Courage
COURAGE, a tything, in the parish of Chieveley,
union of Newbury, hundred of Faircross, county of
Berks, 4½ miles (N. N. E.) from Newbury; containing
277 inhabitants. The vicarial tithes have been commuted for £342.
Court
COURT, a tything, in the parish of Portbury, union
of Bedminster, hundred of Portbury, E. division of
Somerset; containing 59 inhabitants.
Courteenhall (St. Peter and St. Paul)
COURTEENHALL (St. Peter and St. Paul), a
parish, in the union of Hardingstone, hundred of
Wymersley, S. division of the county of Northampton, 5½ miles (S.) from Northampton; containing
143 inhabitants. This place is situated between the two
roads from Northampton to London, one by NewportPagnell and the other by Stony-Stratford, and is within
a mile of the Roade station of the London and Birmingham railway: the Grand Junction canal passes
within two miles. The number of acres is 1314, mostly
pasture. There is a quarry of limestone used for building and draining. The living is a rectory, valued in the
king's books at £12. 10. 10., and in the patronage of
the Crown: the tithes have been commuted for £300,
and the glebe comprises 60 acres, with a glebe-house.
The church, supposed to have been built about the year
1587, is a neat structure, having some fine arches in the
later English style; on the north side is a handsome
monument, representing in full length Sir Samuel Jones,
a former possessor of the estate, who provided the
church with a set of bells. A free grammar school for
boys was founded in 1680, by Sir Samuel, who bequeathed £500 for the erection of a school-house, a
rent-charge of £80 for the master, and another of £20
for the usher. The same benefactor bequeathed £500
for repairing the church.
Courtway
COURTWAY, a hamlet, in the parish of Spaxton,
union of Bridgwater, hundred of Cannington, W.
division of Somerset; containing 31 inhabitants.
Cove
COVE, a tything in the parish of Yateley, hundred of Crondall, Odiham and N. divisions of the
county of Southampton, 9 miles (E. N. E.) from Odiham; containing 433 inhabitants. It is within threequarters of a mile of the Farnborough station of the
London and Southampton railway. A church for the
inhabitants of Cove and South Hawley, was built in
1844, at a cost of £1200; it is a small handsome structure, in the Norman style. The living is in the gift of
the Bishop of Winchester.
Cove, Chapel
COVE, CHAPEL, a chapelry, in Pitt Quarter of
the parish of Tiverton, union and hundred of Tiverton, Cullompton and N. divisions of Devon, 5 miles
(N.) from Tiverton. The chapel is dedicated to St. John
the Baptist.
Cove, North (St. Botolph)
COVE, NORTH (St. Botolph), a parish, in the
union and hundred of Wangford, E. division of Suffolk, 3 miles (E. by S.) from Beccles; containing 219
inhabitants. This parish is situated on the road from
Beccles to Lowestoft, and comprises by computation
2000 acres: the navigable river Waveney separates it,
on the north, from the county of Norfolk. The Hall,
and about 290 acres of land, were sold in 1845 to the
Rev. Thomas Farr for £40,050. The living is a discharged rectory, with that of Willingham annexed,
valued in the king's books at £10, and in the patronage
of the Crown; net income, £353: there are about 5
roods of glebe. The church is in the later English style,
and has an embattled tower, and a rich Norman doorway on the south; the font is curiously sculptured.
There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.
Cove, South (St. Lawrence)
COVE, SOUTH (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the
union and hundred of Blything, E. division of Suffolk, 3 miles (N.) from Southwold; containing 194
inhabitants, and comprising 1172 acres. The living is
a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at
£6. 2. 11., and in the gift of Sir Thomas S. Gooch,
Bart.: the tithes have been commuted for £267. 10.;
there is a glebe-house, and the glebe comprises 13 acres.
The church, an ancient edifice, has some remains of
Norman architecture.
Cove-Hithe.—See North-Ales.
COVE-HITHE.—See North-Ales.
Coven
COVEN, a liberty, in the parish of Brewood, union
of Penkridge, E. division of the hundred of Cuttlestone, S. division of the county of Stafford, 2 miles
(E. S. E.) from Brewood; containing 650 inhabitants.
It lies on the road from Wolverhampton to Penkridge,
and has a considerable village. The Staffordshire and
Worcestershire canal, and the Liverpool and Birmingham railway, pass through the liberty. A chapel of ease
was built in 1839 by Edward Monckton, Esq., of Somerford Hall, and fitted up by the inhabitants. There is a
place of worship for Wesleyans; also a national school,
attached to the chapel.
Coveney (St. Peter)
COVENEY (St. Peter), a parish, in the hundred
of South Witchford, union and Isle of Ely, county
of Cambridge, 6 miles (W. N. W.) from Ely; containing, with the chapelry of Manea and the hamlet of
Wardy-Hill, 1505 inhabitants. It stands on an eminence overlooking the Fens. The manor belonged to
the monks of Ely, and having been for some time wrongfully withheld from them, was recovered by Bishop
Nigell before the year 1169: among subsequent owners,
occur the families of Lisle, Scrope, and Robinson. The
living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £5,
and in the gift of Lord Rokeby, with a net income of
£809: the tithes have been commuted for £227. 14.;
and there is a glebe of 30 acres. The church is an ancient edifice with a thatched roof. The chapel at Manea
forms a separate cure. There is a national school supported by subscription; and about £50 per annum, the
amount of various bequests, are distributed among the
poor on St. Thomas's day. Great numbers of oak, and a
few other trees, have been discovered buried at various
depths below the surface, and some almost petrified are
found in various places.
Covenham (St. Bartholomew)
COVENHAM (St. Bartholomew), commonly called
Cawthorpe, a parish, in the union of Louth, wapentake of Ludborough, parts of Lindsey, county of
Lincoln, 6 miles (N. N. E.) from Louth; containing
277 inhabitants. It comprises 1434a. 1r. 28p., and is
watered at its eastern extremity by the river Ludd, from
which a canal runs to Tetney Haven, at the mouth of
the Humber. The living is a discharged rectory, valued
in the king's books at £17. 12. 8.; net income, £287;
patrons, the Heirs of Sapsford Harold, Esq., for one
turn, and of the Rev. C. D. Holland, for two turns. The
tithes of this parish, and of Covenham St. Mary, were
commuted for corn-rents, under an inclosure act, in
1793. The glebe consists of about 62 acres in this
parish, and 2½ in that of Grainthorpe. The church
contains a curious octagonal font, much admired by
antiquaries; and in the chancel is an effigy in metal
of John Skypwyth, Knt., who was interred here in July,
1415. The church-land comprises 26 acres, allotted at
the inclosure. There are places of worship for Primitive
Methodists and Wesleyans.
Covenham (St. Mary)
COVENHAM (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Louth, wapentake of Ludborough, parts of Lindsey,
county of Lincoln, 5½ miles (N. N. E.) from Louth;
containing 169 inhabitants, and comprising 973a. 1r. 26p.
The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's
books at £10, and in the patronage of the Crown; net
income, £197. The church is an ancient edifice, with a
tower: in the north wall of the chancel is an arched
compartment, ornamented with tracery, and supposed to
have formerly contained a tomb. The church-land
comprises 17a. 1r. 5p., allotted at the inclosure of the
parish, and the rent is applied as far as necessary to the
repair of the church, the residue being given to the poor.
Here was a cell belonging to the monastery of St. Carilephus, in the diocese of Mains.
Coventry
COVENTRY, an ancient
city, in the hundred of
Knightlow, N. division of
the county of Warwick, 10
miles (N. E.) from Warwick,
18 (S. E.) from Birmingham,
and 91 (N. N. W.) from London, on the road to Holyhead; containing, with the
hamlets of Radford, Whitley, and Keresley, 31,430
inhabitants. In ancient records this place is called
Coventre, and Conventrey, probably from the foundation
of a convent, of which St. Osberg was abbess in the
year 1016, when it was burnt by Canute, King of Denmark, and Edric the traitor, who, having invaded Mercia,
destroyed many towns in Warwickshire. On the site of
this convent, Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and his countess
Godiva, about the beginning of the reign of Edward the
Confessor, erected a monastery, which they munificently
endowed, and decorated with such a profusion of costly
ornaments, that, according to William of Malmesbury,
the walls were covered with gold and silver. About this
time, Leofric, at the intercession of his countess, granted
the citizens a charter conferring various privileges and
immunities, which gift was commemorated in the south
window of Trinity church, by portraits of the earl and
countess, with a poetical legend. Leofric died in 1057,
and was interred in the monastery which he had founded.
Shortly after the Norman Conquest, the lordship of
Coventry became vested in the earls of Chester, of whom
Ralph, the third earl of that name, married Lucia,
grand-daughter of Leofric. Their son Ralph having
espoused the cause of the Empress Matilda, his castle of
Coventry was occupied by the forces of Stephen: the
earl besieged it, but the king came in person to its relief,
and repulsed him after an obstinate conflict. In 1141,
Robert Marmion, the inveterate enemy of the Earl of
Chester, took possession of the monastery, from which
he expelled the monks; fortified the church; and cut
deep trenches in the adjoining fields, concealing them
only with a slight covering: on the earl's approach to
dislodge him, Marmion drew out his forces, but forgetting the exact situation of the trenches, his horse fell
with him to the ground, and in this situation his head
was severed from his body by a private soldier. In the
reign of Henry III., the twelve noblemen and prelates
elected to decide upon the terms by which such as had
forfeited their estates during the baronial war might be
again admitted to enjoy them, met here; and their decree is called the Dictum de Kenilworth, from its having
been published in the king's camp at Kenilworth, during
his siege of the castle, in 1266. In 1355 was commenced
the erection of the city walls, which were of great height
and thickness, and subsequently extended to three miles
in circuit; they were strengthened with thirty-two
towers, and contained twelve principal gates, each defended by a portcullis.
Arms.
In 1397, Richard II. appointed this town for the decision, by single combat, of the quarrel between the Dukes
of Hereford and Norfolk; and magnificent preparations
were made on Gosford Green for this encounter, which,
however, was prevented by the banishment of the combatants, a measure that ultimately caused the deposition of the king. In 1404, the Duke of Hereford, who
had become Duke of Lancaster by the death of his
father, John of Gaunt, on his return from exile, having
succeeded to the crown by the title of Henry IV., held a
parliament here, which, from the exclusion of all lawyers,
was called Parliamentum Indoctorum. In 1411, the
Prince of Wales, afterwards Henry V., was arrested at
the priory by John Horneby, mayor of the city, probably for some tumultuous excess, the particulars of which
are not recorded. In 1459, Henry VI. held a parliament
in the chapter-house of the priory, which, from the number of attainders passed against the Duke of York and
others, was, by the Yorkists, called Parliamentum Diabolicum; the acts made in it were annulled by the succeeding parliament. In 1467, Edward IV. and his
queen kept the festival of Christmas at Coventry; two
years after, Earl Rivers and his son, who had both been
seized by a party of the northern rebels at Grafton,
were beheaded on Gosford Green, to the east of the
city. In the war between the houses of York and Lancaster, Richard, Earl of Warwick, marched with all his
ordnance and warlike stores into this city, where he
remained for a short time, during which Edward IV.,
on his route from Leicester, attempted to force an entrance. Being repulsed, the king passed on to Warwick, and thence to London; and having gained the
battle of Barnet, in which the Earl of Warwick was
slain, and that near Tewkesbury shortly after, he returned to Coventry, and deprived the citizens of their
charter, for the restoration of which they were compelled
to pay a fine of 500 marks. In 1474, Edward IV. and
his queen kept the festival of St. George here; and
subsequently, in 1485, Henry VII., on his route from
Bosworth Field, was received here with every demonstration of respect.
In the early part of the sixteenth century, Coventry
became the theatre of religious persecution: the Bishop
of Chester, coming to examine persons accused of heresy,
condemned seven to the stake, which sentence was executed in the Little Park. In 1554, Mr. Hopkins, sheriff
for the city, was confined in the Fleet prison, on a charge
of heresy, but was liberated after great intercession,
and fled the kingdom; in the following year, Laurence
Saunders, Robert Glover, A.M., and Cornelius Bongey,
were burnt for their religious tenets. In 1565, Queen
Elizabeth visited the city; and in 1569, Mary, Queen
of Scots, on her removal from Tutbury Castle for greater
security, was for some time at the Bull inn, in the custody of the Earls of Shrewsbury and Huntingdon. In
1607, the city suffered considerable damage from an
inundation, which entered 257 houses, washing away
furniture and property of various kinds: the flood rose
to the height of three yards, and after remaining for
three or four hours, suddenly subsided; clusters of
white snails were afterwards found in the houses and in
the trees, supposed to have collected prior to the influx
of the water, which, though observed at the distance of
nearly a mile from the town, was so instantaneous in its
approach, as to preclude all means of precaution. King
James, attended by a large retinue of the nobility, visited
the city in 1617, when a cup of pure gold, weighing 45
ounces, and containing the sum of £100, was presented
to him by the corporation, which his majesty ordered
to be preserved with the royal plate for the heirs of the
crown.
During the parliamentary war, Charles I., having
erected his standard at Nottingham in 1641, and taken
the city of Leicester, sent orders to the mayor and
sheriffs of Coventry to attend him at that place; but
the majority of the citizens embraced the cause of the
parliament, and a party having obtained possession of
the magazine in Spon Tower, which the Earl of Northampton had directed the aldermen to secure for the
royalists, kept it for Lord Brooke, who removed it to
Warwick Castle. The parliamentarian party in the city,
being reinforced with 400 men from Birmingham, held it
against the king, who sent a herald to demand entrance,
which being refused, some cannon were planted in the
Great Park and on Stivichall Hill, which played upon the
town, but without effect. Finding the citizens resolved
to defend their gates, and learning that Lord Brooke was
approaching with his army from London, the king drew
off his forces; the city was now regularly garrisoned
by the parliament, and further preparations made for its
defence. The women were employed to fill up the
quarries in the park, that they might not afford shelter
to the royal troops; and for this purpose they assembled in companies, by beat of drum, and marched in
military array, with mattocks and spades, headed by an
amazon who carried an Herculean club on her shoulder.
On the restoration of Charles II., that monarch was
proclaimed by the mayor and aldermen, attended by a
vast concourse of the inhabitants, with the most triumphant acclamation; the greatest rejoicings took
place, and the public conduits of the city were made
to flow with wine: a deputation was sent to present to
him a basin and ewer, and 50 pieces of gold, and to
restore all the king's lands. In the year 1662, the
Earl of Northampton, with a large retinue of the neighbouring gentry, and a detachment of the county troops,
was sent with a commission from the king to make a
breach in the walls, as a punishment to the inhabitants
for shutting their gates against his father; but the earl
so far exceeded the limits of his commission as to leave
only a few fragments of them remaining: the gates were
only dismantled, and there are some yet standing, of
which the Bastille, Swanswell, and Cook-street gates are
the most entire.
The city is pleasantly situated on a gentle eminence,
bounded on the north-east by the river Sherbourne and
the Radford brook, which, running from north to south,
unite within the town. Till of late, the houses were
generally in the style of the fifteenth century, built of
timber frame-work and brick, with the upper stories
projecting, and presenting a dark and sombre appearance; the streets, also, were narrow and but partially
paved: but the town has undergone great improvement,
the more ancient parts having been taken down and
rebuilt in a modern style. The suburbs have within the
last few years been greatly extended; several new streets
have been formed, and ranges of handsome houses
erected: the whole is well paved, and lighted with gas;
and the inhabitants are amply supplied with water from
the corporation water-works. An act of parliament
for the general improvement of the city, and providing
for the establishment of a cemetery, also for a residence for the judges during the assizes, was passed in
1844. The environs are pleasant, abounding with interesting scenery, and having some agreeable promenades.
The public library, established in 1791, has a proprietary
of about 200 members, and is well regulated by a committee: the theatre, a neat and conveniently arranged
building, is opened occasionally; and assemblies and
concerts take place periodically at St. Mary's and Drapers' Halls. The barracks, erected in 1792, on the site
of the old Bull inn (where Henry VII. slept on his route
from the victory of Bosworth Field), are a handsome
range of building, fronted with stone, and ornamented
with the royal arms over the principal gateway; the
establishment is for a field-officer and fifteen subalterns,
and comprises a riding-house, an hospital, and stabling
for 188 horses.
The making of caps was the principal trade of the
town prior to the year 1436, when the manufacture of
woollen and broad cloth was introduced, which continued
to flourish till the end of the sixteenth century: at this
time Coventry was celebrated for a superior blue dye,
which from the permanence of its colour, obtained the
appellation of "Coventry true blue." About the beginning of the eighteenth century, striped and mixed tammies, camlets, shalloons, and calimancoes, were manufactured to a considerable extent; to which succeeded
the throwing of silk, the weaving of gauze, broad silks,
and ribbon, and the manufacture of watches. The
weaving of ribbon at present forms the staple trade: a
vast supply is furnished weekly to the wholesale houses
in London, and to every part of the United Kingdom, by
means of commercial agents; and large quantities are
exported. In 1808 there were 2819 silk and ribbon
looms in the city alone, exclusively of those in the adjacent villages: since that time the number has considerably increased, affording employment to nearly 16,000
persons in the city and suburbs; and from the introduction of the French looms and machinery, an infinite
variety in the pattern and an elegance in the texture
have been attained, which give a distinguished superiority to the ribbon manufactured here. The manufacture
of watches, for which Coventry was so long celebrated,
has of late undergone great improvement; and many
gold watches of superior construction are supplied to
the first houses in that branch of trade. The situation
of the town is peculiarly advantageous for trade, being
central to the ports of London, Liverpool, Bristol, and
Hull, and having by means of the Oxford and Coventry
canals, which form a junction at a short distance to the
north, a direct communication with the manufacturing
districts of Lancashire and Yorkshire. On the south
side of the town is a station of the London and Birmingham railway; there is a railway to Leamington, and an
act was passed in 1846 for a railway to Nuneaton, 10½
miles in length.
The market, which is on Wednesday and Friday, is
held in various parts of the town; for corn, in the
Cross-cheaping, a spacious area enlarged by the removal
of a middle range of old houses, and in which was the
ancient cross, one of the most beautiful in the kingdom,
built by Sir William Holles, Knt., in 1544, and taken
down in 1771; for cattle, in Bishop-street; for pigs, in
Cook-street; and for butter, eggs, and poultry, in an
area behind the mayor's parlour, or police-office, where
a market-house has been erected. Fairs for three days
each commence April 21st, Aug. 16th, and Oct. 21st,
for cattle and merchandise; to these fairs are attached
courts of pie-poudre, and the corporation is entitled to
the same tolls as are taken at Smithfield market, in
London: there are also monthly fairs for cattle. The
great show-fair takes place on the Friday after Corpus
Christi-day, and continues for eight days, on the first of
which the commemoration of Lady Godiva's procession
is occasionally revived, by a representative obtained for
that purpose. This ceremony has its origin in a tradition, that, the citizens having been greatly oppressed by
the severe exactions imposed upon them by Leofric, his
countess undertook to intercede for their relief, but was
apparently frustrated in her suit by a promise of exemption only upon the condition of her riding naked through
the city on horseback. It is further recorded in the traditionary legends of the city, that, having obtained her
husband's permission, and trusting for concealment to
the length of her hair, and to the discretion of the inhabitants, who were ordered, upon pain of death, to shut
themselves up in their houses, she performed the task,
and obtained for the city a charter of "freedom from
servitude, evil customs, and exactions." The tradition
also records that a tailor, who disobeyed the injunction,
was instantly struck blind; and a figure, called Peeping
Tom, carved in wood, and placed in an opening at the
corner of a house in High-street, is still preserved in
memory of this event, which has become closely interwoven with the history of the place, though not invented
till the time of Charles II.
New Corporation Seal.
Old Corporation Seal.
Ranulph, Earl of Chester, in the reign of Henry II.,
granted a charter to the inhabitants, confirming their
possessions in free burgage as they held them in the
time of his father and ancestors, with liberty to elect a
bailiff, and to have a portmote, or town court of record,
in which the bailiff should preside for the trial of all
pleas amongst themselves; bestowing on them, also, all
such freedoms as the burgesses of Lincoln enjoyed.
This charter was confirmed by the reigning sovereign;
and in a subsequent charter, granted by Edward III.,
Coventry, with a considerable district around it, was
termed a city, and liberty was given to elect a mayor
and two bailiffs, who presided in the portmote, which
was from that time called the "Court of the Mayor and
Bailiffs." Henry VI. made the bailiffs sheriffs also, and
converted the city into a county, separating it from the
county of Warwick, and conferring many other privileges. Under the last charter, that of James I., the
corporation consisted of a mayor, 10 aldermen, a council of 31, a recorder, two sheriffs and bailiffs, a coroner,
steward (always a barrister), two chamberlains, two
wardens, a town-clerk, sword-bearer, mace-bearer, and
subordinate officers. By the act of the 5th and 6th of
William IV., cap. 76, the government is now vested in
a mayor, 10 aldermen, and 30 councillors. The city is
divided into 5 wards, instead of 10 as formerly; and
comprises 13 fraternities, or trading companies, the
numbers of which, with the exception of the Drapers'
Company, who still retain their hall, have been greatly
reduced. There are 19 justices of the peace; and a
police force, consisting of a superintendent, inspector,
sergeant, and 16 constables. The freedom is obtained by
a servitude of seven years to any branch of trade within
the city and liberties. Among the privileges enjoyed
by the freemen is that of pasturing cattle upon the
"Lammas Grounds," a tract of about 1100 acres, appropriated to that use from Lammas to Candlemas by
especial grant. The city first exercised the elective
franchise in the 26th of Edward I.: there were partial
intermissions until the 31st of Henry VI., since which
time it has regularly returned two members to parliament. The right of election was formerly vested in the
freemen, in number about 3000; but by the act of the
2nd of William IV., cap. 45, the non-resident freemen,
except within seven miles, were disfranchised, and the
privilege was extended to £10 householders within the
city: the mayor is returning officer. The boundaries of
the city were defined by the act passed in the year 1842
for re-annexing Coventry to the county of Warwick,
and abolishing the distinction of "county of the city,"
conferred by Henry VI. The corporation formerly held
quarterly courts of session, at which the recorder presided, and they had power to try capital offenders; but
the courts of quarter-sessions are now held here by the
magistrates of the county, and the assizes by the judges
of the Midland circuit, for the "Coventry division,"
which comprises the greater part of North Warwickshire. Petty-sessions are held by the Warwickshire
magistrates every alternate Thursday; and the city
magistrates attend at the police-office every day except
Tuesday. The powers of the county debt-court of Coventry, established in 1847, under the provisions of a
general act of parliament, extend over the registrationdistrict of Coventry, and part of the districts of Foleshill and Meriden.
The County Hall is a neat modern building faced with
stone, and ornamented with pillars of the Tuscan order,
rising from a rustic basement, and supporting a handsome cornice in the centre of the front. Adjoining is
the gaoler's house, a neat brick edifice; and behind it
are the prison and bridewell, which were rebuilt a few
years since, at an expense of £16,000. St. Mary's Hall,
appropriated to the larger meetings and civic entertainments of the corporation, is a magnificent structure in
the later English style, originally built by the master
and wardens of the Trinity Guild, in the fourteenth
century. The exterior of the edifice, with its richly
decorated windows, and elaborately groined archway,
has an imposing grandeur of effect. The interior,
which is replete with the richest ornaments of the decorated style, comprises a splendid banquet-hall, adorned
with well-painted portraits of several of the sovereigns
who have been entertained within its walls; the windows, the tracery of which is gracefully elegant, are
ornamented with painted glass: at the upper end is a
fine piece of tapestry, worked in compartments; and on
the north side is a small recess, with a beautiful oriel
window, of which the original carved roof is still entire.
The council-chamber is fitted up in the ancient style, and
retains, among its ornaments, many relics of feudal
grandeur. The present Drapers' Hall, nearly adjoining,
is an elegant structure containing a fine suite of rooms,
executed under the superintendence of Messrs. Rickman
and Hutchinson, of Birmingham, and opened in the
year 1832.
Coventry, until recently, formed a diocese jointly with
Lichfield, the seat of which was fixed in this city from
1102 till 1188, when it was removed to Lichfield: the
diocese comprehended the whole counties of Derby and
Stafford, the greater part of Warwickshire, and nearly
half of the county of Salop, and comprised 557 parishes.
By the act of the 6th and 7th of William IV., cap. 77,
the city was separated from Lichfield, and, with the rest
of the county of Warwick, united to the diocese of Worcester; the consistory court of Lichfield still retaining
ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Of the Cathedral, a sumptuous and magnificent structure (formerly the Benedictine monastery founded by Leofric, of which, at the Dissolution, the revenue was £731. 19. 5.), only the slightest
vestiges are discernible, consisting of the base of one of
the towers, upon which a dwelling-house has been erected,
and some indistinct remains of what are supposed to
have been the conventual buildings. The city comprises
the parishes of St. Michael, the Holy Trinity, and St.
John the Baptist, the last having been constituted a
parish by act of parliament in 1734. The parish of St.
Michael contains about 2700 acres. The living is a
vicarage, valued in the king's books at £26. 15. 5., and
in the patronage of the Crown, with a net income of
£472: the impropriation belongs to the corporation.
The church is a splendid structure, principally in the
later English style, with a tower of four stages, ornamented with niches in which were sculptured figures,
and surmounted by a finely-proportioned octagonal
spire, the whole height from the base of the tower being
300 feet, exactly equal to the length of the church; this
beautiful and richly-decorated steeple was begun in 1373,
and finished in 1395. The interior of the church is finely
arranged, and derives great beauty from the loftiness of
its elevation, and the delicacy of the piers which support
the roof; the clerestory windows of the nave form a
noble range of large dimensions, and are ornamented with
some fragments of ancient stained glass: the chancel,
which is of earlier date, was formerly a chapel, erected
in 1133, to which the nave and aisles were subsequently
added; it deviates from a straight line, and forms an
angle with the line of the nave, which sensibly offends
the eye. Several chantries were founded in this and the
other churches by different persons, and endowed for
the maintenance of one or more priests. To the south
of the city was the monastery of the Grey friars, the
brethren of which were famous for their skill in the
representation of religious dramas: it was originally
founded in 1234, and in 1358 the church was built, for
which Edward the Black Prince granted the friars permission to take stone from the quarries in his park at
Cheylesmere. The monastery was destroyed at the
Dissolution; and all that remained of the church was
the very beautiful steeple, consisting of an octagonal
tower, with a pierced parapet, from which rises a lofty
and finely-proportioned octagonal spire. To this a body
has been annexed by subscription among the inhabitants, aided by a grant from the Commissioners; and the
design being in harmony with the character of the
steeple, the whole forms an interesting architectural feature in the town. The church was completed in 1832,
and dedicated to Our Blessed Saviour. The living is a
perpetual curacy; net income, £179; patron, the Vicar
of St. Michael's.
The parish of the Holy Trinity comprises 1771a. 2r.
16p. of land. The living is a vicarage, valued in the
king's books at £10, with a net income of £396; it is
in the patronage of the Crown, and the impropriation
belongs to the corporation. The church, which is of
earlier date than the more recent part of St. Michael's,
is a venerable cruciform structure, in the later English
style, with a well-proportioned tower rising from the intersection, and surmounted by a handsome octagonal
spire. The proportions of the interior are more massive
than those of St. Michael's; and though less elaborate
in its details, this church preserves throughout a consistent unity of design: the oak roof is panelled, and decorated with gilded mouldings; the pulpit, which is of
stone, has been recently restored, and is a beautiful specimen of enriched sculpture, in the later style. The first
stone of another church, dedicated to St. Peter, and to
which a district has been assigned, was laid on the 7th
September, 1840: the edifice cost £3200, and was
opened for divine service on the 28th October, 1841;
the design is in the later English style, and the building
contains 1354 sittings, 695 of which are free. The living
is a perpetual curacy; net income of the incumbent,
£150; patron, the Vicar of Holy Trinity. The living of
St. John's is a rectory not in charge, annexed to the headmastership of the free school, and including also a lectureship for the second master; net income, £83. The
church, formerly a chapel, erected in honour of Our
Saviour, upon ground given by Isabel, queen-mother of
Edward III., is an interesting structure, quadrangular
in the lower part and cruciform in the upper; from the
centre rises a square embattled tower, with circular turrets at the angles, and supported on four finely-clustered
piers and arches of singular beauty: the interior is characterised by a simple grandeur of style. A church district named St. Thomas' was formed out of the parish of
St. John, in 1844, by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners:
the living is in the gift of the Crown and the Bishop of
Worcester, alternately. There are places of worship in
the town for congregations of Baptists, the Society of
Friends, Independents, Wesleyans, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics.
The Free Grammar school was founded in the reign of
Henry VIII. by John Hales. His original munificent
intentions were frustrated by the opposition of the then
corporation, and Coventry school was thereby deprived
of university endowments which would have made it the
rival of Eton and Winchester. At his death, however,
this benefactor endowed it with lands and houses to the
value of 200 marks per annum, which now produce an
income of £870. It was placed by the Municipal act
under the management of Church-Charity Trustees, who
appoint the masters. There are several exhibitions,
which have been much increased in value of late years,
and will probably continue to increase; they are five in
number, and worth about £40 per annum during residence at the university. There are also two fellowships
at St. John's College, Oxford, and one at Catherine Hall,
Cambridge, appropriated to this school. The schoolroom is the only remaining portion of the hospital of St.
John, founded in the reign of Henry II., and was the
chapel of that religious house: its east window is a magnificent specimen of flowing decorated tracery, and the
side windows of the ancient chancel are of the same date,
probably 1320. The roof, which is now concealed by a
coved plaster ceiling, is a fine specimen of joiners' work,
and contains a vast amount of timber. The beautiful
double row of oak stalls were removed by Hales from
the choir of the church belonging to the monastery of
Grey friars, for the use of the scholars. The western
end of the school was taken down about fifty years ago
to widen the street, and was rebuilt in the worst style of
pseudo-Gothic then prevalent; one stone alone retains
the characteristic Norman ornament, which proves the
antiquity of the old west front. Sir William Dugdale
the celebrated antiquary, and Archbishop Secker, received their education in this school; and the quaint old
physician, Philemon Holland, who was called the Translator General of the age, was master here. The present
masters are, the Rev. T. Sheepshanks, M.A., of Trinity
College, Cambridge, and the Rev. W. Drake, M.A., late
fellow of St. John's, in the same university. Bablake
school occupies one side of the quadrangle of Bond's hospital. It was founded in 1566 by Thomas Wheatley,
ironmonger, and mayor of the city, in consequence of an
accidental acquisition of wealth, by the delivery of barrels
of cochineal and ingots of silver in mistake for steel gads,
which he sent his agent to purchase in Spain; the original endowment, increased by subsequent benefactions,
produces £938 per annum.
Bond's hospital was founded in 1506, by Thomas Bond,
draper, who endowed it with lands for the maintenance
of ten poor men and one woman: the number of pensioners, in consequence of the improvement of the income, has been increased to forty-six, fifteen of whom
are resident. The building, occupying one side of the
Bablake quadrangle, is an ancient edifice of timber
frame-work, in the Elizabethan style; it has undergone
great improvement, under the superintendence of Mr.
Rickman, and the entire building is now restored
to its original character. The Grey-friars' hospital, so
called from its proximity to the monastery of that order,
was founded in 1529, by William Ford, who endowed it
for five aged men and one woman; from the increased
amount of the income, there are at present 34 poor
persons in the establishment. The buildings, which
form a long and narrow quadrangular area, almost
darkened by the projection of the upper stories, are in
the style of domestic architecture prevailing in the reign
of Elizabeth; the timber frame-work, richly carved, and
decorated with cornices and canopies over the central
windows and doorways, is as perfect as when first
erected, and these beautiful almshouses are deservedly
admired as the most entire and elegant specimen of the
kind in the kingdom. The House of Industry occupies
the site, and includes the remains, of a monastery of
Carmelites, founded in 1342, by Sir John Pulteney, lord
mayor of London, and the clear revenue of which, at the
Dissolution, was £7. 13. 8. Part of the arched cloisters,
beautifully groined, also the refectory and dormitory,
are still remaining, with the beautiful entrance gateway,
richly groined and ornamented with three canopied niches
in front; to these remains has been added a large and
handsome brick building, well adapted to the purpose.
The management of this establishment, which is also a
comfortable asylum for the aged poor, is vested in a body
of guardians, under a local act, which extends over the
parishes of St. John the Baptist and St. Michael, and
part of that of the Holy Trinity, the whole union containing a population of 27,070. The trustees of the
church and general charities have altogether at their
disposal funds to the amount of £3000 per annum, for
distribution among the poor: the charity of Sir Thomas
White has arisen chiefly from his donation of £1400 in
the reign of Henry VIII., exclusively of considerable
sums to be lent for nine years to apprentices of good
character, on the expiration of their indentures; in this
loan, natives of Leicester, Northampton, Nottingham, and
Warwick participate. At Allesley, about a mile distant,
is a petrifying spring, not much used. Walter of Coventry, a Benedictine monk and eminent early historian;
William Macclesfield, created cardinal by Pope Benedict XI.; John Bird, Bishop of Chester, who was deprived of his see in the reign of Mary; Humphrey Wanley, the antiquary; and Nehemiah Grew, the botanist,
were natives of the city. It gives the title of Earl, created
in 1697, to the family of Coventry.
Coverham (Holy Trinity)
COVERHAM (Holy Trinity), a parish, in the union
of Leyburn, wapentake of Hang-West, N. riding of
York, 12 miles (W.) from Bedale, and 1½ (S. W.) from
Middleham; containing 1254 inhabitants. This place
was distinguished for its abbey, which was founded
at Swainby, in the parish of Pickhall, near the southern
point of Richmondshire, prior to 1189, by Helewisia,
daughter and heiress of Ranulph de Glanville, lord chief
justice of England, and was removed hither in 1214 by
the son of that lady, Ralph Fitz-Robert, lord of Middleham. The institution was of considerable celebrity,
and received various endowments from families of rank,
possessing, among other lands, nearly the whole of the
valley of Coverham; at the Dissolution its revenue was
returned at £207. 14. 8. The situation of the priory
was highly appropriate for the purposes of the foundation,
and from the spot is obtained a view of the outline of
Whernside and Penhill, which is very majestic, but it
does not appear that the buildings were ever magnificent;
the remains, situated on the north side of the Cover,
consist principally of some shattered arches of the nave,
and the gateway, a very picturesque structure.
The parish extends over a space of forty superficial
miles, and is divided into the High dale and Low dale.
The former contains 12,480 acres, and includes the
townships of Gammersgill, Swineside, Arkleside, Blackrake, Bradley, Coverhead, Pickle, and Woodale, with the
village of Horsehouse, which gives name to a chapelry
that consists of the preceding townships. The latter
comprises 9640 acres, and includes, besides Caldbridge,
East Scrafton, Carlton, Melmerby, and West Scrafton,
the hamlet of Coverham Abbey, in the vicinity of which
stand the ancient church and mill of the monks, and
which, with Agglethorpe Hall and its dependencies,
forms the township of Coverham, with 1090 acres of
rich land. The river Cover, which confers its name upon
the district, is a rapid stream abounding with trout; the
dale through which it runs is supposed to have been the
birthplace of Myles Coverdale, Bishop of Exeter, born in
Yorkshire in 1488, and who, in 1535, published the first
edition of the Bible ever printed in English. Both coal
and lead are found in the parish. The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with the tithes of Arkleside,
Blackrake, Coverhead, Pickle, Swineside, and Woodale,
and in the patronage of the Tomlinson family; net
income, £180. The tithes of Coverham township have
been commuted for £84. The church, which is thought
to have been built in the 12th century, is a neat edifice,
consisting of a nave, chancel, and south aisle, with a
tower, and contains in the windows some remains of
painted glass of great beauty. In the churchyard, which
comprises less than two acres, is a spot where neither the
church can be seen nor the bells heard, which is occasioned by a very sudden descent on the south-east side,
towards the bottom in which the abbey stands, while the
noise of the stream propelling the mill-wheel, shuts out
the sound of the bells.
Covington (All Saints)
COVINGTON (All Saints), a parish, in the union
of Thrapston, hundred of Leightonstone, county of
Huntingdon, 3¼ miles (W. N. W.) from Kimbolton, on
the road to Higham-Ferrers; containing 142 inhabitants. It is situated on the road from Higham-Ferrers
to Kimbolton. The living is a rectory, valued in the
king's books at £10. 1. 8.; net income, £165; patron,
Earl Fitzwilliam. The tithes were commuted for land
and a money payment, in 1801.
Cowarne, Little
COWARNE, LITTLE, a parish, in the union of
Bromyard, hundred of Broxash, county of Hereford,
3 miles (S. W. by W.) from Bromyard; containing 187
inhabitants, and consisting of 674 acres. The living is
annexed to the rectory of Ullingswick: the tithes have
been commuted for £135, and the glebe consists of about
25 acres.
Cowarne, Much (St. Mary)
COWARNE, MUCH (St. Mary), a parish, in the
union of Bromyard, hundred of Broxash, county of
Hereford, 5 miles (S. S. W.) from Bromyard; containing 557 inhabitants. A small stream, a branch of
the river Froome, flows from north to south through
this parish, which comprises by measurement 3550 acres.
The soil is clayey, and the surface flat, with a spot of
rising ground called Greatfield, abounding in gravel,
sand, and stones, all set in regular layers, which formation is supposed to be of diluvial origin. The road
between Hereford and Bromyard intersects the parish.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £14. 19. 7.; net income, £280; patron, the
Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. The site of the glebehouse, and the ground attached, consist of 2a. 3r. The
church, having been almost totally destroyed in January,
1840, through the steeple being struck by lightning, has
been rebuilt: in the chancel, which was the only part
of the church saved, are the figure of a knight-errant,
and a monument containing a recumbent effigy of a lady
of the name of Reede, with four small figures kneeling
by her side, over which is a curious Latin inscription.
Cowbit (St. Mary)
COWBIT (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Spalding, wapentake of Elloe, parts of Holland,
county of Lincoln, 3½ miles (S. by E.) from Spalding;
containing 664 inhabitants. The road from Spalding
to Peterborough by Crowland, passes through the village,
and the navigable river Welland runs parallel with the
road on the west. A small pleasure-fair is held in June.
The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £460;
patrons, certain Feoffees: the tithes were commuted for
land, in 1800; the glebe consists of 350 acres, with a
glebe-house. The church was consecrated in 1486, with
the cemetery, by Bishop Russell, and was, previously to
that year, a chantry to the abbey of Spalding. MajorGeneral Dyson, owner of the estate of Peakill, in the
parish, has lately erected two elegant tablets in the
chancel, one in memory of his father, James Dyson, Esq.,
for many years solicitor to the Admiralty and Navy;
and has also presented an excellent organ, and a beautiful altar window. There is a place of worship for
Wesleyans.
Cowden (St. Mary Magdalene)
COWDEN (St. Mary Magdalene), a parish, in the
union of Seven-Oaks, hundred of Somerden, lathe of
Sutton-at-Hone, W. division of Kent, 9 miles (W.)
from Tonbridge-Wells; containing 695 inhabitants. It
comprises 3232 acres, whereof 760 are woodland. One
of the four principal heads of the Medway, which
rises at Gravelly Hill, in Sussex, directs its course eastward along the southern side of the parish, and separates it from the county of Sussex. Iron-ore is found.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£9. 18. 11½., and in the gift and incumbency of the
Rev. T. Harvey: the tithes have been commuted for
£544, and the glebe consists of 4 acres. The church is
a small building, with a handsome spire; a north aisle
has been added to it, and 134 additional sittings have
been provided.
Cowdon or Colden, Great and Little
COWDON or COLDEN, GREAT and LITTLE, an
ancient parish, in the union of Skirlaugh, partly in the
Middle, but chiefly in the N., division of the wapentake
of Holderness, E. riding of York, 3½ miles (S. by E.)
from Hornsea; containing 151 inhabitants, of whom 19
are in Little Cowdon. Great Cowdon is described in
Domesday book as a berewick, belonging, in the Confessor's time, to St. John of Beverley; and the manor
was in the possession of the Archbishop of York at an
early period subsequent to the Conquest. At Little
Cowdon was a parochial chapel dedicated to St. John
the Evangelist, anciently given to the monks of St.
Martin, Albemarle, who conveyed it in the 18th of
Richard II. to the convent of Kirkstall; the patronage
before this time had been exercised by the knightly
family of Despencer. The parish is commonly considered
a township, sometimes called Cowdons-Ambo, partly in
the parish of Aldbrough, but chiefly in that of Mappleton: it comprises by measurement 1503 acres, of which
about 800 are in Great Cowdon; one-fourth is pasture,
and the remainder arable. The village of the latter place
is situated at the very edge of the cliffs, on the German
Ocean, and is occupied by a few farmers and persons
employed in obtaining gravel from the cliffs. The chapel,
with a portion of the village, suffered from the devastations of the sea, and was swept away about half a century since: the living, however, exists, and is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £2. 13. 4.,
and annexed to the living of Aldbrough. Some time
since, the incumbent received £3000 in satisfaction of
his claim to tithes.
Cowes, East
COWES, EAST, a parochial district, in the parish
of Whippingham, liberty of East Medina, Isle of
Wight division of the county of Southampton, 5 miles
(N.) from Newport; containing 880 inhabitants. The
village is situated on the eastern side of the mouth of
the river Medina, by which it is separated from West
Cowes, and owes its origin to a fort or blockhouse,
erected in the reign of Henry VIII., for the defence of
the harbour, but of which no vestiges are now discernible. Until of late here was an establishment of the
Customs, which has been removed to West Cowes, and
the buildings are now occupied as a station for the men
employed in the preventive service. Ship-building is
carried on to a considerable extent; and good buildingstone is obtained in several parts of the vicinity, particularly at Osborne Park, where it was raised in large
quantities for the erection of the Southampton docks.
The neighbourhood abounds with interesting features
and finely-varied scenery; and on the brow of a hill
near the village is East Cowes Castle, a handsome structure, consisting of one square and two circular embattled
towers, erected by the late eminent architect, Mr. Nash,
for his own residence, and commanding a fine sea-view.
Osborne House was purchased in 1845 from Lady
Isabella Blanchford by Her Majesty as a royal residence: the estate comprises 376 acres, and, with
Barton farm, 817 acres; having an indented line of
sea-shore about a mile and a half in extent. Important additions have been made to the house, and the
grounds in various ways embellished. The church,
dedicated to St. James, and of which the first stone was
laid by Her present Majesty, when Princess Victoria,
who was also present at its consecration in 1831, was
erected at an expense of £3000, raised by subscription,
towards which Her Majesty and the Duchess of Kent
contributed liberally, and which was also aided by a
grant of £375 from the funds of the Incorporated Society; it is a handsome edifice, in the Norman style,
and contains 668 sittings, of which 370 are free. The
living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the
Rector of Whippingham, with a net income of £135.
There is a place of worship for Independents. At Barton
was an oratory of Augustine monks, founded by John de
Insula, in 1282, and the beautiful remains of which have
been converted into a farmhouse.
Cowes, West
COWES, WEST, a sea-port and chapelry, in the
N. division of the parish of Northwood, liberty of
West Medina, Isle of Wight division of the county of
Southampton, 5 miles (N.) from Newport, and 86 (S. W.)
from London; containing 4107 inhabitants. This place
owes its origin to the erection of a small castle in 1539,
by Henry VIII, on the western bank of the river Medina, commanding the entrance of the harbour; the
fortress is a small edifice with a semicircular battery
mounting eight pieces of heavy ordnance, and contains
accommodation for a captain and a company of artillery.
From the excellence of the harbour, in which ships may
find shelter in stormy weather, and from which they may
sail out either to the east or west, as the wind may
serve, Cowes has become a populous and flourishing
town; and from its advantageous situation for shipbuilding, several private yards have been established, in
which men-of-war have been built for the royal navy.
The town is romantically situated on the acclivity of an
eminence: the streets are narrow, and the houses in
general inelegant, but, rising above each other from the
margin of the river to the summit of the eminence on
which they are built, they have a pleasing and picturesque
appearance from the opposite bank, and are seen with
peculiar advantage from the sea, of which they command
interesting and extensive views. The excellence of its
beach, the pleasantness of its situation, and the salubrity
of the air, have rendered it a fashionable place for seabathing, for which purpose several respectable lodginghouses have been erected, and numerous bathingmachines are ranged on the beach, to the west of the
castle. The parade, terminated at one extremity by the
castle, and at the other by the Marine hotel, forms a
favourite promenade. The Royal Yacht Club, consisting
of about 160 noblemen and gentlemen, established here
for many years, celebrate their regatta annually in
August, on which occasion more than 200 yachts and
other vessels are assembled, forming a spectacle truly
splendid. The club-house, situated on the parade, is a
handsome building with a spacious veranda, commanding a fine view of the sea, and having in front an inclosure, within which are several pieces of cannon, and
a semaphore, with apparatus for the display of signals to
the vessels in the roadstead, belonging respectively to
the several members of the squadron. An extensive
trade is carried on in provisions and other articles for
the supply of the shipping: the principal exports of the
island are wheat, flour, malt, barley, wool, and salt, large
quantities of which are shipped for France, Spain, Portugal, and the Mediterranean shores. Packets sail several
times a day to Southampton, Ryde, and Portsmouth, and
passage-boats to Newport. A market-house was erected
in 1816, and the market is well supplied with meat, fish,
and vegetables; a fair is held on the Thursday in Whitsun-week. The town is partly in the jurisdiction of the
borough of Newport, and partly in that of the county;
the upper part of the market-house is appropriated as
the town-hall.
The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £256;
patron, the Vicar of Carisbrooke. The chapel, erected
in the year 1657, and consecrated in the year 1662, is
on the summit of the hill: in 1811 it was enlarged and
improved at an expense of £3000, by the late George
Ward, Esq., who added the tower at the west end, the
lower part of which, opening into the church, forms the
pew and the mausoleum of that family, and contains an
elegant monument to the late Mrs. Ward; the building
was further enlarged in 1832. A district church, erected
on the west cliff, at the expense of Mrs. Goodwin, at a
cost of £5000, including endowment, and dedicated to
the Holy Trinity, was consecrated in 1832: it is a handsome building of white brick, ornamented with stone, in
the later English style, and has an embattled tower
crowned with pinnacles; the interior is lighted by a
range of lofty windows, enriched with tracery, and is
embellished with an east window of stained glass, and
other appropriate details. The living is a perpetual
curacy in the patronage of Mrs. Goodwin; net income,
£85. There are places of worship for Independents and
Wesleyans, and a Roman Catholic chapel.
Cowfold
COWFOLD, a parish, in the union of Cuckfield,
hundred of Windham and Ewhurst, rape of Bramber,
W. division of Sussex, 7 miles (S. S. E.) from Horsham;
containing 943 inhabitants. It is on the road from
London, by way of Horsham, to Brighton, and comprises by measurement nearly 3000 acres, the soil of
which is chiefly a stiff clay, though in some parts of a
lighter quality. The village is pleasantly situated, and a
market for corn is held in it every alternate Wednesday.
The living is a vicarage, endowed with the rectorial
tithes, valued in the king's books at £10. 6. 8., and in
the patronage of the Bishop of Chichester: the tithes
have been commuted for £580, and the glebe comprises
33 acres. The church is a handsome structure, in the
early and later English styles, with a low embattled
tower; in the nave is a magnificent monument of brass
to the memory of Thomas Nelond, prior of Lewes, who
died in 1433.