WESTMINSTER. 



don, lias long ceafed to be either central in pofition or commo- 

 dious in diilribution, for the prodigious biifniL-fs tranfatted in 

 it. After many attempts, chiefly on the part of the inhabit- 

 ants of the weft end of the town, where many of the princi- 

 pal men of bufin^fs refide, parliamentary fanflion has at lad 

 been obtained for the ereftion of a new poft-office, properly 

 adapted, in fiCuation and internal arrangement, to the pur- 

 pofes of the ellablifhment. The fituation fekaed is in St. 

 Martin-le-grand ; and the neceflary preparations in remov- 

 ing houfes and clearing the ground, have made coniiderable 

 progrefs. The expence of this enterprife mud be great ; 

 but the edifice may be rendered highly ornamental as well 

 as ufeful to the metropolis. Mr. Kay is the architedl. The 

 jurifdiftion of the dean and chapter of Weftminfter extends 

 alfo over feme places in Effex, on that account independent 

 of the diocefan bifhop of London, and even of the metro- 

 pohtan of Canterbury ; for while the Roman Catholic reli- 

 gion prevailed, the abbey was immediately under the pope. 

 If the jurifdiftion of the abbey thus extended over places 

 remote from its bounds, it on the other hand compre- 

 hended within its bounds, a diftrift exempt from its jurif- 

 diftion. This is what is commonly called " the liberties, 

 or the duchy of Lancafter." The diftrift comprehends all 

 the fouth fide of the Strand, from the Temple to Cecil- 

 ftreet, with nearly the fame extent on the north fide. The 

 palace and diftrift of the Savoy having been a part of the 

 pofleffions of the houfe of Lancafter, which were feparated 

 from the crown by Henry IV., that part of the Strand be- 

 longing to the Savoy became a diftrift or liberty of itfelf. 

 It has a fupreme court under the chancellor of the duchy 

 of Lancafter, as already mentioned ; and formerly no inha- 

 bitant of this diftrift voted for the reprefentatives of Weft- 

 minfter. But at the eleftion in March 1795, thofe of the 

 duchy-liberties who lived within the parifhes of St. Mary 

 in the Strand, and St. Martin's in the Fields, were admitted 

 to give their fuffrages. Until after the diftblution of the 

 abbey, Weftminfter fent no reprefentatives to parliament ; 

 being virtually reprefented by the abbot, who fat with the 

 biftiops in the houfe of peers. In the records of the laft 

 parliament of Henry VIII. no mention appears of any 

 fummons or returns relative to Weftminfter, Peterborough, 

 or any other abbey-town. The firft parliament of Ed- 

 ward VI., therefore, is, that in which the members for Weft- 

 minfter began to take their place. The two reprefentatives 

 of the city and liberties are elefted by the inhabitant houfe- 

 holders, or thofe paying fcot and lot, who are now efti- 

 mated at about 17,000 ; the number being confiderably in- 

 creafed by the enlargement before -mentioned in 1795. The 

 eleftive franchife being thus widely diffufed among all ranks 

 of the inhabitants, and the popular favour being commonly 

 in the inverfe proportion of that of the court, one if not 

 both of the reprefentatives of Weftminfter may generally 

 be expefted to be decidedly hoftile to the meafures of the 

 exifting adminiftration. So well is this underftood by mi- 

 nifters, that, to have at leaft one member favourable to their 

 views, they have frequently encouraged feme diftinguifhed 

 naval commander to offer his fervices to the eleftors. 



Having for many years been the ordinary refidence of the 

 fovereign, Weftminfter has of courfe contained the princi- 

 pal departments of every branch of legiflative and execu- 

 tive adminiftration. The parhament, originally ambulatory 

 and attached to the perfon of the king, was rendered ftable 

 in Weftminfter on the confirmation of Magna Charta by 

 Henry III. in 1216. Long before that period, the royal 

 palace was erefted adjoining to the abbey ; and as in thofe 

 early times juftice was often adminiftered by the king in 

 perfon, or in his prefence, the various courts of judges were of 

 6 



courfe eftablifhed in or near his refidence. When the palace 

 of Weftminfter ceafed to be occupied by the monarch, and 

 Henry VIII., in 1512, tranfported his court to White- 

 hall, the parliament and the judges Hill retained their ori- 

 ginal ftation ; but the executive branches of adminiftration, 

 relative to financial and military affairs, accompanied the 

 court. Hence we fee thofe departments all eftabliftied in 

 what is ftill called Whitehall ; although the king has long 

 ceafed to refide in that quarter, and that a very fmall por- 

 tion of the old palace is either occupied by pubUc of&ces, or 

 even in exiftence. Hence alfo it is that all public afts of 

 government are dated from Whitehall. From the prodi- 

 gious multiplication and fubdivifion of all pubHc affairs rela- 

 tive to juftice, finance, and military and naval operations, the 

 details of various branches have neceffarily been carried on in 

 other convenient quarters of the metropolis. Such are the 

 Temple, Lincoln's-Inn, Guildhall, the Bank, the Cuftom- 

 houfe, the Excife-office, the Tower, &c. ; ftill it is in 

 Weftminfter alone that the general arrangement of the 

 whole is condufted 



Public Buildings. — Of the ancient refidence of the kings 

 of England in the vicinity of the abbey of Weftminfter, the 

 name, the general pofition, and a few mutilated apartments, 

 are all now remaining. According to a furvey and plan of the 

 whole buildings and veiliges of this palace, it extended along 

 the bank of the Thames from north to fouth, and then turned 

 weftward near to the buildings of the abbey. Of the gene- 

 ral arrangement, it is impoffible to difcover more than that the 

 walls and foundations feem to have been all paraOel to the 

 correfponding walls of the prefent great hall, the only part 

 ftill remaining in its original ftate. Compofed of parts 

 erefted at different periods, no balance or fymmetry of plan 

 feems to have been regarded in their diftribution. 



IVeJlminfter Hall, memorable in itfelf as a building, as the 

 fcene of many important tranfaftions, and for the ufes to 

 which it is applied, was erefted by WiUiam Rufus, or WiU 

 liam II., about 1097, as an appendage to the old palace, or 

 a part of a new projeft. Having fuffered much from acci- 

 dental fires, as well as from the lapfe of time, the hall, juft 

 three centuries after its conftruftion, was completely reftored 

 by Richard II., who heightened the walls, altered the win- 

 dows, adding a new roof, and built a ftately gateway. The 

 hall is a vail parallelogram, ftanding north and fouth, in 

 length, within the vralls, 249 feet, and in breadth 66 feet, not 

 74, as is generally ftated. The walls, although maflive and 

 plain, are externally ftrengthened by buttreffes. The roof, 

 rifing to a high pitch, is ingenioufiy and firmly conftrufted, 

 not of Irifh oak, as ufually faid, but of chefnut brought 

 from Normandy. This room is faid to be of greater mag- 

 nitude without pillars than any other known. In this hall 

 parliaments have been held ; Richard II. was depofed in it in 

 1399, and for many ages it has been employed in the corona- 

 tion-feafts of the fovereigns. In it affembled the court for 

 the trial of Charles I., in January 1649. It is ftill the 

 place of inquiry, before the houfe of peers, into the conduft 

 of perfons impeached by the houfe of commons. In the 

 middle of the right or weft fide of the hall, is an opening 

 into the court of common pleas. The fouth end of the hall 

 is occupiedby wooden ftruftures, to contain on the right-hand 

 the court of chancery, and on the left the court of king's 

 bench ; fo called becaufe the king in ancient times aftually 

 fat, as he is at prefent afferted, by what is ftyled a legal 

 fiftion, aftually to fit, on the bench to adminifter juftice. 

 Between thefe two courts ftairs conduft to the apartments 

 occupied by the two houfes of parliament. That employed 

 by the peers was towards the fouth end of the old palace ; 

 but on account of the additional number of ?2 peers enti- 



tied 



