There was the Chapter-house, wrought as a church, Carved and covered and quaintly entayled; With seemly selure y'set aloft, As a parliament-house ypainted about.--Piers Plougghman.

It has been observed by Mr. Spalding, in his work on

Italy,

a medieval monastery with its courts and cloister, its several buildings announcing their destination by their position-this of the superior, that of the dependent; this public and accessible, that private, with its garden, and its environing wall--was the successor of the Roman

villa urbana

.

religious life,

Water, a mill, a garden, an oven, &c.,

Ecclesiastical Antiquities,

were provided within the precincts of a Benedictine monastery to prevent necessity arising for the monks going abroad. When any of the monks were about to start on a journey, they obtained the

prayers of the community; on their return, the wayfarers sought pardon for anything of which they had been guilty on their way, by neglecting the custody of their eyes, or ears, or by indulging in idle conversation.

Although most of the buildings appertaining to the

inner life

Leaving the abbey church by a doorway at the east end of the south aisle, we are led by a descent of several steps to the north-eastern corner of the cloisters. Passing along the east walk, a doorway on the left will be found opening into the outer vestibule of the [extra_illustrations.3.452.2] .

The chapter house in England,

was almost essentially a national peculiarity, unlike the alleys or oblong rooms which take their place on the Continent, forming the conventual or capitular Parliament House, and a distinctive and splendid building. That of

Westminster

is of considerable archi tectural history; firstly, because it replaces the round Chapter House erected by Edward the Confessor, and is of a polygonal form, like that of Worcester, these

two

being the only exceptions to the Benedictine rule of building rectangular chapter houses; and secondly, because it is built (almost exceptionally) over a crypt, the only other instance being at Wells, that of

St. Paul's

, having perished in the Great Fire; and this crypt embodies the original structure of the Confessor.

Sir G. Gilbert Scott, in writing on the Chapter House at , says it

singles itself out from other beautiful works as a structure perfect in itself, of a purely English type as to its plan and outline, and as carrying out the principle of window tracery in a fuller and grander degree than any part of the church.

La Sainte Chapelle

thus showing that our English architecture was running a pretty parallel course with that of France.

The shape of the previous Chapter House, which stood on the same spot, cannot be determined. The present building stands over a crypt which may or may not have belonged to its predecessor. It is approached from the outer cloister by an outer and an inner vestibule; the former of limited height, owing to its passing under the dormitory; the latter lofty, and containing the flight of steps by which the raised level of the Chapter House is reached. The outer vestibule is divided into walks by small columns of Purbeck marble, and the arch in the cloister by which we enter it is exquisitely carved. The bosses in this vestibule are also elaborate. The inner vestibule is divided into unequal bays, pierced on both sides with windows; ;those on the northern side, however, look not into the open air, but towards the altar of St. Faith in the revestry.

The building is an octagon, the diagonals of which measure feet; in other words, it is an octagon, inscribed in a circle of that diameter; it is loftier than most other buildings of the same kind. The central pillar is of Purbeck marble, consisting of a column surrounded by detached shafts: it is lofty and light, and the groining which shot up from it has been restored according to the original pattern by Sir G. G. Scott. Each side of the building is occupied by a spacious window, which fills nearly the whole width between the corner shafts. These windows are generally of lights; the mullions are of Purbeck marble, and the heads filled with large circles and quatrefoils. The spaces beneath the windows are arcaded, with arches in each, of a trefoil form and richly moulded. The arches against the eastern wall are much richer and more deeply set than the others. They probably formed the seats of the greater dignitaries of the Abbeynamely, the abbot in the centre; the prior and subprior, and the and priors. The seats all round are of stone, and on the backs of these is a series of paintings of religious subjects in a sadly mutilated condition, but as they are fully described by Sir Charles Eastlake in his work on oil paintings we need not pause on them in detail. The entire building, although loftier than the Chapter House at Salisbury Cathedral, is less rich in ornament, and probably a little earlier in date of erection; the , however, are so like that no doubt the suggested the general plan of the other. There is an excellent description of the building in a volume of papers read by Sir G. G Scott at the London Congress of the Archeological Institute in , and published by Mr. John Murray under the title of

Old London.

any approach being made to

the correct restoration of the Chapter House.

The chapter-house, as is well known, was the place where the monks and other dignitaries of monastic buildings met to transact the general business of their order; but that at has its political as well as its religious associations. Here, by consent of the then abbot, in , the Commons of England held their meetings, as part of the King's Parliament; and here they continued to hold their sittings until , when Edward VI. granted them instead the use of Chapel.

It appears that in the reign of James I., if not sooner, the records of the King's Bench and the Common Pleas were deposited in this place, and from that time down to the close of the year the records continued to increase. It is said that much damage was done to the Chapter House in the time of the Civil Wars. The old groined roof was standing in . Remonstrances had been made to the Government, who were the custodians of the place, in consequence of its dangerous condition, some time before. At the above date certain surveyors reported that it was necessary to pull the structure down, and put up a new . This report was, fortunately, not acted upon; and in the year upwards of were expended on those repairs, which destroyed in a great measure the ancient appearance of the building. In the Dean and Chapter of called a meeting to take into consideration the steps which were desirable in order to call public attention to the ruinous condition of the Chapter House, with a view to its restoration; nothing, however, seems to have resulted from this meeting, and in another meeting for the same object was convened by the Society of Antiquaries. [extra_illustrations.3.453.1] , who was voted to the chair, having related the early history of the Chapter House, and alluded to the fact that it was the place of meeting of the , said:

I shall not go through the history of the

House of Commons

, during the

300

years that it sat in this Chapter House, but still it is impossible not for a moment to recall the extraordinary interest of the Chapter House in that connection, and to remember that almost all the struggles for liberty against the Crown must have taken place within these walls. There is

one

instance in which they met in the refectory to impeach Piers Gaveston, in the time of Edward II., but as a general rule we may feel satisfied that here took place those early struggles; and as the Commons sat here down to the time of Henry VIII.,

one

may also figure to oneself that here also took place all the memorable acts of the

first

epoch of the Reformation. It is perhaps worthy of note that the last occasion on which the Commons sat in this house was the last day of the life of Henry VIII., and that their last act here was the attainder of the Duke of Norfolk. In

1547

the Commons moved to the Chapel of St. Stephen, within the walls of

Westminster

Palace, which had become vacant by the suppression of the Collegiate Chapel of

St. Stephen's

,

Westminster

. During the previous

300

years the Abbey must have exercised a kind of divided control over the Chapter House. for no doubt the chapter of the monks met here when the

House of Commons

was not sitting. But in

1547

the jurisdiction passed entirely away from the Chapter, and came exclusively into the possession of the Crown. In

1540

, when the Abbey was dissolved, the Chapter House became absolute public and national property, and the Dean and Chapter that were created on their present footing by Queen Elizabeth never could have entered this Chapter House by right for the performance of any of their business. I believe,

it is not quite clear where they held their chapter meetings from their

first

foundation, but it was probably in the Jerusalem Chamber, which is called in legal documents our Chapter House. In

1547

, therefore, we enter upon the

third

stage of its history. In the reign of Edward VI., or of Elizabeth--it is not quite clear which--the building was appropriated for the public records. Then commenced a course of ruin and dilapidation for which the Government must be considered responsible, and which it is the object of this meeting to press them to repair. No doubt these frightful cupboards are nothing but deformities; but, nevertheless, they once contained everything most interesting in English history. Up to the present day there is a board in Poets' Corner, outside the building, bearing this inscription- All parcels and letters addressed to Sir Francis Palgrave at the Chapter House are to be forwarded to the Rolls' Court. And here I may

Dean Stanley's Monument at Westminster Abbey

relate a story which Sir Francis himself told me. On the night of the great fire at the Houses of Parliament he and Dean Ireland were standing on the roof of the Chapter House, looking at the flames, when a sudden gust of wind seemed to bring the flames in that direction. Sir Francis implored the Dean to allow him to carry Domesday Book and other valuable records into the Abbey, but the Dean answered that he could not think of doing so without

first

applying to Iord Melbourne. And this leads me to the

fourth

period.

Three

or

four

years ago the records were finally removed to the Rolls Court, and from that time the Chapter House has been left in the state in which you behold it. It is national property, but it has not been put to any national use. Now, it is obvious that before anything can be done with it it must be restored, not by the Dean and Chapter, for it never belonged to us, though if the Government will undertake to give it to us we will endeavour to preserve it as best we can. But, in the

first

instance, it must be restored to its original magnificence, and to the nation. That is the request we have to urge, and I now appear before you not as claiming anything for ourselves, but as demanding, in the name of the Dean and Chapter of

Westminster

and of the people of England, that the Chapter House should be restored to the state in which it was during the period when the

House of Commons

occupied it, and that it should be freed from the incumbrances no longer necessary now that the records have been deposited elsewhere. This, the

800

th anniversary of the foundation of the Chapter House, and the

600

th of the foundation of the

House of Commons

, is the very time to make the request, and the Government, I hope and believe, are not indisposed to lend a willing hand to a request coming from so venerable and important a body as the Society of Antiquaries. Mr. Gilbert Scott is willing to set before you the manner in which the restoration of the building is to be accomplished; so, with all these convergences of times, persons, and dispositions, I trust this meeting will not have been held in vain.

That this meeting was more successful than its predecessor will be at once inferred, when we state that early in the following year the sum of was voted by Parliament for the restoration of the Chapter House; the work was placed in the hands of Mr. (now Sir) G. Gilbert Scott, who had devoted much of his time to the acquisition of a knowledge of the details of the Abbey in every part; and the result of his labours, it need hardly be added, has fully justified the appointment.

For many years prior to , the Chapter House was used as a repository for the Public Records, among which was the original

Domesday Book,

Though above

seven hundred

years old,

it is still in as fine preservation as if it was the work of yesterday.

This great work, together with the other public records that encumbered the place, was removed in the year to the new Record Office in . For many years this portion of had been allowed to fall into decay; it was filled from the floor to the ceiling with presses and galleries in which the deeds and other documents were stowed away. The old encaustic pavement was boarded over, and to this cause we are, perhaps, indebted for its preservation. The central pillar, from which sprung the groined roof, remained; but in other parts of this octagonal building terrible mischief had been done. The original windows, the same in size and general arrangement as they now appear, had been in some instances removed, and the space filled up with brickwork.

Close by the Chapter House is the [extra_illustrations.3.454.4]  an ancient vaulted chamber, formerly the depository of the regalia of the Scottish kings, including the Holy Cross of Holyrood. Dean Stanley thus writes concerning it:

In the eastern cloister is an ancient double door, which can never be opened, except by the officers of the Government or their representatives, bearing

seven

keys, some of them of large dimensions, that alone could admit to the chamber within. That chamber which belongs to the Norman substructions beneath the dormitory, is no less than the Treasury of England. Hither were brought the most cherished possessions of the State.

This chamber, as Mr. J. Timbs tells us in his

Romance of London,

the scene of a glorious haul by way of the robbery of about

two

millions of our money by certain folks, amongst whom the abbot and

forty

of his monks fell under suspicion, and were sent to the Tower. This money (

£ 100,000

) had been laid up for the Scotch wars by Edward I.

At he time of the Commonwealth, the Pyx Chamber seems to have been in the occupation of the Dean and Chapter, and upon their refusing to deliver up the keys to the officers of the , the doors were forced open, and an inventory of the regalia was made. These were afterwards sold, and though subsequently recovered

The gloomy-looking passage which extends southward by the door of the Pyx Chamber is known as the

dark cloisters,

Little Cloister.

At the Abbey of

St. Peter's

,

Westminster

, are

two

bells, which over all: the bells in the world obtain the precedence in wonderful size and tone.

in the monasterye of

Westminster

ther was a fayr yong man which was blynde, whom the monks hadde ordeyned to rynge the bellys.

was restored by its tenant, Mr. R. Clark,

one

of the choir, who also erected in its front the original Gothic entrance to the Star Chamber Court, and its ancient bell-pull.

The Little Cloister is a square enclosure, having a fountain in the centre, surrounded by an arcade supported by plain semi-circular arches. At the south-eastern corner are the remains of St. Catharine's Chapel. It now serves as the entrance-hall to of the canon's residences; and part of the north end has been partitioned off so as to form a passage to the residence on the east side. According to Dean Stanley, St. Catharine's Chapel was several times before the Reformation used for episcopal consecrations, and also as the meetingplace of the principal Councils of .

Not far from this interesting remnant of the old monastery, and near the south-eastern corner of the Abbey precincts, is an ancient square tower, which, as we learn from Dean Stanley's

Historical Memorials,

with the Treasury and the Chapter House,

forms the triple link of the English State and Church with the venerable past.

Trial of the Pyx

[extra_illustrations.3.455.3]  is immediately contiguous to the south side of the nave of the Abbey Church. The northern and western sides of the cloisters were built by Abbot Littlington, who died in . He also built the granary, which afterwards became the dormitory of the King's Scholars; By the Benedictine rule the monks were required to spend much of their time in the seclusion of the cloisters; and there the day of the month was proclaimed every morning after

prime

monastic solitude in contrast with the scene on the opposite side of the church.

The north walk of the cloisters is spanned by the buttresses of the nave, and at either end are entrances to the church. In the south walk are the remains of a lavatory, and towards the east end of this walk are [extra_illustrations.3.455.4] , and covers the ashes of Gervase de Blois, a natural son of King Stephen, who was appointed abbot in and deposed in . In , of the monks of this abbey fell victims to a plague which was then raging, and they are reported by old Fuller to have been buried all in grave in the south cloister, under the slab above alluded to. The humbler brethren of the monastery were

A small wooden door in the south walk leads to Ashburnham House, of Inigo Jones's few remaining works. Close by the entrance to Ashburnham House is a monument to Peter Francis Courayer, a Roman Catholic clergyman, librarian and canon of the Abbey of St. Genevieve, at Paris. He translated and published several very valuable works on the validity of English orders; but his writings not being favourably received by members of his own Church, he took refuge in England in , and was warmly received by the University of Oxford, who conferred upon him the degree of D.D. He died in , at the age of . There is in the east walk a monument to Sir Edmundbury Godfrey, who was murdered in the reign of Charles II., and a tablet to Lieutenant- General Withers, with an epitaph said to be by Pope. In the north walk lie buried Dr. Markham, archbishop of York, who died in , and also a former Bishop of St. David's; and there are here a few memorial tablets of no particular interest, unless perhaps we select dated in , remarkable for its quaintness, and inscribed to the memory of William Laurence, in these lines-

With diligence and truth most exemplary,

Did William Laurence serve a Prebendary;

And for his pains, now past, before not lost,

Gain'd this remembrance at his master's cost.

The Western Towers And Cloisters Of Westminster Abbey.

Oh! read these lines again!-you seldom find

A servant faithful, and a master kind.

Short-hand he wrote, his flower in prime did fade,

And hasty Death short-hand of him hath made.

Well couth he numbers, and well measur'd land;

Thus doth he now that ground whereon you stand,

Wherein he lies so geometrical;

Art maketh some, but thus will Nature all.

About the year , Dean Williams, afterwards Archbishop of York, spent a considerable sum in repairing the most decayed parts of the church he also, says Dugdale, converted a room in the east part of the cloisters, which had been the monks' parlour, into a library which he furnished with books.

In the west walk is a monument to George Vertue, the antiquary and engraver, and also , by Banks, to Woollett, another eminent engraver of the last century.

It does not appear that the nave and cloisters, though the last resting-places of so many eminent persons, were treated with due respect in the reign of Queen Anne. At all events the following occurs in the Acts of the Dean and Chapter, under date :

Whereas several butchers and other persons have of late, especially on market days, carried meat and other burdens through the church, and that in time of Divine service, to the great scandal and offence of all sober persons; and whereas divers disorderly beggars are daily walking and begging in the Abbey and cloisters;

and do fill the same with nastiness, whereby great offence is caused to all people going through the church and cloisters; and whereas many idle boys come into the cloisters daily, and there play at cards and other plays for money, and are often heard to curse and swear: Charles Baldwell is appointed beadel to restrain this, and to complain of offenders, if necessary, to a justice of the peace. And it is further ordered that if any boys that go to the grammar school, or are choristers of the church, do play there, the beadel do forthwith give in the names of such boys to

one

of the masters, that they may be punished according to their fault.

Ashburnham House, in , as stated above, was built by Inigo Jones. Its chief beauty is a magnificent staircase. In this house was deposited the Cottonian Library (now in the ), which had a narrow escape of being destroyed by fire here in . of the most important works in this library was the Customs Book of the Abbey, written by Abbot Ware in the century. This volume has always been said to have been destroyed in the fire above alluded to, but its parched and shrivelled leaves have been preserved in the , and a few years ago underwent a restoring process by

In the garden is an alcove, also attributed to Inigo Jones, in imitation of part of a small Roman temple. In the coal-cellar are some remains of the vaults of the old conventual buildings, and in of the walls may be seen a capital of the Early Norman period. The house, however, contains nothing else striking or important, and is chiefly memorable as having been at different times inhabited by Dean Milman and Dean Ireland. The garden between the house and the cloister occupies the site of what once was a hall or refectory or dormitory, as is shown by the deeplysplayed windows which are still to be seen in the wall rising far above the spring of the arches of the cloister roof. The house is now occupied by the Sub-Dean, Lord John Thynne.

The present Deanery, a substantial building of stone, occupies part of the site, and, indeed, is formed partly out of the ancient abbot's house, which enclosed a small court or garden lying to the west of the cloisters. It is of the most curious buildings in the Abbey precincts. Over the doorway is a stone shield carved with the arms

Lives of the Abbots of

Westminster

,

Historical Memorials of

Westminster

,

Cheyney Gate Manor,

louvre

[extra_illustrations.3.458.1] , to which we now make our way, was built by Abbot Littlington, towards the latter end of the century; and it is supposed to have been either the

Guesten hall

Henry.

Doth any name particular belong

Unto the lodging where I first did swoon?

Warwick.

'Tis call'd Jerusalem, my noble lord.

Henry.

Laud be to God! ev'n there my life must end.

It hath been prophesied me many a year

I shall not die but in Jerusalem;

Which vainly I supposed the Holy Land.

But bear me to that chamber : there I'll lie;

In that Jerusalem shall Harry die.

With reference to the death of Henry IV. in this chamber, Pennant remarks, on the authority of Brown's

Fasciculus,

the devil is said to have practised such a delusion on Pope Silvester II., having assured his Holiness that he should die in Jerusalem, and kept his word, by taking him off in

1003

, as he was saying mass in a church of that name in Rome.

In the body of Joseph Addison lay in state in the Jerusalem Chamber, before its burial in Henry VII.'s Chapel, as pictured in Tickell's elegy :--

Can I forget the dismal night that gave

My soul's best part for ever to the grave?

How silent did his old companions tread,

By midnight lamps, the mansions of the dead:

Through breathing statues, then unheeded things;

Through rows of warriors, and through walks of kings.

Here, too, Congreve lay in state, before his pompous funeral, at which noblemen bore the pall; and here, also, a similar honour was paid to the body of Matthew Prior, for we are told in the of , that

the same evening the remains of Matthew Prior, Esquire, were carried to the Jerusalem Chamber, and splendidly interred in

Westminster Abbey

.

The portrait of Richard II., now in the chancel of the Abbey Church, hung for some time on the walls of this chamber, as already mentioned in a preceding chapter.

The exterior of the Jerusalem Chamber is not particularly attractive, and with its dwarf proportions it seems a sort of excrescence on the west front of the Abbey, from which it leads in a southward direction towards the Deanery. Between the years and the interior underwent a thorough restoration. its walls are covered with ancient tapestry, and with cedar panelling; the fireplace is fitted with an antique grate, and the surrounding surface is covered with very handsome tiles, ornamented with a pattern combining roses and lilies, with the briars and the stems of each respectively, while around, in medieval characters, are the texts:

O pray for the peace of Jerusalem,

Build thou the walls of Jerusalem,

Jerusalem which is above is free.

In that Jerusalem shall Harry die.

The Jerusalem Chamber has been used as the Chapter House, probably, ever since the Abbey gave up its proper Chapter House to the Crown. Here, then, it may not be out of place to make some mention of the

staff

the College of St. Peter.

Besides being the place for the transaction of business by the Dean and Chapter, the Jerusalem Chamber is the place of meeting for the members of the Convocation of the Province of Canterbury. In theory, the Church of England is governed by means of its Convocation of Bishops and Clergy; but, practically, Convocation is at present little more than a merely deliberative body. Still its moral influence is great, and no wise minister would venture to disregard its deliberately expressed opinion. There is a House of Convocation for each province, Canterbury and York. That of Canterbury consists of Houses: the upper is confined to the bishops; the lower is composed of the deans of every cathedral, the archdeacons, with proctors elected from every cathedral chapter, and more elected by the clergy of every diocese. In York there are Houses, but the bishops, deans, archdeacons, and proctors sit together. A fresh election of proctors is made with every new Parliament.

The Jerusalem Chamber is also to be remembered as the scene of the labours of the committee appointed by Convocation in to revise the

authorised version

On the suppression of the bishopric of , in the year , the diocese was reunited to the see of London.

The lands of this bishopric,

were several of them exchanged with Ridley, just then made Bishop of London, for some belonging to that bishopric. Ridley had also the convicts' prison, a house between the west end of the Abbey and the gatehouse; the bishop's palace, formerly the abbot's house, was given to the Lord Wentworth; a small parcel of lands was sold to Bishop Thirleby; several granted to

one

Sir Thomas Wroth, and others, said to be applied to the repair of

St. Paul's

, and to occasion the saying of robbing Peter to pay Paul.

We may add here, with reference to the suppression of the bishopric, that, under date of , Strype, in his

Ecclesiastical Memorials,

the Church of

Westminster

, nearer to the King's house than any other, was not yet freed from its superstitions, both in apparel and books, which were still preserved there, which occasioned a letter, dated in February, from the King and his Council to the members of that church, that, in the presence of Mr. Vice-Chamberlain and Sir Anthony Aucher, all manner of garnishments and apparel of silver and gold, such as altar-cloths, copes, &c., should be taken away, and delivered to the said Sir Anthony; and to deface and carry out of the library at

Westminster

all books of superstition, such as missals, breviaries, processionals, &c.

in

May, 1553

, the commissioners for gathering ecclesiastical goods carried away from hence all the plate and furniture of the church, except a silver pot,

two

gilt cups with covers,

three

herse cloths,

twelve

cushions,

one

carpet,

eight

stall cloths for the choir,

three

pulpit cloths, a little carpet for the dean's stall, and

two

table cloths.

Between the abolition of as a cathedral city by Henry VIII. and its return to monastic rule by order of Queen Mary--that is, from to -no less than deans were appointed; and from the restoration of the deanery in , down to the present time, there have been upwards of . Of these, some have held high preferment in the Church, or have had their names handed down to posterity through the share they have taken in political events or other matters of history. Space does not permit of our speaking of more than a few of the most important.

Lancelot Andrews, who held the deanery of when James I. came to the throne, was appointed to the bishopric of Chester in , and afterwards translated to the see of Ely. In

Manual of Private Devotions and Meditations for Every Day in the Week,

Manual of Directions for the Visitation of the Sick.

Thomas Sprat, who became Dean of in , was of the original Fellows of the Royal Society, and in published its history. In he was consecrated Bishop of Rochester, and in return for the royal favours which had been conferred upon him he published a history of the Rye House Plot, entitled

A True Account and Declaration of the Horrid Conspiracy against the late King, his present Majesty, and the present Government.

[extra_illustrations.3.460.1] , who succeeded Dr. Sprat in the deanery, and also in the bishopric of Rochester, was a great controversialist in the reigns of Queen Anne and George I. He was a native of Milton, near Newport Pagnell, in Buckinghamshire, and was educated at School, and , Oxford. Having taken orders, he was elected lecturer of , and soon afterwards nominated minister of , where his pulpit eloquence attracted general attention. In the year he became engaged in a long controversy with Dr. Wake, afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, and others, concerning the rights, powers, and privileges of Convocation, Atterbury denying the authority of the civil power over ecclesiastical synods; and the zeal with which he upheld his views secured for him the thanks of the Lower House of Convocation, and the degree of Doctor in Divinity from the University of Oxford. In he was appointed to the deanery of Carlisle, and shortly afterwards transferred to a canonry in Exeter Cathedral. In he was made Dean of , Oxford, and in the following year was advanced to the bishopric of Rochester and the deanery of . On the death of Queen Anne Dr. Atterbury assumed a position of hostility to the House of Hanover, and all his energies were directed to bring about the restoration of the Stuart dynasty. This, perhaps, is the great blot on his character, and it was the which led to his downfall. On the breaking out of the rebellion in the other prelates published a declaration of abhorrence to it, but Atterbury refused his signature, and not long afterwards he incurred the suspicion of being deeply concerned in a succession of plots for the restoration of the ejected family. He was charged by a committee of the with a treasonable correspondence, and the evidence against him being considered conclusive, he was committed to the Tower. The bill of pains and penalties which was passed against him by both the Upper and the Lower House

condemned him to deprivation from all his ecclesiastical preferments, incapacitated him from performing any spiritual functions, or holding any civil appointment, and sentenced him to perpetual exile.

[extra_illustrations.3.460.2] , who was installed in the deanery in , was a distinguished prelate of the English Church, successively Bishop of St. David's, Rochester, and St. Asaph. He was a powerful theological controversialist, and the person against whom he chiefly directed his attack was Dr. Joseph Priestley. His published writings are very numerous, and a complete list of them is given in Nichol's

Literary Anecdotes of the Eighteenth Century.

Seventeen

Letters to Dr. Priestley

a masterly defence of the orthodox faith, and as the secure foundation of a high and lasting theological reputation.

those who defended the Church ought to be supported by the Church.

John Ireland, who was appointed to the deanery in , sprang from very humble parentage, and was born at Ashburton, in Devonshire, in the neighbourhood of which place he held his

Dr. Samuel Wilberforce was next in succession to Dr. Ireland. He was the son of the celebrated philanthropist, William Wilberforce, and was born in . He was ordained as curate of Checkendon, in Oxfordshire, and his subsequent preferments were the rectory of Brightstone, archdeaconry of Surrey, the rectory of Alverstoke, a canonry of Winchester, a chaplaincy to the late Prince Consort, the Deanery of , and the post of Lord High Almoner. He was consecrated Bishop of Oxford in , and translated to Winchester in . Bishop Wilberforce took a prominent part in the debates in the , and also in the Upper House of Convocation; and he was also well known as a most eloquent speaker at public meetings of a religious character. Bishop Wilberforce was accidentally killed, on the , by being thrown from his horse.

William Buckland was nominated by Sir Robert Peel to the deanery, on the elevation of Dr. Wilberforce to the bishopric of Oxford, in . In early life Dr. Buckland exhibited a marked tendency for the study of natural and physical science, and in we find him appointed to the Readership of Mineralogy, and in to the Readership of Geology, in the University of Oxford. His contributions to the

Proceedings

Bibliographia Geologiae et Zoologise,

Bridgewater Treatise

Vindiciae.

[extra_illustrations.3.461.2] , who succeeded to the deanery on the death of Dr. Buckland, in , is a nephew of the Lord Ashtown, in the Irish peerage, and was born in Dublin in . He graduated at Trinity College, Cambridge, and was soon afterwards ordained, and engaged upon a country curacy. It was not, however, as a scholar or a divine, but as a poet, that his name became known. He is also the author of a large number of essays and treatises. In and he was Hulsean Lecturer at Cambridge, and for a short time of the Select Preachers. About the year he became Theological Professor and Examiner at , London, and continued to hold that appointment till his promotion to the Deanery of . He was consecrated Archbishop of Dublin in , on the death of Dr. Whately.

Arthur Penrhyn Stanley, D.D., who, in , succeeded Archbishop Trench in the Deanery of , is the son of the late Right Rev. Edward Stanley, Bishop of Norwich. Educated under Dr. Arnold at Rugby, and having passed a very distinguished university career, he was for many years tutor of his college, and secretary of the Oxford University Commission. He was canon of Canterbury from to ; Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History at Oxford, and canon of ; and also chaplain to the Bishop of London from to . Dean Stanley became known to the literary world by his admirable

Life of Dr. Arnold,

Historical Memorials of Canterbury,

Sinai and Palestine,

Memorials of

Westminster Abbey

,

We may add here that every precaution is taken to ensure the protection of the Abbey from fire, the Dean and Chapter having caused to be erected in the south-west tower, at an altitude of feet from the ground, a huge tank, capable of containing gallons of water, which is always kept charged; from this tank pipes are conveyed to all parts of the edifice, with hydrants and hose always attached at every point of vantage, so that at the alarm of fire man would be able unaided

It is not generally known that soon after the Reformation the Abbey very nearly shared the fate of Tintern, Glastonbury, Reading, Kirkstall, and Malmesbury. Pennant writes;

When the Protector, Somerset, ruled in the fulness of power, this sacred pile narrowly escaped a total demolition. It was his design to have pulled it down to the ground, and to have applied the materials towards the palace which he was then erecting in the Strand, known by the name of

Somerset House

. He was diverted from his design by a bribe of not fewer than

fourteen

manors!

[] Entrance to Chapter House

[extra_illustrations.3.452.2] Chapter House

[extra_illustrations.3.453.1] Dean Stanley

[extra_illustrations.3.454.1] Trial of the Pyx

[extra_illustrations.3.454.2] Door of Chapel of Pyx

[extra_illustrations.3.454.3] Treasure Chest in Chapel

[extra_illustrations.3.454.4] Chapel of the Pyx,

[] Stanley's Memorials, &c., p. 427

[] Entrance to Cloisters

[extra_illustrations.3.455.2] Emma Lady Hamilton

[extra_illustrations.3.455.3] The Great Cloister

[extra_illustrations.3.455.4] the graves of some of the early abbots, but the memorials of only four are visible, namely, Vitalis, who died in 1082 ; Gilbert Crispin (1114); Lawrence, said to have been the first who obtained from the Pope the privilege of using the mitre, ring, and glove, and who died in 1175; the fourth slab is of black marble, called Long Meg, from its extraordinary length of eleven feet

[extra_illustrations.3.458.1] The Jerusalem Chamber

[extra_illustrations.3.460.1] Francis Atterbury

[extra_illustrations.3.460.2] Samuel Horsley

[extra_illustrations.3.461.1] Dean's Yard, Westminster

[extra_illustrations.3.461.2] Richard Chenevix Trench