LINCOLNSHIRE.

CLEE is a small village in the wapentake of Bradley Haverstoc, in the division of Lindsey, situated about a mile south-east of Grimsby, and nearly the same distance from the south-west shore of the Humber; it is remarkable for its very ancient Church, the nave of which is a curious piece of ancient architecture; it was dedicated to the Holy Trinity and St. Mary, by Hugh, bishop of Lincoln, in the time of Richard I. in 1192, as is expressed by a Latin inscription in Saxon characters, cut on a piece of marble, and inlaid in a square compartment on the shaft of a circular column. This bishop was so much in repute for his sanctity, that after his death he was canonized by Honorius III. in 1221. He was a native of Grenoble, and one of the most illustrious prelates of the church of England in the reigns of Richard I. and king John. His virtue gained him great reverence from the people of his diocese, who were particularly afraid of his excommunications, having, as they thought, observed, that those who lay under that censure seldom failed of being visited in this world with some calamity. It is related as an instance of the zeal and resolution of this prelate, that by his own authority he ordered to be re

moved out of the church of Godstow in Oxfordshire, the tomb of Rosamond, mistress to Henry II. which stood in the middle of the choir, hung with black velvet, and wax tapers about it. Though he was informed that the tomb was placed there by the king's order, he contended that he ought not to suffer it, saying it was a shameful thing that the tomb of such a woman should stand in so honourable a place. He died about the year 1200, at Lon don; and being brought to Lincoln for interment at the time when that city was honoured with the presence of the kings of England and Scotland, the two monarchs went out to meet the body, and for some time bore the coffin upon their shoulders.

Clee Church consists of a nave, which has a middle and two side aisles, a cross aisle, a small chancel, and a pretty good square tower at the west end. The whole of the edifice is very small, the dimensions being as follow the length of the nave thirty-seven feet, the width of the middle aisle eighteen feet, the south aisle thirteen feet, and the northern one eleven feet; the length of the transcept fifty-four feet, its width sixteen feet, and the extent of the chancel thirty feet by eighteen. The south aisle of the nave part is separated from the middle by two circular arches, decorated with zigzag, cable, and billet mouldings, these spring from one circular column and two demi-clustered ones, which have rude Norman capitals and ponderous square bases. The north aisle is separated by three smaller simicircular arches, one ornamented like

those on the south, the other two quite plain; these are sustained by square pillars with shafts of twisted and other ornamental work, sunk in every angle. The font consists simply of two plain cylindrical stones placed upon each other, the top one being hollowed into a basin sufficiently large to answer the purpose of immersion. The rest of the building is the heavy-pointed architecture, with clustered columns, the workmanship very good, and the materials durable. No sepulchral monuments are to be met with in this building, except part of a stone sometime inlaid with brass prefixed to the side of a pillar; but in the porch lie four large flat stones, above which upon the wall is an inscription in old church text.

The custom of strewing the interior of the Church with green grass, mown for the express purpose, is here observed every Trinity Sunday, and a small piece of land which has been let for upwards of a century past for the trivial sum of thirteen shillings per annum, is said to have been left by a maiden lady that the performance of this ceremony might be annually observed to the honour of the Blessed and Holy Trinity.

The manor of Clee belongs to the mayor and corporation of the ancient borough of Grimsby.

A mile eastward is Clee Thorpe, a township composed chiefly of fishermen's huts; here is however a spacious and excellent bathing hotel, at present well conducted, and frequented during the summer months by

genteel families and fashionable company; it commands fine views of the river Humber, the opposite shore, the Spurn point, and German ocean.

About one mile to the westward is the site of Weelsby, or Wellow-Weelsby-a few scattered stumps of trees, and traces of foundations overgrown with herbage, are the only vestiges of this considerable village.

SHROPSHIRE.

THE Castle of Shrewsbury was founded by Roger de Montgomery, who made it his residence, and the chief seat of his baronial power. In the reign of Henry I. it became a royal fortress by the forfeiture of Robert de Belesme, earl of Shrewsbury; its defence was then entrusted to a constable, and part of its vast estate was parcelled out to various knights, upon condition of their keeping castle-ward for a certain number of days during war. This fortress was considered of great importance previously to the conquest of Wales; but after the union it began to decay, and has undergone such various changes from the dilapidations of peaceable times, that it is hardly possible to form an idea of its original state. It stands upon a narrow neck of land, about the breadth of 500 yards, bounded by the windings of the river Severn. The approach from the town is by a handsome street, which has a slight ascent. The present buildings are of red stone, and consist of the keep, the walls of the inner court, and the great arch of the interior gate. The keep is now converted into a dwelling-house; it consists of two round towers of equal size, embattled and pierced, connected by a square building about 100 feet