A L D 
ferving inferior offices; nor fhall they be put upon affixes, 
or ferve on juries, fo long as they continue to be aldermen. 
Alderman, among our Saxon anceftors, was a degree 
of nobility, anfwering to earl or count at prefent. 
Alderman was alfo ufed, in the time of king Edgar, 
for a judge or juftice. Thus we meet with the titles of 
Aldermannus totius Anglia, aldermannus regis, comitatus, ci. 
vitatis, burgiy cajlclli, hundredifive wapentachii, et novemde- 
cimorum. According to Spelman, the aldermannus totius 
Anglice feems to have been the fame officer who was after¬ 
wards ftyled capitalis jujliciarius Anglice, or chief-juftice of 
England; the aldermannis regis feems to have been an oc- 
cafional magiftrate, anfwering to our jullice of affize ; and 
the aldermannus comitatus , a magiftrate who held a middle 
rafik between what w as afterwards called the carl and the 
fheriff-, he fat at the trial of caufes with the bifhop : the 
latter proceeding according to ecclefiaftical law, and the 
former declaring and expounding the common law of the 
land. 
ALDERMASTON, Berkfhire, a pretty neat village, 
beautifully lituated on an eminence that overlooks the ri¬ 
ver Kennet. It is three miles from Silchefler, the Roman 
ftation, three from Baghurft, and eight from Reading. 
ALDERNEY, an iiland in the Britilh channel, fubjeft 
to the crown of Great Britain. It is about eight miles in 
compafs, and is feparated from Cape la Hogue, in Nor¬ 
mandy, by a narrow ftreight, called the Race of Alderney , 
which is a very dangerous palTage in ftoriny weather when 
the two currents meet; otherwife it is fafe, and has depth 
of water for the largeft fliips. Through this ftreight the 
French feet made their efcape after their defeat at La 
Hogtte in 1692. It is a healthy iiland, has but one church, 
is fruitful both in corn and pafture, and is remarkable for 
a fine breed of cow's. The inhabitants, for their greater- 
fafety, live together in a town of the fame name. It has 
but one harbour, called Crabby, which is at a good dif- 
tance from the town; and is only fit for fmall veffels. To 
the weft lie the range of rocks called the Cajkets , fo dan¬ 
gerous to mariners. W. Ion. 2. 17. N.lat.49.50. 
ALDHELM (St.) bilhop of Sherborne, in the timeof 
the Saxon heptarchy. He is faid to have been the fon of 
Kenred, brother to Ina, king of the Welt-Saxons ; but, 
in the opinion of William of Malmlbury, his father was no 
more than a dilfant relation to that king. Having received 
the firft part of his education in the fchool at Malmlbury, 
he travelled into France and Italy for his improvement. 
At his return home, he lludied fome time under Adrian 
abbot of St. Auguftin’s in Canterbury, the moll learned 
profeffor of the fciences who had ever been in England. 
In thefe different feminaries he acquired a very uncommon 
ftock of knowledge; and became famous for his learning, 
not only in England, but in foreign countries. Fie was 
the firlf Englilhman who wrote in the Latin language both 
in profe and verfe, and compofed a book for the inftruc- 
tion of his countrymen in the profody of that language. 
.Befides this, he wrote feveral other treatifes on various 
fubjedls; fome of which are loll, and others publilhed by 
Martin Delrio and Canilius. Venerable Bede, who flou- 
rilhed in the end of this and the beginning of the next cen¬ 
tury, gives the following character of Aldhelm: “ He was 
a man of univerfal erudition, having an elegant ilyle, and 
being wonderfully well acquainted yvith books, both on 
.phiiofophical and religious fubjefts.” King Alfred the 
Great declared, that Aldhelm was the bed of all the Sax¬ 
on poets; and that a favourite long, which was univer- 
fally fung in his time, near 200 years after its author’s 
death, was of his compolition. When he was abbot of 
Malmlbury, having a fine voice, and great (kill in mufic 
as well as poetry ; and, obferving the backwardnefs of his 
barbarous countrymen to liden to grave indrudlions, he 
compofed a number of little poems, which he fung tb 
them after mafs in the fweeted manner; by which they 
were gradually indrudted and civilized. After this ex¬ 
cellent perfon had governed the monaltery of Malmlbu¬ 
ry, of which he was the founder, about thirty years, he 
A L D 255 
was made bilhop of Sherborne, where he died A. D. 709. 
He wrote, 1. De Olio Vitiis Principahbus. This treatife is 
extant in Bibliotheca Patrum of Canifius. 2. /Enigmatkum 
Verfus Mille. This, with feveral other of his poems, was 
publilhed by Martin Delrio at Mentz, 8vo, 1601. 3. A 
bookaddrefled to a certain king of Northumberland, nam¬ 
ed Alfrid, on various fubjecfs. 4. De Vita Monackorum. 
5. De Laude Sanblonnn. 6. De Arithmetica. 7. De Aflrolo- 
gia. 8. A book againd the midake of the Britons con¬ 
cerning the celebration of Eader; printed by Sonius, 1576. 
9. De Laude Virginitatis. Manufcript, in Bennet-college, 
Cambridge. Publilhed among Bede’s Opufcula. Befides 
many fonnets, epidles, and homilies, in the Saxon lan¬ 
guage. 
ALDHUN, the fird bilhop of Durham, fucceeded 
Elflig in the bilhopric of Lindisfarne, or Holy Idand, in 
the year 990. He fat about fix years in the fee of Lindis¬ 
farne, during which time, that idand being greatly expofed 
to the incurlions of the Danilh pirates, he refolved to re¬ 
move from thence ; and, after wandering about fome 
time, he at lad fettled, with his followers, at Dunelm, 
now called Durham; where he gave rife both to the city 
and cathedral church. This prelate educated King Ethel- 
red’s two fons, Alfred and Edward ; and, when their fa¬ 
ther was driven from his throne by Sw'ane king of Den¬ 
mark, he conducted them, and queen Emma, into Nor¬ 
mandy, to duke Richard, the queen’s brother, in 1017. 
The next year, the Englilh having received a terrible 
overthrow in a battle with tiie Scots, the good bidiop was 
fo affedted with the news, that he died a few days after, 
having enjoyed the prelacy twenty-nine years. 
ALDPORT, an ancient name for Manchefter. See 
Manchester. 
ALDRED, abbot ‘of Tavilfock, was promoted to the 
bilhopric of Worcefter in the year 1046. He was fo much 
in favour with king Edward, the Confeffor, and had fo 
much power over his mind, that he obliged him to be re¬ 
conciled with the word of his enemies, particularly with 
Swane fon of the earl Goodwin, who had revolted againft 
him, and came with an army to invade the kingdom. Al- 
dred alfo reftored the union and friendlhip between king 
Edward and Griffin king of Wales. He took afterwards a 
journey to Rome, and being returned' into England, in the 
year 1054, he was fent ainbaffador to the emperor Henry 
II. lie ftaid a whole year in Germany, and was very honour¬ 
ably entertained by Hermon archbilhop of Cologne, from 
whom he learned many things relating to ecclefiaftical dif- 
cipline, which on his return he eftablilhed in his own dio- 
cefe. In the year 1058 he went to Jerufalem, which no 
archbilhop nor bifhop of England had ever done before. 
Two years after he returned to England ; and Kiniius 
archbilhop of York dying the 22d of December 1060, 
Aldred was elected in his dead, and thought fit to keep his 
bilhopric of Worcefter with the archbilhopric of Canter¬ 
bury. Aldred went foon after to Rome, in order to re¬ 
ceive the pallium from the pope : he was attended by 
Tolton Earl of Northumberland, Gifo bifhop of Wellsj 
and Walter bifhop of Hereford. The pope received Tof- 
ton very honourably, and made him fit by him in the fynod 
which he held againtt the Simonills. He granted to Gifo 
and Walter their requelf, becaufe they were tolerably well 
learned, and not accufed of fimony. But Aldred being by 
his anfwers found ignorant, and guilty of fimony, the pope 
deprived him very feverely of all honours and dignities; 
fo that he was obliged to return without the pallium. On 
his way home he and his three fellow-travellers were at¬ 
tacked by fome robbers, who took from them all that they 
had. This obliged them to return to Rome; and the pop-e 
either out of companion, or by the threatenings of the earl 
of Northumberland, gave Aldred the pallium ; but he 
was obliged to refign his bilhopric of Worcefter. Howe¬ 
ver, as the archbilhopric of York had been almoft entirely 
ruined by the many invafions of foreigners, king Edward 
gave the new archbifnop leave to keep twelve villages or 
.manors which belonged to the bilhopric of Worcefter. 
Edv, ard 
