By the Rev. J. E. Jackson. 293 
and subsequently went to Wilton. Queen Elizabeth was no builder 
of palaces herself; she had no occasion, having inherited a suffi- 
cient number from her father. It answered her purpose a great 
deal better to encourage her Ministers to build large houses in 
which she might go to visit, and half ruin them by the compliment. 
Sir John Thynne died in 1580, leaving the larger portion of the 
outside finished, and from the Hall to the Chapel Court inside: no 
part of the western side seems to have been finished in his time: 
As to grounds, nothing seems to have been provided, mention being 
made only of a garden, hop-yard, and orchard, which were probably 
the old ones of the Priory. 
The outer shell of a large house, 220 feet long, by 180 deep, is 
certainly something, but by no means all. It is a skeleton, which, 
to look comely, and to serve life’s uses and luxuries, requires to be 
filled up, fattened, clothed, and adorned. These operations Sir 
John left to his successors. I believe that the building accounts 
were not continued after the founder’s death; but there is a short 
descriptive summary of the progress and changes which took place 
under the various succeeding owners. The oak screen and wains- 
cot of the hall were amongst the additions by his son, Sir John. 
Sir James, the fourth owner, employed Sir Christopher Wren, by 
whom a principal staircase was made; and a hall door, which, how- 
ever, was afterwards removed to a school-house at Warminster. 
The old priory barn, which stood near the south-west corner of the 
house, was converted into stabling; and the Priory kitchen garden 
was walled and planted. In 1663, King Charles II., accompanied 
by the Queen and Duke of York, visited Sir James Thynne. I 
have not seen any account of their reception, but they left London 
on 26th of August; were entertained by Lord Seymour at Marl- 
borough Castle; walked up Silbury Hill with John Aubrey as 
cicerone, dined at Lacock, and so to Bath. It was probably in 
the following month they came here, as I remember seeing some 
years ago a memorandum in the register of the neighbouring 
parish of Beckington, that on 10th Sept. (in that year) “Charles 
Il., King of England, rode through that village, and Katherine, 
his Queen, whom God bless.” 
2aQ 
