Brinkley (St. Mary)
BRINKLEY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Newmarket, hundred of Radfield, county of Cambridge, 5½ miles (S. by W.) from Newmarket; containing 366 inhabitants. The living is a rectory, valued
in the king's books at £13. 6. 8.; net income, £241;
patrons, the Master and Fellows of St. John's College,
Cambridge: land and a money payment were assigned
in 1811, in lieu of tithes. The parish is entitled to the
fifth part of an estate at Oakington, producing in the
whole £100 per annum, given by Mrs. Elizabeth March,
in 1729; it is paid to a master for the instruction of
children.
Brinklow (St. John the Baptist)
BRINKLOW (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in
the Kirby division of the hundred of Knightlow, N.
division of the county of Warwick, 6½ miles (E.) from
Coventry, on the road to Market-Harborough; containing 793 inhabitants. This place derives its name
from a large tumulus, on which stood the keep or
watch-tower of a very ancient castle of uncertain erection, of which there are no remains. In the reign of
John, Nicholas de Stuteville, lord of the manor, received
the grant of a market to be held on Monday, and a fair
on the festival of St. Margaret. The parish comprises
1393a. 3r. 22p.: about 150 acres are wood, and of the
remainder, one-third is arable, and two-thirds pasture;
the surface is level, and the soil a good strong loam.
The labourers who work at Combe Field reside here,
and the number of cottages is therefore considerable.
The Oxford canal passes within a quarter of a mile of
the parish; and the Roman fosse-way, on the line of which
are some traces of an encampment, bounds it on the
east. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books
at £17. 10., and in the patronage of the Crown; net
income, £228. The church is built in the style which
prevailed in the reign of Henry VII. There is a place
of worship for Independents. The interest on £60
given by the Rev. W. Fairfax, in 1761, is applied to instruction; as is also the interest of £800 left in 1789
by William Edwards, after deducting £13. 19. for bread
distributed to the poor.
Brinkworth (St. Michael)
BRINKWORTH (St. Michael), a parish, in the
union and hundred of Malmesbury, Malmesbury and
Kingswood, and N. divisions of Wilts, 4 miles (W. N.
W.) from Wotton-Basset; containing, with the tything
of Grittenham, 1694 inhabitants. It is intersected by
the Great Western railway; and comprises 5450 acres,
of which 4759 are pasture, 472 arable, and 219 woodland. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books
at £23. 9. 2., and in the gift of Pembroke College, Oxford: the tithes have been commuted for £735, and the
glebe comprises 150 acres.
Brinnington
BRINNINGTON, a township, in the parish and
union of Stockport, hundred of Macclesfield, N.
division of the county of Chester, 2 miles (N. E. by N.)
from Stockport; containing 5331 inhabitants, most of
whom are employed in the cotton manufacture. The
manor was the property of the De Masseys, and subsequently of the Stockports, who were succeeded by the
Dukenfields, by whom the lands were held as early as
1327; it continued theirs until about the year 1770,
when it passed to the Astley family, of whom it was purchased by James Harrison, Esq. The township comprises 750 acres, of a clayey soil; and contains Portwood, which see. The tithes have been commuted for
£30.
Brinsley, or Brunsley
BRINSLEY, or Brunsley, a hamlet, in the parish
of Greasley, union of Basford, S. division of the
wapentake of Broxtow, N. division of the county of
Nottingham, 2 miles (N. N. W.) from Greasley; containing 1139 inhabitants. It comprises 888 acres of
land, mostly the property of the Duke of Newcastle and
the Earl of Mexborough. In this vicinity are extensive
collieries, and near the village is a large coal-wharf on
the Nottingham and Cromford canal. A neat chapel of
ease was built in 1838, at a cost of about £1200, raised
by subscription, aided by £200 from the Church Building Society; the Duke of Portland gave £100, and the
land, and stone. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.
Brinsop (St. George)
BRINSOP (St. George), a parish, in the union of
Weobley, hundred of Grimsworth, county of Hereford, 5½ miles (N. W.) from Hereford; containing 116
inhabitants. It comprises by computation 1334 acres.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £4; patron and appropriator, the Bishop of
Hereford: the great tithes have been commuted at £170,
and the small at £104; the glebe comprises 190 acres,
and a vicarage-house has recently been built. The
church is partly of Norman architecture; it has a
window of painted glass of great antiquity.
Brinsworth
BRINSWORTH, a township, in the parish and
union of Rotherham, S. division of the wapentake of
Strafforth and Tickhill, W. riding of York, 2¼
miles (S. S. W.) from Rotherham; containing 241 inhabitants. It includes the hamlet of Ickles, and comprises by computation 1050 acres. During the late
war, the common, now inclosed, was the scene of frequent military evolutions of the Sheffield volunteers.
Brinton (St. Andrew)
BRINTON (St. Andrew), a parish, in the hundred
of Holt, W. division of Norfolk, 2½ miles (W. S. W.)
from Holt; containing 193 inhabitants. It comprises
712a. 3r. 24p., of which 474 acres are arable, 124 pasture and meadow, and 17 woodland; the village is picturesquely situated. The living is a discharged rectory,
annexed to that of Thornage, and rated in the king's
books at £8. 11. 4.: the tithes have been commuted for
£170, and there are 20 acres of glebe. The church is
in the later style, and consists of a nave and north aisle,
with a square tower.
Briscoe, or Birksceugh
BRISCOE, or Birksceugh, a township, in that
part of the parish of St. Cuthbert, Carlisle, which
is in Cumberland ward, union of Carlisle, E. division
of Cumberland, 3½ miles (S. E. by S.) from Carlisle;
containing 303 inhabitants. There are two establishments for printing calico on the banks of the river Petterill, in the township. The first wheat that grew in
the county was produced here, about the year 1700.
Brisley (St. Bartholomew)
BRISLEY (St. Bartholomew), a parish, in the
union of Mitford and Launditch, hundred of Launditch, W. division of Norfolk, 6 miles (N. W.) from
East Dereham; containing 388 inhabitants. The parish
comprises 1201a. 2r. 18p., of which 785 acres are arable,
188 meadow and pasture, and 197 common, roads, and
gardens. Brisley Green is a fine piece of uninclosed
ground of 150 acres, the favourite resort of cricketplayers. The living is a discharged rectory, with the
vicarage of Gately annexed, valued in the king's books
at £8. 7. 8½.; net income, £486; patrons, the Master
and Fellows of Christ-Church College, Cambridge. The
church is a handsome structure in the later English
style, with a lofty square embattled tower: in the chancel are three sedilia of stone and a piscina. Richard
Taverner, who published in 1539 a new translation of
the Bible, for which he was committed to the Tower by
Henry VIII., was a native of the place.
Brislington (St. Luke)
BRISLINGTON (St. Luke), a parish, in the union
and hundred of Keynsham, E. division of Somerset,
3 miles (S. E. by E.) from Bristol; containing 1338
inhabitants. The parish is situated on the road between
Bath and Bristol, and contains 2090 acres; it is bounded
on the north-east by the river Avon, and intersected by
the Great Western railway. Coal was formerly wrought;
iron is found, and stone quarried for building. The
living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £159; patron,
E. W. L. Popham, Esq.; impropriators, the family of
Langton. The church was enlarged in 1818 by 265
sittings: in the churchyard is a handsome cross. There
is a place of worship for Independents. Brislington
House, an asylum for lunatics, was erected by Edward
Long Fox, M.D., who first introduced the classification
of patients in such establishments, and was celebrated
for the cure of mental diseases: the buildings comprise
a spacious central edifice with detached wings, extending in front 495 feet; the estate is well planted, and
consists of about 200 acres. A chapel, dedicated to St.
Anne, was founded by one of the Lords de la Warre, in
the northern part of the manor; but there are not any
vestiges of it. A variety of Roman coins was found in
an adjoining field. in 1829. Langton, who married the
widow of Sir Thomas Cobb, of Langton Court, in the
parish, and was the intimate friend of Addison, is said
to have written many of the papers of the Spectator in
a summer-house belonging to the mansion. The Rev.
W. D. Conybeare, author of some well-known works on
geology, was for some years curate and lecturer of the
parish.
Bristol
BRISTOL, a city and
county of itself, and a considerable port, situated near
the mouth of the Bristol
Channel, and between the
counties of Gloucester
and Somerset, into both of
which the town extends, 34
miles (S. W. by S.) from
Gloucester, 12 (N. W.) from
Bath, and 118 (W.) from
London; containing, in the
old city, 64,266 inhabitants,
exclusively of those in Clifton, Bedminster, and the outportions of the parishes of St. James, St. Paul, and St.
Philip and St. Jacob, which form the suburbs, and
which, if included, would increase the number to
122,034. This place, called by the Britons Caer Brito,
and supposed to have been the Abona, or Trajectus, of
Antonine, probably derives its name from the Saxon
Brito stow. In 1063, Harold set sail from this port for
the subjugation of Wales; and soon after the Conquest,
his sons, attempting to overthrow the government of
William, made an assault upon Bristol, but were defeated by the inhabitants. At that time an extensive
traffic in English slaves was carried on here, which was
abolished by William, at the intercession of Archbishop
Lanfranc. In 1089, Geoffrey, Bishop of Coutance,
taking part in a confederacy against William Rufus, for
the purpose of raising the king's elder brother, Robert,
to the throne, assembled his forces in the town, and fortified it with walls, portions of which still remain. In
the struggle between Stephen and Matilda, the Earl of
Gloucester, having taken possession of the city for the
empress, rebuilt the castle, into which she retired on her
escape from Arundel, at that time besieged by her opponent. Stephen, having been soon after made prisoner,
was confined in this castle, and, by Matilda's order,
loaded with chains, till he was released, after an imprisonment of nine weeks, by the capture of the earl, for
whom he was exchanged. In 1142, Prince Henry,
afterwards Henry II., being brought from Normandy on
a visit to his mother, was placed at Bristol, under the
protection of the Earl of Gloucester, where he remained
for four years, and received part of his education.
Edward I. kept the festival of Christmas, and held a
council, here, in 1285. During the war between Edward II. and the barons, Henry de Willington and
Harry de Mumford, who had been taken prisoners, were
executed at Bristol, in 1322. Edward III., in 1353,
removed the staple for wool from the several towns in
Flanders to England, and, among other places, to this
city, which, in consequence, rapidly grew into importance as a place of trade, and in 1373 was erected into a
separate county, under the designation of the "City and
County of the City of Bristol." In 1399, the Duke of
Lancaster, afterwards Henry IV., besieged the city with
a powerful army, and, on its surrender, sentenced the
governor, Scroop, Earl of Wiltshire, Sir Henry Green,
and Sir John Bushy, to be beheaded; in the same year,
parliament exempted the place, by "land and water,"
from the jurisdiction of the lord high admiral.
Arms.
In 1471, the Duke of Somerset, Earl of Devonshire,
and other nobles in the interest of the house of Lancaster, entering into a confederacy against Edward IV.,
assembled their forces here, and were greatly assisted
by the inhabitants (who were attached to the Lancastrian
cause), in their attempts to replace Henry VI. upon the
throne. Henry VII. visited Bristol in 1485, on which
occasion the citizens, to evince the greater respect, appeared in their best apparel; but the king, thinking
their wives too richly dressed for their station, imposed
a fine of twenty shillings upon every citizen who was
worth £20. During the civil war in the reign of Charles I.
the city was garrisoned by the parliamentarians, who
appointed Nathaniel Fiennes governor. The king, sensible of the importance of the place, endeavoured to
gain possession of it by means of his partisans within
the town; but their proceedings having been discovered,
Alderman Yeomans and Mr. Bourchier were hanged as
traitors, by order of the governor. In 1643, Prince Rupert closely invested the city, which surrendered on the
third day; and the king, arriving soon after, remained
for a short time, and attended divine service in the cathedral on the following Sunday. Bristol continued in the
possession of the royalists for nearly two years; but,
after sustaining a vigorous assault with incredible valour,
the garrison capitulated to Fairfax, and Cromwell soon
afterwards ordered the castle and the fortifications to be
demolished. The city was the scene of a serious riot,
in the autumn of 1831, during the progress of the Reform bill in parliament. It commenced by an attack
upon the recorder, who was opposed to that measure,
on his entrance into the city, prior to holding the quarter-sessions, on Saturday the 29th of October, and,
owing to the want of energy on the part of the civil and
military authorities, continued until the Monday following, during which period the gaols were broken open and
burnt. The episcopal palace, mansion-house, and custom-house, were destroyed; and many private dwellings,
particularly in Queen-square, were set on fire.
The city is pleasantly situated in a valley, near the
confluence of the rivers Avon and Frome; the old town,
which forms the nucleus of the present, consists of four
principal streets, diverging at right angles from the
centre, and intersected by smaller streets. The houses
in the interior of the town are mostly ancient, being
built of timber and plaster, with the upper stories projecting; but in the outer parts are spacious streets and
squares, containing good houses, uniformly built of
stone and brick. The town is well paved, lighted with
gas, and supplied with excellent water from springs, and
from public conduits, originally laid down by the monks,
in convenient situations: an act for its better supply
with water was passed in 1846. A handsome stone
bridge of three wide arches over the Avon, which flows
through the town, was completed in 1768, on the site of
a former one, connecting the northern with the southern
part; and over the river Frome is a swing bridge, admitting of the passage of ships. The theatre, said to
have been admired by Garrick for its just proportions
and arrangement, was built by Mr. Powell, in 1766; it
is opened during the winter season, and has been the
nursery of some of the best performers on the London
stage. The City Library, in King-street, a handsome
stone edifice beautifully ornamented with sculpture and
literary emblems, contains a large collection of books
and numerous manuscripts. The Philosophical Institution in Park-street, a neat building with a Grecian portico, contains reading-rooms, a theatre in which lectures
are delivered, a laboratory, a philosophical apparatus, an
extensive museum, and a room for the exhibition of
paintings. The Statistical Society was instituted in
Nov. 1836, soon after the meeting of the British Association; and the Academy of the Fine Arts, more recently. The Exchange, in Corn-street, erected about
the year 1760, by the corporation, at an expense of more
than £50,000, is a spacious and elegant structure, 110
feet in length, with a rustic basement; in the centre are
handsome columns of the Corinthian order, forming the
principal entrance, and supporting a pediment, in the
tympanum of which are the king's arms: the edifice is
principally used as a corn-market. The Commercial
Rooms, erected in 1811, and having a portico of four
pillars of the Ionic order, contain apartments for the
despatch of business, and a reading-room; the principal
hall is 60 feet in length, 40 feet wide, and 25 feet high.
The Post-office is a neat building of freestone, to the
west of the Exchange. A handsome structure called
the Victoria Rooms, intended for public assemblies, was
lately erected from the designs of Mr. Charles Dyer; it
is situated near the top of Park-street, and is built entirely of Bath stone. The south front, which is the
principal, has a noble octo-style Corinthian portico, recessed within the building as well as advanced forward;
the grand hall is a noble apartment, 117 feet by 55, and
48 in height.
Bristol is represented by Malmsbury as having been,
so early as the reign of Henry II., a "wealthy city, full
of ships from Ireland, Norway, and every part of Europe,
which brought to it great commerce." It carries on an
extensive trade with the West Indies, North and South
America, and the countries bordering on the Baltic and
Mediterranean seas: the principal articles of importation
are sugar, rum, coffee, tobacco, wine, corn, timber, tar,
turpentine, &c.; those exported consist chiefly of the
produce of the manufactories within the town and neighbourhood. It has also a great coasting-trade, and considerable intercourse with Ireland. Of late, a new and
important feature in the commerce of the place was
introduced, by the establishment of steam communication
with North America: the large steam ship, the "Great
Western," which sailed from the port on the 2nd June,
1838, was the first steamer which crossed the Atlantic
by the power of steam only. In 1842, 336 British ships
of the aggregate burthen of 63,227 tons, and 49 foreign
ships of 9671 tons, entered the port. The total tonnage
in that year was 403,627; and in 1845, 492,720.
A few years since, a considerable reduction was made
by the corporation in the local dues; and the port was
materially enlarged and improved, in 1803, by changing
the course of the Avon, and damming up its old channel,
to form an extensive floating-dock, communicating by
means of reservoirs with the river and the quay; to
which vessels have access at any time, and from which
they may sail directly into the Bristol Channel. Over
this new course of the Avon two handsome iron bridges
were erected, and the entire work was completed, in
1809, at an expense of more than £600,000. An act
has been lately obtained for building a bridge from the
parish of St. Philip and St. Jacob, over the floatingharbour, to the parish of Temple. The quay, extending
for more than a mile along the sides of the Avon and
Frome, is accessible to ships of any burthen, and conveniently adapted for the despatch of business. In 1837,
an act for removing and preventing encroachments, and
for better regulating the shipping, quays, and markets,
and for other purposes, was procured. Immediately
behind the quay is a spacious square, part of which was
burned in the riots during the agitation of the Reform
bill; in the centre is an equestrian statue of William III.
in the Roman costume. On the banks of the Avon, a
little below the town, are several dock-yards, where
ship-building is carried on to a considerable extent.
The principal articles of manufacture are brass, copper,
zinc, patent-shot, lead, leather, floor-cloth, china, glass,
glass-bottles, and glass ware of every kind (for which
there are numerous furnaces), and the celebrated stone
ware: the brass and copper works here are the most
extensive in England, and the zinc is thought to be
superior to that made at any other place. There are
several sugar refineries, breweries, distilleries, and ironfoundries; for the supply of all which, abundance of
coal is brought into the town from collieries in the
neighbourhood. The construction of a railroad from
Coal-Pit Heath, in the county of Gloucester, to Bristol,
considerably reduced the price of coal. The terminus
of the Great Western railway, from London to Bristol,
which was opened June 30th, 1841, is situated at Temple Mead; the station-house and offices are raised on
arches of rough stone, and some of the heaviest works on
the line of this vast undertaking occur in the neighbourhood of the city. The Bristol and Exeter railway commences by a junction with the London line at Temple
Mead. An extensive fire, which took place in April,
1841, at the terminus, destroyed property belonging to
the Exeter company to the amount of several thousands
of pounds. In 1845 an act was passed for a junction
line of about half a mile, at Bristol, forming a better
connexion between the Great Western and the Exeter
lines; and there is also a railway to Gloucester and
Birmingham, which commences at Temple Mead, and of
which the Coal-Pit Heath line now forms part. An act
was passed in 1846 for opening a railway and steamferry communication to the South Wales railway, in
Monmouthshire, on the west bank of the Severn. The
market-days are Tuesday and Friday, for corn, hay, and
straw; Wednesday and Saturday, for general provisions,
fish, cheese, and hides; and Thursday, for corn, cattle,
and hides. There are several excellent market-houses,
well supplied. The principal market-place forms a spacious quadrangle; one side is occupied by the back of
the exchange, forming a rustic arcade, over which is a
pediment ornamented with the city arms, and surmounted
by a handsome turret. Fairs, each continuing eight
days, on the two first of which there is a considerable
show of cattle, are held on March 1st and September 1st.
A spacious market-place for cattle has recently been
erected by the corporation, and trustees of the church
lands of St. Thomas', at an expense of £20,000; it occupies an area 400 feet square.
The earliest charter of incorporation is supposed to
be that of Henry II.; many others were subsequently
granted, the principal of which were by Henry III.,
Edward III., Henry VII., Elizabeth, Charles II., and
Queen Anne. By the act of the 5th and 6th of William
IV., cap. 76, the corporation now consists of a mayor,
sixteen aldermen, and forty-eight councillors, and the
city is divided into ten wards; a sheriff, recorder, and
other officers required by the act, are also appointed, and
the total number of magistrates is twenty-five. The
elective franchise has been exercised since the 23rd of
Edward I., two members being returned. The right of
election was formerly vested in the freeholders and freemen at large, in number about five thousand; but, by
the act of the 2nd of William IV., cap. 45, the nonresident freemen, except within seven miles of the city,
were disfranchised, and the privilege was extended to
the £10 householders of an enlarged district: the ancient
boundary comprised about 784 acres, but the present
embraces by estimation 4674. The sheriff is returning officer. A court of general sessions of the peace is
held quarterly before the recorder, who is sole judge;
prisoners charged with offences not cognizable at the
sessions are removed for trial at the assizes for the
county of Gloucester. A court of assize and nisi prius
is held annually at the close of the summer assizes for
the western circuit, at which the senior judge on that
circuit presides. A court called the Tolzey court (from
having been anciently held at the place where the king's
tolls, or dues, were collected), is held by prescription
every Monday under the sheriff, in his character of
bailiff of the hundred, aided by a steward, who must
be a barrister of three years' standing; its jurisdiction
extends over the whole of the county of the city, and
on the river down to the Flat and Steep Holmes, below
Kingsroad, twenty miles from the city. It takes cognizance of all actions for debt, and other civil actions, to
an unlimited amount, arising within the city; it also
holds pleas of ejectment, and issues processes of attachment on the goods of foreigners sued for debt. A
branch of this, similar in all its proceedings and jurisdiction, is the court of pie-poudre, held for fourteen days
in the open air, in the Old market, commencing on the
30th of September; and during this period the proceedings in the Tolzey court are suspended. The powers of
the county debt-court of Bristol, established in 1847,
extend over Bristol, Clifton, Bedminster, and part of
Keynsham. The court of bankruptcy, established in
1842, and held daily, embraces several counties. The
guildhall lately pulled down to make way for a new
edifice, was a very ancient building, decorated with the
arms of Edward VI., those of George IV., and a statue of
Charles II.; and contained, in the north wing, a small
chapel dedicated to St. George, founded in the reign of
Richard II., by William Spicer, mayor. The new guildhall is similar in style to the new Palace of Westminster,
and was erected in 1845; the front is elaborately enriched, and ornamented in the centre by a handsome
tower. The Council-house, for the transaction of civic
affairs, is an elegant edifice of freestone, of the Ionic
order, with a handsome portico and balustrade, and ornamented with a figure of Justice over the pediment.
Merchants' Hall, Coopers' Hall, and others formerly belonging to trading companies, and many of them good
buildings, are now appropriated to private uses. The
common gaol comprises ten wards, with day-rooms and
airing-yards, for the classification of prisoners. The
house of correction was destroyed by fire, by the rioters,
in 1831, except a few of the cells, which have been repaired. Lawford's Gate prison, without the city, is appropriated to that part of the suburbs lying in the county
of Gloucester.
Corporation Seal.
Obverse.
Reverse.
Bristol was separated from
the diocese of Salisbury in
1542, and raised into a see,
the jurisdiction of which
extended over the county of
the city, the county of Dorset, and a few parishes in
the shire of Gloucester.
By the act of the 6th and
7th of William IV., cap 77,
the sees of Gloucester and
Bristol have been united,
and new limits assigned:
Dorsetshire has been transferred to Salisbury. The
establishment of Bristol consists of a dean, six (to be
reduced to four) canons or prebendaries, four honorary
canons, an archdeacon, a chancellor, four minor canons,
a deacon, sub-deacon, and other officers: the Dean and
Chapter possess the patronage of the minor canonries,
and of thirty-three benefices. The Cathedral, dedicated
to the Holy Trinity, was the collegiate church of a priory
of Black canons, founded by Robert Fitzharding in
1148, and raised into an abbey in the reign of Henry II.,
the revenue being at the Dissolution £767. 15. 3. It is
a venerable and highly-finished cruciform structure, with
a lofty square embattled tower rising from the centre,
strengthened with buttresses and crowned with pinnacles; it contains portions in the early, decorated, and
later English styles, in all of them exhibiting specimens
of the purest design and most elaborate execution. The
nave was destroyed during the parliamentary war: the
roofs of the choir and transepts, all of equal height and
finely groined, are supported on clustered columns, richly
moulded; and the remaining parts, from the striking
beauty of their details, afford evidence of the grandeur
of the interior when entire. At the entrance into the
choir is an empannelled screen, ornamented with carvings
of the minor prophets; and in several small chapels of
exquisite beauty are many interesting monuments,
among which may be noticed those of Robert Fitzharding and several of the abbots and bishops; of Mrs.
Draper, the eulogized Eliza of Sterne; Lady Hesketh,
celebrated by Cowper; and the wife of the Rev. William
Mason, with a beautiful epitaph written by that poet;
there is also a bust of Southey. The chapter-house, a
spacious edifice, highly enriched, in the latest style of
Norman architecture, and part of the cloisters in the
later English style, are still remaining; the entrance
gateway, in the lower part Norman, and in the upper
part later English, is in excellent preservation.
Arms of the Bishopric.
The city comprised within its ancient limits, the
parishes of All Saints, St. Augustine, Christ-Church,
St. Ewin or Owen, St. John the Baptist, St. Leonard,
St. Mary-le-Port, St. Mary Redcliffe, St. Michael,
St. Nicholas, St. Peter, St. Stephen, St. Thomas, and
St. Werburgh, besides Temple parish or Holy Cross;
part of the parishes of St. James, St. Paul, and St. Philip
and St. Jacob; and the extra-parochial ward of Castle
Precincts, which has no church, and is exempted from
all ecclesiastical assessments. By the Municipal act
the parish of Clifton, part of Westbury-upon-Trym, and
those portions of the parish of St. Philip and St. Jacob,
and of the united parishes of St. James and St. Paul,
which were in the county of Gloucester, with part of the
parish of Bedminster, in Somerset, have been comprehended within the county of the city of Bristol. The
living of All Saints' is a discharged vicarage, valued in
the king's books at £4. 3. 4.; net income, £160;
patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of
Bristol. The church, to which a tower was added in
1716, is a very ancient structure; the interior is a fine
specimen of the early English style, and contains a magnificent monument, by Rysbrack, to the memory of
Edward Colston, an eminent philanthropist, and a great
benefactor to the city. The living of St. Augustine's is a
discharged vicarage, valued at £6; net income, £320;
patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter. The
church, which was built about the year 1480, combines
various portions in the early, with several in the later,
English style. The living of Christ-Church parish is a
discharged rectory, with that of St. Ewin's united, valued
in the king's books at £11. 10.; net income, £390;
patron, the Rev. J. Strickland. The church is a handsome modern edifice in the Grecian style, with a lofty
tower of two stages, decorated with light columns and
pilasters, and surmounted by an octangular turret and
spire. The living of St. John the Baptist's is a discharged
rectory, with which that of St. Lawrence's was consolidated in 1578, valued at £7. 4. 7.; net income, £150.
The church is a handsome edifice, chiefly in the later
English style; a gallery was erected in 1833 with 120
sittings. The living of St. Leonard's is a discharged
vicarage, with that of St. Nicholas' united, valued at
£12; net income, £253; patrons and appropriators, the
Dean and Chapter. The living of the parish of St. Maryle-Port is a discharged rectory, valued at £7; net income,
£150; patron, the Duke of Buckingham. The church
is a very ancient structure, of early English architecture, with a square embattled tower crowned by
pinnacles.
The living of St. Mary's Redcliffe is a perpetual curacy,
with that of St. Thomas' united, and, with the living of
Abbot's-Leigh, is annexed to the vicarage of Bedminster;
it is valued in the king's books at £12. 6. 3. The church
was founded in 1376, by Simon de Burton, mayor, and
after the damage it sustained from a violent storm, in
1445, that blew down two-thirds of the spire, was extensively repaired by William Cannyngs. It is a spacious
and magnificent cruciform structure, with a lofty and
finely-proportioned tower at the west end, surmounted
by the remaining part of the spire, which has not been
rebuilt. The interior exhibits a continued series of the
richest specimens, in every variety, from the early to the
later style of English architecture; the proportions are
grand, and the details exquisitely finished: but the beautiful east window has been blocked up with paintings
from the pencil of Hogarth, and the organ, which has
been removed to the west end of the nave, is supported
by a heavy mass of modern masonry, by no means
harmonising with the character of the building. The
north porch, which is entirely in the decorated style, is
exceedingly elegant; and the Lady chapel, now used as
a schoolroom, is a fine specimen of the later style. In
the church are two monuments to the memory of
Cannyngs, one bearing his effigy in magisterial robes,
surmounted by a canopy; the other representing him as
Dean of Westbury, he having been promoted to that
dignity on entering into holy orders towards the close of
his life. This exquisitely beautiful structure, being
built of soft porous stone, has been greatly impaired by
time, and is now being restored in all the richness of its
original details, which have mouldered into ruin: the
first stone of the restorations was laid in April, 1846,
by the mayor, in the presence of 15,000 persons. The
remains of Sir William Penn, father of William Penn,
founder of Pennsylvania, are deposited here.
The living of St. Michael's is a discharged rectory,
valued in the king's books at £6; patrons, Trustees;
net income, £372. The church is a neat structure, in
the ancient English style, with a very old tower. The
living of St. Nicholas' is a discharged vicarage, united to
that of St. Leonard's, and valued at £21. 1. 1. The
church is a plain modern edifice, of ancient English
architecture; the interior forms a spacious area undivided by pillars: in the crypt is a handsome monument
to the memory of Alderman John Whitson, who represented the city in four parliaments. The living of St.
Peter's is a discharged rectory, valued at £6. 7. 6.; net
income, £239. The church is a venerable structure, and
though so frequently repaired as to leave little of the
original building, still retains much of its character and
interest: Richard Savage, whose talents and sufferings
have excited so much admiration and sympathy, was
interred in it. The living of St. Stephen's is a discharged
rectory, valued at £16, and in the patronage of the
Crown; net income, £292. The church, founded in
1470, by John Shipward, mayor, is a very handsome
structure in the later style of English architecture, with
a lofty and beautiful tower crowned with light pierced
battlements and turrets, and a porch the details of which
are exquisitely rich. The living of Temple parish is a
discharged vicarage, valued at £3. 4. 2.; net income,
£387. The church, founded by the Knights Templars
in 1145, is a spacious edifice, partaking of the late Norman and early English styles, with a fine tower, declining considerably from the perpendicular, disunited from
the body of the church by the vibration caused by ringing the bells. The living of St. Thomas' is a perpetual
curacy, united to that of St. Mary's Redcliffe, and with
it annexed to the vicarage of Bedminster: the church,
founded in the twelfth century, was rebuilt in 1793, and
is a handsome structure in the later English style. The
living of St. Werburgh's is a discharged rectory, valued
at £10, and in the patronage of the Crown; net income,
£70. The church, founded in 1190, and, with the exception of the tower, which was added to it in 1385,
rebuilt in 1761, is in the later style of English architecture; it is highly ornamented within, and contains a monument to the memory of Robert Thorne,
founder of the grammar school. In this church, the
Litany was first celebrated in English, in 1543.
The living of St. James' is a perpetual curacy; patrons,
Trustees; net income, £551. The church, anciently
collegiate, was made parochial in 1347, when the tower
was added; the interior contains some fine portions in
the Norman style, particularly a curious circular window:
the edifice was restored in 1846. Robert, Earl of Gloucester, founder of the priory of St. James, to which the
church belonged; and Eleonora, niece of King John,
who is said to have been forty years confined in Bristol
Castle; are supposed to lie interred in the church. The
living of St. Paul's is a perpetual curacy; net income,
£513. The living of the parish of St. Philip and St.
Jacob is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £15, and in the gift of Trustees; net income,
£440; impropriator, R. C. Blathwayte, Esq. The church,
founded in the twelfth century, is a spacious and handsome structure in the early English style, with a lofty
square embattled tower: 700 additional sittings have
been lately provided.
St. Mark's, commonly called the mayor's chapel, in
College-green, formerly collegiate, is a small edifice containing elegant specimens of the early, decorated, and
later styles of English architecture, with a beautiful
tower. The altar-piece, a few years since restored, contains some handsome niches in the later style, and fine
tabernacle work; and to the east of the tower is a small
chapel, now used for a vestry-room, with a ceiling of
fan tracery of exquisite workmanship. There are several
episcopal chapels, the principal of which are, Foster's, in
Steep-street, and Colston's, on St. Michael's Hill. Trinity
chapel, a neat building in the later English style, was
erected at an expense of £8800, of which £6000
were granted by the Commissioners for Building New
Churches: the living is a perpetual curacy, with a net
income of £140, in the patronage of the Vicar of the
parish of St. Philip and St. Jacob. St. George's church,
in Great George-street, is a handsome structure, with a
portico of the Doric order: the living is a vicarage, not
in charge; net income, £285; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter. The church of St. Barnabas, near Ashley-place, in St. Paul's parish, was consecrated Sept. 1843, and is a plain edifice with a tower
and spire, the whole erected at a cost of £2200: the
living is a perpetual curacy in the gift of the Incumbent
of St. Paul's, with a net income of £150. St. Luke's
church, in the parish of St. Philip and St. Jacob, cost
£2700, and was consecrated a few days after that of St.
Barnabas: the living is a perpetual curacy in the gift of
the Vicar. The same parish contains the churches of
St. Simon and St. Jude, each of them a perpetual curacy,
in the alternate patronage of the Crown and the Bishop,
and each having a net income of £150. Part of St.
Paul's parish, and part of that of Horfield, now form the
district of St. Andrew Montpelier, for which a church
was consecrated January 1845; the building is cruciform, of correct though plain design, and in the style
which prevailed at the end of the 13th century: the
living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; patron,
the Bishop. A district named The Weir was formed in
1846, out of the parishes of St. Paul, St. Peter, and St.
Philip and St. Jacob, and endowed by the Ecclesiastical
Commissioners. There are places of worship for Baptists,
the Society of Friends, the Connexion of the Countess
of Huntingdon, Independents, Primitive and Wesleyan
Methodists, Moravians, Scotch Seceders, Swedenborgians, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics, besides two
synagogues. An act for establishing a general cemetery
was obtained in 1837.
The free grammar school was founded in 1532, by
Robert Thorne, who bequeathed £1000 for the purpose.
This sum, together with houses and land belonging to
the dissolved hospital of St. Bartholomew, was appropriated to its erection and endowment, and various
benefactions having since been made, the school now
possesses 590 acres of land and some houses; it has
several exhibitions, and two small fellowships at St.
John's College, Oxford. The grammar school in Collegegreen is attached to the cathedral, and endowed with
£40 per annum, for the instruction of the choristers by
one of the minor canons. The free grammar and writing school in the parish of Redcliffe, was established by
letters-patent granted in the 13th of Elizabeth, and
endowed by Alderman Whitson and others, with annuities amounting to £21. Queen Elizabeth's hospital,
founded in 1586 by John Carr, an opulent citizen, whose
endowment of it, increased by subsequent benefactions,
produces about £2400 per annum, is under the management of charity trustees: a new building for this hospital was erected in 1845, the front of which is 400
feet long; it stands on the side of Brandon hill, between
Bristol and Clifton. The free school in St. Augustine's
parish, called Colston's Hospital, was instituted in 1708,
by Edward Colston, who endowed it for 100 boys:
Chatterton was maintained for seven years in this
school, and within that period is thought to have composed several of his poems. The free school in Temple
parish was endowed with £80 per annum by Mr. Colston. The Merchants' Hall school, in St. Stephen's
parish, was established in 1738, by Susannah Holworthy,
and endowed by her and other benefactors; the Merchants' Society, in part of whose hall the school is held,
pay a master £80 per annum. The school in Pile-street,
for boys of the parishes of Redcliffe and St. Thomas, is
supported partly by an endowment of £20 per annum,
by Mr. Colston; the income is about £170. The Red
Maids' school was founded in 1627, and endowed by
Alderman Whitson, for girls: a building in the ancient
collegiate style, has been erected for it on a more eligible
site, from the designs of Mr. C. Dyer. There are also,
a school in Temple parish, endowed with a permanent
fund for girls; the Diocesan school, containing 240
boys and 120 girls; the Clergy Daughters' school,
established in 1833; Ellbridge's school for girls, supported by endowment; and national and other schools
opened in various parts of the city.
Trinity hospital, or almshouse, for ten aged men and
thirty-six poor women, is of very ancient date; the
endowment, increased by benefactions, produces £790
per annum, and the premises consist of two separate
ranges of buildings, on opposite sides of Old Marketstreet, to one of which is attached a neat chapel.
Foster's almshouses, in Steep-street, were founded and
endowed, in 1492, by John Foster, merchant, for fourteen aged persons, whose revenue is at present about
£330; they are built of stone, and have a small chapel
annexed. Temple hospital was founded and endowed in
1613, by the Rev. Dr. White; its revenue amounts to
upwards of £600, and the number of the inmates has
been increased to 24: the premises consist of two
parallel ranges of buildings, connected at one end by a
wall, the area forming a garden. Two almshouses of
stone, one in Temple-street, containing twelve tenements,
and the other in the old market-place, containing sixteen, were founded in 1679, by Alderman Stevens; the
endowment, consisting of 354 acres of land, produces
£750 per annum. The Merchants' almshouses, in Kingstreet, were founded by John Welch and other mariners,
in the 4th of Elizabeth; they are endowed with £1000,
the bequest of Richard Jones, Esq., of Stowey, and
comprise 31 tenements, occupied by nineteen seamen
and twelve women. Colston's almshouses, on St. Michael's
Hill, were founded and endowed in 1696, by Edward
Colston, for twelve aged men and twelve aged women;
the income is about £300. Mrs. Sarah Ridley, in 1716,
founded an almshouse, which she endowed with £2200,
for five bachelors and five maids; the endowment was
augmented by Mr. John Jocham with £1000, and, with
subsequent benefactions, produces £155 per annum.
The almshouses in Milk-street were founded in 1722, by
Mrs. Elizabeth Blanchard, who endowed them for five aged
persons; the income is £95. The revenue arising from
the various charitable endowments amounts to nearly
£17,000 per annum. The Infirmary, the great medical
and surgical school for the western counties, is conducted
on a plan of truly beneficent liberality, and embraces
every possible case of calamity or disease; it was opened
for the reception of patients in 1786, and is nobly supported by donations and voluntary subscriptions. The
building to which a new wing was added a few years
since, at an expense of £10,000, is spacious and well
arranged, and in an open and healthy situation. A
new hospital and dispensary have been instituted in the
populous parish of Bedminster, on the Somersetshire side
of the city; and numerous other charitable and benevolent institutions are extensively patronized.
Of the ancient fortifications,—the tower gateway, a
plain arch at the end of John-street, and St. John's
gate, under the tower of St. John's church, decorated
with statues and much ornamented, are all that now
exist. There are partial remains of some of the numerous Religious Houses which once flourished in the
city and its immediate vicinity, comprised in the buildings of the schools and charitable institutions established
by the corporation and by individuals. Of these houses
the principal were, a priory of Benedictine monks, to
the north-east of the city, founded by Robert, Earl of
Gloucester, in the latter part of the reign of Henry I.,
or the beginning of that of Stephen; a nunnery, to the
north of the city, established in the time of Henry II.,
by Eva, widow of Robert Fitzharding, of which she
was prioress, and the revenue of which, at the Dissolution, was £21. 11. 3.; St. John's hospital, on the road
to Bath, instituted in the reign of King John, the revenue
of which was £51. 10. 4.; St. Catherine's hospital,
founded in the reign of Henry III., by Robert de Berkeley, and the revenue of which was £21. 15. 8.; St.
Lawrence's hospital for lepers, established in the time
of Henry III.; an hospital dedicated to the Blessed
Virgin and St. Mark, instituted in 1229, by Maurice de
Gaunt, and the revenue of which was £140; a house of
Black friars, by the same founder, who also erected a
college of calendaries; a house of Grey friars, established in 1234; a house of White friars, instituted in
1267 by Edward I., when Prince of Wales; an establishment for Augustine friars, founded in the reign of
Henry II., by Simon and William Montacute; and
Trinity hospital, near Lawford's Gate, established by John
Barstable in the time of Henry V. In excavating for
the Great Western railway, about the beginning of June,
1839, a remarkably fine tusk of the mammoth was discovered, lying on a bed of new red sandstone, about
seven feet below the surface, between the Bristol cottonworks and St. Philip's bridge; some very fine specimens of
iron and lead ores were also found near the same spot.
The city is distinguished as the birthplace of many
Eminent Characters, among whom may be noticed Sebastian Cabot, who first discovered the continent of North
America, in 1498; Hugh Elliot, who discovered Newfoundland, in 1527; William Grocyn, Greek professor
at Oxford in the beginning of the sixteenth century;
Tobias Matthew, Archbishop of York; the Rev. Mr.
Catcott, author of a treatise on the Deluge; Sir William
Draper, who distinguished himself by his epistolary
replies to the strictures of Junius; Admiral Sir William
Penn; the Rev. John Lewis, author of the Life of Wycliffe, History of the Translations of the Bible, &c.; the
poet Chatterton; Mrs. Mary Robinson, from the sweetness of her poetry called the British Sappho; Edward
Colston, merchant, who died in 1721, and Richard Reynolds, one of the Society of Friends, and a proprietor of
the iron-works at Colebrook-dale, both distinguished for
their munificent charities; Thomas Edward Bowditch,
the African traveller; Robert Southey; and Sir Thomas
Lawrence, Bird, and several other artists of eminence.
Bristol gives the titles of Earl and Marquess to the
family of Hervey.
Briston (All Saints)
BRISTON (All Saints), a parish, in the union of
Erpingham, hundred of Holt, W. division of Norfolk,
4 miles (S. S. W.) from Holt; containing 963 inhabitants. It comprises 2824a. 1r. 5p., of which about 2181
acres are arable, 242 meadow, pasture, and woodland,
and 400 waste and common; the village, which is considerable, is situated near the springhead of the river
Bure. A swine and sheep market is held every Tuesday,
a cattle-fair on the 26th of May, and a wake on the day
after Old Michaelmas-day. The living is a discharged
vicarage, valued in the king's books at £4. 9. 9½., and in
the gift of the Rev. Robert Bond: the impropriation
belongs to Winton charity; the glebe contains 39½
acres. The church, which is in the decorated and later
English styles, and consists of a nave and chancel,
formerly had a north aisle, the arches, though now filled
up, being still visible; the tower fell down in 1724.
There are places of worship for Independents, Wesleyans,
and Primitive Methodists.
Britford, or Burford (St. Peter)
BRITFORD, or Burford (St. Peter), a parish, in
the union of Alderbury, hundred of Cawden and
Cadworth, Salisbury and Amesbury, and S. divisions of
Wilts, 1½ mile (S. E. by S.) from Salisbury; containing,
with the hamlets of East Harnham and Longford, 878
inhabitants. A stream in the parish was cut for a canal
in the reign of Charles II., to form a line of communication with Christchurch, in the county of Southampton;
but owing to the shifting of the sand, it was never
completed. The manufacture of horse-hair is carried
on to a limited extent; and a large fair for sheep is
held on Aug. 12th. The living is a vicarage, valued in
the king's books at £13; net income, £281; patrons
and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of Salisbury.
The great tithes have been commuted for £700, and the
glebe comprises 39 acres; the vicarial have been commuted for £350, and the glebe comprises one acre. The
church, a spacious cruciform structure, with a central
tower, contains a tomb considered by some to be that
of the Duke of Buckingham, who was beheaded by
Richard III.
Brittenton
BRITTENTON, a hamlet, in the parish of Standlake, union of Witney, hundred of Bampton, county
of Oxford; containing 162 inhabitants.
Britwell
BRITWELL, a liberty, in the parish and hundred of
Burnham, county of Buckingham, 4 miles (N. N. W.)
from Eton; containing 94 inhabitants.
Britwell-Prior
BRITWELL-PRIOR, a chapelry, in the parish of
Newington, union of Henley, hundred of Ewelme,
county of Oxford, 6¼ miles (S. S. W.) from Tetsworth;
containing 52 inhabitants. The mansion-house was
formerly a nunnery, and subsequently belonged to the
Weld family.
Britwell-Salome (St. Nicholas)
BRITWELL-SALOME (St. Nicholas), a parish, in
the union of Henley, hundred of Lewknor, county of
Oxford, 5½ miles (S. by W.) from Tetsworth; containing 233 inhabitants. It comprises 726a. 3r. 26p., exclusively of ground occupied by a beech wood on the
west side of Britwell Hill. An act for inclosing lands
was passed in 1842. The living is a rectory, valued in
the king's books at £6. 19. 2.; net income, including
glebe, £200; patron, the Earl of Carrington. The lower
Ikeneld-street passes under the hill.
Brixham (Virgin Mary)
BRIXHAM (Virgin Mary), a sea-port, markettown, and parish, in the union of Totnes, hundred
of Haytor, Paignton and S. divisions of Devon, 27¾
miles (S.) from Exeter, and 198 (W. S. W.) from London;
containing 5684 inhabitants. This town, at which William, Prince of Orange, landed on the 5th of November,
1688, is pleasantly situated near the southern extremity
of Torbay, on the west side; and is irregularly built,
though containing many good houses, several of which
are on the cliffs above the harbour: a handsome column
of granite has been erected on the spot where the prince
landed. The inhabitants are amply supplied with water;
the air is salubrious, the environs pleasant, and its vicinity to Torquay renders it desirable as a place of residence. During the late war, it was of some importance
as a garrison town, the barracks, at Bury Head, being
sufficiently spacious to accommodate several regiments;
they are inclosed in two regular fortresses, which, with
the ditches and drawbridges, remain in complete repair,
though the barracks have been dismantled. The port
is a member of that of Dartmouth, and carries on a
considerable coasting-trade, in which 120 vessels, of
from 60 to 150 tons' burthen, are employed; they are
also engaged in the foreign fruit-trade during the season.
The harbour, consisting of two basins, communicating
with each other, is safe and commodious; the outer
basin was formed by the erection of a second pier, which
was begun in 1803, and completed in 1809, by subscription, under an act authorizing the lords of the
manor to raise £6000 on security of the tolls. On the
liquidation of the debt now due, it is in contemplation
to erect another pier, on the eastern side of the harbour,
towards Bury Head; in furtherance of which object, an
act for improving the pier, harbour, and market, and
for the formation of a breakwater, was obtained in
1837: vessels will then be enabled to ride in perfect
safety during easterly winds, and Brixham will be a
safe harbour for both homeward and outward bound
ships. During spring-tides the water rises to the height
of 24 feet at the pier-head. There are 105 vessels of
from 20 to 45 tons' burthen, and 64 smaller boats, engaged in the fishing-trade, which is carried on to a considerable extent; the fish caught are chiefly turbot and
soles, for the supply of the London, Bath, and Exeter
markets. The trade of the town has derived some increase from being the rendezvous of ships of war, which
here lay in their supply of water. There are some extensive quarries of marble in the vicinity. The marketdays are Tuesday and Saturday; a fair is held on WhitTuesday and two following days.
The parish is divided into Higher and Lower Brixham, and comprises 5213a. 3r. 12p., of which 777 acres
are common or waste. The living is a discharged
vicarage, with the perpetual curacy of Churston-Ferrers
annexed, valued in the king's books at £52. 15., and in
the patronage of the Crown; impropriator, Miss Knollis;
net income, £494, with a house. The church, situated
in Higher Brixham, is an ancient structure, containing
some interesting monuments, among which is the cenotaph of the late Judge Buller; it was enlarged in 1825.
The church at Lower Brixham was erected about the
year 1822, by the vicar, aided by a large subscription,
and by a grant of £1200 from the Parliamentary Commissioners, and was made a district church by act of
the 58th of George III.; it is a neat building in the
English style, and contains 300 free sittings. The living
is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Crown; net income, £150. There are places of worship for Baptists
and Wesleyans. At Higher Brixham is Lay Well, the
water of which ebbs and flows about nine times in an
hour; the variation is about an inch and a quarter.
Bury Head is said to have been the site of a Roman
fortress: several ancient coins, in excellent preservation, were found in the vicinity in 1830.
Brixton
BRIXTON, a parish, in the union of Plympton
St. Mary, hundred of Plympton, Ermington and
Plympton, and S. divisions of Devon, 5 miles (E.) from
Plymouth; containing 823 inhabitants. This parish
comprises 2838a. 33p.; and the road from Plymouth
to Exeter, through Totnes, and that from Plymouth to
Dartmouth, through Modbury and Kingsbridge, intersect the village. Quarries of slate and marble are
wrought, the marble being used for building, for the
making of lime, and for mending roads; coal and culm
are imported, and agricultural produce and slate are exported, by means of the river Yealm, which forms the
southern boundary of the parish. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £124; patrons, the Dean
and Canons of Windsor; impropriator, T. Splatt, Esq.,
whose tithes have been commuted for £642. The church
is a remarkably neat structure, in the later English style,
and is supposed to have been built about the close of the
fifteenth century, with the exception of the chancel,
which is part of a former chapel. Lewis Fortescue, a
baron of the exchequer in the reign of Henry VIII., was
born at Spriddleston; and Elizæus Heale, of the Inner
Temple, in the reign of Elizabeth, who was called
"Pious uses Heale," from his bequeathing £1500 per
annum for charitable purposes, was born at Wollaton;
both which places are in Brixton parish.
Brixton, or Brighstone (St. Mary)
BRIXTON, or Brighstone (St. Mary), a parish,
in the liberty of West Medina, Isle of Wight incorporation and division of the county of Southampton,
7 miles (S. W. by W.) from Newport; containing 710
inhabitants. The village is pleasantly situated, commanding an extensive view of the British Channel; and
in the neighbourhood are several of those chasms which
form so distinguishing a feature in this part of the coast.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£30. 3. 4., and in the patronage of the Bishop of Winchester: the tithes have been commuted for £670. The
church is of very primitive character, with a massive
tower surmounted by a low spire of lead; the interior
is neatly fitted up. The rectory-house is a pleasant
residence, and the glebe comprises 5 acres. The Rev.
Noel Digby, rector, conveyed in 1814 an estate in trust
for the establishment of a school. The celebrated
Bishop Ken was rector of the parish, as was also the
present Bishop Wilberforce.
Brixton
BRIXTON, an ecclesiastical district, in the parish
and union of Lambeth, E. division of the hundred of
Brixton and of the county of Surrey, 4½ miles (S.
S. W.) from London; containing 10,175 inhabitants.
This is one of the most agreeable suburbs of the metropolis, and is divided into two parts, North Brixton and
Brixton Hill. It consists principally of a line of road
leading from Kennington to Streatham, upwards of two
miles in length, on each side of which are ranges of neat
and well-built houses, with others in detached situations
surrounded by small shrubberies. Within its limits,
also, is Tulse Hill, a gradual ascent from the church,
declining a little towards the east, and returning near
its greatest acclivity into the main road at Brixton Hill.
On both sides are elegant villas and handsome cottages,
the country residences of respectable families, commanding a fine view of the metropolis, and rich prospects
over the adjacent country. Works on a very extensive
scale have been formed for supplying the neighbourhood
with water. On Brixton Hill stands the house of correction for the county, containing ten wards and ten
day-rooms for the classification of prisoners; the treadmill, completed in 1821, was the first established.
The church, dedicated to St. Matthew, and consecrated in June, 1824, was erected pursuant to an act of
parliament for dividing the extensive and populous
parish of Lambeth into five districts, Brixton being one.
It is in the Grecian style, with a handsome portico supported by four fluted columns of the Doric order at the
west, and contains 1926 sittings, of which 1022 are free;
the expense of its erection amounted to £15,192, and
was defrayed by Her Majesty's Commissioners. The
tower was struck down by lightning, April 24th, 1842.
The living is a district incumbency; net income, £650;
patron, the Archbishop of Canterbury. At Denmark
Hill, in the district, is a chapel dedicated to St. Matthew.
Holland Chapel, North Brixton, is a neat edifice, with a
bell-turret; it was built in 1823, for Independents, but
has for some years been an episcopal proprietary chapel.
There are three places of worship for Independents, and
one each for Wesleyans and Unitarians. The St. Ann's
Society, for the maintenance, clothing, and education of
children whose parents have been previously in more
prosperous circumstances, was originally founded in
1709, and for nearly a century had only a day school in
London for clothing and instructing thirty children of
each sex from all parts of the kingdom. The first
asylum which the society established was at Lavenham,
in Suffolk, where twenty boys were admitted in 1794;
this was subsequently removed to Peckham, in Surrey,
and, in 1830, to the present building at Brixton Hill,
erected for 150 children at an expense of £8000, of
which £2500 were paid for the site. In 1838 the building was enlarged so as to admit 200 boys and 100 girls.
It is a handsome edifice of brick, having a basement of
stone, with a central piazza, from which rises a portico
of four Ionic columns, supporting a triangular pediment, with a frieze and cornice continued round the
building, which is also decorated at the angles with antæ
of corresponding character; it occupies, with the
grounds attached, more than two acres of freehold land.
In Acre Lane is Trinity Asylum, for aged females,
founded and endowed by Thomas Bayley, Esq., in 1824;
the building comprises sixteen neat tenements. Mrs.
Mary Bayley, his widow, has invested the sum of £2000
towards founding, in connexion with the above, an
asylum for the education and maintenance of the orphans of gospel ministers and others. The Reform
almshouses, erected from a fund raised by subscription,
in commemoration of the passing of the Reform act,
were intended to form three sides of a quadrangle: one
range only, however, has been erected, containing 31
houses occupied by 60 tenants, behind each of which is
an allotment of garden-ground.
Brixton-Deverill (St. Michael)
BRIXTON-DEVERILL (St. Michael), a parish, in
the union of Warminster, hundred of Heytesbury,
Warminster and S. divisions of Wilts, 4½ miles (S.)
from Warminster; containing 197 inhabitants. It comprises by admeasurement 2450 acres, which, with the
exception of 50 of woodland, are chiefly arable; and the
river Willy runs through the parish: the surface is
hilly, and the soil clayey. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £19. 1. 0½., and in the
patronage of the Bishop of Salisbury: the tithes have
been commuted for £370, and there are 70½ acres of
glebe. Alfred the Great is said to have slept here on
the night before the battle of Westbury. Dr. Huntingford, late Bishop of Hereford, was for some time curate
of the parish.
Brixworth (All Saints)
BRIXWORTH (All Saints), a parish, and the head
of a union, in the hundred of Orlingbury, N. division
of the county of Northampton, 6 miles (N.) from
Northampton; containing 1050 inhabitants. This parish is bounded on the west by a branch of the river
Nene, and intersected by the road from Northampton
to Harborough; it presents a moderately undulated
surface, and consists of 2972 acres, of a very superior
soil. The village, lying on the left of the road, is of
some extent. A considerable portion of the female
population are employed in making lace; and there are
some stone-quarries and clay-pits. A chartered fair is
held on June 5th, but it has dwindled into a sale only
for earthenware and gingerbread. The living is a
discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at
£14. 15. 10.; net income, £300; patron, the Chancellor in the Cathedral of Salisbury, as Prebendary of
Brixworth. Land and a certain annual money payment
were assigned in lieu of tithes, under an inclosure act,
in 1780. The church is a remarkable edifice, of large
dimensions, and of very remote antiquity, being partly
Anglo-Roman or early Saxon, and partly Norman, with
repeated alterations and insertions in the various styles
of English architecture. The walls are mostly built
with rough red ragstone, in pieces not much larger
than common bricks; and all the arches are turned,
and most of them covered, with courses of Roman
bricks or tiles. The nave and lower part of the square
tower are of Anglo-Roman or early Saxon architecture,
exhibiting, since the removal of the plaster and whitewash, the Roman bricks, or tiles, in admirable preservation. The upper part of the tower, and the lofty
steeple, the summit of which is about 140 feet from the
ground, have been recently rebuilt; and attached to the
western side of the square tower is a round Saxon
tower, containing a winding flight of stone steps, leading
to the upper story of the former. On inspecting the
opening of a grave in the chancel, on the 4th of Feb.
1841, the Rev. Mr. Watkins, the vicar, discovered a
portion of the original apse, which having been subsequently traced, the whole circuit of the original wall
was found, together with an ancient floor of hardened
cement, four feet below the floor of the present chancel.
There is a place of worship for Wesleyans. A free
school is endowed with a moiety of 22 acres of good
land, the bequest of Thomas Roe, of Scaldwell, in 1665;
and there are also schools supported by the dissenters.
Divers plots of land have been assigned by unknown
benefactors for charitable purposes, consisting of six
acres for repairing the church, and thirteen for the
benefit of the poor. The union of Brixworth comprises
33 parishes or places, under the superintendence of
thirty-eight guardians, and contains a population of
14,330. It is thought that a monastery, or nunnery,
anciently existed in the parish. Ammonites, belemnites,
and terebratulæ are occasionally discovered in the marlstone beds here.
Broad Blunsdon.—See Blunsdon, Broad.
BROAD BLUNSDON.—See Blunsdon, Broad.—
And other places having a similar distinguishing prefix will
be found under the proper name.
Broadbridge
BROADBRIDGE, a tything, in the parish of Bosham, union of West Bourne, hundred of Bosham,
rape of Chichester, W. division of Sussex; containing 9 inhabitants.
Broad-Chalk (All Saints)
BROAD-CHALK (All Saints), a parish, in the
union of Wilton, hundred of Chalk, Salisbury and
Amesbury, and S. divisions of Wilts, 5¾ miles (S. W.
by S.) from Wilton; containing, with the tythings of
Knighton and Stoke-Farthing, 775 inhabitants. The
living is a discharged rectory, with the vicarages of
Alvediston and Bower-Chalk united, valued in the king's
books at £27. 14.; net income, £336; patrons, the
Provost and Fellows of King's College, Cambridge, the
impropriators of the two vicarages. A portion of land
was assigned in commutation of a modus on certain
estates in this parish and in that of Chilmark, by a
private act obtained in 1814. There are several vestiges
of antiquity, the principal of which are, an encampment
including nearly six acres, and a barrow called Gawen's
barrow.
Broadfield
BROADFIELD, a parish, in the union of Buntingford, hundred of Odsey, county of Hertford, 3 miles
(N. W. by W.) from Buntingford; containing 6 inhabitants. The living is a rectory, annexed to that of
Cottered, and valued in the king's books at £10: the
church is in ruins.
Broadfield
BROADFIELD, a tything, in the parish of Wrington, union of Axbridge, hundred of Brent with
Wrington, E. division of Somerset; containing 575
inhabitants.
Broadgate, or Bradgate
BROADGATE, or Bradgate, an extra-parochial
liberty, in the hundred of West Goscote, N. division
of the county of Leicester, 5 miles (N. W.) from Leicester; containing 7 inhabitants. Here are the ruins
of a mansion once the property of the noble family of
Grey of Groby, of which was the accomplished and
unfortunate Lady Jane Grey, who was born here in
1537. The ruins are small, chiefly composed of brick,
and exhibit no signs of architectural grandeur, the house
having been a large but low building in the form of a
square, and turreted at each corner; it was built in the
early part of the 16th century, by Thomas, Lord Grey,
second Marquess of Dorset. Situated on the verge of
Charnwood forest, it combined the variety of rocky and
mountainous scenery on one side, and a rich and fertilized plain on the other. The grounds of which the
park is formed, are about six miles in circumference,
and surrounded and intersected by walls; they are well
stocked with deer, and an extensive rabbit-warren supplies the neighbouring town of Leicester. A small stream,
abounding in trout, enters the park near the church of
Newtown-Linford, and, working its way amidst the
rock and wood with which this part of the demesne is
overspread, adds materially to the romantic beauty of
the scenery. The Earl of Stamford and Warrington is
the proprietor of Broadgate, which consists of about
1200 acres.
Broadgreen
BROADGREEN, a hamlet, in the parish of Broadwas, union of Martley, Lower division of the hundred
of Oswaldslow, Worcester and W. divisions of the
county of Worcester; containing 113 inhabitants.
It lies a short distance north of the road from Worcester
to Bromyard, and half a mile north-east of the village
of Broadwas.