626 



HAMPSHIRE HANCOCK. 



is pleasantly diversified with gently-rising hills and 

 fruitful valleys, adorned with numerous seats and vil- 

 lages, interspersed with extensive woodlands. About 

 one-half of the surface is devoted to pasturage ; 

 about one-half arable ; and the remainder is occu- 

 pied with extensive forests and tracts of open heath. 

 In those parts which border on Surrey, the land is 

 principally appropriated to the growth of hops, the 

 plantations of which have been largely extended of 

 late years. Wheat, barley, peas, oats, rye, grass, 

 and trefoil, are also raised in considerable quantities. 

 Besides the products already noticed, Hampshire is 

 famous for its wool, bacon, honey, and timber. Ex- 

 clusive of the New Forest, occupying almost the 

 whole of its south-west angle, this county contains 

 the Forest of Bere towards the south-east, and the 

 woods or forests of Alice, Holt, and Woolmar ; the 

 former extending northward from the Portsdown 

 hills, and the latter situated on the borders of Surrey 

 and Sussex. This county is watered by several 

 rivers, some of which rising in the north-east soon 

 leave the comity in their course towards the Thames ; 

 but the greater cross it from north to south, and fall 

 into the English Channel. The Upper Avon, from 

 Wiltshire, flows near the edge of the New Forest, 

 and passing Fording-bridge and Ringwood, enters 

 the sea at Christ-church Bay. The Test, or Tese, 

 rises in the north-western part of Hampshire, and 

 passing Stockbridge and Romsey, fells into South- 

 ampton Bay. The Itchin has its source near the 

 centre of the county, and washing the city of Win- 

 chester, empties itself into the bay just mentioned ; 

 iind which also receives another small river below 

 Titchfield. Besides these may be mentioned the 

 Boldre-water, the Exe, the Anton, and the Hamble. 

 In tracing the sea-coast from east to west, we find 

 several important bays and inlets, the first of which 

 includes Portsea Island, on which is the town of 

 Portsmouth ; and opposite to it, on the mainland, is 

 Gosport, situated on the peninsula, which terminates 

 in the point called Spithead. Hence commences 

 that arm of the sea, stretching to the north-west, 

 named Trisanton Bay, or Southampton Water, na- 

 vigable almost to its head, for vessels of considerable 

 burden. Further westward are the bays of Lyming- 

 ton and Christchurch. The principal manufactures 

 of this county are broad cloth, shalloon, serge, ker- 

 seys, and other coarse woollens ; malt, large quanti- 

 ties of which are made at Andover ; and sea-salt, 

 prepared at Lymington. Sea-fish is plentiful, and 

 lobsters and other marine Crustacea are taken off the 

 coasts ; and the rivers produce excellent trout. 

 The only city of the county, is Winchester ; the 

 boroughs are Southampton, Portsmouth, Petersfield, 

 Yarmouth, Newport, Newtown, Stockbridge, An- 

 dover, Whitchurch, Lymington, and Christchurch ; 

 and the market towns, Alresford, Alton, Basing- 

 stoke, Brading, Cowes, Fareham, Fordingbridge, 

 Gosport, Havant, Odiham, Ringwood, Romsey, 

 Ryde, and Bishop's Waltham. Population in 1831, 

 314,313; in 1841, 355,004. 



HAMPSHIRE, NEW, See New Hampshire. 



HAMPSTEAD ; a populous village in Middlesex, 

 four miles N. W. of London. It is situated on the 

 declivity of a high hill, from which there is one of 

 the best and most charming prospects of the metro- 

 polis and the adjacent counties. According to tra- 

 dition, this was formerly a hunting seat of James II. 

 Pop. of the parish, 1841, 10,093. This place is much 

 resorted to in summer, by the inhabitants of Lon- 

 don. 



HAMPTON, a village of Middlesex, situated 

 twelve miles S. W. of London. Population of parish 

 in 1841, 4711. About a mile from the village is the 

 royal palace of Hampton Court. It was erected by 



cardinal Wolsey, who lived here magnificently. 

 The palace was said to be provided with 280 beds 

 for visitors of rank. Wolsey presented it to Henry 

 VIII., in 1526, after which it was much resorted to 

 by the English kings and queens, until lately. The 

 palace ana appurtenances are very spacious, and are 

 described at length in the various Guides of London. 

 Much of the celebrity of Hampton Court is owing to 

 the gallery of paintings, in which the famous car- 

 toons of Raphael are preserved. They are called 

 by way of excellence, the cartoons. They are part 

 of a series of designs made for tapestry, and were 

 purchased by Charles I. They are deservedly reck- 

 oned among the finest of Raphael's works, and con- 

 sequently among the finest works of art. Richard- 

 son has given an accurate, historical, and critical 

 description of them ; and, hi his opinion, they are 

 more fitted to convey a true idea of the genius of 

 Raphael, than even the loggie of the Vatican. The 

 tapestries that have been wrought from them are but 

 shadows of the originals, yet are preserved with 

 great veneration at Rome, and only shown on a few 

 days of the year, in the gallery which leads from St 

 Peter's to the Vatican, and never fail to attract an 

 immense crowd. Towards the end of the year 1797, 

 the French government exhibited in the Salon du 

 Musee, several tapestries worked at Brussels, which 

 were said to have been executed after the designs of 

 Raphael. The cartoons at Hampton Court have been 

 several times engraved, first by Gribelin, in queen 

 Anne's reign, next by Dorigny, and since that by 

 several inferior artists, most probably from the 

 other engravings. They have also been engraved 

 lately, of a small size, by Fittler, and of a very large 

 size, and in a splendid and superior manner, by 

 Holloway. One of the most admired of these car- 

 toons is St Paul preaching at Athens. For more 

 information respecting them, and the other valuable 

 pictures at Hampton Court, see Hazlitt's British Gal- 

 leries of Art (London, 1824). 



HANAPER ; an office in chancery, under the 

 direction of a master, whose deputy and clerks an- 

 swer, in some measure, to the fiscal among the 

 Romans. The clerk of the hanaper receives all 

 fines due to the king for seals of charters, patents, 

 commissions, and writs. He attends, also, the 

 keeper of the seal daily, in term, and at all times of 

 sealing, and takes into his custody all sealed charters, 

 patents, &c. 



HANAU, a province of Hesse-Cassel,in the Wet- 

 teravia, constituted, from 1809 to 1813, part of the 

 grand duchy of Frankfort. It contains 572 square 

 miles, with 88,100 inhabitants, mostly Protes. ants, 

 who formed a religious union in 1818. The capital 

 is Hanau, on the Kinzig ; lat. 50 51' N. ; Ion. 8 

 51' E. ; with 1479 houses and 9700 inhabitants; 

 famous for the battle fought here, October 30, 181 

 between the Bavarian general Wrede and Napol 

 on the retreat from Leipsic. The victory was, 

 first, decidedly for the French ; but the allies claim 

 the advantage, because they had seriously em 

 rassed the retreat of Napoleon. Military write; 

 have reproached general Wrede for his bad tactics. 

 He was himself severely wounded. The allies did 

 not advance before November 2, and therefore could 

 not have gained any great advantage. It is said 

 that the French lost 15,000 killed and wounded, and 

 10,000 prisoners, in the combats in and near Hamui. 



HANCOCK, JOHN, an American patriot during 

 the war of independence, was born at Quincy, near 

 Boston, and was the son and grandson of eminent 

 clergymen, but, Having early lost his father, was in- 

 debted for his liberal education to his uncle, a mer- 

 chant of great wealth and respectability, who sent 

 him to Harvard university, where he was graduated 



