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THE small village near to which this truly romantic work of art is placed, in the hundred of Chirk, county of Denbigh, North Wales, is pleasantly situated on the northern bank of the river Ceiriog, which, flowing through a small vale of great beauty, here separates the counties of Denbigh and Salop. The parish of Chirk lies at the foot of the Berwyn range of mountains, which skirt it on the west, and its surface is somewhat uneven, rising from the village to an eminence on which the castle is seated on the western side, with the Berwyns beyond; and on the eastern to another elevation, from the brow of which there is a delightful prospect of the plain of Salop, on the one side, and on the other, a nearer view of part of the vale of Llangollen, including the celebrated Pont-y-Cyssyltau aqueduct, which conveys the Ellesmere canal over the valley of the Dee, with the meanderings of that river between its wood-fringed banks towards the grounds of Wynnstay. This hill also commands a fine view of Chirk Castle, towering on its elevated site; and the princely parks that surround it, which, adorned with noble plantations, and interspersed with clumps of trees tastefully arranged along VOL. IX. Second Series. T

the side of the mountain, the picturesque village of the Ceon, and the woody scenery of Newbridge, Nant-y-Bele, on the right, the beautiful domains of Brynkinalt, and the village of Chirk on the left, with various intermediate objects of surpassing beauty, combine to present a home-view highly diversified, cheerful, and rich. The village is exceedingly clean and neat, and contains some substantial cottages, as well as several highly respectable-looking houses. It owes much to the kindness and good taste of Mrs. Myddelton Biddulph, who, on coming into possession of the Chirk Castle estate, pulled down the dilapidated buildings, and erected others of modest and uniform appearance for her tenants, on advantageous and more eligible sites.

The Holyhead-road, on both sides of the village, has been greatly improved within the last few years; and the extremely abrupt ascent of Chirk-Hill is now avoided by means of an embankment along which the road is conducted more circuitously across the vale. These alterations, however they may conduce to the convenience of passengers, have a tendency to destroy the romantic character of the scenery, and to render the view from the station just pointed out, less picturesque than it formerly was.

There is a valuable mine of coal in the parish, which is worked on an extensive scale at Black-Park. The pits are upwards of two hundred yards deep, and the annual sale exceeds fifty thousand tons. There are also lime-works in the neighbourhood, which afford employment to about one hundred persons.

The Chirk Aqueduct, a sketch of which ornaments this Number, and which is carried across the vale, over the river Ceiriog, is two hundred and thirty-two yards long, consisting of ten arches, the piers of which are sixty-five feet high. It was built for the purpose of conveying the Ellesmere canal from bank to bank, which, after flowing over the aqueduct, immediately enters a tunnel two hundred and twenty yards long, and when it again emerges, is carried across the vale of the Dee, by the aqueduct of Pont-y-Cyssyltau. The engineer was Thomas Telford, Esq.

About a mile and a half to the west of the village, is Chirk

Castle, proudly situated on an eminence backed by the Berwyn mountains. To this venerable and deeply interesting structure we hope at some future time to call the attention of our young friends. In the meanwhile, we shall feel pleasure in describing, for their instruction as well as amusement, some striking peculiarities respecting the church in this charming village.

This handsome edifice, dedicated to St. Mary, has a square tower, containing a ring of bells: it has recently been renovated and embellished, in the later style of English architecture, by subscription among the parishioners, who have provided additional sittings to the amount of one hundred and seventy-three, of which one hundred and thirty-three are reserved for the poor; the Incorporated Society for Building and Enlarging Churches and Chapels having granted £100 for that purpose.

Here are found several marble effigies of the Myddelton family of Chirk Castle, mostly ill-executed, with the exception of a bust of Sir Thomas Myddelton, the active Parliamentary commander, represented with a peaked beard, long hair, and armed; near which, is another, of his lady, of the family of Napier of Luton.

The monuments of Sir Thomas Myddelton, son of the former, and his lady, are unwieldy and ill-conceived. She was the daughter of Sir Thomas Wilbraham, of Woodhey; and died at the early age of twenty-two, in the year 1675.

The next in order are Sir Richard Myddelton and his lady, Frances, daughter of Sir Thomas Whitmore, of Buildas. She died in 1694; he in 1716. At their feet lies their son William, the last Baronet, who survived his father only two years, as he died at the age of twenty-four.

On a small mural monument, is an elegant epitaph on Dr. Walter Balcanqual, a Scotch Divine of distinguished character. In 1617 he was appointed Master of the Savoy hospital, which he soon resigned in favour of the able but desultory Marc Antonio di Dominis, Archbishop of Spalatro, in reward for his conversion to Protestantism. In 1618 he was sent to represent his country in the famous Synod of Dort. He was promoted to the deanery of Rochester; and

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