Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 1.djvu/53

ALDERLEY. ALDEKNEY. church is new, having teen erected in 1849, by the Marquis of Salisbury. Alderholt Park is the principal residence. ALDERLEY, a par. in the hand, of Macelcsfield, in the co. palatine of Chester, 5 miles to the W. of Mac- clesfiekl, and 14 miles S. of Manchester. It is distant lj mile from Alderley and Chorley station, on the Man- chester and Birmingham railway, and a branch of the small river Bollin flows through the parish. It comprises the tnshpo. of Over and Nether Alderley, with the chplrios. of Great Warford and Birtles. The land is fertile and highly cultivated, and the surface plea- santly undulating. Rocks of tie New Red sandstone appear at various points, and form a bold ridge, at Alderley Edge, rising steeply from the level pasture lands, on the north side, to the height of 360 feet. The view from the Edge is extensive and very picturesque, the fine ranges of hills on the border of Derbyshire, bounding it to the east. Rich woods cover a great part of this high ground, and slope down the hollows on its sides. Many handsome residences have been built, during the last few years, on the Edge, which are occu- pii'd by wealthy Manchester men, and the place has become a favourite and frequent resort of holiday and pleasure-seeking people. Cheap excursion trains run from Manchester, weekly, through the summer. Alderley Park is the seat oi Lord Stanley of Alderley. It is an ex- tensive, rich, and well-wooded demesne, containing a fine sheet of water called Radnor Mere, and woods with some of the noblest beech-trees in England. Lead, copper, and cobalt have been found, but in too small quantities to rrjiay the cost of working the mines, which have, at different times, been opened. The copper mines, how- ever, have been recently re-opened, and are now paying well. They were visited in "September, 1861, by the members of the British Association, on occasion of their meeting at Manchester. The living is a rect.* in the dioc. of Chester, val. 750, in the patron, of Lord Staidey of Alderley, who is also lord of the manor. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, is a stone building in the township of Nether Alderley, and the chancel was rebuilt in 1855. There are several stained glass windows ; one in the chancel was inserted by the parishioners in 1855, ia memory of John, Baron Stanley of Alderley. There is also a handsome monument of Caen stone, by West- macott, in memory of the first Baron Stanley of Alderley, and another to Dr. Stanley, who was for 32 years rector of this parish, and 12 years bishop of Norwich. A new church has been recently erected in the township of Chorley (which is iu Wihnslow parish) near the railway station, for the accommodation of the residents on the Edge. There is a free school, founded in 1628, by the Rev. Hugh Shaw, and subsequently endowed ; and another small endowed school in Lower Alderley. The Baptists have a chapel at Great Warford. ALDERLEY, a par. in the upper div. of the hund. of Grumbald's Ash, in the co. of Gloucester, 6 miles to the N.E. of Chipping Sodbury. Wotton-under-Edge is the post town. The village stands among the Cots- wold hills, between two small streams, which meet and join the Avon. It is not far from Kingswood forest. The living is a rect.* in the dioc. of Gloucester and Bristol, val. 200, in the patron, of R. H. B. Hale, Esq. The church is dedicated to St. Kenelm. The weaving of fine cloth is carried oruherc by some of the inhabitants. This was the birthplace of the great lawyer and judge, Sir Matthew Hale, who was born in November, 1609, and died in 1676. His remains lie in the church. Alderley House is the seat of his descendant, R. II. B. Hale, Esq. ALDERMAN HAW, a vil. in the chplry. of Wood- house, par. of Barrow-on-Soar, hund. of Goscote, in the co. of Leicester, 2 miles to the W. of Mount Sorrel. A cell to the abbey of Bermondsey formerly existed here. ALDERMASTON, or ADMISTON, a par. in the hnnd. of Theale, in the co. of Berks, 10 miles to the S.W. of Reading, and 9 S.E. of Newbury. It is situated in a pleasant district, in the valley of the Kcnnet, near the junction of the Embornewith that river, and is a station on the Hungerford branch of the Great Western railway. The Kennet is navigable, and there is a wharf, which has a good traffic in coal and timber. There is also an extensive brewery and malting establishment. This place was formerly a market town. The liv. is a vie. in tho dioc. of Oxford. The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, stands in the park. It is a large and ancient structure, in tho decorated style, with a Norman doorway, and contains some brasses and tombs of the Orchards and Delameres. There is a handsome marble tomb of George Foster and his lady, which is a fine specimen of ancient workmanship, and a monument in memory of Ralph Congreve. Near tho village is .Aldermaston Court, a fine new mansion in the Tudor- Elizabethan style of architecture. Aldermaston Park was the seat of Mr. Congreve, a member of the family of the dramatist of the 18th century. The mansion is the old manor house, a fine hall, with stained windows. At Aldermaston Soak are some remains of a camp. There are some ahnshouses, endowed by Dixon, and a national school. Horse and cattle fairs are held on the 6th May and the 7th July, and a fair for horses, &c., on the 13th October. ALDERMINSTER, a par. in the upper div. of the hunds. of Pershore and Oawaldslow, in the co. of Wor- cester, locally within the limits of the co. of Warwick, 4 miles to the S.E. of Stratford-on-Avon. It is situated on the river Stour, and a tram railway, from Stratford to Moreton in the Marsh, passes through it. The living is a vie.* in the dioc. of Worcester, val. 170, in the patron, of the lord chancellor. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, is in the form of a cross, the nave being in the Norman style. It has a low tower. ALDERNEY, one of the Channel Islands, named by the French, Aurigny. It is the most northerly of the group, and the nearest to the coast of France, lying about 7 miles W. of Cape La Hogue, in Normandy, in north latitude 49 44' and west longitude 2 25'. It is separated from the main-land of France by a strait, called the Race of Alderuey, in which the flood-tide runs rapidly, and from opposing currents it becomes a dan- gerous passage in rough weather. The island lies about 15 miles N.E. of Guernsey, and about 55 miles S.S.E. of Portland Bill. It extends in length, from N.E. to S.W., about 4 miles, and has a circumference of about 12 miles, comprising an area of rather more than 4 square miles, being the third in size and population of the Channel Islands. It consists mostly of elevated ground, but not without valleys and meadow land. The cliffs, on the south-cast side, rise to the height of 200 feet, and at some points to nearly 300 feet. On the north-east the land is shelving, and intersected by deep valleys and small bays. The numerous rocks, islands, and shoals surrounding it, and the variety of currents, make it difficult and dangerous to approach at times. There is only one harbour in tho island, and that capable only of admitting vessels of small size. Eastward lies the Blanchard cluster of rocks ; southward, the Coquelhou and Noire Putes, with tho Chole bank, which is 6 miles in length, and has, in one part, only 10 feet of water over it ; on the south-west, the Susurouais bank ; on the north-west, the Burhou reef, the Ortach and Pierre-au- brach rocks, and beyond these the cluster called the Caskets. It was off these that Prince Henry, Duke of Normandy, son of Henry I., together with many of his nobility in the Blanche >ief, perished in 1119. There are tliree lighthouses on this cluster, bearing the names of St. Peter, St. Thomas, and Donjon, arranged as the points of a triangle. It was through the Race of Alderney that the French fleet, under Tourville, escaped, in 1692, after its defeat, by the English and Dutch, under Admiral Russell. The soil of Alderney in the interior is good, about one-third of its surface con- sisting of pasture land. Good corn and potatoes are produced in the valleys. The climate is mild, and there is abundance of good water. The Alderney cow is in high repute ; she is of very small size, straight in the back, and gives excellent milk. These cattle, however, are said now to come mostly from Jersey. Fish is abundant. Seaweed is used for manuring the land.