SHE 



SHE 



hourehold, and then as prefident of the council. After the 

 death of qjieen Anne he was an opponent of the court, and 

 employed his time chiefly in hterary purfuits, till liis death, 

 in 1721. 



The duke had been thrice married, and each time to a 

 widow : his laft wife was a natural daughter of James II., 

 by whom he had a fon that furvived him. Following the 

 example of the court of Charles II., he freely indulged in 

 licentious amours ; neverthelefs, it lias been faid that he 

 had occafionally ferious thoughts of religion, though pro- 

 bably not reftricfted to any particular party. The following 

 is the epitaph which he compofed for himfelf : " Dubius 

 fed non improbus vixi : incertus morior, fed inturbatus : 

 humanum eii nefcire et errare. Chriftum adveneror : Deo 

 confido omnipotenti, bcnevolentifllmo : Ens entium miferere 

 mei." This was infcribed on his magnificent monument in 

 Weltminfter Abbey, with the exception of the claufe refpeft- 

 ing Chrift, which bifhop Atterbury rejefted, thinking fimple 

 veneration a derogatory expreffion applied to the fecond 

 perfon in the Trinity. 



In the capacity of poet, the duke of Buckinghamfhire 

 does not rank very high ; his compofitions are on a variety 

 of topics, of which, however, the chief is «' An Eday on 

 Poetry," which, according to Dr. Johnfon, contains judi- 

 cious precepts, which are fometimes new, and often hap- 

 pily exprefled, but with many weak lines, and feme ftrange 

 inftances of negligence. In his " Eflay on Satire," he 

 is fuppofed to have been affifted by Dryden, who, for fome 

 peculiarities in it, had the misfortune to be taken as the 

 real author. 



The duke of Buckinghamfhire compofed two tragedies, 

 entitled " Julius Ca;far," and the " Death of Brutus ;" 

 for the latter of which, at his requeit, Pope wrote two 

 chorufles : of thefe Warburton fays, that they have the ufual 

 efFeft of ill-placed ornaments, they make the meannefs of 

 the piece more confpicuous. In the colledlion of the duke's 

 works are likewife hiftorical memoirs, fpeeches, eflays, &c. 



Sheffield, or Sbeaffidd, in Geography, a large and 

 populous market and manufafturing town in the fouth 

 divifion of the wapentake of Strafford and Tickhill, 

 liberty of Hallamfhire, Weft Riding of Yorkfhire, England, 

 is fituated at the diftance of 36 miles S. from Leeds, and 

 162 N.N.W. from London. The origin and remote hif- 

 tory of this town are totallv unknown. In the 13th cen- 

 tury it was noted as a ftaple for articles of iron manufailure. 

 Chaucer, who wrote in the reign of Edward III., men- 

 tions the " Sheffield Wiiittle" in one of his poems. At that 

 period it was likewife diftinguifhed by a ftrong cafHe, which 

 flood at the north-eaft of the town, and is faid to have been 

 built during the fovereignty of Henry III. This caftle 

 defcended from the Lovetofts to the Nevils, lords Furnival, 

 and pafi'ed from them to the Talbots, earls of Shrewfbury, 

 and fubfequently to the Howards, dukes of Norfolk, in 

 whofe family the lordfhip of the manor is ftill veiled. 

 During the civil wars between Charles I. and his parliament, 

 Sheffield caftle fuftained a long fiege in the caufe of royalty, 

 but eventually furrendcred upon honourable terms, on the 

 lOthof Auguft, 1644, and was foon afterwards ordered to be 

 demohfhed, which feems to have been done moil effeftually, 

 as fcarcely a veflige of it can now be difcovered. 



Though Sheffield, as already faid, was confidered as a 

 ftaple for iron manufaftures at a very early period, its trade, 

 for feveral centuries, was comparatively confined and pre- 

 carious, and confiited almoft entirely in the making of fheath- 

 knivea, fciffors, fickles, and fcythes. About the commence- 

 ment of the 17th century, an erdinary kind of tobacco-box 

 of iron,; and Jews' harps, began to be manufaftured here ; 



10 



and in 1625 the matter manufafturers were firfl incor- 

 porated by the ftyle of " The Company of Cutlers of 

 Hallamfhirc." This corporation is governed by a mafter, 

 elefted annually, fix fearchers, and twenty-four afTiftants, 

 and is the only body corporate yet exifling in Sheffield. 

 It was not, however, till after the year 1750, that this 

 town affuraed the rank it now holds in manufaftunng 

 opulence. Previoufly to that period, none of the rr.anu- 

 faAurers had extended their traffic beyond the limits of 

 Great Britain ; but in the fame year Mr. Jofeph Broadbent 

 opened a dirett trade with the continent ; and in 1751, the 

 river Don having been rendered navigable to within three 

 miles of the town, that facility was given to exportation, 

 which has fince proved fo beneficial to its manufafturing 

 intereils. Soon afterwards Mr. Thomas Bolfover began 

 to plate brafs and copper buttons with filver ; and in 1758 

 tlie filver plated manufafture was commenced on an exten- 

 five fcale by Mr. Jofeph Hancock, and has fubfequently 

 been profecuted with great advantage by a numerous clafs 

 of individuals. The opulence and population of the town 

 increaied from that time with great rapidity, and foon 

 gave rife to numerous conveniencies and improvements, 

 both ufeful and ornamental. In 1760, the firft flagc -coach 

 ftarted from Sheffield for London ; and in 1762, the 

 theatre and all'embly-room were built by fubfcription. In 

 1770, the firft bank in Sheffield was opened by Mr. Roe- 

 buck ; and in 1786, ttie new market-place was formed, 

 about the fame time tliat Meffrs. Prodlors eredled the firft 

 fteam-engine grinding-wheel. In 1793, hackney coaches 

 were introduced ; and in the fame year alfo was laid the 

 foundation of the General Infirmary. Thefe circumftances 

 are mentioned, becaufe they are calculated to difplay the 

 progrefTive benefits refulting from fuccefsful induftry and 

 ingenuity, the contemplation of which can fcarcely tail to 

 excite pleafurable emotions in every breaft. 



To notice particularly the various articles manufaftured 

 at Sheffield of late years, would occupy too cTonfiderable . 

 a fpace to admit of the attempt. The two great divi- 

 fions of them are into cutlery and plated goods, each of 

 vs'hich branch out into numerous ramifications. The 

 manufafture of the latter is almoft entirely confined to the 

 town, and comprehends a great diverfity of articles : fuch 

 as tea-urns, coffee-pots, tankards, cups, candletlicks, and 

 other pieces of table furniture. The cutlery divifion em- 

 braces the making of edge-tools, combs, cafes, buttons, 

 fenders, files, anvils, joiners' tools, lancets, forks, hafts, 

 ink-ftands, nails, knives of every defcription, fciffors, 

 fcythes, fickles, awl-blades, bellows, &c. to which we fhall 

 only further add the refining of fteel. Many of tliefe 

 manufaftures are carried on in the country, as well as in 

 the town, efpecially in the villages and hamlets of Alter- 

 chffe, Bentfgreen, Brightfide, Butterthwaite, Caibrooke, 

 Darnal, Dyfon-Holmes, Dungworth, Ecclesfield, Greeno- 

 fide, Grimesthorpe, Hallam, Miln-houfes, Newfield-Green, 

 Ovvlerton, Pittfraoor, Stannington, Shircgrecn, Upper- 

 Heeley, Wadfley, Woodfeats, &c. ; all of which are 

 fituated within feven miles of Sheffield. Befides the above 

 manufaftures, there are in the town and its vicinity feveral 

 extenfive founderies for iron, brafs, and while metal. 



Sheffield occupies a fine eminence at the confluence of 

 two rivers, the Sheaf, whence the name of the town is 

 derived, and the Don. In former times the houfes were 

 entirely built of ftone ; but for the laft century they have 

 been chiefly compofed of brick. There are few towns 

 wliich furpafs it in the regularity of its ftreets, many of 

 them running in a direft line, and difplaying a feries of 

 uniform and refpeftable edifices. Sheffield extends about 



a mile 



