was a large beautiful fabrick, and very strong both by art and nature; the area within the walls now ftanding being about an acre and a rood of land, the walls 44 feet high, and 8 thick, with thirteen towers fourteen feet above them. Hither the princefs, afterwards Queen Mary, retired, when Lady Jane, her fifter, and fhe, were competitors for the crown.

SUDBURY is 56 miles fron London, and is an ancient corporation, which has fent members to parliament ever fince the reign of Edward the Fourth. This town ftands upon the bank of the river Sour, by which it is almost furrounded, and over which it has an handfome bridge. Here are three large handfome churches, and the town carries on a good trade in says and ferges.

WOODBRIDGE is 76 miles from London, and is fituated upon the weft bank of the river Deben. Its extent is about half a mile every way, and the chief ftreets are well built and paved. Here is a fine church, with a good grammar-school, and an alms-houfe, founded in 1587, by Thomas Seckford, mafter of the requests, for thirteen poor men, and three women. Here is a market place, in the middle of which is a handfome fhire-hall, where the quarter feffions are held for the district of this county, called the liberty of St. Etheldred and Audrey, and under the fhire hall is a corn crofs. The river is navigable hither by fhips of confiderable burthen, and this town has four or five docks, for building fhips with commodious quays and warehouses. It carries on a good trade to London, Newcaftle upon Tyne, and Holland, in butter, cheese, fait, and plank; and the Woodbridge pinks and hoys go to and from London once every week.

ALDBOROUGH is 93 miles from London, and is pleasantly fituated in the valley of Slaughden, having the fea on the eaft, and the river Ald on the fouth-weft. It has two ftreets about a mile long, and has a good quay, on which are convenient ware-houses and fifh houses, for drying fish, especially fprats, foals and lobsters, which, together with the corn which the inhabitants tranfport, and the coals they trade for to Newcastle, is the chief employment of their fhipping. Here is an handfome church, on a hill to the weft of the town.

ORFORD derives it name from a ford over the river Ore, near the mouth of which it ftands. It is 88 miles diftant from London, was incorporated by King Henry the Third, and is governed by a mayor, eighteen portmen, twelve chief burgeffes, a recorder, a town-clerk, and two ferjeants at mace. It was once a large populous town, with a caftle, of which there are ftill fome towers remaining, that ferve as land marks to vessels at fea. Here is a church; and on a promontory not far from VOL. II.

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the town, called Orfordnefs, there is a lighthoufe, for the direction of feamen failing near the coafts; and this promontory is a great fhelter to fhips when a north east wind blows hard upon the fhore. Orford formerly had a good harbour, but the fea has withdrawn from it many years, and the place has proportionably decayed.

EYE is a fmall town, at the diftance of 96 miles from London, and ftands in what is called an island, because almoft furrounded by a brook. Here is a large handsome church. The chief manufacture of this place is bone-lace.

DUNWICH is 99 miles from London, and is one of the moft ancient towns in the county. In the year 1630, it was an epifcopal fee, but was afterwards divided into to two fees, viz. one here, the other at North-Elmham; but William the Norman transferred them firft to Thetford, then to Norwich. From the coins that have been found here, it is fuppofed to have been a Roman ftation; and a tradition is mentioned by Sir Henry Spelman, that there was once here fifty-two churches and monafteries; but the fea has fwallowed up all the churches, except All Saints. It appears, however, that in the fixteenth century it was a populous place, and had a mint. The free burgefles gave King John 300 marks of filver for his charter, befides ten falcons, and five ger-falcons; and they also gave him 200 marks, and five hundred eels for his grant of wrecks. It is governed by two bailiffs, and has fent burgeffes to parliament from the earliest times; but now it is a very inconfiderable place.

BILSTON is 67 miles from London; here is a good church, and a woollen manufactory.

BUDDESDALE is 87 miles from London, and is a thoroughfare in the road from London to Yarmouth. Here is a freefchool, which was founded in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, by Sir Nicholas Bacon, and endowed with feveral fcholarshipsfor ftudents at Cambridge.

BUNGAY is 107 miles from London, and is fituated upon the river Waveney, which furrounds it, and is navigable hither from Yarmouth by barges. A very extenfive trade is carried on here, and the town is much frequented by many capital dealers from Yarmouth, and other parts of Norfolk. Here are two churches, one of which, dedicated to St. Mary, is a noble Gothic ftructure, and near it are the ruins of an antient priory, for monks of the Benedictine order, which was founded in the reign of King Henry II. Here are also the remains of a very ftrong castle, which was built by the family of the Bigods, Earls of Norfolk.

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CLARE ftands upon the river Stour, at the diftance of 55 miles from London. Here is a fine large church, the ruins of a caftle and monaftery, and a manufactory of fays.

DEBENHAM takes its name from the river Deben, which runs by it. It is 83 miles from London, and is fituated on a rifing ground.

HADLEY is 63 miles from London; it is a pretty large populous town, fituated in a bottom; its markets are commonly well ftored with provifions; and it is of fome note for its manufactory of woollen cloth. The greatest ornament of the town is the church, which is an handfome ftructure, with a spire, and is a peculiar of Canterbury.

HAVERILL is 55 miles from Londen, and is at present of little note, but was formerly a more confiderable place.

HALESWORTH is 101 miles from London, and is an ancient populous town, with a very neat church, and a charityIchool. Its market is famous for great quantities of linen yarn, which is fpun in this town and neighbourhood, and bought up

here.

IXWORTH is 78 miles from London, and ftands in the road between London and Yarmouth.

LOWESTOFF is 117 miles from London, and is a little ftraggling town, fituated on a rock, which feems to hang over This place having been part of the ancient demefnes of the he crown, has a charter, by which the inhabitants are exempted from ferving on juries, either at feffions or affizes. About a mile weftward of this place there is a church, and in the town a chapel," for the cafe of the inhabitants, whofe chief bufinefs is fifhing for cod in the North-fea, and for herrings, mackrel and fprats at home.

LAVENHAM is 61 miles from London, and is governed by fix capital burgeffes or headboroughs, who are fuch for life, and have the power of chufing inferior officers. This is a pretty large town, pleafantly fituated in a healthy air, on the bank of a branch of the river Berdon, from whence it rifes gradually to the top of a hill. It confifts of nine ftreets, and in the middle of the town is a church, reckoned the fineft in the county: it was rebuilt in the time of King Henry the Sixth, and and has a steeple 137 feet high, with fix large bells, as good as moft in England. The roof of the church is curioufly carved, and the windows finely painted. Here are two pews, one belonging to the family of the Earl of Oxford, and the other to the family of the Springs, in this county, that are perhaps fuperior in workmanship to any of the pews in King Henry the Seventh's Chapel at Westminster; and here is a ftatue in brafs of Mr. Thomas Spring, who gave 200l. towards rebuilding

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rebuilding the church. This town has a free-school, a bridewell, part of which is a work-house, where the poor of the parish are employed in spinning hemp, flax, and yarn; and here are alfo fome other confiderable charities. Here is a wool-hall, from whence many hundred loads of wool are yearly fent to London. This place was formerly very famous for a ftaple trade in blue cloth, and was divided into three guilds or companies, "each of which had a hall, and here are still confiderable manufactures of ferges, fhalloons, fays, ftuffs, and fine yarn.

MENDELSHAM is 82 miles from London, and contains nothing remarkable but an handsome church.

MILDENHALL is 69 miles from London, and is a large populous town, fituated on the river Lark. The ftreets are spacious, and the town is well built. It has an handsome church, with a lofty steeple, and a good harbour for boats.

STOW MARKET is 75 miles from London, and is a large town in the center of the county, and fituated on the banks of the Orwell. It has a beautiful fpacious church, with eight tuneable bells, a large fteeple and lofty fpire, being 120 feet high. There are feveral good inns here, a manufacture of tammies, and other Norwich ftuffs, and a charity school.

NEEDHAM is 73 miles from London, and confifts of one good ftreet; the inhabitants deal chiefly in broad cloths.

NEYLAND is 57 miles from London. Here is an handfome bridge over the Stour, which by reafon of the low fituation of the town, often overflows it; but makes it fome amends by bringing it plenty of coal, which muft otherwife be fetched at a great diftance. It is a large town, and has a manufacture of bays and fays, but which was formerly much more confiderable. The church is remarkable for the number of marble monuments, inlaid with brafs, to the memory of clothiers who had formerly lived here, and had befides bequeathed confiderable charities, in order to perpetuate their memories.

SAXMUNDHAM is 89 miles from London, but contains nothing worthy of note.

SOUTHWOLD is 103 miles from London, and is fituated in a peninfula, formed by the river Blith upon the weft, and the fea upon the east and fouth. It is a corporation, governed by two bailiffs, and other officers, and is a pleasant populous town, ftrong by its fituation, and fortified by a few pieces of cannon. It has a draw bridge over the river Blith, and a large ftrong built church. In 1747 act of parliament paffed for effectually cleanfing and opening the haven of this place, which had long been choaked up with fand. On the caft fide of this town is a bay, called Solebay, that affords good anchorage, and is fheltered by a promontory about two miles fur

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ther fouth, called Eafton Nefs. On the fouth fide of Easton Nefs is an excellent harbour, which in the Dutch War was the place of rendezvous for our fleets. The promontory of Eafton Nefs is by fome thought the most easterly point of Britain, but others fuppofe it to be Lowestoff. There is a great refort of mariners to this town; and it carries on a confiderable trade in falt, old beer, herrings, and fprats; and the sprats are cured here in the fame manner as the herrings are at Yarmouth.

REMARKABLE VILLAGES and ANTIQUITIES.

Medford is a pleafant village near Sudbury, where there are fome handsome country feats, and the church is a venerable Gothic structure.

At Offtan, on a chalky hill, are the ruins of an old castle, faid by Camden to have been built by Offa, King of the Mercians.

Reudlefham, a fmall village near Woodbridge, is a place of confiderable antiquity, where the East Saxon Kings had a palace,

Between Wulpit and the river Orwel, on an high hill, are the remains of an old caftle, called Haughley-caftle; by whom built is not known.

Icklingham is a place of great antiquity, where the Romans had a station, called Camboricum, pleafantly fituated, and fortified. Many parts of it are still vifible, and coins have been dug up at different times here. There are likewife some antient funeral monuments at this place.

Burfer caftle, in the north-eaft part of the county, at the mouth of the river Waveney, was built by the Romans. Large parts of the wall are still remaining.

Levington is remarkable for the number of petrified shells, which are found here five feet under the surface of the ground. They are dug up in vast quantities, and being beat to duft are ufed as manure for the land.

Burgb-caftle was a fortification erected by the Romans, to guard the coaft against the Saxon pirates; and is supposed to have been the Garianonum where the Stablefian horse had their station. Of this caftle or fort very confiderable remains are ftill ftanding; the eastern wall continues yet in its original length, which is 660 feet, and at the height of feventeen or eighteen feet. On the outside of this wall are four round folid towers, each about 14 feet diameter, and of equal height with the wall. These towers are joined to the wall, but fo that only a small part of the periphery is within it. The remains of

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