The lofty elevation of the county in general is evidenced by the fact that rivers flow from it in several directions, contributing to each of the three systems of the Severn, Trent, and Thames. The Avon rises in Northamptonshire, and flowing soutli-west through the county receives on its way the Swift, Sowe, Learn, Itchene, Stour, Alne, and other tributaries, and falls into the Severn at Tewkesbury. It is navigable for barges up to Stratford, and is rich in its associations with Shakespeare. The Tame rises in Staffordshire, and flowing through the northern portion of Warwickshire takes in the Cole, Blythe, Anker, Rea, and other minor streams. A few small rivulets in the south of the county fall into the Cherwell, a tributary of the Thames.

The New Red Sandstone is the principal geological formation of the county, but towards the south the Lias prevails. In the north central district there is a large deposit of gravel, which consists of “small boulders and sea-worn pebbles, and ancient rocks traceable to the parent beds in Yorkshire, Cumberland, and Scotland, and commonly known as the northern drift. Quartz pebbles especially abound in it; granite, gneiss, syenite, porphyry, slate, mica schist, trap, and almost every other variety of the primary rocks may be collected.” The Lias is near Edge Hill; the strata immediately below it consist of clay and ironstone, rich in iron ore. The Upper Lias crosses the county by Henley-in-Arden, Stratford, Kineton, Southam, and Rugby. With the exception of one coalfield, small but rich, extending from Tamworth to near Wyken, about 15 miles, the New Red Sandstone and Permian occupy the whole of the central part of the county. In the north Upper Cambrian quartzites and shales are found, together with some volcanic rocks. The Coal-Measures dip under the Lower Permian rocks, and in the southern part of the field underlie the Trias. According to the report of the Coal Commission in 1871, the area of the Warwickshire coal-field is 30 square miles, the thickness of the coal being from 26 to 30 feet. The quantity raised in 1870 was 647,540 tons, and in 1885 it was 1,281,724.

The minerals of the county are limestone, freestone, iron, blue flagstone, marl, and blue clay. The blue flagstone is found in many places, and ironstone at Bedworth, Oldbury, and Merevale. The limestone quarries are principally at Bearley, Grafton Court, Stretton, Prince-thorpe, Ufton, Harbury, Arlescote, Bidford, Newbold-on-Avon, Stockton, and Southam; freestone is found largely about Warwick, Leamington, Kenilworth, and Coventry.

Climate and Agriculture.— The climate is generally mild and healthy. The soil is on the whole good, and consists of various loams, marls, gravels, and clays, well suited for most of the usual crops. It is rich in pasture-land, and dairy farming is increasing. It has excellent orchards and market gardens, and possesses some of the finest woodlands in England. Nearly all the farm buildings are good; and many of the cottages of the labourers are exceedingly picturesque. There are many charming villages in the county. According to the agricultural returns, out of a total area of 566,458 acres there were 496,429 acres under cultivation in 1887, corn crops occupying 105,039 acres, green crops 31,411, rotation grasses 40,783, permanent pasture 308,689, and fallow 10,493; of the corn crops much the largest area was under wheat, which occupied 43,728 acres, barley occupying 16,290, oats 26,297, rye 256, beans 14,050, and pease 4418. Of the green crops turnips occupied 16,913 acres, potatoes 4936 acres, while 4198 were under mangolds, 114 under carrots, 971 under cabbage, &c., and 4279 under vetches and other green crops.

The number of horses in 1887 was 20,769, cattle 107,555, of which 37,080 were cows and heifers in milk or in calf, sheep 294,442, 172,151 of them one-year-old and above, and pigs 37,092.

According to the Return of Owners of Land, 1873, the total number of proprietors in the county was 51,516, possessing 541,022 acres, with a gross annual rental of £3,318,304, or about £6, 2s. 8d. per acre all over. Of these owners of land only 4622 had one acre and upwards. Of waste or common land there was 1833 acres. The following possessed over 5000 acres:—Lord Leigh, 14,892 acres; Lord Willoughby de Broke, 12,621; earl of Aylesford, 12,159; marquis of Hertford, 10,282; earl of Craven, 8448; earl of Warwick, 8263; Sir N. W. Throckmorton, 7619; duke of Buccleuch, 6881; H. J. Lucy, 5766; W. S. Dugdale, 5689; Sir G. R. Philips, 5397; and C. N. Newdegate, 5318.

Manufactures.— The principal seats of manufacture in the county are Birmingham and Coventry (qq.v.). Suffice it to say here that in Birmingham almost every article of use, from a pin to a steam engine, is produced, and that Coventry has long been famous for its ribbons and watches, and has recently won a well-merited reputation for bicycles and tricycles.

Communication.— The county is well supplied with excellently preserved roads. There are also a great number of canals giving access to the Trent, the Mersey, the Thames, and the Severn. The London and North-Western, the Great Western, the Midland, and various branch railways traverse the county in various directions.

Population and Administration.— The population in 1871 was 634,189, and in 1881 737,339 (357,146 males and 380,193 females). More than half the population is contained in the borough of Birmingham. The county is divided into four hundreds :— (1) Hemlingford, (2) Knightlow, (3) Barlichway, (4) Kineton. It has one city, Coventry (42,111), which is also a municipal borough; five other boroughs—Birmingham (400,774), Leamington (22,979), Stratford-on-Avon (8054), Warwick (11,800), and Sutton Coldfield (7737); and, besides the boroughs, ten market towns, viz., Alcester (2430), Atherstone (4645), Coleshill (2356), Henley in Arden (1119), Kenilworth (4150), Kineton (1053), Nuneaton (8465), Rugby (9891), Solihull (5280), and Southam (1784). It is mostly in the diocese of Worcester. It is in the midland judicial circuit, has one court of quarter sessions, and is divided into fourteen petty and special sessional divisions. The boroughs of Birmingham and Warwick have separate courts of quarter sessions and commissions of the peace, and the city of Coventry and the boroughs of Leamington and Stratford-on-Avon have commissions of the peace.

By the Redistribution Bill of 1885 Warwickshire was for parliamentary purposes divided into four boroughs and four county divisions. The boroughs are Birmingham, Aston Manor, Coventry, and Warwick and Leamington united. Birmingham has seven divisions, each returning a member—Bordesley, Central, East, Edgbaston, North, South, and West; the other three boroughs return one member each. The county divisions (Nuneaton, Rugby, Stratford-on-Avon, and Tamworth) each return one member.

History and Antiquities.— Warwickshire was occupied by the British tribes Cornavii and Dobuni. The Romans named this part of England Flavia Caesariensis, and many evidences of their occupation and works exist in the county. It was crossed by the three great roads—Watling Street, the Fosse Way, and Icknield Street; the last-named gives its name to a street in Birmingham which is on the lines of the old Roman road. The Ridgeway borders a part of Warwickshire on the west. Roman stations or camps were at Mancetter, High Cross, Alcester, Chesterton, and other places; coins, pottery, and other remains have been found at Warwick, Willoughby, Hampton-in-Arden, Birmingham, and elsewhere. The Teutons followed the Romans, and after suffering many changes Warwickshire became part of Mercia. From 593 to 918 it was the scene of frequent invasions, conquests, and reconquests.

Although Mercia was for the most part peopled by Angles, the Saxons seem to have occupied the portion now known as Warwickshire in very considerable numbers; for, if we except Alcester, Mancetter, and a few other places, nearly all the towns and villages have Saxon names. Of the three hundred and sixty places in the county mentioned in Domesday nearly all are of Saxon origin. As Verstegan says,

“In Foord, in Ham, in Ley, in Tun, The most of English surnames run.’’

And these terminations are found in the vast majority of the names of places in Warwickshire. This prevalence of the Saxons here is also confirmed by the fact that Mr Kemble discovered no fewer than thirty-one Mark names in places in Warwickshire. The Danes, although they made inroads into Warwickshire several times, seem to have made no settlements in the county, the only names bearing the Danish suffix by being on the north-east border. In later times the “king-maker” carl of Warwick made the county memorable by the part he took in the Wars of the Roses. In the civil war under Charles I. “scarcely a place of any note escaped” without a struggle: at Edge Hill the first engagement was fought; Aston Hall was besieged; Birmingham was sacked and burned by Prince Rupert; Coventry endured a siege; Warwick was the centre of several encounters; and a skirmish took place near Southam.

Few remains of Saxon architecture are to be found in the county, and these are of minor importance. Saxon jewels have been found at Compton-Verney; a fine burial urn filled with ashes, an iron sword, a spear head, and other relics, at Church Over; in a tumulus or barrow, at Marston, were found two sepulchral urns, one of them containing bones, a fibula, a pin, part of a sword, and two spear heads. In 1824 an Anglo-Saxon cemetery was discovered on Watling Street, near Bensford Bridge, in which a large number of articles, both of use and ornament, were found. Other burial places have been opened, and similar remains found. Some good examples of Norman work exist in the churches at Kenilworth, Ryton, Stoneleigh, Berkeswell, Wolston, and Beaudesert. Of famous and interesting places may be mentioned the noble structure Warwick Castle; the ruins of Kenilworth Castle and Maxstoke Priory; Maxstoke Castle; Compton Wyniates; Temple Balsall church; the “three tall spires” at Coventry, with the beautiful churches of St Michael, Holy Trinity, and St John Baptist; Bagley Hall, Combe Abbey, Wroxhall Abbey, Newnham Padox, Astley Castle, Arbury Hall, Walton Hall, Guy’s Cliff, Baddesley Clinton, Tamworth Castle and church, Packington Hall, and Stoneleigh Abbey.

Among the eminent persons connected with Warwickshire besides William Shakespeare are John Rogers the martyr, Michael Drayton, Sir W. Dugdale, Dr Parr, Dr Joseph Priestley, Matthew Boulton, John Baskerville, Walter Savage Landor, and Marian Evans (“George Eliot ”).

See Dugdale, Antiquities of Warwickshire, Thomas’s edition (2 vols. fol., 1730); Brewer, Description of Warwickshire (8vo, 1810); Murray, Agriculture of Warwickshire (8vo, 1813); Smith, History of Warwickshire (4to, 1830); Langford, Staffordshire and Warwickshire ( 4 vols. 4to, 1868); Langford, “The Saxons in Warwickshire” (Birmingham Archaeological Society, 4to, 1881).

WARWICK, the county town of Warwickshire, and a municipal and parliamentary borough, is finely situated on the Avon, on the Warwick and Birmingham and Warwick and Napton Canals, and on a branch of the Great Western Railway, 8 miles north-east of Stratford-on-Avon and 108 north-west of London. The glory of Warwick is still its castle, which has been truly pronounced to be the “most magnificent of the ancient feudal mansions of the English nobility still used as a residence.” Its position is at once commanding and picturesque, standing as it does on a rock overhanging the Avon. Its principal features are Caesar’s Tower, 147 feet high, built in the 14th century; the Gateway Tower, in the centre; and Guy’s Tower, 128 feet, also of the 14th century. There is a fine collection of pictures. The Great Hall and the family apartments were destroyed by fire in 1871, but have been restored. In the collegiate church of St Mary Warwick possesses one of the most interesting ecclesiastical buildings in the country. We learn from Domesday that a church existed before the Conquest, but of its foundation nothing is really known. It was made collegiate by Roger de Newburgh, the second Norman earl. It was dissolved by Henry VIII. in 1545, by whom it was granted to the burgesses of the town, with an estate then worth £58, 14s. 4d. to maintain it, together with the king’s school. A great part of the church was destroyed by fire in 1694, and afterwards rebuilt. The glory of this church, however, is the Beauchamp Chapel, founded by Earl Richard Beauchamp by will, and commenced in 1443 and completed 1464. It is one of the finest examples of pure Gothic in the kingdom. In the centre of the chapel is the splendid tomb of the earl. The church of St Nicholas, near the entrance to the castle grounds, is modern, with a tower and spire, and was erected towards the end of the 18th century. St Paul’s is new. The priory of St Sepulchre was founded by Henry de Newburgh on the site of an ancient church for a society of canons regular. It is now a private residence. One of the most interesting places in Warwick is the hospital of Robert Dudley, earl of Leicester, one of the most picturesque examples of halftimber buildings in England. It was originally used as the hall of the united guilds of the Holy Trinity, the Blessed Virgin, and St George the Martyr. The earl of Leicester, by an Act of Incorporation obtained in 1571, founded the hospital for the reception of twelve poor men possessing not more than £5 a year, and a master. The first master, appointed by the earl himself, was the famous Puritan, Thomas Cartwright. There are numerous charities in the town, the principal being those of Henry VIII., Sir Thomas White, and Thomas Oken. The first is derived from the tithes of St Mary, St Nicholas in Warwick, the parish of Budbrooke, and Chaddesley Corbett, Worcestershire, together with the rents of houses and lands in the borough. It produces about £3000 a year, and is used for paying the stipends of the vicar and an assistant minister for St Mary’s, the vicars of St Nicholas and Budbrooke, the mayor, the town-clerk, yeoman, serjeant-at-mass, and a beadle; while £460, 10s. is annually given in aid of the king’s school. By the charity of Sir Thomas White the sum of £100 is lent, without interest, to young tradesmen for a period of nine years. From the funds left for that purpose by Thomas Oken, allowances are made to the poor. The area of the borough is 5512 acres; the population in 1861 was 10,570, in 1871 10,986, and in 1881 11,800.

A fortress is said to have been erected here as early as the year 50, by P. Octavius Scapula, and it is supposed to have been the praesidium Romanorum at which a cohort of Dalmatian horse was stationed. It was destroyed by the Danes in one of their incursions into Mercia, and in 915 Alfred’s daughter Ethelfleda built the fortress on which the castle now stands. The town is mentioned in Domesday, where we learn that “in the borough the king has in his demesne 113 houses, and the king’s barons have 112, from which the king receives Danegeld. The bishop of Worcester has 9 dwellings, the bishop of Chester 7, the abbot of Coventry 36, and four were destroyed to enlarge the castle.” In the time of Edward the Confessor the sheriffwick of Warwick, with the borough and royal manors, rendered £65, and “thirty-six sextars of honey, or £24, 6s. instead of honey (pro omnibus quae ad mel pertinebant). Now, with the forra of the royal manors and pleas of the county, it pays per annum £145 by weight, £23 for the custom of dogs, 20s. for a sumpter horse, £10 for a hawk, and 100s. for Queengold. Besides this it renders twenty-four sextars of honey of the larger measure, and from the borough six sextars of honey, at the sextar for 15d.” The celebrated Thurkill (or Turchill) was the last Saxon earl of Warwick.

William the Conqueror began his first northern campaign in 1068, and the first place where his presence is distinctly recorded is Warwick. He erected here one of his strong fortifications on the site of the old one. Not a vestige of it now exists, but, as Mr Freeman writes, “the mound itself still remains, a monument of the wisdom and energy of the mighty daughter of Aelfred, while the keep of William has so utterly perished that its very site can only now be guessed at.”

Of the earls of Warwick who may be noticed, of course the legendary Guy, with the numerous traditions relating his wonderful achievements, stands first. In proof of his prowess do not his gigantic helmet, his furnace-like pot, and his mighty fork remain in the castle to this day, to testify against all unbelievers? Prominently in history we have Guy de Beauchamp, who came to the title in 1298, and who was called by the favourite Piers Gaveston “the Black Hound of Arden.” He was instrumental in taking Piers prisoner, and in leading him to Blacklow Hill, close to Warwick, and there beheading him in 1311. Richard Nevil, the famous “king-maker” (see below), assumed the title in right of his wife Anne, and was slain at the battle of Barnet, 1471. Then the unfortunate George Plantagenet, duke of Clarence, was created earl by his brother Edward IV., but afterwards perished, it is said, by being drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine. The title has frequently lain dormant. In 1547 it was revived in favour of the Dudleys, when Viscount Lisle was created earl by Edward VI. It became extinct in 1589, and in 1618 was renewed in the person of Robert, Lord Rich, whose eldest son was lord high admiral for the Commonwealth. Again the title became extinct in 1759. The castle had long been in the possession of the Greville family, having been granted to Sir Fulke Greville, Lord Brooke, by James I. when it was in a ruinous condition, and he restored it, at a cost, it is said, of £20,000. Dugdale says he made it “not only a place of great strength, but extraordinary delight, with most pleasant gardens, walks, and thickets, such as this part of England can hardly parallel; so that now it is the most princely seat that is within the midland parts of this realm.” He died from the effects of a wound inflicted by his own servant, September 8, 1628. His successor, Robert Greville, was the son of Fulke’s first cousin, and is the Lord Brooke who is famous in the civil war between Charles and the Parliament, and was appointed commander-in-chief of the Parliamentary forces of Warwickshire and Staffordshire. He was engaged in the first fight of the war at Edge Hill, and was killed at the siege of Lichfield cathedral, on March 1, 1643. The title of earl of Warwick was bestowed on Francis, eighth Lord Brooke, by George II. in 1746. His son George, who succeeded to the title in 1773, was a great benefactor of the borough, and was lavish in his expenditure on the castle.

WARWICK, Richard Nevil, Earl of (c. 1420-1471), was boru between 1420 and 1430. He was descended from a family of note in the north of England, that of the Nevils, who enjoyed for many generations the title of earls of Westmorland. His grandmother on the father’s side was Joan, daughter of John of Gaunt. He inherited the title of earl of Salisbury from his father, a younger son of Ralph Nevil, and by his marriage with Anne, daughter of Richard Beauchamp, he became earl of Warwick. His descent from John of Gaunt made him naturally a member of the Lancastrian party, but the marriage of his aunt, Cicely Nevil, to Richard, duke of York, connected him also with the Yorkist house. As first cousin of Edward IV. and second cousin of Henry VI. he was well fitted for the double part which he was destined to play in English history.

When the struggle between the Roses began, he and his father threw in their lot with the Yorkists. The first attempt of the duke of York (in 1450) to assert his claims proved unsuccessful, but three years later the final loss of Guienne, coupled with the king’s imbecility, enabled him to renew his efforts. The duke became protector, but the king’s recovery drove him from power and forced him to take up arms a second time. He was now joined actively by Warwick and his father, the former of whom raised a body of troops and contributed largely to the Yorkist victory at St Albans (1455). Warwick was rewarded for his services with the governorship of Calais. This important post gave him the control of the narrow seas, and supplied him with a harbour of refuge whither he could safely retire in case of a change of affairs in England. In the latter capacity Calais soon proved useful.

In 1457, when Henry had recovered his senses, Warwick attended a council at Coventry, at which he took an oath of fealty to the king. Next year he attended a great meeting in London, summoned for the purpose of reconciling the two parties. He was followed on this occasion by six hundred men clad in his livery, and wearing red coats embroidered with ragged staves, the badge of the house of Warwick. An apparent reconciliation was effected, but Warwick, accused of misconduct in attacking a fleet of North Sea merchant-ships near Calais, took advantage of an affray between his followers and some of the king’s men to assert that a plot was laid against his life, and retired to his fortress across the Channel. When in 1459 the duke of York took up arms for the third time, Warwick and his father, the earl of Salisbury, joined him at Ludlow. The confederates were strongly posted, but, being deserted by Sir Andrew Trollop, they lost heart and dispersed, Salisbury and Warwick again taking refuge at Calais. A parliament which met at Coventry now attainted Warwick and his father, with other leaders, of high treason, and Somerset was sent to supersede Warwick in his command. The latter, however, made a strong resistance, repelled Somerset, and took his ships, after which he sailed to Dublin to concert further measures with the duke of York. The results of this negotiation were seen early in 1460, when the duke of York issued a manifesto to rouse the people against the Government, and Warwick, landing in Kent, marched on London. The king retired northward and intrenched himself at Northampton, where he was defeated with much loss by Warwick, and taken prisoner. Warwick returned with his captive to London, and the duke of York at once claimed the crown. After much debate the king was induced to consent to a compromise, by which he was to retain the crown during life, and the duke of York and his heirs were to succeed him. The queen, however, refused to sanction this arrangement, and assembled an army in the north. The duke of York, marching against her, was defeated and killed at Wakefield (December 1460), and the earl of Salisbury was taken and beheaded shortly after. The Yorkist victory of Mortimer’s Cross (1461) did not stop the queen’s march on London, and Warwick, attempting to bar her progress, was entirely defeated at the second battle of St Albans. The king fell into the hands of his own party, but Warwick escaped. The Lancastrian triumph was, however, short-lived. The citizens of London, already devoted to the house of York, were exasperated by the excesses of the Lancastrian troops, and when Warwick, with Edward, earl of March, raised another array and marched towards the capital, the queen was forced to retire to the north. Warwick and Edward entered the city, and the latter was proclaimed king under the title of Edward IV. The sanguinary battle of Towton (March 1461), in which the victory was greatly due to the skill and energy of Warwick, secured the crown for Edward, and gave the nation peace for several years.

Honours and emoluments were showered on Warwick. The governorship of Guisnes and Dammes, with the lieutenancy of the marches there, was added to his command at Calais; he became warden of the western marches towards Scotland, constable of Dover, and lord high chamberlain. The revenue derived from these employments was calculated at 80,000 crowns a year. His brother, John, Lord Montague, was made earl of Northumberland and warden of the eastern marches, and his brother George became archbishop of York and lord chancellor. For some time Warwick did his best to maintain Edward on his throne. An attempt on the part of the Lancastrians in 1463 to recover their power was put down by the united efforts of the Nevils. Montague defeated Percy at Hedgley Moor and Somerset at Hexham, while Warwick besieged and took Bamborough Castle, which was held by Sir Ralph Grey. Soon afterwards Henry VI. was taken prisoner and was lodged by Warwick in the Tower.

But the power and ambition of Warwick were too great to allow the good understanding between the king-maker and the king to be of long duration. The first difference between them arose on the question of the king’s marriage. In 1464 Warwick was employed to treat for peace with France, and was anxious to establish it on the firm basis of a matrimonial alliance. His plans were frustrated by Edward’s marriage with Elizabeth Woodville. At this time Warwick is said to have been negotiating for a marriage between the king and Bona of Savoy, niece of Louis XI. According to another authority, the princess proposed was Isabella of Castile. Whatever may be the truth of these reports, it is clear that Edward’s marriage was not approved by Warwick, and that on the question of foreign policy they followed divergent aims. The rapid advancement of the queen’s family contributed to widen the breach. When in 1467 a marriage was proposed between the king’s sister Margaret and Charles of Burgundy, Warwick, true to his policy of reconciling England and France, vigorously opposed the match, and suggested in its stead a marriage with a French prince. For a time Edward seemed willing to yield, and Warwick was sent over to treat with the French king. . He met him at Rouen, and was received with unusual marks of respect. The result of the conference was that ambassadors were sent by Louis to offer Edward a treaty on favourable terms. But the latter, who had already shown his displeasure by depriving the archbishop of his chancellorship, rejected the offer, and Warwick retired in disgust to one of his castles in the north. Shortly afterwards the marriage between Charles and Margaret took place. An apparent reconciliation between Edward and Warwick was now effected, but its hollowness was shown by the marriage of Isabella, eldest daughter of Warwick, with George, duke of Clarence, a match which Edward strenuously but vainly opposed (1468). A period of intrigue and insurrection followed. A rising in the north, under Robin of Redesdale, was at first defeated by Montague, but the rebels were allowed to make head again. They were soon joined by Warwick and his party, who, if they did not originate, at all events encouraged the rebellion. Edward, whose troops were defeated at Edgecote, fell into Warwick’s hands, and was removed to his castle at Middleham. When, however, the Lancastrians took advantage of this state of affairs and rose in arms, they were speedily put down by Warwick. Edward was released and a formal reconciliation followed (1469).

The situation had, however, by this time become intolerable. A fresh insurrection broke out in Lincolnshire, and the confessions of the leaders, who were taken by the royal troops, showed that it had been instigated by Clarence and Warwick. The king at once marched against the conspirators, who in vain attempted to collect sufficient forces, and with some difficulty escaped from the country. Warwick made for his old stronghold at Calais, but his lieutenant proved faithless, and turned his guns against him. Thereupon he took refuge at the court of France and resolved to side openly with the Lancastrians. A treaty was made between Warwick and Queen Margaret, which was cemented by the marriage of Prince Edward with Warwick’s daughter Anne. This change of front naturally caused a coolness between Warwick and Clarence; but, before the latter could trim his course anew, Warwick, having obtained assistance from Louis XL, landed in the south of England. Edward was taken by surprise, and, unable to make any resistance, fled to Flanders. Warwick at once marched to London, released Henry VI. from captivity, and replaced him on the throne. A general restoration of property and position to the Lancastrians took place. Warwick and his brothers resumed their offices, and Clarence was recognized as successor to the throne in default of heirs-male to Henry VI. (1470).

But this turn of fortune was as brief as it was sudden. The house of Lancaster was finally overthrown by another revolution as capricious and inexplicable as any of those which had already marked this extraordinary conflict. Henry VI. had only been a few months on the throne when Edward, with the assistance of the duke of Burgundy, landed in Yorkshire, and, gathering troops as he went, marched upon London. He was joined by “false, fleeting, perjured” Clarence, and admitted into the capital by Warwick’s brother the archbishop. On Easter-Day 1471 the forces of the king and the earl met at Barnet, and the former won a complete victory. The earl and his brother Montague were slain. Soon afterwards the battle of Tewkesbury and the death of Prince Edward extinguished the last hopes of the Lancastrian party.

The career of the king-maker is chiefly remarkable as illustrating the grandeurs and the evils of feudalism. Warwick’s landed property was enormous, comprising, according to the deed by which his widow made it over to Henry VII., upwards of 110 manors in 21 counties, besides the city of Worcester, the islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, and Sark, and various places in Wales. Commynes tells us that at Calais he was so popular that every one wore his badge, “no man esteeming himself gallant whose head was not adorned with his ragged staff.” Stow (Annals) says that “at his house in London six oxen were usually eaten at a breakfast, and every tavern was full of his meat, for who that had any acquaintance in his family should have as much sodden and roast as he could carry on a long dagger.” In a time of civil war and a disputed title to the throne, such a man was naturally too strong for a subject. The restoration of order and the maintenance of the sovereignty of the state rendered inevitable the disappearance of the class so vigorously represented by the “Last of the Barons.”

See Dugdale, Baronage of England·., P. de Commynes, Memoirs; Lingard, History of England ; Pauli, Geschichte England’s.