg. 
 During the summer, steamers run 
 to Lulworth, Swanage, Bournemouth, 
 and the Isle of Wight. 
 
 In the heart of the town, between 
 St. Mary's Church and the Guildhall, 
 are some old houses, with stone- 
 muUioned windows and gabled dor- 
 mers. At the corner of the Church 
 Passage, to the W. of St. Mary's 
 Church, is an interesting tall gabled 
 house, with projecting storeys and 
 bow windows resting on grotesque 
 human figures, some playing on wind 
 instruments. A cannon ball im- 
 bedded in the gable end of an old 
 house below the Town Hall, at the 
 corner of St. Edmund and St. Mary 
 Streets, is a memorial of the siege by 
 the Royalists in 1644. 
 
 There are no remains of the 
 Dominican Priory, Leland's " fare 
 house of Freres yn ye este parte of 
 ye toune," founded by John Rogers 
 and Hugh Deveril in the reign of 
 Henry VI. It stood in Maiden Street, 
 and its chapel served as the place 
 of worship of the inhabitants, as a 
 chapel-of-ease to Radipole, until the 
 erection of the ch. in 1605. The 
 present Ch. of St. Mary's (Melcombe 
 Regis), biiilt in 1817, is a solid but 
 very ugly edifice of Portland stone, 
 
 galleried all round, with an altar- 
 piece, *'The Last Supper," by Sir 
 James Thornhill (d. 1734), a native 
 of the town, which he represented 
 in Parliament. 
 
 Trinity Ch. (Weymouth), opposite 
 the Bridge, built in the Gothic of the 
 day, 1836, contains a good picture of 
 the Crucifixion, of the school of 
 Vandyck. At the back stood the 
 old chapel of St. Nicholas, destroyed 
 by Col. Sydenham's troops in the 
 Civil Wars, reached by steep flights 
 of steps from the High Street of 
 Weymouth. The Schools on the steep 
 ridge adjoining form a conspicuous 
 feature in the view of Weymouth. 
 
 St. John's Radipole, at the northern 
 extremity of the esplanade, built 1854 
 (Talbot Bury, arch.) in the Dec. 
 style with a lofty tower and spire. 
 
 Christ Ch., opposite the Rly. Stat., 
 has a tower with a low, square spire, 
 which is rather effective. 
 
 The Wesleyan Chapel, near the 
 Guildhall, is a successful adaptation 
 of the Lombardic architecture of 
 North Italy. 
 
 The Congregational Chapel, built in 
 1865, with 2 spires, is a conspicuous 
 object. 
 
 The Guildhall near the Bridge, at 
 the corner of St. Mary's Street and 
 St. Edmund's Street, built 1837, has 
 a Grecian Ionic portico, and contains 
 a marble statue of the late Sam. 
 Weston, Esq. (Theakstone), erected 
 by subscription, and portraits of 
 George III. (Beechy) and the Duke 
 of Wellington (Wei gall), presented 
 by Sir J. H. Lethbridge. Above 
 the Mayor's Chair is a good piece 
 of oak carving of the royal arms, 
 with the date 1577, brought from 
 the former church of St. Mary. 
 
 The Market Bouse in St. Mary 
 Street (Talbot Bury, arch., 1855) has 
 a rusticated Italian front of some 
 character. 
 
 The Literary and Scientific Institu- 
 tion is in St. Thomas Street. The 
 building comprises a Reading Room, 
 Library, and Lecture Hall. 
 
 p 2 
 
212 
 
 Boute lo. — 
 
 WeymoutJi. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 The Baths form a handsome build- 
 ing below George III/s statue, with 
 an Ionic fa9ade in St. Thomas Street. 
 Nearly opposite is the Doric portico 
 of the Masonic Hall. 
 
 Weymouth became of note as a 
 bathing-place towards the middle of 
 the 18th century. The first bathing- 
 machine was constructed for Ralph 
 Allen, of Bath, Fielding's Squire 
 Allworthy,'' in 1763. The Duke of 
 Gloucester passed a winter here, and 
 built Gloucester Lodge, and his re- 
 commendation induced George III. 
 with Queen Charlotte and the Prin- 
 cesses to visit it in 1 789. There is an 
 amusing account of the discomfiture 
 of the monarch when on his first 
 plunge into the sea he heard the 
 strains of God save the King " 
 strike up from an adjoining bathing- 
 machine. The royal family became 
 partial to Weymouth, and resorted to 
 it for many years, occupying the pre- 
 sent Gloucester Hotel. The Princess 
 Charlotte was herein 1814 and 1815. 
 
 William Pitt and his elder brother, 
 and his sister Hester, were residing 
 at Weymouth with the Rev. E. Wilson 
 when their father was called to the 
 House of Lords. The little Wil- 
 liam,'' then seven years old, ex- 
 pressed himself as "perfectly happy" 
 in retaining his father's name. " I 
 am glad,*' he said, " I am not the 
 eldest son. I want to speak in the 
 House of Commons like papa." (Stan- 
 hope's Life of Pitt, i. 3.) 
 
 The chief charm of Weymouth 
 lies in its beautiful bay, and smooth 
 and level shore. It is also the centre 
 of a district of much geological in- 
 terest, to which Mr. Damon's excel- 
 lent work on * The Geology of Wey- 
 mouth and the Isle of Portland' will 
 prove an admirable guide. 
 
 (ci) The Nothe, the green promon- 
 tory which rises from the mouth of 
 the harbour, is reached in a few 
 minutes from the Esplanade, either 
 by the Swing-bridge or a boat. It 
 commands a wide and beautiful view 
 of Portland and the bay. It has been 
 
 converted into a battery fitted with 
 Armstrong guns for the defence of 
 the harbour and roadstead. The 
 whole is cased in stone to obviate 
 the frequent landslips. During the 
 Rebellion the Nothe was fortified, 
 with the object of "keeping in the 
 Portlanders," as an old writer ex- 
 presses it. From this point the 
 visitor should ramble past the Look 
 Out along the cliffs to 
 
 Sandsfoot Castle (1 m. from Wey- 
 mouth by road), a picturesque ruin 
 on the verge of the yellow rocks. 
 Leland calls it "a right goodly and 
 warlyke castle having one open bar- 
 bican." It is, however*, more at- 
 tractive at a distance than on a 
 nearer approach, and its architectural 
 interest is but small. It was erected as 
 a coast defence by Henry VIII., about 
 the year 1539, at which time the 
 country apprehended an invasion 
 prompted by the Pope. The walls 
 contain fragments of Norm, and 
 E.E. architecture from Bindon Abbey, 
 with the materials of which the 
 castle was built. Its last governor, 
 Humphrey Weld, was appointed in 
 1685. 
 
 Near Sandsfoot Castle commence 
 the Smallmouth Sands, which extend 
 to the long timber bridge over the 
 Fleet, a distance of I m. 
 
 [From Sandsfoot it is a pleasant 
 walk to Wyke Regis, IJ m. from Wey- 
 mouth, of which it is the mother 
 church. The road to it passes on 
 the 1. Beljield House, the seat of the 
 late Sir T. Fowell Buxton, Bart., 
 who represented Weymouth for many 
 years. Wyke Regis is seated on an 
 eminence with a fine view of Port- 
 land and of Deadmans Bay, as sailors 
 term the fatal West Bay. At Wyke 
 there is a Romano-British cemetery, 
 and Roman remains have been often 
 discovered. The lofty square tower 
 of the Gh. is a well-known sea-mark. 
 The church is a good plain Perp. 
 building. In the churchyard, among 
 numberless graves of shipwrecked 
 
Dorsetshire. Route 13. — Weymouth; Excursions. 
 
 213 
 
 sailors, is one which contains 140 of 
 the passengers and crew of the 
 "Alexander'* East Indiaman, lost 
 on the Chesil bank, March 26, 1815 : 
 only four Lascars escaped, as is re- 
 corded on a tablet on the West wall. 
 Here is the monument to 17 
 officers and 215 soldiers bound for 
 the West Indies, who perished in 
 the fearful storm of Nov. 18, 1795, 
 also the graves of eighty persons 
 drowned in the wreck of the Aber- 
 gavenny," off Portland, in the winter 
 of 1805. The captain was brother 
 of Wordsworth, the poet. The 
 fishermen assert that the timbers of 
 the vessel may still be discerned 
 through the water, and speak of the 
 spot where she sank by the name of 
 the ship, or, as they abbreviate it, 
 " The Abbey." It is a favourite spot 
 to fish for whiting.] 
 
 [(6) To Radipole, 2 m., the mother 
 church of Melcombe Regis, a pretty 
 walk along the shore of the Back 
 water. This is a village embowered 
 in trees, where the Weij joins the in- 
 let. Radipole boasts of a sulphurous 
 mineral spring and bathing establish- 
 ment, about 1 m. from Weymouth. 
 There is another mineral spring with 
 Pump-room and Baths at Nottington, 
 3 m. N., just before entering the 
 village of Broadwey. 
 
 On the hill overlooking the Back- 
 water is a Romano-British cemetery 
 of several acres in extent. The field 
 behind the ch. produces many Roman 
 and Romano-British remains, and in 
 the bed of the Wey Roman pottery 
 is often found. 
 
 Broadwey CJu has a fine Norman 
 door.] 
 
 [(c) Another favourite expedition 
 is to Preston, 3 m., and Osmington, 
 5 m. Leaving St. John's Church the 
 road starts along the shore, and pass- 
 ing the race-ground, known as Lod- 
 moor Marsh, climbs Jordan Hill, iden- 
 tified by some with the Roman sta- 
 tion Clnviniumy where are extensive 
 
 traces of Roman buildings with a 
 plain but well-preserved tessellated 
 pavement and a large cemetery, from 
 which many hundreds of skeletons 
 have been disinterred, with some 
 beautiful specimens of Samian and 
 other ware, and reaches Preston, 
 where Roman pottery is of frequent 
 occurrence in the churchyard. The 
 Ch. is interesting, chiefly Pei-p. with 
 a Norm, door and font. On a spur of 
 the hill above is the circular en- 
 trenchment of Chalbury enclosing 2 
 large barrows, and numerous hut 
 circles, from 18 to 20 ft. in diameter. 
 J m. S. at Rimhury was the necro- 
 polis, where numerous kistvaens and 
 cinerary urns have been discovered. 
 The camp follows the configuration 
 of the hill, its defences being created 
 by scarping the steep chalk slope 
 and forming a ditch and bank. Its 
 interior diameter is from 200 to 
 250 yards. " Preston Valley is a 
 little gem ; a verdant dell opening 
 to the sea, through which a stream- 
 let runs, with the sides and bottom 
 covered with woods." — Gossc. At 
 Preston is a bridge of great antiquity, 
 considered by Mr. C. Warne to 
 be of Roman date. 
 
 Beyond Preston the downs rise 
 abruptly on the rt., and on one of 
 their steepest slopes appears the 
 colossal figure of George III. on 
 horseback, formed by removing the 
 turf from the chalk. It was the 
 work of a private soldier, and must 
 be regarded as a proof of considerable 
 skill ; for, being cut on an inclined 
 surface, it had to be distorted to 
 produce a true image. It is visible 
 from the sea at a great distance. 
 Along the crest of the ridge are a 
 great number of barrows, arranged 
 in groups. 
 
 Between Preston and Osmington 
 are the remains of a rude stone 
 circle. 
 
 At Pokeswell, J m. S.E. of the 
 ch., the remains of a rude stone 
 circle, 13 ft. 8 in. in diameter, may 
 be traced on the top of a green 
 
214 
 
 Boute 13,— Weymouth ; Excursions, Dorsetsliire. 
 
 mound, surroimded by a shallow- 
 ditch. The stones are all small ; 
 the largest not more than 2 ft. 4 in. 
 high. Four large stones to the W. 
 may perhaps be the remains of an 
 outer circle. 
 
 5 m. is Osmington, a pretty village, 
 embowered in a woody valley, among 
 lofty hills, with a Ch. dedicated to 
 St. Osmund, partly rebuilt in 1845 ; 
 it has a Perp. tower, Trans, chancel 
 arch, and north arcade. The square 
 Norm, font stands on a central pillar 
 and four shafts surrounding it. It 
 was once the property of the abbots 
 of Milton. 1 m. to the 1. is Osming- 
 ton Mill, a coastguard station, a 
 pretty spot, where a cascade tumbles 
 to the shore ; and further E., along 
 the coast, near the hamlet of S. 
 Holworth, the Burning Cliff, which, 
 between the years 1824 and 1827, 
 emitted clouds of heated vapour, and 
 exhibited on a small scale the phe- 
 nomena of a volcano. The effect was 
 produced by the decomposition of the 
 iron pyrites and bituminous shale of 
 the Kimmeridge beds by a long-con- 
 tinued rain. 
 
 It is a pleasant row or sail to Os- 
 mington Mills across the bay.] 
 
 [(d) A walk round the Isle of Port- 
 land (Rte. 18), which can be accom- 
 plished in one day. The chief points 
 of interest are— view of the Chesil 
 Bank from Fortune's Well — Break- 
 water — Verne Fort — Quarries — Con- 
 vict Prison — Bow and Arrow Castle 
 — Pennsylvania Castle — Cave Hole, 
 and Portland Bill. A steamer plies 
 several times a day between Wey- 
 mouth and the island, and a railway 
 connects the two.] 
 
 [{e) To Lulworth Cove (Rte. 17), 
 by excursion steamer during the 
 summer months. The distance by 
 road is 16 m., 9 m. by water.] 
 
 [(/) The most interesting excur- 
 sion to be taken from Weymouth is 
 that to Abbot sbury, 9 m. W., a village 
 
 famous for the ruins of its abbey, 
 and for its Swannery and Decoys. 
 The road thither is over a bare but 
 well-cultivated country between the 
 downs and the sea. 
 
 3 m. West Chickerell, On 1. a lane 
 leads in ^ m. to East Fleet, on the 
 Fleet Water, This retired village 
 suffered greatly in the memorable 
 storm of November 23, 1824, when 
 the church and nearly all the village 
 were devastated by a tide of extra- 
 ordinary height. In the chancel of 
 the old Ch. are some late brasses of 
 the De Mohuns. Near the old ch. 
 is a Roman-British cemetery. A new 
 ch. has been erected in a picturesque 
 situation further inland, at the cost of 
 the late rector. Rev. G. Gould. E. 
 of it 1 m. is Fleet House, formerly the 
 seat of the Rev. George Goodden. 
 
 7 m. Portisham, a village situated 
 under bold furzy hills, from which a 
 lively little rivulet runs to the sea. 
 The Ch. has a tall and stately pin- 
 nacled tower, with conspicuous belfry 
 turret. It has a chancel-door, font, 
 window, and other portions of Nor- 
 man date, and someE.E. windows and 
 other details, panelled nave arcades, 
 and a Jacobean pulpit. The ceiling 
 is a panelled cove. Canute gave 7 
 hides of land in Portisham to his 
 servant Ore, the founder of Abbots- 
 bury. Here were born Sir Andrew 
 Ricard, a notable East India mer- 
 chant, d. 1672, and Admiral Sir 
 Thomas M. Hardy, one of the most 
 illustrious of Nelson's captains, to 
 whose memory a column 70 ft. high 
 has been erected on the adjacent 
 height of Black Down, 817 ft. above 
 the sea. The neighbouring downs 
 exhibit many traces of rude stone 
 circles and avenues, and ^ m. E. of 
 the hamlet of Gorwell are the remains 
 of a kistvaen,^popularly known as the 
 Grey Mare and her Colts. Five large 
 stones lie on the slope of the barrow 
 which once enclosed them, removed 
 in the vain hope of discovering hid 
 treasure. J m. to the N.W. on Tenant 
 Hill is a stone circle about 30 ft. in 
 
Dorsetsliire. BoiUe 13. — Abhotshurij, 
 
 215 
 
 diameter, of 18 stones, all prostrate, 
 the largest being 8 ft. long. Outside 
 the circle are several outlying stones. 
 On the summit of Bidge Rill (rt. of 
 the ascent to Winterbourn) are re- 
 mains of a cromlech or kistvaen, 
 the only considerable one in the 
 county, called the 
 
 Uelstone^ which, according to the 
 legend, was thrown by the Evil 
 One to this spot from the isle of 
 Portland. It consists of a ponderous 
 oval slab about 8 ft. across and 27^ 
 ft. in circumference, of a very hard 
 conglomerate, resting on nine up- 
 right supporters. Most of the sup- 
 porters had been thrown down, and 
 the capstone shelved to the S., but 
 in 1869 the owner of the estate, 
 Mr. Mansfield, had the whole care- 
 fully raised and readjusted by screw- 
 jacks. The locality commands a good 
 view of Hardy's pillar on Blackdown, 
 to the 1. of which is Bridehead (Rte. 
 14), the seat of R. Williams, Esq. ; 
 an ancient earthwork known as the 
 Old Warren ; and a stony valley 
 called Bride Bottom, \ which may be 
 compared with the Grey AVethers 
 near Avebury. 
 
 1 J m. Ahbotshury (^Inn : Ship). This 
 village is very pleasantly situated in 
 a vale about a mile from the sea, 
 below picturesque hill-sides golden 
 with furze ; one of which is crowned 
 by the ancient chapel or chantry of 
 St. Catherine. It derives its name 
 from its once celebrated Benedictine 
 Abbey, founded, it is said, in the 
 reign of King Canute, c. 102G, 
 by Ore, one of his house-carls," 
 and his wife Thola, who bestowed 
 on the abbey the manor of Tol- 
 puddle ; but there is a tradition of a 
 eh. having been founded here in the 
 early times of the British Church by 
 one Bertulfus, and the name of Aho- 
 desbyri is said to have been given it 
 by St. Peter, who, according to a 
 legendary tale, appeared personally 
 to consecrate the building. At the 
 Dissolution the abbey was granted to 
 Sir Giles Strangw^ays. 
 
 The Abbey ruins are inconsiderable, 
 though scattered over a large area. 
 Some fragments of the great Gate 
 House, which spanned the road to 
 the S. of the church, still remain, 
 together with an archway to the 
 left leading into the inner court, an 
 ivy-clad gable end, and a picturesque 
 farmhouse and some cottages, pre- 
 serving windows and buttresses and 
 other relics of the Abbey domestic 
 buildings. The most remarkable 
 portion remaining is the noble Barn 
 of the 15th cent., which for the excel- 
 lence of its masonry, the beauty of 
 its proportions, and the admirable 
 execution of the decoration of its 
 transeptal entrance, and gable orna- 
 ments, AV'ould put to shame many a 
 modern church. An octagonal stair- 
 case turret adjacent to the great door- 
 way is a very unusual feature. About 
 one-third of its length is roofless. 
 W. of the abbey, under Chapel Hill, 
 are remains of the abbey terraced 
 gardens and fishponds. 
 
 The Church is Perpendicular, with 
 a good plain tower. There is a 
 weather-worn figure of the Trinity 
 in a niche over the W. door. The 
 interior is plain but good. The light 
 arcades run continuously from end 
 to end, without the interruption of a 
 chancel arch. The nave has a plain 
 clerestory ; the chancel is distinguish- 
 ed by a Jacobean plaster ceiling, with 
 panels containing the arms of the 
 Strangways and their alliances. The 
 E. window is blocked up by a hand- 
 some but incongruous Corinthian 
 altar-piece, erected 1751. The rood 
 door and steps remain, together with 
 a little old stained glass, and some 
 good 17th cent, woodwork. The 
 .Jacobean pulpit is well carved, and 
 in its bullet-holes bears the marks of 
 a fray which occurred in the church 
 at the time of the Great Rebellion, 
 Nov. 8, 1644, when Sir Anthony 
 Ashley Cooper assailed a Royalist 
 party under Col. Strangways, who 
 had taken refuge here. In the base- 
 ment of the tower is the monumental 
 
216 
 
 Boute 13. — St. Catherine's Chapel. Dorsetshire. 
 
 slab of one of the abbots, with his 
 effigy bearing the pastoral staff. 
 
 The Chapel of St. Catherine stands 
 conspicuously on the crown of a steep 
 terraced hill overlooking the sea, 
 S.W. of the village. It is a little 
 building of much architectural in- 
 terest, of Perp. date, 15 ft. in breadth 
 by 45 in length, and of excellent 
 workmanship. Though occupying 
 so exposed a position, the masonry 
 does not show a single crack, and 
 bears few traces of decay. It is an 
 admirable example of plain Perp. 
 architecture, with well-proportioned 
 windows of three lights in the east 
 gable, and of two lights in that to the 
 west and in the side walls. No timber 
 enters into its construction, which 
 is entirely of stone, ingeniously dove- 
 tailed together in the panelled and 
 carved ceiling and roof. The walls 
 are 4 ft. thick, and are supported by 
 massive buttresses, which rise above 
 the parapet in battlemented pinnacles. 
 The stone roof is masked by lofty 
 parapet walls pierced with arched 
 openings. It has 2 arched en- 
 trances with external porches, and 
 at the N.W. angle a look-out and 
 beacon tower. The view is wide and 
 beautiful, commanding a wide stretch 
 of sea from the cliffs of Portland and 
 its long Bill, to the E., to the hills 
 overlooking Burton Bradstock and 
 Bridport to the W. The Swannery 
 lies at one's feet, protected by the 
 long line of the Chesil bank from the 
 violence of the waves, whose roar, 
 even on a calm day, is distinctly 
 audible at this height. 
 
 A very pretty lane overshadowed 
 with elms, with the grey wall of 
 the outer abbey precincts to the right, 
 leads past the Abbot's Mill to the 
 Decoy and Scvanneri/, at the end of 
 the Fleet, which form a scene of 
 great interest, almost unique in 
 England, not to be missed by the 
 visitor ffor a detailed account see 
 Good Words for March, 1867). It is a 
 place of oozy creeks and reedy pools, 
 and still lakelets, all communicating 
 
 with the Fleet, across which rise 
 the tawny pebble beach and a green 
 warren alive with thousands of 
 nimble white rabits. It affords a 
 home for an immense number of 
 swans, 1 400 of whom were reckoned 
 in the autumn of 1878, and the 
 number of nests in the spring of 
 1879 amounted to more than 360. 
 There are two decoy pipes con- 
 structed for the capture of wild fowl, 
 which are enticed into their mazes 
 by tame ducks trained for the pur- 
 pose. At the entrance a tall pole 
 records the fearful storm of Nov. 23, 
 1824, when the water reached the 
 height of 22 ft. 8 in. submerging 
 the whole of the low land near the 
 sea.' 
 
 The Chesil Bank presents at Abbots- 
 bury the same remarkable appear- 
 ance as at Portland ; but the pebbles, 
 which at Chesilton were nearly 3 in. 
 in diameter, have here decreased to 
 the size of coarse gravel. The 
 music of the sea has also changed, 
 for there is more hissing in the 
 sound. The bank is steeply sloped 
 on both sides, and of immense bulk. 
 To the rt. of the valley stands the 
 Castle, a summer residence of the 
 Earl of Ilch ester, who has a con- 
 siderable property here, including 
 the Swannery. The gardens are 
 very beautiful, and would repay 
 inspection. 
 
 There is also an intermittent spring 
 near the limekiln on the hill-side op- 
 posite the village ; and, in the neigh- 
 bourhood. Hardy's monument, and 
 Abbot sbury Camp, Ij ra. W., a square 
 earthwork enclosing 20 acres.] 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 14. — Salisbury to Lyme Begis, 
 
 217 
 
 EOUTE 14. 
 
 SALISBURY TO LYME REGIS, BY 
 BLANDFORD, PUDDLETOWN, DOR- 
 CHESTER, BRIDPORT [BEAMIN- 
 STER], AND CHARMOUTH. 
 
 Leaving Salisbury the road de- 
 scends Harnham Hill and descends 
 into the Vale of Chalk to Combe 
 Bissett, 3J ni. (Rte. 10). 
 
 9j m. Bolierley D\jkG may be seen 
 running in a serpentine line for 4 
 m. from E. to W. Crossing Crowden 
 Down we reach Vernditch Lodr/e, a 
 hunting lodge of the extensive Vern- 
 ditch Chase, formerly a walk of 
 Cranborne Chase. 2 m. N.E. is the 
 village of Martin, with a small E.E. 
 ch. 
 
 9i m. the road enters Dorsetshire 
 at Woodyates Inn (Wood gates, as 
 being the entrance to Cranborne 
 Chase). Near this spot the Duke 
 of Monmouth, in his flight from 
 Sedgemoor, was obliged to abandon 
 his horse. He proceeded on foot 
 towards the coast, but was overtaken 
 and captured by his pursuers on the 
 Woodlands estate near Horton (Rte. 
 13). 
 
 Here the highway falls in with 
 the Via Iceniana or Iknield St. from 
 Old Sarum, running in a straight 
 line towards Badbury Rings. Nu- 
 merous tumuli are scattered over 
 the downs. The wooded hills of 
 Granhorne Chase are well seen on the 
 rt. 1 m. on the 1. the long straight 
 line of the Adding Dyke, or Roman 
 road, may be traced across Thorny 
 Down, running S. to Gussage St. 
 Michael. 
 
 14f m. Cashmore Inn, famous in 
 coaching days. J m. N. is Gussage 
 St. Andrew, and 2^ m. S. Gussage St. 
 Michael, and All Saints (divided by 
 the Roman road), little villages along 
 the course of a streamlet, with small 
 
 ancient churches. That of St. Mi- 
 chaeVs has some Transition- Norm, 
 portions, including the nave, ar- 
 cade, tower, and font. In the 
 churchyard is a magnificent yew- 
 tree. That of All Saints is a good 
 specimen of early Decorated. The 
 windows of the nave have singular 
 foliated rear arches. The font of 
 Purbeck marble is Trans. Norm. 
 The chancel has been rebuilt. 
 Gussage All Saints lies embosomed 
 between two beautiful hills, half 
 hidden by luxuriant woods. The 
 Ch., restored 1865, deserves notice. 
 The chancel was rebuilt, and the old 
 chancel arch erected as an entrance 
 to the organ chamber. The tower 
 stands on the S. side, c. 1330. On 
 Gussage Cow Down, 2 m. N., is the 
 Roman Stat. Vindogladia. 
 
 Horton (Rte. 13) is 3 m. further S. 
 
 3^ m. S. is More Crichel (Lord 
 Alington), a magnificent house and 
 well-wooded demesne, rebuilt by Sir 
 W. Napier after its destruction by 
 fire in 1742, but very considerably 
 enlarged and beautified by Mr, 
 Humphrey Sturt. It was subse- 
 quently occupied by George IV. 
 when Regent. In 1814 the Princess 
 Charlotte was placed here under^the 
 care of the Dowager-Countess of 
 Rosslyn and the Countess of Ilchester. 
 The Ch. was rebuilt by the 'late Mr. 
 H. C. Sturt in a very handsome 
 manner, with a groined chancel. It 
 contains monuments of the Cifre- 
 wasts, formerly lords of More Cri- 
 chel. 3i m. N. in Cranborne Chase 
 is Bushmore lodge, the seat of 
 General Pitt Rivers, the house being 
 in Wiltshire, but upwards of 30,000 
 acres of his estate are in Dorset. 
 
 About 1 m. W. of Rushmore is the 
 picturesque little village of Tollard 
 Royal, where was a royal hunting- 
 seat, the successor of which still 
 bears the name of "King John's 
 House.'' 1 m. further the Alamm 
 Tree still stands, where tradition 
 says the keeper used to sound his 
 horn for the commencement of the 
 
218 
 
 IR^oute 14. — Tarrant Hinton. 
 
 Dorsetsliire. 
 
 chase. The Ch. contains the effigy 
 of a knight in chain-armour. 
 
 17 m. Tarrant Hinton. The Ch. 
 stands picturesquely on the hill slope 
 N.W. of the village. The chancel 
 and tower are Perp. ; the arcade 
 E.E. There is a Norman font, and 
 on the N. side of the chancel a 
 chapel opening into it by very curi- 
 ous Eenaissance arches highly adorn- 
 ed with carving and colour, the 
 work of Thomas Trotteswell, the 
 Rector, 1515. An arch, bearing in 
 a medallion, to the rt., the three 
 women at the Sepulchre, and the 
 inscription *' Venite et videte locum 
 ubi positus erat Dominus,'" is evi- 
 dently an Easter sepulchre, a very 
 late example of such an arrange- 
 ment. Over the porch door of the 
 rectory is an inscription, commemo- 
 rating the builder, Thomas Trot- 
 teswell, alias Wever, Rector 1532. 
 1 m. rt. is Eastlury Park (Young's 
 Pierian Eastbury"), formerly the 
 site of a mansion by Vanbrugh (see 
 Campbell's Vitruv. Brit. vol. iii.), of 
 great size and splendour, erected 
 1718 at a cost of 140,000/. by George 
 Bubb Dodington. (Bubb Dodington, 
 the son of an apothecary at Wey- 
 mouth, and nephew of George Dod- 
 ington, one of the Lords of the 
 Admiralty, by address in election- 
 eering gained political importance, 
 and was created Lord Melcombe. He 
 was a retainer of Frederick Prince 
 of Wales.) The house was taken 
 down and sold piecemeal, all but 
 one wing, in 1795, by Earl Temple, 
 who had previously offered an an- 
 nuity of 200Z. to any gentleman who 
 would occupy it and keep it in repair. 
 It is celebrated in verse by Thomson 
 'Autumn,' vv. 651-669) (who dedi- 
 cated his ' Summer ' to Dodington), 
 Young, and Christopher Pitt, who 
 w*rites : — 
 
 " Where with your Dodington retired you sit, 
 Charmed with his jaowing Burgundy and 
 wit : 
 
 Where a new Eden in the wild is found, 
 And all the seasons in a spot of ground." 
 
 Fitt to Young. 
 
 They, with Fielding, Bentley, and 
 other literary men of the day, were 
 frequent guests here. Voltaire was 
 also a visitor at Eastbury : — 
 
 " On Dorset Downs where Milton's page 
 With Sin and Death provoked thy rage." 
 
 Young. 
 
 The estate is now the property of 
 J. J. Farquharson, Esq. From 1806 
 to 1858 it was the seat of the famous 
 Eastbury Kennel," of which Mr. 
 Farquharson was master, displaying 
 '^an equanimity of temper which 
 was never ruffled, and an urbanity 
 of manners and generosity of dis- 
 position seldom equalled, united 
 with great punctuality and forbear- 
 ance." Just outside Eastbury Park 
 is Tarrant Gunvil'e, with a Ch. entirely 
 rebuilt 1845, with the exception of 
 the pinnacled tower. 
 
 [From Tarrant Hinton the pedes- 
 trian may take a very pleasant walk 
 down the valley of the little river 
 Tarrant, an affluent of the Stour, with 
 a pretty village called from the 
 stream, and an ancient church, al- 
 most every mile, to Spetisbury Stat., 
 and regain the route at Blandford by 
 rly. He will come in succession to 
 Tarrant Monkton, Rushton, Keynestonj 
 and Crawford. Tarrant Monkton 
 takes its second name from having 
 belonged to Tewkesbury Abbey. 
 The ch. is small and uninteresting. 
 At Monkton Farm bronze torques 
 and armillse were dug up a few years 
 since, now in the museum of Mr. 
 Durden of Blandford. Tarrant Rush^ 
 ton Ch. is an interesting small 
 cruciform building. The chancel is 
 Norman ; the N. transept E.E. ; the 
 rest Dec. The tympanum of the 
 porch has a curious bas-relief : there 
 is a low side window, and a squint 
 filled with tracery. Tarrant Keyne- 
 ston takes its name from the ancient 
 family De Caneto, of which it was 
 the seat. One of its members took 
 Stephen prisoner at the battle of Lin- 
 coln. The Ch. was rebuilt by T. H. 
 Wyatt in 1873. The very curious 
 
Dorsetshire. Route 14. — Pimperne, 
 
 219 
 
 "Ancren Rewle," containing rules 
 for female anchorites, was drawn 
 up for 3 young ladies of rank, who 
 immured themselves here c. 1200. 
 Tarrant Crawford, with an E. E. Vh. 
 of flint and stone, was the site of a 
 Cistercian nunnery founded by Ralph 
 de Caneto, temp. Rich. L, and re-en- 
 dowed by Bishop Poore of Salisbury, 
 1217. The site of the monastic ch. 
 is marked by rough ground, and a 
 barn contains some remains of the 
 old buildings. Crawford Castle is a 
 circular earthwork. Buzhury, 1 m. 
 N. on the downs, is a circular en- 
 trenchment, containing 7 or 8 acres, 
 with a double ditch, commanding 
 fine views N.E. and S.E., probably 
 the site of a fortified British village. 
 A network of trackways spreads over 
 the adjacent downs, which are con- 
 nected by branches with this strong- 
 hold. Crawford Bridge was repaired 
 by 40 days' indulgences, a.d. 1506.] 
 Returning to the main route we 
 reach 
 
 19f m. Fimperne, where was a 
 curious maze cut in the turf on the 
 down, " much used by the young 
 people onholidaies and by the schoole- 
 boies," destroyed in 1730; now the 
 site of the Blandford Cemetery. The 
 Ch., rebuilt 1874, has a very rich 
 Norm. S. door and cup-shaped font. 
 The chancel arch has bold chevron 
 mouldings and good capitals. There 
 are remains of the sancte bell- 
 cot. The porch of the parsonage, 
 built like that of Tarrant Hinton 
 by Thomas Trotteswell, 1430, de- 
 serves notice. The village cross 
 still stands on the green. Framp- 
 toUf Bp. "of Gloucester, one of the 
 suspended bishops, was b. at Hyde 
 Farm, 1622. He steadfastly opposed 
 James II.'s efforts to introduce 
 Popery, but remained firm in his 
 allegiance to him. He appealed to 
 William III. in behalf of his lawful 
 and injured sovereign, and received 
 for answer, *' I will take care of the 
 church." After boldly preaching 
 before him in James's favour at 
 
 Hampton Court, William remarked, 
 I perceive the Bp. of Gloucester 
 don't expect a translation." Soon 
 after this he was deprived. He took 
 no part in the nonjuring schism. 
 
 Christopher Pitt (the poet), the 
 translator of the * ^neid ' and 
 Vida's * Art of Poetry,' was rector 
 here: d. 1748. 
 
 The road descends into the valley 
 of the Stour, and reaches 
 
 22 m. Blandford (see Rte. 20). 
 
 The road rises from the valley 
 over Charlton Down. IJ m. rt. is 
 Down House, Sir Wm. Smith Mar- 
 riott, Bart. 
 
 25^ m. The road crosses the Belgic 
 earthwork of Combe's Ditch. Two 
 barrows face each other on opposite 
 sides of the highway, like posts for 
 sentinels. The dyke may be traced 
 S.E. along the crest of the down to 
 Great Colwood, where it descends 
 into the Winterborne valley, and is 
 lost there. 
 
 27 J m. Winterborne WhitcJturch, 
 where the road crosses a feeder of 
 the Stour, which gives a name to this 
 and many neighbouring parishes. 
 The chancel of the Ch. is E.E., the 
 tower is central and of Perp. date 
 on Tr.-Norman piers. There is only 
 a S. transept. The nave was re- 
 built in 1841. The pulpitis ancient, 
 c. 1450; the font a very curious 
 architectural design of the same date. 
 John Wesley, the grandfather of the 
 founder of Methodism, was vicar here, 
 1658. He married a niece of Thos. 
 Fuller, author of ' the Worthies.' 
 He appears not to have been regu- 
 larly ordained, and was much ha- 
 rassed after the Restoration, which 
 led to his commencing a career of 
 itinerant preaching in striking simi- 
 larity to that of his grandson, whose 
 father Samuel, the rector of Ep- 
 worth, was born here. George 
 Turberville the poet was born here 
 c. 1540. On the 1. is Whatcombe 
 House, built 1750, J. C. Mansel 
 Pleydell, Esq. 
 
220 
 
 Boute 14. — Milton Abhas. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 [Continuing up the stream we 
 come to Wintcrhorne Clenston, 2 m., 
 once the seat of the De la Lyndes, 
 and afterwards of the Mortons. A 
 picturesque fragment of this manor- 
 house remains. The hall, with a 
 fine timber roof, has been divided 
 into several rooms. The barn has a 
 good roof of 6 bays. The Ch. is 
 modern, with a spire (Basevi, arch. 
 1840), erected at the sole expense of 
 the late Mrs. Michel of Whatcombe 
 House, by whom the Church of 
 Winterhourne Houghton was also re- 
 built in 1861 (T. H. Wyatt, arch.). 
 IJ m. further up the stream is 
 Wintcrhorne Stickkmd, with a poor 
 Church, modernized in 1716. 1^ 
 m. further we come to Turnworth, 
 where the Ch. has been rebuilt in a 
 good style, preserving the old 
 square tower, and some ancient 
 features. Turnicorth House, under 
 the chalk downs, the seat of Mrs. 
 Parry Okeden, is a modern Gothic 
 building. On the hill above is a small 
 Komano-British camp, and one of the 
 most perfect examples of a British 
 village in the county.] 
 
 29 J m. Milborne St, Andrew* s is 
 erroneously said to have been the 
 birthplace of Card. Morton, Abp. 
 of Canterbury, the deviser of Mor- 
 ton's Fork," b. 1410, who was really 
 born at Milborne Stileham, in the 
 parish of Bere Regis. There are 
 some remains of the manor house. 
 The little Ch. has Norm, and E.E. 
 portions, and contains a Norm. S. 
 doorway and font. 
 
 2 m. N.W. of Milborne is Dewlish, 
 where is the seat of the Michels, 
 built 1702, near which a Roman 
 pavement was discovered in 1740. 
 The Ch. has good Norm. N. and S. 
 doors. The N. aisle has Perp. arches 
 with panelled soffits. It contains 
 a memorial window to General John 
 Michel, d. 1844. 
 
 1 m. 1. is Weatherhury Castle, or, 
 as it is called here, Castle Bings, a 
 long rectangular British camp, with 
 2 ramparts and ditches containing 
 
 7 acres. An obelisk was erected in 
 1761 within the enclosure, which is 
 now covered with fir-trees. 
 
 [2 m. S.E. of Milborne is Bere 
 Regis, Rte. 19.] 
 
 [From Milborne a pretty lane 
 runs up a vale to Milton Abbey, 2i m. 
 N., the seat of Baron Hambro, known 
 for its Abbey Church. From the park- 
 gate, with its huge dogs supporting 
 with raised paws armorial shields, 
 the lane turns rt. to 
 
 Milton Abbas, 7 m. S.W. of Bland- 
 ford ; 11 m. N.E. of Dorchester. It 
 was built 1786 by Joseph Damer, first 
 Earl of Dorchester, to receive the 
 inhabitants of the old village under 
 the shadow of the abbey, which was 
 pulled down on the erection of the 
 present mansion. It consists of two 
 rows of cottages, each cottage with 
 high thatched roof, and in all re- 
 spects similar to its neighbour, from 
 which it is separated by an open 
 space planted with a chesnut-tree. 
 In the centre of one row is the 
 almshouse, and in that of the other 
 the church, built in debased Gothic 
 1786, with pinnacled tower, and a 
 fpimm old font removed from the 
 abbey. 
 
 Milton Abbey is seated in a hollow 
 at the confluence of three deep 
 valleys below swelling downs and 
 woods, in a park which extends 3 m. 
 from E. to W. It occupies the site 
 of an abbey founded by Athelstan 
 c. 933 for secular priests, who were 
 made to give place to Benedictine 
 monks in 964. At the Dissolution, 
 it was given by Henry VIII. (for 
 1000/.) to Sir John Tregonwell, his 
 proctor in the divorce from Queen 
 Katharine. From the Tregonwells it 
 passed by marriage to Sir Jacob 
 Bancks, secretary to the Swedish 
 Embassy (b. 1663), and then by pur- 
 chase, in 1752, to Joseph Damer, af- 
 terwards Earl of Dorchester. With 
 the exception of the hall, the whole 
 of the monastic buildings were pulled 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 14. — Milton Abbey Church, 
 
 221 
 
 down in 1771, when the present 
 house was built by the Earl of Dor- 
 chester, from the designs of Sir Wil- 
 liam Chambers. It is a large quad- 
 rangular mansion with a central 
 court, and is constructed of white 
 limestone, alternating with layers of 
 flint. It is a curious example of its 
 architect's notions of the Gothic style. 
 The principal fronts face the N. and 
 the W., and on the S. is the noble 
 abbey church. 
 
 The only interesting part of the 
 house is the Monks' Hall, ov Refectory, 
 The walls are hung with ancient 
 weapons, and emblazoned with the 
 arms of Athelstan and other patrons 
 01 the abbey. It is a stately apart- 
 ment, with a roof of Irish oak, a 
 much-admired screen of the same 
 material (but painted white and 
 gilded), and a sideboard, on which a 
 stag-hunt is finely carved. Among 
 its curiosities are also the antlers of 
 an elk found in Tipperary ; and the 
 great bugle-horn used in the old 
 deer-hunts. The date, 1498, and the 
 rebus of Abbot Middleton (a mill 
 and a tun) will be observed on the 
 screen and cornice. 
 
 The Abbey Church is a truly noble 
 specimen of ecclesiastical architec- 
 ture, deserving to take high rank 
 among the minsters of the land, but 
 till recently, from its remote situa- 
 tion, almost unknown to architec- 
 tural enquirers. It consists of the 
 three eastern arms of a cross church, 
 with a very richly pinnacled tower 
 rising at the intersection of the tran- 
 septs. Its outline recalls that of 
 Merton College Chapel at Oxford ; 
 and there is every reason to believe 
 that, as in that instance, the nave was 
 never erected. The church, which 
 existing fragments show had been 
 erected with much elaborate orna- 
 ment towards the end of the 12th 
 century, was struck by lightning in 
 1309, and burnt down. The rebuild- 
 ing was commenced in 1322, and was 
 carried on gradually. The choir is 
 the earliest part, and is also the 
 
 plainest. The S. transept was the 
 next part built, of much finer work ; 
 followed by the N. transept, in which 
 the Decorated of the other portions 
 passes into Perpendicular, which 
 style is fully developed in the elabo- 
 rate tower. The nave was planned, 
 but in all probability was never 
 erected. The Lady-chapel has been 
 destroyed. The best view of the ch. 
 is that from the S.E., which displays 
 the beautifully designed double fly- 
 ing buttresses, supporting the cle- 
 restoiy. The whole of the interior is 
 vaulted in stone. The arrangement 
 of the choir arcade is singular, 
 having rather the effect of a wall 
 pierced with arches than a continu- 
 ous arcade. The design is heavy, 
 and suffers from the want of a 
 string-course above the arches, which 
 is found in the transepts. The 
 lantern arches are noble. The rich 
 altar-screen (dated 1492), which was 
 walled up for security but is now 
 uncovered and restored in artificial 
 stone, is an elaborate work, of the 
 same character as those of Win- 
 chester and St. Albans, divided into 
 niches with highly-decorated cano- 
 pies. The carving of the stalls is 
 good. Two ancient paintings are 
 preserved in the ch. They are sup- 
 posed to represent Athelstan, the 
 founder of the abbey, and his queen, 
 the former presenting a model of 
 the church to a monk who is kneel- 
 ing ; the latter holding in her hand 
 a hawk, which is devouring a small 
 bird. They were painted for the 
 place they occupy about the time of 
 Edward IV. Notice, on the rt. of 
 the altar, the 3 canopied sedilia ; in 
 the N. transept the marble effigy of 
 Lady Milton, d. 1775, with her lord in 
 his robes, bag-wig and sword, hang- 
 ing over her in an agony of grief, 
 grotesquely portrayed by Carlini; 
 in the S. transept, the Jesse 
 window by Pugiu, and a curious 
 wooden Tabernacle in the S. aisle, 
 for receiving the sacramental ele- 
 ments after and before Mass : the 
 
222 
 
 Route 14:, — Puddletown, Dorsetshire. 
 
 only example remaining in this 
 country. On the wall, the rebus of 
 the name Milton (a mill and a tun, 
 or cask, with date 1218) ; and in the 
 N. aisle, the marble monument of 
 Sir John Tregonwell, 1565, who 
 received the Abbey from Henry 
 VIII. and favoured the old religion, 
 but served every sovereign down to 
 Elizabeth. A beautifully executed 
 but inappropriate white marble font, 
 by Jerichau, a pupil of Thorwald- 
 sen's, has been given by Baron 
 Haml3ro, by whom the whole build- 
 ing has been munificently restored 
 under the direction of G. G. Scott. 
 
 The dimensions of the church are 
 —length, 132ft.; breadth, 61 ft.; tran- 
 sept, 107 ft. ; tower, 101 ft. high. 
 
 On the hill to the E. of the abbey, 
 reached by smoothly kept grass 
 slopes, stands the chapel of St. Cathe- 
 rine in the early Norman style, with 
 encaustic tiles paving the chancel, 
 and a curious declaration of indul- 
 gence on the side of the S. door. 
 This chapel has passed through va- 
 rious phases of desecration, having 
 been at one time used as a dovecot, 
 at another as a labourer's cottage. 
 The E. and W. ends have been 
 cruelly restored. 
 
 About 3 m. N.W. rises Bullbarrow, 
 the loftiest chalk down on the range, 
 927 ft. above the sea. It is inter- 
 sected by dykes of defence, &c., 
 crowned by the camp of Rawlshury 
 Rings, a circular work of 7 or 8 acres, 
 formed by double ramparts, and com- 
 manding very extensive views over 
 the country. The ridge of Bulbarrow 
 is traversed by an ancient trackway, 
 at various points of which are re- 
 mains of pit villages, and a small 
 quadrangular enclosure, possibly 
 British, in Ibberton Park. Nettlecomh 
 Toot, 4 m. W., is another entrenched 
 hill-fort of refuge. 
 
 Hilton, 1 J m. N.W., possesses a very 
 attractive ivy-grown Ch. The tower 
 is stately, and there are fine Perp. 
 windows. The S. porch has a fan- 
 tracery roof ; a delicate little corbel 
 
 of ivy-leaves over the priests' door 
 and a dole table deserve notice. 
 The chancel contains whole-length 
 figures of the Apostles painted on 
 panel, brought from Milton Abbey, 
 I5 m. S.W. of Hilton, in a quiet 
 recess, deep down among the round 
 chalk hills, approached by ave- 
 nues of stately trees, stands the 
 fine old residence of Bingham's Mel- 
 combe (Col. Bingham), the seat of 
 the Binghams without a break in 
 the male succession since about 1250. 
 It was the birthplace of Sii^ Richard 
 Bingham, " a brave soldier," says 
 Fuller, fortis et felix. in all his un- 
 dertakings." He was at the battles 
 of Lepanto and St. Quentin, and has 
 a monument in Westminster Abbey. 
 
 On entering the courtyard under 
 the buttressed gatehouse, the ter- 
 raced front of the Hall, with its oriel 
 of remarkable projection, presents a 
 very picturesque composition, in com- 
 bination Avith a gable richly de- 
 corated with escutcheons and angu- 
 lar shafts. The windows of the 
 little Ch,, a plain Dec. building, con- 
 tain some good bits of glass from 
 Milton Abbey.] 
 
 33 m. Fuddletown (Rt. 19). 
 
 [From Puddletown the tourist 
 should visit Athelhampton Hall, 1^ m. 
 E., one of the best examples of 
 Domestic architecture in the county 
 (Rte. 19).] 
 
 33f m. a hamlet known as Troy 
 Town. 
 
 34i m. the road crosses Yellowham 
 Hill, with deep ferny glades, and 
 passing Stinsford, we enter 
 
 38 m. Dorchester (Rte. 13). The 
 traveller leaves this town by the 
 Roman Via Iceniana, or Icknield Street, 
 now for i m. an avenue. On the 
 rt. is Poundhury ; on the 1., in the 
 distance, Maiden Castle. 
 
 " Now o'er true Roman road our horses soun d 
 Gr^evius would kneel and kiss the sacred 
 ground." — Gay. 
 
Dorsetslaire. Boute 14. — Bradford Down — Long Bredy, 223 
 
 From the end of the avenue the 
 road runs in a straight line up the 
 long slope of Bradford Down, and from 
 the summit, in 3 m., commands an 
 extensive prospect. Heights and 
 hollows are alike studded with bar- 
 rows. Many may be counted on the 
 crests of the distant hills ranging 
 from Ridgway Hill to Blackdown. 
 There are others on the low ground 
 of Fordington Field, and several by 
 the roadside, in the adjacent mea- 
 dows. After a descent of | m. we 
 turn 1., leaving the Roman road, 
 which pursues a direct course to- 
 wards Eggardon Hill. In front rises 
 the dark height of Black Down, 817 ft. 
 above the sea. It is crowned by an 
 octagonal tower in memory of the 
 gillant Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy, 
 who was born in the village of Por- 
 tisham to the S. of it. On the south- 
 ern slope of the down is the cromlech 
 known as Helstone (Rte. 13). 
 
 42 m. Winterborne Steepleton. The 
 Ch. has an hexagonal spire, the only 
 ancient stone spire in the county be- 
 sides that at Iwerne minster. It has 
 Norm, doorways and a Norm. font. 
 
 43 m. Winterborne Abbas (Inn: 
 Coach and Horses), a rural village 
 sunk among the chalk downs, 9J m. 
 from Weymouth. The Ch. has a 
 fine tower, and remains of E. E. 
 work ; a Norman font, and a good 
 piscina, c. 1320. Dr. Gilbert Ironside, 
 Bishop of Bristol, d. 1671, was the 
 son of Dr. Ralph Ironside, rector of 
 this parish, whom he succeeded 1625. 
 Winterborne, in common with other 
 places of the name, is so called from 
 a stream, peculiar to the chalk valleys, 
 of which the fountains periodically 
 well up, or " break," as it is termed, 
 in the winter. 
 
 J m. beyond this village, 1., is a 
 stone circle, known as the Nine Stones, 
 about 28 ft. in diameter. It stands 
 on a bare spot, and there is a popular 
 notion that trees will not grow with- 
 in the circle. About ^ m. W. of 
 this circle on the road towards Brid- 
 port is the Broad Stone, a large mono- 
 
 lith, 10 ft. by 5 ft., and 2 'ft. thick, 
 now prostrate. The stones are of 
 a cherty conglomerate, and 8 in 
 number, and one only appears to 
 be wanting. The largest is 7 ft. in 
 height by 4 ft. in width; the next 
 in size 5J ft. by 6 ft. ; the others 
 are mere fragments little raised above 
 the ground. 
 
 Climbing the downs we reach 
 the entrance of Bridehead (R. Wil- 
 liams, Esq.), formerly the residence 
 of the Mellers, which takes its name 
 from a copious spring, which, issuing 
 from the chalk, forms a beautiful 
 lake, the head of the river Bride, 
 which, flowing W., falls into the 
 sea at Burton Bradstock. The E. E. 
 Ch., with tower and spire, was built 
 in 1850, and is that of the parish of 
 Little Bredy, 
 
 1 J m. another entrance to Bride- 
 head, which is about 2 m. 1. The road 
 here quits the enclosed country for 
 the open downs, on which it con- 
 tinues for some miles. Upwards of 
 20 barrows stud the adjoining slopes. 
 Dr. Stukeley pronounced this loca- 
 lity " for sight of barrows not to be 
 equalled in the world." 
 
 1 m. rt. Kingston Bussel, an ancient 
 mansion, now a farmhouse, with tall 
 trees and a rookery — an oasis among 
 the furze-covered hills. It was 
 for 4 centuries the seat of the Rus- 
 sells, ancestors of the Duke of Bed- 
 ford (see ante, Wolveton, Rte. 13.). 
 On the summit to the 1. are several 
 barrows, and a bank and ditch run- 
 ning E.N.E. and W.S.W. Below 
 the S. side of this hill lies the vil- 
 lage of Long Bredy. 
 
 46 J m. The Hut Inn and Long Bredy 
 Gate (540 ft. above the sea), on cross 
 roads, where there is a pass through 
 the downs. By the gate are 2 grassy 
 tumuli, and the remains of a third, 
 which helps to support the inn stable. 
 The road now ascends to the summit 
 of a lofty ridge, reaching a height of 
 702 feet, on which it continues for 
 2^ m. To the 1. is a delightful view 
 of fertile valleys, of the hills by the 
 
224 
 
 Boute 1 4. — Brid^ort. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 coast, and a fringe of blue sea. The 
 earthworks of Abbotshury Castle, and 
 the height of PuncknoU Knob, with 
 its sea-mark, are conspicuous. 
 
 48 J m. Here the whole of western 
 Dorset, and parts of Somerset and 
 Devon, open on the traveller, who 
 commences a descent of 2 m. On 
 the rt. beyond an intervening valley 
 stretches the long rolling down of 
 
 Eg gar don Hill, crowned by a re- 
 markable camp, resembling in its 
 shape and the strength of its de- 
 fences Maiden Castle, near Dorches- 
 ter. On the N. and E. its entrench- 
 ments are double ; on the W. triple ; 
 on the S. they cannot be accurately 
 traced. The inner rampart is more 
 than 50 ft. in height, and the oval 
 area it encloses, of 20 acres, is studded 
 with tumuli. The entrances are two in 
 number, on the N.W. and S.E., and 
 artfully made by overlapping banks. 
 To that on the S.E. ran the Roman 
 road direct from Dorchester. The 
 hill stands in 3 parishes. 
 
 50 m. Travellers' Rest (253 ft. above 
 the sea). 1. is Shipton Beacon, like 
 a ship turned keel upwards, with an 
 elliptical camp. It is irregular in 
 form, with a single low rampart and 
 ditch. Just S. of it is Hammerdon 
 Hill, and to the N.W. are seen the 
 singular twin heights of Lewesdon 
 and Pillesdon, called by sailors the 
 CoiD and the Calf, the latter the highest 
 hill in Dorsetshire, 934 ft. above the 
 sea. 
 
 3 m. Bridport {Inns : Bull ; Grey- 
 hound. A municipal and parlia- 
 mentary borough returning one 
 member, Pop. 6790, taking its name 
 from the river Bride or Bredy, which 
 falls into the sea at Burton Fresh- 
 water, below the town). [Bridport is 
 connected with the G. W. and S.-W. 
 system by a branch line to Maiden 
 Newton on the Dorchester and Yeovil 
 line. A daily omnibus runs from 
 Bridport, through Beaminster to the 
 Crewkerne Stat, of the S.-W. Rly. to 
 Exeter.] This is a large airy town, 
 
 surrounded by hills, and -seated on a 
 gentle eminence between 2 small 
 streams, the Brit, W., and Asker, E., 
 which unite below the town. The 
 streets form a Y> two branches run- 
 ning from the E. and W. towards the 
 centre, where stands the red-brick 
 Town Hall, and a third running S. 
 towards the harbour. The town is 
 chiefly built of red brick, and has no 
 architectural pretensions. The trade 
 of the port lies chiefly in the importa- 
 tion of timber from Canada and Nor- 
 way. There is considerable coasting 
 trade. Bridport has long been cele- 
 brated for its manufacture of twine, 
 rope, shoe-thread, &c., and in the 
 reign of Henry VIH. supplied most 
 of the cordage used in the royal navy. 
 A quantity of hemp was formerly 
 grown in the neighbourhood, and 
 hence the local phrase for a man 
 being hanged, " he was stabbed with a 
 Bridport dagger/* This was taken 
 by Leland in a literal sense ; " at 
 Bridport," he says, *' be made good 
 daggers." There are twine walks 
 at the backs of most of the houses, 
 which are worth inspection. 
 
 The Ch. is a fine cruciform build- 
 ing with a central tower, chiefly Perp. ; 
 but the transepts are E. E., with 
 Perp. windows inserted. The nave 
 was lengthened by 2 bays in the 
 general repair of 1860. In the N. 
 transept is a 'beautiful cross-legged 
 efliigy of a mailed knight, supposed 
 to be one of the Chidiocks. There 
 is a fine modern stone pulpit. In 
 the S. aisle is a mural brass to Edw. 
 Coker of Mappowder, killed by one 
 of the Duke of Monmouth's men, 
 June 14, 1685. The Town Hall was 
 built 1786 on the site of the Chapel 
 of St. Andrew. 
 
 The antiquary will find some an- 
 cient houses worth a visit. The 
 chief of these is a fine Tudor build- 
 ing of 2 stories, now used as a " work- 
 ing men's association," on the E. 
 side of the S. street. On the opposite 
 side of the street is a plainer build- 
 ing, known as Dungeness, now di- 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Boute 14. — Bridport, 
 
 225 
 
 lapidated, said to have been the house 
 of the Prior of St. Leonard's. It has 
 a newel staircase, and its interior 
 arrangements are very interesting. 
 Behind a house on the S. side of the 
 E. bridge is the remnant of St. John's 
 Hospital. 
 
 The Quay is IJ m. distant, where 
 there is a double wooden pier of 
 rather primitive appearance, each 
 end being sharp like the prow of a 
 vessel. The harbour thus formed, 
 which will take vessels of 250 tons, 
 is of consequence to Bridport. but 
 useless as a place of refuge, the en- 
 trance being narrow and obstructed 
 by sand. Around the inner basin 
 are grouped some cottages and an 
 /nw, the George. At this inn, on 
 his escape from Charmouth, in 1651, 
 Charles II. narrowly missed being dis- 
 covered and seized, the ostler recog- 
 nizing his face as one he had seen 
 before. Escaping from Bridport he 
 made his way to Broadwindsor, and 
 thence to Salisbury. The coast is 
 veiy beautiful, undulating towards 
 the W. in irregular heights, including 
 that striking eminence Golden Cap 
 Hill. It also displays an excellent 
 geological section, the strata, from 
 their easterly dip, being exhibited in 
 succession on the cliff. On Golden 
 Cap the sands of the inferior oolite 
 are seen resting on lias, which 
 forms the body of the hill. On Doicn 
 Cliff the blue stratum of lias is at a 
 much lower level, and E. of the har- 
 bour it disappears altogether beneath 
 the shore, being succeeded by the 
 beds of yellow sand and marl belong- 
 ing to the oolite. Again, beyond the 
 mouth of the small river Bredy, the 
 oolite is lost to view in its turn ; the 
 low Burton Cliffs being formed of 
 fullers' earth, abounding in fibrous 
 calcareous spar. At Bridport har- 
 bour we see the first commencement 
 of the Chesil Bank begins, its ma- 
 terials passing gradually from fine 
 sand to coarse shingle between this 
 point and Portland. 
 
 Bridport has never been distin- 
 IWilts, Dorset, (^c, 1SS2.'] 
 
 guished by any important event. It 
 was occupied during the Civil War 
 as quiet quarters by Royalists and 
 Roundheads, but it was never con- 
 tested by either party. Upon Mon- 
 mouth landing at Lyme, it was 
 surprised by his forces, and became 
 the scene of some temporary confu- 
 sion and riot. For this the inhabi- 
 tants had to reckon with Judge Jef- 
 freys, who hung up a dozen of their 
 number in the market-place. 
 
 Bridport was the birthplace of 
 Bp. Bridport, of Sarum, consecr. 
 1256, who, according to Leland, 
 **kyverid the new cathedrall ch. of 
 Saresbyri throughout with lead." 
 It gave the title to Sir Alexander 
 Hood, Baron Bridport, the famous 
 admiral. 
 
 There is a pleasant walk over the 
 hills, returning by the cliffs or along 
 the shore to 
 
 ^Burton Bradstock, 3 m. S.E. of 
 Bridport, which takes its name in 
 its original form, Brideton, from the 
 river Bredy on which it stands, near 
 its embouchure (a pretty spot). The 
 manor was given by Henry I. to St. 
 Stephen's, Caen, to redeem the regalia 
 which the Conqueror at his death 
 had bequeathed to that abbey. It 
 at one time belonged to Bradenstock 
 Priory in Wilts (Rte. I). It was 
 afterwards assigned to St. Stephen's 
 Westminster, and remained the pro- 
 perty of that college till the Dissolu- 
 tion. The Ch. is cruciform, mainly 
 Perp., with a central tower supported 
 on panelled arches. 
 
 Swyre, 2^ m. E., lying just below 
 the conspicuous hill Puncknoll Knob, 
 may be visited for the sake of its 
 intermittent spring, at Berwick farm, 
 f m. N., said to ebb and flow with 
 the tide, and to have a briny savour. 
 It is protected by a small thatched 
 shed]. 
 
 [6 m. N., deeply seated among the 
 hills in the beautiful and fertile vale 
 of the Birt, stands the market town of 
 Q 
 
226 
 
 Boute li.—Beammster. Dorsetsliire. 
 
 Beaminster (Inn: White Hart. 
 Pop. 26 14), a neat, well-looking place, 
 owing its modern appearance to its 
 frequent conflagrations. At the 
 time of the Domesday Survey the 
 manor belonged to the Bishop of 
 Salisbury, and it was given by Bp. 
 Osmund, 1091, to augment two of 
 the prebends of his cathedral. On 
 Palm Sunday, 1644, during the Civil 
 War, when Prince Maurice was 
 quartered here, it was fired in five 
 places in consequence of a quarrel 
 among the different forces, and nearly 
 burnt to the ground. Sprigge passed 
 through it the next year with Fair- 
 fax's army, and found it the pitiful - 
 lest spectacle that man can behold : 
 hardly a house left not consumed." 
 A large part was again burnt in 1684, 
 and again in 1781. The Ch. (a chapel 
 of ease to Netherbury) happily es- 
 caped these repeated fires, and is a 
 very noble building, with rich me- 
 morial windows of stained glass. It is 
 Perp. externally, with a stately square 
 tower c. 1503 (on which the quarters 
 of some of Monmouth's followers 
 were exposed), ornamented with 
 niches and sculptures of the B. 
 Virgin and the Crucifixion, Eesur- 
 rection, Ascension, &c., on the W. 
 face. The arcade of the nave, and 
 a curious squint from the S. aisle 
 into the chancel, are E. E. The 
 chancel arch has some good panel- 
 ling. It contains monuments of 
 the Strodes, including a marble 
 statue to Thos. Strode, serjeant-at- 
 law, d. 1698, and one with marble 
 effigies and statues of fine work- 
 manship to George Strode and his 
 wife, 1753. A curious building called 
 
 the Mort House " adjoins the ch., 
 and has been laid open to it and 
 seated. There is a Free school here, 
 of which the Rev. S. Hood, the father 
 of the naval heroes Lords Bridport 
 and Hood, was master. Dr. Thos. 
 Sprat, Bp. of Rochester, was born 
 here, 1635. 
 
 Beaminster is in the centre of a 
 district famous for the double Dorset , 
 
 or mould cheese, and the surround- 
 ing hilly country is mostly laid out 
 in dairy farms. 
 
 From Axe Knoll, a considerable 
 eminence 2 m. N.E., flow the rivers 
 Axe and Brit. 
 
 Corscombe, 3 m. N.E. of Beaminster, 
 was given by Cuthred, king of the 
 West Saxons, to Sherborne Abbey. 
 The Ch. has a western embattled 
 tower, and 3 canopied niches over 
 the inner doorway of the porch. Here 
 resided the once celebrated Thomas 
 HoUis, the patriot," the liberal 
 benefactor of Harvard College in 
 New England, d. 1774. He called 
 the farms and fields of his estate by 
 the names of the chief patriots and 
 friends of liberty of history. His 
 body was buried, according to his 
 directions, in the middle of a field, 
 without anything to mark the spot. 
 Hollis is commemorated by Crowe in 
 his " Lewesdon Hill." 
 
 " Fain would I view 'thee, Corscombe ; fain 
 would hail 
 
 The ground where Hollis lies ; his choice 
 retreat, 
 
 Where from the busy world withdrawn he 
 lived 
 
 To generous virtue, and the holy love 
 Of liberty, a dedicated spirit, 
 And left his ashes there." 
 
 At Toller Whelme in the parish of 
 Hook are remains of a grange of Ford 
 Abbey. 1 . m. E. is West Chelborough, 
 where the little Ch., rebuilt 1638, 
 contains a very singular tub-shaped 
 E. E. font. Chelborough Hill com- 
 mands a very extensive view, em- 
 bracing Alfred's Tower at Stourhead, 
 Glastonbury Tor, and Castle Neroche. 
 
 At KnoUe, 1 m. S.W., is a burial- 
 ground set apart by James Daniel 
 for the burial of his family and rela- 
 tions, chiefly Anabaptists, in memory 
 of his preservation after the defeat 
 of the Duke of Monmouth, whose 
 cause he had espoused. 
 
 2 m. S.W., under Lewesdon Hill, 
 Stoke Abbot Ch. has a rich Norman 
 font. The tower was rebuilt after 
 being struck by lightning, 1828, 
 and the whole Ch, 1878. The Rev. 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Boiife 1 4. — Broadwindsor. 
 
 227 
 
 W. Crowe, the once well-known public 
 orator of Oxford, author of ' Lewes- 
 don Hill,' was rector here. Crowe's 
 ^ Le wesdon Hill ' was much admired by 
 Rogers, who says in his * Table-talk,' 
 "When travelling in Italy I made 
 two authors my constant study for 
 versification, Milton and Crowe." 
 
 h m. from Beaminster, on the Brid- 
 port road, is Parnham (Lady Og- 
 lander,), formerly the seat of the 
 Strodes, from whom it passed by 
 marriage to the Oglanders in 1764. 
 The house (which is occasionally 
 shown) is a Tudor building at the 
 end of an avenue of wide- branch- 
 ing elms. It contains a fine Hall, built 
 by John Strode, 1449, and altered 
 by Nash, emblazoned with coats of 
 arms, and a gallery of portraits, 
 chiefly of the Strode family. In the 
 drawing-room are original portraits 
 of Thomas, Lord Cromwell, and 
 Gregory, his son. William Strode, 
 one of the five members in Charles 
 I.'s time, was a cadet of this house. 
 The Birt flows behind the house ; 
 and along its banks is a pretty walk to 
 
 Nethet-buri/f 1^ m., one of the larg- 
 est parishes in the county, abound- 
 ing in rivulets. It is one of the 
 prebends of Salisbury Cath. The Ch. 
 is a stately Perp. edifice, with a square 
 western to wer, containing an alabaster 
 monumental effigy in complete ar- 
 mour, with a collar of SS. round the 
 neck, to one of the Moore family. 
 There is a fine Jacobean pulpit. 
 Charles II, halted here on his way 
 to Salisbury, after the failure of his 
 attempted escape from Char mouth. 
 There is an ancient Manor House at 
 Strode (G. T. Gollop, Esq.), of the 
 time of Elizabeth. The wainscoting 
 of the dining parlour bears the arms 
 of Gollop, with the date 1634. At 
 Melplash is a ch., built 1845, in the 
 Norman style by James Bandinel, 
 Esq. Melplash Courts now tenanted 
 by a farmer, is a large ancient man- 
 sion bearing the arms and motto 
 of the Paulets. There is a small 
 domestic chapel at the back. At 
 
 Mapperton, 2 m. S.E. of Bea- 
 minster, is a Manor House of the 
 time of Henry VIII. (Rev. P. M. 
 Compton), with octagonal turrets and 
 spiral pedestals surmounted with 
 heraldic figures. The interior ex- 
 hibits richly panelled ceilings em- 
 blazoned with armorial bearings. 
 The Ch. was rebuilt c. 1700, and re- 
 stored in 1846. N.W. rises a conical 
 hill called CJiart Knoll. 
 
 Broadwindsor^ 3 m. N.W. of Bea- 
 minster, was the rectory of that 
 quaint old writer Thomas Fuller, who 
 there finished his * History of the 
 Holy Warre,' and prepared his ' Pis- 
 gah Sight.' He was presented to it 
 1634, by his uncle, Bp. Davenant, 
 and ousted at the Rebellion ; but he 
 returned to it at the Restoration, and 
 held it until his death in 1661. The 
 Ch. was rebuilt in 1868 at the cost of 
 Major Charles H. Malan, son of the 
 vicar, the Rev. S. C. Malan, the 
 celebrated Oriental scholar. The ori- 
 ginal design was followed, and all 
 the most interesting ancient features 
 were preserved. The N. aisle is 
 E. E., the S. aisle Norm., as is also 
 the font. The Jacobean pulpit is 
 that used by Fuller. The parish, 
 which is the third largest in the 
 diocese, containing Qio^Q acres, 7 m. 
 by 6 m., lies chiefly in a rich vale of 
 meadows and orchards watered by 
 innumerable brooks, and bounded by 
 bold hills. The chief of these are 
 the twin heights of 
 
 Lewesdon Hill and Pillesdon Pen 
 (this latter remarkable for the peaked 
 form of its southern extremity), two 
 conspicuous eminences of greensand, 
 remarkable for their likeness to one 
 another when viewed from certain 
 points, about 3 m. W. of Beaminster. 
 Sailors, whom they serve as a land- 
 mark, call them the Cow and the Calf; 
 and the two hills together have given 
 rise to a proverbial saying current in 
 this county, and applied to neigh- 
 bours who are not acquainted — 
 " as much akin 
 As Lew'soa Hill to Pillson Pen." 
 
 Q 2 
 
228 
 
 Boute 14. — Pillesdon — GhideocJc. Dorisietshire 
 
 These hills are the highest in the 
 county, Lewesdon 960 ft. above the 
 sea, Pillesdon 940 ft. and command 
 a charming prospect. Pillesdon, a 
 lofty table-land overlooking the 
 county for miles, 
 
 " tbat rival height south-west, 
 Which like a rampire bounds the vale be- 
 neath," — Croue. 
 
 is further interesting for an ancient 
 camp, of oval form, encompassed by 
 three strong ramparts and ditches. 
 
 Wordsworth and his sister settled 
 at Raceduwn Lodge, on the N.W. slope 
 of Pillesdon, in the autumn of 1795, 
 in a house belonging to Mr. Pinney, 
 of Bristol, a friend of Basil Monta- 
 gue's. The place was very retired, 
 with little or no society, and a post 
 but once a week. Miss W. describes 
 it as " the place dearest to my recol- 
 lections upon the whole surface of 
 the island; the first home I had;" 
 and speaks with rapture of the lovely 
 meadows above the tops of the combes, 
 and the scenery on Pillesdon, Lewes- 
 don, and Blackdon Hill, and the view 
 of the sea from Lambert's Castle. 
 Here Wordsworth wrote ' The Bor- 
 derers,' and in June, 1797, received 
 his first visit from Coleridge, which 
 led to their removal to Alfoxden. 
 
 Pillesdon, 5 m. W. of Beaminster, 
 was the birthplace of Sir John Hody, 
 Chief Justice of King's Bench, 1440, 
 temp. Hen. VL, whom a false tradition 
 asserts to have passed sentence of 
 death for a capital crime on his own 
 son, who could not have been 7 years 
 old at his father's death. Of the 
 same family were Lord Chief Baron 
 Hody, dec. 1524, and Humphrey 
 Hody, the learned divine, d. 170H. 
 The C%., rebuilt 1830, contains a good 
 piscina, and a stoap in the porch. 
 
 Bettiscombe, a beautiful little ch. 
 built in 1862 by J. Tatchell-Bullen, 
 Esq., of Marshwood Manor, is a con- 
 spicuous object on the E. side of the 
 vale. It contains memorials of the 
 Pinneys.3 
 
 The drive from Bridport to Lyme 
 
 (8 m.) is very attractive, up and 
 down a series of long and steep 
 hills, succeeding one another like 
 waves, and commanding very varied 
 prospects, with every now and then 
 a peep ol the blue sea to the 1. 
 through gaps in the downs. It is 
 pronounced by Madame D'Arblay to 
 be " the most beautiful to which my 
 wandering feet have sent me; diver- 
 sified with all that can compose 
 luxuriant scenery, and with just as 
 much approach to the sublime as is 
 in the province of unterrific beauty " 
 {Diary, 1791). 
 
 Through Bridport's stony lanes our way 
 we take. 
 
 And the proud steep descend to Morcomb- 
 lake. 
 
 On unadulterate wine we here regale, 
 And rob the lobster of his scarlet mail. 
 On either side low fertile vallies lie, 
 The distant prospects tire the travelling eye." 
 
 —Gay. 
 
 As we commence the ascent the 
 remarkable conical eminence of Col- 
 mer's Hill, almost volcanic in its out- 
 line, is a striking object on the rt. 
 At its foot lies 
 
 If m. rt. Symondshiiry, the birth- 
 place of Addison's friend and fellow- 
 worker Eustace Budgell, the son of 
 the rector of the parish, who, mad- 
 dened by losses in the South Sea 
 Bubble, drowned himself at Lon- 
 don Bridge, 1737. The cruciform 
 Ch. with central tower lessening as it 
 rises, deserves notice. Bp. Gulston 
 of Bristol, Addison's maternal uncle, 
 is buried in the chancel, d. 1684. ^ 
 
 ^ 2f m. Chideock^ the seat of an^'an- 
 cieiit family of the same name, whose 
 noble house, continually taken and 
 retaken in the Great Eebellion, was at 
 last slighted " (i.e. ruined) by order 
 of Col. Ceeley, Governor of Lyme, 
 1645. The remains were still stand- 
 ing in 1 733, when Buck published a 
 view of them. The site of the house 
 may be traced in a field N.E. of the 
 ch. The Ch., restored 1880, is mostly 
 Perp. and contains an efligy of a 
 knight in plate armour, probably of 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 14. — Vale of Marshwood. 
 
 229 
 
 Sir John Ariiiidell, on an altar-tomb 
 of black marble. A little stream 
 running through the valley enters 
 the sea at Down Cliffs. Another long 
 climb brings us to the hamlet of 
 
 4 J m. Morcomb Lake (296 ft. above 
 sea), commanding a wide view over 
 the Vale of Marshwood and the re- 
 markable hills which encircle it. To 
 the 1. lies Golden Gap, with its signal 
 station GIO ft. above the sea that 
 washes its base : rt. is Ilardoicn Rill, 
 looking down upon Whitchurch. 
 
 [To the rt. spreads the deep en- 
 closed district known as the Vale of 
 Marshwood. This district is little 
 visited, and presents no very at- 
 tractive features, except in the early 
 summer, when it is a perfect blaze of 
 wild flowers. It is truly spoken of 
 as a terrible rough country," based 
 on the cold stiff clay of the lias. 
 Crowe, who knew it well, thus de- 
 scribes it — 
 
 " 111 wintry daj^s, 
 Cold, vapourisli, miry, wet, and to the flocks 
 Unfriendly, when autumnal rains begin 
 To drench the spungy turf," 
 
 — Crowe's 'Lewesdon Hill.' 
 
 It is, however, remarkable for the 
 large size of its oaks. Loudon men- 
 tions a tree of this kind, on the estate 
 of Stockham, below Lewesdon Hill, as 
 ,52 ft. in height and 22 ft. in circum- 
 ference. It stands," he says, *' singly 
 on risinp: ground, and attracts the 
 notice of travellers." The Ghapel 
 of Marshwood was ruined in the 
 Great Rebellion. Of the Gastlc there 
 are some remains of a Norman keep. 
 
 The capital of this ill-favoured 
 tract of ground is 1 m. N., Whitchurch 
 Ganonicorum, one of the largest pa- 
 rishes in the county, lying in the 
 heart of the vale, the soil of which 
 is uninvitingly described by Hut- 
 chins as " rich, deep, and dirty," 
 with roads almost impassable in win- 
 ter or wet summers. Since his 
 time some improvement has taken 
 place. The name of the parish 
 points to a time when its church of 
 
 white stone was a notable object 
 among the wattled or wooden edifices 
 with which the religion of our early 
 ancestors was contented. Later 
 authorities derive it from a mythical 
 eponymous saint, " St. White " or 
 Sancta Candida," whose well was 
 shown in Coker's time. The name 
 Ganonicorum was given in conse- 
 quence of the rectory being appro- 
 priated to the canons of Salisbury 
 and Wells. The kings of Wessex 
 had large estates in this vicinity. 
 Whitchurch was bequeathed by King 
 Alfred to his youngest son Ethel- 
 ward. 
 
 The Gh, (Holy Cross) deserves 
 notice (restored 1849). It is cruci- 
 form with a W. tower. The chancel 
 and part of the nave are Trans. Nor- 
 man, of which style the S. door is a 
 beautiful example : the transepts c. 
 1200; the tower c. 1400. The nave 
 arcade is partly Trans. Norman. 
 The capitals merit attention. The 
 oak roof, c. 1400. The font is co- 
 eval with the earliest part of the 
 edifice. In the N. transept is a large 
 altar-tomb to some of the De Man- 
 deville family. In the chancel is 
 a remarkably rich altar-tomb with 
 pedimental canopy, and well-exe- 
 cuted efiigy to Sir John Jeffery, Knt. , 
 of Catherstone, d. 1 G 1 1 . There is also 
 a tomb to John Wadham, of Cather- 
 stone, Captain of Sandsfoot Castle, 
 and Recorder of Lyme, d. 1584 ; and 
 a slab with Lombardic capitals to 
 Geoffrey de Luda and his wife Ele- 
 anor, with the matrix of a floriated 
 cross.] 
 
 A long -descent along the flank of 
 Stoneharroio Hill, with the heights 
 of Gatherston (where is a beautiful 
 little ch., built by the late R. C. Hild- 
 yard, 1857 ; the bell a trophy from 
 Sebastopol), Goneygore, and Lambert's 
 Gastlc, rising one beyond the other, 
 before us, brings us to the little 
 watering-place of 
 
 7 J m. Charmouth (Iniis : Coach and 
 Horses; George), 5 m. S.E. of Ax- 
 
230 
 
 jRoute 14. — CliarmovtK 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 minster Stat., a charming village in | 
 a lovely situation, with a sprinkling 
 of villas slowly climbing the hill, 
 called by Hutchins the Plinlimmon 
 of Dorset." It consists of one long 
 street, or rather road, situated above 
 the mouth of the Char, flowing from 
 the abundant springs of the Vale of 
 Marshwood, the leading feature of 
 the view being the heights which 
 hedge in the valley, particularly 
 those from which the road has just 
 descended. It is a place with some 
 historical memoirs. Here were fought 
 two sanguinary battles between the 
 piratical hordes of the Danes and 
 Saxons. In the first, a.d. 833, the 
 Saxons were commanded by Egbert ; 
 in the second, a.d. 840, by Ethel- 
 wolf. In both, the Danes were 
 victorious. At Charmouth, too, in 
 the attempted escape of Charles II. 
 to France, after his concealment at 
 Trent, subsequent to his defeat at 
 Worcester, occurred the incident 
 which so nearly led to the discovery 
 of the fugitive. A plan had been 
 concerted with the captain of a mer- 
 chantman trading to Lyme, that a 
 boat, at a particular hour of the night, 
 should be sent to the beach at Char- 
 mouth. Charles rode hither under 
 the guidance of Lord Wilmot and 
 Colonel Wyndham, and rested at the 
 little inn to await the appointed time. 
 The suspicions of the wife of the 
 owner of the vessel being awakened, 
 she threatened to give instant infor- 
 mation to the local authorities if he 
 did not give up the engagement. No 
 vessel therefore was forthcoming at 
 the appointed hour, so that the fugi- 
 tive was obliged to give up the enter- 
 prise, and to pass the night in the 
 village. The next morning it was 
 found that his horse had cast a shoe, 
 and the village blacksmith was sum- 
 moned to repair the loss. This was 
 a curious fellow, who remarked that 
 **the horse's 3 shoes had been set in 
 3 different counties, and one of them 
 in Worcestershire. The hostler, 
 who was a Republican soldier, and 
 
 who had had his suspicions already 
 aroused, carried the information to 
 the Puritan minister of the place, 
 Bartholomew Wesley, the ancestor 
 of John Wesley, the founder of 
 Methodism. From the minister it 
 went to the magistrate ; and from the 
 magistrate to the captain of a troop 
 of horse, who soon galloped with his 
 men in pursuit. Fortunately for the 
 king, they took the wrong road, and 
 he escaped to Bridport, and thence 
 by Broadwindsor to Salisbury. The 
 " king's bed-room," in a part of the 
 old inn, now inhabited as a cottage, 
 is pointed out. The house is the 
 next above the chapel. 
 
 The late Henry Alford, Dean of 
 Canterbury, was at school at Char- 
 mouth, to which he refers in his 
 * School of the Heart ' as * ' that steep- 
 built village on the Southern shore." 
 
 The Church was rebuilt in the E. E. 
 of the time, in 1836, and improved 
 in 1861. 
 
 Charmouth began to emerge from 
 its condition of an agricultural and 
 fishing village at the beginning of 
 the century, and to assume the cha- 
 racter of a watering-place. Miss 
 Austen, in her ' Persuasion,' speaks 
 of its " high grounds and extensive 
 sweeps of country, and its sweet 
 retired bay backed by dark cliffs, 
 where fragments of low rock among 
 the sands make it the happiest spot 
 for watching the flow of the tide." 
 
 The cliffs at Charmouth, descend- 
 ing in dark slopes to the sea, exhibit 
 a fine section of the strata (described 
 under Bridport), and abound in inter- 
 esting fossil remains. These include 
 the bones of colossal Saurians {sec 
 Lyme), of the Pterodactyle, and nume- 
 rous fish. Ammonites and belemnites, 
 are found in great quantities on Golden 
 Cap. The lias contains much bitu- 
 minous matter and iron pyrites, which 
 have frequently taken fire after 
 heavy rains. Eemarkable instances 
 occurred in 1531 and 1751. A bed 
 of gravel at the mouth of the river 
 contains the bones of the elephant 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Route 14. — Lyme Regis. 
 
 231 
 
 and rhinoceros, and the remains of 
 trees. 
 
 Trout, and in the proper season 
 salmon- peel, may be caught in the 
 Char. " A small irregular alder- 
 fringed playful river, fulJ of strange 
 fish, such as inland streams yield 
 not ; dabs and flounders and the 
 like." — Dean Alford. 
 
 N. of Charmouth 3 m. is Conie 
 (i.e, the King's) Castle, supposed to 
 have been the camp of Egbert when 
 he fought with the Danes ; and 4 m. 
 Zamberfs Castle, another strong en- 
 trenchment, having triple mounds 
 and ditches, pierced by 3 outlets. 
 The area of the last is 12 acres, and 
 shaped like a D. A fair is held here 
 twice a year. 
 
 From the higher end of this vil- 
 lage you ascend into a deep cutting 
 called the New Passage. The road 
 then skirts the slope of a great hill- 
 crescent, with a beautiful view of 
 Lyme far below on the margin of the 
 sea. The descent is long and steep. 
 One on foot may shorten the distance 
 by a field-path, which runs direct 
 from the summit to the new Cemetery, 
 a pretty spot on the outskirt of the 
 town. 
 
 9i m. Lyme Regis (Inns: Three 
 Cups ; Golden Lion. Pop. of mu- 
 nicipal borough, 2043). Public con- 
 veyances run from Lyme to the 
 Axminster Stat. (5;^ m.) of the S.-W. 
 Rl3^, and through Charmouth to the 
 Bridport Stat, of the G. W. Illy., 9 m. 
 W. Lyme, described by Macaulay 
 as " a small knot of steep and narrow 
 alleys lying on a coast, wild, rocky, 
 and beaten by a stormy sea," is 
 situated in a most romantic position 
 at the foot of the hills, being built 
 in the hollow and on the slopes of 
 a deep combe, "the principal street 
 almost hurrying into the water '' 
 {Miss Austen), through which flows 
 the small stream of the Lym, or 
 Buddell, to the sea. It is seated 
 on a grand coast, which rises E. 
 in the blackest precipices, and W. 
 
 in broken crags thickly mantled 
 with wood. The climate is very 
 mild during the winter ; and it is at 
 all times exceedingly healthy. It 
 contains a good hotel and lodging- 
 houses, and is well supplied with 
 shops. The neighbourhood is so 
 abundant in beauty and interest that 
 we may thoroughly accept Miss Aus- 
 ten's dictum, that "he must be a very 
 strange stranger who does not see 
 charms enough in the immediate 
 vicinity of Lyme, to make him wish 
 to know it better." 
 
 Leland describes Lyme as " a 
 praty market town set in the rootes 
 of an high rokky hille down to the 
 hard shore. There cummith a shalow 
 broke from the hilles about a 3 miles 
 by north, and cummith Acting on 
 great stones through a stone bridge 
 in the botom." 
 
 Lyme first appears (a.d. 774) in a 
 charter of Kynewulf, king of the 
 West Saxons, who granted one manse 
 to the Abbey of Sherborne to supply 
 the monks with salt. Edward 1. 
 enfranchised it, and granted it the 
 liberties of a haven and borough, 
 and assigned it as part of the dower 
 of his sister Margaret of Scotland (?). 
 It supplied Edward III. with 4 ships 
 and 62 mariners for the siege of 
 Calais, but was much impoverished 
 during the reigns of Henry IV. and 
 v., when it was twice plundered and 
 burnt by the Fi ench. It also suffered 
 much from ini oads of the sea. The 
 men of Lyme furnished 2 ships to 
 the fleet which met the Spanish Ar- 
 mada in 1588. The first engage- 
 ment between the two fleets was in 
 sight of the hills above the town. 
 During the Great Rebellion it was 
 held by the Parliament against the 
 King, and successfully withstood a 
 siege, which was one of the most im- 
 portant of the time, the failure of 
 which greatly tarnished the military 
 reputation of Prince Maurice. It com- 
 menced on April 20, 1644, and lasted 
 till June 15, when the town was re- 
 lieved by the approach of the Earl 
 
232 
 
 Bouie 14. — Lyme Regis. 
 
 Dorsetsliire. 
 
 of Essex. The defence was main- 
 tained with the utmost heroism by 
 the inhabitants, under the command 
 of Col. Ceely, the governor, assisted 
 by Blake, afterwards the well-known 
 Admiral. Even women took part 
 in the defence. One is said to have 
 discharged 16 muskets at one attack. 
 A maid who had one hand cut off 
 professed her readiness to lose not 
 only her other hand, but her life also 
 in the cause. The besiegers concen- 
 trated their force at Colway and Hay, 
 in the former of which Prince Mau- 
 rice had his quarters. He was sup- 
 ported by Lord Talbot, &c., with 
 2500 men. The town was speedily 
 invested, batteries were raised, fre- 
 quent assaults made, and the inha- 
 bitants soon began to suffer all the 
 miseries of a siege. The arrival of 
 the Lord High Admiral, Lord War- 
 wick, on May 23, with a small naval 
 force, greatly encouraged them ; but 
 provisions ran short, and the condi- 
 tion of the town began to wax des- 
 perate, when the approach of Lord 
 Essex forced the besiegers to raise 
 the siege and retire. On May 16, 
 Hugh Peters, who had supported the 
 courage of the inhabitants by his 
 fiery eloquence, preached a thanks- 
 giving sermon for the deliverance of 
 the town. Lyme is said not to have 
 lost more than 120 men during the 
 siege, while the loss of the besiegers 
 nearly reached 2000, whom they 
 buried near Colway. The Parlia- 
 ment testified their sense of the im- 
 portance of the result of the siege 
 by a vote of 2000L and 26 dozen pair 
 of shoes, and other gratuities to the 
 men of Lyme. 
 
 The next event of historic interest 
 that illustrates the annals of Lyme is 
 the landing of the Duke of Mon- 
 mouth, June 11, 1685. Immediately 
 on reaching the shore Monmouth 
 knelt down and thanked God for 
 having preserved the friends of li- 
 berty and pure religion from the 
 perils of the sea, and implored the 
 Divine blessing on his enterprise. 
 
 The townspeople at once espoused 
 his cause with enthusiasm. The little 
 town was in an uproar with men 
 running to and fro, and shouting a 
 Monmouth ! a Monmouth ! the Pro- 
 testant Religion!" His ensign was 
 set up in the Market-place, his mili- 
 tary stores were placed in the Town- 
 hall, and his declaration was read 
 from the Cross. The mayor, Alford, 
 was a zealous Tory, and immediately 
 gave the alarm to the neighbouring 
 gentry, and took horse for the West, 
 despatching a few hurried lines with 
 the ill-tidings to London. An event 
 of evil omen clouded the outset of 
 Monmouth's enterprise. Fletcher of 
 Saltoun having quarrelled with Dare, 
 Monmouth's secretary, about a horse 
 he had seized, drew a pistol and shot 
 him dead, and was forced to retreat 
 to the ships to escape the clamorous 
 vengeance. Still recruits came in 
 by hundreds, among whom was Da- 
 niel de Foe, then about 24 years old. 
 Arming and drilling went on all day, 
 and in spite of the repulse of Grey, 
 who had marched with 500 men to 
 attack Bridport, and never stopt 
 till they were safe in Lyme again," 
 a sufiicient force was raised by June 
 1 5, to present so formidable a front to 
 Albemarle at Axminster as to cause 
 him to retreat. The unfortunate 
 town soon had to pay for its burst of 
 enthusiasm. After Jeffreys' Bloody 
 Assize at Dorchester, 13 townsmen 
 were executed here, Sept. 1 2, among 
 whom were William Hewling, a lad 
 of 19, whose brother Benjamin ( " they 
 were young, handsome, accomplished, 
 and well connected " — Macaulay) pe- 
 rished at Taunton ; the corpse of Wm. 
 Hewling was carried to his grave in 
 the churchyard " by young women 
 of the best of the town;" and 
 Christopher Battiscombe, " a young 
 Templar of family and fortune of 
 Dorchester, where he was regarded 
 as the model of a fine gentleman. 
 He was engaged to the sister of the 
 high sheriff, who threw herself at the 
 feet of Jeffreys to beg for mercy ; but 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Boute 14. — Lyme Begis, 
 
 233 
 
 he drove her from him with a hideous 
 jest. He suffered at Lyme, firmly 
 and courageously." — Macaulay. 
 
 Cosmo di Medici, Grand Duke of 
 Tuscany, landed here on his visit to 
 England in 1669, Mar. 30. The 
 English and Dutch fleets had an en- 
 gagement off Lyme in 1672, in which 
 the latter were defeated. 
 
 William Pitt, then **a wonderful 
 boy of 14,*' spent the summer of 
 1773 at Lyme, with his elder brother, 
 for the benefit of sea-bathing. There 
 Hayley the poet became acquainted 
 with him, and "often reflected on 
 the singular pleasure he had derived 
 from his young acquaintance, regret- 
 ing, however, that his reserve had 
 prevented his imparting to the 
 wonderful youth the epic poem he 
 had begun. The very youngest critic 
 that ever perhaps any poet chose." 
 {Stanhope * Life of Pitt,' i. 4.) 
 
 "This town," says Leland, '*hath 
 good shippes, and usith fishing and 
 marchaundise. Marchaunts of Mor- 
 leys in Britaine (Morlaix in Brittany) 
 much haunt this town." In Camden's 
 time it was hardly reported a seaport 
 town, and was frequented by few 
 but fishermen. Salt, wine, and wool 
 were among the early articles of 
 commerce, and trade in elephants* 
 tusks and gold dust was carried on 
 with the African coast. The trade 
 with Morlaix, mentioned by Leland, 
 was in serges and linens only manu- 
 factured here ; a branch of commerce 
 which was totally destroyed at the 
 breaking out of the war with France, 
 temp. William IlL From this date 
 the general trade of the town began 
 to decline, and at the end of the 18th 
 century was almost extinct. About 
 1760 the prosperity of the town was 
 at its lowest ebb. It had but little 
 shipping, few respectable inhabitants, 
 and no influx of strangers. After 
 this it became a place of resort for 
 sea-bathers, and its fortunes began 
 to revive. It is well sheltered from 
 the N. and E. winds, so that the 
 climate is warm in winter, while 
 
 the sea-breezes temper the too great 
 heat during the summer. The bath- 
 ing is good, the sands pleasant, and 
 the force of the sea is broken by the 
 Cobb. There is not much gaiety; 
 but Lyme affords an agreeable resort 
 for those who wish to spend a quiet 
 holiday by the seaside, and its neigh- 
 bourhood affords many attractions in 
 its varied scenery, and the geological 
 riches of its cliff's. 
 
 The Church (St. Michael), which 
 has been well restored, is a Perp. 
 building of some merit, standing 
 perilously near the edge of the crum- 
 bling cliff at the E. end of the 
 town. The ground plan is curious, 
 a large late Perp. church having 
 been added to the E. of the low 
 rude tower of a cruciform ch. of 
 the r2th century. A stump of the 
 original nave remains to the W. of 
 the tower, and serves as vestibule 
 and vestry-room. On the capitals 
 of the nave are the initials of William 
 Day, mayor in 1491 ; and the Har- 
 rington knot, commemorating the be- 
 nefaction of Cicely Bonville, Lady 
 Harrington, of Shute, d. 1480. A 
 Jacobean gallery and pulpit, the 
 gift of Richard Harvey, mercer of 
 London and merchant-adventurer 
 of Lyme, deserve notice. The three 
 largest bells were cast into cannon 
 during the siege. W. Hewling's 
 tomb, originally to the S. of the ch.- 
 yd.,has been removed, and a portion 
 of the inscriptions worked into the 
 pavement of the N. aisle. 
 
 Among the natives of Lyme may 
 be named Sir George Somers, b. 1554, 
 the discoverer of the Bermudas, or 
 " Somers' Isle." He died at Bermuda 
 1610, and was buried at Whitchurch 
 Canonicorum. Arthur Gregory, whose 
 " admirable talent of forcing the seal 
 of a letter, that it appeared un- 
 touched,'* recommended him to Sir F. 
 Walsingham, then member for Lyme 
 — who by his means obtained know- 
 ledge of the contents of the corre- 
 spondence of the foreign ambassa- 
 dors, as well as of Mary Queen of 
 
234 
 
 Boute 14. — Lyme Begis, 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 Scots. Captain Thomas Cot^am, b. c. 
 1668, the founder of " The Foundling 
 Hospital" in London. Dr, Case, 
 quack and astrologer in the reign of 
 James II. Case made a large fortune 
 by his practice, and on setting up a 
 carriage placed the following quaint 
 motto imder his arms — ^' The Case is 
 altered;'* and lastly, Mary Anningj 
 (d. 1847), who discovered the Saurian 
 remains. She was the daughter of a 
 vendor of curiosities, and was only 10 
 years of age when in 1811 she found 
 the first Saurian in the cliff, now in the 
 British Museum. A painted window 
 has been put up in the ch. to her 
 memory by the members of the 
 Geological Society. 
 
 The George Inii, where Monmouth 
 slept during his stay at Lyme, was 
 burnt down 1844. 
 
 The Cohh, or pier, so called from a 
 very remote period. It was proba- 
 bly first constructed in the reign of 
 Edward I. It has been frequently 
 washed away, and restored at a great 
 price, and was finally renewed and 
 strengthened in 1825-6, after the 
 tremendous storm of Nov. 23, 1824, 
 when 232 ft. of the pier and 447 ft. 
 of the parapet were rebuilt at a cost 
 of 17,337/. It is a semicircular 
 structure, of great strength, the thick 
 outer wall rising high above the road- 
 way, so as to protect it from the wind 
 and sea. Its length is 1179 ft., and 
 its extreme breadth 35 ft. The 
 regular curve of this parapet pro- 
 duces a singular effect. It concen- 
 trates at a certain point the sounds 
 uttered at another, and thus forms a 
 
 whispering gallery," in which two 
 persons may converse at a distance 
 from each other, as in the dome of 
 St. Paul's. For this purpose one 
 speaker should take his station by 
 the steps near the tablet, and the 
 other by the slip. The view from 
 this pier is extremely beautiful, ex- 
 tending across the West Bay to Port- 
 land. Close at hand are hills whose 
 bleak bare fronts descend in preci- 
 pices to the sea, tier upon tier. The 
 
 most remarkable of these is called 
 Golden Cap, a well-known landmark. 
 Above the town rises Rhodehom, its 
 summit pierced by the cutting of 
 New Passage, sometimes called the 
 DeviVs Bellows, from the extreme fury 
 of the gusts which sweep through it. 
 The pier is a busy spot, there being 
 a considerable export of cement 
 stones, now so largely used for 
 stucco. To the geologist the cliffs 
 will be a mine of interest. The spot 
 most prolific in the bones of reptiles 
 is the Black Vein, between Lyme and 
 Charmouth. The cliffs waste rapidly 
 under the assault of the sea, the 
 Church cliffs at Lyme receding at 
 the rate of 3 ft. a year. Charmouth 
 Lane, which once traversed them 
 from Lyme to Charmouth, has long 
 since disappeared. 
 
 [Among the walks in the neigh- 
 bourhood may be mentioned — • 
 
 (a) To the Undercliff, W. of the 
 town. The path proceeds to it through 
 Holmbush-field, commanding a fine 
 view of the coast, and then runs for 
 about a mile along the broken ground, 
 as far as Pinhay House. The path 
 passes at one spot the Chimney Mock, 
 projecting from the Ware Cliffs, and 
 at another the Whitechapel Rocks, so 
 called as the place of meeting of Non- 
 conformists, who, being persecuted 
 after the Restoration, met for wor- 
 ship in this solitude. 
 
 (6) To Middle Mill, about a mile 
 up the combe at the back of the town. 
 In its vicinity are Old Colway House 
 and Hay Farm, the head-quarters of 
 Prince Maurice when he besieged 
 Lyme. 
 
 (c) To Charmouth by the sands 
 when the tide permits it. 
 
 (d) The Pinhay Landslip is rather 
 more distant than the preceding, 
 but still within an easy walk. You 
 take the lane to Lowland's Farm, 
 3 m., and thence proceed along a 
 cart-road down the cliff. The entire 
 coast between Lyme and the naouth 
 of the river Axe has been the scene 
 
Dorsetsliire. Bmfe 15. — Dorcliester to TeoviL 
 
 235 
 
 of disturbances similar to those which 
 have pi oduced such charming scenery 
 m the Isle of Wight, and to be attri- 
 buted to the same cause — the under- 
 mining action of the .land-springs. 
 The chalk and sandstone forming the 
 upper portion of the down rests on 
 loose sand, which in its turn reposes 
 on an impervious bed of clay shelving 
 towards the shore. The rain, per- 
 colating the upper beds, collects on 
 the clay, and washes away the sand 
 as it filters to the sea. Cavities 
 are thus formed, and into these at 
 length the superstratum is precipi- 
 tated, and being rent by the convul- 
 sion, it glides forward on its slippery 
 basis. Such landslips have occurred 
 along this coast at various periods, 
 but that of Pinhaywas remarkable 
 for the extent of ground it devastated, 
 and for the wild scene it created. It 
 occurred at Christmas, 1839, over an 
 area of 40 acres, on the farms of Ben- 
 don and Dowlands. The damage 
 done was considerable ; 40 acres of 
 good land had been lost for ever to 
 cultivation, an orchard had been 
 roughly transplanted, and two cot- 
 tages moved bodily and deposited 
 with shattered walls at a much lower 
 level. The finest views are to be 
 obtained from the brink of the cliffs 
 overhanging the landslip, from the 
 cottage, from the knolls near the sea, 
 and from the E. end of the great 
 chasm, which is situated just W. of 
 the mural precipice. The features of 
 the scene are much changed since the 
 landslip occurred, and are continually 
 changing. A path runs E. for about 
 
 1 m., ascending again at Whitlands^ 
 
 2 m. from Lyme, where a small land- 
 slip occurred, Feb. 1840, a month or 
 two after that at Dowlands. The 
 farmhouse at Bendon, nearly opposite 
 the great chasm, and rt. of the lane to 
 Axmouth, retains the interesting fea- 
 tures of a manor-house of the 16th 
 cent. It was long a seat of a branch 
 of the Erles. Sir Walter Erie, a dis- 
 tinguished officer on the side of the 
 Parliament, resided here. Bendon is 
 
 about J m. both from Axmouth and 
 the ferry at Seaton. 
 
 Ford Abbey, 10 m. N. (Rte. 28), 
 may be made the object of an excur- 
 sion from Lyme. 
 
 Haioksdown over Axmouth, and 
 Masbunj to the N. of it, are Roman 
 camps commanding the valley of the 
 Axe, and affording extensive views. 
 Conie Castle and Lambert's Castle, the 
 strong entrenchments in the vale of 
 Marshwood, N. of Charmouth, and 
 Lev:esdon and Pillcsdon, curious twin 
 hills further N., are often visited from 
 Lyme.] 
 
 ROUTE 15. 
 
 DORCHESTER TO YEOVIL [MAIDEN 
 NEWTON TO BRIDPORT.] 
 
 {Great Western Railway?) 
 
 Leaving the Gt. Western station 
 on Fordington Field, the rly. skirts 
 the W. side of the town, and dives 
 in a tunnel under Poundbury Camp. 
 Emerging into the valley of the 
 Frome, we have rt. Woketon Hall 
 and Charnimster, 
 
 At 2J m. we cross the Frome and 
 espy 1. among the orchards the spire 
 of Bradford Pcverel Ch., rebuilt 1850 
 (the Broad ford across the Frome) : 
 rt. is Stratton, "the street town,'* 
 taking its name from its position on 
 the Roman Way. A very curious 
 wooden staircase in the tower of the 
 Ch. deserves notice. In the church- 
 yard is the base of a stone cross. 
 
236 
 
 Bjute 15. — Dorchester to Yeovil. Dorsetshire. 
 
 4 J m. Grimstone Stat., where we 
 look over the green meadows and 
 runnels of water to the woods of 
 Frampton. Here we enter a tunnel 
 of 600 yards through the chalk, on 
 emerging from which we have 
 
 6i m. 1. Frampton (Frome-town), 
 embowered in umbrageous woods, 
 and surrounded by gently rising hills. 
 It was formerly a cell of St. Ste- 
 phen's of Caen. For many gene- 
 rations the seat of the family of 
 Browne, it passed by will in 1833 to 
 Sir Oolquhoun Grant, a distinguished 
 military officer, who served in the 
 Peninsular campaign, and had 5 
 horses shot under him at Waterloo. 
 His daughter married the grandson 
 and namesake of the famous Richard 
 Brindsley Sheridan. Frampton Court 
 (R. B. Sheridan, Esq.) was built 
 in 1704 by Robt. Browne, Esq., who 
 also added an incongruous tower to 
 the 67i., which was thoroughly re- 
 stored in 1862, and contains memo- 
 rials of the Hrownes from Sir John, 
 d. 1627. The ancient stone pulpit 
 is adorned with figures in monastic 
 attire, bearing ecclesiastical vessels 
 and books, and a modern relief of the 
 Virgin and Child. The visitor looks 
 in vain for a memorial to John 
 Browne, the zealous Parliamentarian, 
 d. 1659, styled by Oliver Cromwell 
 the Old Roman," for the determi- 
 nation with which he gave his vote 
 for bringing Charles I. to trial. 
 
 A very celebrated mosaic pave- 
 ment, in which the Christian " laba- 
 rum," appeared in singular combina- 
 tion with figures of Neptune and 
 Cupid, and other pagan emblems, 
 was discovered at Frampto7i, 1794-6, 
 on Mr. Sheridan's estates. George 
 III. took so much interest in the 
 discovery that he ordered a detach- 
 ment of soldiers to be placed at Mrs. 
 Lysons' disposal for its careful dis- 
 interment. It was afterwards covered 
 over with earth again. 
 
 Continuing along rich cattle- 
 studded water-meadows, we pass I. 
 
 2. m. Frame VauGhurch with its Ch., 
 which has a Norm, chancel arch, 
 N. doorway and piscina, an E. E. 
 triplet, and a good Jacobean pulpit, 
 and reach 
 
 7f m. Maiden Newton Stat. Maiden 
 Newton was given by the Conqueror 
 to " Waleran the Hunter." The Ck 
 seems originally to have been a 
 Norm, cruciform building with a 
 central tower, and will reward ex- 
 amination : it retains some early 
 Norman work, including the N. door 
 and chancel arch. The base of the 
 tower is earlier still, and may be 
 Saxon. The Dec. roof of the nave is 
 of unusual design. The Perp. porch 
 includes the remains of a Norman 
 one. In the village are an old Inn 
 and the base of a cross. 
 
 The father of Dr. Andrew Reed, 
 the founder of the London Orphan 
 Asylum and other philanthropic in- 
 stitutions (d. 1862), was born at 
 Maiden Newton, where his family 
 had been settled for some genera- 
 tions. 
 
 2^ m. E., crossing the Roman road 
 from Dorchester to Ilchester known 
 as Long Ash Lane, Sydling St. Nicho- 
 las lies in a pleasant nook in the 
 chalk downs. The Ch. is a plain, 
 solid, late Perp. building, with a 
 stately tower, a N. porch the whole 
 height of the nave, and a chancel, 
 rebuilt 1750 by Sir W. Smith. In 
 the churchyard stands the manor- 
 house, originally the residence of the 
 Husseys, then of the Smiths. Avery 
 fine tithe barn stands to the S.E. of 
 the church, bearing on one of its 
 oak timbers the initials of Lady 
 Ursula Walsingham, 1590, wife of 
 Sir F. Walsingham, lessee under 
 Winchester College. In the village 
 is the shaft of an ancient cross. 
 
 [A branch line of the Gt. Western 
 Rly. here diverges to Bridport, 9 J m. 
 S.W. It runs at first up a valley 
 watered by a little feeder of the 
 Frome, under Whitesheet Hill, N., 
 and passes 1^ m. 1. Toller Fratrum^ 
 
Dorsetsliire. Route 15. — Poorstock — Wraxhall. 
 
 237 
 
 so called because originally the pro- 
 perty of the bretheii of St. John of 
 Jerusalem, the CL of which (St. 
 Basil) has a fine Norm, font with 
 the bowl covered with sculptured 
 figures. Here was the seat of the 
 Samway and Fulfords, of which a 
 large portion remains. It is one of 
 the most picturesque specimens of 
 domestic architecture remaining in 
 Dorsetshire, with very rich details, 
 especially the chimneys. The prin- 
 cipal part was probably erected by 
 Sir Francis Fulford, the distinguished 
 Royalist, at the beginning of the 
 17th cent. 
 
 Cattistock Castle is a circular earth- 
 work, containing about 4 acres, with 
 a double rampart. 
 
 2i m. Toller Porcorum Stat., a place 
 deriving its uneuphonious name from 
 the number of swine that formerly 
 found food here. The C%., with its 
 square embattled tower, is a pictu- 
 resque object from the rly.] 
 
 [^Wi/7ifofxl Eagle, 2 m. S., was the 
 birthplace of Sydenham, the famous 
 physician in the reign of Charles II. 
 b. 1624. The old house of the Syden- 
 hams remains, containing a richly 
 carved fireplace. Chief Justice Best 
 took his title of Lord Wynford from 
 this place. The modern Ch, pre- 
 serves outside the E. end a very 
 remarkable tympanum of a Norman 
 door with enigmatical inscriptions. 
 At Lord Wynford's cottage at Strat- 
 combe, remains of a Roman villa 
 with tessellated pavements have been 
 discovered.] 
 
 The line runs towards Bridport 
 over a rolling gorse-covered common 
 to 
 
 6| m. Poorstock Stat. (Beaminster 
 is 5 m. N.W.) Poorstock Castle is a 
 Celtic earthwork, enclosing the site 
 of a castle or manor-house connected 
 by local tradition with King Athel- 
 stan, who is said to have had a 
 winter palace here, occupying the 
 summit of a steep isolated hill. King 
 
 John visited his manor at Poorstock 
 in 1205 and onwards. The Ch. has 
 been rebuilt, preserving all the more 
 interesting features, including the 
 rich Norm, chancel arch, the S. 
 arcade of the nave, and the S. door 
 with its elaborate niches and pin- 
 nacles. 1 m. S.E. is the remark- 
 able entrenchment of Eggardon Hill 
 (Rte. 14). To the rt. of the rly. in a 
 nook in the hills stretches the long 
 grey front of Mappercomhe, worth 
 inspection. 
 
 7J m. Loders Ch., a picturesque 
 object from the rly., is mainly Perp. 
 with a Norm, font and a rich octago- 
 nal staircase turret, and a fine Perp. 
 tower, and contains a monument to 
 Sir Evan Nepean, d. 1822. A cell of 
 the Norman monastery of Monteburg 
 was founded here by Baldwin de 
 Redvers, temp. Henry I. 
 
 9i m. Bridport (Rte. 14).] 
 
 Returning to the main line — 
 15j m. 1. Chilfromey with a small 
 modern bell-gabled CA , stands at the 
 base of Chilfrome Down, across the 
 S. flank of which runs the Crewkerne 
 road, known by the very curious name 
 of Crimmer (quasi-C/'om/cc/i) Crock 
 Lane, A little further on the other 
 side of the line the traveller has a 
 glimpse of the fine E. E. C/i. of Cat- 
 tistock, nearly rebuilt, and elabo- 
 rately decorated; and further still 
 of the gables and chimneys of C/ial- 
 mington House (Col. J. A. Digby). 
 
 16i m. 1. Wraxhall was the seat of 
 the Laurences, two of whom, William 
 and Henry, were of note in the civil 
 disturbances of Charles I.'s time. 
 Milton's sonnet, 
 
 " Laurence of virtuous father virtuous son," 
 
 was addressed to the son of the 
 latter, who was a member of Crom- 
 well's Parliament of 1653, President 
 of the Council, and member of his 
 Upper House. The little Ch. has a 
 bell-turret, a Norm, door and chan- 
 cel arch, and E. E. chancel 
 
 2 m. up the valley is Rampisham 
 
238 
 
 Boute 15. — Melbury Parh. 
 
 Dorsetshire. 
 
 (pronounced Ramsom), known for its 
 prettily situated church, and for a 
 curiously-sculptured cross (in the 
 churchyard) with a long flat stone 
 for preaching attached to it. Fifty 
 years since could be traced the 
 stoning of St. Stephen, the mar- 
 tyrdoms of St. Edmund and of St. 
 Thomas a Becket, and two crowned 
 figures sitting at a long table, with 
 a man kneeling on one knee. Over 
 the projections at each end of the 
 panels were carved St. Peter, with a 
 scroll, the cock standing on a pillar ; 
 2 fools and 2 monks seated ; and 2 
 men in armour, standing. The whole 
 sculpture is now nearly obliterated, 
 with the exception of the stoning of 
 St. Stephen. In the lane which runs 
 to Evershot is the mutilated shaft of 
 another cross 5 ft. high. The 67^., 
 which is a very good one, has been 
 partly rebuilt, and is well arranged 
 with a stalled chancel. The tower 
 is at the E. end of the S. aisle, and 
 has the traces of an altar and rere- 
 dos on the E. wall. A tessellated 
 pavement was discovered here in 
 1799, on the common to the W. of 
 the village. 
 
 17^ m. 1. the long gabled front 
 of the manor-house of C/iantuiarle, 
 robbed of its wings, attracts attention, 
 and is worth examining. [It is a 
 pleasant walk of 3 m. from the 
 Maiden Newton Station, by Catti- 
 stock and Chalmington. Evershot 
 Station is 1:^ m. N. distant] Chant- 
 marie was built a.d. 1619 by Sir John 
 Strode, but never completed. De- 
 tached from the house S. stands 
 the chapel, a curious specimen of 
 the debased Gothic of the period. 
 A very curious account of the build- 
 ing of this chapel and its consecra- 
 tion by Bp. Searchfield of Bristol, 
 Sept. 14, 1619, is given in the last 
 edition of Hutchin's " Dorset.'* 
 
 To the rt. is Frome St. Quintin, 
 where the small Cli. has some Norm, 
 portions and a good Perp. porch. 
 
 11 J m. Evershot Stat, Just beyond 
 the station is Hohjiuell tunnel, a. yerj 
 
 difficult and expensive work, as it 
 is excavated in a loose greensand 
 full of springs. It pierces the hill in 
 a curve 220 yards. The village is 
 1 m. W. 
 
 The Ch., a chapelry of Frome St. 
 Quintin, has been almost rebuilt, but 
 retains its N. arcade and other an- 
 cient portions. IJ m. E. romantic- 
 ally situated at the foot of the chalk 
 down, is Batcombe Ch., rebuilt 1864, 
 except the fine embattled W. tower 
 and the S. wall. The font is Norm, 
 and very curious. A tomb in the 
 churchyard, formerly touching the 
 wall of the aisle, according to the 
 village legend, covers the grave of 
 " Conjuring Minterne, who vowed 
 that he would be buried neither in 
 the church nor out of it.*' In a wild 
 unfrequented spot on Batcombe com- 
 mon, 1 m. E., is a singular stone 
 pillar, called the *' Cross and Hand." 
 The capital bears a hand, and was 
 surmounted by a bowl. An ancient 
 tumulus, Modhury or Modbarrow^ gives 
 its name to the hundred. 
 
 Melbunj Park, the seat of the 
 Fox Strangways, Earls of Ilchester 
 (shown when the family is absent), 
 is situated immediately to the N. of 
 Evershot, and the road through it is 
 a public footway. The house was 
 built, according to Leland, by Sir 
 Giles Strangways, who died 1547, 
 " with a lofty and fresche tower." 
 Much of the mansion is earlier, but 
 none before the 15th cent. The plan 
 forms three limbs of a cross, with a 
 hexagon tower at the intersection. 
 In the S. limb is a fine oriel, and a 
 rich Elizabethan ceiling and fire- 
 place. The E. front is of Queen 
 Anne's time, with Corinthian pilas- 
 ters. The saloon contains several 
 fine pictures, — a good Rembrandt, 
 Canalettis, &c. ; and in the dining- 
 room is a replica, if not the original, 
 of the picture of Queen Elizabeth's 
 progress described under Sherborne 
 Castle. The library, with an open 
 timber roof, was added from Mr. 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 15. — Melhury Parh 
 
 239 
 
 Salvin*s designs. The view of the 
 house standing on its rising lawn, 
 with its quaint front and tower, as 
 seen from the lake below, is very 
 picturesque. On the S. side is the 
 Church of Melhury Sampford, a struc- 
 ture with pinnacled tower, a very- 
 small ch., cross, all of same date, 
 15th centy., restored with new roofs 
 to nave and chancel, oaken stalls, 
 pulpit, at the cost of the Earl of 
 Ilchester, 1876. The reredos of 
 marble represents the Last Supper, 
 and the chancel walls are enriched 
 with carvings and inlaid marbles. 
 There are two canopied tombs and 
 a statue by Chantrey to the Countess 
 of Ilchester. It contains several mon- 
 uments to the Brownings, and one, 
 with alabaster effigies, to " Egidius 
 Strange waies'' and *'Dorothee" his 
 wife. There is also a brass to Sir 
 Giles Strangwayes, 1562. On the 
 S. side a sloping lawn descends 
 to a lake in a charming dell, from 
 which rises a wood terraced at 
 the top. W. of the house is a re- 
 markably fine avenue of 4 rows 
 of sycamores; N. of it a grove of 
 lofty oaks, limes, sycamores, and 
 chesnuts ; and E., beyond a valley, 
 the wooded eminence of Biihh Down, 
 a conspicuous landmark, over which 
 are numerous drives commanding 
 a most extensive and beautiful 
 prospect. Alfred's Tower at Stour- 
 head. Wells Cathedral, the Men- 
 dips and Quantocks, may be seen 
 at different points. Towards the 
 S. a road traverses the park to 
 Ever shot, and towards the N. an- 
 other directs its course between 
 two valleys (each with its stream) to 
 the little village of Melhury Osmund, 
 decked with innumerable creepers, 
 ivy, and laurel hedges, and a curious 
 old yew-tree leaning over the road. 
 The Ch. was rebuilt 1745. ' The 
 estate of Melbury is distinguished 
 for the size of its oaks, which thrive 
 on the stiff, retentive soil. One 
 known as Billy Wilkins, 50 ft. high 
 and 37 ft, in circumference, is "as 
 
 curled, surly, knotty an old monster 
 as can be conceived." 
 
 The Oxford clay of this district 
 contains masses of septaria or cement- 
 stone, which are polished under the 
 name of Melhury marble. 
 
 The rly. has now reached its high- 
 est point, and begins to descend to- 
 wards Yeovil, accompanying a small 
 stream, one of the affluents of the 
 river Yeo. Buhh Dov:n rises to the 
 1.: rt. is the village of Chetnole, with 
 a Perp. Ch. to which a well-designed 
 chancel and aisle have been added 
 as a memorial to the late Major 
 Chadwick, d. 1859. Chetnole is a 
 chapel ry to 
 
 IGJ m. Tetminster. (The minster 
 or church standing at the gate in 
 the line of downs through which the 
 little river flows.) The Ch., with a 
 pinnacled tower, is an interesting 
 Perp. building, retaining many of 
 its ancient carved oak benches and 
 traces of a very large rood-loft con- 
 taining originally no less than three 
 altars, with two more below it. On 
 the outside are many consecration 
 crosses, one appearing on the apex 
 of the W. window. It has a fine 
 brass to Sir John Horsey (in com- 
 plete armour), d. 1531, and his lady. 
 
 At Leigh, 2 m. E. of Chetnole, are 
 some small traces of a maze about 
 5 m. S. of the village. In the village 
 are the remains of two ancient 
 crosses. The Ch. is a good Perp. 
 building with an embattled tower 
 and good oak roofs. 
 
 19:^ m. is Clifton Mayhank Stat., 
 close to the remains of the fine old 
 manorial house of Clifton Maybank. 
 
 20J m. Yeovil (Rte. 23). 
 
240 
 
 BoiUe 16. — Dorchester to Sherhornc, Dorsetshire. 
 
 EOUTE 16. 
 
 DORCHESTER TO SHERBORNE, BY 
 CERNE ABBAS. 
 
 Leaving Dorchester, and crossing 
 the Frome with Poundbury on the 1., 
 we reach 
 
 2 m. Charminster (Rte. 13). The 
 road continues to ascend the valley 
 of the little river Cerne to 4| m. 
 Godmanstone, The little Gh, is of de- 
 based Perp. with the exception of 
 the chancel arch and S. porch, which 
 shows some original Norm, work 
 with recent additions. 
 
 5-2- m. Nether Cerne. The little 
 flint built Ch. is chiefly E.E. and has 
 an eastern triplet. The S. chantry 
 chapel is early Dec. and has some 
 good features. The font of Purbeck 
 marble has a cup-shaped bowl and 
 later base. 
 
 7J m., 1 m. 1., Cerne Abbas (New 
 Inn. Pop. 1185), is a small town, 
 once notorious for smugglers, on 
 the river Cerne, surrounded by chalk 
 hills. It was the site of a very large 
 and important abbey, founded a.d. 
 987, by Ethelmar, Earl of Devon 
 and Cornwall, on the site of a hermit- 
 age established by iEdwold, brother 
 of Edmund the Martyr. The famous 
 iElfric, afterwards Abp. of Canter- 
 bury, was the first Abbot. He had 
 been sent to Cerne by the Bishop of 
 Winchester, to whom Ethelmar had 
 applied for a monk to instruct his 
 new society in the Benedictine rule. 
 He translated his homilies into Anglo- 
 Saxon, for the benefit of the brethren 
 of Cerne who were unacquainted with 
 Latin. The monastery was plundered 
 by Canute, who afterwards atoned for 
 his sacrilege by large endowments. 
 
 Its after- history' supplies nothing 
 worthy of mention till 1471, when 
 Margaret of Anjou took refuge here 
 with her young son on landing from 
 the Continent at Weymouth, the day 
 of the battle of Barnet. From Cerne 
 she proceeded to Beaulieu {ffandbook 
 to Hants). Cardinal Morton, Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, was a monk 
 of Cerne. 
 
 The only remains of the Abbey 
 consist of the Gate House, the Abbey 
 House, and a very fine barn. The 
 Gate Home is a very fine one of 3 
 stories, with a 2-storied oriel window 
 over the fan-groined entrance, with 
 escutcheons, and bands of panelling 
 below and between the windows. 
 The upper room is floored with 
 encaustic tiles. The ^66^^ ^oms(? was 
 the residence of Denzil, Lord Holies. 
 Of the ancient structure little exists 
 except a ruin or two built by Abbot 
 John Vaune (d. 1470), in which his 
 cypher " J. V." may be seen over 
 a chimney. The barn of the 15th 
 century, now converted into a farm- 
 house, is a very fine example, with 
 noble buttresses. Some traces of the 
 park and gardens can still be dis- 
 cerned. On the summit of a hill to 
 the N.E. are the foundations of the 
 chapel of St. Catherine. 
 
 The Ch. is a fine example of the 
 Perp. style with a noble tower, dis- 
 playing a beautiful canopied niche 
 enshrining a statue of the Virgin and 
 Child. The chancel is separated 
 from the nave by a very fine stone 
 rood-screen (restored 1870). N. of 
 the churchyard is an earthwork. 
 
 Immediately above the town rises 
 a lofty eminence, popularly called the 
 Giant* s Hill, from an uncouth colossal 
 figure cut on its chalky surface. It re- 
 presents a man, 1 80 ft. in height, hold- 
 ing in his rt. hand a club 120 ft. long, 
 and stretching forth the other. On 
 the summit of the hill is an entrench- 
 ment called Trendle {i.e. a circle, 
 A.-S.). l^p Cerne, IJ m. N.E., had a 
 curious little E. E. Ch.^ now rebuilt, 
 much of the old stonework being 
 
Dorsetshire. Boutel6. — Biickland Ahhas — PulJiam Church, 241 
 
 preserved. It lias a rude Purbeck 
 marble font. Close to the church 
 stands the picturesque mansion of 
 the Mellors, built by Sir Robert 
 Mellor (d. 1624). The Manor House 
 has, on the outside, circles contain- 
 ing heads boldly carved. N. of 
 Cerne, about 2 m., is Minterne House, 
 seat of Lord Digby, formerly the 
 property of the Churchills, one of 
 whom. General Charles Churchill, 
 brother of John Duke of Marl- 
 borough, almost entirely rebuilt the 
 house. His monument is in the 
 little unpretending (7A., which also 
 contains memorials of the Napiers 
 and of Mary Countess of Gains- 
 borough (d. 1693), and a brass to 
 Admiral Digby (d. 1863). 
 
 Buckland Abbas, 4 m. N.E., lying 
 on the steep declivity of the chalk 
 downs, belonged to the Abbey of 
 Glastonbury. The Ch. has a fine 
 E. E. chancel, well restored, and a 
 Perp. nave. The font is of very 
 handsome design, ornamented with 
 flat foliage and flowers. 3 m. further 
 N.E. is Mappowder, the birthplace of 
 Coker, the author of the " Survey of 
 Dorsetshire.' ' The seat of the Cokers, 
 built 1564, has been pulled down. 
 The Ch. of good, though late Perp. 
 style, has been almost entirely re- 
 built, preserving ancient portions. 
 The Purbeck marble font deserves 
 notice. There is a very curious 
 diminutive cross-legged effigy in 
 complete armour, scarcely 2 ft. long, 
 the hands holding a heart, under an 
 arch in the S. wall. It is probably 
 supposed to mark the place where 
 a heart was buried, the body lying 
 elsewhere. 
 
 [Piddletrenthide, 3 m. E., is a very 
 pleasant village on the slopes of the 
 chalk downs, which command wide 
 and beautiful views. The Cli. is an 
 interesting building, ranking as one 
 of the finest in the country, with a 
 lofty pinnacled tower. The S. door- 
 way and the piers of the chancel 
 
 \WiltSyDorsety ^c, 1882.] 
 
 arch are enriched Norm. The chan- 
 cel contains monuments to members 
 of the family of Bridge. That to 
 Mr. John Bridge (member of the 
 firm Kundle and Bridge, Ludgate 
 Hill, d. 1834) is by the late eminent 
 C. R. Cockerell, R.A. Over the W. 
 door is the following inscription, 
 probably commemorating Nicholas 
 Locke, a native vicar, by whom the 
 tower was erected: — 
 
 Est Pydel Trenth villa in Dorsedie comitatu 
 Nascitur in ilia quam rexit vicariatu. 
 
 It bears the date 1487 ; a somewhat 
 early example of the use of Arabic 
 figures.] 
 
 lOj m. Rei-ds Hill, 1 . The road here 
 descends the escarpment of the chalk, 
 and commands an extensive view 
 over Somerset. High Stoy, 2 m. to 
 the 1., is one of the loftiest of the 
 Dorsetshire downs. 
 
 1 1 m. Middlemarsh, near the source 
 of a branch of the river Lidden. \^m. 
 rt. is a very conspicuous earthwork, 
 now overgrown with trees, crowning 
 a hill, known as Dungeon, which com- 
 mands a fine view. 
 
 At the foot of this hill is Glan- 
 villes Wootton (7 m. S.E. of Sher- 
 borne), long the residence of J. C. 
 Dale, Esq., a well-known ento- 
 mologist, and now of his son, 
 C. W. Dale, who has inherited his 
 father's collections and taste for the 
 science. The Ch. deserves notice. 
 The S. aisle, originally the chantry 
 of Sybilla de Glanville, has some 
 rich Dec. windows, and contains a 
 recumbent effigy of a knight, and 
 some monuments of the Williams 
 family. In this parish stands the 
 ancient mansion of Hound Chimnies, 
 built c. 1590, now a farmhouse, but 
 once the residence of John Churchill, 
 Duke of Marlborough. 
 
 Pulham Church, 3 m. E. of Glan- 
 villes Wootton, is an interesting 
 building, originally cruciform, with 
 aisles added in the 16th cent. A 
 
 R 
 
242 
 
 Boute 17. — Isle of Purheck, 
 
 Dorsetsliire. 
 
 hagioscope on each side of the 
 chancel-arch is curiously filled in 
 with an open screenwork of oak 
 painted and gilt. The font has a 
 circular bowl on a central column, 
 and three detached shafts orna- 
 mented with a series of shallow, 
 round-headed arches. 
 
 13J m. Holnest Lodge, the seat of J. 
 S. W. S. Erie Drax, Esq., stands in a 
 park of 90 acres. It has a large 
 picture gallery. In the park is a 
 bronze statue of Mr. Drax, on a 
 pillar. The Ch. is ancient. 
 
 15 m. Long Burton. 
 
 Lewston Park, occupied by Sir R. 
 G. Glyn, Bart., master of the Black- 
 more Vale Foxhounds, 1 ni. N.W. of 
 Long Burton, was originally the 
 seat of Sir John Fitz James, Lord 
 Chief Justice of King's Bench, died 
 1539 ; (see Bruton, Rte. 23, p. 404) 
 the house was rebuilt 1800, but a 
 chapel built by the Chief Justice 
 was preserved. Bp. Ken visited 
 Lewston, then the seat of the Hon. 
 Mrs. Thynne, shortly before his 
 death, Aug. 1710, and was there 
 seized with his fatal illness. In Ljong 
 Burton CImrch, chiefly Perp., re- 
 stored with new N. aisle, 1873, is a 
 rich Jacobean monument to Sir John 
 Fitz James, d. 1625, and his wife, 
 ^ ith effigies ; and a monument with 
 3 effigies to Thos. Winston, Sir H. 
 Winston, his son, " Lieutenant of the 
 Brill," under Sir Thos. Cecil, d. 
 1609, and his wife Dionise, trans- 
 ferred from Standish, Gloucester- 
 shire, by their daughter Eleanor 
 FitzJames. 
 
 Holiodl House, 1 m. W., till lately 
 a part of Somersetshire islanded 
 by Dorset, occupies the site of the 
 chief hunting lodge of the Forest of 
 Blackmore, visited by King John and 
 other of our sovereigns. 
 
 Stoke Gayland Church, 5 m. E., con- 
 tains a cross-legged recumbent effigy 
 in a coat of mail, probably of the 
 13th cent.j in Hamhill stone. Its 
 
 execution is somewhat inferior. The 
 church stands on the grounds of 
 Stock House, the residence of Mrs. 
 Yeatman. 
 
 The road descends Dancing Hill, 
 and, crossing the Yeo, reaches 
 
 18 m. Sherborne (Rte. 12). 
 
 ROUTE 17. 
 
 THE ISLE OF PURBECK, AND THE 
 COAST FROM SWAN AGE TO WEST 
 LULWORTH. 
 
 The Lsle of Purheck has no claim, 
 regarded geographically, to the de- 
 signation of an island. The eastern 
 portion forms a bold promontory, 
 divided from the mainland by the 
 wide digitated expanse of Poole 
 harbour, eaten out of the softer sands 
 and clays by the erosion of the 
 waves: but the remainder of the 
 district cannot even be regarded as a 
 peninsula. The civil boundaries are 
 nothing more than the little stream 
 of Luckford Lake, which, rising near 
 the park of Lulworth Castle, runs 
 N., and joins the Frome near Holme 
 Bridge, and the Frome itself. The 
 so-called Lsle forms an irregular 
 oval some 12 m. in length by 10 
 in breadth. It is in many respects 
 a very interesting district. To the 
 admirers of fine scenery it offers 
 the attractions of a heath 10 m* 
 in length, of a range of downs 
 nearly 700 ft. in height, command- 
 ing magnificent views, and of a 
 rock-bound coast sometimes fronting 
 the open sea, sometimes retiring in 
 
Dorsetsliire. Boute 17. — Isle of Purhech 
 
 243 
 
 bays of remarkable beauty. The 
 geologist also can here revel in a 
 variety of strata, including beds of 
 the tertiary, cretaceous, wealden, and 
 oolitic formations, which are so ar- 
 ranged, by tilting of the strata on 
 the eastern shore, that they may be 
 as readily distinguished one from 
 the other as books on a shelf. The 
 southern part of the district is 
 isolated by a range of chalk hills, 
 known as the Purbeck Hills, running 
 down to the sea at Handfast Point, 
 between Studland and Swanage Bays 
 to the E., and at Worbarrow Bay 
 to the W., at both of which points 
 the chalk rises in lofty perpen- 
 dicular cliffs. Another range of 
 hills of the oolitic formation runs 
 nearly parallel with the chalk range to 
 the S. from Feveril Point, E., to Wor- 
 harrow Tout, the southern point of 
 Worbarrow Bay, W. Between these 
 ranges lies a rich and fertile undulat- 
 ing valley of the Hastings sands, 11 
 m, long and from f m. wide, diver- 
 sified with a succession of isolated 
 farms. Still further S., between the 
 oolitic ridge and the sea, the coast 
 line presents a series of low-level 
 pasture lands in the Kimmeridge 
 strata, and a succession of pictu- 
 resque bays, extending from St. Aid- 
 helm's Head westward. In ancient 
 times the Isle of Purbeck was a royal 
 deer-forest. Edward the Martyr had 
 been hunting in its hills when he 
 was murdered by Elfrida at Corfe ; 
 and successive kings continued to fol- 
 low the chase here as late as the reign 
 of James I. It is, however, better 
 known for its quarries, which have 
 been worked from a very early period, 
 supplying both the shell-marble so 
 largely used in the decoration of 
 our more ancient cathedrals, and 
 the freestone employed for paving 
 and building purposes. 
 
 The geological structure of the 
 district is well displayed on the 
 cliffs between Studland and Durlston 
 Head, the beds dipping to the N. and 
 so appearing in succession . First come 
 
 the sandy slopes of the Alum Bwj series , 
 gay with a variety of colours. At 
 Old Harry these give place to walls 
 and flanking towers of chalk, with 
 bands of flint at the Foreland, where 
 the strata are tilted vertically. By 
 their side are ranged firestone, gault, 
 and gree?isand, 3 layers descending to 
 the sea from the foot of the hills. 
 Next come the beds of the wealden 
 formation, viz. the Hastings sand, and 
 Purbeck limestone, the former sweep- 
 ing round the bay to Swanage, which 
 stands on the junction line ; the latter 
 appearing to the W. of the point of 
 Peveril, and extending in curved 
 and twisted strata to Durlston Head, 
 where the Fortlaiid oolite emerges 
 from the sea and forms the headland. 
 Beneath Encombe and Gad Cliff 
 appears the Kimmeridge clag, with its 
 beds of bituminous shale known as 
 Kimmeridge coal. Ammonites of large 
 size abound in the oolite, which is 
 overlaid by the "dirt bed" which 
 contains large trunks of trees, and 
 in the wealden the bones of fish and 
 of huge reptiles, the bucklers of 
 turtles, the little bodies of flies and 
 beetles. The teeth of fish are very 
 numerous, and are called " fishes' 
 eyes" by the quarrymen, who in 1847 
 first brought to light the Sicana§e 
 crocodile, described by Dr. Mantell, 
 and now in the British Museum. 
 Remains of the iguanodon occur in 
 the Hastings beds of Swanage Bay. 
 
 The chief place in the Isle of Pur- 
 beck is the little tow^n of Swanage 
 ( /?ms ; Royal Victoria, a very hand- 
 some building with an Ionic front, 
 formerly the Manor House. As a 
 hotel it has a high reputation. It 
 was visited by Her Majesty, then 
 Princess Victoria, in 1 835, and sub- 
 sequently by the Prince of Wales. 
 Ship ; Purbeck. Pop. 4158). It may 
 be reached either by steamer from 
 Poole, Bournemouth, or Weymouth ; 
 or by omnibus from the Wareham 
 station, from which it is distant 11 
 m. Its position is most attractive, 
 and being open to the S.E. it is one 
 R 2 
 
244 
 
 Itoute 17. — Swanage, 
 
 Dorsetsliire. 
 
 of the coolest of our summer water- 
 ing-places. The views from it are 
 varied and extensive, embracing the 
 Hampshire coast in long perspective, 
 and the Isle of Wight, 15 m. distant. 
 The sands are level and firm, and 
 the bathing is excellent. There is a 
 good pier, begun in 1859, at which 
 the steamers touch at all states of the 
 tide. Its quietness and the absence 
 of the ordinary crowd of excursion- 
 ists render Swanage a favourite 
 resort for many leading profession- 
 alists during the long vacation. It is 
 thus described by Prof. Kingsley : — 
 
 ''At the east end of the Isle of 
 Purbeck is a little semicircular bay, 
 its northern horn formed by high 
 cliffs of white chalk, ending in white 
 isolated stacks and peaks, round 
 whose feet the blue sea ripples for 
 ever. In the centre of the bay the 
 softer * wealden beds* have been worn 
 away, forming an amphitheatre of 
 low sand and clay cliflPs. The southern 
 horn is formed by the dark limestone 
 beds of the Purbeck marble. A 
 quaint old-world village slopes down 
 to the water over green downs, quar- 
 ried, like some gigantic rabbit-bur- 
 row, with the stone-workings of 
 seven hundred years. Landlocked 
 from every breeze, huge elms flourish 
 on the dry sea-beach, and the gayest 
 and tenderest garden flowers bask 
 nnder the hot stone walls. A plea- 
 santer spot for summer sea-bathing 
 is not to be found eastward of the 
 Devon coast than Swanage." 
 
 There are good lodging-houses in 
 the outskirts, opening on the green 
 hill-side, as well as a new suburb, 
 styled Mowlem Park. This derives 
 its name from the late John Mowlem, 
 Esq., d. 1869, probably a descendant 
 of "Durandus, the king's carpenter,*' 
 named in Domesday, on whom 
 William bestowed the manor of 
 Moleham in Swanage. In Edward 
 I.'s reign one William de Moul- 
 ham held lands in that manor by 
 the service of the reparation of 
 the great tower at Corfe Castle. 
 
 The late Mr. Mowlem raised himself 
 from the humble position of a quar- 
 ry man to a leading position in Lon- 
 don as a paving contractor, and 
 became a great benefactor to his 
 native place. The Moidem Instita- 
 tion, erected 1863, with reading and 
 lecture rooms, at the N. end of the 
 town, was founded by him. A 
 pillar has been erected close to this 
 building to commemorate Alfred's 
 victory over the Danish fleet in 877, 
 when 120 of the marauders' ships 
 were driven on Peveril reef, and 
 wrecked there. At the S.W. ex- 
 tremity of the town, near the pier, 
 stands a Gothic Clock-tower, trans- 
 ferred hither from the Surrey side 
 of London Bridge, where it had 
 been erected as a memorial to the 
 Duke of Wellington, but removed 
 for railway requirements. It was 
 presented by Mowlem & Co. to Mr. 
 Docwra of the Grove, who re-erected 
 it in his grounds. 
 
 The old town of Swanage consists 
 chiefly of one long narrow street of 
 grey stone-roofed houses, climbing 
 the slope of the hill which forms the 
 southern horn of the bay. It stands 
 precisely over the outcrop of the 
 upper Purbecks, which run out to sea 
 eastward in a low headland and 
 double reef known as Peveril Point 
 and Ledge, shutting in Swanage Bay 
 on the S. The bay sweeps in a noble 
 curve 2J m. across, retiring about f 
 m. inland, under the low cliff's of the 
 Hastings Sand, Its northern horn is 
 formed by the huge chalk headland 
 of Ballard Head, soaring in perpen- 
 dicular precipices from the sea, and 
 reaching an elevation of 584 ft. 
 at the highest point of the down 
 above. The N.E. angle of the chalk 
 promontory is called Handfast Point. 
 At the extremity of the chalk are the 
 insulated lofty fragments known as 
 Old Harrtj and his Wife and the Pin- 
 nacle Pocky and nearer Swanage a 
 large cavern called the Parson's Barn. 
 " As big as a parson's barn " is a 
 Dorsetshire proverb. 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 17. — Piirhcch Quarries — Stiulland. 245 
 
 The Ch. was a plain solid building 
 of great antiquity, and little pre- 
 tensions to beautj^ The body was 
 rebuilt in 1860, but the rude early 
 tower remains. Near it a tablet on 
 a cottage commemorates a night 
 passed beneath its roof by John 
 Wesley, Aug. 13, 1787. Dr. Andrew 
 Bell, the introducer of the "Bell 
 system of Education," was rector of 
 Swanage 1801-1816. 
 
 Numerous quarries of Purbeck 
 marble are worked in the hill above 
 the town. The stone is reached by a 
 slanting pit about 120 ft. deep, which 
 allows of the ingress of the quarry- 
 man by a flight of rude steps, and of 
 the egress of the stone by a slide. 
 Each quarry is generally worked by 
 two men, who are employed either 
 in excavating the stone, or in shaping 
 it in the sheds. The Purbeck strata 
 are estimated at a total thickness of 
 27.5 ft., of which the upper 55 are 
 useful stone. The top vein of all, 
 called Purbeck marble^ is almost en- 
 tirely composed of a small freshwater 
 shell {Paludina carinifera) cemented 
 by lime, and interstratified with the 
 upper Cypris clays and shales. The 
 marble, and the far more abundant 
 building-stone, is carried for ship- 
 ment to Swanage, where it is piled 
 in the unsightly " bankers " which 
 encumber the shore, and is embarked 
 by the aid of a small tramway and 
 pier. 
 
 Few places possess a more inter- 
 esting neighbourhood than Swanage. 
 In the vicinity of the town are Diu-l- 
 ston Head, Tilly Whim, the Dancing 
 Ledge, and numerous caverns ; and at 
 distances suitable for excursions, 
 Studland, 3 m., and the Agglestone ; 
 Corfe Castle, 6 m., and Creech Bar- 
 row ; St, AldhelnCs Head, 6 m. ; Gad 
 Cliff and Worbarrow Bay, 12 m. ; 
 Lulworth Castle, 13 m., and Lidworth 
 Cove, 15 m. 
 
 At Godlingstone, \i m.N.W. are the 
 remains of an old house of some 
 interest, much of which has been 
 recently pulled down. 
 
 3 m. N. of Swanage, on the other 
 side of the high chalk down, is the 
 pretty little village of Studland, em- 
 bowered among lofty elms, reached 
 by a charming walk over Ballard 
 Down. The plastic clay and other 
 tertiaries of the Bagshot series crop 
 out here in rough slopes covered 
 with profuse vegetation. The cli- 
 mate is so mild that myrtles and 
 other tender shrubs and plants brave 
 the winters, and attain a large size. 
 The sea has eaten out a pretty little 
 bay in the friable strata, bounded by 
 low red cliffs, which terminate S. in 
 the bastion-like promontory called 
 the Nodes, the northern angle of 
 Handfast Point. The village com- 
 municates with the shore by a pictu- 
 resque little chine, excavated by a 
 small stream that trickles through it. 
 Studland Church is a very interest- 
 ing example of a small Norman 
 parish church, without additions or 
 alterations of any moment, and very 
 carefully restored. It consists of a 
 nave, chancel, and a tower be- 
 tween the two (as at Iffley, Ticken- 
 cote, &c.). The tower has been 
 strengthened by buttresses, which 
 add to its picturesque effect. It now 
 has a packsaddle roof, but it is evi- 
 dent that it has been shortened, and 
 that the present covering is not 
 original. The nave preserves on 
 both sides its corbel table of gro- 
 tesque heads, and figures, some not 
 very decent. Some of the windows 
 have been enlarged, and the E. 
 window is a plain one of 3 lights, 
 but the side windows of the chancel 
 and the N. windows of the nave 
 are the original slits. The S. door 
 is Norman and shafted. The tower 
 is supported on boldly-moulded 
 arches with curiously-carved capi- 
 tals, and both it and the chancel are 
 groined. Some of the capitals under 
 the tower, with deeply incised stars 
 and graceful leaves at the angles, 
 deserve notice. The chancel has 
 a chamber above the groining, as 
 at Tickencote and Darenth (^see 
 
246 
 
 Route 17. — jD( 
 
 ^arlston Head, Dorsetshire. 
 
 Hdhks. to Rutland and to Kent). The 
 font is large and cup-shaped, per- 
 fectly plain, coeval with the church. 
 In the churchyard are some fine 
 cypresses and some ancient yews. 
 There was anciently a castle here. 
 King John landed in Studland bay 
 in 1205, having given up an in- 
 tended expedition to France, and 
 again in 1213. 
 
 1 m. N.W. of Studland, and about 
 the same distance from the nearest 
 point of the shore on the rough 
 moor is 
 
 The Agglestone (from Halig-stan, 
 Saxon for Holy-stone), or Devil's 
 Nightcap^ as it is sometimes called. 
 It is an isolated block of ferruginous 
 sandstone, in the form of an inverted 
 cone, perched on the summit of a 
 hillock, elevated more than 70 ft. 
 above the surrounding heath, where 
 the moor dips to the low ground 
 which borders Poole harbour. It is 
 a most singular object, as it stands 
 out against the sky, and tradition, as 
 usual, attributes it to Satanic agency. 
 It measures IGJ ft. in height, and 
 36 ft. by 16 J in diameter, and is 
 computed to weigh about 400 tons. 
 On the upper surface are 3 cavities, 
 which may be artificially-formed 
 basins ; but whatever use it may 
 have been put to, there is no doubt 
 that it is the work of nature, and rests 
 in its original position, the earth 
 which once surrounded it having been 
 removed, partly by the action of the 
 weather, partly perhaps by depign. 
 The moor is a good botanizing 
 ground, where may be found the 
 large blue Gentian, Gentiana pneu- 
 monanthe, the Bog Asphodel, Cotton- 
 grass, Bog Pimpernel, and the Sun- 
 dews. On the cliff near the Preven- 
 tive Station grows the rare grass 
 Cynodon dactijlon. 
 
 Swanage is the best place from 
 which to commence the exploration 
 of the coast of Purbeck, of equal 
 interest to the geologist and to the 
 lover of fine rock scenery. Mr. P. 
 Brannon's * Guide to Purbeck,' or 
 
 Mr. Damon's * Geology of Wey- 
 mouth/ will direct him to the various 
 strata. For fuller details the stu- 
 dent should consult Professor E. 
 Forbes' * Memoir on the Purbeck 
 Beds,' and the Eev. O. Fisher's 
 ' Purbeck Strata,' in the Cambridge 
 Philosophical Transactions. 
 
 [From Swanage to Lulworth Cove 
 is a delightful walk of 16 m. by Tilly 
 Whim, Seacombe, St. Aldhehn's Head, 
 Encomhe (3 hours), and one hour 
 besides for seeing the Chapel at the 
 Head. From Encombe Bay, a long 
 terrace above Kimmeridge, crossing 
 the valley, which runs from sea to 
 sea between Swanage and Worbarrow, 
 by Tyneham up to Flowers Barrow 
 (2 hours). Flovjers Barrow by Arish 
 Mell up Bindon Hill to Lulworth Cove 
 (li hours), where is a neat little 
 hotel, at which good refreshments 
 can be procured, and a vehicle hired 
 to take you to Wool Station, 6 m.; 
 or, during the summer, the steamer 
 may be caught to take you to Wey- 
 mouth, (a W. F.)l 
 
 Leaving Swanage a road leads np 
 the hill across Sentry Field to Peveril 
 Point, with its ledge of synclinal 
 rocks forming a double reef, along 
 the edge of the cliffs of Diuiston Bay^ 
 where nearly all the Purbeck beds 
 appear successively rising up south- 
 wards from the beach to the middle 
 of the bay, with the stone-pits on our 
 rt, to 
 
 1 m. Durlston Head, a lofty down de- 
 scending to a cliff of Portland oolite. 
 If the tide permits it, you should de- 
 scend to the shore and examine an 
 arched band of rock to the rt., and 
 the parallel beds of limestone curved 
 and contracted like the bark of old 
 trees. The tide hurries round the 
 point with rapidity. A gorge be- 
 tween Durlstone Height and Round 
 Down leads to 
 
 -J m. Tilly Whim, a cliff quarry, said 
 to derive its name from the person 
 by whom it was opened and worked, 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 17. — St, Aldlielm's Head, 
 
 247 
 
 in defiance of the advice of ex- 
 perienced quarrymen, who warned 
 him of the increasing hardness of 
 the stone. The scene is romantic. 
 A hollow, descending from the hills, 
 conducts the stranger to a terrace, 
 hewn midway on the cliff, about 
 30 ft. above the sea. Opening to 
 this terrace are capacious chambers, 
 remarkable for their flat and solid 
 roofs, and entered by square aper- 
 tures, reminding one of Egyptian or 
 Cyclopean architecture. The black 
 cliffs, grandly divided into enormous 
 cubes, are of Portland oolite capped 
 by Purbeck limestone. At some dis- 
 tance from this spot we pass two 
 smaller cliff quarries now at work. 
 Immediately W, of the furthest is 
 
 2 m. the Dancing Ledge Quarnj, 
 which may be considered as one of 
 the best types of the Purbeck Port- 
 land quarries'* (P. Brannon), con- 
 taining fine specimens of ammonites 
 from 18 in. to 30 in. in diameter, and 
 of the Ostrea gigantea. The quarry 
 takes its name from the Dancing Ledge^ 
 a beach of solid stone, descending at a 
 gentle inclination to the sea, which 
 here breaks with a lively motion, 
 dancing up the ledge. It is the floor 
 of a quarry, about 150 ft. in length 
 by 50 in breadth, abutting on a cliff* 
 which has been worked back in the 
 form of an amphitheatre. E. and W. 
 rises a magnificent coast — huge piles 
 of stone, which re-echo with the 
 thunder of the waves. 
 
 West of the Dancing Ledge are 
 busy quarries, with cranes perched 
 on the cliff for lifting the stone into 
 the vessels. After rounding a hill- 
 spur we descend into Seacombe, where 
 a fertile green valley winds among 
 the hills towards the village of Worth 
 Matr avers, 3 J m. from Swanage, the 
 C/i. of which, restored by the Earl 
 of Eldon, is of considerable interest. 
 The nave and tower and S. doorway 
 and chancel arch are enriched Norm., 
 the chancel E.E. In the churchyard 
 is the tomb of Benjamin Jesty, of 
 Downshay, the first known practiser 
 
 of vaccination, " who, from his 
 strength of mind, made the experi- 
 ment from the cow on his wife and 
 2 sons in 1774." Downshay, a small 
 17th-century house of the DoUings, 
 is a rather picturesque building a 
 little further inland. A little W. of 
 Seacombe, towards Winspit, occurred 
 the melancholy wreck of the Halse^ 
 welly East Indiaman, bound for Ben- 
 gal, Jan.6, 1786, with the loss of 168 
 souls, 82 being saved by the exertions 
 of the neighbouring quarrymen. The 
 graves of some of the drowned may 
 still be seen on the little patch of fiat 
 ground where the cliffs divide. 
 Rounding the boldly advancing hill of 
 Eastman, we reach Winspit quarry, 
 situated on the E. face of St. Aldhelm's 
 Head, consisting of a terrace and 
 numerous subterranean chambers. 
 Above it the path rises rapidly to the 
 cape, and commands a fine view of 
 the coast and sloping downs which 
 have been traversed from Swanage. 
 Lookiug back eastwards, the lofty 
 arch of Connaughfs Hole will be 
 observed E. of the Dancing Ledge. 
 
 3 m. St. Aldhchn' s Head wdsso named 
 after the first bishop of Sherborne. 
 This promontory is 440 ft. in height, 
 and is crowned by an ancient chapel 
 or chantry, in which prayers were 
 said for the safety of mariners pass- 
 ing this dangerous shore, while the 
 roof carried a beacon light. It is 
 a small square stone building, the 
 vaulted roof supported by a central 
 pillar from which spring four inter- 
 secting semicircular arches. The 
 entrance is a Norman doorway, and 
 the window a slit in the wall. Since 
 its restoration by the Earl of Eldon, 
 by whom a Norman font was pre- 
 sented, evening service is celebrated 
 here during the summer. On the 
 face of the promontory are exhibited 
 in section the Portland limestone, the 
 Portland sand, and the Ivimmeridge 
 clay ; the first forming the precipice, 
 the second the long slope, and the 
 third the base, which is, however, 
 concealed beneath the debris of the 
 
248 
 
 Boute 17. — Emmit 
 
 Hill — Kingston. Dorsetshire. 
 
 cliff. The view is superb, the eye 
 ranging down a coast unsurpassed for 
 variety. The colossal profile of Gad 
 Cliff will tempt every visitor to pro- 
 long his ramble. 
 
 W. of this headland the coast, pass- 
 ing from the limestone to the sand 
 and clay, assumes a new character. 
 It dives at once to a deep valley, and 
 then rises in Emmit Hill to a height 
 of 250 ft., forming a range of ivy- 
 mantled ragged precipices. Long 
 dark slopes, covered with fragments 
 of fallen stone, descend from these 
 walls to the sea, with intervening 
 channels of trickling streams, for 
 ever busy in the work of destruc- 
 tion. The path winds along the 
 undercliflF to a very pretty little 
 bay called Cliapman's Pool, from 
 which rises a towering height of 
 Portland sand, with alternate layers 
 of sand and stone, the Kimmeridge 
 clay appearing below, containing 
 beds of bituminous shale. 
 
 The undercliff ceases at the W. 
 end of Egmont Bight, where the drain- 
 age of the valley of Encomhe reaches 
 the sea at Freshwater, in a small cas- 
 cade ; and a flight of steps leads from 
 the private grounds of Encomhe, the 
 seat of the Earl of Eldon, to the 
 beach. Near this spot the W. India 
 mail packet Tgne was stranded on 
 her homeward voyage, Jan. 13, 1857. 
 No lives were lost, and ultimately 
 the vessel was got safely off. The 
 house, long and low, and of no archi- 
 tectural beauty, is situated about half- 
 way up the green valley, which 
 from its fertility is commonly known 
 as " the Golden Bowl." The plant- 
 ing has been judicious, and produces 
 a good effect in spite of the strong 
 S.W. winds. Two pieces of water 
 form very pretty objects from the 
 house and grounds. An obelisk 
 which forms a conspicuous object in 
 the view was erected by Lord Chan- 
 cellor Eldon to his hardly less distin- 
 guished brother, Lord Stowell. En- 
 combe, held at one time by the Abbey 
 of Shaftesbury, came in the r^ign of 
 
 Edward VL to the CuUifords, from 
 whom it passed, 1734, to Mr. John 
 Pitt, who built the house, and whose 
 son sold it, 1807, to Lord Chancellor 
 Eldon. The place is full of memories 
 of the great statesman. 
 
 " Encomhe,'* writes Lord Camp- 
 bell, " became a very dreary abode 
 to Lord Eldon in the latter years of 
 his life. His sporting days were 
 over; he had but little interest in 
 gardening or farming ; and his only 
 reading, besides the newspaper, was 
 a chapter in the Bible. His morn- 
 ings he spent in an elbow-chair by 
 the fire-side in his study — called his 
 s^op— which was ornamented with 
 portraits of his deceased master, 
 George IIL, and his living compa- 
 nion, Pincher, a poodle dog." 
 
 Almost on the summit of the high 
 ridge, 1 J m. N., is the little village 
 of Kingston, with a very conspicuous 
 Ch. of very unusual sumptuousness, 
 erected at the sole cost of the present 
 Lord Eldon, from the designs of 
 Mr. Street, 1880. It is a cruciform 
 structure in the E.E. style, with a 
 lofty central tower and apsidal 
 chancel, and a western narthex. 
 The clustered pillars of the nave, 
 the piers of the crossing and all the 
 string-courses and corbels through- 
 out the building are of polished 
 Purbeck marble from Lord Eldon's 
 own quarries. The transepts and 
 chancel are vaulted in stone, all the 
 windows are filled with stained glass 
 by Messrs. Clayton and Bell. The 
 stalls, iron screens, and every part 
 of the furniture were designed by 
 the architect and executed in the 
 best manner possible. To the S.W. 
 is the parsonage, a building of much 
 architectural character. The former 
 ch. which still stands, was built in 
 very meagre Perp. by Lord Chan- 
 cellor Eldon, from the designs of his 
 son-in-law, Mr. Repton. Here he 
 was buried, Jan. 26, 1838, in the 
 vault he had constructed for his 
 beloved "Bessy." The Ch. con- 
 tains a momiment to him, with ;i 
 
Dorsetsliii'o. Boiiie 17. — Vale of Kiiamerkhje, 
 
 249 
 
 likeness by Cliaiitrey, and others to 
 Lady Eldon, their two sons, and 
 their grandson the second Lord Eldon. 
 A little to the N.E. of Kingston, 
 at Scowles, now a dairy-house of E. 
 Lynch farm, are some interesting 
 remains of a 13th-cent. residence. 
 
 The next valley to Encombe is 
 that of Kiinmeridge ; in a retired nook, 
 overhung with trees, stands Smed- 
 more, formerly the seat of the Cla- 
 vells, and now of their descendant, 
 Lieut-Col. G. P. Mansel. ,Partof the 
 house is old, and was perhaps built 
 by Sir W. Clavell (d. 1643). The 
 remains of an old house at Little 
 Kim7neridge have been destroyed. 
 
 Between Encombe and Gad Cliff 
 the hills receding form an amphi- 
 theatre, enclosing the vale of Kim- 
 meridge, which gives name to the 
 Kimmeridge clay series. Its dark 
 blue beds are seamed by limestone, 
 some strata of which abound in 
 bituminous shale, quarried under 
 the name of Kimmeridge coed. It is 
 a combination of bitumen with clay, 
 and burns with a bright flame, 
 emitting considerable heat, but also a 
 disagreeable sulphureous smell. The 
 products of its distillation are a vola- 
 tile mineral oil, grease, asphaltum, &c. 
 More than one company has been 
 formed to utilise this formation, but 
 without any satisfactory commercial 
 results. Here also are found, about 
 a foot below the surface of the soil, 
 particularly in the neighbourhood of 
 Smedmore, and elsewhere in the Isle 
 of Purbeck, small disksof shale known 
 as Kimmeridge coal-money. This name 
 has been given under the popular 
 idea that they were the coins or amu- 
 lets of the old inhabitants, but they 
 have been satisfactorily proved to 
 be merely refuse pieces thrown 
 aside from the lathe by the fabri- 
 cators of beads, bracelets, and other 
 ornaments for the Roman population. 
 In 1839 bracelets made of this coal, 
 and evidently turned, were discovered 
 in a Romano-British burial-place at 
 Porchesterj and similar ornaments 
 
 have been frequently discovered else- 
 where. The female skeletons found 
 in the cemetery at Jordan Hill, near 
 Weymouth, frequently wore armlets 
 of Kimmeridge jet. 
 
 At the eastern turn of the bay 
 rises the bold bluff of Hen Cliff, sur- 
 mounted by a look-out tower. E. of 
 the Coastguard houses are the ter- 
 races where the coal is extracted, 
 with a small pier for its shipment, 
 and J m. inland the village of Kim- 
 meridge, with its little Ch,, the Norm, 
 door and bell-gable of which deserve 
 notice. The windows and roof are 
 modern. From the low point of this 
 bay the land rapidly rises to the bold 
 hill known as Tyneham Cap, above 
 the ledges of Broad Bench. 
 
 2 m. Gad Cliff, the thin edge of a 
 steep hill, cut vertically at a height 
 of above 500 ft., with jagged preci- 
 pices, overhanging a tangled under- 
 cliff, and the debris of the rocks, 
 among which lies a noble specimen 
 of a fossil tree of the order Cycadese. 
 From this the path rapidly descends 
 to 
 
 1 m. Worharrow Bay, a scene of sur- 
 passing beauty, and unique in many 
 respects. The sea has here broken 
 through the whole series of Purbeck 
 strata to the flinty chalk, here nearly 
 vertical, thus exposing in each side 
 of the bay similar sections of all the 
 strata. It is 1 m. in width, and com- 
 passed by cliffs, which exhibit a 
 number of striking contrasts in their 
 colour, height, and structure. Where 
 the chalk hills have been thus worn 
 into, the cliffs are very high, in two 
 points reaching an elevation of 500 ft. 
 The oolitic strata form high rocks at 
 the entrance of the bay, very highly 
 inclined, and bent and broken in the 
 most fantastic manner. To the W. 
 the cliffs are cleft to the sea by Arish 
 Mell Gap, where there is a miniature 
 bay, and a view through the opening 
 of the park and castle of Lulworth. 
 The various strata of the isle of Pur- 
 beck, spread at Swanage over a dis- 
 
250 
 
 Boute n.—Lulwortli Castle. Dorsetshire. 
 
 tance of more than 2 m., converge as 
 they run westward, and are here so 
 compressed that they all appear in 
 the small compass of Worharrow Tout, 
 the bluff promontory at the E. point 
 formed of Portland and Purbeck 
 limestone, darkly coloured and con- 
 torted; adjoining it are the yellow 
 sands of the wealden, forming low 
 cliffs which terminate the long valley 
 of Swanage. Immediately below the 
 Tout, E., is the picturesque little 
 inlet of PunfeU Cove. 
 
 The most striking feature of this 
 beautiful bay is the gigantic chalk 
 bluff known as Rings Hill or Flower's 
 Barrow, the W. termination of the 
 ridge of downs that insulates S. Pur- 
 beck, uprearing its cliffs of pearly 
 whiteness vertically lined with black 
 layers of flint to a height of 500 ft. 
 The summit commands a most en- 
 chanting view of the coast from 
 Portland to St. Aldhelm's Head. It 
 is crowned by an ancient earthwork 
 containing 5 or 6 acres, formed by 
 3 ramparts and ditches, partly 
 destroyed by the falling of the cliff. 
 Its name was absurdly derived by 
 Hutchins from a supposed Eoman 
 officer named Florus ; but the camp is 
 Celtic. To the E. of Flower's Barrow 
 is the part of the bay known as Tyne- 
 ham Cove, where the long valley of 
 Purbeck comes down to the sea. It 
 takes its name from the pretty little 
 village of West Tyneham, standing a 
 little inland and commanding an un- 
 surpassed prospect of the sea between 
 the heights of Flower's Barrow and 
 Worbarrow Tout. Tyneham House 
 (Kev. John Bond) is a fine old man- 
 sion built by H. Williams, 1567-1582, 
 but disfigured by modern alterations. 
 The Ch., nearly rebuilt by the late 
 Rev. "W. Bond, contains a curious 
 monument, painted and gilt, to 
 John Williams, d. 1589. To the 
 W. of Flower's Barrow the ground 
 suddenly dips down to Hawcombe 
 Bottom, and as suddenly rises again 
 in the chalk headland of Culver, 
 200 ft, high, advancing into the 
 
 middle of the bay, the base of which 
 is worn by the waves into deep 
 caverns, with dark mouths. Beyond 
 this is another great break in the 
 chalk ridge known as Arish Mell Gap, 
 up which the rich woods and grey- 
 towers of Lulworth Castle, and Lul^ 
 worth Ch. form a picture not soon 
 to be forgotten. Bindon Hill suc- 
 ceeds with its white chalk precipices, 
 followed by low cliffs of wealden sand. 
 The western horn of the bay, like 
 the eastern, is formed of a contorted 
 mass of Portland oolite. Huge wave- 
 worn fragments of the wall of stone 
 which once connected the two ex- 
 tremities of the bay and protected 
 the softer strata within, form a chain 
 of insulated rocks, gradually lessen- 
 ing as they approach the centre of 
 the bay. These are known as the 
 Mewps Rocks, and from them the 
 western half of the inlet is often 
 called Mewps Bay. 
 
 If m. inland of Arish Mell Gap 
 stands Lulworth Castle (Reginald J. 
 Weld, Esq.) (3i m. S. of Wool Sta- 
 tion, but less by pleasant footpaths), 
 a feudal-looking pile, situated in 
 a park 5 m. in circumference, and 
 in a most secluded locality. E. of 
 it, for 10 m^, extends a heath only 
 terminated by the sea, and S. a naked 
 range of chalk downs, abutting on 
 one of the most unfrequented but ro- 
 mantic coasts in the kingdom. There 
 was a castle at West Lulworth 
 in early times, which was taken 
 in 1142 by the Earl of Gloucester 
 and occupied for the Empress 
 Maud. East Lulworth belonged 
 to the ancient family of Newburgh, 
 and descended by marriage to Thos. 
 Howard, 3rd son of the 3rd duke of 
 Norfolk, created Viscount Howard of 
 Bindon, and thence to his kinsman 
 the E. of Suffolk, the builder of Aud- 
 ley End, and thence by sale to the 
 Welds, 1641. The present castle was 
 begun by Thos. Lord Bindon, c. 1600, 
 and completed by Humphry Weld, 
 fifty years later. It was garrisoned 
 in the Civil Wars for Charles I., but 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 17. — LulwortJi Cove, 
 
 251 
 
 in 1644 was occupied by the Parlia- 
 mentary soldiers, who committed sad 
 havoc on the lead and metal work. 
 It was constructed chiefly from the 
 ruins of Bindon Abbey. In form an 
 exact cube, it is flanked at each cor- 
 ner by a lofty round tower, and or- 
 namented on its principal front, which 
 is of Chilmark stone, by the arms 
 of the Weld family, and by statues 
 of Music and Painting, and of two 
 Koman worthies. The interior con- 
 tains some family portraits by Lely, 
 and others in pencil by Hussey (d. 
 1788), an amateur artist who drew 
 the human head by the musical scale, 
 and was a native of Marnhull, in 
 this county (Rte. 20). Among those 
 in oil is one of Sir John Weld, who 
 raised a troop for Charles I. ; in the 
 hall is an eagle shot in the park. The 
 Chapel is a modem building detached 
 from the castle. At Lulworth is pre- 
 served the famous " Lutterell Psal- 
 ter," executed for Sir Geoffrey 
 Louterell, temp. Edward III., so 
 remarkable for the illustration of 
 domestic manners and customs afford- 
 ed by the illuminations. In 1794 some 
 refugee French monks of the Trappist 
 order were sheltered by Mr. Weld, and 
 founded a monastery dedicated to St. 
 Susanna, at the foot of Flowers 
 Barrow where they remained till 
 1817, when they returned to France. 
 
 Lulworth has on several occasions 
 been honoured by the presence of 
 royalty. It was visited by James I. 
 in 1615, when the plague raged in 
 London; by Charles II., 1665; and 
 by George III. and the whole royal 
 family, who came here by sea from 
 Weymouth, Aug. 3, 1789. In 1830 
 it afforded an asylum to Charles X. 
 and his family, when driven from 
 his throne. 
 
 The woods are extensive. The 
 lake lies 1 m. N., adjoining the great 
 heath which stretches towards Ware- 
 ham. It is a pleasant solitude. A 
 walk runs around it ; and it possesses 
 a mimic fort and harbour. The Church 
 of East Lulworth was rebuilt 1864, 
 
 with the exception of the tower, the 
 belfry story of which is curious, and 
 the Weld monuments have been re- 
 moved to the vaults beneath the 
 chapel. It however retains some 
 memorials of the family, including 
 that of Sir John Weld, 1674, in which 
 is set forth a genealogy, tracing his 
 descent from Edrike the Wild, a 
 nephew of the Duke of Mercia, the 
 son-in-law of King Ethelred. 
 
 Eeturning to the coast, the walk 
 to West Lulworth lies along the con- 
 tinuation of the chalk-ridge known 
 as the Swinesback or Bindon Hill, pre- 
 senting a rugged face of oolitic pre- 
 cipices to the sea, called the South 
 Rocks, where a bed of fossilized cyca- 
 daceous trees, similar to those to be 
 seen in Portland, will arrest the at- 
 tention of the geologist. On the hill 
 above Lulworth Cove, E., is Little 
 Bindon Abbey, a small desecrated E.E. 
 chapel, marking the original site of 
 the monastery near Wool (p. 201). 
 From this point we rapidly descend to 
 
 4 m. Lulworth Cove {Hotel, Cove 
 Hotel) ; one of the most romantic in- 
 lets on the coast. It is a little circular 
 basin eaten out by the sea in the soft 
 strata of the Hastings sands, encircled 
 by towering cliffs, and entered by a 
 narrow opening between two bluffs 
 of Portland stone, the remnants of 
 the solid barrier which once shut it 
 in, but has fallen before the inces- 
 sant action of the watery hammers. 
 It exhibits a section of all the beds 
 between the chalk and oolite, and 
 owes its peculiar form to the unequal 
 resistance of these strata to the action 
 of the sea. The perpetually moving 
 water, having once pierced the cliff 
 of stone, soon worked its way deeply 
 into the softer sand and chalk. 
 
 West Lulworth, situated in a retired 
 valley under Bindon Hill, has a 
 modern Ch., built 1870, a mile from 
 the sea. 
 
 Starting for a ramble W. of Nelson 
 Fort, the coast-guard signal-station 
 at the entrance of Lulworth Cove^ 
 we soon reach 
 
252 
 
 Boute 18. — Isle of Portland, Dorsetsliire. 
 
 Stidr Bole, an oblong chasm walled 
 off by a rock of Portland limestone 
 from the sea, which flows into it at 
 high water through chinks and ca- 
 verns. It strikingly shows the man- 
 ner in which the neighbouring coves 
 have been formed, the waves here 
 leaping through the breached barrier 
 of limestone to attack the sand and 
 chalk. It is a wild and interesting 
 spot, with its huge ribs of contorted 
 stone. Beyond it is Dungy Head, 
 alive with rabbits, and then Oswald, 
 or Horsewall, Bay, with beach of 
 shingle, and the magnificent chalk 
 escarpment of Marm Tout, These 
 are terminated W. by a low but 
 most picturesque promontory formed 
 by vertical and curved bands of 
 limestone variously coloured, called 
 Tongue Beach. Crossing the neck of 
 this point, we find 
 
 Dui^dle Bay, and the Barn-Door, an 
 archway 30 ft. high, piercing a wall 
 of rosy rock, on whose ledges, says 
 Gosse, nestle the guillemot, the auk, 
 the puffin, the shag, and one or two 
 kinds of gulls. Swyre Head rises from 
 this bay to a height of 669 ft., its 
 slopes of turf cresting a vertical chalk 
 cliff, (m each side of which they de- 
 scend to within a few feet of the 
 beach. At the W. end of the bay is 
 Bafs Corner, tunnelled by a cavern, 
 and a pinnacle of chalk, called the 
 Butter Rock, standing detached among 
 the waves. The next bay terminates 
 with 
 
 Whitenore, 3i m. from W. Lulworth, 
 and the last chalk cliff on the S.W. 
 coast of England, except Beer Head 
 between Lyme and Sidmouth. Im- 
 mediately W. of it is an undercliff, 
 and, in Ring stead Bay, low cliffs of 
 Kimmeridge clay, which in 1824 spon- 
 taneously ignited and continued to 
 moulder for some years. 
 
 West Lulworth is 10 m. from Wey- 
 mouth, and 6 m. from the Wool Stat., 
 14 m. from Weymouth and 13 m. 
 fvom Porchester by carriage road, 
 
 but a pedestrian may do it in 10 ni. 
 A steamer runs from Weymouth to 
 Lulworth several times a week 
 during the summer months. 
 
 BOUTE 18. 
 THE ISLE OF PORTLAND. 
 
 The Isle of Portland (Pop. 10,046) 
 is reached from Weymouth by fre- 
 quent steamers from the pier-head, 
 or by a branch of the G. W. Rly. 
 4f m. in length, with an intermediate 
 stat. at Rodwell, in the outskirts of 
 the town, where the rly. passes 
 through a Romano-British cemetery, 
 in which many urns and other inter- 
 esting objects were discovered. 
 There is also communication by 
 road, crossing a long timber bridge 
 on the site of a former ferry crossing 
 the East Fleet, 
 
 Portland is connected with the 
 mainland by the long narrow isthmus 
 of the 
 
 Chesil Banh. This may be likened 
 to a string stretched from Portland 
 to the mainland at Abbotsbury, lOf 
 m. distant, being separated from the 
 land so far by a narrow channel 
 called the Fleet. It is a compact 
 ridge of shingle, in places mixed 
 with sand, and slopes steeply on each 
 side to the water, its extreme height 
 at its S.E. end being 37 ft., and its 
 width 200 yards at Portland and 170 
 at Abbotsbury. The pebbles form- 
 ing this immense barrier are chiefly 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 siliceous, from the chalk hills to the 
 W., all loosely thrown together. The 
 fundamental rocks on which the 
 shingle rests are found at the depth 
 of a few yards only below the level 
 of the sea. The formation of that 
 part of the bar which attaches Port- 
 land to the mainland may have been 
 due to an original shoal or reef, or 
 to the set of the tides in the narrow 
 channel, by which the course of the 
 pebbles which are always coming 
 from the W. has been arrested." — 
 Lyell. Another singular fact is the 
 gradual increase of the size of the 
 pebbles from W. to E. as we go far- 
 ther from the quarter which supplied 
 these, the bank commencing at Brid- 
 port with sand, and terminating at 
 Portland with stones 3 or 4 inches 
 in diameter. ''The true explana- 
 tion of this phenomenon is doubtless 
 this : the tidal current runs strongest 
 from W. to E., and its power is 
 greater in the more open channel or 
 farther from the land; the size of 
 the masses being carried from the 
 W. and thrown ashore being largest 
 where the motion of the water is 
 most violent." — Lyell. Throughout 
 this distance of 17 m. the change is 
 gradual, but regular ; so that smug- 
 glers, landing on the bank in thick 
 weather or a dark night, can deter- 
 mine the exact spot without any 
 difficulty. In heavy gales from the 
 westward this long line of desolate 
 beach is lashed by a frightful sea, 
 the slope being abrupt, and the water 
 deep. Shipwrecks are unfortunately 
 too frequent, and upon such occa- 
 sions it is a work of considerable 
 danger to proceed to the assistance 
 of the stranded vessel, the landward 
 side being swept by heavy showers 
 of shingle. The shipwrecked sailor 
 has indeed but a poor chance of 
 saving his life. Owing to the steep- 
 ness of the bank, the broken water 
 rolls back with resistless force, 
 springing high into the air as it 
 meets the advancing wave ; and the 
 strength of the under-current alone 
 
 25:] 
 
 will frustrate the efforts of the strong- 
 est swimmer. Such melancholy scenes 
 have been repeatedly witnessed, and 
 hence the bay has acquired its dismal 
 name, Deadman's Bay. In 1588 
 two of the treasure galleons of the 
 Spanish Armada went on shore 
 here. Ingots of silver have been 
 from time to time found imbedded 
 in the blue clay of the beach below 
 the shingle after a storm. In the 
 great storm of Nov. 1824 the bank 
 was considerably lowered, shingle to 
 the amount of many hundred tons 
 having been thrown to the land side. 
 On that occasion an Ordnance sloop, 
 laden witli stores, was carried by a 
 wave to the very top of the ridge, 
 where the crew disembarked and 
 walked into Portland. They after- 
 wards launched her down the other 
 side into the Fleet, and thus she is 
 said to have gone round the penin- 
 sula by land. 
 
 The Isle of Portland id a rocky 
 peninsula, 4^m. in length, IJ m. in 
 width, and 9 m. in circumference, 
 projecting into the Channel, in the 
 shape of a tongue or beak, from 
 which configuration its southern 
 extremity is known as the Bill 
 of Portland. The peninsula is one 
 solid mass of oolitic limestone, and 
 presents an even surface, which 
 slopes southward in a long inclined 
 plain from a height of 495 ft. at the 
 Verne to 30 ft. above the sea-level. 
 The cliffs that form its sides, exposed 
 to the fury of the waves, are ex- 
 tremely rugged. 
 
 Portland offers a peculiarly inter- 
 esting field for geological research in 
 its unique dirt-bed and fossil trees, 
 and its alternations of marine and 
 fresh-water deposits. That Portland 
 was an ancient British stronghold is 
 proved by the double foss-way, en- 
 circling the Verne Hill, which could 
 clearly be traced before the con- 
 struction of the new fortifications. 
 It was subsequently occupied by the 
 Romans, and has been identified with 
 theVindilisof the Itinerary, and the 
 
 BolUe 18. — Chesil Bank. 
 
254 
 
 Route 18. — Portland Castle. Dorsetshire. 
 
 Vindelia of Richard of Cirencester. 
 A Roman road led from Cheswell to 
 the Verne, and at the Grove was a 
 cemetery destroyed by the new 
 fort ; in which a large plain stone 
 sarcophagus, preserved in the fort, 
 was found, and some good specimens 
 of Samian ware. There was also a 
 Romano-British cemetery at South- 
 well, where fibulae, coins, and pottery 
 have been found. 
 
 Portland is asserted to have been 
 the first place on which the Danes 
 landed in this country in the reign 
 of Beorhtric of Wessex, at the end 
 of the eighth century, and in the 
 year 1404 it was selected by the 
 French for invasion, but their at- 
 tempt proved unsuccessful. At the 
 commencement of the Great Rebel- 
 lion, Portland was seized by the Par- 
 liamentary forces, who garrisoned 
 the island in 1643, and made it a 
 depot for their plunder after the cap- 
 ture of Wardour Castie. This, how- 
 ever, together with the island itself, 
 soon fell into the hands of the Royal- 
 ists, who captured the stronghold by 
 a stratagem. A party of horsemen 
 with the Parliamentary colours fly- 
 ing galloped towards the castle, cry- 
 ing out that they were pursued by 
 the King's troops who, with the 
 Earl of Caernarvon, were by design 
 close in their rear ; the gates were 
 opened to them, and, having thus 
 gained an entrance, they speedily 
 overpowered the garrison. The Port- 
 landers were Saleares, or slingers of 
 stones, in ancient times. They are a 
 sturdy race, and long maintained 
 themselves distinct from the people 
 of the adjacent country, intermarry- 
 ing, and handing down from father 
 to son many curious customs ; but 
 they are now less exclusive, and their 
 customs are in great measure discon- 
 tinued. The island is famous for its 
 building-stone, and for a breed of 
 small black-faced sheep well known 
 for their excellent flavour as Port- 
 land mutton. The island is all 
 one parish, but it .is divided into 
 
 8 hamlets, viz., Chesilton and For- 
 tune's Well (IST.), and Castleton, on 
 the E. coast, which are tolerably 
 built, and form a striking contrast 
 to the rest. In the centre of the 
 isle is Eeforne, with the parish church 
 of St. George, in the Wrenean style 
 (the other church is at Fortune's 
 Well) ; Easton, Walieliam, and Weston 
 — where is the Avalanche Memorial 
 Cli. of St. Andrew, erected in 1879, 
 to commemorate the captain, passen- 
 gers and crew of the '^Avalanche," 
 lost by collision with the ''Forest" 
 Sept. 11. 1877 — stretch across the 
 centre ; and Southwell is near the S. 
 extremity ; all these are shapeless 
 collections of stone hovels, with here 
 and there a chapel of the approved 
 Zion or Bethesda type. The Prison 
 is on the E. coast, at a treeless place 
 known as the Grove; Pennsylvania 
 Castle is a mile lower down ; on the 
 same side, the pretty dell of Church 
 Hope adjoins ; Cave Hole is further 
 S., and the High (W.) and Low 
 Lighthouses (E.) are very near the 
 S. extremity — the Bill. A walk 
 along the W. coast gives a good view 
 of the quarries wliich are worked 
 by free labour. 
 
 Portland Castle, a block house, 
 was built by Henry VIII., 1520, 
 after his return from the "Field 
 of the Cloth of Gold," to pro- 
 tect the coast against a surprise 
 by the French. He granted it in 
 succession to three of his queens — 
 Jane Seymour, Kath. Howard, and 
 Kath. Parr ; and in 1588 it was gar- 
 risoned in expectation of a landing 
 by the Spanish Armada. During the 
 Rebellion it was several times be- 
 sieged and taken by the contending 
 parties, once in 1643 by stratagem, 
 as already related, when the Royalists 
 found in it the plunder of Wardour 
 Castle. Col. Wm. Ashburnham was 
 besieged here for 4 months till re- 
 lieved by the Earl of Cleveland, 1644. 
 The next year, Aug. 23, it was 
 attacked by the Parliamentary forces, 
 
Dorsetshire. .Boiite 18. — Portland Quarries, 
 
 255 
 
 and surrendered Ap. 6, 1646. In 1816 
 it was granted to the family of 
 Manning, but on the death of the 
 late Capt. Charles Manning it re- 
 verted to the Crown. The family 
 pictures and other collections which 
 formerly adorned the interior are 
 now dispersed. On the wainscot of 
 the Hall, formerly the guard-room, 
 is the following quaint inscription : 
 *' God save Kinge Henri the VIII. of 
 that name, and Prince Edward e be- 
 gotten of Queene Jane, my ladi Mari, 
 that godli virgin, and the ladi Eliza- 
 bit so towardli, with the kinges 
 honourable counselers." 
 
 Chesilton, where is the Ely. Stat, 
 is the first village in Portland. 
 Vehicles may be here obtained for a 
 drive to the Breakwater, ^ m. distant, 
 and round the island, a pleasant ex- 
 cursion of 2 or 3 hours. It straggles 
 up the hill to meet 
 
 Fortune's Well (Inn: Portland 
 Arms), which occupies the higher 
 ground, and derives its name from a 
 spring w^hich rises behind the inn, 
 200 ft. above the sea-level. A 
 curious relic of antiquity may be seen 
 at the Portland Arms — the lieeve 
 Fole, "a sort of wooden Domesday 
 Book," bearing a record of every 
 estate in the island, and of which 
 a silver model was presented to the 
 Queen by the tenants of the royal 
 manor, 1850. It is referred to as an 
 authority in all questions of manorial 
 dues. From this elevation there is 
 a magnificent view of the Chesil 
 Bank, which appears stretched out 
 in long perspective westward, con- 
 ducting the eye to the distant 
 heights above Lyme, among which 
 the truncated cone of Golden Cap is 
 conspicuous. Above the village the 
 stony hill attains a height of 490 ft., 
 called the Verne Hill, the highest 
 portion of which is occupied by a 
 strong work, called Fort Victoria, 
 ■which its designers intended should 
 as nearly approach impregnability as 
 ditches, walls, earthworks, and guns 
 
 could make it. It is suiTOunded by 
 a dry ditch, for the formation of which 
 upwards of 1,500,000 tons of stone 
 had to be blasted. It is in some 
 parts nearly 200 ft. wide, and dis- 
 plays the strata and faults in beauti- 
 ful sections. Casemated barracks 
 within will accommodate 3000 men, 
 and the extent of the whole en- 
 closure is 56 acres. Beneath the 
 N.E. face of the fort is a line of 
 works cut on the steep slope of the 
 hill called the Fast Weir Batteries. 
 Two proposed outworks further S. 
 at Easton and Weston, to mount oO 
 or more guns a-piece, will strengthen 
 the central fortress of the Verne. 
 Steep roads lead from Fortune's 
 Well to the 
 
 Quarries of Portland stone, among 
 enormous heaps of rubbish, the 
 ruins of the overlying useless beds. 
 There are about 100 of these 
 quarries scattered over the island, 
 This famous stone was first brought 
 into repute by Inigo Jones, who 
 selected it for the Banqueting Hall 
 at AVhitehall, and from his time 
 employed for most of our great pub- 
 lic edifices. One bed of the building 
 or merchanfahle stone, as it is called, 
 extends throughout the island like a 
 floor, at an average depth below the 
 sm-face of 30 ft. The strata thus ex- 
 cavated are the upper series of the 
 oolitic limestones, and vary in thick- 
 ness from 7 to 16 ft. They are 6 in 
 number, and are named in a de- 
 scending order, top-cap, skull-cap^ 
 roach (a good stone), top-bed (the 
 best of all), middle or curf-hed, and 
 hottom-hed, the last being of inferior 
 quality to the top-bed. They lie 
 immediately below the Purbeck beds, 
 one of which, called the dirt-bed, 
 contains the trunks of large trees of 
 the fir tribe, now converted into 
 stone, the roots being still fixed in 
 the soil from which they derived 
 their nourishment. In Fortune's 
 Well there is a fine specimen of 
 these silicified trees 20 ft. in height, 
 
25G 
 
 Boiite IS. —Portland Breahwater, Dorsetshire. 
 
 placed against tlie wall of one of the 
 cottages on the rt. as you ascend 
 the hill. The quarries partly belong 
 to the Crown, partly to private firms. 
 
 In a walk or drive round the island 
 the visitor leaves Chesilton by the 
 road along the E. coast, passing Port- 
 land Castle on the 1. to 
 
 Castleton (Inn: Castle Hotel), 
 where he will observe the stone- 
 wharf, from which the vessels en- 
 gaged in the carrying trade ship their 
 cargoes, and where a pier for the use 
 of the Weymouth steamer has been 
 recently erected. On rt. is the tram- 
 road, descending in a straight line the 
 abrupt hill from the quarries. Down 
 this come the loaded waggons by 
 their own weight, their impetus 
 being controlled by the empty cars 
 attached to the other end of the 
 chain, which passes over a huge drum 
 at the top of the incline. 
 
 From Castleton the visitor should 
 proceed to the Portland Breakwater, 
 a national work, commenced in 
 1847. The site of Portland Harbour 
 possessed natural advantages which 
 had long been apparent. It was 
 already protected by nature from 
 westerly gales, and needed only a bar- 
 rier towards the S.E. to render it on 
 all sides secure. The roadstead was 
 capacious, the depth of water ample, 
 and the holding-ground tenacious ; 
 the position was intermediate be- 
 tween Portsmouth and Plymouth, 
 and opposite to the French arsenal 
 of Cherbourg, a desideratum in a 
 warlike point of view. It had the 
 advantage of an inner harbour at 
 Weymouth, and of a copious supply 
 of spring water at Portland. Lastly, 
 it was situated under heights covered 
 by large quantities of stone already 
 excavated and thrown aside as use- 
 less, but admirably adapted for the 
 construction of a breakwater. The 
 utility of such an undertaking 
 appears to have been first urged 
 upon the Government by a Mr. 
 Harvey, of Weymouth, in the year 
 1794, with no result ; he died in 
 
 1821, but Mr. John Harvey, his 
 son, kept the matter before the 
 public. In 1844 a Royal Commission 
 was appointed *'to inquire into the 
 most eligible situation for construct- 
 ing a Harbour or Harbours of Refuge 
 in the Channel," and reported in 
 favour of Portland Bay. The first 
 vote for the work was granted by 
 Parliament in the year 1846 ; an 
 Act of Parliament was passed in 
 1847, giving powers to purchase the 
 necessary land, &c. ; and the pre- 
 liminary works were begun in August 
 of that year. The works having 
 been completed, His Royal Highness 
 the late Prince Consort (to whose 
 influence, it is said, is mainly owing 
 the decision of the Government to 
 carry out these works) performed 
 the ceremony of depositing the first 
 stone, weighing nearly 9 tons, 25th 
 July, 1849. Strictly speaking, there 
 are two breakwaters ; one connected 
 with the shore, starting about half 
 a mile S.E. of Portland Castle, and 
 running due E. for about 1800 ft. ; 
 and the outer, or main, breakwater, 
 which is about 6000 ft. long, is 
 separated from the inner arm by an 
 opening of 400 ft. wide, with a depth 
 of about 45 ft. of water at the lowest 
 tides. 
 
 The whole of the stone was ob- 
 tained from the top of the island, 
 at about a mile from the breakwater; 
 the greater portion was quarried by 
 convicts, who loaded the whole into 
 waggons. These waggons were con- 
 veyed by locomotive engines to the 
 top of the inclined planes, then at- 
 tached to a strong wire rope wound 
 round a drum fitted with powerful 
 screw breaks, and by the force of 
 gravity descended, pulling up the 
 empty waggons from the bottom to 
 be reloaded. Arrived at the bottom, 
 the waggons, a locomotive engine 
 being placed in the rear, were pro- 
 pelled along tramways, and having 
 reached the proper point on the 
 staging, the loads, consisting of 
 several tons, were shot into the sea. 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 18. — Portland Convict Prison. 
 
 257 
 
 More than 5,600,000 tons of stone 
 have been put into the sea to form 
 this great work ; and about 1000 
 convicts were employed upon it. The 
 portion connected with the shore is 
 crowned by substantial masonry, 
 with a wharf for coaling vessels of 
 the navy. At the extreme end of 
 this arm there is a circular tower, 
 with a fort to carry 9 guns. At the 
 northern extremity of the great 
 breakwater a circular fort has been 
 constructed to carry some of the 
 heaviest guns that have been made. 
 
 The total expenditure upon the 
 breakwater works, coaling and water- 
 ing establishment, jetties, &c., has 
 been about 1,010,000?., an amount 
 which will compare most favourably 
 with the cost of any of our large 
 harbours completed, or in progress, 
 
 Portland is now the largest arti- 
 ficial harbour in the kingdom, if not 
 in the world, with a sheltered an- 
 chorage of 2107 acres up to low- 
 water line. 
 
 From the extent of quarrying, 
 fossils have been found in abundance. 
 Excellent collections may be seen 
 at the engineer's office at the head 
 of the Breakwater, and also in the 
 governor's office at the 
 
 Convict Prison. — This has a hand- 
 some frontage to the sea. The build- 
 ings are mostly of wood or iron, being 
 of a strictly temporary character, 
 and scattered over a large area, the 
 whole being enclosed by a lofty 
 stone wall, guarded at intervals by 
 sentinels in uniform. It is regarded 
 as a model building of the kind, 
 consisting of 8 wings, with Protestant 
 and Koman Catholic chapels within 
 the boundary walls, while on the out- 
 side are quarters for the officers and 
 a handsome Cli. (St. Peter's) with 
 schools and residence attached, the 
 whole having been erected by con- 
 vict labour. It accommodates a 
 governor, 2 deputy-governors, 2 chap- 
 lains, 5 schoolmasters, and other 
 officers. There are about 1600 con- 
 victs, of whom the greater number 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 are mostly employed in hewing 
 and dressing the monster blocks of 
 stone used in the various govern- 
 ment buildings and works. The 
 establishment numbers about 2600, 
 including warders and their families. 
 The prisoners are treated with uni- 
 form kindness, and, while strict dis- 
 cipline is maintained, every effort is 
 made to encourage industry and im- 
 provement. They rise at 5 a.m. for 
 the greater part of the year, break- 
 fast at 5*40, and after attending 
 chapel proceed to labour at 7 o'clock. 
 At 11-10 the bell rings to recall from 
 labour, at 11-30 dinners are served 
 out, and at 1 -p.m. they again pro- 
 ceed to work and remain at the same 
 till 5-15 p.m. when they return to 
 their cells for the night. From the 
 entrance gate the visitor obtains a 
 view over the southern part of the 
 island, and sees before him the uni- 
 ted villages of Waheliam and Easton. 
 A walk of a few minutes will con- 
 duct us to the most romantic spot 
 in Portland, the 
 
 Cove of Church Hope, containing 
 Pennsylvania Castle, and on a cliff 
 overhanging the sea the ruinous old 
 keep of Bow and Arrow Castle. A 
 rugged road leads down to the beach, 
 and about midway is a spring which 
 supplies the inhabitants with water. 
 
 Pennsylvania Castle is a modern 
 castellated mansion (Stewart 
 Forbes, Esq.), charmingly placed 
 in a rough dell here descending to 
 the cove. It was built, at a cost of 
 20,0007., from the designs of the 
 too celebrated James Wyatt, c. 1800, 
 by John Penn, governor of this 
 island, and grandson of the founder 
 of Pennsylvania. It is embowered 
 among shrubberies, and contains a 
 collection of Indian and Chinese an- 
 tiquities. It is not now shown to 
 strangers. Below it are the ruins of 
 the old parish church of the island, 
 ruined by a landslip. From a sea- 
 girt crag rises 
 
 Bow and Arrow Castle, a penta- 
 gonal tower of rude construction, 
 s 
 
258 Boute 19. — Wimhome 
 
 to Dorchester. Dorsetshire. 
 
 commonly said to have been built 
 by William Eufus, situated 300 ft. 
 above the sea, and connected with 
 the mainland by a bridge, the arch 
 of which frames a beautiful view of 
 the blue sea and lofty coast about 
 Lulworth. In the year 1142 Robert 
 Earl of Gloucester took possession of 
 this castle for the Empress Matilda. 
 On the other side of the cove the 
 rocky ground has been broken by 
 a landslip into the most romantic 
 forms. 
 
 Continuing our course towards the 
 S. end of the island, the slope of the 
 land brings us nearer and nearer to 
 the level of the sea, the cliffs being 
 hollowed into picturesque caverns. 
 Over the thin roofs of these vaults 
 we unconsciously walk until startled 
 at one spot by a well-like aperture 
 in the path. This is known by the 
 name of 
 
 Cave Hole, where the waves may be 
 seen chafing beneath our feet in the 
 calmest weather, but in storms they 
 burst upwards through the opening 
 with a sound like thunder, and scat- 
 ter the salt spray for many yards 
 round. About a mile beyond it we 
 reach the southern termination of the 
 island, or 
 
 Portland Bill, a castellated mass 
 of rocks. Around it is a busy quarry, 
 and at some distance apart the 2 
 ligMJiouses, the lantern of one 130, 
 and of the other 197 ft. above the 
 level of the sea. In rough weather 
 there is a wild waste of tumbling 
 water off this point. The tide rushes 
 with extraordinary impetuosity be- 
 tween the land and a bank called 
 the Shambles, 3 m. S.E., raising a 
 dangerous surf, which is well-known 
 to sailors as the Eace of Portland. 
 
 From this promontory we can re- 
 turn along the western side of the 
 island, an unenclosed sheep-walk, 
 commanding a charming view of the 
 Dorsetshire coast. The botanist may 
 notice by the way Euphorhia Port- 
 landica and Lavatera arhorea, or 
 tree-mallow, and the Flos Adonis, or 
 
 pheasant's eye. Many bushels of the 
 root of the Arum used to be dug 
 yearly, and after being reduced to 
 powder sold as Portland Arrowroot. 
 
 ROUTE 19. 
 
 WIMBORNE TO DORCHESTER, BY 
 CORFE MULLEN, CHARBOROUGH, 
 BERE REGIS, TOLPUDDLE, PUDDLE- 
 TOWN. 
 
 (Boad.) 
 
 This road, projected and com- 
 pleted through the instrumentalitv 
 of J. S. W. S. Erie Drax, Esq. of 
 Charborough Park, in 1841, 2, affords 
 a pleasant drive of 22 m. through 
 a diversified country, with an old 
 church and manor-house well worth 
 visiting every few miles. 
 
 Leaving Wimborne, the road crosses 
 the Stour, and traverses the green 
 meadows watered by it, by the side 
 of the Somerset and Dorset Rly, to 
 
 2 m. Coife Mullen, the Ch, is a low 
 building of red stone with an E. E. 
 chancel (the Knowle, J. St. John 
 Coventry, Esq.), where a road 
 strikes off 1. to Poole. Passing 
 Upper and Lov^er Henhm-y {Henbury 
 House, formerly the seat of Earl of 
 Strafford, subsequently of C. J. 
 Parker, Esq.) at 
 
 3 m. Bailey Corner, the road crosses 
 the high road from Poole to Bland- 
 ford, and leaves I5 m. rt. Sturminster 
 Marshal (Rte. 20), and passes the 
 long walls and lofty arched gateways, 
 crowned with stags, lions, &c., of 
 
 6 m. Charhorough House, Miss Drax, 
 the ancient seat of the Erles, burnt 
 in the Parliamentary wars, and re- 
 
Dorsetsliire. Boute 19. — Aimer — Bloxworth, 
 
 259 
 
 built by Sir Walter Erie 1720, con- 
 taining on the ceiling of the staircase 
 a painting of the Judgment of Paris, 
 by Thorn/iill, celebrated in a fulsome 
 poem by Christopher Pitt (rector of 
 Pimperne, Rte. 14). In the park 
 is a tower, erected by Major Drax 
 1790, and rebuilt 1839 after being 
 struck with lightning, a conspicuous 
 object for miles around, and a small 
 building with an inscription record- 
 ing that under its roof, in 1686, the 
 plan of the Revolution was concerted. 
 The Erles were a very ancient family, 
 from whom were descended the late 
 Rt. Hon. Sir W. Erie, and his 
 brothers. 
 
 Drax was an old Yorkshire family. 
 Col. Drax, an adherent of the King's 
 party in the Civil Wars, retired to 
 Barbadoes 1647, where he married 
 the daughter of the Earl of Carlisle, 
 the proprietor of the island, and 
 amassed a large fortune. One of his 
 descendants, Henry Drax, of EUerton 
 Abbey, Yorkshire, married the heir- 
 ess of the Erles, and was made secre- 
 tary to Frederick, Prince of Wales, 
 1744. 
 
 65 m. rt. is the little village of 
 Aimer, with a small old C/i. of little 
 interest. Passing 7 m. Rushmore, the 
 tiny villages strung like beads on the 
 stream of the Winterbourne, from 
 which they take their names — Win- 
 terhourne Zelston, Thomson^ Ander- 
 son, and Kingston — will repay a slight 
 detour. 
 
 7 m. Winterbourne Zelston, the C/i., 
 rebuilt in a good style, retains its 
 old square tower and some of its 
 windows. 
 
 8^ m., Winterbourne Thomson, pre- 
 serves some highly picturesque re- 
 mains of the manor-house of the 
 Husseys, with a spiral stone staircase 
 and some good plaster ceilings in the 
 upper rooms. The little rebuilt 
 by Abp. Wake, is quite unworthy of 
 notice. 
 
 9 ni. rt. at W, Anderson is the fine 
 gabled mansion of the Tregonwells, 
 ascribed on slight evidence to Inigo 
 Jones, c. 1622. The miserable and 
 dilapidated small Ch, hard by, almost 
 entirely rebuilt at the same time, 
 retains its little E.E. double bell- 
 gable. 
 
 1 m. higher up the stream, through 
 pretty meadows, is 
 
 W. Kingston, a chapelry of Bare 
 Regis, with a nice little flint Ch., 
 with] N. aisle, good E. E. arcade, a 
 low square tower, well restored by 
 the late Mr. Street. 
 
 On the S.E. border of the high 
 table-land above W. Kingston are the 
 remains of a British station with 
 tumuli and hut circles. On the slope 
 of the down close to this station 
 is a remnant of the Icknield Street, 
 where Roman and British remains 
 have been discovered. A leaden 
 coffin with a nearly perfect skeleton, 
 with nail-studded caligx, was found 
 near the road to Bere a few years 
 since. 
 
 2 m. 1. on high ground, at the 
 verge of the picturesque Bere Wood, 
 is Bloxioorth, of which Abp. Morton 
 was once rector, being attainted for 
 high treason in 1461 as one of the 
 adherents of Queen Margaret as 
 *' John Morton, late person of Blokes- 
 worth." The small Ch., chiefly re- 
 built in the 16th cent., incorporates 
 relics of earlier work. In the S. 
 wall are some E.E. windows and a 
 round-headed doorway of the same 
 style ;5an hour-glass stand is attached 
 to the pulpit. The chancel has been 
 rebuilt and richly decorated as a 
 memorial to the late Rev. G. Pickard- 
 Cambridge of Bloxworth House, a fine 
 gabled house of the Savages, now of 
 the Pickard-Cambridges, built 1608. 
 The Rev. O. P.- Cambridge, the 
 rector, is a celebrated entomologist, 
 possessing one of the finest collec- 
 tions of Arachnidse extant. 
 
 S 2 
 
260 
 
 Boute 19. — Woodbury HilL 
 
 Somersetshire. 
 
 At 11 m. the road traverses the 
 large village (once a royal residence 
 and market-town) of Bere Regis, on 
 a hill-side above an affluent of 
 the Puddle. To the N. the eye 
 ranges over a wide expanse of bare 
 chalk downs, studded with earth- 
 works and barrows. To the S. is a 
 wide tract of barren heath command- 
 ing very extensive and attractive 
 views towards Poole, Corfe, the Isle 
 of Purbeck and Lulworth Cove. 
 From Blackhill, crowned with a clump 
 of firs surrounding a trenched barrow, 
 there is a really beautiful prospect. 
 A " menhir " or standing-stone may 
 be seen to the 1. of trackway leading 
 to Turner's Puddle. Bere Eegis is 
 a place of great antiquity. Bere is 
 a corruption o£ Byrig, A.-S. a*' build- 
 ing;" Begis being subsequently added 
 to mark it as a royal demesne. 
 Queen Elfrida had a mansion here, 
 to which she retired after the murder 
 of her step-son at Corfe Castle. In 
 later times the royal dwelling was 
 occupied by the ubiquitous John. 
 In a field to the E. of the church 
 are the small remains of the Manor 
 House, on the site of the royal resi- 
 dence. By Henry VIII. the lord- 
 ship of Bere was granted to the Tur- 
 bervilles, who had possessed a moiety 
 of it from the time of the Conquest. 
 In common with many of the thatched 
 Dorsetshire villages, Bere has been 
 repeatedly ravaged by fire, especially 
 in 1788, when the Vicarage and more 
 than 40 houses were consumed. The 
 philanthropist may be interested to 
 learn that near Bere is the Dorset 
 Keformatory for boys ; while the 
 lover of field sports may care to be 
 informed that at Bydef 2 m. S.E., are 
 Mr. Radclyfie's kennels for the S. 
 Dorset Hunt. 
 
 Bere Ch. is a fine architectural 
 study, from the variety of styles. It 
 has been admirably restored by Street, 
 all the windows being filled with ex- 
 cellently-designed stained glass, form- 
 ing a "Biblia Pauperum," by Hard- 
 
 man, well-deserving examination. 
 It is wholly Perp. externally, built 
 of flint and stone, with a stately pin- 
 nacled tower (temp. Henry VII.) 
 with canopied niches. Within we 
 find earlier styles. The S. arcade is 
 early Trans.-Norm. The capitals 
 deserve notice. That to the north 
 somewhat later in the style. The 
 timber roof is traditionally said to 
 have been the gift of Cardinal Mor- 
 ton, who was born at Milborne 
 Stileman in this parish, and whose 
 family had a chantry- chapel at the 
 E. end of the N. aisle. It is a gor- 
 geous but hardly beautiful design; 
 rich but clumsy. The chancel has 
 an E.E. piscina. The font is Norm., 
 with intersecting arcades on the bowl. 
 There are several late examples of 
 canopied tombs. Among the vicars 
 were Thomas Bastard, the satirist 
 and epigrammatist, d. 1618, and the 
 Rev. H. Fisher, commemorated on 
 a tiny brass plate, as on the build- 
 ings erected from his benefaction at 
 Balliol College, Oxford, by the brief 
 motto, '* Verbum non amplius. 
 Fisher." 
 
 i m. N.E. on the extreme point 
 of a high ridge rises Woodbury Hill, 
 a circular entrenchment, containing 
 1 0 acres, formed by 3 ramparts and 
 ditches. On the W. side are the 
 foundations of a chapel and a spring 
 called the " Anchorite Well.*' It is 
 annually the scene of Woodbury Fair, 
 formerly one of the most famous of 
 the south country fairs, rivalling 
 that of Weyhill (Kte. 3), where the 
 tolls alone brought in 100/. a day to 
 the lord of the manor, but now of 
 no great importance. It begins Sep- 
 tember 18th, the Nativity of the 
 Blessed Virgin Mary, and formerly 
 lasted a whole week. To the E. 
 of this hill is the pretty woodland 
 tract of low oaks, known as Bere 
 Wood, through which are charming 
 walks to Bloxworth. 
 
 m. S.W. a pleasant walk over 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 Boute 19. — Paddleton, 
 
 261 
 
 Black H ill and by deep lanes is r<irw^r's 
 (properly, from its ancient owners, 
 Toner's) Fuddle ^ a tiny hamlet, with 
 an old grey farmhouse and little Ch. 
 (partly rebuilt 1759) embowered in 
 trees, on the N. bank of the most 
 uneuphoniously - named Puddle or 
 Fiddle, from which unhappily the 
 string of villages along its banks take 
 their names. There is a fine Norm, 
 font with interlacing work, and some 
 good panelled bench ends. 
 
 12 m., a little off the highroad to 
 the 1. (reached by a pleasant walk 
 up the stream from Turner's Puddle) 
 is Affpuddle, a ch. and manor once 
 belonging to Cerne Abbey. The Ch., 
 grouping picturesquely with the old 
 mill, among the trees on the S. bank 
 of the little river, is an interesting 
 small structure, with an E. E. chan- 
 cel, almost wholly remodelled in the 
 Perp. period, to which the very fine 
 tower belongs. Remark the beautiful 
 E.E. S. door with curious trefoil head 
 and the curious carved pulpit, bear- 
 ing the Evangelistic symbols and the 
 pelican, and figures in mediaeval cos- 
 tumes (which may represent the 
 Evangelists strangely travestied, and 
 B. John the Baptist), "mayd" in 
 1547 by Thos. Lylynton, a monk of 
 Cerne. who being honest and con- 
 formable," became vicar at the Dis- 
 solution. The beautifully-carved 
 benches are also his work, and one in 
 the N. aisle bears the inscription, 
 " Thes seatys were mayd in the yere 
 ofoure Lord God McccccxLv III. The 
 tyme of Thomas Lyllyngton, Vicar 
 of thys cherch." The whole partake 
 of the Kenaissance character. The 
 font is Norman on a modern base. 
 The views from the hills are de- 
 lightful. Affpuddle Heath, S., is 
 covered with multitudes of conical 
 hollows. They were supposed by 
 Mr. Prestwich to be formed natu- 
 rally, by the loose superincumbent 
 stratum beingwashed by the rains into 
 the sand-pipes in the chalk below. 
 Others are of opinion that, like the 
 
 similar hollows at Pen Pits, they are 
 the sites of the huts of a British 
 village. But the great size of some 
 of these pits contradicts this hypo- 
 thesis. One known as Culpepper s 
 Dish, by the side of the Dorchester 
 road, on the heath between Bryan's 
 Puddle and Moreton is 290 yards in 
 circumference and 47 yards deep, 
 and a second on the other side of the 
 wood called his Spoon is nearly as 
 large. 
 
 14 m. Tolpuddle, takes its distinc- 
 tive appellation from Thola, wife of 
 Ore, one of Canute's " house-carls," 
 the CO- foundress of the monastery of 
 Abbotsbury, on which she bestowed 
 this manor (Rte. 13). The Ch., re- 
 stored 1855 by Wyatt, with a new 
 chancel, contains traces of all styles, 
 from Norm, downwards. It is well 
 fitted and cared for. 
 
 16 m. Burleston, united parochially 
 with Athelhamptoii (pronounced Ad- 
 miston) at which there is a new Ch, 
 Left, Athelhampton Ifall (Mrs. G. J. 
 AVood), one of the best examples of 
 Domestic architecture in the county, 
 probably built by tlie Martins in the 
 reign of Henry VII. The chief 
 feature is the noble hall, with a 
 grand trefoil ed wooden roof and 
 beautiful oriel. The domestic apart- 
 ments are in a later building set at 
 right angles to the hall, with a 
 beautiful corbelled shaft projecting at 
 the angle. The very picturesque 
 gatehouse has been pulled down, but 
 it has been partially reconstructed. 
 
 18 m. Puddleton, a large well-built 
 and well-kept village, w^here the road 
 falls into that from Blandford to 
 Dorchester (Rte. 13), on the river 
 Puddle. The Ch. deserves a visit: 
 it consists of a very broad nave with 
 N. aisle, and a S. transeptal chapel 
 opening by a panelled arch, contain- 
 ing a series of fine recumbent cross- 
 legged effigies, unfortunately much 
 mutilated, and other monuments of 
 
262 
 
 Houte 20. — Wimhorne to Sighhridge. Dorsetshire. 
 
 the Martin family of Athelhampton, 
 to whom also there are some brasses. 
 The nave has a very fine panelled 
 ceiling of the 15th centy. The tower 
 is Tr.-Norm. patched in Perp. The 
 font, probably Norm., is of a very 
 unusual shape, like a drinking 
 tumbler, covered with trellis-work 
 enclosing vine-leaves. There is a 
 17th. -century gallery across the W. 
 end. Among the vicars are Dr. 
 Woodroffe, 1673, the second founder 
 of Worcester College, Oxford, and 
 the once notorious Theophilus 
 Lindsay, afterwards minister of the 
 Unitarian Chapel in Essex Street, 
 Strand. 
 
 1^ m. W. of the ch. is the very 
 interesting Manor House of Walterston 
 carefully restored by the Earl of II- 
 chester, after a fire in 1863. The date 
 1586 is on the garden front, a beau- 
 tiful piece of Eenaissance work 
 added to an earlier building. 
 
 18 J m. Troy Town, a hamlet called 
 from a maze or labyrinth, correspond- 
 ing to that already described at 
 Pimperne. 
 
 19^ m. the road crosses Yellowham 
 Hill, a picturesque eminence covered 
 with firs and other trees, with deep 
 ferny glades, and, passing the beau- 
 tiful sloping lawns and fine trees of 
 Kingston Park, we reach Stinsford, 
 where are some remsins of the 
 ancient residence of the Staffords, 
 and by fine avenues of elm and 
 sycamore we enter 
 
 . 22 m. Dorchester (Rte. 14). 
 
 EOUTE 20. 
 
 WIMBORNE TO HIGHBRIDGE, BY 
 BLANDFORD, STURMINSTER NEW- 
 TON, STALBRIDGE, TEMPLE COMBE, 
 WINCANTON, AND GLASTONBURY. 
 [WELLS]. 
 
 {Somerset and Dorset JRailway.) 
 
 This very pretty and attractive 
 route ascends the valley of the 
 Stour and its tributary, the Cale, to 
 the watershed near Wincanton, then 
 passing Glastonbury, enters the 
 valley of the Brue, and traversing 
 the wide expanse of peat bogs which 
 stretch between that place and the 
 British Channel, joins the Great 
 Western at Highbridge, and runs 
 on in a branch line to the coast at 
 the little watering-place of BurnJiam 
 (Rte. 21). 
 
 Leaving Wimborne, the rly. runs 
 across the green meadows watered 
 by the Stour, passing 1. Merly 
 House, and at 2J m. Corfe-Mullen 
 (The Knowle, J. St. John Coventry, 
 Esq.), strikes N.W. to 
 
 5 m. Bailey Gate, the station for 
 Sturminster Marsliall, so called from 
 its former possessors, the Pembrokes, 
 Earls Marshal of England. The CIk , 
 restored by Woodyer, has a good 
 low square tower (rebuilt), pinnacles 
 at angles. The square-headed win- 
 dows in the S. wall, with complex 
 Dec. tracery, and the beautifully- 
 designed E. window deserve notice. 
 The interior has a lofty open screen, 
 and stalled chancel. It contains a 
 brass to Henry Helme, a former vicar 
 (d. 1581). There is a tradition that 
 one of the bells came from the 
 chapel at Knolton, and that the 
 shoes of the horses that brought it 
 to Sturminster were reversed that 
 the track might not be followed in 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Boute 20. — Blandford, 
 
 263 
 
 the snow. The following doggerel 
 is current : 
 
 " Knolton bell is stole 
 And thrown into White Mill hole." 
 
 In the churchyard is the base and 
 much of the shaft of a Perp. cross, 
 and two coffin -lids with incised 
 crosses, one of a former vicar, 
 * ' Tumba Johannis." Near the cen- 
 tre of the village are the remains 
 of a 15th-cent. house called the 
 Minster buildings." E. on the 
 hills beyond Sturminster Marshall 
 are the woods of Kingston Lacy, 
 seat of the Bankes family, and the 
 camp of Badbury Rings. IJ m. W. 
 is Charhorough Parle (Miss Erie 
 Drax), with its lofty arched gate- 
 ways, crowned with stags, lions, &c., 
 its tower on the Mount (Roman) 
 and its paddock of Emus. 
 
 To the W. opens the valley of the 
 Winterbourne, with its series of 
 pretty villages and ancient churches 
 (Rte. 19). 
 
 6 m. Shapwich, to the rt. of the 
 line, has a small but interesting Ch.y 
 containing examples of all styles, 
 from Norman onwards. It has re- 
 cently been admirably restored with- 
 out injury to its historical character. 
 It has a coved ceiling and very 
 elaborate chancel screen. 
 
 Passing close to the small en- 
 trenchment of Craicford Castle, or 
 Spetishury Rings, an oval British 
 earthwork with a single bank half 
 cut away by the rly. 1., we reach 
 
 8 m. Spetishury Stat. Here the 
 little stream of the Tarant comes 
 down its pretty valley to join the 
 Stour. The Ch, has been rebuilt, 
 all but the low square tow^er. It 
 contains an altar-tomb with Ionic 
 pillars to John Bowyer, 1599. Craic- 
 ford Bridge, at the S. end of the 
 village, is a very ancient bridge of 
 nine arches, mentioned in a charter 
 of Tarent Abbey, 19 Hen. III. In 
 1506, it being ruinous, forty days' 
 indulgence were granted for its re- 
 pair. In 1800 Spetishury House be- 
 came the residence of a society of 
 
 English, Augustinian nuns, driven 
 from Louvain by the Revolution, of 
 which Mrs. Stonor of Oxfordshire 
 was the superior. In 1801 these 
 ladies removed to Newton Abbot, 
 and were succeeded by Bridgetines 
 from Lisbon. The villages of this 
 stream will afibrd material for a very 
 pleasant walk, returning over the 
 down^ihy Pimperne to Blandford Stat. 
 (Route 14, p. 219.) The line reaches 
 Blandford St. Mary, rt., the birth- 
 place of Browne Willis, the anti- 
 quary (1682), v.liosfi industry may 
 be gathered from the fact that no 
 less than 150 volumes of his MS. 
 topographical collections are now pre- 
 served in the Bodleian Library. It is 
 also the burial-place of Governor Pitt 
 (of Pitt-Diamond notoriety) grand- 
 father of the Earl of Chatham, whose 
 father was rector of the parish. His 
 body lies in an aisle, added by him 
 to the parish church. The chan- 
 cel and tower belong to the original 
 building. The Pitt family resided 
 at the JDoic7i House, erected by them 
 in a sheltered vale 2 m. from Bland- 
 ford. It then crosses the Stour, and 
 arrives at 
 
 11 i m. Blandford Stat. (Inn: 
 Crown ; Pop. of municipal borough, 
 1373). Blandford ForuDi, taking its 
 name from being a market situated 
 at one of the chief fords of the 
 Stour, is one of the most cheerful 
 and prosperous-looking towns in the 
 county. It owes its handsome ap- 
 pearance to a disastrous conflagra- 
 tion in 1731, which destroyed nearly 
 the whole town, leaving only 4o 
 houses standing. Not fewer than 
 14 persons perished in this fire, and 
 several died afterwards from alarm, 
 fatigue, and grief at the destruction 
 of their property. The houses have 
 a certain air of stateliness from their 
 high roofs and ornamented fronts. It 
 is built entirely of red brick, in two 
 main thoroughfares. East-street and 
 Salisbury -street. These meet in a 
 spacious market-place, terminated at 
 
9M 
 
 Route 20. — Blandford, 
 
 DorgetsMre. 
 
 one end by the church, and at the 
 other by the park of Bryanston, 
 which is separated from the street 
 by a light iron fence. The chief 
 manufacture was that of buttons, 
 now discontinued ; before the great 
 fire the town was the most celebrated 
 in England for pillow-lace. The 
 manor belongs to the duchy of Lan- 
 caster. It was visited by James I. in 
 1615; and suffered much from its 
 loyalty in the Civil Wars, and was 
 plundered by Major Sydenham in 
 1644. 
 
 Old Aubrey, the gossiping topo- 
 grapher, went to school at Blandford, 
 where, upon play days, he used to 
 visit the shop and furnaces of *^01d 
 Harding, the only countrey glasse 
 painter that ever I knew, though 
 before the Reformation there was no 
 county or great town but had glass 
 painters." Harding d. c. 1643, aged 
 83 or more. 
 
 Blandford has produced its full 
 share of eminent men, including 
 various members of the family of 
 Myves : George Ryves, warden of New 
 College (d. 1613) ; Sir Thomas Ryves, 
 a famous civilian, who attended 
 Charles I. at the Newport Treaty 
 (d. 1651); ?[nd Bruno i??/ yes, chaplain 
 to Charles I., and Dean of Windsor, 
 who assisted Walton in publishing 
 his " Polyglott," and the erroneously 
 reputed author of the ' Querela Can- 
 tabrigiensis, d. 1677 ;' Thomas Bas- 
 tard, the epigrammatist, d. 1618 ; 
 Christopher Pitt, the translator of 
 the '^neid' (d. 1748) ; and Thomas 
 Creech, the translator of Lucretius, 
 Theocritus, &c. Natives of Bland - 
 ford were at the same time primates 
 of England and Ireland — Wm. Wahe, 
 Abp. of Canterbury (b. 1657) ; and 
 Thos. Lindesay, Abp. of Armagh 
 (b. 1654). It was the birthplace 
 (1785) of one of the ablest and best 
 of modern Dissenters, J. Angell 
 James. It gave the title of Marquis 
 to John Churchill, afterwards Duke 
 of Marlborough. 
 
 The Church is in the semi-classical 
 
 style of the last century, with Ionic 
 pillars supporting the ceiling, pro- 
 nounced by Madame D'Arblay, in 
 1791, to be a very pretty edifice 
 of late date where the service was 
 very well performed." The tower 
 is 80 ft. high. Adjoining it, under 
 a portico, is a pump, erected by 
 Mr. John Bastard, 1760, in remem- 
 brance of the great fire, and to 
 provide against the recurrence of a 
 similar disaster. It bears an in- 
 scription to that effect. An old 
 mansion of red brick, about a gun- 
 shot N.E. of the church, was one of 
 the few houses which escaped this 
 conflagration. It is an ancient build- 
 ing, with a high roof and hexagonal 
 chimneys, and a quaint un-English 
 air, which it probably owes to the 
 taste of the high German doctor, 
 Sagittary, who lived here. Ryves* 
 Almshouse, a handsome brick build- 
 ing, also escaped the fire. 
 
 The Corn Exchange, behind the 
 Town Hall, is a fine spacious room. 
 
 Mr. Durdan's private museum of 
 local antiquities (near the Crown 
 Inn), including bronze and flint 
 weapons, pottery, and personal orna- 
 ments from the barrows of the 
 vicinity, especially Hod Hill, is well 
 worth inspection. 
 
 Blandford was visited twice by 
 Gibbon, the historian, when Captain 
 of the Hants Militia, in 1760 and 
 1762. In his autobiography he re- 
 calls the attractions of ^'pleasant, 
 hospitable Blandford" — ''our be- 
 loved Blandford,'* though he records 
 with regret that its dissipations in- 
 terfered with his studies. 
 
 On the skirt of the town, beyond 
 East-street, are some remains of 
 Damory Court ; in the reign of 
 Edward 11. the residence of Roger 
 d'Amorie, constable of Corfe Castle, 
 but now a farmhouse. A barn to the 
 E. of it was St. Leonard's Chapel, 
 with Perp. windows and doorway, 
 now partly walled up. On this estate 
 stood Damory's Oah, a celebrated 
 tree 68 ft. in circumf. at the ground. 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 20. — Bryamton — Sod Hill. 
 
 265 
 
 During the Rebellion its hollow 
 trunk was inhabited by an old man, 
 who vended beer in it, and after the 
 great fire it afforded a home for a 
 considerable period to a houseless fa- 
 mily. In 1703 it was greatly injured 
 by a storm,. and in 1755 it was taken 
 down and sold as firewood for 14Z. 
 
 Bryanston, or Brian's Town," 
 takes its name from Brian de 
 Insula, or Lisle, its lord in the time 
 of King John. The estate belonged 
 to the family of Rogers for many 
 generations, and was purchased from 
 them by Sir William Port man, of 
 Orchard-Portman, near Taunton, who 
 took an active part in the suppression 
 of Monmouth's rebellion, and cap- 
 tured the Duke himself, July 8, 1685. 
 He was one of the earliest of the 
 western landowners to join William 
 of Orange at Exeter, and his adhesion 
 secured the Prince's interest in Dor- 
 setshire. 
 
 The Ch. is nearly entirely modern, 
 and contains memorials of the fami- 
 lies of Rogers and Portman. There 
 is an epitaph worth deciphering to the 
 wife of Rich. Rogers (d. 156G), and on 
 the pedestal of an ancient font a 
 mutilated inscription marks the 
 resting-place of the heart of Ralph de 
 Stopham, one of the early lords of 
 the manor. 
 
 Bryanston House, Lord Portman, is 
 not accessible to strangers. It is a 
 large mansion erected in 1780 from 
 a design by James Wyatt, the chief 
 feature of the interior being an octa- 
 gonal staircase, in the centre of 
 the mansion, 30 ft. in diameter. 
 In the dining-room is a fine Gains- 
 borough. The park is more than 1 m. 
 in length, and watered by the Stour, 
 which sweeps through it below a 
 beautiful crescent of wood. This is 
 well seen from the bridge, a little 
 distance from the Crown Inn. 
 
 [Several fine earthworks are within 
 a ride of Blandford, viz. : rt. of the 
 Sturminster road, Hod Hill, 3 m.; 
 and Hamhledon Hill, 4 m. N". W. ; on 
 the old road to Wimborne, Buzhury, 
 
 2^ m. E., and Badhury Rings, 6J m. 
 S.E. ; and on the lower road to 
 Wimborne, Spetishury Ring or Craw- 
 ford Castle, 3^ m. 
 
 The most interesting place near 
 Blandford is Milton Abbey, the seat 
 of Baron Hambro. It is 8 posting 
 miles distant, but a horseman may 
 reach it in 6 (Rte. 14). 
 
 Numerous seats are scattered 
 among the chalk hills and valleys 
 of this neighbourhood. Among them 
 may be enumerated Stepleton House 
 (just E. of Hod Hill), the property of 
 Lord Rivers ; Ranston House (ad- 
 joining Stepleton), Rev. Sir Talbot 
 H. B. Baker, Bart. ; Hanford House, 
 E. Seymer, Esq. ; Turnworth House 
 (5 m. N.W., Mrs. Parry Okeden) ; 
 Whatcomb House (by Milton Abbey), 
 J. C. Mansell Pleydell, Esq. ; and 
 Charborough Park (6 m. on Ware- 
 ham road), Miss Drax.] 
 
 Proceeding on our route up the 
 pretty valley bounded by a bare 
 chalk down E., and the woods of 
 Bryanston W., at 14 m. we pass 
 between Durweston 1. and Stower- 
 payne rt. 
 
 The Ch. of Durweston has been 
 rebuilt, with the exception of the 
 very handsome Perp. W. tower, or- 
 namented with niches. Over the 
 door is a very curious sculpture, 
 representing the interior of a smithy, 
 where a horse is being shod, sup- 
 posed to refer to St. Eligius or Eloi, 
 the patron saint of blacksmiths. A 
 former rector was Lord Sydney 
 Godolphin Osborne, the well-known 
 S. G. 0. of the 'Times.' 
 
 Stoicer Payne (so called from the 
 Paynes, its ancient lords) has a Dec, 
 Ch., rebuilt 1858, with an ancient 
 Perp. tower, and contains a kneeling 
 efiigy of Vicar Straight ^ (1670). 
 Above the village, N., towering over 
 the rly., is 
 
 Hod Hill, crested with an en- 
 trenchment which is separated from 
 that on Hambledon Hill by a deep 
 valley. It contains 50 acres, and 
 is constructed in the shape of the 
 
266 
 
 Boute 20. — Hambledon Hill, Dorsetsliire. 
 
 letter D with 2 ramparts, and is 
 remarkable for containing within its 
 area at the N.W. corner a small but 
 very perfect Roman camp, and a 
 number of hut-circles, marking the 
 site of a British settlement. It was 
 a large walled ^^oppidum," rather 
 than a camp, and is considered by 
 Mr. Warne one of the latest Celtic 
 or British earthworks in Dorset. 
 Still further N. is the rival entrench- 
 ment of 
 
 Hambledon Hill, crowning a bold 
 outline of the chalk downs, 480 ft. 
 above the valley below. It is about 
 f of a mile in length from E. to W. 
 It is protected by 2 ramparts and 
 ditches, strengthened by advanced 
 works at different points. It was 
 probably a British camp, but was 
 occupied by the Romans. It played 
 a part in the Civil Wars, when its 
 entrenched camp was occupied by 
 near 2000 of the west country Club- 
 men," commanded by Mr. Bravel, 
 Rector of Compton, whence they were 
 ejected Aug. 4th, 1645, by Cromwell 
 and Desborough. ^' We have taken 
 about 300 ; many of which are poor 
 silly creatures, whom you will please 
 to let me send home ; they promise 
 to be very dutiful for the time to 
 come, ' and will be hanged before 
 they come out again.' " — Cromwell's 
 Letters. Many escaped by sliding 
 down the smooth turf slopes. The 
 prisoners were confined at Shrowton 
 or Iwerne-Courtnay Ch., with four 
 vicars and curates, who were taken 
 with them on the hill. *' The colours 
 taken had sentences of Scripture 
 profanely applied by their malig- 
 nant priests, who were the principal 
 stirrers-up of the people to these 
 tumultuous assemblies." — Sprigge. 
 The motto on one of the colours 
 was: 
 
 If you offer to plunder our cattle, 
 
 Be assured that we will give you battle." 
 
 [At Stower Payne the little river 
 Iwerne joins the Stour, running 
 down a pleasant valley, and watering 
 
 a chain of villages with churches, 
 which will well reward the tourist 
 for turning out of his way to visit 
 them. 
 
 In the valley between Hod Hill 
 and Hambledon Hill is Stepleton 
 House (the Hon. Misses Pitt), the 
 property of the late Lord Rivers. 
 Stepleton Ch, will interest the 
 antiquary from the singularity of its 
 construction, the chancel being the 
 base of a Norman tower adapted to 
 its present purpose in the 16th cent. 
 Norman windows may be traced in 
 the walls of the nave. 
 
 IJ m. further Banston House (i.e. 
 Randolph's Town) (Rev. Sir Talbot 
 H. B. Baker), a Palladian mansion at 
 the foot of a prettily wooded hill, 
 the stream flowing below. 
 
 2 J m. is Iwerne-Courtnay, other- 
 wise known as Shrowton, i.e. 
 "Sheriffston,'' from having belonged 
 to Baldwin, the sheriff at the time 
 of the Domesday Survey, on the 
 little river Iwern, or Ewerne, on 
 which it stands. The Ch. was re- 
 built, 1641, by Sir Thomas Freke, 
 whose monument with those of 
 others of the family adorn a mortu- 
 ary chapel, separated from the 
 chancel by curious Jacobean screen- 
 work ; and 3 J m. Jwerne-Minster 
 (Iwerne House, Lord Wolverton), 
 where the fine Ch. is remarkable 
 for possessing almost the only an- 
 cient stone spire in the county. 
 The spire and belfry story are 
 Perp. ; the lower part of the tower 
 and great part of the ch. is E. E. ; 
 one arcade of the nave is Norman. 
 The chancel has lancet windows on 
 the N. Iwerne-Minster belonged to 
 the abbey of Shaftesbury, and was 
 appropriated to one of the abbess's 
 confessors. It was one of the many 
 preferments held by William of 
 Wykeham. On the S. side of the 
 church is an old mansion known as 
 Bay House. 1 m. further, at Sutton- 
 Waldron, a pretty little Ch. deco- 
 rated by Owen Jones was built on 
 I a knoll to the S.W. of the village, 
 
Dorsetshire. 
 
 Boute 20. — Sturminsier. 
 
 267 
 
 at the expense of Archdeacon An- 
 thony Huxtable. 
 
 1 m. further, at the foot of Font- 
 mell Down, 'Humid with barrows/' 
 is Fontmell Magna, 4 m. S. of 
 Shaftesbury, with a very good C/i., 
 rebuilt, except the tower, at the cost 
 of the late Sir R. T. Glyn, 1862. 
 All the old portions of interest have 
 been preserved and re-erected. The 
 tower is fine, and the S. aisle and 
 porch much enriched, with bands of 
 panelling, coats of arms, figures, 
 and inscriptions: '' 0 mankynd, have 
 thou yn mynd," *' Yer of our Lord 
 God Mvcxxx" (1530). Much of the 
 inscription remains yet to be de- 
 ciphered. The nave is wide, and the 
 arcade remarkably elegant. The 
 capitals of the pillars bear angels 
 with inscribed scrolls. The font is 
 Norman, with a scroll issuing from 
 birds' beaks round the bowl : there 
 is a little old coloured glass. There 
 is a curious screen in the S. aisle 
 with the heads of ' ' Walter King and 
 Esbell his wife." In the churchyard 
 is a memorial cross erected by public 
 subscription to Lieut. Philip Salkeld. 
 who was mortally wounded in blow- 
 ing up the gate of Delhi, Oct. 11, 
 1857. At the foot of the conical hill 
 of Melbury is Compton Abbas, 7 m. 
 N.E. of Blandford, taking its dis- 
 tinctive name from having belonged 
 to Shaftesbury Abbej^ It has a beau- 
 tiful small church rebuilt, 1808, with 
 broach spire and vaulted chancel.] 
 
 From Stourpayne the rly. pursues 
 the valley of the Stour under the 
 lofty heights of Okeford Hill. 
 
 16f m. ShilUngstone Stat., called 
 also Shilling Oheford, taking its name 
 from its ancient lords, the Eschellings. 
 The Ch., which is a conspicuous 
 object from the rly., has a Norm, 
 chancel arch, E. E. chancel, and 
 font and Perp. tower. There is 
 a monument by Chantrey to Mrs. 
 Acton, 1817. The pulpit was the 
 gift of one Wm. Keen, a mer- 
 chant of London (1666), who retired 
 
 hither to avoid the plague. In the 
 churchyard is the base of a cross. 
 The long village straggles up the 
 hill ; in the centre of it are the steps 
 and basement of a cross, and a may- 
 pole some 50 ft. high, which is an- 
 nually dressed on June 9. The base 
 of a third cross stands lower down 
 on the Blandford Road. At Hay ward 
 Bridge, a very ancient passage over 
 the Stour, is a small camp, probably 
 formed to defend the ford from 
 which the three villages, Shilling 
 and Child Okeford, and OTce-ford Fitz- 
 paine derive their names. The Ch. 
 of Okeford Fitzpaine was rebuilt 
 1866, retaining, as far as possible, 
 the ancient features. The tower 
 arch and AY. windows are curious 
 and deserve attention. The base of 
 a cross of Dec. date is to be seen in 
 a cottage garden in the centre of 
 the village. 2 m. S.E. Hanford House 
 (E. Clay Kerr-Seymer, Esq.) is a very 
 stately gabled mansion, beautifully 
 placed near the banks of the Stour, 
 erected in 1623 by Sir Robert Sey- 
 mer, surrounded by magnificent 
 timber and approached by an avenue 
 of horse- chesnuts. Close to the 
 house stands the little Ch., erected 
 in 1650, containing memorial win- 
 dows to the late Henry Ker-Sey- 
 mer, M.P. for Dorset (d. 1864), and 
 members of his family. 
 
 19 J m. Sturminster Stat. Stur- 
 minster-Newton {Inns: White Hart, 
 SwanJ is another market-town in- 
 significant in size, but exceedingly 
 ancient. It was bequeathed by Alfred 
 to his son Ethelwold, and afterwards 
 belonged to Glastonbury Abbey. 
 At the Dissolution it was granted 
 by Henry YIII. to Katharine Parr, 
 and on her death, by Edward YI. 
 to his sister Elizabeth, who demised 
 it to Sir Christopher Hatton. Leland 
 says of it, '^The townelette is no 
 greate thing and the building of it 
 is mene." In the Civil Wars the 
 Parliamentary forces had a garrison 
 I here, which was forced by the Club- 
 I men, July 3, 1645, when 16 dragoons 
 
268 
 
 Boute 20. — Hinton St. Mary, Dorsetshire* 
 
 were taken prisoners, and many 
 killed and wounded. The Ch. (1827) 
 is a modern cruciform building. 
 The tower is old. There are re- 
 mains of a cross in the village. It 
 is built on a declivity descending 
 to the sluggish Stour, which is here 
 crossed by a bridge of 6 arches. 
 Beyond the bridge rises a beauti- 
 fully wooded hill called Fiddles- 
 wood, a cover belonging to Lord 
 Rivers, the lord of the manor ; and 
 immediately opposite the end of the 
 bridge a moated mound (now an 
 orchard), on which the castle stood 
 formerly, A fragment of this build- 
 ing with some E. E. arches still re- 
 mains — worth a visit. Those in 
 search of the picturesque should 
 ascend the steep road above Stur- 
 minster, which commands a charming 
 landscape. 
 
 1 m. N.E. is Hinton St. Mary, 
 once belonging to Shaftesbury Ab- 
 bey. Near the Gh, recently rebuilt 
 except the tower, is an old mansion 
 of the Frekes. 
 
 3 nic N. of Sturminster is Mam- 
 hull. The Ch. is a good building, 
 with a fine lofty Perp. tower, rebuilt 
 1718, on the fall of its predecessor. 
 The mam features are Perp., with 
 some E. E. features in the nave 
 arcade. The arches opening into 
 the chancel and N. and S. transeptal 
 chapels have excellent mouldings 
 and well-carved capitals. In the N. 
 aisle are 3 well-preserved sepulchral 
 effigies, attributed, but the costume 
 shows erroneously, to Thomas 
 Howard, Lord Bindon, d. 1582, and 
 his two wives. Nash Court (J. 
 Hussey, Esq.), 1 m. N"., is a fine 
 mansion, containing some good paint- 
 ings by Vandyck, &c. It was the 
 birthplace of Giles Hussey, 1710, an 
 artist of much originality, who, how- 
 ever, led away by fanciful analogies 
 between painting and music, wasted 
 his talents in vainly reducing the 
 proportions of the human face and 
 body to a musical scale. A few of his 
 drawings are preserved at Lulworth 
 
 Castle. Marnhull became, 1795, 
 the place of refuge of a society of 
 English Benedictine nuns from Paris, 
 who afterwards removed to Can- 
 nington near Bridgwater. (Rte. 32.) 
 
 1 m. N. of Marnhull is Fi/ehead 
 Magdalen, very prettily situated on 
 the top of the hill which rises from 
 the Stour. The manor belonging to 
 Hugh de Avranches, Earl of Chester, 
 was given by his descendant, Ralph 
 Gernons, to St. Augustine's Priory, 
 Bristol, and was made by Henry 
 VIII. part of the endowment of that 
 see. The little Ch. has a N. chapel 
 built by Sir Richard Newman, lessee, 
 under the Bp. of Bristol in 1693, 
 containing some stately monuments 
 of the family. Under the yew-tree in 
 the churchyard is a curious tomb to 
 Thomas Newman, the burial-place 
 of whose family is recorded by a 
 Greek inscription in the C7i. In 
 several places the rebus of Abbot 
 Nailheart of Bristol may be seen. 
 
 2 m. S.E. is Todbere, the original 
 seat of the ancient family of the 
 Carents, with a little E. E. Ch. 
 
 I'm. S. is a small oblong Roman 
 camp of a single vallum and fosse 
 of no great strength, called Banbury, 
 and S.W., on the stream of the 
 Divelish, Plumber House, a seat of 
 the Prideaux-Brunes. 5 m. S., on a 
 spur of the chalk downs, below 
 Rawlsbury and Bulbarrow, is 
 
 Woolland, where a very handsome 
 Ch, was erected 1857, after the de- 
 signs of Sir G. Gilbert Scott, by 
 Montague Williams, Esq., of Wool- 
 land House. It is built of stone 
 from Hamhill and the neighbouring 
 quarries of Hazelbury Bryan, and 
 is richly decorated with marbles of 
 varied hues within. Hazelbury Bryan, 
 1| m. N.W. of Woolland was the 
 rectory of the Rev. H. Walter (d. 
 1859), first Professor of Nat. Philo- 
 sophy at the East India College of 
 Haileybury. The Ch. deserves notice. 
 On the W. side of the churchyard 
 is an ancient house (c. 1480). The 
 rly. now deserts the Stour, and cross- 
 
Dorsetshire. Boute 20. — Stourton Cauiidle. 
 
 269 
 
 ing the little tributary of the Lidden, 
 reaches 
 
 23f m. StaJbridge Stat. {Inns: 
 Swan, Red Lion ; Pop. 2096). Stal- 
 bridge, origmally St apleb ridge, is 
 a small market-town, once the pro- 
 perty of the abbey of Sherborne. The 
 view from the neighbouring hill and 
 the Cli. and the cross in the street 
 are the only things to remark in it. 
 In the view are seen Alfred's Tower 
 at Stourhead, and the out-lying 
 knolls of Duncliff lind Kingsettle near 
 Shaftesbury. 
 
 The Ch. chiefly Perp., which had 
 suffered much from ill-judged re- 
 pairs, was thoroughly restored and 
 the tower rebuilt by T. H. Wyatt in 
 1878, at the cost of the Rev. H. 
 Boucher. The capitals of the chancel 
 aisle are carved with angels bearing 
 scrolls, inscribed with texts. The 
 chapel contains two fine altar-tombs. 
 A gravestone bears the epitaph in 
 Lombardic letters of William of 
 Exeter, formerly rector. The Perp. 
 arcades of the nave are lofty and 
 well-proportioned. In a gravel -pit 
 at Stalbridge there was a find of 
 copper and bronze Roman coins, 
 mostly of Constantius, and Roman 
 pottery, in 1866. 
 
 The Market Cross is light and beau- 
 tiful, about 30 ft. high, but much 
 weather-worn and mutilated. The 
 steps are modern. The figure of the 
 Saviour is represented on the shaft ; 
 those of the Virgin and St. John on 
 the stone above it ; on the pediment 
 are 4 rude designs, probably repre- 
 senting the Resurrection, in bas- 
 relief. The whole is richly orna- 
 mented. 
 
 Stalbridge Park was purchased by 
 the late Marquis of Westminster of the 
 late Marquis of Anglesea, and is now 
 leased as a farm. The house, a fine 
 Elizabethan structure, stood N. of 
 Stalbridge, among a group of old 
 chesnut-trees, and commanded a de- 
 lightful view of the Vale of Black- 
 moor and of the downs beyond it. 
 It was pulled down, 1822, by the 
 
 steward of the Marquis of Anglesea ; 
 relics of its grandeur are to be found 
 all over the neighbourhood. The 
 present house was the laundry. The 
 manor belonged to Sherborne Abbey, 
 and at the Dissolution was granted 
 to Protector Somerset. It after- 
 wards belonged to the Touchets, 
 Lords Audley, and on the attainder 
 of the last baron it pjissed to Richard 
 Boyle, Earl of Cork, whose 14th 
 child, the celebrated Itohert Boi/le, 
 the natural philosopher, born in the 
 castle of Lismore, in Ireland, 162G-7, 
 resided in it until 1650, and here 
 made his first chemical experiments. 
 It was subsequently the residence 
 of Walters, infamous for his par- 
 simony, a member of Pope's trio, 
 Walters, Chartres, and the Devil." 
 Anthony Dalaber, one of the mem- 
 bers of the first Protestant Divinity 
 class at Oxford ^whose interesting 
 narrative has been reprinted by 
 Froude, ii. 47-61 ), was connected with 
 Stalbridge, where his brother was 
 parson of the parish, ''a rank papist 
 and the most mortal enemy that ever 
 I had for the Gospel's sake." The 
 living was bought by Abp. Tenison, 
 and given to Corpus College, Cam- 
 bridge. 
 
 [2 m. S.W. Stourton Caundle C/i., 
 E. E., contains a curious alabaster 
 female effigy in an elaborate costume 
 on an altar-tomb, with a crocketed 
 canopy, and also an altar-tomb to Sir 
 Simon Chidiock, and a Perp. carved 
 oak pulpit. The Castle or manor- 
 house, was formerly a jointure-house 
 of the Stourtons. Some few traces of 
 it remain, and the E. E. chapel be- 
 hind the farmhouse is nearly entire. 
 
 2 m. E. of Stourton Caundle is 
 Thomhilly the residence of the Rev. 
 H. Boucher, and formerly of Sir 
 James Thornhill (whose father had 
 sold it), the painter of the cupola of 
 St. Paul's, who was its architect as 
 well as owner. An obelisk, on an 
 eminence near the house, erected by 
 Sir James to the memory of his 
 
270 Bte, 20 — -Renstridge — Wincanton* Somersetshire. 
 
 patron, Geo. I.; bearing the date 
 1727, was blown down in 1836, and 
 rebuilt by the Eev, H. Boucher in 
 1874.] 
 
 The rly. now crosses the border, 
 and, leaving Dorset, enters Somerset, 
 and reaches 
 
 25J Henstridge Stat. The Ch. con- 
 tains the fine canopied altar-tomb 
 with effigies of William Carteret, d. 
 1476, high-sheriff of Somerset and 
 Dorset, and his wife Margaret, sister 
 of John, first Lord Stourton, the 
 one in armour, the other in a robe 
 decorated with rosettes. The shields 
 on the shoulders of the male effigy 
 bear the arms of his mother, Alice, 
 the heiress of the Toomers, and the 
 mantle of the female bears those of 
 Stourton. William Carteret's bro- 
 ther Nicholas was Dean of Wells, 
 and in 1463 Bishop Beckington pub- 
 lished an indulgence of forty clays to 
 all true penitents who should say a 
 paternoster and ave at this tomb, 
 for the souls of ^Hhat worthy man" 
 William Carteret, his brother the 
 Dean, and their relatives. 
 
 The Virginia Inn, at Henstridge 
 Ash, stands on 4 cross-roads. A 
 young ash-tree, the successor of one 
 of considerable age, surrounded by 
 a circular stone seat, grows by the 
 road-side, and is one of the many 
 traditional sites of the tale of Sir 
 Walter Kaleigh and his pipe. 
 
 27i m. Temple Comhe Junction Sta,t.y 
 where the Somerset and Dorset Rly. 
 crosses the main line of the S.-W. Rly. 
 to Yeovil and Exeter (Ete. 12j. 
 
 The district we have been travers- 
 ing is known as the Vale of Black- 
 moor, a wide fertile level, watered 
 by the Cale, which flows south- 
 wards from Wincanton to join the 
 Stour. It is celebrated among far- 
 mers as one of the richest of pasture 
 lands. Its marshy surface is speckled 
 by herds of lazy cattle, and by busier 
 droves of pigs, of which this vale 
 
 supplies to London a larger number 
 than either of the counties of Somer- 
 set or Devon. Blackmoor is also 
 known for the vigorous growth of 
 its oaks, which thrive on the strong 
 clay. It was originally called White 
 Hart Forest, from Henry III. having 
 here hunted a beautiful white hart 
 and spared its life; and Fuller gives 
 the sequel to the tale. He says that 
 Thomas de la Lynd, a gentleman of 
 fair estate, killed the white hart 
 which Henry by express will had 
 reserved for his own chase, and that 
 in consequence the county — as acces- 
 sory for not opposing him — was 
 mulcted for ever in a fine called 
 " White-hart Silver." Myself,'' con- 
 tinues Fuller, hath paid a share 
 for the sauce who never tasted the 
 meat." The memory of the White 
 Hart is preserved by the King's Stag- 
 Bridge " over the Lidden, at the vil- 
 lage of Pulham, 6 m. S. of Stalbridge, 
 and the inn of the same name. The 
 local tradition, which is still fresh, is 
 that the stag was killed here. Loudon 
 informs us that the vale contained 
 LoseVs Wood, in which stood the 
 Raven's Oak, mentioned by White in 
 his ^ Nat. Hist, of Selborne.' 
 
 The rly. ascends the valley of the 
 Cale, a tributary of the Stour, to 
 " * 30| m. Wincanton Stat. (Inns : 
 Greyhound, Bear ; Pop. 2397), a 
 thriving little town, situated on the 
 Cale. It stands on the western slope 
 of the hill at the head of the broad 
 Vale of Blackmoor, where the hills 
 form a natural terrace. 
 
 Wincanton, formerly called Win- 
 caleton, from the river Cale on which 
 it stands, is a town of great anti- 
 quity. The manor, granted by Wil- 
 liam the Conqueror to Walter of 
 Douais, belonged in succession to 
 the Lovells of Castle Cary, the 
 St. Maurs and Zouches, of which 
 the two latter families were seated 
 at Marsh Court, now a farmhouse, 3 
 m. S. It was probably built out of 
 the ruins of the old Manor House, 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 Boute 20. — Cadhury Castle, 
 
 271 
 
 after the Restoration. A chimney- 
 piece on the first floor bears the 
 initials G. T. K. (George Thomas 
 Knight), 1661, embossed in plaster. 
 Part of the moat still remains. In 
 1553 Wincanton was terribly ra- 
 vaged by the plague, to such an 
 extent that the roads to it were 
 closed, and travellers passed into 
 AViltshire by Alfred's Tower, along 
 the old British trackway from Old 
 Sarum to Ilchester. In 1654 an 
 active little Parliamentary garrison 
 was collected here to annoy Sherborne 
 Castle. Skirmishes were frequent, 
 and on April 1 Sir J. Digby with a 
 brigade of horse dragoons carried 
 off 200 prisoners, with two colours 
 and 300 horses. In 1688 it was 
 the scene of a skirmish between 
 a small party of troops on the side 
 of the Prince of Orange and some 
 Irish dragoons of James II. — in 
 which the first blood was shed in 
 the Revolution {Macaulay, ii. 514). 
 The Prince afterwards slept in a 
 house in South street, where the 
 Orange room is still pointed out. 
 Great part of the town was burnt in 
 1747. The Cli. has been grievously 
 modernised and has lost all appear- 
 ance of antiquity externally. In the 
 Town Hall was a portrait (burnt in a 
 recent fire) of Sir James Dyer, Lord 
 Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, 
 and Speaker of the House of Com- 
 mons in Edward VI.'s second Par- 
 liament 1553 (d. 1582), who lived at 
 Roundhill, in this parish. The in- 
 tegrity of his character and his pro- 
 found legal knowledge carried him 
 unscathed through the eventful 
 period in which he lived, and secured 
 him the confidence of three succes- 
 sive sovereigns. One of Queen Mary's 
 first formal acts was the appointment 
 of Dyer as Queen's Serjeant, though 
 he was known to be a favourer of 
 the reformed Faith, and on the day 
 following Elizabeth's accession his 
 commission as Puisne Justice of the 
 Common Pleas was renewed, and 
 the next year he became Chief 
 
 Justice. Wheatstone, a contem- 
 porary rhymster speaks of him as 
 
 Alive, refuge of those whom wrong did 
 payne ; 
 
 A Dyer such as dyde without a stayne." 
 
 The grandfather of the famous Dr. 
 Sacheverell held the incumbency of 
 Wincanton during the Common- 
 wealth, and being ejected by the 
 Bartholomew Act retired to his 
 wife's estate at Stalbridge. Being 
 apprehended under the Conventicle 
 Act at Shaftesbury, he was com- 
 mitted to Dorchester gaol, where he 
 suffered a 3 years' imprisonment, re- 
 sulting in his death. There is a 
 mineral spring and defunct spa at 
 Ilorwood, at the foot of Coneygore 
 Hill, 1 m. S.W. Roundhill, 2 m. N., 
 was the seat of the Diers and the 
 birthplace of the Lord Chief Justice; 
 having been previously a grange of 
 Stavordale Priory. The house was 
 rebuilt 1701. 
 
 4 m. S.W. of Wincanton is Hors- 
 ington, where there is a very remark- 
 able preaching cross of the 13th 
 cent, bearing the figure of a'preach- 
 iug friar under a canopy surmounted 
 by scrolls. Adjoining it are the Manor 
 House of the Gawens and the Church 
 House bearing the date 1611, and 
 some picturesque ancient cottages. 
 A Perp. window in the curious 
 rectory dovecot was brought from 
 the manor house of Stowell. 
 
 [The pretty road out of this town 
 towards Bruton, and the view from 
 that towards Castle Cary, should be 
 seen. At a distance of 7 m. S.W. 
 is Cadhurij Castle, the traditional 
 camp of King Arthur (Rte. 23) ; 3 m. 
 in the direction of Bruton Redlinch 
 Parl\ the property of the Earl of Il- 
 chester, the house (now uninhabited) 
 built in 1672 by Sir Stephen Fox; to 
 the N., Alfred's Toiver and Jack's 
 Castle (Rte. 12) ; below the heights 
 of Jack's Castle and Penridge, about 
 3 m. N.E. from Wincanton, some 
 I remains of the Augustinian priory of 
 
272 
 
 Eoute 20. — Fen Selwood. Somersetshire. 
 
 Stavordalc\ founded 1263 by Ri- 
 chard Lovel . The Church was rebuilt 
 by John Stourton c. 1443, when the 
 estate was held by William Lord 
 Zouche of Castle Gary, whose arms 
 are seen in the stonework. The 
 shell of the conventual ch. remains 
 entire, but desecrated to the pur- 
 poses of a farmhouse and offices. 
 The choir is the farmhouse, the nave 
 a barn, the N. chapel, with a groined 
 roof of exquisite beauty, the dairy. 
 Stavordale gives the title of Baron to 
 the Earl of Ilchester. 
 
 The road to Mere climbs Bayford 
 Hill, which on the rt. looks far into 
 Dorsetshire. 1. are Bayford House, 
 and Bayford Lodge, J. Bradney, Esq. 
 
 The road crosses Leigh Common, 
 the place of meeting of the witches 
 of Wincanton and the vicinity, where 
 the devil appeared to them in the 
 shape of a handsome man, and the 
 company had cake and wine and 
 good beer, while a man in black 
 played a pipe or cittern, and the 
 company danced, as is recorded in 
 the depositions taken at Castle Cary 
 in 1664 in Glanvil's '* Sadducismus 
 Triumphatus." It then enters a pro- 
 jecting tongue of Dorsetshire, and 
 ascends the steep southern escarp- 
 ment of the elevated plateau on 
 which stand the little village and 
 church of 
 
 3J m. Pen Selwood. The small 
 Ch, has a Norm. S. door, and a 
 Norm, font, and other ancient 
 features, preserved when it was 
 rebuilt in 1806. This is almost 
 certainly the site of Caer Pensauel- 
 coit, one of the British cities men- 
 tioned by Nennius, and is identified 
 by Dr. Guest with *'Peonne by 
 Gillingham," where, in 1658, Cen- 
 wealh of Wessex defeated the Welsh 
 and secured the annexation of 
 Somersetshire to his kingdom. It 
 was also, in 1016, the scene of the 
 great victory of Edmund Ironside 
 over Canute. The position is a very 
 remarkable one and of great natural 
 strength. The elevated ground 
 
 forming the heights of Stourhead 
 Park, marked by Jack's Castle, and 
 Alfred's Tower, sends out a kind of 
 bastion, known as Penridge, at the 
 line of junction of the three counties 
 of Wilts, Somerset and Dorset, 
 forming the centre and key of the 
 district. To the E. and S. is a steep 
 escarpment. To the S. the steep 
 slope has been cut into by the sources 
 and affluents of the Stour, forming 
 projecting tongues of land, which 
 have been strongly fortified. The 
 most northerly of these spurs has 
 its E. end cut off by a deep ditch, 
 and is occupied by an earthwork 
 known as the Castle, The outer 
 Bailey to the W. is again cut off- by 
 a rampart and fosse. The southern 
 spur is also fortified by strong earth- 
 works, a circular keep known as 
 Castle Orchard, overhanging the 
 Stour, commands the entrance of the 
 valley. Behind the keep is an oblong 
 outer bailey also strongly and sepa- 
 rately fortified. The S. and W. sides 
 of tlie position where the table -land 
 is less strongly defended by nature 
 is protected by a lofty artificial 
 earthen rampart, which appears on 
 both sides of the outlet of the Stour. 
 A very considerable extent of this 
 fortified area is honeycombed with 
 thousands of rudely conical pits of 
 various sizes scattered about, without 
 any attempt at arrangement. Those 
 to the S. of Rose Combe (the valley 
 dividing the two chief spurs) are 
 known as the Pen Pits; those to the 
 N. of the Combe as the Gasper Pits. 
 They are found also in large num- 
 bers on the E. side of the river. 
 Sir R. C. Hoare estimated the area 
 covered by these pits at 700 acres, 
 of which one half had at that time 
 been brought into cultivation. This 
 has been much increased since 
 Hoare's time, and every year sees 
 the obliteration of a very large num- 
 ber of these interesting memorials 
 of the past destroyed by filling up 
 and levelling. The object of these 
 excavations has been warmly con- 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 Route 20. — Bratton* 
 
 273 
 
 tested, affording, in Sir R. C Hoare's 
 words, ''food for conjecture, rather 
 than positive conviction." That 
 author, however, regarded them as 
 "the work of a rude nation and of 
 British origin," and considered them 
 to be the sites of the circular huts 
 or wigwams of the primaeval inhabi- 
 tants of our island. The opinion is 
 confirmed by a large number of 
 similar examples in different parts 
 of England, in many of which the 
 discovery of fragments of utensils, 
 personal ornaments, and other traces 
 of domestic life (none of which have 
 been as yet found at Pen Pits) has 
 proved beyond question that these 
 cavities indicate groups of habita- 
 tions forming a primaeval settle- 
 ment. This opinion, since maintained 
 by Mr. T. Kerslake, was strongly con- 
 tested by the late Rev, F. AVarre, who 
 conjectured that these pits were quar- 
 ries, sunk for the purpose of reaching 
 a hard bed of greensand,locally known 
 as Penstone, used for millstones and 
 querns, as well' as for building. 
 This view has also been taken by 
 the Committee appointed by the 
 Somersetshire Archioological Society, 
 appointed for the exploration of the 
 remarkable historical site. The ques- 
 tion, however, cannot be regarded 
 as in any way settled, and it awaits 
 further elucidation. 
 
 Stourton is little more than 1 m. 
 N. of Pen Selwood, and Stourhead 
 House about 2 J m. 
 
 Cuchlington is o m. S.E. of Win- 
 canton. The Ch. has a fine tower to 
 the S. The arcades are Trans.; the 
 E. window curvilinear. In this parish 
 is Shank's House (D. F. Grant Dalton, 
 Esq.), standing in richly wooded 
 grounds, with some fine cedars.] 
 
 Bratton, 2^- m. N.W., stands on the 
 steep slope of Bratton Hill, conspicu- 
 ous from the rly. 1. In 1834 on Cattle 
 Hill, a lofty tumulus W. of Bratton 
 Ch., the foundations of a Roman 
 buildi^g were discovered with some 
 coins of Constantius II. It was 
 
 [ Wilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 probably a watch-tOwer, and a point 
 of communication between Cadbury 
 Castle and Kingsettle Hill, on which 
 Alfred's Tower stands. Yarlingtorif 
 with its old E. E. Ch , stands W. of 
 Bratton Hill. Yarlington Lodge is 
 the residence of T. E. Rogers, Esq. 
 Hadsi^en House (H. Hobhouse, Esq.) 
 is a venerable-looking mansion, with 
 woods rising above it. Passing on 1. 
 at 34 m. Shepton Montague, close to 
 the rly., with a Perp. Ch. restored in 
 1855, and rt. Redllnch Park (Earl of 
 Ilchester) CRie. 23), we rim through 
 a remarkably picturesque country, 
 among wooded hills and deep valleys, 
 and reach 
 
 35 m. Cole Stat., within IJ m. of 
 Castle Gary W. and Bruton E. (Rte. 
 23), a very short distance of the 
 village of Pitcombe, S. A little be- 
 yond Cole Stat., the Somerset and 
 JJorset line crosses the Frome and 
 Weymouth Hue and the wooded 
 valley of the Brue, winds westwards, 
 and passing Week Champfloicer rt., 
 and at 37 m. Lamyat at the foot of 
 Creech Hill (a bold promontory of 
 the oolite, with a small camp on the 
 the summit), reaches, through very 
 pretty country, 
 
 37f m. Evercreech Junction Stat. 
 An omnibus runs several times a day 
 to Castle Cary, 3 m. 
 
 New Evercreech, \\ m. N., is the 
 stat. for the village of Evercreech. 
 The Ch. deserves inspection. The fine 
 tower, resembling the still finer one 
 of Wrington, is a pretty feature in 
 the landscape. The nave and N. 
 aisle are good Perp., and there is a 
 fine wooden roof, with ancient 
 colouring. The E. window is Dec. In 
 the village is a good loth-cent, cross, 
 removed from the churchyard. 
 
 On the rt., about 2 m. N.E. of Ever- 
 creech, is the small but curious 
 aisleless church of Chesterhlade ; 
 originally a Norman building, of 
 which date are the S. door and 
 some remains of the chancel corbel- 
 table. The bell-cot is Perp. It 
 contains a Norm, tub-font and a 
 T 
 
274 
 
 liOUte 20. — Ditcheat — Pylle. Somersetsliire* 
 
 stone reading-desk with slielf and 
 panelling of the date of Hen. VIII,, 
 perhaps intended as a desk for the 
 Bible immediately after the Reforma- 
 tion. 
 
 1^ m. S. of Evercreech, Milton 
 Clevedon has a small cruciform Ch., 
 E. E. altered to Perp., with a tower 
 of the last cent. In the chancel is 
 an E. E. tomb with the effigy of a 
 priest. 
 
 ' ' \JDitclieat, 1 m. W. of Evercreech 
 Jmiction, has a CTi. fine enough to 
 reward the tourist for turning out 
 of his way to examine it. It is cruci- 
 form, with a central tower, Perp., 
 with canopied niches, and terminated 
 with a pyramidal capping. The 
 initials and monogram of Abbot 
 John Selwood of Glastonbury, of 
 which Abbey Ditcheat was a manor, 
 appear on the parapets. The W. 
 front is a good composition. The 
 crossing is Trans.; the lantern has 
 a fan vault. The chancel is Dec, 
 the windows fine examples of pure 
 geometrical tracery, their rear arches 
 being foliated (a local feature). A 
 Perp. clerestory has been added to 
 the chancel, and one small Norm, 
 window remains, a relic of the ori- 
 ginal church. The nave is Perp. 
 and has light arcades, a clerestory, 
 and fine well-preserved wooden roofs. 
 There is some curious post-Refor- 
 mation woodwork, including chancel 
 screen stalls and pulpit (1630.) In 
 the chancel there is an early Dec. 
 tomb with the effigy of a priest. 
 The bells have ancient inscriptions. 
 The churchyard cross has been mo- 
 dernised. The old sculptured head 
 is preserved by the rector. The 
 Manor House of the Abbots of Glas- 
 tonbury is near the church. It 
 afterwards belonged to Sir Ralph 
 Hopton, a noble specimen of the 
 Cavaliers of Charles the First's time. 
 It is partly late Perp., but the 
 larger part dates from Charles II.] 
 
 The rly. continues up the beauti- 
 ful valley, rich in woods and orchards, 
 
 and sweeping round Pennard Hill S., 
 reaches 
 
 39f m. Fylle Stat., 1 m. from the 
 the hamlet of Street^ on the Fosseway, 
 which intersects the parish from N. 
 to S., and climbs the Pennard ridge 
 in bold defiance of natural obstacles. 
 The ch. of Pylle is Trans.-Norman 
 altered into Perp. and Avell rebuilt. 
 
 Fylle House, now a farmhouse, was 
 a mansion of the Berkeley s. The E. 
 wing, in the Elizabethan style, is still 
 standing. 
 
 East Pennard may be visited 
 either from Pylle or West Pennard 
 Stat., 2 m. from each. The large 
 Ch., Perp., has a low tower, unlike 
 the usual Somersetshire type, with 
 five large and fine-toned bells. It 
 has a good carved oak roof and 
 richly-carved Norm. font. A Perp. 
 cross stands in the churchyard. Near 
 this is Pennard House (E. B. Napier, 
 Esq.). The views from Wraxhill 
 Hill, 1 m. E. are beautiful. 
 
 41 f m. rt. in a pretty valley, 1 m. 
 N., stands Pilton, formerly belong- 
 ing to the Abbey of Glastonbury. The 
 Ch. is beautifully situated. It is 
 partly Trans, in style, with Perp. 
 clerestory, and a later chancel, said 
 to have been built by Amber son, 
 Precentor of Wells. The S. door 
 is Norm., the N. door E. E. with a 
 Perp. arch inserted. The tie-beam 
 roof is a good one of its kind. The 
 pulpit is a fine specimen of its style 
 (1618). The pulpit-cloth has been 
 made out of a cope. At Pilton was a 
 grange of the Abbots of Glastonbury, 
 of which a noble barn remains, of 
 the time of Rich. II., the architecture 
 inclining rather to the Perp. than the 
 Dec. (figured in Parker's Dom. Ant., 
 vol. ii.), with the emblems of the 
 four Evangelists under the gable 
 windows. 
 
 Perridge House is a mansion plea- 
 santly situated. 
 
 Passing under Stichleball Hill, 1., 
 we arrive at 
 
 43J m. West Pennard Stat.^ Ih m. 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Glastonbury, 
 
 27ty 
 
 E. of the village from which it takes 
 its name, and the same distance from 
 Pilton. The Ch. is a fine Perp. 
 building in excellent condition, tho- 
 roughly restored, and fitted with 
 open seats. The tower has much 
 elegant ornamentation, and is groined. 
 The Tudor arches within bespeak a 
 late date. The N. aisle and chancel 
 have fine panelled roofs, and there 
 is a good rood screen with vine-leaf 
 carving, and a rich carved W. door. 
 The pulpit retains the hour-glass 
 stand. In the churchyard is a fine 
 cross, the quatrefoil panels of the 
 base containing the emblems of the 
 Passion and the cipher of Eichard 
 Bere, Abbot of Glastonbury, d. 
 1524. 1 m. W. on the road to Glas- 
 tonbury is Fonters Ball, a very 
 curious earthwork crossing the isth- 
 mus E. of Glastonbury and protect- 
 ing it. 
 
 The rly. Jiere enters on the wide 
 expanse once a peat bog surrounding 
 Glastonbury, and sweeping round 
 the N. side of the Tor Hill with its 
 conspicuous tower reaches 
 
 48 J m. Glastonbury Stat., where 
 it j oins the line from Wells. Glaston- 
 bury {Inns : George, Red Lion ; Pop. 
 3719) is a municipal borough and 
 market-town, owing its origin to its 
 celebrated abbey, one of the earliest 
 centres of Christianity in England . It 
 was in far distant ages an island rising 
 from the estuary of the Brue, the glass- 
 like clearness of whose waters gained 
 for it the name by which it is said 
 to have been known to the Britons, 
 Ynys-witren, or Ynys-ywydryn, '^in- 
 sula vitrea," which lEias descended to 
 later times in the A.-S. Glaestinga- 
 hyrig, and the modern Glastonbury. 
 [Another view is that the root- 
 syllable glas is British, signifying 
 blue, from the colour of the waters 
 surrounding the place, and that 
 Ynys-witren, "the glass island," is 
 a modern antique coined to support 
 a mistaken etymology.] [Another 
 grotesque legend derives the name 
 
 from one Glaesting,*' an Anglo- 
 Saxon whose lost sow led him a long 
 journey to a tree loaded with apples, 
 then a great rarity in the district, 
 near the 'S^etusta ecclesia." Pleased 
 with the land he took his familj'-, 
 the Glaestingas, to reside there, and 
 it became the '^byrig" of his de- 
 scendants. — Gale, 295.] The Britons 
 knew it also by the name of Avalon, 
 or "Apple-Tree isle" (^mZ=:apple, 
 Welsh), which the Romans adopting, 
 called it Insula Avallonia, the mystic 
 ''Isle of Avalon," which later tradi- 
 tion assigned as the spot where, 
 as men fancied, " not long after 
 the complete legend of Arthur had 
 been invented, the tomb of Arthur 
 being fittingly invented also," the 
 Arthur of romance had been buried, 
 but where he really slept in fairy 
 bower to awake in due time, the 
 avenger of his countiy's wrongs — 
 
 " Tlie island valley of Avilion, 
 AVhere falls not hail, or rain, or any snow, 
 Nor ever wind blows loudly, but it lies 
 Deep-meadowed, happy, fair with orchard 
 lawns 
 
 And bowery hollows crowned with summer 
 sea." Tennyson. 
 
 Hither also the body of the disloyal 
 but repentant Guinevere was brought, 
 it is said, from Amesbury to repose 
 by the side of her wronged husband, 
 in the same rude sarcophagus, hol- 
 lowed from the trunk of a huge oak. 
 The place of their sepulture was said 
 to have been marked by two tall 
 stone crosses, between which the sup- 
 posed royal pair reposed undisturbed 
 till the days of Henry II., who, fired 
 by the praises of the renowned con- 
 queror chanted by the native bards, 
 while he was tarrying at St. David's 
 for the assembling of the fleet wdth 
 which he was purposing to cross to 
 complete the conquest of Ireland, 
 desired his nephew, the then abbot, 
 A.D. 1171, to have the royal remains 
 removed from the open cemetery to 
 a more honourable position within 
 the chm'ch. A search was accord- 
 ingly made, and at the depth of 16 ft. 
 a massive oak trunk was discovered, 
 T 2 
 
276 
 
 Boute 20. — Glastonbury Ahbejj, Somersetsliir6» 
 
 with two cavities, the one containing 
 a gigantic skeleton, the leg bone 
 reaching to the middle of the thigh 
 of a living man ; the other the bones 
 of a female. A lock of golden hair 
 was still gleaming in the midst of 
 the decay, but on a monk's hastily 
 snatching at it to raise it from its 
 recess, it immediately crumbled to 
 dust. They also, it is said, found a 
 leaden cross with a Latin inscrip- 
 tion — " Hie jacet sepultus inclytus 
 Eex Arthurus in insula Avallonia." 
 
 The relics were removed to the 
 Ch., and subsequently placed in a 
 mausoleum before the high altar 
 with the tomb of Edward the Elder 
 on the N., where they were visited 
 by Edward I. and Queen Eleanor, 
 1276, and were seen by Leland at 
 the middle of the IGth century. The 
 skulls of Arthur and Guinevere were 
 placed outside the shrine for the 
 devotion of the people. 
 
 The chief interest of Glastonbury, 
 hov/ever, arises from its connection 
 with the early religious history of 
 our country. ^'The Ch. of Glas- 
 tonbury — founded by the Briton, 
 honoured and enriched by the Eng- 
 lishman — is the one great religious 
 foundation which lived through the 
 storm of English conquest, and in 
 which Briton and Englishman have 
 an equal share . . . What Glaston- 
 bury has to itself, alone and with- 
 out rival, is its historical position 
 as the tie at once national and reli- 
 gious which binds the history and 
 memorjes of our race to those of the 
 race which we supplanted. Nowhere 
 is there the same unbroken continu- 
 ity of religions life " {E. A. F.) The 
 early history of Glastonbury may 
 be discarded as bearing the clear 
 stamp of utter fiction. There is no 
 doubt, however, that its religious 
 history has a very early commence- 
 ment. Dr. Guest's belief (Arch. 
 Journ.^ xvi. 129) that it did not 
 become the head sanctuary of the 
 Britons till after the loss of Ames- 
 bury, points to a prior existence. 
 
 The first record that has any sem- 
 blance of historical truth is that in 
 601 A.D. the king — possibly Gwrgan 
 Varvtrwch — ^^gave to Ynysvitrin 
 the old church." From this point 
 it's greatness as a religious founda- 
 tion historically commences. Tradi- 
 tion assigns its foundation to Joseph 
 of Arimathea, who had been sent 
 with 11 companions by St. Philip, 
 then preaching in France, a.d. 63, 
 to evangelize Britain. Rejected by 
 the King and his people, the mis- 
 sionaries took refuge in the island 
 now known as Glastonbvuy, then 
 overgrown with rough thickets and 
 brushwood, and lying deep in the al- 
 most impenetrable recesses of a boggy 
 estuary, which, at the commence- 
 ment of the Christian era, must have 
 been nearly inaccessible. Here, at 
 the command of the Archangel Ga- 
 briel, St. Joseph built a small wattled 
 chapel in honour of the Virgin. The 
 original missionaries died off*, and 
 the existence of the little oratory 
 was lost sight of until, in a.d. 166, 
 Pope Eleutherius, at the request of 
 King Lucius, sent 2 missionaries, who 
 in the course of their progress dis- 
 covered the chapel, and received su- 
 pernatural information of its dedica- 
 tion, and re-established a religious 
 settlement in the island. Three hun- 
 dred years later St. Patrick visited 
 the spot, established the regular coe- 
 nobitic life, and became the first 
 abbot, and d. 472. Its fame grew, 
 and the **vetusta ecclesia," or '^lig- 
 nea basilica," became a favourite ob- 
 ject of pilgrimage. Gildas the historian 
 d. here 512, and was buried in the 
 Vetusta Ecclesia." St. Paulinus, 
 Abp. of York, c. 630, covered the 
 little wattled structure with boards, 
 and cased it in lead, as a precious relic. 
 K. Ina, 688, by the advice of St. 
 Aldhelm, built and endowed a mo- 
 nastery here, and founded the "Major 
 Ecclesia'* in honour of SS. Peter 
 and Paul. It was devastated in the 
 Danish wars, but was thoroughly 
 restored by Dunstan, ^^the greatest 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Glastonbury Ahhey, 
 
 277 
 
 son, the greatest ruler that Glaston- 
 bury ever saw; the friend of Edmund, 
 the counsellor of Edred, the victim 
 of Edwy, the friend and guide of 
 Edgar, the giver of peace." {E A.F.) 
 He was born near Glastonbury, and 
 educated by the Celtic monks, who 
 were then the chief occupants of the 
 monastery. This was the scene of his 
 nightly wanderings over the parapets 
 and roofs of the church in the par- 
 oxysms of brain fever, and it was in 
 a cell in the churchyard that the tre- 
 mendous struggle took place with sen- 
 sual temptations, which he was vainly 
 striving to repress by hard labour at 
 the forge, to which later tradition 
 has given a coarse and material 
 form. Dunstan by K. Edmund's 
 appointment became abbot, a.d. 940, 
 and introduced the Benedictine rule 
 into England, and rebuilt the church 
 and monastery. Edwy expelled and 
 banished him ; and it is recorded 
 that when armed men were driving 
 him from the churcli, a sound was 
 heard, likened by some to the 
 
 wheezy voice of a gleesome hag," 
 by others to *' the bleating of a calf," 
 but which was recognised unmistake- 
 ably by all as the exulting voice of 
 the devil. 
 
 The second Norman abbot, Her- 
 lewin, 1101-1120, pulled down the 
 church as deficient in grandeur and 
 began a new one, carried on by his 
 successors Sigfrid, and King Ste» 
 phen's brother, Henry of Blois. In 
 1184 the whole was burnt, and the 
 relics, to the still greater grief of the 
 monks, perished. The work of re- 
 storation was immediately com- 
 menced by the command, and at the 
 expense, of King Henry XL, the di- 
 rection of the works being committed 
 to his ''camerarius,'* his nephew 
 Ealph. The first part finished was 
 the chapel of St. Mary (now erro- 
 neously known as St. Joseph's 
 Chapel), on the site of the Vetusta 
 Ecclesia," the little wattled erection 
 of the first missionaries. This was 
 (leclicated Jun§ 11, c, 1186, The 
 
 name of St. Joseph of Arimathea's 
 chapel attached to this building is 
 ''a curious record of the permanency 
 of local superstition." — Willis. It is 
 due to the undoubted fact that it 
 stands on the site of the oratory 
 erected by the early missionaries, 
 among whom the very natural desire, 
 in an uncritical age, to identify the 
 religious history of their country 
 with some one or more of the most 
 eminent characters of the New Tes- 
 tament, had placed Joseph of Ari- 
 mathea. The tradition that after- 
 wards grew up, and was carefully 
 fostered by the monks, who found 
 their profit in it from the number of 
 devotees and pilgrims it brought to 
 the abbey, was to the effect that 
 St. Joseph lay buried in tinea 
 hif areata'* {i.e. a linen shirt ^vith 
 2 flaps) at the S.E. corner of the 
 oratory. 
 
 The great church was probably 
 begini at the E. end, and carried 
 regularly onwards to the W. The 
 death of Henry II., and the warlike 
 tastes of his successor Richard, in- 
 terrupted the work, and the monks 
 were at their wits' end for money, 
 when, by a lucky inspiration, it was 
 suddenly remembered that the body 
 of St. Dunstan had been secretly 
 removed from Canterbury, and was 
 interred somewhere in the ruined 
 church. The sacred relics were 
 sought for, and, of course, found ; 
 and, in spite of the remonstrances of 
 the monks of Canterbury, who claimed 
 the possession of the Abp.'s body — a 
 controversy which lasted almost up 
 to the Reformation — began imme- 
 diately to work miracles and cures, 
 and to direct to Glastonbury a rich 
 flow of ofierings. Thus the church, 
 of which the fragments remain, was 
 completed, and received dedication 
 A.D. 1 303. The vaulting, the spring- 
 ing of which can be traced in the S. 
 aisle of the nave, was added by Abbot 
 Sodbury c. 1330, who also gave the 
 clock, now at Wells. Abbot Mo- 
 nington, 134-1-1374, vaulted the 
 
278 
 
 Boute 20. — Glastonbury Abbey. Somersetshire, 
 
 choir, and added 2 bays at the E. 
 end. The last abbot but one, 
 Richard Beere, a mighty man for 
 building, raised inverted arches, as 
 at Wells, to uphold the tower, and 
 made other additions, especially St. 
 Edgar's Chapel at the extreme E. 
 end, which was finished by Abbot 
 Whiting only a few years before he 
 suffered the foul punishment of a 
 traitor on the Tor. 
 
 Glastonbury was a mitred abbey, 
 and its head ranked as the premier 
 abbot of England till 1154, when 
 precedence was given to the abbot of 
 St. Alban's. ^^His apartment in the 
 abbey," we are told, " was a kind of 
 well-disciplined court, where the 
 sons of noblemen and gentlemen 
 were , sent for virtuous education, 
 and returned thence excellently ac- 
 complished." Abbot Whiting had 
 bred up near 300 after this manner, 
 besides others of a meaner rank, 
 whom he fitted for the universities. 
 At home his table, attendance, and 
 officers were an honour to the nation. 
 Sometimes he even entertained 500 
 persons of fashion at a time; and 
 twice every week all the poor of the 
 neighbourhood were relieved by him. 
 When he went abroad, he was at- 
 tended by upwards of 100 persons. 
 The library was one of the most 
 richly stored in England. Leland, 
 who spent some days there by Abb. 
 Whiting's permission copying MSS., 
 records that he had scarcely passed 
 the threshold when the sight of so 
 many sacred remains of antiquity 
 struck him with an awe of astonish- 
 ment, that, for a moment, he hesi- 
 tated. 
 
 The execution of Abb. Whiting, 
 however palliated by Mr. Froude, 
 was one of the foulest of the many 
 judicial murders that disgraced the 
 stormy period of the Keformation. 
 His alleged crimes were ^^the rob- 
 bery of his church : " i.e. the con- 
 cealment of its sacred vessels and 
 other treasures from the legalised 
 depredators that were at hand ; and 
 
 very haut and rank treason : " i.e., 
 in Froude's words, **that he was 
 more faithful to the Church than to 
 the State, and was guilty of regarding 
 the old ways as better than the new.'* 
 
 Whiting was apprehended at his 
 manor-house of Sharpham, conveyed 
 to the Tower, whence he ^was sent 
 back into Somersetshire, already 
 condemned at a tribunal where Crom- 
 well sat as prosecutor, jury, and 
 judge." — Froude. He was arraigned 
 at Wells, Nov. 14, 1539, in the 
 Bishop's Great Hall, sentenced to 
 death, and the next day drawn on a 
 hurdle, with 2 of his monks, to the 
 top, it is said, of the Tor Hill, and 
 there put to death. His head was 
 fixed over his abbey gate. His 
 quarters were sent to Wells, Bath, 
 Ilchester, and Bridgwater, to strike 
 terror into the hearts of all who 
 might dare to question the King's 
 prerogative to do what he would in 
 his own dominions. 
 
 An attempt was made in Mary's 
 reign to restore the abbey, but her 
 death speedily put an end to the 
 plan. 
 
 The manor of Glastonbury, with 
 the site of the ch. and abbey, was 
 granted by Edward VI. to the Duke 
 of Somerset, and by Elizabeth to Sir 
 Peter Carew. The buildings were 
 abandoned, and allowed to fall into 
 ruin; and, being regarded as the 
 stone quarry of the neighbourhood, 
 nearly the whole was gradually de- 
 stroyed. Between 1792-94 the 
 ground surrounding it was cleared, 
 levelled, and converted into pas- 
 turage, and cartloads of stones, ca- 
 pitals, corbels, pinnacles, and rich 
 fragments of sculpture, were used for 
 making a new road over the marshes 
 to Wells. " Happily for the inte- 
 rests of archseology, the present pro- 
 prietor, Mr. Austin, is an ardent 
 admirer of these magnificent and 
 beautiful fragments of antiquity, 
 and spares no pains to preserve them 
 from further mutilation." 
 
 The entrance to the abbey ruins is 
 
Somersetshire. Route 20. — Glastonbury Abbey, 
 
 279 
 
 on the S. of the chief street, under 
 the new Assembly Rooms, through a 
 garden in which a young scion of the 
 famous Glastonbury Thorn (see 
 post) still puts forth its leaves and 
 blossoms when all its brethren are 
 bare. 
 
 Of the vast ch. and its appended 
 buildings, the remnants are scanty. 
 Of the latter we have only the abbot's 
 kitchen, and a small fragment adjoin- 
 ing, and a gateway, now converted into 
 the Bed Lion Inn. Of the ch. we have 
 the 2 E. tower piers, with one of the 
 IST. transeptal chapels (erroneously 
 called St. Mary's), nearly the whole 
 of the S. wall of the choir aisle, some 
 bays of the S. nave aisle, and the so- 
 called St. Joseph's Chapel. The 
 whole is of Tr.-Norman, passing into 
 E. E., corresponding with the date of 
 its commencement (c. 1184); the same 
 design having been • maintained 
 throughout with apparently but little 
 variation in detail. The work is of 
 the very highest type, and the excel- 
 lence of the stone, from the Doulting 
 quarries, renders the details almost 
 as fresh as when they were first 
 executed. The fragments of the 
 triforium and clerestory attached to 
 the tower piers enable us to restore 
 the general design of the ch., which, 
 both in size and architectural excel- 
 lence, was on a level with our first- 
 class cathedrals. The ch., exclusive 
 of St. Joseph's Chapel, was 410 ft. 
 long by 90 ft, broad ; the transept 
 282 ft. long; St. Joseph's Chapel 
 118 ft. by 40 ft., making a total 
 length of 528 ft., Winchester, our 
 longest cathedral, being 530 ft. long. 
 The nave was of 10 bays ; the con- 
 structional choir (the ritual choir was 
 under the tower) originally of 4, in- 
 creased by Abbot Monington in the 
 latter half of the l4th century to 6, 
 with a procession path, and chapels 
 projecting to the E. The eye of the 
 skilful antiquary will detect in the 
 double respond the position of the 
 original E. . gable, and in the absence 
 of the bench-table, and in the differ- 
 
 ence of the mouldings of the eastern- 
 most baj^s, the marks of Monington' s 
 addition. ^' The windows of the choir 
 aisle are of the pointed Norman type 
 throughout, ornamented with zigzag 
 work of the late intricate kind in 
 which straight lines alternate with 
 the angles, as in the N. porch o*. 
 Wells." — Willis. The inner arches 
 of the nave windows are round, the 
 outer pointed. The sills are higher 
 than those of the choir, in conse- 
 quence of the cloister standing against 
 this aisle. The W. part, of which 
 the central door remains, was ot 
 fully developed E. E. of a later cha- 
 racter, as at Wells. 
 
 The best preserved and most inte 
 resting portion of the ruins, ''the 
 loveliest building that Glastonbury 
 can show, the jewel of late Roman- 
 esque on a small scale" (jEJ. A. F.), 
 is the chapel of the Blessed Virgin, 
 corruptly known since the 15th 
 cent, as St. Joseph's Chapel, annexed, 
 like the Galilee or Lady-chapel at 
 Durham, to the W. end of the great 
 ch. This, as we have seen, stands 
 on the site of the original wattled 
 structure of the first missionaries, 
 and may therefore be regarded as 
 one of the most interesting build- 
 ings in the ecclesiastical history of 
 our country. As it was first built 
 in 1184, it was an isolated rectangular 
 edifice of 4 bays, with a square turret 
 terminating in a pyramidal cap, at each 
 angle. Subsequently the gap between 
 it and the ch. was filled up by an E.E. 
 addition of 3 bays, containing a broad 
 fliglit of steps up to the W. door, 
 added to give access to the ch. from 
 the old cemetery of the monks on the 
 S. and that of the laity to the N. ; and, 
 later still, the E. wall of the chapel 
 was pierced with a large arch, under 
 which stood the altar, with a reredos 
 behind. The composition of St. Jo- 
 seph's Chapel is singularly rich ; the 
 style of decoration florid, and the 
 workmanship admirable. Rich inter- 
 lacing arcades ornament the space be- 
 neath the windows within and with- 
 
280 
 
 Boiiie 20. — Glastonhury Abbey. Somersetshire. 
 
 out. Vaulting shafts in quadruple 
 groups carried the ribs of the groined 
 roof. Two richly carved semicircular 
 doorways give access to the chapel on 
 the N. and S. 4 richly moulded win- 
 dows light the chapel on each side, 
 and a triplet pierces the W. wall. 
 2 of the 4 turrets, those to the S.E. 
 and N.W., remain, and greatly add 
 to the picturesque effect of the 
 ruins. 
 
 The crypt is a later construction, 
 formed in the 15th centy., not for 
 ornament, but for use, to 'provide a 
 place of sepulture for the many — 
 kings and queens, bishops and nobles 
 — who were coveting a final resting- 
 place near the hallowed site of St. 
 Joseph's bones. The vault is a flat 
 4-centred one, and the ribs of the 
 roof, and the shafts supporting them, 
 are curiously and economically con- 
 structed from old Norman voussoirs, 
 from some building then being de- 
 molished. [The architectural history 
 of this crypt has been fully investi- 
 gated by Professor Willis, with whose 
 work on Glastonburj^, from which the 
 foregoing details are chiefly derived, 
 the visitor should be provided.] A 
 well, " which has attracted more at- 
 tention than it deserves" as old as 
 the chapel itself, originally outside 
 the chapel walls, and unconnected 
 with it, was discovered by Mr. Reeve 
 in 1825, and is now reached from the 
 crypt. There is no reason for accept- 
 ing the popular belief of its ever having 
 been " a holy well." 
 
 Of the abbey buildings within the 
 precinct walls the only one standing 
 is the magnificent Abbot's Kitchen, 
 33 J ft. sq. within the walls, and 72 
 ft. high to the top of the lantern, 
 now standing alone, and entered by 
 a gate in St. Magdalene-street. [The 
 key is kept in the house opposite.] 
 This kitchen is a curious specimen 
 of domestic architecture, and of inge- 
 nious construction. Externally it is 
 a square building of very massive 
 walls, strongly buttressed ; within, 
 the 4 angles are occupied by fire- 
 
 places and chimneys, which convert 
 the interior into an octagon. This 
 is surmounted by a stone roof in 
 the shape of an octagonal pyramid, 
 which supports in the centre a double 
 turret or lantern, pierced with an 
 aperture to allow the vapour and 
 heat to pass out. The structure of 
 this open stonework is curious. It 
 is commonly ascribed to Richard 
 Whiting, the last abbot, c. 1524. It 
 is, however, more prolDable that it 
 was the work of Abbot Breynton, the 
 style belonging to the end of the 
 14th or the beginning of the 15th 
 century. Pugin assigned it to Abbot 
 Chinnock, 1374-1420. It was once 
 let to the Quakers as a meeting- 
 house. 
 
 The Abbot's Barn, of the 14th cent,, 
 at the top of Chilkwell-st., is per- 
 haps the finest and most richly orna- 
 mented of the monastic granaries 
 still remaining. It is cruciform, the 
 transepts forming the entrances ; 
 93 ft. long, with a grand collar- beam 
 roof. The gables present the 4 
 evangelistic symbols, and have rich 
 traceried triangular windows. The 
 apex of the gable is crowned by the 
 figure of an abbot. 
 
 The Entrance Gateway for the 
 laity and guests is merged in the 
 Eed Lion Inn, in St. Mary Magda- 
 lene-st. The great gate is hidden 
 by a modern house, erected in 1810; 
 but the vaulted entrance for foot 
 passengers is still accessible. Over 
 it is a small room known as "the 
 stone chamber." There is a good 
 Elizabethan oriel. Passing through 
 the inn, in the yard at the back, 
 there is a small Almsliouse for women, 
 v/ith a chapel, founded by Abbot 
 Beere. The gateway to the alms- 
 house yard displays the abbot's rose 
 and supporters, with the date 1512. 
 At the W. end of the chapel are the 
 arms of the abbey, a cross flory 
 between 2 roses. The canting de- 
 vice of the founder, jugs of beer, 
 also appears, 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Glastonhiuy, 
 
 281 
 
 Towards the close of Edward VI. 's 
 reign the abbey buildings, then the 
 property of Protector Somerset, 
 afiforded a temporary home to a 
 colony of foreign Protestants, weav- 
 ers of kerseys, driven from Stras- 
 burg by the publication of the 
 *' Interim," with their pastor Pul- 
 lain, orValerandus Pollanus, who in 
 1551 published their order of service 
 in Latin, which supplied some hints 
 to the revisers of the Prayer-Book 
 in 1552. The mercantile specula- 
 tion proved unfortunate, and the 
 accession of Mary soon broke up the 
 colony, who removed to Frankfort. 
 
 The George Inn, in High-st., the 
 old pilgrims' hostelry, built by 
 Abbot Selwood, temp. Edw. IV., 
 *4s the best piece of domestic work 
 in Glastonbury. The front is one 
 splendid mass of panelling, pierced, 
 where necessary, for windows. The 
 centre is occupied by a 4-centred 
 gateway, with a bay window to 1. 
 rising the whole height of the 
 house." — /. H. P. The arms above 
 the gate are those of the abbey and 
 of Edw. IV., supported by the black 
 bull of Clare and the white lion of 
 Mortimer. There is a pillar and 
 bracket for the support of the sign. 
 The original newel staircase still 
 gives access to the upper rooms. 
 
 A little higher up the street is the 
 Tribunal, built by Abbot Beere, as 
 the abbey court-house. The prin- 
 cipal room has a wide square-headed 
 window of 8 lights, with a large 
 oriel above. 
 
 The town is characterised by Mr. 
 Parker as ' ^ a perfect store of do- 
 mestic antiquities. Small portions," 
 he says, ^'as late P. doorways, some 
 w^ood, some stone, wooden windows, 
 and the like, turn up at every step." 
 In addition to those already men- 
 tioned, the tourist should see a very 
 rich small timber front, in North- 
 lode-st., 1. side, and the Almshouse 
 and Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene, 
 in the street of the same name. 
 Jt is an E. building, with debased 
 
 P. alterations, the original arrange- 
 ments of which were those of similar 
 mediaeval institutions, the nave 
 forming the hall, with the cells for 
 the inmates in the aisles. The navo 
 is now unroofed, but the E. E. 
 chancel remains, with a remarkably 
 good bell-gable figured in Parker's 
 ' Glossary.' 
 
 The Market Cross, at the junction 
 of tlie 4 streets, is a feeble Gothic 
 spirelet by Ferrey, erected in 1846 
 on the site of a picturesque gabled 
 octagonal structure, with central 
 column and pinnacle, and conduit 
 attached (figured in Britton's Arch. 
 Ant.), allowed to fall into decaj^ at 
 the beginning of the century. 
 
 Glastonbury has 2 churches. The 
 principal is St. John the Baptist, the 
 tower of which is considered by 
 Mr. Freeman as the third finest in 
 Somersetshire ; surpassed only by 
 Wrington, and St. Cuthbert's, Wells. 
 It rises to a height of 140 ft., in 3 
 stories, and is richly adorned with 
 canopied niches, and crowned with 
 an open-work parapet and 8 slender 
 pinnacles. The ch. is cruciform, and, 
 like St. Cuthbert's at Wells, origin- 
 ally had a central tower, remains 
 of the piers of which were dis- 
 covered in the restoration of 1859. 
 It is a fine example of Somerset- 
 shire Perpendicular, owing its pre- 
 sent form to Abbot John Selwood, 
 1485. The stone pulpit, designed by 
 Scott, from fragments of an earlier 
 one, w^as a gift of Lady Charlotte 
 Neville Grenville. The six bells are 
 large, of a fine tone. The church- 
 wardens possess a very handsome 
 mediaeval seal. 
 
 >S^^ Benedict* 8 (the true dedication 
 being probably St. Benignus), in 
 the street of the same name, is 
 smaller and plainer ; but the tower 
 possesses much dignity. The pin- 
 nacles, blowai down by a hurricane 
 in 1703, have never been restored. 
 The jugs of beer on its battlements 
 
282 
 
 Boiite 20,- — TJie Glastonbury Thorn. Somersetshire. 
 
 show it to be the work of Abbot 
 Beere, whose initials and mitre ap- 
 pear on the N. porch, which also 
 contains a holy-water stoup. An 
 inscription in the interior records 
 one of the inroads of the sea which 
 have from time to time devastated 
 this district. *^The breach of the 
 sea flood was Jan. 20, 1606." Tra- 
 dition asserts that it reached the 
 tower of this church. 
 
 The tourist should now visit Wir- 
 rall Hill, and the Tor Hill ; if he has 
 time for only one, choosing the 
 latter. The name Wirrall (said to 
 be a Welsh word for a promontory 
 or projecting hill) has been of late 
 days metamorphosed into Weary-all- 
 Hill, in connection with the myth 
 that it was here that St. Joseph and 
 his companions, loeary all with their 
 long pilgrimage, first rested, and the 
 leader of the band planted his haw- 
 thorn staff in the ground, which at 
 once struck root and shot forth 
 branches, and in memory of its 
 sacred origin constantly put forth 
 leaves and blossoms on Christmas 
 Day. 
 
 This was the famous Glastonbury 
 Thorn, which flourished as one of 
 the chief marvels of the holy site 
 till the reign of Queen Elizabeth, 
 when one of its two huge trunks 
 was hacked down by a Puritan, who 
 would have destroyed the other 
 also had not his impious zeal been 
 miraculously checked by one of his 
 blows falling on his own leg, while 
 a chip flying upwards put out his 
 eye. The I'emaining trunk, the blos- 
 soms of which, we are told, were con- 
 sidered such curiosities that Bristol 
 merchants carried them into foreign 
 parts, survived till the Great Re- 
 bellion, when '^a military saint," 
 undeterred by the ill fate of his 
 predecessor, felled it. The spot 
 where it grew is marked by a stone 
 bearing the letters i. a. a.d. xxxi., 
 commemorating St. Joseph and the 
 date of his supposed visit. Though 
 the original holy thorn has passed 
 
 away, the curious visitor may find 
 several successors to its name and 
 virtues in the neighbourhood. Ac- 
 cording to Withering, it is a distinct 
 variety of the common hawthorn 
 blossoming twice a year. "The 
 winter blossoms," he says, which 
 are about tiie size of a sixpence, 
 appear about Christmas, and sooner 
 if the winter be severe." In 1753, 
 when the change of style was made, 
 the thorn was anxiously watched to 
 see whether it would conform to the 
 Act of Parliament, and great was the 
 triumph of opponents of the change 
 when the blossoms which had refused 
 to appear on the new Christmas Day 
 came forth in full luxuriance on the 
 old anniversary, Jan. 5. 
 
 Besides the Holy Thorn, Glaston- 
 bury boasted of a miraculous walnut- 
 tree that grew near St. Joseph's 
 Chapel, and never shot out leaves 
 till St. Barnabas Day, June 11. A 
 branch of each of these sacred trees 
 was presented to Anne of Denmark, 
 James I.'s queen, by Bp. Montague. 
 
 The Tor Hill — "the island mount 
 of St. Michael " {E. A. F.)—is a more 
 formidable height to scale, being 500 
 ft. above the sea, and steep at one part. 
 [Follow the Shepton Mallet road 
 from the Barn for 200 yards, and 
 turn off up the hill 1. at the Tor 
 Hill Inn. You are then in a straight 
 path for the summit.] The hill is 
 crowned by a beautiful tower, all 
 that is left of a pilgrimage chapel of 
 St. Michael, shattered by an earth- 
 quake in 1271, and subsequently re- 
 built after in the ordinary Somerset- 
 shire Perp. type. Over the doorway 
 are 2 rude bas-reliefs — a woman milk- 
 ing a cow, and St. Michael weighing 
 a soul against the devil in a pair of 
 scales. Above are 7 canopied niches, 
 in one of which a figure still re- 
 mains ; below the embattled parapet 
 is another sculptured tablet repre- 
 senting an eagle with outstretched 
 wings. Heavy buttresses support 
 the building. The tower was re- 
 stored in 1804-, v/hen the rubbish 
 
Somersetsliire. JEtoute 20 —Butleigh Court, 
 
 283 
 
 was cleared away and the founda- 
 tions of the chapel laid bare. To 
 this elevated spot, in 1539, Whiting, 
 last abbot of Glastonbury, as already 
 related, was dragged on a hurdle, and 
 hanged. The view here is complete 
 of the Avalonian hills, islanded in the 
 marshes. In their lap lies the town, 
 and behind it is Weary-all. Around 
 the horizon the eye ranges freely, 
 embracing in its view the Bristol 
 Channel, Brent Knoll, the Mendips, 
 and the cathedral of Wells, Sir Samuel 
 Hood's monument on the hill at But- 
 leigh, Alfred's tower on the heights of 
 Wiltshire, the Polden and Quantock 
 hills, Blackdown, Montacute, and 
 Ham Hill. Nearer at hand, below the 
 Tor, to the E., lies Nortlnoood, now 
 a farmhouse, but formerly a resi- 
 dence of the abbots, and centred in 
 a deer-park 4 m. in circumference. 
 You may descend the Tor on the 
 N.E. side, visiting Busliey Coomhe on 
 your way back to the town, which 
 you will re-enter by Chilkwell-street. 
 
 In the middle of the last century, 
 Glastonbury regained a short-lived 
 celebrity from its mineral waters, 
 rising at the foot of the Tor. One, 
 Matthew Chancellor, having been 
 cured of an asthma of 30 years' 
 standing in 1751, by drinking of 
 these waters in obedience to a dream, 
 their fame spread, and visitors flocked 
 hither from all parts of the kingdom 
 in such numbers that lodgings could 
 scarcely be procured. A pump-room 
 was built, but the celebrity of the 
 spring soon waned, and the hopes 
 of the inhabitants of a golden har- 
 vest passed away. On the E. slope 
 of Wirrall hill are some fields called 
 the Vineyards, where grapes were 
 formerly grown for the use of the 
 abbey. 
 
 {Sharpham^ 2 m. to S.W., a manor- 
 house erected by Abbot Beere, and 
 where Abbot Whiting was arrested, 
 was in 1707 the birthplace of Henry 
 Fielding, the author of ' Tom Jones.' 
 He was born in what was known 
 
 as *'the Harlequin's Chamber," 
 lighted by a small window that is 
 seen over the chapel. What remains 
 of the mansion is now a farmhouse. 
 
 Street, m. S.W. (Pop. of sani- 
 tary district, 2514), a long strag- 
 gling village, of blue lias, taking its 
 name from the Roman road on which 
 it stands, deserves to be visited for 
 the collection of Saurian remains 
 made by the Messrs. Clark, whose 
 la.rge factories of shoes and rugs will 
 also reward inspection. 
 
 At Butleigh, 4 m. S. on the road 
 to Somerton (2 m. farther), is 
 
 Butleigh Court (R. Neville Gren- 
 ville, Esq.) This fine mansion has 
 been rebuilt in part (Buckler, Arch?), 
 The saloon measures 45 by 25 ft. 
 Among the pictures are a full-length 
 of the Rt. Hon. G. Grenville, the 
 minister, by Sir Josh. Beynolds, and, 
 by the same master, the Marchioness 
 of Buckingham and her son, the first 
 Duke. There are also full-lengths 
 of the great Earl of Chatham and his 
 Countess, and other family portraits 
 by Gainsborough, Hoppner, Hudson, 
 &c. 
 
 The Ch. originally consisted of a 
 long narrow nave and chancel with a 
 groined tower between them, chiefly 
 Dec. ; N. and S. transepts have been 
 added, and a N. aisle to the nave. 
 The W. window is a fine Perp. one of 
 6 lights. The internal fittings are of 
 superior excellence. It contains an 
 epitaph by Southey to the 3 brothers 
 Hood — Arthur, lost in the ' Pomona ' 
 in the Caribbean sea, together with 
 Falconer, author of ' The Shipwreck ; ' 
 Alexander, who sailed round the 
 world with Cook, was killed in the 
 ' Mars, ' and was grandfather to Sir 
 A. Acland Hood; and Sir Samuel, 
 
 " With Keppel and with Kodney trained," 
 
 who died of fever on the Coromandel 
 coast. 
 
 On a commanding position on Pol- 
 den Hill, a ridge of lias running 
 E. and W., stands a monument to 
 
284 
 
 Boute 20.— Wells. 
 
 Somersetshire. 
 
 Admiral Sir Samuel Hood, erected 
 by the subscriptions of his officers.] 
 
 [At Glastonbury the tourist should 
 diverge to visit the cathedral and 
 other architectural remains at the 
 city of Wells, 6 m. N.E. He may 
 either take the rly. or follow the 
 causeway constructed across the 
 marshes with the ruins of the abbey. 
 
 Wells {Hotels ; Swan, Star, Mitre ; 
 Pop. 4633) has three rly. stations 
 close to each other to the W. of 
 the city — that of the East Somerset 
 branch of the Gt. Western, from 
 Witham on the Yeovil and Wey- 
 mouth line ; that of the Glaston- 
 bury branch of the Somerset and 
 Dorset Rly., which joins the Bristol 
 and Exeter line at Highbridge, and 
 the South-Western at Templecombe, 
 and AVimborne, affording communi- 
 cation with the Bristol Channel at 
 Burnham N. and the English Channel 
 at Poole S. ; and that of the Cheddar 
 Valley line which joins the Great 
 Western at Yatton. 
 
 Wells is a city and municipal 
 borough, market and assize town ; 
 abundantly supplied with water from 
 the copious springs which have given 
 it its name ; placed in a position of 
 no ordinary beauty in a basin at the 
 foot of the Mendip Hills, whose out- 
 liers rise round it like islands. 
 {Dulcot Hill may be specially noticed 
 as a detached craggy summit of much 
 beavity.) Wells is perhaps the best 
 example in England of a strictly 
 ecclesiastical city, owing its existence 
 and whatever importance it has had 
 to the religious foundations of which 
 from the time of King Ina (704) it 
 has been the seat. Few towns of its 
 size are so completely destitute of 
 civil history. Happily for its quiet 
 inhabitants, it was not the appan- 
 age of any baronial castle ; the city 
 itself was never protected by any 
 fortified enclosure, nor does it play 
 any part in the military annals of 
 the country, Neither did it enjoy 
 
 any commercial importance. It was 
 not the seat of any considerable 
 manufacture, though at an early 
 date weaving was one of the staple 
 trades, and at a later period silk 
 mills were set on foot. About 250 
 years back it was noted for boots 
 and shoes, and early in this century 
 many hands were employed in the 
 production of knitted hose. Little 
 manufacture of any kind, except 
 brushes, is now carried on, and the 
 city has a drowsy old-world air. 
 
 The only events not strictly eccle- 
 siastical illustrating the annals of 
 Wells are the visit of Henry VH. 
 in 1497, when on his march into 
 the West against Perkin Warbeck ; 
 and its occupation by the Duke of- 
 Monmouth's forces, July 1685, on 
 their retreat from Philips Norton, 
 when they *^tore the lead from the 
 roof of the cathedral to make bullets, 
 and wantonly defaced the ornaments 
 of the building. Grey with diffi- 
 culty preserved the altar from the 
 insults of some ruffians, who wished 
 to carouse round it, by taking his 
 stand before it with his sword drawn.'' 
 — Macaulay. After the defeat of the 
 insurgents a large number of the 
 prisoners were confined at Wells, 
 where they received daily temporal 
 and spiritual relief from the saintly 
 Ken. 
 
 The chief point of interest at Wells 
 is, of course, the Cathedral^ with the 
 Bp.'s Palace, the Deanery, the Vicar's 
 Close, and the other dependent build- 
 ings of the great ecclesiastical esta- 
 blishment, which are here seen in a 
 very unusual state of perfection, ren- 
 dering this city one of the most in- 
 teresting in Europe. To the lover of 
 picturesque and architectural beauty 
 it affords no ordinary attractions ; 
 indeed, the visitor who comes with a 
 mind attuned to the scene around 
 him will not be slow to accept the 
 somewhat eulogistic character given 
 of Wells as " one of the most beau- 
 tiful things in the w^orld." 
 
 A shovt walk, with the towers o,f 
 
Somersetsliire. Boitte 20. — Wells Cathedral. 
 
 285 
 
 the cathedral as our guide, conducts 
 the tourist from the station to the 
 Market Place, whence an ancient gate- 
 way, known as Penniless Porch'* 
 (from alms having been distributed 
 to the poor there), gives access to the 
 Cathedral Close. But perhaps the best 
 point for approaching the cathedral 
 is " Browns Gate," in Sadler-street, 
 at the N.W. corner of the Cathe- 
 dral Green. The full grandeur of 
 the W. front is seen from this point. 
 It rises at the end of a smooth, well- 
 kept lawn, bordered with trees ; and 
 with its towers, the antique front of 
 the Deanery on the jN"., and the ex- 
 quisite Chapter House and Chain 
 Gate to the N.E., forms a group of 
 architectural objects rarely equalled. 
 The Close is certainly inferior to 
 that of Salisbury, and is perhaps 
 surpassed by those of Peterborough 
 and Winchester, but few can visit it 
 without being singularly affected by 
 its calm beauty. There is a profound 
 peace about these precincts ; the 
 feeble sounds of the little town 
 hushed and softened by distance, and 
 all around breathing a holy calm. 
 
 The first ecclesiastical foundation 
 here was a college of secular canons 
 founded by King Ina, 704, and en- 
 dowed with additional privileges by 
 succeeding Kings of Wessex, until 
 the place was selected as the seat 
 of the new bishopric founded by 
 Edward the Elder for Somerset. The 
 first bishop was Athelm, abbot of 
 Glastonbury^, translated to Canter- 
 bury, 914. Giso, the 15th in suc- 
 cession from Athelm, recovered after 
 the Conquest the possessions of the 
 see, which, it is said, ho.d been seized 
 by Harold, during the Confessor's 
 lifetime. He replaced the canons 
 who had been expelled, and caused 
 suitable buildings to be erected for 
 them. His successor, John de Vil- 
 lula, influenced by the desire for 
 safety in times of general disturb- 
 ance, which had led to the trans- 
 ference of so many cathedrals to 
 walled towns, removed the see to 
 
 Bath, which he bought of Hen. I. 
 for 500 pounds of silver, together 
 with the abbey, which he rebuilt 
 from its foundations. This trans- 
 ference naturally gave rise to much 
 jealousy and discord between the 
 men of Bath and Wells, until in the 
 time of his next successor but one, 
 Bishop Robert, 1135-66, it wa.s deter- 
 mined that the bishop should be in 
 future elected by the monks of Bath 
 and the canons of Wells jointly, and 
 should be styled Bishop of Bath 
 and Wells." Another squabble arose 
 in the time of Bishop Savaric, 1192- 
 1205, with the monks of Glaston- 
 bury. Savaric is said to have been 
 a relation of the Emperor Hen. VI. 
 of Germany, and to have received 
 that bishopric from Richard Coeur- 
 de-Lion in return for kindnesses 
 shown to the monarch while in cap- 
 tivity ; stipulation having been pre- 
 viously made that the rich abbey 
 of Glastonbury should be annexed 
 to the see, the Bishop resigning the 
 town of Bath to the King. The 
 monks of Glastonbury stoutly re- 
 sisted this enforced union, and at 
 last on an appeal to Rome, in the 
 episcopate of Bishop Joceline (Trot- 
 man), his successor, 1206-1242, ob- 
 tained its dissolution, on condition 
 of resigning 4 of their best manors 
 to the Bishop. Joceline was one of 
 the greatest benefactors of the see 
 of Wells, having nearly rebuilt the 
 cathedral from the foundations, be- 
 sides the erection of other buildings, 
 and augmented endowments during 
 his 37 years' episcopate — ^^God," 
 says Fuller, ^^to square his great 
 undertakings, giving him a long life 
 to his large heart." Among the sub- 
 sequent prelates we may mention 
 William de la March, 1293-1302, 
 the instigator of the forced loan, by 
 which before the war in Guienne 
 Edw. I. swept into his exchequer 
 the accumulated wealth of the re- 
 ligious houses of his realm. John 
 Drokensford, 1309-1329, appointed 
 guardian of the realm in 1312 during 
 
286 
 
 Boute 20. — Wells Cathedmh Somersetshil^e. 
 
 the absence of Edw. II. in France, 
 but afterwards attached to Queen 
 Isabella's party. ''He took," says 
 an old historian of Wells, "some 
 care of his diocese, but far more of 
 his family." Thos. Beckington, 1443- 
 1464, who emulated William of 
 Wykeham in his love of building, 
 and his architectural skill, his 
 handiwork meeting us at every turn 
 in Wells. Robert Stillington, 1465- 
 1491, Lord High Chancellor 1468, ac- 
 cused of complicity in Simnel's im- 
 posture, and imprisoned at Windsor 
 till his death. Oliver King, 1495- 
 1503, the builder of Bath Abbey 
 Church. Cardinal Wolsey, 1518-23. 
 William Barlow, 1548-54, the first 
 married bishop. Archbishop Laud,. 
 1626-28. Thomas Ken, 1684-90, 
 who from his saintly character is 
 now perhaps the most generally re- 
 membered of all his predecessors 
 and successors in connection with 
 the see of Bath and Wells ; and the 
 intruding Kidder, killed with his 
 wife, as they lay in bed in the palace, 
 by the fall of a stack of chimneys in 
 the great storm commemorated by 
 Defoe, Nov. 26, 1703. 
 
 The Saxon cathedral, which had 
 fallen into complete decay, was re- 
 paired and partly rebuilt by Bishop 
 Hobert, 1135-1166. Bishop Joceline, 
 1206-1242, began to rebuild it on a 
 larger scale and with far greater mag- 
 nificence, retaining, however, a con- 
 siderable portion of the w^alls, espe- 
 cially in the choir. Some part of 
 this new church was consecrated by 
 Bishop Joceline himself in 1239. The 
 existing nave, the 3 first bays of the 
 choir, the transepts, the central toiver 
 as high as the roof, and perhaps the 
 west front of the cathedral, are the 
 work of this bishop. 
 
 About 1286, during the episcopate 
 of Bishop Burnell, 1275-1292, the 
 crypt of the chapter-house seems 
 to have been completed, and the 
 chapter-house itself is generally as- 
 signed to the time of Bishop William 
 de la Marche, 1293-1302. In 1321, 
 
 under Bishop Brolmisford, 1309- 
 1329, the central tower was raised to 
 its present height ; and before 1326 
 the same bishop had seen the com- 
 pletion of the choir by the addition 
 of the 3 easternmost bays, and of 
 the '' novum opus," or Lady-chapel. 
 
 The upper portion of the 8,W, 
 tower was the work of Bishop Hare- 
 well, 1366-1386 ; and the N. W. tower 
 was raised by the executors Bishop 
 Buhwith, 1425, who also built theE. 
 walk of the cloister, with the library 
 over it. The W. cloister-walk and 
 part of the S. were the work of 
 Bishop Beckington, 1443-1464. The 
 latter was completed, soon after 
 Beckington's death, by Thomas 
 Henry, treasurer of Wells. 
 
 The cathedral displays yery rich 
 work of the E. E. period, full of 
 local peculiarities, which distinguish 
 it from any other building of its 
 date, in the nave and transepts ; 
 E. E. of a more usual type in the 
 W. front, and excellent examples 
 of early Dec. in choir, Lady-chapel, 
 and chapter-house. ''Though one 
 of the smallest, it is perhaps, taken 
 altogether, the most beautiful of 
 English cathedrals. The W. towers, 
 above the roof, clerestory and aisle 
 windows, and cloisters, are Perp. 
 Externally, its three well-proportion- 
 ed towers group so gracefully with 
 the chapter-house, the remains of 
 the vicar "s close, the ruins of the 
 bishop's palace, and the tall trees by 
 which it is surrounded, that there 
 is no instance so characteristic of 
 English art, nor an effect so pleasing 
 produced with the same dimensions." 
 — Fergusson, 
 
 The best near views of the cathe- 
 dral are from an eminence on the 
 Shepton-Mallet road, about a quarter 
 of a mile from the city, and from 
 the terrace in the garden of the 
 palace. The former view is very 
 striking, and should not be missed. 
 [To gain the spot take a stile to the 
 1., and follow the path to a stile rt., 
 
Somersetshire. Route 20. — Wells Cathedral, 
 
 287 
 
 KEFERENCES. 
 
 A. Nave. 
 
 B. Chapel of the Holy Cross, under 
 Bubwith's Tower. 
 
 C. Chapel under Harewell's Tower. 
 
 D. North Porch. 
 
 E. South Transept. 
 
 F. North Transept. 
 
 G. Choir. 
 Gci. Presbytery. 
 
 H. South Choir-aisle. 
 
 I. South-east Transept, or Chapel of 
 St. John. 
 
 J. St. Catherine's Chapel. 
 K. Retro-choir, 
 L. Lady-chapel. 
 M, St. Stephen's Chapel. 
 N. North-east Transept. 
 0. North Choir-aisle. 
 P. Chapter-house. 
 Q. Doorway to Central Tower. 
 R. Door to Chapter Library. 
 S. Cloisters. 
 
 wJl'^[ ^^WTl^]Tm1^l^^■lMlll|l^^fl[l11^^ 
 
 REFERENCESt" 
 
 1. Bp. Bubwith's Chantry. | 8. 
 
 2. Dean Sugar's Chantry. i 9. 
 
 3. Dean Husee's Tomb. I 10. 
 
 4. Part of Beckington's Chantry, j il. 
 
 5. Tomb of Chancellor Storth- I 12. 
 
 wit. I 13. 
 
 6. Monument of Lady de Lisle, i 14. 
 
 7. Monument of Bishop de la | 15. 
 
 Marchia. ! 
 
 Tomb of Bp. Cornish. 
 Monument of Bp. Button 11. 
 Effigy of Beckington. 
 Effigy of Bp. Harewell. 
 Dean Gunthorpe's Tomb. 
 Bp. Buruhwold. 
 Bp. Dudoc. 
 
 Bp. Drokensford's Monu- 
 ment. 
 
 16. Bp. Button I. 
 
 17. Bp. Savaricus. 
 
 18. Bp. Ailwin. 
 
 19. Dean Forrest's Tomb, ' 
 
 20. Bp. Creyghton. 
 
 21. Bp. Giso. 
 
 22. Effigy of Bp. Ralph of 
 
 Shrewsbury. 
 * Altar. 
 
 Ground Pla.n of Wells Cathedeal. Scale 100 ft. to 1 in. 
 
288 
 
 Boiite 20. — Wells Cathedral, Somel'setsliird. 
 
 which leads into the coppice whence 
 the view is obtained.] 
 
 The cathedral, with the exception 
 of its pilasters of Purbeck, is built 
 with stone from Doulting, about 
 7 m. from Wells. These quarries, 
 which are still worked, are in the 
 inferior oolite, and the stone differs 
 but little from that of the Bath 
 quarries, which are in the great 
 oolite. The quarry which is said to 
 have supplied the stone for both 
 Wells and Glastonbury is called 
 
 St. Andrew's." 
 
 '*The West front of Wells," says 
 old Fuller, 'Ms a masterpiece of 
 art indeed, made of imagery in just 
 proportion, so that we may call them 
 ' vera et spirantia signa.' England 
 affordeth not the like. For although 
 the west end of Exeter beginneth 
 accordingly, it doth not, like Wells, 
 persevere to the end thereof." The 
 sculptures of its western facade," 
 says a modern critic, " are quite un- 
 rivalled ; and with the architectural 
 accompaniments make up a whole 
 such as can only be found at Rheims 
 or Chartres." — Fergusson. The va- 
 ried outlines, the numberless sculp- 
 tures, and the slender detached shafts 
 which stretch upward tier above tier, 
 still make the facade of this cathe- 
 dral more interesting and more im- 
 pressive than that of any other 
 English cathedral. 
 
 The breadth of the W. front of 
 Wells (147 ft.) is considerably greater 
 than that of the fronts of either 
 Notre-Dame (136 ft.) or of Amiens 
 (116 ft.), both of them contemporary 
 buildings. 
 
 Notwithstanding the marked dif- 
 ference in architectural character 
 between the W. front and the interior 
 of the nave, it is sufficiently clear 
 that both were included in the 
 original design. The whole of the 
 foundations were laid at the same 
 time ; and the lower courses of stone, 
 including the basement mouldings, 
 are continuous, without any break, 
 to the height of about 10 ft. from 
 
 the ground. Above that height there 
 is a change, and it is doubtful 
 whether the W. front was proceeded 
 with before the aisle walls, or other- 
 wise. 
 
 In both style of work and in actual 
 date, the W. front of Wells is in- 
 termediate between the W. fronts of 
 Lincoln and of Salisbury (completed 
 in 1258). It is throughout of de- 
 cidedly E. E, character, and differs 
 in the most marked manner from 
 the nave. Hence Professor Willis 
 has suggested that it was not com- 
 menced until after the death of 
 Bishop Joceline, and it may very 
 possibly have been erected by a dif- 
 ferent body of workmen from those 
 — in all probability belonging to a 
 local school — who built the nave and 
 aisles. Mr. Irvine on the other hand 
 has, after careful examination, con- 
 vinced himself that the erection of 
 the W. front was prior to that of 
 the nave, standing for a time dis- 
 tinct and unsupported, the nave 
 being built afterwards behind it. 
 
 The front consists of a centre, in 
 which are the three lancets of the 
 W. window, and above them a 
 screen to the gable receding in 
 stages, with small pinnacles at the 
 angles ; and of two wings or W. 
 towers, projecting beyond the nave, 
 as at Salisbury. The upper portions 
 of these towers are of Perp. cha- 
 racter, and, from the design, never 
 having been completed, have a some- 
 what truncated appearance. The 
 three W. doors are unusually small, 
 a great defect in this otherwise 
 matchless front. Six buttresses, at 
 the angles of which are slender 
 shafts of Purbeck marble, support- 
 ing canopies, divide the entire front 
 into five portions. 
 
 Tlie identification of t]ie " populus 
 statuarum" which throng the front 
 of the cathedral is still most uncer- 
 tain, notwithstanding the labour be- 
 stowed on the subject by the late 
 Mr. Cockerell.* Below the central 
 * Iconography of Wells Cathedral. 
 
Somersetsliire. Itoute 20. — Wells Cathedral. 
 
 289 
 
 gable six tiers of sculpture may be 
 recognised, all of which encircle 
 the N.W. tower. The first, or 
 lowest, now nearly empty in front, 
 consisted of full-length figures under 
 canopies. The second is a series of 
 small quatrefoils, in which are angels 
 variously arranged. The third con- 
 tains a series of subjects from the 
 Old and New Testaments. The 
 fourth and fifth tiers are of fall- 
 length statues ; and the sixth exhi- 
 bits the final resurrection in a series 
 of small figures of most remarkable 
 character and design. The three 
 stages of the central gable have sta- 
 tues representing the celestial hier- 
 arch}^, the Twelve Apostles, and above 
 all, the Saviour in Majesty. Only 
 the feet of this last figure remain. 
 
 In the tympanum within the porch 
 is the Virgin seated on a throne, 
 treading on a serpent, and support- 
 ing the Divine Infant, displaying re- 
 mains of colour. In a niche above 
 this porch is a coronation of the 
 Virgin ; the heads of the figures are 
 destroyed. 
 
 The number of figures on the 
 entire W. front is upwards of 300, 
 of which 152 are either life-size or 
 colossal. Of the larger figures 21 are 
 crowned kings, 8 crowned queens, 31 
 mitred ecclesiastics, 7 armed knights, 
 and 14 princes or nobles ; the eccle- 
 siastics being to the S. of the cen- 
 tral door, the laymen and females 
 to the JSr. But amongst all the 
 historical statues not one can now 
 be identified, and but one (Edward 
 the Martyr) with any probability 
 guessed at." 
 
 The third tier of sculpture con- 
 tains medallions with subjects from 
 the Old and New Testaments ; the 
 Old on the S. of the central porch, 
 the New on the N. Both commence 
 from the porch, and are divided by 
 the niche containing the coronation 
 of the Virgin. On the S. the subjects 
 still remaining are — The Creation of 
 Man. The Creation of Woman. The 
 Garden of Eden. The Temptation. 
 
 [^Wilts, Dorset, #c., 1882.] 
 
 The Almighty in the Garden. Adam 
 and Eve at Labour. Cain's Sacrifice. 
 The Sentence. Noah Building the 
 Ark. The Ark itself. The Sacrifice 
 on Ararat. Isaac and Rebecca. Isaac's 
 Blessing. The Death of Jacob. 
 
 On the N. are — St. John the Bap- 
 tist. The Nativity. Christ among 
 the Doctors. St. John in the Wil- 
 derness. Mission of the Apostles. 
 Christ in the Wilderness. Christ 
 Preaching. The Anointing. The 
 Transfiguration. — (Proceeding round 
 the tower, on the north side) : The 
 Mount of Olives. The Calling of 
 Nicodemus. The Entry into Jeru- 
 salem. The Consultation with the 
 High Priest. The Last Supper. 
 Christ before Pilate. The Bearing 
 of the Cross. Elevation of the Cross. 
 The Deposition. The Resurrection. 
 The Gift of Tongues. 
 
 A very high value as works of art 
 was attached to the sculptures at 
 Wells by Flaxman, who selected the 
 death of Jacob, the figure of St. 
 John, and the creation of Eve for 
 the beauty of their composition, and 
 made from them careful drawings. 
 '^The work," he says, *'is necessa- 
 rily ill-drawn and deficient in prin- 
 ciple, and much of the sculpture is 
 rude and severe ; yet in parts there 
 is a beautiful simplicity, an irre- 
 sistible sentiment, and sometimes a 
 grace excelling more modern pro- 
 ductions." 
 
 The sixth tier of sculpture contains 
 92 compositions of the General Resur- 
 rection. Startling in significance, 
 pathos, and expression," says Mr. 
 Cockerell, worthy of John of Pisa, 
 or of a greater man, John Flaxman." 
 The whole will repay the artist's 
 most careful examination. 
 
 The figures of angels in the first 
 stage of the central gable represent 
 the 9 orders of the celestial hierarchy. 
 In the stage above are figures of the 
 apostles, St. Andrew and St. John 
 occupying the two central niches, 
 immediately under the feet of the 
 Saviour ; and in the uppermost stage 
 U 
 
290 
 
 Boute 20. — Wells Cathedral. Soinersetsliire< 
 
 was the Saviour in Majesty^ supported 
 on either side by the Virgin and St. 
 John. The circles of the sun and 
 moon, attended by smaller stars, oc- 
 cupy the spandrils above the central 
 niche. 
 
 The bending of the quatrefoiled 
 recesses round the angles is a defect 
 in this generally beautiful composi- 
 tion ; but Professor Willis has truly 
 observed that what looks " strained 
 and stiff now that they are empty, 
 was elegantly relieved when they 
 were filled with sculpture." 
 
 Passing round the I^T.W. angle of 
 the building, the visitor should now 
 inspect the north porch (b), the archi- 
 tectural character of which differs 
 from that of the west front, although 
 it belongs, like it, to the E. Eng. 
 period. It was apparently the work 
 of that local company of artists by 
 whom, according to Professor Willis, 
 the nave itself was built. The en- 
 trance is deeply recessed, and with 
 the inner door has the zigzag orna- 
 ment among its interlacing mould- 
 ings, an indication of lingering Nor- 
 man traditions. The dripstone is 
 formed of a very beautiful combina- 
 tion of E. Eng. foliage. Square 
 panels on either side of the arch con- 
 tain figures of mystic animals, one of 
 which is a cockatrice. In the gable 
 above a small triplet gives light to 
 a parvise chamber. From the flat 
 and narrow buttresses at the angles 
 rise slender spire-capped pinnacles. 
 The interior walls are lined with a 
 double arcade, the upper more deeply 
 recessed than the lower. The vault 
 springs from groups of triple shafts. 
 The capitals on the E. side possibly 
 represent the death of King Edmund 
 the Martyr (a.d. 870)— bound to a 
 tree as a mark for the Danish arrows, 
 and afterwards beheaded. 
 
 The walls of both nave and aisles 
 are capped by a Dec. parapet. The 
 windows of the aisles and clerestory 
 are Perp. The picturesque grouping 
 of the transept, the chapter-house 
 with its staircase, and the Cham-gate 
 
 with the Gallery above it, leading 
 to the Vicar's Close, should here be 
 especially noticed. On the W. but- 
 tress of the l!^". transept is the face 
 of the cloch, with the motto ^''Ne 
 quid pereat." Two figures in armour 
 of the 15th centy. strike the quarters 
 with their battle-axes. 
 
 The visitor should go through this 
 gate and proceed some little distance 
 along the road for the sake of the 
 view of the stately Central Tower, 
 Chapter House, Lady Chapel, and the 
 E. portions of the cathedral. The 
 difference of style between the 3 
 E. and 3 W. bays of the choir is 
 here plainly, and, we may add, dis- 
 agreeably, discernible. In the clere- 
 story of the latter, very plain Dec. 
 windows with simple intersecting 
 mullions have been inserted some 
 distance below the original E. Eng. 
 window arch to range with those of the 
 E. portion, which are rich Dec. with 
 ogee canopies. Another unpleasing 
 distinction is that in the E. bays, 
 the high-pitched roof of the aisles is 
 discontinued, and the clerestory win- 
 dows are brought down to the level 
 of the parapet. 
 
 The Lady-chapel, one of the most 
 beautiful examples of Dec. in Eng- 
 land, has a plan of singular complica- 
 tion. It is an irregular octagon with 
 very fine 5-light Dec. windows, the 
 heads filled with a rich succession of 
 trefoiled triangles, on 5 sides, and 
 is connected with the choir by a 
 low E. transept, which breaks the 
 outline in a very pleasing manner. 
 The chapel is singular in standing 
 entirely clear of the choir, and rising 
 higher than the aisles. The best 
 view of this portion of the ch., one 
 of the most extraordinary beauty 
 and interest, is that from the open 
 space on the S.E., near which are 
 the springs of usually clear crystal- 
 line water — the wells from which 
 the city took its name. 
 
 The Central Tower, rich in orna^ 
 ment, and excellent in proportions, 
 displays a later masking of an earlier 
 
SomersetsMre. Moute 20. — Wells CathedraL 
 
 291 
 
 work. Each face is of 3 bays, with 
 ogee lights, divided by small pin- 
 Dacled buttresses, and spire-crowned 
 turrets at the corners. 
 
 Returning through the Chain Gate 
 to the W. front, the visitor may 
 now enter the Nave (a), restored by 
 Ferrey 1842, which is of excellent 
 proportions. Its chief defect is the 
 continuous line of the triforium ar- 
 cade, unbroken by vaulting shafts, 
 thus severing the elevation into 3 
 distinct horizontal divisions. 
 
 The visitor should immediately 
 take his place at the extreme W. 
 end, from which point an excellent 
 general view is obtained. 
 
 The huge inverted arches beneath 
 the tower, dating from 1337, when it 
 was found necessary to provide addi- 
 tional supportfor the enormous weight 
 of the superstructure, at once attract 
 the attention. Designedly or not, 
 they form the cross of St. Andrew, 
 the patron saint of the cathedral. 
 The view into the choir is injuri- 
 ously intercepted by these arches. 
 It is easy to see marks of the crushing 
 process, due to the weight of the 
 tower, in the nave arcade. The string- 
 courses have been dragged down, and 
 the E. arch on each side entirely re- 
 constructed. The nave is 38 ft. wide 
 between the columns, 82 ft. from 
 wall to wall, including the aisles. 
 The length, from the W. door to 
 the choir, is 192 ft., the height 
 67 ft. 
 
 This nave, commenced by Bishop 
 Joceline (1206-1244), and built 
 throughout during the E. Eng. 
 period, offers some very remark- 
 able peculiarities. " By many this 
 structure would be designated as 
 an E. Eng. cathedral ; but Wells 
 evidently is only a little removed 
 from the K^orman style ; it is only 
 an improved Norman design, worked 
 with considerable ornament: the 
 mouldings in particular are of an 
 especial richness. The E. E. style of 
 architecture originally (in all proba- 
 bility) came from the French, and 
 
 there must have been in this district 
 a school of masons who continued 
 working with their own companions, 
 in their own style, long after the E.E, 
 style was introduced and practised in 
 this country." — Willis. The cause 
 probably was the possession of good 
 stone in the district. 
 
 The whole of the nave is of this 
 character, but a careful examination 
 will show 2, if not 3, very distinct 
 periods in the masonry and details. 
 The heads of a king and bishop, 
 which project on the S. side, 
 between the 4th and 5th piers (count- 
 ing from the AV.), mark the point of 
 change. These differences seem to 
 prove that the work was begun at 
 both ends, and that the central divi- 
 sion is the latest. All may be ac- 
 cepted as the work of Bishop 
 Joceline. 
 
 The nave is of 10 bays, divided 
 by octangular piers, with clustered 
 shafts in groups of 3. The capitals 
 are enriched with E.E. foliage, much 
 of which is of unusually classical cha- 
 racter — one of the many indications of 
 a lingering local school with its Nor- 
 man traditions. Birds, animals, and 
 monsters of various forms twine and 
 perch among the foliage. Above the 
 pier-arches runs the triforium, very 
 deeply set, extending to the interior 
 of the triforium gallery. The narrow 
 lancet openings are arranged in 
 groups of 3, with thick wall -plates 
 between them. The head of each 
 lancet is filled vd.th a solid tym* 
 panum, displaying foliage and gro- 
 tesques, of which those toward the 
 upper end of the S. side are especi- 
 ally curious. Triple shafts, with en- 
 riched capitals, form the vaulting- 
 shafts, the corbels supporting which 
 deserve examination. A clerestory 
 window (the tracery is Perp., inserted 
 by Bishop Beckington, 1443-1464) 
 opens between each bay of the vault- 
 ing, which is groined, with moulded 
 ribs, and bosses of foliage at the 
 intersections. The interlacing pat- 
 tern in red, traced on the vaulting, 
 u 2 
 
292 
 
 Boute 20. — Weils CathedraL Somersetsliire* 
 
 is a restoration of the original design 
 discovered on the removal of the 
 whitewash. 
 
 In the central bay, S. of the nave, 
 level with the clerestory, is the 
 music gallery, of early Perp. charac- 
 ter, the front divided into 3 panels, 
 with large quatrefoils containing 
 shields. 
 
 The W. end and window are best 
 seen from the upper part of the nave, 
 under the tower-arches. The lower 
 part of the wall presents an arcade of 
 5 arches, of which the central arch, 
 wider than the rest, is pierced for 
 the double W. door. The window 
 above is a triplet, divided by triple 
 shafts, springing from the wall with- 
 out bases. These shafts have Perp. 
 mouldings, and there is a Perp. 
 parapet at the sill, indicating that 
 this part of the interior was partially 
 rebuilt during the 15th cent., al- 
 though the original design was not 
 altered. 
 
 The cinque-cento glass in this 
 window was principally collected on 
 the continent by Dean Creyghton 
 (afterwards bishop, 1670-1672). It 
 illustrates the life (legendary as well 
 as authentic) of St. John the Baptist, 
 and was brought partly from Eouen 
 and partly from Cologne. The date 
 1507 is traceable on one of the lights. 
 The figures of King Ina and of Bishop 
 Ealph of Shrewsbury are Perp., and 
 possibly formed part of the glazing 
 toward which Bishop Harewell, 
 about 1385, gave 100 marks. 
 
 The side aisles are of the same 
 character as the nave, and the same 
 two periods may be traced in them. 
 The windows, like those of the clere- 
 story, were filled with Perp. tracery 
 by Bishop Beckington. 
 
 Opening from the aisles are chapels 
 in the two W. towers (b, c), both 
 true E. E., with the same ringed 
 shafts as on the exterior. The S.W. 
 tower contains a peal of eight bells, 
 and a doorway opens from it into the 
 W. walk of the cloisters. In the 
 JS^.W. tower is the chapel of the Holy 
 
 Cross, now used as the Consistory 
 Court. 
 
 The beautiful chantries between 
 the 2nd and 3rd piers (counting from 
 the E.) are those of Bishop Bubwith 
 and Dr. Hugh Sugar. The screen- 
 work and cornices of Bishop Bub- 
 icith's chantry (1), d. 1424, on the 
 N. side, are of extreme grace and 
 delicacy. The arms of the bishop 
 appear on the interior of the chan- 
 try, all the details of which are well 
 worth examination. 
 
 To the S. the chantry of Hugh Sugar 
 (2) d. 1489, Treasurer of Wells, and 
 one of Bishop Beckington's executors, 
 although of the same general cha- 
 racter as Bishop Bubwith's, exhibits 
 many indications of a later style. 
 The fan -tracery of the roof, and the 
 canopied niches above the altar, de- 
 serve notice. On the cornice are 
 angels (compare those on Bishop 
 Beckington's chantry) bearing shields 
 with the five sacred wounds, the 
 cypher of the founder, his arms, 3 
 sugar-loaves surmounted by a doctor's 
 cap, and the arms of Glastonbury 
 Abbey. 
 
 The stone pulpit, adjoining the 
 chantry, was the work of Bisho]) 
 Knight (1541-1547), who is buried 
 near it. On the front is his shield of 
 arms. The inscription surrounding 
 it runs, " Preache thou the worde ; 
 be fervent in season and out of season, 
 reprove, rebuke, exhort, in all long- 
 soffryng and doctryne. II Tim." 
 
 From the nave we pass into the 
 Transept, Both transepts are E. E., 
 but earlier than the nave. Both 
 have E. and W. aisles, with 3 windows 
 at the N. and S. ends, and a triplet 
 in the place of the clerestory. In 
 each the triforium is arranged in 
 groups of 2 openings, and has none 
 of the rich ornamentation which it 
 displays in the nave. The vaulting- 
 shafts spring from corbels below the 
 triforium between each 2 openings. 
 
 The capitals of the piers in both 
 transepts display great richness and 
 variety, but those in the S. transept 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Wells Catliedral. 
 
 293 
 
 are especially curious and interesting. 
 On the first pier of the W. aisle 
 remark the small figure of Elias 
 (Moses, with the tablets of the law, 
 is similarly placed in the opposite 
 transept). On the second pier is a 
 figure extracting a thorn from the 
 foot, a man with the toothache, and 
 other grotesque subjects. The third 
 pier tells a story at length. Begin- 
 ning at the side nearest the S. 
 window, we have, 1 . two men stealing 
 grapes from a vineyard ; 2. the dis- 
 covery of the theft by the vine- 
 dressers, one of whom carries a 
 pitchfork ; o. one of the thieves is 
 caught by the ear, and threatened 
 with the pitchfork ; and 4. the second 
 is caught and receives castigation 
 with the pitchfork. The spirit and 
 expression of all these sculptures are 
 admirable. 
 
 The E. aisle of the S. transept is 
 divided into two chapels, with Dec. 
 windows. The chapel of St. Calixtus, 
 nearest the choir, contains the monu- 
 ment, with effigy, of Dean Husee (3), 
 d. 1305. The eight panels in front 
 of the tomb display alternately 
 shields and sculptured figures, the 
 latter representing the Annunciation 
 and the Eternal Father holding the 
 crucifix. Between are three figures 
 of ecclesiastics with books. The 
 screen and canopy above are Perp. 
 
 Against the E. end of this chapel 
 is placed a portion of the chantry 
 with a very elaborate canopy, of 
 Bishop Beckington (4) (d. 1464), un- 
 wisely removed from the choir-aisle. 
 It has been richly coloured. The 
 vine-carving of the cornice should be 
 remarked, as well as the ironwork, 
 which formed part of the original 
 chantry, and now divides this chapel 
 from the choir-aisle. 
 
 In the chapel, called St. Martins, 
 and now used as the canons' vestry, 
 is the tomb, with effigy, of John 
 Storthwit (5j, Chancellor of Wells 
 (d. 1454). The canopy is much 
 enriched. At the back are traces of 
 a door which opened to the former 
 
 Lady-chapel, and the chapel of Bishop 
 Stillington^ destroyed soon after its 
 erection. 
 
 Among the monuments against 
 the S. wall of the transept is that of 
 Joanna^ Vicountess Lisle ( 6), d. 1464, 
 an arched canopy, with remains 
 of rich painting, discovered in 1809, 
 and the inscription restored (Lady 
 Lisle was the daughter of Thomas 
 Cheddar. Her husband was the son 
 of John Talbot, the celebrated Earl 
 of Shrewsbury, under whom he 
 served in France, and was killed at 
 the^battle of Chatillon, 1453) ; and 
 that of Bishop William de la Mar- 
 che (7) (d. 1302). The effigy lies 
 in a recess below the central win- 
 dow, enclosed in front by a screen ot 
 three open arches with rich canopies. 
 The canopy has been richly coloured. 
 
 The font in this transept is late 
 Norm. A door in the S.W. angle 
 leads to the cloisters ; a smaller one 
 (r) to the chapter library ; and one in 
 the S.E. angle to the central tower. 
 
 The N. trans, is of precisely the 
 same architectural character as the 
 S. All the sculptures — the capitals 
 of the piers and the corbels of the 
 vaulting-shafts — should be noticed. 
 On the capitals remark the figure of 
 Moses. 
 
 The W. aisle of this transept is 
 closed by a heavy screen of Perp. 
 date, and was divided into two 
 chapels. In the E. aisle (which has 
 Decorated windows, and, like that in 
 tlie S. trans., is probably altogether 
 of later date) are the tombs of Bp. 
 Still, d. 1607 : the effigy vested in 
 scarlet ; Bishop Kidder, killed in 
 the great storm, 1703, his wife and 
 daughter ; and Thomas Cornish (8), 
 d. 1513, *^ Tinensis Episcopus,'' titu- 
 lar bishop of Tenos in the Archipe- 
 lago, and suff'ragan of Bath and Wells 
 from 1486 to 1513. Adjoining this 
 tomb is a door opening to the chap- 
 ter-house staircase. 
 
 In the transept stands a large 
 lectern of brass, the gift of Dean 
 Creyghton, afterwards bishop. The 
 
294 
 
 Boute 20.— Wells Catliedral. Somersetshire. 
 
 inscription runs : — Dr. Eobert 
 Creyghton, upon his returns from 
 15 years exile with our soveraigne 
 lord King Charles II., made Deane 
 of Wells in the yeare 1660, gave this 
 brazen deske with God's holy worde 
 thereon to the saide Cathedrall 
 Church." 
 
 The very curious clocli in this 
 transept was originally the work 
 of Peter Lightfoot, a monk of Glas- 
 tonbury, about 1325, somewhat 
 earlier than that in the cathedral of 
 Exeter. The faces of both show the 
 hour of the day, the age of the moon, 
 and the position of the planets. 
 Above the dial-plate is a platform, 
 on which are four mounted figures, 
 which formerly, as the clock pro- 
 claimed the hour, started into action 
 and hurried rapidly round. Their 
 movements are now exhibited only 
 for the gratification of visitors, but 
 the quarters are still struck by a 
 sitting figure in the N.W. angle, 
 which uses its heels for the purpose. 
 The works of this clock are entirely 
 new. 
 
 The inverted arches^ supporting 
 the central tower, may be examined 
 before entering the choir. The effect 
 as seen from the nave-aisles and 
 from the angles of the transepts, is 
 singular, but far from agreeable. 
 The enormous support and strength 
 afforded by them is, however, evident. 
 The tower itself is of E. Eng. 
 date as far as the roofs. In 1318 
 the canons voluntarily taxed them- 
 selves to the extent of a fifth part of 
 their income in order to raise this 
 tower, which was accordingly carried 
 up three more stages, and completed 
 in 1321. In 1337 and 1338 convoca- 
 tions were called in great dismay on 
 account of a settlement in the work 
 of the tower, which had caused ex- 
 tensive fractures or cracks. In order 
 to remedy this, the double arches 
 were inserted ; the original arches 
 were patched and filled in with large 
 blocks of stone ; and the adjoining 
 at'ches of the triforium were blocked 
 
 up to transmit part of the weight in 
 a lateral direction. The fan-tracery 
 of the vault is Perp., and probably 
 the work of Bishop Beckington. 
 
 The choir-screen, Dec, has been 
 enlarged in order to support the 
 organ. The entrances to the choir- 
 aisles, very beavitiful late Dec, 
 should especially be noticed. The 
 organ, originally built in 1664, under 
 the direction of Dean, afterwards Bp., 
 Creyghton (himself a musician of no 
 common order, whose services and 
 anthems are still in use) was entirely 
 rebuilt, enlarged, and improved by 
 Willis in 1848. 
 
 The choir (g) was restored under 
 the [direction of Mr. Salvin, 1848- 
 1854. The stone stalls, pulpit, and 
 the arrangements about the altar, 
 are entirely new ; the lierne vault- 
 ing of very unusual pattern has been 
 decorated in polychrome. 
 
 The first 3 piers and arches of 
 the choir are E. E., of the same 
 character as those of the nave and 
 transepts, and are probably the work 
 of Bishop Joceline. In all proba- 
 bility these 3 bays formed a pres- 
 bytery, the ritual choir occupying 
 the space under the tower, and 3 
 bays of the nave. The eastern por- 
 tion, including the whole of the 
 vaulting, as well as the face of the 
 triforium and clerestory above the 
 first 3 bays, is an addition in rich 
 early Dec. (geometrical). An entry 
 among the chapter muniments — 
 from which it appears that in 1325 
 the canons commenced the erection 
 of new stalls, each canon agreeing to 
 pay for his own stall out of his own 
 resources — seems to establish a date 
 for this portion of the choir, which 
 was probably nearly completed in 
 that year. 
 
 The tabernacle-work, masking the 
 E. E. triforium which remains behind, 
 and the window-tracery of the first 
 3 bays, although of the same 
 date, are less rich than those of the 
 eastern half of the choir. In this lat- 
 i ter portion remark the triple-banded 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Wells Cathedral, 
 
 295 
 
 shafts of Purbeck, carried quite to 
 the roof as vaTilting-shafts, and the 
 tabernacle-work occupying the place 
 of the triforium, deeper and wider 
 than in the lower bays. Under each 
 arch is a short triple shaft, supporting 
 a bracket richly carved in foliage, 
 which has evidently been studied 
 from natiu-e. 
 
 The E. end of the choir is formed 
 by 3 arches, supported b}^ slender 
 piers, above which is some very rich 
 tabernacle work, surmounted by an 
 E. window of unusual design. At 
 the back of the altar, and between 
 the piers, is a low diapered screen, 
 beyond which are seen the arches 
 and stained windows of the retro- 
 choir and Lady-chapel. This screen 
 is part of the new work, and the ex- 
 cellent effect obtained by it — at once 
 revealing and concealing the portions 
 beyond it — is singularly picturesque. 
 The modern encaustic tiles and the 
 brass altar - rail should also be 
 noticed. 
 
 The choir-stalls are entirely modern, 
 and are arranged in groups of 5 
 within each arch, and not, as in 
 ancient arrangements, in front of 
 them unbrokenly. Though greater 
 width is thus gained for the choir, 
 the novelty is hardly to be com- 
 mended. 
 
 The old misereres are replaced in 
 the lower seats. They are early 
 Dec, and exhibit the usual gro- 
 tesques and foliage. 
 
 The pulpit, carved from a solid 
 block of freestone, was the gift of 
 Dean Jenkyns and his wife in 1853. 
 The hislwp's throne, surmounted by 
 a canopy in three compartments, is 
 said to have been erected by Bishop 
 Beckington about 1450, but is pro- 
 bably earlier. 
 
 Of the stained glass in the choir, 
 that in the E. and 2 adjoining 
 windows is ancient, dating from 
 the early part of the 14th centy. 
 (about 1330), and is. therefore the 
 original glazing ; the choir itself, 
 it has already been seen, was ap- 
 
 proaching completion in 1325. The 
 E. window is of singular design. 
 The lower lights are filled with a 
 stem of Jesse, terminating, as at 
 Bristol, with our Saviour on the 
 Cross, and the tracery lights with a 
 representation of the Day of Judg- 
 ment. The central figure in the 
 lower line is that of Jesse, the others 
 are not easily distinguished. The first 
 figure in the upper line is unknown. 
 The remaining six are — Abraham, 
 David — in the centre the Virgin and 
 Child — Solomon, Daniel, and Uzziah. 
 
 The clerestory windows had ori- 
 ginally a figure and canopy in each 
 of their lower lights. ^' One of the 
 figures, in the north window next 
 the east, represents St. George, hel- 
 meted, and clad in a surcoat which 
 reaches to the knee. The rest of 
 his person is defended with mail. 
 The costume of this figure appears to 
 harmonise with the date assigned to 
 the glass. In the tracery lights of 
 this window is a continuation of the 
 Judgment in the east window." — 
 Winston. 
 
 The S. choir -aisle, which we now 
 enter from the transept, is of the 
 same architectural character as the 
 choir, the first three bays being E. E., 
 and the rest Dec. The tracery of 
 the windows, however, is through- 
 out late Dec. (curvilinear). All the 
 windows contain fragments of stained 
 glass, of various dates, but of no 
 very especial interest. 
 
 Against the wall of the choir, near 
 the W. end of the aisle, is a low 
 cofiin-shaped slab of Purbeck, with 
 an incised episcopal effigy. This is 
 the monument of Bishop Button II. 
 {9), d. 1274, whose life was one of 
 great sanctity, and whose reputation, 
 after death, as a curer of the tooth- 
 ache, rivalled that of St. Apollonia. 
 His tomb was resorted to from all 
 parts of the diocese. This (with the 
 exception perhaps of two figures of 
 abbots at St. Denys, which may date 
 about 1260) is the most ancient ex - 
 ample of an incised slab which has 
 
296 
 
 Houte 20. — Wells Cathedral. Somersetshire. 
 
 been noticed either in England or 
 on the continent. 
 
 Above is the effigy of Bishop BecJi- 
 ington (10), d. 1464, the great bene- 
 factor of Wells. The canopy under 
 which it formerly lay, which the 
 bishop had constructed for himself, 
 projected into the choir, and was 
 removed during the late restorations 
 to the chapel of St. Calixtus. It is 
 much to be regretted that it should 
 have been found necessary to in- 
 terfere at all with the last resting- 
 place of so distinguished a prelate. 
 The monument consists of two stages. 
 On the upper is the effigy of the 
 bishop ; on the lower an emaciated 
 figure in a winding-sheet, the me- 
 mento mori so much in favour at 
 this period. The whole shows re- 
 mains of colour. The ironwork en- 
 closing the monument is decorated 
 with small heads, and should be 
 noticed. It was to this chantry that 
 the mayor and corporation of Wells 
 used to repair in solemn procession 
 annually, in order to pray for the 
 repose of the bishop, who had done 
 so much for them and for their 
 city. 
 
 Beyond this tomb is the effigy of 
 Bishop Hareivell {11), d. 1386, suffi- 
 ciently identified by the 2 hares at 
 the feet. 
 
 In the Chapel of St. John the 
 Evangelist (i), forming the short E. 
 transept opening from this aisle, 
 is the plain altar-tomb of Dean 
 Gunthorpe (12), d. 1475, who built 
 the more ancient portions of the exist- 
 ing deanery. In the centre of the 
 transept is a very beautiful coped 
 monument, by Forsyth, of Dean 
 Jenhyns (d. 1854) and his wife. 
 
 The Dec. piscina, with its canopy, 
 at the E. end of this transept, should 
 be noticed. At the angle between 
 the transept and the retro-choir is a 
 monument with effigy, possibly that 
 of Bishop Button I. (16), d. 1269. It 
 retains traces of colour. 
 
 Against the S. wall of St. Cathe- 
 rine's Cha;pel (j), eastward of the 
 
 transept, are 2 effigies of early 
 bishops, both of E. E. character (as is 
 evident from the foliage and details), 
 and assigned to the mythical Bishop 
 Burhwold (13), c. 1000, and Bishop 
 Duduc (14), 1059. In the N. choir- 
 aisle are 3 other effigies of very 
 similar character, and to all appear- 
 ance of the same date. In the crypt 
 of the chapter- house are 2 more. 
 It is not impossible that under 
 Bishop Joceline and his successors, 
 by whom the E. E. portions of the 
 cathedral were built, a series of monu- 
 ments were erected for the earlier 
 bishops. 
 
 At the end of this chapel is a 
 sitting figure by Chantrey of John 
 Phelips, Esq., of Montacute. The 
 glass in the window above it is frag- 
 mentary, but very rich in colour. 
 
 Near the early bishops is the 
 tomb, with a lofty, shrine-like ca- 
 nopy, of Bishop Drohensford (15), 
 d. 1329, during whose episcopate, in 
 all probability, the choir and Lady- 
 chapel were completed. The grace 
 and beauty of the canopy are espe- 
 cially noticeable, as well as the deli- 
 cate carving of all its details. The 
 E. portion has been recently deco- 
 rated in colour. 
 
 The beauty of the retro-choir^ or 
 '^procession aisle," the arrangement 
 of its piers and clustered columns, 
 and the admirable manner in which 
 it unites the Lady-chapel with the 
 choir, should here be remarked. It 
 is throughout early Dec. The 4 
 supporting pillars and shafts are 
 placed ivithm the line of the choir- 
 piers, thus producing the unusual 
 intricacy and variety of the eastward 
 view from the choir. 
 
 The Lady -chapel (l), a building 
 of the very best age, and of extreme 
 beauty, forms a pentagonal apse, in 
 each side of which is a large window 
 filled with early Dec. (geometrical) 
 tracery. The Lady -chapel is nearly 
 of the same date as the choir, and 
 was certainly completed in 1326. 
 The rich vaulted roof, springing 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Wells CathedraL 
 
 297 
 
 from triple slmfts at the angles, 
 and the reredos, of the same cha- 
 racter as the tabernacle-work in the 
 choir, should be noticed. An arcade 
 runs below the windows. The Lady- 
 chapel, like the nave and transepts, 
 was restored by Mr. Ferrey. The 
 pavement is of encaustic tiles, and 
 contains the brass of Dean Good- 
 enough, d. 1845. 
 
 The stained glass with which the 
 windows are filled is of the same 
 date as the ancient glass in the 
 choir. Except the E. window, it 
 is a confused mass of fragments, 
 the colouring of which, however, 
 is superb. The E. window has 
 been restored by Willement. The 
 tracery -lights are filled with angels 
 bearing the instruments of the 
 Passion. 
 
 At the extreme end of the N, 
 choir-aisle, in St. Stephen's Chapel 
 (m), are two effigies, assigned to 
 hishop Living (17), d. 1012, and 
 Bishop Mhelwyn (18), c. 1023. 
 
 In the small N.E. transept (n) are 
 the tombs of Dean Forrest (19) with 
 effigy (d. 1446); of Chancellor MZ^ow, 
 c. 1337 ; and of Bishops Berkeley, d. 
 1584, and Creyghton (20), d. 1672. 
 Some fragments of the original tiles 
 remain, and a sculpture of the Ascen- 
 sion has been removed here from the 
 cloister. 
 
 Against the wall of the choir is an 
 effigy, with E. E. foliage and details, 
 assigned to Bishop Giso (21), d. 1088. 
 It belongs to the same period as 
 those in the opposite aisle. Below 
 it is the fine effigy of Bishop Balph 
 of Shrewsbury (22), d. 1363. Bemark 
 the infula, or fillet twisted round 
 the staff of the crozier, and the large 
 jewelled ornaments at the back of 
 the gloves. 
 
 A low door on the N. side of this 
 aisle opens to a vaulted passage lead- 
 ing to the crypt of tlie Chapter house, 
 of much earlier date than the super- 
 structure. The passage is lighted by 
 3 small windows. A stone lanthorn 
 in the wall, on the rt. near the door 
 
 of the crypt itself, should be noticed. 
 This door, which opens inward, is 
 covered with fine old ironwork. 
 
 Like the chapter-house itself, the 
 crypt is octangular ; and an octa- 
 gonal pier surrounded by circular 
 shafts rises in the centre. The vault- 
 ing-ribs which spring from these 
 shafts rest again on 8 round pillars, 
 about 6 ft. high, and placed at no 
 great distance from the central pier. 
 A second series of arched vaultings 
 is carried from the pillars to brackets 
 between the narrow windows, 12 in 
 number. Close within the door is 
 a curious piscina, in the hollow of 
 which is sculptured a dog gnawing 
 a bone. 
 
 Here are preserved 2 effigies of 
 early bishops, both of E. E. character, 
 and resembling those already no- 
 ticed. Here are also an ancient cope 
 chest ; a wooden lanthorn, said to 
 have been brought from Glaston- 
 bury; and the old works of the 
 Glastonbury clock, and other anti- 
 quities. 
 
 From the E. aisle of the N". tran- 
 sept a door opens to the fine stair- 
 case which ascends to the Chapter- 
 house. It is lighted by 2 geo- 
 metrical windows, W. The corbels 
 supporting the first vaulting- shafts 
 on either side, representing a monk 
 and a nun trampling on serpents, 
 should be noticed. The staircase is 
 not unworthy of the magnificent 
 chapter-house to which it leads, the 
 finest example of its date in England. 
 It is generally assigned to the epis- 
 copate of William de la Marche 
 (1293-1302), and is, at all events, 
 nearly of this date, being throughout 
 early Dec. (geometrical). 
 
 Like the crypt below, the chapter- 
 house is octagonal, and has a central 
 pier with 16 shafts, from which the 
 ribs of the vaulting radiate. The 
 windows, 8 in number, are filled with 
 very fine geometrical tracery, and 
 surrounded by hollow mouldings 
 enriched with the ball-flower. Some 
 fragments of stained glas^ remain, 
 
298 
 
 Boiite 20, — Wells; Bishop's Palace. Somersetsliire. 
 
 among which are the arms of Morti- 
 mer, and of France and England, 
 quarterly. Below the windows an 
 arcade runs round the walls. At the 
 springs of the arches are sculptured 
 heads full of expression, kings, 
 bishops, monks, ladies, jesters ; and 
 at the angles, grotesques of various 
 kinds. 
 
 The double arches at the entrance 
 show traces of a door on the exterior. 
 Remark the curious boss in the 
 vaulting, composed of 4 bearded ' 
 faces. The diameter of the chapter- 
 house is 50 ft., its height 41 ft. 
 Its unusual features are — its sepa- 
 ration from the cloisters, from which 
 the chapter-house generally opens ; 
 and its crypt or lower story, which 
 rendered necessary the staircase by 
 which it is approached. 
 
 Beyond the chapter -house the 
 staircase ascends, through a Perp. 
 doorway, to the gallery over the 
 diam-gate, built 1459 by Bishop 
 Beckington, which connects the Vi- 
 cars^ College with the cathedral. 
 Through the gallery the vicars could 
 pass from their own close into the 
 cathedral. The common hall of their 
 college opens from it. 
 
 Returning to the cathedral, the 
 visitor may ascend the central toiver 
 182 ft. high, by a staircase opening 
 from the S.E. angle of the S. tran- 
 sept. A magnificent view is com- 
 manded from the roof. The position 
 of the cathedral, rising from the 
 centre of the valley, is perhaps better 
 understood from here than from any 
 other point. 
 
 A doorway in the same transept 
 leads to the chapter library, built over 
 the E. walk of the cloister by the exe- 
 cutors of Bishop BuhwWi, c. 1425, and 
 said to have been largely furnished 
 with books by Bishop Lahe (1616- 
 1626). It now contains about 3000 
 volumes, among which are many that 
 belonged to Bishop Ken, and were 
 left by him to his former cathedral. 
 His own copy of Bishop Andrewes' 
 * Devotions' is here, as well as a large 
 
 and important collection of pam- 
 phlets relating to the public events 
 of his time. Other treasures of the 
 library are — the Aldine edition of 
 Aristotle, with the autograph and 
 manuscript notes of Erasmus; the 
 Etymologicon of Isidorus, a manu- 
 script of the 14th centy., &c. A 
 great number of iron chains, by which 
 the volumes were formerly attached 
 to the desks, are preserved here. 
 
 From the S.W. angle of the tran- 
 sept we pass into the cloisters which, 
 as at Chichester and Hereford, have 
 only 3 sides or walks, instead of 4, 
 as the canons of Wells were not 
 monks, they did not require a clois- 
 ter in the ordinary sense. This is 
 merely an ornamental walk round the 
 cemetery. It did not lead to either 
 dormitory, refectory, or chapter- 
 house. It served as a passage to 
 the bishop's palace ; and the wall 
 of the E. walk is E. E. of the same 
 date as the palace itself. From this 
 walk a chapel opened, now destroyed, 
 traces of which are seen in the inter- 
 ruption of the stone bench, and the 
 rich panelling of the arch on the 
 outside. The rest of the E. walk was 
 built by the executors of Bishop Bub- 
 with ; the W. by Bishop Beckington, 
 who also commenced the S. side, which 
 was completed soon after his death 
 by Treasurer Henry. The lavatory in 
 the E. walk should be remarked, as 
 well as the grotesque bosses of the 
 roof in the portion built by Bishop 
 Beckington. Over the W. cloister is 
 the Chapter Grammar-school. The 
 central space is known as the ' ' Palm 
 Churchyard," from the yew-tree in 
 its centre, the branches of which 
 were formerly carried in procession 
 as palms. 
 
 The mural tablets and monuments 
 removed from the cathedral have 
 been arranged on the walls of the 
 cloisters. 
 
 From the S.E. angle of the clois- 
 ters the visitor may proceed to the 
 Bisliop's Palace, surrounded by a 
 moat fed from St. Andrew's or the 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Wells ; Bishop's Palace, 299 
 
 ^' bottomless well," and defended by- 
 walls and bastions capable of sustain- 
 ing a long siege by a mediaeval enemy. 
 Both walls and moat were the work 
 of Bp. Ralph of Shrewsbury (1329- 
 1365). 
 
 The Bishop's Palace was origin- 
 ally built hj Bishop Joceline, 1205- 
 1244, in the form of a quadrangle, 
 the present house forming the E. 
 side. On the N. were the kitchen 
 and offices, which have been much 
 altered and partly rebuilt ; on the S. 
 the chapel, rebuilt by Bishop Bur- 
 nell, 1274-1292 ; on the W. was a 
 curtain wall and gatehouse, now 
 destroyed. The present Gatehouse 
 through which the visitor enters the 
 palace is plain 14th-cent. work, with 
 square flanking turrets, a groined 
 entrance, the chains of a drawbridge, 
 and the grooves of a portcullis, built 
 by Bishop Ralph of Shrewsbury, 
 1337-1340. On passing under the 
 vaulted archway the visitor has in 
 front the ruins of the Great Hall, 
 and the restored chapel, and the 
 habitable part of the palace to the 
 1. The main building of the palace, 
 the work of Bishop Joceline, re- 
 mains to a great extent as origi- 
 nally built, though with many minor 
 alterations and adaptations, includ- 
 ing the upper story with gabled 
 dormers, added to the W. front by 
 Bishop Bagot, 1840. It consists of 
 a long parallelogram divided length- 
 wise at about one-half of its width 
 by a solid wall ; the narrower por- 
 tion forming the entrance vestibule 
 below, and a gallery above. The 
 whole of the basement story is 
 vaulted throughout with a good E. 
 E. ribbed vault. This is supported 
 in the wider half by a row of small 
 pillars down the centre ; the space of 
 which was probably divided by 
 wooden partitions into store rooms 
 and cellars. It is now used as a 
 dining-hall. At the N.E. corner a 
 square building projects which forms 
 the bishop's study above, with a 
 modern oriel window. 
 
 The fireplace in the entrance vesti- 
 bule is of the time of Henry VII., 
 Bishop Oliver King ; a rich Jaco- 
 bean staircase gives access to the 
 upper floor, which has always con- 
 tained the principal apartments. The 
 whole length of the W. front is occu- 
 pied by the Gallery, a fine room 
 84 ft. long, lighted by the original 
 E. E. windows, of two 3-foiled lights 
 with a quatrefoil over, all contained 
 under a flat 3-foiled escoinson arch 
 supported on shafts with rich capitals. 
 The walls are hung with portraits 
 of the bishops, including Wolsey in 
 his cardinal's robes, the martial 
 Mews, the saintly Ken, the intru- 
 ding Kidder, crushed to death with- 
 in these walls by the fall of a chimney 
 in the great storm. To the E. of 
 the gallery are the chief rooms : 
 the Library, looking S. ; the Draw- 
 ing Boom, with a rich but heavy 
 ceiling ; and the Dining Boom, com- 
 municating with the bishop's study, 
 which has an access by a modern 
 newel staircase with the garden. 
 The whole of the windows of these 
 rooms are of the same E. E. type 
 as those of the gallery, but some- 
 what later ; those in the N. and S. 
 gables are remarkably fine. They 
 are original, but restored by Mr, 
 Ferrey. 
 
 The Kitchens and offices occupy 
 the N. wing, overhanging the moat. 
 This wing was enlarged, and oriel 
 windows added, by Bishop Clerk, 
 1523-1540. The bosses of the win- 
 dows bear his rebus. The corner 
 tower at the N.E. is also Bishop 
 Clerk's work. 
 
 The Chapel (52 ft. by 26 ft. with- 
 in) occupies the site of the S. wing 
 of Joceline's building, which pro- 
 bably included a chapel on the upper 
 floor ; and the practised eye will 
 see traces of the earlier prelate's 
 work in the staircase turrets at the 
 angles, and in the wall of the hall 
 adjacent to the chapel. The exist- 
 ing chapel was built by Bishop Bur- 
 nell, 1274-1292, and is a beautiful 
 
300 
 
 Bon te 20, — Wells; Becmery. Somersetshire. 
 
 example of Dec. work. It is of 3 
 bays, with a 3-liglit window in each, 
 a rich 6 -light window to the E., 
 and a plainer one of 5 lights to the 
 W. of later date. The whole is 
 covered by a very rich groined, vault. 
 There are good sedilia and a piscina. 
 The W. door is E. E. There is a 
 low side window in the S. side wall 
 towards the W. end. This chapel, 
 which had been allowed to fall into 
 decay, was restored by Bishops Law 
 and Bagot, and is now appropriately 
 fitted up. 
 
 The Great Hall (115 ft. by 60 ft.) 
 joins the chapel at the S.W. angle, 
 and is also the work of Bishop Bur- 
 nell, but somewhat later. It was 
 a structure of unusual size and mag- 
 nificence, of 5 bays in length, and 
 divided by arcades into a centre and 
 side aisle. The 2 -light windows 
 are admirable examples of early 
 Dec, It was dismantled by Sir 
 John Gates, who had purchased 
 the palace for the sake of the 
 materials, 1552, after the execution 
 of the Duke of Somerset, to whom 
 Bishop Barlow had alienated it in 
 1550, and only the N. and W. walls 
 and the angular turrets, of which 
 that to the N.E. may be ascended 
 for the view, remain. It is some 
 consolation to the antiquary to 
 know that Gates himself was be- 
 headed in 1553 for complicity in 
 Lady Jane Grey's attempt on the 
 throne. The ruin was completed 
 by the Puritan, Dr. Cornelius Bur- 
 gess, to whom the palace, deanery, 
 and chapter-house, together with 
 other church property in Wells, had 
 been sold for a nominal price by 
 the Parliament. Burgess had been 
 appointed to preach God's word 
 in the late cathedral ch. of St. 
 Andrew's, Wells." His sermons were 
 not palatable to the citizens, who 
 showed their distaste for them by 
 walking up and down the cloister 
 all sermon time. At the Restora- 
 tion he had to give up his church 
 spoils, and he died in jail, where he 
 
 had been immured by the Corpora- 
 tion. This hall, Nov. 14, 1539, was 
 the scene of the mock trial of 
 Whiting, the last abbot of Glaston- 
 bury (see ante). At the W. end of the 
 hall were the offices, with the with- 
 drawing room, or solar, above, the 
 windows of which are very elegant 
 and highly finished. From the S.W. 
 corner of this apartment access is 
 afforded to a garderobe closet in the 
 turret at that angle. 
 
 The S. side of the palace enclosure 
 forms a lovely garden rich with 
 flowers of bright and varied hues, 
 in pleasing contrast with the grey 
 ruins of the hall, and the ancient 
 walls of the house. The whole scene 
 in summer is one of singular love- 
 liness. The embattled wall affords 
 a terrace walk above the garden, and 
 commands exquisite views of the 
 cathedral, and the hills surrounding 
 the city. The Well House, built by 
 Bishop Beckington in the 15th cent, 
 to supply the city with water, still 
 stands in the bishop's gardens ; a 
 square buttressed building, with 
 mullioned windows. 
 
 A short distance to the S.W. stands 
 the Bishop's Barn, a fine and perfect 
 specimen of the early part of the 
 15th cent., probably built by Bishop 
 Bubwith. 
 
 On leaving the palace, we return 
 to the Cathedral Green, and cross it 
 to the N. side to the Deanery, with 
 its octagonal turrets, buttresses, and 
 embattled parapet, the work chiefly 
 of Dean Gunthorpe, 1472-98. He 
 was chaplain to Edw. IV., Lord 
 Keeper of the Privy Seal, and holder 
 of several other high offices, of the 
 profits of which we have a sub- 
 stantial memorial in the present 
 noble building. 
 
 Though a good deal spoilt by 
 ' sash windows and other alterations, 
 it is still nearly a perfect specimen of 
 a nobleman and gentleman's house 
 of the 15th cent. It has its own 
 gatehouse and Avail of enclosure, and 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Wells; Vicars' Close. 
 
 301 
 
 originally had a small court in the 
 centre, now covered in. The prin- 
 cipal apartments are on the first 
 floor, on the N. or garden front. 
 This front is very rich, and pictu- 
 resque, and bears the badges of 
 Dean Gunthorpe (a gun) and of 
 Edw. IV. (the rose upon a sun) on 
 the bay windows and oriels. The 
 chief rooms are the hall, with two 
 beautiful ba}*- windows with fan- 
 vaults, the domestic chapel at the 
 upper end of the hall, and the guest 
 chambers over. The hall is a good 
 example of the transition from the 
 meditcval hall to the modern dining- 
 room. At the lower end is a stone 
 arch of wide span, carrying a small 
 chamber curiously squeezed in, pro- 
 bably for the musicians. Under the 
 arch is the lavatory for washing the 
 hands before dinner." — /. jff. P. 
 Henry VII., when on his march into 
 the W. against Perkin Warbeck, 
 was entertained at the deanery, 
 Sept. 30, 1497, the palace having 
 been for several years unoccupied. 
 An ancient pastoral staff, found some 
 years ago in the precinct of the 
 cathedral, is preserved in one of the 
 rooms. It is a beautiful specimen 
 of mediaeval art. The head, of Li- 
 moges enamel, represents St. Michael 
 vanquishing the dragon ; it is most 
 delicately worked, and studded with 
 small turquoises and other precious 
 stones. 
 
 Beyond the deanery to the E. is 
 the Archdeaconry, a house of Edw. 
 I.'s time ^c. 1 280), but much modern- 
 ised, originally of at least equal im- 
 portance with the Deanery. The 
 hall, which occupied the whole 
 height of the building, retains a very 
 fine open timber roof of the early 
 part of the loth cent., probably the 
 work of Bishop Bubwith. There is 
 a curious circular window in the E. 
 gable. Polydore Vergil, the con- 
 fidant and early tool of Wolsey, is 
 said to have written his history here. 
 In 1550 he obtained royal license 
 to reside abroad, after having held 
 
 the archdeaconry more than 40 years ' 
 and at that time he alienated the 
 house, which has ever since continued 
 severed from the church. The hall 
 was subsequently used as an assembly 
 room and a place for electioneering 
 gatherings, and in local phraseology 
 was known as ''the Salt Box." 
 
 The house at the N.E. corner of 
 the cathedral is a small residence of 
 the 15th centy. (c. 1480), tolerably 
 perfect, with the roof and upper part 
 of the hall windows remaining among 
 modern alterations. The porch and 
 room over it are unaltered, and are 
 very picturesque. 
 
 To the N.E. of the cathedral, just 
 beyond the Chain-gate, which was 
 intended to afford access for the 
 vicars to the church under cover, 
 stands the very remarkable and 
 picturesque Vicars' Close. It is a 
 long narrow court, with a chapel 
 and library over at the N. end, and 
 the entrance gate with the common 
 hall above at the S. extremity, and 
 21 dwellings ranged along the 2 
 sides. The 40 vicars choral were 
 incorporated by Bishop Joceline at 
 the beginning of the 13th cent., but 
 they had no houses assigned to them 
 till the episcopate of Bishop Ealph 
 of Shrewsbury, by whom the more 
 ancient portions of the close were 
 erected, a.d. 1348. The character 
 of the doorways, and the few ori- 
 ginal windows that remain, show 
 that the existing houses, though 
 much modernised, are substantially 
 his work, as are also the chapel and 
 the Hall, with its W. and side win- 
 dows. The E. end of the hall over 
 the gateway, with its bay windows, 
 was added by Richard Pomeroy 
 (temp. Henry VIII.), for whom an 
 inscription on the mantelpiece asks 
 the prayers of the faithful. 
 
 The houses of Bishop Ralph were 
 all on one plan, and consisted of 2 
 rooms, one over the other, with a 
 staircase and closet at the back. The 
 vicars were of course unmarried, and 
 dined together in the common hall. 
 
302 Boute 20, — Wells; Canons' Houses. Somersetsliire. 
 
 The close was in fact a college, in 
 which, each member had a separate 
 small house, instead of rooms on a 
 common staircase, on the same ar- 
 rangement as a Carthusian priory. The 
 houses were extensively repaired and 
 altered by Swan, Sugar, and Talbot^ 
 Bishop Beckington's executors, whose 
 arms, with those of the bishop, appear 
 on the very picturesque tall chimney 
 shafts which break the uniformity of 
 the outline of the front. One of 
 these dwellings has been restored to 
 its original state by Mr. J. H. Parker, 
 C.B._, to whom we also owe the com- 
 plete repair and appropriate decora- 
 tion of one of the houses of the two 
 principals^ attached to the S.W. end 
 of the hall;, which had for a long 
 time been used as a brewhouse, and 
 had fallen into a state of miserable 
 dilapidation. The whole has been 
 decorated and furnished in the style 
 of the period from designs by Mr. W. 
 Burges, and is well worth inspection. 
 An exquisite oriel projects from the 
 W. gable of this house. The Dining 
 HaU contains a reading pulpit; and a 
 curious picture of Bishop Balph 
 granting the vicars' petition. The 
 Kitchen was also added by Pomeroy. 
 The other principal's house is attached 
 to the W. end of the Chapel. The 
 spandrils of the chapel windows 
 contain fragments of loth-cent, 
 sculpture, the work of Bishop Joce- 
 line, probably brought from the 
 cathedral during the reconstruction 
 of the E. end. The Library over the 
 chapel was probably added by Bishop 
 Beckington's executors. 
 
 Most of the Canons' Houses have 
 been rebuilt or spoiled by modern 
 alterations. One to the N.E. of the 
 cath. has a good porch and panelled 
 battlement of the 15th centy. An- 
 other good 14th-cent. house further 
 to the E., with a fine timber roof, has 
 been recently pulled down. 
 
 Some of the houses in the Liberty 
 outside the close were in the bp.'s 
 special gift for non-resident canons, 
 and were called '* the bishop's ribs." 
 
 The Canons' Barn is chiefly of modern 
 date, but some very ancient work 
 exists within, which may be either 
 Norman or very early in the E. E. 
 style. 
 
 Two of the 3 gates of entrance to 
 the Cathedral Green were certainly 
 the work of Bp. Beckington, and bear 
 his punning rebus, a flaming beacon 
 and a tun. That at the N.W. corner, 
 near the deanery of the 15th centy., 
 known as Browne's Gate, or the 
 Bean's Eye, is the poorest, but 
 not without interest. On the oppo- 
 site, or S. side, near the organist's, 
 house, is the Bishop's Eye, com- 
 monly called ^' Pennyless Porch," 
 probably from the distribution of 
 the church alms being made there. 
 On the W. side are the arms of Bp. 
 Beckington, below those of Henry 
 VI., with the bp.'s rebus on each 
 side. The Chain-gate and Bridge at 
 the N.E. corner of the green con- 
 necting the cathedral with the vicars' 
 close is a very beautiful building, 
 erected by Bp. Beckington, c. 1460. 
 There is a fourth gateway, the state- 
 liest of the whole, the work of the 
 same munificent prelate, leading from 
 the market-place to the palace. 
 
 The Marhet-place was also designed 
 by Bp. Beckington, c. 1443. The 
 houses on the N. side, opposite the 
 town-hall, are distinctly mediaeval, 
 though much modernised. A but- 
 tress may be seen peeping out every 
 here and there among later altera- 
 tions. 
 
 In the centre of the market-place 
 is a modern Conduit of nondescript 
 style, supplied by St. Andrew's well. 
 
 The ugly Town-hall, out of har- 
 mony with all its surroundings, was 
 built in 1779, in place of one that 
 stood on pillars in the middle of the 
 square, the work of Bp. Knight 
 (1541-1554) and Dean Woolman. 
 The summer assizes for the county 
 are held here. The Council Chamber 
 contains portraits of James I. and 
 Charles II., attributed to Sir Peter 
 Lelj, Bps. Mews, ^'the fighting 
 
Somersetshire. Route 20. — Woohey Hole. 
 
 303 
 
 bishop," Creyghton, Hooper, and 
 Law, together with some MSS. ; of 
 historic interest, framed and hung 
 on the walls, including a letter of 
 Charles I. asking for a loan of 500Z., 
 an original writ for ship-money, &c. 
 
 The Market-house to the E. of the 
 town-hall was built in 1836, in which 
 a large Saturday cattle and cheese 
 market is held once a month. 
 
 The Crown Inn, on the S. side of 
 the market-place, is a curious framed 
 timber-house, with windows sup- 
 ported on brackets. The most curi- 
 ous part overlooks the yard. Wm. 
 Penn once preached from a window 
 of this Inn. 
 
 St. Cutlibert's Church is, after the 
 cathedral and its adjuncts, the object 
 of the greatest attraction in Wells. 
 The Tower, containing 6 very tine 
 bells, is one of the very finest 
 of the far-famed Somersetshire 
 steeples, of the same type as that at 
 Wrington (to which alone it yields 
 the palm), without horizontal divi- 
 sions, the belfry stage formed by 
 two enormous and nobly propor- 
 tioned windows, with equal pinnacled 
 turrets at the angles. It seems to 
 have been originally an E. E. cross 
 ch., c. 1240, with a central tower, 
 Avhich is recorded to have fallen c. 
 1560. The whole ch. was trans- 
 formed in Perpendicular times after 
 the erection of the W. tower, when 
 the E. E. pillars were heightened, 
 and the whole character changed. 
 The ch., as it now stands, consists 
 of W. tower, nave, and aisles, with 
 chantry chapels on both sides, trau- 
 septal chapels, N. and S. porches, 
 each with a parvis over, a chancel 
 with aisles, and an original sacristy 
 to the N. The S. transeptal chapel, 
 v/liich has a Dec. E. window, was 
 the site of a chantry founded by 
 Thomas Tanner, of Wells, in 1402. 
 Against the E. wall was an altar, now 
 defaced, the reredos representing the 
 radix Jesse, erected in 1470. At the 
 Reformation the statues were torn 
 down or built up in the niches, and 
 
 the whole hidden under a coat of 
 plaster, but were brought to light 
 again in 1848. The reredos of the 
 or St. Mary's Chapel was discovered at 
 the same time ; the design was mag- 
 nificent, the groining of the niches of 
 peculiar richness, and the whole work 
 very delicate and beautiful. The 
 whole had been coloured and gilded. 
 A fresco of our B. Lord in the act of 
 benediction was also discovered. The 
 ch. has been well restored, a carved 
 reredos, with a bas-relief of the Last 
 Supper, by Forsyth, erected at the 
 cost of the local freemasons. A 
 Norman pillar piscina formerly built 
 up in one of the transept walls 
 deserves notice. 
 
 >S'^. Tliomas' Ch. (Teulon, arch.) was 
 built 1856-7 by Mrs. Jenkyns, the 
 widow of Dean Jenkyns, in memory 
 of her husband. It is a very pleasing 
 building, with a tower and spire and 
 apsidal chancel, in the Dec. style. 
 The stained-glass windows of the 
 chancel were given by the Fellows 
 of Balliol College, of which Dr. J en- 
 kyns had been master. 
 
 Not far from St. Cuthbert's Ch. is 
 Bp. BuhwWs Almshouse, founded 
 after the bp.'s. death, 1424. The 
 original plan was that usual in 
 mediaeval times — a large Hall, with 
 cells on each side [for the almsmen, 
 open to the timber roof, and a chapel 
 at the E. end, open to the Hall, so 
 that the inmates could join in the 
 daily service in their cells. This 
 suffered from ill-judged alterations 
 in 1850, but the original design may 
 be traced. At the W. end is the 
 old Guildhally also erected by the 
 executors of Bp. Bub with. A large 
 addition to the almshouses was made 
 by a bequest from Bp. Still, d. 1607 ; 
 to this date some very quaint cinque- 
 cento sedilia on the S. front must be 
 assigned. 
 
 [One of the most interesting ob- 
 jects that may be visited from Wells 
 is the cavern known as WooTcey Hole 
 (2 m. W., at the foot of tho Men- 
 
304 
 
 Boute 20. — Woohey. Somersetshire. 
 
 dip range), the legendary haunt of 
 the Witch of Wookey," where, 
 
 " Deep in the dreamy dismall cell, 
 "Which seem'd and was ycleped hell, 
 This blear-eyed hag did hide ;" 
 
 whose exploits form the subject of 
 a ballad in Percy's ' Reliques.' A 
 road over Milton Hill (with a fine 
 view), or by the foot of the hill, 
 will lead to a pretty dell deeply 
 scooped in the limestone. Along 
 this runs the stream of the Axe to 
 turn the wheels of several paper- 
 mills. By a path through a wood we 
 soon reacii its source, at the foot of a 
 lofty precipice which closes in the 
 valley with its picturesque curve. 
 Here the river issues from a natural 
 arch, and above it, some 50 ft., 
 appears the entrance to the cavern. 
 " Its entrance," says William of 
 Worcester, '* is narrow, and the 
 ymage of a man stands beside it, 
 called the Porter, of whom leave to 
 enter the hall of Woky is to be ob- 
 tained." The passage leads at once by 
 a sharp ascent and as abrupt a descent, 
 called HelVs Ladder^ to the sanctum 
 of the witch, her kitchen^ where the 
 walls expand so considerably, a 
 sphinx-like-shaped mass of stalactite 
 is popularly known as the " witch of 
 Woohey.'* 
 
 In the same chamber are the dog, 
 the witch brewing, the pillar of salt, 
 and the boiling furnace, whimsical 
 masses formed by the dropping of 
 the water charged with carbonate 
 of lime. From the kitchen the 
 guide will conduct you to the par- 
 lour, and point out the witch's 
 hand-basin, the organ, and the 
 flitch of bacon ; and from the parlour 
 to the drawing-room, where the 
 river prevents any farther progress. 
 The rock in which this extensive cavity 
 is formed is the magnesian limestone, 
 which is found in several places on 
 the flanks of the Mendips. Large 
 discoveries of animal remains have 
 been made at Wookey, including an 
 enormous quantity of bones of hyyc- 
 
 na, 3 species of bear, 2 lions, 1 wolf, 
 and of the creatures on whom they 
 fed. As much as 2 cwt. of rhino- 
 ceros-teeth was sold as old bones. 
 There have been also found traces 
 of human occupation ; flint imple- 
 ments, splinters, and a bone arrow- 
 head. According to Leland and 
 Camden, in the reign of Henry VIII., 
 a pig of lead bearing an inscrip- 
 tion recording the British triumphs 
 of Claudius was turned up by the 
 plough near Wookey Hole. Woohey, 
 more properly Ohey, is said to be 
 derived from the British word ogo 
 (Cornish fogo), a cavern. A plan 
 was once proposed to drive an adit 
 for the drainage of the mines from 
 Wookey Hole to East Harptree, a 
 distance of 6 m. (Rte. 27), passing 
 entirely through the chain of the 
 Mendips. In the belief of the 
 country people a passage already 
 exists to the Cheddar cliffs. 
 
 The Ebber Rocks are on the hill 
 above Wookey Hole. You will pur- 
 sue the Cheddar road, and turn in at 
 the first gate on the rt., where a 
 path leads up a wooded bottom to a 
 ravine with rocky sides and slopes 
 covered with debris. The cliffs rise 
 picturesquely above it. 
 
 Wookey Ch, is Perp., with a good 
 tower with a corner turret and 
 spirelet, and a good altar-tomb to 
 Thomas Clarke and his wife Anthon}^, 
 1555; by whom the chapel contain- 
 ing it was built and fitted up for 
 worship, temp. Philip and Mary. 
 A squint at the S.E. corner of the 
 N. aisle, with a piscina on its sill, 
 should be noticed. Alexander 
 Barclay, author of ' The Ship of 
 Fools,' was incumbent of Wookey. 
 The sculptured base of a cross 
 remains in the churchyard. 
 
 The Court, now a farmhouse, was 
 formerly a manorial residence of the 
 Bps. of Bath and Wells, from which 
 many of Beckington's letters are 
 dated. It still contains an E. E. 
 doorway, and some Perp. remains. 
 Mellifont Abbey, built on the site of 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 20. — Meare—Shapwiclc. 
 
 305 
 
 the old rectory by Col. Piers, c. 
 1730, is a modern antique, preserv- 
 ing some ancient architectural frag- 
 ments. On the other side of the 
 Axe, which divides the parishes of 
 Wells and Wookey, and was the 
 frontier of Wessex a.d. 577, is Somer- 
 leaze (E. A. Freeman, Esq., the 
 historian of the Norman Conquest) ; 
 behind which is the hill of Ben 
 Knoll, where there are traces of a 
 small fortified settlement with hut- 
 circles, from which charcoal has 
 been dug. The view from the 
 summit is extensive. The Cheddar 
 clififs are 8 m. W. of Wells (Rte. 
 22).] 
 
 Proceeding on our route from 
 Glastonbury to Highbridge, the line is 
 nearly level, laid mainly on great peat 
 bogs, now covered with rich pasture, 
 and abounding in treasures for the 
 botanist. The traveller will remark 
 the hollow humming of the train as 
 it rolls over the deep beds of elastic 
 peat, and will notice the piles of 
 rich brown blocks, cut and stacked 
 for fuel. 
 
 The first stat. after leaving Glas- 
 tonbury is 
 
 51 m. Ashcott Stat. The village is 
 2 m. S.W., on the lower slopes of 
 Fold en Hill, li m. N. of the stat. 
 is 
 
 Meare^ 3 m. N.W. of Glastonbury, 
 formerly islanded in a large lake or 
 mere, whence the name, and now sur- 
 rounded by marshes, where was a 
 residence of the abbot of Glaston- 
 bury. The house, now used as a 
 farmhouse, was built by Adam of 
 Sodbury in the middle of the 14th 
 centy. The ancient hall and kitchen 
 are well preserved. *' Two sides of 
 a quadrangle remain. The eastern 
 wing has been destroyed. The 
 western, containing the hall, is nearlv 
 perfect. The hall, 60 ft. by 22 ft., is 
 on the first floor, with rooms below. 
 
 [ims, Dorset, dec, 1882.] 
 
 It has good Dec. windows^ and a fire- 
 place, a good example of its period. 
 There is a good entrance porch of 2 
 stories, with the figure of an abbot 
 on the point of the gable. The 
 kitchen, in which there is a good plain 
 fireplace, is entered directly from the 
 porch." — /. H. Parker. To this 
 place the abbots came by water ; and 
 a field, called Pod-reed, marks the 
 spot where their boats were moored. 
 But 50 years since, the village could 
 be approached only by a horse-path. 
 200 yds. E. of the manor-house is a 
 most interesting architectural curi- 
 osity — a cottage of the time of Edw. 
 III., traditionally known as the Fish- 
 house, and probably the residence of 
 the abbey fisherman. It has a roof 
 of open timber-work, and is kept in 
 repair by its i)roprietor. Sir Charles 
 Taylor. The abbey fishponds (N. of 
 Meare and adjoining the Brue) once 
 covered over 500 acres of water. The 
 Ch. is a fine structure. The chancel 
 is of the time of Edw. III., with 
 window tracery of very unusual 
 design. The tower is of the same 
 date. The nave was rebuilt by 
 Abbot Selwood, in the 16th centy., 
 in rather poor Perp., but has re- 
 markably good ironwork. The stone 
 pulpit, also, is richly sculptured, and 
 to the wall by the side of it is still 
 affixed the iron stand for the hour- 
 glass. The pleasing village cross of 
 the 15th century, removed from its 
 original site, stands near the schools. 
 Meare was the living of the Bev. W. 
 Phelps, author of a * History of 
 Somersetshire,' which he left un- 
 finished at his death. 
 
 52f m. Shapivick Stat., 2 m. N. of 
 the village, where was a grange and 
 court-house of Glastonbury. The 
 Ch., restored in 1861 by Sir. G. G. 
 Scott, retains its central tower, an 
 uncommon thing in Somerset. It 
 was rebuilt on its present site by 
 the Abbey of Glastonbury shortly 
 after its impropriation, between 
 1261 and 1274, in the abbacy of 
 
 X 
 
306 
 
 Boute 20. — Honeygore — Edington, Somersetshire. 
 
 John of Taunton. Judge Eolle, de- 
 posed from his office by Cromwall, 
 built a mansion here in 1630 with 
 a fine gabled front, Shapwick House 
 (G. Warry, Esq.). 
 
 [1 m. N.in the marsh h Honeygore^ 
 where an ancient road formed of 
 trunks of trees laid side by side 6 ft. 
 below the surface has been discovered. 
 It appears to lead from Meare to 
 Burtle, 2 m. across the turf, and is 
 called the Abbot's Boad, but it is 
 probably of a much earlier date than 
 this name would indicate. 
 
 4 m. IST. is Wedmore^ which was the 
 site of Alfred's royal palace, where, 
 after the battle of Ethandun, the fa- 
 mous *^ peace of Wedmore" was set- 
 tled, and. the christening festival of 
 Guthrum kept after his baptism at 
 Aller. The site of Alfred's Palace 
 is placed by tradition in the hamlet 
 of Mudgeley, about 1^ m. from Wed- 
 more church, in a field on the S. 
 slope of the hill. Recent excavations 
 have brought to light massive walls, 
 including those of a long building, 
 95 ft. by 39 ft., presumably the hall, 
 which have been identified with the 
 royal residence. It has a large and 
 striking Church (restored by Ferrey, 
 1881), singular in its appearance, 
 especially in the S. view, from its 
 irregularity. The tall and some- 
 what bare tower rises from a con- 
 fused mass of buildings. A curious 
 group of additional buildings is 
 attached to the S. aisle, and some 
 singular chapels and sacristies group 
 round the chancel. It was origi- 
 nally a cruciform structure of the 
 13th centy., which received large 
 additions and alterations in the 15th. 
 It has a central tower, aisles to both 
 chancel and nave, a large S. porch, 
 with parvise over, and chapel between 
 it and the S. transept. The larger 
 portion of the ch. is Perp., and al- 
 most wholly so externally ; the S. 
 side is, as usual, more ornate than 
 the N. The arches under the tower 
 
 are late Trans., as also the S. door- 
 way ; the tower arches are very 
 plain, but there is fine stone groin- 
 ing of late charactei' in the tower. 
 The arcades of the nave have rather 
 depressed arches, and there is no 
 clerestory. The N. transept and the 
 N". chapel of the chancel have good 
 panelled ceilings. The window at 
 the E. of the S. aisle is early Dec. ; 
 under its sill is a vestry like those 
 at Ilminster, Crewkerne, &c. The 
 ascent to the altar is by unusually 
 steep steps; on the S. is a sedile and 
 piscina, and there is a squint 
 from the S. transept to the S. aisle 
 of the chancel. There is a magni- 
 ficent Jacobean pulpit and reading- 
 desk. It contains mural brasses to 
 Captain Thomas Hodges, slain at the 
 siege of Antwerp, 1583, with a cu- 
 rious epitaph deserving perusal, and 
 Capt. George Hodges, c. 1630 (very 
 curious as showing the military cos- 
 tume of the time), and several curious 
 memorials to the Boulting and other 
 families. 
 
 There are two ancient crosses — 
 one plain and modernised in the 
 churchyard, removed to its present 
 site about fifty years since ; the 
 other, in the village, of late 14th- 
 centy. work, and one of the most per- 
 fect examples existing. Its canopied 
 head contains sculptures of the Holy 
 Rood, the Virgin and Cliild, an ec- 
 clesiastic and a knight. On this 
 cross Judge Jeffreys' in the Bloody 
 Assize, is said to have hung a doctor, 
 who had dressed the wounds of one 
 of Monmouth's army. The house 
 in front of which it now stands is 
 that in which Jeffreys is said to have 
 lodged. 
 
 3 m. W. of Wedmore, 4 m. from 
 Highbridge Stat., is Mark, where the 
 Ch. has a very fine oak roof.] 
 
 55 m. Edington Stat., 2J m. N. of 
 the village, which lies on the N. 
 slope of the Poldens. Edington 
 
Somersetsliire. Boute 21. — . 
 
 -Bath to Wellington. 
 
 307 
 
 Moor is much frequented by botanists 
 for its marsh flora. Edington is con- 
 sidered by Bishop Clifford to be the 
 ^thandune of Asser, the scene of 
 Alfred's victory over the Danes, 
 usually placed at Edington in Wilt- 
 shire (Rte. 4). In this vicinity, 
 where the rly. reaches the alluvium, 
 heaps of Romano-British pottery 
 have been found, proving the exist- 
 ence of manufactories of coarse ware 
 during the Roman occupation. 
 
 f m. W. is the little village of 
 Chilton. Above it, on the crest of 
 Polden Hill, stands Chilton Priory, 
 a modern erection built for a mu- 
 seum by the late Mr. Stradling; but 
 its contents have been dispersed by 
 auction, the most interesting having 
 passed to the Taunton Museum. 
 The little building is, however, still 
 used for its original purpose. The 
 views rt. and 1. are exceedingly beau- 
 tiful. The steep sides of the ridge 
 slant directly from the road, expos- 
 ing on the rt. the flats of Sedgemoor 
 and the heights of the Quantock and 
 Blackdown hills ; on the 1. the en- 
 tire range of the Mendips, Brent 
 Knoll, and the sea. At 
 
 58J m. is Bason Bridge Stat., 
 and at 60 J m. the line reaches 
 
 Highhridge Stat, on the Bristol and 
 Exeter Rly. (Rte. 21). 
 
 ROUTE 21. 
 
 BATH TO WELLINGTON, BY BRISTOL 
 [CLIFTON, KINGSWESTON 
 LEIGH COURT, PORTISHEAD], YAT" 
 TON, CLEVEDON [BROCKLEY 
 COMBE], BANWELfL [WESTON- 
 SUPER-MARE], HIGHBRIDGE [BURN- 
 HAM], BRIDGWATER [SEDGEMOOR, 
 ISLE OF ATHELNEY], DURSTON, 
 AND TAUNTON [QUANTOCK HILLS]. 
 
 {Great Western Bailway.) 
 
 {Bristol and Exeter Bailway,) 
 
 The Great Western enters Somer- 
 setshire 1 J m. from the Box Tunnel 
 (Rte. 1) through a deep valley, in 
 which the clays of the inferior oolite 
 and lias are in places exposed. On 
 emerging from the tunnel, the great 
 oolite hills rise steeply to about 700 
 ft., and on the 1., between Monkton 
 FarleigJi Down and Hampton Dovm, 
 the Avon flows from the beautiful 
 Vale of Claverton. The river is 
 crossed by the railway. As the train 
 leaves the cutting, a glimpse is ob- 
 tained of 
 
 1. Bathfordj and its church, and 
 immediately afterwards of the ivied 
 tower of 
 
 1. Bathampton Church, close to the 
 line. This building is chiefly of 
 Perp. date, with a little E.E. work 
 left in the chancel, and has a fine 
 W. door. It has also, within the 
 porch, effigies of a knight and his 
 lady, temp. Edw. III., and in a niche 
 on the exterior wall of the E. side 
 another effigy, supposed by M. 
 Planche to represent a bishop of the 
 11th centy., and by others a female. 
 These effigies were removed from 
 the interior of the ch. when it 
 was restored by Ralph Allen of Prior 
 X 2 
 
308 
 
 Boiite 21. — Bath; History, Somersetshire. 
 
 Park, whose occasional residence was 
 the Manor House (Major E. S. Allen). 
 In the churchyard is the tomb of 
 the Vicomte du Barre, killed by 
 Count Rice in a duel on Claverton 
 Down, 1778. The Rectory and other 
 houses show traces of antiquity. 
 There is also an ancient tithe barn 
 much altered. 
 
 Rt. Batheaston and its Perp. ch. 
 
 The line enters Bath by a cutting 
 through the Sydney Gardens, and, 
 sweeping round in a curve on a via- 
 duct 40 ft. above the level of the 
 river, commands on the rt. an ex- 
 cellent view of the abbey church 
 and city, and on the 1. of the suburb 
 of Widcomhe and the height of 
 Beechen Cliff. 
 
 Bath. — [^Hotels : York House; 
 Grand Pump Room Hotel (a large 
 and splendid establishment, especi- 
 ally adapted for invalids, with 
 mineral-water baths in the hotel 
 accessible by a lift) ; Castle ; White 
 Lion ; Christopher: Royal (ad- 
 jacent to the G. W. Rly. Stat.).] 
 
 [^Railways. — Bath is a chief station 
 on the Great Western Rly., by which 
 it communicates in one direction 
 with London and the East, and in 
 the other with Bristol and the West 
 of England. The station of the Mid- 
 land Rly. by which it communicates 
 with Gloucester, Worcester, Bir- 
 mingham and the north is on the 
 opposite side of the river about J m. 
 distant. This is also the station for 
 the Somerset and Dorset line by 
 Shepton Mallet, and Evercreech, to 
 Blandford, Poole and Bournemouth. 
 By the Wilts and Somerset line it has 
 communication by Bradford, Trow- 
 bridge, and Westbury, with Salis- 
 bury, and Southampton, as well as 
 with Yeovil, Dorchester, and Wey- 
 mouth. (Hackney carriages are 
 entitled to Is. a mile for two 
 persons, and 6d. for each additional 
 person, and for each additional J m. 
 a portion thereof ; or by time 2s, 
 
 an hour and 6d. additional for each 
 I hour.) 
 
 Bath (Pop. in 1881, of city and 
 borough parishes, 52,557; of electoral 
 area, 53,761; "The queen of all 
 the spas in the world. There are 
 certainly very few that can compare 
 with it for beauty of situation and 
 none for magnificence of buildings " 
 — Waagen) is situated in the bot- 
 tom and on the steep sides of the 
 valley of the Avon, which, sweeping 
 round the ancient town, traverses 
 the heart of the city in a winding 
 course from E. to W. The abbey 
 and the busiest streets lie below; 
 and above, on the northern slope, 
 rise terraces and crescents, tier upon 
 tier, to a height of nearly 800 ft., 
 the Royal Crescent about half-way 
 up the hill, then Lansdown Crescent, 
 and numerous villas and mansions 
 towering above them. The whole 
 city is built of the white oolite 
 called Bath Stone, the excellence 
 of which enhances the impression 
 of grandeur and solidity, and in a 
 style of architecture worthy of the 
 material. Some of the streets and 
 groups of houses are indeed models 
 of excellence, and their effect is 
 enhanced by the beauty of the site, 
 and the absence of the smoke and dirt 
 attendant upon trade and manufac- 
 ture. Walter Savage Landor, who 
 made Bath his home for many years, 
 and who was familiar with the finest 
 cities of Italy, gave the palm to Bath 
 for beauty and purity of architecture 
 over all of them. Bath bears the 
 stamp of opulence in its aspect ; and 
 although its '^season" no longer 
 commands the elite of fiishion, it en- 
 joys its share of gaiety, and as a resi- 
 dence is a favourite retirement from 
 more busy scenes. It combines many 
 of the advantages of the metropolis 
 with those of a watering-place; and 
 education, amusement, and society 
 may be obtained here at a moderate 
 expense. 
 
 Bath has two genuine myths, an 
 
Somersetshire. Boute21, — Bath; History, 
 
 309 
 
 older and a younger. The latter, 
 that of Bladud and the swine, is the 
 most commonly known; but the 
 earlier tale, related by Geoffrey of 
 Monmouth, deserves the precedence. 
 According to this, Bladud, the son of 
 the British king Lud Hudibras, was 
 skilled in the black art, and created 
 the Bath" by his magic art, placing 
 a cunning stone in the spring that 
 made the water hot and healed the 
 sick people. Unfortunately he at- 
 tempted to fly with wings of his own 
 devising, and though he managed his 
 aerial voyage from Bath to London 
 with success, when above that city, 
 the strings snapped, and he fell on the 
 roof of the temple of Apollo, and 
 was dashed to pieces. He reigned 
 20 years, and was succeeded by his 
 son, our old friend, *' King Lear." 
 
 According to the later and more 
 popular legend, Bladud was a leper, 
 and for that reason had been expelled 
 his father's palace, wandered discon- 
 solately to Keynsham, and was there 
 reduced to the ignoble condition of a 
 swineherd. His pigs, runs the story, 
 were infected by him with the same 
 disease, but, wandering in this valley, 
 they rolled in the warm mud where 
 the mineral waters stagnated, and 
 were healed. Bladud, perceiving this 
 cure, tried the same remedy with 
 equal success, and when, after com- 
 pleting his education at the university 
 of Athens, he became king, he built a 
 city on the spot. So, according to tra- 
 dition, Bathwasfounded,B.c.86o, and 
 the statue of King Bladud, erected in 
 the Pump Room about the year 1700, 
 bore an inscription to that effect. 
 The Romans, however, were more 
 probably the first to discover the 
 virtues of these waters, and to use 
 them for medicinal purposes, about 
 A.D. 44. 
 
 Bath may be certainly identified 
 with the "Tdara B^pfxa of Ptolemy, 
 placed by him among the Belgse, 
 but more accurately lying just out- 
 side the Belgic border. By the Ro- 
 mans it was denominated Aqiuy Solis 
 
 (or 8ulis)f and was one of the most im- 
 portant of their stations, where they 
 built a temple to the goddess Minerva, 
 here identified with the local deity 
 Sul (who, it is conjectured, gives its 
 name to the adjacent hill of Solsburyt 
 and was worshipped under the ap- 
 pellation of Sul-Minerva), and where 
 there existed a College of Armourers 
 for the manufacture of weapons for 
 the legions. The walls which sur- 
 rounded this station, which were 
 closely followed by the mediseval 
 enceinte, were nearly on a line with 
 the streets called the Lower Borough- 
 walls, Westgate Buildings, Saw^ 
 close, and Upper Borough Walls, 
 and their foundations have been fre- 
 quently laid open. They enclosed a 
 pentagonal area. The principal build- 
 ings stood round the abbey church- 
 yard. The temple, which had a por- 
 tico of Corinthian columns, of which 
 and of the pediment considerable 
 fragments are to be seen at the Royal 
 Institution, stood near the site of the 
 Pump Room. The fragments were 
 disinterred in 1790. A platform on 
 which another temple stood was dis- 
 covered in excavations at the White 
 Hart in 1867. The Roman Baths 
 were discovered in 1755, when the 
 D. of Kingston pulled down the 
 Priory, to form the Kingston Baths. 
 The foundation lay 20 ft. below 
 the surface. The baths were of 
 a magnificent description, decorated 
 with columns and tessellated floors, 
 and furnished with sudatories and 
 other appliances. When discovered, 
 in 1755, the flues were found charged 
 with soot, and the bricks marked 
 with fire. The large central bath 
 was 90 ft. by 60 ft., flanked by oblong 
 rooms, with semicircular recesses, 65 
 ft. by 34 ft. The walls, when dis- 
 interred, were 6 or 7 ft. high, lined 
 with red cement. In 1881, excava- 
 tions set on foot by Major Davis, 
 F.S.A., beneath the King's Bath, 
 resulted in the discovery of a 
 Roman Bath of immense size at a 
 considerable depth below the present 
 
310 
 
 Boute 21, — Bath; History, Somersetshire. 
 
 surface of the ground. One of the 
 most remarkable portions was an 
 octagonal well or tank 50 ft. by 40 ft. 
 lined with lead. The bath proper 
 contained a hall 120 ft. long by 
 69 ft. wide, covered by an arched 
 roof, fragments of which were found, 
 with pilasters and columns m situ. 
 
 Among other Roman remains dis- 
 covered here have been a colossal 
 female head with the hair elaborately 
 dressed ; altars to Sul-Minerva, and 
 a monument to her priest, inscrip- 
 tions, carved fragments, together 
 with millstones, flue-tiles, Samian 
 ware, and a beautiful bronze head, 
 identified by Warner with Apollo, 
 by others with Minerva, dug up in 
 Stall-street in 1727. 
 
 In the stormy period which fol- 
 lowed the departure of this people, 
 c. 410, the beautiful buildings and 
 monuments whicli they had raised 
 around the ''Waters of the Sun" 
 were destroyed, and an era of rude 
 barbarism followed. This is the pe- 
 riod that gave to the world the 
 famous story of Arthur and the 
 Round Table. The seat of Arthur's 
 famous victory over the Saxons at 
 Mons Badonicus (a.t>. 520) has been 
 identified with Bath, but according 
 to Dr. Guest, erroneously, the place 
 of the battle being far more probably 
 Badbury in Dorsetshire. The British 
 dominion in these parts was broken 
 up in 577 by the Saxon chiefs 
 Cuthwine and Ceawlin, who con- 
 quered the Britons at Deorham (now 
 Dyrham, 7 m. JST. E. of Bath, the 
 seat of the Blathwayt family), and 
 took Gloucester, Cirencester, and 
 Bath, or, as it was then called, Ake- 
 mannesceaster. This name has been 
 absurdly derived from aclies and 
 pains, for which people went for 
 cure to Bath ; but it is really a 
 British compound, embodying the 
 Roman element Aqu^, and the 
 syllable man^ the British word for 
 place; and signifies the fortified 
 camp at the place known by the 
 name of Aquir.. 
 
 The great Roman road from Lon- 
 don which passed through Oxford- 
 shire, and by Marlborough to Bath, 
 was also known as the Akeman Street. 
 Two other Roman roads converged 
 at Bath : the Via Julia, from S. Wales 
 by the Aust Passage to Cunetio ; and 
 the Foss Way, from Lincoln by II- 
 chester to Axminster. 
 
 After its capture by the Saxons, 
 Bath became a chief city of the dis- 
 trict of Hwiccia, and gradually losing 
 its original appellation, became known 
 as Batlian-ceaster, the city of the 
 Bath ; or set Bathum, or more fully set 
 liatum Bathum, the city at the bath, 
 or hot baths. 
 
 In 676 a monastery for nuns was 
 founded at Bath by Osric, King of 
 Hwiccia, the patronage of v/hich was 
 acquired in 781 by Off'a, King of 
 Mercia, by which time the sex of the 
 inhabitants had been changed, and 
 it continued to the Dissolution a 
 monastery for monks only. This 
 foundation was dedicated to St. 
 Peter. 
 
 The Saxon period may be consi- 
 dered the making of Bath as a city. 
 From Ofia's time it was a royal de- 
 mesne, and in later times was held 
 by the Confessor's wife Edith. A 
 mint was established here, and coins 
 were struck by most of the Anglo- 
 Saxon and Danish monarchs after 
 Athelstan. At Pentecost 973, a 
 royal pageant of unprecedented mag- 
 nificence took place in Bath on the 
 occasion of the coronation of Ed- 
 gar in the 16th year of his reign, by 
 the Abps. Dunstan and Oswald, at 
 which, according to the Anglo-Saxon 
 rhyme — " There was a heap of priests, 
 of monks a mighty throng of wise 
 men assembled." Leland tells us that 
 in grateful memory of Edgar's mu- 
 nificence on this occasion, ' ' They pray 
 in all the ceremonies for his soule, 
 and a king is elected every yere in 
 the joyful remembrance of King 
 Edgar and the privileges given to 
 the toune by him. This king is fested 
 and his adherents by the riclisst man 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Bath ; History. 
 
 311 
 
 of the toune." When Sweyn, Canute's 
 father, overran England in 10.15, he 
 made Bath his head-quarters, where 
 he received the submission of the 
 western Thanes. 
 
 The subsequent history of Bath 
 is uneventful. Edith, Edward the 
 Confessor's queen, held it at the Con- 
 quest, and in Domesday it appears 
 as a royal manor. In the reign of 
 William Kufus, 1087, it was burnt 
 by Bp. Geoffrey of Coutances and 
 Eob. de Mowbray, in the attempt to 
 place Duke Robert on the throne, 
 but was restored by John de Villula, 
 Bp. of Wells, who in 1090 bought 
 the city of the king, and transferred 
 to it his episcopal seat, becoming 
 the first Bp. of Bath and Wells. 
 Henry I. visited Bath in 1107. The 
 prosperity which the transfer of the 
 see caused to the city received a 
 rude shock in the disturbed reign of 
 Stephen, when the kingdom was torn 
 asunder by the struggle for the 
 crown. During this contest Bath 
 was at one time held by the party 
 of Matilda, at another by that of 
 Stephen. Geoffrey de Talebot, one 
 of the chiefs of Matilda's party, was 
 found disguised in Bath, and was 
 thrown into prison. In retaliation, 
 a party of Matilda's adherents left 
 Bristol, and, reaching Bath at mid- 
 night, seized Bp. Robert, and carried 
 him off, and immured him in the 
 castle until an exchange was effected. 
 
 The lordship of the city was parted 
 with by Bp. Savaric (d. 1205) to 
 Richard Coeur-de-Lion, in return for 
 the rich Abbey of Glastonbury. The 
 city was bestowed by Edw. I. as 
 dower on his Queen Eleanor, a grant 
 which was rescinded in 1274 in favour 
 of Bp. Burnell. In 1297, we have 
 the first record of Members of Par- 
 liament at Bath. In 1341, the bo- 
 rough obtained from Edw. III. a 
 confirmation of former charters, with 
 new liberties. At the same time a 
 bridge was thrown over the Avon to 
 Lyncombe, which was a great accom- 
 modation to the traders of Bath, who 
 
 had been previously accustomed to 
 wade over with their goods to the 
 annual fair at Lyncombe, granted to 
 the monks of St. Peter's in 1304. 
 
 In the Great Rebellion, Bath was 
 of little consequence to either party, 
 for being surrounded by hills it was 
 untenable against artillery ; but on 
 the adjoining height one of the great 
 battles of the time was fought — that 
 of Lansdown, July 13, 1643, in which 
 the gallant Sir Bevil Grenville ended 
 his career. July 29, 1645, it was se- 
 lected by Sir W. Waller as his head- 
 quarters. The inhabitants closed 
 their gates against Monmouth, June 
 26, 3 685, obliging him to commence 
 that retrograde movement which ter- 
 minated fatally at Sedgemoor. Some 
 of the inhabitants, however, fought 
 under Monmouth's standard, and six 
 condemned by Jeffreys, were ex- 
 ecuted at Bath with all the savage 
 accessories of the sentence fully car- 
 ried out. 
 
 Batli has had its full share of royal 
 patronage. In 1574 Queen Elizabeth, 
 on her western progress, visited 
 Bath with much state, probably 
 occupying the royal apartments at 
 the Westgate, rebuilt 1572. She 
 spent Sunday, Aug. 22, here, the 
 
 Queresteres " being brought over 
 from Wells at the cost of 10s. for 
 the occasion. The supposed visit of 
 the Queen in 1591 is an historical 
 fiction. Anne of Denmark, James the 
 First's Queen, visited Bath in 1616 
 for the benefit of the waters, as did 
 Henrietta Maria in 1644, and Catha- 
 rine of Braganza 1663, and Mary of 
 Modena the second Queen of James 
 II,, in 1687. It was visited by Charles 
 II., with James, Duke of York, his 
 Duchess, and Prince Rupert, in the 
 autumn of 1663. Queen Anne, when 
 Princess, visited Bath, 1692. She was 
 out of favour at court, and her royal 
 sister vented her petty spite by for- 
 bidding the mayor and corporation 
 to accompany her to church, as was 
 the custom. At their request she, 
 together with her Consort;, Prince 
 
312 Boute 21, — Bath ; Ancient Boundaries, Somersetshire. 
 
 George of Denmark, repeated her 
 visit 10 years later as Queen; when 
 she was received by 200 damsels 
 dressed as Amazons, and 1 00 young 
 men uniformly clad and armed. 
 Some years later, 1728, the Princess 
 Amelia, daughter of George II., was 
 welcomed with much pomp and 
 pageantry, and escorted hy 100 
 young men fancifully dressed. In 
 1734, the Prince of Orange, who the 
 same year married Anne, the elder 
 sister of the Princess Amelia, re- 
 mained some time here, residing at 
 the West Gate, leaving a memorial of 
 his visit in the name of * ' Orange 
 Grove " and its obelisk. Frederick 
 Prince of Wales and his Princess 
 w^ere here in 1731'; in whose honour 
 the obelisk in the centre of Queen's 
 Square was erected. In 1795 the 
 Duke and Duchess of York visited 
 Bath, and the next year H.R.H. the 
 Prince of Wales. In 1817 Queen 
 Charlotte, accompanied by the Duke 
 of Clarence, afterwards William IV., 
 honoured Bath with her presence, 
 and resided in Sydney Place, Nos. 
 93 and 103 being engaged for the 
 Poyal party, and here she received 
 the intelligence of the death of the 
 Princess Charlotte. In 1830, Oct. 
 21, the Duchess of Kent with the 
 Princess Victoria arrived here, and 
 gave its present designation to the 
 Royal Victoria Park. 
 
 Bath was at one time the seat of 
 flourishing trade and manufactures. 
 In former times, indeed as early 
 as the reign of Richard Cceur-de- 
 Lion, it appears that there was an 
 active trade with Bristol in wine, 
 salt, wool, silks, cloth, and w'ax. 
 The w^oollen trade flourished here 
 principally in the 14th and 15th 
 cents., and even from the reign of 
 Henry VIII. to the 17th centy. its 
 looms, of which as many as 150 are 
 said to have plied in Walcot, were 
 noted for this product of industry.* 
 
 * " Bath Beaver," a kind of woollen cloth, 
 was fanious as early as 15th centy.; but 
 before that, wc learn from Chaucer's ' Wife of 
 
 About the time of Charles II. it 
 began to decline, and except at the 
 suburb of Twerton the trade has 
 disappeared. Its clothmaking cele- 
 brity may be traced to the patron- 
 age of the prior and monks of the 
 day. A shuttle was added to the 
 arms of the monastery in the 14th 
 cenfcy., and was to be seen on the 
 front of the abbey house in the last 
 centy. 
 
 The architectural attractions of 
 Bath, Avhich are now so conspicuous, 
 are entirely of modern growth. It 
 was hemmed in with its ancient walls 
 and kept strictly to the old Roman 
 limits till the early part of the last 
 century. The description given by 
 Leland in the middle of the 16th 
 centy. is very graphic. 
 
 " Bath," he writes, " is sette booth 
 yn a fruteful and pleasant botom, 
 the which is invironid on every side 
 with great hills, out of the which 
 cum many springes of pure water 
 that be conveyid by dyverse ways to 
 serve the cyte. There be 4 gates 
 yn the town by the names of Est, 
 &c. The wauile within the toun is 
 of no great heiglith to the eyes, but 
 without it is afundamentis of a rea- 
 sonable heighth : and it standitli all- 
 moste alle, lakking but a peace about 
 ' Gascoyns tower.' This took its name 
 from one Gascoyne, who ' in homi- 
 num memoria ' built a peace of walle 
 as amends for a fault committed in 
 the city." 
 
 Chapman, in the 17th centy., says, 
 *'The streets are of the narrowest 
 size, especially that nearest the centre, 
 called Cheap St. It is walled round 
 with time-defying stone. The city 
 stands on a hatch, as we call it, in a 
 bottom from 15 to 20 ft. higher than 
 surface without. The whole is one 
 entire rampart, a coffin filled with 
 earth." 
 
 The old city was intersected by 
 
 Bath,' the city was well known for its trade 
 in cloth — 
 
 " Of clothmaking she hadde such an haunt, 
 She passed hem of Ypris and of Gaunt." 
 
Somersetshire. Boide 21, — Bath; Wood and Beau Nash 313 
 
 High St. leading from the Northgate 
 to the abbey, where Cheap St. started 
 at right angles to it, and continued 
 under the name of Westgate St. to the 
 West Gate. Some distance up this 
 street Stall St. went off at right angles 
 to the South Gate. The course of 
 the N. and S. walls may be traced by 
 the streets bearing the name of the 
 Borough Walls. In the Upper 
 Borough Walls/' opposite the Blue- 
 coat School, a fragment of the ram- 
 part still exists, capped by a modern 
 battlement, erected to mark the spot 
 by the late J. H. Markland, F.R.S. 
 Another fragment incorporating the 
 pointed arch of the East Gate (a__mere 
 postern towards the river) is to be 
 seen in Boatstall Lane, at the back 
 of the market, and is worth attention. 
 
 Pepys visited the city in 1668, and 
 leaves us the following account of it 
 in his Diary: — Having dined very 
 well, 10s., we came before night to 
 the Bath ; when I presently stepped 
 out with my landlord, and saw the 
 Baths with people in them. They 
 are not so large as I expected, but 
 yet pleasant ; and the town most of 
 stone, and clean, though the streets 
 generally narrow. I home, and being 
 weary, went to bed without supper ; 
 the rest supping." Pepys, however, 
 only saw the fair outside of things. 
 Wood, the famous architect, takes 
 us behind the scenes, and shows us 
 domestic Bath up to the beginning of 
 the 18th centy. The boards of the 
 dining-rooms," he tells us, and 
 most other floors, in the houses of 
 Bath, were made of a brown colour 
 with soot and small heer, to hide the 
 dirt as well as their own imperfec- 
 tions ; and if the walls of any of the 
 rooms were covered with wainscot, 
 it was such as was mean, and never 
 painted. The chimney-pieces, hearths, 
 and slabs, were all of freestone ; and 
 these were daily cleaned with a par- 
 ticular kind of whitewash, which, by 
 paying tribute to everything that 
 touched it, soon rendered the brown 
 tioors ike the starry firmament. . . . 
 
 With Kidderminster stuff, or at best 
 with chene, the woollen furniture of 
 the principal rooms was made ; and 
 such as were of linen consisted only 
 of corded dimity or coarse fustian ; 
 the matrons of the city, their daugh- 
 ters, and their maids, flowering the 
 latter with worsted during the inter- 
 vals between the seasons, to give the 
 beds a gaudy look. Add to this, 
 also, the houses of the richest inha- 
 bitants of the city were, for the most 
 part, of the meanest architecture, 
 and only two of them could show 
 the modern comforts of sash-win- 
 dows." The city seems to have 
 stood still at this point for a century 
 at least; for between the years 1592 
 and 1692, it had only increased by 
 seventeen houses ! 
 
 The Beggars of Bath " were pro- 
 verbial, for whither," says Fuller, 
 
 should fowl flock in a hard frost 
 but to the barn-door ? here all the 
 two seasons being the general con- 
 fluence of the gentry." 
 
 From this abject condition Bath 
 was raised to the highest pitch of 
 architectural magnificence and popu- 
 larity as a fashionable resort by the 
 influence of two men, Wood the 
 architect, under the auspices of 
 Ralph Allen his munificent patron, 
 and Nash the Master of the Cere- 
 monies. 
 
 The elder Wood, a man of true 
 architectural genius, began his build- 
 ing speculations in 1728, when Queen 
 Square was erected in what had been 
 a common field. In 1740 the N. and 
 S. parades rose out of a flat marsh. 
 Gay St. and the Circus, which was 
 not completed till after his decease, 
 followed in 1754. The Royal Cres- 
 cent, the most splendid and sym- 
 metrical example of classical archi- 
 tecture in Bath, was designed by the 
 younger Wood in 1769, together 
 with Camden Place (now Crescent) 
 and Pulteney Street. From this 
 time nearly to the reign of Geo. III. 
 it was deemed the source of health, 
 and was the focus of fashion. To 
 
314 
 
 Boute 21, — JBath ; Beau Nash. Somersetsliire. 
 
 *^the Bath" Fielding and Smollett 
 bring their heroes. Lord Chester- 
 field was often here, and the great 
 Earl of Chatham, who as William Pitt 
 represented the city in Parliament, 
 resided in the circus. Anstey (1760), 
 in his well-known * New Bath Guide,' 
 ridiculed the follies of the place, and 
 Beau ISTash regulated its fashions. 
 
 " To Nash, Bath must mainly at- 
 tribute the rapidity with which it 
 sprang from an insignificant place 
 into the focus of fashionable life, and 
 the most ^pleasurable' city in the 
 kingdom. 
 
 " When he arrived at Bath in 1703, 
 it was almost entirely devoid of 
 elegant or attractive amusements. 
 The only .promenade was a grove of 
 sycamores, and the only ball-room 
 was the bowling-green, with a haut- 
 boy and fiddle for band. Mob-law 
 prevailed, and no respectable female 
 could pass along the streets unpro - 
 tected after dark. The Pump- 
 house was without a director ; and 
 entirely devoid of attractiveness.'' 
 The baths which, according to Dr. 
 Jordan, 1631, had been bear gardens 
 where both sexes bathed promiscu- 
 ously, while the passers by pelted 
 them with dead dogs, cats and frogs, 
 were still "unseemly ponds ex- 
 posed to wind and rain, as well as 
 to the public gaze." Nash asked for 
 a band of music. His request was 
 granted, and the Pump Eoom 
 speedily attracted a large and fa- 
 shionable company, and Nash was 
 speedily voted Master of the Cere- 
 monies — or King of Bath. The 
 company, which had hitherto been 
 obliged to assemble in a booth 
 to drink tea and chocolate, or to 
 game, were, under his direction, 
 accommodated with a handsome 
 assembly room. 
 
 Nash reached the zenith of his 
 greatness between the years 1730 and 
 1740. Within that time Bath was 
 honoured by two royal visitors, the 
 Prince of Orange in 1734, and Frede- 
 rick Prince of Wales in 1738. Nash 
 
 turned both to good account. An 
 obelisk in Orange Grove — an open 
 space to the E. of the abbey — com- 
 memorates the restoration to health 
 of the Dutch Prince, "to the extreme 
 joy of Britain." A similar erection 
 in Queen Square, with a mediocre in- 
 scription which Nash worried Pope 
 into writing, perpetuates the visit of 
 his royal brother-in-law. 
 
 The evening of Nash's life was 
 embittered by poverty and the 
 desertion of his gay and titled 
 friends ; the Corporation granted 
 him ten guineas a month, and when 
 he died in 1761, at the age of 87, 
 defrayed the cost of his funeral, 
 which took place publicly in the 
 Abbey. Nash's house in St. John's 
 Court, afterwards tenanted by Mrs. 
 Delan}^, is now the Garrick's Head 
 public-house. 
 
 After Nash's death, Bath continued 
 to grow and spread into the parish 
 of Bath wick, on the other side of the 
 river, the plans being due to Baldwin, 
 on whom Wood's mantle had fallen. 
 About 1770 a bridge was thrown 
 over the Avon, at the cost of Sir W. 
 Johnstone Pulteney, Bart., and the 
 meadows were soon covered with 
 streets. 
 
 The pen of the novelist has in- 
 vested Bath with a vivid, though 
 fictitious, interest. The readers of 
 Miss Burney's ^ Evelina ' will re- 
 member the scenes laid in the 
 Pump Room and its vicinitj'', while 
 Miss Austen has peopled the city 
 with interesting remains for the 
 lovers of her exquisite fictions. It 
 was in Pulteney Street that Cathe- 
 rine Morland lodged with her friends, 
 the Aliens; General Tilney and his 
 son and daughter occupying apart- 
 ments in Milsom Street. It was at the 
 Lower Rooms her first introduction 
 to Henry Tilney took place. The 
 pompous Sir Walter Elliot and his 
 daughter had a house in Camden 
 Place — their grand friends, * ' the 
 Dowager Viscountess Dalrymple and 
 the Honble. Miss Carteret " in 
 
Somersetshire. Itoute 21.— Bath; Abbey Church. 
 
 315 
 
 Laura Place ; ' ' none of your Queen 
 Square houses for us." On the walk 
 by Belmont from Union Street to 
 Camden Place the eclaircissement 
 between Anne Elliot and Captain 
 Wentworth took place ; her humble 
 friend Mrs. Smith lived in West- 
 gate Buildings/' to which *^Lady 
 Russell's carriage took her as near 
 as it could." 
 
 Among the natives of Bath were 
 the ever memorable John Hales, of 
 Eton (b. 1584), author of the 
 ' Golden Remains Palmer, the in- 
 ventor of the mail-coach system (b. 
 1742) ; Bichard Lovel Edgeivorth 
 (b. 1744) ; Ahp. Laurence of Cashel ; 
 Sir H. Cole, C.B. (" FelixSummerly "), 
 of South Kensington notoriety ; Terry, 
 the comedian ; and Hone, the author 
 of the ' Every- day Book.' William 
 Prynne (born at Swainswick, 1 600), 
 the 2 Lysons, and 8ir Sydney Smith, 
 were educated at the Grammar- 
 school, a foundation of Edw. YI. 
 
 Among the residents may be 
 noticed Joseph Glanvill, author of 
 * Sadducismus Triumphatus,' who, 
 like Carte, the historian, was incum- 
 bent of the Abbey Church; Quin, 
 the actor (d. 1766) ; Anstey, author 
 of the 'New Bath Guide Gover- 
 nor Pownall (d. 1805) ; Dr. Haweis, 
 chaplain to the Countess of Hunting- 
 don, and preacher of the London 
 Missionary Society (d. 1820); Mrs. 
 Piozzi (d. 1821); and the Dissenting 
 preacher Jay (d. 1853). 
 
 Bath is traversed by two great 
 parallel avenues, which, under diffe- 
 rent names, and not in an uninter- 
 rupted straight line, run northwards 
 from the Avon. 
 
 First, that which runs from the 
 old bridge over the Avon on the 
 Bristol and Wells Road, through 
 Southgate Street, Stall Street, Union 
 Street, Old Bond Street, and Milsom 
 Street, the Regent Street of Bath, 
 containing the finest shops. At the 
 termination of this, deviating a 
 little to the right, the parallel con- 
 tinues by Belmont to Belvedere 
 
 and Camden Crescent, one of the best 
 pieces of architecture in Bath, and 
 commanding a splendid view, on the 
 right. A second parallel of streets 
 commences on the N. side of the 
 Abbey Church, curving with the 
 bend of the river for a great length, 
 under the names of High Street, 
 Northgate Street, Walcot Street, Lady 
 Mead, London Street, Grosvenor 
 Place, &c. From these two parallels 
 the other streets branch off for the 
 most part right and left, or rather 
 E. and W. 
 
 On the opposite side of the Avon 
 the principal street is Pidteney St. 
 (1788), communicating W, by iaMm 
 Place and Argijle Street with the 
 Pulteney Bridge, and E. by Sydney 
 Place with the pleasant promenade 
 known as Sydney Gardens. 
 
 The Avon is crossed by 4 bridges 
 — St. Laicrence's or the Old Bridge, 
 built 1304, rebuilt 1754; Pulteney 
 Bridge, with a row of houses and. 
 shops on either side shutting out all 
 view of the river, 1769 ; Bathwick 
 or Cleveland Bridge, 1827; North 
 Parade Bridge, 1836. To these we 
 may add the 2 railway bridges, the 
 Midland, and the Skew Bridge, cross- 
 ing the river at a very acute angle, 
 3 suspension-bridges, and a small 
 wooden bridge near the station 
 for foot-passengers, the scene of a 
 lamentable accident, June 6, 1877. 
 
 The chief things to be seen in Bath 
 are the Abbey, and the Pump Boom 
 and Baths close to it, both not J m. 
 from the station. Then hire a fly, 
 or walk up to Camden Crescent and 
 Lansdowne Crescent, whence you 
 have good views of the city. De- 
 scend through the Boyal Crescent, 
 Circus, and Queen Square, the 3 
 finest architectural bits in Bath, and 
 so back to the station. By all means 
 visit the antiquities in the Institutio7i, 
 and the geological collection of Mr. 
 C. Moore. The finest view of Bath 
 is from Beechen Cliff, the steep emi- 
 nence overhanging the railway on 
 the S., 400 ft. above the Avon. It 
 
316 Boute 21. — Bath; Abbey Church, Somersetshire. 
 
 may be reached in 10 minutes from 
 the station, walking up Holloway 
 (the Roman Fosse Way), and taking 
 the path to the 1. At night the view 
 is curious and beautiful. 
 
 The Abbey Church, dedicated to 
 SS. Peter and Paul, stands a short 
 distance to the W. of the station. 
 Founded as a nunnery by Osric, 676, 
 it was destroyed by the Danes, and 
 re-founded as a college of secular 
 canons by OfFa, c. 775. Edgar, c. 
 970, exchanged the seculars for 
 Benedictine regulars, of whom Al- 
 phege, the martyred Abp. of Canter- 
 bury, was abbot. John de Villula 
 having bought the city of Henry I. 
 for 500 pounds of silver, together 
 with the Abbey, which he rebuilt 
 from the foundations, removed hither 
 the seat of the bishopric of Wells, 
 1090. After many disputes between 
 the monks of Ba th and the canons 
 of Wells concerning the place of 
 the see, which De Villula's successor, 
 Robert, sought to heal by the decision 
 that the bishop should bear the 
 style of ^^Bath and Wells," and 
 should be elected by an equal number 
 of members of each body, the epis- 
 copal residence was restored to 
 Wells by Joceline Trotman, 1206, 
 the bishop thenceforward taking the 
 title of Bishop of Bath and Wells. 
 As in other monastic cathedrals the 
 bp. took the place of the abbot, 
 and the house was governed by a 
 prior till the Dissolution, when it 
 was surrendered to the crown bv 
 Prior Holway, 1539. The offer of 
 the fabric of the ch. to the city for 
 500 marks having been refused, the 
 glass, iron, and lead were sold to 
 certain merchants, and the bare car- 
 case purchased by Humphrey Colles, 
 1542, who sold it to Mat. Colthurst, 
 whose son Edmund made a present 
 of it to the citizens of Bath, of which, 
 though deprived of all its ornaments, 
 it has since remained the motlier 
 church. It is one of the latest speci- 
 mens of Perp. Gothic in the king- 
 
 dom, commenced 1499 by Prior 
 Birde and Bishop Oliver King. The 
 present church occupies no more 
 than the nave of the huge Norman 
 fobric. The fabric was arrested in 
 its progress 1539 by the dissolution 
 of the abbey, and the church Avas 
 left incomplete, in which state it 
 remained, becoming more and 
 more ragged and dilapidated, till 
 1572, when some repairs were begun 
 at the E. end by one Mr. Peter 
 Chapman. These repairs were 
 carried on by subscription through 
 Elizabeth's reign, till the choir was 
 sufficiently finished to be conse- 
 crated. The aisles and transept 
 were continued by various benefac- 
 tors, Bishop Montagu completing 
 the nave c. 1609. According to a tra- 
 dition, the Bp. being overtaken by a 
 sudden shower when walking with 
 Sir J. Harington of Kelston, in the 
 Grove, was artfully conducted by 
 him into the roofless church, under 
 pretence of taking shelter, and was 
 thus excited to complete the unfin- 
 ished work. 
 
 The plan of the church is a simple 
 cross, with a tower at the intersec- 
 tion, which is singular from not 
 being square in the plan, the tran- 
 septs, as at St. Mary Redcliffe, 
 Bristol, being eleven ft. narrower than 
 the nave and choir. Its length from 
 E. to W. is 207 ft., that of the nave 
 112 ft., of the transepts 126 ft. It 
 is 72 ft. wide from wall to wall. 
 The vault is 73 ft. from the ground. 
 The nave is 5 bays in length, the 
 choir 3 bays; the tower 1(52 ft. high. 
 The whole is of the same date and 
 design, exhibiting late and rather 
 coarse Perp. The height of the 
 clerestory and the size of the win- 
 dows are remarkable features. There 
 are no additional buildings, save a 
 small late vestry added to the E. 
 of the S. transept. The bases of 
 two huge Norm, piers on the out- 
 side of the E. end are relics of Bishop 
 de Villula's building; and during the 
 recent restoration several other piers 
 
Somersefcshire. Boute 21. — Bath; Ahhey Church. 
 
 817 
 
 of the Norman nave have been laid 
 bare. The whole work of the 
 present Ch. shows asiagular mixture 
 of plainness and ornament, some 
 of the mouldings and details being 
 extravagantly large, and others un- 
 commonly small. It nevertheless 
 contains some parts of great beauty.'* 
 ' — Richnan. The exterior was re- 
 paired in 1833, when the flying 
 buttresses were completed, and, most 
 unwarrantably, spirelets added to 
 the eastern and western turrets, as 
 well as to those of the tower, com- 
 pletely altering the outline of the 
 building. The whole has been again 
 restored by Mr. Scott, at great cost, 
 and with strict attention to the ori- 
 ginal design. Bishop Montagu's lath- 
 and-plaster coved ceiling over the 
 nave has given place to a fan-vault, 
 corresponding to that covering the 
 rest of the church. This restoration 
 was set on foot and zealously pro- 
 moted by the late wealthy and muni- 
 ficent rector of Bath, the Rev. C. 
 Kemble. The work was begun 1864 
 and completed 1873, at a cost of 
 about 30,000/. 
 
 The W. front has a magnificent 
 window of 7 lights, flanked by tur- 
 rets, on which are carved angels, 
 ascending and descending by ladders, 
 to commemorate a vision of Bishop 
 King in 1499, who was instigated to 
 the work by a revelation of the Holy 
 Trinity with angels on a ladder, and 
 an olive-tree supporting a crown, 
 which he interpreted of his own name, 
 Oliver King. The winged figures 
 are now headless and mutilated. 
 The space above the window is also 
 filled with angels on corbels ; the 
 figures are well designed, but much 
 defaced. The battlements of this 
 front are varied and very rich. 
 Over the W. door, erected by Sir H. 
 Montagu, brother of the bishop, 
 1617, are the arms of Winchester, 
 to which see the bishop had been 
 translated, impaling Montagu ; on 
 the sides of it statues of Prior Bird 
 
 and Bishop King ; over the N. door 
 a figure of King Edgar, and over the 
 S. door one of King Osric, founder 
 of the monastery. 
 
 The E. front is very plain and 
 heavy. The great E. window, also 
 of 7 lights, has 3 transoms, and is 
 enclosed within a square head. The 
 turrets are square. The N. and S. 
 transept windows are very fine. The 
 aisle windows are low and inelegant ; 
 those of the clerestory well pro- 
 portioned. 
 
 The interior well deserves old 
 Fuller's commendation as being 
 
 both spacious and specious," while 
 the number and size of the windows, 
 now mostly filled with stained glass, 
 have justly earned for it the title of 
 "the Lantern of the West." The 
 great squareheaded E. window, and 
 that in the S. Transept, are excellent 
 examples of Messrs. Clayton and Bell's 
 work. Before the restoration of 1864 
 the choir was shut off" from the nave by 
 a close modern screen, and was encum- 
 bered with high pews and heavy gal- 
 leries. The whole is now thrown open 
 from end to end, and refitted in a 
 more appropriate style. The lateness 
 of the building makes itself disagree- 
 ably evident in the details of the 
 architecture. The mouldings of the 
 piers and arches are somewhat large 
 and coarse. There is no triforium, the 
 sills of the clerestory windows being 
 brought down to the string above 
 the arches. The fan-tracery roof is 
 peculiarly rich. The easternmost 
 arch on the S. side of the choir is 
 filled with the chapel of Prior Bird, 
 1515, left unfinished, but completed 
 according to the original rich design 
 by the family of the late Rev. C. 
 Kemble. The prior's rebus, a bird, 
 and the letter W. will be noticed. 
 It is sadly crowded with tasteless 
 monuments, though less conspicuous 
 than they once were. They are, 
 indeed, so numerous that one might 
 suppose truth, as well as wit, had 
 
318 JRoute 2\—Bath ; Abbey Church. Somersetshire. 
 
 been expressed by Quin's epi- 
 gram : — 
 
 These walls, so full of monument and bust 
 Shew how Bath-waters serve to lay the 
 dust." 
 
 Or by this : — 
 
 " Messieurs, vous voyez tres bien ici, 
 Que ces eaux ne sont pas d'eaux de vie.'* 
 
 The chief are — between the pillars 
 on the N, side of the nave, the altar- 
 tomb of Bishop Montagu, with his 
 effigy, under a Corinthian canopy, 
 d. 1618; those of Beau Nash, a plain 
 marble tablet, with epitaph by Dr. 
 Harington; of the Hon. William 
 Bingham, by Flaxman, flanked by 
 figures of 2 angels ; of William 
 Clements; of James Quin, d. 1766, 
 with medallion portrait, and inscrip- 
 tion by Garrick ; those of Herman 
 Katencamp, d. 1807, by the younger 
 Bacon, and of Colonel Champion, by 
 Nollekens ; of Malthus, author of the 
 * Essay on Population,' d. 1834; and 
 of Sarah Fielding, d. 1768, with 
 inscription by Dr. John Hoadley — 
 " For the honour of the dead, and 
 the emulation of the living." 
 
 One of the most interesting is that 
 against the S. wall of the S. transept, 
 to Lady Waller, with her husband — 
 who fought at Lansdown and Eoimd- 
 way — mourning over her, and a 
 little child quaintly dressed, seated 
 in a chair at the side. 
 
 [Scandalous gossip asserts that 
 James II., passing through the abbey 
 in company with Friar Huddlestone, 
 vented his spleen by hacking off the 
 nose of the warrior. Pepys, how- 
 ever, in his Diary, 1668, some years 
 before James came to the throne, 
 exonerates him from the outrage. 
 He says : — Looked over the monu- 
 ments, where, among others, Dr. 
 Venner, and Felling (rector of Bath), 
 and a lady of Sir W. Waller's, he lying 
 with his face broken."] 
 
 In the N. transept are the monu- 
 ments of Fletcher Partis, founder 
 of the college named after him ; 
 
 of Sir R. H. Bickerton, by Chantrey ; 
 of Dr. Sibthorp, the botanist, a 
 pleasing work by Flaxman; of 
 James Tamesz Grieve, Physician to 
 the Empress Elizabeth of Russia, 
 an interesting sculpture of the wife 
 eagerly attempting to arrest the dart 
 of Death ; and, on the N. wall of the 
 N. transept, of Mary Frampton, 1676, 
 with an epitaph by Dryden, which 
 will repay perusal. In the N. aisle 
 of the choir is that of Dr. Postle- 
 thwaite. Master of Trinity, 1798; 
 and in the S. aisle those of Hoare, 
 the artist, by Chantrey, and Colonel 
 Alexander Champion, d. 1793, by 
 Nollehens ; in the chancel, N. of the 
 altar, of Lady Miller, a pretty speci- 
 men of the elder Bacon's sculpture. 
 On the S. side is that of Bartholomew 
 Barnes, 1607. 
 
 Sir William Draper, whose name 
 survives in connection with the cas- 
 tigation he received from Junius, has 
 a long turgid Latin epitaph in the S. 
 aisle: 
 
 The other churches of Bath may 
 be soon dismissed. They are all 
 modern. Two stand on the sites of 
 ancient churches — St. James at the 
 S. Gate, rebuilt in a plain, classical 
 style by Palmer, of Bath, 1768, and 
 the tower 150 ft. high, completed in 
 1848 ; and St, Michael, outside the old 
 IST. Gate (the fourth on the same site), 
 with a lofty and elegant spire 182 ft. 
 high, rebuilt in E. E. Gothic in 1836, 
 and remarkably good for the date. 
 Stall Church, St. Mary of the Stall 
 {de Stabida, " of the Manger ") has 
 entirely disappeared. Walcot Church, 
 standing at the angle of the Roman 
 Fosse Way, and the vicinal way to 
 Weston, was rebuilt in a heavy 
 classical style in 1780. The elevated 
 position of St. Stephen's, at the top 
 of Lansdown Hill, renders its pin- 
 nacled tower a very conspicuous 
 object in the views of the city, but 
 it is utterly undeserving of notice. 
 There are several new churches in 
 and about Bath more or less com- 
 mendable, but not calling for much 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Bath; Pump Boom. 
 
 319 
 
 special remark. The best is ^S'^. 
 Andrew's, at the rear of the Eoyal 
 Crescent^ by the late Sir G. G. Scott. 
 St. Mary's Bathwick, Vane St., has a 
 chancel by Mr. G. E. Street. Walcot 
 Church, contains tablets to the me- 
 mory of Madame D*Arblay (Fanny 
 Burney, the authoress of ' Evelina 
 and her husband General D'Arblay, 
 and their son, also to Christopher 
 Anstey, and to Governor Pownall. 
 
 The most striking modern eccle- 
 siastical building is the Boman 
 Catholic Church of St. John the Evan- 
 gelist (0. Hansom, arch.) on the S. 
 Parade. It is a rich flamboyant 
 building, with a lofty spire, very 
 conspicuous from the rly. 
 
 On leaving the abbey, a few steps 
 bring us to the Pump Boom and the 
 Baths. 
 
 The Pump Boom first demands 
 notice. This is a classical structure 
 rebuilt, with a Corinthian portico, 
 by Palmer, 1796, and bearing on its 
 front a Pindaric motto— API2TON 
 MEN TAHP — Water best of elements. 
 The interior is a spacious saloon, 86 
 ft. in length by 56 ft. in breath and 
 34 ft. in height, with coved recesses 
 at each end, and in one a statue, (by 
 Prince Hoare), of Beait Nash, so long 
 the arbiter of fashion here. The 
 water tumbles continually into a 
 marble vase, and fills the room with 
 its pleasant murmurs. It comes 
 from a point quite distinct from the 
 baths, so that "ladies may drink it 
 out of the pamp " without any fear 
 of the ablutions detailed by Anstey. 
 From 2 to 4 a band plays here 
 during the season. No payment is 
 expected for merely tasting the 
 water. Adjoining the Pump Room 
 are the 
 
 King's and Queens Baths, sepa- 
 rated from each other by a screen. 
 The King's or principal bath mea- 
 sures 59 ft. by 40 ft., and is open to 
 the sky, with a covered colonnade 
 on one side. In the centre of the 
 
 bath stands a copper statue of Prince 
 Bladud, "eighth king of the Bri- 
 tons from Brute, a great philosopher 
 and mathematician, bred at Athens," 
 set up 1699. The bath is filled daily 
 to a height of 4 ft. 7 in., and contains 
 about 364 tuns of water. Dressing 
 and retiring rooms communicate 
 with it, and the bathers properly 
 attired walk about in the water. A 
 brass rail round the centre marks 
 where the temperature is hottest, 
 and bathers may select for them- 
 selves a degree of heat varying from 
 100° to 112°. The spring issues 
 from its source at 116 Fahr., and 
 yields 2 hogsheads per minute. Dif- 
 ferent hours of the day are allotted 
 for ladies and gentlemen, but in the 
 great days of Bath they used to meet 
 together in the water (as is still the 
 practice in many watering-places 
 abroad), the ladies coiffees in the ex- 
 treme of fashion, the gentlemen with 
 powdered hair and bag-wigs. 
 
 'T was a glorious sight to behold the fair 
 sex 
 
 All wading with gentlemen up to their 
 necks." Anstey. 
 
 The Queen's bath (so named from 
 Anne, the consort of James 1.) is 27 
 ft. square. It is supplied from the 
 same source as the King's, but, as 
 the water flows into it through a 
 passage, the temperature is rather 
 lower. Connected with the King's 
 bath is a reservoir, containing 32,000 
 gallons. 
 
 Private Baths, in the upper story 
 of the building, in Stall Street, are 
 supplied at suitable temperatures. 
 This establishment is excellently ar- 
 ranged and conducted. Douche baths, 
 by which a stream of hot water is 
 applied to any limb or part of the 
 body, without immersing the whole, 
 are provided : the process is here 
 called dry pumping. 
 
 The Cross Bath, 23 ft. by 22 ft., 
 so called from a cross which, from 
 ancient times, stood in the midst, 
 and was renewed in honour of a visit 
 
320 
 
 Boute 21. — Batli ; 
 
 Hot Springs. Somersetsliire. 
 
 from Mary Beatrice of Modena, the 
 second wife of James II. in 1867, by 
 John Earl Melfort, Sec. of State, is 
 resorted to by the less affluent 
 classes, who pay only 3c?. for admis- 
 sion. The temperature is 98°. 
 
 The Tepid Swimming Bath, a neat 
 building, erected in 1829, from a de- 
 sign of Decimus Burton (entrance 
 piazza in Bath Street), measures 65 ft. 
 by 25 ft. The temperature is 88°. 
 
 The Hot Bath, 60 ft. by 22 ft. (end 
 of Bath Street), built by the younger 
 Wood, is a very elegant structure, 
 remarkable for the great beauty of 
 the sculptured foliage and fruit. It 
 is supplied with the hottest of the 
 Bath waters, the spring gushing from 
 its source at a temp, of 120° Fahr. 
 
 The New Royal Baths, in connec- 
 tion with the Grand Pump Boom 
 Hotel, erected 1869 by the Corpo- 
 ration at a cost of about 12,000Z., 
 which are not surpassed in cleanli- 
 ness, comfort, and convenience by any 
 in Europe. There are 7 baths, of large 
 dimensions^, lined with Dutch tiles, 
 having steps descending into them. 
 One is provided with an invalid 
 chair and crane to facilitate the 
 immersion of feeble patients. An 
 hydraulic lift connects the baths 
 with every floor of the hotel. 
 
 The Hetling, or Hot Bath Pump 
 Boom (now closed), is opposite the 
 Hot Bath, at the corner of Hetling 
 Court. 
 
 The Kingston Baths, in Church 
 Street, occupy the site of the Roman 
 Baths, and were the property of Earl 
 Man vers, but, with all the other baths, 
 now belong to the borough, and are 
 under the superintendence of the 
 Town Council. They are open from 
 
 6 A.M. till 10 P.M. ; on Sundays from 
 
 7 to 9-30 A.M. and 1 to 3 p.m. The 
 time usually chosen for bathing is 
 between 2 and 5 p.m. 
 
 The Bath waters rise in 4 distinct 
 springs, and are the hottest of any 
 
 known in England, having a tem- 
 perature at one of the sources of 
 120° Fahr. They act as a stimulant, 
 and are considered efficacious in gout 
 and paralysis, and the numerous dis- 
 eases depending on a relaxed state 
 of the fibres, but may be injurious 
 where there are inflammatory symp- 
 toms. They are supplied to the hos- 
 pitals, and in particular to the Bath 
 Mineral Water Hospital, a noble in- 
 stitution, which was founded in 1737 
 for their special administration to 
 the poor. A new wing on the site 
 of the old Rectory was opened in 
 1861, and a Chapel added, the fittings 
 of which deserve special examination 
 from the combination of richness and 
 refined taste they display. A Roman 
 tessellated pavement remains in situ. 
 
 After the Abbey Ch., Pump Room, 
 and Baths, the visitor will do well 
 to turn his steps to 
 
 The Boyal Literary and Scientific 
 Institution (a little S.E. of the Abbey), 
 on the North Parade. It was built 
 1824, and occupies the site of the 
 Old Assembly Rooms, destroyed by 
 fire, 1820, of which the Doric portico, 
 erected by Wilkins in 1810, is a rem- 
 nant. It possesses a reading-room, 
 well-stored library of 5000 volumes, 
 including the collection of books on 
 Natural Science, and the Herbarium 
 of the Rev. Leonard Blomefield, and 
 museum, with a laboratory furnished 
 with all appliances necessary for 
 chemical and philosophical experi- 
 ments. The Museum contains Roman 
 antiquities discovered in and near the 
 city ; votive altars to the goddess 
 Sul ; remains of the pediment, cor- 
 nice, frieze, and Corinthian pillars of 
 the temples of Sul-Minerva and Luna, 
 sepulchral cippi, &c., all so well 
 ticketed that description is needless. 
 The Great Hall contains a fine Geo- 
 logical Collection, including Saurians 
 and other organic remains deposited 
 by the late C. Moore, F.G.S., with 
 collections to illustrate the geology of 
 the neighbourhood, and of England 
 
Someryetyhire. Boutc 21. — Bath; Fahlic Buildings. 321 
 
 and Wales generally, carefully ar- 
 ranged by the late curator, Mr. 
 Lonsdale. There are also a cabinet 
 of corns, a collection of birds, 
 amounting to 1500 specimens, be- 
 queathed to the city by Mrs. Godfrey, 
 the Duncan Local Museum of Natural 
 History, and the hockey Museum of 
 Ethnology. The Museum is free to 
 the public between 1 1 and 4, except 
 on Tuesdays and Fridays, when a 
 small charge is made. In the garden, 
 which is situated on the bank of the 
 river, the site of the once famous 
 l)owling-green, a band plays oc- 
 casionally. 
 
 The Athe/umtm, in the Orange 
 Grove, adjoining the Abbey, origi- 
 nally a Mechanics' Institution, has 
 an excellent reading-room, and a 
 library of more than 5000 volumes. 
 
 The Old Assembly Rooms, the scene 
 of Beau Nash's glory, erected in the 
 first half of the last century, were 
 destroyed by fire in 1 820. Nash was 
 master of the ceremonies nearly 50 
 years, from 1710 to 17G0. The office 
 of master of the ceremonies is now done 
 away with. The existing or ZTpjw 
 Assembly Booms, built by the younger 
 Wood, 1771, at a cost of 20,000Z., 
 are noble rooms, handsomely fur- 
 nished and decorated. The ballroom 
 is 107 ft. by 42 ft., the card-room 
 70 ft. by 27 ft., the octagon room 
 48 ft. in diameter, and the tea-room 
 66 ft. by 41 ft. The octagon contains 
 full-length portraits of Beau Nash 
 and Colonel Wade, the latter by 
 Gainsborough, who resided for some 
 time at Bath, in the Circus. Balls are 
 frequently given during the season. 
 
 ]n the Guildhall, built 1768-75, by 
 Baldwin, on the site of one by Inigo 
 Jones, are pci-traits of Frederick P. 
 of Wales and his consort, Geo. III. 
 and Q. Charlotte, Pitt Earl of Chat- 
 ham, and Earl Camden (who both 
 represented Bath in Parliament), by 
 Prince Hoare, and busts of Beau 
 Nash and Allen. Behind the Guild- 
 hall are the Markets. 
 
 HetUng Hmtse, in Hetling Court, 
 
 [WilU^, Dorset.^ (i'c.^ )S82.j 
 
 nea,r the Pump Eoom, is one of the 
 oldest mansions in Bath. Its great 
 room, of which the chimney-piece, 
 bearing the arms of the Clarkes, is' 
 a fine specimen of decoration, is now 
 used as an Odd Fellows Hall. 
 
 The excellent Bobert Nelson, au- 
 thor of the ^ Fasts and Festivals,' 
 founded the Bliiecoat School in 1711. 
 It was rebuilt in the Elizabethan 
 style in 1859. A tessellated pave- 
 ment discovered on the site has been 
 relaid in the lobby. 
 
 Bp. Butler, author of the * Ana- 
 logy,' died in the famil}^ mansion of 
 the Eose wells, 14 Kingsmead Sq, 
 
 No. 5 Trim Street was the resi- 
 dence of General Wolfe and his 
 family. The Kev. Joseph Hunter, 
 the archaeologist and topographer, 
 author of the History of Hallamshire, 
 &c., was for 25 years minister of the 
 Unitarian Chapel in Trim St., in 
 which previously S. T. Coleridge had 
 been an occasional preacher. At the 
 Octagon Chapel, opened 1767, as the 
 place of worship for the Opulent 
 and Noble," W. Connor Magee, now 
 Bishop of Peterborough, officiated, 
 1850-1860. No. 19 New King 
 Street was the house of the astrono- 
 mer Herschel, who was organist of 
 the Octagon Chapel, 1767. 
 
 Thomas Eaijnes Bayly, the waiter 
 of once popular drawing-room songs, 
 lived in Catherine Place. Gains- 
 borough, the painter, resided at 
 No. 24 in the Circus ; Mrs. Piozzi in 
 Gay Street, in a house jDrofusely 
 ornamented with carved wreaths. 
 
 Walter Savage Landor, the author 
 of the ' Imaginary Conversations,* 
 resided at 3, Rivers Street. 
 
 Partis College^ on Newbridge Hill, 
 between Bath and Kelston, is an in- 
 stitution for the reception of 30 re- 
 duced gentlewomen (10 of them must 
 be widows or daughters of clergymen 
 of the Church of England), who are 
 each furnished with a separate house 
 of 4 rooms and an allowance. It 
 was founded by Mrs. Partis, in con- 
 formity with the intention of lier de- 
 V 
 
322 Boute 21, — Bath; Victoria Park, dc. Somersetshire* j 
 
 ceased husband, Fletcher Partis, and 
 was completed in 1827. It is a Gothic 
 building, with a chapel in the centre. 
 
 The Wesleyan or New Kingswood 
 College, a Tudor structure, erected 
 1850, from the designs of Mr. James 
 Wilson, F.S. A., occupies a command- 
 ing site on the ascent of Lansdown. 
 It has a tower in the centre 90 ft. in 
 height. 
 
 The Lansdown Boyal School for 
 DaugJiters of Officers in the Army, 
 lower down on the hill, was com- 
 pleted 1858, by the same architect, 
 and has also a lofty central tower. 
 The architecture is Gothic of the 
 Geometric period, with traceried 
 windows. 
 
 The Victoria Park is a very beau- 
 tiful landscape garden and pleasure 
 ground of about 10 acres, immedi- 
 ately below the Royal Crescent, ap- 
 proached through the Boyal Avenue, 
 which is laid out with plantations, 
 shrubberies, and walks, exhibiting a 
 collection of acclimatised trees and 
 shrubs almost unique in its complete- 
 ness, all conspicuously labelled. 
 At the entrance of the park is an 
 obelisk, erected 1837, in honour of 
 her present Majesty, in whose pre- 
 sence in 1830 (while Princess) this 
 agreeable public garden, created at 
 the expense of some zealous citizens 
 and inhabitants of Bath, who con- 
 tributed 5000Z. to this object, was 
 thrown open. Higher on the hill is a 
 colossal bust of Jupiter by Osborne, 
 a self-taught artist, who died in 
 poverty. It is made of a single 
 block of Bath stone, weighing more 
 than 6 tons, and is 7 ft. high. 
 
 The Sydney Gardens, at the end of 
 Pulteney Street, were formerly Hhe 
 " Vauxhall " of Bath. They occupy 
 16 acres, and were laid out in 1795. 
 The Kennet and Avon Canal and 
 Gt. Western Ely. both pass through 
 them. They afford a delightful re- 
 creation ground with retired walks 
 shaded by fine trees. A band plays 
 here several times a week in the 
 summer. 
 
 In Lansdown Crescent lived Wil- 
 liam BecJcford, of Fonthill, the 
 talented but eccentric author of 
 ' Vathek and on the summit of 
 Lansdown, which is 813 ft. above 
 the sea-level, and now covered with 
 houses to within a short distance of 
 the top, stands 
 
 Bechford's Tower, erected after Mr. 
 Beckford had taken up his residence 
 in Lansdown Crescent in 1822. It 
 is a plain classical tower, crowned 
 with an octagonal lantern, rising to 
 the height of 130 ft., and commands 
 an extensive view. The tower and 
 the rooms connected with it, in Beck- 
 ford's lifetime, formed a store-house 
 of treasures of art in pictures, gems, 
 statues, &c. After Mr. Beckford's 
 death in 1844, the property was in 
 danger of being turned into public 
 tea-gardens, but was happily rescued 
 from such desecration by his daugh- 
 ter, the Duchess of Hamilton, who 
 purchased and presented the ground 
 to the Rector of Walcot, as a public 
 cemetery for Walcot parish. A hand- 
 some modern gateway in the Byzan- 
 tine style has been erected, and 
 Beckford's tomb, which formerly 
 stood in the cemetery of Widcombe 
 Vale, has been removed here. It is 
 a sarcophagus of red granite, which 
 was prepared for him in his lifetime, 
 with inscriptions selected by himself. 
 On one side — 
 
 " Eternal Power ! 
 Grant me, through obvious clouds, one tran- 
 sient gleam 
 Of thy bright essence in my dying hour ! " 
 
 On the other — 
 
 " Enjoying humbly the most precious gift of 
 Heaven to man-*hope." 
 
 [The walks and rides around Bath 
 may be almost infinitely varied, and 
 derive a peculiar charm from the 
 wood and rock in the vales, the 
 height of the hills — each with a dis- 
 tinct and extensive view — the nume- 
 rous old camps, the curious churches, 
 and the farmhouses of Elizabethan 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Bath; Environs, 
 
 323 
 
 or an earlier date, which abound in 
 the district. 
 
 Walks and Excursions: — (a.) To 
 Sham Casile, an artificial ruin built 
 1760, on Bathwick Hill, by Kalph 
 Allen, to improve the view from his 
 town residence now buried among 
 houses at the end of the N. Parade. 
 It is a fine point of view. You may 
 extend your walk to the summit of 
 Hampton Doivn, on which are remains 
 of the Wansdylce, and a large British 
 camp. On the E. side of the hill 
 are the Hampton Rocks, a landslip 
 of the gi'eat oolite. 
 
 (b.) To Prior Park and Comhe 
 Doivn. On leaving Bath, the road 
 passes Widcomhe Old Ch., with its 
 ivy-mantled tower, built by Prior 
 Bird (now quite insufficient for 
 the population, for whom the Ch. 
 of St. Mark, under Beechen Cliff, and 
 that of St. Matthew, at the base of 
 Widcombe Hill, have been built), 
 and then commences the ascent 
 of the fertile dell of Widcombe. 
 Here is the Abbey Cemetery, a pretty 
 spot, the grounds tastefully planted 
 by the late Mr. Loudon in 1843, com- 
 manding one of the finest views of 
 the city. Prior Park (so called as 
 having belonged to the Priors of 
 Bath), is situated at the head of the 
 vale, on a brow commanding a beau- 
 tiful view. The mansion, a handsome 
 Palladian structure, connected by 
 arcades with its v^ngs, is 400 ft. 
 above the river and 100 ft. below the 
 top of Combe Down. It was built 
 1743 by Wood for Palph Allen (d. 
 1764) the All worthy of Fielding's 
 'Tom Jones,' born at St. Blazey, 
 Cornwall, 1693, his father being a 
 small innkeeper. He became a clerk 
 in the Bath post-office, then post- 
 master and mayor, and lessee of the 
 cross-posts which he had established, 
 the net profits of which amounted 
 to 12,OOOZ. a year. He was the 
 friend of Fielding, Pope, and, through 
 the latter, of Bp. Warburfcon, who 
 married his niece and occupied Prior 
 
 Park after Allen's death. Pope, who 
 corresponded with him, used to visit 
 him at Prior Park, where he finished 
 the ^Dunciad,' 1741. Pope disliked 
 Bath, its " rocks, and dirt, and brim- 
 stone, and fogs," and declares in his 
 letters that " health itself should not 
 draw him thither, though friendship 
 had once or twice." ^'1 live," he 
 says, ' ' out of the sulphurous pit, at 
 the edge of the pit, at Mr. Allen's, 
 for a month or so." The mansion at 
 Prior Park was occupied from 1829, 
 as a Rom. Cath. College ; but in 1836 
 the central part of it, which was 
 Allen's residence, was^gutted by fire. 
 It is now a second time occu- 
 pied as a Rom. Cath. College. A 
 magnificent Corinthian Ch. has been 
 erected, decorated with Venetian 
 mosaics (Scoles, Arch.), 
 
 Behind are remains of the Wans- 
 dyke, which traversed the breezy 
 upland of 
 
 Combe Down, 2 m., 550 ft. above 
 the sea. On the S. side of this hill, 
 which commands an extensive pro- 
 spect, several villas have been lately 
 built, and there is now quite a town 
 with Ch. and Inn. A path across 
 two fields leads to Mount Pleasant, 
 where a beautiful landscape opens on 
 the view. You look down upon the 
 meeting of the Claverton, Freshford, 
 and Midford valleys, and upon a 
 hill-side covered with wood. The 
 canal winds below, and in the centre 
 a long viaduct spans the valley. To 
 the rt., by a clump of firs called 
 Monument Field, is a tower, now 
 ruinous, built in memory of Allen 
 by Bp. Warburton (another fine 
 point of view), and the sloping park 
 of Midford Castle, a modern tri- 
 angular building in a commanding 
 position. At Midford is a stat. *on 
 the Somerset and Dorset line. In 
 the far distance rises Alfred's Tower 
 at Stourhead. 
 
 The now exhausted quarries on 
 Combe Down formerly furnished 
 the well-known Bath freestone, a 
 variety of oolite, of which not only 
 Y 2 
 
Uouic 21. — Batli 
 
 the abbey and houses of Bath are 
 built, but many other public and 
 private edifices in distant parts of the 
 kingdom. The down, fields and 
 roads are undermined by caverns 
 and passages. 
 
 Crossing the Down, we can drop 
 down on the prettily situated village 
 of Monkton Combe, with its viaduct 
 and aqueduct (Rte. 5), and return 
 by rly. from Limpley Stoke. 
 
 (c.) To BeclifordJs Tower, Stolce 
 Brow, and Kelston Bound Hill, re- 
 turning by Weston. 
 
 About 2^ m. beyond Mr. Beckford's 
 Tower, at the end of the unenclosed 
 ground, is the battlefield ofLansdown, 
 fought July 5, 1643, between the 
 forces of King Charles, led by the 
 Marquis of Hertford, and those of 
 the Parliament under Sir William 
 Waller, resulting in the complete 
 defeat of the latter. Fuller says " it 
 was disputed rather by parcels and 
 piecemeals, and seemed not so much 
 one entire battle as a heap of skir- 
 mishes huddled together." The spot, 
 near the fourth milestone, is marked 
 by a monument to the memory of 
 Sir Bevil Grenville and his Cornish 
 friends, who fell here, erected by his 
 grandson, George Granville, Baron 
 Lansdowne, 1720. There are many 
 traces of earthworks on the hill, and 
 the highroad near the monument 
 passes through a Roman camp. Lans- 
 down Hill is now much enclosed, and 
 the view from it, notwithstanding its 
 elevation, is greatly impeded by the 
 stone walls which hem in the road ; 
 but a walk of 2 m. from Beckford's 
 Tower, or of 4 from Bath, will bring 
 you to a spot on Upper Lansdown, 
 called Prospect Stile, from which 
 may be seen at the same time both 
 Bath and Bristol, the Avon and 
 Severn, the Welsh mountains and 
 the Mendip hills. It is on Stoke 
 Brow, J m. to the S.W. of the pretty 
 village of North Stoke. 
 
 On the road to the monument, 
 and 1 m. beyond Beckford's Tower, 
 
 ; Environs, SomeryetKhiie, 
 
 we pass on the rt. Chapel Farm, 
 which takes its name from the an- 
 cient hospital of St. Lawrence, 
 founded for the reception of pilgrims 
 on their road to Glastonbury. It is 
 now converted into a farmhouse, 
 but some Decorated windows remain. 
 
 Below Kelston Bound Hill, which 
 is 730 ft. above the sea, lies 
 
 Kelston Park, 3 m. from Bath, 
 looking down on the Avon winding 
 through its green meadows, the pro- 
 perty of Lieut.-Col. Inigo Jones. 
 Near Kelston ch. once stood a house 
 built 1587 by Barozzi, an Italian 
 architect, for Sir John Harington, 
 the wit, poet, and favourite of his 
 royal godmother, Q. Eliz. It was 
 pulled down 1760, with the excep- 
 tion of some outbuildings, which 
 still remain. The present house, by 
 Wood, was built by Sir Csesar Haw- 
 kins 1760. The Ch., rebuilt 1860, 
 preserves the old towers, the 
 porch, and two piscinas. A frag- 
 ment of a very early cross, vnth in- 
 terlacing ornaments, which formerly 
 stood in the ch.-yd. is placed inside, on 
 the X. wall of the chancel. A curious 
 representation of the Holy Rood is 
 let into the jamb of the N. door. 
 
 In the churchyard of Weston, ly- 
 ing in a nook under Lansdown (the 
 birthplace of St. Alphege, who gives 
 his name to a spring of singular 
 purity) an altar-tomb marks the 
 burial-place of the widow of William 
 Falconer, author of ' The Shipwreck.' 
 The tower of the Ch. is good. The 
 Bath Archery Society has its place of 
 meeting in Weston Park. 
 
 (d.) To Grenville' s Monument on 
 Lansdown, returning by the pretty 
 road from Chapel Farm to Langridge, 
 and by Stoainsivick. 
 
 Langridge (3 m. from Bath) has 
 an ancient manor-house, presenting 
 an example, almost unique in this 
 part of England, of a fortified '^peel 
 tower" of the 13th cent. There are 
 additions of the IGth cent. The 
 diminutive Ch.j one of the many 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 BoiUe 21 . — Batheaston, 
 
 325 
 
 said to be the smallest in England, 
 measures only 50 ft. in length by 
 1 8 in breadth. The apse is modern. 
 It is most picturesquely situated, 
 and is also remarkable for a Norm, 
 doorway and chancel arch, an early 
 sculpture of the Virgin and Child, 
 and an effigy of a lady— probably 
 of the Walshe family— in the cos- 
 tume of Henry III., and 2 brasses of 
 the same family. 
 
 Swainsivich ( 2 J m. from Bath), also 
 has its manor-house, the birthplace 
 of William Prynne, b. 1600, educated 
 at the Batli Grammar-school. The 
 Ch, has a Norm. S. door ; the tower 
 and font are E. E. In the ch. is a 
 fine brass to Edmond Ford, 1439, 
 and there are monuments to Prynne's 
 parents. Above the village rises the 
 British camp of Sohhury, 600 ft. 
 above the sea, according to Prof. 
 Earle *Hhe venerable site of a well- 
 inhabited and populous British city," 
 or at least the arx or burgh of the 
 Avon valley and the city of Sul 
 below ;" and beyond it Charmy 
 Doim, where remains of a rude stone 
 monument may be seen in a field 
 behind the farmhouse. 
 
 Charlcomhe, 2 m. from Bath, has 
 a very diminutive Ch., 51 ft. by 
 21 ft. with a western bellcot, Norm. 
 S. door and font, and stone pulpit. 
 
 (e.) Over Lansdown to the Wick 
 Roclcs (3 m. from the monument), a 
 romantic wooded valley between 
 limestone cliffs, which rise to a 
 height of 200 ft., and are crowned 
 on the N. side by an ancient camp. 
 The geology and botany, and scenery, 
 suddenly differ here from all the 
 country round. We have an island 
 of mountain limestone, with a preci- 
 l)itous rift characteristic of that 
 rock, and the vegetation peculiar to 
 the soil. A Roman camp of 12 acres 
 with a broad ditch and double ram- 
 part covers the N. cliff. 
 
 (f.) To Batheaston (2 m.) and St. 
 Catherine (4 J m.). Batheaston Ch.^ 
 
 a Perp. building, contains a tablet to 
 the Rev. J. T. Conybeare, the Anglo- 
 Saxon scholar, for several years vicar 
 of this parish. Near the village are 
 the Water Works that partly sup- 
 ply the city with water. Bath- 
 easton villa is memorable as the 
 residence of Sir John and Lady 
 Miller (d. 1781), renowned in the 
 fashionable annals of Bath for an 
 antique vase, within which were de- 
 posited every other Thursday the 
 poetical effusions of the sons and 
 daughters of fashion. The verses so 
 deposited were drawn by a lady se- 
 lected by chance, and read aloud. 
 A committee was appointed to de- 
 cide on their merits, and adjudge 
 the prizes for the four best produc- 
 tions, whose authors were each pre- 
 sented with a wreath of myrtle by 
 Mrs., afterwards Lady, Miller. This 
 custom was continued for some 
 years, until a wicked beau polluted 
 the chaste vase with a satirical or 
 licentious poem, after which it re- 
 mained closed. 2 m. distant N.E. 
 (Rte. 1) is ShocJcerwick (Mr. Dau- 
 beney). The Box Tunnel is 3 m. N.E. 
 2 Jm. the three counties of Wilts, Glou- 
 cester and Somerset meet on Banner- 
 down, by the side of the high road. 
 For upwards of a century the spot 
 has been marked by 3 small stones, 
 but these have been superseded by a 
 cromlech, which was set up in 1858, 
 Left of Batheaston, on the declivity of 
 Holt Down, lies the village of 
 
 St, Catherine, 4 m., formerly a 
 manor of the priors of Bath, whose 
 grange, built by Prior Cantlow about 
 1499, is still standing in its terraced 
 garden. Its porch, of the time of 
 Charles I., and its beautiful hall- 
 screen, bearing the arms of Henry 
 VII., are much admired. The 
 Church — also partly built by Cantlow 
 — contains a finely-carved pulpit, a 
 Norman font, and, in the chancel, 
 an altar -tomb, with effigies, to Wm. 
 Blanchard and his lady, 1631. The 
 return to Bath may be varied by a 
 
326 Boute 21. — Claverton — Stantonhnry Hill. Somersetshire. 
 
 route over Charmy Down and Sols- 
 bury. 
 
 (g.) To Claverton, a very pretty 
 spot, and an agreeable drive of about 
 3 m. from Bath, passing the Hampton 
 Bocks, a landslip of great oolite on 
 the face of Hampton Down (Rte. 5). 
 On the bold projecting point of the 
 Down above, is the British entrench- 
 ment of Caer Badon, enclosing 30 
 acres. 
 
 (h.) To the Farleigh Beeches, 
 Monhton Farleigh, 4 J m., and ;S'. 
 Wraxall Manor-house, 6 m. (Rte. 4). 
 
 Another commanding point of 
 view is King's Down, E. of Bathford, 
 where the panorama embraces the 
 Cotswold Hills, the Wiltshire chalk 
 downs from Swindon to Alfred's 
 Tower, the range of the Mendips, 
 and immediately below the beautiful 
 valley of Claverton. 
 
 (i.) To Hinton Abbey and Farleigh 
 Castle. The quickest route is by 
 rail to Freshford, from which the 
 abbey is 1 m., and the castle 2 m. 
 distant (Rte. 4). 
 
 (j.) To Mid/or d, Combehay, and 
 Welloiu (5 m.) [more conveniently 
 reached by the Somerset and Dorset 
 line to Radstock (Rte. 25)]. 
 
 The road leaves Bath by the Fosse- 
 Way, up Holloivay, on which stands 
 St. Mary Magdalen's Hospital and 
 Chapel, rebuilt by Prior Cantlow, 
 1495, crosses over Odd Down, and 
 passes on its summit some of the 
 stone-quarries and at the Cross Keys 
 Inn a very good section of the Wans- 
 dijlie. The Ch. of South Stoke, rt., 
 has a Perp. tower and a Norman 
 doorway. 3 m. 1,, Midford Castle. 
 
 3J m. Midford. Rt. 2 m., Combe- 
 hay Parle, and the village of Combe- 
 hay. A hill of about 2 m,, climbed 
 by the Wansdyke, leads from the 
 hamlet of Midford to Charterhouse- 
 Hinton (Rte. 4). 
 
 2 m. rt. of Charterhouse -Hinton, 
 by the British Bidge Way, crossing 
 
 the highest tableland in Somerset- 
 shire, commanding wide and varied 
 views, is Wellow, 5 m. from Bath 
 (Rte. 25). 
 
 (k.) To Englishcomhe and Barrow 
 Hill (3 m.) — *'Enghsh as against 
 the Welsh on the other side of 
 Wansdyke," {Guest) — a retired and 
 pretty village, once the residence, 
 according to Hoare (' Hist, of Ancient 
 Wilts*), of our Saxon kings, and 
 afterwards of the Bps. of Coutance. 
 At a later period it was the site of a 
 castle of the De Gournays, of which 
 the mound and the fosse are still 
 to be seen in the dell to the E. of it. 
 Adjoining the ch. is a large but- 
 tressed barn, once belonging to the 
 Prior and monks of Bath, who here 
 stored the tithes of their many 
 parishes round. ISTear the barn are 
 2 whimsical yew-trees, which have 
 grown into one during a long em- 
 brace. The Ch., which has a central 
 tower, Norm., with later alterations, 
 has a Norm, door and a fine Norm, 
 arcade within. In the orchard by 
 the ch. the WoMsdyJce may be traced, 
 but in the 2nd field beyond the 
 orchard it is in good preservation, 
 running W.N.W., with the ditch on 
 the N. side. 
 
 Barroio Hill (an oiitlier of the 
 oolite) crowns a very elevated ridge 
 of land, and is a conspicuous object 
 in almost every view from Bath. 
 The Duke of Monmouth bivouacked 
 near this place on his way to Philip's 
 Norton. 
 
 (1.) To Stantonhnry Hill (about 6 
 m. W.), a conspicuous outlier of the 
 inferior oolite, capped by a very per- 
 fect British camp, on the line of the 
 Wansdyke. The entrenchment is of 
 30 acres, and commands a tine dis- 
 tant view of Bath. E. is Ncicton 
 Park (W. S. Gore Langton, Esq., 
 M.P.), and W. Houndstrect Park,oiice 
 the residence of the Pophams of 
 Littlecot. The panorama is com- 
 plete, and includes the Welsh moun- 
 tains. W.N.W. is Dundry Hill, AY. by 
 S. the Mendips, in the distant S.S.W. 
 
Somersetshire. Boiite 21. — Twerton — Keynsham. 327 
 
 the town at Stourhead. Under the 
 S. side of the hill lies the village of 
 Stanton Prior, 
 
 (m.) To Stanton Drew (11 m.), 
 about 5 m. from the Keynsham Stat. 
 (Rte. 26.) 
 
 (n.) To Bitteridge, or to Chapel 
 Plaster and the manor-house of S. 
 Wraxall, from Box Stat. (Ete. 1).] 
 
 Resuming our route : — On leaving 
 Bath Stat, the line crosses the Avon 
 upon a timber bridge, remarkable 
 for its obliquity, its 2 arches being 
 each as wide as the river. Close on 
 rt. is the old town bridge ; on 1., high 
 above, Holloway Hill and Beechen 
 Chff. 
 
 108J m. Twerton Stat., •''^possibly 
 a condensation of set wser-time, ' the 
 tower at the weir,' or set ofer-tune, 
 ' the town on the bank,' of the 
 Avon" {Prof. Earle). On rt., on the 
 Avon, are large cloth-mills, the re- 
 presentatives of those established by 
 the monks of Bath in the 14th cent. 
 There is also a carpet manufactory. 
 The Cli., rebuilt, with the excep- 
 tion of the tower, 1839, has a Nor- 
 man doorway and font. Fielding's 
 Terrace perpetuates the name of the 
 author of ' Tom Jones,' part of 
 which was written during his resi- 
 dence here. 
 
 Beyond this stat. the train enters 
 the Twerton tunnel, driven in the 
 new red sandstone, and then dashes 
 through the Newton cutting, in ex- 
 cavating which was discovered the 
 Roman pavement once preserved at 
 the Keynsham Station, but now re- 
 moved to the Bristol Institution, but 
 not yet laid down. It represents 
 Orpheus charming the brutes. 
 
 110 m. 1. are Newton St. Loe, a 
 remarkably pretty and well-cared- 
 for village. The Ch. stands on high 
 ground, with beautiful surroundings. 
 The Ch. is Perp., but has been re- 
 stored with more cost than good 
 taste. The S. arcade is ancient. There 
 are remains of an ancient cross, and 
 modern mansion. 
 
 Newton Parh (W. S. Gore Langton). 
 The poet Southey was at school at 
 Corston, To the rt. is a pretty view, 
 with the Avon winding through green 
 meadows below, and Kelston Bound 
 Hill rising above, 780 ft. from the 
 sea-level, commanding one of the 
 finest prospects in the county. 
 
 Ill J m. Saltford Stat. A neat vil- 
 lage, where is the ancient mansion 
 of the Rodneys, with park-like mea- 
 dows stretching to the Avon. A 
 deep cutting in the lias leads to the 
 Saltford tunnel, 499 ft. long ; on 
 emerging from which, and crossing 
 the River Chew, near its junction 
 with the Avon, the line reaches 
 
 li;o| m. Keynsham Stat. {Inns: 
 Lamb and Lark, Crown; Pop. 2245). 
 
 The Church, large and handsome, 
 contains monuments of the 16th 
 centy. to the Brydges, ancestors of 
 the Dukes of Chandos, who had for- 
 merly a mansion here. The chan- 
 cel is E. E. ; the tower, of grand 
 proportions, built in the reign of 
 Charles II., the former tower, which 
 stood on the N. side of the church, 
 having been destroyed by lightning 
 in 1634. There is an elaborate screen 
 of the same period on the S. side, 
 once stretching entirely across the 
 E. end. E. of the Ch. are the remains 
 of an abbey barn, gutted by fire a 
 few years ago. 
 
 This town, according to tradi- 
 tion, was once the residence of St. 
 Keyne, a British virgin, daughter of 
 Braganus, Prince of Brecknockshire, 
 who lived in a solitary wood infested 
 with venomous serpents, which her 
 prayers converted into stone ; the 
 ammonites of the neighbouring quar- 
 ries beiug popularly regarded as the 
 result of her prayer, Here also, as 
 the legend reports, the leprous king 
 Bladud was hired as a swineherd, 
 and hence he drove his pigs to the 
 spring of Bath. At a later period 
 Keynsham was celebrated for its 
 abbey of black canons founded by 
 Wm. Earl of Gloucester, 1170; here 
 the founder and many of his family 
 
328 
 
 kSomeivoisliire. 
 
 were buried, as well as Jasper Tiidoi^ ' 
 Duke of Bedford, uncle of King- 
 Henry VII. There still remain 
 Home relics of this abbey and its de- 
 pendencies in the curious hostelry for 
 pilgrims, in the principal street, the 
 ham by the ch., and the Norman 
 gateway of the Abbots' court-house 
 at Queen Charlton, 2 m. 1. Some 
 curious incised slabs, bases of 
 columns, and fragments of sculp- 
 ture have been recently discovered 
 on the site of the abbey. In the 
 formation of the Gt. W. Ely. a 
 Koman villa was discovered at Keyn- 
 sham, with a tessellated pavement 
 removed to the Literary Institution 
 at Bristol. The stone circles of 
 Stanton Drew are about 5 m. to the 
 1. of Keynsham. 
 
 l^Bitton, W. of N. Stoke, is a pretty 
 village, on a small lake or reservoir, 
 which supplies water to several 
 paper-mills. The Ch, is a remark- 
 able one, and deserves careful exa- 
 mination. It was once cruciform, 
 but has lost its transept. The nave, 
 of very unusual length, 93 ft. 6 in., 
 and, as first built, longer by the 
 breadth of the tower, was originally 
 Norm, of the 12th cent., but with 
 indications of a building of much 
 earlier date having preceded it, which 
 was not totally destroyed when the 
 new church was erected. There are 
 Norm, doors N. and S., and a Norm, 
 corbel table on each wall. To the 
 N. is the Chantry of St. Catherine, 
 built by Thomas of Bitton, Dean of 
 Wells 1284, and Bp. of Exeter 1298, 
 over the graves of his parents, and 
 consecrated by the Bp. of Worcester 
 in 1299. This has good trefoiled 
 lancet windows, three very rich se- 
 dilia, and a piscina, and is altogether 
 an excellent example of the date. 
 The well-proportioned western tower 
 was erected within the nave, temp. 
 Edward III., but is of Perp. cha- 
 racter. The W. door has its hood 
 moukl terminated by the busts of I 
 J^dward III. and Philippa. The chan- ! 
 
 ' col is Per]-)., witii a groined roof, a 
 large E. window of T) lights, and 
 well-proportioned sedilia. On the wall 
 over the chancel-arch are the remains 
 of a very early sculptured crucifix. 
 The church contains some fine monu- 
 mental effigies. One, half-raised, half- 
 incised, commemorates Sir Thomas 
 of Bitton of the 13th cent. A slab 
 with a floriated cross is to the 
 memory of Emmote of Hastings. In 
 the N. aisle are two small effigies 
 supposed to be of canons of Wells. 
 The nave, roof, and seats are mo- 
 dern. There is some pretty scenery 
 in the neighbourhood, particularly 
 at Hanham, where the Avon flows 
 between rocks for some distance. 
 Here is a fine old Grange House, 
 formerly belonging to the Abbot of 
 Keynsham, now a private resi- 
 dence.] 
 
 Bej^ond this stat. commences a re- 
 markable series of tunnels and cut- 
 tings. E. of Bridington^ where the 
 Ch. has a Norman font, is a cutting 
 through the freestone, with vertical 
 sides. Bridington tunnel, 3148 ft. 
 long, is carried through the shale 
 and sandstone of the coal-measures, 
 and ventilated by 4 shafts. 
 
 Emerging from the last tunnel is 
 the new red sandstone, which here 
 covers up the coal ; the line crosses 
 the Avon by a handsome Gothic 
 bridge of stone, and amidst dust 
 and smoke enters the suburb of 
 Bristol. 
 
 1 1 8 J m. Bristol Stat., common also 
 to the rlys. to Exeter and Gloucester. 
 {Inns : Royal Hotel, College Green, 
 very good ; Grand Hotel, Broad 
 Street. At Clifton, the Down Hotel ; 
 St. Vincent Rocks Hotel ; Queen's 
 Hotel ; Imperial Hotel, Clifton Down 
 Stat. Pop. of the Parliamentary 
 borough, 206,503.) [Bristol is a great 
 centre of land and sea communica- 
 tion. Railways branch out from it 
 N.E. to Gloucester, S.W. to Exeter, 
 E. to Bath ; placing it in connection 
 
Somevsetsliiro. 
 
 Bonfe 21. Brist(J ; Hilton/. 
 
 329 
 
 with the Avhole of the Midland, Gt. 
 AVestern, and S.- Western systems of 
 railways. Shorter lines ran to the 
 i^ew Passage, and by crossing the 
 Severn to S. Wales : to Avon Mouth ; 
 and to Portishead for the Cardiff and 
 Newport steamers. Steamers afford 
 direct communication with S. Wales, 
 N. Devon, and Ireland : and also 
 run to Liverpool, Glasgow, London, 
 Bordeaux, and Eotterdam.] 
 
 Bristol, a city and county in itself, 
 locally situated in the counties of 
 Somerset and Gloucester, but chiefly 
 in the latter, the capital of the west, 
 and long the second city of Gi-eat 
 Britain, stands in the valley of Avon, 
 and on the slopes of the hills rising 
 from the river just where it begins to 
 be tidal. It Avas the centre of exten- 
 sive commerce when Liverpool was 
 unheard of, and was long the exclu- 
 sive seat of the AVest India trade, 
 and is still one of the chief resorts of 
 our mercantile navy. 
 
 The early prosperity of the city 
 was chiefly owing to the natural port 
 afforded by the deep oozy beds of 
 the Avon and the Frome, which here 
 unite, and the ready communica- 
 tion afforded to the Bristol Channel, 
 and thence to the open sea. In later 
 times these natural advantages were 
 increased by the proximity of exten- 
 sive coalfields. 
 
 Tradition identified Bristol with 
 Caer-Oder, ''the City of the Chasm," 
 nientioned in the Triads. But this 
 story is pronouned by Dr. Guest to 
 be fabulous. The foundation of the 
 city has been assigned on little better 
 grounds to the British king Dyfn- 
 wal Moelmyd, famous in Welsh le- 
 gendarj^ lore, c. 570, and his sons 
 Bran and Beli, better known by their 
 I^atinised names Brennus and Belinus, 
 whose statues are still posted on 
 St. John's Gate. We know little of 
 its history in Saxon times, but it 
 evidently grew in wealth and pros- 
 peritv, and had a mint in the time 
 of Ethelred II. (987-1016). At 
 
 the time of the Domesday Survey 
 it was rated higher than any town, 
 save London, York, and Winches- 
 ter. In 1088 Bristol was held by 
 Godfrey, Bp. of Coutances, in favour 
 of Duke Robert against Wm. Rufus, 
 on whose defeat it was conferred by 
 the Red King on Robert Fitz Haymo, 
 his companion on his fatal hunting 
 in the New Forest, whose daughter 
 Matilda, by marriage, carried the 
 Lordship to Robert, Earl of Glou- 
 cester, bastard son of Henry I. He 
 erected the Castle c. 1126, on the 
 isthmus between the rivers Avon and 
 Frome to the E., commanding the 
 entrance to the town, and overawing 
 the burghers. The castle was built 
 with stone imported from Caen, 
 the tithe of it being devoted by 
 " the Red Earl " to the Priory of 
 St. James, which he had recently 
 founded. One of the first occu- 
 pants of the castle was Duke Robert, 
 who was entrusted by Henry I. to 
 his son's keeping. From Bristol he 
 was transferred to Cardiff", where 
 he died. The fortress was hardly 
 completed before it was invested by 
 the forces of Stephen. The Earl of 
 Gloucester was the chief champion of 
 the Empress Maud in her claim to 
 the English throne, and Bristol con- 
 sequently became the head-quarters 
 of her party," whence they spread 
 rapine, devastation, and acts of 
 cruelty and license all round. On 
 the capture of Stephen at the battle 
 of Lincoln, 1141, he was marched 
 across England to Bristol, and im- 
 prisoned in the castle, where he was, 
 it is said, loaded with chains in con- 
 sequence of his attempts to escape. 
 After 9 months' captivity he was ex- 
 changed for the Earl of Gloucester, 
 who had been captured at Stockbridge, 
 after raising the siege of Winchester, 
 the queen and her son being de- 
 tained as hostages at Bristol, till the 
 completion of the exchange. Maud 
 placed her young sou^ afterwards 
 Henry IL, in Bristol Castle, where 
 he resided 4 years, 1142-1146, under 
 
330 Boute 21. — Bristol; History. Somersetshire. 
 
 the care of his uncle, the Earl of 
 Gloucester, * ' whose instruction, " says 
 Lord Lyttleton, " laid the foundation 
 of all that was afterwards most ex- 
 cellent in him." 
 
 In 1247 the first bridge was erected 
 over the Avon. It was mentioned in 
 a charter of Henry III. The build- 
 ing of this bridge, by the union of 
 the city with the suburb of Red- 
 cliflfe, greatly increased its prosper- 
 ity, which was also advanced by the 
 erection of the Priory of St. James, 
 in 1130, and the Monastery of St. 
 Augustine, now the Cathedral, by 
 Rob. Fitzhardinge, in 1142, and the 
 gathering of inhabitants round them. 
 King John having married Isabella, 
 the d. of the Earl of Gloucester, the 
 *' lady of Bristowe," his visits became 
 frequent, and to him is due the 
 charter which laid the founda- 
 tion of the franchises of the city. 
 The castle in interchange with Corfe 
 was the place of the long dreary 
 imprisonment of his niece Eleanor, 
 
 the Damsell of Brittaine," Prince 
 Arthur's sister, from 12<i2 to 1240. 
 She was annually brought out and 
 shown to the people, to do away with 
 the only too natural suspicions of 
 foul play. This perhaps was also the 
 scene of the compulsory tooth-draw- 
 ing, of which unlucky Jews, some 
 brought hither from Southampton, 
 were the subjects. One, it is said, 
 was sentenced to lose a tooth every 
 day until he paid John 10,000 marks, 
 and gave in after the loss of 7. In 
 1216, the boy-king Henry HI. kept 
 his Christmas in the castle, as did his 
 son, Edward I., in 1285, who, when 
 Prince of Wales, had besieged and 
 taken it after the battle of Evesham, 
 1265. It was the scene of a royal 
 marriage in 1293, when his daughter 
 Eleanor espoused the Earl of Bar. 
 
 In the next reign Bristol played 
 a conspicuous part in the disgraceful 
 events of which the king's love of 
 favourites was the cause. Hardly 
 was Edw, II. seated on the throne 
 than he accompanied Gaveston here, 
 
 1308, when he was about to set sail 
 for Ireland, of which he had been 
 appointed governor. In 1312 " the 
 Great Insurrection " took place, and 
 Bristol was held by Lord Badles- 
 mere, the custos of the castle, and 
 the burgesses, for 3 years against the 
 king, and was finally taken in 1316. 
 In 1320 the castle and town was 
 granted to the reigning favourite, 
 the younger Despenser ; and in 
 1326 received the fugitive monarch, 
 who had fled hither pursued by the 
 execrations of the whole kingdom, 
 and here took shipping with his 
 favourite for Lundy, on his way to 
 Ireland. The castle was held by the 
 elder Despenser, and was besieged 
 and taken by Isabella. Despenser, 
 in spite of his venerable age of 90 
 years, suffered the savage death of 
 a traitor, and was gibbeted in com- 
 plete armour for 4 days, when his 
 body was given to the dogs. The 
 council of the nation sat in the 
 castle, and after summoning the 
 king to his post, proclaimed Prince 
 Edward guardian of the realm left 
 without a ruler. The next year, 
 1327, saw the unhappy king once 
 more at Bristol, on his way from his 
 prison at Corfe to the place of assassi- 
 nation at Berkeley, to which he was 
 removed under cover of night, April 
 5, in consequence of a plan of some 
 of the burgesses, moved with pity 
 for their dethroned monarch, to aid 
 him in escaping beyond sea. In 
 1348, Bristol was visited by the 
 Black Death. Richard II. visited 
 Bristol in 1399 on his way to Ireland, 
 when a trial of battle between 2 
 Scots took place, in which the appel- 
 lant was defeated and hanged. The 
 year 1400 saw another political tra- 
 gedy, when Despenser, E. of Glou- 
 cester, and Lord Lumley, who, on 
 the explosion of the conspiracy for 
 the restoration of Richard 11. , had 
 ridden as far as Bristol, were seized 
 by the populace and beheaded at the 
 High Cross. In 1446, Henry YI. 
 visited the city, on which he con- 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Bristol ; History. 
 
 331 
 
 ferred a new charter. He was lodged 
 at the Hospital of St. John Baptist, 
 near Redcliff Church. Edward IV. 
 was at Bristol m 1461, and glutted 
 his vengeance by witnessing from 
 the E. window of St. Ewen's Church, 
 hard by the High Cross, the Lan- 
 castrian partisan Sir Baldwin Ful- 
 ford and his two companions, led 
 to execution. As one of the chief 
 cities of his realm, Bristol was visited 
 by Henry VII., not long after his 
 accession, 1486. He was met by the 
 mayor and corporation at Redfield, 
 entered the city at Lawford's Gate, 
 and passing the High Cross, where 
 the clergy in their robes were wait- 
 ing for him, was conducted with 
 great state to St. Augustine's. Four 
 years later the king paid another 
 visit, when, not content with a pre- 
 sent of 500/., he fined every inhabit- 
 ant worth 201., " because their wives 
 went too fine." Elizabeth was at 
 Bristol in 1574, and was welcomed 
 at the Cross by Fame, very orderly 
 set forth by an excellent boy." On 
 the way to her lodgings, *'at Mr. 
 John Young's, on St. Augustine's 
 Back," ^' Salutation, Gratulation, and 
 Obedient Goodwill,'' were awaiting 
 her at the gate. On the Sunday 
 she went to the Cathedral, to hear 
 a Sarmond, and an imme was sung 
 by a very fine boy." In 1612 Anne 
 of Denmark paid Bristol a visit, and 
 occupied the same lodgings. Her 
 reception gratified her so much that 
 she said " she never knew she was 
 queen till she came to Bristol." 
 
 During the Civil Wars of the 17th 
 cent., Bristol played a prominent 
 part. It was alternately in the 
 power of either party, but ultimately 
 became the chief Royalist stronghold 
 in the West ; and its surrender by 
 Prince Rupert, 1645, was one of the 
 greatest blows Charles's cause re- 
 ceived in those parts. In 1642, in 
 preparation for the struggle, the 
 walls and gates were restored, and 
 forts built on Brandon Hill and St. 
 Michael's Hill, The feeling of the 
 
 citizens was divided, and on Essex 
 marching to take possession of the 
 city, Dec. 5, 1642, the gates were 
 shut against him, but were opened 
 to him on the importunity of the 
 women ; but his riotous conduct 
 proved so offensive that in Feb. 
 1643, Col. Nat. Fiennes marched in 
 and replaced him as governor. The 
 following month, a plot was formed 
 to open the gates to Prince Rupert 
 and his brother Maurice ; but it was 
 discovered and frustrated the night 
 of its intended accomplishment, 
 Mar. 7. The 2 heads of the plot, 
 Yeomans and Bouchier, suffered 
 the death of traitors at the Nag's 
 Head in Wine St. This execution 
 so exasperated the citizens that they 
 invited the king to lay siege to the 
 city ; and accordingly Prince Rupert, 
 with 20,000 men, appeared before it 
 July 22, and commenced the assault 
 the next daj^. Three days later it 
 capitulated, for which the king, who 
 was at Oxford, ordered public thanks- 
 givings, aud started with his sons 
 Charles and James to Bristol, where 
 he arrived Aug. o, and wa;^ lodged 
 at Colston's House in Small St. Two 
 years later, Sept. 11, 1645, Bristol 
 was stormed by Fairfax, to the 
 grievous discomfiture of the royal 
 cause in the West. Prince Rupert 
 rode out of Bristol amid seas of 
 angry human faces, glooming un- 
 utterable things on him ; growling 
 audibly, in spite of his escort, ' Why 
 not hang Mm!' For indeed the 
 poor Prince had been necessitated to 
 much plunder." — Carlyle. His re- 
 ception by his royal uncle was not 
 more cheering, for he spoke of its 
 surrender as " the greatest trial of 
 inconstancy that has yet befallen 
 me," and ordered the Prince to 
 **seek subsistence beyond sea." 
 Their new masters did not gain the 
 goodwill of the citizens. The licen- 
 tiousness of the soldiery under 
 General Skippon was intolerable, 
 especially when in 1647 they seized 
 on one of the aldermen, and refused 
 
332 
 
 Jioutc 21. — Bristol; JliHforjj. 
 
 Somersets] lire. 
 
 to release him until they had re- 
 ceived a month's paj^ and indem- 
 nity for their act. Cromwell him- 
 self visited Bristol in 1S49 on his 
 way to Ireland, returning after his 
 bloody campaign in 1650. The 
 next year, after the battle of Wor- 
 cester, Charles II. rode through the 
 city in disguise on his way to the 
 south coast ; the same year Ireton's 
 body was brought from Ireland and 
 received by the authorities of the 
 city in state. The castle was 
 ^ ' slighted " by order of Cromwell 
 in 1655. In 1658, Richard Cromwell 
 visited the city from Bath, and was 
 received with great pomp, as was 
 Charles II., who, in 1663, came over 
 from the same place with his queen, 
 .Tames Duke of York, and Prince 
 Rupert ; the last-named not over- 
 willing, one should think, to see a 
 place connected with so much dis- 
 grace to his character as a com- 
 mander. In 1685, the year of Mon- 
 mouth's rebellion, Bristol contained 
 many of his partisans, who were with 
 difficulty restrained from an insurrec- 
 tion by the Duke of Beaufort, when 
 Monmouth was known to be at 
 hand with designs upon the city, 
 which he was unwillingly forced to 
 relinquish. In Jeffreys' Bloody 
 Assize," 3 rebels were executed here. 
 The next year James II. was here 
 with his son-in-law George of Den- 
 mark, and touched for the kino's evil, 
 leaving it for Sedgemoor to view the 
 scene of the battle. William and 
 Mary visited the city in 1689, and 
 William alone on his return from 
 Ireland in 1690, and Queen Anne in 
 1702. 
 
 The most noteworthy event in 
 modern times was the disgraceful 
 riot which broke out on October 31, 
 1831, during the violent excitement 
 that accompanied the progress of the 
 first Reform Bill ; when, chiefly in 
 consequence of a want of ordinary 
 firmness in the civil and military 
 authorities, the whole city was at 
 the mercy of a furious rabble for 
 
 nearly 2 days, and 2 sides of Queen's 
 Square, including the Mansion House 
 and Custom House, as well as the 
 Bishop's Palace, Jail, and Bridewell, 
 were burnt down, and property to 
 an immense amount destroyed. 
 
 Tiie commercial importance of 
 Bristol dates from a very early period. 
 William of Malmesbury describes 
 it as '^full of ships from Ireland, 
 Norway, and every part of Europe, 
 which brought hither grea.t commerce 
 and much foreign wealth." In the 
 'Gesta Stephani,' it is spoken of 
 as ** almost the richest of all the 
 cities of the country, receiving mer- 
 chandize from neighbouring and 
 foreign places in ships under sail.'* 
 This brings before us one of the 
 chief local advantages of Bristol as 
 a port, that, owing to the tidal river 
 and its soft oozy bottom, vessels 
 were able to come into the heart of 
 the city, and unload their cargoes 
 at the quays under the merchants' 
 windows. From a very early period 
 Bristol was the market of the English 
 slave-trade, as, many centuries later, 
 it was one of the chief centres of 
 that from Africa. From this shame- 
 ful traffic the prosperity of the 
 town began. The slaves were cap- 
 tured in Wales or bought in Eng- 
 land, and exi)orted to Ireland, which 
 is described as being full of Eng- 
 lish slaves. This infamous com- 
 merce was at last checked by the 
 earnest preaching of Wulstan, the 
 Bp. of Worcester, to which diocese 
 Bristol then belonged. The connec- 
 tion with Ireland continued. Der- 
 mot, king of Leinster, being ex- 
 pelled by his subjects, took refuge 
 here c. 1170. A charter of Hen. II., 
 1172, assigned the city of Dublin, 
 then almost drained of its inhabit- 
 ants, to the men of Bristol, and an 
 English colony was transplanted 
 thither. Bristol was also the centre 
 of mediaeval mercantile maritime ad- 
 venture. In 1497, under a patent 
 granted by Henry VII., John Cabot 
 and his son Sebastian, sailed from 
 
8oiiieri3etsh.ire. Haute 21. — Bristol; Hidory, 
 
 088 
 
 Brisf,ol in the Matthew," and on 
 June 24 discovered the mainland of 
 America. In 1498 a fleet sailed under 
 Seb. Cabot, which explored the 
 American coast from Newfoundland 
 to Florida, of which John Guy was 
 the first colonist, and Rob. Thorne, 
 both Bristol men, the first to form 
 a commercial settlement in the 
 newly discovered continent. Bristol 
 has also been no less famous for its 
 manufactures. The woollen manu- 
 facture was introduced in 1340, its 
 chief seat being in Temple and 
 Tucker Streets. Among the manu- 
 facturers Thomas Blanket is con- 
 spicuous, who is said to have given 
 his name to that comfortable article 
 of domestic economy. The first brass 
 made in England was in 1705, at the 
 Baptist Mills, by workmen brought 
 from Holland, the copper being 
 smelted by Sir Simon Clark. The 
 production of zinc commenced in 
 1743, at Hanham-on-Avon, 2 m. from 
 Bristol. From its being the chief 
 seat of the West India trade, the 
 manufacture of sugar was early esta- 
 blished, and has only recently been 
 discontinued through foreign com- 
 petition. There were also early 
 manufactories of glass and shot. 
 Bristol was, as early as the time 
 of Richard I., the only seat of the 
 manufacture of soap; ^^Yea," says 
 Fuller, " after London meddled with 
 the making thereof, Bristol soap 
 was found much cheaper." At the 
 present time its manufactories, which 
 are much assisted by the abundant 
 supply of coal close at hand, are very 
 extensive, including glass works, 
 potteries, soaperies, tanneries, che- 
 mical works, copper, lead, and shot 
 works, iron works and foundries, 
 manufactories of anchors, chain 
 cables, and edge tools, machine 
 works, and cotton mills. The shoe 
 factories engage numerous hands, 
 that of Dyrham's alone employing 
 about 1500. Fry's chocolate works, 
 though not generally open to inspec- 
 tion, are among the most extensive 
 
 manufactories of the city. Tobacco 
 is also an important manufacture. 
 Bristol is also a great seat of the wool 
 trade, and the Irish provision trade. 
 Its connection with the West Indies 
 and West Africa, though not of such 
 importance as it once was, still 
 causes a large import trade of sugar, 
 rum, molasses, hemp, fruits, &c. 
 There are few places of greater 
 attraction to a traveller who takes 
 an interest in the manufactures and 
 trade of the country, or where, if 
 provided with proper introductions, 
 he can spend a few days more agree- 
 ably and profitably. 
 
 " Bristol, more truly Briglitstow," 
 says Fuller, ^^is Iright in the situa- 
 tion thereof, conspicuous on the 
 rising of a hill ; bright in the build- 
 ings, fair and firm ; bright in the 
 streets, so cleanly kept as if scoured, 
 where no carts but sledges are used; 
 but chiefly bright for the inhabitants 
 thereof, having bred so many emi- 
 nent persons." 
 
 The following sketch from the 
 brilliant pen of Macaulay portrays 
 Bristol as it was at the latter part of 
 the 17th century : — "Large as Bristol 
 might then appear, it occupied but a 
 very small portion of the area on 
 which it now stands. A few churches 
 of eminent beauty rose out of a 
 labyrinth of narrow lanes built upon 
 vaults of no gTcat solidity. If a 
 coach or a cart entered these alleys, 
 there was danger that it would be 
 wedged between the houses, and 
 danger also that it would break in 
 the cellars. Goods were therefore 
 conveyed about the town almost ex- 
 clusively in trucks drawn by dogs; 
 and the richest inhabitants exhibited, 
 their wealth, not by riding in gilded 
 carriages, but by walking the streets 
 with trains of servants in rich liveries, 
 and by keeping tables loaded with 
 good cheer. The pomp of the 
 christenings and burials far exceeded 
 what was seen at any other place in 
 England. The hospitality of the 
 city was widely renowned, and 
 
334 
 
 Boute 21. — Bristol ; Situation, Somersetshire 
 
 especially the collations with which 
 the sugar refiners regaled their 
 visitors. The repast was dressed in 
 the furnace, and was accompanied by 
 a rich brewage made of the best 
 Spanish wine, and celebrated over 
 the whole kingdom as Bristol milk. 
 This luxury was supported by a 
 thriving trade with the North Ameri- 
 can plantations and with the West 
 Indies. The passion for colonial 
 traffic was so strong that there was 
 scarce a small shopkeeper in Bristol 
 who had not a venture on board of 
 some ship bound for Virginia or the 
 Antilles. Some of these ventures 
 indeed were not of the most honour- 
 able kind. There was, in the Trans- 
 atlantic possessions of the crown, 
 a great demand for labour; and this 
 demand was partly supplied by a 
 system of crimping and kidnapping 
 at the principal English seaports. 
 Nowhere was this system found in 
 such active and extensive operation 
 as at Bristol. Even the first magis- 
 trates of that city were not ashamed 
 to enrich themselves by so odious a 
 commerce. The number of houses 
 appears, from the returns of the 
 hearth money, to have been, in 
 the year 1685, just five thousand 
 three hundred. We can hardly sup- 
 pose the number of persons in a 
 house to have been greater than in 
 the city of London : and in the city 
 of London we learn from the best 
 authority that there were then fifty- 
 five persons to ten houses. The 
 population of Bristol must therefore 
 have been about twenty-nine thou- 
 sand souls." — Macaulaifs * History of 
 England,' vol. i. 
 
 The City was originally built on a 
 peninsula of rising ground nearly 
 surrounded by the rivers Avon and 
 Frome, and occupied an oval walled 
 area, the form of which may still be 
 traced by the curved line of the lanes 
 which mark the contour of the walls 
 and ditch. The castle, "slighted" 
 by Cromwell, occupied the neck of 
 ground between the 2 rivers to the 
 
 E., filling a space nearly as large as 
 the old town itself, and commanding 
 all the approaches to it from that 
 quarter. The neig^hbourhood of the 
 Castle was far from being agreeable 
 to the quiet burghers, who were con- 
 tinually complaining to the king of 
 the levying of unjust tolls, the cap- 
 ture of their goods, and other acts of 
 oppression perpetrated by the occu- 
 piers of the fortress. The river Frome, 
 in Norman times, after washing the 
 N. wall, took a bend to the S., and 
 flowed along the line of Baldwin St., 
 and joined the Avon some distance 
 E. of its present mouth, close to St. 
 Nicholas' Church. The wall was 
 pierced by 4 principal gates, a ch. 
 standing at each, and traversed by 2 
 main streets. At their intersection 
 stood the High Cross (now at Stour- 
 head, Rte. 12) with 3 more churches 
 at the angles of the central area, and 
 the Guildhall hard by. The 4 streets 
 thus formed were, and are still, 
 known as High St., from the S. ; 
 Broad St., from St. John's Gate, N. ; 
 Corn St., from St. Leonard's Bridge 
 or Blind Gate, W. ; and Wine (or 
 Winch) St., from Newgate (where 
 was the city prison), E. Corn St., 
 now the most busy and imposing 
 thoroughfare in Bristol, and the seat 
 of its chief commercial buildings, was 
 almost closed at its'W. end by a 
 small low gate, beneath St. Leonard's 
 Ch. This was demolished in 1771, 
 and the street was continued to the 
 quay, under the name of Clare St. 
 (in honour of Robt. Nugent, Earl of 
 Clare, then member for the city). 
 This was followed in 1775, by the 
 formation of Pai'h St. in what was 
 known as ^*the Bullocks' Park,'* 
 mounting the steep hill from College 
 Green, which opened a free commu- 
 nication between the city and its 
 western suburbs. 
 
 The Castle, so long one of the 
 chief strongholds of the west, was 
 dismantled, and its fortifications de- 
 molished by order of Parliament, in 
 , 1G55. Castle Gate, leading from the 
 
Somersetshire, Route 2\. — Bristol; Bridge; Cathedral. 335 
 
 city, was taken down, 1766. The 
 exterior walls and bastions still re- 
 main in the midst of modern struc- 
 tures, to the N. and E., where the 
 names Broad Weir and Castle Mill 
 St. tell of the time when the Frome, 
 now running underground, expanded 
 into a broad mill head. Some re- 
 mains may be hunted up by the de- 
 termined antiquary, at the farther end 
 of the Castle Greerij the platform 
 of the rising ground on which the 
 Castle stood, down a turning to the 1. 
 The 13th-cent. vaulted porch to the 
 King's Hall still remains, in a de- 
 graded condition. 
 
 The Bridge over the Avon was built 
 in 1247 ; the same year in which the 
 Frome was diverted to its present 
 channel. The present bridge was 
 erected in 1768. The more ancient 
 streets were built on arched drains, or 
 '^gowts " (Fr. egouts) ; and for a long 
 time the apprehension of disturbing 
 the masonry of these sewers kept 
 all wheeled vehicles out of the city. 
 As late as 1820, Cooke writes in his 
 * Itinerary,' heavy carts are not 
 admitted into this city for fear of 
 damaging the arches of the vaults 
 that are made underground for carry- 
 ing off the soil into the rivers, so that 
 the constant draught is by sledges, 
 which renders the pavement in the 
 highway exceeding slippery." 
 
 Nearly all the older streets of 
 Bristol contain picturesque gabled 
 houses, affording studies for the 
 sketcher, which will repay the re- 
 searches of any one who is careless 
 of the smells, sights, and sounds he 
 may encounter. The best route for 
 any one anxious to see old Bristol is 
 to go a short distance down Wine St., 
 and turn 1. into the Pitliay, a narrow 
 steep street of picturesque houses, 
 which diverges into Tower Lane, and 
 preserves the curved contour of the 
 city walls, smoke-blackened frag- 
 ments of which peep out continually 
 among the quaint dilapidated houses. 
 A postern arch will be passed rt., and 
 St J6hv!% Ch. reached, standing actu- 
 
 ally on the wall, with its tower pierced 
 by the city gate. Passing under this 
 we enter Christmas St., once one of 
 the chief thoroughfares of the city, 
 through which Q. Elizabeth and 
 Anne of Denmark passed with all the 
 pomp of royalty. The entrance of 
 St. Bartholomew's Priory should be 
 noticed rt. It is a porch with exter- 
 nal and internal archways of Dec. 
 and E. E. work, and a statue at the 
 W. corner. Some small fragments 
 of the priory remain in the warehouse 
 behind. Christmas Steps should now 
 be ascended ; they form a steep 
 climb from the lower part of the city 
 towards St. MichaeVs Ch., whose 
 tower rises conspicuously above. At 
 the top of the steps 2 rows of stone 
 niches form seats for the weary. 
 Overhanging the steps to the 1. are 
 Foster's Almshouses, founded, temp. 
 Hen. VII., by a merchant of Bris- 
 tol. The chapel is original, but was 
 modernised when the Almshouses 
 were rebuilt, 1702. 
 
 The Cathedral is the first object 
 to which the visitor will be inclined 
 to direct his steps. This stands 
 locally in Gloucestershire, but civilly 
 in the county of the city of Bristol, 
 on elevated ground rising from the 
 rivers Frome and Avon. 
 
 The monastery, the church of 
 which afterwards became the ca- 
 thedral of Bristol, was founded, for 
 Augustine canons, c. 1142, by Robert 
 Fitzhardinge, who subsequently be- 
 came Lord of Berkeley. Its site, on 
 the right bank of the Avon, and on 
 the highest ground close outside the 
 walls of Bristol, was traditionally 
 that of Augustine's oak, the great tree 
 under which it was said the founder 
 of the English Church met the Bri- 
 tish Christians in solemn conference. 
 Fitzhardinge became a canon of his 
 own monastery, and died here in 
 1170. His descendants, the power- 
 ful barons of Berkeley, who were 
 liberal benefactors to all the reli- 
 gious houses in the neighbourhood 
 
3H6 
 
 Boute 21, — Bristol; Cathedral. Somersetshire. 
 
 of their castle, continued the espe- 
 cial patrons of this monastery, and 
 many of them were interred in its 
 church. St. Augustine's was raised 
 to the dignity of a mitred abbey, 
 under the rule of John Snow (loo2- 
 1341). It was surrendered, among 
 the greater abbeys, in 1538 ; and in 
 154-2, when Bristol was included 
 among the five new sees created by 
 Henry VIII., its church became the 
 cathedral of the new diocese, and 
 the monastic buildings were assigned 
 as residences to the bishop, the dean, 
 and the chapter of canons. Bristol 
 had hitherto been in the far-reaching 
 diocese of Worcester. The liberty 
 of the city, which embraced a con- 
 siderable district, and the county 
 of Dorset (up to this time in the 
 diocese of Salisbury, to which it has 
 now been restored), were assigned 
 to the new see. The see was united 
 to that of Gloucester in 1836, the 
 bishop being elected by the chapters 
 alternately. 
 
 The first bishop of Bristol was 
 Paul Bush, Master of the College of 
 Bonhommes at Edingdon, deprived 
 by Queen Mary, as a married man, 
 1554. Among the bishops of this 
 see, w^hich was one of the poorest in 
 England, giving rise to frequent 
 translations to richer sees, may be 
 noticed Fletclier (tr. 1593), after- 
 wards Bishop of Worcester and 
 London, father of the dramatist, 
 who, as Dean of Peterborough, 
 troubled the last hours of Mary Q. 
 of Scots, by his exhortations to 
 change her faith ; d. 1596. Lalie,i\iQ 
 Nonjuror (tr. 1685), one of "the, 
 Seven Bishops," as was his successor, 
 Trelawny (tr. 1689), the subject of 
 the Cornish rhyme : — 
 
 And shall Trelawny die ? 
 There's 20,000 Cornish men 
 Will know the reason why." 
 
 Butler (tr. 1750), the author of 
 'The Analogy of Religion,' one of 
 the most deservedly honoured names 
 in the English Church. Newton 
 
 (d. 1782), the author of a well-known 
 work on the Prophecies, and the 
 learned Kaije (tr. to Lincoln, 1827). 
 
 * The church, as finished by Fitz- 
 hardinge, consisted of a nave with 
 N. and S. aisles, a central tower with 
 N. and S. transepts, a presbytery 
 with N. and S. aisles, and a proces- 
 sion path at the E. end. To this origi- 
 nal church — of which the onl}^ remains 
 are in the walls of the transepts, and 
 choir, and the piers of the crossing, 
 the chapter-house, and vestibule — • 
 some additions were made during 
 the E. E. period, including the Elder 
 Lady-chapel and portions of the N. 
 transept ; and during the abbacy of 
 Edmund Knowle (1306-1332), the 
 Norm, choir was replaced by that 
 which now exists. After the com- 
 pletion of the choir, it is evident 
 that it was contemplated — probably 
 by the same architect — to rebuild 
 the nave. It is perfectly clear, how- 
 ever, from the position of the 15th- 
 cent. cloister, and other evidence, 
 that the work was only commenced, 
 never completed. The chapels ou 
 the S. side of the choir were proba- 
 bly added in the time of Knowle's 
 successor, Abbot Snow (1332-1341); 
 to whom must also perhaps be at- 
 tributed the Dec. work of the tran- 
 septs. The central tower, as it now 
 appears, was the work of Abbot New- 
 land (1481-1515) ; who also added 
 the groined roof to the N. trans. 
 The vaulting of the S. trans, was com- 
 pleted by Abbot Elliot (1515-1526). 
 . Bristol Cathedral has been too 
 much underrated, and will reward 
 careful study. The Norm, and Dec. 
 portions are of unusual value and 
 interest. The peculiar vaulting of 
 the choir-aisles and the richly deco- 
 rated monumental recesses in the 
 work of Abbot Knowle may be 
 regarded as the specialities of this 
 cathedral, to which justice has 
 never been done either in an sesthetic 
 or historical point of view." — E. A. F, 
 The exterior of the cathedral is 
 comparatively uninteresting 5 ai- 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Bristol; Cathedral, 
 
 337 
 
 thougb. its ainoke-stained walls con- 
 trast well with the trees of St. 
 Augustine's Green. The only ge- 
 neral views to be obtained are from 
 St. Augustine's (or the Upper Col- 
 lege) Green. From the Lower Green 
 there is a good view of the tower, 
 with the whole of the transept and 
 new nave. 
 
 * In the years 1861-1 804 an exten- 
 sive series of restorations was carried 
 on within the cathedral, under the 
 superintendence of Messrs. Pope and 
 Bindon, local architects. The first 
 stone of a new nave was laid in April 
 1868, and the work was vigorously 
 carried on by a lay committee in 
 conjunction with the Dean an(i 
 
 REFERENCES. 
 
 A A. Tower and Transept. 
 Choir. , y 
 
 Chancel or SacrariumffTr^3~7^5^ 
 North Choir-aisle. 
 South Choir-aisle. ' 
 Elder liady-chapel. 
 Ante-chamber to Berkeley Chapel. 
 Berkeley Chapel. 
 Newton Chapel. 
 Cloister. 
 
 Vestibule of Chapter-house. 
 Chapter-house. 
 North Porch. 
 
 Butler Tower and Baptistery. 
 Nave. 
 
 West PortaL 
 
 A 
 B. 
 C. 
 D. 
 E. 
 F. 
 G. 
 H. 
 K. 
 L. 
 M. 
 N. 
 0. 
 P. 
 R. 
 S. 
 
 4 
 
 1 . North Entrance. 
 
 2. Sedilia. 
 
 3. Monument of Abbot Newland. 
 
 4. Monument of Abbot Knowle. 
 
 5. Monument of Abbot Newberry. 
 
 6. Monument of Bishop Bush. 
 
 7. Monument of Maurice Lord Berkeley, 
 and Wife. 
 
 8. Staircase to Triforium and Tower. 
 
 9. Monument of Thomas Lord Berkeley. 
 
 10. Monument of second Maurice Lord 
 
 Berkeley. 
 
 11. Monument of second Thomas Lord 
 
 Berkeley. 
 
 12. Doorway to Cloister. 
 
 SCALE OF FEET 
 
 20 40 GO 80 100 120 140 
 
 Ground Plan, Bristol Cathedral. 
 
 Chapter, from the designs of the 
 late Mr. Street, and was brought 
 to a completion in 1877, when it was 
 opened for service Oct. 23. The 
 new nave carries on the idea of 
 Abbot Knowle's choir, with some 
 slight modifications which distin- 
 guish the new work from the old. 
 It consists of six bays, and is 1 20 ft. 
 IWilis, Dorset &c., 1882.] 
 
 long, 69 ft. broad, and 60 ft. high. 
 
 In the second bay from the W. there 
 is a noble gabled porch, with aparvis 
 over, the gift of Mr. Killigrew Wait. 
 Statues of the Evangelists stand on 
 either side of the arched doorway, 
 the space above which is filled with 
 a bas-relief of the Adoration of the 
 Magi. The design for the western 
 
338 
 
 Boute 21, — Bristol J Catliedral. Somersetshire. 
 
 * facade includes two towers, that to 
 the S. designed to commemorate 
 Bishop Butler, but both as yet in- 
 complete. The centre is occupied 
 by a very lofty, deep-set portal, to 
 be eventually enriched with sculp- 
 ture, above which is a rose window 
 of 12 lights. The gable of the roof 
 is concealed by a range of horizontal 
 panelling. The side walls of the 
 nave are divided by tall plain but- 
 tresses, similar to those of the choir, 
 between which are very lofty win- 
 dows with varied tracery of Dec. 
 character. Small ' flying buttresses 
 and a pierced parapet are a pleasing 
 variation of Abbot Knowle's design. 
 Entering by the N. porch, the 
 effect of space and majestic harmony 
 is very striking. The view from the 
 W. end of the aisles across the Ch. 
 to the E. is one of singular effective- 
 ness. The lofty arches are supported 
 on clustered pillars of Doulting stone, 
 25 ft. high, with attached shafts of 
 blue lias. The capitals are carved in 
 foliage. The vaulting, both of the 
 nave and aisles — the latter of very 
 singular design (see j^os^)— is of the 
 same general design as that of the 
 choir and its aisles. Monumental 
 recesses of the same character as 
 those in the choir, but varied in 
 design, break the wall beneath each 
 of the windows. The base of the 
 S.W. tower forms the baptistery con- 
 taining the font, the whole cost of 
 which has been borne by the familj^ 
 of the late Bp. Monk. The wall 
 arcades of this portion are very 
 beautiful. Many of the windows are 
 filled with stained glass, mostly by 
 Messrs. Hardman. 
 
 • Passing eastwards we enter the 
 transepts and crossing, which occupy 
 the exact site of those of the Norm. 
 Ch., the original walls having been 
 to a great extent retained in Abbot 
 Snow's recasting of the structure. 
 
 ^ *^ The Norm, work of the N. 
 transept is confined to the coursed 
 masonry below the E. E. jambs of 
 the great N. window, and possibly 
 
 'the core of the' buttresses." In 
 the S. transept, the Norm, work 
 is more extensive, but is chiefly 
 visible on the exterior. Inside the 
 transept a ''Norm, cushion-shaped 
 corbel may be seen, at the S.W. 
 angle, supporting the later capital of 
 the Perp. vaulting."— i/. W. (?. 
 
 ^ Some part of the S. transept was 
 rebuilt during the E. E. period, 
 after the construction of the Elder 
 Lady -chapel. The shafted jambs 
 of the great N. window are evidently 
 of this style. The tracery was in- 
 serted in 1704. This work may be 
 assigned to Abbot Long (1237-1264). 
 
 ( Both transepts were altered during 
 the Dec. period, probably by Abbot 
 Snoiv (1332-1341). Abbot Newland 
 (1481-1515) constructed the groined 
 roof of the N. transept, and the 
 arches opening to the nave-aisles. 
 The rich lierne vaulting of the S. 
 transept, which springs at a higher 
 level than any of the rest, is as- 
 signed to Abbot Elliot (1515-1526). 
 
 The lower part of the tower-piers, 
 " although transformed to something 
 like the character of Perp. work, are 
 Norm, in plan." 
 
 ' Many of the monuments with 
 which the walls of the transepts were 
 encumbered have been removed into 
 the cloisters and the lay-clerk's 
 vestry. Among these may be men- 
 tioned a monument for several mem- 
 bers of the Porter family, including 
 Jane and Anna Maria, the well-known 
 novelists ; a monument by Bacon 
 for Mrs, Draper (the "Eliza" of 
 Sterne's letters), d. 1778. The 
 figures on each side of the urn 
 represent " Genius and Benevo- 
 lence ; " a medallion for the Rev. John 
 Eagles (author of 'The Sketcher,' 
 and translator of Homer's Hymns), 
 "Scholar, Painter, and Poet, b. at 
 Bristol 1784, d. 1855 ; " and one for 
 the father and mother of Macready 
 the tragedian; a monument for Cow- 
 per's Lady Eeslceth, who d. at Clifton 
 in 1807 ; a tablet for Mary Anne 
 Schimmelpenninch. In the S. transept 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21, — Bristol; Cathedral, 
 
 339 
 
 are — a very pretty small tablet by 
 Tyley, of Bristol, for 3 children of 
 B. Walivyn, Esq.; a memorial for 
 William Phillips, subsacrist, who 
 prevented the mob of rioters from 
 profaning the cathedral in 1831 ; a 
 monument by Chantrey for Mrs. 
 Crawfurd, with some fine medallion 
 heads on the upper part; and against 
 the E. wall, a monument for Bishop 
 Butler, d. 1752, designed by Fripp, 
 of Bristol, with an inscription, by 
 Southey. On the W. wall of the N. 
 transept is a monument to the late 
 Mif<s Carpenter, d. 1877, the earnest 
 labourer in the cause of the education 
 of tlie lower ranks, and Miss Winh- 
 ivorth, d. 1873, the translator of 
 Lyra Germanica, &c. 
 
 ' Before the restoration of 1864, a 
 choir-screen (dating shortly before 
 Edward VI. 's accession) passed across 
 the church 2 bays E. of the tower ; 
 thereby converting a portion of the 
 actual choir into a small nave or 
 ante-chapel. This arrangement seems 
 to have been made when the church 
 first became a cathedral. A modern 
 screen, with a double arcade of 
 pointed arches, now extends between 
 the E. piers of the tower; and the 
 whole of the choir is thus rendered 
 available for the congregation. But 
 its present arrangements are in viola- 
 tion of all precedent, and cannot be 
 commended. 
 
 The existing choir consists of 5 
 bays, from the tower to the E. end 
 of the aisles ; beyond again is a 
 chancel, or sacrarium, of 2 bays. 
 
 ^ The work of the choir, with its 
 aisles, was commenced and nearly 
 completed during the long abbacy of 
 Edmund Knowle (1306-1332), and 
 belongs to the first or Geometrical 
 division of the Dec. period. The 
 Norman choir seems to have had a 
 square east end, at the 3rd bay from 
 the E. tower-piers — the actual choir 
 consisting of the tower and 2 bays 
 of the presbytery, leaving the E. 
 bay for a via processionum. Abbot 
 Knowle, retaming the Norm, walls 
 
 as far as possible, added 2 bays to 
 the choir and its aisles, besides 
 the Lady-chapel, projecting beyond 
 them. 
 
 • From the clustered piers of the 
 choir spring the groined vaulting of 
 both the choir and aisles. The 
 capitals, of graceful leafage, have 
 been touched with gold and colour. 
 The lofty pointed arches between 
 the piers are very pure and fine ; the 
 archi volts spring from the ground, 
 and run round the arches continu- 
 ously, without any capitals. The 
 lierne vaultiEg of the roof has its 
 compartments foliated, with the ex- 
 ception of those in the last bay of 
 the choir, and of the 2 bays of the 
 sacrarium. These are plain ; the 
 high altar having^ originally stood at 
 the last of the richer bays, and a 
 screen running across behind it, sepa- 
 rating the 3 plainer ones to the E. 
 This arrangement admitted of the 
 usual processional path at the back 
 of the altar. The easternmost bay 
 formed the Lady-chapel. 
 
 ' The stalls, which were originally 
 Dec, of the same date as the choir, 
 have been restored, added to, and 
 contrary to all ritual traditions, 
 placed in the 2 easternmost bays 
 below the sacrarium, the dean hav- 
 ing a throne opposite the bishop. 
 The modern carving of the episcopal 
 throne, and that of the sides of 
 the principal seats, is good. Some 
 of the ancient misereres deserve 
 notice. On one is a fox preaching 
 to geese ; and on another a tilting 
 with brooms between a man and a 
 woman — one mounted on a pig, the 
 other on what seems intended for a 
 turkey-cock. 
 
 ' The organ is on the N. side of the 
 choir. 
 
 ♦ The sacrarium is of the same 
 date and general character as the 
 choir. It is of 2 bays, the eastern- 
 most of which is raised by a single 
 step. The window in each bay 
 corresponds to that opposite ; the 
 two W. windows being of unusual 
 
 z 2 
 
340 
 
 Boute 2i, — Bristol; Cathedral, Somersetshire. 
 
 * and beautiful design. All the win- 
 dows have transoms, and the heads 
 of the lower compartments are 
 filled with rich and peculiar tracery. 
 An open parapet (new, and part of 
 the recent work), with triangular 
 headings, runs at the foot of the 
 windo s. 
 
 ' Th window, which fills the 
 
 w> . of the end above the reredos, 
 3 jWVQ Dec, and of singular beauty 
 
 tracery and design. The glass, 
 according to Mr. Winston, dates 
 from about the year 1320. In 1847 
 the window was completely restored, 
 and has lost nothmg of its interest 
 by the process." A good deal of 
 modern glass, however, was neces- 
 sarily used. The general effect is ad- 
 mirable. There is much white silvery 
 glass, from which the brilliant colours 
 shine out like jewels. 
 ' ^' The window represents a stem 
 of Jesse. The lower lights contain 
 figures of the Virgin and Infant 
 Jesus, as well as prophets and 
 kings. Each figure is enclosed in an 
 oval panel, formed by the ramifica- 
 tions of a vine-branch. Some of the 
 foliaged scrolls in the heads of the 
 lower lights (which are principally 
 original) are remarkably graceful in 
 design. In the three upright lights 
 above are the crucified Saviour, the 
 Blessed Virgin, and St. John the 
 Evangelist. Original parts of all 
 these figures remain. . 
 
 *^In the upper tracery lights is a 
 display of heraldry, of singular ex- 
 cellence." 
 
 The four side windows of the 
 chancel are filled with very rich and 
 interesting ancient glass, of the same 
 date and character as that in the E. 
 window, re-arranged during the late 
 restorations. The first window from 
 the E., on the N. side, contains 
 merchants' marks, and was therefore 
 in all probability the gift of a Bristol 
 trader. 
 
 The reredos below the E. window, 
 which has been elaborately gilt and 
 coloured, has been restored since 
 
 1839, when a Corinthian structure of 
 wood was removed. Of the 3 arched 
 recesses the 2 at the sides are ancient. 
 Above these recesses are corbel-heads 
 and shields of arms, probably those 
 of the first and second Edward, 
 Berkeley, and De Clare. 
 
 A row of panels, with shields of 
 benefactors (of Perp. date, and pro- 
 bably placed there by Abbot Burton, 
 1530-1536), which formerly ran 
 along above the reredos, are now 
 placed in the passage under the E. 
 window. 
 
 In the first bay on the S. side are 
 the sedilia (2), modern (but copied 
 from the ancient), and of very great 
 beauty. They are in 4 divisions, 
 with rich canopies of leafage, sup- 
 ported by shafts of red serpentine. 
 In the next bay on this side (3) is 
 the mitred effigy, with pastoral staff", 
 of Abbot Newland, or Nailheart 
 (d. 1515), the constructor of a por- 
 tion of the transept, called the " good 
 Abbot " from his charitable deeds. 
 Two angels sustain a shield at his 
 feet, with his bearings, a bleeding 
 heart pierced by three nails, and the 
 initials I. N. The effigy is placed 
 in one of the remarkable recesses 
 which are among the characteristic 
 features of this cathedral, and which 
 formed part of the Dec. work com- 
 menced by Abbot Knowle. There 
 are eight recesses in the walls of the 
 chancel and aisles. The form of 
 the arch, and the rich foliaged de- 
 coration, with the five projecting 
 finials, which surround it, are alto- 
 gether unusual. Similar recesses 
 occur in the S. aisle of Kedcliff'e Ch., 
 in the S. aisle of St. David's Cathe- 
 dral, and in Berkeley Castle, where 
 a doorway has a somewhat similar 
 heading. (The monastery at Bristol 
 was, it should be remembered, the 
 burial-place of the Berkeleys, and 
 under their especial patronage.) 
 
 A brass plate let into the wall 
 below Abbot Newland's tomb re- 
 cords the place of interment of 
 Bishop Butler, 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21, — Bristol; Cathedral. 
 
 341 
 
 On the N. side of the chaucel are 
 two of Abbot Knoivle's decorated re- 
 cesses. Within tliat nearest the 
 altar (4) is the effigy of this abbot 
 himself, the rebuilder of the greater 
 part of his church. It was Abbot 
 Knowle who refused to receive the 
 murdered body of Edward II. — 
 which was afterwards interred in the 
 abbey church of Gloucester (see that 
 cathedral), to the great advantage 
 of the Benedictines there. In one of 
 the lower recesses (5) is the effigy of 
 Abbot Newberry J a great benefactor 
 to the church, who died in 1463. 
 
 In passing into the N, choir-aisle 
 (d), the eye is at once attracted by 
 the vaulting of the roof, which is 
 altogether unusual. The choir and 
 its aisles are of the same height ; and 
 ** to carry out this arrangement the 
 following ingenious construction has 
 been adopted. A transom, as we 
 must call it, has been thrown across 
 the aisles from the outer walls to the 
 capitals of the choir-pillars. These 
 are supported on arches springing 
 from attached shafts on each side of 
 the aisle, and in the spandrils formed 
 by these are lesser arches, so that the 
 transom is supported by the points 
 of three arches. From the centre 
 of the transom springs a vaulting- 
 shaft which carries the groining of 
 the roof. A horizontal buttress is 
 thus obtained, w^liich receives the 
 thrust of the groining of the choir, 
 and carries it across the aisle to the 
 external buttress. The windows, 
 which have transoms, are especially 
 to be noticed for the beauty of their 
 Dec. traceiy. A stringcourse, with 
 the ball-flower, runs immediately 
 under them in each aisle. 
 
 The E. windows of the choir-aisles 
 are filled with glass coloured with 
 enamels. They date from the reign 
 of Charles II. ; and although it is 
 traditionally said that they were pre- 
 sented by Nell Gwynne, it is more 
 probable that they were the offerings 
 
 of Henry Glemliam, Dean of Bristol 
 from 1661 to 1667, and afterwards 
 Bishop of St. Asaph, whose arms 
 are repeated 3 times in the win- 
 dow of the S. aisle, and once in that 
 of the N. The subjects (arranged as 
 type and antitype) in the N. aisle 
 are — in the centre, the Resurrec- 
 tion ; below, Jonah delivered from 
 the whale. On the rt., above, the 
 Ascension ; below, Elijah taken up 
 to heaven. On the 1., above, the 
 Agony in the garden ; below, Abra- 
 ham about to offer up his son. Much 
 of the original enamelled glass has 
 been lately replaced by '^pot glass." 
 
 Under this window was a very 
 magnificent reredos of canopied 
 niches, now much mutilated, and 
 almost hidden by modern monu- 
 ments, of which the chief is an 
 elaborate Jacobean monument for 
 Eohert Codrington (d. 1618), It was 
 restored by ISir Bethel Codrington 
 in 1840, w^hen it was removed from 
 the chancel . In front is a marble figure , 
 by Bailey, of Harriet Isahella, wife 
 of John Middleton, of Clifton, d. 1826. 
 The figure, which kneels, with the 
 hands clasped on the breast, is grace- 
 ful, and far more appropriate than 
 most others of its class. At the side, 
 and under the first bay of the choir 
 (6), is the tomb of Paul Busli, d. 
 1 558, the first bishop of Bristol. A 
 " cadaver " rests under a canopy sup- 
 ported on Ionic shafts. Under the 
 window, in this first bay, is Bailey* s 
 very fine bust of Bobert Soutlieyy 
 "born at Bristol, October, 1774;'* 
 behind it is one of Abbot Knowle's 
 recesses. 
 
 The 2nd bay contains a similar 
 recess. In the 3rd is a monument 
 for William Powell, the tragedian, d. 
 1769. The window above is half 
 blocked by the wall of the Lady- 
 chapel. The lower part is disfigured 
 by monuments. 
 
 The 4th and 5th bays open in- 
 to the Lady- chapel, of earlier date 
 than the existing choir, which was 
 connected v.'ith it, as at pre.sent, 
 
342 
 
 Boute 21. — Bristol; Cathedral, Somersetshire. 
 
 by Abbot Knowle. In the 4th bay, 
 between the choir and the Lady- 
 chapel, is a high altar-tomb with 
 effigies (7), under a groined canopy. 
 The effigies are no doubt those of 
 Maurice, Lord Berkeley (d. 1368), 
 and Elizabeth his wife. Over the 
 armour of the male figure is a surcoat 
 with the Berkeley arms. The hel- 
 meted head rests on an abbatial 
 mitre (the crest of the Berkeleys — 
 assumed in reference to their exten- 
 sive Church patronage). The lady 
 wears the veiled head-dress. 
 
 The groined canopy above this 
 monument, and a similar one in the 
 next bay, should be noticed. The 
 panelling of the vault is carried on 3 
 small brackets, springing from the 
 wall. 
 
 In the 3rd bay of this aisle a door 
 opens to a staircase leading to a wall 
 passage running round the church, 
 the view of which from the side of 
 the E. window, is remarkably fine. 
 The corbels in this staircase are 
 Norman, and show it to have been 
 part of Fitzhardinge's church. 
 
 The Lady-chapel (generally called 
 the Elder Lady -chapel (f), because 
 the altar of the Virgin was removed 
 to the E. end of the church after 
 Abbot Knowle had rebuilt the choir) 
 is entered from the N.E. corner of 
 the transept, and from the College 
 Green through a Perp. doorway in 
 the w^esternmost bay, made by Abbot 
 Somerset^ 1526-1530. On the span- 
 drils are the arms of Berkeley, and 
 those of the monastery impaled with 
 those of Somerset. The chapel is 
 E. E., and dates, according to Mr. 
 Godwin, from the time of Abbot 
 John, 1196-1215. The mouldings 
 and general character indicate a very 
 early period of Gothic architecture. 
 The chapel is of 4 bays, the windows 
 in which are triplets with inner arches, 
 of which those at the sides are grace- 
 fully foliated. The detached vault- 
 ing-shafts are of Purbeck marble. 
 The sculpture of the capitals and 
 stringcourses is unusually good ; and 
 
 the spandrils of the wall-arcade are 
 filled with, grotesque designs which 
 are full of spirit and character, 
 greatly resembling the sculpture in 
 Wells Cathedral, much of which is of 
 the same date. Eemark especially — 
 a goat blowing a horn, and carrying 
 a hare slung over his back; a ram 
 and an ape playing on musical instru- 
 ments ; and St. Michael with the 
 dragon (?) ; below is a fox carrying 
 off a goose. 
 
 The blank arches on the S. side 
 of the chapel resemble those of the 
 windows opposite, but on look- 
 ing carefully at the S. side, we see 
 that the whole has been recon- 
 structed. In order to bring in two 
 arches of communication to the 
 choir-aisle, the upper arcade, corre- 
 sponding to the windows on the 
 opposite side, has been cut short, 
 and a stringcourse of the same cha- 
 racter as the vaulting-ribs has been 
 built inr—E. TV. G. The E. wall and 
 window and the groined roof are of 
 E. Dec. character and may be fairly 
 assigned to Abbot, Hugh of Doding- 
 ton, 1287-1294. 
 
 Under the E. window is a tablet 
 with Masons lines in memory of his 
 wife, d. 1767, which deserve to be 
 read. There are also monuments to 
 Dr. Elwyn (d. 1840) by Bailey, and 
 to Mrs. Elwyn by Chantrey. 
 
 The S. choir-aisle (e) (part of 
 Abbot Knowle's work) precisely re- 
 sembles the N. aisle in its vaulting 
 and general character, with the ex- 
 ception of the W. bay, which Mr. 
 Godwin assigns to Knowle's suc- 
 cessor. Abbot Snow, 1332-1341. 
 
 The enamelled glass in the E. 
 window is of the same date as that 
 in the corresponding window in the 
 N. aisle. The subjects are — in the 
 centre, above. Our Lord driving the 
 Money-changers from the Temple ; 
 below, Jacob's Dream; on the right 
 above, the Tribute Money ; below, 
 Melchizedek and Abraham ; the 
 subject on the left above is uncer- 
 tain ; below, the Sacrifice of Gideon. 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Bi 
 
 Wistol; Cathedral, 
 
 343 
 
 Under tliis window is a modern 
 monument. 
 
 In the 3rd and 4th bays from the 
 E., within 2 of Abbot Knowle's re- 
 cesses, are effigies of 2 of the Berke- 
 leys. The most W. (9) of these is 
 that of Thomas, Lord Berkeley (d. 
 1243). He wears the long surcoat, 
 over a hawberk of mail, under which 
 appears tlie haketon, which is not 
 often seen. His poleyns, or knee- 
 caps, should also be noticed. On his 
 left arm is a shield with the Berkeley 
 bearings. The effigy in the next re- 
 cess (10) is that of the 2nd Maurice, 
 Lord Berkelerj (d. 1281), Some 
 ancient colouring was discovered on 
 these effigies. On the label and on 
 the inner moulding of one of these 
 recesses the mistletoe is represented, 
 perhaps a solitary instance of the use 
 of this plant in ecclesiastical decora- 
 tion. 
 
 In this arch, in the 2nd bay from 
 the E., a door opens to a small ante- 
 chamber (g), through which a chapel 
 called the Berkeley Chapel (h), and 
 now serving as a vestry, is ap- 
 proached. The ante-chamher has 
 much that is curious and unusual. 
 On the S. side are 3 ogee arches, with 
 niches between. The finials and the 
 ornaments in the spandrils are un- 
 usually large and elaborate. Other 
 niches or recesses, the use of which 
 is uncertain, occur over the door, 
 and in the N.E. corner. The roof, 
 with its detached curved ribs, may 
 be compared with the ''skeleton" 
 vaulting under the roodlofts in St. 
 David's and Lincoln Cathedrals, and 
 in Southwell Minster. Round the 
 label of the doorway entering the 
 chapel is a remarkable moulding, 
 in which the ammonite is repre- 
 sented. This fossil, which is some- 
 times represented in the churches 
 of the chalk districts (as in St. Mary's 
 Church, Guildford), and which occurs 
 also in Bp. Alcock's chapel at Ely, 
 is found in profusion in the oolite 
 quarries at Keynsham on the Severn, 
 between Bath and Bristol (see ante). 
 
 The fire-place, with chimney, used 
 for baking the hosts should not be 
 overlooked. 
 
 The chapel itself, now used as the 
 song-school, may have been erected 
 by Thomas de Berkeley after the 
 death of his wife Margaret in 1337. 
 There are 2 windows toward the E., 
 the soffits of which are ornamented 
 with a gigantic ball-flower ; and the 
 peculiar foliage on some of the 
 capitals should be remarked. Under 
 each of the windows was an altar, the 
 steps and piscinae of which remain. 
 
 Between the chapel and the aisle 
 the wall is pierced by the pecu- 
 liar arch of Abbot Knowle ; and 
 under it, in the thickness of the wall, 
 is an altar- tomb (11), much orna- 
 mented, and containing 5 shields, 
 charged with coats of the Berkeley, 
 Ferrers, and De Quincey families. 
 The tomb in its present state is no 
 doubt that of Thomas, Lord Berkeley, 
 d. 1321, whose wives were of those 
 families ; but the lower part, with 
 its very fine foliage, is of E. E. date, 
 and may possibly have been removed 
 from another part of the church. 
 The Berkeley arms occur also in the 
 spandrils of the door of the ante- 
 chamber. 
 
 Opening from the westernmost bay 
 of this aisle is a chapel (k) known as 
 the Newton Chapel (from members 
 of that family who are buried 
 there). The S. wall divides it 
 from the chapter-house, with which 
 it is parallel. It has, however, been 
 much altered, and the arches, half 
 cut ofi", in the S. and W. walls show 
 that it was interfered with when the 
 transept was completed. In this 
 chapel are monuments for Sir Richard 
 Cradoch, Justice of the Common 
 Pleas, d. 1444, and 17th-cent. mo- 
 numents for members of the JS'ew- 
 ton family ; cumbrous structures, but 
 good examples of their time. Here 
 is also a monument by Westmacott 
 for Elizabeth Stanhope, d. 1816 ; and 
 one by Bailey for Bishop Gray, d. 
 1834. 
 
lloate 2 1 .—Br istol ; 
 
 Chwpter-ho use. Somersetshire . 
 
 A door in the W. wall of tlie S. 
 transept (12) leads to the small 
 remains of the cloisters, very late 
 Perp. partly rebuilt and the win- 
 dows filled with stained glass, and 
 the walls furnished with some of the 
 monuments from the transept. Other 
 monuments are placed in the Lay 
 Clerk's Vestry, formerly the Monies* 
 Bay-room, to the S. of the chapter- 
 house. The most remarkable is a 
 stately Jacobean pile with a semi- 
 recumbent effigy to Sir Charles 
 Vanner, d. 1830. From the E. 
 walk of the cloister (l), the vestibule 
 of the chapter-house (m) is entered. 
 Both vestibule and chapter-house 
 are Transition Norman, and belong 
 to the original building of Fitz- 
 hardinge ; but to its second, or richer, 
 period. In the vestibule the arches 
 from N. to S. are round, whilst those 
 from E. to W. are pointed. The 
 nail-head moulding runs round 
 the arches, and the capitals are 
 cushioned. 
 
 The Chapter-liouse itself (n), greatly 
 enriched with zigzag and cable mould- 
 ings, is at present of 2 bays, but 
 was originally of 3. It is a parallel- 
 ogram (like the early chapter- 
 houses of Oxford, Gloucester, 
 Exeter, and Chester), the dimensions 
 of which are now 42 ft. by 25 ft., but 
 originally were 71 ft. by 25 ft. In 
 the E. wall (which is recent) are 3 
 windows. In the W. wall, below, 
 are 3 circular arches, that in the 
 centre being the doorway. The 
 walls are arcaded, and the whole 
 interior, including the shafts of the 
 wall-arcades, and the groining, which 
 is quadripartite, are much enriched. 
 On the restoration of the flooring in 
 1831, 12 stone coffins were discovered, 
 which probably contained the re- 
 mains of as many abbots. 
 
 Forming the covering-slab of one 
 of these coffins was a remarkable 
 piece of ancient sculpture of Norm, 
 character, and perhaps coeval with 
 the chapter-house, which is now in 
 the canons' vestry, a small room 
 
 within the chapter-house. It repre- 
 sents the descent of our Lord into 
 Hades, and the delivery thence of 
 the "'spirits in prison." The pros- 
 trate body on which our Lord treads 
 is that of Satan, who attempted to 
 prevent His entrance. 
 
 In the chapter-house are the scanty 
 remnants of the chapter library, the 
 greater part of which was burnt in 
 the riots of 1831, when the bp.'s 
 palace was destroyed, and the w4iole 
 cathedral narrowly escaped con- 
 flagration. 
 
 At the S.W. corner of the cloister 
 area is a beautiful E. E. doorway, 
 which was formerly the entrance 
 to the refectory. What remains of 
 the refectory, much modernised, is 
 used as the cathedral school and 
 master's house. 
 
 The palace stood on the site of 
 the abbot's lodgings at the S.E. 
 corner of the cloisters. The travel- 
 ler will see with interest the Dec. 
 remains of the bishop's private chapel, 
 famous for the cross erected in it by 
 Bp. Butler, who spent 5000Z., ten 
 times the income of the see, on the 
 repairs of the palace in 1744. A 
 dungeon, in which were some bones 
 and iron instruments, was dis- 
 covered in 1744 by the falling in of 
 the floor under one of the apart- 
 ments in the palace. The only means 
 of entrance was by an arched pas- 
 sage, just large enough to admit one 
 person. 
 
 Although the abbey of St. Augus- 
 tine was small (^'the number on the 
 foundation was only G, including 
 officers, and at no time does it appear 
 to have been more than 17 " — Godwin), 
 its arrangements were in every re- 
 spect "as complete as those of the 
 most noble monasteries." . The great 
 gateway, portions of the cloisters, 
 and the gatehouse of the abbot's 
 lodgings, are the chief existing re- 
 mains. 
 
 The lower part of the Great Gate- 
 way, leading from Upper College 
 Green to Lower College Gre^n, 
 
^Somersetshire. Route 21. — Bristol ; College Green, 
 
 belongs to the second or richer 
 period of Fitzhardinge's work, and is 
 of Transitional character, like the 
 chapter-house. The four receding 
 f orders of the archway are greatly en- 
 riched with zigzag and other mould- 
 ings, and an interlacing arcade lines 
 the sides of the passage. " It may 
 be regarded as a typical specimen of 
 the style, sober and constructive, 
 yet rich." — Fergusson. The upper 
 part of the gateway is Perp., the 
 work of Abbot Elliot ; Mr. Godwin 
 suggests, with some probability, that 
 the Norman work of the gateway 
 was rebuilt by Abbot Elliot before 
 the upper portion was added. The 
 statues of Abbots Newland and 
 Elliot occur in the upper part of 
 the front. 
 
 The Deanery, adjoining the abbey 
 gateway on the W., and formerly 
 known as the ' Dove House,' was en- 
 larged by a N. wing by the famous 
 Warburton, 1758. This wing has 
 been removed to make room for a 
 new street to the Hot Wells. 
 
 On passing through the Norm, 
 gatehouse, we have 1. the picturesque 
 remains of the Prior s lodgings, with 
 a two-storied oriel mantled in ivy. 
 Below this is the Lower College 
 Green (called in early documents the 
 ^Wiridis placea"), where stood an 
 ancient chapel in which St. Jordan, 
 traditionally one of the companions 
 of St. Augustine of Canterbury, is 
 said to have been interred. On 
 the 1. is the gatehouse to the AbhoVs 
 lodgings, with two richly-moulded 
 Norm, arches, W. and E., now 
 clogged with yellow wash, altered by 
 Abbot Nailheart who has left his 
 rebus on the wall above the outer 
 arch, as well as on a late Perp. 
 doorway beyond, which gives access 
 to the Infirmary cloister, now the 
 boys' playground. 
 
 College Green, to the N. of the 
 cathedral, was the burial-ground of 
 the abbey. It was in the last century 
 the favourite promenade ground for 
 the beanx and belles of Bristol. In 
 
 the centre stood the High Cross, 
 brought thither from its original site, 
 but again taken down in 1768 because 
 it interfered with the convenience of 
 the promenaders. In 1742 Pope 
 wrote : *' The College Green is pretty, 
 set with trees, with a very fine old 
 cross of Gothic curious work in the 
 middle, but spoiled with the folly 
 of new gilding it, that takes away 
 all its venerable appearance." Its 
 stones were piled up within the 
 cathedral till Dean Barton, whose 
 brother was incumbent of Stourton, 
 presented them to Mr. Hoare of 
 Stourhead, by whom it was re-erected 
 in his park (see Rte. 12). A modern 
 copy of the building, with vacant 
 niches, and destitute of the sur- 
 mounting cross, in deference to the 
 Protestant feelings of the citizens of 
 Bristol, was erected at the S.E. of 
 the green in 1850. 
 
 On the N.E. side of College Green 
 stands St. Mark's or the Mayors 
 Chapel. It is one of the most cu- 
 rious and interesting architectural 
 remains in Bristol, and contains 
 some remarkable monuments. It 
 was the chapel of the Hospital 
 or Priory of Gaunts, founded by 
 Sir Maurice de Gaunt, c. 1229, in 
 the suburb of Biileswyck {Bellus 
 Vicus), for the support of a chap- 
 lain and the relief of 100 poor 
 daily. It was placed by the founder 
 under the management of St. Augus- 
 tine's. His nephew and heir, Rob. 
 de Gournay, made it a distinct house. 
 It was granted at the Dissolution to 
 the mayor and burgesses, and was 
 converted into a chapel for the 
 mayor and corporation 1722 ; before 
 this, it was used by the French 
 Protestants. The infamous Bedloe, 
 Gates' coadjutor, was buried by cha- 
 rity near the door from College 
 Green, 1680. Orchard Street stands 
 on the site of the orchard of the 
 hospital. 
 
 The plan consists of a long narrow 
 nave and choir, chiefly E. E.; the 
 
846 Moute 21. — Bristol; Poyntz Cha^eL Somersetshire. 
 
 windows and arches having mouldings 
 of singular intricacy and richness ; a 
 Perp. tower attached to the centre 
 of the S. aisle, which has chapels 
 appended. 
 
 The whole has suffered from 
 costly and well-intentioned, but not 
 well-designed, fittings and decora- 
 tions, especially the heavy organ- 
 loft and canopied seats for the 
 mayor and aldermen, by which the 
 interior is crushed. The 8. aisle is 
 Dec, and its W. window a singularly 
 rich example of the style, profusely 
 covered with ball-flower. The win- 
 dows contain a great deal of old 
 glass, of different dates and various 
 countries, chiefly German, the greater 
 part of which came from Fonthill. 
 Much of it will repay attentive ex- 
 amination. In the E. window are 
 cinque-cento figures of St. Barbara 
 and St. Catherine. The Teredos is a 
 rich piece of Perp. tabernacle work, 
 restored in 1830, after the ancient 
 model. The cliancel contains to the 
 S. some fine sedilia, and a stately 
 monument to Thomas James, mayor 
 and member of Parliament of the 
 city; and one with two kneeling 
 figures to Thos. (d. 1598) and John 
 Aldworth (d. 1615), famous in the 
 history of the commercial connection 
 of Bristol and Newfoundland ; and 
 to the N., in arched sepulchral 
 recesses, the effigies of Sir Thos. 
 Berkeley (d. 1361), in plate-armour, 
 and Katharine his wife ; and of 
 Miles Salley, Abbot of Eynsham and 
 Bp. of Llandaff (d. 1516), a very fine 
 figure, in the full episcopal costume, 
 with mitre and pastoral staff, and 
 ofi&cial ring worn over the jewelled 
 gloves. 
 
 To the S. of the chancel is the 
 Poyntz Chapel, now used as a vestry, 
 
 in composition and detail one of the 
 most elegant models of the Perp. 
 style remaining. It has a fan-tracery 
 roof, niches, and other embellish- 
 ments, rich, but not overloaded with 
 ornament." — Rickman. Observe the 
 altar part, the pavement of Moorish 
 
 azuleias, brought from Spain, worked 
 in transparent enamel, and the inter- 
 penetrating mouldings of the side 
 recesses. 
 
 The S. aisle is very good Dec. The 
 blocking of the side windows by 
 houses built up against it renders it 
 dark, but the effect is fine. The E. 
 window is occupied by a wonderful 
 Thomas a Becket from Beckford's 
 collection. Notice the beautiful 
 effigy to Sir Henry de Gaunt (d. 
 1268), under an ogee canopy ; on the 
 W. wall the monument of Aid. Ben- 
 go ugh, by Chantrey, and a singular 
 portrait effigy of Hen. Cookin, a boy 
 of 11 (d. 1627), represented on one 
 knee, with a book in his hand. 
 
 To the E. of the S. aisle is the 
 Lady Chapel, of late Perp., with a 
 flat panelled ceiling. On an altar- 
 tomb in the centre are the noble 
 effigies of Sir Maurice de Gaunt (d. 
 1229), the founder of the piriory, 
 drawing his sword, and his nephew 
 Robert Gournay. Both effigies are 
 in chain-armour, with surcoats girdled 
 round the waist, and their heads 
 " en coiffe de maille." The whole E 
 wall is taken up with a wondrous 
 structure in honour of Dame Bayn- 
 ton (d. 1667) ; the lady is kneeling, 
 and smiling over her shoulder at one 
 of her sons, who, with his brother, is 
 drawing the curtain of the alcove. 
 The chapel contains busts and monu- 
 ments to many civic worthies, which, 
 need not be particularised. The 
 visitor must not omit to observe the 
 very remarkable squint in the N.E. 
 corner. 
 
 The visitor should now cross the 
 Floating Harbour, either by boat or 
 by the swing-bridge, and make his 
 way by Queen Square to the Back 
 Ferry, cross the Avon to Redcliffe 
 St., and visit the church of 
 
 St. Mary Redcliffe, " the pride of 
 Bristowe, and the western londe," 
 not unjustly designated by Leland 
 
 by far the fairest of all churches," 
 and by Camden as ''the most ele- 
 
MONUMENTS. 
 
 2* I W. Canynges and Wife. 
 
 3. W. Canynges as priest. 
 
 4. Canopied tomb. 
 
 5. Canynges almoner. (.•*) 
 
 6. Sir R. de Berkeley. 
 
 7. Sir F. and W. Mede. 
 
 8. Sir W. Penn. 
 
 A. Nave. 
 
 B. Choir. 
 
 C C. Transepts. 
 
 D. Lady Chapel. 
 
 E. Tower. 
 
 F. North Porch. 
 
 G. South Porch. 
 H, H Sacristies. 
 
 10 80 30 40 50 
 
 St. Mary Redcliffe. 
 
 Total length of church— externally, 250 ft. ; internally, 240 ft. 
 
 Ions, broad, high long. broad, high. long, broad, high. 
 
 Nave, 93 ft. 58 ft. 54 ft. I rp^^^,,^. i N.,47tt. 50 ft. I Lady Chapel, 42 ft. 26 ft. 26 ft. 
 
 Choir, 60 f. 58 ft. rA It. | transept, libit, -^g ^ ^^^^ 43 j-^^ | rp^^^j. gp^^g^ 267 ft. 
 
34h 
 
 Iloate 21. — Bristol; Redcliffe Church, Somersetshire. 
 
 gant of all the parish churclies I 
 have ever seen." In stateliness, har- 
 mony of proportion, and general ef- 
 fect, it exceeds the cathedral, but it 
 wants the interest derived from the 
 architectural history of the latter. 
 [The authorities of EedcliflPe Church 
 set an excellent example to other 
 churches, by allowing its doors to be 
 always open to all comers. The 
 visitor will leave his offering with 
 much more satisfaction in the collect- 
 ing box for the restoration fund 
 than in the hands of a verger.] 
 
 The best approach is by the long 
 narrow defile of Redcliffe St. The 
 ch., high above the street, stands on 
 a natural terrace of living rock, the 
 colour of which gives its name to the 
 locality, and is approached by broad 
 flights of stone steps, which add dig- 
 nity to the noble building. The view 
 from this point is singularly attrac- 
 tive ; the richly decorated tower, W. 
 front, the unique N. porch and tran- 
 sept, with an unusual array of flying 
 buttresses, pinnacles, and pierced pa- 
 rapets, form a tout- ensemble of extreme 
 architectural magnificence. The view 
 from the S.E. is also very fine. The 
 ch. being built on shelving ground, 
 from S. to N., its height on the W., 
 N., and E. sides is imposing. The 
 Lady-chapel at the E. end is carried 
 on a wide arch, beneath which is a 
 thoroughfare. 
 
 The plan of the ch. is cruciform, 
 with an attached tower at the W. 
 end of the N. aisle, N. and S. 
 porches, a projecting Lady-chapel, 
 and sacristies to the N. The tran- 
 septs have double aisles, a very un- 
 usual feature in parish churches, and 
 by no means common even in cathe- 
 drals. It originally had a central 
 tower, mentioned by W. Worcester 
 in his * Itinerary,' the lower portion 
 of the walls of which still exist above 
 the stone vaults, with arched door- 
 way communicating with the roofs. 
 Its restoration would add greatly to 
 dignity of the edifice. The whole 
 church ifi covered by Perp. vanlts 
 
 of very remarkable richness and 
 elaboration of detail, with skilfully 
 carved bosses. 
 
 The present ch. stands on the site 
 of one of high antiquity. Fragments 
 of carved stone discovered in the 
 walls during the restoration show that 
 this church contained late Norm, 
 work. In the 13th cent, indulgences 
 issued for its repair prove that it was 
 then dilapidated, and therefore not 
 recently erected. Of 1 3th-cent. date, 
 pure E. E., we have the lower part 
 of the tower, the inner N. porch, and 
 one corbelled vaulting shaft at the W. 
 end of nave against the S. tower wall. 
 Traces of the line of the vault 
 springing from this corbel on either 
 side may be faintly discerned on the 
 tower wall. These may not impro- 
 bably be remnants of a complete 
 E. E. church, the piers of which 
 stood on the site of the existing piers, 
 which may possibly be the same, 
 heightened and adapted on the later 
 style. The next work is Dec, c. 
 1287-1300, including the tower and 
 the outer N. porch. Then followed 
 the S. transept of late Dec, passing 
 into Perp., and the S. wall of the 
 S. aisle of the nave with its remark- 
 able stellate recesses. These por- 
 tions may be assigned to Wm. 
 Canynges the Elder, c. 1376. The 
 S. porch and the spire followed al- 
 most contemporaneously. 
 
 The Lady-chapel, originally only 
 of one bay, was in course of erection 
 in 1385. The fabric of the church 
 was gradually completed, and was 
 brought to an end, c. 1440, by Wm. 
 Canynges the younger, grandson 
 of the elder Canynges, who, " with 
 the help of others of the worshipful 
 town of Bristol, kept masons and 
 workmen to repair and edifye, cover, 
 and glaze the ch. which his grand- 
 father had founded in the days of 
 Edw. III." 
 
 The clerestory of the chancel, N, 
 transept and nave, which are exactly 
 the same in design, together with the 
 rich vaults, may ])e safely ascribed 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Bristol; Uedcliffe Church. o49 
 
 to this period. In 144() the spire 
 was struck by lightning, and reduced 
 to the truncated form which it exhi- 
 bited till the recent restoration. The 
 Lady-chapel was prolonged by the 
 second bay, and the later windows 
 of the S. transept and S. aisle set up 
 at a little later date. 
 
 The visitor is advised to walk 
 round the ch. and take a general 
 survey of the exterior before he pro- 
 ceeds within. The tower is a very 
 striking feature, from its mass and 
 the richness of its decorations. It 
 is of 3 stories, the first and second 
 divided by a band of elegant niches, 
 recently filled with statues. The 
 third contains triple belfry windows, 
 of beautiful proportions, under rich 
 ogee canopies. The buttresses, of 
 fine projection and richly decorated, 
 are crowned with elaborate pinna- 
 cles ; the whole is covered with a 
 profusion of the ball-flower. The 
 tower is crowned with a spire of 
 exquisite proportions, which, after 
 remaining truncated since the storm 
 of 1446, has been recently raised to 
 its full elevation of 267 ft., exceeding 
 both Norwich and Chichester. The 
 cap-stone was laid May 9, 1872. 
 The W. Front is somewhat too nar- 
 row, and is dwarfed by the vast 
 dimensions of the tower. The W. 
 window is modern. The very beau- 
 tiful turret at the S.W. corner should 
 be noticed. 
 
 The N. Porch, immediately to the 
 E. of the tower, is, perhaps, the 
 most noteworthy feature in the ch. 
 In plan and execution it is unique 
 in England ; but the very singular 
 and elaborately carved door has a 
 counterpart in the monastery of 
 Batalha, in Portugal. In plan, it is 
 a hexagon, with bold hexagonal 
 buttresses at the external angles, 
 excavated into magnificent niches, 
 which are continued along the 3 
 sides, blocking the lower part of 
 the beautiful Dec. windows. It is 
 crowned by a dwarf upper story, 
 with quadrangular openings, light- 
 
 ing a chamber above (see post), and 
 a pierced parapet. 
 
 Continuing our walk, we notice 
 how much dignity the fall of the 
 ground gives to the N. elevation. 
 Beneath the N. transept is a spacious 
 and lightsome Crypt, now the Choir 
 Vestry, From this point of view the 
 height and dignity of the panelled 
 clerestory may be appreciated, to- 
 gether with the imposing array of 
 flying buttresses crowned with pin- 
 nacles which held up the groining 
 within. E. of the transept against 
 the N. aisle of the chancel is a build- 
 ing of 3 stories, with a chimney- 
 stack, which formed the residence 
 of the chantry priests. At the N.E. 
 corner of the churchyard is Chatter- 
 ton's monument, representing the boy 
 in his Blue-Coat scholar's dress. It 
 will be observed that the two bays 
 of the Lady Chapel are separated 
 by staircase turrets. These turrets 
 originally stood at the angles of the 
 chapel, the second bay being a later 
 addition. Passing under this second 
 eastern bay by an archway (as at the 
 Lady-chapel at Gloucester) we find 
 ourselves on the S. side of the chan- 
 cel with the S. transept facing us. 
 It will be observed that the clere- 
 story of this transept is not panelled 
 and that the flying buttresses are 
 crocketed. The very remarkable 
 clerestory windows (see post) should 
 be noticed. The windows of the W. 
 aisle of this transept, and of the S. 
 aisle of the nave, are different from 
 the aisle windows generally, the 
 arches of which have nearly straight 
 sides, with sharp corners resembling 
 Wm. of Wykeham's window at 
 Winchester Cathedral. 
 
 The S. porch (the usual entrance) 
 is a fine specimen of rich Perp. The 
 front is decorated with crocketed 
 and pedimented niches ; but the pro- 
 portions are not good, and the door 
 looks dwarfed by the heavy wall 
 above. It appears to have been ori- 
 ginally of one story, open to the 
 roof. The present groining is a 
 
350 Route 21. — Bristol; BedcUffe Church, Somersetshire. 
 
 modern insertion, and cuts off the 
 side windows and niches. 
 
 The practised eye will have dis- 
 covered in this circuit many points 
 of difference in the architecture 
 of the exterior, but the general 
 appearance is uniform. The lofty 
 clerestory is supported by flying 
 buttresses, springing from massy pin- 
 nacles. Each bay contains a large 
 and well-proportioned Perp. window, 
 with elaborate tracery, and is richly 
 panelled. The transepts have the 
 same elevation as the nave and 
 choir ; but are narrow for their 
 height, and need accentuation at the 
 angles, as is the case with the E. 
 end. 
 
 On entering by the S. porch, the 
 visitor cannot fail to be struck by 
 the richness of the decorations and 
 harmony of the proportions. The 
 general impression is one of singular 
 lightness and loftiness. The nave is 
 of 7 bays ; the choir of 5 ; and the 
 transepts of 3 ; the arches lofty and 
 well-proportioned ; the windows are 
 very large, and many of them are 
 filled with stained glass. The rich 
 vault is carried on shafts springing 
 without any break from the floor, 
 which adds much to the general 
 effect of height. There is no triforium 
 either in nave or chancel, the space 
 between the clerestory and the arcade 
 being filled with panelling, which 
 in the nave and chancel comes down 
 to the hood-mould of the arches. 
 The want of a horizontal stringcourse 
 is much felt. In the transept a hori- 
 zontal band of panelling produces a 
 better effect. The windows of the 
 8, Transept deserve especial atten- 
 tion. The end window, of unusual 
 height and narrowness, is of flanl- 
 boyant type. Those of the clere- 
 story are set in a band of open quatre- 
 foils, an almost unique design. The 
 vault is 6 ft. lower than in the rest 
 of the Ch. The N. window of the N. 
 transept is a later copy of the S. 
 
 The Choir, of 5 bays, is of the 
 
 same general design as the nave. It 
 is divided from the aisles by a low 
 screen of open stonework. The E. 
 arch on each side is occupied by 
 a lofty close screen. 
 
 The Lady Chapel, of 2 bays, once 
 shut off and used as a school, is now 
 thrown open to the ch., from which 
 it is separated by a stone screen. 
 The windows are filled with gor- 
 geous picture glass of a memorial 
 character. 
 
 The N. porch is one of the most 
 interesting portions of the church. 
 It is divided from the church by a 
 highly decorated screen of 2 stories, 
 maslcing the wall of the narrower 
 aisle of the E, E. church. The in- 
 terior porch is good plain E. E., 
 with an arcade, supported on Pur- 
 beck marble shafts, the capitals of 
 which, and of the door shafts, de- 
 serve notice. It is covered by a 
 quadripartite vault, and has a room 
 over it. It communicates by a 
 very fine shafted E. E. doorway 
 with the external porch. This is 
 covered with a very richly ramified 
 vault, and is surrounded with cano- 
 pies above a stone seat. The whole 
 has been very elaborately and taste- 
 fully coloured. The carved cornice, 
 and indeed all the sculptures, will 
 repay close examination. In addi- 
 tion to the great N. entrance there 
 are external doors to the W. and 
 E., probably for processions. On 
 the S.W. side is a relic chamber with 
 ornamented openings to the porch. 
 A newel staircase gives access to the 
 treasury, in which the precocious 
 and misguided genius, Thomas Chat- 
 terton (son of a lay clerk of the 
 cathedral, and grandson to the sexton 
 of this church), pretended that he 
 had discovered in an old chest, known 
 as Canynges' Cofre," fragments 
 of which with others are still 
 preserved here, the MS. poem of 
 Rowley, a priest of Bristol of the 
 15th century, and other ancient 
 documents. [Chatterton was born 
 on Redcliffe Hill, Nov. 20, 1752, and 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Bristol; Bedcliffe Church 351 
 
 was educated at Colston's School, in 
 the dress of which he is represented 
 on a monumental cross erected to 
 his memory in the churchyard. His 
 ambitious hopes of speedily attain- 
 ing a high place among the poets of 
 his day having been disappointed, 
 he committed suicide by poison, 
 when in a state of almost literal 
 starvation, Aug. 24, 1770, at the age 
 of only 17 years and 9 months.] 
 
 The Monuments to be noticed are 
 (1, 2) those to Canynges and his 
 wife Joan, formerly occupying a 
 high canopied tomb of modern 
 date, partially obscuring the great 
 window of the S. transept, but 
 now replaced in the remarkable stel- 
 lated monumental recesses discovered 
 behind modern wainscoting in the 
 S. aisle; and (3), in the S. transept, 
 one representing Canynges as a priest, 
 said to have been brought hither 
 from the college at Westbury of 
 which he was dean, when that was 
 burnt by Prince Eupert to prevent 
 its being occupied by the Parliamen- 
 tary forces ; (4) in the W, aisle of 
 same transept a similar effigy tradi- 
 tionally called " Canynges almoner," 
 but without foundation. (5) In the 
 same aisle a slab to William Can- 
 ynges' cook, with a knife and skim- 
 mer incised ; (6) to the brothers Sir 
 Thos. and William Mede, c. 1475, 
 with the wife of the former (7), 
 a rich altar-tomb, under elaborate 
 canopies, forming one design. (8) 
 Everard Le French, 1350, in his 
 robes as a magistrate, in the tran- 
 sept. (9) John Lavyngton, Vicar, 
 c. 1393, a figure in demi-relief, on a 
 stone coffin, under the tower. (10) 
 Under the N. window of N. transept, 
 a knight in mail on an altar-tomb, 
 perhaps Sir R. de Berkeley; and (11) 
 on the S. wall of the tower in the 
 nave, removed from the S. transept. 
 Admiral Sir William Penn (d. 1670), 
 father of the founder of Pennsyl- 
 vania, and a native of Bristol. His 
 body was brought from London, 
 where he died, and lay in state in 
 
 the city, and was buried with great 
 pomp. His armour and heraldic 
 insignia are suspended above the 
 monument. In the chancel are some 
 good brasses. In the Lady-chapel 
 Sir John Inyn, Recorder of Bristol 
 and Chief Justice of King's Bench, 
 1440. In the choir, John Jay and 
 his wife Joan, 1480, and John Brooke, 
 Serjeant-at-law, and his wife. The 
 poets Southey and Coleridge were 
 married in this ch. to the 2 Misses 
 Fricker ; the former leaving his wife 
 at the ch. door, and starting imme- 
 diately for Portugal. In 1653, 20 
 of the Dutch prisoners captured by 
 Blake in his victory over Van Tromp 
 were confined in the crypt of this ch. 
 
 Beneath Redcliffe Hill a consider- 
 able number of subterranean cham- 
 bers and passages leading to the 
 river have been discovered, probably 
 once connected with contraband 
 traffic. Opposite the W. end of 
 the ch., St. John's Lane leads 
 to the Quakers' burial-ground, on 
 the N. side of which is a 13th-cent. 
 hermitage, excavated in the red sand- 
 stone cliff. 
 
 Before the Reformation Bristol 
 could boast of no less than 19 parish 
 churches. Of these 14 still exist, 
 and the majority deserve a visit. 
 
 St. Stephen's (to the rt. in going 
 down Clare St.) is remarkable for its 
 fine Perp. tower, one of the most ela- 
 borate in the W. of England, 133 ft. 
 high, crowned with very light-pierced 
 parapet and cage-like turrets, conspi- 
 cuous in every view of Bristol ; re- 
 stored and the turrets rebuilt, 1862. 
 The ch. is of rather late, but good, 
 Perp., built by John Shipward, a 
 merchant, and Mayor of Bristol, 1455. 
 The >S'. Porch is very rich, with fan- 
 tracery, but the style of ornamenta- 
 tion is flat and inexpressive. The 
 interior, restored 1876, is plain, but 
 stately. The arcades are of 7 bays, 
 without any constructional chancel, 
 remarkably fine and tall. The win- 
 dows are broad and ill-proportioned. 
 
Boute 21, — Bristol; Churches. Somersetshire. 
 
 In the N. aisle is an altar-tomb with 
 male and female effigies under a 
 beautiful ogee canopy, probably the 
 monument of the founder and his 
 wife. At the E. end of the S. aisle 
 is a cinque-cento monument to Sir 
 Geo. Snygge (d. 1617), Recorder of 
 the City, with an effigy in full cos- 
 tume. Beneath the tower is an 
 effigy of a civilian on an altar-tomb. 
 
 All Saints, on the S. side of Corn 
 St., is almost embedded in houses and 
 public offices : the Norwich Union Fire 
 Office actually projecting into the ch. 
 above the N. aisle, the old Eectory 
 being equally intrusive on the other 
 side, and cutting off the arches of the 
 2 W. bays, which retain their low 
 Norm, pillars ; the rest of the ch. is 
 Dec, with late Perp. windows. At the 
 E. end of the S. aisle is a monument to 
 Edward Colston (d. 1721), the princely 
 benefactor to Bristol by his educa- 
 tional and other charities, with a 
 statue by Rysbrack, in a full-bot- 
 tomed wig, under an Ionic pediment, 
 with a long list of his numerous 
 benefactions. The tower was rebuilt 
 in 1716. This ch. was the seat of 
 a guild of Calendaries, transferred 
 hither from Christ Church by Robt. 
 Fitzhardinge and Rob. E. ^of Glou- 
 cester, c. 1146. They had a library 
 over the N. aisle, burnt 1466, when 
 many of the records and archives of 
 the city perished. These Calendaries 
 were a body of clerks and laymen of 
 very remote antiquity, who formed a 
 kind of " Propaganda fide," pledged 
 to do their utmost to convert Jews 
 and infidels and educate youth, in 
 addition to which they undertook 
 the guardianship of the archives of 
 the city and other literary treasures. 
 They were under the government of 
 a Prior or Dean, and weekly lectures 
 were read by them in the 15th centy. 
 [Compare with this foundation that 
 of the Domus Conversorum, now the 
 Rolls in Chancery Lane, established 
 with somewhat similar objects.] 
 
 St. Werhurgh's, which stood at the 
 
 corner of Small St., was a late Perp. 
 ch., with a rich pinnacled tower. 
 In it John Wesley preached his first 
 sermon in Bristol, 1777. It was 
 pulled down to widen the street, 
 1879. 
 
 Christ Church, formerly known as 
 Holy Trinity, and the first seat of the 
 Calendaries, at the corner of Wine St. 
 and Broad St., is an Italian building, 
 1787, with a lofty and well-propor- 
 tioned spire in the style of Wren's 
 steeples, and a pleasing interior. The 
 ch. is almost completely hidden by 
 houses. 
 
 St. Nicholas, at the bridge, was 
 erected 1762-8 at the cost of 6000Z. 
 on the site of an ancient ch., of which 
 the finely groined crypt, c. 1503, is 
 still preserved, and is well worth ex- 
 amining. The chancel of the former 
 ch. was over the S. gate of the city, 
 and was ascended by 12 steps. The 
 present Ch. has a Batty Langley 
 Gothic exterior, with a very well- 
 proportioned taper spire. The in- 
 terior is characteristically described 
 in a former Guidebook as "one of 
 the finest modern rooms that can be 
 seen, 100 ft. by 50, and without a 
 pillar ! " The churchwardens' ac- 
 counts are preserved, and are very 
 curious. 
 
 St. Mary-le-Port (restored 1877), 
 in the street of the same name, de- 
 rived its title from being adjacent to 
 the spot where, before the erection 
 of Bridge St., ships unloaded their 
 cargoes. It is a small Perp. building 
 of no special interest, but contains 
 the fine brass eagle desk from the 
 cathedral sold as old metal by the 
 Dean and Chapter, 1802, rescued 
 from the melting-pot and presented 
 to the ch. "on condition of its re- 
 maining here for ever." 
 
 St. Peter's, a little further to the 
 E. in the street of the same name, is 
 not of any special architectural in- 
 terest. The lower part of the towers 
 is Norm. In the S. aisle is a Gothic 
 canopied tomb, with a female effigy 
 of the Newton family. There is also 
 
Somersetshire. Route 2\. — Bristol; Churches. 
 
 353 
 
 a brass of a priest, Rob. Loud, 1461, 
 a stone cadaver, and an altar-tomb 
 to Rob. Aldwoth and his wife. Sir 
 J. Cadaman, who was beheaded in 
 the castle while Prince Kupert held 
 the city, for killing an officer of the 
 garrison, lies buried in the ch. ; and 
 in the churchyard the unfortunate 
 Ricliard Savage, the poet, who died 
 in 174o in the Newgate prison hard 
 by, where he was confined for debt, 
 and was buried at the cost of his 
 gaoler. No stone marks his grave, 
 but there is a memorial tablet to 
 him on the S. aisle wall. 
 
 St. James, on rising ground, to the 
 N. of the Horse Fair, is the nave of 
 the ch. of the Priory, founded 1130 
 by Rob. E. of (Gloucester, as a cell to 
 Tewkesbury. Its founder devoted 
 every tenth stone of those he im- 
 ported from Normandy for the build- 
 ing of the great keep tower of the 
 castle to this priory. The founder 
 d. 1147, and was buried in the choir. 
 An effigy, now placed against the S. 
 wall, is said to be his, but certainly 
 belongs to the 13th cent., and is 
 more probably that of Rich. Gren- 
 ville, buried here in 1240. The 
 nave, which, having always been pa- 
 rochial, was preserved when the rest 
 of the ch. was destroyed. The ch. 
 is a good specimen of late Norm., 
 the W. front, which has an inter- 
 secting arcade and a circular window 
 above, being the most interesting 
 part. The clerestory has externally 
 a continuous pointed arcade. There 
 is a fine plain Norm, arcade within 
 of 5 bays. At the end of the N. 
 aisle is a bust by Bailey to the Rev. 
 T. T. Biddulph (d. 1838). To the 
 S. of the altar are the kneeling effigies 
 of Sir Charles Somerset (d. 1598), 
 son of Hen. E. of Worcester, with 
 his wife and daughter. Princess Elea- 
 nor, 'Hhe demoiselle of Bretagne, " 
 died here, and was buried in the 
 priory, but her body was afterwards 
 removed to Amesbury. In the old 
 Parsonage^ to the N.W. of the ch., 
 is a good room with ceiling panelled 
 [Wilts, Dorset, (fee, 1882.] 
 
 in stucco, and the arms of Aid. 
 Whitson, founder of the Redmaids' 
 School, on the chimney-piece. 
 
 St. John the Baptist, at the end of 
 Broad St., stands on the line of the 
 city wall, and St. John's Gate is car- 
 ried under the tower which supports 
 a low spire. On the front of the 
 gate are the statues of Brennus and 
 Belinus, the fabled founders of Bris- 
 tol. The ch. was built by Walter 
 Frampton, merchant (d. 1357), whose 
 effigy in alderman's robes is within 
 the ch. There is a brass to Thos. 
 Rowley, merchant (d. 1478), and his 
 wife. Beneath the ch. is a finely 
 groined crypt worth inspection. 
 
 Temple Ch., in the street of the 
 same name, near the rly. station, 
 derives its name from having for- 
 merly belonged to a cell of the 
 Knights Templars, the foundations of 
 whose round ch. were discovered 
 during the restoration. It is a large 
 and stately Perp. building, with 
 very light and lofty nave arcades, 
 and wide aisles, and enormous coarse 
 windows. It was well restored in 
 1873. The ch. is celebrated on ac- 
 count of its leaning tower ; this must 
 have been once as fine as that of St. 
 Stephen's, but its carved work is 
 greatly decayed, and it has been 
 robbed of its turrets and pinnacles. 
 The singularity of this tower is men- 
 tioned as early as 1 576 by Braun in 
 his 'Theatrum Urbium.' The 16th- 
 cent. geographer Abraham Ortelius 
 asserts that he put a stone as large 
 as a goose-egg into the chink that 
 opened between the tower and the 
 ch. wall when the bells were rung, 
 and saw it crushed. In 1772 it was 
 plumbed, and found to lean 3 ft. 9 in. 
 from the perpendicular. The ch. 
 contains a brass to a priest in cope, 
 with a lady in a mantle on the re- 
 verse, and another to a civilian. 
 Before the gateway of this ch., 
 at the junction of Temple Street 
 and the new Victoria Street, stands 
 a leaden statue of Neptune, cast 
 by a plumber of the parish, and 
 2 A 
 
354 
 
 Moute 21. — Bristol; Buildings, Somersetsliire. 
 
 presented to it as a memorial of the 
 destruction of the Spanish Armada. 
 It now surmounts a fountain. 
 
 8t, Philip and 8t, Jacob (Jacobus = 
 James) is a large ch. of various dates, 
 the tower at the E. end of S. aisle. 
 Part of the tower, and some portion 
 of the ch., are good E. E. The font 
 is plain Norm., lined with lead. An 
 armed demi-figure in the Kemj^s 
 aisle is, without any authority, popu- 
 larly identified with Duke Eobert, 
 eldest son of the Conqueror, im- 
 prisoned in Bristol Castle by his 
 brother Hen. I. 
 
 St. Augustine, to the S.E. of the 
 cathedral, is a large plain Perp. edi- 
 fice with good tower, erected 1480 
 on the site of an earlier church, 
 founded by the abbots of St. Au- 
 gustine's for the use of the dwellers 
 outside the Abbey precincts. The 
 bosses of the chancel-roof bear the 
 initials and device of Abbot John 
 jSTailheart and Abbot Elliot. 
 
 St. Michael was rebuilt 1774, but 
 the 15th-cent. tower was preserved. 
 Near it is an ancient Almshouse, 
 founded by John Foster, merchant, 
 '^in honour of God and the 3 kings 
 of Coleyn," in Hen. VII.'s reign. (See 
 ante, p. 335.) 
 
 St. Thomas, at the junction of 
 Thomas St., with the newly-formed 
 Victoria St., has a body added in 1793 
 in the classical style, to an ancient 
 tower, showing some E. E. ribs and 
 bosses in the belfry. The interior 
 was elaborately decorated in 1879, 
 and contains some good specimens of 
 modern and last century woodwork, 
 and some enamelled altar taper- 
 stands, supposed to date from the 
 13th century." (0. >S^. T.) 
 
 St. Baphael, with almshouses for 
 seamen annexed, is a costly modern 
 building, erected by Canon Miles 
 from "Woodyer's designs. 
 
 Some very interesting remains of 
 the Dominican or Blach Friars, 
 founded by Sir Maurice de Gaunt 
 and Matthew de Gurney, 1229, are 
 still to be found on the premises of 
 
 the Friends' Meeting House and 
 Schools between Broad-Weir and 
 Rosemary St. They consist of two 
 parallel halls on the first floor, run- 
 ning E. and W., connected by a Dec. 
 cloister (restored). That to the N., 
 formerly the Friar's Dormitory, and 
 subsequently the Cutlers' Hall, is the 
 larger — 86 ft. long by 23 broad — • 
 with a fine open collar-beam roof. 
 At the W. end is a very lovely 2-light 
 Dec. window with flowing tracery, 
 and at the E. end a fine E. E. 3-light 
 window, removed from the Bakers' 
 Hall. The side windows are lancets, 
 2 at E. end of the N. range being 
 cusped. The room below con- 
 tains an E. E. window with central 
 banded shaft. The smaller room to 
 the S., known as the Bakers' Hall, 
 formerly the lesser hall of the Friary, 
 44 ft. by 24 ft., has an open roof. 
 In the cloister below are preserved 
 an old stone lavatory, and some 
 remains of rich tabernacle work. 
 
 Broadmead Baptist Chapel, the 
 oldest place of Nonconformist wor- 
 ship in Bristol, founded 1640, had 
 Robert Hall as its minister. 
 
 Rich as Bristol was formerly in 
 specimens of mediaeval domestic 
 architecture, few examples now sur- 
 vive. The chief remains are the 
 groined crypts or undercrofts on 
 which as a rule our forefathers 
 erected their houses, and which are 
 so often erroneously considered as 
 marking the site of some religious 
 building. Of these, according to 
 Mr. Godwin, 20 existed on one side 
 of High St., and 15 on the other 
 side. A fine example exists under 
 22, High St., and another under the 
 
 Castle Bank," at the corner of High 
 St. and Wine St. 
 
 Colston's House, in Small St., was 
 the most remarkable example of 
 mediaeval domestic architecture in 
 Bristol. This was an important man- 
 sion, the official residence of the 
 mayors of Bristol, from Henry II. 
 to the Commonwealth, in which they 
 entertained many royal and noble 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Bristol ; Guildhall, &c, 355 
 
 gue.?ts. It contains the remains of 
 a ball of 3 bays, 46 ft. by 37 ft., of the 
 middle of the 12th centy., divided by 
 ;5emi-Norm. arcades into a centre and 
 side-aisles. Behind the hall was '^a 
 grand range of Perp. buildings in 3 
 stories, each having a rich fireplace, 
 that in the lowest room being of 
 extraordinary size and magnificence. 
 The windows are very large, square- 
 headed, with rear arches and panelled 
 jambs."— J. jET. P. Much of this in- 
 teresting house has been now swept 
 away, and what remains, which is 
 well worth examination, is incorpo- 
 rated in the modern Assize Courts. 
 
 Canynges' House, in Redcliffe St., 
 now a bookseller's shop, retaining 
 a 15th-cent. hall with a high-pitched 
 roof, suffered great injury from a 
 disastrous fire, Oct. 9. 1881. 
 
 St. Peter's Hospital, behind the ch. 
 of the same name, originally the 
 mansion of Thos. Norton, the Bristol 
 alchymist, c. 1400, but much altered 
 in 1612, is a rich specimen of half- 
 timbered work, with carved gables, 
 and projecting windows, deserving 
 notice. The Watergate, decorated 
 with quaint carving, bears the date 
 1612. In 1695 it was used as a mint, 
 and in 1697 it was converted into a 
 hospital or poorhouse for the city. 
 The Court Room is of unusual magni- 
 ficence. The walls are panelled, the 
 ceiling stuccoed with pendants; a 
 large bay window to S. is filled with 
 stained glass. The mantelpiece, Gothic 
 below Jacobean above, is very rich. 
 On the same fioor is the Chapel, 
 
 The house at the corner of High 
 St. and Wine St., formerly the bank- 
 ing house of Messrs. Stuckey and Co., 
 now a shop, is a very curious wooden 
 structure, with overhanging stories, 
 said to have been framed in Holland, 
 and brought over here. 
 
 In the Welsh Back, near St. Ni- 
 cholas Ch., is a panelled Dec. door- 
 way of singular richness belonging 
 to Spicer's Hall, The Old Swan 
 Inn, in Guardhouse Passage, is worth 
 a visit. 
 
 Bed Lodge, Park Row, long the resi- 
 dence of the learned Dr. Prichard, 
 is a curious old mansion, with carved 
 staircase and internal porch, and 
 handsome chimney-pieces and ceil- 
 ings. 
 
 The older streets till lately 
 abounded in picturesque gabled 
 houses with projecting stories, which 
 are being rapidly swept away in 
 modern alterations. The most remark- 
 able are to be seen in Redcliffe St., 
 Temple St., St. Mary-le-Port St., and 
 the Pithay. The Lamb Inn in West 
 St. retains its mediaeval character. 
 
 The chief public buildings are 
 grouped together in Broad Street 
 and Corn Street. 
 
 The Guildhall, in Broad Street, is 
 a modern Gothic building, Perp., by 
 Pope, of Bristol. The six niches 
 between the windows are filled with 
 statues of Edward III. (who granted 
 the corporation charter), Q. Vic- 
 toria ; Dunning and Sir Michael 
 Foster, Recorders of Bristol; and of 
 Colston and Whitson, its benefactors, 
 all by Thomas, a Bristol sculptor. 
 The building which runs back into 
 Small St., includes the Assize Courts, 
 Bankruptcy Court, and the Grand 
 Jury Room; and preserves the very 
 interesting remains of Colston's 
 House (see ante). 
 
 The Council- House, at the corner 
 of Corn Street, on the site of St. 
 Ewen's Ch., is a correct but cold 
 classical building with Ionic pillars, by 
 Sir Rob. Smirke, opened in 1827. A 
 statue of Justice with her scales, by 
 Baily, surmounts the front. Within 
 are the Mayor's Court, and offices 
 for the various civic functionaries. 
 The Council Chamber contains por- 
 traits of aldermen and benefactors 
 to the city, including the Earl of 
 Pembroke, by Vandyck, and James 
 II. by Kneller. 
 
 On the opposite side of Corn 
 Street is 
 
 The Exchange, a building of the 
 Corinthian order, by John Wood, of 
 I Bath, 1743. It is but little used by 
 2 A 2 
 
356 
 
 Boute 21. — Bristol 
 
 ; Institutions. Somersetshire. 
 
 the merchants, who meet at the 
 Commercial Rooms. The interior, 
 which has an elegant colonnade, is 
 used as a corn-market. On the 
 pavement in front of the Exchange 
 are 4 bronze tables on pedestals, 
 removed from the old Tolsey, for- 
 merly used by the merchants for 
 making their payments and signing 
 their bonds, when they were accus- 
 tomed to meet in the open street. 
 Opposite is the 
 
 W. of England and S. Wales Banlc, 
 completed 1858. The facade is 
 based on the Library of St. Mark at 
 Venice. The lower story is Doric, 
 with an arcade of 5 arches, columns, 
 and decorations emblematical of the 
 city, the county, and S. Wales. The 
 upper is Ionic ; in the 10 spandrils 
 of the arches are life-size female 
 figures emblematical of the elements 
 and sources of wealth. At the 
 corner of Small St., on the site of 
 St. Werburgh's Ch., is the very 
 ornate 4-storied mass of the London 
 & S.-W. Branch Banh. Below this 
 the 
 
 Commercial Booms serve as an 
 exchange, and contain reading-rooms. 
 It was built 1811, and is sur- 
 mounted by statues, which repre- 
 sent the city of Bristol, Commerce, 
 and Navigation. It has a recessed 
 Ionic portico, beneath which is a 
 bas-relief by Bubh, representing Bri- 
 tannia, supported by Minerva and 
 Neptune, receiving tribute from all 
 parts of the world. 
 
 Below the Commercial Rooms is 
 the Boyal Insurance Office, with po- 
 lished red granite columns, and the 
 Ionic fronts of the National Provin- 
 cial Bank and the Wilts & Dorset 
 Banhj and on the other side of the 
 street the very ornate fronts of the 
 Imperial and Globe Insurance Offices, 
 and the buildings of Stuchey's BanJc. 
 
 In Small Street is the Post Office, 
 with a good plain Italian front. 
 
 To the S. of Corn Street is King 
 
 Street, containing the Merchant Ven- 
 turers' Hall, new fronted 1709, where 
 George IV. was received when Prince 
 of Wales, 1807 ; Coopers' Hall, with 
 a good Corinthian front ; some pic- 
 turesque Almshouses worth inspec- 
 tion, and 
 
 The City lAhrary, in King St., 
 especially rich in Hutchinsonian 
 Divinity. It contains the books of 
 its founder, Dr. Tobie Matthews, Bp. 
 of Durham, a native of Bristol, who 
 left them, 1614, for the free use of 
 the citizens. In the Library is a 
 frame magnificently carved by Grin- 
 ling Gibbons. 
 
 To the S. of King Street is Queen 
 Square, a quiet spot, bordered with 
 elms, in the centre of which stands 
 a bronze equestrian statue of William 
 III., by Rysbrdck, for which the artist 
 received 1800Z. Here is the Custom- 
 house, on the site of that destroyed 
 by the mob, together with the Man- 
 sion-house and 2 sides of the sq., in 
 the disgraceful riots of 1831. 
 
 S. of Queen Square and the Float- 
 ing Harbour, and by the side of 
 Bathurst Basin, is the Bristol General 
 Hospital, one of the noblest build- 
 ings of the kind in the country, 
 completed in 1857 at a cost of about 
 15,000L The basement consists of 
 warehouses, which produce a revenue 
 for the institution. 
 
 Returning northwards and crossing 
 the Swing Bridge, rt. are the hand- 
 some Corinthian portico of St. Mary's 
 Chapel, on the Quay, built originally 
 for the Irvingites, at a cost of 
 13,000Z., and now occupied by the 
 Roman Catholics, and the Colston 
 Hall, opened 1867 (on the site of 
 Colston's School, removed to Staple- 
 ton), standing in Trenchard St., 
 above the Floating Dock, containing 
 a fine room for concerts, public meet- 
 ings, &c., accommodating 3000 per- 
 sons. Turning 1. the visitor will pass 
 St. Augustine's Church and College 
 Green (1.) and commence the steep 
 ascent of Park Street, built 1775, to 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Bristol ; Museum, Schools, 357 
 
 The Freemasons' Hall, 1., formerly 
 the Bristol Institution (now removed 
 to the Bristol Museum, post\ erec- 
 ted 1820 from Cockerell's designs, 
 and deservedly admired for the 
 classic purity of its style. The alto- 
 relievo of the frieze is by Baily. Here 
 Sir Humphry Davy commenced his 
 chemical researches and delivered 
 lectures in the theatre. 
 
 At the upper end of Park Street, 
 the steep hill leading to Clifton, are, 
 rt. the Blind Asylum, erected from 
 designs by Rickman (the public sing- 
 ing of the pupils on Mondays at 3 
 is worth hearing), and the former 
 Bishops* College, now the Volunteer 
 Club House. Beyond this is the 
 Bristol Museum and Library, a build- 
 ing in the Venetian-Gothic style, 
 erected 1871, as a general centre for 
 the various scientific associations of 
 Bristol. s> It contains an admirable 
 library, numbering over 50,000 vols., 
 a museum rich in geological speci- 
 mens, especially the fossils of the 
 mountain limestone and the lias, 
 and in objects of natural history. 
 Here are also casts of the Elgin and 
 JEgina marbles, and the original of 
 Baily's Eve at the Fountain. Here 
 also are preserved Chatterton's will 
 and other papers connected with that 
 ill-starred young author. 
 
 Behind the Museum in Tyndall's 
 Park are the conspicuous and hand- 
 some Tudor buildings of the Gram- 
 mar School, removed from the back 
 of the Mayor's chapel, and the build- 
 ings of the Bristol University College. 
 
 On the other side of Park St., L, 
 Berkeley Square affords access to 
 Brandon Hill, with its wide and 
 interesting prospects (see 2^ost). A 
 little farther on, in the angle of the 
 roads, stand the 
 
 Victoria Rooms, a handsome build- 
 ing with Corinthian portico, intended 
 for public meetings, assemblies, con- 
 certs, &c. The great hall measures 
 117 ft. by 85 ft., and is 47 ft. high. 
 
 On the opposite side of the rd. are 
 the Queen's Hotel, and the 
 
 Bristol Fine Arts A cademy, erected 
 1858, a richly decorated modern 
 structure, with marble statues ot 
 Flaxman and Reynolds on the front. 
 Here are 3 pictures by Hogarth, 
 formerly in Redcliffe Ch. On the 
 ground-floor are the Schools of 
 Science and Art. 
 
 Adjacent to this is a very ornate 
 Wesleyan Chapel, built 1863; and 
 not far distant, at the end of Park 
 Place, 1., the Roman Catholic Church 
 of the Holy Apostles, begun by Bp. 
 Baines on a stately classical plan, 
 and temporarily completed and made 
 available for service in the Gothic 
 style. Attached to this is the Con- 
 vent of the Sisters of Si. Catherine. 
 
 From Park St., passing through 
 Berkeley Sq., the visitor should not 
 omit to visit Brandon Hill, so called 
 from the hermitage of St. Brendan, a 
 cell of St. James's Priory, tenanted 
 in the middle ages by a recluse, 
 sometimes male, sometimes female. 
 There was also a Calvary. Irish 
 mariners resorted to this chapel to 
 offer their prayers, and return thanks 
 for a safe voyage; the Spanish sailors 
 doing the same at St. Vincent's 
 Chapel, and those who sailed in the 
 Bristol Channel, at that of St, Blaise. 
 The Hill rises to a height of 250 ft., 
 and is a bit of open common laid out 
 as a park, surrounded by houses, but 
 commanding a fine view of Bristol, 
 and of the country to the S., parti- 
 cularly of the Tump at Ashton Court, 
 and of Dundry Hill. A footway to 
 Clifton lies across it. It is a good 
 example of "millstone grit," and 
 bears the traces of a fort thrown 
 up in the Civil Wars. On the summit 
 are two guns from Sebastopol. At 
 the foot of the W. slope stands 
 
 Queen ElizahetKs Hospital, a large 
 castellated building in the Tudor 
 style, erected 1847. The charity 
 was founded 1586, by John Carr, for 
 the education of poor boys of this 
 city and the manor of Congresbury. 
 
358 Boute 21, — Bristol; Schools^ Celebrities, Somersetsliire. 
 
 More than 180 boys are here educated 
 and maintained. 
 
 Bristol is rich in charitable insti- 
 tutions of this nature. We may 
 notice the Redmaids in Denmark 
 St., founded by Aid. Whitson in 
 1627; Colston's School, opened 1708, 
 in St. Augustine's Place, and re- 
 moved 1861 to the Bp.'s former 
 palace at Stapleton, for boarding, 
 educating, and clothing 100 sons of 
 freemen ; and Miillers Orphan Houses, 
 on Ashley Down, about 1 m. (which 
 should by all means be viewed on 
 Tuesday or Wednesday), in which 
 more than 2000 orphans are clothed, 
 maintained, and educated without 
 any endowment, simply by the gifts 
 of Christian people (see Handbook for 
 Gloucestershire). 
 
 In the Baptist College^ Stoke' s 
 Croft (N. part of Bristol), is pre- 
 served an original miniature portrait 
 of Oliver Cromwell, said to be the 
 best portrait of him known. It is 
 by Cooper, and was bequeathed to 
 the College, 1784, by the Eev. 
 Andrew Giflford, a Baptist minister. 
 Here also is a curious collection of 
 Hindoo idols, and the only perfect 
 copy known of Tyndal's New Testa- 
 ment, which has been reproduced 
 in facsimile by Mr. Francis Fry, of 
 Cotham, the owner of a remarkable 
 collection of early printed Bibles and 
 Testaments. 
 
 Bristol can boast of many eminent 
 children, either native or resident — 
 Balph of Bristol, Bp. of Kildare, 
 1223 ; John Milverton, Bp. elect of 
 St. David's, imprisoned in the Castle 
 of St. Angelo, Rome, for his liberal 
 views ; the two Camynges ; William 
 Botoner, otherwise Wyrcester, the son 
 of a glover on St, James's Back, 
 1415 ; William Grocyn, the friend 
 of Erasmus, Greek Professor at Ox- 
 ford, 1442 ; Sebastian Cabot, b. 1477 
 (son of John Cabot, a Venetian 
 pilot), the discoverer of Newfound- 
 land and Florida ; Br. William Child, 
 the church musician, b. 1607 ; Arch- 
 
 bishop Tohie Matthew, of York, born 
 on Bristol Bridge, 1546 ; Alderman 
 Whitson, founder of the Eedmaids' 
 School; Admiral Sir William Penn, 
 1621 ; Edward Colston, founder of 
 the Free School which bears his 
 name, b. 1636 ; Br. J, Bewis, his- 
 torian of Thanet, 1675 ; Chatterton, 
 born on Redcliffe Hill, 1752 ; Han- 
 nah More, b. 1745, whose sisters kept 
 a school in 10, Park Street, and who 
 d. 1833 at 4, Windsor Terrace, Clif- 
 ton ; the poet Southey, b. 1774 ; 
 Sir Francis Freeling,h. 1764, so long 
 the Secretary of the General Post 
 Office ; Br. W. B. Carpenter, the 
 physiologist ; Sir Thomas Bawrence, 
 the eminent portrait painter, was b. 
 1769 in Redcross St., his father soon 
 after becoming landlord of the White 
 Lion, moving thence to Devizes (see 
 p. 74) ; Baily the sculptor ; and Miiller, 
 Bipingille, and many eminent artists, 
 such as Banhy, Poole, Pyne, Bran- 
 ivhite, West, the Fripps, Jachson, &c. ; 
 Bord Chancellor Westhury and Br. 
 Vaughan, the late eminent Dissenting 
 Minister and historical writer, Avere 
 educated here. At Bristol also Sir 
 Humphry Bavy made his first ap- 
 pearance in the scientific world, 
 imder Beddoes, at the Pneumatic 
 Institute for the Medical Inhalation 
 of Gases, at the N.E. corner of 
 Dowry Square. To the scientific 
 men who have rendered Bristol illus- 
 trious may be added Herapath the 
 chemist, and Prichard the ethnolo- 
 gist. Robert Hall, d. 1831, the famous 
 preacher, was minister of Broadmead 
 Baptist Chapel. On one occasion in 
 his congregation were seen an Irish 
 bishop, a dean, and 13 clergymen. 
 Bristol is full of memories of Southey 
 and Coleridge. Southey's father kept 
 a linendraper's shop. No. 9, Wine 
 Street. At 48, College Street, the 2 
 poets and the other pantisocratical 
 dreamers, Lovell and Burnett, 
 lodged when preparing for their 
 voyage to America. Coleridge's 
 first anti-Pittite lectures were deli- 
 vered at the Corn Market in Wine 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Clifton, 
 
 859 
 
 Street, and he went over from Bris- 
 tol to Bath to preach in the Uni- 
 tarian chapel, "in the morning on 
 the Corn Laws, in the afternoon on 
 the Hair-powder Tax." On leaving 
 Clevedon in 1795, he removed to 
 ** pent-up rooms" on Redcliffe Hill, 
 and, after a short sojourn at Stowey, 
 returned to Bristol, 1796. 
 
 Edmund Burke sat for Bristol, and 
 here made some of his most brilliant 
 speeches. Here, after one of them, 
 his colleague, Mr. Cruger, a Bristol 
 merchant, when his turn came to 
 make an address, as the story goes, 
 simply added, "I say ditto to Mr. 
 Burke." 
 
 Between the years 1804-9 the Avon 
 was dammed back as far as Cumber- 
 land Basin at the Hotwells, and, 
 together with the Frome, converted 
 into a magnificent Floating Harhour 
 at an expense exceeding 600,000Z. A 
 new channel was cut for the Avon, 
 commencing above the city and termi- 
 nating at Rownham Ferry. Bathurst 
 Basin afibrds accommodation for 
 the smaller steamers and coast- 
 ing vessels, while Cumberland Basin, 
 near the Hotwells, opens immediately 
 on the tidal Avon, and receives the 
 larger vessels and steamers. The 
 Welsh Back, as the rt. bank of the 
 upper portion of the Float is called, 
 is principally occupied by Severn 
 fishing smacks, and Irish provision 
 brigs. The size of the vessels in- 
 creases as we descend, and at the 
 Grove, S. of Queen's Square, West or 
 East Indiamen and American ships 
 are ranged side by side, forming a 
 very forest of masts. Farther down 
 the Sea Banks accommodate timber 
 ships. 
 
 The Great Western steam-ship, 
 which was the first to cross the At- 
 lantic in 1838, was built in Bristol, 
 as was the still larger iron ship, 
 the Great Britain. 
 
 Bristol gives the title of marquis 
 to the family of Hervey (created 
 
 1826). It was first bestowed on the 
 Digbys by James I. 
 
 Clifton. (Inns: Clifton Down 
 Hotel; Queen's ; St. Vincent's Rocks.) 
 
 The long and steep ascent of Park 
 Street leads from College Green to 
 Clifton, once a distinct village, now 
 a suburb of Bristol. It is the ^' west 
 end " of the city, where its mer- 
 chants dwell, far removed from the 
 smoke and din. It is also much fre- 
 quented as a health resort, and is 
 remarkable for the beauty of its 
 villas, and the breadth of its elm- 
 shaded roads. Among a labyrinth 
 of streets, squares, and crescents, 
 ranged one over the other along the 
 slopes, the most elevated and hand- 
 somest of all is York Crescent, above 
 which, at the top of the hill, are the 
 open downs, and St. Vincent's Bocks, 
 upon the verge of the 
 
 Gorge of the Avon, where ''the 
 river runs between rocks and a hang- 
 ing wood ; a scene truly magnificent, 
 and wanting nothing but clearer 
 water ; the stream consists of liquid 
 mud, and the gutter-like bed is 
 hideous except when the tide is full, 
 for it rises here not less than 30 ft." 
 — Southey. 
 
 The Avon is here navigable for 
 large vessels and steamers approach- 
 ing the port of Bristol. It is indeed 
 a most striking view to look across 
 this chasm of about 600 ft. span, 
 which separates Somersetshire from 
 Gloucestershire, upon the river wind- 
 ing at a depth of nearly 250 ft. be- 
 low, upon the sails of ships and the 
 funnels of steamers. 
 
 St. Vincent's Bocks are composed 
 of the mountain limestone which 
 abounds in fossil remains, and in its 
 upper beds, where it mingles with 
 the millstone grit, includes also 
 crystals of quartz, which are sold 
 under the name of Bristol Diamonds, 
 Quarries have been formed in these 
 cliffs, so as to diminish their beauty, 
 and cause Southey to accuse the Bris- 
 tolians of ** selling the sublime and 
 
360 Boute 21. — Clifton ; Suspension Bridge. Somersetshire. 
 
 beautiful by the boatload." High up 
 on the bold precipice (220 ft. above 
 liigh- water mark) is a cavern called the 
 Giant Ghysfs Hole, described by 
 W. Wyrcestre under the name of 
 ^'Fox Hole," *' valde periculosus 
 locus." The chapel and hermitage 
 of St. Vincent stood about the middle 
 of the high rock. It may be visited 
 from the Observatory, by a flight of 
 steps cut through the solid rock. 
 The observatory contains some good 
 telescopes, and other optical instru- 
 ments, and a very large camera ob- 
 scura. It stands 285 ft. above high- 
 water mark, in the centre of a British 
 camp occupying the projecting head- 
 land, protected by two ditches and 
 ramparts, and including a square 
 Roman camp. There are 2 other 
 camps on the other side of the Avon, 
 which was here crossed at low water 
 by a ford on a natural bed of rock — 
 Bower Walls (Burgh Walls, recently 
 destroyed), of 7 acres, with 3 ram- 
 parts and ditches, and originally a 
 wall of loose stones ; and Stoke Leigh 
 Camp, of 8 acres, each cutting off a 
 jutting crag; divided by the lovely 
 wooded ravine known as Nightingale 
 Valley in Leigh Woods. A British 
 trackway, afterwards utilised by the 
 Romans, crossed the Avon by a rocky 
 ford at this point, and pursued its 
 course up the valley, and along 
 Leigh Down to Cadbury Camp, and 
 so westwards. 
 
 Very near the observatory the 
 gorge of the Avon is spanned by the 
 graceful curve of the Suspension 
 Bridge, affording a long needed and 
 convenient communication between 
 the Gloucestershire and Somerset- 
 shire banks, without the necessity of 
 descending to Rownham Ferry and 
 climbing again. 
 
 The plan of a bridge was devised 
 by Alderman Vick, of Bristol, who 
 died in 1753. He left lOOOZ., with 
 directions that it should be put out 
 at interest until it reached 10,000Z., 
 which he conceived would be suffi- 
 cient for the purpose. The money 
 
 had reached 8000Z. in 1830, when an 
 Act of Parliament was obtained, 
 additional capital raised, and at last 
 Mr. Brunei commenced the bridge. 
 The funds, however, proved wholly 
 inadequate, and the works remained 
 incomplete for a period of 30 years. 
 At length they were resumed in 1861, 
 and the bridge, which is mainly con- 
 structed from the chains of Hunger- 
 ford Bridge, was formally opened 
 in Sept. 1864, on occasion of the 
 visit of the British Association. The 
 chains are carried over a tower of 
 80 ft. high, on each bank, and sup- 
 port a carriage way of 20 ft., and 
 2 footways of 5 ft. 6 in. each. 
 The distance between the piers is 
 702 ft., the height from the water 
 245 ft., and the weight of the whole 
 structure is 1500 tons. The view 
 from the bridge is singularly beau- 
 tiful. 
 
 Clifton and Durdham Downs 
 stretch for about 1 m. westward. 
 The broad flat expanse of turf, sur- 
 rounded with villas and intersected 
 with elm-shadowed roads, is charm- 
 ingly broken towards the Avon with 
 rocky dells, clothed with ferns and 
 gorse and aged weather - beaten 
 thorns. There is a pretty Zoological 
 Garden on Durdham Down, with 
 usually a good collection of animals, 
 especially of lions and tigers, a few 
 minutes' walk from the Mall. 
 
 Clifton Ch. was re-built in 1819, in 
 what was then thought to be Gothic. 
 The lofty pinnacles of its tower were 
 taken down about 30 years since. 
 The E. window contains a copy of 
 Raphael's Transfiguration in stained 
 glass. 
 
 Clifton possesses several more 
 modern churches, of various degrees 
 of merit. Christ Church has a lofty 
 and graceful spire. All Saints, still 
 wanting its tower, is a fine example 
 of the late Mr. Street's genius, with 
 a grand but simple nave, 62 ft. high, 
 and lofty clerestory filled with stained 
 glass by Hardman. The sculptured 
 reredos represents saints offering 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Clifton; Hotwells. 
 
 361 
 
 themselves and their gifts to Christ. 
 St. Paul's, rebuilt in 1868, after 
 being burnt down, has a bas-relief 
 over the entrance door of ''St. Paul 
 preaching," worthy of notice. The 
 chapels of the various religious de- 
 nominations are mostly of some 
 architectural pretensions, and several 
 have towers and spires. 
 
 Clifton College, founded 1862, and 
 receiving a royal charter 1877, has 
 speedily secured a leading position 
 among our public schools. It forms 
 a picturesque quadrangle of Gothic 
 buildings, with a chapel added in 
 1862 by the munificence of the 
 widow of Canon Guthrie, and a tower 
 in commemoration of the same bene- 
 factor to the College. 
 
 An easy zigzag road and winding 
 paths lead from the heights of Clif- 
 ton Down to the water-side and the 
 defunct 
 
 Hotivells, where formerly stood a 
 Grecian building, erected over the 
 medicinal spring, but demolished for 
 the widening of the river; the spring 
 was known to William Wyrcestre in 
 1480, and was used as far back as 
 1632. It suddenly sprang into noto- 
 riety in 1670, through the marvellous 
 cure of a certain Mr. Gagg, baker, 
 of Castle Street, who was led to 
 make trial of the water by a dream. 
 Until 1695 the well was only acces- 
 sible at low water, but then it was 
 protected by a wall, and pumps to 
 raise the water were erected. Smol- 
 let's Humphrey CUnher gives an 
 amusing picture of fashionable life 
 at Bristol Spa in the last century. 
 
 At the extremity of the hill, some 
 way down the Avon, and high above 
 its waters, is a picturesque tower, 
 incorporated in a modern villa, 
 erected 1693, and ungraciously known 
 as " Cook's Folly." It has been so 
 called from the tradition told under 
 various forms in so many different 
 places, that a person of the name 
 of Cook was here shut up to escape 
 the fulfilment of a dream which indi- 
 cated death from a serpent. A viper 
 
 entered with faggots for the fire, 
 and so inflicted the destined death- 
 wound. A good view of the scenery 
 is obtained at the brink of the pre- 
 cipice. The Pitch and Pay Gate 
 long preserved the memory of the 
 plague year, when the country folks 
 brought their goods to this spot and 
 pitched them on a large stone, when 
 the money was afterwards placed by 
 the purchaser in a basin of vinegar, 
 
 (a.) Across Durdham Down is ^to/i:^ 
 Bisliop, so called from having be- 
 longed to Geoffrey Bp. of Coutances, 
 where is a Cli. with a tall spire and 
 highly decorated interior (Norton, 
 arch.), and Elizabethan manor-house, 
 built by Sir Rob. Cann in 1669. Up 
 the hill among the trees to 1. is a 
 fallen cromlech. A pleasant walk 
 along Stoke Lane leads by Stoke 
 Abbey Farm, a gabled Jacobean 
 house, across fields to Westbury on 
 Trym, 1 m. 
 
 Westbury Cli. deserves notice. It 
 is an E. E. building, with later addi- 
 tions. It was ''elegantly enlarged" 
 by Alcock, afterwards Bp. of Ely, 
 founder of Jesus Coll. Cambridge, 
 while occupying the see of Worcester, 
 1476-1486. The N. aisle retains a 
 W. triplet and a piscina and sedilia of 
 the original work. The N. arcade is 
 earlier than the S. The chancel ter- 
 minates in a broad Perp. apse, and 
 there is a large N. chapel, with a 
 very light and lofty Perp. arcade. 
 The reredos is very elaborate, and 
 has been richly coloured and orna- 
 mented with a bas-relief of the Last 
 Supper. On the N. of the sacrarium 
 is the effigy of Carpenter, Bp. of 
 Worcester, d. 1476, restored at the 
 expense of Oriel College, of which 
 he had been provost. 
 
 Below the ch. an ivy-clad square 
 tower marks the site of the College, 
 of which Canynges, the builder of St. 
 Mary Redcliffe, was dean, and Wy- 
 cliffe prebendary. It succeeds a 
 monastery which existed here as 
 early as 804, and in 964 received the 
 
862 
 
 lloute 21. — Blaise Castle. Somersetsliire. 
 
 first colony of Benedictine monks 
 from Fleury, and may therefore be 
 probably regarded as the original 
 seat of the Benedictine system in 
 England. In the Civil Wars the 
 college was set on fire by Prince 
 Rupert, lest it should become a 
 Parliamentary garrison, and annoy 
 Bristol. 
 
 Southey, in 1798, resided for 12 
 months at Westbury, where he wrote 
 his 'Madoc/ and cultivated his ac- 
 quaintance with Davy and his bag 
 of nitrous oxide. "We hesitated/' 
 he writes, ''between the appropriate 
 names of Rat Hall, Mouse Mansion, 
 Vermin Villa, Cockroach Castle, 
 Cobweb Cottage, and Spider Lodge ; 
 but as we routed out the spiders, 
 brushed away the cobwebs, stopped 
 the rat holes, and found no cock- 
 roaches, we bethought us of the ani- 
 mals without, and dubbed it Marten 
 Hall." It had been an alehouse; '' so 
 we have had application to sell beer, 
 and buy a stock of tobacco pipes." 
 
 A short distance W. of Westbury, 
 4J m. N". of Bristol, is Blaise Castle, 
 formerly the seat of J. S. Harford, 
 Esq., the biographer of M. Angelo 
 and Bp. Burgess, and friend of Wil- 
 berforce. The house stands above the 
 gorge of the Trym, a wooded lime- 
 stone ravine of singular beauty. The 
 house is not shown ; the grounds 
 on Thursdays only, by previous ap- 
 plication in writing. Blaise Castle 
 contains a fine collection of pic- 
 tures, principally of the time of 
 Michael Angelo and Raphael, ar- 
 ranged with great taste in a gallery 
 opening to a conservatory. Among 
 them are the following works : — Seh, 
 del Piomho, the Pieta, a circular 
 picture, painted on black marble. 
 From the Barberini Palace. 2. The 
 Holy Family, ' ' the largest and most 
 admirable example I have seen." — 
 Waagen. M. Venusti, a copy of the 
 Christ bound, by Seb. del Piombo; 
 — D. da Volterra, the Entombment, 
 " a fine and rich composition.'* 
 Correggio, excellent copies by his 
 
 scholars of the Christ on the Mount 
 of Olives, and the Virgin and Child; 
 — Farmigiano, the marriage of St. 
 Catherine, *' worthy of his great 
 model, Correggio." — Waagen. 2. 
 The Virgin and Child adored by SS. 
 Margaret, Augustin, and Jerome, a 
 repetition of the altar-picture in the 
 gallery of Bologna; — Paul Veronesef 
 the Dead Christ on the lap of the 
 Virgin ; — L. Carracci^ a copy of 
 Correggio' s St. Jerome, in the Gallery 
 at Parma; — Ann. Carracci, aRiposo; 
 
 — Guido Bent, the Assumption, of 
 the same period as the Murder of the 
 Innocents in the Gallery at Bologna 
 — ''an admirable picture." 2. The 
 Crucifixion. 3. An Ecce Homo. 
 Guereino, a Youth holding up a bunch 
 of Grapes. 2. Diana. Lanfranco, 
 Belisarius; — Carlo Dolce, Christ and 
 the Woman of Samaria — '' livelier in 
 expression and action than usual." 
 G. Poussin, a Landscape ; — Sal- 
 vator Bosa, 2 large poetical Land- 
 scapes; and 3 smaller Landscapes, 
 one a Sea-shore Scene, of great trans- 
 parency ; — Vandyck, a half-length 
 Portrait of a Lady armed as Minerva; 
 — Hobbema, a large Landscape ; — J. 
 Vernety View of a Sea-coast ; 2. a Sea- 
 piece, of his later time ; — Bapliael, 
 the Spasimo, of which the original is 
 in the Madrid Gallery ; "no copy, but 
 an independent work, in which, I 
 cannot doubt, Raphael had a hand." 
 
 — IF. 
 
 Drawing-room. — Guido Beni, St. 
 Veronica, " of great power of colour- 
 ing;" — Tiarini, the Assumption; — 
 Scliidone, St. John the Evangelist ; — 
 N. Poussin, a Landscape, highly 
 poetic and of fresh colour ; — II Cava- 
 liere d'Arpino, Christ on the Mount 
 of Olives ; — C. Procaccini, the Tri- 
 bute-money ; — G. Poussiri, a Storm ; 
 2. a Landscape ; — Salvator Bosa, a 
 Sea-piece, in the style of the large 
 sea-pieces by this master in the Pitti 
 Palace; — Carlo Dolce, an Ecce Homo. 
 2. The Virgin, in profile. 
 
 In the entrance hall are casts of 
 the Apollo Belvidere and Versailles 
 
S omersef silire . Route 2 1 . — Henhury — Kingsweston. 
 
 863 
 
 Diana, and in the conservatory, of 
 some of the finest heads of the An- 
 tinous. 
 
 Dining-room. — Lawrence, Portrait 
 of Mrs. Harford. 
 
 The jparh of Blaise is remarkable 
 for the beautiful undulations of the 
 ground, which are thickly covered 
 by the arbutus and other evergreens, 
 and diversified by rocks. A sin- 
 gular group of limestone rocks is 
 known as Giant Goram's Chair, 
 where, according to the tradition, 
 he was surprised by a nap, while 
 his rival St, Vincent settled the 
 dispute as to the course of the 
 Avon by cleaving the present ravine 
 through which the river flows. The 
 modern triangular castellated pro- 
 spect house, on the summit of Blaise 
 Hill (which takes its name from a 
 hermitage of Sfc. Blaise, once existing 
 there), was built in 1768 by the then 
 owner of the estate, Mr. Thomas 
 Farr. The hill is occupied by a 
 British camp, defended by 3 ram- 
 parts and 2 ditches, now turned into 
 pleasure grounds, and covered with 
 shrubs and trees. 
 
 Mr. Harford's cottages — designed 
 by Nash 1810, irregularly placed 
 round a sloping lawn, form "the 
 beau-ideal of a village — consist of 
 a group of houses of different 
 forms, styles, and materials, stone, 
 brick, wood, &c., roofed with thatch, 
 tiles, or slate, surrounded with a 
 variety of trees, and enwreathed 
 with clematis, rose, honeysuckle, or 
 vine. The dwellings have separate 
 gardens, and a common fountain, in 
 the centre of the green, shadowed by 
 old trees. The inhabitants are all 
 poor families, settled here by the 
 bounty of the proprietor." — Prince 
 Puclder Muskau. They may be seen 
 any week day between 12 and 5. 
 
 Henhury Ch., a very fine E. E. 
 building, with singularly lofty nave 
 arcades, recently the proportions of 
 Gloucester and Tewkesbury, well 
 restored by Street. The E. E. chan- 
 cel has a remarkable deflection to 
 
 the N. The stunted clerestory lights 
 of the nave, sunk between every other 
 pair of arches, deserve notice, as does 
 the E. E. piscina in the chancel. 
 The walls are lined with costly monu- 
 ments, some of which deserve notice. 
 That to Mr. Harford Battersby, on 
 the N. wall, has an epitaph by Mrs. 
 Hannah More. Under the tower 
 are those of the Southwell family, 
 of Kingsweston, from Sir Robert 
 Southwell (d. 1702), envoy extraor- 
 dinary to many foreign courts, and 
 Secretary of State for Ireland. 
 
 A charming walk leads from Blaise 
 Castle to Kingsweston and Penpold 
 Point, along Kingsweston Hill, a 
 narrow ridge about 1 m. in length, 
 defended by an earthwork, consisting 
 of a bank and ditch, towards its 
 Blaise Castle extremity. The views 
 on both sides are delightful. If you 
 prefer it, you may make a separate 
 excursion to Kingsweston and Pen- 
 pold Pointy a pleasant walk of 4 m. 
 Or you may go down the river bank 
 and turn inland where the path 
 ends. 
 
 Kingsweston, once the seat of Lord 
 de Clifford, and now of Mrs. Miles, 
 is a plain but large house, 3 
 stories high, by Vanbrugh, beauti- 
 fully situated on the Avon, 3 m. above 
 its junction with the Severn. Of both 
 rivers the grounds command delight- 
 ful views, as well as of the Bristol 
 Channel and the hills of Glamorgan- 
 shire. Penpold Point, almost within 
 the park, commands a magnificent 
 view of the Severn and its banks for 
 20 or 30 miles, bounded by the high- 
 lands of Monmouthshire and Wales, 
 and the King's Road immediately be- 
 low, where the Avon joins the Severn. 
 Below Kingsweston is the pretty 
 retired village of Sliirehampton. A 
 rly. from the Hotwells, Clifton, runs 
 along the rfc. bank of the Avon past 
 the stations of Sea Mills, the sup- 
 posed site of the Roman station 
 Ahona, where was once a large float- 
 ing dock, and Shirehampton, to the 
 I pier and docks at Avon Mouth, 5§ m., 
 
364 
 
 Boute 21. — Leigh Court. Somersetshire* 
 
 where a large hotel has been built, 
 surrounded with ornamental pleasure 
 grounds. 
 
 (b.) To the Tump at Ashton 
 Court, an eminence commanding a 
 fine view of Bristol, and of the vale 
 in which it lies. You should go E. 
 along the ridge for a pretty glimpse 
 of the sea between the valley sides, 
 and of Worle Hill and the Steep 
 Holme in the opening. There is 
 another path from Rownham Ferry 
 by Ashton Court, seat of Sir J. H. 
 Greville Smyth, Bart., to the conspi- 
 cuous ch. tower on Dundry Hill, 
 
 (c.) To Leigh Court, seat of Sir P. 
 J. W. Miles, Bart., well known for its 
 gallery of pictures. [It is about 3 m. 
 from Bristol, on the 1. bank of the 
 Avon, and is shown to the public 
 on Thursdays. Application for 
 tickets of admission must be made at 
 the Old Bank, Bristol.] Charles II. 
 was concealed in the old court-house, 
 personating a servant keeping his 
 room under plea of illness. The 
 former house was once occupied by 
 Gordon, the translator of Tacitus. 
 The present stately mansion was 
 erected from designs by Hopper, c. 
 1814. 
 
 ** Passing through an extensive 
 park, you come to the beautiful 
 grounds, which are kept in the finest 
 order, and to the splendid mansion, 
 built with great taste in the Italian 
 style. Though my expectations of 
 this collection had been raised very 
 high, they were far exceeded. I 
 found in these apartments a series of 
 capital works of the most eminent 
 Italian, Flemish, Spanish, and French 
 masters, which would grace the 
 palace of any monarch." — IFaa^/c'?^. 
 
 " Dining-room. — Ann. Carracci, 
 John the Baptist in the Wilderness ; 
 half the size of life. A noble and 
 graceful figure and warmly coloured; 
 — Velasquez, a female saint in ecstasy, 
 called a Velasquez ; but I am inclined 
 to attribute it to some excellent 
 
 Spanish painter unknown to me ; — 
 And. del Sarto, the Virgin with the 
 Child, and St. John. Of extraordi- 
 nary effect, from the figures being 
 above the size of life, and of very 
 powerful colouring, though it cannot 
 he classed among the graceful and 
 attractive works of the master; — ■ 
 Murillo, the Martyrdom of St. An- 
 drew ; figures about quarter the size 
 of life. The whole composition is 
 very discreetly treated, the expres- 
 sion of the saint noble, the colouring 
 singularly tender and clear, and the 
 execution uncommonly careful ; — 
 Gaspar Poussin, a very large Land- 
 scape, almost square, from the Co- 
 lonna Palace . In the most elevated 
 taste of the master, and in admirable 
 harmony with the fine figure, by 
 Nicholas Poussin, of Elijah, to whom 
 an Angel is pointing out Jehovah 
 passing over in the clouds. This 
 picture is a chef-d'oeuvre of this great 
 master, nay, a chef-d'ceuvre of land- 
 scape painting ; — MuriUo, the Holy 
 Family, with Angels, in a Landscape ; 
 figures almost the size of life. Of 
 the decidedly naturalistic epoch of 
 the master ; at the same time the 
 expression is nobler than in most 
 of his pictures of this period ; — 
 Claude, the efiect of the moVning 
 sun upon the sea ; in the foreground 
 fishermen drawing their net ; — Ann, 
 Carracci, Diana and Actaeon ; figures 
 about half the size of life ; in a fine 
 landscape, with an open view of the 
 sea. The horns of Actseon, who is 
 escaping, are beginning to shoot ; — • 
 Guido Cagnacci, Susanna and the 
 Elders ; half-length figures, the size 
 of life. A very choice picture, with 
 great power of colouring, and parti- 
 cularly careful ; — Nic. Poussin, the 
 Plague at Athens, according to the 
 description of Thucydides. A large, 
 very rich masterpiece of Poussin, 
 in which we are reconciled by his 
 skill to the horrors of the subject. 
 Very few pictures of Poussin are 
 of such masterly completion in all 
 their parts, and so well understood 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Leigh Court, 
 
 365 
 
 in the very difficult foreshortening : 
 the heads, at the same time, are 
 much more varied and more true to 
 nature than usual. — On the wall be- 
 tween the windows I remarked a 
 graceful female figure by RomanelU ; 
 a small Landscape with Banditti, by 
 Salvator Rosa ; and Youths looking 
 at a sleeping Nymph, hj^Domeni- 
 china. 
 
 ** Saloon. — Claude f 1. A mountain- 
 ous, richly wooded Landscape, with 
 rich melting middle distances; in 
 every respect one of the finest pic- 
 tures that ever came from the hand 
 of this great master. It is of that 
 time when Claude had attained the 
 highest perfection in general keep- 
 ing, without sacrificing to it, as he 
 .afterwards did, the vigorous execu- 
 tion, the local colours, and the indi- 
 viduality of the details. 2. The 
 companion : also an exquisite com- 
 position, though much paler, and 
 more monotonous in the colour. 
 The harmony of the effect also is 
 disturbed by the stiff", lengthy figure 
 of ^neas, who, with his compa- 
 nions, is landing in Italy. Painted 
 1675, in his 75th year. From the 
 Altieri palace, Eome. Mr. Beckford 
 gave 10,000Z.for the pair, with 4 other 
 cabinet pictures ; — Rubens, the Wo- 
 man taken in Adultery. A composi- 
 tion of five principal and seven sub- 
 ordinate figures ; rather above the 
 size of life. Entirely painted by 
 Rubens' own hand, perhaps of a not 
 much later date than the celebrated 
 Descent from the Cross at Antwerp. 
 The flesh is of a very full tone ; the 
 careful execution admirably melt- 
 ing. This celebrated picture, which 
 is in an extraordinary state of pre- 
 servation, is said to have been painted 
 for the family of Van Knyf at Ant- 
 werp. At the sale of Mr. Henry 
 Hope's collection, in the year 1816, 
 it was sold for 2000i. ; — Domeni- 
 chino, St. John the Evangelist in a 
 vision, supported by two angels; 
 full-length figures, the size of life. 
 Formerly in the Giustiniani Gallery : 
 
 one of the most beautiful works of 
 this master. It is in an excel- 
 lent state of preservation; — Titian, 
 Venus and Adonis, a good school 
 copy of the celebrated picture in the 
 Museum at Madrid; — Rubens, the 
 Virgin supporting the infant Christ 
 standing on her lap, to whom St. 
 John stretches out his arms. St. 
 Francis of Assisi worshipping, Elisa- 
 beth and Joseph. Very pleasing in 
 the expression ; warm, but sober in 
 the colouring, and carefully finished; 
 — L. da Vinci, Christ giving the 
 Benediction. Of a grave, dignified 
 character, but deficient in expression, 
 though it has much merit. It is of a 
 later period than Leonardo. 
 
 * ' Drawing - room. — Raphael, 1 . 
 Christ bearing his Cross. A long 
 narrow picture, formerly the centre- 
 piece of the Predella to the altar- 
 piece which Raphael painted for the 
 nuns of St. Antonio at Perugia 
 (painted in 1505). The group of 
 the mourning women is peculiarly 
 beautiful in the motives, and strik- 
 ing in the expressions. 2. The Vir- 
 gin lifting the veil from the Child, 
 which has just awaked, and with 
 much animation stretches out its 
 arms to her. Half-length figures, 
 the size of life. The Child is of the 
 greatest beauty, and has all the pe- 
 culiarities of Raphael — the greatest 
 vivacity, the delicately felt drawing, 
 and the reddish extremities. The 
 Virgin has, more than any other of 
 Raphael's, the appearance of a por- 
 trait ; yet the features are very deli- 
 cate. On panel. — Claude, a Land- 
 scape, with a temple on rt. and hills 
 in the foreground. The morning 
 light is very harmoniously carried 
 out in a delicate silvery tone. From 
 the old Hope collection : — The Virgin 
 and Child, called a Fra Bartolomeo, 
 is not delicate enough for him, but 
 is by the hand of one of his imitators ; 
 — Guido Reni, Cleopatra ; the origi- 
 nal of innumerable repetitions. Ex- 
 tremely pleasing in beauty of feature, 
 expression, clearness of colouring. 
 
366 
 
 Boute 21. — Leigh Court, 
 
 Somersetshire. 
 
 and melting execution ; — Velasquez^ 
 Philip IV., King of Spain, on horse- 
 back ; a small, very excellent pic-, 
 ture, in the bright, clear, and yet full 
 tone peculiar to him ; soft and freely 
 executed with a flowing brush ; — 
 Marcello Venusti. To this scholar 
 of Mich. Angelo I am inclined to 
 attribute the well-known composition 
 of the Crucifixion, with the Virgin 
 and St. John at the sides. The ex- 
 pression is intense, the execution well 
 understood, and of admirable body ; 
 — Gerard Doim, the Doctov; a medi- 
 cal man looking at a bottle, a woman 
 watching him. The head very ex- 
 pressive ; the details rich, and ap- 
 proaching his master, Rembrandt, in 
 warmth of colour; — Paul Potter, 
 three Cows in a Meadow. Admirable 
 in composition, in warm and lumi- 
 nous colouring, and in the spirited 
 treatment; — Murillo, the Virgin with 
 the sleeping Child and Joseph. Real- 
 istic in the characters, and carefully 
 executed. St. Francis in an ecstasy, 
 supported by an angel, here called a 
 Correggio ; but I believe it to be a 
 beautiful and careful picture in the 
 manner of Correggio, by Ann. Car- 
 racci, to whom an early repetition of 
 the same is here erroneously ascribed ; 
 — Bapliael, Pope Julius II. I would 
 not mention this picture, of which 
 there are such numerous repetitions, 
 were it not different from all that I 
 have seen, and extremely excellent. 
 The treatment is masterly ; on panel ; 
 — Ca7'lo Dolce, the Virgin, with the 
 blue mantle over her head, so often 
 met with, here taken in profile, and 
 of great clearness and delicacy. 
 
 Library. — Murillo, St. John the 
 Evangelist in ecstasy, which is ad- 
 mirably expressed in the realistic 
 head. The execution masterly, in a 
 silvery tone. A John the Baptist, 
 whole-length figure, the size of life, 
 which is here given to Correggio, I 
 believe to be a picture by Parmigi- 
 ano. 
 
 Music-room. — G. Poussin, two 
 views of Tivoli, large upright pic- 
 
 tures, which are among his finest 
 works, for the happily cbi»:-3n points 
 of view, the clearness and completion 
 of all the parts. A smalL:.i% also very 
 beautiful landscape ; — Bolbein, a half - 
 length undraped figure, called, in 
 defiance of all probability, William 
 Tell ; most carefully modelled from 
 Nature, in a true, warm, and power- 
 ful tone, and in very decided forms ; 
 the hand particularly admirable; — 
 Parmlgiano, a small version of the 
 larger picture in the National Gallery ; 
 careful and in a warm ton* ; ; — Sear- 
 sellino da Ferrara. Thi.i m-ister, in 
 my opinion, painted the Entry of 
 Christ into Jerusalem, which here 
 bears the name of Paul Veronese; — 
 Bapliael Mengs, the Virgin and 
 Child enthroned, surrounded by 
 Angels ; feeble in character, but of 
 a delicate harmony ; — G. Bellini, the 
 Adoration of the Kings, a predella of 
 very pure conception, and peculiar 
 composition. Joseph, who is seated 
 near the Virgin, appears of more im- 
 portance than usual. The kings, re- 
 maining at a little distance, respect- 
 fully offer their gifts. Delicately 
 executed, with clear yellowish flesh 
 tones; — Stothard, the Pilgrimage to 
 Canterbury ; the original picture 
 and finest example by him of this 
 often-repeated subject. The colour- 
 ing warm and transparent, the exe- 
 cution careful; — G. Poussin, a Land- 
 scape, with figures in the fore- 
 ground, and water in the middle dis- 
 tance. Nobly conceived, and of ad- 
 mirable keeping in the silvery tones ; 
 — G. Mazzuola. To this master I 
 am inclined to attribute an allegori- 
 cal representation, with the Virgin 
 borne by angels above, and below 
 Vice bound ; here called a Parmigi- 
 ano ; — Hogarth, a Female Portrait ; 
 animatedly conceived, and coloured 
 in a light clear tone ; — Claude, a 
 Harbour; of great delicacy and trans- 
 parency in keeping and colour; — 
 /. Vernet, a Sea-piece, with the morn- 
 ing mist ; of great truth. 
 
 Little Dining-room. — Buhens, the 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — . 
 
 ■Portishead. 
 
 367 
 
 Conversion of St. Paul, in figures as 
 large as life. The spirited, long- 
 maned horse of the saint has fallen 
 on its knee, and Paul, thrown over 
 its head, lies on the ground with his 
 eyes closed. Terror is most strikingly 
 expressed in his noble, pale features. 
 In the dazzling beam of light which 
 falls on him from heaven our Lord 
 appears. Kubens appears here not 
 only with his wonted animation, but 
 with an unusual sobriety of form 
 and colour, which latter is, however, 
 of surprising depth, force, and clear- 
 ness, and with a sustained and care- 
 ful execution. In 1806 this picture 
 was sold for 4000 guineas; — Lairesse, 
 Jupiter and Antiope; a good pic- 
 ture, in which he has endeavoured to 
 imitate Titian; — 0. Maratti, a Holy 
 Family ; a pretty picture, warmly 
 coloured for him ; — Hogarth^ the 
 Shrimp Girl ; animatedly conceived, 
 and sketched with the utmost free- 
 dom. A picture of the Three Graces, 
 here attributed to Titmn, appears to 
 me rather the work of Niccolo delV 
 Ahhate/* — Waagen, 
 
 [^Portishead, a pretty watering- 
 place and harbour in the Bristol 
 Channel, is distant from Bristol by 
 Ely. 11 J m. Leaving the general 
 station, the Portishead line branches 
 off to the N., with a station at Clifton 
 Bridge (3 J m.), thence under Leigh 
 Woods, following the windings of 
 the River Avon by Pill (7J m.), a 
 quaint, crowded, and not over-clean 
 pilot-village, and Porthury (9 J m.), 
 an old Roman station, where the 
 church, remains of priory, &c., 
 should be seen. 
 
 Portishead is growing in favour 
 with visitors seeking health or plea- 
 sure ; the site is picturesque, the 
 temperature equable, the air pure 
 and invigorating. There is a good 
 hotel near the pier ; baths, lodging- 
 houses, &c. Delightful excursions 
 may be made in the neighbour- 
 hood. The harbour is sheltered 
 by a densely - wooded hill, rising 
 
 abruptly out of the sea, commanding 
 views of the Channel from the N. 
 Devon Foreland, the mountain-coast 
 of Wales, King Road, and the River 
 Severn to and beyond Wynd Cliff and 
 Aust. In the deep-water entrance 
 to the estuary a pier has been con- 
 structed, which is used by the Irish 
 and Ilfracombe steamers, and some- 
 times by the Welsh boats to avoid 
 the tidal delays of the Avon. An 
 extensive dock has recently been 
 formed at great cost, in which vessels 
 of large size may load and unload 
 without ascending the Avon. On the 
 N.W. point of this hill-promontory 
 is a small fort. The Parliamen- 
 tarian army took it from the Royal- 
 ists in 1645. Early in the present 
 centy. it was dismantled and sold ; 
 but has recently been repurchased 
 by the Crown, repaired, and armed 
 with a battery of four guns. Oppo- 
 site is a small islet known as the 
 Denny f and beyond are the great 
 sand-banks called Welsh Grounds, 
 The rise and fall of the tide is said 
 to be greater here than at any point 
 in the Old World, being as much as 
 42 ft. at springs. A strong westerly 
 wind will often cause it to rise many 
 feet higher. 
 
 Modern villas stud the hill-slopes 
 overlooking the sea. The old vil- 
 lage occupies the long sheltered val- 
 ley on the S.; the'O/i. isPerp., except 
 some Dec. arches and windows; the 
 tower lofty and good. A new aisle 
 has been recently added. A Norm, 
 font, well preserved, and the old 
 stone-cross near the S. porch, de- 
 serve notice. The Court House 
 shows interesting specimens of 16th- 
 cent. domestic architecture. 
 
 2J m. S. of Portishead, at the foot 
 of Naish Hill, is the little village of 
 
 Clapton-in-Gordano. ''Its plea- 
 sing situation, the small ch. on a 
 high bank amongst luxuriant foli- 
 age, with the remains of the manor- 
 house close by, give a singular 
 charm to the place." The Court 
 House is (or was) very curious ; the 
 
368 
 
 Hoate 21. — AsJiton Court — Nailsea, Somersetshire. 
 
 chief external feature was a square 
 tower, added c. 1440 ; the walls of 
 house, c. 1310; the hall was de- 
 stroyed, but a double oak door, ■ 
 communicating with the buttery, | 
 &c., remained till lately, and was a ' 
 most interesting fragment of an 
 earlier house, c. 1210 — probably 
 the most remarkable piece of early 
 wooden domestic screenwork in ex- 
 istence." — /. H, P. (It now stands 
 in the garden.) The Ch. deserves 
 notice for its singular and irregular 
 outline, and its architectural peculi- 
 arities. It has work of all dates, 
 Norm., E. E., Dec, and Perp. The 
 plain square tower, with a pierced 
 battlement, is of the 13th cent. 
 The bench ends are, perhaps, some 
 of the earliest wooden seats in 
 England. The reredos is ornamented 
 with two E. E. shafts, supporting 
 candlesticks of an early date.] 
 
 We will now proceed from Bristol 
 on our main route westwards by the 
 Bristol and Exeter Rly. The line 
 traverses the Bedminster Coalfield, 
 commanding a fine view rt. of Clifton, 
 and the gorge of the Avon with the 
 elegant curve of the Suspension 
 Bridge. Further on we have on our 
 1. the high ridge of Dundry Hill, 
 crowned with its lofty tower, and 
 rt. Ashton Court and Leigh Doivn. 
 
 Asliton Court (Sir J. H. Greville 
 Smyth, Bart.) was brought promi- 
 nently before the public some years 
 ago by an impudent attempt to gain 
 possession of it on the part of an im- 
 postor, in 1853, calling himself " Sir 
 Kichard Smyth," who ended his days 
 in prison. The Court, situated on a 
 gentle eminence, and backed by a well- 
 wooded park, enclosed and planted 
 by Thomas de Lyons, 1391, presents 
 an extensive front, 150 ft. in length, 
 erected by Inigo Jones in 1634 ; but 
 at the back of the mansion still 
 remain the ancient gateway and the 
 windows, battlements, and buttresses 
 of the old Court. 
 
 In the 15th centy. it was the re- 
 
 sidence of Sir Eichard Choke, one of 
 the Justices of the Common Pleas, 
 who died 1483, and is buried in 
 Ashton Church. 
 
 The old gallery in the Court is 
 full of interesting family portraits, 
 some of them of great merit — one 
 particularly, of Helena Snachenberg, 
 a Swedish lady, Marchioness Dow- 
 ager of Northampton, Maid of Honour 
 to Queen Elizabeth, and mother of 
 Elizabeth, wife of Sir Hugh Smyth, 
 who, with her 2nd husband, Sir 
 Thomas Gorges, lies buried under a 
 splendid monument in Salisbury 
 Cathedral. (See ante^ Rte. 8.) 
 
 Long Ashton Church, founded by 
 Thomas de Lyons, c. 1390, contains 
 many fine monuments to the Smyths 
 of Ashton Court, the slab of its 
 founder's destroyed altar-tomb, and 
 an oak screen of good workmanship. 
 
 124J m. 1., Flax Bourton Ch., re- 
 cently enlarged and restored, has a 
 Norman door and chancel arch, and 
 a sancte bell-cot. 1 m. S., 5 m. 
 from Bristol, is Barrow Gurney. 
 The churchyard cross has been re- 
 stored as a memorial of her son, by 
 Mrs. Frankland Hood. Barrow Court, 
 J. H. Blagrave, Esq., a very fine 
 Elizabethan house, was built on the 
 site of a nunnery, and has been for 
 many generations^the seat of the Gore 
 family. 
 
 Beyond it is Dial Quarry, in the 
 inferior oolite. The road to Ax- 
 bridge here ascends Broadfield Down, 
 and enters a hilly country, rich in 
 beauty. 1. are Hartcliff Rocks; rt. 
 the Goblin Oom&e and Hill Scars; and, 
 at a distance of 2 m., the romantic 
 valley of Brockley Combe. On the 
 N.W. shoulder of Broadfield Down 
 is one of the 3 igneous vents men- 
 tioned by Dr. Buckland as occurring 
 in this county. The 2nd is at the 
 Uphill cutting, on the Mendips ; the 
 3rd at Hestercombe, on the Quan- 
 tocks. 
 
 126 J m. Nailsea Stat., where Cad- 
 bury Camp is about 2 m. to the rt. 
 The small Perp. Ch. of Nailsea has a 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21.— Nailsea — Brockleij Comhe. 
 
 363 
 
 stone pulpit, with steps in a recess 
 in the wall. 
 
 At Nailsea Court, IJ m. down the 
 line, a fine old manor-house (once 
 the seat of the By themores, and after- 
 wards of the Perceval s the ancestors 
 of the Earl of Egmont), was born, 
 1551, Richard Perceval, who first 
 discovered the designs of Spain against 
 England previous to the sailing of 
 the Spanish Armada. At the ex- 
 tremity of Nailsea parish are exten- 
 sive glassworks, belonging to Mr. 
 S. Bowen. 
 
 Cheheij Church, 1 m. S.W., has a 
 Norm, door, and I3th-cent. windows, 
 and contains memorials of the fami- 
 lies of Aish and Tynte, including an 
 incised slab of the 13th centy. 
 
 To the S. of Chelvey Church is a 
 plain Gross, surmounted by a ball. 
 A little further down the line are 
 remains of the manor-house oi Chelvey 
 Court, temp. James I. , now a farm- 
 house, but still retaining many . of 
 the old panelled chambers, one of 
 which has a hiding-room at the back 
 of the fireplace. On the porch are 
 the arms of Tynte, the family who 
 became owners of the house and 
 manor about IBOO. 
 
 1| m. S.E. of Nailsea Station is 
 Backwell Church, standing on a pic- 
 turesque site among rocky heights 
 and deep glens. The tower is fine 
 and tall, of two dates, the upper part 
 of which was, according to local tra- 
 dition, rebuilt after a storm in 1603. 
 It contains good canopied sedilia, and 
 a rich tomb to one of the Rodney 
 family, with an effigy in armour, and a 
 fine reredos added by the M. of Bath. 
 
 2 m. S.W. of the Nailsea Station, 
 about 4 m. from that at Yatton, 9 m. 
 from Bristol, is 
 
 Brockley Comhe, a wooded and 
 rocky hollow in the Dundry line 
 of hills. This tract abounds in pic- 
 turesque beauty ; its chief charac- 
 teristics are rocky eminences, richly 
 clothed with wood and intersected 
 with precipitous ravines. Brockley 
 Combe is more than a mile long, and 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 the rocks are in some places 300 ft. 
 high. Brockley Church stands very 
 prettily. It contains a richly carved 
 reredos and pulpit. Adjoining it is 
 Brockley Court, a seat of the family 
 of Pigott. Towards the close of 
 day the valley forms a vista to the 
 setting sun, which in its descent 
 illuminates the distant sea. Brockley 
 was a favourite spot with the poet 
 Coleridge, who in one of his rambles 
 from Clevedon composed the follow- 
 ing lines : — 
 
 " With many a pause and oft reverted eye 
 I climb the Coomb's ascent: sweet song- 
 sters near 
 
 Warble in shade their wild-wood melody : 
 Far off the unvarying cuckoo soothes my 
 ear : 
 
 Up scour the startling stragglers of the 
 flock 
 
 That on green plots or precipices browse : 
 From the deep fissures of the naked rock 
 The yew-tree bursts! Beneath its dark 
 
 green boughs 
 (Mid which the May-thorn blends its blos- 
 soms while), 
 Where broad smooth stones jut out in mossy 
 seats, 
 
 I rest : — and now have gain'd the topmost 
 site. 
 
 Ah ! what a luxury of landscape meets 
 My gaze ! Proud towers, and cots more 
 
 dear to me, 
 Elm-shadow'd fields, and prospect-bounding 
 sea: 
 
 Deep sighs my lonely heart : I drop a tear : 
 Enchanting spot ! 0 were my Sara here !" 
 
 Cleeve Comhe is another rugged 
 valley of a character similar to that 
 of Brockley. It is nearer the Yatton 
 Stat., being 3 m. to the E. of it. 
 
 At the lower end of the combe 
 rises Cleeve Toot, a conical pile of 
 limestone rocks, the summits of 
 which, as seen from the road, look 
 like a huge chair, whence a fine view 
 can be obtained. Below it is Cleeve 
 Court (Mrs. Castle) and Cleeve House, 
 Rev. J. W. Hardman, LL.D. 
 
 130 J m. Yatton Stat., where 
 branches diverge rt. to Clevedon, 
 and 1. by Axbridge and Cheddar to 
 Wells (Rte. 22). 
 
 The village of Yatton (| m. S. of 
 the stat.), has its name ( Yatton = 
 Gate-town) according to some, from 
 the flood-gate of the estuary, now 
 2 B 
 
370 
 
 Boute 21. — Yatton — Clevedon, Somersetshire . 
 
 dry, and converted into Kenn and 
 Nailsea Moors. (Another more pro- 
 bable form of the name, Eaton, or 
 Yeo-ton, or the " ton by the water," 
 points to the same condition of the 
 locality.) Yatton Ch. deserves care- 
 ful attention. Though unequal, it 
 is one of the finest of the Somer- 
 setshire churches. It is cruciform, 
 with central tower and truncated 
 spire. The chancel, transept, and 
 base of the tower, contain portions 
 of earlier date, E. E., Dec, and 
 early Perp. The nave and N. chapel 
 are Perp. of noble proportions and 
 rich ornamentation. The W. front 
 has a fine window, with a peculiar 
 solid mullion running up its centre, 
 set between hexagonal corner turrets 
 with pyramidal caps. Similar smaller 
 turrets flank the aisles. The W. door 
 is rich, with statues in the jambs. 
 The S. porch is lofty and elaborately 
 carved^ c. 1486. The N. door is 
 a lovely composition under an ogee 
 arch. The N. chapel, being loftier 
 than the chancel, and having a lean- 
 to roof, has a singularly awkward 
 effect outside. At the N.E. angle 
 is a staircase turret, with a spirelet 
 of remarkable beauty. The nave 
 arcade is very stately, and the details 
 good. The roofs throughout are 
 coved, with lateral featherings in 
 the aisles. The crossing is low. The 
 N. chapel is full of elaborate work — 
 rich niches flanking the E. window; 
 a lovely pillar piscina under a canopy ; 
 and a magnificent altar-tomb with a 
 very lofty and elaborate canopy, with 
 effigies of a knight in armour, and 
 his lady. In the N. transept, erected 
 1498 by Isabel of Cheddar, wife of 
 Sir John Newton, is the rich altar- 
 tomb of Judge Newton, d. 1449, 
 Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, 
 clothed in his robes with a collar 
 of SS. roimd his neck, and his lady 
 by his side. Under the N. window 
 are 2 ogee-canopied recesses, contain- 
 ing a male and female efi&gy, appa- 
 rently removed thither from another 
 place. To the S. of the Ch. stands 
 
 the stepped base of a once remark- 
 ably fine Cross, erected 1499 at the 
 cost of 181. The former Bectory ad- 
 joining the churchyard, is a 15-cent. 
 house worth notice. 
 
 [A branch of 4J m. leads to the 
 favourite watering-place of Clevedon. 
 It passes on 1. Kingston-Seymour, 
 The Ch,, of the 14th and 15th cents., 
 has a good tower and spire. There 
 is a peculiar squint in the S.W. angle 
 of the chancel. A tablet inside com- 
 memorates the destructive inunda- 
 tions of 1606 and 1703. On a tomb- 
 stone is the following strange 
 epitaph:— „j 
 
 He was universally beloved in the cii'cle of 
 His acquaintance ; but united 
 In his death the esteem of all, 
 Namely, by bequeathing his remains." 
 
 Further on rt. is Kenn, supposed 
 to be the original seat of Bp. Ken's 
 family, to w^hom there are tablets 
 in the little church, rebuilt 1861, and 
 a monument with curious effigies to 
 Christopher Ken, 1593. 
 
 Clevedon (Inns : Royal Hotel ; 
 Rock House ; Bristol. Pop. 4869). 
 This watering-place is a creation 
 of the last 40 years, being the off- 
 shoot of a village which has been 
 seated here from a remote time, 
 1 m. from the sea, under a rocky 
 height called Dial Hill. It is a 
 collection of villas, sheltered by 
 high land on the N.E., and extend- 
 ing over undulating ground above 
 the cliffs of a small bay. It is an 
 increasing place, and a pier has been 
 erected, opened Easter, 1869. S. and 
 W. of it, the country is very flat for 
 some miles, but it is hilly and 
 beautiful to the E. 
 
 The places to be seen in the im- 
 mediate vicinity are Dial Hill, Wal- 
 ton Castle, and Clevedon Court; and 
 at various distances, Cadbury Carap, 
 the view from Cadbury Hill, Brocldey 
 Combe, Cleeve Combe, and the Clied- 
 dar Cliffs. At the end of the old 
 ^ village is 
 
Somersetsldre. lioute 21. — Clevedon. 
 
 371 
 
 Myrtle Cottage, to which ^S^. T. 
 Coleridge brought his bride, Sarah 
 Fricker, Oct. 4, 1795, and thus 
 describes it — 
 
 " Low was our pretty cot ; our tallest rose 
 Peeped at the chamber window. We could 
 hear 
 
 At silent noon, and eve, and early morn, 
 The sea's faint murmur. In the open air 
 Our myrtle blossom'd ; and across the porch 
 Thick jasmins twined : the little landscape 
 round 
 
 Was green and woody, and refresh M the eye. 
 It was a spot which you might aptly call 
 The Valley of Seclusion ! " 
 
 The Old Church, St. Andrew, on 
 Clevedon Point, "by that broad 
 water of the west," was in early times 
 attached to the Abbey of St. Au- 
 gustine in Bristol. It is cruciform 
 in plan. Its principal feature is the 
 Transition chancel arch. The lower 
 part of the tower and the arch into 
 the transept are Norman. The 
 S. transept, externally supported 
 by Dec. buttresses, has a fine Perp. 
 window to the S. This church con- 
 tains the effigy of a knight in a re- 
 cumbent position, resting his feet 
 upon a bull. In the S. transept are 
 the mural tablets of the Elton 
 family, and of Henry Hallam, the 
 historian, and of his wife, daughter, 
 and two sons. Mrs. Hallam was the 
 daughter of Sir Abraham Elton of 
 Clevedon Court. The name of their 
 elder son, Arthur Hallam, is indis- 
 solubly associated with Tennyson's 
 poem 'In Memoriam.' Mr. Hallam 
 selected this as a burial-place, as he 
 says in the memoir of his elder son, 
 "not only from the connection of 
 kindred, but on account of its still 
 and sequestered situation on a lone 
 hill that overhangs the Bristol Chan- 
 nel.'* It is to this hill, and to this 
 channel, and to this grave, to which 
 the remains of the old, heartbroken 
 father have since been added, that 
 Tennyson refers in his pathetic 
 lines — 
 
 " And the stately ships go on 
 To their haven under the hill ! 
 But, 0 for the touch of a vanished hand 
 And the sound of a voice that is still ! 
 
 Break, break, break, 
 
 At the foot of thy crags, 0 sea ! 
 But the tender grace of a day that is dead 
 
 Will never come back to me." 
 
 Christ Church is a modern build- 
 ing, standing out conspicuously on 
 the brow of the hill, of which the 
 style may be guessed from its date, 
 1838. The E. window contains some 
 good old foreign painted glass. 
 
 All Saints, East Clevedon, is a 
 beautiful and highly decorated cruci- 
 form edifice, consecrated 1860, with 
 a central tower and low broach spire. 
 The windows contain rich modern 
 stained glass. The organ, by Willis, 
 is a remarkably fine one. 
 
 St. John the Evangelist, consecrated 
 1878 as a memorial to the late Lady 
 Elton, from Mr. Butterfield's designs, 
 is a very costly building, with rich 
 stained-glass windows and an elabo- 
 rate reredos. 
 
 Dial Hill, which rises immediately 
 above the town, commands a wide 
 and attractive view, embracing the 
 mountains of Glamorganshire, the 
 Steep and Flat Holmes, the Mendips 
 with their pyramidal height of 
 Crook's Peak, and the whole range of 
 Exmoor in the far distance, with its 
 highest point, Dunkery Beacon, a 
 little to the right of the Steep Holme. 
 The Sugarloaf above Abergavenny 
 may also be seen. Pathways conduct 
 to various attractive points of view. 
 
 Continuing our walk from this hill 
 along the coast, we descend upon a 
 valley, which, once quiet and soli- 
 tary, contained only the ruins of old 
 Walton Church, with its grey walls 
 and mutilated cross overgrown with 
 ivy, but which has now become a 
 large suburb of Clevedon, known as 
 Walton-by-Clevedon. New houses 
 and villas have rapidly risen, and the 
 ruined church, its dedication changed 
 from St. Paul's to St. Mary's, with 
 a tall pinnacled tower, has been 
 rebuilt, commanding a wide and 
 attractive prospect. On the lofty hill 
 beyond it are the remains of 
 
 Walton Castle, once probably a 
 2 B 2 
 
372 
 
 Boute 2 1 . — Walton-in-Gordano. Somersetsliire* 
 
 hunting-seat of the Pawlett family. 
 The ruins occupy the summit of a 
 furzy height between the sea and 
 the woods of Walton Court, and 
 consist of an octagonal wall with a 
 tower at each angle, and, in the area 
 thus formed, an octagonal keep 
 with a tower at one angle. There is 
 little, however, ancient in the appear- 
 ance of the castle, which was pro- 
 bably erected in the reign of James I. 
 in the mediaeval style. The walls 
 are but slightly built, and they are 
 pierced for large windows, which 
 must have commanded magnificent 
 prospects. At the farther end of 
 the hill is a tower which forms an 
 ornament to the grounds of Walton 
 Rectory. Beyond it we can descend 
 to a road which has come from Por- 
 tishead and turns abruptly to the 
 village of 
 
 Walton-in-Gordano, with a small 
 modern 0/t., stands in a pretty dell 
 among hills affording many beautiful 
 scenes. Here the road from Clevedon 
 to Portishead divides. The higher 
 road to Portishead passes Weston-in- 
 Gordano, of which the Ch. has some 
 interesting features, and is well 
 worthy of inspection. It is of Perp. 
 date, with excellent E. window, 
 screen, and chancel stalls with miser- 
 eres, a curious recess apparently in- 
 tended for a pulpit, and, as at Wrax- 
 all Ch., the remnant of a small gal- 
 lery over the S. door within the porch 
 approached by narrow stone stairs. 
 This may have been for the choristers 
 who sang the "Gloria Laus et Honor" 
 on Palm Sunday. Against the N. wall 
 of the nave may be noticed the monu- 
 ment of Richard Perceval, who d. 
 1482, whicli has been well restored. 
 
 A portion of the old Court-house 
 still remains on the S. side of the 
 church. 
 
 From Walton we can return to- 
 wards Clevedon, and visit 
 
 Clevedon Court (Sir Arthur Hallam 
 Elton, Bart.), about I m. E. of the 
 Stat. It was built in the reign of 
 Edw. II., remodelled in that of Eliz., 
 
 and much altered at various subse- 
 quent periods. It has a fine gabled 
 front, chiefly of the 14th centy., with 
 a porch and room over it, and a 
 square-headed window with reticu- 
 lated tracery. The kitchen and parts 
 of the hall are the most ancient, but 
 the fine oak roof is hidden by a 
 modern ceiling. The library has a 
 rich chimney-piece, erected by the 
 Wake family in 1570. The hill 
 above commanding a splendid view, 
 together with the grounds, is 
 open to the public every Thursday 
 between the hours of 1 2 and 3. The 
 house can only be seen on previous 
 Avritten application. The hall con- 
 tains a number of family portraits, 
 including one (a copy) of Hallam, 
 the historian. 
 
 31 m. E. of Clevedon Stat., 2i m. 
 N, of ISTailsea, in the valley, is 
 
 Tichenham, a village remarkable 
 for the remains of a manor-Jiouse, of 
 the early part of the 15th centy. The 
 hall is nearly perfect, but has a 
 plain modern roof. The domestic 
 offices are in 2 stories, the upper 
 approached by a newel staircase. 
 The withdrawing room, and some of 
 the upper rooms, have remains of 
 rich fiat oaken ceilings. The C7i., 
 which is a very interesting study, 
 has a rude Norm, chancel arch, an 
 E. E. S. porch, and a Dec. Avindow 
 studded with armorial shields. In 
 the N. aisle are 2 cross-legged 
 effigies in chain-mail, temp. Hen. III. 
 or Edw. I., and one of a female, and 
 in the churchyard the broken shaft 
 of a cross overshadowed by ancient 
 yew-trees. 
 
 IJ m. beyond is Wraxall, beau- 
 tifully situated in a hollow under 
 the hill. In the Church remark the 
 font and the altar-tomb of Sir E. 
 and Lady Ann Gorges, 1512, the 
 singular gallery above the porch 
 door, as at AVeston-in-Gordano, and 
 the fine late 15th-century cross in 
 the churchyard. The manor-house 
 was a very fine building, but has 
 been modernised except the porch, 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21 —Weston-Super-Mare, 
 
 373 
 
 which bears the characters S. G. 
 1658. In the vicinity are — Wraxall 
 Lodge, J. Ford, Esq.; Tyntesfield, the 
 magnificent new house of the late 
 Will. Gibbs, Esq. ; now tenanted by 
 his widow. 
 
 On the hill above Tickenham is 
 Cadhury Camp, a Belgic entrench- 
 ment of 7 acres, 190 yds. in dia- 
 meter, with 2 ditches and o ram- 
 parts, on the same ridge of hills as 
 Clevedon Court. It is on a com- 
 manding point, overlooking the vale 
 of Nailsea on the one side, and of 
 Portbury on the other, and is formed 
 by 2 ramparts made of loose stones. 
 In driving from Clevedon take the 
 first lane to the left beyond Clevedon 
 Court. Pedestrians should mount 
 the zigzags above All Saints' Church, 
 and keep along the crest of the hill.] 
 
 Proceeding again by railway : — 
 we cross the Yeo, and, continuing 
 our route across the marshy flats, 
 observing how grandly the great 
 outlying islands of limestone rise 
 out of the sea of green pasture, we 
 reach 
 
 136 1 m. Weston-super-Mare Junc- 
 tion, from which a branch line of 1 J 
 m. conducts to 
 
 [Weston - super - Mare Stat. 
 {Hotels : Imperial ; Eoyal ; Pier ; 
 Railway Hotel. Pop. 12,882). This 
 fashionable watering-place is situ- 
 ated at the corner of a capacious 
 bay under a rocky fir-covered hill. 
 It sweeps along the shore in a 
 crescent of handsome houses and 
 a parade of great width, and com- 
 mands a charming view of the 
 mountains of Wales, of the 2 islets 
 of Steep Holme and Flat Holme, 
 and of its own rocky heights — 
 Worle Hill above the town, and 
 Brean Down at the S. horn of the 
 bay. The sea, however, here is of 
 a muddy colour, and its retreating 
 "syaves expose such an extent of oo?e 
 
 that the town has been nicknamed 
 from it Weston-super-wttc2. But 
 there is a smooth beach of sand. An 
 alluvial level, once a marsh, extends 
 inland to the foot of high hills. On 
 the opposite point of the bay a 
 rugged rock stands islanded in the 
 sea. There is a very long and good 
 esplanade, with reading-rooms, ba- 
 zaars, and the usual agrements of 
 watering-places. The Prince Consort's 
 Promenade Gardens are just above 
 Anchor Head. 
 
 Under the point of Worle Hill lies 
 the rugged little islet of Beam Back, 
 from the middle of October to 
 Christmas the scene of a busy 
 sprat fishery. The capture is effected 
 by nets stretched on poles from the 
 shore to the island, and the fish 
 thus secured are removed at low 
 water when the channel is dry. 
 The operation is worth seeing, es- 
 pecially at night, when the little 
 fish glitter in the beams of the 
 moon. The fishery is pursued along 
 this coast on a considerable scale. 
 More than 10,000Z. has been made 
 by it in a season ; and a ton of sprats 
 has been sold in Taunton market on 
 a single day. 
 
 An iron pier, connecting the 
 rugged islet of Beam Back with the 
 mainland, w^as opened in 1867, and 
 forms a most agreeable promenade. 
 A landing-stage at the foot of the 
 island has also been constructed, 
 allowing steamers to disembark pas- 
 sengers at all times of the tide. 
 
 At low water Bearn Back is acces- 
 sible by a rough road known as the 
 Stepway, This needs to be traversed 
 with caution. The two sons of Sir 
 C. Elton were caught by the tide 
 here and drowned 1819 (see Cleve- 
 don, ante). 
 
 The parish Ch., St. John the 
 Baptist, was erected, 1824, on the 
 site of the old fabric, and is a plain 
 and ugly building. A new chancel 
 was added to it in 1837, and a IST. 
 aisle in 1844. The E. window con- 
 tains richly stained glass, some of ii^ 
 
374 Boute 21.— Worle Hill Somersetshire. 
 
 ancient. On the E. wall of the S. 
 
 porch is preserved a bas-relief repre- 
 senting the Trinity. The old muti- 
 lated font has been restored to the 
 ch. In the ch.-yard is the stump of 
 a cross. Emmanuel Ch. was erected 
 in 1847, and two other churches have 
 since been built, of which Trinity 
 Ch. deserves some commendation for 
 its originality, and Christ Ch. has a 
 broach spire. 
 
 The Town Hall, with a feeble 
 clock tower, was the gift of the 
 present Dean of Gloucester (Very 
 Kev. H. Law) when rector of 
 Weston. 
 
 In the town there are several inter- 
 mittent springs which are influenced 
 by the sea. One at Clarence Lodge 
 ceases to flow when the tide reaches 
 the rocks, and others in the vici- 
 nity of Knightstone are variously 
 aff'ected. 
 
 Worle Hill rises 306 ft. above the 
 sea. To ascend this hill, we proceed 
 to Anchor Head, the extreme E. 
 point of the town and bay, passing, 
 on a rock called Knightstone, a group 
 of lodging-houses and the baths, with 
 an open reservoir in which the sedi- 
 ment is deposited from the muddy 
 water, and turn up the hill by a path 
 among the firs. It commands a view 
 of the town below, of the Quantocks, 
 the Mendips, the heights about 
 Clifton, and the coast of Wales. But 
 the most delightful walk is along the 
 sea-front of the hill, where a prospect 
 greets us which is certainly among the 
 finest in the W. of England, includ- 
 ing, seen through a foreground of 
 firs and dark rocks of limestone, a 
 near view of the Welsh mountains, 
 and many distinct ranges in Somerset 
 and the adjoining counties. Hence, 
 too, we can see well the features cha- 
 racteristic of this part of Somerset, 
 viz. the extensive marshy flats, each 
 bounded by hills, and the numerous 
 detached and outlying knolls. 
 
 Worle Hill, or Worlehury, is about 
 3 m. in length, but little more than 
 
 a furlong in breadth. On its summit 
 
 are remains of a camp of about 20 
 acres, defended on the E. side by 2 
 ramparts of stone, and further pro- 
 tected on the weakest side by no less 
 than 7 ditches. The area of the camp 
 is divided into two unequal parts 
 by a ditch running N. and S., the 
 most strongly defended front lying 
 to the W. The whole surface is 
 abundantly indented by hut-circles, 
 the foundations of the wigwams of 
 the primitive occupiers of this 
 stronghold. On excavating the hut- 
 circles have been found arrow and 
 spear heads ; remains of the Bos 
 longifrons, a species of ox known 
 in Britain at an early period; and 
 human bones and skulls much bat- 
 tered and notched, as if a desperate 
 struggle had here occurred. Some 
 of these objects are preserved in the 
 Museum attached to the Albert 
 Memorial Schools. The Rev. Mr. 
 Warre thinks that this camp was 
 destroyed by Ostorius in the reign of 
 Claudius, and that the Britons were 
 subsequently defeated here in the 
 Saxon irruption under Ceawlin, year 
 577. Nothing Roman, save coins, has 
 been discovered. A flight of about 200 
 rude stairs, called Keic Steps, descends 
 to the village of Kewstoke, and what 
 was once the shore before the sea 
 receded. Along the top of the pass 
 run the foundations of a building 
 which was probably a military work, 
 but is popularly supposed to have 
 been the hermitage of St. Kew. 
 
 Along the flank of this hill a car- 
 riage-road has been cut through the 
 wood of fir and oak to Keivstoke, 2 
 m., commanding at every part the 
 most delightful views over the chan- 
 nel and Welsh mountains. Though 
 private property, the drive is open 
 to the public. 
 
 Kewstoke Ch. is an interesting little 
 building, with a Norm, door and stone 
 pulpit. A mural reliquary found here, 
 containing a portion of a wooden cup 
 stained with blood, supposed to be 
 human, and to have been that of 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Woodsjpring Priory, 
 
 375 
 
 Becket, brought from Woodspring 
 Priory, is now in the Museum at 
 Taunton Castle. 
 
 Excursions may be made to Wood- 
 spring Priory, to Brocldey Combe (by 
 rail to Nailsea), to Clevedon, to Ban- 
 'well, 6 m. ; to Cheddar, 12 m.; to 
 CrooJc's Peak, 8 m.; to Prent Knoll, 
 passing by Lympsliam, well known 
 for its beautiful church tower, and 
 its rectory opposite, and East Brent, 
 under the knoll, with a fine well- 
 restored ch. (see post, p. 378). 
 
 [^Woodspring Priory, originally 
 Worspring or Wospring, is about 4 
 m. N. of Weston, at the farther end of 
 Sand Bay, under a rocky headland 
 called the Middle Hope, in a lonely 
 position, in the marshes near the 
 mouth of the Yeo. It was originally 
 founded as an expiatory chapel in 
 honour of St. Thomas of Canterbury, 
 apparently by Keginald Fitz Urse, 
 one of the leading actors in his 
 murder, and converted into a priory 
 of Austin Canons between 1205- 
 1214, by William de Courtenay, 
 grandson and, through his mother, 
 heir of Fitz Urse. The pleasantest 
 way to it is by the road as far as 
 Kewstoke, and then by the shore to 
 the Middle Hope. It is an interesting 
 building, which will reward careful 
 examination. It is entered by a 
 fine double gateway with segmental 
 arches. Passing through this, we find 
 ourselves in a small courtyard, with 
 modern domestic buildings on the 
 N., and the front of the Ch. facing 
 us. The W. window (blocked) 
 is flanked by octagonal turrets. The 
 Ch. consisted of a nave and chancel 
 and central tower. It is late Perp., 
 with traces of the original 13th-cent. 
 work. The tower is a re-casting of the 
 earlier structure, of the ordinary 
 Somersetshire type. It is supported 
 on 4 light arches, with a fan-vault, 
 and rises two stories above the roof, 
 The pinnacles are gone. There never 
 were transepts. The chancel is de- 
 stroyed, and the nave-aisles and 
 crossing have been converted into 
 
 a farmhouse. The cloister court was 
 to the S. of the Ch. The mark of 
 the gable of the dormitory may be 
 seen on the S. wall of the nave ; at 
 the opposite end are the remains 
 of its spiral stair-turret. The en- 
 trance to the chapter-house may be 
 seen in the opposite eastern wall., 
 The refectory, to the S., a noble hall, 
 with a good timber roof, 45 ft. by 
 19 ft., is used as a waggon-house. 
 The Priory Barn retains its corner 
 buttresses and moulded entrances. 
 
 Below the E. end of Worle Hill 
 stands the little village of Worle, with 
 a rudish Ch., possessing a low tower 
 and stumpy spire, S. door of 12th- 
 cent. work, carved miserere seats, 
 and a stone pulpit. Near the ch. is 
 a large ancient barn, converted into 
 a school. 
 
 Wick St. Lawrence, 1 m. S.E. of 
 Woodspring, lies in the rich alluvial 
 flat at the mouth of the Yeo. The 
 small Perp. Ch. has a very rich 
 stone pulpit. In an open space at 
 the back of some cottages is a muti- 
 lated but stately Cross of late 15th- 
 cent. work.] 
 
 lUphill Old Ch., 2 m. S.W., deserted 
 and ruinous, is an object for another 
 short ramble. Pursuing the level 
 road which skirts the shore of the 
 bay, you reach the rocky hill which 
 it crowns. Consisting of a nave, a 
 chancel, and a central tower, it ex- 
 hibits the architecture of almost 
 every style from Norman to late 
 Perpendicular. The Norm. N. 
 porch is one of its chief features.] 
 
 Uphill is supposed to have been 
 the Roman Axium, from which the 
 mining produce of the Mendips was 
 shipped. [A Roman road hss been 
 traced over the Mendips, along 
 Wavery Down to Charter House, by 
 Masbury to Leighton in Cloford, 
 where it is lost in what was Selwood 
 Forest to reappear at Quar Hill on 
 the borders of Wilts, and over the 
 Wiltshire Downs to Old Sarum. — 
 See Introduction. 2 In the hill on 
 which the ch. stands is 
 
876 
 
 Boute 21.- — Upliill — The Holmes. Somersetsliire. 
 
 Uphill Cavern, one of tliose bone- 
 caves so numerous in the mountain 
 limestone. It was discovered in 
 1826, and was then filled with the 
 remains of sheep, oxen, pigs, and 
 horses, and of animals long since 
 extinct in this country, such as the 
 elephant, rhinoceros, bear, and 
 hyaena. Many of these bones were 
 indented with the marks of teeth, so 
 that the cavern was, doubtless, at one 
 time a den of wild beasts. 
 
 Uphill Ch. is a notable landmark, 
 and commands an extensive view, par- 
 ticularly towards the S.W., in which 
 direction the eye ranges to the Quan- 
 tocks across the great Burnliam Level, 
 resting midway on Brent Knoll, which 
 rises from this plain with singular 
 abruptness. It was doubtless once 
 an island in the wide estuary cor- 
 responding to the "Holmes" of the 
 Bristol Channel. According to Wil- 
 liam of Malmesbury, its original 
 name was insula ranarum," the 
 island of frogs, and was infested by 
 three giants *'malefactis famosis- 
 simi," who were slain in the days 
 of King Arthur by the valiant Ider. 
 Below the hill the river Axe slug- 
 gishly creeps to the sea, and at its 
 mouth rises Brean Down, where the 
 white cistus did grow, and may, 
 perhaps, still be found ; and where 
 a fort has been erected for the pro- 
 tection of the ports of the Bristol 
 Channel, in connection with another 
 battery erected on the Flat Holme, 
 and one on Lavernock Point. This 
 bold and conspicuous promontory, 
 with precipitous cliffs, is in a direct 
 line with the Steep Holme, another 
 outlier of the Mendip limestone. 
 The sandy beach extends without a 
 break to the embouchure of the Brue, 
 some 7 m. distant. 
 
 A delightful ramble may be had 
 on Brean Down, which can be reached 
 from Weston, by boat, when the 
 tide serves, — or by road through 
 Uphill and Bleadon, crossing the 
 river Axe at Hobb's Boat, — or by a 
 Iiew i-oad along the rly. Observe 
 
 the ancient earthworks across the 
 down, the beacon on the summit, 
 and the sites of several British hut- 
 circles. 
 
 Brean Ch., 2 m. further S., forms 
 a quaint group, with the gabled 
 stump of a tower. The churchyard 
 cross is nearly buried in the sand. 
 The northerly dip of the mountain 
 limestone may be observed in the 
 fractured end of Brean Down. 
 
 IRutton Ch., 1 J m. S.E. of Weston 
 Junction Stat., is a small but inte- 
 resting building, on a slight emi- 
 nence, possessing a sanctus bell-cot, a 
 stone pulpit, and groined belfry, with 
 a Jacobean monument to Nathaniel 
 Still, 1626, son of Bishop Still, and 
 his wife, some brasses to the Payne 
 family. Hutton Manor-house, an an- 
 cient building, modernised, with a 
 tower of defence, contains a 15th- 
 cent. hall, with arched roof and 
 panelled chimney-piece. Above Hut- 
 ton, S., rises the long lofty ridge of 
 Bleadon Hill, the scene, according 
 to Hearne, of a bloody contest with 
 the Danes. On the W. side are 
 some British earthworks. Bleadon 
 was the manor of Earl Godwin's 
 wife, Githa, who gave it to the sup- 
 port of the refectory of Winchester. 
 The Ch. on the S. side of the hill has 
 a good pinnacled tower, with a 
 good groined roof, struck by light- 
 ning in 1852. It has a low side- 
 window, a stone pulpit, and in the 
 S. porch a curious bas-relief of the 
 Blessed Virgin Mary and the Infant 
 Saviour. Two mutilated effigies lie 
 in the churchyard. There is a very 
 pretty cross in the churchyard.] 
 
 [The Steep Holme and Flat Holme 
 (Holm, Scandinavian for island), 
 rocky islets off this coast, are objects 
 well known to all who navigate the 
 Bristol Channel, as they stand di- 
 rectly in the course of vessels, and 
 the latter shows a light for their guid- 
 ance. They are both outlying masses 
 of the mountain limestone of the 
 Mendip range, on the axis of the 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Brent Knoll, 
 
 377 
 
 chain prolonged under the sea, the one 
 being connected with Crook's Peak 
 by the links of Brean Down, Uphill, 
 and Bleadon Hill; the other with 
 Banwell Hill by those of Bearn Back 
 and Worle Hill. 
 
 The Steep Holme rises 400 ft. from 
 the sea. It is (or was) known to 
 botanists as the habitat of the single 
 pxony. It is a rock about 1^ m. 
 round, very difficult of access. Gil- 
 das took refuge here, and wrote his 
 treatise * De Excidio Britannise," and 
 it afforded an asylum to the Danes 
 after the defeat at Watchet, and to 
 Harold's mother after the battle of 
 Hastings. A ruined wall marks the 
 site of a priory founded by one of 
 the Lords Berkeley in the 14th cent. 
 
 The Flat Holme, m. round, 
 with good bathing, is much visited 
 in summer by excursion steamers.] 
 
 Starting again, we dash through a 
 projecting tongue of the Mendips by 
 the deep Uphill cutting ^ which displays 
 an excellent section of the strata, in- 
 cluding some igneous rocks. We then 
 enter the alluvial fiats, or levels, of N. 
 Somerset, a district of about 200 sq. 
 m., watered by Drayton's 
 
 " battening, marshy Brent," 
 
 remarkable for fertility, extending 
 ing from Wells to Bridgwater, and 
 well known for affording some of the 
 most valuable grazing land in Eng- 
 land. The Pawlet Hams on the 
 Parrett, between Bridgwater and the 
 sea, are the richest grazing grounds 
 in the county; let sometimes for 
 as much as 51. or 61. an acre. All 
 these levels are banked from the 
 sea, the coast being higher than the 
 marsh, so that the drainage is in- 
 land, and are intersected in every di- 
 rection by dykes, or rliines^ for the 
 drainage, and in many places contain 
 extensive beds of peat, often 30 ft. 
 deep, enclosing the horns of the red 
 deer, and the blackened trunks and 
 branches of oak-trees (locally ' * un- 
 derground oal^ Around this great 
 
 plain of 200 sq. m. are seen what 
 may have been ancient coast lines 
 with hills projecting as promon- 
 tories, or standing detached like 
 islands. These break the monotony 
 of the level surface ; but intrinsi- 
 cally the district has a certain claim 
 to attention. To a farmer the mere 
 ground that will fatten a bullock 
 on every acre will be probably as 
 attractive as any hillside hung with 
 wood or scarred by unprofitable rocks, 
 but the botanist may also revel among 
 its rare and dainty flowers — such as 
 the Osmund royal or King Fern, 
 the andromeda, the hog myrtle, the 
 asphodel, and the sundeio ; the ento- 
 mologist will find many uncommon 
 insects, and the antiquary be re- 
 warded for seeking out its churches 
 and manor-houses. In Tudor and 
 Stuart times the marsh had its "aris- 
 tocracy," wealthy graziers, whose 
 acres were as numerous as their 
 broad pieces, who farmed their own 
 estates, and lived in the fine old 
 English style in the midst of their 
 herds. Those were the genial days 
 when 
 
 " Muster Guy was a gentleman 
 0' Huntspill, well knawn 
 As a grazier, a hirch un 
 Wi' lands o' his awn ;" 
 
 " but mangold-wurzel and the swede 
 turnip," says Mr. Acland, have in- 
 troduced great changes, and the race 
 no longer exists in its glory." The 
 cone of Brent Knoll is seen on the 1. 
 rising 457 ft. above the marshes. It is 
 composed of lias, with a cap of inferior 
 oolite ; the cap being pretty well de- 
 fined by the earthworks of an ancient 
 camp, in which Roman coins and 
 other relics have been found. There 
 is a tradition that King Alfred here 
 defended himself against the Danes, 
 and the name of JBattleborough, at 
 the foot of the hill, is evidence of 
 some fight having occurred here. 
 The Romans took possession of the 
 country between the Avon and the 
 Parrett in the reign of the Emperor 
 Claudius, 
 
378 Boute 21. — Lympsham — Burnham. Somersetshire. 
 
 3 m. from Weston Junction 1. is 
 Lympsliam Ch., with its leaning tower 
 of the ordinary type of Somersetshire 
 steeples. The parapet belongs to a 
 17th-cent. restoration, perhaps after 
 the great storm of 1632 ; the date 
 1633 appears on the S. window. The 
 N. aisle has a rich panelled roof. 
 The fanciful Bectory stands close 
 by. Further on, we pass on the 
 same side of the rly.. 
 
 East Brent to the IST. and South 
 Brent to the W. of Brent Kjioll, both 
 with interesting churches. That of 
 East Brent is wholly Perp., with a 
 tower surmounted by a wooden spire, 
 decorated with rudish niches con- 
 taining a curious series of roughly 
 worked statues, representing the 
 Blessed Virgin and Infant Saviour, 
 the Divine Father holding the cru- 
 cifix, and our Lord in Majesty. In 
 the S. aisle is the efl&gy of an eccle- 
 siastic. The windows contain some 
 ancient stained glass, which deserves 
 notice. The chancel is modern. 
 There is a mutilated churchyard 
 cross. The Ch, of South Brent is 
 likewise wholly Perp., with the ex- 
 ception of a Trans. S. doorway, and 
 a .Dec. S. transeptal chapel. The 
 nave is long, and has a good arcade 
 to the ]Sr. There is a remarkable 
 number of fine bench ends, with 
 grotesque carvings and poppy heads. 
 A curious Jacobean monument com- 
 memorates *'Jonn Somerset gent." 
 and his two wives. The tower is 
 good, and has pinnacles and a pierced 
 parapet. Both the Brents belonged 
 formerly to the abbots of Glaston- 
 bury, who had here a manor-house 
 at E. Brent, taken down in 1708. 
 
 [The old Lady Well has recently 
 been cleared, and another fine spring 
 developed by Archdeacon Denison, 
 Vicar of East Brent, who has erected 
 reservoirs for supplying the village 
 with pure water from the base of 
 the knoll. During the excavations 
 remains of the old abbot's mill were 
 brought to light.] 
 
 Crooked Lane leads from this vil- 
 
 lage to the lighthouse near Burn- 
 ham. 
 
 145i m. Highhridge Stat., the junc- 
 tion for the Somerset and Dorset Ely. 
 (Rte. 20) ; where also a branch di- 
 verges to the watering-place of Burn- 
 ham, li m. rt. Close to the ptcJ;. 1. 
 is a new church, conspicuous ior its 
 spire and roof, banded with red and 
 black tile. 
 
 \_Burnliam {Inns : Clarence Hotel ; 
 Reed's Arms, good new hotel, close 
 to the station. Pop. 2550.) is much 
 frequented by the inhabitants of 
 Bridgwater and Bristol. It has a 
 fine sandy beach ; but the sea retires 
 from it 4 m. at low water. J m. to 
 the N. is the lighthouse to show the 
 entrance of the River Parrett; and 
 close to the beach are 2 mineral 
 springs, near each other, the one 
 saline, the other sulphurous. Burn- 
 ham Ch. is chiefly remarkable for a 
 very stately white marble ciltarpiece, 
 designed by Inigo Jones for White- 
 hall Chapel, erected by Sir Chr. Wren 
 in Westminster Abbey, removed for 
 the coronation of George IV., and 
 given by Bishop King, of Rochester, 
 who was then canon of Westminster, 
 to this parish, of which he was vicar. 
 It is many sizes too large for the 
 ch., of which it obliterates the E. 
 window. There is a long nave and 
 chancel, with panelled waggon-roof. 
 
 Continuing our route, we keep in 
 view the Mendips, and pass Huntspill, 
 perhaps named from "Hun," the 
 leader of the men of Somerset, killed 
 in the battle of Ellandun, a.d. 823. 
 Huntspill Ch. was destroyed by fire 
 immediately after restoration, Dec. 
 9, 1878, and reopened after a second 
 restoration, April 8, 1880. Little 
 that is old is left, except the pillars 
 and arches reddened by fire. The 
 chancel stalls and all the seats are 
 of carved oak. The font, designed 
 by Sir E. Beckett, is the gift of him- 
 self and Lady Beckett. The altar 
 candlesticks were brought from the 
 chapel of Balliol College, the patrons 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Bridgwater. 
 
 379 
 
 of the living. Passing the isolated 
 knoll of Paivlet, vt., and the ridge of 
 Poldon Hill, 1., and traversing Horsey 
 Slime, a pasture-land remarkable for 
 its richness, we enter the station of 
 
 151 J m. Bridgwater, on the 
 outskirts of the town. {Inns : Royal 
 Clarence Hotel ; Railway Hotel ; 
 Globe, by the bridge. Pop. 12,024.) 
 Bridgwater is seated on the Ijanks 
 of the Parrett, 6 m. in a direct line 
 from the sea, and 12 m. by the 
 course of the river, on the border 
 of a marshy plain which stretches 
 from the Mendip to the Quantock 
 hills. It is an ancient town. It 
 derives its name — a corruption of 
 Brugie of Walter, erroneously Latin- 
 ised in documents of the 15th and 
 16th cents, into * Aquse Pons' — from 
 Walter of Douai, a Norman baron, 
 on whom the manor, then called 
 Brugie, was bestowed by the Con- 
 queror. It is a busy town chiefly 
 of red-brick houses, connected by 
 an iron bridge with a suburb called 
 Eastover, burnt by Fairfax in 1645. 
 The castle N. of the bridge on the 
 banks of the Parrett was built 
 in John's time, 1201, by Walter 
 de Briwere, who also commenced 
 the bridge of three arches, and the 
 haven which were finished temp. 
 Edw. I. by Sir Thomas Trivet, one 
 of the king's justices. The earliest 
 charter, confirming those of Walter 
 de Briwere, is one of Edward I. In 
 the reign of Edw. IV. the town had 
 lost much of its trade from neglect 
 of the needful repairs of the port. 
 
 At the time of the Great Rebel- 
 lion, the castle, which mounted 40 
 guns, and the town were held for 
 the king by Col. Wyndham, but were 
 taken July 23, 1645, by Fairfax. 
 Fairfax, with his army, of which he 
 was the nominal general, but Crom- 
 well the real head, sat down before 
 the town after the battle of Lang- 
 port, July 11, 1645. The storm- 
 ing commenced Monday, July 21st, 
 after sermons by Hugh Peters on the 
 
 day before, who did his work ''tam 
 Marte quam Mercurio " {Sprigge), and 
 the suburb of Eastover was taken, 
 and, being fired by red-hot shot from 
 the garrison, was burnt to the ground. 
 The old town was surrendered on 
 the 23rd, about 1000 ofiicers and 
 soldiers, besides gentlemen and ma- 
 lignant clergy, marched out as pri- 
 soners. There were also taken jewels, 
 plate, and goods to the value, it is 
 said, of £100,000, which had been 
 sent to the castle, supposed to be 
 impregnable^ from all parts of the 
 neighbourhood. These were sold in 
 London, giving 5s. to each soldier. 
 After the surrender the town was 
 fired, and great part of it burnt. 
 This exploit crowned Fairfax's suc- 
 cesses in the West, giving the Par- 
 liament a chain of garrisons from 
 the Bristol to the English Channel, 
 and cutting off all communication 
 between the royalist forces in the 
 West and the rest of England. The 
 news of the fall of Bridgwater was a 
 heavy one to Charles I., who had 
 been repeatedly assured that the 
 place was absolutely impregnable. 
 He refused to listen to any explana- 
 tions, and regarded its surrender, 
 after less than a week's siege, an 
 utterly inexcusable act. The loss of 
 so important a garrison broke the 
 spirits of the royalist party, and 
 made all despair. 
 
 The Duke of Monmouth was pro- 
 claimed king by the mayor and cor- 
 poration in their robes of ofiice at 
 the High Cross, June 21, 1685. He 
 returned thither, July 2, " in cir- 
 cumstances far less cheering than 
 those in which he had marched 
 thence 10 days before. At one 
 moment he thought of fortifying 
 the town, and hundreds of labourers 
 were summoned to dig trenches and 
 throw up mounds." — Macaulay. 
 Monmouth had his quarters at the 
 castle, which he left for the fatal field 
 of Sedgemoor, 3 m. E., by what is still 
 called War Lane, Sunday, July 6. 
 
 The Church of St, Mary Magda- 
 
380 
 
 Route 21. — Bndgivater. Somersetsliire. 
 
 Jene, a large uninteresting structure 
 of red stone, is principally remark- 
 able for its slender spire, which rises 
 to a height of 174 ft. from the 
 ground. The spire has been once 
 struck by lightning. The greater 
 part of the ch. appears to have been 
 altered or rebuilt about 1420 ; the 
 N. porch, and some of the windows 
 of the nave being older, and dating 
 probably between 1327-77. The N. 
 porch is a fine specimen of the Geo- 
 metrical style. The very curious 
 squints or hagioscopes in this porch 
 once commanding a view of the high 
 altar were shamelessly destroyed 
 during an unhappy restoration in 
 1851, when many ancient features 
 perished, and a Dec. clerestory was 
 absurdly erected over Perp. arcades. 
 The roof and screens are of black 
 oak. The altarpiece, a Descent from 
 the Cross, is said to have been taken 
 as a prize from a Spanish privateer, 
 and presented to the ch. by the 
 Hon. Anne Pawlet (so called from 
 his godmother. Queen Anne), M.P. 
 for the borough. It is a good pic- 
 ture of the Bolognese school, but its 
 painter is uncertain. The chancel 
 contains an Elizabethan monument 
 to Sir Francis Kingsmill, 1620 ; the 
 exterior wall of the N. transept an 
 arched recess with effigies ; and the 
 churchyard the tomb of Oldmixon, 
 one of the heroes of the ' Dunciad, ' 
 d. 1742, whose dull, unlearned his- 
 torical works display a strong spirit 
 of Whig partisanship, for which he 
 was rewarded with the coUectorship 
 of customs at this port. His criti- 
 cism was chiefly conspicuous for 
 unscrupulous abuse of Pope and 
 other eminent men of his day. 
 
 The beautiful modern Church of St. 
 John is in the suburb of Eastover, 
 and was built in 1846 by the liev. 
 J. M. Capes, at a cost of 10,000Z. In 
 the churchyard a stone marks the 
 burial-place of 88 persons who died 
 of cholera in 1849. This ch. occu- 
 pies the site of a Hospital of St. John, 
 foupded for the support of a com- 
 
 munity of Augustine monks, and for 
 the entertainment of pilgrims, by the 
 early patrons of Bridgwater, the fa- 
 mily of Br i were. 
 
 The Toivn Sail is a classical struc- 
 ture, erected 1865. It contains 
 copies of Winterhalter's portraits of 
 the Queen and the Prince Consort, 
 and other pictures. In the Grand 
 Jury Eoom, are 3 pieces of tapestry 
 which were formerly at Enmore 
 Castle, and were purchased at the 
 sale of Lord Egmont's property. 
 Behind stands a large Music Hall, 
 erected as a memorial of the Prince 
 Consort. 
 
 The Corn Exchange is a handsome 
 and commodious building, opened 
 1875. 
 
 King Square, once the Castle Baily, 
 behind the Clarence Hotel, was the 
 site of Bridgwater Castle, built by 
 William de Briwere, 1202, but long 
 since destroyed, with the exception 
 of the Water Gate, on the Western 
 quay, and some other fragments 
 forming the wall of a stable in Castle 
 Street, and the bonded cellars at 
 the custom-house. Castle Field is 
 memorable as the spot on which 
 Monmouth encamped before the fatal 
 fight of Sedgemoor. 
 
 An Elizabethan house in Mill 
 Street, now Blake Street, containing 
 within some well-preserved remnants 
 of the original mansion, was tlie 
 birthplace of the gallant Admiral 
 Blahe, the Republican commander, 
 and successful opponent of Van 
 Tromp. His father was a merchant, 
 and his mother the coheiress of a 
 knightly family. He was born in 
 1599, but was 50 years of age before 
 he commenced his naval career. 
 
 An arched doorway in Silver Street, 
 rt. , is supposed to have belonged to a 
 Monastery of Grey Friars, founded 
 1230 by the 2nd William de Briwere. 
 
 The Bath-hrich Works are by the 
 river-side, about J m. above and ^ 
 m. below the bridge ; this town 
 being the only place in the world 
 where these articles are made. They 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Bridgicater — Sedgemoor. 381 
 
 are formed of a peculiar mixture of 
 clay and sand which the flood and 
 ebb tides deposit in turn at the above- 
 named points. The sediment having 
 been removed from the river is con- 
 solidated by drying, and cut into ob- 
 long masses, well known as Bath 
 bricks, this name being probably 
 given them from Bath having been 
 the place of deposit where the bricks 
 were stored, and from which they 
 made their way over the kingdom. 
 [Stilton cheese is a similar example 
 of an article of commerce taking its 
 name from the place where it was on 
 sale, though not manufactured there.] 
 The business gives employment to a 
 great number of persons, 8,000,000 
 bricks, valued from 12,000Z. to 
 13,000Z., being made every year. 
 
 Farther down the river is a Pottery 
 for coarse ware, formerly the Glass- 
 house, in which French prisoners 
 were confined ; and above the bridge 
 an Iron Foundry, belonging to the 
 Bristol and Exeter Rly. There are 
 also large breweries, cement and 
 plaster-of- Paris works. The foreign 
 trade is chiefly with America and 
 Russia. 
 
 The Bore, or Eager, the tidal wave 
 which rushes up the Parrett on the 
 flood of spring tides, is a phenome- 
 non common to the Severn and other 
 tidal rivers, where the rise and fall is 
 very considerable, and the channel 
 funnel-shaped. These causes produce 
 an immediate rise of a large body of 
 water, which hurries onward as an 
 upright wave, its velocity allowing 
 no time for the gradual elevation of 
 the surface by transmitted pressure. 
 After a gale from the W., the Bore 
 is often 9 ft. in height, but it is 
 usually 5 or 6 ft., the entire flow of 
 the spring tide being 36 ft. Fairfax 
 very narrowly escaped being carried 
 away by this tidal wave, July 14, 1 645. 
 
 [^Chilton Prim-y, a small modern 
 building, furnished as a museum, 
 5 J m. on the road to Glastonbury, 
 stands on Cock Hill, a narrow ridge 
 along which the road runs, com- 
 
 manding on each side the most ex- 
 tensive and interesting views ; 1. 
 the entire range of the Mendips, 
 together with Brent Knoll, is seen 
 across the intervening fen, called 
 the Marsh ; rt. the scarped heights 
 about Langport, the Blackdown and 
 Quantock Hills, the Bridgwater Le- 
 vels, and Bridgwater itself with its 
 needle-like spire. 
 
 A pleasant walk of IJ m. through 
 the meadows leads to Wemhdon, 
 Wembdon Ch, was burnt down in 
 1868, and rebuilt. There is a much- 
 dilapidated churchyard cross, where 
 there is a Holy Well, dedicated to 
 St. John, arched over with stone, 
 mentioned as a miraculous spring in 
 a mandate from Bp. Beckington, 1464. 
 Bower Farm, in the parish of Bur- 
 leigh, 1 f m. S. W., standing in the midst 
 of fields, is an interesting old manor- 
 house on a small scale, with 2 towers 
 and a fine old window, and the re- 
 mains of a moat. It was once the 
 residence of the Dukes of Somerset. 
 Durleigh Ch. is small and plain, 
 without aisles. The toAver is gabled. 
 
 A beautiful drive ma}^ be taken 
 through Spaxton and up Cocker cornhe, 
 a romantic and well-wooded ravine, 
 to the top of the Quantocks, whence 
 the traveller can descend to Crow- 
 combe (Rte. 32), or return to Bridg- 
 water through Nether" Stowey {ibid.)."] 
 
 [Sedgemoor, 3 m. E., the scene of 
 the defeat of the Duke of Monmouth 
 by the King's forces under the Earl 
 of Feversham, Monday, July 6, 1685, 
 *Hhe last fight deserving the name 
 of a battle that has been fought on 
 English ground" (Macaulay), is a 
 long narrow tract of land S. of Pol - 
 den Hill, and bounded by the hills 
 of Somerton and High Ham, and 
 divided from the valley of the Par- 
 rett by the rising ground of Aller, 
 Middlezoy, and Othery. The battle 
 was fought on the extreme W. edge 
 of the morass, between Bridgwater 
 and Weston Zoyland. It is intersected 
 by dykes, especially the Bussex Rhine , 
 which cut off Monmouth from the 
 
382 Boute 21. — Sedgemoor—Chedzoy. Somersetshire. 
 
 army he hoped to surprise, and con- 
 tributed not a little to the discomfi- 
 ture of Monmouth's untrained troops, 
 whose guide missed his way in the fog 
 and gloom. The scene of the battle 
 was between Weston Zoyland, Ched- 
 zoy, and Bridgwater. A mound S., 
 Chedzoy, near Brentfield Bridge, 
 marks the place of the interment of 
 the slain. Feversham had his head- 
 quarters at Weston Zoyland, where 
 the royal cavalry lay. The Wilts 
 militia were quartered at Middlezoy, 
 under the command of Pembroke. 
 On the open moor, not far from 
 Chedzoy, several battalions of regular 
 infantry were encamped. Mon- 
 mouth looked gloomily on them. 
 * I know those men/ said he ; * if 
 I had but them, all would go well/ " 
 The royal troops, when apprised of 
 the advance of the rebels, fired such 
 a volley as sent the horse flying in 
 all directions. The infantry, though 
 deserted by their leader, who had 
 mounted and rode from the field, 
 made a gallant stand, till their am- 
 munition was exhausted, and the royal 
 artillery (horsed in part by the coach 
 horses of Bp. Mew, of Winchester) 
 then came up, and the rout was 
 in a few minutes complete ; 3000 
 of the rebels lying dead upon the 
 moor. Before evening 500 prisoners 
 had been crowded into the ch. of 
 Weston Zoyland, whose fine Perp. 
 tower, 105 ft. in altitude, is a con- 
 spicuous object from all sides. On 
 the fatal field Feversham commenced 
 those cruel executions which were 
 afterwards so ably carried on by the 
 bloody Jeffreys and Kirke. About 20 
 were executed after the battle, and 
 the moor between Weston and Bridg- 
 water was marked by a long range 
 of gibbets. A prisoner being pointed 
 out to him as a remarkably swift 
 runner, the Earl induced him, by 
 a promise of his life, to show him 
 an instance of his agility. A halter 
 was fastened round his neck, and 
 attached at the other end to a horse, 
 when the rider starting away on the 
 
 gallop, the runner kept even with 
 him for the distance of half a mile 
 along the stream called Sussex Rhine 
 to Brentsfield Bridge^ This feat hav- 
 ing been performed, the general, in 
 defiance of his compact, gave an 
 order that the poor man should be 
 hung with his fellows. But another 
 prisoner, if we are to believe the story, 
 was more fortunate. He leaped for 
 his life ; and at the third bound 
 escaped into an adjoining wood. 
 His name was Swayne, and Swayne's 
 Jumps, marked by 3 stones, are to 
 this day pointed out in Loxley Wood 
 on the Shapwick estate. 
 
 Weston Zoyland Ch., 4 m. S.E., 
 has a fine and lofty Perp. tower, which 
 should be ascended by those who 
 desire to make themselves masters of 
 the scene of the battle of Sedgemoor 
 (at first called "the battle of Wes- 
 ton"). The nave is of unusual length. 
 The clerestory is full of beauty and 
 grace. On the S. wall is the mono- 
 gram of Eichard Beere, last abbot 
 but one of Glastonbury, who recast 
 and| added to the church. There is 
 a well-preserved recumbent efifigy of 
 a priest. 
 
 Chedzoy Ch., 3 m. E., has a fine 
 tower, but without sufficient archi- 
 tectural connection between its 
 separate stages. The front bears the 
 initials of Abbot Beere. The ar- 
 cading within, of the 13th cent., is 
 very fine, but much mutilated. The 
 windows are good. There are some 
 fine bench-ends of Queen Mary's 
 time. One bears a crowned M. 
 within a garter, with the date 1559. 
 The altar-cloth is made from a 
 splendid embroidered cope, dis- 
 covered a few years since beneath 
 the pulpit, where it had been thrust 
 away some 3 centuries since. There 
 is also a fine military brass, c. 1490. 
 On a sandstone in one of the southern 
 buttresses, it is said, the axes were 
 sharpened for the battle of Sedge- 
 moor, and from the toAver the ap- 
 proach of the royal troops was dis- 
 covered through a telescope preserved 
 
Somersetshire. Route 21. — Middlezoy — Enmore Castle, 383 
 
 in the Taunton Museum. In a 
 garden near the church is a cross, 
 restored by W. Stradling, 1818. Dr. 
 Raleigh, nephew of Sir Walter E., 
 Dean of Wells, was rector of Ched- 
 zoy. The lamentable sufferings 
 caused by his loyalty, and his murder 
 in his own residence at Wells, are 
 fully detailed in Walker's ' Sufferings 
 of the Clergy.' 
 
 Middlezoy, 6 m. S.E., on the Parrett, 
 has a Ch. with a plain, massive tower, 
 oblong in plan, and Dec. chancel 
 with good windows. A brass com- 
 memorates a French chevalier, Louis 
 de Misteres, who, after serving 18 
 years in the British army '^with 
 great courage and gallantry," fell at 
 the battle of . Sedgemoor, having 
 ** behaved himself with all y® courage 
 imaginable against the king's enemies 
 commanded by y® rebel Duke of 
 Monmouth." Fairfax and Cromwell 
 with their forces were at Middlezoy, 
 July 10-12, 1645, after the battle of 
 Langport, and before the storming 
 of Bridgwater. 
 
 3 m. S.W. is North Petherton, which 
 has a fine Perp. ch. of true Somerset- 
 shire type, and remarkable for one 
 of the most ornate towers of the 
 same class as Huish, Dundry, &c. 
 There is a clerestory, and it has 
 transeptal chapels and large porches; 
 the whole very well finished. The 
 windows are large, and the chancel- 
 roof very good. Under the sill of 
 the E. window is an original vestry, 
 in which are preserved some monu- 
 mental brasses. There is a 15th-cent. 
 cross to the E. of the N. porch on a 
 quatrefoiled octagonal base.] 
 
 [^Halswell House (Col. Tynte), re- 
 built 1689, by Sir Halswell Tynte, 4 
 m. W. of Bridgwater, commands a 
 splendid prospect of wooded hill and 
 vale, with views over the sea and 
 to blue ranges in the distance. A 
 stream runs through the valley, here 
 rippling over stones, there tumbling 
 in a cascade ; and charming rides 
 traverse the woods and climb the 
 hills to commanding points of view, 
 
 occupied by grottoes and temples ; 
 one called the Botunda, with Ionic 
 portico, another Bohin Hood's Temple, 
 and a third the Druid's Temple, 
 where the view is gloomy and con- 
 fined, the water winding silently 
 along. Adjoining the estate is the 
 hamlet of Goathurst, with an an- 
 cient church containing the mon- 
 uments of the Hals wells and of 
 the Tyntes. ''Of the surname of 
 this latter family, tradition," says 
 Burke, *'has handed down the fol- 
 lowing derivation. In 1192, at the 
 celebrated battle of Ascalon, a young 
 knight of the noble house of Arun- 
 del, clad all in white, with his horse's 
 housings of the same colour, so gal- 
 lantly distinguished himself, that 
 Richard Coeur - de - Lion remarked 
 publicly, after the victory, that the 
 maiden knight had borne himself as 
 a lion, and done deeds equal to those 
 of 6 crusaders ; whereupon he con- 
 ferred on him, for arms, a lion arg. 
 on a field gules, between 6 crosslets 
 of the first, and for motto, ' Tinctus 
 cruore Saraceno.' " 
 
 Enmore Castle, rt. of the road, 
 and opposite to Halswell, built by 
 John 2nd Earl of Egmont, c. 17.50, 
 now the property of T. Palfrey 
 Broadmead, Esq., is a curiously con- 
 structed and very ugly house, with 
 semicircular bastions and drawbridge 
 on one front and colonnades on the 
 other. The castle has been dis- 
 mantled by the present owner, who 
 has erected the present house of 
 Enmore Park, Adjoining it is the 
 Ch., with a Norm, doorway, an E. E. 
 chancel, and a fine western tower. 
 The pinnacled crown of the staircase - 
 turret deserves notice. The Ch. 
 has been rebuilt, and in the church- 
 yard old yew-trees and the shaft and 
 steps of an ancient cross. The estate 
 is situated at the foot of the Quan- 
 tock Hills. On the S.W. slope of 
 the hill stands Cothelstone, 9 m, on 
 the road over Quantock to Taunton, 
 once the manor-house of the Stawels, 
 I but now a farmhouse (see post). 
 
384 
 
 Boute 21. — Taunton. Somersetsliire. 
 
 5 m. of deeply sunken lanes from 
 Bridgwater bring us to the village 
 of Charlincli, the seat of the once 
 notorious Agapemone, "the abode 
 of love," founded by ^'Brother 
 Prince," and the seat of his dupes, 
 who at one time numbered nearly 
 200, of whom 5 were clergymen. 
 Most were possessed of property 
 which they made over to Prince, 
 and lived in the Agapemone, having 
 all things in common. Walls, from 
 12 to 15 ft. high, enclose about 5 
 acres, occupying one of the loveliest 
 spots in the S. of England, looking in 
 one direction across a narrow valley 
 to the Bristol Channel, and in the 
 other to the Quantocks. Over the 
 gateway is a tower on which 
 waved a flag bearing a holy lamb 
 when Brother Prince was at home. 
 The establishment consisted of a 
 chapel with 2 groups of rose-clad 
 cottages standing in a beautiful 
 flower - garden, with hothouses 
 filled with orchids and other rare 
 flowers, and a conservatory where 
 cages of singing birds hung from 
 orange-trees, under which stood a 
 piano and couches. The chapel, 
 70 ft. by 30 ft., was devoid of any 
 religious furniture. The chancel 
 was covered, with a blue Turkey 
 carpet, and contained blue velvet arm- 
 chairs and sofas and other drawing- 
 room furniture ; the place of the 
 altar occupied by a billiard-table, 
 and musical instruments scattered 
 about. Everything that can charm 
 the senses is sedulously cared for, 
 and games — hockey, cricket, and foot- 
 ball — are engaged in, especially on 
 Sundays, with much zeal." In the 
 flourishing state of his fortunes. 
 Brother Prince appeared to the Gen- 
 tiles in almost royal state, driving 
 out in a carriage-and-four, with 
 postilions and outriders, attended 
 by bloodhounds ; but defections and 
 lawsuits have diminished their re- 
 sources, and they have been reduced 
 to a single horse vehicle, the blood- 
 hounds and outriders have disap- 
 
 peared, and the delusion is dying 
 out.— {MacmiUarCs Mag., Oct. 1867.) 
 
 Spaxton Ch., 5 m., contains some 
 very interesting well-carved bench- 
 ends, and an ancient and curious 
 alms chest. There is a beautiful 
 canopied cross, with the Holy Rood 
 and other sculptures in the head, of 
 the 14th cent. An old Court House 
 adjoins the ch. ; and at Gothelney, in 
 the parish of Charlinch, is a mediaeval 
 manor-house, with tower, &c., once 
 the residence of the Bourne family.] 
 
 Continuing our route, the rly. pur- 
 sues its course along the skirts of a 
 hilly country, in company with the 
 river Tone and the Great Western 
 Canal, to 
 
 157 J m. Darsfon Stat., from which 
 a line branches off" on the 1. to Yeovil, 
 17 m. (Rte. 27). Durst on Ch. is small 
 and has good Dec. windows. 
 
 163 m. Taunton Stat., on the N. 
 side of the town (Inns: London Hotel, 
 Castle Hotel — good, Clarke's Hotel, 
 Kailway Hotel, George ; Pop. of 
 Parly, borough, 16,611). Taunton 
 is seated on a rising ground above 
 the river Tone, from which it 
 derives its name, and in a rich and 
 picturesque country — its famous vale 
 of Taunton Dean being bounded by 
 the wild ranges of the Quantock and 
 Blackdown hills. It is the county 
 town of W. Somerset, now, as in 
 Clarendon's time, ''the fairest, 
 largest, and richest town in Somerset- 
 shire," and has long been celebrated 
 for its healthy position, sunny aspect, 
 broad streets, respectable houses, and 
 beautiful parish churches. At the 
 present day its chief points of inte- 
 rest are its churches and the remains 
 of the Castle, and its museum. 
 
 Taunton is a town of high anti* 
 quity. The discovery of bronze 
 celts, knives, cloak-pins, and other 
 examples of prehistoric art at the 
 Union Workhouse, and at Sherford, 
 proves the existence of a British 
 settlement here. The coins which 
 
Somersetshire. ■ Boute 21. — Taunton; History. 
 
 385 
 
 have been found in it sanction a 
 belief that it was a Eoman station, 
 and there is no doubt that in Saxon 
 times it became a place of impor- 
 tance. Taunton was founded by 
 Ina, King of the West Saxons, be- 
 tween 710 and 722 as a border for- 
 tress to defend his new conquests 
 from the West Welsh. His castle 
 must have been a mere earthwork 
 defended by stockades and ditches, 
 and perhaps some masonry. This 
 fortress was seized by the rebel 
 Albriht, and taken and dismantled 
 by Ina's queen, Ethelburga. A char- 
 ter in the name of Ethel ward, Ina's 
 successor, 737, granting Taunton 
 to the see of A¥inton, is considered 
 spurious ; but there is no doubt 
 that in 904 it belonged to that 
 bishoprick, with which it continued 
 connected for many centuries. The 
 castle was built by Bp. Giffard, temp. 
 Henry I. Per kin Warbeck on his 
 advance from Cornwall seized the 
 town and castle in Sept. 1497, but 
 he quickly evacuated them on the 
 approach of the troops of Henry 
 VII. He fled for sanctuary at Beau- 
 lieu, and having given himself up 
 to the king's officers, was brought 
 back a prisoner to Henry VIL, who 
 had reached Taunton, Oct. 4. It was 
 taken and retaken by the contend- 
 ing parties in the Civil Wars, and 
 in 1645 the castle was twice defended 
 with heroic valour by Blake, after- 
 wards the renowned Admiral of the 
 Commonwealth. Blake's defence of 
 Taunton was one of the most spirited 
 actions which occurred during the 
 Rebellion. Pressed by an army of 
 10,000 men, who spared no effort to 
 gain the place, he scouted all idea of 
 surrender, even after his ammunition 
 was spent, and his provisions so dimi- 
 nished that, according to the local 
 tradition, told also at Nunney Castle, 
 and other besieged strongholds in 
 the county, there was but one hog 
 left in the town, which half-starved 
 animal was whipped round the walls, 
 and made to cry in different places, 
 IWilts, .Dorset, #c., 1882.] 
 
 to deceive the besiegers into a belief 
 that fresh supplies had been thrown 
 in. Blake declared that he would eat 
 his boots before he yielded, and con- 
 tinued to resist after a breach had 
 been made, and the enemy had actu- 
 ally gained possession of a part of the 
 town. Whole streets were burnt 
 down by the mortars and grenades of 
 the cavaliers. Food became so scarce 
 that the resolute governor announced 
 his intention of putting the garrison 
 on rations of horseflesh. But the spirit 
 of the town had never been subdued 
 either by fire or hunger." — Macaulay, 
 The first siege was raised May 11, 
 simply on the intelligence of the ap- 
 proach of Fairfax. In June 1685, the 
 unfortunate Duke of Monmouth was 
 here welcomed with transports of joy 
 and affection. Damsels of the best 
 families wove colours for the insur- 
 gents. A fiag, embroidered with em- 
 blems of royalty, was offered him by 
 a train of young girls. The lady who 
 headed the procession presented him 
 with a sword and small Bible. On the 
 morning of June 20 he was proclaimed 
 king in the market-place. At Taunton 
 he put forth his proclamations, set- 
 ting a price on the head of James II., 
 and commanding the House of Com- 
 mons to disperse as an illegal as- 
 sembly. After Monmouth's defeat 
 at Sedgemoor, Col. Kirke and his 
 lambs " were let loose on Taunton. 
 His memory is still preserved by the 
 name Tangier, of which place he had 
 been governor, borne by a district of 
 the town which had been the chief 
 quarters of his soldiers. Executions, 
 without the form of a trial, com- 
 menced. Kirke himself occupied a 
 timber house, still standing, at the 
 corner between the market-place and 
 High Street, formerly the White 
 Hart, the sign-post of which served 
 as a gallows. (The White Hart 
 Inn was a few years ago kept by 
 the Mannings, the notorious mur- 
 derers.) It was believed in London 
 that Kirke put 100 prisoners to 
 death in the week that followed the 
 2 c 
 
386 
 
 It oute 21, — Taunton; Churches. Somersetshire 
 
 battle. This irregular massacre was 
 soon followed by no less cruel, but 
 more judicial, acts of barbarity. 
 JeiBfreys' Bloody Assize" began. 
 (The judge's lodgings were till re- 
 cently pointed out in an old framed 
 house at the corner of High Street 
 and Fore Street, now demolished.) 
 On the judge's arrival, he declared 
 in his charge that it would not 
 be his fault if he did not depo- 
 pulate the place — a threat which he 
 did his best to carry out. In vain 
 did Bp. Ken write to the King to 
 implore mercy for his misguided 
 diocese, complaining that it was im- 
 possible to walk along the highways 
 without seeing some ghastly spec- 
 tacle, and that the whole air of 
 Somersetshire was tainted with death. 
 The judicial massacre went on un- 
 abated. Even the poor children, 
 who had presented the colours to 
 Monmouth, had to purchase their 
 pardon by bribes to the Queen's 
 maids of honour, who employed as 
 their agent, not the famous Wm. 
 Penn, as Lord Macaulay has errone- 
 ously maintained, bub one George 
 Penne, a leading dealer in this in- 
 famous traffic. At length, to the 
 relief of the inhabitants, the chief 
 justice proposed ''to jog home- 
 wards," having transported 385 per- 
 sons and hung 97. 
 
 The Ch. of St Mary Magdalen is 
 celebrated as one of the largest 
 and finest Perp. churches in Eng- 
 land, and for its magnificent tower, 
 which for beauty of proportions, ex- 
 cellence of workmanship, and elabo- 
 rate richness of decoration, combined 
 with lightness of effect, holds, if 
 not the very first place, a very 
 high rank among the splendid Perp. 
 towers for which Somersetshire is so 
 deservedly famous. It rises to a 
 height of 153 ft. in 4 stories, the 
 lowest containing a rich doorway, 
 with a holy water stoup on each 
 side, and a large 5-light window ; 
 each of the 3 upper stories lighted 
 with 2 windows, the belfry story 
 
 elaborately panelled, and crowned by 
 a very light pierced battlement with 
 openwork turrets risinginto crocketed 
 spires at the angles. It is hardly 
 possible to exaggerate the union of 
 grace and dignity in this glorious 
 tower. The whole having shown 
 evidence of dangerous insecurity, 
 was taken down to the ground 
 1858-62, and rebuilt as nearly as pos- 
 sible in facsimile at a cost of 8000Z., 
 the work being completed in 1862. 
 All the niches are filled with statues. 
 The ch. is entirely Perp. without, 
 with large windows. On the S. porch 
 is the date 1508. 
 
 On entering the ch., under the 
 fan-traceried vault of the tower, the 
 visitor will be much struck by the 
 magnificence and harmoniousness 
 both in design and colouring of the 
 interior, which underwent a very 
 munificent restoration, under the 
 auspices of its former vicar, Dr. 
 Cottle, in 1845. The roof is of 
 black oak richly decorated with 
 polychrome ; the clerestory windows 
 are divided by elaborately carved 
 niches; andthe whole nave is occupied 
 with well-designed oak seats accom- 
 modating 1400 worshippers. The 
 plan is unusual in having double 
 aisles on each side of the nave (other 
 examples of this arrangement are 
 Manchester Cathedral, St. Michael's, 
 Coventry, and Kendal Ch., West- 
 moreland). The oldest part of the 
 building is seen on the piers of the 
 chancel arch, which show traces of 
 early Norm. work. The next ch. erec- 
 ted was of E. E. character, c. 1270. 
 Of this building remain the row of 
 columns dividing the two N. aisles 
 and the 3 easternmost arches sup- 
 ported by them, the easternmost 
 arch of the N. nave arcade, and the 
 piers of both transepts. Late in the 
 15th cent, the nave was lengthened 
 by the 3 W. arches ; the chancel was 
 erected ; the roofs were framed ; the 
 tower built ; and the church as- 
 sumed its present form. The visitor 
 will notice the reredos, by Street, 
 
Somersetshire. Pioute 21. — Taunton ; Castle, 
 
 387 
 
 richly coloured and gilt ; the 
 new stone pulpit, decorated with 
 coloured marbles; a splendid niche 
 on a pier of the N. arcade, probably 
 once containing the statue of the 
 patron saint; the angels which oc- 
 cupy the place of capitals in the 
 Perp. work ; and the number and size 
 of the windows, and their stained 
 glass. In the N. aisle of the navo is 
 the coloured effigy, in the dress of 
 his time, of Robert Gray, the founder 
 of almshouses for *'ten poore aged 
 syngle women," in 1635, with a 
 curious epitaph, worth reading, 
 ending, — 
 
 " What he gave and how he gave it, 
 Ask the poor, and you shall have it." 
 
 There is a brass plate attached 
 to one of the pillars to Joseph 
 Alleine, the Nonconformist, once 
 minister of this church, with the in- 
 scription, ** Holocaustum et Deo et 
 vobis." 
 
 St. James's Ch. has a tower (re- 
 built 1870), which would be con- 
 sidered a very fine one were it not 
 for the superiority of its neighbour. 
 The ch. is long and low, and has no 
 chancel arch. It contains a good 
 font, with sculptures of the Cruci- 
 fixion and the 12 Apostles, and a 
 tablet to the late Col. Yea, killed at 
 the head of his troops in the attack 
 on the Redan, June 18, 1855, in the 
 Crimean war. A little beyond the 
 ch., on the opposite side of the 
 street, is a very picturesque group 
 of almshouses, with eaves of great 
 projection, supported on brackets. 
 
 St. John's, in Park Street (Sir 
 G. G. Scott, Arch.), is a beautiful 
 church, well worthy of a visit. It 
 was built at the expense of Rev. 
 F. J. Smith, the present pa,tron and 
 incumbent. It has a tall and well- 
 proportioned tower and spire. 
 
 At the N. side of St. James's Street 
 stands a part of the domestic build- 
 ings of the Priory, now used as a 
 barn and stables on the Priory Farm, 
 the only remnant of the Augustinian 
 
 Priory, founded 1127 by Wm.Giffard, 
 and augmented by his successor in 
 the see of Winchestei', Henry of 
 Blois, brother to King Stephen. The 
 gable end exhibits some windows of 
 E. Dec. date, and a solitary boss, on 
 which are carved 3 swords, con- 
 joined in point, the insignia of the 
 house of Paulet. These are not in 
 their original place, having been 
 inserted when the building was 
 used as a chapel for French prisoners. 
 The jambs still remaining show 
 that a gate-house was once situated 
 here. 
 
 Near the schools, opened in 1868, 
 in Church Square, adjoining St. 
 Mary's Church, have been built a 
 very pretty set of almshouses for 13 
 old men, founded by Richard Huish 
 in 1615. 
 
 The historic memories of Taunton 
 Castle, and the unusual interest of 
 its construction, did not avail to 
 preserve its buildings from a period 
 of dilapidation, decay, and neglect, 
 from which they have been happily 
 rescued by the Somerset Archaeo- 
 logical Society, by which body they 
 have been purchased and appro- 
 priated as their museum. The 
 Castle Green is entered by a fine 
 archway, the E. gateway of the 
 outer ward, now incorporated with 
 Clarke's Hotel. King Ina's strong- 
 hold (see ante) doubtless had more 
 than one successor before the reign 
 of Henry I,, when Bp. GifFard is re- 
 corded to have erected a castle here. 
 ^*In Taunton Castle," writes Mr. 
 G. T. Clark, 'Sve have a combina- 
 tion of earthworks dating from the 
 8th cent. ; walls and keep the work 
 of the early part of the 12th ; and 
 towers andgatehouses towards the end 
 of the 13th or early in the 14th cent. 
 Bishop Langton executed some addi- 
 tions in 1490, and placed his arms 
 outside the inner gatehouse, 1496. 
 Bishop Horne made some further 
 repairs here in 1557. On passing 
 through the lofty archway, where 
 the portcullis groove may be noticed, 
 2 c 2 
 
388 
 
 Boute 21. — Taunton; Buildings. Somersetshire. 
 
 we find ourselves on the Castle Green, 
 or outer ward, having on the right 
 the southern front of the inner ward, 
 terminating at each end in a drum 
 tower, of which only the western one 
 remains perfect. In the centre of 
 the front is the gatehouse of the 
 inner ward, a rectangular tower of 
 Edwardian date, with Bp. Langton's 
 Perp. additions. Over the portal is 
 an escutcheon of Henry VII. sup- 
 ported by a griffin and a wivern, and 
 that of the bishop with the date 
 1495, and the motto ^* Laus tibi 
 Christe. T. Langton, Winton." 
 Above are seen the holes for the 
 drawbridge chains. On entering the 
 inner ward we have at the N.W. 
 angle the Keep, a rectangular tower, 
 originally Norm, with Edwardian 
 additions. From the keep tower, 
 running eastward, the Hall forms the 
 northern side of the court. It was 
 recast by Bp. Horne in 1577 on the 
 site of the original Norm, hall of 
 the Castle. The external wall to the 
 N. still shows the flat pilaster but- 
 tresses of that period, and the weather- 
 mould of the roof, springing from a 
 much lower elevation but of a con- 
 siderably steeper pitch, may be seen 
 on the wall of the keep tower. It 
 was formerly used for the assizes, 
 and is a fine room, 150 ft. by 30 ft., 
 but modernised and spoilt. It has 
 been improved in appearance since 
 the Somerset Archaeological Society 
 have employed it as their place of 
 meetings, and for the reception of 
 their collections, but internally it 
 still presents but little air of anti- 
 quity. The castle was dismantled 
 at the Restoration, and the moat 
 filled up. The whole underwent a 
 well-intentioned but disastrous re- 
 pair at the end of the last centy. by 
 the munificence of Sir Benj. Hammet, 
 many years M.P. for Taunton. 
 
 The Town Hall and Market House. 
 built 1772, occupy a central posi- 
 tion in a large open triangular 
 market-place called the Parade. 
 From this point the main streets di- 
 
 verge, the High Street terminating 
 at an iron fence which encloses the 
 grounds of Wilton House, the seat of 
 the Kinglakes. 
 
 The Taunton Literary Institution 
 occupies an Ionic building on the W. 
 side of the Parade. In the large 
 room is arranged the Museum of the 
 Som. Archseol. and Nat. Hist. Soc. It 
 includes the Williams geological col- 
 lection, containing a store of palseo- 
 zoic fossils from W. Somerset, Devon, 
 and Cornwall ; the fossils of other 
 formations ; saurians from the lias 
 quarries at Street ; and the bones of 
 animals from the limestone caverns, 
 including those collected by Mr. W. 
 Beard, at Banwell. Here also are pre- 
 served tessellated pavements found 
 at East Coker and at Pitney ; the re- 
 liquary from Kewstoke Ch., supposed 
 to contain Becket's blood (see ante, 
 p. 374) ; a collection of rubbings from 
 brasses ; various mining implements 
 of the Romans, found in old shafts 
 on the Quantock Hills; the large 
 dish of Persian ware " set before 
 Lord Feversham when quartered in 
 the mansion of the Bridges at Weston 
 Zeyland, mentioned by Macaulay 
 {H. E. i. 604), and the telescope 
 with which the approach of the 
 king's troops were discovered from 
 the tower of Chedzoy Ch. ; and the 
 drawings, presented to the county 
 by the late Mr. Pigott, of the 
 English abbatial and collegiate seals 
 by Howlett, and of the Somerset- 
 shire churches, monastic and castel- 
 lated ruins, ancient and modern man- 
 sions, crosses, town-halls, &c., by the 
 Messrs. BucUer, 1827-47. The Corn 
 Market occupies a Grecian - Doric 
 building, N. of the Literary Insti- 
 tution. 
 
 The SMre Hall, in Upper High 
 Street, is a handsome edifice, in the 
 Perp. style (Moffat, Arch.). It was 
 opened for the transaction of assize 
 and county legal business in 1858. 
 The entrance-hall displays a series 
 of fine marble busts of Somerset- 
 shire worthies, including the cele- 
 
Somersetsliire. Boute 21. — Taunton ; Neighbourhood, 389 
 
 brated Admiral Blake; Locke, the 
 philosopher; Capt Speke, the African 
 discoverer; Pym; Bp. Ken; Dr. 
 Thomas Young, the investigator of 
 the laws of light, and decipherer of 
 hieroglyphics ; and Dr. Henry Byam, 
 the Somersetshire loyalist ; Lord 
 Taunton; Charles Summers, the 
 sculptor, b. at Charlton, 1827, d. 
 1878, — erected chiefly through the 
 exertions of R. A. Kinglake, Esq. 
 
 The High Cross was re-erected 
 1867, at the expense of Dr. King- 
 lake, in memory of his parents 
 (Giles, Arch.). 
 
 The vicinity of Taunton abounds 
 in educational establishments. There 
 is a Church of England Proprietary 
 College at Mountlands ; the Wes- 
 leyans have a college on the Trull 
 Road, and the Congregationalists 
 have a handsome building devoted 
 to the same purpose near the rly. 
 stat. 
 
 Taunton was once famous for its 
 manufacture of serges, which were 
 largely exported to Spain. Fuller 
 describes them as ' * eminent in their 
 kind, being a fashionable wearing, as 
 lighter than cloth, but thicker than 
 many other stuffs." 
 
 It still has a small manufacture of 
 silk, also of gloves and collars, and 
 of agricultural implements. It is 
 also a great agricultural centre, being 
 seated in a district remarkable for 
 fertility. "The Vale of Taunton," 
 says old Fuller, '*is so fruitful, to 
 ■use their own phrase, with the zun 
 and zoil alone, that it needs no ma- 
 nuring. The peasantry therein are 
 as rude as rich, and so highly con- 
 ceited of their own country that they 
 conceive it a disparagement to be 
 born in any other place." Hence the 
 Somersetshire proverb — *' Ich was 
 bore at Taunton Dean ; where should 
 I be bore else?" 
 
 " Wliat ear so empty is that hath not heard 
 the sound 
 
 Of Taunton's fruitful Dean, not matched 
 by any ground ? " 
 
 Drayton. 
 
 The vale is particularly famous for 
 its apples and cider. 
 
 Taunton was the native place of 
 Samuel Daniel, b. 1562, a poet and 
 historian ; Henry Grove, b. 1683, a 
 Nonconforming divine, tutor of the 
 Dissenting Academy at this town, 
 and a contributor to the * Spectator;' 
 Alleine, author of the ' Alarm to the 
 Unconverted,' was minister of St. M. 
 Magdalene ; he died 1668, at the early 
 age of 35, after his liberation from a 
 long confinement in Ilchester gaol. 
 His epitaph simply records : — 
 
 " Here Mr. Joseph AUein lies, 
 To God and you a sacrifice.'* 
 
 A. W. Kinglake, Esq., author of 
 ' Eothen,' and the historian of the 
 Crimean War, was also born at 
 Taunton. 
 
 [The principal seats in the neigh- 
 bourhood of Taunton are Hatch 
 Court, the property of the Gore 
 Langtons ; Pyrland, formerly the 
 seat of the Yeas, now of Arthur 
 Malet, Esq. ; Norton Manor, C. Noel 
 Welman, Esq.; Hestercomhe (rebuilt, 
 nestling in a picturesque dell on the 
 S. flank of the Quantocks, long the 
 manor of the De Meryets, passed 
 by marriage to the Warres at the 
 end of the 14th cent. A two-handed 
 sword, stated to have been taken 
 from King John of France at the 
 battle of Poitiers by the father of 
 the first possessor of Hestercomhe, 
 John de Warre, is still preserved. 
 It bears the inscription, '^Engladium 
 Johannis Galliae, E." From the 
 Warres it passed by marriage to the 
 Bampfyldes. The buttresses of the 
 Hall and some Elizabethan windows 
 are the only relics of the old man- 
 sion; the igneous rock protrudes 
 here) ; and Heatherton Park, Col. 
 Adair ; Walford, R. K. Meade King, 
 Esq. 
 
 Trull, 2 m. S.W., has a small Perp. 
 Ch., with W. tower of earlier date, 
 and S. porch, which deserves to be 
 visited for the abundance of rich 
 
390 Route 21.— Kingston— Q\ 
 
 ]uantock Hills, Somersetshire. 
 
 and unaltered woodwork, showing 
 the closing struggle between the 
 Gothic and Eenaissance styles. The 
 whole is heavily rich, without grace 
 but without coarseness. The pulpit 
 is marvellously rich, and has figures 
 of St. John, and the 4 Latin Fathers 
 in elaborate niches. The rood-screen 
 and loft are perfect and singularly 
 gorgeous. The bench-ends are much 
 varied, and demand careful study. 
 One bears the inscription, Simon 
 Warman, maker of this worke, a^.d"* 
 1560, John Waye, Clarke here.'* 
 The E. and S. windows of the chancel 
 contain some painted glass of re- 
 markable excellence, and quite un- 
 tampered with. In the E. window 
 are the Crucifixion, the B. V. Mary, 
 and St. John ; in the S., St. Michael, 
 St. George and St. Margaret, each van- 
 quishing their respective animal. 
 
 At N. Curry, 6 m. E. of Taunton, 
 a curious Christmas feast, now ex- 
 tinct, is said to have been held from 
 the time of King John, by whom 
 the gift of the manor to the Dean 
 and Chapter of Wells by Richard I. 
 was confirmed. An account of the 
 customs observed on the occasion 
 is inscribed on a marble tablet in 
 the vestry-room of the church. The 
 dinner used to take place at the 
 Reeve's house, and among the dishes 
 was a large mince-pie ornamented 
 with an effigy of King John. Two 
 candles, weighing a pound each, were 
 lighted, and until they are burned 
 out the company had a right to sit 
 drinking ale. The Ch. is a very fine 
 structure of the l4th cent., largely 
 recast in the 15th, cruciform, with 
 a low central octagonal tower, and 
 a very good chancel. The N. door 
 is Norm. The rides and drives in 
 this vicinity are most attractive.] 
 
 [A pleasant walk or drive of about 
 o m. JST. of Taunton leads to the 
 beautiful ch. of 
 
 Kingston. It has a fan-tracery 
 groined S. porch, one of the finest 
 of west country towers, with nume- 
 
 rous carved niches in the walls, 
 buttresses adorned with pinnacles, 
 and a light parapet of open work. 
 The pillars of the nave are Trans. 
 A considerable portion of E. E. work 
 remains, but the whole church has 
 been recast in Perp. times, and the 
 chancel has been almost entirely 
 rebuilt. In the S. aisle is a fine 
 Dec. altar-tomb of the existing family 
 of Warre of Hestercombe, covered 
 with a magnificent slab of Devon 
 fossil marble. The carved bench-ends 
 seats, dated 1522, are of great beauty. 
 Bej^ond the* village a walk of 2 to 
 3 m, leads up the wooded head of 
 the valley to a summit overlooking 
 the Bristol Channel. The valley of 
 Kingston is celebrated, even in W. 
 Somerset, for its cider. It was the 
 custom till within the last few years 
 for rustics on Christmas Eve to go 
 to every orchard and '^sing to the 
 apple-trees " to make them abun- 
 dantly fruitful ; expecting in return 
 money, or, what they liked better, 
 cider. The only scrap of their song 
 recoverable is : 
 
 " We wish you right good luck and jolly 
 well sail." (Wassail.) 
 
 A tree called the '^Kingston black 
 apple produces here the best cider 
 fruit. 
 
 The Quantock Hills form a heathy 
 range extending from Taunton north- 
 ward to the sea, at an elevation of from 
 1000 to 1100 ft., rising to 1270 ft. 
 in Will's Neck, the highest point. 
 They are steep on the W. side, but 
 on the E. the declivities are more 
 gradual, descending into winding, ro- 
 mantic vallej's — such as those of the 
 Seven Wells and the Hunter s Comhe, 
 favourite scenes of Wordsworth and 
 Coleridge, when they resided in their 
 younger days at Stowey and Alfox- 
 den (Rte. 32). The chain is mainly 
 composed of the Devonian or grau- 
 wacke slate, which is islanded, as it 
 were, in the new red sandstone form- 
 ing the vales which surround it. 
 
 An excursion may be made to Crow- 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. — Wellington. 
 
 391 
 
 combe (pictures) and to the summit 
 of Will's Neck, or to the Wellington 
 Column on the Blackdown Hills.] 
 
 Starting again by the rly., we pro- 
 ceed up the course of the Tone to- 
 wards the Blackdown Hills. 
 
 ICoJ m. Norton Fitzwarren Stat. 
 [From this place the Devon and 
 Somerset line branches off by Mil- 
 verton and Dulverton to Barnstaple ; 
 also the West Somerset by Williton 
 and Dunster to Miuehead (see Rtes. 
 31, 33).] 
 
 At Norton Fitzwarren (2 J m., 
 on the road to Milverton) is a fine 
 earthwork on the hill above the 
 church. It is of 13 acres, and formed 
 by a ditch with an external and in- 
 ternal rampart. According to the 
 local legend it was once the haunt of 
 an enormous serpent, which for a 
 long time devastated the surrounding 
 country, and v/hose ravages are sup- 
 posed to be portrayed in the carving 
 of the rood-screen of the adjoining 
 church. It was probably a British 
 town, occupied by the Romans, long 
 anterior to the existence of Taunton. 
 According to the old local rhyme : — 
 
 " When Taunton was a furzy down, 
 Norton was a walled town." 
 
 Norton Fitzwarren Ch. is chiefly 
 of a late 14th-cent. date, the chancel 
 containing traces of earlier work. 
 The tower has a singular triple 
 set of gurgoyles. The S.W. corner 
 of the churchyard was a favourite 
 burying-place for gipsies, who were 
 brought from all parts of the country. 
 The very fine rood-screen has a 
 carving of two dragons and a plough 
 in the centre. 
 
 166^ m. rt. Hill-Farrance Ch. 
 has a low tower, c. 1420, a good 
 piscina, credence, and sedilia, temp. 
 Edward I., and fine oak benches. 
 The little ch. of Oak^ 1 m. further to 
 W., is not unworthy of a visit. 
 
 1675 m. 1. Bradford Ch., prettily 
 placed on a wooded bank overlook- 
 
 ing the Tone, which is here crossed 
 by a good mediaeval bridge of 2 
 arches, deserves notice. It has W. 
 Norm, piers, an E. E. chancel arch, 
 a font on a Norman base, and an 
 efiigy of a hip-belted knight, temp. 
 Richard II. West Buckland, 2 m. 
 further S., has a Ch. with Norman 
 features. The nave is Perp. The 
 chancel arch is curiously corbelled 
 into the massy piers. The font is 
 Norman. 
 
 168 m. 1. we pass Heatherton Park 
 (Col. Adair), and directly afterwards, 
 on the rt., Nynehead (W. A. Sanford, 
 Esq.), where we gain a distant view of 
 an isolated knoll crowned by Willet 
 Tower, a conspicuous landmark, 8 
 m. N. 
 
 170 m. Wellington Stat., near 
 Nynehead, and J m. N. of 
 
 Wellington {Inns : Squirrel, 
 King's Arms ; Pop. 4360). This 
 market-town is seated on a gentle 
 elevation in a country of hill and 
 dale, at the foot of the Blackdowns, 
 which are here crowned by the Wel- 
 lington Monument. It is built 
 chiefly of red brick, and has a hand- 
 some town-hall and church. 
 
 The Ch. is Perp., with the ex- 
 ception of the chancel, which is E. E., 
 with an E. window of 3 lancets, with 
 quatrefoils above. The tower is a 
 fine one, of the local type, with a 
 stair turret running up the centre of 
 the S. side, dividing the belfry win- 
 dows. The nave is lofty, with light 
 arcades, and a high clerestory. There 
 is an elegant canopied piscina in the 
 chancel, and a piece of sculpture on 
 the N. side, which may have been 
 connected with an Easter sepulchre. 
 1 There is a fine tomb to Sir John 
 Popham, Lord Chief Justice in the 
 reign of Elizabeth, and a benefactor 
 to this town. He is represented by 
 the side of his lady in the judge's 
 dress of the period (1607). 
 
 Wellington had the honour of 
 giving title to the conqueror of the 
 Peninsula and Waterloo, the victory 
 
392 
 
 Boute 22. — Yatton to Wells, dc. 
 
 Somersetshire. 
 
 of Talavera raising Arthur Wellesley 
 to the peerage as Yiscount Welling- 
 ton, of Wellington, in the county of 
 Somerset. In the Eebellion the in- 
 habitants of this town exhibited such 
 activity on the side of the Parliament 
 that Welling ton Roundheads were long 
 afterwards proverbial. 
 
 The town has a manufacture of 
 woollens, the mills being worked by 
 the neighbouring river and the water 
 of the canal. 
 
 The Wellington Monument (the key 
 is kept at a house nearly J m. from 
 the monument) is 2J m. S., on the 
 lofty height (900 ft. above the sea) 
 which rises from the town, and 
 where annually a busy fair is held 
 on the 15th of June. The monu- 
 ment is a triangular stone tower, 
 erected by a county subscription, to 
 commemorate the victories of the 
 Great Duke. The original intention 
 "was to crown it with a bronze 
 statue of the Great Duke. The site 
 commands an extensive prospect. 
 A roadway descends the S. side of 
 the hill to the village of Hemyoch, 
 2J m., seated on a trout-stream, in 
 a true Devonshire valley, and con- 
 taining some remains of a Norman 
 castle.] 
 
 [^Cotliay Manor-house, in a secluded 
 situation, 4 m. from Wellington 
 Stat., in the parish of Kittesford, is 
 a very interesting building, with its 
 mediseval hall, ruined gateway, and 
 out-buildings. 
 
 Greenham Manor Farm, 2 m. be- 
 yond, has a handsome porch of the 
 date of P]dward III., and other re- 
 mains of the domestic architecture 
 of that period.] 
 
 [The hilly road, or rather lane, 
 from hence to Milverton (5 m.) is one 
 of the prettiest in Somersetshire. It 
 gradually ascends towards Exmoor, 
 between tangled hedges through a 
 thickly wooded country. In 1 m. 
 from Wellington it passes on rt. 
 Nynehead Court (W. A. Sanford, Esq.), j 
 
 an old-fashioned house, built at 
 many different times, but with little 
 of the old work remaining. 
 
 Nynehead Ch. is of early Perp. 
 date, but much rebuilt, containing a 
 fine screen, and good monuments to 
 the Clerkes of Chipley. A former 
 rector. Rev. J. Sanford, adorned the 
 walls with specimens of Robbia and 
 other Italian ware. 
 
 2J m. Chipley Park, the site of an 
 old hall, in which Locke wrote a 
 part of his 'Essay on the Human 
 Understanding,' first sketched out at 
 Oxford, and finished in Holland. His 
 manuscript, written in a very neat 
 hand, and a large number of his un- 
 published letters, are now preserved 
 at Nynehead by Mr. Sanford, the 
 owner of Chipley. 
 
 Scythe-stones are procured from 
 quarries on the Blackdown hills. 
 They are concretions of the green- 
 sand, which are found in layers asso- 
 ciated with organic remains. Robin 
 Hood's Butts is the name by which 
 some huge heaps of flints, evidently 
 funereal, on Blackdown, are known.] 
 
 Leaving Wellington by the rly., 
 we look our last at the pleasant face 
 of Somerset, as in little more than 
 3 m., we rush through a tunnel 
 through Whitehall Hill into the ad- 
 joining county. (Hdbh. for Devon.) 
 
 ROUTE 22. 
 
 YATTON, BY lAXBRIDGE AND CHED- 
 DAR, TO WELLS AND GLASTONBURY. 
 
 (Branch Railway.) 
 
 This line leaves the Bristol and 
 Exeter Rly. at Yatton Junct., and 
 joins the Somerset and Dorset Rly. 
 at Wells, a distance of 17 J m. The 
 rly., leaving Yatton, crosses the Yeo 
 near 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 22.— Wrington. 393 
 
 1^ m. Congresbury Stat, (pro- 
 nounced Coomsbury), where the 
 ch, and ancient vicarage-house call 
 for attention. The Ch. has a fine 
 stone spire, perhaps the best in the 
 county, forming a very pleasing 
 object in the surrounding country. 
 The arcades are E. E., but not alike, 
 those on the N. being somewhat the 
 later, verging to Dec. There is a 
 fine wood roof and good rood-screen. 
 The font is E. E. The peal of bells is 
 remarkably fine. The parsonage was 
 built by the executors of Bp. Beck- 
 ington, c. 1465. The porch dis- 
 plays a curious imitation of E. E. 
 toothed work, with the arms of the 
 prelate. There is a good 15th-cent. 
 cross in the centre of the village, and 
 the remains of another of the 14th 
 cent, in the churchyard. Woodlands 
 is the seat of Capt. W. Long. 
 
 Congresbury is asserted in the 
 Glastonbury Chronicle to have been 
 an episcopal see founded as early as 
 A.D. 167 (the existence of which, 
 however, according to Mr. Haddan, 
 rests on very questionable evidence), 
 transferred c. A.D. 767 by Daniel to 
 Wells. According to an unhistorical 
 tradition preserved by Capgrave, it 
 derives its name from St. Cungar, 
 the son of an emperor of the East, 
 who, it is said, to avoid a marriage 
 which his father sought to force on 
 him, fled to Britain, and, finding in 
 the dreary marshes of the Yeo the 
 perfect solitude he desired, founded 
 a hermitage and oratory here, a.d. 
 711. The land round his cell was 
 given him by King Ina, and he esta- 
 blished a college here with 12 canons, 
 where, according to Capgrave, he 
 taught ^^Angligenis et Wallensibus," 
 and was called ''Docwinni, a 
 docendo." St. Cungar (so runs the 
 talej went a pilgrimage to J erusalem, 
 where he died, but his body was 
 brought back and buried at Con- 
 gresbury. 
 
 IWrington, 2 m. E., 4 m. S.E. of 
 Yatton Stat, (which takes its name 
 
 I from the stream which runs through 
 I it, now known as the Yeo, but spoken 
 j of as the Wring" in the ancient 
 terriers of Glastonbury), is famous 
 for the tower of its Ch., perhaps 
 the finest of all the towers for which 
 Somersetshire is so celebrated. The 
 lofty nave (too short for its height) 
 with its clustered pillars and foli- 
 ated capitals ; the shafts, carried 
 up and supporting angels with 
 shields; the fine Perp. windows and 
 clerestory, present a whole rarely 
 equalled in parish churches?. The 
 Dec. chancel is small and inferior, 
 with a 5-light E. window of unusual 
 design. At the end of the nave is a 
 curious bell-cot. The tower is one 
 of grand simplicity, with beautiful 
 details and fine masonry, having a 
 stone groined roof, and a remark- 
 ably noble W. window. It is 140 ft. 
 high, and is crowned with 16 pin- 
 nacles. The tenor of the peal is one 
 of the grandest bells in the county, 
 weighing 2 tons. In the church is 
 a tablet to Hannah More, who, with 
 her sisters, lies buried in the church- 
 yard. She lived at Barley Wood, a 
 very pretty cottage, built by her in 
 1800 (now belongs to W. H. Harford, 
 Esq.). West Hay is the residence of 
 the well-known archaeologist, W. 
 Long, Esq. Wrington is distin- 
 guished as the birthplace of John 
 Locke, the philosopher, author of 
 the ' Essay on Human Understand- 
 ing,* born 1632, in a house still 
 standing near the church. His birth 
 here was accidental, his mother 
 having been taken in labour while 
 worshipping in the ch. His father 
 had a small landed property in 
 Stanton Drew parish. He became 
 a captain in the Parliamentary army, 
 and was killed at Bristol, 1645. The 
 entry of Locke's baptism is in the 
 parish register. The Rev. W. Leaves, 
 composer of the air to Lady Ann 
 Lindsay's ballad of '*Auld Robin 
 Gray," was rector of Wrington. The 
 little town is beautifully situated 
 under the hill of Cleeve Coiribe. 
 
394 
 
 Boute 22. — Banwell. 
 
 Somersetshire. 
 
 1 m., in the vale of the Yeo, is 
 Coivslip Green, where Hannah' More 
 resided before she removed to Barley- 
 Wood.] 
 
 Crossing the wide marshy meadows 
 intersected by rhines, we reach 
 
 133| m. Banivell Stat. The town 
 (Inns: Ship; Ball) lies 3 m. to the 
 1., in a pretty situation under Ban- 
 well Hill. This limestone height 
 has been long known for its hone- 
 caves, in which have been found the 
 remains of the bear, with those of 
 the buffalo, deer, wolf, fox, and 
 other animals. The bones of these 
 creatures were embedded in a floor 
 of hardened mud, and are supposed 
 to have been collected by beasts of 
 prey, which made the cavern their 
 den. There are 2 chambers, of 
 which the larger is about 60 ft. in 
 breadth and 40 ft. in height, the floor 
 sloping downward 150 ft., when it 
 terminates in a petrifaction called 
 the Bishop's Chair. 
 
 [Other bone-caves may be found at 
 Hutton, 3 m. W. ; at Uphill, 5 m. W., 
 almost under the church ; at Sand- 
 ford, 2 m. N.E. ; andat IvOic^on, 3 m. S. 
 (where the quaint old Church, Nor- 
 man and E. E., with a square tower 
 on the N. side, stands on an elevated 
 site commanding a view of Crook's 
 Peak. In the porch is a remarkable 
 squint. The pulpit is carved from 
 one block of stone. There is a 
 15th-century mutilated cross in the 
 churchyard). A fine collection of 
 these bones, formed by a local geo- 
 logist, Mr. Beard, has been purchased 
 by subscription, and removed to the 
 Museum at Taunton.] The greater 
 part of Banwell Hill, including the 
 bone-caves, is the property of Capt. 
 Law, who has a cottage here, built 
 in 1827. The Tower was erected by 
 his grandfather, the late Bishop of 
 Bath and Wells. To the S. are seen 
 the loftier heights of Wavering Down 
 and Crook*s Peak, which with Ban- 
 well Hill and Brean Down form the 
 western points of the Mendips. Im- 
 
 mediately E. is Park Hill, with re- 
 mains of a small camp on its summit. 
 
 According to Leland an abbey ex- 
 isted at Banwell in the time of 'Alfred, 
 of which his biographer Asser was 
 abbot. It was given by William the 
 Conqueror to the see of Wells. It 
 was sold by Bp. Barlow to Protector 
 Somerset, but restored by Mary. A 
 manor-house was built by Bp. Beck- 
 ington, of which some remains exist 
 in Banwell Court. The chapel is 
 turned into a cider cellar. Tower 
 Head House was built by Bp. God- 
 wyn in 1584 as a summer residence. 
 The front bears the Bp.'s arms and a 
 canting motto, Godwyn. Wyn 
 God, wyn all." 
 
 Banwell Church is, for its nave 
 and aisles, one of the most tho- 
 roughly beautiful of its class to be 
 seen. The proportions of the aisles 
 and clerestory are absolutely perfect. 
 The turrets at the E. end of the 
 nave are very noble." — E. A. F, 
 The belfry is richly groined. The 
 chancel screen has fan-tracery vault- 
 ing. There are a fine stone pulpit 
 and carved oak seats. The chancel 
 is inferior. The E. window has 
 ancient stained glass, and there are 
 several modern painted windows. 
 The font is E. E. There is a curious 
 brass to a physician, John Martock, 
 1503, robed as an ecclesiastic in cope 
 and surplice, with cassock under ; 
 and a female effigy, Eliz. Blandon, 
 1554, with a wired headdress. The 
 tower is a very fine one, \\ith rich 
 pinnacles and parapets. 
 
 4i m. Sandford Stat., at the foot of 
 Sandford Hill, on the N. side of 
 which lies the village of Churchill. 
 Churchill Court, now a farmhouse, 
 close to the Ch., was the seat of a 
 family of the same name, from a 
 cadet of which the famous Duke of 
 Marlborough sprang. The Ch. is 
 of the usual local type, with a 
 plain tower and groined belfry. The 
 monuments are interesting, including 
 one to the lady of Sir John Latch, d. 
 1644, who is represented in a buff 
 
Somersetshire. Boiite 22. — Dolhury — Burrington. 395 
 
 coat, boots, tincl spurs, gazing on his i 
 wife in a shroud. The quaint in- 
 scription closes thus : — 
 
 " The risen Christ doth us assurance give, 
 He'll raise this grave, and we with Him 
 shall live : 
 
 He rich in grace, though poor in stable 
 cratch, 
 
 So have ye here her laid up, Sarah Latch.'* 
 
 There is a good brass to Kalph 
 Jenyns and his wife, 1572, and the 
 recumbent effigy of one of the 
 Churchills and his lady. 
 
 [From Churchill the old high road 
 from Bristol to Bridgwater runs 
 along the northern flank of the Men- 
 dips. This remarkable range of hills 
 consists of mountain limestone, raised 
 by volcanic action from the bed of 
 an ancient sea, dipping N. and S. on 
 each side of 3 or 4 parallel axes of 
 elevation, composed of old red sand- 
 stone, the limestone beds being placed 
 like sheets of lead on the boarded roof 
 of a ch. Mines of lead and zinc were 
 worked here by the Romans — whose 
 refuse heaps, subjected to improved 
 smelting processes, yield a large 
 quantity of the former metal — and 
 are so still, but scantily. The range 
 of hills is 20 m. long, and from 3 to 
 6 m. wide, and from 200 to more than 
 1000 ft. high. The fractures and dis- 
 locations attending this violent up- 
 heaval are to be seen at Cheddar, 
 Brockley, Goblin - Combe, and the 
 gorge of Avon. A few vents dis- 
 charging igneous rock are to be 
 seen at Hestercombe, on the N.W. 
 shoulder of Broadfield Down, above 
 Brockley Combe, and near Uphill, 
 in the rly. cutting. 
 
 Immediately above Churchill is 
 the remarkable encampment, or, 
 rather, fortified town, of Dolhury, 
 crowning a spur of the hill, over- 
 hanging a ravine which divides it 
 from Sandford Hill. It is a British 
 camp, 540 yds. long by 220 yds. 
 broad, enclosing an irregular area of 
 20 acres, protected by a rampart and 
 a fosse. A square camp, probably 
 of Roman construction, lies within 
 
 the area. The former is a continuous 
 mound of unhewn limestone, form- 
 ing an uncemented wall like that at 
 Worlebury. A local rhyme, as old 
 as Leland's days, makes it the de- 
 pository of hid treasure — 
 
 " If Dolbury digged were, 
 Of gold should be the share." 
 
 1 m. rt. Langford Court (Evan 
 Llewellyn, Esq.), originally a hunt- 
 ing seat of the Capels, Earls of 
 Essex. It was modernised by Dr. 
 Whalley, who sold it, 1804, to the 
 Rt, Hon. J. Hiley Addington, brother 
 of Lord Sidmouth. Beyond it, on 
 the slope of the Mendips, is Mendip 
 Lodge (B. Somers, Esq.), built by 
 Dr. Whalley, the friend and corre- 
 spondent of Hannah More, a beau- 
 tiful place, deeply bosomed in wood. 
 The grounds contain 52 grottoes, one 
 for every week in the year, and the 
 terrace walks command enchanting 
 views. Mrs. Siddons was a frequent 
 visitor here. 
 
 2f m. E. from Churchill is Burring- 
 ton, the Ch. of which has a low tower 
 with spirelet, and good windows and 
 arches in the nave. It contains 
 monuments to the Rt. Hon. Hiley 
 Addington, and to Mrs. Jackson, ship- 
 wrecked off Dunkirk, with an epitaph 
 by Hannah More. From the village 
 a romantic ravine, Burrington Comhe, 
 leads to Black Down and Beacon 
 Batch, 1067 ft. above the sea. The 
 little road in this valley is margined 
 by fine turf, and J m. above the 
 village is the mouth of a cavern, 
 with a sanded floor slanting steeply 
 downward. This is Burrington 
 Cavern, which, when first discovered, 
 exhibited about 50 human skeletons, 
 resting among the weapons which 
 they had used when living. The 
 bones of horses and of sheep, and the 
 jaw of a fox, found in the hardened 
 mud, showed that this cavern had 
 also been the resort of wild animals. 
 On either side of the hollow are 
 great ribs of mountain limestone, 
 well displaying the inclination of tlie 
 
396 
 
 Boute 22. — Blagdon — Axhridge. Somersetshire 
 
 strata ; and above, on the hill, a 
 quadrangular camp with a rampart 
 of loose stones, apparently of Roman 
 date, called Burrmgton Ham. In 
 Burrington Combe a bone cavern, 
 known as Whitcomhe's Hole, was exa> 
 mined in 1863, and found to contain 
 the remains of the ox, red deer, wolf, 
 fox, goat, badger, &c., and fragments 
 of a rude urn. Plumhleys Den, in the 
 same combe, has 2 large chambers, 
 united by a low passage, filled with 
 bones, among which the most re- 
 markable was the skull of the Bos 
 longifrons. 
 
 4J m. Blagdon, between which and 
 Burrington is Bickford Comhe, a 
 romantic dell, dressed with hanging 
 woods, and traversed by a clear 
 streamlet. Blagdon Ch. was rebuilt, 
 all but the tower, in 1822. Meric 
 Casaubon, and Langhorne, the trans- 
 lator of * Plutarch's Lives,' were in- 
 cumbents here. A pig of lead, bear- 
 ing the name of Britannicus, a.d. 
 44-48, the earliest example of Roman 
 metallurgy discovered in Britain, was 
 found near Blagdon, 1853. 
 
 6J m. W. is Ubley, with a small Gh. 
 with W. tower and spire, and 7 m. 
 ComptonMartin. The Ch. has curious 
 Norm, work, but the tower, which is 
 of very ornate character, and several 
 windows are Perp. The arcades are 
 Norm., except one pointed arch on 
 the S., and the Norm, clerestory is 
 preserved on the N. The chancel 
 has fine Norm, groining, the ribs en- 
 riched with chevron moulding, and 
 some trefoil-headed lancet windows. 
 § m. E. is West Harptree (Rte. 27).] 
 
 Returning to the rly., the line 
 ascends by easy gradients to 
 
 5f m, Woodhorough Stat. On the 
 hill to the 1. is Sidcot, where is a 
 large Quakers* School, and on the 
 slope of the swelling green hills, 
 fringed with trees on the rt.. Wins- 
 comhe Ch.f with its fine grey pin- 
 nacled tower. The ch. was rebuilt 
 by Bp. Ralph de Salopia, d. 1362, ^ 
 and must rank among the earliest i 
 
 triumphs of the new Perp. style 
 In a mndow in the ch. there are some 
 figures of fine 15th-cent. white glass.' 
 
 f 1 m. 1. the villages of Shipliam^ 
 and Rowherrow, on the slopes of Black 
 Down, are inhabited chiefly by 
 miners, or grooviers, as they are here 
 termed, conspicuous for their yellow- 
 brown clothes. The greater number 
 of the lead and calamine mines arCj 
 situated in these parishes, but the 
 amount of ore now raised is very in- 
 considerable. Bowherrow lies in a 
 secluded hollow between the folds 
 of the Mendips, commanding a fine 
 view of the Channel, with a rivulet 
 running through a deep winding dell. 
 It is the centre of the Mendip mining 
 district. The Ch., perched on the! 
 brink of the deep dell, and the! 
 manor-house, hard by, form a pic- 
 turesque group. A curious piece 
 of Saxon lacertine knotwork is built 
 into the outside wall of the porch.] 
 
 The line here encounters >S7m^- 
 shelve Hill, which it pierces by a 
 tunnel driven through hard shale 
 and mountain limestone, on emerging 
 from which it descends to 
 
 8 m. Axhndge Stat., on the hill- 
 side above the town, commanding a 
 fine view of the broad rich valley of 
 the Axe, with varied hills in the 
 distance. 
 
 AxBRiDGE (Inn : Lamb ; Pop. 799) 
 is a very ancient little town, still 
 possessing a corporation, and hold- 
 ing charters renewed by different 
 kings from Edward the Confessor to 
 James 1. The Ch. is a fine cruciform 
 building, with good central tower 
 and pierced parapets. The nave has 
 no clerestory, and the chancel, as is 
 common in Somersetshire churches, 
 is much inferior to the rest of the 
 building. In 1879 it received a 
 partial restoration, and refitting, 
 which it greatly needed, at the hands 
 of Mr. Sedding. A curious wooden roof, 
 adorned with large pendants, bears 
 
Somersetshii-e. Boute 22. — Cheddar. 
 
 397 
 
 the date 1636. There are several 
 monuments to the Prowse family, 
 an altar cloth, the work, for 7 years, 
 of Abigail Prowse, and a merchant's 
 brass to Roger Harper and wife, 
 1493. In the town are some good 
 examples of 14th and 15th-century 
 houses. 
 
 Early peas and potatoes are raised 
 in large quantities in this sheltered 
 vicinity for the Bristol and London 
 markets. It is the central depot of 
 the agricultural produce of the Ched- 
 dar Valley. 
 
 Immediately after leaving Ax- 
 bridge, 1. is St MichaeVs Houses a 
 Hospital for Incurables, erected by 
 the widow of the late munificent 
 Mr. Gibbs of Tyntesfield, as a memo- 
 rial to her husband. 
 
 Shutshelve Hill is continued W. 
 in the ridge called Wavering Down, 
 ending in the pyramidal eminence of 
 Crook's PeaTif commanding a very fine 
 view. The ascent from the S. side 
 is very easy along the edge of the 
 combe. Below lies Compton Bishop. 
 The Ch. has a Trans.-Norm. trefoiled 
 doorway, a stone pulpit and an E. E. 
 double piscina, and a costly monu- 
 ment to J. Prowse, 1688. In the 
 churchyard is a cross of early 14th- 
 cent. work. The sides of the hill are 
 j pierced with caverns. 
 
 Christon, in the valley to the N.W. 
 of Crook Peak, has a Norm. Ch., with 
 ^ a low tower between the nave and 
 chancel, supported by chevroned 
 arches, and a good Norm. S. doorway. 
 
 9J m. Cheddar Stat. {Inns : Bath 
 Arms ; Cliff Hotel), famous for the 
 neighbouring Cheddar Cliffs and 
 Caverns : at a distance of 2 m. is the 
 summit of Black Down, the highest 
 hill on the Mendips. 
 
 The rich grass-farms of this neigh- 
 bourhood have been famous from an 
 early period for the Cheddar cheeses. 
 Camden bears witness to their ex- 
 cellence in his time, and speaks of 
 their "prodigious size, requiring 
 more than one man's strength to set 
 them on the table." ''The worst 
 
 fault," says old Fuller, " of Cheddar 
 cheese is that they are so few and so 
 dear : hardly to be met with, save at 
 some rich man's table." In 1841 a 
 monster cheese was manufactured at 
 W. Pennard as a present to the 
 Queen, every farmer in the neigh- 
 bourhood contributing to it a day's 
 milk. A show of a similar kind 
 may be often seen in this neighbour- 
 hood, where, says Mr. Acland, "a 
 full cheese-room, exhibited by a Marsh 
 yeoman after his rent has been paid, 
 and all made straight, is a pleasant 
 sight, as it is one which the farmers 
 have always great pleasure in show- 
 ing to a visitor." 
 
 St. Duns tan has left his name in 
 these parts, which abounds in stories 
 of him. One of the most remarkable 
 is of his having saved King Edmund, 
 when hunting in the Mendips, from 
 being carried over Cheddar Cliff by 
 his horse, which led to the King's 
 reconciliation to the Abp. 
 
 The Ch. is a good example of the 
 usual Somersetshire type, rather 
 coarsely worked, with a stately tower 
 and groined belfry, and a statue of 
 its patron saint, St. Andrew, in a 
 niche on the W. front. In the in- 
 terior are a sculptured stone pulpit, 
 rich screens and ceiling of oak, and 
 a brass to the memory of Sir Thomas 
 de Cheddar, c. 1442, and another of 
 inferior style to his widow Isabel, 
 c. 1460. The original altar-slab, 
 bearing two sets of consecration 
 crosses, serves as the base of the 
 present communion-table. The De 
 Cheddars were a wealthy family, who 
 represented Somersetshire in Parlia- 
 ment for many years. Their manor- 
 house stood by the roadside at the 
 entrance to Axbridge, and a part of 
 it still remains in a farmhouse. 
 
 The hexagonal Market-cross was 
 restored in 1834 by the late Marquis 
 of Bath. 
 
 The village extends to the entrance 
 of the ravine, where the rocks hang 
 grandly over the pass. Below them 
 is a pretty sheet of water, once re- 
 
398 
 
 Eoute 22. — Cheddar Cliffs. Somersetshire. 
 
 fleeting the rugged scene on its 
 limpid surface, but now rendered 
 turbid and poisonous by the lead- 
 mines. On its bank is Mr. Cox's 
 Hotel, and opposite 
 
 Cox's Cheddar Cavern, accidentally 
 discovered in 1837. Is. a head is the 
 charge for admission. The cave is 
 narrow and of small size, but quite 
 a fairy world. In every part it is 
 crowded by fantastic figures, the 
 insensible growth of ages, still nour- 
 ished by the dripping water, which 
 wiiimsically resemble the various 
 forms named by the guide. It is 
 lighted with gas. 
 
 Gouglis Stalactite Cavern^ opposite 
 the Lion rock, is a more recent dis- 
 covery, containing some curious 
 stalactites. Admission, Is. a head. 
 
 Other caverns of larger size are 
 shown, but they are mere gloomy 
 vaults in the hill-side. One may be 
 explored for about 300 ft. Another, 
 situated Ij m. from the entrance of 
 the cliffs, 1. of the road, and some 
 200 ft. above it, has excited much 
 interest by the discovery in the mud 
 breccia of its floor of human skulls 
 and bones, together with those of 
 wild animals. No proof, according to 
 Sir Charles Lyell, ''that they were 
 coeval, but only that they were 
 of high antiquity, though not refer- 
 able to a geological era." The mouth 
 of the cavern is a vertical fissure. 
 
 A carriage-road, made in 1801, 
 leads through the pass of the died- 
 dar Cliffs. The chasm is about a 
 mile in length, and presents numerous 
 fine studies of rocks and caverns. [As 
 the scenery becomes less wild as you 
 ascend, it is advisable to reverse the 
 usual mode of seeing the cliffs by 
 scaling the hill on the E, side, 
 and entering the ravine at its upper 
 part, descending upon the grander 
 and more romantic portions of the 
 defile.] The entrance is more grand 
 than might be expected from the 
 character of the hills, the moun- 
 tain limestone rising abruptly in 
 towering precipices, whilst from a 
 
 cavern at their foot the Cheddar 
 water rushes in a torrent. Within 
 the portal of the pass its stony jaws 
 appear to close upon the little road, 
 which, margined by turf, winds 
 from side to side, and opens at every 
 turn a fresh picture of huge and 
 wildly grouped rocks. The finest 
 portion of the scenery is included 
 in the first J m., in which a cliff 
 rises vertically on the rt., and di- 
 rectly from the path of the spectator, 
 to an elevation of 429 ft. This 
 grand and beautiful wall is decked 
 by festoons of ivy, and scored on the 
 surface by a network of fissures, from 
 which spring the mountain ash, the 
 yew-tree, and various shrubs and 
 plants. As the road proceeds, its 
 barriers gradually open out, and the 
 dark blue precipices are succeeded 
 by slopes of turf. This is a habitat 
 of Polypodium Bohertianum, and of 
 the pretty Dianthus Csesius or Ched- 
 dar pinh, now almost exterminated 
 by excursionists, together with the 
 other beautiful ferns and plants 
 which once gave an additional beauty 
 and interest to the ravine. 
 
 [M'nes of lead and calamine (car- 
 bonate of zinc ) have been worked on 
 the Mendip Hills from the time of 
 the BelgsD, principally in the pa- 
 rishes of Rowberrow, Shipham, and 
 East Harptree. The visitor to Ched- 
 dar is within reach of one of them, 
 called the Mendip Lead Mine, a 
 walk of about 2 m. [Let him turn 
 1. through the first gate in the 
 Cheddar Cliffs, and pursue his way 
 up the rocky bottom to a wood, 
 where he will observe a gate on the 
 rt. A path leads from this gate along 
 another wild hollow. Near the 
 further end of the wood a stream 
 plunges into a swallet-hole, to emerge 
 again to the daylight at Cheddar. 
 At the further extremity of the 
 wood is " the Lower Farm," through 
 which the road passes, by Charter 
 House, to a four-cross road, where 
 the traveller's route is indicated by 
 a guide-post. The chimneys of the 
 
Somersetshire. Route 22. — Mendip Sills, 
 
 399 
 
 mine will then be in sight.] The i 
 mountain limestone abounds in 
 vertical cracks or fissures, and 
 by these its numerous subterranean 
 waters are fed. The summit of 
 Black Doivn rises at a short dis- 
 tance to the N. It is a heathy- 
 eminence, crowned by a mark of the 
 Sappers and Miners, and commands 
 a most extensive and beautiful view. 
 It is elevated 1100 ft. above the sea, 
 and is said to be the part of Somer- 
 setshire seen from Windsor Castle. 
 
 The Mendip Hills extend in a N. W. 
 and S.E. direction about 12 m., the 
 width of the chain varying from 3 to 
 6 m. On the S.E. its beds of moun- 
 tain limestone dip below the oolite, 
 in which position they are seen in 
 the many romantic dales between 
 Shepton and Frome. The nucleus 
 of the range consists of old red 
 sandstone, the flanks of mountain 
 limestone. Hence the resemblance 
 of this district to the highlands of 
 Derbyshire, a similar rock present- 
 ing similar phenomena in both coun- 
 ties, such as veins of lead, caverns, 
 and subterranean streams. In early 
 times the moors of Mendip were at- 
 tached to the crown as a royal forest, 
 in which Saxon and Norman kings 
 diverted themselves by hunting, and 
 here, as mentioned above. King 
 Edmund had a narrow escape of 
 his life. The summit, along which 
 ran a Roman road from Old Sarum 
 to the Bristol Channel, has a com- 
 paratively level surface, attaining its 
 greatest elevation in Black Down, 
 but here and there the traveller will 
 find an unexpected chasm, and the 
 declivities are on all sides abrupt, 
 and scored by rocky hollows. The 
 heights of Mendip are covered with 
 barrows, among which are many of 
 the bowl-shape. The obscure village 
 of Priddy lies high and bleak in a 
 small hollow of the downs. Round 
 Priddy pool lie immense heaps of 
 slag, the refuse of the ancient 
 mineral works of the former inhabit- 
 ants of the district which was un- 
 
 successfully attempted to be re- 
 worked by a company a few years 
 back. The Ch. is of some size 
 and dignity of character. 2 m. N.E. 
 the Roman road, running from Up- 
 hill to Old Sarum, may be traced 
 with great distinctness to the little 
 solitary public-house on Harptree 
 Hill, known as the Castle of Comfort ^ 
 near which is a curious depression 
 about 80 ft. deep, called the DeviVs 
 Funch-howl, and on the summit 
 of the hills, towards Priddy, 4 large 
 British circles, and 2 groups of 
 barrows, one of 9, the other of 8 
 mounds. 
 
 At Charter House on Mendip (Rte. 
 23, p. 405), not far from the lead 
 works, is a Roman station with a 
 perfect amphitheatre ; and about J m. 
 to the S. towards the Cheddar Cliffs 
 another, partly filled up. ] 
 
 The rly. from Cheddar to Wells 
 proceeds along the foot of the Men- 
 dips, commanding a wide prospect 
 over the level country to the rt. The 
 numerous outlying knolls are pretty 
 features in the scenery. The line 
 gradually ascends to 
 
 12 m. Draycott Stat., a little to 
 the S. of which is 
 
 Rodney Stoke, a very pretty spot, 
 the hills rising from it with great 
 boldness and beauty, particularly a 
 peak called Stoke Knoll. The Ch.y 
 standing on a high bank above the 
 line, 1., deserves a visit. It contains 
 a screen given by Sir E. Rodney, 
 1624, and many monuments of the 
 Rodney famil}^, one of the oldest of 
 the Somersetshire families, though 
 now extinct in the direct line. 
 
 14 m. Lodge Hill Stat forWesthury. 
 At the intersection of the roads is an 
 ancient cross, raised aloft on a pile of 
 steps. The Ch. has a Norm, tower. 
 The S. aisle is of the time of Edward 
 IV. The Rodney chapel contains a 
 monument to George Rodney, 1586. 
 From Westbury the line ascends to 
 Easton, where there is a long cutting 
 through conglomerate, and thence to 
 - 17| m. WdU (Rte. 20). 
 
400 
 
 Boute 23. — Frome to Yeovil. Somersetshire. 
 
 EOUTE 23. 
 
 FROME TO YEOVIL, BY BRUTON 
 AND CASTLE GARY. 
 
 {Weymouth Branch of Great Western 
 Bailway.) 
 
 115J m. from Paddington 
 Frome {Inns: Crown; George : 
 Pop. of Parly, borough, 9376). Frome 
 (more correctly Froome Selwood) is 
 a large and populous market-town and 
 Parliamentary borough, with several 
 flourishing manufactories, employing 
 a very large number of hands. The 
 staple manufacture is that of woollen 
 cloth, which is carried on most 
 extensively, and there are some 
 card-mills, fulling-mills, and dye- 
 works. In the vicinity there are 
 large manufactories of edge-tools, 
 and extensive iron foundries. Frome 
 is a town of considerable antiquity. 
 It owes its origin to a monas- 
 tery built before 705 by St. Aid- 
 helm. The inmates were probably 
 dispersed by the wars with the Danes, 
 but the church continued till the 
 time of William of Malmesbury. 
 The Saxon king Edred died at 
 Frome in 955, and was buried at 
 Winchester. The church was after- 
 wards appropriated to the abbey of 
 Cirencester. In former days it was 
 surrounded by Selwood Forest (which 
 in the last century afforded shelter 
 to a body of marauders and coiners, 
 who were a terror to the neighbour- 
 ing parishes), of which the woods 
 adjoining Longieat are a remnant. 
 The country in the neighbourhood is 
 still rich in trees, and extremely 
 
 pretty. It is principally laid out in 
 dairy-farms, which produce excellent 
 butter. 
 
 The town is built on a steep decli- 
 vity, and the streets are laid out to 
 suit the conformation of the ground, 
 with very little attention to regu- 
 larity. The main thoroughfares branch 
 into paved lanes, which again divide 
 and contract as they mount the hill, 
 like the tributaries of a stream. The 
 town is built of stone, and its general 
 aspect is picturesque. It contains 
 many J acobean houses. In the centre 
 of the market-place stands a Marlcet 
 Cross and fountain, erected by the 
 Hon. and Kev. Rich. Boyle. The 
 tourist will find much to interest 
 him here in the fine and magnifi- 
 cently restored Parish Church, the 
 various manufactories, and the pretty 
 ravine of Vallis. It is also a good 
 centre for excursions. Longieat is 
 4 m. S.E. (Rte. 11), Nunney Castle, 
 2 J m. S.W.,and the neighbourhood 
 abounds with pretty villages and old 
 churches. 
 
 The Parish Church of St. John 
 Baptist has been restored and in 
 part rebuilt, at large cost and with 
 much magnificence, by the present 
 vicar, the Rev. W. J. E. Bennett. 
 Originally there was a nave of 3 bays 
 besides the bay formed by the tower, 
 all of the late 14th or early 15th 
 centy. At a later period 4 more bays 
 were added to the W. in a peculiar 
 local type. Remains of a still earlier 
 ch. appear in the chancel, where 
 little bits of Norman work are 
 scattered about. The tower, crowned 
 by a spire, stands at the E. end of 
 the S. aisle. The Lady-chapel, on 
 the N. side, forms a quasi- transept, 
 and there are three chantry chapels, 
 dedicated to St. Andrew, St. John 
 Evangelist, and St. Nicholas. In one 
 the organ is now placed, and the 
 chapel of S. Nicholas is now the 
 Baptistery. The nave is of 8 baj^s, of 
 2 dates, the piers standing on large 
 blocks as high as the seats. All the 
 windows have been filled from time 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 23. 
 
 , — Frome. 
 
 401 
 
 to time with stained glass of various 
 degrees of excellence, and afford a 
 good opportunity for studying the 
 progress which has been made in this 
 art during the last few years. The 
 Church was re-opened on St. John 
 Baptist's Day, 1866. 
 
 In approaching from the N., the 
 visitor will be struck with the vigour 
 and effectiveness of the Calvary Steps, 
 or Stations of the Cross, a series of 
 carvings, consisting of scenes from 
 our Lord's Passion, which occupy 
 the steep ascent from the entrance 
 of the churchyard to the N. porch. 
 Passing on his way to the E., with- 
 out entering the church, let him turn 
 left, towards the E. wall of the chancel 
 (noticing as he passes a beautiful figure 
 of St. Catherine on the N. wall of 
 the church), and stay a little while 
 at the tomb of Bp. Ken (see post). 
 Passing on round the church, let 
 him notice also the sculpture over 
 the S. door, representing Peter and 
 John going up to the Temple at the 
 hour of prayer, and the W. front, 
 with the fine figures of the 4 Evan- 
 gelists. On entering, he will not fail 
 to be impressed with the general 
 effect of richness and solemnity. On 
 each side of the W. door are life- 
 size statues of St. Alban, St. Aldhelm, 
 St. Andrew, and St. George (too 
 large for their place) ; if he then 
 turn to the left, up the N. aisle, 
 he will come to the baptistery, the 
 chapel of St. Nicholas, late Perp. 
 The windows represent the Commis- 
 sion to the Apostles, and incidents 
 in the life of St. Nicholas. The font 
 is a portion of the old font restored. 
 On the pavement are the 7 chief 
 virtues and the 7 deadly sins. Imme- 
 diately adjoining is the very beau- 
 tiful Lady-chapel, Dec, rebuilt 1337, 
 with richly coloured windows, repre- 
 senting scenes in the life of the 
 Virgin Mary. In the arcades of the 
 nave are medallions, the work of 
 Forsyth. N. they represent the 
 miracles of our Lord : S. the Parables, 
 and over the chancel arch is a 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c,, 1882.] 
 
 beautiful fresco by Clayton and Bell, 
 representing the Adoration of the 
 Lamb. 
 
 The pulpit, with its sculptures of 8 
 famous preachers, Noah, Moses, Eli- 
 jah, St. John the Baptist, St. Peter, 
 St. Paul, St. Chrysostom, and St. 
 Ambrose, deserves notice, together 
 with the rich and beautiful chancel, 
 the Ken memorial window, the 
 ringing-floor under the tower on the 
 S., the roof of the nave, and the 
 many windows in the aisle — chiefly 
 memorials. Monumental tablets of 
 another class remain here and there 
 in the church, among them one to 
 the daughters of a former Lord 
 Cork, 2 graceful figures by West- 
 macott. The chancel-floor should be 
 noticed for its variety of marbles. 
 The reredos is of Carrara marble, by 
 Forsyth. There is a peal of 8 
 musical bells, and a clock which 
 chimes at the 4 canonical hours. 
 
 On the outside, under the E. wall 
 of the chancel, is the singular and 
 interesting monument of the brave 
 and holy Bishop Ken — 
 
 " That dared with royal power to cope, 
 In peaceful faith persisting: 
 A braver Becket — who could hope 
 To conquer unresisting." 
 
 Ken, who was one of the 7 bishops 
 committed to the Tower by James 
 
 II. , 1688, for refusing to read the 
 Declaration of Indulgence, was de- 
 prived in 1689 for refusing to take 
 the oath of allegiance to William 
 
 III. , and passed his time in retire- 
 ment at Longleat, under the pro- 
 tection of Lord Weymouth, in 1703. 
 Ken d. at Longleat in 1711, in his 
 74th year, and, according to his desire, 
 was buried "in the churchyard of 
 the nearest parish within his diocese, 
 under the E. window of the chancel, 
 just at sunrising." It is presumed 
 that Lord Weymouth gave directions 
 for the somewhat singular monu- 
 ment beneath which he is interred, 
 which is a grating of iron bars bent 
 into the form of a coffin, across 
 
 2 D 
 
402 
 
 Boute 23. — Frome. Somersetshire. 
 
 which are laid a mitre and pastoral 
 staff — 
 
 A basket-work where bars are bent — 
 
 Iron in place of osier ; 
 And shapes above that represent 
 A mitre and a crosier." 
 
 B. MoncJdon Milnes. 
 (Lord Houghton.) 
 
 The whole is now protected by a 
 small open-worked stone shrine. 
 
 ' Jose'pli Glanvil, ''the first English 
 writer who had thrown scepticism 
 into a definite form/' the author of 
 * The Vanity of Dogmatising,' as 
 well as of the once famous ' Saddu- 
 cismus triumphatus,' or assertion of 
 the reality of witchcraft, was Vicar 
 of Frome, afterwards of Bath, ' . 
 
 John Foster, the Baptist minister, 
 author of ' Essays on Decision of 
 Character,' &c., had the charge of 
 the congregation in Sheppard's Bar- 
 ton, 1804-1808. He did not love 
 the place, which he calls ''a large 
 and surpassingly ugly town. ... I 
 should nauseate the place if I had 
 been habituated to it for a century." 
 
 The cloth-mills are scattered about 
 the neighbourhood of the town. Mr. 
 Tucker's factory is now the most flour- 
 ishing, situated near Wall-bridge at 
 the eastern extremity of the town. 
 Mr. Singer's factory for mediaval 
 brass work, situated at a small emi- 
 nence, called Conigar, and his silver- 
 smith's work in the market-place, will 
 repay a visit. 
 
 The walk to Vallis Bottom is a 
 delightful one. Leaving your inn, 
 you will turn 1. at the bridge down 
 the course of the river, which is 
 stained of a dark blue colour by the 
 dyers. A path across small grassy 
 fields, well provided with hedgerow 
 timber, and commanding a good 
 general view of Frome, leads in 1 m. 
 to Spring Gardens, and further on to 
 the picturesque village of Mells, by 
 Vallis (1 m. W. of Spring Gardens, 
 and the same distance N.W. of 
 Frome, 1. of the road to Kadstock). 
 It is a romantic little glen, with 
 
 richly wooded sides, where the 
 geologist will notice the oolite beds 
 on the flat top of the mountain lime- 
 stone, with beds of much earlier con- 
 glomerate between the two. Here 
 quiet reigns undisturbed, for even 
 the streamlets cease their prattle, 
 and creep in silence, forming pictures 
 in glassy pools. Among other rare 
 plants the botanist will find the Dip- 
 sacus pilosus. The rock is in some 
 places quarried, and exhibits its 
 strata of various colours, dipping at a 
 high angle. Vallis was the seat of the 
 Leversedges, the ancient lords of the 
 manor, and now belongs to the Earl 
 of Cork. The Hall (temp. Hen. VII.) 
 still remains with its roof almost 
 perfect, and all its arrangements 
 can be traced. A very charming 
 walk may be taken up the course of 
 this little stream. It divides at ii7m, 
 one branch descending N.W. from 
 MellSj another S.W. from the woods 
 of Asham and Nunney. Either 
 route will afford much pleasure 
 to the lover of the picturesque. At 
 Elm the rocks of the ravine, over- 
 hung with ivy and brushwood, rise 
 to a height of 150 ft. The Ch. has 
 a tower, with a saddle-back roof, and 
 will repay inspection. Mells, 3 J m. 
 W. from Frome Stat., is celebrated 
 for its manufactory of scythes, which 
 are supposed to owe their excellent 
 temper in part to the water, which 
 is impregnated with lime from the 
 mountain limestone. At Nunney 
 another edge-tool mill is worked by 
 Mr. Fussell. Mells belonged to Glas- 
 tonbury, and at the Dissolution was 
 purchased by John Horner, to whose 
 family the estate still belongs ; a cot- 
 tage of the 15th cent, may still be 
 seen near the ch. Mells Park 
 (F. J. F. Horner, Esq.) is delightfully 
 situated in a finely wooded demesne. 
 Charles I. occupied Mells House 
 July 17, 1643, its owner, Sir John 
 Horner, being Parliamentary High 
 Sheriff of the county, and his estate 
 under sequestration. On the 19th 
 he left for Bruton. Of the Homers 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 23. — Nunney Castle. 
 
 403 
 
 of Mells was that favourite of the 
 nursery, Little Jacic Horner^ who 
 
 " Sat in a corner, , 
 Kiting a Christmas pie." ' 
 
 The plum which the *^good boy" 
 found is said to have been 10,000Z. 
 The CK, Perp., beautiful both in 
 form and detail, according to Leland 
 was built '^yn tyme of mynde by 
 the hole paroche. One Garlande, a 
 draper of London, gave freely to 
 the biiylding of the vestiarie, a fine 
 and curious peece of work. A gentle- 
 man of the paroche made a fair 
 chapel to the N. of the church." 
 It has a noble Perp. tower and sanctus 
 bell-cot, and contains a plain Norm, 
 font. Near the Ch. is the stately 
 late Perp. Manor House. The ravine 
 here is known as Wadbury Vale, 
 On either side are remains of earth- 
 works, Wadhury Camp, N., and 
 Tedhury, S. On the N. flank of 
 Newbury Hill, overlooking another 
 affluent of the stream, is Newbury, 
 another entrenchment. The stream 
 has its source in Emborrow Fond, or 
 Lechmere Water, on the N.E. slope 
 of Mendip. 
 
 2 m. S.W., 800 ft. above the sea, 
 is the bleakly-placed village of Leigh- 
 upon-Mendip, where the small Ch, 
 has a very elaborate Perp. tower 
 crowned with 20 pinnacles, and con- 
 tains a large Norm. font. 
 
 From Vallis an equally pretty 
 walk may be taken up another branch 
 of the stream, which has its rise at 
 E. Cranmore, by Whatley, 2 m., 
 where there is a good Ch., with tower 
 and lofty spire ; Norm, doors to S. 
 porch, and N. and S. chapels ; in 
 the S. chapel is an altar-tomb to 
 one of the Servington family with 
 recumbent effigy (at Whatley House, 
 J. H. Shore, Esq., a Roman villa, 
 with a very perfect pavement, of a 
 design more than usually good, and 
 remains of the bath, have been dis- 
 covered) ; to Nunney, where there is 
 another very pretty dell running up 
 in the direction of Bruton. 
 
 J[Nunney Castle is a very picturesque 
 ruin, in a romantic position. It was 
 begun, temp. Edw. III., a.d. 1373, by 
 Sir John Delamere, and finished by 
 his nephews in the following reign. 
 The walls are nearly perfect, and 
 present an excellent example of a 
 fortified house of the period of tran- 
 sition from Dec. to Perp., sur- 
 rounded by a moat. The plan is 
 oblong, 61 ft. by 25 ft., with a 
 cylindrical tower of very bold pro- 
 jection at each corner. The central 
 part of the house was divided into 
 4 stories by wooden floors. The chief 
 staircase was in the northern tower. 
 The hall was on the first floor. The 
 tower at the S. corner contains on 
 the third story a very perfect ex- 
 ample of a domestic chapel. The 
 stone slab of the altar is seen pro- 
 jecting below the 2-light Perp. win- 
 dow looking due E., with a canopied 
 piscina on the S. side. In the Great 
 Rebellion, this castle was garrisoned 
 for the king, but was taken in Fair- 
 fax's campaign, Sept. 8, 1645, about 
 the same time as Basing House, 
 which belonged to the same owner, 
 Pawlet, Marquis of Winchester. 
 The marks of the siege are still to 
 be seen on the walls. Nunney Ch, 
 is cruciform, extensively altered, 
 temp. Henry VII., with an E. E. 
 chancel, containing a Norm, font 
 and some good effigies of the Dela- 
 meres and Praters which deserve 
 notice. The beautiful ancient cross 
 of the 13th cent., removed a few 
 years since by the parochial autho- 
 rities, has been re-erected in the 
 grounds of Whatley House. The 
 hall of a manor-house near the Ch., 
 used as a lumber-room (called the 
 Nunnery), preserves afine roof, music 
 gallery, and screen. Nunney is 3 
 m. from the Witham Stat.^ 
 
 [Badstock, 8 m. N.W. (Rte. 25), 
 is the centre of an extensive coal- 
 i field. Some of the pits are of con- 
 • siderable depth, employing horses 
 underground.] 
 
 2 D 2 
 
404 Boute 23. — Lullington — BecMngton. Somersetshire. 
 
 IMarston Ch., 3m.S.W.,is modern. 
 Marston House, built by Edmund 
 Earl of Cork and Orrery, d. 1798, 
 has been almost entirely rebuilt by 
 the present earl. It is a stately Italian 
 structure, containing many good 
 paintings, including portraits of the 
 Boyles: Rich., 1st Earl of Cork, 
 Lord High Treasurer of Ireland, and 
 Robt. Boyle, the natural philosopher; 
 and the first orrery ever constructed, 
 about 30 inches in diameter, named 
 from its inventor, Charles, 4th Earl 
 of Orrery, 1676-1731 ; an interest- 
 ing collection of original letters of 
 Pope, Swift, Bolingbroke, the Duke 
 of Marlborough, &c., Charles I.'s 
 Prayer-book with MS. notes, Robert 
 Boyle's air-pump, and many other 
 curiosities.] 
 
 [^Lullington, a pretty secluded vil- 
 lage, 2 1 m. N., deserves notice for 
 its small church, chiefly of good 
 Trans, work, consisting of chancel, 
 and nave without aisles, divided by a 
 central tower; a large S. transept 
 and porch, restored 1862. The 
 tower is Perp., of the Somersetshire 
 type above, supported on Trans.- 
 Norm. arches, with very curious 
 capitals. The most curious feature 
 is the K. doorway, richly decorated 
 ■with twisted columns and with bird's 
 beak and other mouldings. Within 
 the crown of the arch is a rude 
 sculpture of 2 animals fighting for 
 a cross, and above it a figure of our 
 Lord as Judge. There is a singular 
 tub-shaped Norm, font, with an in- 
 scription, "Hoc fontis sacro pereunt 
 delicta lavacro." The chancel is Dec. 
 c. 1320. 
 
 The church of BecMngton, 2J m. 
 N.E., retains its Norm, tower, the 
 rest having been rebuilt in Perp. 
 times. It contains a monument to the 
 poet Daniel, d. 1619, who succeeded 
 Spenser as poet-laureate, placed there 
 by the Countess of Dorset, and some 
 good brasses. There are fine effi- 
 gies of John Seymour, in plate- 
 armour, and his lady, 1485, and of 
 
 another female. The village is rich 
 in old houses. Beckington Castle 
 (Mr. Meade King) contains a rich 
 collection of majolica and other 
 objects of art. In the parish is said 
 to have been born Bp. Beckington, 
 whose name is so closely connected 
 with the architecture of Wells. 1 m. 
 from Beckington is the village of 
 Boad, where is Road Hill House, the 
 scene of the Constance Kent tragedy 
 in 1861.] 
 
 [The principal seats in the neigh- 
 bourhood of Frome are Longleat, 
 Marquis of Bath ; Witham Park, an 
 estate belonging to Bradley Park, 
 Duke of Somerset ; Marston House, 
 Earl of Cork and Orrery Mells Park, 
 J. F. Horner, Esq. ; Bahington House, 
 Capt. Wyndham Knatchbull. Hard- 
 ing ton Park, of which the house is 
 in ruins. Standerwick Court, and 
 Berkeley House, belonging to Sir 
 Charles Mordaunt, E. H. Dickinson, 
 Esq. Ammerdown, 7 m. N.W., in 
 Kilmersdon parish. Lord Hylton, is a 
 modern mansion, designed by J. 
 Wyatt, in a park 4 m. in circum- 
 ference. (See p. 424.) Orehardleigh, 
 2 m. N., Rev. W. Duckworth, Esq., 
 whose father built a new house, and 
 laid out the grounds. The old man- 
 sion, formerly the seat of the Champ- 
 neys, remains in the hollow. The 
 small Ch., which has a font and some 
 windows of interest, stands in the 
 park. On Murtry Hill in the park of 
 Orehardleigh are some so - called 
 Druidical stones forming a Cromlech, 
 or sepulchral chamber ; the two 
 uprights being of inferior oolite and 
 the capstone a slab of millstone grit. 
 Orehardleigh Pond is a fine sheet of 
 water. 
 
 Farleigh Castle, 6 m. N., and 
 Norton St. Phihp's, 5 m. N., and 
 Charter House Hinton (Rte. 4), may 
 all be visited fromFrome.] 
 
 Proceeding on our route, the rly. 
 leaves the woods of Longleat to the 
 1., and runs parallel with the escarp- 
 ment of the great Wiltsbire chalk 
 
Somersetshire. Route 23. — Witham — Bruton. 
 
 405 
 
 range, crowned near Bruton by Al- 
 fred's Tower ^ on the estate of Stour- 
 head (Rte. 12). The section from 
 Frome to Yeovil was first opened 
 Sept. 1856. 
 
 120^ m. Witham Stat., the Junc- 
 tion of the E. Somerset line, which 
 runs rt. to Shepton Mallet and Wells, 
 14 m. (Rte. 22). 
 
 Witham was the site of the first 
 Carthusian establishment in England, 
 founded about 1175 by Henry II. 
 The 3rd prior, and virtual founder, 
 was the celebrated Saint Hugh, one 
 of the "Black Letter'' saints, after- 
 wards Bishop of Lincoln, who erected 
 the buildings, and presided over the 
 house for eleven years, till reluc- 
 tantly removed to Lincoln. His life, 
 edited by the Rev. J. F. Dimock, 
 was written by one of his chap- 
 lains, a monk of Witham. At the 
 Dissolution, the property was be- 
 stowed on the Hopton family, who 
 lived here. Lord Hopton, the dis- 
 tinguished cavalier general, was of 
 this family, and resided at Witham, 
 which was more than once fortified 
 and garrisoned for the king. In 
 1644 Lord Hopton placed as many 
 as 500 horse about it. July 18 in 
 that year Prince Charles dined with 
 Lord Hopton at Witham. It was 
 besieged in September, 1644, and 
 the garrison surrendered on terms. 
 
 The Ch., which was probably 
 the Minor Ecclesia" of the priory, 
 had been much disfigured by so- 
 called improvements, but has more 
 recently received a conscientious 
 restoration at the hands of Mr. 
 W. White, who has removed the 
 ugly tower erected in 1828, and 
 lengthened the church by a bay, 
 A new bell-gable, lofty and massive, 
 carries the three old bells. It is 
 vaulted with stone, the ribs spring- 
 ing from corbels, and has an apsidal 
 E. end, in advanced Transition -Norm. 
 — '* just the small plain ch. we should 
 expect at a Carthusian monastery, 
 
 forbidden." — J, F. Dimock. There 
 is a square trefoil-headed double 
 piscina to the S. of the apse and a 
 rood-loft staircase to the N. There 
 are only very few traces of the mon- 
 astic buildings remaining. 
 
 A cell, belonging to the friary, 
 with lands adjoining, stood on the 
 top of the Mendips, between Cheddar 
 and Blagdon. It is still called 
 Charter-House on Mendip (see Rte. 
 22, p. 399), and is considered as be- 
 longing to the parish of Witham, 
 though many miles distant. 
 
 The line runs through rich woods 
 
 to 
 
 126 m. Bruton Stat. {Inns: Blue 
 Bell ; Wellington). Cole Stat., on 
 the Somerset & Dorset line, is 1 m. 
 W. (Rte. 20). This little town 
 (Pop. 2232) is prettily placed in 
 a valley among a cluster of hills, 
 about 4 m. from the wooded heights 
 of Stourhead and Alfred's Tower. It 
 derives its name from the Brue, 
 which, rising in the neighbourhood, 
 flows through it in a shallow stream, 
 turning the wheels of a horsehair 
 factory. It is a place of some anti- 
 quity, and was formerly the seat of a 
 brotherhood of Black Canons, whose 
 priory was built by William de 
 Mohun of Dunster, 1142, on the 
 ruins of a Benedictine monastery, 
 said to have been founded here in 
 very early times by Ethelmar, an 
 Earl of Cornwall. The abbey was 
 granted by Henry VIII. to Sir 
 Maurice Berkeley, his standard- 
 bearer, in 1546, and he made it 
 his residence. In Leland's time Bru- 
 ton was *'much occupied with the 
 making of cloth." Charles I. was 
 here in 1641, and heard a sermon 
 from Bp. Lake, and visited it again 
 with Prince Charles in Juy 1644, 
 when the king spent two nights 
 at Bruton, and was quartered at the 
 Abbey house, "a, faire and noble 
 habitation of his loyal servant, Sir 
 
 where the inmates were few, and j C. Berkeley." The attempt to in 
 grandeur and ornament was sternly | duce the rustics of the place to join 
 
406 
 
 Boute 23. — Bruton — BedlyncJt, Somersetsliire. 
 
 the royal standard was a complete 
 failure. General Goring made Bruton 
 his head-quarters in 1645, but evacu- 
 ated it on Cromwell's approach. 
 
 In Bruton register is the following 
 poetic effusion of thankfulness for 
 deliverance from the clubmen in 
 1642 :— 
 
 " All praise and thanks to God still give. 
 For our deliverance Matthias eve ; 
 By his great power we put to flight 
 Our foes, the raging Batcombites ; 
 AVho came to plunder, burn, and slay, 
 And quite consume our town this day." 
 
 A pig of lead bearing a triumphal 
 inscription of Antoninus and Verus 
 was found at Bruton early in the 
 last centy. 
 
 The Great Hall of the Abbey House 
 was burnt 1763, and the remainder 
 pulled down, 1786. The family of the 
 Lords Berkeley of Stratton (from 
 whom Bruton Street, Stratton Street, 
 and Berkeley Square, London, take 
 their names) having died out, the 
 property was purchased by Sir H. 
 Hoare in 1776. 
 
 The Prior's house exhibits the 
 arms and badge of the Mohuns, and 
 John Hinton, prior in 1448. 
 
 The Ch. has considerable merit. 
 It has been well restored by the 
 late Mr. Slater and Mr. R. H. Car- 
 penter, and deserves careful atten- 
 tion. The ceilings are remarkably 
 fine. The tower at the W. end is a 
 noble example of a plainish Somer- 
 setshire type, with triple belfry win- 
 dows filled with pierced stone work, 
 and a quatref oiled battlement, and 
 groined within. The church is sin- 
 gular from having a second tower 
 surmounting the N. porch. The 
 chancel is debased. Beneath it is a 
 vaulted crypt with octagonal pillars 
 containing coffins of the Berkeley s. 
 The walls of the nave are surmounted 
 by an open-worked parapet. The 
 clerestory windows have rich niches 
 between them within, filled with 
 new statues at the recent restora- 
 tion, and the roofs are handsomely 
 panelled in oak. There are some 
 monuments, particularly one to Sir 
 
 Maurice Berkeley and his 2 wives, 
 and another to Chief Justice Fitz- 
 James. An ancient tomb in the 
 churchyard is attributed to William 
 Gilbert, abbot of Bruton, whose 
 arms, with the initials W. G., may 
 be seen over the N. door. 
 
 The vicarage, adjoining the church, 
 was formed 1822 by Sir Richard Colt 
 Hoare out of the ruins of the abbey. 
 On a grassy hill above it, once the 
 park of that abbey, stands a roofless 
 tower, commanding an excellent view 
 of Bruton and its neighbourhood. 
 Creech Hill, crowned by a small 
 camp, is seen to the N.W. 
 
 The Free Grammar'School, founded 
 by Richard FitzJames, Bishop of 
 London, 1520, and his nephew. Sir 
 J. FitzJames, Lord Chief Justice, 
 suppressed by Henry VIII., and 
 refounded by Edw. VI., derives its 
 revenue from the Abbey lands. It 
 possesses an excellent library of 
 modem literature and a chemical 
 laboratory. 
 
 The Hospital, founded by Hugh 
 Sexey in 1638 (who rose from a 
 stable-boy to be auditor to Queen 
 Elizabeth) for 14 old men and 14 
 old women (since enlarged), is a 
 quaint building forming a small quad- 
 rangle, including hall and chapel, 
 and presenting a good example of 
 the late Gothic of Somersetshire 
 (compare, post, Wyke Champjlower, 
 Low Ham). Between the hospital 
 and the Ch. is an ancient and very 
 picturesque one-arched bridge. 
 
 The road to Wincanton, 4 m., is a 
 pretty drive, passing on rt. Bedlynch 
 Parle, a seat of the Earl of Ilchester; 
 and rt,, 1 m. from Bruton, Discove^ 
 a romantic hamlet, where a Roman 
 pavement was found in 1711. This 
 road runs out of Bruton through a 
 stone archway, embowered in elms, 
 whose branches embrace across the 
 road. 
 
 Bedlynch was the seat of the 
 ancient family of Draycot. Eleanor 
 Draycott, the heiress, married, early 
 in the 15th cent., James FitzJames, 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 23. — Batcombe — Castle Cary, 407 
 
 and brought the Redlynch estate 
 to that family. Three sons were 
 the issue of this marriage, of whom 
 Richard, Bishop of London (1506- 
 22) and Lord Almoner to Henry 
 VII., was the youngest. The eldest 
 son. Sir John Fitz James, was the 
 father of Sir John Fitz James, Lord 
 Chief Justice of the King's Bench, 
 d. 1 642, the chief founder of Bruton 
 Grammar School (Rte 16, p. 242). 
 In 1670 Sir Stephen Fox possessed 
 the property (b. at Farley, near Salis- 
 bury, 1627; d. 1716) (Rte. 8); a 
 faithful servant of Charles I. and II. 
 He lived in the reigns of 6 Sove- 
 reigns, and his character was that of 
 *' the greatest favourite of the prince, 
 the chiefest minister of state, and 
 the wealthiest subject of the realm." 
 He was the projector of the great 
 military Hospital at Chelsea, and 
 contributed largely to that under- 
 taking. The present mansion was 
 built by him 1672. George III. was 
 ti frequent visitor here. 
 
 [The pictures at Stourheady the 
 seat of Sir Henry Ainslie Hoare, 
 Bart., and the gardens may be seen 
 (Rte. 12). Alfreds Tower, com- 
 manding a view over an immense 
 extent of country, is accessible at all 
 times, the key being kept at the 
 adjoining lodge. It is 4 J m. from 
 Bruton to Alfred's Tower, 7J m. to 
 the house, but J a mile may be 
 saved by crossing the meadows called 
 Bruton Park. S. of Alfred's Tower 
 is the earthwork of Jack's Castle, on 
 the summit of a hill, and at the foot 
 of this height the remains, in a farm- 
 house and its buildings, of the Augus- 
 tinian priory of Stavordale, founded 
 by one of the Lo veils in the reign of 
 Henry III. (Rte. 20, p. 272).] 
 
 [Batcomhe, 3 m. N. has a good 
 Perp. Ch. The tower is very 
 fine, and is a good example of the 
 earlier and more severe Somersetshire 
 tower, with the same truncated ap- 
 pearance as the W. towers of Wells. 
 On its W. face is a niche containing 
 a figure of our Lord with censing 
 
 angels. The S. aisle was built in 
 1629 by James Bisse, a member of 
 the family, to whom the manor passed 
 at the Dissolution, from Glastonbury 
 Abbey. This aisle, especially the 
 S. porch, is a curious specimen of 
 the struggle of the Gothic and Clas- 
 sical styles. The Jacobean altar- 
 rails are curious. There are several 
 quaint and interesting monuments 
 to the Bisse family. A small exter- 
 nal crucifix at the E. end of the 
 nave deserves notice, Richard Ber- 
 nard, a Puritan divine, author of a 
 quaint allegorised work, entitled 
 ''The Isle of Man, or Legal Pro- 
 ceedings in Man's hert against Sin, " 
 died rector here in 1641. 
 
 1 m. W. of Bruton, Wyke Champ- 
 flower has a chapel built by H. South- 
 worth, 1624, worth notice as an 
 example of Jacobean Gothic. The 
 manor-house stands hard by, and 
 both are overshadowed with fine 
 elms. Here the rly. to Yeovil goes 
 under the Somerset and Dorset line 
 between Wimborne and Highbridge 
 ''Rte. 20). 
 
 On the road to Castle Cary the 
 bold eminence of Creech Hill will be 
 observed on the rt. 
 
 1291 m. Castle Cary Stat., f m. 
 N. of the town. An omnibus runs 
 3 times a day from the Britannia Inn 
 to Evercreech June. {Inns : George ; 
 Britannia ; Pop. 2060). This is 
 another small town deriving interest 
 from the beauty of the surrounding 
 country, but in itself possessing 
 little to delay the traveller. It is 
 situated on the escarpment of the 
 inferior oolite, partly in the valley 
 partly on the slope, its principal 
 street running up a hollow between 
 2 hills. There are factories here for 
 flax spinning and weaving hair for 
 the seats of chairs, and a fortnightly 
 market. 
 
 Of the Castle, which once stood 
 above the source of the Gary, the 
 name alone remains, with some grassy 
 mounds indicating its site. The last 
 
408 Boute 23. — Castle Cary — Yarlington. Somersetshire. 
 
 mention of it occurs in the reign of 
 Stephen, when it played a part in the 
 civil contests of that period. 
 
 Castle Cary was in early times the 
 seat of the Luvells, descendants of 
 Robert Lord of Breherval, one of the 
 companions of the Conqueror, whose 
 son Ascelin, d. 1120, was surnamed 
 Lupus, from the fierceness of his dis- 
 position. His son, William de Per- 
 cheval, was called Lupellus, softened 
 into Lupel or Luvell, and lastly 
 Lovel. 
 
 This William de Percheval joined 
 the Empress Maud, and strengthened 
 his castle at Cary. He ravaged all 
 the adjacenb country, sweeping it of 
 the provisions needed by Stephen s 
 army at Bristol, who on raising the 
 siege of Bristol attacked Castle Cary 
 so fiercely that the garrison surren- 
 dered in 1138. It was held again by 
 W. de Percheval in 1153 against 
 Stephen's adherent Henry de Tracy. 
 
 The Ch.j perched upon a hillock, 
 forms a pretty picture. It is a grace- 
 ful Perp. building, which in 1856 
 received a new tower and spire, and 
 was in great part rebuilt by Mr. 
 Ferrey. It contains a font dating 
 from Henry VI., and a richly carved 
 pulpit, bearing statues of the Apos- 
 tles. Opposite this church is 
 
 Castle Gary Park on a prettily 
 broken hill-side. From its summit, 
 which is called Lodge mil, both seas 
 are said to be visible, but, at any 
 rate, the longest sight may be 
 satisfied with the view. It em- 
 braces the vales of Bridgwater and 
 Taunton, the Quantock and Black- 
 down hills, the last extending to 
 Exmoor ; towards the N.W. Brent 
 Knoll and Glastonbury Tor; N.E. 
 the conical top of Creech Hill ; and 
 E. the far-seen tower of Stourton. 
 The hill was probably the chase or 
 park of the barons who once dwelt 
 here. 
 
 The Marlcet'house^ with a clock- 
 tower, was built in 1855 (Penrose, 
 Arch,), 
 
 Charles II., on his escape after the 
 defeat at Worcester, arrived at Castle 
 Cary, Sep. 16, 1651, disguised as 
 Mrs. Jane Lane's groom, under the 
 name of Wm. Jackson. He slept at 
 the house now occupied by Mr. 
 Bellringer, and went on next day to 
 Trent. Within the village are the 
 springs of the river Cary, which 
 form a pond at its fountain-head, 
 and in its course gives its name 
 to Babcary, Lytes Cary, Cary Fitz- 
 paine, &c. 
 
 [The road from this town to Win- 
 canton, 6 m., is one of the prettiest 
 in the coimty. AVinding over the 
 hills, it gives the traveller delicious 
 peeps at distant vales and heights, 
 and at certain points a variety of 
 distances in connection with a rich 
 foreground. At 1^ m. it passes on 
 1. Hadspen House (Henry Hobhouse, 
 Esq.), a grey old mansion beneath a 
 wood, through which a walk is seen 
 to climb. The entrenched height of 
 Cadhury is a striking object from 
 this road.] 
 
 [Al/ord, 21 m. W., has a very 
 beautiful and well-restored Ch. ; a 
 specimen of the Perp. of Henry VI. 
 The screens and bench-ends have 
 rich carvings, and the windows good 
 stained glass, some ancient. In the 
 churchyard is a fine cross, late 13th 
 cent. S. of the village is Alford 
 Well, a mineral spring.] 
 
 [At Yarlington, 3 m. S. of 
 Castle Cary, are some remains of the 
 manor-house, and in the church an 
 ancient and curiously sculptured 
 font. Adjoining the village is Yar- 
 lington Lodge (T. E. Rogers, Esq.), 
 and on the hill-top to the W. the 
 earthworks of a British camp.] 
 
 The rly. passes rt. North Barroui, 
 where the small Ch., rebuilt 1860, 
 retains some ancient portions, and 
 South Barroio, and reaches 
 
 134 m. Sparhford Stat. Sparkford 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 23. — Cadbury. 
 
 409 
 
 Ch. was rebuilt 1824, but the chan- 
 cel and tower arches were preserved. 
 1^ m. 1. is the entrenched height 
 
 of 
 
 Cadhury^ or the hill-fort. [CacZ, 
 or Cath (British), war, battle, and 
 the A.-S. byrig, a fortified camp.] It 
 is a conical summit on the escarpment 
 of the oolite, abvitting on the plain 
 which extends to Ilchester, and en- 
 circled at the top by 4 deep ditches 
 in concentric rings, and by as many 
 bulky ramparts of earth and stone. 
 The S. side is terraced with " lynch- 
 ets." These formidable defences en- 
 close an area of about 30 acres, in the 
 centre of which is a moated mound 
 or prsetorium called King Arthur's 
 Palace. Cadbury is mentioned in 
 old records under the title of Game- 
 lot, probably derived from the Celtic 
 Kam, crooked, applied to the wind- 
 ings of the river Camel which runs 
 near, giving a name to the villages 
 of Queen's Camel and W. Camel, 
 and also to the river Camel and 
 town of Camelford, in Cornwall, 
 near King Arthur's Castle of Tin- 
 tagel. 
 
 " Like Camelot what place was ever yet re- 
 nowned, 
 
 Where as at Carlion he kept the table 
 round ? " — Drayton. 
 
 Many interesting relics have been 
 found in this camp : round stones 
 for slings, a silver horseshoe, and 
 numerous coins, chiefly of Antoninus 
 and Faustina, proving that this for- 
 tress was occupied by the Romans, 
 whatever might have been its origin. 
 This by common tradition is as- 
 signed to King Arthur, who, in the 
 opinion of Camden, fought a battle 
 with the Saxons near the spot. In 
 the fourth ditch on the N. side is a 
 spring called King Arthur's Well, 
 said to possess many marvellous vir- 
 tues, and sharing with the lonely 
 *' palace " on the top the reverence 
 of the countiy people, who, indeed, 
 imagine the whole hill to be haunted 
 ground, and believe it to be hollow 
 within and to be gradually sinking. 
 
 The village of South Cadbury lies 
 in a narrow valley, under the ^.E. 
 side of the camp. The Ch., stand- 
 ing very picturesquely immediately 
 under the rampart, is a pleasing 
 little building, well restored, with a 
 modern chancel. The S. arcade is 
 Trans, between E. E. and Dec, the 
 Western respond being singularly 
 banded. There is a curious niche in 
 the rood turret staircase. 
 
 North Cadbury was formerly a 
 possession of the De Moels, from 
 whom it passed by marriage to the 
 Botreaux, Hungerfords and Hastings. 
 The Ch., once collegiate, was built 
 by Elizabeth, lady of William, last 
 Lord Botreaux, c. 1427. The tower 
 is of earlier date, built by John 
 Ferroure, parson of the parish, c. 
 1394, and is hardly worthy of the ch. 
 It is a very stately edifice, dedicated 
 to St. Michael, all of one date, except 
 the arcades, which are Dec. worked 
 up again, and raised when the ch. 
 was rebuilt. There are N. and S. 
 porches, panelled round the doorway, 
 groined in ^ stone, with stair turret 
 and parvises over. The chancel is 
 very lofty and well proportioned, 
 with a noble E. window filled with 
 good glass by Clayton and Bell, 
 flanked with niches exhibiting some 
 original colouring. The chancel 
 arch is of grand proportions. The 
 oaken tiebeam roofs are excellent. 
 Placed now under the tower are 2 
 altar-tombs ; one bearing the effigies 
 of Sir Wm. and Lady Eliz. Botreaux ; 
 the other commemorating Sir Fran- 
 cis Hastings and his wife. Lady Mag- 
 dalene, 1596, in whose honour is an 
 epitaph of 15 stanzas, in a plate 
 against the wall. The oak seats bear 
 the date 1538, and exhibit much 
 curious carving which deserves at- 
 tention. Whichcot, Provost of King's, 
 was rector here 1643-50, and was 
 succeeded by Ralph Cudworth, the 
 author of the Intellectual System, d. 
 1688. Adjoining it is Cadbury House 
 (Col. Bennett), originally the seat of 
 the De Moels, passing by marriage 
 
410 Bte, 23. — Oom^ton-Pauncefoot — Bimpton, Somersetshire. 
 
 to the Botreaux, Hungerfords and 
 Hastings, an Elizabethan gabled 
 mansion, built by the 3rd Earl of 
 Huntingdon about 1581. The hall 
 is a fine room, 48 ft. by 22 ft., with 
 a large bay window, filled with ar- 
 morial bearings. The S. front is 
 modern. It contains some Italian 
 paintings, including a copy of Guido's 
 Aurora, by RafFaelle Mengs. The long 
 range of stabling bears the date 1607. 
 
 2 J m. E. of Sparkford is Compton- 
 Fauncefoot, a very well-kept and 
 pretty little village. The Ch. is 
 Perp., and has a low stone spire, a 
 very unusual feature in this district. 
 The S. porch has a rich door with 
 niches. The windows contain much 
 deeply-tinted modern Brussels glass, 
 on the merits of which opinions may 
 be allowed to difi'er. 
 
 J m. S.E. of the village is Compton 
 Castle (Hubert Husey Hunt, Esq.), 
 a modern castellated mansion, with 
 a fine sheet of water in front. 
 Within, the octagonal hall and 
 staircase have a fine effect. 
 
 3. m. E. Blackford. The little aisle- 
 less Ch., Perp., has a low, ivy-clad 
 pinnacled tower, and a Norm. S. 
 door with enriched mouldings. The 
 font is early Norm. 
 
 Hazelgrove House, J m. rt. of 
 Sparkford Stat., seat of Rev. Arrun- 
 dell St. John Mildmay, built 1730. 
 Its park is remarkable for its enor- 
 mous oaks. One, mentioned by Lou- 
 don, is 80 ft. in height, and has a 
 trunk 30 ft. in circumference, at 4 ft. 
 from the ground. S.W., 1 m., the 
 village of 
 
 Querns Camels belonging in olden 
 times to the De Burghs, noted for a 
 sulphurous spring, which rises 1 m. 
 to the W. of it. Queen's Camel Ch,, 
 which was given by Hubert de Burgh, 
 Earl of Kent, in 1202, to Cleeve 
 Abbey, is quite worth a visit for its 
 tall and stately tower and fine in- 
 terior, which has a low Dec. arcade 
 and Perp. windows and roof, a very 
 rich screen surmounted by a rood- 
 loft, a fine Perp. oaken pulpit, large 
 
 coarse sedilia, and a good piscina 
 with a triple ogee canopy. The font 
 is one of very remarkable design, 
 with niches and statues at the angles. 
 The Jacobean Mildmay pew deserves 
 notice. There are monuments 
 to the Mildmays, including one to 
 Sir Humphrey, d. 1690, who was 
 wounded at Newbury fight. 
 
 The line now enters a broad 
 marshy vale, which sweeps past II- 
 chester to Langport, along the banks 
 of the Yeo. It is bounded by an 
 amphitheatre of hills. 1 m. W. is 
 West Camel. During a recent restora- 
 tion of the ch. a fragment of the 
 shaft of a stone cross carved with 
 interlacing serpents, of the type 
 common in Ireland, was discovered. 
 
 136f m. Marston Stat. The Ch. is 
 small and plain, with a low square 
 tower, and N. chantry containing a 
 very elaborate niche for a statue. 
 The E. window is a plain E.E. triplet. 
 The N. wall of the chancel has one 
 very early light, and some herring- 
 bone work. There is a good Norm, 
 font. The clock is said to have 
 been brought from Glastonbury 
 Abbey. To the S.W. of the Ch. is 
 a long Jacobean house, one room of 
 which is decorated with coarse 
 Scriptural paintings of the 17th cent, 
 on canvas. In the fields to the 
 S.E. of the Ch. is a moated enclosure, 
 locally reputed to have been the 
 site of an episcopal palace. 
 
 [1 m. E. of Marston is Bimpton, a 
 manor of the See of Winchester from 
 before the Conquest. The small, 
 pretty, and well-restored Ch. deserves 
 notice. The chancel is very early 
 Dec, with an eastern triplet, and 
 single lights in the side walls. The 
 nave has its original benches, with 
 very handsome carved ends, re- 
 sembling those at N. Cadbury. The 
 pulpit is Jacobean. The grand- 
 father of the famous Dr. Sacheverell 
 was incumbent here during the 
 Commonwealth, li m. further E., 
 just on the border of Dorsetshire, is 
 the pretty village of Sand ford Orcas, 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 23, 
 
 . — Yeovil, 
 
 411 
 
 with a very picturesque and well- 
 restored Manor House, with old- 
 fashioned gardens, bowling - green, 
 turf steps and terraces (Hubert 
 Hutchings, Esq.). The Ch. has been 
 almost rebuilt, but reteiins Dec. 
 windows, and an E. E. lancet in the 
 chancel, a S. chantry with a richly- 
 panelled roof, and a curious E. E. 
 circular font. There is a singular 
 monument to Wm. Knoyle, the 
 former possessor of the manor (d. 
 1607), and his two wives. The 
 manor derives its name of Orcas 
 from the Norman family Orescuitz, 
 who formerly held it. Bp. Godwin, 
 the author of the ' Catalogue of the 
 English Bishops/ and of the * Man in 
 the Moon/ d. 1633, was at one time 
 rector. 
 
 The rly. passes left Trent (see 
 post) and Over Gomjpton {Compton 
 House, John Goodden, Esq., a pic- 
 turesque gabled mansion of modern 
 Gothic. The Ch. contains monu- 
 ments of the Gooddens. It has a 
 good Perp. tower), and, running 
 under Babylon Hill, reaches 
 
 14 m. Pen Mill Station for Yeovil, 
 where there is a good modern hotel. 
 
 [The joint station of S.-W. and 
 Bristol and Exeter Rlys. is ^ m. off, 
 on the Sherborne road, at the foot of 
 Summer Tree Hill. Yeovil is a 
 centre of railway communication. 
 The main line of the S.-W. Ely. 
 from London to Exeter passes near 
 it, as does the Weymouth branch of 
 the G.W. Ely., by Maiden Newton and 
 Dorchester. There is also a branch 
 joining the Bristol and Exeter Eail- 
 way at Durston, near Taunton.] 
 
 Yeovil (Inns : Three Choughs ; 
 Mermaid ; Pop. 8480) is a busy, 
 handsome town, built of red brick 
 and yellow Hamhill stone, and situ- 
 ated on a hill-side sloping to the 
 Yeo, from which it derives its name. 
 It is in a pretty country, and on the 
 old coach-road from London to the 
 West. Its chief manufacture is that 
 
 of kid gloves, which is extensively 
 carried on here, about 80, OOOZ. being 
 annually paid to the workpeople. 
 Gloves are made both in the town 
 and in the neighbourhood, and sail - 
 cloth at the villages of E., W. and 
 Middle Chinnock. 
 
 In July 1645 Yeovil was held by 
 the King's forces, who were expelled 
 by Fairfax and his men before the 
 decisive victory of Langport. 
 
 The Ch. is a very noble edifice, 
 cruciform in plan, with stately square 
 tower, 90 ft. high at the W. end. 
 The height of the side aisles and 
 large size of the windows give it 
 grace and lightness, and hence it has 
 been called " the Lantern of the 
 West." *^It is," says Mr. Freeman, 
 ^' one grand and harmonious whole, 
 as truly the work of real artistic 
 genius as Cologne, or Winchester, or 
 St. Ouen's." 
 
 The nave is very lofty and of stately 
 proportions, with wide side aisles, 
 and a noble tower arch, and good 
 dark cradle-roof. The S. porch is a 
 fine composition. Under the chancel 
 is a crypt, groined from a central 
 pillar, used as a vestry, entered by a 
 canopied doorway richly groined in 
 the head. The windows contain rich 
 modern stained glass — that in the 
 tower to the memory of the Prince 
 Consort. There is an ancient brass 
 Lectern, the gift of one Martin Fores- 
 ter, bearing an inscription, violating 
 all laws of grammar and prosody — 
 
 "Precibus nunc precor cernuis hinc eja 
 rogate, 
 
 Frater Martinus Forester vita vigiletque 
 beate." 
 
 In the chancel is a bust of the 
 Eev. Eob. Phelips, Vicar (d. 1855), 
 by Westmacott. The new schools to 
 the W. group well with the church. 
 
 Trinity Ch., Peter Street, was built 
 1843-6, after a design by B. Ferrey. 
 It is in the E. E. style. 
 
 The Town Hall, above the Corn 
 Exchange and Market, is an Ionic 
 building, with a clock turret, erected 
 1849. 
 
412 
 
 JRoute 23. — Brympton cVEvercy, Somersetshire. 
 
 Some old houses deserve notice. 
 
 The George Inn, in Middle Street, 
 is a good specimen of an old hostelry. 
 It was formerly called the Three 
 Cups. The Castle Inn is another 
 ancient building. 
 
 A view of Yeovil from Summer- 
 house Hill will well repay a walk of 
 10 min. Proceed down Middle St., 
 as far as South St., where the foot- 
 bridge over the rly. will lead you to 
 the foot of the hill. At the foot of 
 the eminence runs the Bristol and 
 Exeter Railway, and between it and 
 the river, in rich park- like grounds, 
 is Newton House, an Eliz. building, 
 seat of the old family of Harbin. 
 
 Hendford (Fred. Greenham, Esq.) 
 is a large modern mansion, sur- 
 rounded with fine pleasure-grounds ; 
 Pen House (Miss Neal), is seated on 
 an eminence in a beautiful garden. 
 Other residences are — Hendford 
 Manor, E. Newman, Esq. ; Aldon, J. 
 Batten, Esq. ; Hollands^ H. B. Batten, 
 Esq. ; Kingston Manor, T. Dampier, 
 Esq. 
 
 Another view of the town, with a 
 more extended landscape, may be 
 obtained from the slope of Babylon 
 Hill, about 1 m. on the road to 
 Sherborne. 
 
 Colter Court, 3 m. S., is the resi- 
 dence of W. H. Helyar, Esq. 
 
 [A very charming excursion may 
 be made (preferably on foot) to Pres- 
 ton, Brympton, Odcombe, Monta- 
 cute, and Stoke-sub-Hamdon. 
 
 Leaving Yeovil at the N.W. angle, 
 we reach in 1 m. 
 
 Preston Pluclmett, the site of a 
 grange of Bermondsey Abbey, still 
 retaining in its buildings much to 
 interest an antiquary, especially the 
 remains of its Perp. hall, and groined 
 porch. The Ch. is E. E. 
 
 Brympton d'Evercy, 3 m. .W. of 
 Yeovil, on the road to Montacute, is 
 well worth a visit. From the parson- 
 age a striking architectural group is 
 seen lying in the hollow below, con- 
 sisting of a large stately mansion, 
 
 a smaller house, and the ch., all 
 worthy of attentive study. The Ch., 
 originally a small cruciform aisle- 
 less Dec. building, has gone through 
 many alterations. It has a singular 
 bellcot, perched on the apex of the 
 western gable, for Avhich it is many 
 sizes too large. The Geometrical 
 window of the S. transept, the foli- 
 ated arch connecting it with nave, 
 and the S. door, the piscina in the 
 N. trans., and stone chancel screen, 
 all deserve notice. The Sydenhams 
 have made this their burial-place 
 since Edw. IV. In the churchyard 
 are some interesting effigies, removed 
 from the ch., probably of the 
 D'Evercys. There is a handsome 
 modern monument to Jane Countess 
 of Westmoreland, d. 1857. To the 
 IST. of the churchyard stands the 
 Chantry House, built temp. Hen. 
 VII., for 3 priests, which has a fine 
 octagon staircase turret, and good 
 ceilings within. The Mansion House 
 (Hon. S. P. Fane) has a fine W. front, 
 130 ft. long, of good Perp. character. 
 The N.W. portion is untouched, and 
 has a splendid display of oriels, 
 turrets, chimneys, and open battle- 
 ments. The hall was modernised 
 temp. Eliz. The S. or garden front 
 was added by Inigo Jones. The 
 rooms are large and lofty, and con- 
 tain some good tapestry, and excel- 
 lent portraits by Lely and other emi- 
 nent masters. 2 m. S.W. of Yeovil, 
 1. of the road to W. Coker, are some 
 remains, in a farmhouse, of Nash 
 Court well worth a visit. 
 
 A pretty upland walk, ^ m. from 
 Brympton, leads to Odcombe, from the 
 churchyard of which village a most 
 extensive view can be obtained of the 
 surrounding country. Tom Coryate, 
 w^ho called himself " the Odcombian 
 Legstretcher," born 1577, was the 
 son of a rector of Odcombe. He was 
 educated at Westminster School 
 and Gloucester Hall, Oxford, and 
 then became a member of the house- 
 hold of Henry Prince of Wales. He 
 started on Whitsun Eve, May 14, 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 23. — Montacute. 
 
 413 
 
 1608, on a pedestrian tour through 
 Europe, and returned Oct. 3 of the 
 same year, after walking 1975 miles. 
 He started again for a visit to the 
 East, Oct. 20, 1612, reached Jeru- 
 salem April 12, 1614, and, after visit- 
 ing the Court of the Great Mogul, 
 died at Surat, Dec. 1617. It is 
 commonly asserted that he walked 
 900 m. in one pair of shoes, and on 
 his return hung them up as curious 
 relics in Odcombe Ch. He published 
 his travels under the title, ' Crudities 
 hastily gobled up in 5 moneth 
 trauells newly digested in the hungry 
 air of Odcombe.' He is said to have 
 introduced into England the use of 
 table- forks. Odcombe was also the 
 birthplace of Humphrey Hody, Keg. 
 Prof, of Greek at Oxford, b. 1659. 
 The tower of the Perp. Ch. stands 
 between the nave and chancel. 
 
 Ij m. beyond Odcombe brings us 
 by a pretty walk to Montacute. 
 
 Montacute House, seat of William 
 Phelips, Esq. (4 m. on the road to S, 
 Petherton). It is a very imposing 
 and beautiful structure, built as is 
 believed from the designs of John 
 Thorpe between the years 1580 and 
 1601, by Sir Edward Phelips, Queen's 
 Serjeant, afterwards Master of the 
 Rolls, and Speaker of the House of 
 Commons, whose father and ances- 
 tors had resided at Barrington Court, 
 near II minster. It is in the form of 
 an H, of Hamhill stone, and pierced 
 on its E. front, 170 ft. long, by no 
 less than 41 Tudor windows. The 
 spaces between these windows on 
 the second story are occupied by 8 
 statues, which, with a ninth in the 
 centre gable, are asserted by Coryatt 
 in his ^' Crudities " to represent the 
 nine worthies." The W. front is 
 equally handsome, and has the ad- 
 dition of a gorgeous screen, which 
 was brought from Clifton Maubank 
 (Rte. 12, p. 183). The arms over the 
 doorway also came from Clifton, 
 those of Phelips excepted. The 
 principal entrance bears the hospit* 
 able motto — 
 
 " Through this wide opening gate i 
 Kone come too early, none return too late 
 
 the garden door, ''And yours, my 
 friends." The hall is a stately apart- 
 ment with singing gallery and screen, 
 and a decoration of bas-reliefs which 
 represent the ancient punishment of 
 " riding the Skimmington." The 
 upper story of the house is almost 
 entirely occupied by a single room, 
 185 ft. in length, and 21 ft. in breadth, 
 now unfurnished. The drawing- 
 room in the W. wing, reached by a 
 winding stone staircase, has a rich 
 panelled and fretted ceiling, and ela- 
 borate woodwork, especially a splen- 
 did doorcase, with the motto Hoc 
 Age. The gardens are in the Italian 
 style, with terraces and fountains, 
 and domed alcoves. In the Civil 
 War, 1645, Montacute was sacked by 
 the Parliamentary forces, and was 
 for a short time occupied by Crom- 
 well. 
 
 The Ch. belongs principally to 
 the Transition period between E. E. 
 and Dec. The chancel arch is Nor- 
 man ; those of the S. transept E. 
 E. ; of the N. Dec. ; the font and 
 tower are Perp. On the JST. side of 
 the nave is a curious arabesque 
 Norm, arch over a window now with- 
 in the Ch. The font has a solid 
 stone cover, which is raised by means 
 of a pulley and chain. Here are the 
 monuments of the Phelipses : Sir 
 David Phelips and Anne his wife, 
 with effigies, 1420 ; Bridget Phelips, 
 1508 ; Sir T. Phelips and wife, 1598. 
 The churchyard contains the shaft 
 of a cross bearing the figure of a 
 mitred ecclesiastic with the pas- 
 toral staff under a canopy. Adjoin- 
 ing are the remains of 
 
 Montacute Priory, supposed to have 
 been founded for Cluniac monks by 
 Wm. Earl of Moreton, temp. Henry I. 
 They consist of some domestic build - 
 dings, and a very fine Perp. gateway, 
 with an oriel and bold staircase-tur- 
 ret, more like the gateways of the 
 older Oxford colleges than ordi- 
 nary conventual entrances. The 
 
414 
 
 Route 23. — Skike, Somersetshire. 
 
 E. front facing the meadows is sin- 
 gularly lovely. On one battlement 
 are the arms of England, and on the 
 other the letters T.C., probably the 
 initials of Thomas Chard, the last 
 prior. In the picturesque village of 
 Montacute^ almost "every cottage pre- 
 serves its mullioned window, arched 
 doorway, and chimney-shafts." 
 
 Above Montacute rise two pyra- 
 midal hills (whence mons acutm), 
 clothed with wood to their summits. 
 The E. is St MicliaeVs, on which in 
 the days of Tofig the Proud, — a great 
 Danish thane, **stallere" to Canute, 
 at whose wedding feast with Gytha 
 Hardicanute fell dead, — "t\\Q Holy 
 Cross of Waltham was discovered, 
 after a search made in obedience to 
 a thrice-repeated vision to a smith, 
 who was also the sexton of the vil- 
 lage, then known as Lutegarsbury. 
 On digging, a large crucifix was disco- 
 vered, which Tofig sent to his manor 
 of Waltham, together with a smaller 
 crucifix, and bell, and book. A castle 
 was built on the summit by William 
 the Conqueror's ^'insatiable brother" 
 Eob. of Mortain, Earl of Cornwall, 
 *' at once a badge of the presence of 
 the stranger, and an object of the 
 bitterest hatred to the men of the 
 Western lands, looking down like a 
 vulture's nest on the surrounding 
 hills and the rich valleys at its foot " 
 {E. A. F.), which was vainly besieged 
 by the men of Somerset and Dorset 
 in 1069, who were defeated and put 
 to flight by Bp. Geoffrey of Cou- 
 tances. The castle has entirely 
 perished, and a prospect-tower has 
 been erected on its site [the key is 
 kept at the Hall]. The summit 
 of the hill commands a splendid 
 view: W., to the hills below Mine- 
 head and Blackdown ; N.E., over 
 Taunton, the Quantocks, the Channel, 
 Welsh coast ; N., Brent Knoll, Mendip, 
 Glastonbury Tor ; E., Creech, and 
 Knoll, Alfred's Tower; S., over Dor- 
 set hills to Lambert's Castle, near 
 Lyme. Beyond these, again, are 
 Hamhill and Stoke Down, forming a 
 
 promontory on the escarpment of the 
 oolite, which strikes S. from this 
 point towards Crewkerne. Some en- 
 trenchments confirm the statement 
 that this eminence was fortified after 
 the Conquest. Perhaps the want of 
 water prevented its being continued 
 as a stronghold. 
 
 The road to Hamhill passes the ch. 
 of E. Stoke, or 
 
 Stohe-suh'Hamdon, than which 
 " few churches, great or small, are 
 more interestinsr.*'— i/. A. F. It is 
 a cruciform aisleless building, with a 
 tower over the N. transept, of which 
 the belfry stage is a beautiful speci- 
 men of E. E. masonry. The origi- 
 nal fabric is Norm., with additions 
 and insertions. The W. window is 
 excellent Dec. ; the E. window Perp. ; 
 the transepts and tower E. E. Some 
 of the original windows, the door- 
 ways, and chancel arch remain little 
 altered. On each side of the chancel 
 is a low side window. On the tym- 
 panum of the N. door is a rude 
 carving. In the centre is a tree 
 with three birds in its branches ; 
 on the rt. of this is the Lamb with 
 the cross. Beyond, on the 1., an 
 archer with his bow bent, on the rt. 
 some animal, which is shown by the 
 inscription underneath to be in- 
 tended for a lion. This inscription, 
 which is partly defaced, reads — 
 
 Sagittarius . . . v . . . leo 
 
 The N. porch has a good groined 
 roof ; the room over it, which is used 
 as a vestry, has also a stone ribbed 
 roof. Observe on the exterior a curi- 
 ous canopy in the angle between the 
 W. wall of this porch and the N. 
 wall of the nave. Note also the 
 fine Norman corbel table on the 
 outer walls of the chancel. The 
 chancel-arch is of 3 very massive 
 orders, flanked on either side by a 
 large rude squint. There is a most 
 curious double piscina across the 
 S.E. angle of the chancel, and 
 another similarly placed in the S. 
 transept. The piscina for the rood- 
 
Somersetshire. Route 23. — Hamdon — Trent, 
 
 415 
 
 loft altar remains to the S. The 
 N. transept beneath the tower has 
 groining springing from very curious 
 corbels, E. E., and is divided from 
 the Ch. by a Perp. stone screen. The 
 font is Norm., tub-shaped, with the 
 cable and zigzag moulding. Under 
 a foliated canopy in the S. transept 
 is an efi&gy ascribed to Matthew de 
 Gournay, born at Stoke, d. 1406, 
 aged 96. He fought at Cressy and 
 Poictiers. To the N. of the chancel 
 is a Jacobean effigy under a coarse 
 Renaissance canopy. There is also 
 an effigy of a priest of late 14th cent, 
 work. Beyond Stoke Ch. we can 
 turn up a road to the 1., and visit' 
 
 Hamdm or Hamhill, and its Quar- 
 ries, for centuries celebrated for their 
 building stone, an oolite, which, 
 though coloured by iron, and con- 
 taining more siliceous sand than the 
 oolite of Bath, is little inferior to it 
 in durability, and an equally beauti- 
 ful material, as may be seen by the 
 houses of Montacute and Sherborne 
 Castle. The pits are scattered over 
 the hill, which they pierce to a depth 
 of about 100 ft., exhibiting a fawn- 
 coloured rock, sometimes grained like 
 wood. On the summit of Hamdon is 
 a well-known British camp, the 
 N.-E. portion of which was oc- 
 cupied and altered by the Ro- 
 mans. It is of about acres, 
 and about 3 m. in circumference. 
 The remains of chariot-wheels have 
 been found in it. At the IST. angle 
 is a hollow called ''the Frying- 
 pan," probably an amphitheatre, and 
 near it a series of low perforated 
 stones, much overgrown, supposed 
 by some to have been used for 
 tethering the horses or securing the 
 tents. From this camp the visitor 
 may enjoy a panorama of distant 
 hills, complete but at one point, 
 where the eye meets with a check 
 in St. Michael's Hill. The great 
 landmarks of the county are, how- 
 ever, in view, and from Rana Hill, 
 in the S., you may range round 
 
 the horizon by the Blackdowns, the 
 Brendons, the Quantocks, the sea at 
 Bridgwater, the Mendips, the hills 
 from Bath to Sherborne, and Bubb 
 Down, over Melbury. At the foot 
 of Hamdon is the village of 
 
 W. Stolce, inhabited by quarry men, 
 where was a collegiate chapel, founded 
 by John de Beauchamp in 1304, in 
 which a chantry was founded by 
 Hugh, son of Matthew de Gournay, 
 one of the murderers of Edw. II., for 
 masses for his father's soul. It 
 contains the small remains of the 
 once noble mansion of the Beau- 
 champs and Gournays. The chapel 
 is now a cider cellar. It is in the 
 style of Montacute, with an ivied 
 arch at the entrance to the court- 
 yard. In the village a wall pierced 
 with loopholes marks the position of 
 the former castle. 
 
 A mile walk across the fields, under 
 the western slopes of Ham Hill, leads 
 to Norton-sub-Hamdon, beautifully 
 situated under wooded heights. The 
 Ch. is a handsome Perp. building, 
 well and skilfully restored.] , 
 
 [At Trent, N. of Babylon Hill, and 
 4 m. from Yeovil, Charles II. lay 
 concealed for more than a fortnight 
 after the battle of Worcester, and it 
 was from this place that he made his 
 unsuccessful attempt to escape at 
 Lyme, under the guidance of his 
 host, Colonel Wyndham. Trent 
 Manor House is but a portion of 
 the old building, containing Lady 
 Wyndham's parlour and the King's 
 hiding-place, &c., carefully preserved. 
 The place of Charles II. 's conceal- 
 ment is a hole about 9 ft. deep, under 
 the floor of the closet, where, tradi- 
 tion says, the King slept. The 
 boards are movable, and a man can 
 easily let himself down between the 
 joists. 
 
 The Church is a very interesting 
 building, which has received some 
 splendid decorations from the mu- 
 nificence of the late rector, the Rev. 
 
416 
 
 Boute 24. — Witham to Wells. Somersetshire. 
 
 W. H. Turner. It has, to the S. of 
 the nave, a tower and 5 stone spire 
 (Dec.) — a very unusual feature in 
 this district — and a polygonal baptis- 
 tery (a modern addition) at the W. 
 end. Nearly all the windows are filled 
 with stained glass, principally mod- 
 ern. The rood-loft and screen re- 
 main, and are remarkably rich. The 
 magnificent carved oak pulpit was 
 brought from Belgium. The bas- 
 reliefs represent various scenes from 
 our Lord's infancy and childhood. 
 The N. chapel (Dec.) is entered 
 through an arch painted with laurel 
 branches and leaves, among which 
 are 40 shields, representing the alli- 
 ances of the families of Coker and 
 Gerard. At the N. end are two stone 
 effigies, one in armour, cross-legged; 
 the other a very singular one, partly 
 in military, partly in civil costume. 
 There is also a monument to Sir 
 Francis Wyndham, who, as Col. 
 Wyndham, coucealed Charles II, in 
 his mansion of Trent. 
 
 A fragment of a cross, with a 
 cylindrical shaft and steps, stands in 
 the churchyard, adjoining which is a 
 picturesque chantry house, and 
 another st?.nds a little further from 
 the ch.] 
 
 ROUTE 24. 
 
 WITHAM TO SHEPTON MALLET AND 
 WELLS. 
 
 {Branch of the Great Western 
 Railway.) 
 
 Leaving Witham Junction, the 
 line runs W.N.W. to 
 
 2J m. Wamtrow Stat. The nave 
 of Cloford Ch., 2 m. N.W., v/as re- 
 built 1856. The chancel, long dis- 
 used, has been restored by Mr. Horner. 
 In the N. chapel are monuments to 
 the Horners, including an altar-tomb 
 to Maurice Horner, d. 1621, and a 
 quaint one to Sir Geo. Horner, d. 
 1676, and his lady. Thence to 
 
 5f m. Cranmore Stat, at West 
 Cranmore, where the Ch. has a good 
 tower of the Taunton type, and 
 contains monuments of the Strodes. 
 South Hill House is the seat of Edw. 
 C. C. Strode, Esq. The ch. of East 
 Cranmore, 1 m. E., was rebuilt by 
 T. H. Wyatt, 1846. Cranmore HalUs 
 the residence of R. H. Paget, Esq., M.P. 
 On the top of the hill, 1 m. N.W., 900 
 ft. above the sea^ 2 m. from the stat., 
 a prospect-tower has been built, com- 
 manding a splendid view. If m. S. 
 of the stat. is Chesterhlade (Rte. 20). 
 
 JDoulting, N. of the rly., I5 m. W. of 
 Cranmore Stat., 2 m. E. of Shepton 
 Malet, should be visited for the 
 sake of its fine Ch. , Barn, and Quar- 
 ries of excellent building stone in 
 the inferior oolite, which supplied 
 the materials of the Cathedral and 
 St. Cuthbert's Ch. at Wells, Glaston- 
 bury Abbey, &c. The Ch., dedi- 
 cated to St. Aldhelm (much re- 
 stored), is cruciform, without aisles, 
 with an octagonal central tower (a 
 good plain example of the 13th 
 centy.), crowned with a later spire. 
 The nave is E. E. ; the chancel Dec. ; 
 the S. porch (rebuilt ; the stones of 
 the old porch may be seen in the 
 Rectory garden) is very i-ich Perp., 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 24. — STiejpton Mallet. 
 
 417 
 
 with a pendant. The N. door is 
 Norm. There are 5 large and fine- 
 toned bells. A short distance from 
 the ch. stands a very fine old 6am, 
 formerly belonging to the abbots of 
 Glastonbury, built in the early part 
 of 15th centy., with ornaments over 
 one of the porches. In the ch.-yd. is 
 a 15th-centy. Cross, with the instru- 
 ments of the Passion carved on its 
 base. This was probably a Sanctuary 
 Cross, the precincts of the ch. having 
 enjoyed this privilege. 
 
 Near the ch. is St. Aldhelm's Well, 
 the source of the little river which is 
 the motive power of the weavers of 
 Shepton. St. Aldhelm died here, 
 May 25, a.b. 709. '^When he felt 
 himself stricken for death, he de- 
 sired his attendants to carry him 
 into the little wooden ch., where, 
 having commended his soul to God, 
 he calmly breathed his last." His 
 body was carried for interment by 
 his own desire to St. Michael's 
 chapel at Malmesbury, a distance of 
 50 m. Stone crosses were set up at 
 every 7 m. along the road, known 
 afterwards as Bishopstones. Bp. Eg- 
 win of Worcester came to conduct 
 the funeral. 
 
 Continuing down the valley, 
 watered by the Sheppy, with the 
 southern slopes of Mendip rising rt., 
 we reach 
 
 9 m. Shepton Mallet Stat. {Inns: 
 George, Hare and Hounds ; Pop. 
 5322), commonly known as Shepun,*' 
 a busy, flourishing town, containing 
 one of ?the gaols for the county of 
 Somerset. 
 
 The old town, 2 m. long, and very 
 narrow, lies by the stream in the 
 bottom of the valley. The principal 
 street of the more modern town 
 crosses the valley by a viaduct. That 
 it is situated in a country of stone 
 is obvious from the numerous ugly 
 fences which partition the fields. 
 
 Shepton derives its distinguishing 
 name from the Mallets, its Norman 
 lords, the site of whose ancient man- 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, ^c, 1882.] 
 
 sion is now occupied by the Swans 
 in Kilver Street. It was the birth- 
 place of Simon Browne, a learned 
 Protestant dissenter, an opponent of 
 Woolston and Tindal, b. 1680 ; also 
 of Hugh Inge, Abp. of Dublin, and 
 Chancellor of Ireland, d. 1528 ; and 
 Dr. Walter Charleton, author of 
 ^Chorea Gigantum,' an account of 
 Stonehenge, b. 1619. 
 
 Shepton was a very early posses- 
 sion of the monastery of Glaston- 
 bury. The manor was subsequently 
 held under the Abbey by Eoger de 
 Curcelle, a Norman noble, from 
 whom it passed to the Mallets. Sir 
 William Mallet joined the confederate 
 barons against King John, and hold- 
 ing his strong castle of Curry Mallet 
 against him, his estates were confis- 
 cated ; but afterwards restored on 
 the payment of a fine. It then 
 passed by purchase to the Gournays, 
 one of whom, Sir Thos. Gournay, 
 was one of the murderers of Ed- 
 ward II., who having fled to Spain, 
 was taken and drowned on his way 
 back; another was the celebrated 
 Matthew de Gournay, buried at 
 Stoke-sub-Hamdon (Rte. 23). The 
 manor again devolved to the crown 
 in 1536, and was subsequently 
 granted to the Prince of Wales as 
 Duke of Cornwall, to which duchy 
 a considerable part of the parish 
 belongs. In 1685 the Duke of Mon- 
 mouth, with his irregular forces, 
 paid two visits to Shepton, sleep- 
 ing himself at Longb ridge House. 
 Twelve men, who had joined his 
 cause, were executed in the market- 
 place by Judge Jefireys. The Ch, 
 is cruciform, with a good W. tower 
 of the Taunton type, crowned with 
 an incomplete spire, like that of 
 Yatton. The aisles were rebuilt 
 1827, absorbing the transepts, 
 and the chancel 1851. The two 
 wide eastern bays of the nave, 
 the arches of the chancel, and 
 of the original transepts are very 
 E. E. In the chancel is a beautiful 
 E. E. piscina. The wooden roof is 
 2 E 
 
418 
 
 Boute 24. — 
 
 Groscombe. Somersetshire. 
 
 one of the very finest in tlie country. 
 It contains 350 panels, no two being 
 alike. There is a stone pulpit to- 
 gether with some ancient crosses and 
 two knightly recumbent effigies in 
 chain .armour hoisted to the window 
 sills. The whole has been restored, 
 and re-seated and arranged. 
 
 TheMarTiet Cross, erected 1500 by 
 Walter and Agnes Buckland, hexa- 
 gonal, surmounted by a pinnacled 
 shaft 61 ft. high, ornamented with 
 niches. Having become ruinous, it 
 was carefully repaired in 1841. The 
 ancient Shambles deserve notice. 
 The town contains many curious 
 old houses. 
 
 As early as the 14th centy. 
 Shepton was a place of com- 
 mercial importance. In 1790 more 
 than 4000 hands were employed in 
 the cloth trade. The manufacture 
 of knitted stockings added to the 
 industrial activity of the place. In 
 addition to the large manufactures of 
 silk, velvet, crape, &c., now carried 
 on, there are very extensive breweries. 
 Ropes are made in the parish, and 
 there are large yards for brick and 
 tile making. It is also one of the 
 chief centres of the Cheddar cheese 
 industry. Many hands are employed 
 in the manufacture of boots and 
 shoes. Shepton is a very busy place, 
 and affords much to engage the at- 
 tention of tourists who feel an in- 
 terest in the commercial activity of 
 the country. A kiln for baking 
 Bjoman pottery was discovered when 
 building Messrs. Morrice and Cox's, 
 now the Anglo-Bavarian, brewery, 
 which has been carefully preserved 
 and may be seen on application at 
 the brewery, where is also a good 
 collection of local fossils. The Fosse 
 Way passes through the E. of Shep- 
 ton on its way to llchester. 
 
 [The road from Shepton to Wells, 
 5 m., is one of the most beautiful in 
 the county, and should be chosen in 
 preference to the rly. Croscorribef 
 ''the valley of the Cross," 2 m. 
 
 on the Wells road, lies situated on 
 the pretty stream which flows past 
 Shepton, in a pleasing valley, once 
 richly wooded. The views obtained 
 from the high ground, near the 
 Pilton direction post, are some of 
 the most fascinating in the county. 
 The village has a cross, and a very 
 interesting Ch,, which has a stone 
 spire, an unusual feature in this 
 county. The arcades are Perp. and 
 S. door E. E. ; but the mass of the 
 fabric is Perp. of the usual type, 
 with rich battlements. It contains 
 an extraordinary amount of fine 
 woodwork, seats, bench-ends, &c., 
 among which the truly magnificent 
 cinque - cento pulpit, bearing Bp. 
 Lake's arms and the date 1616, and 
 chancel screen, rising nearly to the 
 roof of the ch., deserve special 
 notice. The roof of the chancel is 
 of the same date ; that of the nave 
 is carved in dark oak. The belfry 
 has a fan-vault. There is a 2-storied 
 vestry on the S. side ©f the tower, 
 and a stone-ribbed N. Chapel. Some 
 monumental slabs and an incised 
 cross are set up on either side of the 
 reredos. 
 
 Croscombe is full of old houses, 
 among which the village Inn of the 
 15th centy. deserves especial notice. 
 It has a remarkably good bay win- 
 dow, with a carved stone ceiling, 
 good fireplaces, good panelled ceil- 
 ings to the chief rooms, and an octa- 
 gonal chimney on the gable. The 
 hall of the Manor House of the 15th 
 centy., N. of ch.-yd., is used as a 
 Baptist chapel. Ham Wood is a 
 lovely wooded and rocky glen, more 
 than 1 m. long. The cliff on the 1. 
 above the road commands a remark- 
 able view. 
 
 1 m. W. on the road to Wells is 
 Dinder, the manor-house of the So- 
 mervilles (the small Ch. has a slender 
 tower with an effective turret and a 
 cross picturesquely overgrown with 
 ivy) ; and Pilton with its good Ch. 
 and fine abbatial ham is 3 m. S.W. 
 (Rte. 20). 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 25. — Bath to Eoercreeoh Junction. 419 
 
 Passing rt. Didcot Hill, command- 
 ing a fine view of Wells and its 
 cathedral (where the tourist will be 
 repaid by walking over Dulcot rock, 
 taking his carriage again at the 
 drinking fountain below), the rly. 
 arrives at 
 
 14 m. Wells (Rte. 20). 
 
 ROUTE 25. 
 
 BATH TO EVERCREECH JUNCTION, BY 
 WELLOW, RADSTOCK, AND SHEP- 
 TON MALLET. 
 
 (Somerset and Dorset Ely.') 
 
 This line, which by Templecombe 
 and Blandford affords direct com- 
 munication between Bath and the 
 English Channel at Poole, leaves 
 Bath at the Midland Station, then, 
 crossing the Avon, sweeps round to 
 the E. of the city, and, passing 
 through a long tunnel under Combe 
 Down, reaches 
 
 4 J m. 1. Mid ford, a village in a 
 very pretty winding valley, with a 
 little streamlet making its way to 
 the Avon, spanned by a viaduct 
 commanding a charming view up 
 and down the dell. There is also 
 a canal up the valley for the con- 
 veyance of coals for Radstock. 
 
 On rt., before reaching the Stat., 
 is Midford Castle, a picturesque 
 modern house of triangular plan, 
 beautifully situated on a terraced 
 slope, with a deep glen on N. and 
 E. clothed with wood, and orna- 
 
 mented with a so-called ''priory" 
 and "hermitage." 
 
 Midford is a convenient point for 
 visiting Charter House Hinton, Limp' 
 ley Stoke and Freshford E. (Rte. 5). 
 
 li m. rt. Sotcth Stolce. The Ch., 
 rebuilt and enlarged 1845, has a 
 Norm. N. door and font, and a 
 Perp. pinnacled tower. 
 
 Rt. 2 m., Comhehay Park (S. Butler, 
 Esq.) embosomed in wooded hills, 
 with lawns sloping down to an arti- 
 ficial lake, and the village of Combe- 
 hay, where the churchyard contains 
 the grave of the poet Garrington, the 
 author of ' Dartmoor,' and a native 
 of Plymouth, d. 1830. In the Ch., 
 chiefly modern, lies buried the fiery 
 cavalier, Sir Lewes Dyves, the gal- 
 lant defender of Sherborne Castle 
 (Rte. 12) . Evelyn says of him, " he 
 was indeed a valiant gentleman, but 
 not a little given to romance when 
 he spake of himself." Combehay is 
 in the neighbourhood of 3 farms, 
 which rejoice in the names of Fort- 
 night , Week, and Three Days. The 
 road accompanies the canal, which 
 ascends a steep slope by means of 
 22 locks. 
 
 1 J m. W. Dunherton. The Ch., ex- 
 cept the tower, was rebuilt in 1859. 
 Here we enter the coal-field of which 
 Radstock is the centre. The pits 
 are sunk through no less than 3 
 formations before tliey reach the 
 coal measures, namely, the lower 
 oolite, the lias, and the new red 
 sandstone. These strata would in 
 some places make a total thickness 
 of 2000 ft., but they are here re- 
 duced to less than 500, by the thin- 
 ning out of many of the beds. 
 
 Friston Ch., 2 m. N. of Dunker- 
 ton, has on the S. side of the nave 
 a Norman corbel table and a good 
 doorway with a depressed arch; and 
 on the S. of the chancel a priests' 
 door, with a canopied weather mould- 
 ing. The windows of the chancel 
 are Dec, and in the interior have 
 round their splay some very elegant 
 cusped and foliated work. In one 
 2 E 2 
 
420 
 
 Boute 25. — Wellow, Somersetsliire. 
 
 of the windows on the N. side this 
 is a restoration, but in the other 
 windows the original work remains. 
 The Norman arches under the tower 
 and the Norman arcading are en- 
 tirely new, and not restored from 
 any remains previously existing. 
 
 The rly. continues along the pretty 
 valley on the 1. bank of the stream 
 to 
 
 6| m. Wellow. Its Ch., said to 
 have been almost rebuilt by Sir 
 Walter Hunger ford 1372, is among 
 the finest village churches in the 
 county, remarkable for the very fine 
 oak roof of the Perp. period, with 
 well- carved bosses and moulded 
 beams rising from good stone 
 corbels. The roof of the Hungerford 
 chapel is richly coloured and gilt. 
 It was restored in 1 845, and again 
 1879. The richly-carved wooden 
 roof, chancel-screen, and E. E. font, 
 are particularly worth notice. There 
 is a good effigy of an ecclesiastic. A 
 manor-house of the Hungerfords is 
 still standing near the churchyard. 
 In a cottage garden is the holy well 
 of St. Julian, according to local 
 tradition the abode of a white 
 lady," who appeared when any evil 
 threatened the house of Hungerford. 
 In afield called Wellow Hayes, about 
 ■J m. W., a Roman villa was dis- 
 covered in 1685, the rich tessellated 
 pavements buried beneath the earth 
 have from time to time been laid 
 bare for inspection. About f m. 
 S.W. at Stoney Littleton, is a cham- 
 bered tumulus containing a ^^cist- 
 vaen" 107 ft. by 54 ft. and 13 ft. 
 high, formed into chambers or cists 
 by large flagtones. One cist, near 
 the entrance, is about 6 ft. by 5 ft. ; 
 a straight passage, 47 ft. 6 in. long, 
 leads to another cist in the centre 
 of the barrow of about equal size. 
 There are also six smaller cists facing 
 each other, so as to form three tran- 
 septs across the passage and another 
 at the end. It was restored by the 
 Kev. T. R. Joliffe in 1858, and is kept 
 
 locked. The key must be had at a 
 house i m. away. 
 
 3 m. S.E. is Norton St. PliUip (7 
 m.^S.E. of Bath, 3 m. from Freshford 
 Stat.), a place of antique appearance, 
 formerly noted for its large Cloth 
 Fair. The cloth merchants held 
 their markets in the upper room of 
 the George Inn, a very interesting, 
 half-timbered, 15th-cent. house, er- 
 roneously stated to have been the 
 Grange of the Prior of Hinton, to 
 whom the market and wool fair be- 
 longed. It has bay windows and a 
 porch, an octagonal stair-turret and 
 good chimneys, and a grand old 
 dovecote. At the entrance of the 
 village stands an enormous elm, of 
 which the trunk forms a summer- 
 house. In this place occurred a 
 skirmish between the army of the 
 Duke of Monmouth and the king's 
 troops under Feversham, June 26, 
 1685. The latter having been re- 
 pulsed, Monmouth, who had passed 
 the night at the George, and had 
 been shot at as he stood at the 
 window with a view to the reward 
 offered for his life, marched upon 
 Frome, where, hearing of the defeat 
 of Argyll and the advance of a strong 
 force from London, he determined 
 to return to Bridgwater — to lose his 
 cause on the fatal field of Sedge- 
 moor. The Ch., "eccentric from 
 beginning to end " {E. A. F.), pro- 
 bably built of old materials reworked, 
 perhaps from Hinton Abbey, is a 
 fine building of Perp. date, well re- 
 stored by Sir G. G. Scott, with a rich 
 tower, belonging to no known type. 
 It contains a canopied tomb with an 
 effigy of a merchant, and the so- 
 called ' ' twin ladies of Foxcote, " now 
 placed in the Tower, the legend of 
 which may be learned from the 
 sexton. 
 
 Proceeding on our route, and pass- 
 ing 1. Foxcote and Writhlington, we 
 reach 
 
 lOf m. Badstoch (Pop. 3092), a 
 busy, thriving place, owing its pro- 
 I sperity to the coal pits, which afford 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 25. — Camerton — Maesbury, 421 
 
 employment to a large population, 
 and have converted a pretty village 
 into an unattractive town. There 
 is little to attract the archaeologist, 
 but the geologist will find it a good 
 field for his researches. Its name 
 has been erroneously derived from 
 the red sandstone on which it stands; 
 but it is really called from the Fosse 
 "Way, close to which it stands, Rad- 
 stockji.e. road-village. The Ch., Dec, 
 contains some remains of the rood- 
 loft and a Norm. font. The late 
 Frances, Countess of Waldegrave, 
 was the chief landowner, now Lord 
 Carlingford. Here the rly. is crossed 
 by the G. W. branch from Bristol 
 to Frome. 
 
 2 m. rt. is Camerton, on the Fosse 
 Way, which traverses a Roman camp. 
 The whole neighbourhood is full of 
 Roman remains. The Ch., with a 
 fine pinnacled tower, deserves notice. 
 A side chapel contains a series of 
 elaborate tombs of the Carews from 
 1640 to 1750. The situation of 
 Camerton Court (the Miss Jarretts) is 
 very picturesque. Woodborough House 
 (D. C. Wait, Esq.) is 1. of the Fosse. 
 Rt. of the road from Camerton to 
 Radstock is Round Hill, a large 
 barrow planted with trees, com- 
 manding a fine view towards Rad- 
 stock. Here the Fosse Way forms 
 a steep, narrow lane of 150 yards in 
 length. Continuing up the valley, 
 with the Fosse Way to the l.,we reach 
 
 12J m. Midsomer Norton Stat., 
 taking its name from lying plea- 
 santly between two branches of the 
 Somer rivulet. The Ch. was rebuilt 
 1832. Three of its bells were given 
 by Charles II., a fact commemorated 
 by his statue on the tower, and an 
 inscription on one of the bells : 
 
 " 'Twas Charles the Second, our gracious 
 king, 
 
 Was tlie chief cause we bells do ring." 
 
 The line climbs rapidly the slope 
 of Mendip to 
 
 14J m. Chilcompton Stat., a very 
 beautiful position. The pretty vil- 
 
 lage, rt., lies deep down in a wooded 
 glade, watered by the Somer, forming 
 miniature cascades. The Ch. was 
 rebuilt 1839. The neighbourhood 
 is very picturesque, and abounds in 
 pretty walks. 
 
 1 m. S.W. Stratton-on-the- Fosse 
 [the Street-town on the Fosse Way] 
 with a Norm. Ch. dedicated to St. 
 Vigor. At Downside is a modern 
 Benedictine Priory and college, with 
 a grand Gh. beautifully situated, and 
 a large wayside crucifix. Still climb- 
 ing, the line reaches 
 
 17 m. Binegar, the Ch. of which, 
 rebuilt 1859, standing high and bleak 
 on the summit of Mendip, has a 
 good ancient tower with panelled 
 battlements, and a niche containing 
 the representation of the Trinity. 
 The village w^as once celebrated for 
 a large fair, transferred here from 
 Wells on account of the plague in 
 the 16th centy., and removed back 
 again 1837. 
 
 J m. E. is the small hamlet of 
 Gurney Slade in a sequestered dell, 
 watered by a rivulet turning an 
 ancient mill. 
 
 Soon after leaving Binegar the 
 line reaches its highest elevation, 
 more than 800 ft. above the sea, 
 and just beyond this is 
 
 18^ m. Maesbury Stat, for Dinder 
 (3 m.) and Croscombe (2 m.) p. 418. 
 Here on the rt. is 
 
 Maesbury Castle, a British camp, 
 with double ramparts — ^'a very ex- 
 cellent type of Belgic works " — con- 
 taining 6 acres, on the line of the 
 Roman road along the crest of the 
 hill from the Bristol Channel to Old 
 Sarum. On the summit Beacon Hill, 
 1020 ft. above the sea, crowned with 
 a clump of firs, lies to the 1. This 
 is the highest point of East Mendip, 
 across which the Fosse Way ran to 
 Shepton, regardless of all natural 
 obstacles. 
 
 Maesbury commands the finest 
 prospect on the E. Mendip, embrac- 
 ing the whole county of Somerset, 
 with paj^ts of the surrounding coun- 
 
Route 26. — Bristol to Frome. Somersetshire. 
 
 422 
 
 ties, the Bristol Channel and South 
 Wales to the N., and to the S. the 
 great central valley of Somerset, 
 with Wells, Glastonbury, and its 
 isolated hills, once islands, rising 
 out of the marsh. The view em- 
 braces also Alfred's tower, the 
 Biackdowns, and Quantocks, Dun- 
 kery Beacon and Exmoor. 
 
 The rly. descends from Maesbury 
 to Evercreech with a very steep 
 gradient. The tourist should notice 
 the very remarkable views rt. on 
 running down to 
 
 22 m. Shepton Mallet (Rte. 2-lr). 
 25 m. Evercreech, New, Stat. 
 26| m. Evercreech Junction (Rte. 
 20). 
 
 ROUTE 26. 
 
 BRISTOL TO FROME, BY BRISLINGTON, 
 PENSFORD [STANTON DREW], 
 GLUTTON AND RADSTOCK. 
 
 (Great Western Ely.) 
 
 2 J m. Brislmgton stat. (Rte. 21). 
 
 3 m. Whitchurch, where the Ch., 
 restored 1864, has a central tower 
 and N. transept. The line skirts the 
 E. end of Dundry Hill, an outlying 
 ridge of inferior oolite, nearly 4 m. 
 long, and 790 ft. above the sea. 
 Maes KnoU, on its E. point, is 
 probably a natural mound, scooped 
 
 out for interments. It is an im- 
 mense tumulus, 390 ft. by 84 ft., 
 and 60 ft. high at the most elevated 
 point. It forms part of a very exten- 
 sive British station, occupying the 
 summit of Dundry Hill above Whit- 
 church, on the line of the Wans- 
 dyke, and corresponding with the 
 entrenched heiglit of Stantonhury, 5 
 m. to the E. of it. The oolite is 
 quarried on the hill. 
 
 3^ m. W. Dundry Ch, (St. 
 Michael's) is celebrated for its fine 
 Per p. tower, built by the Merchant 
 Venturers of Bristol, temp. Edward 
 IV., and probably intended as a 
 landmark. The church was rebuilt 
 1861. In the churchyard is a fine 
 cross with a tall shaft. The head is 
 modern. The summit of the tower 
 commands, on a clear day, one 
 of the most enchanting views in 
 the W. of England. Bristol and 
 Bath, to the N. and E., are both 
 in view; the hills about Calne 
 and Devizes, above the former, 
 bound the prospect. To the rt. of 
 Bristol are seen the hills near Berke- 
 ley and Stroud, in Gloucestershire, 
 and the view extends to Malvern 
 Hills. From N. to W. the Severn, 
 with the Welsh coast and mountains 
 for nearly 40 m., and the Quantpck 
 Hills, near Bridgwater, appear to 
 view. To the S. the eye ranges over 
 a rich and beautifully varied country, 
 embracing Stourhead, Knoll and 
 Cley Hills near Warminster, bounded 
 by the high ground about Shaftes- 
 bury. The Ch. of Norton Malreward 
 under Maes Knoll, rebuilt 1861, 
 retains its tower and Norm. arch. 
 
 \ m. rt. Belluton (T. Barnes, Esq.) 
 belonged to the father of Locke the 
 philosopher. 
 
 6J m. 1. Fensford Stat., called by 
 Leland a market townlet," in his 
 time busy with the manufacture of 
 cloth. It lies most picturesquely in 
 a deep valley crossed by a lofty 
 viaduct more than a J m. long and 
 100 ft. high, through which runs the 
 river Chew, dividing Pensford from 
 
Somersetshire, Boute 2(3. — Stanton Drew. 
 
 423 
 
 the adjacent village of Pvhlow, with 
 a good Ch., the lofty tower of which 
 was struck by lightning 1861. The 
 Ch» of Pensford, rebuilt 1568, retains 
 its square tower and curious font. 
 The scenery here is very picturesque. 
 
 Stanton Brew, rt. (1 m. through 
 the fields), in the fertile and well- 
 wooded valley of the river Chew 
 
 — " Stanton Drew, 
 
 A mile from Pensford — another from 
 Chew " — 
 
 like Littleton Drew, co. Wilts, derived 
 its name from the family of Drew, 
 owners of the manor, temp. Ed. III. 
 Here once stood a vast rude stone 
 monument of similar character to that 
 at Abury. Considerable portions of 
 it are still preserved. They include 
 the ruins of 3 circles, or ovals, and 
 4 outlying stones — huge, shapeless 
 blocks, of which 3 form a group 
 S.W. of the ch., called the Cove, 
 and the 4th stands on the high-road. 
 This is popularly known as Haut- 
 ville's Quoit, under the idea that it 
 was thrown from the height of Maes 
 Knoll by Sir John Hautville, a re- 
 doubtable member of a family who 
 once dwelt here, and whose effigy, 
 in Irish oak, was found many years 
 ago in the ch. of Norton Hautville, 
 and is now in that of Chew Magna. 
 He lived in the reign of Hen. III., 
 and according to the tradition was of 
 such amazing strength that on one 
 occasion, for a wager, he carried no 
 less than 3 men to the top of Nor- 
 ton ch. tower — one under each arm, 
 and the third between his teeth! 
 Of the circles the largest, S. of the 
 river Chew, is 345 ft. by 378 ft., and 
 its circumference, originally of 24 
 stones, is still marked by 14 stones, 
 of which 3 only stand upright, while 
 in the centre remains a so-called 
 altar-stone, and on the E. side 5 
 stones of an avenue. The 2nd circle, 
 about 50 yds. further N.E., formed 
 a ring 96 ft. in diam. and now con- 
 sists of 8 stones, of which 4 are up- 
 right; and connected with them are 
 
 7 stones of an avenue. The 3rd and 
 smallest circle, 129 ft. in diam., is 
 now partly concealed by an orchard 
 S. of the ch. It originally consisted 
 of 12 stones, of which 10 still re- 
 main, the largest being 9 ft. high 
 and 22 ft. round. These stones are 
 called by the country people the 
 *^ fiddlers" and the maids," and 
 the whole *^the wedding." These 
 designations are explained by, un- 
 less indeed they have given rise 
 to, the tale told by Stukeley, to 
 the effect that '*a couple were 
 married on Sunday, and the friends 
 and guests were so profane as to 
 dance upon the green together, and 
 by a divine judgment were turned 
 into stones." The former parsonage- 
 house of Stanton Drew is a fine old 
 building, with the arms of Bp. Beck- 
 ington over one of the windows. 
 The CJi., badly restored 1848, has a 
 beautiful Dec. doorway, with cano- 
 pied niche, plain bowl-shaped font, 
 and among other memorials the 
 tomb of Sir Michael Foster, one of 
 the Judges of the Queen's Bench, d. 
 1763. A farmhouse belonging to 
 Mr. J. Fowler preserves some traces 
 of mediaeval architecture. 
 
 Chew Magna, 1 m. rt. of Stanton 
 Drew, is a very pretty village, once a 
 market town. It has a fine Ch., 
 built or thoroughly repaired by 
 Bp. Beckington, whose arms are to 
 be seen in several places, with a 
 lofty tower, well restored, contain- 
 ing several interesting monuments 
 of families connected with the manor, 
 among them a gigantic effigy of Sir 
 John St. Loe, and an elaborate monu- 
 ment of Edward Baber and his wife, 
 1578. On the sill of a window is a 
 figure, of the 1 3th centy., carved out 
 of solid oak, of Sir John Hautville, 
 originally in Norton Hautville ch., 
 near Chew. It has been re-painted 
 in good mediaeval taste. S. of the 
 Ch. is a mutilated cross on a lofty 
 stepped basement. 
 
 Near the ch. is an old building, 
 supposed to have been built by one 
 
424 Boute 26. — Gheio Stoke — Kilmersdon. Somersetshire. 
 
 of the St. Loes, now used as a paro- 
 chial school, but in good preserva- 
 tion. The Manor-house (J. Colthurst, 
 Esq.) is also an ancient house, with 
 a gateway, and 2 small octagon towers 
 of unusual character. JBow Ditch is 
 a circular entrenchment, with a triple 
 rampart above the valleys. 
 
 1 m. S. of Chew Magna is Chew 
 Stake. The parsonage, of the 15th 
 centy., has numerous heraldic de- 
 vices in panels over the entrance and 
 between the windows, bearing date 
 1529. 
 
 £8utton Court, Sir Edward Strachey, 
 Bart.; partly built by the famous 
 *'Bess of Hardwicke," who took, as 
 her ord husband, Sir J. St. Loe. 
 Leland, the antiquary, spent some 
 days here in 1534, when he was com- 
 piling his * Itinerary of Somerset.' 
 Here Bp. Hooper found a tempo- 
 rary asylum, and John Locke fre- 
 quently resided here with his friend, 
 Mr. Strachey. The earliest part of 
 the Court is the tower, with a turret 
 staircase, built on the plan of the 
 Peel towers, with 3 rooms one over the 
 other. The house was added to the 
 tower by one of the St. Loes. It 
 has been well restored by its present 
 owner."] 
 
 7 m. 1. Houndstreet Park (F. W. 
 L. Popham, Esq., also of Littlecot, 
 Wiltshire). 
 
 10 m. rt. Glutton Stat., with a fine 
 spacious C%., rebuilt 1865. The 
 tower was rebuilt in 1728. The font 
 is ancient. 
 
 1 1^ m. Hallatrow Stat., a hamlet in 
 the valley, belonging to the parish of 
 Sigh Littleton, 1 m. E. 
 
 12 m. rt. Farrington Gournay, 
 lying pleasantly in a valley. Its 
 Norm. Ch. was rebuilt 1844. The 
 Manor House (Major J. E. Mogg) is 
 an ancient building ; 1. lie the coal- 
 fields of Camerton and Radstock. 
 
 14 m. Welton Stat. J m. N. of 
 Midsomer Norton. (Rte. 25.) 
 
 16 m. Radstock^i^.t. (Rte. 25), (the 
 line crosses the Somerset and Dorset 
 line). 
 
 The line continues up the valley to 
 
 17f m. rt. Kilmersdon, vn\h a light 
 and elegant Perp. Ch., having a lofty 
 and well-proportioned tower. In 
 the parish 1 m. 1. is Ammerdown 
 Park (Lord Hylton) — a modern 
 mansion, designed by James Wyatt, 
 in a park 4 m. in circumference on 
 an elevated site. In the park, 800 ft. 
 above the sea, is a column, 150 ft. 
 high, with a central staircase ; from 
 the summit a splendid view is ob- 
 tained. Inscriptions on the plinth 
 in Latin, French, and English, 
 explain that it was erected in 
 memory of Col. T. S. Joliflfe. It is 
 open to the public on Mondays and 
 Thursdays. 
 
 1 m. S.W. of Kilmersdon is Ba- 
 bington, with a modern Ch. Babington 
 House is the residence of Captain 
 Wyndham Knatchbull. 
 
 19 m. rt. Mells Stat., a most attrac- 
 tive spot (Rte. 23), whence a delight- 
 ful walk wends down the narrow^ 
 valley under Wadbury Gamp, by Elm 
 and Vallis. 
 
 24f m. Frome (Rte. 23). 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 21. —Bristol to Yeovil, 
 
 425 
 
 ROUTE 27. 
 
 BRISTOL TO YEOVIL, BY WELLS, 
 SOMERTON AND ILCHESTER. 
 
 (Boad.) 
 
 As far as Farrington Gournay this 
 route follows nearly the same course 
 as the rly. from Bristol to Frome 
 (Rte. 26), to which the tourist is 
 referred. 
 
 Bristol. 
 
 4 m. Whitchurch. 
 
 6 J m. Pensford. 
 
 9f m. Glutton. 
 
 lOj m. Temple Cloud. 
 
 1 m. 1. Stone Easton Park, the 
 seat of John Hippisley, Esq. 
 
 15 m. Chewton Mendip, among the 
 combes and projecting spurs of the 
 Mendips. It gives the title of Vis- 
 count to the family of Waldegrave. 
 The walls of the Ch. are Norman, 
 and it has a doorway and some in- 
 ternal remains in that style. The 
 chancel has an E. E. arcade, sepa- 
 rating it from the S. aisle, in which 
 is an altar-tomb to Sir Hugh Fitz- 
 roger and his lady, 1388. Many of 
 the carved oak benches remain. 
 There is a good example of the frid 
 stool, or seat of refuge, on the N". side 
 of the sacrarium. There is a good 
 lectern of the same date as the Bible 
 which lies on it, 1611, and a portait 
 memorial of the late Frances, 
 Countess of Waldegrave. The tower, 
 one of the finest examples of the 
 Taunton type, has been built on to the 
 earlier nave, ''it is one of the best 
 towers we have, and a most stately 
 thing" (E. A. F.). The church has 
 been well restored. In the ch.-yard 
 is a very fine canopied cross, with 
 the Crucifixion and other carvings 
 on the head. 
 
 [5 J m. rt. lies the village of Comp- 
 ton Martin^ the road to which, under 
 the Mendips, among the picturesque 
 slopes and spurs of the hills, is full 
 of beauty. It passes the villages of 
 East and West Harptree. The former 
 is seated in a rich and fertile valley. 
 Black oxide of manganese has been 
 dug here in large quantities. The 
 soil abounds in masses of breccia, 
 or pudding-stone, formed of sili- 
 ceous pebbles firmly cemented to- 
 gether. East Harptree Ch. is poor, 
 but its walls are Norm., and it has a 
 S. door of the same style. It contains 
 an altar-tomb, with an effigy in 
 armour to Sir J. Newton, d. 1568, 
 with figures of his 8 sons and 12 
 daughters. Bichmont Castle^ J m. 
 S.W. of the ch., was the stronghold 
 of the Gournay branch of the Harp- 
 trees, and was garrisoned in 1138 by 
 Sir W. de Harptree in support of the 
 Empress Maud. Stephen erected a 
 fort against it, which he manned 
 with the garrison from Bath, and 
 ultimately took it by surprise. The 
 building is entirely destroyed, but 
 the site is very picturesque, over- 
 hanging a narrow wooded ravine. 
 Harptree Court (W. W. Kettlewell, 
 Esq.), is a classical building of the 
 Adams school, situated in a richly 
 wooded and watered park. 
 
 W. of East Harptree is a cavern 
 called the LaraVs Lair, in the moun- 
 tain limestone. Other very large 
 caverns at West Harptree, one ex- 
 tending 600 ft. in length, were redis- 
 covered in 1880. The chief chamber 
 lined with stalactites is reputed to 
 be the finest cave in the Mendips. 
 
 West Harptree was one of the 
 manors belonging to Sir Thos. Gour- 
 nay, one of the Barons accessory to 
 the murder of Edw. II. His estates 
 were confiscated by Edw. III., and 
 now form part of the Duchy of 
 Cornwall. The yew-trees in the 
 churchyard, some of them of great 
 age and size, are cut into curious 
 shapes. The Ch. was almost rebuilt 
 in 1864-5 by Mr. Giles. The old 
 
426 
 
 Route 27. — Gompton — Dundon, Somersetsliire. 
 
 tower crowned with a wooden spire 
 still remains, as well as the E. 
 window. There is a good piscina, 
 and a gold chalice of Elizabethan 
 work. Opposite the ch., Gournay 
 Court is a spacious and handsome 
 house, almost unaltered, of the time 
 of James I. Tilly Manor, standing 
 next the ch., bears the date 1659. 
 The uppermost of its 3 stories has 
 been removed. 
 
 Compton Martin. The Ch., de- 
 serving careful attention, is of very- 
 late Norm, date, " of very high rank 
 in its own class" (E. A. F.). It has 
 the unusual feature in a ch. of that 
 date of a clerestory, and is vaulted. 
 On the N. side is a singular twisted 
 pillar. Considerable alterations in 
 the Perp. style were made in the 
 15th centy. when the tower, an 
 inferior version of the Somersetshire 
 type, was erected. In this parish 
 St. AYulfric was born, in the early 
 part of the 12th. centy. He lived as 
 hermit in a cell at Haselbury (Rte. 28, 
 p. 4-30) and was buried there by 
 Kobert, Bp. of Bath and Wells. 
 
 In the direction of W. Harptree a 
 wooded hollow in the hill-side, called 
 Hay don's Gully, derives its name, 
 according to the tradition, from a 
 Colonel Haydon, one of Monmouth's 
 adherents, who fled for refuge to 
 this neighbourhood, and lay con- 
 cealed during the night, at his 
 brother's house ; but every morning 
 he rode forth to this sequestered 
 spot, and backing his horse into a 
 hole in the bank, spent the day in 
 tolerable comfort.] 
 
 The road here begins to climb the 
 steep slope of the Mendip range, 
 passing rt. Chewton Priory, the 
 residence of the late Countess of 
 Waldegrave, now of Lord Carling- 
 ford. 
 
 17 m. rt. Green Ore Farm, on 
 which there is another of the Mendip 
 caverns. Beyond it our route crosses 
 at right angles the Roman road from 
 Uphill, on the Bristol Channel, to 
 Old Sarum. 
 
 17f m. 1. Penhill House, on the 
 heights of Pen Hill, 930 ft. above 
 the sea. The descent to Wells com- 
 mands a view of uncommon beauty, 
 with the towers of the cathedral 
 rising from the vale. 1. is Sioherry 
 House, 
 
 20J m. Wells (Rte. 20). Wells to 
 Glastonbury across the levels and 
 peat bogs (Rte. 20). 
 
 26J m. Glastonbury, (Rte 20). 
 
 27 1 m. Street. From this village 
 the road on the rt. runs towards 
 P olden Hill, a ridge of lias far pro- 
 jecting into the marshes of Sedge- 
 moor. The village of Edington on 
 the N. of the ridge, immediately 
 below its greatest elevation, is 
 identified by Bp. Clifford with the 
 -^thandune of Asser, the scene of 
 Alfred's famous victory over Guth- 
 rum and his Danes, which changed 
 the history of England." The Isle 
 of Athelney lies immediately below 
 on the S. side of the ridge, and Aller 
 closely adjacent. At the summit it 
 passes 
 
 29| m. Marshal's Elm Inn, from 
 which it descends on the other side. 
 1. is the escarpment of the high 
 country of which Polden is an off- 
 shoot. It is beautifully wooded. On 
 a commanding point 1. stands Sir 
 Samuel Hood's monument on the estate 
 of Butleigh Wootton (Rte. 20). 
 
 31J m. rt. Dundon Beacon, an en- 
 trenched height 360 ft. above the 
 sea; and at its foot the pretty and 
 picturesque village of Compton Dun- 
 don and its manor-house. The Ch. 
 has a Perp. nave and tower, and Dec. 
 chancel with a fine E. window, piscina 
 and sedilia, as well as the basement 
 of a stone rood-screen. The road now 
 runs on the flank of Copley and Hur- 
 cot Hill, 1., both thickly clothed with 
 woods. Further to the 1. is King- 
 weston (a corruption of Kenwards- 
 ton), where is the modern house of 
 F. H. Dickinson, Esq. ; close to 
 which is the modern Ch. rebuilt by 
 Mr. Dickinson (Giles, Arch.), with 
 
Somersetsliire. Boute 27. — Somerton. 
 
 427 
 
 a fine lofty spire rising from an oc- 
 tagonal lantern modelled after Lost- 
 withiel. The Norman door, piscina, 
 and font are relics of the former 
 church. The rebels of Devonshire 
 were signally defeated here by Sir 
 Hugh Powlet, 1549. rt. is the river 
 Ca7'y, and beyond it Bradleigh mil. 
 Crossing the river, we ascend to 
 
 33f m. Somerton (Inns : Red Lion, 
 White Hart ; Pop. 2302), a small 
 unfrequented market-town, in a 
 charming country of wild hill and 
 fruitful dale. It w^as anciently, how- 
 ever, as its name indicates, the capital 
 of the Sumer-saetas, from whom 
 Somersetshire received its designa- 
 tion, in which Ina and other W. 
 Saxon kings resided. In 733 it was 
 captured by Ethelbald, king of Mer- 
 cia. The tradition that King John 
 of France was imprisoned here has 
 arisen from a confusion with Somer- 
 ton Castle near Lincoln. The White 
 Hart Inn is locally identified with 
 the site of the castle. It has some 
 old portions worth examination. 
 The town stands on a hill, but you 
 ascend from it still higher on the 
 road to Langport. Some of the 
 houses are ancient, with good pro- 
 jecting bow windows. The most 
 striking object in the principal street 
 is the sign of the head inn, a red lion 
 of ferocious aspect mounted on a 
 pillar. Turning the corner of this 
 street, we find the 
 
 Market-cross, a modern structure, 
 A.D. 1673, on the old stone base- 
 ment, with open arcade and central 
 column supporting a pyramidal roof. 
 The town-hall, and 2 old houses 
 adjoining form with it a group 
 characteristic of an old English town. 
 
 The Cli. is a fine building, with 
 wide nave and aisles, a small N. tran- 
 sept, and a tower forming a quasi-tran- 
 sept on the S. side, which is square 
 E. Eng. below and octagonal Perp. 
 above. The church is chiefly Dec, 
 but the chancel very late Perp. The 
 roof of the nave, said (but without 
 
 any sufficient evidence) to have been 
 brought from Muchelney Abbey, is 
 remarkably fine, having a large 
 amount of rich panelling, varied 
 figures, and foliage. The pulpit 
 has the date 1615; and the altar, 
 which is finely carved, painted, 
 and gilt, bears the date 1625. Some 
 of the prisoners after the battle of 
 Sedgemoor were confined in this 
 ch., and amused themselves with 
 playing at ball. When the roof was 
 repaired, a large number of balls 
 were found, of which specimens are 
 preserved at the Taunton Museum. 
 
 The best view of the town is from 
 Kingsdon Hill, 1 m. S. ; the best view 
 of the country from the top of Som- 
 erton Hill, 1 J m. towards Langport. 
 The prospect embraces the entire 
 breadth of Somersetshire — from 
 Alfred's Tower in Wiltshire to the 
 Wellington Monument on the border 
 of Devonshire. A person acquainted 
 with the county may recognise from 
 this point the Montacute Hills ; Bubb 
 Down, at Melbury ; Pana Hill, near 
 Chard ; the Blackdowns, the Bren- 
 dons, the Quantocks and the Mendips. 
 
 [It is a pretty walk to Hurcot Hill, 
 2 m. N.E., where there are quarries 
 of alabaster ; and rather a longer one 
 over Kingsdon Hill, 4 m. E., to Lytes 
 Cary House, ancient seat of the family 
 of Lyte, one of which, Henry Lyte, 
 in 1578, produced one of the earliest 
 works on scientific botany published 
 in England, and established a botanic 
 garden at Lytes Cary. The house, a 
 charming small late -Perpendicular 
 building, consists of a hall, drawing- 
 room, and other apartments, all 
 apparently of one date, except the 
 chapel, which is Dec. The Hall has 
 an open roof with a rich cornice, and 
 is entered by a porch with an oriel 
 over the door. The S. front has a 
 fine bay window with a pierced para- 
 pet, and a shield bearing the Lyte 
 and Husey arms, and the date 1533. 
 The seats in the neighbourhood 
 I are Kingweston, F. H. Dickinson, 
 
428 
 
 itoute 27,— llchester. Somersetshire. 
 
 Esq. ; Somerton House, W. Pinney, 
 Esq. ; Kingsdon, W. Neal, Esq. 
 
 The nearest railway stat. is Lang- 
 port, 5 m.J 
 
 Proceeding an our route — 
 
 34J m. 1. Somerton House (W. Pin- 
 ney, Esq.). on the banks of the Gary. 
 
 o5| m. The road cr os&esKingsdon 
 Hilly commanding a glorious view. 
 
 J m. 1. Kingsdon, The Ch. has a 
 good square tower, and contains a 
 holy water stoup in the porch, and 
 a recumbent effigy of an armed 
 knight, and on the opposite bank of 
 the Gary, IJ m., Lytes Gary House. 
 
 38 J m. Ilchester (Inns : Dolphin, 
 Bull; Pop. 750), a mean, decayed 
 tov/n, but remarkable for its an- 
 tiquity and early importance, and as 
 the birthplace of ^'the wonderful 
 doctor," Roger Bacon, born 1214 
 (in ''the Monastery,'' between the 
 Dolphin Inn and the Post Office, 
 burnt down 1846), and of Mrs. Eliz. 
 Rowe, the poetess (b. 1674), (seea?i^e, 
 Marlborough, p. 33), whose father 
 was a Dissenting minister here. The 
 Romans made this their principal 
 station in this part of England and 
 surrounded it by a strong wall 
 and ditch, both of which can be 
 traced to this day. It was the Ischa- 
 lis of Antoninus, the Pensavel-coit of 
 Nennius. Five ancient roads meet 
 at Ilchester. — (1) eastwards over 
 Camel Hill and by Alfred's Tower 
 to Old Sarum ; (2) northwards by 
 Somerton and Street to Glastonbury ; 
 (3) southwards to Dorchester, pass- 
 ing to rt. of Yeovil ; and (4, 5) the 
 Fosse Way, running S.W. to Ilmin- 
 ster and Taunton. This still formes 
 the principal street, and the highway 
 to Shepton Mallet. In the Norman 
 age it contained 107 burgesses. It: 
 was vainly besieged by Geoffrey, Bp. 
 of Goutances, and his nephew, Robt. 
 de Mowbray, when they were hold- 
 ing Bristol against William Rufus, 
 in 1088. The town is seated in a 
 broad marshy vale, on the banks of 
 
 the Yeo or Ivel ; a bridge connecting 
 it with a suburb called Northover, 
 with a small aisleless Ch. wall and 
 square tower, rising from the north 
 bank of the river. 
 
 There is little to be noticed here 
 besides the slight vestiges of the 
 Roman earthworks S. and W. of the 
 town. Some of the gardens contain 
 the foundations of the Roman wall, 
 which have been from time to time 
 exposed by digging. 
 
 The Ch., with an octagonal tower, 
 built partly with Roman materials, 
 after having been long in a very 
 neglected state, has been lately 
 restored or nearly rebuilt. 
 
 The Cross is similar to that at Mar- 
 tock, a pillar crowned by a sun-dial, 
 gilt ball and vane. A Wednesday 
 market has been held here since the 
 Gonquest. 
 
 Ilchester has strong claims to be 
 regarded as the county town of 
 Somersetshire. Till the passing of 
 the Reform Bill, it was the only 
 polling-place for the whole county, 
 the elections lasting 15 days, or till 
 one or more of the competing candi- 
 dates withdrew. At the little Gourt- 
 house, near the Gross, the decla- 
 ration of the poll was made, and 
 here the successful candidates were 
 chaired. 
 
 At one time party-spirit here 
 ran so high that electors are 
 said to have desired on their death- 
 beds that they should be buried in 
 true blue coffins. The town was once 
 represented by Richard Brinsley 
 Sheridan. The houses on the right, 
 on leaving the town at the south 
 end, were erected by a Lord Hunting- 
 tower to increase his votes, but were 
 declared on investigation to be 
 beyond the limits of the borough. 
 
 The gaol for the v/hole county 
 was also here, pulled down about 
 1856, giving rise to the proverb, 
 referring to the size of the prison 
 and the meanness of the town, 
 
 Ilchester all gaol." 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 28. — Yeovil to Axminster, 
 
 429 
 
 [The churcli of Limington, 1 m. E., 
 has an ancient chantry, with cross- 
 legged effigy of Sir Rich, de Gyverney, 
 its founder, and at his feet a woman 
 veiled. Under the arch, dividing the 
 chantry from the ch. is a tomb to 
 another of the same family, probably 
 Sir Gilbert and his lady. Limington 
 was the first preferment of Card. 
 Wolsey. He was presented to the 
 living by the Marquis of Dorset, to 
 whose sons he had acted at tutor at 
 Oxford. * ' Having his presentation," 
 writes Cavendish, ^'he made speed 
 without further delay to the said 
 benefice to take thereof possession. 
 And being there for that intent, one 
 Sir Amyas Poulet, Knt., dwelling in 
 the country thereabout, took occa- 
 sion to displeasure against him, on 
 what grounds I know not — tradition 
 reports from being overcome with the 
 strong cider of the place — but. Sir, 
 by your leave, he was so bold as to 
 set the schoolmaster by the feet 
 during his pleasure, which after was 
 neither forgotten nor forgiven."] 
 
 On leaving Ilchester, we traverse 
 the flat vale of the Yeo, a low line of 
 hills being seen on all sides, and in 
 the direction of Yeovil the wooded 
 height of St Michael's at Montacute. 
 
 Chilthorne Vomer Ch., rt., 3 m. N. 
 of Yeovil, is Dec, and contains a 
 recumbent effigy of a knight in 
 chain mail, probably commemor- 
 ating Sir William Dummer, temp. 
 Edward I., father of Sir John, whose 
 effigy is the chief attraction in the 
 church of Pendomer (Rte. 28). 
 
 431 Yeovil (Rte. 23). 
 
 ROUTE 28. 
 
 YEOVIL TO AXMINSTER, BY CREW- 
 KERNE [FORD ABBEY]. 
 
 (South-Western Bailway.) 
 
 Leaving the Yeovil Station, the line 
 passes close to the remains of the 
 old manor-house of Clifton Maubank 
 
 I. , and reaches 
 
 124f m. (from Waterloo Stat.) 
 Sutton Bingham Stat. 1 m. rt. are 
 East and West Colter, where is Colter 
 Court (W. H. Helyar, Esq.), and 
 North Coker House (Geo. Bullock, 
 Esq.). The line runs under the 
 richly wooded heights 1. of Ahhofs 
 Hill and Birt Hill, elevations of the 
 lower oolite, and enters on the broad 
 green valley of the Parret. At 
 12 6 J m. the church and manor 
 house of Pendomer are very conspi- 
 cuous objects rt., perched on the 
 summit of the peculiarly-shaped hill 
 from which the parish derives the 
 former part of its name, the latter 
 half being given by the family who 
 for many generations possessed the 
 manor. The Ch. is Perp., but it 
 contains, under a Dec. arched recess 
 in the N. wall, an earlier effigy of a 
 knight in a complete suit of ring- 
 mail, probably commemorating Sir 
 John Dummer, temp. Edward I. and 
 
 II. The cornice above the monu- 
 ment is supported by small figures, 
 and bears a row of prickets for lights. 
 [With this should be compared the 
 earlier and very similar effigy at 
 Chilthorne Domer, Rte. 27]. On the 
 1. are seen the marked summits of 
 Ashlands and Crook Hill. 
 
 The line passes 130 m. North Perrott 
 rt., with its cruciform Perp. ch., 
 and 1. South Perrott (in Dorsetshire). 
 
 South Perrott Ch. is Perp., with a 
 
430 
 
 Boute 28. — Crewherne, Somersetshire. 
 
 central tower supported on Norm, 
 piers. At the manor'- house, now 
 pulled down, Charles I. lodged, Sept. 
 30, 1644, on his march from the West. 
 
 If m. S.E., on the abrupt slope of 
 the down, is Cheddington. The Ch. 
 was rebuilt in 1841. Both the Par- 
 rett and the Axe have their sources 
 in this parish, the former in Ched- 
 dington copse, 1 m. S., on the estate 
 of W. Trevelyan Cox, Esq. 
 
 On the other side of the down, 
 2 J m. rt., is Corscombe, a large parish 
 in Dorsetshire, given by Cuthred, 
 K. of the W. Saxons, to the Abbey 
 of Sherborne. The Ch. has a pinna- 
 cled tower, and a N. porch with 3 ca- 
 nopied niches over the inner doorway. 
 Thomas Hollis, F.S. A., a once famous 
 freethinker, virtuoso, patriot, and 
 man of letters, now forgotten, owned 
 the chief estate here, where he died 
 suddenly, 1774. He was a liberal 
 benefactor to foreign libraries, espe- 
 cially Bern, Zurich, and Harvard 
 College, New England. Geneva, Ve- 
 nice, Leyden, Sweden, Russia, &c., 
 shared his liberality. 
 
 131 J m., at the village of Misterton, 
 is the station for the town, 1 m. 
 distant, of 
 
 Crewkerne (Inns: George, Red 
 Lion ; Pop. 3149 ; from Crewkerne 
 there is daily communication with 
 Beaminster, 6^ m., and Bridport, 
 12 J m.), a market-town of some size, 
 in the valley of the Parrett, sur- 
 rounded by a wide amphitheatre of 
 hills. It has a manufacture of sail- 
 cloth, webbing, and girths, and is a 
 busy place, where every gaping cot- 
 tage door reveals a loom at work. 
 Several houses, as the George, are 
 constructed of Hamhill stone. 
 
 The CJi., dedicated to St. Bar- 
 tholomew, is one of the 2 finest cruci- 
 form churches in the county, the 
 other being at Ilminster. It is a 
 beautiful specimen of the Perp. of 
 the 15th centy., of remarkable rich- 
 ness, the windows of the N. transept 
 being especially worthy of notice. 
 
 The harmonious simplicity of the W. 
 front, with its octagonal turrets, the 
 W. door and its ornamentation, de- 
 serve particular attention. This ch. 
 was given by the Conqueror to 
 Caen Abbey. In 1402 a certain 
 monk of Ford, one Robert Chard, 
 obtained permission to immure him- 
 self as an anchorite in a solitary 
 house " beneath it. 
 
 The Free Grammar School, on the 
 N. side of the ch., was founded 1499 
 by John Combe, a native of Crew- 
 kerne, and for many years precentor 
 of Exeter Cathedral. It is one of 
 the most ancient in England. Mr. 
 Justice Best, afterwards Lord Wyn- 
 ford, was educated at this school. 
 
 The father of Tom Paine, author of 
 ' The Rights of Man,' was a native of 
 Crewkerne. He was a staymaker, 
 and carried on business at Thetford 
 in Norfolk, where his son was born. 
 
 \Hinton St. George, seat of Earl 
 Poulett, is 3 m. N.W. It is occa- 
 sionally shown. Fuller says it may 
 be called '^a charitable curiosity, if 
 true what is traditioned — that about 
 the reign of King Hen. VII. the 
 owner built it in a dear year, on pur- 
 pose to employ more people there- 
 upon." The earliest portion is the 
 work of the first Sir Amyas Poulett, 
 d. 1537. The garden front is attri- 
 buted to Inigo Jones. The gateway, 
 erected by the same architect at 
 Clifton Maubank, was purchased by 
 Lord Poulett for 120 guineas, and 
 re-erected in Hinton Park, The 
 suites of apartments known as Queen 
 Anne's rooms were erected by John, 
 1st Earl Poulett, in expectation of 
 a visit prevented by the Queen's 
 death. The family pictures were 
 given, it is said, to the great Lord 
 Clarendon, and now form part of the 
 collections at the Grove in Hertford- 
 shire and Both well Castle in Scotland. 
 Hinton received a visit in 1669 from 
 Cosmo III., Grand Duke of Tuscany, 
 who commended its gardens and 
 terraces as very different from the 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 28. — Haselbury, 
 
 431 
 
 common style. The unfortunate 
 Duke of Monmouth appears to have 
 stayed here some time, immediately 
 before the battle of Sedgemoor. 
 During his visit a woman, who was a 
 martyr to the King's Evil, made a 
 rush at the Duke of Monmouth and 
 touched his hand, after which, in the 
 course of 2 days, her wounds were 
 healed. A certificate to this effect 
 was circulated in London, signed by 
 the minister of Crewkerne and seve- 
 ral other persons. The Poulett mon- 
 uments are in the neighbouring Ch„ 
 including those of the first Sir Amyas 
 in complete armour, d. 1537, by whom 
 Wolsey was put in the stocks (p. 429), 
 knighted for his gallantry on the 
 battlefield of Newark-on-Trent, 1487; 
 his grandson, Sir Amyas (d. 1588), 
 the gaoler of Mary Queen of Scots, 
 stigmatised as a dainty and precise 
 fellow, who would promise much, 
 but perform nothing," by Queen 
 Elizabeth, when he rejected, with 
 the indignation of an honest man, 
 the infamous suggestion of her sec- 
 retaries, Walsingham and Davison, 
 that he should find some means to 
 shorten the life of his prisoner. Sir 
 Amyas was buried in the church of 
 St. Martin 's-in-the-Fields, Westmin- 
 ster, on the rebuilding of which his 
 monument was removed to Hinton 
 by the first Earl Poulett in 1728. 
 One of its many inscriptions bearing 
 the initials E. R. is said to have been 
 written by Elizabeth herself. Another 
 is in French, one of the latest i n- 
 stances of its employment. His son. 
 Sir Anthony, and his wife, LadyCathe- 
 rine Poulett, and 10 children, under 
 a canopy between the N. aisle and 
 the nave ; the 1st and 2nd Lords 
 Poulett, &c. 
 
 In the village is a fine cross of the 
 same type as those of Bishops Lydeard 
 and Crowcombe. The shaft, noi^ sur- 
 mounted with a Doric capital and 
 ball, with the figure of St. John the 
 Baptist on its E. face, stands on a 
 lofty flight of 3 deeply-moulded 
 steps. 
 
 Haselhury, 2 m. W., was rendered 
 famous in the 1 2th centy. by the resi- 
 dence of the sainted hermit Wulfric 
 (p. 425) where vexed by fevers and 
 macerations, the gaunt solitary waged 
 his battle against the enemy of souls. 
 Originally a clerical sportsman, he 
 had all at once flung aside his hounds 
 and his vicarage, and without wait- 
 ing for episcopal sanction or priestly 
 benediction, had immured himself in 
 his jealously closed cell. He was soon 
 known as England's one miracle- 
 worker and prophet." Wulfric hailed 
 Stephen as king as he rode past his 
 hermitage, in his uncle's lifetime, 
 replying to his remonstrances, ' ' It is 
 no error — it is you, Stephen, that I 
 mean — for the Lord hath delivered 
 the realm into your hand — protect 
 the church, defend the poor." — J. B. 
 Green. He died 1154. His tomb in 
 the N. chapel of the Ch. was visited 
 by pilgrims for ages. 
 
 Higher up the valley of the Parrett, 
 3 m. N.E. of Crewkerne Stat., is West 
 Chinnoch, where there is a large ma- 
 nufactory of sailcloth. Along the hill 
 further E. are the villages of Middle 
 and East Chinnoch, all with churches 
 of some interest. At ChiseJborough, 
 1 m. N.W., many of the inhabitants 
 are affected by goitre and cretinism, 
 maladies attributed to a defective 
 ventilation at a mild temperature, 
 the village being situated in a narrow 
 valley closed on 3 sides by lofty hills. 
 
 The Ch. is E. E.; the nave, rebuilt 
 1842 ; one of the bells bears a very 
 early inscription : 
 
 " Carmine Isetatur Paulus campana vocatur." 
 
 Mosterton ,3 m. S., was the birth- 
 place of Sir Alexander Hood. The 
 Ch. is modern. 
 
 The road from Crewkerne to Chard 
 affords a good view of Crewkerne, to- 
 gether with its background, Pendomer 
 Down, and the conical knoll of Crooh 
 Hill. 
 
 A steep ascent l^ads to the height 
 popularly known as Strayn Hill, 
 a narrow ridge, so named from St. 
 
432 
 
 Boute 28. — Ford Abbey. Somersetshire* 
 
 Keyn, or Regina, to whom there was 
 once a chapel on the hill. The road 
 rims along the summit of this ridge 
 to within 2 m. of Chard. Rt. are the 
 fir plantations of Hinton St. George. 
 
 1 m. further brings you to the 
 highest point, from which we obtain 
 a bird's-eye view over Somerset and 
 Dorset, each bounded by the sea : in 
 the foreground a clump of beech- 
 trees, and a sandy road descending 
 the hill, complete the picture. 
 
 Further still is Windwhistle Inn, 
 the favourite point of view. It is a 
 solitary house of entertainment, 4 m. 
 on this road, fully exposed, as its 
 name imports, to the rushing winds. 
 On each side the road is wooded, and 
 on the rt. the trees in summer shut 
 out the view, but when bare of leaves, 
 the English Channel is seen, together 
 with the cliffs of Beer Head. On the 
 1. stretch long undulating lines of 
 hills, innumerable vales and glisten- 
 ing streams, the chequered surface 
 of the fair county of Somerset, edged 
 on the far horizon by the purple sea. 
 A mile nearer Crewkerne the view is 
 open on both sides.] 
 
 Proceeding on our route, the line 
 runs through a deep cutting, and, 
 passing under SJiavelane Sill, 1., enters 
 on the rich well-watered meadows of 
 the Axe, with the heights of St. Rana 
 Hill and Windwhistle rt. At 137 m. 
 rt. is 
 
 Winsliam, pleasantly situated on 
 the Axe river. The Ch. is an inte- 
 resting building with a central tower, 
 but sadly spoilt by the tasteless 
 patchings and unskilful repairs of 
 modern times. It has the remains of 
 a handsome wood screen, and old oak 
 seats, carved with the linen pattern. 
 There is a curious fresco of the 
 Crucifixion. 
 
 [2 m. IsT. is Cricket Lodge (Lord 
 Bridport). Through the trees S.E. 
 are seen the twin hills of Lewesdon 
 and Pillesdon. The mansion is situ- 
 ated far below the road, in a romantic 
 dell, which opens into the valley of 
 
 the Axe. It was rebuilt about 60 
 years ago. Adjoining it is the little 
 Ch. of Cricket St. Thomas, in which 
 the first Lord Bridport was buried. 
 There is a monument to his memory, 
 and another to the Rev. William, Earl 
 Nelson, Duke of Bronte, father of the 
 dowager Lady Bridport. Cricket was 
 the ancient seat of the Prestons, to 
 which belonged the gallant sea- 
 captain Sir Amyas Preston, who 
 seized the Admiral of the Galeasses 
 of the Spanish Armada, and in 1595 
 made a successful foray in the W. 
 Indies, ^' entering J amaica," says 
 Fuller, ''with little loss, some profit, 
 and more honour.''] 
 
 138 m. 1., close to the line, is the 
 group of old grey stone buildings of 
 Ford Abbey J IJ m. of Chard Road 
 Junction Stat., 4 m. from the town 
 of Chard. 
 
 Ford Abbey (Knap Inn), Herbert 
 Evans, Esq., a very beautiful mon- 
 astic structure, mixed with much 
 heterogeneous modern work. It is 
 seated in its park, in a retired valley 
 on the river Axe, which there forms 
 the boundary of Dorset and Somerset. 
 It was built in the reign of Stephen 
 (1141) for a community of Cistercian 
 monks from Waverley, in Surrey, 
 which had been first established in 
 1136 at Brightley, near Okehampton, 
 Devon, by Richard de Brioniis, a de- 
 scendant of the Dukes of Normandy. 
 The monks resided 5 years at Bright- 
 ley, but driven out '* by reason of 
 great want and barrenness," they 
 determined to return to Waverley. 
 On their journey they passed Thorn- 
 combe, the manor of the sister of 
 the founder, Adeliza, Viscountess of 
 Devon, who, touched by a feeling 
 of wounded honour at the threat- 
 ened failure of her brother's foun- 
 dation, bestowed 'on them Ford in 
 exchange for Brightley. In the 
 reign of Henry II., by the mar- 
 riage of the heiress of this family, 
 the abbey passed to the Courtenays, 
 who continued its patrons for many 
 
Soinersetsliire. Boute 28. — Ford Abbey, 
 
 433 
 
 generations. Its last abbot was Thos. 
 Chard, and he restored and beauti- 
 fied it, and reconstructed the cloister 
 and refectory, which remain perfect 
 to this day. At the Dissolution it was 
 granted to Richard Pollard, who was 
 subsequently knighted, and from his 
 family it passed in succession through 
 those of Poulett, Roswell, Prideaux, 
 and Gwyn. It escaped destruction in 
 the Rebellion, as the property of the 
 Attorney-General of the Common- 
 wealth, Edmund Prideaux, who after- 
 wards employed Inigo Jones to 
 make extensive alterations, which 
 were, however, not completed at the 
 death of the architect in 1654. In 
 1680 the son of the Attorney-General 
 received a visit from the Duke of 
 Monmouth, who was making a plea- 
 sure tour through the western 
 counties. He had afterwards, how- 
 ever, to regret the honour, for he 
 was arrested as accessory to Mon- 
 mouth's rebellion, and kept a pri- 
 soner in the Tower until he had paid 
 a ransom of 15,OO0Z. to Judge Jef- 
 freys. His heiress carried the pro- 
 perty to the Gwyns of Glamorgan- 
 shire. In the reign of Queen Anne 
 Francis Gwyn was the proprietor of 
 Ford. He was Secretary at War, and 
 was presented by the queen with the 
 tapestry which, until lately, orna- 
 mented the saloon. In 1815 one of 
 his descendants let the abbey for a 
 term of 3 years to Jeremy Bentham, 
 who here wrote some of his works, 
 and here his favourite disciple, 
 James Mill, the father of John 
 Stuart Mill, with his whole family, 
 used to spend nine or ten months 
 at a stretch. In 1847, after the 
 death of John Fraunceis Gwyn, it 
 was in the hands of trustees to sell, 
 and after it had been stripped of 
 its pictures and tapestry, it became 
 the property of G. F. W. Miles, Esq., 
 who sold it to its present owner. 
 
 The approach to the abbey is by a 
 broad straight road, which leads to 
 the eastern ivy-covered side, but af- 
 fords no view of the S. or principal 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c., 1882.] 
 
 front. This front faces the lawn and 
 terrace, and presents a long range of 
 sculptured wall, richly coloured by 
 mosses and lichens. Standing facing 
 this front we have before us the 
 existing cloister, which was the N. 
 walk of the original quadrangle, 82 ft. 
 long, of which the other 3 sides have 
 perished. In a line with the cloister 
 further W., to our 1. are the entrance 
 tower and abbot's lodgings, beyond 
 which are the apartments added by 
 Inigo Jones. Behind us, on the S. of the 
 square, stood the ch., of which there 
 are no remains. To our rt., on the E. 
 side is the chapter-house, now the 
 chapel^ and further to the N. there is 
 a groined basement, with a very per- 
 fect dormitory above, now divided 
 into chambers. Approached by a 
 central door from the N. side of the 
 cloister are the refectory and kitchen. 
 The cloister, tower, and refectory 
 remain as they were built hj Thomas 
 Chard, the last abbot, who w^as also 
 suffragan bishop, and bears his ini- 
 tials, with the inscription ^'Anno 
 Dni Millesimo quingesimo vigesimo 
 octavo (1528). A Dno est factum Tho- 
 ma Chard. Abb." and the arms of 
 Courtenay, Poulett, and Prideaux. 
 The square windows in the W. wing 
 are part of the alterations by Inigo 
 Jones. The chapel, originally the 
 Chapter-house^ is the oldest portion, 
 and probably coeval with the founda- 
 tion of the abbey, in the reign of 
 Stephen. It is a good example of 
 Transition, with a vaulted roof hung 
 with modern pendants, a finely 
 carved screen and pulpit, and ob- 
 tusely pointed arches set with zigzag 
 mouldings. The E. window is Tudor, 
 and was probably the work of Thomas 
 Chard. The cloister still retains all 
 the beauty of its vaulting and deli- 
 cate tracery, but is a little injured 
 in effect by the square-headed doors 
 added by Inigo Jones. It is 82 ft. in 
 length, and is now used as a conser- 
 vatory. The hall or refectory, also 
 built by Chard, is 28 ft. in height 
 and 55 ft. in length, lighted by 4 
 2 F 
 
434: Boate 28. — Thorncomhe — Hawhchiirch. Somersetshire* 
 
 large Tudor windows. Its carved 
 ceiling is gilded and painted, and its 
 walls are partly wainscoted. W. of it 
 are the state apartments^ designed by 
 Inigo Jones. The most remarkable 
 of these are the dining-room and 
 draimng-room, both with elaborate 
 and beautiful ceilings, and formerly 
 furnished in the old English fashion 
 with high-backed, tapestried chairs, 
 &c. Above them are several bed- 
 rooms, one called Queen Anne*s room, 
 because prepared for that sovereign 
 by Francis Gwyn, when Secretary at 
 War. The grand staircase, designed 
 by Inigo Jones, but completed after 
 his death, in 1658, is much admired, 
 particularly the balustrade- It leads 
 to the saloon, also by Inigo Jones, a 
 noble room, 50 ft. in length and 28 ft. 
 in height, and for more than 130 
 years hung with the famous Raphael 
 tapestries presented to Francis Gwyn 
 by Queen Anne. According to the 
 family tradition, they were worked 
 at Arras for the king of Spain, and 
 taken in a Spanish galleon by one of 
 our cruisers. In the park is a lake 
 well stored with fish, and several old 
 trees, particularly a cedar of Lebanon 
 of remarkable size. 
 
 Among the abbots of Ford were 
 Baldwin, Abp. of Canterbury, 1185- 
 1 189 ; the learned and devout Roger 
 the Cistercian, c. 1180; and John of 
 Devon, chaplain and confessor to 
 King John, d. 1210, who, according 
 to Fuller, ' ' travelled in foreign parts, 
 not, as too many, to weed, but 
 gather the flowers, returning stored 
 with good manners, and stocked with 
 good learning, and endeavoured that 
 all his convent should be like him. 
 Ford Abbey, in his time, had more 
 learning than 9 convents of the same 
 bigness." 
 
 [Leigh House (Henley Cornish 
 Henley, Esq.), on the hill-side oppo- 
 site Ford, is a fine old Elizabethan 
 mansion, and a perfect example of 
 the period. It forms 2 courtyards, 
 with the hall between them. It was 
 
 originally one of the granges of Ford 
 Abbey. 
 
 Thorncomhe, IJ m. S.E., was the 
 birthplace of Admiral Hood, Viscount 
 Bridport, 1728. His father was the 
 vicar. The Ch., rebuilt 1867, con- 
 tains a brass to Sir Thomas and 
 Lady Brook, 1437. S. of Thorn- 
 combe is Sadhorough House (Colonel 
 Bragge) ; and 2J m. from Chard 
 Junction the ruins of Olditch Court, 
 long a residence of the Brook 
 family, afterwards Lords Cobham, 
 who forfeited it by the attainder of 
 Henry Lord C. in the reign of James 
 I. They are probably of the time 
 of Edw. III., and now partly incor- 
 porated with a farmhouse. 
 
 Hawlcchurch, S.W. of Thorncombe, 
 3 J m. from Chard Junction and 4 
 m. from Axminster, lies very plea- 
 santly on the western side of the 
 hill crowned by Lambert's Castle 
 (Rte. 14), sloping to the thickly- 
 wooded and fertile valley of the Axe. 
 It is actually in Dorsetshire, but lies 
 close to the confines of Somerset and 
 Devon. The manor belonged to 
 Cerne Abbey. The Ch. was "^entirely 
 rebuilt in 1870, but retains many of 
 its original features, including the 
 Norm, arcades of the nave, orna- 
 mented with grotesque carvings, the 
 Norm, corbel table, and the chancel- 
 arch, removed one bay eastward. 
 The chancel is entirely new. The 
 tower is a stately Perp. building of 
 4 stages, bearing the arms of Cerne 
 Abbey. Wylde Court, originally be- 
 longing to the Abbots of Cerne, is de- 
 lightfully situated, 500 yds. N. of the 
 Ch., on ground sloping down to the 
 Axe, commanding beautiful views. 
 The house is large, but long and low, 
 built originally in the form of an E, 
 but the W. wing has been pulled 
 down. It contained some portraits, 
 and a curious painting of the E. side 
 of St. James's Park before the con- 
 flagration of Whitehall. It is now 
 occupied by a farmer. It was built 
 by Rob. Moore, 1593, it having passed 
 to the Moores from the Leighs, to 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 29. — CJiard to Taunton. 
 
 435 
 
 whom the manor was given at the 
 Dissolution.] 
 
 139J m. Chard Boad Stat., 3 m. 
 from the town of that name (see 
 Rte. 29). 
 
 141 J m. rt. Tytherleigh Arms, on the 
 highest point of the old road to Ax- 
 minster. Near it, in a farmhouse, are 
 some remains of the mansion of the 
 Tytherleighs, a family who became 
 extinct 1741, but were long lords of 
 the manor here. 
 
 [J m. to rt. is Chardstoch, on a nar- 
 row peninsula of Dorsetshire, where 
 the Bp. of Salisbury had a manor- 
 house, crenellated by Bp. Erghum, in 
 1377, some remains of which are to 
 be seen in the Court House Farm 
 to the S. of the eh. A stable between 
 the farmhouse and the ch. has a good 
 open timber roof. Joanna Crippen, 
 of this place, coming home from 
 Chard market, Jan. 24, 1708, was 
 buried in the snow from Monday 
 till the following Sunday, and was 
 taken out alive. The Ch, was rebuilt 
 with the exception of the S. wall and 
 tower, 1863, adhering as far as possi- 
 ble to the style and proportions of 
 the original edifice. It is a very or- 
 nate building. The monument with 
 kneeling effigies to Rich. Symonds, 
 of Coaxdon, and his wife, d. 1610, 
 the grandparents of Sir Symonds 
 D'Ewes, puritan and antiquary, the 
 compiler of the * Journal of Queen 
 Elizabeth's Parliament,' disappeared 
 in the Restoration.] 
 
 146 m. is Coaxdon, the birthplace 
 of Sir Symonds D'Ewes, Coaxdon 
 Mill on the river is picturesque. 
 
 Here the line passes into Devon- 
 shire, and reaches at 
 
 144i m, AxMiNSTER (Handbook to 
 Devonshire). From Axminster there 
 is daily communication" by coach 
 with Lyme, 
 
 ROUTE 29. 
 
 CHARD ROAD STATION TO TAUNTON, 
 BY CHARD AND ILMINSTER. 
 
 The rly. ascends the valley of a 
 little affluent of the Axe from Chard 
 Road Stat, to 
 
 3 m. Chard Stat. {Inns: George, 
 Crown; Pop. 2411), a rather hand- 
 some town, principally of one broad 
 street, running up a hill from E. to 
 W. It is situated within a mile of 
 the border of Devonshire, on a water- 
 shed, from which the streams How 
 in opposite directions to the Bristol 
 and English Channels. It has a 
 manufacture of lace and an excellent 
 market, well known for potatoes, 
 which are principally brought from 
 the neighbourhood of Crewkerne. 
 Charles I. was twice at Chard in 
 1644 — first, on his march westwards, 
 July 24, when he lodged at the house 
 of Mr. Bancroft, a London merchant ; 
 the second time, on his return, 
 broken-spirited and wellnigh hope- 
 less. He arrived Sept. 23 with 
 10,000 horse and foot, and 17 pieces 
 of artillery, and was detained a 
 whole week by the failure of his 
 Somerset commissioners to send on 
 their promised contributions of 
 money and clothing. He left on 
 the 30th, dined at Lord Poulett's at 
 Hinton St. George, where he was 
 joined by Prince Rupert and Lord 
 Digby from Bridgwater. He passed 
 the night at the Manor House, South 
 Perrott, and went on next day to 
 Sherborne. After the fall of Exeter 
 in 1646, Sir Thomas Fairfax marched 
 into Somersetshire, and on April 18 
 encamped with his army round Chard, 
 whence he despatched Col. Lunsford's 
 regiment to strengthen Blake's be- 
 sieging force at Dunster. In 1685 
 Monmouth marched through Chard, 
 
436 
 
 Boute 29.— Eminster, Somersetsliire. 
 
 and a little later in the year the in- 
 habitants had to witness the execu- 
 tion of 12 unfortunate victims to the 
 bloodthirsty Jeffreys ; according to 
 the tradition, they were hung on an 
 oak recently standing near the lower 
 end of the town, and called the 
 Hangcross Tree. 
 
 The things to be noticed in Chard 
 are the Church, the lace factories, the 
 Grammar School, and some other old 
 houses, probably of the 16th centy. 
 One, for instance, above the George, 
 and another, the Chough Inn, be- 
 yond the intersection of the 4 streets. 
 That now called "Waterloo House" 
 contains some good embossed ceil- 
 ings and other plaster enrichments, 
 principally of Scriptural subjects. 
 £In the neighbourhood, Ford Abbey 
 (Rte. 28) and the views from Snowdon 
 and Strayn Hill deserve notice.] 
 
 The Ch:, in the street towards 
 Axminster, is a long low cruciform 
 building of the Perp. of the 15th 
 centy., quasi- transepts being formed 
 by lofty porches. The E. window is 
 fine. It contains a strange old mo- 
 nument to the memory of William 
 Brewer, a physician of Chard, and 
 his wife, d. 1614, who are repre- 
 sented in black dresses and ruffs, 
 kneeling face to face at an altar, the 
 one with his 6 sons, the other with 
 her 6 daughters, in pairs, size after 
 size, all in similar dresses and atti- 
 tudes. The ch. was restored in 1828. 
 
 Two lace factories, huge buildings 
 of red brick with innumerable win- 
 dows, are conspicuous from the High 
 Street, and respectively employ about 
 200 and 300 hands, exclusive of 
 menders. The lace, however, is not 
 quite completed here : it is sent away 
 to be bleached and to receive sundry 
 finishing touches, but much of it re- 
 turns to be sold in this town. The 
 Grammar School is a quaint old 
 building, deserving notice. 
 
 Penruddock and his insurgents 
 met with a severe defeat at Chard 
 (see ante, Rte. 12, p. 156). 
 
 Snowdon J one of the summits on 
 
 the highland from the Blackdowns, 
 rises immediately above Chard, and 
 on a clear day will give the traveller 
 fine prospects over Devonshire and 
 Somerset. IJ m. will bring him to 
 the highest point. 
 
 Windwhistle Inn, on the narrow 
 ridge of Rana Hill, 4 m. W., also 
 commands a wide and fascinating view 
 (Rte. 28). 
 
 At Wadeford, 2 m., and Dinning- 
 ton, tessellated pavements, hypo- 
 causts, and stuccoed walls, and other 
 traces of Roman habitation have 
 been discovered. 
 
 7 ' m. Ilminster] Stat. (Inn : 
 George ; Pop. 3500),' a town seated 
 on the river He, which flows to 
 the N.E. through a low flat coun- 
 try. To the N.W. is the highland 
 of Neroche Forest, and its camp. 
 Neroche Castle, 6 m. distant. Ilmin- 
 ster has a small woollen manu- 
 facture and one of web for carpets. 
 There is now extensive industrial 
 occupation for females in linen 
 collars and cuffs. It is an ancient 
 place, its Saturday market dating 
 from Saxon times. 
 
 The Ch., which formerly belonged 
 to the abbey of Muchelney, is one 
 of the 2 finest cruciform churches 
 in this county, the other being at 
 Crewkerne. It has a rich central 
 tower, having crocketed pinnacles 
 and panelling, but of a different 
 class from HuishEpiscopi, N.Pether- 
 ton, &c. — "one of the very noblest 
 of parochial towers, a Perp. ver- 
 sion of the central tower of Wells." 
 — E, A. F. It has a good stone 
 groined roof open to the interior. 
 The tower, transepts, and porch were 
 built by Sir William Wadham, temp. 
 Henry VII. The whole ch. is Perp., 
 but the nave has been rebuilt, not 
 quite successfully, but as well as 
 could be expected for 1 824. The !N". 
 transept is much enriched. The chan- 
 cel is rather plainer, and there is an 
 eastern vestry as at Langport, &c. 
 There is a good brass to Sir Wm. 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 29. — DilUngton — Cudworth, 
 
 437 
 
 Wadham and his lady in the N. tran- 
 sept, c. 1440 ; and in the same transept 
 the tomb with brasses of Nicholas and 
 Dorothy Wadham, d. 1609 and 1618, 
 the founders of Wadham College, 
 Oxford, — " whose hospitable house," 
 writes Fuller, '*was an inn at all 
 times ; a court at Christmas " — and a 
 tomb of variegated marble to another 
 member of this family, who is 
 represented in armour^ standing 
 with his lady under a canopy. 
 
 The Free Grammar School, which 
 owns the manor of Swanage, in Dor- 
 setshire, is a picturesque building, 
 bearing the date 1586 over the door, 
 formed out of one of the chantry 
 houses of the town by the bene- 
 ficence of Humphrey Walrond. The 
 late Dean Alford, of Canterbury, 
 was educated here. 
 
 [Adjoining the town is DilUngton 
 House, (V. K. Lee, Esq., M.P.) ; and 
 between it and S. Petherton a dis- 
 trict very remarkable for fertility. 
 The land is on the oolite. The upper 
 and middle lias is also developed 
 here, and among the beds of the 
 former are found abundant remains 
 of fossil saurians, fish, crustaceans, 
 and insects. These fossils are re- 
 markable for their fine preservation, 
 and occur chiefly in a layer of yellow 
 limestone, of which an excellent sec- 
 tion may be seen at Shepton Beau- 
 champ y near South Petherton. 
 
 Barrington Court, 3 m. N.E. of 
 this town, is a very beautiful gabled 
 mansion of the time of James I., the 
 exterior well preserved, and the 
 style and taste superior to what is 
 usual at that period, and with more 
 of Gothic detail. It was a seat of 
 the families of Phelips and Strode, 
 and, when in possession of the latter, 
 was visited by the Duke of Monmouth 
 a few years before his attempt on the 
 Crown. The interior is in a sadly 
 neglected state, nearly all the oak 
 fittings have been destroyed, and 
 many of the carved chimney-pieces 
 removed. One of the latter remains 
 
 in the drawing-room, decorated with 
 the arms of the Strode family. 
 
 Barrington has a curious cruciform 
 Ch. without aisles, having a central 
 tower of octagonal form. The tran- 
 septs and part of the tower are E. E., 
 verging to Dec, some of the windows 
 having internally the foliated arch, 
 which occurs at Ditcheat, Butleigh, 
 and elsewhere in Somersetshire . The 
 upper part of the tower is Dec, and 
 there are fine niches of that charac- 
 ter in the transepts. There are some 
 old open seats. 
 
 2 m. S.W. of Ilminster, across the 
 fields, is Donyatty with quarries that 
 deserve a visit. The Ch. has a fine 
 lofty tower, and good oak benches. 
 It has been well restored. The 
 Manor- House weis built by Montacute, 
 the 2nd E. of Salisbury, 1345, 
 and portions of the original house 
 remain, used as a barn, that will 
 repay inspection. The main build- 
 ing is of the date of Elizabeth. 
 In 1552 the manor was given by 
 Edw. VI. to W. Herbert, E. of Pem- 
 broke. In 1625 it belonged to Sir 
 Edw. Coke, Lord Chief Justice, who 
 made considerable alterations in the 
 house. 
 
 Wliite Lacldngton House, 1 m. E., 
 was in 1681 the seat of G. Speke, 
 Esq. In the churchyard of White 
 Lacldngton Rajah Brooke of Sarawak 
 lies buried. In the park stood the 
 famous chesnut-tree under which the 
 Duke of Monmouth took refresh- 
 ment in his progress to the West, 
 when 20,000 people were assembled 
 together. 
 
 3 m. S.E. is Cudworth. The Ch, 
 has a rich Norm, tower and font, 
 with lancet and Dec. windows. 
 
 2 J m. N. W. in the parish of Ashill 
 is Jordans (W. Speke, Esq.), the 
 birthplace of Captain J. H. Speke, 
 the explorer of the sources of the 
 Nile. Here is a fine collection of 
 the many objects of interest brought 
 to England by Capt. Speke, and the 
 gold vases presented to him by the 
 county of Somerset, 
 
438 Boute 29. — Castle Neroclie — He Abbots, Somersetsliire. 
 
 Close to Jordans, W., is Broadimy, 
 with an E. E. and Perp. Ch.y deriving 
 its name from an ancient road, cut 
 through the adjoining forest of 
 Neroche, 
 
 Ashill Ch., 3f m. N.W., has good 
 Norman doorways ; near it is an 
 ebbing- and-flo wing spring, 
 
 2 m. S.E. is Dowlishwake, where 
 the Ch. contains a tomb of serpentine 
 inlaid with brass in memory of Capt. 
 Speke, to whom the N. chapel con- 
 tains a memorial window. The ch. 
 was rebuilt by the Spekes, 1621-25, 
 in the revived Gothic of the day. 
 The tower is singularly strange and 
 ungainly. 
 
 Castle Neroche, 6 m. W., J m. off 
 the highroad to Chard, popularly 
 called Castle Batch, is an ancient 
 British entrenchment, occupied sub- 
 sequently by the Romans, by whom 
 it w^as strengthened by ramparts of 
 strongly cemented masonry. It 
 stands on a bold projecting point of 
 Black Down, overlooking the Vale of 
 Taunton. The neck of land is 
 strongly fortified with a double 
 mound and ditch. It must have been 
 a place of great strength. It is ap- 
 proached by several British track- 
 ways. Leaving the highroad from 
 Taunton to Chard on the right, 
 after a walk of something more than 
 a quarter of a mile, we arrive at the 
 end of a rampart, consisting of a 
 trench and high bank on the right 
 side of the path. This is the lowest 
 of what may almost be called field 
 works, protecting the only accessible 
 side of the beacon, and continued 
 quite across the sloping side of the 
 hill in the form of a small segment 
 of a large circle. On turning either 
 flank of this rampart we find our- 
 selves in front of another, consisting 
 of a double trench and agger, above 
 which rises a second segmental ram- 
 part, similar in construction to the 
 first, but facing more to the N.W., 
 the interior of which is also flanked 
 by a double trench and rampart ; 
 and, still higher up the steep ascent, 
 
 two more ramparts and ditches 
 occupy the face of the slope from 
 one precipitous side to the other, 
 altogether forming a series of works 
 amply [sufficient for the protection 
 of the beacon, the two sides of the 
 narrow slope being too steep to re- 
 quire any regular entrenchments, 
 though they were, perhaps, strength- 
 ened by platforms for slingers, 
 some of which I think I have suc- 
 ceeded in tracing. We now find 
 ourselves at the top of the beacon ; 
 and from this point, but for the 
 plantation, we should obtain a com- 
 prehensive view of the whole en- 
 trenchment." {Rev. F. Warre.) 
 
 It should be mentioned that a 
 Roman road passed through the 
 encampment of Castle Neroche. 
 This camp is in the parish of 
 Bucldand St. Mary, where a very 
 handsome church has been erected 
 at the cost of the rector, Rev. J. E. 
 Lance, which, standing on an emi- 
 nence, may be seen at a great dis- 
 tance.] 
 
 The river lie, from which Ilminster 
 takes its name, flows N.E., and joins 
 the Parrett above Langford, giving its 
 name also to Ilton, lie Abbots, and 
 He Brewers. 
 
 Ilton, 2 m. N.E., has a beautiful 
 Dec. Ch. of picturesque outline, 
 with S. transept, and a tower adjoin- 
 ing it on the S. side ; the whole 
 well restored. A brass to N. Wad- 
 ham, 1508, in shroud. 
 
 He Abbots, 5 m. N.E. (so called as 
 having belonged to the Abbot of 
 Muchelney), has a good Ch., with Dec. 
 nave and chancel, and Perp. tower 
 and N. aisle. The tower is a very 
 beautif ul one, of the same class as those 
 of N. Petherton and Huish Episcopi, 
 &c., and has fine canopied niches, 
 with statues of the Virgin Mary and 
 St. Michael. The S. porch has fine 
 fan groining with pendants. The S. 
 side of the nave has Dec. windows ; 
 the aisle is Perp., and the arcade is 
 of late character. The chancel arch 
 is Perp. and panelled. The chance] 
 
Somersetshire. Boiife 30. — Durst on to Yeovil. 
 
 489 
 
 is Dec, of rather early character, 
 with some singularities. The E. 
 window is poor, of 5 unfoliated 
 lights ; those on the N. side are of 
 o lights trefoiled, with quatrefoiled 
 circles on the heads. On the S. are 
 3 shallow sedilia, without canopies, 
 or at least left unfinished, and east- 
 ward of them rather a remarkable ar- 
 rangement, consisting of a singular 
 piscina and of 2 canopied niches, one 
 over the other — all of excellent work, 
 but a very uncommon arrangement. 
 There are some good open seats, 
 the bench-ends of which have fine 
 carving. The font is Norman, with 
 a squai-e bowl, on cylindrical stem, 
 surrounded by 4 shafts. On the 
 bowl are rude arches, with some 
 foliage and grotesque sculpture. 
 
 Further down the stream, among 
 the marshes, is He Brewers, for- 
 merly the incumbency of the eccen- 
 tric Dr. Joseph Wolfi", by whom the 
 Gh. was rebuilt in 1861. He Brewers 
 is 6 m. from the Langport Stat. 
 (Rte. 30).] 
 
 12 m. Hatch Beaucliamp Stat., ad- 
 joining which is Hatch Lodge (George 
 Raban, Esq.), and Hatch Park 
 (H. P. Gore Langton, Esq.). The 
 hill-sides are here prettily covered 
 with hanging woods. Proceeding 
 along the line, we have 1. a pretty 
 view along a vale to the Blackdowns, 
 which are seen in dark masses by a 
 setting sun. On the rt. is the escarp- 
 ment of high land extending to 
 Langport, and here hung with plan- 
 tations. The country is well covered 
 with hedgerow-elms and orchards. 
 We pass 14 J m. Thorn Falcon rt., 
 cross the Tone below Buishton, join 
 , the Bristol and Exeter line, and reach 
 
 16 m. Taunton Stat. (Rte. 21). 
 
 ROUTE 30. 
 
 DURSTON TO YEOVIL, BY LANG- 
 PORT [MUCHELNEY] AND MARTOCK. 
 
 (Branch Line of Bristol and Exeter 
 Bailimy.) 
 
 This line, diverging at the Durs- 
 ton Stat, of the Bristol and Exeter 
 Rly., ascends the valley of the 
 Parrett to the watershed at Mont- 
 acute, whence it descends to the 
 valley of the Yeo at Yeovil. 
 
 Hard by Durst on Stat, is 
 
 Mynchin BucMand, or Buckland 
 Sororum, the site of a religious house 
 originally founded for Regular 
 Canons, temp. Henry II., but after- 
 wards granted to the Knights Hos- 
 pitallers 1180, as a house for all the 
 sisters of their order scattered 
 through the various preceptories. 
 It subsequently became independent 
 of the Hospitallers, as a distinct 
 priory of Aiistin nuns. A few late 
 fragments of the buildings, with 
 some monumental slabs, one bearing 
 an incised cross to Sister Aleanoro 
 of Actune," were discovered by Mr. 
 Hugo in 1860. 
 
 Leaving Durston, the line runs E., 
 skirting North Moor, leaving East 
 Lyng close to the rly. 1., to 
 
 2i m. Athelney Stat. 2^ m. N. is 
 North Moor Green. 
 
 The Lsle of Athelney (A.-S. mhe- 
 linga, the Isle of Nobles,"), formed 
 and fortified by the stagnant waters 
 of the Parrett and Tone near their 
 confluence, is a spot of rising ground 
 surrounded by marshes, now drained 
 and cultivated, and known as Athel- 
 ney Farm, close to the village of 
 East Lyng (supposed by Bishop 
 Clifford to be a corruption of 
 '^^theling" and is celebrated in 
 history as the place where King 
 
440 
 
 Route 30. — Athelney — OtJiery, Somersetshire. 
 
 Alfred established himself after 
 the Danes had overrun the country. 
 Asser, who visited it in Alfred's life- 
 time;, speaks of it as surrounded on 
 all sides by water and by vast and 
 impassable peat bogs," to which 
 access could only be had by cause- 
 ways, or by a single bridge built and 
 lengthened out with great labour 
 between 2 elevated posts, tov/ards 
 the western part of which a fort of 
 very great strength and most beau- 
 tiful construction/' had been con- 
 structed by Alfred. 
 
 It is thus described by William of 
 Malmesbury {de Gest. Pont.) M&q- 
 linga-ag is an island surrounded not 
 by the sea but by fens and overflow- 
 ing marshes, so as to be altogether 
 inaccessible except by boats. On 
 this island is a forest of alders of 
 vast extent, giving shelter to stags 
 and roebucks and many other kinds 
 of game. Of dry there is barely two 
 acres. There is a small monastery 
 with offices for the monks." The 
 bridge and causeway described by 
 Asser are placed by Bishop Clifford 
 between Borough Bridge on the 
 high ground near Othery. From 
 this fastness Alfred made frequent 
 incursions against the enemy, and 
 with such success that he was soon 
 enabled to take the field, when he 
 totally defeated them at Ethan- 
 dun (identified by Bishop Clifford 
 with Edington on Polden Hill), and 
 captured their king, Guthrum. 
 Having subjected the Danes, he 
 founded a Benedictine abbey at 
 Athelney, of which there are now 
 no remains ; but several rude coffins, 
 encaustic tiles and bosses, and other 
 relics, have been found on the 
 site. A stone pillar bears the fol- 
 lowing inscription : — King Alfred 
 the Great, in the year of our 
 Lord 879, having been defeated 
 by the Danes, fled for refuge 
 to the forest of Athelney, where 
 he lay concealed from his enemies 
 for the space of a whole year. He 
 soon after regained possession of his 
 
 throne ; and in grateful remembrance 
 of the protection he had received, 
 under the favour of Heaven, he 
 erected a monastery on this spot, and 
 endowed it with all the lands con- 
 tained in the Isle of Athelney. To 
 perpetuate the memory of so re- 
 markable an incident in the life of 
 that illustrious prince, this edifice 
 was founded by John Slade, Esr^., of 
 Maunsell, the proprietor of Athelney, 
 and lord of the manor of IST. Pether- 
 ton, A.D. 1801." The famous Alfred's 
 jewel, now in the Ashmoleati Mu- 
 seum, Oxford, was found at ^(ewton 
 Park between Athelney and Bridg- 
 water in 1693. It is a beautiful 
 specimen of 9th-century jewellery, 
 formed of a crystal cut and polished, 
 set in a case of pure gold, the flat 
 side of which is a portrait of Alfred 
 seated on a throne in enamel. The 
 following inscription is worked in 
 pierced letters of gold, ^'Afilfred 
 mec heht gewyrcan" — *' Alfred had 
 me made." This ornament was 
 formerly supposed to be a necklace 
 jewel, but it was more probably the 
 head of a '^baculus cantoris" or 
 precentor's staff, or a reading pointer. 
 
 At the neighbouring village of 
 Borouglibridge, IJ m. N., conspicuous 
 on the top of a hill, locally called 
 the Mump, are the remains of the 
 cruciform chapel of St. Michael, 
 rebuilt 1794. It was much injured in 
 the Civil Wars, when Goring garri- 
 soned it with 120 men, who surren- 
 dered to Col. Okey, July 13, 1645, 
 after the battle of Langport and the 
 rout of Aller Moor. 
 
 The Ch. of East Lyng has a tall 
 slight tower, with singularly fine 
 gurgoyles. The font is Norman. 
 There is a fine canopied sedile in 
 the chancel. The bench-ends are of 
 good 16th-century carving. 
 
 3 m. 1. N.E., overlooking Aller 
 Moor, is Othery. The Ch. is a very 
 remarkable cruciform structure with 
 a central octagonal Perp. tower. The 
 fabric is of the 13th centy., but it 
 received considerable alterations in 
 
Somersetshire. Houte 30. — Langport. 
 
 441 
 
 the 14th and 15th centuries. The 
 building was restored at great cost 
 by the late rector. The windows are 
 filled with coloured glass, and there is 
 a unique specimen of a low side win- 
 dow, or lychnoscope, with a perfora- 
 tion in an external buttress to com- 
 mand the opening. There is a Norm, 
 gable cross, a great architectural 
 rarity. At the Vicarage a splendid 
 embroidered 15th-century cope is 
 preserved. 
 
 1 m. 1., on a knoll, commanding 
 a wide and lovely view over the 
 rich pasturage of the marshes, is 
 Aller, 2 J m.N.W.of Langport Stat., 
 of interest in history, as the place 
 where, a.d. 878, after his defeat 
 at Edington, Guthrum the Dane 
 was baptised, Alfred standing spon- 
 sor to his vanquished enemy (see 
 Wedmore, Rte. 20). A large ancient 
 font was some years ago dug 
 out of a pond in the vicarage 
 garden, and has been replaced 
 in the ch. It is asserted (but 
 without any foundation) that this is 
 the identical font in which King 
 Guthrum was baptised. The Danish 
 King was probably immersed 
 in the Parrett. The Ch., though 
 small, is interesting, and has 
 2 remarkable turrets. It contains 
 a stone effigy to Sir W. Botreaux, 
 1420. Aller was the birthplace 
 of Dr. Cudworth, 1617, whose father 
 was rector. The marshes below 
 were the scene of the final rout 
 of the Koyalist forces by Fairfax 
 and his army, after the battle of 
 Langport, July 10, 1645. The 
 Koyal forces, in the flight from 
 Langport, made a stand at Aller 
 Drove, but soon " faced about," says 
 Sprigg,"and never stood after." The 
 horses got lost in the ditches, and 
 the men entangled in the meadows, 
 and were taken prisoners to the 
 number of 140. Fairfax's forces 
 pursued them within 2 m. of Bridg- 
 water, doing execution on them all 
 the way, losing hardly 40 men them- 
 selves of killed and wounded. 
 
 7 m. Langport Stat. The town of 
 Langport {Inn : Langport Arms ; 
 Pop., with Huish, 1 706) stands on the 
 rt. bank of the Parrett, just below its 
 confluence with the He and Yeo, 
 where a break in the line of hills 
 gives passage to the united streams, 
 overlooking very extensive marshes. 
 It climbs the hill from the river in 
 one long narrow street, and presents 
 nothing to detain the tourist except 
 its two churches, with their noble 
 towers. " A glance at the map 
 shows the strategical importance of 
 Langport. It occupies a neck of land 
 not more than a few hundred yards 
 wide. The bridge unites the Belgic 
 bank with that occupied by the Dam- 
 nonii, the River Parrett being the 
 boundary between the tribes. The 
 E. point of this neck was defended 
 by earthworks. The lines of de- 
 fence ma}^ be still traced on both 
 sides of the Taunton road." Lang- 
 port may have been the Llongforth 
 of Welsh poetry, where a great 
 battle was fought, between the men 
 of Devon headed by Geraint and the 
 West Saxons (see Skene's Four Ancient 
 Books of Wales, ii. 37), which may 
 probably be identified with the en- 
 gagement with Ina of the A.-S. 
 Chronicle, a.d. 710. ^' Langport," 
 says Collinson, was anciently more 
 celebrious than now." It was here 
 that Henry I. first proposed to 
 erect the large Benedictine abbey, 
 afterwards founded at Reading. 
 
 Charles I.'s forces, under Lord 
 Goring, were defeated by those of 
 the Parliament, July 10, 1645, near 
 Langport. *'It was rather," says 
 Fuller, "a. flight than a fight, and 
 henceforward the sun of the king's 
 cause declined, verging more and 
 more westward till at last it set in 
 Cornwall." Fairfax, who had dis- 
 persed the clubmen," and by the 
 very rumour of his approach raised 
 the siege of Taunton, marched hence 
 to Bridgwater, which surrendered 
 July 23. 
 
 Langport Ch,, at the upper end of 
 
Somersetslaire* 
 
 442 
 
 Boute 30. — Muchelney, 
 
 the town, a large Perp. building, 
 has a good tower of the date of 
 Henry VII., numerous windows and 
 light arcades, and a chancel with good 
 wood ceiling. There is a curious 
 piece of sculpture over the inner 
 door of the porch, representing the 
 Holy Lamb inside a ring, the ring 
 being held by 2 angels, and a bishop 
 standing on either side. The E. 
 window contains some excellent anj 
 cient stained glass" well restored. In 
 the vestry, which is below the E. 
 window, as at II minster and Crew- 
 kerne, is a magnificent monumental 
 slab of Purbeck marble. 
 
 Immediately beyond the ch. the 
 road is crossed by an archway, above 
 which is a Perp. chapel, known as the 
 Hanging Chapel, formerly used as a 
 grammar school, and afterwards as the 
 Quekett Museum (perpetuating the 
 name of the celebrated microscopist 
 whose father was master of the 
 school), containing a small miscella- 
 neous collection of curiosities, now 
 chiefly removed to Taunton Castle. 
 A little further 1. rises the exquisite 
 tower of Huisli EpisGopl, one of the 
 most perfectly lovely of the many fine 
 towers which are the glory of Somer- 
 setshire. It is of the Glastonbury 
 type, with projecting pinnacles. The 
 proportions are perfect, and the 
 workmanship excellent. The Ch., 
 which is unworthy of the tower, is 
 of several dates ; the Transition door- 
 way reddened by fire, of the time of 
 Henry II. ; the walls and most of the 
 windows of the 14th centy., with ugly 
 flat ogee arches. The S. aisle was 
 added 1873. 
 
 At Pitney, 2 m. N.E., a Roman 
 villa, with good tessellated pave- 
 ments, has been excavated. 
 
 [A walk of 1 m. S. from Huish Ch. 
 across the marshes leads to the little 
 village of Muchelney, rising out of 
 the surrounding morass, its remote- 
 ness, according to Wm. of Malmes- 
 bury, being the cause of its selec- 
 tion (the '*muckle eye or great 
 
 island'*), with its abbey remains, 
 ch., village cross, and ancient houses 
 embowered in orchards. It is a 
 place of no ordinary beauty and 
 interest, and should by no means be 
 missed. The first house rt. on enter- 
 ing the village, known as the Al- 
 monry, preserves a fragment of Nor- 
 man sculpture over its pointed 
 doorway ; a nimbed saint under a 
 semicircular arch. To the 1. is the 
 Vicarage House, an unaltered exam- 
 ple of a small ancient house of the 
 15th centy., with a small hall and 
 parlour beyond, and bed-chamber 
 over. The handle, knocker, lock, 
 and other fittings of the door should 
 be carefully remarked. The Village 
 Cross has been well restored. The 
 Ch. has also undergone an excellent 
 renovation. It is wholly Perp., with 
 a good plain tower and groined bel- 
 fry, and fine canopied stoup at the 
 W. door, and a S. chapel with an en- 
 riched panelled ceiling opening into 
 the ch. by a fine panelled arch. 
 There is a handsome founder's tomb, 
 of the 14th centy., in the church- 
 yard. Of the Abbey, founded by 
 Athelstan, a.d. 939, the remains are 
 scanty, but highly interesting. The 
 foundations of the Abbey Ch. have 
 recently been laid bare by the owner, 
 W. Long, Esq., revealing the plan of 
 a Norm, building, terminating in an 
 apse, witli a circular Lady-chapel 
 beyond, resembling Becket's crown 
 at Canterbury. In the 14th century 
 the Norm. Lady-chapel was replaced 
 by a rectangular chapel extending 
 further to the E. The extreme length 
 from the W. wall t© the E. end is 
 235 ft. In a N. Trans, or chapel 
 may be seen the remains of the 
 altar platform and a mutilated effigy 
 of an Abbot in an altar-tomb of 
 the end of the 14th century. The 
 exquisite pavements of encaustic 
 tiles discovered in the site have 
 been relaid under the tower and 
 in the chancel of the eh. To the 
 S. of the ch. are the remains of the 
 cloisters and of the Abbot's House. 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 30. — Loiv and High Ham. 
 
 443 
 
 *'This latter is nearly perfect, and 
 presents a fine example of a noble- 
 man's house of the period." — J. H. P. 
 The S. front is nearly unaltered, and 
 is a very excellent composition. To 
 the E. of the house are the panelled 
 walls of the domestic chapel, with 
 traces of the screen, and the usual 
 two-storied arrangement at the W. 
 end. One of the chambers, ap- 
 proached by a stone staircase, retains 
 the wainscot and settle and wooden 
 panels of the time of Henry VIII. 
 There is also a magnificent stone- 
 panelled chimney-piece, and a ceiling 
 supported by huge lion corbels. Of 
 the Perp. cloister G bays of the S. 
 walk remain, now used as a cellar. 
 The springing of the rich vault is 
 still to be seen. At the S. E. corner of 
 the garth is a well walled with stone. 
 The whole group is charming, and 
 full of unusual interest. The vege- 
 tation all round is rank and abun- 
 dant. The botanist will find the 
 Ceteracli and other exquisite ferns 
 and the Cheddar pink, growing on 
 the old walls.] 
 
 [2 m. to N.E. of Langport is Low 
 Ham Ch., formerly a domestic chapel 
 annexed to a mansion now destroyed. 
 It was built by Sir Rich. Hext, d. 
 1624, but in mediaeval style. It 
 stands in a large field, and has no 
 ch.-yd. around it. It has a clerestoried 
 nave, groined in plaster. The chancel 
 roof is painted with stars. There 
 are hardly any signs of debasement 
 except the E. window. Over the 
 chancel screen are the Royal arms, 
 and under them the following text : 
 ''My son, fear thou the Lord and 
 the king, and meddle not with them 
 that are given to change." The pul- 
 pit cloth was rich, the date 1670. 
 There is a fine tomb with the effigies 
 of Sir Edward and Lady Hext, whose 
 only daughter married Sir J. Stawell, 
 the cavalier leader of Cothelstone, 
 and in this family the property long 
 remained. Lord Stawell began a 
 sumptuous mansion here, ''declar- 
 
 ing," it is said, " that as he had the 
 most beautifvil wife and horse in the 
 world, he would also have the most 
 beautiful house." But it was never 
 finished ; a few walls, outbuildings, 
 and grassy terraces, once intended 
 for gardens, alone remain. It is 
 altogether a singular spot. 
 
 High Ham Ch., built 1476 by 
 Abbot Selwood, of Glastonbury, 
 aided by Lord Poulet, and the rector, 
 John Dyer, d. 1499, whose monu- 
 mental slab records the fact, has a 
 superb rood-screen, a richly carved 
 roof, and a singularly perfect rood- 
 loft and staircase. Long Sutton, 4 m. 
 E., was the quarters of Goring and 
 the Royalist forces before the battle 
 of Langport, and after their defeat 
 of Fairfax and his victorious army. 
 The Ch. is a good Perp. one of the 
 local type, with a fine tower. The 
 nave has a clerestory and light 
 arcades, and an excellent wood roof. 
 There is also a highly enriched 
 screen and rood-loft, stretching aei'oss 
 the whole breadth of the ch., and an 
 elaborate stone pulpit.] 
 
 [On the other side of the valley of 
 the Parrett, W., a long stretch of high 
 ground rises. On an escarpment of 
 these heights stands the Parhfield 
 Monument, commonly known as the 
 Burton Steeple, a column 140 ft. 
 high, crowned by a funeral urn, 
 erected by the Earl of Chatham to 
 the memory of Sir William Pynsent. 
 It commands a prospect N. and S. 
 through an avenue of fine trees, par- 
 ticularly beautiful towards the N., 
 where the marshy levels of Bridg- 
 water, extending to the sea-coast, 
 contrast with innumerable hills and 
 woods. To the 1. stood the mansion 
 of Burton House, now almost en- 
 tirely destroyed. For many years 
 this estate was the seat of the 
 Pynsents, but in 1765 Sir William 
 Pynsent, the last of that ancient 
 famil3% having no issue, bequeathed 
 it to William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, 
 to whom he was an entire stranger. 
 
444 
 
 Boute 30. — Martoch Somersetshire. 
 
 '^in his veneration of a great 
 character of exemplary virtue and 
 unrivalled ability," and also on ac- 
 count of Pitt's opposition to the 
 cider tax. The story goes that Sir 
 William on more than one occasion 
 attempted to make his way into 
 Pitt's house, to let him know his 
 intention, but was turned back by 
 the servants on account of his dis- 
 reputable appearance. When Earl 
 of Chatham, Pitt occasionally resided 
 here, and here the little William 
 Pitt's tragedy of "^Laurentius King 
 of Clarinium " [''''Bad, of course," 
 writes Macaulay ; ''but not worse 
 than the tragedies of Hayley" (see 
 Lyme, p. 233)] was acted for the 
 first time, Aug. 22, 1772, when the 
 poet had barely attained his 13th 
 year. The grounds once contained a 
 funeral urn, dedicated to his memory 
 by his Countess, 1781, who made it 
 her permanent home after her widow- 
 hood, and died here April 3, 1803. 
 This urn was removed to Stowe, 
 1831. On the dispersion of the 
 objects collected there, the urn fell 
 into the hands of strangers, but was 
 recovered by Mr. Banks Stanhope, 
 and now stands in his gardens at 
 Revesby Abbey, Lincolnshire. 
 
 Carry Bivell, 2 m. S.W. Dean 
 Alford's grandfather was vicar here, 
 and his father resided here in 1819 
 when curate of Drayton. The Ch. 
 is worth a visit. It has a lofty tower, 
 recently rebuilt, a groined porch, and 
 both sides of the nave equally well 
 finished externally. The nave is 
 good Perp., but the chancel has some 
 Dec. work, and the E. window of the 
 I^. chapel has ball-flower in its arch 
 moulding and shafts, with nail-heads 
 in the capitals. There are also some 
 sepulchral arches of the same date 
 and very excellent character, in one 
 of which is a remarkably small monu- 
 mental efiigy. Some of the win- 
 dows have good ancient coloured 
 glass, and there is an elegant rood- 
 screen. 1. of the altar a curious 
 monument preserves the memory of 
 
 Marmaduke and Robert Jennings, 
 whose effigies appear in the costume 
 of troopers, with jack-boots and jer- 
 kins. Around the tomb are quaint 
 figures of attendant mourners.] 
 
 Returning to the rly., and con- 
 tinuing our route, we pass, 
 
 lO-J m. rt., Kingsbury Episcopi, 
 (2i m. N.W. oiMartockBtSiQ, which 
 has another fine Perp. Ch., with a 
 very rich and beautiful tower, having 
 pierced battlements and pinnacles 
 of the Glastonbury type, and double 
 windows, with stone lattice-work. 
 There is a N. transeptal chapel, which 
 has large windows, containing some 
 good stained glass. The fine double 
 panelled tower arch and canopied 
 niches adjacent deserve notice. 
 There is a good open roof, and a 
 rich rood-screen and loft. As at 
 Langport, there is a vestry under the 
 E. window. The Vicarage has a 
 good Perp. window, and the whole 
 village abounds in ancient houses. 
 
 12 m. Martock Stat. (Inns : White 
 Hart, George; Pop. 2230). Mar- 
 tock is a small picturesque town, 
 containing several ancient houses, 
 originally a manor of the Fienes, 
 chiefly remarkable for its noble and 
 beautifully restored Ch.. one of 
 the largest and finest in the county. 
 The nave and tow^er are wholly 
 Perp. ; the latter, which is the earlier, 
 not rich in proportion to the nave, 
 which is of very grand proportions, 
 with fine arcades, having panelled 
 spandrils, a lofty clerestory, with 
 niches between the windows, and a 
 magnificent open roof of dark oak, 
 one of the finest in the count3^ The 
 chancel is earlier than the nave, and 
 its E. window consists of 5 lancets. 
 Perp. chapels open into the chancel 
 on each side by two arches. The 
 nave clerestory has a very elaborate 
 pierced parapet. The S. porch is 
 groined and has a chamber over it. 
 
 Opposite the ch., and approached 
 by a ruined gateway, is a small Manor- 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 31. — Taunton to Watchet, 
 
 445 
 
 house of the 14thcenty., in good pre- 
 servation and an excellent example of 
 the period. The hall has a fine col- 
 lar-beam timber roof, and is lighted 
 with graceful transomed windows, 
 with foliated rear arches (see Bar- 
 rington, p. 437). There are two large 
 carved stone brackets for lights. The 
 minstrel gallery is boarded off, but 
 the kitchen and other offices remain 
 much as they were in mediaeval 
 times. The Market Cross is a fluted 
 column, bearing a sun-dial, ball, and 
 vane, rising from the original base. 
 
 Cromwell and Fairfax, with their 
 troops, were at Martock, Sunday, 
 July 27, 1645, and gave thanks in 
 the ch. for the taking of Bridgwater. 
 
 Thomas Farnaby, a celebrated 
 grammarian, and editor of Virgil, 
 Juvenal, and other classical authors 
 (d. 1647), kept school at Martock. 
 
 ISouth Petherton, 3 m. S. by W. of 
 Martock Stat., is a small market- 
 town, boasting of a stately cruciform 
 church, with octagonal tower, and 
 chancel windows of early 14th centy. 
 date. It contains some ancient 
 tombs. The house popularly and 
 absurdly known as King Ina's 
 Palace was built by the Daub en y 
 family early in the 16th centy. It 
 has, or had, a fine hall, with open 
 timber roof, a noble bay window, of 
 2 stories, lighting the parlour and 
 chief bedroom, and other architec- 
 tural features of interest. 
 
 Tintinhull, 3 m. E., has a small 
 Ch., without aisles, having early and 
 curious features, and a tower on the 
 N. side of the nave. The prevail- 
 ing features are E. E., but some 
 windows are Perp. In the chancel 
 are some windows of 2 lights, verging 
 on Dec. The porch has a plain stone- 
 arched roof, with strong ribs. The 
 bench-ends are exceedingly fine, and 
 there are 2 brasses to ecclesiastics 
 of the 15th centy.] 
 
 The rly. crosses the Fosse Way at 
 13| m., and passing rt. under the 
 
 fine camp-crowned hill of Hamdon, 
 and the conspicuous wooded sum- 
 mits of Montacute,, and the long, 
 stately front of Montacute House 
 (Rte. 23, p. 413), we catch glimpses 
 of the churches and villages of 
 Lufton and Preston 1. and Odcomhe 
 and Brympton rt., and reach 
 18J m. Yeovil Stat. (Rte. 23). 
 
 ROUTE 31. 
 
 TAUNTON TO WATCHET. BISHOP'S 
 LYDEARD, CLEEVE ABBEY, PUN- 
 STER, MINEHEAD, PORLOCK, LYN- 
 TON. 
 
 (Branch of Bristol and Exeter 
 Bailway.) 
 
 On leaving Taunton, we travel 
 along the Bristol and Exeter line as far 
 as 165 m. Norton Fitzwarren (p. 391), 
 Norton Manor, C. N. Welman, Esq. 
 where it diverges N.W. along the 
 valley of an affluent of the Tone to 
 
 5 m. Bishop's Lydeard Stat., a vil- 
 lage coloured blood-red by the soil. 
 It is remarkable for its Church-tower, 
 a very bea,utiful specimen of the 
 Perp. of Hen. VII., consisting of 4 
 stories, which are surmounted by 
 a pierced parapet. There is a brass 
 to Nicholas Grobham 1585, and his 
 wife Eleanor. In the churchyard 
 is a magnificent cross, an unrivalled 
 example of 14th^cent. work. On the 
 E. face of the shaft is a figure of 
 St. John the Baptist under a canopy. 
 Each of the 8 faces of the socket 
 exhibits a bas-relief — our Lord in 
 Majesty to the E. ; the Resurrection 
 
446 
 
 Boute 31. — Comhe Flory. 
 
 Somersetshire* 
 
 to the W., and the twelve Apostles. 
 A fragment of the village cross has 
 found shelter in the same church- 
 yard. King Alfred had the lands of 
 Lydeard, which he gave to Asser. 
 They afterwards passed to the Bp. 
 of Bath and Wells. Bp. Barlow ex- 
 changed them away with Edw. VJ. 
 for other lands. Here is an alms- 
 house founded and endowed for 
 poor people by Sir Eichard Grob- 
 ham, a native of the parish, in 
 the 17th century. Sir J. Popham, 
 *• memorable as for the antiquity 
 of his noble descent, for his strict 
 justice and unwearied diligence," 
 built a mansion here, held in the 
 Civil Wars as a garrison against the 
 King by Sir R. Grenville, and re- 
 duced to a heap of ruins. 2 m. 
 towards Bridgwater, at the foot of 
 the richly-wooded Quantock Hills, 
 are the interesting remains of the 
 ancient manor-house of Cothelstone, 
 formerly the seat of the Stawels, 
 and the modern mansion of that 
 name, seat of Charles Esdaile, Esq. 
 (Rte. 21). Sir John Stawel, the 
 owner of Cothelstone in the time of 
 the Great Rebellion, was a zealous ad- 
 herent of his sovereign, who paid for 
 his loyalty by seeing his noble man- 
 sion despoiled and devastated, his 
 woods felled, and many of his estates 
 sold. Lord Clarendon characterises 
 him as a gentleman of the largest 
 estate that any man possessed in the 
 West, who, from his very great affec- 
 tion for the person of the King, and 
 for the government that was settled 
 both in Church and State, engaged 
 with singular courage both his own 
 person and two sons in the most 
 active part of the war, and had 
 rendered himself as odious to Par- 
 liament as any man in that condition 
 had done." He lived to see the 
 Restoration, and was one of the 
 100 knights who welcomed Charles 
 II. at Charing Cross. His loyalty 
 and his sufferings are recorded in 
 his epitaph on the monument in 
 Cothelstone Ch, His eldest sou was 
 
 created Lord Stawel. The title is 
 now extinct. 
 
 There is a splendid view from the 
 hill on which Cothelstone Manor 
 stood, and where the lodge remains. 
 It embraces the vale of Taunton, 
 bounded by the Brendon Hills, great 
 part of Dorsetshire, and part of 
 Wilts, the Channel for 50 m., and 
 the Brecon mountains. In the Ch. 
 are Norman pillars and arches, and 
 tombs with fine effigies of the 
 Stawels. 
 
 J m. rt. Watts House, Mrs. Winter ; 
 1. Sandhill Park, Sir Wroth A. Leth- 
 bridge, Bart. 
 
 6f m. Comhe Flory, in a richly 
 wooded park, from 1828 the living 
 of the celebrated wit Sydney Smith, 
 d. 1845, who made the parsonage one 
 of the most delightful of residences. 
 " He carried his system of furnishing 
 for gaiety," writes his daughter, Lady 
 Holland, **even to the dress of his 
 books, which were not brown, dark, 
 dull-looking volumes, but all in the 
 brightest bindings." The open win- 
 dows admitted " a blaze of sunshine 
 and flowers," and commanded a view 
 of a pretty valley and a wood which 
 was traversed by paths. Here the in- 
 genious Sydney would entertain his 
 London friends with many a pleasant 
 device. On one occasion he called in 
 art to aid nature, hanging oranges on 
 the shrubs in the drive and garden. 
 " The stratagem succeeded admir- 
 ably, and great was his exultation 
 when an unlucky urchin from the 
 village was detected in the act of 
 sucking one through a quill. It was 
 as good, he said, as the birds pecking 
 at Zeuxis' grapes. At another time, 
 on a lady happening to hint that the 
 pretty paddock would be improved 
 by deer, he fitted his 2 donkeys with 
 antlers, and placed them imme- 
 diately in front of the mndows." 
 
 In the Ch. are the effigies of a cross- 
 legged mailed warrior, and 2 females, 
 members of the Meriet family, to 
 whom the manor belonged from the 
 
Somersetshire. Boiite 31. — Lydeard — Motiksilver, 
 
 447 
 
 time of Edward II. In the church- 
 yard is a restored cross. 
 
 IJ m. 1. is Lydeard SL Lawrence, 
 in a beautiful position, commanding 
 a fine view of the dark Quantock 
 Hills, and in particular of WilFs 
 Neck, the highest point of the range, 
 1270 ft. above the level of the sea. 
 1. are the Brendon Hills, great off- 
 shoots of Exmoor. This village was 
 the birthplace of Thomas Manton, a 
 learned Nonconformist divine, b. 
 1G20. 
 
 IJ m. further W. is Tolland s^ndi S. 
 of it Gaulden Farm, a curious old 
 manor-house. 
 
 9 m. Crowcomhe Heathfield Stat., 
 a most lonely desolate spot, IJ m. 
 S.W. of the romantic little village of 
 Crowcombe (Rte. 32). On the other 
 side of the line we see the flank of 
 a fir-covered knoll, an outlier of 
 Brendon Hill, crowned by Willet 
 Toiver, a conspicuous object from 
 many distant parts of the county. 
 
 m. W. on Brendon Hill is a 
 British camp called Ellworthy Bar- 
 rows. This range attains a height of 
 1210 ft. above the sea, and has ac- 
 quired importance by the discovery 
 in it of a valuable vein of carbonate 
 of iron. The lode is now worked by 
 the Ebbw Vale Company. 
 
 The cross-roads here are charac- 
 teristic of this part of the county ; 
 very narrow, deep, precipitous, and 
 overhung with hedges. 
 
 On the 1. Ellworthy, a woody ro- 
 mantic spot. Willet Souse (John 
 Blommart, Esq.). 
 
 11 J m. Stogumher Stat, f m. 1. is 
 
 Stogumher, anciently Stoke- Gomer, 
 famous for its tonic ale, made from 
 a spring possessed of medicinal vir- 
 tues, near the village. The Ch., St. 
 Mary, is large and handsome, with 
 N. and S. aisles, and 2 chapels. It 
 has a stone pulpit and some fine mo- 
 numents—one especially of Sir G. 
 Sydenham, a major in the Cavalier 
 army, d. 1664 (whose ghost is still 
 believed to ride his spectral horse 
 
 down Sydenham Combe), and his 2 
 wives. A cross restored in question- 
 able taste stands in the churchyard ; 
 2 miles on the left is situated in a 
 narrow deep valley, the Elizabethan 
 manor-house of Combe Sydenham, 
 worthy of a visit. It has a gabled 
 tower in the centre, the remains of a 
 noble kitchen, and other indications 
 of having been a mansion of great 
 importance. Over the entrance porch, 
 bearing the date 1580, is the inscrip- 
 tion: 
 
 " Porta tuis semper Georgii generose 
 patebo, 
 
 In gratis animis janua clausa patens." 
 with shields bearing the arms of 
 Sydenham and Stourton. 
 
 3 m. W., in a deep valley or 
 combe, is Monksilver. The Perp. Ch, 
 contains some good bench-ends, and 
 has been well restored, and a church- 
 yard cross erected. In the ch.-yd. 
 is a monument to Mrs. Conybeare 
 and her 2 daughters, who were mur- 
 dered in their house, 1773. To the 
 1. 1 m., are the park and gardens of 
 Nettlecomhe, seat of Sir Arthur W. 
 Trevelyan. This is a fine ancestral 
 place, and contains numerous por- 
 traits of the Trevelyans, with many 
 curiosities, such as an original grant 
 of Nettlecombe in the reign of 
 Henry II., and a miniature portrait 
 of Charles I. worked with his own 
 hair. An oak in the park measures 
 17 ft. in circumference near the 
 ground. Nettlecombe Ch. contains 
 some fine monuments to the Raleighs 
 and some good loth-cent, glass. The 
 font is carved with the 7 sacra- 
 ments. At Nettlecombe, several 
 bushels of human bones were dis- 
 covered, supposed to be the remains 
 of the Danes who landed at "VVatchet, 
 and were defeated there. Leighland 
 Chapel, farther W., in a romantic 
 dell, by Treborough, was formerly- 
 attached to the abbey of Old Cleve. 
 
 13 m. rt. on the hill is the village 
 of Bicknoller (Rte. 32). 
 
 14 m. 1. is Sampford Brett, with a 
 Ch, with carved benches and pulpit 
 
448 
 
 Boute 31. — Williton. Somersetshire. 
 
 of black oak, and a cross-legged effigy 
 of a knight in armour; at the 
 foot of the hills, Weacomhe House; 
 away in the distance, 1., the ranges 
 beyond Dunster, and the huge 
 Dunkery Beacon. 
 
 15 m. Williton Stat. (Inn : Egre- 
 mont Arms, Kailway Hotel ; Pop. 
 1500), a village of 2 long streets, in a 
 sheltered valley under the Quantock 
 Hills, about 2 m. from the sea. The 
 cottages are embowered in myrtles 
 and creepers ; but there is little 
 here to delay the traveller, the 
 remains of 2 old crosses by the 
 inn and one in the churchyard 
 being the only objects of any curi- 
 osity. To the S. are seen the fir- 
 crowned hills of Nettlecomhe Court ; 
 and nearer Williton is Orchard Wynd- 
 ham, seat of the late Earl of 
 Egremont, now belonging to his 
 widow. Orchard Wyndham is a 
 beautiful old manor-house ; for the 
 last 3 centuries the seat of the Wynd- 
 hams. It was here that 2 king's 
 messengers came, on Sept. 21, 
 1715, to arrest Sir W. Wyndham, 
 M.P. for Somerset, who was suspected 
 of being mixed up in the Pretender's 
 plot. Sir Will, was not up, but came 
 in his dressing-gown to the dis- 
 turbers of his slumbers, who there- 
 upon told him '*he was their 
 prisoner." He requested leave to 
 return and dress himself, saying, 
 *^that his coach and six would be 
 ready at 7 to convey the party," but 
 he slipped out of a back door, and 
 though a reward of lOOOZ. was offered 
 by the Privy Council, he, by assuming 
 the habit of a clergyman, managed to 
 elude detection, till at last he surren- 
 dered himself, and remained a pri- 
 soner in the Tower, till June, 1716, 
 when he was admitted to bail, and re- 
 turned home. In Blackdown Wood, 
 near Orchard Wyndham, is an up- 
 right stone 7 ft. high, bearing a star 
 and female head, and inscription, 
 long supposed to be a memorial 
 tablet to a young Roman lady, J ulia 
 
 Martima, but proved by Mr. W. 
 George of Bristol to be a modern 
 forgery, incorrectly copied from an 
 engraving of a slab at Ellenborough 
 in Cumberland. It is popularly 
 called " Old Mother Shipton's Tomb." 
 In the reign of Henry II. Williton 
 was the residence of Sir Reginald 
 Fitz-Urse, one of the murderers of 
 Thomas a Becket. It is a walk of 
 2 m., or Ig m. over stile and by 
 green pathway (over the ground, in 
 Somersetshire dialect), to the small 
 but ancient seaport of Watchet, pass- 
 ing the Parish Ch. of 
 
 St, Decumans, so called from its 
 patron saint, d. 706, who, according 
 to the legend, crossed the sea from 
 Wales on a hurdle (some accounts say 
 his cloak), became a hermit here, and 
 was nourished by a cow. It occu- 
 pies a commanding point of view, and 
 the tall, bare, square tower is very 
 conspicuous. It contains memorials 
 of the Wyndhams. Among them are 
 brasses of Sir John Wyndham and 
 his wife, 1571 ; of John Wyndham 
 and his lady Florence, habited in the 
 dress of the period, 1572, 1596 ; 
 monuments of Henry and George 
 Wyndham, with 2 kneeling figures 
 the size of life, 1613, 1624 ; of 
 Sir William Wyndham, 1683 ; and 
 of the late Earl of Egremont, a slab 
 of blue marble emblazoned with 
 shields. The roof, pulpit, screen, 
 and pews are of carved oak ; and the 
 churchyard contains an ancient cross j 
 early 14th century. 
 
 The rly. reaches in 
 
 16 J m. Watchet {Inn: West 
 Somerset, a comfortable little Hotel) 
 situated at the end of a pretty valle}^, 
 which runs obliquely to the sea ; 
 It is a small port, with some preten- 
 sions to be called a watering-place, 
 with a pier built by Sir W. Wynd- 
 ham, Secretary-at-War under Queen 
 Anne, ironfoundry and paper-mill, its 
 principal business being the trans- 
 portation of iron ore to Wales, and 
 
Somersetsliire. Boute 31. — ' 
 
 •Cleeve Ahhey. 
 
 449 
 
 the importation of coal for the lime- 
 kilns. On either side of it are cliffs 
 of blood-red conglomerate, streaked 
 by light-green bands of limestone, 
 and, towards Blue Anchor, abound- 
 ing in alabaster, which is collected 
 and ground for cement in a mill at 
 Williton. 
 
 The shore here is low, and affords 
 a convenient landing ; of which the 
 piratical Danes more than once 
 took advantage, disembarking their 
 marauding hosts here. In 988 the 
 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle tells us, 
 *'the port of Watchet was plun- 
 dered. This attack however was not 
 successful in effecting a lodgment ; 
 several of the English Thanes were 
 killed, but the Danes were at last 
 beaten off. Beyond Watchet, breezy 
 heathy hills look down on the sea 
 at their foot. The walk along the 
 shore to the Blue Anchor (post), 
 2 m. W., is much to be recommended. 
 Picturesque cliffs overhang the sea. 
 [At Watchet a short rly. diverges to 
 the Brandon Hills (West Somerset 
 Mineral Rly.) for the conveyance of 
 its iron ore with stations at Wash- 
 ford (2m.); Boadwater (4 m.) and a 
 terminus at Combe Boad (6 m.)] 
 
 The rly. turns inward to 
 
 18f m. Washford, close to which 
 in a valley, called in old records Vallis 
 Florida, the Flowery Vale, which is 
 watered by a stream flowing into the 
 Channel at Watchet, are the little 
 known but singularly beautiful and 
 interesting ruins of 
 
 Cleeve Ahhey, founded for Cistercian 
 monks, 1188, by William deRomare, 
 grandson of the Earl of Lincoln, 
 the founder of the Cistercian Abbey 
 of Revesby, in Lincolnshire, of which 
 Cleeve was an offshoot. From their 
 remarkable state of preservation, 
 these ruins are far more interesting, 
 both to the archaeologist and artist, 
 than most monastic remains. The 
 foundations of the church and other 
 portions have recently been unearthed 
 
 IWilts, Dorset, &c„ 1882.] 
 
 at the expense of their present owner, 
 Mr. Luttrell, of Dunster, under the 
 able superintendence of the late Rev. 
 Mackenzie Walcott. The farm-build- 
 ings which covered the site of the 
 Ch. have been entirely cleared away, 
 and the whole area laid bare. 
 
 The abbey buildings were sur- 
 rounded by a moat. The gatehouse, 
 embroidered with ferns, is a structure 
 of the time of Richard II., with 
 additions made to it by Will. Dovell, 
 the last abbot. Over the arch of 
 entrance is an inscription admitting 
 of a double meaning, 
 Porta patens esto 
 Nulli claudaris honesto. 
 
 Above this is a square-headed win- 
 dow, of late Perp., surmounted by 3 
 niches, the centre containing a sculp- 
 tured crucifix. 
 
 Entering by the W. cloister door, 
 we have to our 1., on the N. side of 
 the quadrangle, the remains of the 
 Gh, 
 
 Facing us on the E. side is the 
 dormitory of E. E. date, measuring 
 137 ft. 6 in. by 24 ft. 3 in., lighted 
 by a row of unglazed and shutter- 
 less lancets, raised on a vaulted 
 substructure, and communicating 
 with the S. transept of the Ch. by 
 a door and staircase still to be 
 traced. The dormitory is reached 
 from the cloister by a fine E. E. door, 
 with shafts of blue lias, altered in 
 Perp. times, and a stone staircase. 
 It is now divided across by a rude 
 modern wall. It is almost the most 
 perfect conventual dormitory exist- 
 ing. The small arched room under 
 the N. end of the dormitory was the 
 sacristy ; it is surrounded by aum- 
 bries, and has a fine piscina on the 
 S. wall, with a projecting basin, and 
 side ledges for the cruets. The wall 
 at the back has some very pretty 
 decorative painting. The conjecture 
 that the large circular aperture at 
 the E. of this room was used for 
 removing a monk's corpse into the 
 conventual burying-ground, is ne- 
 gatived by the position of the altar 
 2 G 
 
450 
 
 Boute 31. — Cleeve Abbey. Somersetshire. 
 
 immediately below it. Beyond this 
 is the entrance to a chamber lighted 
 by a single lancet. That is succeeded 
 by the entrance into the chapter- 
 house, a beautiful E. E. doorway, 
 between 2 two-light windows, with 
 chamfered mouldings and blue lias 
 shafts. The western part of the 
 chapter-house below the dormitory 
 retains its low vaulting, the eastern 
 bay rose higher, and was lighted 
 from the E. N. and S. Next we 
 have the stairs to the dormitory ; 
 the slype, a passage to the cemetery, 
 from which is the entrance to the 
 calefactory, a monks' day-room, 
 nearly 70 ft. long, divided into two 
 alleys by a central arcade, and 
 lighted with 2 -light windows at 
 the S. end. 
 
 On the S. side of the quadrangle, 
 to the rt., stands the refectory of the 
 15th centy., the work of the last 
 Abbot, William Dovell ; a very stately 
 building, with 5 fine traceried win- 
 dows to the N. and 4 to the S. The 
 usual position of the refectory in 
 Cistercian houses was, as at Beaulieu 
 and Rievaulx, afc right angles to the 
 cloister, and a magnificent pavement 
 of encaustic tiles, bearing the arms 
 of Clare, and of Richard King of the 
 Romans, has recently been laid bare, 
 marking its site. The position of 
 the present refectory, parallel to the 
 ch., as in Benedictine houses, is 
 exceptional. It stands on an E. E. 
 substructure, and is approached by 
 a handsome staircase, to the 1. of 
 which is the monks' lavatory. The 
 hall is 51 ft. long and 22 ft. broad, 
 and still retains its beautiful carved 
 hammer-beam roof, with angel cor- 
 bels. On the E. wall may still be 
 traced an ancient fresco painting of 
 the Crucifixion, and on the S. side the 
 place of the reading pulpit. Further 
 W. are the windows of the buttery, 
 and the Abbot's parlour, and the 
 entrance to the kitchen and offices. 
 The W. side of the cloisters to the 
 2Sr. of the entrance was also rebuilt 
 by ^the Abbot Dovell. It seems 
 
 to have been divided into carols 
 for study, lighted by fine Perp. win- 
 dows. Here may be traced the re- 
 mains of the Domus Conversorum, 
 a house of the lay brothers. The 
 other walks of the cloister were a 
 mere pentice. To the N. of the 
 cloister garth is the S. wall of the 
 Ch. In the centre a trefoiled arch- 
 way marks the seat of the claustral 
 prior. 
 
 The Ch., of which only the founda- 
 tions remain, was 161 ft. in length, 
 of the purest Cistercian type, consist- 
 ing of a nave of 5 bays, with cylin- 
 drical pillars, fragments of which 
 remain, a low central tower, short 
 transepts, each with two square 
 chapels, and a shallow aisleless pres- 
 bytery. The whole appears to have 
 been in the Trans, and E. E. style. 
 The foundations of the walls sup- 
 porting the stalls and of the western 
 screen of the ritual choir may be 
 traced. Portions of the exquisite 
 encaustic tile pavement are carefully 
 protected by glass. Bishop Hooper, 
 the martyred Bishop of Gloucester, 
 had in his early days been a monk of 
 Old Cleeve. 
 
 A shady lane leads N.W. to Old 
 Cleeve. The remains of a wayside 
 cross will be passed midway between 
 Washford and the Ch,, an interesting 
 building, the floor slanting upwards 
 from the tower to the chancel. The 
 tower is a fine Perp. structure in 3 
 stages, with a band of tracery in the 
 middle story. The roofs of the 
 nave and S. aisle have bosses and 
 angel corbels, and carved wall-plates. 
 Portions of the rood-screen do duty 
 as a reredos. The font is Perp. 
 Under an ogee arch is the effigy of a 
 layman, c. 1410-1440, mth a cat 
 watching a mouse at his feet. " Such 
 sculptured effigies of laymen of this 
 date are very rare." (M. K. B.) 
 In the churchyard stands another 
 old cross in a fair state of preser- 
 vation. The site of the Chapel of 
 OUT Lady of Cleeve, much frequented 
 by worshippers in mediaeval times. 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 31. — Blue Anchor — Dmster, 
 
 451 
 
 of which some fragments still exist 
 (as well as portions of a house of 
 the 14th cent.), is nearer Blue 
 Anchor. 
 
 At Washford the rly. returns to 
 the coast and reaches 
 
 JBlue Anchor (21 m.), a quiet cosy- 
 little watering-place, with a large and 
 comfortable Inn, and a few lodging 
 houses for visitors who prize rest and 
 retirement, seated on rising ground 
 by the side of the salt marsh which 
 extends to Minehead. It commands 
 one of the most beautiful prospects 
 in the county, and for this reason 
 should be visited by travellers who 
 find their way to Dunster or Mine- 
 head. Around the alluvial plain to 
 the W. of it the hilly ranges circle 
 in amphitheatrical order, wild and 
 heath-covered, sweeping in undu- 
 lating outline from Minehead to the 
 Quantocks. In advance of them 
 rises the towered cone of Dunster, 
 and through the vista of the valley of 
 Avill looms the giant Dunkery. 
 
 The shore here is interesting. To 
 the E. is a remarkable headland of 
 rock of a dull green colour, inter- 
 sected in every direction by ramifying 
 lines of alabaster. Both in form and 
 colour it bears some resemblance to 
 a berg of Polar ice. The strata are 
 curved and contorted, and, dipping to 
 the sea, have become caverned in a 
 singular manner. They overlie the 
 new red sandstone, which appears 
 again within J m. of Watchet. The 
 alabaster occurs in irregular veins, 
 either white or of a cornelian red. 
 It is largely collected and ground for 
 cement. The sea here retires for a 
 long distance, and at low water 
 spring-tides exposes the fossil re- 
 mains of a submerged forest. Com- 
 pressed ammonites, having the iri- 
 descent nacre, may be found on the 
 beach. 
 
 The rly. runs along the shore of 
 the Channel, with wide views across 
 the sea to the Welsh shore, and the 
 mountains beyond. 
 
 1 m. W. is Marshwood JPam, an 
 old house of the Luttrells, rebuilt by 
 George Luttrell^ of Dunster, c. 1620, 
 mentioned by Leland. The porch 
 contains some curious bas-reliefs in 
 plaster, removed from the interior, 
 by the same hand as those in Dun- 
 ster Castle, and in the Luttrell 
 Arms Inn. Aller, the manor-house 
 of the Everards, also mentioned by 
 Leland, 1 m. further inland, has 
 some ancient portions. 
 
 22 m. Carhampton. The C7i. was 
 restored in 1870, and the tower 
 rebuilt. The chancel screen is painted 
 and gilt. This village gives the title 
 to the hundred. Left, 1 m. S.E. up 
 a glen, lies thelvillage of Withycomhef 
 with a Perp. Ch., beyond which is a 
 pretty combe running up into the 
 hills. On one side of the hills above 
 the village is the supposed site 
 of a British village ; and in a lane 
 leading to it, the conjunction of the 
 red sandstone with the Devonian 
 series may be observed. 
 
 Jm. E. Sandhill, built in 1588, was 
 formerly the residence of a branch of 
 the Escott family, but now a farm- 
 house. 
 
 23 m. Dunster (Inn: Luttrell 
 Arms ; Pop. 1120), a characteristic 
 specimen of an old English town, with 
 
 , its quaint steep streets, its pictu- 
 resque market-cross, its old houses, 
 with pentices projecting on brackets, 
 and the ivied towers of the castle 
 closing the vista. 
 
 Dunster is:situated in the midst of 
 the most beautiful scenery in Somer- 
 setshire, so that a stranger may well 
 amuse himself here for some days by 
 exploring the neighbourhood. The 
 chief points of interest are the castle 
 and its park, the view from Grabhurst 
 Hill, the ruins of Cleeve Abbey, Blue 
 Anchor, Minehead, Porlock, Cul- 
 bone, and Dunkery Beacon. The 
 fisherman will find in the little river 
 trout and eels, and near the sea 
 salmon and mullet. 
 
 2 o 2 
 
452 
 
 Boute 31. — Dmster Castle. Somersetshire. 
 
 Copper coins of Maximian and 
 Constantine prove that Dunster was 
 inhabited in the time of the Romans. 
 Nothin[5 certain is known of its 
 history till the reign of Edward the 
 Confessor^ when, we learn from 
 Domesday, it formed part of the 
 property of one Alluric. It was then 
 known by the name of Torre, but by 
 the year 1100 it had acquired the 
 prefix it has ever since retained, 
 being called Dunestora in a grant of 
 the date of the advowson of the 
 Church to the monks of St. Peter's, 
 Bath, by William de Mohun. The 
 Manor was granted by the Conqueror 
 to William de Moion, as one of the 
 68 manors held by him in the W. 
 of England, and here he erected his 
 castle. Dunster remained in the 
 hands of his descendants for nearly 
 three centuries and a half. After 
 the death of John de Mohun in 137 6, 
 the reversion was sold by his widow, 
 Lady Joan, to Lady Elizabeth Lut- 
 brell, second cousin to the Black 
 Prince, in the possession of whose 
 descendants it has remained till the 
 present day. In 1360 Dunster re- 
 turned members to Parliament for 
 the first and last time* 
 
 Dunster Castle, ^'ihe Alnwick of 
 the West," is not open to the public ; 
 but the grounds may be seen on 
 Mondays and Fridays by application 
 at the gardener's house. It crowns 
 Tor, where it slopes to the valley of 
 Avill, in full view of the wild height 
 of Grabhurst, of the sea-coast, and 
 of the beautiful Castle park. A 
 Castle was erected here by William 
 de Mohun in the 12th century, 
 and held by him in opposition 
 to King Stephen, as a centre from 
 which he devastated the whole coun- 
 try round. Stephen appeared against 
 Dunster, but despaired of taking by 
 assault a place of such extraordinary 
 strength; he therefore surrounded 
 the castle with his forces to keep 
 Mohun in check, and retired, delegat- 
 ing his authority to Henry de Tracy 
 
 of Barnstaple, who stopped Mohun's 
 predatory sallies. Between the 12th 
 and the 17th cents, the annals of 
 Dunster are uneventful. In the 
 civil wars of the latter century it 
 occupied a distinguished place. In 
 1642 the castle was held by Mr. 
 Luttrell for the Parliament, and the 
 failure of the Marquis of Hertford, 
 who had taken up a strong position 
 at Minehead, to get possession of it, 
 caused it to be regarded as impreg- 
 nable. The Royalist successes in 
 the W. led Mr. Luttrell to surrender 
 the castle in 1643, and it Avas gar- 
 risoned for the king and held by his 
 forces till 1646, Colonel Francis 
 Windham being the governor. Dur- 
 ing this period Prince Charles, after- 
 wards Charles II., paid the castle 
 a visit, and slept in the room which 
 still bears his name. In 1645 the 
 tide had turned, and Dunster was 
 the only place held for the king in 
 Somerset ; but, isolated as it was, 
 ineffectually, except as a means of 
 annoyance to the district immedi- 
 ately around it. As it was desirable 
 to stop even this, Blake and Syden- 
 ham, with a small party from 
 Taunton, laid siege to Dunster early 
 in November. Windham turning a 
 deaf ear to Blake's repeated summons 
 to surrender, the latter pushed for- 
 ward his earthworks, batteries, and 
 mines, determined to end the busi- 
 ness. The besieged replied with 
 countermines, and, hard pressed as 
 they were for provisions, continued 
 to hold out with the utmost reso- 
 lution. Several furious attempts 
 having failed, a strong force sent by 
 Lord Hopton managed to reach 
 Dunster and relieve the castle on 
 February 5th, forcing Blake to retire. 
 Blake, however, continued the block- 
 ade till Exeter and Barnstaple having 
 fallen, Fairfax sent a regiment to 
 strengthen him, and the king's cause 
 being seen to be hopeless, Windham 
 surrendered the castle, April 19, after 
 a close siege of 160 days. The sur- 
 render of Dunster ended the struggle 
 
Soniersetsliire. Boute 31. — Dunster Castle. 
 
 453 
 
 in Somerset, and finally destroyed 
 the power of the king. An ordinance 
 issued from the Parliament that the 
 castle should be dismantled, and a 
 rate was levied in the district for 
 that purpose. The order, however, 
 happily was not carried into effect, 
 and two years later, 1648, Prynne 
 was sent to confinement there by 
 Cromwell, finding a congenial em- 
 ployment in searching and arranging 
 tiie family muniments. 
 
 The earliest part of the existing 
 building is the entrance gateway, 
 which, together with the projecting 
 semicircular towers and the thick 
 wall which connects them, was pro- 
 bably built by Reginald Mohun the 
 second, d. 1258. The gatehouse, 
 which spans the road from the 
 N.W., the ^^fair tourre by north 
 cummyng into the castle," errone- 
 ously ascribed by Leland to Sir 
 Hugh Luttrell the second, temp. 
 Henry VII., was more probably 
 built by the earlier Sir Hugh, who 
 we know executed much architec- 
 tural work at the castle, c. 1417. 
 It abuts against and partly incor- 
 porates one of the flanking towers 
 of the earlier gateway. His son. 
 Sir John, strengthened it by the 
 erection of two buttresses on the 
 N". side. The two shields over the 
 W. arch, impaling the arms of Lut- 
 trell and Courtenay, commemorate 
 the marriage of Sir John's son, Sir 
 James, with Elizabeth Courtenay of 
 Powderham, as well as that of his 
 great grandfather, Andrew Luttrell, 
 with Lady E. Courtenay, the pur- 
 chaser of Dunster. The present S. 
 front was erected by Henry Fownes 
 Luttrell, d. 1780, on the formation 
 of the artificial platform in 1764, 
 which came up to the line of the upper 
 story of the gatehouse and buried 
 the lower part. The Perp. doorway 
 was removed from another part of 
 the castle. The present- owner has 
 converted the upper stories into one 
 large room, 46 ft. long. The adapta- 
 
 tion of the old fortress to modern 
 requirements was carried out by 
 George Luttrell, d. 1G29, at the be- 
 ginning of the 17th cent. The plaster 
 ceiling of the hall, and plaster mantel- 
 pieces, and many of the existing 
 doors and windows may be attri- 
 buted to him. The elaborate ceilings 
 of the staircase and parlour are due 
 to Francis Luttrell, 1681. He married 
 the heiress of the Tregonwells of 
 Milton Abbey, whose arms are im- 
 paled with his on the parlour ceiling. 
 It continued as fitted up by him till 
 a recent period, when great changes 
 and improvements have been effected 
 by the present proprietor, Mr. George 
 Fownes Luttrell, from the designs of 
 the late Mr. Salvin. The N. tower of 
 the principal fa9ade was replaced by 
 a larger one with projecting stair- 
 turret. The porch was rebuilt on a 
 larger scale, and an additional story 
 was added to the greater part of the 
 edifice. A lofty tower was erected 
 on the S. front on the site of an 
 incongruous chapel built in 1720. 
 The hall was enlarged by throwing 
 rooms into it, and the whole house 
 converted into a splendid and com- 
 fortable residence. 
 
 The Norm, keep of the Mohuns 
 has entirely perished. The summit 
 of the lofty Tor is occupied by a 
 bowling-green. It was formerly 
 known as Mount Stephens, from a 
 chapel dedicated to the first martyr 
 and mentioned as early as 1254. 
 
 The interior of the castle is full 
 of interest, and is magnificently 
 fitted up. The Hall has an em- 
 bossed ceiling with pendants, and con- 
 tains a portrait of Cromwell by 
 FftlDfi^j^r^ nnri a singular picture by Vv^*«^ 
 Lucas de Heere in 1550, restored in 
 1591, absurdly said to represent Sir 
 John Luttrell (temp. Henry VIIL) 
 saving the lady of his love from 
 drowning; the supposed lady being 
 really a young man with a moustache. 
 The picture is probably partly allego- 
 rical, with reference to some event 
 
454 
 
 Boiite 31. — Dunster Castle. Somersetsliire. 
 
 (now unknown) in Sir! John's life. 
 In the background is a man-of-war 
 struck by lightning and deserted by- 
 its crew. Semi-nude female figures 
 appear in the clouds above, the chief , 
 bearing a sprig of olive. The Great 
 Staircase has elaborately-carved ba- 
 lustrades, polished steps and rich 
 stucco ceiling, 1681 ; Prince Charles* 
 Boom has a mantelpiece orna- 
 mented with coarse reliefs in stucco, 
 dated 1620. The ancient cor ami 
 or leather hangings, painted in imi- 
 tation of tapestry, certainly of Ita- 
 lian, probably of Venetian manufac- 
 ture, date from the 17th cent., the 
 subject being the history of Antony 
 and Cleopatra. Among some stuffed 
 specimens of birds in the castle are 
 a white rook, and a blackbird spotted 
 grey as by age. 
 
 Passing beneath the gatehouse, the 
 visitor — noting on the way the iron- 
 studded door and flanking drum- 
 tower on the rt. — will be conducted 
 to the terrace to the S. of the castle, 
 where his attention will be drawn to 
 a remarkable lemon-tree trained 
 against the wall, and bearing fruit 
 in great plenty ; and to the yew 
 hedge, some 50 ft. high, through a 
 gap of which is seen a little bridge, 
 crossing the sparkling stream. He 
 will then be led by a circling walk 
 to the summit of the wooded hill 
 on which the Korm. Keep of the 
 Mohuns stood, now a bowling-green. 
 Here, through openings in the trees, 
 are a series of enchanting views : 
 through one the town of Minehead 
 and its hills ; through another Blue 
 Anchor, the rocky islets of the 
 Holmes, and a distance of Welsh 
 mountain ; a third will show him the 
 glens and straggling oaks of the 
 park ; and a fourth, the valley of 
 Avill in long perspective to the 
 brown sides of Dunkery. Around 
 the wooded hill are numerous shady 
 walks, which here and there give a 
 peep through a gap of a glittering 
 eddy in the stream, or the wheel of 
 a water-mill. On the lawn there is 
 
 an excellent echo, which will 3 times 
 repeat the blast of a bugle horn. 
 
 The Ch.f though of inferior work- 
 manship, is one of some size and 
 dignity, 157 ft. in length from E. to 
 W., cruciform, with a central tower, 
 and with points of special ecclesio- 
 logical interest. The minster type it 
 displays is explained by Dunster 
 having been a cell of Bath Abbey, 
 originally founded here by Sir Wil- 
 liam de Mohun, in the reign of the 
 Conqueror. Of this some fragments still 
 exist among the buildings of the adja- 
 cent farm,N. of the choir, including the 
 prior's lodgings, with square-headed 
 windows, and the conventual dove- 
 cot. The great barn of the monks 
 is a prominent feature in the land- 
 scape from many points of view. 
 There is documentary evidence that 
 the tower, of stately outline rising 
 in 3 stories above the roof, was 
 built in 1419, and this date would 
 probably suit the larger part of the 
 edifice, though it has a Norm. W. door, 
 and earlier fragments are to be seen 
 within. That which makes this ch. 
 specially remarkable is the peculiarity 
 of its internal arrangements. On 
 entering, it will be seen that the 
 whole space E. of the tower is cut 
 off", the altar being under the eastern 
 tower-arch. Nor is this a modern 
 arrangement, as is proved by the 
 existence of a noble rood-screen in 
 situ, and the rood-turret, some dis- 
 tance to the W. of the tower. * ' This 
 rood-turret is the key to the historv 
 of this church."— (i7. J[. i^.) In fact 
 Dunster Church, like many conven- 
 tual churches, contains two churches 
 under one roof. This has been so 
 at least since 1499, when, in conse- 
 quence of a dispute between the 
 vicar of the parish and the prior of 
 the cell, such as was continually 
 arising in mediaeval times, when the 
 same building was shared by two 
 parties (see Sherborne ante), it was 
 decided by the Abbot of Glastonbury 
 that the monastic choir should be 
 resigned to the sole use of the monks, 
 
Somersetshire. Soute 31. — Dunster Church, 455 
 
 and that the parishioners should 
 make themselves a new choir in the 
 nave. Accordingly the nave is still 
 used for the parish services, while 
 the choir, having at the Dissolution 
 passed into the possession of the 
 owners of Dunster Castle, was for a 
 long time (as at Arundel) allowed to 
 fall into a lamentable state of neglect. 
 The whole has recently been restored 
 in the most munificent manner by 
 Mr. Luttrell, under the direction of 
 the late Mr. Street, R.A. The altar, 
 which originally stood under the 
 western tower-arch, has been trans- 
 ferred to the eastern arch, and behind 
 it a low solid screen has been erected, 
 keeping up the original division of 
 the chancel from the nave. The 
 chancel is admirably fitted with oak 
 stalls, and is used for daily prayers. 
 The effect of the nave within is 
 solemn if not gloomy, owing to its 
 extreme width and lowness, and the 
 absence ^ of a clerestory. It is 
 divided from the aisles by tall well- 
 proportioned Perp. arcades, 6 arches 
 to S., 4 to N. The N. aisle is 
 shortened by two bays, where the 
 Prior's house abutted upon it. The 
 ceilings are coved, with carved ribs 
 and bosses, except in the S. aisle, 
 which has a rich flat-panelled ceiling. 
 The piers of one of the original Nor- 
 man arches of the lantern may be 
 seen on the W. side of the tower, 
 though a later arch, corresponding to 
 the date of the tower, has been 
 constructed beyond. The visitor 
 should notice the very whimsical 
 device for making a wide opening of 
 a narrow one in the eccentric arch 
 opening from the S. transept to the 
 S. aisle of the choir. A narrow E.E. 
 arch has been raised on moulded 
 jambs, bent outward immediately 
 below the capitals, producing a wider 
 shouldered aperture of very ugly 
 form. The presbytery of two bays 
 has been rebuilt by Mr. Street in the 
 E. E, style, with an eastern triplet, 
 following the indications of the 
 original structure. There is a 
 
 chantry to the N. containing a fine 
 altar-slab with its 5 crosses. Be- 
 tween it and the presbytery is the 
 rich canopied altar-tomb of Sir Hugh 
 Luttrell, 1428, and his lady, 1433. 
 On the S. wall of the presbytery a 
 beautiful late Dec. ogee canopy 
 covers the efiigy of a lady of the 
 Everard family. There is also an 
 incised stone slab of Eliz. Luttrell, 
 d. 1493. In the N. chapel is a massive 
 stone altar of the earlier part of the 
 13th cent. In the S. aisle of the 
 nave is a brass dated 1495, with an 
 English inscription ending in Latin. 
 The font is a fair Perp. one, carved 
 with emblems of the Passion, and 
 there is a little wood screen-work, 
 and some ancient tiles. 
 
 After the Ch. the Luttrell Arms 
 Inn claims attention. It has a stone 
 porch with openings for cross-bows, 
 and a wing with a good open roof 
 and an elaborately - carved facade 
 of oak. There is a carved ceiling 
 in the commercial-room, an em- 
 blazoned escutcheon of the Luttrells 
 in an upper chamber, and in one of 
 the bedrooms a chimneypiece richly 
 ornamented with sculptures, repre- 
 senting 2 full-length female figures 
 dressed in the style of Elizabeth, the 
 fable of Actseon, coats of arms, and 
 other devices. At the back of the 
 house are remains of a chapel, and 
 in the kitchen a huge fireplace. On 
 the hill beyond the garden are the 
 earthworks thrown up by the Par- 
 liamentary army during the siege of 
 the castle. 
 
 The Yarn Market, an ancient pic- 
 turesque octagonal structure of wood, 
 with wide-spreading pentice, ^'its 
 efiect about as perfect as may be," 
 E. A, F., recalls the time when Dun- 
 ster was of importance for the manu- 
 facture of kerseymeres, which are 
 mentioned in an Act of Parliament 
 of James I., under the name of 
 Dunsters." It was built by George 
 Luttrell, c. 1600, and repaired by his 
 
456 
 
 Boute 31. — Dunster Park Somersetshire. 
 
 grandson of the same name in 1647, 
 a year after Blake's siege. The vane 
 bears his initials. One of the timbers 
 of the building has been pierced by 
 a cannon-shot from the castle. 
 
 In the street leading to the Ch. is 
 a very curious wooden building of 
 the 15th cent., with 3 overhanging 
 stories, and a tall gable, retaining 
 some old staircases and some windows 
 of earlier date. It has the local 
 name of the *^ Nunnery." 
 
 The j^ar/c affords scope for an ex- 
 tensive ramble. It occupies one of 
 the rough hills here descending in 
 numberless knolls to the lower coun- 
 try. Its sides are seamed by dingles 
 and glens, in which grow irregular 
 woods of oak. A walk to the old 
 Roman camp on Gallows Hill, or 
 further to Batfs Castle, on Croydon 
 Hill, should be an object with every 
 one. The way lies through the deer- 
 park, which is several miles in cir- 
 cumference, up a rugged hollow by 
 the side of a brook. The view em- 
 braces the great offshoots of Ex- 
 moor, the Quantock Hills, and the 
 coast both of Somerset and Wales. 
 Grabhurst lies to the N.W., and S. 
 are the woods about Luxborough, 
 and the dark ridge of Brendon, 1210 
 ft. above the sea. On Croydon are 
 several hut circles, or remains of 
 ancient British habitations. 
 
 Grabhurst Hill is a loftier but 
 more accessible height for the study 
 of this glorious landscape. It rises 
 immediately from Duiister, to an ele- 
 vation of 906 ft., the Tor and Conygar 
 being the steps which lead up to it. 
 From the turnpike on the Timbers- 
 combe road there is a path to the 
 summit which commands a view of 
 the grand mass of Dunkery, the sea, 
 and distant coast. On the southern 
 slope are remains of the terraces, on 
 which stood the racks for drying the 
 cloth, or Dunsters," formerly made 
 in this neighbourhood. The name 
 Grabhurst signifies the entrenched 
 wood. Deep on the S.W. side of this 
 bill, about 3 m. from Dunster, is 
 
 Wootton Courtenay, a village so 
 named from the noble family who 
 possessed it of old, and of interest 
 for the beauty of its position and the 
 carving of the capitals of the Ch. 
 The pillars separating nave and aisle 
 are ornamented with sculptured 
 figures of St. Christopher, St. Law- 
 rence, &c. ; the font also deserves 
 notice, and the columnar holy-water 
 stoup in the porch. The church- 
 yard has the panelled base of a 
 cross and a venerable yew-tree. S. 
 of Grabhurst lies Timberscomhe (pro- 
 nounced Immercombe) — with its 
 manor-house of Bichham. 
 
 Conygar Hill, the far-seen land- 
 mark of Dunster, is another beau- 
 tiful point of view. It forms a 
 pyramid of foliage, crowned by the 
 picturesque shell of a tower, erected 
 as a prospect-house about 1775, and 
 from its prominent position is a 
 well-known sea-mark. Conygar is 
 a corruption of Coney Garth, the 
 rabbit enclosure, and designates the 
 warren, the usual appendage of a 
 country mansion in mediaeval 
 times. 
 
 Near the rly. stat., on the level 
 toward the channel, lies Lower Marsh 
 Farm, where there still exist a 
 very curious small Perp. oratory 
 over the porch, and traces of an 
 open-roofed hall. 
 
 [There is a pretty lane between 
 Grabhurst and Conygar, leading from 
 Dunster to Alcombe, where it joins 
 the main road. At a cross road, 
 J m. from Dunster, is a fine road- 
 side cross. 
 
 A beautiful drive can be taken 
 from Dunster through Timbers- 
 combe, -ascending the long hill be- 
 hind the church to Couple Cross, 
 and then, passing by the lonely vil- 
 lage and church of Luxborough (rt. 
 Chargot Lodge, J. H. Insoll, Esq.), 
 descend through a wooded valley of 
 great beauty for some miles to Cleeve 
 Abbey and Washford, and so re- 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 31. — MineJiead. 
 
 457 
 
 turning to Dunster, through Car- 
 hampton. 
 
 From Dunster to Dulverton, 14 
 m., is one of the most romantic 
 drives in the country. The road 
 passes through deep wooded valleys, 
 and for some distance along the 
 banks of the Exe ; having reached 
 the watershed at Wheddon Cross.] 
 
 24f m. MiNEHEAB, commonly pro- 
 XiouncedMinyard {Inn : Kail way Hotel, 
 Feathers; Pop. 1605), seated under a 
 bold promontory called Greenaleigh, 
 G90 ft. high, the E. point of a wild 
 range of hills extending along the 
 coast to Porlock, one of the grand- 
 est features of the coast of the 
 Bristol Channel. This town, which 
 returned 2 Members of Parliament 
 till it was disfranchised by the 
 Reform Bill, consists of 3 detached 
 parts, the Upper Town on the hill, 
 the Lower Toion, and the Quay 
 Town, the last J m. distant from the 
 inn by an elm-shaded road along the 
 shore. Minehead in times past had 
 a considerable trade, particularly in 
 the export of woollen goods, and of 
 herrings to the Mediterranean, of 
 which as many as 4000 barrels were 
 shipped annually before the herrings 
 left this part of the coast. From 
 the former it derived its arms, a 
 ship under sail and a woolpack. The 
 Quay was built by Geo. Luttrell, 
 1616, at the cost of 5000Z. Mine- 
 head was a favourite landing-place 
 from Ireland 200 years ago. At 
 the present day it is of no mer- 
 cantile consequence, but a pleasant 
 and cheap little watering-place, the 
 neighbourhood being very beautiful 
 and the climate mild. There are 
 good sands and a shingle beach, 
 with bathing-machines. 
 
 Minehead was in early times subject 
 to incursions from the Welsh, from 
 across the Channel. Rishanger tells us 
 that in 1265, the Sunday before the 
 battle of Evesham, this district was 
 devastated by a multitude of Welsh- 
 men under William of Berkeley, 
 
 landing at Minehead, but who were 
 routed by Adam of Gurdon, con- 
 stable of Dunster, who put many to 
 the sword, and drove many with 
 their captain into the sea, where 
 they miserably perished. 
 
 In 1642, the Marquis of Hertford 
 having come into Somerset to raise 
 forces for the king, having been 
 driven from Wells and Sherborne, 
 took refuge with about 400 men 
 at Minehead, September 19, and 
 having fortified himself *4n a strong 
 inn," endeavoured to obtain posses- 
 sion of Dunster Castle, then held by 
 Mr. Luttrell for the Parliament. 
 Mortified with the failure of this 
 attempt, he crossed over from Mine- 
 head in a coal ship to Wales. Having 
 afterwards surrendered to the king, 
 Dunster became a most diragreeable 
 neighbour to all the country round, 
 and Minehead showed its joy on the 
 fall of the castle in 1646, and "gave 
 the ringers 4s. 8d.'' when Dunster 
 was yielded. 
 
 The Ch.f in the Upper Town, pos- 
 sesses some remarkable features, and 
 derives a certain amount of attract- 
 iveness from its striking position. 
 It is dedicated to St. Michael, w^hose 
 image appears in a niche on the E. side 
 of the tower. Another niche on the 
 S. side enshrines a representation 
 of the 2 first Persons of the Trinity. 
 Within it is very wide, and has no 
 chancel arch. It contains a monu- 
 ment, said to be of Bracton, the 
 famous lawyer, but of much later 
 date, and evidently that of a priest. 
 It has been much mutilated, and 
 the chalice in the hands of the 
 figure is broken. Some years 
 ago it was opened, and a skeleton 
 found in it, the skull of which had 
 2 rows of upper teeth, one within the 
 other. The Communion Table is 
 richly carved. The font is carved 
 with figures in niches. The magni- 
 ficent rood-loft still remains, the 
 ascent to it being by the original 
 stone staircase, which is well de- 
 signed. There is a Statue of Queen 
 
458 Boute 31.— B 
 
 Anile, in alabaster, presented .' Toy 
 Sir Jacob 'Bancks, a Swede by birth, 
 who holding a commission in the 
 English navy, in 1696 married the 
 rich widow of Col. Francis Luttrell, 
 and through her influence repre- 
 sented this borough in nine succes- 
 sive parliaments. A beautiful new 
 Ch., from the late Mr. Street's de- 
 signs, has been recently built in 
 the centre of the town by the libe- 
 rality of a lady. In the churchyard 
 is an ancient cross on steps. 
 
 The Feathers Inn is an old house, 
 with an antique fireplace. 
 
 There are many old houses at 
 Minehead, several of which have 
 round chimneys, like those in the 
 neighbourhood of Tenby. The an- 
 cient houses and cottages at Minehead 
 and the adjacent villages are remark- 
 able for the massiveness of the wood- 
 work in which the outer doors are 
 fixed, and especially of the top piece, 
 the lower edge of which is usually 
 hewn out into an obtuse angle. 
 
 Minehead contains a row of 11 
 small almshouses erected by Bobert 
 Quirck in 1630, as is testified by a 
 curious inscription on a brass plate 
 placed upon the front of the centre 
 house. Near to these almshouses is 
 the shaft of an ancient cross. 
 
 There is a beautiful view from the 
 churchyard hill, called North Hill. 
 The easiest path is by the E. of the 
 church. Advancing from the top of 
 the hill over the turf and through a 
 gate, you come suddenly on the edge 
 of a precipice, with the sea 300 ft. 
 below. The quay, pier, bay, and 
 warren spread out like a map. The 
 path descending on the 1. join? the 
 Greenaleigh Road. 
 
 If the level top of the hill is pur- 
 sued, at IJ m. a pretty combe runs 
 down on the 1. to the hamlet of 
 Woodcombe, whence you may return 
 to Minehead along the valley. But 
 if you follow the road on the hill, 
 you come to East Myne Farm, where 
 a rough descending path on the rt. 
 branches off to Grixy, a most ro- 
 
 ratton Court, Somersetstire. 
 
 mantic gorge leading down to the 
 sea. A good scramble is here neces- 
 sary, but the trouble is well repaid, 
 and, if care is taken, you can follow 
 one of the sheep -tracks on the preci- 
 pitous side of the hill, and so re- 
 turn to Greenaleigh Farm, pass ia 
 pretty glen, called Bergundy (see 
 post). Greenaleigh Farm is deprived 
 of the sun's rays 3 months in the 
 year by the shadow of the hill. Here 
 is a room for visitors and picnic par- 
 ties. It is a pleasant walk of 1 m. 
 back to the quay. 
 
 Excursions may be made to Por- 
 lock, Culbone, Dunster, Blue An- 
 chor, and the ruins of Cleeve Abbey. 
 In Watchet Bay, E. of Minehead, 
 abundant remains of a fossil forest 
 are exposed in low spring-tides. 
 
 The rly. ceases at Minehead ; the 
 rest of the route to Porlock and 
 thence to Lynton (20 posting miles) 
 is by road. It is one of the most 
 beautiful drives in the West of 
 : England, presenting scenery of the 
 most varied character, with sea views 
 of great extent. During the summer 
 months a coach runs in connection 
 with the trains between Minehead 
 and Lynton. On each side of the 
 road rise ' hills of varied outline, 
 covered with heaths and ferns, and 
 other moorland plants ; whilst the 
 rugged valley charms by its abun- 
 dant woods, delightfully grouped 
 over broken ground, and mingled 
 with cornfields. 
 
 1^ m. rt. under North Hill lies 
 JBratton Court, the birthplace oi Henry 
 de Bracton, a judge in the reign of 
 Henry III., but chiefly distinguished 
 by his treatise on the Common Law 
 of England. The house is an old 
 timbered quadrangular mansion, now 
 ruthlessly modernised ; but the 
 
 Judge's chamber," traditionally 
 said to have been Bracton's study, is 
 still pointed out over the gateway. 
 In a small and secluded glen on the 
 coast, at or about the point nearest 
 to Bratton Court, may be seen the 
 
Somersetsliire. Boute 31. — Solnicote — Porloch, 
 
 459 
 
 foundations of what was probably an 
 ancient hermitage, and which now 
 bear the local name of Bergundy 
 Chapel. Access to these ruins may- 
 be had through Greenaleigh Farm, 
 which is a favourite walk from the 
 town of Minehead. 1. Heyden Down, 
 a continuation of Grabhurst, from 
 which a view may be obtained of 
 Minehead on the one side, and of 
 Porlock on the other. 
 
 4J m. Holnicote, a hamlet of pretty 
 creeper-bound cottages, deriving its 
 name from holegn or hohn, Anglo- 
 Saxon for the holly. Left is the 
 park of Holnicote (Sir Thomas Dyke 
 Acland, Bart.); the house has been 
 twice much injured by fire, in 1799, 
 and again in 1851. It has been re- 
 cently much enlarged. Its timbered 
 slopes are seen in combination with 
 the huge side of Dunkery, and a 
 middle distance of hollow, wooded 
 glens. Et. J m. at the entrance of a 
 deep nook among the hills lies the 
 little village of 
 
 Selwortliy. A stream flows through 
 it on a rocky bed ; and above it, on 
 the western hill, are the ramparts of 
 ail ancient camp called Bury Castle. 
 S el worthy churchyard, in which 
 stands a fine 14th-cent. cross, com- 
 mands an unrivalled view of Dunkery 
 and the valley between. The Ch. 
 has good clustered pillars, a singu- 
 larly ornamented roof, and a curious 
 manor pew over the S. door. An 
 ancient tithe barn may be noticed on 
 the way up the hill to the church. 
 Up the steep ascent from the Porlock 
 road, on the opposite side from the 
 Ch., Sir T. D. Acland's Free Cottages, 
 or almshouses, stand pleasantly at 
 the foot of the plantations, through 
 which paths cut afford delightful 
 views. In the hamlet of Tivington 
 or Blachsford in this parish is an 
 ancient chapel, and priest's-house 
 annexed, used as a dame's school. 
 The view of Porlock Bay from the 
 door of the chapel is fine. 
 
 On the 1. is the pretty village of 
 
 Luccomhe) 2 m. E. of Porlock, 
 through which flows a stream 
 which rises at Dunkery. The Ch. 
 is a handsome building, and con- 
 tains an ancient stone altar in the 
 belfry, and several interesting monu- 
 ments of the Byam family, including 
 one of the Rev. H. Byam, D.D., who 
 was born in this parish, and was 
 afterwards rector of it. He was an 
 ardent follower and faithful friend 
 of Charles I., and assisted in raising 
 troops in his favour, in which 4 of 
 his sons were captains. He suffered 
 not only the loss of all he possessed, 
 but his wife and daughter, attempt- 
 ing to escape from their persecutors, 
 were drowned in their passage to 
 Wales. He himself attended Prince 
 Charles as chaplain to the Island of 
 Scilly, and thence to Jersey, and 
 lived to see the restoration of the 
 Royal family. A fine old cross 
 stands at the E. end of the Ch. 
 Opposite the ch. is a cottage with 
 a curious ancient window, which 
 should be examined from the inside. 
 
 From Holnicote, passing Brandy 
 Street, another hamlet, embowered 
 by the rose and woodbine, the tra- 
 veller descends into the vale of Por- 
 lock, and soon crosses a mountain 
 stream, the Horner, which flows from 
 Dunkery by a romantic valley. A 
 ramble up this beautiful valley 
 should by all means be taken. It 
 is full of romantic scenery. A 
 whole day may be well spent amidst 
 its streams and woods. A pathway 
 to the rt. beyond the meeting of the 
 2 streams at the end of the valley 
 winds up to Stohe Pero (3 m. S. 
 of Porlock) with its curious little 
 Ch. and few scattered cottages. 
 
 5^ m. Porloch (Inn: Ship). The 
 cosy little inn has entertained among 
 its guests the poet Southey, who 
 here, 
 
 "By the unwelcome summer rain confined," 
 
 composed a sonnet by the alehouse 
 fire. 
 
460 
 
 Boute 31. — Porlock Church, Somersetsliire* 
 
 " Porlock ! thy verdant vale, so fair to sight, 
 Thy lofty hills which fern and furzo em- 
 brown, 
 
 Thy waters that roll musically down 
 ; Thy woody glens, the traveller with 
 delight 
 Recalls to memory.'* 
 
 Porlock— the enclosed port " — in 
 a fertile vale about 1 m. from the 
 sea, in an amphitheatre of hills, 
 formed by the dark masses of Ex- 
 moor. It is a picturesque village ; 
 its thatched cottages clothed with 
 roses and myrtles, and washed by the 
 rapid waters of a stream which 
 issues from a gorge in Dunkery. In 
 Saxon times it had a chase , and was 
 considered a town of some import- 
 ance, and on more than one occasion 
 it was selected by the Danes for 
 their piratical inroads. It was the 
 scene of a more serious attack, 
 when Harold and his brother Leof- 
 wine, on their return from their 
 banishment in Ireland, landed here 
 with nine ships and formed a camp. 
 Though they came as deliverers, 
 their enterprise w^as looked on with 
 suspicion by the men of Devon and 
 Somerset, who met them in arms. 
 After a severe conflict, in which 
 '•more than 30 good thanes and 
 much other folks were slain, the 
 exiles had the victory. Harold 
 carried off goods, cattle, and men, 
 and sailed off round the Land's End 
 to meet Earl Godwin, his father/' 
 The remains of their camp are shown 
 S. of the ch. 
 
 Porlock gives name to a breed of 
 small horned sheep. Their mutton 
 is delicious, but they are hard to 
 keep, as they leap over every 
 barrier. 
 
 The Ch. is dedicated to St. 
 Dubritius, Bishop of LlandafT, and 
 metropolitan of Caer Leon, d. 522, a 
 fact indicating, like the dedication to 
 St. Decuman at Watchet (see ante), 
 that this part of Somersetshire was 
 evangelised from South Wales. It 
 is a long, weather-beaten building^ 
 
 chiefly of Perp date, with E. E, 
 remains in the E. window and piscina. 
 It has a S. aisle and W. tower, 
 
 surmounted by a truncated shingled 
 spire, forlorn-looking and dilapi- 
 dated." Its chief attraction is a very 
 sumptuous altar-tomb beneath an 
 elaborately-ornamented canopy, now 
 mutilated and awkwardly jambed 
 into the easternmost arch of the 
 aisle. The tomb supports the efiigies 
 of a knight and his lady, identified 
 by the researches of Mrs. Halliday 
 [The Porlock Monuments, 1882) with 
 John, 4th Baron Harington of Ald- 
 dingham, d. 1417, and his wife, the 
 Lady Elizabeth Courtenay (d. of 
 the ord Earl of Devon, afterwards 
 wife of Lord Bonville of Chewton), 
 d. 1472, the founders of the adjoin- 
 ing chantry. Lord Harington is in 
 complete armour; his head, resting 
 on his tilting helmet, covered with 
 a bascinet surrounded by a wreath 
 richly sculptured with roses and 
 leaves. He wears a cuirass, and a skirt 
 of taces and scalloped flaps ; a richly- 
 sculptured bawdrick encircles the 
 hii3S, a belt, falling diagonally, carries 
 a long sword, the hilt bearing the 
 sacred monogram. The lady wears 
 the mitred headdress, encircled by 
 a coronet of fleur-de-lis, indicating 
 her princely birth. She is clad in 
 a mantle fastened by tasselled cor- 
 dons, beneath which she wears the 
 surcoat and kirtle, with an orna- 
 mented girdle. She has a double 
 chain round her neck. On the N. 
 side of the sacrarium is a very richly 
 panelled altar-tomb, probably the 
 base of the Easter sepulchre. To- 
 wards the W. end of the S. aisle are 
 two roundheaded E. E. recesses, one 
 containing a cross-legged military 
 effigy supposed to be tkat of Sir 
 Simon Fitz Roges, temp. Richard I. 
 An ancient sacristy projects from 
 the E. wall. The octagonal font is 
 Perp. The churchyard contains the 
 broken shaft of a cross, and a vener- 
 able yew-tree surrounded by a seat. 
 A common country epitaph illus- 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 31. — Dunhery Beacon, 
 
 461 
 
 trates a peculiarity of the Somerset- 
 shire dialect : — 
 
 " As us am, so must you be, 
 Therefore prepare to follow we.'* 
 
 IJ m. distant is the port or Quay, 
 usually called Porlock Weir, where 
 there is an Inn (the Anchor) with 
 excellent accommodation. The port 
 is formed by a pier built across a 
 considerable tract of land overflowed 
 by tide between huge bank of peb- 
 bles and the base of the hill. The 
 shore makes a deep curve, and is 
 fringed by a barrier of pebbles 
 between Porlock and Bossington, 
 otherwise Orestone Point, 2 m. 
 
 [The excursions to be made from 
 Porlock are to the summits of Dun- 
 kery Beacon and Bossington Hill, 
 and to the romantic hamlet of Cul- 
 bone by Ashley Combe. A person 
 remaining here any time should also 
 explore the glens under Exmoor, 
 the courses of the Horner and other 
 wild streams. 
 
 DunJcery Beacon, the most elevated 
 point of Exmoor and of Somerset- 
 shire, rises at once from the vale of 
 Porlock to a height of 1668 ft. above 
 the sea, commanding a view which 
 should be an object with every 
 visitor to this neighbourhood. It 
 is a dark brown moorland hill, 
 whose Celtic name has an appro- 
 priate sound among the remains of 
 primaeval times with which it is 
 crowned." — E.A.F. Its heathery 
 slopes, free of rocks, offer little 
 impediment to its ascent, which 
 may be accomplished riding, or even 
 driving almost to the Beacon, in 
 about 4 J m. from Porlock, by the 
 hamlet of Horner, or by the secluded 
 little village of Stohe Pero. On the 
 summit are remains of the hearths 
 in which beacon-fires were formerly 
 kindled, and which might have spread 
 an alarm from the heights of Ply- 
 mouth to those of the Malvern Hills 
 in Worcestershire, for both these 
 points, although nearly 150 m. apart, 
 are visible from Dunkery on a clear 
 
 day. The horizon of this noble pro- 
 spect has been calculated as 500 m., 
 and as including in its panorama no 
 less than 15 counties. Its leading 
 features are the highlands hence to 
 Lynton, distant Dartmoor, the Quan- 
 tock and Mendip hills, the Bristol 
 Channel, and the long mountain 
 ranges of Wales. By a walk across 
 the moor you may descend upon 
 Culbone or Ashley Combe, and so 
 return to Porlock. 
 
 Another way is by the delightful 
 hill slope of Gloutsham, one of the 
 minor eminences which skirt Dun- 
 kery, rising from a waving sheet of 
 woodland, just swelling into a forest, 
 renowned as a "meet" of the stag- 
 hounds. The wild red deer may 
 often be seen from this point brows- 
 ing amongst the fern, or wandering 
 from covert to covert. The first 
 " meet " is a great event, and takes 
 place usually on the Tuesday nearest 
 to August 12th. Then the rough 
 roads are filled with carriages, and 
 often as many as 2C0 horsemen join 
 in the sport. Apart from this, it 
 is perhaps the most beautiful spot 
 in the moor. On the one side there 
 is the broad, bleak, heather-covered, 
 side of Dunkery; on the other 
 the beautifully - wooded slopes of 
 Sweeteny and Horner ; and beyond, 
 as in a framed picture, a glimpse 
 of the Bristol Channel, with Wales 
 in the far distance. A brook brawls 
 below, and a combe creeps winding 
 up the hillside. For variety of 
 scenery Cloutsham is unsurpassed. 
 
 Ilawhcombe Head is another cele- 
 brated centre for the red-deer hunt. 
 Here, 1880, the Prince of Wales joined 
 in the hunt, from Dunster Castle, 
 when at least 1500 horsemen, and 
 some 20,000 persons on foot or in 
 carriages, gathered as lookers-on. 
 
 Bossington Beacon is the W. end 
 of Korth Hill ; the ridge, extending 
 from Minehead, bounding Porlock 
 Bay on the E. It is 801 ft. above 
 the sea, and owes its exceeding 
 beauty in great measure to the 
 
462 
 
 Boute 31. — Bossington—Culbone, Somersetsliire. 
 
 good taste of its proprietor Sir 
 Thomas Dyke Acland, who has 
 planted it with irregular woods of 
 fir, not marshalled into line by 
 fences, but scattered over the hill 
 with the genuine feeling of an artist. 
 If pressed for time, the traveller 
 may give the preference to Bos- 
 sington over Dunkery ; the view 
 from it being the more beautiful. 
 He should walk to it through Bos- 
 sington, 1 m. distant. In this little 
 hamlet are rare scenes for the 
 painter — a swift stream, rude old 
 cottages, an ancient walnut-tree, 
 and as a background the hill-side 
 with its patches of fern, purple gullies 
 of stones, dark-green furze-patches 
 and waving woods. Along the sum- 
 mit of the Beacon are numerous 
 paths, here and there provided with 
 seats, of which some are cut from 
 the living rock, from which the 
 visitor may enjoy at his leisure the 
 marvellous beauty of the prospect. 
 The entire sea-front of Exmoor lies 
 in view to its termination at the 
 Lynmouth Foreland — at one time of 
 a dark blue, at another partially 
 veiled by the light mists from the 
 ocean. Nearer at hand are the 
 wooded glens below Dunkery, with 
 a stream glittering in one of them ; 
 and above all the huge Beacon with 
 its dark-brown sides. At the end of 
 the hill, called Orestone Pointy a 
 craggy pathway descends to the 
 beach, where the rocks are on a grand 
 scale, and the strata curiously con- 
 torted. A t the spot where you reach 
 the shore there is a singularly -shaped 
 cavern formed in a curved cliff of 
 slate. 
 
 At Lynch, a little hamlet adjoining 
 Bossington, is an old chapel with a 
 good roof, formerly used as a barn, 
 but now restored by Sir T. D. 
 Acland. 3 
 
 [To Culhone, 3 m., a hamlet placed 
 like a nest in a nook of the coast, the 
 habitat of Aspleiiium septentrionale. 
 From Porlock Quay the road to it is 
 
 equally romantic — a horse path, now 
 passable for carriages as far as Cul- 
 bone, running midway along the 
 steep slopes which descend to the 
 sea, and throughout its course 
 densely enveloped with coppice - 
 wood. In 2 m. it reaches Ashley 
 Comhe, a summer residence of the 
 Earl of Lovelace, perched as it were 
 upon a narrow shelf, in full view of 
 Porlock Bay and the Welsh coast. 
 An opening, now closed to the 
 public, used to admit you to a glen 
 which is terminated by a most im- 
 posing amphitheatre chiselled in the 
 moor-side by 5 streams which rattle 
 down its heathery slopes. Another 
 m. from Ashley Combe brings the 
 traveller to Cvlhone, where a rivulet 
 has scooped a hollow in the hill. 
 Deep in this recess nestles the 
 little hamlet of rustic cottages and 
 a tiny Gothic church, 33 ft. by 12 
 ft., with singularly rude furniture, 
 situated," says Warner, *'in as 
 extraordinary a spot as man, in 
 his whimsicality, ever fixed on for 
 a place of worship." The little 
 plain on which it stands is not above 
 J acre in extent : it is 400 ft. above 
 the beach, and on either side 
 hemmed in by dark wooded hills, 
 which tower to a height of 1200 ft. 
 A road ascends from it to the moor, 
 by which, if willing to prolong the ex- 
 cursion, you can return to Porlock.] 
 
 From Porlock to Lynton the tra- 
 veller has the choice of 2 roads ; 
 the highroad over the moor, which 
 is very steep, but by which the coach 
 goes ; or a more modern road called 
 the " New Eoad," made by the late 
 Colonel Blathwayt, which winds 
 through the woods in a gradual 
 ascent, by well-engineered zigzags, 
 after the fashion of an Alpine pass. 
 It is, however, considerably longer, 
 and therefore not used by carriage 
 drivers, unless they have special 
 orders. It is a good road, and com- 
 mands a view which many travellers 
 have considered as fine as any in the 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 31. — Glentliorne — Exmoor, 
 
 463 
 
 West of England. There is also a 
 romantic horse-path which runs mid- 
 way along the slopes of the coast 
 from Porlock Quay to Countesbury, 
 a village 2 m. short of Lynton. The 
 latter passes by Culbene and Glen- 
 thorne (see jpost), and in and out 
 of many a pretty dingle, threading 
 for the greater part of the distance 
 a dense oak coppice. It is called a 
 horse-path, but a rider must have 
 good nerves for the journey. 
 
 From the Weir we ascend Porlock 
 Hill by a steep road, which joins the 
 new road above mentioned, after many 
 zigzags, at about 800 ft. above the 
 sea-level. Having gained the summit 
 we must bid adieu to cultivation, 
 and prepare to face the winds of an 
 unsheltered waste, on which for 
 many a mile runs the road at an 
 elevation of some 1100 ft. above the 
 sea, commanding the breadth and 
 length of the Bristol Channel, and 
 the Welsh mountains beyond. 
 
 12 J m. Here, on the dark moor, we 
 reach the boundary of Devon and 
 Somerset, a fence and a gate intended 
 to keep the half-wild sheep and 
 ponies in their respective counties. 
 
 In the depths of a long valley on 
 the left of the road from Porlock to 
 Lynton lies the village of Oare. 
 Through it runs the Badgeworthy 
 Water," which flows into the East 
 Lyn, and is through its course the 
 boundary between Devon and Somer- 
 set. Oare is the centre of the dis- 
 trict so vividly described by Mr. 
 Blackmore in his tale Lorna 
 Doone," and a visit to the '*Doone 
 Glen," the supposed stronghold of 
 the old robber family, will well 
 repay the trouble. 
 
 Rt., on the summit of a hill, is seen 
 the camp of Oldbarrow, one of the 
 most perfect in Devonshire, and far 
 below it, in a deep dell by the sea, 
 
 Left is Glenthorne, the romantic re- 
 sidence of W. H. Halliday, Esq. By 
 many a complicated zigzag a road 
 descends to this charming retreat, 
 where, some 50 ft. above the shore, 
 
 we find a house and gardens em- 
 bosomed in woods, which rise above 
 them on the slopes to a height of 
 1100 ft. E. of the house a path and 
 stream descend by a shadowy dingle 
 to the beach, and a labyrinth of walks 
 track the hill-side among rocks and 
 old oaks, many of the trees twisted 
 in fanciful shapes, and one in particu- 
 lar forming an archway over the path. 
 The house, which is occasionally 
 shown to strangers, contains many 
 curiosities — antiquities from Greece 
 and Italy, a collection of armour, 
 rare cabinets, and among some pic- 
 tures the Spectre Ship, by Severn, in 
 illustration of Coleridge's * Ancient 
 Mariner.' In the servants' -hall there 
 is a fireplace which tradition asserts 
 once belonged to Cardinal Wolsey, 
 and on Palermo Point, above the 
 house, a group of marbles from 
 Athens and Corinth. 
 
 15 J m. Countesbury. 1. beyond this 
 wild hamlet are the ramparts of an 
 ancient camp commanding the ravine 
 of Waters* Meet. The road now 
 rapidly descends towards the gorge 
 of Lyndale. 
 
 16 m. Lynmouth {Inn: Lyndale 
 Hotel), above which lies its sister 
 town, 
 
 Ly7iton (Inns : Castle Hotel ; Val- 
 ley of Rocks Hotel ; Globe Inn), far 
 celebrated watering - places, which 
 are fully described in the Handbook 
 for Devon and Cornwall. 
 
 {Exmoor, which our route has now 
 traversed from Porlock to Lynton, 
 is a highland district still to a 
 great extent uncultivated — a waste 
 of dark hills and valleys, tracked 
 by lonely streams. It attains its 
 greatest elevation on the E., where 
 Dunhery Beacon rises 1668 ft. above 
 the sea ; but ou the W. its hills 
 are of little inferior height, Chap- 
 man Barrows being 1540 ft., and 
 Span Head 1610 ft. On its borders 
 it is pierced by deep wooded ravines, 
 of which the traveller has a magni- 
 ficent example in Lyndale. The 
 
464 
 
 Boiife 31.- 
 
 . — Exmoor, Somersetsliire. 
 
 central part of this region, about 
 20,000 acres, formed the ancient 
 Forest of Exmoor, for which an Act 
 of enclosure was ^ obtained in 1815, 
 by the late John Knight, Esq., of 
 Wolverley Hall, Worcestershire, who 
 proposed to bring it under cultivation. 
 With this object he encircled the 
 whole forest with a ring-fence, and 
 commenced building a castellated 
 mansion at Simonshath, but the 
 speculation proved anything but a 
 golden one. A considerable acreage 
 has, however, been brought under 
 cultivation, and this is now leased in 
 separate farms by the proprietor of 
 the forest, the principal drawbacks to 
 success being the strong winds and 
 chilly mists which prevail in so ele- 
 vated a district. Extensive tracts, 
 however, still remain both in the 
 forest and surrounding highlands in 
 a state of nature, delighting the 
 eye by the grandeur of their un- 
 broken outline, and the rich beauty 
 of their colour; and here, over 
 slopes of heather, interspersed with 
 the dwarf -juniper, cranberry, and 
 whortleberry, roams the "Exmoor 
 pony," a breed of the native English 
 horse, and the red forest-deer, which 
 still makes its lair in the extensive 
 covers on the moor-side. The 
 farmer seemed at one time likely 
 to be driven by the miner from his 
 settlement on Exmoor. In 1851 
 a specimen of the white carbonate 
 of iron was sent by Mr. R. Smith 
 to the Great Exhibition. Its value 
 suggested the expediency of a further 
 search, and this led to the discovery 
 of abundant iron-lodes, including the 
 haematites and other ores hitherto 
 supposed peculiar to Staffordshire 
 and Wales. Large districts of the 
 moor were in the hands of 3 of the 
 principal iron companies in the king- 
 dom, viz., the Ulverstone of Lanca- 
 shire, and the Dowlais and S. Wales. 
 But the speculation failed, and the 
 mining operations have ceased. A 
 new district ch. was consecrated 
 1856. Before visiting Exmoor, Mr. 
 
 Blackmore's tale of " Lorna Doone " 
 should be read for the old traditions 
 it embodies, and its graphic descrip- 
 tions. 
 
 Simonshath, the seat of F. Knight, 
 Esq., may be visited from Lynton, by 
 Ilford Bridges, or in a walk or drive 
 across the moor from Dulverton to 
 Lynton, the inducement to the trip 
 being the romantic wildness of the 
 scenery. The house is situated in the 
 centre of the forest, on the Barle, a tri- 
 butary to the Exe, 9 m. from Lynton. 
 The traveller leaves Dulverton by 
 the grand defile of Lyndale, ascend- 
 ing into the moor from Ilford 
 Bridges. Arrived in the upper re- 
 gion he will observe to the rt. the 
 hills in which the Exe and Barle have 
 their fountains, and in whose vicinity 
 are the morasses called the Black 
 Pits and Mole's Chamber (now cul- 
 tivated), the last so named from an 
 unfortunate farmer who was lost in 
 it with his horse when hunting. He 
 will proceed along a good and easy 
 road to the entrance of the forest at 
 the double gates, across the road, and 
 IJ m. beyond it, in a most desolate 
 part of the moor, cross the head- 
 waters of the Exe, here draining from 
 a bog called the Chains, In another 
 J m. he will open to view the valley 
 of the Barle, and begin the long 
 descent upon Simonshath, the ruin- 
 ous wall and flanking towers com- 
 menced by Mr. Knight skirting the 
 road on the 1. Simonshath he will 
 find a most romantic spot — a solitary 
 settlement in a moorland valley, en- 
 circled by' some fine old trees, ori- 
 ginally planted as shelter to a rough 
 house of entertainment which for- 
 merly stood here. The place con- 
 sists of Mr. Knight's unfinished 
 mansion, now a picturesque ruin, a 
 small house adjoining it, occupied 
 occasionally as a residence by the 
 present lord of Exmoor, a farm-house 
 where refreshments and a bed may 
 be had, and various outbuildings, in- 
 cluding the shop of a blacksmith, 
 the yard of a carpenter, and the store 
 
Somersetshire. Boiite 32. — Bridgwater to Williton, 465 
 
 of a general dealer. In front the | 
 ground slopes to the Barle, whose 
 foaming waters may be traced for 
 some distance, glittering in a vista 
 formed by wild heathy hills ; and in 
 the bed of this stream lies the original 
 Simon's Bath, a deep pool, in which, 
 according to the legend, a noted 
 outlaw, once the terror of these 
 moors, was accustomed to bathe. 
 From this central point Mr. Knight, 
 at great expense, cut roads across 
 the forest, E. to Red Deer, 2 m., 
 and Exford 5 m., S. to South 
 Molton 11 m., W. to Challacombe 
 6 m., and to Lynton 9 m. By 
 ascending for a short distance the 
 hill towards Red Deer, you may 
 gain a fine view of the dark walls of 
 the ruin, which are seen from it to 
 advantage rising among the trees. 
 
 The pedestrian — who will find his 
 reward in longer excursions over the 
 wild country of Exmoor — may be 
 advised of the following walk, 
 which is recommended in Mrs. Chan- 
 ter's charming little volume * Ferny 
 Combes' (1856). To Simonshath, 
 and thence down the Barle to Land- 
 acre Bridge and Withypool {Inn: 
 Royal Oak) ; and further down the 
 stream« about 5 m.), between hills 
 wild and bare on the one side, beau- 
 tifully wooded on the other, to Torr 
 Steps, an ancient British bridge 
 formed of huge blocks of stone, fixed 
 as piers and pathway, where the 
 view up the stream is very beautiful. 
 Then across the hill to Winsford (a 
 very good Inn) ; and by a lane, just 
 wide enough for a carriage, to Ex- 
 ford, where there is a small Imi much 
 frequented by fly-fishers : whence 
 there is a road over Lucoit Hill to 
 the top of Porlock Hill. 
 
 23 m. Bunster. 
 
 24| m. MineJiead. 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, cf c, 1882.] 
 
 ROUTE 32. 
 
 BRIDGWATER TO WILLITON, BY CAN 
 NINGTON, NETHER STOWEY, [THE 
 QUANTOCKS,] STOKECOURCY, ST- 
 AUDRIES, CROWCOMBE. 
 
 (I^oad, 2 Btes,) 
 
 Bridgwater (Rte. 21). On this 
 route there are 2 roads as far as 
 Williton: one, 17J m., passing the 
 Qaantocks by the sea ; the other, 
 20 m., crossing these hills near their 
 southern termination, and skirting 
 their western slopes to Williton. 
 They are both beautiful roads, but per- 
 haps the latter is the more picturesque 
 of the two. First for the former, the 
 direct road by Nether Stowey. 
 
 4 m. Cannington. Beyond this 
 village, on the rt., are Brymore 
 House (Hon. P. Pleydell Bouverie), 
 the ancient seat of the Pym family, 
 from whom was descended John Pym, 
 the famous member of the Long Par- 
 liament ; and Cannington Park, now 
 occupied as a grazing-farm, where 
 there is a remarkable outcrop of car- 
 boniferous limestone. At Cafinington 
 a priory of Benedictine nuns was 
 founded, adjacent to the present ch., 
 in 1138, by Robert de Courcy, sewer 
 or chief butler to the Empress Maud. 
 The tradition that ' ' Fair Rosamund " 
 was born in this parish and educated 
 at^ the nunnery, may be safely 
 rejected. The manor and lands were 
 granted by the crown in 1672 to 
 Thos. Lord Clifford, and still belong 
 to the Clifford family. In 1807 a 
 sisterhood of French Benedictines 
 was established in the Court House 
 adjacent to the ch., but have since 
 been removed to Rugeley in Staffbi-d- 
 shire. It is now occupied by a 
 Roman Catholic industrial school, 
 and orphanage. It has a long low 
 front, with square-headed stone mul- 
 lioned windows, and a modern 
 2 H 
 
466 Boiite 32. -Netlier Stoivey. Somersetshire. 
 
 Corinthian chapel. The low but- 
 tressed wall of the conventual en- 
 closure remains picturesquely draped 
 with ivy. The Ch. is a Perp. building, 
 very short and loftj', with a single roof 
 embracing nave, aisles, and chancel. 
 It should be seen from the E., when 
 the effect of height is very striking. 
 The same characteristic may be 
 observed in the tall square tower, 
 which strikingl}' shows the value of 
 a blaiik story. Within, the lofty 
 well-proportioned arcades cannot fail 
 to command admiration. There are 
 some sepulchral memorials to the 
 Cliffords, and very rich parcloses at 
 the ends of the aisles. There is 
 neither clerestory nor chancel arch. 
 On the outside, beneath the very 
 fine lofty .5-lt. E. window^ are some 
 fine consecration crosses. There is 
 an ancient Manor-house known as 
 Street jParm, belonging to Lord Cavan, 
 in which there is a very small do- 
 mestic chapel, with just room for 
 the priest and acolyte, preserving its 
 piscina, aumbry, and remains of its 
 altar, commanded from the living- 
 rooms by three squints. The steps of 
 the winding staircase are fashioned 
 of single trunks of oak. 
 
 On the 1., i m., Blackmoor Farm, 
 an interesting specimen of a small 
 mediaeval manor-house, in good pre- 
 servation. The hall, now divided 
 into two stories, occupies the centre, 
 with a projecting porch. The chapel 
 is in the N. wing, having the usual 
 two-storied arrangement at the W. 
 end. Within there are two stone 
 staircases, one in front leading to 3 
 arched doorways, communicating, 
 respectively, with the gallery, the 
 solar, and the chapel, and a newel 
 staircase in the rear. The S. wing 
 has been destroyed. 
 
 The views of the Channel and the 
 Welsh Coast, under a green arch of 
 larch boughs, stretching horizontally 
 over the road, are very beautiful as 
 you approach, 
 
 8 J m., Nether Siowey, the birth- 
 place of Parsons the Jesuit, 1546, 
 
 and for some time the residence of 
 Samuel Taylor Coleridge, his cottage 
 is the last house on the left-hand 
 side as you go towards the Bristol 
 Channel, now turned into a village 
 inn. 
 
 " And now, beloved Stowey, I behold 
 Thy church tower, and methinks the four 
 huge elms 
 
 Clustering, which mark the mansion of my 
 friend ; 
 
 And close beside them, hidden from my view. 
 Is my own lonely c< > r tag?, where my babe, 
 And my babe's mother dwell in peace." 
 
 Among the woods of the neigh- 
 bouring hills are the valleys of the 
 Seven Wells, and Hunter s Comhe, 
 beautiful scenes, rendered classic 
 ground by the genius of this chance 
 visitor, and that of his companion 
 Wordsicorth, who in 1797 occupied 
 a house at Alfoxden (we pre- 
 serve Wordsworth's spelling : the 
 name is really Alfox-/o7^). Many 
 of Wordsworth's * Lyrical Ballads,' 
 and most of Coleridge's poems, were 
 written at Alfoxden and Stowey : 
 among these were ' Peter Bell ' and 
 the * Ancient Mariner,' the latter of 
 which was composed during a w^aik- 
 ing tour of Coleridge and Words- 
 worth along the Quantocks by Wat- 
 chet to Minehead, Porlock, and 
 Lynton in Nov. 1797. 
 
 " Upon smooth Quantocks' airy ridge we roved, 
 Unchecked we loitered mid her sylvan courts, 
 Thou in bewitching words, with happy heart, 
 Didst chaunt the vision of that Ancient Man, 
 The bright-eyed Mariner, and rueful woes 
 Didst utter of the Lady ChristabeL" 
 
 Wordsworth, Prelude. 
 
 Coleridge took up his residence at 
 Nether Stowey in 1796 ("sanctum 
 et venerabile nomen," rich by so 
 many associations and recollections), 
 *^ in order to enjoy the society of his 
 dear and honoured friend T. Poole, 
 and to have leisure for the study 
 of ethics and psychology, and the 
 foundations of religion and morals." 
 He v/as in the habit of preaching for 
 Dr. Toulmin at the Unitarian Chapel 
 at Taunton. He provided for his 
 scanty maintenance by writing verses 
 
Somersetshire. Boiite 32. — Nether Stowey — Stohecourcy, 467 
 
 for a London morning paper. This 
 was tlie period of tlie true manhood 
 of his poetical life, during which he 
 wrote his * Eemorse.' In June, 1 797, 
 Wordsworth and his sister removecl 
 to Alfoxden, and here, in conjunc- 
 tion with Coleridge, he produced 
 the ' Lyrical Ballads.' Among the 
 pieces written here were, 'We are 
 Seven,' * The Idiot Boy/ 'Goody 
 Blake,' &c. He speaks of it as " a 
 very pleasant and productive time 
 of his life." ''Wherever we turn," 
 writes Miss Wordsworth, " we have 
 woods, smooth downs, and valleys 
 with small brooks running down 
 them through green meadows hardly 
 ever intersected with hedge-rows, 
 but scattered over with trees. The 
 hills that cradle these valleys are 
 either covered with fern or bilberries, 
 or oak woods — walks extend for miles 
 over the hill-tops, the great beauty 
 of which is their wild simplicity." 
 Alfoxden was the scene of the famous 
 picnic party of the 2 Wordsworths, 
 Coleridge, and Cottle, when their 
 provisions consisting of bread, cheese, 
 brandy, and lettuces, the cheese was 
 stolen by a beggar, the brandy bottle 
 was broken by Coleridge's awkward- 
 ness, and they were reduced to the 
 lettuces and bread without salt. 
 They had to leave Alfoxden from 
 suspicion of being hatchers of sedi- 
 tion. A government spy with a long 
 nose who was sent down to watch 
 them, thought they were talking of 
 him as *' Spinoza." *' C. was be- 
 lieved to have little harm in him, for 
 he was a crackbrained, talking fellow ; 
 but that Wordsworth, they said, is 
 either a smuggler or a traitor, and 
 means mischief. He never speaks to 
 any one, haunts lonely places, walks 
 by moonlight, and is always booing 
 about by himself." The agent re- 
 fused to give them a lease of the 
 Alfoxden house and they started for 
 Germany, Sept. 1798. Above Nether 
 Stowey are some remarkable en- 
 trenchments of the Castle, now en- 
 tirely destroyed. 
 
 In the Ch. of Spaxton, 3 m. S.E., 
 is ah altar-tomb of the De la Hulles, 
 and some very good bench-ends ; one 
 is known as the fuller's panel," re- 
 presenting a fuller engaged in his 
 work. The alms chest is very curi- 
 ous. Near the village is Holwell 
 Cavern, 127 ft. in length, partly ex- 
 cavated in the grauwacke slate, and 
 encrusted with crystals of white ar- 
 ragonite, here and there tinged with 
 a delicate hue of purple. A copper- 
 mine was formerly worked at Dod- 
 dington. At Over Stowey is Quantoch 
 Lodge, the seat of the late Lord 
 Taunton, commanding a fine view of 
 the Channel, which contains, among 
 other curiosities, a fine collection of 
 miscellaneous china. 
 
 Over Stowey is the best head- 
 quarters for exploring the Quantock 
 range, to which 2 or 3 days may be 
 very agreeably devoted. The high 
 ground is a heathy moorland, the 
 flanks seamed with romantic woody 
 combes. 
 
 2 m. rt. 9^ m. from Bridgwater is 
 Stoliecoiircy (locally known as Sto- 
 gursey), named from its former 
 lords, the De Courcys, the re- 
 mains of whose moated castle may 
 still be seen. Fulk de Breaute, 
 the 2nd husband of Alice de 
 Red vers, daughter of Wm. de 
 Courcy, fortified and garrisoned the 
 manor-house, and made it a strong- 
 hold of robbers. It was dismantled 
 by the express order of the Justiciar, 
 Hubert of Burgh.. It was taken 
 and burnt by William, Lord Bon- 
 ville, brother-in-law of the Earl 
 of Warwick, soon after the first battle 
 of St. Albans, and has ever since lain 
 in ruins. The remains of the castle 
 are very small ; only traces of the 
 bridge, the stumps of the two towers 
 commanding the entrance, the site of 
 the round keep tower and the sally- 
 port remain. The castle mill is still 
 in use. The stream that worked it 
 served the moat. A member of 
 this family, John de Courcy, was 
 the first to subdue the province of 
 2 H 2 
 
468 Boute 32.~FairJield- 
 
 ' — St. Audries, Somersetshire. 
 
 Ulster, of which he was created Earl. 
 In this neighbourhood a sanguinary 
 conflict occurred in 845 between the 
 Danes and Saxons, when the latter, 
 led by the bishop of Sherborne, suc- 
 ceeded in driving the pirates to their 
 ships. Stokecourcy CJi. is a large and 
 interesting building, containing Norm, 
 and Transition work, which has been 
 well restored by Mr. Norton. The 
 body was rebuilt temp. Henry VII. 
 The S. aisle is the burial-place of the 
 Yerneys of Fairfield, and contains 
 two recumbent effigies, one of John 
 Verney, the last but one male re- 
 presentative of the family, clad in 
 complete armour, temp. Henry VI., 
 on a very rich altar-tomb with figures 
 in niches. The tower is central and 
 oblong in plan. Stokecourcy was 
 an alien priory, a cell to the 
 Abbey of L'Onley in Normandy, 
 to which it was given temp. Hen. II. 
 The early Norman tub-font has been 
 recovered and replaced. The cross 
 in the churchyard is an ancient 
 example re-modelled. 
 
 About 1 m. W. is Fairfield, Sir A. 
 Acland Hood, Bart., a mansion of 
 the 16th centy., commenced by Sir 
 Thomas Palmer, d. 1583, and finished 
 by his grandson of the same name, 
 surrounded by an extensive park and 
 grounds. 
 
 10 m. Dodington Court is a fine ex- 
 ample of an Elizabethan manor- 
 house, with a long gabled fa9ade and 
 projecting porch. The hall has a fine 
 roof of dark oak, and preserves its 
 screen and minstrel gallery, and the 
 date 1581, on the Renaissance 
 chimney-piece, which is not in its 
 original place. The withdrawing 
 room has a curious arabesque plaster 
 cornice ; adjoining it is the oriel or 
 ladies' room. 
 
 2 m. 1., on a hill-top, 1022 ft. above 
 the sea, the British camp of Danes- 
 horough (called Dowsebury), where, it 
 is said, the Belgse were defeated by 
 the Romans. It is of a circular 
 form, with double ramparts. 
 
 12 m. rt. Stringston Cli. has a tall, 
 
 red-tiled broach spire, and walls co- 
 vered with plaster. On the S. side is a 
 very beautiful 14th -cent, canopied 
 cross, about 15ft. high. On the E. face 
 is ^he Crucifixion, on the W. our Lady 
 and Child, on the S. an armed knight, 
 on the N. a bishop in act of benedic- 
 tion. 
 
 11m. ITol/ord. On the N. side of 
 the Ch. stands a late 13th-centy. 
 cross, on the shaft of which a male 
 figure is carved. In a commanding 
 and most beautiful position, Alf ox- 
 ton House, seat of L. St. Albyn, Esq. 
 
 2| m. rt., on the sea-shore, is the 
 little village of Kilve — Southey's. 
 ' ^ Kilve by the green sea " — Words- 
 sworth's "Kilve's delightful shore." 
 — Kilve Ch. is a small plain aisleless 
 building, with a rude tower, group- 
 ing well with the walls and gables 
 of a demolished house adjoining. 
 
 1 m. W. is East Quantoxheady. 
 where is one of the most inte- 
 resting Manor-houses in the county. 
 Itspresent owner, Mr. G. F. Luttrell, 
 is the lineal descendant of Ralph 
 Paganel, who held it in^ the time of 
 William the Conqueror. It contains 
 some plaster mantlepieces in alto- 
 relief, the earliest dated 1614. 
 
 12 J m. Putsham. Beyond this vil- 
 lage the road ascends the slope of the 
 Quant ock Hills, when the traveller, 
 by a backward glance, may behold, 
 spread over a vast distance, the hazy 
 levels of Bridgwater, the range of 
 the Mendips, the truncated cone of 
 Brent Knoll, the glistening sea with 
 its rocky islets of the Holmes, and 
 the magnificent coast of Wales. 
 
 14 m. Here, on a spur of the 
 hills, is St. Audries, an ancient pro- 
 perty of the Mallets (Sir Alexander 
 Acland Hood, Bart.). On right is- 
 the home-park sloping to the shore, 
 and the house, which, seated on the- 
 eastern point of Minehead Bay, com- 
 mands the mountainous distance of 
 Exmoor in connection with the sea, 
 a view most charming. 1. is the deer- 
 park, with its ferny brakes and 
 wooded heights. In the grounds, 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 32. — Enmore — Crowcomhe. 
 
 469 
 
 stands the beautiful cli. of West 
 Quantoxhead, erected by Sir Alex- 
 ander A. Hood, to the S. of which 
 are the steps, socket, and part of 
 the shaft of a cross. The road now 
 descends the western side of tiie 
 Quantocks, unfolding the landscape 
 in the direction of Exmoor. 
 17^ m. Williton (Rte. 31). 
 
 The longer road from Bridgwater 
 to Williton runs for above 5 m. 
 through an undulating country, pass- 
 ing on the 1. 
 
 3J m. Halsivell Houses seat of Col. 
 Tynte, and rt. 
 
 5 m. Enmore Castle (p. 383), for- 
 merly the property of the Earls of 
 Egmont, and now of T. P. Broad- 
 mead, Esq., when it ascends the 
 Quantock Hills, rising to a view of 
 the greater part of eastern Somer- 
 setshire. Having gained the sum- 
 mit, about 1000 ^ft. above the sea, 
 it proceeds for IJ m. on a level, 
 running amid wild plantations of fir 
 which sweep to the valley, and pass- 
 ing, on the 1., Broomfield House (J. 
 Hamilton, Esq.), a place of interest 
 in scientific history as the scene 
 of the supposed creation of the 
 *'Acarus Crossii" by '^Philosopher 
 Crosse," who resided here. Broom- 
 field Ch. is Perp., with some fine 
 carved oak benches. In the church- 
 yard S. is the socket and mutilated 
 shaft of a cross of the 13th cent. It 
 then begins a very beautiful descent 
 on the western side, where the tra- 
 veller is deeply embowered in a tall 
 beech wood, through which he sees 
 by glimpses a dark romantic dell, 
 and the Grecian mansion of Cotliel- 
 stone Park, built 18 J 8 (Charles 
 Esdaile, Esq.). 
 
 10 m. At the foot of the hill the 
 road passes under an ivied archway, 
 which was formerly the entrance of 
 the manor-house of Cothelstone, now 
 a farmhouse, rt. Cothelstone House 
 was the residence of Sir John Stawell, 
 the daring Royalist leader. It was 
 destroyed by Blake on his march 
 
 from Taunton to Dunster. Tradition 
 says that the arms of the forces of 
 Sir J. Stawell were kept in the tower 
 of Bishop Lydeard church, and his 
 levies made in a field which still 
 bears the name of Standards." 
 Two gentlemen, who were concerned 
 in the Monmouth rebellion, were by 
 the order of Judge Jeffreys hung 
 on the arch before old Cothelstone 
 House. Passing through an em- 
 battled gatehouse, we have before us 
 a gabled building, thickly mantled 
 with ivy, and of a singular style of 
 architecture, the large oblong win- 
 dows being formed by a series of 
 pillars, which also on a larger scale 
 decorate the front and entrance. Over 
 the doorway appear the arms of 
 Stawel. At the rear of the garden 
 is the little parish Churchy in which 
 lie the remains and monuments of 
 the former lords of Cothelstone. The 
 visitor will notice the fine elm by 
 the churchyard, and the walnut-tree 
 in the adjoining field. Further to 
 the rt. is Baghorough House, a seat of 
 the Pophams (now M. F. Bisset, 
 Esq. M.P.). 
 
 13J m. The road crosses a small 
 stream which descends from WilVs 
 Neckf the summit of the Quantock 
 Hills, 1270 ft. above the level of the 
 sea. The scenery on either side is 
 delightful, particularly on the 1., 
 where there are fir-woods, and Willet 
 Toicer rising beyond them. 
 
 15 m. Crowcomhe {Inn: Carew 
 Arms), a romantic little village under 
 the escarpment of the Quantocks, 
 commanding the hilly country to the 
 W., and in the distance Willet Toiuer, 
 and a straight avenue -drive to it 
 through a wood. The place owes 
 its neat appearance in great mea- 
 sure to the Carews, whose mansion 
 of Crowcomhe Court (Mrs. Carew), 
 and its hanging groves, appear on 
 the rt. At the entrance from Willi- 
 ton the pretty creeper-clad cottages 
 of the village are seen in combination 
 with the dark height of Will's Neck. 
 
 The objects of interest here are a 
 
470 
 
 Boute 32. — Crowcombe ilfa^^w^, 
 
 sculptured cross in the churchyard, 
 another by the roadside, and the pic- 
 tnres and curiosities in the seat of 
 the Carews. 
 
 Croiccomhe Manor had been given to 
 the see of Winchester by Gytha, wife 
 of Earl Godwin, but was alienated 
 by William the Conqueror to the 
 Earl of Mortaign. One of his des- 
 cendants, Roger, one of the Barons of 
 Runnymede, gave it to the priory of 
 Studeley, Oxfordshire, towards the 
 clothing of the nuns. In the church- 
 yard is a very beautiful 14th-cent. 
 crosSf sculptured with the figures of 
 St. John the Baptist, a bishop, and 
 a female in a monastic habit. The 
 Village Cross of the 14th cent., has a 
 slender shaft of very graceful propor- 
 tions, 13 ft. high. The CJi. (restored 
 1870) is Perp., and contains good 
 oak seats, bearing the date 1534, and 
 in a chapel to the ^R. monuments to 
 the Carews. The pulpit, screen, and 
 bench-ends have good carving, the 
 octagonal font exhibits crowned and 
 mitred figures in prayer. The spire 
 w^as destroyed by lightning 1735. 
 
 Crowcombe Court (Mrs. Carew)'is 
 of red brick, with portico and wings, 
 built in a semicircular form. Among 
 the pictures and other works of 
 art are : — In the Front Hall : Mr. 
 Palmer, by Ocrn,^ Jaiwen : 
 lengtlis of Charles 1. and his Queen, 
 Vandych; Sir George Carew, Zuc- 
 cliero. — The Staircase: 1tMb family 
 ftf ii Emom ^ ac , ILeikmr. The carved 
 balustrade and the Carew arms 
 on the ceiling will, be noticed. — The 
 Library : Charles 11 . jis a child ; the 
 Duke of Richmon^j andych. — Draw- 
 ing-room : Vesuvius, G. Foussin ; Of- 
 fering of the Wise Men, Rubens ; Falls 
 of Tivoli, Bosa di Tir.oU ; Narcissus, 
 N. and G. Foussin ; Rachel at the 
 Well, Carlo Maratti ; St. Agnes, Carlo 
 Dolce; the Circumcision, Leonardo 
 da Vinci. — Dining-room: a Polish 
 general, Bembrandt ; Sir Francis 
 Drake, C Janseii ; Rembrandt, by 
 himself; Duke of Norfolk, Nelson, 
 author of the ^ Fasts and Festivals,' 
 
 . Somersetshire. 
 
 'A 
 
 Sir Godfrey KneUer ; General Monk, 
 ¥4mhft)k^ Rembrandt's mother, and 
 Miss Carew, who founded the charity 
 for the Crowcombe boys. — School- 
 room : Sir T. Carew, who built Crow- 
 combe ; his 2 wives ; Sir J ohn and 
 Lady Wyndham, and other family 
 portraits. — The Oak Fassage, fitted 
 as a museum, with stuffed birds, &c. ; 
 family portraits ; cabinets and doors 
 of carved black oak. — The Oak Boom, 
 entirely of carved black oak, except- 
 ing the floor and ceiling. It contains 
 a miscellaneous collection of curiosi- 
 ties, and some pictures ; among them 
 3 of Charles II. 's beauties ; a Miss 
 Carew ; and Bampfylde Carew, called 
 the King of the Gipsies. 2 pieces of 
 tapestry. Old chairs, one decorated 
 with the head of Henry II. 
 
 The park is very varied and beau- 
 tiful. A network of walks and 
 drives penetrates the woods, and 
 leads to the ferny heights of the 
 hill by a ravine or glen, darkly 
 shadowed by oak and beech, and 
 by silver firs 12 ft. in circum- 
 ference. Beneath their spreading 
 branches enormous laurels extend 
 their arms in every direction. Alto- 
 gether there is something very moun- 
 tain-like and wild in this great wood. 
 In its deepest recesses leaps a cascade, 
 among ruins of an arch and convent, 
 artificial, but happily placed. 
 
 A road runs directly across the 
 Quantocks from Crowcombe to 
 Bridgwater, meeting the high road 
 at Nether Stowey. The distance is 
 about 12 m. You should ascend 
 this road a little way for the sake of 
 a superb prospect over the entire hill 
 country on the border of Exmoor. 
 The 2 towered hills seen rt. and 1., 
 are Dunster and Willet. The road 
 is steep and romantic. 
 
 Will's Neck, about 2 m. S.E., is 
 the highest summit on these hills, 
 being 1270 ft. above the sea. Its 
 ascent is a favourite excursion with 
 the inhabita,nts of Bridgwater and 
 Taunton. 
 
 Proceeding on our route — 
 
Somersetshire. Boute 33.- — Taunton to Dulvedon, 
 
 471 
 
 16 m. Lower Halsway. J m. to the 
 rt. is a curious manor-house y tradi- 
 tionally stated to have been a 
 hunting-lodge of Cardinal Beaufort. 
 The long low front has a pinnacled 
 entrance tower at each end, and one 
 of greater elevation in the middle, 
 flanking a lofty double bay-window. 
 There are some remains of good ceil- 
 ings within. Some of the gurgoyles 
 are very quaint. Hurley Beacon 
 here raises its dark head; the slopes 
 are finely wooded with beech and fir. 
 
 The Ch., of very pleasing outline, 
 lias a low sq. tower with staircase 
 turret. The eastern gable, with its 
 Perp. window, is rather elaborate. 
 The richly-carved bench-ends deserve 
 notice. There is a fine yew in the 
 churchyard, near which is a cross, 
 late in the 14th cent. 
 
 1§ m. Bicknoller, between 2 gullies 
 in the Quantock Hills. The Ch., of 
 very pleasing outline, has a low 
 square tower. The E. gable and 
 window, Perp., are rather elaborate. 
 The carved bench-ends deserve 
 notice. In the ch.-yd. is a fine yew, 
 and a late 14th.-cent. cross. If on 
 foot, climb aloft here for a view; there 
 is a small encampment on the slope, 
 but go, if possible, to the barrow on 
 the summit, Thorncomhe Barrow, 
 from which you may see on the one 
 side the Bay of Bridgwater, on the 
 other that of Minehead, the AVelsh 
 coast, the entire scarp of Exmoor, 
 and the moor itself, the whole range 
 of the Blackdowns with the Welling- 
 ton Monument, and far into Devon- 
 shire. Opposite are the woods of 
 Nettlecombe, and S. of them Willet 
 Tower. 
 
 1 m. rt. at the foot of the hills, 
 Weacombe House, 1. the village of 
 Sampford Brett; and, away in the 
 distance, the ranges beyond Dunster, 
 and the huge Dunkery Beacon. 
 
 2 J m. WilUton (Rte. 31). 
 
 ROUTE 33. 
 
 TAUNTON TO DULVERTON AND 
 BARNSTAPLE, BY MILVERTON, AND 
 WIVELISCOMBE, 
 
 {Great Western Ely.) 
 
 Taunton (Rte. 21). This line 
 passes through a superb country 
 between Milverton and the border 
 of Devonshire, and again between 
 Bampton and Dulverton. 
 
 2 m. Norton Fitzwarren (Kte. 21, 
 p. 391). 
 
 6J. m. Milverton (Inn ; AVhite 
 Hart ; Pop. 201 8), a small but ancient 
 market town in a deep combe or dell ; 
 the Ch, stands on an eminence over- 
 looking it. W. are high and steep 
 hills, mostly cultivated to their sum- 
 mits. Milverton is a place of little 
 note now, except for beauty of posi- 
 tion, but it had once a considerable 
 business in the woollen trade. It 
 was the birthplace of John of Milver- 
 ton, a vehement opponent of the 
 doctrines of Wickliff, died 1480, 
 and of Dr. Thomas Young, born 1773, 
 who first established the undulatory 
 theory of light, and penetrated the 
 obscurity of the Egyptian Hiero- 
 glyphics. 
 
 Milverton Ch, is a very fine build- 
 ing and was well restored 1850. It is 
 Perp., of less ornate character than is 
 usual in the large churches of Somer- 
 setshire. On the W. face of the tower, 
 as at Glastonbury Tor, is a mutilated 
 bas-relief of S. Michael (to whom it 
 is dedicated) and Satan weighing 
 souls ; on the E. face a woman milk- 
 ing a cow. The interior has a 
 character of severe grandeur. The 
 nave is very wide, and without clere- 
 story ; the arcades have large pointed 
 arches upon octagonal pillars. The 
 greater part of the original carved 
 bench-ends remain, the work being 
 of remarkable excellence, but others 
 
472 Houte 33. — Wiveliscomhe — Waterwood, Somersetshire. 
 
 appear to be of cinque-cento 
 work. On one of the benches are 
 carved the arms of Henry VIII., 
 and amongst other rude devices 
 is an " aspergillum*' for sprinkling 
 holy water, commonly taken for a 
 pestle and mortar. The chancel is 
 stalled, the sacrarium laid with 
 encaustic tiles, and many of the win- 
 dows filled with modern coloured 
 glass. The font is Norm. The porch 
 is unusually placed at the W. end of 
 the S. aisle. 
 
 The Churchyard is a fine point 
 of view, commanding the Quantock 
 Hills and the outliers of Exmoor. 
 In it may be seen the rudely-sculp- 
 tured base of a cross. 
 
 The archidiaconal residence near 
 the church, now the vicarage, was built 
 in the reign of Henry VIII. It has 
 a door-case of solid oak worth notice. 
 There is a beautiful arch in one of 
 the rooms and a portion of an original 
 oak ceiling. 
 
 2 m. rt. Castle Hill is the site of a 
 camp, now planted with trees, in 
 which Roman coins have been found 
 in large numbers. 
 
 9J m. WiVELiscoMBE Stat., com- 
 monly pronounced Wilscombe (Inns : 
 Lion; Bell; Pop. 1264). This is a 
 market town.of some size embosomed 
 among swelling hills, on the side of 
 one of which it hangs, with its feet in 
 a valley. The manor afterwards be- 
 came a royal domain, and was granted 
 by Edward the Confessor to the 
 cathedral of Wells, whose bishops 
 had a palace here. The Ch., rebuilt 
 1829, still gives name to a prebend 
 of Wells. There are remains of an 
 ancient cross in the churchyard, with 
 the figure of an ecclesiastic on the 
 W. side of the shaft, perhaps John 
 Drokensford, Bishop of Bath and 
 Wells, who built a palace here at the 
 early part of the 14th cent. Ahhots- 
 field is a very conspicuous house on 
 the side of the hill, built from 
 the designs of Owen Jones, by C. L. 
 Collard, Esq. 
 
 There are extensive slate quarries 
 in the neighbourhood. Mr. Han- 
 cock's brewery is one of the largest 
 in the W. of England. W. of the town 
 rise the lofty heights of 3Iain Down 
 and Heydon Down, links in a chain of 
 hills prolonged eastward from the 
 great mass of Exmoor called Molland 
 Down. To penetrate these hills and 
 the deep valleys which intersect them, 
 or to angle in their trout streams, 
 are the attractions held out by Wive- 
 liscomhe. A view of the place may be 
 obtained from the road to BamptoE, 
 and every visitor should see the first 
 valley on that road, 3 m. distant. 
 
 The town stands on the junction 
 line of the new red sandstone and 
 Devonian, or old red, rocks, the latter 
 comprising the district of Exmoor. 
 
 [The highroad to Bampton is a very 
 pleasant one commanding beautiful 
 views. 
 
 At the outset we climb a hill 
 m. in length, and look down 
 upon Wiveliscomhe and the sur- 
 rounding country, which may be 
 seen to yet greater perfection from 
 the summit to the rt., together with 
 the Quantock and Blackdown ranges, 
 Willet Tower on its distant mount, 
 the vales and hills beyond Taunton, 
 and directly to the N. the huge side 
 of Main Down clothed with sombre 
 fir woods. 
 
 From this height a long descent 
 leads to the hamlet of 
 
 3j m. Waterwood, situated deep 
 in a combe by the rocky bed of the 
 Tone, here closely shut in by soaring 
 hills prettily broken by wooded rifts 
 and .hollows. An old bridge span- 
 ning the stream, a cottage full of 
 timbers and angles, and a scarred 
 slate rock on the hill-side, form a 
 scene for a painter. Firs and other 
 trees are thickly grouped over 
 the dell, and adjacent is a valley 
 down which the river Hows from its 
 source on Brendon. 
 
 On the left, in the parish of Bathe- 
 alt on (o ni. S.E. of Wiveliscombe 
 
Somei'setshire. JRoute 33. — Bamjpton — Dulverton. 
 
 station; the Ch. was rebuilt in 
 1854), is a well-defined British camp, 
 called the Castles," in which Ro- 
 man coins have been found. A few 
 years since the foss was unploughed 
 and full of furze or trees, but now 
 improved agricultural skill is de- 
 stroying this interesting feature. 
 From the camp are beautiful and 
 extensive views, stretching from the 
 <^uantocks on the N. to the hills near 
 Honiton to S., Hamdon Hill near 
 Yeovil, as well as Mendip to the E., 
 and over the vale of Taunton, &c. 
 Bathealton Court is the seat of H. 
 O. Moysey, Esq. 
 
 4J m. The traveller here reaches 
 the border of the county on a water- 
 shed, from which he gains a view 
 forward of the hills about Bampton, 
 rt, and 1. are narrow lanes ; the one 
 leading to CMpstahle in Somerset, the 
 other to Clayhanger in Devon. His 
 onward course is somewhat lonely, 
 by an open valley with pleasant 
 heights to the rt. to 
 
 8J m. Shillingford, and a bridge 
 over the Batherm. Rt. is a distant 
 view of Lower Timeivell House (Rev. 
 R. Bere). From this bridge by a 
 kind of defile we enter Bampton."} 
 
 Returningto the rly. we reach 14 m. 
 Venn Cross, on a projecting horn of 
 Devonshire, through which county 
 the rly. runs for six miles to 
 
 17 J m. Morebathf the stat. for 
 
 Bampton, in Devonshire (see 
 Hdbk. for Devon) (Inn : White Horse. 
 Pop. 1858), another hill-embedded 
 town, pleasant quarters for the 
 angler or artist. Here we come 
 at one of the headwaters of the 
 Exe, the Batherm or Batham. The 
 battle of Bampton between the 
 Britons and West Saxons, a.d. 614, 
 sometimes erroneously placed here, 
 was really fought at Bampton, in 
 Oxfordshire, and the town has few 
 memories connected with it, save 
 those of its 4 great fairs, which have 
 
 been held in it annually from a distant 
 time. These are for the sale of sheep 
 and cattle, and Exmoor ponies ; and 
 take place in March, June, October, 
 and November ; that of October, the 
 last Thursday of the month, being 
 the largest. 
 
 Bampton had at one time a castle, 
 the chief residence of the ISTorman 
 Walter de Douai, from whom Bridg- 
 water derives a part of its name. 
 It stood on the fir-crowned knoll called 
 the Mount, on the Wiveliscombe 
 road, at the E. end of Castle Street. 
 
 The Church is a Dec. and Perp. 
 building with carved roof and screen, 
 and fragments of stained glass. 
 
 The things to be seen here are the 
 views from the churchyard and 
 quarries, the latter S. of the town, 
 and the first mile of the Wivelis- 
 combe road. 
 
 At a little distance are the most 
 beautiful scenes — Pixton Parh, Dul- 
 verton, the ravines of Exmoor, and 
 Haddon Down, 1140 ft. high, often 
 visited in the summer time by picnic 
 parties. 
 
 The sportsman may have trout- 
 fishing on the Exe and Barle, and 
 stag and fox hunting on Exmoor, the 
 hounds being kept either at Dulver- 
 ton, or Lynton. 
 
 21 m. Dulverton Stat. {Inn : 
 Carnarvon Arms, good) 2 m. S. of 
 the town of 
 
 Dulverton (Inns: Red Lion ; 
 Lamb; Pop. 1373). 
 
 The Ch. was rebuilt 1855, with the 
 exception of the tower, and is a fine 
 structure adorned with much stained 
 glass. 
 
 The town is seated in an amphi- 
 theatre of hills, wooded with large 
 coverts for the red deer. An impe- 
 tuous torrent, the Barle, dashes past 
 it under a bridge of 5 arches, and 
 springing over rocky ledges is lost 
 to view among the trees. To 
 the N. stretches the lonely district 
 of Exmoor, closing the approaches 
 very completely on that side, and 
 
474 
 
 Boute 33.—. 
 
 'Exhridge. 
 
 Somersetshire. 
 
 limiting the little trade and traffic 
 of the place. To an artist or sports- 
 man, Dulvertou has many at- 
 tractions. The scenery is beauti- 
 ful ; the trout fishing free to the 
 public as far as the border of the 
 forest ; the stag and fox-hunting on 
 Exmoor of a very exciting descrip- 
 tion. The deer are hunted every 
 season (the hounds being kept either 
 at Exford or E . Anstey) ; but they 
 are hardly so numerous as they 
 were some years ago. Their antlers 
 and skins will be observed in the inn. 
 
 At Dulverton you should notice 
 the views from the churchyard and 
 bridge. You should walk down the 
 path below the bridge, and explore 
 the upward course of the river; and, 
 above all, you should ascend to an 
 open spot, called Mount Sydenham, 
 in the wood above the ch. The 
 prospect it commands is truly mag- 
 nificent. Towards the you will 
 look up the valley of the Barle, 
 a wild and solitary valley, where no 
 road has yet penetrated beyond a cer- 
 tain point. Its sides are the wooded 
 coverts of the red deer ; the heights 
 above them naked heaths. You will 
 command the windings of the river 
 in long perspective for many miles. 
 A short but delightful excursion is 
 to Higher Combe, a hunting-box of 
 Sir Thomas Acland's, and return by 
 the Barle. This will give you some 
 idea of the indescribable beauty of 
 the moorland glens. You will gain 
 views over the greater part of Devon 
 and of Somerset, and descry the 
 mountainous mass of Dartmoor on 
 the distant horizon. 
 
 [^Exhridge, 2 m. S. (Inn : Blue An- 
 chor), is a hamlet in a broad vale or 
 basin near the station, at the junc- 
 tion of the Exe and Barle, which 
 flow united under the bridge in a 
 turbulent stream, 40 ft. or 50 ft. 
 broad. It is much frequented by 
 anglers, the Exe and the Barle being 
 notable trout streams. You should 
 bestow a glance upon the view from 
 the bridge. 
 
 The valley of the Barle is one 
 mass of foliage, through which run 
 the highroad and river in company, 
 the glittering surface of the water 
 being seen between the trunks of the 
 trees. Rt. are the lovely woods of 
 Pixton Park, the seat of the Earl of 
 Carnarvon, by whom it has recently 
 been much improved. The walk 
 from the station to Dulverton 
 through the park is full of pictu- 
 resque beauty. On the opposite hill 
 is a heronry.] 
 
 Those who are bound to Lynton 
 may post to it from Dulverton over 
 the forest, but they will find the 
 road hilly. For a pedestrian or eques- 
 trian it is an interesting route ; for 
 a carriage the preferable one would 
 be by the Dunster road, as far as 
 Timber scomhe, a drive of great beauty, 
 passing the site of Barlynch Abbey, 
 now an entire ruin, and then winding 
 along upward through the wooded 
 valley of the Exe. 6 m. on the rt. is 
 the white tower of Exton Ch., visible 
 from the valley ; and 1 m. on 1. is 
 Winsford,a pretty and secludedvillage^ 
 where there is an excellent inn, much 
 patronized by anglers. Before reach- 
 ing Cutcomhe, the road ascends the 
 ridge of hills, of which Dunkery is 
 the highest point. At Cutcombe is a 
 small public-house called Rest and 
 be Thankful." From this spot Dun- 
 kery can be reached with ease. From 
 Timberscombe a cross road leads to 
 Porlock. The distance by the forest 
 from Dulverton to Lynton is 23 m. 
 (charged 26 post), an easy walk in a 
 summer's day. The Bed Deer is the 
 halfway-house, and a good road runs 
 from Red Deer to Sim^nsbath (see 
 ante) and Lynton. 
 
 From the centre of Dulverton the 
 huge fir-clad hill on the W. is a pro- 
 minent object, rising high above the 
 roofs. It is called Part ofDobbss, in 
 accordance with a whimsical nomen- 
 clature common in the town. Thus 
 one house is called Part of Kenna- 
 way's, another the Huntsman's 
 House. 
 
Somersetshire. 
 
 Boute S3.— Torr Steps. 
 
 475 
 
 Near Dulverton are Pixton House 
 (Lord Carnarvon), Comber an old 
 mansion 1 m. S., T. M. Dodington, 
 Esq., and Hollam House, A. St. John 
 Mildmay, Esq. Northmoor House, 
 J. A. Locke, Esq., just above the 
 town. Dulverton is 17 m. from 
 Dunster, a beautiful drive : 15 m. 
 from S. Molton, post; and rather 
 more by an ancient trackway, which 
 passes, 5 m. N. W., Torr Steps, a very 
 wild but most charming spot, where 
 a series of rude stones cross the 
 Barle. There are iron-mines on 
 Exmoor, and lead-mines near Mol- 
 land, in the adjoining comity. 
 
 The town, says Fuller, was the 
 
 birthplace of Humphretj Sidenliam 
 — ' ' Silver-tongued Sidenham " — 
 an eloquent preacher, who died 1650. 
 
 At Dulverton station is the junc- 
 tion of the new N. Devon and 
 Exeter line which will shortly be 
 opened. 
 
 The rly. again enters Devonshire 
 and proceeds to 
 
 24j m. East Anstey. 
 29f m. Bishops Nympton, 
 34J m. South Molton, 
 37 J m. Filleigh, 
 404 m. Swimhridge. 
 44J m. Barnstaple. 
 
 (See Handbook to Devon.) 
 
( 476 ) 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 [N.B. The places printed in italics are railway stations.] 
 
 ABBEYS. 
 A. 
 
 Abbeys, Priories, etc. 
 Abbotsbury, 215. 
 Amesbury, 114, 115. 
 Barlynch, 474. 
 Bindon, 201. 
 
 Bradenstoke or Clack Hill, 
 7. 
 
 Buckland, 4J9. 
 
 Cerne Abbas, 240. 
 
 Cleeve, 449. 
 
 East Holme, 197. 
 
 Edington, 61. 
 
 Olastonbury, 275. 
 
 Hinton Charterhouse, 59. 
 
 Ivy Church, 132. 
 
 Kington, St. Michael, 20. 
 
 Lacock, 19, 47. 
 
 Milton Abbas, 220. 
 
 Monkton Farleigh, 56. 
 
 Montacute, 41^. 
 
 Muchelney, 442. 
 
 Portbury, 367. 
 
 Shaftesbury, 166. 
 
 Stanley, 17. 
 
 Stavordale, 272. 
 
 Taunton, 387. 
 
 Wareham, 195. 
 
 Woodspring, 375. 
 Abbotsbury, Abbey, ch., 
 
 215; Chapel of S. Cathe- 
 rine, 216; Decoy and 
 
 Swannery, ib. ; Castle, 
 
 ib. ; Intermittent Spring, 
 
 ib. ; Camp, ib. 
 Abbots Hill, 429. 
 
 Road, 306. 
 
 Abona, Roman station of, 
 363. 
 
 Abury, 41. See Avebuiy. 
 Ackling Dyke, 217. 
 Addison, birthplace of, f 9. 
 Affpuddle ch., 261 ; Heath, 
 
 202, 261. 
 Agapemone, the, 384 
 Agglestone, the, 246. 
 Ailesbury Column, 44. 
 Alarum tree, 217. 
 Aldbourn, Battle, 64 ; Chase, 
 
 ib. ; ch. 65. 
 Alderbury Junction, ch.. 
 
 House, 86, 
 
 ASHLEY. 
 
 Aldhelm, St., of Malmesbury, 
 8, 174 ; his death, 417. 
 
 's Head, St., Chapel, 
 
 247 ; well, 417. 
 
 Alford, ch. Well, Cross. 408. 
 
 Alfoxton, or Alfoxden House 
 467. 
 
 Alfred, King, at Athelney, 
 his jewel, 440. 
 
 's Tower, 172, 407. 
 
 All Cannings, ch., Manor- 
 house, 70. 
 
 Allein, the nonconformist, 
 birthplace, 74 ; death, 389. 
 
 Allen, Ralph, 323. 
 
 AUer House (near Watchet), 
 451. 
 
 , ch., moor, battle, 441. 
 
 Allington, ch, 80. 
 
 Aimer, ch., 259. 
 
 Alphege, St., birthplace, and 
 spring, 324. 
 
 Alton Barnes, ch., 69. 
 
 Priors, 69. 
 
 Alvedeston, ch., 141. 
 
 Amesbury ch., 115 ; history, 
 114; House, 115; Mon- 
 astery, Nunnery, 114 ; 
 Last Abbess, 115; Sarsen 
 stones, 116; Vespasian's 
 Camp, 115. 
 
 Ammerdown, 404 ; Park, 
 column, 424. 
 
 *• Ancren Rewle," 219. 
 
 Anning, Miss Mary, 234. 
 
 Ann's Hill, St., 66; Camp, 
 67. 
 
 Aquaa Solis, ancient, 309. 
 Arish Mell Gap, 250. 
 Arne Chapel, 194. 
 
 Hill, earthworks, 1 50. 
 
 Arnold, Dr., at Warminster 
 
 Free School, 150. 
 Arthur, King, palace of, well, 
 
 409. 
 
 Arundell, Lady, Blanche, 
 gallant defence by, 160. 
 
 Ashcombe, 142. 
 
 Ashcott, 305. 
 
 Ashgrove, 165. 
 
 Ashill, ch., 438. 
 
 Ashlands Hill, 429. 
 
 Ashley, Earl Shaftesbury , 
 ii9. 
 
 BADGE WORTHY. J 
 
 Ashley Combe, 462. 
 Ashton Court, 364. 368. 
 
 , Long, cb., 368. 
 
 Rood, ch., 53. 
 
 , Steeple, ch., 5 ?. 
 
 Assheton Smith at Tid worth, 
 79- 
 
 Asylum, Wilts county, 75. 
 Athelhampton, Hall, 203, 
 
 222, 261. 
 Athelney Stat., I. of, 439, 
 
 440. 
 
 Athelstan's Day, King, 9. 
 
 Aubrey, John, the antiquary, 
 xxii., 20, at Blandford, 264. 
 
 Audries, St., 468. 
 
 Augustine, St., at Banner- 
 down, 26. 
 
 Avalon, the ancient island of, 
 275. 
 
 Avebury, earthworks and 
 stone circles, 36-40. 
 
 , ch.. House, 40. 
 
 Avill, river, valley, 451. 
 
 Avon, river, xx., 334 ; valley, 
 46, 54. 56, 76, J 59 ; gorge, 
 359' 
 
 (Southern) xxii., 
 
 68, 86, 114, 135. 
 
 Mouthy 363. 
 
 Axbridge, ch., 396 ; St. 
 
 Michael's House, 397. 
 Axe Knoll, 226. 
 river (Somerset), 376, 
 
 396 ; source of, 304. 
 — — (Dorset), sources 
 
 of, 430. 
 Axium, ancient, 375. 
 Axminster, 4? 5. 
 Ayscough, Bishop, murder 
 
 of, 61. 
 
 B. 
 
 Babington House, 404; ch., 
 
 house, 424. 
 Babylon Hill, 412. 
 Bacon, Roger, birthplace of, 
 
 428. 
 
 Backwell, ch., 369. 
 Badbury Castle, 29. 
 
 Rings, 188, 26 j. 
 
 Badgeworthy Water, 463. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 477 
 
 BAGBOROUGH. 
 
 Bagborough House, 469. 
 Bailey Corner, 258. 
 Bailey Gate, 262. 
 Ballard Head, 19J, 244. 
 Balmore Pond, 30. 
 BamptoUy castle, ch., fairs, 
 47^. 
 
 Banbury Camp, 268. 
 Banks, Lady, defence of 
 
 Corfe Castle by, 198. 
 Bannerdown, 26, 325. 
 Banwelly bone caves, ch., 
 
 court, 394. 
 Barbury Camp, 50. 
 Barford, St. Martin, ch., 155 ; 
 
 House, ij6. 
 Barle river, 464, 474. 
 Barley Wood, 39 
 Bar lynch Abbey, 474. 
 Barn Door, the, 252. 
 Barneston, 201. 
 Barrington ch., court, 437. 
 Barrow Court, 368. 
 
 Gurney, cross, j68. 
 
 Hill, 326. 
 
 North, ch., 408. 
 
 — South, 408. 
 Barrows, 
 
 Beacon Hill, 78. 
 
 Bincombe, 209. 
 
 Black Hill, 260. 
 
 Bridehead, 22 j. 
 
 Chalbury, 21 j. 
 
 E. Chaldon, 2oj. 
 
 Cley Hill, 150. 
 I Cophead, 150. 
 
 Ell Barrow, 84. 
 
 Enford, 68. 
 
 Fontmell Down, 267. 
 
 King Barrow, 149. 
 
 Knighton Long Barrow, 
 84. 
 
 Lake House, 122. 
 
 Long Barrow, 42, 77. 
 
 Milton Hill, 66, 78. 
 
 Nine Barrow Down, 201. 
 
 Poole, 194. 
 
 Priddy, 399. 
 
 Ridge Way, 69. 
 
 Round Hill, 421. 
 
 Thorncombe Barrow, 471. 
 
 Twin Barrows, 68, 78. 
 
 Walker's Hill, 66. 
 
 White and Silver Bar- 
 rows, 8j. 
 Barton Farm, 56. 
 Bason Bridge, 307. 
 Basset Down House, 5. 
 Batcombe (near Yeovil), ch., 
 
 238. 
 
 (near Bruton), ch., 
 
 407. 
 
 ^at?i— betels, position, street 
 ^ architecture, jo8 ; legends, 
 history, Roman remains, 
 309; ancient manufactures, 
 
 BIDDESDEN. 
 
 312 ; worthies, 315 ; abbey 
 ch., 316-318; churches, 318; 
 pump room, 319 ; baths, 
 
 319- 320 ;^public buildings, 
 
 320- 322 ; literary and 
 scientific institutions, 320- 
 old Assembly rooms, 321; 
 Partis College, ?2i ; Gar- 
 dens, 322 ; Beckford's 
 Tower, 322 ; environs, 
 323-327. 
 
 Bathampton, ch., 307 ; 
 
 Manor-house, 26, 77, 308. 
 Bath-brick Works, 380. 
 Bathealton, 472; ch., camp. 
 
 Court, 473. 
 Batheaston, ch., villa, 26, 
 
 308, 325. 
 Bathford, ch., 26, 307. 
 Battleborough, 377. 
 Battlesbury Camp, 148. 
 Batt's Castle, 456. 
 
 Corner, 252. 
 
 Baver stock, ch., 155. 
 
 Bay House, 266. 
 
 Bayford Hill, House, Lodge, 
 
 272. 
 
 Baynton Chapel, 50. 
 
 Beacon Batch, 395. 
 
 Hill, 78, 421 (near Shep- 
 
 ton Mallet). 
 Beaminster, ch., "the Mort 
 
 House," conflagrations, 
 
 226. 
 
 Beam Back, 373. 
 
 Beckford, William, author 
 
 of « Vathek," 162 ; tower 
 
 and tomb, 322. 
 Beckington Castle, ch., 404. 
 Bedhampton, 144. 
 Bedminster, coalfield, 368. 
 Bedwyn, Great, Castle Hill, 
 
 ch., history, 65. 
 
 , Little, 65. 
 
 Beechen Cliff, 308. 
 Beechingstoke, ch., 69. 
 Belfield House, 212. 
 Belluton, 422. 
 Bemerton, churches, 123. 
 Bendon, 235. 
 Ben Knoll, 305. 
 Bentham, Jeremy, at Ford 
 
 Abbey, 433. 
 Bere Regis, history, ch., 201, 
 
 260. 
 
 Wood, 259. 
 
 Bergundy Chapel, 459. 
 Berwick, Bassett, ch,, 42. 
 
 St. James, ch., 83. 
 
 St. John, ch., 141, 165. 
 
 St. Leonard's, ch., 
 
 Manor-house, 161. 
 Bettiscombe, ch., 228. 
 Bickham, 456. 
 BicknoUer, 447, 471. 
 Biddesden House, 46. 
 
 BONE-CAVES. 
 
 Biddeston, ch., 25. 
 
 Bilbury Ring, 143. 
 
 Billy Wilkins, oak, 239. 
 
 Bincombe, ch., barrows, 209. 
 
 Bindon Abbey, 20 t. 
 
 Little, Abbey, 251. 
 
 Hill, 251. 
 
 Binegar, ch., 421. 
 
 Bingham, Sir Richard, birth- 
 place, &c., 222. 
 
 Bingham's Melcombe, ch.. 
 House, 222. 
 
 Birt Hill, 429. 
 
 Bishop's Cannings, ch., 70. 
 Caundle, ch., 182. 
 
 Chair, 394. 
 
 Fonthill, ch.,''i6i. 
 
 Bishop's Lydeard, ch., 445. 
 
 Bishopston, ch., 140. 
 
 Biss river, 52. 
 
 Bittern Lake, 163. 
 
 Bitton, ch., 328. 
 
 Blackdown Hills, 391-2. 
 
 — - Wood, 448. 
 
 Black Down (Dorset), 209, 
 214, 223. 
 
 (Mendips), 395, 
 
 397» >99- 
 
 Black Heath, 84. 
 
 Hill, 260. 
 
 Pits, 464. 
 
 Vein, the, 234. 
 
 Blackford, ch., 410. 
 
 Blackmoor Farm, 466. 
 
 , Vale of, 270. 
 
 Blackmore Museum at Salis- 
 bury, no. 
 
 , Sir Richard, poet and 
 
 physician, birthplace, 23. 
 
 Blacksford Chapel, 459. 
 
 Bladud, legend of, 309. 
 
 Blagdon, ch., Roman pig of 
 lead, 396. 
 
 Blaise Castle, pictures. Park, 
 hall, 362, 363. 
 
 Blake, Admiral, birthplace 
 of, 380 ; defence of Taun- 
 ton, 385. 
 
 Blandford, great fire, 263 ; 
 worthies, 264 ; ch., pump, 
 public buildings, ancient 
 buildings, Damorey's oak, 
 264. 
 
 St. Mary, ch., 263. 
 
 Bleadon, ch.. Hill, 376. 
 
 Bloxworth, ch., House, 259. 
 
 Blue Ancfioi; 449 ; sub- 
 merged forest, 451. 
 
 Blunsdon Castle Hill, 3. 
 
 Bokerley ditch, 67, 217. 
 
 Bone-caves : — 
 Banwell, 394. 
 Burrington, 395-396. < 
 Cheddar, 398. 
 Hutton. 394. 
 Loxton, ib. 
 
478 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 BONE-CAVES. 
 
 BoriG-caves : — 
 
 Sandford, ib. 
 
 Uphill, ^76. 
 
 Wookey, 304. 
 Bonham, Thomas, 142. 
 Boreham, 149. 
 
 Bore on the Parrett river, 581 . 
 
 Bormewe, Abbess of Ames- 
 bury, 115. 
 
 Boroughbridge, 440. 
 
 Bascombe, East, ch., 80. 
 
 Bossington, 462 ; Beacon, 
 461 ; view from, 462. 
 
 Bournes, the, 122. 
 
 Bow and Arrow Castle, 257. 
 
 Bow Brook, 172. 
 
 Ditch, 424. 
 
 Bowden Park, 47. 
 
 Bower Chalk, ch., 141. 
 
 Farm, 381. 
 
 Walls, 360. 
 
 Bowie, the Spanish scholar, 
 grave, 80. 
 
 Bowles, the poet, at Brem- 
 hill, 19. 
 
 Bo wood, 15; pictures, 16; 
 gardens, mausoleum, 17. 
 
 Box, Village, 26 ; brook, 21 ; 
 quarries, 25 ; tunnel, ib. 
 
 Boy Bishop, the, 96. 
 
 Boyle, Rob., the philosopher, 
 at Stalbridge, 269. 
 
 Boyton, ch., Manor, pit, 145. 
 
 Brae ton, the lawyer, birth- 
 place, 458. 
 
 Bradenstoke Priory, Hill, 
 ch., 7. 
 
 Bradfield, 13. 
 
 Bradford (near Taunton), 
 ch., 591. 
 
 , Abbas, ch., 182 ; cross, 
 
 I8^ 
 
 on-Avon, bridges, 55 ; 
 
 churches, ib. ; history, ib. ; 
 
 manufactures, ib. 
 Down, by Dorchester, 
 
 223. 
 
 Peverel, ch., 235;. 
 
 Bradleigh Hill, 427. 
 Bradley, Maiden, ch., knoll, 
 
 House, Park, 154, 404. 
 Braden Forest, pond, 28. 
 Brandon Hill, 357. 
 Brandy Street, 459. 
 Branksea Island. See Brown - 
 
 sea. 
 
 Brass, the first made in Eng- 
 land, 33 J- 
 
 Bratton (near Westbury), 
 Castle, ch., 61. 
 
 Biatton (near Wincanton), 
 Tumulus, 275. 
 
 Bratton Court (near Mine- 
 head), 458. 
 
 Breakwater, Portland, 256. 
 
 Brean, ch,, Down, Fort, 376. 
 
 BRITISH. 
 
 Breamore, ch.. House, 137 ; 
 
 Down, 134. 
 Bredy, Little, 209. 
 
 ■ river, 225. 
 
 Bremhill, 19. 
 Bremhillwick Hill, 13. 
 Brendon Hills, 447 ; iron 
 
 mines, ib. 
 Brent, East, 373 ; Lady Well, 
 
 ib. 
 
 Knoll, 377. 
 
 , South, 378. 
 
 Brentsfield Bridge, 382. 
 
 Brett, Sampford, ch,, 447, 47 1. 
 
 Brickworth House, 85, 136. 
 
 Bride Bottom, 215. 
 
 river, source of, 223. 
 
 Bridehead, 215, 223. 
 
 Bridgwater, inns, history, 
 379; storming and burn- 
 ing of, ib. ; churches, 380 ; 
 public buildings, ib. ; 
 Bathbrick Works, ib. ; 
 bore, 381. 
 
 Bridport, Bp., monment of, 
 
 lOI. 
 
 BridportyiimB, position, rope 
 manufactory, 224 ; ancient 
 houses, ib. ; quay, wor- 
 thies, 225. 
 
 Brimsdon, 154. 
 
 Brislington, ch., tunnel, 
 328, 422. 
 
 Bristol— Hotels, 328 ; posi- 
 tion, history. Castle, 329 ; 
 riots, slave-trade, 332 ; 
 manufactures, 333 ; streets, 
 334; cathedral, 3^5-345; 
 see, 336 ; ground-plan, 
 337 ; chapter-house, 344 ; 
 College-green, 345 ; St. 
 Mark's Chapel, 345, 346; 
 St. Mary Redcliffe, 346- 
 351; ground-plan, 347; 
 churches, 351-354 ; public 
 buildings and institutions, 
 354-358; Colston Hall, 
 356 ; worthies, 358 ; docks 
 and floating harbour, 3 59 ; 
 diamonds, 3 59. 
 
 Britford, ch., fair, 130. 
 
 British trackway, 69. 
 
 British villages and hut 
 circles — 
 Ben Knoll, 305. 
 Brean Down, 376. 
 Bulford Field, 78. 
 BuUbarrow, 222. 
 Casterlev, 68. 
 Comb Hill, 78. 
 Croydon Hill, 456. 
 Durrington Long Walls, 
 69. 
 
 Easton, 66, 78. 
 Enford, 68. 
 Everley, 78. 
 
 BURKE. 
 
 British villages, &c. — 
 
 Groveley, 142. 
 
 Hackstone Down, 78. 
 
 Heale Hill, 122. 
 
 Hewish Hill, 66. 
 
 Hindon, 161. 
 
 Hod Hill, 266. 
 
 Knock Castle, 148. 
 
 Lidbury, 78. 
 
 Milton Hill, 78. 
 
 Pewsey Heath, 78. 
 
 Priddy, 399. 
 
 Turnworth, 220. 
 
 West Down Hill, 78. 
 
 Withycombe, 451. 
 Britton, John, the antiquary, 
 
 birthplace, 20. 
 Brixton Deverel, ch., 154. 
 Broad Bench, 249, 
 
 Chalk, ch., 141. 
 
 Hinton, 7. 
 
 Windsor, ch., 227. 
 
 Broadfield Down, 368. 
 Broadstone, the, 223. 
 Broadway Camp, 69, 84. 
 
 Church, 428. 
 
 Broadwey, ch., 209. 
 Brockley Combe, ch,. Court, 
 
 369. 
 
 Bromham, ch.. House, inn, 
 
 17, 50. 
 Brook, 60. 
 
 Brooke, Rajah, grave of, 437. 
 
 Broomtield, House, ch., 469. 
 
 Broughton Gifford, ch., 52. 
 
 Brownsea, or Branksea, Is- 
 land, Castle, 193 ; pits, 
 19J. 
 
 Brue river, xliv. ; sources of, 
 172, 405. 
 
 Bruton, inns, history, 405 ; 
 ch., 406 ; institutions, ib. 
 
 Park, 407. 
 
 Bryanston House and Park, 
 ch., 265. 
 
 Brymore House, 465. 
 
 Brympton d' Evercy, ch., 
 Chantry House, Mansion' 
 house, 412. 
 
 Bubb Down, 239, 
 
 Buckhom Weston, 172. 
 
 Buckingham, Duke of, exe- 
 cution of> 88. 
 
 Buckland Abbas, ch , 241. 
 
 — Sororum, 459. 
 St. Mary, 438. 
 
 — West, 391. 
 Buckshaw House, 182. 
 Bulford, ch., 69. 
 BuUbarrow, 222. 
 Bullstake Hill, J73. 
 Burbage, ch., 66. 
 Burcombe, ch. 155. 
 Burdrop Park, 29; race- 
 course, 30. 
 
 Burke, Edmund, 56. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 479 
 
 BURLESTON. 
 
 Burlcston, ch., 261. 
 Burnham, inns, lighthouse, 
 springs, ch., altarpiece, 
 
 Burning Cliff, 214. 
 
 Burrington, ch., combe, ca- 
 vern, 395; Ham, 596. 
 
 Burton Bradstock, ch., cliff, 
 225. 
 
 Hill House, 21. 
 
 House, 44J. 
 
 Long, ch. 242. 
 
 Steeple, 443. 
 
 Bury Castle, 459. 
 
 Wood, Camp, 25. 
 
 Bushey Coombe, 285. 
 Bussex Rhine, j82. 
 Bustard inn, 84. 
 Bustard, the great, 84. 
 Butleigh, Court, pictures, 
 
 ch., 28;. 
 Butler, Bishop, of Bristol, 
 
 3j6; death, 321; grave, 
 
 340. 
 
 Butter Rock, 252. 
 Buxbury, 157. 
 Buzbury, 219. 
 Byam, Rev. H., 459. 
 Byzant, the, 167. 
 
 c 
 
 Cabbage, first grown in Eng- 
 land, 1 39. 
 
 Cadbury Castle (near Spark- 
 ford), 409, 271, 27 ;. 
 
 Camp (near Weston- 
 super-Mare), 37J. 
 
 North, ch., House, 409. 
 
 South, ch., 409. 
 
 Cadenham, 15. 
 
 Caer Badon, 326. 
 
 Calamine-mines, 396, J98. 
 
 Cale river, 172, 270. 
 
 Calne, castle, ch., 18. 
 
 Camel, Queen's, ch., spring, 
 410. 
 
 W^est, ch., 410. 
 
 Camelot, site of, 409. 
 Camerton, ch., Court, 421. 
 Camps. See Earthworks. 
 Canal, Thames and Severn, 
 28. 
 
 North Wilts, 28. 
 
 Kennet and Avon, 71, 
 
 76. 
 
 Canford, Little, 18 j; Manor, 
 ch., 186. 
 
 Cannings, All, ch., Manor- 
 house, 70. 
 
 Cannings, Bishop's, ch., 70. 
 
 Cannington Park, Court- 
 house, 465; ch., Manor- 
 house, 466. 
 
 I CHAED. 
 
 j Canute, death of, at Shaftes- 
 I bury, 166. 
 
 i Canynges, elder and younger, 
 ! 348 ; monuments, 351. 
 j Carboniferous rocks, xi. 
 I Carhampton, ch., 451. 
 Gary, Lytes, 427-428. 
 
 ' river, 427 ; source, 408. 
 
 I Cashmore inn, 217. 
 i Custerley Camp, 68, 84. 
 I Castles. See Earthworks. 
 
 , the, 472. 
 
 Castle of Comfort inn, 399. 
 Castle Caryy inns, casile, 
 407 ; history, 408 ; ch., 
 Park, Lodge Hill, ib. 
 Combe, ch., House, mar- 
 ket cross, village, 21. 
 Castle Ditches, 84, 134, 
 157- 
 
 Hill, 28, 85, 472. 
 
 Neroche or Ratch, 438. 
 
 Orchard, 273. 
 
 Rmgs, 160, 165, 220. 
 
 Cdstleton, 354, 256. 
 Catherine, St., ch., grange, 
 
 Catherston, ch., hall, 229. 
 
 Cattistock Castle, ch., 237. 
 
 Cattle Hill, 273. 
 
 Caundle, Bishop's, ch., 182. 
 
 , Purse, ch., 182. 
 
 Cave Hole, 258. 
 
 Cemeteries, Romano-British, 
 on Isle of Portland, 254 ; 
 Weymouth, 252. 
 
 Cerne Abbas, Abbey, ruins, 
 ch.. Giant's Hill, 240, 208. 
 
 Chains, the, 464. 
 
 Chalbury, ch., 189; Camp, 
 209, 213. 
 
 Chaldtield, Great, Manor- 
 house, ch., 51. 
 
 .Little, 51. 
 
 Chaldon, East, ch., earth- 
 works, 203. 
 
 Chalk, Bower or Borough, 
 ch. 141. 
 
 , Broad, ch , 141. 
 
 and Greensand, ix. 
 
 , Vale of, 140. 
 
 Chalmington House, 237. 
 
 Chantmarle, 238. 
 
 Chapel Farm, 324. 
 
 Hole, 145. 
 
 Plaster, 26, 327. 
 
 of St. Catherine, 216. 
 
 of St. Joseph, 279. 
 
 of St. Leonard, 58. i 
 
 of St. Michael, 282. 
 
 Chapman Barrows, 463, 
 
 Chapman's Pool, 248. 
 
 Char river, 231. 
 
 Charborough House, 189, 196, 
 258; Tower, 259, 263. 
 
 Chard Road, 435. 
 
 CHICKSGROVE. 
 
 Char'd, inns, history, 435; 
 industries, eld houses, 
 4?6. 
 
 Chardstock, ch.. Courthouse 
 
 Farm, 435. 
 Cliarford, 137. 
 Chargot liOdge, 456. 
 Charlcombe, ch., 325. 
 Charlcott, 60. 
 
 Charles I. at Wilton, 127 ; 
 
 at Chard, 435. 
 IL at Heale House, 122; 
 
 Upton House, 191 ; Brid- 
 
 port,225; Charmouth, 230; 
 
 Castle Cary, 408; Trent, 
 
 415. 
 
 Charliuch, the Agapemone, 
 384. 
 
 Charlton Down, 219. 
 
 Park, House, 12 ; pic- 
 tures, 12. 
 
 (on Avon), ch., 68. 
 
 Horethorn, ch., 173. 
 
 Charminster,ch., earthworks, 
 208, 240. 
 
 Charmouth, inns, 229 ; bat- 
 tles, king's bedroom, ch., 
 fossil remains, 230. 
 
 Charmy Down, 325. 
 
 Charterhouse on Mendip 
 398. 399. 405. 
 
 , Hinton, 326. 
 
 Chart Knoll, 227. 
 
 Chatham, Earl of, at Marl- 
 borough, 34 ; at Stratford, 
 122 ; at Burton, 444. 
 
 Chatterton, the poet, 350. 
 
 Cheddar, inns, cheeses, ch., 
 market cross, 397; ca- 
 verns, cliffs, mines, 398. 
 
 Cheddington, ch., 430. 
 
 Chedzoy, ch., 382. 
 
 Chelborough, West, ch., hill, 
 226. 
 
 Chelvey Court, ch., 369. 
 
 Cherhill White Horse, 18. 
 
 Chesil Bank, 252 ; its forma- 
 tion, shipwrecks, 253. 
 
 , beginning of, 225. 
 
 Chesilton, 254, 255. 
 
 Chesterblade, ch. 273, 416. 
 
 Chetnole, ch., 239. 
 
 C nettle Hole, 145. 
 
 Cheverell, Great and Little, 
 ch., 83. 
 
 Chew Magna, ch.. Manor- 
 house, 424. 
 
 river, 422. 
 
 Stoke, parsonage, 424. 
 
 Chewton Mendip, ch., cross, 
 425. 
 
 Priory, 426. 
 
 Cheyney Court, 26. 
 
 , Sir John, 0. 
 
 Chickerell, West, 214. 
 Chlcksgrove, 157. 
 
480 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 CHIDOICK. 
 
 Chidiock, ch., ruined house, 
 228. 
 
 Chilcompton, ch., 421. 
 
 Child Olteford, 267. 
 
 Chilfrome, ch., 237. 
 
 Chilmark, ch., down, quar- 
 ries, John of, 157. 
 
 Chilthorne Domer, 429. 
 
 Chilton Foliet, 64. 
 
 House, 64. 
 
 Priory, 307, 381. 
 
 Chilver-Combe Bottom, 165. 
 
 Chimney Rock, 234. 
 
 Chinnock, East, ch., West, 
 ch., Middle, ch., 411, 431. 
 
 Chipley Park, 392. 
 
 Chippenham, churches, his- 
 tory, Maud Heath's Cause- 
 way, 13, 14. 
 
 Chipstable, 473. 
 
 Chisbury, 65. 
 
 Chiselborough, ch., 4?i. 
 
 Chiselbury Camp, 157. 
 
 Chiseldon, ch., 29. 
 
 Chisenbury, Priors Camp, 68. 
 
 Chlorus's Camp. 81. 
 
 Cholderton, ch., Manor- 
 house, 80. 
 
 Christian Malford, 13. 
 
 Christon, ch., 397. 
 
 Church Cliffs, 234. 
 
 Hope, Cove of, 257. 
 
 Churchill, Court, ch., 394. 
 
 Church Knowle, ch., House, 
 201. 
 
 Chute, Forest, Lodge, 45, 77- 
 Cistvaens, 67, 213, 214, 215, 
 420. 
 
 Clack Hill, Abbey. 7. 
 
 Clapton - in - Gordano, Court- 
 house, 367 ; ch., 368. 
 
 Clarendon, constitutions of, 
 forest, history, palace, 
 133 ; Lodge, 86, 133. 
 
 Clarendon, Lord, the histor- 
 ian, at Purton, 27 ; birth- 
 place, 156. 
 
 Clatford Bottom, 35- 
 
 Claverton, 56; ch.. Manor, 
 down, 77, 326. 
 
 Clavinium, Roman station 
 of, 213. 
 
 Clearbury, 134. 
 
 ■ Ring, 136. 
 
 Cleeve Abbey, 449, 450; 
 chapel, 450. 
 
 Combe, Toot, Court, ch., 
 
 369, 393. 
 
 ■ , Old, ch., cross, 450. 
 
 Clevedon, inns, 310', Myrtle 
 Cottage, churches, Dial 
 Hill, 371 ; Court, 372. 
 
 Cley Hill, 148, 150. 
 
 Cliffe Pypard, ch.. Manor- 
 house, whirlwind at, 6. 
 
 Clifton, Bridge, 367. , 
 
 COMPTON. 
 
 Clifton, inns, 359; observa- 
 tory, earthworks, St. Vin- 
 cent's rocks, suspension 
 bridge, downs, zoological 
 gardens, churches, 360 ; 
 college. Hot wells. Cook's 
 Folly, 361. 
 
 May bank. House, 183. 
 
 Mayhank, 239. 
 
 Clock at Wells, 294. 
 
 Cloford, ch., 416. 
 
 Clontsham Hill, 461. 
 
 Clutton, ch., 424. 
 
 Coach attacked by a lioness, 
 81. 
 
 Coaxdon Mill, 4J5, 
 Cock Hill, 381. 
 Cockercombe, 381. 
 Codford, St. Mary's, ch. ; 
 
 St. Peter's, ch. ; Camp, 145. 
 Coker Court, 412, 429, 
 
 , East, 429. 
 
 , West, ib. 
 
 , North, House, ib. 
 
 Cold Kitchen Hill, 154. 
 Cole, 273, 405. 
 
 Coleridge, the poet, at Calne, 
 18; at Box, 26; at Cleve- 
 don, 371 ; at Nether 
 Stowey, 466. 
 
 Colerne, ch., 26. 
 
 Coles Farm, 26. 
 
 Coleshill, House, ch., 2. 
 
 Collier, Rev. J., ejection of, 
 143. 
 
 Collingbourne Ducis, ch., 
 
 45,78; Kingston, cb., 44, 
 
 78 ; Sutton, 44 ; Wood, 46. 
 Collingbourne, William, 
 
 rhyme of, 13. 
 Colmer's Hill, 228. 
 Colston, Edward, monument 
 
 of, 352. 
 
 Hall, 356. 
 
 Columns — 
 
 Ailesbury, 44. 
 
 Lansdown, 18. 
 
 Maud Heath's, 14. 
 
 On Black Down, 214, 223. 
 Colway, Old, House, 234. 
 Combe, 475. 
 
 Bissett, ch., 140. 
 
 ■ Down, 77, 323. 
 
 Flory, ch., 446. 
 
 Combehay, Park, 326; ch., 
 
 419. 
 
 Combe Road, 449. 
 Combe's Ditch, 219. 
 Combe, Sydenham, 447. 
 Compton Abbas, ch., 267. 
 — Basset, House, ch., 19, ' 
 
 Bishop, ch., caverns, 
 
 397- 
 
 Castle, 410. 
 
 Chamberlayne, House, 
 
 I pictures at, ch.. Park, 156. 
 
 CRICKLADE. 
 
 Compton Dundon, ch.. 
 Manor-house, 426. 
 
 Martin, ch., 396, 426. 
 
 Pauncefoot, ch., 410. 
 
 Coneygore, 229. 
 
 Congresbury, ch., J93. 
 
 Conholt Park, 45. 
 
 Conie Castle, 23 r. 
 
 Conkwell, 76. 
 
 Connaught's Hole, 247. 
 
 Conygar Hill, tower, 456. 
 
 Cook's Folly, 361. 
 
 Cope at Chedzoy, 382. 
 
 Cophead, 149 ; barrow, 150. 
 
 Copley Hill, 426. 
 
 Corfe Castle, history, 197 ; 
 gallant defence of, 198 ; 
 ruins, 199 ; ch, 200 ; mu- 
 seum, 201. 
 
 , Mullen, ch., 258. 
 
 Corscombe, ch., 226, 430. 
 
 Corsley, ch., Manor House, 
 150. 
 
 Corsham, ch., 23. 
 
 ' Court, 23; pictures, 24. 
 
 Corston, ch., 20. 
 Cor ton Denham, ch., 182. 
 Coryate, Tom, the pedestrian^ 
 412. 
 
 Cothay, Manor-house, 392. 
 Cothelstone Manor-house, 
 
 383 ; ch., Park, 446, 469. 
 Cotley Hill, 148, 
 Countesbury, camp, 463, 
 Couple Cross, 456. 
 Court Hill, 52. 
 Courtenay, Wootton,ch.,456, 
 Cove of Church Hope, 257. 
 Cow and Calf, 224, 227. 
 Cowsfield House, 85. 
 Cowslip Green, 394. 
 Crabbe, the poet, rector of 
 
 Trowbridge, grave, 53. 
 Cranborne, ch., 138; Chase, 
 
 Manor-house. Castle Hill, 
 
 138, 139, 217. 
 Cranmore, 416. 
 
 , P^ast, ch., 416. 
 
 Hall, ib. 
 
 , West, ch., ib. 
 
 Crawford Castle, Bridge, 263. 
 Tarrant, bridge, castle, 
 
 ch., 219. 
 Crawlboys Wood, 46. 
 Creech, heath, pits, barrow^ 
 
 grange, 196. 
 
 Hill, Camp, 27?, 407. 
 
 Cretinism at Chiselborough, 
 
 431- 
 
 Creeping Oak, 43. 
 Crewkerne, inns, industries, 
 
 ch.. Grammar School, 430. 
 Cricket Lodge, 4J2. 
 Cricket St. Thomas, ch., 432. 
 Cricklade, churcbes, 28; 
 
 history, 27. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 481 
 
 CRIMMEIi. 
 
 Grimmer (i.e. Cromlech), 
 
 Crock Lane, 237. 
 Crippen, Joanna, snowed np, 
 
 4i5- 
 
 Crocodile, the Sw^nage, 245. 
 Cromlechs — 
 
 Avebury, j6. 
 
 The Devil's Den, jj. 
 
 Murtry Hill, 35. 
 
 Temple Bottom, 30. 
 Crooked Lane, 378. 
 Crook Hill, 429. 
 Crook's Peak, 397. 
 Cross and Hand, 23S. 
 Croscombe, ch., cross, inn, 
 
 Manor-house, 418, 421. 
 Crosses, Ancient — 
 
 Alford, 408. 
 
 Bleadon, 376. 
 
 Bradford Abbas, i8j. 
 
 Bristol, 171. 
 
 Castle Combe, 21. 
 
 Cheddar, 397- 
 
 Chewton Mendip, 425. 
 
 Cleeve, Old, 450. 
 
 Croscombe, 418. 
 
 Crowcombe, 470. 
 
 Decuman's, St., 443. 
 
 Doulting, 417. 
 
 Dunster, W., 456. 
 
 Hals way. Lower, 471. 
 
 Hinton St. George, 431. 
 
 Horsington, 271. 
 
 Lacock, 49. 
 
 Lodge Hill, 399. 
 
 Loxton, 394. 
 
 Luccombe, 459. 
 
 Ludgershall, 46. 
 
 Malmesbury, 11. 
 
 Minehead, 458. 
 
 Muchelney, 442. 
 
 Rampisham, 238. 
 
 Salisbury, 109. 
 
 Selworthy, 459. 
 
 Shepton Mallet, 418. 
 
 Spaxton, 384. 
 
 Stalbridge, 268. 
 
 Strington, 468. 
 
 Wedmore, 306. 
 
 Wembdon, 381. 
 
 Whatley, 403. 
 
 Wick, St. Lawrence, 375. 
 
 Wilton, 125. 
 Crowcombe Heathfield, 447. 
 Crowcombe, 447, 391 ; ch., 
 
 cross, Manor, Court, pic- 
 tures, 469, 470. 
 Crowe, Rev. W., 69 ; 
 
 "Lewesdon Hill," 227. 
 Croydon Hill. 456. 
 Crucifix at Wardour Castle, 
 
 159. 
 
 Cucking-stool, 6, 
 Cucklington, ch., 273. 
 Cud worth, ch., 437. 
 Culbone, 462. 
 
 [Wilts, Dorset, etc., Ig 
 
 DIVES. 
 
 Culpepper's, Dish, Spoon, 
 
 261. 
 Culver, 250. 
 Cunetio, ancient, 43. 
 Cunnington, the antiquary', 
 
 146. 
 
 Curry, North, ch., 390. 
 
 Rivell, ch., 444. 
 
 Cutcombe,474. 
 
 D. 
 
 Dacombs, 201. 
 Daggens Eoad, 137. 
 Damerham Knoll, 134. 
 Damorey Court, oak, 264. 
 Danby, Lord, monument and 
 
 epitaph, 8. 
 Dancing Hill, 242. 
 
 Ledge, quarry, 247. 
 
 Dane Leys, 61. 
 Danes, the, at Watchet, 449. 
 Danesborough, 468. 
 Danvers, Family, 7. 
 Dauntsey, 6; ch. 7. 
 Dauntsey, Winterbourn, 80. 
 Davies, Sir John, the poet, 
 
 birthplace, 158. 
 Deadman's Bay, 253. 
 Dean, West, House, ch., 84. 
 Decoy at Abbotsbury, 216. 
 Decumans,] St., ch., cross, 
 
 448. 
 
 Deptford inn, 143. 
 
 Derry Hill, ch., 15. 
 
 Deverel, Brixton, ch., 154; 
 Hill, ch., 154; Kingston, 
 155; Longbridge, 154; 
 Monkton, 155. 
 
 Devil's Bellows, 234. 
 
 Den, 35. 
 
 Nightcap, 246. 
 
 Punchbowl, 399. 
 
 Devizes, Bear inn, 74 ; Castle, 
 churches, 72 ; cross, his- 
 tory, 71; museum, 74. 
 
 Devonian rocks, xii. 
 
 Dewlish. ch., 220. 
 
 Dial Hill, 371. 
 
 Quarry, 368. 
 
 Digby family at Sherborne, 
 181. 
 
 Dlllington House, 437. 
 Dinder, ch., Manor-house, 
 
 418, 421. 
 Dinnington, 436. 
 Dinton, 156, ch., 157 ; House, 
 
 156; earthworks, 157. 
 Discove, 406. 
 
 Ditcheat, ch., Manor-house, 
 
 274. 
 Ditteridge, 327. 
 Divelish river, 268. 
 I Dives, Sir L., 180. 
 
 82.] 
 
 DUNSTER. 
 
 Dobbs's, Part of, 474. 
 Doddington Copper Mine 
 467. 
 
 Court, 468. 
 
 Dolberry, 395. 
 Donheads, ihe, 142. 
 Donhead Hall, 165. 
 
 St. Andrew, ch., 164. 
 
 St. Mary, ch.. Priory 
 
 165. 
 
 Donyatt, ch., quarries,Manor- 
 
 house, 437. 
 Doone, Glen, the, 46?. 
 Dorchester, inns, 203 ; ave- 
 nues, Fordington Field, 
 history, 204 ; churcliei«, 
 205 ; castle, county mu- 
 seum, amphitheatre, 206 ; 
 Poundbury, 207 also 222. 
 Dorsetshire, Physical Fea- 
 tures, XX xii. " Felix," 
 xxxiii. " Petrfea," xxxiv. 
 " Deserta," Geology, xxxv. 
 Railway System, xxxviii. 
 Antiquities, xxxviii. Ar- 
 chitecture, xl. 
 Doulting, barn, ch., quarries 
 
 416 ; cross, well, 417. 
 Dowlands Farm, 234. 
 Dowlishwake, ch., 438. 
 Down-Ampney, ch., 28. 
 Down Clift; 225, 229. 
 
 House, 219, 263. 
 
 Downshay, 247. 
 Downside, 421. 
 Downton, ch.. Old Court, 
 Manor-house, the Moot, 
 136-7 ; Maze, 137. 
 Dray cot Cerne, ch., 15, 
 Draycott, 399. 
 Drax family, 259. 
 Druid's Head, 84. 
 Dry den at Charlton Park, 13. 
 Duck, Stephen, 68. 
 Ducking-stool, 6. 
 Duke's HoT:3se, 56. 
 Dulcot Hill, 284, 419. 
 Dulverton, ch., 473. 
 Duncliff, 167, 168. 
 Dundas Aqueduct, 77. 
 Dundon Beacon, 426. 
 
 Compton, ch., 426. 
 
 Dundry Hill, 364, 422. 
 
 , West, ch., 422. 
 
 Dungeon, the, 241. 
 Dungy Head, 252. 
 Dunkerton.ch., 419. 
 Dunkery Beacon, view from, 
 461. 
 
 Dunstan, St., at Malmesbury, 
 9 ; at Calne, 18 ; at Glas- 
 tonbury, 277 ; at Cheddar, 
 
 m- 
 
 Dunster, 451; ch., 454-5; 
 inn, yarn market, 455 ; 
 cross, 456. 
 
 2 I 
 
482 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 DUNSTAN. 
 
 Dunstan Castle, history, 
 siege, 452; description, 
 45 J ; park, 456. 
 
 Durdle Bay, 252. 
 
 D'lJrfey, Tom, at Ramsbury, 
 64. 
 
 Durlelgb, ch., Bower Farm, 
 381. 
 
 Durlston Bay, 246. 
 
 Head, 19J, 243, 246. 
 
 Duvnford, Great, ch., house, 
 122. 
 
 Durrington, ch,, Long walls, 
 69. 
 
 Bitrston, house, 384, 439. 
 Durweston, ch., 265. 
 Dyer, Sir James, 271. 
 
 E. 
 
 Earldoms, wood of the, 85. 
 Earl Stoke, ch., house, 62. 
 Earthworks, Camps, Castles, 
 etc. : — 
 
 Abbotsbury Camp. 216- 
 
 Anne's Hill, St., 67. 
 
 Arn Hill, 150. 
 
 Avebury, 36. 
 
 Badbury Castle, 29- 
 
 Badbury Rings, 188. 
 
 Banbury, 268. 
 i Bannerdown, 26, 
 
 Barbury Camp, 30. 
 
 Batheaton, 473. 
 
 Battlesbury, 148. 
 
 Bilbury Ring, 143, 144. 
 
 Blaise Hill, 363. 
 
 Bleadon Hill, 376. 
 
 Bower Walls, 360. 
 
 Bratton, 61. 
 
 Brean Down, 376. 
 
 Broadway Camp, 69, 84. 
 
 Bury Castle, 459. 
 
 Wood, 25. 
 
 Buzbury, 219. 
 
 Cadbury Camp (near Wes- 
 ton-super-mare), 373. 
 
 Castle (near Spark- 
 ford), 271, 27?, 409. 
 
 Caer Badon, 326, 
 
 Casterley, 68. 84. 
 
 Castle Combe, 21. 
 
 Ditches (North of 
 
 Salisbury), 84. 
 
 (South of Salis- 
 bury), 134- 
 
 Castle Hill (East of Salis- 
 bury), 85. 
 
 (near Cri(k- 
 
 lade), 28. 
 
 (near Taunton), 
 
 472. 
 
 Neroche. 4? 8. 
 
 Rings (Btre Regis), 
 
 EAKTHWORKS. 
 
 Earthworks, &c. — 
 Castle Hill (Shaftesbury), 
 165. 
 
 Catiistock Castle, 237. 
 Chalbury, 213. 
 Charminster, 208. 
 Chisbury, 65. 
 Chiselbury, 157. 
 Chisenbury, 68. 
 Chlorus's Camp, 81. 
 Clearbury Ring, 136. 
 Cley Hill, 150. 
 Codford Circle, 144, 145. 
 Combe's Ditch, 219. 
 Countesbury, 463, 
 Cranborne Casile Hill, 
 138. 
 
 Crawford Castle, 263, 219. 
 Creech Hill, 27?. 
 Danesbo rough, 467. 
 Doibury, 395. 
 Dungeon, the, 241. 
 Easton, 66. 
 
 Eggardon Hill, 224, 237. 
 Ell worthy Barrows, 447. 
 Flower's Barrow, 250. 
 Gallows Hill (Dorset), 201. 
 
 — (Somerset), 456. 
 
 G rim's Ditch, 13 4. 
 Grovely Castle, 143. 
 
 Works, 142. 
 
 Hales Castle, 155. 
 Hambdon Hill, 415. 
 Hambledon Hill, 266. 
 Hampton Down, 323. ' 
 Hamshill Ditches, 143. 
 Hanging Langford, 143, 
 144. 
 
 Haydon Hill Castle, 77. 
 Hod Hill. 265. 
 Knap Hill, 66. 
 Knolton, 189. 
 Lidbury, 68. 
 Liddington Castle, 29. 
 Maesbury Castle, 421. 
 Maiden Castle, 207. 
 Martensell Hill, 66. 
 Milborne Wick, 173. 
 Moot, the, 137. 
 Neroche Castle, 416. 
 Nettlecombe Toot, 222. 
 Newbury, 403. 
 Norton Fitz warren, jqi. 
 Ogbury Camp, 79. 
 Oldbarrow, 463. 
 Oldbury Castle (near 
 
 Calne), 18. 
 Oldbury (on Salisbury 
 
 Plain), 144, 145. 
 
 (near Wareham), 201. 
 
 Old Ditch, 83. 
 Old Warren, 215. 
 Oliver's Castle, 75. 
 Pouter's Ball, 275. 
 Poorstock Castle, 237. 
 Poundbury, 207. 
 
 ELDOX. 
 
 Earthworks, &c. — 
 
 Quarley Hill, 80. 
 
 Rawlsbury Rings, 222. 
 
 Rings Hill, 250. 
 
 Ringsbury, 27. 
 
 Robin Hood's Ball, 84. 
 
 Bower, 150. 
 
 Roddenbury, 155. 
 
 Round Pound, 203. 
 
 Rybury, 67. 
 
 Scratchbury, 148. 
 
 Sherstone, Great, 73. 
 
 Shipton Beacon, 224. 
 
 Sidbury Hill, 78. 
 
 Silbury Hill, 41. 
 
 Solsbury, 325. 
 
 Spettisbury Rings, 263. 
 
 Stantonbury, 326, 422. 
 
 Stockton Works, 144. 
 
 Stokeleigh Camp, 360. 
 
 Tedbury, 403. 
 
 Trendle, the, 240. 
 
 Turnworth, 220. 
 
 Vespasian's Camp, 115. 
 
 Wadbury, 403. 
 
 Wareham, 194. 
 
 Weatherbury Castle, 220. 
 
 Whichbury Camp, 134. 
 
 Whitesheet Castlf, 169. 
 
 Wick Ball Cam. p, 156. 
 
 Rocks, 325. 
 
 Winkelbury, 141. 
 
 Woodbury Hill, 2or, 260. 
 
 Wolfs Barrow, 201. 
 
 Worlebury Camp, 374. 
 
 Yarlington, 408. 
 
 Yarnbury Camp, 144. 
 East Castle, 14?. 
 Eastbury Park, 218. 
 Easton (on Portland), 254. 
 
 • (Somerset), 399. 
 
 Earthworks, 66. 
 
 Grey, 13. 
 
 Hill, 78. 
 
 Piers or Percy, 20. 
 
 Eastover, 379, ?8o. 
 Eaton Down, 25. 
 Ebber Rocks, 504. 
 Ebbesborne VVake, ch., 141. 
 Ebele Brook, 140. 
 Kcho, triple, at Dunster, 454. 
 Edington (Wilts), ch., his- 
 tory, prior3% 61. 
 Ed'nqton (Somerset), 306, 
 
 426. 
 
 Edmonshaw, ch., 139. 
 Edward the Martyr, remains 
 
 of, at Shaftesbury, 166; 
 
 murder of, 197. 
 Edwards, Bryan, 60. 
 EflQgies of knights in armour, 
 
 429. 
 
 Eggardon Hill, earthworks, 
 
 ^224, 237. 
 Eldon, I^ord, at Encombc, 
 
 248. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 483 
 
 ELEANOR. 
 
 Eleanor, damsel of Brittany, 
 
 imprisonment of, 197, ^30. | 
 Ell Barrow, 84. ] 
 EUworthy Barrows, 447. 
 Elm and Ash, 13. 
 Embarrow Pond, 40 
 Emmit Hill, 248. 
 Encombe, 201, 243. 
 Enford, ch., barrows, 68. 
 Englishcombe, ch., barn, 
 ' yew-trees, 316. 
 Enmore Castle, park, ch., 
 
 383, 469- 
 Ensbury House, 189. 
 Ethandune, supposed scene 
 
 of battle of, 25, 61, 307, 
 
 426. 
 
 Ethelbald and Ethelbert, 
 Kings, graves of, 177. 
 
 Ethelred, King, grave of, 1 84 
 
 Evelyn at Cadenham, 15. 
 
 JSvercreech Junct.f JVeiv, ch., 
 273. 
 
 Ever ley, East, house, ch., 
 
 pictures, 45, 78. 
 Overshot, ch., 238. 
 Exbridge, 474. 
 Exe river, source, 464. 
 Exford, 465. 
 
 Exmoor Hills, forest, 46? ; 
 
 ponies, red deer, mines, 
 
 ch., 464. 
 Exton, ch., 474. 
 
 F 
 
 Fairfield, 467. 
 
 Farleigh Hungerford, Castle, 
 
 57; history, chapel, 58, 
 
 326; church, House, 59. 
 Monckton, clump, 56 ; 
 
 ch., 57 ; House, 56 ; tower, 
 
 77, 326. 
 Farley, almshouse, ch., 86. 
 Farrington Gournay, ch., 
 
 Manor-house, 424. 
 Feme, 165. 
 Fern House, 142. 
 P'erraby, Rev. G., 70. 
 Feversham, cruelties of, 382. 
 Fielding, the novelist, at East 
 
 Stower, 168. 
 Fifehead Magdalene, ch., 268. 
 Fifield Baveiit, ch., 141. 
 Figbury or Fripsbury Ring, 
 
 81, 135. 
 Figheldean.ch., 69. 
 Fisherton, ch., 108. 
 
 Delamere House, 144. 
 
 Fittleton, ch., 68. 
 Fitzurse Hill, 20. 
 Flat Holme, 376. 
 Flax Bourton, ch., 368. 
 Fleet, East, ch , House, 214. 
 
 GALLOWS. 
 
 Fleet Water at Portland, 214, 
 253. 
 
 Flower's Barrow, 250. 
 Tons Drogonis, 17. 
 Fonthill Abbey, tower, fetes, 
 
 sale, wall, park, 162 ; 
 
 hermit's cave, 163. 
 
 , Bishop, ch., i6r. 
 
 Giffard, ch., 163. 
 
 Fontmell Magna, ch., bar- 
 rows, 267. 
 Ford Abbey, 235, 432-4. 
 
 , Winterbourn, 80. 
 
 Fordingbridge, ch., 137. 
 Fordington, tield, 204; ch., 
 
 205, 223. 
 Forest, submerged, 451. 
 
 Hill, 43. 
 
 Forests : — 
 
 Braden, 28. 
 
 Exmoor, 464. 
 
 M elk sham, 47. 
 
 Neroche, 436. 
 
 Pewsham, 17. 
 
 SavernaKe, 43. 
 Fortune's Well, 254. 
 Fort Victoria at Portland, 
 
 255. 
 Fosbury, 77. 
 
 Fosse Way, Roman, 13, 28, 
 
 274, 326, 418, 421 
 Fovant, ch., 157. 
 Fox, Henry, Lord Holland, 
 
 81. 
 
 , Sir Stephen, 86, 407. 
 
 Foxcote, 420, 
 Foxley, 13. 
 
 Frampton, Bp., birthplace, 
 &c., 219. 
 
 , ch., court, Roman pave- 
 ment, 2} 6. 
 
 Freshford, ch., 56, 76. 
 
 Freshwater, 248. 
 
 Friar's Heel, legend of, 116. 
 
 Frome, inns, industries, his- 
 tory, ch., 400; Calvary 
 steps, Ken's monument, 
 401 ; Vallis Bottom, 402. 
 
 St. Quintin, ch., 23 B. 
 
 Vauchurch, ch., 236. 
 
 , Whitfield House, 204. 
 
 Mouth, 194. 
 
 River, xxxiv., 194. 
 
 River (Bristol), 334. 
 
 Froxfield, hospital, 65. 
 
 Frying-pan, the, 415. 
 
 Fuller, Thomas, his rectory, 
 227. 
 
 Fyfield, ch., Lych Gate, 42. 
 
 G. 
 
 Gad Cliff, 249. 
 
 Gallows Hill (Wilts), 134. 
 
 (Dorset), 201. 
 
 GRINSTEAD. 
 
 Gallows Hill (Somerset), 
 456. 
 
 Gasper Pits, 272. 
 Gaston, farmhouse, 157. 
 Gaulden Farm, 447. 
 Gaunt's House, 189. 
 Gay, the poet, at Amesbury, 
 115. 
 
 Geology of the three Counties, 
 vii. 
 
 of Wilts, x.xiii.; Dorset, 
 
 XXXV. ; Somerset, xlv. 
 Table of sedimentary rocks , 
 xiii. 
 
 Giant Goram's chair, 363. 
 
 Ghyst's Hole, 360. 
 
 Giant's Hill, 240. 
 
 Giffard, Sir Alex., tomb of, 
 
 Gildas, the historian, 377 ; 
 grave, 276. 
 
 Gillingham, history, ch., 167. 
 
 Glanville, the lawyer, 6. 
 
 Glanvilles Wootton, ch., 241. 
 
 Glastonbury, inns, abbey, de- 
 rivation, 275; legends, 
 history, 276 ; dissolution, 
 destruction, 278 ; remains, 
 St. Joseph's Chapel, 279 ; 
 Abbot's kitchen, Abbot's 
 Barn, 280; George inn, 
 churches, 281; Wirrall or 
 Weary-all Hill, Tor Hill, 
 chapel, tower, thorn, 282 ; 
 waters, vine-yards, 283. 
 
 Cup. 159. 
 
 Glenthorne, 463. 
 
 Gloucester, Earl Robert of, 
 329- 
 
 Glove-making at Yeovil, 411. 
 Goathurst, 383. 
 Goblin Combe, 368. 
 Godlington, 245. 
 Godmanstone, ch., 240. 
 Golden Cap Hill, 225, 229, 
 
 234- 
 Gorwell, 244. 
 
 Gothelney Manor-house, 384. 
 Goiunay, Farrington, ch.. 
 Manor-house, 424. 
 
 Court, 426. 
 
 Grabhurst Hill, 456. 
 Grafton, East, ch., 44, 65. 
 Grately, 80. 
 
 Greenaleigb, 457 ; farm, 458. 
 Greenhara Manor, farm, 392. 
 Greenhill, pictures, 147. 
 Green Ore, farm, cavern, 426. 
 Greensand and chalk, ix. 
 Grenville, Sir Bevil, 311 ; 
 
 monument of, 324. 
 Grey mare and colts, 214. 
 Grey Wethers, xxv., 36. 
 Grim's Ditch, 134, 137, 
 Grimstone, 236. 
 Grin stead, East, 86. 
 
 2 I 2 
 
INDEX. 
 
 GRITTLETON. 
 Grittleton House, pictures, 
 
 22. 
 
 Grixy, 458. 
 Grovely Castle, 145. 
 
 Wood, 142, 1 55. 
 
 Works, 142, 155. 
 
 Gurney Slade, 421. 
 Gussage, St. Andrew, ch., 217. 
 
 , St. Michael, ch., ih. 
 
 All Saints, ch., ih. 
 
 Guthrun, King, baptism of, 
 441. 
 
 H. 
 
 Haddon Down, 47 j. 
 
 Hadspen House, 273, 408. 
 
 Hales Castle, 155. 
 
 Rallatrow, 424. 
 
 Halle, John, the hall of, 109. 
 
 Hals way, Lower, Manor- 
 house, ch., cross, 471. 
 
 Halswell, wreck of. 247. 
 
 House, 383, 469. 
 
 Ham, High, ch., 44^ 
 
 , Low, ch., house, 443. 
 
 , the, 60. 
 
 Wood, 418. 
 
 Hambledon Hill, 266. 
 
 Hamdon, or Ham Hill, quar- 
 ries, 415. 
 
 Hammerdon Hill, 224. 
 
 Hampreston Heath, iBj. 
 
 Hampshire Cross, 79; Gap, 
 80. 
 
 Hampton Down, 323, rocks, 
 
 77» 323, 325. 
 Hamptworth Lodge, 85. 
 Hamshill ditches, 143. 
 Bamuorthy, Ch., 190 ; 
 
 Junct., 190. 
 Handfast Point, 24?, 244. 
 Handford House, ch., 267. 
 Hanging Chapel 442. 
 
 Langford, 143, 144. 
 
 Hangcross Tree, 4 36. 
 Hanham, Grange House, 328. 
 Haunington, ch., ?. 
 Hardenhuish Park, 15. 
 Hardin gton Park, 404. 
 Harding, glass painter at 
 
 Blandford, 264. 
 Hardown Hill, 229. 
 Hard way, the, 172. 
 Hardy, Admiral Sir Thomas, 
 
 birthplace and column, 
 
 214, 223. 
 Hares' Holes, 67. 
 Harnham, East and West, 
 
 ch., bridge, 108; hill, 133. 
 Harptree, West, 396 ; ch., 
 
 caverns, 425. 
 East, ch., court, cav- 
 erns, 425. 
 Hartcliff" Kock?, 368. 
 
 HIGHEST. 
 
 Harte, the poet, birthplace,34. 
 Hartgills, their murder by 
 
 Charles Lord Stourton, 95. 
 Haselbury, ch., 4?i. 
 Hatch Beauchamp^ Lodge, 
 
 Park, 4J9. 
 Hatch Court, 389. 
 
 House, 164. 
 
 Hautville, Sir John, 423. 
 Hautville's Quoit, 423. 
 Hawkchurch, ch., 434. 
 Hawksdown, 235. 
 Hawkstreet, 51. 
 Haxton Down, 78. 
 Haydon Hill Castle, 77. 
 Hay don's Gully, 426. 
 Hay Farm, 234. 
 Hays Castle, 155. 
 Hazelbury House, 26. 
 
 Bryan, ch., 268. 
 
 Hazlegrove House, 410 ; oaks, 
 
 ih. 
 
 Hazlitt at Winterslow, 81. 
 Heale House, Hill, 122. 
 Heatherton Park, 3QI. 
 Heaven's Gate at Longleat, 
 150. 
 
 Hell's Ladder, 304. 
 
 Stone, 209, 215, 223. 
 
 Henbury, Upper, Lov>'er, 
 
 House, 258. 
 Henbury, ch., cottages, 363. 
 Hen Cliff, 249. 
 Hendford, 412. 
 Henover Hill, 17?. 
 Henry VIIL at Wulfall, 66. 
 Henstridge, ch., ash, 270. 
 Hemyock, 392. 
 Herbert family, 127. 
 
 of Lea, Lord, 126. 
 
 , George, at Dauntsey, 8 ; 
 
 parsonage and grave, 123. 
 Hermit's Cave, 163. 
 HerringstoTie, 207. 
 Hertford, Earl, monument of, 
 
 lOI. 
 
 , Lady, 33. 
 
 Hestercombe, 389. 
 Hethfelton, 20T. 
 Hewish, Hill, British village 
 at, 66. 
 
 Heyden Down, 459, 472. 
 Heyteshury, ch,, history, 
 
 hospital. Park, pictures, 
 
 146. 
 
 Heywood House, 62. 
 Jlighbridge, ch., 307, 378. 
 High Cross of Bristol, 171. 
 
 . Hall, 189. 
 
 Stoy, 241. 
 
 Higher Combe, 474. 
 ilighest Points of Wiltshire, 
 
 XX., 62 ; Dorset, xxxiv., 
 
 228; Somerset, xliii., 461; 
 
 Mendip, 399 ; Quantock, 
 
 xliii., 390. 
 
 HUNGERFOKD. 
 
 Highway, ch,, 19. 
 
 Highworth, ch,, 3. 
 
 Hill Deverel, ch., 154. 
 
 Hill-Farrance, ch., 391. 
 
 Scars, 368. 
 
 Hilmarton, ch., 19. 
 
 Hilton, ch., 222. 
 
 Hindon, ch., i6i. 
 
 Hinton Abbey, 326. 
 
 , Broad, ch., 6. 
 
 , Charterhouse, 59, 326. 
 
 House, 59. 
 
 , Little, ch., T90. 
 
 Martel, ch., 190. 
 
 St. George, 430, ch. ; 
 
 cross, 431. 
 
 St. Mary, ch., 268. 
 
 History of the three Coun- 
 ties, xiv. 
 
 Hoare, Sir Richard Colt, grave 
 of, 171. 
 
 Hobbes, the philosopher, 
 
 birthplace of, 12. 
 Hod Hill, 265. 
 Holes Bay, 190. 
 Holford, ch., 468. 
 Hollam House, 475. 
 HoUis, Thomas, grave of, 
 
 226. 
 
 HoUoway, 316; hill, 326. 
 Holme, East, priory. 197. 
 
 Flat, 376, 377. 
 
 , Steep, ih. 
 
 Holnest, ch.. Lodge, 242. 
 Holnicote, Park, 459. 
 Holt Junct., 52, 76. 
 Holwell Cavern. 467. 
 
 Church, 182. 
 
 House, 242. 
 
 Holywell Tunnel, 238. 
 Honnington, ch.,down, 133. 
 Hood, Admiral, monument 
 
 of, 283, 426; birthplace, 
 
 4?4- 
 
 Hooker, Richard, rector of 
 East Boscombe, 80. 
 
 Honeygore, 306. 
 
 Hooper, Bp., at Cleeve, 450. 
 
 Hop ton. Sir Ralph, at 
 Witham, 405. 
 
 Horner, 461 ; river and val- 
 ley, 459- 
 
 Horner,' Little Jack Horner," 
 403. 
 
 Horningsham, ch.,i 53. 
 
 Horsey Slime, 379. 
 
 Horsington, cross, 271. 
 
 Horton, ch.. Park, 189; ob- 
 servatory, 190. 
 
 Horwood Spa, 271. 
 
 Houndstreet Park, 424. 
 
 Hubba's Low, 15. 
 
 Hugh, St., of Lincoln, at 
 Witham, 405. 
 
 Huish Episcopi. ch., 442. 
 
 Huvgcrford, 62. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 485 
 
 HUNGERFORD. 
 
 Hungerford, Sir E., treachery 
 of, i6o. 
 
 , Lady, imprisonment of, 
 
 58. 
 
 Hunter's Combe, J90, 466. 
 Huntspill, ch., ^'jS. 
 Hurcot Hill, 427. 
 Hurdcot House, 155. 
 Hurley Beacon, 471. 
 Hussey, the artist, birthplace 
 
 of, 268. 
 Hut inn, 223. 
 
 Hutchins, historian of Dorset, 
 monument of, 196. 
 
 Hut-circles, see British Vil- 
 lages. 
 
 Hutton, ch., Manor-house, 
 
 376; caves, 394. 
 Hyde, Sir Nicolas, birthplace 
 
 of, 161. 
 Hyde, Kennels, 260, 
 
 I. 
 
 Icknield Street, 87, 217, 259. 
 
 Idmiston, ch., 80. 
 
 Igneous vents, 368, 395. 
 
 llchester, history, ch., for- 
 mer importance of, 428. 
 
 He Abbots, ch., 458. 
 
 Brewers, ch., 439. 
 
 river, 4J8. 
 
 Ilford, bridges, 464. 
 
 Jlminster, industries, ch., 
 456 ; grammar school, 437. 
 
 Ilton, ch., 4^8. 
 
 Imber, ch., 148. 
 
 Ina, King, founder of Wells, 
 285. 
 
 Inkpen Beacon, highest chalk 
 down in England, 62. 
 
 Inverted arches at Wells, 
 291, 294. 
 
 Iron chapel in Salisbury 
 Cathedral, 99. 
 
 Iron-stone, xxv., 76, 447, 
 
 449, 464- 
 Ischalis, ancient, 428. 
 Isis, river, 27. 
 Ivel or Yeo river, 1 82. 
 Ivy Church, 86, 132. 
 
 House, 15. 
 
 Iwerne Courtney, ch., 266, 
 Minster, house, ch., 266. 
 
 J. 
 
 Jack's Castle, 172, 407. 
 James IL at AVarminster, 
 150. 
 
 Jeffreys' "Bloody Assize," 
 
 205, 232, 386. 
 Jerusalem Hill, i8r. 
 Jewel, Bishop, at Lacock, 
 
 KINGSWESTON. 
 
 49; at Salisbury, 92; died 
 
 at Monkton Farleigh, 57 ; 
 
 grave, loi. 
 JolifiFe, Peter, 192. 
 Johnson, Dr., at Kingston 
 
 Lacy, 188. 
 Jordan Hill, 213. 
 Jordans, 457. 
 
 Joseph, St., of Arimathea, 
 legends of, 276. 
 
 K. 
 
 Kate's Bench, 154. 
 
 Kellaways Rock. 13. 
 
 Kelston Park, 324; ch., 
 Eound Hill, 324, 327. 
 
 Ken, Bishop, at Poulshot, 75 ; 
 at Longleat, 151 ; his li- 
 brary, 153 ; at Lewston, 
 242; at Wells, 286; his 
 monument, 401. 
 
 Kenn, ch., 370. 
 
 Kennet, East and West, 42 ; 
 Long Barrow, 42. 
 
 river, xxii., 42. 
 
 and Avon Canal, 71,76. 
 
 Kew Steps, 374. 
 
 Kewstoke, ch., 374. 
 
 Eeynsham,historj,ch., 327 ; 
 hostelry for pilgrims, 328. 
 
 Kilmersdon, ch., 424. 
 
 Kilmington, ch., 172. 
 
 Kilve, ch., 468. 
 
 Kimmeridge coal, 249 ; clay, 
 2h9, 252; coal money, jet, 
 249. 
 
 • ivalley, ch., 249. 
 
 King Ba'rrow, 149. 
 Oak,i43. 
 
 King's Arms, house at Salis- 
 bury,-.! 10. 
 
 Kingsbury Episcopi, ch., old 
 houses: 444. 
 
 Kingsdon, 427 ; ch., house, 
 428. 
 
 Kingsdown, 326. 
 Kingsettle, 167, 172. 
 Kingston (Bradford - on- 
 
 Avon) House, 56 ; Duchess 
 
 of, 56. 
 
 (Dorchester) House, 
 
 2c8 ; park, 262. 
 
 (Isle of Purbeck) ch., 
 
 201, 248. 
 
 Kingston (Taunton) ch., 
 cider, 390. 
 
 , Deverel, 155. 
 
 , Lacy, house, 186; pic- 
 tures, 187 ; woods, 263. 
 
 , Russel, 22?. 
 
 Seymour, ch., 373. 
 
 Kingsweston, house, hill, 
 363. 
 
 LAWRENCE. 
 
 Kington St. Michael, ch., 
 
 nunnery, 20. 
 
 , Langley, 20. 
 
 , West, ch., 21. 
 
 Kingweston, ch., house, 426. 
 Kirk, Col., cruelties at 
 
 Taunton, 385. 
 Kitesford, 392. 
 
 Knap Hill, earthworks and 
 
 tumuli, 66. 
 Knighton Long Barrow, 84. 
 Knightstone, 374- 
 Knock Castle, 148. 
 Knolle, 226. 
 
 Knolton, ch., earthworks, 
 189. 
 
 Knook Ch., 146. 
 
 Knowle, Church, ch,, house, 
 201. 
 
 , the, 201. 
 
 , Abbot, 336, 3J9, 341. 
 
 Knoyle, East, ch., house, pic- 
 tures, 164. 
 
 I. 
 
 Lace-factories at Chard, 456, 
 
 Lackham, 15. 
 
 Lacock ch., 49. 
 
 Abbey, history, pic- 
 tures, abbey barn, cross, 
 19, also 47-49. 
 
 Lady Well, the, 378. 
 
 Lake House, 122. 
 
 Lambert's Casile, 231, 229, 
 4?4. 
 
 Lambert, the botanist, at 
 
 Boy ton, 145. 
 Lamb's Lair, 42 5. 
 Lamyat, 273. 
 
 Landford, ch., lodge. Manor- 
 house, 85. 
 
 Langford Court, 395. 
 
 , Hanging, i4?-4. 
 
 , Little, ch., 143. 
 
 ^ Steeple, ch., 14 
 
 Langport, marshes, history, 
 battle, 441; ch., Hanging 
 chapel, 442. 
 
 Tjangridge. ch., 324. 
 
 Lanhill Farm, tumulus at, 
 15- 
 
 Lansdown Hill, battle-field 
 324. 
 
 liansdowne Column, 18. 
 Latimer, Bishop, oak and 
 
 pulpit, 21. 
 Laverstock, asylnm, ch., 81. 
 Lavington, Market, ch., 82. 
 , West, or Bishop's, ch., 
 
 82. 
 
 Lawes — the musician, birth- 
 place, 156. 
 Lawrence, Sir Thomas, 74. 
 
486 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 LEAD-MINES. 
 Jjead-mines, 395, 398. 
 Leaning Tower at Bristol, 
 
 Lechmere Water, 45 5. 
 Leigh (near Yeovil), ch., 
 
 maze, 239. 
 
 Common, 272. 
 
 Court, pictures, 564. 
 
 (on Mendip), ch., 40J. 
 
 Delamere. ch., 22. 
 
 Down, 368. 
 
 House, 4 54. 
 
 Leighland Chapel, 447. 
 ]j3wesdon Hill, 224, 227. 
 " Lewesdon Hill," Crowe's 
 
 poem, 227. 
 Lewston Park, 242. 
 Lias, the, x. 
 Lidbury, 68. 
 
 Lidden river (Wilts). 168. 
 
 — (Dorset), 269. 
 
 Liddington Castle, 29. 
 Limington, ch., 429. 
 Limpley Stoke, cb., 56, 76. 
 Lioness at Winterslow Hut, 
 81. 
 
 Littlecote, House, 62 ; mys- 
 terious crime at, 63 ; pave- 
 ment, 64. 
 
 Littleton, High, 424. 
 
 Lobcombe Corner, 81. 
 
 Ijockeridge, 67. 
 
 Lock's Well, 17. 
 
 Locke, the philosopher, birth- 
 place of, 393. 
 
 Lodge Hill, ch., cross, 399. 
 
 Loders, ch., 237. 
 
 J^odmoor Marsh, 213. 
 
 -Long, Plenry, murder of, 7, 
 23. 
 
 Long Bredy Gate, 223. 
 
 Burton, ch., 242. 
 
 Knoll, 169, 172. 
 
 Sutton, 44?. 
 
 Ix)ngbridge Deverel, 154. 
 
 Longford House, foundation, 
 I jo; pictures, i ji. 
 
 Longespee, William, ist 
 Earl of Salisbury, 90, 95. 
 
 , 2nd Earl of Salis- 
 bury, 96. 
 
 Longleat, 150; history, 151; 
 pictures, park, house, 151- 
 152. 
 
 ]j0sel's Wood, 270. 
 
 Lower Marsh Farm, 456. 
 
 Luxton, ch., cross, bone- 
 caves, 394. 
 
 Luccombe, ch., cross, 459. 
 
 Liickford I^ake, 242. 
 
 Lucott Hill, 4^5. 
 
 Ludgershall, Castle, 45 ; ch., 
 cross, 46. 
 
 Ludlow, General, birthplace 
 of, 154. 
 
 Lufton, ch., 445. 
 
 I MARLBOROUGH. 
 
 Lugbury, tumulus, 21. 
 i Lullington, ch., 404. 
 Lulworth, Castle, history, 
 
 250; ch., lake, 197, 201, 
 
 251. 
 
 Cove, 214, 251. 
 
 , West, ch., 251. 
 
 Luxborough, ch., 456. 
 Lydeard, Bishop's, ch., 445. 
 
 St. Lawrence, 447. 
 
 Lydiard Tregoz, ch., 5. 
 Lyme Regis, inns, position, 
 history, 231; siege of, 
 landing of Monmouth, 
 232; ancient trade, ch., 
 worthies, 233 ; the Cobb, 
 whispering gallery, geo- 
 logy, 234. 
 Lympsham, leaning tower, 
 *ch., 378. 
 I Lynch Chapel, 462. 
 j Lyndale, 463. 
 1 Lyp.g, East, 4^9; cb., 440. 
 1 lA'nmouth, 463. 
 1 Lynton, 463. 
 ! Lytchet Bay, 194. 
 
 Beacon, 190. 
 
 House, 189. 
 
 Heath, 194. 
 
 Lytes Cary House, 427, 428. 
 
 I M. 
 
 Maddington, ch., 83. 
 
 3/a eshury, Castle, 421. 
 
 Maes Knoll, 422. 
 
 Magna Charta, copy of at 
 Salisbury, 102. 
 
 Maiden Bradley, ch., house, 
 knoll, park, 154. 
 
 ; Castle, 207. 
 
 i Maiden Neioton, ch., 236, 
 i 208. 
 
 1 Main Down, 472. 
 i Malet, Chief Justice, 182. 
 ' Malmcsbury, inns, history, 
 ! 8 ; castle, abbey, ch., 9 ; 
 i market cross, worthies, 11. 
 I Malmesbury, ist Lord, his 
 j monument, 97. 
 I Manning ford. Abbots and 
 i Braose, ch., 68. 
 i Manton, ?5. 
 ! Mappercombe, 237. 
 Mapper ton, ch.. Manor-house, 
 227. 
 
 Mappowder, ch., 241. 
 Marden, ch., 69. 
 Margaret, Queen, at Cerne 
 Abbas, 240. 
 
 , last of the Plantagenets, 
 
 ' 57- 
 
 i Mark, ch., 306. 
 
 : 3JarIbo7-ough, jo; castle, 31 ; 
 
 MIDFORD. 
 
 churches, 34; college, 35; 
 
 castle, inn, history, 8 1 . 
 Marm Tout, 252. 
 Marnhull, ch., 268. 
 Marshal's Elm inn, 426. 
 Marsh Court, 270. 
 Marsh wood Farm, 45 1 . 
 , Vale of, 229 ; chapel, 
 
 castle, 229. 
 Marston (near Yeovil), ch., 
 
 house, 410. 
 (near Frome), house, 
 
 ch., orrery, 404. 
 Martensell Hill, earthworks, 
 
 view from, 66. 
 Martin, ch., 217. 
 Martock, ch., Manor-house, 
 
 444, cross, 445. 
 Marton, 77. 
 
 Maskelyne, the astronomer, 
 burial-place, 27 ; residence, 
 5. 
 
 Maud Heath's Causeway, and 
 
 column, 14. 
 Maumbury, or Mambury, 
 
 2c6. 
 
 Mazes or labyrinths, on Brea- 
 more Dovsti, i 34 ; Down- 
 ton, 137 ; Leigh, 2 19 ; Pim- 
 perne, 219; Troytown, 
 262. 
 
 Meare, ch., abbot's house, 
 
 fish-house, 305. 
 Melbury Hill, 167. 
 
 Marble, 239. 
 
 Osmund, ch., oaks, 239. 
 
 Sampford, ch., park, 
 
 pictures, 238. 
 Melchet Park, 85. 
 JMelcombe Regis, 209. 
 31elkskam, 46; ch., forest, 
 
 mineral springs, 47. 
 Mellifont Abbey, 304. 
 Mells, 424 ; park, scythes, 
 
 ch., manor house, 402, 403. 
 Melplash, ch., court, 227. 
 Mendip Hills, 395, J99 ; 
 
 highest point of, 397, 399. 
 
 Lodge, 395- 
 
 Mines, 395, 398. 
 
 Mere, ch., chantry-house, 
 
 168; market-house, Hall, 
 
 169. 
 
 Merly House, 186, 262. 
 Methuen family at Bradford, 
 56. 
 
 Mewps Bay and Rocks, 250. 
 Mews, Bp., birthplace, 182. 
 Michael's Hill, St., Castle at 
 
 Montacute, 414. 
 Middle Hope, 375- 
 Middlemarsh, 241. 
 Middle Mill, 234. 
 Middlezoy, ch., 383. 
 Alidford, Castle, 323, 326, 
 
 419. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 487 
 
 MIDGHALL. 
 
 Midghall Farm, 5. 
 Midsomer Norton, ch., 421. 
 Milbome, St. Andrews, ch., 
 220. 
 
 Mdborne Port, ch., Guild- 
 hall, borough, earthworks, 
 
 Milford Junct., 86. 
 
 Milston, ch., 69. 
 
 Milton Abbas, 220; Abbey, 
 House, 220, 221 ; S. Ca- 
 therine's chapel, 222. 
 
 Hill (Wilts), 66, 78. 
 
 Clevedon, ch. 274. 
 
 • ■ Hill (on Mendip, J04. 
 
 (Dorset), ch., 168. 
 
 Milverton, ch., 471; Castle 
 Hill, 472. 
 
 Minehead, pier, history, 
 churches, 457 ; cross. 
 Feathers inn, almhouses, 
 458. 
 
 Mines, iron, 447, 464; lead 
 
 and zinc, 39S, i98. 
 Mineral springs— 
 
 Alford, 408. 
 
 Bath, 319. 
 
 Clifton, 361. 
 
 Glastonbury, 283. 
 
 Horwood, 271. 
 
 Melkshain, 47. 
 
 Nottington, 21J. 
 
 Purton, 27. 
 
 Queen's Camel, 410. 
 
 Radipole, 213. 
 
 Stogumber, 447. 
 Minety, ch., 28. 
 M interne, ch., House, 241. 
 Misterton, 430. 
 Mitre Corner, no. 
 Mizmaze Hill, 86, 134. 
 Moat, the, 135. 
 Modbury, 238. 
 Mole's Chamber, 464. 
 Molland Down, 472. 
 Monk's Conduit, 57. 
 Monksilver. ch., 447. 
 Monkton, 209. 
 Monkton Combe, ch., 77, 324. 
 Monkton Deverel, 155. 
 Monkton Farleigh, ch., 
 
 house, priory, 56, 57 ; 
 
 tower, 77. 
 Monmouth, Duke of, cap- 
 ture of, 189; landing of, 
 
 232; at AVells, 284; at 
 
 Hinton St. George, 451. 
 Slons Badonicus, supposed 
 
 site of, 29, 188, 310. 
 JUontacute, House, ch.. 
 
 Priory, 41 1 ; St. Michael's 
 
 Hill and Castle, 414. 
 jVIoore, Tom, the poet, at 
 
 Sloperton, 19; grave, 50. ^ 
 Moot, the, 137. 
 jKorebath, 47 j. 
 
 NEWTON. 
 
 Morecomblake, 229. 
 More Ciitchel, ch., 189, 217. 
 More, Hannah, at Wrington, 
 39?. 
 
 Morcton, ch., House, pic- 
 tures, 202. 
 
 Morgan's Hill, 67. 
 
 Morton, Archbishop, a monk 
 at Cerne, 240. 
 
 Mosterton, ch., 431. 
 
 Motcombe House, 167. 
 
 Mount Pleasant, 76, 323. 
 
 Mount Sydenham, 474. 
 
 Mowlem, John, of Swanage, 
 244. 
 
 Muchelney, abbey, almonry, 
 vicarage, cross, chapel, 
 442. 
 
 Mudgeley, 306. 
 
 Miiller's Orphan Houses, 358. 
 
 Mump, the, 440. 
 
 Murtry Hill, 404. 
 
 Musbury, 23 5. 
 
 Mutuantonis, ancient, 13. 
 
 Mynchin Buckland, 439. 
 
 Myrtle Cottage, Clevedon,37i. 
 
 Nadder river, 86, 108 ; source 
 of. 167. 
 
 Nailsea, ch., ?68 ; Court, 369. 
 
 Napier, Sir Wra., at Fresh- 
 ford, 76. 
 
 Nash, Beau, J14. 
 
 Nixsh Court (near Stur- 
 minster), 268. 
 
 Court (near Yeovil), 
 
 4T2. 
 
 Nelson, Fort, 251. 
 Neroche Castle, 436, 438. 
 
 Forest, 456. 
 
 Nether Avon, 68. 
 Netherbury, ch., 227. 
 Nether Cerne, ch., 240. 
 Stowey, 466; Castle, 
 
 467. 
 
 Street, 51. 
 
 Nettlecomb Toot, 222. 
 
 , ch., bones, 447. 
 
 Nettleton, 21. 
 Newbury, 403. 
 New Hall, pictures, 135. 
 
 Park, 75. 
 
 Passage, 231. 
 
 New Road, the, from Porlock 
 
 to Lynton, 462. 
 Newton Park, 326. 
 House '(near Yeovil), 
 
 412. 
 
 St. Loe, ch., park, cut- 
 ting, 327. 
 
 South, ch., 142. 
 
 Tony, ch., 80. 
 
 ORCHARD. 
 
 Nine Barrow Down, 201, 
 
 Stones, 223, 209. 
 
 Nodes, the, 193, 245. 
 Nonsuch Park, 61. 
 Norrington Manor - house, 
 141. 
 
 Norris, poet and divine, 
 44- 
 
 North Hill, 458. 
 
 Moor Green, 4?9. 
 
 House, 475. 
 
 Northover, ch., 428. 
 
 Northwood, 283. 
 
 JSorton Fitzivarren, ch., 
 
 earthworks, 391. 
 
 Malreward, ch., 422. 
 
 Manor, 389. 
 
 St. Philip, ch.jinn, elm, 
 
 420. 
 
 sub - Hambdon, ch., 
 
 415- 
 No the, the, 12. 
 Nottington Waters, 213. 
 Nuiiney Castle, ch., 403. 
 Nuns' Path, 149. 
 Nunton, ch., 135. 
 N^'iiehead, ch., Court, 392. 
 
 0. 
 
 Oak, ch., 391. 
 
 Oaks, remarkable, Damorey s 
 
 Oak, 264; at Hazelgrove, 
 
 410; Latimer's Oak, 21; 
 
 at Melbury Osmund, 239 ; 
 
 in Savernake Forest, 43 ; 
 
 at Stockham, 229. 
 Oare, 463. 
 Oborne, ch., 173. 
 Odcombe, Tom Coryate, bora 
 
 at, 412 ; ch., 413. 
 Odd Down, 326. 
 Odstock, cb., farm, 134. 
 Oghourne, Greater, ch., 30. 
 
 , Lesser, 30. 
 
 Ogbury Camp, 79, 122. 
 Okeford Fitzpaine, ch., 267. 
 Old barrow, 463. 
 Oldbury or Codford circle, 
 
 144. 
 
 or Wolf's Barrow, 201. 
 
 — - Castle, 18. 
 Old Ditch, 67, 83, 148. 
 Old Harry and his wife, 195, 
 244. 
 
 Olditch Court, 434. 
 Oldmixon, tomb of, 380. 
 Old Sarum. See Sarura. 
 Oliver of Malmesbury, 12. 
 Oliver's Castle, 75. 
 Oolite, Great, x. 
 Orator Hunt, 75. 
 Orchardleigh, ch., pond, 404. 
 Orchard Wyndham, 448. 
 
488 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 ORCHESTON. 
 
 Orcheston, St. Mary, St. 
 
 George, ch., 8j. 
 Orestone Point, 462. 
 Orrery at Marston, 404. 
 Osmington, ch., mill, burning 
 
 cliff, 214. 
 Oswald Bay, 252. 
 Othery, ch., 440. 
 Over Compton, ch., House, 
 
 411. 
 
 Stowey, 467. 
 
 Overton West, ch. 42. 
 Ower Moyne, ch.. House, 203. 
 Ower Passage, 194. 
 
 P. 
 
 Pack- Monday Fair, 179. 
 Page, the buccaneer, 192. 
 Palace Garden at Westoury 
 
 Leigh, 60. 
 Paper Mills at Bemerton, 123. 
 Parkfield monument, 443. 
 Park Hill, 394. 
 
 House, 80. 
 
 Parkstone, 190, 193. 
 3'arnham, 227. 
 
 Parrett river, xliv ; basin, 
 377 ; bore on, 381 ; sources 
 of, 4 JO. 
 
 Parson's Barn, 19J, 244. 
 
 Patchin's or Pagan's Point, 
 194. 
 
 Pawlet Hams, 377, Knoll, 
 ^19. 
 
 Pembroke, Countess of, fa- 
 mily, 127. 
 
 Marbles, 127. 
 
 Pendomer, ch., manor, hill, 
 429. 
 
 Pen Hous3, 412. 
 
 Hill, 426. 
 
 — Mill, 411. 
 
 Pits, 169, 272. 
 
 Selwood, 169; ch., bat- 
 tle, castle, pits,' 272. 
 
 Penhill House, 426. 
 
 Pennard, West, 274; ch., 
 275. 
 
 East, ch. 274. 
 
 House, il). 
 
 Hills, ib. 
 
 Penniless Porch, 285, 302. 
 Penpold Point, 363. 
 Penruddock, Captain, mur- 
 der, 82. 
 
 Penruddock's,Colonel, rising, 
 
 156, 436. 
 Pennsylvania Castle, 257 
 Pemford, 422 ; ch., 42 3. 
 Perridge House, 274. 
 Perrot, North, ch., 429. 
 
 South, ch., 429. 
 
 Peter's, St., Pump, 171. 
 
 PLrMBER. 
 
 Petherton, North, ch., 383. 
 
 , South, ch.. House, 445. 
 
 Petra ^gbryhti, ancient, 154. 
 Peveril P(jint, 19 j, 243. 
 Pewsham Forest, 17. 
 Pewsey, ch., inns, Vale of, 
 66. 
 
 Pheasant inn, 81. 
 Phelps, historian of Somerset, 
 305. 
 
 Pictures, collections of— 
 
 Blaise Castle, 362. 
 
 Bowood, 16. 
 
 Butleigh Court, 283. 
 
 Charlton Park, 12. 
 
 Compton Cliamberlayne 
 House, 156. 
 
 Corsham Court, 24. 
 
 Crow combe, 470. 
 
 Everlej', 45. 
 
 Greenhill, 147. 
 
 Grittleton House, 22. 
 
 Heytesbury Park, 146. 
 
 Kingston Lacy, 187. 
 
 Knoyle House, 164. 
 
 Lacock Abbey, 49. 
 
 ]^eigh Court, 364. 
 
 Longford, 131. 
 
 Longleat, 152. 
 
 Melbury Park, 238. 
 
 Moreton House, 202. 
 
 New Hall, 135. 
 
 Pyt House, 163. 
 
 Salisbury, 108. 
 
 Sherborne Castle, 181. 
 
 Springtield, 193. 
 
 Siourhead, 170. 
 
 Teffont Evias, 157. 
 
 Tottenham House, 44. 
 
 Wardour Castle, 159. 
 
 Wilton House, 128. 
 
 Wimborne, S. Giles, 139. 
 Piddleswood, 268. 
 Piddleton, ch., 201, 268. 
 Piddle river, 194, 268. 
 Piddletrenthide, ch., 241. 
 Pill, 367. 
 
 Pillesdon, ch., 228. 
 
 Pen, 224, 227. 
 
 Piltou, ch., Barn, 274, 418. 
 Pimperne, ch.. Maze, Parson- 
 age, 219. 
 Pinhay House, Landslip, 234. 
 Pinkney Park, 13. 
 Pinnacle Rock, 193, 244. 
 Pitch and Pay Gate, 361. 
 Pitmead, 149. 
 Pitney, 442. 
 
 Pitt, Earl of Chatham, ?4; 
 at Stratford, 122; at Bur- 
 ton, 444. 
 
 Wm., at Burton, 444. 
 
 Pixton- Park, 473, 474. 
 
 Place House, 1 58. 
 
 Plague at Salisbury, 89. 
 
 Plumber House, 268. 
 
 PYT. 
 
 Plumby's Den, 396. 
 
 Polden Hill, 283, 381, 426. 
 
 Ponter's Ball, 274. 
 
 Poole, New, Junction, 190. 
 
 , Borough, inns, trade, 
 
 190 ; history, 191 ; smug- 
 gling, buccaneers, ch., 
 worthies, 192 ; Guildhall, 
 harbour, 193. 
 
 Pool-reed, 305. 
 
 Poore, Bishop, 87, 90. 
 
 Poor stock. Castle, ch., 237. 
 
 Porlock, 459 ; ch., sheep, 46a 
 
 AVeir, 461. 
 
 Portbury, ch., priory, 367. 
 
 Portisham, ch., 214. 
 
 Portishead, dock, ch., court- 
 house, 367. 
 
 Portland, Isle of, Chesil 
 Bank, 252 ; the Fleet, 252- 
 253 ; history, people, 
 hamlets, castle, 254 ; 
 quarries, fossil trees, 255; 
 breakwater, 256 ; convict 
 prison, 257 ; Bill, light- 
 house, shambles, Pvace, 
 258. 
 
 Porton, ch., 80. 
 Potterne, ch., Porch-house, 
 75, 82. 
 
 Potter's clay, pits of, 193. 
 
 Poulett, Sir Amyas, 431. 
 
 Poulshot, ch., 75. 
 
 Poundbury Camp, 207. 
 
 Poxwell, ch., Manor-house, 
 stone circle, 203, 21?. 
 
 Poyntiugton, ch.. Manor- 
 house, battle, 182. 
 
 Preston, ch., valley, white 
 horae,2i3. 
 
 Prestan Plucknett, ch., 412. 
 
 Priddy, ch., 399. 
 
 Priestly, Dr., chemist, at 
 Calne, 18. 
 
 Princites, 384. " 
 
 Prior Park, 323. 
 
 Priston, ch., 419. 
 
 Prospect Stile, 324. 
 
 Tower, 56. 
 
 Publow, ch., 423. 
 
 IMddletown, ch., 208, 261. 
 
 Pulham, ch., 241. 
 
 Puncknoll, Knob, 225. 
 
 Punfell Cove, 250. 
 
 Purbeck, Isle of, topography, 
 242 ; geology, 243 ; quar- 
 ries, marble, 245. 
 
 Purse, Caundle, ch., 182. 
 
 Furton, ch.. Spa, 27. 
 
 Putsham, 468. 
 
 Pylle, ch., House, 274. 
 
 Pynsent, Sir William, 445. 
 
 Pyrland, 389. 
 
 Pyt House, pictures, 163. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 489 
 
 QUANTOCK. 
 
 Q. 
 
 Quantock Hills, 390, 447, 467. 
 
 Lodge, 467. 
 
 Quantock's Head, West, ch,, 
 469. 
 
 Quarley Hill, 80. 
 Queen Charlton, 32S. 
 Queen's Camel, ch., sulphur- 
 ous spring, 410. 
 
 R. 
 
 Eacedown Lodge, 228. 
 Radipole Waters, 21 j. 
 Badstock, coalpits, 40J, 420, 
 424; coalfield, 419; ch., 
 
 Railways, xxvi. xxxvin. 
 xlviii. 
 
 Raleigh, Sir Walter, at Sher- 
 borne, 180. 
 
 Eampisham, ch., cross, 238. 
 
 Ramsbury, Bishopric, ch., 
 Manor, 64. 
 
 Ranston House, 266. 
 
 Raven's Oak, 270. 
 
 Rawlsbury Rings, 222. 
 
 Red Deer, Wild, hunt of, 461, 
 
 Redhorn Turnpike, 84. 
 Redlinch Park, 406, 2 75. 
 Reforne, 254. 
 Reeve- Pole, the, 255. 
 Rempston House, 201. 
 Reservoir of Wilts and Berks 
 
 Canal, 29. 
 Restrop, 27. 
 Revels Hill, 241. 
 Rhines, 377. 
 Rhodehorn, 2^. 
 Richmont Castle, 425. 
 Ridge Hill, 215, 
 Ridge Way, the, 69, 8j, 84, 
 
 139, 207, 209, 326. 
 
 Wood, Great, 161. 
 
 Rimbury, 213. 
 Rimpton, ch., 410. 
 Ringsbury, 27. 
 Ring's Hill, 250. 
 Ringstead Bay, 252. 
 Road, ch., 54, 404. 
 Boadwater, 449. 
 Robin Hood's Ball, 84 ; 
 
 Bower, 150; Butts, 392. 
 Rockbora, 134. 
 Rockley, ch., House, 30, 
 Rodbourne House, 20. 
 Roddenbury Castle, Hill, 
 
 155- 
 
 Rodney, Stoke, ch., Knoll, 
 
 ^99- 
 Eodnellf 252. 
 
 SADBOROUGH. 
 
 Roger, Bishop of Sarum, 9, 
 
 10, 71. 
 Rolleston, ch.. 83. 
 Roman Remains — 
 Amphitheatres — 
 At Bath, 309. 
 Bedwyn, 65. 
 Dorchester, 206.' 
 On Mendip, 399. 
 At Boreham and Pitmead, 
 149. 
 
 „ Bratton, 273. 
 
 „ Broadway, 213. 
 
 „ Bruton, 4ot). 
 
 „ Camerton, 421. 
 
 „ Dewlish, 220. 
 
 „ Dinnington, 436. 
 
 „ Discove, 406. 
 
 „ Dorchester, 2c6. 
 
 „ Edington, 307. 
 
 „ Frampton, 2j6. 
 
 „ llchester, 428. 
 On Jordan Hill, 21 j. 
 At Keynsham, 328. 
 
 „ Littlecote, 64 . 
 In Newton Cutting, 327. 
 At Pitmead, 149. 
 
 „ Htney, 442. 
 
 „ Preston, 213. 
 
 „;; Shepton Mallet, 418. 
 
 „ Stratcombe, 237. 
 
 „ Wadeford, 436. 
 
 „ Wellow, 420. 
 
 „ Whatley, 403. 
 
 „ Winter bourne King- 
 ston, 259. 
 
 „ Wraxall, North, 21. 
 Pig of Lead at Blagdon, 396 ; 
 at Wookey, 304. 
 Roman Roads, 13, 28, 87, 
 
 161, 217, 375» ^99. 458. 
 Rood Ashton, ch., 53. 
 Round Chimneys, 241. 
 Hill (near Wincanton), 
 
 271. 
 
 Hill (near Camerton), 
 
 421. 
 
 Pound, 203. 
 
 Roundway Down, Battle of, 
 75. 
 
 Rowbarrow, ch., 396. 
 Rowde, ch., 75. 
 Rownham Ferry, 360. 
 Rushall, ch„ Park, 68. 
 Rushmore, 259 ; Lodge, 217. 
 Rushton, 439. 
 Russel lamily, Hise of, 208. 
 Rybury Camp, 67. 
 
 s. 
 
 Sacheverell, Dr., birthplace. 
 34- 
 
 Sadborough House, 434. 
 
 SHAFTESBURY. 
 
 Salisbury, inns, railways, 
 rivers, drainage, 86 ; foun- 
 dation, history, 87-89 ; 
 Parliament at, Bucking- 
 ham executed, 88 ; plague, 
 89 ; Cathedral, 89-106 ; 
 ground plan, 91 ; clois- 
 ters, 102; Chapter-house, 
 103 ; Bishop's Palace, 105 j 
 Close, chs.,106, 107 ; Ma- 
 tron's college, 106; St. 
 Edmund's college, 107 ; 
 ancient houses, 106-109 ; 
 Harnham and Fisherton, 
 St. Nicholas' Hospital, 
 Council-house, pictures, 
 Market-place, 108; Mar- 
 ket-house, Poultry Cross, 
 Hall of Jolm Halle, George 
 Inn, 109; Joiner's Hall, 
 Tailor's Hall, King's 
 Arms, Mitre Corner, 110; 
 museums, no, in; 
 worthies, in. 
 
 Salisbury Plain, 8?. 
 
 iSaltford, Tunnel, House, 
 327. 
 
 Sampford Brett, ch., 447,473. 
 Sandford, Hill, bone-caves, 
 394' 
 
 Orcas, ch.. Manor-house, 
 
 182, 410, 411. 
 
 Sandhill, East, 451. 
 
 Sandsfoot Castle, 212. 
 
 Sarsen-stones, xxv., 36, 39? 
 41, 42, 67, 70, 116. 
 
 Sarum, Old, Hill of, 112; 
 history, 113; transfer- 
 ence of see, 86, 113. 
 
 Savage, the poet, grave of, 
 353- 
 
 Saver naJce, ch., forest,. 
 
 Lodge, 43 ; hotel, 66. 
 Sceorstan, ancient, 13. 
 " Scot, John the," death of, 
 
 at Malmesbury, 9. 
 Scott, John, Dr., birthplace 
 
 of, 14. 
 Scowles, 249. 
 Scratchbury Camp, 148. 
 Scythe-stones, 392. 
 Seacombe, 247. 
 Sea Mills, 363. 
 Sedgehill House, 164. 
 Sedgemoor, 381 ; battle, 382. 
 Seend, ch., Manor-house. 76. 
 Selwood Forest, 400. 
 Selworthy, ch., cross, 459. 
 Semly, ch., 164. 
 Seven Wells, Valley of, 39a, 
 
 466. 
 
 Shaftesbury, position, 165; 
 Abbey, 166; the Byzant, 
 167 ; churches, history, 
 I Town-hall, 166; Castle 
 I Hill, almshouses, 167. 
 
490 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 SHAFTESBURY. 
 
 Shaftesbury, family, 139. 
 Shalborn, 77. 
 Sham Castle, 32}. 
 Shambles, 258. 
 Shank's House, 27 j. 
 Skapwic/c, ch., 305 ; House, 
 J06. 
 
 — (near Wimborne), ch. 
 26;. 
 
 Sharpham, 28i. 
 
 Sharps tone, 76. 
 
 Sliavelane Hill, 432. 
 
 Sheerwater, 150. 
 
 Shelburne, Earl of, 17, 18. 
 
 Shepherd's Shore, 67. 
 
 Shepton, Beauchamp, 437. 
 
 Skepton Mallet, inns, history, 
 ch., 417 ; market cross, 
 industries, Roman re- 
 mains, 418. 
 
 Montague, ch., 273. 
 
 Sherborne, see of, 8; inns, 
 173; position, bishopric, 
 history, Abbey ch., 174; 
 feud between monks and 
 townsmen, 175; King's 
 School, 178 ; Abbey con- 
 duit, almshouse, Yeatman 
 Hospital, Pack - Monday 
 fair, castle, 179; history, 
 180; modern castle, pic- 
 tures, cemetery, 181. 
 
 Sherington, Olive, story of, 
 47-48. 
 
 Sherington, ch., mound, 
 145. 
 
 Sherston, Great, battle, camp, 
 ch., ij. 
 
 Shillingford 473. 
 
 Shilling Okeford, ch., may- 
 pole, crosses, 267. 
 
 Shilling stone, 267. 
 
 Shingle Ball Well, 76. 
 
 Shipham, 396. 
 
 Shipton, 79. 
 
 Beacon, 224. 
 
 Shirehampton, 363. 
 
 Shocker wick House, 26, 325. 
 
 Shreen Water river, 168. 
 
 Shrewton, ch., 83. 
 
 Shrowton, ch., 269. 
 
 Shutshelve Hill, 396. 
 
 Sidbury Hill, 78. 
 
 Sidcot, 39^. 
 
 Sidney, Sir Philip, at Wilton, 
 129. 
 
 Silbury Hill, 41. 
 Silton, ch., 168. 
 Simon's Bath, 464; House, 
 
 464, 474. 
 Six Wells Bottom, 171. 
 Slaughterford, 25. 
 Sloperton Cottage, 19. 
 Smallmouth Sands, 212. 
 Smedmore, 196. 
 Smith, Sydney, at Nether 
 
 STILLINGFLEET. 
 
 Avon, 69; at Combe 
 
 Fiory, 446. 
 Snowdon Hill, 436. 
 Solsbury Camp, 325. 
 Somerleaze, 305. 
 Somerfm^d Great, ch., 8 ; and 
 
 Little, 8. 
 Somerset, highest point of, 
 
 461. 
 
 antiquities, xlix. ; ar- 
 chitecture, li. ; botany of, 
 377 ; geology, xlv.; levels, 
 377 ; physical features, 
 xlii. ; railway systems, 
 xlviii. 
 
 Somertou, history, inns, mar- 
 ket cross, ch., hill, 427; 
 House, 428. 
 
 Sorbiodunum, 112. 
 
 Southey, the poet, at West- 
 bury, 362 ; at Porlock, 
 
 459- 
 
 Southwell, 254. 
 
 Span Head, 463. 
 
 SparJcford, ch., 408, 409. 
 
 Spaxton, ch., cross. Court- 
 house, 384, 467. 
 
 Speke, Capt., birthplace, 
 
 Spettisbury, ch., House, 
 
 Ptings, 263. 
 Sprat Fishery, at Weston, 
 
 Springfield, 19;. 
 
 Springs, intermittent, 216, 
 
 225. 574- 
 Spye Park, 50. 
 Stafford, West, ch., House, 
 
 203. 
 Stair Hole, 252. 
 Stalbridge, ch., cross, Park, 
 
 269. 
 
 Standerwick Court, 404. 
 
 Standlincb House, 136. 
 
 Stanley Abbey, 17. 
 
 Stantonbury Hill, 326, 422. 
 
 Stanton Drew, ch., stone cir- 
 cles, 326, 328, 423. 
 
 , Fitzwarren, ch., 70. 
 
 House, 70. 
 
 Prior, j27. 
 
 St. Quintin, ch., hermi- 
 tage, 20. 
 
 Stapleford, cli,, 83, 143. 
 
 Staverton, 52. 
 
 Stavordale Priory, 27 2, 407. 
 
 Stawell, Sir John, of Cothel- 
 stone, 446. 
 
 Steep Holme, 376, 377. 
 
 Steeple Ashton, 53. . 
 
 Langford, 143. 
 
 Stepleton House, ch., 266. 
 
 Stickleball Hill, 274. 
 
 Sticklepath Hill, 142, 165. 
 
 Stillingfleet, Bishop, ^birth- 
 place, 138. 
 
 STREET. 
 
 St. John Family, 5. 
 Stinsford, ch., 208, 262. 
 Stoberry House, 426. 
 Stockham, oaks at, 229. 
 Stock House, 242. 
 Stockton, ch., history. House, 
 
 Works, 144. 
 Stogumber, ch., spring, ale, 
 
 447. 
 
 Stoke Abbot, ch., 226. 
 Bishop, ch., Abbey 
 
 farm, 361. 
 
 Brow, 324. 
 
 Comitis, or Earl, 62. 
 
 • Down, 418, 
 
 East, ch., 201. 
 
 Gayland, ch., 242. 
 
 Knoll, 399. 
 
 • North, 324. 
 
 Pero, ch., 459, 461. 
 
 — - Ptodney, ch., knoll, 399. 
 
 South, ch., 326, 419. 
 
 sub-Hambdon, ch.,414. 
 
 West, 415. 
 
 Stokecourc}^, 467 ; castle, ch., 
 
 468. 
 
 Stokeleigh Camp, 360. 
 
 Stonebarrow Hill, 229. 
 
 Stone circles, at Poxwell, 
 203, 213 ; Tenant Hill, 
 214; near Little Bredy, 
 223; Stanton Drew, 328, 
 423. 
 
 Stone Easton Park, 425. 
 Stonehenge, 112, 1 16-122, 
 84. 
 
 Stoney Littleton, 420. 
 
 Stour, river, xxxiv; sources 
 of, 168, 171. 
 
 Stourhead, 169, 273; pic- 
 tures, 170; pleasure- 
 grounds, lake, high cross 
 of Bristol, 171, 407; Al- 
 fred's Tower, 172, 409. 
 
 Stourton, ch., 171, 273. 
 
 , Charles Lord, his mur- 
 der of the Hartgills, 95. 
 
 Caundle, ch., ruins, 
 
 269. 
 
 Stowell, Manor-house, 173. 
 
 Stower, East, ch.. Manor- 
 house, 168 ; West, ch., 
 168. 
 
 Payne, 265. 
 
 Stowey, Nether, 466 ; castle, 
 
 467. 
 
 Over, 467. 
 
 Stratcombe, 237. 
 Stratford, ch., House, 152. 
 
 Tony, ch., 140. 
 
 Stratton, ch., 235- 
 
 on the Foss, ch., 421. 
 
 St. Margaret's, 3. 
 
 Strayn Hill, 411. 
 
 Street (near Pylle station), 
 
 274. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 491 
 
 STREET. 
 
 Street (on Polden Hills), 28 j, 
 426. 
 
 Stringston, ch., cross, 468. 
 Strode, 227. 
 Studland, ch., 201. 
 Studley, 5J. 
 
 Stumpe, Master, of Miilmes- 
 
 bury, II. 
 Sturmiiister Marshall, 258, 
 
 262; ch., 262; cross. 
 
 Minster buildings, 263. 
 Sturminster Newton, inns, 
 
 267 ; ch., castle, 268. 
 Sunimerhouse Hill, 412. 
 Suspension Bridge at Clifton, 
 
 360. 
 
 Sutton Bingham, 429. 
 
 Court, 424. 
 
 Long, ch., 44?. 
 
 Maudeville, ch., 157. 
 
 Veney, ch., House, pic- 
 tures, 147. 
 
 : Waldron, ch., 266. 
 
 Swainswick, ch., 325. 
 
 Swallet-hole, 398. 
 
 Swallowfield, 62. 
 
 Swanage, inns, crocodile, 
 243; position. Bay, 244; 
 ch., quarries, 245. 
 
 Swannery at Abbotsbury, 
 216 
 
 Svvayne's Jumps, 38?. 
 Swindon Junct., 3 ; New, 3 ; 
 
 Great Western Euilway 
 
 works, 3, ch. 4. 
 
 , Old, ch., 4. 
 
 Swine's Back, 251. 
 Swyre Head, 252. 
 , intermittent sprnig, 
 
 225. 
 
 Sydliug, St. Nicholas, ch., 
 
 208, 236. 
 Sydney Smith, at Nether 
 
 Avon, 69; at Combe 
 
 Flory, 446. 
 Symondsbury, ch., 228. 
 
 T. 
 
 Tan Hill fair, 66. 
 
 Tanner, the antiquary, birth- 
 place of, 82. 
 
 Tarrant Crawford, ch., castle, 
 bridge, 219. 
 
 Gunville, ch., 218. 
 
 Hinton, ch., ib. 
 
 Keynestone, ch., ib. 
 
 Monkton, ch., Farm, 
 
 ib. 
 
 E-ushton, ch., ib. 
 
 Taunton, inns, 384 ; history, 
 
 defence by Blake, 385 ; 
 
 Bloody Assize, ch. of St. 
 
 Mary Magdalene, 386 ; 
 
 TllIAS. 
 
 churches, priory, alms- i 
 houses, castle, 387 ; pub- i 
 lie buildings and institu- : 
 tions, 388 ; worthies, 389. 
 
 Taunton Dean, Vale of, 389. I 
 
 Tedbury, 403 | 
 
 Telfont Evias, ch., Manor- | 
 house, pictures, 157. ; 
 
 Temple Farm, Bottom, 30. i 
 
 Temple 6"'omZ>e Junction, 172, 
 270; manor house, 173. 
 
 Tenant Hill, 214. 
 
 Tertiary formations, ix. 
 
 Thames, river, 27. 
 
 Thompson, William, of 
 Poole, 192. 
 
 Thomson, the poet, at Marl- 
 borough, 33. 
 
 Thorncombe, ch., 434; Bar- 
 row, 471. 
 
 TJiorn Falcon, 439. 
 
 Tliornhill, 269. 
 
 Thornhill, Sir James, 269. 
 
 Thynne, of Longleat, i^i. 
 
 Tickenham, ch., Manor- 
 house, 372. 
 
 Tidcombe, 77. 
 
 Tides in Poole Bay, 193. 
 
 Tidworth, North, ch., Park, 
 79- 
 
 , South, 79. 
 
 Tilshead, ch., 83. 
 Tilly Manor, 426, 
 Tilly Whim, 246. 
 Timberscombe, 456, 474. 
 Timewell House, Lower, 473. 
 Tinhead, 62. 
 TintinhuU, ch., 445. 
 Tisbury, ch., 157; Place 
 
 House, quarries, 158. 
 Tivington, chapel, 459. 
 Todbere, ch., 268. 
 Tolland, 447. 
 
 Tollard Koyal, 142; ch., 
 
 alarum tree, 217. 
 Toller Fratrum, ch., 237. 
 Toller Porcorum, ch., 237. 
 
 Whelme, 226. 
 
 Tolpuddle, ch., 261. 
 Tone river, xliv., 439, 472. 
 Tongue Beach, 252. 
 Tor Hill at Glastonbury, 282. 
 Tor's Steps, 465, 475. 
 Tory Hill, 55. 
 
 Tottenham House, Park, pic- 
 tures, 43. 
 
 Tournament stead, 84, 114. 
 
 Tower Head House, 394. 
 
 Towers, Joseph, the divine, 
 birthplace of, 179. 
 
 Track-way, 475. 
 
 Trafalgar House, 134, 136. 
 
 Trendle, the, 240. 
 
 Trent, ch., 182, 415; cross, 
 416. 
 
 Trias, the, xi. 
 
 VALE. 
 
 Trovcbridge, history, castle, 
 
 52 ; ch. 53. 
 Troy-town Maze, 222, 262. 
 Trull, ch., 389 ; pulpit, glass, 
 
 390. 
 
 Tump, the, 364. 
 Tumuli — 
 
 Long Bredy Gate, 223. 
 
 Cattle Hill, 273. 
 
 Cotley Hill, 148. 
 
 Everley, 78. 
 
 Hubba's Low, 15. 
 
 Jack's Castle, 172. 
 
 Knap Hill, 66. 
 
 the Long Barrow, 42. 
 
 Lugbury, 21. 
 
 Maes Knoll, 422. 
 
 Modbury, 238. 
 
 the Moot, 137. 
 
 Silbury Hill, 41. 
 
 Stoney Littleton, 420. 
 Turley House, 56. 
 Turner's Puddle, ch., 261. 
 Turn worth, ch.,House, camp, 
 
 220. 
 
 Tiverton, ch., tunnel, 327. 
 Twin Barrows, 68. 
 Tychebourne Park, 85. 
 Tj'neham Cap, 249. 
 
 , \Vest,ch., House, cove, 
 
 250. 
 
 Tynte, origin of the name, 
 ^^83. 
 
 Tjiitesfield, 373. 
 Tytherleigh Arms, 435. 
 TythertonKellaways, 13, 14 ; 
 ch,, 13. 
 
 TJbley, ch., 396. 
 
 Uddens House. 189. 
 
 Upavon, ch., 68. 
 
 Ujjhill, old church, 375 ; 
 
 cavern, 376; cutting, 377- 
 Undercliff at Lyme Regis, 
 
 234- 
 
 Underground oak, 377. 
 Upcerne, ch., 240; Manor- 
 house, 241. 
 Upcot Hall, 6. 
 Upton House, 191. 
 
 ' Lovel, ch., 145. 
 
 Scudamore, ch., 150. 
 
 Upuey, ch., 209. 
 I Urchfont, ch., 83. 
 
 V. 
 
 Vale of Blackmoor, 270. 
 
 Chalk, 140. 
 
 Marsh wood, 229. 
 
 Pewsey, 66. 
 
 Taunton Dean, 389. 
 
492 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 VALLIS. 
 
 Vallis Bottom, hall, 402, 424. 
 
 Florida, 449. 
 
 Ven House, 
 
 Vernditch Chase, lodge, 217. 
 Verne Hill, 25 j. 
 Verlucio, ancient, 51. 
 Verwood, 1^7. 
 Vespasian's Camp, 115. 
 Via Iceniana. See Icknield 
 
 Street. 
 Vick, Alderman, 360 
 Vincent's Rocks, St., 359. 
 Vindilis, Roman station of, 
 
 253. 
 
 Vindogladia, 217. 
 Virginia inn, 270. 
 
 w. 
 
 Wadbury, Vale, camp, elm, 
 
 403 » 424- 
 Wadeford, 436. 
 Wakeham, 254. 
 Walford House, 389. 
 Walker's Hill, Barrow, 66. 
 Walterston House, 262. 
 Walton, castle, ch., 371. 
 Walton - in • Gordano, ch., 
 
 court-house, 372. 
 Wanborough, ch., battles, 29. 
 Wands House, 51. 
 Wansdyke, the, 67,36, 39, 70, 
 
 75, 323, 326, 422. 
 Wanstrow, 416. 
 Wardour Castle, pictures, 
 
 159; park, chapel, 160; 
 
 sieges of, 161. 
 Wardour, Thomas of, First 
 
 Lord Arundel, 158. 
 Ware Cliffs, 234. 
 Wareham, inns, earthworks, 
 
 history, 194; priory, 
 
 churches, 195. 
 Warley House, 77. 
 Warminster, ch., history, 
 
 town hall, free school, 149. 
 Warm well, Manor - house, 
 
 ch., 203. 
 Warren, old, 215. 
 Washf&rd, 449, 451. 
 Watchet, industries, inn, pier, 
 
 448. 
 
 Waters' Meet, 463. 
 Watershed, xii. 
 Waterwood, 472. 
 Watts House, 446. 
 Walton, Isaak, at Poulshot, 
 75. 
 
 Warley House, 77. 
 Wavering Down, 397. 
 Wayland Smith's Cave, 5. 
 Weacombe House, 448, 471. 
 Weatherbury Castle, or Castle 
 Rings, 220. 
 
 WHITCHURCH. 
 
 Wedmore, "Peace of," Al- 
 fred's palace, ch., crosses, 
 306. 
 
 Week Champilower, 27 j. 
 
 Wellington, ch., 391 ; monu- 
 ment, 392. 
 
 Wellow, Roman remains at, 
 420 ; ch., 326, 420. 
 
 Welts, inns, 284 ; Cathedral 
 and Close, 284, 302 ; foun- 
 dation, history, 285 ; 
 ground plan, 287; west 
 front, 288 ; sculptures, 
 289;. clock, 294; Chapter- 
 house, 297 ; cloisters, 298 ; 
 Bishop's palace, 299 ; Dean- 
 ery, 300 ; Archdeaconry, 
 Vicar's Close, 301; gates, 
 public buildings, 302 ; 
 churches, 303. 
 
 Welton, 424. 
 
 Wembdon, ch., cross, 381. 
 
 Were river, 149. 
 
 Westbury (Wilts;, ch.,Down, 
 
 industries, 59, 60. 
 Westbury (Gloucestershire), 
 
 ch., college, 361. 
 West Dean, ch.. House, 84. 
 West Down, 78. 
 West Moors, 139; Junct., 183. 
 Westdown Hill, 78. 
 West Hay, 393. 
 Weston, ch., 324. 
 
 in-Gordano, 372. 
 
 Zoyland, ch., 382. 
 
 Weston-sujpeV'Mare, Junot., 
 
 313- 
 
 , inns, churches, 
 
 373; intermittent springs, 
 374; Worle hill, 374; baths, 
 314- 
 
 Westwood, ch., Manor-house, 
 57- 
 
 Weyhill, fair, 46, 
 
 Weymouth, hotels, position, 
 esplanade, 209 ; historj'-, 
 borough, tides, 210 ; 
 churches, public build- 
 ings, 211; the Nothe, 
 Sandsfoot Castle, 212 ; Ro- 
 mano-British cemetery, 
 252. 
 
 Weymouth, Lord, of Long- 
 
 leat, 151. 
 Weymouth pine, first grown 
 
 in England, 153. 
 Wey river, source, 209. 
 Whatcombe House, 219. 
 Whateley House, ch., 403. 
 Wheddon Cross, 457. 
 Whelpley, 85. 
 AVhetham, 17. 
 Whichbury Camp, 134, 137. 
 Whingreen, 163. 
 Whitchurch Canonicorum, 
 
 ch., 229. 
 
 WINCANTON. 
 
 Whitchurch, ch., 422. 
 Whitcombe's Hole, 396, 
 Whitehall Hill, 39?. 
 Whitechapel Rocks, 2 34. 
 White Hart Forest, 270. 
 White Horses — 
 
 Ancient — 
 Bratton, 61. 
 Cherhill, 18. 
 
 Modern — 
 Alton, 69. 
 Marlborough, 35, 
 Preston, 213. 
 White Lackington, House, 
 
 chestnut, 43 7. ^ 
 Whitenore, 252. 
 Whiteparish, ch., 85. 
 White Sheet Castle, 169. 
 
 Sheet Hill, 141, 160, 165^. 
 
 Walls, 13. 
 
 Whiting, Abbot, execution 
 
 of, 278. 
 Whitlands, Landslip, 234. 
 Wick Ball Camp, 156. 
 Wick Down, i ?7. 
 
 Rocks and Camp, 325. 
 
 Wick St. Lawrence, ch., 
 
 cross, 375. 
 Widcombe, old ch., Hill, 323. 
 Wilbury Park, 80. 
 Wilcot, 66. 
 
 Willet House, 447; tower, 
 
 J91, 447, 469. 
 William III. at Littlecote, 
 
 64. 
 
 of Malmesbury, it. 
 
 Willis, Brown, the antiquary, 
 birthplace of, 26 3. 
 
 Willis, Thomas, founder of 
 the Royal Society, birth- 
 place of, 65. 
 
 WiUiton, 448, 469. 
 
 Will's iSeck, 390, 447? 469, 
 470. 
 
 Wilsford, House, 122. 
 
 Wilton., 83, 142; borough, 
 cross, 125 ; history, 123 ; 
 carpets, monastery, 1 24 ; 
 hospital, new ch., 125, 126. 
 
 Wilton House, 127 ; marbles, 
 127; pictures, 128; gar- 
 dens, 130. 
 
 Wiltshire, antiquities, xxvii ; 
 architecture, xxix ; geo- 
 logy, xxiii; physical fea- 
 tures, XX ; railway sys- 
 tems, xxvi. 
 
 Wily river, 124, 142 ; sources 
 of, 172. 
 
 Wimhorne, inns, 183 ; min- 
 ster, history, 184, library, 
 185 ; Grammar School, 186. 
 
 Wimhorne, St. Giles, ch,. 
 House, pictures, 1 19. 
 
 Wincanton, inns, 270; his- 
 tory, plague, ch., 271. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 493 
 
 WINCHAM. 
 
 Wincham, ch., 432. 
 
 Wincombe Park, 167. 
 
 Windwhistle inn, 432, 436. 
 
 Winfrith, ch., 203. 
 
 Winkelbury Camp, 141. 
 
 Winscomb, ch., 396. 
 
 Winsford, 465. 
 
 Winsley, ch., 76. 
 
 Winspit quarry, 247. 
 
 Winterborne Abbas, ch., 22;. 
 
 Clenstone, ch., Manor- 
 house, 220. 
 
 Houghton, ch., 220. 
 
 Steepleton, ch., 223. 
 
 Stickland, ch., 220. 
 
 Whitchurch, ch., 219. 
 
 Winterbourn Basset t, ch., 6. 
 
 Dauntsey, 80. 
 
 Earls, lb. 
 
 Ford, ib. 
 
 Gunner, ib. 
 
 Monkton, ch., 42. 
 
 Stoke, ch., 8i. 
 
 River, 80. 
 
 Winterbourne Anderson, ch., 
 259- 
 
 Kingston, ch., ib. 
 
 Thomson, ch., ib. 
 
 Zelston, ch., ib. 
 
 Winterslow Hut, House, 
 
 Manor, 81. 
 Wishfm-d, ch., 142, 83. 
 Witham, ch.. Priory, 405. 
 Withy combe, ch . , 45 1 . 
 Withy pool, 465. 
 Wivetiscombe, ch., quarries, 
 
 brewery, 472. 
 Wivelisford Hill, 69. 
 Wolfs Barrow or Oldbury, 
 
 201. 
 
 Wolfe, General, hisresidencp, 
 321. 
 
 Wolf Hall, or Wulfall, re- 
 mains of, 6 J. 
 
 Wolsey, Card., his first pre- 
 ferment, 429. 
 
 Wolveton Hall, 207. 
 
 WREN. 
 
 Wood, architect of Bath, 313. 
 Woodboiough (Wilts), ch., 
 69. 
 
 (near Axbridge), 396. 
 
 House (near Kadstock), 
 
 421. 
 
 Woodbury Hill, fair, 260, 
 201. 
 
 Woodford, Middle, 122. 
 
 Woodhouse, 153. 
 
 Woodlands (Dorset), J89. 
 
 (Somerset), 39J. 
 
 Woodsford, Castle, th., 202. 
 
 Woodspring Priory, ch., 
 Priory, 375. 
 
 Woodyates inn, 217. 
 
 Wookey^ ch.. Court, Hole, 
 Witch, paper mills, 304. 
 
 TFooZ, ch., bridge, Manor- 
 house, 201. 
 
 Woolland, ch., 268. 
 
 Woolley House, 56. 
 
 Wootton Bassett, ch., 5. 
 
 Courtenay, ch., 456. 
 
 , Glanvilles, ch., 241. 
 
 Rivers, ch., 66. 
 
 Worbarrow Bay, 243, 249. 
 
 Tout, 243, 250. 
 
 Wordsworth, the poet, at 
 Racedown Lodge, 228 ; at 
 Nether Stowey, 466. 
 
 Worlebury Camp, 374. 
 
 Worle, Hill, 374; ch., 375. 
 
 Wormwood Manorhouse, 26. 
 
 Worth Maltravers, ch., 247. 
 
 Wraxall (Somerset), ch.. 
 Manor-house, 372 ; Lodge, 
 
 , North, ch., Roman 
 
 villa, 21. 
 
 , South, ch., 51 ; Manor- 
 house, 26, 52, 326. 
 
 (Dorset), ch., 2J7- 
 
 Wren, Dr. Christopher, 164. 
 
 , Sir Christopher, at 
 
 Salisbury, 92 ; birthplace, 
 164.; 
 
 ZINC-MINES. 
 
 Wrington, ch., tower, 393. 
 Writhlington, 420. 
 Wulfric St., 4U. 
 Wyatt, the destructive, at 
 
 Salisbury, 92, 98, 99. 
 Wych Passage, 194. 
 Wyke Champflower, chapel, 
 
 407. 
 
 Hall, 168. 
 
 Regis, ch., 212. 
 
 Wylde, Court, ch., 4?4, 
 Wylye,^ch., 143; river, See 
 
 Wily. 
 
 Wyndhani, Sir W., escape 
 
 of, 448. 
 Wynford Eagle, ch., 237. 
 Wy vil, Bp., brass of, loi. 
 
 Y. 
 
 Yarlington. ch.. Lodge, 273 ; 
 
 earthworks, 408. 
 Yarn Market at Dunstei; 
 
 455. 
 
 Yarnbury, Camp, fair, 144. 
 
 Yatebury, ch., 42. 
 
 Yatton, 369 ; ch., cross, rec- 
 tory, 370. 
 
 Yellowham Hill, 262, 222. 
 
 Yeo river, xliv., 174, 182. 
 
 Yeovil, inns, industry, 
 churches, 41 1 ; old houses, 
 412. 
 
 Junct.y 183. 
 
 Yetminster, ch., 239. 
 Yews, large, 134, 326. 
 Young, Dr. Thomas, birth- 
 place of, 472. 
 , Rev. William, 168. 
 
 z. 
 
 Zeals House, ch., 169. 
 Zinc-mines, 395, 398. 
 
 THE END. 
 
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