Levenshulme
LEVENSHULME, a township, in the parish of
Manchester, union of Chorlton, hundred of Salford, S. division of the county of Lancaster, 4 miles
(S. E.) from Manchester; containing 1231 inhabitants.
This place, like other places in the neighbourhood of
Manchester, is engaged in the cotton manufacture. It
lies on the road from that city to Stockport; and has a
station of the Manchester and Birmingham railway,
situated midway between the Manchester and Stockport
stations. A school here is partially endowed.
Lever, Darcy, or Lever-Bridge
LEVER, DARCY, or Lever-Bridge, a township
and ecclesiastical parish, in the parish and union of
Bolton, hundred of Salford, S. division of Lancashire, 1½ mile (E. by S.) from Bolton; containing about
2700 inhabitants, of whom 1700 are in the township of
Darcy-Lever, which comprises 540 acres of land.
Darcy-Lever was one of the original seats of the widely
extended family of Lever, of whom was Robert Lever,
founder of the grammar school at Bolton. It partakes
of the local advantages of the district, and is a thriving
place. There are several collieries in operation. The
Lever-Bridge mills, established in 1790, and belonging
to Messrs. William Gray and Sons, employ 400 hands;
and the bleaching-works of Ridgway Bridson, Esq., are
also on an extensive scale. The river Irwell passes on
the south-west; over the valley of the Lever river here
is a magnificent viaduct for the Liverpool, Bolton, and
Bury railway, and an aqueduct of three arches for the
Manchester canal also crosses the river. The parish of
Lever-Bridge was constituted in 1844, under the provisions of the act 6th and 7th Victoria, cap. 37, and comprises the township of Darcy-Lever, and part of that of
Haulgh. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Crown and the Bishop of Manchester, alternately; income, £150, with a house. The church, dedicated to St. Stephen and all Martyrs, was built on a site
given by the Earl of Bradford, at a cost of £3000, of which
his lordship contributed £500. It is a cruciform structure of terra cotta, in the decorated English style, with
a tower, surmounted by a graceful spire with open
tracery; the interior is highly embellished, and has an
eastern and a western window of stained glass, the latter
with obituary memorials to the Rev. George Langshaw.
There is a place of worship for Wesleyans; and national
schools are arranged for 120 boys and 80 girls.
Lever, Great
LEVER, GREAT, a township, in the parish of Middleton, union of Bolton, hundred of Salford, S.
division of the county of Lancaster, 1½ mile (S.) from
Bolton; containing 657 inhabitants. This place was
long held by the family of Lever, but in the 6th year of
Edward IV., Sir Rauff Assheton, Knt., sued out a
"write of right of warde" against Roger Lever, for the
recovery of the manor, and obtained judgment against
him at the assizes of Lancaster. Lever, however, with
a number of dependants of his name, and a large
concourse of persons, many of whom had been outlawed,
riotously broke into Lancaster Castle, and carried off the
record of recovery. Sir Rauff complaining of this outrage to the two houses of parliament, they ordained that
the copy of the record which was annexed to his petition
should be of the same force and efficacy as the original;
and the justices thereupon ordered execution to issue,
and reinstated him in the possession, which, notwithstanding, was not undisturbed until some time after. In
the reign of James I., Sir Ralph Assheton held the property, which, in 1629, he sold to Dr. Bridgeman, Bishop
of Chester, from whom it has descended to the present
noble possessor, the Earl of Bradford. Lever Hall, an
ancient mansion, was the residence of Bishop Bridgeman; and an ancient chapel contiguous to it was the
place of worship for his family and the inhabitants of
the immediate neighbourhood. The township is bounded
on the east by the Irwell, and comprises 770 acres of
land; it is entirely insulated from the rest of the parish,
and is distant west ten miles from the town of Middleton. The Bolton and Manchester railway, and the road
between those places, pass through. Owing to its
proximity to Bolton there are a number of elegant
modern mansions, among which is Bradford House. A
church was completed in 1848, on an eligible piece of
ground presented by the earl, who contributed £500
towards the erection, and £1000 towards the endowment; among other liberal subscribers to the building
were the Earl of Ellesmere, Messrs. Heys and Hamer,
and T. Bonsor Crompton, Esq.: it is a substantial
edifice in the early English style, with accommodation
for about 400 persons. The living is a perpetual curacy,
in the patronage of the Earl of Bradford. His lordship
allows the old chapel at Lever Hall to be used as a
Sunday-school.
Lever, Little
LEVER, LITTLE, a chapelry, in the parish and
union of Bolton, hundred of Salford, S. division of
the county of Lancaster, 3¼ miles (E. S. E.) from
Bolton; containing 2580 inhabitants. This place was
comprehended in the extensive barony of Manchester.
Albert Gredle, styled Juvenis, gave to Alexander FitzOmoch lands in "Parva Lofre," which were held by his
heirs in the reign of John. Little Lever Hall, a wood
and plaster building, destroyed about 75 years ago, was
a seat of the Lever family in 1567; recently the Andrews
family, of Rivington, became possessed of the Lever estate
in the township. The Heywoods, of whom was Oliver
Heywood, the celebrated nonconformist divine, were long
resident here. Little Lever comprises 1020 acres,
mostly pasture; the soil is of a clayey quality, and wet,
and the scenery varied by dells and dingles. The population is chiefly employed in four cotton-mills, in two
paper-mills, some bleach-works, terra-cotta works, a
rope-walk, and in numerous collieries. The Bolton and
Manchester canal passes through. The living is a perpetual curacy; patron, the Vicar of Bolton; net income, £150, with a house. The chapel was built in
1790, and is dedicated to St. Matthew. There are, a
place of worship for Wesleyans; and a national school,
rebuilt in the Norman style in 1845.
Leverington (St. Leonard and St. John the Baptist)
LEVERINGTON (St. Leonard and St. John the
Baptist), a parish, in the union and hundred of Wisbech, Isle of Ely, county of Cambridge, 2 miles
(N. W.) from the town of Wisbech; containing, with the
chapelry of Parson-Drove, 1954 inhabitants. It comprises 7871 acres. The living is a rectory, valued in the
king's books at £25. 0. 7½.; net income, £2099; patron,
the Bishop of Ely. A school is endowed with £40 per
annum from the town lands. An act for inclosing waste
was passed in 1841.
Leversdale
LEVERSDALE, a township, in the parish of Irthington, union of Brampton, Eskdale ward, E.
division of Cumberland, 7 miles (N. E.) from the city
of Carlisle; containing 438 inhabitants. A school is
partly supported by endowment.
Leverton, North and South (St. Helen)
LEVERTON, NORTH and SOUTH (St. Helen),
a parish, in the union of Boston, wapentake of Skirbeck, parts of Holland, county of Lincoln, 5¾ miles
(N. E. by E.) from Boston; containing 687 inhabitants.
The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's
books at £16. 6., and in the alternate patronage of the
Crown, and A. Booth, Esq.; net income, £759: the
tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in
1810. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.
Sixty-one acres and a half of land in the parish produce
£100 per annum, for distribution among the poor; but
by whom they were given is not known.
Leverton
LEVERTON, a hamlet, in the parish of ChiltonFoliatt, union of Hungerford, hundred of Kinwardstone, Marlborough and Ramsbury, and S. divisions of
Wilts, though locally in the hundred of KintburyEagle, county of Berks, 1 mile (N.) from Hungerford;
containing 30 inhabitants.
Leverton, North (St. Martin)
LEVERTON, NORTH (St. Martin), a parish, in
the union of East Retford, North-Clay division of
the wapentake of Bassetlaw, N. division of the county
of Nottingham, 5¼ miles (E. by N.) from East Retford;
containing 344 inhabitants. The parish is situated on
the river Trent, which here separates the counties of
Nottingham and Lincoln; and comprises 1513a. 1r. 12p.,
whereof 881 acres are arable, 600 meadow and pasture,
and 32 wood. Its surface is level, and the soil chiefly
clay, with some rich meadow land on the margin of the
river. The living is a discharged vicarage, in the patronage of the Bishop of Ripon, valued in the king's books
at £5; net income, £200. The tithes were commuted
for land in 1795; the glebe comprises 80 acres. The
church is an ancient structure, with a square embattled
tower. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.
Leverton, South (All Saints)
LEVERTON, SOUTH (All Saints), a parish, in
the union of East Retford, North-Clay division of
the wapentake of Bassetlaw, N. division of the county
of Nottingham, 5¼ miles (E.) from East Retford; containing, with the chapelry of Cottam, 451 inhabitants,
of whom 362 are in the township of South Leverton.
This parish, which is situated on the river Trent, comprises by computation 2500 acres. The soil is chiefly
clay, and towards the river a loam alternated with sand;
the surface on the western side rises gradually to a considerable eminence, commanding some fine views over
Lincolnshire. The living is a vicarage, valued in the
king's books at £6. 13. 4.; net income, £134; patron,
the Bishop of Lincoln; impropriator, G. V. Vernon, Esq.
The tithes were commuted for land in 1795, when 57
acres were allotted to the vicar, in addition to an old
glebe of 10 acres. The church is an ancient structure.
At Cottam is a chapel of ease. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans. A grammar school was founded in
1691, by John Simpson, and endowed with a rent-charge
of £20 per annum.
Levesdon, or Leavesden.—See Cashio.
LEVESDON, or Leavesden.—See Cashio.
Levington, in Eskdale ward, Eastern division of the county of Cumberland.—See Linton, West.
LEVINGTON, in Eskdale ward, Eastern division
of the county of Cumberland.—See Linton, West.
Levington (St. Peter)
LEVINGTON (St. Peter), a parish, in the union
of Woodbridge, hundred of Colneis, E. division of
Suffolk, 5½ miles (S. E.) from Ipswich; containing 214
inhabitants. This parish, which is bounded on the
south by the navigable river Orwell, comprises 1033a.
2r. 4p. Besides the village, there is a small hamlet
called Stratton-Hall. The living is a discharged rectory,
united to that of Nacton, and valued in the king's books
at £6. 1. 8. Almshouses for six persons were founded
and endowed agreeably with the will of Sir Robert
Hitcham, Knt., attorney-general to James I., and a native
of the parish.
Levisham
LEVISHAM, a parish, in the union and lythe of
Pickering, N. riding of York, 6 miles (N. N. E.) from
Pickering; containing 168 inhabitants. The surface is
a remarkably hilly moorland. The soil is of much
variety, some of it very good; it is for the most part
red and sandy, with a little clay in the romantic valley
of Newton-Dale, situated to the north-west. The substratum is limestone, of which, and of freestone, some
of excellent quality is worked for building and for
lime. The Whitby and Pickering railway runs for three
miles through the parish, and at a distance of about
three-quarters of a mile from the village. There is a
flour-mill. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in
the king's books at £7. 8. 1½.; net income, £120;
patron, incumbent, and impropriator, the Rev. Robert
Skelton, who is also lord of the manor, and owner of
most of the soil. The church, a neat edifice in a secluded
part of the parish, was built in 1802. St. John's well,
here, is a sulphureous spring of petrifying power, reputed
to be good in scorbutic complaints.
Levns, county of Westmorland.—See Levens.
LEVNS, county of Westmorland.—See Levens.
Lew
LEW, a hamlet, in the parish and union of Witney,
hundred of Bampton, county of Oxford, 3¾ miles
(S. W.) from Witney; containing 195 inhabitants. A
chapel of ease has been erected.
Lew, North (St. Thomas à Becket)
LEW, NORTH (St. Thomas à Becket), a parish,
in the union of Oakhampton, hundred of Black
Torrington, Black Torrington and Shebbear, and N.
divisions of Devon, 4 miles (S. W. by S.) from Hatherleigh; containing 1051 inhabitants. The parish comprises 5306 acres, of which about 2000 are common or
waste. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's
books at £27. 8. 9., and in the patronage of the Crown;
net income, £342. At Redcliffe or Rutleigh, within the
parish, are the remains of an ancient chapel; and near
it a quarry of excellent freestone.
Lewannick (St. Martin)
LEWANNICK (St. Martin), a parish, in the union
of Launceston, N. division of the hundred of East,
E. division of Cornwall, 5 miles (S. W. by W.) from
Launceston; containing 733 inhabitants. This parish,
which is bounded on the north and north-east by the
river Inny, comprises by measurement 4000 acres, whereof
176 are common or waste; the surface is hilly, and the
scenery in many parts interesting. The soil is various,
in some places a rich loam, and in others lighter; a considerable portion is in pasture, and large herds of cattle,
chiefly of the North Devon breed, are reared. The substratum abounds with stone of superior quality for building and other uses: at Pollyfont is a quarry of remarkably fine freestone, which is also used for mantel-pieces,
and, when polished, is of a rich green colour with black
veins; there is also a quarry of exceedingly hard slate
in the parish. The living is a vicarage, valued in the
king's books at £7. 18. 9., and in the patronage of the
Crown: the impropriate tithes, belonging to Miss
Hockin, have been commuted for £225, and the vicarial
for £185; the glebe is valued at £60 per annum. The
church is a handsome structure in the later English
style, with a lofty embattled tower crowned by pinnacles.
There are places of worship for Baptists, Bryanites, Independents, and Wesleyans.
Lewes
LEWES, a borough and
market-town, and the head
of a union, in the rape of
Lewes, E. division of Sussex, 7 miles (N. E. by E.)
from Brighton, 38 (E. by N.)
from Chichester, and 50 (S.
by E.) from London; containing 9199 inhabitants.
This place, which occupies
the eastern extremity of the
South Downs, is supposed
to have derived its name
from the Saxon Leswa, signifying pasture; and by some
antiquaries is thought to have been the Mutuantorris or
Mantuantorris of the Romans; an opinion resting more
on the presumed necessity for an intermediate station
between Anderida Portus, in Pevensey, and Ad Derimum,
near Bignor, than upon any conclusive evidence. Numerous remains of Roman antiquity have at various times
been discovered, consisting of rings, pateræ, urns, fibulæ,
and coins forming a regular series from the reign of
Tiberius to the time of Constantine; and at the village
of Glynde, about three miles from the town, the vestiges
of a Roman ford may still be traced. During the time
of the Saxons, from its elevated and commanding situation, the spot was regarded by the inhabitants of the adjacent country as a place of refuge from the frequent incursions of the Danes; and at a very early period it
formed a part of the royal demesnes. A castle was
built about the year 890, by Alfred; and in the reign of
Athelstan, the town, which was strongly fortified, had
attained to such consideration, that two of the royal
mints were established here by order of that monarch.
Seal and Arms.
From this period, it steadily advanced in importance.
In the reign of Edward the Confessor, it obtained the
privileges of a borough, and had a merchants' guild, and
it continued to increase in prosperity till the Conquest,
when it was granted by William to William de Warren,
who had married his daughter Gundreda, and who rebuilt
the castle as his chief residence. This splendid structure occupied an area 790 feet in length and 396 in
width, inclosed with lofty walls, of which those on the
north side formed part of the fortifications of the town;
it had within the area two strong keeps raised on artificial mounds, of which the western has been preserved,
and is of quadrangular form, with hexagonal turrets at
the angles. The principal gateway, affording an entrance
from the high street, is also still remaining, and displays features both of Norman and of later styles of
architecture. A Cluniac priory was founded at Southover, adjoining Lewes, in 1078, by William de Warren
and his wife. This became the principal establishment
of the order in England, and the prior was high chamberlain of the abbot of Cluny, and his vicar-general in
England, Scotland, and Ireland; the establishment was
dedicated to St. Pancras, and flourished till the Dissolution, when its revenue was valued at £1091. 9. 6.
There are but trifling remains of the structure, the chief
portions having been removed to make room for the
erection of the street and crescent to which it has transferred its name. In forming the Brighton and Hastings
railway, which passes through the ruins, several interesting relics were dug up, and among them the coffins of
the founders. An hospital, dedicated to St. Nicholas,
was erected in 1085, by the same founders, who endowed it
for 13 poor brethren and sisters; a portion of the wall only
is remaining. In 1264, a sanguinary battle took place
here, between Henry III., assisted by his brother Richard,
Earl of Cornwall, and the confederated barons under
Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester; in which the
royal forces were at first victorious. Prince Edward, the
king's son, having broken the enemy's line, threw them
into disorder; but confident of victory, pursuing the
fugitives too far, the forces of the barons rallied, and.
making a fresh charge, entirely defeated the royal army;
took the king and the Earl of Cornwall prisoners; and
compelled the king to sue for peace, and to deliver his
son as a hostage for the fulfilment of the conditions,
which were concluded on an eminence adjoining the town,
distinguished by the appellation of the "Mise of Lewes."
Not less than 5000 men are said to have fallen in the
battle, most of whom were buried on the spot. Since
this period, few events of importance have occurred.
Lewes had the honour of a visit, in 1830, from His
Majesty William IV. and his queen, Adelaide, who,
attended by the Duke of Cambridge and the Princess
Augusta, were entertained at the Friars, the residence of
Nehemiah Wimble, Esq.
The town is principally situated on an acclivity, rising
from the western bank of the river Ouse, over which is
a stone bridge of one arch, erected in 1727 to replace a
bridge of wood that had been destroyed by a flood, and
widened in 1829 by the formation of a footpath on each
side. This bridge forms a communication with the vill
of Cliffe, so called from its position under an impending
cliff of chalk, and of which the site is supposed to have
been anciently covered by the sea. The streets are
regular and well built, containing many handsome
houses; the town is paved, lighted with gas, and watched
under a local act obtained in 1806, and supplied with
water under an act passed in 1833. About the year
1821, considerable improvement was made in the White
Hill road, which passes through a valley near the town,
by lowering the hill on each side, and filling up the valley
with the materials, thus forming a causeway between 30
and 40 feet high; and in 1828, the principal street in the
vill of Cliffe was widened and greatly improved, under an
act for this part. On the south side of the town is
Southover; and the environs extend to the South Downs,
a chain of chalk hills, rising like an amphitheatre to the
mean elevation of about 500 feet, and covered with the
rich herbage which gives to the South Down mutton its
admired flavour. Assemblies take place occasionally in
the town-hall, and races are held on Easter-Monday, and
in the month of August; the former, called Hunter's races,
were established in 1829. The race-course, formerly one
of the finest four-mile courses in the kingdom, has been
reduced in extent to 2¾ miles; it has a commodious
stand, erected in 1772. A book society established in
1785 now possesses a library of several thousand volumes,
many of them scarce works; the society consists of 100
members, admitted by ballot, on paying £6. 6. towards
the general fund, and an annual subscription of £1. 5.
A mechanics' institute was founded in 1825, and the
building formerly the theatre has been appropriated to
its use. The trade consists principally in grain and malt;
there are several large breweries and iron-foundries, a
paper manufactory, and a yard for building ships. Railway communication was opened with Brighton and with
Hastings in 1846; and in 1847 a line was completed to
near Keymer, on the London and Brighton railway, thus
diminishing the distance to London by railway by about
eight miles. A line was subsequently opened to Newhaven. The river is navigable from a distance of some
miles above the town to the sea, and greatly facilitates
the trade of the district. A market for corn is held
every Tuesday, and for live-stock every Tuesday fortnight: the present market-house for provisions was completed in 1793. There are fairs on May 6th for cattle
and pedlery, July 26th for wool, Whit-Tuesday for cattle,
and September 21st and October 2nd for sheep, the
number of which brought for sale at each of these two
fairs exceeds 50,000. A show of fat-cattle takes place
about Christmas.
Lewes is a borough by prescription, and was formerly a county of itself; the government is vested in
two constables and two headboroughs, who are chosen
annually, by a jury of burgesses, at the court leet of the
lord of the manor. The town is within the jurisdiction
of the county magistrates, who hold petty-sessions every
Tuesday. The spring and summer assizes for the county
are held here, and also the general quarter-sessions for
the eastern division of the county, which comprises the
rapes of Lewes, Pevensey, and Hastings; there are likewise intermediate sessions for the trial of prisoners.
The powers of the county debt-court of Lewes, established in 1847, extend over the registration-districts
of Eastbourne and Hailsham, and part of those of Lewes
and Uckfield. The borough sends two members to parliament; the parliamentary boundaries comprise an area
of 738 acres, and the constables are the returning officers.
In 1812, a handsome assize-hall was erected, the expense
of which, including the purchase of the ground and other
property, was £15,500: it has a large entrance hall,
with record-rooms, a room for the petty-sessions, two
courts of judicature, and a room for the judges and magistrates; above these are, a spacious and elegant apartment for the grand jury, a council chamber, &c. In
1793, a house of correction for the eastern district was
built, on Mr. Howard's plan; a southern wing was added
to it in 1817, and very considerable additions have been
since made, to adapt it to the improved system of prison
discipline. The town is the place of election for the
eastern division of the county.
The borough anciently comprised ten or eleven parishes, but these have been reduced to four. The parishes
of St. Andrew, St. Mary in Foro, St. Martin, and St.
Michael, were united in the 37th of Henry VIII., and
now form the parish of St. Michael, containing 988 inhabitants. The living is a discharged rectory, with the
rectory of St. Andrew's annexed, valued together in the
king's books at £17. 5. 10., and in the patronage of the
Crown; net income, £116. The church, which was
partially rebuilt and modernised in 1755, retains some
good portions of later English architecture; there is a
splendid mural monument to the memory of Sir Nicholas
Pelham, Knt., and Anne his wife. The parish of St.
Anne consists of the united parishes of St. Peter Within
and St. Mary West-out, the latter being without the ancient borough, and contains 777 inhabitants. The living
is a discharged rectory, valued for both in the king's
books at £19. 13. 6½., and in the patronage of the
Crown: certain impropriate tithes have been commuted
for £193. 10., and the incumbent's for £130. The
church, formerly that of St. Mary's, is partly Norman,
and partly of the early English architecture; it contains
a curious font: the boundary line of the ancient borough
passes through the chancel. The parish of St. John under
the Castle is of very considerable extent, but a small part
of it only is within the borough, the remainder lying in
the hundred of Swanborough; it contains 2502 inhabitants. The living is a rectory, to which that of St. Mary
Magdalene's was annexed in 1539, valued in the king's
books at £3. 11. 3.; patron and incumbent, the Rev.
Peter G. Crofts. The tithes have been commuted for
£250, and the glebe consists of three acres. The church
was of considerable antiquity, but, being much too small,
was taken down and rebuilt in 1840, chiefly by subscription, aided by grants from the Incorporated Society and
the Chichester Diocesan Association; it is a handsome
structure in the later English style, and contains 1013
sittings, of which 602 are free. On the outer wall of
the new church have been placed the remains of a monument formerly in the churchyard, assigned to Magnus,
son of Harold II., with an inscription mostly in AngloSaxon characters. The parish of All Saints is a union of
the parishes of the Holy Trinity, St. Peter the Less, and
St. Nicholas, and contains 2123 inhabitants. The living
is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at
£7; net income, £206; patron, Charles Goring, Esq.
The church, with the exception of the tower, was rebuilt
in the year 1805. The precinct of the castle is extraparochial, and is not rateable within the borough, or
subject to any ecclesiastical jurisdiction. There are places
of worship in the town for Baptists, the Society of Friends,
Independents, Wesleyans, and Unitarians.
The parishes of St. Thomas in the Cliffe, with 1545
inhabitants, and St. John Southover, with 1229 inhabitants, although without the limits of the ancient borough,
may be considered as forming part of the town of Lewes;
they are included in the present parliamentary boundary, as is also part of the parish of South Malling. A
constable and two headboroughs for the hundred of
Ringmer, of which the Cliffe is the most populous part,
are chosen annually at the court leet of Earl De la
Warr. The living of St. Thomas is a discharged rectory,
in the patronage of the Archbishop of Canterbury, valued
in the king's books at £5. 12. 6.; net income, £130.
The church, dedicated to St. Thomas à Becket, contains
a fine altar-piece, and an organ that was formerly in the
chapel of the Duke of Chandos, at Canons. There are
places of worship for Independents and Huntingtonians,
the founder of which latter sect, William Huntington,
was interred here. Southover parish comprises 550
acres, of which 400 are meadow, 122 arable, and 28
acres houses and gardens. The living is a discharged
rectory, valued in the king's books at £6. 12., and in
the patronage of the Crown; net income, £30, with a
glebe-house and 4 acres of land. The church, dedicated
to St. John the Baptist, is chiefly in the decorated English style, and contains a tombstone to Gundreda, wife
to the first earl de Warren; this relic, formerly in the
priory, is of black marble, finely sculptured with foliage,
and bears around its edge a laudatory inscription in
Norman characters. In ancient records Southover is
called a borough, and it still has its distinct high constable and other officers. The manor was an appendage
of the monastery, on the Dissolution of which it was
given to Lord Essex: after his attainder it reverted to
the Crown, and was granted by Henry VIII. to his
divorced queen, Anne of Cleves, who, according to tradition, took up her residence here, in a very ancient
building situated on the south side of the street.
The free grammar school was founded originally at
Southover, in 1512, by Agnes Morley, who endowed it
with a rent-charge of £20, together with a house and
garden, for a master and an usher; and this endowment
was subsequently increased by various legacies, particularly that of Mrs. Mary Jenkins, who in 1709 left a
house, gardens, and appurtenances for the master, and
the sum of £1533. Belonging to the borough is an
exhibition to either university for four years, left by the
Rev. George Steere, "to a poor scholar, the son of
parents residing in or near Lewes;" the annual value is
about £35. Evelyn, author of Sylva, and John Pell, the
celebrated mathematician, were educated here. The
poor-law union of Lewes is limited to the six parishes
above enumerated, with the addition of South Malling,
and contains a population of 9552. There are many
interesting antiquities in and near Lewes, besides those
already noticed. The Castra, or earthworks, on the
summit of the Downs, are still remaining; and tumuli
are scattered in various parts, in which have been found
skeletons, urns, ashes, amber beads, and occasionally
warlike instruments. Part is yet standing of the exterior
walls of an hospital dedicated to St. James, now converted into a barn. Here was also a monastery of Grey
friars, the memorial of which is preserved in the name of
a modern mansion on the site, called the Friars. The
town walls were erected during the residence of the earls
of Warren and Surrey, and may still be accurately
traced; a part of the western wall is standing, and vestiges of other parts are visible. In Southover is an
ancient mansion, erected in 1572 with part of the materials of the priory, and in which are preserved three of
the beautifully inlaid doors belonging to that establishment. Many varieties of vegetable and animal organic
remains have been found in the chalk formation of the
vicinity. Among the natives of Lewes may be mentioned
Richard Russell, Esq., M.D. and F.R.S., who, by his
writings on the efficacy of the sea water at Brighton,
laid the foundation of the prosperity of that fashionable
bathing-place.
Lewisham (St. Mary)
LEWISHAM (St. Mary), a parish, and the head of
a union, in the hundred of Blackheath, lathe of Sutton-at-Hone, W. division of Kent, 6½ miles (S. E.)
from London, on the road to Tonbridge; containing
12,276 inhabitants. The name is a slight corruption of
the Saxon Lewesham, "the dwelling among the meadows,"
anciently written Levesham. The parish, including the
greater portion of the hamlet of Blackheath, the whole
of Sydenham, Forest Hill, Brockley, Loampit Hill, and
Loat's Pit, comprises 5490 acres, of which 100 are in
wood; the soil is extremely rich, and the surface pleasingly varied. Its convenient distance from the metropolis, and its beautiful situation, have rendered Lewisham
a favourite place of residence; and the neighbourhood
is thickly studded with gentlemen's seats, many of which
are splendid mansions, and with numerous handsome
villas, the country residences of opulent merchants. The
village extends about a mile along the high road; the
inhabitants are supplied with water from a stream rising
at the upper end of the village, and flowing through it.
The county magistrates hold a weekly session on
Monday.
The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at
£23. 19. 2.; net income, £946; patron, the Earl of
Dartmouth. The church, rebuilt in 1774, is a handsome edifice, with a square tower at the west end; a
portico on the south side is supported on four Corinthian
columns: the altar is placed in a circular recess. The
building sustained considerable injury from a fire, but
has been restored. On that part of Blackheath which
is in the parish are two episcopal chapels, viz. Dartmouth
chapel, partly rebuilt and enlarged by Lord Dartmouth
in 1839, and Dartmouth-Place chapel; the former in
the patronage of the Vicar of Lewisham, and the latter in
that of his Lordship. There are also episcopal chapels
at Southend and Sydenham; and a district church, dedicated to St. Bartholomew, at Sydenham. The Independents and Wesleyans have places of worship. The
Rev. Abraham Colfe, in 1656, devised certain estates in
trust to the Leathersellers' Company, for the foundation
of two schools; one for the classical instruction of 31
sons of the laity in the hundred, and one son of each incumbent in this and the hundred of Chiselhurst; the
other for the education of 31 boys of Lewisham. A
school for girls was instituted in 1699, to which Dr.
George Stanhope, Dean of Canterbury, bequeathed £150,
and Mrs. Stanhope £50. Dr. Stanhope, who distinguished himself as a theological writer, was presented to
the vicarage in 1689, and was buried here in 1728. The
poor-law union comprises 7 parishes or places, and contains a population of 23,013. Here was a Benedictine
priory, a cell to the abbey of St. Peter, at Ghent; it was
suppressed in the time of Henry V., and the site granted
to the convent of Sheen. Lewisham confers the inferior
title of Viscount on the Earl of Dartmouth.