The southern enterprise. [volume] (Greenville, S.C.) 1854-1870, 1868-09-02
Disinterment of Kings.


been entombed for many years, have
I presented relics In remarkable degree
Of preservation. The following cases
are exceedingly Interesting, in conse.
quence of The Antiquity, aud the histo
'rical relations Of the subjects, and. still
more, because the statements may be
relied on as strictly authentic. = .si
"One Of the most interesting ac
counts Of the preservation of body,
the identity Of which vas undoubied,
istbat cf the disinterment Of King Ed.
ward l. Of England. The readers Of
history will recollecl that the monarch
gave, as dying charge 10 his SOP. that
his heart should be seht to the Holy
Land, but that his body should be car
ried in the van OF, the army till Scot
land was reduced TO obedience.
.He died in July, 1907, and not
mithstanding his iJunctions, was buried
in Westminster Abbey in October OF
the same year. l, is recorded, that he
was embalmed, aud orders for renew>
ing the ce,ecloth about his body we're
issued in The reigns Of Edward III. and
Henry ~. The tomb of ibis monarch
was opened. and bis body examined in
Jannary, 1774, under the direction OF
Sir Joseph A, Life, after il had been
buried ACT years. The following az.
count we extract from a coptemporane.
GUS volume Of the Gentleman's Maga.
zine. O.. ..'" "..
4" Some gentlemen Of The society Of
antiquaries, being desirons TO see how
!ar The actual state Of Edward FirsI's
answered TO the methods taken TO pre-.
serve it, obtained leave to open the
large stone sa'ccphagus, in which il is
known 10 have been deposited. This
was accordingly done on The morning
Vf January 2, l774; when in coffin
Of yellow stone they found the royal
body, il perfect rreser, alton. enclosed
in two wrappers; one Of them was Of
gold tissue, strongly waxed, and. fresh
The other and outermost considerably
d,cayed. Tic corpse was labiled in n
rich mantle of purple, lined with white,
and adorned with ornaments Of gilt me>
tai, studded with red and blue stones
on the hands. The mantle was fasten.
ell on the tight shoulder by = magnifi.
cent .fibula Of the same metal. with the
same stones and pea.ls. His face had
over il silkeu covering so fine and so
closely fitted 10 il. as to preserve the
features entire. Round bis temples was
Il gih corone, of fleure de lys. In his
bands, which were also entire, were two
sceptres Of gilt metal; that in The righ:
,urmounted hy cross feure, that in the
lefi by three clusters Of oak leaves, and.
Il dove OH a globe this sceptre WAS
about five feet long. The feet were en-
veloped 10 the mantle and other cover
ings, but sound, and the toes distinct
Tho whole length Of the corpse WAS FIVE
feet two ioches.' s.r ...... ISL. ..........
This last statement, it will be oh
served, is the only point in wi ich the
narrative appears to disagree with his
tory. We are generally given to un
-derstand iha, Edward |. was tall man |;
and that he was designated in bis own
time by the name Of Long:hanks. Ba
ker, in his Chronicle Of the Kings Of
England, says Of him that he was tall
of stature, exceeding most other men
by head and shoulders. We have
not been able to find Sir Joseph Aylof>
fe's account Of the examination, and
know OF no other mode Of reconciling
the discrepancy. but by surprising a
typographical error Of figure in The
account which has been quoted,
Edward ]. died at Bug upon Sands,
in Cumberland, on his way TO Scotland,
July z, 1907, in the es,h year Of hi.
age. 81. ..t Wa
"Auoiher instance Of partial preser-
walton is that Of the body Of Hing
Charles I. the subject Of the work al
the head Of this article. The remain
1 Of this unfortunate monarch are known
to have been carried TO Windsor, and
there inferred by his friends, without
pomp, In has,y and private manner.
IL is stated in Clarendon's History OF
the Rebellion, that when his son,
Charles III. was dcsirous TO remove and
re inter his corpse in Westminster Alb,
hey, il could not by any search be found.
In constructing a Mausoleum at Wind.
sor, in 1918. under the direction OF
George w. then Prince Regent, an &C.
cident led TO the discovery ofLbis royal
body. The workmen, in forming q
subterrsnean passage under the choir Of
st. Georges Chapel, accidentally made
an aperture in the wall Of the vault OF
King Henry VIII. On looking through
this opening il wa. iound 10 contain
three cofiius, instead Of two, as bad
been supposed. Two Of these were as
contained TO be coffins of Henry VIII.
and ono Of bis queens. Jane Seymour
The other was formally examined, after
| pesmissiop obtained. NV Sir Heu,v ual