■i S06.J Accouyn of the Lifcj 6Cc. of the late Mr. Vahl. 461 



though now, for the greater part, wound 

 round with ivy; but exhibiting, with 

 fome of the adjoining buildings, the 

 principal improvements which were nmde 

 to the catlle when inhabited by John of 

 Gaunt, in the days of Richard 11. The 

 privy chamber, the prefence chamber, 

 Leicefter's buildings, and Sir Robert 

 Dudley's lobby, are the additions on the 

 I'outh-ead and eaftern fides of the inner 

 court, which were made between 1563 

 nnd 1575. King Henry's lodgings form 

 perhaps the only portion of the main 

 ttructure which was built by Henry VIII.; 

 the Plefans en Mcai/s, which he ereftcd 

 rear the Swan tower, was only removed 

 from the tail of the pool, where it had 

 been built by Henry V. The outer 

 walls, which occupy within their circuit 

 I'cven acres, arc ftrcngthcncd at proper 

 '4iltances by very ancient towers. At 



the fouth-weil angle is the fally-port ; 

 in the corner, on the north-weft, the 

 fwan-tower ; on the north, tiie gate- 

 houfe; at the north-eaft corner, Lun's- 

 tower ; on the call fide the ftables, and 

 beyond them the water-tower ; and lalt- 

 Iv, on the fouth-eaft, Mortimer' s-tower 

 (rebuilt by Leicefter) leading through the 

 tilt-yard to the gallery-tovicr, which, as 

 we have before mentioned, appears in 

 ancient times to have been the grand 

 entrance of the caftle. But even beyond 

 this, at a conliderable diilance toward 

 the Warwick road, are other fortifica- 

 tions, which do not appear to have beea 

 noticed by the writers on the calHe. 

 The pool, or lake, wc have fo frequently 

 mentioned, is now quite dry; and both 

 the earth-works and the ruins faft de- 

 caying. R. 



MEMOIRS OF EMINENT PERSONS. 



.JWCrOUKT of the LIFE UHcl WRITINGS of 



the late mis. vaiil, piLOFESson of bo- 

 tany lit COPENHAOEX. 



MARTIN VAIII,, the moft eminent 

 naturalift of Denmarlc, and one 

 of the gieateft totuihlts of his age, was 

 born at Bergen, in Norway, on the 10th 

 of October, I749. 



From the carlieft age when external 

 things make an -impreliion on man, the 

 ^:ontemplation of nature was the favorite 

 objeit of his mind, and until that period 

 wlien every thing becomes inditterent to 

 lis, he remained true to this inclination. 



His application was alfiiled by uncom- 

 mon talents, and his merits were reward- 

 ed with nniverlal efleem. 



Till 17fi(3 he was educated at the fchool 

 ■and f(^ininarv at Bergen, and then enter- 

 ed himfelf a ftudent at the Univerfity of 

 t'openhagen, where he paflcd one year, 

 uttending the lectures of Zoega on the 

 Plants of the Botanical Garden. The 

 ■years from 17G7 to 1769 he palfcd in 

 r<orwiiy, partly at the houfe of his father, 

 a merchant in Bergen, whofe liberality to- 

 ivards his Ion mull endear his moinory 

 to e\ ery cultivator of the ftiences ; but 

 moftly with Profeflor Strom, a clergyman 

 in the country, whofe eminent fkill in 

 natural hillory, efpccially in botany, 

 could not but be peculiarly attractive 

 to voung ValJ. 



In 176'J he went to Upfala, where he 

 enjoyed for very near five years the in- 

 llruciion, cenvcifation, fricudlhip, and 



MoNiULY Mao., No. 140. 



conlidencc of the immortal Linnaeus. 

 From 1774. when he returned to Co- 

 penhagen, he continued to devote the 

 whole of his time to natural hiflory, ef- 

 pecially to botany, and was in 1779, by 

 tlic king appointed Icttnrer in the Bota- 

 nical Garden of that place. In purfu- 

 ance of a royal order, he fet out in the 

 beginning of 1,733 on a journc> through 

 Holland, France, Spain, Baibary, Italy, 

 Switzerlaud, and England, where he made 

 hhiifelf equally efteemed and beloved 

 by the cultivators of botany and natural 

 hillory, and, in fliort, of i'cientific m^n in 

 general. Van Ptoyen, Julfieu, Lammarck, 

 Dcsf jutaines, Monnier, Cyrillo, La Che- 

 nal. Banks, Dryander, and others, the 

 molt iamous botanifts of Europe, were 

 captivated by his converfation, and oftea 

 mentioned him as the Linnasus of Den- 

 mark. He acquired fame by the learn- 

 ing difplayed in his converfation with 

 thefe eminent men, but ftill more by hi* 

 writings. 



On his return in the latter end of 1785, 

 he was honoured with the title of Pro- 

 felfor, and appointed to publifli a Flora 

 Dnnica. He innnediately went to Nor- 

 way to make collections for this work. 

 He went through and fcarched the molt 

 confiderable mount:i!ns and waftes of thaC 

 country, even to iis utnioft northern ex- 

 tremity ; and this Fio)-a Danicu, and fc- 

 vcral trafts in the Memoirs of the Copeu- 

 hagon Society of Natural Hiflory, prove 

 tiiat he travelled with Ik.ilful Rpplication. 

 3N In 



