Chapter I: Front Matter (1)

Transcriber's note:

Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).

Small capital text has been replaced with all capitals.

The carat character (^) indicates that the following letter is superscripted (example: N^o).

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* * * * *

_Born 1704; Died 1796._

_Engraved by Philip Audinet from an Original Painting by Elias Needham 1788 in the Possession of Sir Christopher Pegge, M.D._

_Published by Nichols, Son & Bentley, Jan. 1, 1818._]

Curialia Miscellanea,

OR

_ANECDOTES OF OLD TIMES_;

REGAL, NOBLE, GENTILITIAL,

AND

MISCELLANEOUS:

INCLUDING AUTHENTIC ANECDOTES OF

THE ROYAL HOUSEHOLD,

AND THE

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE COURT,

AT AN EARLY PERIOD OF THE

English History.

BY SAMUEL PEGGE, ESQ. F.S.A.

AUTHOR OF THE "CURIALIA,"

AND OF

"ANECDOTES OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE."

PRINTED BY AND FOR J. NICHOLS, SON, AND BENTLEY,

AT THE PRINTING-OFFICE OF THE NOTES OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS,
25, PARLIAMENT STREET, AND 10, KING STREET, WESTMINSTER;

SOLD ALSO AT THEIR OLD OFFICE IN RED LION PASSAGE,
FLEET STREET, LONDON.
1818.

LIST OF PLATES.

Portrait of the Rev. Samuel Pegge, LL.D. _Frontispiece._

Whittington Church p. lix.

Whittington Rectory lxii.

Whittington Revolution House lxiii.

ADVERTISEMENT.

The publication of this Volume is strictly conformable to the testamentary intentions of the Author, who consigned the MSS. for that express purpose to the present Editor[1].

[1] See the Extract in page vi.

Mr. Pegge had, in his life-time, published Three Portions of "_Curialia_, or an Account of some Members of the Royal Houshold;" and had, with great industry and laborious research, collected materials for several other Portions, some of which were nearly completed for the press.

Mr. Pegge was "led into the investigation," he says, "by a natural and kind of instinctive curiosity, and a desire of knowing what was the antient state of the Court to which he had the honour, by the favour of his Grace William the late Duke of Devonshire, to compose a part."

Two more Portions were printed in 1806 by the present Editor. Long, however, and intimately acquainted as he was with the accuracy and diffidence of Mr. Pegge, he would have hesitated in offering those posthumous Essays to the Publick, if the plan had not been clearly defined, and the Essays sufficiently distinct to be creditable to the reputation which Mr. Pegge had already acquired, by the Parts of the "Curialia" published by himself, and by his very entertaining (posthumous) "Anecdotes of the English Language;"--a reputation which descended to him by _Hereditary Right_, and which he transmitted untarnished to a worthy and learned Son.

It was the hope and intention of the Editor to have proceeded with some other Portions of the "Curialia;" but the fatal event which (in February 1808) overwhelmed him in accumulated distress put a stop to that intention. Nearly all the printed Copies of the "Curialia" perished in the flames; and part of the original MS. was lost.

A few detached Articles, which related to the College of Arms, and to the Order of Knights Bachelors (which, had they been more perfect, would have formed one or more succeeding Portions) have since been deposited in the rich Library of that excellent College.

The Volume now submitted to the candour of the Reader is formed from the wreck of the original materials. The arranging of the several detached articles, and the revisal of them through the press, have afforded the Editor some amusement; and he flatters himself that the Volume will meet with that indulgence which the particular circumstances attending it may presume to claim.--If the Work has any merit, it is the Author's. The defects should, in fairness, be attributed to the Editor.

J. N.

_Highbury Place, Dec. 1, 1817._

*** Extract from Mr. PEGGE'S Will.

"Having the Copy-right of my little Work called _Curialia_ in
myself, I hereby give and bequeath all my interest therein,
together with all my impressions thereof which may be unsold at
the time of my decease, to my Friend Mr. John Nichols, Printer,
with the addition of as much money as will pay the Tax on this
Legacy. I also request of the said Mr. John Nichols, that he
would carefully peruse and digest all my Papers and Collections
on the above subject, and print them under the title of
_Curialia Miscellanea_, or some such description.--There is also
another Work of mine, not quite finished, intitled _Anecdotes of
the English Language_, which I wish Mr. Nichols to bring forward
from his Press. SAMUEL PEGGE."

CONTENTS.

PARENTALIA: or, Memoirs of the Rev. Dr. Samuel
Pegge, compiled by his Son Page ix-lviii

Appendix to the Parentalia:

Description of Whittington Church lix

Description of Whittington Rectory lxii

Description of The Revolution House at Whittington ibid.

Origin of the Revolution in 1688 lxiv

Celebration of the Jubilee in 1788 lxv

Stanzas by the Rev. P. Cunningham lxxi

Ode for the Revolution Jubilee lxxiii

Extracts from Letters of Dr. Pegge to Mr. Gough lxxiv

Memoirs of Samuel Pegge, Esq. by the Editor lxxvii

Appendix of Epistolary Correspondence lxxxiii

HOSPITIUM DOMINI REGIS:
or, The History of the Royal Household.

Introduction Page 1

William I. 6

William Rufus 18

Henry I. 24

Stephen 38

Henry II. (Plantagenet) 48

Richard I. 63

Henry IV. 68

Edward IV. 69

Extracts from the _Liber Niger_ 71

Knights and Esquires of the Body 73

Gentleman Usher 74

Great Chamberlain of England 76

Knights of Household 77

Esquires of the Body 79

Yeomen of the Crown 84

A Barber for the King's most high and dread Person 86

Henxmen 88

Master of Henxmen 89

Squires of Household 91

Kings of Arms, Heralds, and Pursuivants 95

Serjeants of Arms 97

Minstrels 99

A Wayte 101

Clerk of the Crown in Chancery 103

Supporters, Crests, and Cognizances, of the Kings of
England 104

Regal Titles 109

On the Virtues of the Royal Touch 111

Ceremonies for Healing, for King's Evil 154

Ceremonies for blessing Cramp-Rings 164

_Stemmata Magnatum_: Origin of the Titles of some of
the English Nobility 173

English Armorial Bearings 201

Origin and Derivation of remarkable Surnames 208

_Symbola Scotica_: Mottoes, &c. of Scottish Families 213

Dissertation on Coaches and Sedan Chairs 269

Dissertation on the Hammer Cloth 304

Articles of Dress.--Gloves 305

Ermine--Gentlewomen's Apparel 312

Apparel for the Heads of Gentlewomen 313

Mourning 314

Beard, &c. 316

Origin of the Name of the City of Westminster 320

Memoranda relative to the Society of the Temple in
London, written in 1760 323

Dissertation on the Use of _Simnel_ Bread, and the
Derivation of the Word _Simnel_ 329

Historical Essay on the Origin of "Thirteen Pence
Half-penny," as Hangman's Wages 331

Custom observed by the Lord Lieutenants of Ireland 349

Parentalia:

OR,

MEMOIRS OF THE REV. DR. PEGGE,

COMPILED BY HIS SON.

The Rev. Samuel Pegge, LL. D. and F.S.A. was the Representative of one of four Branches of the Family of that name in Derbyshire, derived from a common Ancestor, all which existed together till within a few years. The eldest became extinct by the death of Mr. William Pegge, of Yeldersley, near Ashborne, 1768; and another by that of the Rev. Nathaniel Pegge, M.A. Vicar of Packington, in Leicestershire, 1782.

The Doctor's immediate Predecessors, as may appear from the Heralds-office, were of Osmaston, near _Ashborne_, where they resided, in lineal succession, for four generations, antecedently to his Father and himself, and where they left a patrimonial inheritance, of which the Doctor died possessed[2].

[2] In Church-street, at Ashborne, is an Alms-house, originally
founded by Christopher Pegge, Esq. The name occurs also on the table
of Benefactors in Ashborne Church.

Of the other existing branch, Mr. Edward Pegge having [1662] married Gertrude, sole daughter and heir of William Strelley, Esq. of Beauchief, in the Northern part of Derbyshire, seated himself there, and was appointed High Sheriff of the County in 1667; as was his Grandson, Strelley Pegge, Esq. 1739; and his Great-grandson, the present Peter Pegge, Esq. 1788.

It was by Katharine Pegge, a daughter of Thomas Pegge, Esq. of Yeldersley, that King Charles II. (who saw her abroad during his exile) had a son born (1647), whom he called Charles _Fitz-Charles_, to whom he granted the Royal arms, with a baton sinister, Vairé, and whom (1675) his Majesty created Earl of _Plymouth_, Viscount _Totness_, and Baron _Dartmouth_[3]. He was bred to the Sea, and, having been educated abroad, most probably in Spain, was known by the name of _Don Carlos_[4]. The Earl married the Lady Bridget Osborne, third Daughter of Thomas Earl of Danby, Lord High Treasurer (at Wimbledon, in Surrey), 1678[5], and died of a flux at the siege of Tangier, 1680, without issue. The body was brought to England, and interred in Westminster Abbey[6]. The Countess re-married Dr. Philip Bisse, Bishop of Hereford, by whom she had no issue; and who, surviving her, erected a handsome tablet to her memory in his Cathedral.

[3] Docquet-book in the Crown-office.

[4] See Sandford, p. 647, edit. 1707. Granger erroneously calls him
_Carlo_; and also, by mistake, gives him the name of _Fitz-roy_.

[5] See Mr. Lysons's Environs of London, vol. I. p. 537.

[6] Dart's History of Westminster Abbey, vol. II. p. 55.

Katharine Pegge, the Earl's mother, married Sir Edward Greene, Bart. of Samford in Essex, and died without issue by him[7].

[7] There is a half-length portrait of the Earl, in a robe de
chambre, laced cravat, and flowing hair (with a ship in the back
ground of the picture), by Sir Peter Lely, now in the family: and
also two of his Mother, Lady Greene; one a half-length, with her
infant Son standing by her side; the other, a three-quarters; both
either by Sir Peter Lely, or by one of his pupils.

But to return to the Rev. Dr. Pegge, the outline _only_ of whose life we propose to give. His Father (Christopher) was, as we have observed, of Osmaston, though he never resided there, even after he became possessed of it; for, being a younger Brother, it was thought proper to put him to business; and he served his time with a considerable woollen-draper at Derby, which line he followed till the death of his elder Brother (Humphry, who died without issue 1711) at Chesterfield in Derbyshire, when he commenced lead-merchant, then a lucrative branch of traffick there; and, having been for several years a Member of the Corporation, died in his third Mayoralty, 1723.

He had married Gertrude Stephenson (a daughter of Francis Stephenson, of Unston, near Chesterfield, Gent.) whose Mother was Gertrude Pegge, a Daughter of the before-mentioned Edward Pegge, Esq. of Beauchief; by which marriage these two Branches of the Family, which had long been diverging from each ether, became reunited, both by blood and name, in the person of Dr. Pegge, their only surviving child.

He was born Nov. 5, 1704, N.S. at Chesterfield, where he had his school education; and was admitted a Pensioner of St. John's College, Cambridge, May 30, 1722, under the tuition of the Rev. Dr. William Edmundson; was matriculated July 7; and, in the following November, was elected a Scholar of the House, upon Lupton's Foundation.

In the same year with his Father (1723) died the Heir of his Maternal Grandfather (Stephenson), a minor; by whose death a moiety of the real estate at Unston (before-mentioned) became the property of our young Collegian, who was then pursuing his academical studies with intention of taking orders.

Having, however, no immediate prospect of preferment, he looked up to a Fellowship of the College, after he had taken the degree of A.B. in January 1725, N.S.; and became a candidate upon a vacancy which happened favourably in that very year; for it was a Lay-fellowship upon the Beresford Foundation, and appropriated to the Founder's kin, or at least confined to a Native of Derbyshire.

The competitors were, Mr. Michael Burton (afterwards Dr. Burton), and another, whose name we do not find; but the contest lay between Mr. Burton and Mr. Pegge. Mr. Burton had the stronger claim, being indubitably related to the Founder; but, upon examination, was declared to be so very deficient in Literature, that his superior right, as Founder's kin, was set aside, on account of the insufficiency of his learning; and Mr. Pegge was admitted, and sworn Fellow March 21, 1726, O. S.

In consequence of this disappointment, Mr. Burton was obliged to take new ground, to enable him to procure an establishment in the world; and therefore artfully applied to the College for a testimonial, that he might receive orders, and undertake some cure in the vicinity of Cambridge. Being ordained, he turned the circumstance into a manœuvre, and took an unexpected advantage of it, by appealing to the Visitor [the Bishop of Ely, Dr. Thomas Greene], representing, that, as the College had, by the testimonial, thought him qualified for Ordination, it could not, in justice, deem him unworthy of becoming a Fellow of the Society, upon such forcible claims as Founder's kin, and also as a Native of Derbyshire.

These were irresistible pleas on the part of Mr. Burton; and the Visitor found himself reluctantly obliged to eject Mr. Pegge; when Mr. Burton took possession of the Fellowship, which he held many years[8].

[8] Dr. Burton was President (_i. e._ Vice-master of the College)
when Mr. Pegge's Son was admitted of it, 1751; but soon afterwards
took the Rectory of Staplehurst in Kent, which he held till his
death in 1759.

Thus this business closed; but the Visitor did Mr. Pegge the favour to recommend him, in so particular a manner, to the Master and Seniors of the College, that he was thenceforward considered as an honorary member of the body of Fellows (_tanquam Socius_), kept his seat at their table and in the chapel, being placed in the situation of a Fellow-commoner.

In consequence, then, of this testimony of the Bishop of Ely's approbation, Mr. Pegge was chosen a Platt-fellow on the first vacancy, A. D. 1729[9]. He was therefore, in fact, _twice_ a Fellow of St. John's.

[9] The _Platt-fellowships_ at St. John's are similar to what are
called _Bye-fellowships_ in some other Colleges at Cambridge, and
are not on the Foundation. The original number was _six_, with a
stipend of 20_l., per annum_ each, besides rooms, and commons at
the Fellows' table. They were founded by William Platt, Esq. (Son
of Sir Hugh Platt, Knt.) an opulent citizen of London, out of an
estate then of the annual value of 140_l._ Being a rent-charge,
the Fellowships cannot be enlarged in point of revenue, though the
number has been increased to _eight_, by savings from the surplus.
There is a good portrait of Mr. Platt in the Master's Lodge at St.
John's, with the date of 1626, æt. 47. He died in 1637. More of him
may be seen in Mr. Lysons's Environs of London, vol. III. pp. 59,
66, 70, 71, 110, 376.

There is good reason to believe that, in the interval between his removal from his first Fellowship, and his acceding to the second, he meditated the publication of Xenophon's "_Cyropædia_" and "_Anabasis_," from a collation of them with a Duport MS. in the Library at Eton--to convince the world that the Master and Seniors of St. John's College did not judge unworthily in giving him so decided a preference to Mr. Burton in their election.

It appears that he had made very large collections for such a work; but we suspect that it was thrown aside on being anticipated by Mr. Hutchinson's Edition, which was formed from more valuable manuscripts.

He possessed a MS "Lexicon Xenophonticum" by himself, as well as a Greek Lexicon in MS.; and had also "An English Historical Dictionary," in 6 volumes folio; a French and Italian, a Latin, a British and Saxon one, in one volume each; all corrected by his notes; a "Glossarium Generale;" and two volumes of "Collections in English History."

During his residence in Kent, Mr. Pegge formed a "Monasticon Cantianum," in two folio MS volumes; a MS Dictionary for Kent; an Alphabetical List of Kentish Authors and Worthies; Kentish Collections; Places in Kent; and many large MS additions to the account of that county in the "Magna Britannia."

He also collected a good deal relative to the College at Wye, and its neighbourhood, which he thought of publishing, and engraved the seal, before engraved in Lewis's Seals. He had "Extracts from the Rental of the Royal Manor of Wye, made about 1430, in the hands of Daniel Earl of Winchelsea;" and "Copy of a Survey and Rental of the College, in the possession of Sir Windham Knatchbull, 1739."

While resident in College (and in the year 1730) Mr. Pegge was elected a Member of the Zodiac Club, a literary Society, which consisted of twelve members, denominated from the Twelve Signs. This little institution was founded, and articles, in the nature of statutes, were agreed upon Dec. 10, 1725. Afterwards (1728) this Society thought proper to enlarge their body, when six select additional members were chosen, and denominated from six of the Planets, though it still went collectively under the name of the _Zodiac Club_[10]. In this latter class Mr. Pegge was the original _Mars_, and continued a member of the Club as long as he resided in the University. His secession was in April 1732, and his seat accordingly declared vacant.

[10] Of this little academical literary Society the late Samuel
Pegge, Esq. possessed a particular History in MS. EDIT.

In the same year, 1730, Mr. Pegge appears in a more public literary body;--among the Members of the Gentlemen's Society at Spalding, in Lincolnshire, to which he contributed some papers which will be noticed below[11].

[11] In 1733, his Life of Archbishop Kempe was in forwardness for
press, and he solicited assistance for it from MSS.

In 1734, he sent them a critical letter on the name and town of Wye.

In 1739, an Account of a Religious House in Canterbury, not noticed
before, his conjectures on which were approved by Mr. Thorpe.

An Account of the Endowment of the Vicarage of Westfield in Sussex,
by Richard second Bishop of Chichester, 1249, in the hands of Sir
Peter Webster, Bart.

Account of the Amphitheatre in the Garden of the Nuns of Fidelite at
Angers: the arena 150 feet diameter, outer wall 20 feet thick, the
caveæ 14 feet long and wide, with layers of Roman brick and stone 3
or 4 feet asunder.

Having taken the degree of A. M. in July 1729, Mr. Pegge was ordained Deacon in December in the same year; and, in the February following, received Priest's orders; both of which were conferred by Dr. William Baker, Bishop of Norwich.

It was natural that he should now look to employment in his profession; and, agreeably to his wishes, he was soon retained as Curate to the Rev. Dr. John Lynch (afterwards [1733] Dean of Canterbury), at Sundrich in Kent, on which charge he entered at Lady-day 1730; and in his Principal, as will appear, soon afterwards, very unexpectedly, found a Patron.

The Doctor gave Mr. Pegge the choice of three Cures under him--of Sundrich, of a London Living, or the Chaplainship of St. Cross, of which the Doctor was then Master. Mr. Pegge preferred Sundrich, which he held till Dr. Lynch exchanged, that Rectory for Bishopsbourne, and then removed thither at Midsummer 1731.

Within a few months after this period, Dr. Lynch, who had married a daughter of Archbishop Wake, obtained for Mr. Pegge, unsolicited, the Vicarage of Godmersham (cum Challock), into which he was inducted Dec. 6, 1731.

We have said _unsolicited_, because, at the moment when the Living was conferred, Mr. Pegge had more reason to expect a _reproof_ from his Principal, than a _reward_ for so short a service of these Cures. The case was, that Mr. Pegge had, in the course of the preceding summer (unknown to Dr. Lynch) taken a little tour, for a few months, to Leyden, with a Fellow Collegian (John Stubbing, M. B. then a medical pupil under Boerhaave), leaving his Curacy to the charge of some of the neighbouring Clergy. On his return, therefore, he was not a little surprized to obtain actual preferment through Dr. Lynch, without the most distant engagement on the score of the Doctor's interest with the Archbishop, or the smallest suggestion from Mr. Pegge.

Being now in possession of a Living, and independent property, Mr. Pegge married (April 13, 1732) Miss Anne Clarke, the only daughter of Benjamin, and sister of John Clarke, Esqrs. of Stanley, near Wakefield, in the county of York, by whom he had one Son [Samuel, of whom hereafter], who, after his Mother's death, became eventually heir to his Uncle; and one Daughter, Anna-Katharina, wife of the Rev. John Bourne, M.A. of Spital, near Chesterfield, Rector of Sutton cum Duckmanton, and Vicar of South Winfield, both in Derbyshire; by whom she had two daughters, Elizabeth, who married Robert Jennings, Esq. and Jane, who married Benjamin Thompson, Esq.

While Mr. Pegge was resident in Kent, where he continued twenty years, he made himself acceptable to every body, by his general knowledge, his agreeable conversation, and his vivacity; for he was received into the familiar acquaintance of the best Gentlemen's Families in East Kent, several of whom he preserved in his correspondence after he quitted the county, till the whole of those of his own standing gave way to fate before him.

Having an early propensity to the study of Antiquity among his general researches, and being allowedly an excellent Classical Scholar, he here laid the foundation of what in time became a considerable collection of books, and his little cabinet of Coins grew in proportion; by which two assemblages (so scarce among Country Gentlemen in general) he was qualified to pursue those collateral studies, without neglecting his parochial duties, to which he was always assiduously attentive.

The few pieces which Mr. Pegge printed while he lived in Kent will be mentioned hereafter, when we shall enumerate such of his Writings as are most material. These (exclusively of Mr. _Urban_'s obligations to him in the Gentleman's Magazine) have appeared principally, and most conspicuously, in the _Archæologia_, which may be termed the Transactions of the Society of Antiquaries. In that valuable collection will be found more than fifty memoirs, written and communicated by him, many of which are of considerable length, being by much the greatest number hitherto contributed by any individual member of that respectable Society.

In returning to the order of time, we find that, in July 1746, Mr. Pegge had the great misfortune to lose his Wife; whose monumental inscription, at Godmersham, bears ample testimony of her worth:

"MDCCXLVI.
Anna Clarke, uxor Samuelis Pegge
Vicarii hujus parochiæ;
Mulier, si qua alia, sine dolo,
Vitam æternam et beatam fidenter hic sperat;
nec erit frustra."

This event entirely changed Mr. Pegge's destinations; for he now zealously meditated on some mode of removing himself, without disadvantage, into his Native County. To effect this, one of two points was to be carried; either to obtain some piece of preferment, tenable in its nature with his Kentish Vicarage; or to exchange the latter for an equivalent; in which last he eventually succeeded beyond his immediate expectations.

We are now come to a new epoch in the Doctor's life; but there is an interval of a few years to be accounted for, before he found an opportunity of effectually removing himself into Derbyshire.

His Wife being dead, his Children young and at school, and himself reduced to a life of solitude, so ungenial to his temper (though no man was better qualified to improve his leisure); he found relief by the kind offer of his valuable Friend, Sir Edward Dering, Bart.

At this moment Sir Edward chose to place his Son[12] under the care of a private Tutor at home, to qualify him more competently for the University. Sir Edward's personal knowledge of Mr. Pegge, added to the Family situation of the latter, mutually induced the former to offer, and the latter to accept, the proposal of removing from Godmersham to Surrenden (Sir Edward's mansion-house) to superintend Mr. Dering's education for a short time; in which capacity he continued about a year and a half, till Mr. Dering was admitted of St. John's College, Cambridge, in March 1751.

[12] Afterwards Sir Edward Dering, the sixth Baronet of that Family,
who died Dec. 8, 1798.

Sir Edward had no opportunity, by any patronage of his own, permanently to gratify Mr. Pegge, and to preserve him in the circle of their common Friends. On the other hand, finding Mr. Pegge's propensity to a removal so very strong, Sir Edward reluctantly pursued every possible measure to effect it.

The first vacant living in Derbyshire which offered itself was the Perpetual Curacy of _Brampton_, near Chesterfield; a situation peculiarly eligible in many respects. It became vacant in 1747; and, if it could have been obtained, would have placed Mr. Pegge in the centre of his early acquaintance in that County; and, being tenable with his Kentish living, would not have totally estranged him from his Friends in the South of England. The patronage of Brampton is in the Dean of Lincoln, which Dignity was then filled by the Rev. Dr. Thomas Cheyney; to whom, Mr. Pegge being a stranger, the application was necessarily to be made in a circuitous manner, and he was obliged to employ more than a double mediation before his name could be mentioned to the Dean.

The mode he proposed was through the influence of William the third Duke of Devonshire; to whom Mr. Pegge was personally known as a Derbyshire man (though he had so long resided in Kent), having always paid his respects to his Grace on the public days at Chatsworth, as often as opportunity served, when on a visit in Derbyshire. Mr. Pegge did not, however, think himself sufficiently in the Duke's favour to make a direct address for his Grace's recommendation to the Dean of Lincoln, though the object so fully met his wishes in moderation, and in every other point. He had, therefore, recourse to a friend, the Right Rev. Dr. Fletcher, Bishop of Dromore, then in England; who, in conjunction with Godfrey Watkinson, of Brampton Moor, Esq. (the principal resident Gentleman in the parish of Brampton) solicited, and obtained, his Grace's interest with the Dean of Lincoln: who, in consequence, nominated Mr. Pegge to the living.

One point now seemed to be gained towards his re-transplantation into his native soil, after he had resisted considerable offers had he continued in Kent; and thus did he think himself virtually in possession of a living in Derbyshire, which in its nature was tenable with Godmersham in Kent. Henceforward, then, he no doubt felt a satisfaction that he should soon be enabled to live in Derbyshire, and occasionally visit his friends in Kent, instead of residing in that county, and visiting his friends in Derbyshire.

But, after all this assiduity and anxiety (as if _admission_ and _ejection_ had pursued him a second

time), the result of Mr. Pegge's expectations was far from answering his then present wishes; for, when he thought himself secure by the Dean's nomination, and that nothing was wanting but the Bishop's licence, the Dean's _right of Patronage_ was controverted by the Parishioners of Brampton, who brought forward a Nominee of their own.

The ground of this claim, on the part of the Parish, was owing to an ill-judged indulgence of some former Deans of Lincoln, who had occasionally permitted the Parishioners to send an Incumbent directly to the _Bishop_ for his licence, without the intermediate nomination of the _Dean_ in due form.

These measures were principally fomented by the son of the last Incumbent, the Rev. Seth Ellis, a man of a reprobate character, and a disgrace to his profession, who wanted the living, and was patronised by the Parish. He had a desperate game to play; for he had not the least chance of obtaining any preferment, as no individual Patron, who was even superficially acquainted with his _moral_ character alone, could with decency advance him in the church. To complete the detail of the fate of this man, whose interest the deluded part of the mal-contents of the parish so warmly espoused, he was soon after suspended by the Bishop from officiating at Brampton[13].

[13] The Bishop's Inhibition took place soon after the decision of
the cause at Derby, and was not revoked till late in the year 1758,
which was principally effected by Mr. Pegge's intercession with
his Lordship, stating Mr. Ellis's distressed circumstances, and
his having made a proper submission, with a promise of future good
behaviour. This revocation is contained in a letter addressed to Mr.
Pegge, under the Bishop's own hand, dated Oct. 30, 1758.

Whatever inducements the Parish might have to support Mr. Ellis so strenuously we do not say, though they manifestly did not arise from any pique to one Dean more than to another; and we are decidedly clear that they were not founded in any aversion to Mr. Pegge as an individual; for his character was in all points too well established, and too well known (even to the leading opponents to the Dean), to admit of the least personal dislike in any respect. So great, nevertheless, was the acrimony with which the Parishioners pursued their visionary pretensions to the Patronage, that, not content with the decision of the Jury (which was highly respectable) in favour of the Dean, when the right of Patronage was tried in 1748; they had the audacity to carry the cause to an Assize at Derby, where, on the fullest and most incontestable evidence, a verdict was given in favour of the Dean, to the confusion and indelible disgrace of those Parishioners who espoused so bad a cause, supported by the most undaunted effrontery.

The evidence produced by the Parish went to prove, from an entry made nearly half a century before in the accompts kept by the Churchwardens, that the _Parishioners_, and not the _Deans of Lincoln_, had hitherto, on a vacancy, nominated a successor to the Bishop of the Diocese for his licence, without the intervention of any other person or party. The Parish accompts were accordingly brought into court at Derby, wherein there appeared not only a palpable erasement, but such an one as was detected by a living and credible witness; for, a Mr. _Mower_ swore that, on a vacancy in the year 1704, an application was made by the Parish to the _Dean of Lincoln_ in favour of the Rev. Mr. Littlewood[14].

[14] We believe this witness to have been _George Mower_, Esq. of
Wood-seats, in this county, who served the office of Sheriff in 1734.

In corroboration of Mr. Mower's testimony, an article in the Parish accompts and expenditures of that year was adverted to, and which, when Mr. Mower saw it, ran thus:

"Paid William Wilcoxon, for going _to Lincoln to the Dean_ concerning Mr. Littlewood, five shillings."

The Parishioners had before alleged, in proof of their title, that they had _elected_ Mr. Littlewood; and, to uphold this asseveration, had clumsily altered the parish accompt-book, and inserted the words "to _Lichfield_ to the BISHOP," in the place of the words "to _Lincoln_ to the DEAN."

Thus their own evidence was turned against the Parishioners; and not a moment's doubt remained but that the patronage rested with the DEAN _of Lincoln_.

We have related this affair without a strict adherence to chronological order as to facts, or to collateral circumstances, for the sake of preserving the narrative entire, as far as it regards the contest between the _Dean of Lincoln_ and the _Parish of Brampton_; for we believe that this transaction (uninteresting as it may be to the publick in general) is one of very few instances on record which has an exact parallel.

The intermediate points of the contest, in which Mr. Pegge was more peculiarly concerned, and which did not prominently appear to the world, were interruptions and unpleasant impediments which arose in the course of this tedious process.

He had been nominated to the Perpetual Curacy of Brampton by Dr. _Cheyney_, Dean of Lincoln; was at the sole expence of the suit respecting the right of Patronage, whereby the verdict was given in favour of the Dean; and he was actually licensed by the Bishop of Lichfield. In consequence of this decision and the Bishop's licence, Mr. Pegge, not suspecting that the contest could go any farther, attended to qualify at Brampton, on Sunday, August 28, 1748, in the usual manner; but was repelled _by violence_ from entering the Church.

In this state matters rested regarding the Patronage of Brampton, when Dr. Cheyney was unexpectedly transferred from the Deanry of _Lincoln_ to the Deanry of _Winchester_, which (we may observe by the way) he solicited on motives similar to those which actuated Mr. Pegge at the very moment; for Dr. Cheyney, being a Native of Winchester, procured an exchange of his Deanry of Lincoln with the Rev. Dr. William George, Provost of Queen's college, Cambridge, for whom the Deanry of Winchester was intended by the Minister on the part of the Crown.

Thus Mr. Pegge's interests and applications were to begin _de novo_ with the Patron of Brampton; for, his nomination by Dr. Cheyney, in the then state of things, was of no validity. He fell, however, into liberal hands; for his activity in the proceedings which had hitherto taken place respecting the living in question had rendered fresh advocates unnecessary, as it had secured the unasked favour of Dr. George, who not long afterwards voluntarily gave him the Rectory of _Whittington_, near Chesterfield, in Derbyshire; into which he was inducted Nov. 11, 1751, and where he resided for upwards of 44 years without interruption[15].

[15] Dr. George's letter to Mr. Pegge on the occasion has been
preserved, and is conceived in the most manly and generous terms.
On account of the distance, Mr. Pegge then residing in Kent, the
Dean was so obliging as to concert matters with Bishop (Frederick)
Cornwallis, who then sat at Lichfield, that the living might _lapse_
without injury to Mr. Pegge, who therefore took it, in fact, from
his Lordship by _collation_.

Though Mr. Pegge had relinquished all farther pretensions to the living of _Brampton_ before the cause came to a decision at Derby, yet he gave every possible assistance at the trial, by the communication of various documents, as well as by his personal evidence at the Assize, to support the claim of the new Nominee, the Rev. John Bowman, in whose favour the verdict was given, and who afterwards enjoyed the benefice.

Here then we take leave of this troublesome affair, so nefarious and unwarrantable on the part of the Parishioners of _Brampton_; and from which PATRONS of every description may draw their own inferences.

Mr. Pegge's ecclesiastical prospect in Derbyshire began soon to brighten; and he ere long obtained the more eligible living of _Whittington_. Add to this that, in the course of the dispute concerning the Patronage of Brampton, he became known to the Hon. and Right Rev. Frederick (Cornwallis) Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry; who ever afterwards favoured him not only with his personal regard, but with his patronage, which extended even beyond the grave, as will be mentioned hereafter in the order of time.

We must now revert to Mr. Pegge's old Friend Sir Edward Dering, who, at the moment when Mr. Pegge decidedly took the living of _Whittington_, in Derbyshire, began to negotiate with his Grace of Canterbury (Dr. Herring), the Patron of _Godmersham_, for an exchange of that living for something tenable with Whittington.

The Archbishop's answer to this application was highly honourable to Mr. Pegge: "Why," said his Grace, "will Mr. Pegge leave my Diocese? If he will continue in Kent, I promise you, Sir Edward, that I will give him preferment to his satisfaction[16]."

[16] Mr. Pegge became known, at least by name, to Dr. Herring, when
Archbishop of York, by an occasional Sermon (which will be adverted
to among Mr. Pegge's writings), on the publication whereof his
Grace sent him a letter in handsome terms. When the Archbishop was
translated to Canterbury, Mr. Pegge was, most probably, personally
known to him as the Diocesan.

No allurements, however, could prevail; and Mr. Pegge, at all events, accepted the Rectory of _Whittington_, leaving every other pursuit of the kind to contingent circumstances. An exchange was, nevertheless, very soon afterwards effected, by the interest of Sir Edward with the _Duke of Devonshire_, who consented that Mr. Pegge should take his Grace's Rectory of _Brinhill_[17] in Lancashire, then luckily void, the Archbishop at the same time engaging to present the _Duke's_ Clerk to _Godmersham_. Mr. Pegge was accordingly inducted into the Rectory of _Brindle_, Nov. 23, 1751, in less than a fortnight after his induction at _Whittington_[18].

[17] More usually called _Brindle_.

[18] The person who actually succeeded to the Vicarage of Godmersham
was the Rev. _Aden Ley_, who died there in 1766.

In addition to this favour from the Family of _Cavendish_, Sir Edward Dering obtained for Mr. Pegge, almost at the same moment, a _scarf_ from the _Marquis of Hartington_ (afterwards the fourth Duke of Devonshire), then called up to the House of Peers, in June 1751, by the title of Baron _Cavendish_ of _Hardwick_. Mr. Pegge's appointment is dated Nov. 18, 1751; and thus, after all his solicitude, he found himself possessed of two livings and a dignity, honourably and indulgently conferred, as well as most desirably connected, in the same year and in the same month; though this latter circumstance may be attributed to the voluntary lapse of Whittington[19]. After Mr. Pegge had held the Rectory of _Brinhill_ for a few years, an opportunity offered, by another obliging acquiescence of the Duke _of Devonshire_, to exchange it for the living of _Heath_ (alias _Lown_), in his _Grace's_ Patronage, which lies within seven miles of Whittington: a very commodious measure, as it brought Mr. Pegge's parochial preferments within a smaller distance of each other. He was accordingly inducted into the Vicarage of _Heath_, Oct. 22, 1758, which he held till his death.

[19] Soon after the fourth Duke of Devonshire came of age, 1769,
finding that he had many friends of his own to oblige, it was
suggested to the Senior Chaplains that a resignation would be deemed
a compliment by his Grace. Mr. Pegge, therefore (among some others),
relinquished his Chaplainship, though he continued to wear the
_scarf_.

This was the last favour of the kind which Mr. Pegge _individually_ received from the DUKES OF DEVONSHIRE; but the Compiler of this little Memoir regarding his late Father, flatters himself that it can give no offence to that Noble Family if he takes the opportunity of testifying a sense of his own _personal_ obligations to William the fourth DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE, when his Grace was _Lord Chamberlain_ of his MAJESTY'S _Household_.

As to Mr. Pegge's other preferments, they shall only be briefly mentioned in chronological order; but with due regard to his obligations. In the year 1765 he was presented to the Perpetual Curacy of _Wingerworth_, about six miles from. Whittington, by the Honourable and Reverend James _Yorke_, then _Dean of Lincoln_, afterwards _Bishop of Ely_, to whom he was but little known but by name and character. This appendage was rendered the more acceptable to Mr. Pegge, because the seat of his very respectable Friend Sir Henry Hunloke, Bart. is in the parish, from whom, and all the Family, Mr. Pegge ever received great civilities.

We have already observed, that Mr. Pegge became known, insensibly as it were, to the Honourable and Right Reverend Frederick (_Cornwallis_), Bishop of Lichfield, during the contest respecting the living of _Brampton_; from whom he afterwards received more than one favour, and by whom another greater instance of regard was intended, as will be mentioned hereafter.

Mr. Pegge was first collated by his Lordship to the Prebend of _Bobenhull_, in the Church of _Lichfield_, in 1757; and was afterwards voluntarily advanced by him to that of _Whittington_ in 1763, which he possessed at his death[20].

[20] It is rather a singular coincidence, that Mr. Pegge should have
been at the same time _Rector_ of _Whittington_ in _Derbyshire_
and _Prebendary_ of _Whittington_ in _Staffordshire_, both in one
Diocese, under different patronages, and totally independent of each
other. These two _Whittingtons_ are likewise nearly equidistant from
places of the name of _Chesterfield_.

In addition to the Stall at Lichfield, Mr. Pegge enjoyed the Prebend of _Louth_, in the Cathedral of _Lincoln_, to which he had been collated (in 1772) by his old acquaintance, and Fellow-collegian, the late Right Reverend John _Green_, Bishop of that See[21].

[21] The Prebend of _Louth_ carries with it the _Patronage_ of the
Vicarage of the _Parish_ of _Louth_, to which Mr. Pegge presented
more than once. On the first vacancy, having no Clerk of his own,
he offered the nomination to his Benefactor Bishop _Green_; at the
last, he gave the living, uninfluenced, to the present Incumbent,
the Rev. _Wolley Jolland_, son of the Recorder of Louth.

This seems to be the proper place to subjoin, that, towards the close of his life, Mr. Pegge declined a situation for which, in more early days, he had the greatest predilection, and had taken every active and modest measure to obtain--a _Residentiaryship_ in the Church of _Lichfield_.

Mr. Pegge's wishes tended to this point on laudable, and almost natural motives, as soon as his interest with the Bishop began to gain strength; for it would have been a very pleasant interchange, at that period of life, to have passed a portion of the year at _Lichfield_. This expectation, however, could not be brought forward till he was too far advanced in age to endure with tolerable convenience a removal from time to time; and therefore, when the offer was realized, he declined the acceptance.

The case was literally this: While Mr. Pegge's elevation in the Church of _Lichfield_ rested solely upon Bishop (_Frederick_) Cornwallis, it was secure, had a vacancy happened: but his Patron was translated to _Canterbury_ in 1768, and Mr. Pegge had henceforward little more than personal knowledge of any of his Grace's Successors at _Lichfield_, till the Hon. and Right Reverend _James_ Cornwallis (the Archbishop's Nephew) was consecrated Bishop of that See in 1781.

On this occasion, to restore the balance in favour of Mr. Pegge, the Archbishop had the kindness to make an _Option_ of the _Residentiaryship_ at _Lichfield_, then possessed by the Rev. Thomas _Seward_. It was, nevertheless, several years before even the tender of this preferment could take place; as his _Grace_ of _Canterbury_ died in 1783, while Mr. _Seward_ was living.

_Options_ being personal property, Mr. Pegge's interest, on the demise of the _Archbishop_, fell into the hands of the Hon. Mrs. _Cornwallis_, his Relict and Executrix, who fulfilled his _Grace's_ original intention in the most friendly manner, on the death of Mr. _Seward_, in 1790[22].

[22] It was said at the time, as we recollect, that this piece of
preferment was so peculiar in its tenure, as not to be strictly
_optionable_; for, had the _See_ of _Lichfield_ been possessed by a
Bishop inimical to the Archbishop or to Mr. Pegge at the time of the
vacancy of the Stall, such Bishop might have defeated his _Grace's_
intentions. The qualifications of the Residentiaries in this
Cathedral we understand to be singular, dependent on the possession
of certain _Prebendal Houses_, which are in the absolute disposal of
the Bishop, as a _sine quâ non_, to constitute the eligibility which
is vested in the _Dean_ and _Chapter_. As matters stood, in this
case, at the death of Mr. _Seward_, the present Bishop of Lichfield
(_Dr. James Cornwallis_), Mr. Pegge's warm Friend, co-operating with
the Dowager Mrs. _Cornwallis_, removed every obstruction.

The little occasional transactions which primarily brought Mr. Pegge within the notice of Bishop (_Frederick_) Cornwallis at Eccleshall-castle led his Lordship to indulge him with a greater share of personal esteem than has often fallen to the lot of a private Clergyman so remotely placed from his Diocesan. Mr. Pegge had attended his Lordship two or three times on affairs of business, as one of the Parochial Clergy, after which the Bishop did him the honour to invite him to make an annual visit at Eccleshall-castle as an _Acquaintance_. The compliance with this overture was not only very flattering, but highly gratifying, to Mr. Pegge, who consequently waited upon his Lordship for a fortnight in the Autumn, during several years, till the Bishop was translated to the Metropolitical See of _Canterbury_ in 1768. After this, however, his Grace did not forget his humble friend, the _Rector of_ _Whittington_, as will be seen; and sometimes corresponded with him on indifferent matters.

About the same time that Mr. Pegge paid these visits at Eccleshall-castle, he adopted an expedient to change the scene, likewise, by a journey to London (between Easter and Whitsuntide); where, for a few years, he was entertained by his old Friend and Fellow-collegian the Rev. Dr. _John Taylor_, F. S. A. Chancellor of Lincoln, &c. (the learned Editor of Demosthenes and Lysias), then one of the Residentiaries of St. Paul's.

After Dr. Taylor's death (1766), the Bishop of Lincoln, Dr. _John Green_, another old College-acquaintance, became Mr. Pegge's London-host for a few years, till _Archbishop Cornwallis_ began to reside at Lambeth. This event superseded the visits to Bishop _Green_, as Mr. Pegge soon afterwards received a very friendly invitation from his _Grace_; to whom, from that time, he annually paid his respects at _Lambeth-palace_, for a month in the Spring, till the _Archbishop's_ decease, which took place about Easter 1783.

All these were delectable visits to a man of Mr. Pegge's turn of mind, whose conversation was adapted to every company, and who enjoyed _the world_ with greater relish from not living in it every day. The society with which he intermixed, in such excursions, changed his ideas, and relieved him from the _tædium_ of a life of much reading and retirement; as, in the course of these journeys, he often had opportunities of meeting old _Friends_, and of making new _literary acquaintance_.

On some of these occasions he passed for a week into _Kent_, among such of his old Associates as were then living, till the death of his much-honoured Friend, and former Parishioner, the elder _Thomas Knight_, Esq. of Godmersham, in 1781[23]. We ought on no account to omit the mention of some _extra-visits_ which Mr. Pegge occasionally made to Bishop _Green_, at _Buckden_, to which we are indebted for the Life of that excellent Prelate _Robert Grosseteste_, Bishop of _Lincoln_;--a work upon which we shall only observe here, that it is Dr. Pegge's _chef-d'œuvre_, and merits from the world much obligation. To these interviews with Bishop _Green_, we may also attribute those ample Collections, which Dr. Pegge left among his MSS. towards a History of the _Bishops_ of _Lincoln_, and of that _Cathedral_ in general, &c. &c.

[23] The very just character of Mr. _Knight_ given in the
Gentleman's Magazine, vol. LI. p. 147, was drawn by Mr. _Pegge_, who
had been intimate with him very nearly half a century.

With the decease of Archbishop Cornwallis (1783), Mr. Pegge's excursions to London terminated. His old familiar Friends, and principal acquaintance there, were gathered to their fathers; and he felt that the lot of a long life had fallen upon him, having survived not only the _first_, but the _second_ class of his numerous distant connexions.

While on one of these visits at Lambeth, the late _Gustavus Brander_, Esq. F. S. A. who entertained an uncommon partiality for Mr. Pegge, persuaded him, very much against his inclination, to sit for a Drawing, from which an octavo _Print_ of him might be engraved by Basire. The Work went on so slowly, that the Plate was not finished till 1785, when Mr. Pegge's current age was 81. Being a _private Print_, it was at first only intended for, and distributed among, the particular Friends of Mr. Brander and Mr. Pegge. This Print, however, _now_ carries with it something of a publication; for a considerable number of the impressions were dispersed after Mr. _Brander_'s death, when his Library, &c. were sold by auction; and the Print is often found prefixed to copies of "The Forme of Cury," a work which will hereafter be specified among Mr. Pegge's literary labours[24].

[24] This Print has the following inscription:

"SAMUEL PEGGE, A.M. S.A.S.
A.D. MDCCLXXXV. Æt. 81.

Impensis, et ex Voto, Gustavi Brander, Arm.
Sibi et Amicis."

We cannot in any degree subscribe to the resemblance, though, the
print is well engraved. There is, however, a three-quarters portrait
in oil (in the possession of his grandson, Sir Christopher Pegge,
and much valued by him) painted in 1788, by Mr. Elias Needham, a
young Provincial Artist, and a native of Derbyshire, which does
the Painter great credit, being a likeness uncommonly striking.
Dr. Pegge being an old gentleman well known, with a countenance
of much character, the Portrait was taken at the request of Mr.
Needham; who, after exhibiting it to his Patrons and Friends, made a
present of it to Mr. Pegge. Those who knew Dr. Pegge, and have had
an opportunity of comparing the Portrait with the Print, will agree
with us, that no two pictures of the same person, taken nearly at
the same point of life, and so unlike each other, can both be true
resemblances.--A faithful Engraving from Mr. Needham's Portrait is
prefixed to the present Volume.

The remainder of Mr. Pegge's life after the year 1783 was, in a great measure, reduced to a state of quietude; but not without an extensive correspondence with the world in the line of Antiquarian researches: for he afterwards contributed largely to the _Archæologia_, and the Bibliotheca_ Topographica Britannica_, &c. &c. as may appear to those who will take the trouble to compare the dates of his Writings, which will hereafter be enumerated, with the time of which we are speaking.

The only periodical variation in life, which attended Mr. Pegge after the Archbishop's death, consisted of Summer visits at Eccleshall-castle to the present Bishop (_James_) Cornwallis, who (if we may be allowed the word) _adopted_ Mr. Pegge as his guest so long as he was able to undertake such journeys.

We have already seen an instance of his Lordship's kindness in the case of the intended _Residentiaryship_; and have, moreover, good reasons to believe that, had the late _Archdeacon_ of _Derby_ (Dr. Henry Egerton) died at an earlier stage of Mr. Pegge's life, he would have succeeded to that dignity.

This part of the Memoir ought not to be dismissed without observing, to the honour of Mr. Pegge, that, as it was not in his power to make any individual return (in his life-time) to his Patrons, the two Bishops of _Lichfield_ of the name of _Cornwallis_, for their extended civilities, he directed, by testamentary instructions, that _one hundred volumes_ out of his Collection of Books should be given to the Library of the Cathedral of _Lichfield_[25].

[25] He specified, in writing, about fourscore of these volumes,
which were chiefly what may be called Library-books; the rest were
added by his Son.

During Mr. Pegge's involuntary retreat from his former associations with the more remote parts of the Kingdom, he was actively awake to such objects in which he was implicated nearer home.

Early in the year 1788 material repairs and considerable alterations became necessary to the Cathedral of _Lichfield_. A subscription was accordingly begun by the Members of the Church, supported by many Lay-gentlemen of the neighbourhood; when Mr. Pegge, as a Prebendary, not only contributed handsomely, but projected, and drew up, a circular letter, addressed to the Rev. Charles Hope, M. A. the Minister of All Saints (the principal) Church in Derby, recommending the promotion of this public design. The Letter, being inserted in several Provincial Newspapers, was so well seconded by Mr. Hope, that it had a due effect upon the Clergy and Laity of the Diocese in general; for which Mr. Pegge received a written acknowledgment of thanks from the present Bishop of _Lichfield_, dated May 29, 1788.

This year (1788), memorable as a Centenary in the annals of England, was honourable to the little Parish of _Whittington_, which accidentally bore a subordinate _local_ part in the History of the _Revolution;_ for it was to an inconsiderable public-house _there_ (still called the _Revolution-house_) that the Earl of Devonshire, the Earl of Danby, the Lord Delamere, and the Hon. John D'Arcy, were driven for shelter, by a sudden shower of rain, from the adjoining common (_Whittington-Moor_), where they had met by appointment, disguised as farmers, to concert measures, unobservedly, for promoting the succession of King William III. after the abdication of King James II.[26]

[26] In this year he printed "A Narrative of what passed at the
Revolution-house at Whittington in the year 1688, with a view and
plan of the house by Major Rooke (reprinted in Gent. Mag. vol. LIX.
p. 124)." [See the Appendix.]

The celebration of this Jubilee, on Nov. 5, 1788, is related at large in the Gentleman's Magazine of that month[27]; on which day Mr. Pegge preached a Sermon[28], apposite to the occasion, which was printed at the request of the Gentlemen of the Committee who conducted the ceremonial[29], which proceeded from his Church to Chesterfield in grand procession.

[27] See the Appendix to this Memoir.

[28] In this Discourse the venerable Preacher, taking for his text
Psalm cxviii. 24, first recites, in plain and unaffected language,
the blessings resulting from the event here commemorated to Church
and State; and then points out the corruptions of the present age,
with advice for their reformation.