11U 



WINCHESTER. 



WINDSOR. 



lilt 



cathedral adoU 



. 



40*1 and (cbolastio establishment*, seems 



When Houry V1IL suppressed the mona- 

 menU were the first to suffer in Winchester. 



ss. - 



qoMitlT UM priory of St. S within wu suppressed, and the greater 

 pwtuf to reteuue. were transferred to the dean and chapter of the 

 cathedral; also Hyde Abbey, which had been rebuilt; St. Mary's 

 Abbey ; and >erral hospital* 



The laat of the gwat sufferings of Winchester occurred during the 

 civil war between Charles I. and the Parliament. The city adhered 

 to th king. On the 39th of March, 1014, a battle wai fought ou 

 (Jberitun Down, in which Sir William Waller, the parliamentary 

 Denl. wai victorious; and hi* soldiers destroyed or defaced the 

 stained-glass window*, the monuments, and relics of the cathedral 

 AfUr to* battle of Kawby, Cromwell WM lent to reduce Winchester 

 oaAft the authority of the Parliament Having taken the city after a 

 week's siefe, he oodermined and blew up Winchester Castle, and laid 

 Woivesey Castle and the other fortified places in ruins. St Mary's 

 College aeoaped from injury it is snid through the firmness of one of 

 the parliamentary officers, who was a Wykehamist. In 1666 very 

 many of the inhabitants of Winchester were destroyed by the 



plague. An obelisk, with an inscription, commemorates the event. 

 Charles II. took a liking to the place, an.! employed Sir Christopher 

 Wren to design and erect a palace, which he intended for a summer 

 residence, on the site of Winchester Castle. The king laid UK 

 foundation-stone, March 3rd, 1683, and the work wag carried on with 

 vigour till the death of Charles in 1685, when a stop was put to it, 

 and it was never completed. The building is now used as a barrack 

 for infantry. 



The city is built on the slope of an eminence which rues gently 

 from the right bank of the Itchin. The river is made navigable as a 

 canal from Winchester to the sea. The city is well supplied with 

 water, and the streets are well paved, and are lighted with gfts. 



The liberty of the Soke encompasses the city on almost every side, 

 an 1 a small part is within the city. The Soke is divided into the 

 Kaat Soke and the West Soke. The ancient city had four principal 

 gatat north, south, east, and west; of these only the West Gate, at 

 the end of the High-street, now remains : it is a massy square tower 

 over a wide gateway. The tower is built in the Norman style : it is 

 now employed as a room in which to preserve the corporation records. 



Winchester being the centre of an agricultural district, it has a 

 good corn-market, which is well attended. Wednesday and Saturday 

 are the market-days. Four fairs are held in the course of the year, 

 one of which La a large sheep fair. 



Of the public buildings of the city, the first place is due to Win- 

 chester Cathedral, which is one of the largest cathedrals iu England, 

 and in many respects one of the most interesting. From the west 

 entrance to the choir is 356 feet ; the length of the choir is 135 feet; 

 and the Lady Chapel at the east end is 54 feet, which makes the total 

 length 545 feet As a distinct part, the nave is 250 feet long, 86 feet 

 wide including the aisles, and 78 feet high. The choir is 40 feet wide. 

 The length of the transepts is 186 feet The square of the tower is 

 4b feet by 50 feet, and the height is 138 J feet, which is only about 26 

 feet above the roof; of course it has a low and squat appearance, and 

 was perhaps not intended to contain bells, but only to throw additional 

 light into the choir, and increase the interior effect; by additional 

 height The present bells were suspended in the reign of Charles I. 



Viewed from the exterior, the west front is by far the most imposing 

 part of the structure. On entering the building, the view from the 

 west end to the east is magnificent : the vast length of vista formed 

 by the nave and choir, with the splendid ceiling, the columns and 

 arches on each hand and overhead, and the eastern window ' casting 

 iU dim religious light ' from behind the choir, produce a combined 

 result of solemnity and beauty equalled by few cathedrals in Europe. 



The original structure of Winchester Cathedral was destroyed by 

 the pagan Cerdic, and rebuilt by one of his successors, the Christian 

 Kioegus. Borne of the most substantial walla and pillars of the 

 present structure were erected by St. Ethel wold, bishop of Winchester, 

 who lived to finiah it, and to dedicate it to St Swithiu in 980. In 

 1079, having been much damaged by the Danes, it was repaired by 

 Bishop Walkelyn, who built the present tower, with part of the nave 

 and transepts, and in 1093 re-dedicated the church to St Peter, 

 8t Paul, and St Swithin. The bishops De Lucy, Edyngton, and 

 Wykeham repaired and rebuilt other portions. Bishop Fox in the 

 early part of the 16th century rebuilt some portions. The grandeur 

 of the west front is due to Wykeham. Many restorations and repairs 

 of the cathedral have been recently executed at an expense of upwards 

 of 60,0001. Among the monuments in the cathedral may be mentioned 

 the tomb of William llufun, of plain gray stone, without inscription, 

 in the choir; the six mortuary chests of wood, carved, painted, and 

 gilt, in which Hishop Fox deposited the remains of Saxon kings and 

 other distinguished persons, which he transferred from the decayed 

 lead coffins in which they had been buried; and especially the beau- 

 Uful chantries or oratorios of the bishops Edyngton, Wykeham, 

 Beaufort, Waynflete, and Fox. 



Winchester College (St Mary's College), which is ouUide the city 



lary on the south-east, was founded by William of Wykeham in 



887, on the site of 'the great grammar school of Winchester,' at 



which he had been educated. The college wai founded and endowed 



by Wykeham as a preparatory college to New College, Oxford, which 

 he had founded a short time before. The college was opened Man li 

 28th, 1393: In 1854 there were in the college 70 scholars on the 

 foundation, and 16 choristers. The number of commoners, boys not 

 on the foundation, was about 80, who are lodged in a spacious 

 rangular building contiguous to the college. The buildings of Win- 

 chester College are spacious, and comprise a chapel, a hull of gothic 

 architecture, and a library; a school-room, erected by subscription of 

 the Wykehamists in 1687 ; and a hall in which the commoners dim 1 . 

 Over the entrance to the school-room is a bronze statue of Wykeham. 



The ruins of Wolvesey Castle are at a short distance south cast 

 from the college. This castle, once the residence of the bishops of 

 Winchester, was built in 1138 by Henry de Blois, brother of King 

 Stephen and bishop of Winchester, on the site of a former palace of 

 the Saxon kings. It was a place of great strength till it was dis- 

 mantled in the reign of Henry II. It continued to be the residence 

 of the bishops till it was demolished by Cromwell in 1646. The epis- 

 copal palace begun in 1684 was suffered to go to decay, and the greater 

 part of it was taken down about 40 years ago. The present plain 

 but neat episcopal residence was formed out of the west wing of the 

 former building : it is now occupied during pleasure by tho Diocesan 

 Training school for masters. The Cross, iu the High-street, is a square 

 structure on an octagonal base of five steps. The circumference of the 

 lowest step is 49 feet, and the height is 44 feet. The cross consists 

 of three tiers of gothic archwork, with ornamented niches and canopies. 

 Winchester Castle stood on an eminence outside the city wall on the 

 south-west. It was built by William the Conqueror in 1068, and 

 blown up by Cromwell jn 1645. The ruins were entirely removed 

 when Charles II. began his palace. The chapel of Winchester Castle, 

 which was a building detached from the castle, has since been con- 

 verted into a court for holding the assizes. A curious pieca of anti- 

 quity, called King Arthur's Eound Table, is suspended over the judges' 

 seat Symonds' College (properly Christ's Hospital) was founded in 

 1607, by Peter Symonds, a native of Winchester, and afterwards a 

 mercer of the city of London. The endowments are applied to the 

 maintenance of six old men, one matron, and four boys, and also to 

 the assistance of one scholar in each of the two English universities. 

 The Matrons' College, built by Bishop Morley in 1672, and endowed 

 for the support of 10 clergymen's widows, stands ou the site of the 

 monastery of St Grimbald, founded in A.D. 898, by King Alfred. 



Most of the churches in Winchester are ancient One of the most 

 curious for its situation is the parish church of St Swithin, built by 

 King John over the old postern of St. Michael, or King's Gate. St 

 Thomas's parish church has been rebuilt There is a new church in 

 the parish of St. Maurice. The Wesleyan Methodists, Independents, 

 Baptists, and Roman Catholics have places of worship. There is also 

 a convent of Benedictines at Winchester. There are several National 

 schools, a mechanics institute, a Church of England library and 

 reading-room, a Church of England Young Men's Society, a museum, 

 and a savings bank. A county court is held in the town. The guild- 

 hall, or town-hall, in High-street, was built in 1711. Some articles 

 curious for their antiquity are kept in it, especially the ancient 

 standards of measure. The market-house was built iu 1772. A new 

 county jail, bridewell, police station, and offices have been erected 

 outside the West Gate. The county hospital was established iu 17J6, 

 but the present building was not erected till 1759. St John's House, 

 which is the public banqueting-room and assembly-room, is ou the 

 site of the hospital of St. John the Baptist. There are a small theatre, 

 and a public library and reading-rooms. 



The hospital of St Cross, about one mile S. from Winchester, was 

 founded and endowed in 1136, by Henry de Blois, bishop of Win- 

 chester, as a permanent retreat for 13 poor men past their strength, 

 and for 100 other poor men, who were to be provided with a dinner. 

 Other charities were added. A glass of ale and a small loaf are still 

 offered to persons who call at the hospital before the day's supply is 

 exhausted. The endowments of this institution have been grossly 

 misappropriated for mauy years past; but inquiry has recently been 

 made by authority of the government into the manner iu which the 

 intentions of the founder have been can-led out, with a view to ;i 

 more appropriate employment of the funds of the charity. Tho 

 church is a very beautiful cruciform pile; it is chiefly of Normun, but 

 partly of early English date. The other buildings which remain arc 

 fine specimens of gothic architecture. 



The see of Winchester is in the province of Canterbury. The 

 diocese includes Hampshire, with the islands of Wight, Guernsey, 

 Jersey, Alderney, Sark, and the county of Surrey; ami comprises oiil 

 benefices. It is divided into the archdeaconries of Surrey and Win- 

 chester. The chapter consists of the dean, the archdeacons, eight 

 canons, four minor canons, and a chancellor. The income of the 

 bishop is fixed at 10,5002. a year. 



W1NDAU. [COURLAND.1 



WINDERMERE. [WESTMORLAND.] 



WINDSOR, or NEW WINDSOR, Berkshire, a market-town, muni- 

 cipal and parliamentary borough, and the seat of a Poor-Law Union, 

 is situated on tlie right bank of the river Thames, iu 51 29' N. lat., 

 37' W. long., distant 18 miles E. by N. from Reading, 22 miles W. 

 by S. from London by road, 21 miles by the Great Western railway, 

 and 20 iniltts by the (South- Western railway. The population of the 



