Ninebanks

NINEBANKS, a chapelry, in the parish of Allendale, union of Hexham, S. division of Tindale ward and of Northumberland, 10 miles (S. W.) from Haydon-Bridge. This place was the property of the Auckland family, of whose mansion a tower is still remaining. On several parts of the tower are armorial bearings; and from the inverted position of these arms, it would appear that the building, itself ancient, was erected with the materials of one still older. The chapelry comprises by measurement 4484 acres: the substratum abounds in mineral produce, and there are three lead-mines, but not at present in operation; good stone is quarried for common building purposes, and for the roads. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £124; patron, the Incumbent of Allendale; impropriators, George Lee, Isaac Crawhall, and John Wilson, Esqrs. The chapel was rebuilt, and the cemetery enlarged, about 1816. The Wesleyans have a place of worship. There is a mineral spring.

Ninehead, or Nynehead (All Saints)

NINEHEAD, or Nynehead (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Wellington, hundred of Taunton and Taunton-Dean, W. division of Somerset, 1½ mile (N. by W.) from Wellington; containing 349 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 1200 acres of rich land, forming part of the vale of Taunton; the surface is undulated. The river Tone, which flows through the parish, formerly inundated the lands; but in 1815 the channel was widened and improved at the expense of W. A. Sanford, Esq. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £8. 7. 11., and in the patronage of the Crown: the impropriate tithes have been commuted for £200, and the vicarial for £184.

Ninfield (St. Mary)

NINFIELD (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Hailsham, hundred of Ninfield, rape of Hastings, E. division of Sussex, 5¼ miles (S. W. by W.) from Battle; containing 563 inhabitants. It comprises 2554a. 1r. 5p., of which 1322 acres are arable, 306 pasture, 180 meadow, 490 woodland, and 61 in hop plantations; the surface is varied, and the scenery beautifully picturesque. The village is situated on the road from Lewes to Battle and Hastings, and from its elevated site commands extensive views. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £8, and in the gift of the Dean and Chapter of Canterbury: the tithes have been commuted for £426. The church is a neat structure in the early English style. There are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans.

Niton (St. John the Baptist)

NITON (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in the liberty of East Medina, Isle of Wight division of the county of Southampton, 8 miles (S.) from Newport; containing 613 inhabitants. The parish occupies a delightful situation near St. Catherine's point, the southern extremity of the Isle of Wight, and is bounded by the English Channel, of which the village, being in one of the most hilly districts of the island, commands some fine views. Towards the north runs the road to Newport and the centre of the island; towards the northwest, that to the western parts; and towards the northeast, that to the eastern division. Charles II., after enduring a severe storm, landed at Puckaster, in the parish, on the 1st of July, 1675. The living is a rectory, with the vicarage of Godshill and the perpetual curacy of Whitwell united, valued in the king's books at £20. 7. 1.; net income, £600; patrons, the Provost and Fellows of Queen's College, Oxford. The tithes of Niton have been commuted for £368, and the glebe comprises 22 acres. The church is a very ancient structure; on the south side, without the wall of the cemetery, was formerly a cross raised upon steps, with a basin on the top, supposed to have been a font. There is a place of worship for Baptists; also a school endowed with £270, of which £20 were a donation from the Duchess of Kent.

Nixons

NIXONS, a township, in the parish of Bewcastle, union of Longtown, Eskdale ward, E. division of the county of Cumberland, 13 miles (E. N. E.) from Longtown; containing 217 inhabitants. Several trout streams bound and intersect the township.

Nobold

NOBOLD, a township, in the parish of BraceMeole, union of Shrewsbury, N. division of the county of Salop; containing 187 inhabitants.

Nockholt

NOCKHOLT, a parish, in the union of Bromley, hundred of Ruxley, lathe of Sutton-at-Hone, W. division of Kent, 5 miles (N. W.) from Seven-Oaks; containing 539 inhabitants. It consists of 1683 acres, of which 516 are in wood. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £102; patron, the impropriator of Orpington: the tithes have been commuted for £250, and the glebe comprises 3 acres. The church is a neat structure. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Nocton (St. Peter)

NOCTON (St. Peter), a parish, in the Second division of the wapentake of Langoe, parts of Kesteven, union and county of Lincoln, 7 miles (S. E.) from Lincoln; containing 553 inhabitants. The parish comprises by computation 5000 acres, of which 3000 are arable, and the remainder pasture, with a considerable portion of woodland. The soil is a rich clay, producing excellent wheat, oats, and barley; the scenery is diversified, and embellished with timber of fine growth. Nocton Park is the elegant seat of the Earl of Ripon: the first stone of the present mansion was laid by his lordship's eldest son, Viscount Goderich, October 26th, 1841. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £7. 17. 11.; net income, £560; patron, the Lord Chancellor. The tithes were commuted for land in 1776. The church was erected in 1774, by the Earl of Buckinghamshire, and has been lately repaired by the Earl of Ripon. A priory of Black canons, in honour of St. Mary Magdalene, was founded here in the reign of Stephen, by Robert D'Arcy; at the Dissolution it had a revenue of £52. 19. 2.

Noctorum

NOCTORUM, a township, in the parish of Woodchurch, union, and Lower division of the hundred, of Wirrall, S. division of the county of Chester, 1½ mile (W. by S.) from Birkenhead; containing 30 inhabitants. From the Domesday survey, this manor, then called "Chenotrie," appears to have been granted to the barons of Nantwich, by whom, shortly afterwards, it was alienated to Richard de Praers. It was given by him, under the name of "Knocktirum," to the monks of St. Werburgh, who held it till the Dissolution, when it was appropriated to the new diocese of Chester; and falling, with the principal possessions of the Dean and Chapter, into the hands of the Cottons, it was finally surrendered to the crown, and granted, 35th of Elizabeth, to the Harpur family. The estate was subsequently purchased by the Crosses, of Lancashire, who sold it to the Chauntrells; and from them it passed, also by purchase, to Dr. Wilson, prebendary of Westminster, under whose will it was acquired by the Pattens. In 1844 John Wilson Patten, Esq., sold the property to William Vaudrey, Esq., of Liverpool, for £37,000. The township comprises 327 acres, of a clayey soil, and is farmed to one person.

Noke (St. Giles)

NOKE (St. Giles), a parish, in the union of Bicester, hundred of Ploughley, county of Oxford, 5¼ miles (N. N. E.) from the city of Oxford; containing 153 inhabitants, and comprising 791a. 3r. 25p. of land. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £7. 19. 7.; net income, £90; patron, the Duke of Marlborough.

No-Man's-Heath

NO-MAN'S-HEATH, an extra-parochial liberty, in the counties of Derby, Leicester, Stafford, and Warwick; containing 30 inhabitants.

No-Man's-Land

NO-MAN'S-LAND, an extra-parochial liberty, in the union of Alderbury, hundred of Downton, Salisbury and Amesbury, and S. divisions of Wilts; containing 149 inhabitants, and comprising 18 acres.

Nonington (St. Mary)

NONINGTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Eastry, hundred of Wingham, lathe of St. Augustine, E. division of Kent, 4¼ miles (S. by E.) from Wingham; containing 860 inhabitants. It comprises 4092 acres. St. Alban's Court, here, so called from having been a cell attached to the abbey of St. Alban's, Hertfordshire, contains a valuable collection of paintings: the site of a chapel is traceable in the grounds. The living is a perpetual curacy, with that of Womenswould annexed; patron and appropriator, the Archbishop of Canterbury: the appropriate tithes have been commuted for £600, the perpetual curate's for £250, and those of an impropriator for £170. The church is principally in the early English style.

Nook, The

NOOK, THE, a township, in the parish and union of Bellingham, N. W. division of Tindale ward, S. division of Northumberland, ½ a mile (E.) from Bellingham; containing 129 inhabitants. It is bounded on the south by the North Tyne river, and on the east by the river Rede, on which the village is situated.

Norbreck, with Bispham.—See Bispham.

NORBRECK, with Bispham.—See Bispham.

Norbury

NORBURY, a chapelry, in the parish and union of Stockport, hundred of Macclesfield, N. division of the county of Chester, 3½ miles (S. S. E.) from Stockport; containing 808 inhabitants, and comprising by admeasurement 1220 acres, chiefly a clayey soil. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £110; patron, Thomas Legh, Esq. The chapel, dedicated to St. Thomas, and in the later English style, with a tower, was erected in 1834, at an expense of £3025, raised by subscription, aided by grant from the Commissioners for building Churches.

Norbury

NORBURY, a township, in the parish of Marbury, union and hundred of Nantwich, S. division of the county of Chester, 4¼ miles (N. by E.) from Whitchurch; containing 401 inhabitants. The manor was granted by Henry VIII., in 1543, to Sir Richard Gresham, and appears to have been almost immediately conveyed to Hugh Cholmondeley, who was knighted in 1544. Sir Hugh resided at Althurst, a neighbouring manor, also his property, in that year; and the Hall there, continued long to be one of the seats of the Cholmondeley family. The manors of Norbury and Althurst have descended to the present Marquess of Cholmondeley. In the township of Norbury are 1398 acres, of a light sandy soil: a branch of the Chester canal passes through. The tithes have been commuted for £148. A school is supported by the Marquess of Cholmondeley and the rector.

Norbury (St. Mary)

NORBURY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Uttoxeter, hundred of Appletree, S. division of the county of Derby, 4½ miles (S. W.) from Ashbourn; containing, with Roston, 510 inhabitants, and comprising about 2470 acres. One-fourth of the land is arable, and three-fourths pasture with 50 acres of wood; the soil for the most part is a rich soapy marl, very productive both of grass and corn. The surface is undulated, rising steeply from the river Dove, for perhaps a mile, and much broken into small valleys and ravines; the scenery is beautiful, and well-wooded with oak, ash, elm, holly, and hawthorn, which grow to a large size. Cheese is the chief agricultural return. There is a good limestonequarry. The living is a rectory, with that of Snelston annexed, valued in the king's books at £15. 16. 0½.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. Clement F. Broughton, M.A. The chancel of the church is a fine specimen of the decorated style, with large windows exhibiting the original stained glass, which is strikingly beautiful: the edifice was entirely restored in 1842, at a cost of £1400, raised chiefly by subscription. Here, amongst many ancient monuments of the Fitzherberts, is one to the memory of Sir Anthony, a celebrated writer on the law, who was born at this place, and died in 1538. A free school was founded in 1678, by a bequest from Thomas Williams.

Norbury (All Saints)

NORBURY (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Clun, hundred of Purslow, S. division of Salop, 4 miles (N. E.) from Bishop's-Castle, on the road to Shrewsbury; containing 420 inhabitants. The surface is generally hilly, and the soil light and poor, and in some parts marshy; the lands are watered by numerous small brooks. The living is annexed to the vicarage of Lydbury North. The church is a small ancient structure, with a tower. There is a chapel of ease about five miles from the church, on the road to Bishop'sCastle; and the Primitive Methodists have a place of worship at Asterton.

Norbury (St. Peter)

NORBURY (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of Newport, W. division of the hundred of Cuttlestone, S. division of the county of Stafford, 4 miles (N. E.) from Newport; containing, with the hamlet of Oulton, and the township of Weston-Jones with Loynton, 353 inhabitants. The manor was anciently held successively by the families of Kilpeck, Marmion, Butler, and Skrymsher, who had a moated mansion or castle in the parish, at the head of the "Wild Moors." These moors formed a royal waste, extending from Knightley down to the rivers Terne and Severn, near Newport; but the district has long been inclosed and cultivated. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £10. 2. 6.; net income, £483; patron, the Earl of Lichfield. The church is an ancient stone edifice, except the tower, which is of brick; it was repaired in 1827, and a gallery erected.

Norcott

NORCOTT, a township, in the parish of St. Helen, Abingdon, union of Abingdon, hundred of Hormer, county of Berks, 1 mile (N.) from Abingdon; containing 76 inhabitants, and comprising 340a. 3r. 12p.

Nordley, King's

NORDLEY, KING'S, a township, in the parish of Alveley, union of Bridgnorth, hundred of Stottesden, S. division of Salop, 5¾ miles (S. E.) from Bridgnorth; containing 38 inhabitants.

Norfolk

NORFOLK, a maritime county, bounded on the north and east by the German Ocean, or North Sea; on the south by the county of Suffolk, from which it is separated by the river Waveney and the Lesser Ouse; and on the west by Cambridgeshire and a small part of Lincolnshire, from which it is divided by the Greater Ouse and the Nene rivers. It extends from 52° 22' to 52° 58' (N. Lat.), and from 0° 10' to 1° 44' (E. Lon.); and includes an area of 2092 square miles, or 1,338,880 statute acres. There are 85,903 houses inhabited, 3720 uninhabited, and 437 in course of erection; and the population amounts to 412,664, of whom 199,101 are males, and 213,563 females.

The name is but slightly altered in orthography and pronunciation from the Saxon compound, North-folc, signifying "the northern people," which term was used in the early Saxon kingdom of East Anglia, to distinguish the inhabitants of the northern part from those of the southern, who were called Suth-folc. At the period of the Roman Conquest the county was inhabited by the Cenomanni, or Cenimagni, a tribe of the Iceni, who, according to Whitaker, were descended from the Cenomanni of Gaul, and had their chief city at Caistor, near Norwich. Within the limits of the county, or contiguous to it, were established five principal, besides several subordinate, Roman stations, which, with other fortifications, were placed under the command of an officer whose title, according to some authors, was Comes tractûs maritimi, "Count of the maritime district;" or, according to others, Comes litoris Saxonici, "Count of the Saxon shore." During the Anglo-Saxon dynasty, it formed an important part of the kingdom of East Anglia, until the union of all the kingdoms of the heptarchy under Egbert, about 400 years after the first landing of the Saxons; and on the division of the kingdom between King Canute and Edmund Ironside, it was included in the Denelege, or Danish jurisdiction.

Norfolk is in the diocese of Norwich, and province of Canterbury. It comprises the two archdeaconries of Norfolk and Norwich, in the former of which are the deaneries of Brooke, Burnham, Cranwick, Depwade, Fincham, Hingham, Hitcham, Humbleyard, Reddenhall, Repps, Rockland, and Wacton; and in the latter, those of Blofield, Breckles, Brisley, Flegg, Holt, Ingworth, Lynn, Norwich, Sparham, Taverham, Toft-Trees, Walsingham, and part of Thetford. The number of parishes is 756. For the purposes of civil government it is divided into the hundreds of Blofield, Brothercross, Clackclose, Clavering, Depwade, Diss, Earsham, North and South Erpingham, Eynsford, East and West Flegg, Forehoe, Freebridge-Lynn, Freebridge-Marshland, Gallow, North and South Greenhoe, Grimshoe, Guilt-Cross, Happing, Henstead, Holt, Humbleyard, Launditch, Loddon, Mitford, Shropham, Smithdon, Taverham, Tunstead, Walsham, and Wayland. It contains the city of Norwich; the borough, market, and sea-port towns of Lynn and Yarmouth; the borough and market town of Thetford; the market-towns of Aylsham, East Dereham, Diss, Downham-Market, Fakenham, Foulsham, Harleston, East Harling, Hingham, Holt, Loddon, Reepham, Swaffham, North Walsham, Watton, and Wymondham; and the sea-port towns of Blakeney, Cley, and Wells, which have no markets. Under the act of the 2nd and 3rd of William IV., cap. 45, the county was divided into the eastern and western divisions, each to send two representatives to parliament; two members are returned for the city of Norwich, and two for each of the boroughs. The county is included in the Norfolk circuit; the assizes and quarter-sessions are held at Norwich, and the latter also by adjournment at Walsingham, and, for the Midsummer quarter only, at Swaffham.

The surface has, perhaps, less variety of features than any other tract in the kingdom of equal extent, being for the most part flat; yet this uniformity of appearance is sometimes interrupted, particularly in the northern part, where the ground is broken by gentle elevations, and the hills and valleys are adorned with woods. On the south side of the county is a fine rich tract, extending towards the north and north-east; and these latter portions being inclosed, well cultivated, and containing more timber than most maritime districts, exhibit a variety of pleasing and cheerful prospects. Most of the rivers rise in marshy lands, and, running through a comparatively level country, have a slow current; so that they contribute to keep the adjacent grounds in a swampy state, and to fill the atmosphere with dense and noxious vapours. Their estuaries being for the most part choked with silt driven up by the influx of the tide, they often overflow the low-lands, and in their course form numerous small shallow lakes or pools, provincially termed "broads" or "meres," which are plentifully stocked with fish, and much frequented by aquatic birds. A great part of the coast consists of a low sandy beach, covered with gravel and shingles, which by the force of the waves, are frequently thrown up in vast heaps, and by the constant accumulation of sand, are formed into banks, held together by the matted roots of "sea-reed grass." Numerous banks of the same kind have been raised off the coast, far out at sea, and these, being only discoverable at ebb or quarter tides, are frequently fatal to coasting-vessels: the most remarkable is the large bank running parallel with the coast near Yarmouth, between which and the shore is a deep channel known by the name of Yarmouth roads, where ships ride securely in all states of the weather. The ranges of sand-hills on this, as on the opposite coast of Holland, preserve a valuable portion of the lands from inundation.

According to the table of the soils furnished by the late Arthur Young, secretary to the Board of Agriculture, there are in the county, of light sand, 220 square miles; of more valuable sand, 420; of marshland clay, 60; of various loams, 900; of rich loam, 148; and of peat-earth, 82. The substrata, as far as has yet been discovered, consist of clunch or indurated chalk; chalk in which flints are imbedded; gault, gravel, sand, silt, and peatearth. Although by nature sterile, superior cultivation has rendered Norfolk one of the most productive counties in the kingdom. The arable lands form about twothirds of its surface, and the usual course of crops is, first year, turnips; second, barley; third, seeds for hay; fourth, seeds; fifth, wheat or rye; and sixth, barley: the next most frequently practised is the old four-shift system of turnips, barley, seeds, and wheat, in succession. A vast quantity of barley is raised on the lighter soils, made into malt, and then shipped; malt, indeed, may be considered the staple commodity of the county. On a great portion of the land between March and Wisbech, and around the latter place, mustard is cultivated. Saffron is grown in the south-western district, and in the parts adjacent to Cambridgeshire. Flax is produced in the vicinities of Wisbech, Downham, and Outwell; and hemp near Downham, Old Buckenham, Diss, Harleston, &c. Some of the marshes are peculiarly favourable for corn; but their liability to inundation has induced the inhabitants to prefer the dairy system, and in these parts large quantities of butter are made and exported, under the name of "Cambridge." The quantity of upland meadow and pasturage has been estimated at nearly 127,000 acres, and that of marsh land at upwards of 63,000. One of the richest grazing tracts in Norfolk is, the marshy district lying to the south of Lynn and on the eastern side of the Ouse: the lands here, like others in the county, are in general hired by the upland farmers, and not stocked regularly, but only when convenience requires.

The agricultural produce of Norfolk amounting to twice as much as is consumed by its inhabitants, the exports are great; and it has been stated that, during the late war, as much corn was shipped from the ports of this county, including the quantity brought down the rivers from Suffolk and other counties, as from all the other ports of England collectively. The average number of fat-cattle annually sent from the county to the markets at Smithfield, St. Ives, and other places, is estimated at not less than 20,000; and the number of sheep fattened for distant markets is supposed to be about 30,000. In the sandy and loamy districts, owing to the dryness of the soil and the range afforded by the uninclosed parts, turkeys are extremely numerous; besides affording a supply to several of the neighbouring counties, vast numbers are sent to London and other distant places. Large supplies of geese are also bred in the fenny parts, and annually driven on foot to London from the neighbourhoods of Downham, Wisbech, and Lynn; turkey-poults, goslings, chickens, &c., are sent hence to the same market. A great part of the county, a century and a half since, was comparatively wild, bleak, and unproductive, more than half of it being rabbit-warrens and sheep-walks; and notwithstanding that so much has been effected towards bringing the whole of the land into a state of cultivation, and although the commons have been very much diminished since the middle of the last century, the open and waste lands are still of great extent. Norfolk contains numerous woods and plantations, which have been computed to occupy not less than 10,000 acres.

The Manufactures, except for home consumption, consist chiefly of woven goods, which, in a variety of branches, still constitute the staple trade. The small village of Worsted is remarkable as having given name to a kind of goods made of wool differently dressed from that of which woollen-cloths are made; the yarn of the former being spun from combed, and that of the latter from carded, wool. Dormics, cambrics, calicoes, &c., which in like manner took their names from the places where they were first made, formerly constituted the principal articles of manufacture; and these were followed by druggets, serges, shalloons, duffields, &c., which in their turn have been superseded by bombasins, worsted-damasks, flowered-satins, camlets, crapes, stuffs, tabinets, poplins, shawls, and a great variety of fancy articles, most of which are formed of wool, mohair, and silk, by different intermixtures and curious combinations. In this trade Norwich takes the lead. The articles which have usually been considered as the manufacture of that city only, were formerly produced by the joint labour of several towns and villages in the county; since the introduction of machinery, however, the trade has been concentrated, and is now almost confined to Norwich. Having a great extent of coast, and abounding with rivers and streams, together with numerous broads or meres, Norfolk is well supplied both with fresh and salt water fish. The chief fisheries are the herring and mackerel fisheries, the former of which is by far the more important.

The principal rivers are, the Greater Ouse, the Lesser Ouse, the Waveney, the Bure, the Wensum, the Yare, and the Nar. The Greater Ouse receives the tide up to the vicinity of Denver, where its further influx is checked by sluices erected for the purposes of drainage and navigation: at the period of the equinoxes the tide rushes up with great fury, and is called by the inhabitants "the Eagre." Besides admitting merchant vessels of considerable burthen as high as Lynn, the river is navigable for barges in the whole of its course through the county; and by means of it, and of the rivers and canals with which it is connected, Norfolk supplies the central parts of the kingdom with coal, wine, timber, grocery, and other articles previously brought into its ports; and in its turn receives large quantities of cheese, corn, and malt. The Lesser Ouse is navigable up to Thetford; the Waveney for barges as high as Bungay Bridge. The Bure becomes navigable at Aylsham, and joins the Yare on the north side of Yarmouth. The Wensum begins to be navigable at Norwich, and eventually joins the Waveney. The Yare joins the Wensum to the east of Norwich, and in this latter river its name is lost until the junction of the Wensum and the Waveney, at the head of Bredon water, between which and Yarmouth the united waters again assume the name of Yare: in the Yare, or Wensum, is found a singular species of perch, called a ruffe, which is smaller and of a more slender form than the common perch. The Nar, called also Sechy or Seechy river, falls into the Greater Ouse near Lynn, whence it is navigable up to Narburgh, a distance of about fifteen miles. The navigable river Nene forms part of the western boundary of Norfolk, which it separates from Lincolnshire. In addition to the Eau-brink Cut, there is a canal from Wisbech, in Cambridgeshire, to Outwell Creek and Salter's Lode, in this county, about six miles in extent, for the purpose of improving the navigation of the Nene; and different private estates have small cuts to the navigable rivers, for the conveyance of corn, &c. A navigable communication with the sea at Lowestoft, in the county of Suffolk, has been lately completed. There are, a railway from Norwich to Yarmouth, passing along the valley of the Yare or Wensum, and having a line branching from it, at Reedham, to Lowestoft, in Suffolk; a second line, from Norwich, by Wymondham, Attleburgh, and East Harling, to Thetford and Brandon, on the borders of the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, with a branch from Wymondham to East Dereham; a third line, from East Dereham to Swaffham and Lynn; and a fourth, from Lynn to Downham-Market and the county of Cambridge.

The principal Roman stations established in or contiguous to the county, were, Brannodunum, Garianonum, Venta-Icenorum, Sitomagus, and Ad Tuam. Different remains of the Roman people, such as coins, urns, &c., have been discovered, particularly at Brampton, Buckenham, and Thetford. The great Roman road which crossed the island from east to west, from the Norfolk coast to St. David's Head, in Pembrokeshire, is supposed to have commenced at Burgh, near Yarmouth, and is still conspicuous near Downham-Market, whence, crossing the river Ouse, it passes through the fens into Cambridgeshire. Some traces of vicinal ways are also discernible; Pedder's way, running from Thetford to the sea near Brancaster, appears to be one of these; the road leading by Long Stratton to Tasburgh was probably another; and a third branched from this to the northwest, through Marshland, Upwell, and Elm, to Wisbech. What is called the "Milky Way" has been considered Roman, but is more likely of later date, and was probably made for the convenience of the pilgrims to the chapel of Our Lady of Walsingham; it is traceable in several places, and is tolerably perfect in the vicinity of the tumuli called Grimes Graves. Other tumuli may be seen in different parts of the county, but they are not very numerous. On Mousehold Heath, near Norwich, are many excavations in the earth, which King and other antiquaries have considered to be hiding-pits, or British caves. The religious houses, at the time of the Dissolution, amounted to 123, of all orders; the principal remains are those of the abbeys of Creake and St. Bene't-at-Holme, and of the priories of Binham, Bromeholme, Old Buckenham, Castle-Acre, Flitcham, Pentney, Thetford, Walsingham, and Weybourne. Of ancient castles there are considerable remains at Norwich, CastleAcre, and Castle-Rising. The most remarkable ancient mansions are, Caistor Hall, Oxborough Hall, Winwall House, Stiffkey Hall, and Beaconsthorpe Hall. Norfolk gives the title of Duke to the illustrious family of Howard, the representative of which is earl-marshal and hereditary marshal of England, and premier duke and earl, immediately after the princes of the blood royal.