Page:A tour through the northern counties of England, and the borders of Scotland - Volume II.djvu/289

 as the incendiary experienced, and his name had been blotted out of the book of memory for ever: The tomb of Shakespeare makes one of theremarkables of Stratford, and we considered it of course as a sufficient inducement to lead us to the church, which stands in a situation particularly beautiful, at the southern extremity of the town. The Avon laves the eastern side of the large church-yard, and no meaner building introduces itself to take off the attention from the fine Gothic structure before the eye. The style of architecture which chiefly prevails (for it has been built at different times) in this edifice, is that of the Norman age, and marks out the æra of its erection to be about the 12th or 13th century. Nothing is certainly known of the time when, or of the person by whom, it was founded; but as the arms of the Bishops of Worcester are discovered in many of the ancient Mosaic tiles scattered over its pavement, it has been thought that the founder was one of that see. The chancel is by far the most beautiful member of this building. This was erected by Dr. Tnomas Balsall, about the year 1474, partly from the funds of the college here, of which he was warden, and partly out of his own private fortune. The windows are fine and the roof light. In the north aile, at the eastern end, is a small chapel