RICHMOND, (Surrey) on the bank of the Thames, 10 cm. 12 mm. from London, bet. Mortlack and Kingston, to the latter of
which its Ch. is a chapel of ease, is reckoned the finest village in the British dominions, and is termed the frescati of
England. It was chosen, says Camden, by the Ks. of England for their royal seat; and for its splendor or shining, called
Shene. It has been since also, on account of the wholesomness of the air, the usual nursery of their children. Here K.
Edw. III. died of grief, for the loss of his heroic son, the Black-Prince. Here also died Anne wife of Rich. II. who first
taught the English women their present way of riding on horseback; whereas formerly they used to cross the saddle like
men. The K. took her death so to heart, that he neglected and even abhorred the house, and, as some say, defaced, and even
levelled it to the ground; but K. Hen. V. beautified it with new buildings. In the R. of Hen. VII. from whom the village
assumed the name of Richmond, from that country in Normandy whereof he had been E. it was quite burnt down by a most
lamentable fire; but he just began to rebuild it with greater beauty, and erected a library, when he died here. About 90
years after, viz. 1603, his grandaughter, Q. Eliz. died here also. This place was pretty much neglected by the Princes of
the race of the Stuarts, and parcelled out by K. Will. into private tenements; but his present Majesty took great delight
here, and made vast improvements in the palace, while her Majesty, the late Q. Caroline, diverted herself at her royal
dairy-house, in her beautiful hermitage Merlin's-Cave, and in the other charming improvements, which she made to the park
and gardens of this delightful place. The T. runs up the hill, above 1 m. from the village of East-Shene to the New-Park,
with gardens declining all the way to the Thames; the tide whereof reaches just to this village, which is 60 m. from the
mouth of it, a greater distance than the tide is carried by any other r. in Europe. On the ascent of the hill are the
wells of purging mineral water, to which a great deal of good company resort in the summer; and on the top of it, from
whence there is the most beautiful prospect of the Thames, and of the fine seats on the banks of it, there is an almsh.
built by Duppa, Bp. of Winchester, in the R. of Cha. II. for the support of 10 poor widows, pursuant to a vow he made in
that K's. exile, as is mentioned in an inscription over its gate. There is another almsh. endowed with above 100 l. a
year, which has, since its foundation, been considerably increased by John Michel, Esq;. Here are also 2 ch. scs. one for
50 boys, the other for 50 girls. There is a stately house on the green, among other pretty seats, formerly Sir Charles
Hedges's, since Sir Matthew Decker's; in the gardens whereof is the longest and highest hedge of holly that was ever seen,
with several other hedges of evergreens, vistos cut thro' woods, grottos, fountains, a fine canal, a duckoy, summer-house,
and stove-houses, in which the Indian fruit, called Ananas, was first brought to maturity. In the New-Park, besides the
late Q's. house, is a pretty little hunting-seat, the late E. of Orford's; and a little hill cast up, called K. Henry's
mount, from which there is a prospect of 6 Cos. including the city of London, and also Windsor-Castle, which is 14 m. off.