L ISLE OF WIGHT. 65 -shaw m Exbury. From Calshot he may proceed by Fawley to Hythe, and cross water at that spot, or proceed to Dibden and Eling, and there cross to Southipton. ISLE OF WIGHT. Southampton is a most convenient spot from which to make an excursion to he Isle of Wight. The passage from Southampton to Cowes, the usual landng-place in Wight, is performed by regular steam-boats in little more than an hour. The passage from Portsmouth seldom exceeds half that time. The Isle of Wight (the Vecta or Vectis of the Romans) is separated from Hampshire by a beautiful channel, called the Solent Sea, the breadth of which varies from four to six miles, but at one point, near Hurst Castle, its breadth is only one mile. In this channel, though it contains no harbour of importance, there are many places of perfect security, where ships may ride at anchor. The best of these is Spithead, the great rendezvous of the British fleet in time of war. The form of the island is an irregular ellipsis, measuring 23 miles from east to west, and 13 miles from north to south. Its circumference is about 60 miles, and its superficial contents have been variously estimated at from 105,000 to 130,000 acres, of which a great portion is highly productive. It is said to have been formerly covered with woods, but to have been in a great measure denuded by its vicinity to Portsmouth, and the great demand of that naval arsenal for timber. "The face of the country may be rather described as undulating than as hilly, though there is a range of hills, or rather downs, running from east to west through the island, with a few points of considerable elevation. There is a great variety of rural scenery, adorned with a great diversity of foliage; and though there are few or no woods, yet, as the fields are enclosed within hedge rows, among which fine trees, and especially stately elms, grow most luxuriantly, these, added to the beauty of the verdant fields, present to the eye of the tra veller a succession of most pleasing prospects. The two sides of the island present each a peculiar character. The northern side is marked by every thing that is rich, lovely, and picturesque; the southern, or the part called the Back of the Island, abounds in bold wild rocks, precipitous projections, ravines, fearful chasms, and other features of the imposing, and a few even of the sublime. In some parts, these opposite characters are greatly mingled. There is a peculiar seenery on the south side of the island, which is so striking to all strangers, as to require a special notice. It is a continued sinking of a tract of land, abou* seven miles in length, and from a-half to a-quarter of a mile in breadth. This singular district consists of a series of terraces, formed by fragments of rocks chalk, and sandstone, which have been detached from the cliffs and hills above and deposited upon a substratum of white marl. This whole undercliff, for such is its common name, is completely sheltered from the north, north-west, and west winds, by the range of lofty downs or hills of chalk or sandstone, which rise boldly from the upper termination of these terraces, on elevations varying D 2 from four to six and seven hundred feet in height. The two extremities of the range are indeed higher, as St Boniface Down is 800 feet above the level of the sea, and St Catherine's Hill on the west nearly 900 feet. The protection afforded by this mountain barrier is greatly increased, by the very singular and striking abruptness with which it terminates on its southern aspect. This, in many places, consists of the bare perpendicular rock of sandstone; in others of chalk, assuming ts characteristic rounded form, covered with a fine turf and underwood."* The river Medina, which, rising at the foot of St Catherine's Down, falls into the Solent Channel, at Cowes, divides the island into two hundreds of nearly equal extent, called respectively East and West Medina, the former compre hending 14, the latter, 16 parishes. The population of the Isle of Wight in 1851 was about 50,230. Previously to the passing of the Reform Bill, the boroughs of Newport, Newton, and Yarmouth, returned each two members to Parliament, but Newton and Yarmouth are now disfranchised, and one member is returned for the county, and two for the borough of Newport. The Isle of Wight was first invaded by the Romans, A. D. 43, in the reign of the Emperor Claudius, and they retained possession of it till 495, when it was reduced by Cedric the Saxon. It suffered severely during the wars of the Saxon heptarchy, and was also frequently plundered and devastated by the Danes. It was on various occasions invaded by the French, but in almost every attack they were beaten and driven back to their ships by the islanders, who had made systematic preparations for their defence. After the naval superiority of Britain was established, this island was completely secured from the calamities of foreign invasion, and during the civil war between Charles I. and his Parliament, the inhabitants enjoyed comparative freedom from the prevailing commotions. The Lordship of the Isle of Wight was conferred by William the Conqueror on William Fitz-Osborne, who is known in English history under the title of the Earl of Hereford, and for more than two centuries the island continued to be governed by its independent lords. But in 1293, Edward I. purchased the regalities for the sum of L.4000 from Isabella de Fortibus, Lady of Wight, and, since that time, the island has been governed by wardens, appointed by the Crown. The office has now become a sinecure, and it is understood that the present governor, Viscount Eversley, does not receive any salary. In the year 1644, the weak and unfortunate Henry VI. conferred the title of king of Wight on Henry Beauchamp, Duke of Warwick, and crowned him with his own hands; but the empty title expired with the nobleman who first bore it. The Isle of Wight derives additional interest from the fact of its having been of late years the frequent place of residence of the Queen, as in 1844 Her Majesty and the Prince Consort purchased the mansion of Osborne, with its park, and the adjoining estate of Barton. Osborne House is situated in the immediate neighbourhood of East Cowes, and near the north coast of the island. Since it has been in the possession of Her Majesty and the Prince, the original man • Encyc. Brit. vol. xxi. p. 82. sion has been greatly enlarged by the addition of a new wing, at the southwest corner of which is a massive tower which forms a conspicuous object for miles around, and the summit of which commands a magnificent and varied prospect. Population of Cowes 1851, 4786. On landing at Cowes, the tourist may proceed by a pleasant road, 44 miles in length, to NEWPORT, the capital of the island, a neat and thriving town, situated in a pleasant valley chequered with gardens and groves, and well-watered on the east and west by copious streams. Newport is the most ancient as well as the largest existing town of the island, and contained in 1851 a population of 8047 souls. The parish church is a large plain structure, originally erected in the year 1172. It has, however, been frequently repaired. Here was discovered, in 1793, the coffin of the Princess Elizabeth, who died a prisoner in Carisbrook Castle, about a year and seven months after the execution of her father, Charles I. It was asserted that Cromwell had caused her to be poisoned, but Clarendon declares this accusation false. The other places of worship in Newport are, several Episcopal chapels, with a Roman Catholic, and other Dissenting chapels. The Grammar School, erected in 1619, is an object of some interest, as the place chosen for the memorable conference between Charles I. and the Parliamentary Commissioners, which goes by the name of the Treaty of Newport. One of the best public buildings in Newport is a public library, called the Isle of Wight Institution, which was built by subscription in 1811, and is now well furnished with books and periodical publications. There are also two assembly rooms in the town, a Mechanic's Institution, and other societies for the promotion of science and education. In the immediate vicinity of Newport is the picturesque village of Carisbrook, once the capital of the island under the independent Lords of Wight. The church is of great antiquity, and is supposed to stand upon the site of a Saxon church, built some centuries before the Conquest. Adjoining the church are the remains of a priory of Cistertian Monks, founded by Fitz-Osborne, Earl of Hereford, but now converted into sheds and stables. Opposite to it, on a steep hill of nearly a circular form, stand the romantic ruins of Carisbrook Castle. Its ivy-clad towers and battlements have an eminently picturesque appearance. At the north-east angle, on a mount raised much higher than the other buildings, stands the Keep, the original fortress, supposed to have been built by the Saxons as early as the sixth century. In the eleventh century, the castle was considerably enlarged by Fitz-Osborne, who surrounded the whole with a fosse. Various additions were made to it at different times, the last by Queen Elizabeth, when the outer walls, which still remain, were made to enclose about twenty acres of ground. Among the curiosities pointed out to strangers is a well 200 feet deep, from which water is drawn up by means of a wheel turned by an ass. Another well, in the centre of the Keep, said to have been 300 feet deep, has been partially filed up. The most memorable incident in the history of Carisbrook Castle, is the confinement of Charles L., who took refuge here after his flight from Hampton |