Chapter 5 of 32 · 3690 words · ~18 min read

Part 5

[A] ALMONDBURY is situated near the river Calder, in the upper division of the wapentake of Aybrigg. Here is a grammar school, founded by patent from James I. and endowed with about L120 per annum. This place is noted for its extensive woollen manufactories. It was anciently called Albanbury. In the neighbourhood traces of an ancient castle, on an eminence, are still discernable. It is supposed, by some antiquarians, to have been the Campodonum of the Romans, and subsequently a royal seat of some of the Saxon kings.

[Sidenote: Grammar school founded by James I.]

[Sidenote: Ancient castle. Campodonum of the Romans.]

[B] ALNWICK, is on the high road from London to Berwick, and usually regarded as the capital of the county. It is situated partly in the southern division of Barnborough Ward, and partly in the eastern division of Coquetdale Ward. It is built irregularly, on the declivities of a hill, near the river Alne, over which a handsome stone bridge was erected by the late Duke of Northumberland, which bears the Percy crest on the parapet; there is also another bridge, of one arch, lower down the river; these two bridges serve as boundaries to the fine lawns surrounding the castle. At the head of Pottergate is a tower or clock-house, built in 1786. An abbey of Premonstratension canons was founded at Alnwick by Eustace St. John, in the year 1147. It was pleasantly situated on the northern margin of the Alne, the site of which was granted, in 1549, to Ralph Sadler, and Lawrence Wennington, after which it became the seat of the Brandling family, and also of the Doubleday family, by whom it was sold to the Duke of Northumberland. A fine gate house still remains, on which the Percy arms is visible. This town has a spacious market place, and a considerable town hall, in which the sessions and county courts are held. It is paved, watched, and lighted, under an act passed in 1821. Although the county town, the assizes are held at Newcastle. Alnwick Castle has been for many centuries a fortress of great strength, and the family mansion of the Percys'; it stands on an eminence on the south side of the Alne, opposite to the town, and commands a beautiful view of the country. The walls are flanked with sixteen gothic towers, the battlements of which, are ornamented with figures of ancient warriors: it is very celebrated in border history, and was peculiarly fatal to the kings of Scotland, of whom Malcolm II. and his son Edward, fell before it; and William, surnamed the Lion, was taken prisoner. The castle has lately undergone a complete repair; great attention having been paid to the restoration of the gothic ornaments in their original style. The chapel has been rendered extremely beautiful, by the introduction of a ceiling, in imitation of the celebrated one of King's College, Cambridge. There is also a handsome window, on the model of one at York Minster, and the walls are painted in the manner of those of the cathedral of Milan. The tenants of the estate at Alnwick, in the year 1818, erected a monument to the memory of the late Duke of Northumberland, who died in 1817, and was buried in Westminster Abbey. The Percy column, as it is called, stands on a beautiful knoll, adjoining the road on the southern entrance to the town; it rises without a pedestal, and may be seen in every direction, it is eighty-three feet in height, but may be ascended easily by a circular flight of stairs within. There is an immemorial custom continued here on the proclamation of the several fairs; divers adjacent townships, which are free of toll in the borough, by this service, send their deputies to attend the bailiff, on the eve of the fair, when he makes proclamation; after which they keep watch all night in every part of the town, and this is the most perfect remains of watch and ward retained in any part of this country. It is said that King John, having endured considerable inconvenience from the miry state of the roads, in humorous revenge, directed that for the future, the freemen of Alnwick, should be made in the following manner, which is still observed.--On St. Mark's day, those who are to be made free, assemble in the market place, dressed in white, with white caps, and a sword by their side. They proceed on horseback from this place to the town moor, headed by the four chamberlains, attired in the same manner, where they alight and rush through a muddy pool; having performed this ceremony, they change their soiled garments, and return to the town. Here is a free school, supported by a revenue arising out of the tolls, and various minor charities.

_Market_, Saturday,--_Mail_ arrives 6-1/4 A.M., departs 5-1/2 P.M.--_Fairs_, Palm Sunday eve, for shoes, hats, &c.; May 12th, horses and horned cattle; last Monday in July, linen and woollen cloth; 1st Tuesday in October, and October 28th, horses and cattle; and Saturday before Christmas Day, for shoes, hats, and woollens.--_Bankers_, Ridley and Co., draw on Glynn and Co.--_Inn_, White Swan.

[Sidenote: An abbey of monks, founded in 1147.]

[Sidenote: Fortress of great strength.]

[Sidenote: The fall of Malcolm II. and his son Edward.]

[Sidenote: Monument to the memory of the late Duke of Northumberland.]

[Sidenote: Curious customs in Alnwick.]

[Sidenote: Making freemen at Alnwick through a muddy pool.]

Map| Names of Places. |County.| Number of Miles From | +--+----------------------+-------+------------+------------+ 14|Alphamstone pa|Essex |Halstead 5|Sudbury 5| 36|Alphaston pa|Suffolk|Sudbury 7|Lavenham 3| 11|Alphington pa|Devon |Exeter 1|Topsham 5| 27|Alpington pa|Norfolk|Norwich 6|Loddon 5| 7|Alpraham to|Chester|Tarporley 3|Malpas 8| 14|Alresford pa|Essex |Colchester 5|St. Osyth 6| 16|Alresford, New[A] m.t.|Hants |Southamp. 19|Winchester 7| +--+----------------------+-------+------------+------------+ | |Dist.| Map| Names of Places. |Number of Miles From|Lond.|Population. +--+----------------------+--------------------+-----+------+ 14|Alphamstone pa|Colchester 10| 50| 277| 36|Alphaston pa|Bury 10| 61| 309| 11|Alphington pa|Chudleigh 8| 167| 1236| 27|Alpington pa|Hempnell 6| 119| 197| 7|Alpraham to|Nantwich 7| 176| 418| 14|Alresford pa||Manningtre 8| 56| 297| 16|Alresford, New[A] m.t.|Alton 10| 57| 1437| +--+----------------------+--------------------+-----+------+

[A] NEW ALRESFORD, is in the north division of the hundred of Alton: seated on the river Itchin, at no great distance from its source. It was anciently a more populous place than at present, the navigation of the river, having at one time extended from Southampton to this town; whereas, it now ceases at Winchester. Alresford is divided into two parishes, of which that of Old Alresford is deemed the mother church. The town, which formerly sent a member to parliament, is governed by a bailiff and eight burgesses; and the petty sessions are held here. There is a manufacture of linseys of some consequence, but generally speaking, the trade is much decayed. At Tichbourne Hall, about two miles distant, the seat of Sir H. Tichbourne, there has been bestowed annually, on Lady Day, from the reign of Henry II. a gift to every applicant of twopence in bread or money; of which bounty, in some years, no less than seventeen hundred persons have partaken.

_Market_, Thursday.--_Mail_ arrives 3-1/2 A.M. departs 11-1/2 P.M.--_Fairs_, last Thursday in July, and October 17, sheep, &c.--_Bankers_, Knapp & Co. draw on Barclay & Co.--_Inn_, Swan.

[Sidenote: Formerly a populous place.]

[Sidenote: Tichbourne Hall, seat of Sir H. Tichbourne.]

Map| Names of Places. | County. | Number of Miles From | +--+--------------------+---------+------------+--------------+ 16|Alresford, Old pa|Hants |Southamp. 19|Winchester 7| 35|Alrewas pa|Stafford |Lichfield 5|Burton 8| 35|Alewas Hayes dis|Stafford | ... 4| ... 9| 7|Alsager pa|Chester |Sandbach 5|Congleton 9| 10|Alsop-le-Dale pa|Derby |Ashbourn 6|Longnor 8| 22|Alston to|Lancaster|Preston 6|Blackburn 6| 42|Alstone chap|Worcester|Tewkesbury 5|Evesham 7| 35|Alstonefield pa & to|Stafford |Ashbourn 6|Longnor 6| 22|Altcar chap|Lancaster|Ormskirk 6|Liverpool 11| 8|Alternon pa|Cornwall |Launceston 8|Camelford 8| 22|Altham to & chap|Lancaster|Burnley 5|Colne 11| 14|Althorne pa|Essex |Maldon 6|Southminster 3| 24|Althorp pa & to|Lincoln |Burton 5|Epworth 5| 27|Althorpe ham|Norfolk |Fakenham 2|N. Walsingh. 3| 48|Altmawr chap|Brecon |Builth 3|Brecon 12| 45|Altofts to|W.R. York|Wakefield 4|Leeds 8| 16|Alton[A] m.t. & pa|Hants |Southamp. 29|Basingstoke 10| 41|Alton Barnes pa|Wilts |Marlboro 7|Devizes 7| 12|Alton Pancras pa|Dorset |Dorchester 7|Cerne-Abbas 3| 41|Alton Priors chap|Wilts |Devizes 7|Marlboro 7| 7|Altringham[B] m.t.|Chester |Knutsford 7|Stockport 10| +--+--------------------+---------+------------+--------------+ |Dist.| Map| Names of Places. | Number of Miles From |Lond.|Population. +--+--------------------+----------------------+-----+--------+ 16|Alresford, Old pa|Alton 10| 57| 459| 35|Alrewas pa|Bromley 5| 124| 1607| 35|Alewas Hayes dis ... 6| 124| 77| 7|Alsager pa|Nantwich 8| 157| 446| 10|Alsop-le-Dale pa|Winster 6| 145| 61| 22|Alston to|Clitheroe 9| 222| 1030| 42|Alstone chap|Pershore 7| 101| 78| 35|Alstonefield pa & to|Winster 8| 144| 5169| 22|Altcar chap|Prescott 13| 214| 505| 8|Alternon pa|Bodmin 16| 222| 1069| 22|Altham to & chap|Blackburn 6| 212| 413| 14|Althorne pa|Rochford 6| 42| 352| 24|Althorp pa & to|Glandford Br 12| 165| 981| 27|Althorpe ham|Holt 10| 111| 9| 48|Altmawr chap|Aberedwy 2| 170| 43| 45|Altofts to|Pontefract 3| 186| 502| 16|Alton[A] m.t. & pa|Farnham 10| 47| 2742| 41|Alton Barnes pa|Pewsey 4| 82| 138| 12|Alton Pancras pa|Sherborne 10| 120| 210| 41|Alton Priors chap|Pewsey 4| 82| 205| 7|Altringham[B] m.t.|Manchester 9| 179| 2708| +--+--------------------+----------------------+-----+--------+

[A] ALTON is seated on the river Wye; it is a pleasant open town, consisting of three streets, of which the principal contains some handsome houses. It is governed by a constable appointed by the magistracy, and a petty sessions are held in the town. The district around is celebrated for the superiority of its hop plantations, and possesses manufactures of druggets, serges, and other worsted fabrics, which are dyed in the wool. It was at Alton that Sir William Waller, in December 1643, obtained some advantages over the forces of Lord Hopton, who had taken his post in the town, the regiment commanded by Colonel Bowles retreated to the church, but not having time to barricade the doors, threw down their arms, and surrendered; but the Colonel himself, refusing quarter, was slain on the spot. Amongst the celebrated men to whom this town has given birth, may be mentioned William de Alton, a Dominican Friar, who lived in the time of Edward II., and wrote on the universality of the pollution of mankind by original sin. John Pitts, the Roman Catholic Biographer, who was born in 1560, and died in 1616; and William Curtis the Botanist, who was born about 1746, and died in 1799.

_Market_, Saturday.--_Mail_ arrives 2 A.M. departs 12-3/4 A.M.--_Fairs_, Saturday before May, sheep and lambs, September 29, cattle and toys.--Commercial Banking Company, draw on Williams, and Co.--_Inn_, Swan.

[Sidenote: Celebrated for hops, and manufactures in serges and other worsted fabrics.]

[Sidenote: Church converted to a fortress.]

[B] ALTRINGHAM is a very neat market-town in the parish of Bowden, and hundred of Bucklow, near which the Duke of Bridgewater's canal passes from the Mersey at Runcorn, to Manchester; it possesses several factories of yarn, cotton, and worsted, and the vicinity supplies the markets of Manchester well with fruit and vegetables. This town was anciently a fee for the barons of Dunham Massey, one of whom granted to it a guild mercatory in the thirteenth century.

_Market_, Tuesday.--_Mail_ arrives 4-1/2 A.M., departs 9-1/2 P.M.--_Fairs_, April 29, August 5, November 22, for cattle and drapery.--_Inns_, Bowling Green and Unicorn.

[Sidenote: Yarn, cotton, and worsted manufactories]

Map| Names of Places. | County. | Number of Miles From | +--+------------------------+----------+-------------+-------------+ 7|Alvanley chap|Chester |Frodsham 3|Warrington 9| 7|Alvaston to|Chester |Sandbach 9|Middlewich 10| 10|Alvaston to & chap|Derby |Derby 4|Kegworth 8| 40|Alvechurch[A] pa|Worcester |Bromsgrove 4|Redditch 4| 41|Alvediston pa|Wilts |Hindon 7|Wilton 8| 33|Alvely pa & to|Salop |Bridgenorth 6|Bewdley 8| 11|Alverdiscott pa|Devon |Bideford 4|Barnstaple 6| 16|Alverstoke pa|Hants |Gosport 1|Tichfield 6| 45|Alverthorpe to|W.R. York |Wakefield 1|Leeds 7| 30|Alverton ham|Notts |Newark 7|Bingham 7| 31|Alvescott pa|Oxford |Burford 5|Bampton 3| 15|Alveston[B] pa|Gloucester|Thornbury 3|New Pas 6| 39|Alveston pa|Warwick |Stratford 2|Warwick 7| 35|Alveton pa & to|Stafford |Cheadle 4|Uttaxeter 6| 24|Alvingham pa|Lincoln |Louth 4|Saltfleet 8| 15|Alvington ham|Gloucester|Blakeney 6|Coleford 6| 19|Alwalton pa|Hunts |Peterboro 5|Stilton 6| 11|Alwington pa|Devon |Bideford 4|Torrington 6| 45|Alwoodley to|W.R. York |Leeds 4|Ottley 5| 17|Amberly ham|Hereford |Hereford 6|Bromyard 9| 38|Amberly pa|Sussex |Arundel 4|Petworth 4| 16|Ambersham, North ti|Hants |Midhurst 3| ... 4| 16|Ambersham, South ti|Hants | ... 3| ... 4| 29|Amble to|Northumb |Alnwick 9|Morpeth 11| 35|Amblecoat ham|Stafford |Stourbridge 1|Dudley 4| 40|Ambleside[C] m.t. & chap|Westmorlnd|Kendal 13|Helvelyn 8| +--+------------------------+----------+-------------+-------------+ |Dist.| Map| Names of Places. | Number of Miles From |Lond.|Population. +--+------------------------+------------------------+-----+-------+ 7|Alvanley chap|Chester 10| 188| 341| 7|Alvaston to|Whitchurch 11| 164| 46| 10|Alvaston to & chap|Burton 12| 124| 364| 40|Alvechurch[A] pa|Birmingham 11| 114| 1548| 41|Alvediston pa|Shaftesbury 9| 92| 239| 33|Alvely pa & to|Cleobury 9| 133| 836| 11|Alverdiscott pa|Torrington 4| 200| 334| 16|Alverstoke pa|Fareham 6| 79| 12637| 45|Alverthorpe to|Dewsbury 5| 183| 4859| 30|Alverton ham|Southwell 9| 118| 16| 31|Alvescott pa|Whitney 6| 74| 361| 15|Alveston[B] pa|Bristol 9| 119| 800| 39|Alveston pa|Henley 9| 96| 650| 35|Alveton pa & to|Ashbourn 8| 42| 2391| 24|Alvingham pa|Grimsby 18| 153| 292| 15|Alvington ham|Chepstow 7| 128| 281| 19|Alwalton pa|Wandsford 5| 80| 294| 11|Alwington pa|Barnstaple 12| 206| 486| 45|Alwoodley to|Wetherby 8| 193| 142| 17|Amberly ham|Leominster 8| 135| 25| 38|Amberly pa|Worthing 11| 51| 637| 16|Ambersham, North ti|Haslemere 6| 49| 121| 16|Ambersham, South ti| ... 6| 49| 183| 29|Amble to|Felton 6| 301| 247| 35|Amblecoat ham|Wolverhamp 8| 122| 1157| 40|Ambleside[C] m.t. & chap|Winanderm 1| 278| 1095| +--+------------------------+------------------------+-----+-------+

[A] ALVECHURCH is situated in the middle division of the hundred of Halfshire; it was formerly a borough and governed by a bailiff, chosen annually at the court of the lord of the manor. The church is a large structure of Anglo Norman architecture, but the tower is modern. It however contains many ancient monuments: a hospital was founded here by Nicholas Lewkenor, of Hadsor, in 1580. The bishops of the county formerly had a palace here. Bishop Brain, Chancellor of England, in the reign of Edward III., to whom the Black Prince, wrote a circumstantial account of the battle of Poicters, died here in 1361. Bishop Latimer put it in repair in the reign of Henry VIII., it seems to have been merely a timber building. It has not been inhabited by any Bishop since the restoration, and was nearly a century ago, entirely pulled down, when the park was converted into farms. The river Arrow, which rises in the Lickey Hills, runs through the parish, towards Beoley Park, and Warwickshire; and the Ikenield Street, also passes it. This town formerly consisted of several streets, but is now fallen into decay, it however, receives some benefit from the Worcester canal, which passes it, and joins the Stratford-and-Avon canal, at King's Norton.

[Sidenote: Church of Anglo Norman architecture.]

[Sidenote: Dilapidations of time.]

[B] ALVESTON. This parish contains the vestiges of two Roman camps; the one on the top of a hill called Oldbury, near the Severn; the other called Castle Hill; in both which places, various relics of antiquity have been discovered.

[Sidenote: Two Roman camps.]

[C] AMBLESIDE is seated on the decline of a hill, at the extremity of the romantic lake Winandermere, of which a branch passes through the town. It is held by Horsley, to be the site of the Roman Dictus. It is scarcely in the power of language to do justice to the romantic beauties of this neighbourhood; perhaps the most beautiful scenery in England, is to be found in its vicinity. Here is an extensive manufactory of woollen cloth.

_Market_, Wednesday.--_Fairs_, Wednesday after Whit-Sunday, for horned cattle October 29, ditto and sheep--_Mail_ arrives 9-1/2 A.M., departs 7 A.M.

[Sidenote: Site of the Roman Dictus.]

[A] AMERSHAM, or Agmondesham is situated on the Misbourne, a branch of the river Colne. The town which is seated in a vale between two wooded hills, consists of a long street on the road from Uxbridge to Wendover; it is intersected about the centre, by a cross street from Chesham to High Wycombe, at the point of which stands the church. The market is held in the Market House, or Town Hall, built by Sir William Drake, about 1680; it is a brick building supported by pillars and arches, with a lanthorn and clock, and said to be the handsomest in the county. Amersham was a parliamentary borough by prescription, but by the Reform Bill of 1832, is now disfranchised. The church was extensively repaired in 1778, in the chancel of which are monuments of the family of the Bents of Leicestershire, who had a seat in the parish; and a monument of Henry, son of Sir Patrick Curwen, Bart., who died in 1638; and also several monuments of the Drake family, in the chancel and the adjoining mausoleum; among which are those of Montague Gerrard, by _Sheemaker_, and the wife of the late Mr. Drake, by Henry Cheere. About a mile northward from the town, is Shardeloes Park, the seat of Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt Drake: the estate was formerly in the possession of the Brudenell's, which family terminated in a peeress, and brought Shardeloes to the Cheynes; afterwards it became the seat of William Totehill, Esq., where he entertained Queen Elizabeth in one of her progresses. Francis Drake, of East Sherwin, Surrey, who was one of the gentlemen of the bedchamber to James I., married Jane, the daughter and heiress of William Totehill, Esq. The mansion is beautifully situated on the brow of a hill, overlooking an immense sheet of water, covering thirty-five acres, and commands a delightful prospect, particularly towards the east, where the town of Amersham, and the surrounding eminences, covered with wood, present a very picturesque appearance. The gardens, formerly much admired for their beauty, were originally formed by Sir William Drake, about 1666, but have been modernized by Richmond, for the late proprietor. Here is also a Free Grammar School, the scholars of which are entitled to three exhibitions in Corpus Christi College, Oxford, bequeathed by Dr. Challoner, a canon of Windsor, in 1620; and likewise four alms houses, with other minor charities. The manufactures are chiefly lace, sacking, and all kinds of white cotton, wrought by machinery; and the markets are well attended.

_Market_, Tuesday.--_Fairs_, Whit-Monday for horned cattle, and September 19, for cattle, and statute.--_Inns_, Crown and Griffin.--_Mail_ arrives 7 A.M., departs 9-1/4 P.M.

[Sidenote: Town Hall, built by Sir W. Drake, 1680.]

[Sidenote: Shardeloes park.]

[Sidenote: Entertainment of Queen Elizabeth.]

[Sidenote: Picturesque views.]

[B] AMESBURY, or Ambresbury, is situated on the river Avon, and is said to derive its name and origin from an abbey, founded by the British Prince Ambrosius; which abbey was subsequently changed into a convent of Benedictine monks, of which some remains are still to be seen. In the parish, and about two miles from the town, is the celebrated British monument, known by the name of Stone-henge. Antiquaries differ in their opinions as to the probable application of this structure; the majority, however, deem it to have been a druidical temple, or a grand tribunal of justice. Out of twenty-four enormous stones, of which the outer circular range appears to have been formed, seventeen are still standing, and seven on the ground; of the inner circle, eleven out of the nineteen of which it was formed are still upright, and the remainder prostrate. The distance of the inner circle from the outer one is about eight feet, forming a walk between the two of about three hundred feet in circumference; the stones are from eighteen to twenty feet high, from six to seven feet broad, and about three feet thick, and there is an appearance of the whole having been surrounded with a trench, over which were three passages. There are numerous barrows and tumuli around it, where many skeletons and military weapons have been discovered. Conjecture has been at a loss to ascertain the means by which such solid masses could have been conveyed, and placed in so elevated a situation without the aid of machinery. It stands near the summit of a hill; even at the distance of half a mile the appearance is awful; but on a nearer approach, the eye is still more delighted with the greatness of its contour. On entering the building, either on foot or horseback, these ruins fill the mind with astonishment, which it is impossible for the pen adequately to describe. Other buildings have fallen by piece-meal--here a single stone is a ruin. As you advance farther, the greatness of every part, and the singular construction of the whole, causes additional surprise. Some authors suppose that this noble temple does not owe its defacement so much to the introduction of Christianity, as to the rude and barbarous hands of the neighbouring peasantry, who have carried away the stones for their own purposes. At a house which occupies part of the ancient nunnery, a society of nuns of St. Augustine, from Flanders, have taken up their abode, probably attracted by the supposed sanctity of the situation. Near the town stands the once celebrated house of the Dukes of Queensbury, built by Inigo Jones, and subsequently improved by the Earl of Burlington. The neighbourhood abounds with clay used for making tobacco pipes, and the river Avon supplies a very much admired species of fish called loach. In the vicinity is a camp, called Vespasians. It consists of a triangular area of 39 acres, defended by a ditch and vallum, and bounded on two sides by the Avon. This may have been occupied by the Romans, but its construction and position indicate a British origin.

_Market_, Friday.--_Mail_ arrives 11 P.M., departs 4 A.M.--_Fair_, May 17, June 22, December 18, for horses, sheep, and horned cattle.--_Inn_, George.

[Sidenote: Founded by the British Prince Ambrosius.]

[Sidenote: Stone-henge.]

[Sidenote: Its awful appearance.]

[Sidenote: Nunnery of St. Augustine.]

[Sidenote: Camp of 39 acres.]