Hartlip (St. Michael)
HARTLIP (St. Michael), a parish, in the union and
hundred of Milton, Upper division of the lathe of
Scray, E. division of Kent, 4¾ miles (W.) from Sittingbourne; containing 341 inhabitants. The parish comprises 1412a. 2r. 3p., of which 135 acres are in wood:
the soil is in some parts chalky, and in others sandy;
the produce consists chiefly of wheat, oats, barley, and
beans. A pleasure-fair is held on the 27th of July. The
living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at
£9. 10. 10., and has a net income of £182; the Dean
and Chapter of Rochester are patrons and appropriators.
The church is in the decorated style; the north-east
chancel has been lately rebuilt, and a handsome font
placed in it. Here is a small place of worship for dissenters; and a national school is supported partly by
subscription, and partly by an endowment of land given
by Mary Gibbon in 1678, and now producing about £32
per annum. In Lower Danefield, about a mile from the
church, are the remains of a large subterranean building, the rooms and passages of which are rudely constructed, and contain a great quantity of Roman tiles.
Hartoft
HARTOFT, a township, in the parish of Middleton, union and lythe of Pickering, N. riding of York;
containing 168 inhabitants. It is a narrow dale, comprising 4740 acres, mostly moors.
Harton
HARTON, a township, in the chapelry and union of
South Shields, parish of Jarrow, E. division of
Chester ward, N. division of the county of Durham,
2 miles (S. E.) from South Shields; containing 265 inhabitants. This place, anciently Heortedun, was included in Aldwin's donation to the monastery of Jarrow,
and, with the other lands of that establishment, became
the property of the convent of Durham; it was granted
to the cathedral after the Dissolution, and is now held
under the Dean and Chapter. The township is bounded
on the east by the North Sea, and comprises 1390a. 1r.
37p., of which 884 acres are arable, 445 meadow and
pasture, and the remainder roads and waste; the soil is
chiefly clay, and coal is found in abundance. On the
sea-shore, near Marston Rock, is a verdant island called
the Velvet Bed, which is a favourite resort of visiters
from Tynemouth and the neighbouring places; and near
it is a remarkable cavern, named the Fairies' Kettle. A
church was erected in 1836, at an expense of £650,
raised by subscription; it is a neat structure in the early
English style, with a square embattled tower crowned
by pinnacles, and contains 280 sittings, of which 138 are
free: the living is a curacy, in the patronage of the Incumbent of South Shields. The tithes have been commuted for £5 payable to impropriators, and £249 to the
curate of the chapel of Trinity, South Shields.
Harton
HARTON, a hamlet, in the parish of Upminster,
union of Romford, hundred of Chafford, S. division
of Essex; containing 60 inhabitants.
Harton
HARTON, a township, in the parish of Bossal,
wapentake of Bulmer, union and N. riding of York,
10 miles (N. E.) from York; containing 186 inhabitants.
It comprises by computation 1620 acres; the village is
east of the road from York to Malton, and about a mile
south-west of the village of Barton. The tithes have
been commuted for £87. 8. payable to the vicar, and
£317. 6. to the Dean and Chapter of Durham.
Hartpury (St. Mary)
HARTPURY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Newent, Lower division of the hundred of Dudstone
and King's-Barton, E. division of the county of Gloucester, 4 miles (N. W. by N.) from Gloucester; containing 877 inhabitants. This parish, which is on the
road from Gloucester to Ledbury, is bounded on the
west by the small river Leden, and the Severn passes at
the distance of about a mile to the east. It comprises
about 3430 acres, whereof 1640 are arable, 1683 pasture, and 107 wood, the prevailing timber being elm.
The surface is undulated, the scenery in some parts
picturesque, and the soil in general a strong clay; the
meadows in the vicinity of the Leden are very fertile,
but subject to frequent inundations, which occasionally
destroy whole crops of hay. The living is a vicarage,
valued in the king's books at £16. 6. 5½.; net income,
£196; patron and appropriator, the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. The church is in the decorated style, of
which the east window is a fine specimen; increased
accommodation has been provided by the addition of 80
free sittings. There is a Roman Catholic chapel.
Hartsfoot-Lane
HARTSFOOT-LANE, a hamlet, in the parishes of
Hilton and Melcombe-Horsey, union of Blandford,
hundred of Whiteway, Blandford division of the county
of Dorset; containing 237 inhabitants.
Harts-Grounds, or Gibbet-Hills
HARTS-GROUNDS, or Gibbet-Hills, an extraparochial district, locally in the parish of Gosberton,
union of Spalding, wapentake of Kirton, parts of
Holland, county of Lincoln; containing 58 inhabitants, and comprising 541 acres.
Hartshead
HARTSHEAD, a division, in the parish and union
of Ashton-under-Lyne, hundred of Salford, S. division of the county of Lancaster, 9 miles (E. N. E.)
from Manchester; containing, with part of the town of
Stalybridge, 12,731 inhabitants. This division is the
largest in the parish, of which it comprises the whole of
the eastern side, the centre being about two miles
from Stalybridge. The name is said to have arisen from
a covert or shed for deer of the hart species. The
north-east portion contains several elevations, whereof
Hartshead Pike is the highest. On this point was formerly a conical fabric of stone, erected in 1758, with a
vane at its apex cut into the form of a hart's head; it
served as a landmark for mariners, but in 1794 was split
from top to bottom, and soon afterwards became a ruin.
This is a considerable manufacturing district, in which
are numerous cotton-mills. Among those in the vicinity
of Mossley, are the Bottoms and Scout mills, established
in 1805, and subsequently enlarged to their present extent, the property of Mr. G. Mayall and Mr. J. Mayall,
who reside near their respective works. Heyrod Hall
was at an early period the mansion of a family of the
same name, of whom John del Heyrod was the possessor
in 1422. Mosdelee was formerly held by the Bardsleys,
and has been long the estate of the Halls. Ross-bottom
was possessed by Robertus de Rossbotham in the
fifteenth century, by the rent of a rose. Scout Mill, on
the bank of the Tame, was in 1794 a private lunatic
asylum. Among the villages or hamlets within the district are, Mossley; Hurst-Brook, in which are some
cotton-mills; Higher Hurst, remarkable for its large
cotton-mills; Hurst-Nook; Hurst-Cross; Hazlehurst;
Smallshaw; Lusley; and Ridge-Hill Lane.—See Hurst,
Mossley, and Stalybridge.
Hartshead, with Clifton
HARTSHEAD, with Clifton, a chapelry, in the
parish of Dewsbury, union of Halifax, wapentake of
Morley, W. riding of York, 5½ miles (N. E. by N.)
from Huddersfield; containing 2675 inhabitants, of
whom 896 are in Hartshead. This chapelry is intersected by the river Calder, and comprises by computation 2900 acres, of which 150 are wood and plantations,
and of the remainder, two-thirds pasture, and about onethird arable. The scenery is bold and romantic. Stone
of good quality for building is quarried, and there are
some coal-mines; card-making for machinery, and wiredrawing, are carried on, and facilities of conveyance are
afforded by the Calder and Hebble canal, and the Leeds
and Manchester railway, which pass through the chapelry, as do the roads between Leeds and Elland, and
Halifax and Wakefield. The village, which is small, is
on a commanding eminence. The living is a perpetual
curacy, in the patronage of the Incumbent of Dewsbury,
with a net income of £202; impropriator, Sir George
Armytage, Bart. The chapel is an ancient structure in
the Norman style, with a square tower, and contains
some interesting specimens, among which are two fine
arches, in a perfect state; there is a handsome monument to the Armytage family. In 1839 an act was obtained for inclosing the waste lands.
Hartshill
HARTSHILL, a hamlet, in the parish of Mancetter, Atherstone division of the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of the county of Warwick, 3 miles
(N. W. by W.) from Nuneaton; containing 1061 inhabitants. This place is intersected by the Coventry canal;
the river Anker, celebrated by Drayton in his Polyolbion; and the roads from Atherstone and Coleshill to
Nuneaton. It comprises 1463 acres, of which about
140 are fine spring woods. The soil is fertile, the air
salubrious, and the hamlet commands a beautiful prospect over a richly cultivated tract of country, embracing
the Peak hills in Derbyshire, and the high ground near
Weedon, in Northamptonshire; not less than forty-five
churches being visible. The chief proprietors are,
Richard Jee, Esq., Charles Okeover, Esq., and Mr. Alkin. The manufacture of ribbons employs about 400
persons; but the principal part of the male inhabitants
is occupied in agriculture, and in mines of manganese
(now nearly exhausted) and stone-quarries. The manganese is beautifully crystallized and of superior quality,
and the rocks of quartz are thought to afford some of
the best materials in the kingdom for roads; ironstone
and greenstone are abundant, and copper and sulphur,
and various mineral substances interesting to the geologist, have been discovered. A church, dedicated to the
Holy Trinity, was erected in 1844, at a cost of £2200,
raised by subscription aided by a grant of £300 from
the Incorporated Society, and one of £400 from the
Diocesan Society; the stone was supplied gratuitously
by Mr. Jee: the edifice is in the Norman style, and admirably situated for effect, and for the convenience of
the population. There are places of worship for the Society of Friends, Independents, and Methodists; and a
free school endowed with land producing about £60 per
annum. At the utmost point of a ridge in the hamlet,
commanding a fine view of Atherstone, are the ruins of
a Norman castle, built by Hugh de Hardreshull about
the year 1125, and the site of which is in a very perfect
state. Connected with their station of Manduessedum at
Mancetter, the Romans had their Campus Martius at
this place, and their Castra Æstiva, or summer camp,
which is still perfect, in the adjoining hamlet of
Oldbury. This was the residence of the accomplished
daughters of Sir Anthony Cook, one of the tutors of
Edward VI.: Mildred became the wife of the great
Lord Burleigh; Anne, of Sir Nicholas Bacon, lord
keeper; Elizabeth, of Sir John Russell, son and heir of
Francis, fourth earl of Bedford; and Katherine, of Sir
Henry Killigrew. Drayton was born here in 1563;
and not at Atherstone, as stated by Sir William Dugdale.
Hartshorne (St. Peter)
HARTSHORNE (St. Peter), a parish, in the union
of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, hundred of Repton and Gresley, S. division of the county of Derby, 6 miles (E. by
S.) from Burton-upon-Trent; containing in 1841, 1389
inhabitants. This manor, called in Domesday book
Heorteshorne, then belonged to the family of Ferrers.
The priory at Repton afterwards had lands, and a
moiety of a park here. The Irelands held the manor in
1504; Sir William Compton died seised of it in 1528,
and it was subsequently possessed by the Cantrells, and
by the Cants, an heiress of whom brought it to John
Murcot, Esq., about the close of the last century. The
parish is on the Leicester and Derby road, and comprises 2700 acres, in about equal portions of arable and
pasture, with some woodland: the surface is hilly and
undulated; the soil various, including almost every kind
except marl; and the scenery picturesque. There is a
quarry, from which the stone was obtained for the erection of the church and rectory-house; and at Woodville,
until lately called Wooden-Box, a hamlet part of which
is in the parish, are extensive earthenware manufactories,
and brick-yards. The living is a rectory, valued in the
king's books at £3. 2. 1.; net income, £540; patrons,
the Earl of Chesterfield, and W. Blake, Esq., the latter
of whom has the next presentation. The tithes were
commuted for land in 1765; the glebe altogether comprises 388 acres. The church is a neat edifice in the
early English style, the body of which was rebuilt in
1835, at a cost of £1400: it contains a very handsome
monument to Humphrey Dethick, Esq., by whom was
endowed a school for boys. A girls' school is supported by
subscription. The Wesleyans have a place of worship.
Hartside, with Fawdon.—See Fawdon.
HARTSIDE, with Fawdon.—See Fawdon.
Hartsop, with Patterdale.—See Patterdale.
HARTSOP, with Patterdale.—See Patterdale.
Hartwell (St. Mary)
HARTWELL (St. Mary), a parish, in the union
and hundred of Aylesbury, county of Buckingham,
2 miles (W. S. W.) from Aylesbury; containing, with
part of the hamlet of Sedrup, 138 inhabitants. This
was the residence of Louis XVIII., and his court, during
the stay of that monarch in England, prior to his restoration to the French throne: he gave £100 for the
use of the poor. The living is a rectory, with that of
Little Hampden annexed, valued in the king's books at
£14. 5. 5.; net income, £226; patrons, the Astronomical
Society. The tithes were commuted for land and money
payments in 1776. The church was erected by the late
Sir William Lee, Bart., in imitation of the early English
style, with two octagonal towers, and a roof highly decorated with tracery.
Hartwell (St. John the Baptist)
HARTWELL (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in
the union of Potters-Pury, hundred of Cleley, S.
division of the county of Northampton, 7¼ miles (S. by
E.) from Northampton; containing 553 inhabitants.
The parish is situated on the border of Buckinghamshire,
which is on the south; and on the east is bounded by
the extra-parochial district of Salcey-Forest. It comprises 1305¾ acres, and the London and Birmingham
railway skirts it. The living is a perpetual curacy; net
income, £70; patron, W. Castleman, Esq.: there is a
parsonage-house. A new church was built in a central
situation in 1846. The Wesleyans have a place of worship; and a school is chiefly supported by the Duke of
Grafton.
Hartwith, with Winsley
HARTWITH, with Winsley, a chapelry, in the parish of Kirkby-Malzeard, union of Pateley-Bridge,
Lower division of the wapentake of Claro, W. riding
of York, 5 miles (S. E.) from Pateley-Bridge; containing 1138 inhabitants. The chapelry includes the hamlets of Summer-Bridge, Braisty-Wood, and New Laiths;
and comprises by measurement 5184 acres, of which
3984 are arable and meadow, 500 woodland, and 700
moor. The surface is elevated, and the soil a heavy marl
with rocky intermixtures. The village is situated on the
northern acclivity of the vale of the Nidd, and contains
several scattered houses, some flour-mills, and an extensive thread-mill; the surrounding scenery is boldly romantic, and at Brimham are masses of vast rocks spread
in the wildest profusion over a tract of nearly 40 acres,
the ancient resort of the Druids. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £103; patrons, the Rev.
John Swire, and Richard Henry Roundell, Esq. The
chapel, a neat structure in the later English style, was
built in 1830, at a cost of £400, raised partly by subscription and partly by a grant from the Incorporated
Society of £230. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans; and a free school is endowed with an estate
assigned by Robert Haxby.
Harty, Isle of (St. Thomas the Apostle)
HARTY, ISLE of (St. Thomas the Apostle), a
parish, in the union of Sheppy, hundred of Faversham,
Upper division of the lathe of Scray, E. division of
Kent, 11 miles (S. E. by E.) from Queenborough; containing 117 inhabitants. The isle comprises 2628 acres,
of which 500 are arable, producing large quantities of
wheat, oats, &c., and the rest chiefly rich pasture land,
whereon numerous flocks of sheep are fed; the soil is
principally a stiff clay. Some parts of the parish are
elevated, and command extensive views of the picturesque scenery between Chatham Hill and Herne Bay.
The East Swale is navigable on the south side of the
parish, which is bounded on the west by Cable creek,
and on the east by Muswell creek. The living is a perpetual curacy, with the vicarage of Leysdown, and valued
in the king's books at £20. 6. 0½.; patrons, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and W. A. Mann, Esq., the
former of whom has three presentations, and the latter
one. The church is a small edifice, with a pointed
turret.
Harvington (St. James)
HARVINGTON (St. James), a parish, in the union
of Evesham, Middle division of the hundred of Oswaldslow, Pershore and E. divisions of the county of
Worcester, 4 miles (N. by E.) from Evesham; containing 347 inhabitants. The parish is situated on the
borders of Warwickshire, and on the road between
Evesham and Alcester. It comprises by measurement
1278 acres, of which 315 are pasture, 15 woodland, and
the remainder arable; the soil is a gravelly loam, with,
in some parts, a subsoil of red marl. About half a mile
distant from the village is a wharf on the river Avon.
Sandstone is quarried for building. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £15. 6. 8.; net income, £296; patrons, the Dean and Chapter of Worcester. The tithes were commuted for land and money
payments in 1786; the land comprises 222 acres. The
church, an ancient edifice in the early English style,
stands on the west side of the village, and has been lately
thoroughly repaired.
Harwell (St. Matthew)
HARWELL (St. Matthew), a parish, in the union
of Wantage, hundred of Moreton, county of Berks,
7 miles (S. S. W.) from Abingdon; containing 857 inhabitants. The manor, which is now the property of
the Chetwode family, belonged in the 13th century to
Richard, Earl of Cornwall, King of the Romans. The
parish is on the road from Wantage to Wallingford,
and comprises 2482a. 2r. 39p., of which 2103 acres are
arable, 203 meadow, and the remainder homesteads and
roads; the lands were inclosed in 1802. The living is
a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £12. 4. 2.;
patron and impropriator, Sir J. Chetwode, Bart. The
great tithes have been commuted for £670, and the
vicarial for £170; a rent-charge of £117. 10. 8. is paid
to the rector of Brightwell, and the glebe contains 82
acres. In the church is a handsome monument to
Christopher Smith, lord mayor of London, who was a
native of the parish. In 1644, Robert Loder bequeathed
land now producing £50 per annum, for instruction;
and in 1772, the Rev. M. Eaton left £32 a year for apprenticing children; besides which there are several
bequests for the benefit of the poor generally.
Harwell
HARWELL, a hamlet, in the parish of Everton,
union of East Retford, North Clay division of the
wapentake of Bassetlaw, N. division of the county of
Nottingham; containing 169 inhabitants. It is situated within half a mile of the village of Everton.
Harwich
HARWICH, a sea-port,
borough, and market-town,
having separate jurisdiction,
locally in the hundred of
Tendring, union of Tendring, N. division of Essex,
42 miles (N. E. by E.) from
Chelmsford, and 72 (N. E.
by E.) from London; containing 3829 inhabitants.
The name of this place,
which is expressive of circumstances connected with
its early history, is by Camden derived from the Saxon
Harewic, signifying a station or harbour for soldiers;
and by the same authority it is supposed that, during
the time of the Romans, the counts of the Saxon shore
had a stronghold here, in which a force was stationed
to repel the Saxons and the Danes, who at that time
made frequent incursions. This opinion is in some
degree confirmed by the remains of a Roman camp and
tumulus in the vicinity of the town, near which coins
and fragments of tessellated pavements have been found
at various times; and by the discovery of teeth and
bones of large animals in the southern cliff, which are
by some antiquaries thought to be the remains of elephants brought into England by the Emperor Claudius.
After the departure of the Romans, Harwich, with the
district adjoining, was wrested from the Britons by
Erchenwine, or Erchwine, a Saxon chief, who held it
under Octa, grandson of Hengist. In 885, a considerable battle was fought near this port, between the
fleet of Alfred and sixteen Danish ships, which terminated
in the entire defeat and capture of the latter.
Seal and Arms.
In 1326, Prince Edward and his mother Queen Isabel,
landed here from Hainault, with a force of 2750 soldiers, and being joined by several of the nobility, and
headed by Thomas de Brotherton, Duke of Norfolk, then
lord of the manor and resident in the town, proceeded
to Bristol, to make war against the king. In 1338, the
same prince, now Edward III., embarked at the port
with a fleet of 500 sail, manned with archers and
slingers, on his first expedition against France; and in
the year following, the French, in retaliation, made an
unsuccessful attempt with eleven galleys to set fire to
the town. In 1340, the French navy, consisting of 400
ships, having been stationed near Sluys, in Flanders, to
intercept the king's passage to France, Edward assembled here his naval forces, and, sailing on Midsummereve, and forming with the northern squadron under the
command of Lord Morley, encountered the enemy, destroyed one-half of their ships, and killed or captured
nearly 30,000 of their men. Henry VIII. visited Harwich in 1543; and in 1553 preparations were made here
for the reception of Philip, King of Spain, on his arrival
to celebrate his nuptials with Mary, Queen of England.
Queen Elizabeth was sumptuously entertained in 1561 by
the corporation, who escorted her as far as the windmill
on her return. In some of the naval engagements between the English and the Dutch, in the reign of Charles
II., the contending parties approached so near to the
town as to render their operations visible to the spectators on the cliffs. When Harwich was fortified against
the Dutch in 1666, Charles II., having proceeded from
Newmarket to Landguard fort, sailed hither in his
yacht, accompanied by the Dukes of York, Monmouth,
Richmond, and Buckingham, and, with others of his
suite, attended divine service at the parish church; in
the evening the royal party embarked for Aldborough,
whence they proceeded by land to Ipswich. William
III., George I., and George II., visited Harwich on their
respective tours to the continent; and the Princess of
Mecklenburgh-Strelitz landed at the port on her arrival
in England to celebrate her nuptials with King George
III. In 1808, the Countess de Lille, consort of Louis
XVIII., the Duke and Duchess of Angoulême, the Count
and Countess de Damas, and others of the nobility of
France, seeking an asylum in this country, during the
sway of Napoleon Buonaparte, arrived here in the
Euryalus frigate, commanded by the Hon. Captain
Dundas. On the 16th of August, 1821, the remains of
Queen Caroline, consort of George IV., were brought to
the place, whence they were conveyed by the Glasgow
frigate to be interred at Brunswick.
Harwich
HARWICH is situated on a peninsular projection at the
north-eastern extremity of the Essex coast, bounded on
the east by the North Sea, and on the west and north
by the estuaries of the Stour and the Orwell, which,
uniting previously to their influx into the sea, form a
spacious and secure harbour, nearly three miles in
breadth. The town is in general well built, and consists
principally of three streets: an act of parliament was
obtained in 1819, for watching, paving, and lighting it,
and for supplying the inhabitants with water. An
assembly and a reading room were lately erected in
West-street, and a theatre was opened in 1813. The
foundations of a castle and fortifications, by which
the town was defended, might be seen previously to the
encroachment of the sea, at an extraordinary tide in
1784; but of its ancient walls and gates, with the exception of a very small portion serving to indicate their
former strength, the memorial is preserved only in the
record of tolls, levied in the reign of Edward III. for
their repair. Harwich is much resorted to during the
season for bathing; and hot and cold baths, arranged
with every accommodation, are supplied from a large
reservoir of sea water: there are also bathing-machines
near the jetty.
The harbour is protected on the east by the isthmus
on which the town is built, verging towards the north,
and on the west by a similar projection of the coast
towards the south. The entrance is defended by Landguard fort, erected on the eastern promontory of the
opposite coast; by a large martello tower; and by a
number of shoals near the fort, which so much contract
the passage as to admit only of one large vessel at a time,
rendering the harbour difficult of access, except to expert
navigators. Though of unequal depth, the harbour and
the bay together form a capacious roadstead for the
largest ships of war, 100 of which were assembled here
during the war with Holland, in the reign of Charles II.,
exclusively of their attendant vessels, and 300 or 400
sail of vessels carrying coal. To facilitate the entrance
into the harbour by night, two lighthouses were erected,
under letters-patent of Charles II.: in the eastern part
of the town, where they are situated, is a convenient
stone quay, and near it a delightful promenade called
the Esplanade. By means of these lights, vessels are
guided off a sand-bank named the "Andrews," forming
a bar across the entrance to the harbour from Landguard
fort into the Rolling grounds, from which the passage
leading into good anchorage is safe. The custom-house
establishment consists of a collector, comptroller, and
other officers. The trade of the port principally arises
from the quantities of stone obtained here, from which
cement is manufactured; about 100 small vessels and
boats being employed in and near the harbour in dredging for stone for making it. The North Sea fishery,
though it has materially declined, still affords employment to a considerable number of vessels; and a constant traffic is carried on, by means of steamers and
wherries, with Ipswich and Manningtree. The number
of vessels of above 50 tons' burthen is 61, and their
aggregate tonnage 5497. Ship-building is carried on to
a good extent, the dockyard here being provided with
launches, storehouses, and other requisites; several
third-rate and other vessels have been built, and a
patent-slip has been constructed, on which ships of very
large burthen may be hauled up for repair with great
facility. The manufacture of copperas from stones that
are found in abundance on the shore, was carried on in
the seventeenth century, about which time an attempt
was made to obtain potash from various sea-weeds.
The market-days are Tuesday and Friday; the fairs,
principally for toys, are on May 1st, and October 18th,
each for three days.
The borough was first incorporated by charter of
Edward II., which was renewed, with additional privileges, by James I., through the interest of Sir Edward
Coke, and confirmed by Charles II. By the act of the
5th and 6th of William IV., cap. 76, the corporation
now consists of a mayor, 4 aldermen, and 12 councillors;
the mayor and late mayor are justices of the peace, and
the total number of magistrates is 12. Harwich first
sent members to parliament in the 17th of Edward III.,
but discontinued till the 12th of James I., since which
time it has made regular returns. The right of election
was formerly vested in the mayor, aldermen, and capital
burgesses, 32 in number; but, by the act of the 2nd and
3rd of William IV., cap. 45, it was extended to the £10
householders of the borough, the limits of which contain
1461 acres. The mayor is returning officer. The
mayor and eleven of the corporation, until the passing
of the Municipal act, which abolished admiralty jurisdictions, possessed conjointly the powers of the court of
admiralty, with all its privileges and profits, without
accounting to the exchequer; and at the admiralty
sessions the mayor was usually preceded by a person
bearing a silver oar. A court of record used to be held
under the charter of Charles II., every Tuesday, for the
recovery of debts not exceeding £100; but from the
expensiveness of the proceedings, it has fallen into disuse. The powers of the county debt-court of Harwich,
established in 1847, extend over part of the registrationdistrict of Tendring. There are petty-sessions weekly.
A new guildhall was erected a few years since, of which
the lower part is used as a prison for the borough,
chiefly for the confinement of prisoners previously to
their committal to the county gaol, and the upper is
appropriated to the holding of the courts, and to the
transaction of public business. In the old guildhall, a
small brick building, were several buckets bearing the
arms and names of members of the corporation, among
which were those of Sir Edward Coke, attorney-general
in the time of James I.; Christopher Monk, Duke of
Albemarle; Colonel Sir Charles Lyttleton, governor of
Landguard fort in the reign of Charles II.; Sir Harbottle Grimstone, master of the rolls in the same reign;
the Duke of Schomberg; Lord Bolingbroke; and Edward, Earl of Oxford.
Harwich comprises the parishes of All Saints Dovor-Court, containing 813, and St. Nicholas, 3016 inhabitants. The living of Dovor-Court is a vicarage, with the
perpetual curacy of St. Nicholas' annexed, valued in the
king's books at £5. 0. 10., and in the patronage of the
Crown; net income, £221; impropriator, N. G. Garland, Esq. The church contains several ancient monuments, and was celebrated for a rood held in high veneration, for the destruction of which three men from
Dedham, who had stolen it from the church and burnt
it, were hanged in 1532. The church of St. Nicholas,
rebuilt in 1820, at an expense of £18,000, is a handsome
edifice in the later English style, with a lofty embattled
tower: in the chancel are three finely-painted windows,
presented by John Hopkins, Esq., and containing severally the arms of that gentleman, those of the town, and
of Dr. Howley, then Bishop of London; among the
monuments is a well-sculptured bust of Sir William
Clarke, secretary-at-war to Charles I. and II. There
are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, and
Wesleyans. A fine spring of water, which was much
esteemed for its medicinal properties, and possessed a
petrifying quality, is noticed in the Philosophical Transactions for the year 1669. Quantities of amber, and,
according to some, ambergris, are occasionally met with
on the shore; and in the vicinity of Landguard fort,
transparent pebbles are found, which were formerly set
in rings by the inhabitants.