cording to the poet, signifying royal dignity, virginity, and martyrdom." We may fairly presume that one of these wonderworking pennons was carried by the great constable of England before his army. Whether it at all contributed to produce the

glorious fortune of the day, is another question.

Blomfield, the historian of the county of Norfolk, supposes that the barrows near Rymer House, Ingham, called the Seven Hills, contained the bodies of those slain in this battle. These last, however, are Celtic barrows, and having been opened, nothing has been found in them, corroborative of his opinion. They are also distant from the field of battle. In the immediate neighbourhood of Fornham St. Genevieve, the skeletons of men have been found-money of the reign of Henry II, and military culinary utensils. A gold ring, enclosing a ruby has also been picked up close to the spot, which it has been supposed, belonged to the Countess Petronilla. It is recorded, that upon her flight she threw away her ring. A number of other proofs exist, shewing Fornham St. Genevieve, to be the spot where the encounter took place, and that the opinion of the Norfolk historian, is erroneous.

Immediately upon the conclusion of the unnatural contest between the King and his sons, the Monarch ordered all the Castles which had held out against his power, to be razed to the earth. The Castle of Walton shared the effect of the Royal ordinance. It was levelled to the ground, and the stones of which it was composed, scattered through the villages of Walton, Trimley, and Felixstow.

TOPOGRAPHICAL PARTICULARS.

The Manor of Fornham St. Genevieve, was held by the Monastery of St. Edmund, and placed in the hands of the conventual Treasurer. The Prior, had a villa here, and not more than twenty years since, the foundations of buildings believed to be the ruins of the Priory, were turned up near the Church. At the dissolution, the manor was purchased by Sir Thomas Keytson, and after passing through the hands of several families, fell into the possession of the Duke of Norfolk, in 1789.

F

STANNINGFIELD.

AMBROSE ROOKWOOD, the "GUNPOWDER PLOT," CONSPIRATOR.-MRS. INCHBALD.

NEAR Coldham Hall, in the parish of Stanningfield, still exist, or not long since existed, some old walls, and remains of what once were ponds for the storing of fish, formerly belonging to the ancient seat of the Rokewoods, or Rookwoods, a family of considerable antiquity, and which numbered among its members, Ambrose Rookwood, implicated in the far-famed "Gunpowder treason," and executed in 1605. At this old house, Ambrose Rookwood was born. He was a young man of good parts, and appears to have been persuaded to join the conspiracy by his friend Catesby whom he loved "above any other man." The particulars of Rookwood's connection with the conspirators, are not generally known. Those related here, are taken from two old tracts, one of which consists of 28 pages entitled, "The arraignment and execution of the late Traitors, with a relation of other Traitors, which were executed at Worcester, the twenty seventh of January last past. London, printed for Jeffery Chorlton, and is to be sold at his shop, at the great north dore of St. Paul's, 1606." The other purports to be, "His Majes ty's speech in this last session of parliament, concerning the Gunpowder Plot, as near his words as could be gathered from the

instant together with a discourse of the manner of the discovery of the late intended Treason, joined with the examination of some of the prisoners. London, 1605." Quarto, ninety-two pages. It appears from these publications, that the men who first entered the plot, were Thomas Percy, Robert Catesby, Thomas Winter, John Wright, and Guido Fawkes. These for some time prosecuted their nefarious designs together and in secret, until at length they admitted Christopher Wright, into the compact, and eventually, Ambrose Rookwood, and some others.

Rookwood, appears to have been taken into the design some time after the plot was hatched. He was not one of those, who, to use their own words, "worked in the mine"-that is, laboured at boring through the cellar wall, in order to undermine the Parliament House, but was attached to the band after the cellars had been found vacant and hired for the purpose of depositing the powder in them. Those who worked in this "mine," and were first in the Treason, were Guido Fawkes, Robert Catesby, Bates, Catesby's man, Thomas Percy, Thomas Winter, Christopher Wright, Robert Winter and John Wright. The remaining conspirators, were Everard Digby Knt., Ambrose Rookwood, Francis Tresham, John Graunt, and Robert Keys. When fairly joined in this murderous league, Rookwood, appears to have taken his full share in the course of action pursued by the whole band for the accomplishment of their dreadful purposes. At length, the horrid plan having became known, through the affection entertained by one of the conspirators for Lord Mounteagle, the traitors fled from the neighbourhood of their intended crimes, and took refuge in the country. Information of their acts, pursued them. They were hunted through the county of Warwick, by the Sheriff, and eventually taken, in a house situate at Hagley, in the county of Worcester, close upon the borders of Staffordshire. Rookwood, of Stanningfield, was one of the wretched creatures here captured, and maimed and scorched by a spark of fire falling among a quantity of gunpowder placed to dry, conveyed to London, and

Gage, in his history of

after condemnation, suffered death. Hengrave, says, that Rookwood paid the last penalty of the law, in being hanged at Tyburn, but the first tract, previously mentioned, states that he, with others, was dragged on hurdles into the old Palace Yard, Westminster, where the common hangman, and an executioner at the block, put a period to his existence.

The same authority states, that at his trial, "Rookwood, out of a studied speech, would fain have made his bringing up, and breeding in idolatry, to have been some excuse to his villainy; but a fair talk could not help a foul deed, and therefore, being found guilty of the Treason, had his judgment with the rest of the Traitors." He was dispatched, after his coadjutor Winter. The same tract, speaking of Rookwood's last hour, says "Next Winter came Rookwood, who made a speech of some longer time, confessing his offence to God, in seeking to shed blood, and asking therefore mercy of his divine Majesty; his offence to the King, of whose Majesty, he likewise humbly asked forgiveness; his offence to the whole state, of whom in general he asked forgiveness, beseeching God to bless the King, the Queen, and all the royal progeny, and that they might long live to reign in peace and happiness, over this kingdom. But last of all, to mar all pottage with one filthy weed, to mar this good prayer with an ill conclusion, he prayed God to make the King a Catholick, otherwise a Papist, which God of his infinite mercy ever forbid, and so beseeching the King, to be good to his wife and children, protesting to die in his idolatry, a Romish Catholic, he went up the ladder, and hanging till he was almost dead, was drawn to the block, where he gave his last gasp." So terminated the life of Ambrose Rookwood, of Stanningfield.

The family of Rookwood, numbers several other members, who met with strange fortunes, and tragical ends. Ambrose Rookwood espoused the daughter of Sir Robert Tyrwhit, of Kettleby, Lincolnshire, and left a son named Robert, who became Sir Robert Rookwood. The second son of Sir Robert, was killed at Oxford, in the cause of the King, and his grand