Page:A History of Domestic Manners and Sentiments in England During the Middle Ages.djvu/33

 a?id Sentiments. 1 3 was not common to Anglo-Saxon houfes, and the only name for it was up-fior, an upper floor. It was approached by ^ftwger, fo named from the verb fdgan, to afcend, and the origin of our modern word fiair. There were windows to the hall, which were probably improvements upon the ruder primitive Saxon buildings, for the only Anglo-Saxon words for a window are eag-thyrl, an eye-hole, and eag-dnru, an eye-door. We have unfortunately no fpecial defcriptions of Anglo-Saxon houfes, but fcattered incidents in the Anglo-Saxon hiftorians Ihow us that this general arrangement of the houfe lafted down to the lateft period of their monarchy. Thus, in the year 755, Cynewulf, king of the Weft Saxons, was murdered at Merton by the atheling Cyneard. The circumftances of the ftory are but imperfectly underftood, vuilefs we bear in mind the above delcription of a houle. Cynewulf had gone to Merton privately, to vifit a lady there, who feems to have been his miftrefs, and he only took a fmall party of his followers with him. Cyneard, having received information of this vifit, afl^embled a body of men, entered the inclofure of the houfe unperceived (as appears by the context), and furrounded the detached chamber (bur) in which was the king with the lady. The king, taken by furprife, ruihed to the door {on tha dura code), and was there llain fighting. The king's attendants, although certainly within the inclofure of the houfe, were out of hearing of this fudden fray (they were probably in the hall), but they were routed by the woman's fcreams, rullied to the fpot, and fought till, overwhelmed by the numbers of their enemies, they alfo were all llain. The murderers now took poifeHion of the houfe, and fhut the entrance gate of the wall of inclofure, to proteft themfelves againft the body of the king's followers who had been left at a diftance. Thefe, next day, when they heard what had happened, haftened to the fpot, attacked the houfe, and continued fighting around the gate {yml thd gain) until they made their way in, and flew all the men who were there. Again, we are told, in the Ramtey Chronicle publiflied by Gale, of a rich man in the Danifla period, who was oppres- five to his people, and, therefore, fufpicious of them. He accordingly had four watchmen every night, chofen alternately from his houfehold, who kept guard at the outfide of his hall, evidently for the purpofe of preventing