[A] BERKSHIRE. This county was originally inhabited by three_Curiosities of Great Britain: England and Wales Delineated Vol.1-11 Historical, Entertaining & Commercial; Alphabetically Arranged. 11 Volume set.

nations, termed by the Romans Attrebates, Bibroces, and Segontiaci. The

first occupied part of the west, the south-west and north-west parts.

The second the south-east parts; and the third a portion of the north

parts. Under the Romans, this county formed part of the first division

called Britannia Prima. During the Heptarchy it belonged to the West

Saxons. It was once called Berrocshire, from the name of a hill covered

with box, which at one time occupied a large portion of it. It is an

inland county, bounded on the north by the Thames, which divides it from

Oxfordshire on the west, and Bucks on the east; and by part of Surrey;

on the north by Surrey and Hampshire; and on the west by Wilts and a

small part of Gloucestershire. It is so very irregular in its shape as

not to admit of any adequate description. Its greatest length is about

forty-eight miles, and its utmost breadth from north to south about

twenty-five. In one of the narrowest parts, by Reading, it is about six

or seven miles, and less still at the eastern extremity. It contains

about 464,500 acres, and is about 140 miles in circumference; it is in

the province of Canterbury, and the diocese of Salisbury; (the parish of

Chilton, which is in the diocese of Oxford, and Langford, which is in

that of Lincoln, excepted;) subject to an archdeacon, and is divided

into six deaneries. It is included in the Oxford circuit. There are 20

hundreds, 12 market towns, 148 parishes (of which 67 are vicarages,) and

671 villages. The natural divisions of the county are four, 1. The Vale,

beginning at Budcot, and ending at Streatley. 2. The Chalky Hills,

running nearly through the centre of the lower part of the county. 3.

The Vale of the Kennet, extending diagonally from Hungerford to near

Wargrave. 4. The Forest Division, commencing on the east to Loddon, and

occupying nearly the entire breadth of this part of the county to Old

Windsor, and from Sandhurst south to Maidenhead north. The air is deemed

peculiarly salubrious, particularly on the chalky and gravelly soils,

which are the most common throughout the county; but the uneven face of

the country causes some slight degree of variation in this particular,

though every part is considered healthful and good. The soil is as

various (though perhaps more mixed) as in the last described county. The

Vale of White Horse consists generally of a rich strong loam and gravel,

with some sand and stone brasp, producing corn, wheat, beans, &c. In the

Chalk Hill district, light black earth on chalk prevails, with flint,

chalk, gravel, and loam. Here numerous sheep are fed; it produces,

towards the south and east, turnips, barley; and, when properly manured,

Lammas wheat and artificial grasses. The Vale of Kennet, is generally

peat land, with gravel, loam and clay, though in the south east parts a

poor stony and heathy soil. The Forest District, gravel, clay, and loam,

except on the south, which is poor and heathy. The principal rivers and

streams are the Thames, the Kennet, the Loddon, the Lambourn, the Ock,

the Aubourn, the Emme, and the Broadwater. All these, with perhaps the

exception of the Aubourn, the Emme, and the Broadwater, abound with

almost every kind of fresh water fish. Besides these rivers and streams,

there are the Ginge Brook, the Moreton Brook, and other rivulets, &c.;

also some other natural and artificial lakes and ponds. Water, however,

is generally scarce on the Berkshire downs, and along the whole of the

chalky stratum. The navigable rivers are the Thames and the Kennet. The

navigable canals are the Kennet and Avon canal, which joins the river

Kennet a little above Newbury; the entire length from Newbury to Bath is

sixty miles--it has been navigable since the year 1798; and the Wilts

and Berks canal, opened on September 21, 1810, into the Thames at

Abingdon; from near Bath to Abingdon, about fifty-one and three-quarter

miles. Mineral waters are by no means common in this county. The natural

productions of this county, except those which may be considered partly

agricultural, are neither plentiful or important. There are no minerals

nor fossils of any great consequence. The strata of sand with

oyster-shells, and particularly a thick stratum of chalk, is found near

Reading. The surface of the soil, however, amply compensates for the

apparent barrenness of the internal parts; and the produce of fat

cattle, sheep, swine, and grain, is immense; as is also that of fine

timber, especially oak and beech. Abingdon gives the title of Earl to

the Bertie family--Coleshill, that of Baron to the Pleydell-Bouverie

family--Foxley, that of Baron to the Townshend family--Hungerford, that

of Baron to the Rawdon-Hastings family--Mortimer, the title of Earl to

the Harley family--Newbury, that of Baron to the Cholmondely

family--Uffingham, that of Viscount to the Craven family--and Windsor,

the title of Baron to the Windsor-Hickman family; and Earl, to the

Stuarts. It has been calculated, that, including houses, mills, and

other productive revenue arising from or attached to the soil, the

landed property cannot amount to less than L500,000 per annum, and that

the largest possessor may have about L8000. The largest possessor, being

a peer, is the Earl of Craven. The Craven, Englefield, Eyston, Read,

Southby, Seymour, and Clarke families are among the few ancient families

who still inherit the same estates, and occupy the same seats, or are

immediately connected with the county, as their ancestors. Among the

representatives of some very old families, or in the female line, may be

ranked the Berties, the Nevilles, the Pleydells, the Puseys, the

Throckmortons, the Lovedens, the Nelsons, and the Blagraves. The King is

purposely omitted in this brief list:--his possessions as a landed

proprietor being well known. Agriculture so much engrosses the attention

of the people of Berkshire, that very little trade, unconnected with

these pursuits is carried on. There are, however, some manufactories of

sail-cloth, kerseys, canvass, and malt; and there are also several

pretty large breweries in various parts of the county: the Windsor ale

having acquired considerable celebrity; and at the Temple mills, near

Bisham, there is a copper manufacture, and a manufacture of potash at

Milton.

[Sidenote: Its ancient division into three nations.]

[Sidenote: Air, soil, and rivers.]

[Sidenote: Natural productions.]

[Sidenote: Ancient and noble families.]

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

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

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

|Dist.|

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

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

7|Bermondsey[A] pa|Rotherhithe 1| 1| 29741|

9|Berrier to|Carlisle 20| 291| 113|

36|Berriew |Montgomery 4| 172| 2429|

5|Berrington ham|Evesham 8| 94| 129|

33|Berrington pa|Act. Burnell 10| 152| 684|

42|Berrington to|Ludlow 7| 133| 165|

34|Berrow pa|Bridgewater 12| 139| 496|

42|Berrow pa|Tewkesbury 7| 110| 507|

?1|Berry Narbor pa|C. Martin 3| 201| 794|

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

[A] BERMONDSEY stretches along the banks of the Thames, from Southwark

to Deptford, and Rotherhithe eastward, and is much inhabited by

woolstaplers, fellmongers, curriers, parchment-makers, and other

manufacturers, with such craftsmen as are connected with the

construction and management of shipping. A priory for monks was founded

here in 1082, by Aylwin Child, a citizen of London, and endowed by the

second William with his manor of Bermondsey. In 1399, it was made an

abbey, and at the dissolution, it was granted to Sir Thomas Pope, who

built on its site a large house, which afterwards became the property

and residence of the Earls of Sussex. Another part of the site is called

the Abbey House. Catherine, the Queen of Henry V., and Elizabeth, Queen

of Edward IV. retired to this place, where they died, the former in

1436; the latter soon after the forfeiture of her lands, by an order of

the Council, in 1486. The church was erected in 1680, of brick, with a

low square tower and turret, and consists of a chancel, nave, two

aisles, and a transept. A free school was founded here by Mr. Josiah

Bacon, and endowed with a revenue of L150. for the instruction of not

more than sixty, or fewer than forty boys. A charity-school was also

established, by contributions, in 1755, for the education of fifty boys

and thirty girls, and was afterwards endowed by Mr. Nathaniel Smith,

with a revenue of L40. per annum. The Bermondsey Spa was discovered in

1770, and, by means of the attractive entertainments contrived by the

proprietor, became a place of general resort; but soon after his death

the gardens were closed, and the area is now built upon. This suburban

parish long retained a very antique air from the age of several of its

streets and houses, many of which were built of wood. But the spirit of

improvement has gradually amended its appearance: an act of parliament

was passed in the year 1823, for watching, paving, cleansing, and

lighting the parish. A new church has been erected here for the

convenience of the parishioners, at a moderate distance from the mother

church; it is, however, subordinate to the original rectory.

[Sidenote: Royal residence.]

[Sidenote: Church and schools.]

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

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

31|Berwick-Salome pa|Oxford | ... 4| ... 5|

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

|Dist.|

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

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

11|Berry Pomeroy[A] pa|Brixham 7| 197| 1186|

52|Bersham Drelincourt to|Mold 14| 179| 1240|

38|Bersted, South pa|Lt. Hampton 9| 67| 2190|

38|Berwick pa|Hailsham 6| 58| 203|

33|Berwick, Gt. & L. ham|Albrighton 3| 155| |

29|Berwick Hill to|Morpeth 10| 284| 105|

41|Berwick, St. James pa|Salisbury 9| 83| 232|

41|Berwick, St. John pa|Wilton 12| 97| 425|

41|Berwick, St. Leonard p|Warminster 10| 93| 51|

31|Berwick-Prior lib|Dorchester 4| 49| |

31|Berwick-Salome pa| ... 4| 49| 134|

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

[A] BERRY POMEROY. This place, situated in the hundred of Hayter,

derives its name from the Pomeroys, a very considerable family in these

parts. Ralph de Pomeroy, who came to England with William the Norman,

and for his services was rewarded with fifty-eight lordships in this

county, built a castle here, the magnificent ruins of which, seated on a

rocky eminence, rising over a pellucid brook, now form, in combination

with the other features of the scenery, one of the most delightful views

in Devonshire. The approach to the castle, observes Dr. Matton, in his

Observations on the Western Counties, "is through a thick wood,

extending along the slope of a range of hills that entirely intercept

any prospect to the south: on the opposite side is a steep rocky ridge,

covered with oak, so that the ruins are shut into a beautiful valley.

The great gate, with the walls of the south front, the north wing of the

court, or quadrangle, some apartments on the west side, and a turret or

two, are the principal remains of the building; and these are so finely

overhung with the branches of trees and shrubs which grow close to the

walls, so beautifully mantled with ivy, and so richly incrusted with

moss, that they constitute the most picturesque objects that can be

imagined; and when the surrounding scenery is taken into the account,

the noble mass of wood fronting the gate, the bold ridges rising in the

horizon, and the fertile valley opening to the east, the ruins of Berry

Pomeroy Castle must be considered as almost unparalleled in their

effect." The posterity of Ralph de Pomeroy resided here till the reign

of Edward VI., when Sir Thomas Pomeroy sold the manor to Edward Seymour,

Duke of Somerset, from whom it has descended to the present Duke of

Somerset. Berry Pomeroy Castle, whose venerable ruins we have just

mentioned, appears to have been originally quadrangular, and to have had

but one entrance, which was on the south side, between two hexagonal

towers, through a double gateway; the first of which was machiolated,

and strengthened by angular bastions, and having over it the Pomeroy

arms, still visible. A small room over the gateway was probably the

chapel: it is divided by a wall, supported by pillars and arches. From

the eastern tower is a fine view of the surrounding country. The ruins

in the interior part, or quadrangle, are considerably more modern than

the rest of the building. These appear to have belonged to a

"magnificent structure," commenced, says Prince, in his Worthies of

Devonshire, by the Seymours, at an expense of L20,000, but "never

brought to perfection: for the west side of the mansion was never begun:

what was finished may be thus described. Before the door of the Great

Hall was a noble walk whose length was the breadth of the court, arched

over with curiously carved free-stone, supported in the fore part by

several stately pillars of the same stone, of great dimensions, after

the Corinthian order, standing on pedestals, having cornices and freezes

finely wrought. The apartments within were very splendid, especially the

dining-room; and many other of the rooms were well adorned with

mouldings and fret-work; some of whose marble clavils were so delicately

fine, that they would reflect an object true and lively from a great

distance. Notwithstanding which it is now demolished, and all this glory

lyeth in the dust, buried in its own ruins; there being nothing standing

but a few broken walls, which seem to mourn their own approaching

funerals." The walls are formed of slate, and appear to be rapidly

decaying. The grounds round the castle consist of steep eminences,

covered with oak and other trees. Even in the court, and remains of the

fortress itself, trees of nearly a century's growth are flourishing in

luxuriance, and compose, with the shrubs thickly scattered within the

area, a scene highly beautiful. In the wars between Charles I. and the

Parliament this castle was dismantled. Berry Pomeroy Church, which was

built by one of the Pomeroy family, contains a splendid alabaster

monument to the memory of Lord Edward Seymour, Knt. son to the Duke of

Somerset; Edward Seymour, Bart. and his Lady, the daughter of Sir Arthur

Champernoune. The two first are represented in armour; the knight having

a truncheon in his hand, and lying cross-legged. The lady is in a black

dress, with the figure of a child, in a cradle, at her head, and at her

feet another in a chair: below are nine figures kneeling, with books

open before them. This monument was repaired by the late Duke of

Somerset, the eighth lineal descendant of the Duke of Somerset the

Protector.

[Sidenote: Castle in ruins.]

[Sidenote: Former state of the castle.]

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

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

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

|Dist.|

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

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

29|Berwick-upon-T[A] m.t.|Edinburgh 58| 337|8920|

33|Besford to|Wem 5| 158| 158|

42|Besford pa|Worcester 10| 109| 146|

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

[A] BERWICK. The town is situated N. by W. from Newcastle. King Edgar

gave it, with Coldingham, to the church of Durham; but it was afterwards

forfeited by Bishop Flambard. It had a church in the reign of Alexander,

and, in David's time constituted one of the four boroughs where courts

of trade were wont to be held. In 1173, it was reduced to ashes; and in

the following year, Earl Duncan marched to the place, and butchered its

defenceless inhabitants. Henry II. having obtained the castle as a

pledge for King William, strengthened its fortifications. It was

restored, however, in the following reign. King John made dreadful

ravages in the town and neighbourhood. A convention was held here by

Edward I., in 1291, to arbitrate the claims to the crown of Scotland,

which were at length determined in favour of his creature, Baliol. This

prince having shortly afterwards thrown off his allegiance, Berwick

became exposed to the fury of Edward's resentment. In 1296, the English

king fortified it with a wall and a fosse, and in the same year received

the homage of the Scotch nobility here In 1297, the town was taken by

Sir William Wallace; but the castle held out, and after a long assault,

was relieved. Wallace about eight years after this was betrayed, and

half of his body exposed upon Berwick-bridge. The Countess of Buchan,

for crowning Robert Bruce, at Scone, was shut up here in a wooden cage,

six years, and then released. Edward II. and his queen wintered at

Berwick in 1310. He assembled his army here before the battle of

Bannockburn. Peter Spalding betrayed this place into the hands of Robert

Bruce in 1318: many attempts were made to recover it, which was not

effected till the day after the battle of Hallidon-hill, in 1333. Edward

III. was here in 1335, with a great army in 1340, and the year after, at

Easter, held a tournament; but during his absence in France, in November

1353, the Scots surprized and took the town. The castle, under the

renowned Sir John Copeland, held out till Edward, in February following,

arrived with a great army, and forced the Scotch to capitulate. Seven

Scotchmen, in 1377, surprised the castle, and held it eight days against

7,000 archers, and 3,000 cavalry. The deputy-governor, under the Earl of

Northumberland, betrayed it into the enemy's hands in 1384; but the earl

soon after recovered it. Through the solicitation of his uncle the Earl

of Worcester, engaging in the rebellion against Henry IV., in 1406, he

employed this fortress against the king; but a cannon-shot, the first

that was ever fired in England, so alarmed the garrison, that it,

immediately surrendered. According to Walsingham and Speed, this shot

was of a large size, and demolished great part of a tower. In 1811, a

ball of cast iron, weighing ninety-six pounds, answering to this

account, was found in a part of the ruins of the castle. It had

penetrated the wall about three yards, at a place where it was flanked

with a tower. An unsuccessful attempt was made to reduce it in 1422; but

after the battle of Towton, in 1461, it was again in the hands of the

Scots, who strengthened its walls, and held it till 1482, when it

finally came into possession of the English. "From that time," observes

Camden, "the kings of England have continually added works to it,

particularly Queen Elizabeth, who, lately to the terror of the enemy,

and security of the towns-people, contracted the circuit of the walls,

drawing within the old ones a very high wall, well built of strong

stone, surrounded by a deep ditch, a regular rampart, redoubt,

counterscarps, and covered ways, so that the form and strength of the

fortifications are sufficient to discourage all hopes of carrying it by

assault, not to mention the bravery of the garrison, and the stores in

the place, which exceed belief." Between the years 1761 and 1770 the

walls were almost entirely rebuilt in many parts, and finished in 1786.

The governor of Berwick has a salary of L586. 7s. 1d. The barracks

measure 217 by 121; and contain twenty-four rooms for officers, and

seventy-two rooms adapted to hold 567 privates. The church of Berwick, a

peculiar of the dean and chapter of Durham, stands on the north side of

the parade. It was rebuilt between 1642 and 1652, at the cost of L1400.

It has no steeple. It consists of three aisles, and several galleries,

all handsomely pewed. The Worshipful Mercers' Company, in London,

founded a lectureship here. David I., King of Scotland, founded here a

convent for Cistertian Nuns; and Robert III, granted its revenues to

Dryburgh Abbey. The convent of Carmelites originated with Sir John Grey,

in 1270. The Scotch King, in 1239, brought hither a convent of

Dominicans, which Edward III. removed. The Trinitarians had a house

here, as had the Franciscans; and between the sea and the town, in

Maudlin-field, stood the hospital and free chapel of St. Mary Magdalen,

which had an hospital or hermitage belonging to it at Segeden.--Queen

Elizabeth founded a free school here; and a charity-school was rebuilt

in 1725, in which twenty boys and six girls are clothed and educated.

Berwick bridge was swept away by a flood in 1199. It was rebuilt of

wood, of which it consisted, till the time of James I., who commenced

the present elegant structure of stone. It has fifteen arches; its

length being 1164 feet, and its breadth seventeen. It was twenty-four

years, four months, and four days in building, and cost government

L14,960 1s. 6d. The Town Hall was built in 1754. On its ground-floor, on

the east-side, is a piazza, called the Exchange; and opposite it are

cells for criminals, and shops. The second floor consists of two

spacious halls. The outer hall, for holding courts and guilds, measures,

sixty feet by thirty-one. The inner hall forty-seven feet long and

twenty-three feet broad, is occasionally occupied for public

entertainments. The upper story is the common gaol of the town. The

turret, 150 feet high, contains eight musical bells. The first charter

of the corporation was granted by Edward I. The corporation were first

summoned to send members to parliament in the latter end of the reign of

Edward IV. The last charter of this town was granted by James I. The

corporation now consists of a mayor, recorder, town clerk, four

bailiffs, a coroner, four serjeants at mace, and a water-bailiff. The

mayor is also escheator in the borough, clerk of the market, and a

justice of the peace; the other justices of the town being the recorder

and such resident burgesses as have sustained the office of mayor. They

are lords of the manor of Tweedmouth, where they hold a court-leet and

court-baron twice a year. Their annual revenues arising from duties

taken at the quay and gates, are estimated at L7000. Besides the trade

in salmon, great quantities of corn and eggs are exported here for

London. One morning in the month of October, 1814, there were upwards of

10,000 salmon, in Berwick market, caught in the Tweed, some of which

might have been bought at 2s. each. At the same time, the finest

herrings (of which an immense shoal was on the coast) were sold for 2s.

the hundred of six score. On the same day the best salmon was sold in

Newcastle market at 6d. per pound, and some of the inferior kind as low

as 4d. The port has about sixty or seventy vessels. The harbour abounds

with low dangerous rocks. At its mouth a noble pier has recently been

constructed on the site of an old one, built by Queen Elizabeth. Berwick

Castle, once a place of high importance, is now almost levelled with the

ground. About 400 yards north of it, is a pentagonal tower, called the

Bell Tower, having its name from containing a bell, which was rung on

any occasion of alarm.

Curiosities of Great Britain: England and Wales Delineated Vol.1-11 Historical, Entertaining & Commercial; Alphabetically Arranged. 11 Volume set. · 第 29 / 31 段

[A] BERKSHIRE. This county was originally inhabited by three tribes or