History of the Counties of Surrey and Sussex ... Illustrated by a series of views engraved ... by Nathaniel Whittock

Chapter II

Survey of the West Half-hundred of Brixton 446 LIST OF PLATES IN VOL. I. St. Saviour's Church, Southwark — Vignette. Guy's Hospital, Southwark " 273 Ancient Crypt, Southwark 285 Stamford Street 316 Lambeth Church and Palace 331 General Lying-in Hospital 382 Trinity Church, Southwark 407 St. James's Church, Bermondsey 416 Dulwich College 433 Battersea Church 446 St. Anne's Church, Wandsworth 457 Putney Bridge 462 Barnes 473 Hammersmith Bridge CHAP. I Situation, boundaries and extent. HISTORY OF THE COUNTIES OF SURREY AND SUSSEX.

Book I. General History, Chapter

I. SITUATION, BOUNDARIES, EXTENT, ETYMOLOGY, GENERAL APPEARANCE, CLIMATE, SOIL, AGRICULTURE, &C The Counties of Surrey and Sussex are situated in the south-eastern part of the kingdom. The northern boundary is formed by London and Middlesex, and a very small portion of Buckinghamshire ; the western by Hampshire and Berkshire ; and the eastern by Kent. The two counties assume a form nearly quadrangular, excepting on the north side, where the winding of the river Thames makes a deep indentation ; and at the opposite angle, where Sussex extends to the east-ward. Surrey is computed to be thirty-nine miles in length, from east to west ; and twenty-five miles in breadth, from north to south ; and its circumference is estimated at one hundred and forty-six miles. Accord- B

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Etymo logy. ing to the agricultural survey, made in 1794, this county taken as a plane contains about 481,947 statute acres ; but other authorities make its contents 811 square miles, or about 519,000 acres. It lies between 51° and 51° 30' north latitude, and 0° 9' east, and 0° 45' west lon gitude, from Greenwich. Sussex lies between 50° 43' and 51° 9' north latitude, and 0° 49' east, and 0° 58' west longitude from Green wich. In Templeman's tables, which we quote as the only official statement, although the accuracy cannot be fully depended on, the superficial area of the county is stated to be 1,416 square miles, and 1,140,000 acres ; the circumference one hundred and fifty-eight, the length sixty-five, and the breadth twenty-six miles. Another computation reduces the number of acres to 908,952- but this is likewise erroneous.

The real length of Sussex from Emsworth to Kent Ditch, measures seventy-six miles * the medium breadth falls short of twenty ; and the superficial contents amount to 933,360 acres. On the departure of the Romans, and the new divi sion of the country, which took place under the Saxons, by the name of the Heptarchy, these counties were re duced to a separate government, and assumed the title of Su-S Seaxnapice, i. e. the kingdom of the South Saxons, containing by estimation, 7000 hides.* On the subsequent division of England into counties, or Scypes, the northern portion received the name of •Ahide of land in the time of £dward the Confessor, was 12Q acres ; but land was not measured in England, till about the year 1008, when the realm became tributary to the Danes ; and for the more equal laying on of the tax, the country was measured, and the money levied per hide, and all paid danegelt accordingly.

CHAP. I General appear* ance. Su*op.-ea, Su-Sp-15, and Suftp-ijea, since corrupted to Surrey, from being situated south of the Thames : and from this, the various modes of writing it, as Suthriea, Suthregia, Suthrie, Suderidge, and Sudrei, are but so many natural and obvious deviations. The name of Sussex is derived from its having formed the principal part of the kingdom above-men tioned. Su*$-seax, i. e. the southern shire, in contra distinction to Suft-pea, or south ofthe river. The surface of almost the whole of the counties, except the weald, consists of gentle hill and dale. In some parts, the hills rise to a considerable height, and present some very rich and commanding views. The north-west portion of Surrey, near the river Thames, has its surface varied by Cooper's hill, and St. Anne's hill; both celebrated for the great ex tent of country which can be seen from them.

The next eminence to the east, but at a greater distance from the Thames, is St. George's hill ; after which, proceeding down the river in the same direction, the diversified and highly picturesque scenery of Richmond, Putney, and Roehampton, attract the eye ; and still farther to the east, the rising grounds about Norwood and Dulwich. Another prominent object in both counties, is the extensive downs which divide them in a longitudinal direction, and from which some of the finest and most extensive views may be obtained. Towards the northern border of the Surrey downs, Sanderstead hill, near Croydon, affords a rich and majestic prospect. From Box hill, Banstead downs, and Hedley heath, the views are also particularly admired. To the south of the downs, the surface of the county rises in the hills that overhang the weald, near BOOB, i i Oxted, Godstone, Reigate, and Dorking.

As we approach the western extremity, these hills cover a greater breadth ; and near Wonersh, Godalming, and Pepperharrow, covered with a rich foliage, and waving, with a graceful line, into intermediate vallies, watered by the different branches of the Wey, they present one of the most picturesque prospects the south of England can afford. On Leith hill, to the south-west of Dorking, Tilbuster hill, near Godstone, and Grate wood hill, near Godalming, the views are exceedingly extensive : but perhaps, there is no part of Surrey in which the appearance of the richly wooded vale of the weald is more strikingly pleasing than the road from Albury to Ewhurst. After toiling up the deep and barren sands to the south of Albury, that present no object on which the eye can repose with pleasure, even for a mo ment, we suddenly come to the southern edge of the hill, whence the whole extent of the weald, clothed with wood, appears to the south, with an occasional peep of the sea, through the breaks of the.

Sussex south downs, which form the back ground : on the south-west appears the rich and finely varied country about Godal ming, backed by the wild heaths that stretch across Farnham to Haslemere. Sometimes on a clear night, the shadow of the moon is to be seen glancing on the waves of the English Channel, forming a singular and romantic feature in the prospect.* The south, or Sussex downs, are of considerable altitude, and from them many rich and extensive views may be obtained. From Hollingbury and White hawk hills, near Brighton, and the Devil's dyke, about six miles west from the last-mentioned place, an extent of country may be seen, varied in the greatest degree, * Stevenson's View of the Agriculture of Surrey, p. 40. CHAP. 1 Climate. and enriched by high cultivation. The vicinities of Lewes, Pevensey, and Hastings, also present some pleasing scenery • and the neighbourhood of Brighton and Worthing is well known for its picturesque beauty.

The climate of counties where the soils and eleva tions are so various, must of course vary considerably. It is a generally received opinion, that less rain falls in most parts of both counties than in the metropolis, or in the vale of London, so that the climate may, upon the whole, be regarded as dry, as far as respects the quan tity of rain merely ; but the middle district or weald must necessarily be moist and damp, from the nature of the soil, the flatness of the surface, and the im mense number of trees which cover it, and obstruct ventilation. The low parts near the Thames also partake of the same character. On the other hand, the atmosphere of the chalk hills, is dry, keen, and exceedingly bracing. On the open heaths about Bagshot, Aldershot, and Hind-head, in Surrey, a similar climate prevaih, so that the whole west side may, with a very small exception, be said to have a dry, and rather cool atmosphere.

The climate of the western part of the maritime district is warm, and highly favourable to vegetation ; but it is extremely bleak on such parts of the South-down hills, as are exposed to the south-west. Here the winds are frequently so boisterous, as to strip the coverings from all thatched buildings and corn stacks, and to blow the standing corn out of the ear, when ready for harvest. " These winds," says the Rev. Mr. Young, " when impregnated with saline particles, occasioned by the beating of the spray against the beach, destroy all the hedges and trees within the sphere of their influ-

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ence. On the side exposed to their fury, the hedges seem to be cut as if it were artificially ; and in very open situations, though at a considerable distance from the coast, the spray penetrates the houses, even if built with brick. Hence arises the necessity of placing all buildings in this district, in low and sheltered positions, to prevent the mischief which would otherwise be occasioned by these winds." * The spring is in general early, and in Surrey vegetation is not so often checked by frosty mornings, and cold, raw, easterly winds, as in some of the more southern counties. The summers are commonly dry and warm, and the harvest early, generally commencing in the first ten days of August; and from the steadiness of the weather at that important time, there is seldom any corn out in the fields after the first week of September.

The wind blows most steadily from the west and south-west, seldom keeping long in any point between the north-west and north-east. In the spring, and fre quently towards the end of autumn, the easterly winds prevail, and the weather is then cold and sharp, with a drizzling moisture : but the greater quantity of rain falls when the wind blows from the southsouth-west, or south quarter. The climate is generally considered on the whole as very healthy, particularly between the southern districts, called the weald, and the river Thames, and near the northern foot of the chalk hills. The dryness of the soil and atmosphere, and the entire freedom from the smoke of the metropolis, by the prevalence of the westerly winds, have deservedly conferred the character of salubrity on the northern portion of Surrey.

Even in the weald, where the surface is low, and the soil moist, Young's Agric. of Sussex, p. 3. CHAP. I. Soil diseases are by no means frequent, neither is the ordi nary duration of human life abridged. The soil of these counties is extremely various, and by no means so clearly defined as in some other districts of the kingdom, the different kinds lying a good deal in termixed in small patches, especially the northern part of the former county. They may be reduced to the four general heads of clay, loam, chalk, and heath. The _ most extensive tract of uniform soil, is that which extends along the whole southern border of Surrey, and the northern portion of Sussex, with a considerable part of Kent, and forms what is denominated the weald, a district about thirty miles in length, and varying from six to twelve in breadth.

This almost entirely consists of a pale, cold, retentive clay, upon a sub-soil of the same nature : its surface is flat, covered with wood, and its elevation is said to be less than that of any other vale district in the kingdom. The agricultural management of the soil not only requires a large capital, but also superior skill, attention, and activity, in order to make the most of the proper seasons. Northward of the weald is a district of sandy loam, likewise stretching across the county from east to west, but on the former side it seldom exceeds half a mile in breadth, till at Albury and Shalford it expands as far as Hascomb and Hambledon on the south. The best part of this tract lies round Godalming ; the soil is every where of great depth, and rests on a base of sand-stone, veined with iron ore, which will be more particularly noticed hereafter.

The most prominent district in Surrey is that which adjoins on the north, consisting of extensive chalky downs. They lie nearly in the middle of the county, entering from Kent into Surrey, by Croydon

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i and Limpsfield, where their width, from north to south, is about seven miles, and gradually recede in width as they proceed westward, till their termination near the borders of Hampshire, where there is merely a narrow ridge, but little broader than the turnpike road. Along the elevated summit of the downs, particularly about Walton and Hedley, and between the rivers Mole and Wey, is a large extent of heath, which, for a considerable depth, divides the chalk of the northern from that of the southern compartment of the downs, though it is1 highly probable that they join at their base. Between the east downs, and the north-east portion of the county, we find a great variety of soils, but chiefly strong clay, streaked with sandy loam ; and these, with patches of gravel, continue till near Dulwich, from which place, to the extremity of the county, near Rotherhithe, is a strong unmixed clay.

If we examine farther to the west, from Banstead downs, we find the chalk bounded by a long stretch of clay, by Sutton, Morden, and the east side of Merton, till we reach the loams of Putney heath, Wimbledon, and Mortlake. A similar line of soils, but with less extent of clay, prevails between Banstead and Clandon; and the farther westward we proceed, the breadth of the clay soil that divides the chalk from the sandy loam decreases in proportion. From the northern borders of the clay to the river Thames, the soil is generally of a sandy nature, intermixed however, especially on the banks of the Mole, Wey, and Wandle, with loam of different qualities, and some clay. It is impossible to imagine a worse kind of soil than that of the heaths of Surrey ; and these unfortunately still occupy a considerable portion of the west side of the county.

The whole tract from Egham to Ash is, with little exception, heath, or moorish soil, which is also of con- CHAP. I siderable breadth ; for the space from Bagshot, through Chobham and Byfleet, to Cobham, Ripley, and Oat lands, still present a series of dreary and almost irre claimable heaths, though considerable portions have been enclosed and planted with firs and other timber. The soil is similar on the line of barren land which runs from Blackheath to Leith hill, and stretches from the vale of Albury to the beginning of the weald, near Ewhurst. The different soils of chalk, clay, sand, loam, and gravel, are to be found in Sussex. The first is the general soil of the south down hills ; the second of the woodland district termed the weald ; the third principally occupies the north part of the eounty ; the fourth is found on the north side of the hills ; and the last lies between the rich loam of the coast and the chalk.

The soil of the south downs varies according to its situation. On the summit is usually found, especially in the eastern parts, a very fleet earth, with a sub-stratum of chajk, and over that a surface of chalk rubble, covered with a light stratum of vegetable calcareous mould. Sometimes on the summit of the downs, there is only a light covering of flint, upon which the grass spontaneously grows. Proceeding down the hills, the soil becomes of a deeper staple, and at the bottom the surface is every where of sufficient depth for ploughing. Westward of the river Arun, the soil above the chalk is very gravelly, intermixed with large flints. Between the rivers of Adur and Ouse, is found a sub stratum of reddish sand, covered by a flinty surface. The depth of the soil above the chalk varies in almost every acre of land, from one to twelve inches ; the ge neral average between Eastbourne and Shoreham, does not exceed five inches ; but westward of the latter place, c

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, Encroach ments of the sea. the staple is deeper ; and between Arundel and Hamp shire, its depth continues to increase. At the northern extremity of the chalk hills, and usually extending the same length as the downs, is a strip of very rich arable land, the breadth of which is inconsiderable. The soil of this narrow strip is a stiff calcareous loam on a clay bottom, so difficult to plough, that it is no unusual thing to see ten or twelve stout oxen, and sometimes more, at work upon it. Southward of the hills is an extensive arable vale of singular fertility. This maritime district, extending thirty-six miles from Brighton to Emsworlh, is at first of very trifling breadth ; as far as Shoreham it falls short of a mile ; between the Adur and Arun it is in creased to three ; and from the Arun to the borders of Hampshire it becomes still wider, from three to seven miles.

Between this vale and the south downs, runs a strip of land, not equal to that just mentioned in richness, but excellent for the turnip husbandry. It is provin cially termed shravey, that is, stony or gravelly, the flints sometimes lying so thick as to cover the ground ; and yet it is curious to observe, how vegetation flou rishes through such beds of stone. It is the general opinion founded on experience, that were the farmers to go to the expense and trouble of picking these stones off the land, the soil would be materially in jured. For the course of how many centuries the original extent and surface of this county has been diminished, by the encroachments of the sea, it would now be useless to inquire. In the Domesday book, the words ' abstulit mare,' occur once ; but no particulars are added, as to the quantity of land so lost.

The only authentic record CHAP. I, is the return made in the Inquisitio Nonarum, in 1342, where the tax being calculated upon the value of Pope Nicholas (as it is called), when the produce of the be nefice did not reach that quota, the damage done in the years immediately preceding, was minutely specified.* Not to mention smaller damage, the whole parish of Cudlow, with the exception of about fifty acres, and half the parish of Middleton, have been absorbed by the sea. Pagham harbour, containing more than 2000 acres, from the mention made of it in the inquisition above cited, appears to have been a marsh prior to that date, and then lately rendered incapable of cultivation by a sudden irruption, and having been neglected for centuries, is become a part of the sea. At this time, the whole line of coast between the embouchure of the Arun and Emsworth harbour is visibly retreating, and the means adopted for its preservation have been hitherto attended with imperfect success.

Besides the soils already mentioned, there is a large tract of marsh land adjacent to the sea coast, between the eastern extremity of the south downs and Kent. The soil is a composition of rotten vegetables, inter mixed with sand and other matters, deposited by floods upon the earth. From these marshes, timber and trees, • West Wittering. " Terr. arab. devast. per mare, cujus decimæ val. 7 marc, et mult. terr. par Zabulonem 5 marc." Pageham. " Devast. per mare. M. M. vii. c. acr. terræ, cujus de cim. Rector percipere salet 101. 10s. Selsye. " Multas terr. arab. ad val. 8 more. (60 acr.) Fellegham (b'elpham).— "60 ac. terr. devast. per mare et 40 pas turæ. Tortington. " Po-isessiones dicti piioratus per frequentes inunda tiones maris, in magno valore, pro quo libet anno sunt consumpti." AU these are supposed to have been absorbed within the memorv of those who made the return.

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Agricul ture. each containing one load cubic measure, have at different times been dug up. The arable land in Surrey far exceeds the proportion of pasture; but, as Mr. Stevenson remarks, "in a county where the soils are so very various, and where so little of system prevails, it is impossible, by any general observations or remarks, to give an adequate and just idea of the rotation of crops that prevails even in any considerable district of the county."* The leading principle of modern husbandry, that in no case, except under very particular circumstances, ought two corn, or white crops, to succeed each other, seems to have been not long adopted, and to be still making its way, though perhaps but slowly, in most parts of the county. The drill husbandry has not found many followers in Surrey, except in the west part of the county, about Bagshot, Esher, Send, Cobham, and Ripley, where it is very general.

The produce of wheat is from two to five, and sometimes six quarters an acre ; and that of barley from four to seven and a half. The latter is principally used for malting, for which purpose it is reckoned equal in quality to any in the kingdom. The climate of this county is not favourable to oats ; and from being often grown on foul land, the produce is sometimes very low, not exceeding three quarters per acre ; but when sown on clean ley, or after turnips, it frequently yields from six to eight quarters. In Sussex, the proportion between arable and pas ture land varies in different parts of the county. In the weald, both of Surrey and Sussex, one third is arable, one third pasture, and one third wood and waste. On the south side of the downs of Sussex, the * Agricul. Survey of Surrey, p. 17S. CHAP. I, arable exceeds the pasture in the ratio of thirty to one.

On some farms the proportion is lower ; but in others much higher, for there are whole parishes that have scarcely an acre of grass, excepting a little marsh land. The practice of fallowing very generally prevails in the stiff soils of Sussex, where it is thought a necessary preparation ; but in the rich soils at the foot of the south downs, the best farmers never fallow. Though experience has proved that the practice is neither ne cessary nor profitable, yet some adhere to this sys tem, but it is, generally speaking, on the decline. The rotation of crops adopted by farmers in this district, is in a great measure governed by the nature of the soil on which they cultivate. The most general course pursued on the stiffer, or strong loamy clays, may be considered as the standard of the weald, and is as follows: — 1. fallow; 2. wheat; 3. oats; 4. clover, or rye grass, two or three years ; 5. oats, pease, or wheat.

On lighter lands is practised an ar rangement, which cannot be too much recommended : — 1. turnips; 2. barley; 3. clover; 4. wheat. In the neighbourhood of Battle, Eastbourne, and other places, a different system is pursued. Here the rotation is: — 1. potatoes; 2. barley; 3. clover; 4. wheat. Upon the chalk farms, the arrangement is this: — 1. fallow; 2. wheat ; 3. barley ; 4. clover ; 5. wheat : or, 1. wheat ; 2. barley ; 3. tares, or pease ; 4. oats ; 5. clover : or, 1. wheat ; 2. barley ; 3. clover ; 4. turnips: or, 1. wheat; 2. pease; 3. barley; 4. turnips; 5. tares. In the maritime district, the cus tomary mode of cropping is in this order : — 1. tares, or pease; 2. wheat; 3. clover; 4. clover; 5. wheat; 6. oats. This system is adapted to very rich land alone. Particular instances have occurred, when wheat has been sown four or five years in succession, and the produce has amounted to four or five quarters per acre.

Throughout the gravelly soils between Chi chester and the south downs, we find — 1. pease; 2. wheat ; 3. barley ; 4. clover ; 5. wheat ; 6. pease ; or, 1. turnips; 2. barley; 3. clover; 4. wheat. The new species of wheat, known by the name of Chidham white, pr hedge wheat, was discovered by Mr. Woods, of Chidham, in this county. Walking occasionally over his fields, he met with a single plant of it growing in a hedge. It contained thirty ears, in which were 1400 corns ; and this was the origin of the seed now dispersed over Surrey, Hampshire, and other counties. Garden pease and beans are cultivated to a great extent in the immediate neighbourhood of the metropolis, and the sandy loam near the Thames, about Mortlake and Barnes ; while the field varieties of both are extensively grown in most other parts of Surrey, and especially on the chalk hills.

There is every reason to presume, that turnips have been raised in the fields in this county, as long as in any other district in England. Sir Richard Weston, of Sutton, in his " Directions for the Improvement of barren Land," first published in 1650, gives a very clear and full account of the mode of raising turnips, practised in Flanders and Brabant, and strongly recom mends the culture of them to his countrymen. It is highly probable, that his book might have been the means of introducing this useful root to the notice of the farmers of Surrey, by whom it has been extensively cultivated, beyond the memory ofthe oldest inhabitant.* It is • Mr. Kent is certainly incorrect' when he asserts, in his Survey of Norfolk, that the turnip husbandry was introduced into that county CHAP. I. always sown, as strong objections against drilling prevail in this county.

When sold to be drawn off the field, from ten to twelve guineas per acre are very commonly given by cow-feeders ; when they are intended for mar ket, they may be reckoned worth forty pounds per acre. Most of the farmers who grow any quantity of the com mon turnip, have also several acres of the Swedish kind. The raising of cabbages is confined to the market and farming gardeners, and cow-keepers in the imme diate vicinity of the metropolis. Carrots are largely grown in the northern part of Surrey, westward of the Mole, chiefly for the London market, being very seldom given to cattle. When sold upon the ground, they generally fetch from sixteen to twenty-four pounds per acre. Potatoes are not a common crop in Surrey, except in the neighbourhood of the metropolis, especially in the parishes of Mitcham, Tooting, Streatham, and the new enclosure of Norwood Forest.

The tops are frequently cut by the cow-keepers to be given to cattle when other food becomes scarce. When sold by the acre, which yields from eight to ten tons, they vary in price from twelve to twenty pounds. The whole quantity of garden-ground in Surrey, employed in raising vegetables for the London market, is estimated to amount to about 3500 acres, being, according to Middleton, nearly as much as in the three counties of Middlesex, Kent, and Essex. Great quantities of excellent asparagus are grown in the parishes of Mortlake, Barnes, and Battersea. In the latter, much by Lord Townsend, who had witnessed the advantages derived from it in Hanover, whither he accompanied George I. of the garden-ground is employed in raising vegetables for seed. Surrey was perhaps the first district in England in which clover was cultivated.

Aubrey informs us, it was introduced in 1645, by Sir Richard Weston, before noticed. He is said to have brought it from Flanders or Brabant. Trefoil is sometimes sown in this county with red clover. Sainfoin is very extensively grown from the borders of Kent to those of Hampshire, large tracts of the chalky district being covered with this valuable herbage. The greatest part of it is made into hay. Little lucern is sown, a few farmers only having four or five acres for green crops. Beans, potatoes, buck wheat, lettuces, hops, carrots, rhubarb, opium, sainfoin, lucern, and chicory, sire not commonly cultivated in Sussex. The greatest quantity of potatoes is raised in the neighbourhood of Battle, Eastbourne, and Chichester; and the produce is from four to six hundred, and even seven hundred bushels per acre.

They are chiefly used for fattening bullocks; and they have also been em ployed with success in feeding horses and sheep. Lettuces of the white-cos_ species have been often raised by Mr. Davis, of Beddingham, for hogs ; and he has found them particularly useful for feeding young pigs after weaning. Hops are extensively cultivated about Farnham, and the south-west portion of Surrey, and in the eastern parts of Sussex. The produce of the former is so highly valued, as to fetch a higher price than that of any other hop-district in the kingdom. On the chalk hills, particularly near Banstead downs, woad is found to answer well ; it is generally CHAP. I sown with barley. A greater quantity of land is occupied in raising physical plants in Surrey than in any other county in England. Those which are grown to the greatest extent are peppermint, lavender, wormwood, camomile, aniseed, liquorice, and poppy.

With these and other plants for the druggists and perfumers, nearly three hundred acres are employed in the parish of Mitcham alone, and about one hundred and fifty more in other adjoining parts of the county. In Sussex, also, rhubarb and opium have been produced by the earl of Egremont, at Petworth. The former is found equal, and the latter much superior, to that of foreign growth. Surrey has a much smaller proportion of grass-land than most other counties in England. By far the greater part, and the most valuable of the meadow-land, lies along the banks of the Thames, in the north-west divi sion ; in the parishes of Oxted, Tandridge, Lingfield, and Crowhurst, in the south-east division ; on the banks of the Mole, near Cobham ; and on the banks of the Wey, near Godalming. There is also some meadow land in the north-east corner, near the metropolis ; but in the weald, where most grass would be expected from its low and moist situation, the proportion both of meadow and pasture is the smallest.