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* BROADSTAIRS.

Launceston..6 Bridestow ...7
Hereford ...11 Brewardine .1
Worcester ..4 Broadwas .1 Leigh ..1
Ledbury.....4 Colwell ...1 Malvern L...3
Harleston ...3 Diss.. ..7 Billingford ..3
Lymington ..4 Lyndhurst 4 Boldre
Eye
.3 Braiseworth .3 Ixworth ...12
Daventry....4 Flover 2 Northampton 8
Preston .2 Samlesbury..2 Blackburn...7
Dorchester. 12 Bere Regis ..5 Spittisbury . .5
Cheltenham. 3 Staverton....1 Tewkesbury .6
.5 Hereford ..9 Yatton
.5 Ireby.. ..3 Bolton
..7 Brinklow....1 Coventry
.8 Gr. Grimsby 8 Healing
.1 Wimborne

Castor..

Cranbourne..2 Horton

Beckenham . 3 Bromley

This was formerly a place of some trade, and sent out vessels to Greenland and the Baltic; but it is now chiefly distinguished Sea-bathing. as a fashionable sea-bathing place, much frequented by persons who wish to be more select and retired than they can be at Ramsgate and Margate, for whose accommodation, handsome houses have been, and are continually increasing. The machines, rooms, baths, &c. are similar in construction, and applicability to those of Ramsgate; and there are two subscription libraries, one in the town, and the other on the cliff. At a very short distance from the town, is a small pier, where the fishing boats and other light vessels load and deliver their cargoes. Near the harbour, are the remains of the arch of an ancient portal, formerly defended by a port-cullis and gates to guard the place from the sudden attack of pirates, to which it was formerly subjected. At this place was a chapel dedicated to the Virgin, whose image, under the appellation of "Our Lady" of Broadstairs, was once held in such religious veneration, that the top-sails of the ships that passed the place, were lowered to salute it. The remains of this chapel have been converted into dwelling-houses. The parish church is a handsome structure about a mile distant.

Ancient

portal.

Monastery.

† BROADWATER.-Fairs, June 25, and Oct. 30, for horned cattle, sheep, and horses. ‡ BROMBOROUGH. This parish, containing the townships of Bromborough and Brimstage, is in the hundred of Wirrall. A monastery was founded here, by Elfleda, Countess of Mercia, about the year 912. There is a well in the parish, whose waters are said to possess an incrustrating

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quality; moss leaves, and small twigs, after remaining in it some time, are reported to become incrusted in a very beautiful manner. In the sandy lanes and hedges of this neighbourhood, a species of hurtful reptile, called long-worms by the inhabitants, is very commonly met with: a poor girl once fed one of them, till it became so tame as to creep round her arm, and receive its food from her hand, without her sustaining any injury. A small branch of the Mersey, called Bromborough-pool, runs through the village: there is a good bridge over it; the prospect from which is very beautiful.

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BROM

BOROUGH.

Incrustrat

ing well.

St. Blase's well.

* BROMLEY. This pleasant, healthy, and respectable market-town, is said to derive its name from the Saxon words Brom-leag, signifying a field or pasture of broom; and the great quantity of that plant on the waste places near the town, sufficiently corroborates this etymology. The Etymology. manor of Bromley was given to the Bishops of Rochester, in the eighth century, by Ethelbert, King of Kent, and with some slight interruptions, it has continued in their possession till the present time. These prelates had a palace here at a very early period, which was pulled down by the late Bishop Thomas, who erected the present edifice, a plain brick mansion, about the year 1777. This is now the only episcopal residence belonging to the see of Rochester. It stands about a quarter of a mile from the town, and is pleasantly situated on the brow of a hill, looking towards Beckenham and Hayes. In the grounds is a chalybeate spring, called St. Blase's well, which anciently had an oratory annexed to it, dedicated to St. Blasius; it was much frequented at Whitsuntide; because Lucas, legate for Sextus IV. granted an indulgent remission of forty days enjoined penance, to all those who should visit this chapel, and offer up their orisons there in the three holy days of Pentecost. After the Reformation, the oratory fell to ruins, and the well was stopped up; but being re-opened in 1754, was by the bishop's orders," says Hasted, “immediately secured from the mixture of other waters; since which, numbers of people, especially of the middle and poorer sort, have been remarkably relieved by it from various infirmities and diseases." Bromley church is a spacious building, consisting of The church. a nave, chancel, and aisles, with an embattled tower, surmounted by a cupola at the west end; the north aisle was rebuilt in 1792; Bishop Thomas contributing £500. towards the expence. Amongst the sepulchral memorials, which are numerous, is an ancient tomb in the north wall of the chancel, under a recess pointed arch, with mouldings springing from Antiquities. two pillars on each side, having capitals ornamented with foliage: the upper part, and east side, are mutilated. The person whose memory this was intended to commemorate, is unknown; but it is conjectured to be Richard Wendover, Bishop of Rochester, who died in 1250. Against the same wall is an inscribed monument to the memory of Bishop Zachary Pearce, D.D. who died in June, 1774, aged 84 years; and a slab in the pavement records the name and virtues of John Yonge, another Bishop of Rochester, who died in 1605. Two other bishops of this see were also interred in this edifice; Walter de Henche, who died in 1360; and John Buckeridge, who was translated from Rochester to Ely, in 1628. Among the other memorials, are brasses of Richard Thornhill, Esq. who died in February 1600, and his two wives, Margaret Mills, and Elizabeth Watson :

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The college.

.to

Manningtree 3 Colchester ..6 Harwich....9
Hereford 1 Allensmoor ..1 Ross
Scarborough 7 Snainton .1 New Malton 9
Chatham....1 Milton ..9 Rochester 3

Knighton 5 Wigmore 4 Presteign
Chelsea....1 Hammersmith3 Kensington ..1
Presteign...3 Kington ..2 Tiltey..
Montgomery .3 Keny.. ..3 Llamrewig ..4
Northallerton2 Thirsk ....9 Scorton ..7
Bedale ......3 Richmond...6 Northallerton8

Wiveliscomb 3 Withicombe 8 Watchet....7
Dulverton ...3 Wiveliscomb 8

N. R. York. Catterick....2 Overton ....1 Huntingdon 2

BROMLEY. they are represented in the dresses of the times. The font, apparently of the Norman times, is of a square form, and the sides are ornamented with ranges of plain semicircular arches. Bromley college was founded in pursuance of the will of John Warner, Bishop of Rochester, bearing date in 1666, for the residence and maintainance of twenty poor widows of loyal and orthodox clergymen. The original endowments have been greatly augmented by the gifts of various persons since that period. In 1756, Mrs. Helen Betenson, of Bradbourne, bequeathed the sum of £10,000. for the purpose of erecting ten additional houses for as many widows of clergymen since that, a bequest of £12,000. by William Pearce, Esq., for the building ten more houses for clergymen's widows, has also fallen in. The widows on Bishop Warner's foundation have an annual allowance of £30. 10s. each, with coals and candles; and others have £20. each. The salary of the chaplain is about £86. yearly. The college buildings are pleasantly situated at the north end of the town. Here is also a charityschool for the clothing of twenty-six boys and girls. The houses in the town are principally situated round the market-place, and on the high road to Farnborough and Seven Oaks. The markets are well supplied with corn, live-stock, &c. The grant for holding these was obtained by the Bishop of Rochester, from Henry VI., in the year 1447 or 1448. The market-house is a large old building, standing on pillars of wood. The manor of Simpsons, now occupied as a farm, was anciently the seat of the Banquels, and afterwards of William Clarke, who had license from Henry V. "to erect a strong little pile of lime and stone, with an embattled wall, encircled with a deep moat." In the next reign, it was alienated to the Simpsons. Among the other villas and seats in Bromley parish, is Freelands, which was the residence of Thomas Raikes, Esq., a director of the bank; Buckley, the handsome mansion of William Wells, Esq.; and Sundridge. The markets and fairs are well attended. Market, Thursday.-Fairs, Feb. 14, and Aug. 5, for cattle, horses, sheep, and hogs.—Inn, White Hart.

Charity school.

Spacious

elegant church.

* BROMPTON. A parish comprising the townships of Brompton, Sawdon, Troutsdale, and the chief part of the township of Snainton. The church is dedicated to All Saints, a spacious and elegant structure. Brompton was the residence of the Northumbrian kings, and on an eminence called Castle Hill stands the foundation of an ancient feudal fortress. John de Brompton, the historian, was born at this place. He was a Cistercian monk, and lived for twenty years in the Benedictine Abbey of Whitby, during the abbacy of John of Skelton, which com

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menced in 1413, but according to Chalmers, he was Abbot of Jorevall, in Richmondshire. His Chronicle is a most laborious work, including the period from the time when St. Augustine landed in England, in the year 558, to the death of Richard I., in 1198. Selden says, he was not the author of this work, but only purchased it for his monastery of Jorevall. It was printed in the Decem. Script, Hist. Angle. Lon. 1652, fol.

122 15327

BROMPTON.

Manufac

tures.

Local government.

* BROMSGROVE was formerly called Bremesgrave; and enjoyed the privilege, tempore Edv. I. of sending two members to parliament. This immunity is discontinued. The town differs little from the description given of it by Leland :—" All, in a manner of one street, very large, standing in a plain ground. The towne standeth somethinge by clothinge. The heart of the towne is meetly well paved." It is still a large but dirty place, full of shops, and manufactories of needles, nails, sheeting, and other coarse linen. In the principal street are some good houses, while many of the more ancient buildings are wood, strangely decorated with black stripes, and other unusual ornaments, the effect of which is extremely grotesque. The church, especially as to its tower and lofty spire, is a pleasing edifice, highly embellished in the Gothic style, with statues and mouldings; some considerable relics of stained glass in the windows; several handsome monuments of the Talbots, and one of Counsellor Lyttleton, of the Hagley family. The local government is vested in a court baron, which sits once in three weeks, for the recovery of small debts, &c. In the vicinity, are several remarkable echoes, particularly at the east and west corners of the church; another curiosity is a chalybeate spring, at Barnet Green, of some efficacy; and a third, is a petrifying well, at Holly Wood. The Lickey is a range of wild and lofty eminences, a little northward from the town, recently in a state of nature, but now enclosed and cultivated with some effect. The views from them are very fine, and the botanist will find many curious plants in this vicinity. It has been supposed that this is one of the highest levels in England; a streamlet which rises here, dividing itself into two brooks, which flow respectively into the Trent and the Severn. It is a circumstance well worthy to excite pleasurable sensations, that in the partition of lands on this waste, the rights of the poor have been respected; and many individuals of this useful class, live comfortably in their neat cottages, and are supplied with half a subsistence from their well cultivated gardens. At Dodford, in this parish, a small priory of Præmonstratensian canons was founded, tempore Joh., the remains of which may be seen in the walls of a farm-house. Among other ancient buildings are Barndesley Hall, seated on the skirt of the Lickey, and Hawkesley House, which was garrisoned by the republicans, and taken by the royalists, in 1645. Of Grafton Hall, the ancient seat of the Talbots, a mile from Bromsgrove, no more remains, Fine views. than the porch and part of the hall, the rest having been destroyed by fire in 1710; but these indicate its ancient importance. In this township was fought the celebrated battle of the Standard, in which the Scots were signally defeated by the English barons.

Market, Tuesday.-Fairs, June 24, and Oct. 1, for linen, cheese, and horses; also a market (toll free) for fat cattle, &c., 2d Monday in February, 1st Monday in May, June, July, and November.-Bankers, Rufford and Co., draw on Spooner and Co.-Inns, Crown, and Golden Cross.

↑ BROMWICH, WEST. There is scarcely a spot in Staffordshire calculated to create a greater degree of surprise than the rapid advance and

Præmonstratensian

canons.

WEST

Dr. Plott.

Walter

eccentric character.

improvement that has taken place here, and which, by Mr. Pitt and others, BROMWICH. is properly termed a village, situated to the south-east of Wednesbury, and to the north of Handsworth, on a gravelly hill, and is chiefly remarkable as containing Sandwell park, the seat of the Earl of Dartmouth. The Rapid improvement. road to Birmingham passes through this village, and the population has rapidly increased in consequence of the various manufactures in iron, particularly locks, gun-locks, and nails. In 1811, the number of inhabitants was 7485, which compared with the number of the census taken in 1831, exhibits an increased population in 20 years of 7842. A large street in this parish contains several good houses, and here is avilla which belonged to Mr. Elwal, and a good inn on the Dudley road, called the Swan. The church was an ancient building surmounted by a tower. Neither its architectural features or its monuments claimed the slightest attention according to Mr. Nightingale's history of Staffordshire in 1813; but extraordinary changes have taken place since that period. West Bromwich may now vie with the outlet of almost any large town in England; its new, beautiful, airy, lantern-like church is a credit to the architect who constructed the edifice, and to the place. Dr. Plott, according to Mr. Pitt's statement, mentions an excellent sand for the manufacture of glass found near West Bromwich. The learned doctor, whose propensity to the marvellous is remarkable, gives an account of Walter Parsons, who was Parsons, an born at West Bromwich, and was a man of gigantic stature, and extraordinary strength. In his youth he was bound an apprentice to a smith, and was so tall that they were obliged to dig a hole in the ground for him to stand in, up to his knees, when he struck the anvil. He was afterwards employed as porter to James I. and was courageous in proportion to his strength, but was so good natured that he scorned to take any advantage of it; on being offended by a man of ordinary stature as he walked London streets, he only took him up and hung him by the waistband of his breeches, upon a hook for the amusement of the passengers. He would sometimes by way of merriment, take up two of the tallest of the yeomen of the guard, and carry them about the guard chamber in spite of their resistance. Such is the tale of Dr. Plott: this serves, however, to remind us of the great strength of Milan, the original and celebrated military bookseller of Whitehall, who, upon being insulted by a scavenger in the metropolis, with great ease took him up and threw him into his own dust cart. Sandwell park, situate in a delightful and romantic valley to the north of Handsworth, contains the beautiful and noble mansion of the Earl of Dartmouth, and is said to have taken its name from Sancta Fons, or the Holy Well, although from the nature of the place, and of the soil, it would imply its full definition. It is described as being "built on the site of a priory of Benedictine monks, dedicated to St. Mary Magdalen ; some vestiges of the original foundation being still visible to an observant eye, in the rear of the house and among the offices a stone coffin was dug up a few years ago. At the time of the dissolution of monasteries, in the reign of Henry VIII., it was given to Cardinal Wolsey. The estate afterwards came into the possession of the present family of Legge, of whom Mr. Burke gives the following account :-William Legge, Earl and Baron of Dartmouth, Viscount Lewsham, was born Nov. 29, 1784; succeeded to the family honours of his father Nov. 2d, 1810; married in 1812 Charlotte Frances, daughter of Charles Chetwynd, second Earl Talbot (who died in October, 1823), by whom he has issue, William Walter, Viscount Lewsham, born on the 12th of August, 1823: his lordship is the fourth earl. The founder of this noble family was Alderman Thomas Legge, of the City of London, who served the office of sheriff in 1343, and was Lord Mayor in the year 1346 and 1353. In the year 1338 he lent Edward III. £300. towards carrying on the war with France, which was a very considerable sum in those days, and more than any other citizen advanced, except the Lord Mayor and Simon de Francis, who lent

Sandwell
Park.

William

Legge.

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