the name of =Torquatus= from the incident of having torn the golden
torque or collar from the neck of his adversary in the field. Charles,
the son of Pepin d’Heristal, was surnamed =Martel= in recognition of
his victory over the Saracens, who attempted the invasion of France
in the year 732. According to the chronicler, “he knocked down the
foe and crushed them between his axe, as a martel or hammer crushes
what it strikes.” Robert, Duke of Normandy, the father of William
the Conqueror (died 1035), bore the name of =Robert le Diable=, or
=Robert the Devil=, on account of his courageous cruelty in war. The
Scottish outlaw, Sir William Wallace (born 1270, beheaded 1305), was
styled =The Hammer and Scourge of England= by reason of his patriotism.
William Douglas, Lord of Nithsdale (died 1390), was known as =Black
Douglas= because his frame was tall, strong, and well-built, while his
hair was dark and his complexion swarthy. Archibald Douglas, Earl of
Angus (died 1514), merited the sobriquet of =Bell the Cat= for having
put to death the upstart favourites of James III., and so prevented
the creation of nobles out of architects and masons whom the king
particularly patronized. At a meeting convened in the Church of Lauder
by the Scottish nobles for the purpose of taking measures to obtain
the removal of these persons, Lord Gray had put the question, “But who
will bell the cat?” “That will I!” answered Douglas on the instant;
and he kept his word, for in the very presence of the king he slew the
obnoxious minions with his own hand.
Richard Nevil, Earl of Warwick (born 1420, died 1471), was surnamed
=The King Maker= for the reason that while he espoused the cause
of the Yorkists, Edward IV. succeeded in his efforts to gain the
English Crown; and when, subsequently, he transferred his influence
to the Lancastrians, Henry VI. was restored and the usurper deposed.
Harry Percy (born 1364, died 1403) was styled =Hotspur=, and Prince
Rupert (born 1619, died 1682) =The Mad Cavalier= because they found
it impossible to restrain their rash courage in time of war. The
soldiers of Cromwell, after the Battle of Marston Moor, received the
popular name of =Ironsides= on account of their armour and their iron
resolution. The sobriquet of =The Almighty Nose= was bestowed upon
Oliver Cromwell (born 1599, died 1658), in allusion to his nasal
enormity. Strange, indeed, that he who had attained to the highest
position in the land by the sheer force of arms should have been so
continually taunted with the length and colour of his nose! Yet so it
was. Nevertheless, there have been others whose peace of mind was daily
threatened by popular malice in this selfsame respect. Even the great
Roman poet Ovid suffered a lifelong martyrdom, and became the recipient
of the sobriquet of =Naso=, owing to the possession of an unusually
large nose; just as in modern times Wilson, the painter, and Cervetto,
the violincellist of Drury Lane Theatre, never succeeded in putting
their heads out of their own doors without being greeted with shouts of
“=Nosey!=” from the mob.
The Duke of Cumberland (born 1721, died 1765) rightly deserved the
opprobrious surname of =The Bloody Butcher= on account of his merciless
slaughter of the vanquished adherents of the Young Pretender after
the Battle of Culloden. The soldiers of the Duke of Marlborough (born
1650, died 1722) familiarly styled their leader =Corporal John= because
he had risen from the rank of Corporal; while General Bonaparte,
afterwards Emperor of the French (born 1769, died 1821), bore the
name of =The Little Corporal=, in allusion to his original rank,
his low stature, youthful appearance, and extraordinary courage. As
most readers are aware, Wellington (born 1769, died 1852) earned the
name of =The Iron Duke= by his iron will and resolution; and Blucher
(born 1742, died 1819) that of =Marshal Forward=, by his dash and
readiness to attack the enemy in the campaign which terminated in
the Battle of Waterloo. Prince Bismarck, the late Chancellor of the
German Empire (born 1815) owed his surname of =The Iron Chancellor=
to his extraordinary vigour and indomitable will. Helmuth, Count von
Moltke, Field-Marshal of the German armies (born 1800, died 1891), was
popularly surnamed =Helmuth the Taciturn=, because though a master of
half a dozen languages, he was never known to betray himself in one
of them. The sobriquet of =Stonewall Jackson=, possessed by Thomas
Jonathan Jackson, the Confederate General in the American War of 1861
to 1865, originated with General Lee, who, after rallying his troops
at the Battle of Bull Run, exclaimed, “There is Jackson, standing like
a stone wall!” A less complimentary sobriquet bestowed upon General
Andrew Jackson, President of the United States (born 1767, died 1845),
by his own soldiers, was that of =Old Hickory=, in allusion to his
tough, unyielding disposition. The circumstance is thus commented upon
by Parton, the author of Jackson’s Life:--“The name of _Old Hickory_
was not an instantaneous inspiration, but a growth. First of all, the
remark was made by some soldier, who was struck with his commander’s
pedestrian powers, that the General was tough. Next, it was observed
that he was as tough as hickory. Then he was called _Hickory_. Lastly,
the affectionate adjective ‘old’ was prefixed, and the General
thenceforth rejoiced in the completed nickname, usually the first-won
honour of a great commander.”
Of naval sobriquets we shall mention only three. Commodore John Byron,
the circumnavigator (born 1723, died 1786), was popularly known as
=Foul Weather Jack= because, it was said, he never enjoyed a fine
passage throughout the whole of his experience. Admiral Edward Vernon
(born 1684, died 1757), to whom reference is made in our article on
“Spirits,” was called =Old Grog=, because he wore a “Grogram” coat
in “dirty weather” [_see_ GROGRAM]. Admiral Sir Henry Digby received
his well-known sobriquet of =The Silver Captain= under the following
interesting circumstances:--On the October 14, 1799, when commanding
the frigate _Alcmene_, on a cruise off the Spanish coast, he shaped his
course for Cape St. Vincent, and was running to the southward, in the
latitude of Cape Finisterre. Twice during the night he rang his bell to
summon the officer on the watch, and asked him if any person had been
in the cabin. “No, sir; nobody,” was the answer. “Very odd,” rejoined
Sir Henry. “Every time I dropped asleep I heard somebody shouting
in my ear, ‘Digby! Digby! go to the northward; Digby! Digby! go to
the northward!’ I shall certainly do so. Take another reef in your
topsails, haul your wind, tack every hour till daybreak, and then call
me.” These orders were strictly carried out, and the frigate was tacked
at four, at five, at six, and at seven o’clock. She had just come round
for the last time when the man at the masthead called out, “Large ship
on the weather-bow, sir!” On nearing her a musket was discharged to
bring her to. She was quickly boarded, when she proved to be a Spanish
vessel laden with dollars, in addition to a large cargo of cochineal
and spices. By this capture therefore, the fortunate dreamer secured,
as his (Captain’s) share of the prize-money, the sum of £40,730 18s.;
the lieutenants each £5,091 7s. 3d.; the warrant officers each £2,468
10s. 9½d.; the midshipmen each £791 17s. 0¼d.; and the seamen and
marines each £182 14s. 9½d. The captured treasure was said to have been
so weighty that sixty-three artillery tumbrils had to be requisitioned
for the purpose of transporting it from the vessel to Plymouth Citadel.
_MONEY._
The word =Money= owes its existence to _Moneta_, one of the surnames
of Juno, in whose temple the first coinage of the Romans took place.
=Mint= claims the same etymology, being a contraction of the Latin
_moneta_, brought about through the Anglo-Saxon _mynet_. By =Sterling
Money= is meant the standard coin of Great Britain, and for this
reason:--During the reign of King John the merchants of the Hansa
Towns, of which the inhabitants were commonly described as Esterlings,
because they resided in the eastern portions of Germany, having
long been noted for the purity of their coinage, the king invited
a number of them over to this country for the purpose of reforming
and perfecting our coinage. The invitation was accepted; and ever
afterwards good English money received the name of Esterling or
sterling money.
A =Guinea= was an English gold piece first struck in 1663 out of gold
brought from the coast of Guinea, West Africa. Its value has been
subject to fluctuations at different periods. Thus, in 1663 it was
worth 20s.; in 1695, 30s.; in 1717, 21s.; in 1810, 22s. 6d.; and in
1816, 26s. The coinage of guineas was discontinued July 1, 1817. A
=Sovereign= is so called because when originally coined, during the
reign of Henry VIII., it bore a representation of that sovereign in
his royal robes. A =Crown-piece= when first introduced displayed a
crown on its reverse side. The =Florin= took its name from Florence,
in which city it was struck as long ago as the thirteenth century. Its
reverse side has always borne a representation of a lily, emblematical
of “The City of Flowers.” The term =Shilling= traces its origin in
the Anglo-Saxon _scilling_, the Icelandic _skillinge_, and the Gothic
_skilliggs_, in each case denoting the twentieth part of a pound, as
at present. A =Penny=, so called from the Anglo-Saxon _penig_, and
Danish _pennig_ (whence the modern German =Pfennig= has been derived),
originally denoted a copper coin of full value; a =Halfpenny=, the
half of a penny; and a =Farthing=, a corruption of the Old English
_fourthling_, denotes a penny divided into four parts. We must not
omit to mention that in olden times only penny-pieces were struck; and
these were deeply indented in the form of a cross--exactly, in fact,
after the manner of our Good Friday buns; so that when half-pennies or
farthings were required the pennies could be broken into two or four
portions without difficulty.
Among coins other than those now current in this country we may mention
the =Ducat=, or Duke’s Money, specially struck for circulation in
the Duchy of Apulia in the year 1140, and which bore this beautiful
inscription: “Sit tibi Christi, datus, quem tu regis, iste ducatus”
(“May this duchy which You rule be devoted to You, O Christ”); and the
=Noble=, so called on account of the superiority of its gold. During
the reign of Henry III. this gold piece found its way into England
under the name of =Rose-Noble=, owing to the impression of a rose
on its reverse side; but in the reign of Henry VIII., simultaneous
with the substitution of the figure of St. George, it was designated
a =George-Noble=. The value of this coin at both periods was
six-and-eightpence. The current value of an =Angel=, so styled from
the angel on its reverse side, was, when introduced in the reign of
Henry VI., six-and-eightpence; but at the accession of Elizabeth it had
increased to ten shillings.
The =Thistle-crown= of James VI. of Scotland (James I. of England),
value four shillings, was so called because it had a rose on one side
and a thistle on the other; both surmounted by a crown. The Scottish
sovereign of this period was styled a =Jacobus=, the Latinized form
of the King’s name. After the union of the two countries it became,
of course, current in England also; but in the two succeeding reigns
it was denominated a =Carolus=, the Latin for the name of Charles. A
French gold coin long current in Scotland was the =Dolphin=, which
derived its name from the fact of its introduction by Charles V., who
was also Dauphin of Vienne. The French =Louis d’or= (a louis of gold)
was first struck in the reign of Louis XIII.; this was superseded
by the =Napoleon=, during the consulate of Napoleon Bonaparte.
The =Franc= originally denoted the silver coin of the Franks. The
term =Dollar= is a British modification of the German Thaler, an
abbreviation of Joachim’s-Thaler; by which was implied a piece of money
struck out of the silver discovered in the Thal, or Valley, of St.
Joachim, France, about the year 1518. The silver drawn from this valley
being of superior quality, it was coined into ounce pieces, which
received the name of =Joachims-Thalers=; but all other ounce pieces
subsequently struck from silver obtained elsewhere were simply called
=Thalers=. The =Kreuzer=, now superseded, owed its name to the cross on
its reverse side.
=Wood’s Halfpence= was the designation of an inferior copper coinage
circulated in Ireland by a certain William Wood, under a patent granted
to him by George I. The withdrawal of the patent was eventually
procured owing to the denunciations of Dean Swift in the mysterious
“Drapier’s Letters.” The legal tender notes of the United States are
commonly styled =Greenbacks=, from the colour of the device imprinted
on the back of them. Bank of England notes formerly bore the name of
=Abraham Newlands= from the signature of the chief cashier.
By the term =Bullion=, remotely derived from the Low Latin _bulla_, a
seal, and, more directly, from the Old French _bullione_, the Mint,
is meant the stock of the precious metals formed into bars and stored
in the strong rooms of the Bank of England in readiness for coinage.
Money vested in Government securities is known as =Stock=, or
=Government Stock=, in allusion to the origin of the term, viz., the
Anglo-Saxon stocc, a trunk, a stick; because prior to the year 1782,
when the practice was abolished, the official acknowledgment of money
received on behalf of the Government was written on both sides of a
broad piece of wood, which was then cut in two; and the one portion,
called the Stock, was delivered to the person lending the money, the
Counterstock being retained at the Tally Office. The instrument of
reckoning in this manner was styled the =Tally=, in accordance with
the French verb _tailler_, to cut; while the correspondence of the
Stock and Counterstock, or, in other words, the two portions of the
Tally, furnished the origin of the modern phrase “to tally,” as well as
the designation TALLYMAN, or a trader who lets out goods, principally
clothing, on the system of payment by weekly instalments. The word
=Consols= is a contraction of “Consolidated Annuities,” or the funded
portion of the National Debt. The fund which provides for the annual
reduction of the latter is styled the =Sinking Fund=. The French State
Loans known as =Tontines= perpetuate the name of Lawrence Tonti, a
Neapolitan _protégé_ of Cardinal Mazarine, who projected the scheme
in 1653. The annual statement by the Chancellor of the Exchequer of
the finances of this country is called the =Budget=, agreeably to the
French _bougetta_, a little bag; because formerly the various documents
were presented to Parliament in a leathern bag.
_SPIRITS._
=Rum= is a native West Indian term for a spirit distilled from
cane-juice; =Whisky= is an English rendering of the Irish
=Uisquebaugh=, derived from the two Gaelic words _uisge_, water,
and _beatha_, life; =Brandy= is a corruption of the Old English
_brandwine_, literally burnt wine; while =Gin= is short for Geneva,
where this spirit was first distilled. =Hollands= is the popular
English name for Dutch gin. =Cognac=, a French brandy of the best
quality, owes its designation to the town of which it forms the staple
industry; and =Nantes= to the port where it is shipped. =Old Tom= was
named after Tom Chamberlain, the senior partner in Messrs. Hodges’
well-known distillery.
The term =Punch= traces its origin to the Hindoo _pantsch_, signifying
five, because this favourite concoction originally consisted of five
ingredients, viz., arrack, sugar, tea, lemons, and water; whereas
=Toddy= is a western corruption of _taudi_, the native Hindoo name for
palm-juice. The word =Grog= perpetuates the memory of “Old Grog,” the
nickname of Admiral Edward Vernon, who first ordered his sailors to
dilute their rum with water [_see_ OLD GROG].
Scotch whisky is usually styled =Mountain Dew=, from the fact that
in former times it was often distilled in the mountains in order to
escape the watchfulness of the excise officers. The superior Scotch
whisky known as =Glenlivet= derives its name from the district in
which it is distilled. The popular =LL Whisky= originated under the
following circumstances: When the Duke of Richmond was Lord Lieutenant
of Ireland, he one day, in the year 1807, sent to various Dublin
distilleries for samples of their best whisky; and preferring that
furnished by Messrs. Kinahan, his Grace ordered a large vat in which
this particular quality of the spirit was kept to be reserved for his
own use. Accordingly, the letters “LL,” signifying Lord Lieutenant,
were painted on the vat; and ever since Messrs. Kinahan’s whisky of the
same quality has borne the name of “LL Whisky.”
_LONDON STREETS AND SQUARES._
=Fleet Street= received its name from the =Fleet=, once a swift-flowing
stream, now converted into a sewer. =Mitre Court=, =Falcon Court=,
and =Red Lion Court= were designated after old taverns respectively
bearing these signs. =Bolt Court= was so called from the “Bolt-in-Tun,”
an ancient coaching-house, transformed into a railway goods receiving
office standing on the opposite side of the way. =Johnson’s Court= did
not receive its title from Dr. Johnson, who lived in it for some time,
but from the owner of the property. =Wine Office Court= originally
contained an office where wine licences were issued. =Shoe Lane=
received this designation from the traditional account that when the
Devil ran away with Lady Hatton [_see_ HATTON GARDEN] he dropped one
of her shoes in Shoe Lane and her cloak in =Cloak Lane=, near Cannon
Street. =St. Bride Street= and =Bride Lane= owe their names to the
Church of St. Bride close by. =Salisbury Court= occupies the site of an
ancient palace of the Bishops of Salisbury. =Dorset Street= and =Dorset
Buildings= carry us back in fancy to the =Dorset Gardens Theatre=,
erected in the grounds attached to the residence of the Earl of Dorset
in the early days of the Restoration. =Whitefriars Street= marks the
western boundary of the monastery of the Carmelites, or White Friars,
built in 1245. The whole district of Whitefriars formerly comprised a
Sanctuary infested by debtors and lawbreakers; on which account it bore
the name of =Alsatia=, in allusion to the French province of Alsace,
long notorious for its intestine strife and political disaffection.
=Bridge Street= is a modern thoroughfare leading to =Blackfriars
Bridge= and =Blackfriars Road=, so called from the monastery of the
Dominicans or Black Friars established on the site of =Printing House
Square= and the _Times_ office, about the year 1276. =Water Lane= was
originally a narrow lane winding down to the Thames.
=Ludgate Hill= derived its name from the old Lud Gate, built by King
Lud in the year 66 B.C. on the spot where the London, Chatham, and
Dover Railway now crosses this busy thoroughfare. The gate was removed
in 1760. =La Belle Sauvage Yard= was formerly the coachyard of the
celebrated Inn of this name. =The Old Bailey= is a corruption of
_Bail Hill_, which contained the residence and court of the Bail, or
Bailiff, from very early times. The =Broadway= was doubtless considered
a fine thoroughfare in the days when London streets generally were
so narrow that opposite neighbours could shake hands out of their
top-story windows. =Friar Street= was designated after the Black
Friars’ Monastery. =Sermon Lane= is a corruption of “Shere-moniers’
Lane,” in which stood the office of the money-shearers or clippers
at the time when the Mint was in this neighbourhood. =Paul’s Chain=
owed its name to a chain formerly drawn across its northern extremity
the while service was held in St. Paul’s. =Old Change= was originally
known as “The King’s Exchange” on account of the building where the
bullion was stored convenient to the Money-shearers’ Office and the
Mint. =Paternoster Row= received its name from the stationers who
sold religious texts, prayer-books, and rosary beads, formerly called
_Paternosters_ in this street. =Ave Maria Lane=, =Creed Lane=, and
=Amen Corner=, being of later date, their designation to complete the
religious metaphor was perhaps natural. =Warwick Lane= stands on the
site of a magnificent palace owned by the Beauchamps, Earls of Warwick.
=Ivy Lane= contained the ivy-clad houses of the prebendaries attached
to St. Paul’s Cathedral. In =Panyer Alley= may be seen a curious stone
let into the wall of the middle house on the east side, upon which are
chiselled the rude figure of a boy seated on a pannier or basket, and
a distich reminding the pedestrian that this is the highest ground in
the City. The alley was a standing-place for bakers with their panniers
at the time when a corn market was held at the western extremity of
Cheapside.
=Cheapside= properly denotes that side of the Cheap where the rich
goldsmiths had their shops. The term _cheap_ is Saxon for a market,
derived from _ceapan_, to buy. The Old English spelling of the name of
this locality was =Chepe=. =Ironmonger Lane= was the regular habitation
of the artificers in iron in the reign of Edward I.; =Bread Street= of
the bakers; and =Friday Street= of the fishmongers who supplied the
fast-day markets. =Milk Street= was the ancient milk market. =Gutter
Lane= is a corruption of “Guthurun Lane,” so called after a wealthy
Danish burgher. =Foster Lane= contains the Church of St. Vedast
(otherwise St. Foster), Bishop of Arras in the French province of
Artois, in the time of Clovis. =Wood Street= was anciently inhabited by
turners and makers of wooden cups and dishes and measures. =Lawrence
Lane= received its name from the Church of St. Lawrence in =Gresham
Street=, which perpetuates the memory of Sir Thomas Gresham, merchant
and founder of the Royal Exchange (born 1519, died 1579), because
=Gresham College=, established by him in his own mansion, on the site
of the present =Gresham House=, Old Broad Street, was removed here in
1843. =Lad Lane=, now absorbed in Gresham Street, was a corruption of
“Our Lady Lane,” so called from a statue of the Virgin. =Aldermanbury=
was so called from the original Guildhall that stood on its east side.
The approach to the present Guildhall received the name of =King
Street= in honour of Henry IV., in whose reign the edifice was opened.
In =Basinghall Street= stood the mansion of Solomon Basing, Lord Mayor
in 1216. =Coleman Street= preserves the memory of the first builder
upon the land. The =Old Jewry= was the privileged quarter of the Jews,
whose first synagogue was erected here in 1262. =The Poultry= comprised
the shops of the scorchers and stuffers, who afterwards settled down in
the =Stocks Market= (so called from the old stocks for public offenders
that stood there), displaced by the building of the Mansion House in
1739. =Bucklersbury= was originally the property of a wealthy grocer
named Buckle who owned a manor-house here; the Anglo-Saxon word _bury_
being applicable either to a town or to an inhabited enclosure. =King
William Street= was named soon after William IV. opened the present
London Bridge, on August 1, 1831. =Queen Victoria Street= was cut
through in the reign of her present Majesty.