WITH

July 31.

Mr. URBAN, 7ITH this communication you will receive a view (see Plate II.) of the beautiful Church of Staunton Harold, co. Leicester, which was built by Sir Robert ShirJey, Bart. in the time of the Civil War. The circumstance is thus, recorded by Mr. Staveley, in his "His tory of Churches:"

"Sir Robert Shirley pulled down an old ruinous Church at Staunton Harold,

and in place thereof, at his own charges, built a new one, complete for the work manship, plentiful and honourable for the furniture, ornaments and endowment; but most admirable for the time wherein the same was undertaken and finished; it being when the roofs of our Cathedrals were generally pulled down, and the foundation of all other Churches undermined: the time and manner of which work is set forth by an inscription over the entrance thus:

In the yeare 1653,

The above inscription is on a tablet of white marble; over which are the. arms of Shirley impaling Okesver, with their crests, carved in stone; and on each side a large figure of an angel.

It being told the Usurping Powers then reigning, that Sir Robert Shirley had built a Church, they directed an Order in Council to him to fit out a Ship, saying, "He that could afford to build a Church, could no doubt, afford also to equip a Ship." And thus he and other good men were endeavoured to be frighted from doing any works of piety.

Sir Robert Shirley + died in the Tower, after being seven times imprisoned there, in the very prime of life (his 28th year), Nov. 6, 1656, not without suspicion of poison; and at his death, a funeral sermon preached, from Luke vii. 5. He loved our Country, and hath built us a Synagogue.

was

The Church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, consists of a beautiful embattled tower (in which are six good bells, inscribed "Sir Robert Shirley, founder, 1653"); a nave and two ailes, separated by three arches; over which are clerestory windows; and a very handsome chancel, parted from the nave by elegant wrought-iron gates, on which are the family arms, supporters, and coronet. The ceil ing is painted; and the ascent to the altar is by three steps of bluish marble. The chancel is paved with marble. The furniture of the Church is

Nation

and embroidery. The communionplate, which is gilt, remarkably fine, antient, and costly, was given to the Church by Sir Robert Shirley, the founder. The organ is the production of the celebrated Schmidt, and is extremely sweet-toned and melodious.

scendant of Sir Robert Shirley, is the Earl Ferrers, the immediate desole proprietor of the Lordship of Staunton Harold. The park contains about 150 acres of land, and has in it about 100 head of remarkably fine deer. A fine sheet of water of about 25 acres runs through the park. The mansion-house, one of the largest and

+ His Portrait, and a full account of him and of his noble family, are given in vol. III. of "History of Leicestershire."

most

most elegant displays of modern architecture in the county of Leicester,

is a light and elegant square building, backed by a fine wood, in contrast with a wild heath at a due distance, and a variety of delightful scenery surrounds it. A full description of this noble edifice, and of the portraits and curiosities contained in it, may be found in Nichols's "History of Leicestershire" in the progress of which work the Author acknowledges much material assistance from the present noble owner of Staunton Harold. Yours, &c.

M.

IT will be in the recollection of most of your readers, that a short time since, proposals were issued for publishing by subscription, a print from the above subject, under the direction of a Committee of Artists and amateurs, for the benefit of the Painter's infant children.

The friends of humanity and the arts are, it is presumed, already sufficiently acquainted with the calamitous history of this family, to render it unnecessary to repeat what has been so ably and correctly stated by the Committee, who have generously undertaken the publication *. Although much has been done by friends, much yet remains to do, to accomplish the object of providing for three little destitutes; and as their main reliance is on this print as a work of art, it is not without much anxiety that they look forward to its publication. To those who are not aware of its progress it must be gratifying to know that the exertions of the engraver have kept pace with the wishes of the Committee, Mr. Bromley having already produced an admirable Etching from this splendid composition, proofs of which are now in the hands of the subscribers; and that the plate is proceeding towards a finish with as much rapidity as the nature of the work and the greatest care can possibly admit. J. BRITTON, Hon. Sec. Mr. URBAN, Tours, July 3. AVING in a late excursion vi

and Foutevrault, names familiar to

*See Part I. p. 325.

every person versed in the early history of our country, I presume a brief account of them may not be uninteresting.

The first of these places, though no doubt much decayed, has still several advantages.

It enjoys a pure salubrious air, is very agreeably situated upon the banks of the Vienne, a few miles before its junction with the Loire, and upon the verge of a large forest abounding with game. The town itself, however, has, strictly speaking, little to recommend it; the churches and all the public buildings are inconsiderable, and the streets, as in most old, and almost all French towns, are narrow, crooked, dirty, and ill-paved; two bridges meeting together upon an islet in the stream, so as to form one long irregular pile of fourteen arches, cross the Vienne, but though of considerable antiquity, there is nothing remarkable in the appearance; the starlings on the side where they meet the current are pointed, and considerably advanced; while those on the other are square, and have scarcely any projection, a style which spoils the uniformity, though it may have saved materials, and diminished the expence. Chinou owed its former consequence, and perhaps its existence, to its castle, which stands upon a rock, overlooking and commanding the town and adjacent county. The origin of this building is lost in remote antiquity, but it was a port of great importance from the earliest times; when perfect, it must have been a noble structure, and, properly defended, might, before the invention of artillery, have "laughed a siege to scorn." It was, nevertheless, through famine, or other means, taken and retaken several times by the various contending parties previous to the final expulsion of the English from Anjou and Touraine. Heury II. died in this castle in 1189, of chagrin and melancholy, in consequence of the repeated rebellions of his own children, and Richard Cœur de Lion, after being mortally wounded at the siege of Chalus, breathed his last in the town in 1199. The house in which this event had

place became

Joan of Arc had her first interview with Charles VII. at Chinon in 1429, and Philip de Comines was governor of it in 1477. The castle continued an apanage of the crown until 1631, when Louis XIII. sold it to Cardinal Richelieu, who united it, with other estates, into a Duche Pairée, and it is still the property of his successors. Its appearance is very different from what it once was; very little of the superstructure now remains, and that little is a ruin. It was much dilapidated previous to the revolution, and that completed its destruction. The depth of the ditches, the thickness of the remaining walls, and the number and variety of the subterraneous passages, sufficiently ascertain its former strength and grandeur. The Torre de l'Horloge, some dark apartments, formerly prisons of state, and a small room in which, according to tradition, the Pucelle was introduced to Charles VII. are among the most entire of what is yet left. Here is also a curious souterrain said to have been formed by that monarch for the purpose of secret communication with the house of the fair Agnes Sorel, situated without the castle, but this is probably a mistake. The connexion was a thing universally known at that period, and needed no such precaution. This lady is one of the few mistresses of the French Sovereigns, whom History mentions with respect.. Most of the fortunate occurrences of the reign of her royal lover were owing directly, or remotely, to ber agency. The character of that king seems to have been much mistaken, and the records of Chinon shew that he was not, in early life, that good-natured easy being which he is usually represented; for there are undoubted proofs, that when Dauphin, he caused seventeen score of the inhabitants to be hanged upon the "avant toils" of their houses, for favouring, or being thought to favour, the cause of his enemies!!! His only merit was a pliability of temper, which was fortunately influenced by one, who had at heart his real interest, and that of his subjects. Had his mistress been cruel, or revengeful, his name might have descended to posterity in a point of view as odious aud detestable as Louis XI. or the most abandoned of his predecessors,

or successors.

Fontevrault is situated about six miles from Chinon, in the centre of a wild and beautiful forest scenery. The town is not so large, but better built. It owes its origin to the abbey, which was founded, and the order established, by Robert d'Arbrissel in 1103. The character of this man seems somewhat equivocal. He was in early life an itinerant preacher, and being gifted with great oratorical powers, drew to him a vast crowd of persons of both sexes who attended his move. ments.

This mixture attracted the attention, and gave much offence to some of the severer ecclesiastics of that time, who accused him of too close a familiarity with the females over whom he had influence. On this account, says Boyle, Robert took the extraordinary resolution of fixing his tabernacle in the solitudes of Fontevrault, of subjecting man to the dominion of woman, and while he only enjoined to the last the duty of prayer, he ordained that the former," their perpetual servants," should be employed in draining morasses, grubbing up woods, and labouring upon the land which they recovered from the waters and the wilderness. In a short period, this establishment became very considerable, although calumny did not spare the inmates, and the above author insinuates, that Robert D'Arbrissel

Be

ne faisait qu' un même lit avec ses plus jolies proselytes à fin de vaquer plus commodement à l'oraison." that as it may, the abbey and the order flourished, and continued to the period of the revolution, when it was divided into four provinces, and possessed no less than 57 priories. The habit of the females was a white robe, a black capuchin, a white surplice, and a black girdle. The men wore a black robe, a cope, and a cowl, or a great hood, to which was attached before and behind, too small pieces of cloth, called Roberts. When, during the late convulsion, the popular fury was vented upon religious edifices, the abbey of Fontevrault was sacked, the tombs dilapidated, and the shrines and altars laid prostrate. After the phrenzy had subsided, the attention of the Government was drawn towards the place, as well from the extent of the building, as from the healthiness of the

situ

situation, and it was converted into a Maison de force, upon a plan some what similar to that recommended by Howard. In this change, most of what was left of the former building was taken down, or new-modelled, so that little of the original pile now stands. The most ancient is a small octagonal tower of a pyramidal form, which was probably part of the erection of Arbrissel. It is used as a work-shop, where I saw several of the prisoners employed in dressing flax. The choir and cross aile of the old church also still remain, but the architecture, rather than the appearance, is antique; for the buildings in this country rarely wear the same venerable aspect with those of England. The dryness of the climate, which checks the growth of the moss and the lichen, with the want of ivy, convey an idea of freshness and newness different from those of our own country, even when of less antiquity. The exterior of this edifice is of the mixed Gothic style, and well worthy notice, the interior seems to have been much modernized, even before the revolution. It is now most ruinous, fragments of pillars and altars meeting the eye in every direction, but, as the French government have ordered it to be repaired, and restored its former destination as a place of worship, it may be expected soon to have another appearance. It is completely separated from the other part of the abbey, which is converted into rooms for the prisoners, who will be brought here to hear mass, two wooden galleries being erected for their accommodation. The choir has a semi-circular line of pillars, supporting a pediment, surmounted with a row of small Saxon arches, reaching almost to the roof. It was between two of these, on the North side, and nearest the cross-aile, that Henry II. was interred, and opposite, in a similar direction, his son and successor. Whether their graves were ransacked at the ruin of the abbey, I could not learn; probably as they could afford no chance of plunder, they were unviolated. However that may be, certain it is, that no remains are now discoverable, an English gentleman having, about two years ago, caused the earth to be opened to a considerable depth, without finding any thing. In the lapse

of the many years since they were buried, even their very dust has passed away! Their monuments were in the same position, and near to each was another, said to be Eleanor, the wife of Henry, and Berangaria, the spouse of Richard, though history does not, as far as I can recollect, mention that either of these queens, and in particular the first, had their sepulture at Fontevrault. These ancient memorials are now lying in the church, but the king of France has directed that they shall, as far as possible, be repaired, and a place is making, expressly to receive them; they are greatly injured, and bear marks of wanton violence. I had expected to find the two kings, or at least Cœur de Lion, in armour, and with the emblems of war, and the crusade, but neither are so. Both are represented in a recumbent posture, baving crowns (or what were such,) upon their heads, and clothed in loose gar ments, with large sleeves, and reaching to the feet. They were formerly coloured, but that is now nearly ef faced, though I could trace the arms of England, as then borne, upon a little ornament, round the wrist of Richard. At first sight I thought they were intended to be represented in their shrouds, but their dress seems too large and flowing for that garb of the grave, and was probably only taken from the abbey costume, as it bears a close resemblance to that ordained by the founder. The female figures are also crowned, and their habiliments are very like those of the kings, with the addition of a girdle and a neck ornament, fastened in front with a buckle. What has assisted in the destruction of these ef figies, is the softness of the stone of which they are composed, which seems badly calculated to ensure great duration; though uninjured by man, they might yet have lasted for many ages. The intention of his Christian Majesty to restore them, is creditable to his feelings. It is likewise his interest to cherish such ideas in others, as it may safely be asserted that the being who has no respect for the tomb of a monarch, will have little regard for the person of one. In fact, the sentiment of reverence for who, and what has beenfor the memorials of departed greatness, and the scenes of celebrated

events,