CHRONOLOGY & HISTORY. We are now come to treat of the Chronology of the Kings of England, from Egbert. At the commencement of Egbert's reign, England was governed by 7 Kings, called the Saxon Heptarchy; he was descended from the Kings of Wessex, and reigned over that Kingdom from A. D. 800 to 827, (or as some give it 828;) after this period, either by conquest or treaty, he became sole monarch of all England. In learning this Chronology, you will perceive the exceeding usefulness of the compartments; they do not only prevent confusion arising in the mind from the systematic arrangement of the things deposited in them, but also enable the student to call forth any one of them at pleasure; as the 15th class in Botany; the 21st King in any Table of Monarchs, &c. or whatever else is concerned or associated with them. The name of each King, and the word prefixed for the date, must be put into a separate square, beginning with the first, and proceeding to the last, in regular succession. According to this rule, we shall have Egbert in the 1st square of the Floor, Ethelwolf in the 2d, William the Conqueror in the 21st, viz. the 1st square of the second Wall. In many of the names of the Kings, the radical or first part of the word only is used to express the name, as (Hen) denotes Henry, (Rich) Richard (Ward) Edward, &c. But when the first monarch of any name is mentioned, the name is given at full length. When there is more than one King of the same, name, it is necessary to attach a word or syllable to the name, to signify the No. of that name. Example. The word (doe) united to Ward, declares him to be the second of that name, the d in the word (doe) being 2;-(hoe) joined to Hen makes it Hen-hoe, i. e. Henry the 4th, the h in (hoe) being 4. In general, by taking only part of a name, the word, which is to be united with it, to express the number will better associate. For instance, how much better does Hen-hoe read, than Henry-hoe would do; it reads smoother, and the words glide easier into each other, so that they are sooner learned, and easier retained. Observe, that the 7th King, Edward the elder,. has (el) joined to the name, to remind you of (elder.) The 13th King in succession is, Edward the Martyr, this is expressed Edward-mar, so that it is read as one word; mar being sufficient to remind you of Martyr. By putting it in the possessive case it is greatly abbreviated, as it prevents using any superfluous words: but remember that the apostrophic s is never counted. Observation 2d.-Ethel is substituted for Ethelred, (the 14th King) because the word (doe) which is joined to signify the 2d of that name, would not have united so well with the name at full length. Edward the Confessor, (19th King.) Con is attached to Edwar, to remind you of Confessor; then by leaving out the d in Edward, it will be Edwar-con. Also, by putting it in the possessive case, the word expressive of the date readily unites; so that, that sentence will read thus, Edwar-con's job, I think the utility of this arrangement cannot fail to strike an observant mind, when he considers that he has only two or three syllables to recollect, for to give the succession, name, and date of any sovereign. Method of Learning the Chronology, &c, As you pronounce the words (Egbert's rider). hok steadfastly in the first square, thus go on to the 2d, 3d, &c. 'till you come to 9 on the Floor; then proceed to 10 on the cieling, and thus go on in regular succession with the Walls, 'till you come to 50, the centre of the cieling, which will be George the 1st. The 51st and 52d Kings will commence with the Floor again. Let me intreat you. not to look much at your book, while you are learning any thing by this system, for if you do you will be ten times as long attaining it, and at last not be able to refer to it in any order. One great beauty which! recommend in studying by this system is the diverting the attention from the book as much as possible, and instead of poring intensely on the page, only give a mere glance at it, and transfer the reading to the Wall, according to the succession, or in other words, whatever square you are about to associate with, there keep the eye fixed, repeating again and again the portion which you have to fix in that place, 'till you are perfect;. only giving a slight glance now and then at the book, to see that you are correct. I have frequently taken boys from a charity school, totally ignorant of any thing of the kind, and in two short lessons they would be able to refer to any King in the Chronology, viz.--they would tell who was the 15th, 21st, King, &c. what year he ascended the throne, and how long he reigned. This you will be able to do also, if you follow my instructions, and if you do not, you will not learn it in a month. The words following the name of each King, and printed in Italics signify the date. Also, after the 14th King, viz. Ethelred, you must add 1000 to the date. Exam. 15th King, Edmund 2d, has the word (bean) for the date, which is 16, ther 1000 added will be 1016. After you come to Henry the 1st, you have merely to put a 1 before the date, for the word (cow) in that date is=100; then if you put a I before it, there will be 1100; this method makes it easier, as there are fewer words used for the dates: but except in the Chronology of the Kings of Ergland, I advise the dates to be made out at full length. Now suppose I was to ask you who was the 15th King of England? Look irto your 15th square, and there you will find Edmur-doe's bean, which signifies Edmund the 2d; ean (16) is the date by adding 1000, which is 1016; and this is the first King you will perceive that begins with the thousand. 1087 1100 ... 22 Will-doe's, rope,.. 35 Hen-win, hooded, 36 Ward-hoe's, jamb,.. 37 Ward-el's, serge,......................................... 38 Rich-wig's, serge,... 39 Hen-ape, hurl,.. 40 Hen-roe, lazeto, 41 Ward-en, lisp, 42 Mary's, ill age,......... D |
