WEN 



It is certain that none of the exifting remains are older than 

 his time ; and thefe are confined to the chapter-houfe ; for 

 not a vellige is now to be traced of the pillars of the choir, 

 which are known to have been circular, maflive, and Nor- 

 man. The pari(h-church was indeed rebuilding at, or juft 

 before the time when Malm(bury wrote ( about 1 1 27 ) ; for 

 it was on the occafion of commencing the building of the 

 new church, that the difcovery was made of the body of 

 St. Milburga, whofe facred relics are faid to have effefted 

 many miraculous cures. The parifh-church ftill retains 

 evident marks of having been erefted at a period confiftent 

 with this narrative : but no part of the priory, except what 

 has been already mentioned, can lay claim to any fuch anti- 

 quity. The remains of the patron faint appear to have 

 been transferred from the church of the parifh to that of the 

 priory, and perhaps fome new works erefted with the trea- 

 fures which poured in from their fortunate difcovery ; for 

 when Gervafe Paganel refolved to build a priory at Dudley, 

 which he appears to have done early in the reign of king 

 Stephen, " he placed his deed of gift with his own hand 

 upon the altar of St. Milburga of Wenlock, in prefence of 

 all the convent, to whofe proteftion he committed his new 

 foundation." Indeed the priory of St. Milburga was in 

 fuch high repute for fanftity of life and ftriftnefs of difci- 

 pline during this century, that in 1 164 it furnifhed a colony 

 of monks for the abbey of Paifley in Clydefdale. The 

 number of monks maintained within the priory was forty, 

 and the fame appears to have been about the original number 

 of ftalls in the chapter-houfe: though in 1374, when an 

 inquiry was inilituted into the ftate of the ahen priories, it 

 was found to contain only feventeen monks. The priory 

 was furrendered January 31. 1539-40, when a penfion of 

 80/. per annum was fettled upon the prior, John Creffage, 

 and the manor-houfe of Madeley was afligned for his refi- 

 dence. The revenues of the monaftery, according to Dug- 

 dale, amounted, at the timeof thediffolution, to 401/. oj-. ']\d. 

 The fcite was granted by Henry VIII. to one Auguflino 

 de AugulUnis, who fold it, in 1545, toThomas Lawley, efq., 

 who made it his refidence, and in whofe defcendants it 

 continued, till Robert Bertie, efq., fon of his great-grand- 

 daughter Urfula Lawley, by fir Robert Bertie, K.B., fold 

 it to the family of Gage. Lord vifcount Gage ahenated it 

 to fir John Wynn, bart., who devifed this with his other 

 great eftates, to his kinfman fir Watkin Williams, bart., 

 who thereupon affumed the name of the teftator : he was 

 grandfather of fir Watkin Williams Wynn, bart., the pre- 

 fent proprietor of thefe venerable ruins. 



Few of our Enghlh monaitic remains, perhaps, ar^ capa- 

 ble of affording more inftruftion and amufement to the 

 lovers of ecclefiallical architefture, than thofe of Wenlock. 

 The ruins are feated in a low marfhy bottom, fouthward of 

 the ancient borough, and adjoining the eaft end of the parifh 

 church-yard. The chief entrance to the monaftery, from 

 the town, was by a gate on the north fide of the precinft, 

 which appears to have been flanked with two plain fquare 

 towers, one of which is ftanding. The moll prominent 

 features of the prefent buildings, are the lofty and extenfive 

 remains of the priory church, which have happily efcaped 

 the ravages of time. From thefe it is apparent that this 

 facred edifice partook of the mixed characters of the round 

 and the pointed arch. Its magnificence fully correfponded 

 with the opulence of the foundation, and was not furpaffed 

 by many of the ftately churches of the mitred abbeys. The 

 plan of the church was cruciform, with a central tower, 

 but probably without towers at the weft end. The ex- 

 treme length was 401 feet; that of the tranfept 166 ; the 

 naye ij6 ; the fpace under the fteeple 39 ; the choir 156 ; 



WEN 



and the chapel of the Virgin Mary 48. A fragment of 

 the fouth angle of th"? weft front is ornamented with three 

 tiers of fmall arches ; a window below is finifhed with a 

 plain round arch. The gieat weft window is now no more, 

 but from the remains of one of its impofts, which is a taper- 

 cluftered pilafter, bound midway with rings, its form may 

 be conjedured to have confifted of three lof^ty lancet arches. 

 Three pointed arches on the fouth fide of the nave are per- 

 feft, and reft on ftrong oftagonal pillars with plain capitals. 

 Over thefe commences a fecond divifion, feparated by an 

 horizontal ftring-courfe ; this comprifes a beautiful trifo- 

 rium, or open gallery, formed bv lancet arches in couplets. 

 Above thefe is a third co;ipartment, from which rifes a 

 feries of pointed clereftory v indows, now mutilated, but 

 evidently in the fame ftyle with the arches of the gallery 

 beneath. A confiderable fragment of the north, and the 

 whole of the fouth wing of the traniopt are ftanding', both 

 in a ftyle coeva! with tlie nave. The latter, a very beautiful 

 ruin, is compoled of three pointed arches on each fide, reft- 

 ing on cluftered columns, with plain but well-executed 

 capitals. The bafes of the four grand piers, which fup- 

 ported the fteeple over the interfeftion of the nave, tranfept, 

 and choir, may be traced neariy buried in rubbiih ; and 

 evident veftiges of cluftered fhafts indicate that they fuf- 

 tained pointed arches. Of the choir, f-.-arcely a wreck re- 

 mains, yet within thefe few years, the lower members of 

 fix pillars, of plain and maffy Norman architefture, might 

 be difcerned. Further caftward appears the foundation of 

 the Virgin Mary's chapel, confifting of excellent mafonry, 

 with feveral deep bafement mouldings. On the eaftern fide 

 of the quadrangle was the chapter-houfe, a parallelogram 

 of fixty feet by thirty, of which a very large portion is 

 ftanding ; and a more rare difplay of Norman architefture 

 of the eleventh century can hardly be produced. The 

 north fide is almoft entire. A few paces fouth-eaftward of 

 the chapter-houfe are the remains of a fecond quadrangle, 

 the buildings of which, on two fides, are nearly entire. 

 Thofe on the eaftern fide, it is prefumed, belonged to the 

 lodge of the prior, and, at the diflblution, were preferved 

 for a manfion-houfe by the firft lay poffeflbrs of the monaf- 

 tery. This coiififts of a long range of two ftories, not very 

 lofty, with a highly pitched and tiled roof. Along the 

 whole front runs an elegant cloifter, 100 feet in extent, 

 compofed of a feries of narrow arches in couplets, with 

 trefoil heads, and ftrengthened at frequent intervals with 

 flender fhelving buttrefles. The eaftern front of the houfe 

 is adorned with ranges of rather fingular windows, which 

 have acute triangular heads, and are arranged in couplets 

 united by very flender buttreffes. — Beauties of England and 

 Wales, vol. xiii. Shroplhire ; by R. Rylance, 181 1. Ar- 

 chiteftural Antiquities of Great Britain, vol. iv. ; by 

 J. Britton, F.S.A. 1814. 



Wenlock, or Winlock, a town of Vermont ; 90 miles 

 N. of Windfor. 



Wenlock, Little, a town of England, in Shropfhire ; 

 8 miles N. of Much Wenlock. 



WENMAN, one of the Gallipago iflands, in the Paci- 

 fic Ocean. 



WENNE, a river of Weftphalia, which runs into the 

 Roer, 3 miles below Everfberg. 



WENNEL, a river of North Wales, which runs into 

 the Conway, near Llanrwft. 



WENNER Lake, thelargeft lake of Sweden, in Weft 

 Gothland ; nearly 90 miles long, and 40 wide. This lake 

 is Ilored with great plenty of fifh. Twenty-four rivers 

 empty themfelves into the W^enner lake, yet none flows out 

 of it but the large river called Gotha Elbe, by which out- 

 let 



