Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 1.djvu/853

Rh DUNSTAFFNAGE CASTLE. 843 DUNSTON. Charles I. Stephen and his successor, Henry II., met at this place in 1154. Tournaments frequently took place here, and theatricals were performed in this town as early as 1110, the suhject being " The Miracles of St. Catherine," by Abbot Geoffrey, of St. Alban's. In the reign of Henry V., Tillsworth and other Lollards suffered martyrdom here. The place has long been famous for the manufacture of straw-plait, besides which lace, basket-making, and the whiting-works afford employment to many of the inhabitants. The town, winch chiefly consists of four streets, corresponding with the four cardinal points of the compass, contains a bank, the union poorhouse, and Chew's free school. It is situated under the Chilteru hills, and is very imperfectly lighted and paved. The water is supplied from artesian wells, sunk in the chalk stratum on which the town stands. The neighbourhood is celebrated for larks, great numbers of which are annually sent to London for sale. The living is a rect.* in the dioc. of Ely, val. 150, in the patron, of the lord chancellor. The church, dedicated to SS. Peter a.id Paul, is an ancient structure in the Norman and early English styles, originally built in the form of a cross. It has a beautifully carved oak roof, and contains some monumental brasses of the 14th centuty, and monuments of the Chew and other families ; likewise a funeral pall, richly worked, a gift of the Fay- reys. In this church was read the sentence of divorce against Queen Catherine by Archbishop Cranrner. The charities amount to over 2,000 per annum, of which 331 is for Chew's free school, about 100 is given to the poor, and the remainder is the endowment of Ashtou's and Caste's almshouses; Marsh's almshouses, for unmarried gentlewomen in straitened circumstances has an income from endowment of 133. Dunstable gives name to a deanery, in the archdeac. of Bedford and dioc. of Ely. Hero the Baptists have two and the Wesleyans one chapel. There are National and British schools for both sexes. The remains of immense ramparts of earth mark the site of the Roman fortifications of Magiovinium, and at Maiden Bower are traces of a British camp of 9 acres, supposed by some to be the ancient Magintwn. The Queen is lady of the manor. Wednesday is market day. Fairs are held on Ash Wednesday, the 22nd May, 12th August, and 12th November, which last is the largest fair in the county for shsep. DUNSTAFFNAGE CASTLE, in the co. of Argyle, Scotland. It is situated on Loch Ective, 3 miles N. of Oban. It was held of the crown by the Macdougalls of Lorn, and was taken by Bruce in 1305. It was hero that Argylo landed in 1685. Near this spot was a palace of the early kings of Scotland. The famous coro- nation stone, brought by Fergus from Ireland in 503, is said to have been deposited here before its removal to Scone in 834. DUNSTALL, a hmlt. in the par. and hund. of Cor- ringham, parts of Lindsey, in the co. of Lincoln, 4 miles N.E. of Gainsborough. DUNSTALL, a lib. in the par. of Tamworth, S. div. of the hund. of Offlow, in the co. of Stafford, 2 miles W. of Tamworth, its post town. DUM STALL, a tnshp. and district par. in the par. of Tatenhill, N. div. of the hund. of Offlow, in the co. of Stafford, 4 miles S.W. of Burton-on-Trent, its post town, and 2 N.W. of the Burton station. It is situated near the Grand Trunk canal. The living is a perpet. cur.* in the dioc. of Lichficld, val. 120, in the patron, of John Hardy, Esq. The church was erected and endowed by the late Charles Arkwright, Esq. Here is a school for both sexes. The chief seat is Dunstall Lodge. DUNSTA LL-GKEEN, a hmlt. in the par. of Dalham, in the co. of Suffolk, 6 miles S.E. of Newmarket. DUNSTAN, or DUNSTON, a tnshp. in the par. of Chesterfield, hund. of Scarsdale, in the co. of Derby. 2 miles N.E. of Chesterfield. It is joined to Newbold. DUNSTANBURUH CASTLE. See DUNSTON, co. Northumberland. DUNSTAN, ST., a par. in the hund. of Westgate, lathe of St. Augustine, in the co. of Kent, half a mile W. of Canterbury, of which it forms a suburb, part of the parish being included within the limits of the borough. It is situated on the river Stour. The living is a discharged vie. in the dioc. of Canterbury, val. 107, in the patron, of the archbishop. There are several schools, which together have an endowment of 124 per annum, chiefly accruing from the interest of 6,000 in the Three per Cent. Consols, bequeathed by Mrs. Tillard. DUNSTER, a par., market, and post town, in the hund. of Carhampton, in the co. of Somerset, 2i miles S. of Minehead, and 22 N.W. of Taunton. It is situ- ated in a beautiful spot near the Bristol Channel, and contains the hmlts. of Alcombe, Aville, Bondington, Frackford, Kitswall, and Staunton. In the Domesday Survey it is called Torre, and was subsequently a borough returning members to parliament, but after- wards united with Minehead, and was disfranchised by the Reform Bill. In Saxon times there was a strong- hold here, upon the site of which William de Mohun, Earl of Somerset, built a castle. There was also a small priory of Benedictines belonging to Bath Abbey. The town, which consists principally of two streets, con- tains a court-house, where petty sessions are held weekly ; a new police station, a market-house, and bank. The old shambles, which formerly stood in the centre of the town, have been removed ; but it is still a place of little importance, never having recovered the loss of its wool trade. It is a polling-place for the western division of the county. The living is a perpet. cur. in the dioc. of Bath and Wells, val. 130, in the patron, of H. F. Lut- trell, Esq., who is lord of the manor. The church, a handsome edifice in the form of a cross, is in the Gothic style of architecture, and is believed to have been built by Henry VII. after the battle of Bosworth. It is dedi- cated to St. George, has a lofty tower with a fine peal of eight bells, and contains monuments of the Mohun, Luttrell, and other families ; several inscriptions, and a brass of 1497. There is a very handsome screen, also an ancient font. The parochial charities produce .about 17 per annum. The register commences in 1560. The Wesleyans have a chapel. Dunster Castle, the seat of Henry Fownes Luttrell, Esq., is a building of the latter part of the 16th century, with a gateway of more ancient date. It was much injured during the parliamentary war ; General Blake took possession of it for Cromwell. Prynne was confined in it for a short time. In the neigh- bourhood are some remains of an ancient camp. This and the adjoining town of Minehead are supposed to be the only two places where the ancient custom still exists of two grotesque figures, the "Hobby-horse" and " Gulliver," going about with a drum to collect money on the first three days in May. Friday is market day, and there is a fair on Whit-Monday. DUNSTEW, a par. in the hund. of Wootton, in the co. of Oxford, 2 miles from Deddington, and 7 N. of Woodstock, its post town. It is pleasantly situated in a healthy spot, near the rivers Glyme and Evenlode. Stone of good quality for building is quarried, and some of the inhabitants are engaged in glove-making for the Woodstock market. The living is a vie. in the dioc. of Oxford, val. 237, in the patron, of Sir George Dash- wood, Bart., who is lord of the manor. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, is an ancient structure, with a square tower. The charities amount to 13 per annum. DUNSTON, a vil. in the tnshp. of Lowhand, in the co. palatine of Durham, 2 miles S.W. of Gateshead. M ost of the male population are employed as keelmen. Dunston Hall is a lunatic asylum. DUNSTON, a par. in the second div. of the wap. of Langoe, parts of Kesteven, in the co. of Lincoln, 7 ,3 miles S.E. of Lincoln, and 10 N.W. of Sleaford, its post town and railway station. It is situated on a branch of the river Witham, and was anciently barren and unfre- quented. In 1751 F. Dashwood, Esq., erected the Dun- ston pillar, a pyramidal shaft 92 feet high, crowned with a gallery and lantern, as a landmark to guide travellers over the then surrounding waste. The living is a vie.* in the dioc. of Lincoln, val. 151, in the patron, of the bishop. The church, dedicated to St. Peter, is a well-built structure. The Wesleyan Metho-