"If Blount despatch'd himself, he play'd the man.” Blount's books were reprinted in a collected form by Gildon, in 1695. Mimms to Barnet. The road for some three or Tittenhanger, in Hartfordshire, died in London, felo four miles is as "straight as an arrow," and the de se, five weeks after he had shot himself into the land on either side pleasantly diversified by culti- belly with a pistoll: for love of Mrs. Hobby (his vation and woods. Ridge Hill, which we ascend wife's sister), who was a rich widow." Pope, too, about two miles from Colney, takes its name from commemorated Mr. Blount's death in the following the quaint little old-world village of Ridge, which line in his "Epistle to the Satires ":lies some little distance away to the right of our road, and is approached through narrow winding lanes. The district is exceedingly rural, and has a population of about 450 souls. Apart from the dozen or more of humble cottages, a general shop, and an inn, forming the village, there are one or two houses of a better class, notably Ridge Hall, Rabley House, and Deeves Hall, with here and there a farm scattered about. The parish, which has really no literary history, probably derives its name from the "ridge" of high ground which runs along its border, and it is wonderfully unchanged among all the changes of time. The green lanes on every side wind between hedgerows of thorns and elders, very much as they must have done two centuries ago; and the farm-houses have a sleepy and respectable appearance, which seems to indicate that their owners do not care much for "progress." The parish of South Mimms is bounded on the west by Ridge, on the north by Northaw and North Mimms; Monken Hadley and Enfield encompass it on the east, and it stretches away southward to High. Barnet. It occupies the northern portion of the Hundred of Edmonton, and is the most extreme point northward of the county of Middlesex. The name of the parish has in times past been variously written as Mims, Mymes, and Mymmes. The additional term of “South” is evidently applied to the village to distinguish it from its neighbour in Hertfordshire, which has become famous as the home of Sir Thomas More, but which, by the way, lies just beyond the limits of our peregrinations. This parish, which includes the hamlet of Potter's Bar, about two miles eastward from the village (where there is a station on the Great Northern Railway), and also the ecclesiastical district of Christ Church, Barnet, has a population of nearly 4,000. In 1871 the number of the in census for 1881 shows very slight change. The parish contains within its bounds about 5,400 acres of land, of which 1,097 were allotted by an Act of Parliament passed in 1777, on the enclosure of Enfield Chase. The old "Royal Chase" formed the southern boundary of South Mimms, as far as Potter's Bar. The parish church, dedicated to St. Margaret, is an ancient building, standing away by itself on the west side of the village. The edifice is small, built of flint and stone, and consists of a chancel in the Early Decorated style, and a Perpendicular nave. The west end is surmounted by a low wooden tower, crowned with a spire. It is as yet "un-habitants of South Mimms proper was 775, and the restored," so that it still exhibits all the marks of the Georgian interior arrangements. There are high deep pews of deal on either side of the central passage up the nave, with hatchments in abundance, and the royal arms in a conspicuous position. Like Kingsbury, it is quite innocent of aisles, and the distinction between nave and chancel is of the very slightest kind. The structure is chiefly remarkable for the abundant coats of whitewash which have been inflicted on it by successive incumbents and churchwardens. It is also noticeable for the tombs and monuments of the family of the Blounts of Tittenhanger, who lie buried here. Of these, the best known are those of Sir Henry Pope Blount, the author of the "Voyage into the Levant," who died in 1682, and his sons, Sir Thomas Pope Blount, author of "De Re Poetica," &c., who died in 1697, and Charles Blount, the deistical writer, who died by his own hand in 1693, having been driven to frenzy by his unsuccessful endeavours to obtain a license to marry his deceased wife's sister, and her refusal to marry him without it. The event is thus recorded in the Cæsar Manuscripts, under date of August 31, 1693 :-" Mr. Charles Blount, of The general outline of the parish is agreeably diversified with hill and dale, and the village itself, with the church in the midst-there is no regular street, in the ordinary sense of the term-is built upon undulating ground along the line of the old road-which is now a picturesque lane, winding up from its lower end to North Mimms, but in ancient times was the great highway northwards. This road is intersected by the present high road, which was formed early in the present century. The course of the old road was somewhat sinuous, but it contrasts pleasantly enough with the dull and monotonous uniformity of the more modern high road to St. Albans. On quitting Barnet, it traversed Hadley Green, and leaving the road by Potter's Bar to Hatfield on the right, was carried thence by Kitt's End under the fence of Wrotham Park to Dancer's Hill. Here, bending abruptly to the right, along the wall of Dancer's Hill House, it passed over Mimms Wash, and crossing the present high road, reached South Mimms village. After traversing the entire length of this, it followed the present lane, but branched off sharply to the left shortly before reaching the lodge of North Mimms Park. The present high road, continuing in a straight line from Barnet, passes through the vil lage to the east of the church and churchyard, and then almost bisecting the houses of the village, passes on again in an equally straight line to Colney and St. Albans. The manor of South Mimms is not mentioned in the "Domesday Survey," and it probably then formed part of the royal chase of Enfield, which belonged at the time of the Conquest to Geoffrey de Mandeville, who owned much property in this part of Middlesex. Through several ages, previous to the year 1479, the manorial rights were vested in the Leuknore, or Lewkenor, family, but it afterwards became annexed to the Crown; and in 1484 it was granted by Richard III. to his zealous adherent, Richard Scrope. It was subsequently owned by the family of Windsor; and about the middle of the seventeenth century it passed to the family of the Marquis of Salisbury, with whom it still continues. 317 contain in their centres some fragments of ancient stained glass, forming a series, thought to have been part of the original decoration of the re-built aisle. In the south wall of the chancel is a trefoilheaded piscina, apparently of the thirteenth century. On the north side of the chancel is an altar-tomb, with an elaborately carved canopy, supported by four Renaissance columns. It is without arms or inscription; but the initials R. H. are worked into the rose and quatrefoil ornamentation of the tomb. It is very doubtful whom this handsome tomb commemorates. In the Frowyke chapel is an altartomb, belonging to the family of Frowyke. It bears the recumbent effigy of a knight in armour, under a rich open canopy. The tomb is without inscription or date. There are in the floor of the church two or three brasses to different members of the Frowkyes. Close by the churchyard, and facing the street, is a row of almshouses for six widows. They were founded in the year 1687 by James Hickson, between Dancer's Hill and Hadley, but were moved hither in 1856 by the Brewers' Company, who are trustees of the charity. Potter's Bar, which, as stated above, is an ecclesiastical district of South Mimms, lies about two miles eastward from the latter place. It is a long, straggling village, about a mile in length, with a population of rather more than 1,200 souls. The north end of the village. It was built in the year 1835, chiefly at the expense of the late Mr. George Byng, M.P., of Wrotham Park. It is constructed of white brick in the Norman style, and several of the windows are filled with memorial stained glass. Here the Byng family were formerly interred; but owing to some differences between them and the incumbent of the parish, Lord Strafford erected in Wrotham Park a mausoleum, which was consecrated by the Bishop of London, as their burial-place. The church, dedicated to St. Giles, stands almost in the centre of the village, and, from its lofty situa-church, dedicated to St. John, stands towards the tion, is visible for many miles round. It consists of a nave and chancel, separated from a north aisle, erected at a later period, by octagonal pillars and six obtuse arches. At the western end is an embattled tower, tall and massive, with a small staircase turret at the south-east angle. The main body of the church is in the Early Perpendicular style, and has the walls faced with flint; but the north aisle, looking prim and new from recent restoration, is of red brick, and of Tudor architecture, having been built in 1526. There is no chancel arch, but the chancel is slightly narrower than the nave. At the eastern end of the north aisle, and separated from it by a carved oak parclose, or screen, of Gothic design, is the Frowyke chantry, or chapel, now used as a vestry. The chancel was newly paved and decorated at the restoration of the church, by Mr. G. E. Street, in 1868. The font, of Early English character, consists of a plain square block of stone hollowed in the form of a circular basin, resting upon four small circular columns, and a square centre support, with shallow Perpendicular tracery. One or two of the benches are old, and contain some good examples of wood carving. The five windows of the north aisle On the west side of the high road which leads towards Barnet is the estate of Dyrham (or Derham) Park, the seat of the Trotters. The entrance gate, which is approached from the St. Albans road, consists of a tall central arch between Tuscan columns, with entablature and scrolls, and surmounted by a large vase. It is said to have formed originally the triumphal arch which was erected in London by General Monk on the occasion of the public entry of Charles II. in 1660. The old mansion having been burnt down early in the present century, the present house was built by Mr. John Trotter, the then owner of the estate. It is a large and heavy square building in the Classical style, and is situated in the midst of a well-wooded and undulating park of about 170 acres in extent. The estate derived its name from the Derhams, by whom it was possessed in the latter part of the thirteenth century, when it was conveyed in marriage to the Frowykes. This latter family retained possession of the property through many generations, and late in the seventeenth century it became the property of the Austen family. In 1733 it was purchased from Sir John Austen, Bart., M.P. (who lies buried in the churchyard of South Mimms), by Anne, Countess of Albemarle; and at the end of the last accidentally destroyed by fire in March, 1883, was a handsome edifice in the Classical Italian style, which was so fashionable in the reigns of the two first Georges. It was erected from the designs of Ware in 1754, its then owner being the unfortunate Admiral Byng, who was executed a few years afterwards, under circumstances well known to every reader of English history. The house bore a strong resemblance to Southill, in Bedfordshire, another seat of the Byngs in the last century. The principal front of the mansion looked to the west, The "Butcher" Duke of Cumberland is said to have turned aside out of the Great North road, on his way back to London, after the victory of Culloden, in order to spend a night or two here before going on to join the king at Kew. On the opposite side of the road, and occupying some 250 acres of ground in the fork of the two roads, passing northwards to St. Albans and to Hatfield and York, is Wrotham Park, the seat of the Earl of Strafford. The mansion, which was commanding fine views across the park towards Elstree and Watford. It consisted of a spacious centre, with side colonnades, terminating in octagonal wings; it had a deeply-recessed tetrastyle portico, and a pediment extending along the second storey; and the whole was surmounted by a handsome balustrade. The name of the house was derived from Wrotham, near Sevenoaks, Kent, where was the ancient seat of the Byngs, Lords Torrington. The house contained a fine gallery of pictures and an excellent library. It is somewhat singular that the mansion of Wrotham Park stood a narrow escape from destruction by fire shortly after its erection from the hands of an infuriated mob, during the riots which followed on Admiral Byng's trial and disgrace, Admiral Byng was never married, and at his decease the estate came to his nephew, George Byng, Esq., whose eldest son, also George, was for upwards of half a century M.P. for Middlesex, and who died in 1847. Upon the death of his widow, Wrotham Park reverted to his brother John, a gallant Peninsular officer, who was in 1835 created Baron Strafford, and in 1847 advanced to an earldom; and from him it descended, in 1860, to his son, the present peer, who was well known in 319 his day on the turf, and has held several Court and administrative appointments. At the southern extremity of the park is Hadley Common, where we meet with the obelisk or pillar set up to commemorate the battle of Barnet; but of this we shall have more to say in the next chapter. Christ Church, adjacent to the town of Barnet, but in the parish or South Mimms, was built in 1852, at the expense of the late Captain Trotter, of Dyrham Park, but has since been enlarged. Situation and Extent of Barnet-Its Etymology--The Manor-General Appearance of the Town-Census Returns-Markets and Fairs-The Parish Church-The Grammar School-The old "Crown Inn "-Jesus Hospital-Almshouses and Charitable Institutions--The Town Hall -Barracks-Chapels and Meeting-houses-Ravenscroft Park-The "Physic Well "-Historical Associations-Inns and Taverns--The Battle of Barnet-The Obelisk. THE small busy town of High Barnet stands at a fork where the road to Elstree and Watford branches off from the Great Northern road, along which Dick Turpin used to ride; and the long High Street still shows marks of having been a street of inns and posting-houses, as being in the old coaching days the first stage out of London on the road both to York and Manchester, for those roads diverge just beyond the northern end of the town. The town stands high and "wind-swept," extending along a ridge which commands distant views in every direction, and it is from this circumstance that it acquired the prefix of "High." Mr. Thorne, in his "Environs of London," says it is the belief of the older natives that "Barnet stands on the highest ground between London and York." But this, we fancy, can hardly be the case. The town is also called Chipping Barnet, from its market, "which Henry II. granted to the abbots of St. Albans to be kept in this town; it was famous for cattle, and was held on every Monday." Barnet is considered to belong to Hertfordshire, but not all the town is in that county, nor does the town lie in a single parish. Middlesex and Hertfordshire interlace here, and so do the parishes of South Mimms, Hadley, and High Barnet, to an extent which makes it difficult to describe the place with accuracy. There is, in fact, great confusion, because there are two Barnets, two miles apart-East Barnet and Chipping Barnet, or, as it is commonly called, High Barnet; and to these must be added a third, "New" Barnet, which lies between them both, and is rapidly being covered by modern streets and villas, of the common suburban type. Lying as it does, for the most part, between two lines of railway-the Great Northern main line and the Finchley and High Barnet branch-this central district enjoys the advantage of very frequent communication with London, and therefore is a favourite abode of City men. As to the origin of the name, Barnet is thought by some antiquaries to be probably at root the same word with Brent, the river which rises in the valley between the town and Totteridge. It is fair to state that it is here called the "Dollis brook "i.e., boundary, from an old Kentish word, dolestone, a landmark, a word which also occurs in the Homilies. But according to Chauncy's "Antiquities of Hertfordshire," the name of the town appears in very early deeds as Bergnet, "from the high situation thereof; for the word Bergnet in the Saxon language signifies monticulus, a little hill." In the far-off Saxon times the whole of this district, including East Barnet, formed part of an extensive forest, called Southaw, which belonged to the abbots of St. Albans. The manor continued in the hands of that monastery long after the Conquest; but after the dissolution it was granted by Queen Mary to Anthony Butler, whose descendants, in 1619, sold it to Sir John Weld. It has since passed through the hands of various families, and is now, according to Kelly's "Directory of Hertfordshire," the property of Mr. William Henry Richardson, of Southampton. Though High Barnet is now commonly known as "Barnet," without any prefix, yet it must not be supposed that it is the original place of that name. East Barnet, which, as stated above, lies a mile and a half away, nearer to the borders of Essex, is shown, by its Norman church, to be the mother, though the * daughter has risen into greater note, from its situation on the Great North road which led to York and Scotland. We must, however, mention the daughter first, both because it comes first geographically, and also on account of the extent to which it is mixed up with the adjacent village of Monken Hadley, which really forms its northern suburb. The main street of the town is about a mile in length, broad and well paved, and bears a strong family likeness to that of Highgate; the sign-boards of its numerous inns and hostelries indicate the importance of the town before the invasion of the railway, and when upwards of one hundred and fifty stage-coaches passed through it daily. Of late years the town has greatly improved, not only in its general appearance, but also in growth, particularly on its western side, about the Common, or, as it is now called, "Arkley." This suburb of the town is situated on high ground, and commands extensive views towards Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire on the north, while on the south may be discerned from it the high grounds of Hampstead, Highgate, and Muswell Hill. The neighbourhood is studded with villa residences, a branch railway giving easy access to the City. According to the census returns for 1871 the number of houses in High Barnet was 601, the inhabitants at the same time numbering 3,375; this latter number, in the course of the next ten years, had swelled up to 4,283, or about four times what it was at the beginning of this century. The market, which was granted to the town by Henry II., is still held, but on Wednesday instead of Monday. The horse and cattle fair held yearly, in September, has made the name of Barnet known not only throughout the kingdom, but even abroad. It is held in the fields surrounding the railwaystation at High Barnet, and many thousand head of cattle from the Highlands change hands here. Even Cossacks from the neighbourhood of the Don, in Russia, have been known to attend the fair, clothed in the costume of their native country. The horse and cattle fair used formerly to be wound up with a pleasure fair and races, which became very popular with London roughs; but on the formation of a railway, in 1871, the racecourse was broken up, and the races were of necessity abandoned-an event on which the good people of Barnet may well be congratulated. The parish church, which stands in the middle of the town, at the junction of the north road with that leading to Elstree and Watford, is dedicated See Homily for Rogation Week, Fourth Part, "Accursed be he, to St. John the Baptist, and was originally erected about the middle of the thirteenth century. About saith Almighty God by Moses, who removeth his neighbour's doles and marks." |