THE FORTRESS, PALACES, AND MANSIONS.
_Abbey of St. Peter--Westminster Palace--St. Stephen's
Chapel--Geoffrey Chaucer--Westminster Hall, its Feasts and other
Solemnities--Baynard's Castle and the Fitz-Walters--The City's
Banner-bearer--Whitehall--Strand Mansions of the Nobility: Essex
House, Arundel House, the Savoy, Durham House--Crosby Place,
Bishopsgate--The Tower of London._
The two most famous of London royal residences, the Tower of London and
the Palace of Westminster, were situated respectively at the extreme west
and east of the Middlesex bank of the River Thames, and there lay between
them, mostly at the water-side, many another stately building honoured by
royal residence.
Although there is no direct evidence, there seems every probability that
the foundation of the Abbey preceded that of the Palace of Westminster.
The earliest documentary evidence is a charter of Edgar, which details the
boundaries of the ancient Parish of St. Margaret, the great manor with
which that King endowed the Abbey. The date assigned to this document by
Kemble is 971.
From Domesday Book we learn that Westminster comprised sixteen hides and a
half, which apparently represent about eleven hundred acres, but this
estimate is unreliable on account of the difficulty of determining exactly
the modern value of a hide of land. The manor of the Abbot of Westminster
in the eleventh and twelfth centuries extended eastwards almost to the
River Fleet, and included a large part of the present Ward of Farringdon
Without.
Edward the Confessor resided at Westminster during the greater part of his
reign, and built a monastic church, on the spot where now stands
Westminster Abbey. It is quite possible that he also laid the foundations
of the royal palace of Westminster.
Of the Confessor's church, an interesting relic remains in the Pyx Chapel
and the adjoining structures against the east cloister and the south
transept. The building was cruciform, with a high central tower. The good
king lived until the date of its consecration, but was too ill to attend
the ceremony, for which he had made elaborate preparations. Queen Editha
presided in the place of her husband, who died almost immediately
afterwards, and was buried in the church.
Henry III. rebuilt the church on a grander scale, removing the older
structure from time to time during the progress of the new work. This
great undertaking was begun in 1246, when the east end, the tower, and the
transept were pulled down, to reappear in all the lightness, beauty, and
variety of the pointed style, forming a striking contrast to the massive
and simple impressiveness of the Anglo-Norman edifice. Twenty-five years
earlier, in 1221, Henry, then a mere boy, had laid the first stone of the
Lady Chapel, and was known as its founder. His devoted interest to the
Abbey Church continued throughout his reign. Funds in profusion were
provided by the king, or through his instrumentality, both for the
building itself and for the costly ornaments to be employed in its
services.
Relics were procured to be enshrined at the Abbey, and thus attract the
veneration and gifts of the faithful. Many were the donations from Henry's
own royal purse, but most valuable of all was the privilege granted by the
king in 1248, permitting the Abbot to hold a fair at Tothill, with
privileges of an extraordinary character, all other fairs being ordered to
be closed, as well as the shops of London itself, during the days of its
continuance. Altogether, by various methods, a sum of nearly £30,000 was
raised within the short period of fifteen years, and applied to the
rebuilding of the Abbey. By the close of Henry the Third's long reign the
new building had made substantial progress, and consisted of the
Confessor's Chapel, the four chapels in the choir ambulatory, a large
portion of the choir itself, the transepts, and probably the
chapter-house. The work proceeded slowly, but steadily, for rather more
than two centuries, and ended with the completion of Henry the Seventh's
Chapel, the central tower never having risen upon its foundations.
The Palace of Westminster, like its sister building, the Abbey, was
remodelled by Henry III. in accordance with the architecture of his time.
It was this monarch most probably who converted the apartment known as St.
Edward's Chamber into the better-known Painted Chamber, by embellishing it
with the masterly wall-paintings from which it took its name. In this room
was signed the warrant for the execution of Charles I. Another portion of
the ancient palace was the old House of Lords, so nearly destroyed by
Fawkes and his fellow-conspirators. The later House of Lords also formed
part of the old building, and had in the course of its history various
names. First it was known, probably, as the Hall, before Rufus had erected
the grand structure now known by that name, and in consequence of which
erection it was designated the Little Hall. In Richard the Second's time,
Little Hall had changed to Whitehall; and, again, under Henry VII., to the
Court of Requests, when it was also known, according to Stow, as "the Poor
Man's Court, because there he could have right without paying any money."
Attached to the ancient Palace of Westminster was the beautiful Chapel of
St. Stephen, built by the Norman monarch of that name, and rebuilt by
Edward I. It was destroyed by fire in 1298, and was again rebuilt during
the reigns of Edward II. and Edward III., and completed in 1363 in the
glorious beauty of the architecture of that period. All that now remains
is the crypt or lower chapel, but the building in its original state
consisted of the chapel, with vestibule, crypt, cloister, and a small
oratory with chantry above. The walls were adorned with sculptures and
highly artistic paintings, illustrating scenes from Scripture narratives.
The endowments of the collegiate establishment, as settled by Edward III.,
were of a like sumptuous character. The yearly revenues amounted at the
Dissolution to nearly £1100, which provided for the maintenance of a dean,
twelve secular canons, twelve vicars, four clerks, and six choristers,
besides minor officials.
Between the years 1389 and 1391 the office of Clerk of the Works at the
Palace of Westminster was held by Geoffrey Chaucer, who also had charge of
the works at the Tower and at the mews near Charing Cross. Rather more
than eighty years later Westminster received the new distinction of being
the home of William Caxton, the father of English printing.
Yet another building of great historic interest, happily still preserved,
is the stately and venerable Westminster Hall. Built originally by William
Rufus as a royal banqueting-hall, it has served this purpose at the
coronations of our English sovereigns down to the reign of George IV. Here
occurred one of the strangest and most picturesque events in our national
history. Henry II., with the assent of a general assembly of his subjects,
caused his son Henry to be crowned in his own lifetime. The feast in the
great hall presented a striking scene. The old king himself waited on his
son at the table as server, bringing up the boar's head with trumpets
before it in the accustomed manner. His son, however, predeceased him.
Henry III. was specially distinguished for his royal hospitality. On St.
Edward's Day (January 5th), 1241-2, he feasted, we are told, an
innumerable multitude, among whom were the citizens of London. The latter
would seem to have been somewhat unwilling guests, as they were subjected
by royal edict to a penalty of one hundred shillings if they stayed away.
On another occasion, the marriage of his brother, Richard, earl of
Cornwall, Henry ordered thirty thousand dishes to be prepared for the
banquet. A more pleasing feature of this monarch's hospitality was his
generous entertainment of the poor, who crowded the Hall and its
apartments year after year on the day of St. Edward, his patron saint. The
great size and imposing appearance of Westminster Hall naturally led to
its use for public assemblies of an extraordinary character. Here the
Parliament frequently met before the division into two houses, and the
Lords continued to assemble in it for some time after. Here Edward III.
received his august prisoner, John, King of France, whom the Black Prince
had escorted in a triumphal procession through London.
Edward's grandson and successor, Richard II., rebuilt the Hall, and
covered it with its wonderful roof. The Hall, as we have said, was the
scene of the unfortunate Richard's deposition, and the successful claim of
his rival, Henry of Lancaster, to succeed him on the throne. In later
years Westminster Hall has been the scene of a memorable series of state
trials, which occupy so large a part of its traditions.
Besides the Palace of Westminster and the fortress abode of the Tower of
London, there were within the City of London other places which were
frequently used as royal residences. One of the most celebrated of these
was Castle Baynard, which was built by Baynard, a follower of the
Conqueror. Reverting to the Crown in 1111 by forfeiture, it was granted to
Robert Fitz-Richard, son of Gilbert, Earl of Clare. In 1198 the castle
came by hereditary succession into the hands of Robert Fitz-Walter, who
took a conspicuous part in the Barons' Wars in the time of King John. At a
later time Castle Baynard was held by its lords, the Fitz-Walters, subject
to a military service due to the City of London.
The Lord of Baynard's Castle was the Chatelain and Banner-bearer of the
City, and as such a later Robert Fitz-Walter on 12th March, 1303,
acknowledged his service for his Castle Baynard before Sir Robert Blunt,
Lord Mayor of London. The City, in return, granted important rights and
privileges to their great vassal, Fitz-Walter. These comprised, as we
learn from Stow, a limited jurisdiction within his hereditary soke of
Castle Baynard, and a high military command in time of war. The old
chronicler gives a picturesque description of the formal greeting offered
to their leader by the assembled citizens. The scene forms the subject of
one of the modern tapestries decorating the saloon of the Mansion House.
"The said Robert ought to come, he being the twentieth man of arms on
horseback, unto the great west door of St. Paul, with his banner displayed
before him of his arms. And when he is come to the said door, mounted and
apparelled as before is said, the Mayor with his Aldermen and Sheriffs,
armed in their arms, shall come out of the said Church of St. Paul unto
the said door, with a banner in his hand, all on foot; which banner shall
be gules, the image of St. Paul, gold; the face, hands, feet, and sword of
silver. And as soon as the said Robert shall see the Mayor, Aldermen, and
Sheriffs come on foot out of the church, armed with such a banner, he
shall alight from his horse and salute the Mayor, and say to him, 'Sir
Mayor, I am come to do my service, which I owe the City.' And the Mayor
and Aldermen shall answer, 'We give to you, as to our Banneret of Fee in
this city, the banner of this city to bear and govern to the honour and
profit of this city, to your power.' And the said Robert, and his heirs,
shall receive the banner in his hands, and go on foot out of the gate,
with the banner in his hands; and the Mayor, Aldermen, and Sheriffs shall
follow to the door, and shall bring an horse to the said Robert, worth
twenty pounds, which horse shall be saddled with a saddle of the arms of
the said Robert, and shall be covered with sindals of the said arms. Also
they shall present to him twenty pounds sterling, and deliver it to the
chamberlain of the said Robert, for his expenses that day." The Banneret
then sets forth and desires the Mayor to cause a marshal, "one of the
city," to be chosen for the host, and the citizens to assemble and all go
under the banner of St. Paul. If they should go out of the city, then
Fitz-Walter was to choose two out of every ward, the most sage persons, to
look to the keeping of the city. Lastly, for every siege which the host of
London should lay against town or castle, the said Robert shall have one
hundred shillings and no more. Baynard's Castle passed from the hands of
the Fitz-Walters and came into the possession of the celebrated "Duke
Humphrey," on whose attainder it was seized by the Crown, and, as we have
already said, became one of the royal places of abode within the city.
Close by Baynard's Castle to the west, and at the mouth of the river
Fleet, stood the palace of Bridewell, still more famous as a royal
residence, of which we have already written.
Old Whitehall, with its Tennis Yard and Cock Pit, belongs, in its royal
splendour, to later times, although it existed, under another name, from
an early period. It was originally built by Hubert de Burgh, the great
justiciary of the reign of Henry III. From him it passed, through an
intermediate grant, into the possession of Walter de Grey, archbishop of
York, who purchased it in 1248. It then became, and long continued, the
London house of the See of York, and was known as York House. Wolsey was
its last archiepiscopal owner, and had to surrender it to his imperious
master, Henry VIII., by whom, and his royal successors, it was occupied as
a palace until its destruction by fire in 1698.
The mansions of the nobility which lined the south side of the Strand,
with their river gates and stairs, have an interest almost equal to that
of the royal mansions already mentioned. On a site extending west from
Fleet Street to the present Essex Street anciently stood a building known
as the Outer Temple, which, with the Inner and Middle Temples, formed the
abode of the Knights Templars. This mansion passed, during the reign of
Edward III., into the hands of the Bishops of Exeter, who made it their
London residence under the name of Exeter House. It afterwards became
known as Paget Place and Leicester House, from the names of two subsequent
owners--Sir William (afterwards Lord) Paget, and Queen Elizabeth's
favourite, the Earl of Leicester. The unfortunate Earl of Essex became in
turn the owner of the property, which was then known as Essex House. Here
he assembled his followers on Sunday, the 8th of February, 1600-1, and
marched at their head into the City, hoping to rouse the Londoners to the
support of his cause. He signally failed, and with difficulty escaped by
boat to Essex House. Here he was besieged by the royal forces, to whom he
surrendered with his friend, the Earl of Southampton, and paid the supreme
penalty a little more than a fortnight afterwards.
Another stately river mansion was Arundel House, at first known as Bath's
Inn, or Hampton Place, the London seat of the See of Bath and Wells. It
was next called Seymour Place, from another owner, Lord Thomas Seymour,
uncle of Edward VI. On Seymour's attainder and execution, the property
reverted to the Crown, and was sold, with other messuages for the moderate
sum of 41_l._ 6_s._ 8_d._, to the Earl of Arundel, who gave it his own
name. This nobleman was the famous collector of the Arundel marbles, and
his house was the common resort of the most famous artists of his day,
among them being Inigo Jones, Vandyck, and Wenceslaus Hollar. Here, too,
the Royal Society found a temporary home after the destruction of Gresham
College in the Great Fire. Soon after, Arundel House, said to have been
one of the finest and most commodious of London's mansions, was pulled
down, its site being now occupied by Arundel, Norfolk, Surrey, and Howard
Streets.
Further west we come again to a building of historic fame, which took a
large part in the activities of mediæval London. This was the palace of
the Savoy, built in 1245 on the spot which still bears its name, now
occupied by Wellington Street at the approach to Waterloo Bridge. Peter de
Savoy, its founder, was the brother of Boniface, archbishop of Canterbury,
and uncle to Eleanor, the queen of Henry III. On coming to England, he was
created Earl of Savoy and Richmond, and was knighted in Westminster
Abbey. The house came afterwards into the possession of the Earls of
Lancaster, by one of whom it was enlarged on a magnificent scale in 1325,
at a cost of 52,000 marks. John of Gaunt became by marriage the owner of
the Savoy, and in 1356 it was used as the prison-house of John, the
captive King of France. Here he lived for four years, and hither, on
failing to fulfil the conditions of the treaty which secured to him his
liberty, he chivalrously returned. On the 9th of April, 1364, he died in
the Savoy, and his remains were honourably conveyed to France for burial.
The great Duke of Lancaster and his Palace at the Savoy were in much
danger from a rising of the citizens of London under their
standard-bearer, Lord Fitz-Walter, in a quarrel arising out of the
citation of Wickliffe before the Bishop of London. The danger became more
real in 1381, the year of Wat Tyler's insurrection. On the 12th of June
the Kentish rebels had complete mastery in London, one body marching off
to attack Lambeth Palace, whilst another assembled at the Savoy. Here they
set fire to the building, breaking up the gold and silver plate, while, to
complete the work of destruction, some barrels of gunpowder, which the
rioters supposed to have been filled with treasure, were thrown into the
fire, blowing up the Hall and surrounding houses. For a century and a
quarter the Savoy lay waste, and when it arose from its ruins it was
endowed as a hospital by King Henry VII. Much interest attaches to the
latter fortunes of the Savoy and its famous Chapel, but the story lies
outside our present purpose.
Many noble mansions built in later times shared the beautiful Thames
frontage with the older houses, which are the proper subject of our
notice. Beyond the Savoy to the east lay Worcester, Rutland, and Cecil
Houses, and then we come to Durham House, one of the oldest and most
interesting in this street of palaces. It stood on the site afterwards
occupied in part by the Adelphi theatre, and was originally founded by
Anthony de Beck, Patriarch of Jerusalem and Bishop of Durham, in the reign
of Edward I. Bishop Hatfield is said by Stow to have rebuilt it. Here the
challengers in the famous joustings at Westminster, in 1540, entertained
at dinner not only the King and Queen, with the Court, but also the whole
House of Commons and the Mayor and Aldermen of London, with their wives.
In the following reign the Royal Mint was established in Durham House.
Here, too, the unfortunate Lady Jane Grey lived, under the roof of her
ambitious uncle, the Duke of Northumberland, and set out in great state
from its portals on her ill-fated mission to be acclaimed Queen at the
Tower.
We will now again turn our steps citywards to the great highway of
Bishopsgate, where, closely adjoining the church of St. Helen, still
stands the venerable mansion known as Crosby Place. Sir John Crosby, the
owner and reputed builder of the mansion, was an Alderman and Sheriff of
London in Edward the Fourth's reign, and served the city in Parliament in
1461; he was also Mayor of the Staple of Calais. Attaching himself to the
fortunes of Edward IV., he was knighted by the King on his approach to
London in 1471. Four years later Crosby died, and his magnificent abode
soon became a favourite royal residence. Richard, Duke of Gloucester,
whilst Protector, made this his home and the centre of his plots to secure
the Crown for himself. In the story as told by Shakespeare, the usurper
bids the Lady Anne--
"presently repair to Crosby House;
Where, after I have solemnly interr'd
At Chertsey monastery this noble King,
And wet his grave with my repentant tears,
I will with all expedient duty see you."
There is little doubt that we owe the preservation of the Great Hall and
so much of the rest of this fine building to the notoriety which it has
gained from the allusion in the above passage. In later times the Hall was
used for the acccommodation of foreign ambassadors; many a mayoralty feast
was held within its walls, the most famous recorded one being that given
by Sir Bartholomew Read, goldsmith, in 1502, when the guests were most
numerous and "of great estate," and the provision made for their
entertainment was on a scale of unparalleled magnificence.
Far away below bridge on the right bank of the Thames lay another Royal
Palace, that of Greenwich. The Manor of Greenwich belonged to the Crown at
an early period. In 1300 Edward I. and the Prince his son made offering
"at each of the holy crosses of the Virgin Mary at Greenwich." The estate
passed for a time out of Royal hands, but Humphrey, duke of Gloucester,
enclosed a park of 200 acres, built a tower known as Greenwich Castle, and
the more famous Palace of Placentia, which on his death in 1447 reverted
to the Crown, the Palace becoming the favourite abode of the early Tudor
sovereigns.
It now remains to speak of that grand national monument which, for varied
interest, exceeds all its sister buildings in the ancient city--the Tower
of London. Stow has well described the various uses which from time to
time it has served:--"A citadel to defend or command the city; a royal
palace for assemblies or treaties; a prison of State for the most
dangerous offenders; the only place of coinage for all England; the
armoury for warlike provision; the treasury of the ornaments and jewels of
the Crown; and general conserver of the most ancient records of the King's
Courts of Justice at Westminster." The Great or White Tower was built at
the command of William the Conqueror by Gundulph, Bishop of Rochester,
about the year 1078. Much injury was done to the new work by a storm in
1092, and the fortifications were repaired and extended by William Rufus,
who, for this purpose and for the erection of Westminster Hall, cruelly
oppressed his subjects with taxes. The building of the subsidiary forts
and defences appears to have continued during the reigns of Henry I. and
most of his successors to the time of Edward I.
The custody of the Tower was committed by the Conqueror to a Constable or
Governor, whose office was at first hereditary. In or about the year 1140
it was held by Geoffrey, grandson of Geoffrey de Mandeville, who was
created Earl of Essex by King Stephen. Soon afterwards he took the side of
the Empress Maud, and being besieged by the citizens, sustained the attack
for a long time, and in a sally took the Bishop of London prisoner at
Fulham. The Tower seems to have been regarded in those days as
impregnable, and Geoffrey retained his possession of it until 1143, when
he was taken prisoner by stratagem, and compelled to surrender it. The
possession of the Tower fortress was always regarded by the English
monarchs as of the highest importance, as it enabled them to overawe the
citizens, and also furnished a safe retreat for the sovereign's own
person. Longchamp, bishop of Ely, was left by Richard Coeur de Lion as
chief guardian of the kingdom and in charge of the Tower during the King's
absence in Palestine. John, by his influence with the citizens, prevailed
on them to desert the cause of his royal brother and Longchamp, and the
latter, after handing to John the keys of the Tower, escaped, disguised as
a woman, to France. During the insurrection of Wat Tyler, the mob, through
some unaccountable negligence or treachery on the part of the guard, got
within the Tower and overran its apartments, insulting the Princess of
Wales, the mother of Richard II., and dragging forth from their refuge in
the chapel Simon, archbishop of Canterbury and chancellor, and Sir Robert
Hales, treasurer, both of whom they immediately beheaded. The importance
attached to the safe keeping of the Tower appeared in a striking manner at
a much later period, when, in 1641, Charles I. roused the whole city and
both Houses almost to a frenzy by appointing and persisting in maintaining
Colonel Lunsford as Lieutenant of the Tower. The appointment was
universally regarded as dangerous and unfit, and the King was at last
compelled to recall it. It may be mentioned, as a fact not generally
known, that the Lord Mayor receives every three months a list, under the
sovereign's sign-manual, of the daily pass-word to the Tower.
As a palace, the Tower can boast of an almost continuous use by the
English sovereigns for five hundred years, ending with the accession of
Charles II. Stephen is the first King who is recorded to have held his
Court within the Tower. This was in 1140, when his affairs were not in a
prosperous state, and the security of the Tower offered him a great
temptation. John was also a frequent resident here, and on his death
Prince Lewis, the Dauphin of France, made his abode at the Tower previous
to renouncing all claim to the throne of England. Henry III., during his
minority, constantly kept his Court here, celebrating the religious
festivals with great pomp. These were held in the chapel in the White
Tower, perhaps the most perfect Norman building existing in England; a
chaplain, who received a yearly salary of fifty shillings, conducting
daily service. The three Edwards who succeeded Henry on the throne, seldom
resided in their London fortress, but its dungeons were filled with their
foreign prisoners of highest rank. Richard II. visited the Tower to
prepare for his coronation procession. On the preceding day he was
welcomed in great state and with brilliant pageantry by the Mayor,
Aldermen, and citizens, and this city reception became from this time an
established custom. Froissart gives a brilliant description of the
grand tournament held in London by Richard in 1390, when the King
entertained in the Tower a large number of distinguished foreign guests.
It witnessed a very different scene nine years later, also chronicled by
Froissart, when Richard abdicated the throne in favour of Bolingbroke. In
the following year his body was brought from Pontefract to London, and
carried on a bier from the Tower to Cheapside, where it lay for two hours,
while 20,000 people, says Froissart, came to gaze upon his face. It was
then carried to King's Langley, and interred in the church of the
Dominican Friars; but was removed by Henry V. to the tomb which Richard
had prepared for himself in Westminster Abbey. Neither Henry IV. nor Henry
V. lived much in the Tower, but Charles, duke of Orleans, and his brother
John, count of Angoulême, who were taken prisoners at Agincourt, suffered
many years' imprisonment here. Among the Harleian manuscripts is a copy of
the poems of the Duke, which contains the beautiful illumination, already
mentioned, representing the Tower and London Bridge, with the intervening
buildings, at the time of the Duke's captivity. It is reproduced in our
frontispiece.
[Illustration: THE FUNERAL OF RICHARD II.
_From a MS. of Froissart's Chronicles. British Museum, Harl. 4380._]
With the reign of Henry VI. begins the series of royal tragedies connected
with the Tower. As king and prisoner alternately, the unfortunate monarch
spent here most of his life, until after the battles of Barnet and
Tewkesbury in 1471, which finally crushed his cause, he entered the Tower
once more, where, a few weeks later, he was found dead, not without grave
suspicion of foul play on the part of the Duke of Gloucester, the brother
of his successor, Edward IV. Gloucester's brotherly regard, whether real
or assumed, ceased with the King's death, and he found no words too black
in which to paint the character of the late monarch, and so pave the way
for his own accession to the throne. No obstacle was allowed to interfere
with his ambition, and the murder of the two young princes is the saddest
and most closely associated of all the historical events which give the
walls of the old fortress an almost sacred character. From this cruel
crime the Bloody Tower takes its name.
In the records of its later years the Tower kept up its tradition of
violence and bloodshed; the little church of St. Peter ad Vincula close by
bears sad witness to the dangers besetting the path which those must tread
who seek for high estate.