8. 7th do. The Coblers Inn.

9.

8th do. The Blockhowse (behinde the hall)'.

The rooms on the first floor were, 1st middle chamber, occupying the space over "Cow-lane" and the "low Fellows chamber," 2nd middle chamber, and so on; those on the second floor, Ist upper chamber, 2nd upper chamber, etc. These floors were appropriated to the Fellows, of whom two were lodged in each room. By this arrangement the Old Court was made to afford the precise amount of accommodation necessary for the seventy members of the foundation.

Fig. 13.

Window on the exterior of the north side of the Gateway, Old Court of King's College.

The establishment of the College must have proceeded with considerable rapidity, for in the first of the series of Bursars' Account-books-in this College called Mundum-books-that has been preserved, the expenses are divided under the usual

1 [The chambers at Winchester College were distinguished in a similar manner. A list of the curious names applied to them is given in a note to a paper on “The Architectural Works of William of Wykeham," by C. R. Cockerell, Esq., in the "Proceedings of the meeting of the Archæological Institute held at Winchester, 1845.” Two other names, "the Mounte" and "le Stable," appear at King's in the sixteenth century. Mundum-Book, 1587-88. Reparaciones. "Item solut' Parker et Bridgwater reficiendo muro trium cubiculorum vocat' the mownte xxxviij. iijd." Ibid. 1588 -89, "pro boarding le studie in cubiculo vocat' le stable."]

headings: "Expenses of Hall, Buttery, and Kitchen;""Stable;" "Cost of the Church;" "Purchase of Wine;" and so forth. A Library also had been formed, by the charges for binding and chaining books. In 1449 the Pigeon-house was built and stocked, and in 1451 the "New Garden" was laid out. In 1454 the heading "Cost of the new building, and of the repairs occurs for the first time in the accounts. This probably indicates that the College had then been completed, and that the maintenance of the new buildings had devolved upon the Provost and Fellows. The further history of these buildings, which, in consequence of the delay in erecting the larger College intended to supersede them, remained in use until 1828, will be related, as far as is necessary, in Chapter XII. The new buildings having come into use, the site of the Old Court was sold to the University, 25 November, 1829, for £12,000'; but the destruction of the buildings was not approved by the Senate until 2 December, 1835, when it was decided to clear the ground in view of the immediate commencement of a new Library. The report recommending this contained the following clause:

"The Syndicate however, considering it probable that the University, or some public body connected with the University, may be disposed to re-erect or restore on some other site, the Old Gateway of King's College (as a venerable and beautiful specimen of Architecture), recommend that it should for the present be left undisturbed."

The clearing of the ground had commenced before the adoption of a design for the New Library; an unreasonable and unnecessary proceeding which at length excited so much indignation that the further destruction of the South and West fronts was arrested, 11 June, 1836. It is to this late repentance that we owe the preservation of the few fragments, besides the Gate, that still remain.]

1 [This transaction, the negotiations for which lasted from 1823 to 1829, will be related in the History of the University Library.]

2

a

"[A letter in the form of a petition, signed "The Old Court of King's," appeared in the Cambridge Chronicle, 6 May, 1836. The writer implores "a little mercy;" appeals "against the barbarous demolition now going on," and suggests that " skilful adaptation of the more sound and beautiful portions of the stone work yet left standing would be as good as a subscription of £1000 towards the erection of the new Quadrangle."]

CHAPTER III.

HISTORY OF THE ENLARGED SITE of King's'.

THE site described in the first chapter was sufficient for the small College which the King then proposed to establish. Three years after, however, he commenced the acquisition of the noble site on the south of the first; which, intersected as it was by public streets and lanes, and in the possession of so many independent proprietors and tenants, he was yet enabled to purchase, and finally to grant to his College in 1449. In letters patent of that year he describes this new ground as bounded by High Street on the east, the Common River on the west, Whitefrerelane2 and a new lane (S. Austin's Lane) next to S. Austin's Hostel, on the south, and by Clare Hall and the eastern part of School Street on the north. To these last the southern limit of the old site might have been added. The breadth of the ground at the eastern border is stated in the same charter to be 410 feet, and at the western border 384 feet. The length is 700 feet3.

[A desire to surpass the College built by William of Wykeham at Oxford has often been suggested as the reason for this change of plan. That the King borrowed largely from

1 [The map which illustrates this chapter has been drawn from two plans of the site prepared by Prof. Willis, aided by numerous memoranda left by him. He had made most minute and elaborate tables to shew the history and position of all the pieces of ground composing it; but had only partly finished the description of it. This I have done my best to supply, but I have claimed as my own only those portions of it for which I discovered authority by my own researches.]

So called from the Carmelite Friary (now part of the site of Queens' College), to the south of it. It was also called Cholles Lane, from the occupier of an adjoining tenement, according to Essex (Brit. Mus. Add. MS. 6767, p. 7). In an old undated charter he found the name “Aspelonis Cholle de Cantebr', juxta venellam que ducit versus Cholleshythe."

3 [The eastern dimension is easily laid down on the map, extending from the south boundary of School Lane to the south boundary of S. Austin's Lane. The western dimension is not so easy to define; as the distance from Clare Hall to Cholles Lane exceeds 384 feet by about 30 feet. From the river to Trumpington Street the real distance is now nearly 720 feet, and originally must have varied from 730 feet along the southern, to 780 feet along the northern, border.]

14

Wykeham, both in buildings and in statutes, cannot be doubted. In this instance however it seems hardly right to set aside his own express statement, made in the document above referred to, that he had acquired the larger site because the provost and scholars had represented to him that the former site was too small, and had humbly besought him to provide them with more ample accommodation.]

At this period Milne Street was continued in a direct line from Clare Hall to Queens' Lane, and appears to have been a considerable thoroughfare, judging from the number of Colleges which it contained. Trinity Hall and Clare Hall had their front gates in this street, and at its north end it led to Gonvile Hall and King's Hall. The space between Milne Street and High Street was intersected by Piron Lane', which, starting from a point opposite to the present S. Edward's Passage, entered Milne Street about thirty feet south of the site of the Chapel. This also was probably an important thoroughfare, as it led directly from High Street to Clare Hall, the Church of S. John Zachary, and several Hostels. From the west side of Milne Street two other lanes extended to the river. The northernmost of these was called Water Lane, and the southernmost Salthithe Lane, otherwise Strawey Lane, or Strawe Lane. Both were considerably to the south of Piron Lane.

[The new site may be conveniently divided, for the purpose of description, into three divisions, which we will style northern, southern, and western. The northern lay between the old site and School Street on the north, and Piron Lane on the south; the southern between Piron Lane and S. Austin's Lane. Both had Milne Street, here called S. Johnstrete, on the west, and High Street on the east. The western division was bounded on the north by Clare Hall, on the south by Whitefriars Lane or Cholles Lane, the river on the west, and Milne Street on the east.]

Beginning with the northern division, the tenements in High Street follow in order from north to south thus: at the corner of School Street and High Street was a house belonging to Corpus

1 [The name is variously spelt in the documents of King's College; Pyrones lane 5 Ric. II.; Perewyn lane 18 Ric. II.; Pirwenlane 13 Hen. VI.; Pyrwynlane 15 Hen. VI. According to Caius, it derived its name "a piro:" and therefore should have been called "Pear-lane." Hist. Cant. Acad. i. 67.]

Christi College called "Le Horshede'," west of which was a piece of land belonging to Great S. Mary's Church, and the Art School mentioned in the first chapter. South of these stood a tenement of the Hospital of S. John, with another house, let out in shops, belonging to a chantry in Great S. Mary's Church at its south-east corner next High Street. This was succeeded by a large house, or rather two houses standing together, called "Arundell's," the property of Robert Lincoln, draper, and extending westward from the street so far as to form the southern boundary of "le Glomeryhalle" or Grammar School. They stood partly in S. Mary's parish, and partly in S. Edward's".

Lincoln evidently held out for as high a price as he could get, for his house was not acquired until 7 September, 1452 (31 Hen. VI.), and then upon terms so curiously stringent that the principal points insisted upon are worth quoting.

"This endenture made at Cambrigge the thurresday in the vigil of the Natiuite of oure Lady the yeer of the reigne of King Herry the sixt after the conquest of Englond xxxjte betwix maister Robert Wodelarke prouost of the College Roial of oure lady and seynt Nicholas of Cambrigge of that one partie And Robert Lyncoln Burgeoys and Draper of Cambrigge aforsaid of that other partie witnesseth

that the said Robert Lyncoln hath solde to the said prouost .ij. meeses lyeng togedre in the town of Cambrigge that one in the parish of seynt mary nere the merket of Cambrigge And that othre in the parish of seynt Edward abbuttyng at the one heved vpon the high strete and at the other heved vpon the said College....

For the which meses the said prouost shal pay or do pay to the said Robert lyncoln or to his executours . C. marc of lawful money of Englond... And for these paiementes wel and truly to be done and kept the said prouost betwix this and the said fest of seynt Auldre shal fynde suffisaunt personnes in the towne of Cambrigge suche as the said

1

1 [The position of this and the following piece is known only from the description given in the letters patent of 1449.]

2 [King's College Muniments, A. 101.] 3 [Described in the charter of 1449.

One of the conveyances of "Arundell's' speaks of it as "shoppas nuper cantarie beate marie."]

4 From John de Arundel, Bedell of the University, to whom it was conveyed 27 April, 1355, as we learn from one of its earlier muniments; in another of which, dated 5 December, 1313, "le Glomeryhalle" is the northern and western boundary. Ibid. A. 114. a.

5 The boundary between these two parishes touches the east end of the Chapel a little to the north of its centre. Space therefore having been allowed for part of Lincoln's, and for Fordham's tenement, Piron Lane must have been near the south wall of the Chapel, in continuation of S. Edward's Lane on the opposite side of the street.