"The drift of my present studies is to know, wherever I am, what lies within reach that may be worth seeing; whether it be building, park, ruin, garden, picture, or monument; to whom it doth belong or has belonged; and what has been the characteristic taste of different ages."

GRAY'S LETTERS.

LONDON:

VIZETELLY BROTHERS AND CO., FRINTERS AND ENGRAVERS,

PETERBOROUGH COURT, FLEET STREET.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

A GOSSIP INTRODUCTORY

EXCURSION I.

The Trip down the River to Greenwich, page 8-Hungerford Stairs,

Buckingham Gate, 9-The Strand in the Olden Time, River-side

Mansions of the Nobility, 10-The Adelphi, 11-Savoy Palace,

Waterloo Bridge, 12-Somerset House, Essex House and its

ill-fated Earl, The Grecian Coffee-house, 13-The Temple and

its Gardens, 14-Whitefriars, 17-Blackfriars' Bridge, St. Paul's

and the City Churches, 18-London at Day-break, 20-South-

wark Bridge, The Globe Theatre, The Tabard and the Canterbury

Pilgrims, 21-London's first Bridge, 22—The Monument, Billings-

gate, The Custom House, 23-The Tower, 24-The Pool, The

Docks, 25-The Thames Tunnel, 26-Rotherithe, Shadwell, and

Limehouse Churches, 27-Deptford and its Dockyard, 30-Elegy

on Cowley, Sir Francis Drake at Deptford, 31-Sir Philip Sydney

and Queen Elizabeth, The Earl of Essex, 32-Peter the Great at

Sayes Court, 33-The Arrival at GREENWICH, The Dreadnought,

Greenwich and its historical associations, 36-The Palace Hospital,

37-Its Naval Picture Gallery, 39-Turkish Gun, 47-The Chapel,

49-Greenwich Park, 51-Ancient Oak, 53-One-tree Hill, 54—

Vanbrugh House, 55-The Observatory, 56-The View from the

hill before the great fire of London, and the same in 1844, 58—

Greenwich in the time of Henry the Eighth, 60-Anna Boleyn,

The Old Palace, 61-Elizabeth and James the First at Greenwich,

63-The Old Church, 65-Greenwich Pensioners, Blackheath, 66.

7

viii

EXCURSION II.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

The Old Hall of Eltham, Contrast between times past and present,

71-The walk to the Village of Old Charlton, 72-Charlton Church

and its Monuments, 73-Charlton House, 74-Its architectural

features and interior decorations, 75-Henry Prince of Wales and

Sir Adam Newton, 77—A legend of a polished Chimney-piece, 80

-King John and the Miller of Charlton, 82-Horn Fair and its

peculiarities, 83-Shooter's Hill and its associations, historical,

poetical, and romantic, 85-Shrewsbury House, 88-Severn Droog

Castle, 92-Eltham Palace, with historical and descriptive par-

ticulars from the Saxon period to the present time, 93.

EXCURSION III.

Woolwich from the River, 104-The Royal Arsenal, 107-Its

characteristic features, The Cannon Foundry and its singular origin,

108-Casting and Proving Cannon, 111-The Laboratory, 112—

The Assault on Ghuznee, 113-The Seed of War, 114-The

Parade, The Artillery Barracks, 116-The Rotunda, with its

category of Curiosities, Naval, Military, and Miscellaneous, 118

-The Dockyard, The Giant Shears, 125-Anchor Forging, 126—

A group of Convicts, 127-Historical associations, 129-The

Life of a Ship, The Hulks, 131-The Poet Lovelace and his

romantic career, 133.

EXCURSION IV.

Erith and the best way to get there, The Ordnance Practice Range,

138-Gunpowder House, Green Street House, Henry the Eighth

and Anna Boleyn, 139-Dagenham Breach, 140-The Village of

Erith, Lesnes House, Erith Church and its Monuments, 141—A

Saxon Chancery Suit, 143-A romantic story, Belvidere, 145-Its

Gallery of first class Pictures, 146-The Park, 150-Lesnes Abbey

and Richard de Lucy, 151-Seals of Lesnes Abbey, 154-Discovery

of the Tomb of De Lucy in 1630, 155-The fall of Lesnes Abbey,

Sir Ralph Sadler and Sir John Hippesley, 156-The walk to Plum-

stead and thence to East Wickham, 157.

69

103

137

CONTENTS.

ix

EXCURSION V.

PAGE

The River between Erith and Greenhithe, Purfleet and its Gunpow-

der Magazines, 162-Greenhithe and its Chalk Pits, Ingress Abbey,

163-Swanscombe, The Conquerors of the Conqueror, The martial

Bishop of Baieux, 165-The Churches of Swanscombe and Stone,

167-Stoneplace, 169-A Cardinal's retinue, Stone Castle, 170.

EXCURSION VI.

Gravesend, Hogarth's journey thither, River Craft, 172-Early

history of the Town, 177-The Ferry man of Gravesend, his mys-

terious customers and the Mayor of Canterbury, 178-The Town

and its public Buildings, 181-Proposed Tunnel under the Thames

to Tilbury, 183-Windmill Hill, 185-A Bowler's epitaph, 187

-Richard the Second's grant, 187-Tilt Boats and Steamers con-

trasted, 189-Tilbury Fort, 190-Rosberville Gardens, 191-

Northfleet, 193-Springhead and its water-cresses, 194-The Vil-

lage and Church of Southfleet, 196-Groups on the River Bank,

199-Higham Tunnel and Church, 201—Cliffe Church, 204-Cow-

ling Castle, its past and present history, 205.

EXCURSION VII.

A Summer's day at Cobham, Mode of admission into the Hall,

Milton and Chalk Churches, 208-Cobham Village and Church,

210-Ancient brass monuments to the Lords of Cobham, 211-

Cobham College, 215-The Hall, 218-Ancient State Carriage, 219

-The picturesque features of Chatham, 220-Retrospective mu-

sings, 221-Lord Cobham's Plot, Plunder of the Hall by the Round-

heads, 222-Interior of the Hall, 224-Its Picture Gallery, 226—

The Park, 230-Gigantic Cedar Tree, The Story of Sir John

Oldcastle, 231-The Mausoleum, Dadd the Artist, 238-Shorne

Church, 239.

EXCURSION VIII.

The ride from Gravesend to Rochester, Gad's Hill and Sir John

Falstaff, 242-Rochester, 244-The Castle before and after the

Conquest, 245-The Bridge across the Medway, 246-The Castle

161

171

207

241

X

CONTENTS.

PAGE

and its military history, 247-Its architectural features, 250—

Chaucer's Canterbury Pilgrims, 256-Rochester Cathedral, Its chief

architectural features, 258-The West Front, The Nave, 259-

North Transept, The Great Tower, South Transept, 260-Chapel

of St. Mary, The Choir, 261-The Chancel, St. William's Chapel,

262-Chapel of St. Edmund, 264-The Crypt, Gundulph's Tower,

265 St. Andrew's Priory, The Deanery Gate, 266-The Bishop's

Palace, 267-The Crown Inn, 268-The Town-Hall and Clock

House, Sir Cloudesley Shovel, 269-Watts's Charity and its eccen-

tric proviso, 270-Gates House, 271-The Free School, Rochester

Inns, The Town Walls, Temple Farm, 272-Charles the Second's

entry into Rochester and James the Second's extraordinary flight

from thence, 273.

EXCURSION IX.

The Town of Chatham, The Bridal of the Thames and Medway, 278

-The Lines, Forts Pitt and Clarence, 279-Military operations in

the Lines, 282-The Dockyard, 285-Ship Building and Anchor

Forging, 286-The Dutch in the Medway, 294-Upnor Castle and

Gillingham Fort, 299-The Legend of Our Ladies of Chatham and

Gillingham, 301-Shakspere's Clerk of Chatham, 303—Gilling-

ham Church and Archiepiscopal Palace, 304-The Quarry Farm,

Conclusion and Farewell, 305.

275