NOTTINGHAM. 
258 
The lalt gentleman (loockon the minifterial interefl; and, 
being defeated here, was afterwards returned for the trea- 
fury-borough of Rye, in Sufi'ex, where there are only four 
voters. The prefent members are—-Lord Rancliffe, and 
(the old favourite of Nottingham) JofepU Birch, efq. 
Nottingham has been the f’cene of many events of hif- 
torical importance in aim eft every era of the Englilh hif- 
tory. During the troublefome reign of king Stephen, 
Nottingham, having been taken by the earl of Gloucelter 
in 1140, was plundered, and nearly burnt to the ground. 
It Was foon, however, rebuilt; and in 1153 once more 
met with the fame misfortune, in the contefts between 
Henry II. and his Ion, prince Henry, whom he had inju- 
dicioufly caufed to be crowned during his own life-time. 
From this period, the town lay in allies till the reltoration 
of peace, at which time great exertions were made for its 
re-cllablilliment; and the king granted to the inhabitants 
the charter above-mentioned, as the reward of their loyalty. 
In the reign of Richard I. when his brother John railed 
the Itandard of rebellion againft him, Nottingham changed 
makersTeveral times ; and a parliament vras called here 
by Richard, in which John’s eftates were declared for¬ 
feited to the crown. Edward III. alfo held feveral par¬ 
liaments at this town, in one of which were enndted thole 
laws relative to the lettlement of the Flemilh manufac¬ 
turers, that may juftly be regarded as having laid the 
foundation ol England’s greatnefs as a trading and com¬ 
mercial country. The fame parliament alfo palled that 
patriotic law, forbidding all perfons, except the royal fa¬ 
mily, to wear any foreign-made • loths ; and likevvife pro¬ 
hibited the exportation of Englilh wool. 
This town fubfequently became remarkable for having 
been the place of rendezvous for the troops of Edward IV. 
vhocaufed himfelf to be proclaimed king here (hortly after 
his arrival in England, in the year 1461; and in 1485, 
Richard III. marched hence towards Bofworth Field,where 
he was defeated and (lain. In 1487, his fuccefsful rival, 
Henry VII. held his council of war here previous to the 
battle of Stoke. From this time till 1642, nothing of im- 
-portance occurs in the annals of Nottingham ; but in that 
year, it was diftinguifhed as the plaGe whence king Charles 
lirft formally railed his ftandard againft the parliament. 
The inhabitants, however, being chiefly attached to the 
republican caufe, his majeily was foon obliged to abandon 
the town to the parliamentary forces. Many interefting 
and 1 curious particulars refpefting this town, its caftle, 
and the cultoms of the people, during the civil wars, are 
detailed in the Memoirs of the Life of Colonel Hutchinlon, 
. 2 vols. 8vo. 1810. 
At Nottingham, Lincoln, and places adjacent, fome 
fliocks of an earthquake were felt on Sunday the 17th of 
March, 1816, about noon, which caufed great confter- 
•uation and alarm ; but no confiderable damage was done. 
This city was anciently furrounded by a maflive wall 
nnd a ditch ; though but few traces of either now remain. 
In Leland’s- time, however, much of the wall was Hand¬ 
ing, arid feveral of the gates. One of the latter, indeed, 
Hill remains; and, as it has been excavated from the 
folid rock, may continue permanent for many ages. Ed¬ 
ward the Elder was the firll who fortified this town, about 
the year 910 ; but, the wall being greatly damaged dur¬ 
ing the Danilh wars, it was almoft entirely renewed by 
the Conqueror and his fuccefi'ors to Henry III. The ex¬ 
tent of the town at that period is uncertain, as that cir- 
cumftance is not mentioned by any author before Deer- 
ing, who fays that it meafured two ftatute-miles in cir¬ 
cumference about the commencement of the laft century. 
Its boundaries now probably include a i'pace offotnewhat 
more than four miles, exclufive of many detached boufes, 
which conftitute partial fuburbs. The county of the 
town extends about ten miles in circuit; and till the year 
1802 was free from the jurifdidtion of the magillrates of 
the (hire. Thiele limits are perambulated twice a-year by 
a jury chofen for the purpole, who are likewife bound to 
walk occafionally through the llreets to prevent encroach¬ 
ments and nuifances. In this part of their duty, how¬ 
ever, they are not fo effective as might be wiflied ; for it 
is believed that there are few towns more irregularly built 
than Nottingham. The ftreets, with the exception of 
Callle-gate, and the High-Pavement, are very narrow, 
and far from being kept in a proper (late with refpedl to 
cleanlinefs ; though much improvement, it mud be ad¬ 
mitted, has lately taken place in this particular. Mod of 
the houfes are built of done or of brick, in the modem 
(lyle; but a (mall proportion of them are of ancient erec¬ 
tion. The whole town is divided into three pariflies, and 
feven wards : Chapel 7 ward, on the wedern fide of the 
town; Cadle-ward, in the vicinity of the callle; Market- 
ward, including the market-place, and the Long Row, and 
lanes leading to the north of it; North-ward, which em¬ 
braces the north-ead divifion of the town ; Bridge-ward, 
between St. Mary’s and the Leen, and the lanes and dreets 
to the eadward ; Middle-ward, to the ead of Market- 
ward ; and Monthall-ward, containing the Low and part 
of the High Pavements. Each alderman, though pof- 
fefling a peculiar juril'diftion over his own ward, is not 
obliged to reiide in it; for indeed his jurifdidlion, as a 
judice of the peace, properly extends over the whole town. 
A bill has been brought into the prefent parliament for 
edablifliing a court of requeds in Nottingham : it was 
propol’ed by the inhabitants, but is oppofed by the cor¬ 
poration. The fate of the bill is not at prefent decided. 
The fird manufacture which douriflied in this tovvn was 
edablilhed before the reign of king John, which he en¬ 
couraged by his charter, bearing date s March 19, 1199, 
wherein all perfons, within ten miles round Nottingham, 
are forbidden to work dyed cloth but in the borough. 
This manufacture continued in a profperous fljate rill the 
reign of queen Mary; then it gradually went off, till at 
lail it entirely left this place. The maiting-bufinefs may 
-reafonably be conjectured to be in this town as early as in 
any part of England, lince the greatelt and bed part of 
Nottingham was, from the beginning of the conqued, 
inhabited by the Normans, who were the fird that intro¬ 
duced malt-liquor into tlm kingdom, as well as the making 
ot cider. The tanners were once very numerous here; 
and their habitations, as well as their pits, were formerly 
difperfed all over the town. The mailers of this trade 
were in 1641 thirty-fix in number, in the year 1664 they 
were forty-feven, and in 1707 there were twenty-one; 
fince which time, they are dwindled entirely riway. Be¬ 
fore the cloth-manufaClure was quite decayed, the plenty 
of coals and iron-ore in vited numbers of all forts of work¬ 
men in iron to fettle here; but, fince this trade has moved 
its leaf to Birmingham and Sheffield, it has been fucceeded 
by a much cleaner employment, viz. the bone-lace trade, 
by which .great numbers of females were condantly em¬ 
ployed. till within thele fixty years, when all tliefe hands, 
and above thrice the number of men, were more advan- 
tageoully taken up by a frefh manufacture, namely, that 
of frame-worked (lockings ; but we do not know that 
any correft eltimate of the number of frames employed in 
this trade has been made lately. Deering fays they ex¬ 
ceeded 1200 in phe middle of the-laft century. Here are 
alfo feveral mills for fpinning(ilk and cotton, as well as 
for twilling; fome dyeingand bleach works, and a variety 
of breweries, malt-houfes, &c. 
The churches of Nottingham belonging to the efta- 
blifturient are four in number.- St. Mary’s, St. Peter’s, and 
St. Nicholas's, parilh churches, and the extra-parochial 
chapel of St. James, lately built in confequence of the 
increafed population of the town.—St. Mary’s church, 
(landing on a bold eminence, is built in th$ form of a 
crofs, and is apparently of the (lyle prevalent in the reign 
of Henry VII. though fome authors aflert it to be of a 
much older date. Ithas lately undergone a thorough re¬ 
pair ; and, in the execution of his talk, the architect has 
difplayed confiderable tafte and di-crimination. In this 
church are feveral monuments of the earls of Clare, and 
of the Piumptre family. St. Peter’s church is reckoned 
a handi'ome edifice, and is adorned with a lofty fpife; but, 
upon examination, great incongruity appears in tbeftyle 
