The Scituation, Foundation, and Auncient Names of the Famous Towne of Sallop/A Coppie of Oliver Mathewes Letter

by Oliver Mathews

A Coppie of Oliver Mathewes Letter, sent to his 2. lovinge frends of the Cittie of Bristowe.

R. Phillip Jenkins my naturall Countreyman, and Mr. Thomas Taylor my loving and faithfull frind. I hartelie thancke you bothe for your kinde letters, and for your remembraunce of the most worthie and victorious kinges of famous memorie, Belinus and Brenus, bretheren twinnes and sonnes of Mulmutius Donwallo, whom we true Brittaines doe call Dyffnwall Moell Mydd, and of Cornwenna theire moth . . . . . . . Mulmutius was first Duke of Cornewall, and by his wisdome, prowes and . . . . . . brought this Iland of Greate Brittaine into one Monarchie 440. Yeres before the Incarnation of Christe, and after the arivall of Brute 616. yeres. And whereas this noble Iland, after the Deathe of Ferrex and Porrex, being the last of Brutus line, was, throughe Civill Warres, wasted, and spoiled, and devided into 5. kingdomes, he, the said Mulmutius, quieted his Subjects, and ordained for them profittable and holesome lawes, and gave priviledges to temples and ploughes. And whereas the waies and passages of this Realme were with warres growen out of use, and unknowen to travellers, he ordeyned the four notable highe waies throughe the whole Ile, causinge pavements and causways to be made in all deepe and marishe places, and bridges to be builded over the Waters and Ryvers, and provided, that martiall Lawe should be dulie executed upon all suche, as should robbe, kill, or hurte anie Traveller upon those waies, by puttinge them to death in the same places, where the yfils were committed. Theis 4. waies are called by the Bruttaines Ped . . . . pry for the ye Brenyn, and are knowen by theis names in the Saxons language, Kennynge streete, Watlinge streete, Rennynge streete, and Fosse streete. This kinge builded Templum pacis in London, which some thincke to be Saint-Paule’s Churche, and some thincke yt to be Blackwell Hall. And so he havinge brought this land into greate quietnes, after hee had reigned verie honorablie 40. yeres, he dyed, and was buried in the temple of peace at Newe Troye, now called London. After his Death his twoe twinnes, Belinus and ^[1]Bremnius, devided the whole Iland betweene them. To Belinus was assigned England, Wales, and Cornewall, and to Brennius all beyond the ryver of Humber. But Brennius not contented with this division, raised warre against his brother Belinus, and fought divers battells, but the last battaile theire twoe mightie armies beinge ready to encounter in a pitched field, Queene Cornewenna theire Mother came to them, and opened her naked breasts, and with weepinge teares said:

Oh! out alas! what meaneth this,
Doe you my bowells harme?
What wicked cause doeth move
Twoe brethren’s powers to be so warme?
Cannot all Brittaine you conteyne,
Since it is verie sure,
That bothe you twaine within this wombe
Of myne did once endure?
. . . . . . ur moth . . . . . .
. . . . . . air . . . . . . . .
Nor dolefull naked breastes
In tender age which bothe did suck!

The twoe brethren, moved with theire mother’s teares and speeches, reconciled themselves, and became greate frends and kissed eache other. Then Brennus, desirous of glorie and dominion, and beinge whollie given to the study of warres, left his Countrey to the governaunce of his brother, and went into Fraunce, where, in the province of Lyons, for his exellent qualities and prowes, he was highlie esteemed of Sygwynus, the kinge of the Countrey, whose daughter he married, and of the Galls he was made soveraigne Capteyne, and the kinge Sigwynus, perceavinge that Brenus was whollie addicted to warres, appointed to him certeine bands of expert Souldiers, to assist him in his warres. Which Souldiers, together with his Brittaine forces, he did leade couragiouslie over the highe Hills, called the Alpes, which no man had ever done before, and therefore the Brittaines called his name Brane, but the Galls called his name Brentius. And after he passed the Alpes, he erected Castles and Houldes under the Hills, and therein placed Garrisons and Souldiers, and wan Millaine, Pavy, Belligarne, Brixia, Verona, Trydentum, and Vincentia, and reedified them, and beseiged Rome and overcame the Romaines, but the Galls, desirous of money, tooke of the Romaines a thousand pownd weight of gould to raise the seige. Whereupon Brennus, beinge discontented with the Galles, retorned againe with manie of his Brutaine Souldiers into Brittaine, and withall brought with him of the most cuninge and skillfull builders, and artificiall Masons, out of Italie, and so builded the Cittie of Bristowe, which was formerlie begonne by his father Mulmutius, and he made yt after the example and paterne, which he had taken of other Citties in Italie, makinge it a conveniente place for shippinge, and for Marchandize, and beawtified yt with Temples, Stone walls, Pavements and Valts under the Earthe, to convey from the Cittie all filthines, which might anoye the Cittizens, and called yt after his owne name Kaer Brane, which to saie in the Englishe tongue is, Brennus towne, and nowe, by shortnes of speeche, called Bristowe, (as Ludstowe is nowe, by abbreviation of speeche, called London) the auncient monument whereof remayneth to this daie upon one of the gates of the same Cittie, called St. Jones, where the twoe Pictures of Belinus and Breennus are curiouslie engraven; as also there is a most auncient Castell standinge upon the topp of an exceedinge highe hill in Gwania, called Dinas Brane, that is to saie Brennus Courte or Pallace. Further, it is verie credible, and to be proved by good Aucthors, that Breennus, in his second Voyage to Italy, with fifteene thowsand footemen, and LVI. thowsand and 2. hundred of horsemen, havinge overcome the Romaines, and slaine Camillus, he marched into Græcia, and havinge subdued the Macedonians, Thessalians, Thracians, and Peonians, he finallie, overthrewe all the Power of Greece, in a most horrible and bloudy battell at Thermopolie; for prooffe whereof a Greeke Writer, called Pausanias, in his tenthe Booke writethe thus: “Brennus had in his Army 20400. horsemen, and there followed every horseman twoe servaunts upon horsebacke. Those twoe servaunts, when theire Master was fightinge, stood in the rereward, and helped them, and, yf by anie hap anie of them were unhorsed, they should sett them upon theires, and, yf the Master were slaine, the servaunt should succeede in his place, but yf they were bothe slaine by force of fight . . . . . . . . was this . . . . . . at han . . . . readie to . . . . . . ie for . . che of th . . . . that were slaine, and this practize of fightinge upon horsebacke they tearme, in theire Countrey speeche, Trymartia.” Thus writeth Pausanias. What can be more plaine for prooffe that Brennus and his company were Brittaines, sithe Try, in the Brittishe or Walshe speeche, signifieth three in Englishe, and March in the Brittishe or Walshe speeche is a horse? In fine, he sheweth, that, when Brennus was about to sacke the Temple of Apollo in Delphos, a greate Companie of his army were slaine miraculously by the fall of a highe and mightie Cliffe of a Rocke, and wonderfull raine from heaven; whereupon Brennus for sorrowe dyed. These warrs of Brennus are recorded in the Histories of ^[2]thesetenide, and proved by Mr. Hughe Broughton in his exposition of Daniell, upon the eleventh Chapter, and how that Antiochus, the sonne of Selucus, was surnamed Soter, bicause he drove the Galls out of Asia, of whom Brennus was Capteyne, and doeth most fitlie agree with this Historie for the tyme. Moreover, Athenæus writeth, that, after the death of Brennus, the souldiers, under Bathanasius theire Capteyne, tooke up theire dwellinge about Ister, and afterwards they were devided into twoe partes, the one whereof dwelt in Hungarie, and the other parte, by the name of Brenni, possessed parte of the Alpes by the mount Brennerus, in the Countie of Tirulensis, whom Appianus calleth all by the name of Cymbri, which sheweth that they were Brittaines. Over and besides theis things, the Irish men, called Gatheli, when, in the tyme of Brennus, they departed out of Biscay, 375. yeres before our Saviour’s Incarnation, to seeke newe Dwellings, and were placed in Ireland, they called all the Brittaines Brennach, from the name of Brennius theire noble Capteyne, by which name they call our Nacion to this daie. Theis Antiquities our Countreyman Mr. Humffrey Lloyd diligently searched out. So that there is no man can doubt of noble Brennus, but that he was the Brother of Belinus, and the fownder and builder of your famous Cittie, whose actes and warres are famous in many Historiographers, and albeit B......... and his souldiers are termed by manie writers to be Galli, and not Brittanni, yet, as I wrote before, Pausanias and Athenæus make it plaine enoughe, that they were not Galli but Brittanni or Cymbri. Finally, it is well knowne, that, amonge auncient Writers, Gallia was devided into twoe Partes, that is, Cisalpina and Transalpina. Cisalpina was called Italy, and all Countreys beyond the Alpes, from Roome hitherward, were called Transalpina, where nowe Fraunce and Brittaine stand. And thus haveinge shewed you my knowledge and judgement, as towchinge the Antiquitie and Foundation of your famous Cittie of Brennus Towne, which was built abouts 369. yeres before Christ’s Incarnation by Brennus, that noble Brittaine, I, beinge aged 95. yeres, and by reason thereof decayed in memorie, praie you, to have me excused, yf I have not performed to the full your expectacion herein. And nowe, not ever thinckinge to see you in this transitory World, I take my last and ultimum vale of you bothe, bequeathinge unto you, and to that famous Cittie of Brennus, and to Mr. Maior, with the Magistrates and Commynaltie thereof, my best love, wishinge yt with all my harte all prosperity and happines. Dated at Snead neere Bu...... .. Castle the xviiith daie of March, anno Domini. 1615.

Your old Frind and Brittaine,
OLIVER MATHEWS.

1. Sic.
2. Sic. F. these times.