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tliis place is called Berchelai, ar.d is diflinguilhed by tlie ap- 

 pellation of borough, though it dots not appear ever to have 

 lent members lo parliament. Formerly the great public 

 road from Britlol lo Glouceller, and from the weftern to tlie 

 northern counties, IpalTed through the town, and coiifc- 

 quently gave it fomc advantages ; but this road is now con- 

 ducted through Newport, and fome other places, to the eaft 

 of the town. This circumllancc, with the powerful attrac- 

 tions of Glouceller and Briftol, have coTilpirtd to reduce tlie 

 lize and confequence of this place, which at prefent confifts 

 of one ftreet only. The river Avon fliirts the fouthern fide ot 

 the town, and is navigable to tlie Severn for veffels of 40 or 

 ^o tons. Thcfe mull; wait for high tide, which flows round 

 tlie calUe gardens, and extends a lliort diilance above them. 

 'I'liis part of the county is diiUnguiilKd by its fine pallure 

 land, llie rich cluefe made in itb dairies, and the golden and 

 JLondon-pippin cyder, obtained from its orchards. Tiie clicefe 

 moftly made here is diltini,'uifhed by the double name of Glou- 

 celler, the bed of which is bought up by the Loudon fnclors, 

 at high prices. (See Cheese.) The town is one of the 

 live ancient boroughs of this county, which fubfifted in the 

 time ot Edward I. and though deprived of mod of its an- 

 cient privileges, yet a mayor is annually elcdted. 



The manor of Berkley is one of the largefl in England, 

 and was ta.-ied in the Doinefday book at 160 hides, and 29+ 

 p!ough-till<iges and a half. It was poffefled, immediately 

 after the Norman coiiqucft, by Roger de Berkeley, who 

 came into England with the Conqueror, and was rewarded 

 by him with thio manor. It has continued in this noble fami- 

 ly without interruption to the prefent time, and is now enjoy- 

 ed by Frederick Augullus, the fifth earl of Berkeley, who is 

 the twcnty-lirft in defcent from Harding the Dane. 



The caille of Berkeley is one of the mofl perfeft of the 

 Englith baronial tdltices, and has fufl'ered Icfs by the fconvge 

 of war and injudicious alteration, than any other Englifh 

 caille belonging to a fubjc(ft. Some parts of tlie original 

 llrutlure are ftill perfect, and are intertiling examples of the 

 firll Norman architecture, which was employed in conftruft- 

 ing the baronial calllcf. The fitc of this building occupies 

 an area of ground whofe outline is nearly circular. It rifes 

 from a valley on the louth and eall, and its other fides are 

 jjiiarded by embattled walls, towers, and fortified gates. 

 The great entrance gate opens into a bafe court, having the 

 keep on the left, and the domel'ic apartments on the right, 

 and in front. The keep, whole wall^ are lofty and maffive, 

 refembles the form ot a Roman D, and is flanked by three 

 femicircnlar towers, belides that in which the great Hone 

 ftairs are contained. This is fqnare, and has a fmall dark 

 room near the top, where Edward II. was fecretly murdered 

 by the machinations of the bilhop of Hereford, who invented 

 and diretted the execrable deed. 



The elegant and energetic poet. Gray, notices this event 

 in the following exprtffive terms : — 

 " Mark the year, and mark the night, 

 When Severn ftiall re-echo with afFnght, 

 The fhricks of death through Berkeley's roof to ring. 

 Shrieks of an agonizing king." 

 The hall, chapel, and moll of the apartments, are fitted up 

 and prcfervcd nearly in their ancient ftyle, and in fome of 

 them are feveral curious relics of antiquity. Among them 

 are many fine old hillorical portraits, and the fopha, chairs, 

 and beditead, which belonged to the cabin of the ciicumnavi- 

 gator Sir Francis Drake- The hall, which is 43 feet by 33, was 

 built in the reign of Edward III. and has a fine old raftered 

 roof, with a gallery at one end for the accommodation of 

 minllrels, in " days of yore." Leland mentions feveral parks 

 and chaces, as connefted with this caille at the time he 



7 



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viCted it ; but all, except two, have been converted to the 

 more ufeful purpofe of farming. One of theie, called Whit- 

 ley-park, which is inclofed with a wall feven miles in cir- 

 cumference, Hill remains, and contains much fire foreft- 

 timbtr. 



At Purton near this caflle, 'the prefent earl of Berkeley has 

 made a decoy pool, which is the only one in this county, 

 and where a great number of wild-ducks are annually netted. 

 The celebrated Dr. Jenner, the great promoter of the vac- 

 cine inoculation, was born in this parilh. 



To the north of the caille is the parifh church, which is 

 a large handfome flnifture, and contains feveral handfome 

 and ancient monuments to the Berkeley family. The tower 

 is a modern building, and conftrufled at a fmall diilance 

 from the church. 



Ill this townfiiip are 09 luiufes, and 658 inhabitants. In 

 the hundred of Berkeley there appear to be, by the late po- 

 pulation act, 3450 inhabited houfea, 9,148 males, 10,074 

 females, 3968 perfons employed chiefly in agriculture, 6151 

 employed in trade, manufadturc?, and handicraft, and the 

 whole number of perfons amounts to 19,222. Rudgc's Hif- 

 tory of Glouceftcrfhiro. Rudder's Hiilory "of ditto. 



Berkley's t'oinf, lies on the north fide of lord Egmont'a 

 ifland, or New Gucriifey, the principal of the groupe called 

 Q^neen Charlotte's ifiandf, in S. lat. 10^40'. E. long, about 

 164" id'. 



Bepklev Soiir^, io called from captain Berkley, who 

 vlfited It in 1787 ; an inlet, or bay, on the N. W. coait of 

 North America, being the entrance into the fuppofed flrait 

 of juan de Fuca, terminated on the fouth by cape Flattery, 

 and on the north by the fouthern part of Quadra, or Van- 

 couver's ifland ; about 1° 51' fouth-calt of Nootka found. 

 N. lat. 48° 30'. E. long. 235° 35'. 



BERKS, a county of Penniylvania in North America, 

 has Northampton county on the N. E. Northumberland on 

 the N. W. part of Lu/ern on the N. Dauphin and Lan- 

 cafter on tlie S. W. and Chefter and Montgomery on the 

 S. E. It is watered by Schuylkill river, and is 53 miles 

 long, and near 29 broad, and contains 1,030,400 acres. 

 Iron and coal, which are plentiful, fupply feveral iron works. 

 The noriJieni parts are rough and hilly. Berks contains 

 30,179 ir.habitar.ts, of whom 6^ are (laves. It has 29 

 townlliips, of « inch Reading is the chief. 



BERKSHIRE, a county of the ilalc of Maffachufetts, 

 is bounded on the N. by the (late of Vermont, on the S. by 

 that of Connefticut ; on the E. by Hamplhire county, and 

 on the W, by the ftate of New York. It runs through the 

 whole extent of the ilate from N. to S. and contains 26 

 townfhips; and the number of inhabitants is 30,291. White 

 and coloured marble is found in feveral towns, in the rough 

 and hilly parts of this county. 



Berkshire, a newly fettled townfiiip of Franklin county 

 in the ftate of Vermont. 



Berkshire, an inland county of England. Previous to, 

 and at the period of the Roman invafion of Britain, this part 

 of the ifland was inhabited by three Britifli tribes, refpec- 

 tively termed Attebrates, Bibroces, or Rhemi, and Segon- 

 tiaci. The firfl occupied the weltern part of the county, 

 from the river Lodden on the fonth-eafl, to the Thames oa 

 the north-well ; whilll the fecond pofielfed the fouth-eaftem 

 part of the county ; and the Segontiaci inhabited the remain- 

 ing part on the fouthern lide. When Conllantine divided 

 this country into Roman provinces (in 310,1 Berklhire wa« 

 included in the firfl divifion, called Britannia Prima. During 

 the Saxon Heptarchy, it conflituted part of the kingdom of 

 the weft Saxons which commenced about A. D. 519, and 

 continued till A.D. 828, when WeiTex became the only 



foveieignty. 



