The Picture

OF

ENGLAND & WALES.

Somersetshire.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION.

THIS is a maritime County, and is bounded on the North West by the Bristol Channel; on the North by Gloucestershire; South and West by Devonshire; and East and South East by Wiltshire and Dorsetshire. Its figure is irregular, somewhat resembling a crescent; the extreme length being 70 miles, and the greatest breadth about 30; while the square contents are estimated at 990,000 acres: and the population, in 1821, was stated at 355,314 persons. It is divided into 43 Hundreds, seven Liberties, and 482 Parishes; and is represented in Parliament by 16 Members; viz. two for the County, two for each of the Cities of Bath and Wells, and for the Boroughs of Bridgewater, Ilchester, Milborne Port, Minehead, and Taunton.

The surface of this county is exceedingly diversified, and presents every variety, from the lofty mountain and barren moor, to the rich and highly cultivated valley, and the dreary and unimprovable marsh or fen. The sea coast, in some places, is hollowed into beautiful bays; while, in others, rocky promontories project into the ocean; and on the northern side vast sand-banks form a barrier which VOL. II.

B

protects the level shore against those inundations by which it was formerly ravaged. Several chains of hills extend in various directions; the principal of these are in the northern and western districts, and between them occur beautiful valleys, richly wooded, and watered by numerous streams. On the slopes and at the foot of these eminences, the land is dry and well cultivated, but from thence to the sea it is frequently marshy and unfertile. The Soil scarcely admits of any general character, as almost every species, except chalk, is found in various parts. It is of great fertility, and this county is much celebrated for its agricultural produce, which, however, principally consists of cattle, sheep, and hogs; cider, cheese, and butter. The almost exclusive attention paid to grazing, and the dairy, prevents the raising of grain in sufficient quantities for the consumption of the inhabitants; and it is consequently extensively purchased from the neighbouring counties. Forests were formerly extensive, but are now nearly extinct, a small portion of that of Selwood, near Frome, alone retaining the name.

The

The Climate of Somersetshire, on the coast and in the valleys, is mild and genial; but in the northern district, and on the hills, is cold and boisterous. The Rivers, which principally take their rise among these hills, are rather numerous than important: the Avon, which rises in North Wiltshire, after numerous windings, enters this county, and flowing through Bath forms for some distance the boundary between Somerset and Gloucestershire; then passing Bristol, it falls into the Channel at King's Road. The Parret rises in Dorsetshire, and flows in a north-westerly direction through this county until it reaches Langport, where it becomes navigable, having been previously augmented by the waters of the Ivel, or Yeo, and other streams; and soon after, receiving the Tone, which rises among the Brendon Hills, near the Devonshire border, it pursues a course of about twenty miles, and falls into Bridgewater Bay. The Are rises on the western side of the Mendip Hills, and after a short course falls into the Bristol Channel; and the Brue, whose source is near the eastern border of the county, pursues a long and winding course until its reception in Bridgewater Bay, being navi

gable only about two miles. Other streams flow through various parts of this county, but not any of sufficient importance to merit particular mention; and Canals have been formed in several directions, which add greatly to the facility of intercourse with the neighbouring counties.

In Minerals Somersetshire is very productive; the Mendip Hills afford lead, calamine, and coal, which latter is also found in other parts of the county. Extensive quarries of limestone are worked in the Quantock Hills; and freestone, paving stone, marl, ochre, and fuller's earth, are met with in many places.

The Manufactures of this county consist principally of woollen cloth, hosiery, dowlas, bed tick, gloves, &c. and are carried on to a considerable

extent.

Somersetshire is included in the Western Circuit; and the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the see of Bath and Wells extends over the whole county, with the exception of that small portion of Bristol situated at its northern extremity. The present Lord Lieutenant is the Marquis of Bath.

HISTORY OF THE COUNTY.

SOMERSETSHIRE, as has already been mentioned (see vol. i. p. 309), was inhabited, previously to the Christian era, by a tribe of German extraction, called the Belgæ, who had been settled here more than three centuries, when they were compelled to submit to the all-subduing arms of Rome. These great conquerors had numerous stations in this county, which formed a part of their province of Britannia Prima, and many vestiges of their buildings and encampments, and fragments of urns, statues, and coins, which have been discovered in various places, attest their occupation, although we have no record of any remarkable event occurring here during their sway.

After the departure of the Romans in the fifth century, the British inhabitants of this district bravely defended themselves against the attempts of the Saxon invaders, and were not completely subjugated until after a struggle of more than two centuries.

Ina, King of Wessex, finally annexed Somersetshire to his dominions, about the year 700, and, with a liberality then rare, incorporated the vanquished with the victors, and allowed to all the benefit of equal laws and privileges. Towards the close of the following century, when the irresistible power of the Danes had compelled Alfred to seek security for a season in retirement, he retreated to the forest of Selwood in this county, and after residing some time in the cottage of a neatherd, collected a few of his faithful adherents, and took possession of a smalltract of land called Ethelingay, or the Isle of Nobles, and still named Athelney, situated near the junction of the rivers Tone and Parret, and rendered almost inaccessible by the extensive marshes which surrounded it. Here a habitation was constructed, from which the King and his followers made frequent incursions against the invaders, and generally returned laden with their spoils. After having ascertained, by personal inspection in the disguise of a harper, the state of confident security to which the Danes had abandoned themselves, he attacked and defeated them; and when he had rescued his country from the horrors of war, equally distinguished himself by teaching her the arts of peace.

Under the Saxon monarchs this county was governed by an Earl, with very extensive powers; and after the Norman Conquest, William bestowed this title, with no less than 61 manors or lordships, on Sir William Mohun, one of his followers. Several Earls of different families succeeded, and in 1442, John Beaufort was created Duke of Somerset, which title was afterwards held by various persons, in consequence of the frequent attainders which took place in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. In 1547 it was bestowed on the Protector, Edward Seymour, and after his execution, in 1552, lay dormant until the reign of James I, who conferred it on his infamous favourite, Robert Car. In 1660 it was revived in favour of William Seymour, Marquis of Hertford, great grandson of the Protector, and continues in the same family at the present day.

The history of Somersetshire does not present any events of importance until the period of the Civil War in the seventeenth century, when the Marquis of