:^- W'-^' •'A» • ^^ ^ OLD LINCOLNSHIRE WILL. Councillor J. G. Hall, Hull, has an interesting LiQColushire will ia his pod--essiou, and has f urwardel the foUowiujj copy of it lor publication : — "In ye name of God, Aineu. Ye xi daie of Decembre ! Anno Dotn. 1601 ui ys xIti year of ye rei^no of out SoTorei^u ladia Eliz>beth by ye grace of tjod of Kn^laud ( Fraunib aud Ire aud Queeue defender of ye faith of j OhrJste. I William Wiggau of Suitherby in ye coutit'.e of ' Lincoln cjentleman Purlin iu Bodie but v/oll iu niyude and of good Bud exuert remembiauoe God be bldsaed theietor i do make liud orciaiu'. yis my lust will aud testiment, in | manor and form loUowiu;: dtst I commeude my Some j into ye h^mds ot Jesus ChriBta my Greater aod Kedeemer aud my Bouie to b« Buii :e in ye Churche sarth of St, Mane of Wa-ldiuKh-ima accorduiu'O to ye oispositioats of my executors aud /urthor my inyn le aui mcuiu/ ia yt all other my lormer wills sbail ne revoke i by yis now my last will aud test^meut aiid further my mviide aud will is yat KitQeriUt! my wife » tor wise cilled Kitasrine I ILi^l dauKhter of Tliomas Hail of Hall Euj m ye pansii [ of Wahhomstowe in ye County ot Es-ex jieutlemviu shall j hare cue messuage in wbicn I now dwell uud oue ; doTe rooste aud forty acres of laud now in y<} occupation of B:nyard Toyue four acres ana oue on-s roo 1 ye Dote Eooste v. Builaed upon one acre walid Bound c>ill ye Hall Garth ourj acre called ve lugioste aud ye cl'yse called ve Ivlow all m ye demise Containing bv esti- mation liitie acres of pasture more or less vni Holtes of (JaK trees vi of yem aoutiing upon a close or ya aioresaid "Wm Wiggan and ye gors-j common upon ye nortu side of a close of Tommy Gardeners ana ye half of a close called fiowiil Di^ia renten of me by Tim Marsden 20 acres more or less. All that uie3su«ge caiiei ye Hall aud ye demise before Tested in ye mau of Syuiiterby to have and to hold in ye same uiessuaiie aud ail ye land before noted unto ye said Katlienno my Wife afor-said called Katherme Hall during her life natural aud ye remainder to eo to my rightful heirs for ever according to a deed iudente I made and appoiut-d by me ye twenty daia of Norembe.r now last past before ye date iiereof uato Edward Hopkiuson aud Ed^jar Ross'.ter to them and to tbeir heirs aud'unto ye heirs of me ye said William Wiggau for ever. Item, my will and mynle is yat Edward Booth Willm Booth Thos Booti Isabel ye wife of Wm Thompson and Elizabeth Booth shall have my fat stock amonjsc them to be iiivided immediately after my deithe ye remainuige stock to go to my night heirs Item I give to Isabel Thompson my servant one giey mare of 4 yeares old. Item I give unto Robert Lydyard my servant one youuije grey joie. Item I give unto Mattie \\'iggan aud Thomas Wiggau my brother and 8 ster of Ingham in ye countia of Lincoln three poumjs yearly to be paid uuto them out of my manor during their natnral ly^es. Item my will and mynde is yt afte ye death of Katherme my wiio ye said Mittie aud Thomas Wiggan my brother and sister shall have 3 pounus more yearly during :heir natural lyres to be payde out of mv lauds which my wife holds iu joynter. " Ltitm my will aud mynda is yat Robt Lydyart shall quitelv and peaceably give' up the messuage he now dwells in accordance with a lease heretofore anuuled by him net payin h s reut. •' Item I give to ye repaires of Snyterbye Chapel xlvs ▼id. Item I give to ye repaires of St. Marie's of Wadaiughanie vis V iid. Item I give to ye Catnedral ChurcLe of Lincoln vis vuid. Item I give to ye poore or Snyterbj'e vis viiid. Item I give to ye poore of Wa(";diii^;him vis vid. Item I give to ye poore of R'.ueerbie vis vnid. "Item I give to John Nevill my servant one yowo and a iamb to be aelivered to him at May Daia nest after my deatu. All ye rest of my goods moveable and un- inoveable my debts paide and my law}-er satisUtd aud my funeral expenses paide unio Kather.ue my wife aforewis'; called Kitherins Hail whome I now make lull executDrix cf this my last will aud lestomeut and I do make liobert Ty.'iiitt of ^Neitleton in ye couutii^ of Lincdu aud Edward Hopkiuson of Waddiughame tiusteesof yis my la^^t wid to see yt done accoroiugiie auu I give to them ten pouu s for their paiues. And idvoking all others I declare yia to by my list will aud teatamcnt. " William Wiggax. "Hfje being witnesses — William Yorke Henry John- son Johu Smythe Thomss Hornbie." mm^- TOPOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL OF THE COUNTY OF LINCOLN ; CONTJINING AN ACCOUNT OF ITS TOWNS, ANTIQUITIES, PUBLIC EDIFICES, CATHEDRAL, CHURCHES, PICTURESQUE CASTLES, MONUMENTS, SCENERY, THE RESIDENCES OF THE NOBILITY, GENTRY, &c. Accompanied with Biographical Notices of Eminent and Learned Men to whom this County has given Birth, BY JOHN BRITTON, Esq. F.S.A. Illustrated with Seven Engravings and a Map. iLontian: PRINTED FOR SHERWOOD, NEELY, and JONES, PATERNOSTER ROW ; AND GEORGE COWIE AND CO. SUCCESSORS TO VERNOR, HOOD, AND SHARPE, 31, POULTRY. Sold by all Booksellers in tlie County ADVERTISEMENT. This volume forms part of that elegant and interest- ing IVork lately completed in Twenty-Five Volumes^ entitled « THE BEAUTIES OF ENGLAND AND WALES ;" the Contents of which furnish the most complete Library of county history, topography, and biography, ever ofered to the Public. Each County has been written after an actual jieram- hulation, by Gentlemen engaged expressly for the pur- pose, aided by persons resident in the County ; and the Illustrations, containing upwards of Seven Hundred Copper-plate Engravings of Public Edifices, Castles, Cathedrals, Parochial Churches eminent for Beauty, or Antiquity of Ai^chitecture, Monuments, Ruins, Picturesque Scenery, Seats of the Nobility and Geiitry, S^c, ^c. have been executed by the most eminent Artists, from original Drazvings, at an Expence far exceeding fifty thousand pounds. The present Proprietors, who have recently purchased the whole remaining Stock and Copy-Right of this Valu- able JVork, offer it to the Public in separate counties. By this fnode of publication. Persons desirous of posses- sing a complete History of their native County, may effect it on easy and advantageous terms ; for hereto- fore, though the Letter-Press could have been purchased separately, yet the plates designed to illustrate each County xvere scattered throughout the fVork, and have not, till now, been published with the Counties to which they respectively belong. Directions for placing the Plates in this Volume. ~~ Page. Lincoln Cathedral 627 LoiUh Steeple 696 Croyland Bridge 749 Grantham Church 768 Stamford 793 St. Leonard's Church 797 Boston Church 730 The Map, to face the Title-jmge. ^jSricultural ilepoit!^. Published by Sherwood, Neely, and Jones, Paternoster Row, London, Booksellers to the Board of Agricidture. In One Volume 8vo. (Second Edition,) Price I2s. Boards, A GENERAL VIEW OF THE AGRICULTURE of the COUNTY of LINCOLN, drawn up for the Consideration of the Board of Agriculture, and Internal Improvement, by A. YOUNG, Esq. with a Map and PJates. Also, The Agricultural Reports of the adjoining Counties : viz, CAMBRIDGESHIRE, by the Rev. Mr. Gooch, with a Map, Price 9s. Bds. NORFOLK, by A. Young, Esq. with a Map and Plate, Price I2s. Boards. DITTO, by Mr. Kent, ditto, Price 6s. Boards. YORKSHIRE (East Riding), by Mr. Strickland, with a Map and Plates, Price 12s. Boards. NOTTINGHAMSHIRE, by Robert Lowe, Esq. with a Map, Price 5s. Boards. LEICESTERSHIRE and RUTLAND, by Pitt and Parkinson, with a Map and Plates, Price 15s. Boards. NORTHAMPTONSHIRE, by W. Pitt, Esq. with a Map and Plate, Price 8s. Boards. SHERWOOD, NEELY, and JONES, most respectfully inform the Nobi- lity, Clergy, Gentry, and Farmers, the above form Part of that truly National and Important Work, entitled, " The Agricultural Reports of Great Britain." These Reports were drawn up by Men of estabhshed Reputation, under the immediate Sanction of Parliament, and published by authority of the Board of Agriculture. They unite every Species of Information relative to the Statistical, Economical, Agricultural, and Commercial State of each County, illustrated with Maps and Plates, and by Means of them, (all of which are of acknowledged Accuracy) the Natuie of the Soil, the Productions, Improvements, and peculiar Practices of each County, are fully developed. The whole of the Reports are now published, and may be had either collectively, or separately. •,* Complete Sets of the Reports are recommended to the various Agricultural Societies, and Book Clubs, as forming an aggregate of General Information, and Point of Reference on all Occasions. LINCOLNSHIRE. INDEX. *^* The Names of Mauket Towns are printed in small Capitals ; and those of Villages in Italics. The principal Abbies, Castles, Churches, Encampments, Mo- numents, Pictures, Portraits, Priories, Roman Stations, and Antiquities, described in this Volume, will be found referred to in the Index under one of these Heads. Abbies at Barlings, 656, 657 ; at Newhouse, 68 1 ; at Thornton, 685, 686 ; at Louth Park, 701 ; at Six- hill, 704 ; at Birdney, 706 ; at Kirksteac!, 708 ; at Hagnaby, 71 6 ; at Revesby, 72'2 ; at Swjnehead, 734 ; at Croyland, 745—749 ; at Bourne, 781} at Griinsthorpe, 791. Ad Abum, 678. ALFOhD, privileges, church, school, 715, 716. Al,«:arkirk Church, 733. Alvingham monastery, 703. Ancasler, Roman station at; monu- ments of the Dukes of Aucaster, 761. Ancholme river, 560. ANrcDorES of Dr. Willis, 655; Dr. Makerel, 657, 695; Sir Wiiu.'m Monfon, 637 ; Sir Juhti MonsDn, 658; Thou);is Sutton, E^q. 66'2 ; Lord Burgli, William de Gaiiis- buroucch, Bishop Patrick, 674; John Walsh, Archhisliop Wliitg ft, 691 ; Adrian Sorope, loyalist, 70'2; Adrian Scrope, republican, 703; Cardinal Langton, Dr. Wiiliain T,angtoii, Bcnnct Langton, Esq. Bishop Waintlect, 719; John Fox, niartyrologist, 73'? ; Dr. S.uk ley, 737 — 7:^9; Maurice Johnsou, 7 ''4; Buho]) Fox, 764 ; Sir Isjac Niw- ton, 774; of Lord Burleigh, 783 ; Dr. Dodd, 784 ; the Bertie family, 789; Dr. Tighe, 791. Architecture, ecclesiastical, in Lin- colnshire, essay on, 539 — 542, Adackby, 730. Aslacoe, east and west Wapentakes, 669—671. Asvuarby, 764. Aswardhurn, wapentake, 763 — 765. Aveland, wapentake, 780 — 787. Aukborungh, a Roman castrnm, 677. Axholme, river, island, 675. B. Banno-vallum, a Roman station, 713, Baidiiey Abbey, 706. Bakiiow, castle «i)d barrows, 683. B.\RTON ui'ON HoMBEU, fortifications, ancient h;story, manor, courts, St. Peter's Church, 682 ; St. Mary's Church ; trade and im- proveuipnts of, 683. Belleai Abbey, seat of, and church, 716. Bolton House, seat of, 771 . Bennington, Long Priory, 762, 763. Bettisloe, wapentake, 7S7 — 791. Blow- wells, extraordinary fountains, 692. Bolingbroke-Soke, 719—724. BoLiNcanoKE, ancient castle, birth* place of Henry IV. 720. '^'Oc:52J_3o INDEX. Bontliby Graffo, wapentake, 733 — 155. Borough English, a peculiar law, 807. Boston town, TIG; borough, char- ters, corporation, 1U1; ancient his- tory and trade, present state, re- ligious li(ji;ses, I'iS; church, ar- chitecture, 7'29; tower of, places of worship, 730 ; schools, dispen- sary, iron briiige, 731 j memoirs of John Fox, 732. Bourne town, castle, 7,S1 ; town- hall, cnnal, Li»ril Biirk'i^h, and Dr. Dodd, native.-i of, 783. Bradley Havt'stoe, wapentake, 688 — 692.' £nnkhiU,n\5. Bioekksby Fark, seat of, 685; pic- ture pallery.paiiiiings, niausvleum, (385,686 l>uil-)anning, custom of, S07. Burgh familv, auecdotes of the, 6"3, 674. Burgh, Roman castrum, tumuli, 717,718. Burleigh, Lord, memoirs of, 783. Burrow Hill, enc-.impmcnt, observa- tions on, by LelaHd, Stukeley, &c. 431—433. Burton Gate, seat, 662. li'irtun I'efiuiaidine, 763. Bu'zccH, 701. Burwf'll Park, seat of, 701 : birth- place ot Surah, Buchess of Marl- borough, 702. Canals. 322, 323 ; at I.onlb, 700. Candh^l:oe, wa|.ent;ikf, 7 17 — 7i9. Car-nyke, a Homaii c.-iiial, 526. t'alcewtirth. waieiitak-.', 7 15 — 717. C*sit.ES, 533 ; Line oil., <'.47; Toik--ey, 660; Hi-.X; y. (-76 ; Banow, 683 ; at Tntler>ali, 701-' ; Sonxrion, 754 ; Sleatord, 753. Cdslle Byllu 111, village anlle Hill, inscription, singular tinure, 638. C'att,eiey, priory , 757. Cansi una?, the Koniaii station of, 761— 76*2. CHURCHl SinL^iH'oln.S.. Beriix't's, 642; St. M;iry de Wigfor!, St. 1*- ter at Gowts, 643 ; ^'t. .Martin's. €-»4j at Stow, 665, €67,663; at Gainsborcuirh, 672 ; at Bartort up'in iliimb;.r, S'.. Petei's and St, Maiy's, 682, 683; at Grimsby, 690; at Glee, 691 ; at Market Ra- sn, and Middle Rasin, 693; at Loiilh, 696—698; at Taitersall, 71 1; at lUirgh, 7i7 ; at Boston, 729, 730; at Kirlon, 736 ; at Spal- ding, 74-2; a- Croyiand, 748 ; at Sieaford, 759. Cleu, clinreh, uiid font, 691. Cleathorpe, townstr.p, a summer re- soit fir sea-batlwiig, 692. . Cockrniglon, an' cdotes of Set ope, 702; ?.Bd of Scro;>e, one of the fudges of Charles L 703. Colc^by Ha'l, seat of, gardens, tem- ples, 756. ■ CoteiKor/it, memoirs of Sir Isaac Ni?wton, a native, 774.-776. Cortani, PKcient inhabitants of Lin- .tjr, ancient see, and Bishops of, 535, 534. Dia-on s'ayers, definition of, 694. Draiiinjif, pioees- of, in Lincolnshire, 556—558. Diinston P liar : 755. Dvnuxks, champ. ons of England, 707. INDEX. E. Eagle, commandry of Knights Tem- pln-s, 733. Edeniimn village, church, monn- mcnts of the nertie family, 788. Elloe, wapt-ntake. 736 — 731. Eisl)ai!i hospital. 680 ENCAMPMENTS, 533; at Lincoln, 594 ; at Castle Hills, near Gairis- boroopcb, 674 ; at Yarborough camp, 6S5i at South Oiinsby, 714; at B'lrj^h, 717 ; a(. Rfvesby, 723; at Gc-hi^y Hill, 740; "at IngoMsby, 763; at Folkiiighana, ^86. EpwortH; 676; trade, roarfcel, fairs, 677. Ereshy, au ancient seat, 722. Ermin strest, a Ronian road de- scribed, 524. F. Fens, rivers, drainin?*, Jtc. 556— ' 558. Flexwell, wappntake, 757 — 761. FoLKiNCHAM, cncantpmeiiis at, 785. Fox, .lohn, rncirioirs of. 732. Fosb, Roman road, 524. G. Gainsborouch, 671 ; trade, church, briilite, town-ball, 67'?; old hall, 672, 673; ancient history, 673; eminent natives, 673, 674; Castle Hills. 674. Gainsborough, anecdotes of William de, r)74 Gartrc-, wapf^utake, 706 — 712. Gfiineii Chiircii, niiuninienis, 739. Gedney Chai^elry, Kuiiian antiquities at, 740, Girsby, seat of, 704. Rlandforb Bridge, or Rrigg, 630. Goltlio Hall, seat of, 705. Grantham Soke, 765. Ghantham, ancient history of, 766 ; Oliver Cromwell, 767 ; cross, priory, ib., <;htjroh, 768; moiMi- iDci.ts, font, 769 ; ginl.iliall, fiee school, 770, spaw, canal, 771. GuiMSDY, ancient and present state of, privileses, 689; chiirclies, ))riury, 690; emnient natives, 691. Grimthorpe Castle, history, present »tate, park, abbey, 7':»1. H. TIagnabey Abbey, 716. Iluivton, 704. Haintoi; Hall, seal of, pictures, 704. Hallaion, 436; singular annual CHstoni, 456, 437 ; encampment, 437 ; cbiirch, 438. Halto!i Lodge, seit of, 705. Haiiburv. nitmoirs of the Rev. Wm. 440—446. Haugham, remarkable bill and tor- rent at, 702. Hadu.rion, church, mansion, and an- t quities at. 777. Haverholnw, priory, 7(30. Haxey, 675 ; castie, 676. Heyningsa Cistercian nunnery, 675. Ilill, wapentake, 713, 714. lioUiench, town, iiospitai at, 736 ; school?, cross, chnrch, monuments, 757 ; mcino'rs of Dr. Slukeley, a n-^iive of, 737, 739. Ho r. LAND, a division of Lincolnshire, 724—751. Ihrnbigtoru a Roman camp at, 764. IhrkUjxv, Roman pavement, &.c. at, 681. Hornc.istle Soke, a Roman station, 712, 7! 3. Hop.NCASTLK, a Roman station, 712, 713. L Inscbiptions at Stow, 667; at Spi- tal, ti70. Ingoldsby, encampments at, 764. Johnson, Maurice, account of, 744. K. Kesteven, a division of Lincohi- >-hire,75I — 808. Kiikstetut, Abbey at; memoirs of Hu^'hKiikstead,708. Kirion, w.tpent;ike, 732 — 736, Kn/nn, 735 ; church and font, 736. Kmtl/i, 661 ; memoirs of Tbon»a«. Stiitun, 662. Kyme, pr ory, anecdote of Sir Gil- bert Talbois, 760. L. Langoe, wapentake, 755 — 757. LiingUm, barrows a', 714. family, anecdotes of, ib. Lawress, wapentake, 656 — 660. INDEX. LINCOLN, city, situation, suburbs, etymology, 393; description of a Roman station, i94 ; Roman roads and stations connected with it, 595 ; Roman antiquities, 59G — •602; historical account of the city, 602 — 6 1 3 ; d iocese, bishops, 6 1 5 — 627 ; calbedraj, 627—641 ; its si- tuation and beauty, 627 ; history, 6£8— 630 J dimensions, 630, 631 ; architecture, 631 — 635 ; monu- ments, 635, 636 J cloisters, chap- ter-house, 639.; library, officers, 640 ; churches ; St. Rennet's, 642; St. Mary de Wigford, St. Peter's at Gowts, 643, 644 ; St. Martin's, 644 ; parishes, population, trade, 644 ; privileges, representation, 645 ; corporation, 645, 646; castle, 647,64 8; mint- wall, ib. ; chequer gate, ib. ; Lucy tower, St. Giles's hole, priory, 649; Grey Friars, Deanry, Vicar's college, 650 ; bi- shop's palace, 651; John of Gaunt's palace, Jew's house, 652 ; stone- bow gateway, Highbiidge, market- house, grammar schools, Blue-coat school, 653 ; county hospital, houic of industry, county gaol, 654 ; city gaol, assembly roont, t heatre, 655 ; Dr. Willis, a native, 055, 656. Lincoln Cathedral, its situation and beauty, 627 ; history and succes- sive improvements, 628 — 630; parts and dimensions, 630, 631 ; architecture, 631 — C35 ; western front, 631 ; transept and choir, 652 ; nave and central tower, 633 ; windows, chapels, 634; riches, 635; monuments, 635 — 639 ; cloisters, chapter house, 639 ; library, Ro- man urn, officers, 640. ■ — diocese of, 613, 614. . chronological account of the bishops of, 615 — 627. LINCOLNSHIKE, general descrip- tion, history, topography, and local beauties of, 5'-23 — 808 ; ancient in- habitant*;, and limits, 524; Roman roads and stations, ib. Cardyke, K(>aian canal, 526; Anglo-Saxon h. story, 527 — 552; Danish incur- sions and barbarities, 529 — 551 ; lords and manors, 532 ; encamp- Uieuts and castles, 5j3 ; diocese and see, 553, 534, 613, 627 ; arch- ileaeoni ie», deanries, and pa- rishes, 535 ; monasteries and hos- pitals, 536—538 ; ecclesiastical architecture, 539 — 542 ; seats, 542, 545; geographical features, natural characteristics, and agri- cultural practices, 545 — 556; horses, neat cattle, 549 ; sheep, 550; rabbits, 551, 532; geese, 553; fens, rivers, drainings, &c. 556 — 558; political character, 588 ; wapentakes, hundreds, po- pulation, 589 — 590; maintenance of the poor, 591. LiNDSEY, a division of Lincolnshire, 592, 724. Lose Coat field, battle of, 61 1 . LouTH, situation, scenery, 695; re- ligious houses, free schools, 696 ; churches, St. James's, architecture, date of building, costs, dimensions, 696 — 698 ; vicarage house, her- mitage, St. Mary's church, 698 ; meetings, charters, town hall ; as- sembly room, theatre, manufac- tories, 699 ; canal, remarkable springs, 709. Louth Park Abbey, its foundation, &c. 701. Louth Esk, wapentake, 695—703. Lovedon, wapentake, 761 — 763. Ludborough, wapentake, 692. Ludjord, 703. M. Makerel, Dr. <>r Captain Cobler, anecdotes of, 657 — 695. Maniey, wapentake, 675 — 680. Marlborough, Sarah, Duchess of, 702. Monasteries in Lincolnshire, name, order, date of foundation, grantees and situation of, 536 — 533. Monuments and Tombs of Bishop Reniegius, Bishop Bloet, 636 ; Ca- therine, Duchess of Lancaster, Joan, Countess of Wtstmoreland, Elinor, Queen of Edward 1. 637; Bartholoniew, Lord Burghersh, 638 ; John, Lord Welles, fi39 ; Sir Thomas Grantham, 644 , Lady Margaret Wylughby, 722; Sir John Lockton, 734 ; Carr family, 759; Chief Baron Bury, Chief Justice Kyder, William Cust, 769; of the Bertie family, 781 ; Richard Cecil, Earl and Countess of Exeter, 806. Monson family, anecdotes of, 657, 658. Moor Tower, 708. INDEX. N. Ness, wapentake, lOl — 808. Norton Disney, church and inscrip- tions at, 754. KoC'in Park, seat of, priory, 756. Norton Place, s^at of, 670. Nunneries ai Torksey, 661 j at Hey- niiigs, 675. P. Panton House, seat of; portraits, 705. Piic'iback, luausion and coin, 744. Punto'/ Great and Little, church at, 77S. PoRiRAiTs of Sir Thomas Heneage, 704. ; Sir Robert Cecil, Sir C. Tur- n-r, 705. Prioiues, Torksey, 660; near Ep- woith, 676, 677 ; at Thornham, 6S0 ; at Elshaon, 681 ; at Cro^iiill, 6b4, nt ("ovenham, 692; a*. Spal- ding, 741; Nocton Park, 756; at Calif-ley, 7o7; at Temple Bruer, ib. ; at Kyme, 760 ; at Haver- holme, ib. i at Stamford, 797. R. JRasis Market, church and meet- ings at, 693. Rasin Middle, churches, priory, dra- gon slayers defined, 693, 694. KtnniH, mole of drainage by Mr., 58'2— 586. Revesby ."^libey, foundation, endow- ment, >eat, encampment, 722, 723, Rivers m Lincolnshire, 560 — 562. Hopsiey, oiemoivs of Bishop Fox, a native oi", 764, 765. Roman" Stations, Koads, and Anti- OUiiiChUi Linv'o'iishire, 524 — 526; at L\n<(.hi, 594, 60-? — 604, at Scamp^on, 658 ; at Torksey, 660 ; at Stow, 666 , near Ganisborongli, 675; at Ankboron^^h, 677, at Wintarton, 678, 679; at Hork- stow, 681 ; at Castor, 688; at Hon.ca t'u, 713; at W;-II, 716; atGe'iny Hid, 740; at Whaple.ie, i»". , at Pincrberk, 744; ar Slea- ford, 758; at An.aster, 761 ; at Little PootoD, 764 j at Denton, 773, Saints, England why called tlie isle, of, 641. Scwnpton, Roman villa at, 658 ; ma- nor and church, 659. Scaniptoii Hall, seat of, ib. Scrivelsby, manor of the Dyiriocks, 707. Seats of Lincolnshire, with the names of the owners, 542, 545. Semprinsrham, village and priory of, 786. "^ Sempririgham, memoirs of Sir Gil- bert, 786. Sidnacester, conjectures concerning the ancient city of, 337, 662. See and Bishops of, 534. Shirkbeck, wapentake, 726, 732. Sleaford, situation of, Roman an- tiquities at, 758 ; castle, church, monuments, school, hospital, 760. Somerton Castle, John, King of France imprisened in ; dimensions ' of, 754. Soutli Carlton, 657. South Ormsby, encampment and, seat at, 714, 715. Spalding, situation of, 740; ancient history, priory, and causeway^ 741 ; church, schools, oo'.iit-house, 742; trade, literary sxisties, 743; Maurice JoUnson, a native of, 744. Spilsbv, biiiliiings and cross at, 720; town-hall, ^ichools, church, 721 ; monuments, 722. Spital in the Street, hospital, chapel, and inscriptions at, 670. Stamford, ancient history of, castle, religious houses, churches of St. Michael's, St. Mary's, St. George's, All Saints', and St. John's; Uni- versity schools, hospitals, corpo- poration, ci)arter, town-hall, and population, 793 — 808. Siatnl'on/ Buron, parish of, castle, nun- nery, hospital, church, monu- ments, ousfom of bull running, law of Borough English, 804 — 808. St^ke Rorhford, church and monu- ments at, 778- Stow, the aucieor Sidnacester, 666 ; church, and inscriptions, 667,668; clock a')d font, 668 ; ancient pa- la •■; 669. Siiubiooke Holme, seat of, 657. Summer Castle, seat of, 679. 1^ l> INDEX. Swej'ne, King of Denir.ark, stabbed at Gainsborough, 673. SwiNEHEAD, 733 ; circumstances of King John's death, abbey, seat, church, and aionument at, 734. Tathwell, seat of, barrows, 702. Tatteiishall, ancient history of, 709; castle described, 710 j church and paintings, 711. Temple Belwood, seat of, 677. Temple-Bruer, ruins of an ancient preceptory at, church and cross, 758. Tesselated pavements, 673, 679. Trovulfingacoestre, site of, deter- mined, 661. Th.-.resby, seat of, 716. Thornton Abbey, its ancient history and nnagnificence, architecture, cliurch and chapter house, 684, 685. Thurgunby, seat of, 694. Torkesey, 660; Roman villa at, ib. ; castle, priories, churches, aod charters, 661. Trent, river, 560. Triangular bridge at Croyland, 749. W. Waimfleet, the Roman Via Nuna, Roman roads, jchool, church, 71 8, 719. Wainfleet, anecdotes of Bishop, 719. Walshcroft, wapentake, 692—694. Walsh, anecdote of John, 691. Warping, a peculiar mode of fertili- amg sol), 587. Welt, bairows and church at, 716. Weil, wapentake, 660 — 669. Weil and river, 560. Whaplede, a Roman sword found at, 740. Whit-ift, memoirs of Archbishop, 691. Williugham House, seat of, 694. Willis, memoirs of Dr. 655. Winnibrisgs and Threo, wapentake, 764, 765. WisTERTON, a small town, the Ro« man station, Atl Abum, 678. Wltham river, 560, 561. Worlaby, seat of, 681. Woohthoipe, coal discovered at, 765. Wragby, 704 ; charter, almshouse, chapel, and school, 705. Wragoe, wapentake, 703, 706. Wyngal, 707. Y. YarborougU Camp, 685. Yarborougb, wapentake, 680, 68S. it. Bryer, Printer, Bridje Street, BI«ckfriar«, LoBdOB» LINCOLNSHIRE. X HE county of Lincoln presents to the topographer, antiquary, historian, naturalist, and agriculturalist, a theme replete with interest ; and to each of these, the latter excepted *, it also un- fojds a subject hitherto unexplored, and consequently full of novelty. Its topographical history having never been given to the public, renders it extremely difficult to collect into one focus the numerous rays of information that are now dispersed in various directions f; and to give a concise, but satisfactory ac- count of the principal places, persons, and subjects, which pe- culiarly, and directly, belong to the county, is an arduous task ; but it devolves to me as a duty, and I will endeavour to execute it in a manner satisfactory to myself, and to the liberal reader. The present history must, however, be very brief, as its limits are bounded by the volume, and that must not be dispropor- tionably large. Hence, if I omit some places, or am not satis- factorily copious respecting others, I hope to ex{)erience the indulgence of those gentlemen of the county whose local par- tialities may have required, or anticipated, more circumstantial details. LI 2 That * On this subject we have had two large volumes ; one entitled " A Ge- neral View of the Agriculture of the County of Lincoln." By Arthur Young, Svo. 1799. This was followed by another volume of about 440 pages, en- titled, " A Review of the corrected Agricultural Survey of Lincolnshire," ice. by Thomas Stone, Svo. 1800. This volume contains also, " An Address to the Board of Agriculture, a Letter to its Secretary, and Remarks on the recent Publication of Sir John Sonierville and on the subject of Inclosures." t At the end of the volume will be gir tra list of such books, &iC. as iiave been published respecting the topograpl clthis county. 524 LINCOLNSHIRE. That part of the Brilisli Islands now called Lincolnshire, was, anterior to the Roman conquest, possessed by a class of the Britons known by the name of Coritani, who have been already described in the third volume of this work. During the domi- nion of the Romans in Britain, this district was included within the province of Britannia Prima; and from the evident re- mains, and best published accounts, it is indubitable, that it was intersected by different roads, occupied by military stations, and some of its natural inconveniences removed by means of Roman science and industry. The exact number of stations, roads, and encampments, however, is not, I believe, ascertained ; but the Rev. Thomas Leman, of Bath, who has particularly studied the Roman Topography of England, has kindly furnished me with the following information on this subject. " The British Ermin Street, afterwards adopted by the Ro- mans, enters this county to the west of Stamford, and, joining the north road, runs by Durnomagiis, (Great Casterton,) and Causennis, (Ancaster,) through Lindum, (Lincoln,) and in medio, about fifteen miles north of it, to Ad-Abum, near the banks of the Humber. A second branch of the same street branches off from this road to the westward, about five miles north of Lin- coln, and crosses the river Trent near Littleborough, the Sege- locum, and proceeds in a north-westerly direction to Doncaster, the Damim of Antoninus. A third branch of this road, sepa- rated from that first described, after crossing the Nen River in Northamptonshire, and ran in a straight line to Lolham Bridges ; whence it probably contiimed, with the Car-dyke, all the Avay to Lincoln. " Another branch left the Ermin Street, about six miles north of Stamford, and ran by Stenby, Denton, and Bottesford, to- wards ad Pontem, in its way to Southwell and Bantry. " The Foss, beginning on the coast not far from Ludborough, is visible from Lud/ord, where was a station, probably Banno- vallum, to Lincoln, on to Crocolana, (Bruff,) to Newark, &c. Besides these, there are also remains of other British track-ways ; particularly LINCOLNSHIRE. 525 particularly one from Harncastle, which is supposed to have been a station towards Castor and the Huniber. Another road, called the Salt Way, branched off from the Ermin Street, near Ponton, and ran by Denton into Leicestershire *." Doctor Stukeley supposes, that another Roman road was made " from the northern high country," i. e. of tlie Fens, " about BoUnhrook, by Stickford, Slickney, Sibsey, and so to Boston river, about Redstonegote, where it passed it by a ferry. From thence to Kirkton 'tis indubitably Roman, being laid with a very large bed of gravel; and just a mile from the river is a stone, now called the Milestone, standing in a quadrivium ; 'tis a large round stone, like the frustrum of a pillar, and very probably a Lapis MiUiaris." In another place the Doctor says, " At Sleaford, I am inclinable to think another road came from Banovallum, or Horn-castle, to the east of the river Bane, southward by Les Yates, and so crossed the Wilham by Chap- pel Hill and the Car-dyke, somewhere about Kyme. I think we need not scruple to assert, that Ravensbank be another an- cient road, going east and west through the heart of the countrs', from Tid-St. Mary's to Cowbit. I have rode some miles upon it, where 'tis now extremely strait and flat. We have been in- formed, that 'tis actually in some old writings called Romans- Bank f." The stations, encampments, &c. directly, and coUa- Ll 3 terally * This has been already noticed in page 31 G. But Mr. Turner, in his " History of the Town and Soke of Grantham," furnishes tiic following ad- ditional particulars. " The Salt-icay ran from the salt mines, at Droitwich, in Worcestershire, to the coast of Lincolnshire ; entered Lincolnshire not far from Saltby, crossed the Witham at Salters-ford, near to the town, or Roman station at Ponton. Besides the barrows, the dykes, the ramparts, called King Lud's intrenchraents, on Saltby Heath, noticed in Nichols's Histoiy of Leicestershire, where Roman coins have been found, are five Bairows on the Lincolnshire side, in VVoolsthorpe lordship, and two in the adjoining parish of Stainby, all within a little distance of this branch of the Erinine Street. A Roman pavement, also not fur olF, near Denton, and tlie Roman ruins near Stoke, mentioned in Nicliols, &:c. &c.-? t ItinerariumCuriosum, p. 14, &c. Edit. 1724. 516 LINCOLNSHIRE. terally connected with these roads, will be described in the sub- sequent pages of this volume. Aprrat work of this county, generally attributed to the Romans, is the Car-dyke, a large canal, or drain, which extends from the river Welland, on the southern side of the county, to the river Withani, near Lincoln. Its channel, for nearly the whole of this course, an extent of about forty miles, (Dr. Stukeley says fifty,) is sixty feet in width, and has on each side a broad flat bank. The Doctor at first ascribed the origin of this great work to Catus Decianus, the procurator in Nero's time ; and supposed ttmt his name was preserved in the appellation of places, 6cc. in the vicinity of the Dyke. Those of Catesbridge, Cafunck, Cats- grove, Cailey, and Catfhorpe, he adduced in support of his hy- pothesis ; but liaving afterwards devoted some time and atten- tion to the life of Carausius, the Doctor fancied he recognised pull of the name of his hero in that of the present work. Thus some authors tritie with themselves and their readers by useless, and <>t>en puerile etymologies. Salmon, in the " New Survey ol England," says, that " Cardyke signifies no more than /i?n- dyke. The fens of Ankholm-level, are called Carrs." Doctor Sluki'ley also admits, that Car and Fen are nearly synonimous words, and are " used in this country to signify watery, boggy places." Car, in the British language, is applied to raft, sledge, &c. vehicles of carriage. This great canal preserves a level, but rather meandering course, along the eastern side of the high grounds, which extend in an irregular chain up the centre of the county, from Stamford to Lincoln. It thus receives, from the hills, all the draining uid flowing waters, which take an easterly course, and which, but for this Catchwater drain, as now appropriately called, would serve to inundate the Fens. Several Roman coins have been found on the banks of this dyke. The whole of the present county is supposed to have been named by the Romans Lindum, and the principal station, or town, Lindum-Colonia. During the Anglo-Saxon dominion of England, Lincolnshire 6 was LINCOLNSHIRE. 527 waa incorporated within tlie kingdom of Mercia, which, ac- cording to an old chronicle quoted by Leland, was divided into two ])rovinoes, north and south ; and as the Trent was the se- parating line, the county of Lincoln constituted a great part of South Mercia*. Crida was Hie first Mercian sovereign, and began his reign in 586. At this time Mr. Turner supposed that the whole Island was governed by eight Aui^lo-Saxon monarchs; whence it should rather be denominaied an octarchy than an heptarchy. During the establishment of these petty kingdoms, the Saxons were in constant warfare with the Romanized Britons; and after these were subduwd, they were repealedly embroiled in conflicts with each other. In the midst of these civil commo- tions Christianity was introduced, and gradually made its pro- gress through the island. Peada, the son of Penda, was the reigning monarch here when this religion was offered to, and accepted by the South Mercians. This benign stranger gave a new turn to human pursuits, and soon diverted and engrossed the attention of the barbarous heathens. Peadfe founded a mo- nastery at Mrderham$ted, now Peterborough ; and, according to Speed, governed all the middle pa; I of Mercia, and, after the death of Oswy king of Northumberland, by gift, received all the southern part of that kingdom. This wzis only given on condition of his adoptuig the Christian faith ; whf n iie was also to marry Aljleda, daughter of Oswy. Peada was soon after- wards murdered, as supposed, by his wife f- " Edwin the Great, the first Cliristian king of Northumberland, conquered the counties of Durham, Chester, Lancaster, the Isle of Man, and Anglesea, carried his arras southward over the Trent, and ob- tained all the province of Lindsey. Paulinus, who converted him to Christianity, preached it wherever that King's power L 1 4 extended. * Another ctironicle says, that tliis kingdom was " departed into three partes, into West Mercia, Midtlle Mercia, and East Mercia : it contained the diocesses of Lincoln, Wircester, Hereford, Coventry, and Lich&eld " t Bede, lib. III. ca. 24.— Spe^d, '■2S>'i. 528 LINCOLNSHIRE. extended. Fie built the cathedral of Southwell, a little west o^ Newark, bajjtized many thousands in the river Trent, near to Tiovuljingacester, and converted Rlecca the governor of Lin- coln *. This was about A. D. G30. The learned and pious Alkfrid kept his court at Stamford in 658. After the death of Oswy, King of Northumberland, Egfrid his son invaded Wul- fere, and wrested from him the whole province of Lindsey, in Lincohisliire. This was about the year 673, In 6^7, he erected the Episcopal See of Sidnacesler, in favour of Eadhed, who had been chaplain to his brother. King Alkfrid, of Deira. In A. D. (783, we learn from Ralph de Dicelo, Eadhed left Lin- dissi for Ripon, where he remained till his death f." The Soutli Mercian kingdom, and bishop's see, being thus established, we hear of but few other public events, 'till the incursions and pil- lages of the Danes. These free-booters were particularly active in this county, and committed numerous depredations on the monasteries, &c. Ingulphus has given a circumstantial account of * Bede states, that Paiilinus built a sione church, of notable workmanship, (operis egregit) in the city of Lincoln, the roof whereof being fallen to decay, or destroyed by enemies, left the bare walls standing alone. " In this place, however," he observes, " tliat every year some miraculous cures are ge- nerally wrought, for the benefit of those who seek the faith." Translation of Bede, Book II. eh. 16. In this work the eily of Lincoln is particularly specified ; but to identify the LinclocoUncB civitatis of Bede with the present city, requires something more than assertion ; for the place adopted by Pau- linus for the erection of this stone church, was most probably the subsequent Sidnacesler. In the same chapter our veuerable historian proceeds to state, that a certain Abbot and priest of singular veracity, named Deda, told him he knew an aged person who was baptized at noon-day, by the Bishop Paulinus, in the presence of King Edwin, in the river Trent, near the city, which, in the English Tongue, is called Tiovuljingacester. This will be more particularly enquired into hereafter. t Dr. Stukeley, in a MS. quoted by Dickenson in his " History and An- ti';uities of Neioark," 4to. 1806. In this work the Doctor and Mr. Dicken- son endeavour to prove that Newark is llie Saxon Sidnacesler. LINCOLNSHIRE. 529 of llieir cruelties in this part of the island, and Hearne thus translates the abbot's narrative. Early in the year 8/0, " the Danes took shipping, and went into Lindisse, in Lincolnshire; and, landing at Humberstan, spoiled all that country. At which time the famous and ancient monastery of Bardney was destroyed, the Monks being all massacred in the church without mercy. And when they had stayed there all summer, wasting the country with fire and sword, about Michaelmas they came into Kesteven, in the same county, where they committed the like murders and desolations. At length, in September, 870, Count Algar, and two knights, his seneschals, call'd Wibert and Leofric, (from whose names the people thereabouts have since given appellations to the villages where they lived, calling them Wiberton and LeofringtonJ drew together all the youth of Holland, with a brave body of two hundred men, belonging to Croyland Abby, who were led on by one Toly, a famous soldier among the Mer- cians before his conversion, but now a converted monk of the same monastery. These taking with them about three hundred more stout and warlike men from Deping, Langtoft, and Baston ; to whom also joined Morchar, lord of Brunne, with his strong and numerous family ; and being met by the sheriff of Lincoln, named Osgot, a valiant and ancient soldier, with the Lincoln- shire forces, in number five hundred more, mustered together in Kesteven on St. Maurice's day, gave the Pagans battle, and, by God's assistance, vanquished them, with the slaughter of three of their kiags, and a great number of common soldiers: the christians pursuing the barbarians to their very camp, where find- ing a very stout resistance, night at last parted them, and the Earl drew back his army. But it seems the same night there re- turned to the Danish camp all the rest of the princes of that nation, who, dividing the country among them, had marched out to plunder." The next morning, notwithstanding the weakness of their forces, the Christians again gave battle to the Danes; who being "exas- perated at the slaughter of their men, having buried their three kings 530 LINCOLNSHIRE. kings early in the morning at a place then called Launden, but afterwards, from this burial, Trekingham, four of their kings and eight counts marched out, whilst two kings and four counts guarded the camp and captives. But tiie Christians, because of the sniallness of their number, drawing themselves up in one body, made, with their shields, a strong testudo against the force of their enemies' arrows, and kept off the horse with their pikes. And thus being well ordered by their commanders, thej kept the ground all day. But night coming on, notwithstanding till then they had remained unbroken, and had withstood the force of their enemies arrows, whose horses being tired, began to flag ; yet they very imprudently left an entire victory to the Pagans: for the Pagans feigning a flight, began to quit the field, which the Christians had no sooner perceived, (however their commanders forbade and opposed it,) than they broke their ranks, and, pursuing the Pagans, were all dispersed through the plain without any order or command ; so that the Pagans re- turning like lions among a flock of sheep, made a most pro^ digious slaughter." The Christian combatants being thus completely conquered, and nearly annihilated, a few youths of Gedney and Sutton con- trived to escape to Croylaud, where their afflicting news created much alarm and distress. The terrified minks, expecting an immediate attack from the sanguinary conquerors, instantly em- ployed themselves in secreting and securing their sacred relics and valuables, some of wliich were thrown into the well, and some committed to the care of the youthful class of their com- munity, who were impelled to seek self preservation in flight. Thus prepared, the old monks devoted themselves to prayer, from which they were roused by the flames of the neighbouring villages ; and the clamours of the fierce Pagans drew nearer. The abbot, and they who were too young or too old to fly, assembled in the holy choir, hoping there to secure life ; but the despe- radoes rushed into the sacred place, and, with savage exultation, embrued their swords in the bodies of tlie unresisting victims. Everv LINCOLNSHIRK. f»31 Every part of the sanclified building was stained with blood ; and by the statement of Ini^ulpbus, it appears that only one youth was preserved from the general massacre. The spoilers broke down all the tombs and monuments, with the avaricious hope of discovering treasures ; and on the third day, they committed the whole monastic buildings to the flames. With immense plunder, of cattle, &c. the barbarians marched the next day to Meder- hamsted, or Petei borough, where Ihey committed similar atro- cities and barbarities; and it is related that the monastery conti- nued fifteen days in flames. Though the horrible proceedings of the Danish marauders were so truly calamitous in their immediate operations ; and though language can oidy depict their repeated exploits, in the terms of plunder, murder, rape, famine, and distress ; yet these were the harbingers of national improvement and amelioration. The petty, jealous, and opposing kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxons, were compelled to confederate for ibutual defence ; a consolida- tion of the diflferent states arose, and during the greatest distrac- tion of the realms, that amiable man, wise monarch, and skilful general, Alfred, was sent as a guardian angel to the country. He employed the energies of intellect !o repel invasion, to discomfit the public and private enemies of the island, and to administer comfort to the distressed by wise and appropriate laws. After his firm establishment on the throne, the nation assnuied a new aspect ; and after that felicitous event, its annals became more clear and enlightened. " The sovereignty of Mercia, on the defeat of the Danes, fell into the power of Alfred. He did not, however, avowedly incorporate it with Wessex. He discontinued its regal honors, and constituted Ethelred its military commander, to whom he afterwards married his daughter, Elhelfleda, when her age permitted *." This lady continued the command of Mercia after Alfred's, and her husband's decease ; and during the reign of Edward the Elder, it was found necessary to construct and for- tify several places on the borders of Mercia joining Northumbria, particularly * THruei'8 " History cfthe Angto-Saxons," Vol. I. p, ^67. 4to. 1807, I 53'2 LINCOLNSHIRE. particularly on the banks of the Humber. On Elhelfleda's death, Mercia was incorporated witli Wessex ; but some places were still held by the Danes. Among these were the towns of Stam- ford and Lincoln, even so late as 941, when Edmund the Elder expelled them hence. The transactions of the Church and See constitute the prin- cipal subjects of historical narrative respecting this county, 'till the conquest and subjugation of England by William of Nor- mandy. Innovations of every kind were now introduced ; and the whole property of Lincolnshire was distributed among his favorite followers. The authors of the Magna Britannia, give the following list of names and manors from the Domes- day book. " To Alan Rufus, Earl of Britain and Richmond, he gave 101 lordships. Odo, Bishop of Bayeux and Earl of Kent, 76. Waltheof, Earl of Northumberland, 2. Judith, Countess of Northumberland, 17. Robert Vesci, ?• William Mallet, 1. mgil de Albini, 12. Robert de Stafford, 20. William de Percy, 32. Walter D'Eincourt, 17. Guy de Creon, or Crown, 6l. Geisfrid Hanselin, 15. Ranulph de St. Valerjj, 6. William le Blound, or Blunt, 6. Robert de Todenes, 32. Ralph de Mortimer, 7. Henry de Ferrers, 2. Norman D'Areil, 2. Alured de Lincoln, 51. Walter Bee, 1. Ralph Paganel, 15. Ernisius Burun, 28. Gilbert de Gon- dovo, or Gaunt, grandson of Baldwin Earl of Flanders, 1 13." It will not be an easy task to specify the respective lordships thus distributed; and indeed it will be extremely difficult to identify the places where each of those Barons erected their castles, and established their habitations, &c. Castles, Encampments, 6cc. The Maritime counties of Eng- land being more directly exposed to attack from invading armies and jiiratical plunderers ; and in the early periods of our civil es- tablishmcHts, being more populous than the midland country, were, therefore, frequently exposed to the conflicts of warfare ; and hence it is found, that these districts abound with military works and castles, or castellated mansions. Besides the perma- nent LINCOLNSHIRE. 533 iient stations of the Romans in Lincolnshire, they threw up cas- trametations in different places ; to guard the vallies, protect their great roads, and defend the mouths of the rivers. In the con- tinued wars between the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, these were again occupied by those people ; and, after the Norman conquest, some of the most commanding were adopted by the conqueror's cap- tains, and barons, and then became heads of extensive lordships. To describe or discriminate them, is, and ever will be impossible, for documents are wanting, and the innovations of the latter occupiers generally obscured, or annihilated all traces of their pre- decessors. Exclusive of the Roman stations, I find notices of the following fortifications, &c. Encampments at, or near, Brocklesby ; Hibberston ; Brough- ton ; Roxby ; Winterlon Cliffs ; Aulkborough ; Yarborough ; South Orrasby ; Burwell ; Stamford ; Castle-Hill, near Gains- borough ; Winteringham ; Humington ; Ingoldsby ; Castle Carle- ton ; Burgh ; Brough, north of Caston ; Barrow. Castles, or remains of Castles : at Horncastle ; Tattershall, a noble remain ; Bourne, only earthworks remaining ; Castor ; Somerton ; Moor Tower ; Stamford ; Scrivelby ; Torksey, a fine remain ; Sleaford, only earthworks ; Bollingbrook ; Lincoln, with walls and gates; Folkingham, with large fosses; Kyme Tower and Hussey Tower, near Boston ; Pinchbeck, a moated mansion ; Bitham. DiocEss and See of Lincoln. According to the testimony of the best authorities, the Bishop's See was established at Lincoln in the year 1057, or 10S8*, previous to which era, the diocess consisted of the two Anglo-Saxon Sees of Dorchester -f, now a village * The exact year of the translation is not satisfactorily specified. Most writers adopt the latter date ; but Beatson, in his " Political Index," states that the see was removed to Lincoln in 1057. t This See was founded about the year 625, and had eleven bishdps, whose names and times of installation are— I. Birinus, 625 ; II. Agilburtus, 650 ; III. » .534 LINCOLNSHIKE. village in Oxfordshire, and Sidnacester* , a place bordering on the river Trent. This dioccss is the lar;L;est in the whole kingdom, notwithstanding those of Oxford, Peterborough, and Ely, have been detached and taken from it. It comprehends the counties of Lincoln, Leicester, Hunlingdom, Beiiford, and Buckingham, except the Parishes of Monks Risborougii and Halton, which arc peculiars of Canterbury ; and Abbots Aston and Winslow, (which, with fifteen other parishes that are in Hertfordshire, and were taken hence, beinir made of exempt jurisdiction, and appropriated to the Abbey of St. Albans, becanie, on the dissolution of that monastery in the year 1541, part of the Diocess of London). The See of Lincoln also still retains the better half of Hertfordshire, and the Parishes of Banbury, Tame, Milton, Croperdy, Horley, and Hornton, in the county of Oxford ; Langford, in Berks and Oxfordshire ; Empingham, Lidlington, and Ketton, in Rutland- shire ; King's Sutton, Gretton, and Nassington, in Northampton- shire ; and the chapelries of Wigtnft and Hyde, in the county of Warwick, though the last chapel, Hyde, is desecrated. All which are subdivided, and under the immediate jurisdiction of these six Archdeaconries: L Lincoln, which is divided into the Deaneries III. Totta, who was the first Bisliop of Leicester, 737 ; IV. Elbertus, 764 ; V. Utiwom, 786; VI. Wcrinhurtus, 80\ , VII. Rcthmms, 814; VIII. Aldredus, 861 ; IX. Ceobredus, 873; X. Hurlavdus, ; XI. Ceolusus, or Kemilphux, 905. * This See was established in 678, and, according to Bede, was in, and paramount over tlie province of Lindsey. Its first bishop was Eadliedus, who was consecrated by Paulitnis in 678. His successors were the following . II. Ethelwinus, 678 ; III. Edgarus, 701 ; IV. Kinelbertus, or Embertus, 720; V. Alwigh, 733; VI. Eadulphus I. 751 ; VII. Ceohifus, 767; VIII. Unwona 783 ; IX. Eadulphus II. 789. After his death the See remained long vacant, and was occupied by the Xth Bishop Lenftcinus in 949, when the See Of Dorchester was transferred to, and united with this. XI. Aailnother, 960 ; XII. Assewinus, or Oesewynus, 967 ; XIII. Alshelmm, 994 ; XIV. Eadno- thus I, 1004: XY. Eadhcrieus, i016; XYI. Eadnothus II. 1034 ; XVII. m/us Normams, 10.52 ; XVIII. Wulfinus, 10.52. After the death of this Bishop, his successor St. Remigius, removed the See to Lincoln. LINCOLNSHIRE. 535 Deaneries of Lincoln, Aswardburn cum Latford, Aviland, Bel- tislaw, Bollingbrook, Candlfslioe, Calcewaitb, Gartree^ Gran- tham, Grattbe, Grimsby Hill, Horncaslle, Longobovey, Lovgdeu, Lowth cum Ludbrook, Nesse, Stamford, Walscroft, Wraghoe, Yarburgb, all in the county of Lincoln. U. Stow, which has the Deaneries of Aslacko, Coringham, Lawres, and Maulake, all like- %■ wise in the same county. III. Leicester, the Deaneries of which are Leicester, Ackley, Framland, Gartree, Goscote, Gulhlaxton, and Sparkeuhoe, all in the county of Leicester. IV. Bedford, which has Bedford, Chipham, Dunstable, Eaton, Fleet, and Shef- ford, all in Bedfordshire. V. Huntingdon, which has Hunting- don, St. Ives, Leightons!otie, St. Neols, and Yaxley, all in the county of Huntingdon. With Baldock, Berkliampstead, Hertford, and Hitchin, in Hertfordshire. VI. Buckingham, the Deaneries of which are Buckingham, Burnham, Mursley, Newport, VVaddes- den, Wendovtr, and Wycombe, all in the county of Buckingham. In all which, and the out-lying parishes in Oxon, Northampton, Rutland, &c. Tfie number of parishes contained in this diocess (which yet continues by far the largest in England) is staled by Browne Willis to be, including donatives and chapels, 1517; and the clergy's yearly teiiliis in this very extensive jurisdiction 175ll. 14s, 6"d. •' The revenues of this bishopric were valued at the dis- solution of the monasteries at 2065l. 12s, 6"d. and the common revenues of the chapter at 5781. ftg. 2d. But many of its manors being seized, it is now only rated in the king's books at 8941. lOs. id. and computed to be wort'i 32001. The clergy's tenth is valued at 175 ll. 14s, 6d.*" This see has given to the Romish church three saints, and one cardinal. From its prelates have been se- lected six lord chancellors, one lord treasurer, one lord keeper, four chancellors to the University of Oxford, and two to Cambridge. Willis computes the number of parishes in this diocess at 1517, of which 577 are impropriated. Camden says there are 630 parishes in the county. Connected * Beatson's Political Index. In the Red Book, the revenue of the Bishopric is set down at 8281, 4s. 9d. but in this the Bishop'is tenths, of £61. 13s. 4d. are not included. # 536 LINCOLNSHIRE. Connected with the cathedral, and its ecclesiastical establish- ment, were the Monasteries, Hospitals, &c. which were very numerous, and some of great influence, in this extensive ilislrict. In the following list I have endeavoured to furnisii the reader with the names and denominations of the whole at one view. A further account of some of these will be given when de- scribing the places where they are situated. Karnes of Placci. Orders. Alvingliam Gilbertine Nun, *Aslackby Kn. Templars * liardney Benedictine A. * Barlings Premonstra. A. LonsBenningtonCist. P. Folkingham Homcastle Lincoln Dean & Cii. West. Boston Bondeby BOSTON Alien P. 1 Hospital 2 Austin Friers 3 Black Friers 4 Grey Friers 5 White Friers Austin Canons Bourne * Temple Bruer Templars rounded. Granlerl to. temp.Steplien Ed. L. Cliuton temp. Ricb.I. Ditto temp. W. Con. Sir Ro. Tirwhit • 1154 Ch. D. of SufTolk 1175 temp. John • temp. Ed w. I. Edw. II. Mayor,&c. ofTow n ante 1288 Cha. Du. Suffolk Mayor, 6cc. Ditto Rich. Cotton Ch. D. Suffolk Bullington Burwell Cameringham Catley Cotham Covenbam * Croyland Deeping Egle Elshara Epworth Gilber. P. Bened. P. Premons. P. Gilber. P. Cister. N. Bened. P. Bened. A. Bened. Cel. Templars Austin Canons Carthus. P. Bened. N. Bened. Cel. Fosse Freston Glanford Brigg Hospital Gokwell Cister. N. circa 1300 1138 ante 1185 Ch. D. Suffolk Sleaford temp.Stephen Ditto Lincoln Ditto temp.Hen.II. Rob. Tirwliit temp.Stephen Rob. Carr Stephen Ed. Skip«itli circa 1082 Vfm. Skipwith 716 Ed. Ld. Clinton 1139 Til. Du. Norfolk ■ Th. Ei. Rutland ) temp.Stephen R^b. Tirwhit T ante 1166 Ch. Du. Suffolk temp.Ric. II. John Candish tempHen.IlI.Ed. Ld. Clinton temp. Stephen temp. John ■ ante 1185 Sir W. Tirwhit Barton Hather Grimsby Louth Peterborough GlaufordBrigg. Isleof Axholme Torkesey Boston * Wliere the Asterisk is affixed, imn!i'>s that some of Hip buiMinr" remain. yrimes of Places. Grantham Greenfield • Goxhill Grimsby Hagli Hagham Hagneby Haverliolnie Heveuing HOLBEACH Holland Brigg Hiimberston Innocents, St. Irfonl * Kirksted Kyme Leghorn LINCOLN Orders. Grey Friers Cister. N. P. Bened, N. Alien P. Alien P. Premonst, A. Gilbert. P. Cistertian N. Hospital Gilbert. P. Bened. A. Hospital * LotJTH Park Mark by Maltby Mere Newbo Newsham Newhouse Newsted-in- ^ Axholme > Newsted-jiix- ta Stamford Vol. IX. LINCOLNSHIRE. I'uu/idcd. 537 ante 1290 1153 at Grantham Granted to. l^ear. Rob. Bocherand ^ Dav. Vincent S Ch. Du. Suffolk Alford Barton antellGS D. Chap. Westm. Barton circa 1164 John Ld. Rnssel Loveden J. Bellow. J temp. Ric. II. „ i . *^ Broxholm 1175 John Freeman Ed. Ld. Clinton ^.r^-i-^^/'^ 1137 circa 1180 circs 1351 temp. John Bolingbroke Sleaford Sir Tho. Henneagc Gainsborough • at Holbeach Ed. Ld. Clinton ■ — temp. Hen. Il.John Ciieke, Esq. Grimsby temp. Hen. T. • Lincoln Premonstr. N. temp. Hen. II.Rob. Tirwhit M. Rasin 1139 Cha. Du. Suffolk Tattershall Tho. Ea.Rutland ) Cistertian A. Austin Canons Cistertian N. Nunnery * Cathedral Gilb. Priory Benedic. Cell College Five Hospitals Five Ordeis of ^ Friers had . houses here -^ Cistercian A. Black Can. P. Austin Can. P. K. Templars Premons. A. Gilb. P. Premon. A. temp. Hen. II. ^nd Ro.Tirwhit >'^'""^°'"^ ante John Tho. Henneage Louth auteConquest ■ ■ Bp. Remegius 1148 Cha. Du. Suffolk J. Bellow and J. Broxholm 1355 1139 Sir Hen. Stanley at Louth Cha. Du. Suffolk Louth Ditto Louth Lincoln Sir John Markham Grantham Brocklesby 1198 temp. Hen. II. — • 1143 Ch.Du. Suffolk Gilb. Priory Hen. II. Rob. Henneage Burton I Aust. Can. P. Hen. IIL Rich. Manours Stamford M m NoctoH 53S Names of Places. Nocton Nort!i Ormesby Revesby * Sempringham Sixliill Skirbcck Spalding Spilsby * Spittal Staufield STAMFORD Orders. Aug. Can. P. Gilbcrtine A. Cist. A. Gilb. P. Gilb. P. Hospital Benedic. A. College Hospital Ben. N. 1 Ben. Cell 2 Ben. P. * .3 Gilb. P. * 4 Hospital 5 Hospital 6 Lazar Ho. 7 Au£t. Fri. P. LINCOLNSHIRE. Founded. Granted to. Near. temp. Stephen Cha. Dii. Suffolk Lincoln temp.Stephen Ro. Heneage Louth 1112 Cha. Du. Suffolk Spilsby 1139 Ed. L(]. Clinton Folkinghani temp.Stephen Sir T. Henneage Rasin 1230 Cha. Du. Sutiblk Boston 10.52 Sir John Cheke at SpaUUng Diich. Suffolk at Spittal" Ant. Edw. II. D. Chap. Lincoln Helmeswell Hen. II. Rob. Tirwliit Lincoln Ken. II. Rich. Cecil Will. Cecil 20 Ed. I. • . 1,194, temp. Hen. II. • S Black Fi-. Con.- 1240 1210 9 Grey Fr. Ho. 48 Ed. IL 10 White Fr. Ho.by Edw. I. 1 1 White Mo. A. 12 Canons P. Ed. Ld. Clinton - Rob. Bocherand i Dav. Vincent S Cha. Du. Suffolk - Stow Stikeswold 13 Hospital Mon. of Ben. Cis. Nun. cir. 9 John at Stow Horncastle temp.Stephen Rob. Dighton * Swineshead Cist. A. 1134 Ed. Ld. Clinton Boston *Tattekshai , College 17Hen.VL Ch. Du. Suffolk at Tattershal Thornton Alls. Can. * Cnllpae Barton Barton Brigg 33 Hen. VIII. I5p, of Lincoln King Step. Ch. Du. Suffolk * Thornhoim Aus. Can. P. Torksey A us. Can. P. Sir Ph Hnhhv Stow Tnnstal Gilb. N. tem. Step. Redbourn * Tupholm Preni. A. temp. Hen. Il.Sir Tho. Hcnneag( ; Kirksted Vaudey Cist. A. 1147 Cha. Du. Suffolk Edenham Wellow Aus. Can. A. Hen. I. Sir Tho. Henneage Grimsby Wenghale Alien P. Trin. Coll. Cam. S. Kelsey Wilsford Alien P. temp.Stephen Cha. Dii. S'lffolk Grantham Witham Prec. Templars ; 1164 Stephen Roiford Bellcau A Louth The LINCOLNSHIRE. 5J9 The Ecclesiastical Architecture of Lincolnshire has long been justly celebrated for its magnificence, and the nu- merous churches in the county have been repeatedly spoken of io terms of admiration. It is not unworthy of remark, that the most splen(hd edifices vviiich adorn this district, were erected chiefly in its lowest and most fenny situations, where all commu- nication must fornterly have been, and even to this day is, ex- tremely difficult. It will, perhaps, be no easy task to assign a reason why our ancestors, in the erection of their churches, many of them of large dimensions and splendid in their decorations, should prefer such a tract of country to the higher and more frequented districts. The vicinity to the sea, and the numerous surrounding drains, might indeed have afforded a convenient con- veyance for the materials which were not the produce of thp county. Though the beauties of nature are scattered with a very sparing hand over Lincolnshire ; the fruitfulness and richness of its soil, make ample recompense for this deficiency ; and its in- ternal wealth, which is asserted at the present time to equal that of the most extensive counties in England, might have enabled its inhabitants to have supplied its natural defects, by erecting buildings and works of art, which still display au extraordinary magnificence, equal, if not generally superior, to those of any county in the kingdom. The ecclesiastical edifices in the division of Lindsey, excepting the cathedral of Lincoln, are in general inferior to those in Kest- even and Holland ; but in the north e.istern part of the division, which is bounded by the German ocean to the east, and the high lands called the Wolds to the west, which is a low, fiat tract of country, there are several churches, displaying much ele- gance in their architecture, and built of excellent materials. In many of these are some ancient brasses, and other memorials of families who, three or four centuries past, were resident here, and many of whose descendants, from their possessions, still constitute the principle family interest of the county. The churches in this district vary but little, as to their form and M m 2 character; 540 LINCOLNSHIRE. character; having in coinmon, a body with noilh and south ailcs^, supporting a range of windows, also a soulh porch, a chancel, and tower at the western end. Those of Grinishy and Wainfleet, which are the only deviations from this plan, are cruciform. Tlie date of them may be generally assigned from the time of Edward III. to that of Henry VII. though some display features of an ear- lier erection in the remains of arches, circular pillars, and other ornaments. A considerable number have been rebuilt, not only on confined dimensions, but with inferior materials. On the high lands, or Wolds, the churches have no claim to architectural beauty, many of them consisting merely of a body and chancel. In the south part of the Wolds, the churches and other edifices are built with a soft and green coloured sand-stone, which is plen- tifully supplied from the neighbouring hills : the battlements, but- tresses, copings, and more ornamental parts of the structure being formed of a harder and more firm material. This sand-stone, which never loses its soft and porous quality, gradually wastes away: and the deficiency being filled up with modern brick-work, the repairs present a motley and disgusting appearance. The churches of Spilsby, Bolingbroke, and Horncastle, with the re- mains of the castles at the two latter places, and the surrounding village churches, were, for the most part, erected with this svind- stone. In the western part of Lindsey the churches may be said to preserve a middle character: a considerable number possess much architectural beauty, and some of them display portions of very old architecture. The Division of Kesteven abounds with churches splendid both in their plans and decorations. In the central part, the greater proportion of them are adorned with lofty spires ; while many of those in the northern and southern extremities present handsome lowers. The churches of Sleaford, Leasingham, Heckington, Threckingham, Horbling, Grantham, with St. Mary's, St. John's, and All Saints, in Stamford, may be particularly mentioned as excellent specimens of ancient English architecture; and, by their height, form prominent objects from different stations in LINCOLNSHIRE. 541 in the county. Those of Kesteveii (lifter little from each other in their general plan : the spires, which are lofty, are octagonal, lighted by three tiers of canopied windows, and rising from noble towers at the west end of the building. The towers are frequently divided into three or four distinct stories, and formed of excellent materials and masonry. The date of the churches in this division, with the exception of those of Sempringham and St. Leonard, Stamford, is, in few instances, earlier than the thirteenth century ; and, scarcely any having been rebuilt, few will be found of later dale than the time of Henry the Seventh. It is principally in the Divismt of Holland, that Lincolnshire boasts superior excellence in ecclesiastical architecture ; and it is really surprising that so many fine monastic buildings, and sacreil edifices, should have been erected in a county so inconvenient for travelling, so unpleasant to the eye, and uncongenial with the common comforts of life. Yet, in this fenny, and swampy dis- trict, are the churches of Boston, Gosberton, Pinchbeck, Spald- ing, Holbeach, Gcdney, Long-Sutton, Croyland, and many others, which have a just claim to universal admiration. To the munifi- cence of the abbies of Croyland and Spalding, the greater part of the churches which adorn the southern part of this division probably owe their origin. At the period when most of Ihem ucre erected, Holland was one extensive fen, accessible in many parts only by water, and at particular seasons overflowed from the surrounding drains and marshes. Under these circumstances, the architects of those days were compelled to make artificial foundations, by laying piles or planks of wood, or difl'erent strata of earth and gravel, previous to the superstructure of brick or stone. The skill of our ancestors in building on such a precarious soil is strik- ingly apparent: few of their churches have swerved from their perpendicular; and a firmness and solidity are retained which the peculiar nature of the ground would hardly seem to admit. The character and plan of the churches in this division vary in different parts. Some are cruciform ; many have spires in common with those of Kesteven ; while embattled towers at the M ra 3 ' y^'j A^<^j^ / <^< A ft--*^ ScRiVELSDY, near Horncaslle. The Honourable Champion Dymocke, Esq. SoMERBY, near Brigg. ■ VYest«n, Esq. ^ «fc'^#"';^ii*HM'i^-*'*^*'^'*'*' SoMERBY Park, near Gainsborough. An old seat of the Seafurth Family — new John Beckwith, Esq. Stoke Rochfort, near Grantham. Edmund Turnor, Esq. SwiNHOP, near Castor on the Wolds. The Rev. Marm«uke Alington. SuDBRooKE Holme, near Lincoln. Richard Ellison, Esq. M. P. Stainfield, near Barling's Abbey. Tyrwhit Family. Tathwell, near Loulh. C. Chaplin, Esq. M. P. Temple Bellwooj), Isleof Axholme. William Johnson, Esq. Thoresby, Soiilh, near Alford, W. Wood, Esq. Teai.by Cottage, near Rasin. George Tennyson, Esq. Thonock, near Gainsborougli. Mrs. Hickman. Thorphall, near Louth. Captain Birch. Lffington, near Stamford. Well Vale, near Alford. Dashwood, Esq. Wellingore, near Lincoln. Christopher Neville, Esq. Walcot, near Wiuterton. Thomas Golton, Esq. W^iLLiisiGHAM House, near Rasin. Ayscough Boucherett, Esq. WoTTON, near Barton. John Kj^pleby, Esq. Geographical Features, Natural Characteris- tics, and Agricultural Practices. This county, as well as those of Essex, Cambridge, and Norfolk, have been generally described, as particularly unfavourable to human health- ftdness ; and from their contiguity to the sea, with the numer- ous fens, meres, brooks, &c. with which they abound, are com- monly stigmatized as producing pestilential climates, unfit for human liabitation, or only calculated to excite agues, cramps, and endless rheunjatisms. These general maxims, though often originating in just and apj^ropriate facts, are too conmionly per- verted. 5iG LINCOLNSHIRE. verted, or extended beyoud all due bounds. Thus it happens, that a county, or a whole country, obtains a sort of provincial character, which originally applied perhaps only to a small dis- trict, or which, from natural or artificial improvements, has been rendered nugatory. Lincolnshire may be said to be itt this predicament ; for its name is very commonly associated with fens, agues, flatness, and bogs. Those who reside in, or have ti-avelled over it, are enabled to appreciate and define its cha- racteristics : and this is the duty of the impartial topographer. Arthur Young has pointed out and described many features and places in the county, that may be referred to as partaking of the beautiful and picturesque : " About Belton," says he," " are fine Views from the tower on Belmont ; Lynn and the Norfolk Cliffs are visible, Nottingham Castle, the Vale of Belvoir, &c. And in going by the cliff towns to Lincoln there are many fine views. From Fullbeck to Leadenham, especially at the latter place, there is a most rich prospect over the vale of the Trent to the distant lands that bound it. These views, over an extensive vale, are striking, and of the same features are those from the cliff- road to the north of Lincoln, to Kirton, where is a great view both east and west to the wolds, and also to Nottinghamshire. Near Gainsborough there are very agreeable scenes ; from the plantation of H. Dalton of Knaith, and from the chateau battery of Mr. Hutton of Burton, the view of the windings of the Trent, and the rich level plain of meadow, all alive with great herds of cattle, bounded by distant hills of cultivation, are features of an agreeable county. But still more beautiful is that about Trent- fall ; from Sir Jo!in Sheffield's hanging wood, and the Rev. Mr. Sheffield's ornamented walk, following the cliff to Alkborougb, where Mr. Goulton's beautiful grounds command a great view of the three rivers ; as the soil is dry, the woods lofly, and the county various, this must be esteemed a noble scenery, and a perfect contrast to what Lincolnshire is often represented, by those who have only seen the parts of it that are very different. The whole line of tlie Humber hence to Grimsby, when viewed from LINCOLNSHIRE. 547 from the higher wolds presents an object that must be interesting to all. This, w ith the very great plantation of Lord Yarborough, are seen to nmcli advantage, from that most beautiful building the Mausoleum at Brocklesby*." Many other places and parts of the county might be pointed ©ut as presenting in themselves, or commanding, interesting scenery. The country around Gran- tham, also in the vicinity of Louth, and that more particularly between Bourn and the former place, including the noble and very spacious woods of Grimsthorpe, abounds with that inequa- lity of surface, that diversified interchange of hill and dale, wood and lawn, which constitute the picturesque and beautiful in na- tural scenery. Lincolnshire is a large county, and occupies an area, according to the best authorities, of about 2,814 square statute miles, or 1,800,880 statute acres. Arthur Young makes the total different; but it must be observed, that for want of a good survey of the county, we cannot come to any satisfactory conclusion on this head. That gentleman divides and estimates the contents of the county in the following manner : Acres. The Wolds 234,880 The Heath 1/8,400 Lowland 776,960 Miscellaneous ' 71 8,880 Total 1,848,320 Mr. Stone, in his agricultural survey of the county, gives Iht following statement respecting the extent and division of Lin- colnshire. The whole number of acres 1,893,100; of which he conjectures there may be 473,000 acres of inclosed, marsh, and fen lands, 200,000 of commons, wastes, and unembauked salt marshes, 268,000 of common fields, 25,000 of woodlands, and fi27,120 of inclosed upland. Lincolnshire * General View, &c. p. 3. 54S LINCOLNSHIRE. Lincoliisliire may be said to present Ihroc great natural fea- tures, each of which has a specific and nearly uniform charac- ter. These are the Wolds, Heaths, and Fens. The latter occu- pies the south eastern side of the county, and though formerly a mere waste and perfectly sterile, has been, by means of drain- age, &c. rendered subservient to agriculture; many parts indeed may be pronounced uncommonly fertile. On the sea coast, to- wards the north part of the county, this tract is narrow ; near the Huinber it contracts to a mere strip of land. The Heaths, north and south of Lincoln, and the Wolds, are calcareous hills, which, from their brows, command many fine views over the lower region. The rest of the county is not equally discriminated, either by fertility or elevation. " The Heati), now nearly enclosed, is a tract of high country, a sort of back-bone to the whole, in which the soil is a good sandy loam, but with clay enough in it to be slippery with wet, and te- nacious under bad management ; but excellent turnip and barley land, on a bed of limestones, at various depths, from six inches to several feet, commonly nine inches to eighteen. This hill slope* sharply to the west ; the declivity of the same nature, but gene- rally good ; and this extends some distance in the flat vale, for the first line of villages, (built also as the soil lies in a longi- tudinal direction, north and south.) The soil is rich loam, con- taining much pasturage *." Between Gainsborough and Newark, for twenty-five miles, is a large tract of flat sandy soil, the greater part of which has been enclosed and partly drained. The soil of the isle of Acholme may be said to be among the finest in England. It consists of black sandy loams, warp land, brown sand, and rich loams of a soapy and tenacious quality. The under stratum at Stacey, Belton, &c. is, in many places, an imperfect plaster stone. Respecting the general products of the county, it may be stated that its higher grounds arc now mostly inclosed and appropriated to * Young's View of tije Agriculture of the county of Lincoln. LINCOLNSHIRE. 549 lo Ullage, and produce all sorts of grain. Some of the wolds, however, are not yet divided, but are devoted to sheep aud rab- bits. The lower lands, that have been drained and enclosed, produce abundant crops of oats, hemp, flax, &c. Lincoinsiiirc has long been famous for a fine breed of harses; but tlie adjoining countv of York has now the credit for rearing many that are really bred in this county. In some districts there are numerous mares kept for the sole purpose of breeding. lu Holland division, almost every farmer keeps some ; and the number of colls reared is very great. These are chiefly of the black cart kind ; and are generally sold oft' from the mares when quite young, and sent into the adjacent counties to be reared. At Long Sutton, and in the vicinity, according to Stone, there is a breed of horses for the saddle, remarkable for bone and activity ; with the accustomed riding weight, they will trot sixteen miles an hour, and are allowed, by competent judges, to be the best saddle horses in the kingdom. " About Normanby and Burton many are bred both for saddle and coach ; sell at two or three and four years old ; get from eighty guineas, at four years old for a hunter, down to 7 or 8l. ; a good coach horse, at four years old, 30 to 40l.*" Many occupiers of grass lands purchase three years old colts at the Yorkshire fairs, keep them a year, and, after trimming, nicking, &c. sell them to the London dealers at the customary prices of, from 35 to 40l. each. Mr. Stone describes the 7ieat cattle of this county as being, for the greatest part, of a large sort, having great beads and short horns ; are stout in the bone, and deep in the belly ; with short necks and fleshy quarters, narrow hips and chines, high ia their rumps and bars on the shoulders. The coivs, he remarks, when fat, weigh from eight to nine hundred, and the oxen from ten to twelve hundred each. But though this be the general ^reed, yet many experimental farmers, by purchase, crossing, &c. * Yowug's Agri. Surv. 550 LINCOLNSHIEE. &c. are possessed of cattle of finer symmetry, an4 superior qualities. Lincolusliire is uot only a breeding, hut a grazing county ; and many farmers occupy thesisselves entirely in buying up full grown beasts, letting them run on rich j)astures for a certain period, and then finish their feeding by oil-cake ; when they are driven to Smithfield market. The dahy liere is not regarded, further than for the use of the family ; the rearing of calves, where cows arc kept, is the principal object of care. These are kept till three or four years old, and then usually sold to the feeders when in a lean state. Few farms are found in the county where farmers keep cows professedly for the profit arising from butler and cheese. " It is evident, upon the whole, that the Lincoln breed of cattle, upon Lincoln pastures, are profitable ; and it appears evident, from the general colour of the com- parisons made with the long-horned Leicester, their own short- horned are superior *." Perhaps the most profitable stock of the county is sheep. Numbers are bred and fattened in this part of the kingdom. Large quantities of wool are thence obtained, to supply the de- mands of the manufacturing districts. It is a curious fact, that while so much has been said in commendation of the Leicester- shire breed, as though it was a singular species, the Lincoln- shire, which is the same, should have been passed over in silence. Mr. Stone says, these sheep are not even varieties. " It is well known, that the late Mr. Bakewell, who was the original breeder of the pretended variety of sheep, called the new Leicester, laid his foundation upon the old Lincoln breed, selecting sheep that possessed the most perfect symmetry for his purpose, and after- wards crossing them with others, or breeding into the whole blood f." The sheep of Lincolnshire is a large, horned animal, adapted for • Young's Agri. Surv. t Review of the Agricultnre. LINCOLNSHIRE. 651 for tUe rich grazing, and marsh land of the counly ; and gene- rally weighs well when fat, and bears a heavy fieece of coarse, but long stapled wool ; the weight per fleece is 8lb. and upwards. Mr. Young mentions a sheep sold at Smithfield, which clipped, the first year, QSlb. of wool, in the second year 22\lh.! Few manufactures are establislied in the county; but two objects of considerable merchandize must be specified : deal- ing in rabbit's fur, and goose feathers. These were formerly of ^reat consequence, and furnished articles of extensive trade, be- tween the sellei-s, buyers, and merchants. From the -system of enclosing, now so extensively adopted, both rabbits and geese arc much abridged in this county. The rabbit warrens of tiiis county were formerly much more extensive than at present, and were preserved on a principle of improvement ; some being broken up for tillage, and others, which had been under tilth, being again laid down for this pur- pose. The soil of old warrens, by the urine and dung of rabbits^ and their continually stirring and ventilating the earth in bur- rowing, has been found incomparably better than lands of a like nature left in their original state. Rabbits are highly prolific ; and when in season, and of a proper age, their flesh is esteemed both wholesome and delicate. This, though in a degree an ob- ject of profit, does not render them so valuable as their skins ; these it was that recommended them to the notice of manorial proprietors; and though now, from various causes, much re- duced in price, they still continue to be of no inconsiderable value. The occupier finds, that the investment of a small ca- pital, yields an interest that noliiing else will, and a larger profit, with less labour, than any other kind of tenure. Their fecundity was a circumstance of no small consequence, when the skins of large, well chosen rabbits would produce ' 2s. 6'd. or 3s. each. At that time they were used in making muffs, tippets, lining robes, &c. the down was also employed in the hat manufactories. As rabbit skins constitute the principal profit of the proprietor, it 552 LINCOLNSHIRE. it becomes a primary object wilh him to attend to the time of breeding, killing, \'c. Skins that are free from black spots on the inside, are said to be in season, and the fur is then more valuable tlian at any other time. Those rabbits that are bred at the beginning of May, are esteemed the best. In June and No- vember the skin is also generally white. The silver grey rabbits are of the best sort, excepting those of a clear white colour. Skins from the latter have sold from ninepence to sixteenpence each. The carcases have not netted of late, to the keepers of these warrens, more than fourpence each, owing to tlie obliga- tion they are under of sending them far to a market, and to kill from eight to ten parts of the annual produce from the beginning of November to the end of December. This trade is not only on the decline, from the diminulion in the value of the skins, but also from the means of conducting it becoming daily more circumscribed. Since many methods have been discovered to ameliorate such lands, and render them more productive, it has been thought a point of good husbandry to destroy the warrens, and convert the land to other uses ; and the sooner the whole of such nuisances were removed the better. The voracity of rabbits is equal to their fecundity ; and as they eat all kinds of herbs, roots, grain, fruit, bark, and branches of young trees, they are very destructive to plantations, corn, and other crops, especially quickset hedges. Though the number of warrens in Lincolnshire has been greatly reduced within a few years past, yet many thousand acres are still devoted to this kind of stock. Mr. Young counted ten between Louth and Castor, a distance of eighteen miles*. Many of what are called the Fens, are in a state of waste, and serve for little other purpose than the breeding and rearing of Geese, which are considered the Penman's treasure. Indeed they are a highly valuable stock, and live where, in the present state * For a more patticular account of such lands, and their comparative profits, see Young's Agricultural Survey. LINCOLNSHIRE. 553 slale of those lands, nothing else will. They breed numerous young, which quickly become saleable ; or if thought more de- sirable, speedily contribute to increase the stock. Tlieir feathers are highly valuable; and however trifling it may appear in detail, the sale of quills alone amount, on a large flock, to a very considerable sum. Of feathers the use is well known ; and of all kinds, for the stufiing of bcds^ those of geese are considered the best. Whether from increasing luxury, the diminution in the quan- tity produced, or both these causes co-operating, the present de- mand in Engkiiid is obliged to be supplied by importations from abroad; aud Ihe article is greatly advanced, and advancing, in price. From the cheap mode which persons iu this county pos- sess of keeping these aquatic fowls, Lincolnshire still furnishes the markets with large quantities of goose-feathers and goose- quills. " During the breeding season, these birds are lodged in the same houses with the inhabitants, and even in their very bed-chambers; in every apartment are three rows of coarse wicker pens, placed one above another ; each bird has its separate lodge, divided from the other, which it keeps possession of during the time of sitting. A gozzard, or gooseherd, attends the flock, and twice a day drives the whole to water, then brings them back to their habitation, helping those tiiat live in the upper stories to their nests, without ever misplacing a single bird *." The geese are usually plucked five times a year, though some persons pluck them only three times, and others four. The first plucking is at Lady-day, for quills aud feathers, and again at Midsummer, Lammas, Michaelmas, and Martinmas. Goslings are not spared ; for it is thought, that early plucking tends to increase their succeeding feathers. " The feathers of a dead goose are worth sixpence, three giving a pound ; but plucking alive does not yield more than threepence a head, per annum. Some wing them only every quarter, iaking ten feathers from each goose. Vol. IX. N n whick * Gongh's additions to Camden, Vol. II. p. 235. Edition of 1789. 534, LINCOLNSHIRE. which sell at five shillings a tliousand. Plucked geese pay, ifi feathers, one shilling a iiead in Wikiniore Fen*." The common mode of plucking live geese is considered a bar- barous custom ; but it has, perhaps, prevailed ever since feather beds came into general use. The mere plucking is said to hurt the fowl but little, as the owners are careful not to pull until the feathers are ripe ; that is, not till they are just ready to fall; be- cause if forced from the skin before, which is known by blood appearing at the roots, they are of very inferior value. Those plucked after the geese are dead, are not so good. The general improvements that have been effected in thils county, within the last twenty years, and that are now gradually making, have co-operated to alter the general appearance, the agriculture, climate, &c. in such a material manner, that the surface has assumed a new aspect, the value of land is greatly increased, the means of social and commercial communication Lave been facilitated, and rendered more convenient, and the comforts of domestic life greatly promoted. Strll, though much has been done towards effecting these important ends, there is scope for material improvements : for the roads in many parts of the county are in a very bad state, and though toll bars are raised to tax the traveller, he is not provided with advan- tages adequate to the levied rates. In the neighbourhood of Boston, Spalding, and Louth, the Commissioners have com- menced a plan of forming firm and substantial roads. This is mostly done by laying a quantity of shingles, brought from the Norfolk coast, in the centre of the road, and mixing them with the silt of the place. The latter is a sort of porous sea sand, which has been deposited by the tides at a period when they covered the whole of the fens. It becomes firm with rain, but in dry weather forms a loose sand, of a dark red colour, driven about by the winds, and unfit for vegetation. Mixed with clay and loam it affords valuable breeding pasture for sheep, and in some places, under * Young's General View, p. 394. LINCOLNSHIRE. S55 under tillage, produces large crops of ofifs. Tins grain is almost the only object of agriculture in the inclosed fen-lands ; and im- mense crops of it are produced with little labour or skill. " There is an extraordinary circumstance," says A. Young, *' in the north-west corner of the county. Agues were formerly commonly known upon the Trent and Humber sides — at present, they are rare ; and nothing has been eftected on the Lincoln side of the Humber, to which it can be attributed; but there was a coincidence of time with the draining Wallin-fen in Yorkshire to this effect: that county is now full of new built houses, and highly improved, and must have occasioned this remarkable change*." The Wolds extend from Spilsby, in a north westerly direction, for about forty miles to Barton, near the Humber. They are, on the average, nearly eight miles in breadth, and consist of sand and sandy loam, upon flinty loam, with a sub-stratum of chalk. This is peculiarly their ajjpearance about Louth, and in the ex- tensive rabbit warrens between Gayton and Tathwel. But where the friable loams prevail, rich upland pastures are seen pleas- ingly intermixed. From Binbrook to Caiston, with the inter- ruption of Caiston Moor, a sandy soil prevails; and thence, sand with an intermixture of argillaceous earth, till they change into the rich loam of which Barton field, a space of 6000 acres, principally consists. Beneath this line, and parallel with the eastern shore, lies an extensive tract of land at the foot of the Wolds, in the direction of north west to south east, reaching from Barton to Wainfleet, of various breadth, from five to ten miles. This tract of country, called the marsh, is secured from the encroachments of the sea by embankments of earth, and is agriculturally divided into north and south marshes, by a difference in the soil, cajled tniddle marsh. The first comprises a large extent of rich salt lands, the value of which is well known to the grazier ; the second consists of stiff, cold, and tenacious clay, consequently N n 2 of * General View, p. 6. 556 LINCOLNSHIRE. of inffrior value ; and the iiilervening land is a rich brown loairi, stretching across from Belesby to Grimsby. Between these two ridges, of Wolds and Heath, is a tract of varied, but useful land, though accompanied by much of a difterent character. From " The heath-hill, looking eastward, there is no cliff; yet the country slopes gradually into a vale, of soils too various for description, but not good in its general feature. Half way to the Wolds, in a line not regular, there is a rising tract of good land, that is narrow, on w Inch the villages are built ; this sinks again into another part of the various-soiled vale to the Wolds. Thus forming, between the Heath and the Wolds, first, the narrow ridge on which the villages are built, set at about sixteen shillings ; then the Ancholnie flat, at fourteen shillings ; the ridge of pasture, at sixteen shillings ; a flat of moor very bad ; and then the Wolds *." Between these are the following Fens : first, those which lie below the sloping ground of the south Heath, running north by east from Grantham to Lincoln, ex- tending again by the west from Lincoln to the banks of the Trent. Second, those low lands lying upon the river Witham, forming a triangle between the points of Lincoln, Wainfleet, and Croyland. And lastly, those which lie between the north Heath and the Wolds, in the vicinity of Ancholrae. Fens, Rivers, Draining, &c. The Fens of this county, it has been observed, form one of its most prominent features. They consist of lands which, at some distant period, have been inundated by the sea, and by human art have been recovered from it. In the summer season they exhibit immense tracts cliiefly of grazing land, intersected by wide deep ditches, called droves, which answer the end both of fences and drains. These are ac- companied generally by parallel banks, upon which the roads pass, and are intended to keep the waters, in flood time, from overflowing the adjacent lands. They not only communicate with each other, but also with larger canals, called dykes and drains, * ^'ouDg's General View, &c. p. 9. LINCOLNSHIRE. 557 drains, which in some instances are navigable for boats and barges. At llie lower end of those are sluices, guarded by gates, termed gowts or gouts. During the summer, numerous flocks and herds are seen grazing over this monotonous scene, and many of the pastures aftbrd a rich and luxuriant herbage; but in the winter, or the autiiniw, if it should prov^ wet, the aspect is changed; the cattle quickly disappear ; the scene rapidly alters ; and the eye nmst pass over thousands of acres of water or ice, before it can find an object on which to rest, save the numerous wild fowl which then occupy this watery expanse. There are several causes which combine to produce this drowning of the lands. Many of the fens lie below the level of the sea ; some are lower than the beds of the rivers ; and all are beneath the high water mark of their respective drains. The substratum of the Fens is silt, or sea sand, which is a well known conductor of water. Through this, when the drains are full, the sea water filters; and, unable to pass by the drains, rises on the surface, and is known by the name of soak. To this is added, after rains, the water which flows from the higher lands, the overflowings of the ditches and rivers, and inundations from the sea, by the frequent breaches made in the banks formed for fencing it out. It is a circumstance no less interesting to the philosopher, than mortifying to the inhabitants of this county, that in many situations where the latter are almost ruined by this element in winter, during summer they are greatly distressed for it, even for the most common purposes. They are often in want of it for watering their cattle. In dry seasons, rich marsh land, which would feed a bullock an acre, being destitute of fresh water, cannot be depastured, and consequently becomes of little value ; for any thing of the nature of a flood, to which the vallies or low lauds of more unequal districts are so often ex- posed, has been unknown in this part of the kingdom since the general system of draining has been practised. At this season the drains are very shallow, and the ditches dry, the soak filters oft' through the silt; and, except in a few places, springs of N n 3 fresh 555 LINCOLNSHIRE. fresh water are unknown; so that the cattle must be driven to a great distance for it, at a certain loss in the proof, and at a heavy expence. Another evil also arises from those ditches becoming dry ; being the only bounds between fields and farms, each occupier is continually liable to trespass from the straying of his neighbour's cattle, and to actions of trespass for the damages committed by his own. Of the immense tract of Fen-land in this, as well as the ad- joining counties, much has been written, not only because it forms a prominent feature in the face of this part of the king- dom, but from having excited particular attention in the early periods of our history, at various times engaged the most pointed attention of the legislature, and to the present hour has elicited the genius, and employed the most strenuous energies of man, in attempts to facilitate its improvement. Of these attempts, made at different periods, and still making, to obtain the same desirable end, I shall take a cursory view. Previous to which, however, it will be necessary to enquire, whether these lands were originally in a state of Fen, or from various causes became so, subsequent to the period assigned by some writers for their existence 1 For this purpose, it will be necessary to advert to the natural rivers, and shew how they wind their devious courees through these marsh lands to the sea. It was the opinion of an able writer, who had entered more fully into this subject than any who preceded or have followed him, that there was a time when these parts of the country were not inundated by the ocean ; and though he could not affix any precise time for tlie event, he suggested several causes, which might either suddenly or gradually have tended to produce it. Speaking of the Isle of Axhoime, he says, " For many ages it hath been a fenny tract, and for the most part covered with wa- ters, but was more anciently not so ; for originally it was a icoody country, and not at all annoyed with those inmidations of the fivers that passed through it, as is most evident by the great num- bers LINCOLNSHIRE. 559 bers of oak, fir, and other trees, which have been of late fre- quently found in the moor, upon making of sundry ditches and channels for the draining thereof; the oak trees lying somewhat above three feet in deplii, and near their roots, which do still stand as they growed, viz. in firm earth below the river *." In speaking of the great level, Dugdale is of opinion, that it was formerly firm and dry land, neither annoyed with stagnation of fresh waters, nor iauuflations from the sea ; and this he sup- poses was the case both of the fens in Lincolnshire and the ad- joining counties : for it is an established fact, that large timber trees will not thrive in watery or marshy lands, and such have been found lying in the eartli abundantly in this country. Hence it will appear, that these lands were at a former period in a very different state to what they are at present, and the cause of such a remarkable change it is desirable to ascertain. On such occasions it is usual to wave the trouble of investigation, by referring it to some extraordinary convulsions of Nature ; and an earthqualce often in this way suddenly swallows up or supplies the place of a long train of natural causes. Dugdale himself, unable to find any documents, which might enable him to affirm positively on the subject, is obliged to have recourse to this kind of conjec- ture — •' By what means that violent breach and inundation of Uie sea was first made into this country, I am not able positively to affirm, therefore I must take leave to deliver my conjecture there- in, from the most rational probabilities ; which is, that it was by some great earthquake: for that such dreadful accidents have occasioned the like we have unquestionable testimouyf." But the enquiring mind does not easily rest satisfied with such precipitate conclusions ; it must have recourse to facts, for as it aims at truth, it requires demonstration. With this view, there- N n 4 fore, * Dngdale's " History of Imbanking and Draining," edit, by Cole, p. 141, ■r-See Beauties in Cambridgeshiieo t History of Imbanking, &c. p. 172» 560 LINCOLNSHIRE. fore, it will be necessary to speak of the nature, course, and ex- tent of the nafnral rivers, withiu tlie limits of the district now to be described. The jirincipal of these, which either rise in this county, pass through, or are connected witii it, are the Trent, the Ancholme, the William, the Wellaud, and the Glen, with other tributary streams. The Trent, though not properly a river of the county, rising in Staffordshire, and taking a north-eastern course through the counties of Derby and Nottingham, yet, as dividing the latter county from that of Lincoln, has a claim to some notice here. It forms the boundary on the north-western side, from the village of North Clifford to that of Stockworth ; whence it constitutes the eastern boundary of the Isle of Axholme : it thence flows to Aldborough, opposite to which it receives the Dun, and a little be- low, being joined by the Ouse, both mingle their waters with the Humber. From Gainsborough, where it is crossed by an handsome bridge, it is navigable for the conveyance of coals, corn, and various articles of commerce to its estuary. The Angholme is a small river, rising in the Wolds, near Market-Rasin, whence, flowing northward by Glanford Bridge, it is navigable to the Humber, and falls into this river some miles below the junction of the Trent. The Welland lakes its rise near Sibertoflf in Northampton- shire ; and being increased by numerous rivulets and streams, passes Market Deeping ; where, entering the fens, it leaves a por- tion of its waters and sludge or sock, which it had accumulated in its previous passage through the rich lauds of Northampton- shire, Leicestershire, and Rutlandshire. In its course from Deep- ing to Croyland it divides iuto two streams; the one branching off southward by east to Wisbeach ; and the other, by a sluggish course, through an artificial channel, to Spalding and Surfleet, where meeting the conlributary Glen, it empties itself into Foss- dyke-Wash, east of Boston. The WiTHAM only is properly and completely a river of this county, and is entitled to particular notice. It may be said to derive LINCOLNSHIRE. 56l derive its source near South William, a village about ten miles north of Stamford ; and thence flows almost duly north, by North VVitham, Coltersworth, through the park of Easton, and to Great Ponton, where another stream joins it from Skillington and Sloke Rochford. At Little Ponton it receives a sniall brook, and then proceeds on the eastern side of the town of Grantham ; whence it flows by Belton Park and Sysion, and then turns westerly to Long Benninj-lou. Here it bends again to the norlh ; and after flow- ing by Claypole and Beckingham, it proceeds through a wide sandy valley to Lincoln. It now flows almost directly east to Grubhill, where it turns to the south-east, and continues in this direction to Boston, and unites its waters with the sea, at a place called Boston Deeps. From its source to Beckingham its banks are diversified wilii rising grounds and oruaraenlai objects. Among the latter are the elegant spire of Grantham church, the fine woods at Belton Park, Syston Park, and Little Ponton. In its course to Lincoln the contiguous country is diversified by high grounds, vailies, and woods : after passing the city it leaves the high lands, and continnes through a level tract of country to the sea. Much of the present bed of the river from Boston up- wards is a new artificial cut, made for the purpose of widening and straightening the channel, rendering it more commodious for navigation, and better adapted to receive and carry oft" the water of the contiguous fens. These rivers, with those of the Grant, Ouse, and Nene, in the adjoining counties, from the obstructions they meet in delivering their waters to the ocean, are the cause of drowning so large a portion of valuable land. By which means, instead of deriving the benefits the country otherwise might, from the occasional over- flowing of their waters, had they been i)ernntted to have a free passage to the sea, it has been greatly injured by their stagnating effects; yielding little profit to the proprietors, and annoying those who reside in their vicinity. From these and other causes the courses of the rivers have been changed at times ; their usual phaniiels being obstructed, the wafers have forced through the low 562 LINCOLNSHIRE. low lands new passages to the sea. Their direclion has been sometinies alteied, by the jilans put in execution for the drain- age of the country. Thus the " Welland having anciently its course by Spalding, through the decay of the out-fall there, a great part thereof sometime fell through Great Passons, and so out by Quaplode ; but that out-fall also decaying, as most out- falls over the washes have and still will do, that way was stopped up, and the river driven to seek a course in a very faint manner, by south-east, towards Wisbeach ; where agahj, through the de- fect of Wisbeach's out-fall, when it meeteth with the Neue at the new Leames-end at Guyhirne, they both turn back under Wal- lersey Bank to Hobbes, and so to Harche Stream ; and there meeting with the great branch of Nene came to Welle, and so to Salter's Lode*." We are informed by Leland, that a channel was cut to divert it nearly in the line of its ancient course, by a shorter way, called the New Drain, in which passing Croyland, it runs into the sea by Spalding. Other rivers of the Fen Country have experienced similar changes. Tlie Witham, by powers granted to Commissioners in the time of Richard the Second, it appears, that its ancient bed had been choaked up between Claypole and Lincoln, by which means the current had been diverted, and much of the adjacent country overflowed from the waters endeavouring to find another pas- sage. And in the eighteenth of the said King's reign, a new Com- mission was appointed to view and repair the difterent banks, sewers, &c. between the Hill Dyke and Bolingbroke. The latter part of its course was diverted by art from the old bed under the direction of a Mr. Grundy, surveyor and engineer, about the year 1762. The plan was only partially acted upon, by which the waters of the Witham were conducted by a new channel, with double embankments, commencing near Hambridge, proceeding to * Dngd. Irab. p. o7o. LINCOLNSHIRE. 565 to Langrick Ferry, and thence through Anton's Gowt, to the grand Shiice near Boston. That the obstructions, which these rivers meet in their passage, has been the cause of the inun(hitions, is clearly evident; but perhaps what has occasioned those may not be so manifest. In viewing the various inlets of the sea on this part of the coast it is surprising to observe the in)mense quantity of sand and sludge which is con'.inually depositing on the shore. This is caused by the nature of the tides, whicli, from the form of the channel, flow with much more violence than they ebb. This causes the mouths of the rivers to be choaked up, and the de- scending waters to be thrown back on the lowlands, in the vici- nity of their banks. " Whosoever hath observed the constant tides, which flow up the river Ouse, at Lynne, will find the water always very thick and nmddy there, because the sea bearing a larger breadth northwards, from thence worketh with so much distemper. It is no wonder therefore, that a great proportion of silt doth daily settle in the mouth of the Ostiary, and likewise in the other, viz. of Wisbeche, Spalding, and Boston, so that in time it could not but grow to that thickness, without some artifi- cial helps to quicken the current, upon its evacuation at every ebb, whereby it might be carried out again, that it must needs force back the fresh waters, and cause them not only to over- flow, but at length to drown the whole level, through which their streams did pass. A>id this we see was apparently the case here ; for to such an height is the silt grown, that in the year l635, upon the deepening of Wisbeche river, the workmen, at eight feet below, came to another bottom which was stoney, and in it, at several distances, found several boats that had lain there overwhelmed with the silt for many ages*." The Great Bay, or Estuary, into which the different rivers, passing through the Fens are disembogued, is very shallow and f^\ll of shifting sands and silt. The rivers, which are constantly loaded * Dugd. Imb. p. 177". 564. LINCOLNSHIRE. loaded with mud, particularly in times of flood, are met by the tide equally charged with silt, which obstructs their entrance ; and at a certain distance from their mouths, the force of the river waters becoming equal, a stagnation takes place, during which the silt ir> dropped and banks are formed. The situation of these banks is nearer to, or farther from the river's mouth, ia proportion as the strength of the river water is greater or less i. e. as it is sooner or later overcome by the tide. " Thus, if the seasons are wet, the rivers having a greater quantity of water in them, run to seaward with a greater velocity, and of consequence drive the silt further out ; on the other hand, if the seasons are dry, and the tides stronger from the effects of wind, or other causes, the silt of course is driven less powerfully putwards, and settles nearer to their mouths, which choaks them up and prevents their free discharge from the fens*." These, without any extraordinary phenomenon, appear to have formed the moor-land of the present Fen-country, and to be the sole cause of its frequent inundations. That this was the state of the country, at an early period, is evident, from the plans of imbanking and draining which the Romans adopted in order to counteract the mischievous effects of such inundations. Since their departure much has been done at various times for the im- provement of the district, and an immense expense has been occa- sionally, and is still annually incurred, to prevent the encroachment of the waters, and at the same time to ameliorate the soil. A brief account will not only serve to give an idea of the country, but ■also tend to illustrate those periods of history. Deeping Fen, on the banks of the Welland, appears to have received the earliest attention ; for at the beginning of Edward the Confessor's reign, a road was made across it by Egelric, for- merly a monk of Peterborough, but at that time bishop of Dur- ham f. In * Renr.ie's " First Report conceruing tlie Drainage of Wildmore Fen," &C. p. 2. i Hist. Ingulphi, f. 510. LINCOLNSHIRE. aGS III the time of the Conqueror, Richard de Rules, chamberlain to liiat monarch, inclosed this part of the Fen Country, from the chapel of St. frulhlake to Cardyke, and beyond to Clei-lake, near Cranmore ; excluding the river Welland, by a large and extensive bank of earth. " And having by this good husbandry brought the soil to that fertile condition, he converted the said chapel of St. Guthlake into a church, the place being now called Market Deeping; by the like means of banking and draining he also made a village, dedicated to St. James, in the verj- pan of Pudlington ; and by much labour and charge reduced it into fields, meadows, and pastures, which is now called Deeping St. James *." As property became more divided, greater attention was paid to the improvement of the soil ; and various presentments were made, and grants obtained, for scouring the rivers, and drain- ing off the superfluous waters. The Foss Dyke is an artificial trench, extending about seven miles in length, from the great marsh near the city of Lincoln to the river Trent in the vicinity of Torksey. This was made, or materially altered, by king Henry the First, in the year 1121, for the purpose of bringhig vessels from tjje Trent to the city ; as well as for making a general drain for the adjacent level. From its passing through so fiat a country the water could have but a slow current, whereby it became unnavigable from the in^ creasing accumulation of mud, so that it was soon found ueces- sary to cleanse it. To defray the expense certain sums of money were assessed on the lands that had been, or v.ere to be, benefited by the drainage. And on complaint being made, ia the time of Edward the Third, that the collectors converted the money to their own use, an order was made for an enquiry to be instituted, and connnissioners were afterwards appointed to super- intend in future the concern. Of the Marshes on the river Ancholme, the first account on record is l6"th of Edward the First. " The King then directing his * Dugd. Inab. p. 194. 5()(J LINCOLNSHIRE. liis writ of Ad quod dampnum to the shireeve of this countv, to enquire whether it would be hurtful to him, or any other, if the course of that water, then obstructed, from a place called Bishop's Brigge, to the river of Hunibre, were opened, so that the current of the same might be reduced into its due and ancient channel. Whereupon a jury being impannelied accordingly and sworn, did say upon their oaths, that it would not be to the damage of the said king, nor any other ; but rather for the common benefit of the whole county of Lincoln, if the course of that river, ab- stracted in part, in divers places, from Bishop's Brigge to the river of Humbre, were open. And they further said, that by tliis means, not only the meadows and pastures would be drained, but that ships and boats laden with corn and other things, might then more comraodiously pass with corn and other things from the said river Humbre into the parts of Lindsey, than they nt time could do, and as they bad done formerly — where upon about two years following, the King did constitute Gilbert de Thorntone, John Dive, and Ralphe Paynell, his commissioners, to cause that channel to be so scoured and cleansed *." In succeeding reigns, various statutes were enacted for securing the marks, and rendering effectual the drainage of this part of the country. The Island of Axholme, though now containing some of the richest land perhaps in the kingdom, was formerly one continued Jen, occasioned by the siit thrown up the Trent with the tides of the Humber. This obstructing the free passage of the Dun and Idle, forced back their waters over the circumjacent lands, so that tlie higher central parts formed an island, which appellation they still retain. From this circumstance it became a place so de- fensible, that Roger Lord Mowbray, an eminent baron in the time of King Henry the Second, adhering to the interests of the younger Henry, who took up arn)s against his father, repaired with his retainers to this spot, fortified an old castle, and for some time set at defiance the king's forces who were sent to reduce him to « DtKlj;, Imb. p. 15iO. LINCOLNSHIRK. SGj to obedience. The Lincolnshire men having no other means of access but by water, transported themselves over in boats, and dis- comfited the refractory baron*. In the reign of Henry the Third also, it afforded a retreat to many of the rebellious nobles after the battle of Evesham f. But the inhabitants, stimulated by the example of the indus- trious cultivators of neighbouring districts, who, by embanking and draining, had greatly improved such fenny lands, turned their attention to this beneficial practice. " In the first of King Edward the Third, Robert de ISotingham and Roger de New- march were constituted commissioners, to review and repair those banks and ditches, as had been made to that purpose, which were then grown to some decay ; so also were John Darcey of the park, Roger de Newmarch, and John de Crosholme |." Several commissions were granted in succeeding reigns, for ren- dering more effectual those made at former periods. In the first year of Henry the fifth, by a connnission then granted, it appears, that one Geffrey Gaddeshy, late abbot of Selby, caused a long sluice of wood to be made upon the river Trent, at the head of a certain sewer, called the Mare-dyke, of a sufficient height and breadth for to fence out the sides from the sea, and also against the descent of the fresh waters from the west of the above spe- cified sluice, to the said sewer into the Trent, and thence into the Huniber. Which task he performed, " of his free good will and charily, for tlie ease of the conntry." This, in the lime of his successor, John dc Shireburne, was maliciously destroyed. The Abbot, however, to prevent such a disaster in future, had the sluices erected with stone, sufficiently strong, as he thou"^ht, for defence against the tides, as well as the fresh waters. But a jury being impannelled for the purpose of surveying the new works, reported, that they were both loo high and too broad, and not sufficiently strong for the intended use. That it would * Flor. Hist. Anno 1174. t Matli. Paris, Anno 1276. X Diigd. Inib.-p. 142. 558 LINCOLNSHIRE. would be expedient for the advanluge of the country, if it shoulcf meet the approbation of the abbot, that other sluices, formed of timber, should be set up, consisting of two flood gates; each containing in itself four feet in breadth, and six feet in height ; as also a certain bridge upon the said sluices, in length and breadth sufficient for carts and otlier carriages to pass over. These^ having stood one year, were reported stable by the commissioners. *' The said abbot of Selby, Richard Amcotes, and others the freeholders of CruU-Amcotes, Waterton, Carlethorpe, Ludington, and Eltof, in the county of Lincoln, vi^ also all the said towns ir» common, should, for their lands within that soke, be obliged of right to keep them in repair." The abbot was also requested " to make, without the said sluice, towards the nver Trent, one demmyng, at the feast of Easter next ensuing." They also de- termined, " that the cleansing, scouring, repairing, &c. of the Maredyke" should lie with the said inhabitants in future. In the beginning of the reign of Charles the First, that " com- mendable work" was commenced, which embraced not only the marshes of Axholme, but of all the adjacent fens, called Dikes- mersh and Hatfield Chase, in the county of York. These com- prehended an extent of lands which were drowned not only ia winter, but in summer were often so deeply covered with water, that boats could navigate over them to the extent of 6o,000 acres. These belonging chiefly to the crown, it was thought ad- visable, both for the good of the country and the increase of the royal revenue, that an attempt should be made to recover the same ; and King Charles the Second did, under the great seal of England, contract for this purpose with Cornelius Vermuden, then of the city of London, Esq. by articles bearing date the 24th day of May, in the second year of his reign, A. D. 1626. The purport of the agreement was, that the said Vermuden should, at his own charge, drain the lands specifled, iu consir- deration of which he and his heirs for ever should hold of the king one full third part of the said surrounded grounds ; that he should pay to the owners of such lauds, lying within the same level. LINCOLNSHIRE, 569 levd, and so suvrouuded, such sums as the lands should be deemed worlh by four conunissiouers, two of whom to be no- minated by Cornelias, and two by tlie lord treasurer of England, for the time being. When the works were fiaished, a corpora- tion was to be formed of siicii persons as the said Cornelius, or his iieirs, should nominate, to make acts and orciinances, as oc- casion might re(iuire, for the preservation of tiie same. That three years after that completion, six commissioners should be appointed to estimate what the annual charge might amount to, for their perpetual maintenance, and for conveying lands of suffi- cient value to support the said estimated cliarge. Commissioners also were appointed to ascertain the claims of those who pleaded a right in the commonable lands within the level, and to settle .the same. " The agreement being therefore made, this great work was accordingly begun, and had so successful a progress, that, with the charge of 55,82jI. or thereabouts, it became fully finished within the space of five years; the waters which usually overflowed the whole level being conveyed into the river .Trent, through Snow-Sewer, and Althorpe river, by a sluice, which issued out the drained water at every ebb, and kept back the tides upon all comings-in thereof*." WiTHAM Marshes, &c. It is traditionally affirmed, that large vessels could formerly sail up the river VVitham from Boston to Lincoln ; and from Ihe ribs, timbers, &c. of ships that have been frequently found near it, the tradition seems to be justified. At present, however, it is only adapted for barges ; and the flow of the current is so small, that it does not cleanse the bed of the river. The first notice of the great inconveniences arising from the obstruction of its waters, appears in the sixth year of Edward the Third, Herin/ de Fienton, WilUam de Dysney, and Thomas de. Slhthorpc, l-'oing in that year constituted the king's connnissioners for surveying the same, between the town of Vol. IX. O o Beckingham * Du^d. Imbaiik. See more a'so in " State of the Case," printed Loudon, A. D. 16:g. 570 LINCOLNSHIRE. Beckingham and the city of Lincoln. By a report from these persons it appeared, that the river was so obstructed by " sand, mud, flood-gates, sluices, mills," &c. tliat the waters were fre- quently turned out of their proper channel, and thus hindered in their course, were continually inundating the adjacent levels, and doing great injury to the occupiers of the lands. — And a presentment being made in the thirty-seventh year of the same reign to John de Repyngkale and H. Asty, the king's com- missioners, then sitting at Newark, for the view of the said river, the jurors gave a verdict for the removal of a mill and flood- gates, belonging to the Knights Hospitalers of St. John of Jeru- salem. About two years afterwards, another presentment was made in the Court of King's Bench, when it appeared, that by the neglect of a sewer, called Mardyke, in Coningesby, the marshes of Wildmore and Bolingbroke were overflowed, through the fault of the said town of Coningesby ; the inhabitants of which, as they ought, were ordered to repair the same. By various surveys and presentments, other parts of this river were viewed in different reigns, and various regulations made for restraining the waters within due bounds, and delivering the land floods speedily to the sea. But more efilectual measures were thought necessary to be adopted for furthering the design, and recourse was had to Flanders*, for procuring an able en- gineer to execute it. A council was held the fifteenth of King Henry the Seventh, to deliberate on the best means to be adopted on this occasion. The principal members which formed it were, My Lord of Du- resme. My Lord of St. John, Sir John Flnneux, Sir Richard Gilford, Sir Ranold Gray, and Sir Thomas Lovell. Tliey con- cludedf * Tl'.e following particulars, relating to this subject, are derived from a series of interesting documents which have been preserved among tiie ar- chives of the corporation of Boston, a copy of which was furnished nie by Mr. Rennie, tl;e able engineer, who is now engaged in prosecuting and effect- ing witat Hake began iu the time of Henry the Seventh. LINCOLNSHIRE. 571 duded, that a sluice should be made at Boston, " after the mind of Mayhake; that an agreement be made with him for performing the same, and rewarding him and his men. For this purpose, an assessment to be made, and the sum of lOOOl. borrowed of the king, lords, and great possessiouers, till it could be levied by the commissioners of sewers, according to the law of Romney Marche, whence a bailiff, juratts, and levellers, were to be obtained. The bailiff to have, for himself and ser- vant, per diem, 2s. 4d. every of the said juratts. Is. 4d. and each leveller is." New commissioners were chosen, consisting of the abovenamed council and others, who were instructed to as- certain the number of acres ; order statute duty to be performed, till the work was finished ; levy contributious ; send ships to Calais for Hake and his companions skilled in imbanking and draining, and materials for the work ; appoint proper officers for directing and expediting the same ; and whatever else might fall under the necessary management of the concern. By a deed of agreement, drawn up by the order of his Majesty in council, the fifteenth year of his reign, between Sir John Husse, Knight, and John Robinson, of the one part, and May- have. Hake, of Graveling, " in the parts" of Flanders on the other part, it appears, that the said Hake covenants to bring with him, from Flanders, fourteeu masons, and four labourers, to make a proper sluice and dam, near the town of Boston, suf- ficient for its future safeguard. The said Mayhave Hake, and his companions, to be remunerated for their labour by the fol- lowing wages : — " Mahave Hake to have, for himself and man, holy day as well as common day, per diem, 4s. The masons and stone- hewers, per week, 5s. The labourers, per week, 4s. The said Mahave Hake, after the work was fully completed, to re- ceive an additional reward of 501. Should any more workmen be necessary, during the progress of the work, they should be provided at the expence of the inhabitants of Boston and the level of Holland and Kesteven." Oo 2 Tke 572 LINCOLNSHIRE. The engineer fuillier agreed, to make " sure purveyance,'^ at Calais, of iron work, and all other stuff or materials necessary for the accomplishment of the sluice, &c. The costs and charges pf the whole to be borne by the inhabitants of Boston and the level aforesaid. And by a writ issued the Sth day of Marcli, to the mayors, sheriffs, baiiiffs, constables, &c. the contractiiig parties were allowed " to take and letain, at competent wages, such, and as many workemen, laborers, and artificers, ar»d alsoe as much timber, stone, and oiher things, together with carts and carnages for tlie same, at pryce resonable, as tli«y shall think necessary and behoveful for the speedy performance of such works, as be recpiisite to be done in the said partes." And the King's officers were required to aid and assist, in procuring such necessary articles, from time to time, under paiu of meeting the King's displeasure. In " the remembrancer of diverse articles, when examination was to be made respecting the sluice at Boston, dated the 13th of May, fifteenth year of Henry the Seventh,^" are the following curious items. " Item, that it is determined, tliat forthwith they," the masons, -&c. "shall begin and labour upon the makeing the said since. " Item, that provision be made for stuffe in all goodlye liasle, for the makeing tlie said since. " Item, that all such broke and oulde bouseinge, as be within the town of Boston, be had and taken at a reasonable price, for the making of the said since. " Item, it is agreed, that Mayhave Hake shall have with him WiUiam Robinson and his man ; and the said William shall have, for him, his servant and horse, for the costs at such time as they shall be desiered to ride about the makeing of the said sluce^ every wake IGs. and likewise at whome, when they ride not. " Item, it is ordeined, that every manu, as expend itors, and other by them to be assigned, with two horses, being on business for the makeing of the said since, shall have, by the day. Is. 8d. aud a man with one horse, 1 s. *' Item, that the said eipeudilors. shall have a clerk of sewers for LINCOLNSHIRE. 573 for lire work, such as My Ladyes Grace shall appoint, which shall weckeley have, for him and his servant, 8s. " Item, that provision of all manner of stuffe concerning the said Since be made and provided by the said expenditors, and the workemen to the same. " Item, that Mathew, or Mahave Hake, be contented of his wages for hira and his masons, according to the indenture made between My Lady's Grace and the said ftlathew." Tiiese items ailutle to an indenture made subsequent to tiiat in which Sir John Husse, Knight, was a party, between the higli snd mighty Princesse Margaret, mother to the King, Countesse of Richmond and Darby, on the oiie i)art, and INIatuew Hake on the other. Whereby it is .slipuluted, that he and his masons should have no further allowance than was made in the iaden- t'are, bearing date the igth of February preceding; " and alsce other masons and workmen, taken for the said workes, to have such wages as the expenditors and the clerk of sewers over the works shall agree with them for. And for reward, and in re- compense of fourteen masons and IwenLy-four workmen, and otlier demands, he shall abide tlie order and rules of the said Princes and the King's Counsaiie. Dated IMay 13th, tifteenth of Henry the Seventh.'' In the above manuscript is contained a list of the principal articles that were to be provided for the necessary conducting tlie work, and the j)laces pointed out whence they ought to be pro- cured. The iron especially, was to be purchaser! in that part of France then belonging to i!ie crown of England. As the items, relating to this article may tend to throw some light on the state of one part of our mauiifactures, as well as ascertain the price of the most useful metal at the period in question, it may be de- sirable to insert it. This will be seen by tlie following items ; being the charges of " iron made and bought at Callis, for Bos- ton since, in anno 1500*." O o 3 First * Tlie iron consisted of bars, small cramps, long cramps, rinrjs vitli eramps, great chains, Iwops, pjniw, hookesj great bands, bolts for locks ajul keys, and great scherijs. 574 LINCOLNSHIRE. £. s. d. First paid to James Locker, for 4012lbs. iron, pryce -j the lb. 2d. siTId. I ^^ ^ ^ Item, paid ste. to Mayhake, hTIa. 18 Item, paid pro. two dozen of great maunds 5 Item, paid pro. two dozen of pannes 14 Item, paid for five morter troughs 4 2 Item, paid for two dozen of little maunds 2 8 Item, for two dozen of water scoopes o 7 6 Item, two dozen of base rape 6 Item, paid for the carriage of the said stuff « 10 36 7 For defraying the expenditure, a rate was made upon the lands lying in the contiguous wapentakes, according to the allot- ment of the commissioners. But while the assessment was mak'* ing, and preparing to be levied, an order of council was issued, *• That such as had lands within the said level should advance, by way oi prest, the sum of ten pounds; a moyety to be paid immediately, and the other moyety to be surely sent and de- livered at the town of Boston, in the following May. And in case that after levying of the scotls, after the usage of the marches, any person's part extended not fully to the sum ad- vanced by way of prest, the remainder was to be repaid." This order was signed at the King's INIauor of Greenwich, the 2l9t day of February, the fifteenth of Henry the Seventh. By a rate made in the time of Margaret, Countess of Rich- mond, for the repair of Boston sluice, the first assessment amounted to the sum of 367l. Is. SJd. on the different town- ships subject to the levy. From another account, written by Dr. Brown, it appears, that much benefit accrued from the work, though it was not done agreeably to the first intention. " Afore the since was made, at a full spring in winter, when the flood and fresh water did meet together at Dockdyke, the salt water and fresh water strove soe together, that the water ran see over the LINCOLNSHIRE. 575 the banks of botli sides the haven, that it drowned all the com- mon fen ; see that men might have roome with boates from Garwich to Boston towne : and likewise from Boston to Kirkeby land side. — And that the sea bankes and fen bankes were at double more charge, than they be now." To the north and north-east of tlie Witham, whose outlet to the sea was intended to be facilitated, and the adjacent lands benefited by the work just mentioned, lies the large fenny tracts called Wildmore Fen, West Fen, and East Fen. Upon a writ of Ad quod damnum, in the forty-first of Queen Elizabeth, concerning the draining of these, it appears, that in East Fen 5000 acres were drowned, half of which was then con- sidered drainable, and the other half irrecoverably lost ; and that the commons and severalties on the borders of the said fen, con- tained about 34^00 acres, the whole of which was surrounded. At a session of sewers held at Boston, the 15th of May, sixtji of Charles the First, a recital was made, by virtue of a decree, that the greater part of these lands, whose bounds are stated, were surrounded grounds in the winter season. It was therefore de- creed, that the outfall at Wainfleet-haven should be deepened and enlarged, the various gowts cleansed, and all other necessary works done for draining the extent of country taken in the survey. Each acre of land receiving benefit by the said drainage to pay ten shillings. The money to be paid into the hands of Sir An- thony Thomas, Knight, and the rest of the undertakers, after the work was completed, or proportionably as it might be done. At another session of sewers, held the I5th of April, A. D. l631, a decree was made, " That Sir Anthony Thomas, and his participants, for their expences, should not only have the one half of the said East Fen, and a third of all the severals adjoining thereto; and likewise the fourth part of all the surrounding grounds lying in the West Fen, and the severals thereto adjoin- ing, limited and appointed to them by a former decree, but some farther augmentation in certain other particular places *." O o 4 Notwithstanding * Dngd. Imb. p. 423. 576 LINCOLNSHIRE. Nolvvillistanding the early and continued attention, wliich, frovn this liistoiical view, appears to liave been devoted to the iinprovcnient of this marshy country, the frequent interference oT the Legislature, and the immense sums expended in different periods on its drainages, the progress has not been adequate tO' the exertions made : indeed, often the beneficial efi'ects have been retrograde, and the attainment of the object is still a desi- deratum, in plans for the amelioration of the soil. This has arisen from various causes : — From want of proper levels hav^ ing been taken for the drains when they were lirst made, by which means, through the occasional superfluity of waters from beneath the soil, and the addition of the upland waters in time of floods, the coiuitry could only be tenjporarily or partially drained. The smallness of the gowts and sluices not being suf- ficiently wide to deliver the superabimdant waters to the sea or rivers, they have again been refluent on the adjacent lands. The Commissioners of these sewers, frequently inattentive to the state of the dykes and gowts, and often misled by the ignorance of engineers, or warped by the prejudice and interest of a party, have not always conducted their enquiries, or exerted their powers, for the general benefit. The difference of seasons also makes a wide alteration in the slate of the outfalls. If the summer proves particularly dry, the quantity of silt which settles in the mouths of the rivers, or in those Estuaries, called the Washes, is so great, tliat it requires the floods in winter to continue several weeks to scour it away, and cleanse the openings to the sea. During this time the gates are over-rode, that is, the water is so high as to prevent their use ; and the fens become the receptacle of the waters, which arise from beneath, that fall on their surface, or desceud from the high lands : and in addition to these, inunda- tions frequently happen from the rivers by the bursting of the de- fensive banks. Thus the accumulation of water becomes so great that the outlets are not sufHcient for its discharge ; and the princi- pal part of the spring is gone before it can be all carried off, to the annoyance of the occupier, and to the injury of the pro- prietor. LINCOLNSHIRE. 577 prietor. Many, however, have been llie attempls to remedy these evils, and a spirit of improvement, within these few years past, seems to have pervaded all ranks of people in this extensive county. " Deephi^ Fen, which extends most of tlie eleven miles from that town to Spalding, is a very capital improvement by draining. Twenty years ago the lands sold for about 31. an acre ; some was then let at 7s. or 8s. an acre ; and a great deal was in such a slate, that no body would rent it. Now it is in general worth ^Os. an acre, and sells at 20l. an acre: 10,000 acres of it are taxable under Commissioners, pay up to 20s. an acre, but so low as 2 s. average 4s. including poor rates, and all tithes free. The free land also sells from 151. to 20l. an acre and more, three or four years ago*." Mr. Stone, however, furnishes us with a considerable draw- back upon this Haltering account, and suggests some useful hints towards a more favourable prospect — " The drainage of Deeping fen, he says, so improj)erly commended by Mr. Young, is chiefly eflfected by three wind-engines, above Spalding, that lift the Deep- ing fen water into the river Wellaud, the bed of which, I apprehend, is now higher than the lan lor improving the outfall of the river Welland, belter draining the low lauds of South-Holland, and discharging their waters into the sea. The leading point in this scheme is to cut a deep canal, like the Eau-Bank, from the re- servoir * Young's General View. t Re\ icvv of the Agric. Surv. of Lincoln, p. 142. 578 LINCOLNSHIRE. servoir below Spalding, capable of receiving the whole waters of the Welland, and conveying them into the Witham below Boston, by a lower and more certain outfall than the present, at Wybur- toD road. A cut was also proposed to be made from a place, called Pe- ter's Point, to Wheatmeer drain, near the Hamlet at Peakhill. This appears to be part of a scheme suggested by Lord Chief Justice Popham, in the century before the last, and afterwards partially acted upon by Vermuden, Colonel Dodson, and several other engineers, from that period to the present. The lying dor- mant of such plans for so long a time, portions only having been adopted, and few new ideas started respecting any thing more comprehensive, proves, that while other parts of useful improve- ments had been going forward towards perfection, the subject of Fen-drainage had for a long season been in a stale of slumber ; occasionally waked to small intervals of activity, but never roused to effectual energy. The exertions, however, which have, at times, been made, must not pass unnoticed. " In that long reach of fen, which extends from Tattershall to Lincoln, a vast improve- ment by imbanking and draining, has been ten years effecting. The first act passed in 1787 or 1788, and through a senseless oppo- sition an extent of a mile in breadth was left out lest the waters should in floods be too much confined, and the other side of the river be overflowed ; better ideas, however, having taken place, a new act to take in the river has passed. This is a vast work, which, in the whole, has drained, enclosed, and built, and cul- tivated between twenty and thirty square miles of country (includ- ing the works now undertaking.) Its produce before little, letting for not more than Is. 6d. an acre; now from lis. to 17s. an acre. It is subject to the tax of Is. an acre to the Witham drainage, and not exceeding Is. 6d. to its own. Land here now sells at 25l. an acre. " In the northern part of the county the drainage of the Ane- holme is another great work, extending from Bishop Bridge to the Humber, in a curved line; but by an act passed about thirty yea ft LINCOLNSHIRE. 575 years ago, it was carried in a straight line through the level, for the purposes of draining and navigation. Before the draining it Mas worth but from Is. to 3s. fid. an acre ; now it is from 10s. to 30s. much of it arable, and much of it in grass. " The Lowlands that are taxed to the drainage amount to seven- teen thousand one hundred and ninety-seven acres, the tax amouuls to 2, 1401. per ann. or 2s. fid. an acre. It is now chiefly pasture and meadow ; but the cars which were rough and rushy have been pared and burned, and sowed with rape for sheep, and then with oats for a crop or two ; and on the better parts some wheat, then laid to grass : there is not a great deal kept under the plough *." Though a great portion of the land in this district is very valu- able, and much has been done to improve the rest ; yet a large quantity still remains in an unprofitable state. It appears by Mr. Stone's account, and as he was one of the commissioner* under the act he ought to be a competent judge, that the en- gineers were improperly limited by the act, to drain into the river Trent. The work was executed to the best of their judg- ment, and as well as the situation of the country would admit. In the execution of the plan i!0,000l. were expended ; and though now several years have expired since its completion, yet the desired effects have not followed. The floods of the upper, and the tides of the lower, part of the river have often over- flowed the works, whereby the lowlands, comprising some thou- sands of acres, have, during the greater part of the year, been under water : and unless more effectual works shall be added, by means of steam engines or some other mode, to lift the water into the Trent, the most valuable part of the district will be ab- solutely useless for the purposes of grazing or agriculture. Mr. Stone is of opiiuon also, that upwards of fifty thousand acres in Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire, and Lincolnshire, which are now flooded, will ever continue to be overflown until the present plan of draining into the Trent sliall be given up. And he * Young's General View, &c. p. 241. 580 LINCOLNSHIRE. he fiirtliCr thinks lliat an effectual drainage might have been accomplished by means of a new river, cut in a parallel direction v\i(li the course of the Trent, on the western banks of it; so that a certain competent outfall might have been obtained below Al-r dingfleet. And that the contribution of the Isle commoners, to tlie general expense of such an undertaking, would not have aniounled to above a moiety of what they have already incurred in an ineffectual attempt *. lie next adverts to tlie drainage of Mhat are called the Low-PJrnshes, which, besides thousands of acres of fen, contain a species of wet unproduciive land, for which there is no drainage, bearing the appellation of rotten- land, because shs ip depastured upon it are subject to the rot, and frequently are destroyed, A drain, with lateral cuts iu the lowest line between the middle and lower marshes, carried to an outfall, which might be made near Wainileet, would effectually, iie suggests, drain this part of the north eastern district. Mr. Parkinson has furnished a Table of the Improvements in Drainage, by ditierent Acts, under w hich he was a Comiuissioner ; which will serve to give some Idea of the Proceedings within a few years past. Tattershall Imbankment Alnwick Fen The Nine imbauked -\ Fens to Lincoln • . • • j Holland Fen Eleven ") Towns 3 Total Acres. Iniproveil Value. Old Value. Improvement. 892 1,097 19,418 22,000 £. S3S 703 15,534 25,300 £. 387 54 1,941 .3,600 £. 450 648 13,592 21,700 43,407 42,375 5,982 36,390 From * Review of the Agric, Survey of Lijicoln, p. 167. LlNCOLiySHIRE. 5Sl From this statement, and some minor improvements, vvhidi fall undrr this description by various individuals, more especially Sir Joseph Banks, al Revesby ; Mr. Young exults on the sub- ject, and thinks wondefs have been performed in this way, yet ncknowledges, that " about Mavis, Enderby, Bolinbroke, &c. the wetness of the sides of the hills is lamentable ; bogs are so numerous, that he is a desperate fox-hunter who ventures to ride here without being well acquainted with the ground. I have rarely seen a co!uiJ"-y that wants exertions in draining more than this. Many similar springy sides of hills are to be met with all the way to Ranby, and thence by Oxcomb to Louth*." This remark serves to illustrate a statement made by Mr. Stone, which, as it is unconnected with any deSails of particular spots, would otherwise amount to no more than mere assertion. " There are upwards of three hundred thousand acres of land at this time, 1800, in Lincolnshire, suftering at least on an average 300,0001. a year for want of an efficient drainage, which might be carried into effect for one or two year's improved value ; and upon the borders of the county nearly the same quantity of jund connected with it, capable of the same improvement by si- milar means. When this statement shall be explained, and the truth of the remark established, what will become of the table of forty-three thousand four hundred and seven acrcbf." Though flattering prospects from past exertions are too ant to relax our present energies, yet a too great respect for our own views and capabilities should not niuke us fastidious, or induce us to disparage the laudable attempts f)f those who have preceded us, nor ilhberally to undervalue the labours of others. Whoever has travelled with an observant eye through the county of Lincoln, marked its peculiar situation and characteristic features, and made himself thus acquainted with its present state, and compared this with its appearance and productions in dillerent periods * Generat Review, p. 245. t Review of Survey, p. 133. 582 LINCOLNS'HIRli. ^ periods of its history, will be little inclined to animadvert severely on the present inhabitants, or to think lightly of the attempts which have been made by their predecessors : for in this con- nected view it will appear, that in no county in the kingdom have equal exertions been used, in the important work of drainage. Without going back to very remote periods it is estimated, that not less than one hundred and fifty thousand acres have been drained, and thus improved from the value of 5s. and some much under, per acre, to ll. 5s. per acre, whereby a rental is created upon lands of previous insignificant value, to the amount of 150,0001. per annum; nor is this all the benefit which has ac- crued : the provisions have been increased, and the climate ren- dered more salubrious ; fens covered with water and mud, stag- nating for months, inhabited by fowls or frogs, have thus been rendered fit for grazing or the plough ; and the contaminating in- fluence of its ague giving waters for ever banished to the briny ocean. While health has been fostered, individuals have been enriched, and society greatly benefitted. Plans carried to such an extent, and at such an immense expense, as many of these have been, may justly be denominated great works. " And when, with the views of a political arithmetician, we reflect on the circulation that has attended this creation of wealth through industry, the number of people supported, the consumption of manufactures, the siiipping employed, and all the classes of community bene- fitted ; the magnitude and importance of such works will be seen, and the propriety well understood, of giving all imaginable en- couragement and facility to their execution *." These remarks are judicious, and their importance, as well as others of a similar kind rriade on the subject, have been appre- ciated by those most interested in the improvements to which they relate. A plan has been proposed, and is now executing under the direction of that very scientific and able engineer, Mr. John Rennie, by which Wildmore, with East and West Fens, will • Young's General View, p. 24fi. LINCOLNSHIRE. 583 will be effeduallff drained; and the low lands of Ibis part of tlie county, by this means become, as they actually are in many others, the most productive in the kingdom. Mr. Rennie was employed, with proper surveyors, to view the lituation of the abovementioned fens, the different drains, and out-fall gowts, which conveyed their waters to the sea, — to point out the defects of the then existing system, and the best methods of supplying them, or suggesting a new and better plan for a more effectual drainage of those levels. Upon this subject he printed hi» first Report in 1 800, and with that penetration which marks the superior mind, and that comprehensiveness which evinces perspe- cuity of judgment; he quickly discovered the cause of the evils, which had been so long complained of after repealed attempts to remove them. Viewing their actual state, the remedy instantly presented itself. The first object which struck him was the out- fall ; the second, the discharging the water which falls on the sur- face of the fens, or which arises in them; the third, the inter- cepting and carrying off the up or high land water, without allowing it to descend into, and overflow the fens. Each of these necessary points had at times been canvassed ; but never generally and unitedly adopted in any previous system. This was reserved for the scientific mind of our present engineer, who, after describing the nature of these fens, divides them accord- ing to the usual mode; but from the levels, which were taken on the occasion, he was induced to place Wildmore and West Fens in one draining plan, and East-Fen in anolher. In the drainage of the former the outlet was made by Anton's Gowt or Maudfoster, the gates of which he found were too narrow for the quantity of water occasionally to be discharged through them ; and that the sills of these, as well as those of the grand sluice, were too high for the level of the country, so as to admit, in their present state, of an efficient drainage, not to mention the want of attention to secure the water of the high lands from running into the fens. Mr. Reniiie then gives a scheme, first for draining Wildmore Fen 684 LINCOLNSHIRE. Fen separately ; tlien for (lr;»inin^ VViklmore and West Feri jointly. Respecting these he remarks, That tiie present drain- age is made througli Anton's Gowt, about two miles and a half above Boston, and Maudfoster a little below it. The former of which, considered a most essential outfall, lias a single pair of doors with a clear opening of fourteen feet two inches ; an aper- ture not large enough to discharge the water usually con- ducted to it ; and in time of flood it is over-rode by the Witham, which frequently kee})s the doors shut for weeks together. The water which siiould discharge through them is forced back along Medlam drain, and West House sike, and is obliged to find a, pas- sage by other drains to Maudfoster. The sill of Anton's Gowt is two feet three inches higher than the sill of Maudfoster, and the surface of the water at different times considerably higher ; whence he uifers, that no effectual drainage of these fens can be made by any alterations, while the out-fall still continues at Anton's Gowt. Viewing it therefore in all points, and after giving a scheme for the separate drainage of Wiklmore-fen, he concludes. That the general surface of the low lands of these fens, being about one height, may be drained by one out-fail. — That as their surfice lies about nine feet above the sill of Maudfosler's Gowt, and the water on the sill at neap tides is only six feet, and at spring tides four feet nine inches, there will be a fall of three feet in the one case, and four feet three inches in the other ; which he considers suffi- cient for the extent of level. He then proposes a cut to be made from JMedlam-drain at Swinecoal's inclosure, thence to CoUins's bridge, a length of eleven miles and a half; having a fall from three to four inches and one-tenth per mile. A straight cut was also to be made from the junction of How-bridge drain with Newham drain, to the drain proposed above to CoUins's-bridge. Tiiis forms a line of thirteen miles, with a fall of two inches two- tenths per mile, during neap tides. Other drains are intended to be made, when the inclosures are laid out. It appears from this Report, that nearly twelve thousand acres of high lands drain their superfluous waters by the ditl'erent becks, wliicU LINCOLNSHIRE. 585 wliich pass tlirougli these fens, the quantity per day is often suf- ficient to cover the whole surface three-teulhs of an inch deep ; and in wet seasons much more. To discharge this Mr. Rennie proposed a catch-water drain, to commence near the Witham in Coningsl>y, skirting the high lands to near Hagnaby corner, there to join Gote-sike drain through Fen-side drain; and thence by a new channoi to Maudfoster Gowl. The length from the moutli of the river Bain to Maudfoster Gowt is twenty-one miles, and the rise is little more than fourteen feet. This will give a fall to the water at the said Gowt of eight feet, or about four inches and a half per mile, but it may admit of five inches. He then proposes a new Gowt to be constructed near Maudfoster, with three openings, each fifteen feet wide ; one of which to be appropriated, in times of flood, to the discharge of the waters conducted by the catch-water drain ; but in ordinary cases these are to form a junction. This taking the water which fall or issue from 40,000 acres of land through Maudfoster, will cause so ample a scour, as to prevent the silt from accumulating to any great de- gree, and keep the out-fail in a proper and useful state. By this scheme also the drains are to be made sufficiently capacious to admit of such vessels as are generally used in the fens, being navigated upon them ; for this purpose locks are to be constructed, to permit them to pass into and out of the Witham, and to form a communication with each other. Also, sluices with penstocks to admit of running water from the brooks to the fens, for the use of cattle during the summer months. Respecting the drainage of the East Fen and the East Holland Towns Mr. Rennie observes, that some parts of these, at present, drain through Maudfoster Gowt, and others have separate Gowts at Fishtoft and Butterwick ; but part of the waters at Friskney are raised by an engine, and sent afterwards to sea by a small gowt. The general surface of East Fen is eight feet above the sill at Maudfoster, and but five feet six inches above that at Wainfleet ; whence, as the distance is nearly equal from the centre, in the one case, the fall would be but one inch and five-tenths Vol. IX. P p per 5S6 LINCOLNSHIRE. per mile; and in the other much less; whence he concludes, tliat no efficient drainage, in the present state of Boston harbour, can be eftected by either of those out-falls. On mature consideration, Mr. Rennie thought the only effec- tual place, through \vhich the East Fen and tiie lower grounds in East Holland could be drained, is a little lower than where the present Gowt of Fishtoft is situated. He proposes therefore a new gowt of larger dimensions to be made about a quarter of a mile below the present. From the level taken, through an extent of sixteen miles, the fall appears to be at the lower part two inches and a quarter per mile, and in the higher part five inches. A new drain is to be cut from what are called the Deeps, and turning southward to empty into the river near Fishtoft, about five miles below Boston. This, with proper side drains, Mr. Rennie thinks would form a complete drainage for the whole of this district, a few acres of the Pits or Deeps excepted. The high land waters he proposes should be sent, by a channel joining Fen drain at Shottles, to the Gowt at Maudfoster. The quantity of water descending from 38,424 acres will keep the Gowt open, and as there are but few obstructions from sands near Fishtoft, the out-fall will always be in good order ; at least in the same state with the river itself at the proposed place. This Report was printed April 7, 1800, and the estimates for carrying these grand schemes into effect is stated thus : £. s. d. Draining Wildmore Fen separately 29,702 Draining Wildmore and West Fens jointly 103,262 Draining East Fen and East Holland Towns • • • • 81,908 By a reviiion of the schemes in the above Report, after the former levels were proved, and new ones taken, Mr. Rennie gave in to the Proprietors a second Report ; in which, from having again surveyed the fens in a more favourable season, he is of opinion, that no material alteration can be made for the better, in the scheme LINCOLNSHIRE. 58? scheme for Wildmore and the West Fens ; but that some im- provements may be made, not in the principle, but in the dis- position of some drains in the scheme proposed for draining the East Fen. It was judged proper to be thus particular respecting these Re- ports, because the grand works therein specified are now carrying into execution, and when completed will not only occasion this part of the country to wear a more cheerful appearance, and be highly advantageous to the inhabitants, but be a lasting monument of the spirit of the land proprietors, and the skill and ability of the engineer. Amongst the many agricultural improvements. Irrigation, or the plan of watering meadows, so successfully practised in other counties, does not appear to have been pursued in this. Arthur Young mentions a solitary instance. But a plan of using water for fertilizing the soil is adopted, which is peculiar to this part of the kingdom, and principally practised in this county. This is called Warping, and is a perfectly simple process. It consists in per- mitting the tide to run over the laud at high water, and letting it off at low. It is very different from irrigation, for the effect here is not produced by water, but by mud, which is not meant so much to manure the laud as to create a surface. The kuid of land that is intended to be warped is of little consequence ; for the warp deposited will, in the course of one summer, raise it from six to sixteen inches, and in hollow places more, so as to leave the whole extent a level of rich soil, consistuig of sand and mud, of vast fertility. Its component parts appear to be argillaceous and silicious earths, with portions of mica, marine sail, and mucilage. Whence this warp is derived has been a subject of dispute, be- cause the waters at the mouth of the Humber, when the tide flov/3, are observed to be transparent. But whoever examines the Estuary further inland, and the tides as they roll up the Trent, Dun, Ouse, and other rivers, cannot be at a moment's loss to discover the cause. The soil of the rich lands through which P p 2 they ..idi^ 588 LINCOLNSHIRE. tlicy shape llieir course, is carried down by the currents, and meeting with the sea water, which is charged with saline, sili- cious, and otiier particles, unite, and are carried back by the refluent tide. When tiie waters remain at rest, they instantly de- posit their contents. Young says, "That in summer, if a cy- lindrical glass, twelve or fifteen inches long, be filled with it, it will presently deposile an inch, and sometimes more, of what is called warp." Political Character of the county. It has been re- marked, that Lincolnshire, like Yorkshire and the county of Devon, from their extent and opulence, are neither of them under the influence of any individual, and that in cases of contested elec- tions, the freedom of the people is not so liable to corruption as in small counties and property boroughs. Another evil, however, arises from this extent of territory and number of freemen : an opposition seldom occurs, for the men of greatest riches and landed property obtain a preponderating influence, and the dread of ruinous expense prevents any opposition. This county returns twelve members to the United Parliament ; two for the shire, two for the city, and two from each of the following boroughs: — Bos- ton, Granthamy Great Grimsby, and Stamford. Spalding and Waynjleet returned members in the eleventh year of the reign of Edward the Third. A TABLE LINCOLNSHIRE. 589 A TABLE OF THE POPULATION, &c. OF LINCOLNSHIUE, As published by authority of Parliament, in 1801 ; with the names of the Divisions, Hundreds, Towns, &c. Houses. Peisonp. Occupations. Wapentakes, Hundreds, and Towns. Male. Female. ?. ^ u. S = c . -•2 5=":: Total Pergons. ^ = !- HOLLAND DIVISION coiitains 3 Hundreds, 5 MarketTuwns, and 36 Villages. Elloe, Wapentake 3,764 9,010 8,895 5,173 1,477 17,905 K irton no ••••■*■■•••>•• !S?,106 5,097 5,282 3,517 661 10,379 Avll LUll) liU« ••••■• « ■•••••• SliirriPPK tin ■■■••>•■■>■■ 808 1,25'2 2,007 2,698 1,935 3,228 1,430 91 3,943 5,926 174 866 XiUolUll^ X UVVII •••••••••••• KESTEVEN DIVISION is Subdi- vided into 9 Hundreds and 3 Soke ; which contain 7 Mar- ket Towns, ^190 Villages, Aswardhuu, Wapentake 968 2,661 2,298 1,298 S96 4,959 A vplaiifl i\n •••■•••••■■■.. 1,383 930 3,340 2,399 3,558 2,359 1,245 458 616 2,562 6,898 4,758 XicLliaiUt;:^ UU. •••••••••••• Boothby, do. High and Low ^ Divisions 5 1,062 2,632 2,655 1,883 352 5,237 VIpyutpII fin •••••■•■.••• 795 1,852 1,929 1,27£' 413 3,781 X ICAWCll) Ul/» •••••••••••• Langoe, do. first and se- > cond Divisions j 890 2,439 2,364 2,13v 271 4,803 Lovcdcn* do ••••••. 1,177 1,034 2,899 2,476 2,999 2,545 2,267 1,785 528 562 5,898 5,021 ^Jps*i f\ct •••••••••■••..■■ x^ caoj iiu* •••••••••••••••• Winnibriggs and Tlnew, do. 791 1,9.33 1,918 1,387 357 3,851 Grantham, Town, and Soke 1,457 3,377 3,637 1,453 1,124 7,014 Stamfnrfl TTnwn .•>>•>•••> 701 1,826 2,196 106 2,198 4,022 kJluUllLfl 1.1* J.UWI1 •••••••••• LiNDSEY DIVISION is Subdi- vided into 15 Hundreds and 2 Sokes; which contain 1 City, 19 Market Towns, and 431 Villages. Aslacoe Wapentake, East j and West J 673 1,655 1,711 914 201 3)366 19,791 48,301 49;509 26,418 12,758 97,810 #■ 590 LINCOLNSHIIIE. Wapentakes, Hundreds, and Towns. LiNDSEY DIVISION Con- tinued. Broiii>ht over • • Bolingbroke Soke, East and West Bradley Haverstoe, Wa- pentake Calce worth, Hundred, Marsh and Wold Pi- visioRs Cancileshoc, Wapentake, Marsh and Wold Di- visions Corringhana, Wapentake- • Gartree, do. N. and S. Di- visions Hill, Hundred Horncastle, Soke Lawress, Wapentake Louth Eske, Hundred, Marsh and V/old Di- visions Ludborough, Wapentake • Manley, do. 1st, i".], and Sd Divisions Walshcroft, do. N. and S. Divisions Well, do. Wragicoe, do. East and West Divisions Yarborongli, da. E. S. and N. Divisions Lincoln, City Hou>e- Total 19,7-91 1,343 1,327 1,482 999 2,12c 91-' 427 1,003 1,088 1,986 216 3,345 869 462 855 2,68i: 1,574 4,',50i 3,231 3,418 3,56 2,651 4,4^0 2,427 1,214 2,475 2,527 4,655 521 7,94'^ 2,36-2 1,073 2 27? 6,293 3,474 Females Occupations. 49,509 26,418 3,39 4j 3,303 3,575| 1,692 3,7ist 2,148 2,797 4,77 1,1'2P 2,508 2,70, 4,869 530 8,223 2,29,- 1,098 2,248 6,465 3,924 42,489 102,445'106,112 1,690 2,048 1,424 898 1,208 1,595 2,175 451 6,450 1,483 1,204 1,749 3,849 71i; 3 ="2 -." o .2 i' 12,758 634 64? 47t 473 1,323 222 142 468 406 76; 4V 1,87;^ 395 271 32t 1,345 1,696 Total Persons. 60,584 24,263 97,810 6,625 6,993 7,275 5,448 9,213 4,788 2,343 4,983 5,230 9,524 1,051 16,165 4,655 2,171 4,527 12,758 7,398 208,557 In LINCOLNSHIRE. 591 In the " Abstract of the answers and returns made, pursuant to an Act (43 Qeo. III.) far procuring returns relative to the maintenance of the Poor in England," it is observed, respecting Lincolnshire, " That in the year 177^, Returns were re- ceived from 691 ' Parishes or Places;' in 1785 tlie P»,eturns were 693; and those of the year 1803 were 701." It is then further stated, that " One hundred and thirty-one parishes or places maintain all, or part of, their Poor in workhouses. The num- ber of persons so maintained, during the year ending Easier, 1803, was 1,112; and the expence incurred therein, amounted to 14,9361. lis. 4d. being at the rate of 131. 8s. 7|d. for each person so maintained. By the returns of 1776, there were then forty-seven workhouses, capable of accommodating 1,114 per- sons.— The number of persons relieved, out of workhouses, was 17,733, besides 3,091 who were not parishioners. The ex- pence incurred in the relief of the poor, not in workhouses, amounted to 80,6381. 10s. 8|d. A large proportion of those who were not parishioners, appear to have been vagrants ; and therefore it is probable that the relief given to this class could not exceed two shillings eacli, amounting to 309I. 2s. which, being deducted from the 80,6381. 10s. 8|d. leaves 80,3291. 8s. S|d. being at the rate of 4l. 10s. 7d. for each parishioner relieved out of any workhouse. — The number of persons relieved in and oiit of workhouses was 18,845, besides those who were not pa- rishioners. Excluding the expence supposed to be incurred in the relief of this class, all other expences, relative to the main- tenance of the poor, amounted to 100,6861. Ss. 5d. being at the rate of 51. 6s. 9d. for each parishioner relieved. — The resident population of the county of Lincoln, in the year 1801, appears, from the Population Abstract, to have been 208,557; so that the number of parishioners relieved from the poor's rate appears to be nine in a hundred of the resident population. — The number of persons belonging to friendly societies appears to be four in a hundred of the resident population. — The amount of the total money raised by rates appears to average at 14s. per head on the P p 4. population. 592 LINCOLNSHIRE. population. — ^The amount of the whole expenditure, on account of the poor, appears to average at 9s. 8(1. per head on the po- pulation. — The expenditure in suits of law, removal of paupers, nnd expences of overseers and other officers, amounts to 5,320l. 8s. 4\d. The amount of such expenditure, by the return of 1785, was 2,1 681. 10s. 3d. — The expenditure in purchasing ma- terials for employing the poor, amounts to 9481. 3s. 4|d. , The amount of such expenditure iu 1785 was 479'- 1.9s. yd. — The poor of eighteen parishes or places in this county are farmed, or maintained under contract. — The poor of the city of Lincoln are maintained and employed under the regulations of a special act of parliament." LINDSEY, or as called by Bede, Lindissi, is the largest of the three divisions of Lincolnshire, and occupies nearly one half of the county, extending from the sea on the east, to Nottingham- shire on the west ; and from the river Withaii!, which iutersects the county from east to west, to the river Humber on the nortb. This area extends about forty-five miles, on an average, each way ; and contains nearly 1, 042,560 square acres of land. The soils are much varied, and its geographical features marked by many inequalities. High lands, called the Wolds, occupy a long ridge of it from Spilsby to the Humber, having a rich tract of marsh land to the east, between it and the sea ; another ridge of high land, called Lincoln Heath, extends up the western side of this division from Lincoln to Brigg. The greater part of the latter district has, for time immemorial, been uncultivated, and appro- priated almost solely to the breeding of rabbits ; but within a few years past, most of it has been inclosed, and rendered subser- vient to more useful and profitable cultivation. At the north- western extremity is the river island of Axholme, a low tract of land, formerly a morass ; but, from the operations of imbanking and drainmg, is now a very fertile spot. The river Trent bounds the LINCOLNSHIRE. 593 the eastern side of this island, whilst the rivers Idle, Dun, and Torn, environ the southern and western sides. The property of tJiis district is divided among many small proprietors. In the preceding tables is specitied the number of hundreds, or waj)entakes, which is included within Lindsey division ; and it has been already staled, that the Bertie family derive the title of Marquis from the name of this district. LINCOLN, An ancient City, and a place of considerable note in the eccle- siastical and military annals of England, is singularly situated on the top and side of a high hill, which slopes with a deep descent to the south, where the river Witham runs at its base. A large part of the cily or rather suburbs, extends, in a long street, from the foot of the hill to the south. On the northern side of it, without the walls, is another suburb, called Newport, sup- posed to have been an outwork of the Roman station. Cam- den, and some other antiquaries, state, that this place was occupied as a station, or strong hold, by the Britons, anterior to the Roman colonization of the island ; and that it then bore the name of " Lindcoif, from the woods, (for which some copies have, corruptly, Lintcoit)." By Ptolomy and Antoninus, the name of the place is written Lvidum ; and from having the privilege of a colony, was called Lindum-colonia* . Bede appears to liave identified the spot, by the names of Lindecollinum and Linde- collina ; and in the Saxon annals it is called Lindocolh/ne and Lindeyllan- * " Towns of this class were occupied by Romans, and mostly by legionary soldiers, who received portions of land in the neighbouihood, as a reward for their services, and as an encouragement to be vigilant in suppressing any attempts of the natives to recover their liberty. Their constitution, their courts of justice, and all their offices, were copied from Rome ; and the inhabitants were Roman citizens, and governed by Roman laws." — Mac- pherson's Annals of Commerce, "Vol. L p. 197". ^' 59i< LINCOLNSHIRE. * Lindei/Uan-ceaster. When the Normans took possession of Bri- tain, they gave new names, new laws, and new arrangements, to all the cities and baronies ; and this place was denominated, ac- cording to some writers, Nichol; but Mr. Gough doubts it, and says, " May one suggest a suspicion, that Nichol is owing to some misreading of Incol, or Lincol, or to the imperfect pro- nunciation of the Normans, as the French have disguised many proper names in later times." Whatever may have been the character of this station, pre- vious to its possession by the Romans, we cannot commence any thing like true history before that event; and even then we dis- cover but little to excite interest, or gratify curiosity. As a mili- tary station, occupied by a colony of Romans, it must have been a place of some extent and consequence. This is manifested, by the vesliges that remain, and by the various discoveries that have been made at different periods. The form of the fortified station was that of a parallelogram, divided into four equal parts, by two streets, which crossed it at right angles. At the extremities of these were four fortified gates, nearly facing the cardinal points. The whole was encompassed by an embattled wall, which, on three sides, was flanked by a deep ditch, but on the southern side the steepness of the hill rendered a foss unnecessary. The area thus inclosed was about 1300 feet in length, by 1200 feet in breadth, and is estimated to have contained thirty-eight acres. The walls have been levelled to the ground, and the gates, except that to the north, have been for many years demo- lished. The latter, called Newport-Gate, is described by Dr. Slukeley, as " the noblest remnant of this sort in Britain, as far as I know ;" and he expresses much surprise, that it had not '• been taken notice of" before his time. The great, or central gateway, has a semicircular arch, of sixteen feet in diameter, which is formed with twenty-six large stones, apparently without mortar. The height is twenty-two feet and a half, of which ele- ven are buried beneath the ground. On each side of the arch are seven courses of horizontal stones, called springers, some of which LINCOLNSHIRE. 595 which are from six to seven feet in length. On each side of the ^^^r^^'^'*^*^ . great arcli are two small lateral door ways, or posterns, bolli of which are now closed up. The diameter of eacfi was seven feet and a half, by fifteen feet in height. In the great arch there appears to have been no key stone. A mass of the old Roman wall is still to be seen eastward of this gate ; and to the west is another large mass, called the Mint-wall, which ran parallel with the town wall, and is described by Dr. Stukeley, as con- sisting of '•' a layer of squared stones, with tliree layers of brick, each one foot higli, then th.-ee of stone for the same height, then three of brick, and twelve of stone, and then brick and stone to the top." It was about sixteen feet high, and forty feet long, and had scaffold-holes, and marks of arches. Mr. Gougii thinks this was part of a Roman granary. Southward of the station above described, were other Roman works, which extended from the brow to the bottom of the hill. As the colony increased, this was necessary ; and the soutliern side of the hill would be found more pleasant and temperate in winter than the summit. Besides, the river in the bottom would attract the inhabitants, when they felt themselves protected by a commanding and power- ful garrison *. It appears that a fortified wall, with towers at the corners, continued from the top to the bottom of the hill, where * Tlie following are tlie Roman roads branching off from, and Stations connected with, Lindum-colonia. The Ermine Street, sometimes called High Street and OM Street, left the station on the nortli, and contimied, nearly in a straight line, to the river Humber, on the soutliern bank of which were Roman settlements, or villas, at Ad-Abiim, Wintciingham, and Horkstow. About five miles north of Lincoln, another road, or militaiy way, branched off from the former, at nearly right angles, and passed westerly, by Scampton, Stow, and Rlarton, where it forded the Trent, and near which was Segelocum. On the east of Lindtim, the road called the Foss-Way, branched off towards the sea coast. The same road entered the city, on the southern side, and in a south-westerly direction communi- cated with Crocolana, probably at or near Bruff, in Nottinghamshire. 1 he Ermine Street joined the last road near the southern border of the station, and communicated with the station of Cuuscnnis, supposed to be at An- caster. 596 LINCOLNSHIRE. where it turned at right angles by the side of the river. These fortifications underwent several alterations and-ftdditions, du- ring the various civil wars to which the place was subjected. Hence it is very difficult, if not wholly impossible, to define what is really of Roman origin, or of Saxon or Norman workmanship. It is equally perplexing to ascertain the time of establishing the first colony here, forming the station, building the walls, or ex- tending the city. The Rev. Mr. Sympson, one of the vicars choral, has offered some conjectures on those subjects; and as they serve to illustrate a few points respecting the Roman city, I shall avail myself of some passages from his writings. In taking down the Roman wall, several coins have been found, belonging to the following Emperors — Fl. Vespasian, Nero, Carausius, Ju- lian, &c. " From considering them, and the situation in which they were found, I conjecture that this wall was either built by Carausius, or built or repaired after the time of Julian. V/hen Carausius assumed the purple, and bade defiance to the authority and power of Maximian Hercules, who was so exceedingly en- raged against him, that he had endeavoured to assassinate him, we may reasonably suppose, that so vigilant and consummate a general would fortify himself in the securest manner ; and this colony being of the greatest importance to him, from its situa- tion near to the banks of that part of the Witham which con- tinued the conmiunication between the Carsdyke and another artificial canal called the Fossdyke to the Trent, for the conve- nience of carrying corn, and other conmiodities, from the Iceni, &c. for the use of the northern prajtentures ; it is not improbable, that he built the walls and gates of the old city. This was about the latter end of the third century." From the various coins of Carausius found here, at different times, Mr. Sympson supposes, that Emperor resided here for some time. Among these was one of Dioclesian, with the reverse " Pax Avggg," which was struck in honour of the peace made by Carausius and Diocle- sian, and Maximian. A votive tablet, with the following in- scription, has been found among the ruins of the wall : — M. LA LINCOLNSHIREr 597 M. LA ETII F MAX CT M I Mr. Syrapson reads it as follows; " Marcus Laelius AETII Filius Maximo, ct (et) Maximo lovi, and I suppose it dedi- cated to the Emperor Maximus." In 1739, a discovery was made of three stone coffins at the south-west corner of the close, near the chequer gate. Beneath these was a tessellated pavement, and under that a roman hypo- caust. " On the floor of strong cement, composed of lime, ashes, and hrick-dust, commonly called terrace mortar, stood four rows of pillars, two feet high, made of brick, eleven in a row, in all forty-four, besides two half pillars. The round pillars behig composed of ten courses of semicular bricks, laid by pairs, the joint of every course crossing that of the former at right angles, with so much mortar betwixt the two semicircles, rather form an oval, making the pillars look at first sight as if they were wreathed ; the square pillars are composed of thirteen courses of bricks, eight inches square, thinner than those of tlie red ones. The floor of the sudatory resting on these pillars, is composed of large bricks, twenty-one by twenty-three inches, which lie over the square bricks on the pillars, the four corners of each reaching to the centres of the adjoining pillars. On this course of brick is a covering of cement, six inches thick, inlaid with a pavement, composed of white tesseliB. The walls of this room were plaistered, and the plaister painted red, blue, and other colours, but no figures discenuble in either painting or pavement. This pa%'ement, which is on a level with the testudo of the hypo- caust, is about thirteen feet below the present surface of the ground: so deep is old Lindum buried in ils ruins*." In 1782 another similar discovery was made near the King's Arms. This appears to have been also a Sudatory. On a .^oor, composed of two courses of bricks, and two layers of ter- race * Camden's Britannia, by Gongli, Vol. II. p. 257. j^^^.^'^- SgS LINCOLNSHIRE. race mortar, stood a number of arches four feet Iiigli, their crown eight inches and a half thick, supported by pilhirs of bricks six- teen inches by twelve, which, as well as the arches, were covered over with two coats of mortar; and supported a floor composed of terrace and bricks, irregularly intermixed. — The intervals be- tween the pillars were two feet three inches, two feet five inches, and two feet seven inches : several of the pillars were gone. To the north, beyond two rows of these pillars, whose floors rise one inch and a half from north to south, were passages, at the end of which the arches began again ; but the discovery was pursued no further that way : for the extenial wall, which is six feet thick, of brick and stone intermixed, extends northward beyond the width of one arch; but how much further cannot be traced, the arches being broken in and fiUed with rubbish. Where the second set of arches commences was found a hole, that goes sloping up into the outer wall, beginning at the crown of the arches, and seems to have communicated with some part above. By the joints in the work it is conjectured, that the place with pillars, and the one w ith passages had been built at different times. On the south was an entrance, whose floor falls five inches, and is continued beyond the jamb. The surface of the floor is thirteen feet six inches beneath the pavement of the street, and seventeen feet five inches below the garden in which it is situated. Numbers of fragments of urns, patera?, aud other earthen vessels, but none very ornamental, were found amongst the rubbish ; also earthen bottles terminating in a point, without any orifice. The external walls were built of stone intermixed with brick. The ruins of this I'.ypocaust still exist, and are accessible at all times to the cu- rious traveller. In a communication made to the Society of Antiquaries, by John Pownall, Esq. published in the Tenth Volume of the Archae- ologia, is a description of an ancient place of Sepulture, dis- covered in an open field, half a mile due east of die east-gate of the ancient Lindum. Mr. P. says, there was found in 1790, in digging about three or four feet below the surface, a very curious sepulchral LINCOLNSHIRE. 599 sepulchral monument, evidently Roman, and of some person above j^^r^ c^r^t^x^. the rank of the lower order; but as the urn, which the sarcopha- gus inclosed, coutained nothing but sand, ashes, and burnt bones, the jcra of interment could not be ascertained. The sarcophagus consisted of a large round stone trough, of rude workmanship, with a cover of the same ; both the stone and its cover had ori- ginally been square, but the ravages of time had so worn otf the angles, as to give it the appearance of rotundity. Another stone of the same kind was found near it, of a quadrangular shape, evi- dently used for the same purpose, but without a lid or urn. This, with many rare fragments of antiquity, were preserved by the Rev. Dr. Gordon, the Precentor of the Cathedral; who, in a letter to Mr. Pownall, dated March 2, 1791, gives an account of several earthen and glass urns, which were discovered in the same field, some of which were of singular shape. He also describes a room, twenty feet by sixteen, which was discovered in a quarry, about one hundred yards west from the other; the height could not be ascertained, but the bottom was about twelve feet from the present surface. The floor was covered with black ashes, and the walls bore evident marks of fire. Two skeletons were found lying ou the floor, also a large stone trough capable of holding a man, but not of sufficient depth for the purpose of a coffin. This was probably a sarcophagus, in which, as Pliny in- forms us, in his Nat. Hist. Lib. H. that all bodies, previous to urn-burial, were accustomed to be burnt. The Doctor thinks the room might have been appropriated for the reception of bodies that were prepared for the funereal ceremonies. Suetonius in Nerone, and some other writers, have described similar places under the name of Libitina : where dead bodies were carried pre- vious to interment. — " Erat porro, Romae porta Libitina per quam cadavera ad Libitinam etferebantur*." The same field having been broken up for the purposes of quar- rying, several stone coffins of various shapes have at different times ^ been discovered in the loose ground, which covers a substratum of * Lazius Comiu. Reipub. Rom, (JOO LINCOLNSHIRE. of rock. From tliese and other circumslances, it is highly pro- bable, that this was a Roman burial-ground for the great conti- guous Muncipium ; and continued so till a different mode of burial was established by the introduction of Christianity. Fragments of Iloman pottery were found here in IJSG. They consisted of fine close clay, cleared of heterogeneous sand ; and so baked as to preserve an equal hardness and uniform red colour throughout. Between the Castle and Lucy tower, on the side of Fossdyke, have been found some glazed earthen pipes, two feet long, and between two and three inches diameter, fastened to- gether by joints. These formed part of a set of conduit pipes, for the conveyance of waters to the town from a spring on the high ground near. In a field north-east of the town was dis- covered another supposed conduit of the same aera. About four- teen yards to the north of the Assembly Room was a large Well or cistern of very singular construction, called the Blind Well. It was built with neat walling ; and at the top was eighteen feet di- ameter, narrowing towards the bottom. This has some years since been filled up. — Communicating with this, it appears, pipes were laid from a spring head, at the distance of forty-two chains. In a low ground, abounding with springs on the otlier side the hedge of Nettlehamiuclosure, are traces of a building, supposed a reser- voir, whence, from under a raised bank, parallel with a balk pointing to the spring head, are pipes to another such bank, forming with it an obtuse angle. In the bank, or road, to which the first series of pipes point, are in places raised parts, which bear a strong re- semblance to a Roman Rampart ; and a remarkable excavation is said to have been discovered in it some years since, by the breaking in of a loaded waggon. The whole length from the mound to the second pipe is sixty-three chains and forty-six links, or nearly one thousand three hundred and ninety-seven yards. The pipes are about one foot ten indies long. They have no in- sertions, but are joined by an exterior ring or circular course, with an inlroceptive process of strong cement, like the bed in which the pipes are laid. Count Caylus, in his Receuil d'Anliq. Tom. II. LINCOLNSHIRE. (JOl ^oni. II. describes a similar kind of aqueduct, which supphed 0^* *■ Paris with mineral water from Chaillcot, in the time of the Romans. A plan of that at Lincoln is engraved in Gough's Camden. Within the area of the Cathedral cloisters is part of a Roman tessellated pavement, still preserved, and secured from the weather and hijury by a small buihling erected over it. In 1/88, in the area of Lincoln Castle, was found a Roman vessel, nearly entire, three feet and a half below what appears to be the natural rock, and fourteen beneath the present surface. It was of black pottery, and one side of it was corroded. An- other fragment of a Roman vessel, found in the rubbish of a Ptoman building within the castle, had been apparently gilt; and was, according lo Governor Pownall, who furnished the ac- count, of a different kind of clay to any Roman earthenware he had ever seen. From these, and other considerations, it is not improbable, that the Romans or Romanized Britons had a fortress on the site of the present castle, before its erection by the Norman Conqueror. Sir Henry C.,Englefiel(i, in a communication to the Antiquarian Society, describes an arch opening into the ditch, in a tower still remaining amid the ruins, which had escaped the notice of Mr. King, in his account of this structure. The tower fronts the west, having in the lower part a large semicircular arch, which is sixteen feet wide in the clear, turned with forty-five stones, each of which is two feet deep. Above, to the right hand is a small doorway, now walled up, having a semicircular arch, crossed by a transom stone in the Saxon style. This is six feet six inches high, by two feet four inches and a half wide. It led from the lower to the higher iJoor, To (he left are two loop boles, covered with single stones, cut circular at top. It appears, that nearly eight feet of the original building is now buried beneath the surface. Up a hollow part in the rock went a flight of steps, which has been de- stroyed. Tlie wall of the outer arch is live feet thick, but the Vol. IX. Q q superstructure ^02 LINCOLNSHIRE. superstructure only four ; having in tlic centre, a portcullis groove. Nearly the whole of this wall is composed of the Lincoln stone, of which a reddish and harder stratum has been selected for turning the arches both of tlie gateway and door above, for covering the beam holes, and for closing the loops. Its situation is precisely in the line of the Roman wall, and not far froiii the middle of the west side of it ; and, as near as the eye can judge, is directly opposite to the site of the eastern Roman gate, which was destroyed some years since. The learned Baronet then observes, " The dimensions of tiie arch, its materials, its being so far below the present surface of the earth, and its situation in the line of the Roman wall, and opposite the east gate, would at once determine me to pronounce it the old gate of the Lindum of the Romans ; did not some re- markable differences in this, from the north and south gates stilt existing, seem to discountenance the supposition. They have an impost, this has none. They are built of vast stones, this of ra- ther small ones, (though the three thin stones on each haunch of the Newport Roman arch are very like those, which turn this arch) yet as the present castle, which was built by William the Con- queror, is evidently of more modern time than the tower, and the lower itself appears to have been of a date posterior to the arch in question, as appears by the dilFerent thickness of the walls, &c. I can- not help still thinking, that the Normans and Saxons both found this great arch built to their hands, and so, instead of destroying turned it into a postern, when they dug out the ditch and built a flight of steps to it. I must end by remarking, that the diameter of this arch is much greater than any other gate now about the city, the Newport having been only fifteen feet, and the castle great gate thirteen feet ten inches in the clear *." Soon after the Romans left the island, Lincoln, in common with other places of consequence, shared in the general calamities, which ensued, by the incursions of the Picts, Saxons, and Danes. At. * Archaeologia, Vol. VI. page 379. imcOLNSHIKE,. 60§ At what period the Saxons possessed themselves of this cily does ^-i^f-f- ^^'^^ not appear in history. But so early as the year 516, or accord- ing to Matliew of Westminster, 518, Arthur having been crowned King of Britain, proceeded immediately with his forces against the Saxons, who had been ravaging the counlry under tlieir leader, Golgern; who, on the approach of the British Piince, fled, and passed over into Germany, where having obtained fresh supplies of troops, and aided by Cerdic, the founder of the West Saxon ^iingdom, he again advanced, and carried on a depredatory war- fare. Arthur obtaining advantages against the combined army pursued it towards Lincoln, which cily was then besieged by the / troops of Cerdic ; who, on the arrival of the Britons, were com- pelled to retreat from before it. Soon after this, from the successes which the invaders continu- '^ ally met with, Lincoln was probably in the possession of the Saxons. In those struggles it was that the old town was nearly destroyed, and that, as Leland thinks, " new Lincoln was made out of a piece of old Lincoln." The Saxons, for their better se- curity, fortified the southern part of the hill with ditches and ramparts, walled the town, and erected gates. A. D. 940, but according to the Saxon chronicle, A. D. 957, Edmund pursued the Danes into the north of England, defeated them, and recovered many towns ; among which are mentioned Lincoln, Leicester, Stafford, Nottingham, and Derby; obliging them at the same time to swear allegiance to him, and to receive Christian baptism. Fresh supplies of troops coming over under Sweyne, the Danes over-ran the north, committed great devasta- tions, and laid on the people most insupportable taxes. Sweyne dying at Gainsborough, was succeeded by Canute ; who, A. D. 1016, laid waste the counties of Buckingham, Bedford, Hunting- don, Nottinghani, Lincoln, and York. In this career, however, lie was arresLed by the valiant Edmund Ironside ; but from a con- spiracy in his array that priuce was obliged to disband it, and seek refuge for himself under the protection of Uchtred his brother-in- law, Earl of Northumberland ; from whom he was soon obliged to Q q 2 retire 604, LINCOLNSHIRE. retire to London, and his father dying, soon after liis arrival m that city he was crowned king. The issue of the further strugG;le9 between him and Canute, it is well known, terminated in the divi- sion of the kingdom between tluMii. Lincohi, at the lime of the Norman conquest, appears to have been one of the richest and most populous cites in England; and of great importance as an emporium of trade and commerce. The Domesday Survey m-^n'ions 1070 mansions, 9OO Burgesses, and 12 Lagemen, having sac and soke. On tlie accession of the Conqueror to the throne, he appears to have ftlL that dread and insecurity, which ever attend usurped domiiriion; and having no hold upon his new subjects, but what principally arose from fear, he endeavoured by every precaution to prevent insurrection and revolt. Malcolm, King of Scotland, refusing in 106j, to give up Edgar, who had fled to him for protection, excited alarm in the bosom of the Conqueror; and numbers of the English flying to that country from the yoke of tyranny, tended to increase his sus- picions. Convinced of the disaffection of many, and doubtful of more among his people, he ordered four strong castles to be built ; one at Hastings, another at Lincoln, a third at Nottingham, and a fourth at York. In consequence of this a large and strong castle was erected A. D. 108(5, on the ridge of the hill on which this city was situated. The ostensible design of it was, as a fortress to de- fend the city ; but the more immediate and real object was to overawe and keep in subjection the inliabitants, whose numbers, wealth, and partialities the Conqueror viewed with a jealous eye. The building was 64. t yards in circumference, and occupied the space on which had stood 166 houses. These are said to have been taken down to furnish room for its erection, and 74 more were at the same time destroyed without the limits, that the whole might be insulated, or stand alone. In the reign of Henry the First a navigable canal was made, or enlarged, from the river Witham at Lincoln to tiie Trent near Torksey; and was probably the first canal of the sort ever made in England. This was about seven miles in length, and is at present LINCOLNSHIRE. 6'Oj ■present called the Foss-Dyke. By this a communicaliou was Ac^^i^-^fi^'* forincd wilh the river Trent, and down that by the Huuiber to the «ea. Thus being accessible for foreign vessels, and having also the advantage of an inland navigation, the city became thriving, populous, and woaltliy. And, according to Alexander Nechani, a poet of the age, " Lincoln was now stored with good things, and became the support of the neiglibouring country." At this period it is related by some historians that it i)ossc'bsed a very large share of the import and export trade of the kingdom. A. D. 1140, Tiie Empress Mavid coming over to England, to assert her title to the crown, and o|)j)()se the prcte^isions of King Stephen, she took up her abode at Lincoln, strongly for- litied it, and amply stored it with provisions. This, she thought, was a place of safety, and conveniently situated for keeping up a communication with those persons who were friendly to her cause. Stephen hearing of it, marched quickly thither, closely besieged the city and took it. But the Empress had, during the siege, found means to escajje. The King having possessed himself of the city, appeased the tumults of the neighbourhood, and finding the country quiet, he left a garrison, and proceeded to his army acting in other parts of the kingdom. Shortly after this, in the same year, Ralf de Gernons, Earl of Chester, and William de Iloumara, his half-brother, who had claimed the earldom of Lincoln, in right of liis mother Lucia, sister to Edwin and Morcar; possessed themselves of the castle by surprise, and intended with their countesses and friends, to keep their Christmas there. The citizens espousing the king's cause, sent private intelligence to him, that the Earls were in an unprovided state and apprehensive of no danger ; that it would be easy to secure them, and offered to assist in the enterprize. Upon this advice Stephen came by rapid marches from London, and invested the place on Christmas-day. The citizens rising in his behalf^ seized and secured seventeen men at arms. The Earls knowing that the place could not hold out long, without the siege was raised, and the younger brother's liberty being necessary Qq 3 tpr S06 LINCOLNSHIRE. for that purpose, Ralf broke through the enemies' guards in the night, reached Chester, levied his vassals, obtained assistance from the Welsh, and gained over to his cause his father-in-law, Robert, earl of Gloucester ; and these joining their forces marched towards Stephen, who had now laid before the city six weeks. On their approach he prepared to give them battle ; but an unlucky omen, and a worse disaster, happened that day to the king : the tapers he offered according to custom broke, and the pix, with the consecrated water in it, wliich hung over the altar at mass, augured worse. But what really led to the fate of the day was, the defection of Alan, earl of Richmond, who, refusing to fight, marched off before the battle began. Undismayed, and persist- ing in his resolution, Stephen dismounted, put himself at the head of his infantry, while the earl of Gloucester placed his troops in such a position, that there could be no retreat. Botli armies fought desperately, but Stephen's cavalry being routed, he was sur- rounded by the enemy's horse ; and though he behaved wi'di tiie utmost intrepidity, his main body was soon broken, and himself taken by the earl of Gloucester ; by whom he was conducted prisoner to the castle of Bristol. Stephen, was exchanged for Robert, earl of Gloucester, who had been taken by William of Ypres, and being released out of prison, and restored to the throne by capitulation, his affairs assumed a more pleasing as}>ect, Oxford apd many other places yielded, Ralf, earl of Ches- ter, sided with him, and delivered up his castles of Coventry and Lincoln*; and here, A. D. 1044, he passed his Christmasf. The deed of pacification drawn up between the Empress and Stephen, by which Prince Henry his son was to succeed to the crown ; among other articles of agreement stipulates. That the castle of Lincoln should be put into the hands of Jordan de Bus- sey, • Simon of Durliam testifies that Stephen entered Lincoln in triumph, hav- ing on liis royal rol)es and wearing his crown, wbicli was as new a species of pomp, as it was surprising and disgusting to tlie people. i Carte's Jlist. Eng. LINCOLNSHIRB.. C07 sey, as governor ; who, on taking possession, was sworn to deliver it to Prince Henry, or whom he niiglit appoint, on the death of Stephen*. Lincoln having been made notorious in the contest between the Empress and tliat king, obtained a degree of consequence in the estimation of future monarchs. After Henry the Second had been crowned in London, Speed says, he was afterwards, in the year 1155, crowned at Lincoln. Rapin describes the event as having taken place at Wickford, an adjacent village, in A. D. 1 158. But the dale of Speed is likely to be right, as it is highly proba- ble, that Henry adopted this measure among others, to secure the fidelity of his subjects previous to his departure for Flanders. Carte, however, says, that " it was probably on his return from the north, where he had been to meet Malcolm, King of Scot- land, and at the festival either of Easter or Whitsuntide, that Hejiry wore his crown at Lincoln ; not in the city, but in the su- burbs, called Wickford, out of a prudent compliance with the su- perstitious notions of the people, who imagined that a king's wear- ing it within the walls was always the forerunner of some dis- aster." In the time of Richard the First, Gerard de Camville possessed the castle, and had the government of the city and county granted liim ; but was dispossessed of both in the fifth year of that king's reign. During the contentions between King John and his refractory barons, who were assisted by Lewis, Dauphin of France, this city was taken by Gilbert de Gaunt, who had been made by the usurper, earl of Lincoln ; but the castle still held out for the kingf. John having raised a powerful army, marched in the autumn of the year 1216" to relieve it. Taking the nearest way from Norfolk across the washes, he left in that dangerous pass, all his carriages, treasure, portable chapel, regalia, and other bag- Q q 4 gage. * Mattli. Paris Hist. t It was kept and defended by a noble Lady of ttie name of Nickole; ^ t- L ^C t<. 608 LINCOLNSHIRE. -J gage. This loss so affected him, that it hastened his death. Gil- bert however had, in consequence of the king's approach, retreated, but hearing of his death, he reinvested the place, took it, and again besieged the castle. The Pope, taking the part of the young King Henry, by his Legate, solemnly execrated Gilbert and his abettors ; and granted indulgences to all persons who would take up arms against them for the recovery of the castle. The earl of Pembroke, then Regent, soon raised a powerful army, and encamped at Stow, eight miles off. The numbers appeared greatei- than they were, by a well managed ruse de guerre. The noblemen and bannerets each of them had two ensigns, the one borne by themselves, or squires, and the other advanced among the carriages. This formidable appearance intimidated the con- federate army, and prevented their coming to meet the English, In the mean time, Foulk de Brent, a powerful baron in the King's interest, threw himself, with a reinforcement, into the castle, and sallying out on the besiegers, attacked them in the rear, while the troops, with the Earl of Pembroke at their head, assailed them in front. The French, under the Count of Perch with their abettors, and Gilbert's forces, made a resolute resistance to the sally, till the King's forces coming up on the other side, they were struck with dismay. They had previously shut the barriers, and endea- voured by every means to keep the Earl of Pembroke's forces from entering the city ; but they fell upon the confederates with such fury, that almost all were either slain or taken prisoners. The Count of Perch retired into tlie church yard of the cathe- dral, where, refusing to submit to an Englishman, he was killed by a lance piercing the brain through his helmet. A few of the barons escaped ; but the chief of them were taken, with about 400 knights, besides esquires; and of the inferior classes an im- mense number ; many endeavouring to escape in boats down the Withani, were drowned ; and others, flying in all directions, were put to death by the country people. The riches of the confederate camp and city became spoils to the LINCOLNSHIRE. 609 ? the King's army; hence the discomfiture was reproachfully .x>*'-i>'.<'^'*' termed Lewis-fair. Each royalist wore a while cross on his breast, on account of the baltle being fought in the Whilsun week. It began at two o'clock, and ended at nine, " So expeditious," says Matthew Paris, " were the merchants in transacting the bu- siness at this fair." This battle, fought on the 4th of June, A. D. 1218, was the ruin of the Dauphin's cause in England, as %vell as that of the barons ; and at the same time evinced the folly of the latter in accepting the aid of a French power to enable them to oppose llieir legal sovereign. Speed says, that in the fiftieth of Henry the Third, A. D. 1266, the city of Lincoln was sacked. The castle and bail of Lincoln appear to have continued in the erown till the time of Eiiward the First, when Henry de Lacy died seized of them, and they passed, with other parts of his inheritance, to the Earl of Lincoln, and so became annexed to the duchy of Lancaster. John of Gaunt, Dtike of that palati- nate, greatly imjjroved the castle, and made it his summer re- sidence ; having, according to a tradition of the place, built himself a winter palace below the hill, in the southern suburbs. In the time of King Edward the First, A. D. 1301, a parlia- ment was held here, to consult about an answer to the Pope's letters, in which he had prohibited the King from waging war against the Scots, who had previously resigned their kingdom to that monarch. In this the King and Nobles resolved, that, as the King's quarrel with the Scots was founded upon his just title to the crown of Scotland, no foreign power had a right to inter- fere ; and a spirited reinonstrance to that effect was transmitted lo Rome : upon which the Pope relinquishing his prohibitory plan, the war was continued. Four years after this, the King kept his court here a whole winter, and held another parliament, in which he confirmed Magna Charta *, and obtained a subsidy. A parliament * A fine and perfect copy of tliis important national (leed, is still preserved among tlie archives of tiie cathedral. This has been carefully copied, under the direction of Mr. AV'illiam Illingworth, and is now engraving for the " Parliamentary Reports on the Public Records of Great Britain." 6lO LINCOLNSHIRE. itfx,c-e>^£i.<. A parliament was assembled at Lincoln, by Edward the Second, to consider of the best means to be adopted for opposing the outrages of tlie Scots; and another was also holden at thisplac^ in the first year of the succeeding reign. The contracted spirit of corporate monopoly so far prevailed here, against the acts of parliament passed in the years 1335 and 1337, and the King's resolutions to foster the woollea manufactures, that the weavers of Lincoln obtained a grant from Edward the Third, A. D. 1348, of what they considered and called their liberties. By this charter they were invested with the power of depriving any weaver not of their guild, of the privilege of working at his trade within twelve leagues of the city. This, and some other similar monopolies, were abolished in the year 1351, by an act called the Statute of Cloths. In the twenty-sixth year of this reign, A. D. 1352, the staple of wool was removed from Flanders to England ; and the staple towns appointed on that occasion, were Westminster, Chichester, Canterbury, Bristol, Hull, and Lincoln. The latter was also made a staple fot leather, lead, and various other articles. This proved highly beneficial to the place, for it thereby recovered from the losses it had sustained by military ravages, and was soon in a very ilourishing condition. John of Gaunt being a widower, while resident at Lincoln, married, A. D. 1390', the Lady Catharine Swinford, then a v.idow. This apparently unequal match excited much surprise. But Sir John Hayward observes, that he " therein obeyed the remorse of a Christian conscience, witlvout respect to his own unequal greatness ; for having had several children by her in his former wife's time, he made her and them the only sufficient amends which the laws of God and man require." And further, in a parliament held the year following, the Duke pro- cured an act to legitimate his children, and give them the sur- name of Beavfort. Richard the Second visited Lincoln in the year 1386, and granted to the mayor (John Sutton), and his successors, the privilege of having a sword carried before them in their pro- cessions. Henry LINCOLNSHIRE. 6ll ,7 Henry the Sixlli came here in the year 1446, and then \\t\^ ^^ i t c'^^<- Iiis court in the episcopal palace. A rebellion breaking out in the time of Edward the Fourth, Sir Robert VV'ells, sou of Lord Wells, out of revenge for the death of his father, whom Edward, after promising safety, had caused to be beheaded, took up arms, and raised a great com- tnotion in the county. Collecting together about 30,000 men at Lincoln, he marched out, and fell upon the King's troops in the vicinity of Stamford, near which place a most sanguinary battle ensued, when Sir Robert, with Sir Thomas Deland being taken, the Lincoln men were so terrified, that casting off their coats, least they should be impeded in their flight, ran away. This conflict is still called " Tlie Battle of Lose-Coat-Field." On this occasion it is said 10,000 were killed, aud Sir Robert Wells, with many other persons of distinction, were put to death by the King's command. After the battle of Bosworlh Field, King Henry the Seventh was at Lincoln, and here it was he first heard of tlie escape of the Lord Lovell, who had raised an army against him. After his coronation in the camp, he came to this city, where he spent three days in offering up public prayers and thanksgivings, and in making splendid processions, for the signal victory he had obtained over Richard the Third. In the year 1533, Cromwell, the minister of King Henry the Eighth, ob- tained an act of Parliament to enforce the reading of the Lord's Prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments, in English. This was not agreeable lo the common people, who, instigated by the monks, rose in various parts of the kingdom. A commotion was made by the men of Lincoln and Lincolnshire, under a leader of the feigned name of Captain Cohler. They amounted to nearly 20,000 men, against whom the King prepared to march in person, charging several counties to furnish a certain number of soldiers, properly equipped, to meet him at Ampthill. This being known to the insurgents, they sent to his Majesty a list of articles, or items of their grievances; and an humble request, that he would pardon their liaving taken up arras against him. When €['2 LJNCOLNSIIIRE. When the King had perused it, he pacified tliem by a courteous speech ; and on laying down their arms, they received his most gracious pardon. Ou the commencement of ihe civil war between Charles the , First and his parliament *, the King came to Lincoln, where he received, by Charles Dviil-son, recorder of the city, the assurance of support from the corporation and principal inhabitants; and having convened the nobility, kiiij;hts, gentry, and freeholders of the county, his Miijesty addressed them in an able and appro- priate speech : justifying his conduct in the measures he had taken ; exhorting them to join cordially with him in defence of their liberty and religion, and warning them against the conse- quences of the spirit of rebellion which had gone forth. This speech, delivered July 15, A. D. 1^42, is published in the vo- lume of Reliqiue Sacra, or Works of Kii:g Charles the First. In the month of July, the following year, a plot was discovered to deliver up the city, tiien in the hands of the parliamentarian forces, to the King. For co-operating iu this design, 2000 of l!ie Queen's troops were sent from Ne^^'ark before the walls of Lhicoln, expecting, according to agreement, they should be ad- mitted by Serjeant Major Purefoy, and his brother Captain Furefoy, who had, the day before, received about sixty cavaliers iu disguise. And though an intimation of the plot was given to the garrison by the Mayor of Hull, on which the two Purefoys %vere seized, yet the cavaliers sallied into the town, and, before 'they could be suppressed, did considerable execution^ Soon after * It is a singular circumstance, that althoiigli a very particular account lias been given, Ijy several aiitliors, of the uuliappy differences wliich sub- sisted between the people of England and tlieir ill fated monarch, at various other cities and towns, yet no mention is made of any events relative to that period at Lincoln, either in Camden, the Magna Britannia, or even in Clarendon's History of the Rebellion. Mr. Gous;h, in his additions to Cam- den, edition 1789, merely says, "The lower town having been taken by tlie parliament's forces, under the Earl of Manchester, the castle was stormei], :6Iay, 1G14."' LINCOLNSHIHE. 6iS y .? uftcr tin's, Lincoln was in possession of the royalists ; for. May 3(1, A. D. 16'4.4, the Earl of Manchester sale down with an army before the cily, and, after n;eeiing some liUle resistance, took the lower part of it, the besieged retreating into tiie Minster and Castle. Tliese he intended to storm on tlie niglit of the 4tli, had not a violent rain prevented him, by making the Castle Hill too slipper}' for the purpose. On the following day, receiving in- telligence that Colonel Goring, with 5 or (iOOO horse, was com- ing to relieve the city, Manchester resolved to carry the castle by storm that afternoon. But again being informed that they could not come up during the night, he deferred t!ie attack (ill the next morning. In the mean time, Cromwell was detached, with 2000 horse, to cause a diversion of their rout. The infantry were ordered to lie among their works, that they might be ready when a signal for onset should be given. This was about two o'clock in the morning, when Ihey iuslantly commenced a most- furious attack. In the space of a quarter of an hour they gut up to the works, though the King's troops made a gallant resistance, and soon were enabled to fix their scaling ladders. The garrison, at this time, desisted fiom firing, and threw down large stones on the assailants, which did much more execution than the shot; but the besiegers getting into the castle, slew about fdly ; and the rest, intimidated, demanded quarter, which was inimediate- Jy granted. Among the prisoners were Sir Francis Fane, the governor, Colonels Middlemore and Bandes, two Lieutenant Co- lonels, two Majors, twenty Captains, and about seven hundred private soldiers. Oiie hundred horse, and eight pieces of Ord- nance were also taken. Of Manchester's parly, eight were killed, in which number were Captain Ogleby and Lieutenant Saunders;- and about forty were wounded. The Diocess of Lincoln, after the See was removed from Sid- nacester, soon acquired a vast accumulation of territorial juris- diction and wealth. Il took in so many counties, that it was described as ready to sink under the incumbent weight of its own greatness; and though Henry the Second took out of it the diocess 6l4 LINCOLNSHIRE. diocess of Ely, and King Henry tlie Eiglilh those of Peter- borough and Oxford, it is still considered the largest in Eng- land. As the jurisdiction was great, so, prior to the reformation, the revenues were proportionably abundant. Except the two archbishoprics, and those termed the principnUty bisfioprics, viz. Winchester, Durham, and Ely, no see in the kingdom was so well endowed, which was the reason that there is no record, till the time of Elizabeth, of any Bishop of this see having been translated to another, except Winciiester ; though since that lime, Willis observes, " no less than ten out of seventeen have left this for more valuable ones." Nor was it less remarkable for the number of episcopal palaces within the diocess. Be- fore 1547 it had eiglit. In this county, Lincoln, Sleaford, and Nettleham ; in Rutlandshire, Ledinglon ; in Huntingdonshire, Buckden, the usual residence of the Bishops ; in Buckingham- shire, Wobum, and Finghurst ; in Oxfordshire, Banbury Castle ; two more at Newark, in tlie county of Nottingham ; and Lin- coln Place, Chancery Lane, London. All these, except that at Lincoln, with about thirty manors, were given up, in the first year of Edward the Sixth, by Holbech, the first married bishop; who, for the purpose of gratifying the wishes of some courtiers, and raising his own family, exchanged almost every species of landed property annexed to the see for impropriations : so that now scarcely four manors remain of the ancient demesne?. The present revenues, therefore, principally arise from rectorial pro- perty or tythes. By the death of the Duke of Somerset, during the time of Holbech, the palace of Buckden reverted to the see ; and in the time of Queen Mary, the estates were restored to Bishop White; but on his deprivation, A. D. 1559, they were a^aln alienated by Queen Elizabeth. Madox, in his Baronia Anglia, says, " that the bishopric of Lincoln consisted of five knichts' fees," which, if the knight's fee is fixed, according to Mr. Maseres, at 680 acresj will make its possession 3400 acres. Introductory to an accouat of Lbe Calhedia!, and a« tending to il- lustrate LINCOLNSHIRE. 6l5 ," ^p iustrate many points of local history, I shall next relate a Uyt ^i^'^^^'^^^ particulars respecting the lives or actions of the BISHOPS OF LINCOLN.— The account of these will be given in a chronological order, from the period of fixing the see here to the present time ; and to each will be annexed the eras of their respective consecrations and deaths. St. Remigius de Fescamp, who had been Bishop of Dor- chester about eighteen years, became, on the removal of the see in loss, (or as stated in the Lincoln MS.* 10S6",) Bishop of Lin- coln. He founded the cathedral, which he brought to such a slate of forwardness in four years, as to be ready for consecration, at which all the bishops of England were summoned to attend : but, two days before the intended solemnity, he died. May (j, 1092; and was buried on the north side of the choir of his ca- thedral, where a monument was erected to his memory. Robert Bloet, or Blovet, who had been chaplain to Wil- liam the Conqueror, and was now chancellor to William Rufus,. was consecrated in ]09C. He finished the cathedral, dedicated it to the Virgin Mary, and greatly enriched it. Having presided thirty years, he died January 10, 1123, at Woodstock, (while on horseback attending the king), and was buried in the north tran- sept of his cathedral, where a monument was raised to his rae- niory. In his time the bishopric of Ely was taken out, and made independent of that, of Lincoln. Alexander DE Blois, Archdeacon of Salisbury, and Chief Justice of England, was consecrated July 22, 1123, through the interest of his uncle Roger, the celebrated Bishop of Salisbury. Having rebuilt the cathedral, which had been, in 1124, destroyed by fire, he arched it over with stone, to prevent a similar acci- dent ; and greatly encreased the size and augmented the ornamesits of it, so as to render it the most magnificent sacred edifice in his time. His extensive generosity obtained for him the nanie of Alex- ander the Benevolent . He died July 20, 1 147, and was buried near the two former Bishops. This prelate, and his ambitious uncle of Salisbury, * Willis's Survey of CatliedraJs, Vol. TI. p. 542. C[6 LINCOLNSHIRE. Siilisbiiry, were mucli devoted to ecclesiastical architecture; and are said to have erected, or greatly enlarged, several magnificent buildings*. Robert de Chisney, called also Chesneto, and Quer- CETO, who had been Archdeacon of Leicester, succeeded to the see of Lincoln in 1147. He built the episcopal palace, founded St. Catherine's Priory : and purchased a house in London, near the Temple, for hinisell' and his successors. He died January 25', 1167, leaving the see much in debt through his nuuiificence, and was buried in this cathedral. The see having been vacant six years, Geoffrey Planta- GENET, natural son of King Henry the Second, waselectedin 1 17^'^, and held it nine jears, but never was consecrated; whence some authorities omit liim in the list of bishops, and consider the see as vacant during that period. He discharged the mortgages of his predecessor; and, in 1182, resigned his pretensions to the bishop- ric ; soon after \\ hich he was appointed Archbishop of Yo7'k. Walter de Constantiis, Archdeacon of Oxford, suc- ceeded to this see in 1 183, but was the next year translated to the Archbishopric of Rouan, in Normandy. After a vacancy of two years, Hugh, Prior of Wilhani, com- monly described as St. Hugh Burgundus, was consecrated September 21, 11S6. His piety and austere life obtained him universal esteem while living, and canonization after his death. His authority was so great, and his resolution so firm, that he ordered the tomb of Fair Rosamond to be removed from God- stow church, where it had been placed with great solemnity, by the king's command. This prelate enlarged the cathedral, by building what is now called the Netv Work. He also built that beautiful piece of architecture, the Chapter- House, and died November 17, 1200. The high estimation in which he was held, was evinced by two kings (John of England, and William of Scot- land,) assisting to carry his body to the cathedral doors, where it was * See Architectural Antiquities of Great Britain, Vol I. in the " Account of JIaimsbury abbey churdi." LINCOLNSHIRE. 6lf "WAS received by several bishops, who carried it into the clioir, where it was buried, and enshrined* in silver. This being pulled down in the civil war of the 17th century. Bishop FulleB set up a plain altar tomb over the grave. Sanderson states, that the shrine erected to his memory was " made of beaten gold, and was in length eight feet by four feet broad, as is now to be seen. It was taken away by virtue of a commission, in King Henr'y the Eighth's time; in the thirty-second year of his reign." Goughf says, " He had a magnificent shrine of pure gold, and a silver chest, in which his reliques were translated by the kings of England and France, 5th John, behind the high altar of hist cathedral. This has been succeeded by a table mouumentj erected by Bishop Fuller, between 1667 and 1675, with an inscription, which may be seen in Browne Willis's account of the cathedral. The monument, or shrine, commonly ascribed to him, and en- graved by Dr. Stukeley, was supposed by Mr. Lethieullier to be that of Hugh, a child, crucified and canonized 40th Henry the Third." Mr. Gough here inserts Mr. L.'s account at large, in a I-etter to Mr. Gale, printed in Archaeologia I. 26": and in vol. H. p. 1. Sep. Mon. p. Ixviii, &c. he gives a circumstantial account of tiie discovery of the cotHn, skeleton, &c. of Hugh, a boy. After a vacancy of three years, on account of a dispute between the king and canons, William de Bleys, called by Leland William de Mortibus, precentor and prebendary of this church was consecrated August 24, 1204. He died May 11, \2Q6, and was buried in the upper north transept of the cathedral t. The see remained vacant three years more, when Hugh Wallys, or de Welles, was consecrated Dec. 2I» Vol. IX. . Rr 1209* • A draught of the shritle is given in Dr. Stukeley's Itiii. Cur. t Sepul. Mon. Vol. I. p. 233. X Mr. Gough seems to have made a mistake respecting this prelate. Having noticed tlie burial of Bishop de Bleys, he mentions tliat of William Blesensii, a\»9 y . , LINCOLNSHIRE. S^f in 1761. He was appointed Canon Residentiary of St. Paul's in 1771, and died in 1779- Tlit same year Thomas Thurlow, brother to the lord chancellor of that name, and Dean of Rochester, was advanced to the see of Lincoln; appointed Dean of St. Paul's in 1781 ; and in 1787 translated to tlie see of Durham. He was succeeded in the Bis'.iopric of Lincoln and Deanery of St. Paul's by George Prettyman Tomline, D. D. F. R. S. &c. who now holds those dignities. The CATHEDRAL, or as it is usually called, the Minster, is justly the pride and glory of Lincoln. This magnificent build- ing, from its situation on the highest part of a hill, and the flat slate of the country to the south-east and south-west, may be seen at the distance of twenty miles. Raised at a vast expence, by the munificence of several prelates, it discovers in many parts singular skill and beauty ; particularly its western front, which cannot fail to attract the attention of the most unobservant tra- veller. And of all the ancient fabrics of this description now re- maining in England, no one deserves the attention of a curious enquirer more than this, " whose floor," says Fuller in his hu- morous style, " is higher than the roof of many churches." It may be said to be a building proportioned to the amplitude of the diocess ; and is justly esteemed one of the most extensive and regular of its kind, notwithstanding it was erected at different periods, and has undergone various alterations in later times. After the see was removed to this place, the new bishop, Remi- gius, according to Henry of Huntingdon, " purchased lands on the highest parts of the city, near the castle, which made a figure with its strong towers, and built a church, strong and fair, in a strong place and in a fair spot, to the Virgin of Virgins, in spite of all the opposition from the Archbishop of York, who laid claim to the ground, placing in it forty-four prebendaries. This afterwards being damaged by fire, was elegantly re- paired," by that munificent and pious Bishop of Lincoln, Alex- ander. 62S LINCOLNSHIRE. under. The first foundations were laid in the year 10S6, by Bisliop Remigius, and the building was continued by him and his successor, Robert Bloet. Soon after tiie death of this bishop, the church is said to have been burnt down* about A. D. 1127, and rebuilt by Bishop Alexander, his successor, with an arched stone roof, to prevent the recurrence of a like accident in future ; and it is stated, that he set his whole mind upon adorning his new cathedral, which he made the most magnificent at that time in England. But though thus rendered pre-eminent for size and decoration, it was made more elegant, &c. by St. Hugh of Bur- gundy, in the time of Henry the Second. This prelate added several parts, which were then named the New Works f. To shew what these consisted in, and the periods when different al- terations and additions were made to this structure, I shall tran- scribe a passage from the ninth volume of the Archseologia, the substance of which appears to have been derived from the ar- chives of the cathedral. " A. D. 1124. The church was burnt down. Bishop Alex- ander is, in the historical accounts given to the public, said to have rebuilt it with an arched roof, for the prevention of tlie like accident. But John de Scalby, Canon of Lincoln, and Bishop Dalderby's registrar and secretary, says of Robert de Chesney (who succeeded Alexander), that he — " Primus Ecclesiam voltis lapideis comraunivit, 1147." " 11S6. John de Scalby says of Hugh the Burgundian, Bishop of Lincoln, that he •' fabricam ecclesiam a fundameutis construxit novam." This can relate only to alterations and re- pairs of the old church, for the new east end was not begun to be built till 120 years after." " 1244-5 * Mr, Gougli says, " ouly damaged." t It appears, from various documents, that all additions made to ancient structures were called New Works, Various alterations, &c. were made at Ely cathedral, nearly at the same periods that others were making at Lin- coln, and they arc all called New Works, or " Norti Opcru," LINCOLNSHIRE. 6^^ " 1244-5. The great tower fell down, and greatly damaged . the church. Very httle was done to repair this disaster, till the time of Oliver Sutton, elected Bishop, 1279. The first thing \vhich he set about, was extending the Close wall, but not so far to the east as it now is, for it was, as will be seen, further en- larged ; and he afterwards completely repaired, in concurrence with the dean and chapter, the old church ; so that the whole was finished, painted, and white-washed, after the year I'iyO. When this work was done, the great tower was carried up no higher than to the part where the large windows begin, and where the bells now hang. The upper part was, with the other new work, begun sixteen years after." •* 1306. The dean and chapter contracted with Richard de Stow, mason, to attend to, and employ other masons under him, for the new work ; at which time the new additional east end, as well as the upper parts of the great tower and the transepts were done. He contracted to do the plain work hy measure, and the fine carved work and images bij the day." " 1313. The dean and chapter carried the close still further eastward, so as to enlarge the canon's houses and mansions, the chancellory, and other houses at the east end of the minster yard." " 1321. In this year the neto work was not finished; for Bishop Burghwash, finding that those who were entrusted to collect the money given by voluntary contribution, and legacies to the church, detained the same, and were backward in their payments, published an excommunication against all offenders in this way, which tended, " in retardationeni fabrics;." *• 1324. It may be collected, the whole was finished about 1324; but this is no where specified. The late Bishop of Car- lisle, Dr. Lyttleton, conjectured, that all was finished about 1283. Conjecturers are led into this mistake by supposing, that the work was finished soon after King Henry the Tiiird's charier, granted /o>- enlarging the church and close." *' 1380. John Welburn was treasurer. He built the taber- nacle ^.A^/tje-^t. 6'50 LINCOLNSHIRE, nacle at the higli altar, the north and east parts as now standing j and the south was rebuilt after, to make the north and south sides uniform. He was master of the fabric, and the principal promoter of making the two stone arches under the west towers, and the vault of the high tower ; and caused the statues of the kings over the west great door to be placed there." " N. B. This new work is all of the regular order of Gothic architecture, as I have supposed it to be finally established by the Free Masons. The rest of the church is in part the opus roma- num, and partly of the style of the tirst essays of the Gothic." Communicated by Mr. Bradley to Governor Pownal. These notices are important ; for it is interesting to ascertain the dates, &c. of such ancient buildings as are beautiful or grand. The one now under consideration presents, iu its different parts, both these characteristics ; the principal of which I shall endeavour to describe and particularize. The cathedral church consists of a nave, with its ailes, a tran- sept at the west end ; and two other transepts, one near the centre, and the other towards the eastern end : also, a choir and chancel M'ith their ailes of corresponding height and width with the nave and ailes. The great transept has an aile towards the east ; at- tached to the western side of this transept, is a gallilee, or grand porch ; and on the southern side of the eastern aile are two ora- tories, or private chapels, whilst the north side has one of nearly similar shape, and character. Branching from the northern side, are the cloisters, which communicate with the chapter house. The church is ornamented with three towers ; one at the centre, and two at the western end. These are lofty, and are decorated with varied tracery, pillars, pilasters, windows, &c. To furnish the reader w ilh an adequate idea of the dimensions and general tize of this structure, I subjoin the following table ; the measure- ments for which were made by Mr. T. Espin, of Louth ; and I believe are more accurate than any hitherto published. The Ae/«-/t, with groins, converging into pointed arches. The nave uiid central tower were next rebuilt, probably begun by Flugli de Wells, as the style of their architecture is that of the latter part of the reign of John, or the beginnhig of Henry the Third. It seems to have been carried on from the west, as the two arches next that end are narrower than the others ; perhaps they stand ou the old bases. The clustered pillars of the nave are not uniform, some being worked solid, and others having de- tached shafts : the upper windows are clustered three together, and two are included within each arch of the ailes. The lower part of the north wall is plaiijer than the south, whence it may be concluded that this was built first. Part of the great tower was erected by Bishop Grosthead, who also finished the additions, which had been begun to the old west front; for there is the same fascia or moiildiug under the uppermost story as is continued twice round the rood tower, and altered it to its present form. The part extending from the smaller transept to the east end, was ])rnbab'y built by Bishops Gravcscnd, Sutton, and d'Alderby, abi ut the conclusion of the thirteenth, or commencement of the fourtecnlh century. Over the south porch, which is liigiily ornamented, is a representation of the final judgment, in bold relief. The lower windows have slender clustered pillars, with capitals ; and the heads are ornamented with circles, cinque-foils, and other devices : but the large cast win- dow does not correspond in richness with the other component parts. Tile upper windows have double mullions ; and a gallery runs between the upper and lower tiers. Bishop d'Alderby built the up^)er story of the rood tower, and added a lofty spire, which Vol. IX. S s was * This is said to liave been formerly appropriated to tlie use of prol>a- tionary peiiiteuts, previous to their being re-admilted into corarauuion wittt flie fai'.liCui. 634 LINCOLNSHIRE. was constructed of timber, and coveied with lead. This was blown down in a violent storm of wind, A. D. 1547; and the damages then sustained, were not wholly repaired till the year 1775. Bishop Alnwick probably raised the western towers, and erected the wood spires, the taking down of which, lately by the dean and chapter, has provoked much splenetic animadversion. He added also, the three west windows, and the figures of our kings, from the conquest to Edward the Third. The arch of the centre win- dow is much older than its niullions. The ceilings of the towers, and facing of the interior parts of the three west entrances, are of the same age. The great marigold window at the south end of the lower transept, was built about the time of Edward the Third. Various Chapels were erected, and chantries founded at dif- ferent periods, for the interment of the great, and the perform- ance of mass, to propitiate the Deity in favour of their de- parted spirits, and those of their friends and relations. A chantry was founded within the close of the cathedral, by Joan de Can- telupe, in the thirty-first of Edward the Third, for a warden and seven chaplains, to pray for the soul of Nicholas de Cantelupe, her husband ; as also for her own soul, after death, and for the souls of all the faithful departed. John Wdboum, treasurer of this church, fortieth of Edward the Third, founded a chantry here. In an ancient MS. of the dean and chapter, containing copies <5f deeds and charters respecting this chantry, &c. is a curious instrument, which conveys the house that belonged to " Elye" (Elias) the son of a Jew, who was hanged at Lincoln, and the lands of another Jew, who was outlawed. Richard Fleming, Bishop of Lincoln, built a chapel near the north door, where a statue lies on an altar tomb of marble in his pontifical robes. Bishop Russel, in the time of Henry the Seventh, also built one for the place of his interment, on the south side of the presbytery. And in imitation of this, during the suc- ceeding reign, Bishop Longlaud erected another for the like pur- pose. TT8USD]SAIL< LIJICOLNSHIRE. 635 pose. Tills is a beautiful and interesting specimen of the architec- ture of the age. The late Earl of Bnrh'nqton, whose taste for architecture gave him the title of the Englisli Paliadio, in a question of prece;lency between the callipdrals of York and Lincoln, gave a decision in favour of the latter; and preferred the west front of it to any thing of the kind in Europe, observing, " That whoever had the conducting of it, was well acquainted with the noblest buildings of old Rome; and had united some of their greatest beauties in that very work." That nothing might be wanting to render this church as splendid in furniture as it was elegant in its decorations, it received the most lavish donations. Indeed so sumptuously was it supplied with rich shrines, jewels, vestments, &c. that Dugdale informs us Henry the Eighth took out of its immense treasure no less than 2621 ounces of gold, and 4285 ounces of silver, besides pearls and pre- cious stones of the most costly kind. Also, two shrines, one called St. Hugh's, of pure gold ; and the other of massy silver, called St. John's, of d'AMerby : at the same time the episcopal mitre is said to have been the richest in the kingdom. From the time the custom of burying in churches was adopted till the present, this cathedral has had its share of costly sepul- tures ; its chapels, walls, and columns have been ornamented or disfigured by monumental records and emblems of mortality. But when the observer views the state of such pious memorials, and compares them with the number and grandeur of those, which history relates to have been here erected in the different periods, he is strongly reminded of the transitory nature of the very exertions made to counteract the oblivious ravages of time; and of the ineftectual mode of securing to ourselves or others the meed of posthumous fame, by the pomp of monument or lettered stone. Of many of these tombs not a vestige remains, nor are the places known where once they stood. At the reformation, for the purpose of finding secreted wealth, and under the pretence of discouraging superstition, many of them were destroyed. Bi»hop Holbech and Dean Henneage, both vio- S 8 2 lent 636 LINCOLNSHIEE. lent zealots, caused to be pulled down or defaced most of the liandsome lonibs, the figures of saints, crucifixes, &c. so that by the close of the year 1548, there was scarcely a perfect tomb o» unmutilated statue left. Wiiat the flaming zea! of leformalion havhiph is of the same altitude as the Chapter House. In the S s 4 olJier ^ Ooiigl], Sep. Mon. Vol. I. Part II. p. 1 U, 113. 640 LINCOLNSHIRE. otlier sides are nine windows, having poiiiled arches with two liglifs eacli. Seven of these have five arcades beneath each ; and under the two others are four. The Library over the north side of the ch)isler was built by Dean Honeywood, whose portrait by Haiuienian is slill Itcre preserved. In this room is a large collection of books, with some curious specimens of Roman antiquities : One is a red glazed Urn, having at the bottom the maker's name, DONATVS, F. Also several fragments of pottery, among which are many urns and vessels of various construction. A very large one of baked earth, unglazed, is of a roundish shape, with a short narrow neck, to which are atfixed two circular handles. It is one foot four inches in dian:eier, and two feet four iiiciies in height. There is also a very curious glass phial, of a bluish green colour, with a handle near the nioulh : it is three inches diameter, by nine inches and a half high. Its contents consist of j)ieces of bones of too large a size ever to have been put in through the present aper- ture. This circumstance has exciteon the hill, lo parcciic churclies yet used; I saw a roll, \v herein I counted that there were xxxviii paroche cinuches in Lincoln." In another j)art lie says, " there goith a commune fame, that tliere were ons 52 paroche rliurches yn Lincoln citie, and the suburbs of it." In the lower part of tlic town, called by liim }{ ikerfonl, he says, " there are xi paroche churches, one there I saw in c'ene rnme, beside the otiier xi." — Since that period many have fdien into decay, and some have been rebuilt. But as very erroneous statements have been made, in woiks professing to furnisii authcn- lic accounts of the present state, kc. of places, especially in the list of parishes contained in Carlisle's Topographical Dictionary, it will be proper to give the following more accurate list of churches and parishes in Lincoln : — All Saints, in the close, a vicaraj^e ; All Saints, Hungate; St. Andrew's, Danegatc, Sr. Andrew's, by the palace ; St. Andrew's, Wigford ; St. Anne's, Thorngate : St. Augustine's; St. Baron's; St. Bartholomew's, a curacy; St. Clement's, in the bail, a vicarage ; St. Clement's, Bntterwick ; St. Cross's ; St. Cuthhert's, near Dew stone; St. Dennis's; St. Edmund's; St. Edward's ; St. Faith'sj 6i% LINCOLNSHIRE. and over manyoftliese, which are modern buildings, the writer would gladly throw a charitable veil. — The situation, however, in which they are placed, the rank they hold among public buildings, and the sacred use for which they were intended, all furnish a power- ful cause of lamentation, that structures, so mean, so ill designed, and so puerile in form and character, should ever have been dedi- cated to the service of the Deity. With regret it must be said, that few of them, cither from external grandeur or internal deco-' ration, merit a j)articular description. St. BenneCs clnirch, a little to the south of Higli-bridge, con- sists of a small nave and a north aile, with a square tower at the west end. The tower is about twenty-tive feet high, with four windows, in the early Norman, or Saxon style ; having more modern battlements. It appears that the nave formerly extended further towards the west. The south windows are placed high, having under them a ])rojecting torus moulding; aud under the nave is a row of curious diminutive heads. The aile has a handsome east window, in the style of King Henry the Seventh's time ; and the windows of the nave appear to have been enlarged in the fourteenth century. On the floor are many ancient monu- mental flat marbles, but their brasses are gone. Against the west wall is a square brass plate, to the memory of Aldermap Becke Faith's; St, George's, ThoriiKate ; St. Giles's, in tlie East ; St. Gregoiy's ; St. Inuocent's ; St. Jotiu's, Corn-niaiket; St. John's tlie Poor, a vicarage; St. Lawrence's, in Bulbury ; St. Leonard's, Eastgate ; St, Mary, Crakepool, a vicarage ; St. jNIichael's, on the Monnt, a discharged curacy, chnrch re- built; St. Peter's, l)y the Pump; St. Peter's, Fishmarket; St. Peter's, Stonebeck ; St. Peter's, Hungate ; St. Rnmbold's ; St. Stephen's ; St.Trinity, Greestone Stairs; St. Trinity, Clasketgate ; St. Nicholas, in Newport, Chnrch gone ; St. Swithin's, a discharged curacy, church rebuilt ; Holy Cross church, near the Grammar-school, in ruins ; St. Benedict's ; St. Mark's, re: built; St. Margarets, curacy, united to St. Peter's Eastgate, church down; St. Mary's, in Wigford ; St. Mary Magdalen ; St. Michael's, Curacy church down; St. Pauls, rebuilt; St. Peter's, at Gowts, a cviracy; St. Peter's, Eastgate, rebuilt ; St. Peter's, at Arches, has been rebuilt for the corpe- ration. LINCOLNSHIRE. 6'43 Becke and family, on which are engraved the efligics of him and his wife, and children; the date l620. The Church of St. Mary de IVigford lias a nave, chancel, and a north aile ; a south porch, and a lofty square tower, at the west end of the nave. The tower is of the Norman style. It has no buttress, but is square and plain up to the belfry story; where a torus moulding forms a base for the uppermost story, which is narrower than the oilier parts of the edifice. The belfry has four windows, each consisting of two lights, divided by a column ; the ornamented battlements, with figures at the angles, appear of more modern date. The south side of the nave is coeval with the tower ; the aile seems to have been added, and the windows en- larged, about the reign of King John; but the upper part of the aile is of Flenry the Seventh's time. Against a door-way, now blocked up, in the north wall, is a statue of an upright female figure, much defaced. The west door-uay is of singular construc- tion : the frames are plain and square, with a circular arch, having imposts, not projecting in front, but ornamented with small squares, alternately raised and depressed ; the latter of which have a small knob ; in the centre of each is a transom stone resting on the imposts, and the arch is blocked up. Round the arch is a double billetted moulding, on the right of which is a Roman mo- numental inscription, almost obliterated with dirt. From the appearance of the arch, «SiC. it may be conjectured that this pari of the building is very ancient. St. Peters, at Gowts, situated on the south side of an old building, opposite what is called John of Gaunt's house, is a very ancient structure. That was probably some religious house, and this the chapel annexed. The church has a lofty tower in the Norman style, similar to that of St. Mary's ; but in a more perfect state. On the front is a figure carved in relief, which, from the key placed in its hand, was doubtless meant for St. Peter. The nave and chancel are very lofty, and aj)pear to have been coeval with the tower. On the north side of the nave is a short thick column, with two circular arclies, through which formerly the communication 044 l.INXOLNsniRE. fonumiDication was made to llie north ailo, now taken j)-!ioIes ; aud on the north side is a door-way, having; a flat arch built up. The soutlj aile, which is in the style of the fourteenth century, Ikjs a porch, and is sc|,arated from the nave by two lofty elegant pt/inled arches. On the south side of the chancel is a chapel, with some remains of painted j^lass in its east window. Under one of the arclies, which separates the nave from the south aile, is a small stone font, of high antiquity ; round the outside is a row of small circular arches. St. Martin's Church is stiJl prebendal ; it consists of a nave and chancel, with a modern tower, built in the last century, by Alder- man Libsey. In a chapel to the liorlh of the chanctl is a large mon\nneiit of alabaster, v. i'di two whole length recumbent figures, tQ the memory of Sir Thomas Granthaiii and his lady; dale l6'l8. The canopy falling down some years ago, greatly damaged the figures. Other places of worship for the difi'ereut denominations of dis- senters, are, one for Roman Catholics, one for Independaut Bap- tists, one for Calvinists, and another for IMethodists. The number of parishes within the city are twelve, which, with the four townships within its jurisdiction, make sixteen. These, ac- cording to the late government survey, consist of 1074 houses, which accommodated a population of 73<)8 persons. Though many of the houses are old, there are some Aery good buildings, both upon and below the hill. The city has of late been consi- derably improved, by the making of a new road, paving some of the footways, erecting a new market place, also shambles for meat, and lighting it. Lincoln has a large trade in corn and wool, quantities of which are exported into Yorkshire, by vessels which obtain a back freightage of coals, and other necessary articles for the use of the interior. This city is a county of itself, having subject to it four townships in the neighbourhood, Bracebridge, Canwick, Branston, and LINCOKNSHItlE. 6X3 anrl Wamliui'ton, called llie " Lil»t'itv of Lincohi." This privilege ^A- /^ yiA'i coufenec! in the lliird jcar of I lie reiijn of George ihe First; and in official acts it is deiiominaled, " The City and Cotrnty of the City of Lincoln." Its viscoiintial jiiri;diclion extentis twenty miles round: a privilege tineqiinlk'd I)y that of any city in the kingdom. It sent nienxhcrs to paili;:riic!it as early as the time of Edward the First. In the twciilN-sIxiij jear of that monarch, A. D. r^98> VVilliehniis Disney aixi JohariJies Marmion, were summoned to parliament as its first represtnlatives. In the His- tory of the Borougiis of Great Britain, it is said, " This city had summons with London and York, to send members to parliament, llic forty-ninth of Henry the Third. The right of election is con- siflercd to be in the freemen, and tlie number of voters is about eleven hundred. Tiic polilirai inHucnce, though it is by no meant)uihood." Lincoln is governed by a corporation, consisting of a mayor, twelve aldermen, two sheriffs, twenty-eiglit common counciimen, and four chandjerlains ; who have a recorder, deputy-recorder, steward of the courts of borouyli-mole, a town-clerk, and four coroners. Also a sword-bearer, mace-bearer, cryer, four sergeants at the key, or bailiffs, constables, and other inferior oHicers. The mayor is elected on the fourteenth of September, from among the aldermen ; the senior, if he has not served the cftice before, is the person elected. If all have served the oflice, then he who is the highest in order of standing, is elected to ser\e a second year. — At tiie same lime two citizens, who have served the olHce of cliamberlain, are elected sheriffs: the one nonjinvited by the new mayor, and the other elected by a majority of votes among the mayor, aldermen, and common council: the njayor having a casting vote. — The chamberlains are chosen from among the free- men, by the mayor, upon the Monday after the feast of St. Michael. If any refuse to serve the cJJices to which they are thus elected, the mayor and corporation are invested with a power to compel them, by tine a:.d imprisonment. The OlG LINCOLNSHIRE. 'Hie cordvvainers and weavers are the only privileged Companies slill subsisting here : indeed, they appear to have been tlie only companies incorporated by royal ciiarlcr. The former as early as the second year of King Richard the Second, A. D. 1389. Like all other corporate places, the genius of trade is shackled in Lincoln ; and that vigour which it derives from a spirit of rivalry is suppressed, by whut is considered, in such cases, a justifiable partiality : though in no instance does it contribute to the wealth or comfort, and certainly not to the credit, of a town. All persons who have not obtained their freedom, if they carry on any kind of trade, are obliged to pay an annu;il acknowledge- ment to the sherifts for the time being, for the allowance of such privilege. It was incorporated as early as the reign of Edward the Second. Henry Best was the first mayor, in the seventh year of that reign. This city has had the honour of conferring the title of Earl upon several noble families. Leland observes, in his description of Lincoln, " There be 4 commune places, named as ferys, upon the water of Lindis, be- twixt Lincoln and Boston ; the which feris leade to divers places. To Short Fery, 5 miles. To Tatershaul Fery, viij miles. To 1 Dogdich Fery [l mile]. To Langreth Fery [five miles]. To Boston [5 miles]. *' Gates in the waulles of the cilie of Lincoln. Barregate, at the south ende of the toune. Baihgate, by south a little a this side the minstre. Aewporfgate, fiat north. Estgate and JVesf- gate, toward the castel. Sum hold opinion, that est of Lincoln were 2 suburbes of it, one toward S. Beges, a late a relle to S. Mflri Abbay at York; the which place I take be Icanno, wher was an house of raonkes yn S. Bololphe's tyme, and of this spekith Bede. It is scant half a mile from tlie minster. " It is easy to be perceived, that the Toune of Lincoln hath be notably buildid at 3 tynies. The first building was yn the very toppe of the hylle, the oldest part wherof inhabited in the Britons tyme, was the norlhethest part of the hille, directely withoute LlNCOLNSIIIUfi, G47 withoute Newporte Gale, the cliches whereof yet reniayne, and great tokens of tlie old towne waiilles, buik'id with stone takeu oiite of y diche by it; for at tiie lop o^ Lincoln liille is quarre ground. This is now a subiirbe to Newport Gate, in the wiiich now is no notable thing, but the ruines of the liouse of the Augustine freres on the south side, and a paroch chirch of the est side ; and not far from the chirch garth apperith a great ruine of a towr in the old towne waulle. Sum say that this old Lincoln was destroied by King Stephen, but I thinke rather by the Danes. Much Romaine money is found yii the north (feildes) beyond this old Lincoln. After the destruction of this old Lincoln, men began to fortilie the souther parte of the hille, new diching, wauUing, and gating it; and so was new Lijicoln made out of a pece of old Lincoln by the Saxons. " The third building of later tymes was in Wikirford, for commodite of water; and this parte is enwallid wher it is not de- fendid with the ryver and niarish ground. The river of Lindis fleateth a litle above Lincoln towne, and maketh certain |X)olcs, whereof one is called Sicanne poole." Of the Castle, built by the Conqueror, little now remains; and the area is occupied by buildings appropriated to uses of the municipal power. The few remaining \ estiges convey the same idea of original Normau architecture as that of York, erected nearly at the same period. The Keep was not included, but stood lialf without and half within the castle wall, which ascended up the slopes of the hill, and joined the great tower. This being situ- ated on a high artificial mount, it was equally inaccessible from within and without the caslle area. It was nearly round, covering Ihe sunmiit of the mount; and was thus rendered a distinct stronghold, tenable with or without the castle. This accounts for the circumstance mentioned by Lord Lyttleton, of the Earl of Chester making his escape, while the castle was invested by Stej)hen. From the Keep to another tower, placed also on an artificial mount, was a covered way, by which a private commu- nication was kept up. Tiie walls are above seven feet thick; and GlS LINCOLNSIHRE. and iiiulcr Ihe |)Iucc of ascent from iln; covercfl wav, llierc is something like Ihe roinains of a well, proteclcd by the massy thickness of the wallo. T!ie outer walls of the castle inclose a very large area, the entrance to which was by a gateway, be- tween two small ronnd towers, still staniling, under a large square tower, which contained niagnilicent roonjs. In one corner of the area is a curious small building, appearing on the outside like a tower, called Cobs hall; which Mr. King tliinks originally was used as a chapel ; " having a fine vaultcfl roof, richly orna- mented, and supported by pillars, with a crt/pt underneath ; and adjoining it a small antichapel." The pillars were so placed against the loop-holes through which the light was admilied, that they proved a defence against missive weapons. On the north western siJe are the remains of a turret, having the curious arch mentioned by Sir flenry Engleficid, which being in the line of the Ptoman wall, might have belonged to a more ancient building, or been a gateway to the oUl city. Within the area of llie castle are the county gaol and shire-hall, both modern structures, and well adapted to their respective purpoics. Few places in the kingdom exhibit so many ancient re- mains as Lincoln. Saxon, Norman, and pointed arches ; and door-ways with turrets, walls, mullioncd windows, an«x^j^>^*^ 65S I.lNCOIA'SniKE. admiral. He wrote an account of the Spanish wars from 1585 to 1()02; stood lii;',li in fame at (lie commencement of James the First's reii,'n, and died shortly after. Sir John Monson, Knijiht of the Bath, and a Baronet, was also of the same family ; studied at the Inns of Court, and became an eminent lawyer. During the troubles between King Charles and his parliament, he at- tended that monarch, and assisted in all his councils and treaties. After suffering much for his loyalty, his estates being sequestered, he purchased the privilege of retirement at the expence of 26'42l. Here he wrote " An Essay upon Afflictions," " An Antidote against the Errors of Opinions," and " Supreme Power and Common Right." The grandfather of the present Lord Monsou was created a baron, by the title of Baron Monson, of Burton, in Lincolnshue, by King George the Second. The present fa- nn'ly mansion is at BuRTON, a village about two miles south of North Carlton. The bouse is sealed in a finely wooded {)ark. At ScAMPTON, a village about six miles north of Lincoln, was discovered, in the year 17^5, th.e foundations, &c. of a Roman villa. It was situated on the brow of the bill, at a short distance north of the Ilomaa road, which communicated between Lindiim Coloisia, and Agelocun^, on the Trent. The character and dinicnsions of it have been carefully investigated by the Rev. C. Illingworth, the worthy rector of this parish, who has de- scribed it with plates, &c. in a topographical history of the place. From the plan, including an area of 200 feet square, the number of apartments, which were upwards of forty, and the dimensions of some, with their decorations of painted, stuccoed walls, and tessellated pavements, it appears to have been a villa of consider- able elegance and distinction. Out of thirteen pavements, only one was perfect, which was engraved by Mr. Fowler, of Winter- ton. Some of the walls were of great thickness; and various Roman antiquities were found scattered over the foundations. In two of the rooms were discovered skeletons, which, from some of them lying upon the foundation walls, others being inclosed in a sort of .-tone coffins, rudely formed of one hollow stone covered bv LINCOLNSHIRE. 6^9 by another, and all placed in a position due east and west, Mr. I. concluded, '* that some Saxon, or otlicr Christian chapel iniglit have been erected on the site of the villa *;" which conclusion he considered was supported from the circumstance of its being upon record, that a thapel, dedicated to St. Pancras, did exist as early as the commencement of the twelfth century on that spot, near to a chalybeate spring, still called St. Pancras' Well. In domesday book the manor which was granted to the Gaunt family, is slated to contain ten carucatcs of land. And it is a singular circumstance, that tiie lands in Lincolnshire, as set forth in that celebrated survey, were measured ajul taxed, not ac- cording to hides, but carucatcs; and whenever these are men- tioiied, without reference to hides, a carucale was equal in quan- tity to the hide, which was about six score acres, though the quantity varied in difl'ereut counties. " In provinciu Lincolnie nnn sunt hide, sicut in aliis provinciis, sed pro hiclis sunt carucata terrarum et 7ion minus valent (piam hide\." An ancient custom prevailed in this niraior, as it did in many parts of the north, called Inham, but more properly Intok, or Intak, which signi- fies, any corner or part of a field fenced out from the fallow, and sown with beans, peas, oats, or tares. In the church are several monuments of the Bolles family, anciently lords of the manor. At a short distance from the church formerly stood the fatniiy residence, Scampton-Hall, erected on the site of the West Grange, belonging to Kirksted Abbey. But upon the death of the last Sir John Bolles, Bart, in 1/14, his sistef and heiress, Mrs. Sarah Bolles, residing at Shrewsbury, * At the early dawn of Chii^iliiinity in this kingdom, it was iisnal to erect buildings for Christian worship on the site of olhers which had been dedi- cated to Pagan superstijioii. Tlie first cathedral of St. Paul's was built on the site of a temple dedicated to Diana. Tiie parish church of Richborongh stands on the site of a saceHuni belonging to the Prajtorium. And the same is observable at Porcliestor, Verulam, and oilier Ilonian stations. t Waller de WJtteley, Monk of Peterbcro'. Fol. 37. €60 LINCOLNSHIRE. Shrewsbury, suflered the family mansion to fall into ruins. It was seated in the centre of a small park ; part of the old walls are incorporated with those of a farm house, near which an or- namental gateway is still standing, built about the time of James the First, and probably coeval with the mansion. It is an arch- way, having over it an entablature, supported on each side by double columns of the Doric Order, with ornamented knobs on the shafts. Well wapentake contains the parishes of Brampton, Burtongate, Fenton Hamlet, Kettlethorpe and Loughterton, Kerhy, Knaith, Marfan, Newton, Stow, Sturton and Bransby, Upton and Willington by Stow, and Torksey. ToRKSEY, situated at the junction of the Fossdyke with the Trent, is a small obscure village, but a place of high antiquity, and formerly of considerable consequence. " Torksey was a Roman town, built at the entrance of the Foss into the Trent, to secure the navigation of those parts, and as a storehouse for corn, and was walled about. The present castle is founded on the old Roman granary, which w as nmch like Colchester castle, with circular towers at the corners. A foundation still visible all along the edge of the original site *." Anterior to the arrival of the Normans, it appears from Domesday Book, that this place had 200 burgesses, who enjoyed many privileges. For which they were bound, as often as the king's embassadors came that way, to convey them in their own barges down the Trent, and conduct them to the city of York. The bank of the river is a very deep sand, and on this declining shore it was that Paulinus baptized the Lindissians, in presence of Edwin, King of Northumberland, as Bede says; and here, doubtless, was the long-sought Tiovulfingaccestre of that author. The Romans conducted * Stukeley's Letter to Mr. Gale. LINCOLNSHIRE. 66l conducted llie outlet* of the Fossdyke, between two small hills, into an angle of the Trent. The ])resent remains of the casfle exhibit a western front, with four irregular turrets, placed at unequal distances, and a frag- ment of the south end, originally part of the offices, now con- verted into stables. The apartments seem to have been spacious; but there is no appearance to indicate that any outworks ever existed. It was probably, therefore, intended rather as a mag- nificent residence, than a place of defence. The building is of brick, but the corners and battlements are of stone, and stands about sixty yards from tiie bank of the river, which sometimes flows up to the foot of the ruins. Here was n priory of Austin Canons, built by King John. It consisted of only four religious persons about the time of the dissolu- tion, when its annual revenues were valued at 13l. Is. 4d. In the thirty-fifth of Henry the Eighth, it was granted to Sir Philip Hobby. The priory and convent fined to King John in a palfrey, for the confirmation of their grants, and that they might not be obliged to plead, except before the king. Here was also another religious house, called the Foss Nunnery, founded by the same monarch, and its privileges confirmed by King Henry the Third. It was of the order of St. Benedict, and valued, at the dissolution, at 71. In Leland's time, Torksey had two churches ; at present there is but one, which is a small, neat building, in the centre of the village. The ancient charter of this place is still pre- served, by virtue of which it enjoys the privilege of a toll from strangers, who bring cattle or goods to its fair on Whit- Monday. The manor of Torksey was formerly the properly of the Duke of Newcastle, by whom it was sold to the father of the present proprietor, Sir Abraham Hume, Baronet. Knaith is a small village, formerly the property and resi- dence of the Barons Darcey, and afterwards of Lord Willough- by, of Parham. This place is rendered Aimous from having given birth to the munificent founder of the Charter House, Thomas 662 LINCOLNSHIRE. Thomas Sutton, Eb(i. who was born here. A, D. 1,53 J. lie rijccived his educiiiion at Eton collfge, and studied the law in Lincohi's Inn ; but it does not appear that he ever followed the profession. According to the Magna Britannia, he entered into the army, and obtained the payniastership of a regiment. Quit- ling the military service, he became a merchant, and acquired great riches by trade. The author of his life says, that he made several valuable purchases m the county of Durham, where he discovered coal mines. By working these he gained immense property, and by marriage obtained still more. On the death of his wife, which happened in l602, he led a retired life, and be- gan to Ihiiik of disposing of his wealth in a way becoming the profession and hopes of a Cluistian. He purchased the Charter House, London, and formed it into an hospital for the hifirni, and a seminary for youth. This noble monuraent of protesiant charity, was begun and completed in his own lifetime, and endowed at his own charge. It is an institution perhaps the most mag- nificent ever founded in Christendom at the sole expence of an individual. He died at Hackney, in the year 161I. Burton Gate, five miles south of Gainsborough, is the seat of William Hutton, Esq, by whose father the present mansion was erected. It is a regidar plain building of brick ; but of a colour so nearly resembling stone, as at a distance not easily to be dis- tinguished from it. The grounds are terminated on tlie west by the river Trent, to which there is a gentle, though irregular descent from the house, of nearly half a mile. This river, with the objects on its banks, form a beautiful feature. SiDNACESTER. This place, anciently the seat of the Bishops of Lincoln, before the see was united with Dorchester and re- moved to that city, has long had a name without " a local ha- bitation." Bede informs us, that Paulinus, after converting the Northumbrians, came into the northern part of the kingdom of Mercia. Successful in preaching the gospel here, he converted Blaecoa, LINCOLNSHIRE. 663 il Blaecca, the governor of Lincolnia, or Lincoln, and baptized nuiny people of this district in Uie river Trent, at a place called Tiovuljingdcastre. And Matliew, of Westminster, says, that over his new spiritual acqnisitions, Paiiliuus ordained a bishop, who had six successors. On the death of Eatlulph, the sec having been vacant eighty years, BishopGibson observes, that it\v;is united, by Leofwin, to that of Dorchester. But tlie question is, where was this Sidnaceder? Mathew, of Westminster, when speaking of two of its bishops, EalduH'us and Ceoluifus, observes, " Hi- antera episcopi ubi sedem haberent calhedralem penitus ignora- ruis." Wharton, in his " Anglia Sacra," asserts, that hitherto its situation has not been kiiov^n. And Camden states, " This is now so entirely gone, that neither ruins nor name are now in being." Hence most antiquaries have adopted a general mode of description. One says, " It was near Gainsborough ;" another, " In Lincolnshire, near tiie Humber;" anii Camden, "In this part of the county ;" while some are entirely silent. Others have, however, decided upon the situation of the place. Mr. Johnson thought it was Ilaljield, in the county of York. Dr. Stukeley, at jNcivark-upon-Trent ; which opinion Mr. Dickeiison, in his history of that town, has adopted, and endeavoured to establish by additional, but unsatisfactory arguments, as will be hereafter clearly denionsSrated. Mr. Pegge proposes to consider Kiikton, or Kirton, the place. Horsley, in his Britannia Ro- mana, after having fixed the Roman station, Causennce, of An- tonine's Itinerary, at Ancaster, supposes that to have been Sid- nacester, and the name derived from Causennacester, the first syllable being dropped, which nudges Sennacester. Cymden was inclined to fix it at Gainsborough; and his editor, Gibson, at Stow. Tiiis latter place seems to liave the fairest claim ; and I shall endeavour to shew the superiority of that claim to those made in favour of the places previously named, by first aj)pealing to the authority of Bede. " Eadhaed in provincia Lindisfaroruni quam nupcrrime Rex Ergfrid, superato iu bello et fugato Uif- here. 664 LINCOLNSHIRE." here, obliiiueral, ordinatur episcopus*." Of this province, which he afterwards calls Lindissi, lie says, Eadhaed was the first bisliop. Tiie question now reverts, where was this Lindissi situated, and how far did it extend ? Its bounds are, by the same writer, described with sufficient accuracy, to discover that it con- tained the tract of country still retaining the name of Lindsei/. "Li-ddissi quae est prima ad meridianum Humbrae fluminis ripani." So also Malhew, of Westminster, " Inter Lincolniam et flumen Humbri ;" and further, " provinciam Lindlsse regionis qua? est ad meridianam plagam Humbri fluminis." Higden also states, " Pro- vincia Lindisfarum est idem quod Lindiseia, quae jacet ad orien- tem Liiicolniie, cujus ipsa caput est." Here is given its northern boundary, the Humber; and its southern, or south-western boundary, the city of Lincoln. This will invalidate the claim of Hatfield anri Newark, neither of these places lying within the division of Lindsey. The observations of Stukeley, quoted by Mr. Dickenson, That the divisions of counties were not made till the time of Alfred ; that then the wapentake of Newark was forcibly taken out of Lincolnshire ; and that the Trent was the ancient, because the natural, boundary between that county and Nottinghamshire, are assertions which, if granted, would prove nothing in favour of his opinion ; because the position on which his argument rests, that Provincia Lindissi was taken by our an- cestors in so large a sense, that " It meant all Lincolnshire, where- of Lindum was the capital city," is unfounded, as appears by the definition of its boundary, above quoted from Bede, and other writers. The opinion of Mr. Pegge, given in his dissertation on the subject t, ihzX. Kirton, about midway between Lincoln and the station of Ad- Ahum, on the Humber, was the place, is equally untenable. The only argument he makes use of is, " that * Hist. Lib. IV. c. 12. t Printed in an Appendix to the First Volume of Nichols's History and Antiquities of Leicestershire. LINCOLNSHIRE. " 666 *' that this name, signifving the Church Toum, would be 0116 probably given by the Saxons at first to Siclnac6ster." In a subse- quent place he destroys this argument by observing, that "The name has a manifest reference to a church, which is usually pronounced Jcirk iti the name of places in the northern parts, particularly in Liijcolnshire, where this word enters the composition of a num- ber of names." On this ground, other places might have equal pretensions, especially as Kirton has no vestiges of antiquity, though Dr. Slukeley fancied it was the In Medium of the Romans, nor any thing very noble in its appearance to induce the mind to give this the preference above the rest ; yet, by an unaccountable and extraordinary mode of reasoning, Mr. Pegge thinks, " The very obscurity of Kirkton, veiled as it were by its modern name," is a good argument that this was the place in question ! The reasonings of Bishop Gibson, for placing Sidnacester at Stow, are the strongest of any hitherto adduced ; and his conclusion, if not decisive, is extremely plausible. Eadnorth, the Bishop of Sid- nacester, who died A. D. 1050, built St. Mary's, or the church of our Lady, in Stow. " Where then can we imagine," says Gibson, " a Bi&liop of Sidnacester should so probably build a church as at Sidnacester? Or whence should he sooner take his pattern or platform, than from his own cathedral of Dorchester?'' The see of Legecesler, or Leicester, is concluded to have been where St. Margaret's now stands ; and as that is a peculiar, a prebend, and an archdeaconry, so is Stow. Besides, the present eccle- siastical privileges of this place are greater Ihaji any hereabouts, except Lincoln ; and they have formerly even exceeded that. For that it was famous before Lincoln, and was a bishop's see, is beyond dispute ; and it is a common notion in those parts, both of learned and unlearned, that Stow was the mother church to Lincoln. The steeple of the church, though large, has been, much greater than it is. And Alfred Puttock, or Pulta, Arch- bishop of York, anno 1023, when he gave two great bells to Beverley steeple, which he had built, and two others of the Vol. IX. U u same 666 LINCOLNSHIRE. same mould to Southwell, bestowed two u))on Stow*." It is generally agreed, that whatever places have Chester in their names, were formerly Roman forts or stations. Upon this view, the site of Sidnacester must either have been one, or in the vici- nity of one. Close adjoining to the present Stow is Stretton, so named from being situated on the Roman road, which branches off from the one leading from Lincoln to Ad Ahum, and pro- ceeds in a westerly direction to the Trent, and thence on to Da- num, now Doncaster. About three miles west of Stow, on the banks of that river, is the site of the ancient Segelocum of the fifth Iter, and the Agelocum of the eighth. There Horsley fixes this station : for though he says that the present village of Littlehorough answers to it, yet he observes, " The Roman station has been on the east side of the river, though the town stands on the west. Roman coins have been found here, called Swine pennies, two Roman altars, and other antiquities f." Here was a Roman Trajectus, and it is still a place for passing the river, which, from the opposite village, is called Littlehorough Ferry. In the summer season it is often fordable. About a quarter of a mile from Marton the Roman road is still visible ; and several pieces of pavement have been found here. The ancient city might have stood more to the west ; and, being built near the station, would of course obtain the addition of Castra, and Saxon Ceaster. Stow, though now a small village, is an archdeaconry ; and its jurisdiction, comprehending the whole of Lindsey, is a strong argument in its claims to ancient note ; but a still stronger is ad- duced by Mr. Gough, who says, " the district round it is called Sidena." The see, in the early time of Remigius, was certainly at Sidnacester; and that prelate is said to have built, or rather re-edified, the church of Stow, which had been raised by Ead- north. * Gibson, in Camden Col. 571. t Britannia Romana, p. 434. LINCOLNSHIRE. ^Qj north. This is a large cruciform structure, having a nave, tran- septs, choir, and an embattled tower rising from the centre. This rests on new pointed arches, built within the ancient senn'cir- cular arches. The length from east to west is one hundred and forty-six feet ; the width of transept seventy-seven ; that of the nave twenty-seven feet six inches ; of the chancel twenty-five feet six inches. The western and soulhern entrances exhibit curious remains of the Saxon style. The western doorway is formed by three retirini: columns on each side, with zigzag, or chevron mouldings round the circular arch, which rest on square abaci. Two of the shafts on each side are plain, the others octagonal, with a zigzag ornament. Over this is a large west window, having a sharp pointed arch. On the western side of the north transept is a very old Saxon arch, and another w ith the ends of the mould- ing terminating in snake's head ornament. Round the inside of the chancel is a continued arcade, consisting of semicircular arches, with zigzag mouldings resting on plain colunms. On the average, they are twenty-three inches wide, and divided by half columns, or pilasters, formed by three small shafts, into divi- sions of five, four, and five on each side. The sides are nearly uniform in style and ornament, and from many parts being similar to what appears in Malmsbury Abbey Church, in the county of Wilts, it is probable that this part was rebuilt, by Bishop Alexander, subsequent to llie time of Remigius *. The chancel appears to have been once vaulted ; and within it are two stones, bearing Saxon characters, but illegible. On the floor is an ancient monument of cofiin shape, with a head, or half bust, in relief, within an ex- cavation. Inscribed are these letters : -1-ALLEN STOE N - ERU - - ID - - U u 2 Engraved * Tliese are reprfesented and described ju the Architectural Antiquities nf Great Britairi, Vol. I. 668 LINCOLNSHIRE. Engraved on a copper plate, against a pillar, is this inscription : Aspice lespice, prospice. In this chauncel lycth buried y" bodies of Richard Burgh, of Stowc- Hall, Esq. & Anne liis wife, descended f™ the anc'^ & noble familie of the Lord Burgh, Baron of Gainesboroiigli, & next heyr male of tliat familie, & the s" Ane was the eldest daughter of Anthonie Dillinston, of Knighton, in y= Isle of Wight, Esq. had 4 sons, viz. That noble and viiliant so!dyer» Sir John Bnrgh, Collonel Gen'rall of his Maj' forces to the Isle of lllie, in France, where he was slaine, A. D. 1627. The above-named Richard died, A. D. ]6l6. Coat of arms, three fleurs de lis, supporters two lions rampant, crowned wills two ha\Vks or falcons, with this motto : Nee parvis sisto. Against the south wall of the chancel is a mural stone, Uius in- scribed : Neare unto this place lyeth buried the bodyes of Mr. Thomas Hol- BECH, that sometyme dwelt in Stowe Parke, with Anne his wife, daughter of Anthony Yoxley, of Mellis, Esq. which said Anne deceased the 7tli day of Sep^ An. Dom. 1581, and the s" Tho'. dece" the 16'" day of Aprill, 1591. And they left issue one only son, named Edward. In the church, under the tower, was a large flat stone, in- scribed in old letters, M,CCC,ir. The pulpit is made of cu- riously carved oak. The clock is a piece of peculiar and curious mechanism, having a pendulum vibrating at longer intervals than is usual. But lite most interesting object, after the church, to the antiquary, is a curious ancient Font. It stands upon a platform, ascended by two steps. The base, or pedestal, is square ; on which is carved a figure, in relief, of a wivern, or dra- gon*, intended as a personification of Satan, and allusive to his fall, by the elhcacy of Christian baplisuK The shaft is circular, * A similar animal appears on the crest of Tliomas, Earl of Lancastei : also ou the reverse of his great seal. See Saudfords History, &c. p. lO'J. LINOOLNSHIRE. 6G9 circular, and surrounded by eight short pillars, with foliated ca- pitals. Tlie upper part is octagonal ; and each face, or side, has an ornamental device. Near the church are two sides of a quadrangular moat, \vliicii, it is supposed, surrounded either a palace of the bishop, or the old manor house. It is evident that the bishops had formerly a palace in this parish, as some records are still pre- served, with the signature of the Diocessan, at his palace of Stow. " Here was a church, or minster, for secular priests, built to the memory of the blessed Virgin Mary, by Eadnorth, Bishop of Dorchester, and much augmented by the benefactions of Earl Leofric, and his Lady, Godiva. After tke conquest, the religious here were changed into benedictine monks, under the govern- ment of an abbot, by Bishop Remigious, who got for then^, of William Rufus, the desolate abbey of Eynsham, in Oxfordshire, whether his successor, Robert Bloet, removed them, reserving Stow, Newark, and some other estates, to the see of Lincoln, for which he gave them in exchange Charlbury, and ot^ie.rs*." About one mile south-west of tlie church is Stow Park, which is now divided into four farms ; and heje are still traces of a large moated place, which, according to tradition, inclosed the Bishop's palace. Considerable founda- tions of buildings have been found here. ASLACOE EAST AND WEST WAPENTAKES Contain the parishes of Atterhy, Cainhj, Firshif east, Firshy west, Glentham, Hackthorn, Hanworth Cold, Normanhy, Norton Bishop, Ownby, Saxby, Snitterby, SpridUngton: — Blyborough, Cammeringham, Coates, FUJingham, Ghntworth, Harpswell, Hemswell, Ingham, and Willonghton. lu the parish of Hems- well is U u 3 Spittal * Tanner's Nolitia. 670 LINCOLNSHIRE, ' Spittal in the Street, taking the former name from having an liospilul, and the latter as l}ing upon a Roman road. This place consists of a farm-house, an inn, a sessions-house, a chapel, and an almshouse for poor women. Over the chapel, V'lvch is a small building, is this inscription : Fui anno domini • • 1398 -j Non fui 1 fygi > Domus Dei & pauperura. Sum l6l6J Qui hanc Deus bunc destruet. The hospital, to which the chapel is annexed, was founded before the sixteenth of Edward the Second, and augmented by Thomas Aston, canon of Lincoln, in the time of Richard the Second. It is under the protection of the dean and chapter of Lincoln. Against the wall is — Deo & Divitibus, Ao. Dni. 1620. Over the sessions-house, Hen to the south. The western exterior consists of a stack of large chimnies, built of brick. At the north-cast corner is an embattled tower, having small LINCOLNSHIRE, 673 small windows, coped with stone, the arches of which are of the flat pointed style. Hence to the southern extremity of the eastern end, thp facing is brick, with stone-coped windows. In tlie lower story of this wing is a large room, till lately used as a ball-room. On the northern side is a small handsome building, formerly the chapel. The staircase, made of oak, was very spa- cious; and a few years ago this, with the kitchen, and two im- mense fire-places remained entire. In the arches, within the hall, are niches, with figures of kings, warriors, &c. The highest tower is twenty-six yards in height ; and the whole building was about six hundred feet square. It was once moated round, part of which is still visible, and had large gardens and fish-ponds. At the south end of the eastern wing is a sun-dial, bearing the date 160O; whence a conjecture has been formed, that it was erected about that time; but the building is evidently much older, though probably of a later period than the time of John of Gaimt, whose palace it is said to have been. It is now converted into apart- ments for families. In 1742 it was iuliabited by Sir Neville Hickman, Bart, and is now the property of his descendent. Miss Hickman, of Thonock Grove. Gainsborough is famous in history, as being the anchoring place of the Danish ships, v.hen the sanguinary tyrant Swei/iw ravaged and laid waste many parts of the country. Returning from his horrid expedition, Mathew, of Westnnnsler, informs ns, that he was here slabbed by an unknown hand, and thus received the punishment due to his crimes. On the south part of the town •was an old chapei of stone, in the time of Leland, in which, tra- dition says, many Danes were buried. Some ages atlerwards, Gainsborough formed part of the possessions of William de Va- lence, who obtained for it the privilege of a fair in the time of Edward the First. The Barons of Burgh, who formerly resided here, were descended from this nobleman, by the Scotch Earls ofAtliol, and the Percys, Earls of Northumberland. Of tiiis family, Th<(mas, Lord Burgh, grandson of Thomas, who was created Lord Burgh by King Henry the Eighth, was born here. He lived in the time of Queen Elizabeth, by wiiom he 074 LINCOLNSHIRE. lie was appointed to llie highest trusts, and distinguished himself both ill a diplomatic and niilitv.ry capacity. Tiiis town was also the birth-place of William de Gainsborough, who was bred a franciscan in Oxford, became an ambassador to King Edward the First ; and for his zealous defence of the Pope's infallibility was, by Boniface the Eighth, jireferred to the see of Worcester, where he died A. D. 1308. The learned and pious Simon Pa- trick, Bishop of Ely, was born herein 1626, and died in 1 707. The town has a good market on Tuesdays, and gives title of Earl to the noble family of Noel. Half a mile to the north of this place, on a ridge that runs aloni> the eastern bank of the Trent, are some embankments called the "Castle Hills." The central encampment contains an area one hundred and seventy yards in circumference, surrounded by a double foss and vallum. These are higher and deeper towards the south-west than on the south-east, where the descent is im- mediate to the plain. On the south side of this circular work, and joining it, is another inclosed area, of an oblong shape, and surrounded, except the side towards the central camp, by a high raised mound, without a foss. The length from east to west is one hundred and fifty yards, and breadth from north to south fifty. On the northern side is another oblong inclosure, extend- ing eighty yards, but the mound less perfect, and the site lower tiian the one to the south. The circular part appears to have been a Roman work, and the additions are probably Danish. Near this are several subordinate works ; and along the ridge, to the southward, are various inclosed areas, both circular and ob- long, of great dimensions ; and many remains of antiquity have, at different times, been found in digging. This station appears to have been occupied by the contending parties during the civil wars. Rushworth says, that near Gains- borough, Cromwell defeated General Cavendish, who was slain iu a quagmire, by Cromwell's lieutenant, in l643. The Lord Willoughby had before taken this town, aud made the Earl of Kingston prisoner. The Earl being sent to Hull, was shot, in mistake, by the royalists in his passage over the Huraber. At LINCOLNSHIRE. 675 Al Heynings, two miles from Gainsborough, was a cister- i'tan nunnen/, fouiuled by Reyiier Evermue about the year 1 1 80. It was dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and had a prioress and twelve nuns; vahied at the dissolution, according to Speed, at 581. 13s. 4d. when the site was granted to Sir Thomas Henneage. Gough, by nristake, states its revenues at 4C)Jl. MANLEY WAPENTAKE, contains the following parishes and townships: — western division; Althorpe, Amcotts town- ship, JBelton, Butterivick west township, Crowle, Eastoft town- ship, Epworth, Garthorp township, Huxcy, Keadby town- ship, Lnddington, Owstoii, Wroof. Eastern division ; Ashby township, Botlesford, Brougliton, Brumby township, Bttrring- hara township, Butterivlck East township, Froddingham, Hi- bahtoiv. Holme township, Manton, Messingham, Redbourn, Scaivby with Sturfon, Scunthorpe township, Waddingham, Yaddlethorp township. Northern division ; Appleby, Aiikbo- rough, Burton-upon- Slather, Crosby township, FUxborough, Gunhouse township, Halfon IVest, Roxhy cum Risby, Whitton, Winteringham, and Winterton. The river i.slaud of Axhobne contains eight parishes, which are subdivided into thirteen constableries. The chief, or principal of these is Epworth, the manor of which, held by lease under the crown, includes the parishes of Epworth, Haxey, Owston, and Belton, also the townships of Diddilhorpe and Alihorpe. Haxey, whence the river island of Axholme derives its narae, Camden says, " was anciently called Axel. But it hardly de- serves the name of a town, it is so thinly inhabited." By the returns of the population made to parliament in 1801, it appears that the place then consisted of 323 houses, and contained 1,541 inhabitants. Here is the site of a castle which once belonged to 676 LINCOLNSHIRE. to llie Mou-lirat/s, I'ormorly lords of tliis iieighbourliood, but the building was deinolislied in the baronial wars. In the year 1173, according to Matiiew Paris, Roger de Mowbray, re- nouncing his allegiance to tlie old king *, repaired a caslle at Kin- jiard Ferry, in the isleof Axliolme, which had been destroyed of old. A body of Lincolnshire men crossed over in boats, and laid siege to the castle ; forced tije constable and all his men to surrender, and razed the castle. Leland says, " there was a castle at the south side of the chirch garth of Oxtun, whereof no peace now standith ; the dike and the hill wher the arx stoode yet be scene ; it was sumtyme cauUid Kinardf." Near Mi [wood Park, formerly si seal of \he 3Ioivhrai/s, stood, according to Leland, a " fair carthusian monastry," in the church of which was buried John Mowbray, second Duke of Norfolk, and grandson of the first, who died in the eleventh year of Henry the Sixth. It was founded about the nineteenth year of Richard the Second, by Thomas Mowbray, Earl of Nottingham, and Earl Marshal of England, who was afterwards Duke of Norfolk. TJie yearly revenues of th^ priory at the dissolution were, according to Dugdale, 23/1. 15s. 2d. The site of it was granted, in the thirty-second of Henry the Eighth, to Mr. John Candish, who, Leland observes, in his time had turned " the monasterie to a goodly manor place." It went by the name of " the Priori/ in the Wood;" or, " the house of the visitation of the Blessed Vir- gin, near Eppworth, in the isle of Axholm." EPWORTH Is a long straggling town, the living of which is a rectory, and was held by the pious divine, Samuel Wesley, father of the celebrated leaders * Heury the Second, so called with respect to Im son, who was in rebel- lion against his father. t Lelaud's Itin. Vol. I. fol, 40 ajid 41. LINCOLNSHIRE. GTJ leaders of the Arminian Methodists, John and Charles Wesley^ The trade of this place, which is not very considerable, is chiefly the iDauufaclure of sacking and bagging ; for which there is one large factory, and several others of less note. A great quantity of hemp and liax is grown in this part of the county ; and the poor are chiefly employeil in spinning it. Here is a market on Thurs- days, and two annual fairs. Quantities of large oaks, with acoms, lir, and other kinds of trees, some of which appear to have been burut, and others cut down, are frequently found at the depth of three feet beneath the surface in this neighbourhood. In the Gentleman's Magazine for May, \7A[), il is stated, " that at Crowle, on the river Dune, was found the body of a woman standing upright in a peat moss, and two ancient shoes." About lln'ee miles from Epworlh is Temple Belwood, the seat of William Johnson, Esq. At Hirst was a cell of black canons of St. Austin annexed to Nostell Abbey, in the county of York, valued at 51. 10s. Here is a seat of Cornelius Stevin, Esq. At AuKBOROaoH Dr. Stukeley places the Aouis of Raven- nas, having discovered a Roman castrum and a vicinal road. " The Roman castle is square, 3(3o feet each side, the entrance north, the west side is objected to the steep cliff hanging over the Trent, which here falls into the Humber; for this castle is very conveniently placed in the north-west angle of Lincolnshire, as a watch tower over all Nottingham and Yorkshire, which it surveys. I am told the camp is now called Coimtess Close, and they say a Countess of Warwick lived there, perhaps owned the estate; but there are no marks of building, nor I believe ever were. The vallum and ditch are very perfect. Before the north entrance is a square plot, called the Green, where I suj)pose the Roman soldiers lay pro castris. In it is a round work, formed into a labyrinth, which they call Julianas Boiver*." The places which go by this name, are generally discovered near Roman towns. * IliHcrariiira Curiosum, p, 91. 67S LINCOLNSHIRE. towns. Tliey are circular works, niaile of banks of earth, in the form of a maze, or labyrinth ; the common people indulge an idea, that they are extraordinary things ; and boys often divert tlicuiseives by running, in their various windings and turnings, throngii and back again. The doctor thinks it was one of the ohl Roman games, which wore brought into Italy from Troy; and that it took the latter name, not from bower, an arbour, but from borough, any work consisting of earth ramparts ; and the forn)er from Jiilm, the son of ^Eneas, who introduced it into Italy, according to the account of Virgil, in his fifth iEneid. That the intent of it was to exercise their youth in military ac- tivity ; and that' it was also a practice of the ancient Britons, which they derived from their Phrygian descent. A mile to the south of JVhiteringham, at Winterton, where the Roman road disappears, Stukeley asserts, was the station Ad Abum *. " Upon a rising ground at the end of the road, a little to the right, and half a mile east of the present Winteringham, stood the old Roman town, of which they (the people) have a perfect knowledge, and ploughed up great foundations within memory ; 'tis now a conmion, skirted by the marshes of the Humber. The city was plowed up sis years ago, and great num- bers of antiquities found, now lost; great pavements, chimney- stones, &c. often breaking their plows: in several places they found streets made of sea sand and gravel. The old haven mouth is called Flashmhe. This place is over against Brough, the Roman town on the Yorkihire shore f ." Winterton has a cor- poration, but is a place of little trade. It contains 174' houses, and 773 inhabitants. In Winterton Great Corn Fields, near Roxhy, by ploughing, were discovered, in the year 1747, three curious tessellated pave- ments, which have been destroyed. The Society of Antiquaries, iu 1750, had thein engraved. One of them was thirty feet in length, by * Horsley says, tlmt tlie ancient name of tlio HunilK r wa? Ahu'^. 1 Uin. Cnrio.1. p. 90. LINCOLNSHIRE. 679 by nineteen feet broad, and was supposed to have been the floor of a dining-room. It had, in the centre, a figure of Orplicus play- ing on his harp, surrounded by beasts ; at the corners four- handled wine vessels, for libations. In the centre of another, which was forty-four feet by fifteen, was the figure of Ceres, holding in her hands ears of corn : and on a third, which was the least perfect, was the figure of a stag, in a bounding attitude. At the same lime and phice were dug up quantities of Roman bricks and tiles, but no coins ; and a large brazen eagle, probably a military standard. At RoxBY, near the church, was found a tessellated pave- ment, composed of red, blue, and wlTite tessellae, " six or seven yards long, by more wide," with ox bones, pieces of red and yellow plaister, and large stones. At Appleby is a rampart, called ./m/ww's Boivcr. At Hibbaldstowt are the foundations of Roman buildings, where numerous tiles, coins, and other frag- ments of antiquity have been found. Similar remains have been discovered at Broughton*, where is a tumulus, or barrow; and near it is a petrifying spring, where fossil fish have been dug up. At Sandton are barrows, and a Roman pottery was found there; and between Scalby and Manton is an ancient encampment. In- deed, along the whole of this part of the line of the Ermin Street, numerous remains of the Romans have been discovered at diffe- rent periods. Not far distant from Brougiiton are the ruins of TUORNEHAM, * At, or near this place, Horsley is disposed to fix tlie station named Pr^torium. Some copies liaving against tiiis station XXII. for XXV. wtiich he considers answers very well to tiic distance between this plane and JVighton, in the county of York, where he fixes the Delgovitia of Anto- ninus. " And both Pratorium, in the Itinerary, and Prcesidium, suit so well the present name of Broughton, as to leave some doubt with me whe- ther both of them might not be fixed at this place, upon a supposition either of a chany;e in the name, or that the latter station might have risen out of tlie former. ' Britannia Romana, p. 40r. v»«\»W^ 6S0 LINCOLNSHIRE. TiiORNEHAM, or TiioKNHOLM Priory, which wa3 founded, for canons of the order of St. Austin, by King Stephen, and endowed, at the suppression, with 1551. 19s. 6d. annual iitconie, according to Speed. It was granted, by Henry the Ei-iith, to Charles, Duke of Suffolk. YARBOllOUGH WAPENTAKE contains these parishes and townships : — East divisou ; Croxton, Hahrough, Halton East, Tinmingham, Keelbi/, Killinghohne North, KilUngholme South, Kirmington, Limber Magna, Limber Parva, cum Brockles- by, Riby, Stallingboroitgh. South division ; Barnetby le Wold, Bigby, Cadncy with Hotisham, Castor, Clixby, Glundford Brigg township, Grassby, Kelsey North, Melton Ross, Nettleton, S(<:rby with Oivmby, Summerby, Wrawby cum Brigg. North division ; Barrow, Barton St. Mary's, Barton St. Peter's, Bonby, ElsJiam, Ferriby, Goxhill, Horkstow, Saxby, Thornton- Curtis, Ulceby, IVootton, and Worlaby. GLANFORD BRIDGE, or BRIGG, As usually called, is a small market town, on the banks of the Ancholme river, over which is a strong stone bridge. Here was an hospital, founded by the predecessors of Ralph Paynel, and, as Tanner thinks, by Adam Paynel, in the time of King John. It was subordinate to the abbey of Selby, in Yorkshire ; a monk of which house was always the master. At Elsham, adjoining, was an hospital for several poor bre- thren, begun by Beatrix de Amundevill, which her son com^ pleted, and committed to the care of a friar, and regular canons of the Augustin order, previous to the year 11 66. About the year 1 1 SO, the knight's hospitalers made some pretensions to it. LINCOLNSHIRE. '681 but were obliged to abandon their claim. It was dedicated to St. Mary and St. Edmund ; and a little before the suppression it had five canons, when its possessions were valued, according to Dugdale, at 70I. Os. 8d. The site was granted to Charles, Duke of Suftulk. To the south was Novus Locus, or Newsted-on- Anchohne, a G'dbertine Prion/. King Henry the Second gave to St, Gilbert, and the canons of Sempringhara, an island called Rucliolm, williin the bounds of Cadney, thereon to found a priory of their order, winch was dedicated to the Holy Trinity, and endowed, at the dissolution, with 381. 13s. 5d. according to Dugdale. The site was granted to Sir Robert Henneage. Neus, or Newhouse, the first Premonstratensian abbey ia England, was built by Peter de Gousla, or Gousel, A. D. 11-13, according to the " Mailross Chronicle ;" but according to the *' Monaslicon Anglicanum," A. D. 1146, to the honour of St. Mary and St. Martial. At the dissolution it had an abbot and eleven canons, who were possessed of an annual revenue of 1141, Is. 4d. It was then given, by Henry the Eighth, to Charles,Duke of Suffolk. WoRLABY gave the title of Baron to Lord John Belasyse, who had that honour conferred on him by King Charles the First, for his loyalty and attachment. But his son. Lord Harry, being attainted of the popish plot, in the time of James the Second, was confined some years in the Tower of London, where he died, 1668. The title is extinct; and the estates have descended to Sir John Webb, Bart, of Candford Magna, in the county of Dorset. The old seat, Gough says, slill remains ; over the door of which is the motto, " Bonne & Belle assez." In the east window of the chancel was some handsome stained glass, repre- senting the descent from the cross ; but it has unfortunately been mutilated by a ruthless glazier. At HoRKSTOW have been found many Roman remains. These consisted chiefly of tessellated pavements and foundations. Vol. IX. X x Mr. 682 LINCOLNSHIRE. INIr. S. Lysons has published some plates, with descriptions of them, in the first number of a work entitled RtUquice Romana. BARTON UPON HUMBER, A market town, pleasantly situated on the southern side of the river Humber, about three quarters of a mile from its banks, is a place of high antiquity. It was once surrounded by a rampart and foss, the remains of which are yet visible in what are called the Castle Dikes. This place was probably otherwise fortified against the irruptions of the Saxons and Danes, who, in their predatory visits, often laid waste the country on both sides the river. Of its consequence at that period, nothing can be collected, but from tradition. At the time of the conquest it is stated to have been a place of some importance, and a principal port on the river Humber. It was then a corporate town, and, till the erection of Kingston-upon-Hull, by Edward the First, carried on a considerable trade, Wiien Edward the Third issued mandates to raise a force for the invasion of France, Barton furnished, ac- cording to one account, three ships and thirty men ; and, to an- other, five ships and ninety-one men: while some of the present sea-ports on the eastern coast were even not mentioned. The mauor belongs to the crown. A court-leet is held half- yearly, for the cognizance of offences committed within the town ; and a court-baron every three weeks, for the recovery of small debts. Though there is but one parish, there are two large churches. The mother church, dedicated to St. Peter, appears, from the tower, to have been built about the time of the Con- queror ; but the body of the church was rebuilt after the intro- duction of the pointed arch. It consists of a nave and two ailes. In the window of the chancel are two figures in stained glass ; the one habited as a pilgrim, said to be an etfigy of the famous war- rior, Lord Beaumont, to whom the manor was granted by King ^enry the Second. St. LINCOLNSHIRE. 683 St. Mary's church, considered a chapel of ease to that of St. Peter, is evidently a more modern building, and is very spacious. These being repaired by separate districts, has probably given rise to the idea, that the town contains two parishes. Barton is an improving place, and carries on a considerable trade in corn, having several flour mills in the vicinity, and others for the manu- factory of Paris whiting, and French barley. But it is principally noted for being the place where the great northern road passes the Huniber to Hull ; and the great improvement which has been made in the ferry, and the additional acconnnodations made for travellers, within these few years, have rendered it a great tho- roughfare. A neat packet-boat for passengers, and another for carriages, cross and recross the river every day. The town has a well supplied weekly market on Mondays, and another for fat cattle once a fortnight. Its annual fair is held the Thursday after Trinity. According to the returns under the late act, the number of houses was 412, and of inhabitants 1709' About two miles to the east of this town is Barrow, a large, but irregularly built village. It was for- merly the seat of the ancient and celebrated family of Tirwhit, of Cornwall. About a mile north-west of it, in a marsh, stands a large earth work, called the Castle, which, tradition says, was erected by Humher, when he invaded Britain, in the time of the Trojan Brutus. Stukeley says, " it is dissonant from any thing I ever saw ;" and, after a minute investigation, considers it to be " an alate temple' of the Britons, and places it in the third class of his " druidkal buildings." Having thus decided on it» origin, he gives an account of what he conceived to have been its form, and describes the dimensions. Its features, however, are more of a military than a religious kind ; and it was probably an entrenched camp of the Britons, who, in many instances, pre- ferred such inundated situations. Adjacent to the foundations are several tumuli, or long barrows. In some, on the north side, which have been opened, were found human bones, ashes, urns, &c. X X 2 At 684 LINCOLNSHIRE. At Croxhil, generally misnamed Gokewell and Goxhill, was a priory for Cistertian nuns, founded by William de A!ta Ripa, before tlie year 1185. A little to the south are the noble ruins of Thornton Abbey, which was founded by William le Grass, Earl of Albemarle, and Lord of Holderness, A. D. 1139. for black canons. Dugdale informs us, that when iirst founded it was a priory, and the monks, with Richard their prior, were introduced from the monastery of Kirkham ; but was ciianged into an abbey, and Richard made abbot, by Pope Eugenius the Third, A. D. 11 18. The founder died about the year 1180, and was supposed to have been interred within the walls. King Henry the Eighth, his Queen, and attendants, were splendidly enter- tained, in a visit they made the abbot in the year 1541. At the dissolution, when the revenues were valued at 7301. 17s. 2d. ac- cording to Speed, the King appears not to have been unmindful of the flattering attentions he had received ; for though he sup- pressed the abbey, he reserved the greater part of the lands to endow a college, which he erected in its room, for a dean and prebendaries, to the honour of the Holy and Undivided Trinity. This was a large establishment, for after the dissolution of it, A. D. 15j3, in the sixth year of Edward the Sixth, it is asserted by Willis, that nineteen members receivetl pensions. At that time it was granted, in exchange, to the Bishop of Lincoln. From the remains, it must have been a magnificent building. Originally it consisted of an extensive square, surrounded by a deep ditch, with high ramparts, and built in a style adapted for occasional defence. The gate-house, wliich formed the western tntrance, is yet tolerably entire. The entrance-road is flanked with brick walls, having loop-hole arches, supporting a broad battlement, and terminating in two round towers, between which was formerly a draw-bridge. The grand entrance arch is still per- fect ; over it is a pariipet, four feet broad, and opening into a cell, probably the porter's lodge. The front has been richly or- namented with cornices, niches, and statues. There is a groove for a portcullis, and parts of the great wooden doors are still pendant LINCOLNSHIRE. 685 pendant on their massy hinges. The roof is finely groined, the ribs of which are supported i^y elegant brackets, enriched with flowers and figures. Over the gateway are two rooms, and four handsome hexagonal towers form the four angles. A winding staircase opens into a spacious ai)artment, probably the refectory. The brackt-ts v liich supported the ceilings are half length human ligurcs, so distorted in their countenances, as if represented in pur- gatory. On the east side of the refectory is another room, witlj recesses in both sides. To the east of the gateway, are the re- mains of the ahb.ey church. The cluipter house, part of which is standing, was of an octangular shape, and highly decorated, having round it, under its handsome windows, an arcade, con- sisting of pointed arches, with cinquefoiled heads, and in the centre of each an ornamented trefoil pendent drop. The abbot's lodge, which stood to the south, is occupied as a farm-house. The site of this abbey belonged some years to the family of Sut- ton, but is now the property of George Uppleby, Esq. On a high ridge of the downs, west of Thornton, is Yar bo- rough Camp; a large entrenchment, said to be of Roman origin. From its lofty situation very extensive views are obtained, particularly to the east. Vast quantities of Roman coins have been found here, among which were some of the Emperor Lici- nius. East of tliis is Brocklesby Park, the seat of Lord Yarborough. The house is not remarkable for its architecture, but his lordship has recently made many additions and alterations to the building and park ; among which is an elegant Picture Gallery, from designs by C. H. Tatham, Esq. a gentleman who has distinguished him- self both in architecture and in some scientific works on the sub- ject. The length of the gallery, which was finished in I8O7, is sixty-three feet, the breadth forty-eight, by twenty feet high. The ceiling is very elegant, being enriched with antique vases. That compartment appropriated to the cabinet pictures, has an arched X X 3 ceiling. 686 LINCOLNSHIRE. ceiling, higlily ornamented. The gallery contains a fine col- lection of paintings, which were bequeathed to Lord Yarborough by the laic Mr. Aufere, of Chelsea, near London. A few years since his lords!)ip erected in the park an elegant Chapel and Mau- soleum, which was begun under the direction of James Wyatt, Esq. in the year 1787; and completed in the year 1794. The elevation on which it stands is a tumulus, once a place of Roman sepulture, as appears from the sepulchral urns that have been dis- covered here: these contained burnt bones and ashes; also rings, combs, and small perforated stones. The chapel, which was consecrated by Bishop Preltyman, in June 1794, is an elegant circular building, having fluted Doric columns, supporting a rich entablature, and surmounted by a dome, which is surrounded by an open ballustrade, &c. The interior is divided into four com- partments, by eight fluted columns of the Corinthian order, sup- porting a highly decorated and lofty dome. Beneath the chapel is a vault, with compartments and recesses for depositing coflins. This is divided also by pillars, and has a circular sarcophagus in the centre. The whole, which displays much elegance and taste, is highly ornamental to the park, which is extensive, and diver- sified by numerous plantations and swelling grounds. CASTOR, ' Caistor, or Thong-Castor, according to Camden, who follows some old chrouologists, was called by the Britons Caer- Egarry, and by the Saxons Thong-Castor. The latter name, it c-^/C^>t^9 I is said, to have derived from a circumstance that occurred in the ->s^-^<^tt^»*-»-Ji_^-t^ g, ^^.^^^.^^Z- ^^ r ^ «w» , ^jfrirtjti- 688 LINCOLNSHIRE. Iween the joints of large stones, which are laid flat like a wall, and are connected together by rivets of load. At Caslle-hill many bofiies have been dug np, and a stone, of irregular or mutilated shape, with an inscription, which the late Mr. Bradley, of Lin- coln, read — Cruci sjwlivm, quod Egbert rex in honorem. — This is supposed to have been inscribed in honour, and as a memorial of the victory obtained by Egbert near this place, over Wiglof, king of Mercia, A. D. S27. Castor has a small weekly market, on Saturdays, and three annual fairs. By the returns made under the act for taking an account of the population of the kingdom, the number of houses was 193, of inhabitants SGl. A ceremony, respecting a peculiar tenure*, not mentioned by Camden, or Blount, takes place at Castor church every Palm Sunday. — A person enters the church-yard with a green silk purse, containing two shillings, and a silver penny tied at the end of a cart-whip, which he cracks three times in the porch, and continues there till the second lesson begins ; when he goes into the church, and cracks the whip again three times over the clerg} man's head. After kneeling before the desk during the reading of the lesson, he pre- sents the minister with the purse, and then returning to the choir, he waits the remainder of the service. Mr. Gough thinks, that two shillings are probably substituted for twenty-four pence, as the tenure appears to have been antecedent to the coinage of shillings ; " which," he observes, " were not connnon till the reign of Edward the Sixth." BRADLEY HAVERSTOE WAPENTAKE contains the fol- lowing parishes: — Asliby aim Fenby, Aylesby, Bnrnoldby-le- Beck, Beehby, Beesby, Haverby and Cadeby, Bradley, BrigS' ley, Caboun, Clee, Cleethorpe township, Coafes Great, Coates Little, Coates north, Cuxwold, Fulstonf Grainsby, Grimsby Great, Hatcliffe, Healing, Holton le Clay, Humberstone, Irby, Laceby, * The lands Iield by ttiis, are situated in tlie parish of Broughton. /^u^M-<^^^W^ LINCOLNSHIRE. Q)9^ Laceby, Marsh Chapel, Ravendale East, Ravendale Jl'est, Rothivell, Scartho, Swalloiv, Sivinhope, Teinei/, Thoreshi/ North, Waith, Wallham, and Wold Newton. GRIMSBY, OR GREAT GRIMSBY, So called to distinguish it from a village of the same name, is a borough, market, and sea-port town, which formerly possessed a considerable share of foreign conniierce, and was distinguished for ils internal trade. The town still enjoys many immunities, has a weekly niarkt^t on Wednesilays, and an annual fair on St. Bartholomew's ilay. It also sends two members to parliament. Of its origin and ancient history nmch has been written. The story, that it was founded by a merchant named Gryme, who ob- tained great riches in consequence of having brought up an ex- posed child, called Haveloc, who proved to be of royal Danish blood, and, from being scullion in the King's kitchen, had the honour to marry the King's daughter, is ridiculed by Camden, and placed among old wives' fables. The corporation seal, which appears to be very ancient, however, emblematically gives coun- tenance to such a story, whether fictitious or true. Holies sup- poses this town was founded by a Norwegian pirate ; and Mac- pheison observes, " Grimsby is noted by the Norwegian, or Islandic writers, as an emporium, resorted to by merchants from Norway, Scotland, Orkney, and the Western Islands*." The town is governed by a mayor, two bailiff's, twelve alder- men, and thirty-six burgesses. The mayor and bailiffs hold se- parate courts; the former on Tuesday, the latter on Friday. The first charter was granted in the reign of King John. It was once rich and populous, and carried on considerable trade. In the reign of Edward the Tiiird, Grimsby furnished eleven ships, and one hundred and seventy mariners, to assist at the siege of Calais. But the trade afterwards forsook it, and the harbour became * Annals ef Commerce, Vol. I. p. 391. 6"90 LINCOLNSHIRE. became nearly clioaked with sand. Formerly it was fortified with two blockhouses, ol' which no traces remain. The spirit of the place has of late revived. The harbour has been improved, and a dock constructed at a great expence, by which means the trade of the port has been increased, and the town extended by many ad- ditional buildings. In tlie town were formerly two churches, that of St. Mary's, which was an handsome building, and its steeple a good land n;ark for mariners, has been long since taken down. St. James's ckwch is a spacious structure, built in the form of a cross, with a tower in the centre. Originally it was of greater extent, a part of the choir having fallen down about the year 16OO. The steeple is a beautiful specimen of English pointed architecture, and appears to have suffered less from the depredations of time than other parts of the church. The alterations it has undergone at different periods by no means correspond with the style of the original building. In the upper part of the steeple is this inscrip' tion, " Pray for the soule of John Empringham." This person was eminent, according to Gervas Holies *. This gentleman was born here in the reign of Henry the Fourth, and was a consi- derable benefactor to the church. The large west window had figures of the Kings of Judah branchuig off from the stem of Jesse. In the church are many ancient monuments and inscribed stones, some of which appear to have been removed from the three monasteries that were formerly in the town. Beside a monastery of gray friars, and a convent of benedictine nuns, Grimsby had a priory of Augustine canons, founded by Kirjg Henry the First, who liberally endowed, and conferred on it several privileges. These, his son, Henry the Second, confirmed, and further granted, that the monks should enjoy their lands and rentals free from all exactions and secular services ; a proof of the power and influence of the religious orders during that period of our history. Slow * He lias given a minute description of tlie monumeuts and armorial bear- ings painted in the several windows in tlds churcli, among the Harleiau MSS. in liie British Museum. LINCOLNSHIRE. 69I Stow relates, that John Walsh, a native of this place, being accused of high treason by a gentleman of Navarre, did, on St. Andrew's day, in the eighth year of King Richard the Second, A. D. 1385, enter the lists to combat with the " Navarois, named Marlileto de Vilenos," that he might, according to the custom of the times, refute the charge, by obtaining the victory over his antagonist ; which having gained, his traducer was hanged for false accusation. The brightest ornament of this place was that eminently dis- tinguished prelate. Dr. John Whitgift, Archbishop of Can- terbury. He received his education in the university of Cam- bridge, where he became master of Trinity College, and regius professor of divinity. He was first promoted to the see of Wor- cester, and thence translated to the metropolitan see of Canter- bury. A lover of order, he became a zealous assertor of the doctrines and discipline of the established church, against the violent advocate of the puritans, Cartwright, who, with his fol- lowers, were encouraged and supported in their opposition by numerous friends at court. Whitgift, however, conducted the controversy with so much wisdom, moderation, and piety, that he overcame and won over many of his adversaries, though he could not convince those obstinate enemies, who would be satis- fied with nothing, except the overthrow of the constitution, and destruction of the hierarchy. This prelate was born in the year 1530, and died February 29lh, A. D. l603. About two miles from Great Grimsby is the small village of Clee, which has a very ancient church, consisting of a nave, with north and south ailes, separated from the former by round massy columns. These support semicircular arches, variously or- namented with zigzag, cable, and billet mouldings. In this church is a curious /ow^, formed of two cylindrical parts, one placed upon the other ; over which, in the shaft of the circular column, is in- laid a small piece of marble, with a Latin inscription in Saxon characters, referring to the time of King Richard, and stating that 69'2 LINCOLNSHIRE. that it was dedicated to the Holy Trinity and St. Mary, by Hugh, Bishop of Lincohi. Tiie dale, A. D. 1 192. In the vicinity ol" this place are many of those extraordinary fountains, called Blow-Wells. These are deep circular pits, which furnish a continued flow of water in a considerable stream. They are vulgarly supposed unfathomable ; but Mr. Young says, " Sir Joseph Banks found the bottom without diffi- culty *." At a small distance from Clee is Cleethorpe, a township, which is inhabited by a few fisher- men only in the winter, but in the summer season is much re- sorted to for sea-bathing. Persons visiting it for that purpose will find an excellent hotel for their accommodation. LUDBOROUGH WAPENTAKE contains the parishes of, Brackenhorough, Covenham St. Bartholomew, Coienham St. Mary, Fotherhy, Grimsby Little, Ludborotigh, Ormshy North, JJtterhy, and Wyham cum Cndeby. At CovENHAM, William Carileph, Bishop of Durham, founded a benedictine priory about the year 10^2, and made it a cell to Durham ; but afterwards, in the thirlieth year of Ed- ward the First, it was given to Kirksted abbey. No remains of this priory are at present left. WALSHCROFT WAPENTAKE contains the parishes of, Claxhy, Holton le Moor, Kelsey South, Kingerby, Newton, Normanby on the Wold, Osgodby with Kirkby, Owersby Noith End, Owersby South End, Rasin West, Thornton le Moor, Toft, Unselby.—Binbrooke St. Gabriel, Binbrooke St. Mary, Croxby, * General View, p. 15. LINCOLNSIIIRK. 6^3 Croxby, Linivood, Rusin Market, Rasin Middle, Tupholm and ^^^. SxstB, Stainton le Hole, or Stainion Vale, Tealby, Thoreawajj, Thorganhij, Wallshij, and WilUnghum North. MARKET RASIN, A small town, so calleil from King upon tlie Rasin, a stream which flows into the river Anclwlme, and having on Tuesdays a well frequented market. The only thing here calculated to ex- cite notice is the peculiar form of the upppr windows in the em- battled tower of the church. They have a pointed arch, divided into two pointed lights, and a quaterfoil head. Up the centre goes a strong mullion, crossed by a transom, terminating at the imposts. These are similar to those of Yarborough church, near Louth. Both were erected, it is probable, at the same period ; for on the south side of the tower of each is a representation of our first parents on the branches of a fruit tree, on the trunk of which is tlie dart of death, allusive to the effecfs of eatiiig the forbidden fiuit. The living is a vicarage, in the gift of the crown ; and in the endowment, the vicar is entitled to the unusual tythe of ale. In the town is a Roman Catholic chapel, a Methodist meeting house, a small free school, and an hospital for four poor men. The church of St. Peter, in Middle Rasin, an adjoining village, is small, but has a curious entrance porch, with zigzag, nailhead, and oilier mouldings. The chancel is separated from the nave by elegant screen work, beneath a pointed arch, sup- port?d by Norman circular pillars, which was probably co- eval with the doorway. The nave appears to have had side ailes, as the pillars and pointed arches stand in relief from the present wall. This place is divided into two parishes, called Drax and Tupholm. The latter had an abbey of premonstratensian canons, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, founded by Alan de Neville, and his 6g4> LINCOLNSHIRE. his brother Gilbert, in the time of Henry tlie Second ; in which, at llic dissohilion, were nine monks, who, according to Speed, had tlie annual income of 1 1 9I. 2s. Sd. The site w as granted to Sir Tiiomas Henneage. To the church of St. Peter, called Tnpholme, in Middle Rasin, Gilbert de Bland, of that place, gave, among other dona- tions, one part of his meadow in Lissingley. Tiiis, which con- tains between live and six hundred acres of very wet land, was once, according to tradition, a park belonging to Sir John Bur- lingthorpe, and granted him by royal favour. This is said to have been conferred as a reward for his courage and prowess, in attacking and slaying a dragon which infested the neighbour- hood. A similar story is related of Sir Hugh Bardolph, who is said to have slain another at Walmsgate. These Draconcides, or dragon-slayers, were men who, by their skill or liberality, car- ried on works of drainage, and other improvements in their re- spective neii^hbourhoods, by which the floods and tides being prevented from continually inundating the lands, the head of these hydra monsters were cut off, and prevented from again terrifying people by their ominous and unwelcome appearance. Near Rasin is WiLLiNGHAM HousE, the seat of Ayscongh Boucherett, Esq. member of parliament for Great Grimsby. It is an elegant mansion, situated on the south-west side of the wolds, and was erected in the year 1 790. It stands about two miles west of the site of an old mansion. Thurgunby, an ancient seat of the Willoughbys, is now the residence of Lord Middkton. Situated on an eminence, the house commands a view over tlie vale, to Swinhop. Some fine old timber gives this place a sylvan feature, which is rarely seen on the Wolds. The grounds behind the house are finely varied, and the declivous sides terminate in a narrow vale, through which runs a small trout-stream. LOUTH LINCOLNSHIRE. 695 LOUTH ESKE WAPENTAKE contains tl.e parishes of Alvingham, Carlton Castle, Carlton Great, Carlton Little, Conisholme, Grainthorpe cum Lndney and Wragholme, Gri- moldby, Manhy, Reston North, Saltjlcetby All Saints, Salt- Jleetbjj St. Clement's, Saltjleetby St. Peter's, Skidbrook with Saltjleet Haven, Som.ercotes North, Somercotes South, Yar- horough. — Authorpe, Burwell, Cakethorpe, Cocker in gt on St. Leonard, Cockerington St. Mary, Elkington North, Elking- ton South, Farforth with Maiden Well, Gayton le Wold, llal- lington, Haiigham, Keddington, Kelsterne, Louth, Louth Park, Muckton, Raithby with Mai f by, Ruckland, Stewton, Tathwell, Wetton le Wold, Withcall, and Wykeham. Tlie prin- cipal place in, and whicli gives name to the wapentake, is LOUTH, Anciently called Luda, from the situation . ou the Lud, a small rivulet, formed by the confluence of two streams, is a large well built town, in a fertile valley, at the eastern foot of the Wolds. The valley, which nms east and west, is sheltered on the north and south by sloping hills of indurated chalk, whose horizontal strata are principally covered with an argillaceous soil for several inches deep. Towards the west the rising grounds afford nume- rous and varied prospects. The scenery of the Wolds is highly diversified with hill and dale, and the interesting effects which arise from wild irregularity ; but being generally devoid of wood, the features are not so intricate and picturesque as the more mountainous or woody parts of the island. To the east is a level, wooded country, which is agreeably interspersed with villages, churches, and mansions. Respecting this place history is nearly silent. In the rebellion of the year 1536, occasioned by the suppression of religious houses, the inhabitants of Louth, under Dr. Mackerel, alias Captain Cohler, the prior of Barling's abbey, took part in the insurrection. ^,06 LINCOLNSHIRE. iiisuneclioii, Tliis person, with (lie vicar of Louth, and thirteen other ringleaders, were afterwards put to death. In this place were established three religious fraternities, called " The Guild of our Blessed Lady, the Guild of the Holy Trinity, and the Chuntry of John of Louth." In the time of Edward the Sixth, the funds which had been conferred on these guilds were alienated, and granted for the purpose of erecting and endowing i\free grammar school. The lands then brought 40l. per annum, but are now let for 4001. One half was granted for a head master's salary, one-fourth for the usher's, and the remainder was to be appropriated for t!ie maintenance of twelve poor women, in perpetual succession. Tiie trustees of this foundation were in- corporated by the name of " Tlie warden, and six assistants, of the town of Louth, and free school of King Edward the Sixth, in Louth." The common seal*, yet used by this corporate body, is a curious specimen of the uncouth ideas of the time. It ex- hibits a man exercising the birch upon the posteriors of a sup- pliant youth, while other scholars are shewn at their forms. The motto: — Qvi parcit virge odit filiv. 1552. In this town is another free-school for poor boys, founded in pursuance of the Will of the late Dr. Mapletoft, Dean of Ely, bearing date August the 17th, 1677. It is on a very respectable scale, and the annual salary of the master is forty guineas. The church of St. James is a large, handsome structure, and consists of a nave, two ailes, with an elegant tower and spire at the west end. The east end, which presents a fine elevation, exhibits a large central window, having six upright muUions and varied tracery, witii two lateral windows opening into the ailes. These are se- parated by two well proportioned buttresses, ornanietited by ca- nopied niches; in the gable battlements are quatrefoils with crockets, and the angular point supports a fleury cross. The nave and ailes are embattled, and have numerous crocketted pin- nacles. Internally the nave is separated from tlie ailes by octa- gonal * Tliis is engraved with a plan of the town, and published by Mr. Jackson, of Lontli. i.hs}rtn 0/ /.truth, ttn-the BeiaitKJ f^hnifian^i icHi' iljOrTU STjKEPIjK 8:i! . / /i-om theS.K.I Lincoliiihire. r,c7,.lm.PuhliM,l hiVn-nm-.tUoJ .i- Sha-p.-.l'mltni. Scp.i LINCOLNSHIRE. ^7 gonal columns, the alternale sides of which are relieved by single flutes. The capitals are plain, and the pointed arches are formed by arcs of circles, whose centres are the opposite imposts. The ceiling rests upon corbels, composed of grotesque heads. The chancel, which has an altar piece, containing a picture of the descent from the cross, painted by Williams, is of more modern dale than the body of the church, and probably is coeval with the justly admired steeple. The latter, which is the most elegant part of the building, was begun, as appears from a manuscript still extant, under the direction of John Cole, a master mason, or architect, in the year 1501, who conducted the work about four years. After that time it w^ent progressively on under the ma- nagement of Lawrence aisd William Letnyng, with Christopher Scune. The whole of this stately edifice was completed in fifteen years, for the sum of 3051. 7s. 5d. The height of the spire was originally 360 feet : but the flat stone on the summit was blown off in the year 158/, and carried with it part of the building into the body of the church. The damage was repaired the following year, at tiie expencc of 30l. The whole spire was blown down on the 1 1th of October, 1634, and the present one erected, under the direction of Thomas Turner, whose charge amounted only to the sum of 8 ll. 7s. The extra expences were 541. 2s. 9^. making together 1351. 9s. 9(1. The top stone has on its north and north-eastern sides Tho. Turner, and on the eastern side the date 1635. The lower part of the steeple consists of three stories, the second of which has two mullioned windows, witli tracery, in every front. In the third story, or tier, are two more highly ornamented windows in each face, and surmounted by crocketed canopies, in bold relief. The angles of the tower are supported by buttresses, which contract as they advance ia height, slill preserving the finest proportion. Each stage ter- minates with elegant pediments, supported by ornamental corbels; in this manner diminishing to the top, where are octagonal, em- battled turrets, thirty feet high, whence issue four pinnacles, the angles of which are adorned with crockets, and ead with finials. Vol. IX. Y y At 698 LINCOLNSHIRE. At eighty feet from the base, round the exterior of tlie tower, runs a gallery, guarded by a parapet wall ; aud at the height of one hundred aud seventy feet the batUemenls commence, which are pierced with embrasures, and separated by the pedestals of three small pinnacles ou each side. The octangular centre spire, in four of its sides, is connected to the corner turrets by spandrels or flying buttresses of excellent workmanship. In those faces answering the cardinal points are small pointed windows, and the corners of the spire are enriched with crockets, which contri- bute to its decorated appearance. The top stone projects with a cornice, and the height of the spire to the cross is one hundred and forty-one feet. The total height of the whole is two hundred and eighty-eight feet. The masonry of the tower and spire is often admired for its execution. The living of St. James's parish is a vicarage, in the gift of a prebendary of Lincoln cathedral, to which it was annexed by the conqueror. The vicarage house, which stands contiguous to the church-yard, is an old thatched building, and the present vicar has, in unison with its appearance, laid out his garden in a curious style of inge- nious rusticity ; it is denominated the hermitage. Interspersed among planted walks are several small buildings, and seats, formed of old timbers, branches of trees, with bark, &c. The floors are paved with pebbles, flints, and other substances. The various clois- ters, pavilions, cots, obelisks aud vases, inscribed with appropriate uioltoes, and accompanied by numerous devices, are for the use of the supposed hermit. The singularity of this spot, the Style in which it has been fitted up, and the attention manifested by its possessor, in preserving it in appropriate and pleasant order, conspire to attract the attention, and excite the admiration, of all persons who have an opportunity to view the scene. Here was formerly another church named St. Mary's, which probably belonged to the guild of the blessed virgin; the bells of this church having been valued at the dissolution. It is now totally demolished, but the church-yard is the present place of sepulture for the town; as that of St. James's has not been used for the purpose for LINCOLNSHIRE. 5^9 for nearly forty years past. Besides llie church, there are three places of religious worship at Louth for dissenters from the esta- blishment : one for catholics, one for baptises, and another for niethodists. When the warden and six assistants were incor- porated by Edward the Sixth, in the same charter two weekly markets were granted, one on Wednesdays, and the other on Sa- turdays, and three amiual fairs. The latter were to be held on the third Sunday after Easter, on St. James's day, and the feast of St. Martin; with a particular injunction, that they siiould continue two whole days after; that the lirst day of each fair might be ap- propriated " to hearing the word of God." Queen Elizabeth, in the sixth year of her reigii, gave by charter to the corporation the manor of Louth, of which the annual value then was JS\. 14s. 4|d. for the better support of the corporate dignity. King James, in the third year of his reign, constituted the warden and one of the assistants justices of the peace, with an exempt jurisdiction not extending to life and limb ; and authority to appoint other proper officers. In the fifth year of the same reign, by another charter, they were empowered to appoint a deputy warden, raise taxes for the good government of the town, and make other bye laws. The town-hall is an old plain building, standing at the end of the principal street leading to the market place. By dividing a part of the street into two narrow lanes, it becomes olFensive to the eye and a nuisance to the inhabitants. The Assembly-room, commonly called the mansion-house, with a card-room annexed, forms a suite of elegant apartments, which are titled up in the Grecian style, with considerable taste. The Theatre is a small but neat building, erected by Mr. Edward Blyth, merchant ; to whose public spirit Louth is in- debted for several handsome buildings and liberal institutions. A few years ago a Carpet and Blanket Manufactory was established here, ai;'l is now in a flourishing state. This trade, if it were extended to other towns, would be highly beneficial to Lincolnshire, as it would greatly contribute towards the con- Y y 2 sumption 700 LIxN'COLN'SHlRE. suiDption of coarse wool, llic staple commodity of tlic count j There is also a large niauufaclory of soap, and a mill for making coarse paper. An act was obtained in I'Gl for cutting a canal between Louth and the North Sea. It commences about half a nii'e from the town, and keeps parallel with the banks of the Lndd, whirh sup- plies it with water. It leaves the river about four miles from the town, and, by a sweep to the north, joins the sea at a place called Tetney Lock. The undertaking cost 12,000l. and the concern now pays very good interest. By this channel vessels of consider- able burden regularly trade to several parts of Yorkshire, to Hull, and to London : carrying out quantities of corn and wool, and bringing in return, timber, coals, groceries, &c. Hence it has proved highly advantageous to the town and neighbourhood. The open or common fields of Louth were inclosed by an act of Parliament in 1801. The number of inhabitants appears, by the return under the population act, to be 4, '236', and the number of houses 950; but the former have been much increased since that return was made. In Louth and its vicinity are some geological circumstances well worthy of minute investigation by the philosopher as well as chemist. Asicell spring turns a fulling mill only two hundred yards from the source of the stream. St. Helen's Well once sup- plied Louth park Abbey by means of a cut called Monk's Dyke. At the foot of the northern hills, several springs issue of a very pe- culiar nature. They run rapidly during the summer, but in winter are generally dry. The method of obtaiuing water by overjlowing springs has been of the utmost utility to the lower part of the town, as well as to a great extent of fme marsh-land ; which, till this discovery, made a few years since, possessed little else but stagnant water, retained in the adjacent ditches. A stratum of clay, about twenty-seven yards deep, runs in a sloping direction from the wolds to the sea, and extends several miles to the north and south. Beneath this is a stratum of gravel, «hich forms a grand reservoir of water. The argillaceous &tiatum being per- forated, LINCOLNSHIRE. 701 tbrated, and a cavity of three or more indies divuneter made, a current rushes up to the surface, down which cavity a lube of tin or copper is then slided, and a perpetual fountain, of inex- pressible value formed, at a very inconsiderable expence. These fountains are become general along this part of the coast, and furnish an ample supply of water for an extent of thirty miles in length and ten in breadth ; and were it necessary, might be ob- tained upon the sea shore, as far as low water mark. About one mile from the town is the site of Louth Park Abbey*, which was built by Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln, in the year 1139. It was appropriated to Cistertian Monks, who were brought from Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire. In the time of Henry the Third, it is related that this house contained sixty-six monks, and 150 Convcrsi ■\. At the time of the supj)ression here were only twelve religious persons, and its annual revenues were then valued, according to Dugdale, at J-irl. 14s. 6'd. BuRWELL, which was once a market lown, lias a large hand- some church with a good tower. A few vestiges of a religious house still remain, which was a priory and cell to St. Mary's SyhcB majoris, and was founded by John de Hay ; who endowed it with various lands ; from whom was descended Gilbert de Um- phraville. Earl of Angus, who lived at Burwell, and had the ap- pointment of the prior, by a claim derived from his ancestor. Near the village is Burwell Park, the seat of Mathew Bancroft Lister, Esq. Y y 3 who * Froin the circumstance of its being built in a park, it usually went l)y tiie name of tlie Monastery De Parcolude. Its manuscript niinntes are often >]uoted by Bisliop Tanner, in liis Notitia Monastica, to ascertain the dates of other similar establishments. t The Conversi, in Monasteries, were persons retained to perform all kinds oflaboiions business in the Abbies and Granges. They were made from novices, and learning being expressly forbidden them, tliey could never be- come 31onks. Harleian MSS. o3. B. 10, 702 LINCOLNSHIRE. who is sole proprietor of the parish. The house is a handsome modern mansion, built about ti.e year 1760, bj the father of the present possessor. It is delightfully situated in a well wooded park, wiiich contains about three hundred acres, and is well stock- ed wiihdeer. Sarah, wife of the celebrated Duke of Marlbo- KOTGH, who, by the ascendancy she obtained over Queen Anne, is supposed to have had a considerable share of influence in the politics of the day, was born here when the house was occupied by Mathew Lister, Esq. descendent of Sir Mathew Lister. In the vicinity of Burwell is Haugham, remarkable for a hill called Skirbeck, out of the side of which occasionally rushes a torrent of water sutiicient to fill a tube of thirty inches in diameter. The stream continues to run for several weeks together from a place, where, at other times, there is not the smallest appearance of a spring. This suddeu irruption is observed generally to happen after long and heavy rains, and is a pbaenomenon not common, but in very mountainous countries. On a hill near Tathwell, where is a large mansion be- longing to Charles Chaplin, Esq. are six oblong Barrows, lying in a line from east to west. .., CocKRiNGTON was anciently the head of the barony of Scotiuey. From Sir Adrian Scrope, or Scroop, Knt. of ibis place, was descended Adrian Scrope, Esq. who was educated at Oxford, and became one of the loyal attendants to Chailes the First at Edgehill, where he was severely woun7 ; to which Elhelred, King of Mercia, was a great benefactor. Resigning his crown, he turned monk, and was pppoihteti the chief of this conastery. It is said to have had three hundred monks. Bede says that King Oswald was buried here, and had a ricli banner of gold and purple placed over his tomb. But the remains of that king, except his right hand, were removed by his niece. Queen Ostiith, to the church of Gloces- ter, A. D. 90.9- The hand was retained by the monks as a relique, to wliich they attributed a miraculous power, with the view of drawing to their house superstitious pilgrims. To sanction the imposture, for deception and falsehood are inseparable, they pretended it was incorruptible, and had remained sound for cen^- turies. The monastery being burnt by the Danes, A. D. 870, Petrus Blesensis observes, it was rebuilt by Gilbert de Gaunt, " the noble and devout Earl of Lincoln," who bountifully annexed to it, besides other valuable possessions, the tylhes of the whole of his extensive estates. William of Mahnsbnry attributes the restora- tion to Bishop Remigius, who tilled it wiih Benedictine Monks, to the honour of St. Peter, St. Paul, and St. Oswald, King and Martyr. Its annual revenues, at the dissolution, were valued, ac- cording to Speed, al 4291. 7s. GARTREE WAPENTAKE contains the liarishes of Asterby, Baumber, Behhford, Cawkwell, Donington, Edlingfcn, Gold- sbi/, hlemingby, Ranbv, Scamlesby, Stainton Market, Stenni- goi, Sturion. Bucknall, Daiderby, Gautby, Horsington, Kirby Super Baine, hirkstead, Langton, Martin, Minting, Scrivehby, Stixwould, Tattershall, Tattershall-Thorpe, Thornton Tumby, Waddingworth, Wispington, and Woodhall. SCRIVELSBY LINCOLNSHIRE. 707 SCRIVELSBY was aiicientlv a place belonging to llic Marmions*, from whom, l>y niartia.vre, it caine througii the Ltullows into ihe family of the Di/rnocJ:s. This iiiaiiorwas held by barony an)tle." The house was plain and antique, and in the hall were ail the champions of England, and the kings, in whose reigns they lived, with three sui!s of ar- mour. This part of the house having been burnt down, has ne\er been rebuilt. In the church are brasses for Sir Robert Dymoke, Knt. and Bart, and a bust of Lewis Dymoke, w!i0 died in 1760, aged 91 ; and who was champion to Kings George the First and Second. At Wyngall, in South Kelsey, was an Afien Prwry, or cell subordinate to the Abbey of Sees in Normandy ; and at this village, in the mansion of her father, Sir William Askew, ww^, born Anne Askew, w ho, according to Fuller, " went to heaven 111 a chariot of fire." At • One of this family is the hero of an interostinjr modern poem, by Waller Scott, entitled, ^' Murmion ; a Tale of Flnddtn Field."' Lord Matmion, the fictitions licro of tliLs poem, was an En^li.'"!! kni^l.t of <^reaf lai.k and fortune in the reign of King Henry the Ei-.!)!!!. In Mv. Scott's wnik are some geiicalotiica" am cdotes of the families of IMarmiou aiui D^niock. 70S LINCOLNSHIRE. At KiRKSTEAD, on the banks of the VVithara, once stood a CiSTERTlAN Abbey, which was founded A. D. 1139, hy Hugh Fitz Eudo, second Lord of Tallershall, in the immediate vicinity. It was vakied at the dissolution at 2801. 2s. 7d. annually ; only a small part of a corner building, perhaps a tower, is left standing. The village of Kirkslrad gave birth to that famous monk Hugh KiRKSTEAD, whom Fuller styles, " a Benedict ine-Cistertian- Demadine Monk, or, as it may be termed, a treble refined Chris- tian." For as a Benedictine monk was esteemed superior to a common Christian, so a Cistertian was considered purer than a Benedictine, and a Bernadine still more so than a Cistertian. S» that this holy man must have formed the upper hnk in the chain of piety, or been at the very summit of monastic sanctity. He and Serlo, one of his own order, joining together, composed a Chronicle of the Cistertians, from their first arrival in England, A. D. 1131, when Walter de Espeke, founded their first abbey at Rivaulx, in Yorkshire, down to their own time, about A. D. 1210. The church at Kirkstead, is small and neat, originally the chapel of the monastery " was thatched." The living is a donative, extra episcopal, and formerly w as served by ministers of the established church ; but, in the latter end of the se\'enteenth century, Mr. Dis- ney, in whose gift it was, being a Dissenter, gave it to a minister of his own persuasion ; and left a further endowment of thirty pounds per annum, in the hands of dissenting trustees, to be paid to the per- son whom they should recommend to do the duty. The celebrated Dr. John Taylor, of Norwich, held it from about the year 1715, for eighteen years ; and at this place composed his justly valued *' Hebrew Concordance," in two volumes, folio. It has ever since been held by other protestant dissenting ministers, who, Mr. Gough says, " hury hy the established forms,'^ On an extensive marsh, about two miles from Kirkstead, stands n^i is called the Tower of Moor, or the Moor-Tower. It is a single octangular brick building, of a considerable height, with a winding staircase. Part of this is worn away, aad the lower part of LINCOLNSHIRE. 7O9 of tlie tower, on its soulh side, is in a ruinous condition. Various conjectures have been made, as to the age and intent of the build- ing. There cannot be a doubt, liiat it was an advanced redoubt, or watch-tower, to Taltershall Caslle, from wiiich it is distant only four miles ; and from the perfectly level country between, is completely seen from that important fortress. TATTERSHALL, Is a small market-town, situated on the river Bain, just before it joins theWilham. In the time of King William the Conqueror this place formed part of the possessions, which he granted to Eudo, one of his Norman followers, a descendant of whom built a stately castle here. The Fitz Eudos were barons of parliament ; and, from the place, assumed the name of TattcrshalL Robert Fitz Eudo ob- tained a grant from King John, by presenting that monarch with a well-trained Goshaiok, for the inhabitants of this town to have the privilege of holding a market weekly on Fridays : and his son, in the time of Edward the Third, received the royal licence to erect a cas- tle within his manor of Tattershall. But the present fortress was built by Sir Ralph Cromwell, who was made, by King Henry the Sixth, in A. D. 1433, Treasurer of tlie Exchequer. He died A. D. J4.J5. Henry the Sevcnih, in A. D. 148/, granted tlie castle and manor to Margaret Countess of Richmond, and the following year entailed lliem on the Duke of Richmond ; who dying without issue, they were, by Henry the Eighth, granted by letters patent, in lj20, to the Duke of Suffolk. This grant was confirmed by Edward the Sixth, in 1547. Four years afterwards they were passed in fee, by the same monarch, to Edward Lord Clinton, afterwards Earl of Lincoln. Of this family, Edward and Francis died at Tattei shall, about the year 16^3. By marriage with an heiress of the Clintons, it is now in the possession of Lord Fortesque. The Castle stands on a level moor, and is surrounded by two great fosses, the outerone formed of earth, and theinner one faced with brick, ten feet deep. Tiiis is occasionally filled willi water from the 710 LINCOLNSHIRE; the river. It was intended originally as a place of defence, and was progressively raised to great lieijjlit and extent. In the civil wars it was however dilapidated. Till very lately, the principal gateway was remaining; the part at present left standing, is a square tower of brick, flanked by four octangular embattled tur- rets, which are crowned with spires, covered with lead. It is above two hundred feet in height, and divided into four stories. The main walls were carried to the top of the fourth story, v^here a capacious machicolidiou enclosed the tower, on which there is a parapet wall of great thickness, with arches. This was to protect the persons employed over the machicolations. Upon these arches is a second platform and parapet, containing embrasures ; above which the spired turrets rise to a considerable height. The tower is constructed upon ponderous groined arches, wliich sup- port the ground floor. In this there is a large open fire-place, adorned with sculptured foliage and emblematic devices; such as the treasury bags and shields of the Cromwell arms, with the inotlo, " naimcje droit," «SiC. Similar ornaments are at Colywes- ton Hall, in Northamptonshire, which was a house begun by the treasurer, and afterwards finished by Margaret Countess of Rich- mond. On the second floor is another fire-place, decorated in a similar manner ; and over these was a third story, with a flat roof. In tlie east wall are some narrow galleries, curiously arched, through which there were comnmnications from the grand stairs, in the south east turret, to the principal aprrtments. The church, built in the form of a cross, stands near the outer moat, and is a beautiful and spacious edifice. Few churches, perhaps, have sufitred ir.ore dilapidations than this. It con- sisted of a nave, having five large arches on a side, and eight clerestory windows, placed in pairs; a transept, and a magni- ficent choir. The windows of the latter were glazed with beau- tiful stained glass, which was removed by a late Earl of Exeter to the chapel of Burleigh*, on condition that he replaced it with plain * Mr. Gough says, " The late Mr. Bauks, of ReYes])y, was employefl by Lord Exeter to get the glass i the townspeople threatened to rLse and ob- struct TATlC5RmSMAIL]L 'SAPTfi LINCOLNSHIRE. 7II plain glass, which could have been done for the siun of forly pounds ; but t!)is being neglected, the inside has suffered greatly from the weatiier: although the walls, roof, and pavement, re- main entire. The ruined screen and stalls of wood, richly carved, arc almost rolten ; behind it is a stone screen, in the niches of which have been painted figures of saints. The body of the church and transepts had their windows richly adorned witli the legendary histories of St. Catherine, St. Guthlac, and other saints. " In one of the windov.s the Passion, in another Hell Torments, with divers creatures bound together with a chain ; among them one with a crown, another with a mitre, the devil lormenlini; them, and below, "Sic affliguntur penis qui prava sequunlur." The history of Herniogenes, that raised up tlic devils ; and of St, Guthlac, the saint of the fens ; and of Catherine, who cast them into the sea, that Harmogenes and Philetus raised; and the his- tory of Cosdre, with his decollation*." A few fine fragments remain at present in some of the windows of the transept, while others have been blocked up. Before the altar lay two rich brass figures of Ralph Lord Cromwell, who died in 1455, and of Mar- garet his wife, who died in 1453. This Balph Cromwell, in the seventeenth year of King Henry the Sixth, obtained a licence to make the church of Tattershall collegiate, for seven priests, six secular clerks, and six choristers. It was dedicated to the Holy Trinity, the Blessed Virgin, St. Peter, and St. John the Baptist and Evangelist. He also founded, near the church-yard, an hospital for thirteen poor men and women, for the good estate of King Henry the Sixth, and the said Sir Ralph, during life, and after- wards struct him ; but lie \vas a day before them. Tiie gJass being trikeii down hastily, for fear of the parishioneis, no piau for its le-arrangement cculd be obseived. Part of it was put up in the ciiapel at Burleigh; part given to Lord Warwick, to oniameni his castiej and part remains uupackeu." Se- pulchral Monuments, Part II. p. 174. * MS. of rhnrch notes before quoted, in the Kavleiau Colleclion. 712 LINCOLNSHIRE. wards for the heallh of their souls, and the souls of their parents, friends, and henefactors; but chiefly for the soul of Lady Maud Cromwell, sometime lady of Tattershall, his grandmother. The whole of the foundation was valued, in the twenty-sixth of Henry the Eighth, at 34-81. 5s. 1 id. per annum. The collegiate revenues were granted to Charles Duke of Sutiblk. The hospital still remains, with a small endowment. The number of houses in this parish appears, by the returns made to parliament, to have been 101, and inhabitants 496". HORNCASTLE SOKE consists of the following parishes, Ashby West, Coningsby, Haltham upon Bain, Horncastle, Marcharm-le-Fen, Mareham on the Hill, Moorby, Botighton, Thimbleby, Toynion High, Toynton Low, Wilksby, and Wood- Enderby. HORNCASTLE, A market-fown, is situated upon an angular piece of land, formed by a small rivulet, named Waring, and the river Bain. The latter is navigable from the Witham to this place. The name of the town is derived from horn, or hyrn, in Saxon, signifying an angle or corner, and a castle or fortification. Traces of the latter are yet visible, and the whole formerly occupied an area of nearly twenty acres. The foundations shew that it was in the form of a parallelogram, and inclosed a great part of the present town. Numbers of Roman coins have been found here, and, in digging, several bodies have frequently been discovered. Lately there existed, near the river, one of these intricate circles called Julians ANCIENT CROSS AT SOMERSBY. LINCOLNSHIRE. 713 Julian's Bower. These circumstances, and its situation on a lin- gula, or tongue of land, induced Stukeley to consider it a Roman station ; and to place here the Bannovallum of the Geographer Ravennas. Camden observes, that anciently this castle was part of the estate of Adeliza de Candia, and was levelled to the ground ia the reign of Stephen. Afterwards the manor became the Barony of Gerard de Rhodes. It was also a soke, containing thirteen lord- ships, of royal demesne ; till King Richard the Second bestowed it on the Bishop of Carlisle, for his habitation and maintenance, when he was driven from his seat of Rose Castle by the Scots. But it ap- pears, from other authorities, to have formed, at an earlier period, part of the possessiojis of that See ; for in the Court rolls it is stated, that the bishop, in the seventeenth year of Henry the Third, fined for this manor in fee ; but not to alienate without licence. It still belongs to the bishopric of Carlisle. The town was incorporated in the time of Elizabeth, with pri- vilege of holding a weekly market on Saturdays, and one annual fair on St. Lawrence's day. A considerable trade in leather is carried on here ; the place being principally occupied by tanners. The returns, under the late act, make the number of houses 403» which are occupied by 2,015 inhabitants. HILL WAPENTAKE contains the parishes of Ashby-Pue- rorum, Aswardby, Brinkhill, Claxby- Pluck- Acre, Enderby Bag, Fulletby, Greetham, Hagworthingham, Hammeringham, Harrington, Lnngion, Ormsby South, Oxcomb, Salmonby, Sausthorpe, Scrayjield, Somersby, Tetford, Walmsgate, Winceby, and Worldby. At Brinkhill, in a strata of blue clay, are found numerous veins of a barren marcasite, which the people ignorantly suppose. Vol. IX. Z z from 714 LINCOLNSHIRE. from its appearance, must contain gold. Under this impression, Mr. Gough says, "some of it was sent to London about forty years ago." Quantities of it may be seen, after rains, in a small rill, which runs through the place. Langton, long the possession of the family of the Langtons, who derive their name from this parish, is famous for having been the birth-place of three distinguished characters. The first, Stephen Langton was created a cardinal, and promoted to the arch- bishopric of Canterbury by Pope Innocent the Third. This cir- cumstance produced the rupture between that pontiff and King John, and led to the compulsive conduct of the barons, which so happily terminated in obtaining, for the people of England, that revered bulwark of their liberties, " Magna Charta." Dr. IVilliam Langton, President of Magdalene College, Oxford, in the time of James the First, was born here, and died in 1626; and the late Bennett Langton, Esq. whose name is associated with that of Dr. Johnson, both by epistolary and literary pro- ductions. The present Mr. Langton inhabits a good stone man- sion, which was built about the time of Elizabeth, or in the early part of James the First's reign. The principal front faces the south, over tiie entrance of which appear the family arms. On a hill, at a small distance from the village, near the turnpike road, are three harrows, known by the name of the Spellow Hills, i. e. Hills of the Slain. They are probably Saxon, from the name, and are situated on a hill of chalk, of which thej are composed ; but the field being under a constant state of tillage, has tended to alter their original form. In South Ormsby are the remains of an ancient e»cc;H/?- ment, covering nearly three acres of ground. It is situated on the brow of a steep hill, which forms an oblique side. The other side is straight, and the ends square. Within the area are three smEill artificial mounts. Mr. Drake supposes this to have been a Roman LINCOLNSHIRE. 715 Roman work. Several Roman coins, chiefly of the Emperor Constantine, have been found in and near it. Embosomed in groves of fine timber, stands a seat of C. B. Massingherd, Esq. CALCEWORTH WAPENTAKE contains the following parishes and hamlets: — Aby with Greenjidd, Anderhy, Bellcau, Calcehy, Cawthorpe Little, Claythorpe hamlet, Cumberworth, Gayton, Hogsthorpe, Huttoft alias Hightoft, Legbotirn, Haugh hamlet, Mublethorpe, Miimby cum Chapel, Reston South, Sut- ton, Swaby, Thedlethorpe All Saints, Thedlethorpe St. He- len's, Tlioresby South, Tot hill. Trust horpe. — Alford, Beesby, Bilsby with Tliurlby, Claxby, Farlsthorpe, Hagneby with Han- nah, Marltby le Marsh, Markby, Rigsby with Ailsby, Saleby ivith Thoresthoi'pe, Strubby, Ulceby with Forthington, Well loith Mawthorpe, Willoughby, and Withern with Stain. ' ALFORD Is a small town, having a market weekly on Tuesdays, and two fairs annually. Camden says it owes these privileges to Leo, Lord Welles, who obtained a grant for them of Henry the Sixth. But in tlie Magna Britannia it is asserted, that they were obtained by William Lord Welles, in the lime of Edward the First. The town consists principally of one street, about a quarter of a mile in length, and is watered by a small rivulet. Leland thus de- scribes its appearance in his time : " Alford, l6 miles from Boston, a mean market, in Low Lindesey Marsh, thakkid and redid, and a brooke cometh by it *." The church is an insigni- ficant building, and the chancel is at present thatched. There is Z z 2 a considerable * Itin. V. VII. 50. Jl6 LINCOLNSHIRE. a considerable grammar-school, the governors of which present to the vicarage of Salesby. The number of houses, slated under the population act, is 229, of inhabitants 1,040. At Belleau, so called from the excellent springs of water which issue from a chalk hill * in the vicinity, are the remains of what has been termed The Abbey, but are now considered those of a house belonging to the Earls of Lindsey. The ruins consist of two gateways, and part of a turret, which shew it to have been a place of considerable importance. Over one of the entrances is a grotesque head carved in stone. The walls are covered with ivy, and overtopped by lofty ash trees. After the termina- tion of the civil war, this place was sequestered to that eccentric character Sir Henry Vane, who amused himself here on Sun- days, in assembling and preaching to his country neighbours. It is now the property of Lord Gwydir, in right of his wife. Lady Willoughby de Eresby. The church of Belleau is of con- siderable antiquity, and Gough observes, that it " belonged to the neighbouring monastery of Ailby." For this he refers, how- ever, to no authority, and no mention is made of such religious house, either in Dugdale or Tanner. Near the village of Well, adjacent to Alford, on a heath, are three curious Celtic bairows, which are contiguous to each other. In the year 1725 were found, contained in two fair urns, six hundred Roman coins. " The church," Mr. Gough says, " has been lately rebuilt in the form of an elegant Greciao temple." At Hagneby, three miles and a half E. by N. of Alford, was an abbey of Premonslratensians, dedicated to St. Thotnas of Can- terbury, and founded by Herbert, son of Alardi de Orreby, and Agnes • Near this place is one of the finest springs in the county, being sufficient to tiun a large mill immediately at its source. LINCOLNSHIRE. 717 Agnes his wife, in the year 1175. At the suppression it con- tained nine canons, whoje annual revenues were valued, accord- ing to Speed, at 98l. 7s. 4d. Thoresby is a handsome seat of Mrs. Wood, relict of the late Willihuj Wood, Esq. who was proprietor of this lordship. The waters descending from a number of chalk hills in the vicinity here joining, form a rivulet, which, increased hy the springs of Belleau, runs to Witham, whence it might be made, at a small expeuce, navigable to the sea, the fall from hence to Saltjleet being little more than five feet. Maplethorpe has a comfortable bathing house, resorted to, during the summer months, by fa- milies from Louth and other neighbouring places. CANDLESHOE WAPENTAKE contains the parishes of Addlethorpe, Burgh, Croft, Friskney, IngoldmtUs, Northolmet Orby, Skcgtiess, Wainfleet All Saints, Wainjleet St. Mary's, Winthorpe. — Ashby, Bray toft St. Peter and St. Paul, Can- dlesby, Dolby, Driby, Firsby, Gunby, Trby, Portney, Scremby, Skendleby, Steeping Magna, Satterby, and Welton in the Marsh. BURGH Is a small town, situated on a knoll, or rising ground, in a marsh near the sea. According to Dr. Stukeley, here was once " a Ro- man castrum to guard the sea coasts, probably against the Saxoa rovers. It is a piece of very high ground, partly natural, partly raised by Roman labour, overlooking the wide-extended marshes, perhaps in those times covered with salt water, at least in spring tides. There are two artificial tumuli, one very high, called Cock- hill. In St. Mary's church yard, now demolished, Roman coins have been found*," Burgh has a small market weekly, on Z z 3 Thursday, * Itin. Ciuiios. p. i.'7. 7lS LINCOLNSHIRE. Tliursday, and luo annual fairs. It had fonnprly two churchea, St. Mary's and St. Peter's ; but the latter only remains, in which was a chantry, founded by John Holden. It consists of a nave, north and south ailes, with a fine embattled to.ver ; the battle- ments not pierced, but ornamented with qualrefoils, a turret at each corner, and three others on each side. The angles of the tower are supported by double buttresses. A free school was founded in this town by one of the family of Le Hunt, but from neglect, it is at present become merely a sinecure. The popula- tion returns, made under the late act, render the number of houses 135, and of inhabitants 71<5. " Skegnesse, sometyme a great haven town, was once wallid, having a castle ; the old town clean consumed and eten bv the sea. For old Skegnes is now buildid a poor new thing*." WAINFLEET Is a market town, situated in a marsh, on a small creek, through which the river Limh flows into Boston Deeps. This place. Dr. Slukeley affirms, was the Fainona mentioned by Ravennas ; and whence he supposes the name evidently derived. "The ancient haven was near St. Thomas's church, now called AorfAo/m; 'tis still very deep thereabouts, and appears to have been broad, being a pretty good river f." But by diverting the waters of the Fens more southerly, towards Boston, that place became the port town, in consequence of which the haven of Wainfleet was neg- lected. A road across the fen is still called Salter's Road, which Stukeley observes, was " probably the Roman road" between Banovallum and Lindum. Leland describes Wainfleet, in his time, as " a pretty market town, standing on a creke, near to the sea, * Leland's Itin. Vol. VII. 50. t Itin. Curios, p. 2r. # LINCOLNSHIRE. 7I9 sea. To this town long small vessels. It hath been a very good town, and in it two churches. The school that Wainflete, Bishop of Winchester, made and endowed with lOl. land, is the most notable thing. The Shippelets in lloniinum memoria came up to the*! Aw/. The haven now decayith*." Probably the town, before the decay of the harbour, stood higher up the creek ; for the church of Ail Saints stands at a place called High Wainfleet. This is a handsome building, though apparently not older than the time of Bishop Wainfleet. It has a brick tower of modern date, and is going fast to decay. In the south aile of the church an alabaster monument still exists, which was erected by the pious bishop, to the memory of his father. Wainfleet St. Mary's, or Low Wainfleet, lias nothing worthy of note. The school-house, founded in 1459, is yet standing, and has a handsome window, also two octagonal turrets. A nominal market is held on Saturday, and the haven affords security to vessels when driven on the coast, in tempestuous weather. The number of houses returned under the late act for taking an ac- count of the population, was, in the parish of All Saints, 96, in habited by 506 persons. In the parish of St. Mary 66, occupied by 421 inhabitants. That great prelate, called William of Wainfleet, from the place of his nativity, according to the custom of the times among the clergy, was the eldest son of Richard Part in, Esq. the descendant of an ancient family in this county. He was educated at Oxford, where, being admired for the greatness of his abilities and acquirements, he was quickly preferred, and rose to great eminence in ecclesiastical preferments. He was made Bishop of Winchester, and was the munificent founder of that noble college, St. Mary Magdalene's, in his own university. BOLINGBROKE SOKE contains the following parishes :— East division; Enderby Mavis, Halton Holegate, Himdlebi/, Z z 4 Keal * Itiu. Vol. VII. 50 and 204. 7'iO LINCOLNSHIRE. Keal East, Lir^by, Raithhy, Spilshy, Steeping: Little, Thorpe, Toynton All Saints, Toynton St. Peter s. West division ; As- garby, Bolingbroke, Hagnaby, Harely, Keal West, Kirkhy East, Miningsby, Revesby, Sibsey, Stickford and Stickney. BOLINGBROKE Is a small town, having an annual fair, and a market weekly ou Tuesdays, according to the Magna Britannia; though Leland says, it " hath once a year a fair, but hath no wekcley market*." Yet it must have been formerly of consequence, by having given name to the soke. It contains, according to the returns made to parliament, 70 houses, and 283 inhabitants. A few ruins of its ancient castle still remain. It was situated in a bottom, where a stream rises and soon joins the Withani. This castle was built by William de Romara, Earl of Lincoln ; and afterwards de- scending to the family of Lacy, it was taken, by King Edward the Second, from Alicia de Lacey, because she had married against his consent, and given by Edward the Third to John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. His son, afterward Henry the Fourth, was bom here, from which circumstance he was called *• Henry of Bolingbroke." And from that event the town was ranked amongst those royal manors called, by way of peculiar distinction, " Honours." This place gives the title of Viscount to the family of St. John of Lediard Tregose in Wiltshire. SPILSBY, The chief town in the southern part of Lindsey division, is situated on an eminence, overlooking to the south a large track of marsh and fen land, which is bounded by Boston Deeps and the Ger- man Ocean. The town consists of four streets, or lanes, uniting at * Itin, Vol. VII. 52. LINCOLNSHIRE. 721 at the inarket-[)lace, wliich forms a spacious square, intersected in the centre by a row ol' houses, witli the market-cross at the east end, and the town-hall at the west end. The market-cross consists of a phiin octagonal shaft, with a quadrangular base ter- minated with a modern fane : the whole elevated on five steps. The town-halt is a plain brick building, standing on arches. In 1763, the fabric being hi a ruinous and unsafe state, was taken down, and the foundation of the present one laid in 1764, the subscriptions of the inhabitants and neighbourhood amounting to 163I. lis. The general quarter sessions of the peace for the south division of the parts of Lindsey, have been holden at Spilsby for above a hundred years ; on account, probably, of the situa- tion being found more convenient for the inhabitants in the neighbourhood than Horncastle, where no sessions have been kept since the year 1749. In 1807 an attempt was made to transfer them to the latter place, which was opposed by petition from more than 500 persons resident in the south part of the division, who remonstrated strongly against the proposed measure, on the ground of incurring additional expences, and a serious loss of time; besides, that the great distance from Horncastle nnist necessarily discourage the apprehension of vagrants, as well as the prosecution for petty offences, and the prevention in general of more serious crimes. Here is a small free- school, the salary of the master arising from the rent of certain tenements bequeathed for that pur- pose ; and a sunday-school, which was established a few years ago, promises to be of great service to the poorer inhabi- tants. In 1779 the manor of Spilsby passed, by marriage, to the present Lord Gwydir, then Sir Peter Bunell, who married Lady Willoughby, a daughter of the late, and sister of the pre- sent, Duke of Aucaster. The church, which is situated on the west side of the town, is an irregular building, consisting of north and south ailes, the latter of much larger extent than the rest of the church, at the end of 722 LINCOLNSHIRE. of which is placed the altar. A chapel, probably the former chan- cel, occupies tlie extreniily of the body of the church, in which are some ancient monuments, belonging to the families of Beke, Willoughby, and Bertie, who were successively interred here. At the west end of the church is a handsome embattled tower, of a more modern date than the other parts of the structure, and probably erected about the time of Henry the Seventh. Tradi- tion points out Spilsby to have formerly been a place of less note than at present, the market being removed hither from Partney ; the church may be, therefore, reasonably supposed to have been enlarged at that time, and the families who were proprietors of the place, and resident at Eresby, to have occupied the original chancel as a place of burial for themselves and descendents. " In the chancel is a brass figure of a lady in a mantle, boddice, and mittens; a rich head-dress, and two cushions under her head, with this inscription : Hie jacet Jlargareta que fuit uxor Roberti de Wylughby D'ni de Eresby que obiit xvii die mensis Octobris au'o d'ni Millimo ccc nouagesinio primo. cui aie p'picetur Deus*." Spilsby has a market on Monday, and three annual fairs. The return of its population, under the late act, was 932 persons, oc- cupying 200 houses. At Eresby was formerly a mansion house, belonging to the Bekes and Willoughbys. " The Lord Willoughbie had a house at Heresby, and a park of black deer two miles from Spilsby, where, as I hear say, he intendeth to build sumptuously f." Some years since the house was burnt down, and has not been re- built. At Revesby was a Cistertiau abbey, founded by William de Romara, • Cough's Sepul. Mon. Vol. I. Part H. 151. t Leland's Itin. Vol. VII. 50. LINCOLNSHIRE. 723; Romara, Earl of Lincoln, William his son, and Handewisa Iiis wife, in the year 1142. By tliem it was amply endowed with lands, and subsequently more enriched by numerous benefac- tions. It was dedicated to St. Lawrence ; and its annual reve- nues, at the di;ssolution, were valued at 3491. 4s. lOd. The site was then granted to Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk. The cliailer of this luonasfery is preserved in Dugdale's Monasticon ; and among a variety of particulars respecting exchanges of lands, manner of grants, and other matters, is this curious fact. It appears that to give greater solemnity to the ceremony of founda- tion, the Earl, on petition, manumitted, or set at liberty, seve- ral slaves. One of them was named Wilhelmus Medicus, a phy- sician ; another is called Rogerus Barkarius, who was probably a shepherd. The surnames of persons and families being, at that period, taken from profession or occupation. Till lately a family by the name of Barker resided in the neighbourhood. The Abbot's Lodge, which constituted part of an ancient mansion, no\T forms the offices belonging to a house built by Craven Howard, son of the Earl of Berkshire, but since considerably enlarged by the family of Banks. It is possessed by Sir Joseph Banks, Bart, who has laudably set an example to the gentlemen of the neighbourhood, by the numerous agricultural and other im- provements he has made, or suggested, in the surrounding dis- tricts. The house stands upon an elevated spot, and commands a view over the east and west fens, which, in the summer months, display a vast tract of flat country. The grand system of drainage and inclosures, which is carrying into execution, will add greatly to the improvement of the prospect, and to the ad- vantage of the situation. Near Revesby is an encampment, with a broad foss, inclosing an area of land, which measures about 300 feet from east to west, and 100 from north to south. At each end is a large and lofty tumulus, about 100 feet in diameter, of similar form and position, having a space of 100 feet between. " It seems to have been a place of sepulture ; perhaps two British Kings were there buried, and 724 LINCOLNSHIRE. and tlie height on the north side was tlie place whereon they sa- crificed horses, and the like, to the manes of the deceased. Or is it a place of religious worship among the old Britons, aiii the two hills may possibly be the temples of the sun and moon ? 1 am inclined to think it ancient, because of the measure. The breadth is equal to 100 Celtic feet, as I call them, the length to 300*." HOLLAND DIVISION, called by Ingulphus Hoilandea, constitutes the south-eastern side of the county, and is bounded by parts of Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire on the south, the division of Lindsey on the north, on the east by the English Channel, and on the west by part of Kesteven division. The area thus circumscribed is about thirty miles from north to south, twenty-three from east to west, and comprises nearly 278,400 square acres. It is divided into three wapentakes, which are subdivided into thirty-four parishes. These include four market towns, one township, and four hamlets. Nearly the whole of this tract of country appears to have been, at a remote period, inundated by the sea ; but the persevering and scientific exertions of man have expelled the briny tide, and nearly secured the fertile lands from the overwhelming waters of the ocean. The stagnant pools have been drained, by means of deep canals with sluices ; and the boisterous sea repelled by high and strong embankments. Most of the drains of this district, or dykes as they are provincially termed, communicate with, and empty themselves iuto, the rivers Welland and Witham, the channels of which have been new cut, widened, and altered in various places. Holland is divided into upper and lower, both of the divisions entirely consisting of fens and marshes, some in a state of nature, but others intersected by numberless drains and canals, and crossed by • Stukelcy's Itin. Curios, p. 28. LINCOLNSHIRE. 723 by raised causeways, called droves. The lower, or southern divi- sion, is most watery, and is only preserved from constant inundations by vast mounds raised on the sea coast and on the banks of the rivers. The air of these tracts is generally unwholesome, and the water raUier of a brackish nature; whence the inhabitants are obliged to make reservoirs of rain water. In summer vast swarms of insects fill the air, and prove a great nuisance to the inhabi- tants. Yet even here industry has produced comfort and opulence, by forming excellent pasture laud out of the swamps and bogs, and even making them capable of yielding large crops of corn. The fens too, in their native state, are not with- out their utility, as they afford various objects of curiosity to the naturalist. The reeds with which the waters are covered make good thatch, and are annually harvested in great quantity for that purpose. Prodigious flocks of geese are bred among the undrained fens, forming a considerable object of commerce, as well for their quills and feathers, as for the birds, which are driven in great numbers to the London markets. The principal decoys in England for wild-ducks, teal, widgeon, and other fowls of the duck kind, are in these parts, and afford the chief supplies to the metropolis. Wild geese, grebes, godwits, whinibrels, coots, ruffs and reeves, and a great variety of other species of water-fowl, breed here in amazing numbers, and obtain plentiful food from the fishy pools and streams. Near Spalding is the greatest herony in England, and another at Surfleet, where the herons build together like rooks ou high trees. The avoset, or yelper, distinguished by its bill, which bends upwards, is found in great numbers about Fossdike Wash ; as Ulso those delicate birds, the knots and dottrells. Great quantities of these wild-fowl are caught by means of Decoys, which are more numerous in this county than in any other part of England. These are generally formed by pools, surrounded by wood, and branching off from them are small canals, or ditches, called pipes. At the time of catching the fowls, these are covered over by nets, which rest on hoops, and are ^26 LINCOLNSHIRE. are Iciiniualed by a drawing net. Into these the wild fowl are enticed by various devices ; but tlie usual mode is by means of a decoi/ duck, i. e. one tliat lias been trained up for the purpose. This is taught to obey the whistle of the decoy man, who tempts it to swim up the trapping funnel, when he sees a number of wild birds. These follow the tame one; and when they have all entered the chan- nel, are inclosed, and taken by the net. In all cases, however, the tame duck does not succeed in trepanning the others, when the decoy man employs a small dog, which by swimming about among the rushes and reeds, close to the mouth of the neck, at- tracts the wild fowl. The general season for catching these is from the end of October till February. An act of parliament passed in the tenth year of George the Second, forbids the taking of them from June the 1st till October the 1st, under a penalty of five shillings for every bird so illegally caught. The decoys of Lincoln supply the London market with wild fowl, and the number annually taken is almost incredible. Ten de- coys in the west fen, it is stated, during one winter, furnished tlie enormous number of 31,200. The subdivisions of Holland are the wapentakes of Skirbeck, Kirton, and Elloe. SKIRBECK WAPENTAKE contains the parishes of Ben- nington, Boston, Butteni'ick, Fishioft, Freiston, Leake, Levertoji, Skirbeck, and Wrangle. BOSTON, The chief town in the division of Holland for population and trade, is situated on the river Witham, or, as named by Leland, Lindis, about five miles from its mouth, and thirty south-east of Lincoln. The parish is about two miles in length and one in breadth ; LINCOLNSHIRE. 72/ breadth ; and the town occupies about half of that extent. It is a market and borough town, incorporated as early as the fifth year of King Jolui's reign, and sent members to the national council in the time of King Edward the Second. lu succeeding reigns, by new charters, it obtained many privileges and immu- nities. In a charter dated the thirty-seventli year of Henry the Eighth, it was declared a borough, to be governed by a cor- poration, consisting of a mayor, twelve aldermen, and eighteen common council men, or burgesses ; a recorder, town clerk, six constables, a coroner, two Serjeants at mace, and a clerk of the market. The mayor and burgesses to be a body corporate, and , to implead, or to be impleaded, by the name of, " The Mayor and Burgesses of Boston, in the county of Lincoln," with privi- lege to hold two markets weekly, on Wednesday and Saturday ; and two fairs annually, on the feast of St. George, and the feast of St. James ; and during the same, to hold courts of pie poudre. By a charter dated in the time of Elizabeth, the mayor and bur- gesses were empowered to hold a court of admiralty, for the port and creeks of Boston ; and in the reign of James the First still farther privileges were granted. In early history little is found respecting this place ; though from its situation, it probably obtained very early notice. Stukeley says that the Romans built a fort at the entrance of the Withara, and had a ferry over the river at Redstone Gowt, about a furlong distance from the south entrance of the present town ; and that an old Roman foundation was dug up here, with an urn, containing ashes, a small pot with an ear to it, an iron key, and an urn lined " with lead, full of red earth and bones, un- questionably Roman." In the early part of the rejgn of Edward the Second, a staple* was established at Boston, for wool, leather, tin, lead, and * Leland says, " the staple and stiliaid houses yet remain." In the Life of the river, a building stands, which goes by tlie name of the Stilyard. Tliis 728 LINCOLNSHIRE. and other niercanlile articles. By the roll of the " high fleet" of Edward the Third, Boston appears to have been then a considerable place ; for it furnished a quota of sixteen ships to the " maritime militia." Subsequent to that the town gradually declined in the com- mercial scale; and about fifty years ago it sunk so low, as nearly to lose the whole of its trade, owing to the navigation of the Witham being choaked with silt. The barges, or flat vessels, which required only a small draught of water, could then reach the quays only at high spring tides. But on cutting a new chan- nel from the town to Dogdyke, an extent of twelve miles, the river was again rendered navigable. The Holland fens being inclosed about forty years since, the produce of i2,000 acres of rich cultivated land came to the market ; and these occasioned an increase of shipping from live or six, to seventy or eighty vessels, exclusive of other small craft. And the inclosure and draining of Wildmore, with the east and west fens, which consist of about 41,000 acres, now carrying into effect, together with the im- provement of the port under the direction of Mr. Rennie, will be greatly conducive to the wealth and population of the place. The foreign trade is principally to the north of Europe, and con- sists of imports of deals, battens, balks, hemp, iron, linen, &c. Its export trade is chiefly coasting, and consists of corn and other provisions, with an occasional back freight of coals from Sunderland and Newcastle. Of late quantities of coals from Sunderland have been brought down the Trent and Witham. Formerly Boston had several religious houses, among which was St. Botolph's priory, founded, according to Leland, by St. Bo- tolph, in the time of the Saxons, whence the town derived both its origin and its name. Besides which there was a priory near the sea, dedicated to St. Mary; four friaries of auslin, black, grey, and white friars ; and three colleges, dedicated to St. Mary, Corpus This was probably the site of the ancient custom-house, where, while the staple privileges remained, the commodities were weighed, by means of a large steelyard, or weighing machine. LINCOLNSHIRE. * 72$ Corpus Chrlsti, and St. Peter. The chief object of curiosity and beauty in the town is the Church, which is a large, eleyant, and interesting pile of architecture; at once an honour to tlie taste and science of our ancient artists, and to the religious zeal of the people. At wLat time it was built is not ascertained, Stukeley says, that tiie first stone was laid by dame Murgerjf Tilney, in the year 1309; a"cl " that she put five pounds upoa it, as did Sir Jfiui Twe.sdale, the vicar, and Richard Stevenson, a like sum ; and that tlie^e were the greatest sums at that time given*." It is dedicated to St, Botolph, the tutelar saint of ma- riners, and is supposed to be the largest church, without cross ailes, in the kingdom. The nave is extremely lofty and grand ; an-t the ceiling, itpresenling a stone vaulting, is said to be of Irish oak. It consists of fourteen groined arches, with light spaudrils, wliicli, by their elegant curves, intersections, and «m- bossmciits, produce a beautiful eft'ect. The upper part of the iiave is lighted by twenty-eight clerestory windows, between the springs of the arches. Beneath these, and on each side of the nave, is an aile, the roofs of which were formerly Imed with flat ceilings, divided into a great number of compartments, each ornamented with historic painting; but these becoming impaired, were replaced by ceilings, in some degrte corresponding with that of the nave. The latter is divided by an open screen into two unequal parts ; that on the west side, being about one-third, forms a noble area ; that on the east, containing the other two- thirds, is used for tiie performance of divine worship. The chancel, which is spacious and lofty, has on each side ranges of stalls, the seats of wliicli are ornamented with grotesque carvings, and over these formerly were canopies, highly embellished witli foliage and fret work. The altar is of oak, in the Corinthian order, which, though beautiful, must disgust the eye of taste, as not being in unison with the style of the building. It is en- riched by a copy of Rubens' celebrated picture, " The taking Vol. IX. 3 A down * Itia. Curios. 730 LINCOLNSHIRE. down from the Cross," executed by P. Mequignon, and was the gift of Richard Sniilh, Esq. It is a received opinion, that the Tower was built after the model of that belonging to the great church of Antwerp ; and comparing it witii the print of that structure, drawn and engraved by Hollar, there is evidently a great similarity. It is peculiarly handsome, and measures 28'^ feet in height. The shape and altitude of this part of the struc- ture, with the extreme richness of the tracery, winvlows, but- tresses, pinnacles, lantern, &c. conspire to render it an object of general attraction and admiration. It may, perhaps, without depreciating other similar edilices, be pronounced the most elegant tower in England. It is divided into four stories, exclu- sive of an ornamented basement. In the lower tier are three large windows, full of muUions and tracery. In the next story there are two windows on each front, with ogee canopies: and al)ove these is the third story, having one large window in each front. This division is crowned with a parapet, embattled wall, and an octangular lantern, which has a window in each face, and is connected with the corner pinnacles by flying buttresses*. The length of the church, from the western door in the tower to the east wall in the chancel, is two hundred and ninety feet, and the breadth of the nave and ailes ninety-nine feet. Besides the church, Boston contains a meeting house for the sect called Independents, a general Baptist chapel, a Calvinistic Baptist chapel, an Arminian Methodistic chapel, and another cha))el for a sect who style themselves Universalists. Among the charitable foundations in this town, is the free grammar school, which was first endowed by a grant, dated 17th of January, 1554, of lands in the time of Queen Mary; but, as appears by an inscription over the entrance, the school was not erected till the ninth year of Elizabeth. A charity * A view of this very elegant tower, with a particular description, and some architectural details, will be givcjj in the third volume of the Architee- taral Antiquities of Great Britain, X.iacolnihire . LINCOLNSHIRE. 731 A charity school was founded by a Mr. Laughton, for twenty- five boys, who are to be sons of free burgesses, and are admissible at the a^'e of seven yt^ars. Tiiey remain till they arrive at four- teen, when each boy, as lie goes off the foundation, is entitled to receive ten pounds as a premium to put him apprentice, pro- vided he be hound to a free burgess. The hhie-coat school, cslablished about the year 1/13, is sup- ported chiedy by subscription, and aJmils thirty boys, to be taiiiiht reading, writing, and arithmetic; and twenty girls, who are instructed in reading, knitting, and plain work. In the year 1795, n genrral dispensary was instituted, which has been laudably supported by subscription ; and from which the poor of the town and neighbourhood have received very con- siderable benefit. A permanent library was established in 1799» which, with various reading societies, evince, that the inhabitants of Boston have a laste for literature, and that, amidst other pleasures, they do not neglect those which ari«e from the cultivation of the mind, A theatre, on a large scale, was erected, and fitted up in the modern style, in the year 1 8O6. But sr.iong the greatest improvements which have been made in this town may be ranked that of deepening the channel of the river, and enlarging the harbour, which have been effected from the designs of the scientific engineer, Mr. Rennie. Part of the plan which has been put in execution, is the erection of an iron bridge. It consists of a single arch, the small seoment of a large circle, eighty-six feet in the span ; and the breadth, including the cor- nice on each side, is thirty-nine feet. A circumstance observable in this bridge, and which is a striking feature in all Mr. Rennie's structures of this kind is, the placing the abutments so deep and low, as to relieve the convexity of the arch. So that instead of the artificial and inconvenient hills which bridges usually occasion in the road, the passage is, by tins means, permitted to keep an horizontal direction. The expetice was defrayed by the corpora- 3 A 2 tioa 732 LINCOLNSHlRli. tion of Boston; and wliicli, including the i>urchase-money of buildings, &c. amounted to nearly the sum of 22,0001. It was made passable for carriages, May 2d, I8O7. Boston, like most other places in marshy situations near the sea, experiences a deficiency of good water, as that from the wells is generally brackish. This is found to be the case after boring to a great depth. There are, however, a few private wells, or reservoirs, and one public pump, which furnishes tolerably good water. The cavity with which the latter commu- nicates, consists of two lai - ancient vaulted rooms, built of brick. John Fox, the marti/j'vloght, whose fame, through his works, has stood the ordeal of ages, and who occasioned much contention among the papists and proteslants, was a native of Boston. He was educated at Oxford, and became fellow of Magdalen col- lege ; but refusing to conform to the motley religion set up by King Htury the Eighth, after he had renounced the pope's supremacy, he was appointed tutor to the Duke of Norfolk's family, and preached the gospel at Ryegate. To save him from the persecution of the sanguinary Gardiner, Bishop of Win- chester, the duke sent him into Germany, In the time of Ed- ward the Sixth he returned, and resumed his function at Ryegate. Queen Mary soon afterwards ascending the throne, he was again obliged to fly ; on which occasion he went to his friend Operinus, printer at Basil, whom he had formerly assisted, and there first published his Latin edition of "The Book of Martyrs." On Queen Elizabeth's coming to the crown. Fox returned again to England ; was well received by the Duke of Norfolk, and, through his patronage, became minister of Ryegate, and pre- bendary of Shipton, in the diocess of Salisbury. KIRTON WAPENTx-VKE contains the parishes of Algarkirk, Bickor, Brothertoff, Do7iingtan, Fosdyke, Frampton, Gosber- ton, Kirton Quadring, Skirbeck Quarter, Surjhet, Sutterton, Swineshead, LINCOLNSHIRE. 733 Swincshead, Wigtoft, and Wyberton, with the two extraparocliial places of North Forty Foot Bank and Wastlands. DONINGTON, or DONNINGTON, Is a small town, which has a weekly market on Saturday, and two fairs annually. A new road, called Bridgend Causeway, lias lately been made across the fens, from this town to Folking- ham, which has greatly contributed to the convenience of the neighbourhood during winter, as the road, previous to this improvement, was almost impassable in that season. A free school was erected and endowed here in A. D. 1718, by Thomas Cowley, Esq. who left all his estates to be divided among, and applied to the use of, the poor of every parish in which they re- spectively lay, and for other beneficent uses ; of which 4001. per annum came to the poor of Donington. This place is noted for the sale of hemp and henip seed. The number of houses ap- pears, by the returns made to government in IS 01, to have been 5216, of inhabitants 1,321. In digging for foundations behind the school-house, was dis- covered a vault, four feet square, built of hewn stone, containing an urn filled with red earth. And amid the ruins of some an- cient buildings, a few glazed earthen vessels, specimens, it is sup- posed, of ancient pottery made at Bolingbroke, were found. Algarkirk has a handsome church. In the church-yard is an image of stone, said to be the slatue of Algar, Earl of Mercia, who, with his gallant stewards, Wybert and Leofric, so valiantly opposed the incursions of the Danes, over whom, near this place, he obtained a decisive victory, A. D. 870, but paid for it with his life the following day. SWINEHEAD, or SWINESHEAD, Is a small market town, containing, as stated by the returns made to parliament, 290 houses, and 1,544 inhabitants. It is 3 A 3 famous 734 lincolnshirk; famous for Iiaving been the first resting place of King John, after he lost the whole of his baggage, and narrowly escaped with his life, when crossing tiie marshes, in his military progress from Lynn to Sleaford, the castle of which latter place was then in his possession. He left this town on horseback, but being taken ill with a dysentery, was moved in a litter to Sleaford, and thence to his castle of Newark, where he died on the following day. Matthew Paris, and other historians, ascribe the king's death to a fever, which was brought on by vexation, and heightened by impru- dently eating peaches, and drinking new cyder. But an author who lived about a century after the event, asserts, that the king died in consequence of poison, administered to him by a monk of a religious house which then existed at Swinehead *. This was an ahhey of cistertian monks, founded by Robert Greslei, A. D. 1134-, and valued at the dissolution, according to Dug- dale, at 167I. 15s. 3d. per annum. Gilbert de Holland, Abbot of Swinehead, was cotemporary with, and a particular friend of, St. Bernard. He wrote the life of that saint, and died and was buried at Thoulouse, in the year 1280. Of the abbey buildings no vestiges are left; but a mansion was erected out of the ruins by one of the family of Lockton. In the church, a handsome spacious building, with a lofty chancel, is a monument of Sir John Lockton, who died A. D. \6\0. In the parish of Surjleet, is Cressey Hall, the property of Mr. Heron, a descendent of Sir John Heron, Knight, who was privy counsellor to Henry the Seventh, whose mother was here once sumptuously entertained by Sir John ; and the state-bed- slead on which she lay is described by Stukeley to be made of cu- riously embossed oak. It is preserved in a farmer's bouse in the neighbourhood. The house was handsomely rebuilt by Sir Henry Heron, Knight of the Bath, who died in 1690, and lies buried in the church. This was once a private chapel, and appears to have * See this circumstance discussed by Mr. Pegge io Arcbaeologia, Vo}> IV. p. 29. LINCOLNSHIRE. 735 have been built about the year 1309, as an inscription over the door, respecting the licencing of the building, contains that dale. At this place is a vast Heronry, which has been, however, con- siderably reduced of late, on account of the damage the birds do to the lands. The herons resort here for the purpose of re- pairing their nests about February, and settle in the spring to breed. They are numerous and gregarious, and their nests so crouded together, that Mr. Pennant observes, that in Scotland lie has seen eighty on one tree. The Heron, or Ardea Major of Linnaeus, is a voracious bird ; and, according to Buffon, exhibits a picture of wretchedness, anxiety, and indigence. It subsists on fish, frogs, water newts, &c. and occasionally flies to a great distance in search of food. In England this bird was formerly ranked among the royal game, and protected, as partridges and hares are now, by specific laws. Persons who destroyed their eggs were subject to a fine of twenty shillings for each offence. Heron-hawking was at that time a fa- vourite diversion among the nobility and gentry of the kingdom, and at whose table this bird was deemed a choice dish. A passage in Shakespeare that alludes to the heron, has occasioned much controversy with verbal critics. Allusive, and as a reproach, to ignorance, it states, " He does not know a haivk from a hand- saw, or heron-shaw." The latter is the common name of the fowl ; but, in vulgar pronunciation, it is often called in this proverb, handsaw. An interesting account of the heron, with an accurate representation of it, are preserved in Bewick's " History of British Birds," Vol. H. KiRTON, or KiRKTOWN, is described as a market town ia most topographical works; but though it formerly possessed a weekly market, and two annual fairs, it is mentioned in Howlet's Views as only " a large village." In ISOO it contained 269 houses, and 1,238 inhabitants. The patronage of the living, which is a discharged vicarage, including the chapelry of Brother- 3 A 4 toft, 736 tlNCOLNSHIUE. toft, is vested in the Mercer's Company, of Loudon. Kirton has been noted for its spacious and elegant churcli, which was for- merly collegiate, ami is said to have been built by Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln ; but its style of architecture displays a much later date. Being found much dilapidated and decayed, its chancel, tovrer, and transepts, were taken down in the year 1805. The tower was originally in the centre of the church, at the intersection of the transepts with the nave. When takea down, the stones were marked and numbered, and the whole have been employed in re-erecting a new tower at the western end of the church. The nave and ailes remain in their original state ; and at the western end of the former is a semicircular arch, which is probably a part of Alexander's structure. WitJiin the church is an handsome /on^, with eight faces, in each of which is a recessed panel, with a shield. On the pedestal is this inscrip- tion: — " Orate pro a'la Alauni Burton jmi" fontem istum fieri fee. A. D. M cccc v." ELLOE WAPENTAKE contains the parishes and hamlets ©f Cowhit, Croyland, Fleet, Gedney, Gedney Hill hamlet, Holbeach, Sutton, St. Nicholas hamlet, Moulton, Pinchbeck, Spalding, Sutton St. Edmund's hamlet, Sutton St. James'i hamlet, Sutton St. Mary's, Tyd St. Marys, Weston, Whap- load, and JVkapload Drove hamlet. Tlie principal place io this district is HOLBEACH. An ancient market town, consisting of 556" houses, and f,()83 in- habitants. Among the ancient foundations of this place may be specified an hospital, which was endowed and established by Sir John de Kirton, Knight, about the year 1351. It was in- tended LINCOLNSHIRE. 7^7 ttnded to support a warden, cliaplain, and fourteen poor pen- sioners. A fiee grammar-school was al30 founded here, by a licence from King Edward Uie Third, who granted ceitaiu hinds for lis support. Another free school was established here about the year 1669, by George Farmer, Esq. and the revenues for its support have been much increased by subsequent donations and bequests. In the market place was an ancient stone cross, sup- posed to have been raised about the year \'253 ; near which period Thomas de Malton, Lord Egremont, obtained the grant of a weekly market and an annual fair. The chief building of Holbearh is the church, which is a large handsome structure ; and consists of a nave, chancel, ailes, porch, and square tower. The latter is surmounted with an octangular ornamental spire. Each angle is charged with crockets, and each face has two windows, witli canopies, &c. The north porch is rather curious, having two circular towers, with em- battled parapets, at its extreme angles. Witiiin the church are some fine monuments to the Irby family, and to the Littleburys, both of which formerly resided iu this neighbourhood. Dr. Stukeley has given a plate, with some account of a fine altar mo- nument, with a statue in armour of a person belonging to the latter family. Holbeach has derived some eminence from two of its natives, one of whom was Henry de Rands, called, from the place of his birth, Holbech. After passing through different ecclesiastical offices, he was advanced to the bishopric of Lincoln. See some account of him in p. 62?,. The other native of this town was William Stukeley, M. D. C. M. L. F. A. S, and F. R. S. whose name and memory are respected by every true lover of English antiquities ; and whose literary disquisitions will be always considered curious, and therefore interesting, to a certain class of readers and amateurs of books. He was descended from an ancient family in this county, and was born here November 7th, 1687. After receiving the first rudiments of education uuder Mr. Edward Kelson, in the free school of tliis town, he was ad- mitted 73S LINCOLNSHIRE. rnitted of Bennct College, Cambridge, where he made medicine and botany his peculiar study. Taking a degree in physic, he removed to London in the year 1717. where, on the recom- mendation of his friend Dr. Mead, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, and was> one among the distinguished number who, about that time, revived the Society of Antiquaries. To the latter he acted for many years as secretary. He was also made a member of the College of Physicians, and became one of the censors. After residing in London a few jears, he retired to Grantham, in Lincolnshire, at which place he married and settled. Afflicted with the gout during the winter, it was his custom to travel for his health in the spring or summer ; and in these journies he acquired a particular and zealous love of an- tiquities. This is manifested by the researches and observations which are contained in his valuable work, "The Itiuerariuni Cu- riosum." Finding his health inadequate to the fatigue of his profession, he turned his view to the church, and was ordained at Croyden, July 20lh, 1730. In the October following he was presented to the living of All Saints, in the town of Stamford, and was afterwards Rector of St. Peter's, and Master of Brown's Hospital, in the same place. He appears to have had the offer of several belter livings, which he declined. He was presented by the Duke of Ancaster with the living of Somerby, who also appointed him one of his chaplains. About the time of these pro- motions, he published an account of Stonehenge*. At the instance * This curious woili displays mucli speculation and theory ; but, excluiive of the descriptive facts which serve to perpetuate certain parts of that ex- traordinary monument, it is likely to deceive and bewilder the reader. The young antiquary, if I may t)e allowed the phrase, must scnitinize and doubt almost tlie greater part of the doctor's writiuirs, if he wishes to avoid error and false opinions. It is much to be regretted that the Elements of English Antiquities have never been perspicuously aud rationally elucidated : they are reducible to a few points : and I am persuaded, might be easily and use- fully developed. Potter and Harvvood have explained those of the Gre- cians ; whilst Kennet, Adams, and others, have described such as appertained t* LINCOLNSHIRE. 739 instance of the Diike of Montague, he resigned his prefernients ill the country, and, in lieu of them, accepted the Rectory of St. George's, Queen Square, London. He was seized with a paralytic stroke, which terminated fatally the 3d of March, 1765 ; when, by temperance and regularity, he had attained his seventy-eighth year. Thus ended a valuable life, sedulously spent in endeavouring to illustrate the obscure remains of anti- quity. His early writings presaged what might justly be expected in maturer years, and the lovers of antiquarian studies were not disappointed. He had a sagacity peculiar to great genius, joined with unwearied industry. But in his investigations he appears too partial to a favourite hypolhesis, and too fanciful in his de- scriptions for the impartial enquirer after truth. His character has been given by his friend, Mr. Peter Collinson, and printed in the Gentleman's Magazine for the year 1765. His principal works are, 1. *' Itinerarium Curiosum, or an Account of the Curiosities and Antiquities of Great Britain." Folio. 2. " An Account of Stonehenge and Avebury." 2 vols. Folio. 3. " Paia2graphia Sa- cra, or Discourses of the Monuments of Antiquity, that relate to Sacred History." Quarto. 4. " Palaegraphia Britannica." Quarto. 5. " History of Carausius." 2 vols. Quarto. 6. " Dissertation ou the Spleen." Folio. About a mile and a half froni Holbeach is the village of Gedney, worthy of notice for its church, which " is the lightest and most airy, and perhaps the loftiest of any in this part of the county *." It consists of a chancel, nave, north and south ailes, porch, and tower. The number of windows in the whole are fifty-three. In those of the north aile are considerable re- mains of fine painted glass. The south door has a curious copper to the Romans ; but no author has yet favoured the public with an exclu- sive work respecting those belonging to the British Islands. Having col- lected much matter for such a work, it is my intention, at some future period, to submit it to the world. • Gongh's Camden, Vol, II. p. 234. 740 MNCOLNSHIRE. copper lock, bearing an ancient inscription ; and over the door is carved in oak, in Saxon letters, " Pax Christi sit hiiic donini & omnibus inliabitanlibus in ea : bio requies nostra ;" and under four blank shields, in capitals— IN HOPE. Against a south window of the nave is a monument with an elfigy, sacred to Adiard IVelby, Esq. of Gedney, who died 1576, and Cassandra his wife. At Gedney Hill, which is a chapel ry in this parish, several Roman coins have been found ; and about two miles north of South Sea bank, in a field called the high doles, is an encampment with a double foss, wherein numerous Roman coins have been dis- covered, also the foundations of buildings. Another similar moated area is in the parish of Sutton St. Edmund's, about an equal dis- tance from the same bank ; and at Aswic grange, near Whaplode- drove chapel, is another similar encampment, where also various coins and urns have been dug up. These encampments, which form a triangle, are within view of each other, and being in the south-eastern extremity of the county, near Catscove corner, Mr. Britain, as quoted by Stukeley, supposed were Roman Castella, raised to secure the possession of the country : he also conjectures that they were the works of a Roman general of the name of Catus. In Whaplode were discovered various pipes inserted in each other, for the purpose of conveying water; and in the Sea Dyke Bank, between Fleet and Gedney, was dug up a brass sword, which Stukeley considered to have been of Ronian fabric. SPALDING Is a considerable and ancient market-town, in the southern part of the division, about eight miles to the west of Holbeach. Seated in the midst of a fenny district, and encompassed by the river Welland, and an ancient drain called the Westlode, with numer- ous other drains in the vicinity, Spalding has, not inappropriately, been compared to a Dutch town. Though thus situated, and thou^'h # LINCOLNSHIRE. 741 though such a site does not appear to be congenial to humaa healtlifulness, it certainly lays claim to great antiquity, as is tes- tified by many ancient remains which have been discovered in the town and its vicinity. It certainly existed before the foundation of Croylaud Abbey, for in tlie Charter o( King Ethelbald to that Monastery, the bounds of its hinds are described as extending " usque ad cedejicia Spcddding *." Anterior to the conquest, the manor was the p)0})erty of Algar, Earl of Mercia ; subsequent to that event, it was granted with the whole of Holland by William the Conqueror, to his nephew, Ivo TaUbois. After various changes, it at present is the properly of Lord Eardley, who was some years since created Baron Spalding. Another manor, called Spaliing cum Croylaud, belongs to Thomas Buckworth, Esq. A castle was erected here by Ivo Tailbois, the moat of which was visible in 1746, in part of the castlefields, called Coney Garth, where that proud baron used to reside in great splendour. He also added to the endowments of the priory, which Thorold de Brokenhale founded, A. D. 1051, for six Benedictine monks, and made it a cell to Croylaud. This religious house became in suc- ceeding times a monastery of great consequence, and was one of the two mitred ones in this county. The accounts of the ditFer- ent altercations between its priors and the abbots of Croylaud, tend to illustrate the spirit and maimers of the times. Richard Palmer, the last prior, surrendered his convent into the king's hands, A. D. 1540, at which period its annual revenues were valued, according to Speed, at 12171. 5s. lid. From this place Egelric, Abbot of Croylaud, made a firm causeway, called Elrick- road, through the marsh, called Anindtl Forest, to Deeping, being an extent of twelve miles. It was formed by driving in piles of wood, and covering them over with layers of gravel ; but no traces of this road are visible. The churches of Holy Cross, and •' St. Mary Stokys," being decayed, and the conventual church, though spacious, much crowded; the prior, pulled down the latter. • Ingiilphiis. Hist. p. 485. 742 LINCOLNSHIRE. latter, and built the present parish church, in the year 1284. It is a hght structure, with a hiiudsonie spire, which has crockets at the angles ; its beautiful porch appears to have been added about the end of the fifteenth century. A liouse, for a free grammar school, was erected here in the reign of Elizabeth ; it was be- queathed by the will of John Blanche, bearing date 27th of May, 1588, wherein he devised lands for the endowment. Another school, called the Petty School, in contradistinction to the grammar school, was founded by Thomas Welleshy, gent, in the year l682. Here is also a blue-coal charity school, which was founded by a person of the name of Gamlyn. In Church-street is an almshouse, which was rebuilt in 1754, and contains eleven tenements, each having a plot of garden-ground. It was founded and endowed by Sir Mathew Gamlyn, A. D. 1590, for the benefit of twenty-two poor persons. Another almshouse, for eight poor widows, v. as erected August l<)tli, A. D. \709> by Mrs. Elizabeth Sparke. For many centuries Spalding has been the principal seat of jurisdiction, for the division of Holland. In the Sason times, the courts of law were held here by the Earls; and subsequent to the Norman conquest, the priors, under their patrons the Dukes of Lancaster, and afterwards the Earls of Lincoln, till the sup- pression of the monastery, were vested with the judicial authority. During that period even capital offences were cognizable in the conventual court of this district. But at the dissolution of reli- gious houses, statutes were enacted v.hich removed the power of deciding on life and death from all such inferior courts*. Since that time a court of sessions has been held here ; for which pur- pose a town-hall, or, as it is termed, a court-house, was built at the expence of Mr. John Holstun. It is a substantial brick building, situated * From the register of Spalding manor, by Sir Lawrence Myntling, libra- rian and iliiiniinator of the abbey, it appears, that under the power of this local court, eighty felons were hanged on the Prior's gallows, from the fortj-- fir«t year oi'Kcniy the Third, to the sixteenth of Ilcnry the Seventli. LlNCOLVSHlRi:. 743 siliialed at llie lutiih-west end ol'tlie market-place ; the upper rooms of it are used for the quarter sessions, tlie courts leet and baron, the court of reipiests, and the court of sewers. The under part of the building is let out for shops, conformably to the will of the founder, and tlie rents approjiriated to the use of the poor. A small conij)anY of comedians was accustomed to perform, at one season of the year, in the upper rooms : but for their better ac- commodation, a small theatre has been erected near tlie market- place: and an assembly and card-rooms fitted up, adjoining the town-hall. Spalding, since the river Wellaud was made navigable to the town, has enjoyed a good carrying and coasting trade. It is registered, in the book of rates at the custom-house, " a member of the port of Boston." The river is navigable for barges of about forty tons burthen to the centre of the town, where are good quays with spacious store-houses ; but vessels that require a large draught of water can come no further than Boston Scalp, distant about nine miles. Various attempts have been unsuccessfully made to introduce manufactures into Spalding ; the town derives its prin- cipal support at present from agriculture, and the many extensive grazing concerns carried on in the vicinity. Wool consequently forms a very prominent feature in its trade ; more especially since allowance has been given, under certain restrictions, to carry the article coastwise. The neighbourhood supplies the manufacturing towns of Yorkshire and Norfolk with long wool, which is here deposited and packed, and carried to the respective places, Spald- ing has a flourishing market weekly on Tuesdays ; five fairs annu- ally, and two statutes for hiring servants. By the returns under the late act, the number of houses was 7^7', of inhabitants 3,296. The establishment of the society of antiquaries at London, in the begining of the last century, gave rise to several minor establish- ments in different provincial towns. Literary societies were tstablished at Peterborough, Doncaster, and Stamford ; but the one formed here, under the auspices of Maurice Johnson, flou- rished for many years, and was composed of several gentlemen, eminent 741 LINCOLNSHIRE. eminent for literary talents. The minutes or records of the meet- ings contain many valuable hints and discoverits: in the ^tyie of corporate antiquity, they modestly assumed, for their huuse of mcfling, tlie denomination of " a Cell to that of London:" to which society transcripts of their minutes were regularly sent for upwards of forty years. The above named Maurice Johnson, a native of this place, and son of Maurice Johnson, Esq. steward of the courts, was educaied under tliat eminent scholar Dr. Jurin. He aft« livards sluriied at the Inner Temple, Lon.lon; was appointed steward of the Soke, or manor of Spalding, then belonging to the Duke of Buccleii^h ; and also of Kirkton, the property of the Eari of Exeter. An early member of the socit-ty of antiquaries, he dis- played, through the whole of his life, an ardent love of science and literature. He was the intimate friend of Siukeley, Gale, and others, who were celebiated for antiquarian research ; and v. as the founder of the Spalding society, so congenial to his own taste ; which, by his zeal and attention, continued to flourish till iiis death, on the sixth of February, in the year 1? j^*. At PiNCHnECK, about three miles north of Spalding, are some considtiabie remains of an ancient mansion, which formerly bore the name v{ Pinchbeck Hall, from a family of that name. Being afterwards possessed by the Otway family, it then acquired the appellation of Otway Hall. It appears to have been originally a large building, and was erected about the time of Henry the Eighth. It was moated round, and a few of the windows have pointed lights, with square heads. The chimnies are singularly lofty, and the gable ends have at the sides and centre spire-shaped ornaments, each crowned with an ornamental ball. In the ear- dens of this mansion was discovered, in tlie year 1/42, a large brass coin of Commodus ; on the reverse, a woman sitting on a globe, * An eulofiium of liis character, written by his friend Dr. Stakeley, is preserved in the minutes of tlie society of antiquaries. LINCOLNSHIRE. 745 globe, with Iier right hand extended, and in her left, a victory. In the follow int^ year several pipes of baked earth were funnd here. The house has lately been purchased by a farmer, who resides in it. About eight miles south of Spalding is CROYLAND, or CROWLAND, A town of very remote antiquity, and peculiarly interestinjf.4ll I. I 'I ' I r LINCOLNSHIRE. 74^ founder of tlie abbey. Anollior is acknowledged to be St. Guth- lac, the saint of the fen coinitrv, by a whip placed in his right hand, emblematic of the discipline he nsed to bestow on himself. The whole front is in a very ruinous condition *. At the west end of the north aile is a tower crowned by a low spire ; and some part of the wall, and piers of the arches, belonging to the south aile, are yet standing. In a canopied niche, in the wall of the tower, belonging to the nortii aile, is a curiAis circular stone-font ; which, from its form, appears to be very ancient ; and probably belonged to a baptistery of the abbey in the Saxon period. The nave and ailes are said, by some writers, to have been executed by Williaui de Croyiand, " Master of the Works," in the time of Abbot Upton, between the years 1417 and 1427- Next to these venerable ruins, the triangular bridge, in the mid- dle of the town, may be regarded as an object of " the greatest curiosity in Britain, if not in Europe f." The singularity of its shape has i:iduced some persons to suppose, that it was emblema- tic of the Trinity ; and built rather for the purpose of exciting admiration, than for real utility; and its steep ascent on all sides has been adduced as supporting such a suggestion. From this circumstance, carriages generally go under it ; but it is easily passed by horse and foot passengers|. The form it assumes, and the steepness of its approach, both arise from the situation in which it is placed . The rivers Welland, Nene, and a drain called Cat- 3 B 3 water * Figures of these statues, as tlicy appeared in t!ie year 1730, are en- graved in Carter's " Speciiucns of ancient ^culptul•e, now remaining in tliis kini;doni." P. 4. t Gougb's History of Cropland Abbey. X Tlierc is a brid<;e, which has been mentioned as similar to this, npon the road between St. Oniers and Calais, in I'rauce. It was erected about the year 1754, over a part of the road crossed by two canals, at right angles. Ttie bridge consists of four circular arches, supported by four abutments, uniting in the centre. It is called, Pont Suns Panil. 750 LINCOLNSHIRE. water flow under it, and in times of flood, had it not been consi- derably raised on the abutments, it would have been liable to be swept away by the torrent. By its being mentioned in a charter of King Edred, as the triangular bridge of Croyland, and in preceding charters simply as the bridge of Croyland ; it has been conjectured that it was built antecedent to that charter's being granted, which was about the year 941. Mr. Essex, however, doubts this, and thinks that the present bridge was erected not earlier than the time of Edward the First, or Second*. If any thing can be deduced from the statue placed against the wall, it is probably anterior to either of the above periods. This Statue is said to be a representation of King Ethelbald. From the extreme rudeness of the figure, the disproportion of the parts, the nncouthness of the head-dress, drapery, &c. it is pro- bably a genuine specimen of Saxon sculpture. The figure is plac- ed in a silting posture, at the end of the south-west wall of the bridge. It has a crown on the head, behind wiiich are two wings, the arms bound together, round the shoulders a kind of mantle, in the left hand something like a truncheon ; and in the right, is a globe. The late "^Ir. Hunter supposed, that it represented King Henry the Second: and Willis calls it a figure of St. Guthlac. The former conjecture is improbable from the rudeness of the sculpture, and the latter is done away by the crown fleury on the head. The bridge consists of three piers or abutments, whence spring three pointed arches, which unite their groins in the centre. The whole is formed of stone, and at the middle of it three roads meet, the ascent is steep from each point, and the road is pitched with pebbles. Though formerly a place of such celebrity, Croyland is now reduced to the size of a large village; and little more than the ruins of its former splendour remain. It had rbrmerly a market, which was removed to Thcrrney, as a more eligible place; and all attempts • Observations on Croyland bridge, published in Goiigh's History of Croy- land Abbey. LINCOLNSHIRE. 7;,1 attempts to bring it back, have proved fruitless. The fair, which used to continue for twelve (lays, is still held on St. Bartholomew's day. By the returns under the late act, it appears, the iiun)l>er of bouses was 229, and of inhabitants, 1,245. This village is so surrounded with fens, as to be inaccessible, except from the north and east; in which directions the road is formed by arti- ficial banks of earth. From this singular situation, it has becii compared lo Venice. The inhabitants are principally occupied in grazing, attending geese, or in the business of the dairy. Many derive a livelihood from the sale of fish and wild fowl ; but for the j)rivilege of catching them thry pay to the crown 3001. per annum. Tlie granting this privilege was formerly vested in the monastery. The manor and estates belonging to the abbey, are said to have been bounded by certain stone crosses, most of which are destroy- ed or down. The form, inscriptions, and appropriations of which have furnished themes for several different dissertations of an- tiquaries. That called St. Guthlac's, is still to be seen near Bro- thertoft turnpike, on the road to Spalding. It is of a square pyramidical shape, tapering upward from one foot four inches, at the base ; but the top of the shaft is broken off. The alternate sides are equilateral; and one of its faces bears an illegible in- scription. Governor Pownal thought it referred to the names of five brethren, left in the house when refounded by Turketyl. The first words are sufficiently distinct, " Aio banc petrauj." And Camden thus would read the remainder, " Guthlacus dabit sibi metara." KESTEVEN, the third great division of the county, is bounded on the north and north-east by the river Witham, which separates it from Lindsey ; on the east by the division of Holland ; on the south by the river Welland; which divides it from Northamp- tonshire; and by parts of Nottingham, Leicester, and Rutland- shires, on the west. This district is subdivided into ten vvapen- 3 B 4 takes. 752 LINCOLNSHIRE. takes, and contains seven market towns, viz. Bourne, Corby, Market Deeping, Folkingham, Grantham, Sleaford, and St AM ford, with 1 8 I parishes. Tiie features of lliis division are very diversified, and the soils greatly varied : the western part is fine arable, as well as grazing land, and parts of it are well wooded ; inore particularly the wapentake of Beltisloe. About Sleaford is a tract of fertile pasture land, suthcienlly dry for sheep; and yet calcu- lated for fattening large cattle. The variations of soil are nearly all in a longitudinal direction from north to south. The south- western part contains some handsome seats of the nobility and gentry, and abounds with woods, particularly about Belton, Den- ton, and Grinisthorpe. The eastern side of the division is low and swampy, partaking of the nature of the adjacent marsh lands in the division of Holland. The south-western part was at a former period denominated a forest, as well as fen ; and formed part of the possessions of Leofric Earl of Mercia, w ho was Lord of Brune and the adjoining marshes. In the time of King Henry the First it was enlarged and afibrested by royal mandate. The extent, as described by Dugdale, " was from the bridge of East Deeping, now Market Deeping, to the church of Swaiston, on the one side ; and from the bridge of Bicker, and Wragmere Stake, on the other side; which Motes divided the norlh parts, and the river of Welland the south ; excepting the fen of Goggisland, in regard it was a sanctuary of holy church, as belonging to the abbey of Croyland. And being thus made forest, it continued so nntil King Henry the Third's time, who, in the l6lh year of his reign, granted unto all the inhabitants within the same, that it should thenceforth be disafforested *." " The men of Kesteven gave 250 marcs to have the king's charter, for deforesting this of Kesteven according to the boundaries contained in that charterf." Tliis * Dugdale's Imbanking and Draining, p. 194, 195. Tlie patent was con- firmed by King Edward the Tliird, in tlie twentietli year of his reign. t Mag. Rot. 14. Hen. III. Line, m. 2, 6, as quoted in Gough's Camden. LINCOLNSHIRE. 753 This division liaving been mostly inclosed, drained, and cullivated, contains much licli and valuable land. BOOTHBY GRAFFO Wapentake, high division, contains llie pari.shes of Boothby, Caleb}/, Harmsfon, Nnvenbt/, Skinnard, Swinethovpe Uamlet, Wtlbounie, IVellingore ; — low division, Au- bourn, Bassingham, Bojitham, Carlton in Moorlands, Dodding- lon. Eagle, Wadd'mgton, liykehnm North, Ht/keham South, Norton Disney, Scarle North, SkelUngthorpe, Stapleford, Swin- derby. Thorp on the Hill, Thurlby, and Uisby. Through this waponfake a Roman road passes from Lincoln to Brough, a villiige just without the bounds of the ccnuty, where Stukeley and Horsky endeavour io lis. the ancient shilion of Crocolana. At Eagle, or Egle, was a Coniniandry of knights templars, who had the manor granted them by King Stephen. It after- wards was possessed by the hosj)ilalars; and upon their suppres- sion, in the thirty-third year of Ilcnry the Eighth, it was grantid to Thomas Earl of Rutland, and Robert Tirwhit. In the chancel of Norton Disney clnuch is the figure of a woman, with a cross and four shields: round uhich is this inscrip- tion: " Ici gist Joan que fust la fenniie moun Gillam Disni, et file moun Sire Nicolas de Lancforle Deu eile merei de sa alnie. Amen*." " In the same church is a brass plate, put up about the middle of the reign of Elizabeth, conmiemorating William Disney, Esq. Sheriff of London, 1532; and Richard Disney, Esq. his eldest son * Gongli's ScpBl. Mon. Vol. I, pt. 1. Intro, cix. 75i LINCOLNSHIRE. son antl heir, burgess for Grantham, ] 554, and Sheriff of Lincoln- shire, 1557 and 1566; with their wives and issue. At the back is a long inscription, iu the German or Low Dutch language, re- cording the foundation of a chantry on riie Continent*." In the parish of Boothby, or Boothby Graffo, are the ruins of Somerton Castle, situated about eight miles south ©f Lincoln. The original building was erected about the year 1305, by Anthonij Bee, bishop of Durham, who presented it to King Edward the First ; by whom it was afterwards granted to William de Beaumont. In this castle Sir Saier tie Rochford, who proved himself a valiant soldier in the French wars, undertook, iu the thirty-third year of King Edward the Third, to keep safely the King of France, then a prisoner in England. For yvhich ser- vice be was to be allowed two shillings per dajf\. From the present remains we are justified in supposing that the whole must have been a noble and capacious building. An outer and inner moat inclosed a rectangular area of considerable extent. The dimensions of which are about two hundred, by two hundred and fif:y-one foct. Al the angles of the area are the remains of four circular towers, which appear to have been formerly eotmected by intermediate build- ings. The south-east tower is nearly entire, and the upper part sur- rounded by a parapet, out of which rise three pinnacles; and iu the centre an octangular spire-shaped roof. The south-west tower, in ruin?, contains an octangular apartment., with eight niches ; in one of which is the door way. The north-west tower is nearly ia the same state, and that on the south-west exhibits a similar construc- tion, except, that in every niche is a pointed window. In the re- mains of the norlh-east tower is an apartment with a curious vaulted roof, supported by an umbilical }»illar, from which spring twelve arches, forming in the wall as many niches ; in each of which is a pointed arched window. This interesting ruin is the property * Gougb's Sepiil. aion. Vol. I. pt. i. Intro, exxii, t Rymer's Foedera, "\'ol. W, p. 131. ialVirs <;cu p jl!)FiVST©N PUAi^li, LINCOLNSHIRE, 755 properly of Monlagiie Clioliiiondley, Esq. of Easton, and is at present, willi some adjoining ljuildin;;s, occupied as a farm house. LANGOE WAPENTAKE, first division, contains the pa- rishes of BilUnghoy, Dogdi/ke, Kirkby Green, Kyme North, Martin hamlet, Thorpe, Tinley, Timberland, Wahott hamlet. SecoH'l division ; Blackney, Dunston, Heighington township, Me; heringham, Nocton, Potlerhanworth, Scopwick, and ? ] ash'mghorough. In the parish of Dunston, at the distance of about five miles and a half soulh from Lincoln, is a lofty column, called Dun- ston Pillar. It stands in a square area, ^vhich is planted with trees, and enclosed by a wall. It is a plain quadrangular stone shaft, of a pyraniidical shape, towering to the height of ninety-two feet, with an octagonal lantern, fifteen and a half feet high, crowned with a fane at top. The lantern is sur- rounded by a ballustraded gallery, resting on a cornice. From the summit is an extensive |)rospoct, including, with a great <*xtent of the surrounding country, the cathedral and city of Lincoln. The difterent faces of the pillar bear each an appro- priate inscription. On the north side, To Lincoln v miles; south side, From the city cxx miles; east side, Dunston Pillar; west side, Columnam hanc titilitafi publicce, D. D. D. F. Dash- wood, M.DCCLI. The heath being then an extensive waste, and the roads intricate, it was of great utility ; but since that period, the lauds having been inclosed, the roads fenced, and mile stones erected, it only now remains as a monument of the benevolence and public spirit of the person who caused it to be raised. Upon a high ridge of land, called Cliffrow, near tlie Roman road. 756 LINCOLNSHIRE. road, and seven miles from Lincoln, is Coleby Hall, the seat of General Bertie. It is a tiiie old house, to ^vllicIl addi- tions have been made in a more modern style, and is surrounded with plantations. Tiie entrance into the grounds is by an arch, which was intended to imitate the ruin of a Roman gatex^ay. The gardens are ornamented by two temples : a small one upon the terrace is of the Doric order, dedicated to the memory of the late Earl of Chatham ; the other, built upon the model of the temple of Romulus and Remus, at Rome, from a design of the late Sir William Chambers, is said to be the first building which he ever erected in England, that displayed the taste of this eminent architect. NocTON Park, about two miles and a half north-east from Ditnsfon Pillar, and seven miles south-east of Lincoln, is the handsome seat of the Earl of Buckinghamshire. It is recorded, that in the time of King Stephen, Robert de Areci, or D'Arci, erected, in his park at Nocton, a priory for black canons of the Augustine order. At the time of the dissolution, it had five niouks, whose annual revenues amounted, according to Speed, to the sum of 57l. lf)s. 2d. The site was granted by Henry the Ei<'hth to Charles, Duke of Sufi'olk ; and in the time of Elizabeth, it was bestowed by the crown on Sir Henry Stanley, Lord Strange. By the Stanley family it was converted into a re- sidence ; but the greater part of the old house was afterwards taken down, and the present mansion rebuilt by Sir William Ellys, Bart, in the latter end of the seventeenth century. Tlie house is a handsome building, for that period, consisting of a body with two wings, the angles turrelted, with cupolas at top ; and in the centre rises an octangular cupola, or lantern. The grounds were planted and laid out agreeably to the formal pre- vailing taste of the times, but have been much altered and im- proved by the present noble proprietor. The prospects are nu- merous, varied, and extensive; and near the mansion stands a chesnut tree, considered the finest of the kind in England. At LINCOLNSHIRE. 757 At Cattki.ey, in the piirisii of BlUin^hoij, \vas a Gilbertinc Priory, fouiulo*! by Piter de RUin;^vi), in the time of Kin;; Stephen, for nuns and brethren of tlte order of Seniprin^jhani. At the dissolution, the animal endowment was, according to Speed, 3Sl. ]3s. ^i\. Tlie site was granted, by Henry the Eighth, to Robert Carr, of Slc:iford, whose fathej- was a rich merchant of the staple*. FLEX WELL WAPENTAKE contains the parislies of An- wick, Ashh}f, Blox/iolmc, Bransicell, Cranwell, jr>i, or wapentake, to which it gives name, and over which it exer- cises exclusive jurisdiction. In Stowe's Chronicle, Grantham is said to have been built by Gorbomannus, King of Britain, 303 years prior to the Christian a^ra. Such stories are entitled lo little credit; but it appears from history, that Grantham pos- sessed peculiar privileges at an early period, and was the residence of a suffragan bishop*. At the time of the Norman survey, this place was held in royal demesne ; for in Domesday Book it is re- corded, that Editha, Queen of Edward Ihe Confessor, had a manor in Grantham, and twelve carucates at Geld. Maud, William the Conqueror's Queen, held the town and soke as part of the king's demesne. In the forty-second year of King Henry the Third, that monarch being greatly distressed by the parlia- ment, which refused to grant him supplies, among other plans for raising money, mortgaged, to his uncle, William de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, the towns of Grantham and Stamford. Near the point, where a small stream, called the Mowbeck, joins the Wilhan), formerly stood the castle; but no traces of the building remain : and the only evidence that the town had a castle, arises from the adjoining street being called Castlegate ; and the description in ancient deeds of certain tenements, which belonged to the chantry of St. Mary, as situated in Castle Dyke. The names of the three other principal streets of the present town, called Westgale, Watergate, and Swinegate, evidently de- note that Grantham was once encompassed with a wall, but no vestiges of it are now to be seen. On the 22d of March, l642, this place was taken, for King Charles the First, by the forces under the command of Colonel Charles Cavendish, who made 360 * Tliis ecclesiastical officer was appointed to assist tlie bishop of the diocess, and called bj Sir Edward Coke, " a bishop's vicegerent." LINCOLNSHIRE. 767 360 prisoners, with all the captains and officers, together with three loads of arms and ammunilion, and afterwards demolished the works*. " About this time," says De Foe, " it was, that we began to hear of the name of Oliver Cromwell, who, like a little cloud, rose out of the east, and spread first into the north, till it shed down a Hood that overwhelmed the three kingdoms. When the war first broke out, he was a private caplain of horse, but now commanded a regiment ; and joining with the Earl of Manches- ter, the first action in which we heard of his exploits, and which emblazoned his character, was at Grantham, where, with only his own regiment, he defeated twenty-four troops of horse and dragoons of the king's forces f." Near the south entrance into the town, on St. Peter'sX hill, formerly stood an elegant Cross, erected by King Edward the First, in memory of Eleanor his queen, who died 1290, this being one of the places where the corpse was laid in state, in its way for interment in Westminster Abbey. Grantham had se- veral religious lionses, ruins of which may still be seen. A priori^ of grey friars, called also franciscans, from the founder of their order, and minorites from their assumed humility, was founded here A. D. 1290. " The Angel Inn, which took its name from some representations of angels cut in stone, with several other religious devices about the building, was a commandery of the Knights Templars §." The front of this inn displays some curious grotesque ornaments, and has three projections, with muUioned windows, &c. 3 C 4 The • Mercurius Belgicus, t Memoirs of a Cavalier. X " Of the church dedicated to St. Peter, said to have stood here, I have not been able to find any traces, except the mention made of the chantry of St. Peter, in Grantham." Tumor's Collections for the History ©f the Town and Soke of Grantham. $ Tumor's Collectioos, &c. p. o7. 76s LINCOLNSHIRE. The following notices are contained in an index written by • Bisliop Sanderboii. " Spittlegate hospital, 2 Edward IV. Richard Bloer, master. 13 Henry VII, Mr. Thomas Isham, master of the hosp'tal of St. Leonard, otherwise called rector of the paro- chial church of Spittal *." In the present church, and in that of St. Peter's were five chaor tries, respectively dedicated to Corpus Christi, St. John, St. George, the Blessed Virgin, and the Holy Trinity. The two latter of which were given by King Edward the Sixth for the further endowment of a free school. The Church, consisting of a nave, with spacious north and south ailes, and lighted by large hand- some pointed windows, is celebrated for the elegance of its spire. At what time the present church was built is not recorded. The style of architecture is that prevalent in the thirteenth century ; though Mr. Gough observes, that it was endowed by Hugh, Bishop of Lincoln, A. D. 1100. The crypt under the south aile of the church, now used as a charuel house, is the most ancient part of the building, and probably formed part of the former church, which was endowed as above described. The church underwent considerable repairs in l628, the estimates of which amounted to 14501. In 1(J51 the top of the steeple was blown down, and rebuilt by subscription, as appears by a table, con- taiuing a list of benefactors on that occasion, placed in the church. In 1797 it suffered by lightening, which displaced a stone on the south side, and broke off two or three of the crockets, which fell through the roof into the church. This elegant part of the fabric consists of a quadrangular tower, containing three stories, the first of which is lighted by one mullioned window on each side ; the second by pairs of w iudows, with pointed arches ; and the third by one large window, with two smaller lateral ones. Laving triangular heads. At each angle of the parapet, vrhich is pierced with quatrefoils, is an hexangular crocketled pinnacle. Over this, in beautiful proportion, rises its octagonal spire, or- namented * Sanderson's Index, p. 629, as quoted by Tiirnor. 4» LINCOLNSHIRE. 769 namented witli crockets on the angles, and at three several dis- tances, encircled with windows, having triangular heads. The height of the tower, to the battlements, is 135 feet, and thence to the top of the weathercock 138, making togclher 273 feet. The nave, or choir, as it is called, including the chancel and side ailes, measures in length, inside, one hundred and sixteen feet, and eighty feet in bread Ih. Within the church are several handsome monuments to the memory of different families of distinction. One to Sir Thomas Bury, Knight, Lord chief Baron of the Exchequer in the time of George the First. A sumptuous marble monument, with the figure of justice, and a medallion representing Lo7'y the names of North uiid South Grantham, to the former of wliich were annexed the hvings of North Gunnerby and Londonthorpe, and to the latter South Gunnerby and Braceby. These are in the patronage of two prebendaries, who bear the same names in the cathedral church of Salisbury ; and were granted to that church by a charter of Bishop Osmund, dated the 5th of April, 1091, at Hastings; where it was con- firmed by William Rufns, in the fourth year of his reign. The want of houses for the residence of the vicars was supplied by the pious bequest of Bishop Saunderson, and the two vicarages, with their profits, were consolidated in 1714, under the name of " the united vicarage of Grantham ;" from which time the two prebendaries were to have the alternate right of presentation. Grantham was first incorporated under a charter granted by King Edward the Fourth, A. D. 1463. The jurisdiction of the corporation extends over the whole soke, and " the general sessions of the peace for the town and soke, are held by warrant of the alderman, directed to the bailiff of the liberties, who acts as sheriff of the town and soke, the sheriff of the county having no authority within the soke and district thereof*"." The guild-hull was rebuilt under an act obtained for the pur^ jx)se in the year 1787, by a rate levied upon the soke; in addi- tion to which the Duke of Rutland and Lord Brownlow gave each 3001. to erect a large apartment for the occasional accom- modation of the corporation, and to serve as an assembly-room for the use of the town. A free school was founded here by Richard Fox, Bishop of Winchester, and further endowed by King Edward the Sixth with the possessions of two dissolved chantries. The school- house of stone attracts attention, from the circumstance of its having been a j)lace of education to that astonishing genius. Sir Isaac Newton, who here studied the classics for several years. Grantham * Tumor's Collections for tlie History of the Town, &c. LINCOLNSHIRE. 771 Grantham sends two members to the British senate, has a weekly market on Saturdays, and five annual fliirs. From the returns under the population act, the number of houses is 651, occupied by 3,303 inhabitants. Witliout Spittlegate, at what is termed Grantham Spaw, a salutary spring rises out of sandy ground, the water of which is a mild chalybeate, contains a small portion of aerated iron, and is specifically lighter than common spring water. A Canal has lately been cut from Grantham to the river Trent, an extent of Iwenty-iive miles. It is supplied with water by means of large reservoirs made for the purpose. The level line from Grantham to Woolsthorpe Point is supplied by a reservoir, which covers twenty-seven acres of land, in the parishes of Den- ton and Harlaxton. This is fed by the flood waters of Denton rivulet. The other part of the line, from Woolsthorpe Point to the Trent, has a fall of one hundred and forty feet, and is sup- plied by a reservoir, comprising fifty-two acres, at Knipton. In 179^ the sum of lli,734l. had been expended on the under- taking; at which time the tonuage amounted to 438 ll. since that period it has annually averaged more. The chief articles con- veyed by this navigation are corn and coals, Belton House, two miles north of Grantham, the residence of Lord Brownlo"', is situated on a beautiful lawn, in a fiaely wooded valley, through which flows the river Withani. The reversion of the manor and estate of Belton, after the death of Sir Henry Pakenham and Jane his wife, was purchased by Richard Brownlow, chief prothonotary in the court of common pleas, in the year l6"20. The present mansion house was begun by Sir John Brownlow, Bart, in the year 1685, from designs, it is conjectured, of Sir Christopher Wren, and finished in l689. The form of the building, like many houses of the same period, is that of the letter H; which, though not approved of by modern architects, possesses considerable advantages in point of conve- nience and utility. The house, built of stone, presents four uniform LINCOLNSHIRE. u.iiforni elevations, without any architectural decorations. The apartments are numerous, lofty, and \vell-j)roporlioned. Several are ornamented v»'ith excellent carving by Gibbons, and the clmpel is wainscotted with cedar. In the year 1776> the late Lord Brovvnlow employed that dis- tinguished architect, James Wyalt, Esq. to make improvements in the building. By his direction a cupola and balustrade were re- moved from the roof; the drawing-room, which measures forty feet by twenty-seven, was raised to the height of twenty-two feet, and a new entrance was added at t!ie south front. In several of the apartments are many good pictures by eminent masters, of the Flemish and Italian schools, with numerous family portraits by Lely, Kneller, Reynolds, Ronmey, and others. Amongst them is a peculiarly fine one of Sir John Cust, Bart. Speaker of tiie House of Commons, in his robes, by Sir Joshua Reynolds; a half length copy of which by Ruyssen, a present of the late Lord Brownlow, is in the state apartments of the Speaker of the House of Commons. The founder of this stately fabric had the honour of a visit from King William the Third, who, on his progress through the northern countries, was envertained at Belton house the 29th of October, 1695. Previous to that event be had ob- tained, in 1690, a licence of the king and queen, to form a park of his lands in Belton, Londonlhorpe, and Telthorpe, which he enclosed with a wall five miles in circumference, and at the same time he made numerous plantations ; the trees of which, now become large timber, are higldy ornamental to the place. His nephew, Sir John Brownlow, K.B. created 17IS Viscount Tyr- connel, fitted up the library with a choice and valuable collection of books, and formed gardens of great extent and magnificence in the prevailing taste of that age; these have since been modern- ized and laid out in a style more congenial with rural scenery. The church at Belton is a small ancient structure*. The tower * The arches of the nave and tlie font are probably of the 11th century. The manor and advowson were, at the dissolution of monasteries, in the pos- session of St. Mary's Abl)ey in the City of York. LINCOLNSHIRE. 773 lower has on it the t»ale l637, at which time it was re-buiit by Richard Brownlow, Esq. The cliaucel also was re-built by Dame Alicia Brownlow, who died 1721. The church is kept extremely neat, and in the south window are six pieces of modern stained glass, representing parts of scripture history. Within the nave and chancel are many tine monuments to the memory of the fa- milies of Brownlow and Cust. At the village of Denton, anciently spelt Dentune, was discovered in the year 1727. « mosaic pavement. It lay about eighteen inches beneath the surface, and was composed of white, red, and blue tessellse ; forming a pattern, which consisted of squares and lozenges. The lozenges were ornamented with chequer work, and the squares with gordian knots ; it measured about thirty feet square. Tiiis formed the floor of a room, which Dr. Stukeley, who examined the ])lace, supposed was the site of a Roman villa. A view of this pavement has been engraved by Mr. Fowler, who discovered part of another pavement, eight feet square, composed of similar colours, but of a richer pattern : this is also engraved in his " collection of Roman pavements." Near this place ])asses a Roman vicinal way, called Sailer's road. On the Denton estate is a spiking of very pure water, similar to that of Malvern Wells in Worcestershire. The sj>ring is mucli frequented, and many medical virtues are ascribed to its waters. The church is a small structure, and contains some monuments to the Williams's, the Welby's, and the Cholmley's. An alms- house was erected and endowed by William Welby, Esq. in the year l653, for six poor persons, who have a weekly allowance in money, and an annual allowance for coals. Eastward of the church is a school-house, which is endowed for twenty-four poor children. Formerly there were three families of distinction in this parish, the Thorold's, the V/illiams's, and the Welby's. Some remains of houses belonging to the former are still standing iu the village. The Welby's came from Gedney, in the division of Holland, ^A<*^in^C/ 774 LINCOLNSHIRE. Holland, in which church are several ancient monuments to the memory of the family. Denton House is the property and residence of Sir William Earle Welby, Bart. M. P. The mansion, which is a large hand- some building in the modern style, has received considerable ad- ditions from the proprietor. It stands on a fine elevation, in a well planted park, which is generally, and deservedly admired for the pleasing irregularity of the ground, and for the fine woods and water with which it is highly ornamented. In the western corner of this Soke, eight miles south of Grantham, is the village of Colsterworth, which will ever be celebrated in the records of history, for having given birth to that great luminary in tiie hemisphere of science. Sir Isaac Newton. Of whom it may be more justly said, than of any person who has either preceded or followed him : " Ergo vivida vis animi pervicit et extra Piocessit longe rtammantia maenia muncH Atque omne immensum peragravit mcute animoque." Lucretius, Lib. 1. Jsaac Newton was born at the manor house of JVooIs- thorpe, a hamlet in this parish, on Christmas-day l642; about three months after the death of his father, who was a de- scendant from the elder branch of the family of John New- ton, Bart, and was lord of this manor. When a child, Isaac lived with his maternal Grandmother Aiscough, and went to two small day schools, at Skillington, and Stoke, till he was twelve years of age. At which time he was sent to the free grammar- school of Grantham, where, under the tuition of Mr. Stokes, he shewed a partiality for mechanics, and displayed early tokens of that uncommon genius, which afterwards " filled, or rather com- prehended the world." After continuing at Grantham a few years. LINCOLNSHIRE. 77J \cars, his mother took him lionie, for the purpose of managing his own estate ; but his exalted mind could not brook such aa occuj)ation, and he returned again to school. Soon afterwards he went to Cambridge, where he was admitted into Trinity Col- lege the fifth of June, l66'o. Tlie first books he read with his college tulor, were Sanderso7i's Logic and Kepler's Optics. A desire to discover, whcllier there was any truth in the pretensions of judicial astrology, a science then popular, induced hinj to study mathematics. And having discovertd its fallacy, in a figure he raised for the purpose, from a few Problems in Euclid, he ever after discarded the contemptible study. He however at that time turned aside Euclid, looking upon it as a book containing nothing but obvious truths, and applied himself to the study of Descarte's Geometry. To try some experiments on the doctrine of colours, advanced by that philosopher, he purchased a prism, in the year l66-i ; when he discovered the hypothis to be errone- ous, and at the same time laid the foundation of his own theory of light and colours. About that period he discovered llie method of infinite calculus, or Fluxions; the invention of which was claimed by Leibnitz, although it has been proved*, that the " Lecalcul differential" was borrowed from the English philoso- pher. In the year l6'6'5, having retired to his own estate, on ac- count of the plague, the falling of an apple from a tree in his garden first suggested his system of gravity. And it is a singular case, that he laid the foundations of nearly all his discoveries be- fore he was twenty-four years of age; and communicated them in loose tracts and letters to the Royal Society. Of those an ample account is given in the " Commercium Epistolicum." In lG0"7 he was elected fellow of his own college, and Dr. Barrow resigned the professorship of mathematics to him in 1669. In 1671 he was tlected fellow of the Royal Society. In 168S he was returned by the University of Cambridge to the Convention Pailiament, iu which he sate till its dissolution. The Earl of Halifax, then Chancellor • " Commercium Epistolicum, D. Johannis Collins, et alionmi de Analysi pncmata : jussu Societatis Regise in liicem editum, 4to. Londini", 1712." 77i> LINCOLNSHIRE. Chancellor of tlie Exchequer, and a great palron of learning;, obtained for liiiii the appoiiitnieut of Warden of the Mint. This aftbrded him frequent opportunities of employing his time and skill in mathematics and chemistry ; and occasioned him to produce his talje of " Assays of foreign Coins," printed at the end of Dr. Arbuthnolt's " Book of Coins." In ifiyZ. he received from Sernovilli a celebrated Problem, which was intended to puzzle all the mathematicians in Europe; but our philosopher solved it in a few hours. In l6.99» ''^ ^^^s made " Master and Worker of the Mint;" and in 17OI lie appointed Mr. W^hislon his deputy in tlie Mathematical Chair at Cambridge, allowing him the whole emoluments for the performance of its duties : though he did not resign the professorship till 1703; in which year he was chosen President of the Royal Society. This situation he held till his death, which happened the 2 1st of JMarch 1726-7 He had previously received the honour of knighthood from Queea Anne, at Cambridge, in the year 1705. Sir Isaac was of the middle stature, of a comely aspect, temperate in his diet, and of a meek disposition. lie was courteous and atl'able ; and modesty and generosity were eminently conspicuous in his character. He was never married, and the manor and estate descended to the heir at law, Mr. John Newton, who sold it to the family of Turner, of Stoke Rochford ; and is now the property of Edumud Tumor, Esq. of that place*. The manor-house is slill standing. " Here Newton dawn'd, here lofty wisdom woke, And to a wondering world divinely spoke. If Tully <>lovv'd, when Phoedrus" steps he trod, Or fancy fonned philosophy a God ; If sages still for Homers birth contend, The sons of science at this dome must bend. All hail the shrine! all hail the natal day ; Cam boasts his noon, this cot his morning ray." Harlaxton, * Memoirs of Sir Isaac Newton, sent by Mr. Condiiitt, to Monsieur Fon- tenelle, in \T-27, and published in Tumor's " Collections for a History of the Town and Soke of Grauthara." Jf LINCOLNSHIRE. 777 Harlaxton, a small village, situated on the tumpike-road leading from Grantliain to Mellou, and three miles distant from the former place, has a handsome church with a beautiful spire. Some of the windows are singular in their form, having circular heads, each contained within a square label. The manor, jnd principal part of the properly of Harlaxton, belonged in the time of Henry the Seventh to a family of the name of Blewitt ; one of whom it is supposed built the old and curious Manor House. This underwent many alterations by a subsequent possessor. Sir Samuel de Ligne. The house is built of stone, and on the south side it is guarded by a broad and deep moat, with a bridge over it. The entrance into the outer court is by an arched gateway, and the inner court is separated from the outer by a handsome balustrade. Some of the windows are pointed, and others have square labeled heads. The grand gallery, which is one hundred feet in length, four- teen wide, and eleven feet high ; and the dining room, which is forty feet by thirty-one, were superbly fitted up ; and the win- dows richly decorated with painted glass, by Sir Daniel de Ligne. In the great bow windows are coats of arms of de Ligne, de la Fountaine, de Cordes, and other relations of the de Ligne family, who emigrated together, and became refugees in this country. In other windows are emblematical devices, and representations of events, recorded in scriptural and profane history. Several fine portraits of the de Ligne and Lister families, executed by Cor- nelius Janssen, are here preserved. One of these, which has excited particular interest, is that of Susanna Lady Lister, painted in her wedding dress, by C. Janssen, 1626, when Lady Thornhurst. She was considered the most distinguished beauty of her time, and was presented in marriage to Sir Geoftry Thornhurst, by King James the First, in person. The present proprietor, who is lord of the manor, is George de Ligne Gregory, Esq. In the year 1 740, an Urn was found here, it contained burnt bones and coins of Gallienus, a Claudius Gotliicns, and of other emperors, with a seal inscribed, " Sigillum comitatus Cantabridgiai." In the fields near Vol. IX. 3 D ^\^ 77S LINCOLNSHIRE. this village, near the mansion, as a man was plouj^lrfifirr I'e dis- covered a stone, and under it a brass pot, in which wa^ a' helmet of gold, set with jewels; and also silver beads, and " corrupte(4 writings*." The helmet, supposed to have formerly belonged td John of Gaunt, who had a hunting scat here, was presented to Catharine, Dowager Queen of Henry the Eighth, and deposited afterwards in tlte cabinet of Madrid. Great Ponton, or Paunton, an ancient village, is situated 6D the river Withani, three miles and a half south of Grantham, and near the Ermine-Street. In this pl.ice, and at Little Ponton, an adjacent village, have been found numerous Roman coins, urns, bricks, mosaic pavements, arches, and vaults. Stukeley observes, that this " must needs be the Caii.sennis." With this opinion ■Salmon coincided, and agreed with him to place the Old Pon- TEM at east Bridgford, in Nottinghamshire. But Horsley fixes it at Southwell. Ponton has probably been a station, though it does not appear to fall under any one mentioned in the Itinerary. *' The fosse way, partly paved with blue flag stones laid on edge, runs by this place from Newark to Leicester f." The Church, which is a fine building, was, according to Leiand, completed A. D. 15 ii), at the espence of Anthony Ellis, Esq. merchant of the staple, who lies interred in the chancel ; and whose arms are repre- sented on the different parts of the steeple, with tlie motlo> " Thyiike, and thankc (iod of all." It is justly admired for it4 proportion, has eight ornamental pinnacles at top, and is seventy- eight feet high. Six miles south of Grantham is Stoke Rochfor,i>, or South Stoke. Its churcli, which serves for the parishes of Stoke Rocb-' ford, North Stoke, and Easton, Bishop .Sanderson describes as fair and well built, having " a chancel with three quires and goodly * Lelands Itin. Vol. I. i\>i. ol. t Gongh's CamiieN, Voi. II. p. 25©. LINCOLNSHIRE. 7f9 goodly windows, ami surulry nioiiiiments." A handsome marble monument records the ancestors of the Tumor family, proprie- tors of this place ; and a very elegant throne, with four kneeling figures in the habit of the tiiu«'s, was erected here by Montague Cholmeley, Esq. A. D. l641 : a descendant of whom, of the same nUme, has a mansion in the hamlet of Easton. On a brass plate, fixed on a marble slab, in the floor of the chancel, is this inscription: " Pray for the soil of nmstyr 01yr~. Sentsehn, squier, sonne unto ye right excellent hye, and mightty prynoess of Sonfsete g~ndame unto ou" sovey^n Lord Kynge Herre the VII. and for the soil of dame Elizabeth Bygod his wifF, whoo deputed from tiiis t'nsitore lift'e ye xii. day of June, i" y" year of ou~ Lord M,CCCCC and III." The family of St. John, ancestors of the present Lord Boling- broke, was connected by marriage with that of Rochford, and /ormerly resided here. Stoke House, the residence of Edmund Turnor, Esq. was built in the year 1794, out of materials belonging to an old man- sion house, erected by Sir Edward Turnor, about the middle of the seventeenth century. The park is small, but abounds with picturesque features, and in it is a pleasing small cascade, formed by the water of a single spring*. An handsome stone building in this village, containing six sets of apartments for six poor persons, who have a weekly allowance in money, and an annual allowance for coals, was erected and en- dowed in the year 1777, by Sir Edmund Turnor; no less eminent for his loyalty, than he was exemplary by his charities. He took ipart with Charles the First, and in the year 1651 he was captain 3 D 2 of * The great spring at Holywell, in Flintshire, is supposed to throw out twenty-one tons of water in a minute. This, in Stoke park, discharges nine- teen tons in a minute. Tliey both come out of Limestone, and never freeze, PemanVt Hist, of Holywellf p. 2'25 as quoted by Mr. Tumor, in his collection. 78a LINCOLNSHIRE. of horse, and laken prisoner'at the battle of Worceslcr. As a reward for his services, he was appointed to several lucrative offices, and knighted in l663. AVELAND WAPENTAKE contains the parishes of Aslackhy, BilUnghorough, Birthorpe, Bourne, Demhlehy, Doivsby, Dunshy* Dyke and Canthorpe hamlet, Folkingham, Haceby, Hacconby, Horbling, Kirkby-Under-wood, Lavghton, Morton, Neivton, Os- hournhy, Pickworth, Pointon, Rappingale, Spunby, Swaton, Threckingham cum Stow, Walcot, and Willovgkby Scott. In the village of Aslackby was a Comnvandry of Knights Templars, founded by John le Marechal, about the time of Pachard the First. It was subsequently occupied by the hospitallers ; and at the suppression the site was granted to Edward Lord Clinton. A farm-house, where formerly stood the circular church, still retains the appellation of the temple. A square embattled tower, consisting of two stories, yet remains. The lower story is vau Itetl, and the vault is composed of eight groins. In the centre, where these meet, are eight shields, with various coats of arms, and the middle one is charged with a cross. Round the outside of the tower, near the top, are several large brackets. The parish church, at a small dis- tance on the opposite side of the road, is a large handsome building, having a square embattled tower at the west end. Here formerly stood a Castle, which is said to have been built by one of the Wakes. But in this, both Camden and the Author of the Magna Britannia were mistaken. For a castle appears to have existed here as early as the year IO62, before the Wakes possessed the manor. Leland observed, that in his time " there appeared great ditches, and the dungeon-hill at the west end of the priory, also much service of the Wakes' fee was done to it ; and that every fadary knew his station and place of service." The building is entirely destroyed, but the earth works on the west side are LINCOLNSHIRE. 781 are nearly entire. The area within the outer moat is about eight acres; between the moat and ditch are very large irregular works, on the north and west sides. They consist of raised banks about twenty yards in length, and ten in breadth, with a ditch between each. BOURNE, OR BURN, Is a market town, situated in a flat country adjoining tJie fens* Contiguous to the town is a large spring, which discharges a suffi- cient quantity of water to supply three mills near its source. The earliest notice on record respecting this place is in the time of tlie Saxons, when Canulen states, on the authority of Leland, that it was notable for the inauguration of Edmund, King of the East Angles, A. D. 838. This, however, is proved to be an error, by Mr. Gough, who says, that the Saxon monarch was crowned at a place called Buers in Suffolk. Ingnlphus, after noticing several bene- factions to the Abbey of Croyland, says, " Leofric, lord of the castle of Brunn, a famous and valiant soldier, kinsman to the great Count Radin, who married King Edward's sister Godo, gave many possessions to this abbey ; and on many occasions assisted the monks with his counsel and favour*. This Leofric had a son Werward possessed of the castle and estates of Burn or Brunn, who dying without issue, they were presented by William Rufus to Walter Eitzgilbert, or Fitzgislebert f." Baldwin, Lord W^ake, in the eighth year of King Edward the First, A. D. 1279> obtained a licence for a market weekly on Saturdays, and one annual fair. This was a life grant, as the same privilege was conferred on the place at the request of Thomas Lord Wake, his grandson, in the second year of Edward the Second. An abbey ^^as founded here by Baldwin, sou of Baldwin Fitz- 3 D 3 gislebert, • Historj' of Croyland, folio 899. t Bubop Gibson's Edition of Camden, p. 462. 7S2 LINCOLNSHIRE. gislebert, to whom tlie castle was granted about the ye^ir 113S, who placed in it an abbot and canons of the Augustine order. According to Dugdale, its annual revenues amounted, at the dis- solution, to the sum of 167I. 14s. fid. per annum. The Church, dedicated to St. Peter, is a handsome building, and formerly iiad two large square towers at the west end, one of which is nearly down. The church consists of a loity chancel, a nave, with side ailes, and a short transept on the south side. The nave is separated froni the ailes by circular plain arches, springing from large columns, exhibiting a specimen of the early Nortuan style. At the west door is a piscina and pointed arcades, over which are two lancet windows, and a large window, having four mullions, with tracery. On the outside of the south porch is another piscina. Bourne contains a meeting-house for protestant dissenters; also two almshouses, each endowed with 30l. per annum, one for six poor men, and the other for six poor women. Here is also a free school, with a salary for the master of 30l. per annum. This town has twice suffered severely by fire. The first oc- curring on the 25th of August, l605, by which was destroyed that part of the town called Manor-Street, not leaving a single hyuse standing. Again, on the 25th of March, 1 637, another fire destroyed the greater part of Eastgate, or as it is written in records, Eaugate. In the centre of the market place is an ancient foivn-haU, said to have been erected by one of the Wake family ; but from the arms of Cecil, carved in baso relievo over the centre of the east front, it is more probable that it was built by the treasurer. Lord Burleigh. The petty sessions for the parts of Kesteven are regularly held here at Michaelmas and Christmas. In this town a few Roman coins have been dug up, and, about fifty years ago, a tessellated pavement was discovered in the park grounds. In a farm yard, within the town, is a medicinal spring, much frequentedj the waters of which have a brackish taste, and a: purgalivfs LINCOLNSHIRE. 7S3 purgative quality ; very similar in tliejr effects, but of greater /^ streixgth tliau those of Astrop, in the county of Northampton. A Canal has been made hence to Boston, for boats of ten tons burden. By means of this navigation some mercantile business is carried on ; but the chief trade of the place is wool-stapling and tanning leather. The market, which is but little frequented, is htld on Satiudajs, and the town has four fairs annually. The number of houses, by the returns under the population act, were 282, of inhabitants 1,474.. That eminent statesman, and exalted character, William CiiClL, Baron Burleigh, whose loyalty to his sovereign, and unbiassed patri()li^al, preserved the religious establishment and civil polity of this kingdom from falling a prey to despotic ty- ranny and papal superstition, was a native of this place. He was born at the house of his grandfather, David Cecil, Esq. in the year 1520. In 1535 he was admitted of St. John's College, ia the university of Cambridge, where, at tlie early age of tifteen, ke read a lecture on sophistry ; and at the age of nineteen be gave a Greek lecture. After leaving college he applied himself to the siudy of the law ; and in the year 1547, having been made luaster of requests, he, in the following year, partook of the disgrace which fell on the Lord Protector Somerset, with whom, he was sent to the Tower. After suffering three months im- prisonment, he was released, reinstated in his oifice, received the honour of knighthood, and was chosen a member of the privy council. In 1553 he was appointed chancellor to the order of the garter, with an annual fee of 100 marks. On the death, of Edward the Sixth, Sir William Cecil prudently dechned taking any part in the business, which terminated fatally for Lord Dudley, and his unfortunate consort, the Lady Jane Grey. Qn the accessjori of Queen Marj he was graciously received at. coyrt ; but refusing to change his religion, he was dismissed from his employments. On Queen Elizabeth's succeeding to the throne in 1558, the cloud was quickly dispelled which had lately obscured both his fortmie and fame. A few days after her 3 D 4i accession 784 LINCOLNSHIRE. accession he was sworn one of her privy council, became her chief cabinet minister, and made secretary of state. In 156% he received the appointment of master of the wards; and in 1571 he was created Baron Lord Burleigh. Tlie following year he was honoured with the order of the garter, and raised to the office of lord high treasurer of England, which distinguished situation he held twenty-seven years, performing its duties with credit to himself, and to the satisfaction of his sovereign and the country. Having thus tilled some of the most important situa- tions, and guided the helm of state during the most critical and glorious period of English history, he departed this life on the 4th of August, 1598, in the seventy-eighth year of his age. His remains were removed to the burial place at Stamford, where a most raagniticent monumental tomb was erected to his me- mory. To those acquainted with the history of their country any eulogium on him would be superfluous. Suffice it to add, that Camden, in his Annals, observes, " He was one of those few who lived and died with equal glory. Such a man as, \\'hile others regard with admiration, I, after the ancient manner, rather contemplate with silent and religious veneration*." The Rev. Dr. William Dodd was also a native of Bourne, where he was born in 1 J'29. His father was vicar of this parish, and brought up this son to the church ; which he lived to honour by his eloquence and erudition, and to disgrace by his fatal pro- pensity to gallantry and fashionable dissipation. Never, perhaps, was there a clergyman whose manners and writings obtained greater patronage and admiration; yet a single act of injustice involved him in ruin, and brought him to an untimely end. Having committed a forgery on Lord Chesterfield for the sum of 42001. he was arrested, committed to Newgate, tried, and convicted ; and though the most powerful influence was exerted in his behalf, and various modes of preserving his life was era- ployed, he was doomed to suft'er death at Tyburn, June 27, J777. FOLKINGHARI * Annales Elizabetlia. Anno 1598. - LINCOLNSHIRE. ?'85 9 FOLKINGHAM Is a small town, pleasantly situated on the side and sunnijit of a liiil, aboundina; with springs. Tbe cinjrch stands at tlit- N.W. end of the town, and consists of a nave, with north and soutli ailes, chancel and porch, with a room over it, and has a handsome lofty stoue tower, crowned with eijjlit croketted pini.acles. The manor of Folkingham was given, by the Conqueror, to Gilbert de Gaunt, who came over with him from Normandy, and eminently distinguished himself at the decisive battle of Hastings: for which service William, wlien he came to the throne, amply rewarded him. For in the Domesday Book it appears, that besides forty-one other lordsliips whicli Gilbert was seized of in dili'erenl counties, he possessed one hundred and thirty-one in Lincolnshire, of which Folkingham was one. This place he made his seat, and constituted it the head of the ba- rony. A descendant of Gilbert de Gaunt, \\lio died without issue, 2d of January, 1274, appointed King Edward the First liis heir to the manor and lands of this barony. Tliey were, by that monarcb, granted, for eminent services, to Henry de Bel- lomonte, or Beaumont, who was usually called " Consangui- neus Regis." In the family of the Bellomontes the n>;.nor con- tinued till the time of Henry the Sevenlli. After that i)eriod it ■came into the family of the Duke of Norfolk ; but being forfeited by the attainder of Thomas, Duke of Norfolk, it was granted by King Edward the Sixth, in exchange for lands in the county of Worcester, to the family of Cliuton. Here was formerly a Oastle, probably built by Henry de Bellomonte. " From Grims- thorpe to Sempringham five miles ; and a mile thtnre, somewJial inward, is the castle of Fokinghain, sometime the Lord Bar- dolfe's, since the Lord Bellomonte's, now longing to the Duke of Norfolk. It hath been a goodly house, but it now falleth to ruin, and standeth even about the edge of the fenns *." Even tlie *. Leland's Itin. Vol. I. f. £S. • f86 LINCOLNSHIRE. the ruins have disappeared ; and the only remains to mark -^liere once tlie caslle stood, are the moats and mounds on the eastern side oi the town. Folkingham has a weekly niiirket on Thursdays, and eight an- nual fairs. The resident population, by the returns made to goveriimeiil in 1801, was j31, the number of houses 100. Soutii-east of the town is u large Encampment, with a deep foss and lofty vallum. Within the area is u square keep of raised earth, defended also by a foss capable of being filled with water from the adjoining brook. Without the area, at the north- fast corner, is a small fortified enclosure, intended as an ad-r vauccd work to secure the water for the use of the garrison. Sempringham, about three miles east-south-east of Folking-r ham, is noted in the monastical annals of England, for giving birth to Sir Gilbert de Sempringham, who founded a novel reli- gious order, and settled it at his native place. Gilbert was the eldest son of a Norman knight, and was sent to France for edu- ration. Returning thence, he took orders, and obtahied great preferments; b«ing presented to the churches of Tissingden and Sempringham, and appointed chaplain to the Bishop of Lincoln. Having devoted himself wholly to a religions lifo, he obtained leave of Pope Eugenins III. in the year 1 14S, to institute a new order of monks, to be called Gil/icrtincs. The singularity of the plan adapted by, and the reputed piety of the first recluse, soon attracted the attention of oIImts,. and induced numbers of both sexes to Join the society. For their reception Ciilbert em- ployed his large estate in building a house, and settling on the institution an adequate endowment. The rules laid down for Ihe regulation of t!ie order wete — 1. That the nuns should fol- low the rules of St. Benedict, and the monks the rules of St. Auguslin. — 2. Thai the men should live in a separate habitation from the women, and never have access to the nuns but at the administration of the sacrament. — 3. That the same cliurch »bould serve both for divine service. — 4. That the sacrament should LlNCOLNSniUK. 78/ should not be administered to both ton-elher, but in the presence of many witnesses. Tiiough lliis motley or(Jer was contrary to the law of the Justinian code, yet it long llonrished, and n\iine- rous monasteries were subsequently founded, conformably to the Gilbertine scheme. The founder lived to see thirteen erected, in which were 700 men and 1100 women. He attained the great age of 100 years ; and iVom his austerity, and many inir;«;U's having been performed after his death, according to legendary story, he was canonized by Pope Innocent the Third, A. D. 1202. For some centuries this order maintained its credit for su})erior sanctity ; but human institutions are liable to degenerate, and the brethren and sisters, in a subsequent period, departed strangely from the conlinency and chastity they so solemnly and rigidly professed. The annual revenues of the priory in Sempringham, at the suppression, were valued, according to Speed, at 35()\. 1 Is. 7d- The monastery stood to the north-east of the churci). Tlie site is still marked by a moated area. The church, which serves the two parishes of Poyton and Billingborough, is only a part of the ancient edifice. Tiie transepts arc down, and the cliancel in ruins. The windows are lancet-shaped, and the doors have cir- cular arches, with chevron or zigzag mouldings, and evidently point out the time of its erection to have been in the early Nor. man period. BRTTISLOE WAPENTAKE contains the parishes of Bassitigthorpe cum Wtstby, Bitchjield, Burton Coggles, By- tham Castle, Bytham Little, Carehy, Corby, Counthorpe ham- let, Creeton, Edenlium, Gunhy, Holywell cum Aivnby chapelry, Jrnham, including the hamlets of Bulby and Ilawthorpe, Keixby handet, Lavington, alias Lenton cum Hanby, JMon- thorpe handet, Osgodby hamlet, Sliillington, Stainby, Sway- Jield, Swinstead, Toft and Loinid hmnkt, IViiham on tJulIill, int/tatn 78S LINCOLNSHIRE. Withan North and Twiford, including the hamlet of Loblhorpe, pod Witham South. At Castle Bytham was a fortified mansion, or caslle, which belonged to Lord Hussey in the time of Henry the Seventh. In the time of William the First, this manor was the property of Odo, Ear! of Albemarle and Holderness ; who, having married Adeliza the Conqueror's Sister, obtained the grant of the castle, sand adjoiuiiig territory, for the support of their infant son Stephen : and for llie specified purpose, that they might be enabled to feed him with ivheafen bread. William de FoxtibusEarl of Albemarle, in the time of Edward the Third, rebelled against that monarch ; and fortifying his castle at Bytham, plundered the surrounding country. But the fortress being besieged by the royal troops, i^ was levelled with the ground. It was afterwards repaired, and long remained in possession of the family of Calville. I!,DENHAM, a large parish, includes the township oiEdenham, Grimslhorpe, Elslhorpe, and Scottlethorpe, with the site of the demesnes abbey of Vmidei/, or de Valle Dei. This parish contains 6424 acres of land, wl)ich, excepting about l60 acres, belong to the Duke of Ancasler. The parish church, was formerly appro- priated to the abbey of Vaudoy, and the hving is now a perpetual curacy in tlse gift of the above named nobleman, who is impro- priator of the parish, and j)roprietor of the church-yard. The Church consists of a nave, with north and south ailes, a chancel, south porch, and handsome western tower. This is of more modern erection than some parts of the church, and was probably built about the time of Henry the Sixth. The western door has a flat pointed arch with quatrefoils in the groins. The ailes are separated from the nave, by four arches on each side. At the east- end of the north aile are two tablets of black marble, bordered with naval and military trophies ; over which, within a garter, sur- mounted by an earl's coronet, is a shield containing twenty-five coats. On the first tablet is a Latin inscription to the memory of Robert LINCOLNSHIRE. 789 Robert Bertie, Earl of Liudsey, who fell a martyr to loyalty at the battle of Edgehill, in the time of Ciiarles the First ; tlie six- teenth year of his age, A. D. 1()42. The other tablet records the virtues and exploits of his son /7. S. E. Montacule, who in the royal cause accompanied his father; but survived the tempestuous period, dying the 25th of July, A. D. l656, in the tifty-ninth year of his age. A nuiral tablet of white jnarble is sacred to the me- mory of Richard Bertie Earl of Lindsey, Lord Great Chamber- lain of England, who attended James Duke of York, afterwards King James the Second, and Marcschall de Turenne, at the siege of Mouzan in l653, and that of Landrecy, l655. He commanded a troop of horse in Ireland, and served against the rebel Duke of Monmouth: he died a bachelor the 19lh of January, A.D. 1686. On the south side of the chancel is a monument of white and varigated marble, with an inscription commemorative of Robert Lord Willoughby, who died iMay .Qth, A. D, 1701. Opposite to this is a rich marble monument with a handsome entablature, supported by Corinthian columns, with an inscription, stating, that in a vault beneath lie the remains of Robert Bertie, created Duke of Ancaster and Ketseven by King George the First, and who by death quitted all earthly honours, July 26th, in the year 172s. This monument was executed by L. J. Scheemakers and H. Clieere. Against the same wall is a monument consisting of a pedestal of white marble, on which is the etiigy of Peregrine the second Duke of Ancaster, in a Roman dress, reclining on an urn. On the front is an inscription purporting, that he died January ], 1741, leaving four sons and three daughters. On the south sid« of the chancel is a very elegant white veined marble monument, executed by Harris of London, to the memory of Peregrine, third Duke of Ancaster mul Keiseven, who died in the sixty-fifth year of his age, August 12lh, 1778. If also records the memory of his son Robert, fourth Duke of Ancaster, who died the 8th of July 1779; only eleven months after he hud succeeded to the titles aud estate. la 790 LiNCOLNSHIRE. In ttie village of Edenham, is Grimsthorpe Castle, the scat of the Duke of Ancas'er. The house is a large irregular structure, aii luelz, to hold them of the crown by homage and other service. By King John they were granted to William Earl of Warren, to hold by a similar tenure. After his death, they were granted by John Earl of Warren to Edward the First, and by the king re- granted to the said earl, for the term of his life ; on whose de- mise, by a previous agreement, they reverted again to the crown. After many grants, and as many reversions arising from for- feiture, or failure of male issue, the manor was given by Queen Elizabeth to William Cecil, first Lord Burleigh ; and by mar- riage of Anne, his grand-daughter and coheiress, with William Earl of Exeter, it descended to Henry Grey, first Earl of Stam- ford, in which family it continued for several descents; but is BOW again, by purchase, vested in the family of Cecil. In the reign of Richard the Third the castle was thrown down and demolished. The hill on which it stood, to the north-west of the town, appears to have been nearly artificial, the various layers of earth lying horizontally ; and by the side are the smalt remains of a stone wall. In the time of the Conqueror, Stamford was governed by the lagemen or aldermen. In the lime of Edward the Fourth it ob- tained the privilege, which it still retains, of sending two members to parliament : and in liie first year of that reign a charter was granted, by virtue of which the aldermen and other otHcers were incorporated, under the name of the " Aldermen and combur- gesses, * These were judges of the laws, ami were the first civil governors of towns ; iiaving sac, tiiat is the piivile^e grautcti by the king to judge aud try causes, and receive tlie forfeitures arising from crimes witliin a certain hmit ; The place of such jmisdiction was dcnoiuinated Soc. i LINCOLNSHIRE. 7^7 gcsscs of the first and second bench. " Various other privileges were conferred by difterent cliarters iu succeeding reigns ; but the town was not governed by a mayor till the reign of Charles the Second*, who, when he recalled the royal charters throughout the kingdom, granted a new one to Stamford, which was con- firmed in the reign of James the Second. By that charter it was again incorporated ; and the corporation made to consist of a mayor, thirteen aldermen, and twenty- four capital burgesses, by the name of " The mayor, aldermen, and capital burgesses of the town or borough of Stamford." By the same deed, the mayor and corporation are empowered to chuse a recorder, deputy re- corder, a coroner, and a town clerk, " to enter debts, according to the statutes of merchants, and the statute of Acton Burnell." In Slamford were formerly four religious houses, besides one in the parish of St. Martin, or Borough Stamford. The prin- cipal of these A Benedictine Priory, called St. Leonard's, was founded, according to Mr. Peck, by Wilfred, in the seventh century ; and refounded in the time of the Conqueror by Bishop Carilepli, A. D. 108'2, who made it a cell to Durham. The site is at a small distance from the town, but formerly was included within it. A part of the conventual church is standing. The ailes and traMsepts are down. A portion of the nave, sixty feet long and twenty-one broad, is an interesting ruin. On the north side is a range of circular arches, with a waving ornamental moulding; in the west front is a do(jrivay, with a semicircular arch. This is connected with two lateral niches, and over them is an arcade with an oval window in the pediment. 3 E 3 The * Tliis appears from a letter directed to Robert Fawcet, alderman, by Lenthall, the speaker of the House of Commons, at the latter end of Charles the First's reign ; and in consequence of an ordinance, which soon followed that circular letter, the alderman put iu nomination, for his loyalty to the king, was declared an improper person, and another was uomijiated ia bis j^ace, snd served the office of chief magistrate. 798 LINCOLNSHIRE. The White, or Carmelite Friary, iledicaled to ihc Vir- gin Mary, is said to have been founded by Henry the Third. It was evidently a royal foundation, from the king's arms having been cut in stone over the western gate ; but as ihe coat contains the arms of France quartered witii those of England, it is evident tliat Edward the Third was either the founder, or a great bene- factor to it. That monarch held a council here, when lie confirmed the monastery of Newstede. It was a place used for the reception of the English kings, in their progress to and from the north, and was situated at a small distance from St. Paul's-gate, where the road divides for Richall and Utiinglon ; and from remains of walls ap- pears to have been an extensive building. The west gate still re- mains entire, and is a handsome, though small specimen of the ar- chitecture of the fourteenth century. The Convent of Grey Friars, Fransciscans, or Minorites, was founded by Henry the Tliird, or by some of the Plantagenet family, in the reign of that monarch ; who was so partial to this new order, that he wished to place some of its monks in all the great towns of his dominions. Fuller gives a particular account respecting the surrender of this monastery, by its prior, or warden, and nine monks, to King Henry the Eighth, in the year 1539. It stood just without St. Paul's gate. Mr. Peck describes various stone figures, and fine pieces of carvings, which have been dug up ; but all the remains at present are part of an outer wall, and postern, or back gate-way. The Monastery of Black Friars, called also Do7ninicans, and Friar Preachers, was founded about the year 1220, by JVil- liam de Fortihus, the second Earl of Alberraarle, who rebelled against his sovereign, Henry the Third. It was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin and St. Nicholas, the favourite saint of that mo- nastic order. Speed notices a Dominican friary of St. Mary and St. Nicholas, founded at a much earlier period, by Talbois, Earl of Aujou, and William de Roniara. These were probably the same ; but if founded as above described, it must have been for monks tV LINCOLNSHIRE. 799 monks of some other order, as that of St. Doiuinick did not take its rise till A. D. 12]6. William dc Fortibus might therefore have furllier endowed it, and cliani^ed its monks to the more fashionable order of the time. It stood between St. George's gate and Tenter meadow. The Austin Friary, Leland says, was founded about the year 1380, by Fleming, Archdeacon of Richmond, who was a very wealthy man of Stamford. Richard Warner, its last prior, with five monks, surrendered this monastery to Henry the Eighth, Oc- tober 61 ii, 1539. In this town were, at one period, fourteen parish churches, be- sides chapels. Several of tliese were burnt by the northern sol- diers A.D. 1461, and never rtbuilt. The number was further diminished at the dissolution of the monasteries ; and by an act passed in the year 1547, they were reduced to five, according to the ancient division of the town into five wards : This is the pre- sent number, exclusive of St. Martin's, in Stamford Baron. The names are Great St. Michael's, St. Mary's, St. Georges, All Saints', and St. John's. St. Michael's Church, situated near the centre of the town, is probably t!ie oldest structure, part of it being built prior to the year 1230. It consists of a nave, north and south ailes, choir, with north and south chancels, which extend beyond the ailes. The eastern end of the choir, being in a ruinous con- dition, was taken down and rebuilt by the parishioners about the year 1705, when in the wall were found, thrown in as rubbish, sculp- tujed stones, the fragments of some religious building, which had existed anterior to this. At the west end of the nave was a wooden tower, which was taken down, and replaced by another of stone in 1761. The windows of the church have formerly been highly ornamented with painted glass, but the figures, arms, &c. are in a lamentable state of mutilation. St. Mary's Church appears to have been built at the latter end of the thirteenth century, and probably on the site of one as 3 E 4 early *« 800 LINCOLNSHIRE. early as the conqiiesl, as the iMhabitauts consider lliis the mother church. The spire is a handsome structure, without battlements, having, at that part where it begins to contract, the figures of the four Evangelists, placed under elegant canopies, one at eisch cor- ner. At the upper enii of the chanfel is an ancient and curious raonun»ent, without arms or insrription. The figure of a man armed cai)-a-pee is recumbent by a female figure. This tomb is to the memory of Sir Dav'd Philips, who distinguished him- self at the battie of Bosworth field. He founded a chantry in this church. — In the Cottonian library is a manuscript bill of ex- pences for repairs, and other matters respecting this church in the year 1427, containing many curious items. St. George's Church is a large plain building, consisting of a chancel, nave, nortii am! south ailes, with a square embattled tower at the west end. The whidows of the ailes are large with three lights, and pointed flat arches; those of tiie nave have square heads. It was rebuilt A. D. 1450, at the sole expence of William Bruges, first Garter Kin'^ at Arms.* In the chancel windows, which are very large, were numerous figures in stained glass. — In this church lie the remains of David Cecil, Esq. who was high sherift' of Northamptonshire in 1342, and grandfather of the first Lord Burleigh. All Saints Church is a large well-proportioned structure, consisting of a nave, two ailes, and two chancels ; one at the end of the south aisle, and the other ausvveiing to the nave. At the west end of the north aile is the steeple, which is a lofty, hand- some, embattled structure, with octangular turrets at the corners, «nd crowned by a neat octangular spire, crocketed at the angles from * This person bestowed numerous jewels, rich plate, and other vahiable onanicnts, upon tlie cl;urrh. Mr. Peck lias inserted in his Annals, a copy ofihewill, v\l;ich contains many particulars respecting these bequests. Ad- tiquarian Annals of Stainford, Lib. XIV. p. 24. LINCOLNSHIRE. 801 from liie base to tlic summit. This church, whidj Mr. Peck cojisidors " one of the principal ornamtnts of Slamfor.!," \\;is btiilt at the expence of a Mr. John Brown, merchant of tlie Staple at Calais, who, with his wife lie buried at the upper end of the uorlh aile. On a gilt brass plate in the wall is this inscription, " Orate pro auimabus Johannis Browne, niercaloris Slapule Ca- lisie & Marsjerie iixoris ejus. Qui quidem Joh;innes obiit xxvi" die mensis Julii an. dni. M.CCCCXLII ; iS: que qiiaidem Marge- ria (biit xxii° die Novembris M,CCCCLX, quorum aniniabus pro])itietur Deus. Amen." In St. Marv's chupel, where formt'riy stood the altar, are figures in brass of Williaui Brown, who built and endowed the bead-house, and his wi e ; v. ilh scrolls over their heads — " X me spede," " dere lady help at nede.'' Against the east window of this chapel is a while marble monument, in memory of Mr. Thomas Truesdale, who lived in the samfe house that :Mr. Browu did, and followed his example, by founding anollicr almshouse. St. John the Baptist's Church was rebuili about flie tbirtieth year of Henry the Sixth, AD. 1452. It consists of a nave and two ailcs, with a chancel at the east end of each. They are separated from the nave and ailes by elegant screen work, and the roof has been highly decorated with figures, carved both in wood and stone. The windows of this church, according to Mr. Peck, exhibited some admirable specimens of stained glass. Besides religious foundations, Stanitbrd had formerly several others devoted to the tuition of youth. In t!ie year 1 lOp, Joifrid, Abbot of Croyland, dej)uted three monks from his monastery for this purpose. This was jirobably the foundaiion of the Uni- versity, wUkh .':as been the sid))cct of much controversy. Cam- den* places the date of the eitabiishment in the n ign of Edward the Third; and Anthony Wood, in the yeiir I'^yCf. But the * BiJtannia, Vol. II. p. £25. i As quoted by Mr. Peck, Lib. IX p. 22. 802 LINCOLN'SUIRC;. y^.i^^*'^/^^^ tlie foundation was eaiiier than eifher of these assigned peiiods. ^ The Caniieliles had a monastery liere in the time of Henry the Tliird, gave public lectures on divinity and the liberal arts, and lield public disputations against Judaism. Numbers of the clergy and gentry sent their sons here for instruction. Other religious Jiouses in this place followed the ( xaniple, Stamford soon be- came celebrated as a place of liberal instruction. Public lectures Mere ajipointed, and colleges erected for the reception of stu- dents. On a violent altercation taking place in the reign of Ed- ward the Third, between the Northern and Southern scholars in the University of Oxford, the former class removed to Stam- ford : but they were obliged, by royal proclamation, to return to Oxford, and it was afterward made a statute, that no Oxford man should take a degree at Stamford. In tliis university were four colleges: namely, Brasennose, whence a college at Oxford, found- ed in the time of Henry the Seventh, probably took its name, was taken down in the year lC5S, and a charity school erected out of the nmterials. Sempringham Hall stood ou St. Peter's Hill, and was intended principally as a seminary for youth destined to profess, agreeable to the order of Gilbertines. It was founded by Ro- bert Luttrel, rector of Irnham, A. D. ]292. Pttcrhorongh Hall was opposite the south door of All Saints church. It was pulled down about 1705. Black Hall, a school to prepare the youth for the monastery of Black friars, stood to the north-west of All Saints church, and was taken down soon after Peterborough Hall. The Fiee School, in St. Paul's Street, was founded in the reiga of Edward the Sixth, A. D. 1548, by Mr. William Radcliffe ; and further endowed in the tenth year of James the First, by Tiionsas Earl of Exeter, who gave the sum of lOSl. annually to Clare Hall, in Candjridge, on condition, that he and his heirs for ever should have the noniinaliou of eight scholars, and out of thenj three fellows; and when any of the scholarships should become vacant, that preference should be given, in electing, to the youth educated in the free grammar school of Stamford. la LINCOLNSHIRE. 803 In the Charity School, situated also in St. Paul's Street, tliirty- six boys arc cloathed and educated ; the expence of wliicli are, in a great measure, defrayed by public contributions. Brownes Hospital, so called from Mr. William Browne, an alderman and merchant of the staj)le, at Calais, was founded in tiie reign of Ricliard the Tliird, for a warden, confratcr, and twelve poor men, and endowed with ample lands for tlicir sup- port. It is an handsome old building, situated on the north side of the corn market. In the chapel, at the eastern end, which was consecrated A. D. HP^, service is performed by the confratcr twice every day. In the windows is much curious painted glass. The revenues have greatly increased of late years, and tiie poor are comfortably provided for. In the year 1770, St. Peter's gate being in a ruinous condition, was taken down, and near the site was erected St. Peter's Hos- pital, a well contrived building, for the reception of eight poor men and their wives, whose age, to be admissible, must be more than sixty. Truesdales Hospital, for six poor njen, who have three shillings and sixpence weekly, and an annual allowance of clothes and coals, is situated in the Scogate. Besides these, there are other charitable institutions, named Callises. St. John's Callis, adjoin- ing Truesdale's Hospital, is for eight poor w omen. All Saints Callis, on St. Peter's Hill, is for twelve poor women. And Wil- liamson's Callis, on the same hill, in the parish of All Saints, erected by Mr. G. Williamson, grocer, and endowed with lands by liis widow, in the year 1772. This charily provides an asylum for six poor widows, whose age, at admission, must be near forty-eight. The civil business of the town is transacted in theTowN Hall, a large insulated structure, standing near St. Mary's church. It was built by trustees, appointed under an act passed in the year 1776, for widening the road from the north end of the bridge to the Scogate, when the old Hall was taken down. The building lias two handsome fronts, and the whole is divided into twenty- two apartments, comprising the municipal rooms, the largest of wliich 804 LINCOLNSHIRE. . wliich is firty-lwo feet long, tvventy-ftve wide, and nineteen in heiglit; a guard room, house of correction, and a gaol. The Theatre in St. Mary Street, a neat building, after the model of tl)ose in London, was erected at the expence of 8061. in the year 176'8. The river Weliand is navigable to the town for boats and small barges. The town is supplied with water from Wolthorpe, whence it is conveyed by iron pipes. Stanjford has two markets on Monday and Frid-iy, and seven annual fair?. By the returns to parliament under the late act, the number of houses was 70 1> of iuhabitanls 4022. Stamford Baron, though considered part of the town of Stamford, being separated from it only by the river Weliand, over which is a stone bridge, is a distinct liberty and parish in the county of Northampton. Anciently this part of the town was called Stamford beyond the bridge, or Stamford south of the Weliand. The first time the appellation of Stamford Baron oc- curs on record, is about the year 1455, being then part of the lands held per baroniam, by the Abbot of Peterborough, to distinguish it from the other part called the King's borough. During the Saxon }>eriod, in the reign of Alhelstan, it enjoyed the privilege of a mint*, and was particularly favored by suc- ceeding monarchs. King Edward the elder fortified the southern banks of the river against the Danes, v\ho frequently occupied the northern side; and built, according to Marianus, a strong castle in Stamfi rd Baron to prevent the incursions of that peopje from the north. Mr. Peck observes, he could not discover that it was ever walled ; vet it was defended by five gates and a castle. The latter slood on the verge of the Roman road, where now is Ijie Nuns' farm. In Domesday book this place is mentioned as the sixth ward belonging to Stamford, and as being situated in Hantuneacire. Here * Stowe's Annals. This was a privilege granted to the Abbot of Medes- l^amstcde, and is mentioned in a charter of King Edgar to that monastery. LINCOLNSHIRE. 80 J Here was a minnery of the Benedictine order, dedicated to \\\e. ^^^^^<^^^^^ honour of God and St. Michael, bv William Abbot, of Peterbo- ^ rough, in the rei^n of Henry the Second. The annual revenues of which, at the suppression, were, according to S])eed, llX. 18s. lOkl. In a deed grantefl in the time of Richard the First, notice is taken of an hospital for lepars, dedicated to St. TEyidius, or St. Giles; and a house of regular canons for Knights Hospitallers, but by whom founded is unknown. Where now is the alms- house, stood an hospital dedicated to St. John the Baptist, erected by Brand de Fossato, for the reception of pilgrims and poor tra- vellers. Upon the site of this, William Lord Burleigh, lord high treasurer of England, built an hospital, and endowed it for a war- den and twelve poor men. The present Church, dedicated to St. Martin, was erected by Bishop Russei, in the reign of Edward the Fourth. It is a large handsome building, consisting of a nave, two chancels, north and south ailes, and a square pinnacled to\\er at the west end of the north aile. The lofty nave is divided from the north aile by six j)ointed arches, and from the south by five, supported by slender columns. Mr. Gough erroneously states, that, "in 1737 all the painted glass in St. Martin's was taken away to save the vicar from wearing spectacles *." At tlie upper end of the nortii chancel is a cenolapli to the me- mory of Rickard Cecil and his wife, the parents of the lirst Lord Burleigh. The entablature is supported by columns of the Co- rinlhiast order, and under a circular canopy are the effigies of both represented before an altar ; and on the front of the base, three female figures, in a su[)plicating posture. On the altar are two inscriptions. A very curious monument of various marble, con- sisting of two circular arches, supported by Corinthian pillars, and surmounted with an escutcheoned tablet, and which has be- neath, on a raised altar tomb, a figure in armour, with a dog lying at * Edition of Camden, Vol. IL p. 244. 805 ' LINCOLNSHIllE. at the feel; is coramemoralivc of the virtues of IVilliam Cecil, Baroa of Burleigh, and Lord high Treasurer of England. Against the north wall of the north Chancci, is a stately lonih of white and grey marble, erected to the memory of John, Earl of Exeter, who died August 2()lh, 1700; and of his lady, who died June 18th, 1709. — The carl is represented in a Roman habit, discoursing with liis countess, who has an open book resting on her knee, and a pen in her hand, as rcavly to take down the pur- port of his (liscoiuse. Below is the figure of Minerva witii the gorgon's head ; and opposite, the same deity is represented in a mournful altitude, as lamenting the loss of the patron of arts and sciences. A pyraniid of grey marble, ascending almost to the roof, is crov. ned with the figure of Cupid, holding in his hand a snake with the tail in the mouth, emblematical of eternity. These monuments were executed at Rome, and display a style of sculplure more distinguished by the quantity/, iXmn quality of its workmanship. Against one of the pillars, on the north side of the nave, is a mural monument with a Latin inscription, importing, that it was erected at the expence of John Earl of Exeter, to the memory of JVilliam Wissing, an ingenious painter, a native of Amsterdam, and a disciple of the celebrated Peter Lely. He is compared to ail early bunch of grapes, because snatched away in the flower of his age, September 10th, l687, at the age of 39. Stamford Baron comprises one parish. The living is a vicarage, which, by the munificence of the lord treasurer Burleigh, is en- dowed with the rectorial tythes *. It would be improper to leave Stamford without adverting to an almost singular point in the law of inheritance, called Borough English ; by wliich the youngest son, if the father dies intestate, inherits the lands and tenements, to the exclusion of the elder branches of the family. Tiiis, as well as the law of Gavel kind, which * Burleigh, the handsome seat of Lord Exeter, about a mile distant, will be duly noticed in a subsequent account of Northamptonsliire. UNCA^NSHIRE. 807 which prevails in Kent, were of Saxon origin ; respecliiig the rea- *rf«>^^^!f-«^j^^ son of its introduction, the opinions of lawyers and antiquaries are * • divided. Littleton sup))oses the youngest were preferred, as least able to i)rovide for themselves. Dr Plot conjectures that it arose from an old barbarous right, assumed by the lord of the manor during the feudal ages, of slecpiug the first night after marriage with the vassal's bride. Whence the first born was supposed to belong to the lord. Though this might afford a reason for the exclusion of the eldest son, yet, in the case of there being more iIkui two, it docs not sntisfaclorily account for the preference given to the youngest. Mr. Peck's opinion is less exceptionable : he says, that Siamford being a trading town, the elder sons were set up in business, or generally received their respective shares of the paternal property, while the father was living. A singular custom, called BuU-rii7imng, which annually takes place here and at Tilbury in Slaffordshire, must not be passed un- noticed. Tradition relales, that William, the Fifth Earl of Warren^ in the reign of King John, w'iile standing one day on the walls of his caslle, saw two bulls contending for a cow. A butcher, to whom one of the bulls belonged, coming up with a large dog, set him at his own bull. The dog driving the animal into the town, more dogs joined in the chace, with a vast concourse of people. The animal, enraged by the bailing of the dogs and the clamour of the multitude, knocked down and ran over many persons. This scene so dehghted the earl, who had been a spectator, that he gave the meadows where it commenced, after the first crop was oiY, as a connnon for the use of the butchers in Stamford ; on condition, that they should annually provide a bull six weeks be- fore C!irist?i;as-day, to perpetuate the sport. This plebeian carnival, which has been instituted five hundred and seventy years, is still hAA on the appointed day, the festival of St Brice ; but from the account given by Mr. Butcher, of the manner in which the ceremony used to be conducted, it appears, that either the manners of the inhabitants are more refined, or their veneration for aniiquily has diminished. Formerly, the night , previous 808 LINCOLNSHIRE. previous to the important day, tlie bull procured for the occasion WHS stTured in the stable belonging to the chief magistrate ; and the Bullurds, or men appointed to take the lead in the pursuit, were clad in antic dresses. But at present the niagistracy decline all iuterffrence, the bullards are simply cloathed, and nuich of the original spirit has latterly evaporated. The morning the bull is to run, proclamation is made through the town by the bellman, that no person, on pain of imprisonment, shall offer any violence to strangers. The town being a great thoroughfare, a guard is appointed to protect persons passing through it that day. No person pursuing {he bull is allowed to have clubs or sticks with iron in them. When the people, after due notice given, have secured their doors and windows, the bull is turned out ; when men, women, children, dogs, &c. run promiscuously after the animal with loud vociferations an