IN THE SHIEES. 



II. 



Having long had a great desire to see Belvoir Castle, 

 together with the kennels and stud of his Grace the 

 Duke of Rutland, and finding that the fixture for 

 Monday would enable me to accomplish these objects, 

 I determined to go again to Melton, paying a passing 

 visit to Oakham, that I might see the ruins of the 

 Castle and Hall, as well as the Church, which has 

 recently been entirely restored, being now considered 

 a very fine specimen of Gothic architecture. Of the 

 Castle nothing remains save the walls and a curious 

 building called " the Hall,^^ in which the assizes are 

 held, and the business of the county court carried on. 

 It is supposed originally to have been the banquet 

 hall of the Castle. 



On referring to the legends of the town, it appears 

 that Henry II. granted the manor as created to a 

 younger son of the Earl of Derby, Walcheline de 

 Ferrars, a gentle and a joyous youth, apparently with 

 a tendency to poach on the Eoyal preserves and 

 generally to go the pace, so as to have become 

 entitled to the appellation of a " roysterer,^' whatever 

 that may mean. Be that as it may, it did not prevent 

 Walcheline de Ferrars from being made Baron of 

 Oakham, and enjoying the manorial rights of the 

 capital of Eutlandshire. 



