James, Duke of, a natural son of Charles II. and Lucy Walters, was born at Rotterdam in 1619, and was educated in France. His winning manners rendered him popular, but his foolish vanity made him the dupe of designing tacticians, who induced him to head an insurrection against his uncle James II. in June 1685. He was beheaded on the 15th July of the same year. (See Britain.)

a parliamentary and municipal borough and market-town of England, capital of Monmouthshire, is situated at the junction of the Monnow with the Wye, 17 miles S. of Hereford, and 129 miles W. of London. The site of the town is a tongue of land formed by the junction of the two rivers aforementioned; and its vicinity is characterized by all the picturesque attractions of the valley of the Wye. The name of the town, however, is derived from the tributary of this stream—it being a corruption of Monnow's Mouth. Monmouth has been successively a British and Roman station, a Saxon fortress, and a Norman walled town. A castle was erected here during the Saxon period to overawe the surrounding district, which originally belonged to the county of Hereford, and after the Norman conquest was handed over to the custody of William Fitz-Badour. In 1267, John, Lord of Monmouth, replaced the old fortress by one of greater dimensions; but he, having no male heirs, resigned possession in favour of Prince Edward, afterwards Edward I. Eight years later, this fortress suffered so severely from a siege by the Earl of Leicester, that it had to be rebuilt and its defences rendered more complete.

It then passed into the hands of John of Gaunt; and during the reign of his son Henry IV. became the birthplace of Henry V., the hero of Agincourt. In 1464 the castle, being held by the royalists, was besieged and taken by the parliamentary forces. Only a few ruins remain of this ancient building. Traces of the old town wall and moat are also apparent, and one of the four city gates is still entire. The town is provided with an excellent market-place, and contains several other objects of note and interest. The assize court buildings, the façade of which is decorated with a statue of Henry V., the castellated county jail, and St Mary's church, are the most prominent buildings. The latter occupies the site of a church belonging to a Benedictine priory once situated here, and is remarkable for the beauty of its spire, which is 200 feet in height. St Thomas's church, on the other side of the Monnow, an old building, partly in the Norman, partly in a later style; a handsome town-hall; and Jones's Free Grammar School, are the only other edifices worthy of mention. The borough was incorporated by Edward VI. in 1550, and also received charters from Queen Mary in 1557, James I. in 1606, and Charles II. in 1666. It is governed by a mayor, 4 aldermen, and 12 councillors; and unites with Newport and Usk in returning a member to Parliament. Monmouth owes most of its prosperity to the periodical influx of persons during the assizes and sessions, and to the large number of tourists attracted by the beauties of the district. Manufactures are few and insignificant; but a considerable trade in timber and metals is carried on; while the Wye fisheries give employment to several persons in the town and vicinity. A market is held on Saturday. Pop. (1851) 5710.