self-styled “Adam, Son of God,” who, about the year 1400, proposed to
reduce mankind to a state of primitive innocence and enjoyment. No
clothes were worn, wives were held in common, and many other violations
of Nature were committed ere they finally disappeared from the face of
the earth. A similar sect were the =Libertines=, in Holland, These
contended that nothing could be regarded as sinful in a community
where each was at full liberty to act up to his natural dictates and
passions. The =Jansenists= favoured the doctrines of Jansenius, Bishop
of Ypres, in France (born 1585, died 1638). For a long period these
maintained an open warfare with the =Jesuists=, properly, soldiers
of the “Society of Jesus” [_see_ RELIGIOUS ORDERS], until they were
finally put down by Pope Clement in 1705. The =Gabrielites= were a
sect of Anabaptists of Germany in the sixteenth century, named after
Gabriel Scherling, their founder. The =Labadists= were a sect of
Protestant ascetics of the seventeenth century who conformed to the
rules laid down by Jean Labadie, of Bourg, in Germany. The =Socinians=,
a sect corresponding to the modern =Unitarians=, owed their existence
to Lælius Socinus, an Italian theologian in 1546. The anti-Calvinists
of Holland were styled =Arminians=, after the Latinized name (Jacobus
Arminius) of their leader, James Harmensen (born 1560, died 1609). The
=New Christians= comprised a number of Portuguese Jews in the fifteenth
century, who, although they consented to be baptized under compulsion,
still practised the Mosaic rites and ceremonies in secret. The =Old
Catholics= of Germany are the followers of the late Dr. Döllinger, of
Munich (born 1799, died 1890), who refused to accept the dogma of the
infallibility of the Pope promulgated July 18, 1870.
In our own country the =Scotists= were those who adopted the opinions
of John Duns Scotus (born 1272, died 1308), concerning the doctrines
of the Immaculate Conception, in opposition to the =Thomists=, or
followers of St. Thomas Aquinas (born 1227, died 1274), who denied
that the Virgin was conceived without sin. The =Sabbatarians=,
known also as the =Seventh Day Baptists=, founded by Brabourne, a
clergyman who, about the year 1628, maintained that the seventh
day was the real Sabbath as ordained at the beginning. The =Fifth
Monarchy Men=, who came into existence during the reign of Charles
I., believed in the early coming of Jesus Christ to re-establish
the four great monarchies of the ancient world, viz., the Assyrian,
Persian, Macedonian, and Roman, contemporaneously with the fifth, the
Millennium. The =Muggletonians= were the followers of one Ludovic
Muggleton, a journeyman tailor, who set himself up as a prophet in
1651. The =Society of Friends= originally styled themselves =Seekers=,
because they sought the truth after the manner of Nicodemus, the Jewish
ruler, as narrated in _St. John_ iii. 1-21. They were first designated
=Quakers= by Justice Bennet of Derby, in 1650, in consequence of George
Fox, the founder, having admonished him and all present to quake on
hearing the Word of the Lord. The Seekers came into existence in
1646. The =White Quakers=, who seceded from the main body about 1840,
are distinguished by their white clothing. The original sect of the
=Shakers=, first heard of in the time of Charles I., received its name
from the convulsive movements indulged in by its members as part of
their peculiar form of worship. The modern sect sprang from a body of
expelled Quakers, headed by James Wardley, in 1747. They emigrated to
America in May, 1772, and formed a permanent settlement near Albany,
New York, two years afterwards. The =Mormons= derived their designation
from “The Book of Mormon,” claimed to be a lost portion of the Bible
written by the angel Mormon, the last of the Hebrew line of prophets,
and found inscribed in Egyptian characters upon plates of gold by
Joseph Smith, the founder of the sect, in the year 1827. This work was
really written by the Rev. Solomon Spalding, who died in 1816. Joseph
Smith died in 1844. The =Peculiar People= are so styled because they
believe in the efficacy of prayer on the part of their elders, and the
anointing with oil in the name of the Lord for the cure of sickness as
set forth in _James_ v. 14. This sect was first heard of in London in
1838. The =Faith Healers=, or those who uphold the doctrine of Healing
by Faith, lately sprung up in our midst, may be regarded as an offshoot
of the Peculiar People. The =Irvingites= are the followers of Edward
Irving, a Scottish divine (born 1792, died 1834), who maintained that
Christ was liable to commit sin in common with the rest of mankind. The
=Humanitarians= incline to the same belief. The =Sacramentarians= are
those who deny the Real Presence in the Holy Eucharist: the Calvinists
were originally known by this title. The =Plymouth Brethren= first
appeared at Plymouth about the year 1830; they so style themselves
because they confess Christ as a fraternal community and do not
recognize any order of priesthood. The =Perfectionists= of North
America are so called owing to their rejection of civil laws, on the
plea that the guidance of the Holy Spirit suffices for all earthly as
well as spiritual affairs. Another body of co-coreligionists peculiar
to North America are the =Hopkinsians=, named after Samuel Hopkins, of
Connecticut, their founder. The doctrines which they hold are mainly
Calvinistic.
The =Scottish Covenanters= were those who subscribed to a solemn league
or covenant to stand by each other in opposition to the religious and
political measures of Charles I. This occurred in 1638. In less than
ten years afterwards the Covenanters, having increased in numbers and
power, assumed the entire direction of their own ecclesiastical affairs
and styled themselves =Presbyterians=, a term derived from the Greek
_presbuteros_, an elder, because they contended that the government
of the Church as set forth in the New Testament was by presbyters,
equal in office, power, and order. The national Church of Scotland,
therefore, when at length it was recognized by the English Parliament,
bore the title of the =Scottish Presbyterian Church=. It was, however,
not long before dissensions became rife. The strictest body of the
Presbyterians adopted the style of =Cameronians=, after the name of
their leader, Archibald Cameron, who was executed in 1688 on account
of his religious opinions; while an equally numerous body, headed
by John Macmillan, became known as =Macmillanites=, and also as =The
Reformed Presbytery=. A much later sect was that founded in 1841 by
James Morison, under the designation of the =Morisonians=. But the most
alarming split in the Presbyterian Church took place May 18, 1843, when
Dr. Chalmers, with a large following, established a separate community,
entitled =The Free Church of Scotland=.
The =Puritans= of England were to the Established Church what the
Pharisees were to the Jews. And not only did these Puritans profess
a greater purity of doctrine, of morals, and of living, than their
neighbours, but they embraced the earliest opportunity of separating
themselves from the Church of England altogether. They were, in fact,
the first of the Dissenters. On August 24, 1662, which date witnessed
the secession of nearly two thousand ministers from the Church of
England through their non-compliance with the “Act of Uniformity,” the
Puritans joined forces with the latter, and the combined body assumed
the name of =Nonconformists=. The Protestants were, consequently,
divided into two great parties--the =Conformists=, or those who
conformed to the requirements laid down in the “Act of Conformity,”
and the =Nonconformists=. The latter have in more recent times borne
the name of =Dissenters=, because they dissent from the Established
Church. The =Sectarians= are Dissenters who attach themselves to one
or other of the numerous sects and denominations which exist outside
the Church of England. The =Congregationalists= and the =Independents=
are one and the same. They maintain that each congregation is an
independent religious community entitled to exercise the right of
appointing its own ministers and managing its own affairs. These tenets
were first publicly advanced by Robert Brown, a violent opponent of
the Established Church, in Rutlandshire, as early as the year 1585.
The =Unitarians= are the modern =Socinians= already alluded to. They
are opposed to the doctrine of the Trinity; and, consequently, to the
=Trinitarians=. The =Baptists= not only reject infant baptism, but
hold that the adult subject should be baptized after the manner in
which Christ was baptized by St. John. On this account the original
Baptists, who arose about 1521, received the name of =Anabaptists=,
because, having been already baptized during infancy, they of necessity
went through the ceremony a second time on arriving at full age. The
prefix _ana_ is Greek, signifying twice. The followers of John Wesley
(born 1703, died 1791) and his brother, Charles Wesley (born 1708, died
1788), were styled =Methodists=, owing to the methodical strictness
of their lives and religious exercises. They were also denominated
=Wesleyans=, or =Wesleyan Methodists=, in contradistinction to the
=Primitive Methodists=, or =Ranters=, who separated from the original
sect under Hugh Bourne, in 1810, and retained the style of open-air
preaching peculiar to John Wesley in his early itinerant days.
The terms “High Church” and “Low Church” first came into prominence
during the reign of Queen Anne. Nowadays, as then, that section is
styled =High Church= which regards the Church of England as the only
ark of salvation, while the less apprehensive and more moderate
section is called =Low Church=. Those who take a still more liberal
and comprehensive view of orthodox doctrine belong to what is known as
the =Broad Church=, which is but another name for =Latitudinarianism=,
as originally professed by a number of divines opposed alike to the
Puritans and the High Church party in the time of Charles I. On the
other hand, the =Ritualists= comprise the extreme High Church party who
are anxious to return to the ritual of public worship in vogue during
the reign of Edward VI. Prior to 1866, in which year the term arose,
these High Churchmen bore the name of =Puseyites=, because they agreed
with the views set forth by Dr. Pusey in his celebrated “Tracts for
the Times,” published at Oxford between 1833 and 1841. Those scholars
who assisted Dr. Pusey in the composition of these =Oxford Tracts=, as
they were called, as well as the public at large who believed in their
teaching, were styled =Tractarians=; while the great Roman Catholic
revival that took place in the Church of England at this period
universally bore, and still bears, the name of the =Oxford Movement=.
_TAVERN SIGNS._
=Hotel= is a French term, derived from _hostil_, a lordly house, a
palace. The designation =Public House=, signifying a house of public
resort for refreshment and conviviality, is a modern substitute for
=Tavern=, derived from the Latin _taberna_, a hut, a wooden booth;
frequently also for =Inn=, or rather, as originally written, _Inne_,
which expressed the Anglo-Saxon for a mansion. And here we may at once
observe that by far the majority of our mediæval inns and =Hostelries=
[_see_ HOTEL] grew out of the mansions of the nobility during the
prolonged absence of their owners. At such times the privilege of
utilizing the mansion for his own profit naturally fell to the family’s
most trustworthy dependent, viz., the head gamekeeper, whose green
costume gave existence to the sign of =The Green Man=, when, after
quitting the family’s service, he set up an inn on his own account
either in connection with his own cottage or abutting on the public
highway. Nevertheless, this sign had nothing in common with that of
=The Green Man and Still=, expressive of a herbalist bringing his herbs
to a distillery, and which was doubtless the sign of a herbalist turned
innkeeper.
As the family arms always occupied a prominent position on the front
of the mansion these soon became known far and wide, though scarcely
in accordance with their full heraldic significance. Briefly, the
most conspicuous object in them sufficed to impress itself upon the
minds of travellers as the distinguishing sign of the establishment;
so that, instead of speaking of _lions gules_ and _lions azure_, &c.,
they simplified matters by referring to red and blue lions, &c. Such
was the origin, then, of =The Red Lion=, =The Blue Lion=, and many
another familiar sign of this character. Moreover, as a variation
of the same device entered into the arms of different families, it
happened that the most conspicuous object in them became popular in
different parts of the country at the same time. Another fruitful
source of the rapid multiplication of a particular sign throughout
the same county, and even upon the same estate, was the fact that as
often as a retired dependent of a nobleman’s family turned innkeeper,
he was pretty certain to name his establishment in accordance with the
popular description of the original inn or mansion. If it chanced,
however, that that sign had already been appropriated by another
innkeeper in the immediate vicinity, the full cognizance of the ground
landlord was adopted. Thus, in the Midland Counties there is no sign
so common as =The Bear and Ragged Staff=, which was the cognizance of
the Earl of Warwick, the King Maker. Similarly, =The Boar’s Head= was
the cognizance of the Gordons; =The Black Bull=, that of the House
of Clare; and =The Talbot=, that of the House of Shrewsbury. Another
oft-to-be-met-with sign is =The Chequers=, which comprised the arms of
the Earls of Fitzwarren who, in the time of the Plantagenets, held the
right of granting the vintners their licences. Later in our history the
same cognizance was adopted by the Stuarts. As every one is aware, =The
Red Rose= was the recognized badge of the Lancastrians, and =The White
Rose= that of the Yorkists. It may be assumed that these two signs were
naturally more popular throughout the country at large during the =Wars
of the Roses= than at any subsequent period. During that turbulent
period of English history, too, the devices of the several adherents
of the rival houses were not unfrequently chosen in commemoration
of a particular event; as, for example, after the Battle of Barnet,
when =The Star=, the badge of the Earl of Oxford who decided the fate
of that day, sprang up as an inn-sign in all directions, except, of
course, upon Yorkist ground.
Where the innkeeper was not bound by any ties of gratitude or regard to
the ground landlord he evinced his loyalty to the reigning monarch by
adopting a portion of the royal arms. As examples of this class:--=The
White Swan= was the badge of Edward III. and of Henry IV.; =The White
Swan and Antelope=, of Henry V.; =The White Hart=, and =The Sun=, both
of Richard II.; =The White Lion=, of Edward IV. as Earl of March, and
=The Three Suns=, of Edward IV. as King of England; =The Eagle=, of
Queen Mary; =The Blue Boar=, of Richard III.; =The Red Dragon=, that
of Henry VII., chosen for his standard after the Battle of Bosworth
Field, and =The Greyhound=, his original badge as King. =The Rose=
is the symbol of England, just as =The Thistle= stands for Scotland,
=The Shamrock= for Ireland, and =The Leek= for Wales. A very general
expression of loyalty, again, was conveyed in the sign of =The Crown=,
which, by the way, was shrewdly complimentary to the reigning house
without offering offence to the partisans of a rival claimant to the
throne. =The Rose and Crown= had reference originally to the union of
the red and white roses in the House of Tudor by the marriage of Henry
VII. with Elizabeth, the daughter of Edward IV., in the year 1486; =The
Crown and Sceptre= must have originated in the mind of one who had been
witness to the elaborate ceremonial peculiar to a coronation; while
=The Crown and Anchor= signified the reliance which was placed in the
exalted person that wore the crown.
If, on the other hand, our mediæval innkeeper chose to flatter the
ground landlord without actually adopting his cognizance, he invariably
named his establishment after his lordship’s family title, _e.g._, =The
Earl of March=, in compliment to the Duke of Richmond, or else set up
some such sign as =The Hare and Hounds=, =The Tally Ho!=, =The Fox in
the Hole=, &c., in allusion to the sporting tastes of his patron. At
times he even went so far as to enter into the religious enthusiasm
of the latter by exhibiting a preference for =The Angel= or =The
Salutation=, both referring to the Annunciation of the Virgin; =The
Three Kings=, meaning the Magi who presented themselves to the Infant
at Bethlehem; or =The Cross Keys=, the symbol of St. Peter, and the
badge of the Archbishop of York. The sign of =The Mitre= was generally
adopted by an innkeeper whose establishment stood in the vicinity of a
cathedral; consequently, this particular sign abounds in cities, but is
rarely to be met with in the rural districts.
During the period of the Holy Wars, if the innkeeper did not content
himself with the sign of =The Turk’s Head= or =The Saracen’s Head=,
that of =The Golden Cross=, which was the ensign carried by the
Crusaders, was usually chosen. The modern sign of =The Half-Moon=
originated in the crescent, the ensign of the Infidel. The signs of
=The Swan=, =The Pheasant=, and =The Peacock= arose in the days of
knight-errantry, when every knight selected one of these birds as
an emblem of chivalry, and exerted a pride in the association. For
example, one of the principal characters in the “Niebelungen Lied” is
called “The Knight of the Swan.” Then, again, many innkeepers assumed a
sign in honour of the patron saint of England, or in commemoration of
his combat with the dragon, viz., =The St. George=, =The St. George and
Dragon=, =The George and Dragon=, =The Green Dragon=, &c. =The George=,
a common sign enough in our own day--it would be difficult to name a
town that has not its “George” in the High Street--was originally
connected with the dragon too; but at the commencement of the
Hanoverian succession the heraldic device was painted out altogether,
and the words THE GEORGE were put up in its place. The like observation
applies to all such signs as =The King’s Arms=, =The Queen’s Arms=,
=The Freemasons’ Arms=, =The Coachmakers’ Arms=, =The Saddlers’ Arms=,
=The Carpenters’ Arms=, &c., nowadays identified by name only, instead
of their distinctive badge or crest. We must not omit to mention also
that, since the especial function of tavern and other signs was to
call attention to the character of an establishment in days when the
people were unable to read, and when, therefore, the display of the
owner’s name or of the name of the house would have been useless, the
misapprehension of the painted device was of common occurrence. Hence
the corruption of many signs from their original meaning.
Perhaps the most glaring instance of this kind originated in the sign
of =The Garter=, or the insignia of the Order of the Garter represented
in its proper position on a leg (whence we have the intelligible
sign of =The Star and Garter=); yet the vulgar mind quite failed
to grasp the idea, with a result that a house exhibiting this sign
was invariably referred to as =The Leg and Star=. Corruptions of a
different character are of later date, when the name of the house
instead of the device began to make its appearance on an innkeeper’s
signboard. Chief among these are:--=The Cat and Fiddle=, a perversion
of “Caton le Fidele,” in honour of Caton, the faithful Governor of
Calais; =The Bag o’ Nails=, of “The Bacchanals,” in reference to Pan
and the Satyrs; =The Goat and Compasses=, of the Puritan motto “God
encompass us”; =The Iron Devil=, of “The Hirondelle,” or swallow; =The
Bull and Mouth=, and =The Bull and Gate=, of “The Boulogne Mouth”
and “The Boulogne Gate,” in compliment to Henry VIII., who effected
the siege of Boulogne and its harbour in 1544; =The Lion and Key=,
of “The Lion on the Quay,” meaning a house bearing the sign of _The
Lion_, and situated by the water-side, in order to distinguish it from
other _Lions_ in the same port; =The Cat and Wheel=, of “The Catherine
Wheel,” the instrument of St. Catherine’s martyrdom; =The Plume and
Feathers=, of “The Plume of Feathers,” in allusion to the Prince of
Wales; =The Bully Ruffian=, of “The Bellerophon,” the vessel on board
of which Napoleon surrendered his sword to Captain Maitland after
his defeat at Waterloo; and =The Blue Pig=, a mere modification of
“The Blue Boar.” =The Pig and Whistle= is a very old sign, the term
_whistle_ being a corruption of “wassail,” and _pig_, the Old English
for a bowl or cup. Surely there could be no more fitting sign for a
tavern than that which suggested the drinking of healths!
The original character of many of our country inns is at once indicated
by their signs. Thus, =The Coach and Horses= was clearly, before the
introduction of railways, a coaching establishment; while =The Pack
Horse= announced the fact that pack-horses were let out on hire.
Again, =The Bear=--subject to sundry modifications, such as =The Brown
Bear=, =The Black Bear=, =The Grizzly Bear=--informed the frequenters
of such resorts that bear-baiting might be witnessed on the premises;
exactly as, nearer to our own day, =The Dog and Duck= called attention
to the popular diversion of duck-hunting by spaniels in a pond. =The
Skittles= and =The Bowling Green= indicated a more rational kind of
sport. Once more, =The Grapes= conveyed the intelligence that a vinery
existed in connection with the establishment; whereas =The Castle=,
which constitutes the arms of Spain, =The Globe=, the arms of the King
of Portugal, and =The Spread Eagle=, the arms of Germany, told that
the wines of those respective countries were to be had there. In the
north of England the sign of =The Yorkshire Stingo= is very common, the
allusion being to an old beer of particular strength and sharpness for
which the county of York has won considerable celebrity.
Among other familiar country inn and tavern signs may be mentioned =The
Bell=, referring to the silver bell that formed the prize at races
previous to the Restoration; =The Barley Mow=, denoting the premises
where the barley was housed, _mowe_ being the Saxon term for “a heap”;
and =The Old Hat=, which in the olden time may have been the shop of a
hatter rejoicing in the sign of “The Hat,” and subsequently converted
into a place of refreshment. Another distinctly tradesmanlike sign is
=The Ram and Teazle=, which was originally chosen in compliment to the
Clothiers’ Company; the lamb with the golden fleece being emblematical
of wool, and the teazle, a tool used for raising the nap of the wool
when woven into cloth. =The Bricklayers’ Arms= merely indicate a house
of call for bricklayers; while =The Cricketers’ Arms= derives its title
from a neighbouring cricket-ground. The significance of =The Tankard=,
=The Bottle=, and similar signs, need not detain us. We may, however,
state that =The Black Jack= refers to a leathern pitcher for holding
beer, which took its name from the defensive breastplate of strong
leather formerly worn by horsemen, and known as a _Jacque_, whence the
term JACKET has been derived.
Signs that betray a political bias, such as =The Royal Oak=, =The
Boscobel=, =The Jacobite=, =The Hanover=, &c., are altogether too
numerous to mention. In the early part of the present century, too, the
names of political leaders were largely drawn upon as an attraction for
tavern signs, as were those also of distinguished naval and military
commanders, and of the battles won by them. =The Canning=, =The
Palmerston=, =The Nelson=, =The Wellington=, =The Marquis of Granby=,
=The Portobello Arms=, =The Trafalgar=, =The Waterloo=, and a host of
others of the like character, are everywhere to be encountered; while
the old sign of =The Ship= carries us back to the days of Elizabeth,
when the circumnavigation of the globe by Sir Francis Drake was
regarded as an exploit that could scarcely be too highly honoured.