personal booty. This daring theft having come to the ears of the Archbishop of Canterbury, John 

 Peckham, the adventurous knight was first excommunicated, his subsequent absolution being made 

 dependent upon the following conditions, &c, &c. 



First, that he should restore the nuns to the Abbey ; secondly, that he should never again enter 

 a religious house of females, or hold communication with a nun, so long as he lived; thirdly, that he 

 should be whipped naked with rods, on three several Sundays, in the Parish Church of Wilton, and 

 as often both in the Market and Parish Church of Shaftesbury ; fourthly, that he should fast regularly 

 for a specified number of months; fifthly, that he should lay aside all the insignia of knightly dignity, 

 and wear only clothes of a russet colour or sheep-skins ; and lastly, that he should not put on a shirt 

 till he had passed three years in the Holy Land, — all of which he swore faithfully to perform. 



At this time there was an abbess of the name of Juliana GifTord. Wilton Abbey was dissolved 

 in the thirty-fifth year of Henry VIII, by whom the site and buildings were granted to Sir William 

 Herbert, afterwards created Earl of Pembroke. 



Its power, authority, and importance were formerly so great that it gave the rank of baroness to 

 the abbess. Wilton House stands on the site previously occupied by the once noble Abbey of Wilton; 

 it is on a fine park at the entrance of the borough town of that name, and is about three miles from 

 Salisbury. The approach is through a Roman Triumphal Arch, surmounted by an equestrian statue of 

 Marcus Aurelius. Wilton House was begun in the reign of Henry VIII, and finished in the reign of 

 Edward VI; the designs for it were by that true architect Holbein. A portion of this edifice was burnt, 

 and rebuilt from designs by Inigo Jones. It was again altered by James Wyatt, and is now partly 

 Italian, with a Gothic front. The gardens and pleasure-grounds are extensive. 



" The Parterre has lately much improved under the direction of the Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, 

 the Earl's brother, who makes Wilton House his frequent residence. The principal walk is a fine 

 promenade, occupying the centre of the grounds, and another, running parallel to the house, leads to or 

 from the Temple, and permits a beautiful view of the gigantic Cedars of Wilton." 



Strolling down the long walk, which is continued down the centre of the garden, we remark some 

 noble chesnut trees, whose heavy foliage are quite an ornament, and, beyond, we arrive at Lady 

 Pembroke's garden, laid out in the " chain pattern/' the " links " of which are small, and when filled 

 with flowers combine to produce a gay and lively effect. In the centre is a life-size figure of " The 

 Dancing Fawn," supported by a handsome pedestal, and, in various suitable places, chastely -executed vases 

 form elegant receptacles for flowers. But the most attractive to our taste is the beautiful flower-basket, 

 than which nothing can be more appropriate. At a little distance stands a handsome building, 



designated "Holbein's Porch," fronted with pillars and the Pembroke Arms. This is all that remains 

 of the house designed by Holbein, of which it formed the portico. It contains statuettes, busts, and 

 other objects of interest, and, from its entrance, there is a pretty peep of the House and the old Clock- 

 tower, seen between the majestic chesnut trees. 



The grounds are extensive and attractive, and a handsome bridge over the rapid Noddre* contributes 

 largely to their beauty. Passing the bridge, numerous walks conduct the visitor to the various parts of 

 the grounds, laid out in excellent taste, and adorned with temples, statues, and horticultural ornaments, — 

 artistic seats are placed in all places where the picturesque may be advantageously studied, and gardens, 

 of every variety of shape and produce, diversify this noble domain. 



* "It is the river Noddre, and not the Wily, that passes through the gardens at Wilton, but their streams unite just without the park." 



