Rochester

ROCHESTER, an ancient city and port, having separate jurisdiction, in the union of Medway, locally in the lathe of Aylesford, W. division of Kent, 8½ miles (N.) from Maidstone, and 29 (E. S. E.) from London, on the road to Dovor; containing, with part of Chatham, and part of Strood Infra, 11,743 inhabitants. This place, the Durobrivæ of the Romans, and one of their stipendiary towns, was by the Saxons called Hrove ceastre, from which by contraction its present name is derived. The Roman Watling-street from Canterbury passed through it; and the city was defended by walls built, according to the Roman custom, in the direction of the cardinal points, and extending for half a mile from east to west, and about a quarter of a mile from north to south. Little of its history has been recorded previously to the Saxon era, in the early period of which, Ethelbert, King of Kent, having been converted to Christianity by the preaching of St. Augustine, to whom he gave large possessions at Canterbury, founded a church in this city, and thus laid the foundation of its subsequent importance. In 676, Ethelred, King of Mercia, making an irruption into Kent, plundered and nearly destroyed the place, which also suffered from repeated attacks of the Danes, who committed the most barbarous outrages. In 839, these ferocious invaders having landed at Romney, and defeated the troops sent to oppose them, plundered Rochester, and massacred its inhabitants; and in 885, another party of them, under their leader Hasting, sailed up the Medway, and laid siege to the city, before which they threw up a strong intrenchment; but on this occasion the inhabitants opposed a vigorous resistance, till Alfred, coming to their aid, obliged the enemy to raise the siege, and retire to their ships with considerable loss. Athelstan, about the year 930, established three mints at Rochester, at that time one of the chief ports in the island; two of these mints were for the use of the king, and one for the bishop. On another invasion of the Danes, in 999, the inhabitants, struck with terror at their approach, abandoned the city to their fury.

At the time of the Conquest, Rochester was given by William to his half-brother, Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, whom he created Earl of Kent, and who, in the reign of William Rufus, having headed a conspiracy against that monarch, in favour of Robert, Duke of Normandy, was besieged in the castle here, and deprived of his possessions, which reverted to the crown. In 1130, Henry I., with several of his nobles, attended at the consecration of the church of St. Andrew, in Rochester, by Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury: during the ceremony a dreadful fire broke out, which raged with such fury that the city was nearly reduced to ashes. In 1137, it was again burnt; and it had scarcely recovered from that calamity, when a third destructive fire spread with so great rapidity and to such an extent, that traces of its devastation were visible for ages. In 1141, Robert, Earl of Gloucester, chief general and counsellor of Matilda, after having effected that queen's escape, was himself taken prisoner at Winchester, and confined in the castle of this city; but he was soon afterwards exchanged for King Stephen, who had been made prisoner by Matilda's party. In 1215, the barons seized the castle, which they held against King John, who, investing it with a large body of troops, obtained possession after an obstinate defence, and ordered many of the garrison to be forthwith hanged.

The castle was considerably repaired, and the walls strengthened, in the reign of Henry III., and by that monarch's liberality the city was restored from the dilapidation it had suffered. Henry held a grand tournament here in 1251, in which the English knights entered the lists against all foreigners, without exception. In 1254, the castle was besieged by Simon de Montfort, on the part of the confederate barons, and was successfully defended for the king by Edward, Earl Warren; during this siege the bridge, and the tower upon it, both constructed of wood, were burnt. On the insurrection of Wat Tyler, in the reign of Richard II., a party of the rebels assaulted the castle, and took away by force one of their comrades, who had been placed there in confinement. Edward IV. repaired the castle and the walls of the city, and bestowed several privileges upon the inhabitants. In 1522, Henry VIII., accompanied by the Emperor Charles V., visited Rochester; and in 1573, Queen Elizabeth, during her tour in Kent, remained here for five days, and conferred many marks of her favour on the citizens, by whom she was hospitably entertained. On the restoration of Charles II., that monarch, on his arrival from the continent, passed through the city on his route to the metropolis, and was joyfully received by the mayor and corporation, who presented him with a silver basin and ewer. In 1688, James II., on his retreat from the capital, embarked privately at this port on board a tender lying in the Medway, which conveyed him to France.

The city occupies rather a low point of land bounded on the west by the Medway, which, pursuing a northern course till it has passed the town, suddenly bends to the south-east, thus environing the town nearly on three sides. Over the river is a stone bridge of numerous arches, connecting the city with Strood, built on piles, chiefly at the expense of Sir Robert Knolles and Sir John de Cobham, who, with several others, bequeathed estates fully adequate for keeping it in repair; it is 560 feet long, and defended by a stone parapet and balustrade. The bridge chamber, in which the records of the Bridge Corporation are kept, and the business of that trust transacted, is a neat building of Portland stone, with a handsome portico, occupying the site of a chapel erected near the east end of the bridge by Sir John de Cobham. An act was passed in 1846, for taking down the bridge and building a new one. The approach from it is peculiarly striking; the remains of the stately castle, on an eminence which rises abruptly from the Medway, and the view of that noble river, expanding to a considerable breadth, immediately beyond the bridge, with Chatham lines, and the martello towers ranged along the shores, contribute to heighten the effect. The town consists principally of one spacious street, intersected by several smaller streets, and is bounded on the east by St. Margaret's Bank, connecting it with Chatham; the houses are in general respectable and of ancient appearance, interspersed with some timber and brick buildings. The city is paved, lighted with gas, and supplied with water conveyed from an excellent spring near a field called the Vines. An horticultural society has been formed under the auspices of the nobility and clergy of the neighbourhood: the theatre, a small building, is opened occasionally; and assemblies are held. The Rochester and Chatham Literary and Philosophical Institution is of recent establishment. The environs are extremely pleasant, and contain several handsome villas; on the north-west, on an easy ascent, are several streets of neat modern houses, called, from the owner of the estate, Troy Town. The air is salubrious, and on the banks of the Medway are beautiful promenades. The city, with Chatham and Chatham dockyard, is strongly fortified on the south side, with works which are mostly of modern construction, having been erected since the peace of Amiens.

As regards mercantile pursuits, the place enjoys a favourable situation on the river Medway. Most of the vessels belonging to the port are colliers or coastingvessels, which bring supplies for Chatham; the number of those of above fifty tons' burthen is eighty-six, and their aggregate tonnage 6972. A railway, commencing at Strood, was opened to Gravesend in 1845. The trade arises from the great number of persons employed in the dockyard, and the temporary residents connected with the army and navy, in addition to a small degree of ship-building: the victualling-office has been removed to Sheerness. An oyster-fishery is carried on, and large quantities of oysters are sent to London. The market, on Friday, is supplied with fish and provisions of every kind, and a corn-market is held on Tuesday; the fairs, which are on May 30th and Dec. 11th, have nearly fallen into disuse, but there is a well-attended cattlemarket monthly, on Tuesday.

Rochester received its first charter of Incorporation from Henry II., in 1165; and other charters, chiefly confirmatory, were granted by subsequent monarchs till the time of Charles I. At present the government is vested in a mayor, 6 aldermen, and 18 councillors, under the act 5th and 6th of William IV., cap. 76; the number of magistrates is 10. The borough is divided into three wards, and the municipal boundaries are co-extensive with those for parliamentary purposes, including an area of 2821 acres. The city first exercised the elective franchise in the 23rd of Edward I., since which time it has regularly returned two members to parliament: the mayor is returning officer. The freedom is inherited by birth, or obtained by servitude. Petty-sessions occur twice a week. The corporation has jurisdiction over the oysterfisheries in the river, and in the creeks and branches of the Medway, under an act of the 2nd of George II.; and the mayor and aldermen, assisted by a jury of free dredgers, formerly held a court of admiralty, in which they made regulations for the opening, stocking, and shutting of the oyster-beds; but the admiralty jurisdiction has been lately abolished. The free dredgers are governed by the same act, and no one can be free who has not served an apprenticeship of seven years to one of that body. The powers of the county debt-court of Rochester, established in 1847, extend over the registration-districts of Medway and Hoo, and part of those of North Aylesford, Milton, and Malling. The town-hall, erected in 1687, is a handsome brick building supported on duplicated columns of the Doric order. The hall is commodiously fitted up, and its ceiling enriched with trophies, together with the city arms, and the arms of Sir Cloudesley Shovel, at whose expense it was embellished. At the upper end are fulllength portraits of King William and Queen Anne, by Sir Godfrey Kneller; and the apartment contains also portraits of Sir C. Shovel, Sir John Jennings, Sir Thomas Colby, Sir Joseph Williamson, Richard Watts, Esq., and various other benefactors to the city. The area underneath the edifice is paved with Purbeck stone, and appropriated as the market. The dock-house, a neat building, was erected on the site of the old guildhall (in which the assizes for the county were anciently held), at the expense of Sir C. Shovel, in 1706.

The See of Rochester was founded in 600, by Ethelbert, King of Kent, who, at the persuasion of St. Augustine, erected a church in the city; and, establishing a monastery for secular priests, appointed for their bishop, Justus, who had accompanied Augustine into Britian. Until lately the diocese comprehended the western division of the county, forming the deaneries of Rochester, Malling, and Dartford, separated from the see of Canterbury by the river Medway; but under the provisions of the act 6th and 7th of William IV., cap. 77, it consists of the city and deanery of Rochester, of the county of Essex (except those few parishes which remain in the diocese of London), and of Hertfordshire. The ecclesiastical establishment consists of a bishop, dean, four archdeacons, five (till lately six) canons or prebendaries, six minor canons, a chancellor, eight choristers, a grammar master, twenty scholars, six poor bedesmen, and subordinate officers. The bishop has the appointment to the archdeaconries, chancellorship, and 25 benefices, with a revenue of £5000; the dean and chapter possess the patronage of the minor canonries and 30 benefices. The patronage of the canonries is in the Crown.

The Cathedral, dedicated to St. Andrew, and rebuilt by Bishop Gundulph in 1080, is a spacious and venerable structure in the form of a double cross, with a central tower, once surmounted by a spire, which has been taken down. The west front is a fine specimen of Norman architecture, elaborately enriched with sculpture, but the great window over the entrance is an insertion in the later English style, as are many of the windows in the nave and other parts of the building. On each side of the west door is a square tower: that on the north side has been lately rebuilt, and has a niche in which is a statue supposed to be that of Gundulph. A descent of several steps leads into the nave, which, with the exception of the windows, and a part near the transepts, is Norman; the finely-groined roof is supported on massive piers and circular arches, and, though now flat, has evidently been much loftier. From the nave an ascent of ten steps leads through the arch of the stone screen into the choir, which is in the early English style, the roof groined, and the columns, formed of marble from the quarries near Petworth, in Sussex. The altar-piece is decorated with a painting, by West, of the Angel appearing to the Shepherds; and on the north of the altar, within the railing, are two very ancient tombs, thought to have been erected for Bishop Lawrence de St. Martin and Bishop Gilbert de Glanville. Of the several chapels, are, the Lady chapel, where the bishop holds his consistory court; St. Edmund's, a square chapel, from which a door, now closed up, led to the chapter-house; a small chapel in the south aisle of the choir, with a beautiful window in the decorated style; and, at the north end of the eastern transept, the chapel of St. William, whose shrine is still preserved in it. On the east side of the north transept is a building called Gundulph's Tower, but the style scarcely warrants the supposition of its having been built by Gundulph. The crypt, under the eastern part of the cathedral, is a fine specimen of the early English style; the roof is plainly groined, and in that part of it which extends under the north aisle, the architecture is scarcely to be distinguished from Norman. There are numerous ancient monuments, but they are much mutilated, and the inscriptions are for the most part obliterated; among them is a statue in red-veined marble of Walter de Merton, founder of Merton College, Oxford. There are also memorials to Lord Henniker and his lady, by Bacon, Jun. A sepulchral effigy of John de Sheppy, bishop in the fourteenth century, was discovered in 1825; he was buried in 1360, and his tomb forms a magnificent specimen of the state of monumental sculpture at that period. Some restorations were effected in the cathedral in 1845. The priory of secular priests was re-constituted in 1087, by Bishop Gundulph, who placed in their stead Benedictine monks, whose revenue at the Dissolution amounted to £486. 11. 5. The ancient chapter-house, now in ruins, still displays the remains of several fine Norman arches; and the prebendal houses contain many relics of the monastic buildings.

The city comprises the parishes of St. Margaret and St. Nicholas, the former containing 4908, and the latter 3331, inhabitants: the parish of St. Margaret comprises 2480a. 1r. 4p., of which 201 are common or waste. The living of St. Margaret's is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10; net income, £389; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter. The church is an ancient structure with a tower, and contains several monuments, and an antique font. The living of St. Nicholas' is a vicarage, with that of St. Clement's annexed, valued in the king's books at £20. 8. 9., and in the gift of the Bishop; net income, £160. The church, which has been extensively repaired at different times, is a substantial and commodious edifice, principally in the later style, with a square embattled tower at the northwest angle: the roof of the nave is supported by lofty columns and finely-pointed arches; there are some monuments, and a very ancient stone font. The churches of St. Clement and St. Mary the Virgin have been demolished. Here are places of worship for the Society of Friends, Independents, Wesleyans, and Unitarians.

The Royal free grammar school, founded by Henry VIII. for 20 boys, forms part of the establishment of the cathedral, and is under the superintendence of the Dean and Chapter. There are four exhibitions of £5 per annum each, two to each of the universities, which, on taking the degree of master of arts, are augmented to £6, and subsequently to £6. 13. 4.: the institution has also, with that of Maidstone, two of four exhibitions of £15 per annum each, with chambers, in University College, Oxford, founded by the Rev. Robert Gunsley. A free school was established in 1701, by Sir Joseph Williamson, who bequeathed £5000 for its erection and endowment; the income is about £600 per annum, and about 80 boys are instructed in the ancient and modern languages, the mathematics, astronomy, and navigation. Several distinguished naval characters have been educated here. Sir John Hayward having, in 1635, devised certain estates for charitable uses, his trustee, Mr. Francis Barrell, in 1718 appropriated £33 per annum to purposes of education; and by order of the court of chancery in 1824, a house of industry was built from the produce of the bequest, for the residence of twelve respectable single men, who are boarded in the house. Near the site of the ancient market-cross is a house founded by Richard Watts, Esq., for the reception of poor travellers; six travellers may claim a lodging for the night and fourpence each. The funds left, then amounting only to £36, now produce £2500 per annum; the annual expense averages about £82, and by a decree of the court of chancery the surplus is appropriated to the support of the parochial poor. St. Catherine's hospital, founded in 1316, by Simond Potyn, for the maintenance of lepers and other diseased persons, is now assigned as an almshouse for aged females; the buildings comprise fourteen dwelling-houses. There are various further bequests for distribution among the poor.

The remains of the castle, which was erected after the Conquest, on the site of the ancient Roman fortress, consist principally of the keep, or great tower, in the south-west angle of an inclosed quadrangular area 300 feet in length. It was built by Bishop Gundulph, and is considered one of the most entire and curious specimens of Norman military architecture now remaining. The tower is square, with angular turrets, is 104 feet high, and 70 feet in breadth at the base; the walls are 12 feet in thickness, and a winding staircase in the east angle, connected with every story, leads to the summit, from which a most extensive view of the surrounding country is obtained. The state apartments are on the second story, communicating with which is an arched gallery in the thick wall, extending round the whole tower. The walls of the castle and of the keep are of Kentish ragstone, cemented with mortar which by time has been rendered harder than the stone itself; and the whole fabric has acquired such a degree of solidity, as to have baffled an attempt to demolish it, which was made for the value of the materials, about the beginning of the last century. Some parts of the city walls remain entire, and the north-east angle, in particular, displays the height, form, and embrasures. Near Minor-Canon-row is a small embattled tower, through which was the entrance into the cloisters of the priory, whereof some parts are still remaining. At Boley Hill, to the south of the city, the Romans are thought to have had a cemetery, and sepulchral urns and lachrymatories have been found there in great numbers; a part of the hill, however, is supposed to have been thrown up by the Danes when they besieged the city in 885. Under an elm-tree on the hill the corporation hold a separate court leet for this small district, at which the recorder presides as steward, and appoints an officer called the Baron of Boley: a court of pie-poudre is also held here.

Transcribed from A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858.