ROY 



R O Z 



mrles N.N.W. of Midnapour Alfo, a town of Hindooftan, 



in the circar of Boggilcund ; 20 miles E. of Revvah. 



ROYSTON, a town fituated partly in Cambridgelhire, 

 and partly within that of Hertford, is feated at the bottom 

 of a hill, among the chalk downs. The name appears to 

 have been derived from a crofs, erefted in the beginning of 

 the twelfth century by a lady Roife, or Roifia, and thence 

 called " Roife's Crofs ;" near to which a monailery for 

 Auflin canons was afterwards built : the canons being 

 competently endowed, houfes and inns were erefted, and 

 in time formed a town, called Roife's Town, which was 

 afterwards contracted to Roylton. At the time of the 

 Domefday Survey, the town was fituated in five parirties, 

 and fo continued till the 32d year of king Henry VIII., 

 when it was conftituted a diftinft parifh : and the church 

 of the difiblved priory being made parochial, was, agree- 

 ably to the letter of the ftatute, denominated " The Parilh 

 Church of St. John Baptifl in Roylton." The eftates 

 granted to the priory by the founders appear to have in- 

 cluded nearly all the land on which the town now ftands. 

 In the firlt year of Richard I. the canons obtained the 

 liberty of holding a weekly market, and alfo an annual fair 

 during the whole of Whitfun week. Heury III. inverted 

 them with many additional privileges: and under thefe grants 

 the trade and population of the town rapidly increafed. The 

 greater part of the houfes were dettroyed by fire in the 

 reign of Henry IV. ; but the convenient fituation of the 

 place as a corn-market contributed to its fpeedy reftoration : 

 and in the time of Henry VI., according to Hollinftud, 

 wheat was fo plentiful here as to be fold for twelve-pence 

 the quarter. Camden mentions this town as being famous 

 for the great refort of maltlters and other dealers in grain ; 

 and for the incredible quantity of corn to be feen every 

 market day on the adjacent roads. It is J till celebrated 

 for its corn trade, notwithftanding the great alteration 

 which has taken place in the modes of traffic. The [i 

 of the priory with its appurtenances and liberties, and 

 three annual fairs, were granted by Henry VIII., in con- 

 fideration of 1761/. 5/. od. to Robert Chelter, efq. whofe 

 poflerity continued to poflefs the fame for feveral gene- 

 rations : but thefe are now the property of the honourable 

 Thomas Brand. Only a few remains of the priory build- 

 ings are now left, excepting the church, which confifts of 

 a nave, chancel, and aides, with a low tower. Befides the 

 priory, there were two other religious foundations in this 

 town. One of them, an hofpital dedicated to St. Nicholas, 

 was founded fo early as king John's reign ; but no parti- 

 culars of it are now known. The other, which was alfo an 

 hofpital or free chapel, was dedicated to St. John and 

 St. James, and was in exiftence in the twelfth year of 

 Henry III., as Walter de Gray, archbiftiop of York, then 

 granted indulgences to fuch as mould contribute to the fup- 

 port of its fick and weak brethren. Some remains of this hof- 

 pital are yet extant in a dwelling-houfe. King James I. 

 built a manfion here, as an occafional refidence for enjoy- 

 ing the amufements of hawking and hunting. At the com- 

 mencement of the civil wars Charles I. removed from 

 Hampton-Court to this houfe. It is ftill called the king's 

 houfe, but is {alien to decay. Beneath the market-place 

 is a Cave, or fubterranous crypt or oratory, which has 

 been dug out of the folid chalk, and had originally a per- 

 pendicular aperture riling to the ftreet, and communicating 

 with the upper part of the cavity. This was of a circular 

 form, about two feet in diameter, and had been clofed by a 

 mill-done, which was accidentally difcovered in Augult 

 1742. This aperture, or defcent, had holes for the feet 

 /■.ut into the chalk on each fide ; but as the lower part of 



the crypt was found to be filled with loofe earth and rubbifh, 

 this paffage was quickly enlarged, the curiofity of the 

 town's-people being rtrongly excited by the hope of dif- 

 covering fome concealed treafure. About two hundred 

 loads of earth were drawn out ; but the zeal of the la- 

 bourers was only repaid by finding a fkull, and other 

 human bones, greatly decayed. The interior of this lin- 

 gular fubterraneous apartment is completely circular, finifh- 

 ed in a kind of dome above, broken onlv by the original 

 entrance. Round the lower part of the tides is a feries of 

 rude carving of the crucifixion, feveral faints, and various 

 other fubje&s from facred and profane hiftory. Tin- 

 bottom of this cell is furrounded by a raifed leat about on 

 foot high, and between two and three wide, but divided on 

 the ea(t fide by a hollow place, called the Grave. The 

 prefent entrance is by a regular defcent or partage, nearly 

 one hundred yards in length, formed in the chalk from an 

 adjacent honlc. The diameter of the crypt is about twenty- 

 five feet ; and the height is between thirtv and forty. The 

 Roman road, called Ichnield Way, parted by this town. 

 According to the population returns of the year 181 1, the 

 number of houfes in this parilh, was 284, containing 1309 

 inhabitants. The market is held on Thurfdays ; and here 

 are five annual fairs. Royftou is fituated 20 miles N.E. 

 from Hertford, and 37 miles N. from London. Beauties 

 of England and Wales, vol. vii. by E. W. Brayley and 

 J. Britton. Lyfons's Magna Britannia, Cambridgeihire. 

 Stukeley's Palaeographia Britannica. 



ROYTON, a chapelry or townlhip in the parifh of 

 Preftwich-cum-OIdham, and county of Lancafter, England, 

 is two miles N. of the town of Oldham. This place 

 abounds with cotton manufactories, which appear to have 

 been fettled here in confequence of the abundance of coal 

 obtained. According to the population report of 181 1, 

 this townlhip contained 625 houfes, and 39 10 inhabitants. 

 Royton-hall is the feat of Jofeph Pickford, efq. but for- 

 merly belonged to the Byron family, who poil'efled con- 

 fiderable landed property in the neighbourhood. The 

 houfe is feated in a deep valley, furrounded by high hills. 

 Beauties of England, &c. vol. ix. by J. Britton. 



ROZANNA, a town of Lithuania, in the palatinate of 

 Novogrodek ; 48 miles S.W. of Novogrodek. 



ROZANS, a town ot France, in the department of the 

 Higher Alps, and chief place of a canton, in the diftrift of 

 Gap ; 10 miles W. of Serres. The place contains 900, 

 and the canton 5024 inhabitants, on a territory of 195 

 kiliometres, in 1 1 communes. 



ROZAS, Las, a town of Spain, .in New Caftile ; 10 

 miles N.W. of Madrid. 



ROZE, Nicolas, in Biography, mufic-mafter of the 

 church of the Holy Innocents at Paris, was born at Bourg- 

 neuf, in the dioceie of Chalons-fur-Saone, in 1745. At 

 feven years old he was received as a chorirter in the col- 

 legiate church of Bcaune, in Burgundy. Soon after, he had 

 initruftions from the abbe Rourteau of Dijon, mufic-mafter 

 of Tournay. He had the misfortune to lofe this amiable 

 mafter in two years time, who had taught him to fing feveral 

 motets or anthems in that (hort period. He was after- 

 wards a confiderable time totally without inltruclions. ■ And 

 what was ilill worfe, he was under the authority of perfons 

 who prevented him from attempting compofition. 



The abbe Hornet, nephew to the maitre de ehapelle of 

 Notre-Dame, gave him leflbns in finging, but he was abfo- 

 lutely forbidden compofition by this mafter, for fear his 

 application fliould injure the fine voice which nature had 

 given him. At twelve years old he again found himfelf 

 without an initrudtor, and going to the college of Beaune 



to 



