Ross (St. Mary)
ROSS (St. Mary), a market-town and parish, and
the head of a union, in the hundred of Greytree,
county of Hereford, 14 miles (S. E.) from Hereford,
and 120 (W. N. W.) from London; containing 3773 inhabitants, of whom 2523 are in Ross-Borough, and 1250
in Ross-Foreign. Tradition reports this place to have
been founded from the ruins of the Roman town Ariconium, which stood at a short distance. It was made a
free borough by Henry III., and in the 33rd of the reign
of Edward I. sent members to parliament; but this privilege was relinquished, on the petition of the inhabitants,
the following year, and has never been resumed. The
Duke of Hereford, afterwards Henry IV., passed a night
here on his way to Monmouth, to see his wife, at the
time his son and successor was born; and the unfortunate Charles I. slept here in 1645, on his way from
Raglan Castle. The bishops of Hereford, who were
lords of the manor, had a palace at Ross, but it has been
long demolished, and the prison belonging to them was
pulled down about a century since. An old stone cross
here, called Cob's Cross, a corruption of Corpus Christi
Cross, is supposed to be commemorative of the ravages
of the plague in 1635 and the two subsequent years.
The town is situated on an eminence, at the foot of
which runs the river Wye in a meandering course,
through a richly cultivated and beautiful country. It
consists chiefly of two narrow streets, crossing each
other, and the houses generally are old and ill-constructed, though the town has of late years been much
improved, and some good buildings have been erected.
The inhabitants are well supplied with water, raised by
an engine from the Wye. Pleasure-boats are kept for
the accommodation of parties making excursions down
the river to Monmouth and Chepstow. An horticultural
society has been established, by which 300 prizes and
30 silver medals are annually distributed; there is an
annual display of the works of artists, and a mechanics'
institute and four reading societies have been formed.
Ross had once a considerable trade in iron, which has
long since declined; at present, cider and wool are the
principal articles of produce. An act was passed in
1845 for a railway from Monmouth, by way of Ross, to
Hereford. A market was granted by King Stephen to
Bishop Betun, to be held on Thursday; it is well supplied with cattle and provisions: there are fairs on the
Thursday after March 10th, on Ascension-day, June 21st,
July 20th, the Thursday after October 10th, and on December 11th. A sergeant-at-mace, four constables, and
subordinate officers, are chosen at a court leet and baron,
held about Michaelmas; and the petty-sessions for the
hundred are holden here. The powers of the county
debt-court of Ross, established in 1847, extend over the
registration-district of Ross.
The parish comprises by measurement 3012 acres.
The living is a rectory and vicarage united, valued in
the king's books at £38. 16. 3.; net income, £1284;
patron, the Bishop of Hereford. The incumbent's
tithes have been commuted for £790, and the glebe
consists of 98 acres; £63 are paid to the bishop, and
£27. 10. each to the dean and the precentor of Hereford.
The church is an irregularly built though handsome
edifice, with a lofty and well-proportioned spire, in an
extremely beautiful situation; the east window is ornamented with stained glass, and contains a figure of
Thomas de Cantelupe, Bishop of Hereford, in the act
of giving benediction. There are places of worship for
Baptists, the Society of Friends, and Independents;
also a Roman Catholic chapel at Courtfield. In the
churchyard was formerly a free school called St.
Mary's, founded, and endowed with £10 per annum,
by Lord Weymouth, in 1709; having fallen into decay,
two large rooms were built on the site in 1806, for a
national school. The Blue-coat school was established
in 1709, by Dr. Whiting, Lord Scudamore, and others,
and was endowed in 1786 with £220 per annum,
by Mr. Walter Scott, who had been educated in it.
An hospital for seven parishioners was founded by
Mr. Webbe, a native of the town. The poor-law union of
Ross comprises 30 parishes or places, of which 27 are in
the county of Hereford, and 3 in that of Gloucester, altogether containing a population of 16,763. This is the
birthplace of John de Ross, a celebrated doctor of law,
who was established by the pope in the bishopric of Carlisle, without any election, in 1318. The benevolent
John Kyrle, Pope's "Man of Ross," died here in 1724,
aged 88, and lies buried in the church, where a rich
monument, with a medallion, was erected to his memory
in 1776.
Ross
ROSS, a township, in the parish and union of Belford, in Islandshire, N. division of Northumberland, 3 miles (N. E.) from Belford; containing 56
inhabitants. It is situated in the southern part of
Islandshire, and comprises an extensive rabbit-warren,
stretching along the coast, in a kind of promontory, to
Holy-Island harbour.
Rossendale, Forest of.—See Lancashire.
ROSSENDALE, Forest of.—See Lancashire.
Rossington (St. Michael)
ROSSINGTON (St. Michael), a parish, in the union
and soke of Doncaster, W. riding of York, 4½ miles
(N. W. by N.) from Bawtry; containing 344 inhabitants.
This place was for many generations the seat of the
Fossard and Mauley families, and in the reign of Henry
VII. was granted by that monarch to the corporation of
Doncaster, from whom the manor was purchased in
1838, by James Brown, Esq., of Harehills Grove, Leeds.
The parish comprises by computation nearly 3000 acres,
of which about 280 are woodland and plantations; the
soil is fertile, the surface undulated, rising into hills of
considerable elevation, and the scenery is pleasingly diversified. The village is situated on the south side of
the vale of the river Torne, over which are several
bridges; one of them, on the great north road, called
Rossington Bridge. The living is a rectory, valued in
the king's books at £11. 1. 5½., and in the gift of Mr.
Brown: the tithes have been commuted for £600, and
the glebe comprises 65 acres. The church was rebuilt
by Mr. Brown, in 1843-4; in the churchyard are several
handsome monuments.
Rostherne (St. Mary)
ROSTHERNE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Altrincham, chiefly in the hundred of Bucklow, but
partly in that of Macclesfield, N. division of the
county of Chester; containing 3953 inhabitants, of
whom 386 are in the township of Rostherne, 3½ miles
(N. by W.) from Knutsford. The parish comprises the
chapelries of High Legh and Peover-Superior; the
townships of Marthall with Little Warford, Mere, Millington, Rostherne, Snelson, Tabley-Superior, and Tatton; and part of the townships of Agden and Bollington.
In Rostherne township are 1377 acres, of which the soil
is sand and clay; about one-fourth is under the plough,
the remainder being cultivated for dairy purposes.
The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at
£10; net income, £131; patron, W. Egerton, Esq.;
appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Christ-Church,
Oxford. The church is much admired for its beautiful
situation on the margin of an extensive lake or mere; it
contains several ancient monuments, and in the chapel
of the Egerton family is a sumptuous one by Bacon to
Samuel Egerton, Esq., who died in 1780. There are two
incumbencies at High Legh, one at Marthall, and one at
Peover-Superior.
Roston, in the hundred of Appletree, S. division of the county of Derby.—See Norbury.
ROSTON, in the hundred of Appletree, S. division
of the county of Derby.—See Norbury.
Rothbury (All Saints)
ROTHBURY (All Saints), a market-town and
parish, and the head of a union, in the W. division of
Coquetdale ward, N. division of Northumberland;
containing 2555 inhabitants, of whom 881 are in the
town, 30 miles (N. W. by N.) from Newcastle, and 300
(N. N. W.) from London. The name of this place, anciently Roberie, Rathbury, and Routhbyrig, may be derived from the British Rhuthr, an attack; or from the
Saxon Ruth, red, expressive of the colour of the river
and its bed. The situation of the town, though low, is
very beautiful, in a sequestered and romantic glen
watered by the Coquet. This river abounds in trout,
and is celebrated as a fishing stream; it is crossed on
the south side of the town by an old stone bridge of
four ribbed arches. Upon the west the vale opens gradually to the view, almost encircled by hills, and ridges
of broken rocks, interspersed with trees; a few goats
feed among the crags, and their milk and whey are in
considerable request by the valetudinarians who resort
hither during the summer season. The town, which is
wide and airy, consists of three streets irregularly built,
diverging from the market-place; the inhabitants are
supplied with water from several springs. The market
is on Friday, but has almost fallen into disuse: fairs for
horses, cattle, and sheep, are held on Whit-Monday,
October 2nd, and November 1st; and a statute-fair for
hiring servants on the Friday in Easter-week. The
powers of the county debt-court of Rothbury, established
in 1847, extend over the registration-district of Rothbury.
The parish consists of 33,770 acres, and comprises
the townships of Bickerton, Caistron, Cartington, Debdon, Fallowlees, Flotterton, Hollinghill, Hepple, HeppleDemesne, Hesley-Hurst, Lee-Ward, Mount-Healey, Newtown, Paperhaugh, Raw, Rothbury, Snitter, Thropton,
Great Tosson with Ryehill, Little Tosson, Trewhitt,
Warton, Whitton, and Wreighill. The Duke of Northumberland is lord of the manor, and proprietor of a
large portion of the parish. The haughs by the river
side are good alluvial soil, but the rest of the land is
generally covered with stones or heath. The parish
contains an abundance of limestone, sandstone, and
ironstone, and though there are no mines at present
worked, yet, from the large accumulations of scoria, it
is evident that the ironstone must have been extensively wrought at a very ancient period, and most probably by the Romans: in many parts, the water is so
strongly impregnated with iron, as to be used medicinally. The ancient Forest of Rothbury, occupying a
tract seven miles long and five broad, has been divided
under the authority of an act of parliament passed in
the year 1831.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£58. 6. 8.; net income, £1106; patron, the Bishop of
Carlisle. The church is a ruinous cruciform structure
in the early English style, with a square tower: against
a pillar near the south door is the effigy in stone of a
man in armour; and the font, which is very antique,
bears a rudely-sculptured representation of the Redeemer
sitting in Judgment. The Independents have a place of
worship. Near the church is a free school, with a
dwelling-house and garden for the master, to the erection of which the Rev. Mr. Thomlinson, rector, in 1720
gave £100, with £20 per annum as an endowment, to
which have been added some other benefactions, producing £252. 18. per annum. The poor-law union of
Rothbury comprises 71 parishes and townships, containing a population of 7297. There are numerous
British stations in the neighbourhood. About a mile to
the west of Rothbury is a circular intrenchment, with a
triple ditch and earthen rampart: at the distance of a
quarter of a mile to the north-east of this, is another;
on Tosson hills, two miles to the south-west, a third;
and about the same distance to the south-east, on Whitton hills, a fourth. The last is still very perfect, and of
great extent: the plan of one of the serpent temples of
the Druids may be clearly traced; the stones, placed
side by side, yet remain, and the visiter may pass into
the inclosure by the original entrance. These stations
were doubtless connected; they all stand upon abrupt
and lofty elevations, commanding extensive views of the
surrounding country and of each other. Dr. John
Brown, vicar of St. Nicholas' in Newcastle, and author
of some essays, poetical pieces, and dramatic writings,
was a native of the parish. Bernard Romney, an ancient
Norman bard and musician, lived and died here.
Rotherby (All Saints)
ROTHERBY (All Saints), a parish, in the union
of Melton-Mowbray, hundred of East Goscote, N.
division of the county of Leicester, 5½ miles (W. S. W.)
from Melton-Mowbray; with 142 inhabitants. The
living is a rectory, consolidated in 1823 with that of
Hoby, and valued in the king's books at £8. 8. 4.
Rotherfield
ROTHERFIELD, a tything, in the parish of East
Tisted, union of Alton, hundred of Selborne, Alton
and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 4½
miles (S. S. W.) from Alton; containing 21 inhabitants.
It is situated on the road between Alton and Gosport,
and contains the hamlets of Heards and Holtham.
Rotherfield House, rebuilt some years since, is a fine
seat.
Rotherfield (St. Denis)
ROTHERFIELD (St. Denis), a parish, in the union
of Uckfield, hundred of Rotherfield, rape of Pevensey, E. division of Sussex, 8 miles (N. E.) from Uckfield; containing 3036 inhabitants. This parish, which
is situated on the road from Tonbridge-Wells to Lewes,
comprises nearly 16,000 acres; the soil is generally clay,
and the surface diversified with hills, of which Crowborough Beacon is one of the highest in the county.
There are about 500 acres of hop plantations. On the
south side of the hill on which the village is built, the
river Rother has its source. A market for corn is held
every Monday, and there are fairs for cattle. The living
is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £27. 12. 6.,
and in the gift of the Earl of Abergavenny: the tithes
have been commuted for £1514. 10., and the glebe
comprises 110 acres. The church is in the early English style, with later additions, and has a square embattled tower surmounted by a spire; the roof is of
chesnut wood, and the ancient font is elaborately carved.
A chapel was founded at Crowborough in 1732, by Sir
Henry Fermor, who endowed it with £3000 for the maintenance of a chaplain; the income is £260 per annum.
There are places of worship for Baptists and Wesleyans.
Berthwald, Duke of the South Saxons, about the year
800 founded a monastery here, subordinate to the abbey
of St. Denis, in France.
Rotherfield-Grays
ROTHERFIELD-GRAYS, a parish, in the union of
Henley, hundred of Binfield, county of Oxford, 2¼
miles (W.) from Henley; containing 1535 inhabitants.
This place derives the suffix to its name from the family
of De Grey, of whose baronial residence there are still
two towers at Greys Court, a venerable and interesting
mansion surrounded with richly varied scenery. The
parish comprises 2600 acres, of which about 400 are
woodland: the soil is gravel, alternated with flint and
chalk; the prevailing trees are beech. The living is a
rectory, valued in the king's books at £10. 12. 8½.;
net income, £714; patrons, the President and Fellows
of Trinity College, Oxford. The church contains a font
of singular shape. In the chancel is a brass effigy of a
warrior, in good preservation, under a tabernacle, with a
Latin inscription in old letter, to the memory of Robert
de Grey, Lord of Rotherfield, who died in 1387; and in
one of the aisles is a splendid monument of the period
of James I., to Sir Francis Knollys, his lady, and their
numerous progeny. Two schools are supported by subscription.
Rotherfield-Peppard (All Saints)
ROTHERFIELD-PEPPARD (All Saints), a pa
rish, in the union of Henley, hundred of Binfield
county of Oxford, 4½ miles (W. by S.) from Henley;
containing 439 inhabitants. The parish takes the suffix
to its name from the family of Pipard, to whom it belonged in the time of Henry II. It is bounded on the
east by the river Thames, and intersected by the road
from Henley to Reading, also by the road from Nettlebed to Reading; and comprises by measurement 2293
acres, of which 1390 are arable, 265 meadow and pasture, 177 woodland and plantation, and 180 beech-wood.
The soil is fertile, producing excellent wheat and other
grain; the surface is pleasingly undulated, and the substrata are chiefly chalk and flint. In the village are a
large flour-mill, and a paper-manufactory. The living is
a rectory, valued in the king's books at £9. 9. 4½., and
in the gift of Jesus College, Oxford: the tithes have
been commuted for £522, and the glebe comprises 57
acres. The church is supposed to have been built in the
time of Edward I. or II. There is a place of worship
for Independents. About 500 yards from the church
is a remarkably fine spring, which supplies the neighbourhood during the driest seasons.
Rotherham (All Saints)
ROTHERHAM (All Saints), a market-town and
parish, and the head of a union, in the N. division of
the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill, W. riding
of York; comprising the chapelries of Greasbrough and
Tinsley, and the townships of Brinsworth, Catcliffe,
Kimberworth, Orgreave, Rotherham, and part of Dalton; and containing 13,385 inhabitants, of whom 5505
are in the town, 49 miles (S. S. W.) from York, and 159
(N. N. W.) from London. This place, which derives its
name from the Rother, is bounded by that river on the
west, and on the north-west by the river Don: it is
situated partly on the acclivities of an eminence, and
partly in a vale near the confluence of these streams.
The houses are in general of stone, and many of them
are low and of mean appearance, but great improvements have been made within the last twenty years; in
the immediate neighbourhood, several substantial and
respectable dwellings have been recently built, and at
the east end of the town are two elegant mansions called
Clifton and Eastwood. The streets are mostly narrow
and irregularly formed; the place is paved, lighted with
gas, and amply supplied with water. It is connected
with the suburb or town of Masbrough, which is of
nearly equal extent, by an ancient bridge over the Don,
of five pointed arches, on the central pier of which is an
old chapel of elegant design, now used as the town
prison. The environs abound with varied scenery; and
within a short distance, on the road to Barnsley, is
Wentworth House, the magnificent seat of Earl Fitzwilliam. A public subscription library, containing
several thousand volumes, is liberally supported.
The district abounds in mineral wealth; coal and iron
ore are found in great profusion, and have been wrought
from a very remote period. The town was formerly
celebrated for its manufacture of edge tools; and in
1160, there were mines of ironstone, smelting-furnaces,
and forges in the neighbourhood. But the most extraordinary establishments of this kind, of late years, were
the iron-foundries belonging to Messrs. Walker, in
which immense quantities of cannon of the largest calibre were wrought for government during the war, till
the works were given up by the original proprietors,
and let out to small capitalists. The spinning of flax
affords employment to about 200 persons; there are
manufactories for rope and for starch, a large malting
establishment, two large ale and porter breweries, several
oil and chemical works, and a glass-house. Some other
manufactories and works are noticed in the article on
Masbrough. The Don, which is navigable to Sheffield,
communicates with the river Aire on the north-east,
with the Stainforth and Keadby canal on the east, with
the Dearne and Dove canal and the Barnsley canal on
the north-west, and consequently with the river Calder;
by which means Rotherham enjoys a facility of communication with all the principal towns in the great
manufacturing districts of Yorkshire and Lancashire.
In 1836 an act was passed for making a railway to
Sheffield, with a branch to the Greasbrough canal and
coal-field; it was opened on the 31st of October, 1838,
and the distance is about six miles. The Rotherham
terminal station is situated in Westgate, and occupies
about an acre and a half. There is also a station at the
Holmes, whence a branch diverges to join the Midland
railway at Masbrough. The market is on Monday, for
corn, cattle, and provisions: on alternate Mondays is
a celebrated market for fat-cattle, sheep, and hogs, numerously attended by graziers from distant parts of the
country; and fairs take place on Whit-Monday and
December 1st, for cattle. A court leet is held annually,
at which constables and other officers for the internal
regulation of the town are appointed. The powers of
the county debt-court of Rotherham, established in 1847,
extend over the registration-district of Rotherham. The
adjourned Midsummer-sessions for the West riding are
held in the court-house, a handsome stone building in
the Italian style, erected at an expense of £4000.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the
king's books at £16. 8. 6.; net income, £170; patron
and impropriator, the Earl of Effingham. The church
is situated on an elevated knoll near the heart of the
town, and is a capacious and venerable cruciform
structure in the later English style, with a central
tower and spire enriched with panels, canopies, and
crockets. The exterior is profusely but correctly ornamented with sculptures of beautiful design, the doorways are richly moulded, and the sides of the building
strengthened with panelled and crocketed buttresses;
the south porch, of appropriate character, is highly enriched. The interior is lofty, and finely arranged; the
roof of the nave, which is of oak elaborately carved,
is supported on piers of graceful elevation, and the windows, with a very few exceptions, contain tracery of
elegant design. The chancel is separated from the nave
by a screen of excellent workmanship. In the transepts are some good monuments; and near the altar is
a beautiful one of marble to the memory of Samuel
Buck, Esq., a native of the town, and recorder of Leeds,
who died in 1806. At Greasbrough, Kimberworth, and
Tinsley are other incumbencies. There are places of
worship for Baptists, Independents, Wesleyans, and
Unitarians. The free grammar school was founded in
1584, by Lawrence Woodnett and Anthony Collins, of
London, who endowed it with a small portion of land;
the endowment was subsequently augmented by a grant
of £10. 15. 4. per annum, from the revenue of the
crown lands. The school, in conjunction with those of
Pontefract, Leeds, and Wakefield, is entitled, in failure
of candidates from Normanton school, to two scholarships founded in Emmanuel College, Cambridge, by John
Frieston, of Altofts. A charity school was founded by Mr.
Scott, and the funds for its support are now under the
superintendence of the feoffees of the common lands;
the income, increased by subsequent benefactions, is
about £97 per annum. Rotherham College, for the
education of young men intended for Independent ministers, was removed hither from Heckmondwike, where
it had subsisted for nearly 40 years, in 1795: the premises are handsomely built, and occupy a healthy and
pleasant eminence. The dispensary, a stone building
erected by subscription at an expense of £2000, contains on the ground-floor, in addition to the offices
requisite for the institution, a spacious room for the
grammar school, and on the upper story an apartment
for the library, and a newsroom. The union of Rotherham comprises 27 parishes or places, 26 of which are in
the West riding of York, and one in the county of
Derby; the whole containing a population of 28,783.
In 1480, Thomas Scott, Archbishop of York, usually
called Thomas of Rotherham, who was then Bishop of
Lincoln, founded a college in the town for a provost,
five priests, six choristers, and three schoolmasters, and
dedicated it to the Holy Jesus: of this structure, which
subsisted for nearly a century, there remain the inn in
Jesus' gate, and the opposite buildings now used as stables. Dr. Sanderson, Bishop of Lincoln, an eloquent
preacher in the time of Charles II., was a native of the
town.
Rotherhithe (St. Mary)
ROTHERHITHE (St. Mary), a parish, in the E.
division of the hundred of Brixton and of the county
of Surrey, 1 mile (S. E.) from London; containing
13,917 inhabitants. This place, corruptly called Redriff, was anciently a village and marsh south-eastward of
London, to which it now forms an extensive suburb, on
the south side of the river Thames. The trench cut
by Canute, in order to besiege the metropolis, reached
from Vauxhall to this parish; and the channel through
which the river was turned in 1173, for the rebuilding of London bridge, is supposed to have taken a similar
course. In the reign of Edward III., a large naval
armament was fitted out here preparatory to an invasion
of France by Edward the Black Prince and the Duke of
Lancaster. During the commotions in the reign of
Richard II., respecting the poll-tax, that monarch came
hither in his barge, to pacify the malcontents; but his
refusal to land so enraged the rioters, that, with their
leader John Tyler, alias Jack Straw, and Wat his brother, they broke open the Marshalsea and King's Bench
prisons, liberated the inmates, and proceeding to the
house of the Duke of Lancaster in the Savoy, destroyed
it, and all the valuable furniture and jewels, by fire. In
1785, a dreadful fire broke out, which in a few hours
consumed 206 houses, and did other extensive damage.
The situation of Rotherhithe, on the river, has induced numbers of seafaring men, watermen and others,
to reside here; and its inhabitants are now almost exclusively engaged in pursuits connected with shipping.
In that part of the parish which forms the bank of the
Thames are eleven dockyards, for building East India
ships and small merchant-vessels; also some boat and
lighter builders' wharfs; seven timber-wharfs, three
deal-yards, and a mast-yard; besides anchor-wharfs,
ship-breakers' wharfs, and numerous warehouses for
rigging and victualling the navy. The rest of the parish
is occupied by the residences of masters of ships, seafaring people, and the tradesmen whose interests are dependent on navigation. The principal docks are the
Commercial docks, the several basins of which are
capable of containing upwards of 200 ships of burthen.
The Grand Surrey canal terminates here, and is formed
into two docks, called the outer and inner. In 1837 an
act was passed for making wet-docks and other works,
to be called the Grand Collier docks. The business connected with the place in general has been much circumscribed since the opening of the London, the East
and West India, and St. Katherine's docks, on the opposite side of the river. The manufactures comprise the
works carried on in the ordnance department at the
three government wharfs employed in making gun-carriages, &c.; extensive iron-works, chiefly for the construction of bolts out of old iron hoops and other materials; and the king's mills for grinding corn, some
years ago occupied by the London Flour Company. The
Croydon railway diverges from the London and Greenwich line at Corbett's-lane, in the parish; and a lighthouse has been erected near the spot, with a powerful
gas lantern for security against accidents by collision.
The Thames Tunnel, one of the termini of which is at
Rotherhithe, is noticed under the head of London.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£18; net income, £772; patrons, the Master and Fellows of Clare Hall, Cambridge. The present parochial
church was erected in 1715, and is a neat edifice of
brick with stone quoins, having a square tower, upon
which is a stone spire supported by Corinthian columns.
In the churchyard is the tombstone of Prince Lee Boo,
son of Abba Thule, king of one of the Pelew islands;
who died of the small-pox in 1784. Three district
churches have been built under the auspices of the
rector, the Rev. Edward Blick. The church of the
Holy Trinity, situated in Trinity-street, and consecrated
on the 6th of November, 1838, is a spacious structure
of white brick, erected at an expense of £4698. The
living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Rector,
with a net income of £150. Christ-Church, erected at
an expense of £4373, on a site in Paradise-row given by
Sir William Gomm, who also presented the communionplate, is a neat structure in the early English style, with
a low embattled tower, strengthened by buttresses and
crowned with pinnacles; the roof is supported by open
frame-work of oak. The living is a perpetual curacy, in
the gift of the Trustees of Hyndman's Bounty, with a
net income of £167. The church dedicated to All
Saints, situated on the lower Deptford road, and for
which the site was also given by Sir W. Gomm, was
consecrated on the 29th of June, 1840; it is a neat
structure of white brick, with a tower surmounted by
an octagonal spire. The living is a perpetual curacy;
net income, £150; patron, the Rector. An episcopal
floating chapel is maintained for the use of seamen;
and there are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, and Wesleyans. The parish, under the PoorLaw Amendment act, is separately assessed for the support of its own poor, who are under the care of fifteen
guardians.
Rothersthorpe (St. Peter and St. Paul)
ROTHERSTHORPE (St. Peter and St. Paul), a
parish, in the union of Hardingstone, hundred of
Wymmersley, S. division of the county of Northampton, 4 miles (S. W.) from Northampton; containing
274 inhabitants. It comprises about 1219 acres, and is
intersected by the Grand Junction canal and the London
and Birmingham railway. The living is a discharged
vicarage; valued in the king's books at £5. 9. 4½.; net
income, £112; patrons and impropriators, the Misses
Drought. The tithes were commuted for land and a
money payment in 1809.
Rotherwick
ROTHERWICK, a parish, in the union of Hartley-Wintney, hundred of Odiham, Odiham and N.
divisions of the county of Southampton, 4 miles (W.
by S.) from Hartford-Bridge; containing 416 inhabitants. The parish comprises about 1702 acres, of which
947 are arable, 334 meadow and pasture, 260 woodland,
and 160 common land. Tylney Hall, here, the ancient
seat of the Tylney family, has been taken down some
years, but the park is still preserved. The living is a
perpetual curacy; net income, £50; patron, the Earl of
Mornington: the tithes have been commuted for £396.
15. 6., of which £11. 15. 6. are payable to the incumbent.
The church contains some monuments to the Tylney
family. A school-house was erected in the year 1713,
by Frederick Tylney, who in 1716 endowed it with a
rent-charge of £10.
Rothley (St. Mary)
ROTHLEY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Barrow-upon-Soar, chiefly in the hundred of East
Goscote, but partly in that of West Goscote, N. division of the county of Leicester, 1½ mile (S. by E.)
from Mountsorrel; containing, with the chapelries of
Keyham, Wartnaby, Chadwell, and part of Mountsorrel,
2179 inhabitants, of whom 1055 are in Rothley township. This place formed part of the possessions of the
Knights Templars, to whom it was granted by Henry III.,
and who had a preceptory near the village, afterwards
given to the Hospitallers, and of which, at the Dissolution, the revenue was returned at £87. 13. 4. The present mansion of Rothley Temple was erected on the site
of the monastery, of which some portions are still
remaining. The manor and soke are the property of
Thomas Babington, Esq., who is invested with a peculiar
jurisdiction, both civil and ecclesiastical, and whose
commissary holds visitations and a spiritual court twice
a year, the jurisdiction of which not only extends over
the parish, but to several other parts of the county, in
which this is the most extensive manor, enjoying the
privileges of court leet, court baron, and oyer, terminer,
and gaol delivery, independent of the rest of the county.
The living is a vicarage, with the living of Gaddesby annexed, valued in the king's books at £11. 0. 5.; net
income, £466; patrons, the family of Babington: the
tithes of the parish were commuted for land in 1771.
The church, a spacious and ancient structure, contains
some interesting monuments; and in the churchyard is
the shaft of a stone cross. There are chapels of ease at
Chadwell, Keyham, and Wartnaby; and a chapel at
Mountsorrel. The Wesleyans and General Baptists
have places of worship. A Roman pavement, with
foundations of walls, was discovered in 1722.
Rothley
ROTHLEY, a township, in the parish of Hartburn, union of Rothbury, W. division of Morpeth
ward, N. division of Northumberland, 11 miles (W.
by N.) from Morpeth; containing 143 inhabitants. So
early as the 13th century this place was in the possession
of the convent of Newminster; and John Butler, abbot
of that establishment, built a tower here, which in 1542
is styled a "lytle towre in measurable good reparations,"
but which was demolished by the Blackett family, into
whose possession it came in 1691. Rothley Crags are a
range of precipitous rocks fronting the west, and on the
western verge of Rothley Park; they are of granitic
sandstone, rising in fine and various forms, and richly
coloured. Near their brink, on ground about 800 feet
above the level of the sea, stands Rothley Castle, which,
though erected by the late Sir W. C. Blackett, has all
the appearance of an ancient residence. The township
comprises about 2728 acres. In the park are two large
lakes, in one of which the river Font has its source. A
fold for cattle formerly situated here was attacked during
the border warfare, by the Scots, who were defeated
with great loss, and the slain buried at a place called
Scots' Gap.
Rothley-Temple
ROTHLEY-TEMPLE, an extra-parochial liberty, in
the union of Barrow-upon-Soar, hundred of West
Goscote, N. division of the county of Leicester, 1½
mile (S.) from Mountsorrel; containing 42 inhabitants,
and comprising 459 acres.—See Rothley.
Rothwell (St. Mary Magdalene)
ROTHWELL (St. Mary Magdalene), a parish, in
the union of Caistor, wapentake of Bradley-Haverstoe, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln, 2¾ miles
(E. S. E.) from Caistor; containing 290 inhabitants.
The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's
books at £7. 10. 10.; net income, £250; patron, the
Earl of Yarborough. The tithes were commuted for
land, under an act of inclosure, in 1765.
Rothwell (Holy Trinity)
ROTHWELL (Holy Trinity), a parish, and formerly
a market-town, in the union of Kettering, hundred of
Rothwell, N. division of the county of Northampton,
4 miles (N. W. by W.) from Kettering; containing, with
the chapelry of Orton, and hamlet of Thorpe-Underwood, 2939 inhabitants, of whom 2808 are in the town.
This place, which is situated on the southern side of a
rocky hill, is supposed to have been much more extensive in former days than it is at present, and to have
been surrounded with a strong wall. According to
tradition it was a favourite residence of William the
Conqueror; and a small priory of nuns of the order of
St. Augustine was founded here, probably by some of
the Clare family, which at the Dissolution had a revenue
estimated at £10. 10. 4. The market has fallen into
disuse, except for earthenware, which is still exposed for
sale on Monday: the ancient market-house, begun by
Sir Thomas Tresham, but left in an unfinished state, is
a curious ruin. One of the largest cattle-fairs in the
county is held on Trinity-Monday and several following days. Considerable employment is afforded to
the population by silk, velvet, and plush spinning and
weaving, and the manufacture of shoes. The township
is on the road from London to Leicester, through Bedford; and comprises by measurement 3460 acres, of
which 1480 are meadow and pasture, 25 woodland, and
the remainder arable.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £7. 18. 11.; net income, £145; patrons,
W. T. Smyth, Esq., and two others; impropriators, the
family of Turville. The tithes were commuted for land
and a money payment in 1812. The church, which
appears to have been built about the reign of the Conqueror, has an embattled tower at the west end, and is
enriched with a fine door in the early English style;
underneath is a crypt, containing the bones of several
thousand men. There are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans. The free school was founded
prior to the time of Edward VI., and was further endowed in the 36th of Charles II., when some commissioners of charitable uses applied St. Mary's chapel in
Rothwell to that purpose, and directed that Queen Elizabeth's endowment to the chapel, of £3. 4. 11., received
out of the crown rents, should be paid to the master.
Jesus' Hospital was established, and endowed with the
manor of Olde, its mansion-house and lands, and the
tithes of Overton and Thorpe, by Owen Ragsdale, in the
33rd of Elizabeth; it affords accommodation to twentyfour almsmen and a principal, and the income is about
£430 per annum. Six small tenements for widows were
founded and endowed by T. Ponder, in 1714; and funds
to the amount of £64 are yearly distributed among
widows, arising from bequests by Agnes Hill, in 1728,
and Edward Hunt. Here are two springs, one of which
is of a strong petrifying quality.
Rothwell (Holy Trinity)
ROTHWELL (Holy Trinity), a parish, in the Lower
division of the wapentake of Agbrigg, W. riding of
York; containing, with the townships of Lofthouse
with Carlton, Middleton, Oulton with Woodlesford, and
Thorpe, 7462 inhabitants, of whom 2988 are in Rothwell
township, 4½ miles (S. E.) from Leeds. This place was
originally part of the parish of Morley, from which it was
separated before the Conquest. Soon after that period
it was granted as a dependency of the castle of Pontefract to the Lacys, who had a baronial residence here, of
which evident vestiges may still be traced, and by whom
its church was appropriated to the priory of Nostal.
The parish comprises by computation 8612 acres, of
which 3186 are in the township of Rothwell with Rothwell-Haigh and Royd's Green; the surface is varied,
and the district abounds with coal of excellent quality,
of which several mines are in operation, large supplies
being sent to Leeds and other places. Some quarries of
good stone are likewise worked here. The manor of
Rothwell-Haigh, including Thwaite, comprises about
1000 acres of land, the property of Lord Stourton. The
Midland railway passes through the parish. The village
is pleasantly situated in a fertile vale watered by a small
rivulet, and is very ancient, and irregularly built: the
inhabitants are employed chiefly in the collieries and in
agriculture; there are establishments for the manufacture of rope and twine, and a woollen-mill. The debtors'
prison, for the honour of Pontefract, is a spacious building. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the
king's books at £19.12. 11.; net income, £843; patron,
the Rev. R. H. Brandling, who, with others, is impropriator. The great tithes of the township of Rothwell
and Rothwell-Haigh have been commuted for £436,
and the small for £351: there is a vicarial glebe of
5 acres. The church is a neat structure in the later
English style, with a square embattled tower: it was
repaired and enlarged in 1826, and has lately undergone extensive improvements; three modern galleries
have been removed, and a beautiful oaken roof, of
the 14th century, has been uncovered. At Oulton,
Lofthouse, and Middleton, are other incumbencies.
There are places of worship for Wesleyans and Primitive Methodists.