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Leland's Journey through Wiltshire:

A. D. 1540-42.

WITH NOTES BY THE REV. J. E. JACKSON.

JOHN LEYLAND (commonly spelled Leland) was born in London; the parish and year unknown; but about the beginning of the 16th century. He was educated under W. Lilly, the grammarian, then went to Cambridge, and was afterwards of All Souls College, Oxford. Thence he proceeded to study at Paris: and on his return took holy orders, and became chaplain to King Henry VIII., who gave him a benefice in the Marches of Calais. He seems to have been an accomplished man; was acquainted, it is said, with eight languages, and wrote Latin with facility and elegance. On being appointed library keeper to the King, he left his rectory abroad, and received in 1533 a royal commission under the great seal to travel over England in search of antiquities, with power to inspect the libraries of cathedrals, abbies, and other depositories of historical records. It was in this year that the monasteries were visited, previously to their impending dissolution. Fuller 1 enumerates this royal commission to Leland amongst the "commendable deeds" done by the King, upon the fall of the religious houses. "He would have the buildings destroyed, but the memorables therein recorded, the builders preserved, and their memories transmitted to posterity. This task Leland performed with great pains, to his great praise; on the King's purse, who exhibited most bountifully unto him."

Leland is connected with Wiltshire by one of these "exhibitions :” viz., the Prebend of North Newnton (or Newton, 4 miles west of Pewsey) to which was annexed Knoyle Odierne, (Little or West

1 Church Hist. B. vi, sect. iv. 8. 9.

Knoyle), near Hindon. To this he was presented in 1534, nominally, by Cicely Bodenham, the last Abbess of Wilton, in whose patronage it lay, but, no doubt, really by the Crown. In the Valor Ecclesiasticus 2 taken that year, "John Laylond, Prebendary of Newnton," returns the annual value of the prebend at £5 5s. net.

Though Leland had received his commission in 1533, before the actual dissolution of the religious houses, (which took place A.D. 1535), he does not appear to have begun his "perambulation" until two or three years after that event; viz., about A.D. 1538. It occupied him for several years. He then retired to the Rectory of St. Michael's in le Querne in London, with the intention of producing from the notes and collections which he had made upon his travels, a grand work on English antiquities. But this he was not permitted to accomplish. His reason became affected, though from what particular cause is not exactly known. Fuller's account is: "This Leland, after the death of his bountiful patron King Henry VIII., [January, 1548], fell distracted and so died : uncertain, whether his brain was broken with weight of work, or want of wages: the latter more likely, because after the death of K. Henry, his endeavours met not with proportionable encouragement." There seems to be but little foundation for this. It is more probable that the real cause was the one assigned by other writers, viz., over excitement of the intellect under the prospect of the herculean task before him. Upon his derangement being made known to King Edward VI., letters patent 3 were issued in 1550, granting the custody of his person, as "John Leyland, junior," to his brother "John Leyland, senior;" and confirming to him for his maintenance all his ecclesiastical preferment, as well as an annuity of £26 13s. 4d., which was, perhaps, the salary that had

1 Wilts Institutions, p. 204.

2 V. E. for Wilts, p. 131.

3 In the lengthy and precise Latin document issued upon this occasion, of which there is a copy in the introduction to Leland's Collectanea, vol. I. p. XLVIII., the unfortunate antiquary is described with an extravagant variety of legal epithets, as "demens, insanus, lunaticus, furiosus, phreneticus."

been allowed him by the late King. He was at this time still rector of the benefice abroad (Poperingues near Ypres); and of Haseley in Co. Oxon: so that with the Wiltshire prebend, there does not seem altogether to have been any "lack of wages."

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His death took place in April 1552: upon which event Edward VI. ordered his manuscripts to be brought into the care of Sir John Cheke, the royal tutor and secretary. "Here" (says Fuller) our great antiquary” (Camden) “got a sight, and made a good use thereof; it being most true, Si Lelandus non laborâsset, Camdenus non triumphâsset."1 Sir John Cheke's son, Henry, after his father's death, gave four volumes in folio, of Leland's "Collectanea," (being miscellaneous extracts from the monastic libraries), to Humphrey Purefoy, of Leicestershire, by whom they were given to Mr. Burton, the historian of that county. Burton afterwards obtained eight other volumes called the "Itinerary," written like the former ones in Leland's own hand; and deposited the whole in the Bodleian Library, at Oxford. The original manuscript of the Itinerary had been previously much damaged by damp and neglect, but Burton had made a copy of it in 1621. Bishop Tanner had a design of publishing it, but was prevented: and the task fell into the hands of Thomas Hearne, the antiquary. A second edition appeared in 1745: a third, and the last, in 1770. The work is now scarce and expensive, and a new edition, which should be accompanied by notes to explain obscurities and correct errors, is desirable.

The reader will bear in mind then, that Leland's Itinerary consists only of the original brief, and, often probably hasty, notes taken by himself upon a tour. They are not the “secundæ curæ," the revised production, of his literary leisure: but such observations as he made "inter equitandum," during the stages of his journey; gathered from the conversation of his hosts, the squires and the clergy, or culled from such documents and authorities as they laid before him. Memoranda so taken, would, of course,

1 “If Leland had not worked, Camden would not have triumphed.”

contain much that required further correction and confirmation : much also that would have been omitted in the process of expansion into careful history. Still, the Itinerary is a very curious book, and though it includes many things that are trivial, it has preserved to us a great deal of local information, which it would now be impossible to obtain from any other source. Towards a new edition of the work, great assistance might be rendered by the various Archæological Societies of England, if they would publish in their respective Proceedings such portions of it as relate to their own counties, with notes by those of their members who may have turned their attention to local history.

LELAND'S JOURNEY THROUGH WILTSHIRE.1

[He entered it the first time at the N. E. corner of the county, coming from Lechlade in Gloucestershire].

FROM Lechelade to Eiton Castle in Whileshire, where great ruines of a building in Wyleshir, as in ulteriori ripa (on the farther bank) remayne yet, a 2 miles upper on the Isis.

From Eiton Castelle to Nunne-Eiton, a mile. To Grekelade or rather Crikelade,2 a 2 miles.

Eiton,3 the Lord Zouche's castle. Mount-penson (Mompesson), of Wileshire, married one of the Lord Zouche's daughters, that is now. (vi. 14). Nunne-Eaton belonged to Godstow. Crekelade is on the

1 Itinerary, vol. ii. p. 48.

2 “Or rather Cricklade." The fable of Greek philosophers having "flourished” at this place, and of its having been an university before the foundation of learning at Oxford, is evidently too ridiculous for Leland, who, however, in his life of Alfred, as well as in other passages of his works, alludes to it without any apparent disbelief. There were, probably, never more Greek philosophers at Cricklade than there are at present, whatever that number may be. The name of the place is derived from two Saxon words, signifying "brook" and "to empty" a derivation which is abundantly sustained by the number of small streams that in this neighbourhood fall into the Isis.”

3 "Eiton:" now Castle Eaton. The older name was Eaton Meysey: from a family to whom it belonged temp. Henry III.

farther ripe1 of Isis, and stondeth in Wileshire. Loke here where Braden water comming out of Wileshire doeth go into Isis.

I noted a little beyond Pulton 2 village Pulton priorie, wher was a prior and 2 or 3 blake canons with hym.

I saw yn the walles where the presbyterie was, 3 or 4 arches, wher ther were tumbes of gentilmen. I think that ther was byried sum of the Sainct-Maurs. And of surety one St. Maur, founder of it, was buried there.3

As I passed out of Pulton village, I went over the bek of Pulton rising not far above. Pulton bek, about a mile beneth Pulton, goith at a mill a little above Dounamney into Amney streame.

From Pulton toward Amney villag I passed over Amney water, and so to Amney village, leving it on the right hand.

Amney brook risith a little above Amney toune by north out of a rok; and goith a 3 miles of, or more, to Doune-amney, wher Syr Antony Hungreford hath a fair house of stone, on the farther bank.

Amney goith into Isis a mile beneth Dounamney, againe NunneEiton in Wilshire.

first abbate of

Tetbyri is vii
Tetbyri lyeth

From Pulton to Cirencestre a 4 miles. Serlo, Cirencestre, made his brother prior of Bradene-stoke. miles from Malmesbyri, and is a praty market town. a 2 miles on the left hand of from Fosse,5 as men ryde to Sodbyri.

"Farther ripe:" (bank). This would be the case to a person coming from Lechlade.

2" Pulton:" commonly called Poulton, lies within Gloucestershire, but belongs to Wilts.

3" Founder." Sir Thomas St. Maur founded Poulton Priory, 24 Edw. III. A. D. 1360. [Tanner's Monast.] He died without issue. His brother's descendant in the 4th generation, Alice St. Maur, a sole heiress, married Wm. Lord Zouche. Hence the Zouches at Castle Eaton just mentioned.

4" Bek." Brook.

5" Fosse." Five Roman roads went out of Cirencester, one of which was the Fosse but Leland seems here to have mistaken the course of it. That which is now called "The Fosse" does not go over any "manifest great crest" by Sodbury to Bristol, but by Easton Grey and North Wraxhall to Bath. Leland himself afterwards left Cirencester by the latter road for a short distance : then turned off to Crudwell, and entered Malmesbury over Holloway Bridge on the Charlton Road.

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