The History of London Part 23

~Sir Christopher Wren~ (born 1632, died 1723): the greatest English architect. After the great fire he rebuilt St. Paul's Cathedral, fifty London churches, and many public buildings. Over his tomb in St. Paul's is the inscription in Latin: 'If you seek for his monument, look round about you.'

~The Peace of Ryswick~, 1697, made by England, Spain, and Holland with Louis XIV. of France.

~Dr. Johnson~ (born 1709, died 1784): one of the great names in English literature, and author of a celebrated dictionary.

~oriental scholar~, or ~orientalist~, is a man who studies Eastern or Indian languages, such as Persian, Arabic, Hindi, Sanskrit, &c.

~sarcophagus~: a stone chest for holding a corpse.

~porphyry~: a hard kind of stone coloured purple and white.

~Battle of the Nile~, 1798; ~Cape St. Vincent~, 1797; ~Camperdown~, 1797.

~Lord Almoner~: the official who dispenses the royal charities and bounties.

~Slavonic~: a group of kindred languages, including Russian, Polish, and Bulgarian.

25. PAUL'S CHURCHYARD.

~Embattled~: built with battlements.

~minor canons~: clergy of the cathedral who intone the services and look after the music.

~charnel~: containing the bones of the dead.

~Finsbury Fields~: the _fenny_ or marshy ground lying north of the Moorgate of the old City walls.

~Papal Bulls~: decrees and orders issued by the Pope, so called from the seal attached to them.

~Latimer~ (born 1470, died 1555), Bishop of Worcester, burnt at the stake for his Protestant opinions together with Ridley, Bishop of London.

~chapter house~: the building where the chapter or clergy belonging to the cathedral meet.

~Sacrist~: the official in a cathedral who copied and took care of the music and books.

~Paul's Chain~: so called because traffic was stopped by a chain during the hours of service.

26. THE RELIGIOUS HOUSES.

~Forester~: one who has charge of a forest to cut wood, plant new trees, &c.

~vicar~: one who acts in place of another; hence a priest who on behalf of his monastery conducted services in a parish church.

~orders~: the different brotherhoods into which monks were divided.

~indiscriminate charity~: giving without thinking, whether the charity is well or ill bestowed.

~Minorites~: monks or nuns belonging to the Franciscan Order, who in their humility called themselves the 'lesser' (_minores_) brethren, or sisters.

~Blackfriars~ were the Dominicans; ~Whitefriars~ were the Carmelites; ~Greyfriars~ were Franciscans, from the colour of their respective dresses.

~Charter House~: the house of the Carthusian monks.

~Temple~: once the house of the ~Templars~, an order of knights whose duty it was to protect the Holy Sepulchre.

~part of the church ... still to be seen~: at Clerkenwell the gate of the priory of St. John's is still standing.

27. MONKS, FRIARS, AND NUNS.

~Indiscriminately~: without making any distinctions between them.

~hermit~, from the Greek, and ~solitary~, from the Latin, mean the same thing--one who retires from the world and lives in a lonely place.

~Monte Casino~, in Campania, near Naples, where St. Benedict established his monastery in 529 A.D.

~St. Benedict~ is often shortened to Benet, as in the name of several London churches.

~austerities~: severe rules of life and conduct.

~Friars~, or brethren (French _freres_, Latin _fratres_): those orders that went forth to the people.

~a.s.sisi~: a town in Central Italy where St. Francis was born.

~St. Dominic~: born in Castile, in Spain, 1170, died 1221; founded his order to convert 'heretics,' and procured the establishment of the ~Inquisition~, or court for punis.h.i.+ng heretics.

~Sanctuary~: a refuge where criminals were safe from the law. Sir W.

Scott in the 'Fortunes of Nigel' well describes the lawless character of this district in the reign of James I.

~St. Bernard~: a celebrated brother of the Cistercian Order (born 1091, died 1153).

28. THE LONDON CHURCHES.

~St. Augustine~ was sent by Pope Gregory the Great in 597 to convert the heathen English: he was the 'Apostle of the English,' and first Archbishop of Canterbury.

~St. Dunstan~, who became Archbishop of Canterbury and died in 988, was not only a zealous priest but a great statesman and ruler.

~St. Alphege~: an Archbishop of Canterbury murdered by the Danes in 1012 A.D.

~Sise Lane~: a lane in the City, near Cannon Street.

~The Basings~: an old City family whose name also survives in the 'Ba.s.sishaw' ward of the City, and in Basinghall Street.

~Bread Street~, turning out of Cheapside, shows where the bakers chiefly dwelt in Old London.

~John Milton~ (born 1608, died 1674) wrote 'Paradise Lost,' 'Paradise Regained,' and some beautiful shorter pieces.