to conspire against the miserable remnant of her days.

"By the attainder of the Countess, this, with the rest of her estates, became forfeited to the crown; but Henry was prevailed upon to regrant it, in exchange for other lands, to the heirs of her great uncle, John Nevil, Marquis Montague. From an heir female of this branch, Viscount Montague, son of Sir Anthony Brown, master of the horse to Henry VIII., derived it and his title, conferred by Queen Mary. But his half brother, the Earl of Southampton, had previously substituted to the ancient mansion a costly structure, decorated internally with that profusion of homely art which displayed the wealth, and satisfied the taste, of a courtier of Henry VIII.

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"There was a parlour, elegantly adorned with the works of Holbein and his scholars-a chapel richly furnished-a long gallery painted with the twelve Apostles, and a corresponding one hung with family pictures, and with various old paintings on subjects, religious and military, brought from Battle Abbey; the spoils of which had been assigned to Sir Anthony Brown, as that share of the general plunder of the monasteries to which his long and faithful service had entitled him from the bounty of his master.

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Amongst other particulars of the visit of Her Majesty at Coudray, we are told, that on the

morning after her arrival, she rode in the park, where a delicate bower' was prepared; and a nymph, with a sweet song, delivered her a crossbow to shoot at the deer; of which she killed three or four, and the Countess of Kildare, one ;it may be added, that this was a kind of amusement in which the ladies of that age not unfrequently partook-an additional trait of the barbarity of the manners. Viscount Montagu died two years after this visit, and, to complete his story, lies buried in Midhurst Church, under a splendid monument of many-coloured marbles; on which may still be seen a figure, representing him kneeling before an altar, in fine gilt armour, with a cloak and beard of formal cut. Beneath are placed recumbent effigies of his two wives, dressed in rich cloaks and ruffs, with chained unicorns at their feet; and the whole is surrounded with sculptured scutcheons, laboriously executed with innumerable quarterings."

PLATE CXLIII.

Eastbourne Priory, Midhurst.

THE priory of Esseburne, Oseburn, or East Bourne, is said to have been founded in the reign

of Henry the Third, by Sir John Bohun, of Midhurst, and endowed by Sir David Owen, who married the heiress of the Bohuns; but the date of its foundation is not noticed in the Monasticon; it was a religious house, consisting of a prioress, and five or six nuns; but the extent of the building would lead us to suppose that it was intended for a much larger community. Its possessions, at the time of the dissolution, are differently stated; according to Dugdale, they were valued at 297. 16s. 7d. per annum; but Speed rates them at 477. 3s.; which, with the site, were granted to Sir William Fitzwilliam, and are now the property of William Stephen Poyntz, Esq. whose lady is sister to the late Viscount Montague.

This plate describes a south-west view of what appears to have been the chapel, which stands behind the priory, and was once a handsome building, but is now used as a barn.

seen between the first buttress

The circular arch,

and the window,

points out the original entrance. The trees, at the right, belong to Cowdrey Park, in which this priory is situated.

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Plate 144.-Site of Verdley Castle, and Blackdown Hill.

Plate 145.-Remains of the Keep of Verdley Castle, near Midhurst.

A FEW loose and disjointed stones, scattered in all directions, are all that remains of Verdley Castle, which stood in a wood, bearing the same name, about half a mile east from the village of Henley, on the high road to Midhurst. In the back-ground is Blackdown-hill, whereon the vestiges of a Roman military station may be distinctly traced. Its situation was on the north side of Henley Hill, and the present swamp round the site of it, supporting now a great growth of rushes, by which only is the guide to find the spot, proves it was surrounded by water.

The last drawing furnishes a very just representation of the dilapidated condition of Verdley Castle, even as far back as about the year 1775, when it was delineated for the Burrell Collection, from which this drawing was taken. It was, we suppose, merely a tower erected for the temporary presence of the possessor upon the affairs of this lordship, or as a hunting resort. Verdley is said to be in Fernhurst, a name evidently appertaining to a wooded district, and belonging also to the lordship of Midhurst.

PLATE CXLVI.

Shelbred Priory, Lenchmere.

SHELBRED Priory for Augustine monks, founded by Sir Ralph de Arderne, or de Arden, knight, stands in the parish of Lenchmere, about two miles from Liphook, on the borders of Hampshire; and, having been fitted up for a farm-house, the original form of the building is nearly lost; the situation is low, and surrounded with woods; near which runs a small stream which fed the fish-ponds of the priory. The endowment of this house was estimated by Dugdale at 727. 15s. 10d. per annum;by Speed, at 797. 15s. 6d.

In the year 1538, the last prior, George Wildene, having surrendered Shelbred Priory into the king's hands, Henry VIII. granted its site and demesnes to Sir William Fitzwilliam, Lord Southampton; and they afterwards reverted to his half brother, Sir Anthony Browne, Viscount Montague.

At the right of the plate are three arched windows, and the remains of two walls; these are the ruins of the refectory, more commonly called the monk's vault. This view represents a northern aspect. The present proprietor is William Stephen Poyntz, Esq.