/* i-W ^M n i^B^wj ■ .*& f ':4 % \ v< v -, ^^ 4 - ■ '7 / (S6S^pode^^^^' r/~ - ,/f ' i ^>*^i^ "v. f/> DUKE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Treasure 7(gom ,**..-*.* Sjv J ' GIFT O? ! *3 i 15 mm .V- t 7 v ) / is?; i, w mm- -,<■% $ r'jf^zk |> / Mte* §1 » r '■*/$'■ £ a J 1. PL.X Drawn by F. Mackenzie. Engraved bv J.Le Keux. BAT MI AMEY CMTUHtCM, TART OT PRIOR BIRDS MOOTKECTTAX CHASTTRY. To sir BENJAKIN HOBHOTJST. bar? t.r.4 A.S. &«.£<: this -plate is inscribed from motives of esteem "bv the i t' nlTUnt LendotxJhblUiwd bu zhtAutiwr.Burton Street, JtuteWZi Pbnlfd (JrHa.J'tt'artl THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF BATH ABBEY CHURCH INCLUDING Biographical Stoertrotess OF THE MOST DISTINGUISHED PERSONS INTERRED IN THAT EDIFICE; WITH AN <£&iag on <£pttaj)!tf, IN WHICH ITS PRINCIPAL MONUMENTAL INSCRIPTIONS ARE RECORDED. Ulugtratdr tig a Sbtxitz of lEngrabmgs. ' A* If IF A l'OSSIL, A PLANT, OR AN INSECT, BE ACKNOWLEDGED AS A FIT SUBJECT FOR RATIONAL INQUIRY AND ENGRAVED DISPLAY, SO ALSO A NOBLE CHURCH, WHEN CONSIDERED AS A PRODUCTION OF THE BEST FACULTIES OF MAN, MUST BE REGARDED AS HAVING PECULIAR DEMANDS ON THE ATTENTION OF THE HISTORIAN AND ANTIQUARY, AND WORTHY OF THE BEST EFFORTS OF GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION. By JOHN BRITTON, F.S.A. ETC. ETC. LONDON : PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR, BURTON-STREET ; LONGMAN AND CO., PATERNOSTER-KOW ; TAYLOR, 59, HIGH IIOLBORN ; AND SOLD BY THE BOOKSELLERS OF BATH, &C. 1825. LONDON ; — PRINTED BV J. MOVES, BOL" V£RJ Jt S3KJSET. ®o fljc lEsteemeo' Jfflemorrj of lljc late ftrttmfr Bfofon Stasias Conpbeare, ffl.%. 5HJo comrrinelr tn fjts ofon person tfje profound an& motrest Sbcfiolar, tjje liberal anft enligfitenefc ©ritt'c, tfje crutrite JWtneralogtst, rfie acute anttquarg, rfce amiaole an& cfiart'table ^arisS Uicar, tfie sincere JtfeniJ anto affectionate IMattbe; ©fife Folnme is InscrtbeJf, aSlttfi sentiments of real personal regartr, anil sorrow for fife loss, 3Sj) tf)t %utf)Qr. ISurton Street, Eontfon, 3tll» 1, 1824. JRepttateB, Sanitate 1825. CONTENTS. PAG I Address vii Preface viii CHAPTER I. Origin of Bath, 1. — Fabulous Account of its Antiquity and Magnificence, 2, 3. — Legend of Bladud and his Swine, 4. — Discovery of the Hot Springs, 4. — British History of Bladud, 5. — Ety- mology of the Name of Bath, 7.— Roman Occupation of this City, 8. — Particulars of the Temple of Minerva, 8. — Site and Remains of Ditto, 9. — Apology, 10. CHAPTER II. Bath under the Saxons, 11. — Foundation of a Nunnery, 12. — Early History of the Abbey Church, 13, 14. — Expulsion of the Secular Clergy, 15. — Account of Abbot Elphegus, 15. — Suc- cession of the Abbots, and Coronation of King Edgar, 15, 16. — Saintly Relics, 17. — The City, &c. granted to the Abbey Church, 18.— Bishop John de Villula, and Removal of the See from Wells to Bath, 18, 19. — Bishop John's Gifts, 20,21. — Bishops Godfrey and Robert, 21, 22.— Disputes con- cerning the Episcopal Seat, and the Title of Bath and Wells given to this Bishopric, 22. — Bishops Fitz-Joceline and Savaric, 23, 24. — Joceline de Welles, 24. — Bishop Roger, 25. — Priors of Bath, 25 — 29. — Dissolution of the Monastery, 29. — Learned Monks of Bath, 29, 30. — Weaving Business, 30. — Ecclesiastical Persecution, 30. — Grants of the Monastic Property by Henry VIII. and Edward VI. 30, 31. CHAPTER III. Erection of the present Church, 32. — Account of Bishop Oliver King, and Uncertainty of his Burial-place, 32. — His Vision, and consequent Foundation of this Fabric, 33 — 35. — His Injunctions to Prior Birde, 35. — Progress of the Building, 35, 36. — Poetical Account of Prior Holleweye, 36. — Successive Masters of the Works, 37, note. — State of the Abbey Church in Queen Elizabeth's Reign, 37. — Given to the Corporation, 39. — Repaired' by Chapman, Bellot, and others, 39, 40. — Solicitude of Sir John Harington to complete it, 41 — 44. — Bishop Montague induced to continue the Work, 44. — Improvements recently made, 44 — 46. — Discovery of Roman Baths under the Abbey House, 46. — Ditto of Monastic Vestments, 47. — Arms in the Monks' Parlour, 47, 48. CHAPTER IV. Situation and General Features of the City of Bath, 48.— Architectural Description of the Abbey Church, with reference to the accompanying Prints, 50 — 67. b VI CONTENTS. Plate page I. Ground Plan 50—55 II. Interior : Details of Groining 57 III. Exterior : View of the West Front ib. IV View from the South-east 60 V. View of the East End ib. VI. Interior : Details from different Parts of the Church 61 VII View of the Nave ib. VIII View across the Nave looking South-west ib. IX Elevations of Parts of the Choir, Tower, and Nave 62 X. Title Page : Part of Prior Birde's Chapel 63 State of the Choir, 64. — Reflections on the Sepulchral Memorials in the Abbey Church, 65. — General Remarks on Monumental Incongruities, 66 — 68. — The Custom of Interring the Dead within Churches reprehended, 67. CHAPTER V. An Essay on the Origin and Characteristics of Epitaphs, with Examples of various Classes from the Abbey Church of Bath, 68 — Epitaphs in Latin Verse, 72. — Ditto in English Verse, 72, 73. — Ditto in Latin Prose, 78. — Ditto in English Prose, &c. 82. CHAPTER VI. Biographical Anecdotes of the most distinguished Persons interred in the Abbey Church — (Vide Index for the names) — 84 — 137. Num. APPENDIX. I. Grant of Bath Abbey to Bishop John de Villula, by King WilliamRufus 138 II. Grant of the City of Bath to the same Bishop, by King William Rufus 139 III. Letter of Bishop Drokensford ib. IV. Injunctions of Bishop King 140 V. Certaine Remembrances, &c. touching the Reparation of the Church of St. Peter and Paul in the Cittie of Bathe, since the maine Ruins of the same 141 List of distinguished Persons, &c 148 Index 152 Anecdotes of Bath 155 ADDRESS. Nearly the whole of this volume was printed and ready for publication in August last, when a fire at the office of the printer consumed the entire Impression, and the author has been obliged to have the Work reprinted, which has consequently delayed its appearance. This interval has not, however, been neglected by him, nor has the Work suffered, either in style or matter, by the delay : for the author has revisited Bath Abbey, and endeavoured to render the volume more correct, not only by his own re-examination and investigation, but by the suggestions of friends, to whom he has submitted a copy that was saved from the flames. January 1825. A PREFACE, Besides serving to explain the origin and object of the Work to which it is attached, is also intended to propitiate the professed and discri- minating Critic, — whose passport is fame, or whose censure is con- demnation. It likewise enables the writer to render due acknowledg- ments for favours, and thus record the names of those persons who have contributed to mitigate the labour of investigation, and enlighten the public by imparting useful facts. Perhaps there is no branch of literature in which an author has so much occasion for co-operation — for friendly assistance — for the aid of intelligent correspondents — as that devoted to Topography and Antiquity; for there is none that involves more varied, extensive, and dissimilar subjects, for inquiry and elucidation. Almost every department of art and science, as well as of history, biography, statistics, &c, are, or ought to be, familiar to the antiquary ; for without such attainments he can never do justice to the manifold subjects that come under his review. Devoted to this department of literature, and that zealously and actively, for the last twenty-five years, the author has had frequent and mortifying occasions to witness the deficiencies of some of his predecessors and contempo- raries ; and has endeavoured to avoid their defects, but to profit by their best writings, in his own literary works. His aim has been to exemplify the motto in the title-page, being fully convinced that an antient Cathedral presents an interesting and commanding subject for history and for dis- quisition. It is a monument of Art and Science, — an imposing record of the customs, manners, and taste of our ancestors; — it fastens on the eye and fancy by the most powerful appeal; it shews what our fore- fathers were, what they did, and how they operated; — it serves at once to make us wise and humble, as it induces us to emulate their merits and to question our own. As an object of beauty, of curiosity, and of a remote age, — as venerable in its economy and sacred rites, — and as PREFACE. IX dedicated to the most sublime purposes, — it may be safely said that no work of man is to be compared with the grand antient Christian Church ; its aggregate effect excites astonishment ; its details afford pleasure. Unlike the gigantic, and in some respects appalling ex- cavations of India; and equally unlike the heathenish and heavy Temples of Greece and Italy, the Churches, miscalled Gothic, are light, comparatively cheerful, replete with beauty, and abound in picturesque variety: —contemplated in a pristine and a perfect state, they awaken admiration, and afford permanent delight. In their varied stages of ruin, they awaken the mingled sentiments of pleasure and melancholy. The casual observer, however, notices them merely as masses of Masonry and Sculpture ; but the philosophical and scientific antiquary analyses their design and execution, and thence endeavours to appreciate the charac- teristics of the age, and of the artists, when and by whom they were raised. In their chronological history they clearly shew that Genius and Imagination were unrestrained on those subjects at the respective ages of their erection; and that the result was a progressive improve- ment, and a regular advancement in the principles of beauty and taste ; from the middle of the eleventh to the middle of the fifteenth centuries this is evinced, but the dissolution of monasteries in England effected, among other revolutions, a vast change and degradation of our national architecture. Bath Abbey Church is mostly of a protestant age, although its design is monastic. Hence, we clearly perceive in its execution and detail, a palpable contrast to the splendid and gorgeous Chapels of King's College at Cambridge, and Henry the Seventh's at Westminster ; both the works of Catholic devotees, and raised under the influence of their domination. This Church is one of the latest examples of English Ecclesiastical Architecture ; it having been founded but a very few years previously to the Dissolution, and not completed till the reign of James the First. Its general plan accords with that of most of our Cathedral Churches ; but there are many peculiarities in its arrangement and details which distinguish it from those Buildings, and render it particularly deserving X PREFACE. of graphic and descriptive illustration. The circumstances which led to its erection are extremely curious : — The mystic Vision of Bishop King did not, like Shakspeare's " insubstantial pageant faded," resolve itself into " thin air," without leaving " a rack" behind ; for the whole Church furnishes a signal proof of the powerful impression which the good Prelate's Dream had made upon his mind. But it is not alone the singular circumstances which are associated with its modern history that give celebrity to this edifice ; it derives additional importance from its connexion with a very antient Monastic Establishment, honoured in the Norman Age by being converted into a Seat of Episcopacy, and re- markable during many subsequent centuries for its extent, influence, and splendour. By referring to original sources for information, the Author has been enabled to collect and embody such a variety of interesting and curious facts respecting this Building, as will probably both surprise and gratify those who are most conversant with the published works on the same subject. On another account, also, this Church is de- serving of consideration ; for within it have been interred many persons of talent and superior attainments. Of the most eminent of those so gifted, succinct Biographical Memoirs are given ; and the best of the Sepulchral Inscriptions which crowd the walls are incorporated in, and form the elucidations of, an Essay on the various Styles and Classes of Epitaphs, by the late Rev. J. J. Conybeare. The mention of this highly-gifted, amiable, and accomplished man and scholar, recalls the author to the origin of this work, to his acquaint- ance with that gentleman, and to other associations belonging to its pro- gress and execution. Connected with, and attached to Bath, for more than thirty years, he was attracted by its Abbey Church before he had seen any Cathedral, except that of the metropolis, and after having been accidentally induced to study, and consequently admire, the Architectural Antiquities of England, he employed an artist to make Drawings of the former building. Having published an historical and illustrated work on the famed church of Redcliffe, at Bristol, he was tempted to under- take a corresponding volume on the Abbey Church of Bath. This PREFACE. XI has been preparing for more than ten years, and is at length respect- fully submitted to the public. Though thus long in progress, it is proper to observe, that the whole of the literary part, excepting Mr. Conybeare's essay, has been written during the year 1824; and its appearance at this time is chiefly owing to the valuable assistance the author has experienced from his old friend and early topographical associate, Mr. Brayley*. Progressively, almost incessantly, engaged in public and private offices and duties, the author has lately found them trespass on his literary pursuits, engross nearly every moment of his time, injure his health, and abstract him from much of that friendly intercourse, as well as those delightful associations with art, and popular literature, which constitute the most permanent pleasures of human * In the year 1799, this gentleman and the author commenced the Beauties of England and Wales, vainly fancying to complete such a work in six volumes, octavo. It imper- ceptibly extended to twenty-five volumes; thirteen of which were jointly and separately written by Messrs. Brayley and Britton, and were the result of extensive travelling, cor- respondence, and investigation. The other volumes were beyond their control ; and for any defects in them they cannot be deemed responsible. Knowing that the county of Somerset has been very imperfectly treated in that work, the author is induced to make this statement to exonerate the original authors, who have been deeply engaged in various literary works from that time to the present. A list of the principal of his own will be found at the end of this volume ; and he cannot think it irrelevant to notice the following, written by Mr. Brayley, viz. : — 1 . " The History and Antiquities of the Abbey Church of St. Peter, Westminster ; including Notices and Biographical Memoirs of the Abbots and Deans of that Founda- tion," &c. : illustrated by 61 engravings, from drawings by J. P. Neale, 2 vols, folio and quarto. 2. Descriptions to accompany a Series of Views in Islington and Pentonville ; from original drawings, by Augustus Pugin, 4to. 1818. 3. Lambeth Palace, illustrated by a Series of Views, representing its most interesting Antiquities in Buildings, Portraits, Stained Glass, &c, in conjunction with W. Herbert ; imperial and royal quarto. 4. Popular Pastimes ; quarto and octavo. 5. The History of the Isle of Thanet, 2 vols, small octavo. He also published " The Works of the late Edward Dayes ;" the topographical part of which has just reappeared from the press of Messrs. Nichols and Son, intituled, "A Picturesque Tour through the principal Parts of Yorkshire and Derbyshire;" royal octavo, 1825: 2d edition. Xll PREFACE. life. All the engagements made for literary works *, he pledges himself, shall, if health permit, be scrupulously and conscientiously fulfilled ; and then he hopes to retreat from the endless solicitudes which accompany the many pleasures belonging to " the life of an author." At the time of concluding this volume, he has finished another, which had suffered in the same conflagration, relating chiefly to the Topography of North Wiltshire, in which the ancient monasteries of Malmesbury and Lacock, and the still more ancient monument at Avebury, are fully described. The latter work, in its original state, must certainly have been the most curious, and most stupendous of any in Britain. The various notes of reference, which will be found in this volume, shew that it has not been hastily nor credulously written: for every work herein quoted and referred to, has been carefully examined and compared. In addition to which the author has been favoured by cor- rective remarks, or information, from the following persons, to whom he now offers very grateful acknowledgments : — Sir Benjamin Hob- house, Bart. ; Doctors Parry and Sherwin; the Rev. Joseph Hun- ter; the Rev. R. Warner; Messrs. Braham, Wiltshire, Goodridge, Davies, Barratt, Crutwell, Upham, Godwin, Windsor, Collins, and Mrs. Thomas. It is scarcely necessary to name the late Rev. J. J. Conybeare and Mr. W. Meyler; for the personal kindness and literary assistance of the former gentleman, are demonstrated in this volume ; and it is but justice to the memory of the latter to say that he was uni- formly intelligent, communicative, and kindly disposed towards the author upon many occasions, as he was to most literary persons who had the pleasure of being once introduced to him. J. BRITTON, July 29, 1824. Burton Street, London. Revised, January 15, 1825. # The following are in different stages of progress: — Histories of the Cathedrals of Exeter and Peterborough — a Chronological History, &c. of Antient Ecclesiastical Architecture — a Dictionary of Architectural Terms of the Middle Ages — a History and Illustration of Antient Stone Crosses. THE HISTORY BATH ABBEY CHURCH. CHAPTER I. ORIGIN OF BATH FABULOUS ACCOUNT OF ITS ANTIQUITY AND MAGNIFICENCE LEGEND OF BLADUD AND HIS SWINE DISCOVERY OF THE HOT SPRINGS BRITISH HISTORY OF BLADUD ETYMOLOGY OF THE NAME OF BATH ROMAN OCCUPATION OF THAT CITY — PARTICULARS OF THE TEMPLE OF MINERVA, ITS SITE AND REMAINS APOLOGY. Tradition has ascribed the origin of the City of Bath to the dis- covery of its salubrious waters by Bladud, the son of Lud-Hudibras, a British king ; who, according to the " British History," translated by Geoffrey of Monmouth, reigned between seven and eight centuries before the Christian era. But although that History has assigned the founding-of the city to Bladud, it makes no mention of his pigs, through which, according to other authorities, he attained a knowledge of the sanative virtues of its springs ! — The whole circumstances, indeed, connected with this portion of Bladud's story, are so romantic, that they can be classed only among the wildest fictions of an uncivilised age. It is a subject much to be regretted, that the love of the marvellous should, even in minds above the vulgar, be sometimes so predominant, as to betray its unreflecting votaries into a full belief in legendary absurdities, however improbable in themselves, or however opposed to rational deduc- tions from authenticated history. In remote ages of the world, when learn- ing was confined to a few persons, superstition and ignorance would neces- B 2 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. sarily retard the spread of knowledge, and render the mind weak and cre- dulous ; but in more enlightened times, we cannot but wonder at the cre- dulity of those whose education and station in life ought to keep them far above giving credence to vague and popular traditions, when unsupported by historical testimony. These remarks will not appear misplaced, when reference is made to the legend of Bladud and his pigs, and to that extensive credit which it has received, not only from the populace, but also from corporate bodies, and from writers of scientific pursuits and general erudition. Dr. Jones, a Phy- sician, who published his " Bathes of Bathes Ayde," in the time of Queen Elizabeth, about 1572, and Wood, an Architect, in his " Description of Bath," printed in the early part of the reign of George the Third, may be especially enumerated in the latter class. So fully, indeed, was Dr. Jones convinced of the truth of Bladud's history, that he has traced his genealogy up to Adam ! — and Wood, whose strong passion for British Archaeology induced him to refer every thing in which antiquity was concerned to Druid- ism, has given such a particular account of Bladud's life and acquirements as might lead one to imagine, that he had himself been honoured with his friendship ! It may not be uninteresting to insert a few extracts from his Preface, in order to shew the credulous weakness of his understanding on antiquarian subjects. From the ' circumstances which he has collected,' he says — " Bladud, the British Prince, ninth King of our island, in the time of Brute, appears to have been a great prophet, and the most eminent philosopher of all anti- quity. He was the renowned Hyperborean high priest of Apollo, that shined in Greece at the very time Pythagoras flourished ; and among the Grecians he bore the names of Aithrobates and Abaris — names implying the exalted ideas which that learned race of people had of his great abilities." — " To this famous prince, priest, and prophet," he continues, " the city of Bath owes her original : an original so illustrious that no city upon earth can boast of a greater, since with it the Druids of the western world seem manifestly to have taken their rise. Bath was not only the summer seat of Apollo himself, but the place where the British Druids worshipped that god with greater pomp and ceremony than he appears to have been ever honoured [with] in any other part of the world. *' The chief seat of Apollo must of course become the chief seat of his LEGEND OF BLADUD. 3 priests ; and upon that consideration, no pains have been wanting to collect such things as are necessary to prove the city of Bath to have been the metropolitan seat of the British Druids; whose University having been founded by King Bladud, the building still so far exists, within eight miles of our hot fountains, as to prove the work to have been a stupendous figure of the Pythagorean system of the planetary world. It is a monument that Egypt herself might boast of amidst her proudest structures ; and it is a monument that confirms what Caesar says of the Druids in respect to their astronomical learning*." Another extract from these " archaeological visions," as they have been justly styled, will prove what extravagant ideas have been current respecting the original foundation and extent of this city. " Bath, like Alexandria, was founded for the capital seat of a famous King ; and seems to have consisted, from the very first, of three principal parts, whose centres were widely detached from one another. The most material part of the three lay imme- diately round about the hot springs : the next in degree stood eight miles westward from them, at a place now called Stanton-drue ; and the third lay ten computed miles south of the second, and fifteen of the same miles southward of the hot fountains, at a place now bearing the name of Okey: so that the centres of the three principal parts of the city formed the angles of a triangle whose base line extended fifteen computed miles in length ; its shorter side eight of the same miles ; and its longer side ten of the like miles : and therefore, the magnitude of this city, in its ancient state, could not have been less, in respect to the land of its whole area, than that of Babylon when Cyrus took it. Now, if the city had been originally surrounded with a wall, Bath, in respect to her private buildings, had appeared at this day what Babylon herself once wasf." The substance of the legend relating to the discovery of the Bath waters by Bladud, as delivered by traditionary fabulists, is this : — Bladud, when a young man, being afflicted with leprosy, was banished by Lud-Hudibras, his father, from the British court. Before his departure the * The monument referred to, in the above extract, is the Bruidkal Temple at Stanton Drew ; which, whatever it might have been originally, is now reduced to a few detached, upright, and fallen blocks of stone. See account of it in Saver's " Memoirs, &c. of Bristol," 4to. vol. i. t " Description of Bath," chap. iv. p. 41. 4 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Queen gave him a ring, and enjoined him to preserve it, as a token by which he might be recognised, should his disease be ever cured. Soon after his exile, the Prince exchanged clothes with a poor shepherd, and became the servant of a Swineherd, who resided near the present Keynsham. But mis- fortune still pursuing him, the pigs entrusted to his care caught the leprosy ; and Bladud, to keep this disaster from his master's knowledge, drove them beyond the Avon, which he crossed at Swinesford. Whilst addressing the morning sun, and soliciting for a mitigation of Heaven's wrath, his swine, as though seized with frenzy, ran wildly up the valley, and plunged into the warm and oozy bog, which at that time covered the spot where the sana- tive springs of Bath emerge from their boiling fountains. From this place Bladud was unable to get them away, until excessive hunger, and the power- ful attraction of a bag of acorns, which he shook before them, overcame their obstinacy. Having fixed on a convenient place, the anxious Prince made distinct crues, or pens, for all his swine, concluding that by keeping them separate and clean, the infection would be the sooner eradicated : and he observed, though without adverting to the cause, that some of the herd, on being washed from the filth of the bog, had already shed their leprous scales. Shortly afterwards, he lost one of his best sows ; but after a week's diligent search he accidentally discovered it, wallowing, with apparent gratification, amidst the hot mire about the springs. On washing her, it appeared that every trace of the distemper was removed ! — The result may be readily guessed. Bladud quickly recovered his health, by plunging night and morning into the sedge and balmy waters ; and his pigs were equally fortunate. He then delivered up his charge to the Swineherd, and returned to court, where he soon found an opportunity, whilst his parents were dining in public, of putting his ring into a glass of wine intended for the Queen ; who, on perceiving the precious token, ex- claimed in rapturous accents, " Where is Bladud, my child ?" The Prince, making his way through the crowd, prostrated himself at her feet, and was presently known and acknowledged as the heir apparent to the crown. He could not, however, be prevailed upon to disclose by what means, or where, he had obtained his cure. When the rejoicings for his recovery were over, Bladud went into Greece ; and fixing on Athens for the chief place of his abode, he continued eleven BRITISH HISTORY OF BLADUD. 5 years abroad, studying philosophy, necromancy, and mathematics. After his return to Britain, and the decease of his father, he ascended the throne, and immediately began to construct cisterns, or baths, about the hot springs which had so miraculously contributed to his cure : he also built a palace near the baths, and founded a city there, to which he removed with his whole court ; and which, under the appellation of Caer-bren, became the principal seat of the British kings. — Such is the legendary origin of Bath ; but as the story of Bladud admits of some amusing additions, a few passages are here inserted from Thompson's translation of Monmouth's " British History;" — Book 11, p. 45*. On the decease of Lud-Hudibras, " his son Bladud succeeded, and reigned twenty years. He built Kaerbadus, now Bath, and made hot baths in it for the benefit of the Public ; which he dedicated to the goddess Minerva, in whose temple he kept fires that never went out, nor consumed to ashes, but as soon as they began to decay, were turned into balls of stone f- About this time the prophet Elias prayed that it might not rain for three years and six months. This prince was a very ingenious man, and taught necromancy in his kingdom ; nor left off pursuing his magical operations till he attempted to fly to the upper region of the ah% with wings he had prepared, and fell down upon the temple of Apollo, in the city of Trinovantum, where he was dashed to pieces." In the rhyming history of " Unfortunate Princes," written by Boccace, * The translator, in his Preface, argues very strongly in support of the truth of the original history, as well as of the fidelity of Geoffrey of Monmouth, who first translated it into Latin. Geoffrey's veracity, also, has been ably vindicated by the late Mr. Ellis, in his " Specimens, &c. of English Metrical Romances ;" and the Rev. P. Roberts, A.M. has given a new translation of the " British Chronicle " from the " Brut Tysilio," collated with some ancient Welch MSS. Geoffrey was deficient in the latinizing of Welsh names, although in the original copies they exist in a regular and intelligible form. Hence Rhun Paladr-fras (Rhun of the thick shaft) has been cor- rupted into Lud-Hudibras ; and Blaiddyd his son, into Bladud. The passage relating to Bath, in Roberts's translation, is as follows :— " He (Bladud) built Caervaddon, and formed there a warm unguent to be a perpetual remedy for the diseased. Moreover, by sacrificing to the enchantress called Minerva, he kindled an inextinguishable fire there : which, when it appeared to burn out, rekindled in balls of fire." In a note to this passage, the author states, that in other copies the word Dewines, or enchantress, is Duwies, a. goddess. f It is a curious fact, that every thing relating to Minerva in the above extract is derived from a passage in Solinus, a Roman author who lived about the middle of the third century after Christ, and whose testimony will be more particularly referred to in a succeeding page. 6 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. who lived about 1450, and translated by Dan Lidgate, Bladud is made to speak thus : — " Some say, I made the holesom Baths at Bath, And made, therefor, two burning tuns of brass ; And other twain, seven kinds of salts that have In them inclos'd ; but these be made of glass ; With sulphur fill'd, wild-fire emixt there was : And in four wells these tuns, so placed, heat, for aye, The water springing up before it pass away. — " I must confess, by learned skill I found These native wells, whence springs that help for men : But well thou know'st, there runs from under ground Springs sweet, salt, cold, and hot, even now as then, From rock, saltpetre, alum, gravel, fen ; From sulphur, iron, lead, gold, silver, brass, and tin, Each fountain takes the force of vein it coucheth in. The city eke of Bathe I founded there, Renowned far by reason of the Wells : And many monuments that ancient were, I placed there, thou know'st the story tells ;" &c. Camden briefly passes over the legend of Bladud ; but his words are sufficiently pointed to evince how very little credit he considered it to deserve. " The discovery," he says, " of these baths, our fabulous history refers to the British King Bleyden Cloyth, that is, Bleyden the Magician, with what probability let others determine. Pliny tells us, the ancient Britons practised magic with so many ceremonies, that they may seem to have taught it to the Persians; but I dare not refer these baths to magic power*." In Warner's " History of Bath," p. 11, it is stated inadvertently, that " the story of Bladud and his swine was firmly believed for some centuries, and is attested in the works of almost all our early historians" Unfortunately for our Bath Historian no mention of Bladud's pigs has been made by any early writer of established authority, without adverting to the absurdity of * Gough's Edit, of the "Britannia," vol. i. 1789. TOM coriat's bladud. 7 the legend ; and not three of our ancient chroniclers can be named who have mentioned it at all*. Bath, according to Camden, was called by the Britons Yr Ennaint Twymin, which H. Lloydf has corrected into Caer yn nant Twymin, or the City in the warm Vale; but no antiquities whatever, that can with propriety be referred to that nation, have ever been found in this place. On the con- trary, all the ancient remains which, in different ages, have been discovered here, are of Roman workmanship ; and its coins, altars, sculptures, baths, sudatories, masonry, and inscriptions, all attest its long-continued occupation by the Romans. Its appellations of T^ara S-e^a, Aqua Calidai, or warm waters, and Aquce Solis, by which it is first mentioned in authentic history, prove it, equally, to have been of Roman origin; and, from the known * The legend of Bladud was formerly inscribed in " a great Table," which was long affixed against the wall in the King's Bath, but which was removed in the time of Charles the Second, in consequence of the keen satire of the witty but profligate Rochester, who is said to have made the citizens ashamed of their credulous belief. Tom Coriat, the celebrated peripatetic, (that is, if Guidott, in this instance, has not assumed his name, (see the " Appendix" to his Treatises concerning Bath,) has very whimsically paraphrased Bladud's story in the following lines, written in the " Zomerzetzhire" dialect. Lud Hudibrass, a meazel voule, did zend his zun a graezing, Who vortuend hither vor to cum, and geed his pigs zum peazun ; Poor Bladud he was mangee grown, his dad, which zum call vather, Zet Bladud pig, and pig Bladud, and zo they ved together. Then Bladud did the pigs invect, who, grunting, ran away, And vound whot waters presently, which made 'em vresb and gay. Bladud was not so grote a vool, but zeeing what pig did doe, He beath'd and wash'd, and rins'd and beath'd, from noddle down to toe. Bladud was now (gramercy pig !) a delicate vine boy ; So whome he trudges to his dad, to be his only joy : And then he built this gawdy Town, and sheer'd his beard spade-ways, Which voke accounted then a grace, though not so now-a-days. Thwo thowzand and vive hundred years, and thirty-vive to that, Zince Bladud's zwine did looze their greaze, which we moderns cal vat. About that time, it was alzo, that Ahob's zuns were hang'd ; A Jezabel, their mam (curz'd deel !) caus'd Naboth to be stone-bang'd. Chee cud zay more, but cham aveard voke will account this vable — O, Invidles ! if ye woon not me, yet chee pray believe the Table. t Fragm. " Descr. Brit.," p. 16. 8vo. 8 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. partiality of the Romans for warm bathing*, and from the style and execution of the architectural fragments which have been dug up in this city, there can be little doubt but that it was one of their principal settlements in the west. Ptolemy, who, in his Geography, has recorded its latitude and longitude under the first of the above names, has merely noticed it as one of the principal towns of the Belgae ; both Antoninus and Richard of Cirencester mention it in their respective Itineraries, under the name of Aqua Solis. At what particular time the Romans established their residence here is uncertain ; but there is every probability that it was as early as the reign of Nero (circa A.D. 50) ; : as a great number of Roman copper and brass coins were found of that emperor and his successors, Trajan, Adrian, and the Antonines, on digging the foundations for the New Hot Bath and other works, about the year 1776. A coin of Vespasian has also been found here ; as well as other coins of different emperors down to Valentinian the Second, who reigned in A.D. 375 f. There is a passage in SolinusJ, in which, though speaking of Britain generally, he must be understood as especially referring to this city, except in respect to the rivers; his words are these: — " In quo spatio magna et multa flumina sunt, fontesque calidi opiparo exculpti apparatu ad usus mor- talium ; quibus fontibus praesul est Minervae numen, in cujus sede perpetui ignes numquam canescunt in favillas, sed, ubi ignis tabuit, vertitur in globos saxeos." — In this very curious extract we see the origin of that notice of the temple of Minerva and its perpetual fires, which is found in the story of Bladud ; but, however remarkable in this respect, it is still far more so, from the information it affords in regard to this city in the Roman times. We learn from it that the Romans had not only formed the hot springs into elegant baths for general utility and accommodation, but likewise that they had erected a temple near the spot, in honour of the goddess Minerva, whom they considered as the presiding deity over the springs, and on whose altar, as in the temple of Vesta at Rome, a fire was perpetually burning. With these particulars is connected the singular intimation, that the fires on * Boadicea, in her address to the goddess Andraste, when on the eve of battle, reproaches the Romans for their effeminacy and luxurious habits; and particularly for their custom of bathing in warm waters. Vide Dio. 1. xii. 6. f See Guidott's " Treatises relating to Bath," chap. ix. X Vide " Poly-histor." cap. xxv. TEMPLE OF MINERVA. 9 Minerva's altar were kept burning with fossil coal; as intimated by these words of Solinus, " the perpetual fires never wither into ashes, but when the fire is deadened, it (the fuel) turns into stone balls." The late Rev. John Whitaker, who in his review of Warner's " History of Bath *," has taken uncommon pains to investigate the Roman antiqui- ties of this city, and more particularly, as to every circumstance and remain which may be supposed to relate to the temple of Minerva, states that a species of coal of a slack or powdery kind, is dug up at Newton, about three miles from Bath, which has the property of caking or soldering into hard masses ; and he thence infers, that the Newton coal was employed by the Romans to support their perennial fires, heref. An opinion has been very generally entertained, that the present Abbey Church at Bath stands on the site of the ancient temple here spoken of; and this opinion may be distinctly traced to Camden's time. Dr. Stukeley, in the year 1724, says, " The Cathedral is a beautiful pile : here they sup- pose (with probability) stood the Roman temple of Minerva, patroness of the baths J." Dr. Guidott, in 1676, speaking of Bath, says: — " There is a tradition that there was formerly a temple dedicated to Minerva, where now the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, commonly called the Abbey Church, stands ||." Camden says, " Report tells us there anciently existed a temple sacred to Minerva, where now the Cathedral Church is § :" and by reciting this without reproof, he implies its probability. Notwithstanding the respectable tenour of these authorities, there is reason to believe, from the arguments adduced by Whitaker, that the tradition was an erroneous one, however extensively the lapse of time had contributed to its strength and prevalence. The temple, this critic affirms, after an atten- tive examination of the numerous antiquities which have been discovered on and near the spot, " actually stood upon the western half of the present Pump-room, ranging along the eastern side of Stall-street;" and he pro- ceeds to shew that it was converted into a Christian church, and under * Vide " Anti-Jacobin Review," vol. x. anno 1801. t Ibid. pp. 232, 233. This passage in Solinus, says Whitaker, " gives us the very first intimation in all the Roman history, even the only intimation in the whole history of Britain, concerning the Roman use of fossil coals in Britain." | " Itinerarium Curiosum," vol. i. p. 1 16. || " Briefe Discourse," p. 8. edit. 1659. § " Britannia," vol. i. p. 61. edit. 1789. c 10 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. the appellation of St. Mary de Stalls — " the niches in that, namely, the Temple, being denominated stalls in this" — was in part remaining, though ruinous, at so late a period as the end of the sixteenth century. This latter conclusion is substantiated by a Leiger-book of Bath Abbey, now in the possession of the Marquis of Bath, wherein are the following entries : — " Hie jacet Alexander de Alneto, et Erneburva uxor ejus et Eulius de Alneto filius eoru, et Lucia de Marissis filia eoru, et Jordanus de Marissis filius ejusdem Lucie, et Willelmus de Marissis filius ejusdem Jordani." " Est istud epitaphiu sculptu a dextra in ostio ruinosi templi quonda Minerve dedicati et adhuc in loco dicto sese studiosis offerens. 1582. 7° Decemb. In Civit. Bathon.*" Since the date mentioned in the latter paragraph, the Church of Stalls has been utterly desecrated ; and with it, as a building, every vestige of the ruined temple of Minerva. Among the antiquities, however, still preserved in Bath, are various sculptural remnants, which were connected with the fane of that goddess. The Gorgon shield for the portico of her temple is, for the most part, remaining, together with different fragments of the entabla- ture f. There is, also, the head of a female in bronze, which Whitaker, with much probability, conceives to be that of Minerva herself, and to have belonged to her statue within the temple : an altar to Sulinis Minerva, that is, the Solar Minerva, or Minerva Medica ; and a sepulchral cippus in memory of Caius Calpurnius, the " received priest" of the goddess. To pursue the early history of Bath to a greater extent, is foreign to the design of this work ; and perhaps some apology may be requisite for having entered so fully both into the legendary and the rational account of its origin, as has been done in these pages. But as the subject is curious in itself, and as it has never hitherto been placed in that distinct point of view, of which it appeared to be susceptible, it is hoped that this attempt to extinguish the ignis-fatuus of tradition, and throw a clear light on the foundation of so distinguished a city, will receive the approbation of the candid reader. * Vide Warner's " History of Bath," Appendix, p. 48. f See Lysons' " Remains of two Temples, and other Roman Antiquities discovered at Bath," plate iv. In plate v. of the same work, the portico is represented as restored from existing fragments. CHAPTER II. BATH UNDER THE SAXONS FOUNDATION OF A NUNNERY, AND EARLY HISTORY OF THE ABBEY CHURCH EXPULSION OF THE SECULAR CLERGY ACCOUNT OF ABBOT ELPHEGUS SUCCESSION OF THE ABBOTS CORONATION OF KING EDGAR SAINTLY RELIQUES — THE CITY AND ITS APPURTENANCES GRANTED TO THE ABBEY CHURCH ACCOUNT OF BISHOP JOHN DE VILLULA REMOVAL OF THE EPISCOPAL RESIDENCE TO BATH BISHOP JOHN'S MUNIFICENCE AND GIFTS DISPUTES CONCERNING THE EPISCOPAL SEAT THE TITLE OF BATH AND WELLS GIVEN TO THIS BISHOPRIC ACCOUNT OF THE BISHOPS FITZ* JOCELINE AND SAVARIC ALSO OF JOCELINE DE WELLES, AND BISHOP ROGER SUCCESSIVE PRIORS OF BATH DISSOLUTION OF THE MONASTERY LEARNED MONKS OF BATH INTRODUCTION OF THE WEAVING BUSINESS GRANTS OF THE MONASTIC PROPERTY BY HENRY VIII. AND EDWARD VI. The distractions of the Roman Empire occasioned the Romans to withdraw their troops from this Island at the commencement of the fifth century ; and as the flower of the British youth had already been abstracted to recruit the armies of Rome, the Scots and Picts embraced the opportunity to extend their incursions into Britain, and to plunder and destroy its defenceless natives with unrelenting ferocity. In a moment of despair the British chief- tains invited the Saxons to their aid ; but those treacherous allies seized on the country they had undertaken to defend, and after many arduous conflicts, effectually succeeded in establishing their dominion here. Before, however, they obtained possession of Bath, the Saxon hordes are stated to have been twice defeated, with immense slaughter, on Mons Badonicus, perhaps Bannerdown, in its immediate vicinity, by the British King Arthur, in the years 493 and 520. They proved victorious, however, in 577, when their chiefs Cuthwin, and Ceawlin King of "Wessex, defeated the British kings Commail, Condida, and Farinmail, at Dyrham, about eight miles distant, and took the three cities of Ba)an ceaj-cep, Cirencester, and Gloucester*. * " Saxon Chron." p. 26. Ingram's edit, anno 1823. 12 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Under the sway of the Saxons, Bath received the appropriate names of Hat Bathun, or Bathum, and Acemannes-cestre, or the Sick Man's City; by these appellations, and their derivatives, Balnea, Badonia, Badonessa, Bathonia, Acamanni, Achamanni, and Achumanensi, it is subsequently designated in the Saxon and Monkish chronicles. After the subjugation of this city by the Saxons, Osric, King or Sub- regulus of the Huiccii, or Wicci, with the consent of Kentwin, King of Wessex, founded a Nunnery at Bath in the year 676*. To Bertana the first abbess, he granted one hundred tenants adjacent to the place, for the purpose of raising a monastery for holy virgins -f. To Bernguida, the second abbess, forty ' manentes,' or tenants, in Scepi, were granted by Vighardus, with the consent of Wlpher king of MerciaJ; and lands were given to the same abbess by " one Ethelmod, a great man, by the leave of King -ZEdelrede||." It is impossible to trace the vicissitudes which this establishment expe- rienced, or to identify the period when it changed its original destination. According to Tanner, the nunnery being destroyed by the Danes, King Offa, about the year 775, is said to have rebuilt the Church of St. Peter, and to have placed secular canons therein §. Leland, from whom this account seems to have been adopted, speaks, in his " Itinerary," with considerable dubiety regarding Offa; his words are — " The Prior of Bath told me that after the Nunnes tyme ther wer Secular Chanons in S. Peter's Chirch at Bath ; para- venture Offa, King of Merches, set them ther; for I have redde that Offa did a notable Act at St. Peter's, in Bath. Or els the Chanons cam yn after that the Danes had racid the Nunry thereby." That the Nunnery was not destroyed by the latter, prior to 775, is evident from the " Saxon Chronicle," which states, that the first appearance of the Danes on the English coast * Leland, " Collectanea," vol. i. p. 80. " Itinerary," vol. ii. fol. 38. f Dugdale's " Monasticon," new edition, vol. ii. p. 264. t Warner's " History of Bath," App. II. || See " Itinerary," ibid. § " Notitia Monastica." IT " Itin." vol. ii. fol. 38. In a preceding passage, Leland says, — " The Book of thantiquite of the Abbay of Bath raakith no great mention of any great notable Doyng of Offa, king of the Merches, at Bathe." It is probable that the Book thus referred to by Leland, is the Manuscript, No. CXI. now preserved in Bibl. Corp. Christ. Coll. at Cambridge ; and from which Warner has printed several grants, &c, in his Appendix to the " History of Bath." BY WHOM FOUNDED. 13 was in 787 ; and their devastations were then confined to the northern parts of Britain. In his " Collectanea," Leland says expressly, that the Church of Bath was founded by OfFa * ; yet there is no such foundation mentioned by Matthew Paris, in his life of that sovereign, nor does Leland refer to any authority for his affirmation. We find, however, from Hemming's " Chartu- lary," that Heathored, Bishop of Worcester, assigned to King OfFa, (who had conquered Wessex, and annexed it to his Mercian dominions,) the monastery of Bath, with thirty cassates of land on the south side of the river Eafen (Avon), in compensation for certain lands belonging to King Ethelbald, which the Bishop had detained |. The monastery thus assigned to OfFa, was, doubt- less, that which Osric had founded ; but whether the nuns had been pre- viously ejected, or were then displaced by the King, to make room for secular canons, it is impossible to ascertain. Camden, after speaking of the nunnery, says, " King OfFa built another church; both were destroyed in the Danish wars." " From their ruins," he adds, " afterwards arose a new Church, dedicated to St. Peter, in which Edgar the Peaceable was crowned J." This passage has given rise to some strong assumptions, although its strict verity is very questionable. Wood has fixed on the year 878, when King Alfred retired to Athelney, for the destruc- tion of the church by the Danes || ; and Warner, more indefinite as to time, but more precise as to circumstances, tells us, that " the splendour of Offa's monastery terminated in the middle of the ninth century, when it fell into the hands of the Danes ; and to the horrible excesses of these savages the monas- tery was exposed, its inmates probably slaughtered, and the building reduced to ruins §." Notwithstanding this particularity, there is no valid historical document by which it can be corroborated ; nor is it certain that the Danes had ever obtained possession of Bath at the period spoken of. Had the whole of Wessex been conquered by them at the time of Alfred's mysterious retirement, this city must of course have submitted to their power, and been exposed to their ravages ; but we know that Wiltshire, Hampshire, and Somer- setshire, are celebrated for their resistance to the Danes, and that the brave * Ecclesia Bathoniensis ab OfFa rege fundata est. — " Collectanea," vol. ii. p. 26. edit. 1774. f Hemming's " Chartulary," pp. 224, 225 ; and " Mon. Ang." vol. i. p. 568 : new edit. J " Britannia," vol. i. p. 62. edit. 1789. " Malmesbury," says Gough, " expressly intimates, that Edgar was crowned in the church built by OfFa." Gest. Pont. ii. 144. c. || " Description of Bath," vol. i. p. 183. § " History of Bath," p. 100. 14 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. inhabitants of those counties composed the army with which Alfred com- pletely defeated the invaders at Edington, in Wiltshire *. King Athelstan, in* 931, ' granted to Almighty God and St. Peter, and the venerable family established in the celebrated place, called by the country people, JEt Bathum, &c, ten manses in Pristan, and five in iEstun, &c, on condition that they should daily offer for him to God, most salutary masses and harmonious modulations of psalms ; and incessantly fight for him with spiritual arms against invisible enemies f.' Leland says that, being in the library at Bath, he saw several books, not unlearned, and very ancient, which were presented by Athelstan, the Anglo-Saxon King, to the monks ; one of which, De Synodis Pontificiis, he removed to the library of Henry VIII. £ In the year 956, King Edwy granted to the monastery of St. Peter, " quod situm est in Bathonia ubi terme amene calidis e fontibus dirivan- tur," thirty mansions (mansas) at Dyddenham, in perpetual fee ; and in the following year he gave ten mansions " at For da," (Bathford) to the same monastery,—" quod in Bathonia mira fabrica constructum cognoscitur." In both grants Wulfgar is named as presiding over this establishment || ; the possessions of which were further increased by different Saxon kings, and particularly by Edgar, in the years 965 and 970. JEscwig is mentioned as abbot in both Edgar's grants ; and St. Peter's church described as being- situated " in urbe Achumanensi," and " cet Hatum Bathum." About this period an important change was effected in the state of this foundation, through the influence of the Papal See, and the active bigotry of Archbishop Dunstan, and the Bishops Oswald, of Worcester, and Ethel- wald, of Winchester. The church of Rome, finding the Monks more com- pletely devoted to its ambitious purposes than the Secular Clergy, exerted the most strenuous efforts to expel the latter from their establishments, and * The invasion of Wessex, the retirement of Alfred, and the final defeat of the Danes, all happened in the year 878 ; and although, previously to their defeat, the Danes were in great force at Chippenham, and ravaged the adjacent country, we have no proof of their having been at Bath : that city was probably fortified against their attacks. In the account of Wiltshire, " Beauties of England," vol. xv. is a review of the opinions and statements of different authors, on the much- disputed site of Alfred's decisive defeat of the Danes at " iEthandune." t Warner's History, App. No. III. Ex Cod. MS. Bibl. C. C. C. Cant. 61. I Fabricii Bibl. Med. ii. 39. The King is said to have been the author of these books, upon the direct authority of William of Malmesbury. Ibid. || Vide Warner's " Hist." App. Nos. IV. and V. Wulfgar was to retain three cottages ibr his own exclusive use out of the estate at Dyddenham. ACCOUNT OF ABBOT ELPHEGE. 15 supply their places by the former. These measures were most zealously supported by King Edgar, at the instigation of the bold and unprincipled Dunstan ; and among the other victims of this crafty policy, were the canons of Bath, who were ejected, according to Tanner and other writers, about the year 970, and a convent of Benedictine monks was introduced in their stead. Elphegus, or Elpkege, a monk of Deerhurst, who was eventually raised to the See of Canterbury, is reputed to have been the first abbot of Bath after the expulsion of the seculars*. He was born at Weston, probably near Bath ; and, according to Gervase of Canterbury, was of a good family. Osbern saysf, that dreading the resistance of his mother to his becoming a monk, he prayed to God to point out his destiny, which being done by Divine means, he relinquished his paternal inheritance, and was professed in the priory of Deerhurst ; but not finding the regimen there strict enough, he became prior of Glastonbury, and thence abbot of Bath ; where he built a house for himself to reside in as an anchoret. The nobility flocked to him for spiritual advice, and loaded him with presents. Many persons, also, took a religious habit under him, whom, when he had completed a very large dwelling, through various benefactions, he placed under a rule of disci- pline; and having appointed a proper superintendent to supply them with food, betook himself to a very small house, whither the monks resorted to him for instructions and orders in all business of consequence. The Golden Legend states, that " he bylded there that fayr abbacy at Bath, and endowed it ; and was himself therein the fyrst abbot and founder J." Elphege succeeded St. Birstan in the bishopric of Wilton, and was translated to Winchester in 984. In 1004, according to Ralph de Diceto, or, as Simeon of Durham says, in 1006, he was advanced to the See of Canterbury. He was massacred by the Danes, at Greenwich, when fifty-nine years old, on the 13th of the kalends of May, 1012 1|. During the government of Elphege, king Edgar was crowned, or, in Saxon * In the two grants made by Edgar, as mentioned above, in 965 and 970, iEscwig is expressly called abbot; but that appellation does not appear, from any former grants, to have been ever before borne by the superior of this establishment. Now, as we know from the Saxon Chronicle, that Edgar expelled the religious from several churches in 965, and replaced them with monks, may it not be assumed, with probability, that he ejected the seculars from Bath at the same period ; and that iEscwig was in reality the first abbot on the new foundation ? t " De Vita S. Elphegi," in " Anglia Sacra," pars ii. X Ed. Jul. Notary, fol. lxxv, [| " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 105. 16 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. phraseology, " hallowed to king*," with much pomp, in Bath church, viz. on Whitsunday, (May 11th,) anno 973. " Mickle bliss," says the Saxon Chro- nicle, " was enjoyed at Bath, on that happy day;" when " a crowd of priests, a throng of monks, in counsel sage, were gathered there -|\" William of Malmesbury, speaking of Edgar, says, — " From the 16th of his years, when he was appointed King, till the 30th, he reigned without the insignia of royalty ; but at that time, the princes and men of every order assembling generally, he was crowned with great pomp at Bath." The same author (in his Gest. Pont. lib. ii. Episc. Wellens.) states, that Edgar, " delighted with the magnificence of the place, as well as because he was crowned there, had enlarged the abbey J." Very little is known of this church from the promotion of Abbot Elphege till after the Norman Invasion ||. Leland, but without specifying any distinct period, says, " Alpharus, Erl of Merch, that was a scurge of Monkes, expellid them for a tyme." In the Domesday Book, Vlward is mentioned as being abbot in Edward the Confessor's reign. His successor was Stigand, a friend and favourite of William the Conqueror, whom he accompanied into Nor- mandy, where Stigand soon after died. Wlfwold and jElfsig next occur, as joint abbots, in a lease of lands and cattle made by the whole convent of Bath to William Hosett, on condition that he should serve in war at the king's summons, and pay the king's tallage §. During the supremacy of iElfsig, or Aldsius, as he is sometimes called, and who died in 1087, several manu- missions were made of Villani, or Villains, belonging to the lands of this * " to cynje gehalgob." " Saxon Chron." by Ingram, p. 158. \ Ibid. p. 159 ; from a sort of ode on the solemnity. In commemoration of that event, and of the favours bestowed by Edgar on the town and monastery, a statue of that King was erected in front of the Guildhall. Leland, in the second volume of bis " Itinerary, p. 39, says that, in his time, the inhabitants continued the custom of electing yearly, on Whitsunday, a King among themselves, in joyful remembrance of Edgar, and that the richest men of the town made it a rule to feast their monarch with all his attendants. From this practice, probably, originated the title of King of Bath, bestowed on Beau Nash and some of his successors in the office of Master of the Ceremonies. X " Monasterium Batoniense rex Offa construxit, quod post rex Edgarus, sicut alia monasteria, reparavit." MS. in Bibl. Cott. Vitell. E. xii. || We learn from the " Saxon Chronicle," that the Danish king Sweyne took possession of Bath in 1013, and that Alderman Ethelmar, and all the western thanes, submitted to him there, and gave him hostages. § " Dug. Mon." vol. ii. p. 265 : new edit. RELICS. 17 monastery*. In his time, also, the Domesday Survey was taken; from which record it appears that this Church, independently of its other posses- sions in Somersetshire and Gloucestershire, had belonging to it, in Bath, twenty-four burgesses, who paid twenty shillings, a mill which produced the like sum, and twelve acres of meadow. The total amount of its revenues in Edward the Confessor's reign, was 47/. 3*. 6d. ; in the Conqueror's time, they had risen to 71/. 13*. Qd. It appears from the Corpus Christi manuscript, that Bath Abbey, about this period, possessed a very abundant collection of Relics — those estimable treasures, by which Catholicism partly upholds her power, and engrafts the very essence of absurd belief on the superstitious minds of her weak votaries. The following articles, with many others, are enumerated in the lists of this " precious" assemblage : — the bones of St. Peter, and part of the garment of our Lord ; the heads of St. Bartholomew, St. Lawrence, and St. Pancras ; the knee of St. Maurice, the Martyr ; the ribs of St. Barnabas ; the arm of St. Simeon ; fragments of St. Margaret, the Virgin ; part of the Holy cross and napkin ; the vest of Christ ; the clean cloth in which our Lord's body was wrapped; the hair and some of the milk of the Virgin Mary; fragments of her dress; part of the pillar to which Christ was bound; part of the cross of St. Andrew ; part of our Lord's sepulchre ; remains of St. John Baptist, and some of his blood ; of the sponge and sandals of Christ ; stone from the fountain at Siloa ; part of the back of St. Samson ; and some of the hair of Mary Magdalene ! According to the " Saxon Chronicle," Bath and all the adjacent country was plundered, in the year 1088, by Gosfrith, Bishop of Coutances, and Robert the Peacebreakerf ; who had joined the conspiracy of Bishop Odo and others, against William Rufus, in support of the claims to the crown made by Robert, Duke of Normandy, his elder brother. Warner states, that the monastery here was f totally burned down," in the insurrection ; yet there * " Dug. Mon." vol. ii. p. 265 : new edit. See also Madoxii Formul. Anglic, p. 416. The original documents, in the Saxon language, are in the Corpus Christi MS. before referred to. These documents throw much light on the servile state of the lower classes at the time when the enfranchisements were granted. Alfsius, or Elsi, abbot of Bath, is noticed by Florence of Worcester as being present at the Synod of London, in 1075 ; he was also present at the Council of London, held in 1082. t Probably Robert de Mowbray, the bishop's nephew. D 18 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. does not appear to be any valid authority to warrant his statement. About that period, however, a great change took place in respect to this establish- ment, which appears to have been seized by the King, in order to grant it, with all its appurtenances, to John de Villula, Bishop of Wells, his chaplain, in augmentation of the See of Somersetshire, and for the purpose of trans- ferring the episcopal seat to Bath*. This Bishop, who was both a native and a priest of Tours, in France, and thence also called Johannes Turonensis, was a physician ; and is conjec- tured by Wharton to have purchased the See of Wells with the profits of his profession; for simoniacal practices had been traced to him in other respects - !". He succeeded Giso' in the above See, anno 1088, in which year the gift of Bath Abbey is, in the register of Wells, said to have been made to him J ; but the charter of William Rufus, by which the abbey was given to Bishop John, bears date on the 6th of the Kalends of Feb. 1090-91 1| . About the same time, by another charter, he granted " to God, and St. Peter in Bath, and to John the Bishop and his successors, the whole of the city of Bath, in free alms, with all its appurtenances, to hold and possess in as free and honourable a manner as he himself held any city in England, together with its mint and all the accustomed rights, both within and without the same, with the toll-money arising as well in the fields as the woods, as well in the market as the meadows and other lands, that with the greater honour he may fix his pontifical seat there §." The Canon of Wells, whose history of the Bishops of this See has been published in the " Anglia Sacra," says that John de Tours, or Villula, purchased the city of Bath from William Rufus and his successors, for 500 marks of silver. He states, too, that that prelate, besides removing the see * William of Malmesbury says, in his " Gest. Pont." lib. ii. Episc. Wellens. — " Cum ver6 ijs successisset Joannes, natione Turonicus, professione medicus, qui non minimum qusestum illo conflaverat artificio, minoris gloria putans si in villa resideret inglorius, transferee thronum in Bathoniam animo intendit. Sed cum id inaniter vivente Willielmo patre seniore cogitasset, tem- pore Willielmi filij effecit." f Wharton's note in " Anglia Sacra," pal's i. p. 559. John de Villula is reported to have prac- tised physic at Bath ; and his effigy is said to have been sculptured in alto-relievo on an ancient stone, now defaced and broken, fixed up in the wall of an ordinary house opposite Walcot church. Vide Warner's " Hist, of Bath," p. 63. % " Anglia Sacra," pars i. 560. || See Appendix to this Volume, No. I. § Ibid. No. II. GRANTS OF HENRY I. 19 from Wells to Bath, transferred also the revenues belonging to the abbatial table of the monastery to his own episcopal table, and caused himself to be called Bishop of Bath*. Ralph de Diceto places the removal of the episcopal seat in the year 109 If ; but Rudborne and Matthew Paris have both assigned it to the year 1092 : Rudborne says, by " bribery to the King;" and Paris, more covertly, though with similar implication, " through anointing the Kings hand with white ointment^." Henry the First, by three different charters, granted in the early part of his reign, confirmed and extended the privileges thus obtained by Bishop John ; and, in addition to the grant of Rufus, gave to that prelate and his successors, " the hidage or Danegeld, hitherto exacted of the borough, after the rate of the twenty hides at which it had been assessed from the reign of Edward the Confessor, together with all pleas and other judicial rights and privileges." He also exempted the monks and their possessions from all civil jurisdiction, except in cases of murder and robbery. Leland says, — " This John pullid down the old Chirch of St. Peter at Bath, and erectid a new [Church], much fairer, and was buried in the middle of the Presbyteri thereof, whos Image I saw lying there an 9. Yere sins, at the which tyme al the Chirch that he made lay to wast, and was onrofid, and wedes grew about this John of Tours sepulchre||." The Canon of Wells and William of Malmesbury both state, that he built the church from the foundations ; and the latter adds, " with a great and elaborate circuit of walls§." He also gives the following character of the Bishop: "John easily obtained the abbey from the King, and at first behaved harshly to the monks, because they were stupid, and, in his opinion, barbarians ; taking away the lands allowed for their subsistence, and only dispensing to them scanty pittances by his own lay servants. Being latterly much altered, he treated the monks with more kindness, and allowed the prior some lands for better support of the society, and hospitality. He began and completed many • " Anglia Sacra," pars i. 560. f Abbrev. " Chron." auctore R. de Diceto, col. 490. X " M.XCII. Eodem anno, Johannes Wellensis praesul, natione Turonicus, consensu Willielmi Regis, albo unguento manibus ejus delibatis, transtulit in Bathoniam, sui cathedram preesulatus." " Hist. Angl." p. 17. a Watts. || " Itinerary," vol. ii. fol. 39. § " Sepultus est in ecclesia S. Petri, quam a fundamentis erexerat magno et elaborato parietii ambitu." " Gest. Pont." lib. ii. Episc. Wellens. 20 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. things nobly in ornaments and books, and filled the abbey with monks eminent for literature and discharge of their duties. According to report, his medical knowledge was founded more upon practice than science. He enjoyed literary society, but indulged in sarcasm more than was fitted to his rank. He was a wealthy man, and of liberal habits ; but could not be induced, even on his death-bed, wholly to restore their lands to the monks*." In the latter assertion, Malmesbury is completely in error, as may be seen by the deed or charter which this Bishop solemnly granted to the monks in the year 1106, in the presence of numerous witnesses. By that instrument, he not only restored to the monks all the lands which they had formerly possessed, but he also gave them several estates, and other pro- perty of various descriptions. The rents, or issues, from the city of Bath, he appropriated to the perfecting of the new work — unquestionably the Church — he had begun : — ■■" ad perficiendum novum opus quod incepi-\." * " De Gest. Pont." lib. ii. Episc. Wellens. t The whole Instrument is curious ; it may be thus translated : — " In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, I, John, by the grace of God, Bishop of Bath, to all Bishops my successors, and to all the sons of the Holy Church, greeting. — Be it known unto you all that for the honour of God and St. Peter, I have laboured, and at length effected, with all decent authority, that the Head and Mother Church of the Bishopric of Somerset shall be in the City of Bath, in the Church of St. Peter ; to which holy apostle, and to the monks his ser- vants, I have restored their lands, which I formerly held unjustly in my own hands, in as free and ample a manner as Aldsius the late abbot held them before me ; and if I have improved them, and whatsoever of mine shall be found thereon, I give to them to their own use and property. I also give them for farther supply of their food and clothing, and to increase the convent of the holy brethren serving God there, and to reimburse the treasury what I took from the Church, those lands which I have acquired by my own travail, or bought with my own money ; — to wit, those five hides in Weston, which I purchased of Patricius de Caurcia ; and the land of Hugh with the Beard, to wit, Claferton, Docne, Mersfield and Eston, together with Herley and Arnemude on the sea-coast, and whatsoever belongs to them ; and one house in Bath, and one other in Winchester : — But as to the city of Bath, which first of all King William, and after him, his brother King Henry, gave to St. Peter for their alms, I have, pursuant to my vows, determined that all issues and profits arising from it be laid out in perfecting the new work I have begun. Besides, what I have acquired of church ornaments, in copes, in palls, in cur- tains, in dorsals, in tapestry, in crucifixes, in robes, in chalices, and in phylacteries ; and whatsoever of my own 1 have added in the episcopal chapel, my whole armoury, my clothes, my bowls, my plate, and all my household furniture, I give to St. Peter and his monks for ever, to their own use and property, for the remission of my sins. Whosoever, therefore, shall infringe on this my gift, may the curse of God, and of his holy apostles and saints, light on him, and GIFTS OF JOHN DE VILLULA, AND OTHERS. 21 The munificence of John de Villula excited other pious devotees to assist in endowing his new foundation. " Walcuinus de Douay gave to God and the Church of St. Peter, and Bishop John and the ministers of the same Church, the church of Bath-Hampton, with half a hide of land, and all the tithes of that manor. By the same charter, Ramarus his brother, and Gerard his steward, conjointly gave to the same grantees, a hide of land called Foxcumbe ; and Gerard separately gave the church of Brocton, with one virgate of land ; to which the wife of Walcuinus, in concert with her sons, added half the tithe of Carey, the church of Brigg, or Bridgwater ; and the wife of Gerard the chaplain, sixty shillings and a missal*." Bishop John erected an episcopal palace on the west side of the monas- tery, of which, in Leland's time, a great square tower and some ruins were remaining. According to Wood, he likewise constructed two new baths within the limits of the monastery, for the public use, calling the one the Bishop's Bath, and the other the Prior's Bath f ; but from the circumstances attending the discovery of the ancient baths, which will be mentioned hereafter, it is probable that the baths alluded to had been originally constructed by the Romans, and that Villula merely altered them. In the " Decern Scriptores," (coll. 247,) this Bishop is said to have died on the day after Christmas-day 1123, having been taken suddenly after dinner with a pain in the heart. In the " Anglia Sacra" he is stated to have died very old, December 29th, 1122 J. Godfrey, a Belgian by birth, who was chaplain and chancellor to the Queen, Adeliza, was presented to the See of Bath, about Easter 1123; he was consecrated on the 26th of August following. In his time, Henry the First granted to this church the valuable manor of Dogmersfield, in Hamp- shire, which afterwards became a summer residence of the Bishops. After a vain attempt to recover the lands and supremacy of the Church of Wells, by the authority of me, though a sinner, let him be accursed, and for ever cut off from the community of the Church. Done A.D. 1106; in the reign of Henry, son of William, Duke of Normandy, and King of England, Anselm being archbishop; of my ordination the 19th, and of the indiction the 12th. And that this my Deed may remain more firm and unshaken, I have with my own hand signed it with the sign of the Holy Cross + ." * Warner's " History of Bath," p. 115, and App. No. XIX. t " Description of Bath," vol. i. p. 186. J Vide Wharton's Note in " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 560. Henry de Huntingdon calls the Bishop simply " Johannes Medicus." Ibid, pars ii. p. 700. 22 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. King Henry, and Roger, Bishop of Sarum, supporting John, Archdeacon of Wells, against him, this prelate died on the 16th of August, 1135, and was buried in his cathedral church*. Robert, a native of Normandy, and a monk of Lewes, whom Henry, Bishop of Winchester, had appointed to the temporary government of St. Swithin's, in that city, was, by the influence of the same prelate, promoted to the vacant See on the death of Godfrey. During his episcopacy, the whole city was destroyed by fire, on the 29th of July, 1137, together, according to Stow, with St. Peter's churchf. The Canon of Wells, without adverting to the latter circumstance, merely says, that Bishop Robert finished the Church of Bath which John of Tours had begun J. He also endowed the monastery with the manor of South-Stoke, a mill there, and twenty measures of salt, yearly : these and other donations, including the whole tithe of Bath and Lincumb, the tithe of the Vines of Lincumb, the churches of Forde and Estun, the village of Combe, and divers lands, were confirmed to the monks by Archbishop Theobald, in 1150. After the removal of the seat of this diocese from Wells to Bath, great dissensions arose between the canons of the former city and the monks of the latter, respecting the episcopal residence ; the canons affirming that the translation of the See by John de Villula, " could not be held good, because it was made against their consent, with disregard of right, and without any necessity or legitimate cause ||." The dispute was eventually referred to Bishop Robert, who decreed that the Bishops should neither derive their title from Wells, as in old, nor from Bath, as in modern times, but that they should in future take their names from both Churches, and be called Bishops of Bath and Wells : that the monks of Bath, and the canons of Wells, should, on a vacancy of the See, appoint an equal number of delegates, by whose votes the Bishop should be chosen, (the Dean of Wells being the returning officer,) and that he should be enthroned in both Churches §. This prelate died either in the year 1165, or 1166, and was buried with his predecessors, at Bath. * " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 560. f " Chronicle of England," p. 144. % " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 561. || Ibid. pp. 555, 556. § Vide Collinson's " Hist, of Som." vol. iii. p. 379 ; and " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 561. The composition, or decree, is extant in Register Drokensford; it was made before the year 1139. " Anglia Sacra," ibid. FITZ-JOCELINE AND SAVARIC. 23 After his decease, Henry the Second retained possession of the See till the year 1174, when he gave it to Reginald Fitz-Joceline, whose father was an Englishman by birth, and Bishop of Sarum, but from surname and educa- tion he was regarded as a Lombard*. This Prelate, described to be a man of ability and many excellent qualities, was much addicted to hunting and hawking ; and he obtained from Richard Cceur de Lion the confirmation of an alleged right to keep dogs for sporting throughout all Somersetshire. From some services rendered to the monks of Canterbury, they were induced to elect him their archbishop, on Nov. 27th, 1191 ; but whilst preparing for his new See, he was taken ill at his manor of Dogmersfield, in Hampshire, and putting on a monk's cowl, he died there on the 26th of December following!. He was interred near the high altar at Bath, on St. Thomas's dayt Savaric, the son of Goldwine, Archdeacon of Northampton, and Treasurer of Sarum, being elected to succeed Reginald by the monks of Bath, though without the knowledge or consent of the canons of Wells, was ordained priest on the 19th of September, 1192 ; and, as Wharton thinks, consecrated Bishop on the following day || . Savaric was related to Henry VI. Emperor of Germany, who, to oblige his kinsman, made it one of the conditions of the release of King Richard, whom he then held in captivity, (the King having been basely imprisoned on his way from the Holy Land,) that Savaric should be appointed Bishop of Bath and Wells ; and that the wealthy abbey of Glas- tonbury should be annexed to his diocese, for its aggrandisement and advan- tage §. Henry de Solis, the abbot of Glastonbury, who was of the blood royal, was induced to consent to this arrangement, on being promoted to the bishopric of Worcester; but the monks strenuously opposed it, though in vain. Stow affirms, on the authority of a record of Henry the Third's time, that Savaric procured the imprisonment of Richard, in order to annex Glas- * " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 562. Bishop Joceline is said to have had this son before he was ordained. f Ibid. t " Decern. Scrip." col. 667. Hoveden says, he was buried at Bm ; for so Bath is deno- minated, (vide Hoved. " Script." post Bedam. p. 405. B.) possibly from some presumed analogy to the Roman Bairn. || " Anglia Sacra," par* i. ,,p. 563. § Vide Dugdale's " Monasticon/'new edit. vol. i. p. 5. 'from Johan. Gbst. 24 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. tonbury to his see*; and the King is reported to have declared that the annexation of the abbey was obtained from him by force and terrorf. But, whatever the truth may be, in these respects, it appears that Richard profited by the opportunity sufficiently to induce the Bishop to surrender to him the city of Bath, which was then valued at 100/. per annum. Savaric assumed the title of Bishop of Bath and Glastonbury ; and he granted the arch- deaconry of Bath to the prior and convent there. He died at Scienes, on the 8th of August 1205 ; and was buried in this church. The following monkish rhymes, expressive of the rambling inquietude of his disposition, are said to have formed his epitaph : — Hospes erat mundo, — per mundum semper eundo, Sic suprema dies — fit sibi prima quies. Joceline de Wells, called Joceline de Troteman in the " Annales Marga- nenses," who had been made a Justice of the Common Pleas in September 1204, was consecrated Bishop of Bath, in St. Mary's chapel at Reading, on the 28th of May, 1206J. He was elected by the joint chapters of Bath and Wells ; with this new arrangement, that the prior of Bath should proclaim the bishop elect, who should always be first enthroned in the church at Bath || . During his episcopacy, the monks of Glastonbury, after great exer- tions, and an appeal to the court of Rome, obtained a dissolution of their enforced union with this see : yet not till they had agreed to surrender to the bishop the valuable manors of Winescombe, Puckle-church, Blackford, and Cranmore, together with the advowsons of several churches. This arrangement was duly confirmed by a bull of Pope Honorius the Third, dated at Rome, on the 16th of the kalends of June, 1218 § ; and Joceline then resumed the title of Bishop of Bath and Wells, which has ever since been used by the successive prelates of this see. * "Chronicles of England." t See Adami. de Dom. Mon. Glast. Hist. Cont. inter Epis. Bathon. et Mon. Glast. " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 578. X Ibid. p. 564. || Ibid. § See Dugdale's " Monasticon," vol. ii. p. 269. Num. xix. Bishop Joceline dictated the oath taken by Henry the Third, at his coronation at Gloucester; and, with Peter, Bishop of Winchester, crowned him. Matt. Paris " Hist. Angl." p. 243. PRIORS OF BATH. 25 Bishop Joceline having incurred the high displeasure of King John, by interdicting the nation pursuant to the Pope's command, in the year 1208, was obliged, soon after, to quit the kingdom. During his absence, the King retained the temporalities of the bishopric ; and in the 14th of his reign, anno 1212, Thomas Peverel, his escheator, accounted to him for the profits of it: the net amount in that year was 213/. 14*. 6cl* After an exile of five years, this prelate returned to England, and built the greater part of Wells cathedral. He died on the 19th of November, 1242, and was buried in the middle of the choir, in that edifice f. In the following year, the monks of Bath elected for their Bishop, Roger, precentor of Sarum ; but this being done without consulting the canons of Wells, an appeal was made to the Pope, who decided that the right of election was jointly in the two chapters. Roger, however, having conciliated the canons, the monks, (who promised a stricter observance of the compact in future,) had their choice confirmed, and the Bishop elect was consecrated at Reading, on the 11th of September, 1244. This prelate died on the 21st of December, 1247, or, as other accounts, in January 1248J. He was^the last of the Bishops interred at Bath ; which, about this period, appears to have become subordinate to Wells in episcopal authority and power. It will not therefore be requisite to introduce, in this place, any account of the sub- sequent bishops of this See, as in the " History and Antiquities of Wells Cathedral," biographical anecdotes of the most eminent of its Prelates have been recorded. PRIORS OF BATH. It has been said, that from the period this abbey was annexed to the see of Bath, by John de Villula, till the year 1159, " the establishment was governed by a sub-prior, acting under the directions of the bishop ;" yet we find the names of John and Benedict, who were Priors of Bath before that * Vide " Comp. Epis. Baton, de anno integro." Mag. Rot. 14. Joh. rot. i. 6. By that instrument it appears that the Bishop's establishment comprised a train of huntsmen, a noble pack of harriers, and thirteen other dogs of different descriptions, besides other articles of luxury. f See " History," &c. of " Wells Cathedral." X " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 565. In " Annal. Wigorn." ibid. p. 492, it is said .that the Pope?* made Roger de Sarum Bishop of Bath, on account of the dissensions between the chapters of Bath and Wells. 26 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. year : the former presided during the time of De Villula, and the latter in 1151*. In 1159, Peter was constituted prior, and his name again occurs in 1175. His successor appears to have been Walter, sub-prior of Hyde and Winchester, " a man of much science and piety." He presided, except during a short retirement, at Wherwell in Hampshire, till his decease, on the 31st of May, 1198 ; and was interred at Bathf. About the year 1190, Hugh occurs as prior % ; he probably held that office during Walter's re- tirement. Robert was prior in September 1198. In his time, King John, who had previously to his accession founded two Benedictine priories at Water- ford and Cork, in Ireland, and annexed them to this monastery, granted to the " Church of the Apostles St. Peter and St. Paul at Bath, and to the prior and monks serving God there ||," his Berton, or Barton, a farm near the city walls, together with an exempt and separate jurisdiction, in consideration of two payments into the Exchequer of 10/. each. This was in his 5th year, anno 1204 : three years afterwards, he bestowed many important privileges on the monks of Bath, conjointly with the canons of Wells ; such as having toll, theam, and infangenthef on all their property, together with two ordeals of water and fire, and the privilege of execution ; with exemptions from all suits and attendances in courts, whether general or local, and from all juries, assizes, &c.§ In October 1223, Prior Robert, by the influence of Bishop Joceline, was made abbot of Glastonbury ; but the violent conten- tions which arose between him and the monks there, — (he having been chaplain to Savaric, whom the latter considered to have subverted their privileges,) — occasioned him at length to return to Bath, (where he died in tranquillity in Passion week, 1234,) on a pension of 60/. per annum f . In 1228, Thomas was prior, and his name occurs in various years, till his decease on the Eve of St. John Baptist, 1261**. In his time, and in * Dug. " Monasticon," vol. ii. pp. 257, 258 : new edit. t " Anglia Sacra," pars i. " Anna). Winton." ibid. p. 304. % Dugdale's " Monasticon," vol. ii. p. 258. || Warner's " History of Bath," p. 117, and Appendix, Nos. XXVIII. and XXXIX. The grant made by King John in 1204, is the first in which this church is styled St. Peter's and St. Paul's ; and it is remarkable, that in his second grant, anno 1207, it is called St. Peter's only. In all succeeding grants, it has the duplex appellation of St. Peter's and St. Paul's. § Ibid. IT Adami. de Dom. in " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 583. ** Dugdale's " Monasticon," vol. ii. p. 258. PRIORS OP BATH. 27 that of his predecessor, this city, with the adjoining barton, was held on lease by the prior of Bath, at the pleasure of the King, and on payment of the annual rent of 30/. into the Exchequer*. Walter de Aona, receiver of the monastery, was elected prior in July 1261, and his name again occurs in 1275. During his supremacy, Edward the First, anno primo, assigned Bath, with its barton and appurtenances, to his consort Eleanor, in dower, for the term of her natural life ; and a writ to that effect issued to the prior and convent, the then lessees of the premises. But this assignment must have been speedily retracted, as the same monarch, in his third year, granted to Richard Burnell, bishop of Bath and Wells, and to his successors, and the churches of Bath and Wells, the whole of this city and its suburbs, &c. " except the Berton of Bath, which the prior and convent of Bath hold of us in fee-farm - )"." Thomas de Wynton, who was made prior in 1291, resigned on the 4th of the ides of April, 1301. Robert de Cloppecote was prior in 1303 : and in the following year, King Edward granted to him and his convent the liberty of holding two fairs annually, the one on their manor at Lyncomb, the other on their manor at Barton. Cloppecote oppressed the monks so grievously, that the bishop, John de Drokensford, by an objurgatory letter, dated in August 1321, commanded him to render them justice, and to rectify the abuses of which they complained. By his negligence, also, the Abbey Church is stated to have been suffered to fall to such decay, that the Bishop judged it requisite to issue a circular letter throughout his diocese, in the autumn of 1324, for a general collection towards its repair; and the work was completed in the ensuing year. In 1329, Prior Cloppecote was mulcted by the crown, for appropriating the church of Corston to his monastery, con- trary to the statute of Mortmain: he died on Ash- Wednesday, 1331. In the following March, Robert de Sutton was chosen prior, but the Pope not approving the choice, nominated Thomas Christi, or Christy, and Sutton resigned, on * " Prior Bathoniae reddit competum de xxxl. de firma civitatis Bathonise tenende per talem firmam quamdiu regi placuerit." Mag. Rot. Hen. III. 9 ann. In the twentieth of John [Henry] the lessee was obliged to pay into the Exchequer the sum of 13Z. lis. over and above his rent, for the charge of the repairs that were then wanting in the King's houses and baths, which the prior had suffered to dilapidate. Rot. Pip. 20th Hen. III. Warner's " History of Bath," p. 168, note. t This grant of Bath was in exchange for the patronage of Glastonbury abbey, and the service of the lands belonging to it, with fines, emoluments, &c. Vide Warner's " History of Bath," p. 170 ; and Appendix, Nos. XLVI. andXLVH. 28 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. September 24, 1332 ; the priory of Dunster, and several pensions to the amount of 36/., having been assigned to him by the convent*. Christy was confirmed on the 8th of the kalends of October, but did not long survive. His successor Robert, the fourth of that name, was prior in June 1333. John de Iford, or Yford, who next occurs as prior, was cited to appear before the bishop of his diocese in August 1346, for committing adultery with Agnes Cubbel, at Hammeswell; and on this charge he either resigned or was deprived in the following yearf. In 1363, John occurs as prior, probably the same as John de Berevnke, whose name occurs in 1370, and as John de Berkelye, mentioned by Warner. John de Forde was prior in 1371; and afterwards John de Walcote. John Dunster, prior in 1406, died February 6th, 1412; and John de Telesford was elected on the 10th of March following: he was summoned to a convocation in St. Paul's, anno 1415, and died in 1425. During his time, there was a great dispute between the convent and the mayor and citizens of Bath, concerning the ringing of the bells in the parish churches ; but at length, after the dis- sensions had continued several years, it was decreed, at an inquisition held at Frome, in the 9th of Henry V. " that no one should ring any bells within the precincts of Bath in the day-time, before the prior had rung his bells ■ nor in the night-time, after the prior had rung his curfew J." On the 20th of April, 1426, William Southbroke became prior : he appears to have been cited to a council at Ferrara in 1438, and he died on the 7th of June, 1447. On the 16th of September, in the same year, Thomas Lay cock was named prior by Bishop Stafford, with consent of the monks, and he was in office anno 1451. In 1476, Richard was prior ; and he is said, in the Register of Beckington, to have been present at the baptism of Richard, son to George, Duke of Clarence, at Tewkesbury, on October the 7th, in that year. In 1489, John Cantlowe was made prior : in his time, anno 1494, Archbishop Morton visited the monastery: he died in August 1499. On the 31st of the same month, William Birde was elected ; and although his admission was at first opposed by the Bishop, Oliver King, he was eventually instituted by that prelate, and he became his most effective coadjutor in the rebuilding of this church: he died May the 22d, 1525. His successor, William Holway, or Holleweye, alias Gybbs, was elected on the 5th of July following ; and after his * Bibl. Harl. MS. 6955, p. 66. -f- Dugd. " Monasticon," vol. ii. p. 260. \ Collinson's " History of Somersetshire," vol. i. p. 56. PRIORS OF BATH. 29 appointment, he ardently applied himself to the completion of the Abbey Church. This was scarcely effected, however, before he found it requisite to surrender his monastery to King Henry the Eighth, which was done on the 27th of June, 1539 ; five years previous to which the annual value of its possessions was returned by the King's commissioners (who on that occasion were, Sir Henry Cassell, knt., Henry Covell, late mayor of Bath, and John Browne,) at the sum of 617/. 2*.* Speed gives the value, at the period of the dissolution, as amounting to 695/. 6s. An annual pension of 80/., " with certain perquisites arising from the baths, and a tenement in Stall's- street of the rent of 20*.," was granted to Prior Holway ; nine pounds yearly was granted to John Pyth, the sub-prior ; and smaller sums were given to the other monks, who were nineteen in number. Browne Willis states, that the King would have advanced Holway to good preferment, but that he refused the same, and concluded his days in privacy and retirement |. Among the very few members of this establishment who have been recorded as eminent for learning, is the monk Adelard, or Athelard ; who lived at the end of the 11th and beginning of the 12th centuries. Leland says, that he went to France to study, and was a close follower of Aristotle. He adds, that from the preface to his " Natural Questions," it appears that he lived in the time of Henry I.J Bale says, that Adelard had travelled over Egypt and Africa || . He wrote a Dialogue of the Causes of Natural Objects, between himself and his nephew, the preface of which is published in Martenne's " Thesaurus Anecdotorum§." Pits mentions other works, viz. : 1. A Book of the Seven Arts ; 2. Another, De sic et non sic ; 3. A Work on the Astrolabe ; 4. A Book of Seventy-six Problems, or Natural Questions, much commended by Leland ; 5. Another, on the Doctrine of the Abacus ; 6. A Translation of Euclid's Geometry from Arabic into Latin; 7. A Work on the Seven Planets; — perhaps Japhar, the Mathematician's, whose Introduction to Astronomy was translated from the Arabic by this Adelard^]". * Warner's " History of Bath," pp. 126 — 129, and Appendix, No. LXX1V. from the original in the First Fruits' Office. f " History of Mitred Abbeys," vol. i. p. 221. J " De Script. Brit," p. 201. || " Illust. Mag." vol. ii. p. 69. h Vide vol. i. p. 292. If See Oudin. torn. ii. In Leland's " Collectanea," the titles of a few MS. volumes are men- tioned, which were in the monastic library at the time of the Reformation : viz. " Isagoge Joannicii ; 30 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Under the auspices of the monks of Bath, the art of weaving Woollen cloth was established in this city soon after its introduction into England, about the year 1333; and it was carried to such perfection during the course of the 14th century, that Bath became one of the most considerable places in the west for that manufacture. Wood states, that the shuttle, the chief implement in the art, " was introduced, with the arms of the abbey, as an ornament in front of the abbey-house, and was remaining there in his time ; a trophy of the industry of the monks of Bath*." But if the inmates of this establishment excelled some of their brethren in industry, they we're not inferior to any of them in their endeavours to stifle the voice of reason, and keep the inquiring mind involved in superstition and credulity. A particular instance of this kind occurred in the year 1459, when Agnes, the wife of Thomas Cole, of Bath, was prosecuted in the ecclesiastical court at Wells, for having said " that it was but waste to give to the Holy Trinity at Bath ; and equally absurd to go on pilgrimages to St. Osmund at Salisbury ; and that she wished the road thither was choaked up with bremmel [brambles and thorns], to lette [hinder] people from going thither." She was sentenced to recant the heretical and disrespectful words she had thus uttered, before all the congregation in the great church of Bath - )". In the year 1542-3, (34th of Henry VIII.) the King, by his letters patent dated March the 16th, in consideration of the sum of 962/. 17*. Ad., already paid into the court of Augmentation, granted the hospital of St. John, at Bridgewater, the priory of Dunster, with its appurtenances, " as part of the possessions of the late priory of Bath," the monastery or priory of Bath itself, with all " the houses, buildings, gardens, orchards, barns, dove-houses, stables, pools, warrens, fish-ponds," &c. within the site and precincts of the same ; Libellus Galeni ad Msecenatem ; Hiponosticon Laurentii Dunelmensis Carmine de Veteri et Novo Testamento ; Galenus de Morbo et Accidenti ; Liber de Febribus, quem transtulit Constantinus monachus Cassinensis ex lingua Arabica ; Commentarii Csesaris." " Collectanea," vol. iv. p. 156. There is probably a mistake in the title of the second work, which connects Galen with Maecenas, as the most celebrated individuals known under those appellations lived at different periods. %" Description of Bath," vol. i. p. 191. Warner says, that " the shuttle was incorporated into the arms of the monastery," (History of Bath, p. 122); but he has evidently mistaken the passage in Wood to which he refers. There is no appearance of the shuttle in either of the coats engraved as the arms of this monastery in Tanner's " Notitia Monastica." f Warner's " History of Bath," p. 122, from excerpt. " Reg. Wellens." in Bibl. Harl. No. 6964, sub anno 1459. GRANTS OF EDWARD THE SIXTH. 31 together with various messuages, lands, tenements, (including the Prior's park,) in Lyncombe, Wydcombe, Hollway, and Walcot ; and the capital messuage or mansion of Combe, with its appurtenances, as possessed by the monastery of Bath, toHumfrey Colles, Gent., his heirs and assigns, for ever; " together with all such court-leets, view of frank-pledge, assize of bread, wine, and beer, knights' fees, wards, and marriages, escheats, heriots, fairs, markets, tolls, customs, commons, free-warrens, goods and chattels, waifs and strays, profits, commodities, emoluments, and hereditaments whatsoever, as the abbots and priors of the said monastery heretofore held and enjoyed." The mansion of Combe was to be held in capite, by the fortieth part of one knight's fee, rendered yearly ; and the late site and possessions of the priory of Bath, by an annual rent of eight shillings and four pence*. In the following year, an act of Parliament was passed, by which the Dean and Chapter of Wells were empowered to make one sole chapter for the Bishop of Bath and Wells. About nine years afterwards, namely, on the 12th of July, 1552, Edward the Sixth granted to the corporation of Bath, such lands and tenements within the city and its suburbs, as formerly belonged to the priory, and were then in the pos- session of the crown, for the maintenance of ten poor aged people, and for the instruction of the youth of the city, by a proper master, in the Latin tonguef. * Warner's " History of Bath," p. 134 ; and Appendix, No. LXXIX. t Wood's " Description of Bath," vol. i. pp. 197, 199. The Hospital of St. Catherine, at Bath, called the Bimberries, from being situated in Bimberry-lane, had its origin from this grant of Edward VI. CHAPTER III. PROGRESS OF THE ERECTION OF THE PRESENT CHURCH ACCOUNT OF BISHOP OLIVER KING HIS VISION, AND CONSEQUENT FOUNDATION OF THIS FABRIC HIS INJUNCTIONS TO PRIOR BIRDE PROGRESS OF THE BUILDING POETICAL ACCOUNT OF PRIOR HOLLEWAYE STATE OF THE CHURCH IN QUEEN ELIZABETH'S REIGN REPARATIONS OF THE SAME BY CHAPMAN, BELLOT, AND OTHERS- SOLICITUDE OF SIR JOHN HARINGTON TO COMPLETE THE CHURCH BISHOP MONTAGUE INDUCED TO CONTINUE THE WORK IMPROVEMENTS NEAR THE CHURCH ROMAN BATHS UNDER THE ABBEY CHURCH DISCOVERY OF MO- NASTIC VESTMENTS. The Church which Bishop Robert had completed experienced so much neglect from the monks, that it had become very ruinous before the close of the fifteenth century. It appears, indeed, (as well as the affairs of the monastery in general,) to have been most shamefully neglected long prior to that time — a letter being still extant, which was written to Prior Robert, on " the miserable state of his convent," by Bishop John de Drokensford, in August 1321*; and, three years afterwards, that prelate caused a collection to be made throughout his diocese, for the repairs of the Church. During that, and the succeeding century, it was again so utterly neglected, that, to employ the strong expressions of Bishop King, it became ruined to the foundations — imo funditus dirutam\, — in consequence of the monks expending their large income in pleasurable indulgences, instead of appropriating some part thereof to the necessary reparations of the fabric. It was in this forlorn state, when Dr. Oliver King, who was eminent both as a divine and a politician, was translated from Exeter into the episcopal chair of Bath and Wells; in which he was enthroned, on the 12th of March, 1496. This pre- late was one of the Fellows of King's College, Cambridge, and he after- wards became Archdeacon of Taunton, Registrar of the Order of the Garter, Canon of Windsor, and principal Secretary of State to Edward the Fourth, Edward the Fifth, Henry the Sixth, and Henry the Seventh ; by the latter * Vide Appendix, No. HI. t Ibid. No. IV. ACCOUNT OF BISHOP OLIVER KING. — HIS DREAM. 33 of whom he was employed in France to conclude a treaty of peace with Charles the Eighth, which mission he executed with great success : he was promoted to the see of Exeter in 1492, and thence to Bath and Wells on November the 6th, 1495. He died on the 29th of August, 1503*. This Prelate, who is thought to have been perfectly conversant with the Pointed style of architecture, is said to have been influenced to commence the rebuilding of this Church by a dream, or vision, which he very simply mistook for a divine communication. Of this vision, which, Wood says,' occurred to the Bishop when he came to Bath " to institute Prior Birde into his office," in the year 1499, Sir John Harington gives the following pleasing and familiar account : — " Here I may by no meanes omitt, yet I can scant tell how to relate the pretty tales that are told of this Bishop King, by what visions and pre- dictions he was incouraged and discouraged in the building of this churche, whether some cunning woman had foretold him of the spoyle that followd, (as Paulus Jovius wrytes how a Witch deceaved his next successor Hadryan, Bishop of Bathe) ; or whether his own mynde running of it, gave him occa- sion, sleeping, to dream of that he thought waking ; but this goes for currant, * There is some degree of uncertainty as to the real burial place of Bishop King ; who, according to the Red Book, or Register of Wells, died on the 29th of August, 1503, as men- tioned in the text; and not on the 24th of January, as. stated by Godwin, and others. By his Will, which was proved on the 24th of October in the above year, he directed his body to be interred in the choir of the new church of Bath, near the first arch on the north side towards the altar ; but his tomb (of grey marble) is reputed to be in the south aile of St. George's Chapel at Windsor, within a sepulchral or chantry Chapel, which was founded by himself, and still retains his name. So far, therefore, the evidence preponderates in corroboration of his remains having been depo- sited at Windsor, notwithstanding the contrary directions of his Will ; and as there is no tomb at Bath that has ever been assigned to him, nor any record of his burial there, we may safely conclude, that Windsor was the actual place of his interment. The full length portraitures and armorial bearings of the four Sovereigns to whom he was secretary, are painted on the pannels of an oaken screen, forming part of the inclosure of the choir, opposite to his chantry at Windsor ; and under them is the following incomplete inscription, in black letter ; which he, doubtless, had placed there previously to his translation to Bath and Wells : of late years the portraits have been repainted — " Orate pro Dno Olivero Kyng, Juris Professore, ac illustris Edwardi primogeniti Regis Henrici Sexti, et Serenissimorum Regum Edwardi Quarti, Edwardi Quinti, et Henrici Septimi, Principali Secretario, dignissimi Ordinis Garterij Registrio, et huius Sacri Collegii Canonico, A , Dfii 1489 : et postea per dictum Illustrissim. Rege Henrici Sept m . A" Dfii 1492, ad sedii Exoniensem comedato." See Carter's " Ancient Sculpture and Painting." F 34 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. and confirmed with pretty probabilities — that lying at Bathe, and musing or meditating one night late, after his devotions and prayers for the pro- sperity of Henry Vllth and his children (who were then all or most part lyving), to which King he was principal Secretary, and by him preferred to his bishoprick ; he saw, or supposed he saw, a vision of the Holy Trynitie, with angells ascending and descending by a ladder, neer to the foote of which there was a fayre Olive tree, supporting a crowne, and a voyce that said — '■ Let an Olive establish the Crowne, and let a King restore the Church.' Of this dreame, or vision, he took exceeding great comfort, and told it divers of his frends, applying it to the King his master in parte, and some part to himselfe. To his master, because the Olive being the emblem or hieroglifick of peace and plentie, seemed to him to allude to King Henry Vllth, who was worthely counted the wisest and most peaceable King in all Europe of that age. To himself, (for the wisest will flatter themselves somtime), because he was not only a chiefe councellor to this King, and had bene his ambassador to conclude the most honourable peace with Charles the 8. who paid (as Hollinshed wryteth) 745 thousand ducketts, beside a yearly tribute of 25,000 crowns ; but also he carried both the Olive and the King in his own name ; and therefore thought he was specially designed for this church-worke, to the advauncement of which he had an extraor- dinary inclynation. Thus though (as St. Thomas of Aquin well noteth) all dreames, be they never so sencible, will be found to hault in some part of their coherence ; and so perhaps may this ; yet most certaine it is, he was so transported with his dreame, for the tyme, that he presently set in hand with this Church, (the ruins whereof I rue to behold even in wryting theis lynes) ; and at the west end thereof he caused a representation to be graved of this his Vision of the Trynitie, the angells, and the ladder ; and on the north side the olive and crown, with certain French wordes, which I could not reade ; but in English is this vearse, taken out of the book of Judges, chap. 9. Trees going to chuse their King Said, ' be to us the Olive King.' All which is so curiously cut and carved, as in the west part of England is no better worke than in the west end of this poor church ; and to make the credit of all this more authentique, he added this worde to it, ' de sursum ACCOUNT OF BISHOP OLIVER KING. 35 est,'' it is from on high. Thus much the stones and walls (though dumb wit- nesses, yet credible,) doe playnly testifie*." Under the powerful impression of this dream, Bishop King issued Injunc- tions, anno 1500, to the Prior and convent of Bath, peremptorily decreeing that the expenditure of their revenues should be reduced in the manner he assigned, and that the residue should be absolutely expended in erecting a new Church f. At that period the annual income amounted to 480/. 16*. 6d. ; of which rental the Bishop directed that eight marks per annum should be allowed to the Prior, and eighty pounds to the sixteen monks, for their due support : for repairs on their different manors he assigned 40/., and 10/. for the wages of servants, besides some smaller allowances : the remainder he appropriated to his intended building; which he soon after- wards commenced at a short distance, westward, from the old Church, the walls of which were standing in Leland's time J. The Bishop pursued the work with zeal, " and declared," according to Wood, " his disregard to any extraordinary expense, so that he could but see it finished ; but he died before the south and west parts of the building were covered in, or even all the walls were raised to their proper height ||." He was ably assisted by Prior Birde, who carried on the work after the Bishop's decease, and built a monumental chapel for himself within the choir : his rebus, a W, and a Bird, is yet to be seen on various parts of the edifice. Warner, in his amplification of Wood's statement, says, that Birde's liberality, in respect to this structure, was so unbounded, as " to swallow up the whole of his fortune, and reduce him to poverty." Wood's account is, that " he expended * Harington's " Nugse Antiquae," vol. ii. p. 136 — 138. Park's edition. The words which the worthy knight calls French, are supposed to be the following in Latin, being a translation of the English lines given above : " Jerunt ligna ut ungerent super se regem, Dixeruntque Olivae, impera nobis." f Warner's " History of Bath," Appendix, No. XLIX. X " Oliver King began of late dayes a right goodly new Chirch at the west part of the old Chirch of St. Peter, and finishid a great peace of it. The residue of it was syns made by the Priors of Bathe; and especially by Gibbes, the last Prior ther; that spent a great summe of mony on that Fabricke. — Oliver King let almost al the old Chirch of St. Peter's, in Bath, to go to ruine : the walles yet stande." Itinerary, vol. ii. p. 40 : edit. 1744. : || " Description of Bath," vol. i. p. 195. 36 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. so much money as impoverished him, and made him die very poor," in May 1525 * . Prior Holleweye, alias Gybbs, continued the work ; and, according * Prior Birde, on the authority of Ashmole, is commonly reputed to have applied himself to ■the study of chemistry, or rather of alchemy ; but a comparison of dates will shew that Holleicexje must have been the person really meant, for he, and not Birde, was Prior of Bath at the time of the Dissolution. The chemical knowledge of Prior Holleweye must be estimated from the character of the age in which he lived. Chemistry had not then attained the rank of a science, but consisted merely of a few detached facts, relating chiefly to the properties of metallic bodies, and a vast mass of wild speculation ; accompanied with fallacious instructions for forming the Elixir of Life, the Philosopher's Stone, the Universal Panacea, and other imaginary preparations, which were supposed to possess the power of bestowing on the industrious Adept, riches, health, and long life, if not immortality ; but which uniformly conducted the deluded victim of false science to poverty and distress. Such is said to have been the fate of Our Prior ; of whose presumed studies and mis- fortune? a curious account is preserved, in a poetical treatise on Alchemy, published by Ashmole, in his " Theatrum Chemicum," P. I. This piece is intituled " The Breviary of Naturall Philosophy, compiled by the unlettered scholar, Thomas Charnock, the first of January, A.D. 1557." Charnock professes to have derived a considerable part of his knowledge from the Prior of Bath, of whom he thus speaks : — " And now to obteyne thy purpose more rathe Let thy fire be as temperate as the Bath of the Bathe. Oh what a goodly and profitable Instrument Is the Bath of the Bathe for our fiery intent ! To seeke all the World throughout I should not finde For profit and liberty a Fire more fitt to my minde. Goe or ride where you list for the space of a yeare, Thou needest not care for the mending of thy fire. A Monke of Bathe, which of that house was Pryor, Tould me in seacret he occupied none other fire ; To whom 1 gave credit, even at the first season, Because it depended upon very good reason. He had our Stone, our Medicine, our Elixir, and all Which when the Abbie was supprest he hid in a wall : And ten dayes after he went to fetch it out, And there he found but the stople of a cloute. Then he told me he was in such an Agonie, That for the loss thereof he thought he should be frenzie ; And a toy took him in the head to run such a race, That many a yeare after he had no setling place : • And more, he is darke and cannot see, But hath a Boy to lead him through the country. . I hapned to come on a day where as he was, And by a word or two that he let passe ITS NEGLECTED STATE. 37 to Leland, " spent a great summe of mony on that fabricke :" but all the exertions of the Prior were unable to carry into effect the liberal design of Bishop King*. A great change had taken place in the public mind: the Reformation was daily gaining ground, and the dissolution of monastic esta- blishments fast approaching. The pious zeal which had raised so many splendid ecclesiastical edifices, at a vast expense, was rapidly cooling ; and but little aid could now be obtained beyond the precincts of the cloister. On the contrary, part of the lead, intended for the roof, was stolen, and the money, which had been collected to proceed with the work, was intercepted by profane hands, and applied to secular purposes^. It is not unlikely that Bishop King had fully anticipated the gathering storm, which the corruptions of the Romish church had engendered ; and which, though in some instances of a destructive tendency, was happily the means of freeing this country from Papal tyranny and Catholic imposition. — " I heard by one Flowre of Phillips Norton," says Harington, speaking of the new Church, that '" this Bishop would wishe he had paid above the price of it, so it might have been finisht, for if he ended it not it would be I understood streight he was a Philosopher, For which cause I drewe to him neare ; And when the Company was all gone, And none but his Boy and He and I alone, Master, quoth I, for the love of God and charity, Teach me the seacrets of Naturall Philosophy." Warner, on the authority of Ashmole's notes to this poem, says that Birde " died poor and blind;' but if Charnock's poetical relation be correct, it must be concluded that both Warner and Ashmole are altogether mistaken ; and that Gybbs, alias Holleweye, who was certainly the last Prior of Bath, was the blind and unfortunate Alchemist with whom Charnock formed an acquaint- ance, and whose skill he celebrates. * " Itinerary," ut sup. In the 28th of Henry the Eighth, Prior Gybbs granted the reversion of the office for life, of " Master of all the Works" of the Convent, " commonly called Freemasonry" to John Multon, freemason, in reward for his former diligence and faithful service ; together with an annual salary of forty shillings. Edward Leycester, Multon's predecessor in that office,- is mentioned in the same grant. Vide Warner's " Bath," Appendix, No. LVIII. It is remarkable, that in this instrument the Holy Saviour is named, with the apostles St. Peter and St. Paul, as a tutelar of the Church of Bath, ' f " Anglia Sacra," pars i. p. 576:—" quando sacrilegi quidam, favente temporis iniquitate,- laminas plumbeas abripuerunt, et pecuniam ad opus perficiendum collectam interverterunt," 38 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. pulld down ere it were perfected*." From the same author, we learn that whilst the Church was yet in a neglected state, and " since the 43d yeare of Queene Elizabeth," the following lines " were written by an English gentleman,"— probably Harington himself, — " on the church wall with a charcoale :" — " O Church ! I waile thy wofull plight, Whom King nor Card'nall, Clerke nor Knight, Have yet restor'd to auncient right." Alluding herein, as Fuller has remarked |, " to Bishop King, who began it; and his four successors, in thirty-five years, viz. Cardinal Adrian, Cardinal Wolsey, Bishop Clark, and Bishop Knight, contributing nothing to the effectual finishing thereof." After the surrender of the monastery, in 1539, the Commissioners, says Harington, " in reverence and compassion of the place, did so far strayne their commission that they offerd to sell the whole Church to the towne under 500 marks : but the townsmen fearing they might be thought to cosen the King if they bought it so cheape, or that it might after (as many things were) be found conceal'd, utterly refused. Whereupon certeine Merchants bought all the glass, iron, bells, and lead ; of which lead alone was accompted for (as I have crediblie heard) 480 tunne, worth at this day 4,800/. J" Shortly after the monastic estates had been granted to Humphry Colles, * " Nugse Antiquse," vol. ii. p. 139. Bishop King died on the 24th of January, 1503-4. -f " Worthies of England," vol. ii. p. 277 : edit. 1811. On some other lines, which Harington says were written for " the comfort of this Church, by a Captaine of an other contrie ;" and We thus given by him : " Be blythe, faire Kerk, when Hempe is past, Thine Olyve, that ill wynds did blast, Shall flourish green, for ay to last :" Fuller remarks, " By Hempe, understand Henry the Eighth, .Edward the Sixth, Queen Mary, King Philip, and Queen .Elizabeth. The author, as I suspect, had a tang of the cask ; and being parcel- popish, expected the finishing of this Church at the return of their Religion ; .but his prediction was verified in a better sense, when this Church was finished by James Montague, Bishop of this See, disbursing vast sums in the same, though the better enabled thereunto by his Mines at Mynedep, so that he did but remove the seed from the bowels of the earth to the roof of the Church ; wherein he lies enterred under a fair Monument." Ibid. p. 278, X " Nugae Antiquse," vol. ii. p. 141, REPARATIONS. 39 as before stated, that gentleman disposed of the site and buildings of the Priory to Matthew Colthurst, Esq. ; whose son Edmund, immediately after the decease of his father, in the beginning of the year 1560, " made the city a present of the carcass of St. Peter's church, with the ground upon the east, west, and north sides of it * ;" and the whole is still the property of the Corporation. The Abbey House, which had been the residence, in succession, both of the Abbots and Priors, and which stood on the south of the Church, together with its immediate precincts, tenements, appur- tenances, &c, in Bath, and the Prior's Park, near Combe Down, were sold by the said Edmund Colthurst, on the 27th of January, 1569, to Fulk Morley, Esq., from whom the Abbey estate has descended through the late Duke of Kingston to the present Earl Manvers. The Prior's Park estate is now the property of John Thomas, a quaker, who purchased it of the representatives of the late Lord Hawarden, to whom it had devolved from the Aliens f. The first attempt to improve the state of this Church after the Dissolution, was made by a military officer, named Peter Chapman, who was the eldest son of a clothier, mentioned by Leland, by whom, " in hominum memorial with two others in the same trade, of the names of Style and Kent, " the Toun of Bath florishidj." He was born in 1506, and having served in the wars in France and the Low Countries, in the reigns of Henry the Eighth and Queen Elizabeth, he attained to the rank of a Serjeant Major, and when in his 82d year, in 1588, led a brigade of 800 veteran soldiers to Tilbury Camp || . This gentleman repaired the east end of the north aile, about the year 1572; and soon afterwards the Queen's letters patent were obtained, authorising collections to be made for seven years in every part of the Kingdom, for the completion of this Church, and the rebuilding of St. John's Hospital. With the produce, the latter purpose was effected ; but all that was done to the Church, was by erecting a timber roof, covered with blue slate, over the east, the north, and some of the south part of the fabric, * Wood's " Description of Bath," vol. i. p. 199. t The present mansion at Prior Park was built by Wood, for Mr. Allen, the amiable prototype of Fielding's Airworthy, and was, during the life of its first possessor, frequently occupied by the most distinguished wits of the age. It may be said to have been the Attic seat of Genius : but it has lately presented a lamentable contrast. Part of this finely picturesque estate is now a stone quarry. \ " Itinerary," vol. ii. p. 39 : 2d edit. ]| Wood's " Description of Bath," vol. i. p. 201 : from Chapman's Epitaph. BATH ABBEY CHURCH. and roofing and flooring the tower*." The uppermost windows on the north side of the choir were glazed, at the expense of Thomas, Earl of Sussex, Lord Chamberlain to Queen Elizabeth, prior to 1584 ; and 10/. was given towards the glazing of the opposite windows, by Walter Calicut of Williamscote, in Oxfordshire. The work then stopped for several years, nor was j it again proceeded with till some time after the defeat of the Spanish Armada, when, from the liberality of Lord Burleigh, and Thomas Bellot, or Billet, Esq., his steward, and afterwards his executor, the choir was inclosed, and fitted up for Divine service; the latter gentleman f having been at the expense of 60/. for repairing and glazing the great east window only. The Church was then re-consecrated, and dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul. The south part of the transept, and most of the nave, were still unroofed^ * Wood's " Description of Bath," vol. i. p. 201. It appears, both from Camden's account, and from a letter of Sir John Harington's, published in his " Metamorphosis of Ajax," or a Jakes, in 1596, that some part of the money which had been collected by means of the Queen's brief, had been improperly diverted to private uses. Queen Elizabeth had been twice at Bath, and had given directions for the improvement of the baths, &c. Speaking of her first visit, prior to 1591, Harington says — " The fair Church her Highnesse gave order should be re-edified stands at a stay, &c. Wherefore if your Lordship [probably Lord Burleigh] would authorise me, or some wiser than me, to take a strict account of the money by her Majesty's gracious grants gathered and to be gathered, which, in the opinion of manie, cannot be lesse than ten thousand pounds, {though not to wrong them, I thinke they have bestowed upon the point of 10,000 pounds, abating but one cipher,) I would not doubt, of a ruinate Church to make a reverent Church, and of an unsavorie town a most sweet town." Ibid. pp. 75, 76. t The following passage relative to this generous benefactor to the Abbey Church, is extracted from an article in Peck's " Desiderata Curiosa," No. IV. lib. vi. intituled — " The Observations of Mr. John Bowles, Chaplain to the Lord Treasurer, Sir Rob. Cecill, Earl of Salisbury, as to the carriage of the said Earl in his last sickness, after he went from London to Bath, until the time of his death ; being a true copy of the account which the said Mr. Bowles delivered unto the right reverend James Montague, Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells." — " This daie my lord removed his lodginge, and was desirous to see the great Church in Bathe, where ould master [Thomas] Bellot [his father's steward, and one of his executors] had bestowed some money of his father's, committed to his trust ; and a great part likewise of his owne substance. The Church he much liked, and the liberalities of such benefactors as had brought it to soe good perfection. Addinge, ' that he would himself bestowe some good remembrance to the fynishing thearof.' And (because oulde Mr. Bellot had spent all uppon charitable uses, and left nothinge for his kinsman,) my lord-, in the Churche, saide, ' I give to my servant Bellot 201. a yeare, duringe his naturall life.'" Lord Salisbury had visited Bath, in the hope of deriving benefit from the waters. He expressed a wish to be interred in the Abbey Church, in case of his death happening at Bath : but after a short stay in that city, he was removed to Marlborough, wheTe he died, May 24, 1612. PROGRESS OF THE CHURCH. 41 and otherwise incomplete; and in this state they remained till about the accession of James the First, when Mr. Bellot contributed a further sum of 200/. towards finishing the transept: in 1604, Sir William Paston, of Nor- folk, knt., gave 100/., and smaller contributions were made by divers persons ; yet the work went but slowly forwards till after the promotion of Dr. James Montague to this See, in March 1608. The situation of the Church at that period may be readily appreciated from Harington's account of Bishop King : — " Thus speedily it was pull'd down," says the worthy knight, " but how slow it hath rysen again, I may blush to wryte. Collections have bene made over all England, with which the chauncell is covered with blew slate, and an alms-house built, ex abundantia ; but the whole body of the Church stands bare, ex humilitate. The rest of the money never comming to the townsmen's hands, is laid up (as I suppose) with the money col- lected for Paul's steeple, which I leave to a melius inquirendum. And thus the Church lies still, like the poore traveller mentioned in the 10th of Luke, spoiled and wounded by theeves. The Priest goes by, the Levites go by, but doe nothing : only a good Samaritan, honest Mr. Billet (worthy to be billeted in the New Jerusalem,) hath powr'd some oyle in the wounds, and maintained it in life*." — Sir John Harington, who was the godson and kinsman of Queen Elizabeth, and whose mansion was at Kelston, near Bath, was particularly solicitous to procure aid to complete the Church ; and there is a tradition extant, that Bishop Montague was led to direct his bounty into that channel, by the knight's ready conception and address ; as thus : — Whilst the Bishop was at Bath, walking in the Grove, on his primary, visitation, he was suddenly caught in a violent shower, which induced him, on the invitation of Sir John, to seek shelter in the Church. The knight took him into the north aile, which being entirely roofless, afforded but little security from the storm ; and Bishop Montague remarked, that they were still in the rain. " How can that be," returned Harington, " seeing that we are within the Church?" " True," quoth the Prelate, " but your Church is unroofed, Sir John." " The more is the pity!" rejoined his shrewd companion ; " and the more doth it call for the munificence of your lordship f." Struck with the * " Nugse Antiquse," vol. ii. p. 142. t In the Preface to the " Nugse Antiquse," this is somewhat differently stated. On the Bishop remarking, that his situation did not shelter him from the rain, the Knight is made to reply — " Doth it not, my Lord ? Then let me sue your bounty towards covering our poor Church ; G 42 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. justness of the remark, the Bishop is said to have directed his attention to the fabric from that moment, and under his generous auspices the building was eventually finished. Whatever degree of credit may be thought due to this traditionary report, for if it keep not us safe from the waters above, how shall it ever save others from the fire beneath?" Ibid. p. xvii. The assistance of Mr. Sutton, (the benevolent founder of the present establishment at the Charter House, in London,) towards the completion of the Abbey Church, was strenuously solicited by Sir J. Harington, as will appear by the following passages from different letters to him. In a letter, dated " Greenwich, 13th June, 1608," Sir John says : — " Onlie my old friend, you may not forgett to be a benefactor to Bath Church in your life- time ; for Alms in one's life is like a light borne before one, whereas Alms after death is like a candle carried behind one. Do somewhat for this Church : you promis't to have seen it ere this. Whensoever you will go to Bathe, my lodgings shall be at your commandmente. The Baths would strengthen your sinews ; the Alms would comfort your soule. The Tower, the Quyre, and two Isles, are already finisht by Mr. Billett, Executor to the worthie Lord Treasurer Burleigh. The Walls are up, ready for covering; the Leade is promised by our bountifull Bishop Dr. Montague; the Timber is promised by the Earl of Shrewsburie, the Earle of Hartford, the Lord Say, Mr. Robert Hopton, and others. There lacks but monie for Workmanship, which if you would give, you should have many good prayers in the Church now in your lifetime, when they may indeed doe you good, and when the time is to ' make friends of the mammon of iniquity, (as Christ bids us,) that we may be received into everlasting tabernacles ;' to which God send us, to whose protection I leave you." Ibid. vol. i. pp. 378, 379. In another letter, dated Sept. 5th, 1608, he again urges Mr. Sutton to alms-giving; and after stating that he would keep his lodgings, at Bath, whilst there remained any hope of his coming thither, he adds, — " You rich men should open your barnes ; give, lend, distribute to the poore, and lay up threfold in Heaven ; ffayth ys good, hope ys good, but charity ys the cheefer, ' major horum caritas.'" — He next mentions various persons then residing at Bath; and among them, " Saynt Billet, the benefactor of this Church, and founder of the new Hospitall for lame Pilgrims ; and concludes — I can let you have honest roome, and cost mee never a peny." Malcolm's " Londinium Redivivum," vol. i. p. 399. In a third letter, written on the day of his quitting London, (Dec. 21, 1608,) he once more presses Mr. Sutton to visit Bath, " and when you see the place," he continues, " and fynde (as I wysh) that God geve you helth, then let God work w*. you for the good of the Church and Poore thear, by whose prayr yo r . lyfe and helth may bee continewd yet seavn yeer at least, — and so I will end w th . this distich, that my father taught mee above 40 yeer since : In doing good use no delay, For tyme ys swift and slydes away." As Mr. Sutton's name does not appear in the list of benefactors, it is most probable that his increasing infirmities, and many cares respecting his foundation at the Charter House, prevented his purposed visit to Bath : he died on the 12th of December, 1611. ACCOUNT OF BISHOP MONTAGUE. 43 we have a more certain evidence of Sir John's endeavour to engage the Bishop to complete this edifice, in a brief memorandum under his own hand, namely : — " Havinge longe waitede for our goode Bishope to visite his poore sheepe and rotten folde, I rubbede my braines for suche rustie Latine as might remaine therein, and was bent to meete him at the place of visitation ; and being well encouraged to speak roundelye for his service, to helpe us on in restoringe our Churche to its olde state, or rather to a new state of bewtie ; after all was ended, and his benedictions given, I began with my own " Sis nobiscum, H&mine" and started up in the Church isle with my Poetrye, or rather Historie ; for I sought not to give it the flower, but lookede more for the goode fruit that mighte come of my spare sowinge. Herein I faylede not, and though some mighte thinke me too bolde, it was to make others somewhate bountifull : the Bishope seemed not ill pleasede, and answerede me in suche sorte as made me think verie well of him, and perchance not too ill of myselfe*." The Bishop's reply was — " Cupivi diu, has ruinas, et haec rudera, videre et contemplari ; has vero ruinas et hsec rudera, videre et contemplari, jam dolet : Ingrediar tamen, sed hoc animo, ut nunquam, hoc more, sim reingressurus, prius quam isthasc melius tecta viderof-" * Vide Warner's " History of Bath," p. 159. Note. The Knight's Poem was first published in 1679, by Guidott, in his Appendix to Dr. Jorden's " Discourse of Natural Baths;" and again, in his " Discourse of Bath," with a translation, but of little merit. The Poem is intituled—" Con- ditioner varies Ecclesia Sancti Petri et Pauli Bathoniensis, d primis Fundamentis jactis, anno 775, ad annum decurrentem 1609, Historico-Poetica E?nyiw(;; deque fcelicissima ejusdem Fcclesiee restaura- tione, Vaticinium." f Although Sir J. Harington may claim the merit of having called forth the liberality of Bishop Montague, much must be attributed to the natural generosity of disposition which cha- racterised that Prelate; for he not only bestowed a thousand pounds towards the completion of the Abbey Church, but also expended considerable sums in repairing and decorating the episcopal palaces of Wells and Banwell, and the cathedral of Wells. He was descended from the family of the Montagues, or Montacutes, Earls of Salisbury. Being educated at Cambridge, he became Master of Sydney College. He was afterwards made Dean of Worcester, and next promoted to this See, whence, in 1616, he was translated to Winchester : he died in the latter city, about two years afterwards, but was interred at Bath. Bishop Montague is known in the literary world as the translator of the works of James the First into Latin. A copy of this edition, (published in 1616,) splendidly bound in velvet and gold, with the royal arms embossed on the cover, was given to the University of Cambridge by the King himself, and is still preserved in the Public Library. The Bishops of this See, in the reigns of Elizabeth and James the First, derived vast sums from their lead-mines, near Mendip. Of this abundant crop, Bishop Still is said to have had the harvest ; Bishop Montague, the gleanings ; and Lake, who filled the See after him, the stubble ; " and yet," says Fuller, " considerable was the profit to him and his successors." Vide " Worthies," in Somersetshire. Dyer, 44 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Bishop Montague commenced the new work by a donation of 1000/., and his generous example occasioned many other persons to subscribe liberally towards the furtherance of the design, so that the fabric of the Church was entirely completed about the period at which this munificent prelate was translated to Winchester; which was on the 4th of October, 1616. His brother, Sir Henry Montague, knt., Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, was at the charge of embellishing the great west doors ; and the Vestry was built by Sir Nicholas Salterns, knt., of London*: the latter building, though attached to the wall of the Abbey Church, is actually in the parish of St. James. The expenses of the paving, glazing, fittings up, &c, were defrayed by different individuals, many of whom had been induced to display their bounty thus by the Rev. John Pelling, rector of Bath ; and the Corpora- tion, from a grateful regard for his services, erected, in the year 1621, a monument to his memory, in the north aile. It will not be necessary to notice the various minor repairs and altera- tions which have been since made ; but a considerable improvement has been recently effected in the outward appearance of this Church, as well as a per- manent advantage obtained, by the pulling clown of some buildings which had long obstructed the complete view of its architectural features towards the north t; and which had probably been erected against it when a mere shell, Dyer, in his notices of this prelate, published in his " History of the University and Colleges of Cambridge," 1814, 8vo. vol. i. p. 105; and vol. ii. p. 427; has committed more than one mistake. He calls him Henry Montague, and states that he " was first Bishop of Bath and Wells, then of Winchester, translated at length to Worcester, and lies buried in the cathedral church." — The passages marked in italics are obviously erroneous. * The names of the principal benefactors, with various minute particulars concerning the progress of the work, will be seen in the Appendix, No. V. t The adoption of this measure has been occasioned by various circumstances, among which may be included the inquiries and comments of antiquaries and literary men. The exhortations of the Rev. Francis Skurray, in a Sermon preached in the Abbey Church, in 1816, and since published, must also have had some influence on the corporate members. " I scruple not to call your attention," says Mr. Skurray, " to another local, and what many will deem an unsuitable, subject of consideration, not as to what regards police, but embel- lishment. If the prediction, ' the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain,' (Isaiah xi. 4.) was to be among ' the signs of the times,' in its literal acceptation, where should we find its more complete development than in this elegantly constructed city ? " But there is one alteration, one improvement still wanting, which, in its connexion with religion, is not unworthy of recommendation from a place that is occupied by the ambassador of God. " We are at this moment assembled within a Temple whose vaulted roof has for centuries RECENT IMPROVEMENTS. 45 or ruin, in the possession of Colles, or of Colthurst. Those houses the Corporation of Bath determined, not long since, to remove ; and it is un- derstood that Earl Manvers, the proprietor of some buildings attached to the south wall of the Church, has consented to have those removed also. As the first fruits of this determination of the corporate body, a large house, which stood in the angle formed by the choir of the Church, and the north limb, or transept, was taken down in March 1823; thus opening to the Grove a pleasing view of a part of the fabric which had been long concealed. This has been followed by the removal of two houses which joined the north wall of the Church towards the west end. It might have been expected that more of Oliver King's architectural fancies would have been here brought to light, as the houses covered parts of the building close to the richly adorned west end ; but this has not been the case, the walls being found perfectly plain. The arched, or flying buttresses, in this part of the Church, as conjectured by some persons, have been cut away for the sake of the materials, the upper parts of the masonry being yet visible ; but it is far reverberated wit'i ' Hallelujah, for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.' (Rev. xix. 6.) We are assembled within walls which inclose the ashes of piety and heroism from remote ages of antiquity. But how does it offend the eye of taste when we consider its beautiful exterior screened from public view by crowded and incongruous deformities! " If it be true, as a certain poet sings, that the mind receives from external circumstances ' a secret, sympathetic aid ;' then a view of this disencumbered Temple, rising from the consecrated ground in finished proportions, would have a beneficial operation on the mind of man. It would arrest the eye of the invalid, as he paused in his passage to yon salubrious springs ; it would soften his heart to devotional sensibility ; it would raise it in secret breathings to the Great Physician of Souls to bless their waters as instruments of his recovery. Nay, an indifferent person could not pass by without sentiments of awe, without a desire of becoming ' wise unto salvation,' (2 Tim. iii. 15,) without an aspiration, an effort to qualify himself, in order to dwell one day in a building of God, ' a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.' (2 Cor. v. 1.) •' But if you deny the doctrine of the association of ideas, and of mental impression through the medium of the senses, then effect the removal of unsightly incumbrances, through a feeling of propriety and decorum. If expense be cheerfully incurred in beautifying places of dissenting worship, ' shall parsimony be suffered to obscure the polished corners of the temple?' (Psalm cxliv. 12.) Shall improvements appear in every street and in every receptacle of fashion, and the house of God be the solitary exception ? Oh ! furnish in these days of lukewarmness a practical illustration to your fellow-citizens, that you love ' the habitation of God's house, and the place where his honour dwelleth.' (Psalm xxvi. 8.) Oh ! disregard not the voice of him who crietfa, ' Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight a highway for our God.' (Isaiah, xl. 3.)" Vide " Sermons," &c, by the Rev. F. Skurray, M.A., p. 186. 1817. 46> BATH ABBEY CHURCH. more probable that they were never, finished. Considering the lightness of the vaulting of the nave in comparison with that of the choir, we may conclude that the former work did not require the aid of flying buttresses, although the original architect had prepared for their construction, in case a stone vaulting and heavy roof had been adopted. Much credit is due to the present Corporation for the alterations they have made, and are now making, to improve the exterior appearance of this edifice. The whole of the monastic buildings which were attached to this Church have been destroyed ; but their site is yet pointed out by the Kingston, or Abbey Baths, which derive their waters from the same spring that supplied the Thermce constructed on this very spot by the Romans. For our know- ledge of this circumstance we are indebted to . the discoveries made in the year 1755, when the old Priory, or Abbey-house, was pulled down to make way for new erections. On that occasion, " in digging out the ancient foundation of the priory, about eight feet below the surface of the earth, the workmen found several rough-hewn stone coffins, with the seemingly entire, but mouldering remains of human bodies, of different ages and sexes, and several pieces of coin of successive Saxon kings*;" and, " three or four feet below the burying-place of the Saxons, were discovered some cavities which led to the remains of several very noble Roman baths and suda- tories, constructed on elegant plans, with floors suspended [sustained ?] upon square brick pillars, and surrounded with tubulated bricks f." From the more particular and discriminating account of these Roman remains, given by Dr. Lucas J, and afterwards amplified by Dr. Sutherland ||, who has illustrated his description by a ground-plan, it seems that the baths formed a part of a magnificent building, consisting of a centre and two wings, disposed into numerous apartments, and covering an area of 260 feet from east to west, and 120 feet from north to south. But although it is stated, both by Whitaker § and Warner ^[, that a western wing has been discovered, " exactly tallying" with the eastern one described by the above writers, (and of course establishing the conjectures of Sutherland,) yet it appears that this affirmed exploration of another wing rests on questionable autho- * " Original Bath Guide," p. 5. t Ibid. % " Essay on Mineral Waters," p. 3. 11 " Attempts to revive Ancient Medical Doctrines," p. 1. § " Anti-Jacobin Review," vol. x. p. 127. 1T " New Guide through Bath," p. 29. ARMS IN THE MONK'S PARLOUR. 47 rity. Whitaker has strongly argued, that these remains were part of the Prcttorium, or Palatial residence of the Roman Commandant of this city ; and that it afterwards became the palace of the Saxon kings, under whom a portion of the building " had been converted into a chapel and a burying- place." Collinson says, at the period the Abbey-house was rendered again habi- table, some time after the Dissolution, that parts of it, such as " obso- lete offices and obscure rooms and lofts, " were left in their former state, and never occupied after their desertion by the monks. On " pulling down some of these buildings," he continues, in the beginning of the last century, " one of the apartments, which had been walled up, disclosed a very curious and interesting sight. Round the walls upon pegs were hung, as in a vestry-room — which the place undoubtedly was — the copes, albs, chesibles, and other garments of the religious ; which, on the admission of the air, became so rotten as to crumble into powder. There was also found the handle of a crosier; and on the floor lay two large chests, without any contents, as it was alleged by the workmen ; one of whom, however, grew rich upon the occasion, and retired from business*." He also mentions the following arms, as being in the window of a parlour in the monks' lodgings, viz. : "1. Argent, an Eagle rising, Or: Prior Cantlow. 2. A Chevron between three Eagles displayed, on a Chief a Rose inter two Lozenges, over all a Mitre and Crozier: Prior Birde. 3. Party per Pale, indented, Gules and Or ; a Chevron of the last : Impaling Sable, two Bars Argent, in Chief three Plates : Hungerford ."f * " History of Somersetshire," vol. i. p. 58. t It appears from the " Hungerfordiana" of Sir Richard C. Hoare, that after the marriage of Walter de Hungerford with Maud de Heytesbury, the Hungerfords assumed the arms of her family, viz. Per Pale, indented, Gules and Vert; a Chevron Or. There seems, therefore, to be an error in the blazonment of the above arms as given by Collinson. After the marriage of another Walter de Hungerford, in the time of Edward the Third, with Elizabeth, daughter and heiress of Sir Adam Fitz-John, of Cherill, in Wiltshire, some of the Hungerfords took the arms of Fitz-John; namely, Sable, two Bars Argent, in Chief three Plates, as described in the text; but many of the family continued to bear those of Heytesbury. CHAPTER IV. FEATURES OF THE CITY OF BATH ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION OF THE CHURCH; WITH REFERENCES TO THE ACCOMPANYING PRINTS. It is difficult to render descriptive language on Architectural subjects either amusing or interesting. Unaided by engravings, it generally fails to be specific or intelligible ; but when accompanied by correct pictorial delinea- tions, a writer must be dull indeed who fails to make his own opinions intelligible to his reader. On such occasions as the present, description is employed to assist and explain the graphic illustrations ; and, united with them, to elucidate and exemplify the forms, styles, and characteristics of the building. It is well known to the antiquary, that every edifice is composed of walls, timbers, and various architectural members; and it is a curious fact that no two ancient buildings are precisely alike. To define these dissimilarities, and at the same time clearly to portray the aggregate character and individual parts of each, is both the object and end of the artist and author. In the large cathedrals, and in the baronial castles of our ancestors, wherein many styles of architecture have been successively introduced, it requires considerable care and skill to describe and illustrate the whole, and properly discriminate the numerous gradations ; but in respect to Bath Abbey Church there will not be much difficulty : for the varied members of that edifice are not only of comparatively modern date, but their positive forms and details indicate the age when they were respect- ively designed. The natural character of the country, as well as the peculiar features of the City in which this Church is seated, cannot fail to attract the notice and secure the admiration of every discerning stranger. They also demand the attention of the historian, in consequence of their immediate combination with the appearance of the Abbey Church from different points. The greater part of Bath is situated in a deep, narrow valley, on the banks of the river Avon, which meanders in a contracted channel, from east to west, through the city. The features of the country are bold, abrupt, and DESCRIPTION OF THE CHURCH. 49 highly picturesque. Precipices, steep hills, hanging woods, jutting rocks, narrow, irriguous valleys, wild downs, and fair lawns, constitute the natural scenery; whilst the buildings that have been successively raised to suit the conveniences and fancies of the inhabitants, are almost as diversified as Nature's capricious countenance. With streets ascending steep hills, or placed along the edges of precipices, and others disposed many yards beneath the basements of houses that overhang them ; a Circus, and Crescents with handsome buildings of uniform and enriched architecture, private mansions, elegant shops, detached villas, &c, Bath may be regarded as a City of unique character and of great attractions. Its houses are constructed of fine, smoothed freestone, and most of them are enriched with architectural ornaments. The streets are generally well paved and lighted, and, by the judicious regulations of the Corporation, are mostly kept clean. Fortu- nately here are scarcely any manufactures, and nothing of commerce : the whole trade of the place seems adapted to augment the comforts and the luxuries of life. Fashion has long chosen it as her head-quarters, and both nature and art have contributed to administer to her wants and caprices. In the midst of this famed emporium of gaiety and elegance rises the Abbey Church ; which, though a small building when compared to the Cathe- drals of York, Lincoln, Wells, and others, appears here prominent, bold, and commanding. Its tower, turrets, and clere-story windows, are seen high above the adjoining houses, and they collectively constitute a pro- minent feature in every approach to the city. We find, however, on a closer view, that the Church itself is nearly enveloped with houses, and the greater part of it shut out from inspection. Till within a few years, the whole of the north and south sides were immured by shops and small houses ; its walls were cut into for closets, and its windows obscured by the roofs and chimneys of those buildings. The contiguous ground, being the property of the Corporation, and of private individuals, was let out to the best bidder, and considered as a marketable commodity : the lessee, of course, no farther regarded the sacred walls than as conducive to his own domestic wants and trading advantages, without the least reference either to the beauty of the building or to its character or stability. Various encroachments were in consequence made on the fabric, and many damages sustained ; but since the commencement of the present reign, a new and more enlightened policy has been exercised : the Corporation have thought H 50 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. it prudent to forego a considerable annual income from those shops, and thereby give up private emolument to public appearance and to the public wish. Some houses, that were attached to the Church, have recently been removed, and the whole are intended to be progressively taken down. The Church will then be a clear, insulated edifice; the Grove and the Abbey Churchyard will be open to, and communicate with each other ; and, whilst the Church will be amply and finely displayed to public scrutiny and admiration, the surrounding houses will increase in pleasantness, respect- ability, and value*. At the early part of the last century the Church was a common thoroughfare, or path of communication between the Grove on the east, and the Churchyard on the west. General Wade, who pos- sessed some property and influence here, was shocked at this unhallowed and disgusting practice, and opened a thoroughfare, since called Wade's Passage, on the north side of the Church. The general Plan of the Abbey Church, like that of our Cathedrals, is a cross, with an embattled tower rising from the intersection of the nave and transept. It has arisen from this similarity, and from the character of the architecture, combined with the ancient connexion of the Abbey with the See of Bath and Wells, that this Church has been so frequently, though improperly, called a Cathedral. It never, however, had the least title to that denomination ; for, although indebted for its origin . to Bishop King, and for its completion to Bishop Montague, the charge of its erection was altogether independent of the public revenues of the See of Wells ; and even in Bishop King's time — who contributed so largely from his own purse— as well as afterwards, a great portion of the expenditure was derived from the income of the Monks of Bath. Besides, there never was any Cathedral establishment here ; and whatever jurisdiction the bishop possessed over the abbot and convent, that supremacy was entirely abrogated at the period of the Reformation, when the convent itself was dissolved, and the whole of the abbatial estates and possessions became the property of lay proprietors* Still less could it be termed a Cathedral, with any reference to its actual * Among the laudable and rational improvements of the present age in town architecture, is the formation of squares, wide streets, and spacious openings. The conveniences, and even luxuries of life, are thereby promoted and secured ; and even the landholder is ultimately benefited. Bath has partaken of these reformations in an eminent degree, and its Corporation and Citizens will manifest a profitable and liberal policy to continue the improvements of their city. DESCRIPTION OF THE CHURCH BY FULLER, AND OTHERS. 51 state, after it was granted to the Corporation of Bath, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and made Parochial*. Fuller, whose originality of thought and singular association of ideas still interests through all his quaintness, speaking of the churches of Bath and Wells, introduces his remarks thus : " Twins are said to make but one man, as these two churches constitute one Bishop's See. Yet as a twin oft-times proves as proper a person as those of single births; so these severally equal most, and exceed many, cathedrals in England-]"." Of Bath Church, singly, he observes : " This church is both spacious and specious, the most lightsome as ever I beheld, proceeding from the greatness of the Windows and whiteness of the Glass therein J." Similar praise is bestowed by Chapman; who says — " This Church justly challenging to itself the Pre-eminence for Lightsomeness, Stateliness, and Elegance of Structure, of all the Parochial Churches in the Kingdom ||." It was, unquestionably, the peculiar lightness of the interior that occasioned this fabric to be denominated the Lantern of England ; and not, as Wood has darkly stated, tl from the elegance of the disguised Orders in the building^." In the ground plan of this Church there is a considerable variation from most of our ancient ecclesiastical structures, the ailes being wide in proportion to the width of the nave, and the transept unusually narrow. In conse- quence of this, the base of the tower forms an oblong square, the dimen- sions of which, from north to south, are upwards of one-fourth more than from east to west. The choir, also, in comparison with the nave, is unusually * The entire abrogation of every tie between Bath Abbey and the See of Bath and Wells, was made a few years after the Reformation, by an Act of Parliament passed in the 35th year of Henry VIII. After reciting various particulars relating to the former state of the See, &c, by which it appeared that the Chapter of the Bishopric was jointly composed of the Dean and Chapter of Wells and the Prior and Convent of Bath, and that the common Seal of the latter, as well as that of the Dean and Chapter of Wells, was necessary to give validity to every deed granted by the Bishop in respect to the Episcopal estates — it provides that all grants, leases, &c, which had been made under the Seals of the Bishop and the Dean and Chapter of Wells since the Dissolu- tion, should be good and available in law, notwithstanding the doubts which had been enter- tained; and that in future, the Dean and Chapter of Wells should be for ever reported and adjudged to be, " the full, entire, and sole Chapter of the Bishopric of Bath and Wells." Vide Dugdale's " Monasticon," vol. ii. p. 294: edit. 1819. f " Worthies of England," vol. ii. p. 277. J Ibid. p. 278. || " Thermae Redivivae," vide Guidott's " Treatises," p. 415. 1725. § " Description of Bath," vol. ii. p. 310. 52 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. long ; and it is remarkable that the choir ailes are carried further eastward than the choir itself. Notwithstanding these deviations from the general arrangement of our conventual and cathedral edifices, its design is evidently contrived with great scientific and geometrical skill ; the walls and supporting piers occupying but a very small part of the entire site, when compared with the extent of the space covered, as will be seen by the following calcula- tions : — The whole building stands on 20,032 square feet, of which the points of support include about 4,500 square feet; consequently, the pro- portion of the latter to the former is 0.224. The rise of ground has been so considerable round the walls that much of the basement is buried ; from which circumstance, the true proportions of the Church cannot be justly appreciated. The entrance from the west is by a descent of three steps to the pavement ; beneath which, at the depth of about six or seven feet, parts of an older floor, with base mouldings, &c, are discovered. On the outside, the present level of the ground is nearly nine feet above the plinth of the walls. In the description of this Church given by Wood, he compares its plan and measurements to those of the most ancient structures of the Jews ; and affirms that " the whole edifice is really and truly an Egyptian hall of the Dorick order, sustaining the Corinthian, turned into the figure of a Cross, under Gothick dress. These ideas have been expanded, and a more par- ticular account of the building entered into, in a Manuscript description, of which the following is a copy, but the writer of which has not been traced ; although it is probable that Wood himself was the person — his opinions and measurements, and in some instances his very words, being adopted from the printed statement*. " The proportions of the Abbey Church of Bath shew very plainly that the founder of it was well acquainted with both the profane and sacred architecture of the ancients. The Church is truly an Egyptian hall, and from the intercolumniation and heights of the pillars, we may conclude it to be of the Doric order, sustaining the Ionic ; but this hall is turned, as an emblem of religion, into the shape of a cross, under a Gothic dress, and bears all the proportion of Noah's Ark, of Solomon's Temple, and of the Tabernacle : for instance, the nave within, being 211 feet long, by 35 feet broad to the centres of the pillars, and the arms of the cross, that extends from north * Vide " Description of Bath," vol. i'. pp. 309, 310. DESCRIPTION OF THE CHURCH. 53 to south, being 120 feet long by 20 feet broad, both form an area of six squares in length, which is the proportion of Noah's Ark. Again : the whole Church, from east to west, is formed upon a triple square nearly, being 225 feet long and about 80 feet broad ; but if we take the foot of the cross, we shall find it to be exactly a triple square, which was the proportion of Solo- mon's Temple. If we take the head of the cross, we shall find it to be formed on an area of two squares and an half, the proportion Moses gave to the Tabernacle ; and the proportion of the Sanctum Sanctorum of the Jewish temple is preserved in each arm of the cross. The standard of the cross is composed of a nave and two isles, the exact form of an Egyptian hall ; the pillars that separate the nave from the isles being 4 feet diameter, and 16 feet asunder, preserve the intercolumniation the Greeks called Areostyle ; and the whole height of the Church being nearly 80 feet, pre- serves the rule the ancients always observed of elevating two orders of equal altitude upon each other. The sides of that part of the Egyptian hall which form the foot of the cross are hexastyle, and the sides of that part which form the head of the cross, tetrastyle. In the Church are fifty-two windows, thus placed : one large one in each centre of the east and west fronts, and one large one in each end of the arms of the cross, on each of which the other windows were disposed in equal numbers ; eight win- dows in two ranges fronting the east, the like number fronting the west ; sixteen windows in two ranges fronting the north, and the like number fronting the south ; so that each end of the Church contains five windows in a row, including that which makes the central aperture, and each side contains nine of the like openings. Seven doors were originally made for entrance into the Church, and if we examine the pillars in the Church, we shall find four great ones supporting the tower, and six smaller ones on each side the Egyptian hall : thus, while the four large pillars pointed out the four great divisions in the year, the twelve smaller ones were emble- matical of the twelve months ; and as the doors shew the days of the week, so the windows mark out the weeks in the year. The centre of the west front, on which is represented the good Bishop's Dream*, is composed of * " The building of this Church," says Wood, " in the manner we now see it, would cost in these days full 30,000Z., and therefore, how light soever some people may make of dreams, it is nevertheless certain that Saint Peter's Church at Bath has testified, for near 250 years back, and is like to do the same for many centuries to come, that something very material hath come from a dream." " Description of Bath," vol, ii. p. 311. 54 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. a large window between two octagon towers ; under the window is the door, or principal entrance into the Church ; on each side the door is a niche, one holding the figure of St. Peter, the other that of St. Paul : over the door is a niche in which formerly was the figure of our Saviour : near the top of the window, on one of the munions, is the figure of a Dove ; and at the top of the Church, in a grand niche, was a figure, made to represent God the Father : the spandrels, or spaces above the window, are filled up with small figures representing the Cherubim and Seraphim : on the front of each of the octagon towers is the representation of a ladder, with Angels ascend- ing and descending, and at the foot, a Man asleep under an Olive tree ; and on the collateral sides of the towers are niches which hold statues of the Twelve Apostles : the wings of the front are no more than the ends of the isles ; but the whole front, exclusive of the ornaments, which greatly enrich it, is agreeable and pleasing, being formed upon the proportion of an equilateral triangle. Though the west front is so deservedly admired, I cannot help here observing what has generally passed unnoticed ; and that is, the window of the east front, which is about 20 feet wide and 50 feet high, the top of it is not arched, as in other windows, but quite strait, and shews the great skill and knowledge the builders in those days had in mechanics, to what our modern builders can boast of. The head of the cross, with the isles on each side of it, were originally intended to be arched likewise ; but the death of Prince Arthur made the Bishop in such a hurry to compleat the Church, that he only put a timber roof on those parts. The buttresses of the Church are well worth observation ; they consist of a strait line, and the curve of a parabola, both springing from the same base, which is the outward wall of the isles : the curve of the parabola abuts against the springing of the arch of the roof, and thereby prevents the roof from spread- ing ; the strait line, which is the tangent to the parabola, lies against the top of the wall of the Church, which is level with the crown of the arch, and thereby keeps the whole building steady, and the centre of gravity in its proper place — a remarkable instance of the judgment of the builders. This was the state in which the Church was left by Bishop King, and before it was demolished by the King's commissioners." The principal Architectural Characteristics of the Abbey Church are exhibited by the accompanying Prints. Aided by these, it is hoped that the following description will be fully understood : and it will be unne- cessary to employ the language either of praise or censure, in noticing the JE/UjTMed fa Jkih'Jkrr'e.Tivri aDrawvu byJl.lJaBir/r&k. BATH Groiaid.Tliin, with ivrms of the groitiiriq kc. Frint/J by C>x '.-/.'.:i-.:;r; GROUND PLAN OF THE CHURCH. 55 various divisions of this edifice. On subjects of taste and of scientific art, it is but seldom that the conclusions of a writer have any influence on the judgment of professional and critical readers, who generally decide from their own experience and preconceived opinions. Plate I. — Ground Plan of the Church. This defines the horizontal form, arrangement, and proportions of the building. By this it will be seen to consist of a nave, d, with two corresponding ailes, e, f ; three entrances at the west end, a, b, c ; four clustered columns on each side of the nave, with large windows, of five lights each, occupying the whole space between the piers in the ailes. A narrow transept, h i, with three windows in the lower part of each, intersects the Church from north to south, and separates the nave from the choir, k. The latter, with two corresponding ailes, l, m, east of the transept, constitute the remainder of the Church. It is shewn that each of these ailes has three windows, corresponding with those of the nave, and that the ailes are divided from the choir by two clustered columns, and three arches on each side. At the east end of the ailes are two doorways, i, j, and two circular staircases, g, h. At f, is a chantry chapel, raised to the memory of Prior Bircle. At m, is a small extraneous building, used as the Vestry, which is situated in the parish of St. James. Adjoining its door, 1, is an old mural tomb to John Bellingham, 1577. Near the west end of the south aile, at a, the window has been closed up, a private house abutting against the wall. At b, c, are staircases, through the western turrets, to the roofs of the ailes and nave. At d, is Bishop Montagues monument ; e, a large monumental sarcophagus to Thomas and Margaret Litchfield, the former of whom was Lutanist to Queen Elizabeth : behind this monument is an old doorway, closed up; k, a large altar-tomb, with canopy, pillars, and statues, commemorative of Lady Waller, wife of Sir William Waller. At p, is an ancient doorway, now closed up, called the Prior's entrance. It will be seen from the Plan that the groined vaulting of the eastern part of the Church is extremely different from the coved ceiling of the nave ; and that the ornamental tracery of the latter is very plain and inarti- ficial when compared with the elaborate ramifications of the choir and its ailes. There is, as might indeed be expected, when the different periods are considered at which the various parts of the roof were executed, a very considerable diversity in the design and construction of the vaultings. The parts eastward from the transept were, most probably, completed agreeably 56 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. to Bishop King's original plan ; and they are very elegant. In the transept, the groining is more simple, though executed on the same principle of the high-pointed arch. On the contrary, the arch that forms the coved ceiling of the nave is elliptical, and comparatively very flat ; its span being " thirty feet nine inches," and " its rise" only " three feet*." Though less orna- mental, however, than the choir, it is contrived with great ingenuity and skill; and, as stated by Carter, " maybe justly deemed a master-piece of masonry-)"." Its " construction," he remarks, " is most singular : the several mouldings which compose the tracery being the only solid work, while the spaces between them are cut through, but are now slightly filled with lath and plaster]:." Its low arch springs, on each side, from an horizontal string course, or cornice; the ends of the coving abut against the walls of the west front and central tower. In the middle of each compartment, or severy, of this ceiling, within a radiated quatrefoil, is a sculptured shield of arms, including those of the city of Bath and Bishop Montague ; the latter being twice repeated||. The tracery in the ailes of the nave is of a debased and inelegant style. Browne Willis states that the Bishop and Cardinal, Adrian de Castello, who was translated from Hereford to the See of Bath and Wells in October 1504, " bestowed much money in vaulting the choir of Bath Church, as may be seen by his arms under the Cardinal's Hat, on the roof on each side of the choir §." The Cardinal's arms were Argent, three Bendlets embattled and counter-embattled Gules : as appears from the title-page to his work, " Hadrianus T T S. Chrisogoni S. R. E. Presb. Card. Batonien. De Ser- mone Latino et de Modis Latine Loquendi," &c, published at Basil in 1518. With this agree the Manuscripts of the late Rev. William Cole, who writes thus : " Over y e great west window twice, and on y e roof of y e Church in various places, are these arms, which I observed, being at Bath in April 1746, viz. : Three Bends counter-embattale, and ensigned with a Car- dinals Hat." He then refers them to Adrian, whom he states to have been * Vide " Some Account of the Abbey Church of Bath," p. 8, published by the Society of Antiquaries. f Ibid. J Ibid. || The arms of the City of Bath are Azure, a Saltire Quarterly quartered, Or and Argent: those of Bishop Montague are Quarterly, 1st and 4th, Argent, within a Bordure Sable, three Fusils in Fess, Gules ; Montague : 2d and 3d, Or, an Eagle, displayed Vert, armed Gules ; Monthermer. § Vide " Survey of the Cathedrals of York, Durham," &c. vol. i. p. 520. Cardinal Adrian was deprived of all his ecclesiastical dignities in 1518, for conspiring against Pope Leo X. - y 3 1 g p 1 Cm 3 <4 A XtipwfM ti T.Rwj.m . tr.*m 4-Dri.trlno *i- XHaj^kaugO. tfrinfBvjj Sisr.-r? A* . i7" Jl.rlh ~dbtty Chti. t /, t e::t txcitt or lo cHftKLESM.EABKi'M.L fir Tils Hate is inscribed with, sentiments of esteem "by ZaxdJii .JPulli.-hn! !y The ^ivrfwr.Tavif&ek flare. Jan'.l 1B2£. ' the ATTTHOU. GROININGS — WEST FRONT. 57 a "generous contributor to the edification of the Church*;" most probably, on the authority of Willis, as given above ; for it does not appear from any other writer that the Cardinal ever expended any sums on this fabric : on the contrary, he is said to have resided at Rome, and to have farmed out the revenues of his See. His arms, " but without the Hat, are yet visible in the centre division of the vault of the choir;" and also on two shields, " among the angels," in the centre compartment of the west front, " but now so nearly effaced as not to be distinguishable from below without a telescope," surmounted " by a Cardinal's Hatf." These vestiges may intimate that the vaulting of the choir and the western elevation were completed during Adrian's episcopacy. " A considerable portion of the arched ceiling was beautified at the cost of Hugh Bayley, a famous bone- setter, parvis componere magna J." Plate II. — Details of Groinings, 8$c. from various parts of the Church. — No. 1. Groining at the north-east end of the choir ; — 2. To the choir ailes ; — 3. To the east side of the north transept; — 4. At the north-east angle, below the tower ; — -5. Tracery of the ceiling of the nave ; — 6. Of the nave ailes ; — 7. Groining at the south-west angle of Prior Birde's Chapel; — 8. Shield of Birde's arms, with crosier and tracery behind the same. Plate III. — The West Front. — The western facades of the Cathedrals, and of many monastic churches, were the most decorated and impressive exterior features of those sacred edifices. Intended and calculated to make powerful impressions on the minds of religious devotees, they were adorned with niches, pinnacles, sculptures, and numerous devices. The western front was the chief entrance : — to this the priests and laity were first introduced before entering the holy building, and here the first effect was produced on the Catholic worshippers. On contemplating these gorgeous pieces of archi- tectural imagery, the credulous and zealous would naturally be led to wonder, to admire, and to adore. The west end of the Church, now under notice, displays a design in which architecture and sculpture are combined, * Cole's " MS. Collections," in the British Museum, vol. xiii. p. 42. a. f Vide " Some Account of the Abbey Church," p. 7. % " Practical Treatise on the Bath Waters," &c. by J. H. Spry, Surgeon, &c. 8vo. 1822. After so many essays and treatises have appeared on the Bath waters, we are surprised to see a new volume on the same subject : but genius and science, as in the present instance, can give interest and point to a " thrice told tale." • • • I 58 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. and in which Scriptural histories and emblems are employed to excite interest and awaken religious feelings. This facade may be described as consisting of a centre and two wings ; the latter being constituted by the western extremities of the ailes. The sculpture which is spread over this front, has already been mentioned in Sir John Harington's account of the Vision of Bishop King (p. 33); and also in the general description (p. 55): but it is requisite to add a few particulars to complete the elucidation. The staircase turrets which bound the central part of this front, have square basements, but are carried up octagonally from the height of the cornice of the ailes : they are terminated by two ranges of pannelling, and ' a battlement. Between them is the main entrance, the great west window, and the sculptural representation of the Heavenly Choir, surmounted by an open-work parapet, embattled. The architrave surrounding the entrance consists of numerous mouldings, from which a sub-architrave diverges, and forms a square head over the arch; the spandrels are filled with labels, inclosing wounded hearts, crowns of thorns, pierced feet and hands, &c, emblems of our Saviour's crucifixion : the northern spandrel is delineated in Plate VI. a. The folding-doors constitute a curious example of the decorative carving of James the First's time : the upper part displays an heraldic mantle, surmounted by a knight's helmet and a griffin's head, the crest of the Montagues. On the mantle are two shields of arms ; viz. within a garter the See of Bath and Wells impaling Montague, and Montague only : beneath it is another shield, and on a flowing label round it is inscribed Ecce quam bonum et quam jucundum, etc. At the sides of the doorway are canopied niches, containing large statues, now greatly defaced, of St. Peter and St. Paul, the apostolic patrons of this edifice. The inscriptions which were formerly on the pedestals, are nearly obliterated ; but Cole, who visited this Church in the year 1746, has preserved them in his MSS. in the British Museum : — " Under y e image of St. Peter, with his keys in his hand, on y e north side, is this : Claviger JEthereus f actus de Simone Petrus. " Under the other of St. Paul, holding a sword, is this line : Ecce Furor Saulif actus est Conversio Pauli." Beneath the pedestals are the portcullis and the union rose, crowned, the badges of Henry the Seventh. The figure of St. Paul, &c. is shewn in Plate VI. b. LARGE WINDOW AND WESTERN FRONT. 59 In the centre of an enriched parapet over the great western door, is a small niche, now unoccupied, but presumed to have contained originally a figure of Henry VII., whose arms (crowned) and supporters are sculp- tured at the bottom. Some traces of a defaced inscription are visible on a label to the right and left of this niche. The large window is finely proportioned ; and although its tracery is not particularly elaborate, it is regarded as curious from a supposed connexion of the design with the idea of the Trinity*. Perpendicularly, it consists of three principal divisions, independently of the tracery within the great arch, on the centre of which are the remains of a sculptured figure of a bird, pro- bably intended to represent the Holy Dove. The whole of the space between the architrave of this window and the parapet, (which is pedimental and embattled,) is filled with sculpture, in bold relief, representing the Angelic Choir, in attitudes of adoration, glorify- ing the Trinity ; which was typified by a statue of God the Father, seated within a canopied niche in the centre, and most probably sustaining the image of the Saviour, — as delineated in Catholic missals, and still frequently to be seen in ecclesiastical sculptures. The statue remains, but the hands have been broken off, and other parts damaged : the head, which is that of a venerable bearded figure, still exhibits traces of a fine character. The feet rest on a bracket; below which are two shields, charged with the arms of the See, surmounted by a dragon and a greyhound, (the supporters of Henry the Seventh f,) sustaining a rose, crowned. The ascending and descending Angels, which are sculptured on the rounds of the ladders in front of the staircase turrets, are much mutilated ; as are also the figures, apparently of shepherds, standing on the undulating ground which supports the ladders : over the shepherds are inscribed labels, now unintelligible J. The character * In the account published by the Society of Antiquaries, the window is thus described : - — " The west window is of extreme richness : it consists of two sub-arches, and a large division between them, each sub-arch having three divisions, which are likewise seen in the heads of the sub-arches; the spandrels between the heads and the large division in the centre have each three divisions : the heights, from the bottom of the window to Jbe springing of the arch, have also three divisions : in the heads of the sub-arch are three divisions, and the large division in the centre has also three divisions." — p. 7. f This monarch was anxious to be regarded as a descendant of Cadwallader, the last king of the Britons, whose ensign was the red dragon. The greyhound was an ancient supporter of the arms of the house of Beaufort, from which Henry traced his maternal descent. X It was probably on these labels that the words, Be sursum est, mentioned by Sir John Harington, were inscribed. 60 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. and appearance of these sculptures will be seen on referring to Plate VI. c. At the top of each ladder is a defaced demi-figure, that on the northern side probably intended to typify Heaven, and that on the south Hell: at least the latter displays two eyes, with an open mouth and large teeth, resembling some of the representations, in old designs, of the mouth of the infernal regions : see Plate VI. d. On the cants of the turrets, on each side the ladders, are statues of the Twelve Apostles' in three tiers, standing on pedestals, with small arched canopies over them : these figures, though greatly mutilated, have an appearance of good sculpture. On each buttress, near the extremities of the ailes, is a piece of sculp- ture, (see Plate VI. e,) allusive to the name and vision of Bishop King, viz. the Olive springing through a regal crown, and surmounted by a mitre. Beneath are two mutilated animals : below which is an expanded roll. On this are traces of the text, from the parable of the trees choosing a king, as inserted in page 39. The doorways to the ailes are in unison with the centre entrance, and the enrichments are similar, though less elaborate. Over each is a low- pointed arched window, divided, horizontally, into four principal lights, by mullions branching into handsome tracery. Both the centre mullions are ornamented by a human figure standing on a pedestal under an enriched canopy, (vide Plate VI. / and g) : that on the northern side is in flowing- drapery, and appears to hold an open deed with seals appendant : that on the south, which was probably meant for a king, seems to be holding a pouch, or money-bag. On each pedestal, is a shield of arms. Above the northern window is the inscription, IBfJllTUS VHSU J and over the other, IBontUS OrOtttSS (an abbreviation for Orationis), in black letter. At the sides are vacant brackets. A cornice, with an embattled and pierced parapet, (both raking pedimentally,) terminate the summit of each aile. Plate IV. — View from the South-east. — This displays the chief architec- tural features of the southern side of the Church ; particularly the windows of the aile and clerestory — the flying buttresses of the choir — the vestry — the south and east sides of the tower — the lofty and narrow southern transept, and the aile and clerestory of the nave. This view represents the Church as it would be seen, from a certain point, if the houses were removed from the south side of the nave. Plate V. — East End. — There are several peculiar features in the design of this front, of which the plain horizontal terminations of the ailes, the square forms of the turrets, which exhibit two ranges of pannelling, of the £ngrm>ed l^-JIJ,eJiei!.T. from aJ-lraiyhiyby /l.Shep7ierd,ai)zr a S/re/r/i hy KJl'trJtenzte' EAST IZK® OF ■OBOE AB3BIET (DMTOIftCIH. B^TBL TO JOHNWiLISHmEESli"? SHO CKl.WIICK, this jlatc-ls inscrftea "bvtlie mjthor. •FublisTLut bytht Mitfwr. Burwn Street^iu.0. 16&. SATE AMMMY CMTU^CW* ARCHITECT tfRAL DETAILS . Vide aescripaijii. £ /-■JLJ r IZX. 17,-tr looking S.WofMive. £c. JPTHE HEV? JOSEPH HUNTER. AUTHOR OF 'THE BISTORT See OF liALMMSHlRE'. This Tlate is inscribed "with sentiments of esteem "by ., Zoiufo/uFttMsfted h/fir d}tlfwr,Jart*l?M20. J.BB1TTON DETAILS — VIEWS OF THE NAVE. 61 character of Henry the Seventh's time, and the straight head of the great win- dow, may be pointed out as the most particular. In its general plan, the latter is similar to the great west window, but it consists of an additional tier of lights ; and the jambs are carried up perpendicularly to the highest point of the win- dow ; the spandrels are pierced into circular openings, glazed with stained glass. Similar trefoil-arched heads ornament the buttresses as those at the west end. In the spandrel to the doorway of the north aile is a shield, charged with a fleur-de-lis, and the initials J. F. for Jeffrey Flower, gent. ; at whose cost the new wall here, with the doorway, and the window over it, were built. An inscription on the buttress of the north-east corner, states, that the two buttresses were repaired at the " cost of Francis Allen, sometime clothier of this cittye, 1616." Plate VI. - — Details from different parts of the Church. — All the parts referred to from a to g have already been described : h is a small orna- mental recess at the end of the south transept, which Carter, in the " Account" published by the Society of Antiquaries, has called an almonry : it is more likely, however, to have been a piscina, as both its situation and form are perfectly suitable for the latter, — should there have been, as there probably was, a chantry here, with the altar, as usual, to the east : in Carter's print the pannels over the recess are omitted. — i and j are parts of Prior Birde's chapel, which will be described under Plates IX. and X. : k is a demi-angel supporting a shield of Edward the Confessor's arms, which is sculptured at the springing of the groining at the east end of the choir, on the north side. There are four similar sculptures on each side of the groining, within the lower pannels. Plate VII. — Interior of the Nave, looking east, divested of monuments. — This view shews the forms of the main piers and arches, the clerestory windows, the groining, the great arches of the tower, &c, together with the distant parts of the choir. At its eastern extremity, the nave is crossed by a glazed screen and organ gallery. Plate VIII. — View across the Nave, looking south-west. — In this de- lineation the artist has endeavoured to portray the effect of the descending sun, when its refulgent rays are streaming through the western windows. The forms of the great piers are distinctly shewn : they stand diagonally, (the mouldings of the arches being continued to the bases,) and at the angles, which are canted off, are small three-quarter columns. The arch- way seen in the distance, formed what is still called the Prior's Entrance, but 62 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. it has long been closed up. The very crowded state of the monuments may- be readily comprehended from this view ; the piers and walls of the whole Church bein°- similarly loaded with sepulchral memorials. Under the second arch in the north aile, as represented in the print, but in reality the fourth from the west end, is the monument of Bishop Montague, which is com- posed of an insulated tomb, (on which lies the good prelate's effigy,) sur- rounded with iron railing, and flanked by Corinthian columns, supporting- entablatures, shields of arms, &c, in the costly style of James the First's time. The forms of the tracery in the ailes of the nave are shewn in this engraving. Plate IX. — Interior Elevations. — A, is the first compartment from the east on the south side of the choir ; including the screen of the chapel of Prior Birde, which is represented as in a perfect state : B, is the south side of the central tower ; and C, is the compartment of the nave at the west end, with a section of the window. The forms of the plinths, sub- plinths, and bases of the columns ; the manner in which the mouldings rise and form the architraves ; the way in which the astragals or bands, (which constitute so many capitals,) are composed by the small horizontal mouldings at the springing of the arches ; the springing of the groins, and the construction of the roof, — are all exhibited in these elevations. The monumental Chapel of Prior Birde is situated on the south side of the choir near the altar. The greater part of its northern screen has been very reprehensibly destroyed, to make room for " the clumsy, misshapen wooden seat called the Bishop's throne*." The south side consists, longi- tudinally, of two divisions, rising from a basement ornamented with quatre- foils in pannels, and being separated by octangular buttresses; these, in the upright, are divided into four compartments of small pannelled arches, and their capitals unite with the entablature which surrounds the whole. The work above the entablature has been cut away, to make room for a gallery : its fascia is sculptured with running vine-branches, in bold relief. The divisions between the buttresses are composed of two flattened arches, with three mullions and tracery, and having a plinth of several mouldings, and a dado of enriched radiated quatrefoils, in pannels, with an open flower, or rosette, in the centre of each. In the spandrels is a variety of finely wrought foliage, including birds and, apparently, the figure of a Sagittarius ; * Warner's " History of Bath," p. 250. birde's chantry. 63 but the sculpture being much obscured, this cannot be determined with certainty. At the north-west angle are two angular niches, one above the other, having duplex canopies crowned with pinnacles. At the exterior angle of the north-west corner, is a double pannel crowned with an ogee arch-moulding, with crockets, from which springs one of the angular groins. Plate VI. j. A part of the south side of this Chapel is represented in the Title Page, Plate X., in its present state of dilapidation. There were two sub-arches in each division, together with an enriched transom. The small openings in the head of the principal arch are sharply and elegantly pierced. The figure presumed to be a Sagittarius, appears amidst the foliage in the spandrel which fronts the right hand. The spandrels on the north side do not appear to have been completed : that shewn in Plate VI. i, seems to have included the figure of an angel, and a money-bag, with surrounding labels and foliage. The chantry chapel thus noticed must have been originally a most in- teresting specimen of architectural design. Both externally and internally the whole was adorned with pannelling, roses, niches, pedestals, and varied sculpture. It consisted of a stone screen, filling up the space between two columnar piers on the south side of the choir, and was formerly provided with an altar at the east end, and a piscina. There were probably two doors of entrance ; one from the choir, the other from the south aile. One of them remains, but the other, as well as nearly the whole of the northern screen, is destroyed. The tracery of the roof consists of four compartments of fan-shaped tracery, diverging from the sides, and spreading over the surface ; at the eastern end, over the altar-place, are five pannels, charged with lozenge-shaped tracery : the central pannel is adorned with a shield, bearing the Prior's anns, surmounted by a mitre, as represented in Plate II. No. 8. The lamentable state to which this interesting and beautiful chantry is reduced, cannot but excite regret, and even some degree of indignation. Besides having one side broken away, the remainder of the pannelling and sculpture is partly filled up, and obscured by repeated coats of whitewash * * The common and vulgar practice of white-washing and yellow-washing Churches cannot be sufficiently regretted, nor can it be too much reprobated. However cleanly and carefully executed, it becomes offensive to the eye, and incompatible with all the canons of taste; but 64 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. the whole interior is filled with modern pews, and other parts are cut into, and injured by monumental slabs affixed to the surface. In reviewing the Choir of the Church, we find that modern alterations, and adaptations to accommodate a crowded congregation, have been made, without any regard to harmony of style, to form, or to colour. The whole area is filled with common, irregular pews, and the arches on each side are blocked up by galleries, with boarded backs, glazed doors, &c. At the west end, beneath the lofty arches of the tower, is an organ-gallery; which, with the organ-case, are extremely inappropriate and tasteless. The whole is supported by common pillars, and the ends inserted in the piers of the tower. The altar-piece, or fittings up behind the altar, affect some- thing of architectural character, and were certainly intended to be adorn- ments to the place. A considerable mass of marble, formed into columns, with entablature, pediment, &c, is employed; and doubtless designed to imitate Roman, not ecclesiastical architecture, and therefore has no analogy to the window above, or the arches at the sides. Had the screen of the con- tiguous chapel been taken as a pattern, and imitated in the fitting up of the altar, and for the communion rails, something beautiful and harmonious would have been produced. Attached to the piers, and against the walls at the eastern end of the choir, are various monuments ; and the pavement is almost wholly formed of inscribed slabs. The epigrammatic distich of the late Dr. Harington cannot fail to be re- membered on viewing the numerous sepulchral memorials in this Church : " These walls, adorned with monument and bust, Shew how Bath waters serve to lay the dust." — This remark was not, however, dictated by a reprehensible .levity, but by that playfulness of imagination which marked the character of the amiable the usual process of smearing coat on coat, and that frequently very thick, destroys all the beauties of sculpture and all the rich varieties of surface. The fascinating effects of light, shadow, and relief, which the skilful architects intended to produce, are thus counteracted; and forms that were originally graceful and beautiful, are rendered flat, stale, and insipid. It is almost as reprehensible as clothing the Venus de Medicis in a loose smock-frock, or the Apollo Belvidere in a coachman's box-coat. MORTUARY REMARKS. 65 writer. True wit, influenced by benevolent sentiment, consecrates every thing on which it is employed. Serious and even melancholy subjects it renders pleasing, or at least it diverts the mind from an irrational tendency of dwelling on irremediable events. Death is the inevitable termination of all living beings, — it is as natural and certain as for day and night to succeed each other. None but the coward and the conscious sinner should dread to die. " The Soldier," says Trim, " never fears death in battle" — the true Christian and the sound Philosopher disregard him every where. All nature, and all the institutions of man, point to this " moral tale*." * Fanaticism induces melancholy, misery, worldly abstraction ; but man is not naturally con- stituted for either: — he is endowed with mind, and social adaptations to the world, — to its varieties and to its pleasures. He is one link in the chain of concord ; and, by fulfilling his duty, he promotes all the friendly relations of life. Man may be generally good and happy, and thereby contribute to the happiness of others. It is easier to be virtuous than to be vicious ; and whilst virtue ever wears a cheerful countenance, vice is either haunted by a guilty conscience, or visited by positive or anticipated sorrow. Hervey has written " Meditations among the Tombs," in a tone of solemn and doleful lamentation. Young penned his " Night Thoughts " with more sublime imagery, and a better feeling of philosophy ; but with too lachrymose an eye towards worldly enjoyments. The amiable Addison says — " If I wish to indulge melancholy, or to be made wiser and better than I am, I wander among the tombs of Westminster Abbey." If that place be calculated to produce such effects, the Abbey Church of Bath is equally admonitory; for • it is the mortuary repository of many hundreds of our species. Persons of all countries and climes, — of all professions and ages, — of different sects and conditions, are here entombed in a small space ; and their ashes mingle, perhaps, with the heathenised Romans, Saxons, and Danes. What an awful, and what a grand theme for meditation! It ought to make us wiser and better, by impelling us to correct our follies and subdue our vices. But 1 would recommend a contrary doctrine to that of Addison, by saying, " abstain from" rather than " indulge in melancholy :" for to cherish this morbid feeling must unnerve the frame and disorder the faculties. The Christian church, abounding with numerous monumental records, is calculated to awaken grand, sublime, soothing, and even harmonising reflections. It shews us that, though life is precarious, and death certain, many have attained dignified and happy old age; — have acquired honours, fame, and riches; — have secured the esteem of relations and friends, and thereby deserved the praise of posterity. In such a place, surrounded by such mementos, I could meditate on God and man without one emotion of melancholy, — without one sentiment of misery. The omnipotent and inscrutable laws of Providence would naturally press on the mind : but instead of inducing sorrow and misery, they would carry the thoughts from terrestrial to celestial objects. In contemplating the bust of the poet, the trophy of the hero, the tablet of the musician, and the urn of the philosopher, I could find abundant scope for reflection, and sources of delight ; for they all indicate the extent and energies of the mental character, and point out the elevated rank to which we may attain by the judicious exertion of our faculties, and in perfect accordance with every law which a benignant Deity has enjoined for our conduct in K 66 . BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Perhaps there is not a Church in England, not excepting that national mausoleum, Westminster Abbey, so crowded with sepulchral memorials as the sacred edifice now under notice. Besides the floor being nearly paved with inscribed slabs, there are at least 450 tablets, &c, of all descriptions, affixed to the side walls and pillars of the building. Nearly the whole interior sur- face of the walls, floor, and columns, is lined or covered with monuments and tablets, of all sizes, forms, colours, and materials. Brass, copper, stone, slate, marble, and wood, are distributed over the surface, to attract the eye of the visitor. From their number and diversified forms and colours, they may be said to counteract the destined purpose of each, — sympathy and awe. Instead of solemnity and repose, they produce fritter and confusion. The eye cannot rest, nor can the mind be serene, where such distraction and incongruousness prevail. Here is neither order nor symmetry; nor has there been any attempt at systematic arrangement. In excuse it may be said that it would be im- practicable, if not impossible, to remedy such a defect, where the fancies of so many persons are allowed to prevail. The beginning of the evil is not of the present day or present age ; and few have the courage and good taste to commence a reform, where so much is to be undone, as well as done. this transitory scene of our earthly pilgrimage. — I must, however, check the pen, for my province here is information, not disquisition. The subject must be my apology; but I trust that these reflections will neither be deemed inapposite nor irrelevant. The King's admonition to Hamlet, in Shakspeare's incomparable drama, is in accordance with these reflections, and with the subject. ; To persevere In obstinate condolement is a course Of impious stubbornness; 'tis unmanly grief: It shews a will most incorrect to Heaven ; A heart unfortified, or mind impatient ; An understanding simple and unschool'd : For what we know must be, and is as common As any the most vulgar thing to sense, Why should we, in our peevish opposition, Take it to heart ? Fie ! 'tis a fault to Heaven, A fault against the dead, a fault to nature : To reason most absurd, whose common theme Is death of fathers, and who still hath cried From the first corse 'till he that died to-day, This must be so." REMARKS ON MONUMENTS. 67 Although these remarks are applied immediately to the Church under notice, they are alike applicable to Westminster Abbey, to St. Paul's Cathe- dral, and to many other ancient and modern fabrics. If " Committees of Taste" be officially or voluntarily organised, they should give proofs of taste in the choice of situations, as well as choice of subjects, for interior monuments. In passing through the metropolitan churches already named, as well as that at Bath, every person of sensibility and real taste must be more offended than delighted. Monstrous masses of marble, with broken- backed horses, rampant and tame lions, figures of Time, Fame, Angels, and Cherubim, are the component parts of most of the great monuments ; whilst weeping Cupids, inverted torches, and urns ad infinitum, are the prevailing characteristics of the smaller tablets. It is high time that this common-place mode of sculpture was abandoned ; and it is equally to be wished that the inappropriate and absurd practice of clothing British generals and statesmen in Roman togas was avoided. One English sculptor at least has manifested a more English feeling and a better taste ; and I have no doubt that his success will lead to reformation. The custom of interring bodies within churches is much to be deplored. It is not only injurious to the stability of buildings, but is repugnant to all the finer feelings of our nature. Can any thing be more unpleasant than a know- ledge that the whole earth, or ground, beneath the flooring of a church, consists of human remains ? — I must, however, forbear to express my feelings on this subject ; for they would create unhappiness or horror in the minds of those who are unaccustomed to similar contemplations. Whilst we are eager to imitate the follies and fashions of our Parisian neighbours, it would be creditable were we to adopt their practice of having spacious cemeteries on the outside of the city ; and instead of storing up the putrid remains of the dead in edifices where the living congregate, to inter them in more distant places. CHAPTER V. AN ESSAY ON THE ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS, WITH EXAMPLES OF VARIOUS CLASSES FROM THE ABBEY CHURCH OF BATH, BY THE LATE REV. J. J. CONYBEARE, A.M. The custom of perpetuating the memory of the dead by some monument more durable than the fleeting and uncertain breath of tradition, as it appears to be founded in the most natural affections of our species, may every where be traced to the earliest periods of society. The veneration of the Scythian for the tombs of his ancestors, and the expectation of the Homeric heroes that their sepulchral barrows should remain conspicuous to after-ages, must be " rife in our school-boy memories," while the innumerable monuments of the latter description, scattered over the face of almost every country with which we are acquainted, and forming especially so prominent a feature among the antiquities of our own, bear the strongest testimony to the universality of the sentiments which produced their erec- tion. Before the invention, or at least before the general use of letters, the principal means of insuring the great object of these structures was to be looked for in their extent and solidity. The art of writing promised at once to reduce the expenditure of time and labour necessary for their formation ; and to confer, even upon the humblest individual, a memorial, more lasting perhaps than could have been expected in ruder ages for the most powerful and illustrious. It is yet remarkable that the earliest use made of written characters in monumental inscriptions, does not appear to have been that which we should conceive to be the most natural aud obvious. Those sepulchral vases which are sup- posed to be of the remotest antiquity, whether Greek or Etruscan, do indeed occasionally present some traces of inscription ; but such inscription is uni- formly, I believe, found to refer rather to the mythological personages repre- sented in the paintings on the exterior, than to those for the reception of whose ashes the vases were destined. A few bassi-relievi, however, of an age, it is conjectured, somewhat earlier than that of Pericles, and which ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS. 69 appear to have answered the purpose of sepulchral monuments, bear the names of individuals ; and Thucydides (lib. vi.) has preserved four elegiac lines, which were probably inscribed on the tomb of Archidice, the sister of Hippias. The earlier of the Greek epitaphs seem to have been chiefly of this latter description * : and the Romans in this, as in every other department of art and literature, followed their example f. In later ages, indeed, they appear to have adopted more frequently for this purpose that concise and peculiar style of prose which has been denominated by critics the Lapidary style J. After the decline of letters, we meet with but few, if any, examples of the prose epitaph. The Leonine, or rhyming Latin verse, was, during the Middle Ages, the favourite vehicle for the commemoration and praises of the deceased. The revival of classical learning in Italy, produced, naturally, a recur- rence to classical models ; and the imitation was frequently so close, that inscriptions are not wanting of which it is difficult to pronounce, whether they are the genuine productions of Roman antiquity, or the forgeries of the fifteenth century. In more recent times, a third species of epitaph, unknown, it is apprehended, to the ancients, appears to have had its origin, either in the difficulty of imitating, or the ambition of improving and ornamenting, the terse and simple construction of the Lapidary style. For this, which (as from its copiousness and diffuseness it bears the character of a funeral eulogy or oration) might fairly be termed the Rhetorical epitaph, we are chiefly, I suspect, indebted to the French || ; and like many other inventions of that fanciful people, it long prevailed, both in Latin and in the more modern languages of Europe, to the almost total exclusion of the purer and more graceful models of antiquity. It has, however, in some cases, (especially * Many will be found in the Anthologia. They have been published separately by Leichius, " Carmina Greecorum Sepulchralia." 4to. t The epitaphs of Ennius and Nsevius are well known. The " Inscriptionum Rom. Met. Delectus" of the late T. Warton, will furnish examples of the most ancient and beautiful poems of this kind. t It is needless to adduce examples of this style ; they occur in every page of Gruter's Collection. || See the epitaphs of Crequy and of Richelieu, in Popham's " Elogia Sepulchralia.^ In this country, the Rhetorical epitaph, as I have ventured to name it, became very popular after the Restoration, and was in some instances extended to a most fatiguing length. Those of South and Nelson, (vide Popham, Elogia Sepulchralia,) will afford very favourable specimens of that style. That of Mead is equally well written, and has the merit of being considerably shorter. 70 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. within the last half century,) been rendered somewhat less cumbrous, by a nearer approach to those models * ; and, in a few instances, the writers of Latin inscriptions have altogether returned to the imitation of their original masters f. We have now briefly traced the progress and the various forms of the monumental inscription. Which of those in present use is most agree- able to the principles of good taste, and in what manner each may be most successfully treated, are questions of which the limits of a work like the present must necessarily preclude all discussion. On the subject, indeed, of metrical epitaphs, little could be added to the well-known criticisms of Johnson, and to the admirable observations which Warton has prefixed to his Collection of Ancient Roman Inscriptions. With respect to prose epitaphs, it will perhaps be sufficient to remark, that modern criticism appears justly to have assigned the preference to those which approach most nearly to the simplicity and brevity of a classical model ; and to consider the lighter and more oratorical graces of style as misplaced on a subject beyond all others the most sacred and solemn. The observations hitherto offered have been confined chiefly to those in- scriptions in which the Latin language has been made the vehicle of post- humous eulogy. For these their authors, whether justly or unjustly, antici- pated (probably as they wished) a permanency that would have been endangered by the adoption of any more modern and variable dialect. As this practice, however, was necessarily restricted to the commemora- tion of persons of some rank or eminence, and as various reasons concurred to recommend the adoption of a medium more immediately, if not more lastingly, intelligible, we find the walls of our churches occupied, for the greater part, by inscriptions in our native tongue. In the composition of * The epitaphs of Card. Mazarine, of Johnson on Goldsmith, of Dr. Parr on Johnson himself, and many others of later date, may be referred to this description : the chief characters of which appear to be, a greater attention to conciseness, both of the whole and of the separate clauses, and to purity of Latin style. t See the epitaphs of Lipsius, of Ann. Caracci, of Craggs, and of Shenstone on Maria. More might be readily added, did we possess any better selection than the scanty and incorrect one by Popham. An epitaph, in the truest taste of antiquity, beautiful from its extreme simplicity, exists in the Cathedral of Christ-Church, Oxford. Jana B. Blayney Filia Eheu ! Unica. ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS. 71 these, we have had greater difficulties to overcome than in the direct imita- tion *of the ancients. Our language, encumbered as it is with particles, and admitting little or no inversion of sentence, accommodates itself at best but indifferently to the purer and more concise style of Lapidary inscriptions. Hence, perhaps, it has arisen, that the more considerable portion of English prose epitaphs, may be referred rather to that class which has been termed Rhetorical ; and that very few (in comparison with the numbers which crowd the interior and exterior of our various places of worship) have been found to attract the admiration of critical readers. It is the writer's intention and wish that these, and all the foregoing remarks, should be considered as applicable to the manner only, and not to the matter and spirit of an epitaph. The discussion of these points, while he confesses them to be of much higher importance, he does not feel called to enter upon in a work of this nature. Many epitaphs, doubtless, which contain but little to attract the mere scholar, are calculated to produce the most unexceptionable and edifying impressions on the mind of the Christian ; and in some unhappy instances, the most unquestionable purity and beauty of style have been employed for purposes which piety must disavow, and which none but a mistaken charity could sanction. May it not fairly be added, that he who examines the subject in this more serious point of view, will find much reason to lament that the feelings of Christian humility are not more frequently and strongly recorded, where they might so reasonably be expected, iu the last memorials of human frailty ? In examining the sacred edifices of a City which has afforded for so many centuries a place of constant and general resort to persons of every rank and description, we might reasonably expect to find the monumental in- scriptions which they contain superior, both in number and interest, to those which would occur, under common circumstances, in any town of equal popu- lation. So far, indeed, as number is concerned, the Abbey Church will by no means disappoint such an anticipation : nearly the whole interior of the nave and principal ailes is covered with these records of mortality ; and we are reminded, at every step, of the common destiny which has equalised the hero, the scholar, and the philosopher, with the more peaceful and unambitious children of commerce and industry who repose by their side. 72 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. A complete collection of these memorials would far exceed the proposed limits of the present account. A few, therefore, of the more remarkable in each department have been selected, and arranged agreeably to the order sketched out in the foregoing observations. EPITAPHS IN VERSE. The earliest specimen of Latin verse which occurs, is to be found in the epitaph of Bartholomew Barnes, who died in the early part of the reign of James I. The lines themselves present nothing very striking, either as to poetry or Latinity. In obitum Barthoi.om.ei Barnes defuncti, viri verse religionis amantissimi, nuper mer- catoris Londinensis, nuncque coelorum regni civis beati. Religio, pietas, facundae gratia linguae, Ingenium, virtus, inviolata fides, Cum gravitate lepos, cum simplicitate venustas, Larga manus, pectus nobile, firmus amor : Denique quicquid habet natura quod addere possit, Addere quod possit gratia, quicquid habet. Omnia Barnaum vivum comitata fuerunt, Omnia mors atrox obruit ista simul. Obruat ista licet tristi mors saeva sepulchro, Attamen illorum fama superstes erit*. The classical reader will doubtless receive greater pleasure from the fol- lowing lines, which appear to have proceeded from the pen of the Rev. W. L. Bowles, and commemorate the Rev. J. Honeywood, M.A. : — Quae vox ex imo pervenit missa sepulchro ? Desine tu conjux, sola relicta, queri. * Sir John Harington refers to this monument, when speaking of the Abbey Church, in his memoir of Bishop King. (" Nugae Antiquee," vol. ii. p. 143. Park's edition.) He says, " In so much as a wealthy citizen of London hath adventured to set his tomb there, whom I commend more worthily than the senate of Rome did thank Varro at his return from Cannae, qubd de salute reipublicce wore desperdsset ; for it seems this honest citizen did not despaire of the re-edifying this Church, that gave order to be richly entombed therein." ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS. 73 En ! anima exultans coelo spatiatur et alte Despicit humanas, libera, lseta, vices. Te solum fido reminiscitur anxia amore, Et paulum fractas plorat amicitias ; Donee tempus erit quum nubila cuncta recedent, Nosq ; iterum seterno foedere junget amor. Would it not improve the beauty of this elegant and affectionate little composition, if something less trite were substituted for the present termina- tion of the seventh line ? And might it not be objected, that the word amicitias is scarcely of sufficient strength to express conjugal attachment ? Among the Epitaphs in English Verse, the following will afford no unfa- vourable specimen of the monumental poetry of the earlier part of the seven- teenth century. I know not whether the particulars to which it appears to allude, are any where more circumstantially recorded. In spe resvrrectionis hie jacet Corpvs Johannis Wally, qvonda. : maior hvivs civitatis : qvi obiit 4to die Aprilis. Those blvsteringe storms, which threat the blessed peace Of virtves sovle, nere her departvre cease, Like mistie vapovrs which obsevre the svn, Yet often vanish ere his covrse be done ; True worth hath wings to beare her spotless name Above the reach of ill begotten fame. Witnesse the aged tenant of this tombe, Whose harmless life was subject to the doome Of headstrong rashness ; but since here he lay, Error's revers'd, and trvth hath got the day : In Heaven, kind reader, is his spirit blest, Bless thov his name, and let his body rest. Anno Domini 1615. The epitaphs of Walter Ernele, and the Lady Jane Waller have perhaps little more than their antiquity to entitle them to notice :— Here lyeth the body of Walter Ernele, Esq. ; sonne of Michael Ernele, of Burton, in the county of Wilts, esq. deceased, and of Susan, the eldest daughter, and one of the coheires of Sir Walter Hungerford, knt., of Farley-castle, in the county of Somerset, also deceased. Which Walter Ernele died the 27th day of Sept. A . Dni. 1618. An Ernele Hungerford lyeth here in grave ; More than thy owne, O earth, thou maist not have : L 74 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. His earthy part, his body, that is thine ; His heavenly, his soule, that part divine, Is Heaven's right ; there doth it live and raigne, In joye and blisse for ever to remaine. His body in her bosome earth must keepe Till such as rest in hope shall rise from sleepe ; Then body joyned with sowle for ever shall In glory live, raigne both coelestiall. To the deare memory of the right vertuous and worthy lady, Jane Lady Waller, sole daughter and heir to Sir Richard Reynell, wife to Sir Wm. "Waller, knight. Sole issue of a matchless paire, Both of their state and vertues heyre ; In graces great, in stature small, As full of spirit as voyd of gall ; Cheerfully brave, bounteously close, Holy without vain-glorious showes ; Happy, and yet from envy free, Learn 'd without pride, witty, yet wise — ■ Reader, this riddle read with mee, Here the good Lady Waller lye's. The epitaph, or rather elegy, written by Dryden, upon Mary Frampton, is well known to every reader of English poetry. It exhibits much of the fancy and power of expression of its great author, though somewhat alloyed by the quaintness of his age, and possessing more of ingenuity than of nature or feeling. Here lies the body of Mary, third daughter of Rich. Frampton, of Moreton, in Dorset- shire, Esq. and of Jane his wife, sole daughter of Sir Francis Cottington, of Fonthill, in Wilts; who was born January the 1st, 1676-7, and dyed (after seven weeks' sickness) on the 6th of September, 1698. This Monument was erected by Catharine Frampton, her second sister and executress, in testimony of her grief, affection, and gratitude. Below this marble monument is laid All that Heaven wants of this celestial mayd : Preserve, O sacred tomb, thy trust consign'd ! The mould was made on purpose for the mind ; And she would lose, if at the latter day, One atom could be mixed of other clay. Such were the features of her heav'nly face, Her limbs were formed with such harmonious grace, ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS. 75 So faultless was the frame, — as if the whole Had been an emanation of the soul, Which her own inward symmetry reveal'd, And like a picture shone, in glass anneal'd ; Or, like the sun eclips'd, with shaded light, Too piercing else to be sustain'd by sight. Each thought was visible that roll'd within, — As through a chrystal case the figur'd hours are seen : And Heaven did this transparent veil provide, Because she had no guilty thought to hide. All white, a virgin saint, she sought the skies — For marriage, though it sullies not — it dies ! High though her wit, yet humble was her mind, As if she cou'd not, or she wou'd not, find How much her worth transcended all her kind. Yet she had learn'd so much of heaven, below, That when arriv'd, she scarce had more to know ; But only to refresh the former hint, And read her Maker in a fairer print ! So pious ! as she had no time to spare For human thoughts, — but seem'd confin'd to prayer ; Yet in such charities she pass'd the day, 'Twas wond'rous how she found an hour to pray. A soul so calm, it knew not ebbs nor flows, Which passion cou'd but curl — not discompose! A female softness, with a manly mind, A daughter duteous, and a sister kind ; In sickness patient ! and in death resign'c 1 ign'd! J The epitaph on Quin, by Garrick, though almost too generally known to require insertion in the present work, is so extremely appropriate, that not to give it might be deemed negligence. That tongue which set the table in a roar, And charm'd the publick ear, is heard no more ; Clos'd are those eyes, the harbingers of wit, Which spake, before the tongue, what Shakespear writ ; Cold is that hand which, living, was stretch'd forth, At friendship's call, to succour modest worth. Here lies James Quin ! — Deign, reader, to be taught, Whate'er thy strength of body, force of thought, In Nature's happiest mould however cast, " To this complexion thou must come at last." D. Garrick. Ob. mdcclxvi. iEtatis lxxiii. 76 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Of recent date, the following are among the more remarkable : — Sacred to the memory of William Clements, Esq. a youth distinguished by the sweet- ness of his manners, arid the excellence of his heart. Generous, humane, affectionate, his life was a source of happiness to others ; his death, it is hoped, was the commencement of his own. Look down, blest soul, and from the realms above Accept this last sad tribute of our love : The last — ev'n now our sorrows we resign, And lose our feelings to rejoice in thine. In this City lived and died Sarah, second daughter of General Henry Fielding ; by his first wife, daughter of Judge Gould. Whose writings will be known, As incentives to virtue, and honour to her sex, When this marble shall be dust. She was born mdccxiv. and died April mdcclxviii. Her unaffected manners, candid mind, Her heart benevolent, and soul resign'd, Were more her praise than all she knew or thought, Though Athens' wisdom to her sex she taught. The Rev. Dr. John Hoadly, her Friend, for the honour of the Dead and emulation of the Living, inscribes this deficient Memorial of her virtues and accomplishments. Elizabeth Honeywood, Died Feb. 9, 1812. Mild, patient, pious, charitable, just, Go rest in peace beside thy husband's dust. Whilst all to whom thy memory is dear, Bend o'er thine ashes with a silent tear. A few short years these pensive lines they trace, Then follow to Earth's common resting-place ; Blest, if, like thee, to the last hour approv'd, They live as blameless as they die belov'd. W. L. Bowles. The following lines, inscribed on the monument of Ely Bates (the well- known author of " Rural Philosophy" and other works of a religious and moral tendency), are said to have been found in his own hand-writing, after his decease, in 1814. Ask not who ended here his span ; His name, reproach, and praise, was Man ! ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS. 77 1 1. J Did no great deeds adorn his course, No deeds to swell the poet's verse ? To courts and camps alike unknown, To senates, or the bustling town : Retirement ciaim'd him for her own. Warn'd by Heaven's kind though secret voice, His steps, averse from pomp and noise, To peaceful solitude he bent, On contemplation still intent. Each topic drew his active mind, Nor least the world he left behind. Oft he survey'd its busy stage : Mark'd the great actors of the age, After a fretful hour's debate, Passing to their eternal state. Thus, while he view'd the fleeting train, Life appear'd sacred all, and vain : " Sacred how high, and vain how low, He knew not here — but died to know !" From the occasional inaccuracy and obscurity of this composition (particu- larly observable towards the close), it is probable that it never received the last corrections of its respectable, though eccentric author*. To these may be added, the following inscription on the monument of Lady Miller, wife of Sir John Miller, knt., of Bath-Easton Villa; Ob. June 24th, 1781. Devoted stone ! amidst the wrecks of time Uninjur'd bear thy Miller's spotless name ; The virtues of her youth and ripen'd prime, The tender thought, th' enduring record claim. * The concluding lines (marked on the monument as a quotation,) are usually condemned by visitors as entirely unintelligible. This is perhaps too severe a judgment. Mr. Bates has attempted to express, with more conciseness than our language will bear, a truth, in itself as simple as it is important. " The man who, from a distance, views with the eye of a Christian and a philosopher the course of human affairs, while he recognises the high and sacred purposes for which our existence was bestowed upon us, will see more clearly the vanity and unworthiness of the uses to which it is too frequently applied. In his present state, however, he cannot expect to compre- hend (to their full extent) either the former or the latter. To know these, he must be admitted to that sanctuary, where alone the motives and conduct of rational agents will be justly appreciated, and their final destination fully understood." The known piety and usefulness of the author's writings will perhaps justify the purport and excuse the length of this note. 78 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. When clos'd the num'rous eyes that round this bier Have wept the loss of wide-extended worth ; O gentle stranger ! may one gen'rous tear Drop, as thou bendest o'er this hallow'd earth ! Are truth and genius, love and pity thine, With lib'ral charity, and faith sincere 1 Then rest thy wand'ring step beneath this shrine, And greet a kindred spirit hov'ring near. EPITAPHS IN LATIN PROSE. Epitaphs in the style which has been termed Lapidary, are of very rare occurrence on these walls. The following words, on the monument of Su- sanna Chapman, " Pia Pulchra PudicaPuerpera," were they not preceded by the memorials of her name and family in English, would afford the nearest approach to a classical model. Of the quaint and rhetorical style of 1627, the epitaph of T. Martin is a curious specimen. Juxta repositi sunt (Spiritus Sancti nuper sedes) Sacri cineres Thomje Martyn, Arm. A.M. Exonio : Devoniensis, Qui obiit die X. Sept. A.S. 1627. Ignotis tibi, tui ignaris meriti Loquentem struimus, Martine, tumulum, Qui tuae rependat debitum memoriae, Referatque posteris iEtatem in juvene perfectam, compositos mores, Ingenium suaviter fertile, Animum virtutis et doctrinee saturum, Judicium pene minim, maturum, solidum, Affectus humiles, nobiles, Amorem omnibus, fidem amicis preestitam, Religionis cultusque divini Summe supplicem, vindicemque, Omnia demum foelicem Utut tarn ingenti animo infirmam substaret corpus. Vos qui novistis, quosque novit, lectores ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS. 79 Nobilius dignemini sepulchrum; Vivoque erigite pectore Mausoleeum ; Vobisque cara sit Memoria, Vobiscum resurrecturi ad Gloriam. To the same class, (though it is less characteristic than the above,) may be referred the pompous epitaph on Sir W. Draper ; said to have been com- posed by the late Christopher Anstey : H. S. E. Vir summis cum Animi, turn corporis Dotibus Egregie ornatus, Gulielmus Draper, Balnei Eques. In Schola Etonensi educatus, Coll. deinde Regal. Cantabrigise et alumnus et socius. Quorum utrumque tarn moribus quam studiis honestavit. Altiore tamen a natura ingenio prseditus Quam ut umbratili In academies otio delitesceret, Ad militise laudem se totum contulit, Et in diversis Europse Asieeque partibus stipendia meruit. In India Orientali A.D. 1758, exercitui regio imperavit. Obsessamque a Gallis Sti. Georgii Arcem Cum diu fortiter defendisset, Strenua tandem facta eruptione, Hostium copias, capta legionis Praefecto repulit. Flagrante postea Hispaniensi bello, anno 1762, Expeditionis contra Manillas, Auctor idem et dux fuit : Quibus expugnandis, dubium reliquit, Britanniee nomen virtute magis, an dementia insignaverit. Vale Dux acer ! Vir mansuete, liberalis, vale ! Hoc fidum tuarum virtutum, spectatseque a pueris amicitiae, posteris exemplar tradam. Ob. Jan. A.D. 1787. jEtat. 66. C. A. The following (though not strictly in the Lapidary style) seem intended to approach more nearly to the classical model : Jacobo Antonio Migliovaccio. And®, filio, Patricio Tifemati Nob. Civi Florentino, Qui, cum difficili morbo colluctatus, Quum ad haec balnea se curaturus recepisset, 80 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. In medio eetatis fortunarumque cursu, Eheu immaturus obiit Annum agens XXXVIII. Petrus Josephus Frater, Londini, Cseterique Fratres, Florentise commorantes, Fratri optimo ac piissimo, Beneficiis ejus aucti, Grati animi et pietatis ergo Moerentes posuerunt. M. S. Egregii Viri Gulielmi Melmoth, Armigeri ; Qui, abhinc annos fere quadraginta, In hanc urbem se recipiens, Inter amoena studiorum otia, Et eruditorum elegantem consuetudinem, Ipse, neque inelegans nee ineruditus, Placide consenuit. Inque vera fide Christiana, Quam scriptis tuebatur, Vita commendaverat, Senectuti placide succubuit, A.D. 1799, tetatis suae 89. Quantis ille animi et ingeuii, Laudibus florebat, (Quas marmor hoc frustra attingat,) Testantur, Quod bonis omnibus reliquit Sui desiderium ; Quae patriae, Literarum ornamenta. Huic suo, a teneris, Amico, custodi, tutori, Cognatione avunculo, afiectu parenti, Pignus hocce Amoris in amicum amici, Pietatis in parentem filii, Moerens consecravit. H. S. E. Caleb Hillier Parry, M.D. R.S.S. Vir probus, ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITAPHS. 81 Cultor Dei pius, Medicus sagax. Artem qua pollebat, In hac urbe, per annos fere XL. Ingenio, moribus, Multiplici litterarum cognitione, Exomavit : Scientia, naturae indagatione perspicaci, Feliciter promovit. Ne tanto nomini Ulla pars observantiae Desideraretur, Amici, eadem arte consociati, Hoc marmor P. C. Vixit annos LXVI. Ob'. IX. die Mens. Mart. A. S. 1822. Juxta tumulatus est Johannes Sibtiiorp, M.D. R.S.S. Botanices In Academia Oxoniensi Professor, Rerum Naturalium Investigation! Per vitam brevem deditus, Phytologiae in primis amantissimus, Regiones longinquitate ac metu Peregrinantibus tantum non impervias, Adversa dissuadente valetudine, Obstantibus insuper ex omni parte Periculis, exploravit. Itineris molestiarum pleni, Quod per Greciam nuper confecerat, Labore oppressus, Obiit Bathoniae, Die octavo Februarii, Anno aetatis suae tricesimo octavo, Christi 1800. An object of equal interest will be found in the epitaph of the late vene- rable translator and annotator of Mosheim's Ecclesiastical History. Subtus jacent reliquiae Archibaldi Maclaine, Ecclesiae Anglicanae apud Hagam Comitis, Per quinquaginta annos, Pastoris dilectissimi. Ingenuus, eruditus, pius, jEque mira suavitate morum Ac fama scientiae praeclara Fuit ornatus. Mortalium curis tandem defatigatus, Et, quo propior, eo laetior, Ad ccelum prospiciens, In amplexu Dei placide quievit XXV. Nov. 1804, iEtat. 82. Amicissimus H. Hope, H. M. P. C. The inscription for the late Dr. Harington, will appropriately terminate this class. Memoriae Sacrum Henrici Harington, M.D. Ex vere nobili Having tonorum stirpe de Kelston, In agro Somerset oriundi : Qui, natus Septembris 29, A.D. 1727, Obiit Januarii 15, A.D. 1816; Per sexaginta annos suae Bathoniae saluti Omnibus officiis assidue studebat, Optimas artes ad municipum suorum Delectationem et utilitatem excolens : Medicus solers et fidelis : Poeta lepidus : Musicus sciens et peritus : Magistratus gravis, Justus, acer : M 82 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Erga suos amantissimus, Erga omnes comis et benevolus : Tanta. insuper sanctitate morum, Ut omnes animi sui facultates, Quantum humanee vitse ratio pateretur, Deo dicandas esse judicaret. Hoc marmor, pecunia publice conlata, poni cu- raverunt Amici deflentes. EPITAPHS IN ENGLISH PROSE. la this class the Abbey Church offers but little that is remarkable for excellence, either of matter or of language. The amiable character of a well- conducted female in the middle walks of life, is depicted in the following in- scription, with a simplicity which may amuse our readers : — In memory of Rebecca Leyborne, Interr'd at the foot of this pillar. Born June the 4th, 1698. Deceased February 18, 1756. A Wife more than twenty-three years to Robert Leyborne, D.D. (Rector of the Churches of St. Dunstan, Stepney, and of St. Ann's, Middlesex, near London ; and Principal of Alban-Hall, in Oxford,) Who never saw her once ruffled with anger, Or heard her utter even a peevish word ; Whether pain'd, or injur'd, the same good woman, In whose mouth, as in whose character, Was no contradiction : Resign'd, gentle, courteous, affable ; Without passion, though not without sense, She took offence as little as she gave it ; She never was, or made an enemy ; To servants mild ; to relations kind ; To the poor a friend ; to the stranger hospitable ; Always caring how to please her husband, Yet not less attentive to the one thing needful. How few will be able to equal, What all should endeavour to imitate ! The epitaph on Col. A. Norton will be more interesting to the antiquary than to the critic. " Here under lyes all that was mortal of Col. Ambrose Norton, worthy and loyal de- scendant of worthy and loyal ancestors. He served the crowne of England above 40 years, in employments both civil and military; in which he ever acquitted himself faithfully, and as a man of honour. He was exceeding gracefull in person and behaviour ; his justice, gentleness, and sweetness of disposition, were equall to his courage ; and he crown'd all his other virtues with a most exemplary piety. He was a branch of the ancient family of the Nortons, of Somersetshire, and cousin-german to Sir George Norton, of Abbot's-Leigh in that county; a house happily renowned in history for the concealment and preservation of King Charles the Second, after the fatal battle at Worcester. The Lady Norton, having been a widdow 3 years, first of Sir George Norton, (to whose memory she has erected a marble monument at Abbot's- Leigh, of the same form and dimention as this,) and since the widdow of Col. Ambrose Norton, has in her great regard to his memory erected this monument ; where he desired his body might be interred, expecting a blessed resurrection. He died in the 77th year of his age, on the 10th day of September, in the 10th year of his Majesty King George, his last Royall Master, Annoq. Dom. 1723." ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OP EPITAPHS. 83 The present selection may be closed with the remarkable termination of an epitaph, lately inscribed to the memory of Dame Elizabeth Napier Webb: after an enumeration of the lady's titles and connexions, the writer has added the following address : Reader, Ask thine own heart If such thou art from heedless curiosity, for what is wanting here. Enough is told thee ; Vale, Matrum optima ! But if thou hast lost a parent Ave, Anima beata ! Ever kind, ever liberal, ever- self-denying, Some few of the monuments in this Church deserve notice for the taste and skill displayed in their invention and execution. That of Colonel Robert Walsh, (who died Sept. 12th, 1788,) in which a broken column is intended to represent the extinction of an ancient family, has been praised by Mr. Warner. The monument lately erected to the memory of the well-known Mr. Walsh Porter, (ob. 1809,) presents a symbol equally ingenious arid appropriate. On an altar, dedicated to Taste and Genius, is a lamp, the flame of which has just quitted its socket, and is seen aspiring to its native skies. The basso-relievo, executed by Flaxman, for the monument of Dr. Sib- thorp, deserves to be rendered more generally known by the graver; and two well-carved figures by the same artist, (angels or genii, bearing civic crowns,) ornament that of W. Bingham, late senator of the United States*. * Among other persons interred in the Abbey Church, (whose epitaphs would demand for their insertion too great a portion of these pages, and perhaps also of the reader's patience,) it may be requisite to particularise the names of Sir William Baker, Knt., Dr. Wall, of Worcester, Sir William Blount, Bart., Sir Nigell Gresley, Bart., and the well-known Beau Nash. The epitaph for the latter, said to have been written by the late Dr. Harington, and inadvertently omitted in the text, claims our notice, both from its own merit, and the local celebrity of its object. Adeste O Cives, adeste Lugentes ! If social virtues make remembrance dear, Hie silent Leges Or manners pure on decent rule depend ; Ricardi Nash, Armig. To His remains consign one grateful tear, Nihil amplius imperantis ; Of youth the Guardian, and of all the Friend. Qui diu et utilissime Assumptus Bathonise Now sleeps Dominion ; here no Bounty flows ; Elegantiee Arbiter, Nor more avails the festive scene to grace, Eheu ! Beneath that Hand whrch no discernment shews, Morti, (ultimo designatori) Untaught to honour, or distinguish place. Haud indecore succubuit, Ann. Dom. MDCCLXI. jEtat. sure LXXXVII. Beatus ille qui sibi imperiosus ! CHAPTER VI. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES OF THE MOST DISTINGUISHED PERSONS INTERRED IN BATH ABBEY CHURCH. In pacing the ailes of this Church, as in viewing a gallery of distinguished portraits, every person of sensibility and reflection will naturally be induced to inquire about the lives and characters of the persons whose memories are recorded by the one, or persons depicted by the other. This species of in- quiry is not only praiseworthy, but entitled to respect and attention ; as it tends to consecrate and embalm merit, and bring false pretence and adven- titious notoriety to their real standard. Whilst contemplating the monumental bust or statue, or perusing the inscribed tablet, we involuntarily reflect on the peculiar chacteristics of the individual commemorated, and feel an eager desire to become acquainted with the circumstances that have distinguished his life, and given him a claim to sepulchral fame. To afford that informa- tion to the casual visitant or reader, and thus gratify laudable curiosity, the following biographical sketches have been penned. Should the facts detailed, or the sentiments inculcated, tend to awaken and give energy to judicious enterprise and honourable emulation, the writer's intention will be accom- plished, and his best wishes gratified. In preparing them for the press, all the known sources of information have been consulted ; and in addition to the particulars thus acquired, new facts and circumstances have been incor- porated with the memoirs from the communications of various intelligent and scientific friends. It must be remarked, that many of the persons recorded in these pages have been so immediately connected with this city, that their actions form a part of its annals ; and on that account the chronological order has been observed in the ensuing arrangement ; except in regard to those indi- viduals of rank or family, who have also been interred here, but of whom no other essential particulars have been collected than what is inscribed upon their monuments ; and whose names, for more convenient reference, are ar- ranged alphabetically. In the instances of Governor Pownall, and Mr. Chris- topher Anstey, a deviation from the original intention of noticing those only BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 85 who were buried in the Church has taken place ; but as both the above gentle- men are intimately associated with the history of Bath, and as both have inscribed tablets to their memories in the Church, it is hoped that the in- troduction of their brief memoirs will not be deemed irrelevant. JAMES MONTAGUE, S.T.P. Bishop of Winchester. Ob. 1618. Some particulars of this learned prelate have been given in Chapter III. ; but his talents and munificence entitle him to a still more extended notice. He was born in the year 1568, at Boughton, in Northamptonshire, the seat of Sir Edward Montague, Knt., his father, who was lineally descended from the Montacutes, Earls of Salisbury. He received his education at Christ's College, Cambridge; and in 1598 was appointed the first Master of Sidney Sussex College, in that University, by the executors of Lady Anne Sidney, the foundress*. Of that College, to use the quaint phraseology of Fuller, he be- came the " Nursing-father ; for he found it in bonds to pay twenty marks per annum to Trinity College, for the ground whereon it is built, and left it fixe, assigning it a rent for the discharge thereof |." He also took great pains to overlook the buildings of his College; and bestowed 100/. in improving the ancient King's Ditch, which intersected the grounds there, into a regular water-course. His abilities were considerable, and led to various promotions. In December 1604, he was made Dean of Worcester by King James, " who did ken a man of merrit as well as any Prince in Christendome \ ;" and with whom he long continued in great favour. In March 1608, he was advanced to the See of Bath and Wells; and was consecrated on the 17th of April fol- lowing. His generous reparations have already been detailed ; and in addi- * Lady Sidney was buried in Westminster Abbey, where a costly monument erected to her memory still remains ; and has been particularly described in Brayley's elaborate History of that buildino-. One of Lady Sidney's executors was Sir John Harington, the worthy knight who so much interested himself in the restoration of Bath Abbey Church ; and it is not improbable but that his influence with Bishop Montague arose from the original appointment of the latter to the Mastership of Sidney College, which had been partly effected by Sir John's patronage, who was Lady Sidney's nephew. f " Worthies of England," vol. ii. p. 164 : edit. 1811. t Ibid. 86 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. tion to his works at Bath Abbey Church, it may be mentioned, from Bishop Godwin, that " he built a fair pulpit of freestone in the same*;" although not any thing of the kind now remains, nor does the least notice of it appear to have been taken by any other author. He was translated to Winchester on the 4th of October, 1616 ; and dying in that city, in July 1618, was in- terred at Bath, agreeably to his own desire. On his monument, which was erected at the expense of his four brothers, are the following inscriptions : — " Memoriae sacrum, pietate, virtute, & doctrina insignis Jacobus Montacutus, Edvardi Mon- tacuti de Boughton, in comitatu Northamptoniae, equitis aurati, a Saris. Comitibus deducta pro- pagine, Alius quintogenitus, a sapientissimo Jacobo Rege Sacello Regio Decanus praepositus, ad Episcopatum Bathoniensem promotus, et deinde ad Wintoniensem, ob spectatam in maximis negotiis fidem, dexteritatem et pru 'entiam, in sanctius concilium adscitus, Regique (cui cha- rissimus erat,) in aula assiduus, in medio actuosae vitae cursu, quam Deo, ecclesiae et patriae de- voverat, ad aeternam vitam evocatus 2° Julii, Anno Domini 1618 ; aetatis 50." " Reverendissimus hie Episcopus in hoc Templo antiquissimo, quod, inter alia multa egregia pietatis monumenta, maximis impensis instauravit, corpus deponi jussit, donee Christo Re- demptori videbatur, eum cum justis ad interminatam vitam, quam in terris semper anhelavit, excitare. Edvardus Montacutus de Boughton ; Henricus Montacutus, Capitalis in Banco Regio Justitiarius ; Carolus Montacutus,- testamenti Curator ; et Sidneius Montacutus, a supplicum libellis, equites aurati, fratri optime merito, cum lachrymis posuerunt." Edward Jorden, M.D. Ob. 1632. — Bath, from being the crowded resort of the sick and superannuated, as well as of the healthy and richer classes, has necessarily had among its resident inhabitants a large proportion of medical men ; many of whom lie buried in the Abbey Church. Among them was Dr. Jorden, who appears to have been eminent in his profession at Bath in the early part of the seventeenth century. Dr. Guidott says, that Jorden " was a gentleman of a good family of Kent, who being a younger brother, adopted Physick as a profession, for which, when he had accomplished him- self by a convenient course of studies in his own country, he travelled abroad to see the manners and customs of the Universities beyond seaf." At Padua, he took the degree of Doctor in Physic, and returning home, he practised at London, and " became an eminently solid and rational Philosopher and Physician, and one of that famous and learned Society, The King's College of * " Catalogue of the Bishops of England," p. 386. t Dr. Guidott's " Lives and Characters of the Physicians of Bath," from 1598 to 1676, in the " Collection" of his Treatises, 8vo. 1725: p. 184. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 87 Physicians." He eventually settled at Bath, where he continued till his death, in 1632, at the age of 63, and was buried in the south aile of the Abbey Church, but has neither monument nor inscription. Dr. Jorden is said to have been the first resident physician who wrote on the Mineral Waters at Bath. He was also the author of some treatises on Chemistry, and engaged in a losing speculation relative to the manufacture of Alum, as we learn from a passage in his treatise on Natural Baths and Mineral Waters. " Now I come to Alom, (indignum vox ipsa jubet renovare dolorem !) the greatest Debtor I have, and I the greatest Benefactor to it, as shall appear when I think fit to publish the artifice thereof." It seems that the monopoly of the alum works, which James the First granted to Sir Arthur Ingram, had been expected by Dr. Jorden. Tobias Venner, M.D. Ob. 1660. — 'Among the earlier Bath physicians, Dr. Venner was one of the most distinguished. He was a native of North Petherton, in Somersetshire, and took the degree of Doctor of Physic at Alban Hall, Oxford. Commencing practice in this city, he continued to reside here during almost half a century. Dr. Guidott says, " He had the cha- racter of a plain charitable physician, but no ready man at stating a case. However, he found the right way to write a book, called ' Via Recta ad Vitam longam,' wherein is this memorable observation, ' That a Gammon of Bacon is of the same nature with the rest of the Hog*.' " This remark may be con- sidered as mere hypercriticism ; the passage to which it refers implying only, that Gammon of Bacon is of the same nature with other parts of the Hog, but not so good, it being harder of digestion. Dr. Venner's Treatise, which con- tains a copious collection of rules and maxims relating to diet and regimen, was probably superior to any thing of the kind that had been previously published ; and although it has been long since superseded by the productions of later writers, it contains various passages that may still be read with interest. Dr. Venner died at Bath, March the 27th, 1660, aged 85 ; and was buried in the Abbey Church, where a heavy monument of marble and freestone was erected to his memory, having a long Latin inscription under his Bust. The following strange verse, or epitaph, on him, is given by Dr. Guidott, who * " Lives of the Physicians of Bath," p. 187. The " Via Recta," &c. was first published in -1620, 4to ; and has since been twice reprinted. 88 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. calls it a riddle ; but leaves the meaning to be conjectured. It seems to be a coarse satire on the personal appearance of Dr. Venner : The Ashes of this Grave, No Phoenix but Chimera gave ; The Head, the Feet, about the Thigh, A Duck, a Mouse, a Butterfly. Samuel Bave, M.D., ob. 1668, was a native of Cologne, in Germany, and came to England as tutor to the son of Sir Thomas Edmonds, ambassador from King James the First to France. At Oxford he took the degree of M.D. in 1628. About the year 1640 he removed from Gloucester to Bath, where (Guidott says) he practised with " admirable success" for nearly thirty years. Dr. Bave died in 1668, at the age of 80 ; and being interred in the Abbey Church, a monument was there erected for him, with a Latin epitaph by Dr. Guidott, who speaks highly of his medical skill, and says that he was acquainted with several languages. His memory, according to Guidott, was so good, and his mind so active, that he could both write himself, and dictate at the same time to two Amanuenses, in different languages. John Maplet, M.D., ob. 1670, was born in London, and educated at Westminster, and afterwards at Christ Church, Oxford. He was subsequently a Proctor of that University, and Principal of Gloucester Hall. About the middle of the seventeenth century he visited France and Flanders, as tutor to Lucius and Henry, who were successively Viscounts Falkland. On his return to England, Dr. Maplet married a lady of Bristol, and divided his pro- fessional time between that city and Bath. Some of his letters, on medical subjects, were published by Dr. Guidott ; and also a few short Latin poems. He died at Bath in 1670 ; and was buried in the north aile of the Abbey Church, where a monument, with a Latin inscription by Dr. Guidott, was erected to his memory. Thomas Guidott, M.B. Ob. 1705. — From the various writings of Guidott, and his inquiries into the nature and properties of the Bath waters, his name has become particularly associated with this city, in which he prac- BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 89 tised as a physician, either wholly or partially, for nearly forty years. Born at Lymington, in Hampshire, in 1638, he was the fourth in descent from Signor Antonio Guidotti, a native of Florence, who came into England in the early part of the reign of Edward the Sixth, from whom he received the honour of knighthood. He acquired his early education at the Grammar School in Dorchester, and afterwards, in October 1656, became a commoner of Wadham College, Oxford, where he studied anatomy and medicine, and first entered into practice. On July the 14th, 1666, he was admitted Bachelor of Physic ; and in the following year he settled at Bath, and became a suc- cessful practitioner under the encouraging friendship of Dr. John Maplet. Whilst in that city he made numerous experiments on the Bath waters ; and although these were not conducted with the precision that distinguishes the present age of systematic chemistry, his remarks display considerable judgment and professional acumen. In the course of his inquiries, he endeavoured to obtain the opinions of the most eminent physicians of his time, with several of whom he maintained a correspondence ; but at Bath he experienced con- siderable opposition, probably as much from the want of a conciliatory temper, as from the qualities to which he himself ascribed it ; namely, " envy, pride, beggary, and revenge." It appears from his writings, that Dr. Guidott had a most thorough con- tempt for Quackery ; and the unguarded and unqualified expression of this feeling seems to have involved him in frequent disputes with his fellow practi- tioners, and to have engendered much calumny*. To these causes, perhaps, the decay of his practice at Bath may be more correctly attributed, than to " his impudence, lampooning, and libelling," as stated by the crabbed author of the " Athenae Oxonienses." Guidott's language at times possesses certainly a coarseness, which but ill accords with the decorum of modern * In his preface to Dr. Jorden's " Discourse of Natural Bathes," &c, which Guidott republished in 1669, with an " Appendix concerning Bathe," of his own, is the following strong passage; and many others of similar import, but applied immediately to the faculty at Bath, are scattered through his tracts : — " Empiricks and juggling Medicasters do so much abound, that 'tis almost as hard a matter to meet with a regular and well-accomplished Physitian now, as it was in former times for Diogenes to find an honest man." After stating his ideas of the proper attainments of a phy- sician, as contradistinguished from " Aqytta and Quack-salvers," he whimsically compares " a Com- pleat Physitian to the draught of a Man, standing on the two legs of Anatomy and Herbary, operating (if need be) with the hands of Chirurgery and Pharmacy, having a Chemical head ; and the bulk of his body made up of the Nature, Kind, and Cures of Diseases, which we may not improperly term a Body of Physic," Ibid. N 90 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. literature ; yet of the provocations he received we know very little ; and what may now seem splenetic and unbecoming, might be nothing more than the deserved retort on abuse, falsehood, and misrepresentation. That he exerted himself greatly to advance the celebrity of the Bath waters, there can be no doubt ; for he was fully convinced of their paramount efficacy, and strenuously laboured to extend the knowledge of their healthful qualities. " In 1671," says Wood, " he performed his exercise at Oxon for the degree of doctor of his faculty, but has not as yet taken that degree * :" nor does it appear that he ever took it. Eloy agrees in stating, that he went to Oxford, in 1671, to take a " Doctor's bonnet;" but that he returned to Bath without fulfilling his intentionf. In 1671 he removed to London, though he still continued to practise at Bath during the summer months. From that period almost all that is recorded of him is, that he was offered the choice of a professor's chair, both at Venice and at Leyden, but declined both. Wood characterises him as " a person of good parts, well versed in Greek and Latin learning, and intelligent in his profession ; but so much overwhelm'd with self-conceit and pride, that he is in a manner sometimes crazed, especially when his blood is heated with too much bibbing." In this language there is probably an undeserved severity ; for whoever examines his writings will find that the strength of the argument lay generally with himself; however it may be enveloped in a rambling phraseology, or mingled with sarcastic remarks on the conduct of his adversaries. That he keenly felt the wrongs of which he complains, is evident from many passages in his works, — one of which (not the most severe) is here given : it occurs in the Postscript to his " Apology for the Bath," 8vo., which was first published in the year 1705. Whether the Collections for the work he alludes to have been preserved or not, is unknown : if yet extant they would, doubtless, be curious to examine, as he was so many years connected with this city. — " I have written this," he says, " as my last kindness to the Bath, to which in some measure I may apply the words of the unfortunate learned Dr. Jorden concerning allom — ' The greatest Debtor I have, and I the greatest benefactor to it.' — What spare hours I may have for the future, I shall employ to prepare for the Publick a more bulky work in Latin, being the Annals of this City, and the History of Wells, with the Succession of the Bishops and Deans of that Church, from * Athens Oxonienses," vol. iv. p. 734. Bliss's edit. t " Dictionnaire Historique de la Medecine," torn. i. p. 400, BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 91 the first foundation to the present time ; which may prove of greater advantage to the world than to waste precious minutes about other things of a meaner concern." The following inscription, now partly defaced, occupies a tablet in the wall at the east end of the Abbey Church, on the outside : — " IN MEMORY OF THOMAS GUIDOTT, M.B., BY WHOSE AUTHORITY DRINKING THE BATH WATERS WAS REVIVED, MDCLXXIII., AND WHO DIED MDCCV. THIS INSCRIPTION WAS HERE PLACED MDCCXXVII., BY JOHN WYNTER, M.B." William Oliver, M.D., F.R.S. Ob. 1716.— There have been two eminent physicians of this name, both of whom were resident at Bath, and both Fellows of the Royal Society ; in consequence of which their writings have been confounded by Dr. Watt, in his " Bibliotheca Britannica," and by other writers. The subject of the present article was descended from the ancient family of Trevarnoe, in Cornwall. He was very early attached to physical inquiries ; but whilst pursuing his studies in foreign Universities, was induced, in 1688, to join the expedition under the Prince of Orange, for the liberation of England from the murderous tyranny of the infatuated race of the Stuarts. In 1693, his services were rewarded by the office of Phy- sician to the Fleet; in which station he continued till 1702. He was after- wards Physician to the Hospitals, both of Chatham and Greenwich ; the latter of which he held till his decease, (unmarried,) on the 4th of April, 1716 : he was buried in the nave of the Abbey Church. Several of his communica- tions to the Royal Society may be found in the " Philosophical Transactions" for the years 1693, 1703, 1704, and 1705. They relate to the pressure of water at various depths ; an ebbing and flowing well ; some remarkable Curio- sities in Denmark and Holland ; a case of phrenitis cured by copious bleed- ing ; Jesuits' bark ; and an instance of extraordinary sleepiness in a husband- man, at Tinsbury, near Bath. In 1704 he published, in 12mo, a " Treatise on Fevers, and the Bath Waters ;" and in 1707, a " Practical Dissertation on Bath Waters," conjoined to the cause of their heat and ingredients, the original of springs, antiquity of Bathing, &c. The latter work was repub- lished in 1718. William Baker, S.T.P. Ob. 1732.— This prelate was a native of Ilton, in Somersetshire, and of the same family as the famous mathematician, Thomas 92 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Baker, author of " The Geometrical Key, or the Gate of Equations Un- locked," &c. — who was probably his uncle. He was educated at Wadham College, Oxford, of which, in 1719, he was elected Warden ; but about four years previously he had been appointed Rector of St. Giles's in the Fields, London. That living he held till his decease, notwithstanding his promotion to the see of Bangor in 1723, and his subsequent translation to Norwich in 1727. His publications were only four " Sermons." He died at Bath on the 4th of December, 1732, aged 65 years ; and was buried in the nave of the Abbey Church. Ralph Thicknesse, M.A. Ob. 1742. — He was the brother of Philip Thicknesse, at one time Lieutenant-Governor of Landguard Fort, and well known for his talents, personal adventures, and eccentricities. Ralph Thick- nesse was an assistant-master at Eton College ; from which, when a scholar, he had been elected to King's College, at Cambridge, in 1727. He pub- lished, in 1741, an edition of " Phaedrus, with English Notes," and " Examples, rendered into proper Latin." In 1742 he made application for a Doctor's degree, the Fellows of King's College having promised that they would make him their Provost after the decease of Dr. Snape, whose dissolution was ex- pected; but he himself died on the 11th of October, in the same year, even before the person whom he had been invited to succeed. He had considerable skill in music ; and his death occurred, suddenly, whilst assisting at a concert at Bath, in the performance of a piece of his own composition. Dr. Oliver, the second of that name, who was standing near his elbow when he fell, con- ceived that his decease was occasioned by mental anxiety respecting the execution of his own music. The same gentleman wrote the following elegiac lines to his memory : — Weep, oh ! ye Wits, who ever laugh'd before, — Thicknesse, your favourite Thicknesse, jokes no more. No more his Attic salt, his Roman fire, The social band, delighted, shall admire. Hush'd be all Harmony, except the strain That 's taught in mournful numbers to complain, How He, who sounds celestial could combine, Was snatched from Earth, in Heavenly choir to shine. Ye Poets, — sweet companions of his youth, — Quit all your fables and adorn the truth ; In elegiac plaints his story tell, How lov'd he liv'd ! and how lamented, fell ! BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 93 William Broome, LL.D. Ob. 1745. — This very able assistant to Pope in his translation of Homer, was of humble parentage, and born in Cheshire. He was educated at Eton, and had the singular ill-fortune to be captain of the School a whole year, without any vacancy occurring by which he might have obtained a scholarship at King's College. Being " superannuated " through this delay, he was enabled by some friendly contributions to pursue his studies at St. John's College, where he obtained a small exhibition. When George the First visited Cambridge in 1728, Broome was honoured with the title of Doctor of Laws. In his latter years he held the livings of Oakley Magna, and Eye, in Suffolk ; which were presented to him by Charles, Lord Cornwallis, to whom he was Chaplain. He died at Bath, on the 16th of November, 1745, and was buried in this Church. Broome was an excellent scholar and a good poet, but he was chiefly eminent for his translations. In the morning of life he united with Ozell and Oldisworth in translating the "Iliads" into prose; a performance which, in point of fidelity, has been said to be superior to that of Pope, but is now known only to the curious. The success of Pope's version of the Iliad appears to have induced Broome and his much esteemed friend, Fenton, to undertake a translation of the Odyssey ; but Pope becoming acquainted with their inten- tion, as RufFhead relates, and being more willing to have them for confe- derates than rivals, engaged their assistance ; and of that edition which bears Pope's name, eight books, viz. the 2d, 6th, 8th, 11th 12th, 16th, 18th, and 23d, were translated by Broome, and four others by Fenton. The whole of the notes, also, were written by Broome, whose general learning and strong critical acumen they strikingly exemplify. His share of the poem is equal in every respect to that of either of his coadjutors ; yet Pope, with whom he appears to have quarrelled in regard to pecuniary remuneration, had the baseness to speak of him in the " Bathos" as a proficient in the " art of sinking." — Pope's adversaries, however, were of a different opinion; and Henley adverts to their respective merits in this " ludicrous distich :"— Pope came off clean with Homer ; but they say Broome went before, and kindly swept the way. Sir John Shadwell, Knt., M.D., &c. Ob. 1747. — He was born at London in 1670, being the son of Thomas Shadwell, the dramatist; a descendant of a respectable family in Staffordshire. He was educated at 94 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. All Souls' College, Oxford : and proceeded M.A. in 1692; M.B. in 1697; and M.D. in 1701. In August 1699, he attended the Earl of Manchester on his embassy extraordinary to Louis XIV., and continued with that nobleman at Paris till 1701. He afterwards became Physician to Queen Anne; to George I., who conferred on him the honour of knighthood ; and to George II. He died at Bath on the 4th of December, 1747, and was in* terred in the nave of this Church. Richard Nash, Esq. Ob. 1761. — Few men have acquired more cele- brity while alive, or will be longer remembered in their place of residence after death, than the once noted " Beau Nash." Though possessed neither of rank, fortune, nor learning, his talents and address raised him to a com- manding situation in the world of fashion ; and enabled him to exercise con-> siderable influence over the great, the wealthy, and even the wise ; many of whom treated him as an equal, or submitted to him as a dictator. Over the amusements of Bath he long reigned with despotic power ; and he generally exercised that power for the benefit, or, at least, for the gratification of his subjects. Nash was a native of Swansea in Wales, where his father was concerned in a glass manufactory; and where he was born, on the 18th of October, 1674. Young Nash was early sent to Oxford, whence he was hastily re- moved by his friends, to prevent him from marrying an intriguing female with whom he had become connected. He was at first destined for the law, but was soon introduced to the army ; the strict discipline of which was not compatible with his volatile and gay disposition. He therefore left it, and took chambers in the Temple, and subsequently engaged in the gay and dissipated pursuits of the town. At the theatres and other public places most of his hours were passed, and the gaming-table was the scene of his most serious studies. Occupied by dress, play, and female society, Nash was distinguished as a Beau, or Dandy, of the seventeenth century ; and the former appellation, which thus early was attached to his name, continued to designate him through the re- mainder of his life. On the accession of "William of Orange to the English throne, Nash became known as a public character from the following cir- cumstance : — It was customary for the Societies of the Benchers and Stu- dents belonging to the Temple, to entertain the monarch on his succeeding to BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 95 the crown, with a feast and pageant. The reputation which Nash enjoyed for ingenuity and wit, induced the Templars to consign to his management the direction of the festival. On this occasion he obtained the approbation of all parties ; and the King was so pleased, that he offered to confer on our director of the Temple revels the honour of knighthood ; but this empty compliment was declined. In 1704 Nash visited Bath, and was introduced to Captain Webster, at that time Master of the Ceremonies, to whom he became an assistant ; and on the Captain's death, shortly after, succeeded him in the sovereign direction of the festivities of this city. Our hero was now in his element : the post he held was adapted to his talents and gratifying to his inclination ; and being thus invested with authority, he exerted it to render the amusements more polished, and to promote the comfort and convenience of those who frequented the place*. Nash not only endeavoured to preserve the health of his subjects from injury, but also employed his authority to guard their lives from danger. Swords were usually worn by gentlemen, at that period, as an essential ap- pendage to dress ; and at Bath, disputes arising at the gaming-table, afforded frequent pretexts for having recourse to that weapon. Nash prohibited the wearing of swords in the public rooms. Two gamblers, however, fought by torch-light, in the Grove, and one of them was dangerously wounded. That circumstance furnished our Master of the Ceremonies with a rational pretext for establishing a positive law, that no swords should, on any account, be worn in Bath. To support his dignity and influence, Nash adopted such external marks of splendour as might produce an imposing effect on the minds of those by whom he was surrounded. He wore the most fashionable clothes, covered with lace ; and adopted a large white hat of a peculiar shape, cocked, as the symbol of authority. When he travelled, his chariot was drawn by six horses, * It has been stated that no rank could shield from animadversion the offender against the laws which Nash had established ; nor would any consideration induce him to allow of their being superseded or suspended. When, at one of the dress balls, the Duchess of Queensbury made her appearance in an apron of point lace, worth five hundred guineas, Nash desired her to remove that part of her dress, and taking it from her, threw it to the attendants who were waiting. On another occasion the Princess Amelia wished to have one dance after the appointed hour of con- cluding the ball ; but he told her royal highness, that the laws of Bath, like those of Lycurgus, were unalterable. 96 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. and attended by musicians and other persons both on foot and on horseback. Nash was not only treated with respect by the beau monde in general, but was honoured with marks of esteem by Frederick, Prince of Wales, the Prince of Orange, and by many of the nobility. He was not without friends among literary men. Pope corresponded with him ; and when Nash erected an obelisk in Queen Square, to commemorate the visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales to Bath, in 1738, that great poet furnished an inscription for it. But though Nash was on good terms with many persons of eminence, his situation necessarily exposed him to the censure of others. Among the latter was Dr. Smollett, who appears to have entertained some spleen against him ; which, perhaps, originated in the opposition made by Nash to the Doctor's attempt to establish himself as a physician in Bath. Whatever may have been his motive, Smollett, in Roderick Random, relates a circumstance calcu- lated to place the Master of the Ceremonies in a ridiculous point of view. He represents him as having been guilty of a gratuitous piece of rudeness, in walking up to a young lady, whose shape was somewhat deformed, on her appearing at the rooms, and asking her if she could tell him the name of Tobit's dog ? To this she immediately replied, " His name was Nash, and an impudent dog he was *." The character of Beau Nash, whatever might have been his faults, was marked by some redeeming virtues. As he acquired money easily, so he readily bestowed it on those who were in distress. Many instances of his benevolence are recorded ; and it is said that when circumstances left him without the means of relieving those whom he found in want, he has been * A satirical Epigram from the pen of Lord Chesterfield, and which appears to have been written about the year 1741, has frequently been quoted, and applied to the circumstance of the Cor- poration of Bath having caused a marble statue of the " King of Bath," to be placed in the pump- room, between the busts of Newton and Pope. It seems, however, from a copy of the entire epigram, that it was a portrait of Nash, so placed, that occasioned the satire, — the wit and keen- ness of which are remarkable. The two concluding verses are as follow : — " Nash represents Man in the mass Made up of wrong and right ; Sometimes a knave, sometimes an ass, Now blunt, and now polite. — The Picture placed the Busts between Adds to the thought much strength ; Wisdom and Wit are little seen, But Folly's at full length." BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 97 known to shed tears. In the hard winter of 1739, his active charity was the means of alleviating the misery of many. He went to the habitations of those indigent persons whose modest pride prevented them from making known their necessities, and administered assistance to them unsolicited. The weavers and the colliers of the neighbourhood of Bath being out of employ- ment, entered the city in a body, in a state of the utmost distress. Nash promptly undertook to raise a subscription for them, and contributing ten guineas, was so successful that he sent the half-starved labourers home to their families with the means of preserving them from the impending horrors of want*. A singular anecdote is told by Sir Richard Steele, in the Tatler, of which Nash is the hero, although his name is not mentioned. In the early part of his life, when he was Treasurer to the Society of the Middle Temple, on his delivering in his annual account, there appeared among the disbursements, " Ten Pounds for making a man happy." An explanation of this item being required from the Treasurer, he said that one day he overheard a person say, " If I had ten pounds I should be happy ;" and thinking that such a sum would be well laid out in communicating happiness to a fellow-creature, he had made the man a present of the money out of the funds of the Society. Nash added, that if his conduct should be thought objectionable, he would pay the money out of his own pocket. The Templars unanimously approved of the donation. The latter part of Nash's existence may be termed unfortunate. His great age was attended with the usual train of infirmities. He was disabled from * The following advertisement, originally published in the " Bath Journal," serves to illustrate the character of Nash, and shew the nature of some of the charges which he sustained in the course of his official career : — " Bath, April 25, [1748.] " I think it hard, after above forty years being a fool and slave to the Publick, I should be accused of getting Money by the Publick Subscriptions. I now appeal to the Publick-rooms who receive the money ; to the Musick who are constantly paid by the receivers, if ever they were defrauded of a shilling ; or that I ever touched a sixpenny piece of it. Indeed where there was any small surplus left, those that think I got any of it, may find it in the Hospital Charity Book. To this I call God and Man to witness. " Richard Nash." " N.B. It has cost me more money annually, on the publick account, than any ten that ever came to Bath ; and if it was not for the sake of the Bath and Company, I would leave 'em to the confusion I found 'em in." O 98 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. enjoying the festive amusements over which he had so long presided, and which had formed the chief employment of his life ; and his passage to the grave was embittered by the neglect of those to whom he had so long been the minister of pleasure. His admirable skill in play is said to have been the means by which he defrayed his vast expenses, but this resource failed him as he advanced in years. Sickness and poverty embittered the " closing evening of his days," and " sorrow and distress," evils against which he had provided no defence, fell on him with a " double weight," inasmuch as he had never contemplated their approach. He died at his house in St. John's Court, Bath, on the 3d of February, 1761, at the age of 87, and was honoured with a splendid funeral by the Corporation. His memory was celebrated by two literary tributes of respect; the one in English, by Dr. Oliver, the other in Latin, by the witty and erudite Dr. King. The epitaph inscribed upon his monument, which was erected by subscription in 1790, at the instigation, and chiefly at the expense of the late Dr. Harington, has been already given. A memoir of him was written by the amiable and fascinating Goldsmith. William Oliver, M.D., F.R.S. Ob. 1764. — Among the many Phy- sicians of Bath who have attained to the first rank of professional reputation, was the subject of this sketch, called the famous Dr. Oliver, to distinguish him from his namesake. He was probably the son of the Dr. Oliver already mentioned, as we find him practising at Bath as early as 1730, when he at- tended Mr. Borlase, afterwards the well-known Cornish antiquary*. His practice was very extensive ; and his conversation and literary talents were of an elevated cast. In 1751, he published a " Practical Essay on the Use and Abuse of Warm Bathing, in Gouty Cases," 4to. In the " Philosophical Transactions" for 1723, is a Paper of his, " Partium Genitalium in Muliere Structura Praeternaturalis;" and for 1755, another on " Some Cases of Dropsy cured by Sweet Oil." He died in 1764, and was buried in this Church. Charlotte, his second daughter, became the wife of the learned Sir John Pringle, M.D.,— and P.R.S. * Nichols's " Literary Anecdotes," vol. v. p. 292. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 99 James Quin. Ob. 1766. — Few individuals of the same profession have attracted more notice during their public career, than Quin ; and, among the monuments in Bath Abbey Church, that erected to his memory is the one most likely to provoke a smile, an inquiry, or a jocose remark from the spectator. The jolly face and bushy wig of the bust are readily associated with the traditional character of the witty John-Dory-\ov'mg player. Quin, after having been long an ornament to the English Stage, was super- seded by the superior histrionic abilities of Garrick ; and he at length retired from the mimic scene to enjoy, in the society of his friends, those festive pleasures of the table to which he was constitutionally attached. Bath was the place of his retreat, and in this city he made his final " exit" in 1766, at the age of 73 years. Among the numerous anecdotes which have been pub- lished relative to Quin, a few may be selected as illustrative of his talents and character. The great success of Garrick at his first appearance naturally excited some jealous feelings in the breast of Quin, who considered him a formidable rival. After he had witnessed the acting of the new favourite in the character of Richard the Third, he authoritatively declared, " That if the young fellow was right, he, and the rest of the players, had been all wrong." At another time, being told that the performance of Garrick drew immense crowds to the theatre in Goodman's Fields every night, he sarcastically observed, " That Garrick was the preacher of a new religion ; like Whitfield he might be followed for a time, but the people would all return to the Church." This remark being reported to Garrick, occasioned him to write the following repartee : — " Pope Quin, who damns all Churches but his own, Complains that Heresy infects the town ; That Whitfield-Garrick has misled the age, And taints the sound religion of the Stage : ' Schism !' he cries, ' has turn'd the nation's brain ; But eyes will open, and to Church again !' — Thou great Infallible, forbear to roar, Thy bulls and errors are rever'd no more; When Doctrines meet with general approbation, It is not Heresy but Reformation." Quin and Garrick first made their appearance on the stage together at th e theatre of Covent Garden, in 1760, in the " Fair Penitent," (the former play- ing Horatio, and the latter, Lothario) ; and after an arduous struggle for superiority in the performance of their respective parts, the meed was adjudged 100 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. to Garrick : as Quin, " by striving to do too much, missed the mark at which he aimed*." Quin's company was sought upon many accounts. In providing excellent and choice dishes for dinner, and high-flavoured wines, he was esteemed a perfect arbiter elegantiarum. The pleasure he took in catering, and more especially in talking over the various excellencies of his provisions, with some premeditated conceits, whimsically imagined and quaintly expressed, fixed on him the character of an epicure. The mere indulgence of his palate, it must be confessed, he enjoyed in common with many of his bottle companions ; if it appeared more flagrant in him than in others, it was owing to his drawing the notice of all companies to it, by seizing every opportunity to introduce the subject. When he saw a fishing-rod, or heard any mention of angling, he would say it was a barbarous diversion. " Suppose now any being that was as much my superior as I am to the poor fish, were to say, ' This is a fine evening; I'll go a Quinning; if he were to bait with a liaunch of venison, I should gorge ; and how should I like to be dragged from Richmond to Kingston, floundering and flouncing with a hook in my gullet ?" To such discourse as this, which was very usual with him, we owe the following epigram, published about a year before his death : — Says Epicure Quin, " Should the devil in Hell In fishing for men take delight, And his hook bait with ven'son, I love it so well, That, by Jove, I am sure I should bite-j- !" * Davies's " Life of Garrick," vol. i. p. 136. t Ibid. vol. ii. p. 114. — Quin's epicureanism, if the phrase be allowable, has been thus alluded to by Anstey, in his Epilogue to the " New Bath Guide." The poet feigns himself to be wan- dering on the willowy banks of old Cam — when, lo ! the venerable shade of Quin rises, and, con- veying the poet to " the embowering grove's dark path," thus speaks : — " Forth from Elysium's blest abodes- 1 come, Regions of joy, where Fate has fix'd my doom ; Look on my face, — I well remember thine, Thou knew'st me, too, when erst, in life's decline, At Bath I dwelt — there late repos'd my age, And unrepining left this mortal stage : Yet do those scenes, once conscious of delight, Rejoice my social ghost ! There oft by night I hold my way ; And from the mullet, and the savory jole, Catch fragrant fumes, that still regale my soul r" BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 101 Quin was by no means deficient in liberality, for many shared his bounty. But the delicate manner in which he bestowed it on the poet Thomson, does much honour to his character. Thomson, before he arose to fame and emi- nence, was embarrassed in his circumstances, and arrested for debt. Quin, to whom he was personally a stranger, had read his " "Winter," and properly appreciated its merit. Hearing of his misfortune, Quin went to the place where he was detained ; and after introducing himself with an apology for the liberty he had taken in calling on him without a previous acquaintance, said, " Mr. Thomson, I owe you fifty pounds, and am come to pay it." The poet looked on this speech as a coarse and insulting joke ; and calmly ex- postulated with his visitor on the cruelty of his conduct. " No," rejoined Quin, "lam perfectly serious : for the fact is, on Beading your poem some time since, I was so pleased with it, that I left you in my Will the sum I have mentioned. However, as you probably have more occasion for the money just at present than you will have after my death, I think I may as well save my executors the trouble of paying it, by doing so myself;" — and immediately put into the hands of the grateful and astonished captive poet a Bank-note for 50/. The face, figure, and personal character, of Quin, are exquisitely per- petuated in a picture by Gainsborough, now in the possession of John Wilt- shire, Esq., at Shockerwick, near Bath. Seldom have the mimic powers of the pencil been more skilfully and forcibly exercised than on this occasion. It is a portrait of great merit, and in future times will rank with the works of Rembrandt, Titian, and Reynolds. Sarah Fielding. Ob. 1768. — This lady, sister to the celebrated author of " Tom Jones," obtained considerable fame as the writer of " The Adven- tures of David Simple, in search of a Faithful Friend." She published an ad- ditional volume in 1752, which was never popular. Her principal literary work was " Xenophon's Memoirs of Socrates, with the Defence of Socrates before his Judges, translated from the original Greek." In this 1 undertaking- she was assisted by Mr. James Harris, of Salisbury, to whom she was in- debted for some valuable notes. Mrs. Fielding died unmarried, at Bath, in April 1768. J[Q2 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Samuel Derrick. Ob. 1769. — He was born in Ireland, in 1724, and although from personal appearance and other deficiencies but little qualified for the office, he had the address to be chosen Master of the Ceremonies at Bath, in 1764, on the resignation of Mr. Collett, who had succeeded Beau Nash. He had been in the army, but afterwards supported himself by writing for the booksellers. He was author of several works, and translated others from the French, among which was Bergerac's " Voyage to the Moon," pub- lished in 1753. In 1755 he produced a translation in English verse, of the " Third Satire of Juvenal," in quarto*. The " View of the Stage," which appeared in 1759, under the name of Wilkes, was written by Derrick ; and in 1762, he published an edition of " Dryden's Poetical Works, with a Life and Notes," in four volumes, 8vo ; but this, though neatly printed, was not suc- cessful. He also supplied Dr. Johnson with the materials for Dryden's Life in the English Poets ; and he appears, from Boswell's account, to have been on friendly, if not familiar, terms with that great moralist. Johnson, however, entertained but a low opinion of his general abilities, for in a conversation with Boswell, in which the latter had remarked that Derrick was " a very * In Nichols's " Literary Anecdotes," vol. ii. p. 371, is a playful letter from David Mallet to Derrick, who was then in Dublin, in December 1760. The following are passages : — " I have seen your Translation of Juvenal, and like it : it has been spoken well of by many persons of taste : but I fear you will find it hard to convert reputation into profit. Praise is a good sauce for a dinner ; and when a Poet has dined heartily, he can reflect with pleasure on his rising fame : I am told you have this satisfaction often at Lord Shannon's table." Mallet afterwards advises him to secure the patronage of Lord Shannon, and the Lord Primate, whose acquaintance gave him " a fair opportunity to elude the farther influence of evil fortune," and raise himself " above a state of dependence and attendance." He continues : — " The road is open, the view clear : a living in the Church will handsomely terminate the prospect. The Church-livings in Ireland are very comfortable. In Roman Catholic countries, it is usual for the unfortunate to take refuge in the Church. This practice is not confined solely to foreign countries : there have been instances of gentlemen, who have here taken the air on Hounslow-heath, exchanging the pistol for the gown. Thus have they eluded the vigilance of the centries, found a snug sanctuary in the Church, and adorned the Island of Saints. Why should not a fair honest character succeed in your case, as well as daring villainy in those I have mentioned ? — I remember an old French dancing-master, (an ancient family-piece,) who had long depended upon the late Duke of Dorset for a provision. His Grace was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. Monsieur was ordered to follow in his train : various methods of settling- him were proposed : all were clogged with insuperable objections, and unsurmountable difficulties. At last the Church was thought of; and though he knew nothing of Greek, was a stranger to Latin, could not read English, and spoke very bad French, he was thrust into Orders by some obsequious pander to his Grace's will ; and, I am assured, was inducted into a very profitable living." — BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 103 poor writer," Johnson said — " To be sure, sir, he is ; but you are to consider that his being a literary man has got for him all that he has : it has made him king of Bath ! Sir, he has nothing to say for himself, but that he is a writer. Had he not been a writer, he must have been sweeping the crossings in the streets, and asking halfpence from every body that past*." This caustic se- verity of expression must have exceeded the truth ; for if Derrick's abilities in literature were sufficient to exalt him to the post of Master of the Cere- monies, they would doubtless have obtained for him a maintenance in other employments, had he thought proper to pursue them. On another occasion, Johnson, when speaking of his " Letters from Liverpool, Chester," &c, paid a higher compliment to his literary merit : — " Had they been written," he observed, " by one of a more established name, they would have been thought very pretty Letters." Boswell says, Derrick was his " first tutor in the ways of London," and shewed him " the town, in all its variety of departments, both literary and sportive." Derrick's reign at Bath was not a, peaceful one. His diminutive figure proved a drawback upon his authority : and although he imitated his prede- cessor in one external mark, the white hat, he failed in the more essential attributes of office. After his decease, however, on the 28th of March, 1769, Bath was the scene of yet greater commotion, for during the ardent struggle for the election of his successor, the Ball-room became a field of battle, in which the victory was so strenuously disputed, that even the ladies — who, by the bye, are said to have begun the affray — engaged in real combats : nor was it till the deputy town-clerk had read the riot act three times, under the direction of the mayor, that the hostile movements of the warring assembly could be reduced to decent decorum. Sheridan, then at Bath, thus sketches the scene, in a poem called " The Ridotto :" — " Fair Nymphs achieve illustrious feats ; Off fly their tuckers, caps, and tites.; Pins and pomatums strew the room, Emitting many a strange perfume : * Boswell's " Life of Dr. Johnson," vol. i. Boswell states that Johnson once said to him : — " Sir, I honour Derrick for his presence of mind. One night, when Floyd, another poor author, [who wrote the Bibliotheca Biographica, &c. 3 vols. 8vo,] was wandering about the streets in the night, he found Derrick fast asleep upon a bulk ; upon being suddenly waked, Derrick started up, ' My dear Floyd, I am sorry to see you in this destitute state ; will you go home with me to my lodgings! '" 104 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Each tender form is strangely batter'd, And odd things here and there are scatter'd. In heaps confus'd the Heroines lie ; With horrid shrieks they pierce the sky : Their charms are lost in scratches — scars — Sad emblems of domestic wars !" John Wall, M.D. Ob. 1776. — This gentleman, who was distinguished for his acquirements in various branches of science, was born at Powick, in Worcestershire, in the year 1708. He was partly educated at the College School, Worcester, of which city his father, an opulent tradesman, was mayor, in 1703. In June 1726, he was elected scholar of Worcester College, Oxford; and in 1735, chosen fellow of Merton College in that University. He after- wards settled at Worcester in the practice of Physic ; in which art he took his Doctor's degree in 1739. Dying at Bath in his 68th year, on the 27th of June, 1776, he was buried in the Abbey Church. He published a " Treatise on the Malvern Waters," which owe a great part of their reputation to his remarks ; and also several valuable tracts, chiefly on medicine : these were collected and printed in 1780, in 8vo, by his son, the late erudite Dr. Martin Wall, F.R.S., Clinical Professor at Oxford. He acquired great eminence in those branches of natural philosophy immediately connected with physic and the arts ; and to his assiduous researches, in conjunction with other chy- mists, to discover proper materials for china-ware, the city of Worcester is principally indebted for the establishment of its porcelain manufacture. He is described as skilful in the principles of composition and painting : a speci- men of his talents for design is exhibited in the east window of the chapel of Oriel College, Oxford : he also designed the frontispieces to the old edition of «' Hervey's Meditations," and Cambridge's " Scribleriad." Lady Miller. Ob. 1781. — Among those individuals who have contri- buted to the pleasures of social intercourse shared by the votaries of fashion and fortune at Bath, this lady deserves respectful and distinguished notice. She was the wife of Mr. afterwards Sir John Miller, who for several years resided at a villa which he had built at Bath Easton. Mr. and Mrs. Miller made a tour through several parts of Italy ; and an account of their journey was afterwards published by the latter, in three volumes, octavo. The work, BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 105 which consists of a series of letters, contains some amusing passages, and much information relative to the arts and manners of the Italians. This lady is, however, chiefly indebted for her celebrity to the Bath Easton " Poetical Amusements," which were established by her ladyship. An antique vase, which had been dug up at Frascati, in Italy, in 1759, and purchased by Mr. Miller, was placed in his villa at Bath Easton, upon a modern altar, decorated with sprigs of laurel, and made the receptacle, at a weekly dies festus, of the poetical productions of the assembled company, every individual being expected to deposit an original composition in verse within the venerable relic. These at first consisted of what the French term bouts rimes, or rhyming terminations, which had been filled up by the candi- dates for poetical fame ; but, afterwards, of short pieces upon given subjects. The contributions were drawn out singly by a lady, and publicly read, and a committee was nominated to adjudge wreaths of myrtle to the authors of the most eminent of the poems, who were then crowned by the high priestess (Mrs. Miller) amidst the plaudits of the assembly : a substantial collation con- cluded the gala. This Attic pastime continued for several years ; but at length the purity of the sacred vase was sullied by the licentious wit of some unknown wag, whose satirical production, when recited, wounded the delicacy of all the blushing fair ones present, and the meetings were discontinued for ever. Three small volumes, however, of the best effusions thus elicited, were published, at different times, under the title of " Poetical Amusements at a Villa near Bath," the profits of which were applied to the Pauper Charity of that city. Among the persons whose compositions contributed to these volumes, were Messrs. Anstey, Graves, Garrick, Pratt, Meyler, and Miss Seward, with others of literary celebrity. Lady Miller was buried in 1781, near the altar in the Abbey Church, where a handsome monument of statuary marble, by the elder Bacon, is raised to her memory : vide page 77. Sir William Draper, K.B. Ob. 1787. — He was born in 1721, and after an education at Eton and Cambridge, became an officer in the army, and acquired considerable fame by his military exploits in the East Indies. He was engaged with Admiral Cornish in 1763, in the reduction of the Spanish settlement at Manilla. On the capture of the fort, Draper, who then held the rank of Colonel, agreed to accept of four millions of dollars, 106 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. - by way of ransom for the place. This money was never paid by the Spanish government ; and on his return to England, becoming a member of Par- liament, he complained loudly of the loss sustained by himself and his comrades, in consequence of the non-payment of what was termed the Manilla ransom. After some time, however, the murmurs of the gallant officer against his own government, and that of Spain, ceased. He was honoured with a red riband, and probably received more substantial tokens of minis- terial favour. In 1769, Sir William Draper entered the lists as a public antagonist of the unknown writer of the " Letters of Junius."* In the course of this controversy he displayed more courage than prudence. The motive of his first interference was the defence of the Marquess of Granby ; but he soon became involved in a personal dispute with the soi-disant Junius, which led to a challenge from Sir William ; who in vain endeavoured to provoke his sarcastic adversary to lay aside his mask and give him a meeting. This was not the only altercation in which Sir William was engaged. In 1779, when he held the rank of a general officer, he was appointed lieutenant-governor of the island of Minorca. On the surrender of Port Mahon, the capital, he preferred charges against the governor, General Murray, into whose conduct an inquiry was instituted by a court martial ; but the latter was honourably acquitted, and his accuser required to make him an apology. He died in January 1787, aged 66 : vide p. 79. The Rev. Osmund Beauvoir, D.D. Ob. 1789. — Dr. Beauvoir was the soil of the Rev. W. Beauvoir, who was descended from a French family, long * The energy, acumen, sarcasm, and political knowledge, displayed in these popular letters, were calcu'ated to rouse public curiosity in an extraordinary degree ; but the unexampled secrecy and mystery attending their publication, and which have continued to shroud their author for more than fifty years, have perhaps given them more notoriety than would ever have arisen from their inherent merits. Many attempts have been made, by different writers, to unravel the mystic thread, but not one has accomplished the task : at least the public still require more satisfactory evidence, to identify the author. Averse to political controversy, and hostile as I hope ever to be to party disputation, I have neglected to prosecute an inquiry on this subject which was commenced about fifteen years ago, — and which, had it been then pursued, I am confident would have produced demonstration in the place of conjecture. — Mr. Morris, who retired to Box — Dr. Popham, who lived at Lacock — Colonel Barre, Counsellor Dunning, Lord Ashburton, and William, Marquess of Lansdowne, were acquainted with some of the secrets of " Junius;" and one, at least, of the above-named persons, was privy to the whole correspondence : " Stat nominis umbra." BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 107 settled in the county of Kent. He held successively several preferments in the church ; and at length was made one of the Six Preachers of Canterbury cathedral. He was also Head Master of the Free Grammar School at Can- terbury. Mr. Hasted says — " Of the masters who have presided over this school, many have been men of eminence as clergymen and scholars. One of them I can mention of my own knowledge, and whoever knew him will join in this tribute to his memory. I mean the Rev. Dr. O. Beauvoir, late Head Master of it, first educated here, and afterwards of St. John's College, in Cambridge, whose great abilities brought this school to the highest degree of estimation ; who united the gentleman with the scholar ; one whose eminent qualifications and courtesy of manners gained him the esteem and praise of all who knew him*." In 1784, Dr. Beauvoir was elected F.S.A. ; and he occasionally com- municated articles of curiosity to the Society. Though a man of talents and learning, his literary labours were not very important. He afforded some assistance to Mr. Gosling, in his " Walk through Canterbury," and the description of the great painted window in that work, at the north end of the west transept in Canterbury Cathedral, was written by him. He also communicated to Dr. Maclaine the correspondence of Archbishop Wake with some of the Doctors of the Sorbonne, relative to a scheme of union between the English and Gallican churches, which partly originated with the father of Dr. Beauvoir. These interesting letters were published by Dr. Maclaine, in his translation of Mosheim's " Ecclesiastical Historyf." He died at Bath, July 1, 1789, and was interred in the south aile of the Abbey Church. Thomas Postlethwaite, D.D. Ob. 1798. — He was a native of Lan- caster, and educated at Cambridge, in which University he succeeded Dr. Hinchcliffe, as Master of Trinity College, in 1789. Although accounted one of the ablest mathematicians in the University, his only publication was a " Sermon" on the 7th chap, of Isaiah, verses 14, 15, and 16, which was preached, in two parts, at St. Mary's Church, in December 1780. He died at Bath, aged 67, on the 4th of May, 1798, having previously "be- queathed 2000/. and some books, to his College. * See Nichols's " Literary Anecdotes," vol. ix. p. 352. f Ibid. 108 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. William Melmoth, Esq. Ob. 1799. — This elegant translator of the Epistles of Cicero and Pliny, was the son of a barrister of Lincoln's Inn, who was distinguished as the author of " The Great Importance of a Religious Life," a small publication which passed through numerous editions. The son, who was born in 1710, and brought up to the legal profession, was made a commissioner of Bankrupts in 1756. Having a fortune adequate to his wishes, this gentleman, during the last forty years of his life, employed himself in the study of classical literature, towards the cultivation of which he contributed, by the publication of an original work, entituled " Letters of the late Sir Thomas Fitz-Osborne, Bart, on Several Subjects," 1748, 8vo, as well as by his excellent translations of some of the letters and dialogues of Cicero, and of the letters of Pliny the younger. After residing for some time at Shrewsbury, he removed to Bath, where he continued till his decease in 1799. He was buried at Bath Easton ; but a tablet to his memory has been erected in the Abbey Church. Besides the publications already mentioned, Mr. Melmoth wrote several poems, which appeared in Dodsley's and Pearch's Collections ; and he closed his literary career by a tribute to the memory of his father, intituled, " Memoirs of a late eminent Advocate, and a Member of the Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn :" 1796, 8vo. The worth and talents of this gentleman excited the following encomium from a celebrated satirist of the last century. " William Melmoth, Esq., a most elegant and distinguished writer, ' near half an age with every good man's praise.' His translations of Cicero and Pliny will speak for him while Roman and English eloquence can be united. Mr. Melmoth is a happy example of the mild influence of learning on a cultivated mind ; I mean of that learning which is declared to be the aliment of youth, and the delight and consolation of declining years. Who would not envy this ' fortunate old man ' his most finished Translation and Comment on Tully's Cato ? or rather who would not rejoice in the refined and mellowed pleasures of so accomplished a gentleman and so liberal a scholar * ? " For his epitaph, see page 80. John Sibthorp, M.D., F.R.S. Ob. 1800. — This learned physician was celebrated for his laborious exertions to improve the science of Botany. * " Pursuits of Literature," part iv. p. 89. Notes. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 109 After passing through his preliminary studies at home, he visited France and Italy ; and, on his return, was honoured with the Professorship of Botany, at Oxford, which his father, also a physician, resigned in his favour. In 1786, Dr. Sibthorp left England on a tour through Greece, in the course of which he accumulated a great number of specimens of rare and curious plants. Such was his zeal for the advancement of his favourite science, that not- withstanding the delicate state of his health, he undertook another voyage to Greece in 1794. In the course of both these journeys he made collections for a splendid work on the plants of Greece, intituled, " Flora Gneca." On his last tour, Dr. Sibthorp was seized with a severe pulmonary complaint, which obliged him to return to his native country ; and he became a resident at Bath, where he died, in 1800. His premature death prevented him from methodizing and preparing for publication the stores of scientific information which he had drawn together. That the fruits of his labours might not be lost, he left an estate to the University of Oxford, the product of which was to be applied to defray the expense of arranging and publishing the Flora Grceca ; and the surplus was to be devoted to the endowment of a professorship of Rural Economy. His " Flora Oxoniensis" was published in 8vo, in 1794. Vide page 81. The Rev. John Howlett, A.B. Ob. 1804. — This gentleman was the author of several valuable tracts on different branches of Political Economy, as waste lands, enclosures, population, poor, tithes, &c. At the time of his decease, at Bath, February the 25th, 1804, he was Vicar of the Parishes of Great Dunmow and Great Baddow, in Essex. Archibald Maclaine, D.D. Ob. 1804. — This learned divine was born at Monaclan, in Ireland, in 1722. He spent the principal part of his life in a foreign country, but rendered an important service to English literature, by his well-known translation of Mosheim's " Ecclesiastical History." Dr. Maclaine was educated at the University of Glasgow, and being frustrated in an attempt to obtain episcopal ordination at home, he accepted an invitation to become the successor of his uncle, Dr. Milling, pastor of an English church at the Hague. In that situation he remained till 1794, when the hostile progress of the revolutionary army of the French Republic in the Dutch territories, rendered it prudent for this venerable divine to return to HO BATH ABBEY CHURCH. England. He settled at Bath, where he continued to reside till the time of his death, November the 25th, 1804. Besides the translation of Mosheim's historical work, Dr. Maclaine pub- lished, in 1777, a Series of Letters, addressed to Soame Jenyns, Esq., containing observations on the celebrated treatise written by that gentleman, on " the Internal Evidence of the Christian Religion." He was also under- stood to have supplied the editor of the Monthly Review, for many years, with articles relating to foreign literature. A high and well-deserved character of Dr. Maclaine, is given in Nichols's " Literary Anecdotes," (vol. ii. p. 451,) where also it is mentioned, that " he was brother to the person who went by the name of • The Gentleman High- wayman,' who had been a grocer in Welbeck-street, and was executed at Tyburn, Oct. 3, 1752, attended by Dr. Allen, a Presbyterian minister, who published an account of his behaviour." Some general particulars of Dr. Maclaine's life have been published by the Rev. R. Warner, in an Appendix to a Letter addressed to the Lord Bishop of Gloucester, " On the Admission to Holy Orders of Young Men holding Evangelical Principles," 8vo, 1818, in which he gives the following discriminating summary of his character : — " Wise, without austerity ; deeply learned, without arrogance ; sincerely pious, without ostentation ; of refined wit, untinctured with severity ; of polished manners, unsophisticated by affectation ; of warm benevolence and lively sensibility, but cool in judgment, and unbending in principle : he lived much in the world without being injured by its vices, or infected with its follies ; and confuted, by a visible proof, the unsoundness of that paradox of the ingenious author against whom he exercised his pen, (Soame Jenyns,) that the religion of Jesus Christ cannot go hand in hand with secular business, worldly intercourse, and rational social enjoyment." His epitaph, vide p. 82, is said to have been written by his friend, the Rev. John Simpson*. Thomas Pownall, Esq., F.R.S., and F.A.S., ob. 1805 ; usually termed Governor Pownall, from the circumstance of his having been Governor of some of the North American colonies, was born at Lincoln, in 1722. In 1761, being recalled from America, he was appointed Director-General of the office * Warner's Letter : the Biographical Sketch of Dr. Maclaine given in that letter, was copied into the Gentleman's Magazine for August and September 1818. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. Ill of Control, in Germany, with the rank of Colonel in the army. Whilst in that situation, he was charged with malversation in regard to a purchase of oats, at Bremen ; but after an inquiry, instituted by the Lords of the Treasury, the charge appeared to be unfounded, and his accuser, Mr. John Guest, In- spector of the Magazines in Germany, was dismissed from his situation. In 1768, he became a Member of the House of Commons, where he dis- tinguished himself by his opposition to the war with America. He was attached to literary pursuits, and was a frequent contributor to the Archaeo- logical volumes of the Society of Antiquaries, of which, as well as of the Royal Society, he was a Fellow. He died at Bath, on the 25th of February, 1805, in his 85th year, of a disease of the heart; and was buried, in con- formity to his own directions, in Walcot church, in " an oaken coffin, without ornament or inscription :" but a monument has been raised to his memory in the Abbey Church. His writings are numerous and important : they include various branches of political inquiry, antiquities, and science. Christopher Anstey, Esq. Ob. 1805. — Whilst polished ease and elegance in colloquial poetry, intermingled with the most pointed wit and ingenious sprightliness, shall continue to possess any influence over the social feelings of the human breast, the well-deserved fame of the author of the " New Bath Guide," will flourish in all its pristine raciness. He was the son of the Rev. Dr. Anstey, of Trumpington, near Cambridge, and was born in the year 1724. After commencing his classical studies at Eton, he was elected thence to King's College, Cambridge; and although he acquired no academical honours, he distinguished himself at both seminaries as an elegant scholar. Unfortunately, however, so far as University distinctions were in- volved, he made a speech in the Public Schools that occasioned his rustication ; to which circumstance he thus alludes in the epilogue to the above poem : — Of Granta, sweet Granta, where, studious of ease, Seven years did I sleep, and then lost my degrees ! The immediate cause of this event were the words, " Doctores sine doct rind, magistri artium sine artibus, et baccalauri baculo potiiis quam lauro digni," &c. with which he began his speech, and which originated in the umbrage he had taken at some unfairness of treatment on the part of his superiors. 112 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. After quitting College he went into the army, and having married into the family of Calvert, the celebrated brewer, he fixed his residence at Bath, his first house being in the Royal Crescent. This locality brought him into close contact with the numerous votaries of folly and fashion, who flocked to this city, and from whose general manners and conduct he drew the admirable sketches which constitute his " Memoirs of the Blunderhead family," in the poetical Bath Guide, which was first published in 1765. Many editions of this admirable composition have issued from the press ; but it is remarkable that the author never attached his name to any of them. The rich vein of original humour, the playful wit, keen irony, and shrewd discernment, so remarkably displayed in this poem, blended with the most beautiful classic allusions, and apt similies, and modulated by harmonious versification, have extended its popularity far beyond the common period of local and satirical productions : and its fame will continue to endure, notwith- standing that, the writer, in one or two instances, by following too closely the enthusiastic language of the Methodists, has been betrayed into a vivid fervour of expression that raises the blush on the cheek of beauty, and is offensive to the delicate mind. In 1767, Mr. Anstey produced his "Monody on the Death of the Marquis of Tavistock," father of the late Duke of Bedford, which is written in blank verse, with much tenderness and pathos. He was also one of the earliest contributors to the poetical Vase at Lady Miller's; and in reply to some scurrilous strictures on the amusements at her hospitable villa, which ap- peared at Bath under the signatures of Regulus, Toby, Caesar, &c. he pub- lished, in 1774, a strong philippic against " anonymous assassins," intituled " The Priest Dissected," &c, 4to., addressed to the Rev. Mr. , whom he conceived to be the author of the lampoons in question. In 1776, the flow and elegance of his Latinity were made evident by a comic satire addressed to his ingenious friend, C. W. Bamfylde, of Hestercombe, in Somerset- shire,* on the humours of an " Election Ball." This he soon afterwards translated into the Somersetshire dialect, and next into plain English, in the manner of the Bath Guide. * The grounds and woods at Hestercombe are celebrated for their beauty. The figure of a painted Witch, in a hermitage, elicited the following compliment from the pen of the late Dr. Lang- horne: — " O'er Bamfylde's woods, by various nature grac'd, A Witch presides; but then that Witch is Taste !" BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 113 Mr. Anstey wrote various other poems besides those already mentioned ; and also numerous jeux desprit at different times : he likewise translated several of Gay's Fables into Latin verse ; and in the very evening of his days, in the eightieth year of his age, addressed an elegant Latin Alcaic Ode to Dr. Jenner, on the subject of Vaccine Inoculation, in which he very feelingly alludes to the ravages made by the " foul pest" in his own family. Whilst Mr. Anstey resided in the Crescent, it was in contemplation by the proprietor of the ground-rents to convert the lawn-like fields in front of the houses into a kitchen-garden ; but this profanation of good taste was prevented by the judicious ridicule of Anstey 's muse, in a pleasing " Ode, on an Early View of the Crescent," in which every stanza ended by the words " Sir Peter Rivers Gay." The mania for building, however, afterwards deprived our poet of a favourite spot of ground which he had cultivated. To dissipate or record his chagrin he produced this epigram : " Ye men of Bath who stately mansions rear, To wait for tenants from the devil knows where, Would you pursue a plan which cannot fail, Erect a mad-house, and enlarge your jail." Mr. Anstey died at Harnish, or Hardenhuish, in Wiltshire, at the seat of his son-in-law, Henry Bosanquet, Esq., on the 3d of August, 1805, he being then in his 81st year. He was interred in Walcot church, Bath; but an inscribed tablet to his memory has been erected in Poets' Corner, West- minster Abbey, and another in this church. His poetical works, with some account of his life and writings, were published in a quarto volume, in 1810, by his son, John Anstey, Esq. a Barrister, whose " Pleader's Guide" proves him to inherit no inconsiderable portion of the talents of his father, who, as we learn from a passage in his " Priest Dissected," had " Ten sweet pledges of connubial joys." Walsh Porter, Esq. Ob. 1809.— This gentleman was distinguished by his attachment to literature and the fine arts, and left ample memorials of his taste by the collection of pictures formed by himself. His dramatic productions have merit. He died very suddenly, at Dawlish Villa, his resi- dence near Bath, in May 1809, in consequence of the bursting, as supposed, 114 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. of an abscess in his liver, which had been long diseased. A tablet to his memory, (with others to some of his relatives,) is attached to the north wall of the nave in the Abbey Church, where he was interred. Signor Venanzio Rauzzini. Ob. 1810. — The union of professional excellence, with amiable manners and integrity of conduct, cannot fail of securing to the enviable possessor the sincere esteem of all private associates, as well as the general approbation of the public. Such an union existed in Rauzzini, a man pre-eminent as a musical preceptor and performer, but still more estimable as a friend or familiar acquaintance. Those who knew him best, esteemed him most. As there was neither art nor duplicity in his disposition, his natural character was soon perceived, and as soon beloved. Of such a man it cannot be uninteresting to detail a few biogra- phical particulars. Venanzio Rauzzini was a native of Rome. At an early age he displayed so decided a fondness for music, that his parents were induced to educate him for that profession. He was accordingly placed under the tuition of a friar, who had no voice or power of singing himself, but, from his acquaintance with the theory of music, was a good teacher. He quitted Rome while young ; yet such was his genius and application, that we are told, even then, " he was so well practised in singing, and in the general knowledge of music, that he could take up the most difficult composition, reverse the page as he held it before him, and not only read the notes thus inverted, but in that state sing the air at sight, with the most perfect correctness of time and intonation*." He afterwards travelled into Germany, and while still in early youth, was engaged as principal singer at the Opera at Vienna. At that period he was favoured with the friendship of Metastasio, who took much pleasure in his company. His musical talents and knowledge speedily attracted the public attention, and he became the idol of the cognoscenti, the favourite of princes, and the delight of all who heard himf. * " Monthly Mirror, New Series," vol. i. p. 227. f " The enthusiasm of the people in his favour is evinced by the following anecdote, which fur- nishes one more fact in addition to the numerous instances of the power of song. At the Opera at Vienna, it is contrary to the usual decorum of the place, and to the order of the court, for the persons in the pit to give, in the presence of the Emperor, public and vociferous applause to a per- former ; but on the first night of Rauzzini's appearance, "when he concluded a song in which he BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 115 From Vienna, Rauzzini removed to Munich and entered into the service of the Elector of Bavaria. During his residence at Munich, where he con- tinued several years, Dr. Burney visited that capital, and had repeated oppor- tunities of witnessing his powers. In his Musical Tour, the Doctor says, " The first singer in the Serious Opera here, is Signor Rauzzini, a young Roman performer of singular merit, who has been six years in the service of this court, but is engaged to sing in an Opera composed by young Mozart, at the next carnival at Milan. He is not only a charming singer, a pleasing figure, and a good actor, but a more excellent contrapuntist and performer on the harpsichord than a singer is usually allowed to be, as all kind of appli- cation to the harpsichord or composition is supposed by the Italians to be prejudicial to the voice. Signor Rauzzini has set two or three comic operas here, which have been very much approved ; and he shewed and sung to me several airs of a serious cast, that were well written, and in an exquisite taste." In another place, he says — " Rauzzini had, in an obliging manner, thrown himself in the Elector's way, on purpose to be asked to sing, that I might hear him, which I had expressed a great desire to do, with a band ; for though he is first singer at the Serious Opera, in winter, yet he never performs at the summer concerts unless particularly desired." In 1774 Rauzzini came to England, and was engaged as one of the princi- pal singers at the Opera-house. He soon attained great eminence both as a singer and an actor. Garrick, who witnessed his performance of Monte- zuma, in the opera of that title, was so captivated by his abilities, that he ran behind the scenes, and catching Rauzzini in his arms, embraced him with enthusiasm. Among his principal works are the operas of Pyramo e Tisbe, L'AU cTAmore, L'Eroe Cinese, Creusa in Delfo, La Regina di Golconda, and La Vestale. He had displayed his full powers, the audience, with one consent, joined in a universal cry of bravo. The fashionable decencies were violated, the court was offended, and placards were affixed to the avenues of the. theatre and in the conspicuous parts of the house, complaining of the impropriety of these proceedings, and strictly enjoining the discontinuance of similar applause for the future ; and to enforce the Imperial mandate, additional guards were placed in the pit. Rauzzini appeared a second time — a second time he was applauded by the pit : the ladies waved their handkerchiefs, and the men vociferated bravo to the very echo that redoubled their applause. Whether the court submitted to the popular voice, and rescinded the edict, or continued to impose the duty of mute approbation to vocal excellence, we know not ; but of the fact we are well assured, and it is curious."—" Monthly Mirror," vol. i. p. 228. 116 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. composed with great facility. The opera of Pyramus and Thisbe was finished in three weeks ; and another piece, which was not begun till Sunday evening, was performed at a public concert on the Wednesday following. Such was the opinion entertained of Rauzzini's talents, not only as a singer, but as an actor, that he was complimented with the title of " the Italian Garrick." Notwithstanding his great success, he left the stage at an early period, in consequence of peculiar and unconquerable sensibility, as he never made his appearance as a public performer without feeling considerable trepidation. He retired to Bath, and commenced as Professor of music, and also entered into a connexion with La Motte as Director of the public concerts. The impru- dence of his coadjutor soon obliged that gentleman to withdraw from the manage- ment of the undertaking, and Rauzzini was left sole conductor of the musical exhibitions at Bath. This station he filled for thirty years, much to the satisfaction of the company to whose amusement he contributed. The fol- lowing observations coincide with the general opinion which was entertained of the liberality and professional ability displayed by Rauzzini, in the direc- tion of the public concerts, and as the fosterer of musical genius : — "Of this man, though barely to make mention be sufficient for fame, the grateful senti- ments of every child of music will, we believe, start forward to accompany us, while we offer a passing tribute to his character. Rauzzini, long since possessed of the favour of the public as a singer, and conspicuous as a com- poser, preferring the retirement of Bath, and giving celebrity to the little adjacent hill of Hanging Land*, appears in the fair horizon of that city as the inspiring genius of melody ; and in her musical orgies, he is her minister- ing priest. Accomplished in all the learning and all the graces of his art, he imparts the light of his mind to every professional student whom a requi- site degree of talent entitles to seek his assistance. His house is by degrees become a kind of musical Lyceum ; and a singer untutored by Rauzzini appears but half accomplished. In fact the most eminent among the favourites of the public, of the present moment, are found in the list of his scholars. To the improvement acquired at his lyceum, the singular liberality of the master's disposition has moreover appended advantages seldom attendant on other schools. Without any greater resources of fortune than those which the eminence of his talents lays open to him, he receives and entertains in * Here Rauzzini had a country house called Perry-Mead Villa, which was his summer resi- dence. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 117 his hospitable mansion those very students who come to him for the purpose of profiting by his instructions. Every professional person finds a home at Rauzzini's. After what has been related, it is almost unnecessary to say that he is as beloved as he is respected, and is no less the delight than the ornament of the class to which he belongs*." Signor Rauzzini died in 1810, at the age of 62, at his residence in Gay Street, Bath. The funeral honours bestowed on him evinced the great respect in which his character was generally held. At his interment, in the Abbey Church, a select number of his musical friends, including Mr. Braham, ap- peared as mourners, and a numerous and respectable body of gentlemen made a part of the funeral procession. The fame acquired by several of the pupils of Rauzzini is highly honour- able to the skill of their preceptor. Among them were Madame Mara, Mrs. Billington, Signora Storace, Mrs. Mountain, Mr. Braham, and Mr. Incledon. None of Rauzzini's pupils were treated with more attention, or better recompensed the exertions of their instructor, than Mr. Braham. That gen- tleman was articled to Rauzzini for three years, and, residing in his house, experienced from him many marks of friendly and almost paternal kindness. At the first interview, the instructor requested the musical tyro to sing, and accompanied him on the piano-forte. With diffidence and trepidation the young scholar went through the piece. Rauzzini closed the instrument in silence — paused — and at length turning round, said — " Dat vill do — Master Braham vill make de first rate singer. Ve vill dine togedder, and talk about songs." Under such a master, we cannot doubt but the current of time ran smooth |. The period of tuition soon passed away, leaving in the breasts of each an esteem for the other, which lasted during the life of the master, and since his death has been manifested by the pupil, by raising, in conjunction with Signora Storace, a neat sepulchral tablet to his memory, near the place of interment, with an inscription from the pen of Dr. Harington, in which his professional abilities, characteristic deportment, and liberality of sentiment, are duly commemorated. Enough has already been related to illustrate the musical genius and ability * " Monthly Mirror," vol. xvi. for July 1803, p. 6. f As an instance of liberality honourable to both parties, it may be mentioned that Rauzzini often paid Mr. Braham for singing at his concerts whilst the latter was his pupil ; and Braham, after returning from Italy, sung at Rauzzini's concerts without accepting any compensation. 118 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. of Rauzzini, and to prove the general excellence of his private character. A few anecdotes may be added, to shew the peculiar playfulness of his disposi- tion. A female pupil, in rehearsing the sacred song of Handel, " Pious orgies, pious airs," dwelt so long on the first syllable pi, that Rauzzini exclaimed, " Vat pie, mine dear, plum pie or apple pie ?" At one of his concerts, a person named Mathews, a butcher, who was chorus-singer, was very desirous to be allowed to sing a solo. But in answer to his troublesome importunities, Rauzzini only said, " Go home, Mr. Mad- dew; go home, and kill von sheep,— go kill de sheep." When it was stated before him that Bartleman had not the defects of other singers, he replied, " No; but he has his own." An ignorant musician, who had conceived a pique against him, addressed a letter " to Mr. Rauzzini, Singing Master;" to which Rauzzini returned an answer, addressed *' Mr. Professor of Music ! ! !" Ely Bates, Esq. Ob. 1812. — He was a gentleman of fortune, who distin- guished himself by defending civil government and religious order, in several respectable publications, all of which display a peculiarity of opinion far removed from the common-place arguments of general society. His prin- cipal works are, " Chinese Fragments," &c, of which a second edition, enlarged, was published in 1811; " Christian Politics, containing a View of Civil Government, in its Influence on Virtue and Happiness," &c, in four parts, 1802 — 6 ; " Rural Philosophy," &c, 1803 : the latter was his most popular production. He died at the age of 68, on the 4th of January, 1812, and was buried in the Abbey Church, in the north aile of the choir : for his epitaph, see page 76. Henry Harington, M.D. Ob. 1816. — During a long series of years the name of Dr. Harington has been closely interwoven both with the medi- cal and musical annals of this city, with which, indeed, his ancestors have been historically connected from the period of Henry the Eighth's reign. He was immediately descended from the Sir John Harington, knt., of Kel- ston, to whose solicitude for the restoration of the Abbey Church, Bath is so greatly indebted, and of whose superior intellectual attainments we have such decided proofs in the " Nugce Antiques," and other works. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 119 Dr. Harington was born at Kelston, on Michaelmas-day, 1727 : he re- ceived his education partly at home, under the tuition of the late Rev. Dr. Fothergill, and partly at Queen's College, Oxford, where, in the year 1762, he took the degree of Doctor of Physic. He had been originally destined for the church, but about the time of receiving his Bachelor's degree, in 1748, he declined taking orders. After quitting Oxford, and uniting himself in marriage with the accomplished Miss Meadows, he began to practise as a Physician at Wells ; but in a few years he removed to Bath, where he con- tinued to reside till the period of his decease, on the 15th of January, 1816, in his 89th year, a long time previously to which he had been quite blind. The talents and acquirements of this gentleman were multifarious. To considerable knowledge of his profession, he added an intimate acquaintance with classical literature and Latin composition, great skill as a musical com- poser, much taste and feeling as a poet, and an intimate knowledge of the mathematical sciences and mechanic arts. Music, however, was his favourite pursuit; and the " Harmonic Society" at Bath, is indebted to him, and to the Rev. Mr. Bowen, for its foundation, on the ruins of the " Catch Club," in 1795. The urbanity of his manners, the ease and freedom of his deportment, and the pleasing mildness of his address, rendered him a most agreeable com- panion ; whilst the stores of anecdote and the remarks of experience which he poured forth in conversation, equally delighted and instructed his auditors. Among the prose works of Dr. Harington, is a ■" Treatise on the Use and Abuse of Music ;" and a curious tract, intituled " stmboaon TPisAnoN, oi the Geometrical Analogy of the Catholic Doctrine of Trinity consonant to Human Reason and Comprehension, Typically Demonstrated and Exem- plified by the Natural Indivisible Trinity of Simultaneous Sounds," &c, pub- lished in 1806. Of his poetical pieces, the humorous ballad called the " Witch of Wokey," is probably the best known ; but there are numerous minor effu- sions, of varied degrees of merit, and deserving of much praise. His musical compositions are many and various, from the light and laughable catch, to the sublime anthem. His productions are characterised by originality and elegance, which could result only from a refined taste and powerful attainments. The " Eloi, or Last Words of our Blessed Saviour on the Cross *," which is inscribed upon * This fine composition, arranged for three voices, gave rise, on its first performance, to an attack by Dr. G , of a fashionable Chapel at Bath, on the author, who was arraigned, both for his presumption in setting such words to music, and for his yet greater impropriety in suffering 120 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. his monument in the Abbey Church, was composed at the age of three- score and ten. His monument was erected by subscription, and the follow- ing pleasing lines were written by the late Archdeacon Thomas, (who married Dr. Harington's daughter,) on hearing that the inhabitants of Bath intended thus to honour his memory : " Belov'd, rever'd, and mourn'd, adieu ! Thy praise let grateful Baden tell ; With conscious pride, to virtue true, Whilst timidly I touch the shell. " Unknown thy bright meridian blaze, — Thy setting radiance shone on me ; Reflected long — those parting rays Shall warm the heart that honour'd thee. " Religion, Science, Taste, combine, Thy votive Tablet high to rear : The humble privilege be mine, With ling'ring steps to wander near. " To think, as length of days was given, You honour'd lived, lamented died ; Each day still brought you nearer Heav'n, Your faith matur'd, your virtue tried. " To weep, — but not for you to mourn, Your race is run, your crown is sure ; To tremble, bending o'er your urn, Lest I should deem my self secure." his music to be performed at a place of public entertainment. Dr. Harington, however, was warmly defended in the Bath Papers, by different friends. He afterwards composed, as a companion to the " Eloi," our Saviour's " Prayer" in the Garden of Gethsemane, which was sung by the late Mr. Harrison, the only time it was performed in public. These pieces are at once simple and sublime, and admirably calculated to excite and increase devotion in all lovers of sacred music. The " Eloi " produced a most friendly and flattering letter from the late Dr. Burney. It is always sung on Good Friday, at the Abbey, and at several other churches at Bath ; and is also introduced in the Oratorio of the Messiah, when performed in this city. Dr. Harington published it himself; he likewise published three Collections of Songs, Glees, Elegies, and Canons: a fourth Collection has been published by his daughter, the widow of the late Archdeacon Thomas. Among these composi- tions are the popular favourites of " How great is the Pleasure;" " Give me the sweet Delights, of Love ;" " Turn Fair Clora ;" " The Yawning Catch ;" " The Quakers' Catch ;" " The Laughing Catch;" " Sing Old Rose, and burn the Bellows;" " Old Thomas Day;" " The Alderman's Thumb ;" " The Stammering Glee," &c. ; an " Introductory Glee," composed for the Harmonic Society, and afterwards published singly ; a " Grace before Dinner or Supper ;" and a " Glee to be sung after the King's Health." BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 121 John Palmer, Esq. M.P. Ob. 1818. — Whilst intellectual capacity, mental application, and persevering ardour, shall continue to be thought de- serving of fame and honourable distinction, the name of John Palmer will not only be ranked in the highest class of the native citizens of Bath, but esteemed worthy also of being enrolled among the most eminent benefactors to his country ; for the great reform introduced by that gentleman into the Post-office department, and the victory he achieved by securing its final and successful adoption, have been the means both of augmenting the revenue, and of extending the mercantile and commercial interests of Britain, in a very astonishing degree. Mr. Palmer was born at Bath, in the year 1742 ; his father was a respect- able and affluent brewer in that city, and his mother a descendant of the Longs, one of the most ancient families in the county of Wilts. His early education was imparted at a small academy at Colerne ; from which he was removed to the Free-Grammar School at Marlborough ; his family having designed him for the Church, and there being some valuable scholarships and exhibitions attached to the latter seminary, which it was thought might aid (on more easy terms) the prosecution of his studies at one of the universities. Though fond of learning, and intended for the Church, he preferred the army, — a destination which his parents would not listen to ; and on his abso- lute refusal to enter into holy orders, he was taken from school, and seated in the counting-house of his father's brewery. For some time the drudgery of business proved irksome ; but one day, after a severe dispute on the martial theme, he sullenly put on a jacket and trowsers, and, going into the brewery, began to labour like a common servant. This course he pursued for nearly a year, labouring and faring exactly like the other workmen ; but at length his health succumbed to his spirits, and a physician and change of air were recommended as necessary to arrest the progress of an incipient consumption. Returning to Bath, his pursuits were directed into a channel more agree- able to the bent of his inclinations. His father, in conjunction with nine other inhabitants of the city, had been induced to erect a new Theatre in Orchard Street, on the understanding that the old dilapidated Playhouse under the Great Ball-room should be applied to some other purpose as soon ttj the new one was completed ; instead of which, the proprietor re-opened tllusg premises, and a violent opposition taking place, much loss was expe- rienced by both parties. Eventually the elder Palmer purchased the shares, on easy terms, of all his partners, as well as the interest, by an annuity, of R 122 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. the old house ; and the entire property becoming thus vested in himself, he began to consider of the best means of rendering it most beneficial. Theatrical property at that period was even more precarious, in regard to value, than at present ; and especially at Bath, — for the proprietors of the new buildings, which were at a considerable distance from the old city, were already contemplating the erection of a Theatre in their own neighbourhood. To prevent this, Mr. Palmer petitioned Parliament for an Act to enable His Majesty to grant him a patent; the only patent houses at that time being those of Drury Lane and Covent Garden, and the King being restrained from granting any new patent without the authority of the Legislature. The con- duct of this important application, which was warmly supported by the Cor- poration of Bath, was entrusted to young Palmer ; and after surmounting many difficulties by his activity and energy, he succeeded in obtaining the Act solicited, which was passed in the 8th year of his late Majesty George III., who under that authority immediately granted a patent for the Bath Theatre, whereby it obtained the rank and title of a Theatre Royal. The talents displayed by young Palmer, on this occasion, procured him the esteem of several distinguished political and theatrical characters, whose friendship proved of great service in the subsequent period of his life*. Without noticing the various undertakings of lesser interest, in which the active nature of this gentleman engaged him at different times, it must suffice for the limited extent of these pages to proceed to that more than Herculean task, which he both devised and executed in the department of the General Post Office ; by establishing a complete system of letter carriage by mail coaches, and in consequence a more regular and punctual delivery of letters than had ever been previously contemplated. The original idea of this vast improvement is said to have been excited in Mr. Palmer's mind by a social conveyance, in which he was accustomed to remove his theatrical company to and fro, between Bath and Bristol, on the alternate days of performing in those cities ; and which he frequently re- marked, went over the ground with far greater speed than the mail cart. Those remarks he subsequently extended by observations made during nume- rous journeys to every part of the kingdom ; undertaken, originally, for the The Bath Theatre was the first Theatre Royal out of the metropolis. Whilst under Mr. Palmer's direction, many persons made their appearance here, who afterwards became fhjst-rate actors at the London theatres ; as Edwin, Henderson, Mrs. Siddons, Mrs. Crawford, Miss Brunton, and others. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 123 purpose of strengthening his company by recruits from the provincial theatres ; but afterwards pursued expressly to enable him to arrange and mature his plans for an effective change in every branch of the Post Office. On entering into this arduous undertaking, he obtained the acquiescence and support of the late Mr. Pitt, whose private secretary, Dr. Prettyman, afterwards Bishop of Lincoln, was the medium of communication between them ; and he stipulated to receive two and a half per cent on the future in- creased revenue of the Post Office beyond its then net profits, if his plan suc- ceeded ; but if it failed, he was not to be paid a single shilling*. Let any one who wishes to appreciate the talents requisite to ensure success in a plan of such vast magnitude as that projected by Mr. Palmer, spread the map of Great Britain before him ; let him look at the cities, towns, and villages, distributed upon its surface; and, finally, compose a system by which the mails shall quit each of those different places at different times, and combine, or, as it were, dove-tail in with the main routes of the kingdom, and with such clock-work precision, that all shall arrive at the same spot within a few minutes of each other j" ! He will then, and then only, be able to form a correct estimate of the mental energies necessary for such an enterprise. During the prosecution of his scheme, every possible kind of difficulty was thrown in Mr. Palmer's way by those who were interested in the con- tinuance of customary abuses ; and every kind of ill augury was objected against him. Even the very authorities and officers of the Post Office itself, thwarted and opposed his arrangements ; and nothing but the most undaunted determination and active industry, could have raised him superior to the strong opposition he experienced. In the course of these proceedings he found it requisite to address a strong explanatory letter to Mr. Pitt, who evinced the full confidence which he reposed in his plans by appointing him, in July 1789, Surveyor and Comptroller General of the Post Office, with an annual salary of 1,500/. From that station, however, he was suspended in 1792, in consequence of disputes with the Postmaster- General respecting * Mr. Palmer frequently acknowledged that the contemplation of the capacious mansion erected in Prior Park, by Mr. Allen, (the friend of Pope and Warburton,) out of the immense sums which he received for some improvements in the conveyance of the cross mails, (about half a million sterling-,) was the grand stimulus that urged him to exertion and perseverance. t Vide " Gentleman's Magazine," Sept. 1818. 124 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. his deputy surveyor ; and of other circumstances relating to the completion of his plans, which, however, had increased the revenue of his department in 1783 from 159,625/. to 636,956/. in 1798. His claim to a per centage was also disallowed ; and his remuneration fixed at 3,000/. per annum. Fully impressed with the justness of his own cause, Mr. Palmer sought that redress from Parliament which he could not obtain from the Ministry ; but although a Committee, appointed by the House of Commons, reported entirely in his favour, he could not procure a recognition of his claims till May 1808, when the House resolved, by a majority of 86, that he was justly entitled to two and a half per cent above the net revenue of the Post Office, viz. 240,000/. from the 5th of April, 1793. His compensation bill, founded on this resolution, was however thrown out by the Lords, on the third reading, by a majority of six; but afterwards the ministers themselves brought in, and passed, an act, granting him 50,000/. as a remuneration for his services, independently of his salary of 3,000/. Mr. Palmer was elected Mayor of Bath, in 1796 ; and he twice repre- sented that city in Parliament. One of his latest employments was to rebuild the Bath Theatre upon the site which it now occupies. He died at Brighton, on the 16th of August, 1818, in the 76th year of his age. His remains were conveyed to his native city and interred in the Abbey Church, the Mayor and Corporation attending the funeral. A monument is preparing for him. Thomas Haweis, LL.D. and M.D., (ob. 1820,) was born in 1734, at Truro, in Cornwall. He received his early education at the Grammar School in that town ; and being intended for the medical profession, was afterwards placed in the shop of a respectable surgeon and apothecary there. Having contracted an intimate friendship with a popular dissenting preacher, whose discourses he was accustomed to attend, he determined to alter his pursuits and to enter the ministry. With some difficulty, he procured the means of proceeding to the University of Cambridge, where he became a student at Christ's College ; and having regularly proceeded in arts, he was advanced to the degree ofLL.B. in 1772. Some years previously to that date, how- ever, he had distinguished himself by his preaching ; and soon after taking- holy orders, had been made assistant chaplain to the Rev. Martin Madan, (the far-famed author of " Thelyphthora") at the Lock Hospital, near Hyde Park Corner. In February 1764, he was presented, for a limited time, to the BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 125 Rectory of Aldwinckle All Saints, in Northamptonshire ; and he continued to possess that living until his decease. The circumstances under which the presentation was made occasioned a great ferment in the religious world of that era, as it was supposed to be not unconnected with simony, the advowson being worth 1200/., and the living within a few days of a lapse*. The religious tenets of Dr. Haweis were those which are popularly termed evan- gelical ; and those opinions, with the attractions of his oratory, introduced him to the acquaintance and esteem of the venerable Selina, Countess of Huntingdon, who appointed him her chaplain. She likewise entrusted him with the general distribution of her extensive charities ; and upon her decease, made him her principal trustee, thus confiding to him the management of the numerous chapels which she had founded, as well as other concerns of great value and importance. His attention was not exclusively fixed on the cure of souls, for meeting with many cases of sickness in the course of his minis- tration, his humanity prompted him to take the degree of M.D., for which he was well qualified by the studies of his youth ; and his advice was always given gratuitously. His memory will be long revered, not only from his active virtues when living, but also from his having been the founder of the London Missionary Society, and the Father of the Missions to the South Sea Islands. He died at his house, in Beaufort Buildings, Bath, on the 11th of February, 1820, in the 86th year of his age; and was interred in the Abbey Church, where a small tablet has been inscribed to his memory. His writings were numerous, but altogether confined to religious subjects. His principal works are the " Evangelical Expositor," 2 vols. fol. ; a " Transla- tion of the New Testament from the Greek;" a " Life of the Rev. Wm. Romaine ;" an " Impartial and Succinct History, &c. of the Church of Christ ;" and a " View of the State of Evangelical Religion throughout the World, in 1812." William Meyler. Ob. 1821.— The name of Meyler must be familiar to every literary and scientific person, who has had any intercourse with Bath during the last forty years; William Meyler, the subject of this memoir, first * Several controversial tracts on the occasion were written by Haweis and Madan, all of which -were epitomised in the " Gentleman's Magazine" for 1767. The late erudite critic, Jeremiah Markland, speaking of the transaction in a letter quoted in " Literary Anecdotes," vol. iv. p. 347, sa y S — « In my paper it has a most shocking and odious look against those Methodists." 126 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. settled in that city in the year 1767, and progressively advanced himself by assiduity, talents, and worth, from the state of an apprentice to a bookseller and binder, to be the editor and proprietor of a respectable periodical news- paper, an alderman of the city, and a man, whose company and friendship were coveted by the most eminent and distinguished characters of Bath and its vicinity. He was born atNewburg, in the Isle of Anglesea, Dec. 13, 1755, and sent, when nine years of age, to school at Marlbro', in Wiltshire, where his uncle, the Rev. Thomas Meyler, was Master of the Free-Grammar School. Though previously unacquainted with any other language than his native Welsh, he so rapidly improved in classical and commercial knowledge, that it was determined he should make choice of a profession when only in his twelfth year. He was accordingly apprenticed to a bookseller in this city ; but instead of being permitted to read the works, as he had fondly expected, which furnished his master's shelves, he was almost incessantly engaged in the labour of binding ; and "■ no crime could be greater, in the opinion of his austere employer, than to suffer his eyes to wander over the leaves of a book, while his hands ought to have been active in adorning its covers." In 1781, he commenced business for himself in the Grove, where his talents and social disposition quickly drew around him a numerous ac- quaintance ; some of whom, the Dandies of the day, wishing to profit in fame by his facility of versification, induced him to supply pieces for Lady Miller's poetical Vase at Bath Easton ; and his pulse has often " beat with delight at the praise bestowed upon his compositions," although the reputa- tion devolved upon some fashionable popptnjay, " Who never wrote except upon a card." He had also the frequent satisfaction of obtaining the " myrtle wreath" for his own avowed productions, and the still greater pleasure of acquiring by that means the friendship of Anstey and Graves, with whom he remained in strict intimacy till the times of their respective decease; and he has per- petuated his regard and admiration for them by an elegant monody, in which he has given excellent imitations of their different styles of poetry. On the 3d of March, 1792, the first number of the " Bath Herald" was published, of which Mr. Meyler became the editor ; and on the same day the " Bath Register" appeared. For a short period these newspapers were carried on in opposition to each other, and no common degree of acrimony BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 127 was excited, by the following pointed epigram, which our editor composed for his own paper : — If a story you'd wish to be spread the Town round, Go tell it to Blab as a secret profound : But if 'tis a secret you'd hush ev'ry word of, Let the Register print it ; — 'twill never be heard of. A coalition was afterwards formed between the two papers ; but the pro- prietors by that union becoming too numerous, and the expenditure exceeding the receipts, the whole property, in June 1795, was made over to Mr. Meyler, who progressively rendered the Bath Herald one of the most distin- guished literary papers upon record. The activity and talents of this gentleman were so well appreciated by his fellow-citizens, that, in 1801, they elected him amember of the Common Council, and his opinions on municipal affairs had considerable weight in the chamber of Bath. He likewise acquired much influence as a Free Mason ; and " the brethren of the craft acknowledged, that in all the points which constitute a good mason, he was pre-eminently excellent:" for several years he was Deputy Provincial Grand-Master for the county, the business of which honourable office he transacted with assiduity and intelligence. In 1806 Mr. Meyler published an octavo volume, under the title of " Poetical Amusements on the Journey of Life," which his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, (his present Majesty,) from respect to his character and abilities, requested might be dedicated to himself. Many pieces in that volume are highly poetical, and written with much beauty and great felicity of expression. His prologues, and other theatrical addresses, abound with genuine point, and apt and appropriate allusions. The drama, indeed, was his favourite amusement ; and he once performed Richard III. for the benefit of a charity at Bath, in such a respectable and chastened style of acting, that it was thought the highest walks of the stage would have been within the scope of his powers, had he adopted it as a profession. Mr. Meyler's general urbanity and suavity of manners was unvaried ; his kindness to, and solicitude for, the welfare of every new candidate for histrionic or literary honours, were displayed on many occasions ; and the writer of this slight sketch of his memoirs can testify this in his own behalf ; as well as for several persons, whom he has known in his intercourse with Bath. 128 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Although greatly afflicted with the gout during the last years of his useful life, his mental activity, colloquial address, and social amenities, remained unsubdued. When confined even to his chamber by lameness, his society was courted by the most eminent literary characters that either resided in, or visited this city; among these were Drs. Harington and Valpy, Mr. Pratt, Mr. Bowles, Mr. Kemble, and Mrs. Siddons, the first of whom, who had been blind for a long time previously to his decease, passed several hours with him daily, in cheerful and familiar converse; and on those occasions they eminently enjoyed the " feast of reason and the flow of soul." Mr. Meyler died on the 10th of March, 1821, and was buried on the Saturday following in the Abbey Church. Josiah Thomas, A.M., Archdeacon of Bath, who died in 1822, is com- memorated by a handsome monument, executed by Gahagan, and erected in this Church, by some private friends as a tribute of respect. When young, he published a poem called " The Curate," which was considered to possess great merit ; indeed, but few persons were better judges of poetry than himself, although his subsequent compositions were limited to small pieces, written for the indulgence of a friendly circle. He had a strong and well- cultivated mind, and was well-versed in the different theories of religion, of which his " Controversy" with the Bishop of Gloucester, now Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, his " Strictures on subjects chiefly relating to the Established Religion and the Clergy," in two letters addressed to his patron, Lord Bath, published in 1809 ; and his " Remarks on some Popular Prin- ciples and Notions," addressed to his Royal Highness the Prince Regent, in 1813, may be referred to as evidence. He had a thorough knowledge of the English language, and both in speaking and writing his own was energetic and nervous. On his monument, which exhibits a figure of Truth, with symbols appropriate to Christianity, is this inscription : Josi-e Thomas, A.M., Archidiacono Bathoniensi, Regiae Majestati a Sacris, Desiderii ac Reverentiae Caussa, FecSre Complores. Anno Sacro M.D.CCC.XXII. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 129 Caleb Hillier Parry, M.D., (ob. 1822,) born at Cirencester, Glouces- tershire, Oct. 21, 1755, was descended from an ancient family in Pembrokeshire, an elder branch of which still retains the hereditary estates of Penderry and Portclew. His father, the Rev. Joshua Parry, a dissenting minister, was distinguished for his talents and loyalty, and was the intimate friend and constant correspondent of the first Earl Bathurst, and of many other eminent men ; among whom may be named Doddridge, Amory, Chandler, Hawkes- worth, James, Urmston, Whitsted, Kippis, T. Scott, Dean Tucker, &c. He was an excellent classical, Welsh, and Hebrew scholar. A volume of his Sermons, and a detached Sermon against Popery, evince the purity and perspicuity of his style, and the excellence of his moral and religious prin- ciples. He was an admired contributor to various periodical publications ; and, — as we learn from Hawkins, in his Life of Dr. Johnson, — one of the original writers in the " Gentleman's Magazine." This highly respected man died at Cirencester, in the year 1776, aged 57, being then engaged, by the desire, and with the assistance, of the Lord Chancellor Bathurst, in writing the biography of his Lordship's father. Dr. Parry was the eldest of three sons and seven daughters, the only survivor of whom is the present Lady Hobhouse. His mother inherited from Mr. Caleb Hillier, her father, the estates of Upcott and Minety, in Gloucestershire, which descended to the subject of the present memoir. Young Parry received the rudiments of his education at the Rev. Mr. Wash- bourn's School, at Cirencester, and in 1770 was placed at the Academy of Warrington, Lancashire, where he continued till 1773, in which year he commenced his studies at Edinburgh. In the summer of 1775, he visited London, and resided for two years with the late Dr. Denman. He returned to Edinburgh in 1777, and graduated in the month of June in the following year. As President, he was chiefly instrumental in procuring a royal charter for the Medical Society, then recently instituted in that city. In 1778, Dr. Parry was united to Miss Rigby, with whom he had formed an early attachment at Warrington*. Soon after the solemnization of this event, he proceeded to the Continent, and after having visited Holland, * This lady, the daughter of John Rigby, Esq., of Manchester, was no less celebrated for her beauty than for her amiable disposition and engaging manners. The friendship and admiration of Mrs. Barbauld dedicated to her young friend several of the beautiful Poems which she was then publishing. The exquisite lines addressed " to Miss R., when attending her mother at 130 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. Flanders, and France, he took up his final residence at Bath, in Nov. 1779, and scarcely quitted that city for a day during the remaining career of his valuable and useful life. Within a short period after his settlement at Bath, Dr. Parry assumed a high and commanding station, social as well as professional. He became much distinguished by his extensive and enlightened practice, by the humanity of his character, and by the publication of numerous medical writings. Before his last illness, he was engaged in a comprehensive work, the result of his long experience, which one or two years more would have enabled him to arrange and complete ; the materials of which were, however, left in so unconnected and imperfect a state, as hitherto to have prevented their publi- cation. An Epitome of the Pathological part of this intended system was fortunately committed to the press in 1815 ; and perhaps even in its unfinished state, no medical work of the age has excited greater interest than the first volume of his " Elements of Pathology and Therapeutics." But, to the public, Dr. Parry was for many years even more allied by the variety of his other accomplishments and pursuits than by those of his immediate profession. It would not, indeed, be easy to adduce an instance of higher endowments, whether we look for the resources and refinements of ordinary society, or the more profound attainments of intellectual and cultivated life. His intimate acquaintance with the arts of music, poetry, and painting, from each and all of which he derived an intense pleasure, will be readily acknowledged by those who knew him, and who are themselves com- petent judges in these matters. His familiar connexion with many naval and military persons of renown, had made him remarkably conversant with the subjects and details of their professions ; while his accurate knowledge of the history and politics of his own and other countries, had rendered him the esteemed friend and correspondent of Burke and Windham. His insight into our foreign commercial relations, is evinced by a series of Letters, anony- mously published in the " Sun," on the importance of our South American trade, particularly that of the colonies of Demerara, Essequibo, and Berbice. How deeply he was versed in the theory and practice of Gardening and Buxton," sufficiently exhibit the character and merits of the present Mrs. Parry. Her mother, the daughter of Dr. Taylor, the Hebraist, whose numerous works, and whose portrait by Houbraken, are well known, had been celebrated by the same muse, which was again eloquent on occasion of the marriage of her favourite acquaintance. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 131 Agriculture, to which, as an amusement and relaxation, he devoted much of his leisure, is indisputably proved by his various writings in the " Trans- actions of the Board of Agriculture," those of the " Bath Society," by his Letters in the " Fanner's Journal," by his " Essay on Merino Sheep," and by a voluminous correspondence, kept up for twenty years with his particular friends, Lord Somerville, Sir Joseph Banks, and the principal agriculturists of the kingdom, — men, who in their enthusiastic efforts to promote the internal prosperity of their country, kept pace with the spirit, which, through a series of dark years, conducted to a glorious event, an almost overwhelming but protective state of warfare. From his attachment to subjects of rural economy, Dr. Parry was particularly honoured by the condescending kindness and notice of his late Majesty. He was not less familiar with the facts and deductions of Natural Philosophy and Natural History, respecting which he had frequent communication, as well with his old and highly valued friends, Sir William Herschel and Dr. Jenner, as with many other celebrated characters, to whom his talents and his connexion as a member of the Royal, and various other Societies, abroad and at home, gave him ready access. Dr. Parry had made extensive collections of Organic Remains and Mine- ralogical Specimens. Whilst the sciences to which these related were yet in their infancy, he had collected materials, which, with leisure, would have grown into volumes, and have formed very important records in those delight- ful and interesting departments of inquiry. In 1781, he published " Pro- posals for a History of the Fossils of Gloucestershire," which was intended to include all that was known on the subject of Organic Remains, and the result of many experiments and observations, in which he had been long and ardently engaged. His increasing vocations would never allow the completion of this work. Dr. Parry was an indefatigable reader. His acquaintance with books was not, however, confined to an elementary and critical examination. From them he either sought the higher gratifications of his mental faculties, or the elucidation and extension of practical points, whether of moral or of physical interest. He was an admirable metaphysician, and few men possessed a more sound or discriminating judgment. With a certain severity of character, was united a playfulness, which, (while through life, it had invigorated and charmed his domestic circle,) scarcely deserted him under the severest trials, 132 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. and amidst the heaviest afflictions. His miscellaneous reading, extensive knowledge of men and manners, and an excellent memory, supplied, in his intercourse with society, a constant fund of anecdote and quotation, embracing the most abstruse matters of discussion, and the most familiar and apposite illustrations of wit and narrative. Dr. Parry was a sincere believer in Chris- tianity, an excellent husband, father, and friend, devoted to his King, and firmly attached to the constitution of his country. Of four sons and five daughters, two of the former and four of the latter survive their honoured parent. His second son, George Frederic, died at the age of twenty-one, in the year 1804, having distinguished himself on the continent, where he had resided for several years, by his zeal in the pursuit of several objects of natural science. He was buried in the Abbey Church. George Brydges Rodney, his third son, died an infant, in 1786, and was buried in the parish church of Walcot*. Elizabeth Emma, his fourth daughter, wife of John Eardley Wilmot, of Berkswell, in the county of Warwick, Esq., died in childbed of twins, her seventh and eighth children, in the year 1818. She was interred in the parish church of Berkswell. Of Dr. Parry's surviving children, it is sufficient to name, in this place, his youngest son, Captain William Edward Parry, R.N.f Dr. Parry died at his house in Sion Place, Bath, on the 9th of March, 1822, after a series of com- * In the burial-ground of that church are also deposited the remains of Caroline Mary, the infant daughter of his eldest son, who died Sept. 25, 1824. ■f The name of this distinguished and enterprising officer naturally awakens mingled emotions of pleasure and apprehension ; — of gratitude for the past, and anxiety for the future. Such a parent, friend, and guide, as we have seen described, was calculated to inspire and instruct an ardent youth ; and from this example and incentive has sprang the gallant and persevering officer, whose Arctic discoveries, and whose scientific journals, have at once aroused national curiosity, and afforded gratification to a large portion of the reading community. Captain Parry is now, for the third time, traversing the Northern seas ; and it is ardently hoped will return to his native country and friends, stored with novel and useful information. A Memoir and Portrait of this enterprising officer, were given in the " European Magazine," for May 1821. Of his elder Brother, now residing at Bath, following the profession, and emulating the noble example of his father, it would be easy and delightful to speak in terms of sincere appro- bation — to notice his urbanity of manners, intellectual attainments, and zealous search after knowledge ; but as the feelings of the heart might be misunderstood and misinterpreted by some, or considered as inconsistent with the customs of polished society by others, forbearance, on this occasion, seems to be the most prudent course. BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 133 plicated disease and suffering, arising from a paralytic seizure with which he was afflicted in 1816. No one in his sphere died more regretted than the subject of this short memoir. Many of his personal friends, and a numerous assemblage of his professional brethren, at their own particular request, followed his remains to the grave. The latter caused a handsome monument to be erected to his memory *. However expressly he may have himself directed that his interment should be conducted with privacy, the proffered marks of respect could not, on such an occasion, be decently re- jected ; while, at the same time, this unsought evidence of the attachment of those with whom he had acted in public and private life, necessarily afforded his family a high degree of grateful satisfaction. Besides this public record of esteem, a marble slab was laid over the place of his interment by his widow and children. It bears inscribed some lines, by an unknown writer, which appeared characteristic of the situation and circumstances of this much lamented husband, parent, and friend, and were therefore adopted by his relatives. Underneath Are deposited the remains of Caleb Hilliek, Parky, M.D., F.R.S., &c. Who, after a painful and complicated illness Of nearly six years, Which he bore with exemplary resignation, Quitted this mortal scene, March 9, 1822, Aged 66 years. The esteem of his professional brethren Has, on a monument in the Choir of this Church, Recorded some of his virtues ; The love and regret of his Widow and Six surviving Children Place this Stone to his Memory. " Thou silent Door of our sepulchral sleep ! Sickness and pain, debility and woes, All the dire train of ills Existence knows, Thou shuttest out for ever ! Why then weep This fixed tranquillity, so long, so deep, See pp. 80, 81, for the inscription. 134 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. For a dear < \ faded form, where rose i Father's 3 No energy enlivening health bestows, Through many a tedious year that used to creep In languid deprivation, while the Flame Of Intellect, resplendent once confessed, Dark and more Dark each passing day became ! Now that Angelic lights the Soul invest, Calm let us yield to thee a joyless Frame, Thou Silent Door of everlasting Rest !" Don Francisco Antonio Zea. Ob. 1823.— This gentleman, a native of Antioquia, in South America, Came to England in the spring of 1822, as Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Colombia, of which he was Vice-Pre- sident. Previously to his departure for Europe, he laid before Congress the project for the constitution of his country, which Was afterwards adopted in all its leading particulars. He had fought by the side of the liberator Bolivar, and was the constant associate of that brave and patriotic chieftain for many years, until his mission to Europe, (in 1820,) where much of his life had been spent. Before the South American revolution, he held at dif- ferent times several offices under the Spanish government. He died at the York House, Bath, November the 28th, 1823, aged fifty-one years ; and his remains were interred in the Abbey Church. The accounts of the following persons, who Were interred in this Church, having been omitted in their chronological order, are introduced in this place : — John Pelling, B.D. Ob. 1620. — Guidott, in his " Treatises," relating to Bath, speaking of Bishop Montague's monument in the Abbey Church, has the following passage : — " Over against this noble monument, the City, in Testimony of the Respects they owed to the then Rector, Mr. John Pelling, erected another to him. This Reverend Divine, notwithstanding he had a numerous Issue, yet was so indefatigably zealous in forwarding the Reparation of this Fabrick, that, when at any time (and that was not BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 135 seldom in that generous and benefactory Age) any Persons of Honour offered to him, as to his private, he refused it with his 'Non Mihi, sed Eccksia,' which occasioned that Motto over his Tomb, which Self-denial (it's possible) the good God has secondarily paid into his own Bosom by a Blessing on his Posterity, who, some of them especially, notwithstanding the few Mites they had to begin the World, have now the Value of Talents in their possession." According to Wood, Mr. Pelling was « a Minister's son, of Wilts; and published a Sermon on the Providence of God, in 1607; and perhaps other things." He was educated at Magdalen College, Oxford, where, in 1583, he proceeded in arts, and in 1597, took the degree of B.D. He was Rector of Bath thirty years, as appears by his epitaph, and died in February 1620. He is represented by a three quarter figure placed within a niche against the north wall of this Church. Joseph Glanvill, (ob. 1684,) Chaplain to Charles the Second, and for several years Rector of Bath Abbey Church, distinguished himself as an author, by writing on Witchcraft, the supernatural agency of evil spirits, and other similar subjects, then popular, but now exploded. He was the son of a merchant at Plymouth, where he was born, in 1636 ; and after being edu- cated at Oxford, took the degree of M.A. in 1658. Having assumed the priestly office, he became chaplain to Francis Rous, who had been made Provost of Eton College, by Oliver Cromwell. But Rous dying shortly after, he returned to the University, and pursued his studies till the Restoration. On the re-establishment of the church of England, Mr. Glanvill was regularly ordained, and became Rector of Winbush, in Essex; and in November 1662, he was presented to the living of Frome Selwood, by Sir James Thynne. In 1664 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. He had previously written in defence of experimental philosophy, against those who adhered to the doctrines of Aristotle and the Schoolmen ; and his literary labours are said to have procured him many friends among the cultivators of physical science, through whose interest he obtained the Rectory of the Abbey Church at Bath, to which he was inducted in June 1666. He then resided in that city, where he continued the remainder of his life. In 1672 he was made Chaplain in Ordinary to his Majesty. His other preferments in the church were a Prebend in Worcester Cathedral, procured for him by 136 BATH ABBEY CHURCH. the Marquess of Worcester, to whom his wife was related ; and the Rectory of Street, near Glastonbury, for which he exchanged his Vicarage of Frome. Mr. Glanvill died at his house in Bath, November 4, 1680 ; and was buried in the north aile of the Abbey Church, on the 9th of the same month. A monument, with an inscription to his memory, was erected by his widow, Margaret, of the family of the Selwins, of Gloucestershire. He was twice married, but had no children by either of his consorts. The writings of Glanvill consist of three papers in the Philosophical Transactions ; a Treatise on " Witches and Witchcraft," occasioned by the disturbances in the house of Mr. Mompesson, of Tidworth, in Wiltshire, which gave rise to Addison's Comedy of the " Drummer, or the Haunted House;" " an Essay concerning Preaching;" " Sermons;" and controversial tracts. His chief literary opponents were the Rev. Robert Crosse, Vicar of Chew Magna, Somersetshire; and Henry Stubbe, a physician, occasionally residing at Bath. Henry Stubbe, (ob. 1676,) was a physician and public writer of consi- derable eminence in the seventeenth century. He was born in Lincolnshire, in 1631, and educated first at Westminster School, and afterwards at Oxford. In 1657 he was made second keeper of the Bodleian Library, under Dr. Barlow. He then obtained the patronage of Sir Henry Vane, in whose behalf he em- ployed his pen. He likewise wrote in favour of the tenets of the Quakers ; but after the Restoration he conformed to the Church of England ; and having lost his situation in the University, adopted the medical profession. In 1661 he went to Jamaica, with the title of his. Majesty's Physician for that island. Returning soon after, he settled as a medical practitioner at Strat- ford upon Avon ; whence he removed to Warwick, where he obtained consi- derable practice, as he also did at Bath, which he made the place of his residence during the summer season. Stubbe seems to have been a man of unsettled principles, and of a very restless disposition, which led him to engage in many literary controversies. He wrote against Dr. Wallis in support of Hobbes ; but he distinguished himself chiefly by attacking Dr. Sprat's " History of the Royal Society," and a Treatise against the Philosophy of Aristotle, written by Joseph Glanvill. The dispute with the latter was carried on with much asperity, and both parties repeatedly appealed to the press. Stubbe was drowned BIOGRAPHICAL ANECDOTES. 137 July 12, 167G, in passing a river about two miles from Bath, while on a journey to Bristol, in the exercise of his profession. His body was found the next day, and interred in the Abbey Church at Bath ; when his literary an- tagonist Glanvill preached his funeral sermon. Wood, in his " Athenae Oxonienses," represents Stubbe as a man of very extensive learning and great abilities, but thoughtless, hot-headed, and im- prudent, so that " he became a ridicule, and undervalued by sober and know- ing scholars, and others too." His works, in general relating to temporary topics, are now almost forgotten. John Bowles, B.L. (ob. 1819,) a distinguished political writer, was the son of Mr. John Bowles, an eminent print-seller in Cornhill. He was educated as a lawyer, and admitted to the degree of Bachelor of Laws in the University of Douay, March 25, 1779, and to that of Licentiate, in the same University, May 11, 1781. At the early part of the French Revolution, when the late Thomas Paine, and other similar writers, attacked the established religion and government of the country, Mr. Bowles zealously opposed them, and as warmly defended the " existing order of things." He published several pamphlets and occasional papers ; in one of which, entitled " A Protest against Paine's Rights of Man," he urged, with energy, the strongest arguments against the delusive doctrines of that mischievous work. A society formed " for the protection of liberty and property against republicans and levellers," which then met at the Crown and Anchor Tavern, contributed to give great popularity to this well-timed pamphlet, by ordering it to be printed and sold at a cheap rate, with a view of disseminating it among the lower orders of the people. Mr. Bowles was a Barrister at Law, residing at Dulwich, in Surrey, for which county he was a Justice of the Peace and Quorum. He was also a Commissioner of Bankrupts, and for some time one of the Commissioners for the Sale of Dutch Prizes. Having taken lodgings in Queen Square, Bath, he died there October 30, 1819, at the age of 66, and was interred in the Abbey Church, where a marble tablet, inscribed with a Latin epitaph, is erected to his memory. His publications are very numerous, and almost wholly relate to the party politics of the times in which he lived. APPENDIX. Num. I. Page 18. Carta Willielmi II. Regis, qua Abbatiam S. Petri Bathonia Johanni Episcopo Somersetensi ad ampliandos Episcopates donat. [Reg. Well. i. fol. 14. Hearn. Ad. de Domerh. torn. i. p. 278. Vide etiam Hickes, Dissert. Epist. p. 47.J Pax in perpetuum deicolis omnibus, tarn futuris tam praesentibus. Quoniam Deo omni- potente tempora saeculorum ordinante, et his, prout placuerit, finem imponente, coelum et terra, et omnia quae in eis sunt, suo fine transibunt, et vita nostra, qua? ad tempus floret, et cito tanquam flos fceni decidit, videtur esse momentanea ; idcirco cunctis agendum, ut hie bonis actibus futurae beatitudinis mercemur gaudia, absque omni immutatione peren- niter mansura. Quocirca ego Willielmus Willielmi regis filius, Dei dispositione monarches Britannia?, pro meas meique patris remedio animae, et Regni prosperitate, et populi a Domino mihi collati salute, accessi Johanni episcopo abbatiam Sancti Petri Bathoniae, cum omnibus appendiciis, tam in villis quam in civitate et in consuetudinibus, illis videlicet quibus saisita erat ea die qua regnum suscepi. Dedi, inquani, ad Somersetensis episcopates augmentationem, eatenus praesertim ut mihi instituat praesuleam sedem. Anno Dominicae incamationis mill. XC°. regni vero mei III., indictione XIII., VI. Kal. Febr. luna III. pepigi id, in eorum optimatum meorum presentia + quorum nomina subtus sunt annexa ; et ut per posteritates succedentes apud homines quosque, veritatis amatores, perseveret ratum, meae regiae auctoritatis annecto sigillum, sed et propria manu mea depingo crucis Dominicae signum + Lanfranco archipraesuli machinante. Wintoniae factum est donum hujus beneficii, mill. LXXXVIII". anno ab incarnatione Domini ; secundo vero anno regni regis Willielmi filii prioris Willielmi. Confirmatio autem hujus cartas facta est apud Doveriam, eo tempore quod superius determinatum est. + Ego Thomas archiepiscopus Eboracensis laudavi. Ego Mauricius Londinensis episcopus corroboravi. + Ego WaK chelinus Wintoniensis episcopus aptavi. Ego Osmundus Sarbiensis episcopus consolidavi. Ego Osbernus Exoniensis episcopus confirmavi. Ego Remigius Lincolniensis episcopus astruxi. Ego Rotbertus Herefordiensis episcopus audivi. Ego Rotbertus Cestrensis epis- copus conspexi. + Ego Arnulfus Rouercestrensis episcopus annui. Ego Wolestannus Wigrecestrensis episcopus accessi. Ego Radulfus Cicistrensis episcopus vidj. Ego Her- bertus Tetfordensis episcopus audivi. Ego GoifFridus Constantiensis hoc exquisivi. + Ego Hoellus Cenomannensis episcopus interfui. + Ego Wido abbas Sancti Augustini Cantuarii. + Ego Gislebertus abbas Sancti Petri Westmonasterii. Ego Terstinus abbas APPENDIX. 139 Glestoniensis. Ego Symeon abbas de Eli. Ego Balduinus abbas Sancti Eadmundi. Ego Raginaldus abbas de Abendona. Ego Robertus abbas Sancti Petri Wintoniae. Ego Walterus abbas de Evesham. Ego Paulus abbas Sancti Albani. Ego Odo abbas de Certiseio. Ego Godefridus abbas de Malmesberia. Ego Grisbirtus abbas de Bello. Ego Serlo abbas de Glocestria. Ego Goisfridus Mala Terra. + Ego Rogerus comes. Ego Rotbertus comes. + Ego Symon comes. Ego Hugo comes. Ego Alanus comes. Ego Henricus comes. Ego Walterus comes. Ego Willielmus comes. Ego Rotbertus filius Hannonis. Ego Philippus capellanus. + Ego Rotbertus cancellarius. Ego Samson capellanus. + Ego Geraldus capellanus. Ego Ausgerus capellanus. + Ego Willielmus capellanus. + Ego Ranulfus capellanus. + Ego Petras capellanus. + Ego Tusaldus capellanus. Ego Eudo dapifer. Ego Ivo dapifer. Ego Hanno dapifer. Ego Rogerus dapifer. Ego Willielmus dapifer. Ego Rotbertus de Oili. Ego Urso de Abetot. Rot- bertus dispensator. Hugo de Portu. Rogerus de Busleio. Ranulfus Peverellus + Aiulfus vicecomes + Alveradus de Lincoln + Ernulfus de Hesding + Folco Crispinus. Num. II. Page 18. Carta Willielmi Regis II. de Civitate Bathonitz. [Ex vetusto Exemplari in Bibl. Deuvestana an. 1644, hodie MS. Harl. Brit. Mus. 358. fol. 39.] W. Rex Anglorum, O. episcopo Saresbergensi, et L. abbati Glastoniensi et A. vice- comiti ; omnibusque baronibus Francigenis et Anglis, de Sumerseta et de Wiltunsire, salutem. Sciatis me dedisse Deo et Sancto Petro in Bathonia, et Johanni episcopo, totam civitatem Bathoniae in elemosinam, et ad augmentationem pontificialis sedis suae, et omnibus successoribus suis; pro remedio animae patris mei, matrisque meae, et mei ipsius, et antecessorum et successorum meorum. Dedi, inquam, ei ita libere et honorifice, cum omnibus appenditiis, quidquid ego ibi habui, vel pater meus, dum melius habuimus cum omnibus consuetudinibus extra et infra, ut liberalius habeo civitatem in tota Anglia ; cum moneta, cum theloneo, tarn in campis quam in sylvis, tam in foro quam in pratis et in terris. Ut cum maximo honore ibi pontificialem suam habeat sedem : et de hoc pro- palantur testes, Walkelinus Wintoniensis episcopus, Robertus Lincoliensis episcopus, Robertus comes de Mellent, Henricus comes de Warwic, Robertus filius Hamonis, Eudo dapifer, Ivo dapifer, Robertus filius Geraldi, Robertus dispensator, Williel. de Carokela. Num. III. Page 32. [Reg. Well. Drokenesford. Harl. MS. 6954, p. 70.] Litera ad Rob. Priorem Bathon. de miserabili statu istius conventus. Bona domae predictae ex nimia simplicitate seu negligentia custodum in tantum sunt his diebus 140 APPENDIX. evacuata seu consumpta, quod monachi dictae ecclesiae saepius non solum pane et cervisia, quod fari pudet, hora comestionis, verQm etiam carnium et piscium carent omnino ferculis consuetis ; et cibaria vilia et insana quae gustare nequeunt eisdem inhumaniter tribuuntur. Et si quis ipsorum gravatur, murmuret, vel petat a. vobis cautativ&, bono etiam zelo, juxta formam regulae et antiquam ordinationem domus, laudabiliter usitatam, suppleri defectum hujusmodi subtractorum seu viliter oblatorum, statim verbis contumeliosis com- minatur : eidem quod esca deterior sibi providebitur, et poena gravior subsequetur. 26 Aug. 1321. " Die Sabbat, prox. fest. Sancti Matth. 1324. Litera Domini Episcopi pro col- lecta facienda ad fabricam Eccl. Cathedr. Bathon." Ibid. p. 91. Num. IV. Page 32. Injunctiones facta Priori et Conv. Bathon. 9 Oct. A.D. 1500. [Hari. MS. e Registro Oliveri Kyng, Episcop. Bath. Well., fol. 62.] Oliverus permissione divina B. W. episcopus, dilectis nobis in Christo, confratri nostro priori et conv. Bathon., salutem, gratiam, et benedictionem. Tandem dolenter inter csetera invenimus dictam nostram Ecclesiam Cath. Bathon., per incuriam multorum priorum, non reparatam aut refectam, imo funditus dirutam, ipsisque in voluptatibus evanuisse: pri- oremque modernum, cui praedecessorum suorum culpam non ascribimus, remissum non benevolum ad dictae ecclesiae refectionem seu edificationem paterna compassione deplora- mus. Nos igitur, praemissis consideratis, de consilio multorum nobilium, praelatorum, et abbatum, ac aliorum jurisperitorum, de Dei misericordia. et apostolorum ejus Petri et Pauli patrocinio confisi ; necnon aliorum Christi fidelium et amicorum nostrorum ele- mosyna freti : eo libentius quo celerem dicti operis expeditionem et perfectionem conspici- mus manus nostras adjutrices duximus apponend., non laboribus aut expensis nostris parcentes. Speramus itaque dictum opus perfectum volentes infra paucos annos facere quod nunquam impensis dictorum prioris et conventus, aut vix infra centum annos nostra, et amicorum nostrorum omissa vel spreta diligenter posse fieri existimamus. Quamobrem praefatos defectus monachorum, voluptates, otia, ecclesiae ruinam, ex super- fluitate pensionum, indumentorum, cibariorum, et potuum orta, temperare volentes. Ut etiam aliis Christi fidelibus in elemosynarum suarum largitione pios animos non aufe- ramus, si dictos priorem et conventum non reformatos, aut competentes expensas ad dictum opus juxta vires non conferre dimittemus, praesentes Injunctiones ab eisdem fidelibus observandas decrevimus. Et quia per visum compoti vestri luculenter nobis apparet quod redditus assisae bene- ficiorum, summarum, et pensionum cum exitibus lanae extendit ad summam iiij c . iiijxx. libr. xvj 5 . vj d . ob., vobis, domine prior, ad sustentationem vestram iiij XI . marc, injungendo assignamus. Item conventui vestro qui xvi. numero existunt, et ut arbitrio abundantius exhibeantur quam stricte regulae vestrae intellectu ad nudam literam, cavetur iiij x \ lib. APPENDIX. 141 Item caetera onera rationi consoni, prout in eodem visu continentur, de summa etiani praedicta deducenda censemus omnia. Praeterxx. lib. de firma feudi de Benton, et clx. lib. ad exhibitionem monachorum, cum credamus et sufficienter experimur quod iiij xx . lib. summa ad sustentationem eorem sufficiat, xl\ de feudo celerarii, xxvj s . viij d . de feudo sacristae, xx s . de decima fceni sacristae antedicto assignat. xxx s . pro decima agnellorum etiam sacristae assignat. ; cum monachis solus victus et vestitus, non pensio aut proprium concedatur. Prseter etiam 1. lib. pro reparationibus vestris in maneriis faciendis cum judicio nostra xl. lib. sufficiant ; necnon xx. lib. pro stipendio servientum, cum etiam ipsis x. lib. sufficiant. Residuam vera omnium proventuum, deductis necessariis loco, tempore, per nos vobis citra festum natalis Domini assignand. in constructionem dictae Ecclesiae nostras cath. exponend. et realiter expendenda mandamus et injungimus sub poena juris. Volentes quod omnium casualium anni instantis, et aliorum annorum futurorum, viz. ter- rarum, ecclesiarum in manibus vestris tentarum, finium, heriotorum, mortuariorum, rele- viorum, custodiarumjuvenum, et eorum maritagiorum, wevarum, streyarum, amerceamen- torum, reddituum capitalium, venditionum agnorum, ovium matricum, sub-bosci, et caete- rorum omnium quorumcunque quocunque nomine censeantur, fidelem nobis compotum infra mensem post compotum vestrum generalem apud vos ut moris est tenend. et cele- brand. una cum compoto omnium beneficiorum, pensionum et portionum vestris officianis deputat. archi. exhibeatis. APPENDIX— Num. V. Page 44. [E Cod. MS. in Bibl. Paroch. Sti. Pet. et Pauli Bathon.] Certaine Remembrances, the while, till a more longe Relation shall be made, touching the Reperation of the Church of St. Peter and Paul in the cittie of Bathe, since the manie Ruins of the same. It appeareth, that at three severall tymes the Ruins of this Church have bene un- dertaken to be repaired, part after part. First, by the cittie, with a collection all over this kingdome for seaven years in the tyme of our late Queen Elizabeth of blessed memorie, by virtue of her Majesty's Letters Patents : in which seaven yeares the upper part thereof was all covered, with the north part of the cross isle as it now standeth. The principal benefactor to the first was Edmund Colethurst, Esquier, in whose possession this church then was, and gave it to the cittie, though uncovered and much ruined, as it had long stood after the dissolution, yet the walls of the great tower and of most part of the church were then standinge. The second tyme the south part of the cross-isle was raised neere from the ground, and covered as it is now, and the tower also lofted and leaded as it now is, with the clocke set in it ; and the bell to go ; as they both now doe. The principal benefactor to this worke was Thomas Bellott, Esquire, steward of the house and one of the executors 142 APPENDIX. of the Right Honorable William, Lord Burley, late Lord Treasurer of England : part at his Lorde's charge, the rest at his owne. Mr. Bellott began his worke in Queene Elizabeth's time, and left it with his life, since his sacred Majesty's reigne that now is. The third tyme was repaired the third part of this church, that from the tower westward. The principall benefactor to this was the Right Reverend Father in God, James Montague, Doctor in Divinity, then Bishop of Bathe and Welles, since Bishop of Winchester, one of the Lords of his Majesty's Privie Counsell, and Prelate of the Garter, now deceased, and heere buried in the body of this church, which at his charge was so lately covered. Of particuler benefactors to the First worke wee understand yett (besides the prin- cipall, Mr. Edmund Colethurst) but of two, who were, Thomas Earle of Sussex, Lord Chamberlaine to the Queene's Majesty, at whose charge was glased the uppermost of the heigh windowes on the north side of the quire, and Walter Callcutt, of Williamscot, in the countie of Oxford, Gentleman, who gave ten poundes towardes the glasing of win- dowes in the said first repaired part. Memorandum, that Sir William Pastone, of Northfolke, Knight, and Mr. Daniel. Walters, of the said county, gent., were the first benefactors to the seconde worke A6 Dfii 1604, and gave severally as appeareth in the list following. Benefactors to the Second Worke. Thomas Bellott, of London, Esquier, before-named, gave at first towardes the building uppe of the south isle 200/. Sir William Pastone, of Northfolke, Knight, gave towards that worke 100/. John Still, Doctor in Divinitie, Bishopp of Bathe and Wells, gave 20/. William Powell, Doctor in Divinitie, Archdeacon of Bathe, gave the first tyme, (viz.) the xxvth of May, 1603, 10/. Walter Chapman, Thomas Wint, and Peter Sherstone, all of this cittie, paid in the xxix tb of October, 1603, of moneyes that they gave and gathered of the cittie of Bathe, 35/. 18s. Peter Sherstone aforesaid, paid in more, 3rd of November, 1603, 8/. 10s. Thomas Power, Alderman of this cittie, in November 1603, gave 21. 10s. Danyell Walters, of Worsted, in the county of Norff., gent., gave 10/. John Dunn, inhabitant of this cittie, in November 1603, gave 10s. Laurence Biam, clerke, beneficed in Devonshire, who had then certaine housing in this Cittie, gave 8/. John Masters the elder, one of the Common Counsell of this cittie, gave 21. Edward Horton, of this cittie, Esquier, gave in his life-type, 61., and by his last will and testament gave more, that was paid in by John Maie and Henrie Long, Esquiers, his, the said Edward Horton's executors, 56/. Mrs. Alice Stone, wife to Christopher Stone, Alderman of this cittie, gave 10/. Mr. Robert Rogers, citizen of Bristoll, gave 5/. APPENDIX. 143 Mr. Walton, alias Walter, of Northfolke, gent., in November 1606, gave 51. William Powell, Doctor in Divinitie, Archdeacon of Bathe, gave the second tyme (viz.) the 26th of September, 1607, 11. Winsor, of Esquier, the xx th of March, 1607, gave 10/. Rowland Backhouse, of London, Merchant and Alderman, free of the company of Mercers, executor unto Mr. Bartholomew Barnes, of the same cittie, mercer, in the behalf of the said Mr. Barnes, who lieth buried in the south side of the quier at the upper end, gave 12/. Thomas Wiat, of this cittie, Alderman, in Maie 1609, brought in of the church stocke of St. Michaell's without gate, 4/. 6s. George Gibbes, of this cittie, apothecarie, gave by his last will and testament, which was paid in by his executrix in June 1609, 51. Sir George de Poll, of Snarfford, in the countie of Lincolne, Knight and Baronett, in June 1609, gave 5/. John Elmer, of this cittie, chirurgian, gave by his last will and testament, 51. Richard Hall, of Alton-Barnes, in the countie of Wilts, yeoman, in September 1613, gave 51. . ■ Suma, 514/. 14s. Towards the Bell in this Church, bought at Caynsam, that cost there 80/. William Ford, of this cittie, gathered in the great church, 21. 10s. 8d. The Lord Rich, gave about the same tyme, 21. William Ford and George Gibbs, both of this cittie, collected in Staules Parish, and paid in 10/. John Parker, the younger, of this cittie, clothier, collected in St. Marie's Parish, and paid in 11/. 18s. 6d. John Sherston, since Alderman of this cittie, collected in St. James's Parish, and paid in 12/. The parishioners of St. Michael's without gate, among them, gave 8/. 18s. 2d. George Chapman and John Chapman, collected of Bachilers towards the buyinge of the bell, 3/. 14s. Ad. Thomas Bellott, Esquier, before mentioned, gave more toward es the said bell, 30/. Sume of the money given to the bell, 81/. Is. 8d., whereof 80/. was paid for the said bell, and the rest, viz. 1/. Is. 8d. was bestowed otherwise about this church work. The sume total hitherto cometh to 595/. 15s. 8d. Besides for casting the same bell, 27/. 10s. Besides two of the lower windowes glased and repaired still, the one over the vestrie doore, by the Companie of Tylers of this cittie, the other in the West side of the crosse south isle, by Richard Beacon, of this cittie, tyler, who did all the tiling worke from the first to the last upon this Church. And besides all the galeries, the font, the partitions betweene the body of the Church and the quire, the seates in the Chappell for noblemen and men of worshipp, and the 144 APPENDIX. seates at the upper ende of the quire for ladys and gentlemen of sort that and the seats for the minister and clerke, all done at the charge of the aforenamed Thomas Bellott. The seates in the quire on the south and north sides thereof were done at the Cittie's charge of 10/. The said Thomas Bellot, besides all this, caused the great east window of the quire to be repaired with mason's worke, with smith's worke, and to be all glased at his only charge of 60/. Benefactors to the Third Worke. James Montague, Doctor in Divinitie, Bishoppe of Bathe and Wells, gave at first 1000/. Gilbert, Earle of Shrewsberrie, gave xx timber trees. Thomas, Earle of Suffolke, gave fiftie tunne of timber. William, Lord Compton, since Earle of Northampton, gave 40/. George Rives, Doctor in Divinity, and Warden (with the fellowes) of New College in Oxford, gave a goodlie oake that grewe uppon their mannor of Cullerne, which yelded well neere 5 tunne of prime good timber, besides the topp and armes. The said Doctor George Rives gave besides, of his own free gift, 5/. Henry Hide, of Dyneton, in the Countie of Wilts, Esquier, gave (into the bargaine of timber, bought of him at Trowbridge for this Church,) three timber trees. Francis, Earle of Rutland, gave to the glasynge of the first upper windowe in the south side of the Church, and to the other uses of the Church, 20/. Francis Lord Norrys, at whose charge the second upper windowe of that south side was glased. The Lady Elizabeth, Barronesse of Hunsdon, at whose charge the middlemost of those higher windowes was glased. John May, of Charterhouse in this countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge the fower upper window of that side was glased. John Kerry, of Weston juxta Bathe, in this countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge the fift Westward of those upper windowes was glased. Francis James, Doctor of the Civil Laws, Chancellour of this Diocese, at whose whole charge was glased the great windowe over the great dore at the ende of the church. The Lady Anne, Countesse Dowager of Dorsett, at whose charge was glased the first upper windowe of the north side of the bodie of the church. Sir Robert Ritch, Knight, at whose charge was glased the second upper windowe on the north side. Sir Francis Seymour, Knight, at whose charge was glased the middlemost of those upper windowes. Sir Edward Rodney, of Rodney-stoke, within this countie of Somersett, Knight, at whose charge was glased the fourth of those upper windowes on the north side. Francis Barber, of Chewe, within this countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge was glased the fift of the upper windowes on the north side of the church. APPENDIX. 145 Sir Maurice Bartlett, of Bruton, within this countie of Somersett, Knight, at whose charge was glased the first of the upper windowes eastward, of the south crosse isle. George Speake the younger, of White-Lackington, within the countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge was repaired with mason's worke, barred with iron and glased, the second easte upper windowe of that south crosse isle. Sir Hugh Smith, of Long-Aston, within this countie of Somersett, Knight, at whose charge was glased the first upper windowe on the west side of the aforesaid crosse south isle. Robert Baynard, of Lackhame, and Edward Reade, of Cossam, both of the countie of Wiltes, Esquiers, and brethren in lawe, at whose joynt charge was repaired with mason's worke, barred with iron, and glased, the first of the upper windowes, in the east part of the north crosse isle. Sir James Ley, of Beckington, within this countie of Somersett, Knight, and Attorney- General of the court of Wardes, at whose charge was repaired with mason's worke, barred with iron, and glased, the second upper windowe on the east side of the north crosse isle. James Bisse, of Batcomb, within this countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge was glased the first of the lower windowes on the north side of the body of the church. Thomas Norreys, of this cittie, Esquier, at whose charge was glased the second of the lower windowes on that side. William Plumly, of Newton St. Lowe, within this countie of Somersett, gent., at whose charge was glased the middlemost of those lower windowes on the north side of the body of the church. William St. Barbe, Bacchalaur in Divinitie, and Prebender of Hereford, at whose charge was glased the fourthe windowe, westward, on the north side of the body of the church. Michaell Mallett, of Warwick, in the county Warwick, Esquier, at whose charge was glased the fift windowe, westward, on the north side of the body of the church. Philipp Welsh, of London, glasier, at whose charge was glased the lower west windowe over the north dore, at entering into the church. William Bassett, of Claverton, in the countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge was glased the second of the lower windowes on the south side of the body of the church. William Blanchard, of Kattherne, in this countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge was glased the second of the lower windowes, on the south side of the bodie of the church. John Barker, of Bristoll, Marchant, at whose charge was glased the third, westward, of those lower windowes on the south side of the bodie of the church. Sir John Strafford, of Thomburie, in the countie of Gloucester, Knight, at whose charge was glased the fourth of those lower windowes on the south side of the bodie of the church over the doore into the Abbie Garden. u 146 APPENDIX. Benefactors to the repairinge of the Ruines which were of the Vaulting loorke, and to the beautifying thereof, as it now is, with the new walls and windowes of the two lower allies in the upper part of the Church. Edward, Earle of Worcester, at whose charge of xxl. was made and beautified, that part of the vaulting worke over the great windowe in the south of the crosse isle. The cittie of Bathe, at whose charge of was made all the vaulting worke under the Tower. The Citizens and Inhabitants of Bathe, with the helpe of some other good friends, at whose charge of were repaired and beautified all the vaulting workes of the north crosse isle, and of the quire of this churche, from the tower eastward. The names of these benefactors are upon a booke of purpose touching that worke. Miles Jackson, of Combe-Harvay, in this countie of Somersett, Esquier, at whose charge was repaired and beautified all the vaulting worke of the north allie of the quire. Thomas Power, Alderman and Maior of this cittie, by his last will and testament gave 101. Nicholas Hide, Esquier, Recorder of this cittie, gave 51. Thomas Lesson, one of the Phisitions of this cittie, by his last will and testament gave 3/. The widdowe Gold, of Dorchester, in the countie of Dorsett, administratrix to her husband, James Gold, who deceased in this cittie, and lieth buried in this church, gave 51. Al whiche in toto the summe of 23/. was bestowed uppon repairing the greater part of the vaulting part of the lower southe ile of the quire, and uppon the newe building of the ende wall of the said ile, with the doree and window glased, as it all now standeth. Hugh Bayley, bone-setter, an inhabitant of this cittie, repaired and beautified the lower part of the vaulting worke of the said southe ile next the crosse ile. Jefferay Flower, of Philipp's-Norton, in this countie of Somersett, Gentleman, at whose onely charge was built upp the newe walle with the doore therein, and the windowe, as it now standeth, at the east ende of the north allie of the quire. Mr. Rocke, Alderman of the cittie of Rochester, in the countie of Kente, gave 21., which by his appoyntment was bestowed upon the painting and beautefying of the doores and pillers at the first entrance into the upper part of the church, all under the gallery over the font. Benefactors to the Paving of the Church. Thomas Bellott at his onely charge caused all the crosse ile of this Church to be paved. Francis Allin, clothier, of this cittie, caused at his charge the southe ile of the quire to be paved, 51. The Ladie Elizabeth Boothe, dwelling in this cittie, caused the greatest part of the north ile of the said upper part of the church to bee paved. The rest of the said ile was paved at the charge of three sea-farynge men, whose names were Richard Stanly, John Smith, and Ellis Wood. APPENDIX. 147 John Webb, of Swaynsweeke, in the countie of Somersett, Gentleman, gave 10/. Thomas Cox, of Corston, Gent., gave 3/. 10s. John Woode, Alderman of this cittie, gave 1/. 10s. Mrs. Margaret Mannering, dwelling in this cittie with the Lady Booth, by her last will, gave 1/. Richard Davis, clerke, Parson of Swaynsweeke aforesaid, gave 11. In toto the sume of 171. , which was bestowed uppon the pavinge of the north allye of the bodie of this church. The Ladie Hopton, of Whitham-Friary, in the countie of Somersett, and Robert Hopton, Esq., her sonn, with some other of her familie, have given the Greate Bell in the tower, which came to the some of 160/. The Ladie Rachell Hopton - £20 The Ladie Bacon, one of her daughters - - 20 The Ladie Hubbard, one other of her daughters - - 10 The Ladie Phettiplace, one other of her daughters - 10 The Ladie Banister, one other of her daughters - - - 20 Mrs. Cole, one other of her daughters - - - 5 Mrs. Stanter, one other of her daughters ... 5 Mr. Bingham, one of her sonn-in-lawes ... 5 Mr. Earnly, one other of her sonn-in-lawes .. -- 5 Mrs. Morgan, her grand-child - - - - ... 10 The Ladie Mackworth, one other of her grand-children 5 Mr. Robert Hopton, her sonn ... - 20 Sir Ralph Hopton, her grandson, one of the knights of the Bath - 10 Mr. Thomas Hopton, her sonn - - - - 5 Mr. Arthur Hopton, her sonn - 5 Sir Owen Smith, her grand-child . «. - . - - 5 Some 160 And to perfect the said Bell, the Cittie of Bathe have laid out the some of ----- 60 The Lady Elizabeth Poulett, the wife of Sir John Poulett, of Winchester, in the countie of Hampton, Knight, gave to this church, in September 1631, Three Pounds which is laid out in repaireing and makeing upp the stayers leadeing into the tower on the south-east ile of the church. One " fayre Bible," fol. in English ; Fox's " Acts and Monuments of the Church," 2 vols, with " the deske and chaynes ;" three " Bibles in French, Italian, and Spanish," with the " chaynes and deske belonging to them ;" Minshieu's " Dictionarie" of languages ; two volumes of the " learned Workes of King James, the one in English, the other in Latin ;" D. Willet's " Synopsis Papismi," and Pliny's " Naturall Historic" and six " Books of Common Prair," with the Testament bound with them, were also presented to this Church by different benefactors. ALPHABETICAL LIST OF DISTINGUISHED PERSONS Xntettrtf in ISatlj abbeg eni)utrf)«. A. Alchord, The Rev. Edward, D.D., died Jan. 11, 1652. Aubery, The Rev. Edmund, Archdeacon of Wells, 6. 1714; d. Nov. 7, 1757. Avery, William, one of the Masters of the Bench of the Middle Temple, d. Oct. 17, 1745. B. *Baker, William, S.T.P., Bishop of Norwich, b. 1667 ; d. Dec. 4, 1732. Baker, Sir William, M.P., a London merchant, b. Nov. 5, 1705 ; d. Jan. 23, 1770. *Bates, Ely, Writer on Morals, d. Jan. 4, 1812. *Bave, Samuel, M.D., b. at Cologne, 1588 ; d. Aug. 5, 1668. *Beauvoir, Osmund, D.D., F.R.S., F.S.A., d. July 1, 1789. Bedingfield, Lady Mary, daughter of Viscount Montague, and wife of Sir Rich. B. of Oxburgh, Norfolk, Bart., b. 1733 ; d. Sept. 17, 1767. Bellingham, John, Esq., of Farnham, Sussex, d. 1577. Bentham, Jeremy, author, d. Mar. 28, 1792. Boothby, Sir William, Bart., a Major-General in the Army, and Colonel of the 6th Regiment of Foot, d. 1787. Bostock, Richard, M.D., d. Mar. 16, 1747. *Bowles, John, d. 1819. *Broome, William, LL.D., poet, d. Nov. 16, 1745. Buck, Lady Anne, d. 1764. Butt, John Martin, M.D., F.R.S., b. at Lichfield, Oct. 14, 1738 ; d. Oct. 18, 1769. C. Caldwell, Lady, wife of Sir John C, of Castle Caldwell, in Ireland, b. 1756; d. Mar. 18, 1795. Callis, Smith, Esq., Rear Admiral of the Blue, distinguished himself at the battle of St. Tropez, b. 1709; d. Oct. 16, 1761. Camplin, Thomas, LL.D., Archdeacon of Bath, and afterwards of Taunton, b. 1756; d. Aug. 17, 1780. Champion, Colonel Alexander, Chief Commander of the East India Company's troops in Bengal, d. Mar. 15, 1793. Chapman, Peter, Military Officer at Tilbury Camp, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, b. 1506; d. Feb. 1602. Chapman, Richard, Alderman of Bath, d. May 1, 1572. Chapman, William, Mayor of Bath, d. Oct. 20, 1627. Chapman, Robert, A.M., Rector of Walcot, b. 1702; d. 1728. Churchill, Lieut.-General Charles, Governor of Plymouth, b. 1679 ; d. May 14, 1745. * Memoirs of the persons whose names are thus marked (*) will be found in the preceding pages. NAMES OF DISTINGUISHED PERSONS, &C. 149 Cranston, Lady Elizabeth, b. 1770; d. 1798. Crowle, D., Esq., M.P., Barrister at Law, b. 1699; d. June 21, 1757. D. Dauntsey, John, Physician, d. Feb. 1650. •Derrick, Samuel, M.C. at Bath, Author, d. Mar. 28, 1769. •Draper, Sir William, K.B., b. 1721 ; d. Jan. 1787. Durell, John, Esq., Advocate General of Jersey, 6. 1705 ; d. June 22, 1739. E. Elletson, Roger Hope, Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica, b. 1727 ; d. Nov. 28, 1775. Ellis, Rev. John, LL.B., of Merionethshire, d. 1785. Ernele, Walter, Esq., of Burton, Wiltshire, d. Sept. 27, 1618. F. Fawkener, Sir Everard, b. 1694 ; d. 1758. •Fielding, Sarah, Author, b. 1714 ; d. April 1768. Fleetwood, Sir Thomas, Bart., of Martin Sands, Cheshire, d. Dec. 1802. Frampton, Mary, daughter of Richard F., Esq., of Morton, Dorset, b. Jan. 1, 1677; d. Sept. 6, 1698. Frowde, Sir Philip, Knt., Colonel in the Army of Charles I., in the Civil War, d. Aug. 6, 1674. G. Gambier, James, Vice Admiral, d. 1789. Gethin, Lady Grace, Writer of Religious Tracts, wife of Sir Richard G., of Gethin Grott, Ireland, Bart., b. 1676; d. Oct. 11, 1697. •Glanvill, Joseph, Rector of Bath Abbey Church, b. 1632 ; d. 1680. Godfrey, Charles, Esq., Colonel in the Army, Brother-in-law to the Duke of Marlborough, under whom he served in the Netherlands, b. 1648; d. Feb. 23, 1714. •Grenville, Hon. Henry, d. 1784. Gresley, Sir Nigel, Bart., of Drakelow, in Derbyshire, d. 1787. Grieve, James Tamesz, of Moscow, in Russia, d. 1787. Grieye, Elizabeth, wife of Richard G., Esq., of Alnwick, Northumberland, d. Nov. 7, 1752. Griffith, Guyon, D.D., Divine, d. 1784. •Guidott, Thomas, M.D., Physician and Author, d. 1701. H. •Harington, Henry, M.D., Poet and Musician, b. Sept. 29, 1727 ; d. Jan. 15; 1816. •Haweis, Thomas, LL.D., Divine, b. 1733 ; d. 1820; Hickes, Robert Adams, Divine, d. 1788. Honeywood, Eliz. d. 1812. Honeywood, John, M.A., Divine • Houston, Sir Patrick, d. 1785. *Howlett, The Rev. John, Author, d. Feb. 29, 1804. Hudson, Henry, d. 1789. Hughes, Robert, Esq., Rear Admiral of the Red, b. 1717; d. Jan. 15, 1774. I. Ivy, Sir George, Knt., of West Kington, Wiltshire, d. 1639. J. James, Charles, D.D., Divine, d. 1695. Jephson, William, Serjeant at Law, d. 1772. Jerningham, Sir John, Bart., of Cossey Hall, Norfolk, b 1679; d. June 14, 1737. *Jorden, Edward, M.D., b. 1569; d. 1632. 150 NAMES OF DISTINGUISHED PERSONS K. Katencamp, Herman, British Consul in Spain, b. at Exeter, Sept. 2D, 1750; d. March 23, 1807. L. Lapworth, Edward, M.D., d. May 24, 1636. Legh, Calveley, M.D., Fellow of All Souls' College, Oxford, b. 1682 ; d. April 25, 1727. Leyborne, Rebecca, wife of Dr. Robert Leybprne, b. June 4, 1698 ; d. Feb. 18, 1756. Leyborne, Robert, D.D., Rector of St. Dunstan's, Stepney, and St. Ann's, Middlesex ; and Prin- cipal of Alban-Hall, Oxford ; d. 1759. Lychfield, Thomas, Lutanist to Queen Elizabeth, d. 16th Century. M. *Maclaine, Archibald, LL.D., Divine and Author, d. 1804. Madan, Lieut. Col. Martin, Groom of the Bedchamber to Frederick, Prince of Wales, b. 1701; d. March 4, 1756. *Maplet, M.D., John, b. 1615; d. Aug. 10, 1670. Martyn, Esq., Thomas, of Exeter, d. September 10, 1627. Masham, Lady Damaris, wrote on Morals, daughter of Dr. Ralph Cudworth, and wife of Sir Francis Masham, of Oates, in Essex, Bart. ; 6. June 18, 1658 ; d. April 20, 1708. Mason, Robert, LL.D., Master of the Rolls, in the Reigns of Charles I. and II., b. 1589 ; d. 1662. *Melmoth, William, Lawyer and Author, b. 1690 ; d. 1779. Meredyth, Col. Henry, of Ireland, d. 1715. *Meyler, William, Poet, &c, d. 1821. Migliovaccio, Jacobo Antonio, from Florence, in Italy, d. 1704. "Miller, Lady, Writer of Travels, wife of Sir John Miller, Bart, of Bath Easton, b. 1740 ; d. June 24, 1781. *Montague, James, Bishop of Bath and Wells, b. 1568 ; d. July 20, 1618. N. *Nash, R., Esq. b. October 18, 1674 ; d. Feb. 3, 1761. Norton, Colonel Ambrose, Cousin-german of Sir George Norton, of Abbot's Leigh, Somerset, b. 1646; d. September 10, 1723. O. *01iver, William, M.D., F.R.S., Author, d. April 4, 1716. P. *Pahner, John, Esq. M.P., d. 1818. *Parry, Caleb Hillier, M.D. F.R.S., d. 1822. *Pelling, John, B.D., d. Feb. 19, 1620. Pennington, Hon. Lady, sister of Henry, Viscount Lonsdale, and wife of Sir Joseph Pennington, of Muncaster, Cumberland, Baronet, d. Sept.. 15, 1738. Phelips, Robert, Esq., Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, b. Feb. 5, 1618 ; d. June 21, 1707. Philipps, Sir Erasmus, Bart., M.P., of Picton Castle, Pembrokeshire, 6. 1700 ; d. October 14, 1743. Poole, David, Esq. Serjeant at Law, b. 1703 ; d. October 29, 1762. *Porter, Walsh, Esq., Amateur, d. 1809. *Postlethwaite, Thomas, D.D., Master of Trinity College, Cambridge, b. 1733 ; d. May 4, 1798. *Pownall, Thomas, Antiquary, d. Feb. 25, 1805. Q. *Quin, James, Actor, b. 1693 ; d. 1766. R. *Rauzzini, Venanzio, Musician, b. 1748 ; d. April 8, 1810. INTERRED IN BATH ABBEY CHURCH. 151 S. Saunders, Erasmus, D.D., Prebendary of Rochester, b. 1716; d. December 29, 1775. *Shadwell, Sir John, M.D. F.R.S., Physician to George I., b. London, 1670; d. 1747. Sherwood, John, M.D., d. Feb. 1620. Shrewsbury, Elizabeth, Countess of, daughter of John, Lord Dormer, 6. 1724 ; d. August 1809. *Sibthorp, John, M.D., F.R.S., b. 1672; d. 1800. Stewart, William, Brigadier General, distinguished himself at the Battle of Almanza, d. November 10, 1736. Stibbs, Edward, Chester Herald, b. atBath, 1681 ; d. January 10, 1739. *Stubbe, Henry, Physician and Author, d. 1676. Swinburne, Sir John, Bart., of Capheaton, Northumberland, b. 1697 ; d. January 8, 1744. T. Temple, Sir Richard, Bart., a Commissioner of the Navy, and afterwards one of the Commissioners of the Revenue at New York, d. 1786. "Thicknesse, Ralph, M.A., Divine and Musician, d. October 11, 1742. Thomas, the Rev. Josiah, Archdeacon of Bath, d. 1822. Thomson, Sir Alexander, Lord Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer, d. April 15, 1817. Townsend, Hon. Edw., D.D., Dean of Norwich, b. 1720 ; d. Jan. 1765. *Venner, Tobias, M.D., d. 1660. W. *Wall, John, M.D., b. 1709; d. January 27, 1776. Waller, Lady Jane, wife of Sir William Waller, Knight f, a General Officer in the Parliamentary Army during the Civil Wars. Wally, John, Mayor of Bath, d. April 4, 1615. Walsh, Lieut. Col., Robert, b. 1722 ; d. September 12, 1788. Webb, John, Esq., son of Sir John Webb, Bart., of Conford, Dorset, b. 1700 ; d. March 9, 1745. Wentworth, Lady, daughter of John, Viscount Lonsdale, and wife of Sir John Wentworth, of Yorkshire, 6. 1676; d. April 16, 1706. Wyvil, Sir Marmaduke Astey, Bart., of Burton Constable, Yorkshire, b. February 6, 1742 ; d. February 23, 1774. Z. *Zea, Don Antonio Francisco, Agent of the Colombian Republic in Europe, d. 1823. f Seward, in his " Anecdotes of Distinguished Persons," states that " Sir William Waller was buried in the Abbey Church, Bath," vol. i. p. 402. He was, however, interred in a Chapel in Tothill Street, Westminster. See Chalmers's Biog. Diet. INDEX. Abbey Church, originally a Roman Temple, 9 — 10; history in Saxon times, 11 — 18; rebuilt, 19; gifts to the foundation, 21 — 22; sub- ordinate to Wells, 25 ; styled St. Peter's and St. Paul's, 26, note ; surrendered, with the attached Monastery, to Henry VIII., 31 ; its dilapidated state, 38 ; rebuilt by Bishop Oliver King, 39 ; offered for sale, 38 ; given to the Corporation of Bath, 39 ; partially repaired, ib. ; restored by Bishop Montague and others, 41 — 44 ; its outward appearance im- proved, 45 ; not a Cathedral Church, 50 ; made parochial, 51 ; described by Fuller, ib. ; remarks on its general plan, 52 ; description of, by Wood, 53 — 54 ; architectural account of, with references to the prints, and obser- vations upon its monuments, 55—64 ; Bio- graphical notices of persons interred here, 84—137. Baths, 21; the original Roman Thermce, 46 ; described, ib. House, or Priory built, 15; sold, 38; pulled down, 39. Abbots of Bath in Saxon times, 15. Acamanni, Acemannes-cestre, &c, ancient names of Bath, 12. Adelard or Athelard, a monk, 29. Adrian, Bishop, his arms, 56. Alfred, King, 13. Allen, Rev. Dr., 110. Amelia, Princess, note, 95. Anstey, Christ., lines by, 100, note ; memoir, 111—113. John, 113. Antiquities, Roman, 7, 8, 10. Aquee-Calidse, and Aquse-Solis, ancient names of Bath, 7. Arms of Bath, mistake concerning, 30, note. Athelstan, his grants to Bath, 14. Baker, W., Bishop, memoir of, 91. Bamfylde, C. W., 119. Barnes, Barth., epitaph on, 72. Bates, Ely, epitaph on, 76 ; memoir of, 118. Bath, its origin and early history, 1 — 9 ; ety- mology of the name, 7 ; Roman Temple, 8 ; subjugated by the Saxons, 11 ; Abbey founded, 12; taken by the Danes, 14, note; plun- dered, 17 ; made a Bishop's See, 18 ; granted to Bishop Villula, ib. ; burnt, 22 ; surrendered to Rich. Coeur de Lion, 24 ; leased to the Prior, and given to the see of Bath and Wells, 26 ; general description of, 48 ; arms, 56, note. Bath and Wells, Bishop of, when first so called, 22. Baths at Bath, their legendary origin, 2. Roman, described, 65, 66. Bave, Dr. Samuel, memoir of, 88. Beauvoir, Dr. Os., memoir of, 106. Bellingham, John, his tomb, 55. ' Bellott, Thomas, repaired the Church, 40 ; anecdote of, 42. Bells, ringing of, at Bath, dispute concerning, 28. Bimberries, or St. Cath. Hos. 31. Birde, Prior, assists in rebuilding the Church, 35, 36 ; confounded with Prior Hollewaye, alias Gybbs, 37, note; his arms, 47; his chapel, 62 ; described, 63. Bladud, his legendary history, 5. Bowles, John, memoir of, 137. Broome, Dr. Wm., memoir of, 93. Burleigh, Lord, 40. Cantlow, P., his arms, 47. Cecill, R., Earl of Salisbury, 40. Chapman, Peter, repairs Church, 39. Clements, William, epitaph on, 76. Cloppecote, Robt., oppresses the monks, 27. Coal, fossil, first used in Britain, 9. Coffins, stone, found at Bath, 46. Coins, Roman, found at Bath, 8 ; also Saxon, 46. Cole, Agnes, persecuted by the monks, for free speaking, 30. Colles, Humph., buys the Priory estates, 31. Colthurst, Ed., gives the Abbey Church to the city, 39. Danes, appear on the English coast; destroy the Abbey Church, 18. Derrick, Sam., memoir of, 102. Draper, Sir Wm., his epitaph, 79 ; memoir of, 105. INDEX. 153 Drokensford, John de, Bishop, 32. Druids and Druidical Temple, 3. Dunstan, Archbp., ejects the secular clergy, 15. Edington, or TEthandune, 14. Edgar, King, crowned at Bath, 13. Edward I. annexes the City to the See of Bath, 27. VI. grants part of the Prior's lands to the Corporation, 31. Edwy, King, his grants to Bath monastery, 14. Elizabeth, Queen, visits Bath, 40. Elphege, or Elphegus, abbot, 15. Epitaphs, Essay on, with particular reference to Bath Abbey, 68—83. ; on Jane Blayney, 70; Bartholomew Barnes, 72 ; Rev. J. Honeywood, ib. ; John Wally, 73 ; Walter Ernele, ib. ; Lady Jane Waller, 74; Mary Frampton, ib ; James Quin, 75; William Clements, 76; Sarah Fielding, ib. ; Elizabeth Honeywood, ib. ; Ely Bates, ib. ; Lady Miller, 77 ; Thomas Martyn, 78 ; Sir William Draper, 79 ; J. A. Migliovaccio, ib. ; William Melmoth, 80 ; Dr. C. H. Parry, 80; Dr. J. Sibthorp, 81; Dr. A. Maclaine, ib. ; Dr. Harington, ib. ; Rebecca Leyborne, 82 ; Col. A. Norton, ib. ; Eliz. N. Webb, 83; Richard Nash, ib. ; Thos. Guidott, 91 ; Dr. Parry, 133 ; Archd. Thomas, 128. Fielding, Sarah, her epitaph, 76 ; memoir of, 101. Fire, perpetual, at Bath, 8. Fitz-Joceline, Bishop, privileged to keep sporting- dogs, 23. Floyd, 103, note. Freemasonry, office of, 37, note. Geoffrey, of Monmouth, vindicated, 5. Glanvill, Jos., memoir of, 135. Glastonbury Abbey, annexed to the See of Bath and Wells, 24 ; surrender of manors, 24 ; Bath and Glastonbury See, ib. Godfrey, Bishop, 21. Guidott, Dr., memoir of, 88. Hadrian, Bishop of Bath, deceived by a Witch, 33. Harington, Sir John, his account of Bishop King's Vision, 33 ; and various particulars relating to the Abbey Church, 33—37 — 40. Dr. Henry, memoir of, 118. Harmonic Society at Bath, established, 120. Haweis, Dr. T., memoir of, 124. Henry de Solis, Bishop of Worcester, 23. Heytesbury, arms of, 47, note. Holleweye, alias Gybbs, Prior, 28 ; surrenders his Monastery, 29 ; poetical account of, 36. Howlett, Rev. John, 109. Hungerfords, their arms, 47, note. Joceline de Wells, Bishop, 24 ; his hunting establishment, 25. John de Iford, or Yford, Prior, deprived for adultery, 28. Jorden, Dr. Edward, memoir of, 86. Junius, remarks on, 106. King, Bishop Oliver, account of, 32 ; burial place, 33, note; his vision, 34; rebuilds the Abbey Church, 35 ; decease, 38. Leland, his account of the origin of Bath Abbey Church, 13 ; referred to, 16—19, 29—35— 37—39. Lidgate, John, his poetical account of the Baths at Bath, 6. Lychfield, Sarcophagus for, 55. Lysons, his account of Roman Antiquities, 10. Maclaine, Dr. Archibald, epitaph on, 81 ; memoir of, 109. Mallet, D., his letter to Derrick, 102. Malmsbury, W. of, 14—16—18—20. Manvers, Earl, landlord of Abbey estate, 39 — 45. Maplet, John, Dr., memoir of, 88. Melmoth, William,memoir of, 108. Mendip, its mines, 43. Meyler, W., memoir of, 125. Miller, Lady, memoir of, 104. Minerva, ancient temple of, 8 ; its origin and history, 9. Montague, Bishop, James, 40 ; repairs the Abbey Church, 41 — 43; his arms, 56; tomb, 62; memoir of, 85 ; epitaph, 86. Nash, Richard, his epitaph, 83, note ; memoir of, 94. Nunnery, founded at Bath, 12; its early Ab- besses and History, 13. Offa, King, said to have founded Bath Church, 12. Oliver, Dr. William, his lines on Ralph Thick - nesse, 92 ; memoir of, 98. Dr. W., sen., memoir of, 9 1 . Palace, Bishop's, built at Bath, 21. Palmer, John, memoir of, 121. Parry, Dr. C. H., memoir of, 129. Pelling, Rev. John, 44—134. Porter, Walsh, 83 ; memoir, 113. Postlethwaite, Dr. Thomas, 107. 154 INDEX. Pownall, Thomas, memoir, 110. Priors of Bath, 25—31. Prior park sold, 39. Quiii, James, epitaph on, 75 ; memoir of, 99. Rauzzini, Signor, memoir of, 114. Relics, " precious" assemblage of, 17. Robert, Bishop, his gifts, 22 ; his decree, ib. Roger, Bishop, account of, 25. Savaric, Bishop, annexes Glastonbury Abbey to Bath Abbey Church, 23 ; his epitaph, 24. Saxons, their treachery, 1 1 . Shadwell, Sir John, memoir of, 93. Sibthorp, Dr. John, epitaph, 81 ; monument, 83; memoir of, 108. Skurray, Rev. J., extract from his sermon, 44. Stanton-Drew, a Druidical temple, 3. Still, Bishop, 43, note. Stubbe, Henry, memoir of, 136. Sutton, Mr., appeal to, to repair the Abbey, 42. Thicknesse, Rev. R., memoir of, 92. Thomas, Rev. Archd"., lines on Dr. Harington, 120; memoir of, 128. Venner, Tobias, Dr., memoir of, 87. Villula, Bishop John de, 18—21. Wall, Dr. John, memoir of, 104. Waller, Sir William, and Lady, their effigies, 55. Walsh,. Col. Robert, 83. Weaving of woollen cloth introduced at Bath, 30. Wells Cathedral, West Front rebuilt, 25. Wells, See of, purchased, 1 8 ; disputes between the Sees, 22 ; separation by Act of Parliament from Bath, 51. Whitaker, Rev. John, investigates the history of Bath, 9—46. Wood, his Visionary account of Bath, 2 — 40; his description of the Abbey Church, 52, Zea, Don F. A., memoir of, 134. ANECDOTES OF BATH. The investigations which appeared to the author to be necessary for the present work have been numerous and extensive. The labour consequently has been very considerable, but it has been amply compensated by the amusement and information derived from the various sources resorted to. Few persons are aware that the books, pamphlets, and maps, relating to Bath, exceed fifty in numb'er. Besides two folios, there are three or four quartos, several in octavo, some of which are of large size, and many of smaller forms. Most of these publications are referred to, in the notes of the present volume ; but some of them, having no relation to the Abbey, are not noticed. It was the author's intention to have given a Catalogue Raisonne of all these publications, and he had carefully prepared a manuscript, which was destroyed at the printer's when his premises, with all their contents, were consumed by fire in August last. Not having an opportunity to arrange another list, at present, he defers its publication until a more convenient season. In preparing the present volume, numerous anecdotes and memoranda have been collected, relative to the City of Bath, its history, buildings, fashions, inmates, visitors, &c. &c, most of which appear calculated to excite much interest ; and the author now proposes to publish another volume of corresponding size to the present, (in which the list alluded to will be included,) under the title of . ANECDOTES, BIOGRAPHICAL, TOPOGRAPHICAL, LITERARY, ARCHITECTURAL, AND MISCELLANEOUS, RELATING IO BATH AND ITS VICINITY. Under such a title, and coming within the scope of one or more of these classes, may be intro- duced many curious facts and narratives immediately connected with this city. Devoid of private scandal, and free from every invidious and ill-natured reflection, such a work will afford ample scope for the satirist, and supply materials of great interest to the historian and the biographer. Although Bath, for a long series of years, has continued to be the winter rendezvous of gamblers, fortune-hunters, idlers, and triflers, it has likewise been honored and dignified by the residence of many persons of worth, integrity, and talent. If it has occasionally presented " Characters" and caricatures for the pencil of a Peter Pallet, it has also nurtured and protected many of 156 ANECDOTES OF BATH. those sons and daughters of genius, whose exemplary lives and meritorious productions have alike conferred honor upon their native city, and ennobled their own character. Any hints or information applicable to the subject, and calculated to elucidate the history of Bath, or the memoirs of its more eminent inhabitants, will tend to expedite the proposed work, and will greatly oblige the author. He wishes it, however, to be distinctly understood, that he does not pledge himself to complete this volume within any given time, nor will he bind himself even to publish it at all : he only intimates that Le has some curious materials, that they are susceptible of being formed into an amusing and even interesting publication of Topographical Anecdotes, &c, and that he may be tempted to give them " a local habitation and a name," if assisted and encouraged by those Bathonians who have the means "to aid, and may feel anxious to promote, a literary work of the description here announced. THE END. tONDON: — PRINT BD BV J. MOVES, £Ol VHI11K S7REET. 9T&0U met tyia magstrie of a fniman fjatrti , 2T|»e prise of JBriatotoe anB tj>c affiles tern Rant), on MtMittt €i)Utci)y CSomag CjjatteMom Stag, curgou0 traveller, ant) pass not fcpe, fflntill flbis fetibe a pile a«tountie b tbine ege* JKBbole rocfis on rocfis toitb gron joint), surbete 3nD ofics toitf) o&ts entremeti Di0poneD d fie* 3£gri0 migfttic pile, tbat ficeps tbe tognties at bate jFgre*lebgn e anti ti>e moftie f 0totme Defie, "STfjat sbootcs aloofe into tfje teaulmes of Sate Sball be tbe rccorD of tf?e Burets fame for ate. 3Tbou 0ee0t tbf mag0trtc of a buman giant), 3T£>e price of TBrgototoe anti tfje fJHesteme lantie, J?et is tbe Eugiticw bcrtues tnucft tnoe greete, (Steetet tban can bie ffiotolies pen be oeantoe. 3Tbou 0ee0t tbe sagncteo ant) Ignises in 0tonen state, 3Ebat 0eemti toitb breatb ant) buman soule tiiepanDe, s S0 pagrue h to 110 enseen tbeoe men of state, Sue!; is ureete Sangnce'0 mgnt) toben pagtti to (Sot) elate, 3HelI maiest tbou be aotounti, but bieto it toelf ; &o not from jpence befote tbou see tbg fill, 9nt) team tbe Buimet's uertues anti bis name , 2Df tbis tall 0pgte in eberg counttge telle, 8nti toitb tbg tale tbe lajints ! rgcb men sbame j Sbotoe bone tbe Glorious eiangnae DiD ejccelle ; Sjoto bee coot) man a fiient for fignaes became, Snt) olorgous pabeD at once it>t toag to beaben anti fame. a Elegant. b astonish. « intermixed. d disposed. ' lightning. f gloomy. e expanded. " compared. ' inactive. AN HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL ESSAY RELATING TO ftetrcltffe Cfmrcj), BRISTOL: ILLUSTRATED WITH PLANS, VIEWS, AND ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS INCLUDINB 8n Account of tje fflonummts. AND ANECDOTES OF THE EMINENT PERSONS INTERRED WITHIN ITS WALLS; ALSO, AN ESSAY ON THE LIFE AND CHARACTER OF THOMAS CHATTERTON. By J. BRITTON, F.S.A. " What wondrous monumente ! What pyle ys thys ? That bynds in wonders chayne entendemente ! That doth aloof the ayrie skyen kiss, And seemeth mountaynesjoyned by cemente, From Godde hys greete and wondrous storehouse sente." Chatterton. lUmtiott: PRINTED FOR IOKGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, AND BROWN, PATERNOSTER-ROW; J. TAYLOR, HIGH- HOLBORN; AND THE AUTHOR, TAVISTOCK PLACE. SOLD BY BARRY, BROWN, BULGIN, ELLISTON, NORTON AND SON, SHEPPARD, AND PECKOVER, AT BRISTOL; ALSO BY BARRATT, GODWIN, OPHAM, AND MEYLER AND SON, AT BATH. 1813. Printed by T. Bensley, Bolt Court, Fleet Street, London. TO CHARLES JOSEPH HARFORD, ESQ. F.S.A. Dear Sir, I have much pleasure in dedicating this volume to you, because you have manifested, on many occasions, a laudable and zealous attachment to archaeological lite- rature generally, and to the antiquities of your native city in particular. Among the public edifices of Bristol there is no one more celebrated than Redcljffe Church. Chatterton has enrolled its name in the annals of poetry and of critical literature; and the beauties and pecu- liarities of its architecture have long attracted the admi- ration of the antiquary, and artist, and indeed of every person of taste and science. As a whole it is grand and imposing, and its details are curious, beautiful, and ele- gant. To display these characteristics, and elucidate the history of the building, is the express object of this volume, which is inscribed to you, with feelings of re- spect, and very sincere pleasure^ BY The Author. July 1813; a TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page Lines on Redcliffe Church, by Chatterton : — Dedication v Introductory Preface vii CHAP. 1 1 Utility of Antiquarian Investigations.— Redcliffe Church is highly curious, beautiful, and interest- ing. — Historical particulars respecting it. — Conjectures concerning the dates of different parts. CHAP II 8 Description of the Church ; with reference to the accompanying prints. Plate I. Ground Plan 10 II. Plan of the North Porch 12 III. Exterior View of the Church from the south-east 13 IV. View of the East End 14 V View of the South Porch 14 VI View of the Tower 14 VII View of the North Porch 14 VIII. Interior View of the Nave 14 IX View of the South Transept 15 X View of the North Aile 15 XI Door-way and Skreen to the North Porch 15 XII Details — Door- way, Windows, &c. 1 6 CHAP. Ill 17 Account of the monuments, and anecdotes of persons interred in the church. — Lamyngton, 17 : Simon de Burton, 17: Wm. Canynge, 18 j and extract from the church register respecting him : William Coke, 21 : John Bleaker, 22 : John Brook, 22 : John Jay, 22 : Thomas Mede, 22 : Philip Mede, 23 . Mrs. Fortune Little, 23 : Sir John Inyn, 24 : Everardus le French, 24 : Thomas Young, 24 : Rev. Thomas Broughton, 24 : William Barrett, 25 : Sir William Penn, 25. CHAP. IV * 26 Painted Glass, 26. — Church Furniture, 27. — Cross, 28. — Paintings, 28.— Thunder Storm, 2g. CHAP. V 30 An Essay on the life, character, and writings of Chatterton, 30.— Monody by Dermody, 37.— Letters by Chatterton to Dodsley, 39. INTRODUCTORY PREFACE. Having purchased several drawings of Redcliffe Church, it was my inten- tion to have them engraved for the Architectural Antiquities ; but after ma- ture deliberation, I was induced to appropriate them to a separate and com- plete publication. In this I was. also tempted to enter more fully into the illustration of the building, and to comprehend a more extensive field of dis- quisition than at first I had intended, or than is usual in the general work. This volume is therefore now submitted to the public, in its present form and style, with no small degree of anxiety ; for though success generally inspires confidence, and often presumption, I own that I feel more than usual solici- tude concerning the reception which the present work may experience with its varied classes of readers. To make it amusing, or interesting to the uninitiated antiquary, I have endeavoured to adapt my sentiments and style of writing to the peculiar character of the edifice, and to the poetical associations with which it is connected. For that mind must be dull and cold indeed, which can remain perfectly tranquil and unwarmed, after surveying the one, and re- flecting on the other. " Far from me, and far from my friends," as Dr. John- son observes, " be such frigid philosophy, as may conduct us indifferent and unmoved over any ground which has been dignified by wisdom, bravery, or virtue. That man is little to be envied, whose patriotism would not gain force upon the plains of Marathon, or whose piety would not grow warmer among the ruins of Iona."* If the plains of Marathon, and the ruins of Iona, be calculated to stimu- late curiosity, and awaken rational and pleasing reflections, I am persuaded that the edifice, which we are about to investigate, must also be entitled to * Journey to tbe Western Islands. a 2 Vlll PREFACE. more than common notice. Indeed, it cannot fail to claim from the genuine antiquary, and tasteful critic, much of diligent inquiry, and unmixed admira- tion. In reviewing the history of an ancient edifice, we are imperceptibly led into the company of venerable personages long since departed ; — we are car- ried back to remote ages, and shewn distant events, over which Time has spread its obscuring veil. — These pursuits are not merely amusing to the fancy, but may be rendered useful and instructive. " Whatever," says the elo- quent author just quoted, " withdraws us from the power of our senses, whatever makes the past, the distant, and the future, predominate over the present, advances us in the dignity of thinking beings." Thus, by contem- plating, and analyzing the best works of others, we may acquire wisdom : and it is universally admitted, that the grand ecclesiastical edifices of this country, were executed by men highly skilled in mathematical and geometrical know- ledge. Science is unanimously conceded to them; but their claims to taste are not so generally admitted. On this point the most accomplished scholars and critics differ in opinion. Many contend, that beauty, grace, elegance, and sublimity of architecture, is only to be found in Grecian edifices; whilst others admit, that some of these characteristics belong also to Roman build- ings ; but they will not allow that any thing approaching to tastefulness, pro- priety, or harmony, is to be found in "the Gothic" structures of the middle ages. The partial admirers of the latter also, are too generally as indiscriminating, and intemperate in their panegyrics on one species of architecture, at the expense of the other ; and thus contention and opposition are excited. Con- troversy is produced, and it too generally happens that controversial writers rather advocate an hypothesis, than calmly and dispassionately endeavour to substantiate fact, and elucidate mystery.* * Since Bentham wrote his History of Ely Cathedral, A. D. 177 1, in which he endeavoured to prove, that the remains of the Conventual Church in that city, are of Saxon architecture, " founded in 673," many volumes and essays have been published concerning the criteria of Saxon and Norman architecture, the origin of the pointed arch, and the country in which this was first adopted. Warton, Gray, Grose, Milner, Whitaker, Hall, Whittington, Millers, Sayers, Dallaway, Hawkins, Carter, Englefield, Lysons, Kerrich, Wilkins, t)utens, King, Haggitt, and others, have all employed their pens, either in this controversy, or on the subject : and to some of these gentlemen we are indebted for much substantial information. In the "Architectural Antiquities" which I am now publishing, and in the " Cathedral Antiquities*' preparing, almost every class and style of ecclesiastical, domestic, and castellated architecture, will be PREFACE. IX The present volume has been long announced to the public, and some persons have made repeated inquiries after it. Various circumstances have conspired to occasion delay : but these are all of a public and literary nature. Zealously attached to antiquarian investigations, and embellished works, I often find my inclinations carry me beyond the line of discretion and pru- dence : I eagerly commence a new publication, and am equally eager to per- form my voluntary task with credit to myself, and at the same time satisfy the reasonable expectations of my reader. Thus I have entailed on myself an excess of labour and anxiety which have injured my health, and subjected me to some reprehension. In accomplishing the present little volume, I have encountered more than ordinary expenses and trouble : and though it is not equal to my wishes, yet I hope that its best parts will merit the approbation of the critical reader; and whatever he may detect as errors of judgment or taste, he will have the generosity to pass over with lenity. To the following literary friends and correspondents I have been much obliged for communications and information in the progress of the work; and beg they will accept my sincere thanks : The Rev. Martin Richard Whish, M. A. the vicar of Redcliffe, for indulgently allowing me access to the registers, and for extracts from one relating to Canynge. To Joseph Haslewood, Esq. who has collected almost every book, pamphlet, and paper that has been printed respecting the Chattertonian con- troversy, I am indebted for the two letters printed at the end of this volume, and for the free use of his Archaeological collection. To Philip Bliss, Esq. of St. John's College, Oxford, and the Rev. Bulkeley Bandinel, M. A. and F.S.A. of Trinity College, I am obliged for the communication of some extracts from, and access to, that invaluable lite- rary repository, the Bodleian Library. The late Thomas Eagles, Esq. F. S. A. who had critically watched the controversy about Rowley, was personally acquainted with nearly all the wri- ters, who first published the quarto pamphlet of Sir Charles Bawdin, and whose literary stores in printed books and MSS. were choice and valuable, carefully delineated ; and from the various specimens and facts adduced, with the accompanying descrip- tions and elucidations, it is hoped that the controverted points, above noticed, will be settled, and the history and principles of ancient English Architecture will be clearly established. X PREFACE. obliged me with some interesting letters on the subject. He eagerly con- tended for the authenticity of the poems ; and often expressed an intention of publishing his opinions and arguments on the subject: To Charles Joseph Harford, Esq. F. S. A. I am indebted for much personal civility, and for the zeal he took in promoting my inquiries at Bristol. His friend, The Rev. Samuel Seyer, M. A. who has recently published the Charters, &c. of Bristol, and thereby conferred a distinguished favour on the citizens, and on the public, obliged me with ready and frank replies to my queries. It is hoped this gentleman will proceed immediately with his History and Anti- quities of Bristol. To Granville Penn, Esq. I am indebted for some authentic memoranda respecting Admiral Penn : but am sorry to say that they have been mislaid, or lost, and therefore could not be used on the present occasion. Should another edition of this volume be demanded, I hope to make some amends for this omission. In the mean time the reader is referred to Mr. Clarkson's in- teresting " Memoirs of the private and public Life of William Penn," 2 vols. 8vo. 1813, Thomas Park, Esq. F.S.A. ever zealous in the cause of archaeological and poetical literature, readily assisted my inquiries respecting the paper about church furniture : as did also Lady Millman, a relative of Mr. Browning's, in whose collection this document was found. The Rev. T. D. Fosbrooke, author of " British Monachism," obligingly sent me several memorandums respecting Redcliffe, and Chatterton. To Robert Southey, Esq. who voluntarily undertook to edit the three volumes of Chatterton's Works, from benevolent motives, I am obliged for an interesting letter about Redcliffe and Chatterton. He remarks that " the old ceremony of strewing the church on Palm Sunday, is still observed there." Respecting the Rowleian question, he says, " Ever since I had the slightest acquaintance with old English literature, I was perfectly convinced that it was impossible the poems could be genuine. I will, however, mention one decisive argument, which I owe to a friend. The little fac simile of Canynge's feast contains manifest proofs that the hand- writing is forged; for the letter e is written in eighteen or twenty different ways. — Now also there can be no impropriety in mentioning that there was a trait of insanity in the family. PREFACE. XI His sister was once confined ; and this is a key to the eccentricities of his life, and to the deplorable rashness of his death. At one time he was a great coxcomb in his dress." — Of this extraordinary youth Mr. Park thus speaks: " Chatterton was a phenomenon of nature and art ; an enigma of genius ; and he seemed to have breathed in an atmosphere of mystery." At the end of this volume I have been induced to offer a few remarks on the character and talents of Chatterton, because there are still persons of learning who advocate the antiquity of his poems ; and who found their chief arguments on his incompetency to their composition. Dr. Sherwen, in a se- parate pamphlet on the subject, also in the Gentleman's Magazine ; and the Rev. Dr. Symmons, in the " London Review," have exerted much ingenuity of argument, and displayed considerable literary knowledge in behalf of the ancient, and against the modern poet. Yet the latter Gentleman asserts, that if Chatterton " was the creator of the poems attributed to Rowley, it must be confessed, that the posthumous honours which have been offered to him, are as yet inadequate to the claims of his genius ; and that we must still exert ourselves for expressions to impart our full sense of those intellectual powers which appear so greatly to transcend the accustomed liberality of Providence in its intercourse with man." Dr. Sherwen's remarks are nearly to the same effect. Though the most profound critics, and almost every reader is willing to allow such extraordinary merit to the poems, yet the collected edition, printed in 3 vols. 1803, has not yet passed into a second edition. It is hoped that public curiosity may be again excited towards these poems ; and instead of raising a stone monument to the memory of the bard, I would wish to see his works printed in a popular form. No memorial can be more appropriate to an author than a handsome edition of his works; and more especially when these are extensively circulated. To Hewson Clarke, Esq. I am obliged for some judicious observations on the character of Chatterton. The criticisms of this gentleman are gene- rally acute and profound: it is hoped that he will speedily execute his long projected work, " a continuation of Johnson's Lives of the Poets." To Dr. Goldwyer, Mr. Isaac James, Mr. Gutch, Edward Bird, Esq. Mr. Barry, jun. of Bristol, I have to return thanks, for many acts of XII PREFACE. personal civility, and replies to letters of inquiry, &c; also to Mr. R. Webb, and to Mrs. Perrin the sexton. It is but justice to the latter to say, that she manifests a very laudable, and unusual regard for the fine church committed to her charge. HISTORY OF REDCLIFFE CHURCH. CHAP. I. Utility of Antiquarian Investigations — Redcliffe Church is highly curious, beau- tiful, and interesting — Historical particulars respecting it — Conjectures con- cerning the dates of different parts. X HE study of antiquities, after being long regarded as the occupation of plodding dulness, or frivolous curiosity, has at length attained its due im- portance in the estimation of the public ; and is now the object of assiduous cultivation in the literary and polished circles of society. That a pursuit, indeed, which, while it contributes to the elucidation and embellishment of every other department of literature, possesses within itself the most copi- ous sources of mental pleasure, and while it tends to gratify the ardour of a poetical imagination, and give precision and variety to the page of history, should have been, at one period of English literature, the constant theme of moral and humorous satire, must be imputed to the abuse of an useful and important study, rather than to the insensibility of our wits and moralists to its dignity and value when properly pursued. I flatter myself that in the selection of the Church of St. Mary, Red- cliffe, as the object of architectural elucidation and critical inquiry, I shall not subject myself to be numbered among the triflers who devote their labour and their time to frivolous and unimportant objects. The antiquary, the archi- tect, the critic, the biographer, and the poet, are deeply interested in the history and description of an edifice, which combines much elegance of structure, with all the attractions that can be derived from poetical associa- B 2 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. tion. The design and execution of Redcliffe church, at once deserve the in- vestigation of the architectural antiquary, and commands the admiration of the spectator : the writings, or discoveries of Chatterton have also conferred upon the building itself, and on the surrounding scenery a powerful, but adventitious interest. To the general reader, the names of Rowley and of Canynge, are perfectly familiar: their biography has exercised the critical and historical skill of some of the most celebrated writers of the last, and of the present century, and almost every miscellaneous publication that is in- tended for the closet and the family parlour, contains some particulars of the " gude priest of Bristow," or of his youthful representative. On a subject so curious in itself, and of so much interest in the estimation of many discerning persons, it may be presumed, therefore, that the labours of a few weeks have not been totally misapplied : by those who regard the history of the Church of Redcliffe as the just object of historical investigation, the slightest con- tribution to their present stores of information will be received with in- dulgence; and by those to whom the subject may appear undeserving of inquiry, or unsusceptible of embellishment, the brevity that results from a deficiency of materials, it is presumed, will be praised as a merit, rather than censured as a defect. If the labours of the Antiquary, indeed, be at any time cheerless and unpromising, it is when his inquiries are baffled by a deficiency of historical materials, or his judgment is bewildered amidst a mass of imperfect and con- tradictory evidence. In examining the history of the Church of Redcliffe, the inquirer is alternately confounded by the opposite statements of different historians and topographers ; discouraged by the absence of all satisfactory information, and perplexed amidst the mazes of falsehood and forgery. Many of the particulars recorded by former writers, depend for their authen- ticity on no better authority than the manuscripts of Chatterton; and even those statements that have been collected and published from original docu- ments, are deprived of their appropriate weight, by the suspicion that attaches to every historical record connected with the subject. The writers who have paid the most assiduous attention to the early history of the church are perpetually at variance, and the manuscript memoranda contained in different collections, and relating to the more recent stages of inquiry are equally uncertain and unsatisfactory. Under these circumstances, a brief recapitula- tion of the remarks of others, must in some measure supply the place of positive evidence ; and a fair comparison of the scanty documents already in CAMDEN AND LELANDS ACCOUNTS. 3 existence, it is hoped, will be received as an apology for a regular, authentic, and copious narrative. Redcliffe, according to Barrett,* is proved by many " ancient deeds," to have been a parish of great antiquity, and originally formed part, (as it does at present,) of the manor of Bedminster. f Notwithstanding the deeds to which he thus refers, were in all probability the gift of Chatterton, yet, as some of those documents are quoted in the original Latin, and the evidence of Chatterton's deceptions does not apply to any of these authorities in par- ticular, their authenticity cannot justly be disputed. " Radcliff," says Cam- den.J " a little suburb, was joined to the city by a stone-bridge so thick set with houses, that it seemed a street rather than a bridge. This part is en- closed within the walls, and the inhabitants are free of the city." He imme- diately adds, " Among the fairest of churches, is St. Mary de Radcliffe, with- out the walls, with a grand ascent of steps ; the whole so spacious and well built, with an arched roof of stone, and a lofty steeple, § as to exceed, in my opinion, all the parish churches of England that I have seen." Leland says, that " St. Sprites Chapell, in Radclef Church-yard, was ons a paroche afore * History and Antiquities of the City of Bristol, p. 566. f The ecclesiastical history of Redcliffe may be considered peculiar, if not truly singular. It con- stitutes a part, or member, of the parish of Bedminster ; is in the diocese of Bristol, and is a prebend to the cathedral of Salisbury. This prebend comprehends Redcliffe, with the parishes of Bedminster, Abbots-Leigh, and St. Thomas, adjoining Redcliffe; yet the parochial regulations and ordinances are held distinct and separate from each other, and each is governed by its own churchwardens, &c. The living of Bedminster is both a rectory and a vicarage, and, as prebend, the incumbent is patron of all the other livings. He is nominated by the bishop of Salisbury. Previous to the year 1247, Redcliffe and the Temple-fee were vested in the Knights Templars, and constituted a distinct corporation. I do not find that it passed from the Templars to the Hospitallers, as was generally the case with the possessions of the former : but it is probable that Simon de Burton, a merchant of Bristol, bought it of that military fraternity. The ecclesiastical edifice of Redcliffe is also of a peculiar nature and description : it is easier to name it negatively than positively, for it is not strictly either a parish church, conventual church, collegiate church, cathedral church, or chapel. i Gough's edition of Camden's Britannia, vol. i. p. 63. ed. 1791. § Bishop Gibson, in his translation of Camden, renders this word " Tower," and thereby expresses a different object : — Camden's word is " Turris." Much confusion has been produced, and erroneous accounts circulated, for want of a correct nomenclature of terms : and more particularly of those re- lating to ancient buildings, and to other antiquarian objects. B 2 4 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. the building of Radclyfe new churche* " and William of Worcester, who was a native of Bristol, and lived in the time of Henry VI. calls St. Sprite's an ancient chapel, near Redcliffe church. It appears very certain, that an an- cient religious edifice was standing on, or near the site of the present church, anterior to the erection of the building Avhich we are now surveying. Several grants of land towards repairing the original structure, are referred to by Barrett, as being in his own possession : and indigencies were issued by different bishops, on condition that the persons to whom they were granted would " devoutly visit the church of the blessed Mary of Radcliffe, in Bris- tol, and there charitably contribute towards the repair of the same, and pray for the souls of those there interred." The indigencies are by John, Bishop of Ardfert, dated at Bristol, 1232; — Peter Quivill, Bishop of Exeter, dated at " Radeclyve," 1287; — David, Archbishop of Cassel, dated at Bristol in 1246; — Christianus Episcopus Hymelascensis, dated at Bristol 1246; — and Robert, Bishop of Bath and Wells, dated 1278. All these documents are said to have been found in Canynge's chests, and notwithstanding they were the gift of Chatterton to Barrett, their number, the difficulties that would have prevented their execution by the want of specific evidence to their fabrication, and their coincidence with other documents, to which it does not appear that Chatterton had access, are in favour of their reception as genuine authorities. The foundation, however, of the Great Church, erected on the site of the one thus mentioned, is ascribed by all parties to Simon de Burton,^ who, previous to the commencement of the building, in 1292, had been advanced to the mayoralty of Bristol three times, and enjoyed that dignity twice after- wards; viz. in the years 1304 and 1305. X When another writer, therefore, on this subject § ascribes the foundation of the church to William Canynge he confounds the completion of the building with its original erection. It ap- pears that William Canynge, senior, the mayor of Bristol, completed " the * Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 86. Barrett supposes that St. Sprite's Chapel was also called " Lamyngtons Lady Chapel." t Leland, though he mentions Burton as founder of an alms-house, in which he was buried, does not allude to his foundation of the preseni church. } MS. in Bib. Bodl. "History of the famous City of Bristol, by James Stewart," MS. 1733. — Gough's Collection, Oxford. — MSS. by Hobson, quoted by Barrett. § Hist. Bristol, MS. in the possession of the Rev. T. Dudley Fqsbrooke. ERA OF THE BUILDING. 5 body of Redcliffe church from the cross aile downwards, and so the church was finished as it now is :" * and as this was seventy-five years after the de- dication of Burton's church, it may be considered to be the finishing of what had been begun and partly accomplished by its founder. It was customary, at that time, for the builder of a church to begin at the east end, or choir part, which, when finished, was consecrated, and the remainder was gradually prosecuted, either by the original projector, or by his immediate successors. Several Wills are mentioned by Barrett, as dated about 1380, in which money is given " for the fabric, and towards repairing the Church of Red- cliff:" and, among others, that of John Muleward mentions a gift in money — " Ad opus Beatae Mariae de Radcleve^' which Barrett justly regards as a proof that the work was going on at that time. The subsequent re-edification of the church by the grandson of the William Canynge who first completed it, is involved in much obscurity. Among Mr. Fosbrooke's MSS. is one stating that " anno 1441, William Cannings, who was mayor of Bristol this year, with the help of others of the worshipful town of Bristow, kept masons and workmen to repair and edifye, cover and glaze the church of Redcliffe, which his grandfather had founded in the days of Edward the Third." \ Stewart coincides in this statement, except with regard to the date, which is one year later. A manuscript, quoted by Barrett, agrees with Stewart as to the date of 1442, in which year Canynge was mayor of Bristol. A manuscript in the Bodleian Library informs us that " the said church, having suffered much in a tempest, the above-mentioned William Canynge, a celebrated merchant and public benefactor, in the year 1474, J gave five hundred pounds to the parishioners of Redcliffe towards repairing the church, and for the maintenance of two chaplains and two clerks in St. Mary's Chapel there, and of two chantry priests. The words of Barrett are—" the same plan was observed by him in rebuilding and restoring to its original beauty, after being thrown down by lightning. The south aisle, where the mischief fell heaviest, seems to have been rebuilt with a somewhat more elevated arch, and in a lighter style than the north ; a difference also is between the windows of the north and south aisle. §" From these various statements it would appear, that Canynge having begun and nearly completed the re-edification of the church, his labours were rendered almost fruitless by the effect of lightning; * Barrett, Hist. p. 569. f Ms - Collections for Bristol.— See also Barrett,, p. 5?Oi X In Barrett it is dated 1445... § Hist. Bristol, 5fl. O REDCLIFFE CHURCH. and, that about the year 1445, he repaired the damages, and nearly restored, it to the state in which it stood previous to the tempest that threatened its destruction. Barrett says, " that from a deed in Latin by Canning, dated 6th Edward IV, it appears he founded in that year the chantry of St. Catherine in this church."* Such is the brief but very imperfect history of a structure which it is impossible to contemplate without a powerful impression of the omnipotence of poetical genius. Whether Chatterton, or a priest in the reign of Edward the Fourth, was the author of Ella, and of several other similar poems, the church of Redcliffe itself, the monuments that it contains, and the scenery that surround it, certainly owe much of their attraction and interest, to their association with these writings. The tomb of Canynge might have remained the subject of solitary examination to the occasional visitor, had not his name been coupled with that of the real or supposed author of these extraordinary compositions ; and though the architectural beauties of the structure might have excited the partial and occasional admiration of the professional student, or the lover of the arts ; it is owing to the manuscripts of Rowley, or to the materials of their fabrication, that it has become the object of interesting contemplation to the literary world, and has awakened the inquiries, and exercised the talents, of a Milles, a Bryant, a Warton, a Mathias, and a Southey. The preceding narrative is given to shew the contradictory and vague statements that have hitherto been made, as to the age and history of the present edifice. It remains for me to elicit, from this crude mass, something like architectural elucidation ; and endeavour to point out the ages, styles, and dates of the varied portions of the church. As I have not been for- tunate enough to obtain any authentic and unsuspicious document on this subject, my inferences can only be conjectural : but if these conjectures ap- pear founded on rational, and truly probable grounds, they will partly supply the place of history, and it is hoped will afford the critical reader some satis- factory information. From the intimations contained in the preceding ex- tracts, and from the architectural styles of the different parts of the church, I am induced to assign to the latter the following dates. The superstructure of the whole church displays three distinct and dif- ferent eras of architecture. The middle north porch is certainly the oldest * Hist. Bristol, 571. THREE ERAS OF ARCHITECTURE. 7 portion, and this corresponds in its pilaster-columns, arches, and mouldings, with the buildings of the thirteenth century. — At this age it appears that Simon de Burton lived, and was engaged^ in 1£92, either in constructing a new church, or " re-edifying" a former building. Here then we find a part of the edifice, (though certainly only a very small part,) correspond with a specific date. Of a subsequent age and style are the tower, and grand northern porch, in both of which we recognise a later species of architecture; where the tracery of the ceilings, the niches, and numerous mouldings, are of a much more enriched and elaborate character, than the former specimen : these parts were probably raised in the reign of Edward III. by William Canynge, sen. * In the finishing of the nave, choir, and transepts, we must look for the works of William Canynge, jun., the rich merchant of Bristol, and Dean of Westbury : but here the style is. not so strictly in unison with the era. Still, however, we must contemplate the greater part of the church as the work- manship of his time. A more decorated species of architectural design is shewn in the entrance door-way to the vestry; and also in Sir Thomas Mede's monument in the north aile, the latter of which was probably raised about the year 1480. * He is recorded as member for Bristol in the years 1364, 1383, and 1384. Barrett's History, p. 151. 8 EEDCLIFFE CHURCH. CHAP. ir. Description of the Church, with reference to the accompanying Prints. xWert object of nature and of art, that is inherently grand, or beautiful, is calculated to afford pleasure to the human mind. The sublime and tower- ing mountain, the romantic cascade, the interminable and restless ocean, the broad and translucent lake, are all highly interesting and impressive; but these are the inimitable works of an omniscient Architect: man vainly endeavours to mimic them ; and advance the productions of art to vie with those of nature. Though however his works be comparatively small and insignificant, they often excite the amazement and admiration of his fellow- creatures. Genius, aided by Science, can produce surprising effects; can furnish, to the curious and inquisitive mind, ample sources of study and delight. This is fully verified in the ancient architecture of Great Britain, as well as in the splendid, and much-praised edifices of Greece and of Italy. It has long been the fashion, founded on prejudice, to praise the latter at the expense of the former; but the impartial historian and critic will award to each its proper, and just share of excellence. Each style of archi- tecture has its peculiar beauties, merits, and defects: and each will afford important lessons to the judicious architect : but the man who tamely and frigidly copies either, will impeach both his taste and his judgment. In the Church of Redcliffe the architect has manifested both genius and science. Its design has some traits of novelty, and its execution is founded on geometrical principles. Though its ornaments, and some of the parts are similar in many other churches, yet the whole is unique ; and it may be justly called a grand, and truly interesting specimen of the architecture of the age in which it was erected. Loftiness, lightness, and variety, are its marked characteristics. Every part, both internally and externally, is charged with ornaments : is enriched with sculpture, and architectural em- bellishments : but these are not so prominent and obtrusive as in the gor- geous chapels of King's College at Cambridge, and of Henry the Seventh at Westminster.* It may not inaptly be compared to a graceful, and elegant * Plans, views, and details, with histories and descriptions of these two buildings, are given in " The Architectural Antiquities of Great Britain," Vols. I. and II. VIEW, AND SITUATION OF THE CHURCH. 9 female, dressed in a light and flowing drapery; as the latter adorns the former. To continue the metaphor, and thus portray the edifice and its situation, Ave may further remark, that the former resembles a dignified beauty, accidentally surrounded, and incommoded by a motley group of the rabble. This will not be thought exaggerated by the stranger who visits Redcliffe church from Bristol. The usual approach is by a long, narrow street, skirted by small shops, and from its contracted nature and peculiarity of position, is generally very dirty, black, and perilous to the passenger. Several manufac- tories, warehouses, and workshops, of not the most pleasant and odoriferous kind, are distributed on the right and left : whilst the narrow thoroughfare is generally crowded by colliers, sandmen, sledges, sailors, asses, and carts. In such a situation personal safety is the first care. Having " run this gauntlet" for about a quarter of a mile, the stranger is at once astonished and delighted, to find the street expanded, the ground rising, and to see a towering edifice elevated, on the brow of a natural terrace. This view is singularly impressive and prepossessing, both from its intrinsic and individual effect, and as con- trasted with the inauspicious approach. The richly decorated tower, west front of the church, unique north-porch, and transept; with flying buttresses, pinnacles, and perforated parapets, all unite to constitute a mass of archi- tecture, which cannot fail to delight the artist, and astonish the common observer. — See pi. VI. Built on the side of shelving ground, it was necessary to have a flight of many steps from the level on the north, to the pavement of the church, which is still below the surface of the cemetery, on the south. A fine and very picturesque feature is thus produced; (See Plate VI.), and the same elevated site, confers on the tower, and church, a lofty and imposing aspect. The twelve accompanying prints display the forms, features, and archi- tectural peculiarities of nearly the whole edifice : and with a few descriptions, with reference to these prints, it is hoped that the reader will at once be made acquainted with the style and arrangement of the Church, and be satis- fied with my endeavours to illustrate it. Various parts of the Exterior of the building are shewn in Plates III, IV, V, VI, and VII ; and of the Interior, in those numbered VIII, IX, X, XI, and XII.. The extent, arrangement, and ground plan, are laid down in Plates I. and II. 10 REDCLIFFE CHUBCH. Plate I. Ground Plan. The original design of the church, was probably uniform and regular ; but as it has been built at different periods, the later additions have not been raised in accordance either with the style, or plan of the first erection. The eastern chapel, choir and ailes, the transept and a large portion of the nave, display a correspondency of parts, and style : but the vestries, or chantries, P and Q ; the porches, R, S, and X, with the tower D, are additional members. The ground plan shews the internal arrangement of the church, the pro- jections, number, and relative situation of the clustered columns between the body and the side ailes, the walls, windows, doors, buttresses, porches, skreens, monuments, and the varied forms of the groins, or ribs beneath the vaulted roof. The capital letters refer to the primary divisions of the church ; the small letters to different parts and ornaments; the figures to the monu- ments; and the roman numbers with a star to each, to the points of view displayed in the different prints. A. A. the nave, B. B. the south aile, C. C. the north aile ; D. the tower, at the north-west angle of the church; E. the centre of the transept, over which the principal tower is usually raised: by the size of the four piers in this place, it seems very probable that it was originally intended to have a tower here; F. the chief aile of the north transept; G. that of the south; H. I. J. and K. the side ailes to the transepts, of corresponding height and character to the ailes of the nave and choir. This continued aile, or double aile to the transept, is not a common feature. I believe it only belongs to the present church, and to those of York, Ely, and Westminsters L* the choir, but here kept apart for the chancel ;. M. and N. the north and south ailes to the choir; O. the virgin chapel, now used as a school-room.. At the west end of this chapel is a stone skreen, with tracery, shields, &C; On the north and south sides are stair-case turrets, and the whole is lighted by five windows.* At i. is an entrance porch, and at k. a passage from the south aile. Beneath this chapel is a crypt. P. a vestry, and Q. an inner apartment to, * In the year 1571, Queen Elizabeth founded a school here for grammar and writing, as expressed by her deed, and also gave a building, called the Holy-Ghost-Chapel, for the school-house. This was situated near the south-west angle of Redcliffe church ; but was taken down in the year 1766, when, an ancient stone coffin, with a figure in basso relievo, and an inscription on the lid, was found in the western wall. — See No. J. 3PI..1 Fumm J to O ni.i '.• dtUtrtni yfcnunitiiu and Slabs un.l Utltrs a /" • to various ot&tett *h£ch tax tucribtd in iiir a/vuetd worlu. tT/MGCM- Ground Flan, shetvuw ihe groimmi eftheHoof. Sites oflTomanmts & feet J.Jfo//«J*. Zondek: JftibUshccL ty J.Bnihm,,Jnru:-i. 1B12. REFERENCE TO THE PLAN. H the same. These two rooms have others over them, and appear to have been appropriated as a dwelling for a catholic priest : R. a porch, or vestibule be- tween the hexagon porch and the north aile of the church. This porch is certainly the most ancient part of the whole fabric, and is probably a portion of Simon de Burton's building. It is a regular square, with small insulated columns against the walls, supporting pointed arches of the lancet shape. The vaulted roof has only two ribs, or groins crossing from the extreme angles, and intersecting each other at the centre. On the western side is a door-way to a stair-case, u. which communicated with a room above, and also with the tower of the church. Another door-way, T. is cut through the wall on the east side, and leads to a gallery round the hexagon porch, and also to the noted Chattertonian apartment over it. S. the Hexagon, or outer porch, which, with the former porch, are shewn more at large in PI. II. — W. the Stairs to a room over the southern porch, X. Small letters of reference in the plan: — a. Organ skreen j b. a bracket against this pier supports a carved sword, which belonged to Sir Robert Yea- mans, Knt and Bart, and who was mayor of Bristol in the year 1669. His re- mains were interred in the north aile of this church. Near this relic is an object of popular curiosity, traditionally called a rib of the noted Dun-cow, slain by Guy, Earl of Warwick; but it is more likely to be the rib of a whale, or of some other monstrous fish: — c. an old stone font; d. a modern font, en- closed; e. and f. skreens of stone, with open work, dividing the ailes from the chancel, which is also separated from the nave by an iron skreen ; g. and h. stone skreens, closing up the whole of the two arches on the north and south sides of the altar: i. Altar table, behind which is a modern skreen of wainscot, carved, gilt, and painted:* k. door- way to the lady chapel, now closed up : 1. porch to the same chapel : m. door- way to the south aile, near the east end : n. the western door-way : o. stair-case to the organ-loft, tower, and roof of the church. The figures, No. 1 to 13, refer to the monuments which will be described hereafter; and the figures III. IV. V. VI. VII. VIII. IX. X. and XL with a star to each, mark the situations, or directions whence the views were taken, corresponding with the same numbers on the top of each plate. * The carpenter who designed this, and the organ loft, fancied he should display a fine classical taste, by mimicking the Roman architecture, instead of following the style of the church; and has therefore introduced columns which have some resemblance to the corinthian, or composite order ; but, exclusive of the column, there is scarcely any other architectural member. c Q 12 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. Plate II. Ground Plan of the North Porch, &c. I was induced to have this second plan engraved for the purpose of displaying, more distinctly, the horizontal form and peculiarity of the great north porch; also its union with the inner porch, and the insulated columns, doors, stair-cases, skreen, and groining of the latter. The grand external porch is certainly a very singular structure, and eminently entitled to minute illustration and inquiry. Its form, ornaments, appropriation, and " eventful history," all conspire to render it exceedingly curious and interesting. The original use and intention of this building cannot easily be accounted for. A porch was already erected on the same side of the church, and that porch was provided with a room over its vaulted ceiling. The plan is an irregular hexagon; with bold triangular buttresses at the external angles. A stone seat runs round the interior base, a large and singular door-way faces the north ; a smaller one opens towards the east, a closet is in the western wall, and blank arches, with purfled pediments, are placed in the lower story. An ornamental cornice with sculptured busts and flowers, continue round five sides of the room ; and over the cornice is a series of five windows, each di- vided into three days, or lights, with the lower portion walled up. At the sill of these windows is a passage, extending from the stair-case at the south- east angle, to the pier at the corresponding angle. The vaulted roof of this porch is adorned with several ribs ramifying from the centre, in thirty-two radii, to the circumference. At thirteen different points of intersection are as many sculptured bosses, or orbs. The external feature of this porch is shewn in Pl. VII.* where the prin- cipal elevation, consisting of a curious door-way, a series of niches, with acute canopies, the upper part of a window, two triangular buttresses, part of the north transept, and a bit of the tower, with modern ballustrades and steps, are tastefully and faithfully displayed. The small openings near the summit of this porch afford light to the apartment, which contains fragments of the famous Rowleyan chests.f It is probable that this room was originally in- * The engraver of this plate has at once enhanced his own reputation, and conferred an honour on the graphic art, by the specimen before us. It is one of those rare works of the burin, which pleases the common observer, and delights the most skilful artist. t Barrett says, that one of the largest of the chests, which formerly occupied this room, is noticed in a deed of Canynge's, in the following terms : " Cysta serrata cum sex clavibus vocata cysta Willielmi I M h \[ x m ' 1 •? * m -v . /r,i--/si!.~u tM. yliui Scale -Jg- J0 f! . 7-2, JGm, ./. IB!E3D(SE.n!P3F!l £5EIBr!SB JOBN SJIERWESr, MI), who has >1isplaved miwh Jrrh.rohoiail biowhvlge in Ills tfqys on lft£^4riiquilv tind mdhmiidk- oftlijrJkwlddnMSS " this flak is inscribe by —th? . inilt.ir [,mM<: Publish.-.: ~<. . r . :::-:."■■! .rtihi.vk-j V.L. V"II, ^ ■Utn:kt nout Mf . ^y_ Jj ^fttmc ±J&. ^utt of -tin- Jlbr&i "Porch .. 84>. To EDTMJtD BIRD, Esq. who has &%nad considerable- abflities iw tfu*. design aJid. eazcztiwn* of several Futures, this Flatc is iwciU'ed by his sincere friend JJirittoro. londtm- J'ublislud, by JJirWzm.: Mu-J,l8i2 Trinttd. lyTfai/ivard PJL VEl fir (Jhrfteru Jstijfon/ &;, e£$etSffc f'/i . Ticw of tJit-JFafc, &c looking £ast. To tfi£ Rev^ SJHf- SETER.MAa toter Ji-pronurter of^dntiejiuvidii uwestiaalwm , tiiix \Platt is inscribed by the Author' r , .;- lonAem, Jhtbhsholty JJirittotv.Julyii&iz. ./' //.,„/,■, lEEEXSMFFE (DHnjJIK(SIEL"-3g3EaSl'©IL View or' Soutfi Trtuiccpt . To trn^LiMfioimjfx&SQ an^Jiiist of consulauble f/il&zts, tfusFlaU ts insaibedsbyhis sinctre- rrimd, tt, ^. Lt*ttJ&ii:?kiblLsheJ. bv JBri/Um ^liut-iuSLS. J*rinu,1 hJf.otnu-J. PI. ISC East end offfuC\".azk,. Toth*Jkv*mc>nJm)IErresllItC>OKE.MA)L-j:s.A;hithor of "BrilishihnMhism" S: ,nha-Vorks,^iis Plate ui vMcrOied.Vy Lonj0n:FiiblLslL.:,l by J.Jiriilvn. JlllvJ.jHj?. J.JJnt/vn EL.X EBIBSa.Sira'S £MW3JE3II:-ISIBIISB'(DIL, l 7)oor-nay > Sknai &&. to the .V'/VM. ToROBEBX SOUTEETEsq. whoso various Huron- productions display Genius & Talent'. thisTuiteis inscribed by tlwAuthor Zenden ■:l'ttbluilud b< J.JirilUm. Jan.: i l3i2. TRANSEPT, DOOR-WAY AND SKREEN. 15 window as well as the original altar-piece. It will be seen by this print, that the ceiling of the whole church is richly adorned with tracery, and that the wall between the large arches and the upper tier of clerestory windows, is covered with panelling, and pilasters. The forms of the piers, with their bases and capitals, are characterised in this print. Plate IX. View across the Transept from North to South. The ornamental finishing of the chief aile of the transept, with its lateral aile, the clustered columns, or piers of the nave, and a clerestory window of the same, with two of the very highly ornamented windows of the south transept, are the features of this print. But the chief reason for selecting this point of view is to shew the picturesque arrangement of forms and parts ; and the brilliant effect which is frequently seen in this portion of the church. Unfortunately, the engraver, after having finished two plates of this subject, has not succeeded in producing the desired effect in either. Plate X. View in the North Aile. In this print is displayed the stone skreen, which divides the north aile from the chancel ; with a stone seat attached. The groined character of the ceiling is also shewn ; and a lofty, close skreen, which fills up the eastern arch of this aile, opposite to which is the fine monument of Sir Thomas Mede, and Philip his brother. Plate XI. Door-way and Skreen to the North Porch. This skreen, consisting of two portions, is an architectural curiosity and beauty. In the centre is a door-way, with a square head, and ornamented with several richly sculptured bosses in a hollow moulding. On each side is a series of ornamental panels, crowned with Ogee arches, the outer : mould- ing of which is adorned with fine crockets and finials. Over the door-way is a very elegant frieze, charged with vine-leaves, busts, animals, and foliage; and above that is another portion or story of the skreen, with four panels, and surmounted with a rich frieze. Behind this skreen is a blank win- dow, the mullions and tracery of which correspond with the others of the aile. — See PL XII. 4. 16 UEDCLIFFE CHURCH. Plate XII. Displays four different windows, a door-way, and part of a parapet. Fig. 1. A lofty ^ narrow window, at the extremity of the north and south transepts. 2. A window, with tracery beneath it, and an arch, of the upper story of the south transept. The outer ornaments, and filling up of this win- dow, are rather singular. 3. Window, panelling, and an arch of the nave. 4. Window of the ailes, finished at the top with an obtuse, triangular mould- ing. 5. Door-way from the north* aile to the vestry, which was probably a chantry erected by Sir Thomas Mede. 6. The perforated parapet, which runs round the upper wall of the church. The Vignette Border in the title-page, shews part of the ribs, and tracery of the ceiling in the north aile. The bosses here are fancifully sculptured. In the east aile of the south transept at p. in the ground plan, is a boss on. which are the figures of a sow, with young pigs ; a very strange and unusual device. A similar basso-relievo is found in Exeter cathedral. Having thus referred to all the accompanying prints, and pointed out the chief architectural features, and peculiarities of the church, I proceed to; -specify the principal monuments. IRL.XB ?/'.Jm/w.J del ■ />> SlMmu ..'A,/..//, Se ,y ,>i,i,if/ r.'/i. DfW7'it'a.y, tblFwdows. /. £^&m Jc-. Ztmifcrb.-fiibtisftal by J.J3ritl/»i , Jzm&l iSjs. 17 CHAP. III. Description of the Monuments, with reference to the Numbers in the ground Plan, including Anecdotes of John Lamyngton, Simon de Burton, William Canynge, John Bleaker, William Cole, John Jay, John Brook, Sir Thomas Mede, Mrs. Fortune Little, John Inyn, Everard le French, Thomas Brough- ton, William Barrett, and Sir William Penn. No. I. John Lamyngton. Near the south-west angle of the church is a large stone coffin, with a statue in demi-relief on the lid, and beneath it two words in old characters, which Barrett reads, " Joannesi ILampttgtoti." This coffin was placed here in 1 766", having been discovered under the west win- dow of St. Sprite's chapel, which formerly stood close to the church, and- was demolished at that period. Upon first opening the coffin, the solid parts of the body retained their natural position in the most perfect manner, but on being touched they immediately crumbled to dust. John Lamyngton is mentioned in Barrett's list of vicars, as having been chaplain of this church in 1393- The same author hazards a conjecture, but upon what grounds he does not state, that St. Sprite's chapel was called Lamyngton's Lady-Chapel, before it received its subsequent appellation from the fraternity of the Holy Ghost, to which society the use of it is said to have been granted in 1383, by the master of the Hospital of St. John.* No. 2. Is a flat stone, with a cross and two words upon it, which are almost obliterated. Several fragments of other flat grave-stones, with de- faced inscriptions, constitute part of the pavement of the western end of the church; some of them are certainly of very ancient date. No. 3. Is an altar monument supporting the recumbent statue of a war- rior, or knight habited in a coat of chain armour, and having his legs crossed. The name of the person to whom this monument properly belongs, is un- known, there being no inscription, or any distinct mark upon it, by which it can be decidedly ascertained. Tradition assigns it to William Burton; Barrett to Robert de Berkley, who was Lord of Bedminster and RedcliflTe. Besides the tradition of the name, nothing is known concerning Wil- liam Burton. Indeed, no evidence of the existence of such a person, who * Barrett's History of Bristol, p. hg6. V 18 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. could possibly be the owner of this monument, can be discovered from any species of record. The tradition then is probably erroneous, unless it may be supposed that in the lapse of ages, some accident has led to the substitu- tion of the prenomen William, for that of Simon, in which case this may be regarded as the tomb of Simon de Burton, the original founder of the church, and also of the alms-house called after him." Burton's Alms-house." It is not likely to have belonged to Robert de Berkley, for most of that family were interred in the church of St. Augustine's monastery. No. 4. Is a plain altar tomb, supporting the recumbent figure of a man in sacerdotal" robes, with a large scrip, or pocket attached to the left side. An angel is placed at his head, and a dog, with a large bone in his paws, at his feet. There is no inscription upon it, to mark the person to whose me- mory this monument was erected. Mr. Cole states it to be a third tomb to William Canynge ; tradition, however, assigns it to his purse-bearer.* No. 5. William Canynge. f Under a large canopy beneath the centre window of the south transept is an altar tomb of stone supporting the re- *• The opinion of Mr. Cole on this subject is extremely doubtful, as it seems very improbable that the same individual should have three distinct monuments, all immediately adjoining to each other. The traditional account, on the other hand, most likely approximates the truth, for though it may not be the monument of the purse-bearer, it is certainly that of some person intimately connected with Canynge. If the existence of such a person as Thomas Rowley, a priest, and the confidential friend of that distinguished character, could be fully ascertained, I should have little hesitation in ascribing it to him. It is, however, certain that Thomas Rowley, a merchant, was interred in St. John's church, in Bristol, where a brass commemorates his name. Cole's MS.S. in the British Mu- seum, vol. x. p. 51. f The following extract from a volume of the Parish Register of St. Mary RedclifFe, for the years between 1678 and 1 694 inclusive, furnishes many curious particulars relating to Canynge, and to the church which we are illustrating. " William Cannings, burgess and merchant of Bristol, by his deed, dated the 20th of October, 1467, and in the — year of King Edward the 4th, did give unto the vicar and wardens, and also to the senior and major part of all the parishioners of the church of the blessed Mary of Redcliff, in Bristol, the sum of ,£340 of current money, upon condition that the said vicar and churchwardens and their successors for ever should for that gift and with the said money sufficiently repair, or cause to be re- paired and re-edified, the ruinous buildings, tenements, and houses whatsoever of the said church, and with the rents and issues of the land and tenements of the same church should provide, find, and give unto two chaplains, called St. Mary's Priests, nine marks apiece per ann. To two clerks, sufficiently instructed in reading and singing, at £2. \3s. Ad. apiece, and for executing the sexton's office £1. 6s. 8d. with divers other gifts, as per the record of the same deed in the great red book, fol. 291, it may appear. WILLIAM CANYNCE. 19 cumbent effigies of a man and a woman. The first is dressed in Mayor's robes, and the second according to the fashion of the times. The inscription, on the back of this tomb, is as follows : More he gave to the said vicar, churchwardens, and parishioners, to the use aforesaid, certain jewels of Sir Theobald Knight, which were pawned to him for 160 pounds of like money. He founded one chantry to the honour of God and St. Catherine, and another chantry to the honour of God and St. George. And endowed such chantry with lands of the clear value of £10 per annum towards the maintenance of each chantry priest. He devised and gave by his will, dated January 14th, 1474, and in the 8th year of King Edward the 4th, five tenements, with the vaults and cellars thereto adjoining and belonging, being in and about the Trough-house, going between St. Nicholas street and Baldwin-street, unto Elizabeth Can- ninge, late wife to John Canninge his son, for term of life; the reversion of her life to Elizabeth Canninge his niece, daughter of Thomas Canninge his brother, late grocer and alderman of London, and to her heirs : and ordained by his will, that for want of such issue, the Mayor and Common Council of Bristol, and the Proctors of Bedcliffe, for the time being, should sell the said tenements, and divide the money thereof coming to the uses following, viz. the one-half to be delivered to the said proctors for the use and sustentation of the said chantry of St. Catherine and St. George, and the other half to be devised to the Chamber of Bristol, for the use and common profit of the town. He was bountiful to the poor in Bristol, and to the poor of Westbury upon Trim in the county of Gloc r . He founded an alms-house upon Bedcliffe Hill, and gave every one of his poor there 20s. apiece. He gave £20 to the house of the Friars Minors, and £10 apiece to the mendicant friars in Bris- tol, viz. the Friars Preachers, Friars Augustines, and Friars Carmelites. He was liberal to all fraternities in Bristol, and gave the church of RedclifFhis great ledger books. He was bountiful to all his servants, and gave 60 pounds to all the poor blind and lame dwelling in Bristol. Then he gave and devised divers other lands and tenements in Bristol to his nephew William Cannings, and the heirs of his body; and for want thereof, the same to remain to his niece Elizabeth Canninge and the heirs of her body; and for want thereof, that the lands should be sold by the Mayor and Common Council of Bristol and the Wardens of Redcliff, and that the money thereof pro- ceeding should be devised (divided) to the use aforesaid, viz. the one half to the use of the said chauntries, and the other half for the use and common profit of the town, as appears in the great Orphan Book, fol. 200. The said William Cannings, being afterwards dean of the collegiate church and college of Westbury, founded an alms-house at Westbury for six poor men and six poor women, to be continually placed therein; and ordained that one of the men should always be presented to the said alms-house by the Mayor of Bristol for the time being. And one woman continually presented by the Mayoress of Bris- tol, with consent of her sister ,the late Mayor'swife, as often as any such place should be void. Elizabeth Canninge, niece of the said William Canninge, married with Mr. John Houlden, of Lon- don, draper, and had issue between them Richard Houlden, who at the age of three years deceased ; and afterwards the said Elizabeth deceased without any issue ; and the said John Houlden being possessed of the said tenements which were devised by his said wife, and holding the same by the courtesie of England, sold his interest therein to the Mayor' and Recorder and two Aldermen of the town of Bristol ; and after the mayor and commonalty of Bristol, and the vicar, chaplains, and proctors of Redcliff, with the consent of the senior part of the parishioners of Redcliffe, for a certain sum of money, to be paid to D 2 20 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. " William Cannings, y e richest marchant of y c towne of Bristow, after- wards chosen 5 times Mayor of y° said towne for the good of the common wealth of the same : he was in order of priesthood 7 years, and afterwards Dean of Westbury, and died the 7th Novem. 1474, which said William did build, within the said town of Westbury, a college (with his canons), and the said William did maintain by space of 8 years, 800 handycrafts men, besides carpenters and masons, every day 100 men. Besides, King Edward the IVth had of the said William 3000 marks for his peace to be had in 2470 tons of shipping." " These are the names of his shiping and their burthens : — The Mary Canynges, 400 tons; The Mary and John, 900; The Kathrine, 140; The Little Nicholas, 140; The Kathrine of Boston, 220; The Mary Redcliff, 500; The Galliot, 050 ; The Mary Batt, 220 ; The Margaret, 200 ; A ship in Ire- land, 100."* the chamber of Bristol and the proctors of Redcliffe, to the uses aforesaid, sold all the said tenements to the said Mayor, Recorder, and two Aldermen, as by their deed, dated in the 1st year of King Edward the 5th, 1483, which is recorded in the great Red Book, 247, where it may appear. William Spencer, executor of the last Will of William Canninge aforesaid, gave to the Mayor and commonalty of Bristol, SJl. 6s. 8d. to the intent following, viz. twenty pounds he appointed should be freely lent to the Mayor for the time being, during the term of his mayoralty, and so to have con- tinued from mayor to mayor for ever. The other at 67/. 6s. Rd. he appointed should be lent to the Bayliffs of the said town, and they to enjoy the same for the time of their being in their office, paying therefore weekly Is. per week to the priest of St. George's Chapel on every Saturday, who shall pre- sently distribute the same to the poor in the alms-house in Lewens Mead : which the said William Spencer built with the money and goods of the said William Cannings, as appears in the great Red Book, folio 317. Moreover he bequeathed to certain feoffees, one messuage lying on the back of Bristol, now in the tenure of Richard Pley, of the yearly rent of four pounds, on condition that the said feoffees and their heirs for ever should provide every year, with the profits of the said tenement, three priests sufficiently instructed in sacred divinity to preach the word of God in the parish church of St. Mary Redcliffe, or the yard of the said Church, before the mayor and commons of the said town, and other devout people thither resorting in the Feast of Pentecost, and to pay every of the priests there so preaching 6s. 8d. To the mayor for the preacher's dinner at his table, 3s. 4d. each day. To the clerk and sexton for ringing the bell, and placing the forms for the mayor and common council, twelve-pence per diem. The residue of the rents he appointed should remain towards payment of quitrents, the repairing the same tenements, and the common profit of the town, as appears in the said book and leaf." * The preceding part of this epitaph has most likely been translated from William of Worcester's Itinerary, (p. 81, 99.) and is presumed to be of much later date than the death of Canynge. It is singular that his buildings at Redcliffe Church are not mentioned in the above epitaph. INSCRIPTION ON CANYNGE's TOMB. 21 " No age, no time, can wear out well woon fame, The stones themselves a statly work doth shew, From senceless grave we ground may mens good name, And noble minds by ventrous deeds we know. A lanterne cleer setts forth a candele light, A, worthy act declares a worthy wight ; The buildings rare, that here you may behold, To shrine his bones deserves a tombe of gold. The famous fabricke which he here hath donne, Shines in its sphere as glorious as the sonne , What needs more words, the future world he sought, And set the pomp and pride of this at nought. Heaven was his aim, let heaven be still his station, That leaves such work for others imitation." No. 6. is an altar tomb, on which lies the effigy of a man in priest's robes. The head is shaved, and the hands are raised, as if in the act of devo- tion. This monument is commonly ascribed to William Canynge* as Dean of Westbury . The head, however, is very different to that on the other tomb ; and both have the appearance of being portraits. This of No. 6 presents a very extraordinary face: — a long aquiline nose; a narrow projecting chin; high cheek bones, and very thin cheeks, combine to produce a very singular countenance. At the feet of this statue is a small figure of a man, apparently in great bodily agony. The following inscription, on a loose board, is some- times attached to this tomb: — " Hie inferius tumulatur corpus nobilis, circumspecti magnaeque indus- trial vli, Willi. Canyngs, dudum mercatoris et quinquies majoris istius villae et postea in ordine sacerdotali per septennium instituti, ac Decani de West- bury ; qui in ista ecclesia duas Cantarias perpetuas Duorum Capellanorum : viz' Unam in Honorem S 1 ? Georgii, et alteram in Honorem S"? Catharine ac etiam unura clericum stabiliri fecit et Mariae Virgini Sacravit cum sua Jo- hanna. Quorum animabus propitietur Deus. Amen," No. 7. William Coke. Near the principal monument of Canynge is * Canynge's Will, according to Will. Worcester. Itin.83.is dated 12th Nov. H74, and he died 17th of that month. — " His obiit was yerely celebrated, for which, in the year 14/5, there is charged in the annual account, " For our Master William Canynge's obiit at Lammas-day, as the composition specyfyeth, 2/. 17*. Od. —Paid for our Master William Canynge's years mynde, 2/. 11*. 8d.— At his days requiem, Ol. ijs. Od. —For the holy cake for 52 Sundays, wax, 5cL per Sunday, It. 7s. 8d.—To Sir Thomas Hawkysoke for his years wages, 61. 13s. 4d.-~To Sir Perse Welles for his years wages, 6/. 13*. Ad."— Barrett, 582. 22 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. a flat stone, on which are engraved representations of a large knife, a skim* mer, and this inscription : — " Hie jacet WiLLfn Coke quondam servitii Willmi. Canynges mercatore ville Bristole an s . ale propitietur Deus. Amen." No. 8. Is a flat stone in the south transept, with an inscription to the memory " of John Tilly, who died 22 February 1658, and Elizabeth his sister, who died 7 September, 1660 " No. 9. John Blecker, or Bleaker, and Richard Coke. A flat stone in the south transept, with a cross upon it, and having a rim of brass running round its edges, bears the two following inscriptions : — " Hie jacet Johes Blecker sen pandoxator cujus aie propicietur Deus. Amen." " Hie jacent Ricardus Coke, et Tibota ux. ejus. Quorum aiabus, pro- pitieturefis. Amen." John Blecker, Mr. Barrett supposes to have been one of Mr. Canynge's servants. The term pandoxator is translated both by him and Cole, " Brewer." No. 10. John Brook. Near the altar are engraved representations of a man and woman, on a brass plate, inlaid in a flat stone, with one shield, and blank places for three others. The following inscription is given by Barrett. " Hie jacet corpus venerabilis viri Johis Brook, quondam servientis ad legem illustrissimi principis felicis memoriae regis. Henrici octavi et justiciari ejusdem regis ad assisas in partibus occidentalibus Angliae, et capitalis sene- schalli illius honorabilis domus et monasterii Beatae Mariae de Glasconia. in com. Somcet, qui quidem Johis obiit 25 die mens. Decembris, Anno Dom, millesimo, quingentesimo, xxn, et juxta earn requiescit. Johanna uxor ejus una filiarum et haeredum Ricardi Amerike, quorum animabus propitietur Deus, Amen." No. 1 1 . John Jay. Near the altar is a flat stone, inlaid with brasses, on one of which are engraved two figures, of a man and a woman, and on another fourteen other figures of children. On the stone are brass shields, with monograms, and arms. Beneath their feet is the following inscription : " Hie jacent Johis Jay quondam vicecomes istius villae, et Johanna ux. ej. q. quidem Johis obiit . . . die . . . mens. . . . A . D m . m,cccc,lxxx, quor. aiabs pprop. de Ame." John Jay was sheriff of Bristol, and a merchant of eminence. His wife was sister to William of Worcester, as appears from the following notice in JOHN JAY — THOMAS MEDE. 23 his Itinerary, p. 267. — " Johannes Jay secundus maritus Johannae Sororis meae obiit die 15 mensis Maii anno Christi." No. 12. Thomas Mede. At the eastern end of the north aile, is a very handsome monument, consisting of an altar tomb, surmounted by a richly ornamented canopy. Recumbent on the former are effigies of the deceased, and of his wife, with their heads resting on cushions, and having two figures of angels supporting the pillow. The plinth of the tomb, as well as the back and sides, are covered with panelling and tracery. Immediately over the tomb are five crocketed canopies, with pinnacles, &c. and the whole is sur- mounted with a richly sculptured frieze and parapet. On the verge is this imperfect inscription : " pdict. Thome Mede ac ter majoris istius ville Bristoll : q. obiit xx. diefnes Decebis, A. Dm. m. cccc. lxxv qm. anabs pper." Thomas Mede was Sheriff of Bristol in 1452, and subsequently thrice mayor of that city. He had a country seat at Nayland, then called Mede's- Place, in the parish of Wraxal, and county of Somerset. — Barrett, Hist. Bristol, p. .585. Collinson's Somersetshire, vol. iii. 156. No. 13. Philip Mede. Attached to the former monument, and of the same style and character, but without any effigy, is another to the memory of Philip Mede, with the following inscriptions on labels, and engraved brasses with figures of a man and two women. " S'jL trinitas un' d e miserere nobis Pater de cffilis deus miserere nobis." Philip Mede was brother to Thomas Mede, whose monument has just been described. He appears to have been several times mayor of Bristol, and to have represented that city in two parliaments held at Coventry and at Westminster, in the thirty-eighth year of the reign of Henry the Sixth. His Will is dated Jan. 11, 1471, and directs his body to be buried at the altar of St. Stephen, in Redcliffe Church.— Barrett, 153, 680, 6b 1.— Cole's MSS. Mrs. Fortune Little. A small marble slab, at the north-east angle of the transept, is inscribed with the following lines by Mrs. H. More. " Near this pillar are deposited the remains of Mrs. Fortune Little, widow of Mr. John Little, late of this parish. She died June 28, 1777, aged 57. Oh ! could this verse her bright example spread, . And teach the living while it praised the dead : Then, reader, should it speak her hope divine : Not to record her faith but strengthen thine ; 24 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. Then should her ev'ry virtue stand confess' d, 'Till every virtue kindled in thy breast : But, if thou slight the monitory strain, And she has lived to tbee at least in vain, Yet let her death an awful lesson give, The dying Christian speaks to all that live; Enough for her, that here her ashes rest, Till God's own plaudit shall her worth attest. Hannah Mare. Sir John Inyn. In St. Mary's chapel is a large stone, with a "brass plate inlaid in the centre, bearing an engraved figure of the deceased in his judge's robes. On a slip of brass round the margin is this inscription : " Hie jacet Johannes Inyn Miles capitalis justieiarius domini regis ad placita coram ipso rege tenenda, qui obiit 24 die Marcii, Anno Domini, Mil- lesimo c.c.c.c.xxxix. cujus animae propitietur Deus, Amen." Few particulars, besides those mentioned in the inscription, are known respecting this judge. Barrett states, that his country seat was at Bishop worth, near Filwood, now a farm house. Everardus le Frensshe, or le Fraunceys. Near the centre of the cross aile stands a plain altar tomb, supporting the recumbent figure of a per- son in magisterial robes. The inscription, which is now nearly erazed, was as follows : " Hie jacet Everardus le French, qui in hac ecclesia duas fundavit can- tarias et duas alias in ecclesia St. Nicolai, et fuit ter maior hujus villae, cujus animae propitietur Deus. Amen, m.ccc.l." Everardus le Fraunceys was mayor of Bristol in the years 1333, 1337, and 1339, and member for that city in three different parliaments held at Westminster in the twenty-first and twenty-second years of the reign of Edward the Third. — Barrett, Hist. Bristol, p. 151, 675. Thomas Young. On a marble monument in the transept, is this in- scription : — " Hie inferius sub lapide marmorea sepelitur corpus Thomas Young armigeri, nuper de villa Bristol, ac filii ac haeredis Thomae Young unius justiciorum in communi Banco, et Jocosae uxoris ejus qui quidem Thomas obiit 15 Maii, A. D. 1506, quorum animabus propitietur Deus, Amen." Thomas Young was several times representative for Bristol during the reign of Henry the Sixth.— Barrett, Hist. Bristol, p. 153, 583. The Rev. Thomas Broughton was buried in the north aile of this SIR. JOHN INYN. — THOMAS YOUNG. 25 Church, in December, 1774. He was born in London, July, 1704. Bishop Sherlock presented him with the living and prebendship of Bedminster and Redcliffe. He was one of the original writers in the Biographia Britannica, and also author of a musical drama, entitled, " Hercules." — See Jones's Bio- graphia Dramatica, vol. i. p. 72. William Barrett. Attached to a column in the south transept is a small marble tablet, commemorative of William Barrett, F. S. A. Surgeon, and author of " The History and Antiquities of Bristol." This gentleman having become the dupe of young Chatterton, unfortunately incorporated many of the fictions of that juvenile bard in his history, and thereby rendered the whole apocryphal. It is evident that Mr. Barrett collected a large mass of materials, but was incompetent to the task of selecting, arranging, and discriminating. Many of his papers were left to Mr. Gapper ; those relating to Chatterton were disposed of to the Rev. Mr. Kerrich of Cambridge, for Dr. Glynn, and were afterwards deposited in the British Museum. Sir John Smith, of Ashton, purchased some MSS. at Barrett's sale. Sir William Penn** Fixed to a column in the south transept is a flat slab, with the following inscription, which so fully details the character and public services of the person it commemorates, that it is scarcely neces- sary to say more at present. " To y e Just Memory of S r Will. Pen K' & sometimes Generall, borne at Bristol An. 1621 son of Captain Giles Penn Severall years Consul for y e English in the Mediterranean of y e Penns of Penns Lodge in the County of Wilts & those Penns of Penn in y c C. of BvcKs & by his Mother from y e Gilberts in y e County of Somerset Originally from yorksheire Adicted from his youth to Maritime affaires, He was made Captain at y e yeares of 2 1; Rear- Admirall of Ireland at 23; Vice Admirall of Ireland at 25; Admiral to y c Streights at 29; Vice Admirall of England at 31; & Generall in y e first Duch Warres at 32 ; Whence retireing in An 1655 ; He was Chosen a Parliment man for y e Towne of Weymouth 1660: made Commissioner of y c Admiralty, & Navy Gouernor of y c Towne & forts of King-Sail, Vice-Admirall of Munster, & a Member of that Prouinciall Counseill, & in Anno 1664 was Chosen Great * In a very interesting work, by Thomas Clarkson, M. A. just published, are some notices of Admiral Penn, with a very ample memoir of his son, William Penn. 2 vols. 8vo. 1813. 1 have unfortunately lost, or mislaid, some authentic particulars of the Admiral, which were communicated to me by one of his descendants. E 26 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. Captain-Commander under his Royal Highnesse ; In y e Signall & Most Eui- dently successfull fight against y e Dutch fleet : " Thvs He Took Leave of the Sea, His old Element, Bvt Continued still is other Employs Till I669 at what Time, Throvgh bodely Infirmitys (Con- tracted By y c Care & fatigve of Pvbliqve Affairs) He Withdrew, Prepared & Made for his End ; & With a Gentle & even Gale In mvch Peace Ariu'd and Ancord In his Last and Best Port, At Wanstead In y e Covnty of Essex y e 16 Sept: 167O, being then but 49 & 4 Months old. " To whose Name and Merit, His Suruiuing Lady hath Erected this Re- membrance." CHAP. IV. Painted glass. — Church furniture. — Cross. — Paintings. — Thunder Storm. In the course of the preceding pages, it has been stated, that RedclifFe church contained two chantries, or altars, dedicated to St. George and to St. Catharine : Barret further states, that there were others to St. Blaze, St. Ste- phen, and St. Nicholas. William of Worcester intimates that the principal porch was dedicated to the Virgin : — " Ubi Sancta et beata virgo venerato." He also says, that " the principal chapel of St. Mary contains effigies of kings curiously wrought in freestone," and that the " entrance door-way is curi- ously wrought." In one of the windows of the north transept are some frag- ments of ancient stained glass, which appear coeval with the church. On one piece is represented six women in a boat, possibly alluding to a particular event connected with the church. There are also some diagrams, arms, and letters, which probably marked certain benefactors who contributed towards finishing the fabric. Figures of the virgin and child, with crowns on their heads, are pretty perfect. Among the MSS. that have been discovered in, and relating to Redcliff church, the following is entitled to record here, because it was certainly in existence before Chatterton's birth. A copy of this paper was communicated to the Society of Antiquaries of London, in the year 1736, by Mr. Theobald. The original is said to have been in the possession of Mr. Browning, of Barton-Hill, near Bristol, who, I learn from Lady Millman, a relation of ANCIENT SEPULCHRE. 27 Mr. Browning's, also possessed some MS. poems of Chatterton, never printed. Walpole published the following account in the first edition of his Anecdotes of Painting, 1762; but his copy was very inaccurate, and has never been corrected.* Barrett, in his History of Bristol, repeats it from Walpole. In the Nugre Antiquajf it was printed more fully and accurately, and from that work the following is copied. " The under-written memorandum was found (among other curiosities) in the cabi- net of the late John Browning, Esq. of Barton, near Bristol." " Item. That Maister CanyngeJ hath deliver'd this 4th day of July, in the year of our Lord 1470, to Maister Nicholas Petters, vicar of St. Mary Red- cliffe ; Moses Conterin, Philip Barthelmew, procurators § of St. Mary Red- cliffe, aforesaid ; a new sepulchre well gilt with golde, and a civer thereto. " Item, An image of God Almighty rising out of the same sepulchre, with all the ordinance that 'longeth thereto, (that is to say) a lathe made of timber and the iron-work thereto. " Item, Thereto 'longeth Heaven, made of timber and stain'd clothes. " Item, Hell made of timber, and iron-work thereto, with Divels to the number of 13. " Item, 4 Knights armed, keeping the sepulchre, with their weapons in their hands; that is to say, 2 axes and 2 spears with 2 pav6s. || " Item, 4 payr of Angels' wings for 4 Angels, made of timber and well painted. " Item, The Fadre, the Crowne and Visage, the ball with a Cross upon it, well gilt with fine gould. " Item, The Holy Ghosht coming out of Heaven into the sepulchre. " Item, Longeth to the 4 Angels 4 Chevelers." $ * It is evident that Chatterton was acquainted with Walpole's Anecdotes of Painters : and it is very probable that a sight of this document, in print, not only induced him to write to Walpole, but to commence fabricator of ancient writings. f See a new edition of this work, 2 vols. 8vo. 1804, with additional and corrective notes, by T. Park, F.S.A. J " He was ordained Alcolythe, and received the higher orders of subdeacon, deacon, and priest in 1467-8. See Tyrwhytt's Introduction to Rowley's Poems." Park's note to Nugae Antiquae, 1—12. Walpole spells the word Cumings: several other words vary in the two works. § Barret has proctors. || " A pavice was a large shield that covered the whole body." Park. f[ Park says they are " supports." Lord Orford reads Chevelures, perukes. E 2 28 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. Among the ancient relics, formerly attached to Redcliffe church, was an old Stone Cross, which is mentioned by William of Worcester, and by several other writers. A passage, in Ray's " Itineraries," p. 253, contains this notice of it and of the church : — " June 19, 1662. Saw Ratcliff church, built by one Cannings. It is in the form of a cathedral arched with stone, well gilded on the roof. In the church-yard is a fair stone cross, whereat are preached four sermons every year ; to wit, on Good-Friday, Easter Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday." William of Worcester's words are, " Crux pul- cherrima artificiose operata est in medio dicti cimiterii." Paintings in Redcliffe Church. — At the east end, over the altar, are three large pictures* by Hogarth, j- representing the following sacred subjects ; viz. — 1. The Ascension of Christ ; — 2. The High Priest and Servants sealing the Tomb ; — and 3. The three Marys at the Sepulchre. It is incompatible with the constitution of man and the qualifications of genius, to excel in different branches of art, or to acquire positive pre-emi- nence in two distinct departments of science. The productions of Hogarth, among those of several other justly famed artists, serve to illustrate this maxim. In pictures of comic character, rich humour, and moral satire ; and particularly in displaying the human figure and countenance in its common and popular forms, he certainly excelled all other painters : many of his pic- tures were also executed in a masterly style of colouring, grouping, and effect. * These were hung up in the church in the year 1757, and are said to have cost 500 guineas. The lofty eastern window is closed up for the purpose of hanging the largest of these paintings. f More volumes and essays have been published respecting Hogarth and his works, than of any other ancient or modern artist. Almost every picture that he painted, and sketch that he made, has been perpetuated and circulated by means of the graver. He commenced this practice himself, and engraved many of his own pictures. Since his death, both John and Samuel Ireland, Dr. Trusler, Cook, and Nichols have published numerous annotations on his works, and prints from every subject they could collect. It is singular that only one, of the three pictures at Redcliffe, has been copied and noticed in these publications : and it is equally singular that this print (in John Ireland's Illustrations) is so inaccurately copied, that it appears as if " done " from memory, rather than from the picture. Hogarth was certainly an artist of peculiar, and distinguished talents. He stood alone in art, and formed a school of his own. He was at once the pictorial satirist, monitor, and historian of the age in which he lived. I use the latter term, from a conviction that his pictures will always be referred to with pleasure and advantage, as recording the features, costume, and corporeal characteristics of many eminent and illustrious persons, and of many public and private events of his time. — See a very interesting essay "on the genius and character of Hogarth," by Chas. Lambe, in " The Reflector;" also a brief memoir of him in Rees's Cyclopaedia, article Hogarth, by T. Phillips, R. A. an artist highly qualified to appreciate his talents. THUNDER STORM. 29 Like the generality of artists, he was occasionally required to paint subjects from ancient and sacred history : but he then wandered out of his element, and at once betrayed a want of judgment and of taste. In the three pictures at Redcliffe church this is exemplified : As specimens of colouring however they possess much merit, and may be viewed with advantage by the young artist ; but in the forms and expression of the figures, and in their attitudes and grouping, we seek in vain for propriety, dignity, or elegance. Immediately over the altar-table is a picture, representing Jesus restoring to life the daughter of Jairus, by Henry Tresham, R. A. presented in 1792 to the church by the painter's uncle, Sir Clifton Wintringham, Bart. Thunder Storm. — I have already mentioned the result of lightning on Redcliffe church, in the year 1445, when the upper part of the spire was thrown down, and the western end of the church was much damaged. In 1812 I had an opportunity of observing the appearances and effects of a violent thunder storm in this edifice, which were really so awful and grand, that I conceive an attempt to describe them will neither be thought irrelevant nor unamusing. Never did I witness a scene so truly sublime. It reminded me of necromancy and enchanted palaces. Busily and intently engaged, alone, in surveying this large church, deciphering the old inscriptions, and examin- ing the monuments, an almost sudden darkness came on : the distant pictures and columns became scarcely perceptible : the rain, accompanied with large hail stones, fell in torrents on the leaden roof; and the glass of the windows seemed in imminent danger of being shivered to atoms. A heavy cloud ap- peared to be suspended immediately over the church, and discharged, from its swoln bosom, an accumulation of water, hail, lightning, thunder, and wind. In any situation such a storm must have been terrific; but situated as I was, in the midst of this church, impressed with a recollection of the destroyed spire ; enveloped in gloom, and surrounded by knights in armour, monkish effigies, and other images of deceased persons ; the effect was truly sublime and awful. At one moment the whole space was, as Milton terms it, " dark- ness visible," when, the next instant, the vivid lightning blazed through the long ailes, and illuminated every object. It glanced on the clustered column, played round the brazen eagle, flashed on the supplicating statues : alternate gloom and dazzling glare pervaded the church. An almost incessant peal of thunder continued to accompany the reiterated flashes of lightning: it now seemed exhausted, but only to come on. with additional fury of sound and 30 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. more awful crashes. Though so truly terrific, I own that it excited more of admiration than of fear : for my whole faculties were absorbed, and seemingly entranced in contemplating the varied, brilliant, and powerful effects of the scene. The sensations of the heart were suspended or over-powered by the more powerful emotions of the soul. With a few verbal alterations, the following passage from Walter Scott is at once apposite to, and descriptive of this scene :— ** And sudden, through the dark'ned air A flash of lightning came ; So broad, so bright, so red the glare. The fabric seem'd on flame. Glanced every column through the aile, Glanced eve. ry statue clad in mail. Each trophied tomb, each sculptured stone, Were instant seen and instant gone :— Seem'd all on fire within, around, Deep sacristy and altar pale ; Shone every pillar foliage crown'd, And glimmer'd all the dead men's mail." Lay of the Last Minstrel, Canto VI. CHAP. V. An Essay on the Life, Character, and Writings of Thomas Chattertobt. " Never ending, still beginning." " And yet poor Edwin was no vulgar boy; Deep thought oft seem'd to fix his infant eye : Dainties he heeded not, nor gaude, nor toy, Save one short pipe of rudest minstrelsy. Silent, when glad ; affectionate though shy : And now his look was most demurely sad ; And now he laugh'd aloud, yet none knew why ; The neighbours star'd andsigh'd, yet bless'd the lad: Some deem'd him zuond'rous -wise, and some believd him mad." Minstrel. Such is the portrait which Beattie has drawn of his imaginary young bard— the Minstrel : and this is so correct a delineation of Chatterton, that he may THOMAS CHATTERTON. 31 be considered as the prototype. Every line, and touch, defines a marked feature of this youth; and at once portrays his mind and character. To those who are not familiar with the events of Chatterton's life, and with the complicated and voluminous controversy excited by his writings, it will be expedient to unfold a few particulars : without some knowledge of which, the following Essay would be uninteresting and inexplicable. — Thomas Chatterton's father was a schoolmaster, and verger of Redcliffe Church, and died before the birth of his son, who was born Nov. 20, 1752. He continued under the care of his mother, and in Colston's charity-school, till July 1, 1767, when he was placed, as articled clerk, with Mr. Lambert, an attorney of Bris- tol. In that gentleman's office he continued three years, when he left his native place, his friends, his home, and his only social comforts, to seek literary fame, and acquire an honest livelihood, in the immense metropolis of the British empire. Confident in the powers and versatility of his own talents, he vainly conceived that a large fortune might be acquired by the exercise of his pen : he also fancied that an English Maecenas might be found, to vie with the illustrious Roman, in the proud exercise of patronage ; but his ex- pectations were visionary, his hopes were blasted : he wrote much, for little remuneration ; he struggled some time with penury, and want ; and at length, in a moment of mental derangement, terminated the cares of life by a dose of poison, in August 1770. Such is the short history of the most extraordinary youth that ever lived. His various essays in prose and verse, display a vivid imagination, and singular precosity of talent. The chief of his works have been published in three large octavo volumes, but he caused many more to be written. The life and character of Chatterton is one of those subjects, on which the essayist may expatiate without fearing that even his prolixity will be tedi- ous, or that his repetitions will be censured as impertinent; and the author of the present work, while he was conscious that but little could be added to the speculations of his predecessors, on a topic that has already exhausted the learning, and confounded the sagacity of our most celebrated critics, was yet unwilling to commit his present volume to the world, without attempting to gratify the natural expectation of his readers. It is not his intention, however, to comment at length on the various difficulties of the Rowleyan controversy, or to dwell with minuteness on the personal history of the youth to whom the composition of the disputed productions is attributed; convinced as he is, that the poems ascribed to Rowley, are the effusions of a stripling of 32 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. the eighteenth century, he will confine himself to a cursory review of those prominent features in the character of Chatterton, that appear to indicate his peculiar aptitude to imitate old writings, and to such correllative observations on incidental topics, as may correct the errors, or supply the imperfections of his critics and biographers. The only question, indeed, that remains undecided, regards the qualifi- cation of Chatterton to produce the poems, ascribed to Rowley ; and on this point I wish to be particular and explicit. The external testimony is known to every one; and respecting the internal evidence of the poems themselves, the public has long been decided. The frequent personification of abstract terms, and the copious employment of metaphysical imagery ; the consistency with which the characters and manners are supported ; the frequent employ- ment of words and phrases unknown to the age in which Rowley is supposed to have flourished ; the use of the pindaric measure ; the adoption of a stanza unknown in its finished state till the time of Prior; the varieties of metre; and the uniform harmony of the diction and the verse ; all conspire to indi- cate the existence of their author in a fastidious and cultivated age ; when the poet could improve his first rude efforts from the study of existing models, and combine the regularity that arises from experience, with the native energy of genius. It would be injustice, indeed, to the learned and able advocates for the authenticity of the poems, to deny that on minute, and isolated points of dispute, they have frequently combated with success the positions of their antagonists. But the extent and minuteness of their researches, is in itself the strongest argument against the justice of their conclusions : had the poems been authentic, their claims to antiquity would have been easily sup- ported by the most cursory reference to the works of our earlier poets : the same peculiarities of diction and phraseology which were most observable in the poems of the Rowleyan poet, would have been discovered on the surface of our ancient literature; nor would a Bryant and a Sherwen have been content to triumph in the justification of frequent and important ano- malies, by an isolated passage in some obscure writer, discovered after the research of many years, and brought forward with all the ostentation of decisive authority. It may be true, that more than twenty instances of the use of han, combined with the third person plural, are to be found in the writings of our ancient poets ; but such evidence, by shewing the wfrequeucy of this and similar peculiarities, demonstrates the poems of Rowley to be, PECULIARITIES OF CHATTERTON's WRITINGS. 33 even in their grammatical construction, unlike the compositions with which they are the most easily compared, and evinces them to be the productions of a juvenile imitator, unable to distinguish between the current language of our forefathers, and their mistakes and affected irregularities. Were it possible for the observer of life and manners to place before him an imaginary picture of embryo genius, and to contemplate with ideal enthusiasm the peculiarities of temper and of habit that might be presumed most strongly to foretell the future expansion of latent excellencies, the creation of his fancy would not present him with a more perfect object of scrutiny or of admiration, than was exhibited by Chatterton during his boyish years. ". I remember, (says Mrs. Newton,) his early thirst for pre-eminence, and that, before he was five years old, he would always preside over his play- mates as their master, and they his hired servants. His spirits were rather uneven; sometimes so gloomed, that for several days together he would say very little, and that by constraint; at other times extremely cheerful." While he exercised his juvenile talents in the composition of pieces which his seniors and instructors might have vainly endeavoured to equal, he pursued the bias of his genius in solitude and silence; disdaining a competition in which the glory of success bore no comparison with the possible mortification of defeat. He united the assiduity of the student, with those habits of reflection, which give life and beauty to the materials on which they operate ; and combined the pride of conscious superiority, the ambition that animates to the pursuit of great and arduous objects, and the practical activity and perseverance, that are necessary to sustain the flights and embellish the labours of the most exalted genius. The discipline, in- deed, to which he was subjected, confined him, during his early years, to occa- sional and desultory efforts ; but the observer who contemplates in the charity- boy of Bristol, the future representative of a minstrel of the 15th century, will indulge in the supposition, that during his evenings of school-boy gloom, and eccentric meditation, his faculties were absorbed in the combination and creation of those images which ennobled the struggles of Ella, and which diffuse their splendid but melancholy lustre on the beauty, the innocence, and the sorrows of his bride. The perseverance and the enthusiasm so necessary to the performance of great undertakings, were perverted by the peculiar bias of his mind: the unn form testimony of his friends asserts, that he was prone to artifice, that hq sometimes contemplated the possibility of a fraud, like that which we suppose 34 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. him to have accomplished; that all the stratagems and evasions to which an individual actually committing it would have recourse, were observable in his conduct, and, that he confessed himself to be the author of more than one composition which he had previously given to his friends as the production of Rowley. . If we suppose the pretended compositions of Rowley to be the writings of Chatterton, his falsehoods and inconsistencies are susceptible of easy ex- planation. He would have imposed the first part of the Battle of Hastings on Mr. Barrett, as an ancient production, and only confessed the deception in a moment of snrprize and inadvertence. Is it to be supposed, if that gentleman had made no inquiries into the authenticity of the verses, that Chatterton would have voluntarily undeceived him ? And if we admit, that in this in- stance he endeavoured to betray the confidence of his friend by fraud and falsehood, at what point are we to limit his deceptions ? On the other side, if vanity excited him to claim as his own a genuine production of Rowley, why did he not claim the composition of the rest of the manuscripts ? He might have done so with impunity : and since he was not restrained by any reverence for truth, it is probable that he was only withheld from acknow- ledging his productions by the same motives, that led to their ascription to an imaginary parent; the conviction that they would be despised and neg- lected as the production of an apprentice boy, of obscure birth and imperfect education. To obviate these difficulties, it has been supposed by the later advocates for the authenticity of the poems, that Chatterton did actually discover cer- tain compositions of Rowley among the neglected parchments; that he ex- panded and improved them, and was excited in one or two instances to imitate their appearance and phraseology. Consistently with this supposition, it must be conjectured, that the parchments he endeavoured to disguise were intended as the materials of this mode of amusement, and that he submitted the first part of the Battle of Hastings to the inspection of Barrett, as the best experiment by which he could determine his own success. But to indulge in these speculations is only to explain one wonder by another. The individual who wrote the first part of the Battle of Hastings, must have had learning enough, at least, to compose all the rest of the poems : and to distinguish the interpolated pas- sages from those which are supposed to be genuine, is a task to which the most accomplished critic would be found unequal. CHATTERTON S ACQUIREMENTS. 55 It is recorded by his relatives, that having occasion to write to an absent friend, his letter was composed of all the hard words that he could collect, and contained a request, that it might be answered in a similar manner. This circumstance affords a clue to the composition of Rowley, and to all the sub- sequent writings of their author. Having become in some degree conversant with the obsolete language of the fifteenth century, he was willing to exercise the same species of inge- nuity in the production of more elaborate works, that he had before devoted to the composition of a letter. The Poems of Mason, and particularly the Tragedy of Elfrida, were at that time the themes of critical applause, and of popular imitation. Walpole's " Castle of Otranto" had just attained peculiar publicity; and this work was published with all the arts of fiction, mystery, and falsehood. The poems of Ossian, or rather of Macpherson, were then the subject of public criticism, curiosity, and controversy. These were all cal- culated to fasten on the mind of Chatterton, and it is very probable, that he was accustomed to amuse himself during the hours of sedentary confinement, by couching his own imitations of these and other popular compositions, in the obsolete language and phraseology of the fifteenth and fourteenth centu- ries. By the assistance of Speght and Bailey, he was enabled to accomplish his purpose with a facility, which would not be suspected, but by those who have repeated the experiment. Surprized at his own success, the amusement of his solitude became his regular and his favourite occupation. A new field was opened to his personal and literary ambition, and beneath the name of Rowley, he foresaw the easy acquisition and durable existence of a species of literary fame, to which the pretensions of the unlettered boy would have been partially and unwillingly conceded. To render the deception so complete, that it should defy the scrutiny of common inquirers, he possessed all the learning and all the resources that were necessary. An inaccurate acquaintance with the vocabulary of our fore- fathers ; a cursory knowledge of Speght, and Stow, and Camden ; a super- ficial recollection of Saxon genealogy, and of one or two ancient Chronicles, were all the materials which were requisite to the accomplishment of the forgery. That Chatterton had access to many of these resources, is known from positive testimony; the few authors to whom his reference has not been positively traced, are neither rare nor valuable ; and his deficiency in anti- . quarian and historical knowledge, was supplied by the opportunities of his local situation. 36 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. It has been observed, that in the Battle of Hastings, the names of the Saxons are but sparingly interspersed, while the Normans are minutely and distinctly commemorated ; and Mr. Warton accounts for the circumstance by informing us, that Chatterton copied the names of the Normans from Fuller's Church History, while of the Saxons he had only the scanty knowledge, that might be obtained in the general course of his reading. It is known that an old translation of Camden was among the books to which he had access, and many of the names and facts which Mr. Bryant enumerates as beyond the research of a school-boy, are to be found in the Britannia. In various instances, as in bestoike and Chericauncie, he has been misled, as in others he was assisted, by Bailey's Dictionary. But we are triumphantly reminded of the short and hurried intervals, in which, on the supposition that Chatterton was the author of the poems, he must have accomplished such important and multifarious writings. It might be sufficient, without adverting to the evidence, to reply, that the labour of deciphering, transcribing, and explaining the works of Rowley, supposing them to have been genuine, must have been equal to that expended on their original composition. On reviewing the history of his youth, it will appear, however, that his opportunities of literary labour were fully equal, allowing for his known rapidity of composition, to the production of still more ex- tensive and arduous undertakings. At Colston's school, the hours of applica- tion were, in the Summer, from seven to twelve, and from one to five;, in the. Winter two hours less each day. He was always in bed by eight o'clock ; but was permitted to be absent on Saturdays and Saints days, from one or two at noon, till seven or eight in the evening. Admitting, therefore, an hour in each day to have been devoted to the purposes of cleanliness, there were in. summer three hours, and in winter five of each day, besides about three half days in every fortnight, that he could devote to his juvenile pursuits. His habits were solitary; and the intervals devoted by the other boys to the sports of childhood, were employed by him in reading or contemplation. In Mr. Lambert's office, a very small portion of the day was devoted to business. Within the compass of a year and a-half, assisted by leisure, and stimu- lated by enthusiasm, many poets have outdone the labours of Chatterton ; and even after supposing one-half of his time to have been devoted to his glossary and his Camden, it may be questioned, whether the number of his works exceeded, in proportion to the time expended in their composition, MONODY ON CHATTERTON. S7 the performances of a Blacket, and a Dermody.* Fluency may be attained by perseverance, and the compositions of the man of genius may flow from his pen, with the same exuberant rapidity, that marks the unpremeditated com- positions of the copious but feeble versifier. * The history of this extraordinary poet, and indiscreet youth, ha9 been minutely narrated by Mr. Raymond, in two volumes, 12mo. Among Dermody's poems is " A Monody on Chatterton," of such exquisite pathos, and eloquence, and so peculiarly apposite to our present subject, that I conceive the reader will be gratified in perusing the following passages from it. Monody on Chatterton, written by the late Thomas Dermodt, in the 12th year of his age. Daughters of Heav'n ! blest sisters of sweet song, Who nurse the seedlings that prolific rise From Poesy's illustrious birth, Firing some favour'd son of earth, And lending to his breast a portion of the skies j O ! hither move along In pensive pace, Lead bright Imagination's seraph-throng O'er the rude stones that frown uncouth — In yon deep dell's oblivious gloom Sadly sleeps a once lov'd youth. Ye wood-flowers, breathe your wild perfume, Ye shrouded warblers, harmonize the gale, Here, Autumn, fling thy brilliant bloom, And fence from wayward winds the sacred vale j Tread soft, ye infants of the air, While in the mazy dance you turn, Tread soft — and pause to mourn, Mingling your mystic sports with sickly care, For genius slumbers here ! True Genius, prompt to mount the sphere Of fancy, thro' pure rapture's maze, And view her with unshrinking gaze, Prompt to veil in antique dress What ancientry could ne'er expressj Catch the Buskin's lofty mien, Or woo the laughter-loving Queen. Immortal Boy, thee angels fed With Poesy's abstracted food, Thy bowl was fill'd from Fancy's fountain head, Thy bowl with wondrous ecstasies embuedj By heaven's own chymic skill refined, Thine was the manner of the mind. Had he but gain'd bis manhood's mighty prime, Bright as the Sun, and as the Sun sublime, His soaring soul had borne the awful wand Of magic power, and o'er the fairy land Of Fancy shed a new poetic race, Lending creation to his favor'd place. But oh ! the dying sounds decay, Ah ! they fade away, Melting, melting, melting, Melting from the ear of day. Despair assumes the Muse's lyre, Damps each softly-sinking fire, Presses the fury spirit down below, And tells his stubborn soul the bitter tale of woe. At last, superior to her chain, He flies o'er Madness' wild domain, Despis'd and dejected— he faints and he sighs! Too rigorous Heav'n ! how ghastly his eyes ! Thus I triumph o'er all— lo ! a Chatterton dies ! Spare oh! spare Almighty pow'r 1 His frenzy'd passions and his last black hour j Spare his mortal portion, spare ! Think upon his case distrest, And of his soul's fine essence grant a share to some pure breast ! 88 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. Pride, unbounded and solitary pride, was the leading feature in the cha- racter of Chatterton ; and had its direction been guided, or its exuberance repressed by the salutary influence of religious or moral truth, instead of ex- citing him to a secret, and selfish triumph over the dupes of successful for- gery, its influence would have inspired the honourable zeal of open and manly emulation. It has been the pride of modern literature to degrade the character of Walpole. That, as a man he was sarcastic, fretful, and fastidious ; prone to satirical comment on the failings of his friends ; easily disgusted by uncouth- ness of manners or impropriety of speech; accustomed to regard the world of professional literature, with the supercilious smile of conscious elevation; is evident from his letters, and the memorabilia published in " Walpoliana." These imperfections and eccentricities were the natural accompaniments of an irritable temperament, and an aristocratic education; they were confirmed and exasperated by the exquisite sensibility of his taste ; which detected with intuitive rapidity the slightest deviation from good manners. The Architect of Strawberry Hill, and the author of the Letter on Grace, might display without offence, a distaste of promiscuous intercourse, and a severity of deci- sion on the character and the manners of the intruders on his notice, that in the common possessor of rank and fortune, would both deserve and receive the salutary infliction of legitimate satire. To this individual, of habits so fastidious, so select in his intercourse, and so tender of his literary fame, it was the misfortune of Chatterton to ap- ply : and had Walpole possessed the lights in which we at present view the endowments of his supplicant, there seems no reason to doubt that he would have sacrificed many of his jealousies and prepossessions to the encourage- ment of so extraordinary a phenomenon. As it was, he must have felt indig- nant at the presumption and mercenary spirit of a boy, who could first at- tempt to make him the dupe of his forgeries, and afterwards endeavour to rest his claims for support, or patronage, on the productions of his artifice. Walpole's discretion, or his humanity, however, overcame his anger, and in a letter equally remarkable for the gentleness of its reproof, and its good sense, he exhorts him to apply with industry and perseverance, to the duties of his profession, as the surest means of enabling him hereafter to discharge the debt of gratitude to his relatives. The same sacrifice of principle to the expectation or possession of pecu- LETTERS OF CHATTERTON. 39 niary advantage, that marked Chatterton's application to Walpole, is too visi- ble in his literary undertakings after his establishment in the metropolis. Some weeks after his arrival, he calculates on the profits that might have been made on Rowley, had the gude old priest been a Londoner instead of a Bris- towyian. He writes on either side of the question, as suits his immediate, convenience ; and at a time, when, if we believe his own account, he enter- tained no dread of pecuniary distress, he coldly estimates the death of a man whom even his enemies lamented, at the price of his elegy. He seems in his letters to be conscious that his frequent appearance at public places, demands an apology ; and his Burlettas, written for Marylebone Gardens, appear to testify his intimacy with the leaders of those circles in which no young man ©f enthusiasm ever moved without corruption. His vices and his errors were the natural result of ardent passions, un- controlled by any restraint but convenience, undirected by any motive but the immediate gratification of the passing hour. Had he died a death less premature, it is impossible that a mind like his should not have discovered the folly of that pride, which finds its chief gratification in singularity ; and that sacrifices to a vain display of intellectual independence, the most mo- mentous interests that can excite the speculation, or affect the happiness of man. His pride would have been subdued into virtuous dignity ; the stub- bornness of unbending vanity, would have been converted into the undis- mayed and persevering fortitude of the Christian, and instead of terminating, with the melancholy resolution of despair, a short and unhappy career, he might have improved by his example, that community which he had adorned and enlightened by his talents ; honoured during the splendid progress of his mortal existence by the learned and the good, and the theme in after ages of virtuous reverence, and literary praise. The following letters from Chatterton to Dodsley the bookseller, re- specting his Play of iElla, &c. have never yet been published ; but as they tend to strengthen the arguments here advanced, I am induced to print them. The cunning, deception, and finesse of the young poet, are strongly illustrated in these letters. — They were written before he commenced his correspondence with Walpole. 40 REDCLIFFE CHURCH. LETTER I. Sib, Bristol, Dec. 21, 1768. I take this method to acquaint you, that I can procure copies of several ancient Poems ; and an Interlude, perhaps the oldest dramatic piece extant ; wrote by one Rowley, a Priest in Bristol, who lived in the reigns of Henry Vlth and Edward IVth. — If these Pieces will be of service to you, at your command, copies shall be sent to you, by Your most obedient Servant, Please to direct for D. B. to be left with Mr. Thomas Chatterton, D. B. Redclift Hill, Bristol. For Mr. J. Dodsley, Bookseller, Pall Mall, London. LETTER II. Sib, Bristol, Feb. 15, l?6g. Having intelligence that the Tragedy of jfEIla was in being, after a long and laborious search, I was so happy as to attain a sight of it. Struck with the beauties of it, I endeavoured to obtain a copy to send to you : but the present possessor absolutely denies to give me one, unless I give him a Guinea for a consideration. As I am unable to procure such a sum, I made search for another copy, but unsuccessfully. — Unwilling such a beauteous Piece should be lost, I have made bold to apply to you : several Gentlemen of learning who have seen it, join with me in praising it. — I am far from having any mercenary views for myself in this affair, and, was I able, would print it on my own risque. It is a perfect Tragedy, the plot clear, the language spirited, and the Songs (interspersed in it) are flowing, poetical, and elegantly simple. The similies judiciously applied, and though wrote in the reign of Henry Vlth, not inferior to many of the present age. If I can procure a Copy, with or without the gratification, it shall immediately be sent to you. The motive that actuates me to do this, is, to convince the world that the Monks (of whom some have so despicable an opinion) were not such blockheads, as generally thought, and that good poetry might be wrote in the dark days of superstition, as well as in these more enlightened ages. An immediate answer will oblige me. I shall not receive your favour as for myself, but as your agent. I am, Sir, Your most obedient Servant, T. CHATTERTON. P. S. My reason for concealing my name, was, lest my Master (who is now out of Town) should see my letters, and think I neglected his business. Direct for me on Redclift Hill. After a specimen of the Tragedy, in part of ^Ella's speech, he says — The whole contains about 1000 lines. If it should not suit you, I should be obliged to you if you would calculate the expenses of print- ing it, as I will endeavour to publish it by subscription on my own account. 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