B L A 



j; L A 



BLACK FOREST. [See SCWVARZWALD.] 



BLACK or DOM INK 'AN FRIARS, an order of mcn- 

 dicanu whoso founder was Si. Dominic, a Spaniard, born at 

 i -m-ruga, a small town in the diocese ofOsma in Old 

 Castile, about A.D. 1 1 "0 (sea the Hist, tics Ordres Afonas- 

 tiqufs, torn. iii. p. 1'Js), and not us Tanner (A'c/iV. Mouiut. 

 edit. Nasmith, prof. p. xiii.) savs, in 1070. His real name 

 was Dominic do Guzman. Ho died in 12-21, and was 

 canonized by Pope Gregory IX. in l.J.'i. 



These friars were called Dominicans from their founder ; 

 Preaching Friars, from their ollice to preach, and convert 

 Jews and heretics (sec Lit. Pat. 8 Edw. I. m. 23; and 14 

 Edw. II. p. l,m. 16); Black Friars from their garments; 

 and, in France, Jacobins, from having their first house in 

 that country in the rue St. Jacques at Paris. 



Their rule, which \vas chielly that of St. Augustine, was 

 Approved by Pope Innocent 111. in the Latcran Council, 

 A.IJ. 12IJ. i>y word of mouth; and by a bull from Pope 

 Honorius III., A.D. 121G. They were known, however, 



earlier than this; for Rymcr in his Fasdera, torn. i. p. 137, 

 has printed n license or permission addressed from Pope 

 Innocent III. to King John of England, A.D. 1204, for such 

 Dominicans and Franciscans, who might accompany the 

 king in going beyond sea, to ride, the rules of their order 

 obliging them to travel on foot. 



Thirteen of these Dominican friars, according to Reyner 

 (Apostolat. Benedictin. in Angl. torn. i. p. 101), including 

 u superior, came into England A.D. 1221, for the purpose 

 of establishing their Order in England, when Stephen 

 Langton, then archbishop of Canterbury, giving his ap- 

 proval, they were allowed to settle, and fixed their first 

 house at Oxford in that year. (Reyner, ut supr. ; see also 

 Wood's Hist, of Oxford, p. 62 ; N. Triveti, Chron. p. 176.) 

 The Black Friars at London was their second house : origi- 

 nally placed near where Lincoln's Inn now stands, but re- 

 moved about 1279 to some place near Castle Baynard, where 

 the parochial district still bears the name of the Order. 



At the time of the dissolution of the monasteries under 

 Henry VIII. there were fifty-eight houses of Dominicans in 

 England and Wales. Tanner, who did not find them all 

 out, reckoned the English houses only at forty-three. 



Tanner says ' There were nuns also of this order, but I 

 think none in England; for, though Thomas Lord Wake 

 intended to have brought some of them hither, and had the 

 king's license for it, yet he seems not to have done it.' 

 {Notit. Monatt. ut supr.) The nuns of Dartford in Kent 

 however are believed to have been for some time of this 

 Order. King Edward III., in his letter to the bishop of 

 Rochester, concerning his intended foundation of that house, 

 calls it ' une Maison des soeres de 1'Ordre de Prccheurs.' 

 (See Thorpe's Registrum Roffense, p. 312.) 



Stevens has given an elaborate account of the origin of 

 the Dominican Order, from the Histoire des Ordres Monas- 

 tique*, already quoted, followed by a catalogue of the most 

 celebrated men of English birth among the Black Friars who 

 were writers. Amongst these Robert Kilwarby, afterwards 

 archbishop of Canterbury and a cardinal of the Roman 

 Church, who died in 1280; Nicholas Trivet, the historian, 

 who died in 1328 ; aud Robert Holcot, who died in 1349, 

 u:c the most distinguished. 



Stevens, in his Appendix, vol. ii. pp. 369, 370, has also 

 preserved the following instruments illustrative of the gene- 

 ral history of this order in England. The first two, from 

 King Richard II., forbid the granting of any degrees in 

 the universities to apostate brothers of the Dominicans. 

 (.Put. 14 Ric. II. p. i. m. 16, A.D. 1390, Rym. Feed, old edit. 

 torn. vii. p. 690 ; and Put. 21 Ric. II. clau's. 21 Ric. II. p. 1, 

 in. 20, Rym. Fud. torn. viii. p. 8, A.D. 1397.) The third, 

 from the game king (Pat. 23 Ric. II. claus. 23 Ric. II. m. 

 2, d. Rym. /'<;/. t.mi. viii. p. 87, A.D. 1399), i.s in vindication 

 of the Dominicans and other mendicants from malicious 

 charges. The fourth is the license granted by Pope Inno- 

 cent III., allowing them to ride, already mentioned. These 

 deed* are reprint."! in the last edition of Dugdale's Moruis- 

 ticon, vol. vi. pt. iii. pp. 1482-1484.' In the same volume, 

 t>p. 148 3- 1500, there are accounts and notices of fifty-eight 

 houses of Black Friars formerly existing in the different 

 counties of England and Wales. 



BLACKFRIARS BRIDGE, one of the six magnificent 

 bridges built over the Thames within the cities of London 

 and Westminster, and the third in point of date. The 

 bridge takes its name from the circumstance of a monastery 

 of Black Friar* having existed near its site. The north 



ond of tin 1 bridge, which i situated in the city of I./mdon, 

 occupies what was formerly Hie in. mill ol' llu -Fleet ditch ; 

 the south end is situated in the borough i.f Snmliw.uk. 

 This structure, which was built by the late Robert Mvliu-, 

 consists of nine elliptic*] uiclie>. \ 'which th<- < cnlral ;uv!i 

 is 100 and the side arches 70 feet span. The whole length 

 u 1035 feet. The breadth of the carriage 

 and the footways 7 feet each. On the cutwaters uf the 



piers are two Ionic columns supporting an entablature, on 

 which is a platform forming a projecting n<vs : and . 

 on a blocking course is a massive balustrade, which with tho 

 entablature of the columns is carried along the whole extent 

 of the bridge. The greatest height of the bridge from the 

 level of the caissons on which the piers are laid to t. 

 of the balustrades is about 70 feet. The road-way i.- 

 stecp, the inclination being in some (dace.. 1 in Iti. The 

 first stone is stated by Pennant to have been laid on the 

 30th of October, 1760, but according to the 'Narrative' 

 hereafter quoted, on the 31st. Though the bridge i 

 to have been completed about the latter end of the j ear 

 1768, it was not entirely finished until 1770; and the ap- 

 proaches and embankments, which were very extensive and 

 attended with great difliculties, were carried on for several 

 succeeding years. 



From a Narrative referred to in the report of the com- 

 mittee to the common-council of London, dated May 1 I, 

 1784, we learn several facts connected with the building of 

 Blackfriars-bridgc, which, as they are not generally known, 

 it may be well to give here in a condensed form. 



The city undertook to open a new bridge while the im- 

 provements of the old London-bridge were being carried on. 

 A report was made by a committee of the common council 

 in ) 754, and a design by Mr. Dance, the surveyor to the 

 city works, with an estimate amounting to ISa.UJO/., ex- 

 clusive of the approaches and the expense of piln 



In 1756 successful application \\as made to parliament, 

 and a grant of a reversionary toll, with power to borrow 

 160.000/. upon the credit thereof, were obtained : and t\\ clve 

 aldermen and twenty-four common-councillors were subse- 

 quently appointed to carry the act into effect. 



On account of the scanty means of the city, and probably 

 the dillicully of raising money, it being war time, it was a 

 matter of consideration whether the bridge should be of wood 

 or stone, or both. A public proposition was eventually 

 made for u loan of 144.000/., and the subscribers were to 

 have the city seal for their security. This proposition w -as 

 so eagerly embraced, that in seventeen days the whole of 

 the subscriptions were filled up ; and 1 'J.OOO/. was eventually 

 added to the fund, from the fines levied on those who re- 

 fused to serve the office of sheriff. To diminish tli 

 penscs, the committee acted without fee or reward, and by 

 their prudent economy, 12,8061. 1*. 6d. was added to the 

 general fund. The bridge was advertised as open for com- 

 petition ; and the drawings and models were scut in on the 

 4th Oct. 1 759. 



An objection being made to the elliptical form of the 

 arches in the design presented by Mr. Mylnc, as defi- 

 cient in strength and stability, the objection was dirrctod 

 to be laid before eight competent gentlemen. In 17(i(l 

 these gentlemen determined in favour of Mr. Mylnc. The 

 form of his arch was iheii considered not only best adapted 

 to the navigation at all limes of tide, without raising the 

 carriage-way to an inconvenient height, but also tmidi 

 stringer than the semicircular arch constructed in the 

 common way, whilst at the same time its great width ren- 

 dered fewer piers necessary. Mr. Mylne was accordingly 



