St John the Baptist, Penshurst
St John the Baptist Church at Penshurst, Kent is a Grade I listed Anglican parish church in the Diocese of Rochester in England. Those buried or commemorated here include Knights, Viscounts, a Viceroy of India, a Governor-General of Australia, a Private Secretary to two Kings, two Field Marshals and two winners of the Victoria Cross. Through its courtiers, statesmen, politicians or priests whose lives appear on memorials or through its changing architecture, carvings and windows, the church helps tell a country’s story through the eyes of single village. A church has stood on the present site in Penshurst since 1115, at the centre of a cluster of buildings, including the manor house, guild house and rectory; the church of 1115 is mentioned in the Textus Roffensis. There may have been a church on the site since Saxon times, as suggested by the recent discovery of artefacts dating from 860 AD on adjoining land. Penshurst’s first priest, was installed in 1170 by Archbishop Thomas Becket, his last public act before he was assassinated two days in Canterbury Cathedral.
The core of the nave as it appears today may be of that date. The North aisle was added c.1200, the South-Eastern chapel is 13th century in origin. The South aisle and South chapel arcade were built or rebuilt in the 14th century, the North-Eastern chapel was in existence by the mid-14th century; the nave and chancel walls were raised and provided with a clerestory in the 15th century, the tower is 15th century. The South aisle was widened and the South porch built in 1631. Before the restoration by George Gilbert Scott, the windows there were of 1631; the unusual corner turrets and pinnacles on the tower may be 17th century. The church was restored and rebuilt in 1864–1865 by George Gilbert Scott, he rebuilt and enlarged the North aisle and North-Eastern chapel, replaced many of the roofs, replaced the 17th century South aisle windows with pseudo-medieval windows felt to be more in keeping with the overall style of the church. There was further refurnishing in the late 19th century. St John the Baptist has a nave with a South porch.
The tower stands in the West. Side chapels are in the South and the South-East; the latter is the "Sidney Chapel" which has its own porch and is directly connected with the church's chancel. The church is located set back from the street and in close proximity to Penshurst Place; the church's exterior is built from coursed sandstone ashlar. Sections of the present building can be traced to each century between the 12th and 19th; the roof was raised in the 14th century, the base of the tower added in the 15th, the present southern aisle in the 17th, the top of the tower in the 18th century, the northern aisle in the 19th century and now the north-eastern extension in the 21st century. On the interior, the church as no chancel arch, but a large timber arch of 1865–1866 which serves to divide nave and chancel. There are two arches of unequal width from the chancel to the North chapel, one with a hood mould with mid 14th century headstops, the other plain and much taller, with a triangular 15th century head.
There is a 15th-century polygonal font with quatrefoils on the bowl and tracery on the stem, a stone pulpit of c.1865 in a hard Italianate style, with mosaic inlay and Roman-style carved heads. The chancel screen dates from 1895 and is by Bodley and Garner, in a elaborate late Perpendicular style with delicate tracery and a coved loft. There is a similar screen in the North aisle. There is some good heraldic glass of 1627 in the West window and glass of 1884 in the South clerestory by Holiday, as well as other good 19th century and early 20th century windows; the Chancel, where the choir sits, Sanctuary, behind the altar rail, incorporate 14th and 19th century work. The work by Giles Gilbert Scott consists of a lofty space with three bays set below a quasi barrel vault. Under the East window, behind the altar, is a wooden reredos in memory of Major Francis J Ball; the Chancel screen was installed in 1897 as a memorial to Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst, Viceroy of India from 1910–1916.
A second screen commemorates other members of the Hardinge family. There is a wide collection of brasses and monuments with the Sanctuary dominated by memorials to previous rectors of the parish, the most notable of whom was Revd. Henry Hammond, who became Rector or Penshurst at the age of 28 and who went on to become Chaplain to King Charles I. St Luke's Chapel, at the western end of the south aisle, was called the Side Chapel, it was rededicated by the Bishop of Rochester, in 1981 as St Luke's. The Luke Tapestry, which hangs above the altar, was designed and worked by a former village doctor, Dr A Wood, in memory of his father, Dr C Wood, Penshurst's doctor for more than 50 years. Dedicated to St Luke as the first Christian physician, it denotes the partnership between medical science and Christianity. Between the windows on the south wall is a memorial to Sir William Coventry, a member of the powerful Naval Board whom Samuel Pepys served as Secretary whilst keeping his famous diary, his memorial is a massive architectural wall tablet in black and white marble with putti holding up an urn by William Kidwell.
The Sidney Chapel in the South-East of the church is the Sidney family's private chapel and they remain responsible for its upkeep. The Sidney family has lived in Penshurst Place for over 450 years. Family members enter the church through a gate directly from the garden of Penshurst Place and sit in this chapel during church services to this day; the Sidney Chapel is the third
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry was the second Tudor monarch, succeeding his father, Henry VII. Henry is best known for his six marriages, in particular his efforts to have his first marriage, to Catherine of Aragon, annulled, his disagreement with the Pope on the question of such an annulment led Henry to initiate the English Reformation, separating the Church of England from papal authority. He appointed himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England and dissolved convents and monasteries, for which he was excommunicated. Henry is known as "the father of the Royal Navy". Domestically, Henry is known for his radical changes to the English Constitution, ushering into England the theory of the divine right of kings. Besides asserting the sovereign's supremacy over the Church of England, he expanded royal power during his reign. Charges of treason and heresy were used to quell dissent, those accused were executed without a formal trial, by means of bills of attainder.
He achieved many of his political aims through the work of his chief ministers, some of whom were banished or executed when they fell out of his favour. Thomas Wolsey, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, Richard Rich, Thomas Cranmer all figured prominently in Henry's administration, he was an extravagant spender and used the proceeds from the Dissolution of the Monasteries and acts of the Reformation Parliament to convert into royal revenue the money, paid to Rome. Despite the influx of money from these sources, Henry was continually on the verge of financial ruin due to his personal extravagance as well as his numerous costly and unsuccessful continental wars with King Francis I of France and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. At home, he oversaw the legal union of England and Wales with the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 and following the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 he was the first English monarch to rule as King of Ireland, his contemporaries considered Henry in his prime to be an attractive and accomplished king.
He has been described as "one of the most charismatic rulers to sit on the English throne". He was an composer; as he aged, Henry became obese and his health suffered, contributing to his death in 1547. He is characterised in his life as a lustful, egotistical and insecure king, he was succeeded by the issue of his third marriage to Jane Seymour. Born 28 June 1491 at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, Henry Tudor was the third child and second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. Of the young Henry's six siblings, only three – Arthur, Prince of Wales, he was baptised by Richard Fox, the Bishop of Exeter, at a church of the Observant Franciscans close to the palace. In 1493, at the age of two, Henry was appointed Constable of Dover Castle and Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, he was subsequently appointed Earl Marshal of England and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland at age three, was inducted into the Order of the Bath soon after. The day after the ceremony he was created Duke of York and a month or so made Warden of the Scottish Marches.
In May 1495, he was appointed to the Order of the Garter. The reason for all the appointments to a small child was so his father could keep personal control of lucrative positions and not share them with established families. Henry was given a first-rate education from leading tutors, becoming fluent in Latin and French, learning at least some Italian. Not much is known about his early life – save for his appointments – because he was not expected to become king. In November 1501, Henry played a considerable part in the ceremonies surrounding his brother's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, the youngest surviving child of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile; as Duke of York, Henry used the arms of his father as king, differenced by a label of three points ermine. He was further honoured, on 9 February 1506, by Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I who made him a Knight of the Golden Fleece. In 1502, Arthur died at the age of 15 of sweating sickness, just 20 weeks after his marriage to Catherine.
Arthur's death thrust all his duties upon the 10-year-old Henry. After a little debate, Henry became the new Duke of Cornwall in October 1502, the new Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester in February 1503. Henry VII gave the boy few tasks. Young Henry was supervised and did not appear in public; as a result, he ascended the throne "untrained in the exacting art of kingship". Henry VII renewed his efforts to seal a marital alliance between England and Spain, by offering his second son in marriage to Arthur's widow Catherine. Both Isabella and Henry VII were keen on the idea, which had arisen shortly after Arthur's death. On 23 June 1503, a treaty was signed for their marriage, they were betrothed two days later. A papal dispensation was only needed for the "impediment of public honesty" if the marriage had not been consummated as Catherine and her duenna claimed, but Henry VII and the Spanish ambassador set out instead to obtain a dispensation for "affinity", which took account of the possibility of consummation.
Cohabitation was not possible. Isabella's death in 1504, the ensuing problems of succession in Castile, complicated matters, her father preferred her to stay in England, but Henry VII's relations with Ferdinand had deteriorated. Catherine was therefore left in limbo for some time, culminating in Prince Henry's rejection of the marriage as soon he was able, at the age of 14. Ferdinand's solution was to make his daugh
Sir John de Pulteney
Sir John de Pulteney or Sir John Poultney was a major English entrepreneur and property owner, who served four times as Mayor of London. A biography of Sir John, written by Charles Lethbridge Kingsford, published in the Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 47 contains much well-referenced information. However, it is inaccurate in stating the Sir John's wife was a daughter of John de St John of Lageham, for reasons that are set out in detail in two articles by Walter Lee Sheppard Jr, his will identifies Sir John's parents as Matilda. Sir John married citizen of London and his wife Roesia; the marriage evidently took place by 13 December 1330, when they arranged for perpetual masses for themselves and “for the souls of John de Bureford late citizen of London and Roesia his wife” to take place at St Nicholas Shambles, London. His association with the de Bereford family went back before 1330, as in July 1318 he was recorded as executor of the will of Roesia de Bureford, late the executrix of John de Bureford, citizen of London.
The couple had one known child: William de Pulteney Shortly after Sir John's death, his widow married Sir Nicholas de LoveyneHe was buried in Old St Paul's Cathedral, but the grave and monument were destroyed along with the cathedral in the Great Fire of London in 1666. A modern monument in the crypt lists his among the important graves lost. Sir John was a member of the Drapers' Company, his business activities included the lending of money. For instance, in July 1325, Robert Burdet of Sheepy, Leicestershire acknowledged that he owed £100 to John de Pulteney. In the following month, the Prior of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem in England acknowledged that he owed John the sum of £800. John lent money to the King, such as an unstated sum that in June 1329 was outstanding but secured on the customs revenue of Southampton, he served as Mayor of London in 1331, 1332, 1334 and 1336 and held the office of Escheator of the City of London. Other roles that he undertook included membership of commissions of oyer and terminer in a number of counties, guardian of the peace for Middlesex and roles in negotiations with Flanders.
Sir John invested some of his considerable wealth in notable building projects, including those listed below. He appears to have been active on these matters around 1341. ‘’’Penshurst Place’’’ was built about 1341. This Grade 1 Listed Building includes additions, but the large hall with its fine timber roof supported by figure corbels and its undercroft date back to Sir John's era. ‘’’Coldharbour House, Candlewick Street, City of London’’ - Sir John constructed this mansion, referred to as Pulteney House or Pulteney’s Inn. It overlooked the River Thames and was occupied by the Black Prince after Sir John’s death until 1359 when it was transferred to Sir Nicholas de Loveyne. ‘’’College of St Laurence Pountney, London’’’ – He added to St Laurence church, Candlewick Street a chapel, dedicated to Corpus Christi and St John the Baptist. This chantry chapel appears to have been established by 1332. ‘’’Carmelites or White Friars church, Coventry’’’ – Sir John paid for the construction of this monastery, which took place about 1342.
‘’’Cheveley Castle, Cambridgeshire’’’ – Little remains of this building, so it does not seem possible to say whether Sir John carried out the works that were permitted in 1341. Sir John died on 8 June 1349, a date that suggests he may have been a victim of the Black Death, although no documentary evidence appears to support that possibility. At the end of his life, he owned or had interests in the following properties that were identified at the subsequent inquisitions post mortem: In Cambridgeshire: The manors of Ditton Camoys at Woodditton and Swaffham Prior. In Hertfordshire: The manor of Shenley. In Kent: The manors of Ospringe, Yenesfield and Southalle. In Leicestershire: The manors of Pulteney and Misterton. Land at Dadlington. In The City of London: Various burgages. In Middlesex: The manor of “Poplar in Stebbenheth”. Two mills and rent at East Smithfield. In Suffolk: The manor of Withersfield. In Warwickshire: Property at Napton and Shotteswell, his will was proved at the Court of Hustings, London.
It contained bequests to support chantries in St Paul's Cathedral and prayers for his soul and for the souls of family members and others. These were to be funded from all his tenements and rents in the City and suburbs of London, apart from his principal house where he lived in the parish of St Laurence, Candlewick Street and his tenement called “le Coldherberuy” and his other tenements in the parish of All-Hallows-the-Great, he left his principal mansion to his wife for life or until her remarriage, after which it would go to Sir William de Clinton, Earl of Huntingdon during the minority of Sir John's son, after which it would go to the son. The tenement called. Ralph de Stratford, Bishop of London and Sir William de Clinton were named as supervisors of the will. Examples of Sir John's affluence are found in specific bequests to the respective supervisors, which were his “finest ring with a great stone called rubie of great value and beauty” and “a beautiful ring with two great stones called diamauntes, two silver flagons enamelled, a cup, together with a certain spoon and salt-cellar to match”.
"Sir John de Pulteney and his two residences in London, Cold Harbour and the manor of the rose, togethe
Sir William Sidney
Sir William Sidney was an English courtier under Henry VIII and Edward VI. He was eldest son of Nicholas Sidney, by Anne, sister of Sir William Brandon. In 1511 he accompanied Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy de Darcy into Spain as a volunteer against the Moors, when Darcy, finding his assistance not required, returned immediately to England and several of his companions remained behind in order to see Madrid, he declined the honour of knighthood from him. As captain of the ‘Great Bark’ he took part in the naval operations before Brest in April 1513, in the year commanded the right wing of the English army at the battle of Flodden, he was knighted for his services, on 23 March 1514 obtained a grant in tail male of the lordship of Kingston-upon-Hull and the manor of Myton forfeited by the attainder of Edmund de la Pole. In October he accompanied his cousin Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk and Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset to Paris, to witness the coronation on 5 November of the Princess Mary as consort of Louis XII, took a prominent part in the subsequent jousts and festivities.
In the following summer he again went to France, charged with the delicate task of announcing the approaching second marriage of the Princess Mary, to the Duke of Suffolk. Sidney was appointed a squire of the body to Henry VIII, married in 1517, he accompanied the king to the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520, in 1523, during the war with France, took part in the expedition commanded by the Duke of Suffolk. In March 1538 he was appointed steward of the household to Prince Edward. In 1539 he received a large grant of lands in Kent and Sussex in exchange for those held by him in York and Lincoln, his wife died on 22 October 1543, on 25 April 1552 Edward VI added to his estates in Kent the manor of Penshurst. Sidney died at Penshurst on 10 February 1554, was buried in the parish church. Sidney married daughter of Sir Hugh Pakenham. Henry Sidney was their son. In the chancel of St John the Baptist, Penshurst is the tomb of Sidney with a memorial tablet, on the sides of which are engraven the escutcheons of his four daughters and their husbands: Mary, eldest daughter, who married Sir William Dormer of Wing, Lucy, who married Sir James Harington of Exton Hall, Rutland.
Frances, who married of Thomas Radcliffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex. Richardson, Douglas. Everingham, Kimball G. ed. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families. III. Salt Lake City. ISBN 144996639X. Attriution This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Dunlop, Robert. "Sidney, Henry". In Lee, Sidney. Dictionary of National Biography. 52. London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 210–217
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American sitcom television series broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. The show had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor backwoods family from the Ozarks region who move to posh Beverly Hills, after striking oil on their land. The show was created by writer Paul Henning, it was followed by two other Henning-inspired "country cousin" series on CBS: Petticoat Junction, its spin-off Green Acres, which reversed the rags-to-riches, country-to-city model of The Beverly Hillbillies. The Beverly Hillbillies ranked among the top 20 most-watched programs on television for eight of its nine seasons, twice ranking as the number one series of the year, with a number of episodes that remain among the most-watched television episodes in history, it accumulated seven Emmy nominations during its run. The series remains in syndicated reruns, its ongoing popularity spawned a 1993 film remake by 20th Century Fox; the series starts as Jed Clampett, an impoverished and widowed mountaineer, is living alongside an oil-rich swamp with his daughter and mother-in-law.
A surveyor for the OK Oil Company realizes the size of the oil field, the company pays him a fortune for the right to drill on his land. Patriarch Jed's cousin Pearl Bodine prods him to move to California after being told his modest property could yield $25 million, pressures him into taking her son Jethro along; the family moves into a mansion in wealthy Beverly Hills, next door to Jed's banker, Milburn Drysdale. The Clampetts bring a moral and minimalistic lifestyle to the swanky, sometimes self-obsessed and superficial community. Double entendres and cultural misconceptions are the core of the sitcom's humor. Plots involve the outlandish efforts Drysdale makes to keep the Clampetts' money in his bank and his wife's efforts to rid the neighborhood of those hillbillies; the family's periodic attempts to return to the mountains are prompted by Granny's perceiving a slight from one of the "city folk". Buddy Ebsen as J. D. "Jed" Clampett, the widowed patriarch and head of the household. Irene Ryan as Daisy May Moses, Jed's mother-in-law and Elly May's maternal Grandmother.
Donna Douglas as Elly May Clampett, Jed's beautiful tomboy daughter Max Baer Jr. as Jethro Bodine, the brawny, half-witted son of Jed's cousin Pearl. Raymond Bailey as Milburn Drysdale, Jed's greedy, unscrupulous banker Nancy Kulp as Miss Jane Hathaway, Drysdale's scholarly, "plain Jane" secretary Harriet E. MacGibbon as Margaret Drysdale, Mr. Drysdale's ostentatious wife Bea Benaderet as Jed's cousin Pearl Although he has little formal education, Jed Clampett has a good deal of common sense, he is the son of Luke Clampett and his wife, has a sister called Myrtle. Jed is the head of the family; the huge oil pool in the swamp he owned was the beginning of his rags-to-riches journey to Beverly Hills. He is the straight man to Granny and Jethro's antics, his catchphrase is, "Welllllll, doggies!" Jed was one of the three characters to appear in all 274 episodes of the series. Daisy May Moses, called "Granny" by all, is Jed's mother-in-law. In the first season she implies she is 72 years old when she says she has not slept in so late in 72 years.
Paul Henning, the show's creator/producer discarded the idea of making Granny Jed's mother, which would have changed the show's dynamics, making Granny the matriarch and Jed subordinate to her. Granny can be aggressive, but is overruled by Jed, she is a Confederate to the core, defending President Jefferson Davis and the Stars and Bars, though she erroneously believes it was the North that fought to preserve slavery. Short-fused and angered, Granny fancies herself a Baptist Christian with forgiveness in her heart. A self-styled "M. D." — "mountain doctor" — she claims to be better than expensive trained physicians. In lieu of conventional anesthesia, Granny uses her "white lightning" brew before commencing painful treatments such as leech bleeding and yanking teeth with pliers, she defends the simple life. Granny's full name, Daisy Moses, is an homage to the popular and dearly loved folk artist Anna Mary Robertson, known to the world as Grandma Moses, who died in 1961, a year before The Beverly Hillbillies made its television debut.
Granny is referred to as "Granny Clampett" in a number of episodes, but technically she is a Moses. Granny appears in all 274 episodes. Elly May, the only child of Jed and Rose Ellen Clampett, is a mountain beauty with the body of a pinup girl and the soul of a tomboy, she can throw a fastball as well as "rassle" most men to a fall, she can be as tender with her friends and family as she is tough with anyone she rassles. She says once that animals can be better companions than people, but as she grows older, she allows that, "fellas kin be more fun than critters." In addition to the family dog, Duke, a number of pets live on the Clampett estate thanks to animal-lover Elly. In the 1981 TV movie, Elly May is the head of a zoo. Elly is a terrible cook. Family members cringe. Jethro is the son of Pearl Bodine, he drives the Clampett family to their new home in California and stays on with them to further his education. The others boast of Jethro's "sixth-grade education", but he is ignorant about nearly every aspect of modern California life.
In one episode, he decides to go to college. He enrolls late in the semester at a local secretarial sch
Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester, second son of Sir Henry Sidney, was a statesman of Elizabethan and Jacobean England. He was a patron of the arts and an interesting poet, his mother, Mary Sidney née Dudley, was a lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I and a sister of Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, an advisor and favourite of the Queen. He was educated at Christ Church, afterwards travelling on the Continent for some years between 1578 and 1583. In 1585 he was elected member of parliament for Glamorganshire, he was present at the Battle of Zutphen where Sir Philip Sidney was mortally wounded, remained with his brother. After visiting Scotland on a diplomatic mission in 1588, France on a similar errand in 1593, he returned to the Netherlands in 1606, where he rendered distinguished service in the war for the next two years, he had been appointed governor of the cautionary town of Flushing in 1588, he spent much time there. In 1595 he sent his business manager Rowland Whyte to court to lobby for resources for Flushing, to send him information about events at court including the latest political gossip.
Whyte's letters provide a major resource for historians of the period. Whyte himself complains about the indecipherable handwriting of his employer's replies. In 1603, on the accession of James I, he returned to England. James raised him at once to the peerage as Baron Sidney of Penshurst, he was appointed chamberlain to the queen consort, Anne of Denmark. In 1605 he was created Viscount Lisle, in 1618 Earl of Leicester, the latter title having become extinct in 1588 on the death of his uncle, part of whose property he had inherited. Sidney married twice: Firstly to Barbara Gamage, a noted heiress and beauty, the daughter of John Gamage, of Coity Castle, a Glamorgan gentleman. By his first wife he had eleven children. Sir William Sidney, his eldest son who predeceased his father and died unmarried. Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicester, second son and heir. Henry Sidney Philip Sidney Mary Sidney, who married Sir Robert Wroth of Loughton Hall, was like her father a poet. Catherine Sidney Philippa Sidney, married Sir John Hobart, 2nd Baronet, third son of Sir Henry Hobart, 1st Baronet, Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and ancestor of the Earls of Buckinghamshire.
Barbara Sidney Dorothy Sidney Elizabeth Bridget SidneySecondly to Sarah Blount, daughter of William Blount, widow of Sir Thomas Smythe. Leicester was a man of taste and a patron of literature, whose cultured mode of life at his country seat, Penshurst Place, was celebrated in verse by Ben Jonson. Robert Sidney was a patron of musicians, as is proved by his being the dedicatee of Robert Jones’s First Booke of Songes and Ayres and A Musicall Banquet compiled by Robert Dowland, son of the composer John Dowland. Sidney had agreed to be godfather to John Dowland’s son, A Musicall Banquet opens with a Galliard by John Dowland entitled Syr Robert Sidney his Galliard. Though the brother of one of the most famous poets in the English language, it was not suspected that Robert Sidney had himself been a poet until the 1960s, when his working notebook emerged through the dispersal of the Library of Warwick Castle. Subsequent research showed it had been acquired in 1848 after passing through a number of sales beginning with the dispersal of the library at Penshurst in the early 19th century.
Sold again at Sotheby's and acquired by the British Library in 1975, the autograph is, as its first editor P. J. Croft pointed out, "the largest body of verse to have survived from the Elizabethan period in a text set down by the poet himself". Dating from the latter half of the 1590s when Robert Sidney was governor of Flushing, the collection comprises 66 sonnets, pastorals and slighter pieces structured as a kind of reply to Philip Sidney’s Astrophel and Stella, they show Robert Sidney as an advocate of the Neo-platonic philosophy of love and adept at a great variety of verse forms. The fact that several of the poems are based on identifiable tunes confirms his interest in music. While he cannot be placed in the first rank of Elizabethan poets, his poems are by no means negligible and of the greatest interest for the working methods and intellectual interests of the period; the arms of Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester showed sixteen quarters as follows: 1. A pheon 2. Barry of ten a lion rampant crowned 3.
A lion rampant double queued 4. Two lions passant 5. Barry of six in chief three torteaux a label of three points for difference 6. A maunch 7. A wolf's head erased 8. Barry of ten as many martlets in orle 9. A lion rampant 10. Seven mascles conjoined three and one 11. A lion rampant within a bordure engrailed 12. A fess between six crosses crosslet 13. Checky, a chevron ermine 14. A lion statant gardant crowned 15. A chevron 16. A fess dancetty. Five fusils in bend on a chief three escallops 2. Vair 3. Checky, a fess ermine 4. Three chevrons The Poems of Robert Sidney, ed. P. J. Croft This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed.. "Leicester, Robert Sidney
London
London is the capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south-east of England, at the head of its 50-mile estuary leading to the North Sea, London has been a major settlement for two millennia. Londinium was founded by the Romans; the City of London, London's ancient core − an area of just 1.12 square miles and colloquially known as the Square Mile − retains boundaries that follow its medieval limits. The City of Westminster is an Inner London borough holding city status. Greater London is governed by the Mayor of the London Assembly. London is considered to be one of the world's most important global cities and has been termed the world's most powerful, most desirable, most influential, most visited, most expensive, sustainable, most investment friendly, most popular for work, the most vegetarian friendly city in the world. London exerts a considerable impact upon the arts, education, fashion, healthcare, professional services and development, tourism and transportation.
London ranks 26 out of 300 major cities for economic performance. It is one of the largest financial centres and has either the fifth or sixth largest metropolitan area GDP, it is the most-visited city as measured by international arrivals and has the busiest city airport system as measured by passenger traffic. It is the leading investment destination, hosting more international retailers and ultra high-net-worth individuals than any other city. London's universities form the largest concentration of higher education institutes in Europe. In 2012, London became the first city to have hosted three modern Summer Olympic Games. London has a diverse range of people and cultures, more than 300 languages are spoken in the region, its estimated mid-2016 municipal population was 8,787,892, the most populous of any city in the European Union and accounting for 13.4% of the UK population. London's urban area is the second most populous in the EU, after Paris, with 9,787,426 inhabitants at the 2011 census.
The population within the London commuter belt is the most populous in the EU with 14,040,163 inhabitants in 2016. London was the world's most populous city from c. 1831 to 1925. London contains four World Heritage Sites: the Tower of London. Other landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square and The Shard. London has numerous museums, galleries and sporting events; these include the British Museum, National Gallery, Natural History Museum, Tate Modern, British Library and West End theatres. The London Underground is the oldest underground railway network in the world. "London" is an ancient name, attested in the first century AD in the Latinised form Londinium. Over the years, the name has attracted many mythicising explanations; the earliest attested appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, written around 1136. This had it that the name originated from a supposed King Lud, who had taken over the city and named it Kaerlud.
Modern scientific analyses of the name must account for the origins of the different forms found in early sources Latin, Old English, Welsh, with reference to the known developments over time of sounds in those different languages. It is agreed; this was adapted into Latin as Londinium and borrowed into Old English, the ancestor-language of English. The toponymy of the Common Brythonic form is much debated. A prominent explanation was Richard Coates's 1998 argument that the name derived from pre-Celtic Old European *lowonida, meaning "river too wide to ford". Coates suggested that this was a name given to the part of the River Thames which flows through London. However, most work has accepted a Celtic origin for the name, recent studies have favoured an explanation along the lines of a Celtic derivative of a proto-Indo-European root *lendh-, combined with the Celtic suffix *-injo- or *-onjo-. Peter Schrijver has suggested, on these grounds, that the name meant'place that floods'; until 1889, the name "London" applied to the City of London, but since it has referred to the County of London and Greater London.
"London" is sometimes written informally as "LDN". In 1993, the remains of a Bronze Age bridge were found on the south foreshore, upstream of Vauxhall Bridge; this bridge either reached a now lost island in it. Two of those timbers were radiocarbon dated to between 1750 BC and 1285 BC. In 2010 the foundations of a large timber structure, dated to between 4800 BC and 4500 BC, were found on the Thames's south foreshore, downstream of Vauxhall Bridge; the function of the mesolithic structure is not known. Both structures are on the south bank. Although there is evidence of scattered Brythonic settlements in the area, the first major settlement was founded by the Romans about four years after the invasion
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