Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from Views of the Ancient Church of the Holy Trinity, Stratford Upon Avon, in Warwickshire: Containing the Monument of the Immortal Shakspeare, &C
The town of Stratford-upon-Avon, illustrious in British topography as the birth-place of Shakspeare, is situated on the south-western border of the county of Warwick, on a gentle ascent from the banks of the Avon, which rises in a small spring at Naseby, in Northamptonshire; and continuing its meandering course in a south-westerly direction, approaches Stratford in a wide and proudly-swelling stream, unequalled in any other part of its course. The town is distant eight miles south-west from Warwick, and ninety-four miles north-west from London. The Church stands at its south-eastern extremity, from which it is approached by a paved walk, under an avenue of lime-trees, which have been made to form a complete arcade.
This Church was originally a Rectory, in the patronage of the Bishops of Worcester, in whose diocese it is situate; and was purchased in the tenth year of Edward III., anno 1337, of Simon Montacute, the then Bishop, by John de Stratford, Archbishop of Canterbury, and presented to the chantry which he had previously founded in the Chapel of St. Thomas the Martyr, adjoining the south aisle of the Church, which aisle he had rebuilt at his own expense. The chantry consisted of five priests, of whom the warden and sub-warden were perpetual, while the others were elected and removed at the warden's pleasure. Many privileges and immunities were procured for it, by the Archbishop, from Edward III.; and the founder, with other benevolent persons, settled various revenues upon it, arising from property in Stratford and other places. In the year 1353, Ralph de Stratford, Bishop of London, and nephew of the Archbishop, erected a large substantial mansion of stone, afterwards called the College, adjoining to the western side of the Church-yard, as a residence for the priests.
To the workmen engaged in this building, consisting of ten carpenters, and ten masons, with their servants, special protection was granted by the King's letters patent, until the edifice should be finished.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
