[A] BECCLES is a large and well-built town, situated on the _Curiosities of Great Britain: England and Wales Delineated Vol.1-11 Historical, Entertaining & Commercial; Alphabetically Arranged. 11 Volume set.

Waveny, which is navigable from this place to Yarmouth, and divides in

its course the counties of Suffolk and Norfolk. It is governed by a

portreeve and thirty-six burgesses, the office of the former being held

in rotation by twelve of the latter. The church is gothic, with a

steeple, containing twelve bells, and a porch, which is considered a

fine specimen of the florid gothic. The ruins of Endgate church may be

seen out of the town, but the inhabitants of the village appear to have

been long esteemed parishioners of Beccles. Here is a theatre, a town

hall, a jail, and a free school, endowed with 100 acres of land, in the

reign of James I.; and a good grammar-school founded by Dr. Falconberge,

and endowed with an estate, then worth forty pounds per annum, although

now considerably increased in value. Near the town is a large common, on

which the inhabitants of the town have the privilege of feeding their

cattle on easy terms. In 1586 a fire consumed eighty houses in this

place, and property to the amount of L20,000.

_Market_, Saturday.--_Fairs_, Whit Monday, June 29, and October 2,

for horses and pedlary.--_Bankers_, Gurney and Co., draw on Barclay

and Co.--_Mail_ arrives 10.15 morning; departs 3.45

afternoon.--_Inns_, King's Head, and White Lion.

[Sidenote: Fine gothic church.]

[B] BECKENHAM. The church of this village is a neat edifice, containing

many monuments of the Style, Raymond, Burrell, and other families. On a

slab in the chancel, is a remarkable brass, to the memory of dame

Margaret, wife of Sir William Dalsell, Knt., and daughter of John

Barnes. Esq., of Redhall, in Norfolk, who died 1563: she is represented

in a flowered petticoat, and close-bodied gown; the sleeves slashed at

the shoulders, and hanging down to the feet. Here is also the monument

of Mrs. Jane Clarke, wife of Dr. Clarke, physician at Epsom, with an

elegant inscription, by Gray. The parish register, under the date of

Oct. 24, 1740, also records the burial of Margaret Finch, who lived to

the age of 109 years. She was one of the people called gipsies, and had

the title of their queen. After travelling over various parts of the

kingdom, during the greater part of a century, she settled at Norwood,

whither her great age, and the fame of her fortune-telling, attracted

numerous visitors. From a habit of sitting on the ground, with her chin

resting on her knees, the sinews at length became so contracted, that

she could not rise from that posture: after her death, they were obliged

to inclose her body in a deep square box. Her funeral was attended by

two mourning coaches: a sermon was preached upon the occasion, and a

great concourse of people attended the ceremony. Her picture adorns the

sign-post of a house of public entertainment in Norwood, called the

Gipsy House. Beckenham-place, the seat of John Cator, Esq., is partly in

the parish of Bromley; but the mansion itself is in that of Beckenham.

Rear-Admiral Sir Piercy Brett, who died in 1781, (and with his lady,

lies buried in the church,) resided here. The estate, which had long

been owned by the St. Johns, was alienated to the Cators, in 1773. The

house is a handsome building, commanding a beautiful prospect. Kent

House, the ancient seat of the Lethieullers, in Beckenham parish, is now

occupied as a farm: the estate belongs to J.J. Angerstein, Esq. Clay

Hill, or the Oakery, also in this parish, was the property of the late

learned Edward King, Esq., F.R., and A.S. This gentleman, who was a

native of Norfolk, was elected president of the Society of Antiquaries

on the decease of Dr. Milles, in 1784; but, on the succeeding election

in the year following, he was obliged to relinquish the chair to the

Earl of Leicester, after an unprecedented contest. He was the author of

various works; the principal of which are, his "Observations on Ancient

Castles;" "Morsels of Criticism," tending to illustrate the Scriptures;

and the "Monumenta Antiqua." He died in 1806, at the age of 72.

[Sidenote: Queen of the gipsies died here, at the age of 109.]

Map| Names of Places. | County. | Number of Miles From |

+--+-----------------------+----------+---------------+-------------+

9|Beckermet, St. | | | |

9|Beckermet, St. Johns pa|Cumberland| 4| 9|

27|Beckham, West pa|Norfolk | ... 5| ... 5|

+--+-----------------------+----------+---------------+-------------+

|Dist.|

Map| Names of Places. | Number of Miles From |Lond.|Population.

+--+-----------------------+----------+---------------+-----+-------+

9|Beckermet, St. | | | |

| Bridgetts pa|Whitehaven 9| 291| 545|

9|Beckermet, St. Johns pa| 10| 290| 549|

4|Becket ti|Lambourne 10| 73| |

15|Beckford pa|Evesham 7| 106| 433|

27|Beckham, East pa|Aylesham 9| 124| 50|

27|Beckham, West pa| ... 9| 124| 156|

41|Beckhampton[A] ti|Calne 6| 81| |

24|Beckingham pa|Sleaford 14| 126| 43|

30|Beckingham pa|Bawtry 10| 152| 481|

34|Beckington[B] pa|Bath 10| 105| 1340|

31|Beckley pa|Forest-hill 3| 53| 776|

38|Beckley pa|Lamberhurst 16| 56| 1477|

45|Beckwith Shaw |Ripley 5| 64| |

44|Bedale[C] m.t. & pa|Richmond 10| 223| 2707|

+--+-----------------------+--------------------------+-----+-------+

[A] BECKHAMPTON. Near this place is an enormous tumulus, perhaps the

largest in England; it is called Silbury Hill, and common belief

declares it the place of sepulchre of some British king. The two

antiquaries, Greethead and Stukeley differ, as antiquaries frequently

do, with regard to which of the British monarchs the honor of being

supposed to lie beneath this stupendous monument should belong. The

former learned writer asserting it to be that of Prydain, and the latter

calling it that of Cynneda. Scattered over the neighbouring downs are

numerous large stones called the Grey Wethers; they bear this name from

their resemblance to a flock of sheep. Beckhampton Inn, stands at the

junction of the two great Mail roads, leading from London to Bath; the

southern road passing through Devizes and Melksham; and the northern

through Calne and Chippenham. The inn is a large brick building, but has

a most desolate appearance, according well with the character of the

gloomy downs on the margin of which it stands; yet the traveller would

do well to refresh here, as there is but little accommodation for many

miles beyond.

The Falmouth Mail which passes through Devizes, arrives 5.5 morning;

departs 9.20 night. The Bristol Mail which passes through Calne,

arrives 5.5 morning; departs 9.35 night.

[Sidenote: Silbury Hill.]

[B] BECKINGTON was formerly a place of much importance in the clothing

business, but the decline of that trade in the west of England has much

reduced the town. It was the birth-place of Thomas Beckington, an

English prelate, who was one of the three appointed to draw up a code of

laws in conformity with which the Wickliffites were to be proceeded

against. His book against the salique law is still in the possession of

the Lambeth library.

[C] BEDALE is a tolerably well built town, situated in a rich valley,

which with the surrounding country is exceedingly fertile, and both corn

and grass yield abundant crops. The town lies to the west of the Great;

Glasgow road, about two miles from Leeming Lane. Hornby Castle, the seat

of the Duke of Leeds, deserves the admiration of the tourist. Bedale

church is a large and handsome edifice, and the tower is said to have

been constructed with so much strength, as to enable the inhabitants to

defend themselves therein, during the inroads of the Scots.

_Market_, Tuesday.--_Fairs_, Easter Tuesday, Whit-Tuesday; June 6 and

7; July 5 and 6, for horses, cattle, sheep, leather, &c.; Oct. 11 and

12, horned cattle, sheep, hogs and leather; and Monday-week before

Christmas, for horned cattle and sheep. The Glasgow Mail arrives at

Leeming Lane, two miles distant 7.54 evening; departs 4.58

morning.--_Inns_, Black Swan, and the Swan.

[Sidenote: Seat of the Duke of Leeds.]

Map|Names of Places. | County. | Number of Miles From |

+--+-----------------+----------+-------------+------------+

13|Bedburn, South to|Durham | ... 6| ... 4|

+--+-----------------+----------+-------------+------------+

|Dist.|

Map|Names of Places. |Number of Miles From |Lond.|Population.

+--+-----------------+------------------------+-----+------+

13|Bedburn, North to|Durham 12| 254| 387|

13|Bedburn, South to| ... 12| 254| 296|

50|Beddgelart[A] pa|Tan-y-Bwlch 8| 223| 1071|

+--+-----------------+------------------------+-----+------+

[A] BEDDGELART, is situated in a beautiful tract of meadows, at the

junction of three vales, near the conflux of the Glas Lyn, or Gwynant,

or Nant hwynant, and the Colwyn, which flows through Nant Colwyn, a vale

which leads to Caernarvon. Its situation was the fittest in the world,

says Mr. Pennant, to inspire religious meditation, amid lofty mountains,

woods, and murmuring streams. The church is small, yet the loftiest in

Snowdonia. The east window consists of three narrow slips. The roof is

neat, and there yet remains some very pretty fret work. A side chapel is

supported by two neat pillars and gothic arches. This church has been

conventual, belonging to a priory of Augustines, dedicated to the

Virgin. They were probably of the class called Gilbertines, consisting

of both men and women, living under the same roof, but divided by a

wall, as a piece of ground near the church is called Dol y Llein (the

meadow of the nun). No remnant of the priory however exists. The ground

on the south side of the church seems to have been the spot whereon the

buildings stood which the monks formerly inhabited. There are two or

three arched doors on that side the church, through which probably the

friars entered. The ancient mansion-house near the church might have

been the residence of the prior. In this house is shown an old pewter

mug, that will hold upwards of two quarts; and any person able to grasp

it with one hand, while full of ale, and to drink it off at one draught,

is entitled to the liquor gratis, and the tenant is to charge it to the

lord of the manor as part payment of his rent. Tradition says, that

Llewelyn the Great came to reside at Beddgelart during the hunting

season, with his wife and children; and one day, the family being

absent, a wolf had entered the house. On returning, his greyhound,

called Ciliart, met him, wagging his tail, but covered with blood. The

prince being alarmed, ran into the nursery, and found the cradle in

which the child had lain covered with blood. Imagining the greyhound had

killed the child, he immediately drew his sword and slew him, but on

turning up the cradle, he found under it the child alive, and the wolf

dead. This so affected the prince, that he erected a tomb over his

faithful dog's grave, where, afterwards, the parish church was built,

and called from this accident, Bedd-Cilihart, or the grave of Cilihart.

In the Welch annals this region is styled the forest of Snowdon. It is a

subject of great regret to most tourists, that many of the rocks which

surround Beddgelart, though once covered with oaks, are now naked. One

proprietor, however, is raising new plantations upon his estate.

Snowdonia, though once a forest, contains now scarcely a tree. Salmon is

very plentiful here, selling sometimes as low as three-farthings a

pound; the average price is about four-pence. The best land lets at 20s.

an acre; but the average of the neighbourhood is from 2s. 6d. to 5s.,

with unlimited right of common upon the mountains. In this little plain

is an almost inexhaustible turbary, or right of digging turf. There is a

comfortable inn at this place, called Beddgelart Hotel. It is marked by

the emblem of the goat, with the following appropriate motto. "Patria

mea Petra." My country is a rock. The guide to the mountains is the

harper of the house; or a resident in the village. William Lloyd, the

schoolmaster of this place, was long noted as an intelligent "conductor

to Snowdon, Moel Hebog, Dinas Emrys, Llanberis pass, the lakes,

waterfalls, &c.; he was also a collector of crystals, fossils, and

natural curiosities found in these regions. Dealer in superfine woollen

hose, socks, gloves, &c.," but in the year 1804, he finally emerged from

all sublunary avocations, to the regions beyond the grave. Opposite to

the village of Beddgelart, is Moel Hebog (the hill of flight) which Lord

Lyttelton ascended. [see Festiniog.] In a bog near that mountain, was

found in 1784, a most curious brass shield, which was deposited with Mr.

Williams, of Llanidan; its diameter was two feet two inches, the weight

four pounds; in the centre was a plain umbo projecting above two inches;

the surface was marked with twenty-seven smooth concentric elevated

circles, and between each a depressed space of the same breadth with the

elevated parts, marked by a single row of smooth studs. The whole shield

was flat and very flexible. This was probably Roman, for the Welsh

despised every species of defensive armour. In ascending the summit of

Snowdon from this place, a neighbouring vale is passed, which is by far

the most beautiful of the vales among these mountains. It is about six

miles long, and affords a great variety of wood, lakes, and meadows. The

vale of Llanberis is the only one which may be said to rival it; but

their characters are so different, that they cannot with propriety be

compared. On the left, about a mile and a half up the valley, is a lofty

wood-clad rock, called the fort of Ambrosius, or Merlin Ermys, a

magician who was sent for to this place from Caermarthen, by Vortigern,

who was king of Britain from 449 to 466. Upon its summit is a level

piece of ground, and the remains of a square fort; and upon the west

side, facing Beddgelart, there are traces of a long wall. It stands

detached from other rocks, and at a distance appears in the form of a

man's hat. Adjoining is a stony tract called the cells or groves of the

magicians. In the next field, a number of large stones are called the

tombs of the magicians. It was to this place that Vortigern retired,

when he found himself despised by his subjects, and unable to contend

longer with the treacherous Saxons, whom he had introduced into his

kingdom. It is probable that this insular rock afforded him a temporary

residence till he removed to his final retreat in Nant Gwrtheyrn, or

Vortigern's Valley. Speed says, probably without truth, that Vortigern

married his own child by Rowena, daughter of Hengist, the Saxon prince,

and had by her one son. There is a tradition, that Madog, the son of

prince Owen Gwynedd, resided in this vale for some time before he left

his country for America. The entrance from Beddgelart, is but the

breadth of a narrow rugged road, close by the river's side, in which

there is nothing inviting; but passing on, the traveller advances upon

enchanted ground, where he finds extensive meadows, expanding at every

turn of rock, smooth as a bowling green; beautiful lakes and meandering

rivers, abounding in fish; mountains towering one above the other in

succession, while to the left, Snowdon overtops them all, seeming like

another Atlas, to support the firmament. Mr. Pennant, says he continued

his walk along a narrow path above the lake, as far as the extremity;

then descending, reached the opposite side, in order to encounter a

third ascent, as arduous as the preceding. This brought him into the

horrible crater immediately beneath the great precipice of Wyddfa; its

situation is dreadful, surrounded by more than three parts of a circle,

with the most horrible precipices of the highest peak of Snowdon. The

strange break, called the pass of the Arrows, was probably a station for

the hunters to watch the wandering of the deer. The margin of

Ffynmon-las here appeared to be shallow and gravelly, the waters had a

greenish cast, but what is very singular, the rocks reflected into them

seemed varied with stripes of the richest colours, like the most

beautiful lute-strings, and changed almost to infinity. Here he observed

the wheat-ear, a small and seemingly tender bird, and yet almost the

only small one, or indeed the only one, (except the rock-ouzel) that

frequents these heights; the reason is evidently the want of food. The

mountainous tract near Snowdon, scarcely yields any corn; the produce is

cattle and sheep, which during summer they keep very high in the

mountains, followed by their owners with their families, who reside

during that season in their Havod-dai, or summer dwelling, or dairy

houses, as the farmers in the Swiss Alps do in their Sennes. These

houses consist of a long low room, with a hole at one end to let out the

smoke, from the fire which is made beneath. Their furniture is very

simple, stones are the substitutes for stools, and the beds are of hay,

ranged along the sides: they manufacture their own clothes and dye them

with plants, collected from the rocks. During summer, the men pass their

time in harvest work, or tending their herds; the women in milking, or

making butter and cheese of the milk for their own consumption. The diet

of these mountaineers is very plain, consisting of butter, cheese and

oat bread; their drink is whey, not but that they have their reserve of

a few bottles of very strong beer, by way of cordial, in sickness. They

are people of good understanding, wary, and circumspect; usually tall,

thin, and of strong constitutions, from their way of living. Towards

winter, they descend to their old dwelling, where they lead, during that

season, a vacant life, in carding, spinning, knitting, &c. The height of

Snowdon is 3571 feet.

[Sidenote: Nant Colwyn.]

[Sidenote: Ancient pewter mug.]

[Sidenote: Tradition of a wolf and child.]

[Sidenote: Guide to the mountains.]

[Sidenote: Brass shield found.]

[Sidenote: Groves of the magicians.]

[Sidenote: Snowdon.]

[Sidenote: The pass of the Arrows.]

[Sidenote: The summer habits of the mountaineers.]

Map| Names of Places. | County. | Number of Miles From |

+--+--------------------+---------+-------------+-----------+

25|Bedfont, West pa|Middlesex| ... 3| ... 4|

3|Bedfordshire[A] | | | |

+--+--------------------+---------+-------------+-----------+

|Dist.|

Map| Names of Places. | Number of Miles From |Lond.|Population.

+--+--------------------+-----------------------------+-----+

38|Beddingham pa|Brighton 9| 53| 264|

37|Beddington pa & to|Ewell 6| 11| 1429|

36|Bedfield pa|Eye 9| 88| 323|

25|Bedfont, East pa|Colnbrook 6| 13| 968|

25|Bedfont, West pa|... 6| ... | |

3|Bedfordshire[A] | | |95383|

+--+--------------------+-----------------------+-----+-----+

[A] BEDFORDSHIRE. This county, before the Roman invasion, was part of

the district inhabited by a race of people whom the invaders denominated

Cassii. Afterwards, in A.D. 310, it was a third part of the division

named Flavia Caesariensis. After that, it was attached to the kingdom of

Mercia. In 827 it became subject to the West Saxons. It was first called

Bedfordshire in the reign of Alfred the Great, probably from Bedan

Forda: i.e. The Fortress on the Ford; there being fortifications on the

borders of the river Ouse. It is an inland county, bounded on the north

by Huntingdonshire and Northamptonshire; west by Buckinghamshire; south

by Bucks and Herts; and east by Herts and Cambridgeshire. Its form

approaches an irregular parallelogram, with many deep and almost

isolated indentations. The extent is about 36 miles in the greatest

length, and the greatest breadth about 22 miles; it contains 465 square

miles; circumference about 95 miles. It is divided into 9 hundreds, 125

parishes, 10 market towns, 58 vicarages, 550 villages, having a total

population of 95,383 inhabitants. It belongs to the Norfolk circuit, and

is in the diocese of Lincoln; subject to an archdeaconal jurisdiction,

being divided into six deaneries. The climate is deemed mild and genial.

The prevailing winds south westerly; the north east winds being regarded

as indicating a cold summer and a severe winter. The soil is of an

exceedingly mixed and varied character; but much the greatest portion is

of a clayey nature, particularly in parts north of Bedford. The south

districts are chalky. A slip extending diagonally from Woburn to near

Biggleswade is a mixed sand; an almost equal portion from the vicinity

of Biggleswade to the neighbourhood of Bedford, partakes of a rich

gravelly soil; part of which, near the town of Biggleswade and village

of Sandy, is successfully cultivated for the production of garden

vegetables to a considerable extent. So peculiarly is that soil adapted

for such produce, that it is in some instances let for more than L14.

per acre; and generally from L4. to L9. may be considered as a fair rent

for that luxuriant soil. There can be no standard or real average as to

the value of land; as the value, like the soil itself, is exceedingly

variable. Rivers.--The Ouse and the Ivel are the chief; both of which

abound with fish of various kinds. The Ouse is remarkable for very great

and sudden inundations. The Grand Junction Canal skirts this county at

Leighton Buzzard. The natural produce consists chiefly in corn, garden

vegetables, cheese and butter. There is a little ironstone, limestone,

and a few extraneous fossils. There are several mineral springs, but

none of any celebrity. The principal landed proprietor is the Duke of

Bedford. His Grace possesses estates in about 25 parishes; under the

auspices of whom and of his illustrious brother, the county is indebted

for immense agricultural improvements.

[Sidenote: An inland county.]

[Sidenote: Climate mild.]

[Sidenote: Value of the land.]

Map|Names of Places.| County. | Number of Miles From |

+--+----------------+----------+-------------+------------+

+---+---------------+----------+-------------+------------+

|Dist.|

Map|Names of Places.| Number of Miles From |Lond.|Population.

+--+----------------+------------------------+-----+------+

3|Bedford[A] bo|Cambridge 30| 51| 6959|

22|Bedford to|Bolton 7| 199| 3087|

16|Bedhampton pa|Chichester 10| 66| 537|

36|Bedingfield pa|Framlingham 9| 87| 332|

27|Bedingham pa|Norwich 10| 106| 380|

16|Bedlam pa|Tewkesbury 7| 96| |

+--+----------------+------------------------+-----+------+

Curiosities of Great Britain: England and Wales Delineated Vol.1-11 Historical, Entertaining & Commercial; Alphabetically Arranged. 11 Volume set. · 第 24 / 31 段

[A] BECCLES is a large and well-built town, situated on the river