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Chepstow in Monmouth County England History and GeographyCHEPSTOW, a port, market town, and parish, in the upper division of the hundred of CALDICOTT, county of MONMOUTH, 15 miles (S. by E.) from Monmouth, and 131 (W.) from London, containing 3008 inhabitants. This place, called by the Britons C?s Gwent, and by most antiquaries supposed to have risen from the ruins of the ancient city Venta, about four miles to the west, derives its present name from the Saxon Chepe, a market, and Stowe, a town: it obtained also the name Striguil from the earls of Pembroke, to whom it belonged at the time of the Conquest, and who, from their residing in a neighbouring castle of that name, were called lords of Striguil, by which designation the manorial courts are still held. Soon after the Conquest, a strong castle was erected, probably by William Fitz-Osborn, Earl of Hereford, on the summit of a rocky precipice overhanging the river Wye, of which there are considerable remains richly overspread with ivy, and forming a picturesque and stately object from various points of view. About the same time the town was fortified with strong walls of considerable extent; several portions of which, together with the bastions erected for their defence, are still remaining. In the reign of Stephen, a priory of Benedictine monks was founded here, and dedicated to St. Mary, the revenue of which, at the dissolution, was £32. 4. During the parliamentary war, the inhabitants adhered firmly to the royal cause, and the castle was not surrendered to the parliamentarian forces till after a vigorous siege, in which it sustained considerable damage. On the Restoration of Charles II., Henry Marten, one of those who sat in judgment on Charles I., was confined in the castle till his death. The town is beautifully situated on the river Wye, near its confluence with the Severn, and is built on the slope of a hill, among the lofty cliffs that rise abruptly from the western bank of the river: a handsome iron bridge has been erected over the Wye, at the joint expense of the counties of Gloucester and Monmouth, of which the river forms the line of separation: it consists of several spacious and well paved streets, in which are many handsome, well built houses, and is lighted with oil, towards defraying the expense of which, the late J. Bowcher, Esq. bequeathed £1000; but it is very ill supplied with water, the inhabitants being obliged to procure it at the distance of a mile and a half. There is a small theatre, opened occasionally. The trade principally consists in navy timber, oak-bark, and iron; ship-building is carried on to a considerable extent, for which there are convenient docks on the banks of the Wye. The river, at spring tides, rises to the height of sixty feet at Chepstow bridge, and affords convenient access to the harbour: sixty ships, averaging a burden of seventy-eight tons', belong to the port: in 1826, the number of vessels entered inwards from foreign parts was thirteen British, and of those cleared outwards, three. The market days are Wednesday and Saturday; and there are also great markets on the last Monday in every month for horses, cattle, sheep, pigs, and wool: the fairs are on the Friday and Saturday in Whitsun-week, the Saturday before June 20th, August 1st, and the Friday before October 29th. The county magistrates here hold petty sessions for the division. The old passage over the Severn, within two miles of the town, has been greatly improved by the erection of stone piers, and the establishment of a regular steam-packet by some gentlemen in the neighbourhood, assisted by the Duke of Beaufort, who is lord of the manor; it may now be crossed with safety at any time of the tide: the ferry is under the direction of a superintendent, and governed by salutary regulations. The living is a discharged vicarage, in the archdeaconry and diocese of Llandaff, rated in the king's books at £6. 16. 8., endowed with £200 private benefaction, and £200 royal bounty, and in the alternate patronage of Edward Bevan, Esq. and Mrs. Burr. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, and formerly the conventual church of the priory, exhibits a fine specimen of Norman architecture at the western entrance, and contains the tomb of Marten, who died in the castle. There are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, and Wesleyan Methodists, and a Roman Catholic chapel. A charity school for thirteen poor children was endowed with land in 1605, by Richard Clayton, Esq. A National school for an unlimited number of children of both sexes, and a philanthropic institution, are supported by subscription. Sir William Montagu's hospital, for thirteen aged persons, was founded by that gentleman, in 1614, and endowed with land. Powis' almshouse, for six men and six women, was founded in 1716, by Thomas Powis, Esq., who bequeathed £1800 for its erection and endowment. From Lewis's Topographical Dictionary of England 1831, courtesy of Databases 4 Sale |
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