academic buildings combining with the neighbouring inside the Norman parts show traces of the ancient carvings, but they are mostly destroyed. The porch is a fine one of the time of Henry VI., and above it is a room for a priest. Altogether the parts, though of such various times and differences in style, appear by no means discordant, but group together most artistically. A Guide-book, of a century back, thus records the glory of the parish of which this is the parish church :-" This has more to boast of than any other parish in Europe, or even in the world, as containing within itself, besides the grand colleges (not to say palaces) of Magdalen, New, Queen's, and, in part, University; also Hertford; the Halls of St. Edmund, Magdalen, and part of St. Alban's; and as having two peals of ten bells, one of six, and three organs, two of which are used, twice a day, in choral service."

houses into a picturesque group. The modern shops are, many of them, of the most approved and newest style, and, both in that respect and in the display of goods, would do credit to the metropolis. In our account of Cambridge we spoke of the very characteristic quiet of the streets: this is observable also at Oxford, but not, perhaps, to the same degree. The difference may arise from its being nearer London, and in a more frequented line of road; but we doubt if it does entirely. Oxford has altogether a more "stylish" air, perhaps from the students being, on the whole, of a more aristocratic class,—and also has the appearance of not being so fully given up to educational observances. All who know Oxford know that it has a goodly band of earnest and laborious and most devoted students; but perhaps it has also a larger proportion of idlers, and their doings are such as most catch the attention of a looker-on.

We have mentioned the walls of Oxford, and that a piece is to be seen, in a perfect state, in the garden of New College. Other fragments may be seen by Merton College, in George-lane, and elsewhere; but as they are not in nearly so perfect a condition, it is not worth while to refer to them more particularly. A tower of the old castle is still standing. The site of the other parts of it is now occupied by the County Hall, a prodigious structure, built some seven or eight years ago, in the modern castellated style. The old tower, which can be pretty well seen from the Millstream, is called St. George's Tower. A small crypt and some other slight vestiges of the castle also remain, but they are only of interest to the professed antiquary. Some mounds, that are supposed to have been thrown up at the famous siege, may be seen close to the remains of the castle. These are all the remains that are left, of a warlike nature, connected with the old city.

Two or three churches must be briefly noticed. Oxford has a good many that would be considered of uncommon value elsewhere, but here may be safely left unnamed. All that it has are now well cared for; several have been restored with great taste; and probably in no other place where there are so many churches (there are here fourteen or fifteen parish churches), are they in such beautiful condition. The oldest church in Oxford is St. Peter's-in-the-East, which stands just by Queen's College, and adjoining to St. Edmund's Hall. A more interesting church than this, of its size, it would be difficult to find. It has a crypt of very ancient date-it is generally said, of the ninth century, but probably Norman,-which is almost a repetition, in little, of the crypt of Winchester Cathedral. The chancel of the church is Norman, and has a groined roof; the nave is also partly Norman, but it has windows of later date; and the south aisle is altogether of the decorated order. The whole has been restored with the greatest care; and its appearance inside is exquisite, almost the ideal of an English Protestant church. The exterior is no less striking than the

But the most magnificent church in Oxford is St. Mary's, the University Church, so called from the University sermons being preached in it. No one who has been at Oxford can forget this church, from the grand feature its spire forms in every view of the High-street, and, indeed, from all the most visited parts of the city. The church itself is large, and of noble appearance. The various parts, as is so frequently the case in ancient churches, have been built at very different periods; but, internally at least, they harmonise admirably since the late very judicious alterations and repairs. The arrangements of the Vicechancellor's throne and the stalls of the University dignitaries, and, indeed, the whole of the fittings, contribute not a little to the general good effect. When, on some gaudy," all the great men and doctors are assembled in their robes of scarlet and gold, with the rest of the members in full state, the church affords a rare sight to a stranger; but at all times it is an interesting and characteristic one, and should be seen. After all it is the outside that dwells most on the memory; and of this the "chief, probably, in point of interest to every visitor of the University, is the exquisitely beautiful tower and spire." We quote from Parker's 'Handbook to Oxford,' an admirable guide to the architecture of the good city; the account of the spire is thus continued:-" The panels and gables of the pinnacles testify to its date, being lined with a profusion of pomegranates in honour of Eleanor of Castile, the mother of Edward II., in whose reign it appears probable the work was completed. The superintendent of the work was Eleanor's almoner, Adam de Brom, whose chapel beneath, on the western side of the tower-base, was founded at this time, but rebuilt in the fifteenth century, at the same time with the nave." This spire is shown prominently in the engraving of the High-street; but its marvellous beauty can there only be faintly pourtrayed. The carving that covers, without crowding, the buttresses and finials, has a richness and intricacy that it would require a Prout or Roberts to give effect to. From the nature of the stone, of which this and a large part of the other buildings of Oxford are constructed, the

surface undergoes constant disintegration, and pro- | Magdalene, which should be called the Martyrs' Aisle. duces on the old Gothic work the peculiar richness, to which we before alluded. The effect on this spire has gone as far as it can with safety be permitted. When examined from the outside of the Radcliffe dome, which brings you about on a level with the base of the spire, the eroded appearance is quite startling: much that from below you thought to be the effect of elaborate workmanship is here seen to be the result of decay; and a large portion has become wholly indistinct. We suppose the tourist does not need to be told that he will only half see the city, unless he sees it by "the pale moonlight." The effect of the moonlight on this church and spire is delicious: it brightens in that mystic manner poets often attempt to describe, but no words can adequately convey a notion of. But all Oxford is glorious by moonlight. The High-street puts on quite a new splendour.

Before we leave the church we may notice the singular porch opposite Oriel-street, whose twisted columns and entirely unusual style is sure to attract attention. A piece of history is attached to it :-"It was erected in 1637, by Dr. Morgan Owens, chaplain to Archbishop Laud, at an expense of £230. Over it is a statue of the Virgin with the Child in her arms, holding a small crucifix, which at the time of its erection gave such offence to the puritans, that it was included in the articles of impeachment against the archbishop," (Parker.)

The spire seen beyond that of St. Mary's, in the engraving of the High-street, belongs to All Saints' church, a curious structure, erected, at the beginning of the eighteenth century, by Dean Aldrich, D.D., the author of Elements of Civil Architecture,' who has here attempted the impracticable task of uniting the characteristics of Grecian and Gothic architecture. Leaving all the rest of the churches, we shall visit one more edifice, one of the latest and most graceful of the recent architectural additions to Oxford—the Martyrs' Memorial (Cut, No. 6). It stands at the northern entrance to the town, just by Mary Magdalen church, being the nearest suitable spot to the scene where the martyrs Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer met their doom. The history of that event is too familiar to need repeating here. The imprisonment, the mock disputations and trial, the momentary retraction of Cranmer are all a household tale. The exact spot where the stakes were fixed is not quite certain; but it is believed to have been in the city ditch, opposite Balliol College, where now stands the row of houses in Broadstreet. Previous to their execution the prelates were confined in a prison called Boccardo, a gate-house which stood across Cornmarket-street, by St. Michael's Church; it was removed in 1778. From the top of this prison Cranmer is said to have beheld the execution of his old associates. The memorial of their martyrdom was at first intended to be a church; but, for various reasons, it was finally deemed advisable to erect a cross, and, with the surplus funds, to add an additional aisle to the neighbouring church of St. Mary

The first stone of the Memorial was laid on the 19th
of May, 1841, exactly three centuries after Cranmer's
English Bill was finished and "authorised by royal
authority" to be read. Messrs. Scott and Moffatt were
the architects whose design was selected for execution;
and, as it now stands completed, a very beautiful one it
is. These gentlemen took for their model the Eleanor
Cross at Waltham; but, instead of a mere copy, they
produced a work that, in many respects, certainly
surpasses their original. It is an hexagonal structure
of three stories, mounted on a platform of steps. The
total height is 73 feet, and the gradations are so easy
that the whole is at once airy and substantial. The
style is the decorated, and every part is enriched with
most elaborate carvings. The lower story has the
inscription. In the second story, under canopies of
exceeding richness, are the statues of the three
martyrs, admirably sculptured by Mr. Weekes.
whole is surmounted by a very elegant cross. The
position of the Memorial is a very happy one, and it
is no small ornament to the northern approach to the
city: altogether it would be difficult to find a public-
memorial that exhibits more of beauty and propriety.
The adjacent aisle of the church is in the same style
of architecture, and is made to be, in its ornamentation,
allusive to the martyrs.

The

Before he quits Oxford for good the visitor should stroll at leisure over the Christ Church Meadow, and peep again into the groves of Magdalen. The Meadow belongs to Christ Church College, and is kept in order at the cost of the college, but it is open to the public without any reserve. The Isis and Cherwell bound three sides of it, on the fourth are the college buildings and Merton field. It is a mile and a quarter round; the Wide Walk, a fine avenue of elms-now beginning to decay-is a quarter of a mile long. In thinking of these meadows, it is hardly possible not to contrast them with the Walks of Cambridge, yet there are few points of comparison between them; the walks of Cambridge are beautiful in themselves, but they derive their chief beauty from the backs of so many of the principal colleges opening upon them. It is not so here. These meadows are so situated, that only occasional and partial glimpses are caught of the buildings; when such are caught, they are very lovely, but they are few and far between ; in Cambridge they are continuous. Yet there is a great charm about these meadows. The long winding shady walks by the Cherwell, a succession of close shut-in reaches, yet constantly changing; and though you know that you are far from alone, so seemingly secluded: then that, again, by the Isis (as the Thames is called here), always so lively and gay; and the many other walks that need not be mentioned; it is impossible not to have a kind of liking for them that is not felt for those of the sister University. And you can get, too, so readily over to those more retired ones of Magdalen, the perfection of Academic groves! We give a representation of a favourite peep from Christ