51.) 



ASCALON. 



ASCHAFFENBURG. 



546 



Two handsome painted windows have been put up on each side of 

 the altar by the present bishop, Dr. Vowler Short, in memory of his 

 wife. A new organ was erected in 1833. 



The nave and transepts are of the decorated style, and contain some 

 architectural beauties, among which may be reckoned the west window. 

 The belfry windows appear to have been altered. The piers and arches 

 of the nave, as also the western door, have plain but bold mouldings. 

 The clerestory windows of this part are small square apertures with 

 portions of tracery which are apparently ancient. The windows of 

 the transepts are of decorated character. The choir is apparently 

 intended to resemble the perpendicular style. The tower and some 

 other parts have been partially renewed. Portions of the transepts 

 are cut off to form the chapter-house and vestry. There are no addi- 

 tional buildings, nor, according to Rickman, the traces of any ; but 

 the older plans and drawings of the cathedral, which we have seen, 

 represent the chapter-house as built out from the north side of the 

 choir, and having a door opening into it from the choir. The tower 

 is l3 feet high, and commands a fine view of the rich and extensive 

 vale of Clwyd. It is built of squared stone, of which some is red, 

 intermixed with a harder sort of a brown or gray colour. The stone 

 used in the choir, and in most of the windows of the church, is soft, 

 red, and mouldering. Among the monuments are one, supposed to be 

 that of Bishop David Owen (ob. 1512), which was moved from the 

 choir when it was repaired ; another, erected by subscription to the 

 memory of Bishop Shipley ; and a third, a heavy pile, erected to the 

 memory of Bishop Luxmore. 



The parish church, a small plain edifice without a tower, was erected 

 about 1524. A chapel (to which a cemetery is attached) has been 

 recently erected near the town. No particular branch of trade or 

 manufacture is established at St. Asa ph. The market is held on Friday ; 

 there are four fairs in the year on Tuesday in Easter week, July 15th, 

 October 26th, and December 26th. The petty sessions for the division 

 of Rhuddlan are held here. There are an almshouse for eight poor 

 widows, founded by Bishop Barrow (uncle to the celebrated Dr. Isaac 

 Barrow), a prelate of eminent benevolence ; an endowed Grammar- 

 school, founded in 1600, for 24 boys, which had in all 49 scholars in 

 1850, and National schools for 100 boys and 100 girls. There is a 

 savings bank. 



The parish is large, and contains many townships. It extends into 

 Denbighshire, and is 5 miles from east to west, and 4 miles from north 

 to south. The parliamentary borough extends beyond the town, but 

 is not so extensive as the parish. A county court is held in the town. 



The country around St. Asaph is very beautiful. Within the parish 

 is Capel Ffynnon Vair (' Chapel of our Lady's Well'), a picturesque 

 ruin, near a spring, from which it takes its name, once much resorted 

 to by devotees. In the vicinity are several mansions and parks. 



From the name of the eminence on which the city stands, Bryn 

 Paulin (' the Hill of Paulin'), it has been conjectured that the Roman 

 general Suetonius Paulinus encamped here on his way to or from 



he see of St. Asaph is said to have been founded by Kentigern, or 

 M Scottish writers call him, St. Mungo, who was bishop of Glasgow. 

 Having been driven from his see about the middle of the 6th century, 

 he took refuge in North Wales, established a monastery, and erected 

 a bishopric near the river Elwy. Upon his recall to Glasgow, he left 

 this charge to his disciple Asaph, a native of Wales, from whom the 

 cathedral and the diocese got their designation. In the wars between 

 the English and Welsh, in which the frontier situation of St. Asaph 

 was very disadvantageous to it, the early records of the see perished, 

 and there is a long hiatus in the list of bishops. In modern times 

 the bishopric has been held by men eminent for talent, piety, and 

 learning. Among these may be mentioned Bishop Lloyd, one of the 

 seven committed to the Tower by James II., bishops Beveridge, Tanner, 

 Shipley, and Horsley. 



The diocese comprehends Flintshire, Denbighshire, and Montgomery- 

 shire (with the exception of a few parishes), and parts of Caernarvon- 

 shire, Merionethshire, and Shropshire. There are now in it 148 

 benefices, the patronage of 121 of which, together with the deanery, the 

 archdeaconries, and canonries in the cathedral of St. Asaph, is vested 

 in the bishop. The diocese is divided into the archdeaconries of 

 St. Axaph and Montgomery, and twelve deaneries. The cathedral 

 establishment includes, besides the bishop, a dean, two canons, two 

 archdeacons, six canons cursal, four minor canons, an organist, &c. 

 The bishop's revenue is fixed by Act of Parliament at 4200J. 



(Browne Willis's Survey of St. Asaph; Pennant's Tour in Wales; 

 Single/a Tour round North. Wales; Parry's Cambrian Mirror; 

 Winkles' Cathedrals; Correspondent at St. Asaph.) 



A'SCALON (Askulan), a town of Palestine, situated on the shore ol 

 the Mediterranean, about 14 miles N. by E. from Gaza, in 31 35' N.lat., 

 34 47' E. long. It was one of the ' fenced cities' of the Philistines, 

 but shortly after the death of Joshua it fell into the hands of the 

 tribe of Judah ; it was afterwards successively under the Assyrians, 

 Persians, Greeks, and Romans. 



The name of this town occurs frequently in the history of the 

 people of Israel, especially during the early part of their occupation 

 of Palestine. Herod the Great considerably embellished it with public 

 buildings, including fountains and baths. After Hcrod'sdeath Ascalon 

 was given to his sister Salome as a place of residence. During the Jewish 

 OEOO. Div. VOL. I. 



ars with the Romans the city suffered much damage. Of the 

 numerous Jews who lived in Ascalon 2500 were slain by the 

 inhabitants. 



Copper Coin in the Brit. Mus. 



There was a celebrated temple of the Heavenly Venus at Ascalon, 

 hich Herodotus (i. 105) mentions as having been plundered by the 

 Scythians B.C. 630. Forty rose-granite columns, belonging to an 

 ancient temple, in the Greek style, are still standing, with capitals 

 and friezes of the most beautiful marble. This temple is probably 

 the representative of the old Syrian edifice. There are also remains 

 of a Roman amphitheatre at Ascalou. In the early ages of Christianity 

 Ascalon became an episcopal see. In the 7th century the Saracens 

 obtained possession of the place. On the plains of Ascalon a battle 

 was fought on August 12, 1099, between the Crusaders under 

 Godfrey de Bouillon, and the Saracens under the Vizier of Egypt, in 

 which the Vizier's formidable host was totally routed. The cuirasses, 

 casques, and swords of the knights are still found among the ruins. 

 In the latter part of the 13th century the fortifications were demo- 

 lished by Sultan Bibars, and the harbour filled up with stones. 



The town stood on an extensive semicircular hill, the slope of 

 which is just perceptible towards the land, but on the sea coast 

 it is of considerable abruptness. The walls of the town, with their 

 towers and battlements, are still standing, and among the ruins are 

 vast gothic churches, a palace, and a chapel dedicated to the Virgin, 

 blended with traces of more ancient date. On the roof of the chapel 

 are these words still legible : " Stella matutina, advocata navigantium, 

 ora pro nobis;" but the place is entirely deserted. 



At a short distance to the northward is a small modern village 

 called Scalona, evidently a corruption of the ancient name ; and here 

 is the port for the small vessels that trade along the coast. 



ASCANIA, LAKES OF. [ANATOLIA.] 



ASCENSION ISLAND lies in the South Atlantic Ocean, between 

 Africa and Brazil; 685 miles N.W. from St. Helena, 1450 miles from 

 the coast of Africa, and 520 miles from the nearest land, Matthew 

 Island. The fort is in 7 56' S. lat., 14 24' W. long. The form of 

 the island is an oval, 74 miles long and 6 miles wide. It is of volcanic 

 origin, presenting a surface of rugged conical hills, of different sorts of 

 lava, from 200 to 300 feet high, some of them with perfect craters. At 

 the eastern part of the island is a double-peaked mountain of gritty 

 tufaceous limestone 2818 feet high, which from its comparatively 

 verdant appearance has obtained the name of ' Green Mountain.' The 

 whole island is of a naked desolate character, with numerous rocks 

 lying upon each other in a very irregular way, with great chasms 

 between them, and strewed with scoriae, pumice, and other volcanic 

 substances. 



The island was discovered by Joao de Nova Galego in 1501, and is 

 said to derive its present name from having been seen on Ascension 

 Day. It was then entirely barren and uninhabited ; frequented by 

 many varieties of land animals, and the shores well supplied with fish. 

 The island was afterwards much frequented by homeward-bound 

 vessels from the Cape of Good Hope and the East Indies ; it was also 

 a gnat resort for smuggling vessels from our American colonies, who 

 used to meet the Indiamen here on their return home. In 1815, during 

 the confinement of Napoleon at St. Helena, the British government 

 took possession of Ascension as a military station, and maintained on 

 it a garrison, who fortified the island with 17 guns, the greater number 

 at English Road, where they erected a look-out station, barracks, and 

 storehouses of the compact lava, the pulverised coral on the bi'ach 

 forming excellent cement. From the attention and exertion of the 

 garrison, the island is now in a state of progressive improvement as to 

 its resources, natural and artificial. Roads have been made and iron 

 pipes laid down to convey the water from the springs to the fort, near 

 which a large tank has been excavated, capable of containing 1700 tuns. 

 Some ground has been laid out as pasturage ; domestic animals are 

 extensively reared, and fruits and vegetables are grown. 



A victualling establishment on Ascension Island is principally for 

 supplying the African squadron engaged in the suppression of the 

 slave-trade ; the establishment contains an hospital for sick seamen, 

 &c. It is believed that if the African squadron were withdrawn, 

 Ascension Island would still form a valuable rendezvous and dep6t for 

 Atlantic commerce. v The sum of 2000Z. was voted in 1848 for new 

 storehouses on the island. 



The anchorage though an open bay is perfectly safe, and the island 

 is never visited by gales of wind, but a heavy surf rolls on the beach, 

 which sometimes interrupts the communication with the shore for 

 days together. There is no regular tide, and the rise and fall is 

 very trifling. On Green Mountain the annual range of Fahrenheit's 

 thermometer is from 58 to 82. 



(Purely" s Atlantic Memoir; Parliamentary Papers.) 

 ASCHAFFENBURG, a principality hi the west of Germany, 



2 N 



