66
EPPING FOREST.
done wrong, and they were amerced twenty marks,
which the abbot remitted, and, on their submission,
he assoyled them from the excommunication."
Waltham Abbey did not escape the heavy hand
of Henry VIII., but, along with the rest of the
monasterial foundations, the canons, abbots, and
monks passed away, and their rich lands and for-
estal rights were surrendered to the king in 1540.
The present abbey, which is a conspicuous feature
from the high ground of the Forest overlooking
the valley of the Lea, is but a fragment of the
splendid old abbey, enriched and embellished by
a long line of kings. As has been already shown,
a sanctuary of some sort stood here from very
early times. The abbey was completed in the
nth century, but many additions continued to
be made to it by pious worshippers, until it was
shorn of its glories at the time of the surrender.
What remains of it is said to be "the earliest un-
doubted specimen of the Norman style of archi-
tecture now existing in England."
Originally in the form of a cross, with a massive
tower rising out of the intersection of the nave and
transept, all but the western part of the nave was
either destroyed or fell to the ground when left
unsupported by the rest of the structure. The
work of destruction must indeed have been carried
out eagerly for us to find this extract from the
church-warden's accounts in 1556: "Anno 1556.
Imprimis for coles to undermine a piece of the
steeple which stood after the first fall, 2s." The
present building has been carefully restored in
recent years, and some of its ancient beauty again
brought to light. The columns, each one differing
from its neighbour, are well shown in the accom-