Produced by The Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) [Illustration: EXETER FROM THE CANAL] EXETER Described by Sidney Heath Pictured by E. W. Haslehust [Illustration] BLACKIE AND SON LIMITED LONDON, GLASGOW AND BOMBAY 1912 Beautiful England _Volumes Ready_ OXFORD THE ENGLISH LAKES CANTERBURY SHAKESPEARE-LAND THE THAMES WINDSOR CASTLE CAMBRIDGE NORWICH AND THE BROADS THE HEART OF WESSEX THE PEAK DISTRICT THE CORNISH RIVIERA DICKENS-LAND WINCHESTER THE ISLE OF WIGHT CHESTER YORK THE NEW FOREST HAMPTON COURT EXETER _Uniform with this Series_ Beautiful Ireland LEINSTER ULSTER MUNSTER CONNAUGHT LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Page Exeter from the Canal _Frontispiece_ The Quay 8 Guildhall Porch 14 Mol's Coffee House 20 Rougemont Castle 26 St. Mary Steps 32 The Cathedral from the Palace Grounds 38 The Sanctuary, Exeter Cathedral 42 Old Courtyard in the Close 46 The Abbot's Lodge 50 The Exe at Topsham 54 Countess Weir 58 Plan of Exeter Cathedral 4 [Illustration: Plan of Exeter Cathedral A. Lady Chapel. B. Choir. C. Screen. D. North Transept. E. South Transept. F. Chapter House. G. Nave. H. North Porch. I. Bishop's Throne.] [Illustration: EXETER] THE CITY Just as the five cities of Colchester, Lincoln, York, Gloucester, and St. Albans, stand on the sites and in some fragmentary measure bear the names of five Roman municipalities, so Isca Dumnoniorum, now Exeter, appears to have been a cantonal capital developed out of one of the great market centres of the Celtic tribes, and as such it was the most westerly of the larger Romano-British towns. The legendary history of the place, both temporal and ecclesiastical, goes far back to the days when, for a late posterity, it is difficult to separate fact from fable. It is, however, quite established that here was the capital of the Dumnonii, the British tribe whose dominions included both Devonshire and Cornwall, and who named their capital _Caer-uisc_, the city of the waters.