Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 29.djvu/266
216 THE HISTORY OF THE SOUTH-WESTERN to his courtiers on the sea-shore at Southampton. The cathedral, which Professor Willis has so ably described, and which to this day bears traces of the Saxon period, is a noble monument of the piety and unstinted munificence with which it was sought to make God's house surpass in beauty and grandeur all other buildings. Queen Emma, the mother of Edward the Confessor, here justified her innocence by passing through the fiery ordeal of walking unscathed over hot ploughshares.
Walkelyn, first Bishop of Winchester after the Conquest, nearly rebuilt this cathedral, and a long line of succeeding bishops, amongst whom are conspicuous St. Swithin, Henry de Blois, Peter de la Roche (De rupibus), William of Wyke- ham, the founder of the ancient and celebrated college, Cardinal Beaufort, Waynflete, Bishop Montagu, and Bishop Andrews, is now represented by that much revered and able prelate, our present bishop, who so worthily fills the chair at this meeting as your President. It was Winchester which first heard the sound of the curfew bell, and there that book of titles to property, so hated by the Saxons, was com- piled and named by them Domesday Book. There the splendid Abbey of Hyde, within whose precincts the body of King Alfred rests, lasted to the time of Henry VIII., when it fell with other monastic institutions; and the Castle, Hall, and Palace of King Charles II. attest the partiality with which it was viewed by the sovereign of England. It must be a satisfaction to you to know that this Hall, where the assize courts have hitherto been held, is being restored to its ancient beauty, and will form a part of the new county buildings.
In passing away from Winchester, we should cast our eyes a little lower down the river to the Hospital of St. Cross, where the dole of bread and beer is still given away faithfully, even to modern pilgrims; and then, follow- ing down the valley of the Itchen, we at last reach South- ampton. This town cannot boast the same antiquities as Winchester, but its interest is also very considerable. Its name is found in the ancient British town Anton or Hantone, which is situated on the river An or Anton, and gave its name at once to the present town and county. Bittern was the site of the Roman Clausentum, the remains of which may be seen in the garden and ground which now belong