B I S 



E I S 



BisHor, Bin!, in Oi-nlthal'jgy. See Tanagra Epis- 

 copus. 



Bishop ami his CLrh, in Geography, a cliiftcr of dansjcr- 

 ous rucks, near tlit^ weft coaft of South Wul.-h, at t'ae en- 

 trance of St.Gcorije's cha.-i'.'el, 4. miles well of St. David's. 

 N. iat, 51" 54'. \V. long, 5° 20'. 



BisHOp'j AucUand. See Auckland. 



BisHCp'o CaUld, a market and borough town of Siirop- 

 fliirc, in E!i_!i"d, fpr.-ads its fcattered houfes over the lule 

 of a conlider.ible eminence, at the bafe of which runs the 

 fmall river Clun, This town is an old corporation, and 

 made its firll return to parliament in the 27th of Elizabtth. 

 Previous to tliat period, it belonged to the fee of Hereford, 

 and derived its ramc from being one of the feats, or caftel- 

 latfd manfions, of tiie b:fliops. The coi-poration conlills of 

 a bailiff, recoider, and fifteen aldermen, who, with about 

 thirty other inhabitants called burgeffes, tleCl two members 

 for the town. Here is a large weekly market on Fridays, 

 which is much freqjcnted by the Weifh, as are its fix an- 

 nual fairs. At fomc of the latter a great quantity of Ihcep 

 and pigs are fold. This town was formerly under the pro- 

 tection of a caftle, which is entirely dellroyed. Bifliop's 

 caftle is 156 miles N.W. from London. It contains 241 

 houfes, and 1076 inhabitants. 



At Snedc, about two miles and a half N.W. from Bifliop's 

 caftle, a prioiy of black canons was founded in the time of 

 Henry HI., but was foon afterwards removed to Chfrbiiry. 

 This place, featcd near tlie Severn, is fuppofed to have been 

 b'.:ilt by Ethclflcda, and was afterwards poftcfTed by the fa- 

 mily of the Herberts, one of whom was created lord Her- 

 bert of Cherbury. This gentleman wrote an account of his 

 own life, which has been publifhed by Horace Walpole at 

 Iiis private prefs at Strawberry hill. Not far from this town, 

 on the borders of Montgomeryfhire, is an ancient encamp- 

 ment called Bijljop's Aloat ; and at Clun are the remains of 

 an ancient caitle, near which is a camp called Bury-dilches. 

 About three miles hence is IValcot, the feat of lord Clivc, 

 who is patron of this borough. In the vicinity of Bifliop's 

 caftle, are three lofty Angular hills, refpeflively named 

 Corndon-hill, Church-Stoke-hill, and Squilfar hill. At 

 Moor Park is a refpeclable ancient manfion ; the grounds 

 are finely diverfified, and abound with fine woods. 



BisHop'j IJland, a fmall rocky ifland in Mal-bay, on the 

 well coaft of the county of Clare, in Ireland. N. Iat. 52' 

 38'. \y. long. 9^ 35'. Beaufort. 



BisHOP'j' Storljord, a market town of Hertfordfhire, in 

 E:!gland, is placed on the fide of a hill, near the wettern 

 borders of Efl'ex. Seated in the midft of a corn country, it 

 is remarkable for its number of malt houfes, and for the 

 quantity of malt annually made here ; this is diftinguiftied 

 by the name of brown malt, and is difpofed of principally to 

 the London brewers. It is conveyed to the metropolis in 

 barges, by a navigable canal, which was cut in 1779, and 

 which joins the river Lee, at about 14 miles diftai.ce from 

 this town. Before this navigation was opened, the malt, 

 which is now lodged here, was carried to Ware and Stan- 

 fted, as the neartll places for water-carriage ; but fince the 

 above period, Stortford has become the depot for the malt 

 male in this town and the neighbouring villages. 



This place was evidently of fome note previous to the 

 conqueft, as it appears from the Domefday Survey, that the 

 conqueror gave the town and calUe to Maurice, bifliop of 

 London. From this evidence it appears, that the caftle 

 here, which bore the name of Waytemore, was ftanding 

 prior to the Norman invafion, though fome writers aifert 

 that it was erefted by William. It was probably repaired 

 and flrengtheiied by l>ira, but Mr. Salmon fetms juitiikd in 



the opinion, that it was cnnftrii£ted by the Eaft Sas:on8 to 

 defend their borders. Tiie lands paying cafUe-guard, lie 

 between this place and the Erm.ine-ftrcet, one of the great 

 Anglo-Roman roads. The hill, or keep, on which the 

 caftle ftood, is aitifi', 'al, being evidently raifed with earth 

 brnight from fome diiiance. C)u the top was a v/cll, and a 

 breaftwork of Itone and mortar, A bank of earth, runs from 

 the fummit acrofs the moory ground to the no:th-eaft. 

 " Tliiscalile," fays Salmon, " inuit have been offomeconfe- 

 quencc in the time of king Stephen, becaufe of the great 

 defire GeofiVey de Magnaville had, either to be mafler of 

 it, or to have it pulled down ; and Maud the emprefs en- 

 gaged him to do one or t'other^" The iecuiity derived 

 trom this fortification gave origin to the town, which had 

 increafed to fome confequence in the time ot king John, who 

 created it a borough, and invefted the inhabitants with certain 

 corporate privileges. This monarch feized the caftle and 

 town from W. de St. Maria, the bifliop of London, who 

 was one of the three bifhops deputed to execute the pope's 

 interdict upon England. This period was diftinguifhed by 

 the al;'.rmi:)g jealoufies and animofities between the kins; and 

 the pope with his pnlates; and as Sa'mon cxpre-fl".;s it, 

 " the caftle, at Stortford, Hands yet a monument of king 

 John's power and revenge, and the Bifliop's lands remain a 

 monument of the pope's entire viftory over him." In the 

 time of Edward II [. the town and caftle, &c. again reverted 

 to the bifhop of I^ondor-, in whofe fee it ftill continues, and 

 who appoints a baillft" for this liberty, which includes the 

 town and thirteen contiguous pari files. The Bifiiop's pri- 

 fon was ftanding in bifhop Botiner's time, but that and aH 

 the other old buildings have been fiuce demoliflied. 



The ftreets of the town are dilpofed in the form of a 

 crol , with two long ftreets interfefting each other at right 

 angles. Though no particular manufacture is carried on here, 

 yet the town is refpettable and populous ; it contains 456 

 houfes, and 23C5inhabitarts. Here are a very confidcrable 

 wetklv market tor grain, &c. on Thurfdays, and three an- 

 nual fairs, which are moftly appropriated to the fale of 

 horfcs and cattle. 



The church, dedicated to St. Michael, is a large lofty 

 ftrutture, and, 1 ke moft buildings dedicated to that faint, 

 ftands on the higheft ground in the neighbourhood. There 

 were anciently ti'rce guilds and a chartry endowed here ; 

 and ia tiie choir are nine ftalls on each i:de. The interiw 

 of this building is decorated with a number of monuments, 

 fome of which are ancient. The g;eat tythts of the pariih 

 are in the hands of laymen. In the town are fome meeting- 

 houfes for diffenters, methodifts and quakers, alfo fome alms- 

 houfes,and a fchool-houfc. The latter was built from a fub- 

 fcription among the gentlemen of Herifordiliire and EfTex, 

 who were inftigated to this aft by Dr. Thomas Tooke. This 

 gentleman was zealoufiy indefatigable in promoting and 

 eftablifhing the foundation which has proved beneficial to 

 the town, and highly honourable to its founder and pa- 

 trons. The building ftands on arches, beneath which is a 

 fpace for market and ftiops. Dr. Tooke revived an arnual 

 fchool-feaft here, and charged his own eflate with an annual 

 prcfent to the preacher. He alfo gave a chalice of 20I. 

 value to tlie church, and was a great benetaftor to the fchocl- 

 library, whic'i is a very good one, and was fiiil eftabhfhed 

 by the Rev. Thomas Leigh, who was vicar of the church 

 in 1680, &c, Befides other donations to this library, it is 

 cultomary for every gentleman to prefent a book at the time 

 of leaving th'* fchool. Biihop's Storti'ord derives its com* 

 pound name from being the property of the bifliop of Lon- 

 don at an early period, and from its fituation on the banks 

 of the river Stort, which feparates it on the eaft from the 



hamlet 



