They were of the order of begging friars called Franciscans, which was instituted for such married persons as were desirous of repentance. The members of this order were not called religious, but pursued a religious life, and on account of not observing the strict discipline of monachism, were not esteemed a regular order, though confirmed by Pope Nicholas IV. They were also called Continentii, not because they professed continency, as they were married, but that they observed abstinence on certain days in every week.

Queen Eleanor, consort of Edward 1. took them under her especial protection, and warranted to the prior and convent," the land and building in Colechurch-street, in the parish of St. Olave in the Jewry, and St. Margaret in Lothbury, by her granted, with consent of Stephen de Fulborn, under-warden of the bridge-house, and other brethren of that house, for sixty marks of silver, which they had received of the said prior and brethren of Repentance towards the building of the said bridge."

This order in process of time produced many admirable scholars, and increased considerably, till the council of Lyons, in the next century, decreed, that time forth there should be no more orders of begging friars except the Dominicans, the Meurites, the Carmelites, and the Augustines, so that the brethren and sisterhood of the Sack decreased, dwindled, and disappeared.

In 1305, however, Robert Fitzwalter obtained leave from king Edward, that these friars might assign to him their chapel, which joined his mansion house. Thus what monkish fraud obtained,

feudal oppression wasted away.

This Fitzwalter was knighted by king Edward, on account of his activity in the wars with the French and Scots, and was summoned to parliament as a baron, from the twenty-third year of the reign of that monarch, to the nineteenth year of his son Edward 11. both inclusive. Such a man had but to ask a favour of his sovereign, to have it granted; military influence was paramount, and the helmed baron was a dire competitor for the head-shorn monk.

The estates of Fitzwalter devolving on a female heir, in the reign of Henry VI, these grounds were disposed of by Robert lord Fitzwalter; and sir Robert Large, mercer, kept his mayoralty there in 1449, and resided there until his death.

It was afterwards the abode of sir Hugh Clapton, mercer, who also kept his mayoralty three in 1492. In Stow's time it was reduced to be a wine tavern, bearing the sign of the Windmill, and was ultimately demolished by the great fire of 1666, which destroyed so many objects of antiquity, but yet was ultimately of such paramount benefit to the health of the people, and improvement of the metropolis.

At the west end of St. Margaret's church, was a faire water conduit, builded at the charges of the citie, in the yeere 1546. "The water is conveyed (saith honest John) from divers springs lying betwixt Hoxton and Isledon."

At the corner of Basinghall-street was an old piece of work builded of stone, sometime belonging to a certain Jew named Mansere, the son of Aaron, the son of Cook the Jew, the seventh of Edward the First; since to Rahere de Japan Lane, then to Simon Francis. Thomas Bradbury, mercer, kept his mayoralty there, deceased 1509, and it was afterwards used as a market house.

From the parish church of St. Olave (in old Stow's time), to the north end of the Old Jewre, and from thence west to the north end of Ironmonger lane, and from the said corner unto Ironmonger lane, almost to the parish church of St. Martin, was (of old time) one large building of stone, very ancient, made in place of Jewes houses, but of what antiquity, or by whom the same was builded, I know not, more than that King Henry VI. in the 16th of his reigne, gave the office of being porter or keeper thereof, unto John Stent, for terme of his life, by the name of his principal palace in the Old Jewry. This was (in my youth) called the Old Wardrobe; but of the latter time the outward stone wall hath been by little and little taken downe, and divers faire houses builded thereupon even round about.

Meeting-house court, in the Old Jewry, contained a repectable place of worship for the English Presbyterians, and was celebrated for the eminence of its pastors. Mr. John Herries, and Mr. Fossett, were famous for their elocution; Dr. Richard Price for his writings on Finance, which are only placed second to the works of Adam Smith, although modern theorists in political economy have attempted to invalidate the doctrines laid down, but in vain ;-and the well

known Dr. Abraham Rees, editor of Chambers's Cyclopædia, as well as the best Encyclopædia bearing his name, now completed. This chapel was called Old Jewry chapel, but the congregation have removed to the chapel built expressly for them, in 1808, in Jewin-street.

At No. 8 on the east side of the Old Jewry, is a handsome house built by sir Christopher Wren, and inhabited in 1680 by sir Robert Clayton, lord mayor, and in which Richard Porson, the Greek professor of Cambridge, and the best Greek scholar this country ever produced, died, as librarian to the LONDON INSTITUTION, which occupied this house, until their removal to the fine edifice they now have in Moorfields.

This Institution was founded for the advancement of literature and the diffusion of useful knowledge, and being originally supported by the leading merchants in the city, soon attained celebrity, and in 1806 had become so extensive in its collection, that sir Francis Baring, John Julius Angerstein, esq. and others of the managing proprietors, presented a petition to the lord mayor, aldermen, and common council, soliciting a grant of the site of Blackwell Hall, to erect an edifice appropriate to the purposes of this Institution. The petition was referred to the committee for letting the city lands, but the Society first removed to King's ArmsYard in Coleman-street, and afterwards to the edifice erected from their own funds. accomplish this, nearly one thousand gentlemen and merchants subscribed seventy-five guineas each for the supply of the requisite capital, and selected a committee to prepare laws for the government of the Institution. In January 1807, the London Institution was made a corporate body by Royal Charter: its affairs are directed by a committee of twenty-six proprietors. It possesses a valuable, extensive, and increasing library, and numbers amongst its proprietary some of the most respectable citizens of London.

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Nearer to Cheapside on the west side of the street, was theMercer's School, now removed to College Hill.

This was one of the earliest foundations of the kind in London. For many years, however, previous to the establishment, London was graced with seminaries of learning. Fitz-Stephen records

that in his time, the three principal churches of London were graced with schools" either by privilege and antient dignity, or by favour of some particular persons, as of doctors which were counted notable and renowned for philosophy.

"Upon festival days, the master made solemn meetings in the churches, when their scholars disputed logically, and demonstratively; some bringing enthymems, others perfect syllogisms; some disputed for shew, others to trace out the truth; and cunning sophisters were thought brave scholars, when they flowed with words; others used fallacies. Rhetoricians spake aptly, to persuade of art; and omitted nothing that might serve their purpose. The boys of divers schools did cap or pot verses, and contended of the principles of grammar.

"There some which on the other side, with epigrams and rhymes wipping and quipping their fellows, and the faults of others, though suppressing their names, caused thereby much laughter among their auditors."

The three churches here alluded to are supposed to be those of St. Paul's Cathedral, agreeably to the decree of the council of Lateran in 1176, "that every cathedral church should have its school master, to teach poor scholars, and others, as hath been accustomed, and that no man should take any reward for licence to teach."

The second church in which was a school, must have been Westminster Abbey; for Ingulphus, abbot of Croyland, in the reign of William 1. says, that he "was born in the most beautiful city of London, for to attain learning was first put to Westminster, &c."

And when writing in praise of Edgitha, queen to Edward the Confessor, he says "I have seen her often, when being but a boy' I came to see my father, dwelling in the king's court; and often coming from school, when I met the queen, she would oppose me touching my learning and lesson. And falling from grammar to logic, wherein she had some knowledge, she would subtilly conclude an argument with me: and by her handmaiden did give me three or four pieces of money, and send me unto the palace, where I should receive some victuals, and then be dismissed."

The third church appears to have been the monastery of St. Saviour, at Bermondsey, as being of the earliest date; though afterwards the other monasteries and religious foundations had their schools, though not equally celebrated. But afterwards, from various causes, ignorance having gained great predominance among the clergy as well as the laity, four benevolent clergymen of the city of Londou petitioned the parliament in the 25th of Henry VI., that they and their successors might be allowed to set up schools in their four respective churches, and appoint masters for the instruction of youth.

Their petition, extracted from the Parliament Rolls in the Tower, is curious: it runs thus:-"To the ful worthie and discrete communes, in the present parliment assemblyd, to considre the grete nombre of gramer scholes that sometyme were in divers partes of the realme, beside those that were in London, and how few ben in these dayes, and the grete hurt that is caused of this, not oonly in the spiritual parties of the churche, where oftentyme it apperith to openly in some persones with grete shame, but also in the temporal partie, to whom also it is ful expedyent to have competent congnetie for many causes, as to your wisdomes apperith.

"And for as much as to the citie of London is the common concourse of this land som (from) sake of schole maisters in their own contre, for to be infourmed of gramer ther and from, for the gret alme of lords, merchants and others, that which is in London more plenteously, sooner than in manie other places of this reaume to such pouere creatures as never should have be brought to so grete vertue and connyng as thei have, ne had hit ben by the meane of the alme abovesaid.

"Wherfor it were expedynt that in London were a sufficient nombre of scholes, and good enfourmers in gramer, and not for the singular avail for two or three persons, grevously to hurt the mul titude of yong people of all this land: for when ther is grete nombre of learners and few techers, and al the learners be compelled to go to the few techers and to noon others, the maisters waxen riche in monie, and the lerners pouere in connyng, as appearance openly sheweth against all vertue and ordre of well public.

“And these premises moven and sturen of grete devocion and

VOL II.

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