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4

READING DIRECTORY—

1919.

In 1212 the Pope’s Legate held a council here, and in the following yea.
K in g John met the legate and barons at Reading and held a parliament.
Henry H I . after several visits, also held parliaments here in 1241 and 1263 ;
E dw ard H . was at Reading in 1314, and E dw ard III. passed Christmas
in the town and held a grand tournament in 1346; hither, also, in
1380, came Richard II. to punish such of the townsfolk as had lent
help to the rebel, W a t T y le r • in 1415 H enry V . and in 1440 Henry V I.
who then met his parliam en t; the marriage of E dw ard IV . with E liza­
beth W oodvillo was first openly acknowledged at Reading in 1464, when
she made her public appearance at the abbey, being conducted thither
by the Duke of Gloucester and the E arl of W arw ick. Parliaments were
held here in 1466-67 in the great hall of the abbey. H enry V H . was
at Reading in 1487; H enry V I H . on several occasions, and in 1552
E dw ard V I . visited it and was received with much ceremony b y the
authorities, as afterwards in 1554 were Philip and M ary. Queen E liza­
beth visited Reading in 1568, 1572, 1575, 1592, 1602 and in 1603 shortly
before her death: the law courts were held here in Michaelmas term
1625, on account of the plague raging in London ; the judges sitting in
the great hall of the abbey, the town hall and council chamber. In
1643 the town sustained a very severe siege of ten days from the P a rlia ­
mentary forces, under the command of the E arl of E ssex: the town
itself was strongly fortified, and Essex having summoned the town to
surrender, received an answer from Sir A rthur Aston that “ he would starve
or die in i t : ” operations were then commenced, and Essex having taken
a fortification at M apledurham and another at Caversham H ill, which gave
him the command of the town, it was much battered by the sh o t; it
however held out, but the governor having sustained severe injury by
the falling of a brick, the command was transferred to Colonel Fielding,
and the garrison having at length exhausted their ammunition, held out
a flag of truce, at which juncture Prince Rupert and the K ing, who had
marched from Oxford to their relief, engaged the besiegers on Caversham
Bridge, but after a severe struggle were defeated; the K in g then retired
to Caversham House, and the town surrendered upon the terms of the
garrison being permitted to march out with their colours, arms and
baggage to join the K in g ’s troops at Oxford. The town continued after­
wards to be garrisoned at intervals by both the contending parties.
In 1663, when Charles II. passed through Reading, the Corporation
presented the K ing, Queen and their servants with sums of money:
in 1688 a skirmish took place in the streets between the Scots and Irish
of James H . and the troops of the Prince of Orange, known as the
“ Reading fight,” in which the former were beaten, and left the town
in the hands of the Dutch troops: this affair is still celebrated annually
by the ringing of bells on Dec. 21st. Queen Anne visited the town in
1702 and received from the municipality 40 pieces of gold.
T h e C h u r c h o f S t. Gn.us, built originally in the 11th century,
standing on the east side of Southampton street, is a building of flint
and stone, in mixed styles, consisting of chancel, nave of four bays,
aisles, south porch and a battlemented western tower surmounted by
a slender stone spire, and containing a clock and 8 b ells: there are
11 stained windows, and a brass to John Bowyer, tanner, 1521 and
Joan his w ife : the church suffered much from the artillery of the
besiegers during the Civil W a r, and until a few years since was somev -i'-h inconvenient and unsightly, but was
completely restored and
* r “ir^r-d in 1873 at a total cost of £10,660, and now affords 1,200
Ib e churchwardens* accounts date from the
1518, and

year