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u 


THE 


BRITISH,  ROMAN,  AND  SAXON 


ANTIQUITIES  AND  FOLK-LORE 


WORCESTERSHIRE. 


BY  JABEZ   ALLIES,   F.S.A. 


SECOND   EDITION. 


LONDON: 
JOHN    RUSSELL    SMITH, 

86,  SOnO  SQUARE. 

MDCCCLTI. 


PREFACE  TO  THE   SECOND  EDITION. 


In  the  Preface  to  the  First  Edition  of  this  work,  puhlished 
in  1840, 1  stated  that,  in  collecting  the  facts  there  detailed, 
my  principal  object  was  to  show  the  unsubstantial  nature 
of  the  doubts  of  Dr.  Nash,  and  some  other  writers,  as  to 
whether  the  Romans  had  stations  to  any  extent  in  the 
interior  of  the  County  of  Worcester ;  but  that,  in  the  pur- 
suit of  this  subject,  I  was  led  to  discoveries  relating  to 
periods  both  prior  and  subsequent  to  the  Roman  occupation 
of  these  islands. 

Since  the  publication  of  that  edition,  many  additional 
facts  have  been  added  relative  to  the  Antiquities  of  the 
County,  while  various  errors  and  doubtful  etymologies  have 
been  expunged. 

In  a  few  instances,  theBorder  Antiquities  of  the  neighbour- 
ing counties  have  been  noticed,  principally  in  connection 
with  those  of  the  County  of  Worcester. 

Relics,  of  a  date  later  than  that  indicated  by  the  title  page, 
have  in  some  cases  been  described  ;  these,  however,  were 
generally  found  on  the  sites  of  earlier  antiquities. 

In  conclusion,  I  beg  to  return  my  best  thanks  to  all 
those  who  have  kindly  reiulered  me  their  assistance  during 
the  progress  of  tliese  collections,  particularly  to  Jolin 
Clifton,  Esq.,  and  the  other  gentlemen  at  tlu;  Consistory 
Court  of  Worcester,  for  favouring  inc  with  the  inspctiit>u 


Sli  )755 


IV  PREFACE    TO    THE    SECOND    EDITION. 

of  the  Apportionments  of  Rent  Charge  for  the  county  under 
the  Tithe  Commutation  Act,  amongst  which  documents  I 
made  an  extensive  and  laborious  search  for  all  names  of 
fields  and  places  savouring  of  antiquity  or  peculiarity  ;  To 
H.  C.  Hamilton,  Esq.,  of  Her  Majesty's  State  Paper  Office, 
for  much  valuable  assistance  relative  more  particularly  to 
our  Anglo-Saxon  Antiquities;  To  the  Worcestershire  Na- 
tural History  Society,  and  to  Dr.  James  Nash,  Walter 
Jones,  Esq.,  John  Amphlett,  Esq.,  and  Mr.  Eaton,  for 
the  loan  of  several  ancient  relics ;  To  the  Archseological 
Institute  of  London,  and  to  J.  H,  Parker,  Esq.,  of  Ox- 
ford, for  the  use  of  some  of  their  woodcuts;  and  to  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London,  for  the  use  of  their 
copper-plate  engraving  of  the  Perdeswell  Tore.  The 
remaining  Illustrations  were  prepared  for  the  sole  purpose 
of  elucidating  some  of  the  descriptions  contained  in  this 
volume. 

JABEZ  ALLIES. 


31,  Hallifobd  Street,  Islington, 
September  1852. 


— l—^^—S^ 


CONTENTS. 


After  describing  Worcester,  from  p.  I  to  54,  the  other  places 
in  which  ancient  relics  have  been  discovered  are  classed  under 
several  supposed  Itinera  ;  namely — 

Iter  I. 

PAGE 

From  Worcester,  southward,  to  Kempsey,  Upton,  Rip- 
ple, and  T\\yning*  ;  then  westward  to  Eldersfield, 
Pendock,  The  Berrow,  and  Bromsberrow  f ;  then 
north-westward  to  Castle  Morton ;  and  by  the 
Midsummer  Hill  Camp  and  the  Herefordshire 
Beacon  Camp,  on  Malvern  Hills,  nortli-eastward, 
to  Powick,  and  back  to  Worcester,       .         .         .       54,  74 

Iter  II. 

From  Worcester,  south-eastward,  to  Eckiugton,  Ad 
Antonam,  Strensham,  Norton  in  Bredon,  Bredon 
Hill  (Kemerton)J,  Bredon  Hill  (Conderton),  Sedge- 
barrow  and  Iccomb,  or  Icombe§;  then  north-west- 
ward to  the  Four  Shire  Stone,  Dom,  Badsey, 
Church  Honeyboume,  Quintonli.  Offenham, 
Cleeve  Prior,  Crowle,  Bredicot,  and  back  to 
Worcester 74,  9)=^ 

•   Twyning  is  in  Gloucestershire,  but  nearly  surrounded  by  Worrestersliire. 
+  This  is  in  Gloucestershire,  upon  the  borders  of  Worcestershire. 
I   Also  in  Gloucestersliire,  upon  the  border  of  Worcestershire. 
§  This  was  a  detached  part  of  Worcestershire,  but  is  annexed  to  (iloucester 
shire  by  the  Reform  Bill. 
In  Gloucesiershire. 


VI  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Iter  III. 
From  Worcester,  northward,  by  Elbury  Hill  Camp  to 
Droitwich,  Ombersley,  Salwarp,  Stoke  Prior, 
Lincomb  in  Astley,  Hartl^bury,  Bromsgrove, 
Chaddesley  Corbett,  Belbroughton,  Clent,  Hagley, 
Hales  Owen,  and  Dudley  ;  then  westward,  to 
Wassal  Hill ;  then  northward,  to  Kenvaur  Edge, 
and  south-westward  to  Over  Arley* ;  then  south- 
ward, to  Ribbesford,  Tickenhill,  Soddington, 
Mamble,  Stockton,  Lindridge,  Holt,  Wichenford, 
Grimley,  Bevere  Island,  and  back  to  Worcester,  .     98,  153 

The  chains  of  hills,  with  their  antiquities,  and  the 
remarkable  places  adjoining  them,  are  described  in  the 
following  order  : — 

Iter  IV. 

The  chain  of  hills  and  adjacent  places  which  run  on 
the  western  side  of  the  county,  from  the  south  to 
the  north ;  namely,  the  Malvern  Hills,  Bears 
Wood,  Old  Storage,  x\lfrick,  Ankerdine  Hill, 
Whitbournef,  The  Borrow  Hill,  Woodbury  Hill, 
and  Abberley  Hill, 153,216 

Itek  V. 
The  chain  of  Toot  and  other  Hills,  and  adjacent  places, 
which  run  on  the  cast  side  of  Worcester,  from 
south  to  north ;  namely,  Cruckbarrow  Hill ;  Os- 
waldslow,  in  White  Ladies  x\ston;  The  Hound  Hill, 
alias  Cuggan  Hill,  in  Spetchley ;  Perry,  or  Pirie 
W'oud  ;  Trotshill,  Troshill,  or  Tootshill  ;  Elbury 
Hill  ;  Astwood  ;  Barrow  Cop,  in  Pcrdeswell,  and 
Tutnall,  in  Claines;  and  also  Tuot  Hills  generally,  -210,  238 

The  following  are  the  lines,  or  supposed  lines,  of 
tlie  ancient  roads,  Vicinal-ways,   Salt-ways,  llyckniold 

*    Kiiiviuir  K(lg(>  1111(1  Over  Alley  arc  iu  Stallbrdshire. 
I    hi  Meii'fnnlsliiro. 


CONTENTS.  VU 

PAGE 

Street  or  Kidge-way,  and  Foss-way ;  with  notices  of 
the  ancient  camps  and  remarkable  names  of  fields  and 
other  places  in  such  lines  : — 

Itek  VI. 

From  Wall  Hills,  near  Ledbury  and  Malvem  Hills,  to 
Old  Storage,  Ankerdine,  The  Beirow,  and  Wood- 
bury Hills, 238,  '^55 

Itek  VII. 

From  Malvern  Hills,  partly  through  Worcestershire, 

and  partly  through  Herefordshire,  to  Tenbury,  &c.  255,  201 

Iter  VIII. 

From  Worcester,  by  Woodbury  Hill,  iu  Great  Witley, 

to  Tenbury,  &c 261,270 

Iter  IX. 
From  Droitwdch  to  Stourbridge,  ....  270,  275 

Iter  X. 
From   Wall    Hills    Camp,    in    Herefordshire,    partly 
through  Worcestershire,  and  partly  through  Glou- 
cestershire, to  Gloucester,   .  .  .  .  .  275,  277 

Iter  XI. 

From  Wall  Hills  Camp  to  the  Herefordshire  Beacon 
Camp,  on  Little  Malvem  Hill,  and  then  to  the 
Rycknield  Street,  at  or  near  Tewkesbury,     .         .  "277,  280 

Iter  XII. 

From  Wall  Hills  Camp  to  Towbury  Hill  Camp,  in 

Twyning  Parish,  Gloucestershire,         .  .  .  280, 282 

Iter  XI U. 
From  Wall  Hills  Camp  to  Upton,  or  the  Saxons'  Lude. 
From  the  Herefordshire  r)eacou  Camp  to  llanley  Quay. 
From  Great  :Malveni  Hill  to  llic  Hind,        .  .  .   2S2.  2.S(i 


VUl  CONTENTO. 

PAGE 

Iter  XIV. 
Portway  from  Kenchester  to  Frome  Hill  and  Stifford's 
Bridge,  in  Cradley,  in  Herefordsliire,  and  through 
Cowley  Park  and  Powick  to  Worcester ;  and  from 
thence  to  Ombersley,  Hartlebury,  and  Wolverley, 
to  Over  Arley 286,  290 

Iter  XV. 
The  Western  Trackway  from  Tewkesbury,  through 
Worcester,  to  the  Trench  Lane  and  Droitwich, 
and  from  thence  to  Hadley  Heath  Camp,  in 
Ombersley,  Wassal  Hill  Camp,  in  the  Parish  of 
Kiddei-rainster,  to  Over  Arley,     ....  290,  309 

Iter  XVI, 

The    Upper   Salt-way  from  Droitwich   to   Edgbaston, 

near  Birmingham,      ...  .         .  309, 316 

Iter  XVII. 

The  Lower  Salt -way  from  Droitwich  to  Alcester ;  then 
southward  by  the  Honeybournes,  and  through 
Weston-sub-Edge,  to  the  Cotswolds,  at  Middle 
Hill ;  and  then  to  North  Leach  and  Coin  St. 
Aldwins,  &c 316,  323 

Iter  XVIII. 

The  Lower  Deviation  Salt- way  from  Droitwich,  along 
the  Trench  Lane,  &c.,  to  Pershore,  Ashton-under- 
Hill,  North  Leach,  &c.       .         .         .         .         .  323, 329 

Iter  XIX. 

The  Rycknield  Street  or  Bidge-way,  and  its  Deviation 

Lines .  329,354 

Iter  XX. 
The  Fohs-way, 354,  358 


CONTENTS.  IX 

PAGE 

Also,  the  following  Chapters,  namely  : — 

Chapter  I. 
On  the  places  called  Wick,  Wich,  and  Wiccia,     .         .  358,  363 

Chapteb  II. 

On  the  Barabury  or  Banbury  Stone,  in  Kemerton  Camp, 
otherwise  Bambiuy  Camp,  on  Bredon  Hill,  and  on 
Ambrosias  Petrse  in  general,         ....  363,  381 

Chapter  III. 
On  Logan  Stones  and  Hole  Stones,  .         .         .  381,  383 

Chapter  IV. 
On  Hoar  Stones, 383,  397 

Chapter  V. 
On  places  called  "  Oldbury," 397,399 

Chapter  VI. 
On  ancient  spots  called  by  the  name  of  "  Castle,"        .  399,  401 

Chapter  VII. 
Observations  on  the  ancient  names  of  Fields,  &c.,        .  401,  404 

Chapter  VIII. 
Summary  of  the  places  called  "  Ridgeway,"  .         .  404,  405 

Chapter  IX. 
The  like  of  places  called  "  Portway",  .         .         .  405,406 

Chapter  X. 
The  Hkc  of  places  called  "  Street,"     ....  406,  407 

Chapter  XI. 
The  like  of  places  called  "  Vineyard."         .         .         .  407,  400 


CONTENTS. 


Chapter  XII. 


On  "  Folk-Lore ;"  particularly  on  the  Ignis  fatuus,  or 

Will-o'-the-Wisp,  and  the  Fairies,         .         .         401)  to  470 


The   following   are  the   principal   contents   of  the 
"  Folk-Lore :" — 

Ignes  fatui,  as  seen  in  December,  1839,  and  January, 

1840,  in  Powick, 
Hob,  Hoberdy,  Hobany,  Hob-goblin,  Robin 
Dobbies, 
Cob, 

Knop,  Knap,    . 

Puck,  Hob,  Robin  Good-fellow,  Poake-ledden 
Oseberrow,  or  Osebury  Rock,  in  Lulsley,  and  the  Fairies,  418, 
Inkberrow  and  Upton  Snodsbury,  Fairies 
Hoberdy 's  Lantern,  Hob,  Robin,  Robert,   Puck,  and 

Pooka,  or  Phooka, 
Robin  Hood,     . 
Jack-o'-Lantem, 
Will, 

The  Eternal  Waggoner. 
Elf,  Eoten,  or  Oughton. 
Pinket,    . 
Pixie, 

Wish  or  Wisked  Hounds, 
Mab, 
Tom  Thumb,  Patch,  Grim,  Sib,  Tib,  Licke,  Lull,  Hop, 

Drip,  Pip,  Trip,  Pinck,  Piu,  Tick,  Tit,  Wap,  and 

Win, 

Pig-wiggen,  Wiggen  Ash,  and  Nornies, 

Tinker's  Cross,  in  Leigh, 

Robinet,  ...... 

R  lacks  well,       ..... 

Rates-Bush,  in  Lulsley, 

lilack  Jack,   ..... 


409 
41-2 
414 
410 
417 
418 
443 
419 

4-20 
4:i9 
430 
431 
133 
434 
435 
430 
ih. 
437 


43M 
441 
41;<> 
443 
ih. 
444 
44r. 


CONTENTS. 

xi 

PACK 

Lulsley,  Etymology  of, 446 

Alfrick,  Fairies, 

440,  447 

Anglo-Saxon  Elf,  and  Fairy  Names, 

451 

Fairy  Rings,     .... 

456 

The  Seven  Whistlers, 

459 

The  Devil's  Dream,  . 

400 

The  Mysterious  Black  Cat. 

ih. 

Witchery  Hole, 

462 

Old  Coles,         .... 

ih. 

Lady  Lightfoot's  Spectre,  . 

464 

Devonshire  Spectre, 

ih. 

Sir  Thomas  I3oleyn's  Spectre,     . 

465 

Spunkies,          .... 

467 

Kelpies,            ..... 

468 

As  to  what  causes  an  Ljnisfatuus, 

468,  470 

Appendix, 


471,47:5 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Belie  or  Antiquity.  Place  where  found. 

Angerona,    one     of     the     Roman  \ 


Penates 


J 


Worcester 


Roman   and    Anglo-Saxon    Relics, 
Castle  Hill         .         .         . 

Ancient  British  Coin 

Roman  Urn,  DigUs 

Ancient  British  barbed  Spear-head 

Diglis         .... 
The  like.     British  Museum   . 
Anglo-Saxon  Coin 
Ruins  of  St.  Clement's  Church 

Dane  Skins,  Worcester  Cathedral 


Wolstan's  Seal 
Roman  Fibula 


Plate  I. 


„       Pottery 


Kempsey 


Ancient  British  Spear-liead 

Signet  Thumb  Ring,  Saxons'  Lode    Upton 

{Morton    Folliot. 
or 
Castle  Morton     , 
Roman  Uni  .....    Powick 

„       B&sin,  m  Mortarium .         .    Eckington. 


Plate  II. 


Anglo-Saxon  Relics 


(Norton   in    Bre-)„, 
.}  {.Plate  III. 

(     don         .         .) 


Ancient  Earring  (2  cuts)         .         .    Bredon  Hill 

Roman  Urn Bredicot     . 

Curious  Ring  (2  cuts)    .         .         .  ,, 


No. 

Page. 

.      14 

r  i^ 

to 

18 

118  J 

.     26 

.      2!) 

.     30 

.     31 

.      37 

.     38 

1  \ 


3J 


3  \ 
4 
.') 
(i  .' 


1 

2 

l3. 
1 
to 

113 


SO 

r)2 

54 

fir) 

60 
62 

71 

73 
74 


84 
06 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


RvLic  or  Aiitiquit). 

Place  where  found. 

I'laU.'. 

No. 

Pago. 

Hoiiiiui  Urn 

Droitwicli  . 

I'luf  IV. 

P 

„        „      . 

Lineholt  Com- 

" 

•) 

Ancient  British  Celt 

mon,  Ombers- 

ley          .         . 

Lincomb  in  Ast- 

:$ 

»)           «         )j          '         *         '  1 

ley 

4 

)     »H 

«                      5?                   »                  •                 •                  ■ 

Ribbesford . 

„ 

5 

n             >?»)••• 

Holt  . 

)) 

6 

Roman  Fibula        .... 

„     .         .         . 

„ 

7 

Ancient  British  Celt 

Grimley 

>j 

8 
9 

„          „        Stone  Axe 

?)           • 

»)          • 

10 

„        Knife     . 

Bevere  Isle 

„ 

11 

Barrow  Hill,  Tan  Wood 

Chaddesley    Cor- 
bett 

1     ■ 

125 

Ancient  British  Hone,   or  Flaying 
Knife  (2  cuts)    .... 

Lindridge  . 
Worcestershire     > 

14!) 

Ancient  British  Urn  (2  cuts) . 

Beacon,  Mal- 
.     vem  Hill 

• 

1(35 

„           „        Celt       . 

Malvern  Link     . 

1(57 

Legend  of  St.  Werstan  (4  cuts) : — 

1.  St.  Werstau's  Vision 

Malvern  Church . 

. 

17.3 

2.  Dedication  of  the  Chapel  built 
by  St.  Werstan  . 

1       "       ■ 

• 

175 

3.  The  Grant  of  Edward  the  Con- 
fessor        .... 

„ 

• 

177 

4.  The  Martyrdom  of  St.  Werstiin . 

» 

179 

Bedford    Bridge    and    Gate-house, 
Bunyan's  Prison 

Plate  V. 

208 

Buiiynn's  Signet  Ring  (2  cuts) 

. 

209 

Ancient  British  Tore 

Perdeswell . 

Plate  VI. 

2:!0 

„           „        Camp    . 

■  Bredon  Hill,  Ke 
merton   . 

:)(;5 

The  Banibury  Stone 

„ 

ih. 

Ambrosia;  I'etra;  Coin     . 

.'!7S 

The  like 

;!7!l 

fist  0f  Sttbstribtrs, 


The  late  Most  Noble  the  Makquis  of  Northampton. 
The  Right  Honourable  LoiiD  Viscount  Southwell. 
The  Right  Honourable  Lord  Foley. 
The  Honourable  General  Lygon,  M.P. 
Sir  Thomas  Phillipps,  Bart. 

Thomas  Adams,  Esq.,  Islington. 

.(.  Allcroft,  Esq.,  Lower  Wick,  Worcester. 

Miss  Amelia  Ann  Allies,  Worcester. 

Frederic  .\llies,  Esq.,  St.  John's,  Worcester. 

l{obert  Allies,  Esq.,  Hill  House,  Worcester. 

William  Bland,  Esq.,  Hartlip  Place,  Sittiiigbourne,  Kent. 

Henry  John  Brown,  Esq.,  Wilmington  Square,  London. 

John  Brace,  Esq.,  Treasurer  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaiies,  London. 

Professor  Buckman,  F.L.S.  and  F.G.S.,  Cirencester. 

Colonel  T.  H.  Bund,  Great  Malvern. 

Solomon  Cole,  Esq.,  Worcester. 

John  Cramphorn,  Esq.,  Bellevue  Terrace,  South  Sea,  Portsmouth. 

Edward  Dalton,  Esq.,  D.C.L.  and  F.S.A.,  Dunkirk  House,  near  Nailsworth, 

Gloucestershire. 
Mr.  Frederick  N.  Gosling,  Worcester. 
William  Grane,  Esq.,  Bedford  Row,  London. 
William  James  Grane,  Esq.,  Bedford  Row,  London. 
J.  M.  Gutch,  Esq.,  Common  HUl,  Worcester. 

J.  O.  Halliwell,  Esq.,  F.R.S.  and  F.S.A.,  Avenue  Lodge,  Brixton  Hill. 
Rev.  George  Hodson,  M.A  ,  F.S.A.,  Henwick,  Worcester. 
Edward  Holland,  Esq.,  Dumbleton. 
Thomas  Jee,  Esq.,  Peckleton  Hall,  Leicestershire. 
Lockhart  Johnstone,  Esq.,  Worcester. 
John  Jones,  Esq.,  Leigh,  Worcestershire. 
B.  G.  Kent,  Esq.,  Levant  Lodge,  Upton. 

Andrew  Lawson,  Esq.,  Aldborough  Manor,  Borough  Bridge,  Yorksliire. 
Mrs.  Leach,  The  Newarke,  Leicester. 
Sannu'l  Lewis,  Esq.,  Finsbury  Place,  London. 
Afr.  Maiisell,  Gloucester. 

Mrs.  Montague  Marriott,  Montpelier  Square,  Bromjjton. 
William  Meiu-e,  Esq.,  Ronkswood,  Worcester. 
James  Nash,  Esij.,  M.D.,  Worcester. 
The  Rev.  John  Pearson,  Rectory,  Suckley. 
Mr.  George  Robinson,  The  Fir  Trees,  Redditeh. 
Daniel  Rowland,  V.sq.,  Grosvcnor  Place,  London. 

Tlie  Rev.  F.dward  W.  Stillinglleet,  llotham,  near  Howden,  Yorkshiri'. 
William  Swainson,  F.scj.,  Walworth. 
William  Jackson  Taylor,  Escj.,  Forest  Hill,  Surrey. 
\rrs.  Thomas,  White  Ladies,  Worcester. 
Boyes  Tliornton,  Esq.,  Peckham. 

Clmrles  Tucker,  i:s(|.,  F.S.A.,  Suffolk  Street,  Pall  Mall  Fast. 
Albert  Way,  Fs([.,  Wimhani  Park,  Reigate,  Surrey. — ('*  copies.) 
The  P.ev   .losej))!  Webster,  Rectory,  llindlii). 
Joseph  Woiitncr,  1!m|.,  ('lM])lrni. 


WORCESTER. 


It  is  stated  in  Grose's  "  Antiquities*"  that  "  Worcester 
is  generally  allowed  to  have  been  the  Braviniumf  of  the 
Romans,  mentioned  in  the  twelfth  journey  of  Antoninus, 
twenty-four  miles  from  Magna,  now  Kenchester|,  in  Hereford- 
shire, and  twenty-seven  from  Uriconium,  now  Wrottesley§,  in 
Staffordshire."  But  it  is  only  of  late  years  that  any  satis- 
factory evidence  has  been  brought  to  light  relative  to  the  Roman 
occupation  of  the  place. 

The  following  collections  made  upon  the  subject  will,  it  is 
trusted,  be  found  valuable,  both  as  they  respect  the  history  of 
the  City  and  County  of  Worcester,  and  also  as  adding  to  the 
general  store  of  information  relative  to  the  olden  times. 

In  the  year  1839,  upon  excavations  being  made  to  lay  the 
basement  of  the  house  in  the  centre  of  Britannia  Square,  in 
Worcester,  the  foundation  of  a  circular  tower  or  fort  of  sandstone 
was  found,  about  thirty  feet  in  diameter ;  while  in  the  rubbish 
upwards  of  fifty  Roman  copper  coins  were  discovered  ||,  some  of 
Constantius,    others    of    Constantino    the    Great,     Deceutius, 

•  Vol.  vi.,  Supp. 

•t-  This  agrees  with  Stiikeh'y's  account.  Gale  says  Riishbury,  Horsley  says 
LucUow,  and  others  say  Lentwardiiie. 

J  Tlus  agrees  with  Horsley's  nceount.  Gale  and  Stiikeley  say  Magna  means 
Old  Radnor,  and  that  Ariconinni  means  Kenchester. 

§  Gale,  Stukeley,  and  Horsley  say  Wroxetcr,  in  Shropshire. 

II  It  is  also  said  that  silver  couis  were  found  there,  of  Julia  Mamnea,  Julian, 
and  Constans ;  but  as  these  were  casually  brought  to  me,  I  cannot  vouch  so 
well  for  them. 

-^  B 

/ 


Claudius  Gothicus,  and  Magnentius;  but  the  greater  part  too 
decaj-ed  to  be  deciphered*.  This  tower  or  fort  was,  most 
probably,  one  of  those  which  Tacitus  states  that  the  Roman 
Propraetor,  Ostorius  Scapula,  constructed  on  the  Severn,  in  the 
reign  of  the  Emperor  Claudius  the  First ;  they  were  erected  on 
the  east  bank,  to  check  the  Britons  on  the  other  side  of  the 
river.  John  Eoss,  a  writer  on  antiquities,  who  flourished  in  the 
reign  of  Edward  the  Fourth,  has  reported  Constantius  Caesar  as 
the  founder  of  Worcester,  on  the  credit  of  an  old  British 
chronicle  he  met  with ;  and  Andrew  Yarranton,  in  his  work 
entitled  "  England's  Improvement  by  Sea  and  Land,"  &c.  (the 
first  part  of  which  was  published  in  1677,  and  the  second  in 
1698),  states  in  the  second,  part,  page  162,  as  quoted  by  Dr. 
Nashf,  inter  alia,  as  follows  : — "  He  says  he  found  out  a  vast 
quantity  of  Roman  cinders  near  the  avails  of  the  city  of 
Worcester ;  and  within  one  hundred  yards  of  such  walls  there 
was  dug  up  one  of  the  hearths  of  the  Roman  foot-blasts,  it 
being  then  firm  and  in  order,  and  was  seven  foot  deep  in  the 
earth ;  and  by  the  side  of  the  work  there  was  found  out  a  pot 
of  Roman  coine,  to  the  quantity  of  a  peck,  some  of  which 
was  presented  to  Sir  Dugdale,  and  part  thereof  is  in  the  King's 
closet ; — by  all  which  circumstances  it  clearly  appears  that  the 
Romans  made  iron  in  England,  and  as  far  up  the  river  Severn 
as  the  city  of  Worcester,  where  as  yet  there  are  vast  quantities 
remaining." 

Dr.  Nash  (in  the  absence  of  further  evidence)  strongly 
expressed  his  opinion  that  these  were  not  Roman  relics  ;  but  in 
the  corrections  and  additions  to  the  second  volume  of  his"  History," 
page  97,  he  relaxed  a  little  upon  the  point,  and  stated  that  "  In 
June  1797  an  underground  drain  was  made,  the  whole  length 
of  the  Broad  Street,  Worcester,  and  about  the  middle  of  the 
street  from  the  Cross,  near  the  house  of  Mr.  Morton,  cabinet 
maker,  not  far  from  the  Bell  Inn,   was  found  a  bed    of  iron 

•  Harvey  Berrow  Tynibs,  Esq.,  presented  these  coins  to  the  Museum  of 
the  Worcestershire  Natural  History  Society. 

f  Vide  Vol.  ii.  of  Nash's  "  History  of  Worcestershire ; "  Appendix, 
p.  cviii. 


3 

cinclei's,  which  extended  up  Mr  Morton's  yard,  and  probably 
on  to  the  walls  of  the  city,  near  which  was  a  considerable  iron 
foundery  in  the  time  of  the  Saxons,  or  perliaps,  as  some  think, 
of  the  Komans.  About  two  or  three  hundred  yards  from  the 
city  wall,  up  the  river,  is  a  place  called  Cinder  Point,  where  a 
great  quantity  of  the  like  scoriae  are  found.  The  specimen 
I  have  is  very  rich  in  metal.  The  cinders  at  Mr.  Morton's 
and  the  Bell  Inn  were  found  to  extend  about  forty  yards  in 
breadth  ;  and  at  another  place,  near  the  Cross,  opposite  Mr. 
Wilson's,  about  ten  yards." 

I  have  several  times  examined  the  stratum  of  iron  scoriae  and 
clinkers  at  Cinder  Point,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Severn,  in  a 
place  called  Pitchcroft,  and  find  that  the  bed  is  extensive,  and 
the  clinkers  very  rich  in  metal.  I  have  no  doubt  that  this  is  the 
place  referred  to  by  Yarranton.  The  stratum  lies  by  the  river 
side  about  sLx  feet  deep,  beneath  the  alluvial  soil,  and  was  most 
probably  the  rough  and  half-smelted  ore  thrown  aside  in  the  time 
of  the  Romans,  they  having,  it  is  said,  only  foot-blasts  to  smelt 
the  ironstone. 

The  supposed  fort  of  Ostorius  before  mentioned  stood  exactly 
opposite  to  Cinder  Point,  at  the  distance  of  about  500  yards,  on  a 
ridge  of  ground,  just  out  of  flood's- way,  on  the  same  side  of  the 
river,  and  would  at  all  times  guard  the  iron  works.  A  few  years 
ago,  I  saw  a  similar  bed  of  scoriae  and  clinkers  in  the  bank  of  a 
lane  between  Eughsh  Bicknor  Church  and  the  river  Wye,  in 
Gloucestershire.  This  was  pointed  out  to  me  by  the  Rev. 
Edward  Feild,  then  Rector  of  that  parish,  and  now  Bishop  of 
Newfoundland ;  and  also  a  mound  in  an  adjacent  pasture,  from 
whence  several  years  back  a  great  quantity  of  clinkers  were  dug 
out,  and  taken  to  the  iron  works  at  the  Forest  of  Dean,  to  be 
melted  up  again  with  iron  ore,  as  such  clinkers  (like  those  at 
Cinder  Point)  are  very  rich  in  metal,  and  were  considered  greatly 
to  improve  the  general  mass ;  but  it  is  said  that  on  account  of  a 
new  mode  in  smelting,  they  are  not  now  used*.  These  ancient 
works  in  BicKnor  appear  to  have  been  flanked,  overlooked,  and 

•  See  an  interesting  ncrount  of  the  sites  of  Roniim  iron  works  in  the  aliove 
mentioned  dislriets,  by  Tlionins  Wrijrlit,  Ksq.,  F.S.A.,  in  the  "  Centleninn's 
-Miil^'azine,"  Jannary  IS.")-*,  p.  I^.'t,  A;c. 


defended  by  a  tower  or  fort,  which  stood  at  the  top  of  the 
rising  ground  by  the  churchyard,  and  the  site  of  which  is  still 
plainly  visible.  I  was  informed  by  the  late  Sir  Samuel  Eush 
Meyrick  that  the  like  scoriae  and  cUnkers  are  to  be  seen  in  the 
grounds  adjacent  to  Goodrich  Court. 

Mr.  Spriggs,  of  this  city,  has  shown  me  a  coin  of  Nero,  dug 
up  in  his  presence,  in  Broad  Street,  near  the  top  of  the  street 
called  Doldy,  when  the  drain,  referred  to  by  Dr.  Nash,  was  made 
there  in  1797.  This  coin  was  struck  in  commemoration  of  the 
closing  of  the  temple  of  Janus,  in  Nero's  reign,  which  was  the 
sixth  time.  On  the  obverse  it  has  the  portrait  of  the  Emperor, 
with  the  inscription,  NERO  CLAVD.  CAESAR  AVG.  GER. 
P.M.  TR.  P.  IMP.  P.P. ;  and  the  reverse  contains  the  temple  of 
Janus,  and  the  inscription,  PACE  P.R.  TERRA  MARIQVE 
PARTA  lANVM  CLVSIT.  S.C.  This  coin  is  veiy  interesting, 
as  it  shows  that  Tacitus  was  wrong  in  his  statement  that  the 
temple  of  Janus  was  not  shut  after  the  time  of  Augustus  till  the 
reign  of  Vespasian*.  Paten  notices  a  similar  coin  in  page  113 
of  his  work  on  Roman  Coins,  and  remarks  that  although  he  was 
satisfied  that  the  temple  was  shut  by  Nero,  as  the  coin  indicates, 
yet  that  the  then  state  of  the  world  did  not  justify  it,  and  that 
was  the  reason  why  Tacitus  and  Orosius  did  not  notice  the  fact. 

I  have  coins  of  Probus,  Gratian,  and  Carausius,  which  were 
foimd  a  few  years  back  in  an  excavated  mass  of  soil  upon  which 
some  old  tenements  stood  in  Doldy.  In  the  "  Stranger's  Guide 
to  Worcester,"  published  in  1828,  under  the  name  of  Ambrose 
Florence,  the  above  ancient  part  of  the  town  is  noticed  in  page 
13,  as  follows  : — "  In  the  corporation  book  called  '  Liber  Legum,' 
made  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VII.,  it  is  ordered  that  all  '  Walshe 
catell '  coming  to  be  sold  be  brought  to  Dolday ; "  and  in 
page  11,  it  is  observed  that  "  General  Roy,  in  his  'Mihtary 
Antiquities  of  the  Romans  in  Britain,'  says,  '  If,  however, 
Worcester  was  really  a  Roman  town,  which  is  no  way  im- 
probable, it  seems  to  be  that  which  Richard,  in  his  Choro- 
gra])hy,  assigns  to  the  Dobuui,  under  the  name  of  Branogeiia; 
but  which,  in  his  map,  he  calls  Brangonum.  Tliis  last  is 
evidently  the   same   with   the  name  Wrangon,  given  to  Wor- 

•    J'ii/r  "  UuiviTsal  History,"  Vol.  xiv.,  ])p.  3--4. 


cester  by  the  Welsh ;  whence  the  Saxons  changed  it  to  Wrangou 
ceaster*  ;  and  thence  by  corruption  came  its  present  name.'" 
And,  in  page  12,  that  "  Nennius,  an  ancient  British  writer,  gives 
a  catalogue  of  the  cities  of  Britain,  the  sixth  of  which  is  Cair 
Guoranegou,  which  is  almost  universally  allowed  by  antiquaries 
to  be  our  city;  and,  indeed,  it  is  so  called  in  the  ancient 
British  language  at  the  present  day." 

Upon  the  demolition  of  the  old  Saint  Clement's  Church  in  this 
city,  Eoman  coins  were  found  in  the  rubbish  on  digging  up  part 
of  the  ancient  city  wall  which  stood  on  the  river  side  of  that 
church ;  and  one  of  Domitian  was  discovered  in  the  excavations 
for  the  new  houses  at  Lark  Hill  Crescent,  near  Peny  Woodf ; 
one  of  Valerian,  an  urbs  Roma,  and  a  silver  one,  I  think  of 
Septimus  Severus,  upon  digging  the  foundations  of  Dr.  James 
Nash's  house,  in  the  High  Street ;  and  one  of  Maximian  in  the 
excavations  for  the  new  Saint  Michael's  Church,  in  College 
Street. 

Coins  have  also  from  time  to  time  been  found  at  Dunn's 
Gardens ;  at  The  Wliite  Ladies,  and  at  various  other  parts  in  and 
about  the  City,  as  follows  : — 

A  coin  of  Tetricus,  discovered  in  the  year  18 13,  as  excavations 
were  being  made  at  the  Commandery,  in  Sidbur}- ;  one  of  Hadrian, 
dug  up  near  the  Cathedral;  one  of  Trajan  found,  in  the  year 
1844,  upon  digging  foundations  to  rebuild  the  house  No.  46, 
High  Street ;  one  of  Carausius,  discovered  in  1 844,  upon  exca- 
vations being  made  behind  the  houses  which  lie  on  the  north  side 
of  College  Street  and  on  the  south  side  of  Lich  Street ;  and, 
in  the  year  1847,  coins  of  Hadrian  and  Nero  were  found,  in 
making  a  cutting  to  lay  gas  pipes  in  the  Com  Market. 

In  January  1838,  Mrs.  Thomas,  of  The  White  Ladies,  pre- 
sented a  considerable  number  of  Roman  brass  coins  to  the 
Museum  of  the  Worcestershire  Natural  History  Society,  as  hav- 
ing been  found  at  that  place  and  at  CruckbaiTow  Hill ;  among 
these  there  are  several  Greek  ones,  of  brass.     For  the  following 

•  It  is  spelled   Wigonmeeaster  in   the   Saxon  Chronicle,  9'22,  1041.     See 
Kemble's  "  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  558.     Also  see  "  Alfrick." 
+   Vide  "  .Ambrose  Florence,"  page  130. 


6 

description  of  them  I  am  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  J.  Y.  Aker- 
man,  Esq.,  Secretary  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries*. 

1.  Titus.     IVDEA  (CAPTA).     Judsa  seated  under  a  palm 

tree. 

2.  Antoninus  C COS.  IIII.     The  4th  Consulship  of 

the  Emperor.     Security  seated. 

3.  Colonial  Imperial  of  Gordian  the  Third,  struck  at  Csesarea, 

in  Cappadocia,  in  the  fourth  year  of  that  emperor's 
reign.  The  reverse  has  the  representation  of  Mount 
Argaeus  placed  on  an  altar. 

4.  Galhenus.    Re. :  PEOVIDENTIAE.    Providence  stand- 

ing. 

5.  The  Uke.     APOLLONI  CONS  AVG.     A  centaur  bend- 

ing a  bow. 

6.  Roman  Empress  of  about  the  time  of  Galliueus.     Oblite- 

rated. 

7.  Claudius  Gothicus.     Re. : (S)TATORI. 

8.  Quintillus.     Re. :  CONCORDIA.    A  woman  holding  two 

standards. 

9.  Tetricus  the  Elder.   Re. :  SPES  AVGG.   Hope  walking. 

10.  Brass,  of  Probus.     Struck  at  Alexandria. 

11.  Diocletian.     Re.:    CONCORDIA   MILITVM.     In  the 

exergue,  ALE  (for  Alexandria).  The  Emperor  and 
Jupiter,  supporting  between  them  a  figure  of  Victoiy. 

12.  Constantinus.    Re. :  BEATA  TRANQVILLITAS.    An 

altar  inscribed,  VOTIS.  XX.     In  the  exergue,  P  T  R. 

Struck  at  Treves. 
18.  Constantino  the  Great.   Re.:  SOLI  INVICTO  COMITI. 

Apollo  standing. 
14.  The   like.      Re.:    MARTI    CONSERVATORI.      Man 

standing  with  spear  and  shield. 

*  This  batch  also  contained  several  British  and  foreign  Mediaeval  and  later 
coins,  such  as  a  Philip  and  Mary,  Elizabeth,  Charles  I.,  Geneva  Civitas  1078, 
Byzantine,  Liard  of  Louis  XIV.  of  France,  and  an  East  Indian  ;  some  of  which 
may  have  been  buried  at  The  White  Ladies  with  the  bodies  of  persons  who 
fell  at  the  battle  of  Worcester,  in  1651.     See  the  subsequent  note. 


15.  Magnentius,  with  the  Christian  monogram. 

1 6.  Brass,  of  Magnentius.     Re. :  Victoria  augg.  et  caess. 

17.  Small  brass,  of  Julian  the  Apostate.     Head  of  the  Empe- 

ror.    Re. :  A  figure  holding  a  standard. 

18.  Valentinian.       Re.:     SECVRITAS     REIPVBLICAE. 

Victory  holding  garland  and  palm  branch. 

19.  Valens. 

20.  Greek  ?     Head  of  Jupiter  ?     Re. :  Male  figure  holding  a 

standard  and  the  hasta. 

21.  Greek,  of  Catania.     Head  of  Ceres.     Re. :  A  tiipod. 

22.  Greek  ?     Re. :  Male  figure  holding  the  hasta. 

23.  Greek.     Helmed  head.     Re. : OPOY  (magistrate's 

name).     A  female  figure. 

24.  Greek? 

25.  Greek,  struck  at  Alexandria.    Head  of  an  emperor.    Re. : 

Female  figure  with  turretted  crown,  standing,  holding 
the  hasta. 

26.  Greek — Athens.     Helmed  head.     Re. :  Minerva  fighting. 

27.  Greek,  of  Beotia.     Head  of  Jupiter.     Re. :  A  trident. 

28.  Greek,  of  Thebes  in  Beotia.     Head  of  Neptune.     Re. : 

Trident. 

29.  Greek,  of  Beotia.     Re. :  Trident. 

30.  Carthage.     Female  head.     Re. :  A  horse's  head. 

31.  Catania.     Head  of  Ceres.     Re.: 

Upon  a  drain  being  made  at  The  White  Ladies,  in  1842, 
across  the  lawn  in  front  of  the  house,  several  Roman  and  Greek 
coins  are  said  to  have  been  found.  The  following  Roman  have 
been  deciphered,  viz. : — 

Crispina, 

Caracalla, 

Gallienus, 

Claudius  II.,  )■     Brass. 

Tetricus, 

Carausius, 

Gratian, 


Antonia  Augusta, 

Domitian, 

Trajan, 

Hadrian, 

Faustina  Augusta, 

Diva  Faustina. 

Commodus, 


Valens, Silver. 


8 

And  the  following  Greek  brass  coins,  viz. : — 

A  coin  of  the  series  called  uncertain  lloraan.  Obverse — 
Head  of  Mercury,  with  the  Petasus ;  four  dots  over  the  head 
denoting  quadrans ;  supposed  to  have  been  struck  in  Campania, 
after  its  conquest  by  the  Romans.  Eeverse — Roma,  over  prow 
of  a  vessel. 

Coin  of  Arpi,  in  Apulia,  anciently  called  Hippion.  Reverse — 
A  horse,  apfanot. 

Coin  of  Augustus,  struck  at  Alexandria.  Reverse — An  Ibis 
L'",  18th  year. 

Coin  of  Hiero  II.,  Syracuse.     Reverse — A  trident,  iepq.* 

Mrs.  Thomas  kindly  presented  these  last-mentioned  Greek 
coins  to  me.  For  the  description  of  them,  I  am  indebted  to 
Albert  Way,  Esq.,  and  a  friend  of  his. 

Upon  the  last-mentioned  discovery  being  made,  I  was  sent  for 
by  the  late  Captain  Thomas  and  Mrs.  Thomas,  and  upon  my 
arrival  at  The  White  Ladies,  I  saw  the  trench  which  had  been 
cut  through  the  lawn,  and  the  coins  lying  on  a  table  in  the  hall, 
where  they  had  been  placed  by  the  Captain  and  his  Lady,  who 
informed  me  that  they  received  them  from  the  workmen  as  they 
were  found  in  the  cutting. 

Upon  my  communicating  these  facts,  in  the  following  year,  to 
several  numismatists,  and  showing  them  the  coins,  they  enter- 
tained considerable  doubt  as  to  the  finding  of  such  Greek  coins 
in  that  locality,  and  suggested  that  the  workmen  might  have 
practised  some  deception  in  the  matter,  I  therefore,  in  December 
1843,  applied  to  Mrs.  Thomas  for  any  particulars  she  could  give 
relative  to  the  first-mentioned  find  of  coins ;  and  in  reply  slio 
informed  me  that  those  coins  which  she  gave  to  the  Worcester- 
shire Museum,  were  collected  by  her  late  father,  Richard 
Ingram,  Esq.,  who  told  her  that  some  of  them  were  from  time 
to  time  dug  up  at  The  White  Ladies,  and  that  others  of  them 
were  found  in  a  field  adjoining  the  south-west  side  of  Cruck- 
barrow  Hill,  where  he  intended  to  have  built  a  houscf ;  and  that 

•  In   tlie    earth    uljove    the  coins,  several    human    skeletons  were    found, 
prohaldy  tlie  remains  of  persons  killed  at  the  Battle  of  Worcester,  iu  llijl. 
t  But  his  dfutJi,  in  1811,  prevented  it. 


9 

upon  felling  some  trees  and  levelling  the  ground  for  that  purpose, 
several  of  the  coins  were  discovered ;  but  Mrs.  Thomas  could 
not  tell  whether  any  of  the  Greek  coins  in  this  first  batch  were 
found  at  Cruckbarrow  HiU*,  and  I  should  think  that  they,  like 
the  others  of  that  class  in  the  second  batch,  probably  were  found 
at  The  White  Ladies. 

There  is  an  account  in  the  "  Archseologia "'  of  1846  f 
relative  to  Greek  coins  having  been  found  on  the  site  of  a 
Roman  villa  at  Acton  Scott,  near  Church  Stretton  in  Shrop- 
shire, and  the  villa  from  this  circumstance  is  attributed  to  the 
time  of  Ostorius.  This  strongly  corroborates  the  case  in  ques- 
tion, since  The  White  Ladies  ;  the  supposed  fort  of  Ostorius  in 
Britannia  Square,  and  the  supposed  Roman  iron  works  at 
Cinder  Point,  on  the  bank  of  the  Severn,  are  all  in  a  line  with 
each  other.  Under  all  the  circumstances  stated,  it  seems  not 
improbable  that  The  White  Ladies  is  the  site  of  the  Roman 
governor's  house,  and  that  it  was  so  occupied  from  the  time 
of  Ostorius  downwards  through  many  generations,  the  Roman 
coins  found  there  appearing  to  indicate  such  a  continuous 
occupation.  There  also  is  a  road  from  Worcester,  called  Port- 
field's  Road,  which  begins  at  the  foot  of  LowesmoorJ,  and  runs  by 
Harbour  Hill§  and  Portfield's  Farm  towards  Elbuiy  Hill,  &c. 
Its  name  shows  tliat  this  was  a  Roman  port,  or  military  way']. 

Having  thus  detailed  all  the  facts  that  I  could  glean,  relative 
to  the  case,  it  becomes  necessary  to  enter  a  little  into  the  ques- 
tion as  to  the  truth  of  the  finding  of  such  interesting  Greek 
coins  at  Worcester.  The  objection,  as  I  understood  it,  was,  that 
such  coins  had  not  been  foimd  so  far  inland  in  England.  We 
will,  therefore,  argue  first  as  to  the  truth  of  the  finding ;  and 
secondly,  as  to  the  reasonableness  of  it,  drawTi  from  the  fact  of 
its  having  occurred  in  the  line  of  the  operations  of  Ostorius. 

•  See  title  "  Bi'vcre  Island,"  as  to  a  Greek  silver  coin  supposed  to  have 
been  found  there.  A  coin  of  the  Consulate  was  found  at  the  Castle  Hill  as 
will  be  stated  in  its  place. 

+  Vol.  xxxi.,  No.  2,  pp.  339  to  345. 

J   See  hereinafter  as  to  this  name. 

§  Sec   as   to   tliis  name  in  the  accounts  of  Ilagley,  Hindlip,  ami  Mulvorn. 

II  The  word  "])ort"  also  means  an  enclosed  plare,  for  sale  and  purchase, 
a  market.     See  Kemble's  '*  Suxons  in  England,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  500. 


10 

Now,  with  respect  to  the  finding  of  the  first  batch,  I  would 
ask,  is  it  at  all  probable  that  some  unknown  person  did,  from 
time  to  time,  deceive  the  late  Mr.  Ingram,  through  the  agency 
of  the  workmen ;  or  that  the  workmen  themselves  did  from 
time  to  time  deceive  him  with  these  remarkable  coins.  And 
with  respect  to  the  second  batch,  is  it  at  all  Hkely  that  such 
person,  or  some  other  unknown  person,  did,  thirty-one  years 
after  the  deatli  of  Mr.  Ingram,  find  out  that  Captain  and  Mi-s. 
Thomas  were  going  to  have  a  di'ain  made  in  the  front  of  their 
house,  and  took  that  opportunity  to  deceive  them  through  the 
agency  of  the  workmen ;  or  that  the  workmen  themselves 
deceived  them  with  such  curious  coins.  And  again,  is  it  at  all 
probable  that  a  numismatist  would  have  practised  such  a 
deception,  or  rather  such  a  chain  of  deceptions,  unless  to  support 
some  favourite  theory;  but  do  we  find  that  any  theory  was 
advanced  upon  the  subject?  In  fact,  the  first  batch  of  coins 
appears  to  have  remained  many  years  in  the  possession  of  the 
late  Mr.  Ingram,  and  afterwards  in  that  of  Mrs.  Thomas,  without 
being  particularly  noticed,  and  their  peculiar  character  was  not 
even  dwelt  upon  imtil  I  submitted  them  to  the  numismatists,  as 
before  stated;  although,  had  I  been  earlier  aware  of  their 
pecuUar  character,  I  should,  in  the  first  edition  of  this  work, 
have  brought  them  forward  as  an  additional  proof  of  my  state- 
ment, relative  to  the  supposed  Fort  of  Ostorius,  in  Bri- 
tannia Square,  and  the  supposed  Roman  iron  works  at  Cinder 
Point. 

Another  objection  has  been  raised,  which  is,  that  the  coins 
may  have  belonged  to  a  collector,  or  collectors,  and  that  they 
were  some  time  or  other  buried,  either  by  design,  during  civil 
commotions,  or  by  accident,  and  afterwards  dug  up  again,  from 
time  to  time,  in  the  manner  before  stated.  Now  it  possibly 
might  have  been  so,  but  in  that  case  they  must  have  been  buried 
in  vaiious  places.  It  also  is  possible  that  the  late  Mr.  Ingram 
may  have  collected  some  of  the  first  batch  of  coins  from  various 
sources,  and  added  them  to  those  which  he  said  were  dug  up 
at  The  AVliite  Ladies  and  Cruckbarrow  Hill ;  and  in  that  case 
the  question  is,  whether  the  first  batch  of  Greek  coins  were  part 
of  those  which  were  dug  up  at    cither  of  those  places.     The 


11 

second  batch  of  coins,  however,  is  much  more  satisfactory,  as 
they  were  the  subject  of  investigation  as  soon  as  found,  and  all 
of  them  appear  to  have  been  either  Greek  or  Eoman. 

With  respect  to  the  locality  itself,  in  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol.  i., 
p.  209,  it  is  stated  that  the  Nunnery  of  St.  Mary  Magdalen,  at 
Whistone,  is  now  called  The  White  Ladies,  and  that  Whiston, 
or  White-stone,  is  called  from  a  white  stone  or  cross  erected 
there  ;  and  that  in  William  the  Conqueror's  time  this  stone  was 
pulled  down,  and  used  to  build  a  lavatory  for  the  monks  of 
St.  Mary*.  In  Green's  "  History  of  Worcester,"  Vol.  i.,  it  is 
stated  that  "a  mUe  being  measured  northward  from  the  end  of 
the  High  Street,  a  stone  pile,  with  carvings,  was  erected  at 
the  mile's  end,  which  was  called  the  White  Stonef,  and  gave 
name  to  a  district  or  tithing  without  the  city,  called  Whit- 
stones  to  this  day." 

Having  thus  pretty  well  exhausted  the  subject,  both  pro  and 
con,  relative  to  The  White  Ladies'  coins,  we  must  now  refer  to 
the  account  of  the  remarkable  find  of  Greek  coins  at  the  site 
of  the  Roman  Villa  at  Acton  Scott,  in  Shropshire,  mentioned 
at  p.  9.  It  is  observable  that  Acton  Scott  lay  in  the  range  of 
Ostorius's  operations  as  well  as  Worcester,  and  the  forts  which 
he  constructed  on  the  Severn  are  said  to  have  run  from 
Uriconium,  Wroxeter,  near  Shrewsbury,  to  Worcester  and 
Gloucester^.  This  goes  far  to  prove  that  the  coins  found  at  the 
one  place  would  naturally  correspond  ^\'ith  those  found  at  the 
other.  In  conclusion,  I  sliall  beg  leave  to  quote  what  Mrs. 
Frances  Stackhouse  Acton  has  said,  at  the  end  of  her  very 
interesting  account  relative  to  the  relics  and  coins  found  at 
Acton  Scott. 

"  The  building  fronted  the  south,  and  stood  on  a  bank,  at  the 
foot  of  whicli  runs  a  small  stream.  The  walls  were  formed 
of  the  sandstone  of  the  countrj',  laid  in  soil,  except  at  the 
angles  and  terminations,  where  mortar  was  used.     They  were 

•  Hemiiig's  Chart,  pp.  34~,  -Jl'^ ;  and  Tlioinas's  "  Worcester  Catliednil," 
A.,  p.  21. 

+  Or  ^\^litestau,  ibid. 

\  See  further  as  to  these  forts,  under  tlie  head  RyckuieUl  Street. 


12 

twenty  inches  in  height,  and  were  not  sunk  below  the  floors 
of  the  hypocausts ;  they  varied  in  thickness  from  two  feet 
three  inches  to  eighteen  inches,  and  were  level  at  top.  There 
was  no  indication  of  the  superstructure,  except  that  a  large 
quantity  of  travertine,  with  mortar  attached,  and  many 
fragments  of  tiles,  with  patterns  rudely  scored  upon  their 
surface,  were  found  in  the  soil;  and  I  have  since  seen  that 
the  Koman  lighthouse  within  Dover  Castle,  which  is  said  to 
have  been  the  work  of  Ostorius,  is  built  of  traveitine,  flint, 
with  a  great  deal  of  mortar,  and  courses  of  tiles  at  intervals, 
bearing  patterns  on  them  very  similar  to  those  found  here. 
As  Ostorius,  according  to  the  relation  of  history,  erected  a 
line  of  forts  on  the  Severn,  and  spent  some  time  in  conquering 
the  inhabitants  of  Shropshire  and  Herefordshire,  the  coincidence 
is  not  without  interest. 

"  In  the  soil  were  found  six  Greek  coins :  one  of  Neapolis, 
two  of  Smyrna,  a  rare  one  of  Andros,  one  Egyptian,  and  one  of 
Parium,  in  Mysia. 

"  No  well  authenticated  discovery  of  Greek  coins  has  been 
recorded  as  having  occurred  in  England,  and  some  doubt  of 
the  fact  which  I  have  stated  has  been  expressed.  The  labourers 
employed  had,  however,  all  worked  for  me  for  more  tlian  twenty 
years;  they  had  nothing  to  gain  by  imposition,  and  from  the 
long-established  custom  of  bringing  all  curiosities  to  me,  I  am 
sure  if  one  of  them  had  posseseed  such  coins,  I  should  have 
had  them  before.  I  have  no  suspicion  that  they  could  have 
been  placed  where  they  were  found  by  any  other  person. 

"  We  have  evidence  of  the  presence  of  Roman  soldiers 
during  the  erection  of  the  villa,  and  it  is  related  that  before 
Claudius  visited  Britain,  he  had  employed  troops  to  subdue 
some  insurrections  of  the  Lycians  and  Ehodians,  and  had 
restored  some  Princes  of  Asia  Minor  to  their  kingdoms,  who 
liad  been  unjustly  dispossessed  by  his  predecessors ;  and  may 
we  not,  therefore,  account  for  the  discovery  of  these  coins  by 
supposing  that  they  may  have  been  brought  to  England  by 
soldiers  who  had  previously  been  in  tlie  East?  I  believe 
their  date  will  justify  this  supposition.     I  am  indebted  to  the 


13 

kindness  of  Mr.  Birch,  of  the  British  Museum,  for  a  descrip- 
tion of  these  coins." 

But  to  return  to  Worcester.  Upon  sinking  a  well,  in  the  year 
1844,  at  the  house  No.  12,  in  High  Street,  belonging  to  Dr. 
James  Nash,  there  was  found,  at  a  depth  of  about  eighteen  feet, 
a  small  bronze  figure  of  a  female,  with  one  leg  close  behind  the 
other,  a  wreath  or  chaplet  round  her  head,  her  right  hand  at  her 
mouth,  and  her  left  grasping  herself  behind.  This  figure,  the 
property  of  Dr.  James  Nash,  is  two  inches  and  seven-tenths  long. 
The  limbs  are  much  corroded,  and  it  has  very  little  patina  upon 
it.  The  Central  Committee  of  the  British  Archaeological  Asso- 
ciation, before  whom  it  was  exhibited,  consider  it  to  be  of  Roman 
workmanship*.  Similar  small  Roman  statues  of  Mercury,  Mars, 
Ceres,  and  Apollo,  were  dug  up  at  Exeter  in  July  1778,  the 
height  of  the  largest  not  exceeding  four  inches  and  a  half. 
These  were  considered  to  be  penates,  or  household  godsf.  Several 
penates  have  also  been  found  at  Cirencester^. 

With  respect  to  who  this  little  image  represents,  it  is  possible 
that  the  following  extract  from  a  work  entitled  "  Mystagogus 
Poeticus,  or  the  Mvses  Interpreter,"  &c.,  by  Alexander  Ross, 
third  edition,  1053  or  1655,  p.  148,  may  throw  some  light  upon 
the  subject. 

"  Augerona  was  the  goddesse  of  silence  at  Rome,  as  Harpo- 
crates  was  the  god  of  silence  in  Egypt  §;  she  was  so  called 
from  Angina,  the  squinzie,  which  causeth  silence,  and  which 
she  had  power  to  send  and  cure,  or  she  was  so  called  ab  ango- 
ribus,  from  curing  the  anguishes  and  pains  of  body  and  mind, 
and  was  worshipped  in  the  chappell  and  on  the  altar  of  Volupia 
the  goddesse  of  pleasure,  to  show  that  they  who  with  patience 
and  silence  endured  the  paines  and  anguishes,  at  last  attained 
to  great  pleasure ;  her  feasts  were  called  Angeronalia,  kept 
about  the  middle  of  December;  she  was  painted  with  a  cloth 

•  See  "  Archaeological  Jonnial,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  71, 
t  Lewisa  "  Topographical  Dictionary,"  title  "  Exeter." 
J  See  the  work  entitled  "  Illustrations  of  the  Remains  of  Roman  Art  in 
Cirencester,"  published  lH5(t,  p.  111. 

§  He  is  represented  with  his  linger  on  his  lip. 


14 

about  her  mouth,  and  was  called  the  goddesse  of  ^ovXiji;  koI 
Kaipwv,  of  couiisell  and  occasions,  because  a  wise  man  should 
be  carefid  of  his  tongue,  couusells  and  occasions,  or  of  the 
time*." 

See  fiuther  as  to  Angerona  in  the  Memoir  of  M.  Sichel, 
Eevue  Archeologique,  at  Paris,  8vo.,  1846,  vol.  iii.,  pp.  224--327, 
364-371.  This  author  has  figured  one  as  the  head  of  a  stylus, 
or  acus  crinalis,  in  p.  369,  and  others  in  PI.  51,  Nos.  1,  2.  But 
in  Vol.  iv.  of  the  same  work,  published  in  1847,  p.  20  and  fol- 
lowing, and  p.  140,  M.  Letronne  denies  that  they  represent 
Angerona  at  all. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  all  the  figures  represented  in  the 
above  work  exhibit  a  position  of  the  hands  corresponding  to  the 
figure  in  question,  yet  they  have  not  the  one  leg  behind  the 
other ;  therefore  it  is  pretty  clear  that  the  latter  is  meant  for  a 
recumbent  figure,  and  it  is  depicted  as  such  in  the  woodcut  here 
given,  of  the  actual  size. 


Under  all  the  circumstances,  however,  the  case  appears  to 
require  further  investigation  by  antiquaries,  as  there  may  still  be 
some  question  as  to  whether  these  figures  represent  Angerona  or 
not. 

Camden,  in  his  "  Britannia  f,"  says,  "  Worcester  was 
probably  founded  by  the  Eomans  when  they  built  cities,  at 
proper  intervals,  on  the  east  side  of  the  Severn,  to  check  the 
Britons  on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  It  fomierly  boasted 
Roman  walls.     It  has  now  a  tolerably  strong  wall." 

•  Macrob.  L.  i. ;    Sat.  c.  10  ;   Rosin.  L.  ii.,  c.  10,  &c.,  L,  iv.,  c.  1 ;   Alox.  uh 
Alex.;  Gen.  dier.  L.  iv. ;  Plin.,  Festus,  Turnebus,  &c. 
+  Vol.  ii.,  p.  3b2.     Edition  1790. 


15 

In  Britton's  "  History  and  Antiquities  of  Worcester  Cathedral*," 
it  is  stated  that  "  Dr.  Stukeley,  who  appears  to  have  visited 
the  city  and  several  other  places  in  this  part  of  England,  in 
n'21,  and  afterwards  published  an  account  of  his  antiquarian 
researches  in  his  '  Itinerarium  Curiosum,'  says,  no  doubt  but 
this  was  a  Roman  city,  yet  we  could  find  no  remains  but  a 
place  ill  it  called  Sudbury,  which  seems  to  retain  in  its  name 
some  memorial  of  that  sortf."  To  this  Mr.  Britton  added, 
This  place  is  now  called  Sidbury — evidently  a  corruption  of 
Southbury,  or  borough.  Since  Camden,  Stukeley,  and  Green 
wrote  their  respective  works,  a  vast  mound  of  earth — the  keep 
of  the  ancient  Norman  castle,  on  the  south  side  of  the  Cathe- 
dral, has  been  entirely  taken  away,  and  some  Roman  antiquities 
were  found,  in  1833,  at  or  near  its  base,  viz.,  an  urn  or  jug  of 
red  earth,  with  a  handle ;  coins  of  Vespasian,  Caligula*,  Nero, 
Tiberius,  Adrian,  Antoninus  Pius,  &c.  ;  and  in  a  field  near 
Upper  Deal  was  discovered  another  Roman  urn,  containing 
twenty  copper  coins  of  Carausius. — The  real  extent  of  the 
ancient  castle  cannot  now  be  ascertained ;  but  the  lofty 
mound  called  the  keep,  with  its  ditches,  &c.,  occupied  an  area 
of  between  three  and  four  acres.  The  apex  of  the  keep  mound 
measured  more  than  eighty  feet  above  the  high-water  mark  of 
the  Severn,  which  flowed  close  to  its  western  base§." 

The  above  discoveries  at  the  Castle  Hill  were  also  noticed  in 
the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine,"  Vol.  i..  No.  1,  new  series  for 
Januar}'  1st,  1834  ;  and,  in  addition,  it  is  therein  stated  that  in 
about  the  same  level  as  the  coins  therein  mentioned,  "  were  dis- 
covered a  well,  curiously  quoined  with  stone,  and  remains  of 
buildings,  which  plainly  show  that  the  spot  was  occupied  before 
its  artificial  elevation  for  the  purpose  of  forming  the  donjon 
keep  of  Worcester  Castle  during  the  middle  ages." 

This  hill  was  composed  of  sand  and  gravel,  with  sandstone 
foundations  as  outworks,  and  Mr.  Eaton,  who  purchased  it,  and 
had  it  removed,  has,  from  time  to  time,  obtained  a  great  many 

♦  Piige  4.     The  work  was  publislicd  in  18;?.'). 

+  Bishop  Lyttleton  was  also  of  that  opinion. 

J  Not  Caligula,  but  Augustus. 

§  Tt  had  the  shape  of  a  cone  barrow. 


16 

more  Roman  coins  and  other  relics  out  of  strata  of  blackish  earth, 
which  lay  in  places  principally  under,  but  sometimes  also  in  the 
hill.  I  have  seen  these  coins  and  relics,  and  they  clearly  show 
that  the  elevation  in  question  was  thrown  up  (partly,  at  least,) 
either  by  the  later  Romans,  upon  an  old  Roman  locality,  or  by  the 
Saxons,  Danes,  or  Normans  ;  and  that  the  black  stratum  which 
contained  the  coins  was  the  ancient  surface  of  the  ground,  which 
had  been  previously  occupied  by  the  Romans*.  The  hill  and  its 
ramparts  and  fosse  are  delineated  in  a  map  of  the  city,  as  it  stood 
at  the  time  of  the  great  battle,  in  1651. 

The  Roman  coins  collected  by  Mr.  Eaton  at  this  locality 
amount  to  between  eighty  and  ninety  in  number.  The  folIoiA-ing 
is  a  list  of  those  made  out. 

Augustus 1  in  number. 

Tiberius 1  

Claudius  1 7  Three  of  them  are  good. 

Nero 1  A  very  fine  coin. 

Vespasian 2  One  rather  fine. 

Titus 1  Rather  good. 

Hadrian 1  

Antoninus  Pius 1  

Faustina  1 1  • A  beautiful  eoiiu 

Diva  Faustina 1  

Marcus  Aurelius 1  Obverse  good. 

Julia  Mamaea 1 The  like. 

Gordian  III 1  

Posthumus 1  

Victorinus 3  

ClauiliusII 2  

Tetricus 3  

Aurelian 1  

Maxiniian 1  

Carausius 5  Obverse  of  two  rather  good. 

Allectus 1  

Constantine 1 Reverse  rather  fine. 

Urbs  Roma 1  

Valens 1  

Gratian 3  

Focas 1  

•  Part  of  the  hill,  probably,  was  formed  of  tlie  materials  excavated  when  the 
fosse  was  made,  which  ran  from  the  hill  to  near  where  Edgar's  Tower  now 
stands. 


17 

And  four  or  five  caked  together  in  a  mass  of  oxiilation.  Also  a 
silver  coin  with  two  portraits  on  the  obverse,  one  partially  heliind 
the  other  (which  is  said  to  have  arisen  from  a  second  stroke  with 
the  die).  The  reverse  exhibits  a  horse  galloping  towards  the  left; 
it  is  of  the  latter  part  of  the  Consulate*.  There  was  also  found  in 
the  same  place  half  a  Saxon  silver  penny  of  ^thelred  II. f,  con- 
taining the  hand  of  Providence  on  the  reverse.  A  very  fine  and 
perfect  silver  coin  of  Cnut.  Obverse — The  head  of  the  king,  with 
the  sceptre  :  legend,  CNVT  REX.  Reverse — The  Saxon  cross, 
with  the  inscription,  ELWIiSE  ON  WIHR,  meaning  that  Elwine 
in  Worcester  was  the  mint-master.  Portions  of  another  coin  of 
Cnut.  Obverse— Head  of  the  monarch,  with  CNVT  RECX. 
Reverse— LEOFWI  [N]  E  ON  LVN  (  )  London  ;— and  a  silver 
coin  of  Eadgar. 

Likewise  a  silver  coin  and  half  another  of  one  of  the  Henrys. 
A  silver  coin  of  one  of  the  Edwards,  and  another  of  Charles  the 
First  ;  several  Irish  and  other  copper  farthings  of  the  latter 
monarch,  and  Irish  copper  coins  of  James  the  Second  ;  also  coins 
of  several  other  English  monarchs  ;  various  tradesmens'  and 
abbey  copper  tokens ;  also  Scottish  coins  and  Nuremberg  tokens, 
which  no  doubt  were  brought  here  in  the  civil  wars,  in  Charles's 
time.  These  latter  coins  are  very  frequently  found  in  and  about 
the  City. 

But  to  return  to  tlie  Roman  relics.  The  rest  of  the  Roman 
coins  found  iu  the  hill  are  either  so  decayed  or  so  worn  that  I  can- 
not decipher  them  ;  but  the  principal  pait  have  the  iron  crown. 
The  latter  coins  in  the  list  tend  to  show  that  the  hill 
probably  was  thrown  up,  principally,  at  least,  in  the  time 
of  the  later  Romans ;  perhaps  partly  by  Constantius  and 
ConstaiUine,  and  partly  afterwards,  to  strengthen  the  south  side 
of  the  City,  and  to  communicate  with  the  Kempsey  camp,  where 
a  memorial  of  Constantino  has  been  found. 

The  other  interesting  relics  which  ]\Ir.  Eaton  collected  at  the 
liill,  he  has  kindly  allowed  me  t^  make  drawings  of.    The  principal 

*   In  tlic  first  pdition,  I  sU\Uh\  that  it  probably  was  a  Greek  colonial  oni>. 
+  This  was  cut  tlironp:1i.  and  cadi  half  doubtless  passed  a.s  a  halfpenny. 


18 

part  of  them  are  seen  in  the  accompanying  Plate  I.,  all  of  the 
actual  size,  except  the  celt,  um,  and  bell. 

No.  1. — An  ancient  British  bronze  celt,  found  in  black  soil 
within  the  base  of  the  hill.  It  is  four  inches  long,  and  one  and 
two-eighths  wide,  and  one  inch  thick  in  the  centre.  It  has  four 
parallel  indents  on  each  side.  The  greatest  part  of  the  loop  is 
broken  off,  and  part  of  the  head.  Several  of  the  celts  engraved 
in  the  first  volume  of  Camden,  page  ccvi.,  resemble  the  one  in 
question  in  many  respects,  except  that  they  have  not  any  of  the 
indents. 

No.  Q. — A  Roman  um  or  jug.  Nine  inches  and  a  half  high, 
twenty-four  inches  in  circumference  round  the  middle,  ten  inches 
and  a  half  round  the  foot,  eight  inches  round  the  narrowest  part 
of  the  neck,  and  eleven  inches  and  a  half  round  the  mouth.  It 
is  in  the  finest  state  of  preservation,  and  was  found  about  sixteen 
or  eighteen  feet  deep  in  the  hill,  and  about  a  third  of  the  way  up 
it.  There  are  several  nearly  resembling  it  in  Montfaucon's  work 
on  Grecian  and  Roman  Antiquities,  Vol.  iii..  Part  I. 

Nos.  a,  4,  5,  6,  7,  8,  9,  10,  11.— Roman  brass  fibula  or 
brooches*.  Eigbt  are  of  the  bow  shape,  but  of  different  patterns, 
and  the  other  is  civcularf .  The  acus  is  entire  to  those  numbered 
3  and  10.  Fragments  of  the  acus  of  most  of  the  others  are  also  in 
the  collection.  The  fibula.  No.  3,  is  very  large,  and  weighs 
nearly  an  ounce  and  a  half.  It  looks  something  like  a  Roman 
galley,  and  has  a  single  moulding  round  the  edge,  a  double  one 
along  the  front  (which  is  the  lower  side  of  the  drawing),  and  a 
dotted  one  along  the  middle.  The  front  view  is  given  of  the 
fibula,  No.  6,  with  the  fragment  of  the  acus  appearing  behind. 
There  are  several  patterns  of  fibulae  in  Montfaucon's  work|,  but 
none  exactly  like  these  in  question.  The  whole  were  found  in 
the  black  stratum  under  the  hill,  the  largest  one  near  the  outside 
of  it. 

♦   Tide  general  obsen-ations  relative  to  fibulae,  in  the  account  of  Kenipsey. 

+  It  is  possible  that  this  fibula  is  Anglo-Saxon,  as  it  corresponds  with  types 
of  tliat  period.  Tlie  pcasantrj-,  in  my  younger  days,  used  to  wear  rather 
similar  ones  made  of  pewter  as  shirt  brooches. 

J  Vol.  iii..  Part  I.,  p.  4(1,  &c. 


Plorj>  I  p.tfi 


'  /V/. 


/h(f{(^ifffi^,<-    frrrr     //'/'    /<7.'///'   /////      li'o/rrsf/^r 


19 

Nos.  12  and  13. — Two  views  of  a  pair  of  bronze  tweezers. 

No.  14. — An  oblong  four-sided  cast  brass  bell ;  it  had  a  clapper 
appended  when  found,  which  afterwards  fell  off.  The  two  sides 
of  the  bell  are  one  inch  and  two-eighths  wide  at  the  top,  and  two 
inches  and  three-eighths  at  the  bottom  ;  the  two  ends  are  six- 
eighths  of  an  inch  wide  at  tlie  top,  and  one  inch  and  seven-eighths 
at  the  bottom.  It  stands  upon  four  feet,  and  the  hole  through 
the  handle  is  five-eighths  of  an  inch  in  diameter. 

No.  15. — The  brass  clapper  belonging  to  No.  14. 

There  is  another  bell  exactly  like  the  above-mentioned,  except 
that  it  is  a  little  smaller  and  less  worn.  These  bells  were  found 
in  the  black  stratum  under  the  hill. 

In  IMontfaucon's  work*  are  engravings  of  Grecian  and  Roman 
bells  of  several  shapes,  and  one  exactly  corresponding  with  these 
in  question.  In  his  account  of  them,  he  says  the  Greeks  and 
Romans  had  sometimes  small  bells  at  their  doors ;  that  such  bells 
were  often  used  for  other  purposes  ;  that  they  were,  for  instance, 
hung  to  the  necks  of  horses,  oxen,  and  sheep  ;  that  they  were 
used,  according  to  Lucian,  in  houses,  to  call  up  the  inmates  in  the 
morning ;  that  those  persons  who  went  round  the  fortifications  of 
the  towns  carried  them ;  and  that  they  were  put  at  the  doors  of 
temples. 

The  bell  in  question  is  probably  either  Roman,  Roman- Britisli, 
or  Anglo-Saxon. 

A  four-sided  bell  was  found  in  the  bog  of  Glenade,  in  the  county 
of  Leitrimf. 

A  small  Roman  cone-shaped  bronze  bell,  standing  on  four  feet, 
was  found  at  Silchester.  It  is  engraved  in  the  "  Journal  of  the 
ArchfEological  Institute^." 

There  is,  in  the  British  Museum,  a  very  interesting  collection 
of  small  bronze  cone-shaped  bells  of  various  sizes,  from  Nimrud, 
presented  by  Mr.  Layard  in  1  H,''»  1 . 


*  Vol.  iii.,  Part  I.,  page  10(1. 
+  See  "  Arrhipologia,"  Veil,  xxvii.,  p.  400. 

{  Viil.  viii.,  p.  '.J4r).     Also,  sec   their    "  Prooredings  at  Norwicli,"   j).  ■!(), 
ivlativc  to  bells  of  the  Anglo  Saxou  niul  early  Irish  pcricd. 


20 

The  custom  of  hanging  bells  on  horses  is  alluded  to  by  the 
Prophet  Zechariali*, 

No.  16. — An  old  brass  key,  with  two  small  niches  in  the  ward, 
and  a  pipe  holef. 

No.  17. — A  brass  pin,  an  inch  and  a  half  long,  and  the  eighth 
of  an  inch  thick,  with  a  whitish  bead  head,  rather  decayed ;  lozenge- 
shaped  indents  on  the  upper  half  of  the  pin,  and  a  double  point. 

No,  18. — A  large  bead  of  common,  darkish  glass,  two  inches 
and  five-eighths  round,  and  the  hole  three-eighths  of  an  inch  in 
diameter. 

Likewise,  a  black  touchstone,  with  a  ring ;  a  brass  seal,  en- 
graved with  a  lion  rampant ;  fragments  of  a  plain  amber  ring  ;  a 
brass  medal,  with  the  story  of  Cephalus  and  Procris  on  it ;  old 
spades,  &c.  These  spades  and  other  relics  which  appear  to  be 
the  most  modern,  Mr.  Eaton  says,  were  found  at  or  near  the  top 
of  the  hill^. 

The  Castle  Hill  evidently  underwent  considerable  alterations 
from  time  to  time,  according  to  the  modes  of  warfare  of  the 
different  ages ;  and  the  sandstone  foundations  which  were  dis- 
covered in  or  near  the  base,  no  doubt  were  of  various  periods. 

Some  part  of  the  top  of  the  hill  may  have  been  made  out  of  the 
excavated  mass  of  sand  and  gravel,  upon  buUding  the  crypt  of  the 
Cathedral,  or  some  other  ecclesiastical  edifice ;  and  I  am  rather 
strengthened  in  this  conjecture  by  a  diamond-shaped  piece  of  ruby- 
coloured  glass  having  been  found  in  the  hill. 

As  the  uni  or  jug,  No.  2,  was  discovered  about  a  third  of  the 
way  up  the  hill,  and  about  sixteen  or  eighteen  feet  deep,  from  the 
side  horizontally  towards  the  centre,  this  goes  to  prove  that  part 
of  the  mound  in  question  was  made  by  the  later  Romans,  unless 
we  can  believe  that  the  urn  or  jug  was  thrown  up  by  the  Saxons, 
Danes,  or  Normans,  along  with  the  original  surface,  in  the 
manner  before  suggested. 

•  See  Chup.  xiv.  v.  20,  ami  Dr.  Adaiu  Clarke's  counnentarj-  thereon. 

+  It  is  ilifficult  to  ascertain  the  age  of  keys,  as  those  of  the  Roman  and  hitrr 
times  very  much  coirespond. 

J  In  the  former  edition  I  gave  an  account  of  a  brass  h)ckot,  or  modal,  found 
there.     I  hiivc  since  discovered  that  it  is  of  a  com2)arutivcly  modern  date. 


21 

A  similarly  indented  celt  to  that  found  at  the  Castle  Hill  is 
engraved  in  the  "  Archa3ologia,"  Vol.  xvi.,  PL  54,  No.  2,  and 
is  described  in  page  362.  It  is  there  stated  that  a  ring  of 
the  same  metal  was  attached  to  it,  on  which  was  a  bead  of  jet, 
and  that  it  was  found  near  Tadcaster,  in  Yorkshire.  The  glass 
bead  above  mentioned  may  have  been  similarly  attached  to  the 
celt  in  question.  In  the  work  entitled  "  Old  England*"  it  is 
stated  that  "  the  weapons  of  the  ancient  Britons  show  their 
acquaintance  with  the  casting  of  metals.  Their  axe-heads,  called 
celts,  are  composed  of  ten  parts  of  copper  and  one  of  tin  ;  their 
spear-heads,  of  six  parts  of  copper  and  one  of  tin.  Moulds 
for  spear-heads  have  been  frequently  found  in  Britain  and 
Irelandf." 

Of  late  years,  much  has  been  written  on  the  uses  to  which 
these  singular  implements  were  applied.  The  preferable  opinion 
appears  to  be  that  they  served  as  hammers,  axes,  knives,  cliisels, 
gouges,  and  tomahawks,  or  missiles,  according  to  their  respective 
shapes  and  materials. 

The  late  Sir  Samuel  Eush  Meyrick  considered  celts  "  to  have 
been  of  foreign  manufacture,  brought  to  this  island  by  stranger 
merchants,  perhaps  the  PhcEuicians,  and  purposely  fasliioned  by 
them  in  imitation  of  the  ruder  stone  implements  used  by  our 
British  ancestors,  in  order  to  secure  a  market  by  meeting  their 
wants  and  tastes|." 

Of  the  double-pointed  pin,  found  at  the  Castle  Hill,  I  gave  a 
woodcut  in  the  first  edition  of  this  work  (p.  84) ;  since  that  time 
I  have  made  numerous  inquiries  as  to  its  probable  use,  but 
without  success.  Instruments  something  like  it  (but  with  an  eye 
or  hole  through  the  head,  instead  of  the  knob)  are  engraved  in 
"  Illustrations  of  the  Remains  of  Roman  Art  in  Cirencester,  tlie 
bite  of  ancient  Corinium§."     They  are  described  in  that  work  as 


•  Fun  I.,  pp.  •^•^,  •^:t. 

+  See  the  "  Jounml   of  tlie  Arclui'ologiciil  Institute,"  Vol.  iv.,  p.    1,  &( 
and  p.  327,  &c.,  as  to  various  fonua  and  moulds  of  celts. 
J  See  "Archffiologin,"  Vol.  xxx.,  p.  4!);i. 
§   By  Professor  Buekiiiaii  and  C.  H.  Newniareli,  Es(i.,  IbrtO,  p.  Id'i. 


as 

nail  instruments, — "the  divided  lower  extremities  serving  to 
extract  dirt  from  beneatli  the  nails,  whilst  the  hole  in  the  top 
would  allow  it  to  be  suspended  or  tied  up,  perhaps  with  other 
articles  of  a  similar  nature*." 

The  bronze  tweezers  from  the  Castle  Hill  are  most  probably 
either  Roman  or  Anglo-Saxon;  for  one  of  the  Cirencester  relics, 
figured  in  the  above-mentioned  work,  p.  105,  is  a  pair  of  tweezers, 
with  what  is  therein  considered  a  nail  instrument  attached.  The 
following  is  the  description  given  : — "  A  pair  of  well-formed 
tweezers,  like  our  modern  instrument  of  the  name,  has  an  iron 
axis  through  its  rounded  top,  upon  which  the  nail  instrument 
freely  moves ;  this  is  an  exceedingly  simple  instrument,  and, 
like  all  of  its  kind  from  Corinium,  is  simply  ornamented  ynth. 
engraved  lines  or  circles." 

Now  it  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  the  Castle  Hill  tweezers  have 
a  bronze  axis  through  the  rounded  top,  upon  wliich  probably  was 
attached  an  instrument  similar  to  the  one  mentioned  above, 
which  may  have  been  either  a  nail  instrument  or  a  comb-cleaner, 
or  both. 

In  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  viii., 
p.  188,  a  very  similar  pin  to  the  one  in  question  (with  a  head  of 
green  stone)  is  figured,  and  described  by  Mr.  Buckman  as  having 
lately  been  found  at  Cirencester. 

There  are  some  Roman  tweezere  in  the  British  Museum.  It  is 
also  observable  that  in  a  rather  scarce  work,  published  by 
Thomas  Browne,  M.D.,  in  1658,  and  entitled,  "  Hydriotaphia, 
Uni-burial,  or  a  Discourse  of  the  Sepulchrell  Umes  lately  found 
in  Norfolk,"  in  a  field  of  Old  Walsingham,  the  author,  in  pp.  14, 
U,o,  refers  to  brazen  nippers  to  pull  away  hair,  as  found  in  the 
urns. 

In  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  v.,  pp. 
2:55,  230,  there  is  a  lithographic  engraving,  and  also  an  account 
of  Roman  tweezers  of  bronze  with  an  ear-pick  appended,  found 
at  Chesterford.— Amongst  numerous  Anglo-Saxon  sepulclmil  relics 
found  at  I.iltlo  Wilbraham,  Co.  Cambridge,  exhibited  by  the  lion. 

*  One  willi  an  I'yc  wiih  foiiiid  at  Dioitwich  willi  Hoiiiaii  relics,  ami  llicii 
thoiiiilit  to  have  been  the  ucus  of  a  libiiUi.     Sen  under  "  Droitwich.' 


2B 

R.  C.  Neville  at  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  14th  January,  1852, 
was  a  pair  of  bronze  tweezers,  with  an  ear-pick  attached  to  it. 

Before  leaving  the  Castle  Hill,  I  must  notice  that  the  workmen 
found  several  genera  of  recent  species  of  sea  shells  in  the  native 
gravel  bed  under  the  hill,  which  are  in  Mr.  Eiiton's  possession, 
namely,  Turritella,  Murex  Erinaceus,  Buccinum  Macula,  and 
Purpura  Lapillus.  These  correspond  with  some  of  the  several 
genera  of  recent  species  of  marine  shells  which  I  procui-ed, 
through  the  workmen,  from  the  bottom  of  the  gravel  beds  at 
Kempsey,  Powick,  and  Bromwich  Hill,  near  this  city,  all 
which  latter  shells.  Sir  R.  I.  Murchison,  has  noticed  in  his 
work  on  the  Silurian  System-^s  in  proof  that  an  ancient  arm  of 
the  sea  formerly  divided  England  from  Wales.  Since  that 
work  was  published  I  have  obtained  Tunitella  and  Cardium 
from  Bromwich  Hill;  Purpura  Lapillus  and  Turbo  Littoreus 
from  Kempsey ;  and  Turritella  from  the  gravel  bed  at  Northwick ; 
which  last  place  lies  up  the  Severn,  within  about  a  mile  of  this 
city. 

In  the  vale  between  Worcester  and  Elbury  Hill  is  a  farm  called 
"  Port  Fields  Farm,"  in  the  parish  of  Claines ;  the  road  from  it 
to  Worcester  (whicli  runs  partly  in  the  parish  of  St.  Martin  and 
partly  in  Claines)  is  called  the  "  Port  Fields  Road."  This  name, 
as  before  statedf,  proves  it  to  have  been  a  Roman  port,  or 
miUtar)'  way.  The  owner  of  the  farm,  Mr.  John  Trevis,  informed 
me  that  it  is  called  by  the  above-tnentioned  name  in  the  earliest 
of  his  title  deeds,  which  run  back  to  the  time  of  Henrj'  VIII. 
About  fifty  or  sixty  years  ago  it  got  the  nick-name  of  "  Skelton's 
Barn,"  from  the  coi'pse  of  a  person  who  committed  suicide 
having  been  found  in  the  bam.  The  road  runs  on  eastward  from 
this  farm,  by  the  "  Virgin's  Tavern,"  between  Leppard  and 
Elbury  Hills,  and  towards  Warndon  and  the  Trench  Woods. 

A  supposed  lioman  hypocaust  was  discovered  at  the  hill,  by 
Sidbury  ;  the  particulars  of  which  are  as  follow  : — 

In  January  184.'5,  as  the  workmen  of  Mr.  Holland,  builder, 
were  making  an  excavation  for  a  building  yard,  in  the  marl  bank, 

•  J'idf  Vol.  i.,  pp.  5:32,  5.};3,  bU,  554. 
+  See  p. !). 


2i 

just  above   Sidbury  Place,  on  the   south   side  of  the  London 
Road,  opposite  the  Foit  Royal,  an  ancient  square  underground 
apartment  was  discovered.       Its  walls  consisted  of   bricks  and 
tiles,  in   alternate   courses,  set  in  marly  clay  ;   the  south-east 
corner  being  about  seven  feet  high.     There  was  a  double  course 
of  tiles  between  each  course  of  bricks  in  the  walls  to  the  height 
of  about  three  feet  four  inches  from  the  floor,  and  then  they  ran 
in  single  courses  of  tiles  and  bricks  to  the  top*.    The  foot  of  the 
high  and  solid  marl  bank  was  excavated  in  a  very  square  and 
even  manner,  to  encase  the  walls  of  the  apartment.    These  walls, 
which  were  eleven  inches  thick,  had  been  subjected  to  considerable, 
although  not  excessive  heat  (as  they  were  not  vitrified) ;  their 
interior  was  quite  black,  and  the  marl  against  them  much  pul- 
verized by  heat.     The  north  and  south  sides  of  the  apartment 
were  each  ten  feet  wide,  and  the  east  and  west  sides  eleven  feet. 
The  entrance  was  at  the  north  side,  next  the  road,  and  appeared 
to  have  been  of  the  whole  width  of  the  apartment,  except  that 
the  wall  was  nine  inches  thicker  at  each  side  of  the  entrance, 
forming  square  sections  of  pillars  which  were  two  feet  four  inches 
broad.    The  floor  was  paved  with  a  double  course  of  bricks  which 
were  very  black.    The  under  course  did  not  reach  to  the  walls  by 
about  nine  inches  on  the  east,  west,  and  south  sides,  the  inter- 
vening part  being  marl ;  but  the  upper  course  of  bricks,  covered 
the  whole  of  the  floor,  and  the  flooring  came  out  beyond   the 
entrance  about  two  feet  six  inches,  and  terminated  at  a  slight 
trench.     The  marl  under  the  floor  was  also  much  pulverized  by 
the  heat  to  which  it  had  been  subjected.    The  apartment  was  only 
three  yards  distant  from  the  road,  and  the  floor  was  upon  a  level 
with  the  road,  or  nearly  so.     The  covering  of  the  apartment  had 
fallen  in,  perhaps  ages  back,  and  the  whole  was  filled  up  with 
bricks,  tiles,  and  earth.     In  the  soil  near  the  western  side  of  the 
apartment,  but  unconnected  with  it,  a  fragment  of  a  sandstone 
Gothic  moulded  shaft  was  found,  and  also  a  piece  of  blue  lime- 
stone Gothic  tracery  ;  both  in  the  early  English  style.    A  Dutch 
cupper  coin,  with  the  name  Hollandca  upon  it,  was  also  discovered 

•   'I'liosp  altrnmtc  roiirscs  very  imicli  icbcniMcd  those  in  the  Koiiiau  i)htir()s 
at  Dover  Cattle.     Sec;  "Old  Englaiul,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  v!7. 


25 

between  the  marl  and  the  western  wall,  to  which  place  it  had 
probably  slipped  from  the  upper  part  of  the  bank,  as  the  workmen 
were  demolishing  that  wall,  it  being  evidently  of  a  much  later 
date  than  the  apartment ;  and  foreign  copper  coins,  principally 
Dutch  and  German,  are  frequently  dug  up  in  and  about  this  city. 

The  briclcs  of  the  walls  and  of  the  floor  of  the  apartment  were 
nine  inches  long,  four  inches  and  a  half  wide,  and  two  inches 
tliick  ;  and  the  tiles  in  the  walls  were  twelve  inches  long,  six 
inches  and  a  half  wide,  and  about  three  quarters  of  an  inch  thick. 
There  were  also  some  bricks  in  the  walls  which  were  only  one 
inch  and  a  half  thick.  Upon  first  seeing  the  apartment,  I  was 
inclined  to  think  that  it  was  an  ancient  military  oven,  erected 
outside  the  waUs  of  the  City,  at  a  short  distance  (about  220  yards) 
from  Sidbuiy  gate,  to  supply  such  troops  with  bread  as  might 
be  stationed  on  the  adjoining  heights,  now  called  the  Fort 
Ptoyal,  &c. ;  but  the  late  Harvey  Eginton,  Esq.,  architect,  having 
examined  the  apartment  with  me,  suggested  that  it  might  have 
been  a  Roman  hypocaust ;  and  its  height,  situation,  and  ancient 
appearance,  strongly  favoured  that  opinion. 

I  was  informed  that  there  was  a  flue-hole  through  the  top  of 
the  waU,  at  the  south-east  corner  of  the  apartment,  at  which  a 
flue  might  have  passed  to  warm  the  rooms  above ;  but  the  top 
of  that  comer  was  broken  down  by  the  workmen  before  I  saw  it. 
Whatever  other  flue-holes  there  might  have  been  were  destroyed 
when  the  covering  fell  in,  in  days  of  yore,  which  brought  down  all 
the  upper  part  of  the  walls,  except  the  comer  in  question*. 

The  two  fragments  of  stone,  in  the  early  English  style  of 
architecture,  most  probably  were  part  of  a  chapel,  which 
nmst  have  formerly  stood  hereabouts  ;  for  Leland,  who  made 
his  "  Itinerary "  in  the  reign  of  Heniy  "VIII.,  soon  after 
the  dissolution  of  the  religious  houses,  states, — "  There  is  a 
fayrc  suburb  without  Sudbury  Gate.  There  is  in  this  suburb  a 
Chappcl  of  St.  Godwald.  What  this  St.  Godwald  was  I  could 
not  certiiinly  learne.     Some  sayd  he  was  a  bishop." 

At  the  top  of  the  height,  above  the  spot  in  question,  called 

♦  The  above  piuticiilars  I  coimiiuuieiitcd  t<>  tlie  Worcester  Journals,  in 
.laiuiarv  181"!. 


36 

Green  Hill  (which  lies  opposite  the  Fort  Royal  or  Park),  there 
was,  till  lately,  a  considerable  mound  of  earth,  most  probably  the 
site  of  the  fort  erected  by  King  Stephen  on  the  London  Road, 
when  he  laid  siege  to  Worcester  Castle.  It  may,  however,  have 
been  much  more  ancient.  The  other  fort  which  he  built  was 
on  the  Bath  Road  :  the  mound  on  which  it  stood  has  also  been 
removed. 

In  an  old  trench  at  the  top  of  the  ridge,  between  the  supposed 
hypocaust  and  the  mound,  an  ancient  British  coin  was  dug  up 
by  Mr,  Holland's  workmen,  and  also  Roman  coins  of  Alexander 
Severus,  GalUenus,  Victorinus,  and  Tetricus  the  younger.  The 
ancient  British  coin  is  of  common  type,  and  I  am  informed  that 
it  cannot  be  appropriated  to  any  particular  chief,  nor  as  yet  to 
any  particular  district.  The  obverse  of  it  probably  represents  a 
head,  and  its  reverse  exhibits  a  horse  galloping  towards  the  left. 
(See  the  woodcut.)  This  is  the  only  ancient  British  coin  which 
has  come  to  my  knowledge  as  liaving  been  found  at  Worcester. 


Some  of  the  tiles  found  in  the  supposed  hypocaust  have  a 
groove  or  channel  across  them.  Several  of  these  tiles  I  exhibited 
at  a  meeting  of  the  Archaeological  Institute.  Some  of  the 
members  considered  that  they  were  Roman  roofing  and  paving 
tiles,  and  that  the  grooves  or  channels  might  possibly  have  been 
made  to  receive  either  the  recurve  of  Roman  flanged  tiles,  or  to 
carry  off  the  water,  or  they  might  have  been  to  enable  workmen 
to  break  them  in  half  when  needed*.  The  mortar  or  cement 
in  which  they  were  set  still  adhered  to  them,  containing  much 
pounded  brick,  and  this  was  considered  a  further  proof  of  the 
workmanship  being  Roman.  In  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeo- 
logical lustitutei,"  these  tiles  are  described  as  Anglo-Roman  ;  and 

*  111  this  latter  ciirfc,  they  might  cither  have  been  paving  tiles  or  wall  tiles, 
t  Vol.  vii.,  PI).  -'iOti,  ;i(i"t. 


27 

it  is  further  added, — "  The  fragments  exhibited  presented  some 
unusual  peculiarities  of  fabrication,  some  of  these  tiles  having 
been  deeply  grooved,  in  a  manner  differing  from  the  scoring  of 
common  occurrence,  serving  to  retain  the  mortar  firmly :  another 
tile,  apparently  for  roofing,  was  formed  with  a  knob  at  top,  as 
a  means  of  attachment.  Lyon,  in  the  '  History  of  Dover 
Castle,'  speaks  of  wall-tiles  in  the  Koman  pharos,  formed 
with  hemispherical  knobs  at  the  angles ;  but  this  contrivance 
is  unusual." 

The  fragments  of  the  tiles  in  question  are  so  imperfect,  that 
it  is  impossible  to  say  decidedly  whether  the  channels  ran  along 
or  across  them  ;  the  former  was  most  probably  the  case,  as  they 
are  in  the  middle  of  the  lengthwise  centre  of  the  tiles,  but  would 
not  be  quite  in  the  middle  crosswise*. 

As  Sidbury,  or  Southburyf,  lies  on  the  south  side  of  Worcester, 
it  is  probable  that  it  was  so  called  from  its  position  in  regard  to 
the  City.  There  is  a  Saxon  charter,  dated  a.d.  903,  in  MS., 
Cotton,  Tiberius  A.  XIII. J,  which  seems  to  establish  this  view. 
It  is  a  grant  from  Bishop  Oswald  to  Cynethegu,  of  two  and  a 
half  manses  or  hides  of  laud,  at  Oddingley,  in  Worcestershire. 
The  charter  goes  on  to  say,  "  Thonne  is  ealles  tha;s  laudes 
the  oswold  bisceop  bocatli  cynetliegne,  thriiide  healf  liid  and 
VI.  aiceras  at  haranlea  and  XL.  aecera  be  eastan  Lawern, 
and  sc  Imga  be  suthan  by  rig  se  is  XII.  gerda  lang  and  IX. 
gcrda  brand,"  &c. 

Tliat  is,  in  English,  "  This  is  the  whole  of  the  land  which 
13ishop  Oswald  gave  to  Cynethegn,  two  and  a  half  hides,  and 
si.\  acres  at  Ilarley,  and  forty  acres  east  of  Lawern,  and  the 
enclosure  by  the  south  beorh,  [or  borough,]  which  is  twelve  yards 
long  and  nine  yards  broad." 

*  See  the  "  Arclia-ologia,"  Vol.  xxx..  Appendix,  p.  507,  relative  to  cliaiincUeil 
bricks  found  in  Roman  foundations  at  Tliomliuni,  near  Maidstone,  in  Kent. 

+  Leland,  nabin}?don,  and  others,  wrote  it  "  Sudbury,"  and  it  is  so  spelled 
in  Saxton  and  Speeds'  Map  of  Kill),  and  also  in  tlie  map  in  "  Boscobel." 

\  Printed  in  "  Cod.  Diplom.,"  No.  !)07,  which  work  also  iiieutious  Sutlibyrig 
(Sudbury),  in  Suffolk,  Nos.  Hxr),  (i!)!). 


28 

In  a  survey  of  the  Forest  of  Feckenham,  28th  Edward  I.*, 
the  name  is  spelled  Southburi.  There  are  frequent  instances 
of  towns  similarly  designated  on  account  of  their  position. 
Sidbury,  or  Chidbury  Hill,  in  Wiltshire  —  a  vast  oval 
fortification,  encompassed  with  two  deep  ditches — lies  south  of 
Everley.  (Gough's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  158.)  There  are 
also  Sidbury  in  Devon  and  Salop,  Sudbury  in  Derbyshire  and 
Suffolk,  and  Southbury  (Chapelry)  in  Kent.  In  the  "  Worcester 
Miscellany  "  for  1829,  it  is  contended  that  Sidbury,  like  Silbury 
Hill,  in  Wiltshire,  is  of  ancient  British  origin,  and  derived  from 
the  Keltic  word  Sul,  the  Sim ;  and  that  the  adjoining  heights 
(now  called  the  Fort  Royal,  or  Park)  were  dedicated  to  the 
worship  of  Sul,  or  the  Sun,  the  Keltic  ApoUo.  This  etymology, 
however,  appears  to  be  invalidated,  for  in  early  times  it  was 
designated  as  above.  Still  the  "  bury,"  or  "  burrow,"  most 
probably  was  of  ancient  British  or  Roman  origin;  for  the 
Saxons  thus  distinguished  the  fortified  places  of  the  Britons  and 
Romans. 

In  September  1844,  several  Roman  and  other  reHcs  were 
found  at  Diglis,  near  Worcester,  the  particulars  of  which  I  com- 
municated to  the  Worcester  journals  in  that  month  nearly  as 
follows  : — At  the  south  part  of  the  cutting,  across  the  meadow  at 
Dighs,  for  the  Severn  Navigation  Lock,  at  the  depth  of  about 
twenty  feet  in  the  alluvial  soU,  were  portions  of  small  trees, 
bushes,  and  hazel  nuts,  intermingled  with  fragments  of  stags' 
horns  and  bones ;  a  Httle  nearer  to  the  river,  southward,  at  the 
depth  of  about  twenty-five  feet,  portions  of  an  oak  tree ;  and 
still  nearer  the  river,  at  the  depth  of  about  thirty  feet,  a  great 
number  of  bones  of  the  deer  kind,  and  of  short-horned  cattle  f 
and  other  animals,  together  with  fragments  of  Roman  urns  and 
pans  of  red  earth,  and  a  piece  of  Samian  ware  ;  a  little  nearer 
to  the  river,  at  tYiO  same  depth,  the  horns  and  part  of  the  skull 

*  See  Nash,  Vol.  i.,  Introduction,  p.  65. 

+  A  small  extinct  ox,  the  Bos  longifrons  of  Mr.  Owen ;  fraj;fnicnis  of  the 
bones  of  which  I  sent  to  him.  See  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeological 
Institute,"  Vol.  vi.,  pp.  :}4,  :io,  and  117. 


29 

of  a  stag  or  red  deer  (Cervus  elaphus),  weighing  twenty-one 
pounds*.  Alongside  of  this  latter  relic,  was  part  of  the  under- 
jaw  of  a  horse,  and  a  smaller  antler ;  also  the  greater  part  of  a 
fine  Roman  urn,  of  slate-coloured 
potteryf,  eight  inches  high,  and  twenty- 
six  in  circumference — (see  the  woodcut 
here  represented).  It  seems  probable 
that  there  were  Roman  or  Roman  British 
pottery  works  near  to  the  spot  in  ques- 
tion, like  those  discovered  on  the  border 
of  the  Severn  at  Bow  Farm,  in  the 
parish  of  Ripple  | ;  and  it  is  worthy  of 
remark  that  the  Diglis  pottery,  both  red 
and  slate-coloured,  exactly  corresponds  in  character  with  that 
discovered  in  the  Roman  burial-ground  at  Kempsey||.  A  coin  of 
Marcus  Aurelius  was  also  found  at  the  cutting.  It  appears  to 
me  that  there  was  an  ancient  dyke  at  tlie  spot,  and  that  the  rill 
of  water  which  ran  into  the  Severn  having,  in  ages  past,  been 
diverted  into  another  channel,  the  dyke  became  gradually  filled 
up  by  the  alluvium  occasionally  deposited  upon  the  plains  by  the 
floods  of  the  river,  and  thereby  all  the  relics  were  buried  at  the 
great  depth  at  which  they  lay ;  in  proof  of  this,  it  may  be 
remarked  that  the  stratum  on  which  they  rested  was  muddy  grit, 

•  The  antlers  of  the  stag,  or  red  deer,  I  presented  to  the  British  Museum, 
afSxed  upon  a  block  of  the  oak  tree. 

+  Antiquarians  have  been  in  much  doubt  how  siich  pottery  was  coloured. 
Perhaps  the  following  extract  from  the  "  Archseological  Journal "  (Vol.  i. 
p.  280),  relative  to  a  coninninication  from  Mr,  Edmimd  Tyrell  Artis, 
as  to  a  Roman  pottery-kiln  discovered  in  the  vicinity  of  Castor, 
in  Northamptonshire,  will  throw  some  light  upon  the  subject  The  kiln 
"  appears  to  have  been  used  for  making  tlie  bluish-black  or  slate-coloured 
kind  of  pottery,  so  frequently  met  with  wherever  Roman  remains  ore  found 
in  England.  This  colour,  Mr.  Artis  has  ascertained,  was  imparted  to  the 
potterj-  by  suffocating  the  fire  of  the  kiln,  at  the  time  when  its  contents  hatl 
reached  the  proper  state  of  heat  to  ensure  a  unifonn  colour,"  Also  see 
"  Remains  of  Roman  Art  in  Cirencester,"  pp.  78,  79,  relative  to  how  the 
colour  was  produced  by  chemical  action. 

J  See  Ripple. 

II   See  Kempsey. 


30 


such  as  we  find  at  the  bottom  of  water- coui*ses  ;  and  my  opinion 
is,  that  in  the  Roman  time  the  Blockhouse  stream,  and  other 
rills  from  the  adjacent  heights,  ran  into  the  Severn  at  the  point 
in  question.  In  some  proof  of  this,  the  black  seam  pointed  that 
way  through  the  whole  width  of  the  south  part  of  the  cutting. 
It  would  have  taken  an  immense  time  for  these  relics  to  have 
been  buried  upon  the  surface  of  a  level  plain  by  the  alluvium,  at 
the  depth  they  were ;  for  it  will  appear  in  the  accounts  of 
Pitchcroft  and  Ripple,  that  the  alluvium  upon  the  level  plains 
on  the  borders  of  the  Severn  has  only  accumulated  about  four 
feet  since  the  Roman  time. 

Several  of  the  fragments  of  the  oak  tree,  before  mentioned, 
still  retain  the  bark.  Fragments  of  bark  also  appear  upon  the 
oak  coffin  of  a  supposed  ancient  British  chieftain,  preserved  in 
the  Scarborough  Museum,  the  particulars  of  which  I  commu- 
nicated to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries*. 

In  the  same  year  (1844),  about  a  mile  and  a  half  below  Wor- 
cester, and  half  a  mile  below  the  Diglis  Lock, 
a  bronze  spear-head  of  very  unusual  shape  was 
dredged  up  by  some  workmen  employed  in  the 
improvement  of  the  navigation  of  the  Severn. 
It  is  ten  inches  and  a  half  long,  two  inches 
and  three  quarters  broad,  and  weighs  eight 
ounces.  A  woodcut  of  it,  as  here  repre- 
sented, was  given  in  the  "  Archaeological 
Journal,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  187.  It  is  there 
stated  to  be  of  "  remarkable  form  and  singular 
fashion,  the  blade  being  flat,  and  of  greater 
breadth  than  usual ;  terminating  at  the  lower 
extremity  in  a  shape  more  resembling  the 
barbed  head  of  an  arrow,  than  the  head  of  a 
long-handled  weapon."  It  is  figured  in  the 
"  Proceedings  of  the  Archaeological  Institute  at 
York,  1846,"  p.  39,  plate  v.,  fig.  4,  and  noticed 
in  p.  34  of  that  work.  It  was  also  exhibited  at  a  meeting  of  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London,  29th  May,   1851,  when   a 

•    Tide  "  Archeeologia,"  Vol.  xxx.,  pj).  45H  to  402. 


31 

paper  was  read  by  Mr.  Akerman  "  On  some  of  the  Weapons  of 
the  Celtic  and  Teutonic  races."  There  is  some  difference  of 
opinion  as  to  the  use  to  which  this  remarltable  and  probably 
unique  spear-head  was  applied.  Some  suppose  it  to  have  been 
a  war  spear,  others  a  fish  spear.  If  it  were  a  long-handled  war 
spear,  it  is  open  to  the  objection  that  it  could  not  have  been 
withdrawn  if  thrust  into  an  enemy  beyond  the  barb ;  it  seems 
therefore  probable  that  it  was  a  missile  spear.  The  length  of 
the  blade  would  have  been  an  objection  to  it  as  a  fish  spear ;  and 
Dion  Cassius,  Lib.  Lxxvi.,  says  the  Britons  did  not  eat  fish, 
although  the  sea  abounded  with  them ;  still,  however,  they  may 
have  caught  and  cured*  fish  as  an  article  of  barter  with  the 
Phoenicians  and  Gaulsf. 

In  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  v., 
p.  342,  various  forms  of  Greek  and*  Roman  spears  are 
represented  vnth.  the  amentum,  or  leathern  thong,  tied  to  the 
middle  of  the  shaft,  which  was  of  assistance  in  throwing  the 
spear ;  but  none  there  delineated  have  the  barb.  And  in  p.  389 
of  that  Journal,  there  is  a  quotation  made  from  Herodotus,  who, 
in  V.  49  of  his  work,  states  that  the  barbarians  "  carry  bows  and 
a  short  spear." 

In  the  "  Art  Journal,"  No.  156,  June  1851,  p.  170,  there 
is  copied  from  the  "  Harleian  MS.,"  No.  003,  the  figure  of 
an  Anglo-Saxon  horseman  whose  spear  is  barbed ;  the  head  of  it 
is  not  lengtliy,  like  the  one  in  question,  but  is  short  hke  that  of 
an  arrow. 

The  following  is  a  woodcut  of  a  bronze  spear-head  in  the  British 


Museum  which  was  purchased  in  London,  and  is  noticed  in  the  manu- 
script book  entitled,  "  Acquisitions  of  Antiquities,"  1847-1848,  as 

•  See  in  the  "  Account  of  Droitwich,"  as  to  the  probability  that  the  ancient 
Britons  not  only  used  salt,  hut  made  the  Saltways. 

+  See  a  wood-cut  of  anotlier  spear-head,  in  the  account  of  Kempsey. 


32 

follows,  "  spear-head  or  sword  ;  flat,  leaf-shaped  Made,  the  edges 
turned  up ;  there  is  no  ferrule,  but  a  barbed  spike  to  insert  it  into 
a  shaft  or  handle.  It  is  one  foot  two  inches  and  a  half  long." — 
It  will  appear  by  the  woodcut  that  this  weapon  is  very  narrow 
in  proportion  to  the  Worcester  one.  These  are  the  only 
specimens  of  barbed  spears  which  have  come  to  my 
knowledge. 

In  the  year  1847,  a  curious  leaden  chest  was  found  near 
Worcester,  the  particulars  of  which  I  communicated  to  the 
Archaeological  Institute ;  and  the  same  appeared  in  their  Jounial-=, 
as  follows : — "  At  the  south  end  of  the  tunnel  of  the  Oxford, 
W^orcester,  and  Wolverhampton  railway,  at  Eainbow  Hill,  close 
by  Worcester,  portions  of  lead  and  wood,  which  apparently  had 
formed  a  Httle  reliquary  or  chest,  were,  in  the  year  1847,  found  by 
the  excavators  in  a  mass  of  earth,  which  fell  down  into  the 
excavation.  This  box  is  said  to  have  lain  about  eight  or  ten  feet 
deep  in  the  earth.  It  measured,  taking  the  largest  piece  of  lead 
as  a  guide,  twelve  inches  long  and  seven  inches  broad  ;  it  may, 
however,  be  questionable  whether  the  smaller  plate  of  lead  was 
an  end-piece  or  a  plate  at  the  top  of  the  box.  Its  length  exactly 
corresponds  with  the  breadth  of  the  largest  piece.  The  box 
possibly  may  have  been  the  depository  of  a  heart f.  The  lead  is 
perforated  with  an  immense  quantity  of  nails,  by  which  it  was 
attached  to  the  wooden  box,  the  thickness  of  wliich  was  con- 
siderable. A  few  days  after  the  workmen  had  brought  me  the 
remains  of  the  box,  one  of  them  furnished  me  with  a  small  silver 
coin  of  Queen  Mary,  found,  as  he  stated,  in  the  mass  of  earth 
which  had  fallen  down  with  the  box ;  there  is,  however,  no 
evidence  that  the  box  and  the  coin  are  of  the  same  age." 

To  wliich  the  editor  of  the  "  Archffiological  Journal  "  added 
as  follows : — "  It  may  desei-ve  notice,  that  the  Saxon  coins  and 
ornaments  discovered  in  Cuerdale,  as  also  the  collection  of  coins 
of  the  Conqueror,  found  at  Beaworth,  Hants,  had  been  deposited 
in  small  leaden  cists.     Several  instances  might  be  cited  of  tlie 

•  Vol.  iv.,  p.  149. 

t  See  an  account  of  beart-burial  in  a  leaden  pot  in  "  Hone's  Every  Day 
Book  and  Table  Book,"  Vol.  iii.,  Tart  2,  p.  2:10. 


33 

interment  of  a  human  heart  in  such  a  receptacle,  in  mediseval 
times  ;  and  similar  sepulchral  deposits,  of  more  remote  antiquity, 
have  been  found  in  England.  A  cubical  leaden  cist,  measuring 
eighteen  inches  square,  was  discovered  in  the  parish  of  Donning- 
ton,  Sussex,  during  the  formation  of  the  canal  between  the  river 
Arun  and  Portsmouth.  Within  it  was  found  enclosed  a  glass 
vessel,  containing  bones  and  ashes.  Interments  of  an  analogous 
character  have  been  noticed  in  the  north-western  parts  of  France." 

Subsequently  to  the  discovery  of  the  chest*,  I  made  repeated 
inquiries  at  Rainbow  Hill,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  any  coins 
or  other  relics  had  been  found  there  by  the  workmen,  but  without 
success. 

In  the  review  of  the  first  edition  of  this  work  in  the  "  Gentle- 
man's Magazinef,"  it  is  remarked, — "  There  is,  in  our  opinion, 
no  necessity  to  hesitate  in  pronouncing  Worcester  a  Roman 
station  of  importance,  placed  from  an  early  period  as  a  link  in  the 
military  defences  on  the  left  or  eastern  bank  of  the  Severn. 
This  defensive  line  may  be  traced  at  a  glance  from  Uriconium, 
Wroxeter,  near  Shrewsbury,  on  the  north,  through  the  Brano- 
vinium  of  Antonine,  which  was  the  Caer  Brangon  or  Vran- 
gon  of  the  Britons,  the  Saxon  Wrangonceaster,  softened  to  Wor- 
cester ;  and  proceeding  southward  to  Glevum,  Gloucester.  Now 
these  three  places,  exclusive  of  tangible  remains,  bear  the  indu- 
bitable stamp  of  a  Roman  origin  in  the  distinctive  appellation, 
'  ceaster,'  so  commonly  affixed  to  the  Roman  castra  or  military 
forts  by  the  Saxons." 

Dr.  Nash,  in  page  cvii.  of  the  appendix  to  his  second  volume, 
says:  "  To  speak  my  mind  freely,  I  do  not  take  W^orcestershire 
to  be  any  part  of  the  Coniavii,  but  of  the  Dobuni ;  nor  do  I  think 
the  city  of  Worcester  had  a  being  in  the  Roman  times,  for  there 
are  no  footsteps  of  any  Roman  ways  leading  to  this  city,  nor  are 
there  any  coins  or  antiquities   found  in   any  quantity^.       All 

•  This  chest  I  gave  to  the  museum  of  the  Archaeological  Institute. 

+  For  November  1840,  p.  509,  &c. 

J  So  little  were  the  antiquities  of  the  couutj'  kno\vii  a  century  ago,  that 
the  map  of  Worcestershire,  in  Herman  Moll's  maps  of  England  and  Wales, 
published  in  1747,  is  decorated  round  it  with  antiquities  belonging  to  the 
neighbouring  counties,  because  this  county  did  not  sup])ly  any. 

I) 


34 

betwixt  the  Avon  and  the  Severn  was  formerly  thick  and  wild  wood- 
land. The  Arden  of  Warwickshire  joined  to  that  of  Feckenham, 
in  this  county,  which,  with  the  forest  of  Ombersley,  included  all 
the  north  part  of  the  county  between  the  Stour  and  Severn,  quite 
down  to  Worcester ;  and  the  forest  of  Horewell,  southward,  ex- 
tended from  Sudbury  gate  to  within  a  mile  of  Tewkesbuiy."  He 
also  added  :  "  Some  have  imagined  that  the  Romans  would  not 
neglect  so  fine  and  navigable  a  river  as  the  Severn,  but  would 
certainly  follow  the  course  of  it  from  Gloucester  ;  but  at  that  time 
the  Severn  was  not  navigable  about  Worcester,  it  being  used 
chiefly  for  fishing,  there  being,  long  after  the  time  of  the  Romans, 
three  wears  within  two  miles  of  Worcester ;  Bevere,  Barboume, 
and  Timberdine." 

This  view,  however,  is  disproved  by  the  numerous  Roman  coins 
and  relics  which  have  been  discovered  in  and  near  Worcester 
since  the  Doctor  wrote  his  History.  At  Kempsey,  not  far  from 
this  cit}^  in  the  line  between  it  and  Tewkesbury,  the  sites  of  a 
Roman  camp  and  burial-ground  have  been  discovered.  A  little 
further  on,  at  Ripple,  the  site  of  a  Roman  potteiy  ground.  In 
the  parish  of  Ombersley  the  site  of  a  Roman  camp  and  potteiT 
works  have  been  brought  to  light ;  and  Roman  relics  at  Droit- 
wich ;  and  within  three  miles  of  Worcester,  on  the  north-west 
side,  there  is  a  place  called  Oldbury*,  situated  in  the  parish  of  St. 
John,  near  Broadheath  and  Crovmeast  (vulgarly  called  Crowsnest). 
This  place  has  not  been  noticed  by  Dr.  Nash ;  but  in  his  account 
of  the  parish  of  Halesowen,  he  states  that  the  name  of  the  place 
tliere  called  Oldbuiy  denotes  that  there  was  a  Roman  camp  or 
station  in  that  localityf. 

Oldbury  is  a  fine,  open,  upland  situation,  just  such  a  one  as  the 
Romans  would  have  selected ;  it  commands  a  full  view  from  the 

*  There  is  a  place  called  Oldbury  Gardens  at  Tewkesburj',  where  Roman 
coins  and  relics  are  frequently  dug  up ;  vide  Bennett's  History  of  that  place, 
pufje  17.     Also  see  Notices  of  Tewkesbury,  Oldbui-j-,  and  Halesowen. 

+  J'/'(/c  further  notices  relative  to  the  antiquities  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Worcester,  in  the  subse([uent  account  of  the  Western  Trackway  from  'J'ewkes- 
bury,  through  Worcester,  to  Droitwich  ;  and  in  the  other  ancient  lines  of  road 
to  aTid  from  Worcester. 


35 

higliest  part,  called  Oldbury  Hill*,  of  Worcester,  and  of  Tutnall, 
Elbury,  and  Cruckbarrow  Hills,  which  flank  the  city  on  the  north- 
east, east,  and  south-east ;  of  Bredon  Hill,  on  the  south-east ; 
and  of  the  Malvern,  Old  Storage,  Ankerdine,  Berrow,  Woodbury, 
and  Abberley  Hills,  on  the  south-west,  west,  and  north-west ;  and 
it  appears  to  be  the  highest  ground  in  that  part  between  the  above 
ranges. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  is  clear  that  this  county  was  not 
so  much  covered  with  wood  in  the  time  of  the  Romans  as  Dr. 
Nash  imagined  ;  and  the  wears  referred  to  by  him  upon  the 
Severn  may  have  been  constructed  in  later  times,  as  the  Cinder 
Point  iron  works  tend  to  prove  that  the  navigation  of  the  river 
was  free  during  the  time  of  the  Roman  dominion. 

ANCIENT  BRITISH  PERIOD. 

That  Worcester,  or  the  heights  on  the  east  side  of  it,  were 
regularly  inhabited  by  the  ancient  Britons,  will,  I  think,  clearly 
appear  in  my  subsequent  description  of  the  chain  of  hills  from 
Cruckbarrow  to  Tutnall.  The  following  remarks  in  relation  to 
Lowesmoor  may  also  tend  to  throw  some  light  upon  the 
subject! : — 

It  is  stated  in  p.  9  that  there  is  a  place  on  the  eastern  side  of 
Worcester,  adjoining  Port  Fields  Road  (which  leads  to  Harbour, 
and  Elbury  Hills),  called  Lowesmoor.  Now  this  name,  if  correct, 
indicates  that  ancient  lowes^,  or  barrows,  stood  there.  In 
Sa.\ton  and  Speed's  "  Map  of  the  City  and  County  of  Worcester," 
published  in  1610,  and  in  the  map  contained  in  the  work  called 
"  Boscobel§,"  the  part  called  Lowesmoor  is  represented  as  con- 
sisting almost  entirely  of  open  fields,  lying  on  the  north-east  side 

•  "  All  appellation  almost  always  connected  with  Roman  occupation,  and  in 
this  instance  probably  the  castrn  ajsliva,  or  summer  quarters  of  the  garrison 
of  Worcester."     See  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  November  1840,  p.  OlO. 

+  .\lso  see  what  has  been  said  as  to  Sidbury,  at  p.  2(i. 

{  Or  lows. 

§  Intitled,  "  .\n  exact  (iround  Plot  of  the  City  of  Worcester  as  it  stood 
fortified  :!rd  September,  10.')!.'  See  the  third  editioti  of  that  work,  published 
in  lfi><0. 


of  St.  Martins  Gate*. — Supposing  barrows  to  have  been  there, 
the  first  question  is,  whether  they  belonged  to  the  ancient  Britons, 
to  the  Romans,  or  to  the  Anglo-Saxons  ;  however,  it  seems  most 
probable  they  were  either  ancient  British  or  Anglo-Saxon,  since 
it  appears  that  the  usual  manner  of  the  Romans  was  to  bury 
without  a  tumulusf . 

The  next  point  to  be  discussed  is  the  etymology  of  Lowesmoor. 
Was  it  the  moor  of  the  barrows,  or  the  moor  of  a  person  called 
Lowe?  According  to  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  203,  it  was 
spelled  Losemore,  in  the  time  of  Edward  I.;  and  in  the  19th 
"  Further  Report  of  the  Commissioners  for  Inquiring  concerning 
Charities  "  (p.  508),  it  is  stated  that  in  a  deed,  dated  in  the 
second  year  of  Elizabeth,  a  piece  of  land,  called  "  The  Fort,"  is 
described  as  situated  in  Windmill  Field,  near  Little  Losemore 
and  Great  Losemore.  In  a  lease,  granted  by  the  Bishop  of  Wor- 
cester in  1668,  it  is  spelled  Losemoore  ;  in  another  lease  (1751), 
Losemore  ;  while  a  map  of  Worcester,  by  John  Doharty  (1741), 
has  it  Lowsemoor;  and  a  map  by  G.  Young  (1779),  Lowesmere. 
These  are  the  earliest  mentions  of  the  name  I  have  succeeded  in 
discovering,  and  from  them  it  appears  that  the  etymology  is 
uncertain.  In  the  absence,  however,  of  further  evidence,  it  may 
reasonably  be  inferred,  from  the  ancient  British  localities  which 
surround  it,  that  it  owes  its  designation  to  the  lowes  or  barrows 
which  it  contained. 

SAXON  PERIOD. 

In  connection  with  this  period,  there  is  a  most  interesting  and 
unique  Saxon  gold  coin  of  Edward  the  Confessor,  found  at  Wor- 
cester, when  the  church  of  St.  Clement  was  being  taken  down. 
It  belonged  to  Thomas  Henry  Spurrier,  Esq.,  of  Edgbaston,  near 
Birmingham,  now  deceased.  This  coin  has  been  examined  by 
some  of  the  first  numismatists  in  the  kingdom,  and  is  declared  to 

*  T]ie  iiiiip  in  "  Boscobel  "  represents  Frog  Gat«  as  lying  near  St.  Martin's 
Gate.  Othpr  maps,  afterwards  published,  give  Frog  Gate,  but  omit  its  name. 
It  appears,  however,  by  "  Saxton  and  Speed's  Map,"  that  Frogge  Gate  and 
Frogge  Mill  were  near  the  Severn. 

t  See  Notiffs  of  Krmpsey  and  Powick. 


37 

be  genuine.  It  is  said  to  be  the  only  Saxou  gold  coin  which  has 
been  found*.  It  is  in  a  high  state  of  preservation,  and  weighs 
fifty-four  grains  and  a  quarter.  On  the  obverse  there  is  a  quarter 
side-face  portrait  of  the  king,  with  a  sceptre,  and  the  inscription, 
*'  EDWERD  REX,"  in  Saxon  characters.  On  the  reverse> 
there  is  the  name  of  the  minter,  and  the  place  where  it  was 
minted,  as  follows :— "  LYFIXC  ON  WIRING."  This  Wa;rinc 
is  by  some  supposed  to  mean  Warwick,  by  others  Worcester. 
(See  the  woodcuts  of  the  obverse  and  reverse  of  the  coin  hero 
represented.)     Dr.  Nash,  in  his    •'  Historj't,"   speaking  of   St. 


Clement's  Church,  says  : — "  This  church  was  built  by  the  Saxons 
after  they  had  fortified  the  city  against  the  incursions  of  the 
Britons.  The  parish  to  which  it  belongs  lies  on  the  other  side  of 
the  river  Severn ;  and  there  is  a  monkish  tradition,  that  it  was 
begun  to  be  built  on  the  side  of  the  river  where  the  parish  lies, 
but  that  angels,  by  night,  took  away  the  stones  to  the  place  where 
it  now  stands ;  but  the  true  reason  why  it  was  there  built,  was  for 
its  security ;  that,  whatever  fate  their  houses  might  meet  with, 
their  church  might  be  safe  from  the  devastations  of  their  enemies. 
It  has,  at  the  west  end  of  it,  the  remains  of  a  bulwark,  and  a 
gate  by  it,  which  openeth  upon  the  Seveni,  above  the  bridge, 
called  '  St.  Clement  s  Gate.'  " 

I  give  the  above  extract,  because  it  strongly  bears  upon  the 
subject.  This  ancieiit  church  was  taken  down  about  twenty-five 
years  ago,  and  rebuilt  on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  Some 
portions  of  the  old  walls  still  remain,  containing  circular  arches  ; 
these,  M.  H.  Blo.xam,  Esq.,  of  Rugby,  describes  as  early  Norman. 
It  appears,  from  his  work  on  "Gothic   Ecclesiastical  Architec- 


•  But  sec  injWi. 

+  Vol.  ii.,  .\ppendix,  p.  1'2*>. 


38 

ture,"  published  in  1838,  that  there  are  very  few  specimens  of 
Saxon  buildings  remaining  in  the  kingdom,  and  that  it  is  a 
common  mistake  to  call  all  erections  Saxon  which  contain 
circular  arches.  Perhaps,  therefore,  the  whole  of  this  church 
was  early  Norman,  or  rather  of  the  time  of  Edward  the  Confessor, 
when  Norman  architecture  began  to  be  introduced.  This  view 
appears  to  be  favoured  by  the  circumstances  relative  to  the 
finding  of  the  coin  above  mentioned.  Some  writers  state  that 
the  tower  of  this  church,  which  was  united  to  the  city  wall,  was 
beaten  down  by  the  Cromwellites.  In  a  view  of  the  City,  engraved 
in  1732,  for  Buck's  "  Views,"  the  then  bridge  is  represented  as 
abutting  close  upon  the  old  St.  Clement's  Church ;  and  in  an  old 
map,  which  probably  was  a  reprint  from  that  in  the  work  called 
"  Boscobel,"  the  bridge  and  the  city  wall  close  to  the  original 


■/i^'^'S 


OFLAM^fTE  1 


tower  of  the  church,  together  with  the  bulwark  referred  to  bv  Dr. 
Nash,  are  all  represented. 

The  following  notice  with  respect  to  this  church  (of  which  see 


39 

the  woodcut)  appeared  in  the  "  Archaeological  Journal* : "  "  Mr. 
Wright  exhibited  a  drawing  of  part  of  the  ruins  of  old  St. 
Clement's  Church  at  Worcester,  which  was  pulled  down  a  few 
years  ago  when  the  new  church  of  St.  Clement  was  built.  They 
have  the  apparent  character  of  very  early  Norman  work,  and  the 
church  itself  appears  to  have  been  an  ancient  structure.  The 
arches,  though  in  character  early  Norman,  might  be  of  the  reign 
of  Edward  the  Confessor,  when  Norman  arts  and  customs  were 
introduced  rather  largely  into  England." 

But  to  return  to  the  coin.  In  the  course  of  the  year  1837, 
several  papers  appeared  in  the  "  Numismatic  Quarterly  Journal," 
and  '•  Gentleman's  Magazine,"  respecting  it.  The  principal 
question  appears  to  have  been,  whether  it  really  was  struck  for 
circulation,  or  as  a  kind  of  medal  or  curiosity  ;  some  numis- 
matists regard  it  as  a  piece  struck  in  gold  from  the  die  of  the 
penny  of  Edward  the  Confessor. 

Another  point  has  arisen  as  to  where  this  coin  was  minted  ; 
and  the  question  is,  whether  Waerinc  means  Warwick  or  Worcester. 
Green,  in  his  History  of  the  City,  and  Nash,  in  his  History  of  the 
County  of  Worcester,  have  given  an  engraving  f  of  a  coin  of 
Edward  the  Confessor  |,  with  the  word  Warinc  upon  it,  amongst 
the  Anglo-Saxon  and  English  coins  which  they  say  were  minted 
at  Worcester.  It  has  been  asserted  that  this  word  forms  the 
first  two  syllables  of  the  Saxon  name  of  this  city  § ;  on  the  otlier 
hand,  it  is  contended  that  Wcerinc  means  Warwick  ;  a  gentleman 
of  that  opinion  stated,  in  a  letter  to  me,  that  Camden,  "  although 
a  great  antiquaiy,  knew  but  very  little  about  numismatics,  and 


•  Of  the  Britinh  Archceological  Association,  Vol.  i.,  pp.  261,  202. 

f  In  the  former  work,  No.  10,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  113;  and  in  the  latter,  No.  4, 
Vol.  i.  Intr.,  p.  !)1. 

X  Obverse — Eadwanl  Rex.     Reverse — Purcl  on  Wcerinc. 

§  Vide  Camden's  "  Britannia,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  173,  in  explanation  of  coin,  No.  2!(, 
in  Plate  2,  of  Saxon  coins  in  that  work.  The  last-mentioned  coin  is  one  of 
Cuinite  and  conUiins  the  word  Verin,  which  Cannlen  has  set  down  as  Worces- 
ter :  p.  175,  of  the  first  volume  of  that  author,  has  also  been  cited  in  proof 
that  Edward  the  Confessor  ilid  cohi  money  in  this  city. 


40 

frequently  assigned  coins  to  the  wrong  monarchs."  He  gave 
some  instances  to  that  effect,  and  added,  that  "  the  Saxon  names 
for  Worcester  are — Wigea,  Wihr,  Wir,  Wiri,  Wice,  Wiger,  Wigr, 
Wiher,  Wihre,  Wihri ;  while  the  names  for  Warwick  are  Wearwi, 
Warinc,  Waerhica,  Verinew,  Weric,  Werin,  and  Waerinc."  This 
shows  that  several  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  coins  which  Dr.  Nash  and 
Mr.  Green  have  described  as  minted  at  Worcester,  must  have 
been  minted  at  Warwick*. 

Camden f  says:  "The  question  whether  the  Saxon  kings 
coined  any  gold  is  yet  undetermined.  The  latest  controversy  on 
the  subject  between  Mr.  Pegge  and  Mr.  North  was  not  so  much 
on  the  general  question,  as  whether  the  coins  produced  by  the 
former  were  genuine,  which  Mr.  North  argued  they  could  not  be, 
on  account  of  the  great  deficiency  in  weighty." 


DANE  SKINS. 

I  must  now  advert  to  the  very  curious  fact,  that  vestiges  of 
human  sldn  might  be  seen  attached  to  the  nortli  doors  of  Wor- 
cester Cathedral  as  late  as  forty  years  ago,  when  those  doors  were 
replaced  by  new  ones.  The  extraordinary  spectacle  I  myself 
frequently  saw  before  the  doors  were  removed.  The  particulars 
of  the  case,  and  of  the  existence  of  the  doors  in  the  ciypt  of  the 
cathedral  to  this  day,  I  mentioned  to  Albert  Way,  Esq.,  who 
thereupon  communicated  a  very  interesting  paper  upon  the  subject 
of  "Danes'  Skins  "  to  the  Archaeological  Institute  [Vide  "Journal," 
Vol.  v.,  pp.  185  to  19"2).  This  paper,  which  he  has  kindly  allowed 
me  to  subjoin,  is  as  follows  : — 


*  See  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  November  and  December  1840,  and 
.January  1841,  in  proof  that  Warwick  was  the  place  of  mintage. 

t  Vol.  i.,  p.  108. 

X  As  to  the  probability  that  gold  was  struck  in  small  (piantitics  in  the 
Anglo-Saxon  times,  though  not  from  the  die  of  the  penny  like  Mr.  Spurrier's 
piece,  see  Mr.  Akerman's  remarks  on  the  Saxon  mint,  in  the  Jubilee  edition 
of  King  Alfred's  works. 


41 


"  Some  Notes  on  the  Tradition  of  Flaying,  inflicted  in  Punishment 
of  Sacrilege ;  the  Skin  of  the  Offender  being  affixed  to  the  church 
doors. 

"  It  may  be  known  to  some  of  our  readers,  who  have  chanced 
to  visit  the  eastern  counties  of  England,  and  are  acquainted  with 
the  picturesque  site  of  the  little  town  of  Linton,  or  the  adjacent 
rural  hamlet  of  Hadstock,  that  a  strange  tradition  yet  darkly 
subsists  amongst  the  peasantry  in  that  locality,  dating,  as  it  would 
appear,  from  times  anterior  to  the  invasion  of  the  Normans.  It 
relates  to  the  cruel  and  summary  vengeance  there  supposed  to 
have  been  inflicted  upon  a  sacrilegious  Dane.  Few  years  have 
elapsed,  since  the  curious  traveller  who  visited  that  secluded  spot, 
upon  the  borders  of  the  counties  of  Essex  and  Cambridge,  was 
wont  to  be  directed  to  the  north  door  of  the  little  church,  regarded 
by  some  as  of  Saxon  date,  to  seek  beneath  the  massive  clamps 
and  hinges  for  a  relic  of  the  Pirate  Northman,  whose  skin  had 
been  attached  to  the  door,  a  ghastly  memorial  of  ecclesiastical 
vengeance,  and  a  warning  to  all  who  might  approach  the  church 
with  like  unhallowed  intention. 

"  I  am  not  aware  when  the  earliest  mention  of  this  singular 
tale  was  recorded  by  any  antiquarian  writer  of  the  last  century. 
Sir  Harry  Englefield  laid  before  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  in 
1789,  a  plate  of  iron,  taken,  by  permission  of  the  rector,  from 
the  door  of  Hadstock  church,  Essex,  with  a  portion  of  skin,  con- 
sidered to  be  human,  found  under  the  iron. 

"  The  tradition  regarding  that  chxurch  had  been  recorded  by 
Morant,  in  his  "  History  of  Essex,"  with  the  statement  that  a 
second  similar  tale  had  been  preserved  in  the  village  of  Copford, 
iu  the  same  county.  These,  however,  are  not  solitarj'  examples 
of  the  existence  of  such  popular  relations  in  England.  Having 
learned  that  one  of  the  doors  of  Worcester  cathedral  had  been 
reputed  by  common  belief  to  bear  a  coating  of  human  skin,  the 
circumstance  appeared  so  singular,  connected  with  the  village 
traditions  in  a  remote  eastern  county,  already  mentioned,  that 
I  was  induced  to  address  myself  to  a  zealous  and  intelligent 
investigator   of   Worcestershire    antiquities,    Mr.   Jabez   Allies, 


4'9 

F.S.A.,  through  whose  kindness  my  curiosity  was  quickly  gratified. 
The  singular  fact  had,  indeed,  previously  arrested  the  attention  of 
the  indefatigable  Worcestershire  antiquary,  the  late  Dr.  Prattin- 
ton,  of  Bewdley,  amongst  whose  extensive  collections  for  the 
"  History  of  the  County,"  bequeathed  to  the  Society  of  An- 
tiquaries of  London,  and  preserved  at  Somerset  House,  occurs 
the  object  thus  described ; — 

"  '  A  portion  of  skin,  supposed  to  be  human,  according  to  the 
tradition  that  a  man,  who  had  stolen  the  sanctus-bell  from  the 
high-altar  in  Worcester  cathedral,  had  been  flayed,  and  his  skin 
affixed  to  the  north  doors,  as  a  punishment  for  such  sacrilege. 
The  doors  having  been  removed,  are  now  to  be  seen  in  the  crypt 
of  the  cathedral,  and  small  fragments  of  skin  may  still  be  seen 
beneath  the  iron-work  with  which  they  are  strengthened*.' 

"  Having  been  induced  to  follow  out  the  investigation  sug- 
gested by  such  ancient  traditions,  with  the  conviction  that  all 
means  of  adducing  evidence  to  substantiate  or  disprove  them 
would  quickly  be  destroyed,  in  the  present  course  of  church 
restoration,  I  sought  without  delay  to  procure  specimens,  un- 
deniably authenticated,  of  the  supposed  human  cuticle  in  ques- 
tion, with  the  intention  of  submitting  it  to  the  test  of  scientific 
examination  by  one  of  our  most  skilful  comparative  anatomists. 

"  By  the  prompt  kindness  of  Mr.  Allies  I  shortly  received,  not 
merely  a  fragment  of  the  skin  taken  from  the  great  northern 
doors  of  the  cathedral  of  Worcester,  but  a  careful  drawing  from 
actual  measurement,  for  which  my  best  thanks  are  due  to  Harvey 
Eginton,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  of  Worcester,  whose  knowledge  and  judg- 
ment in  all  that  is  associated  with  ancient  architecture  is  most 
honourably  esteemed  in  his  county.  The  old  doors  had  been 
removed  about  forty  years  since  to  the  crv'pt,  and  replaced  by  new 
wood-work  :  their  date  is  considered  by  Mr.  Eginton  to  be  the 
fourteenth  century ;  and  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  they  are 
coeval  with  the  work  completed  during  the  time  of  Bishop  Wake- 
field, when  the  north  porch,  the  principal  entrance  from  the  city, 
is  supposed  to  have   been  erected,  about  the  year   1380.     The 

*  "  A  Catalogup  of  Aiitiiiuitics  ami  Misrellancous  Curiosities  in  llic  pos- 
session of  the  Siiciety  of  Antiquaries  of  London,"   p.  id. 


48 

vaulting  of  the  north  aisle  of  the  nave  had  only  been  constructed 
towards  1327. 

"  On  close  examination  of  the  old  doors,  which,  as  usual  in 
principal  entrances  of  large  churches,  were  in  several  pieces,  so 
that  the  lower  leaves  only,  or  a  moiety  of  them,  might  be  un- 
folded, unless  some  occasion  of  unusual  ceremony  required  the 
whole  to  be  thrown  open,  Mr.  Allies  succeeded  in  obtaining  from 
the  inner  side  of  the  door,  where  it  was  traversed  by  a  massive 
bar  of  wood,  several  small  portions  of  skin.  The  wooden  bar 
corresponded  in  position  with  an  exterior  one  of  iron,  attached 
by  bolts  or  nails  passing  through  the  internal  bar  of  wood,  and 
there  rivetted.  He  was  decidedly  of  opinion  that  the  skin  had 
been  laid  upon  the  wooden  leaves  of  the  door,  at  the  time  of  its 
original  construction.  '  I  recollect,'  observes  Mr.  Allies,  '  a  horrid 
tale  used  to  be  told  when  I  was  a  boy,  that  some  person  in  times 
of  yore  had  been  skinned  aUve  for  sacrilege,  and  that  his  skin 
was  nailed  upon  the  inside  of  the  north  door  of  the  cathedral. 
This  tradition  is  still  known  to  several  persons  in  tlais  city,  who 
recollect  seeing  the  skin  on  the  inner  surface  of  the  doors,  pre- 
viously to  their  removal.' 

"  The  supposed  human  skin  obtained  from  Worcester,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  obliging  researches  of  Mr.  Allies  and  Mr. 
Eginton,  was  forthwith  submitted  to  a  gentleman  eminently 
skilled  in  the  use  of  microscopic  observation  for  investigating 
minute  details  connected  with  comparative  anatomy.  I  aUude  to 
Mr.  John  Quekett,  Assistant  Conservator  of  the  Musuem  of  the 
lloyal  College  of  Surgeons,  by  whom  I  was  favoured  with  the 
following  report. 

'•  *  I  have  carefully  examined  the  portion  of  skin  wliich  you 
forwarded  to  me  for  my  inspection,  and  beg  to  inform  you  that  I 
am  pei'fectly  satisfied  that  it  is  human  skin,  taken  from  some 
part  of  the  body  of  a  light-haired  person,  where  little  hair  grows. 
A  section  of  the  specimen,  when  examined  with  a  power  of  a 
hundred  diameters,  shows  readily  that  it  is  skin,  and  two  hairs 
which  grow  on  it  I  find  to  be  human  hairs,  and  to  present  the 
characters  that  hairs  of  light-haired  people  do.  The  bail's  of  the 
human  subject  dilTor  greatly  from  those  of  any  other  mammalian 


44 

animal,  and  the  examination  of  a  hair  alone,  without  the  skin, 
would  have  enabled  me  to  form  a  conclusion.  I  may  state  that 
this  is  the  second  occasion  in  which,  from  the  hairs  alone,  I  have 
been  enabled  to  pronounce  an  animal  substance  to  be  human.' 

"  Encouraged  by  this  result,  I  lost  no  time  in  the  endeavour 
to  obtain  a  fragment  of  the  Dane's  exuviae  from  Hadstock,  in 
order  to  subject  it  to  a  similar  test.  Through  the  kindness  of 
the  Hon.  Kichard  Neville,  who  had  noticed  the  tradition  pre- 
served at  that  place,  in  his  interesting  memorials  of  researches 
made  by  him  near  Chesterford  and  Audley  End*,  I  obtained 
such  a  sample.  The  door,  being  much  decayed,  had  been  re- 
moved in  1846,  but  part  of  the  original  wood-work,  with  the 
massive  nails  which  served  to  attach  the  skin,  is  in  Mr.  Neville's 
possession,  as  also  a  piece  of  the  robber's  hide,  of  considerable 
thickness,  and  considered  to  have  been  tanned  previously  to  its 
being  laid  upon  the  wood.  This  relic  had  been  given  by  the 
rector  of  Hadstock,  the  Rev.  C.  Towneley,  to  Mr.  Neville,  who, 
in  a  very  obliging  manner,  supplied  me  with  a  portion  to  facilitate 
my  inquiries.  Again  I  had  the  satisfaction  of  receiving  from  Mr. 
Quekett  an  answer  wholly  corroborative  of  the  popular  tradition. 
His  opinion  was  thus  expressed  : — 

"  '  I  have  been  again  fortunate  in  making  out  the  specimen  of 
skin  you  last  sent  me  to  be  human ;  I  found  on  it  three  hairs 
which  I  have  preserved ;  I  shall  shortly  send  you  a  drawing  of 
them,  as  compared  with  one  from  a  living  subject,  and  you  will 
at  once  see  their  identity.  I  should  further  state  that  the  skin 
was  in  all  probability  removed  from  the  back  of  the  Dane,  and 
that  he  was  a  fair-haired  person.' 

"  On  communicating  this  satisfactory  verdict  to  Mr.  Neville,  he 
informed  me  that  Mr.  Towneley  had  likewise  just  ascertained  the 
fact  by  scientific  examination  of  these  remains.  The  next  step 
was  directed  by  the  information  supplied  by  Morant,  in  relation 
to  the  church  of  Copford,  in  Essex.  On  communicating  the 
object  of  inquiry  to  the  rector,  the  Rev.  Kennett  C.  Rayley,  he 
kindly  sent  me  the  following  reply  :    '  There  are  no  remains  of 

•  "  .\iuiqua  Exploiata,"  tlio  result  of  Excavations  made  by  Hon.  R.  C. 
Neville,  &c.,  p.  :J4.     Saffron  AValden,  1^47.   8vo. 


45 

skin  on  the  door  at  the  present  time.  I  have,  however,  in  my 
possession,  a  short  MS.  account  of  the  parish,  written  during  the 
incumbency  of  John  Dane,  1689-17 14,  wherein  is  the  following: 
"  'the  doors  of  this  church  are  much  adorned  with  flourished  iron- 
work, underneath  which  is  a  sort  of  skin,  taken  notice  of  in  the 
year  1690,  when  an  old  man  of  Colchester,  hearing  Copford 
mentioned,  said,  that  in  his  young  time  he  heard  his  master  say 
that  he  had  read  in  an  old  history  that  the  church  was  robbed  by 
Danes,  and  their  skins  nailed  to  the  dooi-s  ;  upon  which  some 
gentlemen,  being  curious,  went  thither,  and  found  a  sort  of 
tanned  skin,  thicker  than  parchment,  which  is  supposed  to  be 
human  skin,  nailed  to  tlie  door  of  the  said  church,  underneath 
the  said  iron- work,  some  of  which  skin  is  still  to  be  seen.'  " 

"  Mr.  Bayley  added,  '  Since  writing  the  above  I  have  heard 
that  what  remained  of  the  skin  was  removed  about  four  years 
ago.  I  hear,  however,  of  two  pieces  in  this  neighbourhood,  and 
if  I  can  succeed  in  procuring  either  of  them,  I  will  forward  it  to 
you.'  This  obliging  promise  was  fulfilled  on  the  ensuing  day. 
The  fragment  had  been  taken  by  a  carpenter  in  the  parish  from 
underneath  the  iron-work  of  the  door,  about  the  year  1843,  when 
the  church  was  under  repair.  He  gave  it  to  a  Mr.  Eley,  a  miller 
at  Copford,  from  whom  it  was  procured  by  Mr.  Bayley. 

"  The  issue  of  the  thkd  appeal  to  the  discriminating  judgment 
of  Mr.  Quekett  proved  likewise  conclusive.  His  answer  was 
this :  '  I  am  happy  to  tell  you  that  I  have  succeeded  in  making 
out  the  Copford  specimen  to  be  human,  as  well  as  the  others  ;  I 
have  shown  the  hairs  from  this  as  well  as  from  the  others  to  some 
friends  who  were  sceptical,  but  they  are  now  quite  of  my  opinion. 
I  have  had  drawings  made,  and  I  desired  the  artist  to  draw  a 
human  hair  by  the  side  of  the  others,  so  that  there  can  be  no  doubt 
of  the  identity  of  the  hair.  I  must  ask  you  to  allow  me  to  mention 
the  subject  at  our  ^licroscopical  Society,  to  show  how  valuable  tlie 
microscope  is  in  determining  doubtful  points  of  this  nature.' 

"  The  value  of  natural  science  as  a  friendly  ally  to  archaeology, 
in  supplying  conclusive  evidence  on  a  question  which  must,  with- 
out such  aid,  have  been  left  to  vague  conjecture,  has  been 
strikingly  shown   in  the  present  instance.      The  singular  cor- 


40 

roboration  of  the  truth  of  popular  tradition,  thus  undeniably 
established,  may  serve  to  remind  us  that  no  circumstance, 
however  apparently  trivial  or  absurd,  is  without  utility  in  the 
investigation  of  the  history  and  usages  of  ancient  times. 

"  Having  an  opportunity  of  stating  these  facts  to  Lord  Bray- 
brooke,  he  had  the  kindness  to  communicate  the  following  curious 
passage  from  Pepys'  Diary,  taken  from  the  highly  valuable 
additions  which  have  been  made  by  his  lordship  in  the  recently 
published  edition  of  those  remarkable  memoirs. 

"*  April  10,  1661.  To  Rochester,  and  there  saw  the  cathe- 
dral     observing  the  great  doors  of  the  church,  as  they 

say,  covered  with  the  skins  of  the  Danes.'  In  early  times  the 
Thames  had  been  frequently  the  resort  of  the  Danes,  and  the 
men  of  Kent  were  continually  harrassed  by  their  rapacious 
cruelty.  In  the  year  999  they  went  up  the  Medway  to  Roches- 
ter, according  to  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  and  made  a  most  fatal 
foray,  overrunning  nearly  all  West  Kent.  Rochester  cathedral 
was  rebuilt  by  Bishop  Gundulph,  towards  the  latter  part  of  the 
eleventh  century.     He  succeeded  to  the  see  in  1077. 

"  Hitherto  I  have  been  unable,  after  repeated  inquiries  at 
Rochester,  to  trace  any  other  statement  regarding  this  fourth 
example  of  such  a  singular  tradition  ;  but  the  report  of  so 
minutely  accurate  an  observer  as  Pepys  must  be  regarded  as  of 
unquestionable  authority.  Lord  Braybrooke  subsequently  ob- 
served, that  he  had  been  informed  by  Mr.  Neville  that  the  north 
door  of  Hadstock  was  that  upon  which  the  skin  was  nailed,  and 
suggested  the  inquir}^  '  Was  this  the  case  at  Copford  as  well  as 
Worcester?  because  that  aspect  was  always  unpopular  for  pur- 
poses of  interment,  the  sun  never  shining  on  the  graves  so 
situate.'  Mr.  Bayley  has  since  informed  me  that  the  skin  was 
on   '  the  south  door,  none  on  the  north. ' 

"  Other  examples,  it  has  been  reported  to  me,  are  to  be  found 
in  the  north-eastern  parts  of  the  country,  in  the  neighbourhood, 
probably,  of  the  coast,  long  infested  by  the  cruel  plunderers  from 
the  North,  and  I  hope  that  these  notices  may  prove  the  means 
of  drawing  forth  further  information  on  the  subject.  I  have 
thought  the  facts  which  have  come  to  my  knowledge  well  deserv 


47 

ing  to  be  recorded  in  full  detail,  at  the  risk  even  of  appearing 
tediously  circumstantial.  In  a  very  few  years  it  would  be  im- 
practicable to  substantiate  these  traditions  by  a  chain  of  con- 
clusive evidence,  such  as  I  have  now  been  enabled  to  adduce. 
That  so  barbarous  an  exhibition  of  summary  punishment  should 
have  been  permitted  in  comparatively  uncivilized  times,  in  remote 
and  defenceless  villages,  exposed  by  their  vicinity  to  the  coast  to 
frequent  inroads  of  the  pirates  of  the  Baltic,  may  appear  less 
extraordinary,  but  it  must  be  admitted,  that  the  exposure  of  the 
skin  of  a  criminal  within  the  walls  of  cathedral  cliurches,  or 
upon  the  doors  of  their  most  frequented  entrances,  was  a  savage 
display  of  vengeance,  which  it  is  very  difficult  to  comprehend. 
At  Worcester,  moreover,  this  was  done  in  no  days  of  barbarism^ 
or  disregard  of  judicial  enactments  :  the  reign  of  Pdchard  II. 
was  marked  by  the  rapid  advance  of  civilization,  the  introduction 
of  foreign  refinements  and  luxury.  It  is,  indeed,  possible  that 
the  skin,  in  that  instance,  might  have  been  the  vestige  of  a 
punishment  inflicted  long  previously ;  but  its  preservation  in  such 
a  place,  and  at  times  such  as  the  period  when  the  northern  part 
of  that  cathedral  was  erected,  is  a  fact  most  startling  and 
incomprehensible. 

"  The  question  here  suggests  itself,  by  what  authority,  by  what 
judicial  enactment,  was  this  barbarous  pmiishment  inflicted,  not 
merely  as  summary  vengeance  in  a  moment  of  great  popular  in- 
dignation, in  remote  localities  where  the  administration  of  the 
laws  might  be  imperfectly  maintained,  but  inflicted  with  the 
sanction  of  the  Church,  and  the  remembrance  of  the  sanguinary 
deed  carefully  peqietuated.  Many  examples  of  such  horrid 
torments  might  be  found  in  ancient  history,  such  as  the  martyr- 
dom of  St.  Bartholomew  by  the  Armenians,  the  cruel  end  of  the 
Emperor  Valerian,  in  the  third  century,  flayed  alive  by  Sapor, 
king  of  the  Persians,  or  the  fate  of  the  Chief  Justice  Itinerant  in 
the  north  of  England,  Hugo  de  Cressyngham,  in  the  reign  of 
Edward  I.,  who  was  flayed  by  the  exasperated  Scots  at  Strivelyn, 
A.D.  1296.  Knyghton  thus  describes  the  indignity  thus  inflicted 
upon  the  king's  treasurer.  '  Quem  excoriantes  Scoti  diviserunt 
inter  se  pellem  ipsius  per  modicas  partes,  non  quidem  ad  reliquias 


48 

sed  in  contumelias,  erat  eiiim  pulcher  et  grassus  nimis,  vo- 
caveruntque  eum  non  Thesaurarium  sed  Traiturarium  regis*.' 
Such  atrocities  have  been  committed  in  every  age,  on  occasions  of 
despotic  tyranny  or  lawless  commotionf. 

"  Punishments  of  a  very  dreadful  description  were  doubtless 
sanctioned  by  law  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  and  later  ages.  In  some 
of  the  early  judicial  enactments  expressions  occur  which,  at  first 
sight,  would  induce  the  supposition  that  flaying  was  a  punish- 
ment of  no  rare  occurrence.  '  Corium  forisfacere,  corium  perdere, 
corium  carere,  cute  privare,  corio  componere^,'  and  similar 
phrases  appear,  however,  to  have  impUed  only  such  excoriation  as 
might  be  inflicted  by  severe  scourging,  and  for  this  it  was  mostly 
permitted  to  make  a  composition, — corium  redimere, — called  in 
Anglo-Saxon,  hyd-gild,  money  paid  by  an  offender  to  save  his  skin. 
It  is  indeed  possible  that  in  very  rude  times  actual  excoriation 
was  inflicted,  and  afterwards  commuted  for  severe  fustigation, 
described  in  the  dreadful  terms  above  mentioned  ;  and  occasion- 
ally it  would  appear  that  flaying  is  reaUy  implied  in  these 
enactments.  For  example,  in  the  laws  of  Heniy  I.,  it  is  or- 
dained that  if  any  man  slay  his  lord,  there  should  be  no  redemp- 
tion,— '  nuUo  modo  se  redimat,  sed  de  comacione  (scalping)  vel 
excoriacione,  severa  gentium  animadversione  dampnetur,  ut  diris 
tormentorum  cruciatibus,  et  male  mortis  infortuniis  infelicem 
prius  animam  exhalasse,  quam  finem  doloribus  excepisse  videa- 
tur§.' 

"  Much  more  might  be  said  in  regard  to  the  curious  question 
of  the  legality  of  '  excoriacio,'  literally  inflicted  in  pursuance  of 
judicial  ordinances  of  mediaeval  times,  but  I  must  leave  the 
subject  to  the  consideration  of  those  who  are  more  versed  than 
myself  in  ancient  laws.  The  penalty  for  sacrilegious  theft  was 
mostly  of  unusual  severity:  according   to   the  laws   of  Alfred, 

*  Knyghton,    "  Decern  Scriptores,"    col.  2519. 

+  It  is  affirmed  that  amongst  the  dreadful  cruelties  of  the  Frencli  Revolution 
at  the  close  of  the  last  century,  the  skins  of  the  victuns  were  tanned  and  made 
into  boots. 

J  See  Ducange,  Corium,  Decoriare,  Cutis,  Crines,  &c. 

§  "  Ancient  Laws  and  Institutes  of  England,"    Vol.  i.,  p.  579. 


49 

robbery  in  a  churcli  was  punishable  by  fine,  and  the  guilty  hand 
was  to  be  struck  off:  this,  however,  might  be  redeemed*.  In  the 
case  of  spoliation  by  barbarian  invaders,  where  probably  successive 
bands  had  repeatedly  laid  waste  the  sacred  fabric,  it  seems  very 
probable  that  the  enormity  of  the  crime  would  readily  be  admitted 
as  a  justification  of  the  most  savage  punishment.  I  am  strongly 
inclined  to  the  opinion  that  flaying  was  not  a  specific  punishment 
for  any  particular  offence  or  class  of  offences,  but  was  an  arbitrary 
mode  of  inflicting  the  penalty  of  death,  in  such  instances  as  these, 
where  the  vindictive  excitement  of  the  occasion  could  not  be 
satisfied  by  any  ordinary  modes  of  punishment." 

"  Albert  Way." 

In  reference  to  the  observation  of  Mr.  Way  that  the  skin 
affi.xed  to  the  northern  doors  "  may  possibly  be  the  vestige  of  a 
punishment  inflicted  long  previously"  to  the  erection  of  the 
northern  porch  by  Bishop  Wakefield,  about  1386,  it  is  right  to 
add,  that  such  in  fact  appears  to  have  been  the  case.  Upon 
reading  his  observation  it  occurred  to  me,  that  when  Bishop 
Wakefield  erected  the  northern  doorway  and  stopped  up  the 
great  western  doorwayf,  he  in  all  probability  removed  the  doors 
from  the  latter  entrance  to  supply  the  former ;  this  idea,  I 
commmiicated  to  the  late  Mr.  Eginton,  who  replied  by  letter,  as 
follows: — "Worcester,  Jan.  31st,  1849.— Dear  Sir,— To-day  I 
compared  the  doors  in  the  crypt  with  the  arch  at  the  west  end  ; 
the  yore  doors  formerly  were  there."  The  only  remaining  ques- 
tion, tlierefore,  is  the  age  of  these  ancient  west-end  doors. 

Now,  it  is  said  that  the  Bishoprick  of  Worcester  was  founded 
by  Ethelred,  King  of  the  Mercians,  at  the  request  of  Osric,  or 
Oshere,  a  petty  prince  of  the  Mercians,  in  079  or  680  •  that  in 
894,  Duke  Ethelred,  Viceroy  of  Mcrcia,  and  his  wife  Ethelfled, 
daughter  of  Alfred  the  Great,  rebuilt  the  city  and  also  the  church, 
minster,  or  monastery,  which  had  been  destroyed  by  the  Danes ; 
that  St.  Oswald  built  the  Cathedral  in  983  ;  that  in  1041  it 
was  burnt  with  the  city  by  Hardicanute's  soldiers,  in  the  revolt  of 

•  "  Ancient  Laws,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  fi7. 

t  The  stone  arch  of  this  doorway  still  remains  in  the  wall,  bnt  it  evidently 
was  much  disturbed  when  the  great  window  was  erect'd  above  it. 

E 


50 

the  citizens  about  the  Danegelt ;  and  that  in  1 089  it  was  rebuilt 
by  St.  Wolstan,  with  the  exception  of  the  nave,  afterwards  added 
by  Bishop  De  Blois  about  1 50  years  subsequently.  The  historian 
Green,  and  others,  are  of  opinion  that  the  west  end  of  the  nave  is 
part  of  St.  Oswald's  building*,  and  that  it  escaped  the  fire  which 
consumed  the  rest  of  the  Cathedral  in  the  time  of  Hardicanute. 
This  idea  seems  to  be  corroborated  by  the  fact,  that  the  western 
portion  of  the  nave  is  in  the  Saxon  style,  and  of  white  sand- 
stone, wliile  the  remainder  is  after  the  Norman  model,  and  of  red 
sandstone. 

Therefore,  under  all  circumstances,  the  doors  in  question  may 
be  very  ancient,  although  it  is  impossible  to  assign  a  particular 
date  to  them.  The  fact,  however,  of  their  containing  what,  in 
other  instances,  are  commonly  called  "  Danes'  skins,"  appears  to 
carry  us  back  to  those  barbarous  times  to  look  for  their  date, 
although  it  is  possible  that  those  doors  wei'e  erected  at  a  later 
period,  and  contained  the  evidence  of  a  later  punishment  for 
sacrilege — that  is,  if  there  was  such  a  punishment  in  later  times. 
But  if  the  skin  in  question  really  is  that  of  a  Dane,  the  doors 
consequently  are  Saxon  ;  unless,  indeed,  they  were  some  time  or 
other  renewed! .  And  if  the  doors  are  Saxon,  they  are  an  additional 
proof  that  the  west  end  of  the  nave  is  Saxon.  And  if  the  doors 
were  renewed,  still  the  skin  may  be  that  of  a  Dane,  and  have  been 
transferred  from  the  previous  doors  to  those  in  question.  It  is 
here  to  be  observed,  that  the  bits  of  skin  which  I  obtained  from 
one  of  the  upper  flaps  of  the  doors,  adhered  very  closely  to  it,  and 
there  was  an  appearance  of  something  like  red  paint  upon  the 
under  side  of  the  skin.  The  lithographic  engraving,  Plate  2, 
represents  the  doors  with  their  dimensions,  as  prepared  by  Mr. 
Eginton,  at  my  request,  for  Mr.  Way.  It  will  appear  by  No.  1, 
that  the  top  of  the  doors  is  arched  in  the  Saxon  style.  No.  2 
represents  the  back  of  one  of  the  upper  flaps  of  the  doors,  with  the 
strong  band  of  wood  across  it,  under  which  there  are  still  portions 

•  See  Mr.  Ashpitel's  paper,  in  further  proof  of  this  view  of  the  ease,  in  tlie 
"  Report  of  tlie  Proceeding  of  tlie  Archaeological  Association  at  Worcester," 
published  iSol,  pp.  40.1  to  -418. 

+  See  a  general  statement  of  Danish  Relics  in  Worcestershire,  in  tlie 
account  of  Alfrick. 


fi.<tte  '/  p  oO. 


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ELa'aticTi 


!y  b  a  o  0  g-g-Qtr^ 


/nrlvsii   «     J 
I'-  '■  ■  ■ 


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>Sty/^.    a/:    l^ar^    ^'f   Jo  or,    It  real   svxf 


Jia.<'rt,U(Jt 


51 

of  the  skin.      No.  3  is  the  band  of  wood  and  the  ri vetting  of  the 
nails,  one-half  of  the  actual  size. 

The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  letter  from  Mr.  Eginton  to  Mr. 
Way,  which  accompanied  the  drawings  : — "  Worcester,  June  19th, 
1847. — My  dear  Sir, — It  has  given  me  much  pleasure  to  make 
the  accompanying  drawing  of  the  existing  portion  of  the  ancient 
north  door  to  our  Cathedral.  The  head  and  the  lower  part  have 
evidently  been  separate — the  lower  ends  of  the  boards,  forming 
the  head,  having  pieces  of  wood  from  six  and  a  half  to  seven 
inches  mortised  into  them,  and  the  bottom  of  the  lower  half  of 
the  door  the  same.  The  position  of  the  lower  part  of  the  door  I 
have  ascertained  by  measuring  the  planks,  which  agree  with 
those  in  the  head  of  the  door.  There  is  little  in  the  iron-work  to 
define  very  precisely  its  date ;  but  the  general  character  of  the 
door  and  iron-work  is  such  as  is  commonly  found  in  plain  work 
in  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century. — Yours  truly,  Harvey 
Eginton." 

In  the  commencement  of  the  inquiry,  as  we  were  examining 
the  doors  in  the  crypt,  Mr.  Eginton  observed,  that  they  had  no 
distinctive  style  or  mark  about  them  whereby  to  judge  of  their 
age ;  but  he  added,  that  they  might  have  been  of  the  fourteenth 
century,  when  the  north  doorway  was  made.  It  is  worthy  of 
remark,  however,  that  when  we  were  in  the  crypt  (and  which  was 
a  year  and  a  half  before  the  point  was  mised  as  to  their  having 
been  the  western  doors),  he  said  that  they  had  been  altered  some 
time  or  other.  Now  as  Mr.  Eginton  subsequently  (that  is  by  his 
letter  of  31st  January,  1849)  declared  them  to  be  the  yore  doors 
which  formerly  stood  at  the  west  end,  I  have  no  doubt  that  the 
alteration  was  made  at  the  time  they  were  removed  to  the  northern 
doorway. 

WOLSTAN'S   SEAL. 

In  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute"  (Vol.  iii.,  p. 
201)  there  is  an  engraving  of  the  seal  of  St.  Wolstan,  accompanied 
by  the  following  description  : — 

"  At  the  recent  meeting  of  the  Institute  at  York,  a  remarkable 
original  deed  was  exhibited,  being  a  grant  from  St.  Wolstan, 
Bishop  of  Worcester,  of  liftccn  hides  of  land  in  Alvcston,  formerly 


52 


called    from   its   Saxon  occupant  Eanulfcstnne,  Warwickshire, 

to  the  monastery  of 
Worcester.  An  im- 
pression of  the  episco- 
pal seal  was  appended 
(see  the  accompanying 
woodcut  of  it),  and  the 
deed  bore  date,  the 
day  of  Pentecost,  in 
the  third  year  of  King 
William  the  younger, 
A.D.  1 089.  This  docu- 
ment had  been  given 
by  Dugdale  in  the 
"  Monasticon,"  from 
transcripts  in  the 
"  Worcester  Cartu- 
lary," Cott.  MS.,  Tib. 
A.,  xiii*.,  and  the  "  Annales  Wigomenses,"  Claud.  A.,  x.  He  had 
printed  it  also  in  his  "  History  of  Warwickshire,"  from  a  very 
ancient  register  in  the  custody  of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Wor- 
cester ;  and  it  may  be  found  in  "  Heming's  Cartulary,"  printed  by 
Heame,  with  the  ancient  Saxon  description  of  the  boundaries. 
The  existence  of  Wolstan's  original  charter  does  not  appear  to 
have  been  noticedf.  This  deed,  independently  of  its  fine  state 
of  preservation,  is  of  considerable  interest,  as  fixing  precisely  the 
period  of  the  completion  of  the  new  buildings  erected  by  Wolstan. 
After  reciting  his  purpose  and  endeavours  to  augment  the  monas- 
tery constructed  by  St.  Oswald,  his  predecessor,  both  in  the 
erection  and  appointments  of  the  church  itself,  and  increase  of 
the  establishment,  he  stated  that  he  had  added  to  the  number  of 
the  monks,  who  were  about  twelve  m  number,  and  had  formed  a 

•  i.  e.  "  Hemiiig's  Cartulaiy." 

+  "  The  various  readings,  noticed  on  collation  with  the  original,  have  not  ap- 
peared sufficiently  material  to  justify  the  reprinting  of  tliis  curious  document  at 
length.  It  deserves  notice,  however,  that  in  the  '  Monasticon '  the  date  had  been 
erroneously  printed  M.lxxxviij.,  an  error  not  noticed  in  the  new  editioiu  lu 
the  '  Hist.  Warw.,'  and  Henrne's  edition  of  '  Heming's  Cartulary,'  it  is 
correctly  given." 


53 

congregation  of  fifty,  for  whose  sustenance  he  gave  the  lands  in 
Alveston,  long  possessed  unjustly  by  certain  powerful  persons*, 
and  acquired  by  him  with  much  labour  and  cost  from  William 
the  Conqueror.  He  dated  his  gift  from  the  twenty-seventh  year 
of  his  episcopate,  and  the  first  of  the  occupation  of  the  new 
monastery  by  him  erected,  of  which  the  refectory  and  adjoining 
buildings,  as  also  the  crypt  under  the  choir,  and  the  transept,  are 
now  the  principal  remainsf .  William  of  Malmsbury  informs  us 
that  these  works  had  commenced  a.d.  1084,  and  he  gives  an 
interesting  relation  of  the  emotion  of  St.  Wolstan,  when,  on  their 
completion,  the  old  church,  erected  by  St.  Oswald,  a.d.  983,  was 
about  to  be  demolished^. 

It  must  be  observed  that  Dr.  Thomas  has  given  a  figure  of  the 
seal,  in  his  work,  entitled,  "  A  Sur\'ey  of  the  Cathedral  Church  of 
Worcester,  with  an  account  of  the  Bishops  thereof,"  &c.,  A.  88. 

DOMESDAY  SURVEY. 

In  the  "  Archaeologia,"  Vol.  viii.,  p.  440,  Appendix,  there  is 
the  following  interesting  passage  : — 

"  Mr.  Astle  gave  an  account  of  an  ancient  MS.  Register  of  the 
priory  of  Worcester,  now  [1765]  in  his  possession,  intituled, 
•  Liber  irrotulatorius  et  consuetudinarius  prioratus  B.  Marie  de 
Wigom.'  containing,  among  other  curious  particulars,  the  follow- 
ing article  : — 

"  '  Articuli  hundredorum,  or  articles  of  inquiry  sent  by  William 
the  Conqueror  to  the  sheriffs  and  Prepositi  hundredorum,  previous 
to  his  making  the  great  survey  of  England ;  also  several  of  the 
common  customs  of  Villeins,  the  Novae  Provisiones  Anglie  in  the 
reign  of  Henry  III.,  with  many  other  things  of  a  public  nature.'" 

•  "  These  were,  as  we  learn  from  Domesday,  Bricstuimis,  who,  in  the  times 
of  tlie  Confessor,  held  a  moiety  of  the  lands  granted  by  Wolstan ;  Britnodus 
and  Aluni  being  occupants  of  the  remainder.  See  the  statement  of  their 
recovery  by  tlie  bishop,  '  Donjesday  Book,'  f.  2'-iH,  b." 

+  "  The  expression  is  as  follows :  — '  Anno  ingressionis  nostre  in  novum 
monasterium,  quod  constnixi  in  honore  dei  genetricis,  primo.'  It  would 
appear  by  the  context,  that  the  church,  rebuilt  by  Wolstan,  had,  as  well  as  the 
monastic  btiildiiigs,  been  completed  previously  to  the  date  of  his  grant." 

}  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  ii,  "^41 . 


54 


|1U    |. 


KEMPSEY. 


Several  fragments  of  sepulchral  urns,  cups,  and  pans  of  various 
shapes  and  sizes,  evidently  belonging  to  the  time  of  the  Romans 
and  Romanized  or  later  Britons,  were,  in  the  spring  of  1835,  dug 
out  of  a  gravel  bed  at  Kempsey.  Some  of  these  vessels  vsere 
made  of  a  coarse  dark  clay,  others  of  common  red  or  brick  clay. 
The  fragments,  which  were  discovered  about  three  feet  and  a  half 
beneath  the  surface,  were  enveloped  in  a  black  ash,  and  deposited 
in  a  cavity  or  cist  of  about  six  yards  in  circumference,  over  which  a 
roof  of  broken  pebbles  and  clay  had  been  originally  formed,  but 
which  had  since  fallen  into  the  cist,  and  probably  broke  the 
vessels.      There  were  also  a  few  fragments  of  bones  in  the  cist, 

apparently  the  bones 
of  a  horse,  one  of 
them  being  part  of 
the  jaw-bone  of  that 
animal,  with  several 
teeth  in  it.  There  was 
likewise  found  there 
part  of  a  bronze  fibula 
or  brooch  {vide  woodcut  here  represented.  No.  1,  of  the  actual 
size) ;  these  were  used  by  the  men  to  fasten  the  tunic  and 
chlamys,  or  cloak,  on  the  shoulder,  and  by  the  women  the  vest- 
ment in  front  of  the  breast*.  Some  of  the  Roman  fibulae  are  of 
the  circular  form,  others  oblong,  and  not  very  dissimilar  (though 
much  smaller)  to  the  guard  beneath  the  trigger  of  a  gun,  and 
with  the  acus  or  pin  compressed  into  the  socket,  have  been  com- 
pared to  a  bow  ready  strung.     The  fibula  in  question  is  of  the 

•  The  scientific  reader  will  excuse  tliese  occasional  explanations,  my  object 
being  that  this  work  should  be  a  kind  of  popular  antiquarian  history  of  the 
county. 


65 

latter  form,   but   destitute   of    the   acus,   wliich  probably   had 
mouldered  away. 

The  remains  of  a  horse,  found  in  this  cist,  affords  strong  evi- 
dence that  the  ashes  of  a  Romanized  British  chieftain  were 
deposited  there  ;  for  such  costly  funeral  sacrifices,  although  very 
common  among  our  rude  ancestors,  and  constituting  a  part  of 
their  religion,  were  much  restricted  among  the  Romans  by  the 
laws  of  the  Twelve  Tables.  In  other  parts  of  the  kingdom,  frag- 
ments of  the  horns  of  stags  have  been  found  in  similar  cists, 
from  which  it  may  be  inferred  that  hunters  were  buried  there. 

About  a  dozen  other  cists,  although  not  so  large  as  the  one 
already  described,  were  likewise  discovered  in  the  course  of  the 
same  year,  near  the  same  spot,  whilst  excavating  for  gravel ;  they 
contained  ashes,  broken  pebbles,  and  various  articles  of  broken 
pottery ;  and  in  1836,  and  the  three  following  years,  several  other 
cists  were  found  there.  One  of  them  was  of  an  oval  shape,  near 
tlu-ee  yards  long,  two  yards  broad,  and  about  five  feet  deep  in  the 
gravel.  The  others  were  smaller,  and  not  quite  so  deep.  Some 
of  the  latter  merely  contained  black  ashes ;  others,  ashes  and 
fragments  of  red  earth  pottery  (the  mouth  of  one  of  the  urns 
being  twenty-eight  inches  in  circumference) ;  the  largest  cist 
contained  black  ashes,  and  a  broken  pan  of  rather  coai*se  materials, 
which,  judging  from  a  segment,  was  three  feet  in  circumference. 
Several  of  the  fragments  have  handles,  some  of  which  are  of  con- 
siderable thickness.  One  of  the  cists  contained  a  specimen  with 
zig-zag  lines  thereon,  and  pieces  of  urns,  cups,   and   paterae, 

together  with  portions  of 
the  burnt  bones  and  teeth 
of  a  horse.  In  another 
cist,  an  acus  of  a  fibula  of 
brass  was  found  mi.xed  up 
with  similar  rehcs  (ride 
woodcut  thereof,  No.  2,  actual  size) ;  and  in  the  gravel  a  coin  of 
Nero  was  discovered.  The  spot  in  question  is  situated  about  four 
miles  from  Worcester,  in  a  ploughed  field  called  the  Moors,  wliich 
belonged  to  the  late  Joseph  Smith,  Esq.,  on  a  ridge  or  preoipirc 
of  ground,  out  of  fiood'sway,  which  skirts  the  flat  on  the  cast  side 


56 

of  the  river  Severn,  and  lies  between  that  river  and  the  village  of 
Kempsey,  near  the  northern  side  of  the  mound  or  agger  of  a  Roman 
camp,  within  the  site  of  the  southern  end  of  which  Kempsey  Church 
stands.  At  an  adjoining  place,  called  the  Parish  Gravel  Pit,  were 
found,  about  twelve  years  ago,  a  small  Roman  vase  and  a  piece  of 
Samian  ware.  Most  of  the  articles  which  are  here  described,  I 
from  time  to  time  obtained  of  the  workmen  upon  the  spot,  and 
deposited  them  in  the  Worcestershire  Museum ;   the  others  were 


presented  by  Mr.  Smith.  Woodcuts  of  some  are  here  given :  No. 
3  is  of  the  slate  coloured,  and  Nos.  4,  5  and  G*,  of  the  red  ware. 
The  most  ancient  mode  of  sepulture  among  the  Britons  was  by 
simple  inhumation! ;  it  is  thought  that  the  Phoenicians  introduced 
into  this  island  the  mode  of  biorial  by  cremation  or  burning.    The 


*  A  similar  one  to  that  numbered  6,  was  found  at  Diglis,  near  Worcester. 
See  p.  28  ;  and  another  at  Droitwich.  It  much  resembles  a  common  flower- 
pot in  shape,  except  that  it  has  a  handle. 

+  Vide  Mr.  Bloxam's  work,  entitled  "  A  Glimpse  at  Monumental 
Arehitecture  and  Sepulture  of  Great  Britain,  from  the  earliest  period  to  the 
Eighteenth  Century,"  dated  1834,  to  which  I  am  indebted  for  much  of  the 
above  information  as  to  tlie  modes  of  ancient  sepulture. 


67 

practice  amongst  the  ancient  Britons  of  depositing  in  the  sepul- 
chres warUke  instruments,  drinking  cups,  and  other  articles,  is 
likewise  supposed  to  have  been  derived  from  the  Phoenicians  and 
Belgic  Gauls.  This  custom  is  of  great  antiquity,  and  an  instance 
of  it  occurs  in  the  Book  of  Joshua,  in  a  very  ancient  copy  of  the 
Septuagint,  preserved  in  the  Vatican,  where  it  is  stated  that 
knives  and  instruments  of  flint  were  buried  with  his  body  in  the 
tomb.  The  same  practice  is  also  aUuded  to  in  the  Book  of 
Ezekiel,  wherein  the  prophet  speaks  of  persons  who  were  gone 
down  to  the  grave  with  their  weapons  of  war,  and  their  swords 
laid  under  their  heads.  An  instance  of  the  practice  of  cremation 
is  also  recorded  in  the  First  Book  of  Samuel  (Chap,  xxxi.), 
wherein  it  is  stated  that  the  body  of  Saul  and  his  sons  were  burnt 
after  they  had  been  taken  down  from  the  walls  of  Bethshan,  and 
the  bones  were  buried  under  a  tree.  There  are  also  frequent 
allusions  to  the  custom  in  Homer  and  the  ancient  classics. 

The  sepulchral  urns  and  cups  of  the  Celtic  and  Belgic  Britons, 
differ  in  many  respects  from  tliose  of  the  Roman  era,  from  which 
they  are  in  general  easily  distinguished.  Those  of  the  ancient 
Britons  were  coarsely  formed  on  the  wheel*,  without  the  lathe ;  in 
shape  they  bear  some  resemblance  to  a  common  flower-pot  or 
truncated  cone.  The  ornaments  are  rude,  consisting  chiefly  of 
zig-zag  and  short  diagonal  lines,  and  many  appear  to  have  been 
moulded  merely  by  exposure  to  the  sun,  or  blackened  by  the 
funereal  fire.  Some  are  of  a  globular,  others  of  a  cyUndrical 
form  ;  the  latter  being  of  the  most  ancient  description ;  and 
although  the  cinerary  urns  and  drinking  cups  of  the  Romanized 
Britons  and  early  Saxons  were  modelled  after  the  Roman  fashion, 
yet  they  generally  correspond  in  shape  with  those  of  the  ancient 
Britons.  Some  of  the  specimens  above  described  are  very  much 
in  accordance  witli  these  rules. 

The  late  Rev.  Mr.  Rudd,  of  Kempsey,  had  in  his  possession  a 
fragment  of  a  thick  slab  stone,  one  yard  long  and  half  a  yard 
wide,  containing  a  Latin  inscription  in  honour  of  Constantino  the 

•  The  Prophet  Jeremiah,  in  describing  the  potter's  tools  in  his  time,  says : 
"  Then  I  went  down  to  tJic  potter's  house,  and  behold  he  wrought  a  work  on 
the  wheels." — J'idc  C.  xviii.,  v.  3. 


58 

Great.     This  was  found  in  the  camp,  in  the  year  1818.     The 
following  is  the  inscription : — 

VAL       CONST 

ANTINO 

P    F    IN 

VICTO 

AVG* 

The  same  gentleman  also  had  pieces  of  Roman  tiles,  which  were 

found  near  the  same  placef. 

The  agger  of  the  above  camp  may  still  be  easily  traced,  although, 
being  a  mound  of  gravel,  it  has  been  in  many  places  much  levelled. 
From  what  has  been  said,  it  is  e^^dent  that  the  camp  was  a  Roman 
one,  and  that  the  burial  ground  was  likewise  Roman,  with  the 
additional  fact,  that  the  ashes  of  Romanized  British  were  also 
deposited  in  the  same  place. 

Great  alterations  being  occasionally  made  at  the  site  of  the 
Kempsey  camp,  I  will  endeavour  to  give  an  account  of  it,  as  it 
appeared  in  1840,  fearing  that  in  a  few  more  years  almost  every 
vestige  of  it  will  have  passed  away. 

The  western  agger  lay  on  the  ridge  of  ground,  or  precipice, 
skirting  the  flat  on  the  east  side  of  the  Severn.  The  north  end 
of  it  commenced  at  the  back  of  the  garden  belonging  to  the  Par- 
sonage farm-house,  and  ran  in  a  line  from  thence  to  within  about 
fifteen  yards  of  the  south-west  comer  of  Kempsey  churchyard, 
where  it  turned  round.  Judging  from  a  measure  I  made  by  foot- 
steps, this  agger  was  about  two  hundred  yards  long. 

The  southern  agger  appears  to  have  run  along  the  south  side 
of  the  churchyard,  and  was  about  ninety  yards  long. 

The  eastern  agger  ran  along  the  cast  side  of  the  churchyard 
and  other  property,  and  through  the  garden  of  Gore  Cottage, 
into  the  orchard  behind,  and  was  about  two  hundred  yai'ds 
long. 

The  northern  agger  ran  from  the  above-mentioned  garden  and 
orchard  to  the  north-west  comer  of  the  garden  of  the  Parsonage 

*  Valerio  Constantino  Pio  Felici  Invicto  Augusto. 

+  The  slab  and  tiles  were  bequeathed  by  Mr.  Kiuld  to  the  Museum  of  tlie 
Worcestershire  Natural  History  Society. 


59 

farm-house,  and  was  one  hundred  and  eighty  yards  long  or  there- 
abouts. The  rounded  corner  which  lay  in  the  garden  was  very 
perfect,  until  the  latter  end  of  the  year  1836,  when  it  was 
removed  ;  but  the  portion  of  the  f^ger  which  lies  in  the  orchard 
still  remains  entire,  and  measures  twenty-six  yards  in  width. 

I  do  not  find  any  account  of  this  Roman  camp  in  Dr.  Nash's 
"  History."  He,  however,  speaks  of  a  Roman  way  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood ;  for  in  Vol.  ii.,  p.  23,  it  is  stated  that  a  deed,  dated 
1336,  notices  "the  Portweye"  at  Bromhall,  in  the  manor  of 
Kempsey*. 

This  place  is  called  Cemesei,  and  Cymesige,  in  the  Anglo 
Saxon  Charters,  No.  176  and  612,  in  the  "  Codex  Diplomaticusf," 
and  Chemesege  in  "  Domesday  Book." 

In  the  year  1844,  a  bronze  spear-head  was  found  in  the  Severn, 
the  particulars  of  which  I  communicated  to  the  Archaeological 
Institute  ;  it  was  thus  noticed  in  their  "  Journal  | :"  "  The  spear- 
head was  dredged  up  from  the  bed  of  the  river  Severn  by  some 
workmen,  employed  in  the  improvement  of  the  navigation  of  that 
river,  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  below  Kempsey  Ferry,  and  the 
same  distance  above  Pixam  Feny.  They  also  found  at  the  same 
spot,  in  the  bed  of  the  western  side  of  the  river,  the  remains  of 
oaken  piles,  under  the  gravel,  and  of  planking  which  had  been 
fastened  to  the  piles.  These  extended  about  half  way  across  the 
river.  The  place  is  near  the  site  of  the  Roman  camp  at  Kempsey. 
This  spear-head  is  formed  of  mixed  metal,  of  very  bright  colour 
and  hard  quality,  the  edges  being  remarkably  sharp.  It  measures 
in  length  ten  [seven]  inches  and  a  half.  The  leaf-shaped  blade 
terminates  at  the  lower  extremity  in  two  loops,  by  mesms  of 
which  the  spear-head,  apparently,  was  securely  attached  to  the 
shaft.  This  arrangement  is  not  of  uncommon  occurrence,  and  it 
is  well  shown  by  the  curious  example  of  a  stone  mould  for  casting 
such  weapons,  found  in  Ireland,  in  Galway,  as  also  by  an  Irish 
weapon  represented  in  this  journal  §.     In  the  present  instance 

•  See  ante,  p.  9,  relatiye  to  Roman  port  [or  military]  ways. 
t  Also  see  "  Heming's  Cartulary,"  as  to  Kymesei,  Kemesbege,  Kemesege, 
Chemeshege,  Kemesige,  Kemesei,  and  Kcniesey,  p.  T),  &c. 
J  Vol.  iiL,  p.  :]54. 
§  "  Arcliaiologia,"  Vol.  xv,,  pi.  xxxiv.  "  Archaeological  Journal,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  l^j"! . 


60 

there  is  a  flat  lozenge-sbaped  appendage  on  each  side,  a  variety 
in  the  fashion  of  these  weapons,  apparently  intended  for  the  more 
secure  protection  of  the  cord  passing  through  the  loops.  In  some 
examples,  a  single  loop  on  one  side  is  found  to  have  been  accounted 
sufficient." 

This  spear-head  belongs  to  Walter  Jones,  Esq.,  of  Worcester. 


A  woodcut  of  it  is  here  given.     A  few  years  ago  a  Roman  coin 
was  dug  up  at  the  Ketch  between  Kempsey  and  Worcester. 

UPTON. 

Cooke,  in  his  "Topographical  Library,"  published  in  1830, 
(title  "Worcestershire,"  p.  156)  says:  "In  the  year  1787,  a 
circular  cavity  was  discovered  by  a  shepherd's  boy  in  a  corn  field 
in  the  parish  of  Upton ;  upon  examination  it  was  found  to  be  the 
entrance  to  a  cavern  of  considerable  dimensions,  sunk  about  ten 
feet  below  the  surface,  and  extending  in  every  direction  about 
twenty  feet.  At  about  thirty  or  forty  feet  is  a  body  of  water, 
of  the  estimated  depth  of  about  one  hundred  and  forty  feet. 
Various  conjectures  originated  from  this  discovery,  some  attri- 
buting these  excavations  to  a  convulsion  of  nature,  others  to  the 
hand  of  art." 

The  following  extract  from  Vol.  I.  of  "  Old  England,"  Chap,  i.,  p. 
22,  may  throw  some  light  upon  the  preceding  quotation :  "  Tacitus, 
in  his  account  of  the  manners  of  the  Germans,  says,  '  The  Ger- 
mans were  accustomed  to  dig  subterraneous  caverns,  and  then  to 
cover  them  with  much  loose  mould,  forming  a  refuge  from  wintry 
storms,  and  a  receptacle  for  the  fruits  of  the  earth.  In  this 
manner  the  rigour  of  the  frost  is  softened.'  Tacitus  also  says 
that  these  caverns  are  hiding  places  for  the  people  upon  the 
irruption  of  an  enemy.  Hasted,  the  topographer  of  Kent, 
describes  many  such  in  the  heaths,  and  fields,  and  woods,  at 
Crayford.      He  says,  that  at  the  mouth,  and  thence  downward. 


61 

they  are  narrow,  like  the  tunnel  or  passage  of  a  well ;  but  at  the 
bottom  they  are  large  and  of  great  compass,  so  that  some  of  them 
have  several  rooms,  one  within  another,  strongly  vaulted,  and 
supported  with  pillars  of  chalk.  Diodorus  Siculus  expressly  says 
that  the  Britons  laid  up  their  com  in  subterranean  repositories. 
The  caves  of  Hawthomden  were  at  once  hiding  places  and  store- 
houses ;  and  it  is  not  canying  our  fancies  too  far  to  beUeve  that 
the  shelved  cavities  of  the  rock  were  receptacles  for  food,  in  small 
portions* — the  oatmeal  and  the  pulse  that  were  thus  preserved 
from  worms  and  mildew." 

Some  antiquaries  are  now  of  opinion  that  certain  classes  of 
these  wells,  which  contain  chambers,  were  either  Koman  ceme- 
taries,  or  hermits  cells,  or  granaries,  and  that  others  of  them,  not 
containing  chambers,  might  have  been  either  wells  or  rubbish 
holes. 

It  is  said,  that  on  the  hill  at  Southend,  near  Upton,  traces  of 
intrenchments  appear ;  and  Dr.  Nash,  in  his  "  Historyf,"  remarks 
that  •' Stukeley,  in  his  'Itinerarium  Curiosum.'p.  65,  first  edition, 
says :  '  There  was  a  road  along  the  Severn  from  Worcester  to 
Upton,  where  antiquities  are  dug  up.  I  take  the  town  to  be  the 
Upocessa  of  Ravennasj.'  The  road,  he  says,  '  went  to  Tewkes- 
bury§,  and  joined  the  Rickning  Streetjl,  but  no  remains  are  now 
to  be  seen.' " 

This  appears  to  be  the  road  referred  to  in  our  subsequent 
account  of  Ripple,  a  great  part  of  which  is  still  remaining. 

In  January,  184G,  a  thumb  ring  was  found  at  Saxon's  Lode, 
the  particulars  of  which  I  communicated  to  the  Archaeological 
Institute,  and  an  account  thereof  appeared  in  their  "  Journal," 
Vol.  III.,  p.  268,  as  follows :  "  A  ring  formed  of  silver,  con- 
siderably alloyed  or  plated  with  baser  metal,  and  strongly  gilt, 

♦  Such  was  the  case  at  Kemerton  Camp ;  see  the  account. 

+  Vol.  u.,  p.  444, 

J  In  Luekonibe's  "  Gazetteer,"  1790,  it  is  stated  that  Roman  coins  were 
often  dug  up  at  Upton. 

§  In  Grose's  "Antiquities,"  Vol.  vi.,  it  is  stated  that  a  paved  way  leatls  by 
Upton  to  Gloucester, 

|]  Or  Ryckuield  Street. 


m 

was  found  in  dredging  in  the  bed  of  the  Severn,  in  January  last, 
at  a  place  called  Saxon's  or  Saxton's  Lode,  a  little  southward  of 
Upton,  which  supplies  a  good  example  of  the  signet  thumb  ring 
of  the  fifteenth  century  ;  the  hoop  is  grooved  spirally,  it  weighs 
17  dwts.  18  grs.,  and  exhibits  the  initial  "H,"  Signet  rings  of 
this  kind  were  worn  by  rich  citizens,  or  persons  of  substance,  not 
entitled  to  bear  arms.  Falstaff  bragged  that  in  earlier  years 
he  had  been  so  slender  in  figure  that  he  could  readily  have  crept 
through  an  'alderman's  thumb  ring;'  and  a  ring  thus  worn, 
probably,  as  more  conspicuous,  appears  to  have  been  considered 
as  appropriate  to  the  attire  of  a  civic  dignitary  at  a  much  later 

period.  A  character  in  the  Lord 
Mayor's  show,  in  the  year  1664, 
is  described  as  '  habited  like  a 
grave  citizen, — gold  girdle  and 
gloves  hung  thereon,  rings  on  his 
fingers,  and  a  seal  ring  on  his 
thumb.'" 

The  ring  in  question  belongs  to 

Hilary  Hill,   Esq.,  of  Worcester, 

who  Idndly  allowed  me  to  exhibit 

it  to  the  Archaeological  Institute.      A  woodcut  of  it  is   here 

represented. 

KIPPLE  AND  TWYNING. 

In  consequence  of  a  report  that  some  ancient  pottery  had  been 
discovered  at  Bow  Farm,  in  the  parish  of  Kipplc,  about  three 
miles  from  Tewkesbury,  and  thirteen  from  Worcester,  I  repaired 
to  the  spot  in  October  1838,  and  found  that  a  drain,  twelve  feet 
deep  and  upwards,  had  been  made  across  a  pasture*,  on  the 
eastern  border  of  the  Severn,  in  Worcestershire,  and  the  next 
field  but  one  to  the  verge  of  the  county  of  Gloucester.  About 
seventy  yards  from  the  river,  a  slight  rise,  which  lies  parallel 
with  the  Severn,  had  been  cut  through.     Mr.  W.  T.  Homiblow, 

•  Pull  Court  is  situated  nearly  opposite  to  this  pastiu-e,  on  the  western  s-iile 
of  the  river. 


03 

the  tenant,  and  the  workmen  informed  me  that  all  the  way  through 
that  part  they  found,  at  the  average  depth  of  about  four  feet,  a 
stratum  of  black  ashes  and  cinders,  with  pieces  of  pottery ;  that 
also  occasionally  below  the  stratum  they  found  similar  fragments 
of  pottery,  and  that  the  earth  above  the  black  stratum  appeared 
to  have  been  a  gradual  accumulation,  which,  in  the  course  of 
time,  had  been  deposited  upon  the  plain  by  occasional  overflowings 
of  the  river.  The  trench  had  been  filled  up  again  before  my 
arrival,  but  I  picked  up  several  pieces  of  the  pottery  and  oxidated 
bits  of  iron  which  had  been  excavated.  Mr.  Homiblow  had 
previously  collected  several  of  such  fragments  in  the  course  of 
the  work,  all  of  which  I  have  deposited  in  the  Worcestershire 
Museum.  He  and  the  workmen  said  that  they  had  examined  the 
earth  above  the  stratum  very  carefully,  and  were  satisfied  that  it 
had  never  been  disturbed  since  it  was  deposited ;  but  that  the 
earth,  for  four  or  five  feet  deep  beneath  the  black  stratum, 
appeared  to  have  been  disturbed  some  time  or  other.  He  also 
said  that  he  was  informed  by  an  old  workman,  that  about  thirty- 
five  years  ago  he  assisted  in  cutting  a  like  drain  across  the  north- 
end  of  this  pasture,  where  they  found,  at  about  the  same  depth, 
and  in  the  same  line,  a  similar  stratum  of  ashes,  cinders,  and 
pottery. 

Upon  examination  these  specimens  proved  to  be  fragments  of 
Roman  sepulchral  urns  and  pans,  exactly  like  those  (now  in  the 
Worcestershire  Museum)  discovered  in  the  cists  of  the  Roman 
burial  ground,  at  Kempsey ;  but  I  am  satisfied  that  this  pasture 
at  Ripple  was  not  a  burial  ground  (for  it  is  not  out  of  flood's-way), 
but  that  it  was  a  Roman  pottery  ground  where  they  made  their 
sepulchral  and  other  pottery,  of  the  clay  which  they  excavated  at 
or  near  the  spot*. 

At  two  subsequent  examinations  of  the  mould  thrown  up  from 
a  depth  of  about  four  feet,  several  fragments  of  potterj',  both 
red  and  black,  were  discovered ;  also  bits  of  burnt  wood  and 
oxidated  iron.  I  also  found  a  few  pieces  of  unbumt  coal  in  the 
alluvial  soil  above  the  bed,  which  I  presume  had  been  washed 

•  There  are  brick-works  now  within  a  mile  of  tlie  place,  both  above  and 
below  it. 


04 

there  from  the  coal-fields  by  the  floods.  I  was  rather  curious  to 
sift  this  point  to  the  bottom,  because  the  presence  of  coal  ashes  in 
the  bed  would  have  proved  that  the  Romans  used  coal  as  well  as 
wood  at  the  works.  I  have  also  since  examined  the  bed  of  scoriae 
and  clinkers  at  that  part  of  Cinder  Point  where  it  encroaches 
upon  the  bank  of  the  Severn,  and  found  several  pieces  of  burnt 
wood,  but  no  burnt  coal,  in  the  stratum.  There  were  a  few  bits 
of  unbumt  coal  in  the  alluvial  soil  above  the  bed,  some  of  which 
were  rounded,  showing  that  they  had  been  rolled  there  by  the 
floods. 

Within  a  mile  of  the  pasture,  to  the  north-east,  is  a  very 
remarkable  elevation,  called  Towbury  Hill,  lying  in  Twyiiing 
parish,  Gloucestershire,  and  overlooking  the  spot  in  question. 
On  the  summit  of  the  hill  (which  is  composed  chiefly  of  marl)  is 
the  site  of  an  ancient  camp,  of  rather  an  irregular  oblong  square 
shape.  This  hiU,  which  is  evidently  a  natural  formation,  is  pared 
down  at  the  sides  in  steep  slopes,  and  rounded  at  the  comers ; 
but  whether  the  Romans  formed  the  camp,  or  whether  it  was  a 
more  ancient  one,  of  which  they  merely  took  possession,  I  cannot 
pretend  to  determine.  Mr.  Bennett,  in  his  "  History  of  Tewkes- 
bury," has  described  it  at  some  length,  and  given  reasons  for 
believing  that,  after  the  time  of  the  Romans,  it  was  occupied  by 
one  of  the  Mercian  kings.  This  camp  appears  to  be  about  two 
hundred  and  forty  yards  long  on  the  western  side,  three  hundred 
on  the  northern,  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  on  the  eastern,  and 
southern  sides.  Within  the  square,  at  the  south-east  comer,  is 
a  circular  tumulus  surrounded  by  a  trench,  answering  to  the 
Roman  prgetorium*. 

At  the  foot  of  Towbury  Hill,  on  the  western  side,  runs  a  small 
brook,  which  divides  Worcestershire  from  Gloucestershire  ;  over 

•  A  fragment  of  a  brass  spearhead  of  the  time  of  Charles  I.  was  lately  found 
beneath  the  surface  at  Towbury  Hill.  It  is  conjectured  by  Leland  that  the 
house  of  King  Offa,  or  of  King  Kenulphus,  stood  upon  this  hill,  which  he 
calls  "  Tetbyri  Castelle,"  witli  double  ditches  (see  his  "  Itinerary,"  Vol.  \-i., 
p.  71);  and  within  about  a  mile  of  which  is  the  Mythe  Tute,  or  Royal  Hill. 
There  are  places  called  Great  Towbury  and  Little  Towbury,  in  the  parish  of 
Leigli. 


65 

it  there  is  an  ancient  bridge,  called  Bow  Bridge,  from  which  Mr. 
Homiblow  informed  me  there  were  traces  at  intervals  of  an 
ancient  paved  road  all  the  way  to  Tewkesbury,  in  the  line  of  an, 
old  bridle-road  across  the  fields,  by  the  Mythe  Tiite,  and  that  this 
road,  or  track-way,  was  generally  about  four  feet  wide,  and  made 
of  blocks  of  lias  stone,  set  edgewise  against  each  other ;  that  it 
was  reported  that  similar  traces  of  it  were  formerly  discoverable 
from  the  above-mentioned  In-idge  towards  Ripple  village,  and  he 
thought  that  it  probably  continued  from  that  village  to  within 
half  a  mile  of  Severn  Bank,  where  traces  of  such  a  road  still 
exist,  with  one  branch  leading  towards  Upton,  and  another 
towards  Pershore ;  that  it  runs  from  Severn  Bank,  nearly  in  the 
line  of  the  Upton  bridle-road,  to  the  turnpike  at  the  bottom 
of  Stoke  Hill,  situated  about  seven  miles  from  Worcester, 
where,  crossing,  it  turns  in  an  easterly  direction,  and  is  still 
traceable,  for  about  a  mile  further  on  in  a  direction  towards 
Pershore ;  between  this  place  and  Defford  Common  it  is  said  that 
traces  were  also  foimerly  visible.  I  examined  the  whole  line  of 
this  ancient  road,  from  the  southern  foot  of  Bow  Bridge  to  the 
Mythe  Tute,  and  found  it  very  perfect  in  some  places.  It  does 
not  follow  the  line  of  the  of  the  present  parish  road  (which,  after 
passing  the  bridge  from  Ripple,  runs  in  an  easterly  course  to  the 
Tewkesbury  turnpike-road,  between  Brockeridge  and  Shut-honger* 
Commons,  where  there  are  lias  quarries),  but  takes  a  southerly 
direction,  parallel  with  the  brook,  along  an  old  bridle-road,  and 
by  the  foot  of  the  rising  grounds  which  skirt  the  vale  of  the 
Severn.  It  is  traceable  in  nearly  a  continuous  line  all  the  way 
from  the  bridge  to  the  foot  of  Shut-hoiiger  Common,  where  it  is 
probably  lost  under  the  soil,  which,  in  the  course  of  time,  has 
been  washed  by  the  rain  from  the  steep  of  tlie  hill ;  but  it  soon 
appears  again  at  the  south-west  comer  of  the  common,  and  con- 

•  "Honger"  from  the  Suxnn  "  hnngni,"  which  Moraut  supposes  to 
come  from  the  old  word  "  hanpre,"  a  hill. —  See  Lewis's  "Topographical 
Dictionary,"  relative  to  Oiigar  in  F.ssex.  Otliers  from  "  hangra,"  a  meadow 
or  grass  plot,  usually  by  the  side  of  a  road,  the  village  green. — See  "  Codex 
Dip."  Vol.  iii.,  Preface,  p.  x\ix.  With  respect  to  the  word  "Shut,"  see  Mai 
verii  Hills. 


66 

tinues,  in  a  very  perfect  state  in  most  parts,  all  the  way  to  the 
Mythe  Tute,  wliere  it  runs  round  tlie  north  side  of  that  hill  near 
to  the  turnpike-gate,  and  is  now  lost ;  but  it  probably  extended 
to  the  Eycknield  Street,  on  the  other  side  of  Tewkesbury. 

This  road  was  made  of  blocks  of  lias  set  edgewise  against  each 
other  across  the  road ;  both  sides  of  it  have  a  strong  coping  or 
edging  of  larger  lias  blocks,  similarly  set  in  the  line  of  the  road, 
a  little  raised  above  the  cross  pieces.  This,  without  the  coping, 
is  exactly  four  feet  wide ;  the  coping  generally  makes  it  from  two 
to  four  inches  more,  but  at  insecure  parts  the  coping  was  made 
wider  with  extra  blocks  to  strengthen  the  work,  and  the  whole 
road  is  nearly  double  the  usual  breadth  up  the  steep  at  the  side 
of  the  Mythe  Tute*.  I  should  think  there  is  scarcely  so  perfect 
a  specimen  of  an  ancient  road  in  any  part  of  the  kingdom,  as 
from  the  south-west  corner  of  Shut-honger  Common  to  the  Mythe 
Tute.  Every  one  must  be  struck  with  the  narrowness  of  this 
paved  way  ;  in  fiict,  no  cars,  with  axle-trees  more  than  four  feet 
in  length  could  go  upon  itf.  The  most  perfect  portions  of  it  are 
those  which  are  close  to  the  foot  of  the  rising  grounds,  and  partly 
covered  mth  the  detritus  from  the  slopes.  Supposing  this  road  really 
went  to  Pershore,  instead  of  turning  along  the  vales  to  Kempsey 
and  Worcester,  it  is  probable  that  there  was  a  branch  to  the  latter 
places.  I  have  been  informed  by  several  persons  that  blocks  of 
stone,  similarly  placed,  where  found  about  sixteen  or  eighteen 
years  ago  at  a  spot  in  the  Bath  Road,  on  the  Kempsey  side  of 
Worcester,  at  the  depth  of  four  or  five  feet  in  the  eailh,  and 
leading  along  under  the  bottom  of  the  hill  towards  the  canal 
basin.  Now,  although  this  is  not  sufficient  evidence  of  such  a 
road  having  passed  that  way  out  of  Worcester,  yet  it  has  con- 
siderable weight ;  and  it  may,  perhaps,  some  time  or  other,  be 
further  traced  at  the  foot  and  beneath  ihe  detritus  of  the  rising 
grounds  which  there  skirt  the  vale  of  the  Severn. 

Tn  the  first  edition  of  this  work  I  considered  that  this  was  a 

•  This  liill  lias  all  the  cliariicter  of  an  ancient  tunmlns,  and  probably  con- 
taiiiPil  ono  of  Ostoriiis's  forts  as  it  lies  upon  tlie  eastern  bonier  of  tlie  Severn. 
See  Hycknield  Sireet. 

+  This,  and  its  oreasional  sliai^)  turns,  sliow  it  was  only  a  bridle-road. 


67 

Roman  road,  but  in  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine  "  for  November 
1840,  p.  511,  it  is  stated,  that  a  similar  fine  specimen  of  a  road, 
but  of  the  middle  ages  "  in  daily  use  for  foot  passengers,  may  be 
seen  on  the  western  road  between  Calne  and  Chippenham."  If, 
however,  the  road  in  question  is  not  Roman  but  medieval,  it  is 
still  worthy  of  attention-. 

The  appearance  of  Bow  Bridge  is  in  many  parts  very  ancient ; 
I  allude  particularly  to  its  extraordinary  parapet,  which  runs  over 
the  northern  side,  and  appears  to  have  been  intended  as  a  passage 
out  of  flood 's-way,  when  the  water  covered  the  carriage  road. 
It  seems  originally  to  have  been  built  wholly  of  lias,  but  brick- 
work has  since  been  introduced  in  parts  where  arches  have  been 
either  cut  or  repaired,  to  give  passage  to  the  water  at  the  time  of 
high  flood.  One  of  these  arches  is  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  style,  like 
those  represented  in  Bloxam's  work  on  "  Gothic  Ecclesiastical 
Architecture,"  p.  28  ;  but  whether  it  formed  part  of  the  original 
structure,  or  was  introduced  at  a  subsequent  period,  as  well  as  the 
real  age  of  the  most  piimitive  part  of  the  bridge,  I  must  leave  to 
those  who  are  skilled  in  architecture  to  determine.  The  arch  over 
the  rivulet  has  lately  been  rebuilt  of  lirick-work.  The  parapet 
varies  from  twenty  (o  thirty-six  inches  in  thickness,  and  there  is  a 
channel  worn  along  the  top  of  it.  It  has  been  repaired  from  time 
to  time  at  the  top,  with  old  tomb-stones,  &c.  It  extends  very 
considei'ably  beyond  tlie  channel  of  the  stream  on  either  side,  to 
the  points  out  of  flood's-way,  and  it  is  about  four  hundred  and  thirty 
feet  long,  gradually  sloping  down  level  with  the  ground  at  the 
two  ends,  and  running  from  four  to  five  feet  high  towards  the 
centre.  As  this  remarkable  parapet  is  very  much  in  the  shape 
of  a  bow,  I  presume  that  the  bridge  was  therefore  designated  by 
that  appropriate  name. 

There  is  another  circumstiince  worthy  of  remark  connected 
with  tliese  researches,  namely,  the  amount  of  alluvial  soil,  or 
detritus,  which  has  accumulated  in  the  vale  of  the  Severn,  by  the 
occasional  floods,  since  the  time  of  the  Romans.  At  Pitchcroft 
Ham,  upon  the  top  of  the  bed  of  scoria)  and  clinkei*s,  at  the  part 
next  the  river,  the  accumulation  is  six  feet  thick  and  uj)wards : 

*   S(>t'  fnnlior  rolativo  In  it  in  tlic  acconni  of  tlif  Wcstoni   Tnickwav. 


68 

and  on  the  east  side  (as  appears  by  the  stratum  at  the  bottom  of 
the  ditch),  between  thi-ee  and  four  feet,  the  average  being  about 
four  feet,  as  at  Ripple. 

ELDERSFIELD. 

GADBURY    BANKS. 

There  is  a  remarkable  elevation  in  this  parish  called  Gadbury 
Banks*,  which  I  examined  in  company  with  Mr.  Lees.  It  is 
situated  in  the  centre  of  what  may  be  called  a  fine  amphitheatre, 
is  about  sixty  feet  high,  and  of  an  irregular  oblong  shape,  slightly 
rounded  at  the  corners.  Judging  from  a  measure  we  made  by 
footsteps  around  the  top  of  the  hill,  it  is  about  360  yards  long  on 
the  south-east  side,  230  on  the  south-west,  390  on  the  north- 
west, 130  on  the  north-east,  and  112  across  the  centre.  The  top 
is  a  dead  level,  and  was  covered  with  standing  corn  at  the  time 
of  our  visit.  The  sides  are  very  steep  and  thickly  covered  with 
wood,  except  on  the  south-west  and  part  of  the  south-east  sides. 
It  is  admirably  situated  as  a  place  of  refuge,  ambush,  and  strength, 
being  in  the  centre  of  a  basin,  and  quite  detached  from  the  sur- 
rounding elevations.  Looking  at  it  from  a  distance,  no  one 
would  suppose  that  there  is  any  land  free  from  wood  at  the  top. 
The  hills  within  a  few  miles  of  it  are  the  Malvern  Hills,  May 
Hill,  Conygree  Hill,  Hartpury  Hill,  Corse  Grove,  &c.  It  appears 
to  have  had  a  tail  lying  eastward,  which  was  cut  away,  except  the 
extreme  point,  and  that  was  probably  left  as  an  outwork.  There 
is  a  trench  entrance  along  the  site  of  the  tail  into  the  platform 
on  the  north-east  side,  and  another  smaller  one  at  the  north-west 
corner.  It  is  thought  from  its  position,  &c.,  to  be  the  site  of  one 
of  the  ancient  British  towns. 

There  is  a  place  called  Gadbury  Hill  in  Castle  Moreton,  and 
Gadnals  Grove  in  Sutton  in  Tenbury,  also  Gadbidge  in  Whit 
bourne,  in  Herefordshire,  and  Gads  Hill,  near  Rochester,  and  the 

•  Alias  Gadbury  Hill,  or  Gadbury  Coppice.  It  is  the  property  of  Sir  E.  M. 
Lecliniere,  Bart.  A  hill  situated  iu  Barrow  Cliffs,  near  Scarborough,  very 
much  corresponds  in  character  with  Gadbury  Banks.  See  my  accotint  of 
it  in  the  "  ArchfcoloRia,"  Vol.  xxx.,  pp.  4f)l,  4(i2, 


69 

"Codex  Dip."  mentions  Godeshyl  (No.  1258);  Godshill  in  the 
Isle  of  Wight,  which  Mr.  Kemble,  in  his  "  Saxons  in  England," 
Vol.  i.,  p.  345,  suggests  means  the  Hill  of  Woden.  There  is 
also  Goddis  Pit  in  Acton  Beauchamp. 

It  is  probable  that  Gadbury  may  be  derived  from  the  Saxon 
Geata,  who  is  supposed  to  be  no  other  than  Woden-,  although 
he  appears  in  the  "  West  Saxon  Genealogy"  as  a  progenitor  of 
Woden  f.  He  is  mentioned  in  the  "  Textus  Roffensis,"  as  being 
so  deeply  smitten  by  the  beautiful  Maethhikl,  that  the  pain  of 
love  took  all  sleep  from  him.  Asser  also  says  that  the  heathens 
worshipped  him  for  a  god.  We  meet  with  Gattibeorh,  or  the 
burgh  of  Geat,  in  the  "  Codex  Diplomaticus,"  No.  1083;  Gatatun 
or  Gatton,  in  Surrey,  No.  317;  Gattesden  now  Gaddesden,  in 
Hertfordshire,  No.  410;  and  in  "Domesday  Book,"  Gadenai 
and  Gadenay,  in  Lincolnshire  ;  Gadesbi  and  Gadesbie,  in  Leices- 
tei^shire ;  Gadetune,  in  Hants  ;  Gadintone,  in  Oxfordshire  and 
Northamptonshire  ;  and  Gadredehope,  in  Herefordshire. 

In  the  "Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  vi., 
pp.  175  and  239,  &c.,  there  are  accounts  of  a  very  remarkable 
tenure  of  lands  in  the  manor  of  Broughton,  Lincolnshire,  by  the 
service  of  the  "  gad-whip."  A  woodcut  of  one  of  the  whips  is 
therein  given  (p.  245),  the  handle  of  which  is  descrilied  as  five 
feet  eight  inches  long.  These  are  considered  to  have  been  used 
for  driving  oxen,  and  that  the  butt-end  of  the  handle  was  used 
as  a  goad,  hence  the  name  of  gad  or  goad- whip. 

In  some  proof  that  Gadbury  Banks  is  the  site  of  an  ancient 
iiritish  town,  it  may  be  observed  that  Strabo  says,  "  The  forests 
of  the  Britons  are  their  cities ;  for,  when  they  have  enclosed  a 
very  large  circuit  with  felled  trees,  they  build  within  it  houses  for 
themselves  and  hovels  for  their  cattle.  These  buildings  are  very 
slight,  and  not  designed  for  long  duration  *." 

Caesar  remarks,  that  "  wliat  the  Britons  call  a  town  is  a  tract  of 
woody  country,   surrounded  by  a  vallum  and  a  ditch,  for  the 

•  See  Kemble's  "  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  870. 

+  See   Roger  of  Wendover's  '*  Flowers  of    llistorj,"  fonuerly  ascribed   U> 
Matthew  Paris,  by  Giles,  Vol.  i.,  p.  141). 
I  See  "  Old  Kngland,"  Part  i.,  p.  1!». 


70 

security  of  themselves  and  cattle  against  the  incursions  of  their 
enemies*" 

PENDOCK. 

An  account  of  this  parish  ydU  be  found  in  the  descriptions  of 
Cruckbarrow  Hill  and  the  Rycknield  Street. 

THE  BERROWf. 

PENDOCK    POBTWAY. 

We  also  examined  a  road,  which  runs  near  by  Gadbur}'  Banks, 
in  the  direction  of  the  Malvem  Hill  Camps  at  the  Herefordshire 
Beacon  and  Midsummer  Hill ;  part  of  it,  for  about  half  a  mile, 
in  the  parish  of  the  Berrow,  is  called  the  Peudock  Portway. 
This  is  crossed  at  one  end  by  the  Tewkesbuiy  and  Ledbury  road. 

There  is  also  Port  Ridge  Field,  Little  Portridge,  and  Portnells 
in  the  Berrow.  Vide  p.  9,  &c.  relative  to  Roman  Portways,  and 
the  account  of  Hagley  and  Cruckbarrow  Hill. 

BROMSBERROW. 

CONYGREE    HILL. 

We  also  visited  a  remarkable  hill  in  this  parish,  which, 
although  actually  lying  in  Gloucestershire,  is  upon  the  border  of 
Worcestershire.  It  is  called  Conygree,  perhaps  from  its  being  a 
fine  locality  for  rabbits,  as  the  soil  is  of  the  new  red  sandstoue 
formation,  into  which  they  can  easily  burrow.  This  elevation, 
which  lies  near  the  church,  is  of  an  oval  form,  and  about  fifty 
feet  high.  Judging  from  a  measure  we  made  by  foot-steps,  it  is 
about  seven  hundred  yards  round  the  base.  There  is  a  very 
ancient  yew  tree  at  the  top,  wliich  measures  twenty-five  feet 
round  the  stem,  at  about  a  yard  from  the  ground.  The  whole  of 
the  hill  is  planted  with  trees.  The  ascent  is  by  a  path,  which 
winds  round  the  hUl  to  the  top  from  the  south  side,  in  an  easterly 
direction.  A  trench  encircles  the  apex,  into  which  the  winding 
path  runs.  It  is  thought  to  have  been  a  hill-altar  were  the 
Druids  held  an  annual  assembly  for  judicial  and  other  purposes. 

•  Ser  "  Old  Knglaiul,"  Part  i.,  p.  10. 

+  It  was  forinrrly  railed  Bcrewc.  or  Berga. 


Tl 

It  might  also,  although  only  partially  artificial,  have  been  used 
as  a  barrow,  as  I  have  suggested  with  respect  to  Cruckbarrow 
Hill.  It  is  remarkable  that  this  hill  closely  corresponds  in  cha- 
racter with  the  following  description  of  Irish  crom-lechs  in  the 
"  Archaeologia,"  Vol.  xvi.,  p.  268  : — "  Taimlileacht  Lochlanna, — 
that  is  to  say,  '  The  Monument  of  the  Danes,'  a  stupendous  and 
beautiful  pyramid  of  earth,  having  a  spiral  footway  from  the  base 
to  the  summit.  This  Leacht  is  encircled  by  an  extensive  and 
broad  rampart  of  earth,  probably  where  the  congregation  of  the 
people  assembled  ;  by  the  country  people  called  '  a  Mote.' " 


CASTLE  MOETON; 

OK,    MORTON    FOLLIOT. 

We  also  examined  a  tumulus  in  this  chapelry,  of  an  oval  form, 
and  situated  near  the  chapel,  not  far  from  Buddenhill.  It  appeai-s 
to  be  about  190  yards  round  the  base,  and  thirty  yards  along  the 
top,  and  is  said  to  be  fifty  feet  in  height.  It  has  a  deep  trench 
round  the  south  side,  and  an  agger  fomteen  yards  across.  It  is 
called  "  Castle  Tump,"  and  was  most  probably  the  foundation  of 
the  keep  of  an  ancient  castle  said  to  have  stood  there*. 

Dr.  Thurnam,  in  communicating 
to  the  Arch£Eological  Institute  a 
description  of  an  ancient  tumulus 
(probably  of  about  the  eighth  cen 
tury)  at  Lamel  Hill,  near  York, 
after  describing  the  discoveiy  of 
several  relics,  states  as  followsf : — 
"  The  most  interesting  object  foimd 
at  the  same  level,  is,  however,  the 
brass  seal  of  the  keeper  of  a  chapel 
dedicated  to  tlie  blessed  Mary  at 
Morton  Folliot.  This  seal  (see  the 
woodcut)  is  probably  of  the  four- 
teenth or  fifteenth  century,  and  bears 
the  inscription,  '  S'.  Cdmune  C'todi  Capelle  be  Marie  de  Mort' 

•    Fiflr  Nasi),  Vol.  ii.,  p.  100. 

+   See  111.!  ''  .Ic.iiniiil  i.f  the  liistitiilo,"  Vol.  vi.,  pp.  -V),  ;<r>. 


72 

Folliot.'  It  has  for  a  device  a  figure  of  the  Virgin  and  Child, 
and  beneath,  that  of  an  ecclesiastic  with  the  hands  uplifted  in  the 
attitude  of  prayer.  It  is  difficult  to  understand  how  this  seal 
can  have  made  its  way  from  Morton  Folliot  in  Worcestershire  to 
Lamel  Hill*. 

"  The  discovery  of  this  seal,  and  of  counters,  at  the  depth  at 
which  they  were  foundf,  seems  to  afford  the  proof  that  the  upper 
part  of  this  mound  has  been  disturbed  within  the  last  300  years. 
I  incline,  indeed,  to  a  conjecture  that  the  hill  was  turned  over 
and  raised  to  a  greater  height  by  Fairfax's  army  in  1644,  for  the 
purpose  of  obtaining  a  more  commodious  site  for  their  battery*." 

Lamel  Hill  is  also  further  described  in  the  Journal  of  the 
Institute,  Vol.  vi.,  p.  I  "23,  &c. 

It  has  since  been  doubted  whether  the  seal  was  found  at  Lamel 
Hill.  This,  however,  is  of  little  moment,  as  it  is  a  very  interesting 
relic. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  his  account  of  Castle  Morton,  Vol.  i.,  p.  109, 
says  as  follows  : — 

"  This  Morton,  lying  in  the  parish  of  Longdon,  is  comprised 
in  "  Domesday  Book  "  in  the  survey  of  Longdon  §.  It  is  uncer- 
tain whether  Castle  Morton  or  Morton  Foliot  be  the  original 
name.  The  hill,  which  is  situated  on  the  south,  near  the  chapel- 
yard  of  Morton,  was  the  foundation  of  the  keep  of  the  castle, 
and  gave  name  to  Castle  Morton  ;  and  the  castle,  as  it  is  formed 
like  the  Conqueror's  castles,  was  in  all  probability  nearly  coeval 
with  the  Conquest ;  and  this  village  is  called  Morton  Foliot  in 
the  appropriation  of  Longdon  parsonage,  which  proves  that  the 
Foliots  did  anciently  inhabit  here.  We  may  hence  conclude, 
that  the  Foliots  of  Moiton  Foliot  were  formerly  owners  of  the 
castle  of  Castle  Morton,  but  that  the  castle  subsisted  before  their 
time." 

•  "  Castle  MorU)i),  Worcestershire,  was  iinriently  known  us  Morton  Folliot." 

t  Seven  feet. 

J  This  seal  is  also  figured  and  described  in  the  *'  Proceedings  of  the  Ardia-o- 
l(»gical  Institute  at  Lincoln,  in  1848,"  p.  40. 

§  Part  of  the  possessions  of  Uie  Monastery  of  Westniins>ter.  hcc  Nash, 
Vol.  ii.,  pp.  107,  111. 


POWICK. 
Two  sepulchral  Roman  urns,  containing  burnt  human  bones, 
were,  in  or  about  the  year  1832,  dug  up  at  Powick  village,  at 
the  point  of  the  tongue  of  land  between  the  roads  leading  to 
Upton  and  Malvern.  They  lay  about  nine  feet  below  the 
surface.  One  of  the  urns  was  accidentally  broken  to  pieces  ; 
but  the  other  is  quite  perfect,  of  a  fine  shape,  made  of  red 
earth,  eleven  inches  high,  and  nine  inches  in  diameter;  the 
mouth  five  inches,  and  the  neck  and  bottom  respectively  three 
and  a  half  inches  across.  The  perfect  uni  has  a  double  rim 
round  the  mouth,  two  indented  lines  round  the  small  and  thick 
portion  of  the  neck,  and  two  similar  lines  encircle  the  part 
which  may  be  termed  the  shotdder.  (See 
woodcut  thereof.)  The  broken  xu-n  is  one 
inch  smaller  than  the  perfect  one,  a  little 
inferior  in  manufacture,  and  has  only  a 
single  rim  round  the  mouth,  and  is  without 
the  indented  lines.  These  sepulchral  urns 
were  deposited  simply  in  the  ground,  with- 
out a  tumulus,  according  to  the  usual  man- 
ner of  the  Piomans.  They  are  now  in  the 
Worcestershire  Museum,  and  were  presented  by  the  late  Right 
Honourable  the  Earl  of  Coventry. 

A  little  to  the  west  of  the  village  of  Powick,  on  the  brink  of 
the  same  range  of  elevated  ground,  two  urns,  similar  in  size  to 
those  already  described,  were  about  the  year  1833,  dug  up-; 
they  contained  the  bones  of  children ; — parts  of  the  cranium, 
with  their  sutures,  and  some  of  the  bones  of  the  arm,  were,  at 
the  time  they  were  discovered,  entire ;  but,  having  been  deposited 
in  a  wet  spot,  tliey,  shortly  after  they  were  found,  cnuubled  to 
pieces  upon  exposure  to  the  air. 

A  coin  of  Claudius  Gothicus,  and  of  Constantino,  jmi.,  were  also 
found  in  the  same  neighboiu'hood,  and  are  now  in  the  Worcester 
Museum. 

The  village  of  Powick  is  three  miles  from  Worcester,  and 
situated  within  a  mile  of  the  Temo,  on  the  north,  and  about  the 
same  disttmce  from  the  Severn,  on  the  east. 

•  Tins  (Usiovi'iv  Wii-  iiiadi-  lU  llic  liiiH'  "f  ihr  aildilions  to  llmii  Hill 
Fluuso. 


74 


Iter 


ECKINGTON. 

BE'rA\'EEN  the  village  of  Eckington  and  the  river  Avon,  a 
Roman  or  Roman -British  pan  or  basin,  of  whitish  material 
was  found  by  the  railway  excavators,  several  feet  deep  in  the 
earth.  It  was  presented  to  the  Worcestershire  Museum  by 
Mr.  Milne,  one  of  the  contractors,  who  informed  me  that 
several  ancient  foundations  of  buildings  were  discovered  at 
the  same  spot.     The  woodcut  No.  1  represents  the   basin  one- 


sixth  of  the  actual  size.  Nos.  2  and  3  are  half-size  sketches 
of  two  marks  which  are  upon  the  rim  of  the  basin  near  the 
spout. 

A  basin,  nearly  similar,  is  delineated  in  "  Old  England,"  Part 
ii.,  p.  44,  amongst  a  collection  entitled,  "  Roman  Antiquities 
found  on  the  site  of  Paul's  Cross."  A  fragment  of  another, 
which  was  found  about  1778,  on  digging  at  Duntocher,  in 
Stirlingshire,  together  with  other  pottery  and  relics,  said  to  be 
Roman,    may    be   seen   in    Gough's    "  Camden*,"  whore  it   is 

*  Seooud  edition,  Vol.  vi.,  PI.  vi.,  p.  10:3.  Also  spp  the  edition  of  178fl, 
Vol.  iii ,  p.  ."Ui'-i. 


75 

described  as  "  a  piece  of  a  vase,  like  our  wash-hand  basins*  of 
white  clay,  which  has  the  maker's  name  in  raised  capitals  on  the 
rim,—'  BRVSC  .  F,'  for  'Brusci  fiUus.f" 

AD  ANTONAM. 

There  has  been  much  dispute  concerning  the  position  of  this 
Roman  station  ;  it  most  probably  lay  near  to  the  village  of  Eck- 
ington,  where  ancient  foundations  were  discovered  by  the  work- 
men in  the  line  of  the  railway  near  the  Avon,  as  before  described. 
Upon  an  inspection  of  tliis  spot,  I  found  it  to  be  about  two 
hundred  yards  from  the  north  side  of  the  village,  and  within 
three-quarters  of  a  mile  of  the  river.  Mr.  Milne  and  one  of 
the  workmen  pointed  out  to  me  where  the  relics  lay,  and  informed 
me  that  during  the  cutting  for  the  railroad  they  discovered  there, 
at  the  depth  of  several  feet,  a  great  many  human  bones,  frag- 
ments of  potteiy,  drains,  bricks,  stone  foundations  of  buildings, 
and  a  rough  quoined  well,  about  four  feet  wide  and  ten  feet  deep, 
which  passed  through  about  four  feet  of  soil  and  six  feet  of  gravel, 
and  was  filled  up  with  earth  and  rubble,  having  fragments  of  the 
bones  and  horns  of  the  ox  and  deer  species  at  the  bottom,  wliich 
was  shaped  like  a  basin ;  and  that  two  other  quoined  wells 
were  discovered  there,  filled  with  blackish  earth.  I  found  some 
specimens  of  the  pottery  in  the  mound  of  earth  and  gi'avel 
which  had  been  thrown  out  there,  some  resembling  the  Roman 
or  Roman-British  pan,  before  described,  as  discovered  at  this 
excavation,  and  others  exactly  like  the  Roman  red  earth  pottery 
which  1  found  at  KempseyJ.  See  further  particulars  relative 
to  "  Ad  Antonani,"  in  the  account  of  the  Rycknield  Street, 
where  the  subject  comes  more  regularly  under  notice. 

STRENSHAM. 

There  is  an  old  trench  road  which  passes  not  far  from  the 
cottage  where  Butler,  the  author  of  "  Iludibnis,"  is  said  to  have 

*  They  are  by  some  anticiuaries  described  as  "  luortaria." 
+  Or  it  may  mean,  Brusous  fecit. 
I   Sec  page  T)-!,  &c. 


76 

been  bom,  and  through  a  pasture  on  the  south  side  of  the  Moat 
Farm-house,  and  up  what  is  called  Green  Hill  and  the  Park 
Grounds,  to  that  part  of  the  hill  where  Strensham  Church  stands, 
and  from  thence  most  probably  it  crossed  the  Avon,  at  one  of  the 
fords,  to  Eckington.  G.  Bryan,  Esq.,  of  the  Moat  Farm,  and 
Dr.  Grove,  the  rector  of  Strensham  parish,  kindly  pointed  out  to 
me  the  above  line  of  intrenchment  from  the  pasture  to  near  the 
church.  Before  leaving  this  farm,  I  must  notice  that  there  is  a 
double  moat,  forming  nearly  a  square,  at  the  eastern  side  of  the 
house,  with  a  high  ridge  between  the  moats.  The  present  old 
house  is  supposed  to  have  been  built  of  the  materials  of  the 
ancient  (perhaps  baronial)  seat,  which  no  doubt  stood  in  the 
centre  of  the  moats.  This  property  belongs  to  John  Taylor,  Esq., 
of  Strensham  Court*. 

NORTON  IN  BREDON. 

In  this  chapelry  have  been  found  various  Anglo-Saxon  relics, 
consisting  of  several  iron  bosses  or  umbos  of  shields,  and  speai'- 
heads,  a  knife,  fragments  of  a  sword,  with  part  of  the  scabbard 
mounted  in  brass,  and  a  blue  and  a  reddish-yellow  bead.  These 
were  presented  to  the  Museum  of  the  Worcestershire  Natural 
History  Society,  in  the  year  1 838,  by  one  of  the  engineers  em- 
ployed in  making  the  Birmingham  and  Gloucester  railway.  They 
were  discovered  by  the  workmen  whilst  excavating  at  Norton 
Pitch,  a  place  near  to  Bredon  Hill,  upon  which  there  is  the  site 
of  an  ancient  camp,  hereafter  described. 

I  am  informed  by  an  experienced  jeweller  that  one  of  the  above- 
mentioned  beads  is  malachite,  and  the  other  amber;  they  are 
rather  flattened,  and  perforated  in  the  centre.  Malachite, 
although  generally  green  (as  the  name  from  the  Greek,  "  marsh- 
mallow,"  indicates),  is  still  found,  massive  and  of  a  smalt-blue 
colour,  in  Cornwall  f. 

These  relics  are  represented  in  Plate  3,  one-sLvth  of  the  real 
size,  except  the  beads  (Nos.  12  and  13),  which  are  of  the  actual 

•  Strensham  is  supposed  to  be  the  Strengesho  in  Eadgar's  Charter,  a.d. 
972.     See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  570. 

+  Vide  "  .\n  Elementary  Introduction  to  Minerah)gj',"  by  Mr.  Wni.  Phillips, 
fourth  edition,  enlarged  by  Mr.  Robert  Allan,  p.  :V^n. 


Hau:yp7e 


1. 


p>. 


r/ 


J3 


,/,,■,•  /■'  i.\'/i 


•//'//y/// '//:•       f'/r'-i      ,1a//^//      /<>;       l)/r(h'n 


77 

size.  One  of  the  umbos  still  contains  a  rivet  which  fastened  it 
to  the  shield  ;  but  the  umbos,  spear-heads,  knife,  and  blade  of  the 
sword  are  a  complete  mass  of  incrusted  rust.  The  scabbard  of 
the  sword  is  so  decayed  that  it  appears  like  touchwood,  and  the 
mounting  of  it,  which  is  either  brass,  copper,  or  bronze,  is  almost 
reduced  to  a  powder,  resembling  verdigris.  Fig.  6,  which  is 
plated  with  silver,  was  at  first  supposed  to  have  been  the  button 
or  stud  which  attached  the  scabbard  to  the  belt,  because  there  is 
an  impression  of  part  of  the  head  of  the  stud  upon  the  scabbard ; 
it  is  more  probable,  however,  that  it  was  one  of  the  studs  which 
fastened  the  umbo  to  the  shield,  and  that  the  impression  was 
made  by  the  scabbard  having  lain  in  the  earth  upon  the  stud. 
The  latter  has  the  shank  or  rivet  attached  to  it  (which  is  of  an 
oblong  square  shape),  and  also  a  fragment  of  iron  and  wood.  The 
u*on  most  probably  being  part  of  the  umbo,  and  the  wood  a  por- 
tion of  the  wooden  shield. 

In  Vol.  XV.  of  the  "  Archaeologia,"  Plates  xviii.  and  xix.  p.  344, 
there  are  relics  veiy  similar  to  some  of  the  above-mentioned, 
which  were  found  in  Sherrington  Barrow,  Wiltshire ;  among 
them  was  a  bit  of  silver,  which  is  supposed  to  have  covered  the 
projecting  part  of  the  umbo  of  the  shield.  See  also  the  "  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London,"  in  1843,  1844, 
No.  *2,  p.  29,  where  in  describing  some  relics  discovered  at  Stow- 
ting,  in  Kent,  said  to  be  Anglo-Saxon,  it  is  stated  that  "  the 
weapons  are  all  of  iron,  some  of  the  bosses  of  shields  have  the 
summit  of  the  umbo  plated  with  silver,  and  were  attached  to  the 
wooden  sMeld  by  silver-headed  rivets,  or  studs.  A  few  similar 
instances  have  occurred  in  other  parts  of  England  ;  but  the  curious 
fact,  that  the  art  of  plating  silver  upon  iron  was  known  at  a  very 
early  period,  has  never  been  noticed  jis  it  deserves." 

In  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archfcological  Institute*"  there  is  an 
account  of  Anglo-Saxon  relics  found  at  Long  Wittenliam,  Co. 
Berks,  among  which  there  are  iron  studs  plated  with  silver, 
attached  to  bits  of  iron,  which  the  writer  supposes  to  be  parts  of 
the  umbo  or  boss  of  the  shield. 

*  Vol.  v.,  i)]),  -Jiti,  ao'^,  t>!»:?. 


78 

Several  relics  corresponding  to  some  of  those  found  at  Norton 
Pitch  were  discovered  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Fairford,  in 
Gloucestershire,  and  are  described  in  the  "  Archaeologia,"  Vol. 
xxxiv.,  pp.  77  to  82. 

BKEDON  HILL, 

IN    THE    PARISH    OF    KEMERTON. 

At  a  land-slip  at  the  top  of  Bredon  Hill,  which  happened  at 
the  beginning  of  the  present  century*,  a  considerable  quantity  of 
wheat,  of  a  parched  appearance,  and  which  had  been  buried  in  the 
earth,  was  discovered.  This  is  supposed  to  have  been  an  ancient 
granary,  but  of  what  people  is  uncertain.  A  specimen  of  the 
wheat  was  presented  to  the  Worcester  Museum  by  Mrs.  Davies, 
of  Elmley  Parkf.  Wishing  to  know  the  particulars,  I  wrote  to 
Mr.  William  Prior,  of  Kemerton,  who,  in  reply,  informed  me 
that  about  thirty-five  or  forty  years  ago,  after  a  very  wet  season, 
as  the  late  Miss  Martin,  of  Norton,  was  riding  along  the  parapet 
on  the  top  of  Bredon  Hill,  in  the  field  called  Kemerton  Camp, 
her  horse  began  to  sink  into  the  ground  suddenly  and  rapidly ; 
that  she  however  kept  her  seat,  and  the  horse,  which  had  gone 
down  about  four  or  five  feet  below  the  level  of  the  firm  ground, 
sprang  up  and  regained  liis  footing.  That  so  soon  as  Miss 
Martin  had  recovered  from  her  surprise,  she  saw  that  a  land-slip 
had  occurred,  and  that  she  had  landed  on  the  firm  side  of  the 
chasm,  which  at  that  time  opened  about  thirty  feet  wide  at  the 
surface,  and  about  forty  feet  deepj ;  but  that  it  is  since  partially 
filled  up  by  the  crumbling  down  of  the  sides.  That  he  was  at 
the  house  of  the  late  James  Martin,  Esq.,  of  Overbury,  some  few 
weeks  afterwards,  when  a  portion  of  the  parched  wheat,  found 
in  the  excavation,  was  sIiovnti  to  him  and  some  other  gentlemen, 
and  the  general  opinion  was,  that  it  was  a  part  of  the  stores  left 

*  About  the  beginning  of  the  last  century,  a  hillock  on  the  side  of  the  hill, 
containing  about  an  acre,  with  its  trees  and  cattle,  slipped  nearly  10(J  yards 
down. — (See  Laird's  "Topographical  and  Historical  Description  of  Worcester 
shire,"  p.  :{(l-t.) 

+  Now  Lady  Pakington. 

*  Some  sav  the  chiisni  was  about  '-ino  vunls  long. 


79 

behind  by  the  Romans,  Saxons,  or  Danes,  at  the  time  when  they 
were  there  encamped.  That  in  this  opinion  the  late  Dr.  Nash, 
who  was  then  present,  coincided,  and  said  that  there  could  be  no 
other  way  of  accounting  for  it.  That  a  few  years  after,  whilst 
ploughing  the  Camp  Field,  some  ancient  swords  mounted  with 
brass  were  discovered,  which  the  late  John  Parsons,  Esq.,  of 
Kemerton,  claimed,  as  Lord  of  the  Manor,  and  afterwards  gave 
to  his  house  steward,  the  late  Mr.  Blomer. 

Whether  these  swords  were  of  as  early  a  date  as  the  Roman, 
Saxon,  or  Danish  time,  I  cannot  ascertain  ;  but  I  have  two  swords 
which  were  found  in  the  Camp  Field  when  it  was  ploughed  up,  of 
the  age  of  one  of  the  Charles's,  and  this  goes  to  show  that  the 
Camp  was  also  used  during  the  Civil  "Wars. 

I  was  informed  by  Mr.  Moore,  Jun.,  of  Elmley,  that  the  wheat 
which  he  saw  taken  from  the  land-slip  on  Bredon  Hill,  consisted 
of  a  few  grains  found  promiscuously  in  the  broken  earth,  about 
the  year  1836  ;  that  he  did  not  see  any  fragments  of  either  straw 
or  ears  ;  that  the  grains  were  black,  or  nearly  so,  and  that  a 
slight  pressure  between  the  fingers  would  reduce  them  to  a  powder ; 
but  that  the  form  of  the  grain  was  quite  perfect.  He  also  added 
that  he  was  lately  informed  that  as  the  chasm  opened  it  exposed 
to  view  a  vein  of  black  earth,  about  four  or  five  inches  thick, 
immediately  under  the  soil  which  in  some  places,  was  not  more 
than  six  inches  deep,  but  varied  to  eighteen  inches  or  two  feet ; 
that  the  black  earth  was  supposed  to  be  decayed  wheat,  as  quan- 
tities of  perfect  grains  were  found  in  it ;  that  there  was  no  appear- 
ance of  straw  or  ears  of  com  ;  and  that  the  chasm  beneath,  on  both 
sides,  was  a  sohd  but  craggy  rock,  impossible  ever  to  have  been 
opened  before. 

From  the  above  account  it  does  not  appear  that  in  this  case 
there  was  any  chamber  or  vault  in  which  the  com  was  deposited, 
but  that  it  lay  under  the  earth  upon  the  ledge  of  the  rock  along 
the  brow  of  the  hill.  Perhaps  this  was  the  spot  where  it  was 
either  charred  or  deposited  in  small  quantities  for  immediate  use, 
and  that  there  was  a  more  regular  granary  at  or  near  the  spot. 
This  idea  appears  to  be  in  a  measure  corroborated  by  what 
has  been  before  stated  relative  to  ancient  gi'anaries,  in  p.  (>I, — 


80 

namely,  "  that  the  shelved  cavities  of  the  rock  were  believed  to 
be  receptacles  for  food  in  small  portions." 

That  there  was  a  regular  granary  at  the  spot  in  question,  or  at 
least  a  cave  which  might  have  been  used  as  such,  is  quite  evident 
from  the  following  passage  in  Dr.  Derham's  "  Physico-Theology," 
who,  in  speaking  of  caves  containing  stalactites  and  stalagmites, 
in  p.  70,  says : — 

"  Such  like  caves  as  these  I  have  myself  met  with  in  England ; 
particularly  on  the  very  top  of  Bredon  Hill  in  Wocestershire, 
near  the  precipice,  facing  Pershore,  in  or  near  the  old  fortress, 
called  Bemsbury  Camp,  I  saw  some  years  ago  such  a  cave, 
which,  if  I  mis-remember  not,  was  lined  with  those  stalactical 
stones  on  the  top  and  sides.  On  the  top  they  hung  like  icicles, 
great  and  small,  and  many  lay  on  the  ground.  They  seemed 
manifestly  to  be  made  by  an  exudation  or  exstillation  of  some 
petrifying  juices  out  of  the  rocky  earth  there.  On  the  spot,  I 
thought  it  might  be  from  the  rains  soaking  through,  and  canying 
with  it  impregnations  from  the  stone,  the  hill  being  there  all 
rocky.  Hard  by  the  cave  is  one  or  more  vast  stones,  which,  if  I 
mistake  not,  are  incrusted  with  this  sparry,  stalactical  substance, 
if  not  wholly  made  of  it*." 

From  the  above  account  (which  was  written  about  1712)  it  is 
evident  that  the  cave  lay  on  the  Worcestershire  side  of  the  Camp, 
and  near  to  the  place  where  the  charred  wheat  was  found  ;  for  the 
learned  Doctor  not  only  says  it  was  "  in  or  near  the  old  fortress 
called  Bemsbury  Camp,"  but  that  "  hard  by  the  cave,  is  one  or 
more  vast  stones,"  meaning,  no  doubt,  the  immense  stone  there 
called  the  Bambury  Stone,  which,  with  its  companions,  I  sliall 
hereafter  more  particularly  describe  in  the  account  of  the 
"  Ambrosiae  Petrae."  The  cave  probably  was  destroyed  by  one  of 
the  land-slips  before  stated. 

With  respect  to  both  ancient  and  modern  granaries,  the  fol- 
lowing may  be  added  upon  the  subject : — 

In  "  Malcolm's  Anecdotes  of  the  Manners   and   Customs  of 

•  These  stones,  and  the  rock  beneatli  them,  are  porous  freestone,  ealled 
inferior  oolite,  and  beinj?  charged  witli  lime,  wouhl  form  stalactites,  itc,  as 
above  described. 


81 

London  from  the  Koman  invasion  to  the  year  1700.  He  says 
(Vol  i.  p.  13),  "  We  are  not  informed  how  they  (the  ancient 
Britons)  used  their  grain  ;  whether  it  was  made  into  anything 
like  bread,  eaten  raw,  or  prepared  by  fire :  their  method  of  pre- 
serving it  was  by  putting  it  into  subterraneous  receptacles,  in  the 
ear,  and  thrashing  it  daily  as  they  wanted  it.  Now,  it  appears 
doubtful  whether  any  possible  means  could  be  contrived  to  pre- 
vent wheat,  thus  circumstanced,  from  becoming  absolutely  mouldy 
and  decayed,  and  utterly  unfit  for  food,  ceitainly  for  seed,  in  our 
humid  chmate." 

Perhaps  the  best  answer  to  the  above  is,  that  the  ancient 
Britons  parched  tlieir  corn  before  placing  it  in  subterranean 
granaries  for  long  keeping* ;  but  whether  it  was  parched  in  the 
ear  and  then  thrashed  out,  or  parched  after  it  was  thrashed,  may 
be  a  question. 

Dr.  Adam  Clarke  f  says,  "  According  to  Mr.  Jones,  the  Mooi*s 
of  West  Barbary  use  the  flour  of  parched  barley,  which  is  the 
chief  provision  they  make  for  their  journeys,  and  often  use  it  at 
home  ;  and  this  they  cany  in  a  leathern  satchel." 

In  "  A  Narrative  of  Ten  Years  in  Tripoli,"  by  Kichard  Tully, 
Esq.,  the  British  Consul  J,  Letter  of  April  20,  1784,  p.  49,  he 
remarks,  "  We  passed  through  a  street  [in  Tripoli]  noted  for  its 
coni-wells.  or  rather  caverns,  dug  very  deep  in  the  earth.  They 
ai"e  situated  on  each  side  of  the  street,  at  about  thirty  yards 
disUmce.  They  are  designed  for  magazines  to  lay  up  corn  in, 
where  they  say  it  will  keep  perfectly  good  100  years." 

Dr.  Nash,  in  Vol.  ii.,  page  '•234,  speaks  of  Kemerton  Camp  as 
follows  : — "  On  Kemeiton  Hill,  in  Gloucestershire,  though  only 
a  few  yards  distant  from  Worcestershire,  is  a  large  camp,  of  a 
triangular  shape,  two  sides  of  which  are  defended  by  the  steep 
precipice  at  Bredon  Hill,  looking  to  the  north  and  west ;  the 
south  and  east  sides  are  guarded  by  two  ditches,  about  twenty 

•  Similar  subterniiiean  gnuiaries  are  mentioned  by  Tacitus  in  Lis  account 
of  the  customs  of  the  Genuans.    See  "Gentleman's  Mag."  for  Nov.  1840,  p.  511. 

f  CommenUiry  on  tlie  28th  verse  of  the  27th  chapter  of  tlie  Second  Book 
of  Sanniel. 

J  Second  edition,  published  1817. 

G 


82 

yards  wide  each* ;  the  whole  ground  %vithin  the  camp  is  upwards 
of  twenty-one  acres.  It  was  ploughed  two  or  three  years  ago, 
and  several  iron  weapons  found,  of  so  rude  and  bad  workmanship, 
as  bespoke  them  mther  Danish  or  Saxon  than  Roman.  A  plan 
of  it  is  here  given  f." 

Upon  a  visit  which  I  made  in  1840  to  Kemerton  Camp,  1 
found  the  intrenchraents  in  most  parts  to  be  still  very  deep  and 
perfect  J.  The  land-slip  is  also  yet  visible.  The  scene  we 
witnessed  from  the  summit  of  this  hill  was  (owing  principally  to 
a  heavy  storm  which  came  on)  truly  magnificent ;  and  upon  its 
partially  clearing  up,  the  sun,  which  was  fast  declining  westward, 
broke  through  the  murky  clouds  in  that  direction,  and  scattered 
"  the  many  hues  of  heaven"  over  the  whole  expanse  between  us 
and  the  Malvems,  and  painted  upon  the  dark  curtain  towards  the 
Cotswolds  a  splendid  double  rainbow ;  while  the  Avon  shone  in 
silvery  whiteness,  and  seemed  in  imagination  to  be  like  the 
wand  of  Shakespeare  calling  up  the  genii  around  to  meet  in  the 
"  bloody  field  by  Tewkesbury." 

In  the  Corrections  and  Additions  to  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol.  ii., 
p.  29,  the  learned  Dr.  remarks : — "  It  is  the  general  practice  of 
antiquaries  to  refer  all  the  intrenchments  which  are  found  on 
hills,  &c.,  either  to  Roman,  Saxon,  or  Danish  invaders,  without 
reflecting  that  the  unfortunate  inhabitants  thus  invaded,  whether 
Britons  or  Anglo-Saxons,  had  both  more  leisure  and  more  pressing 
occasion  to  prepare  such  fastnesses  and  places  of  retreat  for  their 
wives,  children,  flocks,  and  herds,  itc,  when  their  country  was 
likely  to  be  overrun  by  these  cruel  invaders.  The  first  Saxons 
were  near  two  centuries  in  subduing,  extirpating,  and  expelling 
the  Britons ;  who,  before  they  were  entirely  destroyed  or  driven 
out  from  their  native  plains,  we  know,  made  many  vigorou-; 
struggles  in  their  defence ;  and,  in  the  intervals  of  the  successive 


•  And  also  two  aggers. 

t  See  woodcut  of  it  in  the  account  of  the  "  .Vmbrosise  Petrfe.' 

J  It  is,  however,  to  be  feared  that  the  young  trees  which  have  lately   lieeii 

planted  in  the  trenches  of  the  camp  will,  in  course  of  time,  very  iiiucii  (le^truy 

its  appearance. 


83 

attacks  made  upon  them,  would  doubtless  fortify  the  heights  in 
every  part  of  the  kingdom  that  could  afford  them  any  place  of 
refuge  or  asylum  to  retire  to  from  the  open  country,  which  could 
not  be  defended  when  those  furious  assailants  made  their  de- 
structive inroads.  The  same  retreats  would,  in  like  manner, 
serve  for  shelter  afterwards  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  inhabitants,  when 
invaded  by  the  Danes,  and  perhaps  be  fortified  with  additional 
intrenchments.  Such  I  judge  to  have  been  the  origin  and  use  of 
these  vast  lines,  &c.,  on  Kemerton  Hill,  and  of  many  similar 
ones  in  other  pai'ts  of  the  kingdom,  as  on  Borough  Hill,  near 
Daventry-,"  &c.  &c. 

In  the  "  Archseologia,"  Vol.  xix.,  p.  17*2,  it  is  stated,  that 
"  Bredon  Hill  is  not  a  part  of  the  Cotswold  Hills.  It  stands  in 
the  vale  by  itself,  and  on  it  is  an  intrenchment  of  about  170 
yards  by  130.  On  two  adjoming  sides,  the  brow  of  the  hill  is 
a  sufficient  defence  ;  on  the  other  two,  it  is  defended  by  two 
banks  and  ditches,  which  are  near  fifty  yards  asunder,  and  not 
straight  or  quite  regular.  Were  they  then  tlii'own  up  at  different 
times?  The  entrance  is  at  one  corner.  Drakestone,  Uley  Bury, 
Broadridge  Green,  Painswick  Beacon,  Church  Down,  Wliitcombe, 
Crickley  Hill,  and  Nottingham  Hill,  are  seen  from  it." 

As  the  Roman  camps  are  generally  square  or  oblong,  with  the 
angles  obtuse  or  rounded  off ;  and,  as  the  camp  in  question  is  of 
a  rather  triangular  shape,  it  is  probable  that  it  is  ancient  British, 
and  that  it  was  in  after  ages  occupied  by  the  Romans,  Saxons,  and 
Danes. 

Mr.  May,  in  his  "  History  of  Evesham,"  p.  365,  in  speaking 
of  the  Roman  occupation  of  Bredon  Hill,  says,  it  "  abounds  with 
copious  and  unfailing  springs  ;  and  a  vast  number  of  coins,  of 
the  liigher  as  well  as  lower  empire,  have,  during  late  years,  been 
ploughed  up  there.  Among  such  of  these  as  the  wiiter  has 
hitherto  met  with,  occur  those  of  Vespasian,  Severus,  Gallienus, 
Constantino,  and  Valentinian." 

An  earring  of  silver  (weight  60  gr.)  was  found  with  Roman 
brass  coins  of  Allectus,  Quintillus,  and  Constans,  the  acus  of  a 
fibula,   and  a   silver   penny    of  one  of  the   Edwards,  in  a  field 


84 

called  Nettlebed,  upon  the  Beckford  Estate,  situate  on  the  south 
side  of  Bredon  Hill,  near  the  ancient  camp.  On 
the  lower  part  of  the  ring  appears  a  cavity  formed 
to  receive  a  gem*.    (See  the  woodcut.) 

With  respect  to  the  etymology  of  the  word 
"  Bredon,"  Dr.  Nash  says,  the  hill  was  anciently 
called  Breodum ;  and,  that  "  Bullet  in  his 
'  Memoires  de  la  Langue  Celtique,'  says,  Breeden 
may  be  the  name  of  a  great  forest :  Braidd, 
Great;  and  Den,  Forest."  "  Breedon  has  also 
been  observed  to  signify  a  place  at  the  root  of  a 

hill;  Braidd,  extremity;  and  Don,  Hillf." 

This  latter  appears  to  be  the  better  etymology,  as  the  village 

of  Bredon  J  lies  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill. 

BEEDON  HILL,  CONDERTON. 

In  Dr.  Nash's  account  of  the  parish  of  Overbury,  he  says : — 
"  On  Conderton  Hill  is  a  small  oval  camp,  one  hundred  and 
sixty-five  yards  long,  and  seventy-one  yards  wide :  tradition, 
which  is  better  than  conjecture,  supposes  it  to  be  Danish. 
Some  few  Roman  coins  have  been  found  in  the  fields."  (Vide 
Vol.  ii.,  p.  234.) 

Mr.  Bennett,  in  his  "  History  of  Tewkesbury,"  p.  17,  says: — 
"  In  the  neighbourhood  of  these  {i.e.  the  Kemerton  and  Conder- 
ton) camps,  especially  near  the  latter,  a  number  of  Roman  coins 
have  at  various  times  been  discovered." 

*  See  my  account  in  tlie  "  Archaeological  Jovmial,"  Vol.  iii.  pp.  207,  268. 

+  See  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol.  L,  p.  128. 

J  The  name  is  spelled  Breodun  in  several  Anglo-Saxon  Charters.  See 
"  Codex  Dip."  No.  120 ;  120  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  138,  140,  145,  148,248,  2C1,  514. 
514  App.,  Vol.  vi.,  and  674,  805.  That  work  also  notices  Bredun  in  the 
Charters,  No.  984,  990  (Bradden  in  Nortliamptonshire),  and  Br6owoldsha.ni, 
No.  1309.  The  names  Uferebreodun  and  Uuerabreodun  (Upper  Bredon) 
occur  in  the  Charters,  No.  308,  308  App.,  Vol.  iii. ;  and  514,  514  App.,  Vol. 
\i.,  and  in  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  520  ;  and  Overburj-  is  called  Ufere- 
breodun in  that  work,  p.  306,  &c. 


85 


SEDGEBARROW. 

In  Mr.  May's  "History  of  Evesham,"  second  edition,  1845, 
p.  365,  it  is  stated  that,  "  upon  deepening  the  channel  of  the 
brook  at  Sedgebarrow,  about  eighteen  years  ago,  two  oval-shaped 
spear-heads  of  bronze,  of  most  perfect  v?orkraanship,  with 
portions  of  their  staves  attached,  were  found  stuck  into  the 
bank,  at  a  depth  of  several  feet.  Pieces  of  Roman  defensive 
armour  were  likewise  found ;  together  with  the  sharpened  half  of 
a  celt,  formed  of  basalt,  and  a  portion  of  another ;  as  though 
the  rude  Britain  and  the  polished  Roman  had  fallen  here 
together  in  the  death-struggle,  each  leaving  his  weapon  to  tell 
of  the  event.  These  fragments,  together  with  part  of  a  steel 
band,  apparently  from  the  shoulder,  and  retaining  the  bronze 
rivets  that  attached  it  to  the  cuirass,  are  in  the  possession  of  the 
Eev.  Wilham  Pashley.  Several  very  large  antlers  were  dug  out 
at  the  same  time  ;  but,  strange  to  say,  no  pains  were  taken  to 
preserve  these  memorials  of  the  wild  denizens  of  our  ancient 
forests." 

ICCOMB. 

This  was  a  detached  parish  of  Worcestershire,  until  annexed 
to  Gloucestershire  by  the  Reform  Bill.  In  describing  this 
parish,  which  lies  near  Stow,  in  Gloucestershire,  Dr.  Nash 
says  : — "  Here  is  a  camp,  supposed  to  be  Danish :  it  has  a  single 
ditch,  which  in  many  places  is  ploughed  down*." 

Iccomb  was  anciently  spelled  Iccacumb,  Icancumbf,  Ican- 
cumbe,  Icomb,  Iccecumbe,  Icacub,  Ickacumb,  Yccacumbe, 
Ycumb,  and  Ikecumbe. 

FOUR  SHIRE  STONE. 

This  stone,  which  stands  near  Moreton-in-the-Mai'sh,  in  the 
counties  of  Worcester,  Gloucester,  Warwick,  and  Oxford,  is 
stated  in  Laird's  "  Topographical  and  Historical  Description  of 

»   See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  1. 

+  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Offa's  Charter,  No.  U«l,  ami  Edgiu's  Cliarter,  No.  51-4, 
514  App.  Vol.  vi.,  dated  !)()•!;  also  see  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  1.  The  authenticity 
of   ihe  above-iiientioiied  Charter  of  Kadgar  is  doubted.      See  "  Oswaldslow." 


86 

Worcestei-shire*,"  to  be  "  situated  on  the  spot  where  the  battle 
was  fought,  about  1016,  between  the  English  and  Danes,  when 
the  latter,  under  Canute,  were  totally  defeated  with  great  slaugh- 
ter by  King  Edmund  Ironside;"  and  that  "  there  also,  at  a 
small  distance,  is  a  fortification  or  barrow,  which  Camden  and 
Plott  consider  as  of  Danish  origin,  but  Gough  seems  of  a  different 
opinion,  and  considei-s  it  as  British." 

The  above-mentioned  fortification  or  barrow  is,  I  presume,  that 
situated  in  the  piece  of  land  called  Ban-ow  Ground,  and  lies  at 
the  southern  corner  of  Chastleton  parish,  Oxon.  about  two  miles 
from  the  Four  Shire  Stone,  which  stands  at  the  northern  extre- 
mity of  the  parish.  The  field  is  bounded  on  the  west  and  south- 
west by  Freeboard  Lane,  which  divides  it  from  Adlestrop,  and 
southward  and  eastward  by  Daylesford  and  Comwell.  The  forti- 
fication or  baiTow  is  nearly  a  circle,  and  including  the  single 
agger  or  mound  which  surrounds  it,  contains  176  yards  in 
diameter  from  the  north-west  to  the  south-east  side,  and  165 
yai'ds  in  diameter  from  the  south-west  to  the  north-east  side. 
The  area,  which  is  perfectly  flat,  amounts  to  half  an  acre  and 
sixteen  perches.  The  agger  is  thirty  feet  wide  and  about  sixteen 
feet  high  on  the  outside  of  it,  the  ground  within  it  being  about 
eight  feet  higher  than  the  surrounding  land.  In  the  Ordnance 
Map  it  is  called  Chastleton  Hill  Camp,  but  the  name  "  Barrow 
Ground,"  and  the  very  circular  character  of  the  agger  appear  to 
favour  the  idea  of  its  having  orighially  been  a  baiTow.  It  may, 
however,  have  been  afterwards  used  as  a  camp  by  the  Romans, 
Saxons,  or  Danes.  A  bye-way  passes  through  it  from  east  to 
west,  which  is  the  "  regular  direction  of  the  Praetorian  way  in  a 
Roman  Campf ." 

On  the  brow  of  the  hill  range,  between  Bourton-on-the-Hill  and 
Cutsdean,  there  are  several  camps,  or  earth-works,  of  a  square 
shape,  with  a  rivulet  running  along  a  dell  on  thcu'  west  side. 
This  dell  is  called  Kill-Danes-Bottom  J. 

•  Pp.  :t!)4,  ;S!)5. 

+  See  "  Gentleniau's  iEiig."  for  June,  1842,  p.  fi2'2. 

I  Vide  iiiidci-  the  hciul  of  .Viiibrosife  PcUbb,  for  Uie  dcscriptiou  of  a  [)lan' 
called  Woeful- Dai)cs  Bottom. 


87 

In  the  explanation  of  the  Saxon  map  in  Gough's  "  Camden*," 
it  is  stated  that  Camden,  in  his  "  Notes  on  the  Saxon  Chronicle," 
places  Scierydan  at  the  above-mentioned  Shire  Stone. 

DORN. 

This  hamlet  is  in  the  detached  parish  of  Blockley,  belonging 
to  Worcestershire,  near  Moreton-in-the-Marsh.  It  is  stated  by 
Cookef,  that  "  The  Fosse-way  runs  out  of  Gloucestershire 
through  the  village  of  Dom.  According  to  tradition,  this  village 
was  formerly  a  city  of  some  consequence  ;  and  the  many  old 
foundations,  and  Roman  and  British  coins  found  in  this  neigh- 
bourhood, seem  to  countenance  the  probable  truth  of  the  report. 
At  present,  however,  Dom  can  only  boast  the  possession  of  a  few 
farm-houses." 

Nash  I  says,  that  "  Dom  is  supposed  to  have  been  a  Roman 
station.  Many  small  coins  of  base  metal  have  been  found  here. 
One  of  Carausius  was  lately  in  the  possession  of  the  Rev.  Mr 
Selwyn,  the  vicar."  "  Dom  has  its  name  from  a  little  stream 
running  here,  called  Duran,  which,  in  the  ancient  Celtic,  signifies 
'rivulus,'  or  little  stream§."  Nash[|  likewise  informs  us,  that 
•'  The  Rev.  Mr.  Miles,  of  Worcester,  had  several  Roman  coins 
found  at  Dora  :  the  earliest  was  a  denarius  of  Severus ;  the 
latest,  a  brass  coin  of  Crispus.  Among  tliem  were  Eti'uscilla, 
Carausius,  Allectus,  &c.,  of  brass." 

BADSEY. 

Mr.  Mayll,  describing  various  ancient  relics  found  in  tliis 
parish,  states  that,  "  at  about  a  mUe's  distance  eastward  from 
Badsey  Church,  upon  a  farm  occupied  by  Mr.  Gibbs,  of  Knowle 
Hill,  and  seated  on  a  gentle  slope,  is  a  field  now  called  'Foxhill.' 

*  Vol,  i.  Int.  p.  clxiv. 

+  "  Topographical  Librarj,"  title  Worcestershire,  p.  108. 

J  Vol.  i.,  p.  101. 

§  Baxter's  "  Glossnriuui  Antiquit.  Brit.,"  p.  11. 

II   Vol,  ii.,  p.  20,  of  the  Corrections  and  Additions. 

1[  Miiy's  "  Histon' of  Evesham,"  second  edition,  p,  241. 


88 

Here  pieces  of  coarse,  dark,  gritty  pottery  are  \\idely  strewn, 
intermixed  with  fragments  of  finer  quality,  coloured  red.  Human 
bones,  in  beds,  and  those  of  animals,  apart  from  the  former, 
intermixed  with  antlers  of  deer  and  the  horns  of  small  cattle, 
have  also  been  recently  disturbed.  Rude  slabs  of  stone,  occa- 
sionally laid  kiln-wise,  and  bearing  marks  of  fire,  have  likewise 
been  exposed.  These  we  at  first  regarded  as  places  where  the 
ware  was  baked  ;  but  Mr.  Gibbs  remarks,  that  the  soil  being 
wholly  upon  gravel,  there  is  no  material  for  pottery  any  where 
near.  No  coins  appear  to  be  found  here,  with  the  exception  of 
one  of  those  small  copper  Constautines  that  elsewhere  commonly 
occur ;  but  what  is  perhaps  earlier  than  our  Roman  coinage — a 
rude  bead  or  annulet  of  pared  bone,  one  inch  in  diameter,  and  a 
fourth  of  an  inch  thick,  has  been  preserved.  As  soon  as  the 
present  crop  will  permit,  Mr.  Gibbs  intends  to  open  the  gi'ound 
for  careful  examination.  Meanwhile,  from  what  we  have  hitherto 
seen,  we  are  disposed  to  regard  the  site  as  that  of  a  British 
settlement;  but  whether  so  occupied  before  the  Roman  invasion, 
we  are  not  at  present  prepared  to  assert." 

In  709,  Coeiiraed,  Cenred,  or  Kenred,  and  Offa,  granted  lands 
in  Baddesig  to  the  monastery  which  Bishop  Egwin  intended  to 
found  at  Evesham*. 

CHURCH  HONEYBOURNE,  AND  QUINTON  WAY. 

It  is  stated  in  the  "  Rambler  in  Worcestershire,"  by  Mr. 
Noakef,  that  "  a  human  skeleton,  a  spear-head,  together  with 
several  swords,  and  some  other  relics,"  were  dug  out  in  the  line 
of  road  near  the  church  in  this  parish. 

In  Church  Honeybourne  there  is  a  road  called  the  Quinton 
Way,  near  Podon,  or  Poden  |,  and  not  far  from  Selenslode  and 
Hollow  Breche,  as  appears  by  Terriers,  in  the  "  Registry  of  the 

*  May's  "  Evesham,"  p.  24.  Also  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  5'2  ;  Dugrt.  "  Moiiast.," 
Vol.  i.,  p.  14-5  ;  and  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Charters  of  Coenraed,  No.  61,  01  App.,  Vol. 
iii.,  dated  709.  Of  "  Egwi,"  No.  64,  dated  714;  and  of  "  Eadwenid,"  No. 
289, 289  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  dated  860-865. 

+   Published  in  1848,  p.  2-)0. 

+   See  tlic  nreoiint  of  Old  Storng",  as  to  this  name. 


89 

Consistory  Court  of  Worcester,"  of  the  date  of  1585  and  1715. 
This  road  was  most  probably  a  branch  from  the  Buckle  Street, 
or  Boggilde  Street*,  and  led  from  Church  Honeyboume,  by 
Meon  Hill  Camp,  to  Quinton  Field,  which  lies  about  three  miles 
to  the  north-east  in  Gloucestershire.  A  mile  further  on  is  a 
place  called  Upper  Quinton,  and  about  the  same  distance  further 
is  Lower  Quinton.  There  can  be  little  cause  to  hesitate  in 
saying  that  these  villages  took  their  names  from  the  above-named 
Quinton  Field,  where  the  game  of  quintan  was  no  doubt  played. 
The  name  of  this  place  is  written  "  Cwentun,"  in  "  Codex 
Dip.,"  No.  244. 

There  are  places  called  Upper  Quinton  and  Lower  Quinton  in 
Bockelton ;  Quinton  Oak  in  Northfield ;  Twinton  in  Upton 
Warren ;  the  Quintins  in  Kempsey ;  Quinton  in  Holt  with 
Little  Witley  ;  Quinton  Piece  in  Romsley,  in  Hales  Owen  ; 
First  Quinton  Field,  Upper  Quinton  Field,  and  Lower  Quinton, 
in  Warley  Wigorn,  in  Hales  Owen  ;  and  First  Quinton  Field  in 
Ridgacre,  in  Hales  Owen — all  in  Worcestershire :  and  Near 
Quanton  Croft  and  Far  Quanton  Croft,  in  Arley,  Co.  Warwick. 

In  "  Domesday  Book,"  mention  is  made  of  "  Quenintone," 
and  "  Quenintune,"  in  Gloucestershire ;  and  "  Quintone "  in 
Northamptonshire  and  Warwickshire. 

As  some  of  my  readers  may  not  be  acquainted  with  the 
nature  of  the  game  of  quintan,  I  shall  subjoin  the  following 
extract  upon  the  subject,  from  Malcolm's  "  Anecdotes  of  the 
Manners  and  Customs  of  London,  from  the  Roman  Invasion  to 
the  year  1700,"  Vol.  iii.,  p.  8. 

"  The  quintain,  mentioned  by  Howe,  had  its  origin  from  a 
whimsical  idea  ;  and  those  who  practised  with  it  were  compelled 
to  exert  no  trilling  degree  of  agility  to  avoid  the  heavy  blows  it 
inflicted. 

"In  this  instance,  a  strong  post  was  placed  erect  in  the 
ground,  on  which  a  piece  of  wood  turned  by  means  of  a  spindle  ; 
at  one  extremity  a  bag  of  sand  was  suspended,  and  the  other 
presented  a  surface  sufliciently  broad  to  make  it  practicable  to 

•  Dcscrilicd  ii)  tlic  Hi-coimt  of  tlip  Lower  Salt  Wav. 


90 

strike  it  with  a  spear  when  in  full  gallop  on  horseback ;  the 
pressure  from  the  spear  caused  an  instantaneous  whirl  of  the 
wood,  which  was  increased  by  the  weight  of  the  sand,  and  that 
saluted  the  back  of  the  horseman  in  no  very  gentle  manner,  if 
the  speed  of  his  courser  happened  to  be  less  than  that  of  the 
quintain." 

OFFENHAM. 

In  this  parish  (the  alleged  residence  of  the  Saxon  king,  Ofifa) 
two  coins,  one  of  Faustina  II.,  the  other  of  Canute,  were  a  few 
years  since  dug  up  at  the  Court  Farm  House,  near  the  Moat. 
The  obverse  of  the  latter  contains  the  head  of  the  king,  with  his 
sceptre  and  the  inscription,  CNVT  RECX  (Cnut  Rex.)  in  Saxon 
characters ;  and  the  reverse  bears  a  Saxon  cross,  with  the  mint- 
master's  name  and  the  place  of  mintage — namely,  BRVNCAR 
ON  LVND,  which  some  say  means  Bruncar  in  London,  but  I 
have  it  on  very  good  authority  that,  as  the  moneyer's  name  is 
Bruncar,  it  is  most  likely  a  Danish  coin  struck  at  Lund  in 
Schonen.  These  coins  were  in  the  possession  of  the  late  Rev. 
Mr.  Digby,  of  Offenham,  Canon  of  Worcester  Cathedral.  The 
parish  is  called  Uffenham  and  Oflfeham  in  several  Anglo-Saxon 
Charters*,  and  Offenha  in  "  Domesday  Book."  It  signifies  the 
ham  of  Offa. 

There  is  a  place  called  Dead  Men's  Aitf  in  Offenham,  where 
bones  have  been  dug  up,  supposed  to  have  been  those  of  some  of 
the  slain  at  the  battle  of  Evesham. 

"  On  the  north  side  of  the  village  there  is  a  large  stone, 
almost  overgrown  with  ivy ;  it  has  no  inscription  remaining, 
but  has  been  supposed  to  be  a  memorial  set  up  in  the  rudest 
times^." 

The  following  extract  from  Dr.  Nash's  "  History  §"  may  be  taken 
in  proof  that  Offa  had  property  in  Offenham  : — "  Kenred,  King  of 

*  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  61,  01  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  pp.  289  and  789. 
+  Or  Island. 

{  See  Laird's  "  Topogi-apbical  and   Historical  Description  of  Worcester- 
shire," pp.  375,  388. 
§  Vol.  ii.,  p.  202. 


91 

the  Mercians,  and  Offa,  King  of  the  East  Angles,  gave  to  the 
Abbey  of  Evesham  seven  mansse  in  Offenham.  This  Offa  and 
King  Kenred  were  the  greatest  benefactors  to  the  Abbey.  They 
died  monks  at  Kome.  In  "  Domesday"  we  read,  the  church  of 
Evesham  held  Offenham ;  there  is  one  hide  free." 

CLEEVE  PRIOR. 

In  the  year  1811,  two  jars  of  Roman  coins  were  found  in  this 
parish.  The  following  letter  upon  the  subject,  from  the  late  E. 
Rudge,  Esq.,  of  Evesham,  appeared  in  the  "  Gentleman's  Maga- 
zine" for  December  of  that  year : — 

"  Wimpole  Street,  Nov.  15. 

"  Mr.  Urban, — I  send  you  an  account  of  the  discovery  of  two 
earthen  pots,  the  one  containing  gold  and  the  other  silver  Roman 
coins,  found  by  a  labourer  while  digging  stone  in  a  quarry  at 
Priors  Cleeve,  about  five  miles  from  Evesham,  Worcestershire,  on 
the  22nd  of  October  last ;  the  pots  are  of  red  earthenware,  and  I 
am  informed  are  about  eighteen  inches  wide,  and  about  the  same 
height.  They  were  full  of  coins,  which  poured  out  from  the  pots 
when  broken  by  the  stroke  of  the  pick-axe.  The  quantity  of  gold 
coin  was  as  much  as  the  fortunate  discoverer  could  carry  home  at 
twice.  They  arc  of  very  pure  gold,  in  the  most  perfect  state  of 
preservation ;  but  amongst  them  are  several  of  copper  plated  with 
gold.  The  silver  corns  are  worn,  and  appear  to  have  been  in 
circulation.  There  can  be  little  doubt  but  these  coins  were  de- 
signed for  the  payment  of  the  Roman  troops  stationed  in  that 
pait  of  Britain,  and  may  have  been  buried  about  the  year  403, 
duiing  the  various  disturbances  which  existed  at  that  period. 

"In  1781,  fifty  gold  coins  were  dug  up  in  Stanmore  Common, 
near  Bentley  Priory,  and  amongst  them  were  several  of  Valen- 
tinian  and  Gratian,  similar  to  those  described  below.  The  fol- 
lowing inscriptions  I  have  copied  from  such  as  I  have  seen,  and 
which  are  but  few,  for  the  discoverer,  apprehending  a  claim  from 
the  Lord  of  the  Manor,  refused  soon  after  their  discovei-y,  any 
information  respecting  them ;  so  that  whether  there  were  other 
coins  in  the  pots  than  what  1  have  described,  remains  to  be 
ascertained. 


92 

"  Situation  of  the  pots  when  discovered. — The  pots  stood  upon 
stone  of  eight  inches  in  depth,  in  a  stratum  of  clay  of  eighteen 
inches ;  over  the  pots  was  placed  stone  of  four  inches  in  depth, 
and  above  that  the  natural  soil,  sixteen  inches  deep  from  the 
surface." 

Mr.  Kudge  then  fully  detailed  the  inscriptions  which  were 
upon  the  coins.     The  names  of  the  emperors  are  as  follow : — 

GOLD    C0IN8.  SILVER    COINS. 

Valentiiiianus  I.  Constantius. 

Gratianus.  Julianus. 

Valentinianus,  jun.  Valentinianus  I. 

Theodosius  I.  Gratianus. 

Mag.  Maxiraus. 
.  Theodosius  I. 

Mr.  Kudge  also  communicated  the  particulars  to  the  Society 
of  Antiquaries*,  and  added  that  the  coins  were  found  on  the  site 
of  a  Roman  road  leading  from  Camden  to  Alcesterf. 

Mr.  May,  in  his  "  History  of  Evesham,"  published  in  1834, 
states  that  the  spot  where  the  coins  were  found  lies  "  a  very  few 
yards  west  of  the  existing  road,  at  its  entrance  into  Cleeve  from 
Middle  Littleton,"  and  mentions  a  coin  of  Constantino  as  one  of 
the  number  ;  he  also  suggested,  that  they  "  might  possibly  have 
been  secreted  by  some  Roman  commander  prior  to  an  encounter, 
in  which  his  forces  were  routed,  and  himself  slain." 

In  the  "  Companion  to  Greenwood's  Map"  it  is  stated  that  a 
goldsmith  of  London  "  offered  the  finder  three  hundred  pounds 
for  them,  which  he  refused."  The  discovery  is  also  noticed  in  the 
"Worcester  Jounial"  for  the  31st  of  October,  1811,  where  it  is 
stated,  that  "  counterfeits  were  discovered  among  them,  executed 
in  a  most  excellent  manner,  being  copper  plated  with  gold.  The 
silver  coins  were  not  in  so  good  preservation  as  the  gold.  The 
execution  of  these  coins  is  of  course  not  very  good,  the  art  of 
cutting  the  dies  being  at  that  period  very  much  upon  the  decline. 
The  man  has  acknowledged  that  he  found  one  hundred  of  the  gold 
coins  ;  the  silver  most  probably  greatly  exceeded  that  number." 

*    Vide  "  Archaeologia,"  Vol.  xvii.,  pp.  -'320,  330. 

+  Sec  further  rehitive  to  that  road  in  the  account  of  the  Rycknield  Street 


93 

The  Rev.  R.  D.  Stillingfleet,  Vicar  of  Cleevc  Prior,  in  answer 
to  some  inquiries  I  made  respecting  the  coins,  stated  that  Thomas 
Sheppey,  the  man  who  found  them  in  the  first  instance,  conveyed 
them  secretly  to  his  own  house ;  that  he  afterwards  took  them  to  the 
Dean  and  Chapter  of  Worcester,  (the  Lords  of  the  Manor),  who, 
after  reserving  a  few  of  the  coins,  returned  him  the  remainder. 
Mr.  Stillingfleet  further  added,  that  "  there  was  a  discovery  made 
near  the  village,  in  the  year  1 824,  of  a  number  of  human  skeletons, 
on  a  bank  immediately  above  the  river  Avon,  and  not  very  remote 
from  the  field  in  which  the  coins  were  found." 

1  have  seen  several  of  these  coins  in  the  possession  of  the  Rev. 
Allen  Wheeler,  of  Worcester,  and  the  Rev.  Wm.  Brown,  of  Bredi- 
cot ;  in  addition  to  some  of  the  above,  they  have  coins  of  Valens, 
Valerian,  D.N.  Fl.  Victor,  and  Gordiauus  Pius. 

Sheppey  stated  that  a  goat's  head  was  found  in  the  excavation, 
which  was  perhaps  a  votive  offering  made  upon  depositing  the  coins. 

After  writing  the  above,  I  went  to  Cleeve  Prior,  and  saw  at  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Stillingfleet's,  in  addition  to  those  previously  mentioned, 
a  gold  coin  of  Arcadius,  and  two  silver  coins,  one  of  Vespasian, 
and  another  which  I  could  not  decipher.  T.  Sheppey,  the  finder 
of  the  urns  and  coins,  informed  me  that  the  quantity  of  gold 
coins  found  in  one  of  the  urns  (which  would  hold  about  two 
quarts)  amounted  to  about  six  pounds  in  weight ;  that  there  were 
about  three  thousand  silver  coins  in  the  other  urn,  which  would 
contain  about  a  gallon  ;  that  the  goat's  head  was  found  four  or 
five  yards  from  the  unis,  about  four  feet  deep,  in  a  cavity  made 
in  the  quarn,',  which  cavity  was  of  the  shape  of  a  basin  at  the 
bottom  ;  that  lie  was  offered  seven  hundred  pounds  for  the  coins, 
which  he  refused ;  that  he  considered  they  were  altogether  worth 
about  one  thousand  pounds,  but  could  not  tell  the  total  amount 
received  for  them,  they  having  been  sold  in  parcels  at  various 
times. 

I  also  examined  the  spot  where  the  coins  were  found  near  the 
village,  and  where  the  bones  and  skeletons  were  discovered  on 
Cleeve  Terrace,  and  saw  an  iron  arrow-head  in  Mr.  Stillingfleet's 
possession,  which  was  found  with  the  skeletons.  A  large  hewn 
stone  called  by  the  inhabitants  Batowen,  stands  at  the  place  and 


91 

it  is  most  probably  the  base  of  an  ancient  cross.  Tlie  Avon  flows 
at  the  foot  of  the  Terrace,  and  there  is  a  ford  and  Cleeve  Mill  at 
the  spot.  Perhaps  the  skeletons  may  be  those  of  some  of  the 
soldiers  who  fell  in  this  part  of  the  line  between  Kenilworth 
and  Evesham,  in  the  battles  between  the  barons  and  Henry  III. 
In  conclusion  it  is  as  well  to  remark,  that  the  late  Rev.  Mr. 
Digby,  Canon  of  Worcester  Cathedral,  informed  me  that  one  of 
the  urns  also  contained  gold  coins  of  Valens,  Magnus,  Maximus, 
and  Arcadius,  and  he  gave  me  an  account  of  255  of  the  gold 
coins,  and  of  833  of  the  silver  coins. 


CROWLE. 

Dr.  Thomas*  says,  that  Beortulf,  King  of  the  Mercians,  gave 
Eadberht,  Bishop  of  Worcester,  five  manses  at  Crohlea;  and 
that,  in  the  time  of  Canute,  and  of  Leofsius,  Bishop  of  Worcester, 
"  one  Simund,  a  Dane,  a  soldier  of  Earl  Leofrick's,  endeavoured 
to  dispossess  the  church  of  what  they  had  at  Crowle,  for  he  so 
plagued  it  with  suits  and  trespasses,  that  he  drove  away  the 
farmers,  and  they  were  forced  to  grant  it  to  him  for  his  life,  on 
condition  that  he  should  serve  for  them  in  the  wars  by  sea  and 
land,  and  should  acknowledge  the  prior  as  his  lord,  by  paying 
yearly  a  horse  or  money  in  lieu  thereof  f." 

Dr.  Nash,  in  the  first  volume  of  his  "  History,"  p.  281,  says  : 
"In  a  field  in  this  parish,  adjoining  to  Hodington,  was  dis- 
covered, nearly  two  centuries  ago,  a  stone  coffin  lined  with  lead  % 
and  containing  the  bones  of  a  man,  almost  mouldered  away,  with 
an  earthen  pitcher  or  urn  at  the  head  of  it.  These  were  supjDoscd 
to  have  been  the  remains  of  some  Danish  warrior  who  had  fallen 
in  battle  :  an  opinion  which  seems  to  be  confirmed  by  the  quan- 
tities of  human  bones  frequently  ploughed  up  around  the  place, 

•  Page  A,  27  and  01  of  his  Survey,  &c.,  of  Worcester  Cathedral.  Also  see 
Nash,  Vol.  i.,  p.  279  ;  and,  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  pp.  34.5,  572. 

+  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  205. 

J  It  will  be  observed  in  the  account  of  Tladley  Heath  eaiiij),  i?i  Oiiibersley, 
that  R  leaden  chest  was  found  there. 


96 

and  the  traces  of  fortifications  till  of  late  distinguishable,  though 
now  overgrown  with  woods.  Dr.  Thomas  imagines  this  person 
was  Simimd  the  Dane.  The  stone  of  which  the  coffin  was  made 
so  nearly  resembled  what  is  produced  out  of  Burfox'd  quarry,  in 
Oxfordshire,  that  a  friend  of  Mr.  Habingdon,  a  great  naturalist, 
did  not  hesitate  to  affirm  it  was  hewn  from  thence*." 


BKEDICOT. 

As  some  workmen,  in  the  summer  of  1839,  were  excavating  in 
the  line  of  the  Birmingham  and  Gloucester  railroad  in  this 
parish,  they  found,  at  the  depth  of  about  two  feet  in  the  earth, 
under  the  spreading  boughs  of  a  very  large  and  ancient  pollard 
elm,  just  by  Bredicot  Court,  a  small  Roman  urn  of  red  clay,  four 
inches  and  one-eighth  high,  eleven  inches  and  a  half  round  the 
middle,  six  inches  round  the  neck,  and 
four  inches  round  the  foot.  (See  woodcut 
thereof  here  represented.)  In  shape  it 
resembles  a  skittle,  and  I  am  informed 
there  were  about  140  small  copper  coins 
in  it,  which  were  distributed  amongst  the 
workmen ;  but  the  urn  and  sixty-two  of 
the  coins  having  been  procured  for  my 
inspection,  by  Henry  Chamberlain,  Esq.,  of  the  above  covui;,  I 
found,  after  clearing  them  of  much  oxidation,  that  they  were  all 
Roman,  and  that  the  heads  upon  fifty  seven  of  them  had  the  iron 
crown.  Those  of  the  emperors  I  made  out  are  as  follow : — Seven 
of  Gallienus  ;  eleven  of  Claudius  Gothicus  ;  and  one  of  Probus  ; 
also  one  of  Salonina,  wife  of  Gallienus  ;  and  the  following  of  the 
usurpers  in  Gaul  and  Britain : — one  of  Posthumus ;  nine  of 
Victorinus  ;  twenty-four  of  Tetricus  ;  and  four  of  Carausius. 

In  the  "  Universal  Historyf,"  the  revolt  of  the  Britons  in  the 
reign  of  Gallienus,  and  the  names  of  the  usurpers  acknowledged 
in  Britain,  are  stated ;  and  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that  the 
Bredicot  urn  contained  coins  of  all  of  them  except  LoUianus  and 

•   Ilabiiigilon  M8S.  f  Vol.  xix.,  pp.  IGl,  102. 


90 

Allectus.     It  is  doubted  whether  a  genuine  coin  of  LoUiauus  has 
ever  been  found*. 

The  urn  in  question,  which  is  quite  a  little  history  of  those 
times,  was  probably  deposited  at  Bredicot  (which  lies  between  two 
and  three  miles  from  the  site  of  the  ancient  camp  at  Elbury 
Hill)  in  the  civil  wars  between  Carausius  and  Allectus,  for  I  do 
not  find  that  it  contained  any  coins  of  the  Constantine  family, 
who  succeeded  them ;  however,  as  I  have  only  seen  part  of  the 
coins  (the  others  having  been  carried  away  by  the  workmen),  the 
evidence  is  not  absolutely  conclusive  upon  the  subject.  I  pro- 
cured the  urn  and  about  forty  of  the  coins  for  the  Worcestei*shire 
Museum.  Bredicot  is  situated  about  four  miles  north-east  of 
Worcester. 

In  1846,  a  ring  was  found  near  Bredicot  churchyard,  and 
presented  to  me  by  the  rector,  the  Rev.  Wm.  Godfer}',  which  I 
sent  for  the  inspection  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,  and  which 


+THBHWTffL/THg'I7ru7TXTT 


is  figured  and  thus  noticed  in  their  Journalf.     "  The  ring  of 
base  metal,  plated  with  gold,  and  inscribed  with  a  cabalistic  or 

•  Since  the  above  was  written,  I  find  in  the  "  lUustrations  of  the  Remains 
of  Roman  Art  in  Cirencester,"  p.  142,  the  following,  in  the  list  of  Roman  coins 
discovered  there : — 

"  Laelianus. — An  usurper  in  the  reign  of  Gallieniis. 

Base  Silver.     Obv.— IMP  .  C  .  LAELIANVS  .  P.F.  AVG. 

Rev. — PAX  .  AVG.  A  female  holding  an  olive  branch." 

Lollianiis  and  Laelianus  are  supposed  to  mean  the  same  jierson.  There  is 
still,  however,  a  question  whether  tliis  coin  of  Laelianus  is  really  genuine, 

+  Vol.  iii.,  pp.  267,  268.     Also  see  p.  357  of  that  Vol. ;  and  p.  7k,  of  Vol.  v. 


97 

talismanic  legend,  was  recently  dug  up,  near  to  the  churchyard 
at  Bredicot.  It  appears  to  be  of  the  fourteenth  century." — (See 
the  woodcut  of  it.) 

Since  writing  the  above,  I  am  told,  the  inscription,  subdivided 
as  follows,  THE  BAIGVTH  GVTHANI,  is  in  a  dialect  of  the 
Saxon,  and  means,  "  the  ring  of  Guthanus  ;"  most  of  the  letters 
are  English,  and  may  have  been  made  in  imitation  of  an  earlier 
model. 


^m^^ 


98 


Jm  JJJ* 


DKOITWICH. 

At  this  place  was  discovered  an  urn,  supposed  to  be  of  the 
Roman,  or  Romano-British  period,  formed  of  coarse  gritty  clay, 
and  of  a  dark  colour ;  it  is  scored  with  lines  arranged  lozenge- 
wise,  and  measures  about  sLx  inches  in  height,  by  fourteen  in 
circumference,  at  the  widest  part.  (See  an  engraving  of  it, 
Plate  4,  No.  1.)  It  was  foimd  at  a  depth  of  three  or  four  feet,  at 
Mr.  Ellias's  salt  works,  in  St.  Peter's  Parish,  and  is  in  the  pos- 
session of  the  Rev.  W.  Lea.  In  the  adjacent  soil  were  found 
remains  of  a  human  skeleton.  The  urn  resembles  in  form  one 
found  with  Roman  remains  near  Bagshot*. 

Shortly  afterwards  further  discoveries  were  made,  the  follow- 
ing particulars  of  which  I  communicated  to  the  Archaeological 
Institute  f : — 

"  In  pursuing  my  further  researches  relative  to  the  Roman 
occupation  of  various  parts  of  Worcestershire,  I  was  anxious  to 
discover  evidences  of  such  occupation  at  Droitwich,  the  Salinae, 
or  supposed  Salinse  I,  of  the  ancients.  In  addition  to  the  Roman 
urn  found  there  during  the  excavations  for  the  foundations  of 
Mr.  Ellins's  salt-works,  the  particulars  of  which  I  communicated 
on  a  former  occasion  §,  a  fine  Roman  tesselated  pavement  has 
since  been  discovered,  about  eight  inches  beneath  the  surface,  in 
Bay's  Meadow,  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  river  Salwaq),  close 

•  See  "  Archeeologia,"  Vol.  vii.,  PL  xvi.  And  "  Arcbaeological  Journal," 
Vol.  iv.,  pp.  73,  74. 

t  Vide  "  Archaelogical  Journal,"  Vol.  iv.,  pp.  146  to  149. 

J   In  the  country  of  the  Dobuni. 

§  See  "  Archaeological  Journal,"  Vol.  iv.,  p.  73. 


7  v^  V 


J)rcttw-<'ll 


frnbt-Tjley . 


■r- 


Jff%' 


A^tUj 


HiHe^-ibrd 


Hcdl 


^^J 


Htll 


(•n/ii(<- 


Nn'ff<    J-'fi 


99 

ti)  the  town  of  Droitwicli,  and  on  the  northern  limb  of  tlie  Stoke 
Prior  branch  of  the  Oxford,  Worcester,  and  Wolverhampton  rail- 
way, being  near  the  spot  where  that  branch  joins  the  main  line. 

"  This  branch,  on  entering  Droitwich  from  Stoke  Prior,  passes 
at  the  back  of  Mr.  Ellins's  salt-works,  and,  crossing  the  Wor- 
cester and  Birmingham  turnpike  road  by  means  of  a  viaduct, 
runs  along  the  ridge  called  '  The  Vines,'  which  lies  below 
Doderhill  Church,  and  proceeds  to  a  point  a  little  beyond 
Wood's  salt-works,  where  it  is  divided  into  two  parts ;  a  little 
further  on,  upon  the  nortlieni  limb  of  it,  is  the  spot  where  the 
tesselated  pavement  was  found. 

"  A  large  portion  of  the  pavement  has  been  presented  to  the 
Museum  of  the  Worcestershire  Natural  History  Society,  by  the 
gentlemen  acting  officially  upon  the  line.     The  Rev.  William 
Lea,  of  Droitwich,  invited  me  to  the  spot  on  the  3rd  of  April 
instant  (1819),  where  I  had  the  satisfaction  of  examining  the 
pavement,  and  of  witnessing  its  removal.     It  measured  about 
three  yards  long,  and  two  yards  and  a  lialf  broad,  (but  there 
may  have  been  more  of  it  on  each  side  of  the  cutting),  and  it 
was  curiously  ornamented,  in  compartments,  with  various  inter- 
laced figures,  formed  of  white,  red,  and  blue-coloured  stones  or 
tessenc,  a  little  larger  than  dice.     The  meadow  was  formerly  a 
ploughed  field,  and  the  pavement  lay  at  the  bottom,  between  two 
plough,  lands ;  and  the  plough  must,  for  centuries,  have  passed 
over  the  pavement,  within  a  few  inches  of  it.     The  cement  in 
which  the  pavement  was  set  is  extremely  fragile  ;  and  probably 
the  constant  action  of  moisture  and  drought  which  continued  for 
so  long  a  period  in  the  hollow  between  the  two  lands,  materially 
tended  to  render  it  so.     At  a  few  yards  distance,  towai'ds  the 
east,  fragments  of  a  similai*  pavement  were  dug  up,  of  which  I 
have  sent  specimens  for  inspection.     These  were  found  much 
better  cemented  together  than  tlie  former,  owing,  perliaps,   to 
their  having  been  in  a  drier  situation,  imder  one  of  the  lands. 
The  tesserae  of  one  specimen  are  much  smaller  than  any  of  the 
rest.     Whether  the  white  and   blue  tessera)  are  composed  of 
natural  stone  or  artificial,  I  cannot  pretend  to  determine ;  the 
red   ones,   evidently,  are   bits  of  brick.     If  they   are  natural. 


100 

the  white  may  be  oolite,  and  the  blue,  probably,  are  lias.  If 
artificial,  the  white  may  have  been  made  of  either  macerated 
oolite,  or  of  a  species  of  fuller's  earth  called  '  walkers  clay*,' 
which  is  found  in  some  places  in  this  county ;  but  I  am  at  a  loss 
to  guess  of  what  material  the  blue  may  have  been  made,  unless  it 
were  macerated  lias. 

"  There  were  red  sandstone  foundations  of  a  building  at  the 
spot,  which  appeared  to  have  been  of  considerable  extent,  but  we 
did  not  discover  any  Roman  bricks.  A  small  piece  of  the  trans- 
parent talc  (said  to  be  the  lapis  specularis  of  the  Romans)  was 
found  amongst  these  remains  ;  but  whether,  as  it  has  been  con- 
jectured, it  was  used  in  the  windows  of  the  building  in  question, 
in  the  same  manner  as  we  now  use  glass,  I  cannot  pretend  to 
decide.  I  am  informed  that,  at  a  short  distance  from  these  foun- 
dations, a  layer  of  human  bones,  in  a  state  of  crumbling  decay, 
was  discovered.  Various  relics,  such  as  ii'ou  spear-heads,  a  fibula, 
key,  bronze  pins,  fragments  of  tile  scored  with  lines,  and  of 
pottery  of  various  kinds,  usually  found  near  sites  of  Roman  occu- 
pation, including  a  portion  of  '  Samian'  ware,  ornamented  in 
relief,  were  found  near  these  remains  f.  Amongst  the  earthen- 
ware may  be  noticed  a  fragment  of  one  of  those  singular  flat 
vessels,  formed  of  whitish  clay,  with  a  broad  recurved  margin, 
and  a  spout,  frequently  discovered  with  Roman  remains  J;  also 
red  pottery,  ornamented  with  chevrons,  circles,  and  dots  of  white 
clay,  in  relief.  A  portion  of  a  small  vessel  of  red  wai'e  was  found, 
resembling  one  preserved  in  the  Museum  at  Worcester,  which 
was  found  in  one  of  the  cists  in  the  Roman  burial-ground 
at  Kempsey   (see  the  woodcut,  p.  56,  No.  6).     Another  speci- 

•  "  A  walker,  (Walcher,  Dutch,)  h  fuller."' — Bailey's  Diet. 

f  A  considerable  number  of  these  reuiaius,  with  specimens  of  the  tesselated 
pavement,  were  sent  by  the  Rev.  William  Lea,  of  Droitwich,  and  myself,  for 
the  inspection  of  the  Archaeological  Institute ;  and  those  that  belonged  to  nie  I 
presented  to  their  museum. 

J  These  vessels  are  usually  marked  with  a  stamp  near  the  spout.  Repre- 
sentations of  some,  found  in  London,  may  be  seen  in  the  "  Archoeologia," 
Vol.  viii,  pi.  X.:  vol.  xii.,  pi.  li. ;  and  of  one  found  in  Eekington  in  p.  74  of 
this  work. 


101 

men,  in  my  possession,  was  found  with  Roman  remains,  during 
the  formation  of  the  Severn  navigation  lock,  at  Diglis,  near  Wor- 
cester. An  ornamental  bronze  pin,  double-pointed,  like  the  nock 
of  an  arrow,  and  perforated  at  the  other  extremity,  was  found  in 
the  earth  where  the  pavement  lay*.  A  bronze  pin  was  found 
amongst  Roman  relics,  during  the  demolition  of  the  Castle  Hill 
at  Worcester,  resembling  this  in  its  bifid  point ;  but  the  head, 
which  is  not  perforated,  is  formed  of  stone,  or  vitrified  paste  f. 

"  A  large  immber  of  Roman  brass  coins  have  been  found 
all  along  the  line  at  Droitwich,  some  previously  to,  and  others 
during  the  cuttings,  particularly  in  '  Bay's  Meadow,'  and  in  that 
part  called  '  The  Vines,'  which  is  a  high  ridge  on  tlie  northern 
side  of  the  river  Salwarp,  well  exposed  to  the  sun,  and  very 
suitable  for  a  vineyard  I ;  possibly  it  may  have  been  so  used  even 
by  the  Romans,  or  in  later  times  by  tlie  brethren  of  the  Friary  of 
St.  Augustine,  in  Wich,  or  Doderhill,  or  by  the  prior  and  convent 
of  Worcester,  who  possessed  considerable  property  there  §. 

"  The  Roman  coins  which  have  been  found  at  Droitwich 
amount  to  a  considerable  number.  I  have  seen  about  fifty  in  the 
hands  of  different  persons ;  and  among  them  were  brass  coins  of 
Hadrian,  Gallienus,  Claudius  II.,  several  of  Carausius  and  Con- 
stantius.  I  have  also  examined  a  collection  belonging  to  a  gen- 
tleman, late  of  Droitwich,  now  resident  at  Worcester,  which 
includes  coins  of  Maximian,  Carausius,  Constantius,   Licinius, 

•  This  may  possibly  have  been  llie  acus  of  some  kind  of  fibula;  but  see 
below,  note  +. 

+  See  woodcut  of  tlie  Castle  Hill  relic,  p.  18,  and  an  account  of  its  proba- 
ble use,  pp.  21,  22. 

J  It  is  stated  that  formerly  it  had  several  terraces  miming  along  it,  one 
above  another. 

§  There  are  a  great  many  fields,  and  other  places  in  Worcestershire,  called  by 
the  name  of  "  Vineyard  ; "  and  it  has  been  supposed  by  some  writers  that 
the  Romans  planted  vineyards  in  Britain.  See  the  general  account  of 
the  Vineyards.  Also  Dr.  Nashs  notice  of  the  above-mentioned  place, 
called  "  The  Vines,"  in  his  "  History  of  Worcestershire,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  307. 
The  subject  of  ilie  cnltuie  of  the  vine  in  Britain  is  discussed  at  length  in  the 
papers  by  Pegge  and  Daincs  Burriugton,  *' .\rchicologia,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  321; 
Vol,  iii.,  p.  (i7. 


102 

Constantine,  Crispus,  Magnentius,  Valens,  and  Gratian,  and 
about  sixteen  others,  which  I  cannot  decipher.  He  states  that 
most  of  them  were  from  time  to  time  found  at  '  The  Vines,' 
when  that  part  was  used  as  gardens.  And  it  may  be  remarked, 
that  on  the  side  of  an  elevation,  called  '  Pigeon-house  Hill,'  by 
Longbridge,  at  the  north  end  of  Bromsgrove  Lickey,  which  is 
on  or  near  the  supposed  line  of  the  Upper  Saltway  from  Droitwich 
to  Birmingham,  seventeen  Roman  coins  were  found,  now  in  the 
possession  of  the  same  gentleman  ;  and  I  have  identified  the 
following  : — Claudius  II.,  Dioclesian,  Maximian,  Constantius, 
Constantine,  and  one  on  which  may  be  read  '  Constantinopolis.' 

"  From  all  these  facts,  we  now  have  abundant  evidence  of 
Roman  occupation  at  Droitwich,  which  heretofore  had  been 
only  matter  of  conjectm'e.  Dr.  Nash  remarks,  in  his  account  of 
Droitwich,  '  This  town  was  probably  known  to  the  Romans.  In 
the  map  published  by  Mr.  Bertram  of  Copenhagen,  and  prefixed 
to  the  "  Britannicarum  Gentium  Historia)  Antiquae  Scriptores," 
it  is  noticed  by  the  name  of  "  Salinse,"  though  some  imagine 
the  "  Salinae "  of  the  ancients  means  Sandy,  or  Salndy,  in 
Bedfordshire,  or  perhaps  some  of  the  Lancashire  or  Cheshire 
wiches*.' 

"  The  question  remains  for  investigation,  whether  the  salt- 
springs  at  Droitwich  were  known  to  and  worked  by  the  ancient 
Britons.  Although  we  have  not  as  yet  found  any  relics  in  proof 
that  they  were,  yet  it  may  be  safely  concluded  in  tlie  affirmative, 
as  the  Upper  and  Lower  Salt-way  ran  from  Droitwich  towards  the 
extremities  of  the  kingdom  ;  and  they  arc  generally  admitted  to 
have  been  British  f." 

With  respect  to  the  substances  of  which  tessera}  were  made,  see 
"  Illustrations  of  the  Remains  of  Roman  Art  in  Cirencester,  the 
Site  of  ancient  Corinium,"  p.  49,  &c.,  from  which  it  is  pretty 
evident,  that  what  we  have  before  described  as  white,  or  rather 
cream-coloured,  are  oolite  ;  and  that  the  blue,  or  slate  coloured, 

*  "  History  of  Wori-estorsliire,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  .'!()2. 

+  Sof  Mr.  Ilaiclier's  obscrviitions  on  the  Salt-wiijs,  in  liis  "  Coniiiicntiir}' 
on  Riolmnl  of  Cirrncestcr,"  ji.  110;  and  the  "  lutrotUuaion  to  ilie  Beauties 
of  Kngliuul,"    p.  (il 


103 

are  lias.  With  respect  to  Sandy  or  Salndy  above  referred  to, 
it  Ls  situated  on  the  Roman  or  Ikenild  Street,  in  Bedfordshire, 
and  is  supposed  by  some  to  be  the  SaXijvai  of  Ptolemy,  and  the 
salinse  of  the  geographer  of  Ravenna.  See  the  "  Proceedings  of 
the  Society  of  Antiquaries,"  Vol.  ii.,  1851,  No.  24,  p.  109, 
wherein  Roman  relics  found  at  Salndy  are  described*. 

It  must  also  be  stated  here,  that  iron  nails,  of  somewhat 
pecuhar  form,  occurred  amongst  the  Droitwich  relics;  and  I 
learned  from  the  late  Dean  of  Hereford  (Dr.  Merryweather)  that 
nails,  identical  in  form,  had  been  noticed  at  Kentchester,  sup- 
posed to  have  been  used  in  Roman  times,  to  fasten  the  tiles  of 
roofing.  The  Dean  had  also  found  similar  nails  in  the  course  of 
recent  investigations  of  Roman  remains  in  Wiltshire.  They 
most  nearly  resemble  what  are  termed  "  clout  nails."  The 
surface  of  the  little  chest  found  at  Rainbow  Hillf,  near  Wor- 
cester, in  railway  operations,  was  thickly  set  with  nails  of  similar 
form,  but  mostly  of  greater  length  J. 

An  ancient  urn,  apparently  of  Roman  fabrication,  was  also 
discovered  in  excavations  during  the  formation  of  the  railway  at 
Droitwich,  in  1847.  This  vessel,  as  it  was  supposed,  from  the 
appearance  of  decomposition  which  it  had  suffered,  had  been  used 
in  early  times  in  the  manufacture  of  salt§.  It  is  seven  inches 
high  and  twenty-two  inches  round  the  broadest  part||. — (See  an 
engra\ing  of  it,  pi.  4,  No.  2,  p.  98.) 

A  curious  discovery  was  also  made  near  Droitwich,  the  par- 
ticulars of  which  I  gave  to  the  "  Worcester  Herald,"  and  which 
appeared  on  the  27th  January,  1838,  as  follows  : — 

In  the  month  of  December,  1837,  as  the  sexton  was  digging  a 
grave  in  the  recently  consecrated  ground  of  the  parish  of  Saint 
Mary  Witton,  which  lies  upon  a  rising  spot  adjoining  the  Wor- 
cester road,  near  Droitwich,  his  spade  suddenly  penetrated  into 

•  Also  see  tlie  "  Archaeologia,"  Vol.  xxxi.,  p.  25-1,  relative  to  a  fine  Roman 
um  found  in  that  parish. 
+  See  p.  'i-i. 

J  See  "  Archseolog^ical  Institute  Jounial,"  Vol.  vi.,  p.  404. 
§  Ibid. 
II  I  presented  it  to  tlic  Museum  of  tlic  Archaeological  Institute. 


104 

a  hollow  place ;  and  upon  digging  further,  two  pamllel  rows  of 
circular  arches  were  found,  which  appeared  to  be  of  great  anti- 
quity, from  the  curious  form  of  the  bricks  of  which  they  were 
built,  and  the  mouldering  condition  of  them  upon  being  exposed 
to  the  atmosphere. 

Hearing  of  this,  I  visited  the  place ;  and  finding  that  the  exca- 
vation was  filled  up  again  to  prevent  depredation,  by  the  direction 
of  the  Rev.  John  Topham,  the  rector  of  the  parish,  he,  at  my  re- 
quest, kindly  promised  to  have  the  same  reopened  for  the  inspec- 
tion of  such  archseologists  and  others  as  might  wish  to  attend ;  and 
accordingly,  on  the  3rd  January,  1838,  several  gentlemen  attended 
the  reopening  at  my  request ;  among  whom  were  Matthew  Hol- 
beche  Bloxam,  Esq.,  of  Rugby,  and  Thomas  Henry  Spurrier,  Esq., 
of  Edgbaston,  near  Birmingham ;  and,  upon  inspecting  the  arches, 
we  all  agreed  that  they  were  built  of  the  flooring  of  the  ancient 
church,  which  formerly  stood  within  thirty  yards  of  the  spot,  and 
that  they  were  not  Roman  or  Romanized  British,  or  early  Saxon, 
as  had  been  supposed. 

The  arches  were  rather  flattened,  and  there  were  several  of 
them  in  each  row,  and  each  of  them  was  two  feet  two  inches  high, 
two  feet  four  inches  broad,  and  six  and  a  half  inches  deep ;  that  is 
the  depth  of  the  length  of  the  bricks  of  which  they  were  built ; 
these  bricks  are  five  and  a  half  inches  broad,  and  one  inch  and 
three  quarters  thick,  and  are  squared  at  the  corners  on  the 
one  side.  The  intervening  space  between  each  arch  was  five 
inches ;  that  is  the  diameter  of  the  encaustic  tiles  which  filled 
up  the  sides  between  the  arches  to  the  bend  of  them,  and 
which  tiles  were  cemented  hoiizontally  upon  one  another  with 
red  cement.  The  whole  resembled  the  skeleton  of  the  back  of 
a  horse  or  an  ox. 

The  bricks  in  the  arches  were  strongly  cemented  together,  and 
the  edges  of  them  and  of  the  tiles,  which  were  inwards,  were 
highly  vitrified,  proving  that  strong  fires  had  been  used  within 
the  arches.  The  crowns  of  the  arches  were  several  feet  deep 
beneath  the  level  of  the  ground. 

At  the  bottom  of  the  archways  there  was  a  quantity  of  black 
Hbhcs  of  burnt  wood,  and  a  few  frai'mcntb  of  a  burnt  bone,  tliouuht 


105 

to  be  that  of  the  stag  kind ;  and  the  archways  were  nearly  filled 
up  with  apparently  filtrated  earth. 

Now  the  question  is,  what  were  these  archways  built  for  ?  The 
only  guess  we  could  give  upon  the  inspection  was,  that  they  were 
ancient  stoves  upon  which  salt-pans  or  furnaces  were  placed  for 
the  converting  of  brine  into  salt.  But  then  why  should  stoves 
have  been  erected  upon  this  elevation  so  far  out  of  Droitwich, 
unless  salt-springs  existed,  and  were  worked  at  the  time  in 
question. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Topham  and  Mr.  Frances,  of  Droitwich,  kindly 
presented  me  with  several  of  the  encaustic  tiles  for  the  Wor- 
cestershire Museum.  These  are  said  to  have  been  made  in  the 
twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries.  One  of  them  contains  the 
representation  of  an  archer  with  a  long  bow,  dog,  trees,  and 
something  hke  an  owl ;  another  has  two  birds  with  their  backs 
towards,  but  looking  at  each  other ;  another  has  a  lion ;  another 
has  tlie  first  half  of  the  alphabet  in  Longobardic  characters ; 
another  has  fleur-de-lis  ;  and  another  has  the  ancient  symbol  of 
the  Christian  faith,  viz.,  a  fish  enveloped  in  its  own  bladder,  like 
an  oval  ring,  styled  by  antiquarians  "  Vesica  piscis."  This  sym- 
bol is  often  mentioned  in  works  on  antiquarian  remains,  but  is 
said  to  be  very  rarely  found  either  in  museums  or  in  the  cabinets 
of  the  curious.  The  Greek  word  'I-^6v<i,  a  fish,  being  the  anagram 
signifying  "  Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of  God  the  Saviour,"  and  by 
this  secret  sign  were  the  early  disciples  of  the  faith  known  to 
each  other. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  his  account  of  Droitwich,  says,  "  the  parish  of 
St.  Mary  Witton  was  united  with  St.  Andrews,  13th  Charles  11. 
No  remains  are  discernible  of  the  buildings  of  the  church,  nor  is 
any  account  preserved  of  its  arms,  monuments,  or  paintings.  It 
stood  on  a  rising  ground  to  the  south-west  of  the  town,  near  the 
turnpike  road  leading  from  Droitwich  to  Worcester.  Many 
human  bones  are  seen  here,  part  of  the  churchyard  liaving  been 
cut  away  to  widen  the  road." 

Some  time  after  the  above-mentioned  investigations  were  made, 
I  conununicated  the  p;irticnUirs  to  Albert  Way,  Esq.,  late  Director 
of  tlie  Society  of  Antiquaries,  who  ^ave  it  as  his  ojanion  that  it 


106 

was  the  site  of  encaustic  tile  works,  as  stated  iu  the  •'  Gentleman's 
Magazine,"  1844*,  as  follows: — 

"  With  regard  to  the  tiles  with  impressed  designs  in  red  and 
white,  it  may  be  affirmed  that  they  were  manufactured  in  this 
country,  from  the  fact  that  kUns  for  burning  them  have  been  dis- 
covered, and  especially  one,  which  was  brought  to  light  in  1833, 
in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  Priory  of  Great  Malvern.  This 
kiln  supplied,  there  can  be  little  doubt,  the  rich  variety  of  tiles 
which,  as  it  appears  either  by  the  dates  imprinted  on  them,  or 
the  distinctive  character  of  ornament,  were  fabricated  at  the 
period  when  the  Priory  Church  was  rebuilt,  about  the  middle  of 
the  fourteenth  century. 

"  A  representation  of  this  kiln,  with  a  description  by  Harvey 
Eginton,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  may  be  seen  in  Dr.  Card's  account  of  the 
Prioiy  Church.  In  December,  1837,  a  second  kiln,  of  similar 
construction,  was  discovered  near  Droitwich,  in  a  recently  con- 
secrated cemetery  in  the  parish  of  St.  Mary  Witton.  A  number 
of  tiles,  identical  with  those  still  existing  in  Worcester  Cathe- 
dral and  the  Priory  Church  of  Malvern,  were  found  piled  up 
therein ;  but,  from  an  eiToneous  idea,  as  I  believe,  that  tliis  kiln 
was  an  ancient  salt-work,  no  sufficient  notice  was  taken  of  the 
discovery.  The  tiles  found  at  this  place  appear  to  be  of  the 
fourteenth  century." 

I  have  only  to  add,  that  the  piles  of  encaustic  tiles  which  were 
found  within  the  arches  at  Droitwich,  and  which  were  built  up 
in  columns  with  cement,  probably  were  wastrel  tiles,  which  were 
so  used,  between  which  to  burn  or  bake  those  which  were  being 
manufactured. 

OMBERSLEYf. 

A  mass  of  fragments  of  Roman  red  earth  pottery,  and  a  few 
pieces  of  Samian  ware,  were  discovered  by  Mr.  John  Amplilett, 
of  Tapenhall,  in  two  mounds,  on  Hadley  Heath   Common,  in 

*  New  Series,  pp.  402,  493. 

+  Otherwise,  Anibresley,  Ambreslege,  Anibresloy,  Ombreslcy,  luid  Aiiibersley. 
It  is  called  Ambreslege  in  "  Domesday  Book." 


107 

this  parish ;  which  mounds,  upon  the  enclosure  of  the  common, 
about  the  year  1815,  were  levelled.  These  mounds  appear  to 
have  been  the  relics  of  Roman  pottery  works.  One  of  them 
stood  within,  and  the  other  just  without  the  site  of  a  Roman  camp 
at  that  place.  Mr.  Amphlett  presented  some  of  the  specimens  of 
the  pottery  to  the  Worcester  Museum,  and  they  exactly  correspond 
in  cliaracter  with  those  which  I  obtained  from  Kempsey  and 
Ripple. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  the  second  volume  of  his  "  History,"  page  216, 
says  that  "  Bishop  Kennett,  in  his  '  Parochial  Antiquities,' 
pages  23  and  24,  derives  the  name  Ambresloy*  from  Aurelius 
Ambrosius,  whom  Gildas  makes  of  Roman  extraction,  and  who 
survived  the  murder  of  his  royal  parents.  Other  historians 
report  him  to  be  the  son  of  Constantino,  King  of  Britain,  by  a 
Roman  lady,  born  about  the  year  435.  The  Bishop  supposes 
Ambresloy,  like  Ambrosden,  to  have  alluded  to  some  camp  or 
scene  of  action  of  this  victorious  prince,  who  defeated  the  Saxons 
under  Hengist,  at  Wippedflit,  in  Kent ;  then  marched  to  York ; 
in  his  return  from  which  place  to  Winchester  and  Salisbury  he 
would  naturally  pass  through  Worcestersliire."  But  Ambresley 
more  probably  was  derived  from  the  word  "  ambre,"  as  we 
sliall  state  in  the  section  entitled  "  Ambrosiae  Petrao." 

A  few  years  back,  upon  visiting  Hadley  Heath,  in  company 
with  H.  B.  Peake,  Esq.,  and  Mr.  Amphlett,  the  latter  gentleman 
pointed  out  to  us  where  the  intrenchnients  lay,  rehcs  of  which 
still  remain  in  places,  though  much  effaced  by  the  plough  and 
spade :  there  are,  however,  several  sections  of  them  in  tliat  part 
of  the  common  which  has  not  been  enclosed.  Mr  Amphlett 
thought  that  the  lines  of  intrcnchment  extended  round  an  oblong 
square  of  between  two  and  three  miles  in  circumference,  and 
informed  us  that  the  workmen,  who  were  employed  at  the  enclosure, 
dug  up,  at  the  south-east  side  of  the  camp,  a  leaden  chest,  upon 
which  was  an  inscription  ;  that  the  finders  broke  it  to  pieces,  and 

•  The  learned  Bishop  thii.s  (h^soribes  the  place  in  question  : — "  A  parish  in 
VVt)rce»tershire ;  though  corniptly  aiUod  Onibresly,  is  truly  Auibreslev  or 
Ambresloy,  as  in  a  donation  of  lands  by  Kj^wyn,  Bishop  of  Worcester,  to  the 
monastery  of  Eveshiuu, in tluit  county.' — (Siwhuau,  "(.'oneil.,"Toui.  l,p.  201).) 


108 

sold  it  as  old  materials ;  and  that  a  tumulus  close  by,  which  con- 
tained burnt  bones,  was  levelled.  He  likewise  pointed  out  to  us 
that  part  which  is  considered  to  have  been  the  prjEtorium.  It 
lies  in  a  ploughed  field,  now  called  Castle  Hill,  and  abuts  against 
a  copse  called  Knight  s  Grove.  This  prsetorium  was  about  eighty 
yards  long  and  seventy  broad,  and  the  trench  all  round  it  is  still 
visible,  particularly  so  on  the  wood  side.  In  the  same  field  as  the 
prsetorium,  one  of  the  mounds,  which  contained  the  fragments  of 
pottery,  stood ;  and  we  found  several  specimens  at  the  spot.  Mr. 
Amphlett  also  said,  that  near  this  mound  the  upper  or  concave 
stone  of  one  of  the  ancient  hand-mills  was  discovered,  named  by 
the  inhabitants,  "  querns*."  We  also  examined  the  spot  called 
"  Priest  Stile,"  where  the  other  mound  stood,  which  contained 
the  fragments  of  potter}',  and  of  which  pottery  we  found  seveml 
specimens.  This  place  lies  near  the  north-west  comer  of  the 
camp. 

The  same  observations  which  I  made  relative  to  the  situation 
of  Oldbury,  near  Worcester,  apply  with  equal  force  to  tliis  locality, 
as  it  is  a  fine  upland  situation,  and  would  communicate  with 
nearly  all  the  principal  hills  in  the  county,  particularly  with  the 
northern  ones. 

There  is  a  trench,  which  runs  through  the  site  of  this  camp, 
and  thence  in  a  southern  direction  to  Salwarp  Brook,  to  a  point 
called  Harford ;  and  Mr.  Amplilett  considered  that  it  was  a  Roman 
road,  which  went  from  thence  to  Newland  Common,  iu  Salwaqj 
parish,  and  joined  the  Trench  Lane. 

An  ancient  British  celt,  in  bronze,  and  of  an  early  form,  was, 
a  few  years  back,  dug  up  about  nine  inches  below  the  surface,  in 
a  field  which  was  formerly  part  of  Lynal  (Linnal  or  Lineholt) 
Common,  by  Borley,  in  Ombersley.  It  was,  in  the  year  1844, 
presented  to  the  Worcestershire  Natural  History  Society  by  the 
Hon.  and  Rev.  W.  Talbot,  the  vicar  of  that  parish. 

•  There  is  a  uetlier,  or  convex  stone,  of  one  of  tliese  mills  in  the  Worcester- 
shire Museum,  which  was  found  in  a  hog  at  Pool,  near  Stourport ;  it  measures 
thiity nine  indies  in  circumference.  It  is  said  that  the  more  modern  (luerns 
arc  not  concave  and  convex,  but  flat,  and  approximate  to  tliose  of  the  modern 
corn  mills.     There  are  flat  (piernb  in  the  Scarborough  Museum. 


109 

This  celt,  which  was  cast  in  a  mould,  is  six  inches  and  a  quarter 
long,  weighs  seventeen  ounces  and  a  half,  and  has  a  fine  and 
highly-polished  patina  incrusted  upon  it. — (See  the  engraving, 
Plate  4,  No.  3,  p.  98.) 


SALWARP. 

We  also  examined  this  district,  and  considered  that  the  Trench 
Road,  referred  to  in  the  account  of  Ombersley,  lay  in  or  near  the 
line  of  the  present  lane,  which  runs  eastward  from  near  Salwai-p 
Brook,  at  Harford,  to  the  Birmingham  and  Worcester  turnpike- 
road  at  Copcott  Elm,  near  Droitwich,  where  it  crosses  and  con- 
tinues round  the  north  end  of  Newland  Common  to  the  Trench 
Lane,  which  runs  south-eastward  through  Oddingley,  and  along 
the  east  side  of  the  Trench  Woods*,  through  Hodington  to  the 
turnpike-road.  It  most  probably,  however,  crossed  there,  and 
continued  southward  along  or  near  the  present  by-roads  to  Per- 
shore,  or  it  may  have  gone  more  to  the  south-east  to  Evesham, 
and  there  joined  the  Rycknield  Street.  Mr.  Amphlett  was  of 
opinion  that  it  continued  from  Hadley  Heath  northward  to 
Wassal  Hill  Camp,  near  Bewdley ;  but  of  this  he  said  he  had  no 
certain  information.  He  also  supposed  that  another  Roman 
trench  road  branched  northward  from  the  north  end  of  the  Trench 
Lane,  at  Newland  Common,  in  or  near  the  line  of  the  present 
by-road,  which  runs  from  thence  through  Droitwich  ;  and  ho 
said  that  it  could  be  distinctly  traced  in  places  through  Chad- 
desley,  BluTitington,  Tan  Wood  Common,  Hill  Pool,  and  over 
Harborow  Hill  (where  there  is  an  intrenchment,)  towards  Wich- 
bury  Hill,  &c,.,  and  that  this  road  is  called  the  King's  Headland  at 
the  latter  part ;  tlmt  there  was  a  viaduct  at  Hill  Pool  over  Bamett 
Brook;  and  that  traces  of  the  road  are  ver}-  distinct  in  several 
parts  from  Bluntington,  through  Tan  Woodf,  to  Hill  Pool,  for 

•  Tlie  Trench  Lann  is  crossed  at  the  northern  end  of  the  Trench  Woods  by 
the  BirniinRhani  and  Bristol  railway. 

f  As  to  the  origin  of  this  name  see  "  Cliaddesley  Corhctt." 


no 

more  than  a  mile,  and  occasionally  onwards  to  Harborow,  and 
from  the  latter  place  almost  continuously  to  Stourbridge  Com- 
mon, where,  by  a  place  called  Green's  Forge,  is  a  vast  camp  called 
the  Churchyai'd.  This  no  doubt  is  the  road  which  Bishop  Lyt- 
tleton  spoke  of,  as  passing  in  the  line  from  Stourbridge  Common 
to  that  of  Hagley,  and  he  suspected  that  it  also  proceeded  through 
Clent  and  Chaddesley  towards  Worcester*  ;  if  so,  it  probably  either 
crossed  at  the  north  end  of  the  Trench  Lane,  and  proceeded  through 
Oddingley  by  Cold  Harborough,  or  Cold  Harbour,  and  Smite 
Hill  in  Hindlip,  and  through  Warndon  and  by  Trotshill  or  Toots- 
hill  and  Elbury  Hill,  and  along  the  Port-fields  Road,  by  Harbour 
Hill,  and  through  Lowesmoor  to  Worcester.  Or  it  continued 
along  the  Trench  Lane  to  the  south-east  end  of  the  Trench 
Woods,  and  then  branched  off  westward  through  Crowle,  and  by 
Ravenhill  in  Tibberton,  and  through  Bredicot  and  the  trench 
at  Kings  Hill,  at  the  north  end  of  Perry  Woodf,  to  Worcester, 
and  passed  out  of  the  city  on  the  Sidbury  side,  and  through 
Kempsey  and  Severn  Stoke  and  joined  the  Rycknield  Street  near 
Tewkesbury. 

We  also  examined  Newland  Common,  which  is  a  fine  upland 
situation  like  Oldbury,  and  found  that  there  is  a  deep  trench, 
which  runs  southward  from  near  the  road  at  the  north  end  of  the 
Common  to  the  highest  part,  now  called  Bunker's  Hill.  A  person 
of  the  name  of  Thomas  Garfield,  who  was,  as  we  passed,  working 
in  the  Trench  Lane,  told  us  that  the  trench  on  the  Common  was 
much  deeper  before  the  enclosui*e  than  it  now  is,  and  that  about 
the  year  1822,  six  or  seven  years  after  the  enclosure,  whilst  re- 
moving some  tumps  or  mounds  of  earth,  four  or  five  in  number, 
which  lay  about  twenty  yards  apart  from  each  other,  upon  the 
top  of  Bunker's  Hill,  he  found  that  each  mound  contained  a  kind 
of  iron  hoop  or  ring,  about  five  feet  in  diameter,  four  inches 
broad  and  two  inches  thick ;  that  these  rings,  nearly  decayed 
with  age  and  rust,  were  situated  in  the  centre  and  at  the  bottom 
of  the  mounds,  which  were  composed  of  sifted  earth,  and  were 

*    J'iil)!  Nasli,  Vol.  ii.,  Appendix,  p.  cvii.,  &c. 

+  See  tlie  remarks  respecting  this  trench  in  the  accotint  of  Perry  Wood. 


Ill 

each  about  eight  yards  in  diameter  and  five  feet  high  ;  no  appear- 
ance of  any  bones  or  ashes  being  observable  in  them.  I  was  not  able 
to  form  an  opinion  as  to  what  purpose  these  moimds  and  rings 
served,  or  to  what  people  they  are  to  be  attributed  ;  but  the  late 
Sir  S.  R.  Meyrick,  in  a  letter  to  me,  remarked  "  that  the  large 
iron  rings,  if  tending  towards  a  cone,  like  one  side  of  a  quoit, 
may  have  been  the  edge-guards  of  Anglo-Saxon  convex  shields, 
but  then  the  iron  bosses  should  have  been  found  in  the  centre." 

STOKE  PRIOR. 

Having  heard  that  some  antiquities  were  found  in  the  hne  of 
the  Birmingham  and  Gloucester  railway,  at  Stoke  Prior,  west  of 
the  salt  works,  in  a  piece  of  land  belonging  to  the  vicarage,  I 
went  there  in  1839,  when  the  workmen  exhibited  to  me  two  rude 
bracelets  made  of  brass  found  near  to  each  other  about  tlnee  or 
four  feet  deep  in  the  marl,  together  with  fragments  of  a  human 
skeleton,  portions  of  wliich  I  saw.  Pieces  of  the  bones  were 
within  the  bracelets  at  the  time  they  were  dug  up. 

Some  hewn  blocks  of  sandstone,  perhaps  part  of  the  foundation 
of  a  buildmg  or  tomb,  had  also  been  excavated  within  a  few 
yards  of  tlie  spot,  and  likewise  fragments  of  the  bones  of  some 
animal ;  it  appeared  that  in  days  of  yore  holes  had  been  dug 
there  three  or  four  feet  deep,  and  filled  up  again  with  large  un- 
broken pebbles  from  a  gravel  bed.  These  holes  evidently  were 
not  cists,  as  the  pebbles  were  not  broken,  like  those  at  the  cists 
at  Kempsey*,  and  I  was  at  first  very  much  puzzled  to  assign  any 
use  to  them ;  it  may,  however,  be  inferred  that  they  were  holes 
or  ovens  in  which  food  was  cooked,  or  cakes  baked,  and  which  the 
Welsh  denominate  Greidiols,  and  the  English  Gredles  f. 

This  custom  seems  to  be  alluded  to  in  the  epic  of  "  Fingal" 
in  Ossian's  Poems,  of  wliich  the  following  is  an  extract ;  and  also 
the  note  wliich  Mr.  Macpherson  added  to  it  | : — 

•  See  p.  54. 

+  See  Whitaker's  "  History  of  Mancliestcr,"  Vol.  ii,,  p.  54. 

J  See  Denham  and  Dick's  edition,  iHOf),  Vol.  i.     "  Fiugal,"  Book  i.,  p.  15!). 


lis 

"It  was  on  Cromla's  shaggy  side  that  Dorglas  placed  the  deer*; 
Tlie  early  fortune  of  the  chase,  before  the  heroes  left  die  hill. 
A  hundred  youths  collect  the  heath ;  ten  heroes  blow  the  fire ; 
Three  hundred  chuse  the  polished  stones.    The  feast  is  smoking  wide." 

The  bracelets  are  not  exactly  of  equal  size ;  the  smallest, 
which  is  the  thickest  and  broadest,  being  quite  plain  and  edged 
at  each  end ;  while  the  other  is  slightly  ornamented  with  two  or 
three  indents  at  each  endf,  and  quite  blunt.  I  am  informed 
that  a  brass  gilt  armilla  or  bracelet  of  the  late  British  or  early 
Saxon  era,  and  like  the  two  in  question,  was  found  in  1 780,  in  a 
barrow  on  Chatham  Downs ;  and,  since  I  was  at  Stoke  Prior,  I 
learned  that  the  fragments  of  two  tiles  were  discovered  at  the  spot 
in  question,  one  of  them  containing  two  or  three  circles  upon  it, 
within  each  other  ;  but  I  rather  think  they  are  encaustic,  and  of 
a  later  date. 

A  bracelet  very  similar  to  the  beaded  one  is  given  in  Mont- 
faucon's  work  on  "  Grecian  and  Roman  Antiquities  J." 

LINCOMB  IN  ASTLEY. 

An  ancient  British  celt,  of  the  earliest  form,  cast  in  bronze, 
was,  in  the  year  1843,  found  in  the  cleft  of  a  rock,  21  feet 
0  inches  below  the  alluvium,  and  about  45  yards  from  the  bank 
of  the  river  Severn  at  Lincomb  in  Astley§.  This  celt  was  found 
on  making  a  cutting  for  the  lock  for  the  improvement  of  tlie 
Severn  navigation.  (See  an  engraving  of  it,  Plate  4,  No.  4,  p.  98.) 
It  weighs  nearly  one  pound  and  a  quarter,  and  is  about  six  inches 

*  "  The  ancient  manner  of  preparing  feasts  after  hunting  is  handed  down 
by  tradition.  A  pit  lined  with  smooth  stones  was  matle ;  and  near  it  stood  a 
heap  of  smooth  flat  stones  of  the  flint  kind.  The  stones,  as  well  as  the  pit, 
were  properly  heated  with  heath.  Then  they  laid  some  venison  in  the  bottom, 
and  a  stratum  of  the  stones  above  it ;  and  thus  they  did  alternately  till  tlie  pit 
was  full.  The  whole  was  covered  over  with  heatli  to  confine  the  steam. 
Whether  diis  is  probable  I  cannot  say ;  but  some  pits  are  shown,  which  the 
viilgar  say  were  used  in  that  manner." 

+  This  one  is  in  the  Museum  of  Practical  Geology  in  London. 

♦  Vol.  iii..  Part  i.,  p.  .^0,  fig.  3. 

§  Lincomb  is  partly  in  Astley,  and  partly  in  Hartleburj-. 


113 

and  a  quarter  long,  three  inches  broad  at  one  end,  and  one  inch 
at  the  other.  Upon  it  is  a  highly  polished  patina.  These  par- 
ticulars were  furnished  me  by  Mr.  Lutley,  of  Worcester,  one  of 
the  contractors  for  the  navigation  works. 

A  similar  celt  is  depicted  and  described  in  the  "  Journal  of 
the  Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  ix.,  p.  8,  and  stated  to  be  "  of 
the  form  known  to  the  antiquaries  of  the  North  as  Palstaves." 

HARTLEBURY. 

It  was  remarked  by  the  late  Mr.  Watson,  in  Fasciculus  II.,  of 
the  "  Statistical  and  General  History  of  Worcestershire*,"  that, 
"  when  standing  upon  Hartlebury  Common,  in  such  a  situation 
as  to  exclude  the  view  of  the  surrounding  country,  an  individual 
might  easily  be  carried  in  imagination  to  the  plains  of  Wiltshire, 
with  all  their  recollections  and  sissociations.  Immediately  be- 
neath the  brow  of  the  hill  are  a  number  of  mounds,  in  appearance 
like  tumuli  f ;  behind  is  the  village  of  Torton  (Thorstown  ?) ;  a 
few  miles  to  the  right  is  Tan  I  Wood ;  towards  the  south  §,  at  the 
distance  of  five  miles,  is  WoodberryU  (Woodesberry  ?)  with  the 
surrounding  district,  Witley,  the  Holy  Placed!;  while  beneath 
his  feet  the  lichens  creep  upon  the  arid  soil,  and  here  and  there 
is  seen  a  little  yellow  flower  or  harebell,  sheltered  by  a  patch  of 
of  furze  or  heath.  Though  there  are  no  remains  of  Druidical 
structures  in  tliis  neighbourhood,  still  the  coincidence  of  names 
of  places  with  those  upon  the  Wiltshire  Downs  is  remarkable." 

Dr.  James  Nash,  of  Worcester,  has  a  copper  coin  of  the  Roman 
Emperor  Alexander,  found  at  Lincomb,  in  Hartlebury  parish. 

•   Publislied  under  the  superintendence  of  the  Statistical  Cowniittee  of  the 
Worcestershire  Natural  Historj-  Society,  1h:(!1,  page  0  of"  The  History  of  the 
the  Parish  of  Hartleburj-,"  by  Kenrick  Watson,  Esq.,  of  Stourport. 
•f  "  Stone  arrows  have  been  found  near  to  these  mounds," 
J  "  Tan,  pronounced  Taan,  is  a  Welsh  word  signifying  fire." 
§  See  the  account  of  Tan  Wood  ui  tlie  description  of  Chaddesley  Corbett. 
I!   Woodbury. 

^  The  parish  of  Great  Witley  has  been  described  by  the  Revs.  Thomas  and 
John  Pearson,  in  Fasciculus  I.  of  the  above  history;  and  Areley  Kings,  and 
Shrawley,  in  Fasciculus  III.,  by  Mr.  Watson. 

I 


114 

BROMSGROVE. 

The  following  notice  of  "  The  Jovial  Hunter  of  Bromsgrove" 
is  mainly  extracted  from  a  pamphlet  published  by  me  in  the  year 
1845,  under  the  title  of  "  The  Jovial  Hunter  of  Bromsgrove, 
Home  the  Hunter,  and  Robin  Hood." 

In  the  introduction  to  "  The  First  Sketch  of  Shakespeare's 
Merry  Wives  of  Windsor,"  edited  by  J.  0.  Halliwell,  Esq.,  Mr. 
Halliwell  remarks : — 

"It  is  a  singular  fact,  that  no  allusion  to  the  legend  of 
Home  the  Hunter,  as  he  is  called  in  the  following  sketch,  has 
ever  been  discovered  in  any  other  writer.  We  are  entirely 
ignorant  of  the  date  of  the  legend.  In  a  manuscript,  however, 
of  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.,  in  the  British  Museum,  I  find 
'  Rycharde  Home,  yeoman,'  among  '  the  names  of  the  hunters 
whiche  be  examyned  and  have  confessed'  for  hunting  in  his 
Majesty's  forests.  Is  it  improbable  to  suppose  that  this  was  the 
person  to  whom  the  tale  related  by  Mistress  Page  alludes? 
She  speaks  of  him  as  no  very  ancient  personage : — '  Oft  have 
you  heard  since  Home  the  Hunter  died.'  Connected  as  the 
'  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor'  certainly  is  with  the  historical  plays, 
the  manners  and  language  throughout  are  those  of  the  time  of 
Queen  Elizabeth ;  and  it  is  only  convicting  our  great  dramatist 
of  an  additional  anachronism  to  those  already  well  known  of  a 
similar  character,  in  attributing  to  him  the  introduction  of  a  tale 
of  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.  into  a  play  supposed  to  belong  to  the 
commencement  of  the  fifteenth  century." 

Upon  perusing  the  above-mentioned  work,  I  wrote  to  Mr. 
Halliwell,  stating  that  I  recollected  hearing  a  ballad  in  my 
juvenile  days,  which  might  possibly  have  reference  to  the  legend 
of  Home  the  Hunter,  but  that  I  could  only  remember  tlie  con- 
cluding verse  of  it, — 

"  In  Bromsgrove  Church  his  corpse  doth  lie — 
Why  winded  his  horn  tlie  hunter? 
Because  there  was  a  wild  boar  nigh, 
And  as  he  was  a  jovial  hunter." 

This  led  me.  at  Mr.  Ilalliwcirb  request,  to  make  considerable 
search  after  the   ballad;  and  at  length   I  ascertained,   from  a 


115 

carpenter,  of  the  name  of  John  Cole,  that  he  used  to  hear  an  old 
man  sing  it  about  fifty  years  ago ;  and  that  the  burden  of  the 
song  was,  that  the  district  about  Bromsgrove,  in  the  days  of 
yore,  was  principally  covered  with  wood,  and  much  infested  by  a 
wild  boar,  who  was  the  terror  of  the  neighboiurhood.  That  the 
Jovial  Hunter,  upon  a  mid  lady,  or  witch,  appearing  to  him, 
determined  to  destroy  the  boar.  That  he  proceeded  to  tlie  attack 
by  first  winding  three  blasts,  east,  west,  north,  and  south,  with 
his  horn  *,  which,  the  boar  hearing,  prepared  for  the  encounter 
by  whetting  his  tusks  between  his  fore  feet.  That  after  a  long 
and  desperate  battle  the  boar  fell  dead,  and  thereupon  the  wild 
lady  again  appeared  to  the  Jovial  Hunter,  in  great  anger,  and 
charged  him  with  having  killed  her  pretty  spotted  pig.  The  only 
lines  Cole  could  recollect  are  as  follows : — 

"  Oh !  lady,  oh !  lady,  what  bring'st  thou  here — 
Wind  went  his  horn,  as  a  hunter; 
Thee  blow  another  blast,  and  he'll  soon  come  to  thee. 
As  thou  art  a  jovial  hunter. 

"  He  whetted  his  tusks  as  he  came  along— 
Wind  went  his  horn,  as  a  hunter;" 

And  Cole  concluded  his  narrative  by  saying  that  Bromsgrove 
was,  from  the  above-mentioned  circumstance,  formerly  called 
Boar's  Grove.  This  name,  however,  appears  to  have  been  a 
fiction  to  suit  the  legend,  as  it  is  called  Bremesgrefa  and  Bremes- 
grajfa  in  Anglo-Saxon  Charters,  and  Bremesgrave  in  *'  Domesday 
Book."  There  is  a  place  by  Shepley  Heath,  near  Bromsgrove 
town,  called  Burcotf,  which  is  vulgarly  supposed  to  be  a  corrup- 
tion of  Boarcot  I ;  and  an  old  story  lias  been  handed  down  in  the 
district,  that  the  devil  kept  a  jjack  of  liounds  at  Hales  Owen, 

•  This  brought  to  my  remembrance  Uie  two  following  lines  of  the  ballad; — 

"  He  blew  a  blast,  east,  west,  north,  and  south, 
For  as  he  was  a  jovial  hunter." 
+  The  name  of  tliis  place  is  spelled  Bericote  in  "  Domesday  Book."    There 
were,  in  Anglo-Saxon  times,  places  called  Burcot,  in  Hants  and   Somerset. 
(See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  :VM\,  xU\.)     "  Bur"  means  a  bower  in  Anglo-Saxon. 

*  There  is  n  place  called  Borclcy,  or  Borley,  in  the  neighbouring  parish  of 
()mbei>ilev. 


116 

vulffo.  Hell's  Ovm,)  and  that  he  and  his  huntsman,  "  Harry-ca- 
nab*,"  used  to  ride  on  wild  bulls,  and  hunt  the  wild  boare  on 
Bromsgrove  Lickey. 

Shortly  after  obtaining  the  information  from  Cole,  a  gentle- 
man, whom  I  had  requested  to  make  some  inquiries  after  the 
ballad,  brought  me  the  following  lines,  which  he  said  he  took 
down  in  writing  from  a  man  of  the  name  of  Benjamin  Brown,  of 

Upper  Wick : — 

I. 

"  Sir  Robert  Bolton  had  tliree  sons — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  hunter; 
And  one  of  them  was  called  Sir  Ryalas, 
For  he  was  a  jovial  hunter. 

II. 

"  He  rang'd  all  round,  down  by  the  wood  side — 
Wind  ,weU  thy  horn,  good  hunter ; 
Till  up  in  the  top  of  a  tree  a  gay  lady  he  spy'd, 
For  he  was  a  jovial  hunter. 

III. 

"  Oh !  what  dost  thou  mean,  fair  lady,  said  he — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  hunter; 
Oh !  the  wild  boar  has  killed  my  Lord  and  his  men  thirty, 
As  thou  be'stt  a  jovial  hunter. 

IV. 

"  Oh  I  what  shall  I  do,  this  wild  boar  to  see — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  hunter; 
Oh !  thee  blow  a  blast,  and  he'll  come  unto  thee, 
As  thou  be'st  a  jovial  hunter. 

V. 

"  Then  he  blow'd  a  blast  full  north,  east,  west,  and  south, 
For  he  was  a  jo>'ial  hunter; 
And  the  wild  boar  heard  him  full  into  his  den. 
As  he  was  a  jovial  hunter. 

♦  This  word  "  nab"  may  come  from  the  Swedish  word  "  nupjja,"  wliirJi  means 
to  catch  unexpectedly,  to  come  upon  unawares,  to  seize  without  warning;  but 
vide  the  sequel. 

+  Or  beest. 


117 

VI. 

"  Then  he  made  the  best  of  his  speed  unto  him, 
Wind  went  his  hom,  as  a  hunter ; 
And  he  whetted  his  tusks  as  he  came  along 
To  Sir  Byalas,  the  jovial  hunter*. 

vn. 

"  Then  the  wild  boar,  being  so  stout  and  so  strong — 
Wind  well  thy  hom,  good  hunter; 
He  thrash'd  down  the  trees  as  he  came  along. 
To  Sir  Ryalas,  the  jovial  hunter. 

VIII. 
"  Oh!  what  dost  thou  want  of  me,  the  wild  boar,  said  he — 
Wind  well  thy  honi,  good  hunter; 
Oh  I  I  tliink  in  my  heart  I  can  do  enough  for  thee, 
For  I  am  a  jovial  hunter. 

IX. 

"  Then  they  fought  four  hours  in  a  long  summer's  day — 
Wind  well  thy  hom,  good  hunter; 
Till  the  wild  boar  fain  would  have  gotten  away 
From  Sir  Ryalas,  the  jovial  hunter. 

X. 

*'  Then  Sir  Ryalas  draw'd  his  broad  sword  with  might — 
Wind  well  thy  hom,  good  hunter; 
And  he  fairly  cut  his  head  off  quite, 
For  he  was  a  joviid  hunter. 

XL 

"  Then  out  of  the  wood  the  wild  woman  flew — 
Whid  well  thy  hom,  good  hunter  ; 
t)h  !  thou  hast  killed  my  pretty  spotted  pig. 
As  thou  best  a  jovial  hunter. 

XII. 
"  There  are  three  things  I  do  demand  of  thee — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  liimter; 
It's  thy  horn,  and  thy  hound,  and  thy  gay  latly, 
As  thou  be'st  a  jovial  hunter. 

•  Brown's  ballad  did  not  contain  the  second  and  third  lines  of  this  verse ;  but 
they  ivre  sujjplied  from  the  lines  which  Cole  recollected,  as  stilted  in  p.  115. 


118 


XIII. 

"  If  these  three  tilings  thou  dost  demand  of  me — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  hunter ; 
It's  just  as  my  sword  and  thy  neck  can  agree, 
For  I  am  a  jovial  hunter. 

XIV. 

"  Then  into  his  locks  the  wild  woman  flew — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  hunter  ; 
TUl  she  thought  in  her  heart  she  had  torn  him  through. 
As  he  was  a  jovial  hunter. 

XV. 

"  Then  Sir  Ryalas  draw'd  his  broad  sword  again — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  hunter^ 
And  he  fairly  split  her  head  in  twain, 
For  he  was  a  jovial  hunter. 

XVI. 

"  In  Bromsgrove  Church  they  both  do  lie — 
Wind  well  thy  horn,  good  hunter ; 
There  the  wild  boar's  head  is  pictur'd  by 
Sir  Ryalas,  the  jovial  hunter." 

Brown  aftenvai*ds  sang,  and  also  repeated  the  ballad  to  me ; 
and  I  found  the  copy  to  be  quite  coiTect.  He  said  he  could 
neither  read  nor  write,  and  that  he  learned  the  ballad  by 
frequently  hearing  a  countiyman  sing  it  about  thirty-five  years 
ago.  He  also  said  that  Bromsgrove  was  formerly  called  Boar's 
Grove. 

Some  time  after  this.  Cole  brought  me  another  version  of  the 
ballad,  which  he  said  he  wrote  down  from  the  mouth  of  a  person 
of  the  name  of  Oseman,  of  Hartleburv,  as  follows : — 


I. 

"  As  I  went  up  one  brook  one  brook — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
I  saw  a  fair  maiden  sit  on  a  tree  top, 
As  thou  art  the  jovial  hunter. 


119 

II. 
"  I  said,  feir  maiden,  what  brings  you  here? — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
It  is  the  wild  boar  that  has  drove  me  here, 
As  thou  art  the  jovial  hunter. 

III. 
"  I  wish  I  could  that  wild  boar  see — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter. 
And  the  wild  boar  soon  will  come  to  thee, 
As  thou  art  tlie  jovial  hunter. 

IV. 
"  Then  he  put  his  horn  unto  his  mouth — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
And  he  blow'd  both  east,  west,  north,  and  south. 
As  he  was  a  jovial  hunter. 

V. 

"  The  wild  boar  hearing  it  into  his  den — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
He  whetted  his  tusks,  for  to  make  them  strong, 
And  he  cut  down  the  oak  and  the  ash  as  he  came  along. 
For  to  meet  with  the  jovial  hunter. 

VT. 

"  They  fought  five  hours  one  long  summer's  day — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
Till  the  wild  boar  he  yell'd,  and  he'd  fain  run  away, 
And  away  from  the  jovial  hunter. 

VII. 

"  Oh !  then  he  cut  his  head  clean  off ! — 

Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
Then  there  came  an  old  lady  running  out  of  tlie  wood. 
Saying,  you  have  killed  my  pretty,  my  pretty  spotted  pig, 

As  thou  art  the  jovial  hunter. 

VIII, 

"  Then  at  him,  this  old  lady,  she  did  go — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
And  he  clove  her  from  the  top  of  her  head  to  her  toe, 
As  he  was  the  jovial  hunter. 


,1 


.1 


120 


IX. 


"  In  Bromsgrove  churchyard  this  old  lady  lies — 
Well  wind  the  horn,  good  hunter ; 
And  the  face  of  tlie  boar's  head  there  is  drawn  by, 
That  was  killed  by  the  jovial  hunter." 

The  only  further  evidence  I  obtained  relative  to  the  ballad, 
was  from  Mr.  Maund,  of  Bromsgrove,  (the  author  of  "  The 
Botanic  Garden,")  who  stated  that  he  hatl  met  wth  a  person 
who  once  knew  the  ballad,  but  could  only  recollect  the  following 
lines ; — 

"  Sir  Rackabello  had  three  sons — 

Whid  well  your  honi,  brave  hunter ; 
Sir  E yalash  was  one  of  these, 
Aud  he  was  a  jovial  hunter." 

It  appears  pretty  evident,  from  the  variations  in  the  different 
extracts  and  accounts  I  have  given,  that  there  must  have  been 
several  versions  of  this  legend*. 

Upon  an  examination  of  these  ballads,  a  question  was  raised, 
whether  the  Windsor  legend  and  the  Bromsgrove  legend  at  all 
referred  to  the  same  person,  or  at  least  to  persons  of  the  same 
family  ;  and  what  led  me  at  first  to  suppose  that  they  did,  is  the 
constant  reiteration  of  the  words  Home  and  Hunter  in  the  ballad  ; 
but  as  the  Bromsgrove  legend  makes  no  allusion  to  the  story  of 
the  stag's  horned  ghost,  the  evidence  is  not  sufficiently  strong  to 
found  an  argument  upon. 

Brown,  in  his  account  of  the  ballad,  says  he  understood  that 
the  picture  of  the  boar's  head  was  still  to  be  seen  in  Bromsgrove 
Church.  Now  this,  most  probably,  refeired  to  the  crest  of  the 
Stafford  family  in  that  church ;  for  Dr.  Nash,  in  his  account  of 
Bromsgrove,  vol.  i.,  page  150,  has  given  the  pedigree  of  this 
family  from  the  time  of  Edward  I.  to  Henry  VIII.,  and  also  a 
quotation  from  Habiiigdon,  relative  to  an  alabaster  moiuiracnt 
then  in  the  chancel,  but  now  in  the  body  of  Bromsgrove  Church,  of 

*  T  huvo  no  means  of  knowing  what  the  title  to  the  Rronisprrove  ballad  was. 
(Vile  said  he  thought  it  was  the  "  Jovial  Hunter."  and  I  have  assumed  it  to 
be  so. 


121 

Sir  Humphrey  Stafford,  of  Grafton,  Knight,  and  Eleanor*,  his  wife, 
with  the  family  arms,  and  a  boar's  head  for  a  crest,  upon  a  helmet ; 
and  states  that  he  was  slain  by  Jack  Cade,  28  Henry  VI.,  I450f, 
and  that  his  son  and  heir.  Sir  Humphrey  Stafford,  of  Grafton, 
Knight,  was  attainted  and  executed,  1  Henry  VII.,  1485,  at  Ty- 
burn, and  adds,  "  a  report  prevailed  that  Humphrey  Stafford  was 
drawn  upon  a  hurdle  from  the  Forgate,  or  North  Gate  of  Wor- 
cester, to  the  Cross,  and  there  put  to  death ;  but  this  was  without 
foundation]:," 

The  Doctor  mentions  the  coats  of  arms  of  several  other  families 
who  were  buried  in  Bromsgrove  Church  ;  but  the  coat  in 
question  is  the  only  one  which  contains  either  a  boar's  head  or  a 
boar. 

The  Stafford  monument,  which  I  visited  in  August  1844,  is  in 
the  north-east  comer  of  the  northern  aisle  of  the  church  §,  behind 
the  tomb  of  Sir  John  Talbot,  Knight  ||,  and  his  two  wives.  It  is 
a  fine  piece  of  sculpture,  remarkable  for  the  net-work  head-dress 
of  Eleanor.  Under  the  head  of  Sir  Humphrey  is  the  figure  of  a 
boar's  head,  and  the  sexton  then  assured  me  that  there  was  no 
other  representation  of  a  boar's  head  or  boar  either  in  the  church 
or  churchyard. 

It  becomes  a  question,  therefore,  whether  the  Jovial  Hunter 
was  one  of  the  Stafford  family.  It  seems  possible  that  the  family 
may  have  taken  the  boar's  head  as  a  crest  from  some  great  feat 
done  by  one  of  them  in  killing  a  wild  boar  ;  or  the  legend  about 
tlie  boar  may  have  been  an  old  story  engrafted  upon  the  crest  of 
that  family.  A  circumsUmce  of  the  latter  kind  did  actually  occur 
with  respect  to  the  tomb  of  Sir  Kalph  Wysham,  in  Woodmauton 
Chapel,  in  Clifton-upon-Teme  ChurcMI. 

*  Tlie  Doctor,  in  liis  imrrative  and  pecli^rw,  lias  described  her  as  "Eleanor;" 
but  under  his  picture  of  the  nioniunent  she  is  caHed  Kli/.abeth.  Now,  this  Sir 
liunijihrey's  mother  was  Elizabeth,  and  hence,  perhaps,  the  mistuke  arose. 

f  At  Seven  Oaks. 

I  "Appendix  to  Hales." 

§  It  was  said  at  the  time  of  my  visit,  that  on  account  of  some  conteni- 
l)la(ed  alterations  this  tomb  was  to  be  removed  to  the  lower  of  the  church, 

|;    He  died  KUh  Sept.,  1;");)(). 

•;    See  ('lifti)n. 


122 

With  respect  to  the  point,  whether  the  story  was  merely  en- 
grafted upon  the  crest  of  the  Stafford  family,  it  will  be  observed 
that  Oseman's  ballad,  which  begins  "  As  I  went  up  one  brook," 
says  nothing  about  the  Boltons ;  and  as  that  ballad  is  much  more 
simple  in  its  construction  than  the  other,  it  is  probably  the  most 
ancient ;  and  if  so,  the  engrafting  must  have  taken  place,  for 
both  ball«uis  are  based  upon  the  same  adventure. 

In  fact,  it  does  not  appear  unlikely  that  Sir  Humphrey  Staf- 
ford (the  2nd),  whose  tomb  is  in  Bromsgrove  Church,  as  before 
stated,  either  was  or  was  at  least  represented  to  have  been  the 
Jovial  Hunter.  Sir  Ralph  Stafford,  of  Grafton,  Knight,  had  three 
sons  by  his  wife  Maud ;  their  eldest  son  Sir  Humphrey  (the  1st) 
had  three  sons  by  his  wife  Elizabeth ;  and  their  son  Sir  Hiun- 
phrey  (the  2nd)  had  three  sons  by  his  wife  Eleanor  ;  therefore,  so 
far,  either  of  them  exactly  agrees  with  the  ballad  ;  Sir  Ralph  was 
married  49th  Edward  III.,  1374,  and  Sir  Humphrey  (the  1st), 
who  would  answer  to  Sir  Robert  Bolton  or  Sir  RaccabeUo,  died 
7th  Henry  V.,  1418 ;  Sir  Humphrey  (the  2nd),  who  would 
answer  to  Sir  Ryalas,  Sir  Ryalash,  or  the  Jovial  Hunter,  was 
killed  in  1450  ;  and  Sir  Humphrey  (the  3rd)  was  executed  at 
Tyburn  in  1485,  as  before  stated. 

Notwithstanding  all  this,  it  is  not  impossible  that  the  original 
or  real  Jovial  Hunter  was  a  person  of  the  name  of  Breme 
(which,  in  Anglo-Saxon,  means  renowned  or  famous)  and  that  he 
having  been  buried  at  the  place  in  question,  it  was  therefore 
called  Bremesgrefa,  Bremesgrsefa*,  or  Bremesgrave  f .  There 
was  a  person  of  the  name  of  Breme,  of  Suffolk,  killed  at  the 
battle  of  Hastings  ;  he  is  entered  in  "  Domesday  Book  "  as  one 
of  the  persons  holding  lands  in  the  time  of  Edward  the  Confessor ; 
and  an  ancestor  of  his,  or  some  other  Anglo-Saxon  of  the  same 
name,  may  have  been  the  Jovial  Hunter.     The  above-mentioned 

*  See  these  names  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  Charters,  in  the  "  Codex  Dip.," 
Nos.  183  and  186,  dated  respectively  804  and  821—823.  The  word  gr6fa, 
grsefa,  means  a  hole,  trench,  or  vallxmi ;  and  graf  means  a  grove.  See  "  Codex 
Dip.,"  Vol.  iii.,  Preface,  pp.  26,  27,  Also  see  hereafter,  as  to  "  Hoar 
Grave,"  &c.,  in  the  account  of  Hoar  Stones. 

t  See  "  DoniRsdflv  Book." 


1-23 

person  is  thus  noticed  in  the  Index  to  Sir  Henry  Ellis's 
"  General  Introduction  to  Domesday  Book  "  : — "  Breme  liber 
homo  Regis  E.  qui  fuit  occisus  in  bello  Hastingensi  Suif. 
409  b*." 

With  respect  to  the  name  Harry-ca-nabf,  it  is  stated  in  the 
"Atlienaeum"  for  Saturday,  October  10th,  1846];,  that  it  is 
another  version  of  the  wild  huntsman,  and  that  "  the  name 
Harry-ca-nab  is  an  addition  to  the  Satanic  nomenclature.  It  is, 
perhaps,  related  to  the  epithet  '  Old  Harry,'  alias  '  Old  Hairy ;' 
or  possibly  to  the  '  Domina  Hera  quae  volat  per  aera,'  mentioned 
by  Grimm  in  his  '  Mythologie.'  " 

There  also  is  an  account  of  the  Wish  or  Wisked,  or  Spectre 
Hounds  of  Dartmoor,  and  of  the  famous  spectre  hunt  of  Odin, 
"  the  Wild  Jager  of  the  German  Forests,"  in  the  "  Athenaeum  " 
for  March  27,  1847,  p.  334,  No.  1013.  Also  see  Kemble's 
"  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  346,  349  ;  and  the  chapter  in 
this  work,  on  "  Folk  Lore." 

There  was,  according  to  tradition,  another  mighty  hunter,  of 
the  name  of  Callow  ;  and  we  have  Upper  and  Lower  Callow's 
Field,  in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove  ;  Callow's  Leap§,  near  the 
Bridge's  Stone,  in  Alfrick ;  Callow's  Grave,  near  to  Tenbury ; 
Callow-end,  near  the  Old  Hills,  in  Po\vick ;  Hither  and  Further 
Callow  Field,  and  Callow's  Piece,  in  Hartley ;  Callow  Lane,  in 
Stoke  Prior  ||.  And  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Oddingley 
there  was  a  place  called  Callow  Hill ;  and  CaUew  Hill,  or  Callow 
Hill,  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boimdaries  of  BredicotH. 

•  There  were,  in  Anglo-Saxon  times,  places  called  Bremela,  and  Bremelbam ; 
also  Bremerleah  (Breinerley,  Worcestersliire).  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  817 
and  570.  "  Domesday  Book "  notices  a  place  called  Breme  in  Wilts.  In 
Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  Bromsgrove  is  spelled  Bremer  gref,  Bremergrafi 
Bremesgraf,  Bremesgrafe,  Bremesgrfe,  and  Bremesgrsefan. 

+  See  p.  ll(i. 

X  Page  1043,  No.  989. 

§  It  is  a  very  deep  precipice,  with  a  brook  running  at  the  bottom.  See 
Alfrick  and  Folk  Lore. 

II  There  also  is  Callow-brain  Orchard,  in  Upper  Sapey,  Herefordshire. 

^  See  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  pp.  355,  357  ;  and  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol. 
ii.,  Appendix,  pp.  51,  53. 


124 


CHADDESLEY  CORBETT. 

The  name  of  Tan  Wood,  in  this  parish,  appears  to  be  of  Celtic 
origin.  The  Rev.  W.  L.  Bowles,  in  his  "  Hermes  Britannicus," 
when  describing  Tan  Hill,  in  Wiltshire,  states  that  "  The  name 
of  the  Celtic  God  of  Thunder,  it  is  well  known,  is  Taranis,  or 
Tanarus.  In  Lucan,  it  is  Taranis ;  but  an  inscription,  on  an 
altar,  found  in  Cheshire,  has  the  remarkable  words,  '  D.  0.  M. 
TANARO,' — '  To  the  great  Jupiter  Tanarus.'  This  stone 
remains  a  singular  corroboration  of  the  veracity  of  Lucan  in  his 
names  of  the  Celtic  Gods ;  and  of  Caesar  also,  who  enumerates 
Jupiter. 

"  The  name,  either  Taranis  or  Tanarus,  signifies  the  same 
deity ;  for  Taran  is  Celtic  for  thunder,  and  Tan  for  fire* ;  to 
which  name,  originally,  the  lightning  might  have  given  rise  ;  and 
from  hence  was  derived  the  name  of  the  sacred  fire  called  the 
Bel-tan,  or  Baal-tine,  flaming  on  such  heights,  and  answering 
each  other  from  hiU  to  hill,  through  all  the  consecrated  precincts 
of  the  Druids ;  so  that,  if  called  Taranis,  it  is  from  thunder,  as 
Tanarus  is  from  lightning  or  fire." 

Besides  Tan  Wood,  there  ai'e  Tan  Wood  Meadow,  Lower  Tan 
Wood  Meadow,  and  Tan  Wood  Field,  in  Chaddesley  Corbettf." 

In  August  1844,  I  visited  part  of  Tan  Wood,  and  found  that 
the  common  had  been  enclosed  about  forty  years  previously. 
The  scene,  from  the  fine  artificial  tumulus  called  Barrow  Hill,  is 
very  extensive  and  beautiful.  On  the  east  and  south-east  appears 
Bromsgrove  Lickey.  Further  to  the  south,  the  Cotswolds  and 
Bredon  Hill.  On  the  south-west,  the  Malverns,  the  Berrow, 
Woodbury,  and  Abberley  Hills  ;  while,  on  the  west,  north-west, 
and  north,  are  Stagbury,  the  Clee,  Hagley,  and  Clent  Hills. 

Barrow  Hill  appears  to  be  about  115  yards  long,  and  90  yards 
wide  at  the  broadest  part.  In  shape  it  is  sometliing  like  a  pear, 
with  the  narrow  part  towards  the  west.  The  top  is  bare,  but  its 
steep  sides  are  covered  with  a  plantation  of  oak,  fir,  and  various 

*  It  is  Tan  iii  Welsh,  luul  TeiiiicUi  in  Irish. 

+  It  also  contains  places  called  Far  Long  Barrow  Field,  Long  Barrow  Field, 
Little  BfU'i'ow  Field,  and  Cross  Barrow  Field. 


125 


other  trees,  planted  perhaps  when  Tan  Wood  House  was  built. 
There  is  a  round  tump  at  the  oast  end  of  the  summit  of  the 
tumulus,  as  represented  in  the  woodcut ;  and  the  whole  hill  is 


ver}'  perfect  in  its  appearance,  except  at  the  northern  side,  which 
has  undergone  some  excavation.  I  was  informed  by  an  old 
inhabitant,  that  about  forty  years  ago  a  great  number  of  fine  oaks 
were  cut  down  at  Tan  Wood,  by  order  of  the  Lord  of  the  Manor, 
which,  I  presume,  was  done  preparatory  to  the  enclosure  of  the 
common. 

Ean  Dan  Woods  are  partly  in  Chaddesley  Corbett  and  partly 
in  Belbroughton.  Mr.  Halliwell,  in  his  "  Glossary  of  Archaic 
Words,"  explains  Randan  as  meaning,  in  Gloucestershire,  "  noise 
or  uproar*.  The  Worcestershire  words  "tang  rang,"  "rang  tang," 
have  the  same  meaning  f ,  Supposing  the  name  of  Ran  Dan  Woods, 
in  Chaddesley  Corbett,  means  noise  and  uproar,  it  probably 
alludes  to  the  noise  and  uproar  attendant  on  the  chase  | ;  and  the 

•  In  Thorpe's  "  Northern  Mythoh.gy  "  (Vol.  i.,  pp.  27,  1!J9,  200,  288),  it 
is  stated  that  "  Kan "  is  tlie  wife  of  Oi'f(ir,  the  stormy  ocean ;  untl  thiit 
her  name  signifies  phnuler  and  robbery ;  and  tliat  "  Dain  "  means  a  hart,  and 
also  a  dwarf  (ibid.,  pj).  1;J,  3.'},  l.')!,  155). 

+  Mr.  Halliwell  gives  Iliin,  rebellious  ;   and  Tang,  .sound  of  a  bell. 

J  See  p.  114  to  122  as  to  wild  boar  hunting  in  the  neighbouring  parish  of 
Bronisgrove.  There  are  fox  covers  in  the  Ran  Dan  Woods;  but  fox-hunting  in 
the  West  of  England  is  doubtless  too  modem  a  sport  from  whence  to  derive  the 
name  in  question.  See  Hone's  "  Kvery  Day  Book,  and  Table  Book,"  Vol.  iii,, 
p.  :<5,  where  tlie  commencement  of  anything  like  regular  lox-huuting  in  the 
West  is  set  down  at  about  the  vear  17;{0. 


126 

following  extract  from  Dr.  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  184, 
appears  in  a  measure  to  favour  this  opinion  : — "  28  Edward  I. — 
William  Corbett  was  certified  to  be  Lord  of  the  Manor  of  Chad- 
desley  Corbet,  with  its  members  and  woods  ;"  and  that  *'  Edward 
I.  issued  out  his  mandate  to  Peter  Corbet,  who  probably  was  a 
keen  sportsman,  in  these  words: — *  Eex  omnibus  ballivis,  &c. 
Sciatis  quod  injunximus  dilecto  &  fideli  nostro  Petro  Corbet 
quod  in  omnibus  forestis,  &  parcis,  &  aliis  locis  infra  comitatus 
nostros  Gloucester.  Wygom.  Hereford.  Salop.  &  Stafford,  in 
quibus  lupi  poterunt  inveniri,  lupos  cum  hominibiis,  canis,  & 
ingeniis  suis  capiat  et  destruat  modis  omnibus  quibus  viderit 
expediri."  See  Pennant's  "  British  Zoology,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  69. 
The  hunter  of  the  wolves*  was  usually  in  the  king's  pay:  13 
Henry  II.  three  shillings  were  ordered  to  the  hunter  in  Wor- 
cestershire, who  caught  the  wolves  in  the  forest :  17  H.  II.,  three 
shillings  :  27  H.  II.,  three  shillings  :  5  John,  3  shillings." 

There  does  not  seem  to  be  any  mention  made  of  this  hunter 
upon  the  rolls  of  Henry  III.,  and  after  his  time  f . 

Such  remarkable  names  of  places  as  Tan  Wood,  Astwood  Hill, 
and  Barrow  Hill,  being  joined  together,  strongly  prove  the  Celtic 
character  of  the  place ;  and  in  fact  such  names  designate  all  that 
an  ancient  community  required,  namely,  a  sacred  altar  or  place 
of  worship  of  the  Celtic  god  of  thunder,  a  sacred  hearth  I,  and 
a  place  of  sepulture.  It  is  also  worthy  of  observation  that  three 
remarkable  places,  bearing  names  importing  that  they  were  simi- 
larly occupied,  are  found  together  in  the  parish  of  Claines,  near 
Worcester,  namely,  Elbury  Hill,  Astwood,  and  Barrow  Cop. 

There  is  a  river  called  Tanaro,  in  the  kingdom  of  Piedmont 
and  Sardinia.  Tanera,  two  isles,  Scotland,  par.  Loch-broom, 
Sh.  Cromarty.  Tanfield,  chap,  in  the  parish  of  Chester-le-Street, 
middle  div.  Chester-ward,  Co.  Pal.  Durham ;  Tanfield  in  York- 

•  The  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  59,  Vol.  i.,  and  59  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  mentions 
Wolfandun  (Wolfdown),  Co.  Worcester. 

+  Vide  the  ancient  "  Dialogue  concerning  the  Exchequer,"  published  by 
Madox. 

\  Tliat  is,  if  tlio  name  of  Astwood  Hill  was  derived  from  Asia,  relative  to 
whirh  see  Clainrs. 


127 

shire ;  the  like  in  Lincolnsliire  ;  and  there  are  departments  and 
rivers  in  France  called  Tarn,  and  Tarn  and  Garonne. 

There  are  places  called  Hither,  Further,  and  Upper  Tin  Mea- 
dows in  Cakebold,  in  Chaddesley  Corbett;  Tin  Hill  in  Chnrch- 
hill ;  Tyne  Fields,  or  Tin  Fields,  and  Near,  Far,  First,  Second, 
and  Third  Tin  Fields  in  Hartlebury ;  Tin  Meadow  in  Waresley, 
in  Hartlebury ;  Tin  Meadow,  Tin  Meadow  Hop-yard,  and  Tin 
Meadow  Orchard,  in  Suckley ;  Tin  Meadow  in  Elmley  Lovett ; 
Tin  Meadow  in  Bromsgrove  parish ;  Tin  Meadow  in  King's 
Norton  ;  Tin  Meadow  in  Northfield ;  Tin  Close  in  Martley ; 
Tin  Croft,  in  Lower  Smite,  in  Wamdon ;  Upper,  Middle,  and 
Lower  Tin  Fields,  in  Clent.  All  the  above-mentioned  are  in 
Worcestershire.  There  also  is  Tin  Hill  in  Boraston  and  Wliat- 
more,  Co.  Salop*. 

Tin,  or  tind,  is  a  provincial  term  meaning  to  "  tin,"  "  tind," 
or  light  the  firef,  and  most  probably  is  derived  from  Tan,  the 
Celtic  name  for  lightning,  or  fire.  Tonih  also  means  fire  in 
North  Africa ;  Tein,  fire  in  Gaelic ;  and  Teinde,  fire  in  Algon- 
quin, North  America.  (See  "  Chambers'  Edinburgh  Journal" 
for  February  1844,  p.  09.) 

Tin,  the  Cornish  metal  which  the  Phoenicians  traded  in,  may 
also  have  been  so  called  from  its  whitish  or  shining  appearance. 

•  In  the  Anglo-Saxon  times  tliere  were  places  called  Tan,  or  Taan,  (see 
"  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  lO.")!,  1052,  10(i4,  1005);  also,  Tandun,  108:},  (Tandon 
river);  Tanhliw,  590,  (Tanlow),  Hants;  Tan-lea,  1155,  (Tanley),  Hants; 
Tanniere,  1235,  (Tanniere),  Hants;  Tannera  hole,  518,  518  App.  Vol.  uL,  700, 
700  App.  Vol.  vL ;  and  Tantun  Tantunes  land,  374,  37-1  App.  VoL  iii,,  &c., 
and  Taunton,  Somerset. 

+  Herrick,  in  his  account  of  Candlemas  eve,  speaking  of  the  Christmas 

brand,  says, — 

"  Part  must  be  kept  wherewith  to  teend 

The  Christmas  log  next  yeare." 

(See  Hone's  "  Every  Day  Book,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  201.) 


128 


SARN   OR   SERN   HILLS,  YARN   HILLS,  AND 
DARN  HILLS. 

Within  about  a  mile  of  the  MytheTute,  near  Tewkesbury,  there 
is  a  hill  called  Sarn  Hill*  in  Bushley  parish,  Worcestereshire f . 

In  Gough's  Camden  (Vol  i.,  p.  387),  it  is  stated  that  the 
British  word  Sam  means  a  pavement ;  and  it  seems,  therefore, 
probable  that  a  Druidical  seat  of  judgment  may  have  formerly 
stood  at  the  hill  in  question,  from  the  floor  or  pavement  of 
which  its  name  was  derived.  It  is  spelled  Seam  Hill  in  the 
Ordnance  Map,  Sem  Hill  in  the  Map  of  Isaac  Taylor,  and 
Gough's  Camden,  and  Sarn  Hill  in  the  "  Further  Report  of  the 
Commissioners  for  Inquiring  concerning  Charities." 

There  is  a  place  called  Starn  Hill  in  the  parish  of  Elmley 
Castle,  Sarnsfield  parish,  in  the  hd.  of  Wolphy,  Co.  Hereford. 
A  reef  of  rocks,  called  Sarn|  Badrig,  or  Patrick's  Causeway, 
extending  out  to  sea  about  twenty-one  miles  from  the  coast  of 
Merionethshire ;  Sam  Helen,  called  the  "  Paved  Way  of  the 
Legion,"  in  the  latter  county,  and  Sam  Helen,  called  Helen's 
Road,  in  Caermarthenshire. 

Old  Yarnhill§,  and  Old  Yarnhill  Meadow,  in  Feckenham;  a 
hill,  formerly  called  Yamborough||,  but  now  Ambury,  in  Stoui'- 
bridge ;  Yarnell  Lane  in  Bromsgrove ;  Sivy  Yam,  in  Upper 
Sapey,  Co.  Hereford ;  Yarnsbury  Camp,  in  Wiltshire  ;  and  Yam- 
ton,  in  Oxfordshire. 

Damhiim  Orchard  and  Darnhill  Homestead,  in  Knighton-on- 

*  A  road,  called  Wood  Street,  nins  by  this  hill. 
+  See  Itinera  xi.  and  xix. 

I  The  large  stones  at  the  Grey  Weathers  on  Marlborough  Downs,  Wiltshire, 
of  which  Stonehenge  is  said  to  have  been  built,  are  called  Sarsen  or  Sassen 
.stones  by  the  country  people.  Sarsen  is  a  PhcEuician  word  for  a  rock.  (See 
Gough's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  101),  and  Scear  signifies  a  rock  m  Saxon. 

§  The  word  Yam,  in  Welsh,  means  a  seat  of  jiidgiDent.  (See  further 
thereon  under  the  head  Malvern  HUls,  and  Ambrosia;  I'etra;.) 

II  So  in  old  writings. 

^  Query  whether  this  name  is  a  corruption  of  Yam,  or  comes  from  the 
Saxon  Deor  (deer.) 


129 

Teme ;  Darnhale,  now  Damhill  Grange,  or  Grane,  in  Cheshire*  ; 
and  "  Domesday  Book"  mentions  Darenden,  in  Kent ;  Dameford, 
in  Wilts ;  and  Darninton,  in  Yorkshire. 

I  must  here  notice  some  interesting  corroborative  evidence 
relative  to  ancient  pavements  as  seats  of  judgment.  In  the  16th 
verse  of  the  24th  chapter  of  Exodus,  the  subject  is  referred  to  as 
follows : — 

"  And  they  saw  the  God  of  Israel;  and  there  was  under  his 
feet  as  it  were  a  paved  work  of  sapphire  stone,  and  as  it  were  the 
body  of  the  heaven  in  liis  clearness." 

And  the  following  is  Dr.  Adam  Clarke's  commentary  thereon : — 
"  A  paved  work  of  sapphire  stone]  or  sappliire  brick-work.  I 
suppose  that  something  of  the  musive  or  mosaic  pavement  is  here 
intended ;  floors  most  curiously  inlaid  with  variously-coloured 
stones,  or  small  square  tiles,  disposed  in  a  great  variety  of  orna- 
mental forms.  Many  of  these  remain  in  different  countries  to 
the  present  day.  The  Romans  were  particularly  fond  of  them, 
and  left  monuments  of  their  taste  and  ingenuity  in  pavements  of 
this  kind,  in  most  countries  where  they  established  their  domi- 
nion. Some  very  fine  specimens  are  found  in  different  parts  of 
Britain." 

In  the  1 3th  verse  of  the  1 9th  chapter  of  St.  John,  it  is  stated, — 
"  When  Pilate  therefore  heard  that  saying,  he  brought  Jesus 
forth,  and  sat  down  in  the  judgment  seat,  in  a  place  that  is  called 
the  Pavement,  but  in  the  Hebrew,  Gabbatha." 

The  following  is  the  learned  Doctor's  commentary  thereon :  — 
"  The  Pavement.]  AtOocrrpwTov,  literally,  a  stone  pavement ; 
probably  it  was  that  place  in  the  open  court  where  the  chair  of 
justice  was  set,  for  the  prefects  of  provinces  always  held  their 
courts  of  justice  in  the  open  air,  and  which  was  paved  with  stones 
of  various  colours,  like  that  of  Ahasuerus,  Esth.,  i.  6,  of  red, 
blue,  white,  and  black  marble ;  what  we  still  term  mosaic  work, 
or  something  in  imitation  of  it ;  such  as  the  Roman  pavements 
frequently  dug  up  in  this  and  other  countries,  where  the  Romans 
have  had  military  stations." 

"  Gabbatha.]    That  is,  an  elevated  place ;  from  ^^^  Gabah, 

•   Si'p  Ciougli's  "  ('iMiideii." 
K 


180 

high,  raised  up;  and  it  is  very  likely  that  the  judgment  scat 
was  considerably  elevated  in  the  court,  and  that  the  governor 
went  up  to  it  hy  steps  ;  and  perhaps  these  very  steps  were  what 
was  called  the  Pavement.  John  does  not  say  that  Lithostroton, 
or  the  Pavement,  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  Gabbatha  ;  but  that 
the  place  was  called  so  in  the  Hebrew.  The  place  was  probably 
called  Lithostroton,  or  the  Pavement:  the  seat  of  judgment, 
Gabbatha,  the  raised  or  elevated  place. 

*  *  *  "  Lightfoot  conjectures  that  the  Pavement,  here, 
means  the  room  Gazith  in  the  temple,  in  which  the  grand  coun- 
cil, called  the  Sanhedrim,  held  their  meetings." 

Under  all  circumstances  there  appears  to  be  considerable  pro- 
bability that  the  Sarn  Hills  contained  ancient  British  seats  of 
judgment ;  and  as  the  Druidical  worship  and  ceremonies  arc  con- 
sidered to  have  come  from  the  East*,  it  seems  natural  to  suppose 
that  the  British  Druidical  seats  of  judgment  should  coirespond 
with  their  Eastern  antitypes. 

PiOBIN  HOOD. 

The  memoiy  of  the  famous  Piobin  Hood  is  preserved  in  the 
names  of  numerous  places  in  and  about  Fcckenham  Forest : 
thus,  in  the  parish  of  Chaddesley  Corbett,  there  is  a  field  called 
Ptobin  Hood's  Oak ;  likewise,  in  Grimley,  a  field  designated 
Robin's  Acre ;  fields  named  Eobin's  Piece,  Big  Eobin's,  and 
Little  Robin's,  in  Tardebigg ;  and  pieces  of  land  named  Robin's 
Field,  Big  Robin's  Field,  and  Robin's  Hays,  in  Nortbfield  ; 
Robin  Hood  Piece,  in  Doderhill,  near  Droitwich  ;  Robin's  Hill,  in 
Alvechurch ;  Robin's  Field,  in  Luttley,  in  Hales  Owen  ;  and 
Robin's  Meadow,  in  Stoke  Prior. 

We  propose  now  to  offer  some  short  account  of  Feckcnham 
and  various  other  forests  in  the  north  of  Worcestershire.  Dr. 
Nashf  states: — "  Among  the  forest-rolls  remaining  in  the  closet 
of  the  old  Chapter  House  of  Westminster  Abbey  (where  the  King's 
Bench  and  Common  Pleas  records  arc  now  kejit,  anno  1778), 
is  one  entitled  on  the  back,    '  Rot.  de  Foresta  de  Py[)ero(le  in 

*  See  hereafter,  under  the  heiul  AiiibrosiiB  retrte. 
+  "  History,"  Vol.  i.,  liitrodiietioii,  p.  fiS. 


131 

com.  Wigom.  temp.  11.  Johan."  Which  forest  seems  to  have  con- 
tained within  its  bounds  part  of  Cliaddesley  Corhett,  Bel 
Broughton,  Bromsgrove,  Alvechurch,  &c.  Some  woods  in  Chad- 
deslcy  still  retain  the  name  of  Peppyr  Woods,  In  the  "  Inquisitio 
post  mortem  Rogeri  Bishopsden,"  18  R.  II.,  he  is  said  to  have 
held  at  his  death  the  ofl&ce  of  bailiff  of  the  forest  of  Feckeney,  et 
Pyperode  intra  forestara  de  Feckenham.  By  this  it  should  seem 
that  Pyperode  Forest  was  only  a  member  of  the  large  forest  of 
Feckenham*."  Other  parts  of  the  north  of  Worcestershire 
were  included  in  Kynvare  (Kinver)  Forest;  such  as  part  of 
Pedmore,  Hagley,  Old  Swinford,  Chaddesley,  Kidderminster, 
Wolverley,  and  Churchill. 

The  boundaries  of  Feckenham  Forest  were  much  enlarged 
by  Henry  II.,  to  tlie  veiy  great  distress  of  the  inhabitants  ;  in 
fact,  the  greatest  portion  of  the  north  and  north-east  part  of 
Worcestershire  was  included  in  it.  The  following,  among  many 
other  places,  were  added  to  it  by  Henrj',  namely,  part  of  Droit- 
wich,  of  Hanbury,  of  Rushock,  of  Hartlebury,  of  Chaddesley 
Corbett,  of  Forfield,  of  Coston,  of  Stoke,  of  Alvechurcli,  of 
Tardebigg  (including  the  hamlet  of  Rcdditch),  of  Plarvington,  of 
Evesham,  of  Fladl)urj%  of  Abberton,  of  Crowle,  of  Bredicot,  and 
of  Spetchley. 

Here,  then,  we  have  proof  that  the  field  called  Robin's  Acre, 
in  Grimley,  and  the  pieces  of  land  called  Robin's  Field,  Big 
Robin's  Field,  and  Robin's  Haysf,  in  Northfield;  and  Robin's 
Field,  in  Luttley,  in  Hales  Owen,  were  situated  near  to  the 
forests;  and  tlrnt  the  place  called  Robin  Hood's  Oak,  in  Chad- 
desley Corliett,  Robin's  Piece,  Big  Robin's,  and  Little  Robin's, 
in  Tardebigg.  Robin  Hood's  Piece,  in  Dodcrhill,  Robin's  Hill,  in 
Alvechurch,  and  Rnl)in"s  Meadow,  in  Stoke  Prior,  lay  in  the 
midst  of  the  forests  ;  consequently,  it  is  probable  that  Robin 
Hood  sometimes  ranged  in  those  parts,  either  to  chase  tlie  wild 
animals  of  the  district,  or  to  avenge  the  wrongs  that  his  countn'- 
mcn  were  enduring  umler  tlie  odious  forest  laws. 

•  Spp  Nasli,  Vol.  i.,  Iiilrodiiciioii,  pp.  D.'),  (id,  (iJ^  ;  mul  Vol.  ii.,  Apppiidix, 
pp.  107,  108. 

+    As  In  tliis  imillP,  sPe    "  I'olk   I.oic." 


13-2 

Tliat  he  was  at  the  battle  of  Evesham,  which  lay  on  the  south- 
east side  of  Feckenham  Forest,  is  strongly  substantiated  by  the 
following  extract  from  "  Old  England,"  Part  iv.,  Book  ii., 
page  118  : — 

"  Fordun,  the  Scottish  historian,  who  travelled  in  England  in 
the  14th  century,  diligently  collecting  materials  for  his  great 
work*,  which  forms,  to  this  day,  our  only  authority  for  the  facts 
of  Scottish  history  through  a  considerable  period,  states,  imme- 
diately after  his  notice  of  the  battle  of  Evesham,  and  its  con- 
sequences to  all  who  had  been  connected,  on  the  losing  side,  with 
the  general  stream  of  events  to  which  that  battle  belongs, — '  Then 
from  among  the  dispossessed  and  the  banished  arose  that  most 
famous  cut-throat  Bobert  Hood  and  Little  John.'  If  any  one 
rises  from  the  perusal  of  the  mighty  events  of  the  reign  of  Henry 
the  III.,  with  the  conviction  that  Simon  de  Montfort,  to  whom, 
in  all  probability,  England  owes  its  borough  representation,  was 
a  rebel  instead  of  a  martyr,  as  the  people  called  him,  and  that 
the  words  so  freely  used  by  Dr.  Lingard,  of  pirates,  banditti,  and 
rebels,  were  properly  applied  to  Simon  de  Montfort 's  followers, 
then  also  they  may  accept  Fordun's  opinion  that  Robin  Hood 
was  a  cut-throat, — hut  not  else ;  they  will  otherwise,  like  ourselves, 
accept  his  fact  only,  which  is  one  of  the  highest  importance,  and 
beyond  dispute  as  to  its  correctness,  however  strangely  neglected 
even  by  brother  historians.  Fordun's  work  was  continued  and 
completed  by  his  pupil.  Bower,  Abbot  of  St.  Colomb,  who,  under 
the  year  1266,  noticing  the  further  progress  of  the  events  that 
followed  the  battle  of  Evesham,  says, — '  In  this  year  were 
obstinate  hostilities,  carried  on  between  the  dispossessed  barons 
of  England  and  the  Royalists,  amongst  whom  Roger  Mortimer 
occupied  tlie  Marches  of  Wales,  and  John  Duguil  the  Isle  of 
Ely.  Robert  Hood  now  lived  an  outlaw  among  the  woodland 
copses  and  thickets.' " 

About  fifty  years  ago  there  stood  near  the  village  of  Chaddesley 
Corbett,  a  very  large  and  ancient  oak,  called  Robin  Hood's  Oak. 


•   He  wrote  about  loJLD.      See  Siiiitli's   Standard  Library,  "  Robin   Hood," 
p.m. 


133 

It  appears  to  liave  been  cut  down  at  the  same  time  that  the 
neighbouring  fine  oaks  on  Tan  Wood  Common  were  felled  by 
order  of  the  Lord  of  the  Manor.  It  stood  in  the  lane  by  a  piece 
of  ground  which  is  still  called  Robin  Hood's  Oak-.  The  lane  is 
now  a  bye-way  leading  from  Beauty  Bank  to  Bluutington ;  and 
in  consequence  of  a  new  road  having  been  cut  across  the  angle 
from  Cliaddesley  village  towards  Bluntington  has  become  almost 
useless.  The  views  from  thence  are  extensive  and  fine.  On  the 
east,  Bromsgrove  Lickey  and  the  Ban  Dan  ridge  of  woods  appear ; 
further  to  the  south,  the  Cotswolds  and  Bredon  Hill ;  on  the 
south-west,  the  Malvems,  the  Berrovv,  Woodbury,  and  Abberley 
Hills ;  and  on  the  west,  north-west,  and  north,  Stagbury,  Hagley, 
and  the  Clent  Hills. 

It  has  been  contended  by  some  writei's,  that  Bobin  Hood  was 
bom  at  a  place  called  Locksley,  or  Loxley,  which  is  said  to  have 
been  either  in  Yorkshire  or  Nottinghamshire  ;  but  it  is  remarked 
in  Smith's  Standard  Library,  "  Robin  Hood,"  pp.  4,  5f,  that 
we  have  no  evidence  of  any  such  place  in  either  of  those  counties ; 
but  of  this  by  and  bye. 

There  is  a  township  called  Loxley,  in  the  parish  of  Uttoxeter, 
in  Staffordshire,  and  a  pai'ish  called  Loxley,  situated  near  to  Strat- 
ford upon  Avon,  in  Warwickshire ;  and  the  question  is,  whether 
the  latter  place,  which  lay  near  to  Feckenham  Forest,  was  not 
the  birth-place  of  our  hero ;  if  so,  it  is  probable  that  after  the 
battle  of  Evesham  he  removed  to  Sherwood  Forest,  in  Nottiug- 
liamshire,  and  to  Barnsdale  Forest,  in  Yorkshire.  This  appeal's, 
in  some  measure,  to  be  corroborated  by  the  following  extract 
from  the  above-mentioned  work : — "  Dr.  Fuller^  is  doubtful  as  to 
the  place  of  his  nativity.  Speaking  of  the  '  ^lemorable  Persons ' 
of  Nottinghamsliire,  '  Robert  Hood,'  says  he  (if  not  by  birth),  by 
his  chief  abode  this  countr}-man." 

Edward  I.,  in  or  soon  after  the  28th  year  of  his  reign,  1299, 
disafforested  all  the  lands  which  his  gi'eat  grandfather,  HeniylL, 
had  tyranically  wrested  from  the  people,  and  added  to  Feckenham 

•  TliP  groimd  is  nuinbeidl  WM)  in  tlic  Tithe  Coiiiimitntion  Map. 
y  Piiblibhcd  in  1840,  at  11'!,  Floot  Stroet,  London. 
J  "  'Worthies  of  England,'  Kiii'J,  p.  :f'JO.'' 


134 

Forest* .  As  this  took  place  only  about  thirty-five  years  after  the  battle 
of  Evesham,  it  is  not  unlikely  that  Robin  Hood  was  either  then 
living  or  had  not  long  been  deadf;  and,  in  fact,  that  very  interest- 
ing legendar}'  poem,  entitled,  "  A  Lyttell  Geste  of  Robyu  Hode," 
(which  is  probably  the  oldest  and  most  authentic  that  we  have 
upon  the  subject,)  describes  a  great  many  of  his  exploits  as  having 
taken  place  during  a  long  course  of  years  in  Edward's  reign. 

Mr.  Spencer  Hall,  in  his  "Forester's  Offering^,"  quoted  by 
J.  M.  Gutch,  Esq.,  in  his  edition  of  "  Robin  Hood,"  Vol.  i.,  p. 
75,  says  that  "  Robin  Hood,  or,  as  some  authors  have  it,  Robert 
o'  th'  Wood,  was  bom  at  Loxley  Chase,  near  Sheffield,  in  York- 
shire, where  the  romantic  river  Loxley  descends  from  the  hills  to 
mingle  its  blue  waters  with  the  Rivilin,  and  the  Don,  a  place  well 
known  to  every  grinder  in  Sheffield,  and  often  alluded  to  in  the 
poems  of  the  people's  laureate,  Ebenezer  Elliott,  who  is  the 
owner  of  some  land  on  the  spot,  but  of  which  the  last  London  editor 
of  '  Ritson's  Collection  of  Ballads,'  could  not  tell  the  locality  ; 
and  so,  after  an  elaborate  research,  concluded  that  no  place  in 
that,  or  the  neighbouring  county  of  Nottingham,  now  retained 
the  name." 

There  is  a  ballad  relative  to  Robin  Hood  in  Mr.  Gutch 's  col- 
lection. Vol.  ii.,  p.  255,  in  style  rather  like  the  ballad  of  the 
Jovial  Hunter  of  Bromsgrove§,  and  commencing  as  follows  : — 

"  Bold  Eobiu  Hood  ranging  tlie  forest  till  round. 
The  forest  all  round  ranged  lie  ; 
O  there  did  he  meet  witli  a  gay  lady. 
She  came  weeping  along  the  highway. 

"Why  weep  you,  why  weep  you?  bold  Itobin  he  .said, 
\Miat  weep  you  for  gold  or  fee '.'"  &c.  &c. 

This  ballad  is  printed  in  Smith's  Standard  Library,  "  Robin 
Hood,"  p.  Ill,  and  is  entitled  "  Robin  Hood  rescuing  the  three 
squires  from  Nottingham  gallows." 

*  See  Nash,  Vol.  i.,  Introduction,  pp.  (>^,  fi(i. 

+  Some  of  the  places  mentioned  in  \>\>.  litO,  l-"ll,  niiiy  lia\e  bc(  ii  lalkd  albr 
Piobiii  Hood's  name  uj)on  disatforesting  of  the  lands. 

*  London,  1^11. 

§   Ser'  ])p.  11(1,    lis. 


135 

.  Mr.  Gutch  observes  that  "  this  song,  and  its  tune,  as  the  editor 
is  informed  by  liis  ingenious  friend  Edward  Williams,  the  Welsh 
bard,  are  well  known  in  South  Wales  by  the  name  of  Marchog 
glas,  i.e.,  Green  knight.  Though  apparently  ancient,  it  is  not 
known  to  exist  in  black  letter,  nor  has  any  better  authority  been 
met  with  than  the  common  collection  of  Aldermary  churchyard. 
— llitson." 

BELBROUGHTON. 

In  the  year  1833,  a  Roman  jar,  containing  more  than  one 
hundred  coins  of  the  early  emperors,  was  found  upon  the  Fern 
estate,  near  Farfield  or  Forfield  in  this  parish.  Mr.  John  Amphlett 
has  in  his  possession  several  of  the  coins  of  Adrian  and  Anto- 
ninus Pius,  one  of  Marcus  Aurelius  Antoninus,  and  several  of  the 
Gordians  and  Philip,  all  which  I  have  seen.  Dr.  Nash,  in  Vol.  i., 
p.  56,  of  his  "  History,"  says  Belbroughton  was  anciently  called 
Belni,  Behie,  Beolue,  and  Balue  Bereton.  It  is  spelled  Bcolne 
in  Homing's  "Cartulary,"  p.  261,  and  Bellem  in  Domesday 
Book. 

"  Here  was  formerly  a  wood  five  miles  in  extent,  and  in  Nor- 
man times  the  manor  of  Forfield-'s  or  Fairtield,  formed  a  part  of 
the  great  forest  of  Feckeuham,  at  which  place  the  lords  justices 
of  the  king's  forest  on  this  side  Trent  held  their  courts  to  de- 
termine causes  concci'ning  the  breach  of  the  forest  lawsf." 

CLENT. 

This  parish,  lately  a  detached  part  of  Staffordshire,  was,  till  the 
reign  of  King  Edward  III.,  part  of  Worcestershire,  and  has  been 
re-annexed  to  it  by  the  Reform  Bill.  For  the  following  facts 
respecting  the  antiquities  of  Clent,  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  Timings, 
of  that  place. 

In  or  al)out  the  year  1790,  a  large  jar,  filled  with  Roman  gold 
and  silver  coins,  was  discovered  by  a  labourer  of  the  name  of 
Benjamin  Phillips,  as  he  was  making  a  new  pool  on  Clent  Heath, 

•   Forliclil  is  mt'iitioiicd  in  the  "  Cfidox  Dip.,"  No.  •■iV*. 
+  See  the  "  Kiiiiiblcr  in  \\orceslt'rsliirc,"  pub.  ISjl,  \\  'J'JO. 


136 

a  little  below  where  the  battle  between  the  Romans  and  Britons 
was  fought.  In  1792,  some  silver  coins  were  found  in  a  meadow 
at  Old  Mill.  In  another  meadow  lying  east  of  this,  a  jar  of  gold 
and  another  of  silver  coins  were  found  by  labourers ;  and  about 
the  same  date,  upon  pulling  down  an  old  wall  in  Rowley  Regis 
parish,  there  was  discovered  a  jar  containing  a  great  number  of 
Roman  coins. 

Mr.  Timings,  in  his  "  Guide  to  the  Clent  Hills,"  gives  a  full 
description  of  the  position  of  the  Roman  and  British  annies,  and 
the  battles  of  Walton,  Clatter-Batch,  and  Clent  Heath,  and  par- 
ticularises the  ancient  trenches  on  Walton  Hills,  the  rampart  on 
Clent  Hill,  tumuli,  urns,  bones,  coins,  and  skeletons;  he  also 
describes  Bar  Beacon,  and  other  ancient  relics. 

In  his  "  History  of  the  Antiquities  of  St.  Kenelms,"  he 
desci'ibes  the  barbarous  murder  of  the  young  Mercian  King 
Kenelm,  in  the  year  819,  by  his  unnatural  sister  Quendreda  and 
Ascobert ;  his  first  burial  at  St.  Kenelms,  and  removal  to  Winch- 
comb  Abbey ;  and  the  discovery  of  several  Roman  and  Saxon 
coins  at  different  times  at  St.  Kenelms,  which  place  is  situated 
at  the  east  end  of  the  Clent  Hills,  one  mile  from  Clent  village. 

This  murder  is  likewise  recorded  by  Dr.  Nash,  in  his  History, 
at  considerable  length. 

HAGLEY. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  mentioning  this  place  (Vol.  i.,  pp.  485,  486), 
says  :  "  In '  Domesday  Book '  it  is  written  Hageleia,  from  the  Saxon 
Haga,  domus,  and  Leag,  or  Lega-''-,  locus,  being  probably  the  chief 
residence  of  a  great  Saxon  lord,  and  styled  by  way  of  eminence 
'  The  Manor  Place.'  "  "  Hagley  affords  some  considerable 
remains  of  Roman  antiquity  :  a  large  camp  on  Wichbury  Hillf, 
having  on  the  south  side  a  double  agger,  or  deep  ditch,  now 
covered  with  wood.  Several  coins  of  the  lower  empire  have  been 
found  in  the  adjoining  fields,  and  particularly  an  earthern  pot 
filled  with  them  was  taken  out  of  a  pool  on  the  side  of  the  hill  not 

*   Leag  is  not  locus,  a  place,  but  it  is  a  lea  or  ley.     See  "  Alibeiley." 
t  There  is  also  a  hill  called  the  Eoiiiul  Hill,  hy  Wichlmry  Hill. 


137 

many  years  since.  In  1738,  a  fanner,  stubbing  up  an  old  tree 
wliich  grew  on  the  hill  very  near  Wichburj'  Camp,  discovered  an 
iron  chiiin  almost  rotten  with  age  and  mst,  in  which  hung,  as  in 
a  sling,  a  large  round  stone  about  the  size  of  a  man's  head,  a 
groove  being  cut  quite  round  the  stone  the  more  commodiously  to 
receive  the  chain.  I  have  no  doubt  but  this  was  a  miUtary 
weapon  used  by  the  Romans,  though  it  is  not  exactly  described 
by  Vegetius,  or  any  other  ancient  writer*. 

"  On  Clent  Heath,  about  a  mile  and  a  half  below  Wichbury, 
are  five  barrows  or  lows,  which  were  perhaps  thrown  up  by  the 
Romans  f ,  the  constant  tradition  of  the  inhabitants  assigning  them 
to  those  people ;  and  one  which  I  caused  to  be  opened  several 
years  ago  affording  a  considerable  quantity  of  burnt  wood  and 
ashes  at  the  depth  of  fourteen  feet.  Two  others  have  been  since 
opened,  in  one  of  which,  at  about  the  depth  of  two  feet,  exactly 
in  the  centre,  was  discovered  an  urn  filled  with  small  human 
bones,  very  white,  to  the  quantity  of  two  quarts.  The  urn  was 
broken  all  to  pieces  by  the  workman's  spade,  and  appeared  to  be 
of  very  coarse  ill-burnt  clay^.  At  about  the  depth  of  two  feet 
lower,  on  the  west  side  of  the  tumulus,  was  found  a  pretty  large 
quantity  of  bones,  ashes,  and  bunit  wood,  lying  promiscuously 
together.  The  last  tliat  we  opened  contained  no  uni ;  but  at  the 
depth  of  two  yards,  exactly  in  the  centre,  was  a  circular  cavity  of 
about  a  foot  diameter,  and  pretty  nearly  of  that  depth,  filled 
wholly  with  human  bones  and  burnt  wood.  I  am  of  opinion  that 
tlie  Roman  general  or  cliief  was  honoured  with  an  urn  for  his 
bones  in  the  former  of  these  two  last-described  lows  or  tumuli,  and 
perhaps  the  bones  of  his  principal  officers  are  those  which  lay  in 

•  "  Tlearne's  Cilossiiry  to  Robert  of  Gloucester. — Mangonel,  tornientiun, 
i-atapuhA  bellica,  mangonel  ingin. ; — an  old-fashioned  sling  (saith  Cotgrave  v. 
niangonneau,)  or  engine,  wliereoiit  stones,  old  iron,  &c.,  were  violently  darted. 
Some  of  the  most  aneient  militar}'  weapons  were  slings.  Our  ancestors  the 
Britons  were  expert  at  them.  .Xfter  slings,  catapults,  battering  rams,  and 
other  engines." 

t  Or  more  probably  by  tlie  ancient  Britons ;  see  pp.  05,  .'10,  as  to  Lowes- 
moor. 

J  The  character  cif  the  pottery  tends  to  prove  Uiat  the  lows  were  ancient 
British. 


138 

the  same  low  heaped  together,  but  that  the  last-mentioned  low 
contamed  the  bones  of  the  common  soldiers,  or  some  of  them  at 
least,  who  fell  in  the  action. 

"  The  inhabitants  of  Clent  and  Haglej  talk  of  an  engagement 
which  happened  on  this  spot  between  the  Romans  and  Britons, 
and  say  the  former  were  encamped  on  Wichbury  and  the  latter  on 
Clent  Hill  before  the  battle  was  fought.  Harborow,  wliich  is  the 
name  of  the  lands  and  farm  adjoining  to  the  lows,  cames  in  it 
something  military,  being  a  Saxon  compound  of  l)efie  (here) 
exercitus,  and  Befi|e  (Berie)  campus,  i.e.,  a  plain  where  an  army 
is  assembled.  Thus  Mr.  Hearne  etymologises  Plarborough  in 
Leicestershire. 

"  Probably  a  neighbouring  stream,  called  Horestone  Brook,  was 
so  denominated  from  a  stone  or  rude  pillar  erected  near  it  by  the 
victorious  Britons,  it  not  being  the  practice  of  the  Romans  to 
erect  such  pillars ;  and  hence  the  learned  Dr.  Plott  conjectures 
that  Baston,  in  the  neighbouring  parish  of  Kenvaur,  is  a  British 
monument  of  a  victory  there  obtained.  A  Roman  road  passes 
through  part  of  Hagley  Common,  and  is  now  called  the  King's 
Headland  ;  but  I  have  some  suspicion  it  was  more  anciently 
called  the  Portway,  a  name  common  to  the  Roman  military  high- 
ways ;  for  in  a  court  roll  of  the  manor  of  Clent,  temp.  Elizabeth, 
mention  is  made  of  a  road  styled  the  Portway,  on  the  Lord's 
Waste,  which  could  be  no  other  than  Clent  Heath,  adjoining  to 
Hagley.  A  very  rare  and  singular  piece  of  antiquity,  a  small 
image  of  stone,  about  two  inches  in  length,  was  found  in  1752, 
at  a  considerable  depth  within  a  ragstone  quarry,  in  Hagley  Park. 
It  is  a  very  rude  figure  of  a  man,  but  ending  in  a  term.  The 
ablest  antiquaries,  to  whose  inspection  it  has  been  submitted, 
have  all  pronounced  it  Phoenician,  being  too  rude  for  the  work  of 
a  Roman  artist :  British  it  could  not  be,  as  the  ancient  Britons 
allowed  of  no  effigiated  idol.  This  image  agrees  in  all  respects 
with  the  teraphim  mentioned  in  Scripture." 

I  have  extracted  the  whole  of  the  above  passage,  because  it 
strongly  bears  upon  our  ancient  British  antiquities,  which  I  have 
described  in  the  acjcount  of  the  hills.  I  have  been  informed  by 
Mr.  Timings,  of  ili)ly  Cross  House,  Clciit,  that  near  Wichbury 


139 

Hill,  round  hewii  stones  are  frequently  found,  supposed  to  have 
been  used  by  the  Roman  slingers  in  their  battles. 

There  is  a  piece  of  land  called  Harbourough  Ash,  in  Chad- 
desley  Corbett;  Harbour  Hill,  in  Claines,  near  Worcester; 
Harbour's  Hill  Piece,  in  Stoke  Prior;  Harborough  Hill*,  in 
Shelsley  Beauchamp,  and  Cold  Harborough,  or  Cold  Harbour,  in 
Hindlip  or  Inlip.  The  latter  name,  with  its  alias,  may  tend  to 
throw  some  light  upon  the  etymology  of  the  names  of  many  places 
called  Cold  Harbour,  noticed  in  the  "  Archaeologia,"  1849, 
No.  1,  Vol.  xxxiii.,  p.  125,  &c.  The  writer  of  that  paper  in  the 
"  Ax'chgeologiaf "  endeavours  to  prove  that,  as  the  name  Cold 
Harbour  very  frequently  occurs  at  the  angles  or  tui'ns,  and  also 
at  the  junctions  of  Roman  or  more  ancient  roads,  such  places  may 
have  been  so  called  by  the  Romans  and  Anglo- Romans,  after  the 
significant  tortuosities  of  the  coluber ;  and  that  the  term  coluber 
may  have  been  a  vestige  of  the  once  almost  uiiiversal  ophite  or 
serpent  woi'ship.  He  also  refers  to  the  opinion  of  some  anti- 
quaries, that  the  word  "  Harbour"  means  a  port,  and  that  the  prefix 
"  Cold"  comes  from  the  word  col,  kohle,  carbo.  He  likewise  mentions 
various  other  conjectures ;  for  instance,  that  the  prefix  I'efers  to 
the  bleak  or  exposed  situation  of  the  places  in  question ;  that  the 
name  Harbour  comes  from  the  Saxon  hereberga,  a  post-watch  on 
a  hill,  statio  militaris  ;  that  both  the  names  come  ft'om  the  Latin 
caula-arva  (British  cobail-arbar),  meaning  enclosed  or  cleared 
s})aces  for  cultivation  among  the  woods  and  forests  which  formerly 
covered  England. 

In  "  Notes  and  Queries t"  it  is  suggested  by  one  writer  that 
here-burh  is  an  inland  station  for  an  army,  in  the  same  sense  as 
a  harbour  for  ships  on  the  coast ;  that  Cold  is  a  corruption  for 

•  Tlieiv  is  Iliubounic  Meudow,  in  Nortlitieltl;  but  tliis  name  most  probably 
means  "  Hoiir-bonnic ;  i.e.  Hoar  a  bound,  anil  ]5ourn  a  rivulet,  from  the 
An^lo-Saxon  Hunic— See  "  Hoar  Stones,"  Chap.  IV.  thereon.  There  is  u 
parish  calleil  liarbornc,  or  Harbonrn,  in  ytaflonlsliire,  which  is  bounded  by 
Bourn  Brook  on  the  souili  side  of  it,  where  Sluirortlshire  and  Woreestersliirc 
tmite. 

+  Captain  \V.  11.  Smyth,  H.N  ,  Direetor  of  the  Society  of  Autiipiaries  of 
London. 

I  Vol.  ii.,  No.  .',1,  Oct.  Ill,  Is.-.ii,  p.  :!ll. 


140 

"  Col ;"  that  Colerna  in  Wiltshire  fortunately  retains  the  original 
orthography,  and  in  Anglo-Saxon  literally  signifies  the  habitation 
or  settlement  of  a  colony;  and  that  all  these  "  Col-harbours" 
mark  the  settlements,  farms,  out-posts,  or  ganisons  of  the  Roman 
colonies  planted  here.  It  is  therein  likewise  suggested  by  another 
writer  that  the  word  Cold  or  Cole  may  originally  have  been  the 
Anglo-Saxon  Col,  and  the  entire  expression  have  designated  a 
cool  summer  residence  by  a  river "s  side,  or  on  an  eminence  ;  that 
the  denomination  appears  to  be  the  modern  English  for  the 
A.  S.  Col  Hereberg  ;  and  that  Colburn,  Colebrook,  and  Cold- 
stream are  analagous  denominations*. 

It  is  stated  in  the  "  Proceedings  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 
London  f,"  that,  on  January  16th,  1851,  "a  letter  from  Benjamin 
Williams,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  addressed  to  Sir  Henry  Ellis,  was  read 
in  further  illustration  of  the  etymology  of  Cold  Herbergh,  or 
Harbour.  A  celebrated  Anglo-Saxon  scholar,  he  obsei-ves,  writing 
to  the  editor  of  '  Notes  and  Queries,'  remarks,  that  the  spots 
called  Cole  or  Cold  Harbours  are  not  always  in  cold  situations.  In 
corroboration  of  this,  Mr.  Williams  observes,  that  according  to 
Hire's  "  Dictionarium  Suio-Gothicum,"  there  is,  or  rather  was,  the 
Swedish  word  Kol,  signifying  fire,  the  very  opposite  of  cool ;  in 
that  sense,  however,  there  are  vaiious  dialects  of  Germany  and 
the  north,  in  which  the  word  Kol  is  used  as  denoting  heat.  The 
culinae  of  the  ancients,  the  places  where  they  kept  living  animals 
destined  for  sacrifice,  Mr.  Williams  derives  from  the  same 
source." 

In  the  "  Art  Journal,"  No.  156^,  there  is  a  paper  "  On  the 
Domestic  Manners  of  the  English  during  the  middle  ages,  by 
Thomas  Wright,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  &c.,"  wherein  it  is  remarked  as 
"  not  improbable  that  the  ruins  of  Roman  villas,  and  small 
stations,  which  stood  by  the  sides  of  roads,  were  often  roughly 
repaired  or  modified  so  as  to  furnish  a  temporary  shelter  for 
travellers   who    carried  provisions,    &.c.  with  them,    and   could, 

•  It  must  be  here  observed  tliat  the  word  "  Col  "in  Anglo-Saxon  sigiiilics  a 
peak  or  shai-p  hillock. 
+  Vol.  ii.,  ISol,  No.  2i). 
I  June  ISijl,  p.  171. 


141 

therefore,  lodge  themselves  without  depending  upon  the  assistance 
of  others.  A  shelter  of  this  kind,  from  its  consisting  of  bare 
walls,  a  mere  shelter  against  the  inclemency  of  the  storm,  might 
be  termed  a  ceald-hereberga  (cold  harbour),  and  this  would  account 
for  the  great  number  of  places  in  dififerent  parts  of  England 
which  bear  this  name,  and  which  are  almost  always  on  Roman 
sites,  and  near  old  roads.  The  explanation  is  supported  by  the 
circumstance,  that  the  name  is  found  among  the  Teutonic  nations 
on  the  Continent.  The  German  kalten-herberg,  borne  by  some 
inns  at  the  present  day." 

Cold  Harbour,  the  place  in  question,  is  situate  by  Smite  Hill  * 
in  Hindlip.  It  most  probably  lay  in  the  line  of  "  The  Western 
Trackway"  from  Worcester  to  Droitwich. — See  Salwarp,  pp.  109, 
110  ;  and  also  Iter  XV.  And  it  is  worthy  of  remark,  in  corrobo- 
ration of  Captain  Smyth's  account  of  these  localities,  that  no  less 
than  four  roads  or  old  lanes  intersect  each  other  at  Cold  Harbour  f, 
the  situation  of  which  I  am  informed  is  generally  flat,  with  the 
exception  of  one  field  called  Castle  Hill,  which  abuts  on  Smite 
Hill,  and  from  its  appearance  might  be  supposed  to  scarp 
artificially. 

It  is  said  that  a  castle  or  fort  once  stood  on  Castle  Hill,  and 
was  at  length  destroyed  by  a  battery  placed  on  Xewland  Common. 
A  cannon  shot  was  about  forty  yeai's  ago  ploughed  up  somewhere 
on  the  spot.  Heraing's  "  Cartulary  J"  notices  a  place  called 
Oldbury  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Smite.  It  adjoins 
Castle  Hill  Field,  and  is  commonly  called  Auld-berry  §, 

In  the  account  of  the  Malvern  Hills  I  have  given  a  list  of 
various  places  in  Worcestershire,  the  names  of  which  have  the 
prefix  Coll,  Col,  Cold,  and  Cald  ;  perhaps  this  preftx  may  originate 
in  various  sources,  and  it  therefore  becomes  necessary  that  the 
histor}'  or  nature  of  such  places  should  be  considered  in  order  to 
ascertain  the  derivation  of  their  names.     Some  may  be  derived 

•  See  Wanidou,  Iter  XV.,  as  to  tliis  hill  liaviiig  been  the  scene  of  a  battle 
between  the  Anglo-Saxons  and  Danes. 
+  Sec  the  Ordnance  Mai). 
I  Vol.  ii.,  p.  !>r).5. 
§   See  pp.  -14,  '■]'),  for  tlie  eiyinology  of  the  name. 


142 

from  Coluber,  others  from  the  Latin  Collis,  a  liill ;  others  from 
the  Anglo-Saxon  word  Col ;  others  from  the  Swedish  word  Kol ; 
and  others,  again,  from  the  bleakness  or  coldness  of  the  situation, 
or  of  its  accommodation,  Arc. 

In  Halliwells  "  Glossary  of  Archaic  Words,"  "  Col"  is  given  as 
meaning  "  charcoal."  Now,  it  is  not  improbable  that  charcoal 
may  have  been  burnt  at  some  of  these  stations,  as  the  Swedish 
"  Kol"  before  mentioned  would  seem  to  indicate. 

In  Lulsley  thei'e  is  a  farm  called  Cold  Place,  a  coiTuption  of 
CoUes  Place,  CoUes  or  Coles  having  been  the  name  of  its  owners 
during  the  reigns  of  Elizabeth,  James  I.,  and  Charles  I*.  Here, 
then,  we  have  a  clear  case,  that  the  name  Colles  was  con'upted 
into  Cold,  and  in  like  manner  the  Latin  words  Coluber  and  Collis, 
or  Col,  the  Anglo-Saxon  Col,  and  the  Swedish  Kol  may,  in  some 
cases,  have  been  similai'ly  changed. 

With  respect  to  Hoar-Stone  Brook  previously  mentioned,  I 
here  observe,  that  upon  the  border  of  Sapey  Brook,  in  the  parish 
of  Tedstone  Delamere,  in  Herefordshire,  there  is  a  high  and  large 
mass  of  calcareous  incrustations,  or  travertine  f,  called  the  Hoar 
Stone,  which,  in  the  first  edition  of  this  work,  I  suggested  was  so 
named  from  its  whitish  appearance  ;  but  the  better  opinion  of 
Mr.  Hamper  upon  the  subject  is  given  in  the  latter  part  of  this 
work  in  the  account  of  "  Hoar  Stones." 

HALES  OWEN; 

FORMERLY    CALLED    HALES,    AND    IL\LAS. 

This  parish,  until  183-2,  was  situated  partly  in  Shropshire  and 
partly  in  Worcestershire  ;  the  whole,  however,  was  in  the  latter 
county  till  the  time  of  the  Conquest,  and  has  been  re-annexed  to 
it  again  by  the  Reform  Bill.      Dr.  Nash  I  says  : — "  This  parish 

*  See  the  ancount  of  Lulsley,  and  of  Folk  Lore  in  Lulsley,  and  tlie  lepeiul 
of  Old  Coles. 

+  Tliere  is  a  iiiucli  greater  niass  of  travertine,  ealled  Soullistones  Rock,  near 
Stanford  Court,  in  tliis  county,  the  pi-operty  of  Sir  T.  I^.  \Vinninj,'tnn,  IJ.irt. — 
See  the  aocount  of  Stanford. 

+  "  History,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  T)!)!). 


143 

affords  some  Roman  antiquities.  A  military  road,  called  the 
Portvvay,  passes  through  Warley  Wigom,  and  probably  is  a 
branch  from  the  great  Roman  Ykenyld*  Street,  which  passes 
within  a  very  few  miles  of  this  place  in  its  course  from  Edgbaston 
to  Wall,  near  Litchfield,  the  Etocetum  of  the  "  Itineraiy."  In  the 
road  leading  from  Causeway  Green,  in  Warley  Wigom,  towards 
Oldbury,  and  near  Langley,  were  found  great  quantities  of  iron 
cinders :  whether  they  were  British,  Roman,  or  Saxon,  I  will  not 
affirm  f ,  but  gi'eat  quantities  have  of  late  years  been  carried  away 
and  worked  over  again  to  advantage. — (See  Pennant's  '  Tour  in 
Wales,"  Vol.  i.,  page  64,  where  he  mentions  the  same  kind 
of  cinders  to  have  been  discovered  in  other  parts  of  the 
kingdom.') 

"A  place  called  the  Quintan,  lying  in  Hales  parish,  so 
denominated  fi'om  the  ancient  Roman  sport  still  practised  here, 
proves  the  Romans  to  have  been  stationed  in  this  place.  The 
learned  antiquary.  Bishop  Kennett,  in  his  '  Parochial  Anti- 
quities of  Burcester,'  observes,  that  '  running  at  the  Quintan 
was  not  continued  in  any  part  of  Oxfordshire,  except  where 
the  Roman  ways  did  run,  or  where  some  Roman  garrison  had 
been  placed.'  In  page  521,  the  Doctor,  in  his  description  of 
Oldbury  j\Ianor,  situated  in  the  then  Shropshire  part  of  Hales 
parish,  added  that  '  Oldbury  denoted  a  Roman  camp  or  station ; 
and  that  a  Roman  road,  called  the  Portway,  passed  very  near,  if 
not  through  it;'  that  '  the  Portway  seems  to  have  been  a  vicinal 
road,  branching  from  the  Ykenyld  or  Rycnyld  Street ;'  and  that 
'  at  Oldbury,  in  Wilts,  there  is  a  remarkable  Roman  camp,  and 
in  Warwick  and  Gloucestershire  are  villages  so  called,  that  were 
undoubted  Roman  stations." 

I  have  previously  noticed  a  place  called  Oldbury  in  the  parish 
of  Saint  John,  near  Worcester. 

DUDLEY. 

This  place  derives  its  name  from  Dodo,  or  Dudo,  a  Saxon 
prince,  by  whom  it  was  owned  at  the  time  of  the  heptarchy,  and 

*  Or  IJyckiiield  Stiv.'t. 

+  riile  wliat  liius  been  previously  siiid  under  tlie  head  ''  Worcester,"  p.  '2,  kc. 


144 

who  built  a  castle  here  about  the  year  700.  In  "  Domesday 
Book,"  it  is  called  Dudelei.  Dr.  Nash  says  Dudley  means 
the  field  of  Dodo*.  There  is  "  Greystonef  Field"  in  this 
parish. 

WASSAL  HILL  AND  KENVAUR  (OR  KINVER)  EDGE. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  his  account  of  the  parish  of  Kidderminster, 
says : — "  On  Wassal  Hill,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  banks  of 
the  Severn,  are  the  remains  of  a  small  station  or  camp ;  it  lies 
about  four  or  five  miles  west  of  a  larger  camp,  on  Kenvaur  Edge. 
About  the  same  distance  east  of  Kenvaur  Edge,  on  Wichbuiy 
Hill,  there  was  another.  These  probably  were  the  posts  of  Henry 
IV.,  when  he  blocked  up  Owen  Glyndwr,  after  the  burning  of 
Worcester,  1405." — (See  "  Monstrelet,"  c.  v. ;  and  Hall's 
"  Chronicles,"  pp.  18,  19.) 

Within  the  parish  of  Kinver,  or  Kinfare,  Co.  Stafford,  "  is  an 
ancient  fortification,  forming  a  parallelogram,  deeply  intrenched 
on  two  sides,  and  on  the  other  two  defended  by  a  hill.  In  the 
neighbourhood  is  a  tumulus ;  and  here  also  was  a  large  block  of 
stone,  called  Battlestone,  six  feet  high,  and  about  twelve  in  girth ; 
but  it  has  been  removed  l" 

Near  Kinvaur  Edge,  on  the  Pigeon  House  estate,  there  is  a 
remarkable  sandstone,  called  "  Bolt  Stone."  It  runs  rather 
tapering  towards  the  top,  and  is  said  to  be  about  seven  feet  high, 
and  four  feet  square  at  the  base.  This  stone  went  also  by  another 
name,  as  will  appear  by  the  following  extract  from  "  The  Rambler 
in  Worcestei"shire  §  " : — "'The  Giant's  Throw'  was  an  upright 
stone  of  considerable  magnitude,  about  a  mile  from  Kinver  Edge, 
and  which,  local  tradition  says,  was  thrown  there  by  a  giant 
standing  on  the  Edge  (it  is  generally  customary  to  assign  these 
wonders  to  the  devil) ;  but  the  best  authorities  believe  it  was  an 
ancient  British  monument.     It  was  removed  by  the  owner  of  the 

•  See  Iter  XVI II.,  title  "  Oddiiigley,"  as  to  Dodo. 
+  See  the  account  of  Hoar  Stones. 
J  Lewis's    "  Topof^rapliical  Dictionary." 
§  Publislied  1(^.51,  p.  Q40. 


145 

field  about  ten  years  ago,  and  broken  to  pieces,  because  it  was  in 
tlie  way  of  his  plough," 

OVER  ARLEY. 

Dr,  Nash,  in  the  Appendix  to  the  second  Vol.  of  his  "  History," 
quotes  the  following  account,  from  Bishop  Lyttelton,  of  the 
antiquities  of  Over  Arley  (which  is  not  in  Worcestershire, 
but  Staffordshire) : — 

"  Some  considerable  Roman  antiquities  occur  within  the 
bounds  of  this  manor.  On  the  eastern  limits  I  find  an  ancient 
road  called  the  Portway  (a  name  common  to  Roman  vicinal 
ways  throughout  the  kingdom),  which  probably  led  from  Bra- 
nogenium  (Worcester)  to  Uriconium  (Wroxeter),  and  is  at  this 
day  the  post-road  from  Worcester  to  Shrewsbury-  ;  which  latter 
rose  out  of  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  Uriconium.  In  Wulfruna's 
grant  of  this  manor  to  the  church  of  Hampton  (from  her  entitled 
Wolverhampton  f ),  the  metes  and  bounds  thereof  are  particularly 
described  ;  among  which,  one  is  denominated  |*c|tAce  or  the 
street,  by  which  the  Saxons  generally  meant  a  Roman  road  or 
highway ;  and  this  doubtless  was  the  same  with  the  present  portway. 

•'  A  large  Roman  camp  also  remains  here,  situated  in  Arley 
Wood,  being  nearly  an  exact  square,  with  double,  and  on  one  side 
treble  ditches.  It  was  probably  the  work  of  Ostoiius,  who 
fortified  many  places  near  and  upon  the  banks  of  the  Severn, 
during  his  conflicts  with  the  Silures  and  Ordovices.  Query,  too, 
if  ('astle  Field,  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  but  within  the 
manor  of  Arley,  was  not  thus  named  from  the  Romans  encamping 
there ;  as  no  ruins  of  a  castle,  or  any  tradition  of  there  ever 
having  been  one  here,  remains." 

It  is  sUited  in  Lewis's  **  Topographical  Dictionary,"  that,  at 
Hawkbatch,  "  a  Roman  town  and  bridge  are  said  to  have 
existed ;  and  many  Roman  coins  have  been  found  in  that  part  of 
the  parish." 

*  An  account  of    tliia  portway,  from    Kencliester  to  Worcester,  and  from 
Worcester  to  Over  Arley,  is  given  in  the  latter  part  of  this  work. 
+  Dugdale's  "  Monaslicon,"  Tom.  i.,  fo.  08.'^, 

I. 


146 

RIBBESFORD  AND  BEWDLEY. 

In  the  collection  of  miscellanea  bequeathed  to  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries  in  London,  by  the  late  Dr.  Prattinton,  of  Bewdley, 
is  a  celt  of  greenish  stone,  found  in  the  bed  of  the  river  Severn  at 
Ribbesford,  on  digging  for  gravel.  The  Doctor  stated  that  he  had 
it  from  William  Parsons,  Esq.  The  one  end  of  it  is  a  maul  and 
the  other  an  axe.  (See  an  engraving  of  it,  Plate  4,  No.  5,  page 
98.)  This  celt  is  much  smaller  than  the  larger  of  the  two  found 
at  Grimley  *,  being  only  five  inches  long,  two  inches  and  a  quarter 
broad,  two  inches  wide  at  one  end,  and  one  inch  and  a  half  at  the 
centre.     It  weighs  sixteen  ounces. 

One  exactly  similar,  found  in  Ashton  valley,  is  delineated  in 
Sir  R.  C.  Hoare's  "  Ancient  Wilts,"  PI.  8,  p.  79. 

Ribbesford,  in  Hemings  "  Cartulaiy,"  is  called  Rebetforde, 
and  in  "  Domesday,"  Ribforde. 

Bewdley,  in  Ribbesford,  is  supposed  to  bo  so  called  from 
"  Beaulieu,"  meaning  a  beautiful  situation. 

TICKENHILL. 

It  is  stated  in  Cooke's  "  Topographical  Libraiy,"  (title  Worces- 
tei-shire,  page  1 1 6,)  that  "  a  gold  coin,  of  the  Emperor  Tiberius, 
was  found,  in  a  state  of  uncommon  preservation,  in  the  ancient 
forest  of  Wyre,  about  the  year  1770f."  The  above  place  is  in 
the  parish  of  Ribbesford. 

SODDINGTON  IN  MAMBLE. 

Laird's  "  Topographical  and  Historical  Description  of  Worces- 
tershire," pp.  276  to  279,  contains  the  following  description  of 
ancient  relics  discovered  at  Soddington,  in  this  parish,  a  few 
miles  cast  of  Tenbury,  upon  taking  down  the  old  mansion  of  the 
Blount's  family,  and  digging  up  the  foundations  in  1807  : — "  In 
digging  beneath  the  oldest  part  of  the  farm,  at  the  depth  of  about 
three  feet,   they  struck  upon  an  ancient  focus   furnied  of  thin 

*  See  the  acconiit  of  Grimley. 

+  Also  viilf  Nasli's  "  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  277, 


147 

bricks,  which  had  each  of  them  a  semicircular  termination,  and 
had  evidently  been  framed  in  a  similar  mould.  In  digging  at  a 
small  distance  from  the  focus,  five  feet  below  the  level  of  it,  a 
pavement,  laid  with  large  thin  bricks,  such  as  the  Romans  are 
known  to  have  used,  and  as  are  commonly  to  be  met  with  at 
Verulam  and  other  Roman  cities,  was  discovered. 

"  In  levelling  the  ground  near  the  house  of  Soddington,  the 
labourers  also  dug  up  a  vast  number  of  curious  tubes,  which 
seemed  to  have  formed  an  ancient  aqueduct,  the  existence  of 
which  was  previously  unknown  to  any  of  the  inhabitants,  even  by 
tradition.  These  tubes  were  formed  of  the  finest  clay,  and  ex- 
ceedingly well  baked,  being  of  a  grey  colour  on  the  outside,  and, 
when  broken,  of  a  dark  colour  in  the  interior.  They  appeared  to 
be  exactly  of  the  same  composition  with  the  common  Roman 
urns.  Each  tube  was  about  two  feet  long,  and  about  four  inches 
in  the  total  diameter,  though  the  aperture  for  conveymg  the 
water  was  not  more  than  one  inch  and  three  quartei"s.  At  one 
end  were  hollow  tenons,  and  mortices  at  the  other,  all  exactly 
fitted,  to  be  air-tight  without  the  intervention  of  mortar. 

"  They  were  laid  in  the  direction  of  a  spring,  wliich  flows  at 
the  distance  of  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Soddington,  at  the  summit 
of  an  eminence  still  higher  tliun  the  site  of  the  mansion,  and  they 
were  traced  a  considerable  part  of  the  way  to  it. 

"  But  the  most  curious  discovery,  as  related  by  an  eye-witness, 
occurred  in  a  field  within  a  (|uarter  of  a  mile  of  the  old  house, 
where,  in  levelling  a  hillock  on  which  an  oak,  quite  decayed 
with  age,  besides  other  trees,  stood,  the  workmen  found,  at  the 
depth  of  about  two  feet  from  the  sod,  a  complete  brick-ldln  con- 
sisting, by  computation,  of  ten  tliousaud  bricks,  tlie  greater  part 
of  which  were  well  burnt,  but  the  rest  only  half  ready  for  use. 
It  was  noticed  tlmt  the  kiln  wa.s  not  made  as  kilns  usually  are  at 
present ;  but,  unfortunately,  there  was  no  pei-son  there  qualified 
to  give  a  correct  description  of  it.  The  bricks  also  were  both 
larger  and  thinner  tlian  those  of  the  present  day." 

Mr.  Mihier -,  who  gave  the  account,  thought  Soddington  was  a 

•  "  (jeiitleuiairs  .Mugaziiie,"  Vol.  Ixxvii.,  p.  KJdll. 


148 

Roman  fort,  the  ground  on  the  sides  of  it  still  bearing  certain 
vestiges  of  a  Roman  intrenchment,  and  that  the  brick-kiln  was 
worked  by  the  Romans  just  before  they  abandoned  the  island, 
about  the  year  418. 

STOCKTON. 

Laird  (page  285)  speaking  of  Stockton  Church  and  Village, 
says,  "  The  hill  seems  to  be  cut  into  ancient  intrenchments  ;  but 
we  could  not  procure  any  information  respecting  them,  nor  can 
we  find  it  even  mentioned  by  any  writer  whatsoever." 

LINDRIDGE. 

There  is  a  Toothill  in  this  parish,  the  particulars  of  which  will 
be  given  under  the  head  Toothills,  where  the  subject  is  fully 
considered. 

A  hone,  or  Haying-knife,  was  found  a  few  years  ago  in  this 
parish,  the  particulars  of  which,  accompanied  by  a  drawing,  I 
sent  to  the  Archaeological  Institute.  The  following  notice  of  it 
appeared  in  their  Journal,  Vol.  vi.,  p.  409.  "  Drawing  of  an 
implement,  supposed  to  be  of  the  early  British  period,  formed  of 
a  green-coloured  stone,  and  found  six  feet  below  the  surface, 
in  a  gravel-bed,  at  Lindridge.  It  is  a  kind  of  chisel,  or 
possibly  it  may  have  been  used  as  a  flaying-knife.  At  one  end 
there  are  two  perforations,  and  a  third  hole  drilled  only  partly 
through.  Dimensions  : — length,  four  and  three  quarter  inches  ; 
breadth,  one  inch ;  thickness,  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch,  dimi- 
nishing towards  the  ends.  It  was  presented  to  the  Museum  of 
the  Worcestershire  Natural  History  Society,  by  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Pearson,  of  Witley. 

"  The  objects  of  stone,  found  in  barrows  in  Wiltshire  by  Sir 
Richard  Hoare  ('  Ancient  Wilts.,'  PI.  2,  12,  &c.),  mostly  per- 
forated at  the  ends,  and  similar  to  this  in  general  form,  but  not 
sharpened  at  the  extremity,  have  been  regarded  as  ornaments,  or 
as  whetstones*.     Possibly,  the  curious  example  above  given  may 

•  See  the  "  .Toiirniil  of  the  Ardiajolofrical  Institute,"  Vol.  vi.,  p.  11)8,  as  to  a 
wlu'tstoiio,  foiiiid  witli  other  Roman  remains  at  Icklelon, 


149 

have  answered  a  double  purpose,  both  as  a  hone  and  an  edged  tool. 
(See  also  '  Archaeological  Journal,'  Vol.  v.,  pp.  282,  293,  323." 


The  accompanying  woodcut  rejiresents  both  its  breadth  and 
thickness. 

HOLT. 

A  looped  bi'onzed  celt  was  found  in  the  year  1844,  in  the 
middle  of  the  bed  of  the  river  Severn,  about  thi'ee  feet  six  inches 
under  the  gravel,  as  the  workmen  were  dredging  midway  between 
the  bridge  and  the  entrance  of  the  cutting  for  the  Lock,  for  the 
purposes  of  the  Severn  navigation  improvements.  It  is  four 
inches  and  a  quarter  in  length.  (See  an  engraving  thereof,  Plate 
4,  No.  6,  page  98.) 

The  tongue  of  a  fibula,  of  the  same  length  as  the  celt,  was 
also  found  about  eighteen  feet  below  the  surface,  and  about  200 
yards  from  the  river,  in  the  cutting  outside  the  south  gates  of  the 
Lock.     (See  an  engraving  of  it,  Plate  4,  No.  7.  page  98.) 

These  relics  are,  I  believe,  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  George 
Edwards,  the  civil  engineer,  on  the  works. 

WICHENFORD. 

I  have  in  my  possession  two  lioman  coins  which  were  lately 
found  upon  digging  up  the  foundation  of  an  old  building  at  the 
farm  called  Woodend,  in  this  parisli.  The  one  is  a  coin  of  Vic- 
torinus,  the  other  of  Constans.  The  obverse  of  the  latter  has 
the  portrait  of  the  sovereign,  with  a  globe  in  his  hand,  and  the 
inscription  DN.  CONSTANS,  P.F.  AVG.  ;  on  the  reverse  is 
the  figure  of  the  emperor  armed,  in  a  grotto  or  hiding-place, 
leading  out  a  boy,  supposed  to  be  one  of  the  Cliristians,  by  the 
hand,  tliereby  indicating  his  guardian  care  of  them,  with  the  in- 


150 

scription,  FEL  i  TEMP  i  REPARATIO.  P.L.C.  A  similar 
coin  is  delineated  in  Paten's  work  on  Roman  coins  (pp.  471,  472, 
figure  5),  accompanied  by  an  interesting  description. 

GRIMLEY. 

An  ancient  British  stone  celt,  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  John 
Evans,  late  of  Worcester,  was  found  in  the  year  1835,  by  a  work- 
man, in  a  gravel  bed,  several  feet  beneath  the  surface,  near  Ball 
Mill,  in  this  parish.  The  bed  lies  upon  rather  elevated  ground 
on  the  western  side  of  the  Severn,  nearly  opposite  to  Bevere 
Island,  and  within  a  short  distance  of  it.  The  celt  is  five  inches 
long,  two  inches  broad  at  one  end,  one  inch  and  six-eighths  at  the 
other;  one  inch  and  an  eighth  broad,  and  one  inch  and  six 
eighths  thick  in  the  middle  ;  it  weighs  nine  ounces  and  a  half ;  is 
edged  at  both  ends,  but  the  one  end  has  been  rather  blunted  and 
lessened  a  little  by  use.  It  has  a  hole  through  it  for  a  handle. 
Two  views  thereof  are  represented  in  the  engraving,  Plate  4, 
Nos.  8  and  9,  page  98. 

An  ancient  British  celt,  or  stone  axe,  was,  a  few  years  ago, 
found  by  the  brick-makers  while  digging  for  brick  earth  at  Grim- 
ley  Ham,  fourteen  feet  deep  in  the  alluvial  soil,  at  the  distance 
of  about  127  yards  from  the  Severn.  It  is  in  the  possession  of 
Mr.  Amphlett  of  Farfield.  It  weighs  eight  pounds  five  ounces 
and  a  half,  is  nine  inches  and  a  half  long,  three  inches  broad, 
four  inches  thick  at  the  blunt  end,  and  three  inches  and  a  half 
broad  at  the  sharp  end  :  the  hole  for  the  handle  is  an  inch  and 
three  quarters  in  diameter ;  the  stone  is  a  species  of  basalt.  (See 
an  engraving  of  it,  Plate  4,  No  10,  page  98.) 

There  are  several  stone  axes  in  the  Scarborough  Museum*  ; 
the  largest  one,  found  at  Scalby,  and  made  of  basalt,  is  nearly  the 
same  in  size  and  shape  as  the  one  in  question.  AVhcn  1  visited 
the  spot  at  Grimley  Ham,  there  was  an  appearance  as  if  an  old 
dyke  had  been  buried  there  by  the  alluvium,  which  would  partly 
account  lor  the  great  depth  at  which  the  axe  lay. 

•  Si.'c  my  account  r)f  tJicui  in  tlip  "  AicliaioloKiii,"  Vol.  xx\.,  pp.  laN  102. 


151 
BEVERE  ISLAND. 

The  several  coins  in  my  possession  (the  particulai's  of  which 
arc  stated  below)  were  collected  by  a  gentleman  of  Bevere,  in 
Claines  parish.  Some  of  them,  it  is  said,  were  found  on  Bevere* 
Island,  but  of  this  I  am  not  certain. 

A  colonial  coin  of  Augustus  and  Agrippa,  with  their  joint 
portraits  on  the  obverse ;  and  on  the  reverse  the  words  "  Col. 
Nem."  (Colonia  Nemaususf),  with  a  crocodile  chained  to  a  palm 
tree,  an  apt  emblem  of  their  victories  in  Egypt.  A  coin  of  Tibe- 
rius, with  his  portrait.  Also  one  with  his  whole  figure  in  a  sitting 
posture,  and  which  should  contain  the  legend  "  Civitatibus  Asiae 
llestitutus"  I,  but  it  is  obliterated.  Coins  of  Galba,  Vespasian, 
Domitian,  Trajan,  Marcus  Antoninus,  Dioclesian,  Constantine 
the  Great,  and  Valentinian,  with  their  portraits.  A  consecration 
coin  of  Faustina,  the  wife  of  Antoninus  Pius,  with  her  portrait ; 
the  inscription  "  Diva  Faustina"  on  the  obverse,  and  Juno  on  the 
reverse.  Also  a  Greek  coin,  with  a  head  of  a  female  on  the 
obverse,  and  a  dragon  or  monster,  and  the  Greek  word  Maacra 
on  the  reverse,  showing  that  it  was  a  colonial  coin  of  Massilia  (the 
modem  Marseilles). 

About  the  year  1809,  an  ancient  British  bronze  celt,  or  knife, 
was  dug  up  in  Bevere  Island.  It  is  four  inches  and  one- 
eighth  long,  two  inches  and  three-eighths  broad  at  the  widest  end, 
one  inch  and  three-eighths  broad  at  the  middle,  six-eighths  of  an 
inch  broad  at  the  naiTowest  end,  and  two-eighths  of  an  inch  tliick 
in  the  centre.  It  weighs  six  ounces  and  three  quarters,  and  is 
rather  sharp  at  both  ends,  but  most  so  at  the  smallest  end.  It 
is  now  in  tlie  possession  of  Mrs.  Spriggs,  of  Worcester.  (See  an 
engraving  of  it,  PI.  4,  No.  11,  p.  98.) 

I  was  informed  by  the  Lite  Sir  S.  R.  Meyrick,  that  the  imple- 
ment in  (piestion  was  used  as  a  knife,  and  was  held  between  the 
finger  and  thumb  like  those  of  stone  described  in  Keats 's  account 
of  the  Pelew  Islands. 

•   So  cnllpil  from  lioiivcrs  Imvinf;  formerly  frnqtii'iitcit  it. 

+  Tho  iModeru  N'iiiio;*  in  Fniiiof. 

I    Tlifse  cities  liiiil  lieeii  ilestroyed  l>y  iiu  rarllniuuke. 


152 

There  is  an  ancient  flint  knife,  something  similar,  delineated 
in  PI.  ;5G  of  Vol.  xv.  of  the  "  Ai'chaiologia,"  p.  ;M9,  which  was 
found  in  the  parish  of  Iviltaran,  in  Galvvay.  There  is  also  another 
of  flint  in  the  Scarborough  Museum*,  four  inches  and  a  half 
long,  which  was  found  at  Pickering  in  Yorkshire. 

Bevere  Island  lies  about  three  miles  north  of  the  city  of 
Worcester. 

THE  HILLS. 

I  shall  now  attempt  to  give  some  account  of  the  origin  of  the 
names,  and  also  the  antiquities,  of  several  of  the  hills  of  Wor- 
cestershire. 

Our  first  range  will  be  the  beautiful  chain  on  the  western  side 
of  the  county,  running  parallel  with  the  right  bank  of  the  Seveni, 
at  a  distance  from  it  of  from  four  to  five  miles.  This  chain  com. 
prehends  the  Malvern,  Old  Stoi'age,  Ankerdine,  Berrow,  Wood- 
bur}',  and  Abberley  Hills.  I  shall  then  advert  to  the  Tot,  Toot, 
or  Teut  Hills,  lying  about  two  miles  off  the  eastern  or  left  side  of 
the  Sevei'n.  These  are  Cruckbarrow,  Elbury,  and  Tutnall ; "  the 
fii-st  of  which  faces  Great  Malveni  and  Old  Storage  Hills  ;  the 
second,  Ankerdine  Hill ;  and  the  last  fronts  the  Berrow,  Wood- 
bury, and  Abberley  Hills.  Towbury  Hill  Camp,  before  described, 
faces  the  camp  on  Little  Malvern  Hill ;  but  these  two  last  do 
not  strictly  belong  to  Worcestershire,  being  just  without  the 
border.  Some  parts,  adjacent  to  these  hills,  will  likewise  be 
noticed  in  speaking  of  the  Toot  Hills  generally. 

The  whole  of  this  region  has  been  very  fully  described,  in  a 
geological  point  of  view,  by  Sir  Eoderick  Inipey  Murchison,  in 
his  work  on  the  Silurian  System ;  and  is  also  referred  to  in  my 
pamphlet  on  the  Old  Eed  Sandstone  of  Worcestershire  and  Here- 
fordshire, published  in  1835f. 

*  See  my  accoum  thereof  in  Vol.  xxx.  of  the  "  Arohaeolof^ia,"  p.  Hil. 

+  I  take  tliis  opportunity  of  stating  that  I  am  induced,  by  a  fnrtlier  tic 
(juaintanfe  with  geology,  to  retract  many  of  the  views  advanced  in  the  above 
pamphlet,  respectuig  the  circular  and  semicircular  marks  in  the  old  red 
sandstone  of  that  locality,  as  mammalia  have  not  heen  discovered  in  such  suiid 
slon<',  although  fossil  reptiles  have  lately  heen  found  therein  in  Dcvousliirr. 


153 


Iter  p. 


MALVERN  HILLS. 

Dr.  Nash  (Vol.  ii.,  p.  121)  says  that  the  name  Malvern  is  pro- 
bably derived  from  the  British  word  Moel,  signifying  bald,  and 
Weni,  alders,  importing  a  bald  hill,  with  alders  at  the  bottom ; 
or  rather  from  Moel,  which,  in  British,  signifies  a  mountain,  and 
he  cites  several  authorities  upon  the  subject. 

It  seems  to  me  more  probable  that  the  syllable  "  vem  "  is  derived 
from  the  British  words  "  Sarn,"  or  "  Yarn,"  wliich  respectively 
mean  a  pavement  or  seat  of  judgment*  ;  if  so,  the  name  would 
signify  the  mountain  of  the  seat  of  judgment,  or  the  high  court 
or  seat  of  judgment  f,  proving  it  to  have  been  an  important 
station  of  the  Druids. 

In  corroboration  of  this  view  it  may  be  remarked  that  the  Mal- 
veni  range  contains  what  is  considered  to  be  an  ancient  British 
triangular-shaped  camp*,  and  is  surrounded  by  other  camps, 
stations,  and  antiquities,  both  British  and  Roman.  In  addition 
to  this  it  is  crossed  by  primitive  roads  §,  some  of  which  have 
already  been  described,  and  others  will  be  noticed  in  the  subse- 
quent part  of  this  work. 

The  Malvern  Hills,  and  a  piece  of  land  called  "  Ambers,"  in 

•  See  p.  l'-i8  respectiiif?  these  names,  also  tlie  section  relative  to  the  Am- 
brosisB  Petrae. 

■f  Malveni  is  spelled  Malfenm  in  "  Domesday  Book  ;"  and  it  mentions 
Malvertone,  Co.  Warwick,  and  Malvcselle  and  i\[alvesliille,  Co.  Hereford. 

I  The  sa(Ted  altars  appear  in  some  instances  to  have  been  within  the 
ramps,  see  the  heads  "  Ambrosiie  Petrae,"  and  "  .Vncient  Roads  ;"  therefore 
the  Herefordshire  Ueacon  Camp  most  probably  contained  a  sacred  altar,  as 
well  as  a  seat  of  jiidpnienl. 

§    Particularly  the  Ridge  Way. 


154 

Castle  Morton,  Fire  Hill  Field  and  Tyre  Hill  in  Wellaud, 
Crookbcrrow  and  Elsborongh  in  the  Berrow  and  Pendock,  Tuts- 
hill  and  Gadbury  Banks  in  Eldersfield,  Sam  Hill  or  Sern  Hill  in 
Bushley,  the  Mythe  Tute  near  Tewkesbury,  the  Bamburj^  or  Ban- 
bury Stone  in  Kemerton  Camp  on  Bredon  Hill,  and  Stam  Hill 
in  the  parish  of  Elinjey  Castle,  are  all  neai-ly  in  a  line  with 
each  other. 

Jones,  in  his  "  Brecknockshire,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  26,  makes  Moel-y- 
Yaru,  which  is  pure  Welsh,  signify  the  high  court,  or  seat  of 
judgment*. 

There  is  a  hill  in  Stourbridge  which  was  formerly  called  Yam 
borough,  but  is  now  called  Amburyf.  Likewise  a  camp  called 
Yarnbury,  Y^arnsbury,  or  Y''anesbury,  in  Wiltshire,  relative  to 
which  it  is  stated  in  Gough's  "  Camden,"  that  "  against  the  Bo- 
manity  of  Y'arnsbuiy  or  Y'anesbury  Camp,  it  has  been  urged  that 
Roman  camps  were  generally  square  and  single  trenched,  whereas 
this  is  double.  Its  being  oval  and  so  much  like  Bratton,  only 
bigger,  would  induce  one  to  think  it  Danish,  and  perhaps  its 
name,  with  a  small  alteration  of  sound,  implies  as  much." — Still, 
however,  I  feel  inclined  to  consider  it  British. 

HEREFORDSHIRE  BEACON. 

Iving,  in  his  "  Munimenta  Antiqua,"  states  that  "  there  are  a 
vast  number  of  strong  iutrenchments  in  all  parts  of  this  island,  of 
a  veiy  peculiar  kind,  situated  chiefly  on  the  tops  of  natural  hills, 
and  which  can  be  attributed  to  none  of  the  various  people  wlio 
have  ever  dwelt  in  the  adjacent  country,  except  to  the  ancient 
Britons  ;  although  indeed  the  subsequent  conquerors,  Romans, 
Saxons,  Danes,  and  even  the  Normans,  have  on  certain  emergen- 
cies made  use  of  them,  on  account  of  their  great  original  strength. 
One  of  the  most  important  and  considerable  is  situated  in  a  spot 
that  could  not  but  be  an  object  of  the  utmost  attention  to  the 
original  inhabitants  of  those  territories,  which  afterwards  were 
deemed  distinctly  England  and  Wales.    This  is  the  Herefordsliire 

•  S  'f  ('liiiiiiliiM>;'s  "  Cicncrul  History  of  .Mulvfni,"  publishud  1^17,  p.  27(j. 
t   Sci'  Siirn  Hills,  j..  1-Js. 


155 

Beacon,  commanding  that  which  was  once  the  only  pass  through 
the  Malvern  ridge  of  hills,  and  wliich,  indeed,  is  very  nearly  so  to 
the  present  hour." 

Beyond  the  camp,  to  the  south,  there  is  a  smaller  intrenchment. 

Dr.  Nash  has  thus  described  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  camp, 
in  Vol.  ii.,  p.  141,  of  his  "  History,"  under  the  head  of  "Little 
Malvern  :" — "  This  little  parish  is  a  retired,  romantic  spot,  lying 
on  the  eastern  side  of  the  hill,  and  running  up  to  its  summit, 
where  is  a  camp,  with  a  treble  ditch,  an  exact  plan  of  which  is 
here  given  for  the  amusement  of  the  curious.  Some  have  imagined 
it  Roman,  because  of  the  praetorium,  or  centre  part,  and  the  name 
of  the  parish  in  which  the  greater  part  of  it  is  situated.  Coil- 
wall*,  that  is,  Collis  Vallum.  Some  Roman  remains  in  Here- 
fordshire are  called  Walles,  and  Severus's  Wall  in  the  north  is 
called  Gual  Sever,  or  Vallum  Severi.  But  the  shape  of  this 
camp  doth  not  show  it  to  be  Roman,  though  I  know  not  to  what 
age  to  attribute  it,  as  it  is  not  mentioned  by  any  author  I  know 
of,  either  in  print  or  MSf.  It  was  certainly  prior  to  the  partition 
trench  before  mentioned,  which  divides  the  counties  of  Worcester 
and  Hereford  ;  for  the  outward  trench  of  the  camp  serves  for  part 
of  tliis  ditch. 

"  Within  the  distance  of  a  musket-shot  of  the  trenches  of  the 
camp,  in  the  parish  of  Colwall,  in  Herefordshire,  was  found,  in 
the  year  1050,  by  Thomas  Tayler,  near  Burstners  Cross,  as  he 
was  digging  a  ditch  round  his  cottage,  a  coronet  or  bracelet  of 
gold,  set  with  precious  stones,  of  a  size  to  be  drawn  over  the  arm 
and  sleeve.  It  was  sold  to  Mr.  HiU,  a  goldsmith  in  Gloucester, 
for  thirty-seven  pounds  ;  Hill  sold  it  to  a  jeweller  in  Lombard 
Street,  London,  for  two  hundred  and  fifty  pounds,  and  the  jeweller 
sold  the  stunes,  wliich  were  deeply  inlaid,  for  fifteen  hundred 
pounds,  as  ]\Ir.   C'lough,  of  Lombard  Street,  reported  J.       The 

•   Col,  in  An-,'!!)  Snxuii,  si^niififs  a  peak  or  sliiiri)  hillock. 

+  Tlio  late  Kcv.  Dr.  Card,  Vicar  of  Great  Malvern,  in  his  "  Dissertation  on 
the  hiihject  of  the  Herefonl^^hire  Deacon, "  siys,  in  p.  4vJ,  "  I  ninst  take  it  for 
b'nmteil  that  he  {Dr.  Nash)  never  met  with  the  story  of  Gray,  hintini,'  that  it 
was  oi;ciiiiie(l  hy  Caraciaciis.'' 

J   '*  MS.  in  Jesns  College  l.ihrary,  Oxfor.l." 


156 

register  of  Colwall  has  been  searched,  and  I  find  that  Thomas 
Tayler  lived  there  about  that  time  ;  and  when  his  death  is  entered 
there  is  a  mark  put  to  his  name,  as  if  something  memorable  had 
happened  to  him." 

Dr.  Nash*  states  that  "  the  coronetof  gold  found  near  Malvern 
Camp  had  probably  belonged  to  some  British  or  Anglo-Saxon 
monarch,  who,  expecting  an  assault,  or  meditating  an  escape  from 
these  fortifications,  might  bur}'  this  badge  of  royalty  to  prevent  its 
falling  into  the  hands  of  his  enemies." 

Mr.  Chambers'  also  says,  "  It  was  supposed  that  the  gold  alone 
of  this  coronet  might  have  been  worth  £.1,000,  which,  added  to 
the  value  of  the  diamonds  above-mentioned,  amounted  to  the 
the  amazing  sum  of  £.2,500,  for  which  the  peasant  who  found  it 
received  but  £.37t." 

Dr.  Card,  in  his  "  Dissertation,"  has  adduced  several  reasons 
for  believing  that  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  was  either  the  work 
of  the  ancient  Britons,  at  or  before  Csesar's  invasion,  or  the  work 
of  Caractacus.  He  argues  principally  in  favour  of  the  latter  hypo- 
thesis and  remarks,  in  p.  40,  that  "  if  Roman  coins  should  be  dis- 
covered in  any  part  of  the  work,  they  would  merely  indicate  that 
these  invadei's  occupied  it  at  some  period,  which  is  by  no 
means  improbable,  notwithstanding  the  non-existence  of  any 
Roman  road  in  the  neighbourhood.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
coronet  of  gold,  mentioned  by  Camden,  as  having  been  dug  up 
about  a  musket-shot  on  the  north-west  side,  in  the  parish  of  Col- 
wall, A.D.  1650,  cannot  be  admitted  as  any  proof  of  the  period  at 
which,  or  the  persons  by  whom,  the  fortifications  were  primarily 
constructed.  It  is,  however,  an  incontrovertible  fact,  that  the 
country  between  the  Wye  and  the  Severn  was  the  theatre  of  con- 
tinual intestine  wars,  in  times  subsequent  to  the  Roman  invasion, 
and  that  the  Welsh  princes  wore  coronets  of  a  similar  shape,  as 
the  following  extracts  from  the  '  History  of  Wales,'  by  Caradoc  of 
Llancarvan,  translated  by  the  erudite  Dr.  Powell,  will  sufficiently 

*  "  History,"  Vol.  ii,  p.  2!),  of  the  Corrections  ami  Additions. 

+  Mr.  Kenible,  in  his  "  Saxons  in  England,"  speaking  of  the  ensigns  of 
royalty  says,  "  among  the  Saxons  the  cynehclm,  or  cynebeah,  a  cirele  of  gold, 
was  in  use,  and  worn  round  the  head." 


157 

demonstrate  :  '  Roderic,  King  of  Wales,  divided  his  kingdom  be- 
tween his  three  sons,  and  because  they  (each)  wore  a  coronet  of 
gold  indented  upwards  and  inlaid  with  precious  stones  on  their 
helmets,  they  were  called  the  three  crowned  princes.'  About 
A.D.  877.  These  chieftains  were  finally  driven  to  the  country 
beyond  the  Wye  by  Athelstan,  between  the  years  924  and  939, 
consequently  the  ornament  must  have  been  lost  at  some  period 
anterior  to  the  latter  date." 

The  learned  Doctor,  however,  was  mistaken,  in  speaking  of  the 
non-existence  of  any  Roman  road  in  the  neighbourhood  ;  for 
there  is  Evendine  Street,  leading  from  the  Herefordshire  Beacon 
Hill  towards  Colwall  Village*,  the  Pendock  Portway  in  the 
Berrow,  and  Keysend  Street,  Lime  Street,  Rock  Street,  Wick- 
ridge  Street,  Wood  Street,  Wain  Street,  Rye  Street,  Birt  Street, 
Drake  Street,  Robertson  Street,  and  Poolend  Street — all  in  the 
neighbourhood,  in  the  lines  of  the  ancient  roads  which  ran  from 
Wall  Hills  Camp  and  the  Malvern  Hills  to  various  places. 

Several  writers  have  supposed  that  Caractacus,  for  a  season, 
made  a  stand  against  Ostorius,  at  the  Herefordshire  Beacon 
Campf;  but  finding,  after  many  struggles,  that  he  could  not 
defend  his  eastern  frontier  against  the  enemy,  he  retreated  north- 
westward towai-ds  the  mountainous  regions  of  the  Ordovices  |. 

In  the  "  Archreologia§,"  there  is  an  account,  by  A.  J.  Kempe, 
Esq.,  F.S.A.,  of  an  intrenched  camp  at  Wimbleton,  Surrey, 
wherein  he  states,  that  "  writers  on  the  militaiy  antiquities  of 
Briuiin  have  considered  that  it  was  a  principle  of  tactics  with  the 
Britons  to  arrange  their  forces  on  concentric  circles  of  ramparts, 
rising  one  above  the  other  ;  tmd  tliat  the  celebrated  Herefordshire 
lieacon,  on  the  Malvem  Hills,  is  a  remarkable  specimen  of  that 
mode  of  defence." 

In  Layamon's  "  Brut,  ii,"  supposed  to  have  been  written  in  the 

*  This  probably  wiis  orcnpied  by  the  Roninn  garrison. 

+  About  twenty  miles  soutli-westwani  of  this  camp  tliere  is  a  square  oanip, 
railed  Canidoe,  situate  in  the  parisli  of  Sellaek  (or  Sele  Chyrch),  on  the  Wye, 
in  Herefordshire. 

J  Tacitus  says  : — "  Transfert  belluni  in  Ordovicas." 

§  Vol.  xxxi.,  Part  ii.,  .\i)pendix,  jip.  -SlK-rj-Jl. 

II  Vol.  iii.,  pp.  '^00,201. 


158 

commencement  of  King  John's  reign,  there  is  the  following 
passage,  as  translated  by  Sir  Frederick  Madden : — "  In  North 
Wales  was  a  king,  Cadwan  the  Keen  (named  Cadigan) ;  of  South 
Wales  was  Margadud,  fairest  of  all  men  (knight  fairest  of  all) : 
they  held  all  the  good  land  into  Severn,  from  the  upper  end,  that 
floweth  into  the  sea.  In  Malvern,  near  Severn,  Margadud,  the 
king,  dwelt,  with  very  mickle  folk ;  and  Athelstan  to  him 
advanced,  the  king  of  this  nation,  and  held  them  exceeding  hard, 
and  greeted  them  with  harm,  and  drove  them  with  his  weapons 
out  over  the  Wye,  and  took  from  them  the  land  that  lieth  there 
betwixt ;  the  Severn  and  Wye,  they  possessed  it  not  aftenvards." 
This  passage  tends  to  throw  further  light  upon  Dr.  Card's  account 
relative  to  the  coronet  of  gold,  although  we  must  allow  for  the 
fiction  in  Layamon's  work. 

The  hills  are  also  noticed  in  the  "  Vision  of  Wilham,  concern- 
ing Piers  Plowman,"  a  poem,  supposed  to  have  been  written 
about  the  year  135'2. 

In  May  1844, 1  visited  the  place  called  Burstners  Cross,  where 
the  coronet  was  found ;  it  is  situated  in  an  orchard,  behind  the 
house  styled  the  Wind's  Point,  wliich  lies  on  the  turnpike-road 
by  the  Herefordshire  Beacon.  The  tenant  informed  me  that  the 
old  cottage,  said  to  have  been  occupied  by  Tayler,  the  finder  of 
the  coronet,  was  taken  down  about  thirty  years  ago,  and  that  the 
site  of  it,  and  the  gai'den,  were  added  to  the  orchard. 

In  the  parish  of  Colwall,  there  is  a  small  spring  of  water, 
situated  on  the  western  side  of  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  Hill, 
called  Coldwell ;  but  I  am  inclined  to  the  opinion,  that  tlie 
name  of  that  extensive  parish  is  derived  from  Collis  Valium,  or 
Collis  Vallatus,  a  fortified  hill. 

There  are  many  names  with  tbe  prefix,  "  Wall :"  tbus,  tlicre 
are,  in  Herefordshire,  Wallhills,  and  Wallhills  Camp,  near 
Ledbury;  Wallsfield  and  Wallsfiold  Orlcs,  in  Cradley  ;  Wall- 
hills, and  Wallhill  Camp,  in  Thornbury ;  and  Wallhill,  in 
Orleton.  In  Worcestershire,  there  are  Walldridgo  and  Walls- 
hill,  in  SSuckley  ;  Wallsliill,  in  Alfrick ;  Wallhill,  in  Orleton, 
in  Eastham  ;  the  like  in  Belbroughton  and  Brunisgrove  ;  and 
Wallbatch,  Wallcroft,  and  Upper  Wullcroft.  in  <irimley.     And  in 


159 

Staffordshire,  Wallcroft,  Walls  Meadow,  and  The  Walls,  in  Over 
Arley. 

The  names  Coldwell  and  CoUhill  occur  very  frequently  in 
Worcestershire.  There  are,  or  were  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times, 
places  called  Coldwell,  on  the  boundaries  of  Cotheridge* ; 
CoUhill  and  Colford,  on  the  boundaries  of  Salwarpf;  and  Cald- 
well, on  the  boundaries  of  Whittington  {.  There  now  are  places 
called  Coldwell  Hill,  Coldwell  Rough,  Coldwell  Coppice,  and 
Coldwell  Piece,  in  Abberley ;  Coldwell  Hill,  in  Mathon  ;  Colwell 
Piece,  and  In  Colwell  Piece,  in  Claines ;  First  Coldwell  and 
Second  Coldwell,  in  Abbot's  Lench  ;  Coldwell  Leasow.  in  Warley 
Wigoru  ;  and  Coldwell  Manor,  in  the  parish  of  Ividderminster. 
There  are  also  Coldnap  (or  Knap),  by  Cracombe  Hill ;  Cold 
Comfort  §  Meadow,  in  St.  Clement's  parish,  Worcester  ;  and  Cold 
Harbourough  (or  Cold  Harbour),  in  Hindlipi|. 

There  is  a  large  block  of  limestone  called  Colwall  Stone, 
situated  by  a  cottage  (formerly  named  the  "  Old  Game  Code "), 
on  the  road-side  at  Colwall  Green.  Some  have  supposed  that  it 
was  placed  there  in  ancient  times  as  a  memorial  of  some  event,  or 
as  evidence  of  some  custom  ;  but,  upon  my  visiting  the  spot  in 
1840,  I  learned  from  a  person  in  the  neighbourhood,  that  his  late 
father,  Francis  Shuter,  and  others,  about  seventy  years  ago,  got 
it  out  of  the  limestone  quarry,  in  a  copse  at  the  foot  of  the 
Wytch,  and,  assisted  by  a  strong  team  of  oxen,  dragged  it  to  its 
l)resent  locality  ;  but  whether  it  was  brought  there  in  lieu  of  a 
more  ancient  memorial  I  could  not  loam.  It  is  four  feet  long, 
three  feet  broad,  and  two  feet  six  inches  thick  ;  and  I  was 
informed  that  the  landlord  receives  one  penny  a  year  rent  for  it. 

The  most  remarkable  discovery  which  has  yet  occurred  in 
proof  uf  the  Iluinan  occupation  of  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp, 

•  See   IIeiiiiiij,''.s    "  (.'iirtiiliir)-,"  p.  •'<")() ;  uihI  Nasli,  Vol.   ii.,  Apji ,  j).    ts. 

+  Sco  ihit/,      .  .  .  .p.  .'tO-'t ;  ami  ihiil.  .         .         .p.  .OO. 

{  See   ibid.      .  .  .  .p.  ■'}.')!• ;  niul   ihiil.  .  .   p.  55. 

§  In  Mr.  HiilllwcHs  "  (Jlossiiry  of  Arclmii-  Wonls,"  Cold  Comfort  is  Kivfii, 
as  nipaiiiii^  bad  news. 

!|  Also  Coldridge,  in  Upper  Arley,  Co.  Stallord  ;  and  Colwood,  at  ('oiiibe- 
bnuk,  ill  Dorsetshire. 


IGO 

was  made  in  the  year  1847,  as  will  appear  by  the  following 
account,  which  I  submitted  to  the  Archaeological  Institute 
in  September  of  that  year,  and  which  was  inserted  in  their 
Journal* : — "  A  few  weeks  since  a  discovery  of  Roman  coins  was 
made  in  Little  Malvern  parish,  on  the  western  side  of  the  road 
leading  to  Ledbury,  and  opposite  to  the  premises  called  Little 
Malvern  Grove,  within  half  a  mile  of  the  foot  of  the  Herefordshire 
Beacon  Hill.  A  party  of  visitors  were  rambling  over  the  hills, 
and  one  of  them  struck  his  iron-pointed  mountain  staff  into  the 
turf,  just  upon  the  margin  of  a  stone  quarry,  at  the  spot  de- 
scribed, causing  the  turf  and  stones,  with  an  um  containing 
about  three  hundred  Roman  brass  coins,  to  fall  amongst  the 
rubbish  beneath,  from  which  they  were  picked  out  by  various 
persons,  and  are  now  in  the  possession  of  Colonel  Colston,  Henry 
Trant,  Esq.,  and  in  numerous  other  hands.  All  those  which  I 
have  seen  are  of  Dioclesian,  Maximian,  or  Constantius,  and  they 
are  in  very  perfect  condition.  The  urn,  judging  by  the  fragments 
which  I  have  seen,  had  become  much  decayed,  and  nearly  pul- 
verized. I  believe  this  is  the  first  evidence  of  Roman  occupation 
of  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp.  Some  writers  have  supposed 
it  Roman  on  account  of  the  central  prsetorium  ;  but  it  appears 
more  probable  that  it  was  originally  British,  and  afterwards 
occupied  by  the  Romans,  and  adapted  to  suit  their  own  purposes. 
One  of  the  coins  is  a  large  brass  of  Maximian.  Obv. — Laureated 
head,  MAXIMIANVS  NOBILIS  C.  Rev.— A  genius,  naked, 
lidding  the  cornucopia  and  discus.  Genio  Populi  Romani, 
S.  F." 

An  account  of  this  discovery  was  given  by  Mr.  Vaux  of  the 
British  Museum,  and  was  read  before  the  Numismatic  Society 
January  27,  1848f.  The  following  is  an  extract  from  their 
Journal : — 

"  On  Monday  the  15th  of  August,  1847,  as  Mr.  Commissioner 
Mayne  and  his  sons  were  out  on  a  walk,  they  were  induced  to  go 
in  search  of  some  geological  remains,  into  a  small  quarry,  on  the 

•  Vol.  iv.,  pp.  ;i5(),  noT. 

+  Particular.s  were  also  p;iven  in  thr  "  fientlenian's  Ma,u:aziiio,"  Miiy  IK-IK, 
p.  .'■)2fi. 


161 

side  of  the  road  leading  from  Little  Malvern  to  Ledbury.  While 
turning  over  stones,  Mr.  Cox  Mayne  came  unexpectedly  upon  a 
considerable  number  of  second  brass  Roman  coins,  v?hich  were 
lying,  as  appeared  to  him,  loosely  thrown  together  a  few  inches 
under  the  surface  at  the  top  of  the  hill  itself. 

"  He  immediately  collected  as  many  as  he  could  lay  hands  on, 
amounting  to  about  two  hundred. 

"  The  news  of  this  discovery  rapidly  spread  in  all  directions, 
and  people  flocked  from  the  village  to  the  spot,  and  were  rewarded 
by  obtaining  a  few  more  specimens  (probably  the  same  as  Mr. 
Mayne  had  previously  exhumed)  before  nightfall. 

"  The  following  morning,  a  man  of  the  name  of  Fletcher  came 
across  from  the  parish  of  Colwall,  on  the  Herefordsliire  side  of 
the  hills,  and,  on  seai'ching  more  closely,  and  turning  over  the 
soil,  discovered  another  collection  of  similar  coins,  enclosed  in  a 
light  red-coloured  earthen  pot,  of  undoubted  Eoman  fabric,  which 
he  sold  shortly  afterwards,  together  with  the  coins,  fifty  in 
number,  to  Mr.  Warden,  one  of  the  Directors  of  the  East  India 
Company.  Some  portions  of  the  pot,  which  has  been  much 
shattered,  I  imagine,  in  the  process  of  extraction,  have  been  pre- 
served, and  are  to-night,  by  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Warden,  exhi- 
bited to  the  Society.  It  will  be  observed,  that  there  still  adheres 
to  the  sides  of  the  pot,  some  of  the  verdigris  which  covered  the 
coins  when  found  in  it.  It  may  be  presumed,  therefore,  that  the 
whole  number  of  coins  thus  discovered,  did  not  fall  far  short  of 
three  hundred  ;  for,  besides  those  I  have  enumerated,  which  have 
been  placed  in  my  hands  for  the  purpose  of  description,  I  saw 
some  twenty  or  thirty  in  the  hands  of  the  gentlemen  and  cottagers 
in  the  neiglibourhood  ;  and  the  post-master  of  the  village  informed 
me  that  fur  some  days  after  the  discovery,  coins  were  continually 
passing  in  letters  through  the  post-office.  I  found,  on  going 
down  to  Malvern,  that  it  was  very  dilhcult  to  obtain  a  clear  and 
satisfixctory  account  of  the  order  in  which  the  discoveries  took 
j)lace,  as  almost  every  one  to  whom  I  addressed  myself,  had  a 
different  story  to  relate.  I  believe,  however,  that,  on  the  whole, 
the  al)ove  is  jxs  correct  a  version  as  it  is  possible  to  procure  ; 
while  the  appearance  itself  of  the  coins,  goes  far  to  confirm  the 


163 

truth  of  the  narration.  It  will  be  observed,  for  instance,  that 
those  which  were  first  turned  up,  and  which  I  saw  myself  at 
Malvern,  were  covered  with  soft  green  arugo,  which  peeled  off 
immediately  on  being  touched  by  the  point  of  a  penknife ;  the 
result,  probably,  of  exposure  for  a  long  period  in  the  open  ground, 
but  at  the  same  time  in  a  dry  pebbly  soil :  while  those,  on  the 
other  hand,  which  were  found  in  the  pot,  had,  to  a  great  degree, 
resisted  the  effect  of  the  weather,  and  retained  the  metallic  lustre 
and  brightness  of  the  tinning,  which  most,  if  not  all  of  them,  had 
originally  undergone. 

'•  Of  these  coins  I  have  been  able  personally  to  examine  about 
two  hundred ;  and  I  will  now  lay  before  the  Society  the  results  of 
that  examination,  at  the  same  time  exhibiting  some  specimens 
from  the  hoard,  including  those  first  discovered  by  Mr,  Cox 
Mayne,  and  those  subsequently  placed  at  my  disposal  by  Mr. 
Warden,  with  this  remark,  that  so  far  as  I  know,  no  coins  have 
been  found  except  of  the  five  emperors,  Diocletianus,  Maximianus 
Hercules,  Constantius  Chloinis,  Galerius  Maximianus,  and  Maxi- 
minus  Daza,  and  that  they  fall  therefore  within  the  period 
between  a.d.  286-311.  They  all  are  of  the  size  called  second 
brass,  and  in  excellent  preservation  ;  and  the  larger  part  of  them 
so  sharp  and  well  defined,  that  they  could  hardly  ever  have  been 
in  circulation." 

Mr.  Vaux  then  gives  a  very  minute  description  of  the  coins, 
and  some  general  remarks  relative  to  the  Herefordshire  Beacon 
Camp,  concluding  as  follows : — 

"  The  district  in  which  these  coins  were  discovered  was,  up  to 
the  time  of  Constantino  the  Great,  included  in  the  province  west 
of  the  Severn,  called  Britannia  Secunda,  and  was  probably 
under  the  military  government  of  the  2**  Legio  Atigusta,  whose 
usual  head  quarters  were  at  Caerleon  on  the  Usk.  There  is, 
however,  no  additional  evidence  of  this  fact,  from  the  coins 
themselves. 

"  The  period  of  history  over  which  they  extend  is  one  of 
peculiar  interest,  as  well  to  the  student  of  Roman  history  as  to  an 
Englishman.  Then,  for  the  first  and  indeed  the  only  time,  liome 
saw  her  empire  administered  by  six  emperors,  in  pretended,  if 


1G3 

not  real,  harmony ;  and  England,  under  tlie  rule  of  the  gallant 
rebel  Carausius,  for  seven  years  successfully  withstood  the  whole 
power  of  Rome,  and  made  her  first  essay  at  dominion  upon  that 
element,  which  has  since  become  peculiarly  her  own. 

"  The  comparative  numbers  of  the  coins  discovered  attest  the 
presence  of  the  legions  of  Constantius,  so  long  the  governor  of 
the  island,  and  who  closed  his  victorious  career  at  York,  a.d.  306 ; 
while  the  large  number  of  those  of  Diocletianus  and  Maximianus 
Hercules,  who  were  associated  with  him  in  the  empire,  demon- 
strate the  length  of  their  united  reigns,  compared  with  the  short 
duration  of  that  of  Maximinus  Daza." 

MIDSUMMER  HILL  CAMP. 

About  a  mile  and  a  half  southward  of  the  Herefordshire  Beacon 
Cami?,  there  is  another  remarkable  camp  on  Midsummer  Hill. 
This  camp  I  visited  in  July,  1842,  and  found  it  very  perfect.  It 
has  a  single  vallum  all  round  the  crown  of  the  hill,  and  an  agger 
on  the  lower  side  of  the  vallum.  In  fact,  it  has  a  kind  of  double 
vallum  and  double  agger;  the  ground  above  the  upper  side  of 
the  main  vallum  having  probably  been  scooped  out  to  raise  a  kind 
of  agger  on  that  side  of  the  vallum.  This  camp  is  in  shape  like 
a  high-quartered  shoe,  and  at  one  part,  on  the  north  side  (at  the 
instep  of  the  shoe)  it  runs  down  one  steep  part  of  the  hill,  and  up 
another  part,  and  terminates  southward  at  the  toe  of  the  shoe, 
wliioh  overlooks  the  deep  pass,  dividing  Midsummer  Hill  from 
Ragged-stone  Hill.  The  heel  of  the  shoe  overlooks  the  deep 
ravine  called  the  Gullett,  between  the  north  side  of  Midsummer 
Hill  and  Warren  Hill.  This  extensive  camp  has  not  been  noticed 
as  it  deserves. 

THE  RIDGE  WAY. 

Between  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  and  Eastnor  there  is  an 
ancient  road  called  the  Ridge  Way,  which  runs  along  the  top  of  u 
fine  hogs-back  range  of  limestone.  It  is  very  remarkable  tliat, 
on  the  western  side  t)f  this  most  probably  ancient  British  road-, 

*  See  the  account  of  the  KveknieUl  iStreel. 


164 

and  about  midway  from  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp  on  the 
north-east,  and  the  Midsummer  Hill  Camp  on  the  south-east, 
and  within  two  miles  of  these  camps,  there  is  an  oak,  about 
seventy  or  eighty  years  old,  upon  the  upper  branches  of  which 
are  several  fine  mistletoe  bushes  growing.  This  is  the  first  and 
only  time  I  have  seen  it  growing  upon  an  oak.  Mr.  Lees,  who 
accompanied  me,  and  pointed  out  this  interesting  memento  of 
Druidism,  has  noticed  it  in  "  The  Botanical  Looker  Out*."  It 
certainly  is  remarkable  that  this  rare  instance  of  the  mistletoe 
growing  upon  an  oak,  should  occur  on  "  the  Ridge  Way,"  the 
name  of  which  indicates  that  it  was  an  ancient  British  roadf; 
and  it  carries  us  back  in  imagination,  to  the  time  when  the 
Druids  marched  forth  in  solemn  array  from  their  altar  and  seat 
of  judgment  at  the  Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp,  to  cut  the  sacred 
mistletoe  from  the  oaks  in  the  neighbourhood. 

It  is  supposed  that  the  ancient  Britons  sometimes  deposited 
branches  of  mistletoe  in  their  tombs.  In  a  pamphlet,  containing 
a  description  of  a  coffin  found  in  a  tumulus  which  was  opened  at 
Gristhorpe,  near  Scarborough,  in  1834,  the  writer,  Mr.  William- 
son, says, — "  A  quantity  of  a  vegetable  substance,  which  was  first 
believed  to  be  dried  rushes,  was  also  found  in  the  coffin ;  some  of 
it  has  since  been  macerated,  and  though  the  greater  portion  of  it 
is  so  much  decomposed  that  nothing  but  the  fibre  remains,  in  one 
or  two  instances  we  have  been  so  far  successful  as  to  clearly  dis- 
tinguish a  long  lanceolate  leaf,  resembling  that  of  the  mistletoe, 
which  plant  it  has  probably  been :  a  few  dried  berries  were 
amongst  the  vegetable  mass ;  they  were  very  tender  and  most  of 
them  soon  crumbled  to  dust ; — they  are  about  the  size  of  those  of 
the  mistletoe." 

This  coffin,  which  is  now  in  the  Scarborough  Museum,  was 
made  out  of  the  trunk  of  an  oak  ti-ee,  and  contained  a  very  per- 
fect skeleton  of  a  supposed  Brigantian  chief,  and  also  various 
spear- heads,  &c. 

*   First  Edition,  p.  18;  Second  Edition,  pp.  51-55. 

+  See  furtlier  ))ftrticul«rs  in  tlie  iiccount  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  or  Ridge  Way. 


166 


THE  WORCESTERSHIRE  BEACON. 

A  very  interesting  discovery  was  lately  made  on  the  top  of 
this  Beacon,  the  following  particulars  of  which  appeared  in  the 
"  Journal  of  the  Archajological  Institute*." 

"  Mr.  Jabez  Allies  reported  an  interesting  discovery,  supplying 
an  example  of  diminutive  British  fictilia,  hitherto  almost  exclu- 
sively noticed  in  Wiltshke  tumuli.  He  communicated  also  a 
detailed  account,  with  drawings  supplied  by  Mr.  Edwin  Lees, 
of  Worcester,  in  whose  possession  the  um  is  now  preserved.  In 
November  1849,  Mr.  Lees  visited  the  Worcestershire  Beacon, 
on  the  range  of  heights  immediately  above  Great  Malvern,  and 
met  with  some  of  the  party  engaged  upon  the  new  trigono- 
metrical sur\'ey,  who  showed  him  part  of  a  human  cranium, 
found  three  days  previously,  in  excavating  on  the  summit  of 
the  Beacon  to  find  the  mark  left  as  a  datum  during  the  former 
survey.  On  uncovering  the  rock,  about  nine  inches  below  the 
surface,  just  on  the  outer  edge,  towards  the  south  of  the  pile 
of   loose  stones,  the  small    urn  (two  views  of  which  are  here 


^         '    'I'M// 


represented,  of  half  the  size  of   the  original)  was  found  in  a 
cavity  of  the  rock,  with  some  bones  and  ashes.     The  urn  was 


»   Vol.  vii.  pp.  fi7,  (is. 


160 

placed  in  an  inverted  position,  covering  part  of  the  ashes,  and  the 
half-burnt  bones  lay  near  and  around  it.  Its  height  is  two  and 
a  half  inches ;  breadth  at  top,  three  inches.  The  bottom  of  this 
little  vessel  is  nearly  three  quarters  of  an  inch  in  thickness.  The 
impressed  markings  are  very  deficient  in  regularity.  Another 
deposit  of  bones,  but  without  an  urn,  was  also  found  on  the  north 
side  of  the  heap  of  stones  marking  the  summit ;  and  this  heap, 
although  renewed  in  recent  times  as  a  kind  of  beacon,  very  pro- 
bably occupies  the  site  of  an  ancient  cairn. 

"  The  discovery  was  made  by  Private  Harkin,  of  the  Royal 
Ordnance  Corps,  who  gave  the  fragments  of  the  urn  to  Mr.  Lees. 
On  further  examination  of  the  spot,  some  bones  were  collected ; 
and,  being  subjected  to  anatomical  examination,  they  were  pro- 
nounced to  be  the  remains  of  an  adult  human  subject,  which  had 
undergone  cremation.  The  urn  is  of  simple  form,  somewhat 
different  in  character  to  any  found  in  Wilts ;  it  bears  a  zig-zag 
corded  line  both  externally  and  within  the  lip,  impressed  upon 
the  surface,  as  shown  in  the  representation. 

"  No  discovery  of  any  British  urns,  or  interments,  upon  the 
Malvern  Hills  had,  as  Mr.  Allies  observed,  been  previously  made. 
The  conspicuous  position  of  the  site  where  this  deposit  was 
found,  being  the  highest  point  of  the  range  in  the  part  adjoining 
Great  Malvern,  seems  to  indicate  that  it  was  the  resting-place 
of  some  chieftain  or  person  of  note  at  an  early  period  of  our 
history." 

At  the  foot  of  the  east  side  of  the  Worcestershire  Beacon, 
there  is  a  piece  of  ground  called  Twinbarrow*,  situated  at 
Barnard's  Green,  near  the  Moat  Farm. 

Dr.  Nashf  says  : — "  In  the  Link,  in  the  parish  of  Malvern, 
was  lately  found,  many  feet  under  ground,  a  celt,  weighing  ten 
ounces,  about  five  inches  and  a  half  long,  of  a  mixed  metal 
between  brass  and  copper,  with  a  small  ring  or  loop,  as  here 


*  Two  linrnnvs,  adjoining  each  other,  arc  called  Twiiibarrow.  (SeeSirR.  ('. 
ITtare's  "  Historj'  of  Wiltshire".) — Twiuberrow  is  a  persouol  uaine  iu  Wor- 
(■«;.-.|crsliin\ 

t  ■'  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  ji.  I'iil. 


167 


engraved ;  it  has  a  beautiful  patina  upon  it.' 
here  given.) 


(See  the  woodcut 


A  similar  celt  is  represented  in  "  Camden,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  200. 
Montfaucon,  in  Vol.  iii.,  Part  2,  p.  339,  has  given  a  drawing 
of  a  Greek  or  Roman  hatchet,  very  like  the  above. 

A  Roman  coin,  said  to  be  a  Vespasian,  was  found  a  few  years 
back  on  the  east  side  of  the  Worcestershire  Beacon,  near  St. 
Ann's  Well,  in  a  cavity  which  had  been  made  by  the  sheep ;  and 
a  large  Roman  coin  was  a  few  years  ago  presented  to  the  Wor- 
cestershire Museum,  which  was  found  by  a  gravel-digger  near  the 
road  at  the  north  end  of  the  hill,  three  or  four  feet  deep  in  the 
detrital  matter,  which  had  in  the  course  of  time  rolled  down 
the  hill.  On  the  obverse  there  is  a  portrait,  without  the  iron 
crown;  the  inscription  is  gone.  The  reverse  contains  a  fine 
figure  of  a  horse  at  full  speed,  with  a  warrior  upon  it,  apparently 
in  the  act  of  striking  with  his  spear. 

There  are  pieces  of  land  below  Great  Malvern  called  Upper 
Radnor  Meadow  and  Lower  Radnor  Pasture.  "  Rad,"  in  Anglo- 
Saxon,  means  "  council ;"  and  it  seems  probable  that  judicial 
and  other,  meetings  were  held  there* . 

There  is  a  curious  account  relative  to  the  Legend  of  St. 
Werstan  (who  appears  to  have  been  a  hermit  who  fouuded  an 
oratory  in  Great  Malvem),  detailed  by  Albert  Way,  Esq.,  in  the 
"  Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,"  in  1845f  ;  illus- 
trated by  several  woodcuts,  from  the  painted  glass  in  Great 
Malvoni  Church,  depicting  the  legend.  By  the  kind  permission 
of  the  Institute,  I  am  enabled  to  lay  the  following  copy  before 
my  readers. 


See  ItLT  xiii. 


t  Vol.  ii.,  pp.  -IH-Ca, 


168 


THE  LEGEND  OF  SAINT  WERSTAN, 

AND    THE    FIRST    CHBISTIAN    ESTABLISHMENT    AT    GUKAT    MALVEUN. 

"  On  the  northern  side  of  the  choir  of  the  ancient  priory  church 
of  Great  Malvern,  in  Worcestershire,  three  large  windows,  which 
compose  the  clerestory,  still  exhibit,  in  the  original  arrangement, 
a  very  interesting  series  of  subjects  taken  from  sacred  as  well  as 
legendary  history.  These  windows  consist  of  four  lights,  which 
are  divided  into  two  almost  equal  stories  by  a  transom  ;  and  the 
painted  glass,  with  which  they  are  still  in  great  part  filled, 
appears  never  to  have  been  re-leaded  or  disturbed,  although  in 
its  present  fractured  and  decaying  condition,  it  greatly  needs 
some  judicious  measures  which  might  preserve  it  from  further 
injuries.  The  window  which  is  nearest  to  the  northern  transept, 
and  most  remote  from  the  eastern  end  of  the  church,  presents  a 
very  curious  series  of  subjects,  and  of  some  of  these  it  is  pro- 
posed to  offer  to  our  readers  a  detailed  description.  They 
illustrate  the  origin  of  a  Christian  establishment  in  the  wild 
woodland  district,  which,  at  an  early  period,  contributed  to 
render  the  hill  countiy  of  Worcestershire  an  almost  impenetrable 
fastness,  and  boundary  towards  the  marches  of  Wales.  It  was 
by  a  vei-y  small  beginning  that  Christianity  found  an  entrance 
into  this  savage  country ;  but  the  primitive  introduction  of 
Christian  worship,  to  which  it  will  be  my  endeavour  to  draw  the 
attention  of  our  readers,  ultimately  led  the  way  to  the  foundation 
of  an  extensive  religious  establishment,  the  Benedictine  monas- 
tery, which,  although  considered  as  a  cell  to  Westminster, 
occupied  in  this  country  a  very  important  position.  An  in- 
teresting evidence  of  the  beneficial  tendency  of  a  monastic 
institution,  situated,  as  was  the  priory  of  Great  Malvern,  in  a 
remote  and  inaccessible  district,  is  afforded  by  the  letter  of  re 
monstrance,  addi-essed  by  the  pious  Latimer,  then  bisliop  of 
Worcester,  entreating  that  an  exception  might  be  made  in  its 
favour,  at  the  time  of  the  general  dissolution  of  religious  liouses*. 

*   "  Cotl.  .MS.,  drop.,  1'.  iv.,  f,  VlCil  :  piiut. d  iu  new  cclit  .    Moniist.  Aug  , 
iii.,  151 1.- 


169 

"  The  documentary  evidences,  chartularies,  and  records,  which 
might  have  thrown  light  on  the  early  history  of  Great  Malvern, 
have  either  been  destroyed,  or  yet  remain  stored  away  in  con- 
cealment, amongst  the  unexamined  muniments  of  some  ancient 
family.  Some  fortunate  research  may  hereafter  bring  to  hght 
these  ancient  memorials ;  at  the  present  time  little  is  known 
even  of  its  later  history,  and  the  legend  of  the  circumstances 
under  which,  in  Anglo-Saxon  times,  the  first  Christian  establish- 
ment was  here  made,  is  recorded  only  on  the  shattered  and 
perishable  glass,  which  has  escaped  from  the  successive  injuries 
of  four  centuries.  The  priory  church  of  Great  Malvern  was 
erected  by  the  hermit  Aid  win,  according  to  Leland's  statement, 
about  the  year  1084 ;  the  Annals  of  Worcester  give  the  year 
1085  as  the  date  of  the  foundation.  Some  portions  of  the 
original  fabric  still  exist ;  the  short  massive  piers  of  the  nave, 
and  a  few  details  of  early  Norman  character,  are,  doubtless,  to 
be  attributed  to  that  period.  It  appears  by  the  Confirmation 
Charter  of  Heiny  I.,  dated  1127,  that  the  monks  of  Great 
Malvern  then  held,  by  grant  from  Edward  the  Confessor,  certain 
possessions  which  had  been  augtnented  by  the  Conqueror;  but 
there  is  no  evidence  that,  previously  to  the  Conquest,  any  regular 
monastic  institution  had  been  there  established.  The  evidence 
which  was  given  by  the  prior,  in  the  year  1319,  may  be  received 
as  grounded  not  merely  on  tradition,  but  on  some  authentic 
record  preserved  amongst  the  muniments  of  the  house.  He 
declared  that  tlie  priory  had  been,  for  some  time  previously  to 
the  Coni|uest,  '  quoddam  hcremitorium,'  a  certain  resort  of 
recluses,  founded  by  Urso  D'Abitot,  with  whose  concurrence  it 
subsequently  becjinie  a  monastic  establishment,  formed  and  en- 
dowed by  the  abbot  of  Westminster*.  It  is  not,  however,  my 
present  intention  to  enter  into  the  subject  of  the  foundation  or 
endowment  of  the  priory,  but  to  call  attention  to  the  singular 
and  forgotten  legend  of  the  hermit  saint,  who  first  sought  to 
establish  Christian  worship  in  the  impenetrable  forest  district  i>f 
this  part  of  Worcestershire. 

"  Several  writers  have  descriltcd,  in  greater  or  less  detail,  iIk^ 
•    ••   I'liic.  <.oiiiiu  K'-^'   iipml  Kboi.,  trMiii  .Mic,  1'-  I'.dw.  II.,  .Mouiisl.  -Vii^l. 


170 

remarkable  painted  glass,  of  wliich  a  considerable  portion  still 
remains  in  the  windows  of  Great  Malvern  church ;  of  few 
churches,  indeed,  have  such  minutely  detailed  accounts  been 
preserved,  noted  down  long  since,  at  a  time  when  the  decorations 
had  sustained  little  injury.  The  full  descriptions,  which  were 
taken  by  Habingdon,  are  for  the  most  part  accurate  and  satis- 
factory, and  afford  a  valuable  source  of  information  ;  a  mere 
wreck  now  remains  of  much  which  attracted  his  attention,  and 
has  been  preserved  from  utter  oblivion  in  the  notes  compiled  by 
him  during  the  reign  of  Charles  I*.  It  is  however  very  singular 
that  he  wholly  overlooked,  as  it  would  appear,  the  remarkable 
commemorative  window,  to  which  the  present  notice  relates ; 
and  Thomas,  Nash,  and  other  subsequent  writers,  have  contented 
themselves  with  giving  a  transcript  or  abstract  of  Habingdon's 
notes,  without  any  comparison  with  the  original  painted  glass 
still  existing.  They  have  in  consequence  neglected  the  most 
curious  portion  of  the  whole,  and  it  will  now  be  my  endeavour 
to  set  before  our  readers  this  feature  of  the  ancient  decorations 
of  this  interesting  church,  as  a  singular  example  of  the  com- 
memorative intention  of  such  decorations,  and,  in  default  of 
direct  historical  or  documentary  evidences,  an  addition  to  the 
information  vvliich  we  possess,  respecting  the  progressive  establish- 
ment of  Christian  worship  in  our  island,  in  early  times. 

"  Leland,  who  appears  to  have  visited  Great  Malvern,  in  the 
course  of  the  tour  of  investigation  pursued  by  him  during  sLx 
years,  and  who  had  the  opportunity  of  consulting  the  muniments, 

•  "  Thomas  Habingdon  or  Habiugton,  of  Hindlip,  Worcestershire,  was 
condemned  to  die  for  concealing  some  of  the  agents  concerned  in  the  gun- 
powder plot.  He  was  pardoned  on  condition  that  he  should  never  quit  the 
county,  to  the  history  and  antiquities  of  which  he  subsequently  devoted  his 
time.  There  existed  formerly  a  MS.  of  these  collections  m  Jesus  College 
library,  Oxford.  In  the  library  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  there  is  a 
transcript  made  by  Dr.  Hopkins,  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne,  with  additions 
by  Dr.  Thomas.  The  notes  on  the  Malvern  windows  have  been  printed  in 
tlie  '  Anti(iuitios  of  the  Cathedral  Church  of  Worcester,  and  Malvern  Priory,' 
8vo,,  1728  ;  Nash's  '  History  of  Worcestershire,'  ii.,  120  ;  and  in  the  new 
edition  of  the  '  Monasticon.'  Dr.  Thomas  gave  a  Latin  version  in  his  '  An- 
tiquities f>f  Malvern  Priory.'  " 


171 

to  which  the  commission  of  inquiry,  granted  to  him  under  the 
Great  Seal,  in  the  year  1533,  afforded  him  freedom  of  access, 
has  noted  down  that  nigh  to  the  priory  stood  the  chapel  of  St. 
John  the  Baptist,  where  St.  Werstan  suffered  martyrdom*.  He 
had,  perhaps,  examined  the  singular  subjects  in  the  northern 
window  of  the  choir,  a  memorial  replete  with  interest  to  a  person 
zealously  engaged  on  such  a  mission  of  historical  inquu-y,  and 
had  listened  in  the  refectory  to  the  oral  tradition  of  the  legendary 
history  to  which  these  representations  relate,  or  perused  the 
relation  which  was  then  preserved  in  the  muniment  chamber  of 
the  priory.  Leland  is  the  only  writer  who  names  the  martyr 
St.  Werstan,  or  makes  any  allusion  to  the  connection  which 
appears  to  exist  between  his  history  and  the  foundation  of  the 
religious  establishment  at  Great  Malvern.  It  is,  however, 
certain,  from  the  place  assigned  to  the  four  subjects  illustrative 
of  the  incidents  of  his  life,  in  the  window  destined  to  com- 
memorate the  principal  facts  of  that  foundation,  that  in  the 
fifteenth  century,  when  this  painted  glass  was  designed,  the 
monks  of  Great  Malveni  accounted  the  '  certain  hermitage,'  ac- 
cording to  the  statement  of  the  prior,  in  the  year  1319,  as  above 
related,  to  have  been  the  germ  of  that  important  and  flourishing 
establishment,  which  at  a  later  time  had  taken  a  prominent  place 
amongst  the  religious  institutions  situated  on  the  western  shore 
of  the  Severn, 

"  The  remarkable  painted  glass,  to  which  I  would  call  atten- 
tion, is  to  be  found  in  the  upper  division  or  story  of  the  cle- 
restory window,  nearest  to  the  Jesus  chapel,  or  northern  transept. 
In  the  elevated  position  occupied  by  these  representations,  they 
appear  scarcely  to  have  attracted  notice,  the  figures  being  mostly 
of  small  dimension ;  and  to  these  circumstances  it  is  perhaps  to 
be  attributed  that  Ilabingdon  and  the  writer's  of  later  times  have 
wholly  neglected  so  singular  a  series.  The  painted  glass,  which 
is  preserved  in  the  choir  of  this  church,  ajipears  to  have  been 
executed  towai'ds  the  year  14(30;  some  changes  have,  in  recent 
times,  been  made,  and  the  windows  on  the  southern  side  have 
been  filled  with  portions  collected  from  the  clerestory  of  the 
•    "   l.rUmd,  Coll.  tie  iclnis  Hritann.,  i.,  f.  (V^." 


172 

nave,  which  was  of  somewhat  later  date  than  the  choir.     Tlie 
construction  of  the  church,  as  augmented  and  renovated  in  the 
Perpendicular  style,  appears  to  have  commenced  towards  the 
middle  of  the  fifteenth  century ;  and  it  is  to  prior  John  Malveme, 
who  is  first  named  in  the  register  of  Bishop  Bourchier,  in  1435, 
that  the  commencement  of  this  new  work  may  be  attributed. 
Habingdon  has  recorded  that  in  the  window  of  the  clerestory  of 
the  choir,  on  the  northern  side,  nearest  to  the  east  end,  the 
kneeling  figure  of  that  prior  was  to  be  seen,  with  an  inscription 
commemorative  of  his  benefaction.      It  no  longer  remains,  as 
described  by  Habingdon,  but  it  is  possible  that  the  fragment 
which  may  still  be  noticed  in  the  lower  pait  of  that  window, 
being  the  head  and  upper  part  of  a  figure  of  a  Benedictine  monk, 
may  be  the  portraiture  of  prior  Malveme,  the  founder  of  the 
new  choir :  and  it  may  readily  be  distinguished  by  the  inscribed 
scroll  over  the  head,  ©  fclti  anna  pro   me  at)   xp'm  ex  ora. 
The   following  inscription   formerly   recorded   his    benefaction, 
@cate  pro    anima    ^ojbanni^   i^albeme,   qui  btam  fene^tram 
fieri  fecit,  and  although  it  is  not  certain  that  such  requests  for 
prayers  on  behalf  of  the  soul  of  the  benefactor  were  not,   in 
some  instances,  thus  inscribed  during  his  life-time,  some  persons 
wUl  probably  take   the  pious  phrase  as  an  evidence  that  the 
window  was  not  completed  until  after  the  decease  of  the  prior, 
which  occurred  about  the  year  1449.     But  some  further  circum- 
stances, in  regard  to  the  painted  glass  which  is  preserved  in  the 
windows  of  the  choir,  will  be  hereafter  noticed,  in  the  endeavour 
to  ascertain  its  date  ;    I  will  now  proceed  to  describe  the  four 
subjects  which  comprise  the  legendary  histor}-,  as  I  am  led  to 
suppose,  of  St.  Werstan,  exhibited  in  the  upper  story  of  the 
window  nearest  to  the  northern  transept.     In  the  first  pane  is  to 
be  obsers'ed  a  representation  apparently  composed  of  two  pictures, 
forming  one  subject;  in  the  upper  part  are  seen  four  angels, 
with   golden-coloured   wings,    vested   in   amices   and   albs,  the 
apparels  of  the  former   being  conspicuous,  and  presenting  the 
appearance  of  a  standing  collar.     Each  of  these  angels  has  the 
right  hand  elevated   in  the  Latin  gesture  of  benediction  ;  and 
they   rest   their   left   hands  on  the   boundary   stones    placed   at 


173 


St.  Werstan's  Vision. 


174 

the  four  angles  of  a  square  verdant  plot,  which  appears  in 
that  manner  to  be  set  out  and  defined,  being  a  more  green  and 
flowery  spot  than  the  adjacent  ground,  which  seems  to  represent 
a  part  of  the  Malvern  hills.  In  the  centre  of  this  piece  of 
ground,  thus  marked  out  by  the  angels,  appears  a  large  white 
key.  In  the  lower  division  of  the  same  pane  appears  a  figure 
kneeling,  and  looking  towards  heaven  ;  a  hill,  formed  of  several 
banks  or  terraces  one  above  another,  appears  as  the  back- 
ground, and  over  his  head  is  a  scroll  thus  inscribed,  ,^anctu0 
32a[etgtanusi  JKartir.  He  is  not  clad  in  the  Benedictine  habit, 
like  other  figures  in  the  adjoining  windows,  but  in  the  russet 
coloured  cappa,  or  full  sleeveless  mantle,  with  a  roimd  caputium, 
or  mozzetta,  to  which  is  attached  a  hood.  Under  the  mantle 
may  be  distinguished  the  scapulary :  the  head  is  bare,  and 
the  hands  are  raised  in  adoration.  There  can,  I  think,  be 
little  question,  that  this  first  subject  was  intended  to  represent  a 
celestial  vision  which  indicated  to  the  hermit,  who  had  fled  from 
troubles  or  temptations  to  the  wilds  of  the  Malvern  hills,  tlic 
spot  where  he  should  construct  an  oratory,  which  would  ulti- 
mately lead  to  the  foundation  of  an  important  Christian  insti- 
tution in  those  dreary  wastes.  The  import  of  the  silver  key  at 
present  remains  unknown,  for  the  legend  of  St.  Werstan  is  lost, 
and  even  his  name  has  not  been  handed  down  in  any  calendar  of 
British  Saints,  but  the  signification  of  this  interesting  repre- 
sentation can  scarcely  be  mistaken ;  the  heavenly  guidance, 
which  fixed  the  wanderings  of  the  pious  recluse  in  the  woodland 
waste  of  this  hill  country  of  Worcestershire,  and  pointed  out  the 
site  of  the  primitive  Christian  foundation  in  that  district,  appears 
undeniably  to  be  here  set  forth  and  commemorated. 

"  In  the  next  pane  may  be  noticed  a  similar  twofold  dispo- 
sition of  the  subject  represented.  In  the  lower  part  appears  the 
same  heimit,  clad  in  russet  as  before,  the  epithet  JKartit  being, 
perhaps  accidentally,  omitted  in  the  inscription.  In  the  superior 
division  are  again  seen  the  four  angels  vested  in  like  manner 
in  albs,  which  have  apparels  on  the  sleeves,  over  the  wrists  ;  and 
these  celestial  messengers  are  engaged  in  the  dedication  of  the 
oratory,  which,  as  it   may  be   supposed,   liad   been   raised   by 


175 


Di'diciUiim  of  the  Cluipel  built  by  St.  Werstan. 


170 

St.  Werstaii  on  tlie  spot  miraculously  pointed  out  to  him  in 
the  vision.  The  angels  elevate  their  right  hands  as  before, 
in  benediction ;  one  bears  a  processional  cross  ;  another,  who 
approaches  the  closed  entrance  of  the  chapel,  bears  the  thurible, 
and  seems  prepared  to  knock  against  the  door,  and  cry  aloud, 
according  to  the  impressive  ancient  ritual  of  the  Latin  church, 
'  Lift  up  your  heads,  0  ye  gates,  and  be  ye  lifted  up,  ye 
everlasting  doors,  that  the  King  of  Glory  may  come  in !'  A  third 
angel  bears  the  cross-staff,  and  raises  the  aspergillum,  or  hyssop, 
as  if  about  to  sprinkle  with  holy  water  the  newly  completed 
edifice ;  whilst  the  fourth  touches  the  bell,  which  is  suspended 
in  an  open  turret,  surmounted  by  a  spire  and  finial  cross.  Tlie 
roof  of  the  chapel  is  coloured  blue,  as  if  to  represent  a  covering 
formed  of  lead.  In  this  pane  we  must  at  once  recognise  the 
representation  of  a  mix*aculous  dedication  of  the  chapel,  which 
had  been  built  by  the  hermit  Saint  in  obedience  to  a  vision  from 
above,  and  was  now  consecrated  by  the  same  ministering  spirits 
who  had  been  sent  forth  to  direct  him  to  undertake  its  con- 
struction. It  is  interesting  to  compare  this  subject  with  the 
curious  drawing,  preserved  at  Cambridge,  which  may  be  seen 
in  a  series  of  representations  illustrative  of  the  life  of  Edward 
the  Confessor ;  amongst  these  occurs  the  miraculous  dedication 
of  the  church  of  St.  Peter,  at  Westminster,  by  the  arch-apostle 
in  person,  according  to  the  legendary  history ;  St.  Peter  is  there 
seen  accompanied  by  angels,  who  perform  the  services  of  the 
attendant  acolytes,  in  singular  and  close  confonnity  with  the 
curious  representation  at  Great  Malvern,  above  described.  The 
drawings  in  question  exist  in  a  MS.  in  the  library  at  Trinity 
College,  and  appear  to  have  been  executed  towards  the  com- 
mencement of  the  fifteenth  century. 

"  In  the  third  compartment  of  the  window  the  eye  is  at  once 
struck  by  the  stately  aspect  of  a  regal  personage,  a  figure  of 
larger  dimension  as  compared  with  those  which  have  been  de- 
scribed :  he  appears  vested  in  a  richly  embroidered  robe  lined 
with  ermine,  a  cape  of  the  same,  and  the  usual  insignia  of 
royalty.  In  his  right  hand  he  holds  a  charter,  to  which  is 
appended  tlie  great  seal,  bearing  the  imjiression  of  a  cross  on 


177 


178 

red  wax,  and  apparently  is  about  to  bestow  a  grant  upon  a  person 
who  kneels  at  his  feet.  The  king  is  at  once  recognised  by  the 
inscribed  scroll,  ^t'&  Cltltoartug  rei ;  the  figure  of  the  suppliant, 
to  whom  the  charter  is  accorded,  is  represented  as  of  much 
smaller  proportion  than  that  of  the  sovereign,  in  accordance  with 
a  conventional  principle  of  design  in  old  times,  by  which  persons 
of  inferior  station  were  often  represented  as  of  diminutive  size, 
in  comparison  with  their  more  powerful  neighbours.  Over  the 
head  of  this  smaller  figure  is  a  scroll,  which  bears  the  following 
inscription,  SSHill*  m' :  CttltoarlJUS :  It  does  not  appear,  in  the 
absence  of  all  legendary  or  historical  evidence,  who  was  the 
person  thus  designated,  upon  whom  a  grant  was  conferred  by  the 
Confessor,  and  who  here  appears  as  connected  ^vith  the  history 
of  St.  Werstan.  He  is  clad  in  a  sleeved  robe  and  hooded  cape, 
the  former  being  blue,  and  the  cape  bordered  with  white :  it  is 
not  properly  the  monastic  habit,  and  it  differs  from  that  in  which 
St.  Werstan  appears,  as  before  described.  It  may  be  conjectured 
that  the  hermit,  disturbed  in  his  peaceful  resting-place  upon  the 
Malvern  heights  by  some  oppressive  lord  of  the  neighbouring 
territory,  had  sent  a  messenger  to  intercede  with  St.  Edward, 
and  obtained  by  royal  charter  lawful  possession  of  the  little  plot 
whereon  the  celestial  vision  had  led  him  to  fix  his  oratory. 
Certain  it  is,  as  recorded  in  the  charter  of  Henry  I.,  dated  1127, 
that  amongst  the  possessions  of  Great  Malvern  were  numbered 
lands*  granted  by  the  Confessor,  although  no  regular  monastic 
establishment  appears  to  have  existed  previously  to  the  Conquest. 
It  seems  therefore  reasonable  to  conclude  from  the  introduction 
of  the  subject  now  under  consideration,  in  connection  with  the 
circumstances  of  the  legend  of  that  saint,  that,  according  to 
received  tradition,  the  period  when  St.  Werstan  first  resorted  to 
this  wild  spot,  and  established  himself  on  the  locality  marked  out 
by  a  heavenly  vision,  was  during  the  times  of  the  Confessor. 
"  The  fourth,  and  last  subject  of  the  series,  which  appears  in 

*  "  '  L'lia  virpita  tcrre  in  Biildeli,  de  feudo  de  Ilanlcy,  quaiii  Ilex  Hdwardus 
dodit.'  Carta  U.  lleiir.  I.  a.d.  1127.  In  another  charter  of  Henry  I.,  cited 
in  Pat.  TjO  Kdw.  IJl.,  per  inspexinius,  it  is  called  'Baldehala,'  and  in  Plac.  I'i 
Edw.  II.,  '  Badenliale.'" 


179 


eCLAHtVUMAW 


'I'lie  Miirlvnlom  of  St.  Werstan. 


180 

the  upper  division  of  this  remarkable  window,  appears  to  re- 
present the  martyrdom  of  St.  Werstan  the  hermit,  and  the 
chapel  or  oratory,  which  was  the  scene  of  that  event,  described 
by  Leland  as  situated  near  to  the  Priory.  On  the  steep  side  of 
the  Malvern  heights  are  represented,  in  this  pane,  two  small 
buildings,  apparently  chapels  :  the  upper  one  may,  doubtless,  be 
regarded  as  the  same  miraculously  dedicated  building,  which 
appears  in  the  second  pane  ;  from  its  roof  springs  the  bell-turret 
and  spire,  but  precise  conformity  in  minor  details  has  not  been 
observed  in  these  two  representations.  At  one  of  the  windows 
of  the  oratory  is  here  to  be  seen  the  Saint,  who  puts  forth  his 
head,  bleeding  and  bruised,  whilst  on  either  side  stands  a  cruel 
murderer,  prepared  with  sword  upraised  to  strike  the  unoffending 
recluse.  These  miscreants  are  clad  in  gowns  which  are  girt 
round  their  waists,  and  reach  somewhat  below  their  knees  ;  the 
scabbards  of  their  swords  are  appended  to  their  girdles,  and  on 
their  heads  are  coifs,  or  caps,  similar  in  form  to  the  military 
salade,  but  they  do  not  appear  to  be  armour,  properly  so  called. 
These  may  possibly,  however,  represent  the  palets,  or  leathern 
head-pieces,  which  were  worn  about  the  time  when  this  painted 
glass  was  designed,  as  a  partial  or  occasional  defence.  Be  this 
as  it  may,  it  deserves  to  be  remarked  that  the  short  govm  and 
coif-shaped  head  covering  is  a  conventional  fashion  of  costume, 
in  which  the  tormentor  and  executioner  are  frequently  repre- 
sented as  clothed,  in  illuminations  and  other  works  of  mediaeval 
art.  An  illustration  of  this  remark  is  supplied  by  the  curious 
embroidered  frontal  and  super-frontal,  preserved  in  the  church  of 
Steeple  Aston,  Oxfordshire,  which  were  exhibited  at  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  Archajological  Association  at  Canterbury.  The 
subjects  portrayed  thereon  are  the  sufferings  of  Apostles  and 
martyred  Saints :  the  work  appears  to  have  been  designed  to- 
wards the  early  part  of  the  fourteenth  century  ;  and  the  tor- 
mentors are  in  most  instances  clad  in  the  short  gown  and  close- 
fitting  coif.  Beneath,  not  far  from  the  chapel,  wherein  the 
niiirtyr  is  seen,  in  the  Malvern  window,  appears  a  second  building, 
not  very  dissimilar  to  the  first  in  form,  but  without  any  bell- 
turret  and  s[iiro  :  possil)ly,  indeed,  so  little  were  minute  propriety 


181 

aud  conformity  of  representation  observed,  the  intention  may 
have  been  to  exhibit  the  same  building  which  is  seen  above,  and 
a  second  occurrence  which  there  had  taken  place.  This  oratory 
has  three  windows  on  the  side  which  is  presented  to  view,  and  at 
each  appears  within  the  building  an  acolyte,  or  singing-clerk, 
holding  an  open  book,  whilst  on  either  side,  externally,  is  seen 
a  tormentor,  clad  in  like  manner  as  those  who  have  been  noticed 
in  the  scene  above ;  they  are  not,  however,  armed  with  swords, 
but  hold  bundles  of  rods,  and  seem  prepared  to  castigate  the 
choristers,  and  interrupt  the  peaceful  performance  of  their  pious 
functions.  With  this  subject,  the  series  which  appears  to  repre- 
sent the  history  of  the  martyr  St.  Werstan,  closes,  and  in  the 
four  compartments  of  the  lower  division  of  the  window-,  divided 
by  the  intervening  transom,  are  depicted  events  recorded  and 
well  known,  in  connection  with  the  foundation  of  Great  Malvern, 
namely,  the  grant  and  confirmation  conceded  by  William  the 
Conquerer  to  Aldwin,  the  founder ;  the  grant  to  him  by  St. 
Wolstan,  bishop  of  Worcester;  and  the  acts  of  donation  by 
William,  earl  of  Gloucester,  Bernard,  earl  of  Hereford,  and 
Osbem  Poncius ;  benefactions  which  materially  contributed  to 
the  establishment  of  this  religious  house.  Of  these,  curious  as 
the  representations  are,  I  will  not  now  offer  any  description  ;  the 
circumstances,  to  which  they  relate,  are  detailed  in  the  documents 
which  have  been  published  by  Dugdale,  Thomas,  and  Nash.  No 
allusion  has  hitherto  been  found  in  the  legends  of  the  saints  of 
Britain,  or  the  lists  of  those  who  suffered  for  the  faith  within  its 
shores,  to  assist  us  in  the  explanation  of  the  singular  subjects 
which  are  now,  for  the  first  time,  described ;  they  appear  to  be 
the  only  evidences  hitherto  noticed,  in  relation  to  the  history 
of  St.  Werstan,  and  the  earliest  Christian  establishment  on  the 
savage  hills  of  Worcestershire.  In  this  point  of  view,  even 
more  than  as  specimens  of  decorative  design,  it  is  hoped  that 
this  notice  may  prove  acceptable. 

"  It  is  so  material,  wherever  it  may  be  feasible,  to  establish  tlie 
precise  age  of  any  example  either  of  architectural  design,  or 
artistic  decoration,  that  a  few  observations  will  not  here  be  mis- 
placed, in  the  endeavour  to  fix  the  dates,  both  of  the  fabric  of  the 


182 

later  poilions  of  Great  Malvern  priory  church,  and  of  the  painted 
glass  wliich  still  decorates  its  windows.  The  work  of  renovation 
or  augmentation  had  commenced,  as  it  has  been  stated,  under 
Prior  John  Malveme,  towards  the  year  1450  ;  and  it  progressed 
slowly,  as  we  find  by  various  evidences.  It  has  been  affirmed 
that  the  great  western  window  was  bestowed  by  Richard  III., 
whose  armorial  bearings  were  therein  to  be  seen  ;  the  nave  ap- 
pears to  have  been  completed  during  the  times,  and  under  the 
patronage  of  the  liberal  John  Alcock,  whilst  he  held  the  sec  of 
Worcester,  from  1476  to  1486.  But  in  regard  to  the  eastern 
part  of  the  building,  it  is  to  be  noticed  that  the  dates  1453  and 
1456  (36th  Henry  VI.),  appear  on  tiles  which  formed  the  decora- 
tion not  only  of  the  pavement,  but  of  some  parts  of  the  walls  of 
the  choir  ;  being  here  used  in  place  of  carved  wainscot,  an  appU- 
cation  of  fictile  decoration,  of  which  no  other  similar  example  has 
hitherto  been  noticed.  The  period  at  which  the  work  had  been 
80  far  completed,  that  the  dedication  of  the  liigh  Altar,  and  of 
six  other  altars,  might  be  performed,  which  took  place  probably 
on  the  completion  of  the  choir  and  transepts,  is  fixed  by  an 
authentic  record,  hitherto  strangely  overlooked  by  those  who 
have  written  on  the  history  and  antiquities  of  Malvem,  and  now 
for  the  first  time  published.  This  document  is  to  be  found  in 
the  Registers  of  Bishop  Carpenter,  the  predecessor  of  Bishop 
Alcock  in  the  see  of  Worcester.  They  are  preserved  amongst 
the  chapter  muniments  in  the  Edgar  Tower,  at  Worcester.  This 
evidence  has  possibly  been  overlooked  on  this  account,  that  those 
who  searched  for  documents  in  relation  to  the  date  of  the  later 
building,  did  not  bear  in  mind  that  no  consecration  of  the  new 
structure  would  take  place,  the  church  having  been  only  embel- 
lished or  enlarged  ;  the  only  evidence  therefore,  to  be  sought  in 
the  episcopal  archives,  would  be  the  record  of  the  dedication  of 
the  altars,  which  is  given  in  the  Register  as  follows  : — 

"  Kegistniiii  Ciirpenter,  vol.  i.  f.  10;").  '  Cousecmcio  altariiini  in  jirionitu 
iiinjdris  Malveniie.  Peiiultimo  die  nieiisis  Julii,  Anno  Doniiiii  iiiillcsinio 
cccc'""  sexiipfcsinio,  Rcverendus  in  Cliristo  pater  et  doniiniis,  doniiinis  .lolinnni's, 
pemiissione  divina  Wifforniensis  Episoopiis,  crat  rcccptiis  in  nionnstcrimu 
bive  prioniliuii  iiiiijoris  JMalvrniic  \)or  jniorcni  et  Conventual  ejusdeni,  <nun 


183 

pulsacione  campanarum,  et  ibidem  penioctavit,  cum  clericis,  luinistris,  et 
servieiitibus  suis,  8um2>tibus  domus.  Et  iii  crastiiio  die  seqtiente  consecravit 
ibidem  altariu,  videlicet,  primum  et  suimnuiii  altare,  in  lionore  beate  Marie 
virgiuis,  Saucti  Michaelis  Archangeli,  Sanctorum  Johaunis  Evangeliste,  Petri 
et  i'auli  Apostolorum,  et  Benedict!  Abbatis.  Aliud  altare  in  choro,  a  dextris, 
in  honore  Sanctorum  Wolstani  et  Thome  Herfordeusis.  Aliud  in  choro,  a 
sinistris,  in  honore  Santorum  Edwardi  Regis  et  Coufessoris,  et  Egidii  Abbatis. 
Quiu-tum,  in  honore  Petri  et  Pauli,  et  omnium  Apostolorum,  Sancte  Katerine 
et  omnium  virgiuum.  Quintum,  in  honore  Sancti  Laiu-encu,  et  omnium 
martinim,  et  Sancti  Nieholai,  et  onmium  confessonim.  Sextum,  in  honore 
beate  Marie  virginis,  et  Saucte  Anne,  matris  ejusdem.  Et  septimum,  in 
lionore  Jesu  Christi,  Sancte  Ursule,  et  undecim  milia  virginiun." 

"  The  period,  therefore,  at  which  the  work  had  so  far  progressed 
that  the  services  of  the  church  might  take  place  in  the  choir 
of  the  new  fabric,  was  the  year  1460.  It  is  worthy  of  obser- 
vation, that  in  the  great  eastern  window,  a  careful  observer  may 
discern,  here  and  there,  scattered  as  if  irrespectively  of  any 
original  design  in  the  painted  glass,  several  large  white  roses  and 
radiant  suns,  which  appear  to  be  allusive  to  Edward  IV.  They 
seem  to  have  been  inserted  in  various  places,  after  the  window 
had  been  filled  with  painted  glass,  as  they  manifestly  do  not 
accord  with  the  propriety  of  the  design,  which  consists  of 
subjects  of  New  Testament  liistoiy.  The  painted  glass  to 
which  the  present  notice  chiefly  relates,  namely,  tliat  which  has 
been  preserved  in  the  northern  clerestory  windows  of  the  choir, 
may  be  assigned  to  this  same  period,  the  later  part  of  the  reign 
of  Henry  VI.,  or  commencement  of  that  of  Edward  IV.  There 
is  a  great  predominance  of  white  glass,  according  to  a  prevalent 
fashion  of  the  time  :  the  skies  are  richly  diapered,  the  alternate 
panes,  or  compartments,  being  red  and  blue  ;  the  figures  are 
slightly  shaded,  but  scarcely  any  colour,  with  the  exception  of 
yellow,  is  introduced. 

"  It  is  not  verj-  easy  to  fix  the  positions  of  the  seven  altars, 
described  in  the  record  of  their  consecration.  The  high  Altar, 
dedicated  in  honour  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  St.  Michael  the 
archangel,  St.  John  the  Evangelist,  St.  Peter,  St.  Paul,  and 
St.  Benedict,  occupied  the  position  wherein  now  is  placed  the 
altar-table.       The  two  alUirs  wliich  are  described  as  in  the  choir. 


184 

were,  probably,  one  at  the  eastern  extremity  of  the  north  aisle 
thereof,  dedicated  in  honour  of  St.  Edward  the  Confessor  and 
St.  Giles ;  and  the  second  on  the  other  side,  where  is  now  a 
vestry ;  tins  was  dedicated  in  honour  of  St.  Wolstan,  and  St. 
Thomas  of  Hereford.  The  fourth,  dedicated  in  honour  of  St. 
Peter  and  St.  Paul,  may  have  been  in  one  of  the  transepts,  and 
the  sixth,  in  honour  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  and  St.  Anne,  in  the 
lady  chapel,  eastward,  which  is  now  totally  destroyed,  unless 
indeed  that  building  was  erected  subsequently  to  the  choir.  The 
seventh,  dedicated  in  honour  of  Jesus  Christ,  St.  Ursula,  and 
the  eleven  thousand  virgins,  was  in  the  southern  transept.  It 
seems  not  improbable  that  some  change  in  the  appropriation  of 
these  altars  might  have  been  made  at  some  latter  period,  for 
whUst  the  northern  transept  has  been  always  traditionally  called 
the  Jesus  chapel,  the  southern  transept,  long  since  wholly 
demolished,  has  been  termed  the  chapel  of  St.  Ursula.  The 
tomb  of  Walcherus,  the  second  prior,  discovered  in  1711,  on  the 
site  of  the  cloisters,  not  far  from  the  spot  formerly  occupied  by 
the  southern  transept,  is  described  as  having  been  found  about 
twelve  feet  from  the  chapel  of  St.  Ursula*. 

"  In  the  map  of  tlie  chace  and  liills  of  Great  Malvern,  which 
was  supplied  by  Joseph  Dougharty,  of  Worcester,  for  the  work 
compiled  by  William  Thomas,  and  published  in  1725,  under  the 
title,  '  Antiquitates  Prioratus  majoris  Malveme,'  it  is  to  be 
noticed,  that  above  the  Priory  church,  a  little  higher  up  the  hill, 
towards  the  Worcestershire  beacon,  appears  a  little  solitary  build- 
ing, marked  '  St.  Michael's  Chapel.'  The  position  of  the  chapel, 
as  it  appears  in  this  map,  corresponds  with  the  description  which 
is  found  in  Habingdon's  notes  on  the  windows  of  the  church,  as 
given  by  Thomas.  In  the  lower  part  of  the  western  window  of 
the  northern  transept,  or  Jesus  chapel,  it  is  stated  that  there 
were  to  be  seen  the  town  and  church  of  Malvern,  and  the  chapel 
of  St.  Michael,  situated  on  the  side  of  the  hUl ;  and  in  the 
southern  corner  an  archer  in  the  chace,  about  to  let  fly  a  shaft  at 
a  hindf.     Not  a  trace  of  this  interesting  subject  is  now  to  be 

*  "  Nii^li,  Hist,  of  VVoicfhtprsljiro,  ii.  l:i.'{." 

+  "  Autiijii.  I'lii'iiilui,  iiiajuris  .Malvenu-  :  rlesfriplio  pcclcbiu.',  [>.  21." 


185 

distinguished.  It  must  be  obsen-ed  that,  although  the  Priory 
church,  according  to  the  account  commonly  received,  was  dedi- 
cated in  honour  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  alone,  it  appears,  from  a 
passage  in  the  Chronicle  of  Gervase  of  Canterbury,  that  it  was 
dedicated  in  honour  of  St.  Michael  also  ;  and  Richard,  '  filius 
Puncii,'  in  his  grant  of  the  church  of  Leche  to  Malvern,  expresses, 
that  the  donation  was  made  '  Deo,  et  Sancte  Marie,  et  Sancto 
Michaeli  Malvemie*.'  The  high  Altar  of  the  new  fabric,  accord- 
ing to  the  document  given  above,  was  also  consecrated  in  honour 
of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  and  St.  Michael  the  archangel.  These 
facts  would  lead  to  the  supposition  that  the  primitive  oratory  had 
been  dedicated  in  honour  of  the  Archangel,  on  account  of  the 
miraculous  vision  of  Angels,  who  first  directed  St.  Werstan  to 
undertake  the  work,  and  by  whose  ministry  it  had  been  consecrated. 
Nor  was  the  memory  of  the  same  celestial  guidance  lost,  when 
a  more  stately  fabric  was  erected  near  to  St.  Michael's  chapel ; 
the  trace  of  it  is  preserved  in  the  dedication  of  Aldwin's  church 
to  the  Archangel,  in  the  time  of  the  Conqueror,  as  likewise  in 
that  of  the  high  Altar,  in  1460  ;  and  these  facts  seem  to  show 
that  the  monks  of  Great  Malvern  at  all  times,  bore  in  mind,  that 
the  remote  origin  of  that  religious  foundation  was  derived  from 
the  message  of  ministering  spirits  to  the  hermit  Saint  f . 

"  A  singular  difficulty  presents  itself  in  this  endeavour  to 
bring  together  the  few  obscure  details  which  relate  to  the  legend 
of  St.  Werstan.  Leland,  and  Leland  alone,  makes  mention  of 
the  chapel  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  nigh  to  the  Priory,  as  the 
scene  of  his  martyrdom.  No  other  notice  whatsoever  has  been 
found  of  any  chapel  thus  dedicated.  The  ancient  parish  church, 
whicii  stood  near  to  the  Prior}-,  at  the  north-westeni  angle  of 
the  present  cemetery,  was  dedicated  in  honour  of  St.  Thomas 
the  Apostle,  and  no  evidence  has  been  adduced  to  show  that 
any  other  chapel  existed  in  the  vicinity.  May  it  be  supposed 
that  Leland  wrote  inaccurately  in  this    instance,    or   that    the 

•  "  Ciirta  Ant.  L.F.C.  xviii.  11,  in  the  Briti.sli  Musenni." 
t  "  Kcton  pives  in  17.')4,  '  N^wlanil,  St.  Mirlmel,  Cap.  to  Malvcnic  .Mafrna. 
Wordsfieltl,  ('iiaprl  t"   Malvcrnt'   Majjrnrt,  in    niiu.s.'     The  former  is  the  liitlo 
rhiireh  ou  Ncwland  (ircen,  <m  tli'-  road  from  Malvern  to  Woreester." 


186 

chapel  of  St.  Michael  might  have  been  dedicated  also  in  honour 
of  the  Baptist,  and  occasionally  designated  by  his  name  ?  The 
decision  must  be  left  to  the  more  successful  researches  of  those 
who  take  an  interest  in  the  liistoiy  of  the  locality ;  it  will  suflBce 
now  to  suggest,  that  the  forgotten  site  of  the  hermit's  primitive 
chapel  may  still  perhaps  be  traced,  situated  not  far  above  the 
Priory  church.  No  tradition  is  connected  with  the  spot ;  few 
even  bear  in  mind  that  not  many  seasons  have  passed  since  it 
was  commonly  termed  The  Hermitage.  It  is  only  twelve  or 
fifteen  years  since,  that  a  gentleman  named  Williams,  on  his 
return  from  Florence,  selected  and  purchased  this  picturesque 
site  ;  he  built  thereon  a  dwelling,  in  the  Italian  fashion,  and 
applied  to  it  the  name  of  the  Grand  Duke's  Villa,  II  hello  sguardo. 
The  neighbours  now  commonly  call  it  Bello  Squardo,  or  some- 
times, I  believe,  Bellers'  Gai'den,  and  certainly  it  was  not  there 
that  the  curious  ti'aveller,  in  seai'ch  of  the  spot  where  Christian 
woi'ship  was  first  established  on  these  hiUs,  in  Anglo-Saxon 
times,  would  have  lingered  on  his  ascent  to  St.  Anne's  well. 
The  Hermitage,  at  the  time  when  it  so  strangely  lost  its  ancient 
name,  appears  to  have  been  an  old-fashioned  building,  little 
worthy  of  the  notice  even  of  an  antiquary  :  it  had  been  fitted 
up  as  a  dwelling-house,  probably,  soon  after  the  dissolution  of 
monasteries.  An  ancient  vault,  or  crypt,  of  small  dimensions, 
fragments  of  dressed  ashlar,  and  a  few  trifling  relics,  have  from 
time  to  time  been  found  :  several  interments  in  rudely-formed 
cists,  or  graves  lined  with  stones,  were  also  discovered,  which 
seem  to  show  that  the  spot  had  been  consecrated  ground.  Here, 
then,  in  default  of  tradition,  or  any  more  conclusive  evidence, 
it  may  be  credibly  supposed  that  the  simple  orator}"^  of  St. 
Werstan  had  stood;  here  did  he  suffer  martyrdom,  and  here 
was  the  memoiy  of  his  example  cherished  by  those  whose 
labours  tended  to  the  establishment  of  Christian  institutions  in 
the  wild  forests  of  this  remote  distiict  of  our  island." 

"  Albert  Way." 

I  must  here  add  that  Mr.  Way  kindly  called  my  attention  to 
the  fact  that,  in  Lelaud's  "  Itinerary,"  Vol.  vi.,  fo.  7 'J,  there  is 


187 

the  following  interesting  passage  relative  to  St.  Werstan,  which 
he  was  not  aware  of  at  the  time  he  wrote  the  account  of  the 
legend : — "  Bade  raaketh  mention  tliat,  yn  his  tyme,  there  was  a 
notable  abbay  at  Derehurste  *.  It  was  destroyed  by  the  Danes. 
Werstanus  fledde  thens,  as  it  is  sayde,  to  Malvern."  Mr.  Way 
also  added  that  "  It  appears  by  an  ancient  inscription  formerly 
existing  at  Deerhurst  Priory,  as  stated  by  Leland,  that  Dodo,  or 
Doddo,  a  Mercian  duke,  and  one  of  the  chief  founders  of  Tewkes- 
bury Abbey,  built  a  monastery  at  Deerhurst,  in  honour  of  tlic 
Blessed  Virgin  f.  Dodo  is  said  to  have  died  in  7 "2 5.  The  authority 
for  this  statement,  which  various  writers  and  local  topographers 
have  concurred  in  adopting,  was  a  MS.  history  of  Tewkesbury 
Abbey,  from  which  Leland  made  extracts.  There  certainly  were 
religious  persons  established  at  Deerhurst  before  804,  as  appears 
by  a  charter  printed  in  the  '  Mouasticon.'  (Dugd.  '  Monast.' 
Vol.  i.,  now  edition,  p.  591,  Append,  to  Worcester,  Mon.,  No.  23.) 
The  house  was  afterwards  destroyed  by  the  Danes,  but  rebuilt 
before  980,  Elfege,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  having  about  that 
time  been  a  monk  there.  (Leland  '  Coll.'  Tom.  i.,  p.  19;  Tom.  ii., 
p.  249.)  Edward  the  Confessor,  according  to  Sir  Robert  Atkyns 
and  Rudder,  caused  the  monastery  to  be  rebuilt  and  consecrated 
about  1050 1-  That  king  certainly  gave  it  to  the  Benedictine 
Abbey  of  St.  Denis,  in  France,  as  appears  by  the  confirmation 
charter  of  William  the  Conqueror,  preserved  in  the  Cartulary  of 
that  house,  and  printed  in  Dugdale's  '  Monasticon'  (new  edition, 
Vol.  iv.,  p.  005).  From  that  time  it  became  an  alien  priory,  and 
a  cell  to  St.  Denis." 

From  the  above  statement  it  appears  that,  as  tlie  abbey  was 
rebuilt  by  Edward  the  Confessor,  it  must  have  been  burnt  a 
second  time  by  the  Danes,  an  occun'cnce  which  most  probably 
took  place  when  the  forces  of  Edmund  Ironside  and  those  of 
Cnut  were,  in  the  year  1010,  drawn  up  at  Deerhurst  in  battle 

*  It  is  sjiid  to  Imvp  been  founded  in  71,"),  See  "  Codex.  Dip.,"  C'hiirters  Nos. 
If^fi,  H'24,  H2!),  and  h:1(),  relative  to  Deorliyrst  or  Deerhurst. 

f  "  l)ui?<lale,  '  .Mon.  .\ii},'l.,'  Vol.  iv.,  new  edit.,  p.  (ifii." 

J  "  Atkyns  '  Hist,  of  Gloue.,'  p.  :W5;  Kiidder,  p.  403;  also  see  Lysous' 
'  .\nli(|uities  of  (iloueeslersliire,'  j).  l>^." 


188 

array  for  some  time,  without  coming  to  any  engagement;  and 
which,  after  the  supposed  single  combat  between  Edmund  and 
Cnut,  ended  in  the  treaty  of  peace  and  division  of  the  kingdom, 
agreed  upon  by  them  in  the  Isle  of  Alney  *,  in  the  Severn,  said  to 
be  near  Gloucester.  Now,  taking  the  date  of  1010,  or  thereabouts, 
as  the  time  of  St.  Werstan's  flight  from  Deerhurst  to  Malvern , 
and  supposing  that  he  was  about  thirty  years  of  age,  this  would 
make  him  about  fifty-six  years  old  when  the  confessor  came  to  the 
throne,  which  took  place  in  1042. 

It  may  be  as  well  to  remark  that  an  opinion  has  been  enter- 
tained that  the  isle,  where  the  supposed  combat  took  place,  was 
situated  opposite  to  Deerhurst  instead  of  near  to  Gloucester. 
Sir  Kobert  Atkyns,  in  his  "  History  of  Gloucestei-shire,"  p.  388, 
says,  "  There  is  a  small  island  in  this  parish  [Deerhurst]  anciently 
called  Oleneayf,  and  by  the  Saxons  Alney,  and  now  the  Neight  j, 
whereon  it  was  supposed  that  the  single  combat,  between  Edmund 
King  of  England,  and  Canutus  King  of  the  Danes,  was  fought,  to 
decide  the  fate  of  the  kingdom,  which  had  been  worried  by  bloody 
wars.  It  produced  a  peace  by  dividing  the  kingdom,  for  neither 
king  obtained  an  entire  victory  over  his  enemy.  But  the  place  of 
combat  may  more  justly  be  assigned  to  have  been  a  meadow  near 
the  city  of  Gloucester,  which  at  this  day  is  called  Alney  Isle§." 

Now  it  appears  rather  incredible  that  the  two  kings  should  have 
gone  as  far  as  Gloucester  to  settle  their  dispute,  while  the  armies 
lay  at  Deerhm'st ;  and  it  gives  some  countenance  to  the  idea  that 
the  island,  now  called  the  Neight,  was  the  place  in  question,  un- 
less we  suppose  that  the  armies  removed  from  Deerhurst  to 
Gloucester  during  the  settlement  of  the  dispute. 

In  the  work  formerly  ascribed  to  Matthew  Paris,  it  is  stated 
that  the  single  combat  took  place  at  Deerhurst,  on  a  small  island 
called  Oseney,  and  that  Edmund's  army  was  on  the  west  side  of 

•  Or  Olney,  see  "  Chron.  Sax  ,"  an.  1016. 

+  Or  "  Oleneag,"  see  "  Camden." 

J  Or  "  Eiglit,"  ibid.  The  word  is  sometimes  spelt  Naiglit,  Neyt,  and  Ait, 
see  the  account  of  the  Ambrosise  Petree. 

§  See  also  Gondii's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  270,  first  edition,  17  Nl),  where  il 
is  said  that  the  isle  lies  between  Aversbridge  and  Mayseniore. 


189 

the  Severn  and  Canute's  on  the  east*.  Now,  as  Deerhurst  lies 
on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  the  abbey,  according  to  this  account, 
must  have  been  quite  exposed  to  the  ravages  of  the  Danes. 

The  site  of  some  encaustic  tile-works  was  found  at  Great 
Malvern,  the  particulars  of  which  have  been  already  given  in  the 
account  of  a  similar  discover}^  at  Droitwich. 

There  is  in  the  "  Archaeologiaf"  an  interesting  description,  by 
Edward  Blore,  Esq.,  of  the  refectory  of  the  Priory  of  Great 
Malvern,  with  engravings  of  it  as  it  appeared  in  1837,  being  only 
two  years  before  it  was  taken  down.  Mr.  Blore  considers  it  to 
have  belonged  to  the  early  part  of  the  reign  of  Edward  III. 

BEAR'S  WOOD. 

There  is  a  remarkable  conical  hill  in  Cradley  *,  Herefordshire, 
near  the  western  side  of  Old  Storage,  Alfrick,  Worcestershii'e, 
called  Bear's  Wood,  which  is  partly  a  wood  and  partly  a  common. 
An  idea  has  been  entertained  that,  in  some  cases  where  the  term 
bear  occurs  in  the  names  of  places,  it  is  to  be  considered  a  cor- 
ruption of  the  name  Bard,  and  that  such  places  were  frequented 
by  the  ancient  British  bards.  In  Mrs.  Bray's  work,  entitled  the 
"  Borders  of  the  Tamar  and  the  Tavy§,  the  authoress  speaks  of 
a  tract  of  land  on  Dartmoor,  called  Baird-down  (wlgo  Bair-down), 
and  suggests  that  it  means  the  hill  of  the  Bards.  Others  have 
conjectured  that  the  last  British  bear  was  killed  there,  and  the 
place  designated  accordingly  ;  be  that  as  it  may,  it  is  more  than 
probable  that  we  are  indebted  to  the  bears  rather  than  to  the 
bards,  for  the  name  of  the  hill  in  Cradley,  for  in  the  first  place, 
the  name  at  present,  at  least,  is  Bear,  like  the  names  of  some 
other  places  mentioned  below ;  and,  in  the  next  place,  the  hill 
lies  in  a  very  romantic  and  woody  region  where  such  animals 
would  naturally  frequent. 

•  See  Giles's  edition  of  "  Roger  of  Wemlover's  Flowers  of  History,"  pub- 
lished in  184!),  Vol.  i.,  pp.  :>!)(),  yoi. 
+  Vol.  XXX.,  Part  2,  p.  514. 
J   See  Cradley. 
§   Vol.  i.,  pp.  .^7,  f.!>,  7'2. 


190 

It  is  stated  in  the  "  Zoologist,"  No.  1,  p.  8,  in  a  notice  of 
Bell's  "  History  of  British  Quadrupeds,"  that,  "  in  the  days  of 
Plutarch,  bears  were  exported  from  Britain  for  the  amusement  of 
of  the  Romans." 

There  is  a  piece  of  land  called  Bear-croft  in  Suckley,  a  parish 
adjoining  Cradley ;  Big  Bear  Hill,  Little  Bear  Hill,  and  Upper 
and  Lower  Bear's  Leasow  in  Tardebig ;  Bearcrofts,  or  Astridge 
or  Ashridge  Hill,  in  Powick ;  Bearlands  Wood,  Bearsland,  and 
Upper  and  Lower  Bearsland,  in  Warley  Wigorn;  Bearcroft 
Meadow,  in  Garlesford  Court  Farm,  Great  Malvern  ;  and  Bear- 
croft, in  the  chapelry  of  St.  Andrew,  Pershore,  all  in  Worcester- 
shire*. There  is,  Ukewise,  Bearwood  Common,  near  Pembridge, 
in  Herefordshire,  and  Bere  Forest,  by  Portsdown,  Co.  Hants. 

OLD  STORAGE,  OR  STORRIDGE. 

The  name  of  this  beautiful  promontory,  or  headland,  is  most 
probably  of  ancient  British  date,  and  derived  from  Tar,  Tor,  or 
Tarit.  Mr.  Bryant  says  the  Amoniansf,  in  the  early  ages,  built 
obelisks  and  towers,  either  upon  artificial  mounds  or  upon  natural 
eminences,  and  called  them  Tar  and  Tor,  which  signified,  in  their 
language,  and  that  of  the  Chaldees,  both  a  hill  and  a  tower. 
That  they  were  oftentimes  compounded,  and  styled  Tor-is,  or  fire- 
towers,  on  account  of  the  light  which  they  exhibited,  and  the  fires 
which  were  preserved  in  them  | ;  and  that  Turit,  or  Tint  also 
signified  a  tower  or  turret  §. 

In  the  Celtic,  Taran  means  thunder,  Taranis  is  the  name  of 
the  Celtic  god  of  thunder,  and  Tan  means  firel|. 

This  being  the  principal,  and  perhaps  the  most  anciently- 
named  hill  in  that  locality,  was  probably  in  after  ages  called  Old 

*  A  place  called  Bercroft  (Bearcroft)  is  mentioned  in  Oswald's  Clmrter,  No. 
080,  in  the  "  Codex  Dip."  Also,  see  Heniing's  "  Cartulary,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  '-i^)^*, 
which  stiites  it  to  be  on  the  boundary  of  Hinibleton,  Co.  Worcester. 

+  The  descendants  of  Ilani. 

+   Bryant's  "  Ancient  Mythology,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  OOy,  -100. 

§   Ibifl.,  p.  404. 

|]   See  p.  VU. 


191 

Torit,  Torrage,  or  Torage  *,  in  contradistinction  to  other  minor 
Tors  in  the  vicinity ;  and  there  is  a  hill  called  the  Tar,  or  Tor 
Coppice  at  the  foot  of  it.  The  S,  added  at  the  beginning  of  the 
word,  is  a  common  provincial  vulgarism  f.  Old  Storage  is  situated 
in  the  hamlet  of  Alfrick,  in  the  parish  of  Suckley.  The  views 
from  it  are  particularly  fine ;  no  less  than  six  or  seven  counties 
have  been  frequently  pointed  out  to  me  from  the  summit,  called 
the  Beck,  near  a  place  named  the  Vineyard. 

If  Sir  Henry  Spelman  were  right  in  his  conjectm-e,  that  St. 
Augustine's  Oak  stood  in  Alfrick,  I  should  think,  from  the  known 
predilection  and  good  taste  of  the  ecclesiastics  in  the  early  ages 
for  commanding  situations  and  beautiful  scener}-,  that  the  oak 
gi'ew  on  the  top  of  Old  Storage ;  and  indeed,  until  within  about 
twenty  years,  the  remains  of  a  very  ancient  oak  did  actually  stand 
close  to  the  Beck  farm-house,  near  to  the  top  of  the  hill,  and 
within  half  a  field's  length  of  the  modem  Beck  oak,  which  grows 
quite  upon  the  pinnacle  I. 

There  is  a  slight  trench  running  across  the  top  of  the  common, 
from  east  to  west,  close  by  the  spot  where  the  ancient  oak  stood  ; 
probably  the  trace  of  a  sacred  boundary. 

The  following  are  particulars  of  some  remarkable  customs 
still  observed  in  this  kingdom  (at  which  slight  trenches  are  cut), 
and  which  clearly  appear  to  be  relics  of  the  woi^ship  either  of 
Baal  or  Pales. 

In  Hone's  "  Every-Day  Book,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  594,  published 
1838,  it  is  stated,  that  in  Ireland,  "  May-day  is  called  'lana 
Beal-tina;'  and  May-eve,  '  neen  na  Beal-tina:'  that  is,  day  and 
eve  of  Beal's  fire,  from  its  having  been,  in  heathen  times,  con- 
secrated to  the  god  Beal,  or  Belus  ;  whence  also  the  month  of 
May  is  termed,  in  Irish,  '  mi  na  Beal-tine.'  The  ceremony 
practised  on  ^lay-eve,  of  making  the  cows  leap  over  lighted 
straw,  or  faggots,  has  been  generally  traced  to  the  woi-ship  of 

•  There  iire  (Jreiit  Storage  Hill  and  C'opjjirc,  ami  Little  Storugre  Hill,  in 
Beoley;  and  a  river  called  Torridge,  near  Little   Torrington,  Co.  Devon. 

+  .\s  Stitchen  Hill  for  I'itchen  Hill,  Stilelies  for  Pitches. 

J  See  fnrther  remarks  on  St.  Aiignstines  Oak  iu  the  accounts  of  Alfrick  and 
Abberlev  Hill. 


19a 

that  deity.  It  is  now  vulgarly  used  in  order  to  save  the  milk 
from  being  pilfered  by  the  good  people*." 

Mr.  Hone  also  gives  many  instances  f  of  the  custom,  in 
various  parts  of  the  kingdom,  of  kindling  fires,  dancing  round 
them,  leaping  over  them,  and  passing  through  them,  on  Mid- 
summer-eve, Midsummer-day,  All  Saints'-eve,  and  All  Saints '- 
day.  And  in  Vol.  ii.,  p.  659,  it  is  stated  that  Dr.  Jamieson,  in 
his  "  Dictionary  of  the  Scottish  Language,"  mentions  a  festival 
called  Beltane,  or  Beltein,  annually  held  in  Scotland,  on  Old 
May-day ;  that  a  town  in  Perthshire  is  called  "  Tillee  Beltein," 
i.e.  the  eminence  (or  high  place)  of  the  fire  of  Baal ;  that,  near 
this,  are  two  druidical  temples  of  upright  stones,  with  a  well 
adjacent  to  one  of  them,  still  held  in  great  veneration  for  its 
sanctity,  and,  on  that  account,  visited  by  vast  numbers  of  super- 
stitious people ;  that,  in  the  parish  of  Callander  (in  the  same 
county),  upon  "  Beltein-day,"  they  cut  a  circular  trench  in  the 
ground,  sufficient  to  enclose  the  whole  company  assembled  ;  that 
they  kindle  a  fire,  and  dress  a  repast  of  eggs  and  milk,  about  the 
consistence  of  a  custard  ;  that  they  knead  a  cake  of  oatmeal, 
which  is  toasted  at  the  embers  against  a  stone ;  and  after  the 
custard  is  eaten,  they  divide  the  cake  into  as  many  equal  parts  as 
there  are  persons  present,  and  one  part  is  made  perfectly  black 
with  charcoal ;  that  the  bits  of  cake  are  then  put  into  a  bonnet, 
and  drawn,  blindfold,  and  he  who  draws  the  black  bit  is  considered 
as  devoted  to  be  sacrificed  to  Baal,  and  is  obliged  to  leap  three 
times  through  the  flame. 

In  a  work  published  in  1823,  by  W.  Grant  Stewart,  Esq.,  on 
"  The  Highland  Superstitions  relative  to  Belton-eve,"  the  author 
gives  the  following  different  interpretation  to  the  name  : — 

"  Belton  is  derived  from  two  Gaelic  words,  conjoined — 
'  Pale-tein,'  signifying  Pale's  fire,  and  not  Baal's  fire,  as  some 
suppose.  The  strange  relics  of  Pagan  idolatry  which  gave  rise 
to  this  feast  was,  no  doubt,  introduced  into  these  countries,  like 
many  others  of  our  more  permanent  superstitions,  by  the  Druids. 
Pales  (of  whom  we  read  in  the  heathenish  mythologies)  was  the 

•  A  cant  iiiinie  for  tlie  fairies. 

^  Vol.  i.,  |)i).  840,  «17,  84R,  K>i,  1412,  141-%  1414,  1422. 


193 

goddess  of  Sliepherds  and  protectress  of  Flocks.  Her  feast 
was  always  celebrated  in  the  month  of  April,  on  which  occasion 
no  victim  was  killed,  and  nothing  was  offered  but  the  fruits  of 
the  earth.  The  shepherds  purified  flocks  with  the  smoke  of 
sulphur,  juniper,  box-wood,  rosemary,  &c.  They  then  made  a 
large  fire,  round  which  they  danced,  and  offered  to  the  goddess 
milk,  cheese,  eggs,  &c.,  holding  their  faces  towards  the  east,  and 
uttering  ejaculations  peculiar  to  the  occasion*.  Those  interesting 
relics  of  the  religious  opinions  of  our  ancestors,  until  of  late, 
remained  pretty  entire  in  some  parts  of  the  Highlands!." 

There  is  a  hillock  called  the  Knap,  at  the  foot  of  Old  Storage, 
in  Alfrick.  Knap,  in  Saxon,  means  a  hillock  ;  but  the  Rev.  E. 
Duke,  in  his  work  on  the  "  DruidicaJ  Temples  of  the  County  of 
Wilts,"  considers  that  Knap  Hill,  which  lies  between  Albury  and 
Stonehenge,  was  derived  from  Kneph,  or  Cneph,  which,  as  well 
as  Thoth  {,  was  the  Egyptian  or  Phoenician  name  for  Mercury. 
The  greater  probability,  however,  is,  that  the  name  of  Knap,  in 
Alfrick,  came  from  the  Saxon. 


ALFRICK, 


THE  ROUND  HILL,  RAVENHILLS,  ALFRED  THE 
GREAT,  THE  DANES,  AND  St.  AUGUSTINE'S  OAK. 

Dr.  Nash  ("  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  399),  says : — "  Alfric  was 
anciently  called  Alfcnvyke§,  and  Alfredeswic  ;"  but  he  does  not 

•  See  Kemble's  "  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  L,  pp.  366,  367,  relative  to  Pol 
or  Pal.  There  is  I'olsden,  in  Hants  ;  and  Polsdon,  in  Surrey ;  and  it  is 
possible  that  Podon,  or  Poden,  in  Church  Honeyboume,  Co.  Worcester,  may 
be  similarly  derived. 

+  Vide  the  account  of  Pauntley. 

I  But  see  the  acccount  of  the  Tootliills. 

§  There  was  a  chief  named  Alferc,  in  Edward  the  Martyr's  reign,  who 
possessed  the  monastery  of  Evesham. — (See  Mr.  May's  "  Historj'of  Evesham," 
pp.  27,  28. 

0 


194 

quote  any  authorities  upon  the  subject.  He,  however,  refers*  to 
an  Inquisition,  dated  in  1479,  in  which  the  two  chapelries  of 
LuUesley  and  Afurwikef  are  mentioned  as  belonging  to  the 
parish  of  Suckley  I ;  and  perhaps  he  considered  the  word 
Afurwike  as  synonymous  with  Alferwyke  or  Alfredeswic. 

In  the  "  Exemplification  of  a  Decree,"  in  my  possession, 
dated  1585  §,  and  made  relative  to  certain  church  questions 
between  Suckley,  Alfrick,  and  Lulsley,  it  is  spelt  Alfrick,  Alfrike, 
(alias  Awfrike,)  Awfrik,  Aufrik,  and  Alfrik ;  and  Alfric  in 
visitations  of  1461  and  1507;  and  Alfrick,  in  an  award,  dated 
in  1524. 

THE  EOUND  HILL. 

There  is  a  tumulus  called  the  Eound  Hill||  in  Alfrick,  and 
adjoining  it  a  ridge  named  Walls  HiUlF,  in  the  Suckley  Hill 
chain ;  near  to  it  is  a  lane  in  Alfrick  and  Lulsley  called  Green 
Street**. 

KAVENHILLS,  ALFRED  THE  GREAT,  AND  THE 
DANES. 

To  return  to  the  name  Alfredeswic,  it  must  be  observed,  in 
the  first  place,  that,  on  the  borders  of  Alfrick  and  Lulsley,  just 
by  the  above-mentioned  Round  Hill,  there  are  places  called 
Ravenhills,  and  Ravenhills  Green  ff ,  vulgo,  Raffnalls  Green  ;  and 
the  probability  is  that  they  were  so  called  from  the  Danish 
standard  of  the  raven,  which  may  have  been  erected  at  the  spot; 
for  there  is  a  hill  in  Yorkshire,  where  the  Danes  landed,  which  is 
so  called,  as  will  appear  by  the  following  extract  from  Gough's 

•  Pp.  397,  398. 

+  They  are  called  Lulsey  and  Alfric,  in  Bacon's   "  Liber  Regis,"  p.  977. 

{  In'  "  Domesday  Book,"  it  is  called  Svcbelei  in  Dodintret  hundred. 

§  See  also  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  75,  "  Corrections  and  Additions." 

II  It  ha^witliin  these  few  years  been  planted  with  asli,  and  no  doubt  will  in 
time  be  so  mixed  up  with  the  neighbouring  coppice  woods  as  scarcely  to  he 
discernible. 

H    Vide  Iter  VI. 

••   Ibid. 

+  t  The  former  being  in  Alfrick,  and  the  latter  in  Lulsley.  In  Greenwood's 
Map,  published  in  l>>22,  the  latter  is  by  mistake  called  "  Baffler's  Green." 


195 

"  Camden*:" — "  When  the  Danes,  under  Inguar  and  Hubba, 
landed,  a.d.  807,  in  Dunsby  Bay,  two  miles  east  [west]  of  this 
place  [Whitby],  and  encamped  on  an  eminence  still  called  from 
their  standard  Ravenshill,  they  destroyed  the  monastery,  &c." 
That  and  another  hill  of  the  same  name  are  also  thus  noticed  in 
Hindenvell's  "  History  of  Scarborough  :" — "  Hungar  and  Hubba, 
two  celebrated  Danish  chieftains,  having  collected  a  great  many  ad- 
venturei-s,  set  sail  for  England  with  a  numerous  fleet  in  the  spring 
of  the  year  876  f,  and  landed  in  two  divisions.  The  first  divi- 
sion, commanded  by  Hubba,  debarked  in  Dunsby  Bay,  about  two 
miles  to  the  westward  of  Streanshalh  (Whitby),  where  they 
erected  their  standard,  a  raven,  on  an  eminence  of  rising  ground, 
which  is  supposed  to  have  been  known  ever  since  by  the  name  of 
Raven  Hill ;  while  the  other  division,  under  Hungar,  made  their 
landing  good  at  Peak,  about  seven  miles  to  the  eastward  of 
Streanshalh,  and  ten  to  the  north-west  of  Scarborough,  where,  on 
the  top  of  a  very  high  cliff  or  hill,  they  erected  another  standard 
or  flag,  with  a  raven  pourtrayed  thereon,  which  might  be  seen 
all  the  country  round ;  which  hill  is  to  this  day  also  known  by 
the  name  of  Raven  Hill."  It  may  be  observed  that  there  was  a 
person  named  Alfric  IL,  Earl  of  Leicester,  who  was  slain  by  this 
Hubba  at  Skrekingham,  in  Lincolnshire  J,  during  Alfred's  time. 
It  is  said  in  some  of  the  histories,  that  Odun,  Earl  of  Devon- 
shire, in  a  battle  which  took  place  in  that  county  with  Hubba,  in 
the  year  879,  defeated  the  Danes  and  captured  their  famous 
magical  standard,  which  was  called  Reafan,  from  its  Imving  the 
figure  of  a  raven  §  embroidered  upon  it  by  the  three  sisters  of 
Hubba  ||. 

•  Vol.  iii.,  p.  324,  second  edition,  1806. 

+  Ciur.den  says  "  HOT." 

+  See  Cough's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  .I.'U,  second  edition,  1S()(). 

§  It  may  be  observed  here  that  children  to  the  present  day  commonly  call 
any  large  tiiiiie  bird  they  may  have  by  the  pet  name  of  Ikfl',  Rjife,  or  PUlph, 
In  Hone's  "  Table  Hook,"  pp.  826,  827,  he  gives  an  account  of  a  tame  raven 
which  was  called  Hafe. 

II  See  Sydney's  "  History  of  V'.ngland,"  &c.  The  aboveiupntioned  was  a 
most  important  event,  as  it  drew  Alfred  from  his  retreat  to  further  victories, 
an<l  ultimate  triumph. 


196 

In  Gibson's  "  Camden*"  it  is  stated,  that  there  was  upon  the 
coast  of  Devonshire,  a  castle  called  Kenuith  [or  Kenwith],  *'  and 
so  situated,  that  there  was  no  approaching  it  on  any  side  but  the 
east,  where,  in  the  year  879,  Hubba,  the  Dane  who  had  harrassed 
the  English,  cutting  off  great  numbers  of  them,  was  himself  cut 
off,  and  the  place  was  from  thenceforward  called  Hubbestow  by 
our  historians.  At  the  same  time,  the  Danish  standard,  called 
Reafan,  was  taken  by  the  English,  which  I  the  rather  observe, 
because,  from  a  little  story  in  '  Asser  Menevensis,'  who  has  re- 
corded these  matters,  it  may  be  gathered  that  the  Danes  had  a 
crowf  in  their  standard,  which  is  said  to  have  been  wrought  in 
needlework  by  the  daughters  of  Lodbroc  the  Dane ;  and,  as  they 
conceived,  it  made  them  invincible." 

The  following  similar  story,  taken  from  Thierry's  "  History  of 
the  Norman  Conquest"  (p.  70),  is  told  of  the  three  sisters  of 
Sweyn : — "  1004  to  1006.  At  their  disembarkation  on  the 
English  coast,  the  Danes,  formed  into  battallions,  unfurled  a 
mysterious  standard,  which  they  denominated  the  raven.  It  was 
a  banner  of  white  silk,  in  the  centre  of  which  was  embroidered  a 
raven,  with  open  beak  and  extended  wings :  three  of  King 
Sweyn's  sisters  had  embroidered  it  in  a  night,  accompanying 
their  labour  with  magic  incantations  and  gesticulations.  This 
banner,  which,  agreeably  to  the  superstitious  notions  of  the 
Scandinavians,  was  a  sure  pledge  of  victory,  increased  the  ardour 
and  the  confidence  of  the  fresh  invaders,"  &c. 

Dr.  Thomas,  in  his  "  Survey  and  account  of  Worcester  Cathe- 
dral," &c.,  published  in  1737,  mentions  a  place  called  Ravenshill, 
or  Raefneshill,  situated  two  miles  east  of  Worcester  |,  and  says, 
that  in  the  year  876,   Ccenwlf,  King   of  the   Mercians,  gave 


•  Vol.  i.,  p.  167,  fourth  edition,  1772. 

+  Also  see  Gough's  "  Camdeu"  thereon,  Vol.  i.,  p.  30,  first  edition,  178!), 
where  it  is  called  a  raven. 

J  It  lies  about  three  miles  from  the  city,  in  the  midst  of  Danish  relics. 
Vide  the  accounts  of  Wamdon  and  Crowle.  Also  see  "  Codex  Dip."  No.  209, 
and  20!)  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  as  to  this  Hrsefneshyl ;  and  No.  289,  and  289  App., 
Vol.  iii.,  as  to  Hrefnespyt,  near  Honeyboume,  in  this  county. 


197 

Raefneshill  to  the  Bishop  of  Worcester,  &c.  *  ;  and  that  Bright- 
eagus,  Bishop  of  Worcester  in  the  reign  of  Canute,  gave  Ravens- 
hill  to  his  kinsman  Brihtwine  f. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  his  account  of  Tibberton,  says,  "  on  the  north 
side  of  the  parish,  situate  on  a  hill,  is  RavenhuU.  Britteagus, 
the  22nd  Bishop  of  Worcester,  a.d.  1033,  gave  it  to  a  certain 
kinsman  of  his,  called  Swythynes,  after  whose  death  the  sheriff 
Urso  invaded  it,"  &c. 

There  is  a  piece  of  land  called  the  Raven's  Dole,  in  the  Ber- 
row;  Raven's  Hay,  in  Pendock;  Raven  Hill,  in  the  parish  of 
Upton-on-Sevem ;  and  Raven's  Bank,  in  Beoley, 

In  Welland  there  are  pieces  of  land  called  Dane  Moor  Copse, 
and  Dane  Moor  Hill ;  the  Danes,  in  the  Borough  of  Kidder- 
minster ;  Danes  Field,  in  Belbroughton ;  Danes  Close,  in  Claines ; 
Danes  Meadow,  in  Doderhill ;  Danes  Close,  in  Kempsey ;  Dane 
Piece,  in  Lower  Milton,  in  the  parish  of  Kidderminster ;  and 
Dane  Wood,  east  of  Pirton, — all  in  Worcestershire.  Likewise, 
Dane  Hopyard|,  in  Cradley,  Herefordshire. 

Now,  it  is  observable  here,  that  as  Welland,  Upton,  Cradley, 
Alfrick,  and  Lulsley,  are  upon  or  near  the  line  of  the  Malvern, 
Old  Storage,  and  Suckley  chain  of  hills ;  they,  therefore,  were 
the  most  likely  parts  in  the  district  to  bo  the  sites  of  battles 
between  the  Saxons  and  Danes.  It  is,  however,  a  question 
whether  Alfred  was  in  Worcestershire,  or  rather  in  the  region 
afterwards  called  Worcestershire  during  any  of  these  battles.  On 
this  point  I  have  not  found  any  positive  evidence ;  yet  the  fol- 
lowing extracts  from  various  works  may  tend  to  throw  some  light 
upon  the  subject ; — but  I  must  first  observe  that  the  most  likely 
time  of  his  being  in  Worcestershire,  if  at  all,  was  either  about 
the  year  877,  when  the  Danes  made  themselves  masters  of 
Mercia;  or  in  880  or  883,  when  he  signed  two  charters  of 
Ethelred,  viceroy  of  Mercia ;  or  when  he  signed  another  of  such 
charters  (without  date),  as  hereafter  mentioned ;  or  in  or  about 

*  See  App.  25. 

t  See  App.  (Vi,  and  Hemitigs  "  Cartulary,"  pp.  207,  W7,  ;}.37. 
{   The  word  Hopyard  attached   to  the  above  name  must  be  conipaiiitivt  ly 
fiindcrn.  il  probably  was  Pane  proiind,  nr  some  suoli  name,  in  days  of  yore. 


the  year  894,  when  he  drove  Hasting,  the  celebrated  Danish 
pirate,  from  the  Mercian  kingdom,  of  which  Worcestershire 
formed  a  part. 

It  is  stated  in  '*  A  Concise  History  of  Worcestershire,"  pub- 
lished in  1808,  that,  "  when  England  was  overrun  with  the 
depredations  of  the  Danes,  we  find  this  place  [Worcester]  to 
have  suffered  in  the  general  wretchedness  of  the  kingdom.  It 
was  plundered  and  burnt  to  the  ground ;  insomuch  that  it  re- 
mained in  ruins  and  uninhabited,  until  Ethelred,  viceroy  of  the 
Wiccians*,  with  his  lady,  Ethelfreda,  [Ethelflaed],  daughter  of 
Alfred  the  Great,  invited  the  inhabitants  to  resort  again  to  their 
ancient  residence.  A  bishop's  see  was  established  here,  and, 
numbers  returning,  great  privileges  were  granted  to  them." 

In  Green's  "  History  of  Worcester,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  18,  is  the  fol- 
lowing : — "  The  great  Alfred,  whose  paternal  throne  was  that  of 
Wessex,  was  the  first  king  in  England  who  had  all  the  provinces 
of  the  heptarchy  under  his  immediate  dominion ;  yet  he  thought 
it  expedient  to  govern  the  Mercians  by  a  prince  of  their  ancient 
nobility,  Duke  Ethelred,  to  whom  he  had  given  his  daughter 
Ethelfleda,  a  very  heroine,  in  marriage.  Several  towns  in  Mer- 
cia  (Chester,  Shrewsbury,  Stafford,  Warwick,  and  Bridgenorth) 
are  indebted  to  this  noble  pair,  at  least  to  Ethelfleda,  who  sur- 
viving the  duke  seven  years,  died  a.d.  919.  Worcester  also  has 
obligations  to  them ;  for,  by  a  charter  of  theirs  f ,  signed  in  King 
Alfred's  reign  (i.  e.  before  a.d.  900),  upon  Bishop  Waerfred'sJ 
desire  that  the  city  of  Weogemaceastre  might  be  improved  and 
fortified  with  bulwarks  for  the  security  of  its  inhabitants,  they 
gi'anted  to  the  church,  or  minster  there,  one-half  of  the  royal 
dues  or  tolls  arising  either  from  the  market  or  the  street,  reserv- 
ing only  the  wain  shilling  and  the  seam  penny  §  entire  to  the 

•  Wiccia,  a  province  of  Uie  Mercian  kingdom,  contained  Worceslersliire, 
Gloncestershire,  and  part  of  Warwicksliire.  He  appears  to  have  been  Duke 
of  Wiceia  and  viceroy  of  Mercia. 

+  "  Heniing's  '  Cartulary,'  p.  0." 

\  "  Or  Wserferth,  or  Werfrith.' 

§  "  This  was  a  duty  on  wares  carried  nut;  one  penny  each  horse  load,  and 
twelve  times  as  much  on  a  loaded  wain," 


199 

kiug*.  But,  out  of  all  his  land-rents,  and  the  mulcts  for  fighting, 
theft,  fmud,  &c.,  and  the  other  forfeitures  that  might  accrue  to 
the  crown,  they  assigned  a  moiety  to  the  use  of  St.  Peter's  Church 
and  See." 

With  respect  to  this  important  charter,  it  proves  that  Alfred 
was  in  Mercia  when  it  was  granted,  for  it  states  that  it  was  given 
under  witness  of  Alfred  the  king,  and  of  all  the  Witan  in 
Mercia.  Now,  as  this  charter  contributed  so  largely  towards 
the  amelioration  of  the  wretched  condition  of  Worcester,  after  it 
was  ravaged  by  the  Danes,  and  entered  so  minutely  into  the  con- 
cerns of  the  place,  it  appears  very  probable  that  Alfred,  and  his 
son-in-law  and  daughter,  and  the  Witena,  sat  at  Worcester  at  that 
time,  in  order  that  they  might,  upon  the  spot,  be  enabled  to  take 
all  the  circumstances  of  the  case  into  their  consideration. 

Since  writing  the  above,  I  am  liappy  to  find  the  following 
notice  of  this  charter  in  Kemble's  "  Saxons  in  England f:" — 
"  ^DELRED,  DUKE  OF  MERCIA,  a.d.  878-899.— At  a 
gemot  held  between  these  years,  and  very  likely  at  Worcester, 
^thelred  and  -lEthelfliEd  commanded  a  burh  or  fortification  to  be 
built  for  the  people  of  that  city,  and  the  cathedral  to  be  enlarged. 
The  endowments  and  privileges  which  are  granted  by  the  instru- 
ment are  extensive  and  instructive  |." 

In  the  same  page  Mr,  Kemble  notices  another  charter  of 
.^thelred  and  ^Ethelflaed,  as  follows  : — 

"  ^DELRED,  DUKE  OF  MERCIA,  a.d.  888.— This  gemot 
was  held  at  Saltwic  in  Worcestershire,  to  consult  upon  afiairs 
both  ecclesiastical  and  secular.  The  witan  assembled  from  far 
and  near§." 

Now,  in  the  former  case  it  is  pretty  evident  tliat  Alfred,  and 
his  son-in-law  and  daughter,  did  sit  at  Worcester ;   and  in  the 

•  The  reservation  is  as  follows: — "  The  wain-shilling  and  load-penny  are  to 
go  to  the  king's  hand,  as  they  always  did,  from  Saltwic." — See  the  account  of 
Droitwich,  hereafter. 

+  Vol.  ii.,  p.  !2r)"2,  eliap.  Witena  Gemot  of  the  Saxons. 

I  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  1075.  The  date  is  therein  set  down  as  between 
87;}  and  8!)!). 

§  "  Codex  Dip.,"  N(.s.  ■V^l ,  KKis. 


200 

latter  case,  it  is  clear  that  iEthelred  and  iEthelfl£ed  sat  at  Salt- 
wic,  meaning  Droitwich -is  which  lies  only  about  seven  miles 
from  Worcester. 

As  tlie  first-mentioned  charter  is  so  interesting  in  a  local  point 
of  view,  and  so  instructive  relative  to  tlie  manners  and  customs 
of  those  times,  I  shall  here  give  a  translation  of  it,  taken  from 
Mr.  Kemble's  above-mentioned  workf. 

"  To  Almighty  God,  true  Unity  and  holy  Trinity  in  heaven, 
be  praise  and  glory  and  rendering  of  thanks,  for  all  his  benefits 
bestowed  upon  us !  Firstly,  for  whose  love,  and  for  St.  Peter's 
and  the  church  at  Worcester,  and  at  the  request  of  Werfrith  the 
bishop,  their  friend,  iEthelraed  the  ealderman,  and  iEthelflaed 
commanded  the  burh  at  Worcester  to  be  built,  and  eke  God's 
praise  to  be  there  upraised.  And  now  they  make  known  by  this 
charter,  that  of  all  the  rights  which  appertain  to  their  lordship, 
both  in  market  and  in  street,  within  the  byrig  and  without,  they 
grant  half  to  God  and  St.  Peter  and  the  lord  of  the  church ;  that 
those  who  are  in  the  place  may  be  the  better  provided,  that 
they  may  thereby  in  some  sort  easier  aid  the  brotherhood,  and 
that  their  remembrance  may  be  the  firmer  kept  in  mind,  in  the 
place,  as  long  as  God's  service  is  done  within  the  minster.  And 
Werfrith  the  bishop,  and  his  flock,  have  appointed  this  service, 
before  the  daily  one,  both  during  their  lives  and  after,  to  sing  at 
matins,  vespers  and  '  undernsong,'  the  psalm  De  Profundis, 
during  their  lives ;  and  after  their  death,  Laudate  Domiuum ; 
and  every  Saturday,  in  St.  Peter's  church,  thirty  psalms,  and  a 
mass  for  them,  whether  alive  or  dead,  ^thelraed  and  ^Ethelflaed 
proclaim,  that  they  have  just  granted  with  good-will  to  God  and 
St.  Peter,  mider  witness  of  JElired  the  king,  and  all  the  witan  in 
Mercia,  excepting  that  the  wain-shilling  and  load-penny  {  are  to 
go  to  the  king's  hand,  as  they  always  did,  from  Saltwic ;  but  as 

•  See  hereafter  "  Droitwich." 

+  Vol.  ii  p.  328. 

J  "  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  Wacnscilling,  written  erroneously  in  the  MS. 
VVa;giis<,illing,  is  what  is  meant  by  statio  ct  inoneratio  plaustroruiii,  in  another 
oliartcr. — '  Cotlox  Dip  ,'  No.  lOfifi.  It  is  custom  or  toll  upon  the  staiuUnpand 
]f>ndinj;  of  ihr  shU  waggons." 


•201 

for  every  thing  else,  as  landfeoh*,  flhtwite,  stalu,  vvohceapung, 
and  all  the  customs  from  which  any  fine  may  arise,  let  the  lord 
of  the  church  have  half  of  it,  for  God's  sake  and  St.  Peter's,  as  it 
was  arranged  about  the  market  and  the  streets ;  and  without  the 
market-place,  let  the  bishop  enjoy  his  rights,  as  of  old  our  prede- 
cessors decreed  and  privileged.  And  ^Ethelraed  and  -^thelflsed 
did  this  by  witness  of  Alfred  the  king,  and  by  witness  of  those 
vvitan  of  the  Mercians  whose  names  stand  written  hereafter ;  and 
in  the  name  of  God  Almighty  they  adjure  all  their  successors 
never  to  diminish  these  alms  which  they  have  granted  to  the 
church  for  God's  love  and  St.  Peter's ! " 

Nash,  in  his  "  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  109,  thus  notices 
the  subject . — "  When  the  kingdom  was  overrun  by  the  Danes, 
tliis  city  (Worcester)  was  sacked  and  destroyed  by  them,  and, 
being  in  ruins,  till  Ethelred,  viceroy  of  the  Wiccians,  with  his 
Lady  Ethelfleda,  daughter  of  King  Alfred,  rebuilt,  enlarged, 
adorned,  and  gave  it  many  privileges,  for  which  Bishop  Werfrith 
and  his  family,  at  St.  Peter's,  agreed  to  say  many  prayers  for 
them,  both  alive  and  dead,  and  gave  unto  them  several  lands  f . 
Witnesses  thereto,  King  Alfred  and  others  J." 

It  is  true  that  this  grant  of  Bishop  Werfrith  (which  bears  date 
in  904)  is  witnessed  by  a  person  of  tlie  name  of  Alfred,  who, 
however,  could  not  have  been  the  king,  as  he  died  three  or  four 
years  previously  ;  besides,  had  it  been  the  king,  no  doubt  his 
title  would  have  been  added  (as  the  titles  of  those  of  rank  were) ; 
on  the  contrary,  the  name  is  simply  given  with  a  cross  before  it, 

♦  "  Lanilfeoh,  land-fee,  probably  a  rccognitory  rent  for  land  held  under  the 
burh  or  city.  Fihtwite,  fine  for  brawling  in  the  city.  Stalu,  fine  or  mulct  for 
theft.  Wohceapung,  fine  for  buying  or  selling  contrary  to  the  rules  of  the 
market." 

f  Namely,  to  tliem  and  their  daughter  iElfwiue,  a  vill  in  Worcester,  and  about 
132  acres  of  arable  and  meadow  land,  for  three  lives,  witli  reversion  to  tlie 
see,  on  condition  that  they  would  be  good  friends  and  protectors  to  the  chapter. 
It  may  be  reasonably  inferred,  from  tliis  and  the  previous  charter,  that 
Etlielred  and  his  family  resided  at  Worcester,   "  tlic  metropolis  of  the  west." 

J  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p,  i:);  also  see  the  manuscript  in  the  Cotton 
Collection,  British  Museum;  'Tiberius,  A  xiii.,  fo.  f!A ;  and  "Codex 
nip.,     No.  :J:J!}, 


202 

like  several  of  the  other  signatures  of  witnesses  of  inferior  note. 
It,  however,  does  not  follow,  as  a  matter  of  course,  that  aU  the 
persons  who,  in  those  times,  merely  made  their  mark  could  not 
write ;  as,  for  a  certain  period,  it  became  the  fashion,  even  for 
those  who  were  masters  of  the  art  of  penmanship,  to  leave  it  to 
the  scribe  to  add  their  names  opposite  to  their  marks,  and  also 
their  titles,  if  they  were  persons  of  rank  or  distinction. 

In  proof  of  this,  it  is  observable  that  Alfred  did  sign  and 
confirm,  by  a  mark,  Duke  ^thelred  and  iEthelflaeda's  charter, 
dated  in  880,  as  follows  : — "  +  Ego  -Alfred  rex  consensi  et  sub- 
scripsi ;"  and  also  the  Duke's  charter,  dated  883,  as  follows : — 
"  +  Ego  Alfred  rex  huius  traditionis  munificentiam  signo 
sanctae  crucis  adfirmo." — (See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  311,  313, 
and  313  App.,  Vol.  iii.) — And  the  charter  relative  to  property 
in  London,  granted  to  Bishop  Werfrith,  dated  in  889,  is  signed 
by  the  three  as  follows : — "  +  Ego  Alfred  rex  anglorum  et 
Saxonum,  banc  donationem  confirmans  signo  crucis  subscribo.+ 
Ego  jEthelred,  subregulus  et  patricius  Merciorum,  banc  dona- 
tionem signo  crucis  subscripsi.  +  Ego  -^Ethelflaed  consensi. 
— (See  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  43  ;  and  "  Codex  Dip.," 
No.  316.) 

Worcester  was  again  burnt  during  the  reign  of  Hardicanute, 
for  refusing  to  pay  the  Danegelt;  and  the  inhabitants  would 
have  been  all  put  to  the  sword,  had  they  not  fled  to  Bevere 
Island,  about  three  miles  from  the  city,  and  fortified  themselves 
there.  It  is  said  that  Alfric,  Archbishop  of  York,  instigated  the 
king  to  this  act  of  cruelty,  because  the  citizens  had  refused  to 
accept  him  as  their  bishop*. 

Assuming  that  Alfrick  was  formerly  named  Alfredeswic,  or 
Alferwikef,  as  stated  by  Dr.  Nash,  the  fact  of  a  place   called 

•  There  also  was  JEUeie,  Duke  of  Mercia,  temp.  King  Edgar ;  .lElfrick,  a 
learned  and  pious  writer  in  the  time  of  Etlielred  II. ;  and  ^Irick,  or  Agelric, 
Arclideueon  of  Worcester,  temp.  Bishop  Wulstan. 

+  There  is  tdso  Alfreton,  north  of  Worcester ;  Alfreton  parish,  and  market 
town,  Co.  Derby.  Tins  town  is  said  to  have  derived  its  name  from  Alfred, 
who  is  reported  to  have  been  its  founder.  Alfrington  tythiug,  Co.  Dorset ; 
and  Alfristou  parish,  Co.  Sussex.     Tumuli  are  numerous  in  this  latter  parish, 


203 

Ravenhills,  and  Ravenhills  Green,  or  Raffnals  Green*,  being  just 
by  the  Round  Hill,  in  Alfrick,  is  strong  presumptive  evidence 
of  a  battle  having  been  fought  in  that  quarter  v?ith  the  Danes, 
during  the  time  of  Alfred  ;  and  the  place  may  have  been  called 
Alfredeswic,  either  on  occasion  of  the  battle,  or  shortly  after- 
wards ;  when  it  is  said  by  some  writers  that  Alfred  divided  the 
kingdom  into  counties,  hundreds,  and  tythings  ;  but  the  better 
opinion  appears  to  be,  that  such  sub-divisions  existed  long  pre- 
viously, but  that  he  probably  did  alter  the  boundaries  of  some  of 
them,  and  consolidated  others  f  which  were  too  small ;  and  this 
would,  in  some  instances,  cause  new  names  to  be  given  to  such 
divisions.  The  circumstance  of  the  viceroy  of  the  Mercians 
having  married  the  daughter  of  Alfred,  as  before  stated,  also 
tends  to  add  weight  to  the  above  derivation  of  Alfrick  ;  for  what 
was  more  natural  than  that  the  son-in-law  and  daughter  should 
honour  their  illustrious  father  by  calling  a  certain  part  of  the 
viceroyalty  by  his  name,  particularly  if  it  was  the  site  of  one  of 
his  or  their  great  exploits  ? 

In  proof  that  there  were  subdivisions  before  Alfred's  time, 
resembling  the  above-mentioned,  there  is  a  place  in  Suckley,  in 
Worcestershire,  on  the  border  of  Cradley,  in  Herefordshire, 
called  "  The  Bantej,"  or  "  Bant."  Now,  Mr.  Kemble,  in  his 
"  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  i.,  after  describing  "  The  Mark," 
March  (raearc),  or  smallest  division  of  land  on  which,  in  the 
early  Saxon  times,  a  greater  or  lesser  number  of  freemen  settled 
for  purposes  of  cultivation,  and  for  the  sake  of  mutual  profit 
and  protection,  proceeds,  in  p.  72,  to  describe  the  Ga,  or  Scir,  thus : — 

"  Next  in  order  of  constitution,  if  not  of  time,  is  the  union  of 
two,  three,  or  more  marks,  in  a  federal  bond,  for  purposes  of  a 

and  ancient  unis,  and  other  relics,  have  been  discovered. — (See  Wright's 
"  Gazetteer." 

•  Four  roads  moot  at  this  preen :  one  of  them  runs  up  to  the  Round  Hill. 

+  See  Kenible's   "  Saxons  in  England,"   Vol.  i.,  p.  248;  and  also  Astwood. 

I  It  lies  between  NV'allridge  and  the  Upper  and  Lower  Barrow  (or  Berrow). 
See  the  Ordnance  Map.  Thisi  place  is  described  as  "  The  Baute,"  in  ccrtniii 
title  deeds  referred  to  in  the  "  J^rd  Report  of  the  Commissioners  for  Inquiring 
concerning  Charities,'"  p.  57!(. 


204 

religious,  judicial,  or  even  political  character.  The  technical 
name  for  such  a  union  is,  in  Germany,  a  '  Gau,'  or  '  Bant* ;' 
in  England,  the  ancient  name  *  Ga '  has  been  almost  universally 
superseded  by  that  of  '  Scir,'  or  '  Shire.'" 

With  respect  to  the  name  "  Worcester,"  it  is  said  that 
Ethelred,  King  of  Mercia,  having  resolved  to  divide  Mercia  into 
five  separate  dioceses,  Osric,  viceroy  of  Wiccia,  prevailed  upon 
him  to  establish  one  of  them  at  Wigomaceastre,  the  metropolis 
of  his  province  ;  and  that,  in  679,  Bosel  was  consecrated  first 
bishop,  by  the  style  of  Episcopus  Huicciorum,  and  invested  vnth 
full  authority  to  preside  over  the  ecclesiastical  affairs  of  Huiccia 
or  Wiccia;  and  in  charters  of  this  Ethelred,  dated  691  or  692, 
and  692  f,  Worcester  is  styled  Uueogoma  ciuitate,  and  Uuegerna- 
cester.  Now  here  we  have  evidence  of  the  Saxon  name  of  Wor- 
cester J  two  centuries  before  the  final  expulsion  of  the  Danes 
from  Mercia  by  Alfred  ;  but  still  there  is  no  decisive  proof  as  to 
when  the  county  was  so  called.  It  is  possible  that,  as  Wiccia 
included  no  more  than  Worcestershire,  Gloucestershire,  and  part 
of  Warwickshire,  that,  at  first,  the  shire  was  co-extensive  with 
the  dukedom,  or  see ;  and  that,  either  before  or  during  Alfred's 
time,  the  sub-division  took  place  §.  The  probable  apportionment 
of  the  hamlet  of  Alfredeswic,  or  Alfrick,  in  his  time,  appears  to 
favour  the  idea  that  other  changes  were  then  made. 

My  pamphlet  on  the  "  Igiiis-fatuus  ;  or,  Will-o'- the- Wisp  and 
the  Fairies,"  was  published  in  February  1 846  ;  and  in  the  Sep- 
tember following,  a  letter  appeared  in  the  "  Athenaeum  ||," 
wherein   the  writer   says,    "  Alfrick "   (the   place    in   question) 


•  "  Less  usual  are  Elba  and  Para.  The  Norse  Herrad  may  in  some  sense 
be  compared  witli  these  divisions." 

+  See   "  Codex  Dip.,"   Nos.  32,  34. 

J  Which,  in  the  Latin,  is  Wigoma  et  Vigornia. —  (See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App., 
p.  109.) 

§  It  is  named  Wigercestresire  in  Edward  the  Confessor's  charier  of  lOlHi, 
and  Wirecestrescire  in  another  of  his  charters. — (See  "  Codex  Dip.,'  Nos. 
K29,  830.) 

II  For  Septcnibi-i  19th,  1K4(),  p.  9Dj.— (Sec  also  the  numbers  for  October 
2nd  and  9th,  l«iT.  pp.  10:10,  lO-,.-).) 


205 

"  means,  literally,  '  elf,'  or  '  fairy  kingdom*.'"  Now,  as  Alfrick 
and  the  hamlet  of  Lulsley,  which  adjoins  it,  certainly  were  con- 
sidered as  fairy-land,  as  stated  in  my  pamphlet  (the  substance  of 
which  is  given  in  the  latter  part  of  this  work),  we  must  admit 
that  this  view  of  the  etymology  is  not  altogether  without  reason  ; 
and  it  may  have  been  the  opinion  in  mediaeval  times,  although  we 
consider  the  one  proposed  above  to  be  the  more  probable. 

ST.  AUGUSTINE'S  OAK. 

In  addition  to  what  has  been  said  under  the  title  "  Old  Storage," 
relative  to  the  site  of  St.  Augustine's  Oak,  it  may  be  further  ob- 
served that  Bede,  in  his  "Ecclesiastical  History f,"  states  that 
"  Augustine,  with  the  assistance  of  King  Ethelbert,  drew  together, 
to  confer  with  him,  the  bishops  or  doctors  of  the  next  province  of 
the  Britons,  at  a  place  which  is  to  this  day  called  Augustine's  Ac, 
that  is  Augustine's  Oak,  on  the  borders  of  the  Wiccii  and  West 
Saxons."  Here  then  we  have  an  account  of  the  oak  as  far  back 
as  the  year  731,  when  Bede's  "  History"  was  written. 

Camden  in  his  "  Britannia"  says,   "  There  is  a  place  whose 

situation  is  not  exactly  known,  in  this  county  [Worcester],  called 

Augustyne's    ace,    Augustine's    Oak,    where     Augustine,     the 

Apostle  of  the  English,  and  the  British  bishops  met,  and  after  some 

squabbling  about  the  observance  of  Easter,  the  preaching  of  the 

Gospel,  and  administration  of  baptism  according  to  the  ritual  of 

the  Romish   Church,   separated   with   as    little    agreement    as 

before  J." 

Gough,  in  his  Additions  to  "  Camden,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  472,  second 

edition,  remarks,  "  Spelman  thought  he  found  Austin's  Oak  at 

Aufric,  a  village  bordering  on  Herefordshire,  which,  as  he  explains 

Bede§  and  Henry  of  Huntingdon  !|,  lies  in  the  confines  of  the 

•  The  olves  are  called  Alfiir  in  Scandinavia  (see  Tliori)e's  "  Norlheni 
Mytholoffj',"  Vol.  i.,  p.  25,  note  ■'>)  ;  and  Dr.  Nash  cerUiinly  describes 
"  Alfrick  "   as  Alferwyke,  and  Alfredeswic,  as  before  stated. 

f  B.  ii.,  c.  2.,  p.  81,  Giles's  translation. 

I  This  conference  is  said  to  have  taken  place  dnriu|?  tlie  Saxou  heptarchy 
in  A.D.  (iO.3. 

§  "  II." 

II  "  III.,  .t^r,." 


206 

Wiccii  and  West  Saxons,  and  maybe  a  contraction  of  Austinfric* 
q.  d.  Austin's  territory.  But,  not  to  mention  tliat  the  true  name  of 
this  \allage  in  writijigsf  is  Aulfric  and  Alfredcswic,  he  makes 
Herefordshire  a  province  of  the  West  Saxons ;  and  probably  the 
Oak  was  a  tree,  and  not  a  village  in  any  age  |. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  his  account  of  "  Suckley,"  says,  "  We  are  told  in 
the  Additions  to  '  Camden  §'  that  Sir  Henry  Spelman  thought 
there  was  some  remains  of  the  name  of  Augustine's  Oak  in 
Aufrick,  which,  as  he  explains  Huntingdon,  lies  on  the  confines 
of  the  Wiccians  and  the  West  Saxons  ('  in  confinio  Wicciorum  et 
occidentalium  Saxonum,'  p.  186)  '  Ac  id  est  robur  Augustini  in 
confinio  Huicciorum  et  occidentalium  Saxonum.' — Bede  ,L.  2,  c.  2, 
whom  Huntingdon  copied."  The  Doctor  then  added,  "  The  pro- 
vince of  the  Wiccians  did  indeed  border  on  the  West  Saxons ; 
but  Worcestershire,  much  less  that  part  which  joins  Hereford- 
shire, did  not,  though  in  the  province  of  the  Wiccians.  When 
Bede  wrote,  this  province  was  not  divided  into  counties,  &c. 
Bishop  Gibson,  in  his  "  Additions  to  Worcestershire,"  says  this 
oak  was  in  the  confines  of  the  Wiccians  and  West  Saxons.  He 
does  not  say  it  was  in  Wiccia,  much  less  in  that  part  of  the  pro- 
vince which  is  now  called  Worcestershire ;  but  that  it  was  in  the 
confines  of  the  West  Saxons,  upon  which  the  part  now  called 
Worcestershire  did  not  border  ;  wherefore,  admitting  this  oak  to 
have  been  in  the  confines  of  Huiccia  (for  in  the  same  '  Additions' 
we  read  Vectorium),  it  might  have  stood  in  that  part  of  Glouces- 
tershire which  bounds  the  confines  of  Wilts  and  Somersetshire, 
provinces  of  the  West  Saxon  kingdom,  perhaps  near  Tetbury||,  in 
Gloucestershire." 

The  Doctor  also  added,  that  "  Sir  Henry  Spelman  was  drawn 

*  Query  of  Austinric. 

+  Query — In  what  writings  is  it  called  Alfredeswic  ?  As  Dr.  Nash's  "  His- 
tory" was  published  in  1781,  the  above  probably  was  quoted  from  him,  for 
which,  however,  he  gives  no  authority  as  before  stated.  The  first  edition 
of  Gottgh's  Camden  was  published  in  1789,  and  the  second  edition  in  180G. 

J  There  is  no  village  in  the  hamlet,  unless  a  very  few  eottnges  scattered 
about  near  Alfrick  Pound  may  be  called  a  village. 

§  That  is,  in  those  j)nblished  prior  to  Gough's  additions. 

II   MSS.     Thomas  and  Lyttleton, 


207 

into  the  above  supposition  by  the  old  maps,  &c.,  which  write  the 
name  of  this  place  Acfrick."  "  Some  have  supposed  it  to  stand 
at  Aka  or  Rock ;  others  at  a  place  called  Apostle's  Oak,  near 
Stanford  Bridge  ;  others  again,  with  still  less  reason,  suppose  it 
might  liave  been  the  Mitre  Oak,  in  the  parish  of  Hartlebury," 
Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p,  397.  The  Doctor  also,  in  "  Postscript  Cor- 
rections and  Additions,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  19,  in  speaking  of  Aka  or 
Rock,  described  in  Vol.  i.,  p.  10,  &c.,  says,  "  Some  have  supposed 
this  to  have  been  the  place  where  St.  Augustine  met  the  British 
bishops  under  a  great  oak,  and  that  from  hence  the  parish  ob- 
tained its  name  :  certain  it  is  here  was  a  hollow  oak  held  in  great 
veneration  by  the  country  people,  and  called  by  them  the  Apostle's 
Oak.  When  the  turnpike  was  first  erected,  it  served  as  a  habi- 
tation for  the  keeper,  and  through  his  carelessness  was  burnt 
down*." 

Having  thus  brought  together  the  various  conjectures  which 
have  been  offered  by  different  writers  concerning  the  site  of  this 
celebrated  oak,  we  will  only  further  add  that,  supposing  it  to  have 
been  in  Alfrick,  the  top  of  Old  Storage  would  seem  to  be  the  spot 
in  that  locality  on  which,  most  probably,  it  stood. 

Some  further  mentions  of  Alfrick  will  be  found  in  the  sections 
on  Ancient  Castles,  Primitive  Roads,  and  Folk-lore. 


Before  leaving  the  hamlet,  I  must  notice  a  very  curious  rehc. 
It  does  not,  however,  belong  to  this  county  ;  but  as  I  became 
acquainted  with  the  facts  respecting  it  in  Alfrick,  and  as  I  am  not 
likely  to  be  a  Bedfordshire  historian,  I  feel  that  I  cannot  do 
better  than  introduce  the  subject  here. 

The  late  Dr.  Abbot,  chaplain  to  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  used 
occasionally  to  visit  some  relatives  of  his  of  the  name  of  Harris, 
who  lived  at  Chirkenhill,  in  the  parish  of  Leigh,  and  upon  those 
occasions  he  sometimes  came  to  the  Upper  House  in  Alfrick,  during 
my  late  father's  time,  and  used  to  show  a  ring,  wliich  he  said 
belonged  to  the  celebrated  John  Bunyan.  The  remembrance  of 
tliis  circumstance  led  me,  in  later  times,  to  make  some  inquiries 

•   Sfo  tlip  arooniit  of  Aliliorly  relntive  to  a  supposed  sapling  from  tliis  oak. 


208 

respecting  the  riug,  of  one  of  the  Chirkenhill  family, — namely, 
the  Doctor's  niece,  Mrs.  Williams,  of  Tivoli  Lodge,  Newport, 
Monmouthshire,  who  resided  with  him  several  years  before  her 
marriage,  and  up  to  the  time  of  his  death ;  and  who,  by  letters 
dated  respectively  November  and  December,  1830,  kindly  in- 
formed me  that  Dr.  Abbot,  in  his  last  illness,  presented  Bunyan's 
ring  to  the  Kev.  G.  H.  Bowers,  of  Bedford,  and  that  if  she  recol- 
lected right,  it  was  found  at  the  time  the  North  Gate  House  on 
Bedford  Bridge  was  taken  down  in  1765,  which  was  the  prison  in 
which  Bunyan  was  confined.  That  the  Gate  House  was  near  the 
centre  of  the  bridge,  and  that  she  believed  the  ring  was  found  in 
its  ruins,  and  sold  to  her  uncle  by  a  workman.  That  she  then 
had  in  her  possession  a  print,  published  on  the  1st  of  March, 
1772*,  of  the  Bridge  and  Gate  House  as  they  stood  in  Bunyan's 
time.  That  the  drawing  from  which  the  print  was  taken  was 
made  1761,  in  which  the  North  Gate  House  appears;  and  that 
she  had  heard  Dr.  Abbot  say  the  prison  was  at  times  nearly  under 
water.  That  the  ring  was  very  beautiful,  and  used  as  a  signet. 
That  it  was  made  of  fine  gold,  and  was  in  a  most  perfect  state. 
That  the  bridge  was  supposed  to  be  built  in  Queen  Mary's  reign, 
in  lieu  of  a  prior  one.  That  there  were  two  Gate  Houses  upon 
the  bridge  near  the  centre,  which  were  taken  down  together. 
That  the  one  on  the  north  was  used  for  the  prison,  as  before 
stated ;  and  that  on  the  south  served  as  a  store  house  for  the 
arms  and  ammunition  of  the  troops  quartered  there. 

Mrs.  Williams  also  gave  me  a  drawing  of  the  Bridge  and  Gate 
House  taken  from  the  print. — (See  the  lithographic  engraving 
of  it  here  represented,  Plate  5).  The  prison  was  that  part 
where  the  loophole  appears. 

Upon  receipt  of  these  communications  I  sent  the  particulars  to 
Mr.  Bower,  of  Bedford,  perpetual  curate  of  Elstow  (where  Bunyan 
was  bonif)  and  requested  further  information,  who,  in  reply, 
dated  17th  November,  1830,  stated  that  Bunyan's  ring  was  pre- 
sented to  him  by  the  late  Dr.  Abbot,  in  his  last  illness,  in  August 

*  By  S.  Hooper,  No.  25,  Ludgate  Hill,  and  B.  Godfrey,  Sen. 
+  Bom  lfi2R;  died  12tli  August,  1688. 


'4^ 


209 

1817,  and  was  then  in  his  possession.  That  the  circumstances 
related  by  Mrs.  Williams  in  all  material  points  coincided  pre- 
cisely with  the  impression  left  on  his  own  mind  by  Dr.  Abbot's 
description  of  the  place  from  whence,  and  the  mode  by  which,  he 
obtained  it.  That  the  Doctor  had  no  doubt  of  its  being  really 
the  ring  worn  by  Bunyan  when  imprisoned  in  the  Gate  House  at 
Bedford.  That  the  gold  had  but  very  httle  alloy  in  it,  and  that 
the  impression  was  rude,  and  the  ring  altogether  appeared  to 
have  been  much  worn. 

Mr.  Bower  also  kindly  sent  me  a  sketch  of  the  ring,  and  a 
sealing  wax  impression  of  its  seal,  which  contains  the  repre- 
sentation of  a  death's  head,  and  the  initials  I.  B.,  and  the 
motto,  "  Memento  mori."     (See  the  woodcuts.) 


These  particulars  I  communicated  to  the  late  Dr.  Southey, 
shortly  after  his  "  Life  of  Bunyan"  appeared  *,  and  sent  him  the 
drawing  of  the  Bridge  and  Gate  House,  and  an  impression  of  the 
the  seal ;  who,  in  reply  by  letter,  dated  Keswick,  29ih  January 
1831,  said, — "  Whenever  the  life  of  Bunyan  shall  be  reprinted, 
I  will  take  care  to  avail  myself  of  the  particulars  which  you  have 
thus  kindly  communicated,  and  publicly  acknowledge  your  kind- 
ness. I  had  seen  a  view  of  the  Gate  House  on  Bedford  Bridge, 
and  it  should  have  been  engraved  for  the  "  Life,"  if  Mr.  Major,  the 
publisher,  had  not  found  reason  to  conclude  that  Bunyan  was  not 
imprisoned  there,  but  in  the  town  itself." 

The  above-mentioned  doubt  relative  to  the  place  of  imprison- 
ment, induced  me  to  write  another  letter  to  Mrs.  Williams,  who. 
on  the  13th  May,  1831,  replied  as  follows: — 

"  Dear  Sir, — I  have  just  received  a  communication  from  Bed- 


•  The  work   is  entitled   "  The  Pilgrim's  Projjress,    with   a   life   of    John 
Bunyan,  br  Robert  Sonthey,  Esq.,  LL.D.,  Poet  Laureate,  &c.  &c.  Stc," 

P 


210 

ford  about  Bunyan,  which  I  think  will  convince  Dr.  Southey  that 
Bunyan  was  certainly  confined  in  the  Gate  House  of  that  town. 

"  The  communication  is  from  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hilyard,  the  pre- 
sent pastor  of  the  chapel  Bunyan  was  in  the  constant  habit  of 
attending. 

"  There  is  in  this  Meeting  House  a  cmious  old  chair,  which  is 
called  Bunyan 's  chair." 

The  following  is  the  substance  of  Mr.  Hilyard's  letter  : — 

"  I  imagine  there  exists  no  doubt  as  to  Bunyan 's  having  been 
imprisoned  both  in  the  town  and  county  gaols.  The  former 
(called  the  Gate-house)  he  was  certainly  in,  because  tradition  is 
so  strong  on  that  point.  I  remember  hearing  my  old  tutor,  Mr. 
Bull,  who  died  many  years  ago,  at  the  age  of  eighty,  say  that  he 
never  went  over  Bedford  Bridge  without  taking  off  his  hat  in 
honour  of  the  place  of  imprisonment  of  that  good  and  great  man. 
He  was  certainly  imprisoned  in  the  county  gaol,  because  it  was 
for  preaching  at  Pollux  Hill  that  he  was  punished ;  consequently, 
it  was  by  a  county  magistrate  that  he  was  committed,  and  the 
county  magistrates  have  no  power  to  commit  to  the  town  gaol. 
His  imprisonment  lasted  t"welve  years,  probably  by  two  commit- 
ments. He  was  leniently  treated  by  the  jailer,  who  allowed  him 
at  times  to  absent  himself  from  the  gaol.  He  often  attended 
service  at  our  meeting  whilst  a  prisoner,  as  the  church  books  of 
our  Society,  in  the  possession  of  me  (the  pastor  of  the  congrega- 
tion) testify.  Bunyan  sometimes  staid  out  all  night  at  the  re- 
quest of  the  jailer,  who  did  not  want  to  let  him  in  at  a  late  hour. 
One  night,  however,  Bunyan  returned  at  an  early  hour,  requesting 
to  be  let  in.  '  Why,  how  now,'  quoth  the  jailer,  '  what  ails  you, 
why  could  you  not  have  staid  out  all  night  ? '  Bunyan  requested 
again  to  be  let  in,  saying  he  had  an  impression  of  evil  on  his 
mind,  and  that  he  could  not  stay  away  from  the  gaol  all  night, 
whereupon  he  was  let  in.  His  prescience  was  manifested,  for, 
before  day-break  next  morning,  came  commissioners  down  from 
London  from  the  State  Council,  to  inquire  if  all  the  prisoners, 
and  especially  Bunyan,  were  safe,  and  if  they  had  slept  witiiin 
the  walls  that  night.  Upon  this  issue  of  the  matter,  the  jailor 
said  that  henceforth  Bunyan  should  come  and  go  as  he  pleased. 


an 

for  that  he  and  his  God  knew  more  of  the  matter  than  his  friends 
could  for  him.  One  evening,  Bunyan  coming  at  dark  through  a 
lane,  where  he  was  seized  by  officers  of  justice  in  search  of  him, 
he  called  out,  as  they  handled  him  roughly,  '  Why,  the  devil  must 
be  in  the  fellows. '  On  hearing  this  they  let  him  go,  saying,  '  This 
cannot  be  the  man  we  ai-e  in  pursuit  of.'  I  had  this  anecdote 
from  Mr.  Belsham,  the  historian." 

Upon  my  sending  a  copy  of  the  above  letter  to  Dr.  Southey,  he 
wrote  the  following  reply,  dated  Keswick,  3rd  August,  1831. 

"  Sir, — I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for  the  information  concern- 
ing Bunyan,  which  you  have  been  so  kind  as  to  communicate. 
The  proof  respecting  the  Gate  House  is  decisive  ;  and  I  am  very 
Sony  that,  owing  to  a  mispei-suasion  on  this  point,  a  view  was 
not  given  in  the  late  edition. 

"  The  anecdote  of  Bunyan 's  returning  to  prison  when  he  was 
not  expected  there,  has  been  published ;  and  I  cannot  now  be 
certain  whether  I  did  not  see  it  till  too  late,  or  overlooked  it,  or 
omitted  it  because  my  narrative  had  already  extended  far  beyond 
the  limits  that  were  intended.  The  other  anecdote  is  new  to  me, 
and  whenever  I  revise  the  memoir  for  another  edition,  or  for 
posthumous  publication,  when  my  works  of  this  kind  may  be 
collected,  I  will  make  use  of  it,  and  of  the  other  facts  with  which 
you  have  obligingly  furnished  me." 

1  also  saw  Mr.  Major,  relative  to  the  doubt  which  he  had  raised, 
who  then  told  me  the  only  ground  he  had  for  such  opinion  was, 
because  some  author,  then  living,  said  Bunyan  was  imprisoned  in 
Bedford  Gaol,  therefore  he  presumed  it  was  not  in  the  Gate- 
house ;  but  he  admitted  that  the  finding  of  the  ring  in  the  ruins 
of  the  latter,  was  strong  presumptive  evidence  of  its  having  been 
the  place  of  incarceration. 

In  conclusion,  I  must  add  that  I  feel  much  pleasure  in  being 
able  to  publish  these  interesting  accounts,  because  they  tend  to 
elucidate  some  points  in  the  biography  of  the  prince  of  allegorists  '^'■. 

Since  the  above  was  written,  I  have  seen  a  curious  document 

•  Sevpral  papers  iippcarcd  in  tlie  "  GciUlenmti's  Magazine"  for  September, 
October,  and  November,  184:3,  and  May  and  July,  1844,  relative  to  the  early 
editions  of  ilie  ''  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  in  wliioli  the  writer  hereof  took  a  part. 


212 

relative  to  Bunyan,  ia  the  Leicester  Museum,  where  it  was  lately 
deposited.  It  previously  was  filed  upon  a  string  among  the 
Town  Hall  papers.  It  bears  date  in  167Q,  being  the  year  in 
which  he  was  liberated  from  prison.  It  is  noticed  in  the  "  His- 
tory of  Leicester,"  by  Mr.  James  Thompson,  published  in  1849, 
p.  430,  as  follows : — 

*'  In  the  month  of  October,  1672,  the  celebrated  John  Bunyan 
visited  Leicester,  for  the  purpose,  apparently,  of  preaching  to  the 
Society  of  Baptists.  He  produced  his  licence*  before  the  mayor 
and  justices  f.  A  declaration  of  indulgence,  for  suspending  the 
penal  laws  against  Dissenters,  had  been  published  in  the  early 
part  of  the  year,  and  it  was  probably  under  the  protection  of  this 
that  Bunyan  made  a  circuit  of  the  country.  In  the  March  fol- 
lowing, the  King,  at  the  instigation  of  the  two  houses  of  Parlia- 
ment, promised  to  retract  his  declaration." 

ANKERDINE  HILL  AND  OSEBURY  ROCK. 

Ankerdine  Hill  was  formerly  called  Ancredham^,  and  now 
Ankerden  or  Ankerdine.  The  intermediate  space  between  it  and 
Old  Storage  is  filled  up  with  a  chain  called  the  Suckley  and  Hall 
House  Hills.  The  scenery  from  Ankerdine  Hill  is  very  fine, 
and  much  enriched  by  the  beautiful  meanderings  of  the  Teme. 
It  is  situated  in  the  chapelry  of  Dodenham,  in  the  parish  of 
Knightwick.  At  the  south  end  of  the  Hill  the  Teme  passes, 
and  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river  there  is  a  remarkable  con- 

*  "  The  following  is  a  copy  of  it — the  original  is  aiiiong  the  Hall  papers  : — 
'  John  Bunnyon's  license  beares  date  tlie  ninth  day  of  May,  1672,  to  teach  as 
a  congregationall  p'son,  being  of  that  p'swasion,in  the  liouse  of  Josias  Roughead, 
in  the  towne  of  Bedford,  or  in  any  other  place,  roonie,  or  house,  licensed  by 
his  Ma"«- 

" '  Memord. — The  said  Biinnyon  shewed  his  license  to  Mr.  Mayor,  Mr. 
Overing,  Mr.  Freeman,  and  Mr.  Browaie  being  Uiere  p'sent,  the  6th  day  of 
October,  1672,  being  Sunday.' " 

+  "  The  house  in  which,  according  to  tradition,  he  preached,  is  still  stand- 
ing nearly  opposite  to  St.  Nicholas's  Church,  and  was  for  many  years  lenaiited 
by  a  respectable  family  named  Coltman. " 

J    J'iile  Nash's  "  Historj,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  68. 


2J3 

glomerate,  vulgarly  called  Rosebury  or  Rosemary  Rock,  the  real 
name  of  it  being  Osebury  or  Oseberrow*.  This  in  the  Ordnance 
Map  is  by  mistake  called  Woodbury  Rock. 

WHITBOURNE. 

In  Duncumb's  "  History  of  Herefordshire,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  236,  it 
is  said  that  "  within  Whitbourne  Court  Park  was  a  Roman  in- 
trenchmentf,  and  divided  from  it  by  a  meadow  and  valley,  were 
the  lines  of  a  circular  British  camp,  but  no  vestiges  remain  of 
either.  The  latter,  perhaps,  formed,  with  Thornbury,  &c.,  a 
chain  of  intrenchments  which  extended  northward  from  Bran- 
gonium  (Worcester)  towards  the  country  of  the  Ordovices,  and 
were  successively  defended  by  Caractacus,  who  is  supposed  to  have 
kept  the  Romans  in  check  for  a  considerable  time  in  these  parts 
after  they  had  taken  Brangonium." 

"  Part  of  the  Park  is  a  beautiful  remnant  of  an  amphitheatre, 
and  is  supposed  to  have  been  a  vineyard." 

THE  BERROW  HILL. 

The  ancient  name  of  this  noble  elevation,  which  lies  in  the 
parish  of  Martley,  no  doubt  was  either  Burrow  *,  which  in  the 
Saxon  signifies  a  place  fenced  or  fortified,  or  Barrow  §,  meaning 
an  ancient  place  of  sepulture,  but  most  probably  the  former.  It 
is  of  a  fine  oval  form,  and  although  a  natural  hill,  its  sides  have 
evidently  been  artificially  rounded  into  their  present  shape. 
There  are  two  lines  of  intrenchment  rovmd  the  brow  of  the  hill, 
which  show  it  to  be  the  site  of  an  ancient  camp.  These  trenches 
I  first  noticed  in  the  year  1835,  and  they  are  still  perfect  in 
some  parts,  particularly  at  the  north  and  south  ends  of  the  oval. 
In  length  the  camp  is  about  four  hundred  yards,  and  one  hundred 
and  ninety  yards  wide.  Dr.  Nash  does  not  appear  to  liave  noticed 
the  camp  or  the  hill  in  his  Historj'  of  the  county.  The  hill  in 
its  general  shape  resembles  what  is  called  a  broad  barrow. 

•    T'ide  further  mention  of  this  phice  in  the  ehapter  on  Folk-lore, 
t  MSS.  Silas  Taylor,  Bibl.  Htirl. 

J  The  Saxons  gem-rally  applied  this  trrni  lo  those  places  which  had  been 
fortified  hy  their  predecessors. 

§    From  "  birighc,"  (Sax'ni)  to  hide  or  bury. 


ai4 

WOODBURY  HILL. 

The  name  of  this  hill  is  probably  derived  from  the  Saxon 
"  Wude  Byrig,"  the  dwelling  in  the  wood*,  and  refers  to  the 
camp  there.  It  is  vulgarly  called  Howbury  or  Oubury  Hillf. 
Dr.  Nash,  in  speaking  of  it,  says :  "In  the  parish  of  Great 
Witley,  the  river  Teme  passeth  under  Woodbury  Hill,  remark- 
able for  an  old  intrenchment  on  the  top,  commonly  called  Owen 
Glyndwr's  camp  |,  but  which  probably  is  of  more  remote  antiquity." 
"  The  top  of  the  bank  on  Woodbury  hill  contains  twenty-six  acres 
two  roods  and  twenty-seven  perches,  and  if  the  dimensions  be 
extended  to  the  centre  of  the  ditch,  it  would  measure  at  least  two 
acres  more.  This  hill  is  distant  from  Wassal  Camp,  in  the 
parish  of  Kidderminster,  about  eight  miles,  and  from  Kenvaur 
Edge  about  eleven  §."  A  plan  of  this  camp,  which  is  of  a  rather 
triangular  shape,  is  given  by  Dr.  Nash||.  A  way  passes  through 
it  from  north  to  south. 

ABBERLEY  HILL. 

It  is  said  that  this  hill  was  formerly  called  Abbotsleyli.  In 
"  Domesday  Book  "  the  name  is  written  Edboldelege. 

With  respect  to  the  etymology  of  the  word  ley,  Sir  Wilhara 
Dugdale,  speaking  of  the  etymology  of  Arley  in  Warwickshire, 
says  "  it  is  very  often  used  for  terminating  the  names  of  several 
villages.  If  we  ascend  to  the  British  for  its  original,  we  shall 
find  ile  in  that  language  to  be  the  same  with  locus  in  Latin  ;  but 
if  to  the  Saxon  ley,  there  signifieth  ground  untilled**." 

•   See  "  Gent.'s  Magazine,"  Nov.  1840,  p.  512. 

+  There  are  places  called  Howbury  Meadow  and  Little  Howbury  in  Suckley, 
and  Woodbury  in  Upton  Warren. 

\  Vide  a  very  interesting  account  of  this  chieftain  in  the  "  Analyst  Quarterly 
•loumal"  for  March,  183.5,  Vol.  ii.,  No.  8,  p.  7.S,  entitled  "  Kenchurch  Court, 
Herefordshire,"  by  the  late  Sir  Samuel  Rush  Meyrick,  K.  H. 

§    Vide  Vol.  ii.,  p.  465. 

i|   Also  see  the  Ordnance  Map. 

If  See  Lewis's  "  Topogniphical  Dictionar5-,"  also  the  "  lianibler  in  Worccs 
tershire,"  published  in  1851,  p.  102.      The  prefix  Ah  may  be  a  contraction  of 
Abbot,  as  Habbc  Lench,  or  Hob  Lcnch,  is  of  Abbot's  Lcncli.      It  is  <hHci1  Mali 
Icah  in  the  "  Codex  r)ip.,"  No.  ."ill. 

♦•    /'((/'■  Nash's  "  History,'  Vol.  ii.,  Appendix,  p.  I. 


215 

Dr.  Nash,  iu  his  account  of  Woodbury  Hill,  states  that  he 
never  could  find  any  marks  of  intrenchments  on  Abberley  Hill. 
Both  these  elevations  are  said  to  be  nine  hundred  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea.  There  is  a  parish  called  Abberton  on  the  east 
side  of  the  county  ;  and  a  place  called  Aberold  was  on  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  boundaries  of  Crombe*.  There  also  is  Habberley  in 
Shropshire. 

In  Lewis's  "  Topographical  Dictionary,"  published  in  1848,  it 
is  stated  that  "  on  Abberley  Hill,  in  the  midst  of  a  thickly  planted 
wood,  stands  an  oak,  said  to  have  been  a  sapling  from  the  oak- 
tree  under  wliich  St.  Augustine  in  the  sixth  century  invited  the 
Welsh  bishops  to  a  conference,  as  recorded  by  Milner  in  his 
'  Church  History.'  The  parent  tree  was  afterwards  consumed  by 
firef." 

*  See  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  348,  and  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol. 
ii..  Appendix,  p.  46.  Aber,  in  the  British  tongue,  is  a  place  where  one  river 
falls  into  another,  or  into  the  sea,  and  in  the  Welsh  signifies  every  place  where 
water  meets  with  water.  Aber,  or  Haber,  in  the  Phoenician,  has  also  the  same 
signification.  See  "  Britiinnia  Antiqua,"  by  Aylett  Sanimes,  p.  C8.  Therefore 
it  is  possible  that  some  of  the  above-mentioned  places  may  be  so  derived. 

+  Vide  the  remarks  on  St.  Augustine's  Oak  in  the  accounts  of  Old  Storage 
and  Alfrick,  pp.  901,  205,  &c. 


316 


IttX   ^, 


CRUCKBAEROW  HILL,  IN  WHITTINGTON. 

This  fine  conical  elevation  is  most  probably  an  ancient  British 
broad  barrow.  It  is  situated  about  two  miles  and  a  half  south- 
east of  the  city  of  Worcester,  in  the  hamlet  of  Whittington  *,  in 
the  parish  of  St.  Peter.  It  was  in  all  likelihood  used  by  the 
Romans  as  a  signal  station,  as  it  overlooks  Worcester,  and  the 
Roman  camp  at  Kempsey,  and  is  nearly  opposite  to  Powickf :  a 
few  Roman  coins  are  said  to  have  been  found  here.  In  shape  it 
is  elliptical,  and  measures  512  yards  round,  within  the  ring  fence 
at  the  base,  and  about  180  yards  round  the  crown  |.  It  is  com- 
monly said  to  contain  about  six  acres  of  land ;  but,  measured 
horizontally  within  the  ring  fence,  it  contains  4a.  Or.  18p.  The 
elevation  is  considerable.  I  consider  this  was  partly  a  natural 
hill,  but  it  owes  its  extreme  regularity  of  contour  to  artificial 
means.  The  sides,  which  are  sloped  as  evenly  as  a  sugar  loaf, 
are  covered  with  a  fine  green  turf.  The  ends  of  the  oval  stand 
east  and  west.  According  to  the  measurements  which  I  liave 
made,  Cruckbarrow  Hill  is  rather  larger  than  Silbury  HUl,  in 
Wiltshire.  Silbury  Hill  is  said  to  be  perfectly  artificial,  but 
Cruckbarrow  only  partially  so. 

Respecting  the  etymology  of  the  word  Cruckbarrow  or  Crook- 
berrow,  I  have  collected  the  following  interesting  facts : — 

In  a  communication  made  by  Sir  Thomas  Phillips,   Bart.,  to 

*  See  in  the  at-couiit  of  Astwood,  as  lo  this  phicc  probably  having  been  one 
of  llie  Anglo-Saxon  marks. 

+  .\t  all  whieh  places  Roman  relics  have  been  found. 

J  Sep  hIso  the  "  Strangers'  Guide  to  Worcester,"  by  .\mhrosp  Florence, 
p.  117. 


217 

the  Royal  Society,  on    the   lith   June,    1834,    relative    to   the 
Saxon  derivation  of  various  names,  is  the  following : — 

'*  Segesberewe,  in  Worcestershire,  the  burial  place  of  Segga. 
Crockberewe  „  „  „  Croc." 

Now,  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  there  are  certainly  entered  as 
tenants  in  capite,  Croch  or  Crock,  venator  of  Hants ;  also  of  his 
son  Rainaldus  Croch  ;  and  likewise  Croc  of  Wilts  :  but  this  of 
itself  is  no  proof  that  Cruckbarrow  Hill,  in  Whittington,  took  its 
designation  from  a  person  named  Croc.  We  meet  with  various 
other  places  named  Crookberrow  in  quite  a  distant  part  of 
Worcestershire :  for  instance,  in  the  parish  of  Pendock  there  are 
two  pastures  adjoining  each  other  bearing  that  name,  situated 
near  Pendock  village,  on  the  roadside  leading  from  Ledbury  to 
Tewkesbury ;  adjoining  thereto,  in  the  Berrow,  there  are  two 
pieces  of  land  called  Crookberrow,  and  another  named  Lower 
Crookberrow.  In  addition  to  this  I  was  informed  by  the  late 
Edward  Ingram,  Esq.,  of  The  Wliite  Ladies,  that,  in  the  oldest 
title-deeds  of  his  brother  relative  to  Cruckbarrow  Hill,  the  name 
is  spelt  Crugbarrow.  Now,  as  the  word  Crug  in  ancient  British 
and  Welsh,  and  Cruach  in  Irish  signifies  a  hill  or  heap,  the  name 
Crugbarrow  appears  to  prove  that  the  elevation  in  question  was 
an  ancient  British  hill  barrow.  It  does  not,  however,  follow 
that  in  all  cases  the  word  "  Crug"  as  connected  with  "  barrow" 
meant  a  natural  hill  or  heap,  it  no  doubt  included  artificial 
moimds  also,  which  in  time  became  removed,  without  any  tradi- 
tion of  them  being  left ;  as,  for  instance,  those  pieces  of  land 
called  Crookberrow  in  Pendock,  and  in  the  Berrow. 

The  name  is  spelled  Crokbarrowe  in  an  Inquisition  in  the 
Tower  of  London,  temp.  Henry  VI.  [vide  Nash,  Vol.  ii., 
App.  Ixx.K,);  Cruckberew  in  a  grant,  '3rd  Edward  III.;  and 
Crokebon-ow  in  the  first  register  of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of 
Worcester,  folio  H  l . 

There  is  a  mountain  called  Cruckfalla  in  Ireland,  Co.  Donegal, 
Prov.  Ulster,  five  miles  north  of  Brinlach  ;  Cruckton,  a  township 
in  the  piiri>h  of  I'ontcsbury,  hand,  of  Ford,  Co.  Salop;  and 
''nipgion,  H  township,  in  the  parish  of  Alberbury.  Co.  Montgomtiy. 


218 

The  name  Peudoc  is  spelled  various  ways :  Pendock,  Pendoke, 
Penedoc,  and  Peonedoc.  It  is  called  Peonedoc  in  some  Saxon 
charters*,  and  Penedoc  and  Peonedoc  in  "  Domesday  Book." 
The  word  Pen  is  of  Phoenician  extraction,  and  signifies  head  or 
eminence,  as  Penmaen  Mawr  in  Wales.  It  is  changed  into  Ben 
in  Scotland,  as  Ben  Lomond  and  Ben  Nevis. 

There  are  Penhills  in  Inkberrow,  Penhill  in  Lulsley,  Penfieldf 
and  Pen  Copse  in  Mathon,  and  Pendock  |  Meadow  in  the  hamlet 
of  Orleton  in  Eastham. 

Many  of  the  places  in  or  about  Pendock  and  the  Berrow  ai'e 
called  either  by  British  or  Saxon  names :  for  instance,  Crook- 
berrow  ;  and  in  the  Berrow,  Portridge,  Little  Portridge,  Portnells, 
the  Pendock  Port-way,  Wain  Street,  Keysend  Street,  and 
Elsborough.  Adjoining  the  Berrow  is  Rid  Marley  D'Abitot, 
which,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times,  was  called  Reodemsereleah  and 
Rydemaereleah ;  and  in  "  Domesday  Book, "  Redmerleie  or 
Ridmerlege.  As  Ryd  in  ancient  British  and  Phoenician  signifies 
a  ford,  it  is  probable  that  in  the  British  times  a  ford  existed  there 
over  the  river  Ledden ;  in  support  of  this  idea,  we  may  remark, 
that  there  was  a  place  there  called  by  the  Anglo-Saxons,  Salter's 
Ford,  as  appears  by  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  351. 

Adjoining  the  Berrow  and  Rid  Marley  on  the  south-west  of  the 
Malvern  Chain,  is  a  parish  called  Bromsberrow,  in  Gloucestershire. 
At  this  place  there  is  a  remarkable  tumulus  called  Conygree 
Hill ;  whUe,  between  Eastnor  and  the  Herefordshire  Beacon 
Camp,  is  the  Ridgeway.  In  Eldersfield  there  are  Gadbury  Banks 
and  Tutshill :  Gadbury  Hill,  in  Castle  Morton ;  and  Sarnhill,  in 
Bushley.  These  various  places  will  be  found  particularly 
described  under  their  respective  heads. 

*  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  :jns,  :J08  Apj).  Vol.  iii. ;  514  and  5U  App.  Vol.  vi.; 
and  Vol.  iii.,  53*^. 

t  It  is  possible  that  some  of  tlicse  places  obtained  their  names  from  sheep 
or  cattle  having  been  penTied  there.  The  Anglo-Saxon  word  Pennan  means 
a  small  enclosure. 

{  There  are  several  places  called  by  the  name  of  Due  in  Anglo  Saxdn 
charters,  set  forlli  in  the  "  Codex  Dip. ;"  as,  Docrrnalbrd,  No.  U'il'f ;  1 1"!.""  r>occeii 
graf,  No.  lUl  ;  Doccyng,  No.  T")!),  (Docking  in  Norfolk).  The  word  Doccii 
in  Anglo  Saxmi  nuans  the  <bick  xvecil. 


219 

In  regard  to  the  names  Barrow,  Burrow,  and  Berrow,  we  must 
remark  that  the  last  is  a  corruption  of  the  two  former.  As  the 
Saxons  called  the  British  and  Roman  burial  places  by  the  name 
of  Barrow,  and  the  British  and  Roman  fortified  places  by  that  of 
Burgh,  or  Burrow,  therefore,  whenever  the  word  Berrow  is  met 
with  as  the  name  of  any  place,  the  character  of  that  place  must 
be  considered,  in  order  to  determine  whether  Barrow  or  Burrow 
is  intended. 

The  Roman  port  (or  military)  way,  called  "  The  Pendock 
Portway,"  in  the  Berrow,  clearly  proves  that  Pendock  was 
occupied  by  the  Romans.  This  is  but  one  instance  out  of 
innumerable  others,  which  goes  to  show  tliat  the  Romans  gene- 
rally located  themselves  in  ancient  British  stations. 

In  the  first  edition  of  this  work,  I  suggested  that  the  name 
Cruckbarrow  was  derived  from  "  Cuclopes "  and  "Barrow;" 
the  former  term  meaning  a  high  place  of  heathen  worship*  ;  but. 
under  all  the  circumstances,  the  word  "  Crug  "  appears  to  be 
the  more  certain  etymology.  It  is  commonly  called  Crookberrow 
Hill ;  and  this  error,  no  doubt,  arose  from  the  circumstance  of  its 
not  being  generally  known  that  the  term  "  Crug  "  means  a  hill, 
and  therefore  the  word   "  hill  "   was  added  to  it. 

Between  one  and  two  miles  from  Cruckbarrow  Hill,  there 
is  a  conical  hill  in  Spetchley  (on  the  boundary'  of  Cudley. 
or  Cutley,  in  St.  Martin's  and  Wanidon),  which  now  goes 
l)y  the  name  of  the  Round  Hill,  but  was  called  Cuggan  Hillf 
by  tlie  Anglo-Saxons,  as  attested  by  the  Saxon  boundaries  of 
Cudley  (Heming's  '•  Cartulary,"  p.  358  ;  Nash's  "  Histoiy," 
Vol  ii.,  App.,  J).  55).  Now,  Cuggan  Hill  most  probably  means 
Cruggan  I  Hill  ;  and,  if  so,  we  have  the  same  repetition  as  in  the 
name  of  Cinickbarrow  Hill,  wliich  proves,  fh-st,  that  the  Saxons 
called  the  Spetchley  Hill  by  its  ancient  British  name  ;  and 
secondly,  that  they  did  not  generally  understand  the  meaning  of 
that  name,  and  theroforo  added  the  word    "  hill  "  to  it. 

*  BrjHiit,  Vol.  i.,  p.  4!)1,  ."to. 

+  See  tlie  accouiiis  of  the  Homul  Hill,  in  Spt-iclilcy, —  I'ool  Hills, — Riiil  tin- 
pfiirrHl  Rpcoiint  of  Spriclilry. 

I  Si'c  )),  ,'17,  as  to  Cnippion,  (.  o.  Moiilgomt-r} . 


220 

These  curious  facts  are  additional  links  in  the  chain  of 
evidence  that  Cruckbarrow  Hill  is  an  ancient  British  barrow,  and 
also  that  the  etymology  of  the  name  is  partly  British. 

It  is  thus  described  by  Dr.  Nash  : — "  Cruckbarrow  Hill,  so 
called  from  '  Crug,'  in  British  signifying  a  hill,  and  '  Barrow,' 
which  word  often  signifies  a  place  fortified  by  the  Romans,  and 
was  used  in  after  ages  for  a  burial  ground,  or  other  purposes.  It 
may,  therefore,  signify  the  hill  where  was  a  barrow.  It  consists 
of  about  six  acres,  of  an  oval  form,  and  considerable  height. 
Could  it  be  a  mount  from  whence  the  laws  and  customs  of 
Oswaldeslawe  were  promulgated  ?" 


OSWALDSLOW. 

In  answer  to  the  above  question  of  Dr.  Nash,  1  have  to 
observe  that  there  was,  in  the  time  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  on  the 
boundary  of  Wolverton,  in  Stoulton*,  a  place  called  Oswaldslow, 
as  appears  byHeming's  "  Cartulary,"  pp.  359,  360  ;  and  Nash's 
"  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  App.  56.  This,  therefore,  was  most  probably 
the  place  where  the  laws  and  customs  of  the  hundred  of  Oswald- 
slow  were  promulgated.  The  following  is  an  English  version  of 
this  boundary. 

These  are  the  land  boundaries  of  Wolverton  : — first,  from 
Lusthorn  to  White  Dale ;  from  White  Dale  to  Yrse  f ;  from 
Yrse  thence  it  cometh  to  Baldrick's  Mere,  to  the  Foul  Brook  ; 
From  the  Foul  Brook  thence  it  cometh  to  the  headland,  then 
from  the  headland  it  shooteth  athwart  over  the  port-way ;  from 
the  port-way  to  the  Dale :  from  the  Dale  up  by  tlie  Fen ;  from 
the  Fen  to  the  North  Ditch,  along  the  ditch,  to  Copney ;  from 
Copney  to  the  middle  of  Broad  jVloor,  to  Fuet's  Well ;  from  Fuets 
Well  thence  it  cometh  to  Ramsden  ;  along  Ramsden  thence  to 
the   street ;    along  the  street  thence  it  cometh  to  Oswaldslow  ; 

*   Scr  fiioiilion,  Iicr  Will.  +   Scr    "  Codex  Dip.,"    Nos.  570,  612. 


from  Oswaldslow  aloug  the  Salt  Street,  to  Foul-mere ;  from 
Foul-mere  again  to  Lusthorn  *. 

The  above-mentioned  Salt  Road,  or  Street,  most  probably  was 
part  of  what  I  have  hereafter  called  "  The  Lower  Deviation 
Salt  Way,"  which  ran  in  that  direction  from  Droitwich  to 
Ashton-under-Hill,  &c. ;  and  I  mention  this  to  show  that,  as 
Oswaldslow  lay  by  this  ancient  British  road,  it  was  remarkably 
well  situated  for  the  advantage  of  recourse. 

The  hundred  of  Oswaldslow  was  so  called  in  honour  of 
Bishop  Oswald,  at  whose  request  King  Edgar  granted  it  an 
advantageous  chaiterf. 

There  is  a  hill  which  now  goes  by  the  name  of  Low  Hill, 
situated  pailly  in  White  Ladies  Aston,  and  partly  in  Stoulton, 
on  the  boundar}'  of  Wolverton  ;  and  this,  I  presume,  is  what  was 
formerly  called  Oswaldslow.  The  Worcester  and  Evesham 
turnpike-road  runs  over  it,  and  divides  the  two  parishes  in  that 
part.  Chambers,  in  his  "  Biographical  Illustrations  of  Worces- 
tershire*," states  that  Edgar  granted  "  considerable  privileges  to 
the  manors  possessed  by  the  Bishop  and  Church  of  Worcester, 
uniting  them  all,  viz.,  300  hides  of  land;  and  for  the  most  part 
lying  contiguous  in  one  hundred,  whose  court  was  appointed  to 
be  held  under  the  Bishop,  at  a  place  about  four  miles  to  the  east 
of  Worcester,  called  in  memory  of  the  Bishop,  Oswaldeslawe,  or 
Oswald's  Mount  §.  This  was  creating  a  small  palatinate  in  the 
county,  exempt  from  all  jurisdiction  of  the  civil  magistrate." 

This  description  of  Oswald's  Mount  exactly  corresponds  with 
the  situation  of  Low  Hill,  or  Oswaldslow,  as  mentioned  in 
Heming's  "  Cartulary  ;"  and  the  combined  facts  appear  to  be 
decisive  that  Low  Hill  is  Oswaldslow. 


•  Also  see    "  Codex  Dip.,"  Oswald's  Charter,  No,  «12,  dated  977. 

+  Dated  904.  See  Nash,  Vol.  i..  Introduction,  (11  ;  and  "  Codex  Dip.," 
No.  nil,  Vol.  ii.,  and  5U  App.,  Vol.  vi. ;  and  Heming's  "  Cartnlarj, "  p.  .517. 
The  authenticity  of  this  charter  is  doubted. 

^  Published  1820,  p.  fi. 

§  "  Between  Spotcliley  and  Wolverton. " 


222 


THE  ROUND  HILL  IN  SPETCHLEY. 

There  is  a  circular  elevation  in  this  parish,  called  "  The  Round 
Hill,"  situate  about  two  miles  north-east  of  CruckbaiTow,  and 
three  miles  from  Worcester,  near  the  seat  of  the  Spetchley  branch 
of  tlie  ancient  family  of  the  Berkeleys.  It  is  partly  surrounded 
by  a  trench,  and  is  in  view  of  Cnickbarrow  Hill ;  its  shape  is  of 
that  called  the  Cone  Barrow.  It  was  formerly  called  Cuggan 
Hill.  Some  further  remarks  on  it  will  be  found  under  the  heads 
of  Cnickbarrow  and  Toot  Hills. 

PERRY  WOOD,  OR  PIRIE  WOOD. 

The  ancient  trench  road,  which  I  have  before  noticed  as  lying 
in  the  meadow  called  King's  Hill*,  at  the  north  end  of  Perry 
Wood  f ,  is  of  considerable  depth ;  its  east  end  runs  in  shape  like 
the  letter  Y,  with  the  foot  pointing  towai'ds  Worcester,  one  arm 
towards  Cruckbarrow,  and  the  other  towards  Elbury  Hill.  There 
is  also  a  rather  deep  cut  in  the  next  piece  of  ground  northward, 
called  the  Fox- pit  Field  J,  and  another  just  within  the  south  end 
of  Peny  Wood,  but  I  cannot  say  whether  these  two  last  are 
artificial  or  not. 

Not  far  from  the  last-mentioned  spot,  behind  Woodside  House, 
there  is  a  rather  deep  hollow  in  Peny  Wood,  where,  according  to 
tradition,  Cromwell  signed  a  contract  with  the  devil  for  seven 
years'  reign  §. 

Southward  of  Perry  Wood  and  Lark  Hill,  near  Battenhall  Lane, 
there  is  a  place  called  Camp  Ground,  the  westeni  side  of  which  is 
crossed  by  a  trench.  This  was  probably  one  of  the  outposts  of 
the  Battle  of  Worcester.  In  the  "  Strangers  Guide  to  Worces- 
ter," by  Ambrose  Florence,  the  author  spealis  of  the  intrencli- 

*  See  title  "  Sal  warp,"  p.  110. 

+  There  is  a  place  called  Perry  Wood,  in  Pirton. 

J  Between  tliese  parts  and  Worcester  tliere  is  the  site  of  a  place  which  was 
called  Perrj-  Court ;  nothing,  however,  but  the  trenches  of  the  moat  remain. 

§  See  Dodsley's  humorous  account  of  it  in  his  "  Chronicles  of  the  Kind's 
of  England,"  published  1700. 


2-23 

nients  at  Lepard  Hill*,  Ronk's  Wood,  and  Peri-y  Wood.  These 
hills  are  in  a  line  from  CruckbaiTow  to  Elbury  Hill,  and  lie  in 
St.  Martin's  parish.  The  trenches,  or  cross-cuts  on  Lepard 
Hill  and  Konk's  Wood  were  most  probably  made  or  altered  in 
Cromwell's  time,  as  his  army  lay  in  those  parts  before  the  great 
battle. 

A  gauntlet  sword  was,  a  few  years  back,  presented  to  the  Wor- 
cestershire Museum,  stated  to  have  been  found  in  the  bank  of  an 
old  hedge  situated  on  the  west  side  of  Lepard  Hill,  in  a  meadow 
called  Pike  Field.  It  is  long  and  two-edged,  and  was,  as  appears 
by  the  shape  of  the  handle,  made  for  thrusting  only.  This  sword 
is  evidently  of  Indian  manufacture.  Similar  ones  are  used  by 
the  Mahrattas  to  this  day.  There  are  some  of  them  in  the  Tower 
of  London.  If  the  sword  in  question  really  was  found  as  above 
stated,  and  was  used  at  the  Battle  of  Worcester,  it  must  have 
been  obtained  from  some  collection,  as  that  species  of  weapon  is 
not  described  among  the  English  war  implements  of  that  or  any 
other  period. 

TROTSHILL. 

At  a  short  distance  eastward  from  Elbury  Hill,  there  is  a  farm 
in  Wanidon,  commonly  called  Trotshill,  or  Troshill.  It  is  named 
Tootshill  in  Isaac  Taylor's  Map  of  Worcestershire,  published  in 
ITT^J,  and  in  Cai'cy's  largest  Atlas  of  Worcestersliire,  published 
in  1810;  Trotswell,  in  Nash's  "  History,"  and  Trotshall  in  the 
Ordnance  Map. 

There  is  a  parish  called  Trotescliffe,  Totesclivef,  or  Trosley, 
on  the  Pilgrim's  Koad,  near  Wrothara,  in  Kent.  Between  these 
latter  places  human  bones  have  been  found,  buried  in  chalk, 
supposed  to  be  ancient  British  remains  J. 

ELBURY  HILL. 
This  hill  was  probably  named  from  E,l,  and  Bury  or  Burrow. 

»   Otlicrwisp  l.ypiiinl,  l.nppaworthiii,  or  Liippcwortli. 

+   "  Domesday  Book." 

•   Sf'f  "  (icntlpiiiim's  MiifTiiziiH'"  for  .Vufnist.  1^41. 


2-24 

Mr.  Bryant  says,  that  El,  Al,  HX,  sometimes  expressed  Eli,  was  the 
name  of  the  true  God ;  But  with  the  Zabians  it  signified  the  Sun ; 
whence  also  the  Greek "HXto?,  and  'Hi\io<;.  That  El  and  EUon 
were  titles  by  which  the  people  of  Canaan  distinguished  their  chief 
deity.  That  El  was  particularly  invoked  by  the  eastern  nations 
when  they  made  au  attack  in  battle ;  for  at  such  time  they  used  to 
cry  out  EI-El  and  Al  Al,  which  Mahomet  could  not  well  bring  his 
proselytes  to  leave  off,  and  therefore  he  changed  it  to  Allah,  which 
the  Turks  at  this  day  make  use  of  when  they  shout  in  joining 
battle ;  and  that  such  invocation  was  not  unknown  to  the  Greeks  *. 

Elbury  Hill  lies  about  a  mile  and  a  half  to  the  east  of  Worces- 
ter, in  the  parish  of  Claiues  ;  the  summit  coiitains  the  site  of  an 
oblong  square  camp — in  fact,  all  the  upper  part  of  the  hill  is  of 
that  shape.  The  sides  of  the  hill  are  very  regularly  sloped,  and 
the  comers  beautifully  rounded.  The  camp  appears  to  be  about 
two  hundred  yards  long  on  the  northern  side,  one  hundred  on  the 
eastern,  one  hundred  on  the  southern,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty 
on  the  western  side.  Within  these  few  years  it  has  been  planted 
with  gorse.  This  camp  completely  overlooked,  and  would  defend 
the  city,  and  was  an  excellent  signal  station  to  communicate  with 
Ostorius's  supposed  fort  on  the  west,  Tutnall  on  the  north,  Cruck- 
barrow  on  the  south,  and  the  Round  Hill  at  Spetchley  on  the  east. 

Although  the  name  of  this  hill  is  most  probably  of  much  greater 
antiquity  than  the  time  of  the  Romans,  yet  it  is  very  hkely  that 
it  was  occupied  by  them  as  an  outwork  from  the  city  of  Worcester, 
for  a  Roman  military  way  called  Portfield's  Road,  ran  from  the 
city  to  the  hillj,  and  about  two  miles  eastward  of  it  a  jar  contain- 
ing Roman  coins  was  found  at  Bredicotj. 

•  Bryant,  Vol.  i.,  pp.  13,  14,  15,  IG ;  and  in  page  05  he  says,  "  Capb, 
Cap,  and  Cephas  signify  a  rock,  and  also  any  promontory  or  lieadland.  As 
temples  used  to  be  built  upon  eminences  of  this  sort,  we  find  tliis  word  often 
compounded  with  the  titles  of  the  deity  there  worshipped,  as  Caph-El,  Caph 
Kl-On,"  &c.  Now  it  is  rather  singular  that  the  peasantry  of  Worcestershire 
call  any  high  or  monstrous-looking  animal  or  thing  a  great  Caph-El,  or  Kefel, 
to  this  day.  They  also  call  any  poor,  slow,  stupid,  and  ugly  animal  a  Dumel . 
There  is  a  field  called  D\imniel  in  Arley,  in  Warwickshire. 

+  See  pp.  9,  -.>.'?. 

♦  See  p.  0.^. 


•225 

This  hill,  although  it  has  been  but  very  Uttle  noticed,  was 
most  probably  the  keystone  of  all  the  ancient  bulwarks  of  the 
town  and  its  vicinity.  A  large  fire  on  this  central  elevation  would 
be  seen  at  almost  every  part  of  the  country,  and  it  was  probably 
one  of  the  chief  of  the  "  high  places"  for  druidical  worship.  On 
the  eastern  side  of  the  hill  there  is  a  spring  of  water,  by  which 
its  occupants  were  probably  supplied. 

Until  within  the  last  few  years  a  wood  ran  up  to  one  side  of 
the  hill.  In  the  British  time  the  camp  was  most  probably  sur- 
rounded by  a  forest,  like  Gadbury  Banks,  before  described. 
Elbury  Hill  is  called  Ellbury  Wood  in  Isaac  Taylor's  map  of  1772, 
Helbury  Hill,  in  the  "  Stranger's  Guide  to  Worcester*,'"  and  like- 
wise in  the  "Worcester  Miscellany  f,"  and  Elbury  Hill  |  in  the 
Ordnance  Map. 

There  was,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times,  a  place  called  Ellesbeorh 
and  Hallesburg  (EUesborough)  near  Twyford  and  Evesham  on 
the  Avon  § ;  and  an  idea  has  been  entertained  that  Ellesbeorh 
(Ellbury)  means  Oldbury  or  •'  Ancient  Town,"  but  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  charters  have  a  distinct  name  for  the  latter  places, 
such  as  Ealdanburh  (Aldbury)  Worcestershire,  Ealdaudic  (Old 
Dike),  &c.i| 

There  are  Ellbatch  Coppice  in  Broadwas ;  Ellbatch  Wood  on 
the  north-west  side  of  Woodbury  Hill ;  EUwood  east  of  Clent ; 
Ellbatch  Orchard,  and  Far  and  Near  Ellbatch  Band  in  Abberley ; 
Upper  and  Lower  Ellbatch  Coppice  and  Ell  Meadow  in  Hartle- 
bury ;  Elsborough  in  the  Ben-ow ;  Ell  Bank  Piece  in  Northfield ; 
Ell  Wood  in  Romsley,  in  Hales  Owen ;  and  Allsborough  HillU  near 
Pershore.  There  also  are  Ellbarrow  near  Stonehenge  in  Wilt- 
shire, Ellwall  in  the  parish  of  Goodrich,  Co.  Hereford,  and  Upper, 
Far,  and  Lower  Elkin**  in  Solihull.  Co.  Warwick. 

•   [^nder  the  name  of  Ambrose  Florence,  puhlislied  l^'iH,  pp.  180,  131. 
f   Publi.shed  lK-.>0,  Vol.  i.,  No.  2,  p.  fi8. 

J  "  Domesday  Hook"  inentioiis  Klburgelega  in  Herefordshire. 
§  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  I'MiH  and  61,  fil  .^pp..  Vol.  iii. 
|l  Ibid.,  No.  570,  42-^,  422  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

IT  Most  probably  meaning  Elsburrow  Hill. — See  the  "  Fairy  Mythology." 
••  The  names  "Elkin,"  or  little  gods,  or  of  kin  to  the  gods,  appear  to  con- 

Q 


iiU6 

ASTWOOD 
Is  a  hamlet  or  tithing  in  the  parish  of  Claines,  adjoining  to  Elbury 
Hill.  As  there  areagreat  manyplaces  in  tliis  county  that  have  names 
commencing  with  Ast,  an  inquiry  into  the  etymology  of  the  prefix 
does  notseem  altogether  uncalled  for.  Bryant  and  others  would  trace 
the  derivation  to  the  (ireek  ecrria,  and  Latin  vesta,  a  word  signify- 
ing fire  or  sacred  health  ;  but  we  shall  probably  be  more  correct  in 
referring  it  to  the  Saxon  "east,"  the  east ;  the  prefix  indicating  that 
such  places  lie  eastward  of  some  more  important  locality.  To 
this  conclusion  we  are  drawn  by  the  analogy  of  other  names :  for 
instance,  on  the  north  side  of  Worcester  is  a  place  called  North- 
wick  ;  on  the  south  side  Southbury  or  Sidbury  ;  Westwood*  lies 
west  of  Droitwich  ;  Aston,  Easton,  or  Eston  Episcopi  (White 
Ladies'  Aston)  is  about  four  miles  east  of  Worcester,  and  Astley, 
Eslei,  Estley,  Asteleye,  or  .^Estleye,  lies  on  the  east  side  of  Abber- 
ley  Hill.  It  must,  however,  be  remarked  that  Astwood,  the  place 
in  question,  is  not  east,  but  N.N.E.  of  Worcester,  and  N.N.W. 
of  Elbury  Hill ;  and  this  is  an  instance,  like  the  following,  of  a 
place  compounded  with  Ast  or  Est,  not  appearing  to  be  east  of 
any  neighbouring  place  of  consequence  ;  namely,  Aston  or  Eston  f 
township,  in  the  parish  of  Blockley ;  Ast-Lench  or  East-Leuch,  in 
Church  Lench  ;  Astwood  on  the  north-east  side  of  Droitwich,  in 
Doderhill ;  Astridge  or  Ashiidge,  in  Powick ;  Astwood  Hill,  in  Ink- 
berrow  ;  Great  Asthill,  Little  Asthill,  and  New  Asthills,  in  Upton 
Warren;  Upper  Aston  in  Knighton;  Astwood,  on  the  west  side  of 
the  Ridgeway,  in  Feckenliam ;  Aston  Field  in  Eushock,  Astley 
Ground  in  Beoley,  Astmore  Common  in  the  Parish  of  Kempsey, 
Astwood  in  Hanbury,  Estbuiy  in  Hallow,  in  Grimley.  and  the 
parish  of  Eastham  (Estliam  in  •'  Domesday  Bonk"). 

nect  our  fairj'  inythologj-  witli  that  which  was  more  ancient.  See  the  Folk-lore. 
And  some  other  of  the  above  names  of  place.s  of  sniall  note,  which  have  not 
the  word  "limy"  or  "boronj-'h"  attached  to  them,  may  have  been  piven  in 
reference  to  the  fairies. 

•  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  574,  as  to  Westwndu. 

+  It  is  called  Eastun  (Aston  .Mafma)  in  the  "Codex  Dip.,"  No.  117. 
"Domesday  Book"  also  notices  Estini  and  I'.stone,  in  Worcestershire;  and 
Meiiiiiifi;'s  '•  Cartulary,"  ]).  4-'ll,  ineiiiions  Anstan  (.\sti)u  I'arva),  and  Kastinie, 
llastim,  and  .Estim.  in  ]).  ■''id,  ^;c. 


227 

Still  it  is  possible  that  tlie  tithing  of  Astwoud  is  indebted  for 
its  designation  to  the  fact  of  its  being  east  of  Northwick,  which 
appears  to  have  been  the  chief  of  the  nine  hamlets  of  which  the 
parish  of  Claines  is  composed,  and  is  the  only  one  of  them  men- 
tioned in  "  Domesday  Book."  Tlie  non-appearance,  however,  of 
any  name  in  "  Domesday"  is  no  proof  of  its  non-existence  when 
that  survey  was  made,  as  Anglo-Saxon  charters  and  grants  suf- 
ficiently testify. 

Having  thus  given  preference  to  the  more  obvious  etymology, 
it  may,  on  the  other  hand,  be  remarked,  that  as  Astwood  lies 
between  those  ancient  places  called  Elbury  Hill  and  Barrow  Cop, 
is  is  just  possible,  if  there  really  were  any  "  sacred  hearths  "  in 
this  countiy,  that  the  name  may  have  come  from  "  Ast,"  ''  Asta*," 
or  "  Estaf,"  which  Bryant  says  signified  fire,  and  also  the  deity 
of  that  element ;  and  that  the  Greeks  expressed  it  'Earla,  and 
the  Romans,  Vesta.  That  "  Esta  '  and  "  Asta  '  signified  also 
a  sacred  hearth ;  and  that,  in  early  times,  ever}'  district  was 
divided  according  to  the  number  of  the  sacred  hearths,  each  of 
which  constituted  a  community  or  parish.  That  the  most  common 
name  was  "  Asta|."  That  these  were  places  of  general  rendez- 
vous for  people  of  the  same  community ;  that  here  were  kept  up 
perpetual  fires  ;  and  that  places  of  this  sort  were  made  use  of  for 
courts  of  judicature,  where  the  laws  of  the  country,  ^e/AtcrTe?,  were 
explained  and  enforced.      Hence,  Homer,  speaking  of  a  person 


•  "  Doiiipsday  Book"  lias  .AstoiiPwir  and  .AstuiiP,  in  Yorksliiro;  and 
Astenofre,  in  Herpfordshire. 

f  "  Kst"   is  a  prefix  to  many  names  in  fureifpi  j)arts. 

J  There  was,  in  Nortlianiptonshire,  in  tlie  Aii^lo-Saxoii  times,  a  place 
called  A;,(;tnn  (Asliton).  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  f)?,') ;  and  in  a  confinnation 
of  tliat  charter.  No.  !)0H,  there  is  a  place  called  .\stun  (.\ston).  Now,  if  tjiese 
mean  the  same  place,  we  appear  to  liave  a  corruption  of  the  name  .Vsctun  into 
Astiin;  and  it  tends  to  raise  a  (piestion,  whether  the  general  name  Aston  does 
not  mean  Asliton.  There  now  are,  liowever,  several  places  called  Ashton,  and 
one  called  .\ston-le-Walls,  in  Northamptonshire.  .Also,  see  what  is  before 
staled  as  to  Astrid^;e  or  Ashridge,  in  I'owick.  It  is  called  Astridge  in  the 
Tithe  C'omnmtation  ;  but,  in  (he  "  :i:trd  Fnrtlier  Keport  of  the  Commis- 
sioners for  Inquiring  concerning  Charities, '  it  is  spelled  .^uliridgc. 


228 

not  worthy  of  the  rights  of  society,  calls  him  ^ A<f>pTjTa>p, 
adefiurro^,  dveaTU><i*. 

In  this  new  of  the  case,  the  three  names,  Elbury  Hill,  Astwood, 
and  Barrow  Cop,  designate  all  that  an  tmcient  community  required, 
namely,  a  sacred  altar,  or  place  of  worship  of  the  god  El,  or  the 
sun;  a  sacred  hearth;  and  a  place  of  sepulture f. 

The  Saxons  possibly  may  have  converted  some  of  these  sacred 
hearths — if  there  really  were  any  in  tliis  country — into  •'  marks  " 
(which  afterwards  became  parishes,  tithings,  and  hundreds) ;  and 
the  names  of  such  small  places  often  remained  unchanged. 

Mr.  Kemble,  in  his  "  Saxons  in  England |,"  has  given  a  very 
interesting  list  of  patronymical  names,  which  he  believes  to  be 
those  of  ancient  marks  §.  The  following,  in  Worcestershire,  are 
taken  from  Anglo-Saxon  charters  : — 


Birlingas 

"  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  570 

Grundlingas  .     . 

„    548 

Heallingas 

„    209 

Oddingas 

„    209 

Dristlingas     . 

„    570 

Crohhaeme 

„    507 

Hinhaeme 

»     764 

Monninghaeme 

„    645 

Secghaeme 

,,     764 

Domhaeme 

„    511 

Beonotsetan  . 

„    266 

Bradsetan 

„    289 

Grimsetan 

„    561 

Incsetan    .     . 

„    511 

Mosetan    .     . 

„    266 

Wreocensetan 

„    277 

•  Bryant's  "  Ancient  Mythology,"  Vol.  i.,  published  1774,  pp.  62,  63, 

+  See  a  similar  case  in  the  account  of  Tan  Wood,  Astwood  Hill,  and 
Barrow  Hill,  in  Chaddesley  Corbet,  p.  120. 

+  Vol.i.,  p.  449,  &c. 

§  As  to  the  transition  of  the  ancient  mark  courts  into  lords'  courts,  see 
pp.  483,484,  485,  486,  of  the  work.  Also  see  Alfrick,p.  203,  relative  to  these 
subdivisions. 


229 

And  among  the  names  inferred  from  the  actual  local  names  in 
England,  at  the  present  day,  the  following  are  in  Worcestershire : — 

Aldingas  Aldington  (in  Badsey) 

Berringas  Berrington  (in  Tenbury) 

Birlingas  Birlingham 

Deorlingas  Darlingscott  (in  Tredington) 

Dodingas  Doddingtree 

Eastingas  Eastington 

Ecgingas  Eckington 

Heorfingas  Harvington 

Hudingas  Huddington  (or  Hodington) 

Oddingas  Oddingley 

Tsedingas  Teddington  (in  Overbury) 

Tidmingas  Tidmington 

Whittingas  Whittiugton*  (in  the  Parish  of  St.  Peter) 

In  Vol.  ii.,  p.  424,  Mr.  Kemble  says : — "  In  all  likeUhood 
every  mark  had  its  religious  establishment ;  its  fanum,  delubrum, 
or  sacellum,  as  the  Latin  authors  call  them ;  its  hearh,  as  the 
Anglo-Saxon  no  doubt  designated  themf;  and  further,  that  the 
priest,  or  priests,  attached  to  these  heathen  churches  had  lands 
— perhaps  free-will  offerings,  too — for  their  support." 

BARROW  COP,  IN  PERDESWELL. 

A  remarkable  bronze  fragment  of  a  tore,  or  ornament  for  the 
neck,  which  is  in  my  possession,  was  found  in  1840,  about  two 
feet  deep  in  a  gravel  bed,  at  Perdeswellj,  in  the  parish  of  Claines, 
within  about  two  miles  of  Worcester.  It  is  rather  more  than  the 
third  of  a  circle,  and  was  probably  broken  in  battle.  It  is  eight 
inches  long  in  the  cun'e,  and  weighs  half  a  pound.  An  iron  rod 
runs  through  its  centre,  connecting  the  bronze  pieces  or  ver- 

•  It  is  wortliy  of  remark,  thnt  AVhittingtoii,  Huddington,  Oddingley,  and 
Aatwood,  lie  in  ii  circle  within  a  lew  miles  of  each  other. 

+  Besinga  hearh,  fanum  Besingorum. — "  Codex  Dip.,"    No.  994. 

\  See  herenfter,  title  "  Claines."  There  was  a  place,  bi  the  Anglo  ;>axon 
times,  called  l^rdrswell  (Pirdswell),  Co.  Wilts. — (See  "  Codex  Dip.,'  No. 
3.'i.'5,  355  ,App..  Vol.  iii. 


230 

tebrae,  whidi  are  twenty  in  number,  and  are  curiously  twisted 
and  tooled.  Between  each  piece  there  is  a  thick  ring,  shaped 
like  a  pulley,  and  the  whole  is  fitted  close  together.  The  cir- 
cumference of  the  perfect  tore  must  have  been  about  eighteen 
inches.  It  is  incrusted  with  a  fine  highly-polished  patina.  (See 
the  copper-plate  engraving,  Plate  6.) 

There  are  three  pieces  of  ground  adjoining  each  other  where 
this  fragment  was  discovered,  named  Barrow  Cop,  Barrow  Cop 
Field,  and  Barrow  Cop  Orchard*.  Tliis  name  tends  to  prove 
that  the  fragment  is  either  ancient  British  or  Roman-British. 
The  field  in  which  it  was  found  is  now  called  the  Big  Field,  or 
the  Ten  Acres,  and  is  situated  opposite  Perdeswell  House,  on  the 
tongue  of  land  which  lies  between  the  Birmingham  and  the  Kid- 
derminster road.  The  gravel-pit  abuts  against  the  north-east 
corner  of  Barrow  Cop  Field.  It  is  said  that  formerly  several 
other  fields,  including  the  Big  Field,  were  all  one  piece  of  land, 
and  called  Barrow  Cop.  The  Saxon  term  "  Cop  "  signifies  the 
head,  top,  or  mound.  This  goes  to  show  that  there  was  anciently 
a  barrow  at  the  spot  in  question  ;  but  the  spade  and  plough  have 
been  great  levellers,  and  have  much  to  answer  for  in  this  respect. 
Nevertheless,  the  spot  is  still  the  highest  part  between  Tutnall 
and  Worcester,  and  both  are  in  view  from  it.  The  milling  of  the 
tore  is  much  like  that  in  the  figure,  No.  2,  in  Plate  50,  of  the  1 6th 
Vol.  of  the  "  Archseologia,"  therein  described  as  found  at  Hag- 
bourn  Hill,  in  Berks.  The  Perdeswell  tore  was  exhibited  to  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries,  in  London,  at  their  meeting  of  the  1 4th 
of  December,  1843  ;  and  the  above  engraving  of  it  is  given  in 
the  "  Archaeologia,"  Vol.  xxx.,  pp.  554,  555  ;  where  it  is  stated, 
that  "  the  form  of  this  singular  ornament,  when  complete,  may 
be  ascertained,  as  it  appears,  by  comparison  with  another  example, 
discovered  in  Lancashire,  in  1831,  representations  of  which  were 
presented  to  the  Society  by  James  Dearden,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  of  The 
Orchard,  Rochdale.  This  latter  ornament,  which  appears  to  be 
suited  rather  for  an  armilla  than  a  collar,  measures  5^  inches  in 
diameter;  its  weight  is  lib.  l-joz.     One-half  of  the  circumferpiicf 

*   Src  "  flainrs.  ■ 


2U 

is  composed  of  small  engi*aved  and  twisted  pieces,  alternating 
with  pulley-shaped  rings,  similar  in  fashion  to  the  Worcestershire 
hronze  ;  the  other  half  is  of  a  square  form,  and  ornamented  with 
isig-zag  patterns,  deeply  incised,  and  running  lengthwise,  like  the 
decorations  of  early  architectural  mouldings*." 

The  I'erdeswell  tore  is  described  in  a  paper  on  the  tore  of  the 
Celts,  published  in  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute," 
Vol.  iii.,  p.  34 ;  and  the  Rochdale  tore  is  likewise  referred  to. 
It  is  added,  "  that  the  British  Celts  were  accustomed  to  wear 
similar  decorations,  is  evident  from  the  testimony  of  Herodian, 
that  the  Britons  wore  the  teeth  of  the  seal  or  walrus  strung 
as  beaded  tores ;"  and  the  author  of  that  article,  in  de- 
scribing beaded  tores  generally,  in  page  o'2,  considers  them  of 
very  early  date,  and  says,  "  when  a  transition  took  place  to  a 
higher  degree  of  civilization  among  the  Celts,  and  the  art  of 
smelting  metals  became  known,  the  stone  weapons  and  ruder  de- 
corations of  those  races  seem  to  have  been  replaced  by  metiillic 
ornaments,  still  preserving  their  original  type."  Now,  if  the 
ornament  in  question  is  of  that  early  date,  and  not  an  imitation 
made  in  the  Iloman-British  period,  it  probably  contains  one  of 
the  earliest  applications  of  iron  to  be  found,  for,  as  before  stated, 
the  rod  upon  which  the  bronze  vertebrae  are  strung  is  of  iron,  and 
no  doubt  owed  its  preservation  to  being  encased  in  bronze. 

The  following  extract,  u[)oii  the  subject  of  tores,  from  llichard 
of  Cirencester  may  not  be  uninteresting  here  : — 

"  The  more  wealthy  inhabitants  of  South  Britain  were  accus- 
tomed to  ornament  the  middle  linger  of  the  left  hand  with  a  gold 
ring  ;  but  a  gold  collar  round  the  neck  was  the  distinguishing 
mark  of  eminence.  Those  of  the  northern  regions,  who  were  the 
indigenous  inhabitants  of  the  island  from  time  immemorial,  were 
almost  wholly  ignorant  of  the  use  of  clothes,  and  surrounded  their 
waists  and  necks,  as  Herodian  reports,  with  iron  rings,  which  they 
considered  as  ornaments  and  i)roofs  of  wealth." 

•  Tores,  soiiietliin^  similiir.  iimy  bt-  seen  in  tlie  "  .\rchwologia,"  Vol.  xxxi., 
Aj)p.,  J).  T)!?,  Kiul  Vol.  xxxi  v..  \i.  s(i.  'I'iii'rc  is  iilsu  ii  iiiosi  dirious  pold  (on-, 
liploii'^iiit;  to  Her  Miijosiy  llii'  Quern,  (•n)j:riivril  in  tlic  '' .\rclia'o|orn,i^"  Vol. 
xxxiii..  p.  ITO;  Inii  it  !••  not  of  iho  jmiitii  in  i[U<'slion. 


383 

The  tore,  chain,  or  rather  wreath,  is  frequently  alluded  to  by 
the  early  British  bards. 

"  Yet  in  the  battle  of  Arderydd  1  wore  the  golden  torques." 

Merddin  Avellanan. 
"  Four-and-twenty  sons  I  have  had, 
Wearing  tlie  golden  wreath,  leaders  of  armies." 

Llywarch  Hen. 

"  Of  all  who  went  to  Cattraeth,  wearing  the  golden  tore  or  wreath." 

Anevrin. 

The  same  bard  states,  that  in  the  battle  Cattraeth  were  three 
hundred  and  sixty  who  wore  the  golden  torques*. 

TUTNALL,  TETNAL,  or  TOOTENHILL; 
ALIAS  OAKFIELDS. 

This  hill  is  in  the  parish  of  Claines,  and  lies  about  three  miles 
north  of  Worcester.  It  overlooks  Bevere  and  the  northern  side 
of  the  city,  and  would  communicate  by  signals  with  the  camp  at 
Ombersley,  Ostorius's  supposed  fort,  and  Elbury  Hill. 

We  have  thus  traversed  this  remarkable  chain  from  Cruck- 
barrow  Hill  to  Tutnall,  and  it  appears  almost  impossible  to 
believe  that  the  names  of  the  several  links  could  have  been  given 
accidentally,  and  without  reference  to  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  ancients,  which  they  so  admirably  illustrate  and  confirm. 

We  shall  now  proceed  to  a  more  detailed  account  of  Toot  Hills. 

TOOT  HILLS. 

Toot  Hill,  in  Liudridge,  is  an  elevation  situated  near  to  the 
parish  road-side  at  Doddenhill,  and  forming  part  of  the  estate  of 
Sir  Wm.  Smith.  The  following  are  also  in  or  upon  the  borders 
of  the  county : — Tutnall  or  Tootenhill,  in  Claines ;  Trotshill, 
Troshill,    or   Tootshillf  Farm,    in    Warndon;    Tutnal,    Tutnal 

•  See  Giles'  "  Richard  of  Cirencester,"  published  1848,  p.  427. 

+  It  is  called  Tootshill  in  Isaac  Taylor's  Map  of  1772;  but,  as  no  par- 
ticular elevation  now  remains  there,  the  tumuhis  must  have  been  removed 
some  time  or  other. — Sec  pp.  217,  230,  as  to  similar  cases. 


233 

Mount,  and  Tutnal  Piece,  in  Tardebig  *  ;  Tonthall  [Tothehel] 
Cross  f,  in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove  ;  Tutshill  Common  Field, 
and  Little  Tutshill,  in  Eldersfield  ;  Tutbatch,  in  Lower  Sapey, — 
all  in  Worcestershire.  There  also  are  the  Mythe  Toot  or  Tute, 
near  Tewkesbury  in  Gloucestershire  ;  Tatnell  Bridge,  near  Yatton 
in  Herefordshire  ;  and  Tatenhill  and  Tutbury  in  Staffordshire. 

"Domesday  Book  J"  notices  the  above-mentioned  place  in 
Bromsgrove,  called  Tothehel,  and  describes  it  as  terra  regis.  It 
also  mentions  Teotintune,  in  Worcestershire;  Teteberie§,  Tet- 
inton,  and  Toteham,  in  Gloucestershire ;  Toteberie,  Totehala, 
and  Toteuhalell,  in  Staffordshire;  Tetisthorpe,  in  Herefordshire  ; 
Tutenelle,  in  Somei-setshire  ;  Toteham  and  Totehele,  in  Mid- 
dlesex ;  Toteled,  Co.  York ;  Totele,  Cos.  York  and  Lincoln  ;  and 
Totenais  and  Totescombe,  in  Devonshire. 

Dr.  Thomas,  in  his  "  Survey  of  Worcester  Cathedral,"  &c., 
notices  in  A.  18,  Teottingtun,  Tetiutun,  Taterington  H,  or  Tetj-ng- 
ton,  near  the  river  Cerent  or  Carent,  which  runs  through  Over- 
bury,  Kemerton,  and  Ashchurch  parishes  into  the  Avon,  near 
Tewkesbury,  and  states  that  Iving  Offa  gave  five  manses  of  land 
at  Teottingtun**  to  the  Mouasteiy  at  Breodun ff-. 

There  is  much  contrariety  of  opinion  as  to  the  etymolog}-  of 
the  name  of  the  places  in  question  ;  some  say  it  comes  from  the 
Saxon  word  "  teotan,"  to  look  out,  and  others  from  the  Celtic  god 
Teutates.  Bryant  derives  the  name  of  such  round  hills  from 
"  Tith,"  and  says,  when  towers  were  situated  on  eminences 
fashioned  very  round,  they  were  by  the  Araouiansn  called  Tith, 


•  Tiitnal  and  Cobley  were  atlded  to  Worcestershire  by  the  Keforiu  Bill. 
+  See  Nash,  Vol.  i.,  p.  1.50. 

*  Vol.  L,  p.  172«. 

§  It  is  called  Tettebiiri  in  the  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  2.3,  28  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

II  In  Hcuiing's  "  Cartnlarj,"  p.  431,  mention  is  made  of  a  place  called 
Totenliale. 

^  Also,  see  Meniing's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  26,  as  to  Tateringetun. 

*•  There  is,  or  was,  a  loft  railed  Toten,  in  the  parish  of  Badsey,  as  appears 
by  a  title  deed  dated  in  1T22. 

+  ♦•   Heniing's  "  Cnrtiilary,"  p.  4.'i3. 

't   That  i*.  tlir  flo«cendanis  of  Flam. 


234 

wliicb  answei-s  to'^nin  Hebrew,  and  to  t/t^i;  and  rtT^o?  iu  Greek. 
That  they  were  particularly  sacred  to  Orus  and  Osiris,  the  deities 
of  Hght,  who  by  the  Grecians  were  represented  under  the  title  of 
Apollo.  That  these  mounts  were  not  only  in  Greece,  but  in 
Egypt,  Syria,  and  most  parts  of  tlie  world ;  that  they  were  gene- 
rally formed  by  art,  being  composed  of  earth,  raised  very  high, 
which  was  sloped  gradually  and  with  great  exactness,  and  the  toj) 
of  all  was  crowned  with  a  fair  tower*. 

Although  the  Anglo-Saxons  may  have  used  such  hills  as  "  look- 
out stations,"  still  many  of  them  may  have  been  of  ancient  British 
origin  and  derivation  ;  and  the  fact  that  all  the  above-mentioned 
hills  or  places  in  Worcestershire  are  either  close  to,  or  near  upoii 
the  sides  of  roads,  appears  to  favour  the  opinion  that  they  were 
sacred  to  the  Celtic  Teutates,  who  was  the  guide  over  the  hills 
and  track-ways.  Bryant  says,  Theuth,  Thoth,  Taut,  Taautes,  are 
the  same  title  diversified,  and  belong  to  the  chief  god  of  Egypt. 
That  Eusebius  speaks  of  him  as  the  same  as  Hermes.  That 
from  Theuth  the  Greeks  formed  0EOS,  which,  with  that  nation, 
was  the  most  general  name  of  the  Deity.  That  it  was  the  same 
deity  which  the  Gennans  and  Celtae  worshiped  under  the  name 
of  Theut-Ait,  or  Theutates,  whose  sacrifices  were  verj'  cruel,  as 
we  learn  from  Lucanf. 

The  following  interesting  passage  upon  the  subject  is  extracted 
from  the  "  Worcestershire  Miscellany  J." — "  Caesar,  in  his  remarks 
upon  the  religion  of  Britain,  observes,  that  Mercury  was  the  chief 
object  of  popular  veneration  ;  that  there  were  many  images  of  him, 
and  that  he  stands  as  a  guide  over  the  hills  and  tmck-ways§.  Not 
that  the  Roman  Mercury  was  actually  worshipped  by  that  name 
before  Caesar's  arrival  in  Britain  ;  but  stones  being  sacred  to  Mer- 
cury among  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  and  Caesar  perceiving  the  ar- 
tificial mounds  surmounted  by  a  stone,  or  simulacrum,  were  parti- 
cularly venerated,  he  hence  concluded  that  Mercury  was  the  god 

»  Bryant,  pp.  417,418,410. 
+  Ihid.,  pp.  11,  12, 
J  Vol.,i.,  No.  2,  June,  1820,  p.  Or). 

§  Spc  Kcnilile's  "  Saxons  in  England,"  p.  o-'JO,  &c.,  as  to  tlio  identity  of  tliis 
MeiTurv  with  Wnilon. 


235 

held  in  peculiar  esteem.  Now,  Mr.  Bowles  says,  '  The  Egyptian 
Thoth*,  Thot,  or  Tot;  the  Phoenician  Taautus,  or  Taute;  the 
Grecian  Hermes ;  the  Roman  Mercury ;  the  Teutates  of  the  Celts 
(so  called  by  Lucan,  from  the  Celtic  Du  Taith,  Deus  Taautus),  are 
universally  admitted  to  be  the  samef.'  A  stone  was  the  first 
rude  representation  of  Thoth,  Taute,  or  Teut  (the  Latinized  Teu- 
tates of  Lucan)  which  being  placed  on  eminences,  natural  or  arti- 
ficial, and  more  especially  near  roads,  were  thence  called  Tot- 
hills,  or  Teut-hills,  and  in  many  instances,  in  various  parts  of  the 
kingdom,  are  so  called  at  present."  "  A  writer,  designated  as 
'Merlin,'  in  the  'Gentleman's  Magazine,'  March,  1829,  says, 
'  When  the  Cimmerian  Druids  migrated  from  Asia  into  Eui'ope, 
they  carried  with  them  patriarchal  traditions,  their  Chaldaean 
lore,  and  their  Cadmsean  alphabet,  together  with  that  grand  and 
characteristic  badge  of  distinction,  the  name  Theu-tate.'  He 
further  observes,  '  There  is  no  language,  ancient  or  modern,  into 
which  this  name  is  so  easily  and  naturally  resolvable  as  the  Cim- 
bric,  or  British,  and  that  Theu-taut  is  notliing  more  nor  less  than 
Dhiu-Tad,  the  univei-sal  parent,  or  God  the  Father.'  Merlin 
says  the  Druids  cherished '  this  revered  off'spring  of  patriarchal  tra- 
dition' till  obliged  by  the  stern  Romans  to  relinquish  it  for  the  gods 
of  their  conquerors.  ]Mr.  Bowles,  too,  observes,  'It  will  not  be 
denied,  then,  that  as  the  Celts  jwpulai'ly  worshipped  Mercury,  that 
is,  this  Thoth,  the  Druids  secretly  taught  the  immortalityof  the  soul. 
The  secret  worship  was  of  one  infinite  God,  whose  representation 
wsis  the  circle.'  "  Mr.  Bowles  also  says  Mercury's  "  name  in 
Celtic  was  Du  Taith,  from  whence  Lucan  calls  him  Teutates. 
According  to  my  idea,  Thoth,  Taute,  Toute,  Tot,  Tut,  Tad,  Ted, 
Tet^,  arc  all  derived  from  the  same  Celtic  root,  and  are  in  names 
of  places  in  England,  indicative  of  some  tunmlus  or  conical  hill, 

•  "  Tliotli,  iirconliiig  to  Bishop  Cmnberlaiul,  was  tlie  son  of  Misraim,  tlie 
son  of  II Hill,  and  prandson  of  Noah." 

+  But  see  tlie  "  (ientleiiian's  Mapi/ine."  January,  IS'-i'.),  pp.  45,  id,  where 
doubts  are  stilled  as  "  to  the  identity  ()f  tlu'  F^gjptiaii  Thotli  witli  Ilennes,  or 
llie  Gaulisli  Mi  iciirius  'I'eiitates,"  and  arfrnini;  tliat  Taut  or  Teutates  was  the 
I'.pyplian  Meinilrs,  n  syiiihol  of  the  sun. 

J    There  weio  in  ilie  Aiipl"  Shnou  lime--  ilif  folhnvinp  names,  as  mentioned 


236 

dedicated  to  the  great  Celtic  god  Taute,  or  Mercury,  when  there 
were  ubique  per  Angliam,  plurima  simulacra,  according  to  the 
testimony  of  Caesar." 

The  reviewer  of  Mr.  Bowles's  work  in  the  "  Gentleman's  Maga- 
zine," February,  1829,  p.  140,  observes,  "It  is  plain  from  Livy 
that  Mercury,  'Ej/6Sto9  (or  Vialis),  was  called  among  the  Celts, 
Mercury  Teutates,  and  both  these  tumuli  (referred  to  by  Mr. 
Bowles)  were  on  the  sides  of  roads.  Caesar  proves  the  application ; 
for  he  says  of  the  Britons,  that  they  made  Mercury  '  viarum  atque 
itinerum  ducem,'  hence  the  case  concerning  Toot-hills  is  very 
satisfactorily  made  out." 

In  the  parish  of  Nemnet  in  Somersetshire  there  is  a  remark- 
able baiTow,  called  Fairy  Toote,  thought  to  be  a  work  of  the 
Druids*.  In  Gough's  Camden,  in  the  account  of  Staffordshire, 
it  is  stated  that "  Theoten-hall,  q.  d.,  the  hall  of  nations  or  pagans, 
now  Tetnall  [was]  dyed  with  Danish  blood  in  9 11 ,  by  Edward  the 
Elder."  I  mention  this  place,  not  that  it  belongs  to  the  Toots, 
but  because  its  name  has  been  corrupted  so  as  to  con'espond  with 
the  corrupted  names  of  some  of  the  Toots.  It  is  possible  that 
some  of  the  other  names  which  are  given  as  coming  from  Toot 
would  be  found,  could  they  be  traced,  to  belong  to  other  roots  f. 


Before  proceeding  to  describe  several  additional  ancient  British, 
Roman  and  Saxon  reUcs  which  have  been  discovered  in  Worces- 
tershire and  its  vicinity,  I  must  say  a  few  words  on  the  meaning 
of  certain  names  and  terms  which  will  very  frequently  occur  in 
the  course  of  the  narrative. 

in  tlie  "  Codex  Dip, :"— Taedsbroc,  No.  501,  1:369  (Tadsbrook);  Taetlingtun, 
No.  676  (Tatlington),  and  Teottingtun,  No.  146,  &c.  (Teddington),  all  in 
Worcestershire,  and  Tadanleali,  No.  603,  1092,  1094  fTadley),  Hants ;  Tad- 
msertun,  No.  442,  448,  453,  and  453  in  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  and  1195  (Tadniarton), 
Oxfordshire;  Tatanbeorh,  366  ( Tatbo  rough),  Dorset ;  Tatanbroc,  714  (Tat- 
brook),  Oxfordsliire  ;  and  Tatangrafes  wurtwale,  .347,  347  App.,  Vol.  iii.  (Tat- 
grove),  Worcestershire. 

•   Gougli's  Camden,  Vol  i.,  p.  105. 

+  This  observation  mny  also  apply  to  other  schedules  of  names  which  are 
in  this  work  classed  under  some  particular  root. 


237 

1st.  Sacred  or  altar  stones  were  called  ambrosiae  petrae,  or 
amber  stones. 

2nd.  Boundary  stones  were  called  hoar  stones. 

3rd.  Roman  stations  are  in  many  instances  known  by  their 
being  called  after  some  Roman  game,  such  as  the  Quintan,  &c. 

4th.  The  name  of  Portway  is  common  to  the  Roman  military 
ways,  and 

5th.  The  ridgeways  are  considered  to  be  either  of  Roman  or 
ancient  British  origin. 

The  name  of  Castor,  Cester,  or  Chester,  generally  indicates  a 
Roman  station  ;  and  Sam,  Sti'eet,  Stane,  and  Stone,  as  fre- 
quently shovs'  the  course  of  a  British  or  Roman  way*. 

I.  The  ancient  British  ways  are  not  raised  nor  paved,  nor 
always  strait,  but  often  wind  along  the  tops  or  sides  of  the  chains 
of  hills  which  lie  in  their  coui*se. 

II.  They  do  not  lead  to  Roman  towns,  with  which  they  have 
no  connection,  except  when  placed  on  the  site  of  British  fort- 
resses. 

III.  They  are  marked  by  tumuli,  like  those  of  the  Romans, 
but  often  throw  out  branches,  which,  after  running  parallel  for 
some  miles,  are  re-united  in  the  original  steral. 

ANCIENT   ROADS,    CAMPS,    AND    REMARKABLE 
NAMES  OF  FIELDS  AND  PLACES. 

As  the  ancient  British,  Roman,  and  Saxon  roads  and  camps, 
in  Worcestershire  and  its  borders,  have  only  been  casually  noticed 
in  the  previous  part  of  this  work,  I  have  endeavoured  to  collect 
and  consolidate  all  the  principal  facts  relative  to  them  ;  and  have 
likewise  given  the  names  of  several  fields  and  places  wliich  lie  in 
or  near  the  lines  of  such  roads. 

•  See  the  lute  Mr.  Hiitcher's  notes  to  his  edition  of  the  much  disputed  work 
intitled   the  "  Itinerary  of  Richard  of  Cirencester,"  published  in  1809,  p.  105. 

■\  Ibid.,  p.  lOl.  Tlie  parallel  branches  most  probably  were  made  by  the 
Romans  and  the  primitive  lines  by  the  ancient  Britons,  as  stated  in  the  account 
of  the  primitive  roads. 


^38 


Iter  ^ 


WESTERN  SIDE  OF  THE  COUNTY. 

ANCIENT  ROAD  AND  CAMPS, 

FROM 

WALLSHILL  CAMP  AND  MALVERN  HILLS  TO 
WOODBURY  HILL. 

In  my  account  of  the  hills,  I  have  likewise  described  the  camps 
wliich  lie  on  the  western  side  of  the  county,  in  the  line  of  the 
Malvern  Chain, — Cowley  or  Cowleigh  Park  (in  Leigh),  Old 
Storage  and  Round  Hill-  (in  Alfrick),  Lulsley,  Ankerdiue  Hill, 
Whitboume,  The  Berrow,  Ridge,  and  Woodburj'  Hills.  It  is  pro- 
bable that  an  ancient  ridgeway  ran  in  that  line  near  to  the  ridges 
of  the  hills,  from  Wall  Hills,  Colwall,  and  the  Malvern  Hills 
Camps  to  the  camp  at  Woodbury  Hill  in  Great  Witley ;  for  there 
are  several  pieces  in  Leigh,  called  Big  Ridway,  and  in  Suck- 
ley,  called  Walldridge  ;  and  adjoining  the  Round  Hill  in  Alfrick 
there  is  a  ridge  called  Wallshill  Coppice  (which  is  partly  in 
Alfrick  and  partly  in  Suckley),  and  a  lane,  partly  in  Alfrick  and 
partly  in  Lulsley,  called  Green  Streetf ,  and  not  far  from  thence  is 
a  rock  called  Osebury or  Oseberrow,  in  Lulsley;  therefore  the  pro- 
bable line  of  the  road  in  question,  from  Old  Storage  or  Storridge,  was 
in  by  Tundridge  in  Suckley,  then  by  Catterhall,  and  along  the  east 
side  of  the  Suckley  Hill  chain,  between  it  and  Buall  or  Bewill ;  Nor- 
grove,  Oughton  or  Eoten  Wells  | ;  Gorway's  Green,  Cruise  Hill§, 

♦  It  is  astonisliiug  what  a  niuiiber  of  round  hills  there  are  in  the  eounty. 
See  tlie  account  of  the  Toot  Hills,  p  282,  &c. 

■t-  There  is  a  place  called  Green  Street  in  Hnrvington.     See  Iter  XIX. 

I  See  "  Folk-Loie,"  Chap.  xii. 

§   So  called  in  a  deed  dated  27  Charles  II. 


239 

or  Cruse  or  (yrewshill-  ;  the  Hound  Hill  a,iid  Walls  Hill, — all  in 
Alfrick  ;  then  to  Batesbush  and  Osebury  Rock,  and  across  the 
ford  at  Knightsford  bridge,  to  Ankerdine  Hill,  and  the  camp  at 
Whitbourne,  and  also  to  the  camps  at  the  BeiTow  and  Woodbury 
Hills,  where  it  probably  joined  the  ancient  road  from  Worcester 
to  Tenbury,  hereafter  described.  A  line  neai'ly  parallel  to  this 
road  probably  ran  from  the  Bridges  Stone  f,  at  the  foot  of  Old 
Storage,  in  Alfrick,  by  Callow's  Leap,  and  up  the  hill  at  the 
Knap  or  rising  and  by  Patches  (or  Paches)  Farm,  leaving  the 
Upper  House  and  the  Grimsend  on  the  left ;  thence  along  Clay 
Green  and  by  Payne's  Castle,  in  Alfrick,  and  along  Green 
Street,  in  Alfrick  and  Lulsley  ;  thence  onwards,  by  the  Folly  I 
Farm,  in  Alfrick,  and  Puttocks,  otherwise  Pothooks  or  Pauthooks, 
in  Lulsley,  and  over  the  river  Teme  at  Broadwas,  Broadis,  or 
Bradewas  Ford ;  thence  through  Broadwas  and  Dodenham  to  the 
camps  at  the  Berrow  and  Woodbury  Hills.  A  cross-road  appears 
to  have  formerly  run  out  of  the  first-mentioned  road,  from  Nor- 
grove,  or  Gorway's  Green,  along  a  part  which  used  to  be  called 
Cate  Lane  §,  situated  on  the  west  side  of  the  close  by  the  Upper 
House,  and  thence  by  Grimsend  to  Paynes  Ciistle.  Another 
branch,  instead  of  crossing  the  Teme  at  Puttock's  End,  most 
probably  went  from  thence  over  the  Red  Cliff  into  Leigh  parish, 
tlirough  the  Devil's  Pig-trough  (which  is  a  trench  across  a  ridge 
of  ground),  and  on  through  Leigh,  Bransford  (otlienrise  Braunts- 
ford\  and  St.  John's,  to  Worcester. 

This  line  is  principally  distinguished  by  the  names  W^all  Hill 

*  There  i;?  a  place  culled  Crews-iield  in  Djiuock,  Co.  Gloucester. 

+  Erroneously  called  "  Bridger's  Town"  in  Isaac  Taylor's  map,  published  in 
177"^.  As  much  new  red  siind-stone  rock  was  at  an  early  period  cut  through 
at  this  part  to  form  the  road,  I  presume  the  hridj^e,  whi(  h  is  of  wood,  acquired 
the  name  of  the  13ri(lge  at  Stone  or  the  Bridge  of  Stone.  It  is  called  by  the 
latter  name  in  a  deed  dated  27 Hi  Cliarles  II. 

J  There  are  a  great  many  places  in  Worcestershire  and  the  neighbouring 
counties  called  "  The  Folly." 

§  There  is  a  place  called  Crate  Lane  in  Suinf()rd  in  the  Teme.  See  Iter 
VIII.  Perhaps  these  names  mean  Gate  Lane;  gate  being  a  Saxon  term  for  a 
road  or  wiiv ;  it  also  means  a  wicket. 


240 

and  Wall*,  occurring  in  several  parts  of  it,  which  are  evidences  of 
Roman  possession. 

The  following  names  occur  in  this  line  : — 

In  LEIGH  there  are  Hocker  Hill,  LuckalFs  Orchard,  Dead 
Loons,  Upper  and  Lower  Dead  Loons,  Hurfield,  Hire  Field, 
Great  Towbury,  Little  Towbury,  Wynns  (or  Wins),  Grave, 
Pins  Hill,  Hovlands,  Musmore  Hill,  Obersley,  Old  Ovens, 
Sich  Orchard,  Crumpenhillf  Meadow,  Castle  Green  Sufi&eld, 
Castle  Hill  Meadow,  Big  and  Little  Lonkers  Ley,  Mundole 
Orchard,  Rowberry's  Meadow,  Boustens  Field,  HoUocks,  Cra- 
combe  Hill,  The  Hoardings  %  Harding's  Meadow,  Quag  Suffield, 
The  Sturts,  Warwick's  Wish,  The  Mounds,  The  Nap  (Knap), 
Cowley  (Cowleigh)  Park,  Big  Ridway  Pieces,  The  Red  Cliff, 
The  Devil's  Pig  Trough,  Tinker's  Cross,  Black  Jack's  Cave,  Patch 
Hill§,  and  Omber's  Hill|.  This  parish  is  called  Lege,  in 
"  Domesday  Book." 

Dead  Loons  was  probably  the  site  of  a  battle  or  skirmish  in 
the  civil  wars,  as  human  bones  and  cannon-balls  have  been  found 
there.  It  lies  at  the  bottom  of  the  east  side  of  Old  Storage. 
Dr.  Nash  11,  speaking  of  a  military  skirmish  which  happened  in 
Leigh,  says,  perhaps  it  was  "  while  the  Parliament  forces  lay  in 
this  county,  before  Brereton  summoned  the  town  of  Worcester,  in 
March  1646.  In  September  1645,  the  king  marched  from  Wor- 
cester to  relieve  Hereford,  and  obliged  the  Scots  to  abandon  the 
siege**."     A  cannon-ball  was,  a  few  years  ago,  found  several  feet 

*  The  parallel  line  from  Malvern  Hills  to  Tenbury,  &c.,  next  hereafter 
described^  is  also  so  distinguished.  (See  the  derivation  of  the  name  "  Wall," 
and  a  list  of  Wall  Hills,  in  the  account  of  the  Malvern  Hills,  pp  155, 158,  159.) 

+  Otherwise  Crumpal  or  Crumpton  Hill. 

J  See  as  to  a  hoar-stone  in  Leigh,  in  the  general  account  of  hoar-stones. 

§  Several  of  the  above-mentioned  places  are  referred  to  in  the  "  Folk-Lore," 
Chap.  xii. 

II  Most  probably  meaning  Ambers  HUl.  (See  what  is  stated  relative  to 
Ombersley,  in  the  account  of  Ambrosae  Petree,  Chap,  ii.,  and   "  Folk-Lore.") 

f  Vol.  ii.,  p.  74. 

*•  About  two  miles  from  Dead  Loons,  in  Upper  Sherridge,  in  Leigh,  there 
is  a  piece  of  ground  and  a  barn  called  Cromwells,  vulgo  Cmmells,  or 
Cromalls. 


241 

deep  in  the  bank  by  the  roadside,  at  Callow's  Leap,  not  far  from 
the  north  side  of  Old  Storage,  in  Alfrick  ;  and  another  was 
ploughed  up  in  the  Grimsend  estate. 

Besides  "  The  Devil's  Pig-trough,"  there  is  a  place  called 
The  Devil's  Den,  in  Stanford,  and  also  in  Bromsgrove;  The 
Devil's  Bowling  Green,  in  Inkbarrow ;  The  Devil's  Dib,  in 
Areley  Kings ;  The  Devil's  Leap,  in  Dodenham  and  Martley  ; 
and  The  Devil's  Spadeful,  in  the  parish  of  Kidderminster. 

A  pot  of  silver  coins  was  found  in  this  line  of  march  at  Hales- 
end,  in  Cradley,  the  property  of  Richard  Yapp,  Esq.,  the  par- 
ticulars of  which  were  given  in  Berrow's  "  Worcester  Journal " 
for  August  1842.  These  coins  were  chiefly  of  Edward  VI., 
Elizabeth,  and  Charles  I.,  and  were  doubtless  buried  for  security 
in  the  troublesome  times  of  the  civil  wars. 

A  quantity  of  silver  coins  were  also  found  in  Mathon,  as  stated 
in  Laird's  "  Topographical  and  Historical  Description  of  Wor- 
cestershire," the  particulars  of  which  could  not  be  ascertained. 
Within  the  last  half  century,  a  hoard  of  gold  coins  was  found, 
upon  stocking-up  an  old  hedge  in  the  Grits  Farm,  in  Cradley,  in 
Herefordshire,  the  property  of  William  Morton,  Esq.,  of  Lower 
W^ick  :  these  were  of  George  II L,  and  Portuguese  gold  pieces  of 
John  V.  and  Joseph  I. 

In  BRANSFORD,  in  Leigh,  there  is  Tibshill*.  According  to 
Dr.  Nash,  Bransford,  Bradnesford,  Braynsford,  or  Braunsford, 
means  the  ford  of  Braines.  It  is  called  Branesford  in  "  Codex 
Dip.,"  No.  65  ;  and  Bregnesford,  in  No.  508,  508  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

In  SUCKLEY  there  are  places  called  Great  and  Little  Kitchill 
Coppice,  Tundridge,  Catterhall,  Sharmore  Meadow,  Wreckless, 
Babbins  Woodf  Great  Babbins,  Little  Babbins,  Upper  Babbins 
and  Lower  Babbins,  Kithay  Coppice,  Lower  Berrow,  Comowles  J 
Meadow,   The   Odnetts.    Howbur}'§  Meadow,    Little    Howbury, 

•  Hec  "  Folk-Lorp." 

f  There  is  a  place  called  Babbins  Wood,  near  Whittington,  Co.  Salop. 

X  Also  Cearnowl,  in  Knighton-on-Teme. 

§  There  is  Rowberrj's  .Nfeadow.  in  Leigh  ;  Ronghborongh,  in  Stretton-on-the- 
FoRse,  C(>.  Warwick  ;  and  several  places  called  Rowberry  in  Ilfraconibe  parish, 
Co.  Devon. 

R 


'242 

Gossy  Pails,  Bearcroft,  Archen  Field,  Aldery  Hill,  Swerdy  Hill, 
Image,  Quabb  Coppice,  Camp  Orchard*,  Walldridgef  Hopyard, 
Walldridge  Meadow,  Little  Walldridgo  Meadow,  The  Batch, 
Egghill  Coppice,  The  Ovens,  The  Ovens  Coppice,  Oventree 
Orchard,  Little  Oventree  Orchard,  Pinner's  Piece,  Tin  Meadow, 
Tin  Meadow  Hopyard,  Tin  Meadow  Orchard,  lied  Castle  Orchard, 
Wile  Coppice,  The  Bante,  or  Bant  J.  In  "  Domesday  Book," 
this  parish  is  called  Sukelei. 

In  addition  to  the  above  name,  "  Kit,"  there  are  places  called 
Near  Kit's  Close  and  Far  Kit's  Close,  in  Lulsley ;  Kitlaughton, 
in  Knighton-on-Terae ;  Kitsall,  in  Hanbury ;  Kit's  Iron,  in 
Feckenham ;  Kit's  Castle,  in  Tenbury ;  Kit  Meadow,  in  Upton 
Warren ;  Kit  Pit,  in  Elmbridge ;  Kitcroft,  in  Beoley ;  Kitwell,  in 
Northfield ;  Kitwell  Meadow,  in  Clent ;  and  Kittans,  in  Castle 
Morton. 

There  are  also  Kitlands  and  Kitlands  Coppice,  in  Over  Arley, 
Co.  Stafford  ;  Kitbatch,  in  Tedstone  Delamere,  Co.  Hereford  ; 
Kitstone,  in  the  parish  of  Ilfracombe,  Co.  Devon ;  Kit's  Green, 
Kitgreen  Leasow,  Kitgreen  Field,  and  Near  and  Far  Kit- 
green  Pieces,  in  Sheldon,  Co.  Warwick ;  and  Kit  Hill,  in 
Cornwall. 

As  the  word  "  Kistvaen,"  or  "  Kistven,"  means  a  Druidical 
monument,  or  stone  chest  consisting  of  four  stones  or  coits,  it  is 
possible  that  the  above-mentioned  "  Kit"  is  a  cori'uption  of 
•'  Kist."  The  Kistvaen,  at  Aylesford,  in  Kent,  is  commonly 
called  "  Keith  Coty  House §,"  or  "  Ivit's  Cotty  House;"  and 
Lambarde,  in  his  "  Perambulation  of  Kent,"  1570,  says  it  then 
was  "  termed  of  the  common  people  there,  '  Citscote  House,' " 
This  Grose  derives  from  Catigern,  a  Briton,  who  is  supposed  to 
have  fallen  in  the  same  battle  with  Horsa,  the  Saxon,  and  is  said 
to  be  buried  there.  This  idea,  however,  is  strongly  refuted  in 
"  Old   England."  Part  i..  p.   15  ;    and  we   should  think  it  not 

•   It  lies  near  Acton  Beauchanip. 
f   See  Malven),  pp.  158,  150. 
+  See  Alfrick,  Iter  VI. 

§  See  Grose's  "Antiquities,"  second  edition,  p.  1-31 ;  and  Gough's  "Camden," 
Vol.  i.,  ]).  -'ill,  second  edition,  IHOO. 


248 

improbable   that  ■'  Kit "  Ls   an   abbreviation   of    "  Kist,"    and 
"  Cotty  "  another  form  of   "  Coit." 

I  have  a  portrait  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  which  was  at  the  old 
farm-house  called  "  Lower  BeiTow,"  in  Suckley.  It  is  painted 
on  oak  panels,  and  probably  was  formerly  suspended  in  the 
church.  It  exhibits  the  usual  magnificence  of  costume,  and  is 
thus  inscribed  : — 


Posvi  Devm 

Adivtorem  Mevm 

^t:  Sv^, 

50. 


Nata  Gronew- 

iciAE  Ao  1538 

Septem  :   6. 


Under  her  left  elbow  appeal's  an  open  book,  •with  a  quotation 
from  Psalm  xl.,  11.  This  portrait  was  painted  in  the  year  1592*' 
It  will  be  observed  the  inscription  states  that  the  queen  was  bom 
September  6th  ;  but  many  writers  say  it  was  on  the  7th  ;  others 
on  the  8th ;  and  othei*s  on  the  1 3th  of  that  month.  In  Miss 
Agnes  Strickland's  "  Lives  of  the  Queens  of  Englandf,"  a 
document  is  referred  to,  dated  the  7th  of  September,  which 
announces  the  birth  ;  but  it  is  possible  that  the  event  took  place 
in  the  evening  or  night  of  the  6th,  and  that  it  was  announced  on 
the  7th.  In  regai'd  to  the  above-mentioned  motto,  it  may  be 
observed  that  Miss  Strickland  I,  on  the  authority  of  Sir  Robert 
Naimton,  states  that  Queen  Elizabeth's  silver  bore  the  words, 
"  Posui  Deum  adjutorem  meum  §"' — "  I  have  chosen  God  for  my 
helper." 

A  proclamation,  dated  15(53,  in  the  hand-writing  of  secretarj'^ 
Cecil,  prohibits  •'  all  manner  of  persons  to  draw,  pa}nit,  grave, 
or  portrayit  her  majesty's  personage  or  visage  for  a  time,  until, 
by  some  perfect  patron  and  example  the  same  may  be  by  others 
followed,  «fcc. ;  and  for  that  her  majestic  perceiveth  that  a  grete 
nomber  of  liir  loving  subjects  are  much  greved,  and  take  gi'ete 

•  Some  account  of  this  jjortniit  appeared  in  the   "  Jounuil  of  the  Archaeo- 
logical Institute,"  Vol.  iii.,  j).  SO. 
t  Vol.  iv.,  p.  •24(i. 
X  Vol.  n.,  p.  145. 

§  "  Friijjriiienlii  !?t\i(iiliii." 


244 

offence  with  the  errors  and  deformities  allredy  committed  y 
sondry  persons  in  this  behalf,  she  straightly  chargeth  all  hir 
officers  and  ministers  to  see  to  the  due  observation  hereof,  and  as 
soon  as  may  be,  to  reform  the  errors  already  committed,"  &c. 
— (See  Hone's  "  Year  Book,"  p.  363.) 

There  are  many  names  compounded  with  the  monosyllable 
"  Egg ;"  for  instance,  Egg  Hill,  in  Suckley ;  Egdon,  and  Big 
and  Little  Egdon,  in  Sutton,  Tenbury ;  Egg  Lane  Piece  and 
Aggborough  Piece,  in  Stone  and  Shenston ;  Eggs  Hay,  in 
Eldersfield  ;  Egg  Hills,  in  Doderhill,  also  in  Hampton  Lovett ; 
Egg  Down*,  in  Clifton -on-Teme  ;  Hagg  and  Middle  Hills,  and 
Hagg  Meadow,  in  Castle  Morton  ;  Aggborough,  in  Hurcott  and 
Comberton,  in  the  Foreign  of  Kidderminster  ;  Little  Hagburrows, 
in  Dodenham ;  Tagbourne,  in  Chaddesley  Corbett ;  and  Hagg 
Lane,  or  Egg  Lane,  on  the  limits  of  Hartlebury. 

There  is  also  Egbury  Camp,  in  Hants ;  a  hill  called  Hagbourn, 
in  Berks ;  and  Egdon  Hill,  at  Grendon  WaiTeu,  in  Here- 
fordshire. 

In  the  account  of  Hagbush  Lane,  Islington,  in  Hone's  "  Every- 
Day  Bookf,"  it  is  stated,  that  "  Hag  is  the  old  Saxon  wordHaeg, 
which  became  corrupted  into  Haugh,  and  afterwards  into  Haw, 
and  is  the  name  of  the  berry  of  the  hawthorn :  the  same  word 
Haga  signified  a  hedge,  or  any  inclosure,  Hag  afterwards  sig- 
nified a  bramble." 

In  Anglo-Saxon,  Haeg  signifies  a  hedge ;  and  Haga  an  inclosure 
made  by  a  hedge. 

As  instances  of  names  similar  to  "  The  Ovens,"  "  The  Ovens 
Coppice,"  &c.  in  Suckley,  we  may  mention  Oven  Piece,  and  Oven 
Wood,  in  the  parish  of  Brorasgrove ;  Ovenshill,  in  Doderhill ; 
Old  Ovens,  in  Leigh  ;  and.  The  Oven,  in  Tredington.  Some  of 
these  names  may  probably  be  indicative  of  the  sites  of  ancient 
public  ovens,  called  by  the  British  "  Od}Ti  l" 

*  Eg  or  Ig,  in  Auglo-Saxon,  signifies  au  ige  or  island,  or  eye  ;  but  several 
of  the  above-mentioned  names  cannot  be  so  derived.  "  Down  "  comes  from  the 
Saxon  "  Dun,"  a  hill. 

t  Vol.  L,  p.  875. 

X  See  NMiitakers  "  History  of  Manchester,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  M, 


245 

The  following  list  of  moduses,  or  supposed  moduses,  on  privy 
or  small  tithes  in  the  parish  of  Suckley,  including  the  hamlets  of 
Alfrick  and  Lulsley,  may  be  considered  as  curious,  inasmuch  as 
they  tend  to  show  the  great  difference  in  the  value  of  property,  or 
rather  of  money  in  those  times,  to  what  it  is  at  present*.  If  they 
were  good  moduses  they  must  have  existed  as  far  back,  at  least, 
as  the  time  of  Richard  I.,  otherwise  they  were  rankf.  These 
payments  are  now  happily  all  extinguished  under  the  Tithe 
Commutation  Act. 

Smoke,  lrf.|,  and  garden,  ld.§ 2d. 

The  mUk  or  white  of  each  cow Id. 

Cider  and  perry  per  hogshead 2d. 

Calves,  if  reared  for  plough  or  pail,  per  each    .     .     ^d. 

Calves,  if  killed  for  the  family,  the  left  shoulder  .     Od. 

Sheep's  wool,  if  under  ten,  per  each  fleece       .     .     Id. 

Lambs,  if  under  seven,  per  each Id. 

For  each  colt 4d. 

Eggs :  two  for  each  hen,  and  three  for  each  cock, 
at  Easter 

Eggs  :  two  for  each  duck,  and  three  for  each  drake. 

GosUngs :  at  Midsummer,  if  seven,  one  ;  if  under 
seventeen,  no  more 

Sucking  pigs,  if  seven  ;  a  third  choice  at  fourteen 
days  old 

Several  of  the  moduses  claimed  in  the  adjoining  parish  of 
Leigh  correspond  with  the  preceding,  except  in  the  instances  of 
2d.  for  a  colt,  and  a  ^d.  for  lambs,  if  under  seven.  They  also 
paid  what  is  called  "  Leighton  Money"  in  lieu  of  tithe  fruit,  2d., 
and  Ad.  for  a  pigeon  house. 

•  See  further  on  Uiis  point  in  the  npcount  of  the  "  Manorial  Customs  of 
Ombersley,"  Iter  XV. 

+  In  proof,  however,  tliat  tliey  were  not  rank,  similar  moduses  to  most  of 
these  in  other  parishes  were  established  as  good  by  decisions  in  courts  of 
law. — See  the  note  in  Rum's  "  EcclesiHstical  Law,"  by  S.  Fraser,  Esq.,  Vol.  iii., 
pp.  4.'5r^-4.'i0,  seventh  edition,  180!!. 

J   In  lien  of  all  tithe  wood,  or  fire  wood. 

§   In  lieu  of  all  litheahle  matters  ^owinp  in  the  poideii. 


U9 

Query.— Why  was  the  modus  for  tithe  fruit  called  "  Leighton 
Money?" 

In  ALFRICK  there  are,— The  Old  Hill,  Copson's  Coppice, 
Hodnett's  Orchard,  Eycester  or  Ayciter,  Benty  Vere,  Fleur-de-lis, 
Stichen  s  Hill,  The  Millards,  Sibhay  or  Tibhay,  The  Tibbins, 
Quince  Hill,  Mancroft-,  Prick-pears  Coppice f,  Cheapside,  Clap 
Gate,  Green  Street,  Yell,  The  Knap,  Luckholds,  Payne's  Castle, 
The  Folly,  Wonam  Meadow  or  Wad  Meadow,  Roman  Orchard  |, 
Old  Storage  or  Old  Storridge,  The  Beck,  The  Vineyard,  Conygree 
Coppice,  Tar  or  Tor  Coppice,  Mousehole,  BewiU,  Norgrove  or 
Hoar  Grove,  Catterhall  or  Catterall,  Cruise  (or  Cruse,  or  Crews) 
Hill  §,  The  Round  Hill,  Wallsliill  Coppice,  Raffnals  or  Ravenhills  |j, 
Sonit  Hole,  Callow's  Leap,  Fairies  Cave,  Patches  or  Paches,  Patch 
Hill,  Grimsend,  Oughton  or  Eoten  Wells,  and  Halvens  or 
HalvinsH. 

As  synonymes  with  "  Hodnetts"  may  be  mentioned  Hodnet, 
near  Market  Drayton  in  Shropshire,  and  the  Odnetts  in  Suckley. 
Of  names  nearly  allied  to  "  Stitchenshill"  in  appeai'ance,  are 
the  following : — Pitchen  Hill,  in  Spetchley  ;  Hichen  Hill,  in 
Lindridge ;  Pitchall  Hill,  in  Atch  Lench ;  Big  Stitchings,  and 
Lower  Stitchings,  in  Hayley  ;  Stitches  and  Stitcheus  Bank,  in 
Lulsley  ;  and  First  and  Second  Stitches,  in  Grimley.  All  these 
names  may  probably  be  derived  from  the  word  "  Pitch,"  meaning 
a  steep  place. 

As  synonymes  of  "  Quince  Hill"  may  be  mentioned  Quince 
Hill,  in  Eastham ;  Quince  Hill,  in  Hallow ;  and  Quin  Hill,  in 
Mathon.     It  is  said  that  quince  trees,  as  well  as  pear  trees,  were 

*  Also  Mancroft,  in  Knighton-on-Teme ;  and  likewise  in  Upton-upon 
Severn. 

f  This  appears  to  have  reference  to  a  species  of  wild  prickly  pear  tree.  It 
is  said  the  Romans  introduced  the  pear  tree  into  England. 

X  This  has  nothing  to  do  with  our  antiquities.  The  Orchard  was  so  named 
from  an  apple  called  Roman. 

§  There  is  Crewsfield  in  Dymock,  Co.  Gloucester. 

li  See  p.  104,  &c. 

^  With  respect  to  the  etymology  and  antiquities  of  Old  Storage  and  Alfrick. 
see  pp.  iflO  and  ItKi,  l<>  •.'(•::!,  and  "  folk  Lore.' 


247 

first  introduced  into  Britain  by  the  Romans*.  It  was  an  ancient 
Greek  custom,  that,  at  a  marriage,  the  bridegroom  and  bride 
should  eat  a  quince  together,  as  part  of  the  wedding  ceremonies  \. 
And  there  is  an  account  in  "  Notes  and  Queries,"  No.  63, 
1 1th  January,  1851,  that,  in  the  evening  after  a  marriage  in  this 
country,  which  took  place  in  1725,  quinces  where  presented  by 
the  bridegroom's  father  to  the  bridegroom's  mother,  and  presents 
in  money  to  each  member  of  the  family.  But  whether  this 
instance  may  be  taken  as  evidence  that  the  Greek  custom  had 
been  introduced  into  this  country  by  the  Romans,  or  whether 
it  is  to  be  regarded  merely  in  the  light  of  a  casual  occurrence,  we 
do  not  undertake  to  decide. 

Bewill  is  spelled  Bual,  alias  Bewail,  in  title  deeds  dated  1691, 
&c.  This  place  was  probably  named  from  Beaulieu,  meanhig  the 
beautiful  place  (see  Bewdley).  There  is  a  place  called  Buelt,  for- 
merly Bullgeum,  in  Brecknockshire,  on  the  Portway.  There  also 
is  a  place  called  "  Tump  Bewhill,"  in  Church  Honeybourne ; 
Bewill  Field,  in  Sutton,  in  Tenbury ;  Beawells,  in  Aston  in 
Blockley ;  Beauhall  Meadow,  Big  Beauhall,  and  Little  Beauhall, 
in  Hanbuiy ;  Bewell  Head,  in  Bromsgrove. 

The  folloA^ing  appears  to  throw  some  light  upon  the  name  of 
Catterhall. — "  Extracts  from  the  Registers  of  the  Stationers' 
Company  of  Works,  entered  for  publication  between  the  years 
1557  and  1 570  ;  with  Notes  and  Illustrations,  by  J.  Payne  Collier, 
Esq.,  F.S.A.,  &c.,"  published  by  the  Shakespeare  Society. 

"  1565-6 — R*^-  of  Thomas  Colwell,  for  his  lycence  for 
prynting  of  a  ballet  intituled  the  Cater  brawles,  both 
wytty  and  mer}' iiij''" 

A  brail,  brawl,  or  brausle,  was  a  species  of  dance,  ("  Douces 
Illus.,"  i.,  217),  and  double  brawls  are  mentioned  by  several 
writers  ;  but  here  wc  have  a  notice  of  what  should  seem  to  be  a 
quadruple  brawl,  or  "  cater  brawl."  In  the  "  llandfull  of  evor- 
pleasant  Delights,"  1581,  is  the  "  Historic  of  Diajia  and  Acteon 
to  the  Quarter  lirawlos,"  p.  12<1. 

•  Sro  Wliiiiikri's  '>  llislon  of  Maiii-lHstrr,-  V..1.  ii.,  i))..  4!),  .j(l,  (I.!. 
I   Sec  l'i)ttPr'>.  "  (iri'iMiui  Aiuiiinitics." 


248 

There  also  is  Catterbatch  Piece  and  Catterbatch  Meadow,  in 
Abberley. 

"  Sonit  Hole"  probably  either  stands  for  Stoney  Hole  or 
Stoney  Dole.  In  a  document  of  the  date  1796,  mention  is  made 
of  Stouney*  Dole  in  Glaswick  Common  Field,  which  lies  by 
Barley  Brook :  as  Sonit  Hole  also  lies  there,  the  same  place  is 
probably  intended.  There  is  Stoned  Hole,  in  Castle  Morton; 
and  Stoney  Dole  at  Leigh  Sinton,  in  Leigh.  The  name  "  Dole," 
in  ancient  British,  signifies  a  plain  or  valley  lying  to  the  sea  or 
a  river.  It  is  of  Phoenician  origin,  from  Daula,  a  plain  f .  In 
addition  to  the  above  there  are  also  Long  Doles  in  Romsley, 
Hales  Owen  ;  Dole  Meadow,  in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove  ;  Dole 
Meadow,  Wimble  Dole,  and  Big  Wimble  Dole,  in  Tardebig  ;  and 
Dole^,  in  Hartlebury. 

"  Callow's  Leap"  is  a  most  romantic  precipice  on  the  roadside, 
about  400  yards  west  of  the  Bridges  Stone,  the  Leigh  Brook 
running  through  Coppice  Woods,  at  a  considerable  depth  below. 
There  is  a  legend  that  a  mighty  hunter,  of  the  name  of  Callow, 
leaped  down  this  precipice.  Whether  he  broke  his  neck  in  the 
adventure,  no  one  knows  ;  but  it  may  be  presumed  that  he  did 
not  find  his  grave  there,  as  we  have  a  place  called  "  Callow's 
Grave,"  near  to  Tenbury§. 

Alfrick  and  Lulsley  are  hamlets  annexed  to  Suckley,  but  they 
are  taxed  and  rated  separately,  and  were  so  in  the  time  of  Heniy 
VIIL,  as  appears  by  the  "  Valor  Ecclesiasticus,"  Vol.  iii.,  p.  247, 
col.  2 ;  and  also  by  a  subsidy  gi'anted  in  the  thirty-second  year 
of  that  monarch  (1540-1),  by  the  Convocation  of  the  Province  of 
Canterbur}',  of  Ad.  in  the  pound,  which  was  to  raise  j£.  150,000  in 
two  years.  Whether  the  hamlets  originally  were  small  rectories 
or  vicarages,  and  afterwards  annexed  to  Suckley,  or  whether  they 
were  carved  out  of  Suckley,  is  not  now  known,  but  the  former  is 
thought  to  have  been  the  case.    In  page  193  to  207, 1  have  given 

•  The  peasantry  call  a  stone,  a  stouan. 

t  See  "  Britannia  Antiqua,"  by  Aylett  Saninies,  p.  67. 

J  Some  of  these  names  niay,  however,  ronie  from  "  Dole,"  a  gift ;  or  from 
"  Dole,"  a  void  space  left  in  tillage. 

§  Further  mention  of  the  name  Callow  will  he  foimd  in  the  arronnt  of 
Brom^gTovr,  p.  \'1^. 


249 

some  early  particulars  of  these  hamlets ;  and  the  decree  there 
mentioned  of  1585  refers  to  a  prior  decree  or  sentence  of  Arch- 
bishop Robert,  relative  to  certain  questions  between  the  parish 
and  hamlets  concerning  the  church  and  chapels,  which  must  have 
been  either  Archbishop  Kilwarby,  who  was  elected  in  1272,  and 
was  made  a  cardinal  in  1278,  or  to  Archbishop  Winch elsey,  who 
was  elected  in  1293,  and  died  in  1313.  The  hamlets  have  sepa- 
rate parish  officers ;  and  marriages,  baptisms,  and  burials  are 
performed  at  these  chapels ;  but  no  burials  take  place  in  the 
chapelyard  in  Lulsley,  it  not  being  consecrated  *. 

In  LULSLEY  (anciently  LuUesley)  there  are  Earaolls,  Co- 
pemhill  Coppice,  Raffnals  or  Ravenhills  Green,  Raffnals  Orchard, 
Bachefield,  Bachfield,  or  Batchfield ;  Stitches ;  the  Jags,  Little 
Jags,  Penhill,  Little  Berrow,  Common  Berrow,  and  Sherah-croft ; 
Black-borough ;  Osebury,  or  Oseberrow  Rock ;  Blacks-well ;  Red 
Cliff  Coppice  ;  Cold,  or  CoUes,  or  Coles  Place  f ;  the  Redding  or 
Cophern  Hill ;  Stitchens  Bank  and  Coppice  ;  Near  and  Far  Kit's 
Close  ;  Cockshut,  or  Cockshoot ;  Horsage  %  or  Horrage  Coppice  ; 
Green  Street ;  Puttocks,  Pothooks,  or  Pauthooks-end  Orchard  ; 
Patch-Ham;  Bates-bush  ;  Harding  Orchard,  and  Whistlers §. 

Speaking  of  Puttock's-end,  we  may  mention  also  a  farm  called 
"  Poltucks-end,"  near  the  Rliyd.  by  Dripshill  in  Madresfield, 
where  there  is  a  ford  over  the  Severn  ;  the  word  Rid,  or  Rhyd,  in 
ancient  British  and  Pha?nician  signifying  a  ford.  There  is  also  a 
place  called  Puttoc's-end  in  Flyford  Flavel,  likeN\ise  near  to  a  ford. 

Some  light  on  the  subject  of  these  names  may  perhaps  be 
gained  from  the  fact  that  the  orchard  in  Lulsley  is  also  called 
Puttock's,  or  Pothook 's-inn  ;  and  I  am  informed  that  Puttoc's-end 
in  Flyford  Flavell  is  likewise  called  Pothook's  Inn.  Some  of  the 
old  inhabitants  add  that  there  was  a  small  inn  at  the  spot,  and 
that  hooks  were  attached  to  the  wall  of  the  house,  by  which  horses 
were  fastened  by  the  bridle,  there  being  no  stable  belonging  to 
the  premises.     Such  small  inns,  by  fords,  may  therefore  possibly 

•   The  clmpelyard  at  Alfrick  was  oonsecnitpd  by  Bishop  Tlmmas,  temp.  IfiS-'i. 

f  See  "  Folk  Lore"  and  *'  Old  Coles." 

X  Also,  Horsage  Orrhard,  in  Wiehenford. 

§   See  fiiitlier  mention  of  l.uNlcy  under  Alfiiek,  p.  -JIM,  &e,,  and  ''  Folk  Lore.  ' 


250 

liave  acquired  their  designation  from  these  hooks ;  if  so,  the 
sufl&x  "  end,"  attached  to  such  names,  is  probably  a  corruption  of 
the  word  inn.  In  the  Ordnance  Map  the  place  at  Flyford  Fla- 
vell  is  called  Pothook's  Inn*.  The  word  Puttock  means  a  courte- 
zan, also  a  small  candle  added  to  make  up  a  pound  f;  and  in 
ornithology,  a  kite  or  buzzard.  Several  observations  appeared  in 
the  minor  correspondence  of  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  in 
1849,  relative  to  certain  applications  of  the  word  Puttoc. 

In  BROADWAS  there  are  Ellbatch  Coppice,  Romid  Hill,  The 
Hale,  Graffridge,  Petchwick,  and  Cainsbury.  Bi'oadwas  is  also 
called  Brodis,  or  Bradewas ;  in  "  Domesday,"  Bradewesham.  In 
the  Saxon  times  there  were  places  on  the  boundaries  of  Cotheridge 
named  ^ting-way,  the  Old  Cross,  Wulfgai-s-mere,  Coldwell,  and 
Brainsford|.  Cotheridge  was  anciently  named  CoMaryege,  Cod- 
raie,  Coddanhrycg§,  and  Coterug.     In  "  Domesday,"  Codrie. 

In  DODENHAJVI,  or  Dodeham,  there  are  Great  Womage, 
Little  Womage,  Peoplenon  Meadow,  Vine  Hill,  Vine  Rough, 
The  Vineyards,  Loveridge  Bank,  Gumuck's  Dingle,  Lond  HiU, 
Alduns,  Upper  Round  Hill,  Lower  Round  Hill,  Little  Hag- 
burrows,  and  the  Devil's  Leap!|.  The  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  154, 
154  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  mentions  Dodaema  Pull  (Dodeuham  Pool). 
See  p.  212,  as  to  Ankerdine  Hill. 

In  KNIGHTWICK  (otherwise  Knitwick,  or  Knitwyck)  there 
are  the  Round  Hill,  Blacks-well^,  Great  Blackwell,  Black-well 

*  There  is  Robert's-eiul  Street,  in  the  piirish  of  Hanley  Castle,  in  this 
county,  and  Tedney's-end,  in  Whitbourue,  Herefordshire,  near  tlie  river  Teme ; 
and  "  The  Vines-end,  or  Vine  Inn  Estate,"  in  C'radley,  Herefordshire.  See 
tl)e  "  26th  Further  Report  of  the  Counuissioners  for  inquiring  concerning  Cha- 
rities," p.  570,  relative  to  Tedney's-end ;  and  their  "  3'2nd  Further  Report," 
Part  2,  p.  10!),  relative  to  "  The  Vines-end,  or  Vine  Inn  Estate,"  whereby  it 
appears  that  the  latter  was  called  "  The  Vine  Inn"  as  far  back  as  1007,  Tliere 
are  many  names,  however,  which  perhaps  rightly  terminate  with  the  word  "  end," 
which  are  called  "in"  or  "  inn,"  and  vice  versa. 

f  See  Hulliwell's  "  Glossary  of  Archaic  Words." 

X  Vide  Hemint,''s  "Cartulary,"  p.  :i."JO;  also  Nash,  Vol,  ii.,  Appendix, 
pp.  47 ,  48. 

§  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  508,  .^OS  App.,  V<d.  iii. 

II   It  is  II  dci'p  dingle,  partly  in  Dodcnham  and  partly  in  .Martli'V. 

^    So.-  ••  I'nlk  l,..r..." 


251 

Hopyard,  Dumble  Hole  Coppice,  Upper  and  Lower  Coal  Pits,- 
and  the  Vole. 

In  WHITBOURNE,  Herefordshire,  there  are  Gadbidge, 
Crumplebury  Hill,  and  Wishmoor,  near  Inksmoor. 

In  MiVRTLEY  (Martely,  or  Mercelei)  there  are  Castle  Hill 
Meadow,  Tin  Close,  War  Croft,  Bossock  Coppy  (Coppice),  Radbury 
Bank,  Poke  Meadow,  Berrow  Hill,  Berrow  Stone,  Jacob's  Baver, 
Rodge,  or  Rudge  Hill ;  Battle  Field,  Hither  and  Further  Callow 
Field,  Callow's  Piece,  Puckley  Green  Farm,  and  Devil's  Leap. 

In  HILLHAMTON,  in  Martley,  there  are  Upper  and  Lower 
Wolstones  •-,  Hell  Meadow,  Twhit  Lane,  and  Great  Castle  Field. 

In  CLIFTON-ON-TEME  there  are  The  Old  Hills,  The  Imp  Or- 
chard f ,  Camp  Meadow ;  Hell-hole  Orchard,  Coppice,  and  Ash-bed ; 
Egg  Do\\7i,  Round  Hill ;  White-way  Head,  Ashbed,  and  Coppice ; 
Upper  and  Lower  Stuckbatch,  and  Woodmanton.  In  "  Domes- 
day Book,"  Clifton  is  named  Clistvne. 

The  estate  called  Woodmanton  is  a  manor  of  itself,  separate 
from  the  maiior  of  Clifton.  The  knightly  family  of  the  Wyshams, 
who  were  lords  of  the  manor  of  CUfton,  were  seated  at  Woodman- 
ton between  the  reigns  of  Henr}'  III.  and  Edwai^d  III.  J,  that  is 
between  1210  and  1^77.  Sometime  afterwards  Woodmanton 
was  possessed  by  the  Cullowhills  of  Tedstone  Delamere  (tlie  heirs 
in  the  female  line  of  the  Wyshams).  It  is  now  the  property  of  the 
Cowcher  family,  and  has  been  so  ever  since  the  early  part  of 
Queen  Elizabeth's  reign.  In  Woodmanton  Chapel,  Clifton  Church, 
there  is  a  raised  monument  representing  a  knight  in  armour,  in  a 
tarbard,  with  a  lion  at  his  feet§ ;  he  is  recumbent  and  the  legs  are 
crossed  ;  this  is  supposed  to  be  the  tomb  of  Sir  Ralph  Wysham.  The 
liuu  at  his  feet  (which  looks  more  like  a  dog)  gave  rise  to  a  legend 
current  amongst  the  peasantry  to  this  day,  that  as  Sir  Ralph  was 
one  day  walking  with  his  dog,  from  Woodmanton  to  Clifton,  he 
fell  down  dead  under  a  yew  tree,  where  he  was  found  lying  on  his 
back,  with  his  legs  crossed,  and  his  faithful  dog  crouching  at  his 

*  Sep  "  .\stley,"  ns  to  tliis  niinir, 

+  See  "  ?"oIk  Ijoro." 

+  Sep  Nasli.  Vol.  i..  pp.  -^4,;  -.240. 

§  ]h„l.^  p.  ■'A'^. 


25a 

feet.  Sir  Ralph  is  supposed  to  have  been  a  crusader.  The 
family  arms  are  represented  in  the  painted  window  of  Woodman- 
ton  Chapel,  and  in  other  windows  of  the  church.  Sable,  a  fess 
argent,  between  six  martlets  of  the  second*.  Martlets,  it  is  said, 
were  depicted  on  the  shields  of  the  crusaders. 

The  old  moated  f  wooden  mansion  was  taken  down  in  the  early 
part  of  the  present  century,  and  rebuilt  of  stone  by  the  late 
Martin  Coucher,  Esq.  In  my  juvenile  days,  my  venerable  grand- 
mother used,  when  I  visited  her  at  the  old  mansion,  to  show  me 
one  of  those  remarkable  large  variegated  glass  beads  called  Druid's 
eggs  I  or  adder  gems,  which  some  antiquaries  suppose  were 
brought  from  the  east  by  the  crusaders  as  talismans  or  charms, 
as  a  portion  of  one  was  found  in  the  tomb  of  the  crusader  Udard 
de  Broham§.  Others  say  that  they  were  Druidical,  and  of  Phoe- 
nician manufacture  I ]. 

The  following  extract,  from  Nash,  bears  upon  the  subject  of 
the  Woodmanton  estate  being  a  manor  to  itself  IT : — "  There  are 
two  very  ancient  deeds  in  Latin,  without  date,  in  the  possession 
of  Francis  Ingram,  of  Ticknell,  Esq.,  owner  of  the  Upper  Home, 
in  Clifton,  whereby  some  lands  are  granted  to  his  ancestor,  then 
owner  of  the  Home,  or  Ham  (it  being  called  Home  in  the  one 
grant  and  Ham  in  the  other) ;  and  these  grants  are  made  to  hold 

*  See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.  93. 

f  It  is  said  there  were,  at  the  quadrangles  of  the  inner  margin  of  the  moat, 
four  loop-holed  round  towers  or  turrets  of  stone ;  only  one  now  remains.  The 
draw-bridge  was  taken  down,  and  part  of  the  moat  filled  up,  probably  about  a 
century  and  a  half  ago,  after  the  conclusion  of  the  civil  war. 

X  "  Anguina  ova,"  or  Druid's  eggs  of  Pliny. 

§  Situate  within  the  chancel  of  the  parish  church  of  Brougham,  in  West- 
moreland, 

II  See  the  "  Archseologia"  thereon,  Vol.  xxxiv.,  p.  46  to  50,  and  the  "  Archaeo- 
logical Juimial,"  of  the  Institute,  Vol.  iii.,  p.  .354,  and  Vol.  iv.,  p.  CO. 
Also,  vide  tlie  "  Proceedings  of  tlie  Archaeological  Institute  at  Salisbury, 
1849,"  p.  3,  relative  to  the  "  gleyn  neyder,  or  holy  adder  stone,"  said 
to  have  been  found  in  a  cist  in  a  tumulus  near  Winterboume  Stoke, 
containing  "  circular  lines  of  opaque  sky-blue  and  white,  representing  a  serpent 
entwined  round  a  perforated  centre." 

•I    Vol.  ii.,  Con-ociions  and  ,\(lditi<)U.'-,  p.  H. 


253 

of  the  grantor  and  his  heirs,  and  not  of  the  lord  of  the  fee,  which 
must  be  antecedent  to  the  year  1290,  when  the  statute  of '  Quia 
emptores  terrarum'  was  made,  which  prohibits  such  inferior  hold- 
ings. The  deeds  are  in  good  preservation  ;  the  one  is  by  Lucianus 
de  Woodmanton,  and  the  other  by  Elias  Venator  de  Woodmanton, 
and  the  name  of  the  former  is  still  legible  on  the  seal ;  and  the 
'  habendum'  and  '  tenendum'  is  '  de  me  et  haeredibus  meis  pro  ser- 
vitio,'  &c.  Woodmanton  was  formerly  the  Wysham's,  and  adjoins 
to  the  Upper  Home  or  Ham,  the  ancient  estate  and  residence  of 
the  Ingrams." 

John  Coucher,  who  purchased  the  Woodmanton  estate  in  1569, 
was  High  Bailiff  of  Worcester  in  1563  and  1565*.  John,  his 
son  (Alderman  of  Worcester)  was  Bailiff  of  that  city  in  1593  and 
1595f,  and  also  a  burgess  in  several  parliaments,  temp.  James  I. 
and  Charles  1. 1  In  Green's  "  History  of  Worcester,"  Vol.  ii., 
p.  36,  there  is  a  curious  account  (dated  28th  January,  19th 
James  I.,  1620)  of  the  wages,  2s.  Qd.  a-day,  paid  by  the  citizens 
to  their  members,  Robert  Barkeleyand  Mr.  Coucher  §,  for  attend- 
ing the  parliament. 

The  alderman's  son,  Edmond,  married  Anne,  eldest  daughter 
of  Philip  Bearcroft,  of  ^leer-gi'een  Hall!|,  Esq.,  as  appears  by  the 
pedigree  of  Bearcroft  in  the  Herald's  Visitation,  Worcester,  in 
16824.  Edmond's  sister  (Mary)  IT  married  George  Twitty,  of 
Clifton-upon-Teme,  as  appears  by  the  pedigree  of  Twitty  in  the 
same  Visitation.  Edmonds  grandson,  Thomas  (son  of  his  son 
Edmond)  in  1726,  married  Susannah**,  daughter  of  Edward 
Ingram,  of  Upper  Home,  or  Ham,  Esq.,  by  his  wife  Susannah, 
daughter  of  John  Co.x,  Esq  ,  of  Clent. 

•  See  Nash,  Vol.  ii..  Appendix,  112. 

t  Ibid. 

I  7Wrf.,  Vol.  i.,  Intr.,  p.  3(1, 

§  He  was  also  one  of  those  who  were  appointed  aldermen  in  the  charter  of 
the  2nd  of  October,  in  the  lllth  year  of  James  I.,  1020. 

il  In  the  parish  of  Hanbury. 

^  There  is  a  blank  for  her  name  in  the  Visitation  Book,  but  I  have  supplied 
it  from  the  will  of  her  eldest  brother,  Thomas  Coticher,  dated  in  lfi4.3, 

••   She  was  his  second  wife. 


•i54 

In  SHELSLEY  WALSH,  or  Little  Shelsley,  tliere  is  Witchery 
Hole*.  This  parish  was  anciently  called  Caldesley,  Seldesley, 
and  Sheldesley ;  and  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Caldeslei, 

In  SHELSLEY  BEAUCHAMP,  or  Great  Shelsley,  there 
are  Street  Bank,  Camp  HiU,  Big  Holbourn,  Round  Hill,  Poke 
Meadow,  Hell  Hole,  Harborough  Hill,  and  Barrel  Heald,  or 
Barrel  Hill.  It  was  anciently  called  Sholdesley,  and  in  "  Domes- 
day," Celdeslai.  There  is  a  hamlet  in  this  parish  called  Shelsley 
Kings. 


See  "  Folk-Lore." 


»55 


Iter  ll||. 
— ♦ — 

ANCIENT  EOAD  FROM  MALVERN  HILLS  TO 
TENBURY,  &c. 

A  BRANCH  road  from  the  Malvern  line*  may  have  gone  north- 
westward fi'om  Cowley  Parkf,  in  Leigh  (at  the  end  of  the  North 
Malvern  Hill),  through  Cradley,  in  Herefordshire,  by  Ridgeway 
Cross  I,  along  the  Ridgeway,  and  by  the  Ridgeway  Oak  ;  thence 
through  Acton  Beaucliarap,  in  Worcestersliire,  and  Woffenvood 
Common,  Avenbury,  Clatei-park,  Bromyard  Downs,  and  by  Broad 
Oak  and  Brockampton,  in  Herefordshire  ;  thence  through  Edwin 
Loach,  a  detached  part  of  Worcestershire  (where  there  is  a  camp), 
and  by  Wall  Hill  Camp,  at  Thornbury,  west  of  Collington  ;  thence 
by  Lower  Sapey  and  through  Upper  Sapey(  between  which  and  Shels- 
ley  Walsh  Uiere  is  a  camp  at  Farmers'  Copse,  on  the  border  between 
Worcestershire  and  Herefordshire) ;  thence  by  Stoke  Bhssand  Wol- 
verlow  otherwise  Wolferlow,  in  Plerefordshire,  and  by  Handley  Wil- 
liam, Handley  Child,  and  Kyre  to  Tenbury  in  Worcestershire;  from 
whence  it  may  have  continued  northwai'd  to  Edge  Hill,  and  the 
ancient  encampment  at  Titterstone §,  on  Clee  Hill,  in  Shropshire. 

In  MATHON  (or  Mathiu)  which  is  paitly  in  Worcester- 
shire and  partly  in  Herefordshire,  there  are  Street  IVIeadow, 
llorsenett's  Coppice,  Horsenetts,  Rowburrow  Wood,  Clater 
Park,    Castle    Field,    Castle    Bank,    Little    Castle,    the   Yell, 

♦    Sec  p.  '^-'SS. 

+   Sec  Clmi).  iv.,  rflativc  to  the  lioar-stone  in  tlmt  piirt. 

J  Where  it  jirohably  cnisseil  the  Portway  hereinnfter  described.  See 
Iter  XIV. 

§  See  "  Hoar  Stones,"  Cliap.  iv.,  conceniinp  one  of  the  suniniils  of  Titter 
stone  called  Wareilge. 


J256 

and  Penfield,  Pen  Coppice*,  Quin  Hill,  Cotherwood,  Jack 
Field  and  Jack  Field  Coppice,  Lower  Dobbins,  Dobbin's  Meadow, 
Gronage  Moor  Meadow,  Colwell  Hill  Orchard,  Little  Be^^•et's, 
Moundings,  Imburrow  Field,  Eve  Nuts,  Axdown,  Rail's  Nap, 
Backburrow  Coppice  and  Orchard,  Long  Mondene  and  Quin 
Hill. 

In  "  Domesday  Book,"  Mathon  is  called  Matma.  In  con- 
junction with  the  names  "Yell  and  Penfield,"  we  may  mention 
Yell  Bank  and  Yell  Coppice,  in  Holt  and  Little  Witley ;  Yell's 
Meadow,  in  Great  Witley  ;  the  Yeld  and  Yeld  Coppice,  in  Acton 
Beauchamp ;  the  Yellings  (a  common  meadow),  in  Chasely ; 
Yeld  Meadow,  in  the  parish  of  St.  Peter's  Worcester ;  Yeld  Wood, 
in  Abbot's  Lench,  Fladbury ;  Burcott  Yeeld,  Shepley  Yield,  and 
Wood  Coat  Yield,  in  Bromsgrove  ;  Yelters,  in  Longdon  ;  the 
Yield,  in  Astley  ;  the  Yells,  in  Sutton  in  Tenbuiy  ;  and  the  Yeld, 
in  Rochford.  As  the  name  Yell,  in  Mathon,  is  connected  with 
the  name  Penfield,  we  may  perhaps  be  allowed  to  suppose  that  in 
the  latter  place  cattle  were  penned  f  up  to  feed,  and  in  the  former 
were  slaughtered.  If,  however,  the  name  Yell,  instead  of  mean- 
ing a  cry  of  horror,  is  a  corruption  of  "  yield,"  it  means  productive 
land ;  but  it  must  be  observed  here,  that  in  North  Devonshire 
there  is  a  belief  in  a  spectral  pack  called  "  yeth  hounds,"  or 
"yell  hounds,"  supposed  to  be  the  disembodied  or  transmigrated 
spirits  of  unbaptized  children,  which  having  no  resting-place 
wander  about  the  woods  at  night,  making  a  wailing  noise  |. 

In  CRADLEY,  Herefordshire,  there  are  Tump  Hill,  Dole 
Field,  Stoney  Cross,  Upper  Barrow  or  Upper  Berrow,  BaiTow 
Coppice,  BaiTOw  Meadow,  Barrow  Field,  Barrow  Wood,  Lower 
Barrow  Wood,  Little  Barrow  Wood,  Round  Hill,  the  Vineyard, 
Great   Vineyard    Wood,    Little    Vineyard    Coppice,   Riderdine 

•  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p,  404,  &c.,  notices  Peiiliyll  or  Penhulle,  in  Wor- 
cestershire.    There  is  Penhill  in  Lulsley. 

+  Tlie  Saxon  word  "  Pen,"  signifying  an  enclosure  for  sheep.  See  further 
as  to  this  word  in  the  account  of  Cruckbarrow  Hill. 

J  See  further  on  this  subject,  and  also  as  to  the  wish  or  wisked  hounds,  in 
the  "  Athenaeum"  for  March  27,  1847,  pp.  334,  335,  and  also  as  to  the  wisked 
hounds  in  the  aooount  of  the  Pixies,  in  the  "  Folk-l.ore." 


257 

Coppice,  Stirt  Meadow,  Dane  Hop-yard,  Baldridge,  Ilidgeley,  Walls- 
field  Meadow,  Wallsfield  Orles,  Jumper's  Hole*,  Park  Barrow  Or- 
chard, Park  Barrow  Coppice,  Hidelow  Alders,  Astwood  or  Pimple 
Hill,  Harrold's  Coppice,  Harrold's  Orchard,  Harrold's  Meadow, 
Leitchcroft,  Further  Leitchcroft,  Leitchcroft  Coppice,  Leitchcroft 
Orchard,  Mobbledepleck  Orchard,  or  Mobled  Pleck,  or  Mabled- 
pleckf,  Harrell's  Gardens,  Big  Harrells,  Little  Harrells,  Wofrick, 
Coneycut  Hill,  Bears  Wood  J,  Bears  Wood  Common,  Ridgeway 
Cross,  Ridgeway,  and  Ridgeway  Oak. 

The  name  Cradley  is  written  Credleaie  in  "  Domesday  Book," 
and  Cyrdesleah  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  Charter,  No.  755,  in  the 
"  Codex  Dip." 

In  ACTON  BEAL'CHAMP  there  are  Yagtree,  Goddis Pit,  Camp 
Coppice,  Camp  Field,  Yeld  Coppice,  the  Yeld,  the  Croat,  Balletts, 
Winthill§,  Peppin  Hill,  Puckhills  Coppice,  Puckhills  Ashbed, 
Puckhills  Orles,  Puckhills  Orchard,  Puckhills  Field,  Puckhills 
Hopyard,  Upper  Puckhill  and  Lower  Puckhill'i.  Hemiug,  in 
his  "Cartulary,"  p.  361,  notices  Hawkeridge,  Scot's  Path*;,  Sal- 
ter's Way,  and  Elfstan's  Grove,  as  being  the  boundaries  of 
Acton  Beauchamp,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times.  See  also  Nash, 
Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  58.  Acton,  in  "Domesday,"  spelled  "  Actune," 
signifies  the  Oak-Town. 

In  AVENBURY,  Herefordshire,  there  is  a  place  called  Big 
Castle  Field. 

In  ULLINGSWICK,  Herefordshire,  there  are  eight  pieces  of 
land  called  by  the  name  of  Hoarstone ;  two  called  Hoarstone 
Length,  and  one  Hoarstone  Piece.  Also  places  called  Street-end 
Orchard,  Street-end  Garden,  and  Street-end  Meadow. 

*  There  is  also  a  place  called  .luinper's  Hole,  in  Whslpley  Brook,  Stanford 
Re^s,  near  Stanford  Bishop,  Co.  Hereford,  where  there  are  some  of  tliose  re- 
markable indentations  in  the  old  red  sandstone,  referred  to  in  my  pamphlet 
upon  that  subject. 

+  See  the  ''  Folk- Lore." 

*  See  pp.  isy,  190. 

5   Perhaps  meaning  Wins  Hill.     See  the  "  Folk-Lore." 
Ij    See  the  '•  Folk- Lore." 

^  Also  see  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  .'^70,  as  to  Scotta  PiPth. 

S 


258 

In  TEDSTONE  DELAMERE,  in  Herefordshire,  there  are 
Burlip  Hill,  Pixall  or  Pixhill,  Folly  Coppice,  Vineyard,  the  Gob- 
bets, Hoarstone,  and  Kit  Batch*. 

EDVIN  LOACH,  a  detached  portion  of  Worcestershire,  con- 
taining a  camp,  was  formerly  called  Yedfen,  or  Yedfen  Loges, 
and  anciently  Edevent. 

In  COLLINGTON,  Herefordshire,  there  are  Castle  Field, 
Castle  Meadow,  Castle  Leasow,  Hoarstone  Leys,  Hoarstone 
Leasow,  Hoarstone  Piece,  Hoarstone  Hop-yard,  and  Hoarstone 
Meadow. 

At  THOPtNBURY,  a  few  miles  west  of  Collington.  there  is  a 
large  camp,  called  Wall  Hill  Camp.  It  "  has  a  triple  intrench- 
ment,  almost  perfect,  and  is  supposed  to  be  the  work  of  the 
ancient  Britons  under  Caractacusf :"  if  so  it  was  doubtless  after- 
wards occupied  by  the  Piomans,  and  acquired  a  Roman  name  *. 
Its  shape  also  is  more  Roman  than  British.  See  the  Ordnance 
Map. 

In  BOCKLETON,  or  Bokelton,  in  "  Domesday"  Boclintun, 
there  are  Upper  Quinton  and  Lower  Quinton. 

In  LOWER  SAPEY,  or  SapeyPritchard,  named  in  "  Domesday 
Book"  Sapie,  there  are  Gospel  Green,  Ankstry  Field,  and  Tut- 
batch.  It  is  called  Sapian  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  Charter,  No.  142, 
in  the  "  Codex  Dip." 

In  UPPER  SAPEY,  Herefordshire,  there  are  Colly,  Ivintall, 
Callowbrain  Orchard,  Pouk  Lane,  Criftin,  Sivy  Yam,  Warden's 
Grove  (in  Criftin  Farm),  and  Camp  Field. 

In  STOKE  BLISS  (including  Little  Kyre),  wliich  is  partly  in 
Worcestershire  and  partly  in  Herefordshire,  there  are  Camp  (in 
Thorn  Farm),  Camp  (in  Garmsley),  Powk  House  Meadow  and 
Field,  Hockeridge,  Camp  Orchard,  Ick  Field,  Red  Castle  Or- 
chard and  Meadow,  Old  Wall,  and  Vineyard. 

In  WOLVERLOW,  Herefordshii-e,  there  are  Round  Hill,  Hare 
Hill,  and  Slatherbatch. 

•   See  p.  242,  as  to  this  name. 

+  See  Lewis's  "  Topographical  Dictionary." 

J   See  pp.  15fi,  255. 


259 

In  HANLEY  WILLIAM,  or  Upper  Hanley,  in  Eastham, 
there  are  Bowcutt,  Bowcutt  Field,  Upper  and  Lower  Hur  Cott, 
.  Wolf  Piece,  and  the  Quob  Meadow.  This  place,  in  "  Domesday," 
is  named  Hanlege. 

In  HANLEY  CHILD,  or  Lower  Hanley,  in  Eastham,  there 
are  Castle  Acre,  The  Dumps,  Impy  Orchard,  Tuck  Hill,  Tuck  Hill 
Leasow,  Upper  and  Lower  Tuck  Hill,  Yeld  Orchard,  and  Pooten's 
Hole*.     In  "  Domesday  Book"  it  is  spelled  Henelege. 

KYRE  WYRE  was  anciently  called  Cure  Wyard.  In 
"  Domesday,"  Cuer.  In  Isaac  Taylor's  Map,  there  is  a  place 
called  Romen,  situated  between  Kyre  and  Bockleton. 

TENBURY,  Temebury,  or  Temebyrig,  in  Worcestershire,  was 
anciently  called  Tametdebirie.  In  "  Domesday,"  Tamedeberie 
and  Tametdeberie. 

In  the  township  of  Tenbury  there  are  places  called  Castle 
Meadow,  The  Burgage,  Round  Hill,  and  Cat  Brain. 

In  the  Foreign  of  Tenbuij  there  are  places  called  Terrill's 
Orchard,  Terrill's  Meadow,  Dagger's  Orchard,  Round  Bank,  and 
Round  Hopyard. 

In  BERRINGTON,  in  Tenbury,  there  are  places  called  Kit 
Castle  Orchard,  Castle  Meadow,  Cadmoor  Field,  and  Cadmoor 
Meadow. 

In  SUTTON,  in  Tenbury,  there  are  Round  Hill,  Nine  Holes 
Orchard,  Nine  Holes  Hopyard,  Nine  Holes  Piece,  Dicker's  Hole, 
Quantrals,  Egdon,  Big  Egdon,  Little  Egdonf,  Sitch  Meadow, 
Bewell  Field,  Jacksbutts,  The  Yells,  and  Gadnal's  Grove. 

The  Ordnance  Map  notices  the  Castle  Tump  on  the  north- 
west side  of  the  town  of  Tenbury  and  Callow's  Grave  J,  within  a 
mile  south  of  that  town. 

Berrington  is  supposed  to  have  been  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
Marks  §. 

In  BRIMFIELD,  Herefordshire,  in  the  line  between  Tenbury 

*  See  the  "  Folk-Lore." 
f  See  also  "  Stone." 

J    Vide  mention  of  CiiUow's  Leap,  in  Alfrick,  p.  24fi ;  and  in  the  account  of 
the  Jovial  Hunter  of  Bronisj^ove,  p.  I'^S;  and  in  the  "  Folk  Lore." 
§  See  p.  229. 


260 

and  Croft  Ambrey,  there  are  Kyle  Alley,  High  Orca,  and  Camp 
Orchard. 

In  ORLETON,  Herefordshire,  adjoining  Brimfield  and 
Richard's  Castle  Parish,  there  are  places  called  the  Portway*, 
Portway  Orchard,  Portway  House,  Camp  Orchard,  Camp  Piece, 
Storrel's  Stocking,  Wolfin's  Dens,  and  Hare's  Croft. 

•  See  Ordnance  Map. 


§ii^ 


361 


|to  fill. 

— ♦ — 

SUPPOSED  ANCIEiNT  KOAD  FEOM  WOECESTEE 
TO  TENBUEY,  &c. 

This  supposed  road  probably  went  from  Worcester*,  through 
Oldbury,  near  Upper  Broad  Heath,  in  the  parish  of  St.  John, 
(thought  to  have  been  the  Castra  (Bstiva^,  or  summer  quarters  of 
the  Roman  gariison  of  Worcester) ;  thence  by  Green  Street  Farm, 
in  Hallow,  through  Wichenford ;  by  Grimley,  Holt,  and  Little 
Witley,  to  the  Camp  at  Woodbury  Hill,  in  Great  Witley,  and 
Cold  Camp.  It  then  either  crossed  the  Teme  at  Stanford,  and 
went  along  the  south  side  of  that  river  through  Orleton,  Eastham, 
and  Rochford,  to  Tenbury ;  or  continued  from  Great  Witley  along 
the  northern  side  of  the  river,  through  Stockton,  Pensax,  Rock, 
Lindridge,  and  Knighton,  to  Tenbury.  Both  these  lines  were 
most  probably  used. 

In  the  parish  of  ST.  JOHN,  in  Bedwardine,  otherwise 
Beodwardin,  there  are  places  called  Ridgeway  Meadow,  Stan 
Field,  Black  Jack's  Hole|,  The  Eight  Ridges,  Oseby  Meadow, 
The  Yell,  Oldbury,  and  Hogmore  Hill.  It  is  a  question  whether 
the  proper  authography  of  this  latter  place  is  not  Ogmore,  inasmuch 
as  there  are  Ogmore  Castle,  Ogmor  River,  Ogmoor  Down,  Ogor, 
and  Ogor  River,  in  Glamorganshire ;  Ogwen  River,  in  Carnar 
vonshire ;  Ogbury  Ring  ^,  the  parish  of  Ogbourn  St.  George,  or 

•  See  pp.  1  to  ■)-i,  on  tlic  ancient  British,  R<jiiiau,  and  other  relics  found  at 
or  near  Worcester. 

+  See  pp.  .'>4,  '■\^,  a.s  to  this  camp. 

X   See  the  "  Folk- Lore." 

5   Sep  fiough's  •'  Cftrnden,'   second  rdilion,  Vol.  i.,  p.  1;^.'^. 


Q6S 

Great  Okebiu-n ;  and  Ogbourne  St.  Andrews,  or  Little  Okebum, 
in  the  county  of  Wilts.  These  names  may  either  be  derived 
from  the  British  word  "  Ogo,"  which  means  a  cave,  or  from 
Ogmius*,  the  Hercules  of  the  Gauls.  The  Ogofau  Mine,  in 
Cai'marthenshire,  is  supposed  to  have  been  worked  by  the 
Romans  f. 

To  return  to  St.  John's.  In  Chap,  iv.,  "  Hoar  Apple  Tree"  is 
mentioned  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Wyke  \,  near  Doferic, 
(Doveridge),  where  the  Teme  joins  the  Severn ;  and  "  Hoar  Ley," 
in  the  boundaries  of  Lawern.  It  is  stated,  in  Heming's  "  Cartu- 
lary," p.  349,  and  in  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  4(5, 
that  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Clopton  there  were  places 
called  Wulfric's  Mere,  ^Ifric's  Mere,  The  Military  Way  §,  Ceolan 
Way  'I,  and  King's  Thane  Mere.  The  "  Cartulary,"  in  pp.  135,  349, 
also  mentions  "  Old  Street,"  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of 
Clopton ;  and  in  pp.  161,  349,  "  Port  Street,"  on  the  boundaries 
of  Lawern^.  Nash  says,  that  in  "  Domesday,"  Clopton  (Clop- 
tune)  is  stated  to  be  held  of  the  manor  of  Wyke,  or  Wiche.  In 
Heming's  "  Cartulaiy,"  pp.  349,  350,  both  Clopton  and  Cothe- 
ridge  are  described  as  abutting  upon  Bridge-bourne  Ford ;  Clopton 
upon-Lawem,  and  Terae ;  Cotheridge-upon-Teme,  and  Braines- 
ford,  or  Bransford.  I  mention  this,  because  the  name  Clopton  is 
not  now  known  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  parish  of  St.  John ;  and 

♦  There  are  Ogham  Stoues  ui  the  south  of  Ireland  and  in  Wales,  wliich  are 
inscribed  in  the  Ogham  character,  supposed  to  be  Druidical.  %)me  have  said 
that  they  are  so  called  from  Ogham,  the  Hercules  of  the  Gauls.  See  Lady 
Chatterton's  work  relative  to  these  inscriptions,  and  also  the  "  Journal  of  tlie 
Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  iii.,  p.  175;  Vol.  vii.,  p.  409;  and  Vol.  ix., 
pp.  110,  117.  In  the  latter  number  it  is  said,  "The  designation  Ogham 
Craobh,  or  branching  type,  had  reference  to  the  supposed  resemblance  of 
such  inscription  to  a  tree ;  the  letters  also,  it  is  said,  were  named  from  trees, 
and  the  inscriptions  were  either  on  wooden  tablets  or  on  stones." 

+  See  the  above  Journal,  Vol.  \i.,  p.  55. 

I  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  (35,  126  and  1358,  as  to  AVick  and  Lower  Wick. 

§  Or  Herepath. 

{{   Keel -way. 

%  Sec  "  Codox  Dip.,"  No.  120,  120  App.,  Vol.  iil.,  .^c,  as  to  Lawcrii  River 
and  No.  Trl,  iis  i..  Lawnrn  Wyl  (W.-ll). 


263 

in  the  Index  to  the  "  Codex  Diplomaticus  Aevi  Saxonici,"  it  is 
considered  to  mean  Clapton,  in  Gloucestershire. — See  the  Char 
ters  649,  666,  and  7M,  relative  to  Cloptiin  (Clopton),  in  that  very 
valuahle  work.  It  is  called  Cloptone  in  "  Domesday  Book." 
With  respect  to  the  name  "  Hoar  Apple  Tree,"  it  appears  that 
apple  trees  are  of  very  ancient  growth  in  this  country,  vide 
Whitaker's  "  History  of  Manchester,"  Vol.  ii.,  pp.  49-.55.  Dr. 
Davis,  in  his  "  Celtic  Researches,"  says  that  the  apple  tree  was 
considered  by  the  Druids  the  next  sacred  tree  to  the  oak,  and  that 
orchards  of  it  were  planted  by  them  in  the  vicinity  of  their  groves 
of  oak*. 

In  the  time  of  Wolstan,  Bishop  of  Worcester,  nick-named 
Reprobate  (who  lived  in  the  reigns  of  Ethelred  II.,  Edmund  II., 
and  Canute),  there  was  a  place  near  Droitwich  called  Thiccan 
Apel  Treo  (Thiccan  Apple  Treef). 

With  respect  to  the  name  Bedwardine,  or  Beodwardine,  Dr. 
Nash  J  derives  it  from  the  Saxon  word  Beod  [Breod],  bread  or 
table,  and  Worthig,  a  large  field  or  close  ;  and  states  that  it  is 
often  corruptly  changed  into  Wardin  or  Worthen  ;  and  that  Beod- 
wardine signifies  a  portion  of  gi'ound  allotted  to  supply  the  table 
of  the  refectory  with  provisions.  A  question,  however,  may  be 
raised,  whether  the  prefix  to  the  name  Bedwardine  does  not  come 
from  the  French  "  bord,"  a  border,  and  that  it  and  the  suffix 
mean  the  Bord-worthig,  or  boundary-field  or  close  of  the  city. 
The  parish  of  St.  Micliael,  in  Bedwardine,  is  also  on  the  boun- 
dary of  Worcester. 

In  HALLOW,  Hollow,  Hallage,  or  Halnegan,  in  Griraley, 
adjoining  St.  John's  parish,  there  are  places  called  Nether  Street, 
Little  Street,  The  Camp,  Camp  Leys,  Green  Street  Farm,  Copern 
Pit,  Puck  ]\Ieadow,  Green  Street  Field  and  Meadow,  Princevana 
Meadow,  Princevana,  Quincehill  Vineyard,  Estburj',  and  Henwick 
or  llhiwyke§.     The  name  Hallow  is  spelled  Halhagan,  in  the 

•  See  "  Botanical  Lnoker-Uiu,"  by  Mr.  E.  Lees,  ji.  1-1. 

t  See  Dr.  Tll(>Illa^,'s  "  Siir>ey  of  Worcester  Catliedral,"  &c.,  A.  (>();  also 
Cbap.  iv.  of  this  work,  us  to  several  Hoar  Apple  Trees. 

*  Vol.  ii.,  p.  .•U!t. 

§   See  Heiiiiiid's    "  Cartulary,"  p.  ■)7  i. 


264 

"  Codex  Dip.,"  Charter,  No.  209,  Appendix,  Vol.  iii.,  which 
notices  Salt  Street,  Grimeshill,  Hoar  Apple-tree,  Portway,  and 
Wontesdic,  as  boundaries  thereof. 

See  Chap,  iv.,  as  to  "  Hoar-stone,"  and  "  Hoar  Apple-tree," 
in  this  parish. 

In  WICHENFORD  there  is  a  place  called  Horsage  Orchard. 
See  pp.  149,  150,  concerning  Roman  coins  found  there;  and 
hereafter,  in  Chap.  I.,  on  the  derivation  of  the  name. 

In  GRIMLEY,  are  Upper,  Middle,  and  Lower  Camp  Piece  ; 
Camp  Orles,  Camp  Leys,  Cobs  Orchard,  Cobs  Coppice  ;  Robin's 
Acre,  The  Nokin  Piece,  Lower  Nokin  Close,  Round  Hill,  First 
and  Second  Stitches,  Jack  Stile  Acres,  Sturt  Orchard,  Ridge's 
Top,  Okeridge,  and  Upper  Okeridge  Field,  Ramplis  Coppice, 
Wall  Batch,  Wall  Croft,  Wire  Meadow,  Warley,  W^arley  Meadow, 
Wartly  Moors ;  Big,  Upper,  and  Lower  Willtree,  and  Hares 
Moor. 

This  pai-ish  is  called  Grimanleah,  Grimanlea,  and  Grimgelege, 
in  Anglo-Saxon  charters*.  Heming,  in  his  "  Cartulary "  pp. 
148,  417,  notices  the  Hearpath  (Herepath),  or  Military  Way,  on 
the  boundaries  of  Grimley.  The  name  is  spelled  Grimanleh  in 
"  Domesday  Bookf."  Dr.  Nash  says,  Grimley  means  Grimes 
Field |.  "  Wire"  signifies  a  wear;  there  having  been  several 
wears  on  the  Severn  in  days  of  yore§. 

In  HOLT,  with  LITTLE  WITLEY,  are  Yell  Coppice,  Hawke- 
ridge  ||  Wood,  Battle  Well  Hopyard,  The  Baides,  Round  Hill, 
Turpin  Field,  Hares  Hill  Field,  Hares  Hill  Orchard,  Hurry's 
Oak,  and  Quinlon.  Holt  is  an  Anglo-Saxon  word,  signifying  a 
wood  or  forest.  Holt  Fleet,  situated  by  the  Severn,  is  derived 
from  the  Saxon  words,  "  Holt,"  a  wood,  and  "  Fleet,"  a  running 
stream. 

•  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No. 266,  266  App.,  Vol.  iii.;  514,  514  App.,  Vol.  vi,  ; 
515,  515,  App.,  Vol.  iii. ;  and  1069  ;  also  Grimanhyl,  No.  466. 

+  "Domesday"    also  notices  Gremaiihil. 

J  See  p.  150,  concerning  ancient  relics  found  in  this  parish ;  and  also 
"  Folk-Lore." 

§   See  pp.  .S4-:)5. 

Ij  On  the  Anglo  Saxon  boundiirips  of  Bentlry. — (See  "  Codex  r)ip.,"  No. 
4PC.  40R  Apr,  Vol,  iii.  ;  and  570  ;  nnd  Homing's  ''  Cartulary,"   Vol.  ii.,  p.  :i5'.].) 


265 

In  SHRAWLEY  there  are  places  caUed  Round  Hill,  and  The 
Folly.  Its  ancient  name  was  Shraueley.  "  Immediately  below 
Shrawley  Court,  now  a  farm-house,  are  some  artificial  mounds, 
known  by  the  name  of  the  Court  HUls,  or  Oliver's  Mound.  They 
were  raised  to  command  a  ford  over  the  river  Severn,  and  probably 
were  occupied  by  a  detachment  of  Cromwell's  army  immediately 
previous  to  the  battle  of  Worcester ='•."  These  may  have  been 
ancient  speculatories,  referred  to  in  the  account  of  Rochford,  near 
Tenbury. 

In  GREAT  WITLEY,  or  Wliitley,  are  Yells  Meadow,  Had 
Meadow,  Worstonf,  and  Woodbury  Hill.  It  was  anciently  called 
Wittley,  Witlega,  Witleaj,  and  Vecelage  ;  and  in  "  Domesday," 
Witlege.  Woodbury  Hill,  and  Camp,  are  mentioned  in  p.  214  ; 
and  "  Hoar  Grave,"  on  the  boundaries  of  Witlinc  and 
Hartlebury,  in  Chap.  iv. 

In  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  352,  there  is  an  account  of 
places  on  the  boundaries  of  Witley,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times 
called  Killau  Ridge,  Silway,  Yerdway,  and  the  Fig-tree.  They 
are  likewise  mentioned  by  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  49  :  and  the 
"  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  682,  notices  Cyllanhrygc,  or  Kyllanhrygc. 

The  previously-described  line  of  road  from  the  Camps,  on  the 
Malvern  Hills,  to  Woodbury  Hill  Camp,  probably  joined  the 
Worcester  and  Tenbury  line  of  road  at  or  near  Woodbury 
Hill. 

In  ABBERLEY,  near  Great  Witley,  there  are  Cobs  Hole,  Hares 
Hill,  Upper  and  Lower  Mogul  Tree  Bank,  Little  Warders,  Sturt 
Piece,  Ellbatch  Orchard,  Far  and  Near  EUbatch  Band,  Lower 
EUbatch  Coppice,  Upper  Ellbatch,  Radge  Coppice,  Catterbatch 
Piece,  Catterbatch  Meadow, |,  The  Dotch,  Dotch  Meadow,  Little 
Dotch,  The  Dots,  The  Vinne,  Vinne  Orchard,  Big  Vinne,  Little 
Vinne,  Great  Viney,  Sallens  Field  Orchard,  Sallens  Field, 
Coldwell  Hill,  Coldwell  Rough,  Coldwell  Coppice,  and  Coldwell 

•  Lewis's  "  Topographical  Dictionary." 

f   See  Isaac  Taylor's  map,  published  m  1772. 

♦  See  "  Coflpx  Dip.,"   No.  682. 

§  No.  l'2fi,  12fi  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  pp.  W\,  fi82,  1:169. 

;i   Thrrp  i^  f'HttcrhHll,  in  .Mfrirk.  — (Spp  Itrr  vi.,  pp.    24fi.  347.) 


266 

Piece*.  In  "  Domesday  "  it  is  called  Edboldelege.  (See  an 
account  of  Abberley  Hill,  in  pp.  214,  215.) 

In  STOCKTON,  anciently  written  Stotune,  there  are  places 
named  Upper  Lousy  Oak  and  Lower  Lousy  Oakf. 

ROCK. — Dr.  Nash  describes  a  service  or  sorb-tree  I,  growing 
in  this  parish,  and  much  venerated  on  account  of  its  scarcity  and 
supposed  virtues.  I  understand  that  the  fruit  of  it  is,  even  to 
this  day,  hung  up  by  the  peasantry  in  their  houses,  under  the 
idea  of  its  being  a  protection  against  witchcraft.  Nash  says  it  is 
vulgarly  called  the  "  Quicken  Pear-tree,"  and  stands  in  Wire 
Forest,  about  a  mile  from  Mopson's  Cross,  between  that  and 
Dowles  Brook.  Mr.  Lees  has  also  noticed  this  tree  at  some 
length,  and  given  an  engraving  of  it,  in  his  lecture  "  On  the 
Affinities  of  Plants  with  Man  and  Animals,"  wherein  he  says  it 
is  vulgarly  called  the  "  Whitty,"  or  "  Witten  Pear-tree,"  the 
leaves  being  similar  to  those  of  a  withy  or  willow §.  It  is  said 
the  service  or  sorb-tree  was  first  introduced  into  Britain  by  the 
Romans  II. 

It  has  been  supposed  by  some  writers  that  St.  Augustine's  Oak 
stood  in  this  parish.  This  point  is  discussed  in  my  notice  of 
Old  Storage,  Alfrick,  and  Abberley  Hill.  Rock  was  anciently 
called  Alwinton,  or  Aka,  from  the  Saxon  "  Ac,"  an  oak.  There 
is  a  chapelry  in  it  called  Heightington. 

In  LINDRIDGE  there  are  Toot  Hill^,  Castle  Hill,  Newnham 
or  Neowanham,  and  Hichen  Hill  Coppice.  It  is  said  there  is  an 
ancient  camp  about  three  miles  east  of  Tenbury,  and  within  about 
half  a  mile  of  the  Teme.  Anciently  the  orthography  of  this  place 
was  peculiarly  unsettled,  being  spelled  indifferently,  Lindrycg**, 
Linderyge,  Linderycgeas,  Lindrug,  Lindruge,  Lindrugge,  and 
Lindruggff-.     It  includes  Yerdiston,  Earston  or  Eardulveston, 

»  See  "  Malvern,"  p.  159. 

+  See  p.  148,  concerning  ancient  intrenchnients  there. 

I  Vol.  i.,  p.  10,  &c. 

§  There  is  a  tree  of  the  kind  in  the  grounds  of  Upper  Arley  Castle. 

II  See  Whitaker's  "  History  of  Manchester,"  Vol.  ii.,  pp.  49  and  62. 
^   See  the  general  account  of  the  Toot  Hills,  p.  'i'^2,  &c. 

»•   See  "  Cndex  Dip.,"  No.  ."iTO. 

+  f  Sec  pp.  11^,  119,  as  to  an  ancient  relic  found  in  tliis  parish. 


267 

Knighton  or  Cnihteton,  and  Pensax.  Duke  Wifered,  and  Alta 
his  lady,  in  Offa's  reign,  gave  lands  in  Cnihtatan,  and  Neowenham, 
and  Eardulfeston.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  two  of  these  places 
are  called  Ardolvestone  and  Cnihtetone. 

In  STANFORD  *  {mlgo  Stamford)  there  are  Crate  Lane  f ,  South- 
stone  Rock  or  Southern's  Rotch,  Devil  s  Den,  and  Hell  Hole. 
Southstone  Rock  is  a  very  remarkable  mass  of  travertine  or  calca- 
reous matter,  situated  near  Stanford  Court  j,  by  the  river  Teme. 
It  is  noticed  by  Nash,  who  likewise  mentions  the  old  hermitage  that 
was  in  the  rock,  and  the  curious  offertory  dish§  that  belonged  to 
the  chapel  which  stood  on  the  top  of  the  rock.  Sir  R.  J. 
Murchison  has  described  this  rock  in  his  work  on  the  Silurian 
System.  It  was  formed  by  a  strong  spring  of  water,  impregnated 
with  carbonate  of  lime,  which  issues  from  its  summit,  and  now 
runs  down  the  other  side  of  the  mass||.  The  late  Mrs.  Sherwood, 
in  "  Southstone  Rock,"  graphically  described  the  beauties  of  the 
district,  and  the  interesting  legendary  stoiy  of  the  supposed  witch 
of  the  Black  Wood,  or  Devils  Den,  in  the  time  of  Richard  Cceur 
de  Lion.  The  Den  lies  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  her- 
mitage, and  is  thus  described  by  Mrs.  Sherwood  : — *'  The  Black 
Wood  was  a  narrow  dell,  deeply  enclosed  in  entangled  woods, 
lying  parallel  with  the  valley  of  Southstone,  yet  somewhat  lower 
down  the  stream.  The  country  people,  to  this  day,  give  it  names 
which  commemorate  its  former  evil  character.  The  Devil's  Den 
is  the  mildest  of  the  epithets  bestowed  on  this  sequestered  scene." 
There  is  a  remarkable  place  called  Witchery  Hole  in  the  ad- 
joining parish  of  Shelsley  Walsh,  otherwise  Little  Shelsley,  which 
will  be  more  particularly  noticed  in  the  "  Folk-Lore." 

With  respect  to  Hell  Hole,  there  are  many  remarkable  holes 
and  places  with  such  a  prefix  in  the  county ;  for  instance,  HeU 

»  The  name  is  written  Stanford,  in  tlie  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  509,  609  App., 
Vol.  iii. ;   and  Sumford,  in  "  Domesday  Book." 

+  See  .Vlfrick,  Iter  vi.,  p.  ^39. 

*  The  seat  of  Sir  Thomas  Edward  Winniiifi^ton,  Bart. 

§  Also  see  the  "  Itaiiibler  in  Worcestershire,"  published  1851,  pp.  174,  175. 

ll  Within  a  mile  of  liie  south  west  side  of  the  rock  there  is  a  place  called  the 
Camp,  whirl;  i^  said  to  lie  British. 


268 

Hole  Meadow,  in  Doverdale  ;  Hell  Hole,  in  the  parish  of  Elmley 
Castle  ;  Hell  Hole  and  Hell  Hole  Meadow,  in  Hampton  Lovett ; 
Hell  Ford,  in  Crome  Dabitot ;  Hell  Hole,  in  Knighton-on-Teme, 
near  Tenbury  ;  Hell  Patch,  in  Upton  Warren ;  Hell  Hole,  in 
Astley ;  Hell  Church,  in  Clent ;  Hell  Bank,  between  Stourbridge 
and  Hales  Owen ;  Hell  Hole,  in  Warley  Wigom  ;  Hell  Hole,  in 
Shelsley  Beauchamp,  or  Great  Shelsley ;  Hell  Hole  Coppice,  in 
Clifton-on-Teme  ;  and  Hell  Kitchen,  in  Newbold-on-Stour.  In 
•'  The  Eambler  in  Worcestershire,"  by  Mr.  John  Noake,  pub- 
lished in  1851*,  it  is  stated,  that  in  "  Hell  Hole"  (the  place  in 
question),  "  grows  the  plant  called  •  Devil's  bit,'  or,  succisa 
pratensis.  Tradition  says  that  this  plant  was  given  to  heal  man 
of  any  deadly  wounds  ;  but  that  when  Satan  saw  what  numbers 
of  the  human  race  it  deprived  him  of,  he,  in  spite,  bit  the  roots 
off,  whereupon  it  miraculously  grew  without  those  usually  neces- 
sary appendages  ;  and  this  is  the  reason  we  find  it  growing 
apparently  without  roots." 

In  the  hamlet  of  ORLETON,  in  the  parish  of  Eastham, 
there  are  ten  pieces  of  land  called  Wall  Hill ;  likewise, 
a  piece  called  Pendock  Meadow.  It  was  anciently  written 
Arleton  or  Horeleton  ;  and,  in  "  Domesday,"  Alretune. 

In  EASTHAM,  or  Estham  f ,  there  are  places  called  Bonfire 
Hill,  Round  Hill,  Quince  Hill,  Ridgeway,  and  Castle  Tump 
Meadow. 

In  ROCHFORD  there  are  Vigo  Meadow,  Vigo  Coppice, 
Camp,  Camp  Ashbed,  Debdat  Orchard,  The  Haggotts,  Rome  Hill, 
Tumpy  Piece,  Round  Hill,  Curter's  Wall,  The  Gobbets,  The 
Whurnhups,  The  Yeld,  The  Yeld  Ashbed,  Hardion  Piece  and 
Hardion  Orchard.  Rochford  was  a  detached  part  of  Hereford- 
shire, but  has  been  annexed  to  Worcestershire  by  the  Reform 
Bill.  It  is  said,  in  a  little  historj'  of  Tenbury,  that,  in  a  meadow 
close  to  Rochford  churchyard  there  still  exists  a  green  mound  on 
the  river  bank|,  thought  to  be  the  site  of  one  of  those  forts  called 
arces  spcculatoruc,  raised  upon  convenient  spots  for  watch  and 
ward. 

•  J>,  V.n.  t  "  Domesdny  Bonk." 

J  ThoiT  is  a  ford  afljoiiiiii};. 


269 

In  MAMBLE,  at  Soddington,  ancient  relics  have  been 
found*.     In  "  Domesday"  it  is  called  Mamele. 

In  BAYTON,  there  is  a  place  called  Norgroves-end  Farm. 

In  KNIGHTON,  or  Cnihtatun-on-Teme,  there  are  places  called 
Ceam  Owl,  Mancroft,  Hell  Hole,  DarnhiU  Orchard,  Damhill 
Homestead,  Over  Sale  Meadow,  Over  Sale  Field,  Kit  Laughton, 
and  Upper  Aston.  Dr.  Nash,  in  Vol.  ii.  of  his  "  History," 
p.  437,  says,  the  name  Knighton  means  "  the  town  of  soldiery." 

ANCIENT  CAMPS  ON  THE  NORTHERN  SIDE  OF 
THE  COUNTY. 

Most  of  the  camps  which  lie  on  or  near  the  northern  side  of 
the  county,  have  previously  been  described  in  the  account  of  the 
various  parishes  in  which  they  are  situated,  such  as  those  at 
Wichbury  Hill,  Clent  Hill,  Stourbridge  Common,  Kenvaur  Edge, 
Wassal  Hill,  or  Wars  Hill,  and  Over  Arley.  In  addition  to  these, 
we  may  add  a  camp  laid  down  in  the  Ordnance  Map,  on  the  north 
side  of  Wolverley,  near  High  Holbro' ;  and  another  called  Camp 
Hill,  near  Birmingham. 

•  Vide  pp.  146,  147,  148. 


270 


— ♦ — 

ANCIENT  EGAD  FKOM  DROITWICH  TO 
STOURBEIDGE. 

There  is  a  line  of  road  (mentioned  in  pp.  109,  110  of  this 
work)  which  runs  from  Droitwich,  by  Hampton  Lovett  and 
Doverdale,  through  Elrabridge,  Rushock,  Chaddesley  Corbett, 
Bluntington,  Tan  Wood  Common,  and  across  the  valley  at  Hill 
Pool  (where  there  formerly  existed  a  viaduct),  and  then  by  Bel- 
broughton,  and  through  Brome,  Clent,  and  the  south  side  of 
Hagley  parish,  and  over  Harborough  Common*,  and  through 
Pedmore  and  Old  Swinford,  to  Stourbridge  Common,  and  the 
camp  called  "  The  Church-yard,"  situate  by  Green's  Forge.  In 
one  part,  this  road  is  called  the  King's  Head  Land. 

The  following  names  occur  in  this  line  : — 

In  HAMPTON  LOVETT  there  are  places  called  HeU  Hole, 
Hell  Hole  Meadow,  and  Egg  Hill.  It  was  anciently  called  Han- 
tone,  Hanton,  and  Hante ;  and,  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Hamtune, 

In  DOVERDALE  there  are  Hell  Hole  Meadow  and  Round 
Hill.  It  was  anciently  called  Lunuredale,  and  Doudale  ;  and,  in 
"  Domesday,"  Lunuredele.  The  name  of  this  place  is  supposed 
to  have  been  derived  from  the  British  words,  "  Dur  "  (water),  and 
"  Dal  "  (a  valley),  which  are  faithfully  descriptive  of  its  situation, 
in  a  well- watered  valef.  In  the  Anglo-Saxon  times,  the  name 
was  spelled  Doferdsel  and  Douerdel  |. 

In  ELMBRIDGE  (a  chapelry  situated  in  DoderhUl,  in  the 

•  There  is  an  intrenchnient  at  Harborough  Ililh 

+  Lewis's  "  Topographical  Dictionary." 

J  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  .')0,  r)G  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  TJOS,  1^00. 


271 

parish  of  Droitwich)  there  are  places  named  Holbro'  Ground,  Great 
Caterans  Hill,  Catenis  Hill,  Kit  Pit,  and  Eadnal  Field.  In 
"  Domesday  Book,"  it  is  spelled  Elmerige. 

In  EUSHOCK  there  are  Bumble  Hole,  Oldburj-,  Big,  Little, 
Middle,  and  Far  Oldbury;  Wassal's  Meadow,  Jack  Meadow, 
Camp  Close,  Wattlestitch  Meadow,  Big  Trench,  Little  Trench, 
North  and  South  Conderlands,  Radnall,  and  Aston  Field.  It 
was  anciently  written,  Pdxuc*  and  llushoke  Eegis;  and,  in 
"  Domesday,"  Eussococ. 

In  CHADDESLEY  COEBETT  there  are  places  named  Tan 
Wood,  Tan  Wood  Meadow,  Lower  Tan  Wood  Meadow,  Tan  Wood 
Field,  Tin  Meadow,  Cannages  Moor,  Hackerage,  Bagnett,  The 
Dole,  Burnt  Oak,  Judy's  Close,  BHzzardines,  Hobf  Moor,  Har 
borough  Ash,  Eattlestones,  Warstone,  Little  Warstone,  The 
Warrage,  Dead  Moor,  Far  and  Near  Lincridge,  Lincridge 
Meadow,  Cakebole  Pool,  Near  and  Far  Cakebole  Meadow,  Eobin 
Hood's  Oak,  Yes  Hill,  Tagboume,  Sharrow  Point,  Astwood  Hill 
and  Meadow,  Barrow  Hill,  Barrow  Hill  Field,  Barrow  Hill  Lane 
Field,  Far  Long  Barrow  Field,  Long  Barrow  Field,  Little  Barrow 
Field,  Cross  Barrow  Field,  Ean  Dan  Woods,  Tatton  Hill,  and 
Dobies. 

Chaddesley  was  foiTuerly  called  Chadsley,  Ceadresleaghe,  and 
Caddeslai ;  in  "  Domesday,"  Cedeslai.  See  further,  as  to  this 
parish,  p.  124,  &c. 

In  Cakebold,  in  Chaddesley  Corbett,  there  are  Hither,  Further, 
and  Upper  Tin  Meadow. 

In  BELBROUGHTON  there  are  Hanging  Hill,  Barrow's  Croft, 
Round  Hill,  Tom  Hills,  Belsey  Field,  Radnall  Pit,  Bonfire  Hill, 
Big,  Little,  Middle,  and  Burnt  Lights,  Dane  Field,  Wall  Hill 
Strip,  Little  and  Great  Chenil,  Ran  Dan  Woods,  and  Cakebold  J. 

In  BROOME  there  is  a  place  called  Castle  Hedge. 

In  CLENT  there  are  places  named  Saltpit  Piece,  Upper  Worgen, 
Lower  Wargen,  Hill  Chm-ch,  Kitwell  Meadow,  Warstone,  The 
Beacon  Hill,  Little  Beacon  HiU,  Upper,  Middle,  and  Lower  Tin 

•  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  508,  508  App,,  Vol.  iii, 

t  See  tlie  "  Folk-Lore." 

\   See  p.  V-i'},  relative  to  Roman  relics  found  in  this  parish. 


•27-^ 

Fields,  aud  Castle  Hill  *.  Dr.  Nash  suggests  that  the  name 
Clent  is  a  corruption  of  the  British  word  "  glenn  ;"  and  adds, 
that  the  Cornish  "  glyn,"  the  Irish  "  gleann,"  and  the  Saxon 
"  glen,"  all  agree  with  the  British  "  glenn,"  in  denoting  a 
narrow  valley  or  dingle  encompassed  with  a  wood. 

CHURCHILL  f,  near  Kidderminster,  was  anciently  called 
Cercehall,  Cercehalle,  and  Chirchehylle ;  and,  in  "  Domesday," 
Cercehalle. 

In  HAGLEY  there  are  Dead  Marsh,  Hoar  Stone,  Big  and 
Little  Hoar  Stone,  The  Goers,  Wichbury  Hill,  Round  Hill  Wood, 
Beacon  Hill  Meadow,  Harberrow  Field  and  Common,  Nail  Den, 
First  and  Second  Wassail  Piece,  Wassail  Field,  and  Big  and 
Lower  Stitchings.  This  parish  was  often  spelled  Haggelegh. 
In  "  Domesday  Book "  it  is  written  Hageleia ;  and  in  the 
"  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  570,  Haganleah.  The  name  is  derived 
from  the  Saxon,  Haga  (^domus),  and  Leag,  or  Lega,  a  lea, 
or  ley^. 

In  PEDMORE  there  are  Upper  Spirits  Field,  and  Wichbury 
Hill.     Pedmore  was  anciently  written  Pevemore. 

In  HALES  OWEN  there  are  Moors  (or  Mours)  Street,  and 
The  Coombs.  This  place  was  formerly  written  Hales  and 
Halas  §. 

In  the  township  of  WARLEY  WIGORN,  in  Hales  Owen 
(anciently  written  Werwelie)  there  are  Hell  Hole,  Caldwell  Leasow, 
First  Quinton  Field,  Upper  Quinton  Field,  Lower  Quinton, 
Bearlands  Wood,  Bearsland,  Upper  and  Lower  Bearsland,  and 
Hobby  Kiss. 

In  the  township  of  RIDGACRE,  in  Hales  Owen,  are  places 
named  Aldridge  Meadow  and  First  Quinton  Field. 

In  the  to\NTiship  of  WARLEY  SALOP,  in  Hales  Owen,  is  a 
place  called  Part  of  Portway  Field. 

*  See  pp.  137,  138,  relative  to  ancient  British  and  Roman  antiquities 
found  in  Clent. 

+  There  is  another  Churchill,  near  Bredicot 

\  Vide  pp.  136  to  1-12,  relative  to  Roman  and  other  antiquities  found  in 
this  parish. 

§  S»e  pp.  142,  143,  as  to  various  ancient  relics  found  in  this  parish. 


•273 

In  the  township  of  CAKEMORE,  in  Hales  Owen,  is  Dogney's 
Meadow.  *'  lu  1804,  many  Roman  coins  were  found  in  an 
earthen  vessel,  deposited  at  a  small  depth  below  the  surface,  at 
Cakemore ;  but  few  only  of  these  coins  were  preserved*." 

In  the  township  of  ASBURY,  in  Hales  Owen,  there  are  Jack 
Field,  Little  Jack,  Old  Jack,  and  Tom  Wood. 

In  the  township  of  HALES  OWEN  there  is  a  place  called 
Tenter  Field. 

In  LUTTLEY,  in  Hales  Owen,  there  are  Pen  Field,  Twizzle- 
batch,  and  Robin's  Field. 

In  CRADLEY  (anciently  Cradelei),  a  township  in  Hales  Owen, 
there  are  Warling  Meadow,  and  Coppy  (Coppice)  Warling. 

In  ROMSLEY,  a  township  in  Hales  Owen,  there  are  Long 
Doles,  Great  Castle  Hill,  Castle  Hill,  Uffmoor,  Old  Battery 
Meadow,  Quinton  Piece,  and  Ell  Wood. 

In  OLD  SWINFORD  there  is  a  place  called  Ambry  Hill. 
Bishop  Lyttelton  f  states  that  this  place  was  so  called  from  a  ford 
over  a  brook  or  rivulet  named  Swin];;  but  Dr.  Nash§  doubted 
that  opinion.     May  it  not  have  been  the  ford  for  swuie  ? 

STOURBRIDGE  PARISH  was  originally  called  Bedcote. 
There  are  Hill  Bank  and  Hob  Green  between  it  and  Hales  Owen. 

In  the  hamlet  of  AMBLECOATE,  in  the  Staffordshire  part 
of  Old  Swinford,  there  are  Powkmore  j]  Hill,  Hares  Close,  Bolas 
Meadow,  Bolas  Piece,  High  Oldbury,  Petre  Hill,  Round  Hill,  and 
Babylon. 

This  line  of  road  is  referred  to  by  Nash*!,  who  quotes  the 
following  from  Bishop  Lytteltou's  account  of  the  Roman  roads  :  — 

"  A  third  Roman  road  comes  out  of  Salop  or  Staffordshire,  and 
passes  over  the  heath  near  Stoiu'bridge,  where,  by  a  place  called 
Green's  Forge,  is  a  vast  camp  called  the  Church  Yard,  and  men- 

•  See  Lewis's  "  Tofinprrapliieiil  Dietionan-." 
+   MS.,  I.yttel. 

♦  There  is  also  tlie  Switi,  in  tlic  sea,  off  the  Suffolk  coa,st.  Can  it  be 
synonymous  with  the  wonl  "  swill." 

§  Vol.  ii.,  p.  -iO. 

II   See  the  "  Folk  Lore." 

•I    Vol.  ii.  .Vpi)..  ]).  107. 

r 


274 

tioned  by  Dr.  Plott  in  his  '  NaUiral  History  of  Staffordshire,' 
which  proceeds  through  Hagley  Common,  and  is  known  by  the 
name  of  the  King's  Head  Land  ;  and  not  far  distant  is  a  great 
Koman  camp  on  Whichbury  Hill  *,  and  three  lows  or  tumuli  on 
the  common  very  near  it ;  and  I  suspect  this  road  also  leads  by 
Clent  and  Chaddesley  to  Worcester." 

It  is  probable  that  this  road  either  ran  in  a  north-westerly 
course  into  the  Western  Trackway,  described  in  Iter  XV.  ;  or, 
north-east  into  the  Rycknield  Street,  described  in  Iter  XIX. 

ANCIENT  CAMPS  ON  THE  SOUTHERN  SIDE  OF 
THE  COUNTY. 

The  following  are  the  ancient  camps  along  or  near  the  southern 
side  of  the  county,  from  west  to  east : — 

Wall  Hills  Camp,  and  Kilbury  Campf,  near  Ledbury ;  Haf- 
field  Camp,  near  Bromsberrow ;  The  Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp, 
and  Midsummer  Hill  Camp,  on  the  Malveni  Hills  ;  Castle  Hill 
Camp,  in  Castle  Morton ;  and  the  camps  on  Towbury  Hill, 
Kemerton  Hill,  Conderton  HiU,  Oxenton  Hill,  DLxton  Hill,  and 
Nottingham  Hill.    Several  of  these  have  been  previously  noticed. 

ANCIENT  ROADS  ON  THE  SOUTHERN  SIDE  OF 
THE  COUNTY. 

The  following  are  the  probable  lines  of  the  ancient  roads  along 
or  near  the  southern  side  of  the  county.  The  starting  point  of 
all  of  them  may  be  taken  from  Wall  HUls  Camp,  near  Ledbury, 
from  whence  they  issued  in  four  principal  lines  as  follow. 

•  There  also  is  a  camp  at  Kniver  Edge. — See  p.  Hi. 
+  The  Ordnance  Map  has  it  "  Eilbury  Camp." 


275 


Iter  I 

— ♦ — 

•    ANCIENT  EOAD 

FBOM 

WALL  HILLS  CAMP  TO  GLOUCESTER. 

From  this  camp  a  road  appears  to  have  stretched  south- 
westward  by  Ledbur}%  Eastnor,  and  Haffield  Camp,  in  Hereford- 
shire (situated  about  two  miles  west  of  Conigree  Hill*,  in 
Bromsberrow,  in  Gloucestei'shire),  thence  by  Rid  Marley 
D'Abitot  to  Gadbury  Banks,  and  Bury  Hill,  in  Eldersfield ; 
thence  by  Birth  Hill,  and  along  Lime  Street,  in  Worcestershire  ; 
across  Corse  Wood  Hill,  along  Wickridge  Street,  by  the  Barrow 
Farm,  and  Barrow  Hill,  to  Cinderbury ;  Ashelworth  Green, 
Longridge  End,  and  thence  by  Springhill  and  Maisemore,  in 
Gloucestershire,  to  Gloucester.  A  branch  of  this  road  may  have 
gone  from  Gadbury  Banks  to  Staunton  Coppice,  thence  to 
Staunton  in  Worcestershire,  along  Harridge  or  Harwich  Street, 
and  so  to  Wickeridge  Street  in  Gloucestershii-e. 

In  LEDBURY  parish  there  are, — Vineyard  Bank,  The  Camp, 
Suggals,  Wall-ends  Meadow,  Vineyard  and  01dbur}%  Warcroft, 
Wall  Hills  Wood  and  Coppice,  Wall  Moors,  Rigdeway  Field  and 
Coppice,  Oral  Green  Meadow,  Stirt's  Meadow,  Coneybury  Hill, 
Coneygree  Wood  Camp,  Camp  Hopyard,  Camp  Orchard,  and 
Hare  Hill. 

The  camp  at  Wall  Hills,  which  contains  an  area  of  near 
thirty  acres,  is  situated  about  a  mile  from  Ledbury,  and  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  originally  British,  and  subsequently  occupied 
as  a  Roman  station.     Ledbury  appears  to  have  derived  its  name 

*   See  ])]).  70,  71,  -218,  rplntive  to  tliis  rciiiarkalilp  hill. 


276 

from  the  river  Leden,  which  intersects  the  parish  from  north  to 
south. 

In  RID  MARLEY,  or  Ryd  Marley  D'Abitot,  there  are  Nottin 
Dole,  Dark-ham,  and  Folly  Field.  It  was  formerly  called  Rid 
Merleya*,  and  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Redmerleie  or  Ridmerleye. 
In  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  it  is  stated,  that,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon 
times,  there  were  places  on  the  boundaries  of  Rydmerley,  called 
Preonsdale,  Salter's  Ford,  The  Glenk,  Glenking,  Maeresbrook, 
Ceolan  Head,  Brute  Gate,  and  Werlass  Do\vn.  Xash  calls 
Rid  Marley  "  the  field  with  the  mere  ;"  but,  as  the  ancient 
British  and  Phoenician  word  "  Rid"  means  a  fordf,  the  presump- 
tion is,  that  the  name  implies  a  ford ;  and  there  can  be  but  little 
doubt  that,  in  the  ancient  British  times,  a  ford  was  there  over 
the  river  Leden,  which  very  much  surrounds  Rid  Marley.  It  is 
probable,  tliat  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  era  it  acquired  the  name  of 
"  Salter's  Ford." 

In  ELDERSFIELD  there  are,— Tut's  Hill  Common  Field, 
Little  Tut's  Hill,  Dobbs  Hill  Meadow  and  Close,  Cob  Hill,  Gadbury 
Hill,  Gadbury  Coppice,  Eggs  Hay,  and  Hardwick,  or  Orde^\•icke. 
— See  p.  68,  69,  as  to  Gadbury  Banks.  The  name  of  this  parish  is 
probably  derived  from  elder,  an  elder  tree,  and  field,  an  open, 
uninclosed  expanse  of  land.  It  is  called  Yldresfeld  in  the 
"  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  570. 

In  STAUNTON,  or  Stauntown,  there  are  Walker's  I  Ford,  and 
Cob  Croft. 

In  CHASELEY,  or  Chadesley,  adjoining  Eldersfield,  there  are 
Norgast  Field ;  Great,  Middle,  and  South  Norgast  Field ;  Round 
Hill,  The  Yellings,  The  Gome  Field,  and  The  Leys,  next  Rock 
Street  §. 

*  Reodemaereleah  and  Rydemaereleah  in  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  510 ;  510 
App.,  Vol.  iii.,  and  619. 

t  See  "  Britannia  Antiqua,"  by  Aylett  Sanimes,  p.  06  ;  also  the  account  of 
Cnickbarrow  Hill. 

I  See  Droitwicb,  p.  100,  and  Ougliton  Wells,  in  the  account  of  "  Folk- 
Lore,"  concerning  this  word. 

§  See  Chap.  IV.  as  to  Horridge  (Hoar  Ridge)  in  the  neighbouring  hamlet 
of  Corse,  Co.  Gloucester. 


277 


Pr  ||. 


ANCIENT  ROAD 

FBOH 

WALL   HILLS   CAMP,   NEAR  LEDBURY,  TO 
TEWKESBURY,  &c. 

From  Wall  Hills  Camp  a  road  appears  to  have  stretched 
westward  by  Dog's  Hill  and  Ledbury,  to  Kilbury  Camp,  and  the 
Herefordsliire  Beacon  Camp  on  Malvern  Hill ;  thence,  south- 
eastward, down  Awkeridge  and  the  Ridgeway,  and  by  Eastnor ; 
thence  along  Wain  Street*  to  Rowicke,  Fowlet  Farm,  and  Pen- 
dock  Grove, — all  in  Herefordshire.  From  thence  through  the 
Malvern  Hill  chain  into  Worcestershire,  at  White-leaved  Oak 
between  Ragged  Stone  Hill  and  Keysend  Hill ;  and,  southward, 
along  Keysend  or  Case-end  Street,  to  Camer's  or  Camomile 
Green;  thence  along  the  Peudock  Portwayf,  in  the  Berrow,  to 
Cromar's  Green  ;  thence  to  Gadbury  Banks  |,  in  Eldersfield ; 
thence,  north-eastward,  through  Pendock,  and  between  Bushley, 
in  Worcestershire,  and  Forthampton,  in  Gloucestershire,  by  Sam 
Hill,  and  along  Wood  Street,  in  Bushley,  to  the  Severn  (which 
was  probably  crossed  either  at  the  Mythe  Tute,  or  at  the  Upper 
or  Lower  Lode) ;  and,  thence  on  to  the  Rycknield  Street,  at  or 
near  Tewkesbury. 

With  respect  to  the  name  of  "  Wain  Street,"  considerable  light 
appears  to  be  throwii  upon  it  in  Hatcher's  "  Richard  of  Ciren- 

•  There  was  in  tlie  Anglo  Saxon  times  a  plaee  railed  Waenrie  (Waiuriilge) , 
in  Oxfordshire. — See  "  Codex  I'ip.,"'  No.  77.'),  &e. 
+  See  p.  70. 
J  See  pp.  <)H,  (>:). 


2T8 

cester,"  from  which  the  following  quotatiou  is  taken*: — "  The 
Britons  not  only  fought  on  foot  and  on  horseback,  but  in  chariots 
drawn  by  two  horses,  and  armed  in  the  Gallic  manner.  Those 
chariots,  to  the  axletrees  of  which  scythes  were  fixed,  were  called 
covini,  or  wains."  And,  in  p.  12,  it  is  stated,  that  "  Csesar,  in 
his  fourth  book,  describes  their  mode  of  fighting  in  the  species  of 
chariots  called  essedae,"  and  to  which  the  following  note  is 
added : — "  Their  chariots  seem  to  be  of  two  kinds,  the  covini  or 
wains,  heavy  and  armed  with  scythes,  to  break  the  thickest  order 
of  the  enemy ;  and  the  essedae,  a  lighter  kind,  adapted  probably 
to  situations  and  circumstances  in  which  the  covini  could  not 
act,  and  occasionally  performing  the  duties  of  cavalry.  The 
essedje,  with  the  cavalry,  were  pressed  forward  to  oppose  the  first 
landing  of  Caesar  ;  and  Cassivellaunus  afterwards  left  4000 
essedae,  as  a  corps  of  observation,  to  watcli  his  movements. — 
Caesar  "  Comment.,"  Lib.  v.,  s.  15. 

In  THE  BERROW,  formerly  Bercwe  or  Berga,  there  are 
Berrow  Hill,  Puck  Dole,  In  Portridge  Field,  Little  Portridge, 
Portnells,  In  Picknell,  In  Jack,  Upper  and  Lower  Jack,  Jack 
Meadow,  Jack,  In  Gola  Field,  Old  Hills,  Crookberrow,  Lower 
Crookberrow,  Black  Dole,  Elsborough,  Peualth  Piece,  Raven's 
Dole,  Dobbin's  Hill,  Little  Dobbin's  Hill,  Gowler,  and  Oldin  Hillf. 

In  PENDOC,  or  Pendock,  Pendoke,  Penedoc,  or  Peonedoc, 
there  are  Waxborough,  Wilkin's  Pasture,  Wilkin's  Field,  Little 
Wilkin,  In  Berrow  Wood,  Badenshall,  Allotment  in  Berrow 
Meadow,  CatshLll,  Little  Catsliill,  Raven's  Hay,  Upper  Nap 
Ground,  Nap  Field,  Lower  Nap  Field,  Little  Gola,  In  Gola 
Field,  Inclosed  Gola,  and  Crookberrow. 

In  Dr.  Thomas's  "  Survey  of  Worcester  Cathedral,  &c.,"  App.,p. 
30,  reference  is  made  to  a  bequest  of  Peonedoc  by  Ceolwulf,  Iving  of 
the  Mercians,  to  the  ]\lonastery  at  Worcester  J.  This  is  mentioned 
in  a  charter  of  King  Edgar,  a.d.  964.  On  the  Anglo-Saxon 
boimdaries  of  Pondoc,  there  are  places  called  ^Ifstan's  Bridge, 

•  P.  11. 

+  See  p.  70;  likewise  tlie  account  of  Cruckbarrow  Hill,  relative  to  the  I'eu- 
doek  Portway. 

J  .Wan  see  Ilfiiiinp's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  •'■■>l. 


279 

Osric's  Pool,  Ducas  Pit,  Edred's  Field*,  Stanborough,  and  Salt 
Field  f.  This  place  is  spelled  Peonedoc  and  Penedocj  in 
"  Domesday  Book."  With  respect  to  the  derivation  of  the  name, 
tiie  reader  is  referred  to  p.  218. 

BUSHLEY  was  formerly  called  Bysseley,  and  in  "Domesday" 
Biseleye§. 

*  It  is  called  Eadredesfeld  (gy.  Adderstield)  in  the  "Codex  Dip."  No.  308, 
008  App.  Vol.  ui.,  and  538. 

+  See  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  360,  and  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  57. 
Also  see  Chap,  iv.,  relative  to  "  Hour  Withy,"  in  Pendock. 

J  There  is  a  place  called  I'eudock  Meadow,  in  the  hamlet  of  Orleton,  in  the 
parish  of  Eastham. 

§  See  p.  128,  concerning  Sam  Hill  aud  Wood  Street,  in  this  parish. 


280 


(§,ltl  ^(f  J. 


ANCJENT  ROAD 


WALL  HILLS  CAMP  TO  TOWBURY  HILL  CAMP,  &c. 

From  Wall  Hills  Camp  a  road  appeai-s  to  have  gone  south- 
westward  by  Ledbury,  Eastuor,  across  the  Fiidgeway,  and  along 
Wain  Street,  in  Herefordsliire ;  through  the  Malvern  chain, 
into  Worcestershire,  by  the  Holly  Bush,  between  Ragged  Stone 
Hill  and  the  south  side  of  Midsummer  Hill  Camp,  thence  to 
the  Rye,  thence  eastward  along  the  Rye  Street,  and  through 
Birt's  Morton,  Longdon  and  Queen  Hill,  to  Pull  Court,  on  the 
west  side  of  the  Severn,  opposite  to  which,  on  the  eastern  side  of 
the  river,  is  the  site  of  the  Roman  pottery  works*,  and  an 
ancient  vicinal  paved  roadf  at  Bow  Farm,  Ripple,  and  a  camp  at 
Towbury  Hill  |,  in  Twining  Parish,  Gloucestershire.  The  river 
was  probably  crossed  opposite  Towburj-  Hill,  the  road  in  question 
felling  into  another  road  wliich  runs  from  Tewkesbuiy  to  Wor- 
cester. 

Another  branch  of  this  road  extended  from  Wain  Street,  by 
Gullett  Wood,  and  through  the  pass  named  the  GuUett,  whicli 
lies  between  the  north  end  of  Midsummer  Hill  and  the  south  end 
of  WaiTen  Hill :  thence  by  Fair  Oaks  Hill,  across  Holly-bed 
Common,  and  along  Birts  Street  to  Birt's  Morton. 

•    Sec  p.  ()•.!,  ()••!,  (14. 
f    Srp  p.  (I">.  (i(). 

I    As  i4i  ihi>  roinarkalilr  liill,  srr  p.  fU.     'J'heiT  an-  plncr:-  iall<il  ( jiral   Ion 
hurv  and  Liillr   I'mwIiuiv,  in  I.ripli. 


'281 

In  BlllT'S  MORTON,  or  Brutes  Morton,  are  Spark  Horn, 
and  Tunipy  Leasow.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  this  place  is  wiittcn 
Mortune. 

In  CASTLE  MORTON, adjoining  Birt's Morton, are  Vamperley 
Field,  Vamperley  Meadow,  Aldine  Meadow,  Budnil  (Buddenliill) 
Common  Field,  the  Doles,  Dole's  Hole,  Hagg  Hills,  Agg  Meadow, 
Ambers,  Stoned  Hole,  Great  Gog  Bridge,  Little  Gog  Bridge, 
Tadmoor,  Inkstones*,  Camp  Hill,  Gadbury  Hill,  and  Kittans. 

It  was  formerly  called  Morton  Folliotf.  See  p.  71,  where  a 
tumulus,  there  called  "  Castle  Tump,"  is  mentioned. 

In  LONGDON,  anciently  Longedon,  are  Stirts  Middle  Piece, 
Yelters,  Rugged  Nell,  Robert  s-end  Orchard,  Doles,  Hare  Plock 
(Fleck),  Hare  Bridge,  Occo,  Guller's  End,  Hurste,  and  the  Styrte. 
See  Chap,  iv.,  as  to  Hoar  Pit,  in  this  parish.  In  "  Domesday  Book" 
it  is  called  Longedune,  and  in  Anglo-Saxon  charters,  Langdiin, 
Langandun,  Leugandune,  and  Longedune  |. 

♦  See  lukberrow,  Iter  XVII. 

t  See  pp.  71,  72,  couceniing  Morton  Folliot  seal. 

+   See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  57,  57  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  &o. 


'<C^/^>^''- 


^^^    y 


'282 


Jut  <JJJJ. 


ANCIENT  ROAD 


WALL  HILLS  CAMP  AND  THE  HEREFORDSHIRE 
BEACON  CAMP  TO  UPTON,  OR  THE  SAXON'S 
LODE. 


THE  HEREFORDSHIRE  BEACON  CAMP  TO  HANLEY 

QUAY. 

FROM 

GREAT  MALVERN  TO  THE  RHYD. 

From  Wall  HiUs  Camp  a  road  appears  to  have  gone  along  the 
before-mentioned  line,  over  Dog's  Hill  to  Kilbury  Camp,  and  the 
Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp ;  thence  eastward  into  Worcester- 
shire, on  the  south  side  of  Dane  Moor  Copse,  and  along  Drake 
Street,  by  Brook  End,  and  the  Lake  on  Hook  Common  ;  thence 
along  Duckswick  to  the  Severn,  which  it  probably  crossed  either 
at  Upton  or  more  southward,  at  Saxon's  Lode,  vulrjo,  Saxton  s 
or  Sexton's  Lode. 

Another  road  seems  to  have  extended  from  the  Herefordshire 
Beacon  Camp,  by  Malvern  Wells,  along  Robert's-end  Street 
(otherwise  Robertson  Street)  and  through  Hanley  Castle  parish 
to  Hanley  Quay,  where  it  probably  crossed  the  Severn. 

A  road  likowise  appears  to  have  run  from  Great  Malvern,  along 


283 

Pool-End  Street  and  Barnard's  Green,  by  Dripshill  or  Tripshill*, 
and  Drake's  Place  to  the  Ferry  or  B'ord  at  the  Rhydd  or  Ridd  f . 

In  COLWALL  there  is  a  place  called  the  Low,  and  a  road  called 
Evendine  Street.  See  further  relative  to  this  parish  in  the 
account  of  the  Malvern  Hills. 

In  LITTLE  MALVERN  there  are  Upper  Sarte  Piece  and 
Lower  Sarte  Piece  |.  See  p.  154  to  163,  &c.  concerning  various 
ancient  relics  found  in  this  parish. 

In  WELLAND  there  is  a  place  called  Tyre  Hill  (situated 
between  Dane  Moor  Copse  and  Robertson  or  Robertaend  Street) ; 
also  Dain  Moor  Hill  and  Five  Hill  Field.  It  was  anciently  called 
Wenlond,  or  Wonlond.  Dr.  Xash  supposes  the  name  to  have 
been  derived  from  the  Saxon  "  Won,"  dirty  ;  but  may  it  not  be 
a  contmction  of  Woten  ? 

In  the  parish  of  UPTON  §  upon  Severn,  there  are  Mount  ||, 
Raven  Hill  IT,  Leckeridge,  Lockeridge ;  Upper,  Middle,  and 
Lower  Tuck-Mill  Piece,  Gilver  Lane  Meadow,  Monsul,  Hoote 
Common,  Mancroft,  Bury  Field,  Brants,  Talver's  Field,  Talver's 
Ley,  Perlons  Close,  Great  Pickes,  and  Little  Pickes**. 

In  the  parish  of  HANLEY  CASTLE  are  Great  Tickeridge, 
Lauutridge,  and  Robert's-end  Street.  This  parish  is  named 
Hamley  in  Lelands  "  Itineraiy." 

In  the  parish  of  GREAT  MALVERN  there  are  Quom  Meadow, 
Hob  WellH,  Twinberrow*',  Gorick  Hill,  Sembre  Furlong,  Shar- 
vastor  or  Sharvastcr,  Sharvcst  Graffe,  Upper  Piadnor  Meadow, 
Lower  Radnor  Pasture,  Bearcroft  Meadow  (in  Garlesford  Court 
Farm),  and  Cockshoot,  Cocksliute,  or  Cockshut  Orchard,  Lane, 
and  Farm,  at  the  Link. 

•  See  the  "  Folk-Lore."  +  See  p.  218. 

I  Tliese  luiines,  most  probably,  are  a  corruption  of  the  word  "  assart,"  or 
"  essart,"  wliirli  means  land  gnibbed  in  a  forest  and  converted  into  tillage. 

§  It  is  written  Uptiin  in  the  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  05,  &c. 

II  There  is  an  eartliw<irk  near  it  in  Green  Fields  estate. 
^1    See  p.  l'.)4,  .<ce. 

*•   See  pp.  OO,  (!1,  (Vi,  coneprning  ancient  relics  found  there. 

++  See  Cough's  "  Camden." 

*t  Twinliarrow,  ruhjo,  Twinberrow,  is  situated  about  u  quarter  of  a  mile 
northwaril  "f  the  Moat  I'arm,  in  Hariiard's  (jreen.  See  pp.  Kid,  as  to  the 
derivatiou  "1'  llie  uaiiic. 


284 

There  is  lladnal  Field,  in  Elmbridge,  in  Doderhill ;  Radual 
Tit,  in  Belbroughton  ;  Rad  Meadow,  in  Claines ;  Had  Meadow, 
in  Hindlip ;  Rad  Castle  Orchard  and  Meadow,  in  Stoke  Bliss ; 
Radge  Coppice,  in  Abberley,  Radnall,  in  Rushock ;  Radbury 
Bank,  in  Martley ;  and  Rad  Meadow,  in  Great  Witley*.  These 
names  are  probably  derived  from  the  Saxon  "  rsed,"  council. 

It  is  said  that  the  name  "  Cock-shoot,"  probably  designates  the 
places  where  springes  or  nets  were  set  to  catch  woodcocks  f ;  and 
that  the  syllable  "  shoot,"  means  the  hole  or  gap  in  the  bank  or 
hedge  through  which  the  woodcocks  either  ran  or  fled  into  the 
springe  or  net.  Now  it  must  be  observed  that  the  springs  of  water 
from  North  Malvern  Hill,  run  by  the  spot  in  question,  and  it  was 
a  very  likely  place  in  days  of  yore  to  be  frequented  by  woodcocks. 
Still,  however,  spouts  or  cocks  for  water-shoots,  vulgo  shuts  |,  at 
the  bottom  of  hills,  banks,  or  slopes,  may  possibly  have  given  rise 
to  some  of  the  names  in  question ;  for  instance,  there  is  Cock- 
shute,  by  Dormston  Hill ;  Cockshoot  Hill,  in  Hadsor,  near  Droit- 
wich ;  Cockshut§  Hill,  in  LvJsley ;  and  Cockshoot  Hill  at  Shels- 
ley  Beauchamp.  But  as  these  localities,  even  if  they  have  or  had 
spouts,  would  be  equally  favourable  for  woodcocks,  it  is  probable 
that  the  first-mentioned  derivation  is,  in  some  such  cases,  the 
primary  one  ;  and  when  Shakespeare  speaks  of  "  cockshut  time||" 
he  probably  refers  to  the  twilight,  when  woodcocks  H  run  or  fly 

*  A  place  called  Radborough  was  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of 
Codeston  or  Cutsdean,  and  Eadley  of  Whittington.  See  Heming's  "  Cartu- 
lary," Vol,  ii.,  pp.  348,  359. 

+  See  the  "Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  v.,  pp.  118  to 
121. 

J  The  peasantry  call  those  channels  made  to  carry  rain  water  off  ploughed 
lands  "  land  shuts,"  and  natural  rills  "  water  shuts."  Thus  a  spring  with  a 
spout  at  the  foot  of  a  hill  or  slope,  would,  in  common  language,  be  a  "  cock- 
shut."  There  is  one  on  the  side  of  the  Malveni  road,  just  above  Cockshut 
Farm. 

§  Cockshut  is  also  a  personal  name.  See  Nichols's  "  History  of  Leicester 
shire,"  Vol.  iv.,  Part  2,  p.  524. 

II   Richard  111.,  Act  v.,  Scene  ;i. 

^  AliiiDst  1(11  classes  in  the  country,  when  speaking  of  woodcocks,  scarcely 
ever  use  the  prelix. 


•285 

out  of  the  covers,  and  were  caught  at  the  shoots  in  the  springes  or 
nets. 

In  MADRESFIELD,  Maddersfield,  or  Madersfield*,  there  are 
places  named  Stamperfield,  Stampal  or  March  Field,  Dripshill  or 
Tripshillf,  and  Cleve  Lode  or  Clyve  Lode. 

•  Perhaps  from  the  Saxon  "  niadere,"  a  plant.      This  parish  does  not  ap 
pear  to  he  noticed  in  "  Domesday  Book. " 
+  See  the  "  Folk-Lore." 


286 


Iter  ip. 

— • — 

POET-WAY  FEOM  KENCHESTEli,  THE 
ANCIENT  MAGNA*, 

THROUGH 

CRADLEY,  ACROSS  THE  NORTH  END  OF  GREAT 
MALVERN  HILL  TO  BRANOGENA  (WORCESTER), 
AND  THENCE  THROUGH  OMBERSLEY,  HARTLE- 
BURY,  AND  WOLVERLEY,  TO  OVER  ARLEY. 

DuNcuMB,  in  his  "  Histor}'  of  Herefordshire,"!  says,  "  a  third 
Roman  road  enters  this  county  [Herefordshire]  from  Worcester, 
and  passing  Frome  Hill,  Stretton  Gransham  (Grandisou),  Lugg- 
bridge,  Holmer,  and  Stretton  Lugwas,  reaches  Kenchester.  This 
road  is  wholly  unnoticed  in  the  Itineraries  before  quoted ; 
but  Dr.  Stukeley  treats  it  as  Roman,  and  its  own  internal  evi- 
dence confirms  it.  Two  Strettons  are  named  in  its  course,  and 
it  invariably  preserves  that  particular  uniformity  of  direction 
which  distinguishes  the  roads  constructed  by  that  people.  Several 
writers  mention  an  entrenchment  on  this  line,  at  Stretton  |  Gran- 
dison, — it  was  probably  Roman ;  but  in  that,  and  other  instances 
where  the  site  has  been  appropriated  to  the  more  useful  labours 
of  the  plough,  the  traces  have  been  gradually  obliterated." 

It  is  also  stated,  in  the  "  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales"  §, 
that  there  is  a  paved  way  from  Kenchester,  leading  to  a  passage 

•  See  p.  1,  as  to  the  opinion  of  some  antiquaries  that  Ariconiuni  was  the 
ancient  name  of  Kenchester. 

+  Vol.  i.,  p.  2n.  See  also  "  Topographical  and  Historical  Description  of 
Herefordshire,"  by  Brayley  and  Britton,  p.  400. 

I  The  name  Stretton  is  derived  from  "  Via  Strata,"  or  the.  street. 

§  Vol,  1 5,  I'nrt  2,  p.  0. 


287 

over  the  river  Lug,  and  thence  towards  Ledbury,  pointing  to 
Worcester,  supposed  to  be  Roman. 

This  road  is  also  thus  noticed  in  Gough's  "  Camden"*: — 
"  Ariconiumf  [querie  Magna]  stands  on  a  little  brook  called  the 
Ince,  which  thence  encompassing  the  walls  of  Hereford,  falls  into 
the  Wye.  Two  great  Roman  ways  here  cross  each  other ;  one, 
called  the  Port-way,  comes  from  BuUseum,  now  Buelt  J,  in  Breck- 
nockshire, and  passing  eastward  by  Kenchester  through  Stretton, 
to  which  it  gives  name,  and  over  the  river  Lug  to  Stretton 
Grantham,  upon  the  Frome,  goes  to  Worcester." 

The  line  of  this  road,  from  Frome  Hill  to  Worcester,  most 
probably  was  by  Cradley  Court,  Ridgeway  Cross,  and  over  the 
brook  at  Stifford's  Bridge  (all  in  Cradley  §,  Herefordshire),  thence 
through  Cowley  Park,  Upper  Howsell,  in  the  parish  of  Leigh  ||, 
Newland,  and  Powick,  across  the  Teme,  and  through  Upper  Wick, 
in  the  parish  of  St.  John,  to  Worcester. 

In  the  parish  of  NEWLAND  (formerly  a  hamlet  of  Great  Mal- 
vern) there  are  places  called  Little  Ridgeway,  Campson,  Long  Dole, 
Limburi'ow,  and  Jack's  Close.     Pins  Green  lies  on  the  border. 

In  POWICK,  or  Powycke,  are  Pykesham  or  PLxam ;  Moan 
Land,  in  Pixham's  Ham ;  Big  StampaU  Ground,  Oldneys,  Old 
Hills,  Callow-end,  Stoney  Lake ;  Rudgeway,  or  Ridgeway  Ham, 
or  Common  Field ;  Ridgeway,  Great  and  Little  Ridgeway,  Puck- 
croft,  Astridge,  Soar  Oak  Field,  Bear-croft,  or  Ashridge  Hill,  The 
Vineyard,  and  Cinders  Perry.  The  name  of  this  parish  is  spelled 
Poincgwic  in  the  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  570,  and  Poiwic  in 
"  Domesday  Book*I." 

The  pieces  of  land  named  Ridgeway  belong  to  the  Ridgeway 

•  VoL  iii.,  p.  7;{. 

+  The  prevailiiiff  opinion  now  is,  that  Ariconiuni  stood  at  Penyanl,  iieiir 
Ross,  and  tlint  Manila  means  Kenchester. 

I  With  respect  to  tlie  derivation  of  this  name,  see  "  Bewdley."  There  is  a 
liill  called  Bual,  or  Bewill,  in  Alfriok  (see  p.  247),  on  the  line  of  road  from 
Walls  Hill  Camp  and  .Malveni  Hills,  to  Woodbury  Hill.— See  p.  238. 

§  See  p.  20(!,  2r)7. 

II  See  p.  240. 

^  See  p.  7!1,  relative  to  Roman  anti(puties  found  in  this  parish ;  and  also 
see  the  "  Folk  Lore." 


288 

Farm,  situated  on  the  east  side  of  the  road  from  Malveni  to 
Worcester,  and  about  a  mile  from  the  Old  Hills.  Ridgeway 
Ham,  or  Common  Field  (now  enclosed)  lies  by  the  west  end  of 
the  farm,  near  the  messuage  and  premises  called  the  Daw's  Nest, 
where  Black  Hawthorn  Lane  joins  the  above-mentioned  road. 
The  line  of  the  Portway  from  Newland,  through  Powick,  was 
most  probably  across  this  Common  Field,  through  Ridgeway 
Farm*,  thence  to  Ham  Hill,  and  across  Powick  Ham,  to  the 
Teme,  which  it  probably  crossed  near  to  the  present  Wearf,  and 
thence  led  to  Upper  Wick,  in  the  parish  of  St.  John,  and  so  on 
to  Worcester. 

I  am  sorry  that  I  can  offer  little  or  nothing  in  elucidation  of 
the  peculiar  name  "  Black  Hawthorn  Lane."  I  am  informed 
that  there  formerly  was,  at  the  entrance  of  this  lane,  a  large  haw- 
thorn tree  of  the  common  kind,  which  was  destroyed  about  twenty 
years  ago  through  the  continual  placing  c>f  the  stones  for  repair- 
ing the  road  against  its  trunk,  and  that  it  lias  since  been  replaced 
by  a  younger  tree.  There  is  a  coppice  near  Dorking,  in  Surrey 
called  "  Black-hawes,"  where  Aubrey  says  there  was  a  castle^. 

In  the  parish  of  ST.  JOHN,  in  Bedwardine^,  there  is  Ridge- 
way Meadow,  which  lies  in  Upper  Wick,  by  the  Wear,  on  the  Teme, 
a  little  above  Powick  Bridge  ;  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  this  was 
part  of  the  line  of  road  in  question,  and  that  it  went  on  through 
Upper  Wick,  along  the  Port  Street,  on  the  boundaries  of  Lawem  ||, 
to  Worcester.  It  may  be  here  remai'ked  that  a  portion  of  the 
Roman  antiquities  previously  mentioned,  were  discovered  on  the 
west  side  of  Powick  village,  exactly  opposite  Ridgeway  Meadow  11. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  his  "  History  of  Worcestershire,"  speaks  of 
an    ancient    road     in    Over   Arley,    in    Staffordshire,    on    the 

•  There  is  an  ancient  branch  road  from  Ridgeway  Farm  to  the  Old  Hills, 
running  from  thence  to  Pixam  Ferrj-  on  the  Severn,  nearly  opposite  to  Kemp 
sey  village,  where  ancient  relics  have  been  found,  as  stated  in  pp.  54  to  CO. 

+  "  Wser,"  Saxon. 

I  See  "  Archeeologia,"  Vol.  xi.,  pp.  102,  107. 

§   See  p.  2fil,  as  to  various  names  of  places  in  this  parish. 

I)   See  p.  2(52. 

^  See  p.  7:$. 


289 

border  of  this  county,  called  the  Portway,  and  states  that  it  pro- 
bably led  from  Worcester,  through  Over  Arley,  to  Shrewsbury. 
It  is  observable  here,  that  Portstrast,  mentioned  in  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  boundaries  of  Salwarp*,  "  Portway  Plat,"  in  Croces,  in 
Sychampton,  in  Ombersley,  and  "  Portway  Piece,"  in  Wolverley, 
also  lie  in  the  direct  line  from  Worcester  to  Over  Arley ;  and  a 
considerable  quantity  of  Roman  relics  was  found  at  Knight's 
Grove,  in  Ombersley,  as  before  stated.  This  part  of  the  Portway 
was  probably  a  deviation  road,  running  parallel  with  the  western 
side  of  that  part  of  the  Western  Trackway,  which  went  from 
Worcester,  through  Droitwich,  to  Over  Arley,  &c.,  as  hereafter 
described.  The  term  Port,  or  Military  way,  occurs  in  other  parts 
in  the  county ;  but  it  is  not  improbable  that  the  one  in  question 
was,  from  its  length  and  importance,  emphatically  called  by  the 
Romans,  "  The  Portway."  It  appears  to  have  run  along  the 
eastern  bank  of  the  Severn,  between  Worcester  and  Over  Arley, 
where  forts  of  Ostorius  were  most  probably  placed. 

As  the  name  Ridgeway  occurs  so  frequently  in  that  part  of  this 
Portway  which  lies  between  Frome  Hill,  Cos.  Hereford  and  Wor- 
cester, it  seems  very  probable  that  this  part  of  it  was  a  branch  of 
the  Rycknield  Street,  or  Ridgeway,  passing  from  Wall  Hills 
Camp,  near  Ledbur\',  to  Frome  Hill,  and  thence  to  Worcester ; 
and  that  the  Romans  adopted  it,  from  Frome  Hill  to  Worcester, 
as  part  of  the  main  Portway. 

•  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Vol.  vi.,  p.  2LS. 


'^90 


Iter  |i. 


WESTERN  TRACKWAY, 

FROM 

TEWKESBURY,  THROUGH  UPTON  AND  WORCESTER, 
TO  THE  TRENCH  LANE,  DROITWICH,  AND  SAL- 
WARP;  THENCE  TO  HADLEY  HEATH  CAMP,  IN 
OMBERSLEY  ;  AND  THROUGH  WASSAL  HILL 
CAMP,  IN  THE  PARISH  OF  KIDDERMINSTER, 
TO  OVER  ARLEY,  &c.* 

This  line  of  road  forms  a  part  of  what  is  called  the  Western 
Trackway,  w'hich  is  said  to  have  gone  from  Isca  Damnoniorum, 
or  Uxellaf  (Exeter),  Taunton,  Bridgewater,  Bristol  |,  Glevum 
(Gloucester),  Branogenium  or  Bravinium§  (Worcester),  Salinae 
(Droitwich),  and  Kidderminster  j|,  in  Worcestershire ;  Claverley, 
in  Shropshire ;  Weston-under-Lizard,  Etocetum  (Wall),  High 
Offley,  Mediolauum  (Chesterton),  and  Betley,  in  StafFordsliire ; 
Condate  (Congleton  or  Kinderton),  Middlewich,  and  Northwich, 
in  Cheshire ;  Warrington,  Mancunium  (Manchester),  Preston. 
Coccium  (Blaclirode  1: ),  and  Lancaster,  to  Luguhallium  (Carlisle), 
&c.     In  Mr.   Hatcher's  edition  of   "  Richard  of    Cirencester," 

*  See  glimpses  of  tliis  rond  in  the  account  of  Worcester,  p.  28  ;  Upton,  (il  ; 
OiiiLersley,  108  ;  Salwarp,  10!),  110  ;  Perry  Wood,  222,  a^Ji  ;  Elbm y  HUl,  224. 

+  Some  think  tliiit  Uxella  lay  near  Bridgewater,  or  at  Barton-on-tlie-Foss  ; 
others,  that  Isca  and  Uxella  were  the  same. 

I  Some  say  this  road  went  from  Bridgewater  through  Ad-Aquns  (jHoliiilily 
Wellsj,  Aqune  Solis  (Bath),  and  Coriniuni  (Cirencester),  to  (iloucestcr.  If 
so,  the  rond  through  Bristol  was  probably  a  Koiiinn  deviation  or  short  line. 

§   See  p.  1. 

Ij  According  tn  sumc  nuthoritics,  this  road  ran  froui  Dmitwich,  llirough 
Binniugham,  tn  Wall. 

«]    Stukeley  says  Burton,  by  Lancaster. 


•291 

tliis  road  is  considered  to  be  British,  since  it  connects  many  of 
the  British  towns.  It  appeal's  to  be  noticed  by  Salmon,  who 
asserts  that  a  Roman  road  went  frona  Woi'cester,  crossing 
Sln'opshire*. 

A  description  of  the  southern  part  of  this  road,  from  Gloucester 
to  Tewkesbur>%  will  be  found  in  the  account  of  the  Rycknield 
Street. 

The  following  describes  that  part  of  it  from  Tewkesbury  to 
Over  Arley  : — 

In  TWYNING,  in  Gloucestershire,  there  are  places  called 
Broadway,  Little  Broadway,  Puckmoor  Headland,  Puckrup, 
Sharrow,  Coneygare,  and  Showburrow  Common  f .  Roman  coins 
have  been  found  in  a  small  camp  in  this  parish. 

The  parish  of  RIPPLE  (or  Rippel  j)  contains  the  site  of  Roman 
pottery  works,  and  a  paved  vicinal  road,  described  in  pp.  62 
to  68. 

In  HILL  CROMB,  adjoining  Ripple,  is  Hooshill  Farm.  This 
place  was  anciently  called  Heleyombe  and  Hull  Cromb.  It  is 
written  Hilcrumbe  in  "  Domesday  Book." 

In  EARL'S  CROOMB,  or  Cromb  Simon,  is  a  place  called 
*'  Part  of  Horrell  Orchard."  The  name  is  written  "  Cnimb  "  in 
"  Domesday  Book." 

In  CROOMB  DABITOT,  or  Cromb  Osbern,  is  Hell  Ford. 
It  is  spelled  "  Crumbe  "  in   "  Domesday  Book§." 

In  SEVERN  STOKE,  anciently  called  Stocke,  there  are 
Wainridge's  Piece.  Part  of  Horrell  Orchard,  and  the  Burrage. 
A  Roman  coin  of  Magnentius,  now  in  the  Worcestershire 
IVIuseiim.  was,  a  few  years  ago,  dug  up  in  tliis  parish||. 

•   See  the   "  Beauties  of  Kiiglaud  and  Wales,"  Vol.  xv..  Part  ii.,  p.  (i. 

+   See  p.  ()4,  contaiiiing  an  aeoount  of  Towbuiy  Hill  (ninp. 

+  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  17,  5.1K. 

§  In  lleniint^s  "  Cartulan.-, '  Vol.  ii.,  p.  ;!48,  Aberold,  Winterboume, 
Wiplev,  and  Kaj^lo's  I.awn,  are  mentioned  in  the  .Anj^lo-Saxon  boundaries  of 
C'ronilje. 

II  See  pp.  (i5,  HO,  (i7,  eoncerning  a  paved  trackway  from  tlie  My  the  Tute, 
near  Tewkesbury,  through  Hippie,  to  Severn  Stoke  Hill,  and  probably  to  \A'or- 
cest<'r.     Thi.s  Inu-kway  uppenrs  to  ii»ve  been  a  mere  viciiui)  road. 


292 

111  PIRTON,  formerly  spelled  Pereton,  there  is  a  place  Tianie<I 
Perry  Wood. 

In  the  parish  of  KEMPSEY,  Kemsey,  or  Kemesey,  are  Dane's 
Close,  Quintins,  The  Koond,  Hoberdy  Hill*,  Old  Hills,  Green 
Street  Meadow,  Green  Street,  Bow's  Piece  (adjoining  Green 
Street),  and  Bootridge's.  In  Nash's  "  Histor}%"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  23, 
it  is  stated  that  a  deed,  dated  1336,  notices  "  The  Portweye,  at 
Bromhall,  in  tlie  manor  of  Kempsey."  In  "  Domesday  Book  " 
it  is  written  "  Chemesegef." 

In  NORTON  juxta  Kemsey,  there  are  Crokenhill,  Great 
Howboume  or  Holborn  Field,  Little  Holborn  I'ield,  Bury 
Field  Hill,  and  Bury  Field  Meadow.  It  contains  the  hamlet  of 
Hatfield,  or  Hedtfeld. 

In  WHITTINGTON  a  hamlet  in  the  Parish  of  St.  Peter,  are 
places  called  Witch  Meadow,  Norcroft,  Hares  Close,  Wordings, 
Holburn  Field,  Cruckbarrow  Hill,  and  Little  CruckbarrowJ. 
Whittington  was  formerly  called  Hwitingtun  §,  Widingtun, 
Witington,  Witinton,  and  Witintun.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been 
one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  marks  ||.  It  is,  in  "  Domesday  Book," 
spelled  "  Widintun."  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  359,  mentions 
Caldwell  and  Radley,  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  this 
hamlet  IF. 

In  SPETCHLEY,  Spechesley,  Spechley,  Spjeckley,  Spsecleah- 
tun  or  Speclea**,  are  Round  Hill  and  Pitchen  Hill.  The  name  is 
written  "  Speclea "  in  "  Domesday  Book."  In  Heming's 
"  Cartulary,"  p.  358,  the  following  places  are  mentioned  as 
Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Cudley,  or  Cutley,  namely,  Cugganft 
Hill,  Wittlesley,  Kyneldworth,  Swineshead,  Sunderland,  Omber- 

•  Hoberdy  is   one    of  the    provinciiil    nnnies    for    the    igiiis-fiUuns.      See  • 
"  Folk- Lore." 

t  See  pp.  .04  to  (iO,  eouceniing  the   Roman  camp,   cists,  and  other  relics, 
found  at  Kempsey. 

J   See  p.  ^l(i,  &c.,  relative  to  Cruckbarrow  Hill. 

§   See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  -JOl,  (iTO. 

I,    See  p.  2-iQ. 

«[  Vide  also  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  00. 

»•  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  20i),  •20!»  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  210,  D42. 

+  +  As  to  the  etymology  of  this  name,  see  p.  210. 


293 

land*,  and  The  Three  Meres f.  Cudley  Manor  is  in  the  parish 
of  St.  Martin,  and  Cudley  Farm  and  Swineshead  Farm  iu 
VVamdon.  This  place  was  called  Cudeley  in  Edward  the  Con- 
fessor's reigii.  It  is  spelled  "  Cudelei"  in  "  Domesday  Book." 
•  With  respect  to  the  name  Swineshead,  Swinesherd,  or  Swineherd, 
there  is,  in  the  Cottonian  MS.,  Claudius  C.  viii.,  a  representation 
of  Anglo-Saxon  swineherds,  with  a  dog  and  horn,  and  armed  with 
spears,  driving  their  swine  into  the  forest  to  feed  upon  acorns, 
which  one  of  the  herdsmen  is  shaking  from  the  trees  with  his 
hand.  Also  see  "Art  Journal"  thereon,  No.  150,  June  1851, 
p.  170. 

The  Cuggan  Hyll  of  the  Saxon  boundaries  seems  to  have  been 
what  is  now  designated  the  Round  Hill,  in  Spetchley,  which  abuts 
against  the  ejistern  side  of  Cudley ;  and  it  appeal's  probable  that 
most  of  the  hills  which  now  only  go  by  the  modem  name  of 
"  Round  Hill,"  were  distinguished  by  the  prefix  of  •'  Ci-ug," 
"  Toot|,"  &c.,  in  days  of  yore.  The  views  from  the  hill  in 
question  are  fine,  and  rather  extensive. 

In  the  parish  of  ST.  MARTIX  are  Lipperd  (otherwise 
Lypeard,  or  Lappewrthe,  or  Lappawurthin),  Pirie  or  Perry  Wood^, 
Pirie  Court,  King's  Hill,  and  Portfields  Road.  Lipperd  and  Pirian 
are  mentioned  in  Oswald's  Charter,  dated  909.  (See  "  Codex 
Dip.,"  No.  559.)     Pirian  is  also  noticed  hi  "  Domesday  Book." 

In  the  parish  of  ST.  PETER  are  Burnt  Orchard,  Yeld 
Meadow.  Camp  G round  ||,  Spa  Field,  and  Swinesherd.  This 
parish  includes  Wliittington,  Batenhal*!  (Battenhall),  Timber- 
dine,  and  other  places. 

In  CLAINES  parish  are  Port  Fields  Farm,  Port  Fields  Road, 
Harbour  Hill,  Astwood,  Elbury  Hill,  Street  Hill  Tillage  on 
Rainbow   Hill    ridge  abutting   against   Merriman's   Hill  range ; 

•   See  "Ainbrosiip  Pptra>,"   Chap,  ii.,  us  to  this  nanic. 

+  See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  ."^5. 

J   See  pp.  'i[li.  '^17,  aiiil  ]).  '-J^iM,  Ike.,  as  to  tliese  names. 

§   See  p.  •2:li. 

11  Tliis  elevation  was  probably  one  of  the  outposts  of  the  battle  of  Worcester, 
iu  lO.'^l.  (See  pp.  '-I'-l'i,  'Z'-l'^.)  It  might,  however,  liave  been  a  more  aucient 
ramp,  as  it  is  in  tlie  dirert  line  between  Crnekbarrow  and  Castle  Hills. 

•I    See    '•  Cotlrx  l>ip.,'  No.  .'lOlt. 


'294 

Kad  Meadow,  Colwell  Piece,  and  In  Colwell  Piece,  in  Astwood  ; 
Wall  Meadow  and  Wall  Ground,  in  ToUardine  ;  In  Bow  Stone 
Field,  at  Femall  Heath ;  Camp  Close,  near  Bevere  Green ; 
Copsons  ;  Tutnall,  Tetnall,  or  Tootenhill ;  Tetnall  Close,  Dane's 
Close,  Barrow  Cop  Field,  Barrow  Cop  Orchard,  Barrow  Cop,  alias 
Little  Barrow  Cop  ;  Puckpit  Farm,  alitis  Tapenhall,  orTapenhale; 
and  the  Fort,  in  Windmill  Field,  near  to  Little  Ijowesmoor  and 
Great  Lowesmoor*.  For  further  particulars  relative  to  Claiues, 
see  the  account  of  Worcester,  Perdeswell,  Bevere  Island,  Elbury 
Hill,  Astwood,  and  Tutnall. 

BREDICOTf. — The  name  is  spelled  "  Bradecote  "  in  "  Domes- 
day Book ;"  and,  according  to  Dr.  Nash,  it  means  the  cot  of  Brade. 
In  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  357,  mention  is  made  of  the  Salt- 
road,Wolfpit,  Wyun  Meadow,  and  Callew  or  Callow  HUl  I,  on  the 
Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Bredicot§. 

TIBBEPtTON  was  formerly  spelled  Tibritton,  Tyberton,  Tybur- 
ton,  Tidbrichtingtone,  Tebertone,  or  Titbrictune  ||.  In  "  Domesday 
Book"  it  is  written  "Tyberton."  There  is  a  place  called  Raven  s 
Hill,  in  this  parish,  near  to  Bredicot  and  Crowle.  The  Danish 
origin  of  this  name  is  stated  in  the  account  of  Alfrick,  p.  194,  &c. 

CROWLE  was  spelled  Crogleah  and  Crohlea  in  the  Anglo-Saxon 
timesll^,  and  Crohlea  in  "  Domesday  Book."  It  is  said,  by  Dr. 
Nash,  to  mean  "  The  Dirty  Field**." — See  p.  94  as  to  supposed 
Danish  relics  found  there. 

IN  WARNDON,  or  Warmedon,  there  are  farms  called  Trots 
Troshill,  or  Tootshill,  Cudleyft",  and  Swinesherd  or  S\vincherd ; 

»  See  p.  3(5. 

+  See  pp.  9o,  9(5,  97,  as  to  Roman  relics  found  there. 

I   Also  see  Nash  thereon,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  53. 

§  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  507,  507  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  and  ()8.'5,  us  to  C'alawan  hyl 
(Calwan  hyll). 

]]  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  150,  150  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  and  92:5,  as  to  Tim 
bingcti'in  and  Tinibrintun. 

^[   See"  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  •.>.S7,  'U2,  24ti  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

*•   But  query  Crow  Field. 

H-  It  was  called  Cudley  in  Kinp;  Kdgar's  lime  (see  'riionias's  "  Survey,  \i-. 
of  Worcesln-  Calliedral,"  App.  40)  ;  and  Cudi'li^i  in  "  Dmiicsdiiy  IJnok.  ' 
Na>li  (Vol.  ii.,  p.  4'i!()  s-ays  Cudl'v  means  llie  field  ofCodi. 


295 

also  a  field  called  Tincroft,  in  Lower  Smite  Farm.  The  name  is 
written  Wearman-den  and  Werdun,  in  Anglo-Saxon  Chai-ters  =>=, 
and  Wermedum,  in  "  Domesday  Book."  In  Heming's  "  Car- 
tulary," p.  355,  mention  is  made  of  Oldbury  and  Babels-hill  on 
the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Smite  f,  which  is  partly  in  Warn 
don,  and  partly  in  Hindlip. 

With  respect  to  Smite,  Nash  says,  "  Mr.  Wm.  Fellows,  a 
learned  antiquary  and  vicar  of  Tibberton,  a.d.  1708,  supposes  it 
was  called  Smite  J,  from  an  engagement  near  this  place  between 
the  Anglo-Saxons  and  Danes. — MS.  Fellows §." 

In  HINDLIP,  or  Inlip,  and  Alcrinton  (now  Alfreton),  there 
are  Rad  Meadow,  Wolfs  Meadow,  Coverley  Field,  Oldbury  Field, 
Smite  Hill,  Upper  Smite,  Lower  Smite,  Doken  Field,  and  Cold 
Hai-borough,  or  Cold  Harbour  ||.  In  the  Anglo-Saxon  times  it 
was  called  HindehlypH  ;  and  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Hindelep 
and  Alcrintun.  In  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  463,  mention  is 
made  of  Herpath,  or  the  militaiy  way  on  the  boundaries  of  this 
parish.  The  name  Hindlip  is  said  to  signify  the  Hind's  Leap*=!=. 
A  Roman  copper  coin  was  found  in  the  rectory  grounds  in  1840. 
MARTIN  or  MERTON  HUSSINTREE  is  spelled  in 
"  Domesday  Book,"  Husentree.  In  the  year  183'2,  a  Roman 
copper  coin  of  Commodus  was  found  on  levelling  a  bank  by  the 
roadside,  near  the  inn  called  the  Shoeing  Horse. 

In  Catshallfl^  and  Coneygree  in  OMBERSLEY,  otherwise 
Ambresley,  and  Ambersley,  are  Hither  Warvil,  Further  Warvil, 
and  Barrow  Lane. 

In  Croces,  in  Sychampton,  in  Ombersley,  there  is  a  place 
called  Portway  Plat. 

•  Sep  "  Codox  Dip.,"  Nos.  llw,  lis  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  and  570. 

+   Ibid.,  Nos.  (ilH  and  lOo!)  as  to  Sniitf. 

I   SniitiB  in  Anplo-Saxon  sij^iilies  ii  slow,  ^'reasy  stream,  or  pool. 

§   See  Nasli,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  45.J. 

j  .Much  lias  hi'cn  said  of  latf  n-lalivo  in  ilip  ili>rivation  of  tlio  names  of  the 
ninnerous  places  called  Cold  Harbour. — See  lla^^lej,  pp.  l;(H  to  14vJ,  and 
Malvern,  pp.  Iwj,  1')!',  ^:e. 

f[    See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  lOvi,  JO,'  App.,  Vol,  iii. 

••    See  Nasi).  Vol.  ii.,  p.   i-'lT. 

tf   'I'lieie  i>  ('ainrll  (jreen  in  l",lnilrv  I.ovetl 


296 

In  Stewards,  in  Sychampton,  in  Ombersley,  there  is  a  place 
called  Salent  Oak. 

In  Upharapton,  in  Ombersley,  is  a  place  called  Wharwill. 

In  Allies,  in  BORLEY,  in  Ombersley,  there  is  a  place  called 
Underdoms. 

This  estate  has  been  called  by  my  family  name,  "  Allies,"  from 
the  time  of  the  earliest  Court  Rolls  of  the  Manor  of  Ombersley, 
which  commence  in  the  43rd  Edward  III.,  1 368.  It  was  formerly 
of  considerable  extent,  and  lay  in  Brockhampton,  Northampton, 
Mayeux,  Beriton,  Trylmylne,  Winhale,  Ambersley,  and  Borley ; 
but  the  name  is  now  nearly  confined  to  that  part  which  lies  in 
Borley.  The  family  removed  from  Ombersley  in  the  latter  part 
of  the  17th  century,  and  have  been  owners  and  occupiers  of  the 
Upper  House  Estate,  Alfrick,  since  the  former  part  of  the  18th 
century.  A  branch  of  the  family  of  Allies,  or  Alye,  lived  in  the 
parish  of  Northfield,  near  Ombersley,  as  appears  by  the  pedigrees 
in  the  Herald's  Visitations  of  Gloucester,  anno  1623;  Hereford, 
1683;  and  London,  1687*. 

The  following  extracts,  from  the  Index  of  the  Couit  Rolls  of 
the  manor,  relative  to  grants  which  had  been  made  out  of  the 
estate,  are  rather  curious,  as  showing  the  peculiar  manners  and 
customs  of  our  ancestors,  and  the  great  difference  in  the  value  of 
property,  or  rather  of  money,  in  mediaeval  times  to  what  it  is  at 
present! : — 

*  The  coat  is  azure ;  a  lion  rampant,  argent.  Crest : — On  a  wreath  of  tlie 
colours,  a  lion's  head  cabossed,  or.,  between  two  wings,  sable.  The  coat  of 
the  Ally,  or  Alye  family,  of  Dorset,  is  different  to  the  above;  and  the  coat 
which  belonged  to  Sir  Richard  Aly,  of  Sapwell,  Co.  Hertford,  as  stated  in  the 
Harleian  MSS.,  1140,  for  Hereford,  docs  not  resemble  either  of  the  above 
mentioned. 

+  Also,  see  p.  245. 


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30a 

Ombersley  was  anciently  written  Ambresley,  Anibresloy,  and 
Onibresley ;  in  Anglo-Saxon  charters,  Anibresleah,  Ambreslege, 
and  Ambresleia*  ;  in  •'  Domesday  Book"  it  is  spelled  Ambreslege f. 

IN  ASTLEY  there  are  places  called  Sitch  Meadow,  Great  and 
Little  Sitch  Meadow,  Kound  Hill,  Round  Hill  Coppice,  Peril 
Cop,  Far  Rowberry,  Coneygreen,  Hell  Hole,  The  Yield,  The 
Burf,  Part  of  Upper  Woolstons^,  Deep-den,  and  Lincomb§,  or 
Lincumb.  This  parish  was  anciently  spelled  Estley,  Astley,  or 
ifCstlege.  In  "  Domesday  Book"  it  is  written  Esley.  At  Red- 
stone Ferry  point,  on  the  western  bank  of  the  Severn,  where 
Astley  joins  to  Areley  Kings,  is  the  site  of  an  ancient  hermitage 
excavated  in  the  lofty  cliff.  This  is  rendered  remarkable,  as  being 
tlie  place  where  Layamon,  about  the  time  of  King  John,  wrote 
his  "  Brut,"  or  Chronicle  of  Britain  !|. 

In  HARTLEBURY  there  are  places  called  Hargrove,  Har- 
groves,  Hargrove  Lane,  Doles-in-Torton  Meadow^,  Egg  Lane, 
Puck  Hall  Field,  Far  Puck  Hall  Piece,  Dole*-,  in  Hanging  Close ; 
Round  Hill,  Tyn-fieldes  (Tin  Fields),  Tin  Fields  Near,  Tin  Fields 
Far;  Plrst,  Second,  and  Third  Tin  Fields  If,  Great  Hoos  Head, 
and  Ell  It  Meadow.  This  pai'ish  was  anciently  spelled  Huertburie, 
Hertlibuiy,  and  Heortlabiri.  In  "  Domesday,"  it  is  written 
Hueiteberie.  It  is  said  the  name  of  this  place,  in  the  Saxon 
language,  signifies  "  the  hill  or  place  of  harts§§." 

•  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  Sfi,  .'iO  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  64,  1355;  also,  see  "  Aiii- 
brosiiE  Petrie,"  Chap.  ii. 

+  For  account  of  Roman  and  other  relics,  which  were  found  at  Hadley  Heath, 
in  this  parish,  topether  with  a  British  celt  found  at  Lineholt  C'oninion,  vide 
J).  10(1  to  10!);  also,  see  account  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  concerning  the  site 
of  a  prohahle  fort  of  Ostorius,  by  the  Severn,  near  Onibersley  village. 

\  Wohitan  is  a  contniction  of  the  Saxon  name  Wulfstim. 

§   See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  5(i ;  also,  pp.  112,  lUJ  of  this  work. 

II  J'iile  Layamon's  "  Bmt,"  Introd.,  pp  10-10,  Ed.  Sir  F.  Madden;  also 
Nash's  •'  History,"  Vol.  i,  p.  41. 

^    See  p.  II-"!,  as  to  the  word  Torton. 

••  See  Alfrick,  p.  •^4M. 

+  +   See  p.  lil. 

XX  See  Elbiiry  Hill.  ]..  'i-r,\,  &c. 

§§   See  p.  ll-'t,  concfrninp;  relics  found  in  Hartleliury  :   and  Chap,  iv.,  its  to 


304 

In  WARESLEY,  in  Hartlebury,  are  Tin  Meadow  and  Round 
Hill. 

In  UPPER  MITTON,  in  Hartlebury,  are  Organ's  Hill,  Big 
and  Little  Organ's  Hill,  and  Round  Hill.  The  name  Organ  pos- 
sibly may  have  come  either  from  Organy  (wild  marjoram)  having 
grown  on  the  hills  in  question,  or  from  orgies  {orgia)  mad  rites 
of  Bacchus,  frantic  revels,  having  been  practised  there  by  the 
Romans  or  Romanized  British.  There  likewise  is  Organ's  Hill 
between  Heightington  and  Rock. 

In  ELMLEY  LOVETT  are  Burn  Hill,  Wat  Pit,  Tin  Mea- 
dow, Great  and  Little  Puckall,  Round  Hill,  and  Catnell  Green. 
Elmley  Lovett  was  anciently  called  Almeleia  or  Aumeleia.  In 
"  Domesday"  it  is  written  Almeleia. 

In  ARELEY  KINGS,  or  Lower  Areley,  are  Dreacle  Hill, 
Devil's  Dib-,  The  Mounins,  Vineyards,  Hanstones  Hill,  Han- 
stones  Bank,  Hanstones  Little  Hill,  Hanstones  Field,  and 
Hungry  Hobouni.  It  was  anciently  called  Armleg,  Harlegh  de 
Rege,  and  Arley  Regis. 

In  STONE,  with  the  Hamlet  of  Shenstone,  are  Curslow  Hill, 
Egg  Lane  Piece,  Aggborough  Piece,  Round  Hill,  Piper's  Close, 
and  Hoo.  It  was  anciently  written  Staines,  and  in  "  Domesday 
Book,"  Stanes. 

In  the  Hamlet  of  LOWER  MITTON,  in  the  parish  of  Kid- 
derminster, are  Sleeper's  Den,  Short  Winwood  Close,  The  Vine- 
yard, and  Dane  Piece. 

In  RIBBESFORD  are  Ockeridge  Wood  and  Ridges.  The 
name,  in  the  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  738,  is  written  Ribbedfordf. 
Bewdley,  in  this  parish,  is  derived  from  Bellus  Locus,  or  Beau- 
lieu. 

KIDDERMINSTER  was  anciently  written  Chiderminster,  and 
in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Chideminstre.  Dr.  Nash  says,  "  the  word 
Kidderminster  means  a  church  standing  upon  the  brow  of  a  hill, 

llargraves,  on  the  limits  of  the  manor,  wliere  also  are  "Lowe  Field,"  "  Hagg 
Lane,"  and  "  Torton  Field." 

*  Or  Valley. 

\  See  p.  14(),  as  to  a  celt  found  there,  and  as  to  a  Roman  coin  f(mnd  at 
Tickenliill,  in  Bewdley. 


305 

and  the  water  running  under  it.  '  Kid'  signifying,  in  the  old 
British,  the  brow  of  a  hill;  '  dur,'  water;  and  'minster,"  a 
church.  Some  have  supposed  Kidderminster  to  have  been  de- 
rived from  Cynebert's  Minster."  In  the  "  Rambler  in  Worces- 
tershire," published  in  1851,  pp.  2,  3,  the  author,  after  noticing 
several  definitions  of  antiquaries  as  to  the  name  Kidderminster, 
says,  others  "  facetiously  assert  that  one  King  Cador  resided 
there  in  the  glorious  days  of  the  round  table,  and  that  Caders 
Minster  is  thence  derived ;  in  proof  of  which,  they  advance  the 
following  whimsical,  versified  tradition  : — 

"  King  Cador  saw  a  pretty  maid ; 

Kiug  Cador  would  have  kissed  her ; 
The  damsel  slipt  aside,  and  said, — 
'  King  Cador,  you  have  miss'd  her.' 

("  i.  ('.,  Cador,  or  Keder-mister.") 

The  above  may  be  taken  as  a  specimen  of  medieval  legends  in 
general,  which  often  had  reference  to  names  of  places*.  Laya- 
mon's  "  Brut"  abounds  with  them. 

The  manor  of  Caldwell,  in  the  parish  of  Kidderminster,  is  said, 
by  Dr.  Nash,  to  have  been  "  so  called,  perhaps,  from  Calida 
Vallis,  being  very  descriptive  of  its  situation ;"  but  it  probably 
means  Cold-wellf. 

Mitton,  a  hamlet  in  this  parish  is,  in  "  Domesday  Book," 
called  jMetune. 

In  the  borough  of  Kidderminster  are  places  called  the  Danes, 
and  Round  Hill. 

In  the  parish  of  the  Foreign  of  Kidderminster,  including  the 
hamlets  of  Hnrcott  and  Comberton,  there  are  places  called 
Elleme  Field,  or  Ellame  Field,  Tipper's  Oak,  Cop  Hill,  Battle 
Field,  Round  Hill,  Jack's  Stile,  Upper  Street  Leasow,  Lower 
Street  Leasow,  Aggborongh,  and  Hoar  Stone  |. 

South  of  Wribbenhall,  near  Bewdley,  there  is  a  place  called 
the  Devil's  Spadeful  (in  Isaac  Taylors  map  and  the  Ordnance 
Map,  the  Devil's  Spittleful).  It  is  a  remarkable  pinnacle  of 
sandstone  rock,  situate  in  Bluckstone  Farm,  in  the  Foreign  of 

*  See  Oddingley  thereon, 
t  See  pp.  158,  L")!). 

I  See  pi>.  144,  14.5,  as  to  Wassitl  Hill  Ciinip,  or  Warshill  Camp,  in  tliis 
parish. 


Kidilerniiiister,  and  standing  about  a  mile  from  Blackstonc  Cave, 
or  Hermitage,  not  far  from  Wassal  Cainp  and  the  Hoar  Stone. 
The  following  curious  legend  is  told  of  the  '*  Devil's  Spade- 
ful:"— As  a  cobbler  was  returning  home  at  night  with  a  pair 
of  shoes  to  mend,  he  was  met  by  a  certain  old  gentleman  carry- 
ing a  spadeful,  who  enquired  of  the  cobbler  how  far  it  was 
to  Bewdley,  as,  on  account  of  its  great  godliness,  he  wanted 
to  drown  it,  by  throwing  the  spadeful  into  the  Severn :  to 
which  the  cobbler  replied  that  it  was  so  far  off  that  he 
had  worn  out  the  pair  of  shoes  he  then  exhibited  in  walking 
from  it  ;  whereupon  the  old  gentleman  threw  the  spadefull 
down  at  the  spot  in  question,  and  declared  he  would  not  carry 
it  any  further.  With  respect  to  the  size  of  this  spadeful,  a  gen- 
tleman of  Bewdley,  James  Fryer,  Esq.,  favoured  me  with  the 
following  particulars  : — "  The  circumference  of  tliis  rock  at  the 
base  is  about  '291  yards.  It  is  naked  at  the  summit,  and  has  a 
small  cavern  at  the  south  west  end,  which  has  been  inhabited. 
The  length  at  the  summit  is  07  yards.  Its  average  width  is  three 
yards ;  and  its  height  about  35  or  40  feet.  The  rock  stands  in 
sulated  in  a  basin  of  sandy  soil,  the  contents  of  which  may  bo 
about  a  square  mile.  It  has  been  planted  on  the  sides  with 
beech,  Scotch  fir,  and  other  trees  that  grow  well." 

About  four  or  five  miles  north  of  the  above-mentioned  place, 
there  is  a  spot  called  the  Giant's  Grave. 

Wribbenliall,  above  referred  to,  is  a  hamlet  in  the  parish  of 
Kidderminster,  and  situated  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Severn,  im- 
mediately opposite  Bewdley. 

In  the  "  Archfeologia,"  Vol.  xxxi.=i=,  there  is  the  following  curious 
account  of  a  grant  of  land  in  this  hamlet : — 

"  Remarkable  Charter  of  the  Twelfth  Century  from  the  Muniments 
of  the  Leclimere  Family. 
"  18th  April,  1844,  Evelyn  Philip  Sliiriey,  Esq.,  M.P.  for  tin; 
county  of  Monaghan,  exhibited  a  charter  of  the  twelfth  century, 
from  the  muniments  of  the  Lechmere  family.  It  is  a  confirm.i- 
tion  from  Italph  de  Mortuo  Mari  of  a  grant  of  land  in  \V ribbon- 
hall,    Co.    Worcester,    made  by  Turstinus  to  the  monks  of  a 

•   A]>ptMi(lix.  ]).  I'i;"). 


307 

monastery  not  specified.  The  peculiaiities  of  this  charter  consist, 
fii"st,  in  its  being  signed  with  a  cross,  by  each  of  the  persons 
who  made  and  confirmed  this  grant — a  practice  of  very  rare 
occurrence  ;  and,  secondly,  in  the  seal  being  suspended  by  a  thin 
label,  not  as  usual,  from  the  foot  of  the  charter,  but  from  the 
middle  of  it.  It  is  believed  that  this  is  the  only  instance  hitherto 
known  of  such  a  singular  mode  of  attaching  the  seal  being  prac- 
tised in  England ;  although  something  similar  exists  in  the  col- 
lection of  charters  in  the  Hotel  de  Soubise,  at  Paris." 

With  respect  to  the  above-mentioned  mode  of  signature  it  must 
be  remarked  that  few  persons  signed  Anglo-Saxon  charters  and 
gi-ants  without  using  either  the  tauma  or  the  cross*.  The  hammer 
of  Thunor  (Thorr)  was  the  true  heathen  symbol  of  all  contracts!, 
and  it  is  well  known  to  have  been  represented  by  the  cross  |. 

In  W()LVERLEY§  there  are  Portway  Piece,  Big  Oldbrough, 
Hound  Hill,  Solcum,  Street  Meadow,  Street  Leasow,  Axborougli 
Lane,  and  Great  and  Little  Axborough.  The  name  Wolverley 
was  anciently  spelled  Wulfirdingly,  Wulwardinglea,  Ulwar- 
delei,  Wlwardeley,  Wlverslawe,  and  Wlfreslawe.  In  "  Domes- 
day Book"  it  is  written  Ulwardelei,  and  in  Anglo-Saxon  charters, 
Uulfferdinleah,  Uulfordilei'i,  and  Wulfweardiglea||. 

In  OVER  ARLEY,  or  Upper  Arley,  in  Staffordshire,  there  are 
ColdRidge  Wood,  Lower  Coldridge,  Kitlands,  Kitlands  Coppice, 
Wall  Croft,  The  Yeals,  Wall's  ^Meadow,  Upper  Burgage,  Lower 
Burgage,  Castle  Field,  Tedge  Hole,  Hennage,  the  Innage,  The 
Walls,  Little  Yeals.  Big  Yeals.  and  Hawk-batchl^      Over  Arley 

•  See  p.  202. 

+  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Vol.  i.,  Int.,  pp.  fl4.  100. 

J  In  Kenible's  "  Siixon's  in  En{:claiid,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  047,  it  is  stated  that  tliis 
pecnliar  weapon  of  Thor  "  seems  to  denote  the  violent  emshijig  thunder-boll, 
and  the  Norse  myth  represents  it  as  continually  nsed  against  the  giants  or 
elenientJil  go<ls  of  the  primal  world." 

§  A  branch  of  the  road  in  question  is  supposed  to  have  nni  from  Wolverlev 
to  Kenvaur  Edge,  &c. 

II  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  201,  2!)2,  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  and  700,  The  same 
work  sets  forth  other  names  of  places  in  Worcestei-shire,  having  the  prefix 
"  Wolf,"  as  Wulfandun,  No.  nO  App.,  Vol.  iii.,  &c. 

If  See  p.  1  \h,  as  to  the  Portway,  Homan  Camp,  Castle  Field,  and  other  relies 
in  this  parish. 


8ns 

was  anciently  written  "  Emlege,  Ernleah*,"  Amiey  antl  Arlegli. 
With  respect  to  tlie  etymology  of  the  suffix  "  ley,"  see  the 
account  of  Abberley  Hill ;  the  prefix  "  Ar"  is  British,  and  sig- 
nifies the  same  with  super  in  Latin  f . 

EASTERN  SIDE  OF  THE  COUNTY.— ANCIENT 
ROADS  AND  CAMPS,  &c. 

The  lines  of  the  ancient  roads  and  camps,  on  the  eastern  side 
of  the  county,  from  Middle  Hill  near  Broadway  to  Bidford,  will 
appear  in  the  account  of  the  Lower  Salt-way  :  and  from  Bidford 
to  Edgbaston,  near  Birmingham,  &c  ,  in  the  account  of  the  Ryck- 
nield  Street. 

*  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  705. 

+   See  Diigdale's  "Warwicksliire,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  103.      Ed.  Thoui. 


bff^pr 


809 


Iter  |0|. 


SALT-WAYS. 

THE   UPPER    SALT-WAY, 

FROM 

DKOITWICH  TO  EDGBASTON,  NEAR  BIRMINGHAM. 

The  Upper  Salt-way,  although  not  noticed  in  the  Ordnance 
Map  of  Worcestershire,  is  set  down  in  the  Rev.  Thomas  Leman's 
Map  of  Ancient  British  Trackways*,  as  proceeding  north-eastward 
from  Droitwich,  through  Worcestershire,  and  along  the  northern 
side  of  Leicestershire  to  Lincolnshire.  Its  line  from  Droitwich 
to  Birmingham,  &c.,  probably  was  as  follows  : — 

From  Droitwich,  (anciently  called  Wic  and  Wich),  by  Doder- 
hill,  and  near  the  line  of  the  Salwarp  or  Saiowai'pe  River  to  Upton 
Wan-en,  by  Stoke  Prior,  through  Bromsgrove,  and  by  or  over  the 
east  side  of  the  Lickey,  and  through  Shepley,  where  it  probably 
fell  in  with  the  most  primitive  line  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  as 
hereafter  stated f.  Thence,  after  their  juncture,  the  two  roads 
passed  by  Twatling  Farm,  Tin  Fields,  Fire  or  Firy  Hill,  and  Barn 
or  Barnt  Green,  and  through  Coston  Hacket,  Xorthlield,  and 
Witchall.  to  Edgbitston,  where  they  separated  as  hereafter  stated. 
The  road  then  continued  by  Camp  Hill,  and  on  the  east  side  of 
Jiirmiugham,  by  Ashted  to  Salteley,  near  Duddestou,  &c. ;  so 
on  to  Strettoii,  on  the  border  of  Warwickshire ',  as  stated  in  the 

•  See  HrcwtTs  "  I?<'KUtifs  of  Kiij^lnod  and  Walrs,"  Jut.,  p.  l:t,  tliirtroiuli 
pililioii,  l^ils. 

t  Spp  tl)P  coiu-lnsioii  (if  this  article,  and  nls"  tlie  Rcrniint  of  die  Hyckiiipld 
Sin-pt.  I  do  not  proipnd  to  siiy  wliich  is  thr  fddest,  the  Sidt-wav,  or  ilic  Rypk 
Jijpld  Stivpt.  Imt  shoidd  tliink  the  latter. 

J   Tliiii  i>  SiiPtloii  CM  Ic  Fields,  in  Deri)} shin-. 


310 

*'  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  61,  62  ;  and  in 
"  Richard  of  Cirencester,"  p.  116. 

DROITWICH. — Much  has  been  said  in  the  former  part  of 
this  work  as  to  this  place  having  been  the  Salinae  of  the  Romans  ; 
and  tliat  the  Salt- ways  thereto,  which  are  generally  considered  to  be 
British,  strongly  tend  to  prove  that  the  salt  springs  at  Droitwich 
were  used  by  the  Britons.  With  respect  to  the  Anglo-Saxon 
times,  it  appeal's  that,  in  716,  ^Ethelbald  of  Mercia  granted  certain 
saltworks  near  the  river  Salwerpe  at  Lootwic*,  in  exchange, 
however,  for  othei-s  to  the  north  of  the  river  f. 

In  the  same  year  he  granted  a  hide  of  laud  iu  Saltwic  (Saltwych), 
uuico  (vico)  emptorio  salts,  to  Evesham  J. 

In  888,  jEthelred,  Duke  of  Mercia,  held  a  gemot  at  Saltwic,  to 
consult  upon  affairs  both  ecclesiastical  and  secular.  The  Witan 
assembled  from  far  and  near§. 

Saltwic  was  frequently  in  Anglo-Saxon  times  called  Wich  or 
Wiche  only,  and  the  prefix  "  Droit"  was  added  in  later  times.  It 
is  observable  here,  that  the  Anglo-Saxon  kings  possessed  a  right 
to  levy  certain  dues  at  the  salt-pans,  or  the  pit's  mouth,  upon  the 
waggons  as  they  stood,  and  upon  the  load  being  placed  in  them : 
these  dues  were  respectively  called  the  waenscilling  and  seam- 
pending, — literally,  icain-shilUng  and  load-penny. — See  the 
Charter  of  ^thelred,  Duke  of  Mercia,  in  the  "  Codex  Dip.," 
No.  1075,  and  the  account  of  Alfrick  in  this  work  ||.  Mr.  Kemble, 
in  his  "  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  ii.,  pp.  71,  72,  in  speaking  of 
these  dues,  says  : — "  The  peculiar  qualities  of  salt,  which  make 
it  a  necessary  of  life  to  man,  have  always  given  a  special  diameter 
to  the  springs  and  soils  which  contain  it.  The  pagan  Germans 
considered  the  salt  springs  holy,  and  waged  wars  of  extermination 

*  Aiid  Coolbeorg. 

t  iiec  "  Coilex  Dii).,"  No.  07  ;  aiul  Keiuble's  "  Siixous  in  Euglaiul,''  Vol.  ii  , 
V.  70. 

♦  "  Coilfx  Dip.,'  No.  (iS. 

§  IhiiL,  Nos.  ••!-^7,  lOlis,  I(i;r);  luui  Ktiiibles  "  Saxons  in  KiiKlaiid,'  Vol. 
ii.,  \\.  -yoi.  Also  s(.<  Aiflilii^liop  Wulfcliuis  C'liartfr,  No.  lol:i.  ilaiod  HilT. 
rcliiiivi'  lo  Scaltwii-. 

;     Srr  p.  JlMi. 


311 

for  their  possession  * ;  and  it  is  not  improbable  that  they  may 
generally  have  been  the  exclusive  property  of  the  priesthood. 
If  so,  we  can  readily  understand  how,  upon  the  introduction 
of  Cliristianity,  they  would  naturally  pass  into  the  hands  of 
the  king ;  and  this  seems  to  throw  light  upon  the  origin  of  this 
royalty,  which  Eichhorn  lumself  loolis  upon  as  difficult  of  explana- 
tionf.  Many  of  the  royal  rights  were  unquestionably  inherited 
from  the  pagan  priesthood  |." 

SALWARP  is  mostly  spelled  Saleweorpe  or  Salwarpe  in  the 
Anglo-Saxon  charters §,  and  Salewaq^e  in  "  Domesday  Book." 
There  were  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times,  Coil-hill,  Coil-ford,  Omber- 
setene,  and  Portstraet,  on  the  boundaries  of  this  parish  ||. 

The  following  names  of  places  occur  in  the  line  in  question 
from  Droitwich  to  Birmingham : — 

In  DODERHILL  there  are,— Hanburj-  Meadow,  The  Ridge- 
way  Field,  Upper  Street,  Upper  Street  Sling,  Thumb's  Close, 
Cob's  Close,  Cob's  Croft,  Cob's  Orchard,  Egg  Hills,  Oven's  Hill, 
Dane's  Meadow,  Robin  Hood  Piece,  Round  Hill,  Astwood  or 
Carpel  Meadow,  Piper's  Hill,  and  Impney*'. 

There  is  a  manor  called  Wichbold  in  Doderhill.  This  name, 
Dr.  Nash*"'-  says,  means  "  The  Hall  of  the  Wicciansff."  It  is 
called  Wicelbold  in  "  Domesday  Book." 

In  UPTON  WARREN  there  are  places  called  Woodbury, 
Warraton  Meadow,  Wall  Dole,  Oldbury,  Twinton|*,  Great,  Little, 
and  near  Asthills,  Sitch  Close,  Hell  Patch,  Kit  ]\Ieadow,  and 
Wanidge.  In  "  Domesday  Book"  this  place  is  spelled  Uptune. 
Cokesey  in  this  parish  is  spelled  Cockesie. 

*  Tacitus,  Ann.  xiii.,  •')7. 

+  Dent.  Stoatsr.,  ii.,  -420,  §  t>!»7, 

{  Also  see  the  general  observations  relative  to  the  nunies,  Wick,  VVicli, 
andWicria,  Chap.  I. 

§    Vide  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  ;U,  5fi,  07,  117,  &c. 

;1  See  Heniing's  "Cartulary,"  p.  '-^M;  Nasli,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  5i>;  and 
"  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  .")7(),  l:Wi(>;  also  aiilr,  pp.  10!),  IM,  HI. 

•1   See  Burn's  '•  Kcclesiajtica!  I. aw,"  Vol.  iii.,  pp.  140,  447. 

•♦  Vol.  ii.,  p.  :i47, 

f+    Hut  ipierv  tlii-. 

^[    Probiil'ly  mcaniiis  Quiiil<>ii. 


S12 

In  DOVERDALE*,  near  Upton  Warren,  there  are  places 
called  Hell  Hole  Meadow,  and  Round  Hill.  Doverdale  was 
anciently  called  Lunuredale  and  Doudale.  "  Domesday  Book" 
has  it  Lunuredele. 

In  STOKE  PRIOR  there  are  places  called  Hell-end  Meadow, 
Harbour's  Hill  Piece,  Callow  Lane,  The  Styche,  Robin's 
Meadow,  Hobdeu.  In  Latin  records  it  is  written  Stoka,  or 
Stocha.  In  "  Domesday,"  Stoche.  Some  ancient  bracelets  have 
been  found  here,  and  also  primitive  ovens  f. 

Dr.  Nash,  in  describing  the  boundaries  of  Stoke  Prior  Manor, 
speaks  of  Puck  Lane  and  Obden  Brook];. 

In  BROMSGROVE  PARISH  there  are  Old  Hill,  Low's 
Hill,  The  Lowes,  Vigo  Piece,  Honier  Boon,  Oven  Piece,  Wall 
Hill,  Wall  Hill  Close,  Dicel  Dole,  Dib  Dale,  Beacon  Wood, 
Round  Hill,  Beach  Dole,  Firy  Hill,  Warding,  Tvvatling  Wood, 
In  Beacon's  Field,  Beacons,  Highway  Hill,  Upper,  Middle,  and 
Lower  Gannow,  The  Streets,  Dole  Meadow,  Oldbury,  Rattle- 
stone,  Big  and  Little  Mole  Horn,  Folly  Meadow,  Dole  in  Broad 
Meadow,  Doles,  Fockbury'  Meadow,  Bache  Green,  Burcot,  Hani- 
bery  Piece,  Big  Ambery,  Tin  Meadows  §,  Yaniell  Lane,  Mottk's 
Wood,  The  King's  Chair,  Wilkin  Close,  Tickeridge  Piece, 
Bungay  Lane  Homestead,  Holbourne,  Bewell  Head,  Oveu 
W^ood,  Pug's  Hole  Allotment  j|,  Hambury's  Piece  and  Meadow, 
The  Lear,  Upper  and  Lower  Callow's  Field,  Devil's  Den,  Cubnail, 
Jack's  Croft,  Burcott  Yeeld,  Shepley  Yeeld,  Woodcoat  Yield,  and 
Fatch  Leasow,  in  Burcott. 

At  a  place  called  Pigeon-House  Hill,  by  Longbridge,  on  the 
north  side  of  Bromsgrove  Lickey,  several  Roman  coins  were 
found  as  stated  in  the  account  of  Droitwich*'.  In  "  Domesday 
Book"  this  parish  is  called  Bremesgrave**,  where  a  place  called 

*   See  p.  270,  relative  to  the  derivation  of  this  name. 
+    Vide  pp.  Ill,  112. 

I  See  Vol.  ii.,  p.  3S0. 

§  Called  Pin  Fields  in  the  Ordnance  Map, 
|,   Meaninji;  I'upk's  ilule. — Sec  "  Folk-Lore." 

II  See  p.  102. 

•»  See  p(i.  11"),  l>i -,  also,  Chap.  IV.,  and  Slirpley  Koad,  HMknicld  Strni, 
lloi   \1\. 


:313 

Tothehel,  now  called  Tonthall  Cross-,  is  likewise  noticed.  In 
Kemble's  "  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  ii.,  Appendix  C,  p.  551, 
in  the  account  of  Anglo-Saxon  towns,  there  is  the  following: — 
*'  Bremesbyrig. — At  tliis  place  Ethelflaed  built  a  burh.  •  Saxon 
Chi'on.,'  910.  Florence  says,  '  urbem,'  an.  911,  perhaps  Broms- 
grove,  in  Worcestershire,  the  Et  Bremesgrafum  of  the  '  Codex 
Diplomaticus.' " 

In  COSTON,  or  Cofton  Hackett,  there  are  Creamen  Meadow, 
The  Sprights,  and  "  Part  of  Warstoue."  This  place  was  anciently 
called  Codestun  and  Coftiinf.  In  "  Domesday  Book"  it  is  written 
Costone.  In  Chap.  IV.  on  Hoar-Stones,  "  Whorstone  Field" 
is  said  to  be  partly  ui  King's  Norton  and  partly  in  Crofton 
Hacket :  it  also  notices  "  Hoar  Apple  Tree  "  in  that  part.  King 
Offa,  in  the  year  780,  gave  to  the  church  of  Worcester  five 
manses  at  Wreodenliale,  which,  in  the  year  849,  were  granted  by 
Alhhun,  Bishop  of  Worcester,  to  King  Berhtwulf  t- 

In  FRANKLEY  there  are  Came's  Meadow,  Upper  Hoblets, 
Banky  Hoblets,  Warstone  Farm,  Great  and  Little  Round  Hill, 
Hobacre,  Ravens  Hays  Wood,  and  Jack  Leasow.  This  parish 
was  formerly  spelled  Fraunkeleigh,  Franchelie,  and  Frankel ;  and 
in  "  Domesday  Book"  it  is  written  Franchelei,  which  Dr.  Nash 
says  "  signifies  a  free  or  privileged  place,  this  name  being  pro- 
bably given  to  it  from  the  lands  being  granted  by  the  first  Saxon 
lord,  to  the  tenants,  without  the  reservation  of  any  base  services." 
In  support  of  this  conjecture,  it  may  be  remarked  that  the 
"  Domesday"  survey  of  tliis  manor  records  nine  bordarii,  but  not 
one  villanus. 

In  NORTHFIELD,  otherwise  Nordfield§,  there  are  War- 
stone,  Warstone  Field  ||,  Ellbaiik  Piece,  Bumbuiy  Piece,  Big  Bum- 
bury  Piece,  Tin  Meadow,  Cob's  Field,  Long  Nokc,  Robins  Field, 
Big  Robin's  Field,  Robin's  Hays,  Witches  Rough,  Quinton  Oak, 
Port  Fields.  Castle  Hill,  Kitwell,  Ilarbourne  Meadow,  Hob  Acre, 

•  See  Nasli,  Vol.  i.,  p.  IW. 

t  See  "  Codex  Dii).,"  Nos.  h'.W,  (i(i(t,  Vix,  2(\.l,  ■iol. 

I  Ihi,l.,  N(.s.  l:is,  -Jd-J. 

(j  See  "  H(,iiie>.liiy  Hook.' 

,  y.e  Clmi'.  IV. 


314 

First  and  Far  Hobridge,  Hob  Redding,  Hob's  Croft,  Jack  Piece, 
Middle  and  Far  Jack  Piece,  Round  Hill,  and  Weoley  Castle. 

In  BIRMINGHAM  tliere  are  Wor-ston,  Warstone  Lane*,  and 
Hoar  Quebb,  in  the  Foreign  of  Birmingham  f.  It  is  written  Ber- 
mengeham  in  "  Domesday  Book." 

In  Nash's  "  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  1 07,  there  is  a  quota- 
tion from  Bishop  Lyttelton,  relative  to  this  line  of  road,  which 
Higden  en'oneously  calls  the  Ykenild  Street  [Rycknield  Street] 
in  the  whole  of  the  line.  The  Bishop,  however,  does  not  appear 
to  have  seen  that  the  part  of  the  road  from  Droitwich  to  Broms- 
grove  Lickey  meant  a  part  of  the  Upper  Salt- way,  which  seems 
to  have  run  into  the  elder  branch  of  the  Rycknield  Street 
at  Shepley  Heath  or  Twatling  Farm,  near  Bromsgrove  Lickey, 
and  thence  proceeded  as  one  road  to  Edgbaston,  where  the  two 
branched  off  as  previously  stated.  The  foUomng  is  the  quota- 
tion : — 

"  If  any  credit  may  be  given  to  an  old  writer,  R.  Higden,  cited 
in  Gale's  '  Essay  on  the  Roman  Roads' j,  the  Ykenild  Street 
passed  through  Worcester  from  Maridunum  [Caermarthen],  in 
South  Wales,  to  Droitwich,  Edgbaston,  Wall  near  Litchfield, 
Little  Chester,  near  Derby,  and  so  on  to  Tinmouth,  in  Noithum- 
berland ;  but,  though  I  cannot  subscribe  to  this,  as  the  Ykenild 
undoubtedly  enters  tliis  county  at  Beoley,  in  its  com-se  from 
Alcester,  in  Warwickshire,  and  passes  by  Bordesley  Park,  in  Alve- 
chiurch,  and  so  goes  to  Edgbaston  and  Wall ;  yet,  I  have  myself 
often  observed  a  high  raised  road  on  the  Lickey,  pointing  di- 
rectly to  Bromsgrove,  from  whence,  I  make  no  doubt,  it  proceeded 
to  Wich,  the  supposed  SalinaB  of  Ravennas,  and  thence  to 
Worcester." 

THE  LOWER  SALT-WAY,  AND  THE  LOWER 
DEVIATION  SALT- WAY. 

Tliere  appears  to  be  two  branches  of  the  Lower  Salt-way  from 
Droitwich  to  Northleach,  in  Gloucestershire ;  the  one  llu-ougli 

•   Hvc  ( 'Imi).  I V.  t   Il>''^- 

{  Lclniulb  "  Itin.,'  Vol.  vi.,  ji.  inn. 


315 

x\lcester  and  over  Broadway  Hill  and  Middle  Hill,  to  Northleach, 
aud  the  other  by  Elmley  Castle,  Ashtou  Underhill,  Sudeley 
Castle,  and  Hawling,  to  Northleach,  where  they  probably  united, 
and  ran  on  to  Coin  St.  Aldwins,  and  thence  to  Hampshire,  as 
is  hereafter  stated.  For  convenience  of  description,  1  shall  call 
the  former  of  these  two  lines  The  Lower  Salt-way,  and  the  latter 
the  Lower  Deviation  Salt-way. 


C^QP^ 


010 


Pr  mi 


THE  LOWER  SALT-AVAY, 

FROM 

DROITWICH  TO  BROADWAY  HILL,  NORTHLEACH,  &c. 

This  Salt-way  is  set  down  in  the  llev.  Thomas  Leman's  Map 
of  Ancieut  British  Trackways  as  proceeding  from  Droitwich, 
through  Alcester,  to  Cirencester,  &c.  It  appears  to  have  gone 
eastward  from  Droitwich  (Salinse),  through  Hadsor  (where  it  bears 
the  name  of  the  Salt-way  in  the  Ordnance  Map),  thence  to  Mere 
(or  Meer)  Green  and  Bradley  Green  ;  thence  through  Feckenham 
and  Inkberrow,  by  Muzzy  Hill,  north  of  Hoobery  Green,  Worces- 
teshire  (where  it  again  is  called  the  Salt-way  in  the  Ordnance 
Map);  thence  across  the  Ridge-way*  to  Hanging  Well,  Bunker's 
Hill  Barn,  and  Alcester  Heath,  Warwickshire,  to  the  Rycknield 
Street f,  north  of  Alcester;  thence  along  that  street  to  Bidford  ; 
thence  along  the  line  of  the  Buckle  Street  from  Bidford,  through 
UUington,  in  the  parish  of  Pebwoith ;  thence  between  the  Honey- 
bournes,  through  Weston  Subedge,  over  Willersey  Hill ;  thence 
over  the  Cotswolds  at  Middle  Hill,  where  it  resumes  the  name  of 
the  Salt-way. 

It  is  slated  in  the  "  Salopia  Antiqua,"  that  a  way  called  ]3uckle 
Street,  or  Boggilde  Street  I,  passes  between  Church  Honeybourne, 
in  Worcestershire,  and  Cow  Honeybourne,  in  Gloucestershire, 
and  through  Western  Subedge  in  the  latter  county ;  and  that  it 
continued  southward,  under  the  name  of  the  Salt-way,  over  the 

•  Tliis  liidjiewny  itioljiilily  was  tlu-  piiiliest  line  of  tlic  iJyckiiicld  Strci  t. 

f  'I'liiTc  (loscrili((l  as  ilio  llavdoii  way  in  the  Ordiiniioe  Map. 

I  Callfd  "  Biifri^ildc  Sirnl"  and  "  lUirgan  Stra-l."' — sei-  tlir  Cliaitci-  of  Kcnrrd 

and  OH'a,  dated  \.  n.  /'i!l,  a-d  in  "  ((.dcx  I'i]'.,"  No.-.  (>l,  •,"^!l.  h-'A.  J -Itis. 


317 

Cotswolds,  along  the  ridge  l)y  the  Tower  on  Broadway  Hill*,  in 
Gloucestershire,  to  Middle  Hill,  in  Worcestershire!,  from  whence 
it  most  probably  went  in  nearly  a  straight  line  southward  through 
Smallthorn  and  Condicote  I,  to  the  Foss-way,  either  at  Bourton- 
on-the- Water,  or  Stow-on-the-Wold,  all  in  Gloucestershire ;  and 
afterwards  to  Cirencester,  &c.  §  ;  or  rather,  perhaps,  it  was  joined 
by  the  Lower  Deviation  Salt-way  at  Northleach,  and  then  they 
went  as  one  road  to  Coin  St.  Aldwins,  &c.,  as  hereafter  stated. 
From  Church  Honeyboume  (or  rather  from  Ullington)  to  Alces- 
ter,  it  is  called  the  Icknield  Street  in  the  Ordnance  Map ;  but 
this  appears  to  have  been  a  mistake  in  that  part,  from  Honey- 
boume or  UlHngton,  to  Bidford,  unless  the  Fivcknield  Street  did 
run  from  South  Littleton  to  Ullington,  and  then  to  Bidford, 
instead  of  going  through  Middle  Littleton,  North  Littleton,  Cleeve 
Prior,  and  Marlciff,  to  Bidford  ,1.  In  Mr.  May's  "  History  of 
Evesham,"  second  edition,  p.  304,  it  is  stated  that  the  coui"se  of 
the  Buckle  Street "  is  still  clearly  seen  from  Bidford  to  Honeybourne 
Bridge,  through  Westonfield,  across  the  new  Camden  Road,  by 
Saintbury,  to  the  top  of  Willersey  Hill,  whence,  crossing  the 
London  road,  east  of  the  Fish,  on  Broadway  Hill,  it  appears  to 
have  joined  the  Foss-way  at,  or  near  Stow." 

In  the  middle  of  Camp  Field,  in  Seven  Wells  Farm,  Wor- 
cestei-shire^,  situate  on  the  south-east  of  Middle  Hill  **,  there  are 
some  slight  vestiges  of  a  small  oblong  square  camp  (lately 
pointed  out  to  me  by  Sir  Thomas  Phillipps).  A  similar  one  is 
visible  on  the  north  side,  in  the  adjoining  field.     The  traces  of 

•  I  rntlier  think  there  must  have  been  an  ancient  camp  on  this  commanding; 
spot,  the  site  of  whicli  has  been  destroyed  by  a  land-slip,  which,  to  all  appear 
ance,  took  place  there  several  centuries  back. 

+  See  Chap.  IV.,  conceniinp  Hoar  Stones,  in  Cutsdean,  which  parish  lies 
near  the  line  in  question,  between  Middle  Hill  and  Rmall-thoni. 

I  Or  it  might  have  gone  by  a  more  circuitous  route,  through  Cutsdean, 
Temple  Giiiting,  Guiting  Power,  and  Naunton. 

§  See  "  Srtlopia  Amifina,"  by  the  Rev.  Charles  Henry  Hartshonie,  Int.,  p.  12. 

!|   See  "  Rycknifld  Street." 

^  Belonging  to  Lady  Louisa  Lygon  ;  not  to  Sir  Thoniits  Phillipps,  Bart.,  as 
stated  in  the  "  Salopia  Antiqua." 

••  The  seat  of  Sir  Thomas  Phillipps,  Bart. 


318 

both  have  been  much  defaced  by  the  plough.  A  mound  or  vallum 
runs  across  the  Camp  Field,  between  the  two  camps.  This  most 
probably  formed  part  of  the  Salt-way. 

Sir  Pdchard  Colt  Hoare,  Bart.,  in  his  "  History  of  Wiltshire," 
Vol.  ii.,  p.  43,  describes  a  sinall  camp,  similar  to  the  above,  on 
the  ridge  of  a  hill,  near  Banwell,  in  Somersetshire.  He  says, — 
"  Its  form  proclaims  it  to  be  Roman  ;  but  I  cannot  conceive  for 
what  it  was  destined.  It  measures,  in  circumference,  230  yai-ds  ; 
and  the  area  comprehends  nearly  three-quarters  of  an  acre." 

It  seems  probable  that  these  small  camps  were  intermediate 
watch,  signal,  or  guard  stations,  to  protect  messengers,  &c.,  in  the 
lines  of  the  roads  between  the  greater  camps.  There  is  a  con- 
siderable camp  in  the  line  in  question,  at  Condicote,  and  also  at 
Bourton-on-the-Water ;  and  within  about  two  miles  north-east  of 
Middle  Hill  Camps,  there  is  a  large  camp,  commonly  attributed 
to  the  Danes,  situated  by  Famcombe,  between  Broadway  village 
and  Saintbury,  on  Willersey  Hill,  in  Camp  Farm*,  Gloucester- 
shire, just  upon  the  border  of  Worcestershire.  About  seven 
miles  fmther  on,  in  the  same  direction,  there  is  a  camp  on  Meon 
Hill,  in  Gloucestershire,  near  to  Upper  Quinton,  Lower  Quinton, 
and  Quinton  Field,  and  midway  between  the  Rycknield  Street 
on  the  west,  and  the  Fossway  on  the  east.  This  no  doubt  was  a 
most  important  station. 

Before  leaving  Meon  Hill  f ,  we  will  say  a  few  words  on  the 
derivation  of  the  name.  Camden  supposed  the  place  called 
Meon  Stoke,  in  the  county  of  Southampton,  "  to  derive  its 
name  from  the  ancient  district  of  Meanwari,  which,  together  with 
the  Isle  of  Wight,  was  given  to  Ethelwald,  king  of  the  West 
Saxons,  at  his  baptism,  by  Wulphere,  king  of  the  Mercians,  who 
was  his  god-father^." 

•  By  the  camp  there  is  a  great  heap  of  stones,  probably  a  cairn. 

+  Near  it  there  are  places  called  Upper  Meon  and  Lower  Meon.  The 
name  is  sometimes  spelled  Meen  and  Mean.  There  is  a  hamlet  called  Mean- 
wood,  in  the  parish  of  Leeds,  Co.  York. 

*  Lewis's  "  Topographical  Dictionary  of  England,"  published  184B, 
There  are  also  East  Meon  and  West  Meon,  Co.  Southampton.  See  "  Codex 
Dip.,"  Nos.  314,  &c.,  and  158. 


319 

There  was  a  place  called  the  Wilderness  of  Maon,  in  the  Holy 
Land ;  "  it  was  a  mountainous  district,  in  the  most  southern 
parts  of  Judah.  Calmet  supposes  it  to  be  the  city  of  Menois, 
which  Eusebius  places  in  the  vicinity  of  Gaza,  and  the  Msenaemi 
Castrum,  which  the  Theodosian  Code  places  near  to  Beer-sheba*." 

But  still  the  question  is,  from  whence  the  remarkable  hill  in 
Gloucestershire  took  its  name.  As  it  was  a  strong-hold  of  the 
Anglo-Saxons,  it  possibly  may  have  been  named  by  them.  The 
word  "  Meon "  signifies  the  fifth  heaven,  the  dwelling-place, 
according  to  the  rabbins  f;  but  we  can  scarcely  believe  that  the 
Anglo-Saxons,  even  if  they  named  the  hill,  and  that  after  their 
conversion  to  Christianity,  took  it  from  the  above  source  |,  as  they 
were  not  likely  to  know  anything  about  rabbinal  learning ;  no 
such  difficulty,  however,  attaches  to  their  having  called  a  hill, 
which  lies  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Smite,  by  the  name 
of  "  Babel's  HU1§." 

It  is  stated  in  Lewis's  "  Topographical  Dictionary,"  that  "  the 
parish  of  Quinton  is  distinguished  as  the  scene  of  a  great  battle 
between  the  Saxons  and  Danes ;  and  on  the  summit  of  Meen 
Ttill  are  the  remains  of  a  Saxon  camp||,  with  double  intrench- 
ments,  supposed  to  have  been  occupied  by  the  West  Saxons,  at 
the  period  of  their  engagements  with  the  Mercians,  at  Barring- 
ton."  It  is  also  stated,  that  the  neigbouring  town  of  "  Chipping 
Camden,  a  place  of  very  great  antiquity,  is  supposed  to  have 
derived  its  name  from  an  encampment,  formed  prior  to  a  battle 
between  the  Mercians  and  the  West  Saxons.  In  089,  a  congress 
of  the  Saxon  chiefs,  confederated  for  the  conquest  of  Britain, 
was  held  here." 

In  the  reign  of  Charles  I. ,11  Mr.  Bobert  Dover  established 


•  Dr.  AdaiiiCliirkfi's  "Coin.,"  on25tli  vfr. of  Chnp.xxiii.  of  First  Bookof  Sam. 

+   Ili'id., on  Chap.  xii.  of  ','  Cor.,  ver.  2. 

J   The  word  Meon  likewise  signifies  the  moon  ;  also,  men,  a  nniltitnde,  &e. 

§  See  Wanidoii,  \i.  '.i'.)."). 

{{  Various  Roniiin,  An};lo-Saxon,  and  other  relies  have  heen  found  in  the 
vicinity ;  immely,  at  Four-Shire  Stone,  Doni,  Budsey,  Church  Floneyboume, 
Offenhani,  and  Cleeve  Prior. 

^   Or  .lames  I, 


320 

Whitsun-week  games  on  the  Cotswold  Hills,  which  are  described 
in  a  book  published  in  London  in  1G30,  hitituled,  "Annalia 
Dvbrensia,  vpon  the  yearly  celebration  of  Mr.  Robert  Dover's 
Olympic  Games  upon  Cotswold  Hills ;"  wherein  one  of  the 
authors  speaks  of  the  "  sweet  Meonian  quill  of  Homer."  These 
games,  although  very  much  degenerated,  are  still  celobi-ated,  in 
the  shape  of  a  wake,  at  Chipping  Camden,  at  a  spot  called 
Dover's  Hill. 

The  names  of  fields  and  places  in  the  line  in  question,  are  as 
follow : — 

In  St.  PETER'S  PARISH,  DROITWICH,  there  are  several 
pieces  of  land  called  by  the  name  of  Sutnal. 

In  St.  ANDREW'S,  DROITWICH,  there  are  Trimnels  Dole, 
Camp  Hill,  and  Furlong ;  Falsam  Fields,  Sutnall  Field,  Singer's 
Hill,  Great  and  Little  Singer's  Hill,  Masgundry  Field,  Lozelle 
Field,  and  Belfrey  Lozelles. 

HADSOR  was  anciently  called  Hadeshore,  or  Headdes  Ofre. 
In  this  parish  is  Cockshoot  Hill, 

In  HANBURY,  near  Droitwich,  there  are  Spa  Piece,  Beauhall 
]\Ieadow,  Big  and  Little  Beauhall,  and  Kitsall.  It  was  formerly 
called  Heanbiri ;  and  Heanbyrig,  in  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle," 
anno  G75.  There  are  various  mentions  of  Heanbyrig,  in  the 
Saxon  charters-.  Dr.  Nash  remarks,  that  Hanbury-  means  the 
village  on  the  height f,  or  High-town,  on  account  of  the  situation 
of  the  church  ;  and  that  Roman  coins  are  said  to  have  been 
found  there.  It  is  called  Hambyrie,  in  "  Domesday  Book."  In 
836,  Wiglaf,  of  Mercia,  confirmed  the  liberties  of  Hanbun-,  with 
all  its  possessions,  including  salt-wells  and  lead-works*. 

In  STOKE  (or  Stock)  and  BRADLEY,  there  are  the  Salts, 
Marl  Pit  Close,  Part  of  Harcourts,  Near  and  Far  Sale's  Orchard, 
Puck  Croft,  Beart  Field,  and  Part  of  Ronsil  IMeadow. 

There  are  numerous  ancient  marl-pits  in  this  county.  Pliny 
says,  the  Britons  manured  their  grounds  with  marl. 

•    J'ide  "  Codex  Dip."  Nos.  .'«2,  127,  100,  and  237. 
+  P>oni  the  Saxon,  "  ham,"  home  ;   "  vicus,"  village. 
I    Vide    "  Codex   Dip.,"  No.  237  ;  and   Kemble's  "  Saxons  in    England, " 
Vol.  ii.,  p.  70. 


■s-n 

With  respect  to  the  word  "  Sale,"  it  may  be  remarked  that  the 
Salt-way  is  sometimes  so  called.  In  Knighton-on-Teme,  there 
are  Over  Sale  Meadow  and  Over  Sale  Field ;  Salent  Oak,  in 
Stewards,  in  Sychampton,  in  Orabersley ;  and  Sallen's  Field  and 
Orchard,  in  Abberley. 

Stock  and  Bradley  are  hamlets  in  Fladbury. 

InFECKENHAM  there  areWoiTalls,Worrairs  Hill,  Norgrove, 
Merry-Come- Sorrow,  Monksbury,  Upper  and  Lower  Puck  Close, 
Astwood  Close,  Norbury  Hill,  North  Norbury  Hill,  South  Xor- 
bury,  Old  Yarn  HiU,  Old  Yarn  Hill  Meadow,  Tricks's  Hole. 
Allotment  in  Trickholes  Lane,  Aubeny  Hill,  Berrow  Hill,  Wad- 
berrow  Hill,  AVadberrow  Meadow,  Castle  Hill,  Camp  Field, 
Wargrave,  Wanidge,  Bound  Hill,  Fearful  Coppice,  Holborn  Hill, 
Kit's  Iron,  Windmill  Peril,  Peril  Field,  Great  and  Little  Blaze 
Hill,  Blaze  Butts,  Blaze  Meadow,  Big  and  Little  Fire  Field, 
Upper  and  Lower  Horcuts,  Salt  Meadow,  and  Ridgeway.  In  tho 
Saxon  charters  this  name  is  spelled  Feccanhom  ;  in  "  Domesday 
Book,"  it  is  written  Fecheham.  The  Hoar-stone  Field,  in 
Feckenham,  is  mentioned  in  Chap.  IV. 

DOPtMSTON,  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  is  spelled  Dormeston. 
Cockshutc.  or  Cockshoot,  is  situated  near  to  Donnston  Hill. 

KINGTON,  also  called  Kinton,  or  Kingston,  alicis  Tokynton, 
is  in  "  Domesday  Book"  written  Chintuue. 

In  INKBERROW  there  are  Bustai'd  Hill*,  Bustard 
Hill  Meadow,  Round  Hill,  Noberry  Hill,  First  and  Second 
Archer's  Hill,  Holbro'  Field,  Holbro'  Piece,  Holbro'  Green 
Piece,  Holben'ow  Green,  Firet  and  Middle  Astwood  Hill, 
Astwood  Meadow,  Hongerhillf  Meadow,  Salter's  Street  Ground, 
Muzzy  Hill,  Muzzy  Coppice,  Devil's  Bowling  Green  |,  and 
Pinnils,  or  Pinhill§.     This  parish  was  formerly  called  Intanbeor- 


•  It  is  said  till' bustards  lire  extinct  in  Kngland,  and  nearly  so  in  Scotland, 
f  See  p.  1)7),  ns  to  this  name. 

X  The  above  place  seems  to  have  been  named  ironically,  as  1  am  infonned 
it  was,  till  lately,  one  of  the  roughest  jiieces  of  ground  in  the  ])arisli. 

§   Also  SIC  the   ■'  Folk  Lore." 

V 


322 

gus,  Intebeorgan,  and  Intanbeorg*;  in  "  Domesday,"  Intebei^e 
and  Inteberga. 

In  CHURCH  HONEYBOURNE  there  are  Tump  Bewhill 
and  Pitch  Hill.  It  was  anciently  written  Hunburne  and  Honi- 
burne  ;  and  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Hunibume.  Ancient  relics 
have  been  found  in  this  parish  f. 

In  BROADWAY  there  are  Rudgeway  I  Furlong,  and  Domap. 
In  the  Saxon  charters,  it  is  written  Bradanweg§;  and  in 
"  Domesday  Book,"  Bradeweia. 

•  Vide  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Charters,  183,  613,  644,  and  898. 

t    Vide  p.  88. 

X  Rudgeway  means  Ridgeway.     Vide  siimniarj-  of  the  Ridgeways. 

§  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  570. 


'i-l'i 


Iter  PJ||. 


THE  LOWER  DEVIATION  SALT-WAY^ 


DROITWICH    TO   ASHTON    UNDERBILL,    SUDELEY 
CASTLE,  NORTH-LEACH,  &c. 

The  Lower  Deviation  Salt-way  appears  to  have  run  from  Droit- 
wich,  by  Hadsor  and  Newland  Commons,  along  the  Salt-way,  and 
into  the  Trench  Lane,  which  passes  through  Oddingley,  and 
thence  along  the  east  side  of  the  Trench  Woods,  and  through 
Hodingtonf,  by  Sale  Green];.  It  then  most  likely  continued 
through  Crowle,  Broughton  Hacket,  and  by  Upton  Snodsbury ; 
thence  through  Churchill,  White  Ladies  Aston,  Wolverton,  and 
by  Peopleton,  Pinvin  Heath,  and  Pershore ;  thence  through 
Little  Comberton,  Bricklehampton,  Elmley  Castle,  and  along  the 
part  there  called  the  Salt-way  into  the  Rycknield  Street  at  or  near 
Ashton-under-Hill,  which  it  crossed  in  its  course  southwards. 
This  view  appears  to  be  bonie  out  by  what  is  stated  in  the 
"  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  61,  62  ;  and  by 
the  following  quotation  from  "  Richard  of  Cirencester  §." 

"  The  Lower  Salt- way  is  little  known,  although  the  parts  here 
described  have  been  actually  traced.  It  came  from  Droitwich, 
crossed  Worcestershire  under  the  name  of  the  Salt-way,  appears 
to  have  passed  the  Avon  somewhere  below  Evesliam,  tended 
towards  the  chain  of  hiUs  above  Sudeley  Castle,  where  it  is  still 

•   See  p{).  314,  315,  as  to  this  title. 

+  See  pp.  10!(,  110,  as  to  this  line  of  road,  auJ  the  antiquities  found  iu 
those  parts. 

J   See  pp.  311,  321,  as  to  Sale. 
§    Hatchard.  p.  llfl. 


324 

visible,  attended  by  tumuli  as  it  runs  by  Hawling.  Thence  it 
proceeds  to  North  Leach,  where  it  crossed  the  Foss,  in  its  way  to 
Coin  St.  Aldwiu's,  on  the  Tkeraan  Street,  and  led  to  the  sea- 
coast  of  Hampshire*."  It  is  called  "  Salt- way  Road"  in  the  Ord- 
nance Map,  as  it  passes  from  North  Leach  on  the  east  side  of 
Coin  St.  Dennis,  Coin  Rogers,  and  Winson,  and  on  the  west  side 
of  Aldsworth. 

In  ODDINGLEY  there  are  places  called  Sitch  ^Meadow, 
Round  Hill,  Ourshill,  Trench  Wood,  and  Marl  Pit  Field. 
In  the  Anglo-Saxon  time,  Callow  Hill  (Calwan  Hill)  was  one  of 
the  boundaries  of  Oddingleyf.  The  name  is  spelled  Oddungalea, 
Odduncalea,  Odingalea,  Oddinga-lea,  Oddungahlea  sive  Oddin- 
gleye,  in  several  Anglo-Saxon  charters  I,  and  Oddunclei  in 
"  Domesday  Book."  With  respect  to  the  etymology  of  Oddingley, 
Dr.  Nash  says§, — "  It  would  be  childish  to  repeat  the  legend  of 
two  giants.  Odd  and  Dingley,  who  are  said  to  have  fought  upon 
the  Common  here  ;  and  Dingley  getting  the  better,  Odd  is  said  to 
have  cried  out, — 

"  Oh  Diugley,  Diiigley,  spare  my  breath, 
It  shall  be  called  Oddingley  Heath. 

"  But  perhaps  it  might  derive  its  name  from  Oddo,  a  noble 
duke  of  the  Mercians,  who,  together  with  Doddo,  another  Mercian 
duke,  were  buried  in  Pershore  Church,  the  latter  t^xking  the 
habit  of  a  monk  there]]."  However,  the  Doctor  afterwards  says, 
Oddingley  means  the  field  of  OdingH ;  and,  if  by  that  he  meant 
the  Saxon  God,  Odin,  or  Woden '■=*,  we  think  he  is  quite  connect. 

*  By  Venta  Belgarinm  (Winchester),  and  ClHnsentnm  (Bittern). 
+  See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.  51 ;  and  Heniing's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  '-ibb. 
I  See  Heniing's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  KiO,  &.c. 

§  V..1.  ii.,  p.  -200. 

|;  Dugd.  "  Mon."  i.,  154.  It  is  said  they  founded  Tewkesbury  Monastery, 
and  Dudley  Castle. — (See  Saxon  Chronicle.) 

•[  See  Vol.  ii.,  p.  4:'57.  There  certJiinly  was  a  person  of  the  name  of  Odin, 
nn  under-tenant  of  land  in  Cheshire  at  the  formation  of  the  "  Domesday" 
Survey. 

•  *  It  is  siiid  that  Wednesbun-,  in  Siafl'ordsliire,  means  Wodenslnny. 
Heniing's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  lUl,  notices  Wodnesfeld. 


o25 

Tliis  place  is  supposed  to  have  been  one  of  the  Angh)-Saxon 
marks*. 

HIMBLETON.— In  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  pp.  355,  356, 
there  are  places  stated  to  be  on  the  boundaiies  of  Himbleton,  in 
the  Anglo-Saxon  times  called  Egbert's  Thora,  Bere  Croft  f, 
Chester  Gate,  Chester  Way,  Badas  Ash,  and  Win  stile  J.  Dr. 
Nash  notices,  Ukewise,  Puck  Hill  Comer,  and  Puck  Hill,  aa 
boundaries  of  Himbleton  mentioned  in  the  Parliament  Survey 
in  1648§.  Himbleton  is  also  called  Hymelton,  Hemelton,  or 
Humilton. 

"  In  884,  ^Ethelred,  Duke  of  Mercia,  who  acted  as  a  viceroy 
in  that  new  portion  of  Alfred's  kingdom,  and  exercised  therein  all 
the  royal  rights  as  fully  as  any  king  did  in  his  own  territories, 
gave  iEthelwulf  five  hides  at  Humbleton,  and  licence  to  have  six 
salt  pans,  free  of  all  the  dues  of  king,  duke,  or  public  officer,  but 
still  reserving  the  rights  of  the  landlord  ||." 

HODINGTON,  otherwise  Huddington,  or  Huntenatune,  is,  in 
"  Domesday  Book,"  called  Hudingtune.  It  is  probable  that 
this  place  was  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  marks  "I. 

BROUGHTON  HACKETT  is,  in  '-Domesday  Book,"  written 
Bretune. 

GRAFTOX-SUPER-FLIVORD  was  anciently  called  Graston 
or  Grafton.     In  "  Domesday  Book"  it  is  written  Garstune**. 

In  FLYFORD  FLAVELL,  or  Flavell  FUvord,  there  is  a 
place  called  Puttocs  End,  or  Pothooks  Innff.  The  name  is 
spelled  Fheferth,  and  Fleferth  in  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  346,  &c. 

In  NORTH  PIDELET  there  is  a  place  called  Ennick  Ford 

In  UPTON  SNODSBURY  there  are  places  called  Castle  Hill, 
Hawfoot,  Sulladine  Field,  and  Salt  Moor  Meadow.    This  imrish  is 

•   See  pp.  228,  22!). 

+  See  p.  1!(0,  as  to  the  derivation  of  this  iiaiiie. 
J  Tide  Niisli's  "  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  -02. 
§    Ihiil.,  Vol.  i.,  p.  .')7!1. 

Ji   See  Kemlile's  '•  Saxons  in  rOnglaiul,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  71,  and    "  Codex  Dip.," 
No.  1(IG(>. 
^    See  p.  22!t. 

♦*   Gars  means  gias.s  in  Saxon. 
+  1-  See  Lulsley,  p.  240. 


326 

also  called  Uptou  Stephani,,  and  Upton-juxta-Snodsbury.  In 
*'  Domesday  Book"  it  is  written  Snodesbyrie*. 

In  CHURCHILL  f,  near  Bredicot,  there  is  a  place  called  the 
Naight,  meaning  Ait  or  Island.  The  name  of  this  parish  is 
Circehille  in  "  Domesday  Book."  It  was  anciently  written 
Chirchehelle,  Corishull,  Chirshall,  and  Sarishell. 

NAUNTON  BEAUCHAMP  is  also  called  Naunton,  Newington, 
or  Newintune. 

In  WHITE  LADIES  ASTON t  there  aie  Harrolds  Close, 
Far,  Middle,  and  West  Bury^  Field,  and  Low  Hill. 

In  STOULTON  there  are  Wainherd's  Hill,  Whoyn  Hills,  and 
Wolverton,  In  the  Anglo-Saxon  times  there  were  Herepath  and 
Lusthom  (Lousethorn),  on  tlie  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Wol- 
verton §. 

In  PEOPLETON  there  are  Hunger  Hill,  ^orchard  Field,  and 
Vorty  Close.  This  parish  is  also  called  Pibleton,  Peobleton,  or 
Pebelton.     It  was  formerly  written  Piblinton  and  Piplintune. 

In  WYRE  PIDELET,  a  hamlet  in  Fladbury,  there  are 
Sitchway  Lane,  and  Sitchway  Closes.  It  is  called  Pidelet  or 
Pidele  in  "  Domesday  Book."  Part  of  the  church  is  said  to  be  of 
undoubtedly  Anglo-Saxon  workmanship  j]. 

In  the  parish  of  ST.  ANDREW  PERSHORE,  there  are 
Bearcroft,  Salam  Common  Meadow,  Dear  Sale,  Cosnett's  Meadow, 
AUsborough  Hill,  and  Tidsley  Wood.  Pershore,  or  Pearshore. 
was  anciently  called  Perseora  and  PersoraT.  It  also  contains  a 
parish  called  Holv  Cross. 

BESFORD,  sometimes  called  Besbrook,  is  written  Befoid  in 
"  Domesday  Book." 

LITTLE  COMBERTON.— A  Saxon  coin  of  Edward  the  Elder 
was  a  few  years  since  found  in  this  parish.  On  the  obverse  there  is 
the  inscription,  EADWEARD  REX.,  and  on  the  reverse,  ABBA 

*  See  the  "  Folk-Lore." 

+  There  also  is  Clmrchill,  near  Kidderminster. 

J  See  pp.  •■12(>  to  2'i'),  as  to  this  name. 

§  riV/c  Hi'iiiiiig's  "  Carliitary,"  pp.  l.')4,  H.">!J ;  "Codex  I>il'.,"  Nos.  ')'ii\  (il'J, 

ft!).">,  mo.').      Also  see  llio  account  of  Oswaldslow,  p.  ",'.21. 

11  See  the  "  Kainbler  in  Worcestershire,"  published  in  |s,"il,  p.  ;i:il. 

^  See  •'  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  570,  &<■. 


327 

MON,  showing  that  Abba  was  the  Monetarius  or  mint-master. 
This  coin,  which  is  in  a  very  fine  state  of  preservation,  is  in  the 
collection  of  John  Parker,  Esq.,  of  Wood  Side,  Perry  Wood,  near 
Worcester. 

ELMLEY  CASTLE  parish. — I  have  examined  the  line  of 
the  Lower  Deviation  Salt-way,  in  this  parish,  and  find  that  it  is  an 
old  and  very  miry  bye- way  running  for  about  a  mile  under  the  name 
of  tlie  Salt-way,  in  a  direction  inclining  northwards  towards  Per- 
shore,  and  southwards  towards  Ashton-under-Hill.  Alongside  of 
it  there  are  pieces  of  land  called  Nostem's  Well  Piece,  Hell  Hole, 
Upper  Salt-way  Piece,  Salt-way  Bam*Piece,  and  Salt-way  Coppice. 
And  not  far  from,  and  overlooking  it,  there  is  a  long  slope  called 
Starn  Hillf,  which  rises  up  to  a  higher  part  of  the  eminence  called 
the  Round  Hill.  A  piece  of  ground,  called  the  Breach,  lies  along 
the  east  side  of  the  two  latter ;  between  them  and  the  Salt-way 
there  are  pieces  called  Throughters  and  Moll  Hays  \.  The  line  of 
this  road  continues  southward  to  Ashton-under-Hill,  and  foraierly 
towards  Pershore ;  but  upon  the  inclosure  it  was  diverted  into  the 
direction  of  Croptliorne. 

In  this  parish  there  is  also  a  place  called  Cames  or  Cams 
Coomb  §,  a  strip  of  ground  which  runs  from  the  bottom,  partly  up 
the  side  of  Bredon  Hill,  between  two  coppice  woods. 

There  are  also  in  this  parish  Little  Worrall  or  Middle  Hill, 
Elecampane  II  and  White  Wayll  Quor  Piece.  About  half-way 
between  the  site  of  Elmley  Castle  **  and  Kemerton  Camp  there 

•  The  Ordnance  Survey  notices  this  Salt-way  Bani. 

+  See  p.  128,  as  to  tliis  hill.  Mr.  Wm.  Moore,  of  Elmley,  the  owner  of  the 
hill,  kindly  conducted  me  over  this  range. 

I  There  are  places  called  Big  and  Little  Moll-horn  in  Bromsgrove  parish. 

§  Combe,  from  the  .\nglo-Saxon  Cumb,  signifies  a  valley  or  a  cleft  in  the 
hills.     It  sigiiiiies  the  same  in  Welsh,  and  is  written  cwm  by  tliem. 

I]   Perhaps  a  locality  of  the  plant  of  tliat  name. 

^  A  line  of  road  called  the  "  Welsh  Way,"  or  "  Old  White  Way,"  crosses 
Gloucestershire.  The  above  name  may  throw  a  light  upon  the  name  Games 
or  Cams  Coomb,  as  "  Can"  in  Welsli  and  Irish  signifies  "  white."  "  Cain," 
however,  in  those  languages  signifies  fair  and  chaste,  and  "  Cam,"  crooked. 
There  is  a  place  called  White-way  Head  Ashbed  and  Coppice,  in  Clifton  on- 
Teme. 

•*  Dr.  Nash  says  tlic  Castle  was  built  in  the  Ihne  of  William  I.,  and  de- 
molished temp.  Henry  VIII, 


3^8 

is  an  immense  mound,  composed  of  earth  and  loose  stones, 
called  the  Winds-end,  which  runs  in  an  inclined  plane  from 
the  lx)ttom  to  the  brow  of  Bredon  Hill,  at  tliat  part  called 
Sheep  Hill.  Vestiges  of  ancient  shallow  excavations,  to  a  con- 
siderable extent,  appear  in  the  adjoining  pastures  from  whence, 
no  doubt,  materials  were  taken  to  fonn  the  mound.  There  are 
also  some  remarkable  cuttings  in  the  pasture  on  the  eastern  side 
of  Sheep  Hill,  near  a  barn,  between  the  mound  and  the  site  of 
the  Castle,  called  "  The  Horse  Camps,"  which  it  is  said  were  made 
to  protect  the  horses  in  the  time  of  battle  or  siege.  The  name  of 
this  parish  was  Elmleah  and  Elmlseh  in  Anglo-Saxon  times-. 

•   See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  i:jy,  764. 


329 


ft^r  <jj<f . 


KYCKNIELD   STEEET,  OR  EIDGEAVAY. 

The  great  ancient  road,  called  the  Rycknield  Street,  or  Ridge- 
way,  is  said  to  have  passed  Bidford,  in  Wanvickshire,  in  its  way 
from  St.  Davids  (Menapia)  to  Tynemouth.  Its  exact  course  is 
little  known,  but  some  writers  say  it  may  be  traced  from  Glouces- 
ter to  Norton  ;  thence  to  a  little  east  of  Tewkesbury  ;  thence  to 
Ashchurch,  in  Gloucestershire ;  thence  across  a  small  portion  of 
Worcestersliire *,  to  Beckford  and  Ashton-under-Hill,  in  Glouces- 
tershire ;  thence  to  the  west  of  Sedgebarrow,  in  \^'^orcestershirc  ; 
thence  to  Hinton,  in  Gloucestershire ;  thence  a  little  east  of 
Evesham,  and  tlu'ough  South  Littleton,  in  Worcestershire,  to 
Bidford,  in  Wanvickshire ;  f  thence  through  Wicksford,  to  Alces- 
ter ;  thence  near  Coughton,  Studley,  and  Ipsley,  in  Wai-\vickshire  ; 
that  it  thence  re-entered  Worcestershire  near  Beoley,  passes  near 
Edgbaston  I,  in  Warwickshire,  and,  a  little  west  of  Birmingham, 
crossed  the  Tame  at  Woodford  Bridge,  in  Stiiffordshire ;  ran 
through  Sutton  Park,  and  by  Shenston  ;  crossed  the  Waitlinger 
Strceto  (Watling  Street)  about  a  mile  from  Wall  and  Lichfield  ; 
thence  to  Streetley;  crossed  the  Trent  at  Wichnor ;  thence  taking 
iiranston  in  its  way,  it  left  Burton-upon-Trent  half  a  mile  to  the 
casi.  pnTsed  through  Strctton,  and  entered  Derbyshire  over  Monk's 
Bridge,  near  Egginton. 

The  direction  of  the  road  cannot  be  traced  further,  although 

•   111  Overbury  parisli. 

t  Set;  (inlo's  "  l".ss!»y  iciwards  tlio  Kecovory  of  llio  ("oiirsrs  (if  tlio  four  (".ifHi 
liiiiniiii  Wiiy-.,"  wiiiini  iilioiit  llic  your  lifio,  niul  iiisfilcil  l)y  HcHriic,  in 
[.I'lniid's  "  liiiiciitiy,'  Vnl.  iv.,  rd.  17(11. 

J   Sot>  rlmii.  I\'.,  cimciTiiiiip;  llir  Hour  Siour  wliicli  slnod  tlicrc. 


its  course  is  said  to  have  been  through  Derby,  Chesterfield,  York, 
and  so  to  Tynemouth*. 

I  am,  however,  inclined  to  tliink  that,  instead  of  this  road 
having,  in  the  ancient  British  time,  gone  from  Evesham  through 
South  Littleton,  Middle  Littleton,  North  Littleton,  Cleeve  Prior, 
and  Marl  Chff,  to  Bidford,  Alcester,  and  Beoley,  it  went  through 
Offenham,  Lench  Wick,  Sheriff's  Lench,  Atch  Lench,  Church 
Lench,  Stoney  Morton,  and  along  the  Ridgeway  by  Redditch,  to 
Bordesley,  in  Alvechurch,  near  Beoley.  It  is  probable,  however, 
that  the  Romans,  during  the  latter  period  of  their  dominion  here, 
avoided  the  ridgy  ground  f  in  the  last-mentioned  line,  and  took 
the  road  through  the  former  places.  That  part  which  is  called 
the  Ridgeway  is  of  considerable  length,  and  runs  on  the  border 
of  Feckenham,  between  Worcestershire  and  Warwickshire,  near 
Alcester.  Several  antiquaries  consider  it  to  be  Roman  J;  but  it 
is  more  probably  the  ancient  British  part  of  the  line  of  the  Ryck- 
nield  Street,  which  the  Romans  in  part  abandoned  for  the  easier 
course. 

From  Bidford  to  Alcester  this  road  is  called  Ickenild  Street  in 
Yates's  Map§  of  Warwickshire.  In  the  Ordnance  Map,  from 
thence  northwards  to  Ipsley,  it  is  called  the  Hay  den-way  || ;  thence 
from  Ipsley  to  Beoley,  and  towards  King's  Norton  and  Edgbaston, 
the  IcknUd-way;  between  Birmingham  and  Lichfield,  the  Ick- 

*  See  Collen's  "  Britannia  Saxonica;"  also,  Leland's  "  Itinerary,"  Vol.  \-i., 
pp.  116  to  150;  and  Nash's  "  History  of  Worcestershire,  Vol.  i.,  Int.,  p.  3, 

f  The  ancient  Britons,  no  doubt,  preferred  the  ridges  of  the  lulls  for  the 
lines  of  tlieir  roads,  as  the  elevations  afforded  them  greater  protection  against 
their  enemies ;  but  when  the  Romans  became  settled  in  their  government  of 
this  country,  it  was  natural  for  them  to  make  deviation  lines  to  avoid  difficult 
or  crooked  routes,  see  p.  207. 

X  See  "  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  01,  G'2,  and  Vol.  xv., 
Part  2,  p.  8. 

§  The  Ordnance  Map  calls  it  the  Icknicld  Street  from  Ullington,  in  the 
parish  of  Pebworth,  to  Bidford ;  but  this  appears  to  liave  been  i)art  of  the 
Buckle  Street,  unless  the  Rycknield  Street  ran  from  South  Littleton  to  L'lling 
ton,  and  thence  to  Bidford,  instead  of  going  through  Aliddle  Littleton,  North 
Littleton,  Cleeve  Prior,  and  Mnrlcliff',  to  Bidford.     See  p.  -ilO. 

II  There  is  a  road  called  the  Maiden  way  by  the  Wall,  and  Bewcastle,  in 
Cumberland. 


331 

nield  Street,  and  so  on  to  Wichnor-on-Trent,  &c.  In  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Leman's  Map  of  the  Ancient  British  Trackways,  how- 
ever, as  set  forth  in  the  "  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales*,  it  is 
called  the  "  Rykenield  Street,"  in  its  whole  length  from  St. 
David's  to  Tynemouth. 

The  following  notices  of  this  street,  and  of  its  branches  between 
Beoley  and  Edgbaston,  have  been  collected  from  various  sources. 
In  the  "  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales  f"  it  is  stated  that  the 
Consular-way,  or  "  Ikening  Street,"  passes  from  Alcester,  through 
Alvechurch  parish,  and  again  appears  at  Shepley  |,  in  Bromsgrove. 
Na.sh§  says,  "  At  Shepley  appears  tlie  Ikenild  Street,  which, 
coming  out  of  Warwickshire  at  Beoly,  re-enters  it  at  Edgbaston." 
In  Gough's  additions  to  "  Camden  ||"  it  is  stated  that  the  "  Yke- 
nild  Street  passes  by  Bordesley  Park,  in  Alvechurch,"  and  that 
"  there  is  a  lane  leading  from  the  Lickey,  towards  Tardebig  and 
Alvechurch,  commonly  called  Twatling  Street,  which,  no  doubt, 
is  a  corruption  from  Watling  Street,  a  name  common  to  Roman 
roads,  as  some  writers  have  observed,  there  being  one  in  Scot- 
land and  two  or  three  in  England H."  In  p.  477,  it  is  stated  that 
"  Through  Alvechurch,  near  Bewdley  (meaning  Bordesley)  the 
Ikening  Street  passes,  in  its  way  from  Alchester  to  Wall,  near 
Lichfield.  It  is  mentioned  as  a  boundary  within  this  parish,  in  a 
deed,  30th  Henry  VIII.**" 

The  Ikenild  Street,  in  Alvithchurch,  is  also  noticed  in  one  of 
the  Records  of  the  Tower  of  London,  relating  to  the  county  of 
Worcester  tf. 

Nash,  in  his  account  of  Alvechurch,  says,  "  The  Roman  Con- 
sular way,  called,  both  anciently  and  to  this  day,  the  Icknyng 

•  Introduction,  p.  1:3,  ed.  1818. 

+  Vol.  15,  Part  2,  p.  C. 

X  Culled  Scippnelea  in  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  080. 

§  Vol.  i.,  p.  100. 

II  Vol.  ii.,  p.  47-1,  second  edition,  1800. 

^  I'idi;  also  tlie  Index  to  Gibson's  Edition  of  Camden's  "  Britannia  ;"  also, 
Nash,  Vol.  ii.  Appendix,  p.  107,  where  lie  quotes  Bishop  Lyttelton  on  the 
subject,  who  siiys  it  is  sometimes  called  Ickle,  or  Ikeiiyld  ^>treel. 

••   Nash,  Vol.  i,  p.  17. 

+  t   Pat.  Iv!  V.dw.  11.,  ]).  m.  12.      I'idc  Nasii,  Vol.  ii.  .\i)p.,  p.  'i'k 


3t}2 

Street,  passes  througli  Alveclmrch  in  its  course  from  Aulcester 
to  Wall,  near  Litchfield.  1  find  it  mentioned  as  a  boundary  of 
land  within  this  parish,  in  an  indenture  between  William  Wyl- 
lington,  Esq.  and  John  Field,  of  King's  Nortfui,  dated  the  30th 
year  of  King  Henry  VIII. ,  in  which  the  said  William  demises  a 
yearly  rent  of  3s.  Ad.,  and  a  heriot  issuing  out  of  a  certain  leasow 
called  Swanshall,  extending  hi  length  unto  Ikneld  Street,  lying 
in  Alvechurch.  Also,  one  Henry  de  Ikenyld  Street  occurs  as  a 
witness  to  a  gi'ant  of  land  in  Alvechurch,  in  a  deed  of  the  time 
of  Henry  III.,  in  the  possession  of  Edward  More,  Esq." 

Hutton,  in  his  "  History  of  Birmingham,"  says,  part  of  the 
"  Ikeneld  Street"  is  called  Warstone  Lane  in  passing  through 
tliat  neighbourhood*. 

Th  above  statement,  that  the  Ikening  [Rycknield]  Street  passes 
from  Alcester  through  Alvechurch  parish,  and  again  appears  at 
Shepley  in  Bromsgrovef,  is  strong  evidence  that,  in  the  ancient 
British  time,  the  line  of  this  road  ran  to  Shepley,  and  there  joined 
the  Upper  Salt-way  ;  its  course  in  that  pail  was  probably  from 
the  Ridgeway  to  Headless  Cross ;  it  then  passed  by  Redditch  and 
Bordesley,  through  Tardebig,  by  Salter's  Lane,  Ridgvvay  Close, 
Broad  Green,  and  Tutnal]:,  in  Tardebig,  to  Twatling  Street; 
thence  to  the  Upper  Salt-way  at  Shepley,  or  Twatling  Farm,  and 
thence  in  the  line  of  the  Salt- way,  by  the  east  side  of  Bromsgrove 
Lickey,  through  Cofton  or  Coston  Hacket,  Northfield  and 
Wytchall  to  Edgbaston,  where  the  Salt- way  branched  off  §.  It  is 
probable  that  the  Romans  varied  the  line  in  this  part  by  carrying 
it  from  Evesham  through  the  Littletons,  Cleeve  Prior,  Marlcliff, 
Bidford,  Wicksford,  Alcester,  Coughton,  and  Studley,  and  by 
Machbarrow  Hill,  through  Ipsley  and  Beoley,  along  Eagle  Street, 
in  Beoley,  and  by  Weatheroak  or  Witherock  Hill,  in  Alvechurch: 
that  it  then  crossed  the  road  called  Silver  Street,  passed  through 
King's  Norton  and  ^loseley  to  Edgbaston,  and  thus  avoided  the 

»   See  Chiip.  IV. 

t  Ibid.,  (•oncerniiif,'  a  iiieiition  ol'  "  lloar-Sloiie,"  in  ii  survey  ol'  ISiDiiisgiovr, 
Norton,  and  Alvocliurcli. 

I   Sei-  J).  vi;{.'t,  oil  (lie  imuie  Tiitnal. 
§   See  p.  :{(i!l. 


333 

liills  and  tortuosities  of  the  primitive  line  in  that  district.  As 
some  evidence  that  the  Romans  did  thus  vary  the  line,  it  may  be 
remarked  that  there  are  several  places  in  Beoley  called  the  Port- 
way*  ;  and  three  fields  near  the  south  side  of  Weatheroak,  in 
Alvechurch,  upon  the  roadside  leading  from  Beoley  to  King's 
Norton,  two  of  which  are  called  by  the  name  of  Icknield  Street, 
and  the  third  Lower  Icknield  Street  f."  In  Nash's  map,  the  whole 
of  the  line  from  Alcester  to  Edgbaston  is  described  as  the 
"  Roman  road  called  Ykenield  Street." 

The  line  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  from  Gloucester  to  Tewkes- 
burj',  seems  to  have  been  through  Down  Hatherley  by  Barrow 
Wood,  The  Barrow,  and  Barrow  Hill,  to  Tredington  ;  and  thence 
along  the  Rudgeway  %  by  Walton  CardiflF. 

The  following  names  of  fields  and  places  occur  in  the  line  of 
this  street  from  Gloucester,  through  South  Littleton,  to  Edgbas- 
ton, near  Birmingham. 

GLOUCESTER  is  said  to  have  been  the  Caer-Gloew  or  Kair- 
glow  (bright  city)§  of  the  ancient  Britons.  It  surrendered  to  the 
Romans  a.d.  41,  and  became  the  Glevum.  or  military  station  of 
that  people.  Tesselated  pavements,  coins,  drinking  vessels, 
lamps,  and  other  Roman  relics  found  at  Kingsholm,  the  northern 
suburb II,  are  mentioned  in  the  "Transactions  of  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries'"." 

It  is  noticed  in  the  "Saxon  Chronicle,"  577.  918,  as  Url)s 
Glovemiae,  Glocestriae,  a  fortified  city  of  Mercia**. 


•  Tliere  is  a  i)liice  culled  the  Port-way  in  the  Ordiiniiee  AFnp,  a  little  east- 
ward of  the  line  in  (juestion,  jjrohably  a  branch  of  the  line. 

f  This  tenn,  "  flower  Icknield  Street,"  does  not  allude  to  a  lower  road,  but 
II  lower  field.  The  first  field  is  upon  the  roadside,  the  second  adjoins  the 
first  westward,  and  the  third,  or  lower  field,  adjoins  the  second  westward. 

X  See  the  suiuiiiary  of  the  Ridgeways  as  to  this  name. 

§  Some  suppose  Caer-Ciloew,  or  Glow,  to  be  derived  from  a  British  prince 
named  filoew. 

II  This  was  perhnjis  the  line  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  out  of  Gloucester. 

^   See  Wrij^hl's  "  Gn/.etteer." 

••  Sep  Kemble's  "  Siixons  in  England,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  •'iOfi. 


334 

Rudgeway  occurs  between  Tredington  and  Walton  Cardiff,  Co. 
Gloucester. 

In  TEWKESBURY,  Co.  Gloucester,  Coins  of  Trajan  and 
Maximianus  were  found  in  a  meadow  near  to  the  town*. 

I  have  seen,  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  James  Dudfield,  of 
Tewkesbury,  relics  which  are  thus  noticed  in  Mr.  Bennett's 
"  Tewkesbury  Yearly  Register  and  Magazine,"  for  1842,  No.  30. 
"  In  digging  tlie  foundation  of  the  railway  station  house  in  this 
borough,  the  workmen  discovered,  within  a  few  yards  of  High 
Street,  and  at  the  depth  of  about  eleven  feet,  a  perfect  Roman 
sepulchral  urn,  containing  a  quantity  of  wood  ashes,  some  frag- 
ments of  bones,  and  a  silver  coin  of  the  Emperor  Septimus 
Severus.  Immediately  beneath  the  urn  was  found  an  ancient 
earthen  vessel,  filled  with  wood  ashes  ;  and  imbedded  in  the  ad- 
joining soil  was  a  fine  copper  coin  of  the  Emperor  Commodus. 
The  urn  evidently  was  beautifully  glazed,  with  mottled  green 
glaze,  but  which  now,  on  the  exterior,  is  partially  destroyed  by  the 
alkali  in  the  ashes  in  which  it  was  imbedded." 

In  ASHCHURCH,  Co.  Gloucester,  in  the  district  of  the 
Tithings  of  Northway  and  Newton,  there  are  places  called  Cur- 
borough,  Little  Curborough,  Three  Ridges,  Fetter  Hedge,  Flat 
King's  Land,  Little  King's  Land,  Carrant  Meadow,  Sal  ton's 
Bridge  Meadow,  Long  Shooters,  and  Short  Shooters  ;  and  in  the 
Tithing  of  Tiddington  there  are  places  called  Cop  Thome, 
Ridgway  Hill,  Ridgway  Piece,  Ridgway  Meadow,  Saltmere  Piece, 
Tyre  Field,  Burrough,  and  Burrough  Length. 

In  OVERBURY,  othei'\^'ise  Uferebiiif,  Uverbirie,  or  Upper 
Bredon  parish,  Co.  Worcester,  there  are  places  called  Wash- 
bourn,  or  Wassanburnan.  In  "  Domesday  Book"  Overbury  is 
written  Oureberie.  Dr.  Nash  says  the  name  means  the  Upper 
Village,  and  that  Teddington  in  this  parish  signifies  the  town  of 
Teoding.     This  latter  place  is  supposed  to  have  been  one  of  the 

*  See  Cough's  "  Camden.',       Also  see  p.  66,  as    to  the  Myths   Tute,    neai 
Tewkesbury,  and  p.  34,  as  to  Roman  coins  found  in  Ohlbury  Caidens. 
t  See  "  Codex  Dip."  No.  .'J08. 


835 

Anglo-Saxon  marks*.  In  Heming's  "  Cartulary," p.  362,  Carente, 
Bules  Ditch,  and  Pevin-ton,  are  mentioned  as  Anglo-Saxon  boun- 
daries of  Teddington.  The  Caerent,  Carantf,  Cerent,  or  Carron 
River,  runs  by  the  South  side  of  Bredon  Hill,  through  Overbury, 
Kemerton,  and  Ashchurch  parishes,  into  the  Avon|,  near  Tewkes- 
bury. Offa  of  Mercia  gave  certain  property  at  Teottingtun,or  Tetyng- 
ton,  near  the  river  Cerent,  to  the  monastery  at  Bredon  §.  There  is 
another  river  of  this  name  in  the  north,  as  appears  by  the  follow- 
ing extract  from  the  dissertation  concerning  the  era  of  Ossian  || : 

"  Ossian,  in  one  of  his  many  lamentations  on  the  death  of  his 
beloved  son  Oscar,  mentions,  among  his  great  actions,  a  battle 
which  he  fought  against  Caros,  king  of  ships,  on  the  banks  of 
the  winding  Carunll.  It  is  more  than  probable  that  the  Caros 
mentioned  here  is  the  same  with  the  noted  usurper  Carausius, 
who  assumed  the  purple  in  the  year  287,  and,  seizing  on  Britain, 
defeated  the  Emperor  Maximinian  Herculius  in  several  naval 
engagements,  which  gives  propriety  to  his  being  called,  in 
"  Ossian "s  Poems,"  the  king  of  ships.  The  winding  Carun  is 
that  small  river,  retaining  still  the  name  of  Carron,  and  runs  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Agricola's  wall,  which  Carausius  repaired 
to  obstnact  the  invasions  of  the  Caledonians." 

In  Gough's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  77,  it  is  stated  that  there  is 
a  village  in  Somersetshire,  near  Dunstor  Castle,  dedicated  to  a 
Saint  named  Caranton. 

In  Little  Washborn,  a  chapelry  in  Overbury,  there  is  a  place 
called  the  Hob  Nails. 

SEDGEBERROW,  other\nse  spelled  Seggesbur}',  Sedge- 
beaniwe,  Sccgesbearwe,  Seggesberge,  and  Sedgberewe,  is  situated 
on  the  western  side  of  the  bropk  ^segbunie.  In  "  Domesday 
Book,"  Sedgeberrow  is  written  Secgesbanie.     Offa  gave  Segges- 

•   See  p.  22'.). 

t  See  "  Codex  Dip."  No.  140,  &f. 

I  Avon  is  the  Gaelic  word  for  river. 

§  Heming's  "Cartulary,"  p.45.'1,and  Dr.  Thomas  A.,  p.  18;  see  also  my 
account  of  the  Toot  Hills,  p.  2.'V2,  &c. 

II  See  Denham  and  Dicks  edition,  l^O.'i.  Vol.  i.,  pp.  !),  10. 
^   "  Car  avon,  winditifj  river." 


336 

berewe  to  Aldred.  duke  of  the  Wiccians.     Various  relics  have 
been  found  here.     See  p.  85. 

EVESHAM. — The  appellation  Eovesholnie,  or  Eovesham,  is 
said  to  be  derived  from  Eoves,  a  swineherd  in  the  service  of 
Egwin,  third  Bishop  of  Wessex,  who  is  reported  to  have  had  a 
miraculous  vision  at  the  spot  where  the  Abbey  was  afterwards 
founded.  It  was  anciently  called  Homme,  Haune,  Hetheholme, 
Ethomne,  Cronuchomme  and  Eovesham. 

At  HAMPTON  (Great)  there  is  a  place  called  Vineyard  Hill. 
A  vinery  w-as  established  there  in  the  Conqueror's  time.  It  con- 
tains the  hamlet  of  Little  Hampton.  The  name  is  spelled 
Hantun  in  "  Domesday  Book." 

BENGEWORTH  was  anciently  called  Benningweord,  or 
Benninewyrth.  Dr.  Nash  says,  the  signification  of  this  name  is 
the  farm  or  estate  of  Bening. 

BADSEY  in  "  Domesday  Book"  is  spelled  Badesei.  Kendred 
and  Offa  granted  lands  here.  In  the  title  deed  of  an  estate  in 
Badsey  Aldington,  and  Bretforton-'s  dated  in  172Q,  there  is  a 
piece  of  land  described  as  a  "  toft,  called  or  known  by  the  name 
of  Toten"  in  Badsey,  and  "  a  close  or  pasture  gi'ound  lying  in 
Port  way  Furlong."  It  is  not,  however,  specified  in  which  of  the 
above  places  the  latter  was  situated.  Ancient  relics  have  been 
found  in  this  parish  f. 

ALDINGTON,  anciently  Ealdenadun|,  is  supposed  to  have 
been  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  "  marks §." 

In  WICKHAMFORD  there  are.  Green  Street,  Pitcher's 
Hill,  Game's  Acre,  Coomb  Nap,  (Knap). — Wickhamford  was 
anciently  called  Wicque.  In  "  Domesday  Book"  it  is  Wiquene  ; 
and  in  a  charter  of  Kendred  and  Offa,  Wikewane. 

In  SOUTH  LITTLETON  are,  Vineyard  Orchai-d  and 
Ilowburn  Hill.  In  "  Domesday  Book"  this  place  is  written 
Liteltune. 


•  IJretfortoii  is  noticed  in  the  "  Codex  Oip.,"  No.  liSO. 

f  See  pp.  87,  88. 

X  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  (11. 

§  See  p.  220. 


mi 

CLEEVE  PRIOR*  was  anciently  called  CUve.  In  May's 
"  Historj'  of  Evesham  f",  it  is  stated,  that  at  "  Cleeve  Prior, 
being  the  portion  between  Bidford  and  Littleton,  the  road 
(Rycknield  Street)  may  be  clearly  traced  along  the  verge  of  the 
wide-spread  terrace  that  slopes  upward  from  the  river's  brink,  and 
expands  into  a  level  plane  of  greensward  from  Marl  Cleeve  to 
Oflfenham,  including  Cleeve  Prior  and  the  three  Littletons  J  in 
its  extent.  This  road  has  now  the  appearance  of  a  mere  bridle- 
patli  some  six  feet  in  width." 

MARLCLIFF,  in  Warwickshire,  is  called  Marlcleeve,  or 
Martcleeve. 

In  GREAT  ALNE,  Co.  Warwick,  near  Alcester,  there  are 
places  called  Hobbin's  Close,  Curmoor  (or  Carmore)  Hill,  Cur- 
moor  Comer,  Graffel's  Orchard,  Elvin's  Close,  Packet^  Stones, 
and  Brittains. 

In  IPSLEY,  Co.  Warwick,  there  are, — Shakespeare  Ground, 
Jack  Ground,  Marl-pit  Close,  Jack's  Croft,  Round  Hill,  Bloody 
Pit,  and  Hob's  Croft. 

In  BEOLEY,  Co.  Worcester,  there  are, — Ravensbank ;  Pleck 
by  Portway  Road ;  Close  south  of  Portway  ;  Hob's  Croft  Close 
next  to  Portway ;  Torment  Hill,  Round  Hills,  Aldborough 
Meadow  and  Ground,  The  Tranters,  Ground  above  Eagle  Street  ||, 
Kitcroft,  Phasom,  Hob  Hill,  Hob  Meadow,  Hob  Rough,  Little 
Hob  Hill;  Ground  next  Portway ,' Sling  near  Elvins ;  Pink 
Field,  Pink's  Green,  Bransom's  or  Branston's  Cross,  Astley 
Ground,  Great  Storage  Hill  and  Coppice,  Little  Storage  Hill, 
Pleck  at  Dagnel-end  Lane,  Pleck  by  Portway  Road. — The  name  of 
this  parish  was  formerly  Body  and  Brokeleigh.  In  "  Domesday 
Book"  it  is  called  Beoly. 

There  are  relics  of  a  square  trenched  camp  at  the  top  of  Beoley 

♦   See  p.  91,  &c.,  as  to  ancient  relins  found  there, 
■f-   Second  edition,  p.  -168. 
J  Namely,  North,  Middle,  and  South  Littleton. 
§   Perhaps  means  peaked  stones. 

II  This  is  by  the  roadside  which  leads  from  Studley  and  Ipsley  parishes  to 
Wetheroak  hill,  Alvechurch, 

z 


338 

Hill,  about  three  or  four  hundred  yards  from  the  Rycknield 
Street.  The  plateau  in  the  centre  is  about  sixty  or  seventy  yards 
squai'e,  and  the  entrance  appears  to  have  been  at  the  north  side 
of  it. 

In  OLDBERROW,  otherwise  Oldburrow,  or  Owlborough,  Co. 
Worcester,  there  are, — Harding's  Pleck,  Harding's  Meadow, 
Whamap  Hill,  Great  Cadboro',  Cadboro'  Coppice,  Banner's 
Hill,  Puck  Meadow,  Little  Oldborough,  Little  Oldborough  Wood, 
and  Gospel  Bit.  This  parish  was  anciently  called  Ulberge.  In 
"  Domesday  Book"  it  is  written  Oleberga.  Dr.  Nash  says,  "  it 
is  called  Old  Barrow,  or  Borough,  from  an  ancient  tumulus  here, 
though  some  have  conjectured  it  Owlborough*,  from  the  quantity 
of  those  birds  which  were  found  here ;  certain  it  is,  that  at  the 
latter  end  of  the  reign  of  Edward  III.  there  was  a  family  of  the 
Owleborough's  here,  and  their  arms  were  three  Owls,  as  painted 
in  the  church  windows," 

In  the  "  Companion  to  Greenwood's  Map  of  Worcester,"  pub- 
lished in  1822,  it  is  stated,  that  OldbeiTow  "  takes  its  name  from 
an  ancient  tumulus,  wherein  several  curious  warlike  weapons 
have  been  found  at  different  periods." 

With  respect  to  the  etymology  of  the  names  "  Great  Cadboro'," 
and  "  Cadboro'  Coppice,"  it  may  be  observed,  tliat  the  words 
"  Cad"  in  Welsh,  and  "  Cath"  in  Irish,  signify  a  battle.  In  "  An 
Inquiry  into  the  History  of  King  Arthur,"  which  appeared  in  the 
"  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  July  1842,  it  is  stated,  in  the 
account  of  the  "  Battle  of  Cadbury,"  that  "  Agned  Cathbregion 
has  been  generally  recognised  in  the  modem  Cadbury,  a  place  of 
considerable  natural  strength.  In  Somersetshire  there  are  North 
and  South  Cadbury.  There  is  also  Cadbury  Camp  or  Castle, 
near  Tiverton,  Co.  Devon,  where  Roman  remains  have  been 
found  f,  and  Cadbury  parish,  in  Devonshire. 

There  also  are  pieces  of  land  in  Worcestershire  called  Cadraore 
Field,  and  Cadmore  Meadow,  in  Berrington  in  Tenbury. 

In    ALVECIIURCH,    Co.    Worcester,    there    are, — Impcy, 

*   See  "  C()<lex  Dip.,"  No.  RO,  as  to  Ulanuyl  (Owlwell),  in  Worcestershire. 
+  See  tlip  "  .lourniil  of  tlie  Arcliwologiral  Institute,"  Vol.  v.,  p.  191,  &c. 


339 

Icknield  Street,  Lower  Icknield  Street,  The  Hiinpey,  Will 
Fields,  Cob's  Meadow,  Pennils  or  Pinhill,  Hound  Hill,  Battle 
Field,  Robin's  Hill,  Long  Cross  Himpey,  and  Long  Himpey 
Street  and  Meadow.  This  parish  is  vulgarly  called  AUchurch ; 
it  was  anciently  designated  Alvinechurch,  Alveinecherche, 
Alviethcherche,  and  ^Ifgythe-cyrcea. 

In  KING'S  NOFiTON,  Co.  Worcester,  which  includes  the 
chapelries  of  Moseley  and  Wythall,  there  are, — Tin  Meadow, 
Hob  Irons,  Round  Hill,  The  Dole,  Hobbis's  Piece,  Pucklin's 
Meadow ;  Big,  Little,  Upper,  Middle,  and  Lower  Pucklins,  Puck- 
lin's Lane,  Warstone,  Warstock  Piece,  Barrow  Field,  Upper 
Dobbins  and  Lower  Dobbins. 

In  SOLIHULL,  Co.  W^arwick,  there  are, — Street's  Brook 
Coppice,  Street's  Brook  Meadow,  Copt  Heath,  Hobbin's  Close  on 
Copt  Heath,  Warstoc  Comer,  Camp  Close,  The  Bufferj's,  Puck- 
nell's  Close,  Jack  Lands,  War-croft,  War  Meadow,  Waring's 
Coppice,  Shirley  Street  Meadow,  Dumble  Pit,  Hare-croft,  Near 
Hare-croft,  Upper,  Lower,  and  Far  Elkin,  and  Hob's  Moat. 

In  YARDLEY,  Co.  Worcester,  anciently  Eardleah  *,  Gyrd- 
leah,  and  Gyrdleaf,  there  are,  Ballondes  Lane,  and  Hell  Bank. 

The  following  Names  occur  in  the  supposed  Route  of  the 
Rycknield  Street,  fuom  Evesham  to  Edgbaston. 

In  OFFENHAM,  or  Uffenham,  there  are, — Norvill,  Upper, 
Middle,  and  Lower  Nor^'ill,  and  Hob's  Hole.  Antiquities  have 
been  found  here. — Vide  p.  90. 

In  NORTON  [alias  Abbot's  Norton)  and  Lenchwick,  there 
are, — Asken  Comer,  Upper  Sytch,  Long  Dragon "s  Piece,  Chad- 
bury,  and  Swatman's  Ground.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  Norton  is 
written  Nortime.     This  name  signifies  North-town. 

In  HARVINGTON,  formerly  Hervertonne  *,  there  are, — 
Green  Street,   Round  Hill,  and  Nurder.     In  Heming's  "  Car- 

•  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  507. 
t  Ibid.,  .-iTO,  ft  16,  l:V22. 
{   Ibid.,  No.  61. 


340 

tulary,"  p.  347,  there  are,  Huuninghara  Street,  and  Wistan's 
Bridge,  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Harvingtou*.  "  The 
Hound  Hill"  is  a  small  meadow  on  the  Harvington  Manor  House 
Estate,  and  the  two  adjoining  fields  are  called  "  The  Bury 
Lenches."  At  the  present  day  there  is  no  tumulus  to  be  met 
•^dth  in  the  meadow,  nor  yet  in  the  Lenches  ;  the  inference  from 
this  is,  that  the  Round  Hill  was  removed  a  long  time  back. 
Nashf  says,  that  the  name  Harvington,  formerly  Hereforton, 
means,  "  The  town  on  the  military  ford."  In  "  Domesday  Book" 
Harvington  is  written  Herferthun.  This  place  is  supposed  to 
have  been  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  "  marks  |." 

In  THE  HAMLET  OF  ABBOT'S  LENCH,  or  Habbe  or 
Hob  Lench,  in  the  parish  of  Fladbury,  there  are, — Rudge  Hill, 
Salter's  Green  Meadow,  Puck  Piece,  Old  Ford  Meadow,  Ran's 
Orchard,  Dragon's  Hole,  First  and  Second  Cold  Well,  and  Yell 
Wood. 

In  the  hamlet  of  SHERIFF'S  LE^XH,  or  Shreve  Lench, 
in  the  parish  of  Church  Lench,  there  are  Wad  Close,  Upper 
Hobbs,  Farther  and  Nether  Hob  Lays,  and  Balaam's  Way. 

In  the  hamlet  of  ATCH,  AST,  or  EAST  LENCH,  in  Church 
Lench,  there  ai"e  PitchaU  Hill  and  Can  Lane. 

CHURCH  LENCH  is  described  as  Biscopesleng,  in  "  Domes- 
day Book." 

ROUS  LENCH.— There  is  Yeald  Wood  between  it  and 
Church  Lench. 

In  ABBERTON  there  are  places  called  Salt-way  Piece  and 
Puck  Pit  Ground.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  Abberton  is  written 
Ebbritone. 

In  BISHAMPTON  (formerly  Biscopes  dun  §),  there  is  a 
place  called  Gunning's  Lane. 

A  few  years  back,  a  coin  of  Constantine  was  dug  up  in  Abbot's 
Morton,  othensise  Stoney  Morton. 


•  Vide  also  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  44. 
t  Vol.  iL,  p.  437. 

♦  See  p.  229. 

§  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  724. 


341 

The  particulars  of  Inkberrow  and  Feckenhara  will  be  found  in 
the  account  of  the  Lower  Salt-way,  p.  321. 

In  TARDEBIG  (called  Terdeberie  in  "  Domesday  Book,") 
there  are  the  Round  Hill,  Little  Round  Hill,  Robin's  Piece,  Big 
and  Little  Robin's,  Dole  Meadow,  Wimble  Dole,  Big  Wimble 
Dole,  Big  and  Little  Bear  Hill,  Upper  and  Lower  Bear's  Leasow, 
Hobbis  or  Obbis  Meadow,  Hobbis's  or  Obbis's  Cur  Lane,  Ridge- 
way  Close,  Wassel's  Meadow,  Holbom,  and  Tibb  Ribbin.  Nash 
states  that  this  name  signifies  the  Big  Tower;  but  it  seems 
more  probable  that  it  owes  its  derivation  to  a  Tor,  Tar,  or  Fire 
Tower*,  which  may  probably  have  stood  either  on  the  site  of  the 
present  church,  or  on  Tutnal  Mount.  Homing,  in  his  "  Cartulary," 
p.  362,  mentions  Elfled's  Bridge  f  and  Dip-well  among  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  boundaries  of  Tardebig. 

Tutnal  and  Cobley  are  hamlets  in  Tardebig ;  they  formerly 
belonged  to  Worcestershire,  as  appears  by  "  Domesday  Book  ;" 
but  afterwards  became  detached  parts  of  Warwickshire  ;  however, 
they  have  been  re-attached  to  Worcestershire  by  the  Reform  Bill. 

Bentley,  in  Tardebig,  was  formerly  called  Bentelegh  and 
Beonetley. 

On  the  border  of  the  chapelry  of  Bordesley  is  a  place  named 
Pickefields. 

The  particulars  of  Cofton  Hacket,  Northfield,  and  Edgbaston, 
are  given  in  the  account  of  the  Upper  Salt-way. 

There  is  no  trace  of  the  Rycknield  Street  to  be  met  with  in  the 
Ordnance  Map,  throughout  the  whole  line  from  Gloucester  to 
Bidford,  except  from  Honeybourne  (or  rather  Ullington)  to 
Bidford  ;  which,  however,  is  probably  a  mistake,  as  mentioned  iu 
pp.  317,  330  ;  the  discovery,  however,  as  previously  detailed,  of 
Roman  and  other  relics,  at  various  places  ;  for  instance,  at  Oldbury 
Gardens,  in  Tewkesbury  ;  Sedgebarrow,  Kemerton  Hill,  Conder- 
ton  Hill,  Elmcley  Castle,  Badsey,  Bratfortoii,  Offenham,  Har- 
vington,  and  Cleeve  Prior — all  in  or  near  the  line  from  Tewkesbury 
to  Bidford — strongly  corroborates  the  allegation  that  the  Rycknield 

•   See  01(1  SloiuRc,  p.  1!1(). 

+   'I'liis,  no  (loiilit,  was  a  biidgf  luiilt  by  the  Laily  .Ellicltla;il. 


342 

Street  did  run  in  that  direction.  In  "  Richard  of  Cirencester," 
the  sites  of  the  stations  on  this  Hne  are  set  forth  in  Iter  XIV.,  p. 
152,  as  follows  : — 

From  "  Rose  or  Berry  Hill,  in  Weston,"  under  Penyard,  near 
Ross,  to 

Miles. 
Glebon  Colonia,  15     Gloucester ; 

Ad  Antonam,      ...     15     On  the  Avon ; 
Alauna, 15     Alcester,  on  the  Ahi. 

The  editor,  Mr.  Hatcher,  remarks,  in  a  note  : — "  As  tlic 
author  has  only  left  the  name  of  a  river  for  the  next  station  to 
Gloucester,  it  must  be  placed  in  such  a  situation  on  the  Avon  as 
to  admit  the  distance  of  fifteen  miles  from  the  next  station  of 
Alcester,  which  was  the  site  of  Alauna.  This  would  carry  it  to 
the  westward  of  Evesham." 

Talung  it  to  be  correct,  that  the  station  at  Gloucester  was 
fifteen  miles  from  the  station  called  Ad  Antonam,  as  stated  by 
"  Richard,"  it  would  bring  us  to  Eckington,  upon  the  Avon, 
which  coincides  exactly,  as  to  distance,  if  taken  in  a  straight  line. 

This  is  the  place  which  I  pointed  out,  in  my  previous  accounts, 
as  the  probable  lost  station,  "Ad  Antonam*."  And,  supposing 
there  were  only  fifteen  miles  from  the  latter  station  to  Alcester, 
as  stated  by  Richard  of  Cirencester,  he  must,  in  like  manner 
have  taken  the  straight  line  between  those  two  places,  which  is 
also  about  fifteen  miles.  This  goes  to  prove  that  the  Rycknield 
Street  ran  in  two  lines  in  this  part,  namely :  fii-st  in  a  curved  line, 
from  Tewkesbury  to  Alcester,  through  Ashchurch,  Beckford, 
Ashton-under-Hill,  Sedgebarrow,  and  Hinton,  to  Evesham,  &c.,  as 
before  suggested  ;  and,  secondly,  in  the  nearly  direct  line  from 
Tewkesbury,  through  Bredon  Hardwick,  Bredon,  Norton  in 
Bredon,  Eckington  (the  probable  Ad  Antonam),  and  across  the 
.\von  there;  thence  through  Birlingham,  across  the  Avon  again, 
and  by  Great  Comberton,  Little  Combcrton,  Fladbury,  and  Crop- 
thornc  :  across  the  Avon  at  Chadbury  Ferry,  and  through  Lonch 
Wyke,  Norton,  llarvington.  and  .\tch  I-cnch,  to  Alcester.      It  is 


343 

probable  that  the  curved  Una  was  the  most  ancient,  and  that  the 
more  direct  road  was  the  work  of  the  later  Romans. 

Dr.  Stukeley  considered  Evesham  to  be  the  station  Ad  An- 
toiiam*,  while  others  believed  it  to  have  been  near  Sedgebarrow  ; 
but  as  Evesham  is  twenty-two  miles  from  Gloucester,  it  could 
not  (according  to  "  Ricliard  of  Cirencester,")  have  been  the 
Ad  Antonam  ;  and  Sedgebarrow  is  not  only  nineteen  miles  from 
Gloucester,  but  three  miles  from  the  Avon  ;  and  therefore  no 
more  likely  to  have  been  the  station  than  the  former  place. 
The  only  other  probable  place,  besides  Eckington,  is  Norton,  in 
Bredon,  about  fourteen  miles  from  Gloucester,  "  as  the  crow 
flies,"  and  near  the  Avon,  where,  as  previously  stated  f,  ancient 
relics  have  been  found,  as  well  as  at  Eckington. 

The  latter  place,  however,  is  the  more  probable  of  the  two,  as 
the  Avon  there  lies  directly  across  the  road  |,  and  Roman  relics 
have  been  found  there,  as  previously  described  in  the  account  of 
Eckington.  According  to  Tacitus,  Ostorius  Scapula,  in  the  year 
5'2,  extended  a  chain  of  forts  between  the  rivers  Avon  and  Severn 
to  keep  the  Britons  in  check.  "  Ostorius  detrahere  arma  sus- 
pectis,  cinctosque  castris  Antonam  et  Sabrinam  fluvios  cohibere 
paret. — [Tacitus,  "  Annals,"  Book  xii..  Sec.  21.]  Upon  this  Mr. 
May  has  observed,  "  Camden's  arbitrary  alteration  of  this  passage, 
from  Antona  to  Aufona  ['  Brit.'  p.  515],  bolstered  up  by  his  subse- 
quent infliction  of  the  name  Avon-upon-the-Nen — by  which,  even 
on  his  own  admission,  that  river  is  never  called — are  equally  in- 
defensible. For,  as  Dr.  Stukeley  has  observed,  it  could  not  pos- 
sibly be  the  Nyne,  or  Nen,  in  Northamptonshire,  that  being  too 
distant  from  the  Severn" — P.  3G5. 

It  may  bo  here  observed  tliat  the  discovery  of  so  many  ancient 
relics  at  Eckington  and  its  vicinity,  as  previously  described,  not 
only  goes  to  prove  that  it  was  the  Ad  Antonam.  but  corroborates 
tlie  truth  of  Richard  of  Cirencester's  sUitement  upon  the  subject, 

*  "  Kichiird  t>f  Cirencester,"  p.  I;j4,  seventh  edition,  17T(J. 
•f   See  pp.  7(1,  77. 

♦  Mr.  May,  in  his  "  History  of  Kveshani,"  p.  3(54,  contends  that  tlie  station 
in  ({uestion  lay  in  the  vicinity  of  tlie  encanipnient.s  on  Bredon  Hill. 


344 

and  the  discovery  of  Roman  relics  at  Droitwich,  with  the  site  of  a 
supposed  fort  of  Ostorius,  and  other  Roman  relics  at  Worcester, 
as  previously  described,  tend  strongly  to  prove  that  the  former 
was  the  Salinse,  and  the  latter  the  Bravinio,  Branogenio,  or  Bran- 
nogenium  of  the  Romans. 

We  will  now  say  a  few  words  on  a  matter  of  importance,  the 
probable  stations  of  the  different  forts  of  Ostorius  on  the  Severn, 
in  Worcestershire,  and  on  the  borders  of  that  county,  with  their 
respective  distances  from  each  other.  Supposing  them  to 
have  been  about  five  or  six  miles  apart,  the  first  from  Worcester, 
in  the  line  of  the  Severn  southward,  would  be  at  Kempsey,  where, 
as  before  stated,  there  was  a  Roman  camp*.  The  next  would  be 
either  at  Upton,  the  supposed  Upocessa  of  Ravennas,  or  at  Saxon's 
Lode,  near  by,  on  the  east  side  of  the  river  f;  the  next  at  the 
Mythe  Tute,  near  Tewkesbury  |,  and  so  on  to  Gloucester.  The 
space  between  Upton  and  the  Mythe  Tute  is  rich  in  Roman  re- 
mains, particularly  at  Ripple  and  Twining.  Near  the  Mythe 
Tute  the  Avon  joins  the  Severn,  and  if  the  forts  of  Ostorius  also 
ran  along  the  Avon,  the  first  would,  according  to  our  scale  of  dis- 
tance, be  at  Eckington§  (the  supposed  Antonam) ;  the  next  would 
be  at  Cropthorne,  or  Fladbury,  where  there  is  a  place  called  Port- 
way  ;  the  next  would  be  at  Bengeworth ;  the  next  either  at  Har- 
vington  or  Cleeve  Prior,  at  the  former  of  which  places  Roman 
names,  or  rather  Saxon  names  of  British  and  Roman  roads  occur, 
while  at  the  latter,  Roman  relics  have  been  found  ||.  On  the  east 
side  of  the  Severn,  north  of  Worcester,  the  first  of  the  forts  of 
Ostorius,  according  to  our  scale,  would  be  in  the  parish  of  Om- 
bersley,  at  an  earth-workU  by  the  river  side,  within  a  mile  of  thr 

•  See  pp.  54  to  60. 

+  See  pp.  GO,  61,  62. 

J   See  p.  06. 

§  Some  have  supposed  that  the  adjoining  camp  on  Bredon  Hill,  in  Kenier- 
ton,  was  the  work  of  Ostorius ;  others  that  it  is  Danish ;  but  it  seems  most 
probable  that  it  is  ancient  British.     Vide  "  Ambrosiae  Petree,"  Chap.  II. 

II  See  pp.  91  to  94. 

IT  It  is  considered  by  some  ArchoBologists  that  this  earth-work  is  of  ancient 
British  origin.  I  am  informed  that  it  has  the  appearance  of  the  site  of  a  fort 
and  that  there  is  a  winding  path  up  to  it,  as  at  the  Mythe  Tute.     See  p.  66. 


345 

village.  The  next  at  Stourport;  the  next  at  Wribbenhall,  by 
Bewdley  ;  and  the  next  at  Over  Arley*  ;  a  full  description  of  all 
which  places  will  be  found  in  this  work. 

We  must  now  return  to  the  supposed  deviation  line  of  the 
Rycknield  Street  from  Tewkesbury,  through  Eckington  to 
Alcester. 

In  NORTON,  in  BREDON,  there  are  Ridgeway  Furlong, 
Ridgeway  Far  Close,  Ridgeway  Middle  Close,  Ridgeway  Little 
Meadow,  Ridgeway  Ground  f ,  Calmus  Hill,  and  several  places  called 
Clatsmoor  and  Hickley.  Various  Anglo-Saxon  relics  have  been 
found  in  this  chapelry  |.  On  the  south-west  declivity  of  Bredon 
Hill,  just  above  the  village  of  Norton,  there  are  two  tall  turret- 
like  masses  of  white  oolite  rock,  commonly  called  "  The  King  and 
Queen."  A  manorial  court  was  held  at  this  spot,  as  we  learn 
from  an  old  document  in  Nash's  "  Worcestershire  §." 

The  parish  of  BREDON,  or  Breedon,  anciently  spelled  Breodun 
and  Breodune||,  contains  the  chapelries  of  Norton  and  Cutsdean, 
and  the  hamlets  of  Bredon,  Hardwick-with-Mitton,  Kinsham  and 
Westmancote. 

ECKINGTON  was  anciently  called  Eccingtun,  EccyncgtunH, 
and  Ackintune.  Wollashul,  WoUashill,  Wollershull,  or  WoUers- 
hill,  lies  in  this  parish,  and  Nafford.  Roman-British  relics  have 
been  found  there**.  Eckington  is  supposed  to  have  been  one  of 
the  Anglo-Saxon  marks  ff. 

*  And  so  on  to  Shrewsbury.  See  p.  289,  relative  to  the  probability  that 
the  Port-way  accompanied  this  line  of  forts  from  Worcester  to  Over  Arley, 
and  perhaps  to  Slirewsbiiry. 

+  These  names  are  stronpf  presumptive  evidence  that  the  Romans  did  carry 
a  branch  line  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  or  Ridgeway,  from  Tewkesbury,  through 
Eckington,  to  Alcester. 

X    Vide  p.  7(i. 

§  See  the  "  Rambler  in  Worcestershire,"  published  ir  1848,  p.  159,  and  the 
"  Report  of  tlie  Archaeological  .\ssociation  at  Worcester,  in  1851,"  p.  277. 

II  See  pp.  78  to  84,  relative  to  Kemerton  Camp,  Banbury  Stone,  an  ancient 
granary,  and  other  relics  on  Bredon  Hill.  Also  the  account  of  "  Ambrosiee 
Petrse,"  Chap.  II. ;  and  the  derivation  of  the  word  Bredon,  p.  84. 

%  See  "  Codex  Dip."  No.  570,  1298. 

••    J'if/f,  pp.  74,  75.  f f   Sec  p.  220. 


346 

In  BIRLINGHAM,  anciently  Burlinghani,  or  Byrlingaham*, 
there  are  Hurrill's  Hill,  the  Old  Ait,  In  Asham  Meadow,  and 
Tibley.  This  place  is  supposed  to  be  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
marks  f . 

In  DEFFORD  there  are  places  called  Part  of  Horell  Orchard 
and  Hales  Well.  Between  Defford  and  Besford  there  is  Horrell 
Wood.  This  place  was  anciently  spelled  Deopauford*,  Depeford, 
and  Dufford  ;  and  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Depeforde. 

COMBERTON,  anciently  Combrintone. 

In  FLADBURY  there  is  a  place  called  Portway.  This  parish, 
in  ancient  times,  was  usually  spelled  Fleodanbyryg,  or  Fledan- 
byrig§.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  Fledebirie.  Dr.  Nash  says  the 
name  signifies  the  village  of  the  stream.  Bradley,  in  Fladbury, 
was  formerly  called  Bradanlsegh. 

CROPTHORNE  was  anciently  called  C roppan thorn  i|  and 
Coppeme,  and  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  Cropethom. 

CHADBURY  FERRY  is  a  ferry  over  the  Avon,  from  Crop- 
thome  into  Chadbury,  in  Lenchwick,  a  tithing  in  Norton,  alias 
Abbot's  Norton. 

It  is  possible  that  a  branch  road  ran  from  Eckington,  by  the 
north  side  of  Bredon  Hill,  through  Elmley  Castle  parish,  and 
along  the  Salt-way,  into  the  Rycknield  Street  at  Ashton-under- 
Hill,  thus  jointly  with  the  main  line  performing  the  complete 
circuit  of  Bredon  Hill,  the  great  bulwark  of  that  part  of  the 
county. 

The  Hne  of  the  Rycknield  Street  is  pretty  well  defined  in  the 
Ordnance  Map,  under  the  name  of  the  Icknield  Street,  &c.,  from 
Bidford  and  Alcester,  northwards  to  Lichfield,  and  Wichnor-on- 
Trent,  &c.  However,  we  cannot  but  here  remark  on  the  impro- 
priety of  thus  confusing  any  part  of  the  Rycknield  with  the 
Iiiknield  Street,  since  this  latter  runs  quite  in  aiiother  direction, 
namely,  through  the  southern  part  of  the  kingdom. 

A  modem  reviewer,  writing  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  says*', 

•  See  "  Codex  Dip."  No.  570.  f  See  p.  229. 

J   See  "  Codex  Dip."  No.  STO.  §  "  Codex  Dip."  No.  ;(■). 

;|   Sec  "  Codex  Dip."  Nos.  VV.t,  247,  rAi,  KJoH. 

II   See  "  (ientlemKu's  Mapnzinc"  for  November,  !'^4(>. 


347 

"  Having  mentioned  the  Rycknield  Street,  one  word  of  its  ety- 
mology :  in  our  view  it  is  attainable  without  those  efforts  which 
have  ingeniously  been  bestowed  on  it  by  some  antiquaries,  who 
will  have  it  to  be  the  Upper  Ikenield  Way  ;  witli  the  old  Icenian 
road,  its  geographical  position  can,  however,  give  it  no  connection. 
Is  it  not  simply  the  old  Ridge-way  ?  Kic  or  Reac  is  the  Saxon 
term  for  a  heap  or  dorsal  elevation  of  any  kind,  and  its  sense  is 
fully  retained  in  the  agricultural  word  "  rick  ;"  and  if  this  accepta- 
tion be  disputed,  there  is  yet  another  for  the  term,  which  would 
make  it  the  chief  or  royal  way,  in  short,  par  eminence,  the  king's 
highway." 

In  this  view  of  the  name  we  are  disposed  entirely  to  agree,  for  we 
find  in  various  parts  of  the  main  lines  of  the  Rycknield  Street*, 
and  also  in  the  numerous  branches  which  issued  from  it,  that  the 
name  Ridgeway  frequently  occurs  f. 

The  ancient  British  and  Gaulish  words  Rix  and  Rich,  and  the 
eastern  word  Rik,  mean  strong  and  powerful  J.  The  Saxon 
word  Ric  or  Reac  also  means  strong  and  powerful,  likewise  a 
heap  or  dorsal  elevation  of  any  kind,  and  as  elevated  situations 
were  the  strong  and  powerful  positions  of  the  ancient  Britons,  we 
may  probably  look  here  for  the  origin  of  the  name  §. 

The  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  Jan.  1836,  p.  48,  contains 
the  following  communication,  relative  to  the  "  Rycknield"  Street: 

"  In  Nichols's  '  History  of  Leicestershire'  (Introduction, 
p.  147),  the  course  of  an  ancient  way,  designated  '  Via  Devana,' 
a  name  which  has  not,  as  I  am  aware,  the  sanction  of  antiquity, 
is  veiy  particularly  traced  through  several  of  the  midland  coun- 
ties, and  which  appears  to  have  been  the  connecting  road  between 


•  The  term  "Rycknield  Street"  docs  not  appear  out  of  the  two  niaiu  lines 
(that  is  the  ancient  British  line  and  the  Roman  deviation  line),  but  in  the 
Itranclies  the  term  Ridgeway  is  used. 

+  See  the  summary  of  them,  Chap.  VIII. 

X  See  "  Britannia  Antiqua,"  by  Aylett  Sammes,  p.  08. 

§  See  Chap.  I.,  as  to  tlic  Saxon  word  Wic,  signifying  cither  a  station,  man- 
sion, phico  of  sccurily,  or  secure  hnliitation,  from  the  word  "  wician,"  to 
inhabit. 


348 

the  two  distant  Roman  cities  of  Deva  (Chester)  and  Camalodu- 
Dum  (Colchester).  The  writer  of  that  article,  the  Eev.  T.  Lemau, 
states  it  to  have  been  first  noticed  by  the  late  Dr.  Mason,  and 
that  he,  Mr.  Leman,  with  the  Bishop  of  Cork,  travelled  the 
greater  part  of  it  in  1798  and  1799.  He  says,  it  was  traced 
through  the  principal  part  of  Staffordshire  with  little  difficulty, 
and  particularly  from  Draycott  straight  to  Lane  Delph,  and  then 
by  Wolstanton  Church  to  the  station  at  Chesterton  (in  the 
neighbourhood  of  which  I  write),  and  which  is  now  generally  con- 
sidered to  be  the  Mediolanum,  at  which  Antonine's  tenth  Iter 
terminates.  Now,  upon  referring  to  one  of  the  Harleian  Manu- 
scripts in  the  British  Museum  (No.  2060),  being  a  copy  of  the 
foundation  charter  of  the  Abbey  of  Hulton,  dated  in  1223,  I  find 
the  Rykeneld  Street  mentioned  as  a  boundary  of  lands  in  Nor- 
mancote,  bestowed  upon  that  abbey ;  and  it  happens  that  the 
road  from  Draycott  to  Lane  Delph,  above  spoken  of  by  Mr. 
Leman,  still  forms  the  boundary  of  Normancote  Grange  for  the 
distance  of  at  least  a  mile,  so  that  Ryknield  Street  is  most  clearly 
identified,  by  a  document  more  than  six  hundred  years  old,  with 
the  Chester  and  Colchester  way,  denominated  Via  Devana  by 
modem  geographers." 

The  following  notice  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  from  another 
correspondent,  occurs  in  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  April 
1836,  p.  338  :— 

"  Higden,  in  his  '  Polychronicon,'  which  he  finished  up  to  the 
year  1342,  speaking  '  on  the  Royal  Roads'  of  England,  says  :  '  of 
the  four,  the  fourth  was  called  Rykenild  Street,  and  stretcheth 
forth  by  Worcester,  Wycombe,  Brymingham,  Lychefelde,  Derby, 
Chestrefelde,  York,  and  forth  unto  Tynemouth.'  This  is  from 
De  Woorde's  edition ;  and  that  of  Oxford,  in  Latin,  begins  it  at 
'  Manovia,  in  West  Wallia,'  and,  proceeding  by  the  same  route, 
ends  it  at  Tynemouth.  Higden  was  a  Cheshire  man,  and  a  monk 
in  the  city  of  Chester.  The  '  Eulogium  Historiarum,'  in  the 
British  Museum  (Galba,  E.  vii.),  gives  it  also  the  same  line ; 
but,  between  Menavia  and  Wygornia,  make  it  pass  '  per  Here- 
fordiam.'  Harrison,  in  his  '  Description  of  England,'  says,  some 
call  '  Erming  Street,  The  Lelme.'  and  then  describes  the  Ikcnild. 


349 

or  Rikeuild,  as  beginning  some  way  in  the  south,  and  passing 
towards  Cirencester  and  Woi'cester,  and  thence  by  Wycombe,  &c., 
to  the  mouth  of  the  Tyne.  Drayton  also  begins  it  at '  Cambria's 
further  shore,'  at  St.  David's,  makes  it  overtake  the  Fosse,  and 
decUne  into  the  German  Sea  at  '  the  Fall  of  Tyne.'  I  will  add 
to  these  notices,  that  the  foundation  charter  of  the  Abbey  of 
Hilton,  in  Shropshire,  describes  a  bomidary  of  property  granted 
to  it,  as  '  ascendendo  per  Richineld  Street,  at  per  Villam  de 
Mere.  Seldon,  in  his  notes  ou  the  *  Polyolbion,'  says  Ricen-ild 
Street  is  mentioned  in  '  Eandul  of  Chester  (Higden),  as  beginning 
at  St.  Dawies,  in  Pembroke,  going  through  Hereford,  and  ending 
at  Tinmouth.  The  Additions  to  "  Camden'  mention  a  survey  of 
the  County  of  Derby,  of  the  7th  century,  which  calls  it,  as  it 
passes  over  Tupton  Moor,  '  Rignal  Street;'  and  Lysons,  in  his 
'  Derbyshire,'  says  that  an  old  survey  of  Sir  H.  Hunloke's  pro- 
perty in  Derbyshire,  says,  tliat  Rikenild  Street  was  there  called 
Rignal  Street,  as  well  as  in  other  estates  in  Warwickshire  and 
Staffordshire,  where  it  is  described  as  a  boundary.  Rickenhall, 
in  the  parish  of  Aycliffe,  in  the  County  of  Durham,  probably  had 
its  name  from  this  road  passing  near  it ;  and  it  is  still,  in  its 
course  firom  the  top  of  Gateshead  Fell  to  the  mouth  of  the  Tyne, 
in  many  places  very  visible,  still  used  as  a  road,  and  called 
Wrecken-dyke.  And  here,  in  writings  of  the  liith  and  13th 
centuries,  I  have  found  lands  upon  which  it  abutted,  called  Wrack- 
ennelberge,  and  itself  wiitten  Wrakyn-dik  and  Wraken-dyke." 

There  is  also  a  paper  expressly  upon  this  subject  in  the 
"  Archaeologia  ^liana;"  and  in  the  "  Archaeological  Journal  of 
the  Institute,"  "Vol.  vi.,  pp.  323,  324,  there  is  the  following 
passage : — 

"  Some  authors  speak  of  another  '  IkenUd  Street'  from  '  Tra- 
jectus  Augusti'  (Aust  Passage),  on  the  Severn,  to  Cirencester, 
and  there  meeting  the  Akeman  Street,  which  extended  to  Alces- 
ter,  in  Berkshire.  In  this  there  appears  to  be  some  confusion  ; 
the  road  from  Aust  Passage  appears  to  fall  into  the  '  Ridge  way,' 
near  Old  Down,  in  its  course  between  Bristol  and  Gloucester,  and 
is  not  satisfactorily  traced  as  far  as  Cirencester." 

In  the  "  Archaeologia,"  Vol.  xxix.,  p.  7,  occurs  the  following 


350 

allusion  to  the  street  in  question : — "  In  an  essay,  by  Roger 
(iale*,  on  the  Roman  Roads  of  Britain,  the  following  opinion 
occurs  with  respect  to  the  Rycknield  Street: — He  considers  the 
Ryknield  Street  to  have  come  from  the  north  to  Gloucester,  and 
to  have  proceeded  thence,  '  in  all  probability,  to  Oldbury,  where 
formerly  was  the  Feny  or  Trajectus  over  Severn,  towards  Caer- 
gwent ;  and  if  it  did  not  run  so  far  as  St.  David's,  yet  it  may  very 
well  be  supposed  to  have  gone  to  Maridunum  (Carmardhin),  and 
to  have  taken  in  that  branch  of  Antonine's  Itinerary  that  lies 
from  Maridunum  to  Isca.  The  Strata  Julia  may  have  been  part 
of  it." 

According  to  Leman's  "  Itinerary!,"  the  course  of  this  road 
was  by  Chester-le-Street,  Boroughbridge,  Chesterfield,  Sutton 
Coldfield,  Birmingham,  Alcester,  across  the  Avon,  to  Bidford, 
and  a  little  to  the  east  of  Evesham  ;  hence  leaving  Tewkesbury 
on  the  right,  through  Gloucester,  Chepstow,  Abergavenny,  and 
Caermarthen. 

In  the  "  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales,"  it  is  stated  that  the 
Rycknield  Street  passed  from  Gloucester  to  Berry  Hill,  Here- 
fordshire, and  probably  by  Abergavenny,  Brecon,  Llandilo 
Vawr,  and  Caermarthen,  to  St.  David's. 

The  course  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  from  St.  David's  to  Tewkes- 
bury, seems,  in  the  ancient  British  and  early  Roman  times,  to 
have  been,  as  before  stated,  from  Menapia  (St.  David's),  by  Mari- 
dunum (Caermarthen  I),  and  Isca  (i.e.  Iscalegua),  Silurium 
(Caerleon§),  Ballium,  Usk|l,  Blestium,  Monmouth,  toAriconium, 
(Berry  Hill,  near  Ross) ;  thence  it  probably  passed  by  Brampton 

•  Leland's  "  Itin.,"  edit.  1767,  Vol.  vi.,  p.  138. 

+  Vol.  iv.,  Part  1,  p.  C5,  edit.  1764. 

\  See  the  "  Journal  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,"  Vol.  vii.,  p.  173,  as  to 
Roman  relics  found  at  Landovery,  in  Caermarthenshire,  near  the  Roman  road 
called  Sam  Helen,  or  Helens  Road. 

§  Vide  ibid.,  Vol.  viiL,  p.  157,  &c.,  and  tiie  previous  journals  there  cited, 
concerning  Roman  relics  found  at  Caerleon. 

II  Some  say  from  Usk,  through  Abergavenny,  to  Monmouth  ;  but  that  place 
appears  to  be  too  much  out  of  this  line.  There  was  an  ancient  road  from 
Caerleon,  through  Usk,  Abergavenny,  Kenchester,  and  Lentwardine,  to 
Wroxeter. 


351 

Abbots,  and  Linton,  to  Upton  Bishop ;  and  by  Yatton  and 
Keinpley,  to  Much  Marcle  and  Little  Marcle ;  and  by  Wall  Hills 
Camp*  and  Ledbury,  to  Tewkesbury.  The  later  Romans,  for 
military  and  other  purposes,  probably  made  two  deviation  lines, 
one  from  Isca  to  Venta  (Chepstow),  and  across  the  Severn,  at  or 
about  Aust  Passage,  or  Oldbury  Passage,  into  the  Western 
Trackwayt ;  and  the  other  from  Berry  Hill,  near  Ross,  across 
the  Severn,  to  Gloucester,  into  the  same  Trackway  (which  ran 
from  Exeter,  tlie  Caer-Isk  of  the  Britons,  and  the  Isca  Dan- 
moniorum  of  the  Romans,  to  Bristol,  Gloucester,  Tewkesbury, 
Worcester,  &c.).  The  Rycknield  Street,  having  run  along  this 
Trackway  from  Aust  Passage  to  Tewkesbury,  appeal's  there  to 
have  branched  off  to  Evesham,  Bidford,  Edgbaston,  &c.;  while 
the  Trackway  went  on  to  Worcester,  Droitwich,  Over  Arley,  &c. 
The  Rev.  Thomas  Leman's  two  maps,  relative  to  the  ancient 
British  and  Roman  roads  |,  strongly  favour  this  opinion,  since, 
in  the  one  map  the  ancient  British  line  of  the  Rycknield  Street 
is  made  to  run  from  St.  David's  to  Berry  Hill,  and  from  thence 
through  Herefordshire,  much  to  the  west  of  Gloucester,  to 
Alauna,  Alcester ;  and,  in  the  other  map,  the  Roman  deviation 
line  runs  through  Gloucester,  from  the  pass  of  the  Severn,  by 
Aust  or  Oldbury  Passage,  and  also  from  the  pass  of  tlie  Severn, 
near  Gloucester  §.  Now,  supposing,  as  is  most  natural,  that  the 
ancient  British  line  of  the  Rycknield  Street  ran  from  Berrj'  Hill, 
near  Ross,  through  Herefordshire  i|,  to  Ledbury,  instead  of 
crossing  the  river  to  Gloucester,  its  course  from  Ledbury  to 
Tewkesbury  was  most  probably  the  line  of  road  detailed  in  p. 
'277,  &c.,  in  which  is  the  before-mentioned  road,  called  the  Ridge- 
way,  running  between  Eastnor  and  the  Herefordshire  Beacon 
Camp,   on   Malvern   Hill;    and  where  also  are  met  with  the 

*  See  p.  289,  as  to  ii  probable  branch  road  of  the  Ryekniehl  Street  having 
gone  from  Wall  Hills  Camp  to  Frome  Hill,  and  on  to  Worcester. 

+  See  p.  290,  &o. 

I  See  Brewer's  "  Beauties  of  England  and  Wales,"  Introduction,  pp.  Vi 
and  l.'lo,  edition  1818. 

§  The  lines  to  these  two  passes  are,  however,  given  in  dots,  or  doubtfully. 

I'   See  pp.  :14R,  349,  in  furiher  proof  of  this. 


remarkable  ancient  British,  Roman,  and  Saxon  names  of  Wain 
Street,  Keysend  Street,  the  Pendock  Portway,  in  the  Berrow; 
Gadbury  Banks,  in  Eldersfield ;  Crookberrow,  in  Pendock  and 
the  Berrow ;  Sam  Hill,  and  Wood  Street,  in  Bushley  ;  and  The 
Mythe  Tute,  and  Oldbury  Gardens,  near  Tewkesbury. 

The  following  are  in  the  line  from  Ross  to  Ledburj' : — 

In  LINTON,  Herefordshire,  near  Upton  Bishop,  there  is  a 
place  called  Lower  Oldbury. 

In  Brockharapton  *,  Herefordshire,  there  are  places  called  The 
Top  of  Walboro',  Caplow  Wood,  Castle  Hill,  and  The  Yells.  A 
little  to  the  north  of  the  village,  the  remains  of  what  is  said  to 
be  a  Roman  encampment,  with  a  double  trench,  are  met  with  f . 

In  MUCH  MARCLE,  Herefordshire,  there  are  Puckmoor's 
Orchard,  Street 's-end,  Camp  Field.  Little  Woburg,  Upper  and 
Lower  Woburg,  Camp  Wood,  Puerdon  Field,  Boyarden,  Hasarden, 
Harold's  Croft,  Oldbury,  Worrall's  Meadow,  Harwell  Orchard, 
Harwell  Field,  and  Wiggen  Ash. 

In  DYMOCK,  Gloucestershire,  there  are  Dorlow,  Coldridge, 
Coldridge  Hill,  Old  Hill,  Berrow  s  and  Little  Berrow 's  Orchard, 
BerrowMeadow,  Berrow  Rough,Berrow  Homestead.Berrow  s  Bank, 
Castle  Meadow,  Crewsfield,  Round  Hill,  Puckmore,  Puckmore's 
Hitch,  Yesler's,  Quabb's,  Quabb  Ground,  Upper  and  Lower 
Quabb's,  Portway  Top,  Shaice  Field,  Castle  Tump,  Middle  and 
Near  Castle  Field,  Hell  Piece,  Hell  Bridge  Meadow,  Dotchley, 
Stanberrow,  Stich,  Sitchell's,  Lao  Croft,  Ambersley,  Far  Am. 
bersley.  Cob's  Hole,  Bow  Field,  Harding's,  Pink's  Field,  Pinks 
Meadow,  Harcomb,  Harcomb  Coppice,  Knap  Head,  and  Broms- 
berrow  Heath.  This  place  is  supposed  to  derive  its  name  from 
the  Saxon,  "  dim,"  (dark),  and  "  ac  "  (oak),  and  was  formerly 
a  place  of  some  importance.  There  is  a  mount  in  this  parish 
called  Castle  Tump,  the  site  of  the  old  castle  which  stood  there. 

In  PAUNTLEY,  adjoining  Dymock,  there  are  Paveford 
Coppice,  Paveford,  Harwich  Coppice,  Harwich  Field,  Harwich 
Quabs,  Great  Harwich  Coppice,  and  Harwich. 

*  There  also  is   "  Brockhampton,"  near  Bromyard. 
+  Broc,  in  Anglo-Saxon,  signifies  a  brook. 


353 

An  agricultural  custom  prevails  at  this  place  ou  Twelfth-day- 
eve,  thus  described  in  Hones  "  E very-day  Book,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  28, 
as  follows  : — 

"  In  the  parish  of  Pauntley,  a  village  on  the  border  of  the 
county  of  Gloucester,  next  Worcestershire,  and  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood, '  a  custom,  intended  to  prevent  the  smut  in  wheat,  in 
some  respects  resembling  the  Scotch  beltein*,  prevails.'  '  On 
the  eve  of  Twelfth-day,  all  the  servants  of  every  farmer  assemble 
together  in  one  of  the  fields  that  has  been  sown  with  wheat.  At 
the  end  of  twelve  lands,  they  make  twelve  fires  in  a  row  with 
straw;  around  one  of  which,  made  larger  than  the  rest,  they 
drink  a  cheerful  glass  of  cider  to  their  master's  health,  and  success 
to  tlie  future  harvest ;  then,  returning  home,  they  feast  on  cakes 
made  of  carraways,  &c.,  soaked  in  cider,  which  they  claim  as  a 
reward  for  their  past  labours  in  sowing  the  grain f.'" 

In  LEDBURY,  in  Herefordshire,  there  are  places  as  stated 
in  p.  275. 

The  preceding  notices  appear  to  warrant  the  inference  that  the 
Rycknield  Street,  or  Ridgeway,  consisted  of  a  single  Hne,  from 
St.  David's,  for  several  miles  eastward,  and  afterwards  formed 
three  great  links  before  it  reached  Edgbaston,  near  Binningham  ; 
that  the  first  link  commenced  at  Isca  (Caerleon),  and  terminated 
at  TewkesburyJ ;  the  second,  at  Tewkesbury,  and  terminated  at 
Alcester ;  and  the  third,  at  Alcester,  and  terminated  at  Edgbaston. 
This  agrees  with  the  principles  laid  down  in  p.  237,  respecting 
ancient  British  roads  ;  and  explains  the  reason  of  such  parallel 
lines,  namely,  tliat  the  one  was  ancient  British,  and  the  other 
Roman. 

•  See  Chatldesley  Corbett,  p.  124,  and  Old  Storage,  pp.  l!)l,  192. 
+  "  Rudge's  '  Gloucester.'" 

J  The  line  from  Bern-  Hill,  near  Ross,  to  Gloucester,  was  merely  a  cut 
a^rosa  the  first  link. 


354 


3bt  U- 


FOSS  WAY. 

As  the  Foss  Way  passes  through  Blockley,  Shipston-on-Stour, 
and  Tredington,  which  are  detached  portions  of  Worcestershire, 
I  have  collected  the  following  names  which  occur  in  those  places 
and  their  vicinity. 

CODESTON,  Cotesdon,  or  Cutsdean,  is  a  hamlet  of  the  parish 
of  Bredon,  Co.  Worcester.  In  the  Anglo-Saxon  times  there  were 
places  called  the  Greystone,  and  Radborough,  on  the  boundaries 
of  Codeston*. 

The  parish  of  BLOC  KEY  was  anciently  called  Blockelet  and 
Blockel.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  it  is  written  Blockelei.  It  is 
said  that  urns  and  other  Roman  remains  have  been  found  on 
Moor  Hill.  In  the  "  Companion  to  Greenwood's  Map  of  Wor- 
cestershire," published  in  1822,  it  is  stated  that  the  palace  of  the 
bishop  formerly  stood  in  Blockley,  and  that  "  from  the  many  relics 
of  antiquity  foimd  in  the  vicinity,  it  is  supposed  to  have  been  a 
Roman  station." 

In  the  hamlet  of  Blockley  there  are  places  called  Old  Oven, 
Round  Hill,  and  Dove  Dale. 

In  the  hamlet  of  Aston  or  Eston,  in  Blockley,  there  are  Bea- 
wells,  Hob's  Hole,  Hobb's  Hole  Coppice,  Tokenham,  Elim  Hale, 
Big  and  Little  Hale,  and  Foss  Way.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  the 
place  is  called  Aston. 

•  See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  45,  and  Hemiug's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  348.  Also 
see  Chap.  IV.,  relative  to  "  Hoar  Stones,"  and  the  above-mentioned  "  Grey 
Stone ;"  likewise  p.  86,  a.s  to  the  neighboiiruig  camps  at  Bonrton-on-theTIill, 
Co,  Gloucester. 


355 

In  Dome,  a  hamlet  in  Blockley,  there  is  a  piece  called  the 
Foss  Way  Ground.  British  and  Roman  relics  have  been  found 
here,  as  stated  in  p.  87. 

In  NORTHWICK  there  is  a  place  called  Ridegway.  The 
name  is  spelled  Norwyke  in  "  Domesday  Book."  In  Dr.  Thomas's 
"  Survey  of  Worcester  Cathedral,"  &c.,  the  Foss  Way  is  thus 
incidentally  mentioned  : — Ethelbald  "  by  the  style  of  the  King  of 
the  South  Angles,  gave  to  Bishop  Wilfrithe  eight  cassates  of  land 
at  Baecces  horan*,  now  called  Battesford,  bounded  by  Bourton  Hill 
to  the  south,  by  the  Fosse,  or  King's  Highway,  to  the  east,  and 
by  rivulets  to  the  north." — A.  p.  12. 

ICOMBE,  otherwise  Iccaucumb,  Ikecumbe,  or  Ickham,  was  a 
detached  parish  of  Worcestershire,  but  has  been  annexed  to 
Gloucestershire  by  the  Reform  Bill.     There  is  a  camp  there  f. 

DAYLESFORD,  Dalesford,  or  Dailsford,  is  a  detached  parish 
of  Worcestershire.  It  was  anciently  called  Deiglesford ;  and  in 
"  Domesday  Book"  it  is  written  Eilesford. 

In  EVEXLOAD,  Emload,  or  Emlade,  a  detached  parish  of 
Worcestei*shire,  there  is  a  place  called  Dark's  Folly.  The  name  of 
this  parish,  in  King  Edgar's  Charter,  is  written  Eowenland,  but 
sometimes,  and  more  correctly,  it  is  written  Eunilade  and  Eum- 
iade.  In  "  Domesday  Book,"  it  it  is  spelled  Eunilade,  and  is 
therein  described  as  appertaining  to  the  Church  of  Worcester. 
In  Heming's  "  Cartulary"  there  is  a  Charter  of  King  Offa,  dated 
7^4,  granting  lands  in  Eowengelade.  The  Four  Shire  Stone 
stands  partly  in  this  parish.  Antiquities  have  been  found  near 
here,  and  in  the  Barrow  Ground.     See  pp.  85,  86. 

In  the  parish  of  CHASTLETON  or  Chastledon,  Co.  Oxford  (in 
which  the  Four  Shii'e  Stone  also  partly  stands),  there  are  places 
called  Stup  Hill,  Harcomb,  Barrow  Ground,  and  Wyton's  Har- 
comb.  "  The  parish  is  memorable  as  the  scene  of  a  sanguinary 
conflict  in  1016,  between  Edmund  Ironside  and  Canute,  when 
the  latter  was  defeated  with  great  slaughter*." 

•  Heming's  "  rartiilary,"  pp.  -'U,  STfi. 
+    Vide  p.  fi.5. 

•  Lewis's  "  Topoirnipliin.ll  Dirtionary." 


856 

On  the  border  of  the  parish  of  TIDMINGTON,  Tidminton,  or 
Tuddlminton,  Co.  Worcester,  there  was,  in  the  time  of  the 
Anglo-Saxons,  a  place  called  Hor-pit*.  This  parish  was  anciently 
called  Tidelminton,  and  is  so  described  in  "  Domesday  Book  ;" 
and  is  supposed  to  have  been  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  marks  f . 

In  the  parish  of  STRETTON-on-the-Foss,  Co.  Warwick,  there 
are  places  called  Little  Roughborough,  Great  Roughborough, 
Roughborough  Hill,  Roughborough  Meadow,  and  Folly  Meadow. 

In  the  parish  of  SHIPSTON-on-Stour,  Co.  Worcester,  there 
are, — Gerrard's  Leys,  Woad-down,  and  First,  Second,  and  Far 
Woad-down.  The  name  of  Shipston  probably  means  "  the  town 
of  sheep."  In  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  847,  and  in  Nash's 
"  History,"  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  44,  it  is  stated,  that  there  wei-e 
places  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times,  on  the  boundaries  of  Shipston, 
called  the  Salt  Pit,  at  Whadden  and  Tordeland. 

In  the  hamlet  of  WILLINGTON,  in  Barcheston,  Co.  War- 
wick, there  are  places  called  Hob's  Hole,  and  Little  Hob's  Hole. 

In  the  parish  of  TREDINGTON,  anciently  Tredinctunt 
(which  includes  the  hamlets  of  Blackwall  or  Blackwell,  and 
Darlingscott),  there  are, — Hawkestone  Butts,  Banbury's  Groiuid, 
Far  and  Further  Banbury's  Ground,  The  Oven,  Banbro'  Meadow, 
Bobbin's  Ground,  Great  Hobbis's  Meadow,  and  Lower  Hobb's 
Meadow. — (See  Chap.  IV.,  relative  to  "  Hoar  Stone"  there.) 
Darlingscott  is  supposed  to  have  been  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
marks  §. 

In  NEWBOLD  there  are,  Catbrain,  Hell  Kitchen,  and  Tatton 
Hedge. 

In  the  hamlet  of  Armscott,  in  Newbold,  there  are  a  great 
many  pieces  of  land  described  as  being  in  the  Upper  Fossway 
Furlong,  and  also  others  as  being  in  the  Lower  Fossway  Furlong, 
and  othei*s  as  being  in  Iloligo  Furlong. 

In    ALDERMINSTER,     formerly    called   Aldemiaston,   or 

•  See  Chap.  IV.,  also  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  348  ;  and  "  Codex 
Dip.,"  No.  (il4. 
+  See  p.  •■l■^U. 

J   See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  (i'20,  G7(i. 
§   See  ]).  '22'.). 


357 

Aldermanston,    there    are    places    called    Hoberton,     Upthrop 
Meadow,  WoUand,  Great  Pike,  Little  Pike,  and  Wellod  Leys. 

We  may  here  remark  that,  as  in  many  instances  some  of  the 
principal  camps  are  upon  the  very  borders  of  counties  (such  as 
the  Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp,  and  Kemerton  Camp),  it  seems 
probable  that  they  were  used  as  land-marks  in  the  division  of  the 
counties,  as  some  also  were  in  the  division  of  paiishes, 


fjns 


GENEKAL  OBSERVATIONS 

RELATIVE  TO  THE  NAMES  WICK,  WICH,  AND 
WICCIA. 

Camden  says,  the  province  called  Wiccia,  of  which  Wor- 
cestershire formed  a  part*,  seems  to  have  been  "  derived  from 
the  salt  pits  which,  in  the  old  English  language,  are  called 
Wiches." 

Dr.  Nash  says,  in  his  account  of  Droitwichf,  "  Wich  is  sup- 
posed by  some,  though  probably  without  reason,  to  be  derived 
from  '  Vic,'  '  Vicus,'  a  street  or  village.  Othei-s  derive  it  from  the 
Saxon  word  '  Wic,'  signifying  either  a  station,  mansion,  place  of 
security,  or  secure  habitation,  from  the  verb  '  Wician'  to  inhabit ; 
or  a  sanctuary,  brine  spring,  salt  pit,  from  •  Wi,'  or  '  Wye '  Holy. 
The  northern  nations  attributed  great  sacredness  to  waters  im- 
pregnated with  salt^.  I  cannot  find  that  '  Wic,'  or  '  Wich,' 
signifies  salt  spring  in  its  primitive  sense." 

In  a  note  relative  to  the  words  "  Wi,"  or  "  Wye,"  Nash  says, 
"  Perhaps  the  word  '  Wice,'  in  EngHsh,  witch,  came  from  the  same 
root,  and  signified  originally,  '  sacro  sancta  mulier,  diis  devota,' 
a  druidess.  '  Sagus'  and  '  Saga'  of  the  Latins,  were  at  first 
terms  of  honour.  Wiccungdom  is  by  Somner  rendered  Magia. 
Wiccingaemere  was  anciently  the  name  of  W^igmore,  in  Here- 
fordshire, a  scene  not  improper  for  the  display  of  druidical  art." 

The  Doctor,  in  his  account  of  the  parish  of  Wichenford, 
Vol.  ii.,  p.  457,  says, — "  From  whence  comes  the  word  Wic,  or 

•  See  Vol.  ii.,  p.   400.     It  included   Worcestershire,  Gloucestershire,  and 
part  of  Warwickshire. 
+   See  Vol.  i.,  p.  2Uh. 
I   Tacit.  "  Ann.,'   Lib.  xiii. ;  aho  scr  Droiiwich,  pp.  'ilO,  .'Ul. 


859 

Wich  ?  Dr.  Thomas  thinks  from  the  windings  of  the  river ; 
but  this  seems  too  general  a  description  :  besides,  no  river  runs 
near  Wichenford.  Baxter*,  in  his  '  Glossarium  Antiq.  Britan.,' 
thinks  that  Iceni,  Huiccii,  Wiccii,  Vigantes,  (not  Jugantes,  as 
falsely  printed  in  Tacitus),  all  meant  stout  or  valiant  men." 

In  describing  the  parish  of  Wickhamford,  anciently  Wicque, 
he  further  states  (Vol.  ii.,  p.  61),  that  "it  is  watered  by  a  little 
brook,  shallow  in  some  places,  from  whence  its  modern  name  is 
derived;"  but  this  derivation  can  only  apply  to  the  suffix  to  the 
name.  This  place  is  called  Wiquene  in  "  Domesday  Book,"  and 
Wikewane  in  the  charter  of  the  two  kings,  Kenred  and  Oflfa. 

In  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  109,  he  says,  "  When  the  Britons  were 
driven  over  the  Severn  by  the  conquering  Saxons,  Worcester  was 
a  part  of  the  Mercian  kingdom,  and  possessed  by  the  Wiccii,  who, 
seating  themselves  on  the  turnings  and  windings  of  the  pleasant 
rivers  Avon  and  Severn,  took  their  names  from  thence,  and  by 
them  was  this  city  founded  f ,  called  Wichirne  at  first,  or  Wic ; 
for  the  hills  encompass  it  from  the  east  to  the  Severn,  and  come 
down  so  close  upon  it  at  its  south  gate,  that  it  seemeth  to  stand 
in  a  comer  under  the  hills.  Hence,  the  old  Saxon  name,  Wich- 
irne, Wigm-ne,  Wegurne,  Weogerne,  Wigoma,  Weogorna ;  and, 
in  Latin,  'Wigoma  et  Vigomia|.'  And,  afterwards,  when  it 
was  fortified  against  the  incursions  of  the  Britons,  and  a  castle 
erected  where  the  river  was  most  fordable,  it  was  then  called 
Wygerue-ceastre,  Weogerne-ceastre,  Wigor-ceastre,  Wyogoma- 
ceastre,  Wigom-ceastre,  Wygn-ceastre,  Wire-castre,  Wear-cestre, 

Weore-ceastre,  Wor-cester The  castle  was  built  at  the 

south  end,  close  to  the  river,  where  it  is  for  a  great  way  fordable  ; 
and  a  specidum§,  or  high  mount,  was  raised  up  with  the  earth 
taken  out  of  the  river." 

•  See  Baxter,  "  Ad  voces  Hrainiogeitiuiii  et  Iceiii." 

f  See  before,  p.  M,  wliere  it  is  roiiteiuled  tliat  it  wius  a  town  in  both  the 
Konmn  and  ancient  liritish  time. 

*  Heiiiiiig's  "  Ciiitularv,''  p.  (!  ;  and  l!)  MS.,  'I'lionias. 

§  See  jip,  17,  viO,  as  to  the  probability  of  the  t'astle  Mill  liaving  been  partly 
thrown  lip  in  tlie  Hoinan  time,  although  llic  castle  itself  may  have  been  biiili 
by  the  Siixoiis.  (»r  Normans. 


800 

The  following  is  a  summary  of  places  called  by  the  name  of 
Wick  or  Wich  in  this  county,  together  with  a  particular  descrip- 
tion of  their  geographical  features. 

Western  Side  of  the  Counts-. 

KNIGHTWICK  is  a  parish  which  contains  much  high  ridgy 
ground,  near  the  River  Teme  •. 

ALFRICK,  Alferwyke,  Afurwike,  or  Alfredes\Yic,  is  a  hamlet 
in  Suckley  parish,  containing  very  high  ridgy  ground,  principally 
on  the  borders  of  Leigh  Brook,  by  Old  Storage,  or  Storridge,  and 
along  the  east  side  of  Suckley  Hillf. 

POWICKj,  or  Po\vycke  in  "  Domesday,"  (Poiwic,)  is  a  parish 
containing  much  high  ridgy  land,  near  the  banks  of  the  Severn 
and  Teme.     A  road  called  the  Ridgeway§  also  passes  through  it. 

Lower  and  Upper  Wick,  Wic,  Wyken,  or  Wyke  Episcopi, 
Rushwickjl,  or  RushAvj'ke,  and  Hemvick,  Hinewick,  or  Hynewyk, 
contain  considerable  ridges,  either  upon  the  Severn  or  the  Teme, 
and  lie  on  the  western  side  of  the  Severn,  in  the  parish  of  St. 
John,  in  Bedwardine  ^,  except  Henwick,  or  Hynewick,  (which 
is  in  St.  Clement's  parish,  and  Hallow).  They  nin  in  almost  a 
continuous  line  from  Powick  to  Worcester. 

Hard  wick,  or  Wyke  **,  is  a  manor  contained  partly  in  St.  John's 
parish,  and  partly  in  the  neighboui'ing  places. 

KENSWICK,  a  chapelry,  in  Wichenford  parish,  lies  north- 
west of  Henwick,  on  Laughem  Brook. 

Wichenford  ft  lies  north  of  Kenswick,  There  is  a  place  called 
the  Ridges  1%  by  Laughern  Brook,  between  Kenswick,  Wichenford, 

•  There  is  a  bridge  at  the  ford  there,  called  Knightsford  Bridge, 
r  See  pp.  190,  248,  &c. 

I  See  p.  73,  concerning  Roman  relics  found  there. 
§   See  pp.  287,  288. 

II  In  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  308,  it  is  stated  that   Rushwyke  is  a  modern  name. 
5[  See  p.  288,  concerning  a  piece  of  ground    called  the  Ridgeway  Meadow 

in  this  parish. 

•*  Called  Wiche  in  "  Domesday  Book."     See  Nasli,  supra. 

+  t  See  p.  140,  ir)0,  as  to  Roman  coins  found  there. 

XI   The  OnlnHnco  Ma])  calls  i(  the  Kc<l;;cs  and  Kedgcs  Copse. 


361 

and  Ridge-end.     Ridge-end  Copse,  and  Ockeridge  Wood  lie  o  n 
the  north  side  of  Wichenford  *. 

Southern  Side  of  the  County. 
Bredon's  Hardwick,  in  Bredon  parish,  south  of  Bredon  Hill. 

Eastern  Side  of  the  County. 

Wickhamford. — For  this  parish  see  p.  336. 

WICK,  Wyke,  or  Wycke  Waryn,  is  a  ridge  on  the  border  of 
the  Avon,  near  Pershore. 

LENCH  WYKE  is  a  ridge  on  the  border  of  the  Avon,  near 
Evesham. 

North  Side  of  the  County. 

NORTHWICK  lies  on  the  ridge  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Severn,  near  Worcester. 

DROITWICHf,  or  Wych,  lies  on  the  sides  and  bottom  of  the 
ridgy  banks  of  the  river  Sal  warp. 

WICHBOLD,  or  Wicelbold,  ■  is  a  manor  in  Doderhill,  by 
Di'oitwich,  and  lies  on  the  banks  of  the  Salwai-p. 

CHADDLEWICK,  Cliadelewick,  or  Chadwick,  and  WilUng- 
wicke,  lie  on  the  north-west  side  of  Bromsgrove  Lickey. 

WICHBURY§  Hill  is  in  Hagley  parish. 

WYTCHALLII  lies  between  Northfield  and  Edgbaston. 

I-'rom  a  general  review  of  the  above-mentioned  places,  we  are 
inclined   to  think  that  the  name   Wick,  or   Wich,    is  derived 

•  Nash,  in  Vol.  ii.,  p.  458,  says,  "  Mr.  Habingdou  thinks  that  Wyke,  near 
Worcester,  and  Wiclienford,  were  fonuerly  joined  together ;  indeed,  '  Domes- 
day' and  several  other  records  seem  to  confirm  this  conjecture. — Tab.  ii., 
C<»1.  b."  Perhaps  it  was  called  Wichenford  from  its  being  detached  from  the 
rest  of  Wyke  by  Laughem  Brook." 

+  See  pp.  !)8,  &c.,  :31(»,  &c. 

I  See  p.  :.U1. 

§  See  p.  l;}(i,  as  to  its  antiquities. 
I   See  p.  :):VJ. 


36a 

either  from  the  Saxon  word  '  Wic',  signifying  a  station,  mansion, 
place  of  security,  or  secure  habitation,  from  Wician,  to  inhabit ; 
or  from  the  Latin,  '  Vic,'  '  Vicus,'  a  street  or  village*."  We 
find  that  almost  all  the  above-mentioned  places  are  connected 
with  high  ridges  of  ground  f,  or  dorsal  elevations,  which  in 
ancient  times  would  be  considered  as  the  most  advantageous  and 
protected  places  for  residence  I. 

*  See  pp.  310,  347,  358. 

+  It  is  possible  that  some  few  places  in  this  kingdom  were  named  Wick  or 
Wich  in  comparatively  modem  times  (see  Rushwyke,  p.  360),  without  any 
regard  to  the  coniigiutition  of  the  ground ;  but  it  is  worthy  of  remark,  that 
almost  all  the  above-mentioned  places  not  only  occur  on  ridges,  but  are  in  or 
near  the  Imes,  or  supposed  lines,  of  tlie  ancient  Ridgeways. — See  Rycknield 
Street. 

J  '  Ymb  Wicigean '  means,  to  encamp  about.  '  Wicing,'  or  '  Wiceng,'  means 
a  pirate, — See  "  Saxon  Chron.,"  921  and  879. 


Q^^"^ 


363 


— ♦ — 

BAMBUKY  STONE  ON  BREDON  HILL,  AND 
AMBROSIJ:  PETRiE  GENERALLY. 

In  the  first  edition  of  this  work,  I  cursorily  referred  to  a  re- 
markable stone  on  the  border  of  Kemerton  Camp,  otherwise 
Banbury  or  Bambury  Camp,  on  Bredon  Hill,  close  by  the  boun- 
dary line  between  Worcestershire  and  Gloucestershire.  The  fol- 
lowing additional  observations  on  this  stone  may  not  be  thought 
unworthy  of  notice. 

It  stands  within  about  forty  yards  of  the  south-west  end  of  the 
inner  vallum  or  trench  of  the  camp,  and  near  a  tower  or  prospect 
house,  which  was  built  in  modem  times  upon  the  summit  of  the 
hill.  It  is  situated  a  little  within  the  entrance  of  an  oblong  basin 
or  amphitheatre,  near  the  western  focus  of  the  ellipse,  and  is  about 
twenty  yards  in  circumference,  four  yards  high,  and  nearly  flat  at 
the  top.  The  basin  resembles  a  dry  dock,  with  its  entrance  upon 
the  verge  of  the  precipice  of  the  hUl,  and  is  about  two  hundred 
yards  in  circumference.  The  stone,  at  several  miles  distance, 
looks  something  like  the  hull  of  a  ship  coming  out  of  dock.  I 
have  no  doubt  that  this  basin  is  artificial,  and  that  the  earth 
and  stones  excavated  were  applied  towards  forming  the  inner 
agger  of  the  camp,  which  is  high  and  wide,  and  would  take 
more  materials  in  the  making  than  could  be  obtained  out  of 
the  vallum*  or  trench.     The  stone  is  a  mass  of  inferior  oolite, 

•  Tliere  are  also  traces  of  very  considerable  excavations,  in  the  ground  be- 
tween the  outer  and  inner  vallum,  at  the  south-cast  comer ;  the  materials 
from  which  were  no  doubt  used  for  the  above-mentioned  purpose. 


364 

the  same  as  the  rest  of  the  hill,  and  no  doubt  was  denuded  upon 
the  basin  being  dug,  and  most  probably  was  preserved  for  an  altar 
stone.  At  the  distance  of  about  six  yards  before  it,  westward, 
nearer  the  precipice,  there  is  another  stone  about  eleven  yards  in 
circumference,  and  two  yards  above  the  surface ;  and  about  six- 
teen yards  further  westward,  at  the  precipice,  is  a  third  stone, 
about  ten  yards  in  circumference,  and  two  yards  high.  The 
former  of  these  two  stones  was  probably  disturbed  at  the  time  of 
the  excavation,  as  the  stratification  is  nearly  vertical,  and  the 
other  either  appears  to  have  been  moved  to  the  very  edge  of  the 
precipice  (down  which  it  seems  on  the  point  of  rolhng  into  Wor- 
cestershire), or  the  earth  has,  in  the  course  of  ages,  fallen  away 
from  before  it  down  the  precipice,  and  left  it  upon  the  brink*. 
There  is  also  another  stone,  behind  and  to  the  east  of  the  Bam- 
buiy  stone,  which  measures  about  eight  yards  in  circumference. 
All  these  stones  are  nearly  hi  a  line  with  each  other,  and  stand 
in  an  easterly  and  westerly  direction  ;  the  one  on  the  brink, 
stands  on  or  near  to  the  site  of  the  ancient  graiiaiyf. 

Laird,  in  his  "  Topographical  and  Historical  Description  of 
Worcestershire^,"  describing  this  stone,  says,  "  Near  the  Prospect 
House,  is  Bramsbury  Stone,  an  immense  mass  of  rock,  but  of 
which  there  is  no  traditionary  account ;  and  which  is,  most  hkely, 
merely  a  natural  production,  without  any  reference  to  ancient 
events." 

In  Derham's  "  Physico-Theology"  the  camp  is  called  Bems- 
bury  Camp§. 

In  Nash's  plan  of  the  camp  it  is  called  Bembmy  Stone,  and 
in  the  plan  in  the  second  edition  of  Gough's  "  Camden,"  Bunbury 
stone ;  but  neither  of  those  authors  take  any  further  notice  of  it. 
In  Greenwood's  map,  dated  1820  and  1821,  it  is  called  Bambury 
Stone,  and  in  the  Ordnance  Map  Banbury  Stone. 

»  See  p.  78,  relative  to  tlie  land-slips  at  the  jiart  iu  question. 

+  See  pp.  78,  79,  80. 

♦  See  p.  :Ui4. 

§    Vide  p.  80  of  this  work. 


365 

Dr.  Nash,  in  his  plan  (here  given),  only  noticed  the  principal 
stone,  and  placed  it  on  the  brink  of  the  precipice.     Neither  has 


a    -44    ft    «g    110 


220     YARDS. 


he  represented  the  hollow  basin  in  which  the  stone  stands. 
Perhaps,  thei'efore,  the  woodcut  here 
set  forth,  which  was  drawn  after  a  per- 
sonal inspection  in  1841,  will  give  a 
more  clear  idea  of  the  matter. 

With  respect  to  the  word  Banibury, 
it  may  be  observed  that  not  only  do  the 
peasantry  frequently  substitute  one  con- 
sonant for  another  at  the  commence- 
ment of  a  word,  but  that  it  is  a  vulgarism 
of  the  county  to  super-add  a  consonant 
to  words  commencing  with  a  vowel ; 
thus  Bambur}-  might  easily  be  the  same 
as  Ambur}'. 
Dr.  Nash*  says,  "  The  common  people  of  this  county  frequently 

add  the  leter  N  to  words  that  begin  with  a  vowel  ;  thus  they  say 


•    Vol.  ii.  !>.  1() 


866 

n  uncle  for  uncle,  nant  for  aunt,  a  narrow  for  an  arrow,  a  nay 
word  is  an  aye  word  ;  a  newt  is  an  eft  or  small  lizard,  nawl  for 
awl,  a  noddy  for  an  oddy  or  oddity ;  thus  Nash  of  the  Noke  *, 
for  Ash  of  the  Oak." 

The  vulgar  of  all  parts  of  England  frequently  add  the  letter  H 
to  words  that  begin  with  a  vowel ;  as,  houats  for  oats,  a  howl  for  an 
owl,  a  hox  for  an  ox,  a  hounce  for  an  ounce,  &c.,  while  in  some 
cases  they  substitute  a  vowel  for  a  consonant ;  as,  yor  for  hair,  yat 
for  gate,  &c. 

There  is  a  field  called  Ambers,  in  Castle  Morton  ;  Ambury 
Hill,  in  Old  Swinford ;  Omber's  Hill,  in  Leigh  f  ;  Oraberland,  on 
the  boundaries  of  Cudley|,  in  Spetchley ;  Hambery  Piece,  Ham- 
bury  Meadow,  and  Big  Hambery,  in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove  ; 
and  Banbury's  Ground,  and  Banbro'  Meadow,  in  Tredington. 
There  also  is  a  hundred,  parish,  and  town,  called  Banbury  §  ;  and 
a  parish  and  township,  called  Ambrosden,  in  Oxfordshire  ;  and 
a  camp,  called  Croft  Ambreyjl,  in  Herefordshire,  which  is  of  an 
elliptical  form,  with  double  ditch  and  rampart.  Also  places  called 
Amberley  and  Bransbury,  in  the  latter  county ;  a  parish  called 
Amberley,  in  Sussex ;  Ambersley  and  Far  Ambersley,  in  Dy- 
mock,  Co.  Gloucester ;  an  intrenched  camp,  at  Wimbledon,  Co. 
Surrey,  called  Bensburyll ;  and  in  Waltham,  in  Essex,  just  with- 
out Copt  Hall  Park,  there  "is  an  oval  camp  called  Ambresbury 
Banks,  which  is  probably  ancient  British**."  There  is  a  parish 
called  Humbeston,  in  Lincolnshire  ;  Humberstone  Priory,  a  ruin, 
in  Pembrokeshire  ;    and  at  Stanfield,  in  Yorkshire,  there  are  a 


*  There  are  several  places  called  by  the  name  of  Noke,  such  as  Long  Noke, 
in  Northfield,  &c. 

+  See  "  Folk-Lore." 

I  See  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  p.  358 ;  and  "  Nash,"  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  p.  55. 

§  Called  by  the  Saxons,  Banesbyrig.  Some  ancient  British  gold  coins  were 
found  near  Banbury."     See  "Gentleman's  Magazine,"  for  July,  1843,  p.  30. 

I]  See  the  Ordnance  Map.  The  parish  is  called  Crofta,  in  "  Domesday 
Book."     It  lies  in  the  hundred  of  Wolphy. 

«[   See  "  Camden,"  also  the  "  Archeeologia,"  Vol.  xxi.,  No.  2,  p.  518,  &c. 

••  See  Gough's  "Camden,"  Vo).  ii.,  p.  127,  second  edition,  1800.  Also 
Gudbiuy  15anks,  pp.  C,^,  fit). 


367 

number  of  druidical  stones  called  Humberds*.  "  Domesday 
Book  "  mentions  Ambreforde,  in  Yorkshire  ;  Ambrelie,  in  Sussex  ; 
Ambresberie,  in  Hants  and  Wilts  ;  Ambresb'ise,  in  Wilts f;  Am- 
bresdone,  in  Oxfordshire ;  Ambretone  and  Ambritone,  Bucking- 
hamshire ;  Amburlege,  in  Herefordshire  ;  and  Hambertune,  in 
Huntingdonshire  I. 

The  Rev,  T.  Lewis,  of  Yatton  Court,  near  Leominster,  in 
answer  to  some  inquiries  of  mine,  states  that  the  intrench- 
ments  at  Croft  Ambrey§,  in  Herefordshire,  are  very  deep  and 
interesting;  and  that  there  is  one,  about  a  mile  from  it, 
which  he  considers  to  be  Roman,  but  which  he  has  never 
seen  noticed  in  any  work. 

That  camp  is  noticed  in  Gough's  "  Camden  ||,"  thus,  "  In  the 
park  is  a  large  camp,  double-ditched,  called  the  Ambrey ;  a  name 
common  to  other  earth-works,  as  in  Essex  and  Hants ;  from 
whence  is  an  extensive  prospect.  To  this  is  opposed  a  camp, 
called  the  Warren,  on  Wapley  Hill,  between  Eywood  and 
Wigmore.  At  Avemestre,  south-west  of  it,  is  a  smaller  square 
camp." 

Before  proceeding  further,  I  must  here  observe,  it  is  possible 
that  some  of  the  above-mentioned  names,  commencing  with  B, 
may  be  derived  from  the  word  "  beam,"  which,  in  Anglo-Saxon, 

•  Also  Hawkstones,  Bridestones,  &c.  See  Gough's  "  Camden"  Vol.  iii., 
p.  275,  second  edition,  180C  ;  and  Vol.  ii.,  p.  .')Ofi.  There  is  Hawkesstone 
Butts,  in  Tredington,  Co.  Worcester. 

+  Aniesbury,  or  Ambresbury,  in  Wilts,  is  written  Anibresbyrig,  and  Ainbres- 
burh,  in  Anglo-Saxon  charters.  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Nos.  314,  361,  361  App., 
Vol.  iii.,  1058,  1007  ;  and  a  place  called  Hainbres  Buruli  is  mentioned  in  the 
"  Charter,"  No.  572. 

J  There  is  a  house  culled  Almerj-,  or  Ambry  Court,  near  the  town  of  Per- 
shore;  but  this  name  is  derived  from  Almonry,  Almonarium,  a  place  where  alms 
were  distributed.  See  Nash,  Vol.  i.,  p.  409.  Almery,  or  Ambry,  also  means 
a  moveable  receptacle  for  household  stuff.  See  the  "  Archaeological  Institute 
Journal,"  Vol.  v.,  p.  310. 

§  I  am  informed  that,  in  some  old  documents,  the  name  Ambrey  is 
applied  to  a  place  of  security  for  soldiers  ;  but  this  no  doubt  is  in  a  sub- 
ordinate sense. 

11   Vol.  iii.,  p.  R4. 


868 

implies  a  woody  situation* ;  while  others,  commencing  with  H, 
may  come  from  the  Anglo-Saxon,  "  ham,"  home ;  "  vicus,"  or 
village.  In  such  instances,  we  must  endeavour,  from  the  nature 
of  the  places  themselves,  to  ascertain  which  is  the  correct 
etymology  of  the  name. 

In  the  parish  of  Minchinhampton,  Gloucestershire,  there  is  a 
large  upland  common,  called  Amberley;  while  near  to  it  is  a 
remai'kable  intrenchment,  supposed  to  be  ancient  British,  nearly 
three  miles  in  circumference.  Adjoining  the  site  of  tliis  camp, 
there  are  a  great  number  of  small  tumuli,  supposed  to  be  barrows. 
On  the  northern  side,  just  below  Amberley  Church,  are  three 
rather  large  erect  stones,  two  of  them  being  close  together,  and 
the  other  about  a  hundred  yards  distant :  these  may  have  been 
amber-stones  ;  and  near  the  southern  side  of  the  camp  there  was 
till  lately  a  very  large  erect  stone,  called  "  Tingle  Stone," 
situate  near  "  Hure  Broke ;"  while,  not  far  from  the  latter,  there 
now  are  two  other  erect  stones,  called  Long  Stones  f ,  or  Ragged 
Stones  (oolitic  formation).  The  adjoining  vale  is  called  Woeful 
Dane's  Bottom. 

This  camp  was  kindly  shown  to  me  by  Edward  Dal  ton,  Esq., 
D.C.L.  and  F.S  A.,  of  Dunkirk  House,  near  Nailsworth,  Glouces- 
tershire. It  lies  within  about  two  miles  of  Woodchester,  where 
very  extensive  Roman  pavements,  &c.,  have  been  found,  the  par- 
ticulars of  which  were  published  in  1797,  by  Lyson.  There  is  a 
noble  kind  of  amphitheatre  or  indent  on  the  side  of  the  high 
ridge  opposite  where  the  above-mentioned  relics  were  found,  and 
which  is  probably  partly  natural,  and  partly  artificial. 

There  is  a  parish  called  Humberston  |  (most  probably  a  cor- 
ruption of  Amberstone),  in  the  county  of  Leicester,  wherein  is  a 
stone  called  the  Holstone,  Hoston,  or  Hostin,  situate  in  Hum- 
berstone  Field.  This  is  noticed  by  Nichols,  in  his  "  History  of 
Leicestershire  §  ;  and  also  by  Hamper,  in  his  work  on  Hoar-stones. 
In  order  to  learn  all  the  particulars  I  could,  I  wrote  to  the  late 

•  See  Gough's  "  Caiiuleu,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  ICO. 

■f  Perhaps  identical  with  what  are  called  "  Dmidioal  obelisks." 

I  There  is  also  a  parish  called  Humberston,  in  the  county  of  Lincoln. 

§  Vol.  iii.,  Part  2,  p.  081,  note  2. 


369 

John  Stockdale  Hardy,  Esq.,  of  Leicester,  who  kindly  obtained 
for  me  the  following  communication,  addressed  to  him  from  the 
Rev.  John  Dudley,  rector  of  Humberston,  upon  the  subject : — 

"  Sileby,  3rd  May,  1841. 

"  In  the  lordship  of  Humberston,  on  the  estate  of  Mr. 
Pochin,  of  Barkby,  and  about  a  mile  N.W.  of  the  parish  church, 
there  is  a  stone  which  is  interesting  from  the  traditions  in  the 
village  concerning  it.  These  traditions,  though  now  almost  lost, 
relate  that  fairies  dwell  in  and  near  to  it;  that  any  injury  done 
to  it  was  sure  to  be  followed  by  misfortune  to  the  injui'er,  for 
that  it  was  holy.  This  supposed  sanctity  is  intimated  by  the 
name  (Hostone)  of  the  plot  of  ground  where  it  is  located. 
According  to  Borlase  ("  History  of  Cornwall"),  fairies  are  believed 
to  attend  stones  of  undoubted  holiness  in  that  county. 

"  The  stone  is  of  the  granite,  or  rather  syenite  rocks  of 
Mountsorrel,  about  six  miles  distant,  and  seems  to  be  one  of  the 
blocks  which  geologists  term  erratic  blocks,  many  of  which  have 
been  found  in  the  lordship  of  Humberston,  as  also  in  the  inter- 
vening distances  between  Humberston  and  Mountsorrel.  This 
stone  appears  to  be  larger  than  any  others  now  known.  At 
present  it  is  covered  over  by  the  turf  of  the  field  ;  but  about 
a  hundred  years  ago  it  stood  in  a  surrounding  hollow  basin*, 
which  the  then  owner  of  the  land  filled  up,  and  broke  off  frag- 
ments from  the  stone,  so  that  the  plough  might  pass  over  it. 
The  threat  against  injuries  of  the  stone  was  certainly  fulfilled  in 
this  instance  ;  for  the  man,  though  bom  heir  to  a  good  yeoman's 
estate,  became  a  vagabond,  and  died  in  the  parish  workhouse. 

"  That  this  stone  was  one  of  those  called,  in  Cornwall,  Logan- 
stones,  seems  to  be  almost  certain,  from  the  hollow  or  sunken 
area  in  which  it  is  said  to  have  stood.  There  is  no  tradition 
to  that  purport ;  but,  according  to  the  Cornish  historian  (B.  3, 
C.  4),  '  Logan,  in  the  Guidhelian  British,  signifies  a  pit,  or 
hollow  of  the  hand ;  and  in  such  hollows  this  moving  stone  is 
often  found.' 

•  This  corresponds  with  what  is  said  in  p.  .363,  relative  to  the  Banbury 
Stone,  on  Bredon  Hill, 

B  B 


370 

"  It  appears,  from  the  same  autlior  that  the  Logan-stone  was 
known  in  some  mstances  by  the  name  of  Men-amber,  or  the 
Amber-stone.  Bryant,  in  his  "  Mytholog)%"  Vol.  iv.,  p.  201, 
8vo.  shows  that  sacred  stones,  especially  oscillating  or  rocking- 
stones,  have  been  known  by  this  name,  in  almost  all  parts  of  the 
world,  and  from  the  earliest  antiquity  that  they  were  always  held  to 
be  sacred,  and  that  the  town  of  Amesbury  (anciently  Ambresbury), 
near  Stonehenge,  on  Salisbury  Plain,  took  its  name  from  the 
Logan*  or  Amber-stones  in  its  vicinity.  There  can  be  little  doubt 
but  that  the  village  near  which  this  stone  still  remains,  in  like 
manner  obtained  its  name,  Humbers-ton,  or  the  town  of  the 
Amber,  or  Holy-stone. 

"  Adjacent  to  the  spot  in  which  the  stone  now  lies,  is  a  vale  or 
plot  of  land  called  Hell  Hole.  No  appearance  of  this  plot 
invites  the  name,  which  must  have  been  given  for  some  special 
reason.  Borlase  mentions  a  sacred  stone,  in  Cornwall,  called 
Tolmen,  or  Hole-stone.  This  stone  is  of  great  size,  and  rests 
upon  the  points  of  two  others.  The  historian  observes 
that  many  druidical  mysteries  were  practised  at  stones  so 
placed,  and  that  persons  passing  under  them,  and  through  the 
opening  between  the  supporting  stones,  were  purified  from  every 
sin.  Whether  the  name  of  Hell  may  have  been  given,  in 
Christian  times,  to  any  passage  under  this  Humberston  stone,  to 
excite  an  abhorrence  of  druidic  rites,  to  which  the  people  of  our 
island  were  from  custom  long  attached;  or  whether  the  word 
Hell  may  have  been  the  Welsh  or  Celtic  word  hel,  to  assemble, 
may  not  be  easily  determined.  It  rather  seems,  however,  that 
the  latter  origin  of  the  name  may  be  most  probable,  and  that 
this  vale  was  the  place  in  which  the  people  assembled  to  celebrate 
or  witness  the  rites  performed,  or  to  worship  the  stone  deity  on 
the  rising  ground  above." 

In  addition  to  the  above,  it  may  be  stated  that  Throsby,  in  his 
supplementary  volume  to  the  "  Leicestershire  Views  "  (published 
in  1790),  states  that  the  lordship  of  Humberston  was  inclosed  in 
1789,  and  gives  a  quotation  from  Nichols's  "  Leicestershire," 
that  "  to  the  north-west  of  the  village,  in  a  part  of  the  field 

•  But  see  the  note,  p.  ^72. 


371 

at  present  known  by  the  name  of  Hoston,  it  is  said  a  religious 
house  or  nunnery  was  situated,"  &c. ;  and  that,  "  near  the  same 
place  is  a  stone,  which  confirms  the  generally-received  opinion  of 
naturalists  concerning  the  growth  of  those  bodies ;  for,  notwith- 
standing great  pains  have  been  taken  by  a  late  proprietor  of  the 
land  to  keep  it  below  the  surface,  it  defeats  his  efforts,  and  rises 
gi'adually.  It  is  remarkable  as  being  the  only  stone  of  the  same 
kind  nearer  than  Chaniwood  Forest,  which  is  about  eight  or 
nine  miles  distant,  and  is  probably  the  peak  of  a  vast  bed  of 
rock-stone,  which  may  lie  beneath  the  intermediate  country." 
In  June,  1843,  I  visited  the  spot,  and  a  ploughman,  who  had 
worked  for  many  years  upon  the  farm,  pointed  out  this  Amber- 
stone,  or  Hoston  to  me.  It  is  vulgarly  called  Hostin.  I  found 
it  nearly  covered  with  earth  and  standing  com.  The  ground 
around  it  is  slightly  conical,  arising  no  doubt  from  the  occasional 
efforts  of  the  agriculturists  to  keep  it  covered.  The  gradual 
washing  away  by  the  rain  of  the  mound  of  earth,  has,  doubtless, 
given  birth  to  the  popular  idea  of  the  rising  of  the  stone. 

But  we  must  return  to  Worcestershire. 

Witli  respect  to  Ombersley,  it  is  observable  that,  in  706, 
Ethelward*,  son  of  Oshere,  king  of  the  Wiccians,  with  the 
consent  of  Cenred,  king  of  the  Mercians,  gave,  by  charter,  to 
Bishop  Egwin,  twelve  cassates  of  land  at  Ambreslege,  with 
the  appurtenances,  especially  two  wears,  one  where  Ombreswelle  f 
falls  into  the  Severn  |.  It  is  called  Ambresleia,  in  the  charter 
of  Bishop  Egwin  §  (who,  in  714,  gave  the  same  lands  to  the 
Abbey  of  Evesham);  Ombersetena  gemaere,  in  the  charters 
numbered  627  and  1366,  in  the  "  Codex  Dip. ;"  and  Ambreslege, 
in  "  Domesday  Book."  Dr.  Nash,  in  Vol.  ii.  of  his  "  History," 
p.  217,  says  : — "  Among  the  records  at  Hagley,  mention  is  made 

•  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Vol.  i..  No.  56,  and  56  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

+  See  p.  366,  coneemiiiR  Oniber's  HLll,  in  Leigh  and  Omberland,  on  tbe 
boundary  of  Cudley. 

X  Also  see  Nasb,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  216  ;  and  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Vol.  i.,  No.  56,  and 
56  App.,  VoL  iii.,  as  to  Ombresuuel. 

§  "  Codex  Dip.,"  Vol.  i.,  No.  64. 


37a 

of  Mauritius  de  Ambei'sloy,  who  held  Brome,  in  the  county  of 
Stafford,  in  the  reigns  of  Richard  I.  and  John."  It  is  also  called 
Ambresley,  in  the  Court  Rolls  of  the  manor,  temp.  14th 
Henry  VII. 

Having  proceeded  thus  far  in  our  account  of  places  compounded 
with  Amber  or  Omber,  we  shall  quote  a  few  authorities  concern- 
ing the  probable  etymology  of  the  prefix. 

In  Bryant's  "  Ancient  Mythology*,"  the  following  passage  oc- 
curs : — "  I  have  mentioned  that  they  (the  ancients)  showed  a 
reverential  regard  to  fragments  of  rock  which  were  particularly 
uncouth  and  horrid  ;  and  this  practice  seems  to  have  prevailed  in 
many  other  countries.  It  was  usual,  with  much  labour,  to  place 
one  vast  stone  upon  another  for  a  rehgious  memorial.  The  stones 
thus  placed,  they  oftentimes  poized  so  equably,  that  they  were 
affected  with  the  least  external  force, — nay,  a  breath  of  wind 
would  sometimes  make  them  vibrate.  We  have  many  instances 
of  this  nature  in  our  own  country,  and  they  are  to  be  found  in 
other  parts  of  the  world;  and,  wherever  they  occur,  we  may 
esteem  them  of  the  highest  antiquity.  All  such  works  we  gene- 
rally refer  to  the  Celts  and  to  the  Druids,  under  the  sanction  of 
which  names  we  shelter  ourselves  whenever  we  are  ignorant  and 
bewildered.  But  they  were  the  operations  of  a  very  remote  age  ; 
probably  before  the  time  when  the  Druids,  or  Celtae,  were  first 
known.  I  question  whether  there  be  in  the  world  a  monument 
which  is  much  prior  to  the  celebrated  Stonehengef.  There  is 
reason  to  think  that  it  was  erected  by  a  foreign  colony,  one  of 
the  first  which  came  into  the  island.  There  is  extant,  at  this  day, 
one  of  those  rocking  stones,  of  which  I  have  been  speaking  above  J. 
The  ancients  distinguished  stones,  erected  with  a  religious  view, 
by  the  name  of  Amber,  by  which  was  signified  anything  solar  and 
divine.  The  Grecians  called  them  Uerpai  A/x^poatat  (Petrte 
Ambrosise);  and  there  are  representations  of  such  upon  coins. 

•  Vol.  iii.,  pp.  .532,  533. 

+  This  is  tliought,  by  some  writers,  to  be  the  Round  Temple  of  the  Sim, 
described  by  Diodoms  Siculus. 

J  If  Mr.  Bryant,  by  this,  meant  one  of  the  imposts,  i.  e.,  a  transverse  stone 
on  two  upright  ones,  it  does  not  appear  strictly  to  belong  to  the  class  of  Logan 
stones. 


373 

HorapoUo  speaks  of  a  sacred  book  in  Egypt,  styled  Ambres, 
which  was  so  called  from  its  sanctity,  being  a  medicinal  book  of 
Hermes,  and  entrusted  solely  to  the  care  of  the  sacred  scribes. 
Stonehenge  is  composed  of  these  amber  stones ;  hence  the  next 
town  is  denominated  Ambrosbury  *,  not  from  a  Roman  Ambro- 
sias, for  no  such  person  existed,  but  from  Ambrosiae  Petrae,  in 
whose  vicinity  it  stands." 

Bryant  likewise  remarks,  that  "  among  the  many  tribes  of  the 
Amonians  which  went  abroad,  were  to  be  found  people  who 
were  styled  Anakim,  and  were  descended  from  the  sons  of  Anac ; 
so  that  this  history,  though  carried  to  a  great  excess,  was  pro- 
bably founded  in  truth.  They  were  particularly  famous  for 
architecture,  which  they  introduced  into  Greece,  as  we  are  told 
by  Herodotus ;  and  in  all  parts  whither  they  came,  they  erected 
noble  structures,  which  were  remarkable  for  their  height  and 
beauty,  and  were  often  dedicated  to  the  cliief  deity,  the  sun, 
under  the  name  of  Elorus  and  Pelorus.  People  were  so  struck 
with  their  grandeur,  that  they  called  ever}'  thing  great  and  stu- 
pendous Pelorian ;  and  when  they  described  the  Cyclopians  as  a 
lofty,  towering  race,  they  came  at  last  to  borrow  their  ideas  of  this 
people  from  the  towers  to  which  they  alluded." — "  They  were 
the  same  family  as  the  Cadmians  and  Phoenices,  and  as  the 
Hivites,  or  Ophites,  who  came  from  Egj'pt,  and  settled  near 
Libanus  and  Baal  Hermon,  upon  the  confines  of  Canaan.  They 
worshipped  the  sun  under  the  symbol  of  a  sei*pent ;  hence  they 
were  styled,  in  different  parts  where  they  in  time  settled,  Euro- 
pians,  Oropians,  Anopians,  Inopians,  Asopians,  Elopians ;  all 
which  names  relate  to  the  worship  of  the  Pytho  Ops,  or  Opis." 

Bowles,  in  his  "  Hermes  Britannicusf,"  says, — "  Respecting 
the  Phoenicians  being  the  founders  of  the  Druidical  discipUne  in 
Britain,  one  fact  weighs  with  me  more  than  a  thousand  argu- 
ments.    I  allude  to  the  Tyrian  coin  J,  on  which  appear  the  oak 

♦  See  Stukeley's  "  Stonehenge,"  pp.  40,  .')(). 

+   Published  IN'^S,  p.  78. 

J  It  Ims  been  conjectured  that  tliis  coin  belonged  to  Cadez,  or  Glides,  which 
is  of  PhaMiician  origin.  See  "  Gentleman's  Magiizine,"  February  18J!t, 
pp.  140,141. 


374 

tree,  the  sacred  fire,  the  two  stone  pillars  of  Hercules  (Thoth),  and 
the  singular  legend,  Tyr.  Col.*  (Colony  of  Tyrians),  and  the  still 
more  remarkable  words  under  the  erect  stones,  AMBPOHIE 
IIETPE  (AmbrosisB  Petrae),  the  anointed  rocks  f.  Let  the 
reader  remember  the  monkish  tradition  of  Ambrosius ;  the  exact 
likeness  of  these  pillars,  on  this  coin,  to  the  stones  at  Stonehenge, 
the  Ambrosiae  Petrae;  and  if  he  does  not  think  the  origin  of 
Ambrosebury,  or  Amesbury,  was  derived  from  the  Ambrosiae 
Petrae,  or  anointed  stones  of  the  Tyrian  colonists,  he  will  think 
the  coincidence  most  remarkable*." 

The  Eev.  Mr.  Duke,  in  his  work  on  the  "  Druidical  Temples 
of  Wiltshire  §,"  remarks,  that  "  Stukeley,  when  speaking  of  the 
camp  situate  between  Stonehenge  and  Ambresbury,  and  which, 
though  without  much  reason,  has  been  attributed  to  Vespasian, 
says,  '  I  apprehend  that  Stonehenge  was  originally  called  the 
Ambres;  from  thence  this  camp  was  called  Ambresburgh,  and 
thence  the  name  of  the  town  underneath.'  Stukeley  then  quotes 
from  Camden,  citing  the  instance  of  a  vast  stone  near  Penzance, 
in  Cornwall,  called  Main  Ambre,  which  was  destroyed  by  the 
soldiery  in  the  days  of  Cromwell.  It  was  a  patriarchial  custom 
to  anoint  stones  or  temples,  dedicated  to  divine  worship,  with 
sweet-scented  oil  or  ambrosia,  the  meaning  of  which  word  is  well 
illustrated  by  Baxter,  in  his  '  Glossarium  Antiquitatum  Roman- 
arum.'  The  word  signifies  sweet-scented  oil,  '  oleum  rhodinum' 
(oil  of  roses),  a  very  ancient  perfume ;  and  from  hence  Stukeley 
justly  says,  that  '  main  ambres,  petrae  ambrosiae,  signify  tlie  stones 
anointed  with  holy  oil,  consecrated  ;  or,  in  a  general  sense,  a  tem- 
ple, altar,  or  place  of  worship.' 

"  Stukeley  exhibits  the  representation  of  an  ancient  coin  of 
Tyre,  (copied  from  the  second  volume  of  Vaillant's  '  Colonial 
Coins'),  which  bears  on  its  face  the  figures  of  stones,  and  over 
[under]  them  the  legend  of  '  Petrae  Ambrosiae,'  whilst  beneatli 
them  is  the  figure  of  a  conch  shell." 

•  The  legend  is  COL. TYRO. METR.— See  after. 

+  They  are  called  "  Immortal  Stones,"  in  "  Gentlemen's  Magazine,"  Vc 
braarj-  1820,  p.  Ul. 

J  It  must  be  observed  that  many  of  the  theories  advanced  in  the  "  Hermes 
BritAnnirns"  are  n)iieli  dispiitfd. 

§  Pp.  IJn,  K'l,  l>:. 


375 

The  Round  Temple  of  the  Sun  in  Britain,  mentioned  by 
Diodorus,  has  been  thought  by  some  writers  to  allude  to  Stone- 
henge,  and  by  others  to  Abury ;  the  latter  at  present  appears  to 
be  the  better  opinion — that  is,  if  Britain  was  meant  by  the  under- 
mentioned ancient  writers.  In  a  paper  in  the  "  Journal  of  the 
Archaeological  Institute*,"  by  Edwin  Guest,  M.A.,  on  the  "  Belgic 
Ditches,  and  the  probable  date  of  Stonehenge,"  it  is  stated 
that  there  is  "  a  passage  in  Diodorus  Siculus,  which  appears  to 
have  been  taken  from  Hecataeus  of  Abdera,  who  flourished  about 
three  centuries  before  the  Christian  era.  According  to  this 
authority,  there  was  among  the  Hyjterboreans  a  round  temple 
dedicated  to  Apollo,  and  situated  in  an  island  '  opposite  Celtica.' 
Our  English  antiquaries  assume,  that  the  word  Celtica,  in  this 
passage,  was  used  with  the  same  meaning  as  by  Strabo  and  his 
contemporaries ;  or,  in  other  words,  that  it  signified  Gaul ;  and 
they  conclude  tliat  the  island  was  Britain,  and  the  Round  Temple 
Stonehenge,  or  Avebury,  or  the  Rolrich  Circle,  according  to  the 
particular  hypothesis  they  are  interested  in  supporting.  Swedish 
antiquaries  give  to  Celtica  a  wider  meaning  ;  and  as  the  ancients 
considered  Scandinavia  to  be  an  island,  they  boldly  claim  the 
Round  Temple  of  the  Hyperboreans  as  Swedish  property.  Wes- 
seling,  in  a  sensible  note,  examines  these  different  hypotheses, 
and,  for  reasons  which  appear  satisfiietoiy,  rejects  them.  He  is 
inclined  to  fix  the  Round  Temple  far  more  to  the  eastward  than 
would  suit  the  views  either  of  our  own,  or  of  the  Swedish  anti- 
quaries ;  and  whether  we  agree  with  him  or  not,  the  criticism 
which  identifies  Stonehenge  with  this  temple  of  the  Hyper- 
boreans, rests,  I  think,  on  grounds  much  too  questionable  to 
secure  the  assent  of  any  cautious  inquirer." — (pp.  lH'i,  153f.) 
However  this  may  be,  we  know  from  Caesar  that  Britain  was 
looked  upon  by  the  Gauls  as  the  great  centre  of  Druidism,  and 
as  the  country  in  which  its  peculiar  doctrines  oiigiuated.  He 
says :  "  Disciplina  in  Britannia  rcperta,  atque  inde  in  GalUam 
translata  esse    existiniatur  ;    et  nunc  qui    diligentius  eam  rem 

»,  Vol.  viii.,  p.  14:(,  .tc. 

+  But  sec  the  cdiitniry  opinions  to  tliis,  set  foitli  in  the  "  Procceilin^s  <if  iln- 
.\rclia;<)l('gical  Institute  lU  Salisbury, "  p.  TJt,  ice. 


376 

cognoscere  voluut,  plerumque  illo  discendi  causa  proficiscuntur." 
— B.  G.,  16. 

Mr.  Guest  thus  concludes  : — "  I  think,  therefore,  we  may 
faii-ly  conclude  that  Stonehenge  is  of  later  date  than  Avebury, 
and  the  other  structures  of  unwrought  stone ;  that  it  could  not 
have  been  built  much  later  than  the  year  100  B.C.,  and  in  all 
probability  was  not  built  more  than  a  century  or  two  earlier.  As 
to  the  antiquity  of  Avebury,  I  dare  offer  no  conjecture.  If  the 
reader  be  more  venturesome,  and  should  fix  its  erection  some 
eight  or  ten  centuries  before  our  era,  it  would  be  difficult  to 
advance  any  critical  reasons  against  his  hypothesis." — (p.  157.) 

The  following  curious  extract  concerning  stone-circles  at 
Emsorah,  or  Autset,  not  far  from  Tangier,  is  from  a  work 
entitled  "  Notes  taken  during  Travels  in  Africa,"  printed  for 
private  circulation  only,  by  my  late  much  lamented  friend,  John 
Davidson,  Esq.,  F.R.S.,  F.S.A.,  &c.>^  :— 

"  After  a  ride  of  two  hours  over  a  beautifully  undulating 
countrj',  we  arrived  at  Emsorahf,  or,  as  the  modeni  village  is 
called,  the  Autset,  from  whence  we  had  a  fine  view  of  the  lesser 
Atlas.  At  the  foot  of  the  rising  ground,  where  we  had  pitched 
our  tent,  was  a  magnificent  plain  ;  and  on  the  side  of  the  hill  is 

situated  El  Uted,  or  the  Peg-rock Coming  round  the 

side  of  a  hill,  you  perceive  several  stones  forming  a  circle^,  of 
which  one,  called  the  Peg,  is  much  higher  than  the  rest ;  there 
is  likewise  a  second  circle,  but  a  third  is  never  to  be  seen."  The 
whole  neighbourhood  is  full  of  similar  circles  of  stones,  but 
smaller.  Many  of  the  latter  have  been  worked  artificially.  The 
entrance  to  the  circle,  which  is  fifteen  feet  wide,  faces  the  west ; 
on  the  north  and  south  of  the  Peg  are  two  other  openings  at 
equal  distances.  At  about  the  distance  of  two  hundred  feet, 
there  is  a  stone  placed  at  an  angle  of  45°,  intended,  it  is  said,  to 
mark  the  opening ;  it  is  six  feet  high,  and  by  lying  on  the  back, 
one  can   see  directly  through   the  circle.     From  this  stone  a 

•  See  pp.  15,  Ifi   of  that  work. 

•f  "  For  Mesbmh  or  Miisawwesah  (soulptured)." 

J  In  p.  177  of  that  work  it  is  stated  that  Mr.  Davidson  seemed  to  think 
that  the  above  mentioned  ruins  were  I^ruidiral,  and  liial  he  romparrd  thfni 
with  the  remains  of  Sionrhmpo, 


377 

shelving  road  leads  to  a  well  called  '  'Ain  tayj'eb '  (good  spring). 
But  the  chief  tradition  of  the  place  relates  to  the  gold  treasure 
said  to  be  concealed  here.  The  poor  creatures  sleep  upon  this 
stone  in  all  weathers,  and  they  were  delighted  to  see  the  compass 
going  round  while  we  were  taking  the  bearings  of  the  place,  for 

they  fancied  that  the  gold  turned  as  the  needle  did One 

account  attributes  the  erection  of  the  stones  to  Pharaoh;  by 
others  it  is  said  that  there  was  once  a  large  city  there,  subse- 
quently buried,  and  that  what  remains  is  only  the  top.  I  think 
it  has  been  a  large  place,  and  I  would  willingly  pay  for  exploring 
it.  The  people  say  it  was  the  city  of  a  giant  race,  who  were  of 
such  a  size  that  the  shin-bone  of  a  woman  formed  a  bridge  over 
the  stream.  The  elk-horn  of  Ireland*.  The  'Arakin  on  the 
E.S.E.  are  five  large  stones,  one  of  which  is  like  a  coffin ;  but  I 
think  it  is  too  solid  to  have  ever  answered  that  purpose.  On  the 
W.N.W.  there  are  five  others,  each  forming  a  sort  of  vestibule  to 
the  side  entrances  mentioned  above.  At  the  centre  entrance  the 
stones  lie  flat  on  the  ground.  It  appears  to  have  been  a  great 
place  of  resort  for  religious  purposes,  and  the  various  circles  to 
have  been  the  various  spots  selected  for  the  performance  of 
religious  rites.  The  circle  is  630  feet;  the  Peg  16^  feet  high, 
and  6^  in  circumference  ;  the  larger  entrance  is  15  feet  wide  ;  at 
the  distance  of  1 12  feet  on  the  E.S.E.  and  W.N.W.  sides  are  two 
other  entrances,  5  feet  wide,  and  the  serai-diameter  of  the  circle 
is  74  feet." 

In  the  eleventh  chapter  of  the  Book  of  Joshua  there  is  an 
account  of  the  general  destruction  of  the  Anakim  and  other 
Canaanites,  by  Joshua.  Dr.  Adam  Clarke,  in  his  commentary 
thereon,  says — "  Besides  the  multitudes  that  perished  in  this 
war,  many  of  the  Canaanites  took  refuge  in  the  confines  of  the 
land,  and  in  the  neighbouring  nations.  Some  suppose  that  a 
party  of  these  fugitive  Canaanites  made  themselves  masters  of 
liOwer  Egypt,  and  founded  a  dynasty  there  known  by  the  name 
of  the  shepherd  kings  ;  but  it  is  more  probable  that  the  shepherds 
occupied  Egypt  long  before  the  time  that  Jacob  went  thither  to 

•  Mr.  ]).  sccnis  lo  .illiide  here  to  a  similar  tradition  in  some  part  of 
Ireland. 


378 

sojourn.  It  is  said  they  founded  Tingris  or  Tangier,  where, 
according  to  Procopius,  they  erected  two  white  pillai-s,  with  an 
inscription  in  the  Phoenician  language,  of  which  this  is  the 
translation  :  '  We  are  the  persons  who  have  fled  from  the  face  of 
Joshua  the  plunderer,  the  son  of  Nave  or  Nun.'  (See  Bochart, 
Phaleg  and  Canaan,  Lib.  i.,  c.  xxiv.,  col.  476.)  Many,  no  doubt, 
settled  in  diflferent  parts  of  Africa,  in  Asia  Minor,  in  Greece,  and 
in  the  different  islands  of  the  ^gean  and  Mediterranean  Sea. 
It  is  supposed  also  that  colonies  of  this  people  were  spread  over 
different  parts  of  Germany  and  Sclavonia,  &c.,  but  their  descend- 
ants are  now  so  confounded  with  the  nations  of  the  earth,  as  no 
longer  to  retain  their  original  name,  or  to  be  discernible." 

The  port  of  Tangier,  being  on  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar,  would 
be  the  very  key  whence  these  Phoenician  or  Tyrian  colonists 
might  carry  on  their  trade  with  Britain,  and  disseminate  their 
religion,  manners,  and  customs  amongst  the  natives*. 

The  colonial  coin  of  Tyre  mentioned  previously  is  certainly 
very  remarkable,  whether  it  supports  Druidism  or  not.  I  am 
informed  by  Mr.  Akerman  that  its  genuineness  is  unquestionable, 
and  that  an  ill-preserved  specimen  of  one  of  the  kind  is  in  the 

cabinet  of  Dr.  John  Lee.  A  wood- 
cut of  the  coin  in  question  is  here 
given,  taken  from  the  engraving 
of  it  in  Vaillant's  work  on  Eoman 
Colonial  Coinsf,  and  therein  stated 
to  be  of  the  time  of  Gordian  III. 
Mr.  Bowles,  in  his  representation 
of  this  coin,  describes  the  tree  as 
an  oak,  but  Vaillant  states  it  to  be 
an  olive  tree ;  and  after  describing 
the  Ambrosife  Petrae  and  flaming 
altar,  states  that  the  shell  is  of  that  kind  from  which  the  Tyrian 


*  See  the  "  .Jounial  of  tlie  ArcliiBological  Institute,"  Vol.  vii.,  p.  8,  rclntive 
to  a  bronze  fifjure  of  a  bull  found  in  Cornwall,  conjectured  by  some  to  be 
Phoenician. 

+  I'art  ii.,  p.  l.')!,  ed.  10i)7,  whcn-in  he  refers  to  Tristan's  work,  Vol.  i., 
pp.  !)1,  4.1)1  ;  and  Vol.  ii.,  j).  508;  and  also  to  Noninis. 


379 


dye  was  made.     In  the  same  page  of  Vaillant's  work  there  is 
another  Tyrian  coin,  representing  two  stones  and  an  olive  tree 

between  them,  a  serpent  en- 
twined round  the  trunk  of  the 
tree ;  and  a  shell,  and  the  dog 
which,  according  to  the  legend, 
having  cracked  the  shell  and 
eaten  the  fish,  his  purple- 
stained  mouth  led  to  the  dis- 
covery of  the  Tyrian  dye.  The 
inscription  on  this  coin  is 
"  TYR.  METRO.  COL.,  "which 
Vaillant  interprets,  "  Colonia 
Tyrus  Metropolis."     See  the  woodcut. 

These  two  coins  are  given  in  Vaillant's  work,  published  in 
1688,  p.  *^18,  which  work,  likewise,  in  p.  148,  contains  a  coin  of 
the  Tyrians,  temp.  Aquilia  Severa,  in  which  the  two  stones, 
instead  of  being  represented  smooth,  as  in  the  other  cases,  are 
like  two  rocks.  In  p.  351  of  that  work,  a  Tyrian  coin  of  the 
time  of  Gallienus  is  represented  with  the  stones  smooth.  It  has 
the  inscription,  "  Col.  T}to.  Metr.,"  which  Vaillant  interprets, 
"  Colonia  Tyros  Metropolis." 

In  Patin's  work  on  Roman  coins,  p.  299,  a  coin  of  the  time  of 
Caracalla  is  figured  with  the  inscription,  "  Sept.  Tyrus  ^let. 
Coloni";  and  in  p.  298,  a  coin  of  Sidon,  with  the  inscription, 
"  Col.  Av.  Metro.  Sid." 

Mr.  Akerman,  in  a  paper  "  On  the  Stone  Worship  of  the 
Ancients,  illustrated  by  their  Coins,"  which  was  read  before  the 
Numismatic  Society,  January  18,  1838,  and  published  in  their 
"  Transactions,"  states  that  "  to  these  examples  of  consecrated 
rocks  or  mountains,  may  be  added  that  recorded  on  a  coin  of 
Tyre,  bearing  the  figures  of  two  large  upright  stones-s  inscribed 
AMBPOmE   nETPE\.     Although   all    these   objects   are 

•  "  Pausaiiias,  Lib.  viii.,  c.  15,  describes  two  reniarkable  stones,  called 
Petroma,  venerated  by  the  PlieneatsB." 

t  "  Mionnet,  Dewrip.,  Tom.  v.,  p.  l-'iO,  No.  607.  Other  coins  of  Tjre  Lave 
this  remarkable  iusiTiplinu.' 


380 

figured  with  a  smooth  surface,  they  are  without  doubt  intended 
to  represent  rocks,  and  not  cone-shaped  stones,  a  conclusion 
justly  warranted  by  the  fabulous  account  of  the  building  of  Tyre. 
Nonnus,  in  his  '  Dionysiacs  '*,  says  that  the  oracle  instructed 
the  founders  of  the  city  to  proceed  on  their  voyage  until  they 
came  to  two  rocks,  which  they  would  find  floating  on  the  sea  ; 
upon  these  they  were  to  build  new  Tjto.  The  oracle  was 
obeyed,  and  the  city  being  built,  the  rocks  became  immoveable. 
On  other  coins  of  Tyre  these  holy  rocks  are  represented  with 
water  streaming  from  the  base  of  eachf.  Another  description  of 
sacred  stone  appears  on  coins  of  Greek  cities.  On  those  of  Tyre  J 
we  find  a  serpent  entwined  round  a  large  egg-shaped  stone. 
Vaillant  considers  that  this  relates  to  the  serpent  or  dragon 
which  was  fabled  to  have  ,been  killed  by  Cadmus ;  but  though, 
on  other  coins  of  this  renowned  city,  a  man  is  represented 
engaged  in  combat  with  a  serpent,  it  is  by  no  means  clear  that 
the  example  in  question  refers  to  that  exploit §." 

From  all  that  has  been  said,  and  considering  that  Ambreley, 
Amberley,  Ambresbury,  and  Amburj',  are  common  names  of  old 
earth-works  all  over  the  kingdom,  it  appears  more  than  probable 
that  Amber  Stones  stood  at  such  places  in  primitive  times,  which 
gave  the  names  thereto  ;  and  that  the  Banbury  or  Bambur}' 
Stone  or  Rock  in  Kemerton  Camp,  otherwise  Bambury  Camp,  on 
the  top  of  Bredon  Hill,  was  one  of  these  Ambrosiae  Petrae||,  or 
Amber  Stones,  dedicated  to  the  Sun  by  the  Celtic  Druids,  either 
in  imitation  or  independently  of  the  form  of  worship  of  the 
Amonians,  Phoenicians,  or  Tynans.  This  would,  if  so,  tend  to 
confirm  my  idea  that  the  Kemerton  Camp  is  ancient  British, 
although  afterwai'ds  occupied  by  the  Romans,  Saxons,  and 
Daues^. 

»  "  Lib.  xl." 

+  "  Vaillant,  Num.  in  Col.  percussa." 

J  "  VaiUant,  ibid.  Tom.  ii.,  p.  I3(i." 

§  Ibid.,  p.  350,  pub.  1688. 

II   There  is  a  place  called  "  Petre  Hill"  in  Amblecote,  Co,  Staflbid. 

^  See  pp.  8:},  Hi,  and  the  Celtic  derivation  of  the  name  of  the  hill.  I'idc 
also  theiu-connts  of  Kckiiipton,  Norton  in  Bredon,  Sedgebarrow  and  Coiidertun, 
as  to  ancient  relics  found  at  those  places. 


881 


(^W^^  M 


LOGAN  STONES  AND  HOLE  STONES. 

It  has  been  contended  by  some  antiquaries  that  the  Logan,  or 
Rocking  Stones  are  not  artificial.  Now  the  question,  as  to 
whether  they  are  artificial  or  not,  is  perhaps  of  little  consequence 
in  the  research,  as  to  the  veneration  and  awe  in  which  they  were 
held  by  the  ancients  and  the  religious  uses  they  consequently 
apphed  them  to  ■■'.  Perhaps,  however,  the  truth  is  that  some  are 
natural,  and  produced  or  exposed  by  the  gradual  disintegration 
or  denudation  of  rocks,  but  that  others  are  artificial. 

The  ancients  possibly  considered  the  natural  Logan  Stones,  and 
also  the  basaltic  columns  (such  as  the  Giant's  Causeway  and 
Fingals  Cave)  as  the  artificial  productions  of  a  prior  gigantic 
race;  and  in  many  instances  erected  similar  Logan  Stones  f,  par- 
ticularly where  they  found  boulders,  &c.,  at  hand  suited  to  their 
pui-pose. 

In  later  ages,  very  extraordinary  ancient  productions,  whether 
natural  or  artificial,  appear  to  have  been  frequently  attributed  to 
Satanic  influence,  and  hence  we  have  the  class  of  places  called 
the  Devil's  Den,  the  Devil's  Spadeful,  the  Devil's  Leap,  and  the 
Devil's  Pig-trough*. 

Not  only  the  ancients  held  stones  in  great  reverence  which 
had  holes  through  them,  or  were  so  placed  as  to  leave  a  hole  be- 

*  "  The  Druids  are  supposed  to  liave  appealed  to  these  stones  in  their  sacred 
rites,  divinations,  and  judgments." — See  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  March 
1842,  p.  287. 

+  There  is  a  Hocking  Stone  in  Soyland,  in  Yorkshire,  called  the  Awse,  or 
Fairies'  Hole,  with  a  Caniedh. — See  Gough's  ''  Camden,"  Vol.  iii.,  p.  275, 
second  edition,  18()(!. 

I  See  Stanford,  Kidderminster,  Dodenham,  Martley,  and  Leigh. 


382 

tween  them  ;  but  "  the  passing  through  a  cleft  or  aperture  in  a 
rock,  is  a  medical  superstition,  which  lias  been  found  in  many 
countries.  It  is  mentioned,  in  the  "  Asiatic  Researches,"  as  com- 
mon in  the  east ;  and  Borlase  commemorates  it  as  practised  with 
perforations  of  Druidical  stones  in  Cornwall*."  The  peasantry  in 
the  country  also  fancy  that  a  stone,  with  a  hole  in  it,  prevents 
witches  riding  horses,  and  hence  it  is  oftentimes  tied  to  the  stable 
key ;  and  such  stones  they  also  hang  up  behind  the  cottage  door,  to 
preserve  the  house  and  its  inhabitants  from  the  baneful  influence 
of  the  "  evil  eye." 

*  See  "  Athenaeum,"  for  September  5th,  1846,  p.  909 ;  and  for  September 
12th,  p.  932. 


383 


a^mttt  p. 


HOAE  STONES. 

From  the  Amber  or  Sacred  Stones  of  primitive  times,  we 
descend  to  the  Hoar  Stones  of  a  later  age,  which  mark  the  period 
when  this  country  began  to  be  portioned  out,  and  defined  by 
distinct  boundaries. 

In  my  account,  in  the  first  edition  of  this  work,  of  the  calca- 
reous rock  called  Hoar  Stone,  situated  on  the  borders  of  Sapey 
Brook,  in  Tcdstone  Delamere,  Herefordshire*,  I  suggested  that 
such  stones  were  so  called  from  their  being  white  or  hoary ;  but, 
upon  a  subsequent  perusal  of  the  late  Mr.  Hamper's  workf  on 
the  subject,  it  appears  evident  that  they  were  so  called  on  account 
of  their  being  either  placed  or  adopted  as  boundaries,  or  marks 
of  division.  He  says  the  Hoar  Stone  is  "  the  stone  of  memorial, 
or  land  mark,  describing  the  boundary  of  property,  whether  of  a 
public  or  a  private  nature,  as  it  has  been  used  in  almost  all 
countries,  from  the  patriarchal  era  down  to  the  days  of  the 
present  generation  ;  and  that  tlie  Greek  '  Horos,'  the  Latin 
'  Ora,'  the  Celtic  and  Welsh  '  Or'  and  '  Oir,'  the  Armoric  '  Harz,' 
the  Anglo- Sa.x  on  'Or,'  '  Ord'  and  '  Ora;'  the  German  '  Ort,'  the 
Italian  '  Orlo,'  the  old  French  '  Oree,'  the  French  '  Orle,'  the 
Spanish  '  Orla,'  the  Arabic  '  Ori,'  the  obsolete  British  '  Yoror,' 
the  obsolete  Irish  '  Ur'  and  '  Or,'  the  Gaelic  or  Erse  '  Ear'  and 
'  Aird,'  witli  similar  words  in  other  languages,  have  all,  to  a  cer- 
tain degree,  one  and  the  self-same  meaning,  namely,  a  bound  or 
limit ;"  and  that  "  the  unaspirated  Greek  '  Oros',  denoting  a  moun- 

•   See  pp.  4H,  4!)  of  that  edition. 

+   Kntitled  "  Obsenations  oti  Certain  Ancient   Pillars  of  Memorial  called 
Hoar  Stones,"  by  William  Hamper,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  &c.,  published  in  1832. 


384 

tain,  one  of  the  natural  limitations  of  vision,  its  root,  and  that  of 
all  the  preceding  words,  may  probably  be  referred  to  the  Hebrew 
'  Hor,'  or  '  Har,'  a  mountain,  which,  in  a  secondary  sense,  seems 
to  be  used  for  a  termination."  Of  this  he  gives  several  instances, 
such  as  Mount  Hor,  Hermon,  Ar-oer,  Ar-non,  &c.  * 

It  appears,  however,  from  Mr.  Hamper's  work,  that  I  was  not 
singular  in  considering  that  the  name  Hoar  Stone  meant  a  white 
or  hoary  stone,  for  he,  in  describing  the  notions  of  different 
authors  concerning  them,  says,  in  Section  I.,  as  foUovvs : — 

"  SOMNER. 

"  The  Anglo-Saxon  words  '  on  thane  haren  stan,'  in  a  charter 
relative  to  the  monastery  of  Wolverhampton,  Co.  Stafford,  are 
rendered  '  in  lapidem  mucidum,'  under  the  idea  of  haren  mean- 
ing hoary. — '  Monasticon  Angl.,'  i.,  p.  989." 

The  following,  from  Mr.  Hampers  work,  also  nre  interesting, 
as  bearing  upon  our  subject : — 

"  GOUGH. 

"  The  boundaries  of  Codeston,  now  Cutsdean,  Co.  Worcester,  are 
described  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  of  Heming's  '  Cartulary,'  p.  348,  as 
coming  '  on  thsene  haran  stan,  of  thane  haran  stan  andlang 
grenan  weyes,'  which  is  translated,  in  Nash's  '  Worcestershire,' 
Vol.  ii.  App.,  p.  45,  '  on  to  the  grey  stone,  from  the  grey  stone 
along  the  green  way.' 

"  Mr.  Nichols  informed  the  writer  that  the  translations  from 
Homing,  in  the  above-named  historv',  were  by  the  editor  of 
'  Camden,' " 

"  HUTTON. 

"  This  author,  speaking  of  a  Koman  station  at  Birmingham, 
says,  he  can  find  no  vestiges  remaining,  though  '  the  most  likely 
place  is  Wor-ston,"  which  he  interprets  '  Wall-stone,'  part  of  the 
Ikeneld  Street  being  called  Warstone  Lane  in  passing  through 
that  neighbourhood. — '  History  of  Birmingham,'  third  edition, 
p.  221." 

"  The  stone  itself  is  mentioned  in  deeds  as  late  as  a.d.  1676." 

•  Also,  see  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  November  1840,  upon  the  subject. 


385 

"  Nichols. 

"  In  Humberston  Field,  Co.  Leicester,  the  apex  of  a  rock, 
rising  considerably  above  the  ground,  is  called  Holstone,  which 
Mr.  Nichols  conjectures  to  be  a  corruption  of  Holy-stone ;  adding, 
that  in  Dorsetshire,  and  the  other  western  counties,  these  holy 
stones  are  very  frequent,  and  '  by  the  common  people  sometimes 
called  Hell-stones,  a  name  deducible  either  from  helian,  to  cover 
or  conceal,  or  rather  from  heilig,  holy.' — '  Histor}-  of  Leicester- 
shire,' Vol.  iii.,  Part  2,  p.  981,  Note  2." 

"  Dudley. 

"  The  Rev.  John  Dudley,  under  the  signature  of  J.  D.,  in  the 
'  Gentleman's  Magazine'  for  1813,  Part  1,  p.  318,  calls  the  stone 
mentioned  in  the  last  extract,  '  Hoston-stone,  or  Hoston,  mean 
ing,  probably.  High-stone*.'  " 

"  Watson. 

"  In  an  account  of  Druidical  remains  at  Halifax,  in  Yorkshire, 
by  the  Rev.  John  Watson,  '  Archaeologia,'  Vol.  ii.,  p.  353,  it  is 
said,  that  '  the  Rocking  Stone  is  situated  so  as  to  be  a  boundary 
mark  between  the  two  townships  of  Golcar  and  Slaighthwait,  and 
gives  the  name  of  Hole-stone  Moor  to  the  adjoining  grounds, 
corrupted,  as  1  take  it  (adds  Mr.  Watson,  p.  356),  from  Holy-stone, 
or  Holed-stone.' " 

In  Section  III.,  Mr.  Hamper  gives  a  list  of  a  great  number  of 
Hoar  Stones,  or  places  named  from  them ;  namely,  about  seventy- 
five  in  England,  two  in  Scotland,  and  eighteen  in  Wales.  Of 
those  in  England,  the  following  fourteen  are  in  Worcestershire  : — 

Worcestershire. — The  Horestone  in  the  Foreign  of  Ividder- 
minstcrf. 

Hore-stone  Field,  in  Northfield,  so  called  in  a  deed,  a.d.  1687, 
though  corrupted  into  the  Oar-stone  Field,  in  particulars  of  North- 
field  Manor,  &c.,  for  sale,  a.d.  1820. 

•   But  see  pp.  •'!()!>,  :$7(),  as  to  Mr.  Dudleys  subsequent  opinion. 

f  Tills  stone  is  noticed  in  tlie  Ordnance  Survey  Map.  The  fann  there  is 
railed  the  Hoar-stone  Estate,  which  is  situated  williin  one  mile  of  Bewdley 
and  two  miles  of  Kiddermuister.  Also  see  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  41-'5,  -ll.')  App., 
Vol.  vi.,  as  to  a  j)l«co  called  Ilore  stan. 


386 

Land  called  Hauxmore,  iu  Leigh,  is  described  in  a  MS.  Survey 
of  Malvern  Chase,  a.d.  1633,  as  "  lying  after  the  head  waie  from 
Cowley's  Oke  towards  the  Hoare-stone." 

WTior-stone  Field,  partly  in  King's  Norton,  and  partly  in 
Cofton  Hacket. 

"  Horston  Field,  in  Feckenham."  Letters  patent,  37  Hen. 
VIII.,  in  the  possession  of  the  late  Christopher  Hunt,  Esq. 

Whor-stone  Grove  Coppice,  at  Himbleton,  mentioned  on  a 
tablet  in  the  church. 

"  De  Apulthonesford  usque  Horestan." — Survey  of  Broms- 
grove,  Norton,  and  Alvechurch,  temp.  Edw.  III.  Nash,  Vol.  i., 
p.  23. 

"  Horestan,  and  Le  Horeston,  in  Bromsgrove." — Testa  de 
Nevill. 

"  Of  reodmsedwan  on  Haranstan." — Heming's  "  Cartulary," 
describing  the  boundaries  of  Tredington,  p.  39. 

"  On  thone  Haran-stan." — Ibid.,  Cutsdean,  pp.  167,  348. 

"  Of  thone  Haran-stan." — Ibid.,  Clive,  p.  245. 

"  Into  Cyles  dene  to  tham  Haran-stane." — Ibid.,  Hallow,  p,  339. 

"  On  wene  [thene]  grene  weie  wat  [that]  on  Horeston." — 
Ibid.,  Cutsdean,  p.  433. 

"  Duo  crofta  voc'  Horestone  Crofts,  jac'  insimul  inter  regiam 
viam  que  ducit,  inter  Sterbrigge  et  Worcester,  ex  parte  orient, 
et  parvum  torentum  vocat.'  Horestone  Broke  al'  Holy  Broke." 
— Rental  of  Hagley,  at  Lord  Lyttelton's ;  23  Hen.  VIII. 

And  the  following  are  some  of  those  which  are  in  the  neigh- 
bouring counties. 

Gloucestershire. — The  Hore-stone  at  Diuiteshoume  Abbots ; 
engraved  in  the  "  Archseologia,"  xvi.,  p.  362. 

Herefordshire. — The  Hoar-stone  at  Tedstone  Delamere. — 
Duncumb,  ii.,  p.  197. 

Leicestershire. — The  Holstone  in  Humberstone  Field. — 
Nichols,  iii..  Part  2,  p.  981. 

Monmouthshire. — "  Per  circuitum  usque  at  Horston."  Boun- 
daries of  land  belonging  to  Tinteni  Abbey. — "  Mona.st.  Angl."  i., 
p.  723. 


387 

Harold's-stones,  at  Trelech.  King,  "  Munimenta  Antiqua,"  i., 
p.  199.  Also  Coxe's  "  Monmouthshire,"  ii.,  p.  332,  where  they 
are  engraved,  and  called  Druidical. 

Oxfordshire. — The  War-stone  at  Enstone. 

Shropshire. — The  Hoar-stone  in  Hales  Owen  *,  dividing  it  from 
Northfield,  Co.  Worcester. 

Staffordshire. — Land  in  Harhorne  called  Horestone. — Nash, 
"  Worcester.,"  ii.,  App.,  p.  36. 

Warwickshire. — The  Hoar-stone  at  Whitley,  near  Coventry. 

The  Whar-stones,  a  field  at  Erdington.  The  Hoar-stone 
between  the  parishes  of  Aston  and  Sutton  Coldfield. 

The  Whor-stone  at  Castle  Bromwich,  still  remaining  in  a  field 
bordering  on  Little  Bromwich,  called  "  Le  Horestonefeld,"  in  a 
deed,  temp.  Edw.  I. 

In  Section  IL,  Mr.  Hamper  enumerates  a  great  number  of 
places  and  things  called  by  the  following  names,  aud  which  I 
have  subjoined,  because  they  will  tend  to  throw  much  light  upon 
many  of  the  names  which  will  be  hereafter  mentioned  in  the 
lines  of  ancient  roads,  &r. 

No. 

1 .  Hoar, 

•i.  Hoar  Oak. 

3.  Hoar  Withy. 

I.  Hoar  Thorn. 

.">.  Hoiir  Hazel. 

ti.  Hoar  Maple. 

7.  Hoar  Apple-tree. 

"<.  Hoar  Cross. 

9.  Hoar  Stoke,  or  Place. 

10.  Hoar  Ham,  or  Home. 

I  1 .  ?Ioar  Ton,  or  Inclosure. 

l"-2.  Hoar  Worth,  or  Inclosure. 

I  3.  Hoar  Wood. 

1  1.  Hoar  Thwait,  Assart,  or  llidiUng. 

15.  Hoar  Park. 

Ifi.  Hoar  Land. 

*  The  wIioIr  of  lialp;,  Owen  was  added  to  Worcestei-sliire  in  1844,  by  tlie 
Reform  Bill. 


888 


No. 

17. 

Hoar  Grounds. 

IH. 

Hoar  Ley,  or  Pasture. 

19. 

Hoar  Mead. 

20. 

Hoar  Ing,  or  Meadow. 

HI. 

Hoar  Field. 

22. 

Hoar  Croft. 

23. 

Hoar  Moor. 

24. 

Hoar  Moss. 

25 

Hoar  Quebb,  or  Quagmire. 

26. 

Hoar  Slade,  or  Narrow  Valley. 

27. 

Hoar  Comb,  or  Valley. 

28. 

Hoar  Dean,  or  Dale. 

29. 

Hoar  Dell. 

30. 

Hoar  Gill,  or  Glen. 

31. 

Hoar  Hyme,  or  Corner. 

32. 

Hoar  Wick,  or  Bank. 

33. 

Hoar  Knap,  or  Rising. 

34. 

Hoar  Copp,  Mound,  or  Hillock. 

35. 

Hoar  Don,  or  Hill. 

36. 

Hoar  Grave,  Trench,  or  Vallum. 

37. 

Hoar  Law,  or  Mount. 

38. 

Hoar  Bury,  Borough,  or  Earth-work. 

39. 

Hoar  Hill. 

40. 

Hoar  Hope,  or  Height. 

41. 

Hoar  Edge. 

42. 

Hoar  Ridge. 

43. 

Hoar  Cragg. 

44. 

Hoar  Cliff. 

45. 

Hoar  Rock. 

40. 

Hoar  Terr. 

47. 

Hoar  Way. 

48. 

Hoar  Street. 

49. 

Hoar  Lane. 

50* 

•   Mr.  Hamper  here  inserted  Hoar  Patli,  from  "  Ilerepatli;"  but  tliat  word 
signilies  a  military  road. 


389 

No. 

61.  Hoar  Gate,  or  Wicket. 

52.  Hoar  Gate,  or  Road. 

63.  Hoar  Ford. 

54.  Hoar  Bridge. 

55.  Hoar  Wear. 

56.  Hoar  Cote. 

57.  Hoar  House. 

58.  Hoar  Hall. 

59.  Hoar  By,  or  Village. 

60.  Hoar  Chester,  or  Camp. 

61.  Hoar  Castle. 
6'2.  Hoar  Dyke. 

63.  Hoar  Sytch,  Sike,  or  Water-course. 

64.  Hoar  Bourne,  or  Rivulet. 

65.  Hoar  Wash,  or  Water. 

66.  Hoar  Mouth,  or  Embouchure. 

67.  Hoar  Mere. 

68.  Hoar  Pool. 

69.  Hoar  Pit. 

70.  Hoar  Well. 

Of  the  above,  the  following  are  either  in  Worcestershire  or  on 
or  near  the  border  of  it : — 

HOAR  WITHY. 
"  On    thone    Haran   Withig." — Heming's    "  Cartularj',"   de- 
scribing the  limits  of  Pendock,   Co.  Worcester,  pp.   183,  184, 
360,  361. 

HOAR  APPLE-TREE. 

"  On  the  Haran  Apel-treo." — Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  Boun- 
daries of  Wyke*,  Co.  Worcester,  p.  75. 

•  This  Wyke  nifiins  Wick  Kpiscopi,  in  tlie  parish  of  St.  John,  in  Bodwiir- 
(line,  near  tiie  eity  of  Worcester.  (There  also  is  Wyke,  Wick,  or  Wych 
Waryn,  near  I'ershorc.)  The  apple-tree  stood  near  where  the  Tenie  joins  tlie 
Severn. 


390 

"  In  Haran  Eapol-deme." — Ibid.,  Cofton,  Co.  Worcester,  p.  7. 
Bishop  Lyttelton  translates  this,  "  to  the  grey  apple-trees,"  in 
his  account  of  Alvechurch  parish,  as  printed  by  Nash,  Vol.  i., 
p.  20. 

"  To  thaere  Haran- Apeldran." — Ibid.,  Hallow,  Co.  Worcester, 
p.  340. 

HOAR  STOKE,  OR  PLACE. 

Warstock,  in  King's  Norton,  Co.  Worcester,  is  close  to  War- 
wickshire ;  and,  on  an  inquisition  being  taken  there,  5  Edward 
III.,  is  described  in  the  Escheat  Roll  as  "  le  Horestok,  in  con- 
finio  comitat.  Wigom.  et  Warr." 

HOAR  LEY,  OR  PASTURE. 

"  Ondlang  thses  weyes  on  Haran  Laeh." — Heming's  "  Car- 
tulary," describing  the  boundaiies  of  Laweni,  Co.  Worcester, 
pp.  161,  349. 

Worley,  Wigom  ;  and  Worley,  Salop  ;  two  hamlets  in  those 
respective  counties,  joining  each  other. 

HOAR  LAND. 

Hore  Londe,  at  Wootton  Wawen,  Co.  Wanvick,  is  mentioned 
in  the  Minister's  accounts  of  the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  Henry 
VII.,  and  is  probably  the  same  as  now  called  Whor  Knap,  bor- 
dering on  Old  borough  and  Morton. 

HOAR  MEAD. 

War  Meadow,  in  Solihull,  Co.  Warwick,  abutting  on  Kings 
Norton,  Co.  Worcester. 

HOAR  CROFT. 

War  Croft,  in  Solihull,  Co.  Warwick,  abutting  on  King's 
Norton,  Co.  Worcester. 


391 


HOAR  QUEBB*,  OR  QUAGMIRE. 

"  A  leasowe,  or  pasture,  called  Hore  Quebbe,  witMn  the  forren 
of  Biruiingham,  nighe  Wynsdon  Greene,"  is  named  in  a  deed, 
33  Elizabeth. 


HOAR  KNAPf,  OR  RISING. 

Whor  Knap,  at  the  verge  of  Wootton  Wawen  parish,  Co. 
Warwick,  bordering  on  Oldberrow  and  Morton.    (See  Horelond.) 

HOAR  GRAVE,  TRENCH,  OR  VALLUM:. 

"  Andlang  thaere  die  in  Here  grafun." — Heming's  *•  Cartulary," 
boundaries  of  Witlinc,  Co.  Worcester,  pp.  171,  354.  It  appears 
to  be  the  same  place  as  Hargraves,  in  a  suney  of  the  limits  of 
Hartlebury,  about  a.d.  1648  (Nash,  Vol.  i.,  p.  570). 

Hargrave,  an  estate  in  BickenhUl,  Co.  Warwick,  bordeiing  on 
the  parishes  of  Elmdon  and  Hampton-in-Arden.  It  is  called 
*'  The  Hargroves§,"  in  a  particular  of  sale,  a.d.  166"4. 

HOAR  EDGE. 

One  of  the  summits  of  the  Titterstone  Clee  Hill,  near  Ludlow, 
Co.  Salop,  is  called  the  War-edge. 

•  There  is  a  place  called  Quabb  Coppice,  in  Suckley;  and  The  Quob 
Meadow,  in  Hanley  William. 

+  There  is  tlie  Knap,  in  .\lfrick. 

*  "  Grave  also  signifies  a  grove ;  perhaps,  in  its  primary  application,  one 
that  was  protected  by  a  graff,  or  trench ;  as,  I  presume,  a  coppice  derives  its 
name  from  tlie  cops  or  mounds  enclosing  it."  The  word  "  graf "  means  a 
grove,  and  "  grefa,"  "  graefa,"  a  hole.  (See  Bromsgrove,  p.  122.)  With  respect  to 
the  word  "  cop,"  there  are  Copson's  Coppice,  in  Alfrick  ;  Copem  Hill,  in 
Lulsley  ;  Copson's,  in  Claines ;  Copem  Pit,  in  Hallow  ;  and  Peril  Cop,  in 
Astley — all  in  Worcestershire ;  and  Great  Coppel  Croft,  and  Little  Coppel 
Croft,  in  .\riey,  in  Warwickshire. 

§  There  are  places  called  Norgrove,  in  Alfrick  ;  Norgroves-end  Farm,  in 
Bayton  ;  and  Norgrrjve,  in  Feckenhani.  The  a<lding  an  N  to  names  and 
words,  is  a  vulgarism  of  tln'  county.     See  i)p.  '-W^i,  ."KJO. 


392 


HOAK  RIDGE. 

Horridge  is  a  hamlet  in  Corse,  Co.  Gloucester,  bordering  on 
Worcestershire. 

HOAR  LANE. 

"  Hairlane,  otherwise  Herlon,  Harelane,  and  Bound-lane,"  in 
the  suburbs  of  Gloucester. — Rudder,  p.  205.  Mr.  Fosbroke,  in 
his  history  of  that  city,  p.  8,  calls  it  Hare-lone,  Here-lone ;  i.e. 
Army -lane,"  without  noticing  it  as  Bound-lane,  which  is  merely 
a  translation  of  its  ancient  appellative. 

HOAR  BOURN,  OR  RIVULET. 

Harborne  (in  "  Domesday,"  Horeborne),  Co.  Stafford,  bor- 
dering on  Warwickshire  and  Worcestershire. 

HOAR  MERE. 

"  Of  tham  on  tha  ealdan  die  on  Ilaran  maire.  ' — Ileiuings 
"  Cartulary,"  boundaries  of  Bishop's  Stoke  [Stoke  Orchard],  Co. 
Worcester  [Gloucester],  p.  122. 

HOAR  PIT. 

"  Of  sandune  on  Hor  pytte." — Heniings  "  Cartulary,"  boun- 
daries of  Tidminton,  Co.  Worcester,  pp.  192,  8  48*. 

"  Andlang  rices  thget  cymth  to  thaem  Hor  pytte." — Ibid., 
Longdon,  p.  209. 

HOAR  WELLf. 

A  land  boundary  at  Pershore,  Co.  Woiccstur,  is  "  Hor 
wyllan,"  Cotton  MS.,  Augustus  II.,  Art.  G. 

*  Also  see  Nasli,  Vol.  ii.,  App.  45. 

+  In  Severn  Stoke,  Karl's  Croonib,  and  Defford,  there  arc  places  culled 
"  Part  of  Iloncll  Orchard."  See  "  Codex  Dip.,'  No.  :U0,  'UO  Ai)p.,  Vol.  iii., 
and  .070,  as  lo  llorwyl,  in  Worcestershire;  and  Jleniings  "  I'artiilary, "  p. 
^il,  as  1(1  llorewcll. 


393 

"  Inde  per  Fulanbroc  usque  in  Haren  willes." — Boundaries  at 
Evesham,  Co.  Worcester,  "  Monast.  Angl.,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  145. 

The  following  is  the  account  given  in  the  "  Archaeologia," 
(Vol.  xvi.*)  of  the  Duntesboume  Abbot's  Stone  : — 

"  Nov.  20,  1806. — An  account  of  a  tumulus,  opened  on  an 
estate  of  Matthew  Bailie,  M.D.,  in  the  parish  of  Duntesboume 
Abbots,  in  Gloucestershire,  communicated  to  Samuel  Lyson,  Esq., 
Director,  by  the  Rev.  Anthony  Friston,  rector  of  Edgeworth,  in 
the  same  county. 

"  The  length  of  the  barrow  was  about  forty  yards,  and  the  width 
thirty ;  it  contained  about  eight  or  nine  bodies,  of  different  ages  ; 
it  was  composed  of  loose  quarry  stones.  The  largest  stone,  at 
the  east  end,  has  been  long  known  in  that  county  by  the  name 
of  the  '  Hoar  Stone.'  It  is  of  the  calcareous  kind,  twelve  feet 
high,  fifteen  in  circumference,  and  weighs  probably  about  five  or 
six  tons." 

Thus,  it  appears  evident  that  the  primitive  Logan  and  Amber 
stones  were,  in  some  instances,  made  use  of  in  the  later  ages,  as 
Hoar  or  boundary  stones. 

The  etymology  advanced  by  Messrs.  Dudley  and  Nichols,  in 
regard  to  the  Holstonc,  in  Humbei^ston  Field,  might  at  first 
appear,  in  that  particular  instance,  to  militate  against  the  idea  of 
its  being  a  Hoar-stone ;  nevertheless,  however  that  may  be,  it  is 
pretty  clear,  from  the  name  Humberston,  or  Amber-stone  Field, 
that  it  was  originally  an  Amber-stone.  Indeed,  this  principle 
appears  to  be  admitted  by  Mr.  Hamper  liimself,  in  the  second 
edition  of  his  work  (although  not  in  the  first  f),  wherein  he,  in 
his  account  of  the  Merionethshire  stones,  called  the  Graves  of 
the  Men  of  Ardudwy,  says : — "  It  seems  probable  that  they 
were  early  sepulchral  monuments,  though  not  less  likely,  on  that 
account,  to  become  the  ternuni  of  later  times  ;  for  the  Hoar- 
stone at  Duntesboume,  Co.  Gloucester,  already  mentioned,  is 
fixed    upon  an   ancient  sepulchral   tumulus  ;  and  a  barrow    in 

•   Spf  ApptMidix  llicivio,  pp.  ;i(l  I ,  ■'?()•,•, 

+   'Vhv  lirsl  nlitiim  was  piiblislinl  in  IBvIH. 


394 

Norfolk  is  actually  tlie  boundary  mark  of  the  three  parishes  of 
Aylsham,  Burgh,  and  Tutington." — "  Archaeologia,"  Vol.  xvi., 
p.  355. 

And  in  his  account  of  the  War-stone,  at  Enstone,  in  Oxford- 
shire, he  says  : — "  A  view  and  description  of  tliis  stone  are  given 
in  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine  "  for  February  1824,  by  Edward 
Rudge,  Esq.,  who  judiciously  deems  it  to  have  been  originally  a 
cromlech,  supported  after  the  manner  of  Kit's*  Coity- house, 
upon  three  stones  of  smaller  dimensions,  which  are  still  remain- 
ing close  to  it." 

Mr.  Hamper  also  thus  notices  the  Harold's  stones  at  Trelech,  in 
Pembrokeshire  :  "A  stone  pitched  on  end,  on  the  farm  of  Harold- 
stone," — Fenton,  p.  24.  And  added,  Mr.  Fenton  thinks  it 
"  rather  remarkable  that  there  should  be  so  many  places  called 
Harold-stone,  or,  at  least,  with  Harold  prefixed,  in  this  country." 

Under  the  head  "  Hoar  Hill,"  Mr.  Hamper  remarks,  "  In  Over 
Alderley,  Co.  Chester,  at  the  present  boundary  of  Alderley  and 
Presbury  parishes,  and  near  the  ancient  division  of  Hamestan 
and  Bochelan  Hundreds,  is  an  estate  called  the  Harehills." 
"  Omerod,"  iii.,  p.  307. 

HarehiUf,  near  the  Roman  Wall,  Co.  Cumberland.  "  Horse- 
ley,"  p.  153. 

Harehill,  near  Leeds,  Co.  York.  Thoresby,  by  Whitaker, 
p.  145. 

In  Leigh  there  are  places  called  the  Hoardings,  and  Harding's 
Meadow]:.     In  Alfrick,  Norgrove  ;  in  Bayton,  Norgrove. 

In  Lulsley  there  is  Harding  Orchard,  and  Horridge  Coppice. 

In  Hagley  there  are  places  called  Hoarstone,  Big  Hoarstone, 
and  Little  Hoarstone.  In  Frankley,  a  chapelry  in  Hagley,  there 
is  Warstone  Farm.  In  Cofton  Hackett,  a  place  called  Part  of 
Warstone.  In  Powick,  a  place  called  Soar  Oak  Field.  In  White 
Ladies  Aston,  Harrold's  Close.     In  Elmley  Castle  paiish,  a  piece 

•  See  "  Siickley,"  p.  242. 

+  This  is  also  noticed  in  Hutton's  "  History  of  the  Roman  Wall,"  p.  20fi, 
which,  he  siijs,  "  by  the  bye,  stands  in  a  valley." 

+  Perhaps  this  is  the  site  of  the  Hoar-stone  wliich  lay  towards  Cowley's  Oak, 
before  described.     See  p.  -180. 


395 

called  Worrall,  In  Birliiigham,  Harrils  Hill.  In  Severn  Stoke, 
Earl's  Croomb,  and  Defford,  a  piece  called  Horrell  Orchard. 
Between  Church  Honeyboume  and  Middle  Littleton,  a  place  called 
Norridge  Hill.  In  Holt  with  Little  Witley,  places  called  Hares- 
hill  Field  and  Hareshill  Orchard.  In  Offenham,  places  called 
Norvill,  Lower,  Middle,  and  Upper  Norvill.  In  Chaddesley 
Corbett,  places  called  Warstc»ne,  Little  Warstone,  and  Warrage. 
In  Longdon,  Hare  Plock,  and  Hare  Bridge.  In  Chaseley,  Norgast 
Field,  Great,  Middle,  and  South  Norgast  Field.  In  Feckenham 
there  are  places  called  Worralls,  Worrall's  Hill,  Worralls 
Meadow,  Wargrove,  Warridge,  Upper  and  Lower  Horcuts,  Nor- 
grove,  Norbury  Hill,  North  Norbury  HUl,  and  South  Norbury. 
In  Upton  Warren,  Warridge  Lodge  Homestall,  and  Warranton 
Meadow.  In  Hartleburj',  Hargrove,  Hargroves,  and  Hargrove 
Lane.  In  Oldborough,  Harding's  Pleck,  Harding's  Meadow, 
and  Wamap  Hill.  In  Whittington,  Norcroft,  Hares  Close, 
and  Wordings.  In  Stock  and  Bradley,  a  place  called  Harcourts. 
In  Tidmington,  Hoar  Pit.  In  Abberley,  Hareshill  and  Warden. 
In  Catshall  and  Coneygree,  in  Ombersley,  Hither  Warvill,  and 
Further  Warvill.  In  Uphampton,  in  Ombersley,  Wai-Avill.  In 
Chadwick,  in  Bromsgrove  parish.  Warding.  In  Hanley  William, 
Upper  Hurcott.  In  Grimley,  Hares  Moor,  In  King's  Norton, 
Warstone,  and  Warstock  Piece.  In  Cradley,  in  Hales  Owen, 
Warling  Meadow  and  Coppy  (Coppice).  In  Northfield,  Warstone, 
and  Warstone  I'ield.  In  Clent,  Warstone,  Upper  Wargen  and 
Lower  Wargen.     In  Martley,  Warcroft. 

HEREFORDSHIRE. 

In  Ullingswick,  Horestone,  Horestone  Length,  and  Horestone 
Piece.  In  Wolverlow,  Hai-e  Hill.  In  Ledbury  parish,  Hare 
Hill,  and  Warcroft.  In  Much  Marcle,  Harold's  Croft,  Harwell 
Orchard,  Harwell  Field,  and  Worrall's  Meadow.  In  or  near  Ken- 
derchurch,  Harold's  Ewias.  In  Upper  Sapey,  Warden's  Grove, 
At  Kentchurch,  Orcopp.  In  Cradley,  HaiTolds  Coppice,  (or 
Herold's  Copse),  Harrold's  Orchard,  Hai-rold's  IMeadow,  and  Big 
and  Little  Harrclls.     In  Collington,  Hoarstone  Leys,  Hoarstone 


896 

Leasow,  Hoarstone  Piece,  Hoarstone  Hopyard,  and  Hoar  Meadow. 
In  Orleton,  Harescroft. 

STAFFORDSHIRE. 
In  Amblecoate,  Hare's  Close. 

WARWICKSHIRE. 

In  Solihull,  Warstock  Comer,  War  Croft,  War  Meadow,  War- 
ing's  Coppice,  Hare  Croft,  and  Near  Hare  Croft. 

GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
In  Dymock,  Harding's,  Harcomb,  and  Harcomb  Coppice. 

OXFORDSHIRE. 
In  Chastleton,  Harcomb,  and  Wyton's  Harcomb. 

Near  Dublin  a  place  called  Harold's  Cross. 

"  Domesday  Book "  has  Harehille,  in  Gorsedone's  hd.  Co. 
Gloucester ;  and  Hore-dane,  and  Horefelle*,  in  that  county. 
Horebourne,  in  Staffordshire  ;  Horemede,  in  Herefordshire  ;  and 
Haregrave  in  Northamptonshire  and  Cheshire. 

In  WALES,  single  stones  set  up  as  boundaries,  or  as  com- 
memorative of  any  event,  were  termed  "  Meini-hirion,"  or  tall 
stones,  and  were  often  spoken  of  as  "  Llaydion,"  i.e.,  grey.  Now, 
there  is  a  piece  of  land  called  Greystone  Field,  in  the  parish  of 
Dudley  ;  and  there  are  fields  in  the  parish  of  Ilfracombe,  in 
Devonshire,  called  Near,  Far,  Inner,  Big  and  Little  Greystone, 
also  places  called  Eastern,  Middle  and  Western  Horedown,  The 
Bi'oad  Hoar,  and  Higher  and  Lower  Arcomb  Meadow.  In  Cuts- 
dean,  Worcestershire,  there  is  the  Grey-stone. 

*  Also,  Tristhaiii's  Harries,  Rowberry,  and  Kitstoue. 


[m 


— •— — 
OLDBUKY 

(PLACES  SO  CALLED). 

In  pp.  34,  35,  some  observations  are  made  relative  to  two  or 
three  places  in  Worcestershire,  called  by  the  name  of  Oldbury, 
accompanied  by  the  remark,  that  the  name  is  an  evidence  that 
such  places  were  generally  occupied  by  the  Eomans.  The  fol- 
lowing list,  which  contains  all  such  places  as  have  come  to  my 
knowledge  within  the  county,  together  with  a  few  of  those  met 
with  in  the  neighbouring  counties,  may  not  be  thought 
altogether  uninteresting. 

Oldbury,  in  Hales  Owen  *,  also  in  St.  John's,  near  Worcester ; 
Big  Oldburrow,  in  Wolverley ;  Oldbury  Field,  in  Hindlip ; 
Oldbury  Bam,  in  or  near  Elmbridge ;  Holborough  Green,  near 
Feckenham ;  Ilolbro'  Field,  in  Inkberrow  ;  Oldbury,  in  Upton, 
Warren ;  Little  Oldbrough,  and  Little  Oldbury  Wood,  in  the 
parish  of  Oldberrow  ;  Oldbury,  on  the  boundary  of  Smite  f,  which 
lies  partly  in  Wanidon,  and  partly  in  Hindlip  ;  Oldbury  Rough, 
in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove  ;  Oldbury,  Big,  Little,  and  Middle 
Oldbury,  and  Far  Oldbury  Meadow,  in  Rushock ;  Aldbrough 
Meadow,  in  Beoley  ;  Big  Holboume,  in  Shelsley  Beauchamp  ; 
Howboume  Hill,  in  South  Littleton ;  and  Hovvboume,  in 
Norton-juxta-Kempsey. 

•  There  was  in  tlie  Anglo  Suxoii  times  a  place  called  Ealdanburli, 
Alilburj,  or  OldbuiT,  in  Wdrcestersliire.  See  "Codex  Dip.,"  No.  57(t;  also 
see  Klbury  Hill,  pp.  2-2'i  to  '^'.iG. 

+   See  Heniiiift's  "  Cartnliiry,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  ■V)^). 


398 

The  following  are  not  in  Worcestershire  : — High  Oldbury,  in 
Amblecote,  Co.  Stafford. 

Oldbury  Gardens,  at  Tewkesbury,  Co.  Gloucester. 

Oldbury,  in  Much  Marcle  ;  Oldbury  and  Vineyard,  in  the 
pai'ish  of  Ledbury ;  and  Lower  Oldbury,  in  Linton,  Co.  Hereford. 

Oldborough  Castle,  near  Abury,  Co.  Wilts. 


309 


€h^Ut  0|. 


CASTLE 

(ANCIENT  SPOTS  SO  CALLED). 

In  p.  145  I  quoted  Bishop  Lyttelton's  opinion,  that  a  place 
called  Castle  Field,  not  far  from  the  Camp  in  Over  Arley,  but 
on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  "  was  so  named  from  the  Romans 
encamping  there,  as  no  ruins  of  a  castle,  or  any  tradition  of  there 
ever  having  been  one  there  remains."  Now,  this  also  may  be 
equally  said  respecting  the  Castle  Hill  in  Hadley  Heath  Camp  *, 
and  of  a  place  called  Payne's  Castle,  in  Alfrickf,  where  there  is 
nothing  but  a  cottage.  In  "  Grose's  Antiquities  of  England 
and  Wales,"  p.  1,  it  is  stated  that  "  the  Saxons,  Romans,  and 
even  according  to  some  writers  of  antiquity,  the  ancient  Britons, 
had  castles  built  with  stone." 

In  a  paper  in  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine,"  for  July  1842, 
entitled,  "  An  Inquiiy  into  the  true  History  of  King  Arthur," 
it  is  stated,  in  the  account  of  "  The  Battle  of  Castle  Gurnion," 
that  "  the  title  of  castle,  which  is  here  prefixed,  denoted,  in  the 
phraseology  of  the  middle  ages,  a  Roman  fortress,  or  a  town  built 
on  Roman  foundations,  in  the  same  sense  in  which  '  Chester,' 
or  '  Chestei-s'  is  used  in  numerous  instances  in  the  existing 
topography  of  Britain." 

There  are  Castle  Green  Suffield,  and  Castle  Hill  Meadow,  in 
Leigh  parish  ;  Big  Castle  Field,  in  Avenbury ;  Castle  Hill,  in 
Lindridge  ;  Castle  Tump  Meadow,  in  Eastham ;  Castle  Hill,  in 
Upton  Snodsbury ;  Castle  Field,  Castle  Bank,  and  Little  Castle, 
in  Mathon ;    Castle   Hill,  in   Feckenham :  Kit's  Castle,   Castle 

•  Sep  p.  108.  t  Soe  p.  '>:tO. 


400 

Tump,  and  Castle  Meadow,  in  Tenbury  parish ;  The  Castle 
Hedge,  in  Broom  ;  Castle  Hill,  in  Clent ;  Castle  Acre,  in  Hanley 
Child;  Castle  Hill,  in  Northfield ;  Red  Castle  Orchard,  in 
Suckley ;  Castle  Hill  Meadow,  in  Martley ;  Great  Castle  Hill, 
and  Castle  Hill,  in  Romsley,  in  Hales  Owen ;  and  Great  Castle 
Field,  in  Hillhampton,  in  Martley. 


401 


Chptcr  0||. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS 

RELATIVE  TO  THE  ANCIENT  NAMES  OF  FIELDS, 

&c. 

My  principal  object  in  marslialling  together  so  large  an  array 
of  names  of  fields  and  places  in  the  different  parishes,  particularly 
in  the  lines  or  supposed  lines  of  the  ancient  roads,  has  been  the 
hope  that  in  many  instances  these  names  will  tend  to  throw  light 
upon  the  etymology  of  each  other,  and  also  upon  their  own  his- 
tory both  in  early  and  later  times.  The  sources  to  which  I  am 
mainly  indebted  under  this  head  are  the  surveys  and  apportion- 
ments under  the  Tithe  Commutation  Act,  the  Ordnance  Survey 
Map,  and  the  "  Report"  and  "  Further  Reports  of  the  Commis- 
sioners for  Inquiring  concerning  Charities*." 

Although  some  of  these  names  have  become  partially  corrupted 
by  provincial  pronunciation,  it  seems  almost  miraculous  that  so 
large  a  number  have  been  accurately  preserved  through  the  lapse 
of  so  many  ages.  I  have  inserted  the  names  of  the  places,  as 
they  appeared  in  the  authorities  from  which  I  drew  them ;  and 
when  I  knew  any  such  to  be  erroneous,  or  that  the  places  also 
went  by  other  names,  such  additional  information  has  likewise 
been  given.  Should  it  be  asked  what  evidence  we  have  that  such 
names  were  given  in  ancient  times,  we  reply  that,  for  the  most 
part,  the  evidence  is  internal,  but  not  the  less  positive  on  that 
account ;  and  that,  although  the  names  of  some  of  the  places  may 

•  Till'  naiiips  of  tliP  parislies,  vills,  iiml  liairilots,  have  gpiierally  bpcn  taken 
from  Dr.  Nashs  "  History,'  Dr.  I'lioiiias's  *'  History,"  Heiniiij^'s  "  Carliilnrv, ' 
and  the  "  Codex  Dii)liiniaiicns." 

1>  D 


40a 

have  been  borrowed  in  after-times  from  those  of  an  earlier  date, 
while  others  may  have  assumed,  by  a  process  of  corruption,  their 
present  form,  yet,  notwithstanding  this,  the  majority  of  the  names 
are,  undoubtedly,  as  they  appear  to  be,  of  genuine  antiquity.  I 
must  here  remark,  that  I  consider  myself  particularly  fortunate 
that,  at  the  present  time,  so  many  independent  circumstances 
have  concurred  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land,  as 
above  stated,  to  assist  my  scattered  gleanings;  and,  although 
much  that  is  ancient  flies  before  the  advance  of  the  railway,  and 
the  spread  of  more  accurate  knowledge,  still  it  is  consolatory  that, 
in  their  passage,  these  vast  engines  of  destruction,  alike  to  tradi- 
tionary names  and  legendary  superstitions,  shed  a  momentary 
light  upon  their  victims,  by  aid  of  which  the  friendly  antiquary 
can,  at  least,  write  their  epitaph. 

That  land  was  in  early  times  divided  into  fields,  we  know 
from  Saxon  grants,  which  describe  hedges  and  ditches  ;  and, 
Sharon  Turner,  in  his  "  History  of  the  Anglo-Saxons-'-,"  thus 
remarks  upon  the  subject : — 

"  When  the  Anglo-Saxons  invaded  England,  they  came  into  a 
country  which  had  been  under  the  Roman  power  for  about  four 
hundred  years,  and  where  agriculture,  after  its  more  complete 
subjection  by  Agricola,  had  been  so  much  encouraged,  that  it  had 
become  one  of  the  western  granaries  of  the  empire.  The  Britons, 
therefore,  of  the  fifth  century  may  be  considered  to  have  pursued 
the  best  system  of  husbandry  then  in  use,  and  their  lands  to 
have  been  extensively  cultivated,  with  all  those  exterior  circum- 
stances which  mark  established  proprietorship  and  improvement : 
as,  small  farms,  inclosed  fields,  regular  divisions  into  meadow, 
arable,  pasture,  and  wood ;  fixed  boundaries,  planted  hedges, 
artificial  dykes  and  ditches,  selected  spots  for  vineyards,  gardens, 
and  orchards,  connecting  roads  and  paths,  scattered  villages,  and 
larger  towns  ;  with  appropriated  names  for  every  spot  and  object 
that  marked  the  limits  of  each  property,  or  the  course  of  each 
way.  All  these  appear  in  the  earliest  Saxon  charters,  and  before 
the  combating  invaders  had  time  or  ability  to  make  them,  if  they 

*   Vol   iii.,  A])]).  No.  '2. 


403 

had  not  found  them  in  the  island.  Into  such  a  country  the 
Anglo-Saxon  adventurers  came,  and  by  these  facilities  to  rural 
civilization,  soon  became  an  agricultural  people.  The  natives, 
whom  they  despised,  conquered,  and  enslaved,  became  their 
educators  and  servants  in  the  new  arts,  which  they  had  to  learn, 
of  grazing  and  tillage  ;  and  the  previous  cultivation  practised  by 
the  Romanised  Britons  will  best  account  for  the  numerous  divi- 
sions, and  accurate  and  precise  descriptions  of  land  which  occur 
in  almost  all  the  Saxon  charters.  No  modem  conveyance  could 
more  accurately  distinguish  or  describe  the  boundaries  of  the 
premises  which  they  conveyed." 


The  following  are  summaries  of  the  places,  in  or  near  the 
county,  called  by  the  names  "  Kidgeway,"  "  Portway,"  and 
"  Street." 


O^^ 


404 


(^Wtt  miM' 


KIDGEWAYS. 

There  are  several  plots  called  Ridgeway,  in  Norton,  in  Bredon ; 
Little  Ridgeway,  in  Nevvland ;  Ridgeway  Leasow,  and  Great  and 
Little  Ridgeway,  and  Rudgeway  or  Ridgeway  Ham  or  Common 
Field,  in  Powick ;  Ridgeway  Meadow,  in  the  parish  of  St.  John, 
in  Bedwardine ;  Ridgeway,  in  Feckenham ;  Ridgeway  Close,  in 
Tardebig ;  Ridgeway,  in  the  hamlet  of  Northwick,  in  Blockley ; 
Ridgeway  Field,  in  Doderhill ;  Big  Ridgeway  Pieces,  in  Leigh ; 
Rudgeway  Furlong,  in  Broadway ;  and  Ridgeway,  in  Eastham  ; — 
all  of  which  are  in  Worcestershire. 

In  Herefordshire  there  are  Ridgeway  Field  and  Ridgeway 
Coppice,  in  the  parish  of  Ledbury ;  The  Ridgeway,  between  the 
Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp  and  Eastuor ;  and  Ridgeway  Cross 
and  Ridgeway  Oak,  in  Cradley. 

In  Gloucestei-shire  there  are  Ridgeway  Hill,  Ridgeway  Piece, 
and  Ridgeway  Meadow,  in  Fiddington,  in  Ashchurch ;  and  Rudge- 
way, between  Tredington  and  Walton  Cardiff. 

With  respect  to  the  above-mentioned  "  Rudgeway  Furlong,"  in 
Broadway,  it  is  stated,  in  the  "  24th  Further  Report  of  the  Com- 
missioners for  inquiring  concerning  Charities"  for  the  county  of 
Worcester,  p.  574,  that  a  plot  of  charity  land,  therein  mentioned, 
is  "  a  sellion  or  rudge  of  arable  land,  lying  in  the  common  fields, 
in  a  furlong  there,  called  Rudgeway  Furlong,"  situate  at  "  the 
upper  end  of  Broadway."  Now,  Johnson,  quoting  Ainswoith, 
gives  the  word  "  sellion"  thus, — "  Selion.  s.  [Selio,  low  Latin]  a 
ridge  of  land ;"  therefore  it  is  quite  clear,  from  the  above,  that 
Rudge  means  Ridge. 

An  account  of  the  main  lines  and  branches  of  the  Ridgeway,  or 
Rycknield  Street,  will  be  found  at  p.  329  to  353. 


405 


^W^^  11- 


POETWAYS. 

In  either  Badsey,  Aldington,  or  Bretforton,  a  piece  used  to  be 
called  Portway  Furlong*.  There  is  Portway  Piece,  in  Wolverley ; 
Portway  Plat,  in  Croces  in  Sychampton,  in  Ombersley;  Porte 
Fields  Farm,  and  Porte  Fields  Koad,  in  Claines ;  The  Portway, 
in  Beoley;  Portridge  Field,  Little  Portridge,  and  Portnells  in 
the  Berrow ;  The  Portweye,  formerly  in  Kempsey ;  Portway  Field, 
in  Warley,  in  Hales  Owen ;  Portway,  in  Fladbury ;  and  Portfield, 
in  Northfield;  and  there  was  Port  Street,  on  the  Anglo-Saxon 
boundaries  of  Lawern,  in  the  parish  of  St.  John,  in  Bedwardine ; 
the  like,  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Salwarp  ;  and  Portway, 
on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Wolverton ; — all  of  which 
places  are  in  Worcestershire. 

Portway,  in  Over  Arley,  in  Staffordshire. — See  p.  145. 

Portway,  Portway  Meadow,  Upper  Portway  Meadow,  and  Lower 
Portway  Meadow,  in  Monington-on-the-Wye,  about  four  miles 
west  of  Kenchester  (the  site  of  the  ancient  Magna  f;)  Portway 
Orchard,  Portway  House,  and  the  Portway,  in  Orleton,  in 
Herefordshire. 

Portway  Top,  in  Dymock,  in  Gloucestershire. 

*  See  p.  3.](i,  title  "  Biulsey." 

+  See  p.  280,  &c.,  as  to  this  Portway  through  Worcestershire. 


406 


Cfea^ter  |. 


STEEETS. 

There  are  Street  Meadow  and  Street  Leasow,  in  Wolverley  ; 
Moors  (otherwise  Mours)  Street,  in  Hales  Owen  ;  Green  Street, 
and  Green  Street  Meadow,  in  Kempsey ;  Green  Street,  Nether 
Street,  and  Little  Sti'eet,  in  Hallow ;  Green  Street,  and  Hun- 
ningham  Street*,  in  Harvington;  Salter  Street  Ground,  in  Ink- 
berrow ;  The  Leys,  next  Kock  Street,  in  Chaseley  ;  Wood  Street, 
inBushley;  "  The  Streets,"  in  Bromsgrove  parish ;  Street  Hill 
Tillage,  in  Claines ;  Green  Street,  in  Wickhamford ;  Eagle 
Street,  in  Beoley.  Pieces  called  Lower  Street  Leasow,  and 
Upper  Street  Leasow,  in  the  Foreign  of  Kidderminster ;  Upper 
Street,  and  Upper  Street  Sling,  in  Doderhill ;  Street  Bank,  in 
Shelsley  Beauchamp ;  Street  Orchard,  in  Grimley ;  Street-end 
Meadow,  in  Alvechurch ;  Rye  Street,  in  Birt's  Morton ;  Green 
Street,  in  Alfrick  and  Lulsley ;  Street  and  Salt  Street,  in  the 
Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Wolverton ; — all  in  Worcestershire. 

Streets-end,  in  Much  Marcle ;  Streets-end  Orchard,  Street- 
end  Meadow,  and  Street-end  Garden,  in  UUingswick,  in  Here- 
fordshire. 

King  Street,  near  Berrington,  not  far  from  Shrewsbury,  in 
Shropshire. 

Streets  Brook  Coppice  and  Meadow,  and  Shirley  Street 
Meadow,  in  Solihull,  Co.  Warwick. 

*  Sec  p.  8-40,  referring  to  lleming's  "  Cartulary." 


407 


€Wtx  ||. 


SITES  OF  ANCIENT  VINEYARDS. 

As  the  name  '•  Vineyard"  occurs  in  almost  every  parish  in  the 
county  (a  few  of  which  have  previously  been  noticed),  it  would 
be  curious  to  ascertain  when  vines  were  first  planted  in  England, 
and  how  long  they  were  continued. 

As  the  name  sometimes  occurs  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
camps*,  and  in  the  lines  of  the  ancient  roads,  perhaps  they  were 
first  introduced  by  the  Romans ;  but,  if  so,  it  must  have  been 
during  the  latter  part  of  their  dominion  here ;  for,  Tacitus  in 
speaking  of  the  temperature  and  happy  situation  of  Britain,  says, 
"  there  is  nothing  deficient  in  it  but  the  olive  and  the  vine,  which 
only  grow  in  hotter  countries!." 

Dr.  Nash,  in  Vol.  i.  of  his  "  History,"  p.  307,  in  speaking  of 
a  place  called  The  Vines,  iji  Droitwich  *,  says,  "  Suetonius  tells  us 
that  Domitian  forbade  the  planting  of  any  new  vineyards,  and 
destroyed  at  least  half  of  the  old  ones  in  every  province.  The 
liberty  of  growing  vines  was  restored  by  Probus,  and  I  believe  the 
Britons  began  to  plant  thom  about  the  year  280.  Bede,  who 
finished  his  "  History"  in  731,  describing  Britain,  says,  they 
grew  vines  in  sundry  places ;  and,  Richard  of  Cirencester,  who 
died  about  1400,  makes  the  same  observation.  Perhaps  their 
cultivation  was  neglected,  when  the  inhabitants  found  they  could 
purchase  better  flavoured  wines  at  a  low  price  from  France,  or 
employ  their  lands  to  more  advantage  by  raising  grain  §. 

•  See  Stoke  Bliss,  p.  25^,  and  Wliitbonnie,  p.  213. 

+  See  "  Britaniiiii  .\mi(iiiii,"  liy  Aylett  Suinnies,  published  l(i7(i,  p.  .'). 

J   Several  Hoiiiaii  relics  have  been  found  there.— See  pp.  !)8  to  KH. 

§  See  .Mr.  Pe^'ge's  dissertation  in  the  first  volume  of  the  "  Architologla," 
p.  344.  Several  aufiquaries  consider  that  the  places  called  Vineyards  refer  to 
apple  or  other  fniit  orchards,  and  not  to  the  vine;  but  see  before,  ])p.  W  to  Id-,'. 


408 

And  in  Vol.  ii.,  "  Corrections  and  Additions,"  p.  24,  the  Doctor 
says,  "  In  William  of  Malmsbury's  description  of  Thomey  Abbey 
('  De  gestis  pontificum,'  L.  4,  p.  163,ed.  Savil),  there  is  a  passage 
which  seems  plainly  to  prove  that  vines,  for  making  wine,  were 
planted  in  England ;"  and  "  Camden  says,  one  of  the  four 
wonders  of  Ely  was  a  vinea." 

The  Doctor  also  refers  to  various  ancient  documents  relative  to 
vineyards  in  Ripple,  temp.  Henry  II. ;  Fladbury,  temp,  circa 
Henry  III. ;  in  Leigh,  temp,  circa  Edward  I.  ;  and  also  in 
Sedgbarrow  and  Elmley  Castle. 

It  is  said  that  the  sides  of  Towbuiy  Hill,  in  Gloucestershire, 
were  formerly  covered  with  vines. 

There  also  is  a  hill  by  Evesham  called  Vineyard  Hill,  planted 
by  Walter,  the  first  Norman  Abbot,  wliich  is  noticed  in  "  Domes- 
day," as  the  "  New  Vineyard:" — "  Et  vinea  novella  ibi." — Survey 
of  Abbey  land  at  Hampton,  in  "  Domesday  Book*."  There  are 
Vine  Hill,  and  the  Vineyards,  in  Dodenham  ;  The  Vinne,  Vinne 
Orchard,  Big  Vinne,  Little  Vinne,  and  Great  Viney,  in  Abberley ; 
Vineyard,  in  Stoke  Bliss  ;  The  Vineyard,  in  Powick ;  The  Vine- 
yard, in  Lower  Mitton,  in  the  parish  of  Kidderminster  ;  and  also 
in  a  great  many  other  places  in  the  county. 

*  See  May's  "  History  of  Eveshaui,"  second  edition,  1843,  pp.  18,  84. 


409 


a^tet  III, 


FOLK-LORE. 

ON  THE  IGNIS  FATUUS,  OR  WILL-O'-THE-WISP, 
AND  THE  FAIRIES. 

TiiE  following  chapter  was  published  as  a  separate  pamphlet, 
in  184G,  and  is  here  reprinted  with  various  additions. 

From  the  county  of  Worcester  might  be  gleaned  much  more 
of  tlie  ancient  folk-lore  than  is  here  presented  to  tlie  reader, 
the  researches  of  the  Author  having  been  chiefly  directed  to  the 
particular  legends  .in  reference  to  the  ignis  fatuus,  and  the  tiny 
inhabitants  of  fairyland. 

In  and  near  Worcestershire  there  are  many  fields  and  other  places 
distinguished  by  the  names  of  "  Hoberdy,"'  "  Hob,"  "  Puck," 
"  Jack,"  and  "  Will."  The  origin  of  such  appellations  is,  doubt- 
less, mainly  to  be  sought  in  the  popular  fairy  mythology  ;  and, 
in  investigating  the  subject,  the  Author  has  collected  many 
cuiious  legends  of  the  folk-lore,  more  particularly  those  tliat 
relate  to,  or  may  be  explained  by  the  natural  phenomenon  of  the 
itjnis  fatuus.  These  it  is  his  present  intention  to  lay  before  the 
reader. 

The  following  particulars  of  the  iynis  fatuus  were  pubhshed 
by  me  in  the  Worcester  newspapei-s,  of  January  1840. 

"  In  the  year  ls:^5,  1  gave  an  account  of  a  great  many  facts 
which  I  collected,  and  which  are  pubUshed  in  my  pamphlet  on  the 
'  Old  Red  Sandstone  of  Worcestei-shireand  Herefordshire,' relative 
to  that  rcniiirkiible  and  interesting  phenomenon  called  the  ignis 
fatuus,  or  Will-o'-the-Wisp,  but  I  never  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing 
it  myself  until  the  night  of  the  ?Hst  of  December,  18:39,  in  two 
meadows  and  a  stubble  licld  on  the  south  side  of  Brook  House, 


410 

situated  about  a  mile  from  Powick  village,  near  the  Upton  road. 
1  had  for  several  nights  before  been  on  the  look  out  there  for  it, 
but  was  told  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  house  that  previously  to 
tliat  night  it  was  too  cold.  I  noticed  it  from  one  of  the  upper 
windows  intermittingly  for  about  half  an  hour,  between  ten  and 
eleven  o'clock,  at  the  distance  of  from  one  to  two  hundred  yards 
off  me.  Sometimes  it  was  only  like  a  flash  in  the  pan  on  the 
ground;  at  other  times  it  rose  up  several  feet  and  fell  to  the 
earth,  and  became  extinguished ;  and  many  times  it  proceeded 
horizontally  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  yards  with  an  undulating 
motion,  like  the  flight  of  the  green  woodpecker,  and  about  as 
rapid ;  and  once  or  twice  it  proceeded  with  considerable  rapidity, 
in  a  straight  line  upon  or  close  to  the  ground. 

"  The  light  of  this  ignis  fatuus,  or  rather  of  these  ignes  fatui, 
was  very  clear  and  strong,  much  bluer  than  that  of  a  candle,  and 
very  like  that  of  an  electric  spark,  and  some  of  them  looked 
larger  and  as  bright  as  the  star  Sirius  ;  of  course,  they  look  dim 
when  seen  in  ground  fogs,  but  there  was  not  any  fog  on  the 
night  in  question  ;  there  was,  however,  a  muggy  closeness  in  the 
atmosphere,  and  at  the  same  time  a  considerable  breeze  from  the 
south-west.  Those  Will-o'- the- Wisps  which  shot  horizontally 
invariably  proceeded  before  the  wind  towards  the  north-east. 

"  On  the  day  before,  namely,  the  30th  of  December,  there  was 
a  white  frost  in  the  morning ;  but  as  the  sun  rose  behind  a 
mantle  of  very  red  and  beautifully  stratified  clouds,  it  rained 
heavily  (as  we  anticipated)  in  the  evening ;  and  from  that 
circumstance  I  conjectured  that  I  should  see  the  phenomenon  in 
question  on  the  next  night,  agreeably  to  all  the  evidence  I  had 
before  collected  upon  the  subject. 

"  On  the  night  of  the  1st  of  Januaiy,  1840,  I  saw  only  a  few- 
flashes  on  the  ground  at  the  same  place ;  but  on  the  next  night 
(the  wind  still  blowing  from  the  south-west),  1  not  only  saw  several 
ignes  fatui  rise  up  occasionally  in  the  same  locality  many  feet 
high,  and  fill  again  to  the  ground,  but  at  about  eight  o'clock  two 
very  beautiful  ones  rose  together  a  little  more  than  one  hundred 
yards  from  nie,  and  about  fifty  yards  apart  from  each  other.  The 
one  ascended  several  yards  high,  and  then  fell  in  a  curve  to  the 


411 

ground  and  vanished.  The  other  proceeded  in  an  horizontal 
direction  for  about  fifty  yards  towards  the  north-east,  in  the  same 
undulating  and  rapid  manner  as  I  have  before  described.  I  and 
others  immediately  ran  to  the  spot,  but  did  not  see  any  light 
during  our  stay  there.  Both  these  nights  were  stai'-light,  with 
detached  clouds,  and  rather  warm,  but  no  fog.  On  the  night  of 
the  3rd  of  January  the  atmosphere  was  occasionally  thick,  but 
there  was  not  any  wind  or  fog,  nor  the  slightest  appearance 
of  the  phenomenon. 

"  There  was  a  very  considerable  quantity  of  rain  on  the  4th  of 
January,  but  it  ceased  at  five  o'clock  in  the  evening ;  and  from 
about  seven  till  eight  the  meteors  again  appeared  several  times 
at  the  spot  in  question ;  but  as  there  was  not  any  wind  they  went 
in  various  directions. 

"  On  the  night  of  the  5tli  of  January  (which  was  star-light),  I 
observed  a  few  flashes  on  the  ground  at  the  turn  of  the  evening, 
but  it  soon  after  became  cold  and  frosty,  and  I  saw  no  more  of 
them  either  on  that  or  the  two  succeeding  nights.  I  did  not 
see  any  lightning  during  the  whole  of  those  observations,  which 
were  made  by  others  of  the  house  as  well  as  myself. — The  soil  of 
the  locality  is  clay,  with  considerable  beds  of  gravel  interspersed 
thereon. 

"  From  all  the  circumstances  stated,  it  appears  probable  tliat 
these  meteors  rise  in  exhalations  of  electric,  and,  perhaps,  other 
matter,  out  of  the  earth,  particularly  in  or  near  the  winter 
season  ;  and  that  they  generally  occur  a  day  or  two  after  con- 
siderable rain,  and  on  a  cliange  from  a  cold  to  a  warmer 
atmosphere*." 

•  An  opinion  has  been  euterudned  by  some  writers  that  "  Will-o -the- Wisp" 
is  nothing  more  than  a  hnuhious  insect  (see  "  Satnrday  Magazine,"  Nov.  5, 
1830,  p.  180,  quoting  Kirby  and  Spence) ;  but  from  all  that  I  have  seen  and 
collected  upon  the  subject,  the  volimie  of  light  api>ears  to  be  nnich  too  large 
to  give  any  coinitenance  to  that  opinion.  The  principal  circumstance  upon 
which  the  insect  theory  rests,  is  that  a  person  who  once  upon  a  time  chased 
H  "  Will-o' ihc  Wis]),"  caught  a  mole  cricket  in  his  hat:  but  the  probability 
is,  that  in  (■liii>iiig  om-  iliiiig  lie  caught  another;  and,  I  believe,  wc  have 
yet  to  learn  vlntbcr  mulr  crickets  arc  luminous  or  not. 


412 


HOB. 


Ill  an  account  which  I  published  in  IHOS,  relative  to  the 
appearance  of  the  ignesfatui  in  Allrick  and  its  neighbourhood,  1 
stated  that  they  are  called  by  the  names  of  "  Hoberdy's  Lan- 
tern," "  Hobany's  Lantern,"  "  Hob  and  his  Lantern,"  "  Jack- 
o'-Lantem,"  and  "  Will-o'-the-Wisp,"  in  tliat  district  to  this 
day*. 

In  Hone's  "  Every-day  Book,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  1371,  we  read — 
"  That  there  is  a  custom  very  common  in  Cheshire,  called  Old 
Hob ;  it  consists  of  a  man  carrying  a  horse's  head,  covered  with 
a  sheet,  to  frighten  people.  This  frolic  is  usual  between  All- 
Souls'  Day  and  Christmas." 

In  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine,"  for  January,  1845f,  it  is 
stated,  that  formerly  there  was  a  practice  observed  in  Kent  of 
"  Hodening,"  or  carrying  a  horse's  head  in  procession  at 
Christmas  Eve.  "  Hodening  "  would  here  seem  to  be  a  cor- 
ruption for  "  Hobening." 

The  woi'ds  "hoberdy,"  "hobany];,"  and  "hob, "most probably, like 
the  word  "  hobby  §,"  are  all  derived  from  the  Gothic  word  "  hoppe  ||," 
which  signifies  a  horse  ;  for  we  find  that  in  vaiious  legends 
relative  to  sprites,  &c.,  fiend  horses  form  a  prominent  part;  and 
as  the  movements  of  the  ignesfatui  resemble  in  a  measm'e  the  can- 
tering motion  of  a  horse  H,  that  may  have  been  the  reason  why  the 
names  in  question  were  given  to  these  meteors**  :  and  here  we 
appear  to  have  the  true  meaning  of  the  word  hobgoblin,  that  is, 

♦  Fairy  rings  abound  there,  as  well  as  in  various  other  parts  of  the  county. 

+  See  p.  2,  "  Minor  Correspondence." 

J  There  were  in  Anglo-Saxon  times  Obanleah  and  Obantrcovv.  See  "  Codex 
Dip.,"  No.  20,  and  20  App.,  Vol.  vi.,p.  508. 

§  See  Johnson's  "  Dictionary,"  title  Hobby. 

II  And  hence  the  words  "  hobby-horse  "  and  "  hobble." 

1[  A  hobbling  or  awkward-gaited  country  lad  is  called  a  hoberdy-hoy. 

•*  It  is  said  that  the  merciless  wreckers  on  the  coasts  of  Cornwall  and  Devon 
sometimes,  in  dark  windy  nights,  attach  a  lantern  to  a  lame  horse,  and  then 
lead  him  along  the  coast,  hoping  that  some  passing  vessel  may  mistake  the 
undulating  light  of  the  lantern  for  that  of  another  vessel,  and  ihcreby  be 
deeoved  on  shore  and  wrecked. 


4i:i 

a  fiend  horse,  which  afterwards  became  a  verj-  general  name  for 
sprites,  in  whatever  shape  they  might  appear. 

Horsemen  who  were  stationed  in  particular  places,  to  give 
notice  of  the  approach  of  an  enemy  in  the  day-time,  were  anciently 
called  "  hobelers."     See  "  Archseologia,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  4. 

In  the  "  Literary  Gazette  "  for  May  9,  1846,  p.  426,  the 
subject  is  also  noticed  as  follows : — "  Hobby,  a  little  Irish  nag 
for  the  hobelers,  a  kind  of  Irish  knights,  light  horsemen  ;  hobelers 
in  England,  those  whose  tenure  was  by  maintaining  a  light  nag, 
to  certify  an  invasion,  or  any  peril  by  the  sea-side." 

I  am  informed  by  Mr.  Lower,  of  Lewes,  that  "  Hobs  Hoth  " 
is  one  of  the  wildest  sports  on  the  South  Downs  of  Sussex. 

The  word  "  hoberd  "  is  used  as  a  satirical  expression  in  the 
"  Coventi-y  Mysteries."  (See  the  edition  by  J.  O.  Halliwell,  Esq., 
pp.  179,  325.)  And  it  also  occurs  in  the  curious  old  poem  on 
"  The  Man  in  the  Moon,"  printed  in  Mr.  Halliwell's  "  Introduc- 
tion to  Shakespeare's  Midsummer  Night's  Dream,"  p.  54. 

There  are  places  called  Hob's  Hole  and  Hob's  Hole  Coppice,  in 
Aston,  in  Blockley ;  Hoberdy  Hill,  in  Kempsey ;  Hob  Moor,  in 
Chaddesley  Corbett;  Hob's  Hole,  in  Offenhara ;  Hob's  Green, 
between  Stourbridge  and  Hales  Owen  ;  Hobden  and  Obden 
]3rook,  in  Stoke  Prior ;  Hob  Well*,  in  Great  Malveni ;  Upper 
Hobs,  Farther  Hob  Lays,  and  Nether  Hob  Lays,  in  Sheriffs 
Lench ;  Hobbis  Meadow,  Hobbis's,  and  Obbis  IVIeadow,  in 
Tardebigg  ;  Hobby  Kiss,  in  Warley  Wigom,  in  Hales  Owen  : 
Hob  Croft,  Hob  Hill,  Hob  Hill  Meadow,  Hob  Hill  Rough,  and 
Little  Hob  Hill,  in  Bcoleyf ;  Hobbis's  Piece,  in  King's  Norton  ; 
Hob  Acre,  First  Hob  Ilidge,  Far  Hob  Ridge,  Hob  Redding,  and 
Hob  Croft,  in  Northfield|;  Upper  Hoblets,  Banky  Hoblets,  and 
Hob  Acre,  in  Frankley ;  Hoberton,  in  Alderminster ;  Great 
Hobbis's  Meadow  and  Lower  Hobbs  Meadow,  in  Tredington  ; 
and  The  Hob  Nails,  in  Little  Washborn. 


•  See  G()U},'hs  "  Cimulen,"  Vol.  ii.,  secoiitl  edition,    I*^(M!,  p.  487  ;  but  it 
lias  now  lost  its  iinine. 

+  Also  "  iSiiiijj;,  near  Kivins." 
I   Also  Wiflies-  Kuii^'li. 


414 

In  Sussex  there  is  a  place  called  Hobden. 

In  Leicestershire  there  is  Hobwell. 

In  Warwickshire  there  are  places  called  Hob  Lane  Piece,  in 
Sheldon ;  Hobs  Hole  and  Little  Hobs  Hole,  in  Willington,  in 
Barcheston  ;  Hobs  Croft,  in  Ipsley ;  Hobbin's*  Close,  in  Great 
Alnef;  Hobbin's  Close,  on  Copt  Heath;  and  Hobs  Moat,  in 
Solihull. 

In  the  "Athenaeum"  for  Sept.  18th,  1847,  p.  982,  there  is 
the  following  passage  relative  to  Puck,  alias  Hob,  having  fre- 
quently assumed  the  shape  of  a  horse. 

"  In  the  characters,  too,  which  Puck  assumes  when  his  object 
is  to 

Mislead  night  wanderers,  laughing  at  their  harm  ; 

for  which  purpose  he  says. 

Sometime  a  horse  I'll  be,  sometime  a  hound, 
A  hog,  a  headless  bear,  sometime  a  fire. 

he  is,  as  unquestionably,  only  taking  upon  himself  forms 

which  the  spirits  of  popular  belief  were  constantly  in  the  habit 
of  assuming.  How  very  ancient  and  far-spread  is  the  belief  in 
spirits  or  fairies  assuming  the  form  of  a  horse,  we  learn  from 
Gervase  of  Tilbury,  who,  in  a  well-known  and  oft-quoted  passage 
of  his  '  Otia  Imperialia,'  speaks  of  a  spirit  which,  in  England, 
was  called  Grant,  and  appeared  in  '  likeness  of  a  filly  foal.' 
*  Est  in  Anglia  quoddam  demonum  genus,  quod  suo  idiomate 
Grant  nominant  ad  instar  pulli  equini  anniculi,'  &c. ;  and  Mr. 
Keightley,  in  his  '  Fairy  Mythology,'  has  shown,  from  Grose, 
'  that,  in  Hampshire,  they  still  give  the  name  Colt  Pixy  to  a 
supposed  spirit  or  fairy,  which,  in  the  shape  of  a  hoi-se,  wickers, 
i.e.,  neighs  and  misleads  horses  into  bogs,  &c.,' — a  prank  which 
is  exactly  one  of  those  that  Puck  plays,  when  he  assumes  the 
shape  of  a  horse  to  make  Oberon  smile.'" 

DOBBIES. 

The  name  of  this  species  of  fairies,  most  probably,  like  the  words 
"  hobby"  and  "  hob,"  is  derived  from  the  before-mentioned  Gothic 

*   Mobiii  (Freiu-li),  a  pacing  horse.  +  Also  Elvin's  Close. 


415 

word  "  hoppe ;"  for  the  word  "  dobbin,"  to  this  day,  is  a  pro- 
vincial term  for  horse.  The  following  account  of  the  Dobbies  is 
given  in  a  list  of  ancient  words  at  present  used  in  the  moun- 
tainous districts  of  the  West  Riding  of  Yorkshire,  printed  in  the 
"  Archseologia,"  Vol.  xvii.,  p.  144  : — 

"  Dobbies,  demons  attached  to  particular  houses  or  farms. 
The  ideas  respecting  them  arc  the  same  as  are  held  in  Scotland 
with  respect  to  Brownies.  Though  naturally  lazy,  they  are  said 
to  make,  in  case  of  trouble  and  difficulty,  incredible  exertions  for 
the  advantage  of  the  family, — as  to  stack  all  tlie  hay,  or  house 
the  whole  crop  of  com,  in  one  night. 

"  The  farmers'  horses  are  left  to  rest,  and  stags,  or  other  wild 
animals,  are  supposed  to  fulfil  the  orders  of  the  demon. 

"  Some  of  the  Dobbies  are  contented  to  stay  in  outhouses  with 
the  cattle,  but  others  will  only  dwell  among  human  beings.  The 
latter  are  thought  to  be  fond  of  heat ;  but  when  the  hearth  cools, 
it  is  said  they  frisk  and  racket  about  the  house,  greatly  disturbing 
the  inmates.  If  the  family  should  move,  with  the  expectation  of 
finding  a  more  peaceable  mansion,  their  hopes  would  be  frus- 
trated ;  for  we  are  informed  that  the  Dobby,  being  attached  to 
the  persons,  not  to  the  place,  would  remove  also,  and  commence 
his  revels  in  the  new  habitation. 

"  The  Dobbies  residing  in  lone  granges  or  barns,  and  near 
antiquated  towers,  bridges,  &c.,  have  a  character  imparted  to 
them  different  from  that  of  the  house  demons.  Benighted 
travellei"s  are  thought  to  be  much  endangered  by  passing  their 
haunts  ;  for,  as  grave  legends  assure  us,  an  angry  sprite  will 
sometimes  jump  behind  a  horseman,  and  compress  him  so  tightly, 
that  he  either  perishes  before  he  can  reach  his  home,  or  falls  into 
some  lingering  and  direful  malady." 

There  are  Dobbin's  Hill  and  Little  Dobbin's  Ilill,  in  the 
Berrow ;  Dol)bs  Hill,  in  P^ldersfield ;  Dobbins  Meadow  and 
Lower  Dobbins,  in  Mathon ;  Upper  Dobbins  and  Lower 
Dobbins,  in  King's  Norton  ;  and  Dobies,  in  Chaddeslcy 
Corbett. 


416 


COB. 


This  word  also  frequently  occurs  as  a  proper  name,  and  it  most 
probably  is  a  corruption  of  the  Saxon  word  "  cop"  (or  Dutch  "  kop"), 
and  means  the  head,  the  top,  a  mound,  or  anything  round*. 
Possibly,  however,  in  some  cases  the  word  "  cob"  may  be  a  cor- 
ruption of,  or  rather  substituted  for,  the  word  "  hob,"  in  like 
maimer  as  the  latter  sometimes  is  for  the  former." 

There  are  places  called  Cob's  Orchard  and  Cob's  Coppice,  in 
Grimley ;  Cob  Nailf,  in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove  ;  Cob's  Hole, 
in  Abberley ;  Cob's  Field,  in  Xorthfield ;  Cob  Hill,  in  Elders- 
field  ;  Cob's  Orchard,  Cob's  Close,  and  Cob's  Croft,  in  Doderhill ; 
Cob's  Meadow,  in  Alvechurch ;  and  Cob's  Croft,  in  Staunton. 

In  Gloucestershire. — Cob's  Hole,  in  Dymock. 

In  Warwickshire. — Cob-dock  Hill,  near  Wasperton. 

In  Sussex. — Cob  Court,  and  Cobden. 

In  the  north-east  corner  of  Lincoln  Castle  "  is  a  remarkable 
strong  little  building,  called  Cob's  Hall  j,  appearing  on  the  outside 
like  a  tower,  and  used  as  a  dungeon  §."  The  object  for  which  it 
was  built  does  not  appear  certain  ;  but  on  account  of  its  circular 
form  it  most  probably  took  its  name  from  "  cop,"  unless,  indeed, 
it  was  a  supposed  fairy  hall  of  Cob  or  Hob,  and  designated 
accordingly. 

It  is  stated  in  Gough's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  iii.,  p.  88,  that,  at 
Ross,  in  Herefordshire,  there  "  is  a  cross  called  Cob's  Cross,  i.  e., 
Corpus  Christi,  and  a  lane  of  the  same  name."  But  surely  this 
derivation  cannot  be  correct ;  otherwise  we  should  have,  as  above, 
Corpus  Orchard,  Corpus  Coppice,  Corpus  Nail,  Corpus  Hole,  Sec. 

*  A  small  horse  is  called  a  cob ;  and  hence,  perhaps,  the  word  "  cub." 

t  Hob-nail  most  probably  is  a  corruption  of  cobnail.  There  is  a  piece  of 
land  called  "  Hob-Irons"  in  King's  Norton.  The  hob  or  cob-iron  is  a  kind  of 
dog  or  horse,  standing  njjon  three  feet  (two  before,  and  one  behind),  with  a 
round  knob  for  the  head:  they  are  placed  on  each  side  of  tlie  liearth  in  the 
kitchens  of  old  farm-houses  to  lay  the  wood  upon,  and  also  the  spit,  and  sene 
instead  of  a  grate. 

J  "  Or  Cobb  Hall." 

§   See  Gough's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  ii.,  j).  3()5, 


417 


KNOP. 


We  find  in  Thorns  s  "  Lays  and  Legends  of  Various  Nations*," 
that  "  an  old  Irish  fable  states,  that,  in  a  Danish  intrenchment 
on  the  road  between  Cork  and  Middleton,  Knop,  a  fairy  chief, 
kept  his  court ;  where,  often  at  night,  travellers  who  were  not 
well  acquainted  with  the  road  were  led  astray  by  lights  which 
were  seen,  and  music  which  was  heard,  within  the  fort. 

"  '  Kuop,  witliiu  thy  cavenied  hall. 

Where  thou  keepest  thy  fairy  court, 
There,  attendant  on  thy  call, 

Airy  chiefs  and  knights  resort,'  "  &c. 

And  in  a  note  it  is  added  : — "  Knop  (cnap)  is  the  Irish  for  a 
hillock,  a  hump,  a  button,  any  small  rotundity. — (See  note  on 
the  word  in  '  Lays  and  Legends  of  Germany,'  i.,  p.  5.)  We 
doubt  not  that  Knop  is  the  proper  name  of  the  hump-conferring 
fairy  chief,  so  notorious  in  English,  Spanish,  German,  Italian, 
and  Irish  tradition. — (See  Pamell's  poem,  '  In  Britain's  Isle 
and  Arthur's  Days ;'  '  Quarterly  Review,'  No.  63,  p.  206 ; 
'  Redi's  Letters ;'  '  Tale  of  Knockgrafton,'  in  '  Fairy  Legends  of 
South  Ireland,'  &c.") 

Dr.  Johnson  derives  "  knap"  from  the  Welsh,  as  follows : — 
"  Knap  (cnap,  Welsh,  a  protuberance),  a  protuberance  ;  a  swel- 
ling prominence. — Bacon.' 

There  is  a  hillock  called  the  Knap,  in  Alfrick.  In  a  work 
published  by  the  Rev.  E.  Duke,  relative  to  the  Druidical 
Temples  of  the  County  of  Wilts,  he  considers  that  Knap  Hill, 
which  lies  between  Abury  and  Stonehenge,  was  derived  from 
Knephf,  or  Cneph,  which,  as  well  as  Thoth,  was  the  Egyptian 
or  Phrenician  name  for  Mercury,  who,  it  is  said,  on  the 
authority  of  Caesar  and  others,  was  worshipped  at  the  Toot  Hills 
as  the  guide  over  tlie  hills  and  trackways  \ ;  but,  as  "  Knap"  in 
Welsh  means  a  rising  or  hillock,  these  names  most  probably  in 
general  were  derived  from  the  latter  source  §. 

•   P.  24,  of  the  "  Lays  and  Legends  of  Ireland,"  published  in  1834. 
+  There  is  a  place  called  Knep,  in  Sussex. 
J   See  the  account  of  Toot  Hills,  pp.  234,  235. 
§  See  p.  193. 

E  E 


418 


PUCK,   HOB,  ROBIN  GOOD-FELLOW,   ROBIN  HOOD. 

The  peasantry  in  Alfrick,  and  those  parts,  say  that  they  are 
sometimes  what  they  call  Poake  *  ledden  ;  that  is,  that  they  are 
occasionally  waylaid  in  the  night  by  a  mischievous  sprite,  whom 
they  call  Poake  f,  who  leads  them  into  ditches,  bogs,  pools,  and 
other  such  scrapes,  and  then  sets  up  a  loud  laugh,  and  leaves 
them  quite  bewildered  in  the  lurch  J.  Now,  it  is  natural  enough 
for  these  simple-minded  peasantry,  when  bewildered  and  misled 
in  the  night  by  a  Jack-o '-Lantern,  particularly  should  they  pre- 
viously have  had  plenty  of  good  old  cider  at  some  neighbouring 
farm-house,  to  fancy,  as  their  ancestors,  time  out  of  mind,  did 
before  them,  that  any  noise  they  might  then  hear,  such  as  the 
hooting  of  an  owl,  the  crowing  of  a  cock,  the  bleating  of  a  calf, 
the  neiglung  of  a  horse,  or  the  braying  of  an  ass,  is  the  laughter 
and  ridicule  of  Poake,  or  Puck§. 

According  to  tradition,  that  interesting  headland  called  Ose- 
berrow,  or  Osebury||  [vulgo  Rosebury)  Rock,  which  lies  not  far 
from  Alfrick,  and  is  situated  upon  the  border  of  the  river  Teme, 
in  Lulsley,  opposite  to  Knightsford  Bridge,  was  a  favourite  haunt 
of  the  fairies  [vulgo  pharises).  It  is  said  they  had  a  cave  there 
(which  is  still  shown  11 ) ;  and,  that  once  upon  a  time,  as  a  man 
and  boy  were  ploughing  in  an  adjoining  field,  they  heard  an 
outcry  in  the  copse  on  the  steep  declivity  of  the  rock ;  and  upon 
their  going  to  see  what  was  the  matter,  they  came  up  to  a  fairy, 
who  was  exclaiming  that  he  had  lost  his  pick,  or  pick-axe  :  this, 
after  much  search,  the  ploughman  found  for  him  ;  and,  thereupon, 
the  fairy  said  if  they  would  go  to  a  certain  comer  of  the  field 

•  The  adding  of  the  letter  a  in  the  above  word  is  a  common  vulgarism  of 
the  county.     In  like  manner  the  peasantrj-  say  poarke  or  pearke  for  pork. 

+  They  also  call  the  puff,  or  puck-ball  fungus,  by  the  name  of  pug-fiest 
(foist). 

X  The  same  fancy  also  prevails  in  Ombersley,  Upttm  Snodsbury,  and  other 
parishes. 

§  Being  Pixy  led  is  also  a  general  fancy  in  Devonshire. 

II   By  mistake  named  \Voo<lbury  Rock  in  the  Ordnance  Map. 

^   And  also  a  bole  called  the  "  Witches  Oven." 


U9 

wherein  they  had  been  ploughing,  they  would  get  their  reward. 
They  accordingly  went,  and  found  plenty  of  bread  and  cheese, 
and  cider,  on  which  the  man  feasted  heaitily  ;  but  the  boy  was  so 
much  frightened  that  he  would  not  partake  of  the  repast. 

It  also  is  said,  that  upon  another  occasion  a  fairy  came  to  a 
ploughman  in  the  same  field,  and  exclaimed — 

"  Oh,  lend  a  hainnier  and  a  nail, 
^\^lich  we  want  to  mend  our  pail." 

There  likewise  is  a  saying  in  the  neighbourhood,  that  if  a 
woman  should  break  her  peel  (a  kind  of  shovel  used  in  baking 
bread),  and  should  leave  it  for  a  little  while  at  the  fairies  cave 
in  Osebury  Rock,  it  would  be  mended  for  her. 

In  days  of  yore,  when  the  church  at  Inkberrow  was  taken 
down  and  rebuilt  upon  a  new  site,  the  fairies,  whose  haunt  was 
near  the  latter  place,  took  offence  at  the  change,  and  endeavoured 
to  obstruct  the  building  by  carrying  back  the  materials  in  the 
night  to  the  old  locality.  At  length,  however,  the  church  was 
triumphant,  but  for  many  a  day  afterwards  the  following  lament 
is  said  to  have  been  occasionally  heard  : — 

"  Neither  sleep,  neither  lie. 

For  Inkbro's  ting  tangs  hang  so  nigh  *." 

The  church  is  a  large  and  handsome  edifice,  of  mixed  styles  of 
arcliitecture.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  built  about  five  cen- 
turies ago,  but  has  undergone  much  alteration. 

As  a  couutiyman  was  one  day  working  in  a  field  in  Upton 
Snodsbury,  he  all  of  a  sudden  heard  a  great  outcry  in  a  neigh- 
bouring piece  of  ground,  which  was  followed  by  a  low,  mournful 
voice,  saying,  "  1  have  broke  my  bilk,  I  have  broke  my  bilk  ;"  and 
thereupon  the  man  picked  up  the  hammer  and  nails  which  he  had 
with  liira,  and  ran  to  the  spot  from  whence  the  outer}'  came,  where 
he  found  a  fairy  lamenting  over  his  broken  bilk,  which  was  a  kind 
of  cross-barred  seat ;  this  the  man  soon  mended,  and  the  fairy,  to 

•  Tlie  fairies  made  their  couplet  correspond  as  truly  with  the  chimes  as  that 
celebrated  one  which  foretold  the  fame  of  \\liittuigton  and  his  cat.  In  Thorpe's 
"  Northern  Mythologj,"  Vol.  ii.,  pp.  154,  155,  several  instances  are  given  of 
the  Trolls'  hatred  of  bells,  in  Scandinavia. 


420 

make  him  amends  for  his  pains,  danced  round  him  till  he  wound 
him  down  into  a  cave,  where  he  was  treated  with  plenty  of 
biscuits  and  wine ;  and  it  is  said  that  from  thenceforward  that 
man  always  did  well  in  life.  I  have  been  informed,  by  Mr.  Lower, 
that  there  is  a  similar  legend  in  Sussex  relative  to  the  fairies 
{vulgo  pharises),  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Alfriston,  though  the 
article  broken  was  not  a  "  bilk,"  but  a  "  peel,"  and  the  reward 
was  a  beer-sop. 

The  following  extract,  from  Shakespeare's  "  Midsummer 
Night's  Dream,"  Act  ii..  Scene  1,  is  much  in  point  upon  our 
subject : — 

"  Fairy.  Either  I  mistake  yoiir  shape  and  making  quite, 
Or  else  you  are  that  shrewd  and  knavish  sprite, 
Call'd  Robin  Good-fellow :  are  you  not  he, 
That  fright  the  maidens  of  the  villagery ; 
Skim  milk ;  and  sometimes  labour  in  the  queni, 
And  bootless  make  the  breathless  housewife  chum ; 
And  sometime  make  the  drink  to  bear  no  bann  ; 
Mislead  night-wanderers,  laughing  at  their  hanu  ? 
Those  that  Hohgohlin  call  you,  and  stveet  Puck, 
You  do  their  work,  and  they  shall  have  good  luck : 
Are  you  not  he  ? 

"  Puck.  Thou  speak'st  aright ; 

I  am  that  merry  wanderer  of  the  night. 
1  jest  to  Oberon,  and  make  him  smile, 
When  I  a  fat  and  bean-fed  horse  beguile, 
Neighing  in  likeness  of  a  filly  foal ;"  &c. 

In  Drayton's  "  Nymphidia=i-"  the  following  lines  occur  in  the 
account  of  Oberon 's  chace  after  his  wife.  Queen  Mab  : — 

"  Scarce  set  on  shore,  but  there  withal 
He  meeteth  Puck,  which  most  men  call 
Hob-goblin,  and  on  him  doth  fall 

With  words  from  frenzy  spoken. 
'  Hoh,  hoh,'  quoth  Hob  +,  '  God  save  your  grace  ? 
Who  dress'd  thee  in  this  piteous  case  ? 

•  This  was  a  subsequent  production  to  the  "  Midsummer  Night's  Dream." 
(See  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  p.  195.) 

+  He  also  is  called  by  the  name  of  "  Hobgoblin"  and  "  Hob"  several  times 
afterwards  in  that  poem. 


421 

He  tlius  that  spoil'd  my  sov'reign's  face, 
I  would  his  neck  were  broken.'  " 

In  the  "  Illustrations  of  the  Fairy  Mythology  of  a  Midsum- 
mer Night's  Dream,"  by  Mr.  Halliwell,  for  tlie  Shakespeare 
Society,  the  following  account  occurs  in  p.  1'27,  in  what  is  called 
the  "  Life  of  Kobin  Good-fellow*  :" — 

"  How  Robin  Good-fellow  served  a  Clownish  Fellow. 

"  Presently  Robin  shaped  himselfe  like  to  the  horse  that  the 
fellow  followed,  and  so  stood  before  the  fellow  :  presently  the 
fellow  tooke  hold  of  him  and  got  on  his  backe,  but  long  had  he 
not  rid,  but  with  a  stumble  he  hurl'd  this  churlish  clowne  to  the 
ground,  that  he  almost  broke  his  necke ;  yet  took  he  not  this  for 
a  sufficient  revenge  for  the  crosse  answers  he  had  received,  but 
stood  still  and  let  the  fellow  mount  him  once  more. 

"In  the  way  the  fellow  was  to  ride  was  a  great  plash  of  water 
of  a  good  depth ;  thorow  this  must  he  of  necessity  ride.  No 
sooner  was  hee  in  the  middest  of  it,  but  Robin  Good-fellow  left  him 
with  nothing  but  a  pack-saddle  betwixt  his  leggs,  and,  in  the 
shape  of  a  fish  swomme  to  the  shore,  and  ran  away  laughing,  ho, 
ho,  hoh  I  leaving  the  poore  fellow  almost  drowned." 

And  in  pp.  13-2,  133:— 

"  How  Robin  Good-feli.ow  led  a  Company  of  Fellows  out 
OF  TiiEiR  Way. 

"  A  company  of  young  men  having  beene  making  merry  with 
their  sweet  hearts,  were  at  their  comming  home  to  come  over  a 
heath.  Robin  Good-fellow,  knowing  of  it,  met  them,  and  to  make 
some  pastime,  hee  led  them  up  and  downe  the  heath  a  whole 
night,  so  that  they  could  not  get  out  of  it ;  for  he  went  before 
them  in  the  shape  of  a  walking  fire,  which  they  all  saw  and  fol- 
lowed till  the  day  did  appeare  ;  then  Robin  left  them,  and  at  his 
departure  spake  these  words  : — 

"  '  Get  you  liouie,  you  merry  iiids  i 
Tell  your  mammies  and  your  dads, 

•   It  is  supposed  lliiU  Shake qiearr  whs  aeiiuuiuled  with  this  Inict. 


/ijr 


422 

And  all  those  that  iiewes  desire, 
How  you  saw  a  walking  (ire*. 
Wenches,  that  do  smile  and  lispe 
Use  to  call  me  Willy  Wispe. 
If  that  you  but  weary  be, 
It  is  sport  alone  for  me. 
Away  :  unto  your  houses  goe, 
And  I'le  goe  laughing  ho,  ho,  hoh  I ' " 

Also,  in  p.  166,  entitled, — 

"THE  PRANKS  OF  PUCK+. 

"  If  any  wanderers  I  meet, 

That  from  their  night-sport  do  trudge  home, 
With  counterfeited  voice  I  greet. 
And  call  them  ou  with  me  to  roaui ; 

Through  woods,  through  lakes, 
Through  bogs,  through  brakes. 
O'er  bush  and  brier  with  them  I  go ; 
I  call  upon 
Them  to  come  on. 
And  slide  out  laughing  ho,  ho,  ho  I 

"  Sometimes  I  meet  them  like  a  man. 

Sometimes  an  ox,  sometimes  a  hound ; 
And  to  a  horse  I  turn  me  can  J, 

To  trip  and  trot  about  them  round  ; 
But  if,  to  ride. 
My  back  they  stride. 
More  swift  than  wind  away  I  go ; 
O'er  hedge,  o'er  lands, 
Through  pools,  through  ponds, 
I  hurry  laughing  ho,  ho,  ho  ! " 

The  following  is  from  the  ballad  of  "  Robin  Good-fellow." 
(See  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  p.  164)  : — 

*  In  Shakespeare's  *'  King  Lear,"  Act  iii..  Scene  4,  there  is  the  same 
expression. 

t  This  song  is  attributed  to  Ben  Johnson. 

J  Perhaps  Shakespeare,  in  the  "  Midsummer  Night's  Dream, "  introduces 
Bottom,  the  weaver,  with  an  ass's  head,  in  comic  allusion  to  the  custom  called 
Old  Hob,  before  referred  to. 


4'2S 

"  Sometimes  he'd  counterfeit  a  voyce, 

And  travellers  call  astray, 
Soinetiines  a  walking  fire  he'd  be, 

And  lead  them  from  tlieir  way. 
Some  call  him  Robin  Good-fellow, 

Hob-goblin,  or  mad  Crisp, 
And  some  againe  doe  tearme  him  oft 

By  name  of  Will  the  Wispe ; 
But  call  him  by  what  name  you  list, 

I  have  stutlied  on  my  pillow, 
I  tliink  the  best  name  he  deserves 

Is  Robin  the  Good  Fellow." 

From  the  above  extracts  it  appears  that  Puck  was  sometimes 
called  by  the  name  of  "  Hob-goblin"  and  "  Hob,"  therefore  such 
names,  and  his  pranks  in  the  sliape  of  horses,  and  his  misleading 
persons  in  the  night*,  "  in  the  shape  of  a  walking  fire,"  and  the 
name  that  he  obtained  of  "  Willy  Wispe,"  completely  identify 
him  as  a  personification  of  the  ignis  fatum,  under  the  before- 
mentioned  names  of  "  Hoberdy's  Lantern,"  "  Hobany's  Lantern," 
and  "  Hob  and  his  Lantern." 

In  my  juvenile  days  I  remember  to  have  seen  peasant  boys 
make,  what  they  called  a  "  Hoberdy's  Lantern,"  by  hollowing  out 
a  turnip,  and  cutting  eyes,  nose,  and  mouth  therein,  in  the  true 
moon-like  style ;  and  having  lighted  it  up  by  inserting  the  stump 
of  a  candle,  they  used  to  place  it  upon  a  hedge  to  frighten 
unwary  travellers  in  the  night. 

There  is  an  opinion  prevailing,  that  the  name  "  Hob"  and 
"  Robin"  are  corruptions  of  the  name  Robert;  but  I  would  ask, 
whether  it  is  not  much  more  probable  that  the  Roberts  were,  by 
an  easy  transition,  nick-named  from  oiu-  fairy  mythology,  and 
that  Robin  was  originally  a  corruption  of  Hob  or  Hobin.  (See 
pp.  412,  113,  411.) 

There  are  legends  relative  to  Robin  Hood,  which  savour  very 
much  of  both  our  fairy  and  Druidical  mythology. 

The  following  curious  account  relative  to  the  sprite  in  question 
has  been  kindly  furnished  rae  by  a  friend  : — 

"  Hob-thrush,   Hobtrusse,  the  thirce  or  wicked  demon,  Aug.- 

♦   Citiisiii!,'  iheiii  to  br  "  f'onkc  Inldi'ii.  '     Src  p.  lis. 


Sax.  '  thyrs,'  a  spectre  or  ignis  fatum, — Icelandic,  '  thuss.'  Grose 
gives  us  the  term,  but  did  not  suspect  its  derivation.  He  says 
Hob-thrush  is  an  hobgobUn,  called  sometimes  Robin  Goodfellow ; 
in  the  north  Hob-thrust,  or  rather  Hob  o'  t'  hurst,  a  spirit  sup- 
posed to  haunt  woods  only.  Bp.  Kennett,  in  his  '  Collections  for 
a  Dialectical  Dictionary,'  Lansd.  MS.,  1 033,  gives  '  A  thurse,  an 
apparition,  a  goblin  (Lancashire) ;  a  thurs  house  or  thurse  hole, 
a  hollow  vault  in  a  rock  or  stony  hill  that  serves  for  a  dwelling- 
house  to  a  poor  family,  of  which  there  is  one  at  Alveton,  and 
another  near  Welton  Mill,  Co.  Stafford.'  Brochett,  in  his  '  North- 
Country  Glossary,'  gives  a  curious  note  on  the  pranks  of  Hob- 
thrust.  In  a  very  early  English  Latin  dictionarj'-,  dated  1433,  I 
find  '  hob  trusse  {prcpes,  negocius),  these  Latin  words  imply 
busy,  flying  sprites,  or  goblins.'  The  French  wox'd,  Lutin,  is 
rendered  by  Cotgrave,  '  a  goblin,  Robin  Goodfellow,  Hob-thrush, 
a  spirit  which  playes  reakes  in  men's  houses  a-nights ;  Loup- 
garou,  a  hobgoblin,  hob-thrush,  Robin  Goodfellow,  also  a  night- 
walker,'  &c.  Howitt,  in  '  Rural  Life,'  mentions  there  Hob- 
thrushes.  Forby  gives  Hobby-lantern  as  the  name  of  the  Will-o'- 
Wisp  in  Norfolk,  as  does  Moor  for  Suffolk  ;  and  Akerman  gives 
Hob-lantern  as  its  name  in  Wiltshire." 

There  are  places  called  Upper  Puck-hill  and  Lower  Puck-hill, 
in  Acton  Beauchamp ;  Puck  Meadow,  in  Hallow ;  Puck  Hall 
Field  and  Far  Puck  Hall  Piece,  in  Hartlebury ;  Puck  Ci-oft,  in 
Stock  and  Bradley  ;  Upper  and  Lower  Puck  Close,  in  Fecken- 
ham ;  Puck  Meadow,  in  Oldberrow  ;  Puck  Hill  and  Puck  Hill 
Comer,  in  Himbleton  ;  Puck  Croft,  in  Powick ;  Puck  Lane,  in 
Stoke  Prior ;  Pug's  Hole*  Allotment,  in  the  parish  of  Broms- 
gi'ove ;  Great  and  Little  Puckall,  in  Elmley  Lovett ;  Tuck-hill, 
Leasow,  and  Upper  and  Lower  Tuck-hill,  in  Hanley  Child  f; 
Upper,  Middle,  and  Lower  Tuck  Mill  Piece,  in  the  parish  of 
Upton-upon-Severn  ;  Tuck  Mill,  near  Broadway;  Puck  Pit 
Farm,   alias   Tapenhall,   in   Claines ;    Puck   Piece,  in   Abbot's 

•  See  p.  418,  as  to  Pug-fiest  or  Puck-foist. 

f  Also  Impy  Orchard  and  Pooten's  Hole.  There  is  likewise  Imp  Orchard 
in  Clifton  onTemp.  Tmpey,  The  Hiinpey,  Long  Cross  Ilinipey,  and  Lonp 
Himpey,  in  Alverhurch. 


4^5 

Lench,  in  Fladbury ;  Pucklins  Meadow,  Big,  Little,  Upper, 
Middle,  and  Lower  Pucklins,  and  Pucklins  Lane,  in  King's 
Norton ;  Puck  Dole,  in  the  Berrow  ;  Pouk  Lane,  in  Upper 
Sapey ;  Poke  Meadow,  in  Shelsley  Beauchamp  ;  Puck  Pit,  in 
Abberton  ;  Poke  Meadow  and  Puckley  Green  Farm,  in 
Martley. 

In  Stafifordshire,  Powkmore  Hill,  in  Amblecoate,  in  Old  Swin- 
ford ;  and  Powk's  Lane,  near  Rowley. 

In  Gloucestershire,  Pokil,  Pokyl,  or  Puckle  Church  hundred 
and  parish*,  Puckmore  Headland,  and  Puckrup,  near  Towbury 
HiU,  in  Twyning;  and  Puckmore  and  Puckmore's  Hitch,  in 
Dymock. 

In  Herefordshire,  Puckmoor's  Orchard,  in  Much  Marcle  ;  and 
Powk  House,  in  Stoke  Bliss. 

In  Warwickshire,  Pucknells  Close,  in  Solihull. 

In  Hertfordshire,  Puckerich. 

In  Somersetshire,  Pucldngton. 

In  the  Isle  of  Wight,  Puck,  Pool,  Puck's  (vulgo  Pook's)  Farm, 
and  Puckaster  Cove. 

In  Wales,  the  Devil's  Bridge  (Cwm  Pwcca),  where  the  goblin 
leads  the  unsuspicious  night  traveller  over  the  steep  precipice 
into  the  Clydach  Llanelly. 

In  Sussex,  a  weed  very  prejudicial  to  corn  is  called  Pook  or 
Puck  needlef.  It  goes  by  the  name  of  Beggar's  (vulyo  Bagger's) 
needle,  in  Worcestershire. 

It  is  stated  in  the  "Literary  Gazette"  for  March  28,  1846, 
that,  "  Akin  to  Puck  are  the  Dutch  '  Spook,'  the  German 
'  Spuck,'  the  Swedish '  Spoke,'  and  the  Danish  '  Spogelese' — ghost 
— apparition — with  the  verbs  formed  from  them.  The  Germans 
and  Swedes  say,  '  Es  spuckt  imhause,'  and  '  Det  spokar  i  huset,' 
for  '  Tlie  house  is  haunted.'    What  is  commonly  called  a  puff-ball 

»  "  This  place  was  once  the  residence  of  several  of  our  Saxon  kings." — (See 
"Wright's  GiiZPtteer.") 

t  In  Tlu)q)p's  "  Northern  .Mjthologj-,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  1«(1,  182,  it  is  stated  that 
the  God  Loke's  mother  was  "  Laufey  (leafy  isle),  or  Nal  (needle) ;  j.  <■.,  the 
Iraflet  of  the  lir;  "  and  tliat  "trees  with  acicular  leaflets,  like  the  lir,  cedar, 
yew,  and  the  like,  arc  called  needle  trees." 


426 

is  properly  Puck-ball  or  Puck-tist ;  the  '  little  folks '  are  well 
known  to  have  a  great  liking  for  the  fungus  tribe." 

In  the  "Athenaeum"  for  9th  Oct.,  1847,  p.  1054,  it  is  stated 
that  "  Pfficcan  or  Pajccian  (Anglo-Saxon)  signifies  to  deceive  by 
false  appearances,  to  delude,  to  impose  upon." 

The  following  passage  relative  to  Puck,  and  the  derivation  of 
the  name,  is  taken  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  S.  C.  Hall's  very  interest- 
ing work  on  "  Ireland ;  its  Scenery,  Character,"  &c.,  Vol.  i., 
p.  108,  &c.:  — 

"  Of  the  malignant  class  of  beings  composing  the  Irish  fairy 
mythology — and  it  is  creditable  to  the  national  character  that 
they  are  the  least  numerous, — the  Pooka*  excels  and  is  pre- 
eminent in  malice  and  mischief.  In  form  he  is  a  very  Proteus — 
generally  a  horse,  but  often  an  eagle.  He  sometimes  assumes 
the  figure  of  a  bull,  or  becomes  an  ignis  fatiius.  Amongst  the 
great  diversity  of  forms  at  times  assumed  by  him,  he  exhibits  a 
mixture  or  compound  of  the  calf  and  goat.  Pi-obably  it  is  in 
some  measure  owing  to  the  assumption  of  the  latter  figure  that 
he  owes  his  name,  "  puc"  being  the  Irish  for  a  goat.  Golding,  in 
his  translation  of  Ovid,  describes  him  by  name,  in  a  character  of 
which  the  goat  forms  a  component  part : — 

'  The  country  where  Chymsera,  that  same  Pouk, 
With  goatish  body,  lion's  head  and  breast,  and  dragon's  tail,'  &c. 

"  And  Spenser  has  the  following  lines  : — 

'  Ne  let  the  Pouke,  nor  other  evil  spirit, 
Ne  let  inischievous  witches  with  their  charms, 
Ne  let  hobgoblins,  names  whose  sense  we  know  not, 
Fray  us  with  things  that  be  not.' 

"  The  Pouke  or  Pooka  means  literally  the  evil  one  :  'playing 
tlie  puck,'  a  common  Anglo-Ii'ish  phrase,  is  equivalent  to  '  playing 
the  devil.' 

"  There  arc  many  localities,  favourite  haunts  of  the  Pooku,  and 

•   Or  I'hooka. 


4ii7 

to  which  he  has  given  his  name,  as  Drohid-a-Pooka,  Castle  Pook, 
and  Carrig-a-Pooka.  The  island  of  Melaan,  also,  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Kenmare  river,  is  a  chosen  site  whereon  this  malignant  spirit 
indulges  his  freaks.  It  is  uninhabited,  and  is  dreaded  by  the 
peasantry  and  fishennen,  not  less  because  of  its  gloomy,  rugged, 
and  stem  aspect,  than  for  the  tales  of  terror  connected  with  it. 
The  tempest  wails  fearfully  around  its  spectre-haunted  crags,  and 
dark  objects  are  often  seen  flitting  over  it  in  the  gloom  of  the 
night.  Shrill  noises  are  heard,  and  cries,  and  halloos,  and  wild 
and  moaning  sounds  ;  and  the  fishermen,  benighted  or  forced 
upon  its  rocks,  may  often  behold,  in  the  crowding  groups  which 
flit  ai'ound,  the  cold  faces  of  those  long  dead — the  silent  tenants, 
of  many  years,  of  field  and  wave.  The  consequence  is,  that 
proximity  to  the  island  is  religiously  avoided  by  the  boats  of  the 
country  after  sunset ;  and  a  bold  crew  are  they  who,  at  nightfall, 
approach  its  haunted  shores. 

"  The  great  object  of  the  Pooka  seems  to  be  to  obtain  a  rider, 
and  then  he  is  in  all  his  most  malignant  glor}'.  Headlong  he 
dashes  through  briar  and  brake,  through  flood  and  fell,  over 
mountain,  valley,  moor,  or  river,  indiscriminately ;  up  or  down 
precipice  is  alike  to  him,  provided  he  gratifies  the  malevolence 
that  seems  to  inspire  him.  He  bounds  and  flies  over  and  beyond 
them,  gratified  by  the  distress,  and  utterly  reckless  and  nithless 
of  the  cries,  and  danger,  and  suff"ering,  of  the  luckless  wight  who 
bestrides  him.  As  the  '  Tinna  Geolaue,'  or  Will-o'-the-Wisp,  he 
lures  but  to  betray;  like  the  Hanoverian  'Tuckbold*,'  he  de- 
ludes the  night  wanderer  into  a  bog,  and  leads  him  to  his  destruc- 
tion in  a  quagmire  or  pit.  Macpherson's  "  Spirit  of  Loda"  is 
evidently  founded  on  the  tradition  of  the  Pooka ;  and  in  the 
"  Fienian  Tales"  he  is  repeatedly  mentioned  as  the  '  Puka  (grua- 
gach,  or  ha\rj  spirit)  of  the  Blue  Valley." 

"  The  English  Puck  is  a  jolly,  frolicksome,  night-loving  rogue, 
full  of  archness,  and  fond  of  all  kind  of  merry  tricks  ;  '  a  shrewd 
and  knavish  spirit,  as  Shakespeare  has  it.  But  he  is,  nevertheless, 

♦  See  p.  i2A,  iis  to  Tuck  Mill,  &<•.  In  Tliorpc's  "  Nortlicrn  Mytliolofjy," 
Vol.  iii.,  p,  IW,  it  is  stated  that  thr  Nortli  Gennaii  "  Tuckbolde"  is  identicid 
witli  the  .lack-o"  Lantern. 


42« 

very  probably  in  his  origin  the  same  as  the  Irish  Pooka ;  as, 
besides  the  resemblance  in  name,  we  find  he  has  not  at  all  times 
sustained  his  laughter-loving  character,  but,  on  the  contrary, 
exhibited  unquestionable  proof  of  his  Irish  affinity  in  descent. 
For  this  we  have  the  poetical  authority  of  Drayton,  in  his 
"  Polyolbion  :" — 

'  This  Puck  seems  but  a  dreaming  dolt ; 
Still  walking  like  a  ragged  colt, 
And  oft  out  of  a  bush  doth  bolt, 

Of  purpose  to  deceive  us  ; 
And,  leaNTUg  us,  makes  us  to  stray. 
Long  winter  nights,  out  of  the  way ; 
And  when  we  stick  in  mire  and  clay, 

He  doth  with  laughter  leave  us.' 

"  The  early  English  adventurers  imported  to  the  Irish  shores 
their  softened  version  of  the  native  Pooka  under  his  Saxon  appel- 
lation of  Puck,  and  have  left  his  name  to  Puck's  Eock,  near 
Howth*,  and  Puck  Castle,  a  romantic  ruin  in  the  county  of 
Dublin." 

The  narrative  continues  with  the  detail  of  some  practical  jokes 
of  the  Pooka  f,  which  must  have  been  far  from  pleasant  to  his 
riders. 

Thoms  tells  us,  in  the  "  Lays  and  Legends  of  Ireland  |,"  that 
"  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  Puck,  or  Pouke,  means  the  devil ; 
and  in  Ireland  that  name  is  also  variously  localised.  The  form 
under  which  the  Irish  Puck,  or  Pooka,  most  commonly  appears — 
for  it  seems  to  have  the  power  of  assuming  fonns  at  will — is  that 
of  a  goat,  a  form  in  which  the  usual  attributes  of  homs  and 
cloven  feet  are  preserved,  as  well  as  the  similarity  of  name ;  '  boc ' 
(usually  pronounced  puck)  being  the  Irish  for  a  goat.  A  cele- 
brated waterfall  of  the  Liffey,  in  the  county  of  Wicklow,  is  called 
Poule-a-Phooka,  or  Phooke's  Cavern.  The  Castle  of  Carrig-a- 
Phooka,  not  far  from  Macroom,  and  the  Castle  Pooke,  situated 
between  Doneraile  and  the  ruins  of  Kilcoleman,  where  Edmund 
Spenser  wrote  his  "  Fairy  Queen,"  are  in  the  county  of  Cork." 

»  On  the  north  s'de  of  the  Bay  of  Dublin. 
+   Sec  also  Vol.  ii.,  p.  •■>{»).  J   Pp.  4S,  411. 


4-29 

A  passage  relative  to  the  derivation  of  the  word  "  Puck "  will 
be  found  in  the  "Archaeological  Journal,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  144, 
145,  under  the  title,  "  Observations  on  the  Primeval  Antiquities 
of  the  Channel  Islands,  by  F.  C.  Lukis.  Esq,,"  where  the  author, 
after  referring  to  the  derivation  of  the  word  "  cromlech,"  speaks 
of  the  names  "pouque"  and  "  laye,"  or  "lee,"  as  occurring  in 
those  islands,  "  (from  whence  Puck,  an  elf,  or  dwarf,)  meaning 
the  place  of  the  fairy." 

ROBIN  HOOD. 

In  the  account  of  Robin  Hood  given  in  pp.  130  to  135,  he  is 
considered  to  have  been  contemporary  with  the  battle  of  Evesham, 
temp.  lvJ65  ;  and  the  "Scottish  Chronicle*"  of  Fordun  and 
Bower,  and  the  "  Lytell  Geste  of  Robyn  Hode,"  are  quoted  as 
authorities.  Since  that  part  of  this  work  was  printed,  the  Rev. 
Joseph  Hunter  has  published  No.  4  of  his  "  Critical  and  His- 
torical Tracts,"  entitled,  "  The  Great  Hero  of  the  Ancient  Min- 
strelsy of  England,  Robin  Hood.  His  period,  real  character,  &c., 
investigated,  and  perhaps  ascertained."  Mr.  Hunter  endeavours 
to  identify  him  with  one  "  Robyn  Hode,"  who  entered  the  sendee 
of  Edward  II.  a  little  before  Christmas  1323,  and  continued 
therein  somewhat  less  than  a  twelvemonth  ;  and  considers  that 
he  was  one  of  the  vanquished  at  the  battle  of  Boroughbridge,  in 
132 1-2.  In  support  of  this  view,  Mr.  Hunter  joins  Mr.  Wright 
in  regarding  the  passage  in  the  "  Scoti  Chronicon,"  relative  to 
Robin  Hood,  "  as  part  of  the  addition  which  was  made  to  the 
genuine  Fordun  in  the  fifteenth  century." 

Now,  the  above  point  is  more  with  the  critic  than  the  collector ; 
but  as  I  considered,  at  the  time  I  made  the  quotations  from  For- 
dun and  Bower,  that  those  passages  were  genuine,  I  certainly 
was  struck  with  the  remarkable  fact  that  so  many  places  in  the 
north  and  north-east  part  of  Worcestei-shire,  in  and  about  Fecken- 
ham  Forest  and  bordering  upon  Evesham,  bear  the  names  Robin 

•  It  is  as  well  to  remark  that  the  person  described  as  Duguil  in  "  Old 
England,"  as  contemporary  with  Hohiu  Hood  (see  p.  1^2  of  this  work),  is 
called  Davnil  in  the  above  "  Chronicle." 


430 

and  Robin  Hood*  ;  and  1  was  therefore  led  to  the  conjecture 
tliat  they  were  so  named  after  the  people's  darling,  upon  the  dis- 
afforesting of  those  lands  by  Edward  I.,  in  1299  (being  about 
thirty-four  years  after  the  battle  of  Evesham),  particularly  as 
those  lands  had  been  tyrannically  wrested  from  the  people  by  his 
great-grandfather,  Henry  II.,  and  added  to  the  forest. 

JACK-O'-LANTERN. 

In  addition  to  what  has  been  already  said  this  name  appears 
to  be  familiar  in  Scandinavia  and  North  Germany,  as  well  as  in 
England.  In  Mr.  B.  Thorpe's  "  Northern  Mythology,"  Vol.  ii.. 
p.  97,  it  is  stated  among  the  Swedish  traditions,  that  Jack-with- 
a-Lantern  "  was  a  mover  of  land-marks,"  and  "  is  doomed  to 
have  no  rest  in  his  grave  after  death,  but  to  rise  every  midnight, 
and,  with  a  lantern  in  his  hand,  to  proceed  to  the  spot  where 
the  land-mark  had  stood  which  he  had  fraudulently  removed," 
&c.  And  in  Vol.  iii.,  p.  158,  among  the  North  German  tra- 
ditions, it  is  stated  that  Jack-o '-Lanterns  "  are  frequently  said 
to  be  the  souls  of  unbaptised  children  that  have  no  rest  in  the 
grave,  and  must  hover  between  heaven  and  earth  f."  The  name 
Jack  well  suits  the  tricksy  spirit  in  question,  for  generally 
speaking  it  means  a  cunning  fellow,  who  can  tm'n  his  hand 
to  any  thing];,  as  "  Jack  of  all  Trades,"  "  Jack  and  the 
Bean  Stalk,"  "  Jack  the  Giant  Killer,"  "  Jack  in  the  Green," 
"  Jack  Pudding,"  &c. ;  the  latter  means  a  zany,  a  men'y  Andrew, 
a  buffoon  §. 

According  to  some  writers,  "Jack  in  the  Green  "  is  a  type  or 

*  I  observe  Mr,  Hmiter  considers  that  many  of  the  places  so  named  were 
places  to  which  the  persons  in  after  tunes  called  Robin  Hood's  men  "  were 
wont  to  resort  when  they  went  out  a-Maying,  or  to  try  their  skill  with  tlie 
bow."  There  is  another  subject  which  it  is  to  be  hoped  Mr.  Hunter  will  treat 
upon,  namely,  the  dispvited  "  Itinerary"  of  Richard  of  Cirencester. 

+  This  appears  to  be  the  more  modern  idea.  There  is  a  fancy  in  Devon- 
shire that  the  Yell  Hounds  and  Pixies  are  the  souls  of  unbaptised  children. 
See  the  account  of  "  Mathon,"  pp.  SS.*),  250,  and  "  Pixie,"  infra. 

\   Like  "  Black  .Tack,"  hereafter  mentioned. 

§   "  Spring-heeled  Jack  "  is  still  in  the  memory  of  most  of  our  readers. 


431 

remnant  of  the  Druidical  assistants.  Professor  Burnett*  also 
associates  the  curious  basket  of  garlands,  with  which  he  his 
now  sometimes  invested  on  May-day,  with  the  Druidical  hunt 
for  the  mistletoe. 

With  respect  to  the  legend  of  "  Jack  the  Giant  Killer,"  it 
appears,  partly  at  least,  to  be  "  derived  either  directly  or  in- 
directly from  a  common  source,  with  a  story  of  the  Giant 
Skrymner  and  the  Scandinavian  demi-god  Thor,  which  is  related 
in  an  ancient  specimen  of  the  literature  of  the  north  of  Europe, 
the  '  Edda  of  Suorro.'  "  (See  Chambers's  "  Edinburgh  Journal," 
for  February  1844,  p.  68.) 

There  are  places  called  Jack  Field  and  Jack  Field  Coppice,  in 
Mathon  ;  Jack  Stile  Acres,  in  Grimley  ;  Jack's  Croft,  in  the 
parish  of  Bromsgrove ;  Jack-butts,  in  Sutton,  in  the  parish 
of  Tenbury ;  Jack's  Close,  in  Newland,  near  Great  Mal- 
vern ;  Jack  Meadow,  in  Rushock ;  In  Jack,  Upper  Jack, 
Lower  Jack,  Jack  Meadow,  and  Jack,  in  the  Berrow  ;  Jack  Piece, 
Middle  Jack  Piece,  and  Far  Jack  Piece,  in  Northfield ;  Jack's 
Stile,  in  the  Foreign  of  Kidderminster ;  and  Jack  Leasow, 
in  Frankley ;  Jack  Field,  Little  Jack,  and  Old  Jack,  in  Hasbury, 
in  Hales  Owen. 

In  Warwickshire. — Jack  Ground  and  Jack's  Croft,  in  Ipsley ; 
and  Jack  Lands,  in  Solihull. 

In  Somersetshire,  not  far  from  Kilmington  Church,  there  is  a 
small  oval  camp  called  Jack's  Castle,  supposed  to  be  Danish  f. 

WILL. 

"  Will-with-a-Wisp,"  probably  is  a  personification  derived  from 
the  Saxon  word  "  wile,"  a  deceit,  a  fraud,  a  trick,  a  stratagem, 
<l'c.,  and  the  Swedish  word  "  wisp."  a  small  bundle,  as  of  hay  or 
straw,  ignited  t  • 

•  See  liis  "  Ainoenitiites  Quemese." 

f  See  Gonp;irs  "  C'liiiulen,"  Vol.  i. 

J  Some  of  our  readers  will  reineiiiber  an  interesting  picture,  exhibited 
se\eral  years  bark  by  tbe  Royal  Academy,  of  "  Will-o'-the-Wisp,"  in  which  a 
ifoblin  horse  was  depicted  going  .stealthily  over  a  moor  or  bog,  in  the  night, 


432 

In  Pamell's  "  Fairy  Tale*"  he  is  mentioned  as  follows : — 

"  Then  Will,  who  bears  the  wispy  fire 
To  trail  the  swains  among  the  mire,"  &c. 

The  common  phrase  "  Wicked  Will "  probably  refers  to  the 
same  personage  :  we  find  that 

"  Wicked  Will  kill'd  tlie  dead  owlf  with  the  wash  beetle." 
And  also  that 

"  Wicked  WiUy  Wilkin  J 
Kiss'd  the  maids  a-milking." 

Now,  from  the  most  veritable  accounts  which  we  have  of  the 
fairies,  we  learn  that  kissing  the  maids  was  no  uncommon  trick 
of  theirs,  and  no  doubt  they  considered  the  milking  time  as  the 
best  opportunity  for  them  to  do  it ;  and  had  they  merely  stolen  a 
kiss,  perhaps  no  great  harm  had  been  done,  but  they  occasionally 
stole  the  milk  also,  for  it  is  said  that  they  sometimes  used  to  milk 
the  cows  at  night §,  and  checked  their  yielding  milk  at  mom,  and 
prevented  the  butter  forming  in  the  chum. 

In  this  account  of  "  Will,"  we  fancy  we  see  pretty  clear 
traces  of  our  old  friend.  Puck ;  and  we  have  it  from  Puck's  own 

ridden  by  a  fiend,  representmg  Will,  looking  backwards,  and  holding  up  a 
lighted  wisp  in  his  hand,  in  a  most  decoying  manner. 

*  See  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  p.  306. 

+  Meaning  the  screech  owl,  the  wamer  of  death. 

I  In  Percy's  "  Reliques  of  Ancient  English  Poetry,"  sixth  edition,  Vol.  1., 
p.  84,  it  is  stated  that  the  most  diligent  inquirers  after  ancient  English  rhymes 
find  the  earliest  they  can  discover  in  the  mouths  of  the  Norman  nobles,  such 
as  that  of  Robert  Earl  of  Leicester,  and  his  Flemings,  in  1173,  temp.  Henry  II. 
(little  more  than  a  centiu-y  after  the  Conquest),  recorded  by  Lambarde,  in  his 
"  Dictionary  of  England,"  p.  36  : — 

"  Hoppe  Wyliken,  hoppe  Wyliken, 
Ingland  is  thine  and  myne,"  &c. 

§  In  Hone's  "  Every  Day  Book,"  Vol.  i.,  p,  594,  it  is  stated  that  in  Ireland 
a  ceremony  is  practised  during  the  Beal-tine  on  May-eve,  of  making  the  cows 
leap  over  lighted  straw  or  faggots,  "  to  save  the  milk  from  being  pilfered  by 
the  good  people,"  meaning  the  fairies. 


433 

mouth — aye,  and  as  far  back  as  about  Shakespeare's  time,  that 
he  used  to  be  called  "  Willy  Wispe*." 

In  an  account  of  "  Manners  and  Customs  of  tlie  Irish  Pea- 
santry," in  the  "  Saturday  Magazine  f,"  it  is  stated  that 
"  beethng  linen  by  the  side  of  a  rocky  stream,  that  murmurs 
through  an  unfrequented  glen,  is  represented  as  a  favourite,  or 
rather  common,  female  fairy  occupation,  where  they  chaunt  wild 
and  pathetic  melodies,  beating  time  with  their  beetles." 

There  are  places  called  ^^'ilkin's  Pasture,  Wilkin's  Field,  and 
Little  Wilkin,  in  Pendock ;  Big  Will-tree  and  Upper  and  Lower 
Will-tree,  in  Grimley ;  and  Wilkin  Close,  in  the  parish  of 
Bromsgrove. 

In  Gloucestershire,  Will  Fields,  in  Alvechurch;  in  Mont- 
gomerj'shire,  Brin  Wilkin  Wood  and  Brin  Wilkin  Meadow,  in 
Church  Stoke. 

In  the  "  Annalia  Dvbrensia  upon  the  yearly  celebration  of  Mr. 
Piobert  Dover's  Olympic  Games  upon  Cotswold  Hills,"  published 
in  1636,  there  are  the  following  lines,  in  Mr.  Piobert  Durham's 
address : — 

"  As  Phoebus  is  Heaven's  cnrl'd-pnte  chariter. 
And  Twinkling  J  Will,  the  Northern  Waggoner." 

With  respect  to  this  waggoner,  there  is  an  allusion  to  him  in 
Thorpe's  "  Northern  Mythology§,"  among  the  North  German 
traditions,  as  follows  : — 

"  The  Night  Raven,  or  Eternal  Waggoner. 

"  In  the  night,  the  '  hor,  hor,'  or  '  hrok,  hrok,"  of  the  night 
raven  is  frequently  to  be  heard.  This  bird  is  nuicli  larger  than 
the  common  raven,  and  almost  as  large  as  a  full-grown  hen.     By 

•  See  p.  4"-i2.  There  is  "Wisp  Hill,"  in  Roxburghshire,  and  a  hill  called 
"  Brown  Willy,"  in  Cornwall.  Now,  whether  the  name  Brown  in  this  instance 
has  reference  to  tlie  Scotch  fairies  called  "  Brownies,"  I  cannot  pretend  to  say. 

t   Vol.  viii.,  Februarj-  i:?th,  1830,  p.  fiO. 

X  See  the  account  of  "  Piiikot,"  p.  435. 

§   Vol.  iii.,  ]>]K  !)T.  !IM. 

F  b 


434 

some  he  is  called  the  Eternal  Waggoner,  who  also  say  that  he 
wished,  for  his  share  of  heaven,  to  drive  to  all  eternity ;  and  he 
accordingly  drives  without  cessation,  sitting  on  the  middle  horse 
of  the  celestial  wain,  of  which  the  four  large  stars  hehind  are  the 
four  wheels,  but  the  three  foremost  stars,  which  stand  in  a 
crooked  line,  the  three  horses ;  and  the  little  star  over  the  middle- 
most, is  the  Eternal  Waggoner.  He  guides  the  horses  ;  and  as 
the  waggon  always  goes  in  a  circle,  they  do  not  stand  in  a  right 
line  with  one  anotlier,  but  in  a  curve,  being  always  on  the  turn. 
Before  midnight,  the  waggon  is  said  to  be  going  out,  when  the 
pole  inclines  upwards;  and  after  midnight  it  goes  home,  and 
then  the  pole  incUnes  downwards." 

ELF. 

In  the  Introduction  to  the  "  Tale  of  Tamlane,"  in  the  "  Min- 
strelsy of  the  Scottish  Border,"  by  Sir  Walter  Scott,  he  says : — 
"  The  word  '  elf,'  which  seems  to  have  been  the  original  name 
of  the  beings  afterwards  denominated  fairies,  is  of  Gothic  origin, 
and  probably  signified  simply  a  spirit  of  a  lower  order." 

In  a  paper  upon  this  subject,  in  the  "  Athenaeum  "  for  Octo- 
ber 2nd,  1847,  p.  1030,  it  is  stated  that  "  our  English  name 
'  elf '  is  the  same  as  the  Ango-Saxon  '  alf,'  the  old  High-German 
and  middle  High-German  '  alf,'  the  old  Norse  '  alfr,'  and  the 
Gothic  'albs;'  and  that  coiTesponding  with  our  English  '  elf,'  in 
the  plural  '  elves,'  we  have  the  Swedish  '  elf '  in  the  plural, 
'  elfvar  '  masculine,  and  '  elfvor '  feminine  ;  the  Danish  '  elv  ' 
and  '  elve  '  in  the  plui'al. 

"  This  word  '  elf '  has,  however,  undergone  some  strange 
modifications.     In  Beowulf  we  read  of 

'  Eotenas,  and  Ylfe,  and  Orcneas  •!'-. 

'  Eotensf,  and  Elves,  and  Ores.'  " 

In  Alfrick  there  is  a  place  called  Ilalvens,  or  HalvinsJ,  and 
there  are  two  wells  adjoining  each  other  on  the  side  of  the  road 

*  See  p.  'J  of  Mr.  Keiiible's  edition. 

+  Or  Titans. — (See  Kenible's  "  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  i.,  pp.  .'179,  SSI.) 

t    Probably  Klvins  or  Klfvins. 


436 

between  the  Upper  House  and  Bewell,  or  Buall,  which  are  called 
Oughton  Wells*,  most  probably  a  corruption  of  Eoten  Wells; 
for  the  peasantry  say  outing  for  hooting.  They  ai*e  situated  just 
below  Norgrove,  or  Hoar  Grove  f,  and  used  to  be  mueh  esteemed 
by  the  peasantry ;  and,  although  close  together,  their  springs 
must  come  from  opposite  directions,  as  the  water  of  the  northern 
one  is  clear;  while  that  of  the  southern  one  is  of  a  milky  hue, 
caused  probably  by  its  coming  through  a  stratum  of  what  is  called 
Walker's  I  or  Fuller's  clay,  which  in  some  places  appeai-s  in  the 
neighbourhood.  The  difference  in  the  colour  of  these  two  springs, 
and  the  supposed  virtues  of  that  of  a  milky  hue,  as  a  remedy  for 
weak  or  inflamed  eyes,  most  probably  tended  to  throw  an  air  of 
mystery  about  these  twin  wells  i 

There  is  a  place  called  Elvins,  in  Beoley ;  and  in  Warwick- 
shire, Elvins  Close,  in  Great  Alne  ;  and,  Upper,  Far,  and  Lower 
Elkin,  in  Solihull. 

This  latter  name  (Elkin)  appears  to  connect  our  fairy  names 
with  the  more  ancient  mythology,  and  means  either  the  little 
gods,  or  of  kin  to  the  godslj. 

PINKET. 

The  iffiiis  fatiius  is  called  Pinket  in  the  parish  of  Badsey. 
This  name,  perhaps,  is  derived  from  the  Dutch  word  "  pinken," 
which  means  to  wiulv  with  the  eyes,  and  alludes  probably  to  the 
twinkling  motion  of  these  mcteoi's.' 

A  fairy  of  the  name  of  Pinck  was  one  of  the  waiting  maids  of 
(Jucen  Mab*'. 

•  Tliey  are  more  generally  known  by  tlie  iippellatioii  of  "  nayward's 
Wells,"  a  person  of  that  name  having  probably  at  some  time  occupied  the 
neighbouring  cottage. 

+  See  p.  240. 

I  A  Walker,  or  Fuller. — See  Droitwich,  p.  100. 

^  That  the  Anglo-Saxons  were  addicted  to  well-worship,  see  Kemble's 
"  Saxons  in  England,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  524. 

II  See  the  account  of  Kllmr)'  Hill,  p.  22').  The  place  there  noticed  a.s 
Allsbnrongh  Hill  is  also  called  Alesborough,  and  Aylesborough. — See  infra. 

^  See  Drayton's  "  Nymphidia  ;"  and  also  llalUweH's  "Fairy  Mythology," 
p.  2(X). 


486 

There  are  Pink  Field,  and  Pink's  Green,  in  Beole}"!,  in  this 
county ;  Pink's  Field,  and  Pink's  Meadow,  in  Dymock,  Co. 
Gloucester ;  Pinxton  parish,  in  the  counties  of  Derby  and  Not- 
tingham ;  and  two  mines  called  "  The  Pink,"  in  Cornwall  f. 

PIXIES, 

AND 

WISH  OR  WISKED  HOUNDS. 

Fairies  are  called  pixie  in  ,some  parts,  particularly  in 
Devonsliire. 

There  is  Pykesham,  or  Pixam,  in  Powick ;  Picke-fields,  on  the 
border  of  Bordesley,  in  Tardebig ;  and  Little  Pickes,  and  Great 
Picks,  in  Upton-on-Severn. 

In  Devonshire,  the  Pixies'  Cave  or  Grot,  at  Dartmoor;  and  the 
Pixies'  Rock,  on  the  Yealm  Piiver. 

In  Herefordsliire,  an  eminence  called  Pixall,  or  Pixhill,  near 
Tedstone  Court ;  and  Pixley,  Pikesley,  or  Pykesleye  |,  near 
Ledbury.  The  following  lines  are  taken  from  Clobery's  "  Divine 
Glirnpses,"  1659,  p.  73  : — 

"  Old  countrey  folk,  who  pixie-leading  fear. 
Bear  bread  about  them  to  prevent  that  harm  §." 

"  Pretorius  informs  us  that  a  member  of  the  German  House 
of  Alveschleben  received  a  ring  from  a  Nixie,  to  which  the  future 
fortunes  of  his  line  were  to  be  attached. — Antherpodemus  Plu- 
tonicus,  i.,  p.  113." — (See  the  Editor's  note  to  the  Introduction 
to  the  "  Tale  of  Tamlane,"  in  the  edition  of  "  Scott's  Minstrelsy 
of  the  Scottish  Border,"  published  in  1833,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  277. 

Mrs.  Bray's  "  Borders  of  the  Tamar  and  the  Tavy,"  Vol.  i., 
informs  us  that  the  peasantry  at  Dartmoor  believe  that  the  pixies 
are  the  souls  of  infants  who  died  before  receiving  the  rite  of 
baptism  !|. 

•  See  tlie  Ordnance  Map. 

+  Can  this  have  any  reference  to  wliat  are  called  "  Knockers"  in  mines. 
I  "  Extracta   particula   de    Gestis    Abbatunj,"    in    Har.   MS.    370,    British 
Museum. 

§  See  Halliwell's  "  fairy  Mythology,"  Introduction,  p.  17. 
;|  Also  see  p.  430. 


437 

South-east  of  Pixhill,  in  Tedstone  Delamere,  there  are  Wish- 
moor,  and  Inksmoor,  near  Sapey  Bridge  in  Whitboum. — (See 
an  account  of  the  Wish*,  or  Wisked,  or  Spectre  Hounds,  of 
Dartmoor,  in  the  "  Athenaeum,"  No.  1013,  for  March,  27,  1847, 
p.  334  f.) 

The  writer,  R.  J.  K.,  in  the  "  Athenaeum"  for  October  24, 
1846,  p.  1093,  says,  "  The  pixies'  name  has  been  sought  in  the 
Islandic,  '  Puke,'  a  demon,  a  fairy.  It  is  probably  more  imme- 
diately connected  with  the  Welsh,  '  Pwc,'  a  goblin,  although  I 
cannot  find  such  a  root  in  the  old  Cornish  vocabularies.  Puck, 
the  '  tricksy  spirit'  of  the  fairies,  and  the  Irish  Phooka,  are  botli 
from  a  cognate  root." 

MAB. 

"  Oh  then,  1  sec  Queen  Mab  lias  been  with  you  J." 

So  said  the  immortal  bard,  and  I  was  curious  to  ascertain 
whether  her  majesty  had  honoured  the  fair  midlands  with  her 
presence.  That  she  has  done  so  will  appear  as  follows  : — There 
is  a  piece  of  ground  near  the  village  of  Upton  Snodsbury,  in 
Worcestershire,  called  Mob's  Close,  or  Mop's  Close ;  and  an 
orchard  at  Hales-end,  near  Herold's  Copse,  in  Cradley,  in  Here- 
fordshire, adjoining  the  western  side  of  Old  Storage,  in  Wor- 
cestershire, called  Mobbled  Pleck,  meaning  Mab-led  Pleck§,  or 
a  plot  where  any  one  was  liable  to  be  Mab-led. 

"  The  name  Mab  appears  to  have  been  at  one  time  current  in 
Warwickshire,  where,  as  we  learn  from  a  note  of  Sir   Henry 


*  Probably  from  the  .\nglo-Sax()n  "  Wicca,"  a  witeh.  In  Kenible's  "  Saxons 
in  Knf^laiul,"  Vol.  i.,  p.  346,  it  is  stated,  that  "  in  Devonshire  to  this  day  all 
magical  or  supematm-al  dealings  go  under  the  common  name  of  Wishtness; 
can  this  have  any  reference  to  Woden's  name,  "  Wysc  ?"  And  added,  that  there 
are  "  Wishanger,  (Wisehangra,  or  Woden's  Meadow) ;  one,  about  four  miles 
south-west  of  Wanborough  in  Surrey,  and  another  near  Gloucester,"  &c.  &c. 

f  Also  see  the  account  of  Bromsgrove,  p.  I'-l-], 

+  Romeo  and  Juliet. 

§  Pleck  is  a  common  term  in  the  country  for  a  plot  or  small  pircL'  of 
ground. 


438 

Ellis,  in  his  edition  of  IJmnd,  raabled,  pronounced  mobled, 
signifies  led  astray  by  a  Will-o'- the- Wisp  *." 

The  place  in  Cradley  was,  in  early  times,  called  Little  Pleck, 
aftei*vrards  Moblee  Pleck,  and  subsequently  Mobbled  Pleck  f,  as 
appears  by  the  title  deeds  of  Richard  Yapp,  Sen.,  Esq.,  the  owner 
of  the  estate. 

Mr.  Thorns,  in  a  communication  to  the  "  Athenaeum"  for  Nov. 
1847  J,  observes  that  Mab  is  derived  from  the  Celtic;  Mabh 
in  Celtic  mythology  being  the  chief  of  the  Genii ;  and  "  no 
earlier  instance  of  Mab  being  used  as  the  designation  of  the 
fairy  queen,  has  hitherto  been  discovered  than  that  of  Shake- 
speare in  his  Romeo  and  Juliet."  He  afterwards  adds,  "  that 
Shakespeare  learned  that  Mab  was  the  name  of  the  fairy  queen 
from  the  folk-lore  of  his  own  time." 

TOM  THUMB,  PATCH,  GRIM,  SIB,  TIB,  LICKE,  LULL, 
HOP,  DRYP,  PIP,  TRIP,  PINCK,   PIN,  TICK,   TIT, 

WAP,   AND  WIN. 

These  are  all  names  of  the  fairies.  Tom  Thumb  §  is  the 
thaumlin  (that  is  Little  Thumb)  of  Scandinavian  fiction  ;  a 
regular  dwarf  or  duergar,!  of  the  mythology  of  that  country  U. 

In  Drayton's  "  Nymphidia"  he  is  noticed  as  follows  : — 

"  When  by  Tom  Tliuni,  a  fairy  imge**,"  &c. 

In  the  "  Life  of  Robin  Good-fellow,"  are  the  following  fines  : — 

"  Pinch  and  Patch,  Gull  and  Griiii, 
Goe  yon  together ; 
For  you  can  change  yoiu-  sliapes 
Like  to  the  weather. 

♦   Popular  Antiquities,  Vol.  iii.,  p.  218,  ed.  1841. 

f  It  is  called  "  Mobblede   Plecks   Orchard,"  in  the  apporliiuiiiient  to  the 
tithe  commutation. 
+    Page  ll.'in. 

§  There  is  "  Thumb's  Close,''  in  Doderhill. 

II   A  small  person  is,  by  way  of  ridicule,  called  a  "  durgie  '  in  these  parts. 
^1    See  Chariibers's  "  Edinbnrgli  .Jcun'iial  ,"  for  February  184.1,  p.  tiH. 
••   Also  see  llidliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  p.  I'Jd. 


439 

Sib  and  Tib,  Licke*  and  Lull, 

You  have  trickes  too  ; 
Little  Tom  Thumb  tliat  pipes  + 

Shall  goe  betwixt  you  |." 

In  Drayton's  "  Nymphidia "  it  is  stated  that  the  under- 
mentioned fairies  formed  the  retinue  of  Queen  Mab  : — 

"  Hop,  and  Mop,  and  Dryp  so  clear, 
Pip,  and  Trip,  and  Skip  that  were 
To  Mab,  tlieir  sovereign,  ever  dear. 

Her  special  maids  of  honour ; 

Fib,  and  Tib,  and  Pinck,  and  Kn, 

Tick,  and  Quick,  and  Jil,  and  Jin, 

Tit,  and  Nit,  and  Wap,  and  Win, 

The  train  that  wait  upon  her§." 

In  connection  with  the  above  fairy  names  I  have  collected  the 
following  from  the  neighbouring  and  other  counties.  Tib's  Lauds, 
near  Bringsty  or  Brinksty  Common,  in  Herefordshire ;  Tib's 
Hall,  near  Wiggins  Hall,  in  Warwickshire  ;  Tibthorp,  in  York- 
shu-e  ;  Tibshelf,  not  far  from  Pinxton,  Cos,  Derby  and  Notting- 
liam  ;  Tib  Brook,  near  ]Manchester ;  Wapley  Hill,  in  Hereford- 
shire (which  contains  a  camp  called  the  Warren);  Pinswell 
Camp,  in  Gloucestershire ;  Pinwell,  in  Sussex ;  Grimsdyke,  in 
Hants ;  and  a  remarkable  place  called  Grimspound,  at  Dartmoor  ||. 

The  following  are  in  this  county : — Pippin  Hill,  in  Acton 
Beauchamp ;  Tibb  Ribbin,  south  of  Tardebig ;  Tibley,  in  Bir- 
lingham ;  Pin's  Green,  by  Newland  Green,  in  the  parish  of 
Great  Malveni;  Pennils  or  Pinhill,  in  Alvechurch;  Tickridge 
Piece,  in  Bromsgrove ;  Great  Tickiidge,  in  Hanley  Castle ; 
Ticknell,  or  Tickenhill,  near  Bewdley ;  Tidsley  Wood^,  by  Alls- 

•  There  is  Lick  Hill  between  Stagbury  Hill  and  Lower  Mitton. 

+  "  The  Swedes  delight  to  tell  of  the  Stromkerl,  or  boy  of  the  stream,  who 
haunts  the  glassy  brooks  tluit  steal  silently  through  green  meadows,  and  sits 
on  the  silver  waves  at  moonlight,  playing  his  haq)  to  the  elves,  who  dance  on 
tlic  flowery  margin." — Washington  Irvhuj. 

X  See  Halli well's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  p.  14!). 

§   Ibid.,  p.  -^00. 

Ij  See  "  Notes  and  Queries,"  Feb.  14,  1852,  p.  163. 

^  Perhaps  this  name  means  Titsley  Wood,  and  comes  from  Tad,  Ted,  or 
Tet,  which  words  arc  said  to  mean  the  Celtic  god  Mercurj-.  See  the  account 
of  the  Toot  Hills,  p.  -l^o. 


440 

borough,  Alesborough -s  or  Aylesborough  Ilillf,  uear  Pcrshore ; 
Wintill,  in  Actou  Beauchamp ;  Winstile  in  the  Anglo-Saxon 
boundaries  of  Hymelton,  Hemelton,  or  Himbleton ;  and  Wynn 
Meadow,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  boundaries  of  Bredicot  or  Bradi- 
cote|.  There  is  also  a  farm  called  "Patches"  or  •'Paches§;" 
an  eminence  called  "  Patch  Hill;"  an  estate  called  "  Grimsend;" 
pieces  of  laud  called  "  Sibhay "  or  "  Tibhay,"  and  the 
"  Tibbins  ;"  and  a  hole  in  a  rock  called  the  "  Fairies'  Cave,"  in 
the  hamlet  of  Alfrick ;  a  hamlet  called  "  Lulsley,"  adjoining 
Grimsend  ;  "  Patch-ham,"  in  Lulsley ;  Tib's  Hill,"  in  Bransford, 
in  Leigh ;  "  Patch  Hill,"  "  Pin's  Hill,"  and  "  Win's  Grave," 
in  Leigh,  adjoining  to  Alfrick ;  and  "  Drip's  Hill,"  in  Madres- 
field.  It  seems  probable  that  such  places,  or  most  of  them, 
were  so  called  after  the  corresponding  names  of  some  of  the 
above-mentioned  faiiies. 

There  were  several  places  of  the  name  of  Grim  in  Anglo- 
Saxon  times,  as  we  shall  after  state.  "  Douiesday  Book  "  mentions 
Gremanhil  and  Grimanleh,  in  Worcestershu'e,  and  persons  of  the 
name  of  Grim,  as  laud-owners  in  Devon,  Cornwall,  and  Worces- 
tershire, and  as  under-tenants  in  Warwickshire  and  Essex. 

"  Drip's  Hill,"  in  Madresfield,  is  sometimes  called  "  Trip's 
Hill,"  and  is  so  designated  in  Isaac  Taylor's  map,  published  in 
1772 ;  but  I  rather  think  "  Dryps"  title  to  the  hill  is  better  than 
"  Trips." 

"  Tib's  Hill,"  in  Bransford,  in  Leigh,  abuts  upon  Powick ; 
"  Patch  Hill,"  in  Leigh,  borders  upon  the  river  Teme,  opposite  to 
Broadwas,  and  lies  near  to  the  Red  Cliff,  the  Devil's  Pig-trough  ||, 
and  Omber's  Hill^,  and  not  far  from  Alfrick  and  Lulsley ;  and 

*  See  the  map  in  Gibson's  "  Camden,"  1st  ed.,  1095,  and  the  account  in 
the  2nd  ed.,  1722,  Vol.  i.,  p.  629. 

+  This  name  probably  means  Elsborongh  Hill.     Sec  Elbury  Hill,  p.  22'). 

I  See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App.,  -52, 5'i,  and  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  pp-  35>j,  ;35(i,  oST. 
§  It  is  spelt  "  Paches,"  in  a  deed  of  1735. 

II  This  is  either  a  natural  trench,  or  an  ancient  artitical  cuUing  through  the 
declivity  there.     It  lies  on  the  north  side  of  the  present  bye-road. 

^  A  fine  head-land  overlooking  the  Teme.  The  name  probably  is  a 
corruption  of  .\inber's  Hill,  in  like  manner  as  the  name  Ombcrsley  is  of 
.\mbrcslege  or  Ambersley;  for  the  pcasiintry  to  this  day  call  a  lianjincr 
f  Onibcr."     The  ancients  distinguished  stones,  erected  with   a   religious   view. 


441 

"  rill's  Hill,"  in  Leigh,  adjoins  the  field  called  "  Win's  Grave," 
and  a  place  called  Little  Towbury*,  and  is  neai*  Hoptonf. 

Win's  J  (or  Wynn's)  Grave  §  is  supposed  by  some  to  have  been 
the  burial  place  of  a  giant  of  that  name.  Now  I  do  not  wish 
to  rob  the  supposed  giant  of  his  grave,  if  he  is  entitled  to  it ; 
but  there  may  be  a  question,  whether  it  was  not  supposed,  in 
days  of  yore,  that  the  fairy  "  Pin,"  and  her  neighbours  "  Patch," 
"  Grim,"  "  Lull,"  "  Sib,"  and  "  Tib,"  and  all  the  tribe  at  Osebury 
Rock,  buried  their  sister  "  Win  "  at  the  spot  in  question. 

The  fairies,  although  long-lived,  were  nevertheless  supposed 
by  some  writers  to  be  mortal.  See  the  account  of  the  birth  and 
death  of  Oberon  in  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  pp.  10;^, 
119;  and  Drayton,  in  his  "  Nymphidia,"  in  describing  the  battle 
between  Oberon  and  Pigwiggen,  says,  that  they 

"  Both  to  be  slain  were  likely." 

In  the  north  of  England,  "  green  shady  spots  are  pointed  out 
by  the  country-folks  as  the  cemeteries  of  the  tiny  people  ||." 

Some  writers,  however,  describe  them  as  immortals. 

In  connection  \sdth  the  name  Wiggen  may  be  mentioned  that 
there  was  in  Worcestershire,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  times,  a  place 
called  Uuiggangeat^  (Wiggingate),  and  Wiggen-hall,  in  Norfolk  ; 
Wiggin-thoi*pe,  in  Yorkshire  ;  Wiggins-hall,  near  Tibs-hall,  in 
Warwickshire ;  Wiggen  Ash,  in  Much  Marcle,  Co.  Hereford ; 
and  Wiggenton,  in  Hertfordshire,  Oxfordshire,  and  Staffordshire. 

In   the   northern   counties,    the   mountain  a^h  is  called  the 

h\  the  name  of  "  Amber,"  which  signilied  any  thing  solar  or  divine.  See 
Chap.  II.,  Anilirosiffi  Petrse,  p.  37'^,  Sec. 

*  There  also  is  a  place  called  Great  Towbury,  in  Leigh.  See  p.  04,  as  to 
'I'owbury  Hill  Camp,  in  Twyning,  Gloncestershire. 

+  Ueming's  "  Cartulary"  notices  Iloptun,  in  Shropshire,  and  Ilopwiida 
(llopwood),  in  Worcestershire,  see  pp.  27(i,  (ilO. 

I  "  Win  '  in  .\nglo-Saxon  implies  a  battle.  See  Coughs  "  Camden,"  Vol. 
i.,  p.  ICO. 

§  The  word  "gmve"  is  sometimes  a  corruption  of  "grove"  and  vice  versit. 
See  the  nccomit  of  Bronisgrove,  pp.  115,  IIH,  ItivJ. 

]|  See  "  Popular  Hliymes  and  Nursery  Tales,"  a  seipiel  to  the  "  Nursery 
Hiiymes  of  l-jiigland,"  by  Mr.  Ilalliwell. 

II  See  "  Codex  Dip.,"  No.  blO. 


442 

wiggea  tree,  and  its  anti-witching  properties  are  there  held  in 
great  esteem*. 

The  ash  tree  holds  a  conspicuous  place  in  Scandinavian 
mythology.  In  the  "  Edda  of  Snorro  "  (Fable  the  8th),  it  is 
stated  that  the  city  of  the  gods  is  under  the  ash,  "  the  greatest 
and  best  of  all  trees ;"  and  that  "  there  are  in  heaven  a  great 
many  pleasant  cities,  and  none  without  a  diN-inc  garrison.  Near 
the  fountain,  which  is  under  the  ashf,  stands  a  very  beautiful 
city,  wherein  dwell  three  virgins,  named  Urda,  or  the  Past ;  Ver- 
dandi,  or  the  Present ;  and  Sskulda,  or  the  Future.  These  are 
they  who  dispense  the  ages  of  men ;  they  are  called  nomies, 
that  is,  fairies|,  or  destinies."  "  Some  are  of  celestial  origin, 
others  descend  from  the  genii,  and  others  from  the  dwarfs." 
"  The  nomies  who  are  sprung  of  a  good  origin,  are  good  them- 
selves, and  dispense  good  destinies ;  but  those  men  to  whom 
misfortunes  happen,  ought  to  ascribe  them  to  the  evil  nomies  or 
fairies." 

But  we  must  return  to  the  parish  of  Leigh.  There  is  a  cross 
road,  called  "  Tinker's  Cross,"  in  this  parish,  where  formerly 
stood  an  old  yew  tree,  said  to  mark  the  site  of  a  criminal's 
grave  §.  This  place  is  said  to  be  haunted ;  and  Mr.  John 
Pressdee,  of  Worcester,  has  informed  me  that,  one  night  about 
fifty  years  ago,  one  of  his  father's  servants  came  home  to 
Millham,  in  Alfrick,  frightened  almost  to  death,  and  stated  that 
he  had  been  to  see  his  father,  who  lived  in  Gallows  Lane,  in 
Leigh,  and  as  he  passed  "  Tinker's  Cross,"  on  his  return  home, 
he  saw  a  strange  thing  there,  something  like  a  lion,  with  eyes  as 
big  as  saucers.     Mr.  Pressdee  said,  that  the  man  appeared  to 

*  See  Hone's  "  Everj-day  Book  and  Table  Book,"  Vol.  iii.,  p.  G74. 

+  In  the  Fifth  fable  of  the  same  work,  it  is  stated  that  man  was  created  out 
of  aske,  the  Gothic  for  an  ash  tree ;  and  woman  out  of  emla,  or  the  elm  tree. 

I  Nornir  (Islandic),  is  rather  "fates"  or  "destinies"  (parcaj.) 

§  The  traditions  are  very  confused  as  to  the  tinker's  crime.  His  burial  in 
the  cross  road,  prima  facie,  goes  to  show  that  he  committed  suicide,  and  sonic 
siiy  that  the  yew  tree  was  originally  a  stake  that  was  driven  through  his  body ; 
but  1  inn  inilined  to  think  that  he  committed  an  atrocious  nuirder  at  the  spot 
in  (lui'siion,  iiiid  was  executed  there,  to  render  the  example  as  signal  as 
])()ssible;  for  one  of  the  roads  leading  thereto  is  cidled  "  Gallows  Lane." 


443 

be  perfectly  sober  at  the  time,  and  that  he  was  ill  for  several 
days  afterwards,  from  the  fright. 

The  unbelievers,  no  doubt,  will  say  that  in  the  gloomy  shades 
of  night  he  saw  some  harmless  animal — perhaps  a  calf  or  jackass 
— at  the  dreaded  spot,  with  wondering  instead  of  wondrous  eyes, 
which  his  heated  imagination  worked  up  into  something  super- 
natural ;  but  believers,  no  doubt,  will  contend  that  it  was  Puck, 
and  that  the  following  quotation  from  a  curious  old  tract  by 
Rowlands,  on  "  Goblins,"  tends  to  identify  him  : — 

"  Amongst  the  rest  was  a  Good-FeUow  devill. 
So  cal'd  iu  kindness,  'cause  he  did  no  evill ; 
Knowne  by  the  name  of  Robin  (as  we  heare), 
And  that  his  eyes  as  broad  as  sawcers  were, 
\Mio  came  a-nights*,  &c." 

Patch  Ham,  in  Lulsley,  lies  near  the  river  Teme,  by  Puttocks 
or  Pot-hooks-ciid. 

Oseberrow  or  Osebury  {vul(/o  Roseburj'-)  Rock,  in  Lulsley,  was, 
according  to  tradition,  a  favourite  haunt  of  the  fairies.  Close  by 
it,  westward,  in  Knightwick,  there  is  a  well  called  "  Black's 
Well ;"  and  adjoining  to  it,  eastward,  there  is  a  piece  of  land 
called  "  Black  Borough ;"  close  to  it,  southward,  stands  "  Bate's 
Bush." 

The  etymology  of  the  first  syllable  in  the  name  Oseberrow  is 
probably  the  same  as  "  osier ;"  trees  of  the  willow  kind  abound- 
ing at  the  foot  of  the  rock,  upon  the  banks  of  the  river  Teme. 
The  provincial  term  "  berrow"  is  used  indiscriminately  both  for 
"  burgh,"  a  fortified  place,  and  for  "  barrow,"  an  ancient  place  of 
sepulture ;  however,  I  should  think,  from  the  character  and  com- 
manding position  of  the  rock  (it  being  opposite  to  Knightsford), 
that  in  this  case  burgh  or  burrow  is  meant. 

Black's  Well  used  to  be  on  the  side  of  the  Sandy  Lane,  by 
Osebuiy  Rock  ;  but  the  road  having  lately  been  made  straighter 
at  that  part,  it  now  is  a  few  yards  out  of  the  lane,  on  the  left- 

•  See  Ilalliwt'H's  "  I'liiry  Arytliolojjy,"  p.  17(1;  and  in  j)]).  IvJ,  1."],  of  the 
Iiiirodiiction  to  that  work  it  is  stated  that"  a  manuseript  of  tlic  thirteoiiih 
reiiniry,  in  tin-  ISodlcian  Liliiary  at  Oxford,  appears  to  refer  to  the  name  and 
pranks  of  l{obin  (ioodfcllow,  iiiuh'r  the  name  of  Kobinet."" 


444 

hand  side  goiug  down.  This  well  and  Osehury  Kock,  Black 
Borough,  Common  Berrow,  and  Sherah  Croft,  Little  Borrow,  and 
Pen  Hill,  are  nearly  all  in  a  line. 

Bate's  Bush  is  a  large,  old  maple  tree,  which  stands  in  the 
middle  of  the  cross  road  by  Osebury  Rock.  This  is  said  to  have 
been  a  stake  driven  through  the  body  of  a  man  named  Bate,  who 
committed  suicide  and  was  buried  there.  There  are  several  trees 
spontaneously  springing  up  round  the  maple,  namely,  an  oak,  a 
holly,  a  hazel,  and  a  hawthorn  ;  and  it  is  to  be  hoped,  when  the 
venerable  maple  is  no  more,  that  some  one  of  these  will  remain 
to  perpetuate  the  bush. 

The  place  is  reported  to  be  haunted,  and  the  following  is  given 
as  an  instance  of  it : — 

As  a  person  of  the  name  of  William  Yapp  was  one  night, 
about  forty  years  ago,  returning  from  his  father's  house,  situated 
by  Alfrick  Chapel,  to  Dodenham  Hall,  he  had  to  pass  by  Bate's 
Bush  ;  when  arrived  there,  the  dog  that  accompanied  him,  and 
was  a  little  in  advance,  came  howling  mysteriously  back  to  liim, 
out  of  the  Sandy  Lane.  He,  however,  went  on,  but  had  not 
proceeded  far  before  he  saw  something  which  he  took  to  be  a 
man  without  a  head*,  leaning  with  his  back  against  the  steep 
bank  on  the  Osebury  Rock  side  of  the  lane  ;  at  which  he  was  so 
frightened  that  he  did  not  dare  to  go  up  to  it,  but  hurried  away 
home  as  fast  as  he  could  runf. 

I  have  also  been  informed  how  that  a  certain  person  of  the 
name  of  Ball,  about  forty-five  or  fifty  years  ago,  went  from  his 
house,  near  Lulsley  Chapel,  to  see  a  man  of  the  name  of  Broad, 
who  lived  at  Wildgoose  Hill,  in  Knightwick,  and  that  his  son, 
who  went  at  night  to  fetch  him  home,  was  met  at  Bate's  Bush 
by  some  strange  thing,  which  frightened  him  almost  to  death  j. 
Also,  how  that  a  man,  of  the  name  of  Parry,  was  one  night  met 
at  the  same  bush  by  something  like  a  black  pig ;  and  that  another 
person,  as  he  was  one  night  returning  home  from  Oldham,  near 
the   Red  Cliff  and   the    Devil's   Pig-trough,  to  Colles  or  Coles 

*  'I'licro  is  a  place  called  Headless  Cross  at  Ipsley,  Co.  Warwick, 
t  1  liad  til's  fVoiii  liis  sitrviving  sister. 
J   1  had  ibis  from  the  son  and  others. 


445 

[vulgo  Cold)  Place*,  in  Lulsley,  was  met  by  a  mysterious-looking 
black  dog,  who  sometimes  rushed  close  by  him,  then  appeared 
again  at  a  distance,  and  thus  dodged  him  nearly  all  the  way  till 
he  got  home. 

The  sceptics,  no  doubt,  will  say  that  some  mischievous  Avight 
occasionally  personified  Bate  at  the  spot  in  question,  and  that 
the  pig  was  nothing  more  than  mortal,  and  had  wandered  to  the 
bush  from  some  neighbouring  stye ;  that  the  dog  (equally  mortal) 
had  lost  his  master,  and  was  roving  about  Lulsley  to  find  another. 
The  believers,  on  the  other  hand,  will  contend  that  it  really  was 
Bate  who  thus  appeared,  and  that  although  he  had  no  head,  yet 
that  he  had  a  tale  to  unfold,  which  those  he  met  were  not  civil 
enough  to  wait  to  hear ;  and  that  the  pig  did  indeed  wander  to 
the  dreaded  bush  from  a  neighbouring  place,  but  that  it  was  from 
the  Devil's  Pig-trough  f,  and  that  he  was  of  kin  to  the  black  dog, 
who  was  no  other  than  the  fairy  Grim,  who  sometimes  went 
about  in  tlie  likeness  of  a  black  dog,  and  that  Oldham  was  in  his 
nightly  round  from  Osebury  Rock,  Black  Borough,  the  Red  Cliff, 
the  Devil's  Pig-trough,  Grimsend,  and  Bate's  Bush,  to  Black's  Well, 
where  having  slaked  his  thirst,  he  retunied  again  to  the  rock. 

This  road  was  much  more  interestingly  haunted  at  the  part 
between  Grimsend  and  Bates  Bush,  at  the  copse  which  lies 
between  the  former  and  Ravenhill's  [vulgo  Raffnal's)  Green.  I 
have  been  informed  by  a  person,  that  as  his  father,  about  seventy 
or  eighty  years  ago,  was  proceeding  at  dead  of  night  from  Patches 
in  Alfrick  to  Lulsley,  he  saw,  as  it  is  said  others  also  occasionally 
did  at  the  same  spot,  a  beautiful  young  female  figure,  all  in  white, 
standing  by  the  roadside  ;  his  horse  turned  suddenly  round,  but 
upon  being  forced  back  again  by  his  rider,  he  started  off  at  full 
gallop  by  the  enchanting  vision,  and  never  stopped  till  he  arrived 
at  his  journey's  end  J.  • 

•  See  the  section  "  Old  Coles." 

■f  Grimni,  in  his  "  Geniian  Fairy  Mythology,"  furnishes  some  instances  of 
the  r^vil  One  assuniinfj  the  shape  of  a  "hog."     See  "  Atheua;uni,"  Sept.  18, 

1847,  p.  um. 

I  Horses  are  supposed  (o  see  ghosts,  even  when  the  ghosts  are  invisible  to 
their  riders.  Upon  my  once  asking  a  countryman  whether  he  had  ever  seen 
a  ghost,  he  said,  "  No,  but  my  horse  has." 


446 

It  also  is  said  that  something  like  a  white  horse  has  occasionally 
been  seen  in  tlie  night,  proceeding  as  swift  as  the  wind  along  the 
foot  of  Osebury  Rock,  by  the  side  of  the  river  Terae,  the  clatter 
of  his  hoofs  on  such  occasions  liaving  been  distinctly  heard. 

As  we  have  just  passed  tlie  Red  Cliff,  it  may  as  well  be 
remarked  that  in  it  there  was  a  hole  called  "  Black  Jack's  Cave," 
but  it  is  now  nearly  filled  up  with  the  marl  which  gi'adually 
crumbles  do\vn  the  precipice.  This  cave  is  said  to  have  been 
inhabited  by  a  convict,  of  the  name  of  Famham  {vuhjo  Thorn- 
ham),  who,  about  eighty  or  ninety  years  ago,  returned  from 
transportation  before  his  time  had  expired,  and  took  up  his  abode 
in  that  romantic  and  secluded  spot :  he  was  commonly  called 
"  Black  Jack."  The  cave  lay  about  half  way  up  the  almost 
perpendicular  cliff,  and  many  are  the  tales  that  are  told  how 
Black  Jack  used  to  climb  up  to  it  with  all  the  agility  of  a  cat, 
even  when  laden  with  the  spoils  of  the  neighbourhood.  There  is 
also  a  piece  of  land  called  "  Black  Jack's  Hole"  (vulgo  Hook's 
Meadow),  in  the  parish  of  St.  John,  in  Bedwardine,  by  Laughern 
Brook,  on  the  road-side  leading  to  Temple  Laugheni,  and  near 
to  Ambrose  (alius  Hook's)  Mill ;  some  say  that  this  latter  name 
is  a  corruption  of  "Jack  Black's  KnoU."  I  was,  in  the  year 
1846,  told  by  a  very  aged  farmer  in  Alfiick,  of  the  name  of 
Trehearn,  that  he  when  a  boy  saw  Black  Jack,  and  that  he  had 
been  dead  about  seventy-five  years. 

"  Lulsley'"  is  mentioned  in  an  Inquisition  of  1479  ;  it  is  there 
spelled  "  Lullesley "  *  ;  and  Lulsey  in  Visitations  of  1461  and 
1507.  We  meet  with  "  LuUesley  or  Lullesey,"  in  an  award 
of  1524 ;  and  "  Lulsley  and  Lulsey"  in  the  exemplification  of  a 
decree  of  1585,  relative  to  Suckley,  Alfrick,  and  Lulsleyf.  The 
name  is  a  compound  of  the  words  "  Lull,"  ("  Lulu,"  Danish,) 
"  to  compose  to  sleep  by  a  pleasing  sound  I ,"  and  "  Ley  "  (Saxon), 
"ground  untilled§,"  and  seems  descriptive  of  the  "  swcetc 
musicke  "  and  free  character  of  fairyland  || . 

*  See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  397. 

+  Ibid.,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  7.^,  of  the  Corrections  and  Additions. 

J  Spenser. 

§  See  p.  214. 

]|   Also  see  p.  1!);!  to  v!(l.'),  aiid  Iter  Vf,,  pji.  24!),  2.")0,  rclalivc  to  Liil^li-y. 


447 

It  may  as  well  be  noticed  here,  that  in  the  chapel-yard  at 
Lulsley  there  is  an  ancient  female  yew  tree,  which  is  six  yards 
round  at  about  five  feet,  and  five  yards  round  at  about  three  feet 
from  the  base.  The  head  of  it  is  partly  dead,  and  several  lai'ge 
limbs  have  been  broken  off.  The  length,  from  the  extremity  of 
one  bough  to  that  of  the  opposite  one,  is  twenty-two  yards.  In 
Cradley,  Co.  Hereford,  near  the  Beck  on  Old  Storage,  in  Alfrick, 
there  is  a  yew  tree  which  is  twelve  feet  round  at  three  feet,  and 
fourteen  feet  three  inches  round  at  six  feet  from  the  base.  In 
Stanford  Bishop  churchyard,  Co.  Hereford,  there  is  a  female  yew 
tree  which  is  thirty-one  feet  round  at  about  seven  feet,  and 
twenty-seven  and  a  half  feet  round  at  about  six  feet  from  the 
base,  but  it  is  not  quite  so  large  at  the  base.  The  above  measure- 
ments were  made  about  sixteen  or  eighteen  years  ago. 

The  name  Alfrick  has  been  considered  as  meaning  Elf-reich, 
or  fairyland.  Its  most  probable  signification,  however,  is 
Alfredswic*. 

Oughton  or  Eoten  Wells,  in  Alfiick,  lie  near  the  Upper 
House,  as  before  stated,  and  just  below  Norgrove,  or  Hoargi'ovef. 

The  meadow  called  "  Sibhay,"  or  "  TibhayJ,  in  Alfrick,  lies  in 
the  Grimsend  estate,  and  adjoins  the  Tibbins  in  Clay-Green 
farm,  which  abuts  upon  Patches ;  and  here  it  may  be  observed, 
tliat  it  is  curious  that  the  piece  of  land  called  "  Sibhay,"  or  "  Tib- 
hay,"  has  two  fairy  names  for  its  prefix,  like  "  Drips  Hill,"  or 
"  Trips  Hill,"  before  described  §.  The  word  "  liay"  comes  from  the 

♦  See  further,  relative  to  this  place,  pp.  193  to  '-207,  aud  Iter  VI.,  pp.  246  to 
249.  Shiee  p.  200  was  printed,  I  find  Alfiick  is  called  "  Alfredes-wic"  in  the 
first  edition  of  Gibson's  "  Camden,"  published  in  1(595,  p.  r)27,  who  therein 
says  it  is  so  written  in  old  writings;  and  he  calls  Austinfrie  "  Austines-ric." 
There  is  a  line  echo  at  the  Upper  House  in  Alfrick,  which  is  so  distinct,  that  it 
will  allow  about  ten  syllables  to  be  uttered  before  it  begins  to  repeat  tlieni.  The 
spot  is  in  the  garden,  opposite  to  and  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards  from 
Alfrick  Chapel.  In  proof  of  its  distinctness,  one  of  the  pointer  dogs  used  occa- 
sionally to  resort  to  the  spot,  and  bark  till  hewastircd,  athis  supposed  antagonist. 

+  See  pp.  240,  V.Kk 

J  This  name,  probably,  is  a  contraction  of  Tibia,  the  uanie  of  an  ancient 
musical  pipe. 

§   See  p.  4  4(1. 


448 

Saxon  "  hieg."  To  dance  tlie  hay,  means  to  dance  in  a  ring, — 
probably  from  dancing  round  a  haycock*.  Hay  (Fr.  haie,  a  hedge) 
means  a  net  which  encloses  the  haunt  of  an  aniraalf.  There  is 
a  piece  of  land  called  "  Robin's  Hays,"  in  Northfield^. 

"  Patch  Hill,"  in  Alfrick,  lies  in  Patches  Farm ;  and  there  is 
a  very  steep,  deep,  and  gloomy  lane,  called  the  Sandy  Lane, 
which  runs  down  the  south  side  of  the  fann  by  Patch  Hill  to  the 
main  road,  by  the  Fairy's  Cave  in  the  rock  at  the  Knap§,  by  the 
Bridge 's-stone,  near  the  north  side  of  Old  Storage,  and  many  are 
the  tales  told  of  the  haunted  lane.  Frequently  has  the  benighted 
peasant  been  scared  by  the  sight  of  a  black  greyhoimd,  or  of  a 
horse  or  man  of  the  same  sombre  hue.  Sometimes  a  mysterious 
waggon,  drawn  by  four  black  horses,  has  passed  by  him,  while  at 
others  his  eyes  have  encountered  the  form  of  a  crow,  perched 
upon  one  of  the  barrels  in  an  old  cider-house  i|  attached  to  a 
mouldering  building  in  the  lane.  Often,  too,  have  strange 
unearthly  noises  issued,  in  the  dead  stillness  of  the  night,  from 
the  same  building,  like  sounds  as  of  a  cooper's  hammer  wielded 
by  no  mortal  hand. 

The  black  dog  has  likewise  been  seen  at  Callow's  Leap,  a  place 
near  the  foot  of  the  Sandy  Lane,  on  the  main  road  side,  where  it 
is  said  that  a  mighty  hunter,  of  the  name  of  Callow,  leaped  down 
the  precipice.  A  carrier,  who  weekly  goes  through  the  main  road 
with  a  horse  and  cart,  told  me,  that  upon  his  return  home  one 
night,  from  Worcester  to  Suckley,  he  saw,  nearly  opposite  to  the 
cottage  by  Callow's  Leap,  what  he  took  to  be  a  man  lying  in  the 
ditch ;  but,  upon  his  seizing  the  horse's  head  to  prevent  him 
taking  fright,  he  all  of  a  sudden  lost  sight  of  the  supposed  human 
being,  and  something  like  a  black  dog  rushed  close  by  him  under 
the  horse's  neck.  He  also  said  that  his  horse,  at  two  or  tliree 
different  times,  made  a  dead  halt  at  that  spot,  and  that  he  had 
much  difficulty  in  getting  him  on  again. 

*  Shakespeare. 

+  Perry's  Dictionary. 

+  See  p.  i;]0, 

§  See  p.  108,  as  to  tlie  derivation  of  the  name  of  this  hiUock. 

11  See  tlio  section  "  Old  Cfdcs." 


449 

There  was  a  play,  in  Shakespeare's  time,  called  the  "  Black 
Dogge  of  Newgate,"  (see  Henslowe's  "  Diary,"  published  by  the 
Shakespeare  Society,)  and  one  of  the  items  in  the  "  Diary,"  p.  246, 
is  as  follows : — "  Lent  unto  John  Dewcke,  the  1 0  of  Janewary, 
1 602,  to  bye  lame  skenes  for  the  '  Black  Dogge  of  Newgate,'  the 
some  of  X*." 

In  Waldron's  "  History  of  the  Isle  of  Man,"  there  is,  among 
the  fairy  legends,  an  account  of  an  apparition  called  the  "  Mauthe 
Doog,"  which  the  Manks  alleged,  used,  in  the  shape  of  a  large 
black  spaniel,  with  curled  shaggy  hair,  to  haunt  Peel  Castle.  (See 
also,  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  p.  309. 

Patch  has  given  his  own  character  in  the  "  liife  of  Robin 
Good-fellow*,"  in  the  following  words  : — 

"  About  mid-night  do  I  walke,  and  for  the  trickes  I  play  they 
call  me  Pach.  When  I  find  a  slut  asleepe,  I  smuch  her  face  if  it 
be  cleane ;  but  if  it  be  durty,  I  wash  it  in  the  next  water-pot  that 
I  can  finde,"  &c.  "  Some  I  finde  that  spoyle  their  masters'  horses 
for  want  of  currying :  those  I  doe  daube  with  grease  and  soote,  and 
they  are  faine  to  curry  themselves  ere  they  can  get  cleane,"  &c. 

"  Thus  many  trickes,  I,  Pach,  can  doe, 
But  to  tlie  good  I  ne'er  was  foe,"  &c. 

The  name  of  the  court  fool  of  Elizabeth,  Queen  Consort  of 
Henry  VII.,  was  Patch  f.  The  fool  of  Henry  VIII.  was  also  so 
named. 

Grim  thus  describes  himself  in  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology  I :" 
"  I  walke  with  the  owle,  and  make  many  to  crj'  as  loud  as  she 
doth  hollow.  Sometimes  I  doe  affright  many  simple  people,  for 
which  some  have  termed  me  the  Blacke  Dog  of  Newgate,'"  &c. 
"  'Tis  I  that  do,  like  a  skritch-owle,  cry  at  sicke  men's  windowes, 
which  make  the  hearers  so  fearefull,  that  they  say  that  the  sick 
person  cannot  live§,"  &c. 

•  See  IlalHwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  pp.  IT)!,  152. 

+  See  the  "  Lives  of  the  Queens  of  England,"  by  Miss  Agnes  Strickland, 
Vol.  iv.,  p,  C>-1. 

\   Pp.  15i,  158. 

5  The  peasantry  have  a  fancy,  to  this  day,  that  they  sometimes  either  see 
or  hear  a  "  token''  when  a  person  is  going  to  die,  which  they  call  "  Fetch ;" 

G  G 


450 

"  Wlien  candles  bunie  both  blue  and  dim, 
Old  folkes  will  say,  '  Here's  fairy  Grim  !'" 

Grim  was  a  most  notable  pei*sonage  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  (or 
Scandinavian)  mythology,  being  no  other  than  the  Evil  One  him- 
self, under  a  different  name. 

In  Thorpe's  "  Northern  Mythology,"  Vol.  i.  p.  23,  it  is  stated 
that  the  musical  Grim,  or  Fossegrim,  of  Norway,  is  a  being  whose 
sojourn  is  by  waterfalls  and  mill-works. 

Sib  thus  describes  herself,  and  Tib,  and  other  "  women  fayries," 
and  likewise  Tom  Thumb,  in  the  "  Life  of  Robin  Good- fellow*." 

"  To  walke  nightly,  as  do  the  men  fayries,  we  use  not;  but 
now  and  then  we  goe  together,  and  at  good  huswives  fires  we 
warme  and  dresse  our  fayry  children.  If  wee  find  cleane  water  and 
cleane  towels,  wee  leave  them  money,  either  in  their  basons  or  in 
their  shoes ;  but  if  we  find  no  cleane  water  in  their  houses,  we 
wash  our  children  in  their  pottage,  milke,  or  beere,  or  what-ere 
we  finde,"  &c. 

"  'i'ib  and  I  the  chiefest  are. 
And  for  all  things  doe  take  care ; 
Licke  is  cooke  and  dresseth  nieate, 
And  fetcheth  all  things  that  we  eat ; 
Lull  is  nurse  and  tends  the  cradle. 
And  the  babes  doth  dresse  and  swadle ; 
This  little  fellow,  called  Tom  Thumb, 
That  is  no  bigger  than  a  plumb, 
He  is  the  porter  to  our  gate, 
For  he  doth  let  all  in  thereat. 
And  makes  us  merry  with  his  play. 
And  merrily  we  spend  the  day." 

I  could  have  adduced  several  other  names  of  places  which  cor- 
respond with  the  names  of  some  of  the  fairies  ;  but  I  have  confined 
myself  principally  to  those  places  in  this  county  with  wliich  I  am 
well  acquainted,  and  the  fair}-  names  of  which  appear  to  be  sup- 
ported by  concurrent  facts  or  circumstances  f. 

and  upon  such  occasions  they  say,  "  Fetch  is  come."  There  is  Patch  Leasow, 
in  Bureot,  in  Bromsgrove.  The  peasantry  say  fatch  for  fetch,  and  fatches  for 
vetches.     Feckenham  is  called  Feckeha,  in  "  Domesday  Book," 

*  See  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mytliology,"  pp.  153,  154. 

+  It  is  a  very  curious  fact  that  so  many  of  iliose  peculiar  places,  whicli  in 


451 

In  addition  to  what  has  been  already  quoted,  proving  that 
much  Anglo-Saxon  lore  is  mixed  up  in  our  medieval  fairy 
mythology,  the  following  names  of  places,  taken  from  the  "  Codex 
Diplomaticus  aevi  Saxonici,"  will  further  show  that  many  of  the 
fairy  names  enumerated  by  Drayton  *  and  others,  appear  to  come 
from  the  Saxon,  and  tend  to  prove  that  the  mediaeval  fairies  were 
partly,  at  least,  the  offspring  of  the  earlier  luce  of  elves. 


Fairy 
Names. 

Names  of  places  iu  the 
"  Codex  Dip." 

No.  of  the 
Charters. 

Cob    . 

Cobbanden   . 

Cohden\,  Hants. 

.      752,  1136. 

,, 

Cobbelia 

.     752,  1094,  1187. 

Cobley,  Hants. 

,, 

Cobbenstan  . 

.     482,  482  Anp.,  Vol.  iii 

Capstone,  Wilts. 

Elf     . 

Ylfetham      . 
Hants. 

.     595. 

,, 

Ylfingden 

.     1198. 

„ 

Elftehamt    . 

.     938. 

Eoten . 

Eotanford     . 

Et/ord,  Dorset. 

.     1246. 

Grim  . 

Grimes  die    . 

.     446, 446  App.,  Vol.  vi. 
456,  456  Ibid,  778, 

Grbnsditch,  Wilts. 


(lays  of  yore  were  set  down  as  fairj-  localities,  and  named  after  tlieni,  should 
even  to  these  times  be  considered  as  haunted;  and  it  shows  how  intimately 
fairy  mythology  and  ghostology  are  connected.  This,  I  trust,  will  be  a  suffi- 
cient excuse  for  my  having  given  several  stories  of  the  latter  class. 

*  Some  of  Drayton's  names  were  most  probably  invented  by  him  to  suit  the 
rhyme,  as,  Mop,  Skip,  Fib,  Quick,  Jil,  .Jin,  and  Nit. 

+  "  Where  the  modern  name  is  printed  in  italic  characters,  it  marks  an 
attempt  to  suggest  the  name  which  may  be  home  by  a  corresponding  place  in 
the  same  county." "  Codex  Dip.,"  Vol.  vi..  Introduction,  p.  2-1!). 

J  See  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  pp.  -380,  38*.i,  &e. ;  and  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  App., 
pp.  57,  58,  50,  as  to  several  places  of  the  name  of  Elf,  in  the  Anglo-Saxon 
times,  such  as  Elvestun,  .-Klfintun ;  &c.  And  "  Domesday  Book,"  as  to 
.Alfestun,  Aluestnn,  Alvestun,  &c. ;  also  see  pp.  4.U,  4S.'),  of  this  work. 


452 

Fairy  Names  of  places  iu  the  No.  of  the 

Names.  "  Codex  Dip."  Charters. 

Grim  .     Grimastun    .         .         .         ,759. 
Grimstone,  Norfolk. 

„  Grimanhyl    ....     466. 

Worcestershire. 

„  Grimsetene  gemero  .     561. 

Grimset,  Wore. 

Grimes  hylle*       .         .         .     209,  209  App.,  Vol.  iii. 
„  Grimanleah,     Grimanlea,     or 


Grimgelege  \ 

.  266,  266  App.,  Vol.  iii. ; 
514,  514  App.,  Vol. 
vi.  ;  515,  515  App., 
Vol.  iii.,  1069. 

Grimley,  Wore. 

,, 

Griman  edisc 

.     180,  180  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

Hob    . 

Hobbesse 

.     785. 

Hauboys,  Norfolk. 

Hop    . 

Hopping 

.     537. 

Hopping,  Surrey. 

„ 

Hopwuda 

.     261,351. 

Hopwood,  Worces. 

,, 

Hopwudes  wic 

.     262,  262  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

Imp    . 

Impintun 

Impington,  Camb. 

.     907. 

Lull    , 

Lullan  setl.  . 

.     652,  1065. 

,, 

Lulan  treow . 

.     18,  18  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

Lullesbeorh  . 

.     374,  374  App.,  Vol.  iii  ; 

488,  488  Jitrf.,  1002, 
1186. 

Ijullesborough,  Hants. 

♦  See  Heming's  "  Cartulary,"  for  Grinianhylle,  sive  Gruniuanhylle,  vel 
Gremanhil,  pp.  164,  le."),  257,  300. 

f  Ibid  ,  a.s  to  Griinanleage,  Gruiianlege,  Grimanleag,  Grimelege,  Grimanleg, 
Grimelengp,  Grimanleah,  vel  Grj-mley,  p.  147,  &c.,  and  Grimel,  p.  516;  also 
see  before,  pp.  438,  43!),  440.  Professor  Leo,  of  Halle,  says  the  word 
"  Grima"  denotes  a  mask. 


453 

Fairy  Names  of  places  in  tlie  No.  of  the 

Names.  "  Codex  Dij)."  Charters. 

Lull    .     Lulleswyrth  .         .         .         .714. 
Lulsworth,  Oxford. 

„  Luling  ....     1'2A5. 

„         Lulliiiges  treow     .         .         .     2'27. 
Lullingstree,  Midd. 

„  Lullingmynster,  Lullyngminstre  314,  350,  1067. 

?  Lullington,  Sussex. 

Patch .     PaBccingas,    Peaccingas,    Pec- 

cinges       ....     114,481,715,896. 
Patching,  Sussex. 

Pink  .     Pincanden    .         .         .         .570. 
Pinkden,  Wore. 

„  Pincanham   ....     347,  347  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

Pinkham,  Wore. 

Pin  Pinnan  rod   ....  767. 

Pinnelesfeld.         .         .         .  172. 

Pines  heafod  .         .         .  1088. 

Pip     .     Pipe 118,  118  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

{Pipe,)  Wore. 

Pippanl6ah   ....     549,  1279. 
Pipley,  Wore. 

Pipraynster  ....     774,  1117,  1140. 
Pitmmster,  Somerset. 

,,  Pippanslsed  .         .         .         .150,  150  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

Pipslade,  Wore. 

„  Pippelrethig .         .  .     1171. 

Pipplerithe,  Berks. 

Pippellrieg    .  .         .1171. 

Pipplehridge,  Berks. 

„  Pippenes  fenue      .         .         .     1360. 

Pippenes  pen         .         .  426,  426  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

Pip»pen,  Glouc. 


454 


Fairy 

Names  of  places  in  the 

No.  of  the 

Names. 

"  Codex  Dip." 

Charters. 

Pip 

.     Piperingas    . 

Pippering,  Sussex. 

.     1001. 

>> 

Pipemaes 

.     731. 

Pippemess,  Kent. 

,, 

Pippesleah    . 

.     1123. 

Pipsley,  Berks. 

„ 

Piplingcgtun 

.     570. 

Pipplington,  Wore. 

Puck  . 

Pucanwyl 

Puckwell,  Somerset. 

.     408,  408  App.,  Vol.  iii 

Sib     . 

Sibbe  stapele 
Wore. 

209,  209  App.,  Vol.  iii 

,, 

Sibbeslea 

1094. 

" 

Sibbesweg     . 
Hants, 

595. 

,, 

Siblingchurst 

589. 

Hants. 

Tib 

Tybenham    . 

Tibbenham,  Norfolk. 

785. 

,, 

Tibbanliol     .         .         .         . 

1000. 

Tick   . 

Ticenheal     .         .         .         . 
Tickuall,  Derby. 

710,  1298. 

Tit     . 

Tit 

957. 

>j 

Tittanduu     .         .         .         . 

346,  346  App.,  Vol.  iii., 
970,  1295. 

)> 

Titferthes  geat 
Wilts. 

378,  378  App.,  Vol.  iii., 
1120. 

,, 

Tittenhalh    .... 

559. 

Tittingale,  Wore. 

Irip    . 

Triphyrst      .... 

385. 

Triplmnl,  Glouc. 

455 


Fairy 

Names  of  places  in  the 

No.  of  tlie 

Names. 

"  Codex  Dip." 

Charters. 

Trip    . 

Tripelau 

Triplow,  Camb. 

.     907. 

Win    . 

Wynnedun    . 

Windon,  Somei-set. 

.     516,  516  App.,Vol.  iii. 

>) 

Wineshyl 

Winshill,  Derby. 

.     710,  1298. 

,, 

Wynne  maedua     . 

.     683. 

Wore. 

,, 

Wynes  leah  . 

.     585,  585  App.,  Vol.  iii. 

Winsley,  Wilts. 

" 

Wines  treow 

.     427, 427  App.,  Vol  iii., 
1147,    1177,    1198, 
1265. 

,, 

Wynburh  edisc 

.     570. 

Worces. 

With  respect  to  tlie  Saxon  name  "  Grim,"  is  it  not  possible 
that  it  was  derived  from  the  name  of  the  Swedish  king  Grj^mer, 
who  was  so  celebrated  in  Swedish  and  Danish  song,  and  a  descrip- 
tion of  whose  romantic  exploits  are  appended  to  the  translation  of 
Mallet's  "  Northern  Antiquities,"  Vol.  ii.,  p.  248,  &c.  In  fact, 
many  of  the  names  of  the  elves  and  fairies  may  have  been  bor- 
rowed from  those  of  cither  real  or  imaginary  heroes. 


456 

FAIRY  RINGS. 

1  mentioned,  in  a  former  page*,  that  fairy  rings  abound  in 
various  parts  of  this  county.  Botanists  variously  account  for 
their  formation  ;  a  common  opinion,  however,  is  that  they  are 
caused  by  a  species  of  vegetable  growth,  which  radiates  from  a 
centre  and  spreads  wider  and  wider  in  a  circle,  causing  the  grass 
at  its  circumference  to  assume  a  deep  green  colour  and  rank 
appearance.  Upon  the  rim  of  one  of  these  fairy  rings  being  dug 
into,  a  whitish,  fibrous  f,  starchy-looking  matter  appeal's  under 
the  sod,  amongst  the  roots  of  the  grass,  and  at  ceitain  seasons 
several  species  of  fungi  or  agarics  grow  in  great  numbers  upon 
such  rims.  Some  writers  consider  that  the  fibrous  matter  is 
either  the  roots  or  spawn  of  the  fungi,  and  that  its  presence 
causes  the  grass  to  be  of  a  deeper  colour  at  the  rims  ;  othei"s 
suppose  that  they  are  caused  by  the  fall  of  electric  matter  during 
thunder  storms.  But  let  us  leave  the  regions  of  science  to  the 
botanists,  and  retmn  to  the  more  genial  realms  of  fairyland. 

Shakespeare  alludes  to  fairy  rings  in  the  "  Midsummer  Night's 
Dream,"  in  a  scene  between  Puck  and  another  fairy,  as  follows  : — 

"  Puck. — How  now,  spirit  I  whither  wander  you  ? 
"  Fairy. — Over  hill,  over  dale, 

Tlirough  bush,  through  briar. 
Over  park,  over  pale, 

Through  flood,  through  fire  : 
I  do  wander  every  where, 

Swifter  than  the  moone's  sphere  ; 
And  I  serve  the  fairy  queen, 

To  dew  her  orbs  uj)on  the  green,"  &c. 

In  a  scene  between  Oberon  and  Titania  there  are  the  following 
lines : — 

"  Oberon, — How  long  within  this  wood  intend  yon  slay  ? 

"  Titania. — Perchance  till  after  Thesus'  wedding  day. 
If  you  will  patiently  dance  in  our  round, 
And  see  our  moonlight  revels,  go  with  us,  &c. 

»   See  p.  412. 

+  That  it  is  fibrous  I  believe  there  can  be  no  doubt;  for  several  years  apo 
1  had  a  portion  of  it  examined  by  a  gentleman,  wjih  a  powerful  microscope, 
who  pronounced  it  to  be  fibrous. 


457 

The  rings  are  also  noticed  in  the  "  Life  of  Robin  Good-fellow,*" 
as  follows : — 

"  There  was  wont  to  walke  many  harmlesse  spirits,  called  fay 
ries,  dancing  in  brave  order  in  fayry  rings  on  greene  hills,  with 
sweete  musicke  (sometime  invisible),  in  divers  shapes,"  &c. 

And  in  Robin's  songf,  as  follows  : — 

"  Elves,  urchins,  goblins  all,  and  little  fairyes. 

That  doe  fiUch,  blacke,  and  pinche  inayds  of  the  dairyes, 
Make  a  ring  on  the  grasse  with  your  qnicke  measures  ; 
Tom  shall  play,  and  I'le  sing  for  all  your  pleasures." 

And  in  the  "  Pranks  of  Puck|,"  as  follows  : — 

"  Whenas  my  fellow  elves  and  I, 
In  circled  ring  do  trip  a  round,"  &e. 

In  an  "  Episode  of  Fairies,"  published  in  160U§,  there  are  the 
following  Unes : — 

"  Round  about,  round  about,  in  a  fine  ring-a, 

Thus  we  dance,  thus  we  dance,  and  thus  we  sing-a ; 
Trip  and  go,  to  and  fro,  over  this  greeii-a, 
All  about,  ill  and  out,  for  our  brave  queen-a." 

And  in  Drayton's  "  Nymphidia||,"  as  follows  : — 

"  And  in  tlieir  courses  make  that  round 
In  meadows  and  in  marshes  found, 
Of  them  so  call'd  the  fairy-ground, 
Of  which  they  have  the  keeping." 

And  in  the  *'  Wiltshire  Collections  of  Aubrey  relative  to  the 
Fairies^,"  the  following  curious  particulars  are  stated : — 

"  In  the  yeare  1633-4,  soone  after  I  had  entered  into  my 
grammar  at  the  Latin  Schoole  at  Yatton  Keyncl,  our  curate, 
Mr.  Hart,  was  annoy "d  one  night  by  these  elves  or  fayrics.    Com- 

•  See  Halliwell's  "  Fairy  Mythology,"  p.  122. 
+  Ibid.,  p.  14!). 

*  Ibid.,  p.  108. 
§  Ibid.,  p.  180. 
II   Ibid.,  p.  197. 

^  Ibid.,  pp.  2:i!:>,  2-iG. 


458 

raing  over  the  downes,  it  being  neere  darke,  and  approching  one 
of  the  fairey  dances,  as  the  common  people  call  them  in  these 
parts,  viz.,  the  greene  circles  made  hy  those  sprites  on  the  grasse, 
he,  all  at  once,  sawe  an  innumerable  quantitie  of  pigmies  or  very 
small  people,  dancing  rounde  and  rounde,  and  singing,  and  mak- 
ing all  manner  of  small  odd  noyses As  to  these  circles,  I 

presume  they  are  generated  from  the  breatliing  out  of  a  fertile 
subterraneous  vapour,  which  comes  from  a  kinde  of  conical  con- 
cave, and  endeavours  to  get  out  at  a  narrow  passage  at  the  top, 
which  forces  it  to  make  another  cone  inversely  situated  to  the 

other,  the  top  of  which  is  the  green  circle If  you  digge 

under  the  turfe  of  this  circle,  you  will  find  at  the  rootes  of  the 

grasse  a  hoare  or  mouldinesse Mem.  —  That  pidgeon's 

dung  and  nitre,  steeped  in  water,  will  make  the  fayry  circles  :  it 
drawes  to  it  the  nitre  of  the  aire,  and  will  never  weare  out." 

The  following  recipe  is  given  in  Adams's  work  on  "  Flowers, 
their  Moral,  Language,  and  Poetry,"  whereby,  it  is  said,  a  sight 
of  the  fairies  may  be  obtained. 

"  We  have  a  precious  unguent,  prepared  according  to  the 
receipt  of  a  celebrated  alchymist,  which  applied  to  your  visual 
orbs,  will  enable  you  to  behold  without  difficulty  or  danger,  the 
most  potent  Fairy  or  Spirit  you  may  encounter.  Tliis  is  the 
fonn  of  the  preparation : — '  R.  A  pint  of  sallet-oyle,  and  put  it 
into  a  vial-glasse  ;  but  first  wash  it  with  rose-water,  and  mary- 
golde  water  :  the  flowers  to  be  gathered  towards  the  east.  Wash 
it  till  the  oyle  come  white  ;  then  put  it  into  the  glasse,  ut  supra ; 
and  then  put  thereto  the  budds  of  hoUyhocke,  the  flowei-s  of 
marygolde,  the  flowers  or  toppers  of  wild  thime,  the  budds  of 
young  hazle  :  and  the  thyme  must  be  gathered  neare  the  side  of 
a  hill  where  Fayries  use  to  be  :  and  take  the  grasse  of  a  fayrie 
throne  ;  then,  all  these  put  into  the  oyle,  into  the  glasse  :  and 
sette  it  to  dissolve  tlu'ee  dayes  in  the  sunue,  and  then  keep  it  for 
thy  use  ;  ut  supra-".'  " 

*  Asliinolean  MS.  1400,  written  about  the  year  1000.     See  also  Halliwell's 
"  Fairy  Mytliology,"  p.  '22'J. 


459 


THE  SEVEN  WHISTLERS. 

Wliether  these  were  fairies,  wizards,  or  fates,  I  cannot  pretend 
to  say ;  but  I  have  been  informed  by  Mr.  J.  Pressdee,  of  Wor- 
cester, that,  when  a  boy,  he  used  to  hear  the  country  people  talk 
a  good  deal  about  the  "  Seven  WTiistlers,"  and  that  he  frequently 
heard  his  late  grandfather,  John  Pressdee,  who  lived  at  Cuckold's 
KnoU,  in  Suckley,  say  that  oftentimes,  at  night,  when  he  happened 
to  be  upon  the  lull  by  his  house,  he  heard  six  out  of  the  "  Seven 
Whistlers  "  pass  over  his  head,  but  that  no  more  than  six  of  them 
were  ever  heard  by  him,  or  by  any  one  else,  to  whistle  at  one 
time,  and  that  should  the  seven  whistle  together  the  world  would 
be  at  an  end  ■-'•'. 

This  is  a  very  remarkable  legend  ;  and  it  is  strange  that  such 
a  fancy  should  thus  have  been  credited,  almost  to  our  own  time. 
It  probably  took  its  rise  either  from  the  occasional  peculiar 
whistling  of  the  windf,  or  from  flights  of  wild  fowl,  such  as 
plovers,  widgeons,  or  teal,  which  sometimes  fly  at  night,  making 
a  pecuHar  whistling  noise.  Supposing,  however,  that  the  legend 
was  based  upon  such  natural  causes,  it  ceitainly  became  most 
strangely  mystified. 

This  legend  has  been  noticed  in  the  "  Athenaeum  ^,"  in  con- 
nection with  a  curious  account  in  Grimm's  "  German  Mythology," 
descriptive  of  the  "  Swan  Maidens,"  who  are  represented  as 
being  heard  flying  through  the  air  at  night. 

There  is  a  place  called  "  Whistlers  "  in  Lulsley,  and  also  a 
Uttle  liill  in  Ireland,  called  "  Knock-na-feadalea,"  which,  accord- 
ing to  Neilson,  signifies  the  "  Whistling  Hill."  He  states  that 
the  place  took  this  name  from  reports  that  the  music  of  the  fairies 
had  been  often  heard  to  proceed  from  it§. 

•  I  linve  also  lieanl  h  similar  nccount  from  otliers, 

+  "  Like  the  darkened  moon  he  (Cnigral's  phosl)  retired,  in  the  midst  of  the 
wiiislHng  blast." — Ossian,  "  Fingal,"  Book  ii. 

"  Often  arc  the  ste])s  of  the  dea<l  in  the  dark-ethlyin-^  Masts." — Ossian, 
"  Teinora,"   Book  vii. 

♦  For  September  lltth  and  .November  Utli,  lS4(i,  pp.  !)jo,  1  !«•-;,  llO^J. 
§  See  Thorns'  "  liUys  and  l.e-jcnds  of  Irehind,"  p.  Til. 


400 

THE  DEVIL'S  DREAM. 

As  an  old  fiddler,  named  Pengree,  about  fifty  years  ago,  was  one 
night  returning  home  by  himself  to  Old  Storage,  from  the  wake 
which  had  been  held  at  Knightsford  Bridge  Inn,  he  had  to  pass 
a  place  called  "  Hell  Garden,"  which  is  situated  at  the  bottom 
of  the  CheiTy  Bank,  near  to  the  Upper  House,  in  Alfrick. 
When  he  came  there  (we  give  the  narrative  in  his  own  words),  he 
said,  "  Oh,  I  am  come  to  '  Hell  Garden ! '  Well,  111  give  the 
'  Devil's  Dream ;' "  which,  no  sooner  had  he  struck  up,  than 
about  150  strange  female  figures  came  and  danced  all  round  him 
in  pattens,  which  made  him  not  only  unshoulder  his  fiddle  pretty 
quickly,  but  take  to  his  heels  as  fast  as  he  could  run.  This,  he 
assured  my  informant  (Mr.  John  Pressdee)  was  perfectly  true* ; 
nor  is  it  unlikely  that  he  did  see  some  dancing  shadows  there ; 
for  we  may  rest  quite  satisfied,  that  that  wonder-working  spirit 
called  "  Old  Cider,"  had  not  only  entered  into,  but  taken  full 
possession  of  our  hero  f . 

THE  MYSTERIOUS  BLACK  CAT. 

The  late  John  Spooner,  Esq.,  of  Hopton  Court,  Leigh,  kept  a 
pack  of  hounds  ;  and  Mr.  John  Pressdee  has  informed  me  that 
he  frequently  used  to  follow  them ;  and  that  whenever  they  passed 
through  a  certain  field  in  Leigh  Sin  ton,  called  "  The  Oak  and 
Crab  Tree,"  the  hounds  used  invariably  to  run  full  cry  after 
something  which  nobody  could  see,  and  never  ceased  the  pursuit 
until  they  arrived  at  a  cottage,  situated  about  a  mile  and  a  half 
off,  at  Crumpal  (otherwise  Crumpen  or  Crumpton)  Hill,  in  Cradley, 
which  was  inhabited  by  an  old  woman  named  Cofield,  when  they 
would  turn  back  again.  He  added,  that  Mr.  Spooner  at  such 
times  used  to  say,  "  Ah,  they  are  gone  after  that  old  witch,  Dame 
Cofield ;"  and  upon  one  occasion,  about  forty  years  ago,  when  he 

*  I  have  also  been  told  the  same  anecdote  by  others. 

+  In  the  "  Athenseuni "  for  September  11th,  1847,  p.  !)oS,  there  is  a  curious 
Flemish  account  of  an  old  fiddler,  who,  returning  home  from  the  fair  at 
Opbrakel,  met  with  a  rather  similar  adventure. 


461 

(Mr.  Pressdee)  was  with  the  hounds,  Mr.  Spooner,  before  they 
entered  the  field  in  question,  sent  his  huntsman,  James  Bayhss*, 
to  watch  by  the  cottage,  and  see  whether  he  could  unravel  the 
mystery ;  when  lo  !  he  had  not  long  been  there  before  the  hounds 
came  full  cry  over  hedge  and  ditch,  as  straight  as  an  arrow, 
towards  the  cottage  ;  and,  upon  their  leaping  into  the  garden,  he 
saw,  just  before  them,  either  a  black  cat  or  a  witch  in  that 
shape,  wliich  bounded  from  the  hounds,  first  upon  a  shed,  and 
then  through  a  hole  in  the  window  of  the  old  woman's  bed- 
room. 

There  is  something  veiy  strange  in  this  account ;  for  although 
it  possibly  might  have  been  a  real  cat  that  from  time  to  time  led 
the  hounds  such  a  chase,  yet,  taking  the  narrative  as  it  is,  the 
difficulties  in  the  way  of  such  a  supposition  are  great.  First, 
because  Mr.  Pressdee  says  that  the  persons  who  accompanied  the 
hounds  never  saw  what  was  pursued  ;  neither  did  the  huntsman, 
except  in  the  instance  above  stated  ;  and,  secondly,  it  was  not 
natural  for  a  timorous  animal  like  a  cat  to  venture  so  often  to 
a  certain  spot,  so  far  from  home,  and  thereby  expose  herself 
to  such  repeated  dangers.  There  may  have  been  some  facts  in 
the  case  which  were  never  discovered  ;  and  we  cannot  but  believe 
that  the  cause  was  a  natural  one,  although  at  that  time  it  was  so 
generally  attributed  to  witchcraft ;  for  Mr.  Pressdee  says  it  was  a 
common  saying  in  the  neighbourhood,  that  the  hounds  had  only 
to  go  into  the  Oak  and  Crab  Tree  Ground,  and  they  would  be 
sure  to  have  a  run  after  old  Dame  Cofieldf. 

Tt  is  said,  if  a  red  herring,  or  a  piece  of  bacon,  or  certain  dead 
animals,  are  drawn  along  the  ground,  the  hounds  will  go  full  crj' 

•  When  a  boy,  the  author  used  frequently  to  see  Mr.  Spooner  ami  his  above- 
mentioned  Imntsman  ride  by  his  native  place,  the  Upper  House,  in  Alfrick, 
after  the  hounds ;  and  yet,  strange  to  say,  he  was  quite  blind  during  tlie  latter 
part  of  the  time  that  he  followed  tlint  diversion.  J  lis  servant  used  to  take  tlie 
lead  over  slight  fences,  and  he  used  to  follow. 

+  It  was  formerly  a  common  idea,  in  many  districts,  that  the  hounds  did 
sometimes  hunt  witches  in  the  shape  of  foxes  and  hares.  This  fancy, 
doubtless,  often  arose  when  an  animal  was  so  fleet  and  wary,  that,  although 
repeatedly  run,  it  could  not  be  caught. 


46-2 

along  the  "  trail ;"  and  I  inquired  of  Mr.  Pressdee  whether  such 
a  trick  might  not  have  been  practised  in  the  above-mentioned 
cases  ;  but  he  thought  this  was  impossible,  as  the  instances  were 
so  numerous,  and  the  hounds  frequently  came  to  the  spot  in 
question  quite  casually*. 

WITCHERY  HOLE. 

There  is  a  place  called  Witchery  Hole  [alias  Witcherly  Hole), 
in  Shelsley  Walsh,  otherwise  Little  Shelsley;  and  I  recollect, 
when  a  boy,  hearing  the  peasantry  of  Alfrick  say,  whenever  a 
violent  storm  blew  from  the  north,  "  The  wind  comes  from 
Witcherly  Hole ;"  meaning,  thereby,  that  the  broomstick  hags, 
mounted  on  their  aerial  steeds,  were  then  rushing  southward 
from  their  mysterious  hole,  and  were  followed  in  their  course  by 
an  atmospheric  hurly-burly  f . 

OLD  COLES. 

I  well  remember,  in  my  juvenile  days,  hearing  old  people  speak 
of  a  spectre  that  formerly  appeared  in  the  parish  of  Leigh,  in  this 
county,  which  they  called  "  Old  Coles."  They  said  that  he  fre- 
quently used,  at  dead  of  night,  to  ride  as  swift  as  the  wind  down  that 
part  of  the  public  road  between  Bransford  and  Brocamin,  called 
Leigh  Walk,  in  a  coach  drawn  by  four  horses,  with  fire  flying  out 
of  their  nostrils ;  and  that  they  invariably  dashed  right  over  the 
great  barn  at  Leigh  Court,  and  then  on  into  the  river  Teme.  It 
was  likewise  said,  that  this  perturbed  spirit  was  at  length  laid  in 
a  neighbouring  pool  by  twelve  parsons,  at  dead  of  night,  by  the 
light  of  an  inch  of  candle  ;  and,  as  he  was  not  to  rise  again  until 
the  candle  was  quite  bm-nt  out,  it  was,  therefore,  thrown  into  the 


*  The  old  daine  was  also  cbarged  witli  ha\-ing  frequently  upset  waggons  as 
tliey  passed  by  her  cottage,  and  then,  having  looked  very  innocently  out  of  her 
window,  asked  what  was  the  matter. 

+  In  this  we  appear  to  have  a  kind  of  mediaeval  version  of  the  cave  of 
iEolus.  The  hole  is  a  dingle  of  coppice  wood,  having  Hell  Hole,  and  the 
Devil's  Den,  in  Stanford,  as  its  neiglibonrs. 


463 

pool,  and  to  make  all  sure  the  pool  was  filled  up, — 
And  peaceful  after  slept  Old  Coles's  shade. 

Upon  considering  the  tenor  of  this  legend,  I  was  led  to  think 
that  "  Old  Coles"  must  have  been  a  person  of  some  quality  ;  and 
it  induced  me  to  look  into  Nash's  "  History  of  Worcestershire," 
hoping  it  might  throw  some  light  upon  the  subject.  I  find  that 
in  his  account  of  Leigh*,  he  says,  "  This  ancient  lordship  of  the 
abbots  of  Pershore  falling  by  the  dissolution  of  monasteries  into 
the  king's  hands,  remained  there  till  Elizabeth's  time.  The 
tenants  of  the  house  and  demesne,  both  tinder  the  abbot  and 
under  the  king  and  queen,  were  the  CoUes,  of  which  family  was 
Mr.  Edward  [Edmund]  CoUesf,  '  a  grave  and  learned  justice  of 
this  shire,  who  purchased  the  inheritance  of  this  manor;'  whose 
son,  William  Colles  I,  succeeded  him ;  whose  son  and  heir,  Mr. 
Edmund  Colles,  lived  in  the  time  of  Mr.  Ha1)ingdon§ ,  and,  being 
loaded  with  debts  (which  like  a  snow-ball  from  Malvern  Hill 
gathered  increase),  thought  fit  to  sell  it  to  Sir  Walter  Deveretix, 
Bart." 

The  Colles 's  were  also  possessed  of  the  manor  of  Suckley||, 
which  shared  the  same  fate.  "  The  manor  of  Suckley  remained 
in  the  name  of  Hungerford  till  it  passed  by  purchase  from  them 
to  Mr.  Edmund  Colles,  of  Leigh,  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth.  He 
left  it  to  his  son,  Mr.  William  Colles  ;  whose  heir,  Mr.  Edmund 
Colles,  sold  it  to  Sir  Walter  Deveretix,  Knight  and  Bart,  f" 

It  is  not  improbable  tliat  the  legend  may  have  refeiTed  to  the 

•  Vol.  ii.,  p.  73. 

+  He  died  lOth  December,  160C,  aged  70. 

X  Died  iiOtli  September,  1615. —  (See  Nash's  accomit  of  the  family 
monuments  in  Leigh  Church. ) 

§  Thomas  Habington,  or  TIabingdon,  of  Hinlip,  the  historian,  died  8th 
October,  l(!-i7.  His  son  William  died  November  :!Oth,  lOf)!). — (See  p.  170; 
and  Nash,  Vol.  i.,  Introduction.) 

II  This  manor  includes  the  hamlets  of  Alfrick  and  Lulsley.  There  is  a 
farm  called  Colles  Place  (r«/</o  Coles  Place,  or  Cold  Place)  in  Lulsley,  "  which 
is  mentioned  in  a  ledger  of  the  Priory  of  Malveni,  in  the  reign  of  Henry  III., 
as  belonging  to  the  family  of  Colles." — (See  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  400.)  There  is 
also  "  Coles  Green,"  near  Sandlin,  in  I,eigh. 

%  Nash,  Vol.  ii.,  p.  .•]!)7. 


464 

unfortunate  Edmund  CoUes,  the  second,  who,  having  lost  his 
patrimony,  and,  perhaps,  died  in  distress,  his  spirit  may  have 
been  supposed  to  have  haunted  Leigh  Court,  the  seat  of  his  joys 
in  prosperity,  and  tlie  object  of  his  regrets  in  adversity. 

The  following  story,  something  similar,  is  told  in  the  "  Rambler 
in  Worcestei-shire*,"  respecting  the  Court-house  in  Little 
Shelsley : — "  The  people  say  the  house  is  haunted,  and  that  a 
Lady  Lightfoot,  who  was  imprisoned  and  murdered  in  the  house, 
comes  at  night  and  drives  a  carriage  and  four  fiery  horses  round 
some  old  rooms  that  are  unoccupied,  and  that  her  ladyship's 
screams  are  heard  at  times  over  the  Old  Court.  There  she  has 
been  seen  to  drive  her  team  into  the  moat,  and  carriage,  horses, 
and  all,  have  disappeared,  the  water  smoking  like  a  furnace." 

It  used  to  be  supposed  that  the  neighbourhood  of  Haddon,  or 
of  Hardvvicke,  Co.  Derby,  or  both,  were  visited  by  a  coach  drawn 
by  headless  steeds,  and  driven  by  a  coachman  as  headless  as 
themselves ;  and  that  a  similar  equipage  used  to  haunt  the 
Mansion  of  Pai'sloes,  in  Essex  f. 

The  following  is  a  similar  legend  | : — 

"  In  the  south  of  Devon,  some  eighteen  or  twenty  years  ago,  a 
reverend  gentleman,  of  large  landed  property,  held  a  small  bene- 
fice in  his  immediate  neighbourhood,  for  the  purpose  of  evading 
residence  in  another  quarter.  He  was  accustomed  to  perform 
the  duty  every  Sunday,  and  was  conveyed  to  the  church  in  his 
chariot  tlu-ough  one  of  those  narrow,  shady  lanes,  for  which  tliat 
county  was  then  so  justly  famed.  He  died,  and  his  remains  were 
consigned  to  the  vault  in  the  church  of  the  above-mentioned 
benefice,  with  much  pomp  and  ceremony,  and  followed  by  a  long 
procession  of  friends,  tenants,  and  the  surrounding  neighbour- 
hood. But  his  spirit  was  not  supposed  to  rest  in  peace.  Villagers 
returning  from  their  labours  had  been  terrified  by  the  sound  of 
carriage  wheels  in  the  shady  lane ;  and  one  had  even  seen  the 
chariot  itself  drawn  by  headless  horses.     The  rumour  spread,  till 


*  Published  in  1851,  p.  191. 

f  See  the  "  Athenaeum"  for  29th  August,  1846,  p. 

I  Ibid.,  for  November  7,  1846,  p.  1112. 


465 

it  was  confidently  asserted  in  the  cider  shops  that  '  twelve 
parsons'  had  been  convened  to  lay  the  spirit  in  the  Red  Sea. 
Still,  the  lane  was  believed  to  be  haunted ;  and,  on  investigating 
the  reason  why  the  spell  had  not  taken  effect,  it  was  conjectured 
that,  as  one  of  the  twelve  parsons  had  been  the  intimate  friend  of 
the  deceased — as  he  knavced  the  trick — he  would  communicate  it 
to  him,  and  so  render  it  abortive.  That  parson  was,  therefore, 
struck  out  of  the  list ;  and  the  vicar  of  an  adjoining  parish, 
lately  come  into  residence,  from  '  Lunnun  town,'  did  it  all  hisself; 
and  neither  chariot  nor  horses  was  ever  knaiced  to  walk  again. 
This  superstition  was  current  under  the  immediate  knowledge  of 
the  writer  of  this  anecdote." 

Another  story  of  the  kind  is  told  in  "  Notes  and  Queries*." 
"  Sir  Thomas  Boleyn's  Spectre. — Sir  Thomas  Boleyn,  the 
fiither  of  the  unfortunate  Queen  of  Henry  VIII.,  resided  at 
Blickling,  distant  about  fourteen  miles  from  Norwich,  and  now 
the  residence  of  the  dowager  Lady  Suffield.  The  spectre  of  this 
gentleman  is  believed  by  the  vulgar  to  be  doomed,  annually,  on  a 
certain  night  in  the  year,  to  drive,  for  a  period  of  1000  years,  a 
coach  drawn  by  four  headless  horses,  over  a  circuit  of  twelve 
biidges  in  that  vicinity.  These  are  Aylsham,  Burgh,  Oxnead, 
Buxton,  Coltishall,  the  two  Meyton  bridges,  Wroxham,  and  four 
others,  whose  names  I  do  not  recollect.  Sir  Thomas  carries  his 
head  under  his  arm,  and  flames  issue  from  his  mouth.  Few 
rustics  are  hardy  enough  to  be  found  loitering  on  or  near  those 
bridges  on  that  night ;  and  my  informant  averred  that  he  was 
himself  hailed  by  this  fiendish  apparition,  and  asked  to  open  a 
gate,  but  '  he  wam't  sich  a  fool  as  to  turn  his  head ;  and  well  a' 
didn't,  for  Sir  Thoma.s  passed  him  full  gallop  like  :'  and  he  heai-d 
a  voice  which  told  him  that  he  (Sir  Thomas)  had  no  power  to  hurt 
such  as  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  his  requests ;  but  that,  had  he 
stopped  he  would  have  carried  him  off. 

"  This  tradition  1  have  repeatedly  heard  in  this  neighbourhood, 
from  aged  persons,  when  I  was  a  child,  but  I  nover  found  but  one 
person  who  had  ever  actually  sfen  the  phantom.    Perhaps  some  of 

•  Vol.  i..  No.  20.  May  18,  18.')(i,  p.  468. 
I  I 


466 

your  correspondents  can  give  some  clue  to  tins  extraordinary  sen- 
tence. The  coach  and  four  horses  is  attached  to  another  tradition 
I  have  heard  in  the  west  of  Norfolk,  where  the  ancestor  of  a 
family  is  reported  to  drive  his  spectral  team  through  the  old 
walled- up  gateway  of  his  now  demolished  mansion,  on  the  anni- 
versary of  his  death  ;  and  it  is  said  that  the  bricks  next  morning 
have  ever  been  found  loosened  and  fallen,  though  as  constantly 
repaired.  The  particulars  I  could  easily  procure  by  reference  to 
a  friend.  "  E.  S.  T. 

"  P.S. — Another  vision  of  headless  horses  is  prevalent  at  Cais- 
tor  Castle,  the  seat  of  the  Fastolfs." 

Before  leaving  Leigh  Court,  it  may  as  well  be  observed  that 
strange  tales  have  been  told  of  a  mysterious  looking  crow  or  raven, 
which  sometimes  used  to  be  seen  at  night  sitting  on  one  of  the 
barrels  in  a  detached  cyder  house,  and  who,  with  a  horrid  flap- 
ping of  his  wings,  would  "  dout*"  the  candle  of  an  intruder,  and 
drive  him  back  to  the  upper  regions. 

A  similar  tale  is  told  of  a  lonely  cellar  in  Alfrickf,  and  also  of 
one  in  Holt  Castle  |.  Probably  these  scarecrows  were,  in  the 
good  old  times,  almost  as  effective  in  guarding  the  cellars  against 
all  but  the  initiated,  as  Chubb 's  locks  now  are. 

But  we  must  leave  the  witches  and  ghosts,  and  return  again  to 
the  fairies,  and  ignis  fatuus. 

Several  of  the  places  referred  to  in  this  treatise,  are  either  ad- 
joining to,  or  not  far  from  each  other,  and  this  is  additional  evi- 
dence of  the  source  from  whence  their  names  were  derived.  For 
instance, — on  the  boundaries  of  Stoke  Prior  manor  we  have  Puck 
Lane  and  Obden  Brook.  In  Bromsgrove  parish,  Wilkin  Close, 
Pug's  Hole,  Cob-Nail,  Tickridge  Piece,  Fatch  (Fetch)  Leasow, 
and  Jack's  Croft  §.  In  Grimley,  Cob's  Coppice,  Big  Will  Tree, 
Upper  and  Lower  Will  Tree,  and  Jack  Stile  Acres.  In  the  Ber- 
row,  Puck  Dole,  Dobbin's  Hill,  Little  Dobbin's  Hill,  and  several 

*  "  Dout,"  for  do  out. 
t  See  p.  448. 

I  See  the  "  Kanibler  in  Worcestershh-e,"  iniblished  in  1848,  p.  184. 
§  In  Coston   Hacket,  adjoining  Bromsgrove  parish,  there  ia  a  field  called 
"  The  Sprights." 


467 

fields  called  by  the  name  of  Jack.  In  Eldersfield,  Dobb's  Hill,  and 
Cob  Hill.  In  Northfield,  several  places  called  by  the  names  of 
Hob,  Cob,  and  Jack.  InFrankley,  Upper  Hoblets,  Banky  Hoblets, 
Hob  Acre,  and  Jack  Leasow.  In  King  s  Norton,  several  places 
called  by  the  names  of  Hobbis,  Pucklin,  and  Dobbin.  In  Doder- 
hill,  Cob's  Close,  Cob's  Croft,  Cob's  Orchard,  Thumb's  Close,  and 
Impney.  In  Alvechurch,  Impey,  The  Himpey,  Will  Fields,  Cob's 
Meadow,  Long  Cross  Himpey,  and  Long  Himpey.  In  Hartley, 
Poke  Meadow,  and  Puckley  Green  Farm.  In  Alfrick,  Oughton  or 
Eoten  Wells,  Sibhay  or  Tibhay,  The  Tibbins,  Grimsend,  Patches, 
and  Patch  Hill,     In  Lulsley,  The  Whistlers  and  Patchham. 

In  Gloucestershire,  Puckmore,  Puckmore's  Hitch,  Cob's  Hole, 
Pink's  Field ;  and  Pink's  Meadow,  in  Dymock. 

In  Warwickshire. — Hob's  Croft,  Jack  Ground,  and  Jacks  Croft, 
in  Ipsley ;  Hobbin's  Close,  Pucknell's  Close,  Jack  Lands,  Hob's 
Moat,  and  Upper,  Lower,  and  Far  Elkin,  in  Solihull ;  and  Tib's- 
liall  near  Wiggens-hall. 

SPUNKIES. 

The  ignis  fatuus  is  called  "  Spunkie"  in  Scotland.  In 
Stewart's  "  Superstitious  of  the^Highlands  of  Scotland,"  pubhshed 
in  18'^3,  the  Spunkies  are  described  as  follows  : — 

"  Whenever  the  traveller  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  his  way, 
or  whenever  there  was  a  prospect  of  deluding  him  from  it,  this 
vigilant  link-boy  was  ever  at  hand,  to  light  him  into  far  worse 
quarters  than  even  the  purlieus  of  Covent  Garden. 

"  Suddenly  the  traveller's  attention  was  arrested  by  the  most 
resplendent  light,  apparently  reflected  from  a  window  not  far 
distant,  which,  however,  as  the  traveller  approached,  receded  from 
him,  like  the  rainbow.  Still  pursuing  his  course  towai'ds  it,  the 
wily  Spunkie  manceuvred  so  dexterously  that  the  unhappy  wan- 
derer was  speedily  decoyed  into  the  nearest  moss  or  precipice. 
Plunging  headlong  into  some  fatal  abyss,  the  deluded  victim  never 
returned  to  his  mournful  wife  and  family,  to  relate  to  them  the 
Spunkies  pertidy." 


468 

In  Sussex,  and  elsewhere,  the  rotten  wood  which  emits  phos- 
phorescence is  called  "  spunk."  It  is  sometimes  stuck  by 
country  boys  in  the  hedge  side,  as  a  gobUn,  to  frighten  the  traveller. 
It  goes  by  the  name  of  "  daddock"  in  Worcestershii-e,  and  there 
the  fungi  which  grow  on  trees  are  called  "  spunk."  There  is 
Puncknowle,  in  Dorsetshire.  See  p.  425,  where  Spuck,  &c.,  are 
considered  as  akin  to  Puck. 

KELPIES. 

Mr.  Stewart  also  speaks  of  superstitions  in  the  Highlands 
relative  to  fiend  horses,  called  "  Water  Kelpies,"  who,  splendidly 
accoutred,  place  themselves  in  the  way  of  weary  travellers,  to 
tempt  them  on  their  backs  ;  and  having  accomplished  their  object, 
plunge  headlong,  with  a  fiend-like  yell,  into  an  adjacent  pool,  and 
prey  at  their  leisure  upon  then-  unfortunate  victims. 

These  appear  to  be  synonymous  with  the  Irish  Pooka,  before 
referred  to. 

There  are  marks  in  the  old  red  sand  stone  in  Forfarshire,  called 
"  Kelpies'  feet."  These  are  similar  to  the  marks  in  the  old 
red  sandstone  of  Worcestershire  and  Herefordshire,  referred  to  in 
my  pamphlet  upon  that  subject*. 

Jamieson,  in  his  "  Etymological  Dictionary,"  thinks  the  name 
kelpie  may  be  derived  from  the  old  German  Chalp  (Germ.  Kalb), 
from  the  bellowing  noise  he  makes  f . 

From  these  various  legends  it  seems  pretty  evident  that  our 
rude  ancestors  linked  a  part  of  their  demonology,  and  afterwards 
much  of  their  more  poetical  fairy  mythology,  upon  what  was  then 
considered  the  mysterious  appearances  of  the  ignis  fatuus. 


As  an  evidence  that  the  ignis  fatuus  is  probably  the  result  of 
electricity,  combined  with  certain  gases,  it  may  be  remarked  that, 

♦  As  to  the  causes  of  those  marks,  see  the  "  Proceedings  of  the  Geological 
Society  in  London,"  Vol.  ii.,  1836-37,  No.  48,  p.  439 ;  and  Dr.  Buckland's 
"  Bridgewater  Treatise,"  Vol.  L,  p.  261 ;  and  Sir  R.  J.  Murchison's  work  on 
the  "  Silurian  System,"  Piirt  i.,  pp.  178,  17!). 

t  See  "  Athenjeum,"  Decomber  5,  1846,  p.  1244. 


469 

in  a  lecture  on  electricity,  by  Andrew  Crosse,  Esq.,  of  Broomfield, 
he  stated,  that  "  by  means  of  the  wire  suspended  in  his  park,  he 
had  discovered  that  a  driving  fog  sweeps  in  masses,  alternately, 
negatively,  and  positively  electrified  ;  and  once  the  accumulation 
of  the  electric  fluid  in  a  fog  was  so  great,  that  there  was  an  inces- 
sant stream  of  sparks  from  his  conductor,  each  one  of  which 
would  have  struck  an  elephant  dead  in  an  instant*." 

In  Leigh's  "  Guide  to  Wales  and  Monmouthshire,"  we  read 
in  the  account  of  Harleigh,  that  in  the  winter  of  1694,  this 
neighbourhood  was  much  alarmed  by  a  fiery  exhalation  or  mephitic 
vapour,  which  arose  from  a  sandy,  marshy  tract  of  land  called 
"  Morfa  Bychan"  (the  little  marsh),  across  the  channel,  eight 
miles  from  Harlech,  and  injured  much  of  the  country,  by  poison- 
ing the  grass  in  such  a  manner  as  to  kill  the  cattle,  and  firing 
hay  and  com  ricks  for  near  a  mile  from  the  coast.  It  is  repre- 
sented to  have  had  the  appearance  of  a  weak  blue  flame.  All 
the  damage  was  done  invariably  in  the  night ;  and  in  the  course 
of  the  winter  not  less  than  sixteen  hay-ricks  and  two  bams,  one 
filled  with  corn  and  the  other  with  hay,  were  burnt  by  it.  It  did 
not  appear  to  affect  anything  else,  and  men  could  go  into  it 
without  receiving  any  injury.  It  was  observed  at  different  times 
during  eight  months.  An  account  of  this  singular  phenomenon 
appeared  in  No.  208  of  the  "  Philosophical  Transactions!." 

This  fiery  exhalation  most  probably  was  carburetted  hydrogen, 
foimed  by  the  decomposition  of  sea-weed  and  other  vegetable 
matter  in  the  marsh,  and  may  have  been  ignited  by  electricity  J. 

In  other  cases  the  ignis  fatuus  is  probably  phosphuretted 
hydrogen  gas,  which  rises  occasionally  with  electric  exhalations 
from  the  earth,  where  animal  matter  has  been  bmied  and  become 
putrid,  and  inflames  upon  contact  with  the  oxygen  of  the  atmos- 

*  See  "  Bristol  Mirror,"  March  9,  18;3!J. 

+  See  also  Gougb's  "  Camden,"  Vol.  iii.,  pp.  174,  17.'). 

I  It  is  fortunate  for  the  Welsh  that  one  of  their  strange  liglits  is  quite  the 
reverse  of  being  mischievous;  for  in  Wright's  "  Scenes  in  Nortli  Wales,"  pub- 
lished in  lH:t;t,  it  is  slated  in  the  Appendix,  that  "  sometimes  a  teaming  light 
is  seen  to  shine  out  before  llie  traveller,  and  conduct  liim  to  the  precise  direc- 
tion of  his  jdiirncv  ;  distinguished  from  .lack  o'-thc-Lantcrn  in  this  respect — 
'liHt  the  latter  rruellv  '  hues  us  to  our  doom:'  ' 


470 

pbere.  In  proof  of  this,  I  have  been  informed  that  a  person 
once  saw  several  ignes  fatui  rise  out  of  a  boggy  comer  of  a  field 
in  the  parish  of  Clifton-upon-Teme,  where  a  horse  had  been  buried 
some  time  before. 


APPENDIX. 


This  work  was  nearly  all  printed  off  before  the  appearance  of 
a  valuable  "  Treatise  on  the  Local  Nomenclature  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxons,  as  exhibited  in  the  '  Codex  Diplomaticus  ajvi  Saxonici ;' 
translated  from  the  German  of  Professor  Heinrich  Leo,  P.H. 
and  LL.D.,  of  Halle,  ^nth  additional  examples  and  explanatory 
notes,"  by  B.  Williams,  Esq.,  F.S.A.  Had  that  Treatise  ap- 
peared earlier,  I  might  have  derived  from  it  much  important 
information,  relative  to  some  of  the  Saxon  names  in  this  work. 
A  few  notices,  however,  I  must  here  introduce. 

Upper  and  Lower  Areley  (pp.  304,  307,  308,  of  this  work). 
Earneleah,  Anglo-Saxon,  the  Eagles*  Lea.  But  see  p.  308. 
Lower  Areley  is  written  Enileye  in  Layamon's  "  Brut." 

Bromsgrove  (pp.  115,  l2'-l).  Bremesgraf,  from  the  Anglo-Saxon 
"  brome,"  a  plant,  and  "  graf,"  a  grove.  But  the  former 
derivation  (at  p.  1  'i'2)  appears  to  be  the  better,  as  the  name 
is  Breraesgrefa,  or  Bremesgrcefa,  meaning  Bremes-grave. 

Beoley  (p.  337).     Beoleah,  Anglo-Saxon,  the  Lea  of  Bees. 

Buddenhill,  and  Buddenhill  Common  Field,  in  Castle  Morton 
(pp.  71,  281).  Dr.  Leo,  in  his  Treatise,  speaks  of  places 
which  were  the  scenes  of  those  executions  which  assumed 
the  form  of  human  sacrifices  amongst  the  Germans,  and  in 
which  the  criminal  was  immolated  as  an  expiation  to  the 
gods;  and  in  a  note  he  says: — "  In  the  Saxon  part  of  the 
district  of  Hessiga  in  old  Germany,  a  plot  of  ground,  the 
scene  of  such  barbarous  executions  (burial  alive,  with  a  stiike 


47-2 

througli  the  heart)  was  named  a  Buddenfeld.  —  Vita  Liu- 
geri,  ap.  Pertz,  ii.,  419." 

Crowle  (p.  294).  Crohlea  may  come  from  the  Anglo-Saxon 
"  croh  "  (crocus). 

Deerhurst  (pp.  187,  188,  189).     Deor-hyrst,  the  Bush  of  Stags. 

Evesham  (p.  336),  in  Anglo-Saxon,  Cronuchomme,  the  Ham  of 
Cranes. 

Great  Gog  Bridge  and  Little  Gog  Bridge,  in  Castle  Morton 
(p.  281).  Dr.  Leo  says  the  names  of  fierce,  fabulous  crea- 
tures are  coupled  with  wild,  dismal  places,  as  Grimesdic 
(grima,  maleficus),  -^nta  die,  and  ^Enta  hlew  ;  the  Giant's 
Dike  and  Mound,  Goggislond,  and  Gugedike. 

Old  Swinford  (p.  273).     Swynford,  the  Ford  of  Swine. 

Lincomb  (pp.  112,  113).  Anglo-Saxon  "  lin,"  flax,  and  "  cumb," 
a  stream  or  trough. 

Lindridge  (p.  266).  From  the  Anglo-Saxon,  Lindhrycg,  the 
Ridge  of  Lime  Trees,  where  was  pasturage  for  swine  and 
goats. 

Pendock  (pp.  218,  219).  In  a  note  to  Dr.  Leo's  Treatise  it  is 
said,  Pendock  might  be  Anglo-Saxon ;  "  peond,"  "  pund," 
signifies  a  place  enclosed  or  fenced  in  ;  "  p}^ldan "  is  the 
German  "  beunten,"  to  fence  in  ;  "  peonedoc "  may  stand 
for  "  peonedhoc"  [or  "  peoned-hook"],  and  originally  sig- 
nify angulum  agri  septi  [the  corner  of  a  hedged  field].  But 
see  the  derivation  in  p.  218  of  this  work. 

Rid  Marley  (p.  218).  Reodemereleah.  the  Lea.  by  the  Mere  (or 
boundary)  of  Reeds.     But  see  the  derivation,  p.  218. 

Rushock  (p.  271).  Anglo-Saxon,  Rixuc,  (?)  Rise-hoc  ;  the  Rush- 
hook,  or  corner  of  a  field  where  the  rush-weed  abounded. 

Sedgebarrow,  or  Sedgeberrow  (pp.  85,  335).  From  the  Anglo- 
Saxon,  Secgesbearuwe,  the  Barrow  of  Sedge  Grass. 

Tickenhill  (p.  146).  From  the  Anglo-Saxon,  Ticen-hyl,  the 
Kid's-hill. 


473 

The  following  account  of  Anglo-Saxon  Dikes  and  Roads  in 
Worcestershire  is  extracted  from  the  appendix  to 
Dr.  Leo's  Treatise*,  with  some  names  added,  in 
brackets,  by  the  Author  of  this  work. 

.^ttinc  weg,  Cotheridge  (see  p.  262). 

Beartan-weg. 

Bradan  weg  [Broadway]  (see  p.  322). 

Bugghilde  Street,  near  Evesham  (see  p.  336)  [it  also  passes 

between  Church  and  Cow  Honeybourne]  (see  pp.  316,  317). 
Carcadic,  near  Abbot's  Morton  (see  p.  340). 
Ciolanweg  [bo'-mdaries  of  Clopton]  (see  p.  262). 
Dagarding  weg,  Beoley  (see  p.  337). 
Deorelmes  dyk,  near  Thorndun. 
Dicweg,  Himbleton  (see  p.  325). 
Dunnedyk,  near  Evesham  (see  p.  336). 
Ealhmunding  weg,  Twyford. 
Elmedesdich,  Bleedon. 
Eyshinige  dich,  Littleton  (see  p.  336). 
Gerdwaeg. 

Irfurlanges  dykef,  Aston  Magna  (see  pp.  226,  351). 
Leomanninc  weg.     Query,  Worcestershire. 
Lolanweg. 

Middelweg,  Himbleton  (see  p.  325). 
Pincanhammes  dyke,  Aston  Magna  (see  pp.  226,  351). 
Pohweg.     Query,  Powick  (see  p.  287). 
Rahweg,   near   Tredington,   Gloucestershire,   or  Worccstcrsliin; 

(see  p.  356). 
llugandyke,  Ruganweg,  or  Rugwic,  near  Evesham  (sec  p.  336) 

[and  also  in  Broadway]  (see  p.  322). 
Salteraweg,  Sealtstnet. 
Scearpweg,  Stoke  Prior  (see  p.  312). 

•  AddfJ  by  the  translator  of  tlie  Treulise. 
f  (iupry,  the  Archery-dike,  from  "  ir,"  a  l)(>w. 


INDEX. 


Abbebley,  2{i5,  260. 

Abberley  Hill,  derivation  of  the  name  of;  supposed  sapling  of  St.  Augustine's 
Oak  there,  214,210. 

Abberton,  340. 

Abbot's  Lench,  or  Habbe,  or  Ilob  Lencli,  340. 

Abbot's  Norton,  and  Lenchwick,  339. 

Abbot's  Morton,  otherwise  Stoney  Morton,  340,  473. 

Acton  Beauchanip,  257. 

Acton  Scott,  Co.  Salop;  Greek  and  Roman  coins  and  other  relics  found  there, 
9,  11,  12. 

Ad  Antonam,  most  probably  at  Eckington,  75,  342,  343. 

Agg,  or  Egg,  244. 

Aka,  or  Rock  (see  Rock),  2Cf). 

Alcester,  Co.  Warwick,  329. 

Alcrinton,  now  Alfreton,  295. 

Alderminster,  356,  357. 

Aldington,  said  to  liuve  been  one  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  marks,  330. 

Alfred  the  Great,  194  to  204. 

Alfredeswic  (see  Alfrick),  193,  194,  202,  203,  204,  206,  447. 

Alfrick,  etyniologj'  of,  193,  194,  202  to  205,  447.  Hound  Hill,  194.  Raven 
Hills,  and  the  standard  of  the  raven  ;  the  Danes ;  Ethelred  and  Elhel- 
flfed,  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Mercia,  194  to  li)9.  Their  charter  to 
Worcester,  199,  200,  201.  They  and  Alfred  were  most  probably  in  Wor- 
cester when  it  was  granted,  198  to  201.  They  signed  cliarters  by  making 
a  cross,  201,  202.  The  Bante,  or  ancient  division  of  land  before  shires, 
203, 204.  As  to  the  derivation  of  the  name  Worcester,  204.  Old  Stonigc, 
and  St.  Atigustine's  Oak,  205,  206,  207.  Bunyan's  signet  ring  and 
prison,  and  anecdotes  of  him,  207  to  212.  Engraving  of  the  prison, 
208.  Woodcuts  of  the  ring,  209.  Quince  Hill ;  Greek  custom 
respecting  quinces ;  Catterhall  and  Callow's  Leap,  246,  247,  248. 
Folk-lore,  412,  418,  434,  435,  440,  445,  447,  448,  460,  461,  402,  466. 
Eoten  or  Oughton  Wells,  434.  Fairy  names,  and  Fairies'  Cave,  440, 
448.     The  Devil's  Dream,  460. 

Alne,  Great,  337. 

Alney  Isle,  188,  189. 

Alvechurch,  338,  339. 

Allies,  in  Borley,  in  Ombersley,  29(i.     Manorial  customs,  297  to  303. 


476 

Alluvium,  accumulation  of,  since  the  time  of  tlie  Romans,  at  Cinder  Point, 
near  Worcester,  30,  and  at  Ripple,  07,  68. 

Amberley,  Gloucestershire  (see  Ambrosise  Petrse),  368. 

Aiiil.lecote,  in  Old  Swinford,  273. 

Ambrosise  Petra  generally,  363  to  381,  440,  441.  Woodcuts  of  Tjrrian  coins, 
378,  379. 

Ancient  British  coin,  found  at  Green  Hill,  Sidbury,  Worcester,  25,  26.  Wood- 
cut, 26. 

Ancient  names  of  fields,  general  observations  relative  to,  401,  402,  403. 

Angerona,  one  of  the  Roman  penates,  13,  14,  with  a  woodcut,  14. 

Anglo-Saxon  bomuhiries  of  fields,  402,  403.     Relics,  76,  77,  111,  112. 

Anglo-Saxon  coins  found  at  the  Castle  Hill,  Worcester,  17. 

Anglo-Saxon  dikes  and  roads  (see  App.),  473. 

Anglo-Saxon  gold  coin,  found  at  St.  Clement's,  Worcester,  36  to  40.  Woodcut,  37. 

Anglo-Saxon  marks,  228,  229.     Graves,  110,  111. 

Ankerdine  Hill  and  Osebury  Rock,  212,  213. 

Areley  Kings,  or  Lower  Areley,  304  ;  App.,  471. 

Arley,  Upper  or  Over,  in  Staffordshire,  145,  307,  308  ;  App.,  471. 

Armscott,  in  Newbold,  356. 

Asbury,  in  Hales  Owen,  273. 

Ashchurch,  Co.  Gloucester,  334. 

Ash,  Wiggen,  441,  442. 

Ast  (see  Astwood,  in  Claines),  226. 

Astley,  Redstone  Ferry,  Layamon's  "  Brut,"  303  ;  also  see  Lincomb,  112, 113. 

Aston,  or  Eston  Episcopi,  or  Wliite  Ladies  Aston,  226,  326. 

Aston  or  Eston  Magna,  226,  354,  473. 

Aston-under-Hill,  Co.  Gloucester,  329. 

Astwood,  in  Claines,  etymology  of,  226,  227,  228.  Various  names  with  the 
prefix  "  Ast,"  or  «  Est,"  226.     Anglo-Saxon  marks,  228,  229. 

Astwood  Hill,  in  Chaddesley  Corbett,  124,  125,  126,  and  woodcut,  125. 

Atcb,  Ast,  or  East  Lench,  340. 

Augustine's  Oak,  191,  205,  206,  207,  215,  266. 

Austinfric,  Austinric,  or  Austins-ric,  206,  447. 

Avenbury,  Co.  Hereford,  257. 

Basel's  Hill,  on  the  Anglo-Saxon  boimdaries  of  Smite,  319. 

Badsey,  87,  88,  336.     Fairies  there,  named  Pinket,  435. 

Bambiuy   Stone,  in  Bredon  Hill  Camp,   Kemerton,  80.      Ambrosiae  Petrse 

generally,  with  tlie  etymology  of  the  name,  363  to  381.     Woodcuts  of 

the  Camp  and  Stone,  365. 
Bante  or  Bant,  an  ancient  division  of  land  in  Suckley,  203,  204,  242. 
Barbed  bronze  spear-heads,  with  woodcuts,  30  and  31. 
Bark,  on  a  wooden  coffin  of  an  ancient  Briton,  30. 
Barrow  Cop,  in  Perdeswell,  in  Claines ;  tore  discovered  there,  229,  230,  231. 

Copper-plate   engraving  of  it,  230.      Description  of   tores   generally. 

231,  232. 
Barrow  Hill,  in  Chaddesley  Corbett,  124,  125,  12(i.     Wtodcut  of  it,  125. 
Bates-bush,  in  Lulsley,  444,  445. 
Battenhall,  293. 
Battlestouf,  or  Boltstone,  144,  145. 


477 

Beal-tine,  or  Beltein,  124,  191,  192,  193,  353,  433. 

Bear,  several  places  so  called,  189,  190. 

Bears  Wood,  in  Cradley,  Co.  Hereford,  189,  190, 

Bedwardine,  derivation  of  it,  263. 

Beggars'  needles,  425. 

Belbroughton,  Roman  relics  found  there,  135,  271. 

Bells,  Roman,  found  at  the  Castle  Hill,  Worcester,  19.    Engraving  of  one  of 

them,  Plate  I.,  No.  14,  p.  18. 
Bengeworth,  336. 

Bentley,  in  Holt  with  Little  Witley,  264. 
Bentley,  in  Tardebig,  341. 
Beoley,  337.     Camp  on  Beoley  Hill,  337,  338.      Derivation  of  tlie  name, 

App.,  471,  473. 
Berrington,  in  Tenbury,  259. 
Berrow,  the  Parish  of  the  ;  Pendock  Portway,  70. 
Berrow  Hill,  in  Martley ;  ancient  camp  there,  213,  278. 
Berrow,  the  name  either  a  corruption  of  Barrow,  or  of  Burrow,  219. 
Besford,  326. 
Bevere  Island,  Roman  coins  and  ancient  bronze  celt  or  knife  found  there, 

151,  152.    Engraving  of  the  knife,  Plate  IV.,  No.  11,  p.  98. 
Bewdley,  in  Ribbesford,  146,  304. 
Be^vill,  Bual,  Buelt ;  several  places  so  called,  247. 
Bilk,  419. 
Birlingham,  346. 
Birmingham,  314. 
Birts  Morton,  281. 
Bishampton,  340. 
Black  Borough,  in  Liilsley,  445. 
Black  Cat,  a  mysterious,  460,  461,  462. 
Black  Dog,  445,  448,  449. 
Black  Dog  of  Newgate,  449. 
Black  Hawthorn  Lane,  288. 
Black  Jack,  430,  446.     His  Cave,  in  Leigh,  446. 
Black  .lack's  Hole,  446. 
Blackstone  Cave  or  Hermitage,  305,  306. 
Black's  Well,  in  Knightwick,  443. 
Blackwell,  in  Treduigton,  356. 

Blockley,  and  HamleLs  of  Blockley,  Aston,  and  Dom,  354,  355 
Boc,  alins  Puck,  428. 
Bockleton,  258. 

Boggilde  Street,  or  Buckle  Street,  316,  317,  473. 
Bolcyn,  Sir  Thomas,  liis  spectre,  465,  466. 
Bonlesley,  331,  332. 
Bottom,  the  weaver,  422. 
Boundaries  of  helds,  Anglo-Saxon,  402,  403. 
Bow  Bridge,  in  Ripple  ;  paved  tnickway  from  thence  to  the  Mythe  Tute,  65, 

66,  67. 
Bracelets,  Anglo-Saxon,  111,  112. 
Bradley,  in  Kladl)urj-,  346. 
Bradley  and  Stoke,  or  Stock,  320. 


478 

Bransford,  in  Leigh,  241. 

Brants  (see  Upton),  283. 

Bredicot,  294.  Roman  urn  and  coins,  1>5,  06.  Curions  ring,  96,  97,  Wood- 
cut of  the  um,  95.     Woodcuts  of  tlie  ring,  96. 

Bredon,  and  its  chapelries  of  Norton  and  Cutsdean,  and  tlie  hamlets  of  Brc- 
don,  Hardwick-with-Mitton,  Kinsham,  and  Westmancote,  345. 

Bredon  Hill,  Conderton  Camp  in  Overbury,  and  Roman  coins,  84. 

Bredon  Hill,  Kemerton  Camp,  78  to  84.  Ancient  granary,  charred  or  parclied 
wheat,  and  laud-slip,  78  to  81.  Bambury  Stone,  80.  Silver  earring, 
and  woodcuts,  83,  84.  Etymology  of  Bredon,  84.  Particular  account 
of  tlie  Camp  and  the  Bambury  Stone,  363  to  306.  Woodcuts  of  the 
Camp  and  Stone,  365. 

Bretfortou,  in  Badsey,  336. 

Brickworks,  site  of  Roman,  in  Soddington,  in  Mamble,  146,  147,  148. 

Bride  Stones,  367. 

Brimfield,  Co.  Hereford,  259,  260. 

Broadwas,  250. 

Broadway,  322,  473. 

Brockhampton,  Co.  Hereford,  near  Linton,  352. 

Brockhampton,  Co.  Hereford,  near  Bromyard,  255. 

Bromsberrow,  Co.  Gloucester ;  Conygree  Hill,  70,  71,  218. 

Bromsgrove,  312,  313.  The  ballad  of  the  Jovial  Hunter,  114  to  123.  Harry- 
ca-nab,  115,  116,  123.  Wish,  or  wisked,  or  spectre  hounds,  123. 
Callow,  123.   Derivation  of  the  name  Bromsgrove,  122,  and  App.,471. 

Broome,  271. 

Broughton  Hackett,  325. 

Brownies,  415,  433. 

Brown  WUly,  433. 

Buckle  Street  or  Boggilde  Street,  316,  317,  464. 

Budden  Hill,  and  Budden  Hill  Common  Field,  in  Castle  Morton,  71,  281. 
Derivation  of  "Budden,"  App.,  471,  472. 

Bunyan,  his  signet  ring ;  the  prison  where  he  was  incarcerated,  and  anec- 
dotes of  huu,  207  to  212.  Woodcuts  of  the  ring,  209.  Engraving  of 
tlie  prison,  Plate  V.,  208. 

Bushley,  279. 

Bustards,  extinct  m  England,  321. 

Cad,  and  Cadbury,  338. 

Cakebold,  271. 

Cakemore,  in  Hales  Owen,  273. 

Caldwell,  305. 

Callow,  123. 

Callow's  Grave,  259. 

Callow  HUl,  123. 

Callow's  Leap,  248,  448. 

Camps,  small  intennediate,  317,  318. 

Caraotacus,  157,  213. 

Carausius,  335. 

Carent,  Cerent,  or  Carrou  River,  334,  335. 

Castle,  ancient  spots  so  called,  399,  400. 


479 

Castle  Hill,  Worcester ;  ancient  British,  Roman,  and  Saxon  relics  found  there, 
15  to  23.     Engraving  of  them,  Plate  I.,  p.  18. 

Castle  Morton,  or  Morton  Folliot;  Tumulus,  71.  Ancient  seal,  71,  72. 
Woodcut  of  the  seal,  71,  Castle,  72.  Parish,  281.  Budden-hill,  App., 
471,  472.     Gog,  472. 

Cat,  mysterious  black,  460,  461,  462. 

Catterhall  (see  Alfrick),  247. 

Catshall,  and  Coneygree,  in  Ombersley,  295. 

Cave,  remarkable  (see  Upton),  60,  61.  Caves  generally,  and  ancient  granaries, 
60,  61.  Thumb-ring,  found  at  Saxons'  Lode,  61,  62.  Woodcut  of  it, 
62. 

Celts,  engravings  of  those  foimd  at  Castle  Hill,  in  Worcester,  18;  at  Om- 
bersley, 98  (described  in  108,  109);  at  Astley,  98  (described  in  112, 
113);  at  Ribbesford,  98  (described  in  146) ;  at  Holt,  98  (described  in 
149) ;  at  Grimley,  98  (described  in  150) ;  at  Bevere  Island,  98  (de- 
scribed in  151,  152) ;  at  Malvern  Link,  167. 

Chadbiuy  Ferry,  346. 

Chaddesley  Corbett,  124  to  135,  271.  Etymology  of  Tan  Wood,  124.  Barrow 
Hill,  124,  125,  126,  with  a  woodcut  of  it,  125.  Ran  Dan  Woods, 
etymology  of,  125,  126.  Astwood  Hill,  126.  Places  of  the  name  of 
Tiin,  and  etymology  of  tlie  name,  127.  Sam  or  Sem  Hills,  Yam  and 
Dam  Hills,  etymology  of,  128,  129,  130.  Robm  Hood,  his  probable 
time  and  bu-th-place,  130  to  135,  423,  429,  430. 

Chaddlewick,  or  Chadwick,  361. 

Channelled  or  grooved  Roman  tiles  (see  Sidbury),  26. 

Chapters  in  this  work.     See  Contents,  Introduction,  pp.  ix.,  x.,  xi. 

Charred  or  parched  wheat,  in  ancient  granaries,  78  to  81. 

Chaseley,  276. 

Chastleton,  Co.  Oxford,  355. 

Chipping  Camden,  camp,  319. 

Church  Hill,  near  Kidderminster,  272. 

Church  Hill,  near  Bredicot,  326. 

Church  Honeybourae,  relics  found  there.  The  Qninton  Way.  The  game  of 
quintain,  &c.,  88,  89,  90,  316,  317,  322,  473. 

Church  Lench,  340. 

Cinder  Point,  in  Pitchcroft,  near  Worcester,  2,  3. 

Cinders,  probably  Roman,  3,  143. 

Claines,  293,  294. 

Clevelode,  in  Maddersfield,  285. 

Cleeve  Prior,  Roman  jar  and  coins,  91  to  94.     Rycknield  Street,  337. 

Clent,  Roman  relics,  135,  130.  Ancient  names,  and  etymology  of  Clent, 
271,  272. 

Clifton-upon-Temc,  251,  252,  253. 

Clopton,  in  the  parish  of  St.  John,  in  Bedwardine,  202,  263,  473. 

Cnap,  417. 

Cueph,  417. 

Cob,  416,451. 

Cobley  and  Tutnal  (see  Tardebig),  341. 

Cockshoot  (see  Great  Mulveni),  283,  284. 

Codeston,  or  rutsdcim  (scf  Brcdon),  345,  354. 


480 

Cold  Harbour,  13S  to  142,  295. 

Cold  Place,  Lulsley,  142. 

Cold  WeUs,  159. 

Coll  Hills,  and  Wall  HUls  (see  MalTsm  Hills),  158, 159. 

Collington,  Co.  Hereford,  258. 

Colwall,  155,  156,  157,  283. 

Colwall  Stone,  159. 

Comberton,  346. 

Comberton,  and  Hurcott  (see  Kidderminster),  305. 

Coles,  Old,  462  to  465. 

Colt,  Pixy,  414. 

Conderton  Camp,  in  Overbury,  on  Bredon  HUl,  84, 

Constantine  tlie  Great  (see  Kempsey  Camp),  57,  58. 

Conygree  Hill  (see  Bromsberrow),  70,  71,  218. 

Cop,  416. 

Com,  parched  or  charred  (see  Bredon  Hill),  78  to  81. 

Coronet  of  gold  foimd  in  Colwall,  155  to  158. 

Coston,  or  Cofton  Hackett,  313. 

Cotheridge,  262,  473. 

Cradley,  Co.  Hereford,  256.     Mobled,  437,  438. 

Cradley,  in  Hales  Owen,  273. 

Cremation,  or  burial  by  burning,  56,  57. 

Crisp,  or  Robin  Good-fellow,  423. 

Croces,  in  Sychampton,  in  Oiiibersley,  295. 

Croft  Ambrey,  Co.  Hereford,  367. 

Cromwell's  contract,  222. 

Croomb  D'Abitot,  291. 

Crookberrow,  in  Pendock,  and  in  the  Berrow,  217. 

Cropthome,  346. 

Crowle,  Danish  relics,  94,  95.     Derivation  of,  294,  and  App.,  472. 

Crows,  or  ravens,  mysterious,  448,  466. 

Cruckbarrow  Hill,  or  Crugban-ow,  in  Whittington ;  description  and  etymology 

of  it,  216  to  220. 
Cudley,  in  Spetcliley,  292,  293. 

Cuggan  Hill,  now  the  Round  Hill,  in  Spetchley,  219,  292. 
Cutsdean,  or  Codeston,  345,  354. 

Daddock,  468. 

Dane  skins,  on  a  former  door  of  Worcester  Cathedral,  &c.  &c.,  40  to  51.     En- 
graving of  the  door,  Plate  II.,  50. 
Danes  (see  Alliick),  194  to  199. 
Danegelt,  202. 

Darlingscott,  in  Tredington,  356. 
Darn  UUls,  128,  129,  130. 
Daylesford,  355. 
Deadloons,  in  Leigh,  240. 

Deerburst,  Co.  Gloucester,  187,  188  ;  and  App.,  472. 
Defford,  346. 

Devil's  Bit  (see  Stanford),  208. 
Deal's  Dream,  460. 


481 

DevU's  Den,  267,  462. 

DevU's  Leap,  250,  251. 

Devil's  Pig-trough,  240,  440,  445. 

Devil's  Spadeful,  or  Spittleful,  305,  306. 

Devonshire  spectre,  464. 

Diglis,  Roman  urn  and  other  relics  found  there,  28,  29.  Woodcut  of  the  urn, 
29.     Barbed  bronze  spear-heads,  and  woodcuts,  30,  31,  32. 

Dikes  and  roads,  Anglo-Saxon,  in  Worcestershire,  App.,  473. 

Dob,  415,  466,  467. 

Dobbies,  414,  415. 

Dobbin,  415,  467. 

Dodenham,  250. 

Doderliill,  311. 

Dolday,  in  Worcester,  4. 

Dole  (see  Alfrick),  248. 

Domesday  Survey,  53. 

Domiston,  321. 

Dora,  British  and  Roman  relics  found  there,  and  derivation  of  the  name,  87, 
355. 

Dover,  Mr.  Robert,  his  Olympic  games  on  tlie  Cotswold  Hills,  319,  320. 

Doverdale,  270,  312. 

Droitwich ;  Roman  urns,  fibulae,  tesselated  pavement,  coins,  Roman  naUs,  and 
other  relics  found  there,  98  to  103.  Engraving  of  the  urns,  Plate  IV., 
Nos.  1  and  2,  p.  98.  Site  of  encaustic  tile  works,  103  to  100.  Droit- 
wich, formerly  Saltwic,  310.  Royal  dues  on  salt  in  Anglo-Saxon  times, 
310,  311.     St.  Peter's  jiarish,  and  St.  Andrew's  parish,  320. 

Druids'  eggs,  or  adder  gems,  252. 

Dniidical  circles,  376,  377. 

Dripshill,  or  Tripshill,  m  Maddersfield,  285,  440,  447. 

Drjp,  tlie  fairy,  439. 

Diulley,  etymology  of,  143.     Grey  Stone  Field,  144. 

Durgie  (duergar),  438. 

Dymock,  Co.  Gloucester,  352. 

Eabl'8  Croomb,  291. 

Eastliam,  268. 

Echo,  a  very  distinct  one,  447. 

Eckington ;  Roman  and  Roman  British  relics  found  there,  and  woodcuts  of 
them,  74.  Ad  Antonam,  75.  WoUer's  Hill,  and  Naffonl ;  Anglo- 
Saxon  mark,  345. 

Edvin  Loach,  '^^H. 

Egg,  or  Agg,  -UA. 

El  or  Ell,  varioii.s  names  willi  that  pn-tix,  225. 

Elbuiy  Hill,  description  and  ciyiiiology  of  it,  223,  224,  225.  Camp,  224. 
Various  nniiu's  with  the  prefix  ''  El,"  225. 

Elderslit'ld  ;  (tuilliurj-  Bunks,  ())->.  Etymology  of  the  latter,  60.  Probably  the 
site  of  an  ancient  British  town,  68,  69,  70.  Derivation  of  the  name, 
27(). 

Elf,  434,  435,  451. 

Eli/abcth,  (Juceii,  portrait  of,  243. 


482 

Elkin,  or  little  gods,  225,  226,  435. 

Elinbridge,  270. 

Elmley  Castle   parish,    Stamliill,  Old  Wliite  Way,  Wuidseud   Moimd,  and 

Horse  Camps,  327,  328. 
Elmley  Lovett,  304. 

Emsorah,  in  Africa,  376.     Stone  circles,  376,  377. 
Encaustic  tile  works,  site  of,  near  Droitwich,  103  to  106,  18!). 
Encaustic  tile  works,  site  of,  at  Great  Malvern,  180. 
Eoten  or  Oughton  Wells,  in  Alfrick,  246,  434,  435. 
Eotenford,  Etford,  Dorset,  451. 
Est,  or  Ast  (see  Astwood),  226. 
Eternal  Waggoner,  or  Night  Eaven,  433,  434. 

Ethelred  and  Ethelflaed,  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Mercia,  194  to  202. 
Evenload,  355. 
Evesham,  336  ;  and  App.,  472,  473. 

Fairy  rings,  456,  457,  458.     Fairies'  caves,  418,  420,  448. 

Feckenham,  321. 

Fetch,  449,  450. 

Fibulae ;  engravings  of  those  found  at  the  Castle  Hill,  Worcester,  Plate  1., 
p.  18 ;  at  Kempsey,  woodcuts,  pp.  54,  55  ;  at  Holt,  No.  7,  p.  98 
(described  in  p.  149). 

Fields,  general  observations  relative  to  the  ancient  names  of,  401, 402.  Anglo- 
Saxon  boundaries  of  fields,  402,  403. 

Fiend  horses,  412. 

Fladbury  and  Bradley,  346. 

Flaying,  punishment  of,  41  to  49. 

Flaying  knife,  or  hone,  probably  ancient  British,  148,  149.  Woodcuts  of  it, 
149. 

Flj-ford  Flavell,  325. 

Fogs,  electricity  of,  468,  469. 

Folk-lore,  409  to  470. 

Foss-way,  354  to  358. 

Four  Shire  Stone,  Danish  and  Saxon  battle  field,  and  ancient  barrow,  85,  86, 
355. 

Frankley,  313. 

Gadbuby  Banks,  in  Eldersfield,  also  other  places  named  Gadbury  or  Gad, 

68,  69,  70. 
Gad-whip,  69. 
Gaimtlet  sword,  223. 
Giant's  Grave,  306. 
Giant's  Throw,  144,  145. 

Gloucester  (Glebon  Colonia),  antiquities  and  derivation,  333. 
Godwald,  Saint,  site  of  a  chapel  of,  at  Sidbury,  Worcester,  25. 
Gog,  281,  and  App.,  472. 
Grafton-supor-Flivord,  325. 

Granaries,  ancient  and  modem,  and  caves,  78  to  81. 
Grant,  ii  goblin  so  called,  414. 
Great  Malvern  (see  Malvcni,  Great),  283,  2H4.     Also,  Malvciu  Hills. 


483 

Great  Alne,  Co.  Warwick,  337. 

Great  Hampton,  336. 

Great  Witley,  265. 

Greek  coins  found  at  The  White  Ladies,  Worcester,  and  at  Acton  Scott, 

Shropshire,  5  to  13. 
Grey  Stone  Field,  Dudley,  144.     Grey  stones,  396. 
Grim,  the  fairy,  438,  449  to  452,  455. 
Grimesdic,  App.,  472. 
Grimley,  stone   celts   found   there,  150.      Engravings  of  them,  Plate  IV., 

Nos.  8,  9,  10,  p.  98. 
Grimley  parish,  264. 

Grimsend,  m  Alfrick,  440,  445.     Grimes  Hill  (see  Hallow),  264. 
Grooved  or  channelled  Roman  tUes,  found  at  Sidbury,  Worcester,  26,  27. 

Habbe  or  Hob  Lench,  340. 

Hadsor,  320. 

Hagley,  136  to  142.  Wichbury  HUl  Camp,  and  Roman  relics,  136,  137. 
Ancient  barrows,  137.  Harborough,  138.  Hoar-stone  Brook,  Kings- 
head  Land,  and  singular  image,  138,  139.  Stones  used  by  slingers, 
138,  139.  Etymology  of  Harborough  and  Cold  Harbour,  139  to  142. 
Etymology  of  Hagley,  272. 

Hag  (see  Suckley),  244. 

Hales  Owen;  Portway;  Roman  cinders;  Quintan;  Oldbury,  &c.,  142,  143, 
272. 

Hales  Owen,  Township,  273. 

Hallow,  263. 

Hampton,  Great  and  Little,  336. 

Hampton  Lovett,  270. 

Hanbury,  320. 

Hanley  Castle,  283. 

Hanley  Child,  or  Lower  Hanley,  259. 

Hanley  William,  or  Upper  Hanley,  259. 

Harbour,  and  Cold  Harbour,  places  so  called,  138  to  142. 

Hard  wick  (see  Bredon),  345. 

Harry-ca-nab  (see  Bromsgrove),  115,  116,  123. 

HarUeburj-,  113,  303. 

Har\ington,  339,  340. 

Hatfield  (see  Norton-juxta-Kempsey),  292. 

Hawkestones,  367. 

Hnyden  Way,  330. 

Heart  burial,  32,  33. 

Heightington  (see  Rock),  266. 

Hell  Hole,  places  so  called,  267,  26S,  462. 

Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp,  on  Malvern  Hills,  L')4,  155.  A  coronet  of 
gold  found  near  there,  155,  15(!,  157  ;  and  a  pot  of  Roman  coin,  159, 
to  l(i3. 

Hills,  account  of,  152  to  238;  and  see  Introduction,  p.  vi. 

Hill  Cromb,  291. 

Hill  Hampton,  251. 

Himbleton,  -'125,  473. 


484 

Hinlip,  295.     Smite,  and  Cold  Ilaibour,  139  to  142. 

Hoar  Stones,  and  places  and  tilings  called  by  the  name  of  Hoar ;  etymology  of 

the  name,  383  to  397. 
Hoar  Stone,  in  Tedstone  Delamere,  Co.  Hereford,  142. 
Hob,  409,  412,  413,  414,  418,  423,  424,  452. 
Hob  and  his  lantern,  412,  423. 
Hobanys  lantern,  412,  423. 
Hobelers,  413. 
Hobby,  412. 
Hoberd,  413. 
Hoberdy,  409. 
Hoberdy's  lantern,  412,  423. 
Hobgoblin,  412,  420,  423. 
Hobin,  414. 
Hobs  Hoth,  413. 
Hob-thrush,  424. 
Hob  Well,  283. 
Hodening,  412. 
Hodington,  325. 

Hogmore  Hill,  and  Ogmore,  261,  262. 
Hole  Stones,  and  Logan  Stones,  369,  370,  381,  382. 
Holt,  a  bronze  celt  and  fibula  found  there,  149.    Engraving  of  them,  Plate  IV., 

Nos.  6  and  7,  p.  98. 
Holt  with  Little  Witley,  264. 
Holy  Cross,  Pershore,  326. 

Hone,  or  flaying  knife,  ancient  British,  148,  149.     Woodcuts  of  it,  149. 
Honeyboume,  Church,  88,  89,  90,  316,  317,  322,  473. 
Ilonger,  65. 

Hop,  the  faii-y,  438,  439,  452. 
Hoppe,  412,  432. 

Horse  Camps  (see  Elmley  Castle),  328. 
Hounds,  Yell,  Yeth,  or  spectre,  256. 
Hounds,  a  pack  of,  bewitched,  460,  461,  462. 
Himian  skin  oji  church  doors,  40  to  51. 
Humberston,  Co.  Leicester,  368  to  371. 
Hurcott,  and  Comberton  (see  Kidderminster),  305. 
Hj-pocaust,  site  of  a  Roman,  at  Sidbury,  Worcester,  23  to  27. 

IccoMB,  or  Icombe  Camp,  Co.  Gloucester,  85,  355. 

Icknild  Street  (see  Rycknield  Street),  346. 

TgniH  fntmis,  and  cause  of  it,  409,  410,  411,  468,  469,  470. 

Illustrations  in  this  work  (see  list  of  them  in  the  Introduction),  pp.  xiii.,  xiv. 

J  nip,  and  Impy,  424,  452. 

Inkberrow,  321.      Fairies,  419. 

Inlip,  or  Hindlip,  and  Alcrinton  (now  Alfreton),  295. 

Ipsley,  Co  Warwick,  337. 

Iron  nails,  Roman  (see  Uroitwich),  103. 

Itinera  in  tliis  work  (see  Introduction),  pp.  v.,  vi.,  vii.,  viii. 

Jack,  409,  431. 


485 

Jack-o'-Lantem,  412,  430. 
Janus,  Temple  of,  shut,  on  a  coin  of  Nero,  4. 
Jovial  Hunter  of  Bromsgrove,  114  to  123. 
Judgment,  ancient  seats  of,  128  to  130,  153,  154. 
Jumper's  Hole,  257. 

Kelpies,  468. 

Kemerton  Camp  (see  Bredon  Hill  Camp),  78  to  84. 

Kempsey,  Roman  camp,  and  cists  or  burial  ground  at;  fibulae,  pottery;  inscrip- 
tion in  honour  of  Constantine  the  Great ;  bronze  spear-head,  54  to  60. 
Woodcuts  of  the  fibulae,  54  55  ;  of  the  pottery,  56  ;  of  the  spear-head 
60.     Kempsey  parish,  292. 

Kenswick,  in  Wichenford,  360. 

Kenvaur  or  Kinver  Edge,  144,  145. 

Keys,  ancient,  20.     Engraving,  Plate  I.,  No.  16,  p.  18. 

Kidderminster ;  legend  ;  Caldwell ;  Mitton  ;  B'oreign  of  Kidderminster  ;  Hur- 
cott  and  Comberton  ;  Devil's  Spadeful ;  Giant's  Gmve  ;  Wribbenhall, 
charter  of  land,  304  to  307. 

Kingshead  Land,  274, 

Kington,  321. 

Kings  Norton,  339. 

Kinsham  (see  Bredon),  345. 

Kistvaen,  242. 

Kit,  and  Kit's  Cotty  House,  242,  243. 

Knap,  and  Kneph  (see  Old  Storage),  193,  417. 

Knife,  ancient  British,  151,  152. 

Knighton,  269. 

Knightwick,  250. 

Knockers,  436. 

Knop,  417. 

Kop,  416. 

Kyre  Wyre,  259. 

Lady  Lightfoot's  spectre,  464. 

Land-slips  (see  Bredon  Hill),  78. 

Layamon's  "  Brut,"  157,  158,  303  ;  App.,  471. 

Leaden  chest,  for  heart  burial,  32,  33. 

Ledbury,  Co.  Hereford,  275,  353. 

Leigh,  240,  241.      Dead  Loons,  240.      The  Devil's  Pig-trough,  241,  444. 

Fairy  names  there,  440  to  443. 
Lench,  Church,  \ 

.     „      Sheriffs, 

„      Atch,  -  340. 

„      Rous, 

,,      Abbot's,  or  Hob,  or  Habbe,  / 
Lciichwick  (see  Abbot's  Norton),  339. 
Licke,  the  fairy,  438,  439,  450. 
Lickhill,  439. 

Liuconib,  in  Astlcy,  ancient  British  celt,  112,  113  ;  and  engraving  of  it  in 
Plate  IV.,  No.  4,  p,  \iH;  also  see  App.,  472,  as  to  the  derivation  of  the  name. 


486 

Lindridge ;  ancient  hone,  or  flaying  knife,  148,  149.     Woodcut  of  it,  149. 

Toothill,  2:W,  2(((i.     Derivation  of  Lindridge,  App.,  472. 
Linton,  Co.  Hereford,  352. 
Little  Comberton,  326. 
Little  Hampton,  336. 

Little  Malvern,  154  to  163,  283.     Also,  Malvern  Hills. 
Littleton,  Middle,  337. 
Littleton,  North,  337. 
Littleton,  South,  336,  337,  473. 
Little  Washbom,  335. 
Little  Witley,  Holt  with,  264. 
Logan  Stones,  and  Hole  Stone,  381,  382. 
Longdon,  281. 

Low  Hill,  formerly  Oswaldslow,  220,  221. 
Lower  Areley,  or  Areley  Kings,  304.     App.  471. 
Lower  Deviation  Salt-way,  314,  315,  323  to  329. 
Lower  Mitton,  304. 
Lower  Salt-way,  314  to  323. 
Lower  Sapey,  or  Sapey  Pritehard,  258. 
Lowesmoor,  35.     Etymology,  36. 
Lull,  the  fairy,  438,  450,  452,  453. 
Lulsley,  249,   250.     Puttocks-end,  or  Puttocks-inn,  derivation  of,  249,  250. 

Fairies'  Cave   there,    and  fairy   names,   418,  419,  440,  443    to  44(i. 

Etynjology  of  Lulsley,  446.     Large  yew^  tree  there,  447. 
Luttley,  in  Hales  Owen,  273. 

Mab,  Queen,  437,  438. 

Mab-led,  or  mobled,  437,  438. 

Madresfleld,  or  Maddersfield,  285. 

Malvern  Hills,  153,  to  189.     Etymology  of  Malvern,  153,  154. 

Herefordshire  Beacon  Camp,  and  Colwall,  154,  155,  156.  Coronet 
of  gold,  155  to  158.  Caractaeus,  157.  Layamon's  "  Brut,"  157, 
158.  Names  of  places  with  the  prefix  "Wall,"  and  "Col"  or 
"  Cold,"  158,  159.  Colwall  Stone,  159.  Pot  of  Eoman  coins  found 
near  the  Herefordshire  Beacon,  159  to  163. 
Midsummer  Hill  Camp,  163.  The  Ridgeway;  mistletoe  on  an  oak 
there,  163,  164.  Mistletoe  in  an  ancient  British  coffin  at  Scar- 
borough, 164. 
Worcestershire  Beacon ;  ancient  British  cinerary  uni,  found  on  the 
summit  of  it,  165,  166.  Woodcuts  of  the  urn,  165.  Twinban-ow, 
166.  Celt  found  at  Malveni  Link,  166,  167.  Woodcut  of  it,  167. 
Roman  coins,  167.  Radnor  and  Rad,  167.  The  legend  of  Saint 
Werstan  and  the  first  Christian  establishment  at  Great  Malvern, 
167  to  188.  Four  woodcuts  upon  the  subject,  taken  from  a 
painted  glass  window  in  Great  Malvern  Abbey  Church,  173,  175, 
177,  179.  Alney  Isle,  188,  189.  Site  of  encaustic  tile  works, 
189.     Refectory,  189. 

Malvern,  Great,  parish  of ;  Hob-well;  Twiubarrow,  Radnor,  and  Rad;  Cock- 
shoot,  and  derivation  of,  2^^3,  2H-4. 

Malveni,  Little,  154  to  163,  283. 


487 

Mamble  and  Soddington,  140  to  148,  269. 

Manorial  customs  (see  Ombersley),  296  to  30.'J. 

Man  witliout  a  head,  444,  445,  464. 

Marks,  Anglo-Saxon,  203,  228,  229. 

Marlcliff,  in  Warwickshire,  337. 

Marl  pits  in  Britain  in  the  Roman  times,  320. 

Martin  Hussintree,  295. 

Martley,  213,  251. 

Mathon,  255.     Yell  and  Penfield,  256. 

Mauthe  Doog,  449. 

Meon  Hill,  Co.  Gloucester,  318,  319.     Questions  as  to  its  derivation,  319. 

Middle  Littleton,  337. 

Midsummer  Hill  Camp  (see  Malvern  Hills),  163,  &c. 

Mistletoe  (see  Malvern  Hills),  163,  164. 

Mitton  (see  Bredon),  345. 

Mitton,  in  Kidderminster,  305. 

Moanland,  in  Pixham,  in  Powick,  287. 

Moduses  (see  Suckley),  245. 

Mole  crickets,  411. 

Morton  Folliot,  or  Castle  Morton,  71,  72.     Seal,  aiul  woodcut,  71. 

Much  Marcle,  Co.  Hereford,  352. 

Mythe  Tute,  near  Tewkesbury,  65,  66,  291. 

Naffobd,  345. 

Nails,  Roman  (see  Droitwich),  103. 

Names,  ancient,  of  fields,  220,  401,  402. 

Naunton  Beauchanip,  320. 

Newbold,  356. 

Newland  Common  (see  Salwarp),  109,  110,  111. 

Newland,  near  Great  Malvern,  287. 

Night  Raven,  or  Eternal  Waggoner,  433. 

Nixies,  436. 

Nomies,  442. 

Northfield,  313. 

North  Littleton,  337. 

North  Pidelet,  325. 

Nortliwick  on  the  Foss,  355. 

Norton  Abbots,  and  Lencliwick,  339. 

Norton,  in  Bredon  ;  Anglo-Saxon  relics  found  there,  70,  77.     Engraving  of 

them,  Plate  III.,  76.     Norton,  in  Bredon  parish,  345. 
Norton-juxta-Kempsey,  292. 

Obf.ron,  414,  420,  450. 

Oddingley,  324. 

OfTenham,  90,  339. 

Ogham  Stones,  262. 

Ogniore,  or  Hogmore,  261,  262. 

Oldberrow,  or  Oldborough,  derivation  of,  and  of  Cadborough,  338. 


488 

Oldbury,  near  Worcester,  34,  35. 

Oldbiiry  Gardens,  near  Tewkesbury,  34. 

Oldbury,  places  so  called,  397  to  399. 

Old  Coles,  462,  463,  464. 

Old  Hob,  412. 

Old  Storage,  its  etymology,  190  to  193.     St.  Augustine's  Oak,  191.     Sacred 

boundaries  and  customs  at  Bealtine,  or  Paletein,  or  Belton,  191,  192, 

193. 
Old  Swinford,  273.     Derivation  of,  App.,  472. 
Old  White  Way,  or  Welsh  Way,  327. 
Olympic  games  on  the  Cotswold  Hills,  319,  320,  433. 
Ombers  Hill,  or  Ambers  Hill,  in  Leigh,  240,  366,  440. 
Ombersley,  Roman  camp  and  pottery  ground,  10()  to  108.     Etymology  of  the 

name,  107,  371,  372,  440,  441.     Castle  Hill,  108.      Ancient  British 

celt,  108 ;  and  an  engraving  of  it,  Plate  IV.,  No.  3,  p.  98.     Ombersley 

parish  ;   Catshall,  and  Coneygree  ;    Croces  and  Stewards,  in  Sycliamp- 

ton,  Uphampton  ;  Allies,  in  Borley ;  manorial  customs,  295  to  303. 
Ores,  434. 

Organs  Hill,  etymology  of,  304. 
Orleton,  a  hamlet  of  Eastham,  Co.  Worcester,  268. 
Orleton,  Co.  Hereford,  260. 
Osebury  Rock,  in  Lulsley,  212,  213.     Fairies'  Cave  there,  and  Witches'  Oven, 

418,  443 ;  etymology  of  the  name,  443. 
Ossian,  111,  112,  335. 
Ostorius,  sites  of  forts  of,  1,  2,  344,  345. 
Oswaldslow,  on  the  bomidary  of  Wolverton,   in   Stoulton,  now   called  Low 

Hill,  220,  221. 
Oughton,  or  Eoten  Wells,  in  Alfrick,  246,  434,  435,  447. 
Ovens,  ancient  (see  Stoke  Prior),  111,  112,  and  Suckley,  244. 
Over  Arley,  or  Upper  Arley ;    Portway ;    Camp ;    Castle  ;    etymology  of  tlio 

name,  145,  307,  308  ;  and  App.,  471. 
Overbury;  Conderton  Camp,  84.      Carent,  or  Cerent  River;  Caraiisius,  334, 

335. 
Owen  Glyndwr,  214. 
Ox,  bones  of  an  extinct  species  of,  found  at  Diglis,  28. 

Paletein,  or  Belton  (see  Old  Storage),  191,  192,  193. 

Parcse,  fates,  or  destinies,  442. 

Parched  or  charred  wheat,  in  ancient  granaries,  78  to  81. 

Patch  or  Pach,  the  fairy,  438,  448,  449,  453. 

Patch  HUl,  in  Alfrick,  448.     The  like  in  Leigh,  440. 

Pauntley,  Co.  Gloucester,  352.     Custom  there  resembling  the  Scotch  Beltein, 

353. 
Paved  track-way,  old,  64  to  68. 
Pavements,  ancient,  128,  129,  130,  153,  154. 
Pedmore,  272. 

Penates,  Roman,  13,  14.     With  a  woodcut  of  Angeronn,  14. 
Pendock  Portway,  70.     Derivation  of  Pendock,  218  ;    and  App.,  472.      Pen 

dock  parish,  278,  279. 
Penfield,  and  tlic  Yrll,  in  Mathon,  255,  256. 


489 

Pensax,  in  Lindridge,  '267. 

Peopleton,  320. 

Perdeswell  (see  Barrow  Cop),  229,  &c. 

Perry  Wood,  or  Pirie  Wood,  222 ;    ancient  trench  road  there ;    Cromwell's 

contract  with  the  devil ;  camp  ground  ;  gauntlet  sword,  222,  223. 
Pershore ;  St.  Andrew,  and  Holy  Cross,  parishes  of,  32f$. 
Pharises,  or  fairies,  41H,  420. 
Pigmies,  456. 
Pigwiggen,  441. 

Pin,  with  a  double  point,  20,  21,  22.     Engraving  of  it,  Plate  I.,  No.  17,  p.  18. 
Pin,  tlie  feiry,  438,  453. 

Piuck,  or  Pink,  the  fairy,  435,  430,  438,  453,  407. 
Pinket,  the  fairies  so  called  in  Badsey,  435,  436. 
Pins  HUl,  in  Leigh,  441. 
Pip,  the  fairy,  438,  453,  454. 
Pirton  parish,  292. 
Pixies,  430,  437. 
Poake  ledden,  418. 
Pooka,  or  Phooka,  420,  427,  428. 
Pooten's  Hole,  in  llanley  Child,  259,  424. 
Portfields  Road,  near  Worcester,  9,  23. 

Portway,  from  Kenchester  to  Worcester,  and  thenre  to  Over  Arley,  280  to  290. 
Portways,  summary  of,  405, 
Pottery,  Roman,  slate-coloured ;  liow  made,  29. 
Potterj-  ground,  Roman,  at  Ripple,  fi2,  03,  04. 
Powick,  Roman  sepulchral  urn  found  there,  and  woodcut  of  it,  73.    Ridgeway, 

287,  288.      Black   Hawthorn   Lane,  288.      The  i/jnLi  futuHs  ^»een   in 

Powick,  409  to  411.     Also,  see  App.,  473. 
Puck  needle,  425. 

Puck,  Poke,  Poake,  Pouk,  Pouque,  Powk,  &c.,  418,  420,  422  to  429. 
Pugfist,  Puckfoist,  or  Pucklmll  fungus,  425,  420. 
Pugs  Hole,  in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove,  424,  40(i. 
Puttocks-rnd,  or  Pothooks  Inn,  24!),  250,  443. 

Queen  Elizabeth,  original  portrait  of  (see  Suckley),  243. 

guinee  Hill  (see  Alfriok),  240,  247. 

Quintan,  in  Hales  parish,  143. 

Quinton,  Upper  and  Lower,  and  Quinton  Field,  318,  319. 

Quinton  Way,  and  game  of  quintan,  88,  8!),  80. 

Radnor  and  Rad  (see  Great  Malvern),  107,  283,  284. 

Ran  Dan  Woods,  in  Chaddcsley  Corbett,  and  Belbroughton,  125,  120. 

Rung-tang,  or  tang-rang  (see  Chaddesley  Corbett),  125,  120. 

Ravens  or  Crows,  mysterious,  448,  4(i(i. 

Raven  Hills  (see  Alfrick),  194  to  19!), 

Raven,  standard  of  tlie,  1!)4  to  199. 

Receipt,  curious,  458. 

Red  Cliir,  in  Leigh,  440,  440. 

Red  deer,  antlers  of,  found  at  Diglis,  2!). 

Redstone  Fi-rry  Hermitage,  303. 

L    L 


490 

Refectory  site  of,  at  Great  Malvern,  189. 

Ribbcsford,  and  Bewdley  ;  celt,  140.    Engraving  of  it,  Plate  IV.,  No.  5,  p.  98. 

Ribbesford  parish,  304. 
Ridgacre,  in  Hales  Owen,  272. 
Ridgeway,  in  Powick,  and  in  St.  John,  in  Bedwardine  ;  probably  a  branch  of 

the  Rycknield  Street,  287,  288,  289. 
Ridgeway,  or  Rycknield  Street,  329  to  354. 
Ridgeway,  the  (see  Malvern  Hills),  163,  164.    Mistletoe  on  an  oak  there,  163, 

164. 
Ridgeways,  summary  of,  404,  and  see  App.,  473. 

Rid  Marley  D'Abitot ;  derivation  of  the  name,  218,  276,  and  App.,  472. 
Ring,  curious,  and  woodcuts  of  it  (see  Bredicot),  96,  97. 
Rings  (see  Fairy  rings),  456  to  458. 
Ripple  and  Twyning  ;  Roman  pottery  ground  at  Bow  Farm,  Ripple,  62,  63, 

64,  291.     Towbury  Hill  Camp,  in  Twining,  64.     Ancient  track-way, 

64  to  67.     Bow  Bridge,   67.     Allu\dum,  accumulation   of,   since  the 

time  of  the  Romans,  67,  68. 
Roads,  ancient,  and  Salt-ways  (see  a  list  of  them  in  the  Introduction),  pp.  vi., 

vii.,  \'iii. 
Roads  and  dikes,  Anglo-Saxon,  in  Worcestershire.     See  App.,  473. 
Robin,  and  Robert,  423. 
Robinet,  443. 

Robin  Good-fellow,  418,  420  to  423. 
Robin  Hood  (see  Chaddesley  Corbett,  as  to  various  places  called  by  his  name), 

130  to  135 ;  and  Folk-lore,  418,  423,  429,  430. 
Rochford,  a  speculatoi-y  there,  268. 

Rock,  or  Aka ;  sorb-tree  ;  Quicken  or  Witten  Pear-tree,  266. 
Roman  and  Greek  coins,  found  at  The  Wliite  Ladies,  Worcester,  and  at  Acton 

Scott,  in  Shropshire,  5  to  13. 
Roman  brick  works,  site  of,  at  Soddinton,  146  to  148. 
Roman  ijottery  gi-ound  (see  Ripple  and  Twyning),  62,  63,  64. 
Roman  penates,  with  a  woodcut  of  Angerona,  13,  14. 
Romsley,  in  Hales  Owen,  273. 
Rosebury,  or  Rosemary,  or  Osebury  Rock,  212,  213. 
Round  Hill,  in  Spetchley,  219,  222. 
Rous  Lench,  340. 
Rushock,  271,  and  App.,  472. 
Rycknield  Street,  or  Ridgeway,  329  to  354,     Derivation  of  the  name,  347. 

Sacked  boundaries  and  customs  (see  Old  Storage),  101,  192,  193. 

St.  Andrew's,  Droitwich,  320. 

St.  Andrew's,  Pershore,  326. 

St.  Augustine's  Oak,  191,  205,  206,  207,  215,  266. 

St.  Clement's  Church,  the  former,  Worcester,  relics  of,  supposed  to  be  late 
Saxon  or  early  Nonnan,  36  to  39.     Woodcut  of  it,  38. 

St.  Godwnld,  25. 

St.  John,  in  Bedwardine,  261,  262,  263.  Hogmore  or  Ogiiiore  Hill,  deriva- 
tion of,  261, 262.  Ogham  stones,  262.  Clopton,  262, 263,  473.  Bedwar- 
dine, derivation  of,  263.     Ridgeway,  288,  289. 

St.  Kenelms.  136. 


49i 

St.  Martin's  parish,  Worcester,  2!J3. 

St.  Peter's  parish,  Worcester,  293. 

St.  Peter's  parish,  Droitwich,  320. 

St.  Werstan,  legend  of  (see  Malvern  Hills),  167  to  188;  and  woodcuts,  173 
175,  177,  179. 

St.  Wolstan's  seal,  51,  52,  53.     Woodcut  of  it,  52. 

Sale  Green,  323. 

Sale,  places  so  called,  321. 

Salinae  of  the  Romans,  most  probably  Droitwich,  98,  310. 

Salt,  royal  dues  in  Anglo-Saxon  times,  310,  311. 

Salt-way,  Upper,  309  to  316. 

Salt-way,  Lower,  3U,  316  to  323. 

Salt-way,  Lower  Deviation,  314,  323  to  328. 

Saltwic  (see  Droitwich),  310,  311. 

Salwarp,  trench  road  there,  109,  110.  Anglo-Saxon  graves,  110,  111.  Anglo- 
Saxon  boundaries,  311. 

Sapey,  Lower,  or  Sapey  Pritchard,  258. 

Sapey,  Upper,  Co.  Hereford,  258. 

Sam  or  Sem  Hills,  128,  120,  130. 

Sam  Hill,  in  Bushley,  128,  279. 

Saxons'  Lode  (see  Upton),  61,  62. 

Sea  shells  in  the  native  gravel  bed  under  the  Castle  Hill,  Worcester,  &c.,  23. 

Sedgebarrow,  or  Sedgeberrow,  British  and  Roman  relics  found  there,  85,  335, 
336,  and  App.,  472. 

Seven  Whistlers,  tlie,  459. 

Severn  Stoke,  291. 

Shelsley  Beauchamp,  or  Great  Shelsley,  254. 

Shelsley  Kings,  254. 

Shelsley  Walsh,  or  Little  Shelsley,  254. 

Shenstone,  304. 

Shepley,  in  the  parish  of  Bromsgrove,  332. 

Sheriff"s  Leneh,  340. 

Shipston-on-Stour,  3.j6. 

Shrawley,  2(i5. 

Sib,  the  fairj-,  438,  450,  454. 

Sibhay,  or  Tibhay,  447. 

Sidbury,  or  Southbury,  15,  23  to  26.  .\nrient  British  coin  found  on  Green 
Hill,  and  woodcut  of  it,  26  ;  Roman  coins  and  Roman  hypocaust,  23 
to  27.     Etymologj'  of  Sidbury,  27,  28. 

Slate-coloured  Roman  potterj-,  witli  a  woodcut,  29. 

Sleepers'  Den,  in  Lower  Mitton,  304. 

Small  intermediate  camps,  317,  318. 

Smite,  141,  295.     Babel's  Hill,  295,  319. 

SodcUngton,  in  Mamble  ;  Roman  relics,  and  site  of  Roman  brick  works,  146, 
147,  148. 

SolDuUl,  Co.  Warwick,  339. 

Sorb-tree  (see  Rock),  2(i(!. 

South  Littleton,  336,  337,  473. 

Soutlistone  Rock  (see  Stanford),  267. 

Spear-head  of  bronze,  barbed  (see  Diglis),  30,  31.  Woodcut  of  it,  30;  and  of 
one  in  the  British  Museum,  31. 


492 

Spear-head  (see  Kempsey),  59,  60.     Woodcut  of  it,  60. 

Speculatories  (see  Slirawley),  265,  (and  Rochford),  268. 

Spetchley,  Cudley,  Cuggan  Hill,  Swiiieshead  or  Swinesherd,  292,  293,  294. 

Spiights,  458,  406. 

Spunkies  and  spunk,  467,  468. 

Standard  of  the  raven  (see  Alfrick),  194  to  109. 

Stanford ;  Southstone  Rock  and  legend  ;  Hell  Hole,  Devil's  Den,  Devil's  Bit, 
267,  268. 

Staru  Hill,  in  Elmley  Castle  parish,  128,  327. 

Staunton,  276. 

Stewards,  in  Sychanipton,  in  Onibersley,  296. 

Stockton,  ancient  iiitrenchnients,  &c.,  148,  266. 

Stoke  Bliss,  258. 

Stoke  Prior;  Anglo-Saxon  bracelets,  ancient  ovens,  &c.,  Ill,  112,312,  473. 

Stoke,  or  Stock,  and  Bradley,  320. 

Stone,  with  the  haiulet  of  Shenstone,  304. 

Stone  axe,  ancient  British  (see  Grimley),  150 ;  and  engraving  of  it,  Plate  IV., 
No.  10,  p.  98. 

Stoney  Morton,  or  Abbot's  Morton,  340,  473. 

Storage  or  Storridge,  Old,  190  to  193. 

Stoulton,  326. 

Stoiu-bridge  palish,  273. 

Stourport,  345. 

Streets,  suiuinary  of  places  so  called,  400. 

Strensham,  trench  road  there,  75,  76. 

Stromkerl,  or  boy  of  the  stream,  439. 

Suckley,  241.  Bant  or  Bante,  an  ancient  division  of  land,  203,  204,  242.  Kit, 
places  so  called,  and  derivation  of,  242.  Queen  Elizabeth,  origiual 
portrait  of,  stating  the  day  of  her  birth,  21:3.  Places  whose  names 
have  the  prefix  "  Eg,"  or  "  Egg,"  244.     Moduses  on  small  tithes,  245. 

Sutton,  in  Teubmy,  259. 

Swan  Maidens,  459. 

Swinford,  Old,  273. 

Tad  (see  Toot  Hills),  235,  236. 

Tadnioor,  in  Castle  Morton,  281. 

Tang-rang,  or  rang-tang,  125,  120. 

Tan  Wood,  in  Chaddesley  Corbett,  124,  125,  120. 

Tapenliall,  Tapenhale,  or  Tapenhole  (see  Claiues),  294. 

Tardebig,  derivation  of,  341.     Tutnal,  and  Cobley,  and  Bentley,  341. 

Teddington  (see  Overbury),  334,  335. 

Tedstone  Delaniere,  Co.  Hereford,  258. 

Tenbury,  259. 

Tewkesbury,  Co.  Gloucester ;  antiquities  found  there,  334. 

Thor,  113.     His  hammer,  307. 

Thombury,  Co.  Hereford ;   Wall  Hills  Camp,  258. 

Thoth,  193,  417. 

Thumb  ring  (see  Saxons'  Lode),  Upton,  61,  62.     Woodcut  of  it,  02. 

Tib,  the  fairy,  43s,  450,  454. 

Tibhay,  or  Sibliay,  447. 

Tibia,  447. 


493 

Tibberton,  294. 

Tib's  Hill,  in  Bransford,  440. 

Tick,  the  fairy,  438,  454. 

Tickenhill,  Roman  gold  coin  found  there,  146.   Derivation  of  the  name,  App., 

472. 
Tidniington,  356. 

Tiles,  Roman,  grooved  or  channelled,  26,  27. 
Timberdine  (see  St.  Peter's  Parish,  Worcester),  293. 
Tin,  places  so  called ;  and  etymology  of  the  name,  127. 
Tinker's  Cross,  in  Leigh,  442. 
Tinna  Geolane,  or  Will-o'-the-Wisp,  427. 
Tit,  the  fairj',  438,  454. 
Titania,  456. 
Tom  Thmub,  438,  450. 
ToUardine  (see  Claines),  294. 

Toot  Hills,  232  to  236.     Etymology  of,  233  to  236,  417. 
Tores  of  the  Celts  (see  Barrow  Cop),  229  to  232. 
Tors,  (see  Old  Storage),  100,  191. 

Towbury  Hill  (.see  Ripple  and  Twyning),  64,  (and  Folk-lore),  441. 
Track-way,  ancient  paved  (see  Ripple  and  Twyning),  64  to  67. 
Track-way,  the  Western,  290  to  309. 

Tredington,  includhig  the  hamlets  of  Blackwell,  and  DarUugscott,  356,  473. 
Tredington,  Co.  Gloucester,  Rudgeway,  334. 
Trip,  the  fairy,  438,  454,  455. 

Trips  Hill,  or  Drips  Hill,  in  Maddersfield,  285,  440,  447. 
Trots  Hill,  Troshill,  or  Toots  Hill,  in  Wamdon,  223,  294. 
Tuckbold,  or  Jack-o-Lantem,  427. 
Tuck  HUl,  in  Hanley  Child,  259. 
Tutnall,  Tetnal,  or  Tootenhill,  alias  Oak  Fields,  232. 
Tutnal,  and  Cobley,  341. 
Tweezers,  Roman,  found  at  the  Castle  Hill,  Worcester,  19,  22.     Engravings 

of  it,  Plate  1.,  Nos.  12  and  13,  p.  18. 
Twinbarrow,  Great  Malvern,  166,  283. 
Twinkling  Will,  the  Northern  Waggoner,  433,  434. 
Twyning,  Co.  Gloucester,  62  to  67,  291. 
Tyrian  coins,  and  woodcuts  of  them  (see  Ambrosiae  Petrae),  378,  379. 

Ullinoswick,  Co.  Hereford,  257. 

Uphampton,  in  Ombersley,  296. 

Ul)per  Ariey,  or  Over  Arley,  Co.  Staflbrd,  145,  307,  308.     App.,  471. 

Upper  Mitton  ;  Organs  Hill ;    and  etymologj'  of  it,  304. 

Upper  Salt- way,  309  to  316. 

Upper  Sappy,  258. 

Upton  Snodsbury,  325.     Fairies'  cave  there,  419,  420. 

Upton-upon-Seveni,   the   Upooessa  of   Ravennas ;    remarkable  cave    or  well 

found  there,  60,  61.     Thunib-ruig  at  Saxons'  Lode,  and  woodcut  of  it, 

61,  (i2.     Upton  parish,  283. 
Upton  Warren,  311. 
Urchins,  457. 
I'm,  ancient  British,  f(uind  at  the  Worcestershire  Beacon,  Malvern  Hill ;  and 

woodcuts  of  it,  165. 


494 

ViKETABDs,  sites  of  aucieut,  101,  407,  408. 

Waggoner,  the  Eternal,  or  Night  Raven,  433,  434. 

Wains,  or  Covini,  278. 

Wain  Street,  derivation  of,  277,  278. 

Walking  fire,  421,  422,  428. 

Wall  Hills  and  Collhills  (see  Malvern  Hills),  158,  159. 

Wall  Hills  Camp,  Co.  Hereford,  274,  275,  277,  280,  282. 

Walton  Cardiff,  Co.  Gloucester,  333. 

Wap,  the  fairy,  438,  439. 

Waresley,  in  Hartlebury,  304. 

Warley  Wigom,  in  Hales  Owen,  272. 

Warley  Salop,  in  Hales  Owen,  272. 

Wamdon,  TrotshUl,  Troshill  or  Tootshill,  and  Smite,  294,  295. 

Warning  light,  469. 

Wash-beetle,  432. 

Washboum,  Little  (see  Overbury),  334. 

Warwick,  anciently  Waerinc,  37  to  40. 

Wassal  Hill  and  Kenvaiir  or  Kinver  Edge  Camps,  Battle  Stone,  Bolt  Stone, 

and  the  Giant's  Throw,  144,  145. 
Wears,  formerly  on  the  Severn,  34. 
Welland,  283. 

Welsh  Way,  or  Old  WTiite  Way,  327. 
Werstau,  the  legend  of  (see  Malvern  Hills),  167  to  188 ;  and  four  woodcuts, 

173,  17.5,  177,  179. 
Western  Track-way,  290  to  308. 
Westraancote  (see  Bredon),  345. 
■VMiistlers,  the  Seven,  459. 
WTiistling  Hill,  in  Ireland,  459. 

Wliitboume,  Co.  Hereford,  ancient  intrenchnient  and  camp,  213,  251. 
White  Ladies,  Worcester,  Greek  and  Roman  coins  found  there,  5  to  13. 
White  Ladies  Aston,  326. 
Wliite  Way,  Old,  or  Welsh  Way,  327. 
^Vhittmgton,  216,  292,  293. 
Wiccia,  the  province  of,  198. 
Wichbold  (see  Doderhill),  311. 
Wichburj-  Hill,  in  Hagley,  136,  137,  138. 
Wichenford,  Roman  coins  found  there,  149,  150,  264,  360. 
Wick,  Wich,  or  Wiccia ;  places  so  called,  and  derivation  of  the  name,  358  to  363. 
Wick,  Upper,  and  Lower,  262,  287,  288. 
Wickhamford,  336. 
Wick  Waryn,  near  Pershore,  361. 
Wiggen,  fairies  so  called,  441. 
Wiggen  Ash,  441,  442. 
Wilkhi,  432,  433. 
WUl,  409,  431,  432,  433. 
Willington,  in  Barcheston,  Co.  Warwick,  356. 
Will-o-the-Wisp,  409,  411,  422,  431,  432,  433. 
Win,  the  fuirj,  43s,  441,  455. 
Win's  Grave,  in  Leigh,  441, 
Wish,  or  wisked,  or  spectre  liounds,  12'!,  437. 


495 

Wishnioor,  in  Whitbouni,  437. 

Witebcraft,  460,  401,  462. 

Witchery  Hole,  462. 

Witches'  Oven,  in  Osebury  Rock,  Lolsley,  418. 

Witley,  Great,  205.     Witley,  Little,  with  Holt,  204. 

Witten  Tree  (see  Rock),  266. 

Wizzards,  459. 

Woden,  283,  324,  437.     Wontesdic,  264. 

Wollers  Hill  (see  Eckington),  345. 

Wolstan's  seal,  51,  52,  53.     Woodcut  of  it,  52. 

Wolverley,  307. 

Wolverlow,  Co.  Hereford,  258. 

Wolverton,  220. 

Woodbury   Hill ;    ancient  canip,  commonly  called  Owen   Glyndwr's  Camp, 
214. 

Woodmanton  (see  Clifton-on-Teme),  251  to  253. 

Worcester,  1  to  54.  The  Braviniuni  of  the  Romans,  1  to  4.  A  supposed  fort 
of  Ostoiius  there,  1, 2.  Cinder  Point,  in  Pitchcroft,  2, 3.  Coin  of  Nero,  with 
the  Temple  of  .Janus  shut,  4.  Roman  and  Greek  coins,  found  at  The 
^\^lite  Ladies,  5  to  11.  Greek  coins,  found  at  Acton  Scott,  Slu-opshire, 
9  to  13.  Roman  penates,  13, 14.  Woodcut  of  Angerona,  14.  Sidbury, 
or  Southburj-,  15.  Castle  Hill ;  British  celt ;  Roman  relics ;  and 
Roman,  Saxon,  and  other  coins  foimd  there,  15  to  23.  Engraving  of 
them,  Plate  I.,  p.  18.  Sea  shells,  in  the  native  gravel  bed  under  the 
Hill,  23.  Portfields  Road,  23.  Roman  hypocaust,  at  Sidbury,  23  to  27. 
Site  of  St.  Godwald's  chapel,  25.  Ancient  British  coin  found  at  Green 
HUl,  Sidbury,  25,  20.  Woodcut  of  it,  26.  Grooved  or  channelled 
tiles,  found  in  the  hj'poeaust,  20,  27.  Etymology  of  Sidbuiy,  27,  28. 
Roman  slate-colomed  and  other  pottery  and  relics,  fragments  of  the 
Bos  longifrons,  and  of  the  red  deer,  found  at  Diglis,  28,  29,  30 ; 
with  a  woodcut  of  one  of  the  imis,  29.  Remarkable  barbed  bronze 
spear-head  found  below  Diglis,  30,  31;  with  a  woodcut  of  it,  30; 
and  of  one  in  the  British  Museum,  31.  Leaden  chest,  probably  for 
heart  burial,  32,  33.  Wears,  formerly  on  the  Severn,  34.  Oldburj-, 
34,  35.  Ancient  British  period,  35.  Lowesnioor,  etymology  of,  35, 
36.  Saxon  period ;  Anglo-Saxon  gold  coin,  30  to  40  ;  with  a  wood- 
cut of  it,  37.  The  fonner  St.  Clement's  Church,  with  a  woodcut,  37, 
38.  Dane  skms  on  the  old  door  of  Worcester  Cathedral  (and  on  other 
churches),  and  the  punishment  of  flaying,  40  to  51,  with  an  engraving 
of  the  door.  (See  Plate  II.,  p.  50.)  The  west  end  of  the  nave  of  the 
Cathedral,  probably  Anglo-Saxon,  49  to  51.  Wolstan's  seal,  51,  52, 
53.  Woodcut  of  it,  52.  Domesday  Survey,  53.  Worcester  btmit  by 
the  Danes,  1!)8.  Ethelred  and  Etheltlffid's  charter  to  Worcester,  gnmted 
most  probably  at  Worcester,  in  the  presence  of  Alfred,  198  to  201.  They 
signed  charters  by  nuiking  a  cross,  201,  202.  Worcester  burnt  in 
Hardicanute's  time,  202.  Etymology  of  Worcester,  33,  204,  359. 
Worcestershire,  when  first  so  called,  204. 

Worcestershire  Beacon  (see  Malveni  Hills),  105,  160.    Ancient  British  cinerary 
urn  found  there,  105,  100.     Woodcuts  of  it,  105.     Roman  coins,  107. 

Wribbenhall,  305,  300,  307.     Remarkable  charter  of  land,  300,  307. 


496 


Wyre  Pidelet,  326. 

Wysham,  Sir  Ralph  (see  Clifton-on-Teme),  251,  252,  25;}. 

Wytchall,  361. 

Yabdley,  339. 

Yarn  HUls,  and  Dam  Hills,  128,  129,  130. 

Yell  and  Penfield  (see  Mathon),  255,  250. 

Yell  Hounds,  or  Yeth  Hounds  (see  Mathon),  250. 

Yew  trees,  remarkable,  70,  447. 


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Literary  Histoi^,  Biogiapliy,  and  Criticism . 
PhiJolology  and  Early  English  Literature 
Provincial  Dialects  of  England     . 
Archtcology       ...... 

NumismatiCB 


1 
4 
7 
9 
10 
Topography 11 


Heraldry,  Genealogy  and  Sumanieg     .       .       .15 

Fine  Arts      .  16 

}'()pn)ar  Poetry,  Stories,  and  Superstitioos       .       17 
Bibliography — Miscellanies  .       .       ,       .18 


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TITESLEY. — Narrative  of  a  Remarkable  Transaction  m  the  Early  Life  of  John 
'  '       Wesley,  now  first  printed  from  a  MS.  in  the  British  Museum.     Svo,  seiced.     2s. 
A  very  curious  love  affair  hitwecn  J.  W.  and  his  housekeeper;  it  gives  a  curious  insight  into  the  early  economv 

of  the  Methodists.    It  is  eutircly  unknown  to  all  Wesley's  biographers.  ' 

rPHE  CONNECTION  OP  WALES  with  the  Early  Science  of  England, 
-■-  illustrated  in  the  Memoirs  of  Dr.  Robert  Recorde,  tlie  first  Writer  on  Arithmetic, 
G<x)mctr3-,  Astronomy,  &c.,  in  the  English  Language.  By  J.  O.  UalliwjiLl.  Svo 
seiced.     1*.  ' 


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TV/rORLAND. — Account  of  the  Life,  Writings,  and  Inventions  of  Sir  Samuel 
■^  ■*-  Morland,  Master  of  Mechanics  to  Qharlcs  II.  By.  J.  O.  IlAiLiWEUi.  8vo, 
eewed.     Is. 

nOLLECTION  OP  LETTERS  on  Scientific  Subjects,  iUustrative  of  the 
^-^  Pi-ogress  of  Science  in  England.  Temp.  Elizabeth  to  Cliarles  XL  Edited  by 
J.  O.  Halliwell.     8to,  clolh.   3«. 

Comprising  letters  of  DigMS,  Dee,  Tyclio  Brahe,  Sir  Samuel  Morland,  from  a  MS.  in  Lajnbetli  Palace 
Lowor,  Harriott,  Lydyatt,  Sir  W.  Petty,  SirC.  Caveu-  Nat.  Tarpoley's  Corrector  Ajialyticus,  &c.  Coit  the 
dish,  Brancker,  Pell,  "&c. ;  also  the  autobiography  of        Subscribers  £1. 

ST.   DUNSTAN.— The  Life  and  Miracles  of  St.  Dunstan.      By  W.  Robinson, 
LL.D.     8vo,  plate.  Is. 
SIDNEY.— Brief  Memoir  of  tlie  Life  of  the  Hon.  Algernon  Sidney  (the  Patriot)  ; 
with  his  Trial  in  1683.     By  R.  C.  Sidney.     JFith  outline  plate  from  St'ephanoff"* 
well  knoum  picture.     8vo,  sewed.  \s.  Qd. 

LOVE    LETTERS   OF   ^IK'&.VIOZZI,  (formerhjMrs.Thrale,thefriandoJ 
Dr.  Johnson,)  written   when  she  was    Eighty,   to  the  handsome  actor,   William 
Augustiis  Conway,  aged  Twenty-seven.     Svo,  sewed.   2s. 

" written  at  three,  four,  and  five  o'clock  (in  the  celebrity — considerably  enhances  their  interest.    The 

Kioming)  by  an  Octogcnary  pen,  a  heart  (as  Mrs.  Lee  letters  themselves  it  is  not  easy  to  characterise ;  nor 

Bays)  twenty-six  years  old,  and  as  H.  L.  P.  feels  it  to  shall  we  venture  to  decide  whether  they  raorebespcuk 

fee,  all  your'own.  — Letter  V,  ZU  Feb.  1820.  the  drivelUug  of  dotage,  or  the  folly  of  'love ;  in  eulicr 

"  This  is  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  collections  case  they  present  huniau  nature  to  us  under  a  new 

•f  love  epistles  we  have  ever  chanced  to  meet  with,  aspect,  and   furnish  one  of  those  riildJcs  wliich  no- 

Mid  the  well  known  literary  reputation  of  the  lady—  thing  yet  dreamt  of  in  our  philosophy  can  salisfao- 

Mie  Mrs.  Thrale,  of  Dr.  Johnson  and  Miss  Burney  torily  solve."— Foli/technic  lieciete. 


PjUoIoSJ?  anil  €arlj?  ©italisl)  3literatuvt* 

pOMPENDIOUS    ANGLO-SAXON    AND    ENGLISH    DIC- 

^     TIONARY.  By  the  Rev.  Joseph  BoswoKTH,  D.D.,  F.R.S.,  &c.  %yo,  closely  printed 
in  treble  Colv/mns.     \2s. 
■ Large  Paper.   Royal  Svo.  {to  match  the  next  article),  cloth,  £1. 

"This  is  not  a  mere  abridgment  of  the  lar>rc  Pic-  price,  all  that  is  most  practical  and  valu.ible  in  th, 
ttonary,  but  almost  an  entirely  new  work.  In  this  tormer  expensive  edition  with  a  great  accession  of  new 
compendious  one  will  be  found,  at  a  very  moilcrnte        words  and  matter." — Author's  Preface. 

QN  THE  ORIGIN  OF  THE  ENGLISH,  Germanic,  and  Scandinavian 
^-^  Languages  and  Nations,  with  Clironological  Spechnens  of  their  Languages.  By 
J.  BoswoExn,  D.D.     Royal  Svo,  Ids.     £1. 

A  new  and  enlarged  edition  of  what  was  formerly  the  Preface  to  the  First  Edition  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  Dic- 
tionary, and  now  pul)lished  separately. 

ANGLO-SAXON   DELECTUS  ;  serving  as  a  first  Ciass-Book  to  the  Lan- 
guage.    By  the  Rev.  W.  Barnes,  B.D.,  of  St.  John's  Coll.  Camb.     I2mo,  clolh, 
Zs.Qd. 

"  To  those  who  wish  to  possess  a  critical  knowledge  stated,  and  illustrated  by  references  to  Greek,  the  Latin, 

•f  their  own  Native  English,  gome  acquaintance  with  French,  and  other  languages.    A  philosophical  spirit 

Anglo  -  Saxon  is  indispcnsalile ;    and  \vc  have  never  penades  every  part.     The  Delectus  consists  of  snort 

•een  an  introduction  better  calculated  than  the  pre-  pieces  on  various  subjects,  with  extracts  fiom  Angio- 

•ent  to  supply  the  wants  of  a  beginner  in  a  short  space  baxon  History  and  the  S;ixou  Chronicle.    There  is  « 

•f  time.    The  declensions  and  conjugations  are  well  good  Glossary  at  the  end." — Alhendttm,  Oct.  2U,  18VJ. 

p  UIDE  TO  THE  ANGLO-SAXON  TONGUE  :  on  the  Basis  of  Pro- 
^-*  fessor  Rask's  G-rammar  ;  to  which  are  added,  Reading  Lessons  in  Verse  and  Prose, 
with  Notes  for  the  use  of  Learners.    By  E.  J.  Vernon,  B.A.,  Oxon.     12mo,  cloth,  5s.  6rf. 

"The  author  of  this  Guide  seems  to  have  made  one  care  and  skill ;  and  the  latter  half  of  the  volume  con- 
ttep  in  the  right  direction,  by  compiling  what  may  be  sists  of  a  well-chosen  selection  of  extracts  from  Anglo- 
pronounced  the  best  work  on  the  subject  hitherto  Saxon  writers,  in  prose  and  verse,  for  the  practice  of 
published  in  England." — Alheiiaum.  the  student,  who  will  find  great  assistance  in  reading 

"  Mr.  Vernon  has,  we  think,  acted  wisely  in  taking  them  from  the  grammatical  notes  with  which  thty  are 

Rask  for  his  Model ;  but  let  no  one  suppose  from  the  accompanicdaiid  trom  the  glossary  which  follows  tlieiii. 

title  that  the  book  is  raerelv  a  comnilution  from  the  This  volume,  well  studied,  will  enable  any  one  to  rciid 

work  of  that  philologist.    I'he  accidence  is  abridged  with  ease  the  generality  of  Anglo-Saxon  writers;  and 

from   Kask,  with  constant  revision,  correction,  and  its  cheapness  places  it  withm  the  reach  of   «rery 

modification;  but  the  syntax,  a  most  important  por-  class.    It  has  our  hearty  rcconinicudatiou." — Lilerarf 

Una  of  t^ie  book,  is  original,  »zi  J  ia  compUeU  with  great  Catelte. 


John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 

ANALECTA  ANGLO-SAXONICA.— Selections,  in  Prose  and  Verse,  from 
Anglo-Saxon  Literature,  with  an  Introductory  Etlinological  Essay,  and  Notes, 
Critical  and  Explanatory.  By  Louis  F.  Kupstein,  of  the  University  of  Giessen.  2  thick 
vols,  post  8vo,  cloth.    12*.  {original  price  l%s.) 

Containing  an  immense  body  of  information  on  a  hare  a  thorough  knowledge  of  his  own  mother-tongue; 

language  which  is  now  becoming  more  fully  appre-  wliile  the  language  itself,  to  say  nothing  of  the  many 

dated,  and  which  contains  fiftecn-twentietlis  of  what  raluable  and  interesting  works  preserved  in  it,  may, 

we  daily  think,  and  speak,  and  write.   No  Englishman,  in  copiousness  of  words,  strength  of  expression,  and 

therefore,  altogether  ignorant  of  Anglo-Saxon,  can  grammatical  precision,  vie  with  tlie  modem  German. 

TNTRODUCTION    TO   ANGLO-SAXON    READING;  comprising 

-*•  ./Elfric's  Homily  on  the  Birthday  of  St.  Gregory,  with  a  copious  Glossary,  &c.  By 
L.  Lanqlet,  F.L.S.     12mo,  cloth,  2«.  6d. 

.£lfnc's  Homily  is  remarkable  for  beauty  of  composition,  and  interesting  as  setting  forth  Augustine's  missioa 
to  the  "  Land  of  the  Angles." 

A  NGLO-SAXON  VERSION  OF  THE  LIFE  OF  ST.  GUTHLAC, 

-^*-  Hermit  of  Crojland.  Printed,  for  the  first  time,  fi*om  a  MS.  in  the  Cottonian 
Library,  with  a  Translation  and  Notes.  By  Chables  Wycliffb  Goodwin,  M.A.,  Fellow 
of  Catharine  Hall,  Cambridge.     12m6,  cloth,  5.?. 

ANGLO-SAXON    LEGENDS    OF   ST.  ANDREW  AND    ST. 

-^*-  VERONICA,  now  first  printed,  with  English  translations  ou  the  opposite  page.  By 
C.  W.  Goodwin,  M.A,    8vo,  sewed.    2s.  6cl. 

A  NGLO-SAXON  VERSION  OF  THE  HEXAMERON  OF  ST. 

-^*-  BASIL,  and  the  Anglo-Saxon  Remains  of  St.  Basil's  Admonitio  ad  Filium 
Spiritualem  ;  now  first  printed  from  MSS.  in  the  Bodleian  Library,  with  a  Translation  and 
Notes.    By  the  Rev.  H.  W.  Norman.    8to,  Second  Edition,  enlarged,  sewed.    4s. 

ANGLO-SAXON    VERSION    OF    THE    HOLY    GOSPELS. 

■^  *-  Edited  from  the  original  MSS.  By  Benjamin  Thoepe,  F.S.A.  Post  8vo,  cloth. 
8*.  (original  price  12s.) 

A  NGLO-SAXON  VERSION  OF  THE  STORY   OF  APOLLO- 

-^  NIUS  OF  TYRE  ;— upon  which  is  founded  the  Play  of  Pericles,  attributed  to 
Shakespeare ; — from  a  MS.,  with  a  Translation  and  Glossary.  Bj  Benjamin  Thobpb. 
12mo,  cloth.   4j.  6d.    {original  price  Gs.) 

A  NALECTA  ANGLO-SAXONICA.— A  Selection  in  Prose  and  Verse,  from 
■^*-  Anglo-Saxon  Authors  of  various  ages,  with  a  Glossary.  By  Bexjamin  Thorpe, 
F.S.A.  A  new  edition,  with  corrections  and  improvements,  iost  Syo,  cloth.  8s.  {original 
price  12s.) 

POPULAR  TREATISES  ON  SCIENCE,  written  dming  the  Middle  Ages, 
•■-  in  Anglr-Saion,  Anglo-Norman,  and  English.  Edited  by  Tuos.  Weight,  M.A. 
Svo,  cloth,  3s. 

Content) .-—An  Angio-Saxon  Treatise  on  Astronomy  mmning,  and  explanatory  of  a!l  the  s>jmholical  siatu 

of  the  Tenth  Centuey,  now  first  jmhlhhed  from  a  in  earhj  sculpture  and  painting) ;  the  Bestiary  of  Pliil- 

3/5.  in  the  British  Museum,  with  a  Translation;  Livre  lippc  de  Tliaun.  tcilh  a  translatinn;  Fraenicnts  on  Po- 

des  Creatures,  by  Phillippe  de  Thaun.  now  first  printed  pular  Science  from  the  Early  English  Metrical  Lives 

tcith  a  translation,  (extremely  valuable  to  I'hilulogists,  of  the   Saints,   (the  earliest  piece  of  the  kind  in  th» 

as  being  the  earliest  specimens  of  Jnglo-Normcm   re-  English  Language.) 

■pRAGMENT    OF    .ELFRIC'S    ANGLO-SAXON   GRAMMAR, 

-'-  MMtic^s  Glossary,  and  a  Poem  on  the  Soul  and  Body  of  the  Xllth  Century,  dis- 
covered among  the  Arcliives  of  Worcester  CathedraL  By  Sir  Thomas  Phillips,  Bart. 
Fol.,  PBiVATELT  PKiNTED,  sewed.    Is.  6d. 

OKE ETON'S  (John,  Poet  Laureat  to  Henry  VIII)  Poetical  Works  :  the  Bowgeof 
*^  Court,  Colin  Clout,  Why  come  ye  not  to  Court  ?  (his  celebrated  Satire  on  Wol.«cy), 
PiiiUip  Sparrow,  Ehnoiu*  Rumming,  &c. ;  with  Notes  and  Life.  By  the  Rev.  A.  DrCB. 
2  vols,  Svo,  cloth.     14j.  {original  price  £1.  12*.) 

"Thepower.thcstrangcness.thevolubilityofhislan-  great  a  scholar  as  ever  lived  (Erasmus),  'the  light 

guage,  the  audacity  of  his  satire,  and  the  perfect  origin-  and  ornament  of  Britaiu.'     He  indulged  very  freely 

ality  ol  his  manner,  made  Skclton  one  of  the  most  extra-  in  his  writings  in  censures  on  monks  anil  Domiuicans; 

ordinary  writers  of  any  age  or  country."— 5.)n<Acy.  and,  moreover,  had  the  hardihood  to  relloct,  in  no  very 

•' Skelton  is  a  curiuus,  able,  and  remarkable  writer,  mild  terms,  on  the   manners  ani!    life  of  Cardinal 

with  strong  sense,  a  vein  of  humour,  and  some  iraa-  Wolsey.     We  cannot  help  considering  Skclton  as  &■ 

gination ;  he  had  a  wonderful  command  of  the  English  ornament  of  his  own  time,  and  a  bcuvractor  to  tho3« 

luuguage,  and  one  who  was  aiyled,  io  his  turn,  by  as  who  co»nc  after  him." 


Valuable  and  Intere  ting  Books,  Published  or  Sold  by 

SEMI-SAXON. — The  Departing  Soul's  Address  to  the  Body,  a  Fragment  of  a 
Semi-Saxon  Poem,  discovered  amoung  the  Archives  of  Worcester  Cathedral,  by  Sir 
Thouas  Phillipps,  Bart.,  with  an  English  Translation  by  S.  W.  Singeb.     8vo,  only 

100  PBIVATELT  PHINTBD.      2*. 

DICTIONARY  OF  ARCHAIC  AND  PROVINCIAL  WORDS, 
Obsolete  Plirases,  Proverbs,  and  Ancient  Customs,  from  the  Eeign  of  Edward  I. 
Bt  James  Oechabd  HALLrwELL,  F.R.S.,  F.S.A.,  &c.  2  vols,  8vo,  containing  upwards 
o/lOOO  pages,  closely  'printed  in  double  columns,  cloth,  a  new  and  cheaper  edition.  £1.  1*. 
It  contains  above  50,000  words  (embodying  all  the  are  not  to  be  found  in  ordinary  Dictionaries  and  books 
known  scattered  glossaries  of  the  English  language),  of  reference.  Most  of  the  principal  Archaisms  are  il- 
forming  a  complete  key  for  the  reader  of  onr  old  Poets,  lustrated  by  examples  selected  from  early  inedited 
Dramatists,  Tneolog^ans,  and  other  authors,  whose  MSS.  and  rare  books,  and  by  far  the  greater  portion 
works  abound  with  allusions,  of  which  explanations       will  be  found  to  be  original  authorities. 

ESSAYS    ON    THE    LITERATURE,    POPULAR   SUPERSTI- 
TIONS, and  History  of  England  in  the  Middle  Ages.  By  Thomas  Weight,  M.A., 
F.B.S.     2  vols,  post  8vo,  elegantly  printed,  cloth.     16*. 

Contents. — Essay  I.  Anglo-Saxon  Poetry.  11.  Anglo-  Rush,  and  the  Frolicsome  Elves.  XI.  On  Dunlop'g 
Norman  Poetry.  III.  Chansons  dc  Geste,or  Historical  History  of  Fiction.  XII.  On  the  History  and  trans- 
Romances  of  the  Middle  Ages.  IV.  On  Proverbs  and  mission  of  Popular  Stories.  XIII.  On  the  Poetry  of 
Popular  Savings.  V.  On  the  Anglo-Latin  Poets  of  History.  XIV.  Adventures  of  Hereward  the  Saxon, 
the  Twelfth' Century.  VI.  Abelard  and  the  Scholastic  XV.  The  Storv  of  Eustace  the  Monk.  X\T  The  His- 
Philosophy.  VII.  On  Dr.  Grimm's  German  Mythology.        toryof  Fulkefitzwarine.   XVII.  On  the  Popular  Cycle 

VIII.  On  the  National  Fairy  Mythology  of  England.        of  Robin-Hood  BaUads.    XVIII.  On  tlie  Conquest  of 

IX.  On  the  Popular  Superstitions  of  Modem  Greece,        Ireland  by  the  Anglo-Normans.    XIX.  On  Old  Fnijlish 
and  their  Connexion  with  the  English.     X.  On  Friar       PoUtical  Songs.    XX.  On  the  Scottish  Poet,  Dunbar. 

XpARLY     HISTORY    OF    FREEMASONRY    IN    ENGLAND. 

^-^     Elustrated  by  an  English  Poem  of  the  XlVth  Centvury,  with  Notes.    By  J.  O. 

Halliwell,     Post  Svo,  Secokd  Edition,  with  a  facsimile  of  the  original  MS.  in  the 
British  Mitsetun,  cloth.     2s.  6d. 

"  The  interest  which  the  curious  poem,  of  which  which  is  not  common  with  such  pubb'cations.     Mr. 

this  publication  is  chiefly  composed,  has  excited,  is  Halliwell  has  carefully  revised  the  new  edition,  and 

proved  by  the  fact  of  its  having  been  translated  into  increased  its  utility  by  the  addition  of  a  complete  and 

German,  and  of  its  having  reached  a  second  edition,  correct  glossary." — Literary  Gazette. 

nnORRENT  OF  PORTUGAL;  an  Enghsh  Metrical  Eomance,  now  first  pub- 
■*-  lished,  from  an  unique  MS.  of  the  XVth  Century,  preserved  in  the  Clietham  Libraiy 
at  Manchester.  Edited  by  J.  O.  Halliwell,  &c.  Post  Svo,  cloth,  uniform  with  Eitson, 
Weber,  and  Ullis's  publications.     5s. 

"This  is  a  valuable  and  interesting  addition  to  our  bling  to  a  modem  reader,  yet  the  class  to  which  it 
hst  of  early  English  metrical  romances,  and  an  in-        rightly  belongs  will  value  it  accordingly ;  both  because 


dispensable  companion  to   the  collections  of  Ritson,        it  is  curious  in  its  details,  and  possesses  philological 
^eber,  and  Ellis." — Literary  Gazette.  importance.     To  the  general  reader  it  presents  one 

"A  literary  curiosity,  and  one  both  welcome  and        teature,  viz.,  the  reference  to  Wayland  Smith,  whom 


serviceable  to  the  lover  of  black-lettered  lore.  Though  Sir  W.  Scott  has  invested  witli  so  much  interest." — 
the  obsoleteness  of  the  style  may  occasion  sad  stum-       Metropolitan  Mat/azine. 

TT ARROWING  OF  HELL ;  a  Miracle  Play,  written  in  the  Reign  of  Edward 
■■--'•  II,  now  first  pubUshed  from  the  Original  in  the  British  Museimi,  with  a  Modeim 
Beading,  Introduction,  and  Notes.  By  James  Oechabd  Halliwell,  Esq.,  F.E.S.,  F.S.  A., 
4c.     Svo,  sewed.     2s. 

This  curious  piece  is  supposed  to  be  the  earliest  elish  Poetry;  Sharon  Turner's  England;  Co/her's 
specimen  of  dramatic  composition  in  the  English  Ian-        History  of  English  Dramatic  Poetry,  Vol.  II,  p.  213, 

fuage ;  vide  Hallam's  Literature  of  Europe,  Vol.  I ;        All  these  vrriters  refer  to  the  Manuscript. 
trutt's  Manners  and  Customs,  Vol.  II ;  Warton's  En- 

"M"UG^  POETIC  A;  Select  Pieces  of  Old  English  Popular  Poetry,  illustrating  the 
-*■*  Manners  and  Arts  of  the  XVth  Century.  Edited  by  J.  O.  Halliwell.  Post  Svo, 
only  100  copies  printed,  cloth.     5s. 

Contents.— Colyn  Blowbol's  Testament;  the  De-  Lobe,  Henry  Vlllth's  Fool;  Romance  of  Robert  of 
*ate  of  the  Carpenter's  Tools;  the  Merchant  and  Sicily;  and  Jive  other  curious  pieces  of  the  sam$ 
kia   Son ;    the  Maid  and   the   Magpie  ;   Elegy   on        kind 

A  NECDOTA  LITERARIA  :  a  CoUection  of  Short  Poems  in  English,  Latin, 
-^*-  and  French,  illustrative  of  the  Literature  and  History  of  England  in  the  Xlllth 
Century ;  and  more  especially  of  the  Condition  and  Manners  of  the  different  Classes  of 
Society.    By  T.  Weight,  M.A.,  F.S.A.,  &c.     Q\o,  cloth,  only  250  printed.     7s.  6d. 

POPULAR   ERRORS  IN   ENGLISH  GRAMMAR,  particularly  in 

•*•  Proniuiciation,  familiarly  pointed  out.  By  Geoboe  Jacksok.  12mo,  Thibd 
Editiow,  unth  a  coloured  frontisviece  of  the  "  Sedea  Busbetana."    6d. 


John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 


■p  ARLY  MYSTERIES,  and  other  Latin  Poems  of  theXITth  and  Xlllth  centuries, 
■^-^  Edited,  from  original  MSS.  in  tlie  British  Museum,  and  the  Libraries  of  Oxford, 
Cambridge,  Paris,  and  Vienna,  by  Tuos.  WuioHT,  M.A.,  F.S.A.    8vo,  bds.    4s.  6d. 

"  Besides  the  curious  specimens  of  tlie  dramatic  on  tlie  people  of  Norfolk,  written  by  a  Monk  of  Peter- 
style  of  Middle-Age  Latinity,  Mr.  Wriglit  has  given  borougli,  and  answered  in  the  same  style  by  John  of 
two  compositions  in  the  Narrative  Elegiac  Verse  (a  St.  Oiuerj  and,  lastly,  some  sprightly  and  often  grace- 
ferourite  measure  at  that  period),  in  the  Conioedia  ful  songs  from  a  MS.  in  the  Arundel  Collection,  which 
Babionis  and  the  Geta  of  Vitalis  Bleseiisis,  which  form  afford  a  very  favourable  idea  of  the  lyric  poetry  of 
a  link  of  connection  between  the  Classical  and  Middle-  our  clerical  forefathers." — GentUman't  Magazine. 
age  Literature:  some  remarkable  SatvTical  Rhymes 

"P  ARA  MATHEMATICA  ;  or  a  CoUection  of  Treatises  on  the  Mathematics  and 
-'-*'  Subjects  connected  with  them,  from  ancient  inedit«d  MSS.  By  J.  O.  Hajlliwell. 
8vo,  Second  Edition,  cloth.    3«. 

Contents : — Johannis  de  Sacro-Bosco  Traciarns  de  Duration  of  Mooulieht,  from  a  MS.  of  the  Thirteenth 
Arte  Numcrandi ;  Method  used  in  England  in  the  Century ;  on  the  Mensuration  of  Heights  and  Dis- 
Fiftccnth  Century  for  taking  the  Altitude  of  a  Steeple;  tanccs ;  Ale.xaiidri  de  Villa  Dei  Carmen  de  Algorismo ; 
Treatise  on  the  Numeration  of  Algorism;  Treatise  on  Preface  to  a  Calendar  or  Almanack  for  14:50;  Jolianiiis 
Glasses  for  Optical  Purposes,  by  W.  Bourne;  Johannis  Norfolk  in  Artera  progressionis  sumniula;  Notes  on 
Robyns  de  Cometis  Commentaria;  Two  Tables  showing  Early  Almanacks,  by  the  Editor,  &c.  &c. 
the  time  of  High  Water  at  London  Bridge,  and  the 

PHILOLOGICAL  PROOFS  of  the  Original  Unity  and  Kecent  Origin  of  the 
-*-  Human  Race,  derived  from  a  Comparison  of  the  Languages  of  Europe,  Asia,  Africa, 
and  America.     By  A.  J.  Johnes.     Svo,  cloth.    6*.  {original  price  12s.  6d.) 

Printed  at  the  suggestion  of  Dr.  Prichard,  to  whose  works  it  will  be  found  a  useful  supplement. 
A  MERICANISMS.— A  Dictionary  of  Americanisms.  A  Glossary  of  Words  and 
-'*-  Phrases  colloquiaUyused  in  the  United  States.  By  J.  R.Babtlett.  Tiuck8vo,cloth.  12». 
PHILOLOGICAL  GRAMMAR,  founded  upon  EugUah,  and  framed  from  a 
-^  comparison  of  more  than  Sixty  Languages,  being  an  Introduction  to  the  Science  of 
Grammar,  and  a  help  to  Grammars  of  all  Languages,  especially  English,  Latin,  and  Greek. 
By  the  Rev.  W.  Baenes,  B.  D.,  author  of  the  "Anglo-Saxon  Delectus,"  "Dorset 
Dialect,"  4c.     IBoat  6yo,  in  the  press. 


"DIBLIOGRAPHICAL  LIST  of  aU  the  Works  wliich  liave  been  published 
-■-'  towards  illustrating  the  Provincial  Dialects  of  England.  By  John  Russell  Smith. 
Post  8vo.    Is. 

"  Very  serviceable  to  such  as  nrosecute  the  study  of  our  provincial  dialects,  or  are  collecting  works  on  that 
curious  subject.   We  very  cordially  recommend  it  to  notice." — Metropolitan. 

HALLIWELL'S    HISTORICAL    SKETCH     OF    THE    PRO- 
VINCLiL  DIALECTS   OF  ENGLAND.     Illustrated  by  numerous  Examples, 
(extracted from  thelntroduction  to  the  Dictionary  of  Archaic  and  Provincial  Words.)  8vo.  2s. 

rj.LOSSARY  OF  PROVINCIAL  AND  LOCAL  WORDS  USED 

^^  IN  ENGLAND  ;  by  F.  Ghose,  F.S.A. ;  with  wliich  is  now  incorporated  the  Sup- 
plement, by  Samuel  Pegge,  F.S.A.     Post  8vo,  cloth.    4>s.  6d. 

The  utility  of  a  Provincial  Glossary  to  all  persons  de-  would  be  entirfly  a  work  of  supererogation.  Grose 
sirous  of  understanding  our  ancient  poets,  is  so  uni-  and  Peggc  arc  constantly  referred  to  in  Todd's  "  John- 
Tersally  acknowledged,  that  to  enter  into  a  proof  of  it       son's  Dictiouary." 

CORNWALL.— Specimens  of  Cornish  Provincial  Dialect,  collected  and  an-anged  by  Uncle 

Jan  Teeenoodle,  with  some  Introductory  Remarks  and  a  Glo.<sar}-  by  an  Antiquarian 

Friend,  also  a  Selection  of  Songs  and  other  Pieces  connected  with  Cornwall.     Post 

8vo.     With  curious  portrait  of  Dolly  Pentreath.     Cloth.    4». 
CHESHIRE. — Attempt   at   a  Glossary  of  some  words  used  in  Cheshire.     By  RoQEB 

WlLBBAHAM,  F.A.S.,  &c.     12nio,  hds.    2s.  6d.  (original  price  5*.) 
DEVONSHIRE. — A  Devonshire  Dialogue  in  Four  Parts,  {by  Mrs.  Palmir,  sister  to  Sir 

Joshua  Reynolds,)  with  Glossary  by  tlie  Rev.  J.  Phillipps,  of  Membury,  Devon. 

12mo,  cloth.     2s.  Qd. 
DORSET. — Poems  of  Rural  Life,  in  the  Dorset  Dialect,  with  a  Dissertation  and  Glossary. 

By  the  Rev.  William  Baenes,  B.D.    Second  Edition,  enlarged  and  corrected, 

royal  12mo,  cloth.     10*. 
A     fine  poetic  feeling  is  displayed  through  the  various        Bums;  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine"  for  December, 
pieces  in  this  volume ;  according  to  some  critics  no-        1844,  gave  a  review  of  the  First  Edition  some  vkij^cs 
thing  lias  appeared  equal  to  it  since  tlie  time   of       in  length. 


Valuable  and  Interesting  Books,  Published  or  Sold  by 

DUSHAM. — A  Glossary  of  Words  used  in  Teesdale,  in  the  County  of  Diu-ham.  Post 
8yo,  with  a  Map  of  the  District,  cloth.     Gs. 

"  Containg  about  two  thousand  word*  ...  It  is  be-  guage  and  literature  ...  the  author  has  evidently 

lieved    the  first  and  only  collection  of  words  and  brought  to  bear  an   extensive   personal   acquaiut- 

nhrases  peculiar  to  this  district,  and  we  hail  it  there-  ance  with    the    common    language."  —  BarlingtoH 

Mre  aa  a  valuable'  contribution  to  the  history  of  Ian-  Times. 

ESSEX. — John  Noakes  and  Mai-y  Styles :  a  Poem  ;  exhibiting  some  of  the  most  striking 
lingual  locaUsms  peculiar  to  Essex  ;  with  a  Glossary.  By  Chaelbs  Clabk,  Esq.,  of 
Great  Totliam  Hall,  Essex.     Post  8vo,  cloth.    2s. 

"  The  poem  possesses  considerable  humour. — Tail's  "  Exliibits  the  dialect  of  Essex  perfectly."— ^rf«frt* 

Magazine.  Review. 

"  A  very  pleasant  trifle  " — Literary  Gazette.  "  yull  of  quaint  wit  and  liumonr."  —  Gent's  Mag., 

"  A  very  clever  production."— &iM  Lit.  Journal.  May,  1841. 

"  Full  of  rich  humour." — Essex  Mercury.  "  A  very  clever  and  amusing  piece  of  local  deacrip- 

"Very  droU." — Metropolitan.  tion." — Arckaologist 

KENT. — Dick  and  Sal,  or  Jack  and  Joan's  Fair :  a  Doggrel  Poem,  in  the  Kentish  Dialect. 
Third  Edition.   12mo.    6d. 

LANCASHIRE. — Dialect  of  South  Lancashire,  or  Tim  Bobbin's  Tummus  and  Meary ; 
revised  and  corrected,  with  his  Rhymes,  and  an  enlarged  Glossary  of  Words  and 
Phrases,  chiefly  used  by  the  riu-al  population  of  the  manufacturing  Districts  of  South 
Lancashire.     By  Samuel  Bamfoed.     12mo,  cloth.     3*.  Qd. 

LEICESTERSHIRE  Words,  Phrases,  and  Proverbs.  By  A.  B.  Evans,  D.D.,  Head 
Master  of  Markets osworth  Grammar  School.     12mo,  eloth.     5s. 

NORTHAMPTONSHIRE.— The  Dialect  andFolk-Lore  of  Northamptonshire  :  a  Glossary 
of  Northamptonshire  ProvinciaUsms,  Collection  of  Fairy  Legends,  Popular  Super- 
stitions, Ancient  Customs,  Proverbs,  &c.  By  Thomas  Stebnbee0.  12mo, 
cloth.    5s. 

SUSSEX. — A  Glossary  of  the  Provinciahsms  of  the  County  of  Sussex.  By  W.  Dueeanx 
Cooper,  F.S.A.      Post  8vo,  Second  Edition,  enlaeged,  cloth.      5s. 

SUSSEX. — Jan  Cladpole's  Trip  to  'Merricur  in  Search  for  Dollar  Trees,  and  how  he  got 
rich  enough  to  beg  his  way  home !     Written  in  Sussex  Doggerel.    12mo.    6d. 

WESTMORELAND  AND  CUMBERLAND.— Dialogues,  Poems,  Songs,  and  BaUads, 
by  various  Writers,  in  the  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland  Dialects,  now  fh'st  col- 
lected ;  to  which  is  added,  a  copious  Glossary  of  Words  peculiar  to  those  Counties. 
Post  8vo,  pp.  408,  cloth.    9s. 

This  collection  comprises,  in  the  Westmoreland  Dia-  the  Cumbrian  Bard  (including  some  now  first  printed)  ; 

kct,  Mrs.  Ann  Wheeler's  Four  Familiar  Dialogues,  VII.  Songs  by  Miss  Blamire  and  Miss  Gilpin ;  VIII. 

with  Poems,  &c.;  and  in  the  Cumberland  Dialect,  1.  Songs  by  John  Rayson ,  IX.  An  Extensive  Glossary  of 

Poems  and  Pastorals  by  the  Rev.  Josiah  Ralph;  II.  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland  Words. 
Pastorals,  Sw;.,  by  Ewan  Clark;   III.    Letters  from 

Dublin,  by  a  young  Borrowdale  Shepherd,  by  Isaac  AH  the  poencal  quotations  in  "  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sand- 

Ritson ;  iV.  Poems  by  John  Stag" ;  V.  Poems  by  M  ark  boy's  Visit  to  the  Great  E.xliibition,"  are  to  be  found 

Lonsdale ;  VI.  BaUads  and  Songs  oy  Robert  Anderson,  in  this  volume. 

WILTSHIRE. — A  Glossary  of  Provincial  Words  and  Phrases  in  use  in  Wiltshire,  showing 
their  Derivation  in  numerous  instances  com  the  Language  of  the  Anglo-Saxons.  By 
John  Yonge  Akeeman,  Esq.,  F.S.A.     12mo,  cloth.    3s. 

YORKSHIRE. — The  Yorkshire  Dialect,  exempUfied  in  various  Dialogues,  Tales,  and 
Songs,  applicable  to  the  Cotmty ;  with  a  Glossary.     Post  8vo.     1*. 

''A  shilling  book  worth  its  money;  most  of  the  feelings  of  the  rustic  mind;   and  the  addresses  to 

pieces  of  composition  are  not  only  hannless,  but  good  Riches  and  Poverty  have  much  of  the  freedom  and 

uid  pretty.    The  eclogue  on  the  death  of  '  Awd  Daisy,'  spii-it    of   Burns. ''  —  Gentleman's   Magazine,    May 

•n  outworn  horse,  is  an  outpouring  of  some  of  the  best  1841. 

YORKSHIRE.— The  Hallamshu-e  (district  of  Sheffield)  Glossary.  By  the  Rev.  Joseph 
Hunter,  author  of  the  History  of  "  Hallanishire,"  "  South  Yorksliire,"  kc.  Post 
Svo,  cloth.     As.  {original  price  8«.) 

f  ORKSHIRE. — Bairnsla  Foak's  Annual,  on  onny  body  els  as  beside  fort  'y  years  1842 
and  1843,  bo  Tom  Treddleqoyle  ;  to  which  is  added  the  Bamsley  and  Village 
Record,  or  tlie  Book  of  Facts  and  Fancies,  by  Ned  Nut.     12mo,  pp.  100.     1*. 

YORKSHIRE.— Sum  Thowts  abaght  Ben  Bunt's  Wcddin ;— Tom  Ti-eddlehoyle's  Thowts 
abaght  Nan  Biuit's  Chresmas  Tea  Party,  &c.  Two  Pieces,  (Barnsleu  IHalect.) 
12mo.    Gd.  ' 


John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 

A  RCH>^OLOGICAL  INDEX  to  Remains  of  Antiquity  of  the  Celtic,  Bomano- 
-^^  British,  and  Anglo-Saxon  Periods,  by  John  Yonob  AKBUiixy, Fellow  and  Secretaiy 
of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  8vo,  illustrated  with  numerous  engravings,  comprising 
upwards  of  Jive  hundred  objects,  cloth,   15s. 

This  work,  though  intended  as  an  introduction  and  rows — Urns — SworJs — Spears — Knives — Umbones  of 

a  guide  to  tlie  stuuy  of  our  early  antiquities,  will,  it  is  Shields  —  Buckles  —  Fibuls  —  Bulls  —  Hair  Pins  — 

hoped,  also  prove  of  service  as  a  book  of  reference  to  Beads,  fee.  &c.  &c.  he. 

the  practised  Archeeologist.    llie  contents  are  as  fol-  The  Itinkbary  of  Antoninus  (as  far  asrelatesto 

lows :     .■'  Britain).    Tlie  Geographical  Tables  of  Ptolemy,  the 

Part  I.    Celtic  Period.  — Tumuli,  or  Barrows  Notitia,  and  the  Itineeary  of  Richard  of  Ciren- 
and  Cairns — Cromelechs — Sepulchral  Caves — Rocking  cester,  together  with  a  classified  Index  of  the  con- 
Stones — Stone  Circles,  &c.  &c. — Objects  discovered  in  tents  of  the  Archjeologia  (Vols,  i  to  xxxi)  are  gives 
Celtic  Sepulchres — Urns —  Beads — Weapons — Imple-  in  an  Appendix, 
ments,  &c. 

Part  II.    Romano-British  Period. — Tumuli  of  "One  of  the  first  wants  of  an  incipient  Antiquary, 

the  Romano-British  Period — Burial  places  of  the  Ro-  is  the  facility  of  comparison,  and  here  it  is  furnished 

mans  —  Pavements  —  Camps  —  Villas  —  SepulchriJ  him  at  one  glance.    The  plates,  indeed,  form  the  most 

Monuments — Sepulchral  Inscriptions — Dedicatory  In-  valuable  part  of  the  book,  both  by  their  number  and 

•criptions — Commemorative  Inscriptions  — Altars —  the  judicious  selection  of  tj-pes  and  examples  which 

Urns  —  Glass  Vessels  —  Fibute  —  AmiiUse  —  Coins —  they  contain.     It  is  a  book  which  we  can,  on  this  ac- 

Coin-moulds,  &c.  &c.  count,  safely  and  warmly  recommend  to  all  who  are 

Part  III.  Anglo-Saxon  Period. — Tumuli — De-  interested  in  the  antiquities  of  their  native  land."— 

tailed  List  of  Objects  discovered  in  Anglo-Saxon  Bar-  Literary  Gazette. 

"DEMAINS  OF  PAGAN  SAXONDOM,  principally  from  TumuU  in  En- 
-*-*'  gland,  drawn  from  the  originals.  Described  and  Illustrated  by  J.  Y.  AkeemaK, 
F.S.A.    4to,  Publishing  in  Pakts  at  2*.  6d.  each. 

DIRECTIONS    FOR   THE   PRESERVATION   OF  ENGLISH 
AJ^TIQUITIES,  especiaUy  those  of  the  Three  First  Periods ;  or  Hints  for  the  In- 
experienced.   By  J.  Y.  Akehman. 

A  small  tract  for  distribution,  at  one  shilling  per  dozen,  useful  to  give  to  excavators,  ploughmen,  &c.,  who  are 
apt  to  destroy  articles  they  find  if  not  of  precious  metal. 

ARCHAEOLOGICAL  ASSOCIATION  JOURNAL.  8vo,  vols.  2, 3, 4, 

"^■^  5,6.  £1.  1«.  each;  and  yoI.  7  just  completed,  with  an  extra  quantitg  of  letter-prest 
and  plates,     £1.  lis.  6d. 

J.R.  Smith  having  been  appointed  Publisher  to  the  ArcliGeological  Association,  their  Publications  may  b« 
had  of  him  in  future. 

"DRITISH  ARCH^OLOGICAL  ASSOCIATION.— A  Report  of  the 

-*-^  Proceedings  of  the  British  Archseological  Association,  at  tlio  Worcester  Session. 
August,  1848.     By  A.  J.  Dunkin.     Thick  8vo,  with  engravings,  cloth.     £1.  Is. 

'Y'ERBATIM   REPORT  of  the  Proceedings  at  a  Special  General  Meeting  of  the 
British  Archaeological  Association,  held  at  tlie  Theatre  of  the  Western  Literary 
Institution,  5th  March,  1845,  T.  J.  Pettigrew,  Esq.,  in  the  Chair.     With  an  Introduction 
by  Thomas  Weight.    8vo,  sewed.    Is.  6d. 

A  succinct  history  of  the  division  between  the  Archteological  Association  and  Institute. 

A  NTIQUARIAN  ETCHING  CLUB.— The  Pubhcations  of  the  Anti- 
-^*-  quarian  Etching  Club,  for  the  year  1849,  consisting  of  54, plates  qf  Churches,  Fonts, 
Castles,  and  other  Antiquarian  objects.     4to,  boards.     Ss. 


for  the  year  1850,  containing  66  plates.     4to,  bds.     10s. 

for  the  year  1851,  containing  70  plates.     4to,  bds.     10s. 

yESTIGES     OF    THE    ANTIQUITIES     OF    DERBYSHIRE, 

'  and  the  Sepulchral  Usages  of  its  Inhabitants,  from  tlie  most  Remote  Ages  to  the 
Reformation.  By  Thomas  Bateman,  Esq.,  of  Yolgravo,  Derbyshire.  In  one  handsome 
vol.  8vo,  with  numerous  woodcuts  of  Tumuli  and  their  contents.  Crosses,  Tombs,  Sfc, 
doth.     15s.  184S 

A  N  ESSAY  ON  THE  ROMAN  VILLAS  of  the  Augustan  Age,  their 
-^^  Architectural  Disposition  and  Enrichments,  and  on  the  remains  of  Roman  Domes 
tic  Edifices  discovered  in  Qx(^\,  Britain.  By  Thomas  Moulb.  8vo,  2  platss,  cM\. 
4*.  6d.  {original  price  8».) 


Valuable  and  Interestinp  Books,  Published  or  Sold  by 


RELIQUIiE  ANTIQUIiE  EBORACENSIS,orEeHcs  of  Antiquity,  relat. 
ing  to  the  County  of  York.     By  W.  Bowman,  of  Leeds,  assisted  by  several  eminent 
Antiquaries,     4to,  with  engravings,  publishing  in  Quarterly  Parts.     2s.  6d.  each. 

n^lYE  ROMAN  "WALL:  an  Historical,  Topographical,  and  Descriptive  Account 
•*•      of  the  Barrier  of  the  Lower  Isthmus,  extending  from  the  Tyne  to  the  Solway, 
deduced  from  numerous  personal  surveys.  By  the  Rev.  John  Collingwood  Beuce,  F.S.  A., 
Thick  8vo,  Second  and  Enlaeged  Edition,  with  40  plates  and  200  woodcuts,  a  hand 
tome  volume,  half  morocco.    £1.  Is. — A  few  Copies  on  Labge  Papeb,  4to,  £2.  28. 

"Following;  the  impulse  ofa  fresh  interest  in  remains  or  the  works  of  Archaeologists  upon  our  Roman  re 

of  the  Roman  age,  recently  excited  amonpfst  English  mains,  especially  those  which  relate  to  Ma  immediate 

Archseologists.Mr.  BrucC  has  now  supplied  a  dcsidei-a-  subject." — Sptclalor. 

turn  in  Antiquarian  literature,  by  producing  a  Treatise,  "  In  taking  leave  of  Mr.Bruce's  work,  we  may  express 

in  which  he  has  happily  combined  much  of  the  in-  a  hope  that  our  brief  notice  of  some  of  its  attractions 

formation  gathered  by  previous  writers,  with  a  mass  may  promote  its  circulation.    The  author's  style  ren- 

of  original  and  personal  observations." — Journal  of  ders  it  highly  readable,  the  facts  he  has  collected  will 

the  ^rckaological  Institute,  Vol  viii,  p.  105.  maUe  it  useful  for  reference,  and  its  portability,  and 

" The  lloni;in  Wall  is  a  very  elaborate  and  pains-  the  clear  anaBgement  of  the  subject-matter,  sliould 

taking  work,  on  one  of  the  most  interesting  of  British  introduce  it  as  a  cunipanion  to  all  who  may  desire  to 

Rntiquitics.    Mr.  Bruce  is  a  man  of  learning,  whether  study  fully  one  of  the  noblest  monumeuts  of  our 

as  regards  Roman  history,  in  connection  with  Britain,  country." — Gentleman's  Magazine. 

TfELIQUIiE  ISURIANiE  :  the  Eemains  of  the  Roman  Isurium,  now  Ald- 
-'-*'  borough,  near  Boroughbridge,  Yorkshire,  illustrated  and  described.  By  Hsnat 
EcEoYD  Smith.    Royal  4to,  with  37  plates,  cloth.    £1.  5s. 


The  Same,  with  the  Mosaic  pavements  colotteed,  cloth.    £2.  2s. 

The  most  highly  illustrated  work  ever  published  on  a  Roman  Station  in  England. 

•DESCRIPTION  OF  A  ROMAN  BUILDING,  and  other  Remains,  dis- 
-*-^  covered  at  Caerleon,  in  Monmouthshire.  By  J.  E.  Lee.  Imperial  8vo  with  20 
interesting  ^Etchings  hy  the  Author,  sewed.     5*. 

TVrOTITIA  BRITANNIiE,  or  an  Inquiry  concerning  the  Localities,  Habits,  Con- 
"•■^  dition,  and  Progressive  Civilization  of  the  Aborigines  of  Britain;  to  which  is 
appended  a  brief  Retrospect  of  the  Results  of  their  Intercourse  with  the  Romans  By 
W.  D.  Sacll,  F.S.A.,  F.Gr.S.,  &c,     8vo,  engravings.    3s.  Qd.  ' 

A  RCHiEOLOGIST    AND    JOURNAL    OF    ANTIQUARIAN 

■^*-  SCIENCE.  Edited  by  J.  O.  Halliwell.  8vo,  Nos.  I  to  X,  complete  with 
Index,  pp.  420,  with  19  engravings,  cloth,  reduced  from  IQs.  6d.  to  6s.  6d.  ' 

Containing  original  articles  on  Architecture,  His-  various  Antiquarian  Societies  Retrospective  Re- 
torical  Literature,  Round  Towers  of  Ireland,  Philo-  views,  and  Reviews  of  recent' Antic uarian  WorkT 
logy.  Bibliography,  Topography,  Proceedings  of  the       &c.  i     »<»••      «i»« 


^  Numismatics* 

TNTRODUCTION    TO    THE    STUDY    OF    ANCIENT    AND 

^  MODERN  COINS.  By  J.  Y.  Akeeman,  Secretary  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries. 
foolscap  Svo,  with  numerous  Wood  Engravings  from  the  original  coins,  {an  excellent 
introductory  book,)  cloth.     6s.  6d. 

Contents:  Sect.  1.— Origin  of  Coinage.— Greek  Scotch  Coinage.    11.  Coinage  of  Ireland.    12  Anelo 

legal  Coins.    2.  Greek  Civic  Coins.    3.  Greek  Im-  Gallic  Coins.    13.  Continental  Money  in  the  Middle 

penal  Coins.    4.  Origin  of  Roman  Coiuaje— Consular  Ages.    14.  Various  representatives  of  Coinage     15 

Coins.    5.  Roman  Imperial  Coins.    6.  Roman  British  Vorgeries  in  Ancient  and  Modern  I'tmcs      16   Table 

Coins.    7.  Ancient  British  Coinage.    8.  An2;lo-Saxon  of  Prices  of  English  Coins  reahzed  at  Public  Salw 
Coinage.    9.  Enghsh  Comage  from  the  Conquest.    10.  <""«.  <ii  ruouc  Sdies. 

rpRADESMEN'S   TOKENS    struck  in  London  and  its  Vicinity,  from  1648  to 

-■-      1671,  described  from  the  originals  in  the  British  Museum,  &c.    By  J.  Y,  Akeeman 

F.S.A.     Svo,  with  8  plates  of  numerous  examples,  cloth.     15*.— Labge  Papee  in  4to* 

cloth.    £l.  Is.  '  ' 

Tliis  work  comprises  a  list  of  nearly  three  thousand       streets,  old  tavern  and  coffee-house  signs   &c    &c 
Tokens,   and   contains  occasiomd   iUustr.itive   topo-        with  an  introductory  account  of  the  caiues  whi"ch  led 
graphical  and  antiquarian  notes  on  persons,  places,       to  the  adoption  of  such  a  currency 

A  NCIENT  COINS   OF  CITIES   AND    PRINCES,  GeographicaU, 

•'■  *-    Arranged  and  Described,  Hispania,  Gallia,  Britannia.    By  J.  Y.  Akerman, 
F.S.A.    8vo,  with  engramngs  of  ma7iy  hundred  coins  from  actual  examples,  cloth,    18*. 


John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 
rjOINS    OF    THE    ROMANS     RELATING    TO    BRITAIN, 

^^  Described  and  Illustrated.  By  J.  Y.  Akermak,  F.S.A.  Second  Edition,  greatly 
enlarged,  8vo,  with  plates  and  woodcuts.     10s.  6d, 

The  "  Prix  de  Numismatique"  was  awarded  by  the  lished  at  a  very  moderate  price;  it  should  be  consulted, 

French  Institute  to  the  author  for  this  work.  not  merely  for  these  particular  coins,  but  also  for  facts 

"  Mr.  Akcrman's  volume  contains  a  notice  of  every  most  valuable  to  all  who  are  interested  in  the  Romano- 
known  variety,  with  copious  illustrations,  and  is  pub-  British  History." — Jrchaological  Journal. 

MUMISMATIC  ILLUSTRATIONS  of  the  Narrative  Portions  of  the  NEW 
■*-^  TESTAMENT.  By  J.  Y.  Akeeman.  8vo,  numerous  woodcuts  from  the  original 
coins  in  various  public  and  private  collections^  cloth.    5*. 

"  ArchSEology  is  under  a  peculiar  obligation  to  bute  of  commendation  for  light  thrown  upon  Holy 

Mr.  Akerman.    To  him  more  tnaa«to  any  other  liring  Writ,  through  the  medium  of  "  the  unrighteous  Mani- 

man,  is  due  the  praise  of  having  converted  multitudes  mon."    The  New  Testament  has,  it  appears,  in  the 

to  the  love  of  antiquarian  research.    To  him  we  all  owe  compass  of  the  Gospels  and  Acts,  no  less  than  32 

the  pleasant  debt  of  an  instructive  acquaintance,  not  allusions  to  the  coinage  of  Greece,  Rome,  and  Judaea; 

only  with  the  beautiful  money  of  Ancient  Greece  and  and  these  beautifully  engraved,  and   learnedly  de- 

Kome,  but  with  the  once  barbarous,  though  not  less  scribed,  give  Mr.  Ake'rman  an  opportunitv  of  serving 

interesting,  coins  of  our  earliest  history.    And  to  him  the  good  cause  of  truth  in  the  way  of  his  peculiar 

now  especially,  the  cause  of  religion  can  bring  its  tri-  avocation." — Church  of  England  Journal. 

ATUMISMATIC    CHRONICLE    AND    JOURNAL    OF    THE 

■»■*  NUMISMATIC  SOCIETY.  Edited  by  J.  Y.  Aeebman.  Published  Quai-terly 
ftt  Zs,  6d.  per  Number. 

This  is  the  only  repertory  of  Namismatic  intelli-  and  countries,  bv  the  first  Numismatists  of  the  day, 
{cnce  ever  published  in  England.  both  English  and  Foreign. 

It  contains  papers  on  coins  and  medals,  of  all  ages  Odd  parts  to  complete  sets. 

LIST  OF  TOKENS  ISSUED  BY  WILTSHIRE  TRADESMEN, 
in  the  Seventeenth  Century,    By  J.  Y.  Akeeman.     8vo,  plates,  sewed.     Is.  6d. 

T  ECTURES   ON  THE   COINAGE   OF  THE   GREEKS  AND 

■^  ROMANS,  DeUvered  in  the  University  of  Oxford.  By  Edwaed  Cabdweli,  D.D., 
Principal  of  St.  Alban's  Hall,  and  Professor  of  Ancient  History.  8vo,  cloth.  4s. 
(flriffinal  price  8s.  6d.) 

A  very  interesting  historical  volume,  and  written  in  a  pleasing  and  popular  manner. 

A  N  OLLA  PODRIDA,  or  Scraps  Numismatic,  Antiquarian,  and  Literary.  By 
^*'  RiCHAED  Sainthill,  Esq.,  of  Cork.  Royal  Svo,  many  plates  and  portraits,  a 
handsome  volume,  privately  feinted,  cloth.    £1.  lis.  6d. 

Containing  Letters  on  the  coinnge  of  1816 ;  Memoir  Irelaud ;  Coins  of  the  Mint  of  E.teter ;  Coins  of  Henry 
ofTliomasWyon.jun.;  on  the  Co.cnation  and  Guild-        111;    Saxon  and  Anjlo-Xorman    Coins;   attempt  to 


hall  Medals;  Russian  Medals;  Coins  found  at  Be^-  lociUe  Coi.ns  unappropriated  by  Ruding;  and  other 
worth;  Short  and  Long-Cross  Pennies  of  Henry  VII;  papers  on  Coins  and  Topegrapiiical  and  Geueaiogicai 
Dublin  Groats;  Tlii-ee "Crowns,  the  ancient  Aims  of       subjects. 


(OBSERVATIONS  ON  A  UNIQUE  CUFIC  GOLD  COIN  of  the 

^-^     Fatimite  Dynasty.     By  L.  Loewe.     Svo,  engraving,  sewed.     Is. 

HAND-BOOK   OF  ENGLISH  COINS,  from  the  Conquest  to  Victoria. 
By  L.  Jewitt.     12mo,  11  plates,  cloth.    Is. 

TTISTORY  OF  THE  COINS  OF  CUNOBELINE  and  of  the  ancient 

•*-•*•    BRITONS.    By  tbo  Rev.  Beale  PosTB.    S\o,  with  numerous  plates  and  woodcuts, 
cloth,      la  the  Fress. 


tCoposrapf)^* 


JOURNEY    TO    BERESFORD     HALL,    IN    DERBYSHIRE, 

•'  the  Seat  of  Chabi-es  Cotton,  Esq.,  the  celebrated  Author  and  Angler.  By 
W,  Alexandeb,  F.S.A.,  F.L.S.,  late  Keeper  of  the  Prints  in  the  British  Aluseum, 
Crown  4:Xo,  printed  on  tinted  paper,  with  a  spirited  frontispiece,  representing  Walton  and 
his  adopted  Son  Cotton  in  the  Fishing-house,  and  vignette  title  page,  cloth.     6s. 

Dedicated  to  the  Angleis  of  Great  Britain  and  the  various  Walton  and  Cotton  Clubs;  only  100  printed. 
r[.RAPHIC  AND  HISTORICAL  SKETCH  of  the  Antiquities  of  Totnes, 
^^     Devon.      By  W.  Coixo»,  F.S.A.      Bniail  4to,  fne  woodvuis,  cloth.     6«.  (priginai 
price  IQj.  Gd.) 


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N' 


CAMBRIDGE. — Histom  Collegii  Jesu  CantabrigienBis  &  J.  Shbbmanso,  oliin 
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HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES  of  the  County  of  Hereford.    By  the 
Rev.  JoHH  DUNCUMB.     2  vols,  4to,  portraits  and  plates,  bds.      £1.  4a.  (original 
price  £5.  5s.) 

{4ELPS  TO  HEREFORD   HISTORY,  Civil  and  Legendary,  in  an  Ancient 

Account  of  the  Ancient-Cordwainers'  Company  of  the  City,  the  Mordiford  Dragon, 

and  other  Subjects,    By  J.  D.  Devlin.    IZmo,  cloth  {a  curious  volume).    3s.  6d. 

"  A  series  of  very  clever  p&^eTa."— Spectator.  .,    .,         ,      ■  . 

"A  little  work  full  of  Antiquarian  information,  presented  in  a  pleasing  and  popular  form."— Jvonfon/ormi#^ 

HISTORY     OF     PORTSMOUTH,     PORTg^lA,     LANDPORT, 

SOUTHSEA,  and  GOSPOET.  By  Hesey  Slight,  Esq.  8vo,  Third  Edition, 
did.    4a. 

[OTES  ON  THE  CHURCHES  in  the  Counties  of  KENT,  SUSSEX,  and 

SURREY,  mentioned  in  Domesday  Book,  and  those  of  more  recent  date,  with  some 
Account  of  the  Sepulchral  Memorials  and  other  Antiquities.  By  the  Rev.  Abxhus 
HussET.  Thick  8vo,  pike  plates,  cloth.    18s. 

KENTISH  CUSTOMS. — Consuetudines  Eandce.    A  History  of  Gavelkind, 
and  other  Remarkable  Customs,  in  the  County  of  Kent.    By  Chaeles  Sandys, 
Esq.,  F.S.A.  {Cantianus).  Illustrated  withfacimilies,  a  very  handsome  volume,  cloth.    15*. 

HISTORY  AND  ANTIQUITIES   OF   RICHBOROUGH, 

RECULVER,   AND  LYMNE,  in  Kent.     By  C.  R.  Roach  Smith,  Esq.,  F.S.A., 

Small  4to,  vjith  many  engravings  on  wood  and  copper,  by  F.  W.  Faibholt,  cloth.     £1.  1*. 

"  No  antiquarian  volume  could  display  a  trio  of       here  represented — Ronch  Smith,  the  ardent  explorer; 

names  more  zealous,  successful,  and  intellieent,  on       I'airholt,  the  excellent  illustrator;  and   Bolfe,  the 

the  subject  of  Romano-British  remains,  than  the  three       indefatigable  collector." — Literary  Gazette. 

HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES    OF    DARTFORD,    in  Kent 

-with  incidental  Notices  of  Places  in  its  Neighbourhood.  By  J.  Dunkin,  Author 
ol  tho  ^  History  of  the  Himdreds  of  Bullington  and  Ploughley,  in  Oxfordshire;"  "  History 
of  Bicester ;"  •'  History  of  Bromley,"  &c,  8vo,  17  plates,  cloth.  Only  150  printed. 
2ls. 

HISTORY  OF  THE  TO^\'N  OF  OKAVESEND,inKent,andof  the 

Port  of  London.  By  R.  P.  Cettden,  late  Mayor  of  Gravesend.  Royal  8vo,  37 
fine  plates  and  woodcuts,  a  very  handsome  volume,  cloth.     10».  (original  price  £1.  8*.) 

ACCOUNT  OP  THE  ROMAN  AND  OTHER  ANTIQUITIES 
discovered  at  Springhead,  near  Gravesend,  Kent.     By  A.  J.  Dunkin.    8vo,  plates, 
{only  100  printed,)  cloth.    6s.  6d. 

HISTORY  OF    ROMNEY  MARSH,  in  Kent,  from  the  time  of  the  Romans 

to  1833,  with  a  Dissertation  on  the  original  Site  of  the  Ancient  Anderida.     By  W. 

HOLLOWAY,  Esq.,  author  of  the  "  History  of  Rye."  8vo,  toith  Maps  and  plates,  cloth.   12s. 

CRITICAL  DISSERTATION  on  Professor  WiUis's  "Architectural  History 
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"Written  in  no  quarrelsome  or  captious  spirit;  the  serious  errors  throusrliout.     It  may  be  considered  as 

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it  IS  due.    But  the  author  has  made  out  a  clear  case,  a  great  deal  of  extra  information  of  a  very  curious 

in  some  very  important  instances,  of  inaccuracies  that  kind." — Art-  Union. 
have  led  the  learned  Professor  into  the  construction  of 

FOLKESTONE  FIERY  SERPENT,  together  with  the  Humours  of  tho 
DovOB  Mayce  ;  being  an  Ancient  Ballad,  full  of  Mystery  and  pleasant  Conceit, 
now  first  collected  and  printed  from  the  various  MS.  copies  in  possession  of  tho  in- 
habitants of  the  South-east  coast  of  Kent ;  with  Notes.     12mo.     1*. 

HAND-BOOK   OF  LEICESTER.    By  James  Thompson.     12mo,  Second 
^Edition,  woodcuts,  bds.     2s. 

H ISTORY  AND  ANTIQUITIES  OF  THE  ISLE  OF  AXHOLME, 

■'■■'     in  Lincohishiro.     By  tho  Venerable  AbCHDEACOK  SxoNEHOUSB.    Thick  4to,  PXHa 
PLATBS  18».  (original  price  £3.  3*.) 


John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 

HISTORY  AND  ANTIQUITIES  OF  GAINSBOROUGH,  in  Lin- 
colnshire.    By  Adam  Stabk.    Thick  8vo,  Second  Edition,  gbeatly  enlabqed, 
cloth.    9s.  (original  price  £1.  1«.) — Labge  Papeb,  royal  8vo,  cloth,     14*. 

TJISTORY  AND  ANTIQUITIES  OF  THE   TOWN  OF  LAN- 

■*-•*•  CASTER.  Compiled  from  Authentic  Sources.  By  the  B«t.  Bobebt  Simpsok. 
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TV/TEMORIALS  OF  THE  VICARAGE  HOUSE  AND  GARDEN 

A'J-  OF  ALL  SAINTS,  King's-Lynn ;  with  a  List  of  the  "Vicars,  and  a  quantity  of 
other  useful  information.     By  J.  N.  Chad  wick.     8vo,  four  engravings,  sewed.    2s.  Qd. 

"r)ESCRIFnVE  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  RUINS  OF  LIVEDEN, 

-*--'  near  Oundle,  Northamptonshire ;  with  Historical  Notices  of  the  Family  of  Tresham, 
and  its  connection  with  the  Gunpowder  Plot.  By  Thomas  Beli..  Four  plates  and 
Tresham  Pedigree.    4to.    6*. 

REPRINTS  OF  RARE  TRACTS,  and  Imprints  of  Ancient  Manuscripts,  &c., 
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TlPTTIiLY  PBINTED  o»  thick  paper,  with  facsimile  titles,  initial  letters  in  colours,  ^r., 
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This  Collection  comprises  no  less  than  62  Tracts  of  the  most  interesting  kind,  edited  by  M.  A.  Richardson, 
assisted  by  several  antiquaries  in  the  northern  counties.  Only  100  copies  of  the  Collection  were  printed,  which 
are  all  sold  by  the  printer. 

RIVER  TYNE. — ^Plea  and  Defence  of  the  Mayor  and  Burgesses  of  Newcastle 
against  the  Malevolent  accusations  of  Gardiner,  (author  of  "  England's  Grievance 
on  the  Coal  Trade,")  1653 ;  with  Appendix  of  UnpubUshed  Documents  respecting  the 
Biver  Tyne.    By  M.  A.  Bichaedson.     Svo,  (only  150  'printed.)     2s. 

^TOPOGRAPHICAL  MEMORANDUMS  for  the  County  of  Oxford.  By 
■■■     Sir  Geegoey  Page  Tuenee,  Bart.    Svo,  bds.    2s. 

NOTICES    OF    THE     HISTORY    AND   ANTIQUITIES    OF 
ISLIP,  Oxon.    By  J.  O.  Halliwell.    Svo,  (only  50  printed,)  sewed.     Is. 

HISTORY  OF  BANBURY,  in  Oxfordshire;  including  Copious  Historical  and 
Antiquarian  Notices  of  the  Neighbourhood.  By  Axfked  Beesley.  Thick  Svc^ 
684  closely  printed  pages,  with  60  woodcuts,  engraved  in  the  first  style  of  art,  by  O.  Jewett, 
of  Oxford.     14*.  (original  price  £1.  6s.) 

"  The  neighbourhood  of  Banbury  is  equally  rich  in  author  has  collected  a  great  body  of  local  information 
British,  Roman,  Saxon,  Norman,  and  English  Anti-  of  the  most  interesting  kind.  By  no  means  the  least 
quitics,  of  ail  which  Mr.  Beesley  has  given  regularly  valuable  part  of  Mr.  Becslcy's  work,  is  his  account 
cleared  accounts.  Banbury  holds  an  important  place  of  the  numerous  interesting  early  churches,  which 
in  the  history  of  the  Parliamentary  War  of  the  Seven-  characterize  the  Banbury  district." — The  ArchtO' 
tcenth  Ccntur)-,  and  was  the  scene  of  the  great  Battle        loght. 

of  Kdgehill,  and  of  the  important  fight  of  Cronredy  Odd  Parts  to  complete  copies,  1*.  6(i.  instead  of 

Bridge.    B;clating  to  the  events  of  that  period,  the       &».  6i/. 

HISTORY   OF    WITNEY,  with  Notices  of  the  Neighbouring  Parishes  and 
Hamlets  in  Oxfordshire.   By  the  Eev.  Dr.  Giles,  formerly  Fellow  of  C.  C,  Oxford. 
8vo,  plates,  cloth,  (only  150  printed.)     6s. 

HISTORY  OF  THE   PARISH  AND  TOWN  OF  BAMPTON, 
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Dr.  Giles.    Svo,  plates.  Second  Edition,  cloth.    Is.  6d. 

FAUCONBERGE  MEMORIAL.— An  Account  of  Henry  Fauconberge,  LL.D., 
of  Beccles,  in  Suffolk,  and  of  the  endowment  provided  by  his  will  to  encourage 
Learning  and  the  Instruction  of  Youth ;  with  Notes  and  Incidental  Biographical  Sketches. 
By  S.  W.  RlX.  Pot  4to,  very  nicely  got  up,  with  30  engravings  of  Old  Souses,  Seals, 
Autographs,  Arms,  ^c,  bds.  bs. — Laege  PAi'En,  7.^.  6d.  (vert  few  copies  printed.) 

Content}.— I'AuconhcTeea  of  Olden  Time.  II.  Fau-  Memoirof  Robert  Sparrow,  Esq.  Memoir  of  Dr.  Joseph 
conberge  of  Beccles.  III.  I'aucoubergc  Endowment.  Arnold  (by  Dawson  Turner,  of  Yarmouth),  Particular* 
IV.  Fauconberge  and  Lcman.   V.  Appendix,  Pedigrees,        of  the  Faiieonbcrgc  Trust  Estate,  &c.  &c. 

^USSEX  ARCHAEOLOGICAL  COLLECTIONS,  iUustrating  the  Hia- 

"^  tory  and  Antiquities  of  the  County,  published  by  tlie  Sussex  Archiieological  Society. 
Svo,  plates  and  woodcuts,  cloth.  Vol.  I,  10*.;  Vol,  II,  154.;  Vol.  Ill,  10*.;  Vol,  IV,  l-is.; 
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OUSSEX  GARLAND;  a  Collection  of  Ballads,  Sonnets,  Tales,  Elegies,  Songs, 
^  Epitaphs,  &c.,  illustrative  of  the  County  \i  Sussex,  with  Notices,  Historical, 
Biographical  and  Descriptive.    By  James  TaylojL.    Post  8vo,  JBngramngs,  cloth.     12s. 

^USSEX  MARTYRS  :  their  Examinations  and  Cruel  Burnings  in  the  time  of 
^  Queen  Mary ;  comprising  th'e  interesting  Personal  Narrative  of  Eicliard  Woodman, 
extracted  from  "Foxe's  Monuments;"  with  Notes.  By  M.  A.  Lower,  M.A.  12mo, 
sewed.     \s. 

pHURCHES  OF  SUSSEX,  drawn  by  R.  H.  NiBBS,  with  Descriptions. 
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HISTORY  AND  ANTIQUITIES  OF  THE  ANCIENT  PORT 
AND   TOWN   OP   RYE,  in  Sussex,  compiled  from  Original  Dociunents.     By 
William  Holloway,  Esq.    Thick  Svo,  (only  200  feinted,)  cloth.    £1.  Is. 

HISTORY  OF  WINCHELSE  A,  in  Sussex.  By  W.  Dubeanx  Coopee,  F.S.A. 
Svo.  fine  plates  and  woodcuts.    7s:  6d. 

CHRONICLE  OF  BATTEL  ABBEY,  in  Sussex;  originaUy  compQed  in 
Latin  by  a  Monk  of  the  Establishment,  and  now  first  translated,  with  Notes,  and  an 
Abstract  of  the  subsequent  History  of  the  Abbey.  By  Maek  Antony  Lowee,  M.A. 
Svo,  with  illustrations,  cloth.    9s. 

"It will  be  found  to  contain  a  real  and  living  pic-  "  Mr.  Lower  has  added  to  the  completeness  of  th« 

tare  of  the  manners  and  customs,  the  modes  of  thought  book  by  a  summary  sketch  of  the  History  of  tlie 
and  speech  prevalent  in  the  times  ot  which  it  is  ftie  Abbey,  and  its  succession  of  Abbots  from  tlie  time 
record.  Mr.  Lower  has  well  discharged  his  office  of  when  the  Chronicle  terminates  to  the  period  of  the 
translator  and  editor." — Gimrdian.  dissolution.     Various  intellifrcnt  notes,  as  well  as  the 

"In  no  respect  less  interesting  than  Jocelin  de  general  style  of  the  translation,  are  highly  cre- 
Brakelond's  famous  Chronicle  of  Bury  St  Edmund's  ditiible  to  liis  care  and  skiU  as  editor." — GuntlemoH't 
Abbey." — Lit.  Gaz.  Magazbie. 


DESCRIPTIVE  CATALOGUE  OF  THE  ORIGINAL  CHAR- 
TERS, GRANTS,  DONATIONS,  &c.,  constituting  the  Muniments  of  Battel 
Abbey,  also  the  Papers  of  the  Montagus,  Sidneys,  and  Websters,  embodying  many  highly 
interesting  and  valuable  Records  of  Lands  in  Sussex,  Kent,  and  Essex,  with  Prehmiiiary 
Memoranda  of  the  Abbey  of  Battel,  and  Historical  Pai'ticulars  of  the  Abbots.  Svo, 
234  PAGES,  cloth,    only  1*.  6d. 

TJAND-BOOK  TO  LEWES,  in  Sussex,  Historical  and  Descriptive;  with 
-"-•*■  Notices  of  the  Recent  Discoveries  at  the  Priory.  By  Maek  Antony  Ldweb. 
12mo,  many  engravings,  cloth.     Is.  Gd. 

rjHRONICLES  OF  PEVENSEY,  in  Sussex.  ByM.  A.  Lowee,  12mo, 
^-^     woodcuts.    Is. 

TJURSTMONCEUX  CASTLE  AND  ITS  LORDS.    By  the  Rev.  e. 

-'"'-  Venables.  (Reprinted  foom  Vol.  IV  of  tho  Sussex  Arclii£ological  Collections.) 
Svo,  many  engravings,  sewed,  Zs. ;  cloth  4*. 

MOTES  ON  THE  ANTIQUITIES  OF  TREVES,  MAYENCE 

^^  WEISBADEN,  NEIDERBIEBER,  BONN,  and  COLOGNE.  By  Chakles 
Roach  Smith,  F.S.A.  (Reprinted  from  VoL  II  of  the  "  CoUectanea  Antiqua.")  Svo  with 
many  engravings.     7s.  6d.  ' 

A  NNALS   AND   LEGENDS    OF    CALAIS;   with  Sketches  of  Emigre 

Notabihties,  and  Memou-  of  Lady  Hamilton.     By  Robeet  Bell  Calton,  autlior 

<rf  "  Rambles  in  Sweden  and  Gottland,"  &c.  &c.     Post  Svo,  with  frontispiece  and  vignette. 

doth.     5s.  '  J  I-  if         > 

Prtncipal  (hntenta -.—mstoTy  of  the  Siege  by  Ed-  cester;  the  Courgain;  the  Field  of  the  CToth  of  Gold: 

^'li    •    t^,i          ''  ^'"  ^  ^^  °^  **■"  Commanders  Notice  of  the  Town  and  Castle  of  Guisncs,  and  its  sur- 

and  their  ioUowers  present,  from  a  contemporary  MS.  prise  by  John  de  Lanraster;  the  town  and  Sci'^neurie 

m  the  British  Museum i  The  Allotment  of  Lauds  and  of  Ardres;  the    Sands  and  Duelling;   ViUaircs  and 

Houses  to  Edwards   Barous;  CiJais  as  an  English  Chateau  of  Sangatte,  Coulonse,  Mark,  Eschallcs  and 

iJorough ;  Last  of  the  Streets  and  Householders  ot  the  Hamiiies;  Review  of  the  Englisli  Occupation  of  Calais- 

"^V  ^^'^'^  Vlllth  8  Court  there;  Cardinal  Wolsey  its  Ke-captme  bv  the  Duke  de  Guise;  the  lower  Town 

and  his  Expenses;  the  English  Pale,  Willi  the  Names  and  its  Lace  Trade;  our  Commercial   Relations  with 

of  Roads,  iarmsteads,  and  Villages  in  the  EngMi  Era;  France;    Emigrfi    Notaliilitics;    Cl.:.rle3  and    Harry 

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Calais;     Pros  and  Cons  of    the   Place;  the   H6tel  BiummeU,  Jemmy    Urquhait  and  his  friend  Faun- 

^'i"  •  ».*^,™,®  *  Chamber ;  CliurchcB  of  Notre  Dame  tleroy,  " Nimrod,"  Berkeley  Craven,  Mvtton,  Duclicsa 

?}  >,^*;,..^'5!l''''''^'  tl'e  H6tel  de  \ille;  Ancient  Staple  of  Kingston;  a  new  Memoir  of  Lady  llamilton    ««;. 

Hall,  Tli^  Chateau  and  Murder  of  the  Duke  of  Clou-  Lc 


John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 

MONT    SAINT-MICHEL.— Histoire  et  Description  de  Mont  St.  Michel  en 
Normandie,  texte,  par  Hericher,  dessins  par  Bouet  publics  par  Bourdon.     Folio, 
150  pp.,  and  13  beautiful  plates,  executed  in  tinted  lilhograjphy,  leather  back,  uncut.  £2.  2*. 
A  handsome  volume,  interesting  to  the  Architect  and  Archaeologist. 

GENOA;   with  Eemarks  on  the  Climate,   and  its  Influence  upon  Invalids.      By 
HeSey  Jones  Bunitett,  M.D.    12mo,  cloth.    4s. 


f^eralBrp,  #entaIosp,  anlr  Surnames* 

CURIOSITIES    OF    HERALDRY,   with  lUustrations   from  Old   English 

Writfirs.  By  Mark  Antony  Lowee,  M.A.,  Author  of  "Essays  on  EngUsh  Sur- 
names;" with  illuminated  Title-page,  and  numerous  engravings  from  designs  by  the  Author. 
8vo,  cloth.   14s. 

"The  present  volume  is  truly  a  worthy  sequel  (to  than  an  ample  exposition  of  an  extraordinary  and  uni- 

the  '  Si'RNAHEs')  in  the  same  curious  and  antiquarian  versal  custom,  which  produced  the   most  important 

bne,  blending  vrith  remarkable  facts  and  intelligence,  effect  upon  the   minds  and  habits  of  mankiiid."  — 

such  a  fund  of  amusing  anecdote  and  illustration,  that  Literary  Gazette. 

the  reader  is  almost  surprised  to  find  that  he  has  "Mr.  Lower's  work  is  both  curious  and  instructive, 

learned  so  much,  whilst  he  appeared  to  be  pursuing  while  the  ma-aner  of  its  treatment  is  so  inviting  and 

mere  entertainment.    Tlie  text  is  so  pleasing  that  we  popular,  that  the  subject  to  which  it  refers,  which 

scarcely  dream  of  its  sterling  value ;  and  it  seems  as  if,  many  have  hitherto  had  too  good  reason  to  consider 

in  unison  with  the  woodcuts,  wliich  so  cleverly  explain  meagre  and  unprofitable,  assumes,  under  the  hands  of 

its  points  and  adorn  its  various  topics,  the  whole  de-  the  writer,  the  novelty  of  fiction  with  the  importance 

sign  were  intended  for  a  relaxation  from  study,  rather  of  historical  truth." — Alhenvtum. 

PEDIGREES  OF  THE  NOBILITY  AND  GENTRY  OF  HERT- 
FORDSHIllE.  By  William  Beery,  late,  and  for  fifteen  years,  Registering  Clerk 
in  the  College  of  Arms,  author  of  the  "  Encyclopaedia  Heraldica,"  &c.  &c.  Folio,  (only 
125  printed.)     £1.  5s.  {original  price  £3.  10s.) 

GENEALOGICAL  AND  HERALDIC  HISTORY  OF  THE 
EXTINCT  AND  DORMANT  BARONETCIES  of  England,  Ireland,  and  Scot- 
land. By  J.  BuBKE,  Esq.  Medium  8vo,  Second  Edition,  638  closely  printed  pages,  in 
double  columns,  with  about  1000  arms  engraved  on  wood,  fine  portrait  of  James  I,  and 
illuminated  title-page,  cloth.     10s.  {original  price  £1.  Ss.) 

This  work  engaged  the  attention  of  the  author  for  ativo  or  representatives  still  existing,  ■«'ith  elaborate 
several  years,  comprises  nearly  a  thousand  families,  and  minute  details  of  the  alhances,  achievements,  and 
many  of'^them  amongst  the  most  ancient  and  eminent  fortunes;  generation  after  generation,  from  the  earliest 
in  the  kingdom,  each  carried  down  to  its  represent-       to  the  latest  period. 

XpNGLISH     SURNAMES.     An  Essay  on  Family  Nomenclature,  Historical, 

-*--^  Etymological,  and  Humorous ;  with  several  illustrative  Appendices.  By  Maek 
Antony  Lowee,  M.A.  2  vols.,  post  8vo,  Thied  Edition,  enlaeqed,  woodcuts,  cloth. 
12s. 

lliis  new  and  much  improved  Edition,  besides  a  and  in  his  chapters  on  the  different  ways  in  which 

great  enlargement  of  the  Chapters,  contained  in  the  particular  classes   of  names   have    originated  from 

previous  editions,  comprises  several  that  are  entirely  namesofplaccs.occupations,  dignities,  offices,  personal 

new,  together  with  Notes  on  Scottish,  Irish,  and  and  mental  qualities,  &.c." — Spectator. 

Norman    Surnames.     The   "Additional  Prolusions,"  «»»     t  i.  . u  i..  t\.^t^,^  .^:,^t^t 

besides  the  articles  on  Rebuses,  Allusive  Arms,  and  "'•  ^'""  ^"^  ^one  to  work  m    he  troe  sprit  of 

the  Roll  of  Battel  Abbey,  contaiA  d.sseriations  on  Inn  >^riUV^:-^mn  discovery,  and  a  most   ^"Hismg  and  lu- 

signs,   and   Remarks  on   Christian    Names,   with  a  "'"''^"ve  book  he  has  produced.  -Jir.ghlon  Herald. 

copious  Index  of  many  thousand  Names.    These  fea-  "A  curious  work,  and  got  up,  moreover,  with  that 

turcs  render  "  English  Surnames  "  rather  a  new  work  commemlable  attention  to  paper  and  typography  which 

Uian  anew  edition.  is  certain  to   make  a  book  'tak  the  eye." 

"Acurious,ingeiiious,andamu3ingbook.  Mr.Lower  Mr.  Lower  has  been  '  at  aereat  feast  of  languages, 
brings  considerable  knowledge  to  hear,  both  in  his  and  lias  stolen  more  than  the  '  scraps.'  He  both  in- 
general  history  of  the  use  of  Surnames  in  England,  structs  and  entertains." — John  Bull. 

TNDEX  TO  THE  PEDIGREES  AND  ARMS  contamed in  the  Heralds' 
-■-  Visitations  and  other  Genealogical  Manuscripts  in  the  British  Museimi.  By 
R.  Sl>is,  of  the  Manuscript  Department.  8vo,  closely  printed  in  double  columns,  cloth.  15s. 
An  indispensable  work  to  those  engaged  in  Genea-  study,  amusement,  or  professionally;  those  wlio  have 
logical  and  Tonographical  pursuits,  alfording  a  ready  experienced  the  toilsome  labour  of  seairhins.  with 
clue  to  the  Pedigrees  and  Arms  of  ntiirly  4",<>')0  of  the  .the  help  only  of  the  existing  ver>  mipi'ricit  Catalogues, 
Genti-y  of  England,  their  R«^»idences.  &c.  {distinguish-  can  appreciate  the  perseverance  and  acruraie  exa- 
ing  the  different  families  of  the  .•iime  name  in  any  niinalKm  ncrcssary  to  produce  suih  iin  Indi-x  as  that 
county),  as  recorded  by  the  Heralds  in  their  Visita-  just  published  by 'Mr.  Sinis;  it  will  be  an  indispen- 
tions  between  the  years  1  i-S  to  lOoG.  sable  cmnpanion  to  the  Library  tali'.e  of  all  students 

in   geucaliigifiil  pursuits,  and   thoae  en'.':ci.d  in  the 

History  of  Landed  Pnipiilv." 'ounutl  </  Jrckito- 

Uigkal  Insliliite  fvr  Sfftemh'er,  lRt9 


"  This  work  will  be  very  arccjitable  to  all  wlm  have 
ccasiou  to  examine  lhoM^S  alluded  to,  whether  for 


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A  very  useful  volume  for  Genealogical  and  Biographical  purposes. 

THE  SLOGANS  OR  WAR-CRIES  OF  THE  NORTH  OF 
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Origin,  by  John  Fenwick;  and  Observations  on  Martial  Mottoes,  by  W.  Hylton 
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and  political  emblems  pictured  from  time  to  time,  in        curious  outlying  learning  Mr.  Chatto  has  somehow 
tlieir  changes,  opensancwtield  of  antiquarian  interest;        contrived  to  draw  into  the  investigations." — Atlas. 
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—Athenteum.  Moris,  1852. 

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HISTORY  OF  THE  ORIGIN  AND  ESTABLISHMENT  OF 
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Staining  Glass,  as  practised  in  the  Ecclesiastical  Structures  of  the  Middle  Ages.  By 
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John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 

popular  ^oetrp,  Calts,  anlr  Superstitions* 

fTHE  NURSERY  RHYMES  OF  ENGLAND,  coUected  chiefly  from 

-*■  Oral  Tradition.  Editedby  J.  O.  Haliiwell.  The  Fopbth  Editiox,  enlarged, 
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which  the  three-year  olds   understand  before  their  whole  cartloads  of  the  wise  saws  and  modem  instances 

A,  B,  C,  and  which  the  fifty-ihrce-year  olds  like  almost  which  are  now  as  duly  and  carefully  concocted  by  ex- 

«s  well  as  the  threes." — Literary  Gazette.  pcrienced  litterateurs,  into  instructive  tiiles  for   the 

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jingles,  talcs,  and  rhymes,  possess  a  strone  imagination  reading  public.    The  work  is  worthy  of  the  attention 

nourisliing  power ;  and  that  in  infancy  and  early  child-  of  the  popular  antiquary." — Taift  ilag. 

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This  very  interesting  volume  on  the  Traditional       Proverb  Rhymes,  Places,  and  Familiee,  Sapentition 
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Quities,  Fireside    Nursery  Stories,    Game   Rhymes,        number  are  here  printed  for  the  first  time.   It  may  be 
Alphabet  lUiymes,  Riddle  Rhymes,  Nature  Songs,       considered  a  sequel  to  tue  preceding  article. 

rjLD  SONGS  AND  BALLADS.-A  Little  Book  of  Songs  and  Ballads, 
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LL.D.,  F.S.A.,  &c.,  elegantly  printed  in  post  8vo,  pp.  210,  half  morocco.     Qs, 

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Rustics  of  former  times." — Atlas. 

T> OBIN  HOOD.— The  Eobin  Hood  Garlands  and  Ballads,  with  the  Tale  of  "The 
-'-*'  Little  Geste,"  a  Collection  of  all  the  Poems,  Songs,  and  Ballads  relating  to  thia 
celebrated  Yeoman ;  to  which  is  prefixed  his  History,  from  Documents  hitherto  uurevised. 
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T)  ALL  AD  ROMANCES.  ByR.  H.  Hohne,  Esq.,  Author  of  "Orion,"  &0. 
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Containing  the  Noble  Heart,  a  Bohemian  Legend;  description.    Mr.  Home  should  write  us  more  Fairy 

tlie  Monk  of  s>wineshead  Abbey,  a  baUad  Chronicle  Talcs;  we  know  none  to  equal  him  since  the  days  of 

Of  the    death  of  king  John  ;   the  three  Knights   of  Drayton  and  Herrick."— i'xaminer. 

Camelott,  a  Fairy  Tale;  The  Ballad  of  nelora,  or  the  .,t,             •                •    .,  •       , 

Passion  of  .ijidreaComo:  Bedd  Gclert  a  Welsh  Legend  •  opening  poem  m  this  volume  is  a  fine  one,  it 

Ben  Capstan,  a  Ballad  of  the  Ni'ht  Watch-  theEife  ''  entu.ed  tiie  'Noble  Heart,'  and  not  onlv  in  title 

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QIR  HUGH  OP  LINCOLN  :  or  an  Examination  of  a  curious  Tradition 
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"PSSAY    ON    THE    ARCHEOLOGY    OF    OUR    POPULAR 

-y  PHRASES  AND  NURSERY  RHYMES.  By  J.  B.  Keb.  2  vols.  12mo.  new 
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TftJ^o}.  T.ni'^n  '""^  "'f  with  mucli  abuse  among  the  gossiping  matter.    Tlie  author's  attempt  is  to  eipl.iin 

re    twers,  but  those  who  are  l.,nd  of  philolo-ual  pur-  every  tlimg  from  the  Dutch,  which  he  believes  was  the 

suits  n  111  read  it  now  it  is  to  be  had  at  so  very  mo-  same  language  aa  the  Anglo-Saxon, 
derate  a  price,  and  it  really  contains  a  u'ood  deal  of 

]y|ERRY    TALES     OF    THE    WISE    MEN    OF    GOTHAM. 

-^     Edited  by  James  OacHARD  Halliwell,  Esq,  F.S.A.     Post  8vq.     1*. 
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Borde,  the  well-known  pro.vn.tor  of  Merry  Andrews.        niirih  by  scholars  and  genUemen  " 

CAINT    PATRICK'S    PURGATORY;     an  Essay  on  the  Legends  of  Hell, 

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•*•      land).    By  J.  Mitchell,  and  J.  Dickie.    12mo,  cloth.    3*.  {original  price  6s.) 
A  curious  volume,  and  a  fit  companion  to  Sir  W.  Scott's  "  Demonology  and  Witchcraft." 

ACCOUNT    OF    THE    TRIAL,    CONFESSION,   AND    CON- 

■^*-     DEMNATION  of  Six  Witches  at  Maidstone,  1652 ;  also  the  Trial  and  Execution 
of  three  others  at  Faversham,  1645.    8vo.     Is. 

These  Transactions  are  unnoticed  by  all  Kentish  historians. 

WONDERFUL  DISCOVERY  OF  THE  WITCHCRAFTS  OF 

»  '       MARGARET  and  PHILIP  FLOWER,  Daughters  of  Joan  Flower,  near  Sever 

iBclvoir),  executed  at  Lincoln,  for  confessing  themselves  Actors  in  the  Destruction  of 
iord  Eosse,  Son  of  the  Earl  of  Rutland,  1618.     Svo.     Is, 

One  of  the  most  extraordinary  cases  of  Witchcraft  on  recortU 


BiiliosrapSp^ 


"DIBLIOTHECA  MADRIGALIANA.— A  BibUographical  Account  of  the 
-■-'  Musical  and  Poetical  Works  published  in  England  during  the  Sixteenth  and  Seven- 
teenth Centuries,  imder  the  Titles  of  Madrigals,  Ballets,  Ayres,  Canzonets,  &c.,  &c.  By 
Edwaed  F.  Rimbault,  LL.D.,  F.S.A.    Svo,  cloth.    6s. 

Itrecordsaclassof  books  left  undescribed  by  Ames,       Catalogue  of  Lyrical  Poetry  of  the  age  to  which 
Herbert,  and  Bibdin,  and  furnishes  a  most  valuable       it  refers. 

THE  MANUSCRIPT  RARITIES  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF 
CAMBRIDGE.     By  J.  O.  Halliwell,  F.R.S.     Svo,  bds.    3s     {original  price 
10*.  6d.)     a  companion  to  Hartshome's  "Book  Rarities"  of  the  same  University. 

SOME  ACCOUNT  OF  THE   POPULAR  TRACTS,  formerly  in  the 
Library  of  Captain  Cox,  of  Coventry,  A.D.  1575.    By  J.  O.  Halliwell.    Svo,  onlt/ 
50  printed,  sewed.    Is. 

CATALOGUE  OF  THE  CONTENTS  OF  THE  CODEX  HOL- 
BROOKIANUS.    (A  Scientific  MS.)  By  Dr.  John  Holbi-ook,  Master  of  St.  Peter's 
College,  Cambridge,  1418-1431).    By  J.  O.  Halliwell.     Svo.     Is. 

A  CCOUNT   OF  THE   VERNON   MANUSCRIPT.    A  Volume  of 

-^  Early  English  Poetry,  preserved  in  the  Bodleian  Library.  By  J.  O.  Halliwell. 
Svo,  only  50  printed.    Is. 

■piBLIOTHECA  CANTIANA.  A  Bibliographical  Account  of  what  has  been 
■*-'  pubUshed  on  the  History,  Topography,  Antiquities,  Customs,  and  Family  Genealogy 
of  the  County  of  Kent,  with  Biographical  Notes.  By  Joun  Russell  S-aiith  in  a 
handsome  Svo  volume,  pp.  370,  with  two  plates  of  facsimiles  of  Autographs  of  23  eminent 
Kentish  Writers.      5i».     {original  price  14s.) — Laege  Papeb  10s.  6d. 


N 


iHiscellantes* 


EW  FACTS   AND  VERIFICATIONS    OF  ANCIENT  BRI- 

TISH  HISTORY.   By  the  Rev.  Beale  Poste.   Svo,  tvith  engravings,  cloth. 

npHOMAS  SPROTT'S  {a  monJc  of  Canterhury,  circa  1280)  Chronicle  of  Profane 
-*•  and  Sacred  Ilistoiy.  Translated  from  the  original  MS.,  on  12  parchment  skins  in 
the  possession  of  Joseph  Mayer,  Esq.,  of  Liverpool.  By  Dr.  W.  Bell.  4to,  half  bound 
in  morocco,  accompanied  with  an  exact  Facsimile  of  the  entire  Codex,  37  feet  long  in  a 
iBound  morocco  case,  privately  peinted,  very  curious.     £2.  2s.  ' 

'  'pONSTALL    (Cuthbert.,  Bishop  of  Durham),  Sermon  preached  on  Palm  Sunday, 
1539,  before  Henry  "VIII,  reprinted  veebatim  from  the  rare  edition  bu  Berthclet  in 
1539.     12mo,  Is.  Gd.  ^ 

An  exccedinply  interesting  Sermon,  at  the  commencement  of  the  Reformation,  Strype  in  his  Memorials  ha* 
made  largs  extracts  from  it.  >      ^r  .  o—  ■. 


John  Russell  Smith,  80,  Soho  Square,  London. 

T  APPENBERG'S  HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND,  under  the  Anglo-Saxon 
-■-^  Kings.  Translated  by  Benj.  Thobpe,  with  Additions  and  Correctioiu,  by  the  Author 
and  Translator.     2  vols.  8vo,  cloth.     1 2s.     {original  price  £1.  1».) 

"  Of  modem  worVs  I  am  most  indebted  to  the  History  the  best  and  surest  guide  in  penetrating;  the  labyrinth 
of  England  by  l^ppeiiberg,  the  use  of  wliicli,  more  of  early  English  History." — "Konig  Aelfrei  una  seine 
particularly  in  conjunction  with  the  translation  given  StelU  in  der  Geschichte  EnglantU,  von  Dr.  Reinold 
by  Thorpe,  and  enriched  by  both  those  scholars,  aifords        Fauli." — Berlin,  1851. 

T  ETTERS  OF  THE  KINGS  0¥  m^iGliA^Tf ,  now  first  collected  from 
-"  the  originals  in  Royal  Archives,  and  from  other  authentic  sources,  private  as  well  w 
public.  Edited  with  Historical  Introduction  and  Notes,  by  J.  O.  Halliwell.  Twp 
HANDSOME  VOLUMES,  post  8vo,  with  portraits  of  Henry  VIII  and  Charles  I,  cloth.  8s. 
(original  price  £1  Is.) 

Tliese  volumes  form  a  good  companion  to  Ellis's  his  letters  to  the  Duke  of  Buckingham  arc  of  the  most 
Original  Letters.  singular  nature ;  only  imagine  a  letter   from   a   so 

llie  collection  comprises  for  the  first  time  the  love  vereignto  his  prime  minister  commencing  thus-  "jji 
letters  of  Henry  the  Vlll.  to  Anne  Bolevn  in  a  com-  own  sweet  and  dear  cliild,  blessing,  blessin"  blessing 
plete  form,  which  may  be  regarded  perhaps  as  the  on  tliy  he.vt-roots  and  all  thine."  Priuce  C?i'arles  and 
most  singular  documents  of  the  kind  that  have  de-  the  Duke  of  Buckingham's  Journey  into  Spain  ha» 
scended  to  our  times ;  the  scries  of  letters  of  Ed-  never  been  before  so  fnlly  illustrated  as  it  is  by  th 
ward  VI  will  be  found  very  interesting  specimens  of  documents  given  in  this  work,  whreh  also  includes  th' 
composition;  some  of  the  letters  of  James  I,  hitherto  very  curious  letters  from  the  Duke  and  Duchess  d" 
unpubhshed,  throw  light  on  the  murder  of  Overbury,  Buckingham  to  James  I.  Forming  an  essential  com 
and  prove  beyond  a  doubt  the  King  was  implicated  panion  to  every  History  of  England. 
in  it  in  some  extraordinary  and  unpleasant  way :  but 

TyALES. — Royal  Visits  and  Pbogebsses  to  Wales,  and  the  Border  Counties 
'  '^  of  Cheshire,  Salop,  Heeefobd,  and  Monmouth,  from  Julius  Casar,  to  Queen 
Victoria,  including  a  succinct  History  of  the  Country  and  People,  particularly  of  the  lead- 
ing Families  who  Fought  during  the  Civil  Wars  of  Charles  I.,  the  latter  from  MSS.  never 
before  published.  By  Edwaed  Parry.  A  handsome  4to  volume,  with  many  wood 
engravings,  and  fine  portrait  of  the  Queen,  cloth.     £1.  \s. 

HUNTER'S    (Rev.    Joseph)    HISTORICAL    AND    CRITICAL 
TRACTS.    Post  8vo.     2*.  Qd.  each. 

I.  Agincourt;  a  contribution,  towards  an  authentic  III.  Milton;  a  sheaf  of  Gleanin''s  after  his  Bio- 
List  of  the  Commanders  of  the  English  Host  in  King        gwnhers  and  Annotators.  " 

Henry  the  Fifth's  Expedition.  iV.  The  Ballad  Hero,  "Robin   Hood,"  his  period 

II.  Collections  concerning  the  Founders  of  New  real  character,  &c.,  investigated,  and,  perhaps  ascer- 
Plymouth,  the  first  Colonists  of  New  England.  tained.  '  ' 

A  RCHERY. — The  Science  of  Archei7,  shewing  its  affinity  to  Heraldry,  and  capa- 
^^    bilities  of  Attainment.     By  A.  P.  Haekison.     8vo,  sewed.     Is. 
ILLUSTRATIONS   OF  EATING,  displaying  the  Omnivorous  Cliaracter  of 
-*•     Man,  and  exhibiting  the  Natives  of  various  Countries  at  feeding-time.     By  a  Beee- 
Eatee.     Fcap.  8vo,  with  woodcuts.     2,s. 

•[ELEMENTS    OF   NAVAL   ARCHITECTURE;    being  a  Translation  of 
-■-^     the  Third  Part  of  Clairbois's  "  Traite  Eleinentaire  de  la  Construction  des  Vaisseaux." 
By  J.  N.  SteanOE,  Commander,  R.N.     9,\o,  with  five  large  folding  plates,  cloth      bs 
TECTURES   ON   NAVAL  ARCHITECTURE;    being  the  Substance  of 
-*-*     those  dehvered  at  the  United  Service  Institution.    By  E.  Gaedinee  Fishboubne 
Commander,  R.N.     Svo,  plates,  cloth.     5s.  6d.  ' 

Both  these  works  are  published  in  illustration  of  the  "  Wave  System." 

MEW  YORK  IN  THE  YEAR  1G95,  with  Plans  of  the  City  and  Forts  aa 
■'-^  they  then  existed.  By  the  Rev.  John  Miller.  JVojo  first  printed.  Svo  bds. 
2s.  6d.  {original  price  4*.  6d.)  ' 

rpHOUGHTS  IN  VERSE  FOR  THE  AFFLICTED.    ByaCou:.TEY 

-*-     Cubate.    Square  12mo,  sewed.     Is. 

T)OEMS,  partly  of  Rural  Life,  in  National  English.    By  the  Rev.  William  Baenes 
■*-      author  of  "  Poems  in  the  Dorset  Dialect."     12mo,  cloth.     5s. 

WAIFS  AND  STRAYS.     A  CoUection  of  Poetry.     12mo,  onl^  250  printed, 
**       chiefig  for  presents,  ieiced.     Is.  Gd. 

IVTIRROUR  OF   JUSTICES,  written  originally  in  the  old  French,  long  before 
*     the  Conquest,  and  many  things  added  by  Andhev?  Hoene.     Translattxl  bv  W 
HUOHSS,  of  Gray's  Inn.     12mo,  cloth.     2s.  ^ 


1 


curious,  interesting,  and  nutlivatic  treatise  on  ancient  English  Law. 


Valuable  and  Interesting  Books,  Published  or  Sold  by 
pONTRIBUTIONS  TO  LITERATURE  HISTORICAL,  AN- 

^^  TIQUARIAN,  and  METRICAL.  By  Mabk  Antony  Lowbb,  M.A.,  F.S.A., 
Author  of  "  Essays  on  English  Surnames,"  '•  Curiosities  of  Heraldry,"  &c.  Post  8to, 
woodcuts,  cloth.    7s  Gd 

Contents. 

1  On  Local  Nomenclature. 

2  On  the  Battle  of  Hastings,  an  Historical  Essay; 
8  The  Lord  Dacre,  his  mournful  end ;  a  Ballad. 

4  Historical  and  Archaeological  Memoir  on  the  Iron  Works  of  the  South 

of  England,  mth  numerous  illustrations. 
6  Winchclsea's  Deliverance,  or  tlie  Stout  Abbot  of  Battayle ;  in  Three  Fyttes. 

6  The  South  Downs,  a  Sketch ;  Historical,  Anecdotical,  and  Descriptive. 

7  On  Yew  Trees  in  Church-yards. 

8  A  Lyttel  Oeste  of  a  Greate  Eele  ;  a  pleasaunt  BaUade. 

9  A  Discourse  of  Genealogy. 

10  An  Antiquarian  Pilgrimage  in  Normandy,  tcith  woodcuts. 

11  Miscellanea,  &c.  &c.  &c. 

Tliere  ia  a  good  deal   of  quaint  and  pleasing  the  Sussex  Archaological  Society.    They  are  well 

reading  in  this  volume.    Mr.  Lower's  jokes  are  worthy  of  being  printed  in  a  collected  form.    The 

of  the  oldest — as  befits  the  pleasantries  of  an  an-  account  of  the  Battle  of  Hastings  and  the  memoir 

tiquary, — but,  on  the  whole,  we  seldom  meet  with  on  the  Southern  Iron  Works  contain  matter  of  his- 

more  readable  antiquarian  essays  than  these.    Most  torical  value,  in  addition  to  their  local  interest  in 

of  them  have  been  printed  elsewhere.    One,  on  the  connexion  with  the  topography  and  archaeology  of 

South  Domis,  contains  the  best  of  the  new  matter.  Sussex.  Among  the  papers  now  printed  for  the  first 

The  author  is  at  home  on  the  wide  expanse  of  these  time  that  on  the  South  Downs  is  the  most  important, 

chalk  ranges.    He  speaks  with  knowledge  of  the  and  will  be  read  with  much  interest,  both  for  the 

picturesque   villages   enclosed    in    their    secluded  information  it  contains  and  the  pleasing  style  in 

nooks, — of  the  folk-lore  and  legends  of  old  days  which  it  is  written.    There  are  some  chaxmin":  de- 

wliich  stiU  abound  amongst  the  sequestered  inhabi-  scriptions  of  scenery,  and  acceptable  notices  of  the 

tants,  and  of  the  historical  associations  which  render  history,  traditions,  and  customs  of  the    district, 

celebrated  many  spots  otherwise  of  little  interest. —  Among  the  minor  contribiitions  in  the  volume,  the 

Atherutwn.  paper  on  Local  Nomenclature  is  full  of  valuable 

Most  of  the  papers  in  this  volume  have  already  suggestions.     Altogether  it  is  a  volume  of  very 

appeared  in  periodicals,  and  in  the  Collections  of  agreeable  and  instructive  reading.— ii7.  Gaz. 

TTANDBOOK  to  the  LIBRARY  of  the  BRITISH  MUSEUM, 

-*-  '-  containing  a  brief  History  of  its  Formation,  and  of  the  various  Collections  of 
which  it  is  composed ;  Descriptions  of  the  Catalogues  in  present  use  ;  Classed  Lists  of 
the  Manuscripts,  &c. ;  and  a  variety  of  Information  indispensable  for  the  "  Readers" 
at  that  Institution ;  with  iome  Account  of  the  principal  Public  Libraries  in  London. 
By  BiCHAED  SiM3,  of  the  Department  of  Manuscripts,  Compiler  of  the  "  Index  to 
the  Heralds'  Visitations."     Small  Svo,  pp.  438,  with  map  and  plan,  cloth,     bs 

It  win  be  found  a  very  useful  work  to  every  Library  of  the  British  Museum  is  a  very  compre- 

literary  person  or  public  institution  in  all  parts  of  hensive  and  instructive  volume.    I  have  the  sixtieth 

the  world.  edition  of  "  Synopsis  of  the  Contents  of  the  British 

Museum"  before  me — I  cannot  expect  to  see  a  six- 

What  Mr.  Antonio  Panizzi,  the  keeper  of  the  tieth  edition  of  the  Uand-book,  but  it  deserves  to  be 

department  of  printed  books,  says  might  he  done.  placed  by  the  side  of  the  Synopsis,  and  I  venture  to 

Mr.  Richard  Sims,  of  the  department  of  the  manu-  predict  for  it    a   wide    circulation. — Mr.   Builon 

scripts,  says  shall  be  done.    His  Hand-book  to  the  Corney,  in  Notes  and  (Queries,  Ko.  213. 

A  GRAMMAR  of  BRITISH  HERALDRY,  consisting  of  "Blazon" 
■^^  and  "  Marshalling,"  with  an  Introduction  on  the  Rise  and  Progress  of  Symbols 
and  Ensigns.  By  the  Rev.  W.  Sloanb  Evans,  B.A.  Svo,  with  2Qplatts,  comprising 
upwards  of  4£>0  figures,  cloth,     5*. 

One  of  the  best  introductions  ever  published. 

A    PLEA  FOR  THE   ANTIQUITY  OF  HERALDRY,  with  an 

■^  *-  Attempt  to  Expound  its  Theory  and  Elucidate  its  History.  By  W.  Smith  Ellis 
Esq.,  of  the  Middle  Temple.     Svo,  sewed.     Is  Gd 

A  FEW  NOTES  ON  SHAKESPEARE,  with  Occasional  Remarks  on 
-^  the  Emendations  of  the  Manuscript-Corrector  in  Mr.  Collier's  copy  of  the  folio, 
1632.     By  the  Rev.  Alexander  Dtce.    Svo,  cloth.    5* 

Mr.  Dyce's  Notes  are  peculiarlv  delightful,  from  has  enabled  him  to  enrich  them.    All  that  he  hat 

the  stores  of  illustration  with  whirli  his  extensive  recorded  is  valuable.    We  lead  hu  little  volume 

rcadingnot  only  amongour  writers,  but  among  those  with   pleasure  and  close  it  with  regret.— iiffrary 

of  other  countries,  especially  of  the  Italian  poclg,  Gtuelt*. 


John  Russell  Smith,  36,  Soho  Square,  London. 
A  FEW  WORDS  IN  REPLY  TO  MR.  DYCE'S  "  FEW  NOTES 

■*^    ON  SHAKESPEARE."    By  the  Eev.  Joseph  Hustee.    8ro,»«rea'.    1« 

rPHE   GRIMALDI   SHAKESPEARE.— Notes  and  Emendations  on  th« 
■*-      Plays  of  Shakespeare  from  a  recently-discovered  annotated  copy  by  the  late 
Joseph  Gbimaidi,  Esq.,  Comedian.    8to,  cuts.    Is 

A  bamonrous  Sqtiib  on  the  late  Shakespeare  Emendations. 

CJHAKESPE ARE'S  VERSIFICATION  and  its  apparent  Irregularities 
^  explained  by  Examples  from  early  and  late  English  Writers.  By  the  late 
William  Sidney  Walkee,  formerly  Fellow  of  Trinity  College,  Cambridge;  edited 
by  W.  Nansok  Lettsom,  Esq.     Fcp.  8vo,  cloth.    6*. 

A  PHILOLOGICAL  GRAMMAR,  grounded  upon  English,  and  formed 
"^^  from  a  comparison  of  more  than  Sixty  Languages.  Being  an  Introduction 
to  the  Science  of  Grammars  of  all  Languages,  especially  English,  Latin,  and  Greek. 
By  the  Eev.  W.  Bahnes,  B.D.,  of  St.  John's  College,  Cambridge.  Author  of  "  Poems 
in  the  Dorset  Dialect,"  "  Anglo  Saxon  Delectus,"  &c.     Bvo,  pp.  322,  cloth.    Qs 

rriM  BOBBIN'S  LANCASHIRE  DIALECT,  ^ith  his  Rhymes  and 
-*•  an  enlarged  Glossary  of  Words  and  Phrases,  used  by  the  Rural  Population  of 
South  Lancashire.    By  Samuel  Bamfobd.     12uio,  the  second  edition,  cloth^  Zs  6d 

"DRITANNIC  RESEARCHES  :  or,  New  Facts  and  Rectifications  of 
-'■-'  Ancient  British  History.  By  the  Rev.  Beale  Poste,  M.A.  8vo,  (pp.  448) 
with  engravings,  cloth.     1 5* 

T!ie    author  of   tliis  volume  may  justly  claim  tient  study.     The  objects  which  will  occupy  the 

credit   for   considerable  learning,   great  iiidustry,  attcntiono'f  the  render  are— 1.  The  political  position 

■nd,  above  all,  strong  faith  in  the  interest  and  ini-  of  the  princijial  British  powers  before  the  Roman 

portance  of  his  subject On  various  conquest — under  the  Roman  dominion,  and  strug- 

points  he  has  given  us  additional  information  and  ghng  unsuccessfully  against  the  Anglo-Saxon  race; 

afforded  us  new  views,  for  which  we  are  bound  to  2.  The  geography  of  Ancient  Britain;   3.  An  inves- 

thank  him.    The  body  of  the  book  is  followed  by  a  tigati  n  of  the  Ancient  British  Historians,  Gildns 

very  complete  index,  "so  as  to  vender  reference  to  and  Nennius,  and  the  more  obscure  British  chroui- 

any  part  of  it  easy  :  this  was  the  niore  necessary  on  clers ;  4.  The  ancient  stone  monuments  of  the  Celtic 

account    of   the  multifariousness    of    tlie    topics  period;  and,  lastly,  some  curious  and  interesting 

treated,  the  variety  of  persons  mentioned,  and  the  notices  of  the  early  British  church.     Mr.  Poste  has 

many  works  (|Uoted.— ^M<rn<ftt)n,  Oct.  8,  1853.  not  touched  on  subjects  which  have  received  much 

The  Rev.  Beale  Poste  has  long  been  known  to  attention  from  others,  save  in  cases  where  he  had 

antiquaries  as  one  of  the  best  read  of  all  those  who  gometliiiig  new  to  offer,  and  the  volume  must  be 

have  elucidated  the  earliest  annals  of-this  country.  regarded,  tlieicfore,  as  an  entirely  new  collection  of 

He  is  a  practical  man,  has  investigated  for  himself  discoveries  and  deductions   tending  to  throw  light 

monuments  and  manuscripts,  and  we  liave  in  the  on  the  darkest  as  well  as  the  earliest  portioL  of  our 

•bove-named  volume  the  fruits  of  many  years'  pa-  national  history. — Allaj. 

nOTNS  OF  CUNOBELINE  and  of  the  ANCIENT  BRITONS. 

^-^  By  the  Rev.  Bealk  Poste,  B.C.L.  8vo,  plates,  and  many  woodcuts,  cloth  (only 
40  printed).    £1. 8» 

T)  ARONIA  ANGLIA  CONCENTRATA  ;  or  a  Concentration  of  aU 
•■^  the  Baronies  called  Baronies  in  Fee,  deriving  their  Origin  from  Writ  of  Sum- 
mons, and  not  from  any  specific  Limited  Creation,  sliowiiig  the  Descent  and  Lino  of 
Heirship,  as  well  as  those  Families  mentioned  by  Sir  William  Dutlgale,  as  of  those 
whom  that  celebrated  author  has  omittrd  to  notice;  interspersed  with  Interesting  Notices 
and  Explanatory  Remarks.  Wiiereto  is  added  the  Proofs  of  Parhamentary  Silting 
from  the  Reign  of  Edward  I  to  Queen  Anne;  also  a  Glossary  of  Dormant  Enjlish, 
Scotch,  and  Irish  Peerage  Titles,  with  references  to  presumed  existing  Heirs.  By  Sir 
T.  C.  Banks.    2  vols.  4to,  cloth.    £3.  Zs  now  orrtKKP  roE  15* 

AbooV  of  great  research  by  the  well-known  nn-  to  his  former  works.     Vol.ii.  pp.  SIO.I^OO,  contains 

thorofthe    "  Dormant  «nd  Fxtinct  Peerage,"   and  an  llisloriral  Account  of  the   tirst  settlement  of 

ether  hsraldic  and  historical  works.     Thosefor.dof  N(,\ a  Scotia,  and  the  foonili-.iion  ol"   the  Order  of 

genealogical  pursuits  ought  to  secure  a  copy  while  ^(.va  Scotia  Baronets,   diilinijuishing  llieie  who 

It  is  so  cheap.    It  Uii;  be  ccusidered  a  Supplement  had  seisin  of  lauds  there. 


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RETROSPECTIVE     REVIEW     (New   Series)  ;  consisting  of  Criticisms 
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Books.     Vol.  1,  8vo,  pp.  436,  cloih.     10s  6d 

*«*  Published  Quarterly  at  is.  6d.  each  Number.— No.  VII  is  published  this  day. 

Contents  op  No.  V. 

1  Sir  WilHam  Davenant,  Poet  Laureate  and  Dramatist,  1673. 

2  Cooke's  "  Poor  Man's  Case,"  1648. 

8  Old  English  Letter-writing  ;   Angel  Day's  English  Secretary,  1592 ; 

W.  Fulwood's  Enemy  of  Idlenesse. 
4  The  Old  Practice  of  G^ardeIling ;  Thos,  Hyll's  Briefe  and  Pleasaunt 

Treatise,  1563. 
6  English  Political  Songs  and  Satires,  from  King  John  to  George  L 

6  Medieval  Travellers  in  the  Holy  Land. 

7  The  Athenian  Letters,  by  Lord  Hardwicke  and  others. 

8  The  Writings  of  Wace  the  Trouv^re. 

Anbcdota  Literaeia. — Pepy's  Directions  for  the  Disposition  of 
his  Library ;  A  Legendary  Poem  of  the  15th  Century,  the  Story 
laid  at  Falmouth,  in  Cornwall :  both  now  first  printed. 

Contents  op  No.  VL 

1  Drayton's  Polyolbion. 

2  Penn's  No  Cross  No  Crown. 

3  Lambarde's  Perambulation  of  Kent. 

4  Philosophy  of  the  Table  in  tlie  Time  of  Charbs  1, 

5  Russia  under  Peter  the  Great. 

6  Life  and  Works  of  Leland,  the  Antiquary. 

7  The  Decay  of  Good  Manners. 

8  Stephen's  Essayes  and  Characters,  1615. 

Anecdota  Liteeaeia. — The  Child  of  Bristow,  a  Metrical  Legend. 
Now  first  printed. 

The  title  of  thia  Review  explains  its  objects.    It  to  interest  Tnodem  readers ;  we  shall  lay  before  them 

IS  intended  to  supply  a  place  unfilled  in  our  periodi-  from  time  to  time,  essays  on  various  branches  of 

chI  literature,  and  this  first  number  is  very  satis-  the  literature  of  former  days,  English  or  foreign ; 

factory.    The  papers  are  varied  and  interesting,  not  we  shall  give  accounts  of  rare  and  curious  books  ; 

overlaid  by  the  display  of  too  much  leai-ning  for  the  point  out  and  bring  forwardbeauties  from  forgotten 

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litcature  of  the  past,  subjects  which  are  most  likely       prove  a  successful  undertaking Atltu. 

REMAINS  OF  PAGAN  SAXONDOM,  principally  from  Tumuli  in 
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We  will  conclude  with  a  simple,  but  hearty  re-  mendation  of  preserving  the  old  songs  (and  the  airs 

commendation  of  a  little  book  vmidi  is  as  humour-  to  which  they  are  sung),  which  arc  still  to  be  heard 

ous,  for  the  drolleries  of  the  stories,  as  it  is  in-  at  most  harvest  homes  and  other  merry  makings, — 

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Weekly  Taper.  and  a  "  A  nie  upon  the  pear  tree  top"  among  the 

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and  the  districts  of   other   counties  Iving  ort  its  Salisbury  and  iVincheiler  Journal. 
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