?8 INNS of 
Mary le Strand without Iiondon, towards Weftminfter; 
and the fame to hold to the faid Roger and his fucceffors 
by the yearly rent of 3s. at Eafter.” For the purchafe of 
this the bilhop gave twenty marks of filver. 
Cheftre’s Inn is frequently confounded with the licufe 
of the bithops of Chefter, which Hood near the fame fpot, 
and was fometimes fo named ; but Stowe fays the latter 
was moft commonly called “ Litchfield and Coventrees 
Inne, or London Lodgings,” and was firft built by Walter 
Langton, bilhop of Chefter and treafurer of England in 
the reign of Edward I. 
III. LINCOLN’S INN. 
This principal inn of court occupies a large plot of 
ground on the weft fide of Chancery-lane (formerly called 
Chancellors-lane), nearly in the centre of the metropolis. 
It was founded partly on the ruins of the monallery of 
the black friars, who refided here previous to their remo¬ 
val to the quarter which now bears their name, and a 
manfion formerly belonging to Ralph Nevil, bifhop of 
Chichefter and chancellor of England in the reign of 
Henry III. 
Thefe black or preaching friars (thirteen in number) 
came into England with their prior Gilbert de Fraxfneto 
in the year 1221 ; about which time great numbers of 
mendicants of the different orders were imported from the 
continent to reform the manners of the age. Peter de 
Rupibus, bilhop of Winchefter, introduced them to Ste¬ 
phen Langton, archbllhop of Canterbury, at his cathe¬ 
dral, who commanded the prior to preach, and fo much ap¬ 
proved of his fermon, that he became their warm patron. 
On their arrival in London, the piece of ground on which 
prefent inn Hands, then defcribed to be “ without the 
wall of the city by Holborn, near unto the old Temple,” 
was given them, and there they founded a houfe and 
Church, where they met with feveral benefaftors, parti¬ 
cularly the famous Hubert de Burgo, or Burgh, earl of 
Kent, and Margaret, filler to the king of Scots, who were 
both buried here, but afterwards removed to Ludgate. 
At this monaftery of the black friars a general convoca¬ 
tion of the order from all parts of Chriltendom, and even 
the Holy Land, affembled in 1250, to the number of 400, 
to treat of the affairs of their order, having their meat 
and drink found them of alms, becanfe they had no pojfeffions 
vf their own. The firft day the king came to their chap¬ 
ter, entered and dined with them 3 another day the queen 
fent them provifions; and they were afterwards fealted 
by the bilhopsof London, and the abbots of Weftminfter, 
St. Alban’s, and Waltham. 
The bilhop’s houfe was built in a garden in the lower 
part of the lane, once belonging to John Herlirurn, as 
appears by the grant made to him of it by Henry, who 
excepted it out of the dotnys converforum , (now the Rolls.) 
“‘The king granted to Ralph bilhop of Chichefter, chan¬ 
cellor, that place, with the garden, which John Herlirurn 
forfeited in that ftreet called New Street, over againft the 
land of the faid bilhop in the fame ftreet; which place, 
with the garden and appurtenances, was the king’s efeheat, 
by the liberty of the city of London, as it were acknow¬ 
ledged before the king in his court of the Tower of Lon¬ 
don, in the laft pleas of the crown of that city.” The fite 
«f this houfe and garden ftill retains the names of Bi- 
fhop’s Court and Chichefter Rents. Of both this and the 
friary there are now no remains. Chichefter houfe was 
■Handing as late as the reign of Elizabeth; at which time, 
Bpelman informs us, fir Richard Read mafter in chancery, 
and Mr. Atkinlon a counfellor at law, men eminent in 
their time, refided. It had long before ceafed to be the 
dwelling of the bilhops of Chichefter, who had leafed it 
to various perfons. Of the extent or magnificence of this 
dwelling we are at prefent unacquainted ; but Matthew 
Paris, who fpeaks of its foundation, terms it a noble pa¬ 
lace : “The venerable father, Ralph Nevil, bilhop of 
.jGhichefter and chancellor of England, built his noble palace 
Jwri! the ground not far from the New Temple, and 
COURT. 
Houfe of Converts; in which place he deceafed in the 
month of February 1244.” 
Richard de Wihtz, afterwards called Saint Richard, 
was the next occupier of Chichefter-houfe after bilhop 
Nevil; about which period both that manfion and the de- 
ferted houfe of the black friars became appropriated to 
the ltudy of the law ; but in what particular way does 
not appear. Tradition reports, - that Henry Lacy, the 
great earl of Lincoln, who in the next age had a grant by 
patent from king Edward I. of “the old friar-houfe juxta 
Holborn, being a perfon well affected to the ftudy of the 
laws,” affigned the profeffors of it this refidence, but we 
are not told whether by gift or purchafe. From this no¬ 
bleman, however, it derived the name of Lincoln’s Inn,, 
which it ftill retains. Lacy died in 1310. 
To the earl of Lincoln’s eftate on this fpot was foon 
afterwards added the greater part of that poffeffed by the 
bilhops of Chichefter, who afterwards leafed it to the Un¬ 
dents of the law, referving a certain rent and lodgings 
for themfelves on their coming to London; one of which 
ftudents, Francis Sulyard, refided there till the 27th of 
Henry VIII. In that year Robert Sherbopi, then bilhop 
of Chichefter, made a new leafe of it to William Sulyard, 
the fon of Francis Sulyard, ulher of the bedchamber to 
king Henry VIII. and likewife a ftudent of the fame 
houfe, for 99 years, for the rent of 61 . 13s. 4d. this leafe 
ended Michaelmas 1634, Richard Sampfon, one of the 
fucceeding bilhops of the fee, paffed the inheritance of 
this houfe and the garden called Cottrell Garden or Co- 
neygarth, by his deed bearing date the ift July, 28 Hen. 
VIII. to the faid William Sulyard, and Euftace his bro¬ 
ther ; which grant was confirmed by the dean and chap¬ 
ter of Chichefter the ift of Auguft then next enfuing. 
The inheritance, thus fettled in thefe two brothers, be¬ 
came veiled by furvivorlhip in.Euftace, whofe fon and 
heir, Edward, by his deed bearing date the 12th of No¬ 
vember, 22 Eliz. in confideratitm of 520I. conveyed to 
Richard Kingfmill, and to the reft of the then benchers, 
the aforefaid houfe and garden. See. in fee ; and a fine was 
accordingly levied by him the faid Edward and his wife. 
In the year 1492, (8th Henry VII.) the fociety having 
raifed a fum of money, partly by contribution, and partly 
by loan, about two years afterwards the old hall was pulled 
down for the purpofe of erefting another. The new one, 
however, was not begun to be built till fourteen years 
afterwards, owing to a deficiency of funds. It was for¬ 
warded by a gift, in 13 Hen. VII. of John Netherfale, a 
member of the fociety, who bequeathed forty marks, 
“ partly towards the building of a library here, for the 
benefit of ftudents of the laws of England ; and partly, 
that every pried of this houfe, then being, or hereafter to 
be, who Ihould then celebrate mafs and other divine fer- 
vice every Friday weekly, Ihould then fihg a mafs of re¬ 
quiem; and alfo, in the time of the faid mafs, before his 
firft la vatu re, fay the Pfalm of De profundis, with the 
orizons and colle&s accuftomed, for the foul of the laid 
John." 
The next year, that fine ancient remain the great gate¬ 
way, or Gatehoufe Tower as it is called, was contradfted 
for, and the mafons for the ftone-work engaged. The 
timber was brought by water from Henley upon Thames, 
Towards this work, fir Thomas Lovell, the founder of 
Holy well-nunnery, and formerly a member of this fociety, 
but then treafurer of the houl'ehold to king Henry VII. 
was a good benefaftor. The work however was not com¬ 
pleted till the 9th of Henry VIII. and that by means of 
additional affiftange from the fame perfon, whofe liberal¬ 
ity at length 'fo far operated on the reft of the fociety, 
that, two years afterwards, all in commons were taxed, and 
orders made for the fpeedy payment of former fubferip- 
tions. An additional fum of forty pounds was alfo al¬ 
lowed from the treafury of the houfe; and the ftruiture 
was finally finilhed in 12th Henry VIII. the expence 
amounting to 153l.10s.8d. William Sulyard, before 
named, was the principal calhier and direftor of this work. 
a Th? 
