KATHARINE WHEEL.
See CATHARINE WHEEL.
KATHERINE'S (SAINT)
(Map V6)
(Ks.= Katherines, K's.= Katherine's). A hospital founded in 1148 by Matilda, wife
of King Stephen. It stood immediately E. of the Tower of Lond., on the bank of
the Thames. It received much help from Q. Eleanor and Q. Philippa, and the patronage
still remains in the hands of the Q. Consort. It was suppressed by Henry VIII,
but reconstituted by Elizabeth in 1556 for the maintenance of a master, 3 brethren,
3 sisters, and 10 bedeswomen. The ch. was a fine Gothic building, but it was pulled
down with the rest of the hospital in 1825–7 to make room for St. K's. Docks,
which now occupy the site. The hospital was removed to the N.E. corner of Regent's
Park. There was, however, before the building of the present docks, a landing-place
at the E. end of the precinct, known as St. K's. Dock, and it would appear to
have been used specially by the Dutch mariners. The Precinct, or Liberty, extended
from the Tower to Radcliffe, and had the usual reputation of a waterside dist.
In Jonson's Alchemist v. 1, Face says,
"These are all broke loose Out of St. Ks., where they use to keep The better sort
of mad folks": an unkind reference to the bedesmen and women of the hospital.
In T. Heywood's I.K.M. B. 326, the
Q. says to Dr. Patty, "Though at our Court of Greenwich thou went crost In suing
to be Master of St. Ks, To do thee good seek out a better place." In Dekker's
Babylon 260, Paridel, who stands
for Dr. William Parry, says, "I did but beg of her [the Q.] the mastership Of
Santa Cataryna, 'twas denied me." In T. Heywood's Ed.
IV A. v., the Master of S. Ks. appears and brings to the King "Of poor St.
Ks., £500 "as a benevolence. In Webster's Weakest
iii.4, Bunch exclaims, "For England, for Lond.! O St. Kathern's Dock! "In
W. Rowley's New Wonder iii., Richd.
says, "This tide should bring them Into St. Catherine's Pool." In Dekker's Edmonton
iii. 1, Cuddy, going to woo Katherine, says to the Witch's dog, "Land me but
at K's. Dock, my sweet K's. Dock." Then, when he has been ducked by the spirits,
he says, "Thinking to land at K's. Dock, I was almost at Gravesend "; i.e. I was
almost killed. In Jonson's Magnetic ii.
1, Polish says, "How now, goody Nurse, Dame Keep of Katerns? What! have you an
oar in the cockboat, 'cause you are a sailor's wife, and come from Shadwell?":
which is just beyond St. K's. In Eastward
iv. 1, Slitgut, at Cuckold's Haven, sees Winifred in the Thames, and says,
"A woman, i' faith, a woman! though it be almost at St. Ks., I discern it to be
a woman." Later in the scene the Drawer rescues Winifred and says, "I am glad
it was my good `hop to come down thus far after you to a house of my friend's
here in St. K's."
In Jonson's Devil i. 1, Iniquity
suggests to Pug to go "to St. Kathern's, To drink with the Dutch there, and
take forth their patterns": which indicates that it was pronounced Katterns.
In Wealth 288, Hance the Fleming
says, "Gut naught is mot waft to sent Cafrin to mi lanman store "; and in 299,
he says, "Ic myself cumt from sent Katryns." Cafrin and Katryn are modifications
of Katharine. In Jonson's Staple iii.
1, Thomas announces as an interesting news item: "The perpetual motion is here
found out by an ale-wife in St. K's. at the sign of the Dancing Bears." In Jonson's
Augurs, Notch and Slug, the masquers, say, "We do come from among the brew-houses
in St. K's."; and later, "Our project is that we should all come from the Three
Dancing Bears in St. K's." Then John Urson comes in with the 3 bears and sings
while they dance, "Then to put you out of fear or doubt, We come from St. Katherine-a;
These dancing 3, by the help of me, Who am the post of the sign-a." He goes
on: "To a stranger there, If any appear, Where never before he has been, We
shew the iron gate, The wheel of St. Kate, And the place where the priest fell
in." The Iron Gate is one of the gates of the Tower, also called St. K's, Gate,
just above the hospital. The wheel of St. Kate is the Katherine wheel, the symbol
of the martyrdom of the saint, who was put to death on a jagged wheel; there
was a Catharine Wheel Tavern at the W. end of Little Tower Hill, close to the
hospital. In Wager's The Longer, B. 1, Moros says, "At St. Katherine there be
good puddings at the sign of the Plough, you never did eat better sauserlings."
In Middleton's R. G. iv. 2, Moll
sings, "She says she went to the Burse for patterns; You shall find her at St.
Kathern's": i.e. in a place of bad repute. In T. Heywood's Ed.
IV A. 1, Smoke says to the rebels advancing on the E. of Lond., "See how
St. Ks. smokes; wipe, slaves, your eyes, And whet your stomachs for the good
malt-pies." Dekker, in News from Hell, says of Hell: "It stands farther off
than the Indies; yet if you have but a side wind, you may sad sooner thither
than a married man can upon St. Luke's day to Cuckolds Haven from St. Ks.,"
i.e. just across the Thames. See Cuckold's Haven. Deloney, in Craft 1,
14, tells how John the Frenchman's wife was "going toward St. Ks. to see if
she could meet with some of her countryfolks that could tell her any tidings
of her husband."
KATHERINE'S (SAINT) NUNNERY
(Map R4)
(see Katherine Cree)
Probably the Priory of the Holy Trinity is meant. St. Katherine Cree, or Christchurch,
was built on its site on the N. side of Leadenhall St., Lond. The old ch. was
taken down in 1628, and the present one built. It is here that the famous "Lion"
sermon is preached every 16th October, to commemorate the deliverance of Lord
Mayor John Gayer from the paws of a lion in Africa in 1648. In B. & F. Thomas
iv. 1, Michael says, "This morning a man of mine at St. K. N. told me he met
your mistress." The Aunt of Mons. Thomas is the Abbess of St. K. Scenes 4 and
8, Act V. take place in the Abbey of St. K.
KENNINGTON
Dist. in Lond., on the Surrey side of the Thames, opposite the Vauxhall Bridge, and S. of Lambeth. There was a royal palace there up till the time of Henry VII. One of the oldest Masques in England was celebrated at K. in honour of the accession of Richd. II in 1377, 130 men on horseback rode from Newgate through Cheap, then over Lond. Bdge. to K., where they entertained the young King with games and dances. Alleyn, the actor, bought the manorial rights of K. in 1604, and held them for 5 years, when he sold them for nearly twice what he gave for them.
KENSINGTON
Formerly a vill. to the W. of Hyde Park; now a populous suburb of Lond. It was
a favourite resort of the citizens who wanted a day's outing in the country. In
Oldcastle iii. 2, Acton reports that
the rebels are quartered in a dozen villages round Lond., one of which is "Kenzington."
In Brome's Couple ii. 1, Careless
expresses his willingness to escort his aunt to "Paddington, K., or any of the
city out-leaps, for a spirt and back again." In his Academy
ii. 1, Valentine asks Hannah, "When shall we take coach to K. or Padington,
or to some one or other o' the city outleaps, for an afternoon, and hear the cuckow
sing?" In Deloney's Craft ii. 11, we are told of a certain merry company: "They
went to K., where they brake their fast and had good sport by tumbling on the
green grass."
KENTISH TOWN
One of the N. suburbs of Lond., lying between Camden Rd. and Haverstock Hill.
In the 16th cent. it was a rustic village. In Jonson's Tub,
the heroine is the daughter of Tobias Turfe, the High Constable of K. T., and
several of the scenes are laid at his house there. Jonson makes him talk a kind
of country dialect of the Somerset type. In his Devil
i. 1, Satan, mocking the petty exploits of Pug, says, "Some good ribibe [old
woman] about K. T. or Hogsdon you would hang now for a witch." Dekker, in Rod
for Runaways (1613), speaks of K. T. as a vill. by Pancridge (i.e. St. Pancras),
and tells a story of some Londoners who took a Sunday walk out there.
KENT STREET
The present Tabard St., the name having been changed in 1877. It runs from St.
George's Ch. in the Borough, Southwark, to the Old K. Rd., and until the formation
of Gt. Dover St. was the main road from the S. into Lond. "It was ill-built,"
says Strype (B. iv. 31), "chiefly inhabited by Broom Men and Mumpers." It was
an extremely disreputable slum throughout its history. In Greene's Quip, p. 226,
he says, "When velvet was worn but in kings' caps, then Conscience was not a broom
man in K.-St., but a Courtier." In News from Hell, the Cardinal speaks of "all
the whores and thieves that live in Southwark, Bankside, and K.-St." When Harman
(Caveat ii.) had his copper stolen, he "gave warning in Southwark, K. St., and
Barmesey st., to all the tinkers there dwelling." In Three
Lords, Dods., vi. 422, Simplicity asks: "Ladies, which of ye dwelt in K. St.?"
In T. Heywood's Hogsdon. ii. 1, one
of the citizens' wives that come to the Wise woman to have their fortunes told
dwells in K.-st. In Davenant's Plymouth
iv. 1, Topsail cries: "What's here? K. st., or Bedlam broke loose?"
KEW
A vill. on the Thames in Surrey, 9 m. W. of St. Paul's, Lond., opposite to Brentford.
The Palace and Botanical Gardens date only from the time of George III. In Middleton's
Mad World iii. 3, Folly-wit says, "You
shall go nigh to have a dozen blyth fellows carry me away with a pair of oars,
and put in at Putney or shoot in upon the coast of Cue."
KILBORN (or KILBURN)
Formerly a vill. in S.W. Hampstead, but now a large suburb of Lond. stretching
from Kensal Green to St. John's Wood. In Jonson's Tub.
1, 1, the self-styled Council of Finsbury has determined to marry Awdry Turfe
to "Clay of K., a tough young fellow and a tile-maker."
KING STREET
(Map B5–6/A6–7)
Originally ran from Charing Cross, Lond., to the Palace of Westminster: all that
is now left of it is a small fragment at the S. end, from Charles St. to Gt. George
St. Though it was the main thoroughfare from the Court of St. James's to Westminster,
it was narrow and ill-paved. Here lived Lord Howard of Effingham and the mother
of Oliver Cromwell, and according to Jonson, Conversations with Drummond, the
poet Spenser died "for lack of bread in K. St." Donne, Satire iv. (1597) 80, says
of Westminster Abbey "The way to it is K.'s st." In Jonson's Staple
iii. 2, Mrs. Tattle boasts that she has all the news from "the conduits in
Westminster; long and round Wool-staple, with K.'s-st. and Canon-Row to boot."
Middleton, in his Black Book, p. 25, tells of "black cloth snatched off the rails
in K.'s St. at the Q.'s funeral." Glapthorne's Wit
was "Printed by Io. Okes for F. C. and are to be sold at his shops in Kings-st.
at the sign of the Goat, and in Westminster Hall. 1640." So was Brome's Sparagus
in the same year. In Cowley's Cutter (Renaissance version entitled The
Guardian ) i. 6, Worm says that Cutter was "Cromwell's agent for all the taverns
between K.'s-st. and the Devil at Temple Bar." In B. & F. Hum.
Lieut. iv. 4, Leonatus mentions a K.-st. in the Capital of Greece, in which
the scene is laid.
KING'S ARMS
A bookseller's sign in Lond. T. Heywood's Maidenhead
was "Printed by Nicholas Okes for John Jackson and Francis Church, and are
to be sold at the K. A. in Cheapside. 1634."
KING'S BENCH
An ancient Lond. prison, on the E. side of Borough High St., Southwark, immediately
N. of the White Lion prison and some 20 houses S. of the Marshalsea. Layton's
Buildings now (in 1925) occupy the site. It was removed in 1755 to the junction
of Blackman St. and Newington Causeway. In 1879 it was sold and the site cleared.
During the Commonwealth it was known as the Upper Bench Prison. In Skelton's Colin
Clout, the judges of the preacher against the prelates cry "The K. B. or Marshalsy,
Have him thither by-and-by." In Hycke,
p. 94, Frewyll says, "At the K. b., Sirs, I have you sought." In Straw
ii., Newton reports "They [the rebels] have spoiled all Southwark, broke up
the Marshalsea and the K. B." In Eastward
ii. 2, Quicksilver advises Sir Petronel, whose creditors have laid to arrest him,
"Let 'em take their choice; either the K. B. or the Fleet, or which of the 2 Counters
they like best." Taylor, in Works i. 91, says, "The Ocean that Suretyship sails
in is the spacious Marshalsea; sometimes she anchors at the K. B., sometimes at
the gulph of the Gate-house." In Middleton's Inner Temp. 70, Christmas bequeaths
to "my 2nd son, In-and-In, his perpetual lodging in the K. B." In T. Heywood's
Ed. IV B. 120, Jane Shore asks:
"Have you bestowed our benevolence on the poor prisoners in the common gaol of
the White Lion and the King's B.?" In Middleton's Hubburd, p. 79, we are told
of "decayed gentlemen's wives whose husbands lie for debt in the K. B." In B.
& F. Wit Money , i. 1, Lance, warning
his young master against wasting his estate says, "The K. B. is enclosed, there's
no good riding.''
KING'S BRIDGE
(Map B7)
("Westminster Stairs")
The gangway leading to the Westminster stairs just E. of Westminster Hall from
the Palace Yard. There were several of these so-called bridges, which did not
cross the river, but were merely approaches to the various landing-stages. In
Look about v., Skink, who is being
pursued by, the watch, says, "At K. B. I durst not enter a boat."
KING'S HEAD
A common tavern sign in Lond.:
(1) There was a K. H. in New Fish St. (Map Q6)–area only; site unmarked, the site of which is marked by K. H. Court,
Fish St. Hill. In News Barthol. Fair, in the list of Lond. taverns, we have "K.
H. in New Fish-st., where roysters do range." In Prodigal
ii. 4, Lancelot says to Oliver, "Let's meet at the K. H. in Fish st."
(2) Another K. H. was in Fleet St., near Temple Bar (Map G5)–area only; site unmarked. It used to be identified
with the house at the W. corner of Chancery Lane, destroyed in 1799. This, however,
was known as the Harrow, and in Hogarth's Burning of the Rumps, the sign of
Henry VIII's Head is shown on the S. side of Fleet St., close to Temple Bar,
with a Puritan hanging in effigy from it. It was certainly on the N. side of
the st., for it was opposite the Queen's Head, which was between the Temple
Gates, but probably close to Temple Bar. In Barry's Ram
v. 1, Smallshanks says that Throate "hath not a member in his palsy body
but is more limber than a K. H. pudding took from the pot half sod." Ram Alley
is off Fleet St., so that the Fleet St. K. H. is probably intended. In T. Heywood's
Lucrece ii. 5, Valerius' list of
taverns begins: "The gentry to the K. H." In Jonson's Magnetic
iii. 4, Rut advises Sir Moth, "Have your diet-drink Ever in bottles ready,
which must come From the K. H." Probably the Fleet St. tavern is meant in both
passages, but it is impossible to be certain. In Middleton's Hubburd, p. 79,
we read of "decayed gentlemen's wives whose husbands lying for debt in the K.
Bench they go about to make monsters in the K. H. Tavern," i.e. to make cuckolds
of their husbands.
(3) In Killigrew's Parson ii.
3, Wanton speaks of "the sign of the K. H. in the butchery." There was a K.
H. on the W. side of W. Smithfield (Map K3)–area only; site unmarked.
KNAVES ACRE
(Map B3)
area only; site unmarked.
(otherwise PULTENEY ST.). Lond., a little N. of Piccadilly Circus, and S. of Golden
Sq., running from Glasshouse St. to Wardour St. The W. end of it is now Brewer
St. Strype describes it as "but narrow, and chiefly inhabited by those that deal
is old goods and glass bottles." In Marlowe's Faustus
iv. 18, the Clown says, "How, how, knaves-acre! Ay, I thought that was all the
land his father left him."
KNIGHTRIDER STREET
(Map L5)
Lond., running E. from Addle Hill to Q. Victoria St. The present st. includes Gt. and Little K. Sts. and Old Fish St. Stow derives the name from the knights who rode along it from the Tower to the jousts in Smithfield. In the Stone House in this st. lived the famous Linacre, court physician to Henry VII, and founder of the Royal College of Physicians.
KNIGHTSBRIDGE
A rural dist. near Hyde Park Corner, so called from the stone bdge. which crossed
the Westbourn at what is now the Albert Gate of Hyde Park. It was notorious for
highway robberies, and its loneliness made it a favourite resort of duellists.
The Chapel of the Holy Trinity E. of the Albert Gate marks the site of an old
lazar house or hospital. In Shirley's Hyde
Park iv. 3, when Lord Bonvile insults Venture, Rider says, "Come to K.," sc.
to fight it out. In Long Meg ix., we are told how "Harry the ostler . . . would
needs to K. a shroving, where they had good cheer and payed frankly."
KNIGHTS' WARD
In the Counters and the Fleet prison, q.v. In Middleton's Chaste
Maid v. 4., Yellowhammer says of Sir Walter: "He lies i' th' K.' w." In T.
Heywood's F. M. Exch. 24, the Cripple
asks "Didst thou lie in the K. W. or on the Master's side!" In Chapman's Bussy
i. 2, 135, Barrisor says jestingly, "Here's a sudden transmigration with D'Ambois–out
of the k. w. into the duchess' bed." See also under COUNTER, HOLE, TWOPENNY
WARD.