imprisoned till he came to an agreement with his creditors.

The Abbey-Church of St. Peter at Westminster appears to be very
ancient, though far from being so ancient as is vulgarly reported.

Some relate, without any authority to support the conjecture, that
it was founded in the days of the Apostles by St. Peter himself;
others that it was erected by King Lucius about the year 170. And
by some it is said to have been built by King Sebert, the first
Christian king of the East-Saxons (Essex and Middlesex), anno 611.
But I take it for granted the church was not built before the
convent or abbey it belonged to. People did not use to build
churches at a distance from town, unless for the service of convents
or religious houses. But neither in the times of the Apostles, nor
in the supposed reign of King Lucius, in the second century, was
there any such thing as a convent in England, or perhaps in any part
of Christendom. During the dominion of the Saxons in this island,
monasteries indeed were erected here, and in many other kingdoms, in
great abundance; and as the monks generally chose thick woods or
other solitary places for their residence, where could they meet
with a spot of ground fitter for their purpose than this woody
island called Thorney, then destitute of inhabitants? But I am
inclined to think that neither this or any other monastery was
erected in South Britain till the seventh century, after Austin the
monk came into England. As to the tradition of its having been
built upon the ruins of the temple of Apollo, destroyed by an
earthquake, I do not doubt but the monks were very ready to
propagate a fable of this kind, who formed so many others to show
the triumphs of Christianity over paganism, and to induce their
proselytes to believe that heaven miraculously interposed in their