The Earl of Cornwall, brother of Edward III.
Upon another tomb is an honorary inscription for Frances, Duchess of
Suffolk. The sense of it is,
That titles, royal birth, riches, or a large family, are of no
avail:
That all are transitory; virtue alone resisting the funeral pile.
That this lady was first married to a duke, then to Stoke, a
gentleman;
And lastly, by the grave espoused to CHRIST.
The next is the tomb of Lord Russell, son of the Earl of Bedford,
whose lady composed the following Greek and Latin verses, and had
them engraved on the marble:-
How was I startled at the cruel feast,
By death's rude hands in horrid manner drest;
Such grief as sure no hapless woman knew,
When thy pale image lay before my view.
Thy father's heir in beauteous form arrayed
Like flowers in spring, and fair, like them to fade;
Leaving behind unhappy wretched me,
And all thy little orphan-progeny:
Alike the beauteous face, the comely air,
The tongue persuasive, and the actions fair,
Decay: so learning too in time shall waste:
But faith, chaste lovely faith, shall ever last.
The once bright glory of his house, the pride
Of all his country, dusty ruins hide:
Mourn, hapless orphans; mourn, once happy wife;
For when he died, died all the joys of life.
Pious and just, amidst a large estate,
He got at once the name of good and great.
He made no flatt'ring parasite his guest,
But asked the good companions to the feast.
Anne, Countess of Oxford, daughter of William Cecil, Baron Burleigh,
and Lord Treasurer.
Philippa, daughter and co-heiress of John, Lord Mohun of Dunster,
wife of Edward, Duke of York.
Frances, Countess of Sussex, of the ancient family of Sidney.
Thomas Bromley, Chancellor to Queen Elizabeth.
The Earl of Bridgewater, {4} Lord Dawbney, Lord Chamberlain to Henry
VII., and his lady.
And thus much for Westminster.
There are many other churches in this city, but none so remarkable
for the tombs of persons of distinction.
Near to this church is Westminster Hall, where, besides the Sessions
of Parliament, which are often held there, are the Courts of
Justice; and at stated times are heard their trials in law, or
concerning the king's patrimony, or in chancery, which moderates the
severity of the common law by equity. Till the time of Henry I. the
Prime Court of Justice was movable, and followed the King's Court,
but he enacted by the Magna Charta that the common pleas should no
longer attend his Court, but be held at some determined place. The
present hall was built by King Richard II. in the place of an
ancient one which he caused to be taken down. He made it part of
his habitation (for at that time the Kings of England determined
causes in their own proper person, and from the days of Edward the
Confessor had their palace adjoining), till, above sixty years
since, upon its being burnt, Henry VIII. removed the royal
residence to Whitehall, situated in the neighbourhood, which a
little before was the house of Cardinal Wolsey. This palace is
truly royal, enclosed on one side by the Thames, on the other by a
park, which connects it with St. James's, another royal palace.
In the chamber where the Parliament is usually held, the seats and
wainscot are made of wood, the growth of Ireland; said to have that
occult quality, that all poisonous animals are driven away by it;
and it is affirmed for certain, that in Ireland there are neither
serpents, toads, nor any other venomous creature to be found.
Near this place are seen an immense number of swans, who wander up
and down the river for some miles, in great security; nobody daring
to molest, much less kill any of them, under penalty of a
considerable fine.
In Whitehall are the following things worthy of observation:-
I. The Royal Library, well stored with Greek, Latin, Italian and
French books; amongst the rest, a little one in French upon
parchment, in the handwriting of the present reigning Queen
Elizabeth, thus inscribed:-
To the most high, puissant, and redoubted prince, Henry VIII. of the
name, King of England, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith;
Elizabeth, his most humble daughter. Health and obedience.
All these books are bound in velvet in different colours, though
chiefly red, with clasps of gold and silver; some have pearls and
precious stones set in their bindings.
II. Two little silver cabinets of exquisite work, in which the
Queen keeps her paper, and which she uses for writing boxes.
III. The Queen's bed, ingeniously composed of woods of different
colours, with quilts of silk, velvet, gold, silver, and embroidery.
IV. A little chest ornamented all over with pearls, in which the
Queen keeps her bracelets, ear-rings, and other things of
extraordinary value.
V. Christ's Passion, in painted glass.
VI. Portraits: among which are, Queen Elizabeth, at sixteen years
old; Henry, Richard, Edward, Kings of England; Rosamond; Lucrece, a
Grecian bride, in her nuptial habit; the genealogy of the Kings of
England; a picture of King Edward VI., representing at first sight
something quite deformed, till by looking through a small hole in
the cover which is put over it, you see it in its true proportions;
Charles V., Emperor; Charles Emanuel, Duke of Savoy, and Catherine
of Spain, his wife; Ferdinand, Duke of Florence, with his daughters;
one of Philip, King of Spain, when he came into England and married
Mary; Henry VII., Henry VIII., and his mother; besides many more of
illustrious men and women; and a picture of the Siege of Malta.
VII. A small hermitage, half hid in a rock, finely carved in wood.
VIII. Variety of emblems on paper, cut in the shape of shields,
with mottoes, used by the mobility at tilts and tournaments, hung up
here for a memorial.
