:iil iiiiiii UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES HISTORY OF ENGLAND FROM THE FIRST INVASION BY THE ROMANS TO THE ACCESSION OF HENRY VIII. BY THE REV. JOHN LINGARD. IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. I. LONDON: PRINTED FOR J. MAWMAN 39 LUDGATE STREET. I8I9. BARNARD AND VAfttKY, BKlNNSR (ITRKRT, tONPOKi u to K! 3 O' ADVERTISEMENT. This Work contains the History of the Southern Division of X this Island, from its first Invasion by the Romans to the Accession P of Henry VIII. To render it worthy the patronage of the pubUc, the author has spared no pains in consulting the most ancient historians, and comparing their narratives with such c] authentic documents as are known to exist. Anxious, at the same time, to avoid the two extremes of prolixity on the one hand, and of brevity on the other, he has been careful to intro- duce nothing which he deemed trivial or irrelevant, and to exclude nothing which appeared to him important in its conse- quences, or illustrative of the character of the times. The historian ought not to confine himself to the barren ^ recital of facts. It is his duty to trace the silent progress of nations from barbarism to refinement ; and to mark their suc- cessive improvements in the arts of legislation and government But in the performance of this duty he must keep a steady rein on the imagination ; or he Avill mistake fiction for truth, and write a romance in the place of a history. a2 iv ADVERTISEMENT. Guided b}' these principles, the author of the present work has endeavoured to point out to the attention of his readers whatever he could discover of importance in the manners, polity, and institutions, of our ancestors. From the scattered notices in the classical writers, it was easy to glean a sufficiently correct account of the state of Britain when it was first visited by the Romans, and of the condition of the natives as long as it remained under their dominion. The Saxons presented a subject of more interesting though more toilsome investigation. They were the original stock from which the English nation has sprung. We still speak their language, still retain many of their institutions. On this account, the writer considered it a duty to study the genius and manners of that people ; and to describe, with accuracy, their ranks and services, their courts of law and judicial proceedings, their system of government and spirit of legislation. But it is the period after the conquest which has' the strongest claim on our attention. The Normans found in the island in- stitutions of a similar origin with their own, and easily grafted upon them the improvements, with which they had been fami- harized on the continent. Of these improvements, the most important are carefully detailed in the following pages, together with the causes, which, in the course of a few reigns, served to render the sovereign dependent on the bounty of his vassals, and led to the introduction of the representatives of the people into the great council of the nation. The distinction of the ADVERTISEMENT. three estates, their forms and constitution, and the successive steps by which the house of commons continued to rise in dignity and consequence, cannot fail to interest the curiosity of the reader ; and each reign, in the latter part of this period, will offer to his attention some valuable improvement in the laws, in the administration of justice, or in the internal polity of the kingdom. It may perhaps be thought a recommendation to this work, that it was, in the first instance, composed without any reference to modern historians. The author religiously confined his re- searches to the original, and, whenever it was possible, to con- temporary writers. This resolution rendered his task more laborious ; but it rendered it also more satisfactory. It pre- served him from imbibing the prejudices, or copying the mistakes, of others : it left him to the unbiassed exercise of his own judgment; and it has enabled him to place in a new, and, he trusts, a more interesting light, some of the most important occurrences in our history. In conclusion it may be proper to add, that this is only a portion of a more extensive work, which will conduct the history to the great era of the Revolution, and will, if the present attempt meet with encouragement, be published in three addi- tional volumes, with as much expedition as possible. Hornby, LancasJiire, May 1, 1819. CONTENTS THE FIRST VOLUME. * * * Genealogical Table, William I. to Henry II. page 378. CHAP. 1. ROMAN BRITAIN. CjESAR twice invades Britain — The British Tribes — Their Manners — Religioh — Govarnment— Gradual Conquest of Britain hy the Romans — Its State under the Emperors— Conversion of the Natives to Christianity — The Romans abandon the Island. (y> PAGE Caesar's first invasion of Britain 1 His return to Gaul 2 The second invasion ■. 4 Resistance of Cassibelan 5 And his submission 7 Origin of the Britons , 7 British tribes 9 Their manners 10 Discovery of the tin islands 11 Exports and imports 13 Custom of dyeing the body 14 Religion 15 Sacrifices 16 Doctrines 16 Authority of the Druids 19 The Bards 19 Government of the Britons 20 Augustus 21 Cahgula 22 Claudius .,,,.,,.,,„,.,,... 22 Ostorius . .' .V, ',\ ..... 23 Fate of Caractacus 24 Reduction of Anglesey 26 Rebellion of Boadicea .V 27 PAGE Defeat of Boadicea 28 Victories of Agricola 30 He invades Caledonia 32 The Government established in Britaiu.. 33 The Prefect 33 Procurator and taxes 34 Army 35 Provinces 36 Colonies 37 Municipia , . , 38 Latian cities 38 Stipendiary towns 39 Roman walls 39 Vallum of Hadrian 40 Vallum of Antoninus 40 Uipius Marcellus 40 Clodius Albinus 41 Virius Lupus 42 Severus in Britain 42 Grants peace to the Caledonians 43 Builds his celebrated J^^^" "^ From the coast of the Morini he could descry the white cliffs ^. c. of the neighbouring island : and the conqueror of Gaul aspired ^• to the glory of adding Britain to the dominions of Rome. The refusal of the Gallic mariners to acquaint him with the number of the inhabitants, their manner of warfare, and their VOL. I. B 2 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, political institutions; and the timidity of Volusenus, who, though " he had been sent to procure information, had returned without ven- turing to approach the island, served only to irritate his curiosity and inflame his ambition. The Britons, by lending aid to his enemies, the Veneti, had supplied him with a decent pretext for hostilities : and on the twenty-sixth of August, in the fifty-fifth year before the Christian era, Caesar sailed from Calais, with the infantry of two legions. To cross the strait was only the work of a few hours : but when he saw the opposite heights crowned with multitudes of armed men, he altered his course, and steering along the shore, cast anchor before the spot which is now occupied by the town of Deal. The natives carefully followed the motions of the fleet, urging their horses into the waves, and, by their gestures and shouts, bidding defiance to the invaders. The appearance of the naked barbarians, and a superstitious fear of offending the gods of this unknown world, spread a temporarj' alarm among the Romans : but after a short pause it was dispelled, by the intrepidity of the standard- bearer of the tenth legion. Calling on his comrades to follow him, he leaped with his eagle into the sea : detachments instantly poured from the nearest boats: the beach, after a short struggle, was gained ; and the untaught valour of the natives yielded to the arms and discipline of their enemies. His return to fhc Romaus wcrc not more pre-eminent in the art of war, than they were deficient in nautical science. On the fourth night after their arrival the violence of the wind augmented the usual swell of the waves at a spring tide: the ships, that had been hauled on shore, were filled with water : those which rode at anchor, were driven out to sea ; and a scpiadron, which was employed to bring the cavalry from Gaul, was entirely dispersed. The British chieftains, who had come to the camp to solicit 3 ROMAN BRITAIN. peace, observed the consternation excited by these untoward chap. events ; and having retired separately, under different pretexts, ' concealed themselves, with their forces, in the neighbouring woods. Caesar was not aware of their design, till he heard that the seventh legion, which had been sent out to forage, was surrounded and overwhelmed by a hostile multitude. The timely arrival of the rest of the army rescued the survivors from utter destruction : but the Britons, steady in their plan, dispatched messengers to the neighbouring tribes, to represent the small number of the invaders, and inculcate the neces- sity of intimidating future adventurers, by exterminating the present. A general assault was soon made on the Roman camp: and, though it proved unsuccessful, it taught Cajsar to reflect on the evident danger of his situation, if the in- clemency of the weather should interrupt his communication with Gaul, and confine him, during the winter, to a foreign shore, without supplies or provisions. To save his repu- tation, he gladly accepted an illusory promise of submission from a few of the natives, and then hastened back with his army to Gaul, after a short absence of three weeks. It is manifest that he had little reason to boastof the success of this expedition: and on that account he affects, in his Commentaries, to repre- sent it as undertaken for the sole purpose of discovery. But at Rome it was hailed as the forerunner of the most splendid victories : the mere invasion of Britain was magnified into the conquest of a new world : and a thanksgiving of twenty days was decreed by the senate to the immortal gods\ The ensuing winter was spent by each party in the most ' Cffis. de Bel. Gal. iv. 20—36. Dio, paneg. p. 174. Of his success, Lucan says xxxix. 120. Caesar, in his letters, described plainly : the island as of immense extent, another Territa quaesitis ostendit terga Britannis. world : alium orbem terrarum. Eumen. Luc. ii. 372. B 2 4 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. The second ioTasion. AC. 64. active preparations. In spring the Roman army, consisting of five legions and two thousand cavalry, sailed from the coast of Gaul in a fleet of more than eight hundred ships. At the sight of this immense armament stretching across the channel, the Bri- tons retired with precipitation to the woods : and the invaders landed without opposition on the very same spot Avhich they had occupied the preceding year. Caesar immediately marched in pursuit of the natives, but was recalled the next day b}^ the news of the disaster which had again befallen his fleet. A storm had arisen in the night, in which forty vessels were totally lost, and many of the others driven on shore. To guard against similar accidents he ordered the remainder to be dragged above the reach of the tide, and to be surrounded with a fortification of earth. In this laborious task ten days were employed, after which the invaders resumed their march towards the interior of the country. Each day was marked by some partial rencounter in which the natives appear to have frequently obtained the advantage. It was their policy to shun a general engagement. Divided into small bodies, but stationed within hail of each other, they watched the march of the enemy, cut off the strag- glers, and diligently improved every opportunity of annoyance. Their principal warriors, who fought from chariots, extorted by their skill and intrepidity the applause of the Romans. On the brink of a precipice, or on the rapidity of a descent, they guided their vehicles with as much safety as in the level plain. No danger appalled them. They drove fearlessly along the Roman line, espied every opportunity of breaking the ranks of the enemy: and during the heat of the action would run along the pole, leap on the ground, or regain their seats, as the events of the moment seemed to demand. If they despaired of success, they retired with rapidity: if they were pursued, they abandoned ROMAN BRITAIN. 5 their chariots, and with their pikes resisted on foot the charo-e CHAP, of the cavah-y. It required all the art of Cxsar to infliet any " serious injury on a foe so vigilant, alert, and unassaihible. At length three of the legions with all the horsemen were sent out to forage, and their apparent disorder invited the Ihitons to attack them with their whole force. Descending from the hills, they poured through every opening, and penetrated as far as the eagles: but the veterans received them with coolness; their return was closed up : and but few were able to regain the mountains and woods. Dispirited by this check, many of the confederate tribes retired to their homes : and Cassibelan, king of the Cassii, the chief of the allies, Avas left to support the whole pressure of the war. By repeated victories over his neighbours, Cassibelan had Resistance of 11-1 • T^ 1 Cassibelan. acqun-ed high renown among the natives. By the tribes on the right bank of the Thames he had been invited to place himself at their head : and his conduct during the war seems to have justified the selection. Deserted by his confederates, he retreated into his own territories, and attempted to place the Thames between him and his pursuers. At the only ford he ordered sharp stakes to be fixed in the bed of the river; lined the left bank with palisades ; and stationed behind these the principal part of his army. But the advance of the Romans was not to be retarded by artificial difficulties. The cavalry without hesi- tation plunged into the river : the infantry followed, though the water reached to their shoulders : and the Britons, intimidated by the intrepid aspect of the invaders, fled to the woods. Such is the account of this transaction which has been given b}' Cnesar: but Polyffinus attributes his success to the panic caused by the sight of an elephant, which was driven before the Romans. At the approach of this unknown animal, of enormous magnitude, HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, covered with scales of polished steel, and carrying on his back ' a turret filled with armed men, the Britons abandoned their defences, and sought for safety in a precipitate flight". The king of the Cassii was not, however, discouraged. To impede the progress of the enemy, he laid waste his own terri- tories. By his orders the habitations were burnt, the cattle driven away, and the provisions destroyed : and as the Romans marched through this desert, Cassibelan himself, with four thou- sand chariots, carefully watched all their motions. But the imfortunate chieftain, besides his foreign enemies, had to con- tend against the jealousy and resentment of his own countrymen. He had formerly subdued the Trinobantes, a contiguous nation. In the contest their king Immanuentius had been slain : and his son Mandrubatius was now an exile, and served in the army of the invaders. The Trinobantes offered to submit to the Romans on condition that they should be governed by the son of Imma- nuentius: and several tribes, which bore with impatience the yoke ot the Cassii, following their example, solicited the protec- tion of Caesar. By these he was conducted to the capital or principal fortress of Cassibelan, situated on the spot where afterwards Verulam w^as built, and near to the present town of St. Albans. It was surrounded by a rampart and a ditch, and covered on every side by extensive marshes and forests. Even Cffisar admired the judgment with which the position had been selected, and the art with which it was fortified. Its defences, however, were easily forced by the Romans : and the cattle of Cassibelan, his principal treasure, became the prey of the coiKjuerors. The British king still waited the issue of his plans in another ' PolyscD. viij. 737. Lug. Bat. IGDl. ROMAN BRITAIN. 7 quarter. He had instructed the four chieftains of Kent to chap. assemble their forces, assault the Roman camp, and set fire to the ships. If this attempt had been successful, the Romans ' ! T" '■ ' _ And his sub- yould have been involved in inextricable difficulties. But the mission. men of Kent were defeated : and Cassibelan condescended to sue for peace. Caesar, who feared the approach of the equinox, willingly prescribed the following conditions, that he should give hostages, should live in amity with the Trinobantes, and should furnish his share to the annual tribute, which was to be imposed on Britain. The Romans immediately marched back to the coast, and as the ^eet had been refitted, returned to Gaul in the month of September ^ Such were the petty results of this mighty expedition. The citizens of Rome celebrated with joy the victories of their favourite general : but the conqueror of Britain was not the master of one foot of British ground. The inhabitants, however, and the productions of " the new world," now became objects of interest to the more civilized nations of Greece and Italy ; and the industry of writers was eagerly employed to satisfy the curiosity of the public. Of their works, many have undoubtedly perished : from those which remain, has been gleaned the following account of ancient Britain, such as it is described to have been about the commencement of the Christian era. The principal nations of Europe are shewn, from the radical ^''S'" of the . '^ Biitoiis. difference in their languages, to be descended from the three great families of the Celtiie, Gothi, and Sarmata? : and from the countries which they have successively occupied, it appears that the Celtee were the first who crossed the limits of Asia into Europe; that, as the tide of population continued to roll towards - Cses. V. 1—23. Dio, xl. 146. 8 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, tlie west, they were pushed forward by the advance of the ' Gothic nations ; and that these in their turn yielded to the pressure of the tribes of the Sarmatae. i\t the dawn of history we fiiid the Celtae dispersed over a great part of Europe : in the lime of Cccsar they occupied the principal portion of Spain, of Gaul, and of the British isles*. That conqueror, in describing the inhabitants of Britain, could speak from personal knowledge of none but the tribes, that dwelt near the mouth of the Thames. These he informs us were of Belgic descent. Their ancestors had, at no very distant period, invaded the island, expelled the original inhabitants from the coast, and in their new settlements still retained the names of the parent states^. — Beyond them dwelt other tribes less familiarized with the habits of civilized life. When he inquired after their origin, he was told that their ancestors were the spontaneous production of the soil : later discoveries shewed that they were Celta?, the descen- dants of the first colonists of Britain ". The numberof the inhabitants in the districts which fell under his observation, astonished the Roman general : and there is reason to believe that many other districts were equally well ' It is doubtful whether the Belgic tribes the nat\ies, and, in some instances, the origin should be considered as of Celtic or Gothic of the three primeval tribes that settled in origin. Britain, of the three foreign tribes, that were ' Cjes. ii. 3. V. 12. peaceably admitted, and of the three usurping ^ I shall not notice the fable of Brutus, the tribes, that obtained possession of the greater great grandson of ^neas, who gave his name part of the island. But whatever may be the to the island, and whose descendants are said antiquity of the triads, their testimony nuist to have swayed the sceptre for many genera- be doubtful as being founded either on oral tions(Nenniu3 says he extracted it ex veteribus tradition, or on fictions framed originally to scriptis veternm nostrorum. Edit. Bert. 104. solve appearances. B^or Gildas informs us which makes it older than Gcoll'ry or Tyssi- that in his time there did not exist among his lio) : nor ihe dreams of more recent antiqua- countrymen any historical documents : quippe ries, who have sought out the patriarch of the quae, si qua fuerint, aut ignibus hostium de- Cymri in the ark of Noah, and conducted leta, aut civium exilii classe longinsdeportata, him and his children through a thousand non comparcant. Gild. edit. Bert. p. 69. perils to Britain. — The triad.i have given us ROMAN BRITAIN. 9 peopled''. The population of the whole island comprised above CHAP, forty tribes, of whom several, while they retained their former ' appellations, had been deprived of their independence, at the g^^^,^ ^^^^^ same time that others, amid the revolutions of two or three centuries, had risen to a high pre-eminence of power. The long tract of land to the south of the Severn and the Thames was unequally portioned between ten nations, of whom the p incipal were the Cuntii, or men of Kent ; the Belga?, or 'nhabitants of the present counties of Hampshire and Wilts, and the Damnonii, who, from the river Ex, had gradually extended themselves to the western promontory. Across the arm of the sea, now called the Bristol channel, the most powerful was the tribe of the Silures. From the banks of the Wye, their original seat, they had carried their arms to the Dee, and the ocean : and their authority was acknowledged by the Ordovices and the Dimetae, the inhabitants of the northern mountains, and of the western district of Wales. On the eastern coast of the island between the Thames and the Stour, lay the Trinobantes, whose capital was London : and from the Stour to the Humber stretched the two kindred nations of the Iceni, called Cenimagni, and Coi- tanni. Tlie Dobuni and Cassii, confederate tribes under the rule of Cassibelan, extended along the left bank of the Thames, from the Severn to the Trinobantes : and above them dwelt the Carnabii and several clans of minor consequence. The Brigantes were the most powerful of all the British nations. They were bounded by the Humber on the south, and by the Tyne on the north ; and had subdued the Volantii and Sistuntii of the western coast. To the north of the Brigantes Avere five tribes, known by the general appellation of Maaetse : and beyond these 'Hominum estinfinita multitudo. Caes. v. Brigantes, civitas numerosissima. Tac. Agric. 12. IIciAuavO^WTre? KKTo;. Dio. Sic. v. 347. c. 17. VOL. I. C 10 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Their man- ners. wandered amid the lakes and mountains various clans, among which the Caledonians claimed the praise of superior courage, or superior ferocity ". By the Roman writers all the natives of Britain are indis- criminately denominated harharians, a term of indefinite import, which must vary its signification with the subject to which it is .applied. Though far removed from the elegance and refinement oJF their invaders, the Belgic tribes of the south might almost claim the praise of civilization in comparison with their northern brethren. Their dress was of their own manufacture. A square mantle covered a vest and trowsers, or a deeply plaited tunic of braided cloth : the waist was encircled with a belt : rings adorned the second finger of each hand : and a chain of iron or brass was suspended from the neck^. Their huts resembled those of their Gallic neighbours. A foundation of stone sup- ported a circular wall of timber and reeds; over which was thrown a conical roof, pierced in the centre for the twofold purpose of admitting light, and discharging the smoke '". In husbandry they possessed considerable skill. They had dis- covered the use of marl as a manure : they raised more corn than was necessary for their OAvn consumption : and to preserve it till the following harvest, they generally stored it in the cavities of rocks ". But beyond the borders of the southern tribes, these faint traces of civilization gradually dis- appeared. The midland and M-estern nations were unacquainted with cither ao-riculture or manufactures. Their riches consisted in the extent of their pastures, and the number of their flocks. ' Ptolem. viii. 2. Ricard. Corin. i. 6. WhitaVer's Mancli. i. 91. ii. 201. ' Plin. viii. 48. xxxiii. \. Dio Nic. in Nerone, p. 169. Whitaker's Manchester, Tii. 6. "• C'sBs. V. 12. Diod. Sic. v. p. 347. Strabo, iv. 197. " Plin. Hist. Nat. xvii. 6. 8. Diod. Sic. v. p. 347. 3 ROMAN BRITAIN. U With milk and flesh they satisfied the cravings of hunger; and, CHA^. clothed in skins, they bade dcljiance to the inclemency of theele- ' nients'". But even sheep were scarcely known in the more north- ern parts ; and the hordes of savages, wlio roamed through the Aviids of Caledonia, often depended for support on the casual pro- duce of the chase. They went almost naked : and sheltered them- sehes from the weather under the cover of the woods, or in the caverns of the mountains. Their situation had hardened both their minds and bodies. If it had made them patient of fatigue and privation, it had also taught them to be rapacious, bloody, and revengeful. When Severus invaded their country, the Roman legions were appalled at the strength, the activit}', the hardihood, and ferocity of these northern Britons". The superior civilisation of the southern tribes was attributed Discorery of by historians to their intercourse with the strangers, whom the pursuits of commerce attracted to their coast ^*. When the Spa- nish ores began to be exhausted, the principal supply of tin was sought from the mines of Britain. The first who exported this metal from the island, and conveyed it to the different ports in the Mediterranean, were certain Phenician adventurers from Cadiz. To monopolize so valuable a branch of commerce, they carefully concealed the place from the knowledge of their neigh- bours : and about five centuries before the birth of Christ, Herodotus, the father of profane history, candidly acknowledged that he had been unable to discover the real position of the " Cassiterides, or Tin-islands ^^" The Phenicians of Carthage were more successful. Anxious to share in the trade Avith their - brethren of Cadiz, Hanno and Himilco undertook separate " Caes. V. 14. » Cses. v. 14. Diod. Sic. v. 347. " Mela, iii. p. 264. Dio Nic. in Severe, "' Strab. iii. 175. Plin. vii. 55. Herod, p. 340. Herodian, iii. 47. iii. 203. Lug. Bat. 1715. c 2 12 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. voyages of discovery. Having passed the straits, Hanno turned to the left, and explored the coast of Africa : Himilco, shaping his course to the north, crept along the shore of Spain, stretched, by accident or design, across the ocean, and in the fourth month discovered the object of his voyage. The OLstrymnides (so the tin islands are called in his journal, which was extant as late as the fifth century), were distant two days sail from " the " sacred isle of the Hibernians," and that isle lay near to the isle of the Albions ^^ The success of the Carthaginians awakened the hopes of the Grecian colonists of Marseilles ; and Pytheas, their most celebrated navigator, during his voyage in the northern seas, had also the good fortune to discover the Cassi- terides". They were ten in number, abounding in mines of tin and lead, and divided by a narrow but boisterous strait from the coast of the Damnonii. The largest was called Silura or Sigdelis, a name in which may be discovered the origin of their present appellation, " the Scilly isles." Nine out of the ten were inhabited : and the natives are described as a peaceful and industrious race, much addicted to habits of religious worship and divination. They wore long tunics of a dark colour ; were unacquainted with the use of money ; had no fixed places of habitation, and crossed from isle to isle in boats of wicker-work covered with leather '\ " Fest. Avien. Ora inarit. v. 117. 410. The Romans also, after several fruitless at- Ast hinc duobus in saci-ani (sic insulam tempts, discovered the Cassiterides. A story Dixere prisci), solibus cursus rati est, is told of a Phenician mer^'hant, who seeing Earaque late gens Hibernorum colit. himself closely watched by a Roman vessel. Ibid. V. 108. ran his ship ashore, that he might not disclose Why Sacram ? Diodorus says it was called the secret to a rival. He was recompensed Irin, the very name by which it is known to for his loss out of the public treasury. — the natives at this day :T«i,o.o/.«Cof.£....f.u. Strab iii. 173. Diod. Sic. V. 355. May not the resemblance ... f""- -\^ '• '*''• ^ ^f ''^\"'"- J-}*^- ''"""• , •; ., 111. 175. The encroachments of the sea, by between .j.v and .£f au have given rise to the gradually inundating the low lands, have mul- epithet " sacred" ? , „. ^ . tiplied the number of islets. " Plin. ii. 75. Vo83. de Hist. Graec. iv. '^ ROMAN BRITAIN. 13 By these successive discoveries the trade was at last thrown CIIAP. open to different nations. Lucius Crassus, a Roman, taught the natives to work their mines to greater advantage ; and so E%iiorts aii.i abundant was the annual exportation, that the surplus of the ""^""^' tin was bought up by factors on tlie coast of the Mediterranean, and conveyed over land to the remote provinces of India '^ But the navigation by the pillars of Hercules was now abandoned as too expensive and dangerous. The British miners having cast their tin into square blocks, conveyed it to the Isle of Wight, the general deposit. Thence it was exported by Gallic traders to the mouths of the Seine, the Loire, or the Garonne ; and ascending these rivers, was carried across the land on the backs of horses, till it could be conveyed by water carriage to the great commercial cities of Marseilles or Narbonne™. In return for this metal, so highly prized by the ancient nations, the Britons received articles of inferior value to the importers, but of high estimation to an uncivilized people, salt for the preser- vation of provisions, earthen ware for domestic use, and brass for the manufacture of arms and ornaments "\ The enterprise and researches of the foreigners quickened the industry of the southern tribes. Tin had originally formed the sole article of their commerce ; to tin was soon added the exportation of hides, which were procured in immense numbers from the natives of the interior ; lead w^as next extracted from veins open to the day ; and then followed a most valuable acquisition, the discovery and use of iron "^ But report had exaggerated the productions of the country far beyond their real " Strab. ibid. Plin. xxxiv. 17. =' Strab. iii. 175. '" The whole journey was performed in " Plin. iv. 22. xxxiv. 17. Cxs. v. 1^. about thirty days. See Dio. Sic. v. 346, 347. 361. Strab. iii. 147. 14 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Custom of i\ypiiig the body. value : and at the time of the invasion, the Romans flattered themselves with the hope of conquering an island, of which the shores abounded with pearls, and the soil with ores of the more precious metals. Their avarice Avas, however, defeated. Of gold or silver not the smallest trace was discovered '" ; nor were the British pearls of a size or colour which could reward the labour of the collector *\ Yet the invasion produced one advantage to the natives. They sought, and at last discovered ores of the very metals, after which Roman avarice had so anxiously but fruitlessly inquired : and the British exports, at the commencement of the Christian era, comprised, if we may credit a contemporary and well-mformed writer, corn and cattle, gold and silver, tin, lead and iron, skins, slaves and dogs '^ Of the peculiar customs of the Britons but few and imperfect notices have been transmitted to posterity. One strange and disgusting practice, that of painting the body, seems to have prevailed in many parts of the island. For this purpose the southern tribes employed a blue dye, extracted from woad, which gave to them, in the eyes ot foreigners, the appearance of Ethiopians. It was adopted equally by both sexes : and was consecrated in their estimation by ceremonies of religion"". Connected with this was the still more barbarous practice of tatooing, so long in use among the more northern Britons. At an early age, the outlines of animals were impressed with pointed '' Illud cognitum est, neque auri neque argenti scrupuluni esse ullum in ilia insula. Cic. ep. .•'.d fam. vii. 7. ad Att. iv. 16. " Parvos atque decolores. Plin. ix. 35. Origeii says they were cloudy, and less bright than those of India. Com. in Matth. 211. Yel Caesar dedicated to Ve"us a breastplate ornamented with pearls, which he pretended to have found in Britain Plin. ibid. ''' Tac. vit. Agric. xii. Strab. iv. 199. "^ Plin. x.\ii. 1. Mela, iii. 6. Caesar (v. 14.) says: omnes vero se Britanni vitro inficiunt As, however, he had not seen uny o( the more remote tribes, it is uncertain whether his observation should be applied to them. ROMAN BRITAIN. 15 instruments in the skin : a strong infusion of woad was rubbed tJliAP. into the i)unctures ; and the figures, expanding with the growth " of the body, nitained their original appearance tluough life. The Briton was vain of this hideous ornament : and to exhibit it in the eyes of his enemies, he was always careful to throw off his clothes in the day of battle "^ The religion of the natives was that of the druids, whether Religion. it had been brought by them from Gaul, as is the more natural supposition, or, as C?esar asserts, had been invented in the island. The druids adored, under different appellations, the same gods as the Greeks and Romans. Pluto they considered as their progenitor : Apollo, Mars, Jupiter, and Minerva were severally worshipped : but to Mercury, as the inventor of the useful arts, they paid a more particular veneration"''. To these, the siiperior gods, they added, like other polytheists, a multitude of local deities, the genii of the woods, rivers, and mountains -'\ Some fanciful writers have pretended that they rejected the use of temples through a sublime notion of the divine "immensity : though the absence of such structures may, with more proba- bility, be refeiTed to their want of architectural skill. On the oak they looked with peculiar reverence. This monarch of the forest, frou) its strength and durability, was considered as the most appropriate emblem of the divinity^'. The tree and its productions were deemed holy : to its trunk was bound the victim destined for slaughter ; and of its leaves were formed the chaplets worn at the time of sacrifice. If it chanced to produce ^ Solin. xxii. 43. Herod, iii. 47. It was " Cas. vi. 15, 16. practised by the Picts as late as the fifth =» Gild. ii. Many of theselocal deities are century. named in inscriptions svhich still exist. Perlegit exangues Piclo moriente figuras. » AyaX^a <^£ Aiof k£>.t»xo> -j^rM Sp-oc. Ckml. de Bel. Get. v. 165. Max. Tyr. Dissert, xxxviii. p. 87. 16 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Sacrifices. Doctrines. the misletoe, the whole tribe was summoned : two white heifers Avere immolated under its branches : the principal druid cut the sacred plant with a knife of gold ; and a religious feast ter- minated the ceremonies of the day ". The druids were accustomed to dwell at a distance from the profane, in huts or caverns, amid the silence and gloom of the forest. There, at the hours of noon or midnight, when the deity was supposed to honour the sacred spot with his presence, the trembhng votary was admitted within a circle of lofty oaks, to prefer his pra3^er, and listen to the responses of the minister^'. In peace they offered the fruits of the earth: in war they de- voted to the god of bjttles the spoils of the enemy. Tiie cattle were slaughtered in his honour : a pile was formed of the rest of the booty, and was consecrated as a monument of his powerful assistance ^^ But in the hour ol" danger or distress human sacri- fices were deemed the most efficacious. Impelled by a super- stition, which had steeled all the feelings of humanity, the ofhciating priest plunged his dagger into the breast of his victim, whether captive or malefactor ; and from the rapidity with which the blood issued from the wound, and the convulsions in which the sufiercr expired, presumed to announce the future happiness or calamity of his country ^^ To the veneration, which the British druids derived from their sacerdotal character, must be added the respect, which the reputation of knowledge never fails to extort from the ignorant. They professed to be the depositaries of a mysterious science, =' Plin. xvi. 44. " Mela, iii. 243. Luc. i. v. 463. iii. v. 399. 423. Tac. .Ann. xiv. 30. I have not noticed the circles of unhewn stones, the remains of which still exist at Slonehenge, Abuiy, &c. because 1 do not find that such stones are ever mentioned by ancient writers, as appendages to places of worship among the Cella;. " Cajs. iv. 16. " Dio. Sic. V. 354. Tac. Ann. xiv. 30. CiEs. vi. 15. Plin. xx.\. 1. Slrab. iv. 198. ROMAN BRITAIN. 17 far above the comprehension of the vulgar : and their schools chap. were opened to none but the sons of illustrious families. Such 1 was their fame, that the druids of Gaul, to attain the perfection of the institute, did not disdain to study under their British brethren "^ With them, as with similar orders of priests among the ancients, a long course of preparatory discipline was required : and we are told that many had the patience to spend no less than twenty years in this state of probation. To the initiated they enjoined the most inviolable secrecy : and that the profane might not become acquainted with their doctrines, the use of letters was prohibited, and each precept was delivered in verse by the teacher, and committed to memory by the dis- ciple'"'. Of tenets thus anxiously concealed, it is not to be expected that much should be distinctly known : the following particulars have been collected from the few notices contained in the an- cient historians, compared with the doctrines peculiar to the bards. The druids professed to be acquainted with the nature, the power, and the providence of the divinity ; with the figure, size, formation, and final destruction of the earth : with the stars, their position and motions, and their supposed influence over human affairs ^^ They practised the art of divination with eager assiduity. Three of their ancient astrologers were able, it is said, to foretel whatever should happen before the day of doom ; and their skill in magic was so great, that, according to Phny, the Persians themselves might be thought to be their disciples '". To medicine also they had pretensions : « Caes. vi. 12. Mar. xv. 427. ^ Ce6s. vi. 13. Aii/i)/fA«TwJu?. Diog. '" Mela, iii. 243. Plin. sxx. 1. Solin. Laert. in proem, p. 5. Amstel. apud West. xxii. 42. Pio. Sic. v. 354. Cic. de div. i. " Caes. vi. 13. Mela, iii. 243. Amm. 41. Triad,, 89. VOL. I. D 18 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, but their knowledge was principally confined to the use of the • misletoe, vervain, savin, and trefoil ; and even the efficacy of these simples was attributed not to the nature of the plants, but to the influence of prayers and incantations^^. The great objects of the order were, according to themselves, " to reform " morals, to secure peace, and to encourage goodness :" and the following lesson, which they inculcated to the people, was cer- tainly conducive to those ends : " the three first principles of wis- " dom are, obedience to the laws of God, concern for the good of " man, and fortitude under the accidents of life'*"." They also taught the immortality of the human soul : but to this great truth they added the absurd fiction of metempsychosis ". Man is placed, according to their doctrine, in the circle of courses : good and evil are placed before him for his selection. If he prefer the former, death transmits him from the earth into the circle o^ felicity : but if he prefer the latter, death returns him into the circle of courses : he is made to do penance for a time in the body of a beast or reptile ; and then permitted to reas- ^» Plin. xvi. 44. xxiv. 11. sxv. 9. xxx. 1. rliyu or mysterious language, so often men- " These two triads may be seen in Davis tioned by the bards. To every tree and (Celt. Researches, 171. 182). It is remark- shrub, to their leaves, flowers, and branches, able that the latter had been translated by they seem to have affixed a fanciful and sym- Diogenes Laertius many centuries ago. bolical meaning: and these allegorical sub- 2£€«> flsaj, Hosi (/.tSiv xay.ov S^kv, x«j stitutes for the real names of beings and their avSpHM a.(rxff^, (Dio. Laert. in proem properties, must have formed, in their numcr- t \ ous combinations, a species of jargon per- -' Css. vi. 13. Mel. iii. 243. Dio. Sic. ■"''^'^'y vmintelligiblc to any but tlie adepts. T. 352. Strabo, iv. 197. I have added an This acquirement appears to havo been prized explanation of the metempsychosi.s from the ''"'' '"""Y centuries in proportion to its dilR- writings of the bards. It is so improbable ^ulty and folly. Taliessin boasts with corn- that such a system should have been invented I'lacency, that he is acquainted with every after the introduction of Christianity, that I "P^'g m tl"-' cave of the diviner: that he tfcink it may fairly be considered us a relic of l^'iows the intent of the trees m the memorial the druidicnl doctrine. For tlie same reason °^ compacts, (hat he knows both good and I would attribute to these ancient piests the, evil. See Davis, Celtic Hoseaiclies, 245—253. ROMAN BRITAIN. 19 sumc the form of man. According to the predominance of vice CHAP. or virtue in his disposition, a repetition of his prf)bation may be ' necessary : but after a certain number of transmigrations his offences will be expiated, his passions subdued, and the circle of felicity will receive him among its inhabitants *^ It was to this doctrine that the Romans attributed that contempt of death which was so conspicuous in the Celtic nations "^ It will not excite surprise that men, whose office and pre- Authority ot • 1 1 1 ''*^ Druids. tended attamments raised them so much above the vulgar, should acquire and exercise the most absolute dominion over the minds of their countrymen. In public and private dehber- ations of any moment, their opinion was always asked, and was generally obeyed. By their authority peace was preserved : in their presence passion and revenge were silenced ; and at their mandate contending armies consented to sheathe their swords. Civil controversies were submitted to their decision : and the punishment of crimes was reserved to their justice. Religion supphed them with the power to enforce submission. Disobe- dience was followed by excommunication : and from that instant the culprit was banished from their sacrifices, cut off from the protection of the laws, and stigmatized as a disgrace to his family and country **. As the Druids delivered their instructions in verse, they must The Bards, have had some notion of poetry, and we find among them a particular class distinguished by the title of bards. By the triads their origin is ascribed to certain personages, who from *' See the triads in William's Poems, ii. Mortis, et ignavum redilurx parcere vitae. 227, or the epitome of them in Davis, p. 185. Lucan. i. 460. " Cffis. vi. 13. Mela, iii. 243. Inde ruendi " Caes. vi. 12. Diod. Sic. v. 354. Strabo, In feiTum mens prona viris, animiEque capaces iv. 197. Dio. Chrys. orat. xlix. p. 538. D 2 20 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. / CHAP, their names appear to be enigmatical, rather than real, cha- ' racters ". The bard was a musician as well as a poet : and he constant] 3"^ accompanied with his voice the sounds of his harp. Every chieftain retained one or more of them in his service. They attended in his hall; eulogised his boimty and his valour: and sang the praises and the history of their country. At the festive board, in the hour of merriment and intoxication, the bard struck his harp : and every bosom glowed with admiration of the heroes whom he celebrated, and of the sentiments which he aimed to inspire. He accompanied the chief and his clan to the field of battle : to the sound of his harp they marched against the enemy : and in the heat of the contest animated themselves with the hope that their actions would be renowned in song, and transmitted to the admiration of posterity ^^ Government The form of government adopted by the British tribes has oftheBntoDS. ^ . . ^ •' scarcely been noticed in history. In some, the supreme autho- rity appears to have been divided among several chieftains; in most, it had been intrusted to a single individual: but in all, the people continued to possess considerable influence. With respect to the succession there are instances in which the father had portioned his dominions among his children, and others in which the reigning prince left his crown to his widow, who both exercised the more peaceful duties of royalt}^, and with arms in her hands, conducted her subjects to the field of battle*'. But in the absence of any fixed notions of succession, it is pro- bable that power Avould frequently supply the place of right ; " Triad, 58. Laudibus in longum vates dimittitis cevum, * Diod. Sic. V. p. 354. Athenasus, vi. Plurima securi fudistis carmina Bardi. p. 246. Amraiaa. Mar, xv. 24. Strabo, Lucan. i. v. 447. IV. 197. " Cees. v. 11. 20. 22. Diod. Sic. v. p. 347. Vos quoque, qui fortes animas, belloque Mela, iii. p. 264. Tac. Agric. xvi. Dio. percniptas Cass. Ix. p. 779. Dio. in Sever, p. 339. ROMAN BRITAIN. 21 and the weaker state fall a victim to the ambition of a more warlike neighbour. We are told that the ]^ritons were quarrel- some, rapacious, and revengeful : that every nation was torn by intestine factions : and that ])retexts were never wanting to justify oppression, when it could be committed with impunity'*. It was this rancorous hostility among themselves which acce- lerated their subjugation to the power of Rome. " There is *' not," says Tacitus, " a more fortunate circumstance, than " that these powerful nations make not one common cause. " They fight single, and unsupported : and each in its turn is " compelled to receive the Roman yoke^^" Such were the Britons, who by their braver}' and perseverance bafHed the attempts of the first, and the most warlike, of the Ci^sars. From that period to the reign of Claudius, during the lapse of ninety-seven years, they retained their original inde- pendence. During the civil wars, the attention of the Romans was too actively occupied at home, to think of foreign conquest. Augustus thrice announced his intention of annexing Britain to the empire : but the danger was averted, on one occasion b}'^ a submissive embassy from the natives, on the others by the intervention of more important concerns^". Instead of exacting the tribute imposed by Caesar, he contented himself with levying duties on the trade between Gaul and Britain, a measure which brought a larger sum into the imperial treasury, and was borne without murmuring by the inhabitants^'. Yet this financial experiment has been magnified, by the flattery of a courtier, / into the conquest of the whole island^". CHAP. I. Aiiqfiisfus. A. U.2h " Maxirae imperitandi cupidine, et studio prolatandi ea qua possident. Mela, iii. 265. Tacit Agric. xii. *' Ibid. '' Dio. xlix. p. 472. liii. 586. Hor. 1. i. Ode, 29. iv. 12. '' Strabo, iv. p. 200. " Prssens diviis habebitur Augustus, adjectis Britannia Imperio. Hor. iii. 5. Calig;nla. A. D. 40. 22 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Tiberius pretended that the empire was already too exten- ' sive; and sought to justify his own indolence, by the policy of Augustus^'. In opposition to his conduct, his nephew and successor Caligula exhibited to the world a farce, worthy of the childish prince by Avhom it was planned. Cunobeline, the most powerful of the successors of Cassibelan, had banished his son Adminius. The exile repaired to the emperor, and, as if Britain had been his patrimony, made a surrender of the island into the hands of Caliovila. The glorious intelligence was immediately transmitted to the senate : and an army of two hundred thousand men was ordered to assemble on the coast of Gesoriacum^*. As soon as the emperor arrived, he aiTayed the legions on the shore, rowed out to sea in the imperial galley, I'eturned precipitately, and gave the signal of battle. The soldiers, in suspense and astonishment, inquired for the enemy : when Caligula informed them, that the}' had that day conquered the ocean, and commanded them to collect its spoils, the shells on the beach, as a proof of their victory. To perpetuate the memory of his folly, he laid the foundation of a lofty beacon, and returned to Rome to give himself the honours of a triumph*^ ciaudiuj. j^jj^. ^]^Q empty pageantry of Caligula was soon succeeded by the real horrors of invasion. Instigated by Beric, a British chieftain, whom domestic feuds had expelled from his native country, the emperor Claudius commanded Aulus Plautius to transport four legions with their auxiliaries into Britain. It was with difficulty that the troops could be induced to engage in " Tac. Agric. xiii. land have been supposed to be the remains of ■" Boulogne. this beacon. Camd. p liv. Gibson's version. " Suet, in Calig. 46, 47. Dio. lix. 754. But in all probability it would be raised at The ruins of Britenhuis on the coast of Hoi- Boulogne. ROMAN BRITAIN. 23 the expedition : but as they crossed the channel, a meteor ^vas chap. ^een moving in the direction of the fleet, and was hailed as a ___^-;__ certain omen of victory. The Britons were under the command of Caractacus and Togidumnus, the two sons of Cunobeline: who adopted the policy of their ancestors, and endeavoured to harass, rather than to repel, the invaders. But the German auxiliaries, better fitted for such warfare than the legionary feoldiers, followed them across rivers and morasses ; and, though the natives made a gallant resistance, drove them, with the loss of I'ogidumnus, to the north bank of the Thames. The emperor himself now took the conmiand, penetrated to Camalodunum*'^, and received the submission of the Britons in the vicinity. At his departure, he divided the Roman forces between the legate Plautius, and Vespasian, an officer whose merit afterwards invested him with the purple. To the care of Plautius was assigned the left, to that of Vespasian the right bank of the Thames. Both experienced from the natives the most deter- mined resistance. Vespasian fought no less than thirty battles, before he could subdue the Belgae and natives of the Isle of Wight: Plautius, during the five remaining years of his govern- ment, was opposed by Caractacus at the head of the Cassii and Silures, who, though frequently beaten, as often renewed the contest. Claudius had entered Rome in triumph : to Plautius, for his services, was decreed the inferior honour of an ovation^^ Ostorius Scapula was the successor of Plautius. To repress Ostorius. tlie inroads of the unsubdived Britons, he erected two chains of forts, one in the north along the river Avon, the other in the *° Maiden or Colchester. ploits of Plautius are mentioned in an inscrip- " Dio. Ix. 779 — 781. Suet, in Claud, xvii. tion in his honour, which is still extant, on the Kxiv. Tac. Agric. xiii. The Roman army mausoleum of the Plautian family, near Ponte was attended by several elephants, probably Lucano, on the road from Rome to Tivoli. to terrify the natives. Dio. ibid. The ei- 24 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Fate of Car- actacus. A. D. 52, west along the left bank of the Severn. The reduced tribes Avere gradually moulded into the form of a Roman province: and, when the Iceni dared to refuse the yoke, their rebellion was severely punished, and a colony of veterans was planted at Camalodunum to insure their obedience. The freedom of Bri- tain now sought an asylum among the Silures. The enthusiastic attachment of that people to their independence, had caused them to be compared to the ancient Sicambri : and their hatred of the Roman name had been envenomed by an incautious expression of Ostorius, that their existence as a people Avas incompatible with his projects. In Shropshire, at the conflu- ence of the Coin and Teme, stands a lofty hill called Caer- Caradoc, still retaining the vestiges of ancient fortifications. There Caractacus and the Silures determined to defend the liberty of their country. The bank of the river was lined with troops, and the ascent of the hill was fortified with ramparts of loose stones- At the approach of the Romans, the Britons bound themselves by an oath to conquer or die : and with loud exclamations defied the attack of the enemy. Ostorius himself hesitated : but at the demand of the legions the signal of battle was given : the passage of the river was forced : and the Romans, under showers of darts, mounted the hill ; burst over the ramparts, and drove the Silures from the summit. The wife and daughter of Caractacus fell into the hands of the victors : his brothers soon after surrendered : and the king himself was delivered in chains to Ostorius by his step-mother Cartismandua, queen of the Brigantes, under whose protection he had hoped to elude the vigilance of his pursuers. The fame of Caractacus had already crossed the seas ; and the natives of Italy were anxious to behold the man who had braved for nine years the power of Rome. As lie passed ROMAN BRITAIN. 25 through the imperial city, he expressed liis surprise that men, CHAP. Avho possessed such palaces at home, should deem it worth their while to fioht for the wretched hovels of Britain. Claudius and the empress Agrippina were seated on two lofty tribunals ; the pretorian guards stood on each side ; and the senate and people had been invited to witness the spectacle. First were borne the arms and the ornaments of the British prince : next followed his wife, daughter, and brothers, bewailing with tears their unhappy fate : lastly came Caractacus himself, neither dispirited by his misfortunes, nor dismayed at the new and imposing spectacle. Claudius, to his own honour, received him graciously, restored him to liberty, and, if we may credit a plausible conjecture, invested him with princely authority over a portion of conquered Britain^". The event was celebrated at Rome with extraordinary joy. By the senate the captivitv of Caractacus was compared to the captivity of Perses and Syphax ; by the poets Claudius was said to have united the two worlds, and to have brought the ocean within the limits of the empire^. The Silures, however, did not abandon themselves to despair. Taught by experience that uninstructed valour was not a match for the discipline and defensive armour of the legions, they adopted a more desultory but sanguinary mode of warfare ; and contented themselves with harassing the Romans in their quarters, interrupting their communications, and surprising their detachments. If they sometimes received, they often " Quaedam civitates Cogiduno regi donatae : suspicion that he was the very Togidumnus, (is ad nostram usque memoriam fidissimus whom Die supposed to have fallen in battle, mansit.) Tac. Agric. xiv. Though great '' Tacit. Ann. xii. 31^ — 38. authorities conceive Cogidunus to have been At nunc oceanus geminos interluit orbes : the same person as Caractacus, I entertain a Pars est imperii; terminus ante fuit. £ calalect. Scalig. apud Camd. lix. VOL. I. E I. 26 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, inflicted, considerable injury : and Ostorius was so exhausted ' by labour and vexation, that his death was attributed to his A. D. 53. chagrin. His successor, Aulus Didius, found himself involved in a new war. Venusius, a chieftain of the Jugantes, had mar- ried Cartismandua. Both had been faithful alhes to the Romans : but the queen after a short interval separated from her husband, and took to her bed a Briton, named Vellocatus. Hostilities were the immediate consequence. Cartismandua, for her ancient services, claimed the aid of the Romans : the Brigantes, through hatred of the adultress, fought for Venusius. After several battles, the queen was compelled to leave the throne to her husband, and to lead a degraded life under the protection of her allies^". Reduction of To Didius succcedcd Veranius, whose early death made '"^.*D^67. way for Suetonius Paulinus, a general of consummate skill and distinguished reputation. The isle of Anglesey, the nursery and principal residence of the druids, had hitherto offered a secure retreat to those priests ; to whose influence and invec- tives was attributed the obstinate resistance of the Britons. A.D. 61. To reduce it, Suetonius ordered his cavalry to swim across the strait, while the infantry should pass over in boats. On their approach to the sacred isle, they beheld the shore lined not only with Avarriors, but with bands of both male and female druids. The former, with their arms outstretched to heaven, devoted the invaders to the God of war : the latter, in habits of mourning, with their hair floating in the wind, and lighted torches in their hands, ran in all directions along the beach. " Tac. Ann. xii. 40. Hist. iii. 45. This the Britons. Perhaps the story might iiave fact is sufficient to induce a doubt of the arisen from the circumstance, that several accuracy ofCffisar (v. 14), and of DioNicaius families were accustomed to dwell in tKe (in Sev. p. 339), who represent a commu- same hut. nity of wives as n national institution amoni; ROMAN BRITAIN. 27 The Romans were seized with a superstitious horror. For a chap. moment they refused to advance : shame and the reproaches " of their leader urged them to the attack. The victory was easy and bloodless. On that day the power of the druids received a shock from Avhich it never recovered. Their altars were overturned ; their sacred groves fell beneath the axe of the legionaries : and their priests and priestesses were consvuncd in the flames, which they had kindled for the destruction of their captives^'. The absence of Suetonius in Anglesey, was the signal of a Rebellion oi most formidable insurrection. Prasutagus, king ot the Iceni, who had long been the faithful ally of Rome, to secure the disposition of his property, had made the emperor joint heir with his own daughters. But Roman avarice was not easily defeated. The whole succession was immediately seized by Catus, the imperial procurator, Boadicea, the widow of the late king, who ventured to remonstrate, was scourged as a slave : and the chastity of her daughters was violated by the Roman ofticers. The unhappy princess grasped the first favourable opportunity of revenge. The history of her wrongs reminded each individual of his own sufterings ; and in a few days almost all the conquered tribes were in arms. To account for this general disaffection we are told, that the insults and oppression of the conquerors were beyond endurance ; that the British youth had been forcibly conveyed to foreign countries to serve among the cohorts of auxiliaries ; that, to pay the contribu- tions, their chieftains had been compelled to borrow ten millions of drachmas^^ from the philosopher Seneca, by whom they were harassed with the most vexatious prosecutions ; that their estates " Tacit. Ann. xiv. 29, 30. " About ^^480,000. e2 38 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, had been latel}' registered, and loaded with imposts ; and that • many of their most noble famihes had been reduced to indigence and slavery *\ All these causes contributed to swell the torrent, which now burst on the Roman establishments. Camalodunum was the first to experience its fury. Within the walls of the colony had been erected a temple to the divinity of Claudius, the subjugator of Britain, and the natives were eager to demolish this monument of their servitude. At the first assault the town was reduced to ashes: the walls of the temple protracted the fate of the garrison only two days. Petilius marched with the ninth legion to their assistance. It was trodden under foot by the multitude of the insurgents. By this time Suetonius had returned to London, already a populous and opulent mart^*. Unable to protect the town, he retired, taking with him such of the inhabitants as were willing to share his fortunes. London was soon consumed by the flames ; and shortly afterwards the municipal town of Verulam experienced the same fate. The fury of the Britons treated as enemies all who had not joined in the insurrection : and those who fell not by the sword, were immolated with still greater cruelty to Andraste the goddess of victory. The slaughter of seventy thousand victims, without distinction of sex or age, of rank or country, attests both the violence of their revenge, and the extent of country through which they followed the Romans^*. , Defeat of Bo- Suctonius was at last compelled to turn his face to the enemy. atlicea. " Compare 'I'ac. Ann. xiv. 31. with Dio draste. Some of the victims were crucified, Nicaeus apudXiphil in Ner. p. 169. otliers were burnt. Tiie female captives they '* Copii negociatorum et conimeatuum hanged on the branches of trees, cut off tlieir maxime celebre. Tac!. 33. breasts and drove stakes tlirough their bodies. " Tac. ibid. Dio Nic. ibid. Their rejoicings Ibid were celebrated in the woods sacred to An- 3 ROMAN BRITAIN. 29 CHAP. I. Though fear had prevented the second legion from joining his little army, he had collected from the different garrisons ten thousand men, and had chosen a position, in which he could be attacked only in front. The Britons were collected in masses around their ditiercnt chieftains : their wives and children oc- cupied a long line of carriages in the rear : and the air resounded with their cries and imprecations. The Romans, motionless and silent, permitted them to approach : then rushing forward in the form of a wedge, overturned every thing within their reach. The battle, however, was long and fiercely jnaintained. Numbers on the part of the natives, supplied the want of discipline ; and a succession of conflicts almost exhausted the patience of the legionaries. Victorious at last, the Romans took a severe revenge. They granted no quarter : and the women and chil- dren were involved in the same carnage with the combatants. Were' success to be estimated by the multitude of the slain, Tacitus was justified in comjjaring this with the most glorious victories of ancient Rome. He estimates the loss of the Britons at eighty thousand men. The fugitives, however, who escaped, offer- ed to try again the fortune of war : but Boadicea, who had led them to the field, and shared the dangers of the day, refused to survive this defeat, and terminated her misfortunes b}^ a volun- tary death ^^ If this splendid action preserved the ascendency of the Ro- a. d. 62, man arms, it did not put an end to the war. A notion prevailed in the imperial court, that the obstinacy of the Britons arose from the dread which the severity of Suetonius had inspired. He was recalled: and under the milder administration of his three succes- '° Tac. 34 — 37. Dto Nic. apud Xiphil. reached almost to the ground. She wore a ia Ner. p. 176. Die has described this plaited tunic of various colours, round iiec British heroine as a -woman of lofty stature, waist a chain of gold, and OTer these a long and severe countenance, Her yellow hair mantle, p. 173. 30 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. A. D. 70. A. D. 75. Victories of Agricola. A. D. 78. sorsTurpilianus,Trebellius,and Bolanus, the natives within theRo- man pale were gradually induced to submit to the yoke. But the task of tranquillizing the province, themutinousspiritof the army, and the rival claims of competitors for the empire, prevented these governors from making any attempts against the independent portion of Britain. As soon as Vespasian had assumed the pur- ple, a new era commenced. Petilius Cerealis was ordered to reduce the Brigantes : and in the space of five years that power- ful tribe was added to the subjects of the empire. Julius Fron- tinus was his successor: and during the three years of his go- vernment he nearly subdued the warhke nation of the Silures ^^ But the reputation of preceding governors was obscured by the more splendid, and more lasting, fame of Cneius Julius Agricola. When that commander arrived, the army had been dismissed into winter quarters. He immediately summoned it again to the field, marched into the territory of the Ordovices, who had surprised a squadron of Roman horse; and put to the sword the greater part of that nation. Preceded by the terror of his name he crossed over to Anglesey : but the natives offered no- resistance, and the sacred isle was a second time added to the empire. In the two next campaigns he gradually extended the limits of his government to the Tay. Tribe after tribe saw itself compelled to submit : garrisons were stationed in every commanding situation : and with the prospect of success was removed the principal incentive to rebellion. The fourth summer was employed in securing a strong frontier to the Roman concjuests : and a Hue of forts from the frith of Forth to that of Clyde, bade defiance to the inroads of the more northern Britons ''. " Tac. Ann. xiv. .S7 — 39. Hist. i. 9. 60. Cumberland, Annandalo, to the narrow isth- 'ii. 97. Vil. Agric. 8. 16, 17. inus between the friths ol' Forth and C'l\ Jt ■" Agricola seems to have proceeded across Gordon's Itiner. Septent. tlie Dee, through Lancashire, Westmoreland, IIOMAN BRITAIN. 31 But Agricola aspired to more solid praise than tliat of chap. conquest, and devoted his winters to the Jess ostentatious, but ' more useful, arts of peace. Sensible of the errors of his predecessors, he reformed the civil administration in all its branches, established a more equitable sjstem of taxation ; listened with kindness to the complaints of the natives; and severely punished the tyranny of inferior officers. The Britons were charmed with the mildness and justice of his government, and publicly pronounced him their benefactor. At his insti- gation the chieftains left their habitations in the forests, and repaired into the vicinity of the Roman stations. There they learned to admire the refinements of civilization, and acquired a taste for improvement. The use of the Roman toga began to supersede that of the British mantle : houses, baths, temples, were built in the Roman fashion : children were instructed in the Roman language; and with the manners were adopted the vices of the Romans. In these new pursuits the spirit of inde- pendence speedily evaporated : and those hardy Avarriors, who liad so long braved the power of the emperors, insensibly dwindled into soft and effeminate provincials ^\ Ambition and curiosity now induced Agricola to transgress the boundary, which he had fixed to his conquests. An Irish chieftain, expelled from his native country, had sought protec- tion in the camp of the Romans. From him it was understood that the sister island possessed a climate and soil like that of Britain, and was inhabited by tribes of similar manners, and similar dispositions. Agricola was not insensible to the glory of adding this unknown country to the provinces of the empire: but prudence forbade him to engage in a second conquest before he had completed the first, and he contented himself \\itli '"Tac. Agric. 18—24. .■32 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. He invades Caledonia. obtaining possession of the western coasts, that he nnight be pre- pared to take advantage of the first opportunity, which the course of events might ofter. The next year, having received the submission of the tribes, in the neighbourhood of the Forth, he pushed his advances along the eastern coast. The operations of the army on land were com- bined with those of a numerous tleet at sea. If the sight of the ship- ping alarmed the natives, the Romans were also terrified by reports of the multitude and ferocity of their enemies. In the darkness of the night the Britons attacked the quarters of the ninth legion, burst into the camp, and maintained a doubtful fight within the intrenchnients until the break of day disclosed the eagles of the other legions, which were advancing to the support of their com- rades. This campaign seems to have conferred little honour on the injperial arms. Resolved to distinguish the eighth and last year of his govern- ment, Agricola had assembled all his forces, and added to their number several cohorts of Britons raised among the tribes of the south. The Caledonians were apprized of their danger : and thirty thousand warriors under the command of Galgacus had undertaken to defend the passage of the Grampian mountains. They were discovered, divided into clans, posted one below the other on the declivity of a hill. The plain at its foot was covered ■ with horsemen and armed chariots. Agricola drew up his army in two lines, in the first of which he placed the auxiliaries, in the other the legions. As long as they fought with missile weapons, the Britons, from their numbers, retained the advan- tage: but their unvvieldy and unpointed swords were of little use in close action, and they were gradually driven uj) the hill by the steady pressure of the auxiliaries '". An attempt to '° They liaJ osior targets covered witli tiluns: and long heavy swords without points, with which they were accustomed to cut but not to push. Tac. Agric. xxxvi. ROMAN BRITAIN. »• CHAP. surprise the rear of the Romans was defeated by the vigilance of ^"^^ the general ; who charo-cd in return the flank of the Britons, and threw them into disorder. The courage or despair of a few detached bodies protracted the conflict till night. The next inorniu"- presented a very different scene. A vast and dreary solitude had succeeded to the noise and turmoil of the preceding day : and columns of smoke rising on the verge of the horizon, proved that the Britons had burnt their cottages in their flight. Ten thousand Caledonians, about four hundred Romans, are said to have fallen in the battle ^'. After this victory the army returned to winter quarters : the fleet pursued its voyage, and sailing along the eastern coast, arrived at the port of Sandwich, from which it had commenced the expedition. By the jealousy of Domitian the ornaments, but not the parade, of a triumph were granted to Agricola, who, havino- surrendered the command to his successor Lucullus, re- turned to Rome, waited on his imperial master, and was gra- ciously permitted to withdraw into the obscurity of private life". The Roman power was now firmly established in the island. The Gotb™- ^ ment estab- The tribes, which had submitted, attempted no more to lished in Bri- recover their independence : and the Caledonians, humbled by their last defeat, were content to roam without molestation in their native forests. The successors of Agricola, instead of conducting the legions in the field, were employed in protecting the public tranquillity, in settling the details of the provincial government, and in assimilating the state of Britain to that of the other countries, which had been incorporated in the empire. A short sketch of this system will not be unacceptable to the reader. 1. The governor was denominated the Prefect or Propretor rpi^e prefect " Tac. Agric. 24—38. " Tac. Agric. 40. VOL. I. F 34 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Procurator and taxes. of Britain. Hi.s power was supreme within the island, but precarious in its duration, and dependent on the will of the emperor. He united in his own person every species of autho- rity, which Avas exercised by the different magistrates within the city of Rome. He commanded the army : he was invested with the administration of justice ; and he possessed the power of substituting his own notions of equity in the place of the strict letter of the law. An authority so extensive and irresistible would frequently give birth to acts of injustice : and though the imperial court and the senate house were open to the com- plaints of the natives, yet the distance of the capital, and the influence of friends, promised, or rather insured, impunity to the oppressor. In a few years, however, the exorbitant power of the prefects was confined by the emperor Hadrian, who, in his " perpetual edict," laid down a system of rules for the re- gulation of their conduct, and established an uniform adminis- tration of justice through all the provinces of the empire". 2. Subordinate to the prefect, but appointed by the emperor, was the procurator or quaestor. It Avas his duty to collect the taxes, and to administer the revenue of the province. That revenue arose from a variety of imposts : a poll-tax, which was not confined to the living, but extended to the funerals of the dead : a tax on legacies, the sale of slaves, and purchases at auctions; the tenth part of the produce of mines; and a certain proportion of corn, hay, and cattle, which was paid either in kind or in money, at the option of the procurator '\ He was "Tillem. Emp. ii. 51. the corn wanted for the army at a fixed price. '* In provinces which submiUed voluntarily, (I'ruinentum cmptura) ; and a cortain ([Uantity a tenth of the corn was exacted (frumentiim for the use of the governor, for which a com- decumannm) : in those, which were conquer- position was usually paid in money (trumen- m stipon- turn acstimatum). See Murphy's Tacitus from ed, an arbitrary quantity (frumentum stipe diariuni). Besides this the natives supplied La Bleterie, vol. iv. p. 402, ROMAN BRITAIN. 35 also employed occasional] v in the dishonourable office of a spy : chap. and his reports were frequently swelled with exaggerated ac- ' counts of the riches, the power, and the ambition of the prefect. For the distance of that officer from the seat of government, and the natural strength of the island were constant sources of suspicion to the emperors : and in the course of this history we shall see that suspicion justified by the conduct of the usurpers, who at the head of the British legions, will assume the purple, and contend for the empire of Rome. 3. The amount of the army maintained in Britain must have Army. varied according to circumstances. When Plautius undertook the reduction of the island, he Avas at the head of four legions with their auxiliaries, a force, which, at a moderate calculation, would exceed fifty thousand men'\ If the different mili- tary stations, which were so thickly scattered over the country, had all been garrisoned at the same time, they would have re- quired a still greater number"*' : but it is probable that, in pro- portion as the Roman power was established, many of them were abandoned ; and during the decline of the empire so large a force could not be spared from the defence of the other pro- vinces. Into the ranks of the legions none but Roman citizens could claim the privilege of admittance : but the auxiliaries were composed of provincials who had not obtained the freedom of the city, or of barbarians, whom the fate of Avar, or the prospect of wealth, had drawn into the imperial service. These auxilia- ries nearly equalled the legionaries in number : and from the " At that period a legion consisted of 6100 but their bulk had dwindled from nearly 7000 infantry, 726 cavalry, and nearly the same to 1200 men (Pancir. ad Notit. Imp. f. 23). number of auxiliaries (Veget. ii. 6. Tac. Ann. " There were in all one hundred and sixty- iv. 5). Under the successors of Constantine six stations, besides several smaller forts. Ric. the number of the legions had increased from Corin. i. p. 17. 33. Whitaker's Manches. twenty-five to one hundred and thirty-two : iii. 2. xi. 2. F 2 36 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Provinces, notices of ancient writers, and the inscriptions on ancient mo- numents, have been discovered the names of three-and-thirty cohorts of auxiliary foot, and of eleven squadrons of auxiliary horse, which were stationed in Britain ". All these were foreign- ers; for, though by the law of conscription the natives were com- pelled to serve, they were not permitted to remain in the island. At home they might have employed their swords in asserting the independence of their country : but on the continent they were unconnected with the inhabitants : for their subsistence, they depended on the bounty of the emperor ; and far from combin- ing to subvert, were always prepared to support, the throne of their benefactor. What their number might be, is uncertain: but there exists evidence to shew, that they amounted to at least six-and-twenty cohorts; that they were dispersed as far as Egypt and Armenia; and that some of them had acquired the surname of " invincible" from their valour ''^. When the Roman conquests in Britain had reached their utmost extent, they were irregularly divided into six provinces under the government of pretors appointed by the prefect. The long tract of land which runs from the western extremity of Corn wall to the South Foreland in Kent, is almost separated from the rest of the island by the arm of the sea, now called the Bristol channel, and by the course of the river Thames. This formed the most wealthy of the British provinces ; and from priority of conquest or prox- imity of situation was distinguished by the name of Ihitannia pri- ma. Britannia secunda comprised the present principality of Wales with the addition of that tract which is included by the Severninits circuitous course towards St. George'schannel. Fhivia " It is not, however, improbable that the designated under two difTercnt names, same coliorl or squadron may be soraetimes " Apud L'amd. introd. p. cvii. ROMAN BRITAIN. 37 Cffisariensis was the next in order, but the first in extent. It was <^'"^'^i'- bounded on two sides by the former proviuees, and on the two ' others bj tlie Humbcr, the Don, and the German ocean. To the north of the Ifumbcr lay tlie province of Maxima. It reached to the Eden and Tyne, and its opposite shores Avere washed by the western and eastern seas. Valentia followed, includhig the Scot- tish lowlands as far as the friths of Clyde and Forth. The tribes beyond the friths formed the sixth government of Vespa- siana, divided from the independent Caledonians by the long chain of mountains, which rising near Dumbarton, crosses the two counties of Athol and Badenoch, and stretches beyond the frith of Murray. But the greater i)art of this province was wrested at so early a period from the dominion of Rome, that it is seldom mentioned by writers, and the pretentura of Agricola has been generally considered as the northern limit of the empire in Britain ". To each of these divisions was allotted a separate government under the general superintendence of the prefect : but the interests of the rulers were most jealously separated from those of the provincials. Every Briton by his birth was exclud- ed from all offices of trust and authority in his own country : and every holder of such office was prohibited by law from marrying a native, or purchasing property within the island ^^ Throughout these provinces were thickly scattered a great Colonies. number of inhabited towns and military posts, the names of which are still preserved in the itineraries of Richard and Antoninus. They were partly of British, and partly of Roman, " Ric. Coriii. i. p. lo. Not. Imp. oc-cid. f. roborated by the testimony of Ptolemy, w^^° 15.5. The capitals of these provinces were mentions the military station of Pterotone °^ Ricliborough, Caerleon, London, York, Inverness. Ptol. viii. 2. apud Gale. Whit- Whithern, and Inverness. The existence of Manch. i. 8. iii. 2. xi. 2. the last province of Vespasiana has been ques- '" See the Pandects xxiii. tit. ii. n. 38. 5.7. tioned: but the authority of Richard is cor- 63. Cod. Theod. viii. lit. xv. leg. 1. 250919 38 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Wiinicipia. Latian cities. origin ; and were divided into four classes, graduall)^ descending in the scale of privilege and importance. 1. The first rank was claimed by the colonies. It had long been the policy of Rome to reward her veterans with a portion of the lands of the conquered nations ; and for this purpose those situations were generally selected, which combined the double advantage of a fruitful soil, and a. military position. Each colony Avas a miniature representation of the parent city. It adopted the same customs, was governed by the same laws, and with similar titles conferred on its magistrates a similar authority. In Britain there were nine of these establishments, two of a civil, seven of a military description". In the constitution of the latter, we discover a striking similitude to the feudal tenures of later ases. The veteran received his land from the bounty of the emperor ; and was obliged to enrol his sons in the army, as soon as they should attain the years of manhood. Disgrace, imprisonment, or sometimes death, was the punish- ment of the youth, who refused to serve the benefactor of his father and family. 2. The advantages enjoyed by the colonies were nearly equalled, in some respects surpassed by the privileges of the municipal cities ; the inhabitants of which were exempted from the operation of the imperial statutes, and with the title of Roman citizens, possessed the right of choosing their own decurioncs or magistrates, and of enacting their own laws. Privileges so valuable were reserved for the j'eward of extra- ordinary merit, and Britain could boast of only two municipia, Vcrulam and York'". But thejusLatii, or Latian right, as it conierred more partial advantages, was bestowed with greater " Ilichborough, London, Colchester, Bath, Chpsteifield. Ric. Corin. i. p. 30. (Honcc'Ster, Caerloon, Chester, Lincoln, and '' Ibid. ROMAN BRITAIN. 39 liberality. Ten of the British towns had obtained it from chap. . . . I. the favour of different emperors, and were indulged with the choice of their own magistrates, who, at the expiration of the year, resigned their offices, and claimed the freedom of Ptome". That freedom was the great object of provincial ambition ; and by the expedient of annual elections, it "was successively con- ferred on almost all the members of each Latin corporation. 4. The remaining towns were stipendiary, compelled, ^s the iownr.''""^ term imports, to pay tribute, and governed by Roman officers, "who received their appointment from the pretor. These distinctions were, however, gradually abolished. Antoninus granted to every provincial of rank and opulence the freedom of the city : Caracalla extended the indulgence to the whole body of the natives ^^. Though Agricola had defeated, he had not been able to Roman waiiB. subdue, the Caledonians. After his departure they continued to insult the Roman power; frequently crossed the line of forts between the two friths ; and by their successful example, rekindled the flame of independence in the breasts of many among their countrymen. In less than thirty years the state of Britain had become so precarious, as to require the presence of the.emperor Hadrian. Of his exploits history is silent; but A;D. 120. on the testimony of medals and inscriptions, we may believe that he expelled the barbarians, and recovered the provinces Mhich had been lost^\ If, however, his victories have been forgotten, his memory has been preserved by a military work, which was executed under his direction, and has hitherto defied the ravages of time. Convinced by experience that the preten- " Inverness, Perth, Dunbarton, Carlisle, " Tillem. Etnp. ii. 103. Hence he is tlui« Calterick, Blackrode, Cirencester, Salisbury, addressed by Rutilius : Caister in Lincolnshire, nod Slack jin Long- Urbera I'ecisti quod privi? orbis erat. Tood. Ric. ibid. RuUl. Ilin. v. 86. •* See Speed, 96- Camd. introd. Ixxix. 40 HJ STORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. ti]j-a thrown up by AgriCola could not confine the northern tribes, he resolved to oppose a second barrier to their incursions, bj drawing a ditch and rampart across the island, from the Solway frith on the western, to the mouth of the Tyne on the Valium of eastern, coast. This mighty fortification measured in length Hadrian. . * -^ . . * more than sixty of our miles; and strong bodies of troops were permanently stationed at short intervals on the whole extent of the line^". But the tranquillity, which had been established by Hadrian, was repeatedly disturbed during the reign of his successor, AntmTnl!^ Antoninus. On the north of the vallum the six tribes of the A.]). 140. ]\Jaoeta3 reasserted their independence; on the south the Brigantes took up arms, and invaded the territory of the Ordovices. Lollius Urbicus Avas appointed propretor of Britain. He chastised the Brigantes, subdued the Maeetae, and, in imitation of Hadrian, carried a similar fortification across the isthmus, from Caer-riden on the Forth to Alchuid on the Clyde, a distance of more than thirty-six miles. In honour of the emperor, it was called the vallum of Antoninus ; and from numerous inscriptions which have been preserved, we learn the names of the different corps by which it was raised, and the different portions of work which were respectively allotted to each ^^ uipUis Miir- Hostilities were now become habitual between the Caledonians ccllus. A. D. 180. ^ ^ „ , '" Spartian. in Ilidnan, p. 290. The that the mound to the south was a military vallum may be traced from Burgh on the road ; and that the original work of Hadrian, sands to the town of Newcastle, avoiding the like tliatof .\nloninus between the friths, con- mountains, and winding along the vallies. sisted of no more than the ditch, the rampart, The ditch appears to have been eleven feet and the road. The aggerc on the north might in breadth, and nine in depth ; the rampart, be afterwards added as a military way for the at the present day, rises in some parts six wall of Severus, when the vallum could be n« feet above the original surface. Besides this, longer considered as a work of defence, two aggeres or moimds of earth, one on the " Pausan. in Arcad. 1. viii. p. 698. Capi- norlh, the other on the south, run the whole tol. in Anton, p. 297. Horsley, Brit. Rom. length in lines parallel to the ditch at the dis- p. 160. Heury, ii. App. ix. 476. tance of nearly twenty feel. It is probable, .'} ROMAN BRITAIN. 41 and the Romans. Urged by national animosity and the love of f plunder, these intractable barbarians annually assaulted the ' ■ vallum of Antoninus ; often eluded the vigilance, or overpowered the opposition, of the guards; and spread devastation over the province. But in the reign of Commodus their incursions assumed a more formidable appearance ; and the discontent of the legions alarmed the emperor for the safety of Britain. Ulpius Marcellus, a soldier of approved valour and unsullied integrity, was made propretor. He restored the discipline of the army, and drove the Caledonians back to their native mountains. But his services were requited with ingratitude. By his severity he incurred the hatred of a seditious soldiery j while his glory excited the jealousy of a dissolute prince. From the swords of the former he escaped with difficulty ; Commodus recalled him from his command, and reluctantly abstained from depriving him of life*^^. But the British legions soon made a trial of the resolution, or the weakness, of the emperor. They sent a deputation of fifteen hundred men to demand the head of the minister Perennis. Without opposition these dangerous petitioners marched through Gaul and Italy, and were met at the gates of Rome by Com- modus himself. To that prince, immersed in pleasure, and reckless of blood, the life of a favourite was a trivial object. — He surrendered Perennis to their revenge, and the unhappy victim was scourged and beheaded. His wife and daughters were immolated on his remains^'. The government of Britain was soon after conferred on Clodius ciodiiu Albinus, an officer whose birth and abilities were feared and a.'d! 190—197. "Dio apud Xipliil. in Commodo, p. 286, °" ILid. p. 287. Lamprid. in Com. p. 311. 287. Zonar. p. 209. VOL. I. G 42 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, honoured by his imperial master, who, either with the view c=;--__j__. of securing his fidehty, or, as is more probable, of trying his ambition, offered him the rank and authority of Caesar. Albinus had the prudence to decline the insidious present: but after the death of Commodus, and the ephemeral reigns of Pertinax and Julian, he willingly accepted the same dignity from the emperor Severus. It soon, however, appeared, that with all the parade of friendship, Severus was a secret and mortal enemy : and Albinus, by the advice of his friends, assumed the imperial purple, and led the British legions into Gaul. The two armies, amounting to one hundred thousand men, fought in the plain of Trevoux, near Lyons. At fust the cause of Albinus was seen to triumph. Severus disappeared from the field : but he soon returned with a fresh body of men, renewed the battle, and obtained the victory. The Biitish CfEsar paid with his head the forfeit of his ambition ^'^. ^'['"sL"P"s- Severus w^as now undisputed master of the empire. To abolish the exorbitant power of the prefect of Britain, he divided the island into two governments, bestowing the one on Hera- clianus, and the other on Virius Lupus ^^ The latter with an army of new levies v/as unable to withstand the united efforts of the Maa^tae and Caledonians, and was compelled to purchase with money a precarious respite from their incursions. The expedient, though it procured a temporary forbearance, invited tiiem to a repetition of the attempt : and Lupus, wearied with continued hostilities, solicited the presence of the emperor, and the aid of a numerous army^^. ^eunysm Thougli Sevcrus was advanced in years, and declining in ;i07— '^11. "" Ilerodian.iii. K; — 13. DioapudXiphil. Spartan, in Sever, p. 320. Inscriptions in in Sever, p. 3-i2— 324. Speeil, p. 139. by mistake for 111. " El? ivQ ryiixovixu Herod, iii. 21- "' Herod, iii. 46. ROMAN BRITAIN. 45 health, he cheerfully obeyed the summons of his lieutenant, chap. He was accompanied by his two sons, Caracalla and Geta : to ' the younger he committed the civil government of the province: to Caracalla he assigned a part in the projected expedition. When the army moved from York, the selection of the com- manders, the number of the legions and auxiliary cohorts, and the long train of carriages loaden with provisions and implements of war, proclaimed the determination of the emperor to subdue, if not to exterminate, all the rebellious tribes in the north. The Britons were but ill provided against so formidable an invasion. They possessed no other defensive armour than a narrow target. Their weapons were a dirk, an unwieldy sword hanging from the waist by an iron chain, and a short lance, from one extre- mity of which was suspended a bell. But they were aided by the nature of the country, abounding in mountains, lakes, and forests ; by constitutions inured to fatigue, hunger, and every privation ; by habits of running, swimming, and wading through rivers and morasses ; and above all by a contempt of danger, and an unconquerable love of freedom. The progress of the Romans was constantly interrupted by the necessity of opening roads through the woods, of throwing bridges over the rivers, and of erecting causeways across the marshes. It was in vain that Severus sought for an enemy in front. The natives had wisely divided themselves into detachments, which hung on the flanks of the Romans, watched every opportunity of annoyance, and often inflicted a sudden and severe wound on the long and encumbered line of their enemies. Still the emperor, regardless of his losses, and unappalled by difliculties, pressed forward till he reached the frith of Cromartj', where he condescended to accept the offers of submission which he had formerly refused ; Grants peace and to punish the obstinacy of the natives, exacted the nominal donians' g2 Builds his ce- lebrated wall. 44 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, surrender of a part of their territory. But this trivial advantao-e I. ^ had been dearly purchased: and the number of the Romans, who perished by fatigue, by disease, and by the SAvord, has been estimated at fifty thousand ^\ When Severus returned to York, he had leisure to devise means for the future security of the southern provinces. From what he had seen, he was convinced that no rampart of turf could resist the assaults of these active and persevering bar- barians : and he determined to confine their incursions by raisino- a solid wall of stone a few paces to the north of the vallum of Hadrian. In the neighbourhood of the sea it preserved a parallel direction : but as it approached the higlier ground, leaving the work of that emperor to wind its circuitous course along the vallies, it boldly ascended the most lofty eminences, and ran along the margin of the most abrupt precipices. Its height was twelve feet^*; its breadth at the foundation varied from two to three yards. In front was sunk a ditch of the same dimensions with tliat of Hadrian : and for its protection were assigned four squadrons and fourteen cohorts, composing an army of ten thousand men, quartered in eighteen stations along the line of the wall. By the historian of Severus, this stupendous erec- tion is pronounced the principal glory of his reign: by the traveller of the present day its remains are viewed with emotions of astonishment and delight ^^ Scarcely had the Romans evacuated the territory of the Caledonians and Maa^taj, when information was brought to Severus, that the barbarians had recommenced hostihties. His infirmities had been so much increased by the fatigue of the late " Dio apud Xiphil. in Sovero, p. 340. " Nolit. Imp. Panciiol. f. 176, 177. Herod, iii. 40. 49. Maximum dccus, Spart. in Sevoro, p. 321. " Bede, Hist. i. 12. ROMAN BRITAIN. 45 campaign, lliat he was no longer able to join the army. He ciiAP. gave the command to Caracalla, with an injunction to extirpate ' the whole race without mercy. But that prince had a far different object in view, to exclude his brother Geta from the succession. Instead of marching against the Britons, he en- deavoured to gain the affection of the troops, by indulgence and donatives : and as soon as his father had expired at York, He dies, Feb. ' 4, 21 1. renewed the peace, disbanded the army, and returned to Rome ^'=. History is little more than a record of the miseries inflicted a. d. 211—284. on the many by the passions of a few. If then, for more than seventy years from the death of Severus, Britain has escaped the notice of the ancient annalists, we ma}' infer that they were years of comparative tranquillity and happiness. The northern tribes respected the strength of the new fortification, and the valour of the army by which it was guarded : and the natives of the south, habituated from their infancy to submission, bore without impatience the yoke, which had pressed so heavily on their free-born fathers. The rest of the empire was convulsed by the claims of the numerous competitors, known by the name of the thirty tyrants : and from coins, which have been occa- sionally discovered in the island, it is supposed that Posthumus, LoUianus, Victorinus, Tetricus, Bonosus, and iElianus were suc- cessively acknowledged in Britain. If the inference be accurate, the silence of history shews, that their authority was admitted without opposition, and not established at the point of the sword, as it was in the other provinces. Probably Britain constantly followed the fortune of Gaul. This distracted stale of the empire had emboldened the bar- Usurpation of barians, who, under the appellations of Franks and Saxons, a. d. qm. " JDio, p. 3 12. IleroJ. ibid. 46 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, possessed the coast from the mouth of the Rhine to the extremity _ ' of the Cimbrican Chersonesus. They swept into their own ports the commerce of tlie narrow seas, and insulted by their pre- datory expeditions the shores of Gaul and Britain. To chastise or restrain their insolence, the command of a powerful fleet, with the title of Count of the Saxon shore, was given by the emperors Dioclesian and Maximian to Carausius, an experienced officer, and a Menapian by birth. His conduct soon awakened suspicion. The pirates continued their depredations witli impunity ; a portion of their spoil was regularly surrendered to Carausius : and the money was employed in debauching the lo3'alty of the mariners. Maximian prepared to punish his perfid3^ But the Menapian unexpectedly fortified Boulogne, concluded an alliance Avith the barbarians, sailed to Britain, induced the army and fleet to espouse his cause, and assuming, with the imperial purple, the name of Augustus, set at defiance the whole power of Rome. A.'l)!*^2y3. The reign of this adventurer was fortunate and glorious. The Caledonians were compelled to flee before his arms ; his autho- rity was acknowledged on the western coast of Gaul ; and a numerous fleet carried the terror of his name to the entrance of the Mediterranean. It was not, however, to be expected, that the emperors should tamely acquiesce in his usurpation. At first indeed they thought it more prudent to admit him as their colleague : but when they had adopted the two Caesars Galerius and Constantius, they assigned to the latter the task of wresting Britain from his dominion. Constantius began the attempt with the siege of Boulogne. By his orders the mouth of the harl)our was obstructed by a mound of stones : and the garrison, cut off from any assistance from Britain, was, after an obstinate resistance, conjpelled to surrender. This loss might grieve, but ROMAN BRITAIN. 47 did not dishearten, Carausius. He was still master of the sea, chap. and at the head of a numerous army. But while he was ' employed in providing against a distant danger, he fell a victim to domestic treachery : and in the eighth year of his reign was murdered at York by Allcctus, a minister, who had abused his confidence, and dreaded his resentment. Allectus enjoyed during three years the reward of his treachery. Reign or mi ■ " 1 r-i J J • • n 1 • 1 Allectus. Ihe tune was spent by Lonstantms in preparing a lleet which might safely transport his troops to the island. To distract the attention of the enemy, it was divided into two squadrons, of which one under his own command was stationed at Boulogne, the other, under that of the prefect Asclepiodotus, in the mouth of the Seine. The latter, owing to the impatience of the mariners, was the first which put to sea : and sailing under the cover of a fog, passed unobserved by the British fleet near the Isle of Wight, and reached without opj)ositiou the adjacent coast. Tiic Ca?sar himself with a still more powerful armament directed his course to the shore of Kent: and at his landino- received the pleasing intelligence that Allectus was dead. On the first nevv's of the arrival of Asclepiodotus, the usurper had hastened towards the spot : but the greater part of his forces was unable to equal his speed ; and with his guard, a band of Franks, he M'as speedily overwhelmed by the Romans. Nor was this jjjs ,ieatii. the onl^^ instance of the good fortune of the Caesar. A division of his fleet, which had separated in the dark, entered the Thames, and advanced without meeting an enemy to the neigh- bourhood of London. At that moment a body of auxiliaries in the pay of Allectus, hearing of his death, began to plunder the city. It was saved from destruction b}' the accidental arrival of the Romans : and Constantius himself was soon after hailed b}' the inhabitants as their sovereign and deliverer. He innnediately A. 1). ■id'J. 48 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, restored the imperial authority : Britain became his favourite ' residence : and the natives enjoyed the benefit of a mild and equitable administration, till their happiness was disturbed by the horrors of religious persecution^. ofcbrttSy. -^t the distance of so many ages it is impossible to discover, by whom Christianity was first preached in the island. There have been writers who have ascribed that province to St. Peter; others have preferred the rival claim of St. Paul : but both opinions, improbable as they are in themselves, rest on the most slender evidence ; on testimonies, which are many of them irrelevant, all ambiguous, and unsatisfactory. It is however certain that at a very early period there were christians in Bri- tain : nor is it difficult to account for the circumstance, from the intercourse which had long subsisted between the island and Rome. Within a very few years from the ascension of Christ, the church of Ronie had attained great celebrity : soon afterwards it attracted the notice and was honoured with the enmity of Claudius and Nero^^. Of the Romans, whom at that period choice or necessity conducted to Britain, and of the Britons who were induced to visit Rome, some would of course become acquainted with the professors of the gospel, and yield to the exertions of their zeal. Both Pomponia Grsecina, the wife of the proconsul Plautius, the first who made any permanent con- quest in the island, and Claudia, a British lady, who had married the senator Pudens, are, on very probable grounds, believed to have been christians'^. Whether it was by the piety of these ladies, or of other individuals ^""j that the doctrine of Christianity " Panegyr. vet. p. 177. 180, Eutrop. ix. 32. for Claudia compare St. Paul. 2 Tim. ir. p. G59. Aurol. Vict, in Constan. 21 with M irtial, epig. ii. 54. iv. 13. '■" Epist. to Romans, i. 8. Suet, in Claud. "'° Nothing can be less probable in itself, XXV. Tac. Ann. xv. 44. nor less supported by ancient testimony, than " For Pomponia see Tacitus, Ann, xiii. the opinion that Britain was converted by ROMAN BRITAIN. 4.9 was first introduced among the Britons, it proceeded with a CHAP, silent but steady pace towards the extremity of the island. The _ attention of the Roman officers was absorbed in the civil and military duties of their stations : and while the flames of perse- cution blazed in the other provinces of the empire, the British christians were suffered to practise their rehgion without moles- tation. There is even evidence that the knowledge of the gospel was not confined to the subjects of Rome. Before the close of the second century, it had penetrated among the independent tribes of the north ^°\ It might have been expected that the British writers would have Conversion of ° * ... Lucius. preserved the memory of an event so important in their eyes as the conversion of their fathers. But their traditions have been so embellished or disfigured by the fictions of the bards, that without collateral evidence, it is hardly possible to distinguish in them what is real from that which is imaginary. After deducting from the account of Nennius and his brethren every improbable cir- cumstance, we may believe that the authority conferred by the emperor Claudius on Cogidunus, was continued in his family; that Lucius, surnamed Lever maur or the great light, one of his near descendants, was a believer in the gospel ; that he sent to Rome Fagan and Dervan to be more perfectly instructed in the chris- tian faith : that these envoys were ordained by the pope, Eva- - ristus or Eleutherius, and at their return, under the influence of their patron, increased the number of the proselytes by their preaching, and established the British, after the model of the oriental missionaries. The only foundation iii. 19). Socrates (Hist. v. 22). and the on which it rests, is that in the seventh cen- council of Aries (Spelman, p. 40. 42). lury the Britons did not keep Easter on the '"' Brittannorum inaccessa Romanis loca, same day as thi church of Rome. That, liow- Christo vero subdita. Tertul. adver. Jud. fcver, they did so in tlie beginning of the fourth c. vii. p. 189. Ed. Rigalt. century, is plain from Eusebius (Vit Con. - VOL. I. H 50 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Peiseciition. 303—300. continental churches. But independently of their authority, we have undoubted proof that the believers were numerous, and tliat a regular hierarchy had been instituted before the close of the third centur3\ For by contemporary writers the church of Britain is always put on an equality with the churches of Spain and Gaul ; and in one of the most early of the western councils, that of Aries in 314, we meet with the names of three British bishops, of Eborius of York for the province of Maxima, of Restitutus of London for that of Flavia, and of Adelphius of Richborough for that of Britannia prima ^°". It has been observed that the British christians had hitherto escaped the persecutions to which their continental brethren were repeatedly exposed. But in the beginning of the fourth century, Dioclesian and Maximian determined to avenge the disasters of the empire on the professors of the gospel ; and edicts were published by which, the churches in every province •were ordered to be demolished, and the refusal to Avorship the gods of paganism was made a crime punishable with death. Though Constantius might condemn, he dared not forbid the execution of the imperial mandate : but at the same time, he proved by his own conduct how much he abhorred the idea of religious persecution. Assembling around him the christian officers of his household, he communicated to them the will of the emperors, and added that they must determine to resign their employments, or abjure the worship of Christ. If some among them preferred their interest to their religion, they received the reward which their perfidy deserved. The Caesar dismissed them from his service, observing that he would never trust the fidelity of men, who had proved themselves traitors to their God ^^. '" Spclm. cone. 42. 45. liabbe, cone. 1430. Eusebius, V. 23. Socrales, v. 21. "" Eiisek Vil. Cons. i. !(!. Laet. do mort. Persec. 15, Ki. Kozoin. i. 6. ROMAN BRITAIN. 51 But the moderation of Coiistantius did not restrain the zeal of CHAP. the inferior magistrates. Tlie churches in ahnost every district ' were levelled with the ground : and of the christians many fled for safety to the forests and mountains, many suffered with con- stancy both torture and death. Gildas has preserved the names of Julius and Aaron, citizens of Caerleon upon Usk ; and the memory of Alban, the protomartyr of Britain, was long cele- brated both in his own country and among the neighbouring nations. But within less than two years Dioclesian and Maxi- niian resigned the purple : Constantius and Galerius assumed the title of emperors; and the freedom of religious worship was / restored to the christian inhabitants of the island ^°^. Constantius, while he was yet in. an inferior situation, had Constantin. married Helena, a nafive of Bithynia according to some writers, '^'"''306. the daughter of a Briti;gh prince, if we may believe our national historians. When he was raised to the dignity of Caesar, he was compelled to repudiate Helena for Theodora, the daughter- in-law of Maximian ; but not till she had already borne him a son in Britain ^% the celebrated Constantine, on whom posterity has bestowed the e[)ithet of the "great." The young prince was educated an honourable hostage in the court, first of Dio- clesian, and then of Galerius : but on the report that his father's health was rapidly declining, he snatched a favourable moment to escape, and maiming at every post the horses, which were not necessary for his flight, contrived to retard the speed of his pursuers. He reached York a few days before Constantius expired : was recommended by him to the aftection of the sol- diery : and assumed with their approbation the titles of Caesar Gild. vii. viii. Bed. i tii. "" Tu nobiles illic oriendo fecisti. Paneg. veter. p. 192. Item, p. 207. n 2 52 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Government «f Britain. and Augustus. The sequel of his story, and the long course of victories by which he united the whole empire under his own authority, are subjects foreign from these sheets : but it will be necessary to notice an important alteration which he made in the government of Britain ^°''. Dioclesian had divided the whole empire into four parts, under himself, Maximian, and the two Csesars. When Con- stantine became sole emperor, he adopted a similar partition under four pretorian prefects. At the same time new titles and employments were devised ; and throughout the whole gradation of office, the military was jealously separated from the civil arl ministration. By this arrangement Britain was placed under the jurisdiction of the prefect of the Gauls, whose authority extended from the wall of Antoninus to the southern limits of Mauritania Tingitana. His deputy with the title of vicar of Britain resided at York : while the subordinate charge of the provinces was entrusted to the two consulars of Valentia and Maxima, and the three presidents of Flavia, Britannia prima, and Britannia secunda. The administration of justice, and of the finances, was continued in the hands of these ministers : but the command of the army was divided among three military officers, who acknowledged for their superior the master of the cavalry or infantry stationed on the banks of the Rhine. They were distinguished by the titles of the duke of Britain, whose command reached from the northern boundary to the Humber ; the count of the Saxon shore, whose duty it was to guard the coast, from the Humber to the Land's End in Cornwall ; and the count of Britain, to whom were subject all the other garrisons in the island '"". "* Zosim. ii. 78, 79. p. 477. Philostorg. i. '" Zosim. ii. 109. 110. Tillcm. iv. 117. Not. Imp. f. 165. 161, 102. 170, 177. ROMAN lilllTAlN. 53 Under Constantine and liis sons Britain enjoyed more than CHAP, fifty years of tranquillity. The aggressions of the barbarians ' were rc[)iesscd : and industry and commerce were encouraged. Tyranny of The first check was given to the public prosperity by the cruelty '"'■jm. and avarice of Paulus, a Spanish notar}'. He had been sent to the island with a commission from the emperor Constantius to inquire into the conduct of the officers, who, during the general defection of the Avestern armies, had adhered to the usurper Magnentius. Paulus was eminently skilled in all the arts of rapacity and chicanery ; with him wealth was a sufficient pre- sumption of guilt ; and no man, whose possessions might fill the coffers of the notary and his imperial master, was ever acquitted at his tribunal. Martin, the vicar of Britain, had lamented, and sometimes interposed to prevent, these iniquitous proceedings. But he was informed that a deep scheme had been laid to involve him in the common delinquency : and, impelled by de- spair, he made an attempt on the life of the notary. The stroke was parried : and Martin instantly plunged his sword into his own heart. His real or pretended accomplices were punished with torture, confiscation, exile and death : and Paulus continued his career regardless of the hatred and imprecations of the natives. By Constantius he Avas applauded for his fidelity : Julian, the succeeding emperor, commanded him to be burnt alive "«. While Julian held with the title of Caesar the prefecture of Exportofcorn >-, , , 11-1 I *■■'"" Britain. Oaul, an event occurred which proves the great resources of Britain at this period. The Franks, Saxons and AUemanui had previously crossed to the left bank of the Rhine, laid waste an extensive tract of country, reduced to ashes forty cities, and carried the inhabitants into captivity. By repeated victories "' Amm. Marcel, xiv. 12. xx. 2. 54 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, the Caesar compelled the barbarians to restore their prisoners : . his next object was to provide the multitude with food in a country, which for years had been desolate. The grana- ries of Britain offered an immediate and plentiful supply. A fleet of eight hundred small vessels Avas collected in the mouths of the Rhine : repeated voyages were made to the British coasts: the cargoes vrere conveyed in lighters up the river : and the almost famished inhabitants received an ample provision of corn both to sow their lands, and to support themselves till the fol- lowing harvest ^''^. Nor was the island equal only to a tem- porary supply. It exported annually great quantities of corn to the continent "". Origin of the It is remarkable that from this period, the Caledonians and Scots. Maaetae, tribes which' for two centuries had been the terror of the civilized Britons, disappear without any ostensible cause from the page of history : and their places are supplied by the Picts and Scots, who, though differing from them in name, are described as barbarians equally savage in disposition and equally addicted to invasion and rapine "^ Of the origin of these two nations, which appear to start suddenly into existence in the course of the fourth century, many learned but fanciful theories have been invented. 1. To me it seems manifest that the Picts were under a new denomination the very same people, whom we have hitherto called Maajtae and Caledonians"". The name '"' Zosim. iii. 145. of animals on their bodies (Claud, dc belle "" Amm. Marcel, xviii. 2. p. 204. Edit. Get. 165): 3". because Eumenius, the first Gronov. Liban. orat. x. torn. ii. p. 381. who mentions ihem, numbers the Caledonians '" See Gild. c. 25. with the olhi^r Picts (Eum. paneg. Constan. "' This appears, 1". because we have no p. 235) : 4'. because Ammianus Marcellinus evidence of the extirpation or emigration of (lib. xxvii. p 520), about eighty years after the ancient tribes: 2". because the character Eumenius, divides the Picts into the Dicale- of the Picts is the same as that given of the dones, confessedly the Caledonians, and the Caledonians by Herodian, Dio, and Solinus. Vecturioncs, who dwelt in the vicinity of the They lived by rapine: they went almost river 'l"ay (Ptol. viii. 3. Ric. Cor. i. 6). naked (Gild. 15) : they punctured the figures The territory of the Picts extended from the ROMAN BRITAIN. 55 of Caledonians properly belonged to the natives of that long but (--'Hap. narrow strip of land, which stretches from Loch Finn on the ' western, to the frith of Tayne on the eastern, coast : but it had been extended by the Romans to all the kindred and independent clans which lay between them and the northern extremity of the island. In the fourth century the mistake was discovered and rectified : and from that time not only the Caledonians, but their southern neighbours, the five tribes of the Maaetae, began to be known by the generic appellation of Picts, a word derived perhaps from the national custom of painting the body"^, more probably from the name which they bore in their own language. 2. The Scots came undoubtedly from Ireland, which, like its sister island, appears to have been colonized by adventurers from different countries. Thus we meet with tribes of Damnii, Volantii, Brigantes, and Cangii, names which point out a British origin ; of Menapii and Cauci, descended from the parent tribes in Belgium and Germany, and of Iberni and Concani, who seem to have emigrated from Spain "^. These were scattered on different points of the coast; Avhile the interior was held by numerous clans of the Scoti "^, many of whom in the fourth northern ocean as far as the south of Gallo- described as cannibals, and the most barba- way (Bed. iii. 4). reus of the human race. But from Tacitus "^ Nee falso nomine Pictos we learn that the ports of Ireland were fre- Edomuit. quented by merchants, and that in manners Claud, in iii. consul. Honor. 54. and disposition the natives resembled the Bri- '" Ptol. viii. 2. Ric.Corin. i. 8. Diony- tons (Vit, Agric. xxiv.). »ius places a Spanish colony also in the "^ In the fourth century, they were univer- Scilly islands. sally known by the name of Scots (Scoticse Tc6i jcaa-fl-iTseoio ym^f^ri, gentes Porphyr. apud S. Hieron. ad Ctesiph. Aipi/iioi ^oil^!^tv ayavot TraJtj lSnou„. '^- •*^1)- '^^^'^ Claudian speaking of their Dion. Perierg.y. 563. depredations says : As the Roman arms never penetrated into Mejuvit Stihcbo, totam cum Scotus lemen Ireland, the ancients may have entertained ^""'^^ ^' mtesto spuraavit remige Tethys. Tery false notions of its inhabitants. By ^^ ^""''- ■^'''- "• ''• '^■^^■ Diodorus (v. 355), Strabo (iv. 201), Mela Scotorum cumulos flevit glacialis lerne. (iii. 266J, and Solinus (xxii. 42), they are hi consul, iv. Honor, v. 33. 56 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. Tlieoilosius. 360. century, united with the Attacotti, a kindred clan in theneioh- bourhood of Loch Lomond, to plunder the rich provinces of the Roman Britons. But the Scots soon aspired to something more permanent than plunder. From the north of Ireland the passage was short and inviting: hordes of adventurers followed each other ; settlements were obtained from the friendship, or extorted from the Aveakness, of the Picts : and at last the strangers acquired so marked a superiority over the indigenous tribes, as to impart the name of Scotland to the northern division of Britain "''. It was long, however, before the two nations were blended in one people. We find the Picts distinguished from the Scots as late as the twelfth century "'^. In the reign of Constantius the Picts and Scots entered the Roman province in considerable numbers. The Caesar Julian could not be spared from Gaul : and Lupicinus, whom he sent as his deputy, did not venture to meet the invaders. This con- fession of weakness incited them to repeat their inroads; and at each repetition they penetrated farther into the country. They maintained spies in the Roman army ; they tempted the fidelity of the garrisons ; and they seduced many of the foreign auxi- liaries to join them in the pursuit of plunder. At length the emperor Valentinian was alarmed for the safety of the island. The island itself was called Scotia. Scotia eadem et Hibernia — cujus partes priores Ibe- riam intendunt, undo el Ibernia dicta : Scotia, aiitem quod ab Scotorum geiitibuscolitur, ap- pellata. Isid. Orig. xiv. 123. See also Oro- sius (i. 2), /Elliiciis (Cosmog. 507), Raven- nas Geograplms (dale. i. 748), and Bede (Usee autuin proprie patria Scotorum est. Hist. i. J). It is not improbable that the Scoti were the most numerous tribe in the interior of the island, and a division of the great Celtic family of the Cotti. Tlje language of the Waldenses, the natives of the valleys amid the CoUian Alps, bears to this day a great affinity to the vernacular tongues of Ire- land and Scotland. See Chamberlayne's Ora- tio Domin. and Pinkerton's Dissert, p. 84. '"' Loarn, Fergus, and Angus, the sons of Ere, a chieftain of Dalraida in Ulster, settled in the isthmus of Cantirc in 503. From them the Scottish kings claimed their descent. See Dr. O'Conor, Prolog, i. 126. ii. 83. '" Ric. Hagul. 291. 316. ROMAN BRITAIN. 57 Fallofaudes, the Roman general, had been slain by treachery : CHAP. Nectarides, the count of the Saxon shore, had fallen in battle : " and the flames of devastation were spread along the right bank sea. of the Thames. First the steward of the imperial household, then Jovinus, and lastly Theodosius were appointed to the com- mantl. That celebrated officer, with the flower of the Gallic army, landed at Richborough, and, having divided his troops into several corps, attacked and defeated the marauding parties of the barbarians. He entered London in triumph, and spent a few weeks in making preparations for new victories. The deserters were induced by an act of amnesty to rejoin their standards; the ancient discipline of the army 'was revived; supplies and reinforcements were provided ; and, on ^the recom- mencement of hostilities, the invaders were taught in several 369. bloody encounters to respect the bravery of the troops, and the talents of the general. They sullenly retired beyond the an- cient limits of the empire : and Theodosius applied himself to reestablish the former system of government. The political and financial departments lie confided to the vicar Civilis : and as commander of the army, repaired the fortifications, placed garrisons in the military stations, and restored the province of Valentia, which had long been abandoned. When he left the island, his services were attested by the gratitude of the natives, who accompanied him in crowds to the sea shore ; and by the acknowledgment of his sovereign, who loaded him with distin- guished honours"^. Gratian succeeded his father Valentinian in the empire, and Usurpa*""* o<" invested with the purple Theodosius the younger, the son of the deliverer of Britain. There was at the time in the island an '" Amm. Mar. xxvii. c. 8. xxviii. c. 3. Claud, in iv. Hon. v. 26. VOL. I. I 58 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. I. 382. He is slain. 388. 3S8— 400. oflicer, named Maxiinus, of great abilities, and of greater ambi- tion "^ Inflamed with jealousy by the promotion of one who had been his equal, he began to intrigue with the soldiery ; and artfully extorted from their gratitude or their credulity an offer of the title of Augustus. It was not without apparent reluctance that he yielded to their entreaties : but his subsequent conduct betrayed his real sentiments. Not content with the possession of Britain, he aspired to the whole of the western empire. At the head of the British army he sailed to the mouth of the Rhine; the murder of Gratian gave him possession of Gaul; and, by the precipitate flight of Valentinian, the greater part of Italy was compelled to submit to his authority. He reigned with dignity, and severely chastised the Picts and Scots, who attempted to renew their inroads. Theodosius received his image, and ac- knowledged his title : but roused at last by shame and appre- hension, he took the field against the usurper. On the banks of the Save in Pannonia the first shock was given to the power of Maximus: the city of Aquileia soon after saw him stripped of the imperial ornaments, and beheaded by order of his victorious opponent. The Britons, who had followed his standard, never revisited their country: and the native writers lament the de- fenceless state in which it was left, exposed to the insults of its inveterate enemies ^^^ This favourable opportunity did not escape the vigilance of the Picts and Scots. They experienced only a feeble resistance from the small force that had been left in the island, and returned home laden with the plunder of the provinces. Their repeated "» Maximus is called a Spaniard by Zosi- Urb. vii. p. 1301. apud. Poet. vet.), mus (iv. 247), a Briton by Socrates (v. 11) '-" Prosper, in Chron. an. 387. Sozom. and Gilda.s (c. X.), tiie robber of Richborough Hist. vii. p. 721. Gild. c. 11. Nenn. xxiii. by Ausonius (Latro Rhutupinus. De clar. ROMAN BRITAIN. 59 inroads impcllod the Britons to lay their distressed situation be- CHAP, fore the imperial court, probably through the means of Chry- ' santus the vicar, whose administration is mentioned with ap- plause : and Stihcho, the master of the infantry and cavalry, dispatched to their assistance a bod}' of troops, which repelled the invaders, and confined them Avithin their own territories*^^ But the oreat fabric ol" the Roman power was now shaken to Marcus Gra- ~ _ ■■■ _ _ _ tian and Cou- its basis. Hordes of barbarians, under different denominations, stantine em- perors. issuino; from the unknown reo;ions of the east and the north, had depopulated the fairest of the provinces; and a torrent of Goths, Vandals, and Alans, under the celebrated Alaric, had rushed from the summit of the Julian Alps into the flourishing plains of Italy. It now became necessary to recal the troops from the extremities to defend the heart of the empire ; and the cohorts which had been stationed along the walls in Britain, fought and triumphed vmder the command of Stilicho in the bloody battle of Pollentia'^-. After the retreat of Alaric the British forces ^'"• seem to have returned to the island, and to have driven back the Picts, who had taken advantage of their absence to plunder the neighbouring province. But within two or three years the German nations bursting into Gaul, spread devastation from one extremity to the other; and the legions in Britain, cut off from all communication with the emperor Honorius, determined 'to elect an emperor for themselves. The purple was bestowed 406. on Marcus, one of their officers, who soon lost his hfe in a sedi- tion of the soldiery. The next object of their choice was Gratian, a native of one of the British municipia : who, at the end of four months, experienced the fate of his predecessor. This dangerous "' Compare Gildas (c. 12) and Bede ver. 247). (i. 12) with Claudian (De laud. Stilic. ii. '" Claudian De bello Get. v. 416. I 2 60 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, pre-eminence Avas, however, still the object of ambitions com- " petition. Constantine, a soldier in the ranks, with no other pretensions than his name, offered himself to their suffrao-es. He was proclaimed Augustus, led them to Boulogne, and with the assistance of some Roman corps, which lay dispersed in the neighbourhood, cleared the province of the barbarians. His son Constans, who is said to have worn the monastic habit at Winchester, was named Caesar, and hastened to take possession of Spain. But their prosperity was of very short duration. *ii- The son was put to death at Vienne by Gerontius, one of his own officers ; and the father was beheaded at Aries by the order of Constantius, who commanded the forces of Honorius^-^. d!!neTb^''the ^^ hilc Constautinc was thus hastening to his ruin, Britain had Romans. bccn the theatre of an important revolution. The natives, left without a mihtary force, and exposed to the inroads of their enemies, determined to reject an authority Avhich was unable to afford them protection. They deposed the Roman magistrates, proclaimed their own independence, took up arms, and with the spirit of freemen, drove the barbarians out of their territories^^*. When the intelligence reached Ravenna, Honorius, the legitimate emperor, wrote to the states of Britain, " to provide for their " own defence." By this ambiguous expression he has been . thought to have released them from their allegiance : perhaps his only object was to authorize their present efforts, that he might thus reserve a claim to their future obedience ^-^ It would be interesting to delineate the conduct of the natives on this memorable occasion, and accurately to exhibit the causes which transferred the greater part of this island from the milder dominion of the Romans to the exterminating sword of the "= Zosira. vi. p. 371—373. '-' Zosini. vi. 370. '" Id. 381, ROMAN BRITAIN. 61 Saxons. But Britain, after its separation from the empire, CHAP, ceased to attract the notice of foreil ever been suffered from the incursions of foreign enemies^-". Soon after the Britons asserted their independence, the greater "^'"^ ""'"'" invite tlie Saxf ns. Gild. c. xix. xxiii. xxv. Epist. p. 10. 12. Nen. c. Ixi. Procop. Hist. Vand. 1. 1. p. 8, f). 62 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, part of Europe was depopulated by the two dreadful scourges of pestilence and famine. This island did not escape the general calamity : and the Scots and Picts seized the favom'able moment for the renewal of their inroads. The dissensions of the native chieftains facilitated their attempts : district after district be- came the scene of devastation : till the approach of danger ad- monished the more southern Britons to provide for their own safety. Some solicited, but in vain, the protection of iEtius, the Roman general in Gaul ^'^: others, under the guidance of Vorti- gern, the most powerful of the British kings, had recourse to an expedient, which, however promising it might appear in the out- set, proved in the result most fatal to the liberty of their country. I'he emperors had long been accustomed to purchase the services of the barbarians; and the Armoricans, who, like the Britons, had thrown off the Roman yoke, had, Avith the assistance of the Saxons, successfully maintained their independence^^^. Vorti- gcrn resolved to pursue the same polic}^ A Saxon squadron ot three chiules, or long ships, was cruising in the channel in quest of adventures : and its two commanders, the brothers A. D. 449. Hengist and Horsa, eagerly accepted the overtures of the British prince, to aid in fighting his battles, and to depend for their reward on his gratitude. They landed at Ebbsfleet, and were cantoned in the isle of Thanet^-^. Theological Auiidst thcsc Calamities, the Britons found leisure to attend to theological disputes. About the commencement ot the nlth century, Pela<>ius a Briton, and Celestius a Scot, had advanced several new and heterodox opinions respecting the nature of original sin, and divine grace. Agricola, one of their disciples, made an attempt to difluse their doctrine among their country- '•" Gild. c. xvi. xvii. xxi. '" Gild. c. xxiii. Nen. xxviii. "• Sid. Apol. Paneg. Avit. v. 369. I. ROMAN BRITAIN. 63 men : and the British prelates, unaccustomed to the subtleties of f'HAP. controversy, solicited the assistance of their nei<>hbours, the bishops of Gaul. With the concurrence of Pope Celestine, Germanus of Auxcrre twice visited Britain, once in 429 in com- pany with Lupus of IVoyes, and again in 446 with Sevcrus of Treves. By his authority the new doctrines were condenmed and suppressed ; and schools for the education of the clergy were opened in several dioceses. On one occasion the Gallic prelate resumed a character, in which he had distinguished himself during his youth. A party of Picts and Saxons were plundering the coast. Germanus put himself at the head of the Britons, led them against the enemy, and inflicted a severe punishn)ent on the invaders. This was afterwards called the Hallelujah victory ; because the Britons repeatedl}' shouted that word, as they rushed upon their adversaries '^. "Trosp. inChron.p. 630. adann. 429. Constan. vit. S. Ger. c.l. 28. Bed. i. 17. Hunt. 178.. 6i HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. II. ANGLO-SAXONS. ORIGIN AND CHARACTER OF THE ANGLO-SAXONS— THEIR REPEATED DESCENTS IN BRITAIN— THEY FOUND EIGHT DISTINCT KING- DOMS—THE NATIVES RETIRE TO THE WESTERN COAST— REIGNS OF THE SAXON BRETWALDAS— ^LLA-CEAWLIN— ETHELBERT— REDWALD— EDWIN— OSWALD— OSWIO. CHAP. IL Oriffinal country of the Saxons. iiLBOUT the middle of the second century the Saxons, an obscure tribe of barbarians, occupied the district between the Elbe and the Eyder on the neck of the Cimbrican Chersonesus' ; in the course of two hundred years the same appellation had become common to all the nations from the extremity of the peninsula to the Weser, the Ems, and the Rhine ^. They formed a kind of voluntary association, which was loosely held together by similar interests, and congenial pursuits. Pillage by land, piracy by sea, was their only profession : and though the imperial fleet had often been employed to check, it could never subdue, their dauntless and enterprising spirit. But as the power of Rome declined, the audacity of the Saxons increased : their expeditions became more frequent, their descents more destruc- • Ptol. in 4" Europsc tab. Eutrop. ix. p. 659. ANGLO-SAXONS. 65 tive : from ])lvin(ler they proceeded to colonization : and the c^^- men who had depopulated, afterwards repeopled the better _ portion of iiritain. Adventurers from each of the associated tribes were among the colonists ; but the majority consisted of Jutes, Angles, and Saxons properly so called ^. The original seat of the Saxons has already been mentioned : the Angles were their neighbours on the north as far as the site of the present town of Flensburgh : and beyond the Angles dwelt the nation of the Jutes, with iio other boundary than the ocean ^ From the language of the Saxons, their gigantic stature, and Their man- national institutions, it is evident that they were of Gothic descent. Their whole time was alternately devoted to indolence and to rapine. To earn by labour Avhat might be acquired by force, they deemed unworthy the spirit of a freeman, and con- sio-ned the culture of their lands with the care of their flocks to the meaner labour of women and slaves. Every warrior attached himself to the fortunes of some favourite chieftain, whom he followed in his piratical expeditions. These chieftains guided the councils of the tribe : and from them, in times of danger, was selected a leader, who exercised the supreme com- mand, and was dignified with the title of conyng or king. His authority, however, was but temporary. It expired with the exigency to which it owed its existence ^ The warhke exertions of these tribes were at first checked Arms. by their want of arms : but during three centuries of inter- course or hostility with the Romans, they had learned to supply ' Bed. 1. 15. Ethelvveid, Chron. 1. p. 476. other islands were originally inhabited by the * Bede mentions also the Frisians, Boructu- Angles. " On thasm landum eardodon Engle ari or people of Berg, the Rugini, Danai, and ser hi hider on land comon." Barrington's Hunni. v. O.Alfred.in his Orosius, distinguishes Orosius, p. 20. Angle-land, Sealand and Denmark : but after- ' Bed. v. 10. Wittich, i. p. 7. wards observes that Jutland, Sealand and the VOL. I. K 66 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, the deficiency. They bore a target on the left arm, and ' employed for offence the spear, the sword, and the battle-axe. The two latter were long and ponderous; and to their destructive effects is attributed the havoc, which the Saxons never failed to make in the broken ranks of an enemy *'. As their ships were not fitted for the transportation of cavalry, they usually fought on foot in one compact body ; after their settlement in Britain, the chieftains, with the most wealthy of their retainers, came mounted into the field. Their esteem for the war horse rose to a species of veneration : but previously to his initiation in the military conflict, his nostrils were slit, his ears were stitched up, and his sense of hearing was entirely destroyed. From that moment he became sacred to the God of war, and was conceived on important occasions to announce the will of the deity ^. Ships. jfj the infancy of their naval power the Saxon boats resembled those of the other northern tribes : and a few planks, surmounted with works of osier and covered Avith skins, bore the fearless barbarian across the ocean, in the search of adventures and of spoil ^. But in the fifth century their chiules or war-ships had assumed a more formidable appearance ^ : and from the number of warriors whom they carried, and the length of the voyages which they made, we may conclude that they were formed of more solid and lasting materials. In these the Saxons repeated!}' issued from their ports, sometimes steering for a particular point, sometimes trusting entirely to the guidance of the winds : but whether they were conducted by chance or design, their object • Huntingd. 178. 181. • The word is still employed on the rivers ' Wilk. Con. i. 150. Tyno and Were. By ancient writers it is " Cui pelle salum sulcare Britannum translated a long or a large ship. See Bede, 1. Ludus, et assuto glaucum mare findere lembo. 15. Alfred's Version, ibid. Chrou. Sa.\. 12. Apol. Pan, Avil. v. 370. Gildas, c. xxiii. ANGLO-SAXONS. 67 was invariably the same, to surprise and pillage the unoffending CHAP, inhabitants on some part of the British or Gallic coasts. Sidonius, ' the eloquent bishop of Clermont, has described in animated language the terrors of the provincials and the ravages of the barbarians. " We have not," lie says, " a more cruel and more " dangerous enemy than the Saxons. They overcome all who *' have the courage to oppose them. They surprise all, who are " so imprudent as not to be prepared for their attack. When " they pursue, they infallibly overtake : when they are pursued, " their escape is certain. They despise danger : they are inured " to shipwreck : they are eager to purchase booty with the peril " of their lives. Tempests, which to others are so dreadful, to " them are subjects of joy. The storm is their protection when '• they are pressed by the enemy, and a cover for their operations " when they meditate an attack. Before they quit their own " shores, they devote to the altars of their gods, the tenth part of " the principal captives : and when they are on the point of " returning, the lots are cast with an affectation of equity, and " the impious vow is fulfilled ^°." The character which is thus given of them by Sidonius, is confirmed by every ancient authority. Marcellinus has recorded the terror excited by their sudden and unexpected aggressions : Zosimus allots to them the superiority in courage, strength of body, and patience of fatigue : and by the emperor Julian they are pronounced the most for- midable of all the nations that dwelt beyond the Rhine, on the shores of the western ocean ". '" S'don- viii. 6. aay.MwIala. Jul. oral. i. in laud. Const. Saxones prs ceteris hostibus timentur. p 34 j^^gjj^ homines omnium quos novimus Amm. Mar. xxviii. p. 526. Kaflsf wlaloi barbarorum ad bella acerrimi. Procop. Hist. S-ujM,(j) Hcci fufj-n x«i xafltpia tm Treji t«j Got. iv. p. 469. Gentem virtute atque agili- f**X«5- Zos.'iii. p. 147. tJ uTTfj T«> Utelembilem. Oros. vii. p. 549. ViwQv xfti Tr\y (d-irt^Kny ^oiXullnv t^vuv rx K 2 68 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Such was the terror of the Saxon name, when Hengist and ^^' Horsa, in 449, were invited by Vortigern to fight his battles. Founrjati^m of For six jears they served him with fidehty. The Picts were of^Ken^tTg. taught to respect, the Britons were eager to reward, their valour. Hengist, whether he had already formed designs of conquest, or was willing to render more service to his employers, obtained permission to solicit reinforcements from his own coun- try. The messengers, whom he sent, were received with welcome : chieftain after chieftain led his followers to Thanet : and the isle was crowded with strangers, till their number became an object of jealous apprehension to the Britons. An increased supply of provisions was demanded ; and the refusal was to both *55. parties the signal for war. The Saxons marched to the Medway, and at Aylesford were opposed by the natives. The passage of the river was fiercely disputed : Vortigern lost a son, and Hen- gist his brother : but the issue appears to have been favourable to the foreigners. After the death of Horsa, JEsca, the son of Heneist, was associated with his father in the command, and a second battle was fought more to the west on the banks of the Cray. It proved most disastrous to the interests of the Britons. Four of their leaders Avere left on the field : their troops fled with precipitation to London : and Kent was abandoned to the possession of the invaders. It was at this time that Hengist ventured, if ever he ventured, beyond the limits of that county. We are told by Gildas that the Saxons traversed the island without opposition, that they spread on every side the flames of devastation : but that on their return the natives collected in considerable numbers, and inflicted a signal vengeance on the plunderers. Some such event may perhaps have happened : but the Saxon writers are silent, and the hyberbolical decla- mation of Gildas must not be literally received. Eight years ANGLO-SAXONS. 69 later was fouglit a most bloody battle, in which twelve of the chap British chieftains were slain ; and the Saxons lost a renowned ' leader called Wypped, from whom the spot was named Wyp- 405. pedsfleet. The last victory of Ilengist was obtained in 473. The Britons are said to have fled from their enemies as " from " a devouring conflagration," and to have left behind them spoils of incalculable value. The conqueror survived fifteen years, and dying in 488, left the peaceable possession of Kent to his son ^sca *^. A very different tale is told by the British writers, whose British fic- vanity has attributed the loss of Kent to the infatuation of Vortigern, and the treacherous policy of Hengist. That chief- tain, if we may credit their relation, had a daughter, Rowena, of transcendent beauty. It was so contrived, that at a bancjuet given to the British nobles, she waited on Vortigern, who of course was captivated by her charms, took her to his bed, and bestowed on his father-in-law the kingdom of Kent. But his attachment to the Saxons deprived him of the affections of the Britons. His son Vortemir was placed on the throne, fought three battles with the strangers, and ultimately expelled them from Kent. During five years Hengist wandered an adven- turer on the ocean : but at the death of Vortemir the father recovered his crown, and the son-in-law demanded the restoration of the possessions which he had lost. Three hundred deputies from each nation assembled in council to determine the question : but during the conference each Saxon singled out his victim : at the proper moment Hengist exclaimed, " Nemeth 3'ure seax, " draw your daggers :" and the ground was covered with the dead bodies of two hundred and ninety-nine Britons. The one, who bad been spared, was Vortigern himself: and to free from " Chron. Sax. 13, 14. Bed. i. 15. 70 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, captivity a prince, whom they hated, the natives yielded to " Hengist the territory Avhich has since been divided into the counties of Kent, Essex, Sussex, and Middlesex. Can it be necessary to say that many of these pretended events are con- tradicted by undeniable evidence, and that all escaped the notice of Gildas, a British, and almost a contemporary, writer? The whole appears to be a fable invented by the natives, to account for the first settlement of the Saxons without the admission of conquest ^^. Sussex. 477. Hengist and his successors were content with the possession of Kent. On the north, east, and south, their small domain was protected by the Thames and the sea ; on the west they were removed from the hostility of the natives by the interpo- sition of anew band of adventurers, under the command ofiElla and his three sons. In 477> these marauders landed at Cymen- sore, near Withering, in the isle of Selsey. The Britons made an obstinate resistance : but were defeated with considerable loss, and compelled to shelter themselves in the Andredswold, a forest of one hundred and twenty miles in length, and thirty in breadth. The progress of ^lla was slow. In 485 he fought a great battle, the result of which is unknown : and it was not till 490 that he could penetrate as far as the city of Anderid, which gave its name to the tract, and Avas deemed an impregnable fortress. Its fate is celebrated in our annals. While the Saxons besieged the city, they were besieged in their turn by a nume- rous army of Britons, who allowed them no rest either by day or night. As often as they began the assault, the natives " Nen. c. 36. 44 — 47. I should not have Kent, as he adds that the Britons attacked notict'd tht-si' fictions had it not been thought and defeated them there. IVrha|)s he may that the account of Hengist's expulsion is fa- allude to llie battle of Wyppedsllei't. There vourcd by a passage in Gildas (alitpianto cum is a place of that name in the isle of Thanet : recessisscnt domttm, c. 25) : but it is evident but it is very uncertain that it was the scene that by domum lie means tiicir settlement in of combat. ANGLO-SAXONS. 71 attacked them in tlie rear : and if they turned on the assailants, chap. these inniicdiately found an asylum in the woods ; from which ^^' they issued again, the moment that the Saxons moved to their former position. This harassing species of warfare suggested to the barbarian the obvious expedient of dividing his force into two armies : of which one conducted the siege, while the other watched the motions of the enemy without the walls. At last the Saxons forced their way into the place ; Anderid was reduced to ashes ; and every inhabitant was put to the sword ". This conquest secured to ^lla the possession of his former acquisitions, and he became the founder of the kingdom of Sussex. Five years after the destruction of Anderid, a more powerful Wessex. armament of five chiules appeared in the channel. This was ^' under the conmiand of Cerdic, who sailing past the previous conquests of his countrymen, landed more to the west, at a place which, from the circumstance, received the name of Cer- dicsora ^\ Natanleod, the king of the district, opposed the foreigners with intrepidity and perseverance; and Cerdic was repeatedly compelled to solicit the co-operation of other adven- turers. In oOl, Porta, with two chiules, arrived at Portsmouth, and slew a British prince, who opposed his landing. Still Natanleod retarded the advance of the invaders : in 508 he routed Cerdic, but was attacked during the pursuit by Kenric, and perished in the field with five thousand Britons, Even this important victory did not give to the Saxon quiet possession of the country. In 514 he received a great accession of strenoth by the arrival of his nephews Stuffa and Whitgar with three chiules at Cerdicsora : repeated victories gradually extended " Chron. Sax. 14, 15. Hunt. 179. Sus- " Higden tells us that this " shore of Cer- sex was computed to contain 7000 hides of die" is Yarmouth (Gale, p. 224). He pro- land. Bed. iv. 13. bably means Yarmouth in the isle of Wight. 73 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, the conquests of the strangers : and in 519 the great battle of ^^' Charford on the Avon finally established the kingdom of Wessex, or of the West-Saxons. Cerdic, having associated his son Kenric in the- regal dignity, and bestowed upon his nephews the subordinate sovereignty of the isle of Wight, died in 5S4^^ The success of these adventurers had given a new direction to the policy of the Saxons. Their object, which had formerly been plunder, was now converted into that of colonization. In pur- suit of new settlements in a more opulent country and under a more genial sun, the most enterprising chieftains abandoned their homes, and were followed by thousands anxious to share their fortunes. There was no part of the eastern shore from the frith of Forth to the mouth of the Thames, which was not visited by hordes of barbarians. While Cerdic was struggling with the southern Britons, several independent chieftains had pushed their conquests along the left bank of the Thames : and Essex. 530. jjj 530 Erkenwin had assumed the sovereignty of Essex, or of the East-Saxons ^'^. The enterprising spirit of the Angles had led them to desert entirely their native country ^^ Several divi- EastAngiia. slons landed to the north of the East-Saxons: Ulfa, from whom his successors were called Uffingas, was chosen for their monarch : and so great was their power, that even while they were making conquests on the Britons, they could furnish men for a foreign expeditions^. The daughter of one of their chiefs had been betrothed to Radigis, prince of the Varni, a people on the north bank of the Rhine. But on the death of his father, Radigis married his step-mother, the daughter of Theodobert the Frank, and the East-Angles resolved to revenge the insult. An expedition '«Chron.Sax. 15—19. Hunt. 179. "Whit- " Mat. West, ad an. 58fi. gar and StuiTa put to ih» sword every Briton " Bed. i. 15. Chron. Sax. 12. in the island. Aeser, p. 5. '" Hunting. 313. Bed. u. 15. ANGLO-SAXONS. 73 sailed up the Rhine : the Varni were defeated : and the country CHAP, was pillaged. When the victors returned to the disappointed ' princess, whom they had left with a sufficient guard, she loaded them with reproaches for having permitted the escape of Radigis. They returned to the pursuit ; discovered the fugitive in a wood, and laid him in chains at her feet. His punishment was probably less severe than the reader will have anticipated. He was compelled to dismiss the sister of Theodobcrt, and take the East-Anglian lad}' to his bed. The conquerors returned in triumph to Britain^". But the majority of the Angles had spread themselves more Bernicia. m? to the northward. Ida, who commanded a fleet of forty chiules, after many severe conflicts succeeded in removing the Bernician Britons from the vicinity of the coast ; and fixed his residence at Bebbanburgh, a castle which he had built on a lofty promon- tory, and to which he had given that name in honour of his consort, Bebba*V He obtained the regal title in 547j and reigned twelve years. His states were called the kingdom of Bernicia, and were bounded on the south by the river Tees. The Britons, who lived on the right bank of the Tees were Deim. seo. called Deiri. The first of the Anglian chieftains, by whom they had been assailed and defeated was Scomil. Sella, one of his descendants, in 560, obtained the undisputed possession of the country, and formed a new kingdom, which preserved its British appellation ^^. The Saxons of Deira stretched themselves as far as the Mercia. sss. Humber. In 586 a colony under the command of Cridda? " Procop. Hist. Goth. iv. 468. united with Deira under one sovereign, the " Chron. Sax. p. 19. Bed. iii. 6. Nen. whole was called the kingdom of Northum- 63, 64. bria, from its comprising the Saxon conquests " Nen. 64. Wheo Bernicia was afterwards tiorth of the Humber, VOL. I. L 74 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, passed that river, and after clearing the coast of the Britons, " pushed their conquests behind the East-Angles, till they had reached the very centre of the island. They were in general called Mercians, perhaps from the marshy district in which they first settled ; some of them took the name of Middle-Angles, from their central position '^. From the arrival of Hengist to the last successes of Cridda, a period had intervened of more than one hundred and fifty years. The natives had gradually retired before their enemies from the coast to the mountains, and had left about one half of the southern division of the island in the possession of the invaders. Eight new kingdoms had been formed. Kent and Sussex were comprised within the small extent of the counties still known by those names. The East Saxons possessed Essex, Middlesex, and the south of Hertfordshire. East Anglia comprehended Norfolk, SutFolk, Cambridge and the isle of Ely. These states were pi'cvented from extending their territories by their position on the coast, and the contiguity of other Saxon adventurers. But the remaining kingdoms bordered on the Britons, and. were successively augmented by conquest. When they had attained their full growth, Bernicia on the north, and Deira on llie south of the Tees, extended from the Forth to the Humber, and from the eastern sea to the western. Wessex was bounded by the Thames and the Severn on the north, and stretched from the borders of Kent and Sussex to the Land's-end in Cornwall. Mercia comprised all the interior of the island as far as the mountains of Wales. — It is easy to point out the continental origin of these different peoples. Tlie nations of the Saxons discover themselves by their very name. Tiie conquerors of " Mercia was divided by the river Trent computed to contain 7000, south Mercia into north and south. North Mercia was bOOO hides ol' land. Bed. iii. 24. 2 ANGLO-SAXONS. 75 Kent, of the isle of Wight and the coast of Hampshire opposite chap. to that island, were Jutes. All the remaining kingdoms were I founded by the Angles '^'*. Durino- this long and eventful period, the Britons, though Comi.Ktoithe finally unsuccessful, had displayed a considerable sliart; ot couraoe and resolution. In the other provinces of the empire the natives had remained tame spectators of the contest between the imperial forces and the barbarians : and whenever the fortune of war declared in favour of the latter, had patiently submitted to the rule of the conquerors. The Britons alone, with the exception of the natives of Armorica, had ventured to unsheath the sword in the defence of their liberty. If during the struggle they lost the fairer portion of the island, the origin of their mis- fortunes will be found in the want of union among their chief- tains. Like their fathers of old, they were vanquished in detail. Their national writers talk of kings who at this period wielded the whole power of Britain : but of the existence of any such authority no trace can be discovered in genuine history. The population of the country was divided among a multitude of chieftains, whose crimes and dissensions had rendered them too attentive to objects of personal jealousy or aggrandizement, to act with any combined efforts against the common enemy. The only opposition made to the Saxons seems to have pro- ceeded from the inhabitants of the places in which they succes- sively ianded : and so unconscious were the other tribes of the danger which threatened them, or so indifferent to the fate of their more distant countrymen, that at the very time, when the barbarians were estabhshing kingdoms in the south-west of the island, an array of twelve thousand Britons, under the command « Bede, i. 15. Chron. Sax. 12. l2 tains. 76 . HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, of Riothamus, sailed from the coast of Cornwall to the mouth of _ the Loire, and ascending that river fought against the Visigoths in the neighbourhood of Bourges -''. Their chief- Of the chieftaius, who signalized their valour against the Saxons, we possess only an imperfect catalogue. 1. The first is Aurelius Ambrosius, who is described as of Roman origin ; the son of parents that had worn the purple ; a brave, faithful, and unassuming warrior. He seems to have fought against Hengist, and to have perished in a domestic quarrel with Guito- lin^^. 2. The fame of Natanleod has been preserved by the Saxon chronicle. He was the opponent of Cerdic, and falling in battle, left his name to a considerable district in Hamp- shire ^^ 3. The territory of Urien, and the scene of his prowess lay in the north. Ida and his Angles experienced in Urien a formidable antagonist : but the Briton, after a long, and in some instances successful, struggle, was deprived of life bj^ the jea- lou.sy of a confederate chieftain, named Morcant*^*^. 4. The fame of Arthur has eclipsed that of all his contemporaries. Yet if we divest his memory of that fictitious glory, which has been thrown round it by the imagination of the bards, he will sink into equal obscurity with his fellows. We know neither the period when he lived, nor the district over which he reigned. He is said to have fought and to have gained twelve battles. In most of these, from the names of the places, he seems to have been opposed to the Angles in Lincolnshire, from the last at mount Badon, to the Saxons under Cerdic or Kenric"^. This, whether it were fought under Arthur or not, was a splendid and ■ useful victory, which for forty years checked the advance of the '' Jornand. cxlv. p. 678. Sid. Apol.iii.ep.9, "* Nenn. c. 64. =" Gild. c. 25. Nen. c. 1. ™ Id. c. 6), 6^. cum not. Gale, p. 131 " Chron. Sax. p. 17. ANGLO-SAXONS. 77 slrangers*'. Perhaps, when the reader has been told that CHAP. Arthur was a ]iritish chieftain, that he fought many battles, that ' he was murdered by his nephew, and was buried at Glas- tonbury', where his renuiins were discovered in the reign of Henry II., he will have learned all, that can be ascertained at the present day, respecting that celebrated warrior ^\ By the conciuests of the Saxons the island was replunged into Eff«tsofti.ft that state of barbarism from which it had been extricated by the uue^sts. Romans. The victors had long been inured to pillage and slaughter. On many occasions the towns and villages were with their inhabitants involved in the same ruin. A mighty conflagra- tion, says Gildas, was lighted up by the barbarians on the eastern coast, which gradually pervaded the whole surface of the island^^. To escape from the exterminating sword of their enemies, the natives, as soon as opposition appeared fruitless, fled with their most valuable effects to the hills and forests. Multitudes found a secure asylum among the mountains which cover the west of the island : where, struggling with poverty, and engaged in con- stant warfare, they rapidly lost the faint polish of provincial civilization, and relapsed into many of the habits of savage life. Others under the conduct of their prelates and chieftains aban- doned their native country altogether. Crossing the ocean they seized the desolate lands on the western extremity of Armorica ; subdued the independence of the neighbouring cities ; and gave to the tract which they subdued the appellation of their parent country. It is still known by the name of Bretagne^^ But the work of devastation was at last checked by views of " Gild. c. 26. Antiq. p. 225 — 227. Also Bouquet's Rerum " Girald. apud Langhorn, p. 91. Lcl. Gallic, torn. v. p. 149. vii. 298, and in torn. Coll. V. 8, 9. ■ vi. Eginhard. annal. ad an. 786. and Ermold. ■'^ Gild. c. 24. Chron. Sax. p. 15. Nigel, de reb. Ludov. 1. iii. " Gild. c. 26, and the testimonies in Usher, 78 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, personal interest. The habitations of the Britons were Avanted ' for the use of the conquerors ; and the labours of the captives were found necessary for the cultivation of the soil. Hence it was that, as the Saxons extended their conquests, the buildings were suflered to stand ; and the lives of the Britons were spared, unless the thirst of vengeance had been excited by the obstinacy of their resistance. The captives, without distinction of rank or profession, of sex or age, were divided, together with the land, among the conquerors : they became the property, the chattels, of their lord, subject to his caprice and transferable at his will. The same fate attended their descendants for many generations : and from the authentic record of Doomsday it apj^ears, that as late as the eleventh century a majority of the population of England remained in a state of slavery. Octarchy The conciucrors had established eight independent kingdoms pstablished. . in the island, though from the frequent union of Bernicia and Deira under the same head, they have generally been considered as only seven. The history of their different dynasties, were they' to be arranged either collaterally or in succession, would perplex and fatigue both the writer and the reader. A sufficiently accu- rate notion of the period, which precedes the preponderance of the West-Saxon kings, may be obtained by attending to the reigns of the more powerful monarchs. For there frequently was one among the number, whose authority was acknowledged by all or by most of his contemporaries. The title by which he was designated, was that of Bretwalda, the wielder or sovereign of Britain. Whether he obtained it by the influence of his power, or received it from the spontaneous suffrage of his equals, is doubtful J nor do we know whether any duties or prerogatives were attached to his dignity. By Bede the title is given to seven of the Saxon princes ; other historians add an eighth. To ANGLO-SAXONS. 79 their reigns may with j)ropriety be referred the principal events C'HAP. which occurred in the kingdoms not immediately subject to their ' control '■^ iELLA, Bretwalda I. The descent of iElla on the southern coast, and his subsequent Rei^nof success, have been previously noticed. It is difficult to conjec- ture, by what means he acquired the precedency among the confederate chieftains. The kingdom of Sussex, which he 48o. founded, was the smallest, and the least powerful of all the new principalities. This distinction may perhaps have been con- ceded to some pre-eminence, which he enjoyed in his native country, or to some exploits of which the memory has perished. He has scarcely obtained the notice of our ancient chroniclers^^. CEAWLIN, Bretwalda II. Ethelbert, the fourth king of Kent, was the first to disturb the Reign of harmony, which had united the Saxon princes. At the age of ^^• sixteen, he was taught to believe that the dignity of Bretwalda belonged to him as the representative of Hengist^^^. Under this impression he led an army against Ceawlin, king of Wessex, the grandson of Cerdic. At Wimbledon his temerity was severely chastised. Oslac and Cnebba, his two ealdormen, fell in the conflict, and Ethelbert himself escaped with difficulty from the pursuit of the enemy. Ceawlin, content with the humiliation of the king of Kent, directed his arms against the Britons. The ^ See Bade, ii. 5. and the Saxon chronicle, kings acknowledged themselves the vassals of p. 71. From the strong expressions of Bede, the Bretwalda. it would not be rash to infer that the inferior ^^ Bed. et Chron. Sax. ibid. ^ Maims, p. 12. Hunt. p. 315. 80 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, battle of Bedford, which was fought under the direction of his ' brother Cuthwin, added to his dominions the towns of Leighton, 571. Ailesbury, Bensington, and Eynsham : and six years aftervyards 577. the victory of Derham in Glocestershire was marked by the fall of three British kings, Conmail, Gondidan, and Farinmail, and was followed by the surrender of the important cities of Glocester, Cirencester, and Bath. When Ceawlin had settled his new con- quests, he resumed offensive operations against the Britons. At 584. Frithern on the left bank of the Severn he lost his son Cutha : but victory declared for the Saxons, the neighbouring towns were plundered, and the army returned home laden with booty. A few years after, on the death of Cissa, the son of ^lla, Ceawlin added Sussex to his other dominions. But fortune deserted him in the zenith of his power. A bloody battle Avas fought at Wodensburg in Wiltshire, his disaffected subjects called to their •^91- aid the Scots and Britons : the king was defeated, and forced to seek for safety in concealment : and Ceolric his nephew ascended the throne. Ceawlin died in 593 "*. ETHELBERT, Bretwalda III. Reign of xhe disgrace, which had clouded the first years of Ethelbert, Etiielbert. & ' i r i king of Kent, was afterwards dispersed by the glory of a long and prosperous reign. At the death of Ceawlin he had acquired (by what means we are not informed) the dignity of Bretwalda, and his authority was admitted by all the Saxon princes south of the Humber. While in possession of this dignity, he received intelligence that forty strangers had landed on the isle of Thanet. " Chron.Sax. 20— 23. Ethelwerd, 834. Saxons spoke different dialects: Cielin, qui Hunt. 315. In writing the name of this king, lingua eonnn Ceaulin vocabatur. Bedc (ii. 5) observes that the Angles and ANGLO-SAXONS. 31 These were Augustine and his associates, partly Gauls, partly chap. Italians, whom Pope Gregory the great had sent for the bene- " volent purpose of converting the pagans. Ethelbert could not 596. be unacquainted with the christian religion. It was probably thf'^tneQ " of the religion of the majority of the British slaves in his domi- *°'' nions : it was certainly professed by his queen Bertha, the daughter of Charibert, king of Paris. The Saxon prince received the missionaries, under an oak, in an open field, at the suggestion of his priests, who had told him that in such a situa- tion the spells of the foreign magicians would lose their influ- ence. At the appointed time, Augustine was introduced to the king. Before him were borne a silver cross, and a banner representing the Redeemer: behind him his companions walked in procession : and the air resounded with the anthems which they sang in alternate choirs. As soon as the interpreter had explained the object and motives of their mission, Ethelbert replied, that he had no wish to abandon the gods of his fathers for a new and uncertain worship : but that, as the intention of the strangers was benevolent, and their promises were inviting, they might preach without molestation, and should be supported at his expense. This favourable answer filled them with joy : and they proceeded to Canterbury chanting, as they went, the following prayer : " By thy great mercy, O Lord, turn " away, we beseech thee, thy anger from this city and thy holy " temple, for we are sinners. Hallelujah ^^" The care of the queen had already prepared a residence for Etiidbert the new apostles. They were lodged in the ancient church of ^^ '^*^ " St. Martin, which had originally belonged to the Britons, and had lately been repaired for the use of bishop Liudhard, a pre- " Bed. i. 25. VOL. I. M 82 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, late who accompanied Bertha from Gaul. Curiosity led the ' Saxons to visit the strangers : they admired the ceremonies of their worship, compared their lives with those of the pao-an priests, and learned to approve a religion, which could inspire so much piety, austerity, and disinterestedness. With secret plea- sure Ethelbert viewed the alteration in the sentiments of his subjects : on the feast of Pentecost in the year 597, he professed himself a christian, and received the sacrament of baptism ; and on the following Christmas ten thousand of his subjects followed the example of their sovereign ^^. The willing mind of the royal proselyte was now quickened by the letters and presents of the pontiff. He exerted all his influence to second the efforts of the missionaries ; not indeed by violence (which he had learned to ^be repugnant to the mild spirit of the gospel), but by his exhortations, and by distinguish- ing the converts with marks of the royal favour. xVs soon as Augustine had received the episcopal consecration from the archbishop of Aries, the king retired to the city of Reculver, and gave to the missionaries Canterbury with the surrounding coun- try. By his munificence the church of St. Saviour, originalh^' built by the Britons, was repaired and allotted for the residence of the bishop and his clergy : while a new monastery was raised without the walls, for the use of the monks, and dedicated in honour of the apostles Peter and Paul. At the same time the number of the missionaries Avas augmented by the care of Gre- gory ; and their success was rapidly extended to the boundaries of the kingdom. As each canton embraced the new doctrine, the heathen temple was converted into a christian church : and in order to wean the proselytes from their idolatrous practices, » Id. 26. GIreg. Epist. vii. 30. ANGLO-SAXONS. 83 they were permitted, instead of the feasts which they had for- chap. merl}" celej)rated around the altars of their gods, to assemble ' upon the more solemn festivals in the neighbourhood of the church, and to partake of a sober repast. To preside over the more distant christians, Augustine conferred the episcopal dig- nity on his disciple Justus. The new prelate fixed his residence in Rochester, in which the church of St. Andrew was built and endowed by the piety of Ethelbert. The kino;dom of Essex was, at this period, governed by Sa- ^ ^*: . beret, the son of its founder, and the nephew of Ethelbert. The ^**^*- influence of the uncle introduced a missionary, the abbot Melli- tus, to the notice of Saberct, who soon consented to receive the sacrament of baptism. The episcopal consecration was conferred on Mellitus : and London, which is represented as a populous and commercial city, was selected for the see of the new bishop. The cathedral was built, and endowed at the joint expense of Ethelbert and Saberct ^. From the conversion of the Saxons the zeal of Augustine was controversy directed to the reformation oi the rJntons. During one hundred tons. and fifty years of unsuccessful warfare, the ancient discipline of their church had been nearly abolished, and the livesof their clergj were disgraced by vices the most repugnant to their profession **. To which of the British sees the archiepiscopal jurisdiction had been originally attached, is at present unknoM' n /but Gregory had written to Augustine, that he had subjected all the bishops of Bri- tain to his authority. The missionary, Avith the aid of Ethelbert, prevailed on the British prelates to meet him at a place, which has since been called Augustine's oak in Worcestershire. After '" Bed. i. 26. 30. iii. ?,. but faithful colours by Gildas, a counlryma *' Their charucter has been drawn in odious and contemporary. Gild. ep. p. 23. m2 84 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. II. Laws of a long and unavailing debate, the conference was adjourned to another day. In the interval the Britons consulted a neighbour- ing hermit, who advised them to watch the behaviour of Augustine ; if he rose to meet them, they were to consider him as a man of unassuming disposition, and to listen to his demands : but if he kept his seat, they should condemn him of pride, and reject his authority. With this sapient admonition, which left the decision of the controversy to accident, seven bishops, with Dinoth, abbot of Bangor, repaired to the place of conference. Augustine happened to be seated ; and did not rise at their arrival. Both his reasons and his authority were consequently despised. In points of doctrine there had been no difference between them : and to facilitate their compliance in other matters, the archbishop had reduced his demands to three heads : that they should observe the catholic computation of Easter, should adopt the Roman rite in the administration of baptism ; and should join with the missionaries in preaching to the Saxons^'". Each of these requests, in obedience to the advice of the hermit, was pertinaciously refused. " Know then," exclaimed the missionary with the tone of a prophet, " that if " 3'ou will not assist me in pointing out to the Saxons the Avay " of life, they, by the just judgment of God, will prove to you " the ministers of death." He did not live to see the prediction verified '^. The reign of Ethelbert lasted fifty-six years. Before his death *•' It is surprising that so many modern liis- lorians shoiiM havp reprost'ntcd the Britons as holding different doctrines from those pro- fessed by the Roman missionaries, though those .writers liave never yet produced a single instance of such difference. Would Augustine have required the British clergy to join in llio conversion of the Saxons, if they had taugiit doctrines, which ho condemned ? Bede has related with great minuteness all the contro- versies between the two parties. They all regard points of discipline. No where does the remotest hint occur of any difference re- specting doctrine. " Bed. ii. 2. ANGLO-SAXONS. 85 he published a eodc of laws to regulate the administration of chap. justice. For this iniprovenicnt he was indebted to the sugges- ' tious of the missionaries, who, tliouoli they had been accustomed to the forms and decisions of the lioman jurisprudence, did not, in legislating for the Saxons, attempt to abolish the national notions of equity, but wisely retained the principle of pecuniary compensation, a principle universally prevalent in the northern nations. Those crimes, which appeared the most repugnant to the well-being of society, v/ere scrupulously enumerated, theft in its different branches, murder, sacrilege, insults offered to female chastity, and infractions of the peace of the king and of the church : and to each was attached a proportionate fine, which rose in amount according to the dignity of the person against whom the oflence was committed. From these laws it appears that all freemen were classed according to their property, and the offices which they held. To each class was allotted its peculiar miind and znere. The mund was the pecuniary mulct, which was intended to provide for the security of each individual, and of those under his roof. Thus the mund of a widow, if she were of the highest rank, was fifty shillings ; of the second, twenty; of the third, twelve; and of the fourth, six. Thowere was the sum at which the life of each person was rated. If he was killed, the murderer paid it as a compensation to his family : if he himself transgressed the laws, he forfeited it, in lieu of his head, to the king. But murder was not only an offence against individuals, it was also considered as an injury to the commu- nity : and the criminal was compelled to make what was esteemed a compensation to the violated justice of his country as well as the family of the deceased. For this purpose, besides the were^ he paid an additional fine, called the icite, which was received by the king or the chief magistrate of the district. 86 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. II. 616. Reign of Eadbald. The same distinctions, and the same punishments, with a few variations arising out of times and circumstances, were retained in all the laws of succeeding legislators **. Ethelbert died in 6l6. Tiie crown devolved upon his son Eadbald, the violence of whose passions nearly replunged the nation into that idolatry from which it had just emerged. The 3'outh and beauty of his step-mother, the relict of Ethelbert, induced him to take her to his bed : and when the missionaries admonished him to break the unnatural connexion, he aban- doned a religion, which forbade the gratification of his appetites. At the same time the three sons of Saberct, (their father was dead), restored the altars of the gods, and banished from their territory the bishop Mellitus. With Justus of Rochester he retired into Gaul : and Laurentius, the successor of Augustine in the see of Canterbury, had determined to follow their foot- steps. On the morning of his intended departure, he made a last attempt on the mind of Eadbald. His representations were successful. The king dismissed his step-mother and recalled the fugitive prelates. The sincerity of his conversion was proved by his subsequent conduct : and Christianity, supported by his influence, assumed an ascendancy, which it ever afterwards preserved '^. REDWALD, Bretwalda IV. ReijjnofRed- wald. The Saxon princes refused that obedience to Eadbald which they had paid to his father : and the dignity of Bretwalda passed from the Jutes to the more powerful nations of the Angles. The East-Anglian throne was now filled by Rcdwald, " Leg. Sax. p. 1. « Bed. ii. 5. ANGLO-SAXONS. 87 the second Uffinga. He had formerly paid a visit to Ethelhcrt, C'n\P. and at his persuasion had professed himself a christian. But ' on his return home the new convert found himself assailed by the importunities of his wife, and the opposition of his people. His resolution Avas at last subdued : but to silence his conscience, he endeavoured to unite the two worships, and in the same temple, by the side of the statue of Woden, dedicated an altar to the God of the christians **. We cannot appreciate his subsequent conduct, Avithout Conquests of . ... EJiHri.1. reverting to the history of Northunibria. Edilfrid, the grand- son of Ida, was a restless and sanguinary prince, who for several years had directed all his efforts against the neighbouring Britons. In many districts they had been entirely exterminated by his arms : in others they were happy to purchase his forbearance by the payment of an annual tribute. Aidan, king of the Scots, jealous of so formidable a neighbour, assembled all his forces, and marched as far as the stone of Degsa, a spot long celebrated co3. in the traditions of the country. Though Theodbald, the brother of Edilfrid, was slain with his followers, victory declared for the Northumbrians. The greater part of the Scots were immolated to their vengeance ; and the narrow escape of Aidan with a handful of attendants proved an instruc- tive lesson to him and his successors. For more than a century no king of the Scots dared to meet the Northumbrians in battle '*^ At the death of iElla, the founder of the kinodom of Deira, Adventures of . . / _ . lidwin. Edilfrid, Avho had married his daughter, took possession of his dominions. ^Ua had left a male child of the name of Edwin, " Bed. ii. 15. near Jedburgb. Aidan was the seventh of " Id. i. 34. The stone of Degsa is thought the Scottish kings, reckoning Loarn for the to be either Dalston near Carlisle, or Dawston first. 0"Conor Proleg. i. p. cxxvi. (i. p. Ixxxiii. II. 88 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, about three years old, who was conveyed beyond the reach of the tyrant, and, intrusted to the protection of Cad van, the king of North Wales. The hospitality of the British prince drew on him the vengeance of the Northumbrian ; and the two armies met in the vicinity of Chester. On the summit ofa neighbouring hill Edilfrid espied an unarmed crowd, the monks of Bangor, who, like Moses in the wilderness, had hoped by their prayers to determine the fate of the battle. " If they pray," exclaimed the pagan, " they also fight against us ;" and ordered a detach- ment of his army to put them to the sword. Victory was, as usual, true to his standard. Chester was taken and Bangor demolished. Its scattered ruins demonstrated to subsequent generations the extent of that celebrated monastery ^'^. The son of ^lla, who was incessantly harassed by the jealousy of Edilfrid, wandered from the hospitable mansion of Cadvan through the different principalities of the Britons and Saxons. At last he found an asylum in the court of Redwald. The fidelity of that prince was immediately attempted to be shaken by the threats and promises of Edilfrid : and after a long struggle he preferred the friendship of a powerful monarch to the danger of protecting a solitary exile. On the very evening, while the council deliberated on his fate, Edwin was sitting alone in the dark at the gate of the palace, when a friendly voice whis- pered in his ear that it was time to fly, for the king had given his assent to the demands of his enemy. " I have known too " much misery," replied the prince, " to be anxious for life. " If I must die, no death can be more acceptable than that " which is inflicted by royal treachery." He remained in the " Bed. ii. 2. The number of the monks the monks had assembled to pray. Ho sup- slain on the hill is generally said to have been poses tliat the victory of Edilfrid fulfdlod the 1200, but Bede observes that others besides prediction of Augustine. 3 ANGLO-SAXONS. sv same place musing on his melancholy situation, when a favour- chap. able dream, which had considerable influence on his subsequent ' conduct, afforded him a faint gleam of hope, and his friend, stealing to him a second time, informed him that he was safe. The solicitations of the queen had overcome the perfidious resolve of her husband ^^. The moment Redwald determined to reject the proposals of <>><•■ ■n i-ir • ^ 1 ii • r ■ • • i • Dr-atli of Jiidilnid, he saw the necessity or anticipating his resentment. lidiiiVi.i. The Northumbrian with a small body of followers was hastening to surprise his enemy, when he was met by the whole of the East-Ansilian forces on the rio;ht bank of the Idel in Nottina;- liamshire. They were skilfully (so we are told) arrayed in three bodies : and their helmets, spears, and banners gave them a martial and formidable appearance. Edilfrid, though dis- concerted, scorned to retire; and rushing on the first division^ destroyed it with its leader, Ra^genheri or Rainer, the son of Redwald. But the Nortliumbrians were quickly trampled under foot by the multitude of the East-Anglians : and the king, having opened with his sword a way into the midst of his enemies, fell on the bodies of those whom he had slain. The conquerors hastened to improve their advantage. By the men of Deira Edwin was received with acclamations of joy : the children of Edilfrid fled into the north of the island ; and the Bernicians submitted cheerfully to the good fortune of the son of iElia. Redwald, having placed his friend on the united throne of the two kingdoms, returned in triumph to his dominions ^^. *' Bed. ii. 12. » Ibid. Chron. Sax. p. 27. Hunt. 181. VOL. I. N 90 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. 11. ==' EDWIN, BUETWALDA V. Reign ofEd- ^he martial senius of Edilfrid had raised Nortliumbria to an win. Gi(>. e "•* equality with the most powerful of the Anglo-Saxon states : under the government of Edwin it assumed a marked superiority, and conferred the title of Bretwalda on him, and his inmi.ediate successors. The steps by which he ascended to this pre- eminence, are not recorded : but the history of his conversion to Christianity has been preserved by the pen of the venerable Bede. i^nxarriag-e. jjj ^Y\e ninth year of his reign Edwin had married Edilberga, the daughter of Ethclbert, the deceased king of Kent. The z.eal of Eadbald had previously stipulated that his sister should enjoy the free exercise of her religion : and had obtained from Edwin a promise that he would himself examine the evidences of the christian faith. The queen was accompanied by Paulinus, a Roman missionary, who had lately received the episcopal consecration. The king faithfully observed his word : but, though he made no attempt to alter the faith of Edilberga, he shewed no inclination to embrace it himself. It was in vain that Paulinus preached ; that the queen entreated, that pope Boniface sent letters and presents. Edwin appeared immove- ably attached to the woi'ship of his fathers. Attempt to The kingdom of Wessex was now governed by two princes, Edwin. (536. Cuicliclm and Cynegils, the successors of Ceolwulf. They bore with impatience the superiority assumed by Edwin ; and, unable to contend with him in the field, attempted to remove him by assassination. Eumer, in quality of an envoy from Cuichclm, demanded an audience of Edwin. He had concealed under his ANGLO-SAXONS. .01. clothes a two-edged dagger, which had been previously dipped in <"-'>! VP. poison : and while the king earnestly listened to his discourse, '_ the assassin aimed a desperate stroke at his breast. His design did not escape the eye of tlie faithful Lilla, Avho threw himself between Edwin ajid the dagger, and fell dead at the feet of his master. So great was the force of the stroke, that the kino- was wounded through the body of his attendant. Every sword was instantly drawn : but Eumer defended himself with such desperate courage, that he killed Frodheri, another thane, before he was overpowered by numbers. The preceding night Edilberga had been delivered of a daugh- ter, and Edwin publicly returned thanks to the gods for his own preservation, and the health of his consort. Paulinus did not omit the opportunity of ascribing both events to the protection of Christ, whose resurrection from the grave had been that very day celebrated by the queen. His discourse made impression on the mind of the king, who permitted him to baptize his daughter, and promised to become a christian, if he returned victorious from his meditated expedition against the perfidious king of Wessex ^^ At the head of a powerful army, Edwin marched against his HisreTenge enemies. The two brothers were defeated ; five of the West- Saxon chieftains fell in the battle ; and the country was pillaged by the victors. Having satisfied his resentment, the king returned to Northumbria, and was reminded of his promise by Paulinus. From that moment he abstained from the worship and of his gods : though he still hesitated to embrace Christianity. He consulted altei'nately his priests and the missionary, and revolved in sohtude their opposite arguments. His mind was " Bed. ii. 9. Chron. Sax. 27. N 2 conver- sion. 92 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, stronalv influenced bv the recollection of his dream in East- II _______ Anglia ; and as it had been fulfilled in every other particular, it became his duty to accomplish it by becoming a christian. Having taken his resolution, he called an assembly of his witan or counsellors, and required each to state his sentiments on the subject. The first, who ventured to speak, was Coifh, the high-priest, Avho, instead of opposing, advised the adoption of the foreign worship. His motive was singular. No one, he said, had served the gods more assiduously than himself, and yet few had been less fortunate. He was weary of deities, who were so indifferent or so ungrateful, and would willingly try his fortune under the new religion. To this profound theologian succeeded a thane, whose discourse, while it proves the good sense of the speaker, exhibits a striking picture of national manners. He sought for information respecting the origin and the destiny of man. " Often," said he, " O king, in the depth " of winter, while you are feasting Avith your thanes, and the " fire is blazing on the hearth in the midst of the hail, you have " seen a bird, pelted by the storm, enter at one door, and " escape at the other. During its passage it was visible : but " whence it came, or whither it went, yoii knew not. Such to " me appears the life of man. He walks the earth for a few " years : but what precedes his birth, or Avhat is to follow after " his death, we cannot tell. Undoubtedly, if the new religion " can unfold these important secrets, it must be worthy our " attention." At the comnion request Paulinus was. introduced, and explained the principal doctrines of Christianity. Coifii declared himself a convert, and to prove his sincerity, offered to set fire to the neighbouring temple of Godmundham. With the permission of Edwin, he called for a horse and arms, both of which were forbidden to the priests of the Angles. As 1 ANGLO-SAXONS. 93 he rode along, he was followed by crowds, who attributed his CHAP. . . II conduct to a temporary insanity. To their astonishment, bidding " defiance to the gods of his fathers, he struck his spear into the wall of the temple. They had expected that the fires of heaven would have revenged the sacrilege. The impunity of the apos- tate dissipated their alarms : and urged by his example and exhortations they united in kindling the flames, which with the fane consumed the deities, that had been so long the objects of their terror and veneration ''^ When Gregory the Great arranged the future economy of the Anglo-Saxon church, he directed that the northern metro- politan should fix his residence at York. Edwin accordingly bestowed on Paulinus a house and possessions in that city, and was baptized in a church hastily erected for the ceremony. Pope Honorius was immediately informed of the event; and at his request granted the use of the pallium to the archbishops of Canterbury and York, with the permission, that when one of these prelates died, the survivor should consecrate his successor, without waiting to consult the Roman pontiff. To Paulinus Edwin continued to prove himself a patron and assistant: and his mansions at Yeverin in Glendale, and at Catterick in York- shire, were long respected by posterity, as the places where their fathers had been instructed in the doctrine of the gospel, and had received the sacrament of baptism. Nor could his zeal be satisfied with the conversion of his own subjects. At the death of Redwald, the thanes of East-Anglia, who had witnessed his virtues and abilities, offered him the regal dignity. His gratitude declined it in favour of Eorpwald, the son of his 627. benefactor : and his piety prompted him to explain to the young '-' Bed. ii. 13. 631. 94 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, king the principles of Christianity. But Eorpwald was slain " after a short reign of three years : and the conversion of the East-Angles was reserved for the united efforts of Sigebert, his brother and successor, and of Felix, a Burgundian prelate, who received his mission from Honorius, archbishop of Canterbury ^^. Edwin's The empire of Edwin was more extensive than that of any power. preceding Bretwalda. The islands of Anglesey and Man were subject to his authority"*; all the princes of the Britons paid him tribute; and if among the Saxon kings, Eadbald of Kent- retained a nominal independence, he owed the benefit, not to his own power, but to the influence of his sister Edilberga. As a token of his authority, the Northumbrian assumed a distinc- tion unknown to the Saxons ; and the Tufa, a military ensign of Roman origin, was always borne before him, when he appeared in public. Anxious to enforce the observance of the laws, he severely punished every act of theft or rapacity : and the advantages resulting from his inflexible admini- stration of justice were long preserved in the recollection of posterity by a proverb,- the truth of which is attested by Bede : " that in the days of Edwin a woman with a babe at her " breast might have travelled over the island without suffering " an insult." On the highways, at convenient intervals, he placed cisterns of stone to collect water from the nearest foun- tains, and attached to them cups of brass for the refreshment of passengers ; an improvement which in the seventh century excited applause and gratitude^'. His death. After the death of Ceorl of Mercia, Penda, the son of his predecessor, possessed the power, without the title, of " Bed. ii. 14, 15. " " Id. ii. 5. 9. 16. The tufa is supposed by * Anglesey was computed at 960 hide.s, some to have been a globe, by otlK;is a tuft Man at something more than 300. Bed. ii. 9. of feathers, fixed on a spear. ANGLO-SAXONS. 9^ king*". He was then advanced in age, a brave and experienced ^'Hap. warrior, and of insatiable aniljition. For seven years he bore with " 633. impatience the superiority of the Northumbrian : at last he found in Ceadwalla, king of Gwynez or North Wales, an asso- ciate of equal daring and of similar views. They united their annies, unfurled the standard of rebellion, and marched into Yorkshire. The battle was fought at Hatfield between the Don and the Torre. The Northumbrian army was routed ; and Edwin perished with great part of his followers. Of his sons by his first wife Quoenburga, the daughter of Ceorl, Osfrid was slain with his father, Eadfrid implored the protection of his relation Penda, and was afterwards murdered by him in violation of his oath. Ethelburga with her children and Paulinus escaped by sea to the court of her brother in Kent''^. The confederates exercised without mercy the licence of Suffeiinjrs of rni 1-rr i • i- • n i -r> • the iNoithuni- victory. Ihey chriered m religion; for the Jiritons were ijnaiis. christians, the Mercians idolaters : but both were equally solicitous to wreak their resentment on the vanquished, the one that they might revenge the injuries formerly inflicted on their country, the other that they might punish these apostates from the worship of their fathers. Of the two the Britons were the more savage. They spared neither age nor sex : and their cruelty, instead of being appeased by the death, exulted in the torture of their captives. Having spread devastation from one end of the country to the other, they separated. Ceadwalla remained to accomplish his boast of utterly exterminating the Northumbrians ; Penda marched with his Mercians into the territory of the East-Angles. Sigebert their king had lately 63^. " By the Saxon chronicle (p. 28), and most 22, which places the first year of his reign at ether writers, he is said to have begvin his the period of the battle of Hatfield. reign in 62C. and to have reigned 30 years : " Bed. ii. 20. Chron. Sax. p. 2S. but Bede expressly says that he reigned but 1 96 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, retired into a monastery, and had resigned the honours and cares ______ of ro} ahy to his cousin Egeric : but the East-Angles were alarnjed at the approaching danger, and clamorous!}^ demanded the aged monarch, who had so often led them to victory. — With reluctance he left the tranquillity of his cell, to mix in the tumult Q^the combat. But arms were refused b}' the royal monk as repugnant to liis profession, and he directed with a wand the operations of the army. The fortune of the Mercians prevailed : and both Sigebert and Egeric fell in the service of their country ^^. OSWALD, Bretwalda VL Murder of the The uufortunatc death of Edwin dissolved for a short period kin^s. the union of the Northumbrian kinodoms. Amono; the Deiri the family of ^lla retained the ascendancy; and the scepier was placed in the hands, not indeed of the children of Edwin, but of their cousin Osric, a prince mature in age, and ex- perienced in battle. In Bernicia the memory of Ida was still cherished with gratitude, and Eanfrid, the eldest of the sons of Edilfrid, returning from his retreat in the mountains of Cale- donia, ascended the throne of his ancestors. Each of these princes had formerly received baptism, Osric from Paulinus, Eanfrid from the monks of St. Columba : and each with equal 6M. facility relapsed into the errors of paganism. If their ambition was satisfied with the possession of royalty, they quickly paid the price of it with their blood. Ccadwalla still continued his ravages. He was in the city of York, when Osric hastening to surprise him, was attacked unexpectedly himself, and " Bed. ii. 20. iii. 18. ANGLO-SAXONS. 97 perished on tlie spot. Eanfrid, terrified by the fate of Osric and CHAP, the fame of Ceadwalla, visited the Briton with only twelve at- " tondants, sohcited for peace, and was perfidiously put to death. The indignant piety of the Northumbrians expunged the names of these apostate princes from the catalogue of their kings : and the time in which they reigned was distinguished in their annals by this expressive term, " the unhappy year*'." By the deaths of Osric and Eanfrid the duty of revenging his Accession of family and country devolved on Oswald, the younger of the sons of Edilfrid. Impelled by despair, he sought with a small but resolute band, the army of the Britons, and at the dawn of day discovered them negligently encamped in the neighbourhood of Hexham. Oswald had not imitated the apostacy of his brother. By his orders a cross of Avood was hastily formed, and fixed in the ground : when turning to his army he exclaimed : " Soldiers, " let us bend our knees, and beg of the true and living God to " protect us from the insolence and ferocity of our enemies : for " he knows that our cause is just, and that we fight for the " salvation of our country." They obeyed his orders, and knelt down to pray : from prayer they rose to battle : and victory was the reward of their piety and valour. Ceadwalla was slain : and > his invincible army was annihilated. By the common consent of the Bernicii and Deiri Oswald assumed the government of the two nations. He was allied to each : for, if he was descended by his father from Ida, by his mother Acha he numbered iElla among his progenitors *^. The piety of Oswald, which ascribed his success to the Conversion of interposition of Heaven, prompted him to solicit from his brians!*'^ former teachers, a supply of missionaries, who might instruct his " Bed. iii. 1. 9. " Id. iii. 2. B. VOL. I. O 98 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, people in the doctrines of the gospel. The first who was sent, ' Gorman, a monk of a morose and rigid disposition, soon returned in disgust to his monastery: but when in presence of the community he accused the ignorance and barbarism of the Nor- thumbrians, he received a severe and sensible rebuke. " Brother," exclaimed a voice, " the fault was your's. You exacted from *' the pagans more than their weakness would bear. You should " have first stooped to them, and gradually have raised their " minds to the sublime truths of the gospel." At the sound every eye was fixed on the speaker, a private monk of the name of Aidan, who was chosen as the successor of Gorman by the unanimous suffrage of his brethren. Having received the epis- copal consecration he repaired to the court of Oswald, who condescended to explain in English the instructions, whic;h the bishop delivered in his native language. Aidan received from the king the donation of the isle of Lindisfarne, since called Holy Island, in which he built a monastery, long an object of veneration to the Northumbrians. With unwearied perseverance he traversed every part of the kingdom ; and his efforts were seconded by the industr}^ of several zealous monks, who had abandoned their native country to partake in his labours. The austerity of his life, his contempt of riches, his charity to the poor, and his attachment to the duties of his profession, gained the hearts, while his arguments convinced the understanding, of his proselytes. Ghristianity soon became the predominant reli- gion in Northumbria*'\ Oswald not only claimed that pre-eminence over the Saxons which had been possessed by his predecessor, but also compelled the princes of the Picts and Scots to number themselves among his vassals '^^. Like Edwin he also contributed to add a royal " Id. iii. 3. 5. tannia; impcrator. Cum. Vit. St. CoUim. " Bed. iii. 6. By Cuminius, a contompo- p. 44. lary Scottish monk, hy is called, totius Bri- ANGLO-SAXONS. 99 proselyte to the number of Saxon christians. At the time when CHAP. 13irinus, a foreign bishop, commissioned by pope Honorius, .. landed on the coast of Wessex, Oswald visited the same kingdom to demand the daughter of Cynegils in marriage. Their united efforts induced the monarch, his family, and principal thanes to receive the sacrament of baptism. Even the obstinacy of Cuichelm was subdued : and on his death-bed that prince pro- fessed himself a christian. Cynegils bestowed the city of Dor- chester, near the conflux of the Tame and the Isis, on the apostle : Oswald in quality of Bretwalda, confirmed the donation ^^ But the fate of Edwin awaited Oswald, and the same prince was destined to be the minister of his death. In the eighth year Death*o'f Os- of his reign, and the thirty-eighth of his age, the king of Nor- ^^'''" thumbria fought with Penda and his Mercians in the field of Maser". The pagans were victorious. Oswald, surrounded by enemies, was slain. His last words were repeated by the grati- tude of the Northumbrians, and a proverb preserved them in the remembrance of their posterity. " Lord have mercy on the " souls of my people," said Oswald, as he fell. The ferocity of Penda did not spare the dead body of his adversary : but severed the head and arms from the trunk, and fixed them on high poles driven into the ground. The body of Oswald was buried at Bardney, and his standard of purple and gold was suspended over the grave. The head and arms were taken do^vn the year after his death by Oswio his successor, and deposited, the head in the monastery of Lindisfarne, the arms in the royal city of Bam borough *'^. Bamborough was the first place that ventured to stop the '^ Bed. iii. 7. Shropshire: by some Winwich in Lancashira. " By most supposed to be Oswestre in " Id. iii. 9. U, 12. Chron. Sax. p. 32. o 2 100 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. II. destructive progress of the Mercians after the battle of Maser- field. Situated on a rock, and protected on one side by a steep ascent, on the other by the waters of the ocean, it bade defiance to their utmost exertions. But the genius of Penda was fertile in expedients, and that which he adopted, displays the ferocity of hi:3 disposition. By his order the neighbouring villages were demolished ; every combustible material was collected from the ruins, and reared up against the walls ; and as soon as the wind blew fiercely towards the city, fire was set to the pile. Aheady were the smoke and flames wafted over the heads of the trem- bling inhabitants, when the wind suddenly changed, and the fire spent its fury in the opposite direction. Chagrined and con- founded Penda raised the siege, and led back his amiy ^^ Reign of Oswio. Murder of Oswin. 644. OSWIO, Bretwalda VII. The retreat of Penda afforded leisure to the Northumbrian thanes to elect a successor to Oswald. The object of their choice was his brother Oswio, who inherited the abilities of his predecessor, and who, to strengthen his throne, married Eanfled, the daughter of Edwin ^^. But the power of the nation was now- broken : and his long reign of twenty-eight years, though it was occasionally distinguished by brilliant successes, was harassed at intervals by the inroads of the Mercians, the hostihty of his nephew Oidilwald, and the ambition of his own son Alchfrid. In the second year of his reign, he was alarmed by the claims of a dangerous competitor of the house of iElla, Oswin the son of Osric : and prudence or necessity induced him to consent to a compromise, by which he allotted Deira to his rival, but reserved lo himself Bernicia and the northern conquests. The « Bed. iii. 16. •' Bed. iii. 15. Nen. c. 44. ANGLO-SAXONS. 101 character of Oswiii has been drawn in the most amiable colours CHAP, by the pencil of the venerable Bede. He was affable, just, ' religious, and generous. His virtues were idolized by his sub- jects ; and his court was crowded with foreign Saxons, who solicited employment in his service. Six years the two princes «5i- Jived iti apparent amity with each other; but in the seventh their secret jealousy broke into open hostilities. Oswin, seeing no probability of success against the overwhelming force of his adversary, disbanded his arniy, and concealed himself with one attendant at Gilling, the house of the caldorman Hunwald. The perfidious thane betrayed him to his enemy ; and nothing but his death could satisfy the policy of Oswio. The bishop Aidan, who loved and revered him for his virtues, bitterly lamented his fate, and in twelve days followed him to the grave ""^ The Northumbrian, however, did not reap the fruit of his cruelty. Oidilwald, the son of Oswald, was placed on the throne of tlie Deiri, probably by the superior influence of Penda*^^ That restless monarch seemed determined to obtain the dignity Enmity of . b J Pcnda. of Bretwalda. He had lately expelled Coinwalch from the throne of Wessex, because that prince had repudiated his daughter Sexburga. He now directed his arms against Nor- thumbria, penetrated again as far as Bamborough, and set fire to every habitation in the line of his march '^°. Oswio, warned ess. by the fate of his immediate predecessors Edwin and Oswald, made every effort to mitigate the resentment of so formidable an enemy. He sent him the most valuable presents ; his second son Egfrid was delivered as a hostage to the care of Cynwisethc queen of Penda : and Alchfrid his eldest son married Cyneburge the daughter of the Mercian. This connexion between the two / " Bed. iii. U. «" Ibid, aud c. S3, 24. '» Bed. iii. 17. 102 HISTORY OF ENGLAND, CHAP, families brought Peada, the son of Penda, to the Northumbrian II . • . court on a visit to his sister. There he saw and admired Alch- fleda, the daughter of Oswio : but the difference of rehgion would have opposed an insuperable obstacle to their union, had not Alchfrid prevailed on his friend to listen to the teachers, and embrace the doctrines of Christianity. When his sincerity was questioned, he replied with warmth, that no consideration, not even the refusal of Alchtleda, should provoke him to return to the worship of Woden : and at his departure he took with him four priests to instruct his subjects, the southern Mercians, or Middle-Angles, whom he governed with the title of king during the life of his father. It Avas to be feared that the conversion of Peada would irritate the fanaticism of Penda : but the old king, though he persevered in his attachment to the religion of his ancestors, expressed his admiration of the morality of the gospel, and permitted it to be taught to his subjects. To the converts however he shrewdly observed, that as they had preferred the new worship, it was but just that they should practise its pre- cepts : and that every individual would incur his displeasure, who should unite the manners of the paganism which he had abjured, with the profession of the Christianity which he had embraced '^^ e"- About the same time another royal proselyte Avas led to the waters of baptism. By gratitude Sigeberct, king of Essex, was attached to Oswio, and paid frequent visits to the court of Nor- thumbria. Oswio laboured to convince his friend of the folly of idolatry. He frequently inculcated that images formed by the hand of the artist, could possess none of the properties of the Deity : and that the God, who deserved the worship of man, must be an almighty and eternal being, the creator, the ruler, " Id. c. 21. ANGLO-SAXONS. 10.5 CHAP. II. and the disposer of the universe '^ Sigcbcrct hstencd attentively to his royal instructor, consulted the thanes who attended him, and was ba|)tized by Finan, the successor of Aidan, at Wau- boltle in Northumberland. The presbyter Cedd was conse- crated bishop of the East Saxons, and fixed his residence in London. But Penda had acain sunuuoncd his INfercians to arms. The Defeat and 1 • r 1 IT A 1 deatli of first victim of his resentment was Anna, kmi^ot the iLast-Angles, Penda. . 654 who for three years had afiorded an asylum to Coinwalch, king of Wessex. He fell in battle, and was succeeded by his brother Edilhere, who artfully directed the hostility of the con- queror against the Northumbrians. It was in vain that Oswio endeavoured to avert the danger by the offer of submission and tribute. The Mercian declared that it was his object to exter- minate the whole nation : the presents, which had been sent, were distributed among his auxiliaries ; and thirty vassal chief- tains, Saxons and Britons, swelled with their followers the numbers of his army. Despair at last nerved the courage of Oswio. With his son Alchfred, and a small but resolute force, he advanced to meet the multitude of the invaders. The night before the eventful contest, he fervently implored the assistance of heaven, and vowed, if he returned victorious, to devote his infant daughter iElfleda to the monastic profession. In the morning Oidilwald, ashamed perhaps of fighting against his countrymen, separated from the Mercians, and remained at a distance a quiet spectator of the combat. The valour or despair of the Northumbrians prevailed. Of the thirty vassal chief- tains who served under the banner of the Mercian, only Oidil- wald, and Catgubail the British king of Gwynez, escaped. Penda did not survive the destruction of his army. This hoary '• Id. iii. 22. ]04 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, veteran, who had reached his eightieth year, and had stained his ' sword with the blood of three kings of the East-Angles, and of two of the Northumbrians, had been carried from the field by the crowd of the fugitives, but was overtaken ])y the pursuers, and put to death. The battle was fought at Winwidfield near Leeds ; and the Are, Avhich had overflowed its banks, swept away more of the Mercians in their flight, than had fallen by the sword of the enemy. The Anglo-Saxons were accustomed to preserve by proverbs the memory of remarkable events. Of this victory it was usually said : " In Winwid's stream was revenged " the death of Anna, the deaths of Sigebert and Egeric, and the " deaths of Edwin and Oswald ''V The fall of Penda and the annihilation of his army opened an unexpected prospect to the ambition of Oswio. With rapidity he over-ran East-Anglia and Mercia ; subdued the astonished inhabitants ; and made them feel the miseries, which they had so often inflicted. Mercia he divided into two portions. The provinces on the north of the Trent he annexed to his own dominions : those on the south, out of compassion for his daughter, he permitted to remain under the government of her husband Peada. But that unfortunate prince did not long enjoy the donation. At the next festival of Easter he perished, by the treacher}^, it is said, of his wife : and his territory was imme- diately occupied by the Northumbrians. Dedication of The obligations of his vow now demanded the attention of Oswio. ^Iflcda, a child not one year old, was entrusted to the care of the abbess Hilda: and her dower was fixed at one hun- dred and twenty hides of land in Bcrnicia, and an equal number in Dcira. This munificent donation enabled the sisterhood to remove from Hartlepool to a more convenient situation at " Bed. ill. 24. Nenn. c. 64. Ale. de Pont, apud Gale, p. 712. ANGLO-SAXONS. 105 Whitby, where the ro^al nun lived the space of fifty-nine years chap. in the practice of the monastic duties, during one half of which ' she exercised the office of abbess. The king soon after endowed another monastery at Giiling. His conscience still reproached him with the blood of Oswin : and at the solicitation of his queen Eantled, he established, on the very spot in which that prince had been slain, a comnmnity of monks who were charged with the obligation of offering up daily prayers for the soul of the murdered king, and for that of his kingly murderer^*. Oswio was now Bretwalda in the fullest sense of the word. q°^,^J '^ The union of Mercia with Northumbria had placed under his control a greater extent of territory, than had belonged to any of his predecessors : the princes of the Britons and Saxons unanimously submitted to his authority ; and the greater part of the Picts and Scots were careful to avert his enmity by the pay- ment of annual tribute. Yet long before his death his power suffered a considerable diminution '^^. Three Mercian ealdormen, Immin, Eafha and Eadbert, took up arms to recover the inde- pendence of their country ; expelled the Northumbrian magis- trates ; and conferred the sceptre on a prince, whom they had anxiously concealed from the researches of the Bretwalda, Wulphere, the younger son of Penda. In defiance of the Nor- thumbrian he retained his authority, and united under his go- vernment the Mercians, the Middle-Angles, and the Lindiswaras, or natives of the county of Lincoln. To add to the mortification of Oswio, his eldest son Alchfrid required a portion of the Nor- thumbrian territory with the title of king. A hint in Bede would lead us to suppose that he even drew the sword against his father. As Oidilwald had perished, the ambition of Alchfrid '* Bed. iii. 24. calls Britain Oswio's island. Suam insulam. " Bed. ii. 5. iii. 24. Hence pope Vitalian Id. iii. 29. VOL. I. p 106 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. li. Religious disputes. was gratified, and a kingdom was assigned him in the country of the Deiri ^^ From politics Oswio directed the attention of his dechnino- years to the concerns of rehgion. Christianity had now been preached in all the Saxon kingdoms except Sussex : but as the missionaries had come from dift'erent countries, though they taught the same doctrine, they disagreed in several points of ecclesiastical discipline. Of these the most important regarded the canonical time for the celebration of Easter, a subject, which had for several centuries disturbed the peace of the church. That it depended on the commencement of the equinoctial lunation, was universally admitted : but according to the Roman astronomers that lunation might begin as early as the fifth, according to the Alexandrian it could not begin before the eighth, day of March. The consequence of this diversity of opinion was, that when the new moon fell on the fifth, sixth, or seventh of that month, the Latin celebrated the feast of Easter a full lunation before the Greek, christians". In the middle of the sixth century the Roman church, weary of the disputes occasioned by these different computations, had adopted a new cycle, which agreed in every important point with the Alexan- drian calculation. But this improvement was unknown to the British christians, wiio at that period were wholly emploj^ed in opposing the invaders of their country; and they continued to observe the ancient cycle of Sulpicius Severus, which was now become peculiar to themselves. Hence it frequently happened that Easter, and in consequence the other festivals of the year depending on that solemnity, were celebrated at different " Bed. iii. 14. iii. 21. to perplex the subject. They may be seen in " There were a few other variations in the Smith's IJede, App. ix. p. 698. and Dr. O'Con-. faschal canons, which contributed still more or, Proleg. ii. 119. ANGLO-SAXONS. 107 times by the Saxon christians, accordingly as they had been CHAP, instructed by Scottish, or by Roman and Gallic, missionaries. _.,^=__= Another, but subordinate subject of dispute was the form of the ecclesiastical tonsure. A custom had long prevailed that the clergy should be distinguished by the manner in which they Avore their hair : and the missionaries, not acquainted with the different modes prevailing in different countries, were at their first meeting mutually surprised and shocked at what they deemed the uncanonical appearance of each other. The Romans shaved the crown of the head, and considered the surrounding circle of hair as a figure of the wreath of thorns, which had been fixed on the temples of Christ by the cruelty of his perse- cutors. The Scots permitted the hair to grow on the back, but shaved in the form of a crescent the front of the head. The former pleaded in defence of their tonsure that it had descended to them from St. Peter, and accused their adversaries of wearing the distinctive mark of Simon Magus and his disciples. The latter could not disprove the assertions of their adversaries, but contended that their method of shaving the head, however im- pious in its origin, had been sanctified by the virtues of those who had practised it. Each party obstinately adhered to its own custom, and severely condemned that of the other. If such questions could divide the missionaries, it cannot be Uniformity established, surprising that they should perplex their disciples. The restora- est. tion of concord was reserved for the zeal and authority of Oswio. He, with the majority of his subjects, had derived the knowledge of Christianity from the Scots : his queen Eanfled, and his son Alchfrid had been educated by the disciples of the Romans. Thus Oswio saw his own family divided into factions : and the same solemnities celebrated at different times in his own palace. Desirous to procure uniformity, he summoned the champions of p2 108 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, the two parties to meet at Whitby, and to discuss the merits of II their respective customs. Wilfrid, afterwards bishop of York, rested the cause of the Romans on the authority of St. Peter, and the practice of the universal church, which ought not to yield to the pretensions of a few obscure congregations of chris- tians on the western shores of Britain. Colnian boasted of the sanctity of St. Columba, the apostle of the north, and contended that nothing should be changed, which he and his successors had sanctioned with their approbation. Oswio terminated the debate by declaring that he should prefer the institutions of St. Peter to those of St. Columba. The decision was applauded by the majority of the meeting : and of the Scottish monks, several conformed to the practice of their opponents, the others retned in silent discontent to the parent monastery in the isle of Hii^^. Yellow jjj ii^Q same year, the twenty-second of Oswio, the beginning of the month of May was rendered remarkable by a total eclipse of the sun. The ignorance of the observers did not fail to pre- dict the most alarming disasters : and the event seemed to jus- tify their predictions. The summer was extremely dry : the heavens, to use the expression of an ancient chronicler, appeared to be on fire; and a pestilence of the most fatal description (it was called the yellow plague) depopulated the island '^^ It made its first appearance on the southern coasts, and gradually advancing towards the north, had ravaged before winter both Deira and Bcrnicia. It reached Ireland in the beginning of August. The symptoms of this destructive disease have not been described by historians: but it baffled all the medical science of the natives : and many of the East-Saxons, unable to '• Ikd. iii. 25, 26. '" Compare Bede (iii. xxvii.) with th»- Uluter Anuals (Usher, Ant. Brit. p. 'J-JS.). ANGLO-SAXONS. 109 jiccouiit for it on natural grounds, attributed it to the anger of chap. . . . , II the gods, and reverted to tlicir former idolatry. Trom the ' instances recorded in Bede, it appears tliat many died in tiie course of a single day, and that of those who caught the inlcc- tion, hardly more than one in thirty recovered. During twenty years it visited and revisited the ditferent provinces of Britain and Ireland. Bede does not attempt to calculate the amount of its ravages: but is content with the vague terms of depopu- lated districts, and multitudes of dead. In Ireland an ancient writer computes its victims at two-thirds of the inhabitants ^°' The highlands of Caledonia were alone free from this dreadful visitation. The natives piously ascribed the exemption to the intercession of their patron saint Columba, and persuaded them- selves that even in the infected countries they were inaccessible to its attacks. Adamnan, the abbot of Icolmkilie, relates, with obvious emotions of national pride, that twice during this period he visited the king of Northumbria, and, though he lived in the midst of the contagion, though numbers were daily dying around him, neither he, nor any of his attendants, ever took the infection "^ The pestilence had no sooner appeared than it was fatal to Theo-iore ,.. •!, arclibishop oi several or tlie most distmguished characters in the island. Cat- <-'anterbur>. gualet, king of Gwynez, Ercombert of Kent, Ethelwald of Sussex, Deusdedit archbishop of Canterbury, the bishops of London and Lindisfarne, Boisil, the celebrated abbot of Mailros, and Ethelburga, the royal abbess of Berking, were among t!ie first of its victims. The death ot the metropolitan aflorded Oswio an opportunity of promoting his favourite system of religious uniformity. He consulted with Egbert, the new king •" Vit. Geral. Sax. apud Ant. Bnt p. 1164. " Adiimn. Vit. St. Columb. ii. c. .xlvii. p. 133. 110 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. II. Death of Oswio. of Kent; and by their concurrence, the presbyter Wighard, who had been chosen to succeed to the archiepiscopal dignity, was sent to Rome to ask the advice of the ApostoUc see. But in that city the new prelate fell a victim to the pestilence which he had escaped in his own countrj^ : and his death was announced in a letter to Oswio from pope Vitalicin. The pontiff, however, assured the king that he would gratify his Avishes by selecting for the church of Canterbury a person equal to so exalted a station : and after some delay Theodore, a monk of Tarsus, whose virtue and erudition had been honoured with general applause, landed in Kent, with the title of archbishop of Bri- tain. His authority was immediately acknowledged by all the Saxon prelates : new bishoprics were established ; synods were held ; and uniformity of discipline was every where observed. Oswio died in 670. With him expired both the title and the authority of Bretwalda. The power of Northumbria had for some years been on the decline; while the neighbouring state of Mercia, created by the genius of Penda, had gradually matured its strength, and the southern kingdom of Wessex had with a slow but steady progress constantly advanced in the sub- jugation of the Britons. These three rival nations will, in the following chapter, solicit the attention of the reader : the more feeble kingdoms of Essex, Kent, East-Anglia and Sussex, some- times the allies, but generally the vassals of their more powerful neighbours, cannot awaken sufficient interest to deserve a more detailed and separate narration. ANGLO-SAXONS. Ill CHAP. III. ANGLO-SAXONS. KINGS OF NORTIIUMBRIA OF MERCIA ETHELBALD OFFA- CENULF— OF WESSEX—CiEADWALLA—INA—CYNEWULF— EGBERT —ETHELWULF— ETHELBALD— ETHELBERT—ETHELUED. NORTHUMBRIA. h ROM Oswio the Northumbrian sceptre was transferred to chap. the hands of Egfrid, the elder of his surviving sons \ The Picts, ^"• despising the youth of the new monarch, assembled under their ~ ^"~*~~" . -^ , , , , 1 , 1 • • 1 1 -i^ T-i r- • I Northumbrian pnnce Bernherth, and asserted then* mdependence. But Lgfnd, kings. with a vigour which surprised and dismayed tliem, put hinjself at the head of a body of horse, entered their territory, defeated them in a bloody battle, and compelled them to submit again to the superior power of the Northumbrians. With equ;^ expe- ' Malmsbury (20, 21.) and several later timate, and thought to be the son of Oswio. ■writers say that Alchfrid the elder son was He lived in spontaneous exile among the Scots still alive, but rejected on account of illeglti- through his desire of knowledge, and was macy : and that he ascended the throne after called to the throne after the decease of the the death of Egfrid. From a diligent exami- legitimate offspring of Oswio. See Bede, p, nation of Bede it appears to me that they have iW. 132. 178. 206, 207. 234. 247. 293. confounded Alchfrid, and Aldfrid, and made Also the poem De Abbat. Lindis. in act. SS, the two but one person, Aldfrid was illegi- Bened. p. 305. 112 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, dition he anticipated and defeated the designs of Wulphere king . of Mercia, who numbered among his vassals most of the southern chieftains. The victory broke for a while the power of the Mer- cians. Wulphere died soon after : and his kingdom was at first seized by the Northumbrian, but restored to Ethelred, who had married Osthr3'da, the sister of Egfrid". Religious prejudice has conferred an adventitious interest on the reign of Egfrid ; and his quarrel with ^V^ilfrid, the celebrated bishop of York, occupies a distinguished but disproportion- ate space in our modern histories. Wilfrid was a noble Northumbrian, who had travelled for improv^ement ; and after his return from Italy, had been selected as the instructor and confidant of Alchfrid, the son of Oswio. When Tuda died, Wilfrid was chosen to succeed him in the bishopric of York, and was sent by the two princes into Gaul to be consecrated by his friend Agilberct, bishop of Paris. AVhether it was that during his absence, the quarrel arose between Oswio and his son, or that the party of the Scottish missionaries had acquired the ascendancy, as is intimated by Eddius, Wilfrid, at his return, found Ceadda in possession of the episcopal dignity, and retired peacefully to his monastery at Rippon. But Theo- dore of Canterbury restored Wilfrid, and translated Ceadda to Lichfield. Oswio acquiesced in the decision of the metropolitan, and the bishop enjoyed for several years his friendship, and that of his successor Egfrid ^ Egfrid's first wife was Edilthryda, the daughter of Anna king of the East- Angles, and widow of Tondberct, ealdorman of the Girvii. At an early period in life she had bound herself by a vow of virginity, which was respected by the piety or indiffer- • Edd. Vit. Wilf. six. xx. 61, 62. Bed. iv. 12. ' Edd. i— xv. Bed. iii. 28. iv. 3. v. 19. ANGLO-SAXONS. 113 ence of her husband. At his death she was demanded by Oswio CHAP, for his son Egfrid, a youth of only fourteen years : and in spite " of her remonstrances was conducted by her relations to the court of Northumbria. She persisted in her former resolution; and Eo-frid, when he ascended the throne, referred the matter to the decision of Wilfrid, having previously offered him a valuable present if he could prevail on Edilthryda to renounce her early vow. The prelate however approved of it: the princess took the veil at Coldingham : and the friendship between Wilfrid and Egfrid was considerably impaired. The king now married Ermenburga, a princess, the violence of whose character excited the discontent of the people, and the remonstrances of the bishop. The freedom of his admonitions mortified her pride, and she found in her husband the willing minister of her vengeance *. In the exercise of his authority archbishop Theodore was always severe, occasionally despotic. He had already deposed three of the Saxon prelates ; and Wilfrid was destined to experience the same fate. At the solicitation of Egfrid and Ermenburga, he came 678. to Northumbria, divided the ample diocese of York into three portions ; and consecrated three new prelates, one for Bernicia, a second for Deira, and a third for the Lindiswaras. But Wilfrid did not submit in silence. He complained that he had been deprived without notice or accusation ; and, with the advice of his episcopal colleagues, appealed to the equity of the sovereign pontiff. The appeal was admitted. The injured pre- late prosecuted it in person : Canwald, a monk, appeared as the advocate of Theodore. After a patient hearing Pope Agatho decided, that Wilfrid should be restored to his former bishopric ; ♦ Bed. iv. 19. Edd. xxiv. VOL. I. Q 114 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, but that he should select three proper persons out of his own ^^^" clergy, should ordain them bishops, and divide among them the more distant parts of his diocese ^. 680 Egfrid and Ermenburga had made several fruitless attempts to intercept the prelate on his journey : at his return they threw him into prison, and during nine months endeavoured by the alternate employment of lenity and rigour, of promises and threats, to extort a confession that the papal rescript had been procured by bribery, or falsified by his contrivance. Wearied at last with his constancy, and harassed by the importunities of the abbess Ebba, they consented to his enlargement, but on the condition that he should bind himself by an oath never more to set his foot within the dominions of Egfrid. Wilfrid retired into Mercia. From Mercia he was driven by the in- trigues of his persecutors into Wessex : and from Wessex was compelled to seek an asylum among the pagans of Sussex. Edilwalch their king took him under his protection : and the exile repaid the benefit by diffusing amonghis subjects the doctrines of the gospel. The South-Saxons were the last people of the octarchy who embraced Christianity *', Egfrid's \^'ars Thougli the royal families of Northumbria and Mercia were 679. ' allied by marriage, their union had been broken by the ambition of Egfrid. The hostile armies met on the Trent : their valour • was wasted in a dubious conflict ; and peace Avas restored by the paternal exhortations of Theodore. iElfwin, the brotlier of Egfrid, had fallen in the battle : and as the honour of the king- compelled him to demand compensation, he was persuaded to accept the legal zs^ere instead of prolonging hostihties for the uncer- nHi. tain purpose of vengeance''. Afterwards, in the year preceding » Edd. xxiv— xxxi. Bed. i v. 12. v. 19. ' Edd. xxiii. Bed. iv. 21. • Edd. xxxiii— xl. Bed. iv. 13. v. 19. ANGLO-SAXONS. 115 his death, he dispatched Beorht, a warhke and sanguinary chieftain, to ravage the coast of Ireland. Of his motives for this expedition we are not informed. Bede assures us that the Irish were a harmless and friendly people. To them many of the Anoles had been accustomed to resort in search of know- ledge, and on all occasions had been received kindly, and supported gratuitously. Beorht requited their hospitality by ravaging their country, and burning their churches, mo- nasteries, and towns. The natives, unable to repel the in- vader by force, implored on the author of their wrongs the vengeance of heaven : and their imprecations were believed to be fulfilled in the following year by the unfortunate death of Egfrid. Against the advice of his council the king led an army into the territory of the Picts. Brude, the Pictish king, pru- dently retired before a superior enemy, till his pursuers had entangled themselves in the defiles of the mountains. At Drum- nechtan was fought a battle, Avhich proved most fatal to the Northumbrians : few escaped from the slaughter : Egfrid himself was found on the field by the conquerors, and honourably interred in the royal cemetery in the isle of Hii. The Picts, and Scots, and some tribes of the Britons, took advantage of this opportunity to recover their independence : Trumwin, whom Egfrid had appointed bishop at Abercorn, fled with his clergy into the south ; and of the Saxon settlers all, who had not the good fortune to make a precipitate escape, were put to the sword, or consigned to perpetual slavery ^. Egfrid had left no issue by Ermenburga ; and the Northum- brian thanes offered the crown to Aldfrid, the reputed but CHAP. 111. e8» Aldfrid illegitimate son of Oswio, During, the last reign he had retired • Bed. iii. 27. iv. 26. Edd. xliii. Chron. Sax. 45. Sim. Dun. Hist. ecc. Dun. p. 4«. Q 2 116 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, to the western isles, and had devoted the time of his exile to ' study under the instruction of the Scottish monks. His pro- ficiency obtained for him from his contemporaries the title of the learned king. Though a pacific disposition, and the diminished power of the kingdom, did not permit him to assume the supe- riority, which had been possessed by several of his predecessors, he reigned respected by his neighbours, beloved by his sub- jects, and praised by the learned whom he patronised. If he conducted in person any military expedition, it has escaped the notice of historians : but the celebrated Beorht, by his order or with his permission, attempted to obliterate the disgrace, which the late defeat had brought on the Northumbrian arms ; and, like the unfortunate Egfrid, lost in the attempt both his hfe and his army ^. 687. In the second year of his reign, Aldfrid, at the recommenda- tion of archbishop Theodore, had restored Wilfrid to his bishopric and possessions. The reconciliation was not lasting. The prelates who had been expelled by the restoration of Wil- frid, acquired the confidence of the king ; Brihtwald, the suc- cessor of Theodore, was induced to favour their cause ; and the persecuted bishop was compelled to appeal a second time to the justice of Rome. He returned with a papal testimonial of his innocence : but Aldfrid refused to see him, and he sheltered himself under the protection of Coenred of Mercia. Aldfrid 705. died in 7G5 : and in his last moments regretted his treatment of Wilfrid, and bequeathed to his successor the charge of doing justice to the injured prelate. A compromise, satisfactory to all parties, was effected in the course of the same year ^". Succession of Hitherto the actions and abilities of the Northumbrian princes Northumbnan ' '''"&«■ have demanded a more ample space : a iew pages may suffice ' Bed. V. 24. '" Bed. v. 19. Edd. xlii— Iviii. ANGLO-SAXONS. * ll7 for the history of their successors, wliich will present nothing to CHAP, the reader but one continued scene of perfidy, treason and ^ ' murder. At tiie death of Aldfrid, his son Osred was eight years old. The ealdornian Eadulf usurped the sceptre, and besieged the royal infant in Bamborough : but the people espoused the cause of Osred, and the usurper, after a tumultuous reign of two months, paid the forfeit of his treason. Bcrctfrid assumed 7u. the guardianship of the king, and chastised the incursions of the Picts in a bloody battle fought near the wall. But Osred soon emancipated himself from the restraint of his tutor : and the ungovernable youth was slain in his nineteenth year on the banks of ^\ inanderinere, in an attempt to suppress a dangerous 7i6. insurrection headed by his kinsmen, the two brothers Cauired and Osric. C'jenred possessed the throne two years, Osric eleven, at whose death it descended to Ceolwulf the brother of his predecessor. The learning and piety of Ceolwulf are at- 729. tested by venerable Bede : but he possessed neither the vigour nor the authority requisite for his station. In the second year 731. of his reign, he was seized, shorn, and shut up in a monastery. From this confinement he escaped, reascended the throne, and learned amid the splendid cares of royalty to regret the tran- quillity which he had reluctantly possessed in the cloister. After a reign of eight years, he voluntarily resigned the sceptre, 737. and embraced the monastic profession at Lindisfarne ^^ He was succeeded by his cousin Eadbert, who during a reign of one-and- twenty years enlarged the territory, and revived for a while the ancient glory of the Northumbrians. The Picts and Mer- cians felt the superiority of his arms : and with the assist nee of Ouengus, the Pictish king, he took Dunbarton from ihe Britons, " Mailros, 136. Sim. Dun. 100. 118 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, and added Cyil to his dominions. In his old age he imitated TTT • his predecessor, and received the tonsure among the clergy of the church of York, of which his brother Egbert was the arch- ''^- bishop. His retreat by some writers is attributed to compulsion ; others assign it to the impression made on his mind, by compar- ing the violent deaths of two contemporary princes with the peaceful exit of Ceolwulf ^". Oswulf, the son of Eadbert, was '59- slain by a conspiracy of his thanes soon after his accession : and the sceptre by the suffrage of the people was placed in the hands of Edilwold, a noble Northumbrian. But the descend- ants of Ida, who claimed it as the right of their family, con- sidered him an usurper. The death of Oswin, his principal opponent, who fell in a battle which lasted three days in the vicinity of Melrose, seemed to confirm him on the throne : but after a troublesome reign of six years he resigned, in an assembly of the witan at Finchley, in favour of Alchred, a 765. prince of the line of Ida ^^. The inconstancy of the Northum- brian thanes was fatal to the ambition of their monarchs. Alchred, abandoned by those who had placed him on the throne, fled for protection to Kennet king of the Picts, and was succeeded by Ethelred, the son of Edilwold, of whom we know only, that in the fifth year of his reign, his army was twice defeated by two rebel ealdormen Ethelwald and Heardbert, and ^'^®- that the loss of his three principal captains induced him to fly, and leave the sceptre to Alfwold the son of Oswulf^*. Alfwold's reign was as tumultuous as those of his predecessors. Beorn his principal minister was burnt to death in Silton by a party of tlmnes, whose enmity he had incurred by the equity of his " Auct. Bed. p. 224. Sim. Dun. p. 105. '* Chron. Sax. 62. Sim. Dun. 107, 108. Hunt. 196. Mailros, 138. " Sim. Dun. p. 106. Auct. Bed. 224. ANGLO-SAXONS. 119 administration ; and the king himself, whose virtue was not a chap. match for the ferocity of his subjects, was slain by the ealdonnan ^^'' Sigan. The murderer, five years after, perished by his own 788 swoid *'. Osied, the son of Alchred, attempted to seize the crown : but the thanes recalled the exilfH Fthdrod, und the late claimant, to save his hfe, enrolled himself among the clergy of Y^ork, and afterwards for greater security fled to the isle of Man. Ethelred returned with the thirst of revenge. He or- 790. dered Eardulf, one of his most powerful opponents, to be slain at the door of the church of Rippon. The monks carried the body into the choir. During the funeral service it was observed to breathe, proper remedies were applied to the wounds • and the future king of Northumbria was carefully concealed in the monastery. The fate of Elf and Elwin, the two sons of Alfwold, was more deplorable. They had fled to the sanc- tuary at York : were drawn by deceitful promises from their asylum, and paid with their lives the price of their credulity. Osred now I'eturned from the isle of Man, and braved his rival to battle, but he was deserted by his followers, and added another to the victims of Ethelred's ambition. That prince, however, was hastening to the close of his bloody career. In his third year the total failure of the harvest had reduced the inhabitants to the extremity of distress : to famine were soon add- ed the ravages of pestilence : and to complete their misfortunes an army of Danes landing on the coast, pillaged the country, and destroyed the venerable church of Lindisfarne, the former residence of the apostle of the Northumbrians. Both the cala- mities of nature, and the cruelties of this unknown enemy, were attributed to the imprudence or the bad fortune of Ethelred : " Chron. Sax, 68. 64. Mailros, 139. 120 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, and he fell in a fruitless attempt to crush the rising discontent ' of his subjects ^^. The sceptre stained with the blood of so many 794. princes was next grasped by Osbald : but it dropped from his hands at the end of twenty-seven days, and Eardulf, whose life had been saved by the monks of Rippon, ascended the throne. Osbald prudently retired to the cloister, where he enjoyed a tranquillity unknown to his more successful competitor. Ear- dulf was compelled to fight against the murderers of Ethelred, and defeated them in a sanguinary conflict at Billinghow near 798. Whalley. They found a powerful protector in Cenulf, king of Mercia. The two kings advanced against each other at the 801. head of their respective armies : but a reconciliation was effected by the interposition of the prelates, and they swore eternal friendship to each other. Yet Eardulf was afterwards surprised 806. by his enemies, and put into close custody. These numerous, and blood}' revolutions had excited the notice of foreign nations. Charlemagne pronounced the Northumbrians more perfidious than the very pagans ": and by a special messenger sought and obtained the liberation of the captive from the hands of his sanguinary subjects. It seems that the opponents of Eardulf consented to commit the decision of their quarrel to the equity of the pontiff Leo III. The king himself, after paying a visit to the emperor at Noyon, repaired to Rome, where a messenger from Eanbaid, archbishop of York, had already arrived. That prelate, the ealdorman Wado, and Cenulf of Mercia Avere be- lieved by Leo to be the secret authors of the rebellion. In the beginning of 809 Eardulf left Rome, accompanied by Aldulf the papal legate, and by the messenger of Eanbaid, to whom Charle- " Chron. Sax. 6-J, 65, Mailros, 139. " Gentem perfidam ct perversam, pejo- Sim. Dun. 110—113. rem paganis. Malms. 26. ANGLO-SAXONS. 321 niasrne, in order to manifest the interest which he took in the CHAP. Ill affair, added Rotfrid, abbot of St. Aniands, and Nanther, abbot " of St. Onicrs. With this honourable escort he arrived in North- 809. uml)ria ; all opposition vanished before the papal and imperial envoys ; and the deposed king was unanimously restored to his throne**. How long he continued to reign is uncertain. Jt is unnecessary to pursue farther the history of these princes. During the last century Northumbria had exhibited successive instances of treachery and murder, to which no other country perhaps can furnish a parallel. Within the lapse of one hundred years fourteen kings had assumed the sceptre : and yet of all these one only, if one, died in the peaceable possession of royalty. Seven had been slain, six had been driven from the throne by their rebellious subjects. After Eardulf, the same anarchy and perfidy prevailed, till the Danes totally extinguished the North- umbrian dynasty, by the slaughter of Ella and Osbriht in the year 867. From these worthless princes, the votaries and victims of their ambition, the mind will turn with pleasure to two very different characters, who, in a more humble station, became the bene- factors of their age and their country. These were Bede and Notice «f Alcuin, Northumbrian scholars, whose literary superiority was acknowledged by their contemporaries, and to whose writings and exertions Europe was principally^ indebted for that portion of learning, which she possessed from the eighth to the eleventh century. Bede was born at Sunderland, and was intrusted in his childhood to the care of the monks of Jarrow, a convent on the right bank of the Tyne. In that seminary he spent sixty- " Le Cointe, Ann. ecel. Franc, p. 102. Rer. Gallic, torn. y. p. 72. 255. 333. 355. Annal. Bened. torn. ii. p. 383. Bouquet, 602. VOL. I. R . 122 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. Of Alculn. two years, devoting, according to his assertion, the whole of his time either to his own improvement or to the improvement of others. He appears to have possessed whatever knowledge had survived the ruin of the Roman empire; and if the reader look into his writings, he will be astonished at the depth and the variety of his attain- ments. Of his works the most valuable is the " Ecclesiastical His^ " tory of the Nation of the Angles," which while it treats profes- sedly of the establishment of Christianity in the different Saxon kingdoms, incidentally contains almost all that we know, of the history of the more early princes. This learned monk died at Jarrow in 733. His works were quickly transcribed, and dis- persed among the nations of Europe: and the applause with which they were received, induced the Anglo-Saxons to con- sider him as the ornament and pride of their nation ^^ Alcuin was a native of York, or its neighbourhood. By arch- bishop Egbert he was appointed master of the great school in the archiepiscopal city. His reputation attracted crowds of students from Gaul and Germany to his lectures, and recom- mended him to the notice of the emperor Charlemagne. He accepted the invitation of that prince to reside in his court ; diffused a taste for learning through all the provinces of the empire; and numbered the most distinguished prelates and ministers among his scholars. Wlien, in his old age, he retired from the distractions of the palace, many followed him to his retreat at Tours, where he continued his favourite occupation of teaching; till his death in the commencement of the ninth ccn- tury. His works are numerous. They consist principally of poems, elementary introductions to the different sciences, trea- " Et rectum quidein mihi videtur, says the graliasDeo refcraiit,quia tarn mirabilcm vinim abbot Cutlibert, ut lota gens Anglorum in illis in sua natioiie donavit. Ep. St. Uonif. emnibus provinciis, ubicumque reperti sunt, p. 124. ANGLO-SAXONS. 125 tises on a variety of theological subjects, and an interesting CHAP, correspondence with the most celebrated characters of the " age^". MEllCIA. In the preceding pages the reader will have noticed the acces- Mercian kings sion of Wulphere to the throne of Mercia, and his frequent and not inglorious struggles against the power of the Northumbrians. With equal spirit, and eventually with greater success, he opposed his southern rivals, the kings of Wessex. In the first Wuiphere conflict the chance of war made Wulphere the prisoner of Coin- walch, but Avith the recovery of his liberty he obliterated the disgrace of his defeat. At the battle of Pontisbury the forces of 661 Wessex Avere dispersed ; the victors ravaged the country of their enemies ; and the Wihtwaras, the inhabitants of the isle of Wight, submitted to the dominion of Wulphere ^^ That prince was now the most powerful of the kings on the south of the Humber : and he employed his authority in promoting the dif- fusion of Christianity among his dependants. Idolatry dis- appeared in Mercia: the natives of Essex, who, during the pestilence, had returned to the worship of Woden, were reclaimed by the preaching of the bishop Jarunman : and '" The Anglo-Saxon converts were indebt- England too hag its share, that Theodore and ed for the little learning they acquired to their Adrian shine like the sun and moon at Can- missionaries : and hence for some time those terbury, and that the former is surrounded in the north repaired for instruction princi- with scholars even from Ireland. Theodorus pally to Ireland, those in the south to the summi sacerdotii gubernacula regens, Hiber- Roitian teachers at Canterbury. Tiiis pro- nensium globo discipulorum stipatur. Usser, duced a kind of literary rlvalship between the syllog. ep. p. 38. See also O'Connor, prol. two islands, of which an amusing account is Ixix. given by Aldhelm, who had studied first un- •' This appears to me the most plausible derlrish, and then under Roman masters. In manner of reconciling Ethelwerd (p. 476) his letter to Eadfrid, who had just returned with the SaXon Chronicle (p. 39) and Bede from Ireland, he gives due praise to the learning (iv. 13). of the Irish scholars ; but then he observes that R 2 124 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. 675. Ethelrert. 676. «70. Edihvalch, king of Sussex, at the persuasion of Wulphere, pro- fessed liimself a christian. On the day of his baptism, he received from the munificence of his royal god-fatlier the sovereignty of the isle of Wight, and of the territory of the Meanwaras, a district comprehending almost the eastern moietj^ of Hampshire. Wilfrid, who had been driven into exile by the resentment of Ermenburga, improved the opportunity to establish the belief of the gospel in the kingdom of Sussex, and Edihvalch rewarded his zeal with the donation of the isle of Seisey, containing eighty- seven hides of land, and two hundred and fifty slaves. They were baptized, and immediately received their freedom from the piety of the bishop ■*^. The power of Wulphere declined as rapidly as it had risen. Towards the end of his reign, he was defeated by the Northum- brians, and lost the province of the Lindiswaras. The men of Wessex, who had borne his superiority with impatience, were encouraged by the victory of the Northumbrians, to try again the fortune of war. Though the battle was not decisive, it contributed to break the power of Wulphere, at whose death Egfrid, the Northumbrian monarch, over-ran and subjected the kingdom ^^ Ethelred was the brother of Wulphere, and had married Osthryda, the sister of Egfrid. To this alliance he was perhaps indebted for the crown of Mercia. He led an army against Lothaire, king of Kent, burnt the villages and churches, carried off the inhabitants, and destroyed the city of Rochester. He next demanded the province of the Lindiswaras from Egfrid : a war ensued : iElfwin, the brother of the Northumbrian, was slain : and Ethelred, though he paid the were for the Bede iii. 30. iv. 13. Edd. Vit. Wilf. xl. " Chron. Sax. p. 41. Edd. x.x. 3 ANGLO-SAXONS. 125 death of MWw'in, recovered the possession of the disputed territory. For many years he reigned Avith honour : but the murder of his (juecn Osthryda by tlie Suthenhymbre, the people between the Trent and the llumber, forcibly affected his mind. He gave the government of the discontented district to his nephew Coenred, the son of Wulphere : and at last abdicated the throne in his favour. He had children of his own : but they ■were of an immature age, and the nation preferred a successor of approved judgment and in the vigour of manhood. Ethel- red then took the monastic vows in the monastery of Bardeney, was raised to the office of abbot, and died at an advanced age in 716'*. Coenred was a prince whose piety and love of peace are loudly applauded by our ancient chroniclers : but whose short reign of five years affords only a barren theme to the historian. As soon as Ceolred, the son of the preceding monarch, was of an age to wield the sceptre, Coenred resigned, and travelling to Rome, received the monastic habit from the hands of the pontiff'. Offa, the son of Sighere, king of Essex, was the companion of his pilgrimage, and the imitator of his virtues ^^. The reign of Ceolred was almost as tranquil as that of his predecessor. Once only had he recourse to the fortune of arms, against Ina, king of Wessex. The battle was fought at Wodensbury : and the victory was claimed by each nation. But Ceolred degenerated from the piety of his fathers, and by the licentiousness of his morals alienated the minds of the Mercians. In the eighth year of his reign, as he sat at table with his thanes, he suddenl}' lost his reason, and shortly after expired in the most excruciating torments '^ " Bed. iv. 12. 21. v. 19. Chron. Sax. 44. 49. Flor. ad an. 716. Chron. Pet. de Burg, p. 6. "Bed. V. 19. ""^ Chron. Sax. p. 50, 51. apud. Spelm. p. 225. Ep. St. Bonif. CHAP. III. 697. 704. Coenred. 709. Ceolred. 715. 716. 126 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. Etbelbald. Contemporary with Ceolred was Ethelbald, a descendant of Alwin, the brother of Penda. He was in the vigour of youth, graceful in his person, ambitious of power, and innnodei-ate in his pleasures. To avoid the jealousy of Ceolred, by whom he was considered as a rival, Ethelbald had concealed himself among the marshes of Croyland, where he was hospitably enter- tained by Guthlake, the celebrated hermit. As soon as he had learned the death of his persecutor, he issued from his retreat, assumed the sceptre without opposition ; and afterwards, to testify his gratitude for his former benefactor, raised a magnificent church and monastery over the tomb of Guthlake ~^. The character of Ethelbald was a compound of vice and virtue. He was liberal to the poor and to his dependants ; he watched with solicitude over the administration of justice; and he severely repressed the hereditary feuds, which divided the Mercian thanes', and impaired the strength of the nation. Yet in his own favour he never scrupled to invade the I'ights of his subjects ; and that no restraint might be imposed upon his pleasures, he refused to shackle himself with the obligations of marriage. The noblest families were disgraced, the sanctity of the cloister was profaned by his amours. The report of his immorality reached the ears of the missionary, St. Boniface, who from the heart of Germany wrote him a letter of most earnest expostulation^^. What influence it had on his conduct, is not mentioned : but he soon after attended a synod, held by archbishop Cuthbert tor the reformation of manners ; and long before his death, for- sook the follies and vices of his youth. Of the kings, who had hitherto swayed the JNIercian sceptre. " Ingiil. p. 1. To construct the building, lowing years, p. 3. Ethelbald giive 300 pounds of silver the first '" Ep. St. Bonil". apud Sptlm. p. 223. year, and 100 pounds a year for the ten fol- ANGLO-SAXONS. 127 Ethel bald was the most powerful. From the Humber to the chap. southern channel, he compelled every tribe to obey his authority: " but he seems to have respected the power or the abilities of the Northumbrian inonarchs : and if he ventured twice to invade their territories, it was at times when they were engaged in the 737. north against the Picts, and when the spoils which he obtained were dearly purchased by the infamy of the aggression ^^. In 740. the south the kings of Wcssex struggled with impatience against his ascendancy, but every effort appeared only to rivet their chains. They were compelled to serve him as vassals, and to fight the battles of their lord. At length, in 752, Cuthred undertook 76i. to emancipate himself and his country, and boldly opposed the Mercians in the field of Burford in Oxfordshire. In the open space between the two armies, Edilhun, who bore the golden dragon, the banner of Wessex,slew with his own hand the stand- ard-bearer of Ethelbald : and his countrymen hailed as the omen of victory, the valour of their champion. An ancient poet has described in striking language the shock of the two armies ; the shouts and efforts of the combatants, their murderous weapons, the spear, the long sword, and the battle-axe, and their pro- digality of life in the defence of their respective standards. Chance at length conducted Ethelbald to the advance of Edil- hun : but the king of Mercia shrunk before the gigantic stature, and bloody brand of his adversary, and submitted to give to his followers the example of a precipitate flight. This defeat abolished for a time the superiority of Mercia ^. Ethelbald did not long survive his disgrace. Beornred, a 757. noble Mercian, aspired to the throne, and a battle was fought '' Bed. V. 23. Ill his charters he calls him- generali nomine Sutangli dicuntur. Smith's self Uex Britamiia;, and Rex non solum Mer- Bed. app. p. 786. Hunt. 195. Chron.Sax. 54, ciorum sed et omnium provinciarum, qua: ™Hunt. 195. West, ad ami. 755, 128 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, on the hill of Seggeswold in Warwickshire. The king either fell ' in the engagement, or was killed by his own guards in the following night. His body was buried in the monastery of Repandune^^. offa. The death of Ethelbald transferred the momentary possession of the crown to Beornred : but the thanes espoused the interests of OfFa, a prince of royal descent; and the usurper, at the end of a few months, was defeated in battle, and driven out of Mercia. Of the reign of the new monarch the fourteen first years were employed in the subjugation of his domestic enemies. His victories, j^j^j ^j^g Consolidation of his own power, objects which he was 771. unable to effect without the effusion of much blood ^^ In 771 he first appeared in the character of a conqueror, and subdued the Hestingi, a people inhabiting the coast of Sussex ^^ Three '''"*■ years afterwards, he invaded Kent, routed the natives atOtford, and stained the waters of the Darent with the blood of the fugitives ^. From the more feeble, he turned his arms aoainst ''77. the more powerful, states. He entered Oxfordshire, which then belonged to Wessex ; Cynewulf, the West-Saxon monarch, fled before him : Bensignton, a royal residence, was taken ; and the territory on the left bank of the Thames became the reward of the conqueror ^^. The Britons were the next victims of his ambition. The kings of Powis were driven from Shrewsbury be3'ond the Wye ; the country between that river and the Severn was planted with colonies of Saxons : and a trench and rampart stretching over a space of one hundred miles from " Ingul. p. 5. Auct. Bed. p. 224. Sim. Sussex. By it Offa confirms a grant of land Dun. p. 10.5. Malm. f. 11. in the neighbourhood of Hastings to tlio abbey ^- Ep. Alcnini apud Malm. p. 33. Lei. of St. Denis, and styles Bertwald, the pro- Collect, i. 402. prietor of Hastings and Pevensey, his _^rie/is. ''Mail. p. 138. Sim. Dun. p. 107. The Apud Alford, ad ann. 790. Hestingi have beensought in every part of the " Chron. Sax. 61. Mail. 138. island. A charter in Dublet fi.xes them in " Chron. Sax. 61. Mail. 138. Ethel. 477. ANGLO-SAXONS. 129 the mouth of the W^^e to the aestuary of the Dec, separated the CHAP, subjects of OfFa from the incursions of their vindictive neigh- ' hours ^. The Northumbrians also, but in what year is uncer- tain, were compelled to own the superiority of the Mercian ^^ The chair of St. Peter was filled at this period by Adrian, the rsa. friend and favourite of Charlemagne. In 785 two papal legates, of LichfieiT* the bishops of Ostia and Tudertum, accompanied by an envoy from the French monarch, landed in England: and convoked two synods, the one in Northumbria, the other in Mercia. In the latter, which was attended by Offa, and by all the princes and prelates on the south of the Humber, the legates read a code of ecclesiastical laws composed by the pontiff for the reformation of the Anglo-Saxon church. They were heard with respect : and subscribed by all the members ^^. The ambition of Offa did not omit the opportunity of attempting a project, which he had long meditated. Jaenbercht, archbishop of Can- terbury, had formerly offended the king, and had been deprived by him of all the manors which belonged to his see in the Mercian territories. From the man the enmity of OfFa was transferred to the church, over which he presided. Why, the king asked, should the Mercian prelates be subject to the jurisdiction of a Kentish bishop ? Why should the most powerful of the Saxon kingdoms be without a national metropolitan ? According to his wishes a proposition was made in the synod, that the juris- diction of the see of Canterbury should be confined to the three kingdoms of Kent, Sussex, and Wessex : that one of the Mercian bishops should be raised to the archiepiscopal rank ; and that all the prelates between the Thames and the Humber should be "^ Wise's Agser, p. 10. Sim. Dun. p. 118. circumquaque nationum. Smith Bed. app. Caradoc. p. 20, Langhorn, p. 292. p. 767. " West. 142. Offa, in a charter dated 780, '' Chron. Sax. 64. Wilk. Con. lorn. i. itiles himself Rex Merciorurasimulqueahorum p. 151. VOL. I. S Ill ISO HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, subject to his authority. Jaenbercht did not acquiesce without a struggle in the degradation of his church ; but the influence of Offa was irresistible, and Higebert of Lichfield was selected to be the new metropolitan^^. Still it was necessary to procure the papal approbation. The messengers of OfFa urged the great extent of the province of Canterbury, and the propriety of ap- pointing a native metropolitan to preside over the churches of so powerful a kingdom as Mercia : the advocates of Jaenbercht alleged the letters of former pontiffs, the prescription of two centuries, and the injustice of depriving an innocent prelate of more than one half of his jurisdiction. Adrian assented to the wishes of the king : the pallium with the archiepiscopal dignity was conferred upon Adulph, the successor of Higebert, in the see of Lichfield ; and Jaenbercht Avas compelled to content himself with the obedience of the bishops of Rochester, London, Selse}^ Winchester and Sherburne^. Before the conclusion of the council, Egferth, the son of OfFa, was solemnly crowned, and from that period, reigned conjointly with his father. At the same time the king delivered into the hands of the legates a charter, in which he bound himself by oath, and promised for his successors, to send annually the sum of three hundred and sixty-five mancuses to the church of St. Peter in Rome, to be employed partly in defraying the expences of the public worship, partly in the support of indigent pilgrims^^ Offa and Alcuin, the Anglo-Saxon preceptor of Charlemagne, had been C'haile- magiie. instrumental in opening an epistolary correspondence between " Malm. f. 15. Wilk. Con. p. 152. 164. " Angl. Sax. i. 460. Malms, f. 15. Spel. It was, says the Saxon chronicle, a " geflit- con. 302. " fullic (quarrelsome) synod," p. 63. The " Ang. Sac. i. 461.. Chron. Sax. p. 64. situation ©t'Calcuith or Calcythe, where it was Hontingdom (f. 197), says, Egferth, was held, is disputed. I suspoct it to be Chelsey, crowned king of Kent : but in this he diifers which WU.S called Chelcethe as late as the end from all other historians. — The mancus was of the fifteeuth century. Lei. Col. iv. 250. equal to thirty pennies. ANGLO-SAXONS. 131 his royal pupil and the king of Mercia'". From the letters, chap. which are still extant, it appears that several of the thanes, who ' had opposed the succession of Ofta, finding it unsafe to remain in England, had sought an asylum upon the continent. The humanity of Charlemagne refused to abandon them to the resent- ment of dieir enemy. Those, who asserted their innocence, he sent to Rome to exculpate themselves before the pope : the others he retained under his protection, not, as he said, to encourage them in their rebellion, but with the hope that time might soften the resentment of Oflf'a, and that the fugitives might be received into favour. Once he intrusted some of them to the faith of Ethelhcard, the successor of Jaenbercht in the see of Canter- bury : but on the express condition, that he should send them back to France in safety, unless OfFa should give the most solemn assurances, that he would pardon their offences*^. Another subject of discussion regarded the mercantile interests of the two nations. It was complained that the avarice of the English manufacturers had induced them to contract the size of the woollen gowns, which they exported to the continent : and the vigilance of the French had detected several adventurers, who, under -the disguise of pilgrims, had attempted to impose on the officers of the customs'"^. These points were amicably arranged : " In his letters Charles gives himself the gem. — His si pacem precari valeatis, remane- sounding title of " the most powerful of the ant in patria. Sin vero durius de illis frater " christian kings of the east ;'' and at the mens respondeat, illos ad nos remittite iltesos. same time to sooth the vanity of Gifa, calls Melius est enim peregrinare quam perire, ia him " the most powerful of the christian kings aliena swvire patria quam in sua mori. Con- " of the west." Ep. Car. Mag. apud Bouquet, fido de bonitate fratris mei, si obnixu pro illis torn. V. p. 620. intercedatis, ut benigne suscipiat eos, pro " The letter to Ethelheardis so honourable nostro amore, vel magis pro Christe charitate, to Charlemagne, that I shall offer no apology qui dixit remittite et remittetur vobis. Int. for transcribing a part of it. Hos miseros epist. Alcuini. ep. 61. patriae suk e.xules vestrae direximus pietati, ** Malms, f. 17. Lei. CoUec i. 402. Wilk. deprecantes, ut pro ipsis intercedere dignemini Con. i., 158. Bouquet, v. 627. Hpud fratrera meum carissimura Offanum re- * s2 - 1S2 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, but a new occurrence interrupted for a time that harmony, "• which had subsisted for so many years. Charlemagne, as a proof of his friendship, had proposed a marriage between his illegitimate son Charles and a daughter of Offa. The Mercian, as the price of his consent, demanded a French princess for his son Egferth. If we reflect that the two monarchs had hitherto treated each other on the footing of perfect equality, there will not appear any thing peculiarly offensive in such a demand. Yet it wounded the irritable pride of Charlemagne ; he broke off all communication with the Mercian court ; and the trade with the English merchants experienced the most rigorous prohibi- tions. But Gerwold, the collector of the customs, whose in- terests probably suffered from this interruption of commerce, contrived to pacify his sovereign : and Alcuin, who was com- missioned to negociate with the Mercian, succeeded in restoring the relations of amity between the two courts ^. Murder of 'p[jg most Dowcrful of the Saxou princes were ambitious of an Ethelbert, of . East-Angiia. alliance with the family of Offa. Brihtric and Ethelred, the kings of Wessex and Northumbria, had already married his daughters Eadburga and Elfleda: and Ethelbert, the young king of the East-Angles, was a suitor for the hand of their sister, Etheldrida. This amiable and accomplished prince (so he is described) by the advice of his council proceeded with a nu- merous train to Mercia. On the confines he halted, and sent forward a messenger with presents and a letter, announcing the object of his intended visit. A kind invitation was returned, accompanied with a promise of security. At his arrival he was received with the attention becoming his dignity, and expressions of affection most flattering to his hopes. The day was spent iu " Cbron. Fontanellen. c. xv. apud Bouqust, v. 31 5. Epist. Ale. ad Cole. ibid. p. 607. 2 ANGLO-SAXONS. 133 feasting and merriment: in the eveniniy Ethelbort retired to his chap. . • • III apartment; but shortly afterwards was invited by Wimbert, an " officer of the palace, to visit Offa, who wished to confer with him on matters of iniportance. The unsuspecting prince, as he followed his guide through a dark passage, v/as surrounded by luffians, and deprived of hfe. At the news, his attendants mounted their horses and fled : Etheldrida, shocked by this atro- city and disappointed in her expectations of worldly happiness, re- tired from court, and lived a recluse in the abbey of Croyland : and Ofl'a, shut up in his closet, affected, by external demonstra- tions of grief, to persuade the world of his innocence. Gratitude to the founder of his abbey has induced the monk of St. Albans to transfer the whole guilt from the king to his consort Cyne- drida : by every other ancient writer, he is said to have acted at her suggestions: but, if it be true that he immediately annexed East-Anglia to his own dominions, little doubt can be enter- tained that the man, who reaped the advantage, had directed the execution of the murder^^ Offa honoured the memory of the prince, whose blood he had Offa's death, shed, by erecting a stately tomb over his remains, and bestow- ing rich donations on the church of Hereford, in wliich they reposed. About the same time he endowed the magnificent abbey of St. Albans. But his heart was corroded by remorse, and his body enfeebled by disease. Within two years he fol- 7m. lowed Ethelbert to the grave, and was buried near Bedford, in a chapel on the banks of the Ouse. It was the tradition of the ■"^ Westminster is merely the copyist of tlie lingford (p. 530), on some ancient authority, monk of St. Albans, who, besides confining describes him as falling in battle. Occidit in the guilt to the queen, makes Ethelbert sink campestri indicto belle. See Chron. Sax. 65. through a trap-door into a care, where he Malm. 15. Ethelw. 477. Asser. Ann, 154. was dispatched. Vit. Off. ii. p. 980. Wal- Brompton, 749—752, 134 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. Egfeilh. Cemilf depo- ses Eatlbert of Kent. neighbourhood, that, a few years afterwards, the river overflowed, and that his bones were carried away by the inundation*^. Egferth, who liad been crowned nine years before, succeeded his father. The ancient writers indulge in reflections on the misfortunes of a family, the estabUshment of which had cost its founder so many crimes. Egferth died without issue after he had possessed the crown one hundred and forty-one days. Of his sisters, Elfleda became a widow soon after her marriage, Eadburga died in poverty and exile in Italy, and Edilthrida finished her days in seclusion at Croyland. Within a few years after the murder of Ethelbert, Offa and his race had disappeared for ever *. The throne of Mercia was next filled by Cenulf, descended from another of the brothers of Penda. At the commencement of his reio-n, a sinoular revolution in Kent directed his attention to that kingdom. By the death of Aluric the race of Hengist became extinct: and the prospect of a throne awakened the ambition of several competitors. The successful candidate was a clergyman related to the descendants of Cerdic, Eadbert Pren, whose aspiring mind preferred the crown to the tonsure*". Ethelheard, the archbishop of Canterbury, beheld with sorrow his elevation : but if Ae treated Eadbert as an apostate, Eadbert considered him as a rebel ; and the metropolitan, unable to maintain the discipline of the canons, consulted the Roman pontifl^, Leo IIL who, after mature deliberation, exconnnuni- cated the king, and threatened, that, if he did not return to *' I have not mentioned Offa's pretended journey to Rome : for it could not have es- caped the notice of every historian before tlie fabulous "monk of St. Albans. The institu- tion of the Kemescot, is attributed to bim by Huntingdon : I suspect that writer has con- founded it with the annual donation of 365 mancuses already mentioned. ■" Ing. p. 6. *" Hunting, f. 197. Wallingford says he was brother to Ethclred, the eldest son of Withred, p. dSO. ANGLO-SAXONS. 135 the clerical profession, he would exhort all the inhabitants of CHAP. . • . r III Britain to unite in punishing his disobedience'*". Cenulf took ' this office on himself: and Eadbert, convinced that resistance 790. would be vain, endeavoured to elude the vigilance and revenge of his enemies. He was, however, taken : the eyes of the cap- tive were put out, and both his hands amputated. Culhred, a creature of the victor's, obtained the throne, with the title, but without the authority, of king. Eadbert was reserved b}-- the Mercian for the gratification of his vanity. A day had been appointed for the dedication of the church of Winchelcomb, which he had built with royal magnificence : the ceremony was attended by two kings, thirteen bishops, ten ealdormeu, and an immense concourse of people : and in their presence Cenulf led his mutilated captiv^e to the altar, and of his special grace and clemency granted him in the most solemn manner his free- dom. According to the national custom the parade of the day M'as concluded by the distribution of presents. To the kings, prelates, and ealdormen he gave horses, garments of silk, and vases of the precious metals, to each visitor of noble birth but Avithout landed possessions a pound of silver, and to every monk and clergyman a smaller but proportionate sum ^^ The next undertaking of Cenulf was an act of justice, to Restores the restore to the successor of St. Augustine the prerogatives, of onTanter-*^^ which they had been despoiled at the imperious demand of Offa. '""'^soa. The authority of the new metropolitan had been endured with reluctance by the English prelates, his former equals: and the archbishops of Canterbury and York seized the first opportunity " Anglia Sacra, i. 460. In the pope's let- " Monast. Angl. i. 189. Chron. Sax. ter the name of the king is not mentioned: 67. Sim. Dun. 114. Malm. 13. Wallinp;. but all circumstances conspire to point out 530. Eadbert. 136 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. 813. Persecutes archbishop Wulfrid. 816. of convc\ing to the king the sentiments of the episcopal body. He acquiesced in their wishes: a letter in his name and that of the nobility and clergy was written to the pope; and Ethelheard proceeded to Rome to plead in person the rights of his church. A favourable answer was obtained ; and Ethelheard at his return, summoned a council of twelve bishops, in which it was declared that the decree of pope Adrian had been surreptitiously obtained, and the metropolitan of Lichfield Avas reduced to his former station among the suffragans of Canterbury ^'^. Archbishop Wulfrid was, like his predecessor, for some time the favourite of Cenulf'^^ With the origin of the dissension between them, we are unacquainted : but we afterwards find the king displaying the most violent hostility against the pri- mate, and excluding him during six years from the exercise of the archiepiscopal authority. Both appealed to the holy see, and Wulfrid repaired to Rome, to vindicate his character from, the charges of his royal persecutor. At his return Cenulf sum- moned him before a great council at London. " I require," said the king, " that you surrender to me and my heirs your " manor of three hundred hides at Yongesham, and pay to me " one hundred and twenty pounds of silver. If you refuse, I " will drive you out of Britain, and no solicitation of the em- *' peror, no command of the pope, shall ever procure your *' return" Wulfrid heard the menace with firmness : and Cenulf shewed himself inflexible. After much altercation and many remonstrances, a compromise was effected by the inter- position of the nobility and clergy. Wulfrid acquiesced in the king's demand : and Cenulf consented that the cession should " Wilk. con. 163. 167. Smith's Bed. app. p, 787. Malm. f. 15. Evid. eccl. Chri6t.2212. Ing. p. 6- ANGLO-SAXONS. 137 be of no value, unless he wrote to the pope in favour of the chap. Ill archbishop, and restored him to all the privileges which his ' predecessors had enjoyed. But no sooner had he obtained possession of the manor and the money, than he laughed at the credulity of Wulfrid, who was compelled to submit in silence, and wait for compensation from the justice of Cenulf's successor^. After a prosperous reign of twenty-six years the king was killed in an expedition against the East-Anglians. Notwithstanding his persecution of the archbishop, he is celebrated by our ancient writers for his piety no less than his courage and good fortune. He was succeeded by his only son Kenclm, a boy of seven years of age. After the lapse of a few months the young prince accom- Keneimmur- panied his tutor Ascebert into a forest, where he was barbarously ^i^- murdered. Suspicion attributed his death to his elder sister Quendrida, whose ambition, it was said, would have willingly purchased the crown with the blood of a brother. If such were her views, she was disappointed. Ceolwulf, her uncle, ascended the throne: but Quendrida succeeded to the patrimony of her father, and is frequently mentioned in the English councils with the titles of abbess, and heiress of Cenulf^^ The reign of Ceolwulf was short. In his second year he M'as 821. dethroned by Beornwulf, a Mercian, who had no better title Ceoiwuif. than his power and opulence. He obliged Quendrida to compound with Wulfrid for the land which her father had wrested from the archbishop. His abilities are said to have been unequal to his station, and he was soon compelled to yield 824. to the superior genius of Egbert, king of Wessex'^' 56 " Wilk. Con. 172, 173. Spel. con. 332. ably she was called abbess, because Cenulf Chron. Sax. 69. had left her the abbey of Winchelcomb. " Ing. p. 7. Wilk. & Spel. ibid, Prob- " Ing. p. 7. VOL. I. 138 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. Kingrs of ■\Vessex. 597. Ceolwulf. 607. 610. Deatlj of Tewrliic of Wales. WESSEX. From the kings of Mercia it is time to return to the descend- ants of Cerdic, whose fortune or abihties, after a struggle of three hundred years, triumphed over every opponent, and united all the nations of the Anglo-Saxons in one great and powerful monarchy. The death of the bretwalda Ceawlin and the ac- cession of his nephew Ceolric, have already been noticed. To Ceolric, after a short reign of five years, succeeded his brother Ceolwulf^ whose enterprising spirit engaged him in constant hostilities Avith the Saxons, Britons, Scots, and Picts^^. The men of Sussex made a bold but unsuccessful effort to recover their independence. The war was conducted with the most obstinate valour : and though Ceolwidf crushed his opponents, it was with the loss of his bravest warriors ^^. He next led a numerous army against the Britons, drove Mouric, their king, beyond the Severn, and penetrated to the banks of the AVye. The pride of the natives attributed their reverses, not to the superiority of the conquerors, but to the incapacity of their leader. His father Tewdric, it was said, had never shewn his back to an enemy: were he to place himself at their head, the Saxons would not dare to appear in his presence. Tewdric had resigned the sceptre, and led the life of a hermit amidst the rocks of Dindyrn. From his cell he was drawn by the entreaties , of his countr3'men ; and assumed with reluctance the command of the army. In the battle which followed, the hermit gained the victory, but lost his life. He received a Avound in the head, of which he died near the confluence of the " Chron. Sax. p, 23. Hunt. 181. " Chron. Sax. p. 25. Hunt. 181. ANGLO-SAXONS. 139 Wve and the Severn. Ceolwulf" did not survive him more than chap. •^ III. a year . ===== Ceolwulf was succeeded by Cynegils, the son of Ceolrie, who Cynotriisand divided the kingdom with his brother Cuichelm. This partition eu. did not diminish the strength of the nation. The two brothers appeared to be animated with the same spirit, and united their efforts to promote the pubUc prosperity. They led a powerful '''*■ army to Bampton in Somersetshire. The Britons fled at the martial appearance of the enemy; and the Saxons returning from the pursuit numbered two thousand and forty-six enemies among the slain *. The three sons of Saberct, who had suc- ceeded to the kingdom of Essex, ventured to provoke the hostility of the two brothers ; but they fell on the field of battle, and of their ibllowers but tew escaped to carry the intelligence .625 to their countrymen *^\ The character of Cuichelm is disgraced by the attempt of his messenger Eomer to assassinate Edwin, king of Northumbria. What peculiar provocation he might have received, it is in vain to conjecture : according to Malmsbury, he had been deprived of part of his territory. The silence of historians acquits Cynegils 626. of any share in the guilt of his brother; but he was unwilling to see him fall a victim to the resentment of the Northumbrian, and assisted him with all his forces in a fruitless attempt to repel Edwin. Fortunately the conqueror was appeased, and left them in possession of their territories*'''. Tavo years afterwards Penda, who Avas then beginning his c-^s- °' Usher de prim. p. 292. Langhorn, bones entire, and the fracture of the skull p. 148. As Tewdric was killed by pagans, apparently recent. God. de Praesul. p. 593. the Britons styled him a martyr. Mathern, "" Hunt. 181. Malm. 6. Chron. Sax. where he was buried, derived its name from p. 25. the words Merthir Tewdric. When Bishop " Hunt. 181. . Godwin repaired his tomb, he found the '- Bed. ii. 9. Chron. Sax. 27, 28. T 2 140 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. Coinvvalch. 642. Expelled and nions restored. 6S3. 658. sanguinary career, determined to measure his strength with that of the West-Saxons. The obstinacy of the two armies prolono^ed the contest till it was interrupted by the darkness of night. The conflict was about to be renewed in the morning, when both parties, appalled by the loss of the preceding day, were induced by their mutual fears to listen to terms of reconciliation. The battle was fought at Cirencester ^^ Both Cynegils and Cuichelm received baptism from the hands of the bishop Birinus. Cynegils sui*vived his brother seven years, and died in 642. The throne was next filled by Coinwalch, the son of the last monarch, who bad refused to embrace Christianity with his father and uncle. He had formerly maiTied a sister of Penda ; but as soon as he obtained the crown, he dismissed her with ignominy, and bestowed his hand on a more favourite princess. The Mercian, burning with resentment, entered Wessex, defeated Coinwalch, and chased him out of his domi- He found an asylum in the territory of Anna, the vir- tuous king of the East-Angles, where he was induced to abjure the deities of paganism. In the third year of his exile, he recovered his throne by the assistance of his nephew Cuthred ; and as a testunony of his gratitude, bestowed on his benefactor three thousand hides of land at Aston in Berkshire. His next care was to fulfil the pious bequest of his fiither, and to erect a church and monastery in the city of Winchester. Its size and magnificence astonished his countrymen ^. Coinwalcli was eminently successful against the Britons. He defeated them at Bradford, and afterwards at Pen ; and made the Parret the western boundary of his kingdom. But he was " Chron. Sax. p. 29. Ethelward, 476. Hunt. 181. " Bed. iii. 7. Chron. Sax. 31, 32, 33, 39. Malm. f. 6. 2 ANGLO-SAXONS. 141 compelled to bend before the superior power of Wulpliere, king tJHAP. of Mercia. If the chance of war threw that prince into tlie " hands of Coinwalch, the reader has seen that he recovered his libert}'^, defeated the West-Saxons, and transferred the sove- gei. reignty of the isle of Wight, and of part of Hampshire, to his friend Edilwalch, the king of Sussex ^"'. At the death of Coinwalch without children, an alluring pros- Sexbursa. pect was o])cned to the ambition of the remaining descendants of Cerdic ; but the reins of government were instantly seized b}' his widow Sexburga, a princess, whose spirit and abilities Avere worthy of a crown. By her promptitude and decision she anti- cipated or suppressed the attempts of her opponents : at the liead of her arm}^ she overawed the neighbouring princes, who were eager to humble the power of Wessex ; and by the lenity of her sway, endeavoured to reconcile her subjects to the novelty of a female sovereign. Yet a general discontent prevailed ; the chieftains conceived it a disgrace to submit to the sceptre of a woman ; and she would probably have been driven from the throne, had not her death anticipated the attempt, before the first year of her reign was at an end *'^. The government of Wessex now assumed the form of an aristocracy. The most powerful thanes associated for their mutual defence; and in the emergencies of foreign war con- ferred on one of their number the title of king ^^ The first of *''''*• these was ^scuin, a descendant of Ceolwulf, who fought a bloody but indecisive battle with Wulphere, at Bedwin in Wiltshire. He died or was expelled in the following year : Ceutwin, the ^'^^• '* Chron. Sax. 33. 39. Bed. iii. 7. iv. 13. the testimony of Malmsbury, f. 6. Hunt. 182. " This appears the only manner of recon- ^'^ Chron. Sax. 41. Westminster says she ciling the ancient chroniclers with Bedeiii. 12. was dethroned (ad ana. 672) ; but I prefer 142 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. brother of Coinwalch, succeeded, and the West-Saxons under ■ • his conduct drove the Britons to the borders of the ocean. To escape his pursuit, many joined their brethren in Armorica*^^. Cceadwaiia. AnioHg the numcrous princes of the family of Cerdic was Caeadwalla, of the house of Ceawlin. His j^outh, activity, and courage had distinguished him above his equals : but the quality which attracted the admiration of the people alarmed the jea- lousy of Ceutwin ; and Caeadwalla, with a band of faithful ad- herents, retired from danger into the territorv of Sussex. Yet the spirit of tlie fugitive scorned to solicit assistance from the enemies of his country : and in the extensive forests of Andreds- wald and Chiltene he maintained his independence*^^. At the same time Wilfrid, the banished bishop of York, resided in In Sussex. Sclscy, which had been given to him by Edilwalch. The similarity of their fortunes formed a bond of amity between the two exiles. Caeadwalla frequently visited the prelate, and re- ceived from him seasonable supplies of horses and money. In- sensibly the number of his followers increased ; adventurers and malcontents crowded to his standard ; and he made a sudden and unexpected irruption into the cultivated part of Sussex. Edilwalch, who attempted with a few followers to oppose him, was slain ; and the Hames of war were spread over the country, when the ealdormen Bercthune and Andhune returned from Kent with the army of Sussex, and drove this band of outlaws Made king of to their fomicr asylum in the forest. There Caeadwalla received "esi. tl^^ welcome intelligence that his persecutor Ceutwin Avas dead, '" Cliion. !Sax. 44. Malm. 6. Hunt. 183. the eastern part of Hampshire, and in the Ethel. 476. district of the Meanwari lately added to '^'■' De descrtis Chiltene et Ondred. Edd. c. Sussex, llemains of the name still exist in xli. The forest of Andredswald has been Chilton, Chalton, Sec. already mentioned: Chiltene was probably in ANGLO-SAXONS. 143 and had generous!}', on his death-bed, named him his successor. CHAP. He immediately marched into Wessex : his reputation liad " ah'eady interested the people in his favour : his rivals were intimi- dated by the martial a))pearance of his followers; and Cajad- walla ascended, without opposition, the throne of Cerdic'". 1'hc first care of the new king was to remove the disoracc which he had so lately received in Sussex. With a powerful ew;. army he entered that devoted country, slew Bercthune in battle, and reduced the natives to their former dependence on the crown of Wessex. Thence he pursued his victorious career into Kent. The inhabitants Hed at his approach ; and the riches of the open country became the spoil of the invaders ^^. Con.)u*rs the The isle of Wight had i)cen formerly subjugated and colonised by a body of Jutes. Wulphere had severed it from \Vessex : CajadAvalla resolved to reunite it to his dominions. Though a pagan, he implored, in this difficult enterprise, the assistance of the god of the christians, and vowed, in the event of victor}^ to devote one-fourth of his conquest to the service of religion. Arvald, who held the island under the crown of Sussex, defended himself with courage ; and Caeadwalla received several wounds before he could subdue his antagonist. In his rage he had determined to exterminate the natives, and to supply their place with a colony of Saxons ; but he yielded to the entreaties and exhortations of Wilfrid ; and gave to the bishop, in execution of his vow, three hundred hides of land, the fourth portion of the island. By him the donation was transferred to the clergyman Bernwine, his nephew, who, with the assistance of Hiddela, established the christian faith among the inhabitants''. 't> '° Edd. c.xli. Bed.iv. 15. Chron.Sax,45. "'Bed. iv. 15. Chroii. Sax. p. 46. Hunt. Malms. 151. 192. " Bed. iv. 16. 144 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. During this invasion two young princes, the brothers of ; Arvald, had escaped from the island, and sought an asylum Puts to Heath anioug the Jutes of the opposite coast. They were concealed ATvauf '"'°* at Stoneham : but the place of their retreat was betrayed to Cffiadwalla, and an order was dispatched for their immediate execution. Cynibert, the abbot of Redbridge, hastened to solicit, and with difficulty obtained, a respite, till he should baptize the unfortunate youths. He hastened to Stoneham, in- formed them of their approaching end, consoled them with the hope of future happiness, and explained to them the leading doctrines of Christianity. They listened to him with gratitude ; the ceremon}^ of baptism was performed ; and the two brothers joyfully offered their necks to the sword, " in the certain hope," says Bede, " of exchanging a temporary for an immortal and "blissful existence ^^." Loseshisbro- ^j^g next theatre of his vengeance, or his ambition, was ther in Kent. ^ . 687. the kinodom of Kent. His brother Mollo commanded the West-Saxon army : and the natives recurring to the policy which they had adopted in the former year, retired at the approach of the invaders. Mollo, whom the absence of an enemy had rendered negligent, incautiously separated from his forces with twelve attendants. He was descried by the peasants, attacked, hunted into a cottage, and burnt to death. Caeadwalla hastened to revenge the fate of his brother: and devoted the whole of Kent to the flames and the sword '^^. GoestoRome. From his first acquaintance with Wilfrid, the king had imbibed a favourable notion of the christian worship : when he had mounted the throne, he invited the bishop into Wessex, honoured him as his father and benefactor, and determined to " Bed. ibid. " Chron. Sa.x. p. 4S, ANGLO-SAXONS. 145 embrace the faith of the gospel. Another prince would chap. have been content to receive baptism from his own prelate or ' his instructor : Ca^adwalla resolved to receive it from the hands ggg. of the sovereign pontiff. He crossed the sea, visited in his pro- gress the most celebrated churches, testified his piety by costly presents, was honourably entertained by Cunibert, king of the Lombards, and entered Rome in the spring of the year 688. On the vigil of Easter he was baptized by pope Sergius, and isi>aptizcd. changed his name to that of Peter, in honour of the prince of the apostles. But before he laid aside the white robes, the usual distinction of those who had been lately baptized, he was seized with a mortal illness, and died on the twentieth of April in the thirtieth year of his age. By the command of Sergius he was Dies, interred in the church of St. Peter; and an inscription fixed on his tomb preserved the memory, and celebrated the virtues, of the king of the West-Sjaxons". The successor of Caeadwalla was Ina, who derived his descent '" from the bretwalda Ceawlin. As a warrior Ina was equal, as a legislator he was superior, to the most celebrated of his prede- cessors. In the fifth year of his reign he assembled the Witena- gemot, and " with the advice of his father Cenred, of his bishops " Hedda, and Erconwald, of all his ealdormen, and wise men, " and clergy," enacted seventy-nine laws, by which he regulated co^deofiaw^s. the administration of justice, fixed the legal compensation for crimes, checked the prevalence of hereditary feuds, placed the conquered Britons under the protection of the state, and exposed and punished the frauds, which might be committed in the " Chr. Sax. ibid. Bed. v. 7. The con- Commutasse magis sceptrorum insignia credas, eluding lines of his epitaph were these : Quem regnum Christi promeruisse vides. Candidas inter eves Christi sociabilis ibit : Ibid. Corpore nam tumulum,mente superna tenet. TOL. I. U 146 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, transfer of merchandise, and the cultivation of land ^'^. Essex, ■ (by what means is unknown) had already been annexed to his Invades Kent crown ^'^: and Kent was again destined to lament the day in 694!"^ ■ which Mollo had perished. At the head of a resistless army Ina demanded the t^cix for the death of his cousin : and Withred, king of Kent, to appease the resentment of the invader, paid the full compensation, thirty thousand pounds of silver ^''. The West Saxon monarch steadily pursued the policy of his fathers in the gradual subjugation of the Britons : added by successive conquests several districts to the western provinces of his king- Ti"- dom ; and expelled after long struggles, Geraint, the king of Cornwall. His dispute with Ceolred of Mercia, was more bloody, T15. and less glorious. The battle was fought at Wodncsbury. Both claimed the victory : but neither dared to renew the engage- ment'^^. Is opposed by If the abilities of Ina had promoted the prosperity of Wessex, pretenders to />!•• the crown, the duiation of his reign exhausted the patience of the more aspiring among the descendants of Cerdic. He had swayed the sceptre two-and-thirty 3'ears, when the etheling Cenulf ventured 721- to claim the royal authority, and in a short time paid the forfeit of his ambition^". The next year his example was followed by another pretender named Eadbyrht ; who seized the strong castle of Taunton, which Ina had lately erected in Somersetshire. It was at the moment when an insurrection had drawn the king into Sussex : but his queen Ethelburga assembled an army, took the fortress by storm, and levelled it with the ground. Ead- "= Leges Sax. p. 14—27. makes it amount to 3700 pounds. Flor. ad " Malm. 7. Ina calls the bishop of Lon- ann. 694. don, " my bishop." Leg. Sax. p. 14. " Chron. Sax. p. 50, 51. Hunt. 193, '• Chron. Sax. p. 48. Polycliron. p. 243. 194. Malmsbury (7.) has too great a sum, 30,000 '" Chron, Sax. p. 52. Flor. Wig. ad ann, marks of gold. Florence of Worcester 721. ANGLO-SAXONS. 14? byrht had the o-ood fortune to escape from his pursuers, and was chap. . III. raised by the enemies of Ina to tlie throne of Sussex. During __^-___^ two years the natives successfully maintained the struggle for their independence, but in the third they were defeated, and ''-•^• the death of Eadbyrht consummated the subjection of their 81 country Ina was the friend and benefactor of the churchmen. All Founds mo- the celebrated monasteries in his kingdom experienced his bounty : and the abbey of Glastonbury was erected by him with a munificence truly royal ^'^. The religious sentiments which he had imbibed in early life, sunk more deeply into his mind as he advanced in years; and their influence was strength- ened by the exhortations of his queen, who ardently wished for the retirement of the cloister. With this view, if we may credit the narrative of Mahiisbury, she devised and executed a most singular stratagem. The king and queen had given a splendid entertainment to the nobility and clergy of the kingdom. The following morning they left the castle : but after a ride of a few hours, Ina, at the earnest solicitation of Ethelburga, consented to return. He was surprised at the silence and solitude which appeared to reign in the castle. At each step his astonishment increased. The furniture had disappeared : the hall was strewed Avith fragments and rubbish : and a litter of swine occupied the very bed, in which he had passed the night. His eyes interro- gated the queen, who seized the moment to read her husband a lecture on the vanity of human greatness, and the happy serenity of an obscure and religious life ^^ It is not, however, necessary to "' Chron. Sax. p. 32. Hunt. 194. paid for the death of Mollo : as Ina built the " Malm, de Ant. Glast. edit. Gale, p. 310. monastery pro anima propinqui sui Mollonis. His donations amounted to 2900 pounds of Gale, 309. Monast. Ang. i. 13. silver, and 350 pounds of gold. Ibid. I " Malm. 7. should think this money arose from the were u 2 148 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. CHAP, attach much credit to the story. There are other grounds on which • the determination of Ina may be explained, without attributing Resignsthe it to SO clumsy an artifice. He had now reigned seven-and- ciwn. thirty years. The peace of his old age had been disturbed by rebellion. His body was broken by infirmity, his mind dis- tracted by care. Experience had taught him how difficult it was to hold with a feeble hand the reins of government among a warlike and turbulent nobility. He resolved to descend spon- taneously from that situation, which he could no longer retain with dignity : and religion offered to his grey hairs a holy and a safe retreat. In the witena-gemot he resigned the crown, released his subjects from their allegiance, and expressed his wish to spend the remainder of his days in lamenting the errors r.ocstoRorae. of hisyouth. Within a few weeks the royal penitent, accompa- nied by Ethelburga, quitted Wessex. To watch and pray at the tombs of the apostles Peter and Paul, was the first object of their wishes : and after a tedious journey they arrived in Rome, and visited the holy places. It may be, as some writers have asserted, that Ina then built the school of the English in that city**^: but this circumstance was unknown to the more ancient historians : and can hardly be reconciled with the humility of the kino;, whose endeavour it was to elude the notice of the public, and to live confounded with the mass of the common people. On this account he refused to shave his head, or wear the monastic habit : and continued to support himself by the labour of his hands, and to perform his devotions in the garb of Dies. a poor and unknown pilgrim. He died before the expiration of the year : and was soon followed to the grave by Ethelburga, " Wpst. ad ann. 727. lie also attributes is equally improbable. to Ina the establishment of Peter-pence, which 13S. ANGLO-SAXONS. , 149 the consort of his greatness, and the faithful companion of his chap. poverty and repentance "^. ^ When Ina resigned the sceptre, he recommended for his sue- ^thciheard. cessors, i?ilt he) heard, the brother of his queen, and Oswald, who through Ethelbald, Cynebald, and Cuthwin, traced his descent from Ceawlin*^*'. The two princes immediately became antago- nists : Oswald, though defeated, did not relinquish his preten- sions; and till his death in 730, iEthelheard reigned in anxiety and suspense. This domestic quarrel impaired the power, and emboldened the enemies, of Wcssex. The British writers claim for their countrymen the glor}^ of three victories, obtained in North- Wales, South-Wales, and Cornwall *"^. The superiority of the Mercians is better established, j^'ithelheard was compelled to obey the authority of Ethelbald, king of Mereia : and an 733. unsuccessful attempt to recover his independence, was chastised by the loss of Somerton, the capital of Somersetshire. After an inglorious reign of thirteen years he left his crown to his brother 741. Cuthred ««. Cuthred first drew his sword to revenge the death of his son, cuthred. the etheling Cenric, who had been slain in a sedition of the people. The perpetrators of the crime, apprehensive of punish- ment, took up arms, and placed at their head the ealdornian "s. Edilhune. Their army was inferior to that of the king : but the bravery of their leader supplied the deficiency of numbers : and the victory was doubtful, till a dangerous wound removed the ealdornian from the field. The conqueror behaved with gene- rosity to his vanquished subjects, and restored Edilhune to his favour. The services of that nobleman in the great victory of " Bed. V. 7. Chron. Sax. p. 52. Malm. " Caradoc, p. 16. 7. Gale, 313. " Chron. Sax. p. 54. Hunt. 195. " Bed. V. 7. Chron. Sax. p. 53. 3 150 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. 752. Sigebyrcbt is deposed. Burford have been already mentioned. By his assistance the king defeated the Mercians, and fixed the independence of Wessex. An expedition against the Britons, which added a considerable district to his dominions, closed the career of this warlike monarch, who died in 754 ^'. Sigebyrcht succeeded to the crown. Before the end of the year, the majority of the thanes rejected his authority, and elected a descendant of Cerdic, by name Cynewulf. Hamp- shire alone, by the influence of the ealdorman Cumbra, remained faithful to Sigebyrcht: but that nobleman having presumed to remonstrate with him on his conduct, was put to death by his ungrateful master. The loss of their leader dissolved the connexion between the Hampshire-men and the king : they imited with their countrymen in acknowledging the claim of Cj^newulf : and Sigebyrcht fled with precipitation to the forest of Andredswald. There he wandered for almost a year; till he was accidentally discovered at Prevet by one of the retainers of Cumbra, who, to revenge the death of his lord, thrust his spear through the body of the fugitive prince. He is said to have been buried with royal honours at Winchester^. Of the long reign of Cynewulf we know little more than that it was signalized by several victories over the Britons, and dis- graced by the surrender of Bensington to the Mercians. But the history of his death deserves to be preserved, as illustrative of two great features in the Anglo-Saxon character, — devotedness of attachment, and ferocity of revenge. Sigebyrcht had left a Is murdered, brother named Cyneheard, who, to escape the jealousy of the new king, had abandoned his native country, and consoled the hours of exile with the hopes of revenge. Thirty-one years Cynewulf. 784. "Chron. Sax. 66. Hunt. 196. Carad. 17. '" Chron. Sax. 66. Ethelw. 477. Hunt. 196. ANGLO-SAXONS. I5i had elapsed from the death of Sigebyrcht, wlien Cyncheard CHAP, returned with eighty-four adherents, and secreted hiniself in the ' woods. It chanced one evening that the king left Winchester with a slender retinue to visit a lady at Merton, to whom he was warmly attached. Cyneheard stole silently from his retreat, followed with caution the footsteps of the monarch : and in the dead of the night surrounded the residence of his mistress. Cynewulf was asleep : his attendants were dispersed in the neighbouring houses. At the first alarm he arose, seized his sword, and descended to the door, where he descried his enemy, and springing forward aimed a desperate blow at the head of Cyneheard. The wound, which was but slight, was quickly revenged b}^ the weapons of the conspirators. Roused by the noise of the combatants and the shrieks of the woman, the king's attendants hastened to his assistance ; but the}' found him breathless, and weltering in blood. It was in vain that Cyneheard offered them their lives and possessions. They scorned his proposals : and after a long conflict were all slain with the exception of a Briton, who in quality of hostage, had been detained in the court of Cynewulf Even he was severely wounded. Early in the morning the news arrived at Winchester. The Punisiiment ealdorman Osric, and AViverth the thane, immediately mounted d'erers^. """' their horses, and rode to Merton, followed by their retainers. Cyneheard met them at the gate to justify his conduct, and solicit their friendship. He pleaded the obligation of revenging the wrongs of his family : asserted his claim to the throne ; offered them valuable possessions ; and bade them recollect that many of his friends were their kinsmen. " Our kinsn)en," they replied, " are not dearer to us, than was our lord. To his " murderers we will never submit. If those, who are related to 152 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. Brihtric. " US, wish to save their hves, they are at liberty to depart." "The same offer," returned the followers of Cjneheard, "was " made to the king's attendants. They refused it. We will " prove to-day that our generosity is not inferior to theirs." Impatient of delay, Osric forced the barrier : he was opposed with the most desperate intrepidity : and the battle was ter- minated only by the failure of combatants. Of Cyneheard's eighty-four companions one alone was saved. He was found among the slain covered with wounds, but still alive : and owed his preservation to this fortunate circumstance, that he was the god-son of Osric. The body of Cynewulf was interred among tlie ashes of his progenitors at Winchester : that of Cyneheard was conveyed to the church of Exeter ^'^. The vacant throne was next occupied by Brihtric. The West-Saxon thanes had still retained the ancient privilege of electing their kings. Though they confined their choice to the descendants of Cerdic, they frequently disregarded the order of hereditary succession. This practice was productive of the most serious evils. Every prince of the royal race was ambitious of ascending the throne. The unsuccessful candidate often appealed to the sword : the strength of the nation was impaired by domestic dissensions : and the reigning prince was frequently compelled to divert his attention from the general welfare to his own individual security. The opponent of Brihtric was Egbert, who, unable to withstand the power of his enemy, left the island, and sought employment in the armies of Charlemagne. Of the exploits of the king during the sixteen years of his reign, historians are silent : the circumstances of his death, on account " Chron. Sax. 57. 63. Hunt. 196, 197. stance, but differ in minor circumstances. I Flor. ad aun. 784. Malm. 7. Ethelw. 477. have selected those which appear the most VVestra. ad ann. 786. Tliey all agree in sub- probable. ANGLO-SAXONS. 1.55 of its consccjucnces, have arrested their attention. Brihtric CHA.P. III. had married Eadburga, the daughter of OfTa, a princess as ambitious and unj)rineipled as her father. By her imperious temper she governed her husband, and, through him, the whole nation. The king had noticed with particular distinction the ispoisioneiiby ealdorman Worr. Jealous of the rising influence of this youno- '^''eoo. nobleman, Eadburga jirepared for him a poisonous potion : but unfortunately the king drank of the same cup, and accompanied his favourite to the grave. The West-Saxons vented their im- precations against the murderess, who escaped with her treasures iierfau. to France : and the witena-gemot enacted a law, by which the consorts of their future kings were deprived of the style and privileges of royalty. Eadburga was presented to Charlemagne, and when the jeering monarch asked her, whom she would have, him or his son, " your son," she replied, " for he is the younger." The emperor was, or afl'ected to be, displeased : but he made her a present of an opulent monastery, in which she resided with the title of abbess. But the dissoluteness of her conduct soon scandalized the sisterhood, and the public. She was expelled with ignominy, and after many adventures, terminated her miserable existence at Pavia in Italy, where the daughter of the king of Mercia, and widow of the king of Wessex, was often seen soliciting in rags the charit}' of passengers. Brihtric died in the year 800 ^\ EGBERT. The expulsion of Egbert, and his reception at the court of Egbert Charlemagne, have been already mentioned. Three years he " Chron. Sax. 63. 68. Asser, p. 10. 12. VOL. I. X 154 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, served in the armies of that emperor, and improved the period III • • • • ^ of his exile in acquiring a proficiency in the arts of war and of government. The death of Brihtric recalled him to his native country. He was the only remaining prince of the house of Cerdic, deriving his descent from that conqueror through Inigils, the brother of Ina. By the West-Saxon thanes his claim was unanimously acknowledged : and the day of his coronation was ennobled by a splendid victory, the omen of subsequent conquests. Desirous perhaps to disturb the joy of the cere- mony, Ethelmund, the Mercian ealdorman of Glocester shire, attempted with a body of horsemen to cross the Isis at Kemps- ford, and was opposed by AVulstan, the West-Saxon ealdorman of Wiltshire. Both the commanders fell in the engagement: but the Mercians were routed, and pursued with considerable loss into their own territory ^^. Egbert devoted the commencement of his reign to the cul- tivation of peace, and the improvement of his people. It was BJitJus'*''^ not till 809 that he unsheathed the sword : but from that period ^^^' each succeeding year Avas marked by new victories and con- quests. He repeatedly invaded and appropriated to himself parts of the territory of the ancient Britons : the havoc of war and the flames of destruction were carried to the western ex- tremity of the island : and the natives of Cornwall, exhausted by numerous defeats, reluctantly submitted to the conqueror ''^ The East- Angles, who still remembered the treachery of Offa, by entreaties and presents induced him to make Avar upon the ThcMercians. Mercians. The two armies met at Ellendune on the banks of ^'^'^' the Willy : and Beornwulf, after an obstinate resistance, yielded the palm of victory to his adversary, Avho, seiiiing the favourable " Chron. Sax. p. 68. " Chron.,Sax. p. 69,70. EtheKveard, 478. ANGLO-SAXONS. 155 moment, overran the feeble kingdoms of Kent and Essex, and chap. united them to his own dominions. Beornwulf, and after him ' his successor Ludecan, sought to wreak their vengeance on the 825. East-Angles ^^ Both lost their lives in the fruitless attempt : and Wiglaf, who next ascended the throne, liad scarcely grasped the sceptre, when he was compelled to drop it at the approach of the West-Saxons. Unable to collect an army, he endea- voured to elude the pursuit of the invaders : wandered for three years in the forests and marshes : and during four months obtained a secure retreat in the cell of Elhclbui-ga, the daughter of Ofla, who lived a recluse in the church of Croyland. Time, and the entreaties of the abbot Siward, mitigated the resent- ment of Egbert : who at last permitted Wiglaf to retain the sceptre, on condition that he should pay an annual tribute, and swear fealty to the king of Wessex^''. By the submission The North- of Merc'a and of the East-Angles, Egbert found himself on the 828.^' frontiers of Northumbria, which was already subdued by the terror of his name. The chieftains, with Eanfrid at their head, met him at Dore, acknowledged him for their lord, and gave hostages for their obedience. Thence he directed his arms against the Britons, penetrated through the heart of North Wales, and planted his victorious standard in the isle of Anglesey. Thus in the space of nineteen years did Egbert, by his policy and victories extend the authority of AVessex over the greater part of the island, and obtain for himself the honourable title of " the eighth Bretwalda^^" " Prece pretioque Ingul. 7. Chron. Sax. authority. Several of his predecessors had as P- 70. , good a right to it as himself: and his imme- "' Ingul. 7, 8. diate successors contented themselves with the I" Chron. Sax. 71, 72. Ethelw. 478. The usual style of kings of the West-Saxons. By opinion that he gave himself the title of the moiiarcha Britanniae Huntingdon (188) pro- first king of England, rests on no sufficient bably means no more than Bretwalda. X 2 156 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. The Danes and North- men. Scarcely, however, had the king attained this superiority over the native princes, when he saw himself assailed by a foreign and most dangerous enemy. At this period the peninsula of Jut- land, the islands of the Baltic, and the shores of the Scandina- vian continent, were the birth-place of a race of men, who, like the Saxons of old, spent the best portion of their lives on the waves, despised the tranquil enjoyments of peace, and pre- ferred the acquisitions of rapine to the laborious profits of in- dustry. Their maritime situation familiarized them with the dangers of the ocean : and an absurd law of succession, Av'hich universally prevailed among a multitude of chieftains, consigned the majority of their children to the profession of piracy. The eldest son obtained the whole patrimon}' of his family : the rest of the brothers received no other inheiitance than their swords, and ships, with which they were expected to acquire both repu- tation and riches'^. Till the eighth century the sea-kings (so the principal of these adventurers were called), confined their de- predations to the northern seas : but they had heard of the wealthy provinces in the south ; and the success of their first at- tempts incited them to engage in more distant and important expeditions. Several chieftains associated under the banner of a renowned and experienced leader. In spring the pirates sailed to some distant province, landed, ravaged the country, collected the spoil, steered to another coast, repeated their depredations, and in autumn returned loaden with plunder to their own countr3^ Their first attempts were directed against the British isles: next they desolated the coasts of France and Spain ; at last they sailed through the straits which divide Europe from Africa^ and taught the shores of the Mediterranean to tremble at the names of the »' Gale, 533. Snorre, Havniae, J 777. p. 43. Messen. Stockholme, 1700, p. 4. ANGLO-SAXONS. 157 Danes and Northmen. The cstablislimcnt of a Danish dynasty C'i\p. in England, of the dutchy of Normandy in France, and ' afterwards . of a powerful kingdom in Italy, bears sufficient testimony to their courage, their activity, and their perse- verance. Of their descents in England during the eighth century- three Thehde- scents only are recorded, one on the isle of Thanet, and two on the coast of Northumbria. If these predatory incursions produced a tem- porary alarm, they furnished no cause of permanent uneasiness. But towards the close of the reign of Egbert the numbers of the pirates perpetually increased, and their visits were annually re- newed. In 832 they landed in the isle of Shepey, conveyed *"• away the plunder, and returned home without molestation. The next year a fleet of five-and-thirty sail entered the mouth of the '^•■*- Dart : and Egbert had the mortification to see his West-Saxons turn their backs to the invaders. Convinced of the necessity of preparation, he summoned all his vassals to meet him in London, explained to them the measures which he had resolved to adopt, and waited in anxious suspense for the next descent of the enemy. Nor were they inferior in policy to the king. They gss. landed on the coast of Cornwall : where, by the offers of friend- ship, they seduced the Britons from their allegiance; and at Hengstone hill encountered with united forces the men of Wessex. The king commanded in person: and a bloody but J^*'^''"'^ %■ decisive victory restored the glory of his arms, crushed the rebel- lion of the Britons, and compelled the invaders to seek refuge in their ships. This was the last exploit of Egbert, who died in the following year, after a long, a glorious, and a fortunate reign ^. sss- " Ethelw. 478. Hunt. 198, log. 10. 158 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. III. .== ETHELWULF. Succession of Ethclwulf succceded his father on the throne of Wessex : the conquered provinces ot Kent, Essex, and Surrey were formed into a subordinate kingdom, and intrusted to the government of Athelstan, the son or the brother of Ethehvulf ^*'. Of this monarch it has frequently been observed that he was fitter to wear the cowl, than to wield the sceptre. For so unfa- vourable a character he is principally indebted to the pen of Malmsbury, who describes him as a prince of inferior abilities, and assigns the merit of his government to the wisdom of his ministers Alstan, bishop of Sherburne, and Swithin, bishop of Winchester. But the accuracy of this statement may be ques- tioned. In the pages of the more ancient annalists Ethelwulf appears with greater dignit}"^ : and if we may estimate his, cha- racter by his conduct, we cannot refuse him the praise of activity and courage. The education of his more early years had been confided to Swithin, provost of Winchester; and the care of the tutor was repaid by Egbert with the office of royal chaplain. From the lessons of his preceptor the young prince was removed to study the mihtary art under the auspices of his father : and after the victory of EUendune, he commanded the arm}^ which expelled Baldred, king of Kent, from his dominions, and annexed that province, with Surrey and Essex, to the ancient patrimony of the house of Cerdic^"^ As soon as he had mounted the throne '«> Chron. Sax. 73. Our chroniclers are ther, and at that monarch's death transferred equally divided on the question, whether them to Athelstan. Athelstan was the son of Egbert, or of Ethel- '"' Malmsbury (De Pont. 1. ii. f. 137) tells wulf. I suspect that Ethelwulf governed the us that Etlielwulf, at the death of his father, eonquered provinces during the life of his fa- was a subdcacon : but tliat a dispensation for ANGLO-SAXONS. 159 he bestowed iijK)n his former tutor the vaciiiit bisliopric of Win- <^'"^P Chester ; but retained at the head of the couueil the experienced ' bishop of Sherburne. The incessant and desultory invasions of the Nortlinien suggested the propriety of appointing officers in the maritime districts, who, on the first alarm, might collect the inhabitants, and oppose the landing or progress of the enemy -, and this arrangement, though, by dividing the force of the country, it lessened the chance of victory, generally succeeded in confming the depredations of the invaders to the vicinity of the coast. The whole island was now surrounded by their squa- inva- sions. drons. While one occupied the attention of Ethelwulf, a second '^*"'*'> of thirtj^-three sail entered the port of Southampton, and soon s^''- after a third attempted to eifect a landing on the isle of Port- land. Of the kins's success we are not informed : Wulfere de- feated the invaders at Southampton ; but Ethelhelm was slain at Portland with many of the men of Dorset. The next spring a sas. powerful army landed in Lincolnshire. The ealdorman Here- bryht, with his followers, perished in the marshes ; and the barbarians pushed their victorious career through East-Anglia to the Thames. The following year three bloody battles were *^* fought at Rochester, Canterbury, and London : and Ethelwulf himself was defeated in an action at Charmouth with thirty-five sail of the enemy ^°'. him to ascend the throne was obtained from gether different persons with the same or si- Leo III. because he was the only surviving milar names. Thus in the ancient life of St. descendant of Cerdic. But Leo had then Neot (Act. SS. Bened. Sebc. iv. torn. ii. p. 325.) been dead more than twenty years; Athel- the bishop of Winchester his contemporary, Stan, the brother or son of Ethelwulf, was and Ethelwold who was bishop a century af- living, and might have governed Wessex terwards, are both described as the same per- as well as Kent ; and the story itself appears on. to have been unknown to all preceding writers, "" Chron. Sax. 73, 74. Asser, annal. 155. and even to Malmsbury, when he wrote his About this time occurred the wars between history of tiie kings (De Reg. 20). The tale the Scots and Picts, which ended in the sub- of Ethelwulf having been bishop of Win- jngation of the latter by Kenneth, king of Chester is still less entitled to credit. Both Scots, in 842. Fordun, iv. 6. 8. reports probably arose from confounding to- 2 160 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Whether it . was that the pirates were discouraged by the ' obstinate resistance which they experienced, or that France, now become the theatre of intestine feuds and fraternal ambi- tion, offered u more inviting prospect, they appear to have abandoned Britain for the next ten years, while they visited and revisited with impunity the different provinces on the coast of ''•'^- Gaul. But in 851 several squadrons, as if by common consent, returned to the island. One army had landed the preceding autumn in the isle of Thanet, and had passed the winter on shore, a circumstance which filled the Saxons with consterna- tion, as it seemed Jto denote a design of permanent conquest. In the spring a fleet of three hundred and fifty sail ascended the Thames : Canterbury and London were sacked, and Bertulf, the tributar}^ king of Mercia, to whom the defence of the district had been assigned, was defeated ^''^ The barbarians turned to the left, and entered Surrey, where Ethelwulf with his AVest- Saxons w'aited to receive them at Okeley. The battle which ensued, was the subject of a poem, fragments of which have been preserved by the ancient chroniclers. It was most obsti- nate and sanguinary. The victory remained to Ethehvulf ; and the loss of the Danes is said to have been greater than they had ever sustained in any age or country. The other divisions of the Saxon forces were equally successful. Ceorl with the men of Devon defeated the barbarians at Wenbury : and Athelstan, king of Kent, captured nine of their ships in an engagement near Sandwich. So many victories gave to this the name of the prosperous year : and the Northmen, disheartened by their losses, respected during the remainder of Ethelwulf's reign the shores of Britain ^°^. '" Chron. Sax. 74. Asser, 5, 6. Ing. 11. Danes made one or two descents afterwards, •" Chron. Sax. 74, 75. Asser, 5, 6. The but of little importance. 4 ANGLO-SAXONS. iGl Burrhed, king of Mercia, the successor of ]5crtulf, had deter- CHAP, mined to chastise the insolence of the Welsh, who made frequent . incursions into his territories. Merfyn Frjch their sovereign, Kiheiwnn fell in the battle : but Roderic Mawr succeeded to the throne, Mercians and defied all the power of the Mercian. Burrhed had recourse to his superior lord, the king of Wessex : and Ethelwulf, uniting his forces with those of his vassal, penetrated through Wales as far as the isle of Anglesey, and compelled the natives to acknowledge the superiority of the king of Mercia. At his return he gave his daughter Ethelswitha in marriage to Burrhed: and the nuptials were celebrated with royal magnificence at Chippenham ^°^. The repeated invasions of the barbarians induced Ethelwulf Crants-aiiite. „ 1 11 I 1 J- 1 • ii /-\ ^ ral ilonation t» irequently to consult the assembly or his thanes. Un one or the chinch. 854 these occasions by their advice, and with their consent, he pub- lished a charter, of which the copies ai'e so different, and the lan- guage is so obscure, that it is difficult to ascertain its real object : whether it were to exempt from all secular services the tenth part of each manor, whoever might be the possessor, or to annex that portion of land to the possessions which had already been settled on the church. That the grant, however, was highly ad- vantageous to the clergy, is evident from the engagenrent of the bishops of Sherburne and Winchester, who appointed the Wed- nesday of each week as a day of public supplication, to implore the divine assistance against the Danes. This charter was at first confined to the. kingdom of Wessex : but in a council of the tributary states, held at Winchester in 855, it was extended to all the nations of the Saxons ^°^. "" Chron. Sax. 75. Asser, 6, 7. Cara- Spelm. p. 348. Ing. 17. Gale, 3S9. Westni. anes. 910. the whole power of Edward : but they still preserved the man- Auacks the ners and spirit of their ancestors, and diminished their national '^'^^''"^ strength by dividing it among a number of equal and indepen- dent chieftains. Alter the death of Ethehvold five years elapsed without any important act of hostility : in 910 Edward con- ducted his forces into Northumbria, and spent five weeks in ravaging the country, and collecting slaves and plunder. The next year the Northmen returned the visit. They penetrated to the Avon : but in their retreat were overtaken by the Saxons, and suffered a defeat, which was long a favourite subject among our national poets. Edward now adopted the plan, which had been so successfully pursued by his fatlier, of building fortresses for the defence of his dominions, and the annoyance of the enemy. A line drawn from the n)Outh of the Tliames, through Bedford, to Chester, will pretty accurately describe the boundary which separated the hostile nations. To curb the East-Anglians the king built Witham and Hertford : while Ethelfleda, at his suggestion, erected similar fortresses at Bridgenorth, Tamworth, Stafford, Warwick, and other places in the vicinity. Their utility was soon demonstrated in the failure of a Danish expedition from the coast of Armorica. After ravaging the shore of Wales, the barbarians attempted to peafitrate into Herefordshire. They were opposed by the inhabitants of the neighbouring burghs, driven into a wood, and compelled to give hostages, as a security for their peaceable departure. Edward was, however, suspicious of their honour, and lined the northern coast of Somersetshire with troops. As he expected, they made two attempts to land in the night at Watchet and at Portlock, and were defeated at both places with considerable slaughter. The remains fled to 206 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. IV. Success of Ed n aid and Ethelfleda. Edward pur- sues his suc- cess. one of the uninhabited isles in the mouth of the Severn, but want soon compelled them to abandon their asylum, and seek new adventures in AVales and Ireland ^^ The royal brother and sister, having thus provided for the security of their own territories, proceed to attack those of their enemies. Ethelfleda took Derby by storm, though the Danes obstinately defended themselves in the streets; and then laid siege to Leicester, which, with the adjacent territory, was sub- dued by the terror of her arms. Edward, on his side, built two forts at Buckingham to overawe the Northmen of the adjoining counties, took Bedford by capitulation, and, advancing into Northamptonshire, fortified Towcester. The Danes alarmed at the progressive encroachments of the Saxons, made, in the same 3'ear, four attempts to obtain possession of the nearest fortresses. One party occupied Tempsford, and besieged Bedford : another stormed the walls of Towcester : a third attacked Wigingamere, and a fourth surrounded Maiden. In each instance the garrisons defended themselves till the royal army came to their assistance; and Edward, eager to improve his success, took possession of Huntingdon and Colchester. The Danes were dispirited by so many losses : and all their chieftains from the Willand in North- amptonshire to the mouth of the Thames, submitted to the conqueror, took the oaths of allegiance, and acknowledged him for their "lord and protector ^V^ During the three next years the king with unceasing vigilance pursued the same line of policy. He successively carried his arms to every part of the ancient boundary of Mercia, and erected fortresses at Manchester, at Thelwall on the left bank of the Mersey, at Nottingham, and at Stamford. By these con- "Chron.Sax. 102--105. " To hlaforde and to mund-boran. Chron. Sax. 109. Also, 106--1O9. ANGLO-SAXONS. 207 quests Edward acquired more real power than had ever been CHAP, possessed by any of his predecessors. All the tribes from North- ' umbria to the channel ibrined but one kingdom subject to liis inuuediate controul : while the other nations in the island, warned by the fate of their neighbours, anxiously solicited his friendship. The Danes and Angles of the north made him offers of submission : the kings of the Scots and Strath-clyde Britons 924. chose him fbr their " lord and father :" and the princes of Wales paid him a yearly tribute. Yet he was not long permitted to ^*""'' enjoy this pre-eminence. He died in ^25 at Farrington, and his death was immediately followed by that of his eldest son Ethelward at Oxford ^. Edward had been thrice married, and left a numerous family. His family. Of the sons, who survived him, three successively ascended the throne, Athelstan, Edmund, and Edred. Six of his daughters Avere married to foreign princes, some of them the most powerful sove- reigns in Europe: and three, Elfleda, Ethelhilda, and Eadburga embraced a religious life. Of Eadburga the early history is curious. Eadburga. She was the youngest of Edward's children, and had been led by her father, when she was about three years old, into a room, in which he had previously placed a collection of female trinkets, and a chalice with the book of the gospels. The child ran to the latter, and Edward, interpreting her choice as the destination of heaven, embraced her and exclaimed : " thou shalt be gratified to" " Chron. Sax. 111. The chronicle tells this fortress that " the king of the Scots and us that Edward built a town and fortified it " ail the people of the Scols, and the king of at Badecanwyllan in Poacland, which Gibson " the Strathclyde Gaels, and all the Strath- conceives to be Bakcwell in Derbyshire. I " clyde Gaels (the men of Galloway. West- think that Peaclaud means Lothian, which " min. 184) chose him for their father and according to Camden was anciently called "lord." Chron. Sax. 110. In other words, Pictland (Brit. p. 1181), and that Badecan- they did him homage: hominiuiB fecerunt. wyllan, the bathing wells, is probably Bath- Mailros, 146. gates. For it was on occasion of his building 208 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. <« in thy wishes ; nor will thy parents regret, if they yield to thee " " in virlue." She was delivered to the care of her grandmother Alswitha, and of the nuns of Winchester ; Avith whom she spent a long course of years, eminent among the sisters for her humi- lity and devotion ^^. Edward forti- jjj legislative and literary merit Edward was much inferior to fied the O •' burghs. his father : he surpassed him in the magnitude and the durability of his conquests. The subjection of the Danes to Alfred was only nominal : and at his death the kingdom, which he left to his son, was bounded by the Mercian counties on the banks of the Thames and the Severn. Edward by steadily pursuing the same object, and ensuring the submission of each district before he proceeded to further conquests, extended his rule over all the Danes of Mercia and East-Anglia. Wherever he penetrated, he selected a strong position, and while a multitude of workmen surrounded it with a wall of stone, encamped in the neighbour- hood for their protection ^'^. That these fortifications were equal to their object is evident from the fact, that not one of them was ever captured by the enemy : and they were productive in after ages, of consequences, which this monarch could not possibly have foreseen. They were long the principal towns in England, and served to multiply a class of men of a higher order, and dis- tinguished by greater privileges than the ceorles or husbandmen. To the burghers was intrusted the defence of their walls and of the adjacent country. By living in society, and having arms in their hands, they grew into consideration, and insensibly acquir- ed sucli a degree of power and wealth as ultimately to open to their representatives the national council, and thus lay the foun- " Malms, de Reg. ii. 13, De Pont. ii. f. 140. " Chron. Sax. 106. 108. ANGLO-SAXONS. 209 dation of that influence, which the people enjoy in our present chap. constitution. • ' During his reign an important alteration was effected in the Eccieiiastica) ecclesiastical economy of the kingdom of Wcssex. The frequent wars which had preceded the restoration of Alfred, had caused a relaxation of discipline, and, in many places, had revived the superstitions of paganism. Pope Formosus sought by threats and exhortations to awaken the zeal of the West-Saxon prelates, and suggested the propriety of increasing the number of their bishoprics. About the year 910 the two churches of Winchester and Sherburn became vacant, and Plegmund, archbishop of Canterbury, improved the opportunity to make a new division of the kingdom, and to establish three more dioceses for the counties of Somerset, Devon, and Cornwall ^^ The most important of the religious foundations at this period was the new minster at Winchester. At the death of Alfred, the aged Grimbald had requested permission to retire to the friends of his youth, the clergy of St. Omers : but Edward, unwilling to be deprived of his services, prevailed on him to remain in England, by promising to provide for him according to the in- tention of the late king, a monastery in the neighbourhood of the royal city. From the bishop Denulf and the canons he purchas- ed three acres of land, on which he erected a spacious church and buildings for the accommodation of Grimbald and a society of clergymen, and bestowed on them the lands which his father had destined for that purpose in his will. To this new minster he transferred the remains of Alfred : and in the same place his OAvn body, and that of his son Ethelward were deposited^'*.. " Wilk. Con. i. 199,200. Eadm. Nov. v. Sax. p. 111. During Edward's reign t he 128. English made frequent pilgrimages to Rome. " Monast. Ang. p. 208, 209. Annal. de In 921 many were massacred in passing the Hyde apud Alf. iii. p. 201. 205. Chron. Alps by the Saracens from Fraxinetum. A VOL. I. E E 210 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. QHAP. ^^- ATHELSTAN, THE FIRST MONARCH OF ENGLAND. Succession of By the will of the late monarch the crown was left to Athelstan Atheistan. j^^^ eldcst son, about thirty years of age. The claim of the new king was immediately admitted by the thanes of Mercia, and after a short time by those of Wessex. The ceremony of his coronation was performed at Kingston by Athelm, archbishop of Canterbury ^^. Taieabmttthe ^^ the mothcr of Athclstan, Malmsbury has told a romantic AtheisLn' t^^^' °'^ ^hc faith of an ancient ballad. She was the daughter of a neat-herd, and called Egwina. Her superior beaut}^ even in her childhood, had attracted admiration : and a fortunate dream was said to portend that she would prove the mother of a power- ful monarch. This report excited the curiosity of the lady who had nursed the children of Alfred. She took Esiwina to her house, and educated her as one of her own family. When prince Edward casually visited his former nurse, he saw the daughter of the neat-herd, and was captivated with her beauty, Athelstan was the fruit of their mutual affection ^^. From this very doubt- ful story it has been inferred that the king was an illegitimate son : but the force of the inference is weakened by .the testimony of a contemporary poetess, who in mentioning the birth of Athel- *' stan, alludes to the inferior descent of his mother, but at the same few years later many others met with the same porary poet, whose extravagant praises of his fete. Chron. Flodoardi apud Bouquet, vii. patron he reduced to the standard of proba- 177. 180. bility and common sense. The last is a col- '' Chron. Sax. 111. Malm. 26. In Malms- lection of facts for which no written authority bury we have three diiferent accounts of could be found : but which were mentioned Athelstan, which should be carefully distin- in Anglo-Saxon songs transmitted from one guished. The first he compiled himself from generation to another. Malm. 26 — 19 documents within his reach. The second he "' Malm. 29. abridged from the longer work of a contem- ANGLO-SAXONS. 211 time calls lier the partner of Edward's throne". The child was CHAP. IV the delight oi' his grandfather Alfred, who created him a knight ' by investing him with a mantle of purple, and a short sword in a golden scabbard. After the death of his mother he was in- trusted to the care of his aunt Ethelfleda, a fortunate circum- stance, as it probably caused his interests to be, at this period, so eagerly espoused by the natives of Mercia^^. In Wessex Athclstan had to guard against the secret designs Alfred aspires , tothecrowD. of his enemies, of whom the most dangerous was the etheling Alfred. . The associates of this prince had conspired to seize the person of the king at Winchester, and to deprive him of sight. On the discovery of the plot Alfred demanded, according to the forms of the Saxon jurisprudence, to clear himself by oath : and Athelstan, who dared not refuse the privilege, sent him to Rome in the custody of his messengers, to perform the ceremony in tlic presence of the pontiff. The unfortunate etheling swore to his innocence on the altar of St. Peter. But as he survived his oath only three days, his death was con- sidered a sufficient proof of his guilt by the witan, who adjudged his estates to the king. By him they were given to the monastery of Malmsbury ^. Sightric, the Danish king of Northumbria, had braved the Atiieistan power of Edward : he solicited the friendship of Athelstan, and storofNorih- asked his sister Editha in marriage. The two princes met at "" '^^. Tamworth. Sightric was baptized, received the hand of Editha, and accepted from Athelstan a grant of what he already pos- sessed, the country between the Tees and the frith of Forth ^. It is said, that the barbarian soon repented of his own choice, and abandoned both his wife and religion ^^: it is certain that " Quern peperit regi consors non inclyta '" Malm. 28, 29. regni. Rosvitha,de gest.Odon. p. 165. «* Malm. 27. Wallingford, 540. "" Malm. 27. " Westmin. 185. T. E 2 212 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, he died at the end of twelve months, and that Athelstan seized ' the oijuortunity to annex Northumbria to his own dominions. The two sons of Sightric fled before the superior power of the Anglo-Saxon ; Godfrid into Scotland, and AnlafF into Ireland. Anlaff had the good fortune to meet with friends and associates : but Constantine, the king of the Scots, dared not afford an asylum to the enemy of Athelstan ; and Godfrid, after a fruit- less attempt to surprise the city of York, voluntarily surrendered himself to the mercy of the conqueror. He was received with humanity and treated with honour : but the mind of the Dane could not brook the idea of dependence, and on the fourth day he fled to the coast, and commenced the profession of a sea- king '^. Extends his The ambition of Athelstan nov/ grasped at the sovereignty of the'sriton"!" the whole island. In the north he levelled with the ground the castle of York, the principal bulwark of the Danish power : Ealdulf, a Saxon chieftain, was compelled to yield to him the strong castle of Bamborough : and the king of Scots, and the prince of Cumberland obeyed his summons, and acknowledged his superiority. On the west he intimidated the Britons of Wales and Cornwall. The chieftains of the former waited on him at Hereford, where they stipulated to confine their country- men to the right bank of the Wye, and to pay a 3'early tribute of twenty pounds of gold, three hundred pounds of silver, and five thousand head of cattle. The Cornish Britons had hitherto reached from the Land's-end to the river Ex, and possessed one half of Exeter. He commanded them to retire beyond the Ta- mar ; surrounded the city with a strong wall of stone ; and fre- quently honoured it Avitli his presence. To confirm his claim of sovereignty, he convened at a place called Eadmote all the " Malm. 27. ANGLO-SAXONS. 21 princes of the Scots, Cambrians and Jiritons, who, placing their CHAP, hands between his, swore to him tiiat fealty, which the Saxon ' o vassal was accustomed to swear to his lord ^''. Dm-ing this tide of success, and when Athelstan had just reached the zenith of his power, Edwin, the eldest of his bro- Weatii of \m , ,^1 ,. . 1 11 1 brother E(l- thers, penshed at sea. Ine traditionary ballads, consulted by win. Mahnsbury, attribute his death to the jealousy of the king, who convinced of his own illegitimacy, suspected Edwin of aspiring to that crown which belonged to him by the right of inheritance. It was in vain that the young prince asserted his innocence upon oath : and when his oath Avas disregarded, threw himself on the affection of his brother. The tyrant thought his own safety incompatible with the life of Edwin : and, Avhile he affected the praise of lenity by commuting the sentence of death into that of banishment, committed his victim to the mercy of the waves in an open and shattered boat, with only one companion. The prince, in a paroxysm of despair, leaped into the sea : his at- tendant coolly waited for the flow of the tide, and was wafted back to the shore in the neighbourhood of Dover. Athelstan, it is added, when it was too late, repented of his cruelty, sub- mitted to a course of canonical penance, and built the churcli of Middleton, that prayers might be daily offered for the soul of his murdered brother. Such is the tale which Malmsbury has preserved, but of which he does not presume to affirm or deny the truth *^^ It seems not to deserve much credit. No trace of " Malm. 27, 28. Flor. 602. Mail. 147. by Sim. 134. 154. Hoved. 242. West. TliG contemporary ivriler in Malmsbury makes 186. Bromp. 836. It may however be the tribute of the Welsh amouut to 25,000 observed that Simeon, Hoveden, and West- eattle. I have preferred the more moderate minster, have all copied the same words from, account of Caradoc, p. 48. one common document. Florence (603), '"Nonconstantersedtitubanter. Malm. 25. who usually copies the same documefit, has Non ut defendam, sed ne lectorum scieutiam in this instance deserted it, and omitted en- del'raudem. Id. 29. The story is repeated tirely the death of Edwin. 214 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. IV. J5rots rehel and suliinit. Invasion of Anlaff. 937. it is to be discovered in the contemporary biographer of Athei- Stan : and in the poem from which it was extracted, it was coupled with another tale evidently fabulous *'^. That Edwin pe- rished at sea, cannot be doubted : but the king appears rather to have deplored his death as a calamity than to have regretted it as a crime. The account of Huntingdon contains all that can now be known of the transaction : " soon afterwards he had " the misfortune to lose in the waves of the ocean his brother " Edwin, a ^^outh of great vigour and good disposition ^°." The king of Scots eagerly sought to free himself from his dependance on the English monarch: and with this view en- tered into alliance with Howel, king of AVales. But the power of Athelstan was irresistible. At the head of his army he ex- tended his ravages as far as Dunfsedor and Westmore, while his fleet pillaged the coast to the extremity of Caithness. Con- stantine was compelled to implore the clemency of the con- queror, and to surrender his son as an hostage for his fidelity ^^ Three years afterwards the superiority of the English king was threatened by a more formidable confederacy. In 937 a fleet of six hundred and fifteen sail cast anchor in the Humber. It obeyed the commands of Anlaff, who was come with an army of Irish and northern adventurers to reconquer the dominions of his father. His arrival was the signal of war to his confederates, *' The ballad proceeds to say that it" was the butler of Athelstan, who urged his master to the death of Edwin : that one day as he waited on the king, his foot slipt, and reco- vering himself with the other, he exclaimed: thus brother helps brother. The words re- minding Athelstan of the fate of Edwin, he ordered the butler to be put to death. Malm. 23. This kind of story seems to have been a favourite with the Anglo-Saxons. The reader will meet with another edition of it in the bistory of Edward the conlessor. " That Edwin perished at sea is asserted by the Saxon chronicle (111), and Mailros (147). The words of Huntingdon are: nee multo post adversa perculsus fortuna fratrem suuin Edwinum magni vigoris juvenem ct bona; indolis maris fluctibus flebiliter amisit. Hunt. 204. 168, 159. " Chron. Sax. HI. Sim. Dun. 134. Floren. 603. On this account Ethelwerd, a contemporary, says, Colla subdunt Scoli pari- tertpie Picti, uno solidanlur Britannidis arva. Ethelw. 482. Scotiam sibi subjug.indo per- domuit. Sim. Dun. 25. ANGLO-SAXONS. 215 the Scots and Britons, who under their respective princes direct- chap. ed their march to the same spot. The heutenants of Alhelstan, _ unable to repel the torrent, endeavoured to retard its pro- gress. Negociations were opened to gain time for the arrival of Athelstan, who not content with his own forces, had purchas- ed the aid of several sea kings. As he passed through Beverley, he visited the church, offered his dagger on the altar, and vowed to redeem it, if he returned victorious, at a price worthy of a king. The armies were soon in the neiriau rji|^ j jj wars, wliich fomierlv desolated Northumbria, liave pnnces. 7 ./ been mentioned already : after the extinction of its native kings it continued to present similar scenes of anarchy and bloodshed. Its chieftains Avere partly of Saxon, partly of Danish origin, alike in disposition and habits, but enemies to each other, and equally regardless of treachery or of violence when it could contribute to their aggrandizement. Every sea-king was certain of finding an asylum among them: and, if he had the ambition to aspire to a throne, there were never wanting men, who were willinc to draw the sword i)i his cause. Sometimes a fortunate adventurer extended his authority over the whole nation ; some- times two or more shared the sovereign power among them. But they were no better than flitting shadows of royalty, •• Leg. 54—69. " Malm. 29. ANGLO-SAXONS. 225 following each other in rapid succession. After a year or CHAP, two many of them perished by the treachery of afi'ected friend- J_ ship, or the sword of declared enmity ; many were compelled to abandon the country, and revert to the pursuits of piracy : hardly one transmitted the inheritance of his authority to his children. Occasionally necessity extorted from them an ac- knowledgment of the superiority claimed by the kings of Wes- sex: but the moment the danger was removed, they uniformly forgot their oaths, and resumed the exercise of their indepen- dence. It soems to have mattered little, Avhether these princes were natives or foreigners : the pride of the inhabitants was satisfied, provided they did not crouch to the pretensions of the southern Saxons, whose superior civilization was viewed with contempt by the barbarism of the Northumbrians. After the battle of Brunanburgh the terror of Athelstan had Ankifs s kept this turbulent people under some restraint: but at his 310. death their ancient spirit revived : AnlafF was invited to hazard a third time the fortune of war: and within a few Aveeks the Humber was covered by a numerous fleet of foreign adventurers. The sea-king rested his hope of success on the rapidity of his motions, and, marching into Mercia, obtained possession of Tamworth. Edmund, the brother of Athelstan, and about eighteen years of age, had been crowned at Kingston, and has- tened to oppose the invaders. The operations of the campaign are involved in much obscurity. The success which attended the first efforts of Edmund, seems to have been balanced by a subsequent defeat : and the respective losses of the two princes induced them to listen to the suggestions of the archbishops Odo and Wolstan, who laboured to effect a pacification. The vanity of our chroniclers has exhibited the transaction in partial colours : but the conditions of the treaty prove the superiority 224 HISTOllY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, of AnlafF. Edmund ceded in full sovereignty to the Dane all ^^ the provinces on the north of the Watling street"^. His death. The sea-king did not long enjoy his good fortune. He died ^^^' the next year, and Edmund improved the opportunity to recover the dominions which he had lost. His measures were plamved Edmund con. with foresight, and executed with vigour. The five-burghs, as Smbria. °^ " they were called, of Derby, Leicester, Nottingham, Stamford, and Lincoln, had long been inhabited by the descendants of Danes, who, though they made a profession of obedience to the English monarchs, considered it a duty to favour the enterprises of their kinsmen. These towns formed as it were a chain of fortresses running through Mercia, and garrisoned by ene- mies. The king began his operations by reducing them in suc- 942. cession. Their inhabitants were expelled, and replaced by Eng- lish colonies ^^ Edmund next proceeded into Northumbria. That country was already divided between two princes, one of whom like his predecessor was called Anlaff, the other styled himself Reginald, king of York. They submitted without re- sistance to the superior power of Edmund, acknowledged them- 943. selves his vassals, and embraced Christianity. The king stood sponsor to AnlafF, at his baptism ; and adopted Reginald for his son, when he received confirmation. Yet he had hardly left the country, when they again asserted their independence. Their 944. perfidy soon met with its punishment. The archbishop of York and the ealdorman of Mercia united their forces, and drove the two traitors out of the country ^. 4nd Cumbria. -^ scusc of tliclr owu danger had hitherto taught the Britons ^^'^^- of Cumbria to assist their neighbours in their different struggles '* Besides the printed chroniclers, see an- the dominions of the other. This is not men- other in MS. quoted by Mr. Tinner, Tib. B. 4. tioned by any other writer. Westminster (187), adds to the conditions of "' Chron. Sax. 114. Hunt. 203. Flor. 603. the treaty, that the survivor was to succeed to '° Eihehv. 482. Flor. 604. Hunt. 203. ANGLO-SAXONS. 225 in support of their independence. It was against them that chap. Edmund next directed his arms. Every effort, which they ' could make, Avas hopeless : the two sons of Dunmail their king fell into the hands of the conqueror, and were deprived of sight, and the country was bestowed on Malcolm, king of Scots, on the condition that he should become the vassal of the English crown, and should unite with Edmund in opposing the attempts of the sea-kings ^'. The reign of Edmund lasted only six years. He was cele- Edmunds brating at Pucklekirk in Glocestershirc the feast of St. Angus- 940. tine, the apostle of the Saxons, when he perceived Leof a noted outlaw enter the hall. This man had been banished on ac- count of his crimes some years before : and now had the auda- city to seat himself at the royal table, and to offer resistance, when the cup-bearer delivered to him an order to depart. Passion hurried Edmund to the spot, where he received a wound in the breast, from a dagger which Leof had concealed under his clothes. The king immediately expired : the assassin was cut in pieces by the royal attendants ^'^. Edmund had been married to Elfgiva, a princess of exemplary virtue, whose solicitude for the relief of the indigent, and charity in purchasing the liberty of slaves, have been highly extolled by our ancient writers. She bore him two sons, Edwy and Edgar, of Avhom the eldest could not be more than nine years of age. Their childhood rendered them incapable of directing the government : and in an assembly of the prelates, thanes, " Ut sibi terra et mari fidelis esset. Lei. (iv. 24) asserts that according to the agree- Col. ii. 399. Sim. 156. Hunt. 203. Flor. ment between the two kings, the heir to the 604. His midwyrhta, or associate in war, crown of Scotland was always to hold Cum- Chron. Sax. 115. Ut Aquilonares Angliai berland of the crown of England, partes terra marique ab hostium adventantium " Malm. 30. AVest. 188. In most of his- jiicursioBe tucretur. West. 188. Fordun charters he styles himself Rex Anglorum. VOL. I. G G 226 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. IV. Edred suc- ceeds. and vassal princes of Wales, their uncle Edred, the only sur- viving son of Edward, was chosen king ; and, to use the inflated language of a charter given on the occasion, was " consecrated " at Kingston to the quadripartite government of the Anglo- " Saxons, Northumbrians, Pagans, and Britons ^^." EDRED. I'inal subjec- tion of the Northum- bi'aiis. 946. The reign of Edred was principally distinguished by the final subjugation of the Northumbrians. Immediately after his coro- nation, he proceeded to that countr}'^ : and receis'ed first from the natives, afterwards from the Scots, and lastly from the Cum- brians, the usual oaths of fidelity"^ But the obedience of the Northumbrians lasted only as long as they were overawed by his presence : he was no sooner departed, than they expelled his olUcers, and set his authority at defiance. Eric, who had been driven from Norway by his brother Haco, and had wan- dered for years a pirate on the ocean, landed on their coast, and was immediately saluted king. The news excited the indigna- tion of Edred. His first object was to secure the important city of York: and with that view he dispatched his chancellor Turketul to archbishop Wolstan, to confirm the wavering fidelity of that pre- late, whose influence among his countrymen was unbounded. The king soon afterwards entered Northumbria at the head of the men of Wessex and Mercia : and by ravaging the lands, severely punished the perfidy of the rebels. But as he led back his followers Ipaden With pillage and unsuspicious of danger, the »» Smith's Bed. A pp. 772. Elfgiva died ,, ^ will whatever ho should vrill." Chron. Sax, before her husband. ElUelw. 48'2. 116. Cui Northynibri sulijiciuntur cuneti, '* Flor. CO 1. West. 189. " The Scots necnon Scoti juyuiaiida coiilinnant, i)iumita- " gave iiim their oaths that they Tvould bilemque fidem. Kihelv^. 4il2. ANGLO-SAXONS. 227 gates of York were thrown open in the night; a chosen band of CHA.P. adventurers silently followed his march, and a division of his ' army was surprised and destroyed. To revenge this insult he 9.->o. resumed tlic work of devastation : but his anger was appeased by presents, entreaties, and submission ; and he returned in triumph with a long train of captives to London. Eric might still perhaps have maintained liimself in the country, had he not been opjjosed by a new competitor, Anlaff, one of the princes who had fled from the sword of Edmund in the last reign. The two rivals assembled their forces : Anlaff was victorious : and tlie Norwegian with his brother and son perished in the wilds of Stanemoor by the treachery of Osulf, and the sword of Macco, the son of Anlaff*. This was the last struggle of Northumbrian independence. 953. Edred returned with a numerous army, and traversed the country without opposition. Large and fertile districts were laid deso- late : the archbishop, whose conduct had long been ambiguous, was immured for a year witiiin the castle of Whitby : the prin- cipal noblemen were torn from their dependants, and carried by the king into captivity : the whole province, like the rest of Eng- land, was divided into shires, ridings, and wapentakes : and the goveffnment was intrusted to a number of officers appointed by Edred, under the superintendence of Osulf, who took the title of earl of Northumberland ^^. Edred was afflicted with a lingering and painful disease^'': Account of and much of the merit of his reign must be attributed to the counsels of his favourite ministers, the chancellor Turketul, and "Ing. 30. 41. West. 189. Mail. 148. stance for an Anglo-Saxon king, of whom it "^ Ing. 41. Sim. 156. Walling. 541. was expected that he should be the foremost " Malm. 30. He was for a long timeim- in the pleasures of the table as well as the able to take any solid food (Vit. S. Dun. in dangers of the field. Act. SS. p. 353) : a most unlucky circum- G G 2 228 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Dunstaiij abbot of Glastonbury. Turketul was a clergyman of IV royal descent, the eldest son of Ethelwerd, and the grandson of Alfred. He had refused preferment in the church, but accepted and retained the office of chancellor under his cousins Athelstan, Edmund, and Edred. His virtues and abilities were honoured with the approbation of the prince, and the applause of the people. He held the first place in the royal councils : the most important offices, both civil and ecclesiastical, were con- ferred by his advice : and his attendance on the sovereign was required in every military expedition. The important part which he acted in the battle of Br ananburgh, has been already noticed -^. When he was sent by Edred to archbishop AVolstan, it chanced that his road led him by the ruins of Croyland, which still afforded a miserable shelter to three monks, the survivors of the Danish devastations. Turketul was atfected by the piety and resignation of these aged anchorites; and he felt a secret desire to enter into their society, and to restore their monastery to its ancient splendour. At his return he solicited, and after several refusals, obtained the permission of his sovereign. The public crier announced to the citizens of London that the chancellor, before he quitted his office, was anxious to discharge all his debts, and to make threefold reparation to any person, whom he might have injured. When he had satisfied every demand, he gave fifty-four of his manors, the inheritance which he had received from his fiither, to the king, add reserved six for the use of his monastery. At Croyland he made his monastic profession, received the investiture from Edred, was blessed by the bishop of Dorchester, and the next day by the advice of tho " Ingulf remarks (p. 37) that though he however, the doctrine of tlie age, thai an ox- led tlie troops to battle, he refused to make ccption was allowed in war undertaken tor use of arms, because the canons prohibited the protection of the country against a pagan, io clergymen the eftusion of blood. It was, invasion. Ibid. ANGLO-SAXONS. 229 Jawyers resigned the abbey with its appurtenances into the hands chap. of the sovereign. All the lands which formerly belonged to it, ^^' had, during the Danish wars, been seized by Burrhed, king of Mercia, who annexed a part to the crown, and divided the re- mainder among his thanes. The former were cheerfully restored by the piety of Ed red : of the latter several manors were pur- chased from the present possessors by Turketul. At the next meeting of the witan he received a new grant of the whole from the king in the most ample form, but with the exception of the privilege of sanctuary, which he refused as a violation of justice and an incentive to crime. From this period he spent seven-and-twenty years in the discharge of his duties as abbot: the zeal of the preceptor was rewarded by the proliciency of his disciples ; and at his death in 975 the monks ol Croyland formed a nunerous and edifying community ^'^. The abbot of Glastonbury, the other favourite of Ed red, oc- AndofDua- cupies a disproportionate space in most of our modern histories, s^"* Nearly related to Athelm, archbishop of Canterbury, and to Elphege, bishop of Winchester, he had been introduced by them a candidate for royal favour to the court of king Athelstan. But the jealousy of rivals, and the reflections suggested by a danoer- ous illness, diverted the thoughts of the young thane from worldly- pursuits to the monastic state : and having received the order of priesthood, he served during several years the church of Glaston- bury. In this situation his zeal, disinterestedness, and charities attracted the notice of the public : by Turketul he was recom- mended to the favour of Edmund; and that prince bestowed on him Glastonbury with its possessions. By Edred, Dunstanwas not less respected than he had been by his predecessor. The new king made him the director of his conscience: deposited with him his " See Ingulf, 25. 30—41 . 62. 230 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, treasures and the titles to his lands, and earnestly solicited him TV ' to accept the vacant bishopric of Winchester. This preferment he declined : and, while he was more obscurely emplo3^ed in the govermiient of his monastery, unexpectedly lost his friend and '^lo.*^* benefactor. The king, whose constitution had been enfeebled by frequent returns of his disease, was induced by a new and more alarming attack, to send for the abbot of Glastonbury : but had expired before Dunstan arrived. Edred reigned something more than nine years, and was buried at Winchester *^. '" Ang. Sac. ii. 90—104. Malm. 30, ANGLO-SAXONS. 231 CHAP. V. ANGLO-SAXONS. REIGNS OF EDWY— EDGAR— EDWARD THE MARTYR— ETHELRED— AND EDMUND, SURNAMED IRONSIDE. EDWY. At the accession of Edred, his nephews Edwy and Edgar liad chap. been passed by on account of their childhood : at his death the elder of the two brothers was chosen king by the unanimous Edwy. voice of the witan, and entered immediately on the full exercise of the royal authority \ The young king had unfortunately imbibed an idea that the crown belonged to him of right from the time of his father's death. The consequence was, that during the life of Edred he looked on him as an usurper, and after his decease treated his friends as personal' enemies to himself'. They were removed "It is observable that the ancient writers Mercia had not yet coalesced into one king- almost always speak of our kings as elected. dom : \it in tUraque plebe regum numeros Edwy's grandmother in her charter (Lye, nominaque siippleret eiectus, p. 353. App. iv.) says: " he was chosen, g-eco)-f?j." - Wallingford, 541, 542. No ancient wri- The contemporary biographer of Dunstan ter has mentioned the age of Edwy at his (apud Boll. tom. iv. Maii, 344) says : ab accession. Circumstances concur to shew universis Anglorum principibus communi that he had certainly reached his sixteenth, rlectione. He also intimates that Wessex and possibly his eighteenlli, year. 955. 233 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. His miscon- duct. from the royal councils ; and this original cause of discontent Avas increased by the conduct of then* successors. By flattering; the king's passions the new favourites ol^tained the ascendenc}^ over his mind : and by seeking the aggrandizement of their own families at the expense of others, they at first lessened, and ulti- mately destroyed, his popularity. Every order of men succes- sively experienced either injury or insult. The relations of Edwy were driven from the court : several of the most opulent thanes were forcibly deprived of their estates : the grants that had been made to diiferent churches were resumed ; and the whole nation was thrown into a ferment by new and grievous exactions^. But that which most loudly provoked the censure of the public was the treatment of the king's grandmother Edgiva. That princess, venerable for her age and virtues, was, on some unknown pre- text, despoiled of her riches and patrimony, and reduced to a state of indigence and privacy '*. While Edwy, by these tyrannical proceedings, alienated the affections of his subjects, he rendered himself contemptible by the immorality of his private life. Ardent in the pursuit of pleasure, and regardless of public decency, he abandoned him- self to the most unseemly enjoyments. The language in which ' Osbern, 104. Unde quid mail siiccre- verit, quam infamis fama populorura aures et ora I'epleverit, facile est et me lacente viclere. Ipse namque possessioiies quorumcunique diripere, hos et illos exliiereditare, majores natu proscribere, totiimque regniim innumeris oppressionibus contiirbarc festinavit. Ead- mer, vit. S. Dunst. apud Surium, p. 236. Col. Agrip. 1618. 1 have quoted (his pas- sage from Eadmer (wliich evidently appears to iiave been copied by liim from a contem- porary writer), because it has been omitted in the extracts published by Wharton in /Vng. Sac. torn. ii. ' Osb. 104. Accessil his malis ejus nimis detestabile malum. Matrcm quippe, totius AngTiae nobilitatricem, ecclesiarum consolatri- cem, et sustentatricem oppressorum in iramensum afflixit, ac vastatis rebus ad earn pertinentibus, ab eo statu, in quo esse sole- bat, saevus et crudelis dejecit. Ead. ibid. Atavam suam praedari praecepit. MS. Cleop. 78. " When Edred ended, was Eadgiva " bereaved of all her property :" is her own expression in her original charter. Lye, App. iv. — I take the words praedare, diripere, vastare, to mean that summary kind of ven- geance which individuals frequently inflicted on their enemies, and kings on powerful de- linquents, by sending a body of armed men, to drive off their cattle, and plunder their houses and estates. ANGLO-SAXONS. 235 our ancient writers uniformly describe and reprobate this part of .CHAP, his conduct, is not fit for the eye of every reader': but it will be ' proper to delineate the real nature of his connexion with Ethel- giva, a subject, which, though unimportant in itself, has derived some interest from the embellishments with which it has been adorned by the fancy of modern historians. Ethelgiva was a lady of noble birth, who had conceived the Hisamnm design of securing tiie dignity of queen for herself or her daugh- ^Vva. ter •". With the view of captivating Edwy's affections, they were constantly in his company : and, if we may credit the scandal of the age, neither of them hesitated to sacrifice her honour to the hope of obtaining the object of her ambition. The king's coronation had been fixed at a distant day by the witan. As soon as the ceremony was ended, Edwy proceeded with the thanes and prelates to the banquet, which was always given on such occasions : but after a hasty repast, he rose from his seat, left the hall, and repaired to the company of Ethelgiva and her daughter. By the members of the witan his departure was con- sidered as an insult : and after some deliberation it was resolved that Kinsey, bishop of Lichfield, and the abbot of Glastonbury should, in the name of the whole assembly, recal the king, and command Ethelgiva to leave the court, under the penalty of death. The two deputies found Edwj' in the most unbecoming situation, replaced the crown upon his head, and conducted him back to the hall. Before they had left the room, Ethelgiva threatened Dunstan with the whole weight of her resentment'. ' Regiam dignitatem obscernis operibus de- adultam. Eadmer apud Surium, p. 237. It honestabat. Eadm. 192. Libidine ardens will not follow from this expression that sine inlermissione ipstuabat ad coitum. Osb. Ethelgiva was very old. By law females 104. Expugnator aliena; pudicitiae, negli- were adult at twelve years of age. Wilk. gens suae, vaga fractus libidine. Senatus in con. i. p. 120. xxvii. vit. S. Oswaldi, MS. in the Durham library. ' See Note [A], at the end of the volume. •^ Cum adulta filia, MS. Cleop.76. Filiam VOL. I. H 11 234 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. Ifrr banish- ment. The inliuence which that ecclesiastic formerly enjoyed, had expired with the reign of Edred. To have been honoured with the friendship of his uncle was a sufficient crime in the estima- tion of Edwy : but Dunstan had, by a still more honourable provocation, incurred the enmity of this prodigal and voluptu- ous youth. As the treasurer of Edred, and the executor of his last testament, he had disappointed the rapacity of the prince^: and by seeking to check the licentiousness of his conduct, had long ago wounded and irritated his pride ^. To a mind thus predisposed the late transaction appeared an unpardonable oftencc : and Ethelgiva, in order to execute her threat, had not so much to stimulate, as to guide, the resentment of her para- mour against a supposed enemy, and an importunate monitor. AVith the king's permission a party of armed men was dispatched to Glastonbury, w'ho seized on the property of Dunstan, and expelled him by force from his monastery. Several thanes offered him an asylum in their houses : but their generosity subjected them to the vengeance of Edwy ; and the abbot, that he might not involve his fiiends in his own ruin, resolved to sub- mit to his fate, and to retire into exile. He was no more than three miles from the shore, when the satellites of Ethelgiva arrived, Avith an order, it is said, to deprive him of sight. He pursued his course, landed in Flanders, and was honourably received by the earl Arnulf, who appointed for his residence the monastery of St. Peter's at Ghent ^". Soon after this transaction Edwy appears to have married, an event which might have been expected to put an end to the connexion between him and his mistress. Whether on that occasion Ethelgiva was committed to the care of her relations » Wallingford, 542. Osb. 102. » Osb. 104. . ' See Note [A], at the end of the volume. ANGLO-SAXONS. 235 or of her husband, wc arc io-norant : but the kino;, cither insti- CHAP. . . V. gated by his passion, or moved by her solicitations, carried her ' off by force, and placed her in one of the royal farms ". Arch- bishop Odo undertook to remove the scandal by enforcing the punishment, which the laws awarded against women living in a state ol* concubinage ^■'. Accompanied by his retainers, he rode to the place, arrested Ethelgiva, probably in the absence of her lover, conducted her to the sea-side, and put her on board a ship, in which she was conveyed to Ireland. At his return to court he waited on Edwy, and in respectful and affectionate language endeavoured to justify his own conduct, and to sooth the exasperated mind of the young prince '^ Notwithstanding his errors, the West-Saxons were still at- Revolt of tbc tached to Edwj^ as the descendant of a long race of kings, the lineal representative of the founder of their monarchy. But to the other Saxon nations he was a stranger, the head of a family, which had been imposed upon them by the reverses of war. In the second or third year of his reign the Mercians rejected his authority. Edwy did not tamely submit to the insult : but his force was inferior to that of the insurgents, and he was compelled to retire Avith precipitation into Wessex. Ethelgiva, who had returned from Ireland, was the companion of his flight. At Glocestcr she fell into the hands of the pur- suers, who Avith their swords divided the sinews of her legs, a cruel but not unusual mode of punishment in that age. After lingering in great torment for a few days, she expired ". The war was continued with more acrimony than exertion : Edwy'sdeath. " Quam et rapuit. Vit. S. Oswaldi, MS. " realm." Leg. Sax. 53. Nero- E. 1. '^ See Note [A], at the end of the volume. " Edward, the grandfather of Edwy, had " For the death of Ethelgiva, .see Note [A], enacted : " if a known whorqucan be found at the end of the volume. " in any place, men shall drive her out of the II H 2 e36 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, and each bank of the Thames was alternately laid waste by parties " of marauders, Edgar, the king's brother, was chosen to fill the united throne of Mercia and Northumbrian^. Edwy, after a short struggle, finding himself unable to dethrone, consented to acknowledge the new king : and in a gemot of the whole na- tion, the Thames was mianimously fixed for the common boun- dary of their respective dominions. We are told that after this partition, the king reformed his conduct, and studied to recover 959. the affections of his subjects. His death in the following year disappointed their hopes. By one writer he is said to have been assassinated ^^ : by others to have pined away through grief for the loss of the northern provinces " : by all his death is described as miserable and premature. From his beauty he was usually called Edwy the fair ^^ EDGAR. ftac"'^'°" Edgar was still in the cradle, when he lost his mother Elfgiva. By his father the infant was intrusted to the care of. Alfwena, the wife of Athelstan, an East-Anglian ealdorman, who from his royal descent and extensive authority had obtained the surname of the " half-king." The young prince was educated with their children ; and was, it is probable, indebted to the iamily for his elevation to the throne of Mercia, in opposition to his brother Edwy. Athelstan, a little before his death, entered the mo- nastery of Glastonbury ; his four sons, Ethelwold, Alfwold, Athelsin, and Aihvin, long continued to be the favourite coun- sellors of Edgar ^^. " Eligere sibi Eadgarum in regem. MS. " Ethelwerd, 483. Cleop. 78. '° Hist. Rames. 387. .'{QS. It is singular " MS. Nero, A. 6. quoted by Mr. Turner, that modern historians should attribute the p. 163. revolt of the northern provinces, and tiie ele- "Ingulf, 41. Malm, 30. Caradoc, 56. vation of Edgar, to the intrigues of the monks, ANGLO-SAXONS. 23? One of the first measures of the new king, or rather of his chap. V ministers (for he was only in his fourteenth year), was to reeal ' from exile the abbot of Glastonbury. His possessions, which Hcrrcais lay in the dominions of I'dwy, he could not recover : but he ""957. was retained in an honourable situation at court near the person of Edgar. When the witan assembled, he opened the session with a discourse, which excited the admiration of his hearers: received at their unanin)Ous request the episcopal consecra- tion : and on the death of the bishop of Worcester, was appointed successor to that prelate. The next year tlie church of London became vacant: and he accepted, though with reluctance, the administration of that diocese"". The thanes of Wessex, after the death of Edwy, offered the becomes king •'of Wessex. throne to Edgar ; and the two kingdoms were again united 9i>9- under the same monarch. The oppressive acts of the late go- vernment were now solemnly annulled. Edgiva, the relict of Edmund, recovered her patrimony : Dunstan was re-established in the possession of Glastonbury and Abingdon : and ample reparation was made to the thanes, who had suffered from the passion or resentment of Edwy ^^ One of the last acts of that prince had been to nominate Byrhtelm, bishop of Shcrburn, to the metropolitical see of Canterbury. Perhaps the ministers of Edgar were unwilling to see a favourite of liis brother at the head of the English church ; certain it is that in the assembly of the witan his want of vigour was alleged as a proof of his incapacity : and that Byrhtelm returned with disgrace to the church, from which he had been promoted. Dunstan, who was and cf archbishop Odo, not only without a rection is confined to the Mercians, East- single authority in favour of the charge, but in Anglians, and Northumbrians, direct opposition to the fact, that both the ™ MS. Cieop. 78, 79. Osbern, 107. Wal- archbishop and the monks who had suffered lingford, 544. from the despotism of Edwy, continued faith- ■" MS. Cleop. 79. lul to him. By aU ancient writers the insur- 238 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. Surnamed tbe peaceful. Pleases the Northum- brians. selected in his place, repaired to Rome, and obtained the pal- lium from John XII. He resigned the bishopric of London in favour of iElfstan, that of Worcester in favour of Oswald, the nephew of Odo -'^ Edgar has received from posterity the surname of "the " peaceful." During the sixteen years of his reign he was never compelled to unsheath the sword against either a foreign or a domestic enem}'. The circumstance is the more remarkable, if we consider the lot of the kings who preceded, or followed him. His predecessors, during the long lapse of one hundred and fift}^ years, scarcely enjoyed an interval of repose from the repeated, and often formidable, invasions of the Northmen. Of his successors his son was driven by them into Normandy: his grandson was compelled to share the throne with a foreign chieftain ; and his descendants in the third degree lived in exile, Avhile the English sceptre was wielded by a race of Danish sovereigns. This long interval of tranquillity, the peculiar felicity of Edgar, arose partly from the policy of his uncle Edred, partly from his own good fortune and the vigour of his councils. The population of Northumbria Avas composed in a great proportion of Danes or the posterity of Danes. Animosity against their southern neighbours, and aflection for their own kinsmen, induced them frequently to invite, always to assist, the inv^aders. By Edred, indeed, they had been completely sub- dued : but it is probable that their submission would only have been temporary, had not circumstances connected their interests with the prosperity of the new king. Edgar had been educated " MS. Cleop. 79. Osb. 109. Wharton scssed Rochester with Canterbury. This is a (Ang. Sac. ii. 107. not.) infers from the mistake. Osbern says the contrary. So also words of Osbern (p. 110), that Dunstan pos- does Eadmer, 214. ANGLO-SAXONS. 239 among the Danes of East-Anglia : the Northumbrians had c;hap. & o V. united with that people and tlie Mercians to raise him to the " throne : and they respected him as a king whom they had not only chosen for themselves, l)ut had imposed on the hostile kingdom of AVessex. He, Avhetlier it were gratitude or policy, paid to them on all occasions the most marked attention : and the only blot, •which the southern annalists could discover in his character, was his partiality for the manners, and his zeal for the welfare, of his Danish subjects ^^ Still he appears to have kept a watchful i>iv' the Invasion by Thames'^. The departure of the English was the signal for the »"^<=^''- re-appearance of the Danish fleet. It was no longer under the command of Sweyn, who affected to observe his recent stipula- tions ; but he had secretly granted permission to Thurchil to re- •"> ChroD. Sax. 1S7. ANGLO-SAXONS. 261 venge the death of his brother, who had perished in a former ex- citap. pedition". For three 3'eavs Thurchil carried fire and devasta- ' tion into different parts of the kingdom. In the first he ravaged the southern counties : in the second he penetrated through East- Angha into the fens, wluch had hitherto afforded a secure asylum to the natives : in the third he besieged and destroyed the im- portant city of Canterbury. Thurchil had lain before it twenty lon. days, when the traitor Elmer set fire to a number of houses; and while the inhabitants were employed in extinguishing the flames, the Northmen forced open one of the gates, and rushed into the city. Elphege, the archbishop, venerable for his age and virtues, threw himself into the midst of the carnage, and besought the barbarians to spare the inhabitants. He was seized, bound and dragged to behold the fate of his cathedral, in which were col- lected the monks, the clergy, the women and the children. A pile of wood had been reared against the wall : with shouts of triumph the fire was kindled : the flames quickly ascended the roof; and as the melted lead and falling timbers compelled the - fugitives to quit their retreat, they were successively massacred before the eyes of the primate. In the evening the Danes num- bered eight hundred captives : seven thousand men besides women and children had perished in the sack of the city. The life of Elphege was spared during several weeks, in the hope that he might be induced to pay a ransom of three thousand pounds: but the old man refused to solicit the aid cither of his friends or the clergy ; and he was put to death on the Saturday after Easter while he was labouring to impress his captors with a reverence for the doctrines of Christianity, At last Thurchil, mio after ravaging the greater part of thirteen counties, sold his " Encom. Emmse, Maseres, p. 7. Licentia ulciseretur. Ditinarapud Bouquet, x. 13t accepta, ut fratrem suum inibi interiVctum 262 HISTORY 0F» ENGLAND. CHAP, friendship and services to Ethelred for the sum of forty-eight thousand pounds. Many of his followers accepted settlements in the island : and the mariners of five-and-forty ships swore allegiance to the monarch "'^. Distress of Here the reader may pause to take a view of this fallen and " devoted country. The natives had not submitted to their fate without a struggle; but numerous treasons and accumulated defeats had unnerved their courage; Avhile repeated victories had inspired the Danes with the idea that they were invincible. We are assured on good authority that one Northman was con- sidered an equal match for ten Englishmen ^^. Hence we meet with few instances of successful defence, except in the fortified cities, which w^ere seldom reduced. London, though repeatedly besieged still bade defiance to all the power of the invaders ^K But the open country was universally abandoned to their mercy, while they systematically destroyed Avhatever they could not carry away, and reduced to ashes every monastery, village, and town. In consequence of these ravages the labours of agri- culture were interrupted or abandoned : and in some years the scarcity was so great, that the Danes themselves had been com- pelled to quit the island in search of provisions ''^. These calamities sprung from the ferocity of the invaders : others must be attributed to the turbulence and insubordination of the natives. Since the death of Edgar the administration of justice had been but feebly enforced : of late it had been entirely suspended. The absence of legal punishment, and the licence of a state of warfare, had left the passions of individuals without restraint ; the most atrocious crimes were committed Avith impu- " Chron. Sax. 141, 142. Ang. Sac. ii. " Chron. Sax. 138. 135. " Chron. Sax. 134. "' Serm. Lup. apud Hicks, 103. ANGLO-SAXONS. 263 nit}' ; and men sought to indemnify themselves for their own cilAP. losses by the spoHation of tlieir neighbours. On the one side ' rehxtions were sold for slaves by their relations, children in the cradle by their parents ; on the other the slaves often rose on their masters, pillaged their property, and then deserted to the enemy ^. The thanes of each district adopted at last the general policy of the nation. Instead of uniting with their neighbours against the common enemy, they negociated for their own security : and by the pa3'ment of a sum of money dismissed the barbarians to another county, to repeat the same ravages, and extort similar contributions^'^. To this period must also be referred the origin of direct and Taxation. annual taxation. The sums which Ethelred so frequently paid to the Northmen were raised by an impost on landed property, which did not cease with the occasion, but was retained for centuries under the pretext of providing for the defence of the kingdom ^'^. The assessments were at firet apportioned with apparent equity : but they soon gave birth to much extortion, and consequently to much misery. Wherever money was known to exist, it was required by the king's officers : the pay- ment of one demand was considered sufficient evidence of ability to pay a second : and by these repeated exactions, joined to the depredations of the enemy, the most opulent proprietors were often reduced to a state of penury. From one instance the reader may form an idea of the others. In 1005 Godric was chosen abbot of Croyland : and in that and the seven follow- ing years the monies levied on the monastery by the king, the ealdorman, and the inferior officers amounted on an average "^ Serm. Lupi apud Hiuks, Diss. epis. 99, geld, and becameanannual land-tax of twelve- 106. Langbeck, ii. 464. 469. pence per hide. The clergy were exempted "' Chron. Sax. 134. 140, 141. from it. Leg. Sax. Ed. Con. x.i. p. 1Q8. •^^ Hunting. V. f. 203. It was called Dane-. 264 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, to the annual sum of four hundred marks. In 1013 Sweyn ^' plundered all the manors belonging to the abbe}' ; and crowds of the natives, fleeing from the swords of the barbarians, sought an asylum atCroyland. The benevolent old man received them with open arms ; consoled them in their misfortunes, and offered them support as long as his means sufficed. The choir and the cloisters he reserved for the accommodation of his own monks and those of the neighbourhood ; the body of the church was allotted to the clergy for their residence ; the laymen were lodo^ed in the other apartments of the abbey; and the women and children in temporary buildings erected in the cemetery. The charity of Godric awakened the rapacity of Sweyn. Under pain of the demolition of the monastery he ordered the abbot to pay one thousand marks at Lincoln, on an appointed day ; and not satisfied with this sum, extorted another thousand within the three following months. Scarcely were these demands satis- fied, when the officers of Ethelred appeared. They accused Godric of being the confederate of Sweyn : the payment of the money extorted from him by violence was construed into an act of treason : and he was compelled to send two thousand marks to the king to recover the royal favour. Harassed by these iniquitous proceedings, and reduced to a state of poverty, Godric, as a last resource, implored the protection of Norman, a powerful retainer of the ealdorman Edric; and that chieftain, in consideration of the grant of a valuable manor for the term of one hundred years, proclaimed himself the patron of the abbey, and engaged to defend it with his sword from every , .. unjust demand ^^. Last invasion •' ''y Sweyn. Report had carried to Denmark the knowledge of Thurchil's •' Ingul. 55. 67. ANGLO-SAXONS. 265 success and of his subsequent engagement with Ethelred : and CHAP. Sweyn, jealous of the reputation as well as the fidelity of that chief- ' tain, summoned all his vassals to his standard, and openly declared his intention to attempt the conquest of England. The riches of the fleet, and the superior magnificence of the royal galley are described in terms of admiration by a contemporary histo- rian : nor shall we refuse credit to his narrative, if we recollect that Denmark had been for centuries the depot of successful depredation"". Sweyn sailed to Sandwich ; failed in an attempt to corrupt the Danish mercenaries ; and directed his course to the mouth of the Humber. At Gainsborough he received suc- cessively the submission of the Northumbrians, of the men of Lindesey, of the Five-burghers, and of the other inhabitants on the north of the Watling-street. They were partly incorporated with his troops, and were commanded to supply him with provi- sions and horses. As conquest was his object, he resolved to extort by terror the submission of the southern English : and the orders, which he issued preparatory to his march, were con- genial to the barbarism of the chief and his followers : to ravage the open country, pillage the churches, burn the towns, and put every male to the sword '^^ From the Watling-street to the Thames these instructions were faithfully observed : the inhabi- tants of Oxford appeased his anger by prayers and hostages : their example was followed by the citizens of Winchester ; and the invader, borne forward by the tide of success, hurried his troops to the walls of London. The city was defended by Ethelred and Thurchil, whose policy and courage baffled the negociations, stratagems, and assaults of the enemy. Sweyn '° Encom. Emmas, Maseres, p. 9. Vanes wind. Ibid, in the shape of birds or dragons were fixed on " Flor. 614. West. 201. the masts to point out the direction of the VOL. I. MM 266 HISTOHY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. Flight of Ethelred. 1114. Death of Sweyn. consoled his disappointment with the repetition of his former cruelties; and marching slowly to Bath, proclaimed himself kin"' of England, summoned to his cornl the thanes of Wessex, Mercia, and Northumberland, and compelled them to swear allegiance to the king of the Danes. This general defection created alarm within the walls of the metropolis. The wavering fidelity of the citizens induced the king and Thurchil to retire with the fleet to Greenwich : and the authority of the invader was quickly established in London itself. In this emergency Ethelred yielded to despair. His wife and children with a retinue of one hundred and forty horsemen he recommended to the care of her brother Richard, and sailed clandestinely with the few thanes and prelates, Avho still adhered to his fortunes, to the isle of Wight. There he remained in concealment till a messenger from Emma brought him the offer of a secure asylum in Normandj' ''^. The successes of the northern chieftains were often attended Avith surprising revolutions : and their thrones, which had no firmer basis than that of terror, were overturned at the first shock. It was in the second week of January that Ethelred fled from England, and abandoned the crown to his victorious com- petitor: in the first week of February the unexpected death of that competitor recalled the fugitive king, and re-established his authority. Sweyn, before he died, had appointed his son Canute to succeed him : and the will of the monarch had been confirmed by the acclamations of the army". But the English, no longer overawed by the genius of the conqueror, and consi- dering the moment favourable for the recovery of their inde- pendence, invited Ethelred to re-ascend the throne. His son " Chron. Sax. 143, 144. Malm, 39. West. 202. " Encora. Emm. p. 9. ANGLO-SAXONS. 267 Edward met the thanes at London : it was agreed that the kino- chap. 3 y should forgive all past offences, should govern according to law, " and should on important occasions follow the adviceof the great council : and that the thanes, on their part, should swear to support his authority, and never to submit to a Danish sove- reign. Ethelrcd, who returned about the middle of Lent, was I?^,'"5" / ^ _ ' Ethelred. received with enthusiasm, and instantly led an army against the enemy in Lindcsey. Canute could not withstand the superior force of the English, and fled with sixty ships, leaving his asso- ciates to the mercy of the victors. The country was ravaged, and every inhabitant of Danish extraction was put to the sword. To revenge the fate of his friends Canute ordered the hostages, who had been delivered to his father, to be deprived of their ears, noses, and hands. In this mutilated state, the sons of the noblest families among the English, were landed at Sandwich, as pledges of that unsparing retribution which awaited those, who had revolted from the authority, or opposed the interests, of the Dane. He proceeded to his own country ^*. It might have been expected that the English, relieved from '^"^• the pressure of the enemy, would have employed this interval in providing against future dangers. But distrust and treachery still distracted their attention, and divided their councils. Ethelred convoked an assembly of the witan at Oxford : and his first measure was a repetition, on a smaller scale, of that system of massacre, for which he had already suffered so severely. Man}'^ thanes of Danish descent were immolated to his jealousy or revenge : but Sigeferth and Morcar, the chieftains of the Seven- burghers, were too powerful to be openly assailed with impuni- ty. On such occasions thepolic}' of the king did not disdain the '' Chron. Sax. 145. Flor. G15. Hunt. 207. jM M 2 26tJ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. Invasion by Canute, dagger of the assassin. The unsuspecting earls were invited to a banquet by his favourite Edric : and in the midst of the feast were murdered by a body of armed men. Their retainers, alarmed at the fate of their lords, fled to the church of St. Fri- deswitha : driven from the gates they sought refuge in the tower: but Ethehed, irritated by their resistance, ordered fire to be put to the sacred edifice : and had the satisfaction to see his enemies, real or supposed, perish in the conflagration. Such conduct was not of a nature to conciliate esteem, or to insure fidelity. The sequel proved that he could not command the obedience of even his own family. Edmund, his eldest son, petitioned for the possessions of the two earls. The father refused : and the young prince hastened to Malmsbury, married Algiva, the relict of Sigeferth, whom the kino- had confined in the monas- tery, rode with her into Northumberland, and by her influence prevailed on the Seven-burghers to receive him as their chief- tain. Ethelred was compelled to acquiesce in this insult to his authority ". At the commencement of winter Thurchil had received twent}^- one thousand pounds as the reward of his past services : but either suspecting the ca])ricious temper of Ethelred, or dreading the resentment of his native sovereign, he returned with nine sail to Denmark, and obtained, after much solicitation, the forgive- ness of Canute. The thousand ships, which, according to the northern writers, that prince had collected for the invasion of England, are reduced to two hundred by a contemporary histo- rian : but he describes in pompous colours, the splendour of " Chron. Sax. 146. Malm. 30. Flor. 616. West. 202. The Fit-burghers or in- habitants of the five burghs, Leicester, Stam- ford, Derby, Nottingham, and Lincoln, are urell known in our history. But who were the Seven-burghers? Malmsbury (4)) and Westminster (203) seem to place them among the Northumbrians : the Saxon Chronicle (140) and Florence (616) make them include the Fif-burghers. ANGLO-SAXONS. 269 their equipment, and assures us that among the warriors whom t-'HAP. they bore, tlierc was not one of ignoble birth, or past the age of ' manhood, or unpractised in feats of arms, or unable to contend in speed with the fleetest horse ^''. Saiidwich was at this period "the most celebrated haven in Britain"." Here Thurchil solicited and obtained permission to obliterate the disgrace of his past disloyalty. He was the first to land ; but was resolutely opposed ; and if he ultimately proved successful, it was not without the loss of the bravest among his Danes. From Sand- wich Canute proceeded along the southern coast, ravaged the maritime counties, and extorted the submission of the AVest- Saxons. An army had been collected in the north by Edmund : another in Mercia by Edric. They joined, quarrelled and sepa- rated. The resentment of Edric led him to the standard of Canute : and his example was followed by a bod}' of Danes, who had sworn fealty to Ethelrod "**. The next year, after an ineffectual attempt to raise an army ma. in the southern counties, Edmund put himself at the head of the Northumbrians, who had been called into the field by their earl Uhtred. England soon became the prey of two hostile armies, which instead of seeking each other, contented them- selves with plundering the defenceless inhabitants. The royalists wreaked their vengeance on the counties of Stafford, Salop, and Leicester, which had refused to join their standard : and Canute, adopting a similar policy, indulged his followers with the pil- lage of the eastern part of Mercia, and the neighbourhood of York. Uhtred was called away to protect his own property : but finding resistance hopeless, made an offer of submission. It "Encom. Emm. 12. Langbecb, i. 67. 118. 616. The amount of the Danish armies is " Sandwich omnium Augloruin poituuni always calculated by ouv old writers in shijts. famosissimus. Encom. Emm. 13, 14. P'roni dilTerent hints I conjecture the comple- " Forty s/wps. Chron. Sax. 146. Flor. ment of a s/t/p to have beoa about 80 m^n. 270 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. Death of Ethelred. was accepted : and his oath of fealty was followed by an order for his execution. The Dane summoned him to attend his court at Wiheal : a curtain suspended across the hall concealed Thure- brand and a body of assassins : and the defenceless earl fell a victim to the perfidy of his new sovereign. Forty of his retainers shared his fate'^^. Harassed with care, and worn out with disease, Ethelred had resigned the defence of the throne to the courage and activity of Edmund. At the arrival of Canute from Denmark he was confined to his bed at Cosham in Wiltshire. For greater secu- rity he had been removed to London, where he lingered through the winter. But his constitution was broken : and on the twenty-third of April he terminated a long and calamitous reign at the very moment Avhen the barbarians w^ere preparing to " Chron. Sax. 147, 148. Malm. 40. Encom. Emm. 15. The history of Uhtred and his family will afford striking proofs of the barbarism oi the times. When Malcolm, king of Scotland, laid siege to Durham, Uhtred assumed the office of his aged father, the earl Waltheof, and defeated the enemy. After the victory he selected the most hand- some of the slain, whose heads by his orders were cut off", washed in the river, and with their long braided hair fixed on stakes round the walls of the city. To reward this service Ethelred appointed him earl, and 'jave him his daughter Elfgiva in marriage. His former wife Siga was the daughter of the opulent thane Styr. With her he had espoused the quarrels of the family, and engaged to satisfy the revenge of his father-in-law by the deatli of that nobleman's enemy Thurebrand. But Thurebrand frustrated all his machinations, and at last, as appears above, obtained the consent of Canute to inflict on lus foe the p\mishment which had been designed for him- self. The murderer, however, fell soon after by the sword of Aldred, the son of the man whom ho had murdered. The duty of re- venge now devolved on Coorl, the son of Thurebrand. The two chieftains spent some years in plotting their mutual destruction: by the persuasion of their friends they were re- conciled : the reconciliation was confirmed by oaths of brotherhood, and a promise of mak- ing together a pilgrimage to Rome. Aldred visited Ceorl at his house, was treated with apparent kindness, and then treacherously assassinated in the forest of Ridesdale. Ceorl escaped the fate which he merited : but at the distance of many years his sons, while they were feasting at the house of the eldest brother near York, were surprised by Waltheot the grandson of Aldred. Thewhol' family was massacred with the exception of Sumerlede, who chanced to be absent, and of Canute, who owed his life to the pity inspired by his amiable character. Sim. Dun. 81, 82. This hereditary feud, which had now continued for five generations, was at last extinguished by the Norman conquest. From it the reader may judge of the disunion, mistrust, and treachery, which prevailed in armies composed of the retainers of chieftains, bound by what they considered a most sacred duty, to seek the destruction of each other. It was to this that in a great measure was owing the succes.s of the Danes. 2 ANGLO-SAXONS. 271 besiege him in liis capital. Of the sons by his first wife Edmund, CHAP. Edwy, and Athclstan survived him : by Emma he left two ' others, Edward and Alfred "'\ " EDMUND. If the personal exertions of an individual could have pre- siege of Lon- vented the subjugation of England, that glorious atchievement ""'loie. would have been accomplished by the courage and perseverance of Edmund. He was in London at the time of his father's death, and was immediately proclaimed king by the citizens. Canute was posted at Southampton, where the thanes of Wessex with little repugnance acknowledged him for their sovereign. The preparations for the siege of the capital, the last bulwark of English independence, were now ready : and a fleet of three hundred and forty sail, carrying an army of tAventy-seven thou- sand men, had been collected in the mouth of the Thames ^\ Within the city were Edmund and his brother, the queen dowager Emma, two bishops, and several distinguished thanes. It was easy for Canute to cut off the communication by land : to prevent the ingress and egress b}'^ water proved an undertaking of greater difficulty. As the fortifications of the bridge impeded the navi- gation of the river, by dint of labour a channel was d ug on the right bank: through it was dragged a considerable number of ships: and the Northmen became masters of the Thames above as well as beloM' the city. The valour of the inhabitants repelled every assault: their constancy was tried by promises and threats. Canute demanded that Edmund with his brother should be "" Chron. Sax. 146. 148. same year from an acquaintance. He tells us " We owe this inlormation to Ditmar, that Canute's ships carried on an average bishop of Mersburgh, who received it the eighty men. Bouquet, x, 134. 2T2 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. Battles be- tween Ed- mimd and Canute. delivered into his hands ; that fifteen thousand pounds should be paid for the ransom of the queen, twelve thousand for that of the bishops ; and that three hundred hostages should be given as pledges for the fidelity of the citizens. If these terms were accepted, he would take them under his protection : if they were refused, the city should be abandoned to pillage and the flames ^^. Sensible that it required the exertions of an army to save the capital, Edmund endeavoured to escape during the darkness of the night. A boat conveyed the royal brothers through the Danish fleet '^^, and the men of Wessex hastened in crowds to their standard. They surprised a party of plunderers in the forest of Gillingham : but had soon to contend with Canute himself, who leaving a detachment to observe the city, had advanced with the rest of his forces to crush the growing power of his competitor. The battle of Scearstan is celebrated in the writings of our annalists. Edmund placed his most approved warriors in the front : the remainder were formed into a reserve. The Danes were assisted by Edric and iElmer with the uien of Wilts and Somerset. So obstinate was the valour of the combatants, that night alone put an end to the contest. It was renewed the next morning : when Edmund, espying his adversarjs with a stroke of his battle-axe divided the shield of the Dane, and wounded his horse in the shoulder. A crowd of Northmen sprung forward to protect their monarch : and Ed- « Ditmar, ibid. Chron. Sax. 148. " Ditmar, ibid. It is singular that Ditmar's friend sliould call the brother of Edmund Athelstan, and say that he fell in the next engagement. This prince is unknown to our national historians. Yet his will is published by Lye (Die. App. No. 5), in which he re- peatedly calls Ethelred bis father, Elfrida his grandmother, and Edmund and Edwy his brothers. It has been supposed that the author of the will was slain by the Danes in 1010: but the Athelstan, who fell on that occasion, was not the king's son. He was his " athum'' or daughter's husband. ChroH. Sax. 139. ANGLO-SAXONS. 273 tiuind slowly retired before the multitude. At this moment CHAP. Edric cut olT the head of Osmear, who had been slain, and ' holding it in his hand exclaimed, " The head of Edmund!" At "~~~~~ the sight some of the English turned their backs. The indig- nant prince hurled his spear at the traitor: and, hastening to an eminence, uncovered his face, that he might be known to his troops. The battle was thus restored, and was a second time interrupted by the darkness of night ^^ In this murderous conflict each army had suffered severely ; but the morning showed that the result was in favour of the English. Canute was already on his march to London. Edmund, as soon as he had repaired his losses, followed the footsteps of the Dane, forced him to raise the siege, and fought a second battle at Brentford. The advantage seems to have been with the enemy, who again returned to the capital, but failing in the assault, began to pillage the neighbouring country. The indefatigable Ed- mund overtook the plunderers at Oxford, where they experienced a most signal overthrow. It is pretended that the English mo- narch might have annihilated the Danes, had it not been for the perfidious counsels of Edric, who was again restored to favour®^ Canute sailed to the isle of Shepey. To a personal challenge from the English hero, he coolly replied : " Let the man who " talks of fighting in winter, take care to be prepared in sum- ' mer^'^." Within a few days the Northmen had quitted the isle of Shepey, and carried devastation through the county of Essex. Edmund met them at Ashdown. The Danes brought into the field the mysterious standard of their fathers : and Thurchil, " Chron. Say. 148, 149. Flor. 618. ^* Qui aves duellum in hieme, cave ne defi- Knytlinga Saga, p. 130. cias aptiore tempore. Eucom. Emm. 16. *' Chron. Sax. 149. Flor. 618. VOL. I. N N 274 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. V. Pacification. from the apparent flight of the raven, promised them certain victory ^'^. Edmund had drawn up his forces in three divisions ; but at the very onset, Edric, either actuated by treachery, or by cowardice, fled with his division. From three in the afternoon till sunset despair supported the natives : some of them even maintained the contest by the light of the moon : but at last they fled in every direction, and attempted by their knowledge of the country to elude the pursuit of the enemy. This defeat was most fatal to the prospects of Edmund. Almost the Avhole of the West-Saxon nobility had perished. The Danes buried their own dead ; they stripped the bodies of the English, and left them naked in the field ^^. Canute followed his competitor into Gloucestershire, and another battle would have ensued, had not the chieftains in each army been tired of this sanguinary warfare. Compelled by the expostulations of their troops, the two kings met in the isle of Olney, exchanged oaths and presents, and agreed to a compro- mise. The Thames was made the boundary of their respective dominions. The south was retained by Edmund : the north by Canute : but the tax called Danegeld was extended to both kingdoms, and assigned to defray the expenses of the Danish fleet. Edmund died within a month after the pacification, and was buried near the remains of his grandfather at Glastonbury. He left two infant sons, Edward and Edmund ''^ The reign of this king, if reign it can be called, which was a mere struggle for existence, lasted but seven months. Yet, " Ibid. Eiicom. Emm. 16. " Ibid. 17, 18. Chron. Sax. 130. Malm. 40. Flor. 618. lu this battle fell the eal- dormen JEKnc, Godwin, Ulfketel, and Ethel- ward. Eadnoth, bishop of Dorchester, with Wulsige the abbot of Ramsey, was slain as he was saying mass for the success of the army. Hist. Ellen. 502. ' Juxta morcm Angloium veterem iion arinis sed orationum suppiUiis ]iug- nantem exercitum jiivaturi. Hist. Hani. 133. '•^ Chron. Sax. 150. Encoin. Emir.re, 18, 19, 20. Walling-. 549. Florence (618), and Westminster (205), give to Edmund, Locdon, Essex, and Easl-Anjrlia. ANGLO-SAXONS. 275 within that short space, besides having vigorously assisted in the ^hap. defence of London, he fought five battles; and, till the fatal ' field of Ashdown, seemed destined to establish the independence of his country. From his armour or his strength he acquired the surname of " Ironside :" and his memory was long cherished by the gratitude and admiration of his subjects. Their vanity has thrown the embellishments of fiction over the character of the hero. To account for the final success of Canute it was said that the two kings fought in single combat in the isle of Olney : that the Dane, finding himself inferior, assailed his rival with flattery ; and that by his eloquence, not his prowess, he induced the English prince to acquiesce in the partition of the kingdom^. Nor was Edmund permitted to die in the ordinary course of nature. By some writers his death was attributed to Canute, on Death of Ed- whom it conferred the crown of Wessex : by others to Edric, as """^ " if the murder of a king had been wanting to fill up the measure of his treasons. The assassins were said to have been the two chamberlains of Edmund, or Edric, or the son of Edric. Some professed themselves ignorant of the circumstances, some assert- ed that he was stabbed in the back in a secret and unguarded moment ^\ But the real fact is uncertain. The Saxon Chro- nicle is content with saying, that he departed on the feast of St. Andrew ; the encomiast of Emma, that he died by the visi- tation of God -''. ""Kiev. 364. West, 205. Hunt. 208. '«' Chron. Sax. ISO. Deus Edmundum " Ingul. 67. Hunt, 208. West. 205. eduxit e corpore. Encom. Emm. 20. Ho- Hist. Ram. 434. Malm. 40. Saxo. 193. minem exuit. Walling. 549. Ambiguum Hist. Elian. 502. quo casu extinctus. Malm. 40. N N 2 276 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VI. DANES. DANISH SOVEREIGNS — CANUTE — HAROLD — HARDEC ANUTE — SAXON LINE RESTORED— EDWARD THE CONFESSOR— HAROLD— VICTORY OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. CANUTE. CHAP. VI. Canute suc- ceeds. Sends away the children of Edmund. 1017. After the death of Edmund, Canute was elected king by the unanimous voice of the nation. To justifj- their choice it was pretended by some, that according to the pacification of Ohiey, the crown belonged to him as the survivor : by others that Edmund had appointed him the guardian and protector of his children ^. The best reason was the power of the Dane. No man had the wish or the hardihood to renew the bloody and unavailing contest. The first object of Canute's policy was to secure himself on the throne. From the infancy of Edmund's children he had little to apprehend ; but as they advanced in years, they might prove dangerous competitors. Though a sea-king was seldom diverted from his purpose by considerations of humanity, ' He was chosen sponte (Encom. Emm. quia Edmundus voluerat Canutum adjutorem p. 20), omnium consensu (Ing. .58), ex prse- ct protectorem esse filiorum ejus, donee reg- dicta coneordiac condictione (Walling. 549), nandi Betatem habuissent. Flor. (318. DANES. 277 Canute did not imbrue his hands in tlieir blood, but sent them CHAP, to his half-brother Olave, king of Sweden. If we may believe ' those, who could hardly possess the means of knowing it, the messenger who conducted the children, was instructed to request in secret of Olave, that he would order them to be mur- dered. But whatever credit may be given to that report, it is certain that they were conveyed from Sweden to the court of Stephen, king of Hungary^. That prince, who was afterwards sainted for his virtues, received the orphans with tenderness, and educated them as his own children. Edmund died in his youth: Edward married Agntha, daughter to the emperor of Germany, and will hereafter claim the reader's attention. Besides tlie children, Canute had to guard against the brothers Kills Edwy. of Edmund. Ed wy was in England, and, for reasons with ■which we are unacquainted, was named the " king of the " peasants." He was banished, recalled, and assassinated in the bosom of his family. We are told that the king had endea- voured to induce Ethelwold, a powerful thane, to undertake the murder; and that, failing in the attempt, he had bribed some of Edwy's own servants^. Edward and Alfred, the half-brothers of Edmund were in Marries Em- ma. Normandy, and Wallingford assures us that their uncle Richard had fitted out a fleet in support of their claims'*. But Canute had the wisdom to disarm his enmity, by asking in marriage his sister, the relict of Ethelred. To accept the hand of the man, whose hostility had almost deprived her late husband of his ' Mailros, 155. Flor. 619. Higden,275. 155i The Saxon chronicle mentions two Our chroniclers pay that they were sent to Edwys banished at the same time : but they Solomon king of Hungary. But Papebroche appear to be one person, from Simeon shews it must have been to Stephen, not to (175), Higden (274), Brompton (907), Solomon, who was not born till after the Knyghton (2317). year 1051. Act. SS. Jan. ii. 325. * Walling. 550, 'Chron. Sax. 151. Flor. 619. MailroB, 278 HISTORY OF ENGLAND, CHAP, kingdom, "who was suspected of the murder of her sons-in-la^v, ^^' and who had despoiled her own children of the crown, does not indicate much delicacy in Emma : but her youth and vanity were flattered with the prospect of royalty ; her brother reluc- tantly assented to the proposal : and the marriage was solemnly celebrated in the month of July. It had been previously agreed, that her issue by Canute should succeed to the crown of Eng- land ; a condition, which, while it satisfied the Norman, ex- tinguished the hopes of his nephews ^. Punishes Canute had divided the kingdom into four governments. Wessex he retained for himself; East-Anglia he gave to Thurchil ; and continued Eric and Edric in Northumberland, and Mercia*". But Edric soon received the reward of his former perfidy. The king was celebrating the festival of Christmas in London, and Edric had the imprudence to boast of his services. Canute, turning to Eric, exclaimed : " Then let him receive his " deserts, that he may not betray us, as he betrayed Ethelred " and Edmund." The Norwegian cut him down with his battle-axe ; and the body was thrown from a window into the Thames. It has been said that Canute, though willing to derive advantage from the treason, was anxious to punish the traitor : but, as he ordered Norman and the principal retainers of Edric to be put to death at the same time, there is reason to believe that they were suspected of some plot against the Danish interest. Their punishment is a matter of triumph to the ancient annalists, who attribute to the perfidy of Edric the subjugation of their country : but the same writers lament the fate of Ethel werd and Brihtric, who perished with them, and were * Chron. Sax. 151. Encom. Emm. 21. brated Dane in Langbeck, ii. 458. Eric Malm. 40, 41. met with the same fate as Thurchil. West. ^ « Thurchil was expelled in 1021. Chron. 207. Malm. 41. ■"ax. 152. See a long account of this cele- DANES. 279 numbered amonff the most noble and blameless of the English chap. , ® . VI. nobility'^. The lands of the slain were distributed an)()ng the ^_____ Danish chieftains; but several of these, aware of the hatred of the natives, and apprehensive for their lives, with the king's per- mission sold their estates, and returned with the money to their native country ". These emigrations to Denmark were much encouraged by Rewards the Canute, who, now that he thought himself secure on the throne, made it his endeavour to win the affections of his English sub- jects. The presence of the Danish army was to them a con- stant source of uneasiness and animosity : but gratitude as well as polic}^ forbad him to dismiss it without a liberal donative. For this purpose the sum of fifteen thousand pounds was raised on the citizens of London, of seventy-two thousand on the lois. remainder of the nation : an oppressive burthen, but which was borne with the greater cheerfulness, when its real object Avas understood. Of all the associates of his labours and conquests he retained only the crews of forty ships, about three thousand men, probably the Thingmanna or royal guard, which, we are Establishes tcld, amounted to that number^. These were a body of soldiers ' selected by Canute from the whole of his forces. He was their commander : the chiefs swore fealty to him ; and the privates to ^ Encom. Emmae, 20. Malm. 41. Edric by the ordeal, should be given up to justice: is said to have been killed digiio tine (Ing. 58) that if he could not be immediately found, swythe rihtlice (Chron. Sax. 161), but the the inhabitants of the vill or hundred, where others sine culpa (Mail. 155. Flor. 619). the murder was perpetrated, should have a "^ Hist. Ram. 438. 443. 445. month and a day to search for him : that if " Chron. Sax. 151. Flor. 649. Sim. Dunel. they did not discover him, they should then 177. These all differ in the sum paid by the pay a fine of 46 marks : that if they surren- citizens of London, making it 10,500, 11,000, dered him to the king within a year and a day, or 15,000 pounds. We are told in the laws the money should be returned: but if they of Edward the confessor, that to provide for did not. forty marks of the fine should be the safety of the Danes who remained, it was kept by the king, and the other six be givea agreed that they should all enjoy the king's to the parents or tlie lord of the slain. Leg, peace ; that if a Dane were murdered, the re- Sax. 199, 200. puted murderer, unless he could clear himself 280 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VI. Pleases the English. their chiefs. The laws are still extant, which he compiled fof their use : and his object appears to have been to prevent the quarrels, and consequently the bloodshed, Avhich so frequently happened among these turbulent warriors. Unfortunately the king himself was the first to transgress his own laws, by the murder of a soldier in a paroxysm of passion. He assembled the Thingmans, descended from his throne, acknowledged his crime, and demanded punishment. They were silent. He promised impunity to every individual, who should speak his sentiments. They left the decision to his own wisdom. He then adjudged himself to pay three hundred and sixty talents of gold, nine times the amount of the usual pecuniar}^ mulct: and added nine other talents by way of farther compensation ^^ Though Canute had been baptized in his infancy, he knew little of the doctrines of Christianity. But as soon as he was seated on the English throne, the ferocity of his disposition was softened by the precepts of religion, and the sanguinary sea-king was insensibly moulded into a just and beneficent monarch. He often lamented the bloodshed and misery, which his own rapacity and that of his father had inflicted on the natives ; and acknowledged it his duty to compensate their sufferings by a peaceful and equitable reign". He always treated them with marked attention ; protected them from the insolence of his Danish favourites ; placed the two nations on a footing of equality ; and admitted them alike to offices of trust and emolument. He erected a magnificent church at Ashdown, the scene of his last victory : and repaired the ruins of the religious edifices, which had suftcred during the invasion. By his donations the abbey of St. Edmund's, the memorial of " Langbeck, 111. 144. et seq. Saxo. 199. and domestics. The Thingmanna were also called Thingllths, " See his charter in Ingulf, 58. and Iluscarles, ihatis, thane-men, sea-thanes, DANES. 281 the cruelty of his fathers, was rcnclered for centuries the most CHAP, opulent of the monastic establishments in the kingdom. In a ' witena-gemot at Oxford he confirmed the laws of Edgar, and persuaded the English and Danish thanes to forgive each other every former cause of offence, and to promise mutual friendship for the future*^. In another at Winchester a code of laws was compiled from the enactments of former kings, with such additions as were recpiired by the existing state of society. From it some interesting particulars may be selected. I. The king Pnhiisiies exhorted all those, who were intrusted with the administration of justice, to be vigilant in the punishment of crimes, but sparing of human life : to treat the penitent with less, the impeni- tent culprit with greater, severity ; and to consider the weak and indigent as worthy of pity, the wealthy and powerful as deserv- ing the full rigour of the law : because the former were often driven to the commission of guilt by two causes, which seldom affected the latter, oppression and want. II. He severely repro- bated and prohibited the custom of sending christians for sale into foreign countries. But the reason which he assigned, was not, that there is any thing immoral in the institution of slavery; but that such christians were in danger of falling into the hands of infidel masters, and of being seduced from their religion. III. By the incorporation of the Danes with the natives, the rites of paganism had again made their appearance in the island. Canute forbade the worship of the heathen gods, of the sun or moon, of fire or water, of stones or fountains, and of forests or trees. At the same time he denounced punishment against those who pretended to deal in witchcraft, and the " work- " ers of death," whether it were by lots, or by flame, or by any other charms. IV. The existing system of jurisprudence which he "Ing. ibid. Hist, Rwnes. 437. Encom. Emm. 23. Chron. Sax. 161. Mail. 155. VOL. 1. CO 282 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, confirmed, was divided into three branches, the law of the West- ^^' Saxons, the law of the Mercians, and the law of the Danes. The two former had been preserved from the time of the Hep- tarch}-, and prevailed in their respective districts : the latter had been introduced into East-Anglia and Northumbria by the Danes, who had settled in those countries since the beginning of the ninth centur}'. Of all three the substance was the same : they differed only in the amount of the pecuniary mulcts which were imposed on various transgressions. V, The king under- took to ease his people of part of the burthens arising from the feudal services, which in England, as well as the other European nations, had long been on the increase. He totally abolished the custom of purveyance, forbidding his otficers to extort pro- visions for his use, and commanding his bailiffs to supply his table from the produce of his own farms. He fixed at a mode- rate value the heriots which were paid at the demise of tenants, and apportioned them to the rank of the deceased, whether they died intestate or not. AVith respect to heiresses, whose helpless condition frequently exposed them to the tyranny of their lords, he enacted, that neither maid nor widow should be compelled to marry against her will. ]n conclusion he com- manded these laws to be observed both by the Danes and the English, under the penalty of a single were for the first offence, of a double rcere for the second, and of the forfeiture of all property for the third ^^. Visits Den- Tliougli Canute generally resided in England, he frequently visited Denmark. He was accompanied by an English fleet; and carried with him pious and learned missionaries to civilijic" and instruct his countrymen. Of these, Bernard, Gerbrand, and Rainer were promoted to the episcopal dignity, antl ])laced " Lag. Sax. 133—135. 143—146. Brompton, 914—931. • DANES. 285 bv him in Sconcn, Zealand, and i'inland. In one of his visits, CHAP. VI in 1025, he was suddenly attacked by Olave and Ulfr with a ' nvunerons army of Swedes, and was defeated with the loss of J02.5. many English and Danish thanes. But our annalists add, that Godwin, who commanded the English troops, surprised the camp of the enemy during the night, and totally dispersed the Swedes : a feat of heroism, Avhich procured him the esteem and favour of the kino;^^ The power of Canute released the kingdom from the liorrors conque.? /• 1 • -IIP Norway. of domestic war : but his ambition thirsted for a crown which had formerly been worn by his father. Sweyn had divided Norway between two brothers, Eric and Haco. When Eric accepted Northumberland from Canute, Haco succeeded to the whole, but was driven from it by the superior power of Olave, a Norwegian sea-king. Canute seduced the natives from their allegiance to Olave by presents, sailed to Norway with an 102s. English fleet of fifty vessels ; and was every where received with acclamations of joy, and professions of attachment. He ex- pelled Olave and restored Haco. But the latter was soon after drowned at sea ; and Olave recovered his dominions. That prince was a zealous christian ; but his religious innovations irritated the jealousy of the pagan priests ; and he was murdered in an insurrection of his subjects ^^. Canute's last military effort was directed ao-ainst Scotland. Ami subdues •' * _ the Scots. Fordun tells us, that Duncan, who, as nephew and heir to Malcolm, was in possession of Cumberland, refused to hold it of Canute, because that prince had not obtained the crown by hereditary descent: but that, before the armies could engage, the two kings were reconciled, and the ancient conditions re- " Adam Brem. ii. 38. Chron. Sax. 153. '' Chron. Sax. 153. Flor. 620. Snorre, West. 207. 278. o o 2 284 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, specting the possession of Cumberland, were solemnly renewed. ^ ' Of these particulars our annalists are ignorant; and merely inform us, that Malcolm, unable to oppose the superior power of the English monarch, submitted to his pleasure with two inferior princes, Melbeth and Jermac^^. He rebukes The courticrs of Canute, to please his vanity, were accus- his flatterers. ^^^^^ ^^ ^^^^j j^-j^-j .^^ ^.j^g greatest of kiugs, whose will was obeyed by six powerful nations, the English, Scots, and Welsh, the Danes, Swedes, and Norwegians. Canute had the good sense to despise, or affect to despise, their flattery. On one of these occasions, as he was sitting on the shore near Southampton, he commanded the sea to respect its sovereign. But the influx of the tide soon compelled him to retire, and he improved the oppor- tunity to read his flatterers a lecture on the weakness of earthly kings, when compared with the power of that supreme Being who rules the elements. Impressed with this idea, he is said, on his return to Winchester, to have taken the crown fiom his head, to have placed it on the great crucifix in tlie cathedral, and never more to have worn it even at public ceremonies ^'^. His pUsvim- 111 1030 he determined to make a pilgrimage to Rome. On age to Home. . . , , , , , , , , . Ktso. his road he visited the most celebrated churches, leaving every where proofs of his devotion and liberality ^^. In his return he proceeded immediately to Denmark, but dispatched the abbot of Tavistock to England with a letter, describing the object and the issue of his journey. This letter I shall transcribe, not only because it furnishes an interesting specimen of the manners and opinions of the age, but also because it exhibits the surprising '° Fordun, iv. 41. Chron. Sax. 1.53. . lived on tlio road by wliich he passed, had Hunt. 208. West. 209. reason to exclaim : bcneiiictio Domini super " Hunt. 209. West. 209. regeni Anglorum t'liutoncin. C'hron. WiL '" So profuse was he ill his donations that, Godel. apnd l?ouqiiet, x. 2C3. according to a foreign chrouicler, all who DANES. 285 chanii;e Avliicli reliiiion had produced in the mind of a ferocious CHAP. ,".*.* VI. and sanguinary warrior. _____^ Canute, king of all Denmark, England and Norway, and of Jiis k-tter. part of Sweden, to Egelnotli the metropolitan, to archltisliop Alfric, to all the bishops and chiefs, and to all the nation of the English, both nobles and commoners, greeting. I write to in- form you that I have lately been at Home, to pray Ibr the remis- sion of my sins, and for the safety of my kingdoms, and of the nations, that are sul)icct to my sceptre. It is long since I bound myself by vow to make this pilgrimage; but 1 had been hitherto prevented by affairs of state, and other impediments. Now, however, I return humble tliaid»ard, built castles on their lands alter the manner of their own country. Thus besides the castle at Hereford, we meet with Robert's castle, Pentecoste's castle, &c. Chron. Sax. IG3. 167. Chtoa. Lamb. 1052. The fo- reigners wlio formed the garrisons are called indifferently Frencisc men, or Welisc (Gaul- ish) men. The latter term has caused some confusion on account of its similarity to the word ' Welshmen.' ANGLO-SAXONS. 305 inquiry into tlie death of Bcorn, thought it prudent to flee. He hhap. VI. was solemnly pronounced an outlaw : the tiianos, who held of Godwin and Ilarohl, were compelled to swear icalty to the king; and the two earls were ordered to clear themselves of the accu- sations against them by the oaths of twelve compurgators in the presence of the witan. As a previous condition they demanded hostages for their safety : but this demand was contumeliously refused ; and they were allowed five days either to establish their innocence or to quit the kingdom. Godwin, with his wife and three sons, Sweyn, Tostig, and Gurth, fled for protection to the earl of Flanders : Harold, and his biother Leofwin, hastened to Bristol, embarked on board a vessel belonging to Sweyn, and with difticulty reached Ireland '*. The queen was involved in the common disgrace of her family. Her lands were seized by the king, and her person Avas intrusted to the custody of Ed- ward's sister, the abbess of Whirwell. Some writers aflirm that she was treated with great severity : but a contemporary histo- rian assures us, that she was conducted with royal pomp to the monastery allotted for her residence, and informed that her con- finement was only a measure of temporary precaution ^^ At the very commencement of the insurrection, the foreign visit from favourites had trembled for their safety ; and by their advice Norman.iy. Edward had solicited the assistance of William, duke of Nor- mandy. Tranquillity Avas hardly restored, when that prince, with a powerful fleet, reached the coast of England. As his services were no longer wanted, he landed with a gallant train of knights, was kindly received by the king, visited several of the royal villas, and was dismissed with magnificent presents. Many have " Chron. Sax. 163, 104. Chron. Lamb, by Stow, p. 96. His authority ii the greator, ad ann. 1052. as lie dedicated liis work to Editha herself. " The author of the life of Edward, quoted Ibid. VOL. I. R R. 306 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, pretended, that the real object of this interview was the future " succession of Wilham to the crown of England : but Ingulf, who accompanied that prince on his return to Normandy, and was for several years his confidential secretary, assures us, that the idea of succeeding to the English throne had not yet presented itself to his mind^^. Restoration of While Godwin remained at Bruges, he did not abandon hini- the Godwins. i f t • i i • • • i 1052. sell to despan-, but spent the wmter m arrangmg the means ot revenge. A few days before Midsummer he put to sea with a small squadron ; while a powerful armament at Sandwich, under the earls Radulf and Odda, watched all his motions. The outlaw was unconscious of his danger: but he escaped in a storm, and precipitately returned to his former retreat. The royal com- manders were dismissed for their negligence : and while the council was debating on the appointment of their successors, the mariners (so loosely combined were the armaments of these times) returned to their respective homes. This dispersion of the fleet encouraged Godwin to renew his attempt : in the channel he was met by Harold from Ireland : with their united squadrons they pillaged the coast, swept away the ships from the different harbours, advanced up the Thames, and sailed through the southern arch of the bridge at London. The royal fleet of fil'ty sail was ranged on the opposite side of the river ; and a power- ful army lined the left bank. Godwin sent his submission to Edward, by whom it was sternly refused. But his resolution was gradually subdued by the policy of Stigand, who insinuated that his troops were unwilling to shed the blood of their country- men ; and that it was folly to sacrifice the affections of his sub- jects to the interests of a few Normans. At length lie extorted from the reluctant king a commission to ncgociatc with God- " Ingulf, 65. E'lor. 627. Ilemmingford, 456. Cliroa. Lmnb. ad. ann. 1052. ANGLO-SAXONS. 307 CHAP. VI, win, and that instant the foreigners fled in despair. Robert, archbishop of Canterbury, and Ulf, bishop of Dorchester, mounting their horses, fought their way through their opponents, rode to Ness in Essex, and seizing a small and shattered bark, committed themselves to the mercy of the waves. The others dispersed in different directions; and by the connivance of Edward's friends escaped with their lives, though they were compelled to quit the kingdom. By their flight the principal obstacle to an accommodation was removed. Godwin re- ceived permission to visit the king. He laid the blame of the late dissensions on the Normans, attested in the most solemn manner the innocence of himself and his children, and surrendered as pledges for his loyalty his son Wulfnoth, and his nephew Haco. Edward received him kindly, but for greater security sent the hostages to be kept by William of Normandy. The foreign favourites were outlawed by decree of the great council : Godwin and Harold recovered their earldoms ; and Editha was recalled from her prison to the throne''*. But to Sweyn Edward was inexorable. He had been guilty of a most inhuman and perfidious murder: and seeing himself abandoned by his family, he submitted to the discipline of the ecclesiastical canon. He walked, a barefoot pilgrim, from Flanders to Pa- lestine ; visited with tears of compunction the holy places,. and on his return finished his penance and his life in the province of Lycia'^. The services of the nes-ociator on this occasion were not for- Pro'iot'on of ® _ Sligand. gotten by the Godwins. He had expelled archbishop Robert : he succeeded to the honours of that prelate. Without learning, without any of the virtues becoming his profession, Stigand, " Chron. Sax. 1G5— 1G8. Flor. 627. 628. " Malm. 46. R R 2 308 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAF. even under a religious monarch, arrived at the highest dignity ^^' in the English church. His only merit Mas an aptitude for intrigue, and the art of profiling by every occurrence. He had been originally noticed by Canute, and appointed one of the royal chaplains. By the intervention of friends and the aid of presents, he became bishop of Helmstan : from Helmstan he was successively removed to Selsey and AVinchcster; and now obtained the great object of liis ambition, the archiepiscopal see of Canterbury. To his unspeakable mortification pope Leo IX. could not be persuaded that a church was vacant, of which the bishop was still alive, and refused to surrender his rights^. But the vigilance of Stigand never slept : John of Velitrae, under the name of Benedict, usurped the papacy for a few months ; and it was no difficult matter for one intruder to obtain the pallium from another. However Benedict was soon ex- pelled, and Alexander IL suspended Stigand from the exercise of the episcopal functions. Still, under the patronage of Harold, he contrived to deceive the simplicity of Edward : and his avarice absorbed at the same time the revenues not onl}'^ of the churches of Canterbury and Winchester, but also of the mo- nasteries of St. Augustine's, St. Alban's, Ely, and Glaston- bury *'^. DeathofGod- Godwin did not long survive the disgrace of his enemies. He J1053 died the following Easter; and the story, which was invented by the malice of party, would persuade us that his death was a visible judgment of heaven on the murderer of Alfred. He was sitting, we are told, at table with the king. Observing a servant, who had chanced to make a false step, support him- *• Robert had gone to Rome, and in his Elien. 515. Mail. 15S. Spel. con. 628. return with a papal letter, died at Jamieges, Vil. Ir Wulst. 'i51. Guil. Pict. 105. Ing. C9. an abbey in Normandy. Malm. 46. Malm. 110. " Chron. Sax. 167, 168. 168. 170. Hist. win ANGLO-SAXONS. 300 self ■with his other foot, he exclainietl : " See, liow one brother CHAP. VI. " assists another!" — " Yes," rephed Edward, looking sternly at the earl, " and if Alfred were now alive, he might also assist " me." Godwin lelt the reproach, loudly protested his inno- cence, and with the most solemn execrations wished that, if he were guilty, he might not live to eat the morsel, which he held in his hand. He put it to his mouth, and immediately expired''^. Such is the tale in its most improved state. At its first publica- tion the preparatory incident, and the remark of Ed ward appear to have been forgotten '''^. The real fact is, that Godwin on Easter Monday fell speechless fi'om the royal table ; that he was carried by his three sons into the king's chamber; and that, alter lin- gering for some time in great torment, he died on the following Thursday^". ,His earldom was given to Harold : that of Harold to Alfgar the son of Leofric. The character of this powerful earl has been painted by most of our historians in colours of blood. They describe him as a monster of inhumanity, duplicity, and ambition. But their credibility is lessened by the consideration that they wrote after the conquest, when every artifice was adopted to persuade the English that the man whom the Norman had precipitated from the throne, was, on account of his own crimes and those of his father, unworthy to remain on it. To their defamation may be opposed the panegyric of Edward's biographer, who dedicated his work to Editha. If we may believe him, the earl was the father of the people, the support of the nation. To the peaceful and virtuous he was kind, generous, and pla- cable : but the turbulent and lawless trembled at his lion-like " HIgden, 280. Rudborn, 239. West. 21.5. " Ingulf, 66. Malm. 45. Bromplon, 943. according to whom the per- " C'hron. Sax. 168. Mailros, 158. Flor. sou who made the false step was Harold, 628. Godwin's sod, and cup-bearer to the king. 310 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VI. Edward's hu- manity. countenance, and dreaded the severity of his justice. The English lamented his death as a national calamity, and placed their only consolation in his son Harold, the inheritor of his father's virtues no less than of his honours'"'. Probably the truth will be found between the exaggerated encomiums of one party and the undistinguishing invectives of the other. Though the late disturbances had interrupted the general tranquillit}^, they had been terminated without bloodshed, and had inflicted no considerable injury on the people. The principal calamities of Edward's reign were pestilence and famine, evils which, at this period, occasionallj' visited every part of Europe. As long as agriculture was in its infancy, each unfavourable season was followed by a year of scarcity : and while the in- tercourse between nations was rare and insecure, the wants of one people could not be relieved from the plenty of another. The chroniclers of the age frequently complain of the inclemency of the seasons, of earthquakes, which, on one occa- sion created considerable alarm at Derby and at Worcester, of the distress caused by the failure of the crops, and of con- tagious distempers which afflicted not only the cattle, but also the human race"^. The benevolent heart of Edward mourned over the calamities of his people, and he eagerly adopted every expedient which seemed likely to remove or to mitigate their sufterings. The Dane-gelt had now been paid for eight-and- thirty years : it formed a considerable part of the royal revenue. In 1051 the kino- resolved to sacrifice this advantage to the " Vlt. Ed. npiid Stow, 97. These oppo- site accounts so perplexed Malmsbury, that he knew not what to believe, or what to reject. Malms. 45. "Chron. Sax. 157. 109. Chron. Lamb, ad ann. 1049. 1059. Mailros, 157. In the year 1049 we are told that much corn and many farms in Derbyshire were destroyed by the wild-fre (Chron. Lamb, nd ann.), or as it is termed in the chroniele of Mailros, by the uood-ftre (Ignis acrims vulgo diclu«; silvatlcus. Mail.' 157). ANGLO-SAXONS. 311 relief of the people : and the abohtion of so odious an impost chap. was received by them with every demonstration of gratitude. " On another occasion, when his nobles had raised a lari>,e sum on their vassals, and begged him to accept the free gilt of his laitiiful subjects, he refused the present as extorted from the labour of the poor, and commanded it to be restored to the original contributors''^. The only foreign war, in which the king engaged, Avas against War with an usurper, whose infamy has been immortali^ied by the genius ' lo-W. of Shakspcare. In 1039 Duncan, king of Scotland, was mur- dered by ]\lacbcth. A prince driven by force from the throne of his fathers might justly claim the sympathy of Edward: and Malcolm, the son of Duncan, received Irom him the permission to vindicate his rights with the aid of an English army. For fifteen years the power of the murderer discouraged every attempt: and the fugitive resided with his uncle, Siward, earl of Northumberland. But when Macduff, the thane of Fife, unfurled the royal standard, Malcolm hastened to the insurgents ; Siward accompanied him Avith a powerful force ; and the vic- tory of Lanfanan in Aberdeenshire, by the fall of Macbeth, placed the crown on the head of the rightful heir. Among those who perished in the action was the son of Siward. The hero anxiously inquired in what manner the young man had fallen ; and being assured that his wounds were received in front, ex- claimed that he was satisfied, and wished for himself no better fate. Soon after his return Siward was attacked by a disorder which proved mortal : but he declared that he would die as he had lived, like a warrior : and ordering his arms to be brought, breathed his last, sitting upright on his bed, and leaning upon "Ing. 65." Mailros, 157. IIov. 25G. 312 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, his speai**^^ His son Waltheof was too young to succeed to the father : and the earldom was given to Tostig, the brother of 1055. Harold. Civil war. ^Vhile the earl of Northumberland was yet in Scotland, the flames of civil war had burst out in England. They seem to have been kindled by the jealousy of Harold, who was indignant that the earldom which he had resigned for that of Godwin, should be given to the rival family of Leofric. At the witena- gemot Alfgar was accused of treason " against the king and the " countr}'." Most of our chroniclers assert his innocence ^^: a writer, who seems devoted to the interests of Harold, declares that his guilt was established on the most satisfactory evidence ^^. Outlawed by the judgment of the council, Alfgar fled to Ireland, purchased the assistance of a northern sea-king, was joined by Griffith, prince of Wales, and poured his Welsh and Norwegian auxiliaries into the county of Hereford. The earl Radulf with his retainers fled at the first onset : the city was taken and pillaged : four hundred of the inhabitants were slain : and the cathedral with the principal buildings was burnt. To revenge this insult the king assembled an army at Gloucester, at the head "I may be allowed to observe that with 187. Florence, p. C29, repeats the same respect to this event, lord Hailes (Annals of words. Mailros, p. 158, has the same sense. Scotland, p. 2.) appears to have overlooked See also Malmsbury, Macbctha vita regnoqu« the statements of our most ancient historians, spoiiavit, Malcolnium regem instituit, f. 44. He tells us that " Siward, with (he approba- Huntingdon, regem billo vicit, rcgnum totum " tion of his sovereign, led the Northumbrians destruxit destructum sibi subjugavit, f. 209. " to the aid of Malcolm, but did not live to Lambard's Saxon Chronicle: " Siward went " see the event of his enterprise :" they say, " with a great army into Scotland, both with that he defeated Macbeth, and placed Malcolm " ship-force, and land-force, and fought with on the throne as Edward had ordered. Si- " the Scots, and routed the king Macbeth, wardus jusfii IJegis Edwardi et equestri " aud slew all the best in the land, and exercitu et classc valida Scottiam adiit, ct " brought thence much s-poil, such as no man cum regc Scottorum Macbeotha pnelium com- " ever got before." C'hron. Lamb, ad ann. misit, ac multis millibus Scottorum et Nor- 1054. mannis omnibus, quorum supra mciitionem ''^ Ing. 66. Mail. 158. Flor. 629. fecimus Decisis, ilium fugavit, ct Malcolmum, *° Chroii. Sax. 189. ut rex jusserat, n-gera constituit. Sim. Dun. ANGLO-SAXONS. 313 of which Harold chased the invaders into the fastnesses of CIIAP. VI Snowdon. A negociation followed ; which restored to Alfgar his " former honours. His allies inarched immediately to Leicester : and I/eofric, who appears to have remained an idle spectator during the contest, was impelled by apprehension or by gratitude to nnvard their services at its termination. But Leofric died soon iost. afterwards : and AUgar succeeded to the honours of his father. The former jealousy, and former accusations were immediately revived. Alfgar again lost his earldom ; and was again restored, by the arms of Griffith and the Norwegians. But he hardly enjoyed his triumph during a year: and at his death left two sons, iSIorcar and Edwin, whose unmerited fate will claim the 1059. sympathy of the reader*'^. The death of Alfgar exposed Griffith to the just resentment of wTie"*"'* "^ Harold. The Welsh prince and his subjects had long deserved '''^^ the name and punishment of robbers and assassins. From the recesses of their mountains they had made annual incursions on the inhabitants of the borders : had indulged for a while in plunder, bloodshed, and conflagration ; and had eluded the pursuit of vengeance by the celerity of their retreat. When Rhese, the brother of Griffith, fell into the hands of the English, even the meekness of Edward, " whom no injuries could irri- " tate'^^" ordered him to be put to death : and the king now commissioned Harold to inflict a severe punishment on these persevering robbers. Aware of the difficulties arising from the nature of the country and the fleetness of the enemj^, Harold selected a numerous body of young men, vigorous and active, bade them exchange their usual arms for others of less weight and dimensions ; and gave them for defence helmets and targets of " Ingulf, 66. Mailros, 158. Flor. 629, 630. "' Malm. 44. VOL. I. S S 3U HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, hardeneil leather. In the depth of winter he attempted by a ' sudden irruption to surprise Griffith : but the Welshman escaped. ■ though his ships and mansion were consigned to the flames. At the beginning of summer, Tostig, with a body of cavalry, entered AVales from the north : Harold conveyed his troops by sea, and landed them on the coast. The indefatigable earl, who proceeded on foot and fared like the meanest of his followers, traversed the country in every direction. Neither mountains nor morasses could screen the natives from the pursuit of their enemy. Wherever the Welsh offered any resistance, he was victorious : and to perpetuate the memory of each victory, he erected a pyramid of stone with this inscription : Here Ha- rold CONQUERED. Ovcrpowercd and dismayed they solicited for mercy : and sent as a peace-offering the head of Griffith to the conqueror. Harold returned in triumph to Edward : the head of the Welshman with the beak and the ornaments of his ship were presented to the English monarch : and his two uterine brothers Blethgent and Rigwatlan swore fealty, and engaged to pay the ancient tribute. A law was passed con- demning every Welshman, found in arms on the east of Offa's dyke, to lose his right hand : and the natives of the mountains, taught by fatal experience, respected during the four next reigns ^ the territory of their neighbours ^^. Edward sends Thc custom of pilgrimage had prevailed among the Anglo-^ t'orliisnepliew . „ , . . .... -,p,^ from Ger- baxous irom the tiaic of then* conversion to Christianity. JJurmg the reign of Edward there was hardly a year in which bishops, thanes, or abbots did not jiroceed to Rome in order to ofier up '*Gir. Camb. in Aug. Sac. ii. 541. Ingulf, successor? or did they merely become his 68. Chrbh. 'Lam. adann. 1063. The cliro- vassals? At thc same time and by the same nicle says the Welsh princes swore fealty and anthority Meredith was appointed prince of gave hostages to the king and the earl. Why South AVale?. Powel, XO'J, to the earl ? Had he been appointed Edward's ANGLO-SAXONS. 315 their devotions at the tombs of the apostles. The piety or the chap. curiosity of Aid red, bishop of Worcester, was still more enter- ' prisinf^. lie traversed Germany and Hungary, reached the city of Jerusalem, and as a memorial of his visit to the sepulchre of the Saviour, offered a golden chalice of the weight of five marks''*'. Edward was anwiated with the spirit of his country- men, and had bound himself by vow, to visit, in imitation of his predecessors Canute and Ethelwulf, the apostolic see. But the design was opposed by his witan, on the ground, that the king had no children, and that the dangers of the journey might expose the nation to the evils of a disputed succession ^^ This objection directed the thoughts of Edward to his nephew and namesake, the exiled son of his brother Edmund. An honour- able embassy was sent to demand him of the emperor Henry III. into whose family he had married '^^: and the young Edward arrived in London with Agatha, his wife, and his children, Edgar, INIargaret, and Christina. The people, who received him with lively demonstrations of joy, were plunged into mourning by his sudden death. There is something mysterious in the fate of this prince. It was natural that Edward should be anxious to embrace a nephew, who like himself, and for the same reason, had spent the better portion of his days in banish- ment : and whom the English monarch had now chosen for the purpose of perpetuating the race of Cerdic upon the throne. Yet from the hour of his arrival to that of his death, the prince " Chron. Lamb, ad ann. 1058. bard's chronicle only says that Agatha (that " Spelm. con. 628. was her name) was the relation of the em- " Some difficulty has been started with peror (ad ann. 1057), and speaking of her respect to this marriage, bui it arises solely daughter Margaret, that " her inother-kitt from an error in the printed text of Ailred : " went to Henry the CtBsar" (adann. 10G7). Rex Hungarorum Edvardo fiHam Germani sui But Simeon (170), and Ailred himself, in the Henrici imperatoris in matrimonium junxit. same page, expressly assert, that she was the 3G6. Sui should either be omitted, or, as daughter of the emperors brother. He had, P;ipcbr«ch suggests, changed into Sti. Lam- a brother called Bruno. s s 2 316 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VI. Harold in Normandy. lOOj. was by some contrivance kept at a distance from the king : a circumstance which will almost justify a suspicion that he was deemed by Harold a dangerous obstacle to the success of his future projects". By the course of events that earl was become the most power- ful subject in England. After the d^ath of Edward (surnamed the outlaw) but one individual stooa between him and the suc- cession, Edgar the son of that Edward, a young prince, feeble in body and still more feeble in mind, whose hereditary right was sunk in his inaptitude to govern. But the other side of the channel exhibited a more formidable competitor, in the person of William, duke of Normandy. It was evident that by descent neither could boast the remotest claim. William was the illcffi- timate son of Robert, the brother of Emma : Harold's only con- nexion with the royal family arose from the marriage of his sister with Edward ^^. Their real title lay in their power and ambition: and in the latter William was equal, in the former he was supe- " Chron. Lamb, ad ann. 1057. subjoin a short genealogy of William's de- " For the satisfaction of the reader, I shall scent from RoUo, the first duke of Normandy. Rollo, died in 917. I William + 943. I Richard I. + 996. Richard II. + 1026. Emma = Ethelred + 1016. Ricliard III. + 1026. Robert+1035. Edmuud+IOIG. William, by Ilerleva a concubine. Edward + 1057. Edward + 1060. without issue. The descent of Harold can be traced no farther back than his grandfather Wulfnoth, " child of Sussex." His father Godwin had married Gyda, the sister of Ulfr, brothei-in- Edgar Atheling. law to Canute. Of the connexion between Godwin and Ulfr, Mr. Turner has given from the Knytllnge Saga an account, whicil savours ijaore of romance than of history. ANGLO-SAXONS. 317 rior to Ilaiold. Unfovtuiiatcly for the English carl, a vessel, in chap. which he had sailed from liosenham, was accidentally stranded in ' the mouth of the river Maye, on the opposite coast of Ponthieu. A barbarous custom had invested the lord of the district with a pretended right not only to the remains of the wreck, but also to the persons of the survivors : nor were imprisonment, threats, and torments spared to extort from the captives an exorbitant ran- som. Harold and his companions were seized on the beach, conducted to the earl Guy, by whom they were immured within his castle of Beaurain. No circumstance could have been more propitious to the views of William. He demanded the prisoners : they were surrendered to him at Eu in Normandy : and the compliance of Guy was rewarded with a valuable donation of land. In the Norman court the earl was treated with respect and munificence: but he enjoyed only the semblance of liberty, and soon had reason to regret the dungeons of Beaurain. Com- pelled b}*^ the necessity of his situation, he consented to do ho- mage for his lands and honours to William, as the apparent suc- cessor of Edward. But the jealousy of the Norman required more than the mere ceremony of homage. Before an assembly of his barons, Harold was constrained to SAvearthat he would promote the succession of the duke to the English crown, that he would guard his interests in the court of Edward, and that he would admit a Norman sarrison into the castle of Dover. Atleno-th, loaded wdth presents but distressed in mind, he was permitted to leave the ter- ritory of his rival. He had obtained from the gratitude of William the liberation of his nephew, Haco, one of the hostages, whom Edward had formerly required from Godwin : AVulfnoth, the other, was detained by the policy of the Norman, as ti security for the faith of his brother ". ■'See tlie account in "William of Poitou, persons, \vLo were present. Gul. Piet. 79, who received the particulars of the oath from 80. 85. '318 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VI. Insunertion of tlie Noilh- umbi'iaus. lOGo. That Harold was thus dehvered up by the earl of Pon'thieU; and was compelled to swear fealty to AVilliam, are indisputable I'acts : but the object which originally induced him to put to sea, is a subject of doubt and investigation. B}^ the Norman writers, and those who follow them, we are told, that Edward, moved by gratitude and relationship, had appointed William his successor, and that Harold was sent to notify this appointment to the duke~^. Nor, indeed, is it improbable that such a report should be circulated in Normandy, as a justification for the violence wliich was offered to Harold. Many of the English historians have preserved, or invented, a different account. If we may believe them, the earl intended to visit William, but his object was to solicit the liberty of the hostages, Haco and Wulfnoth"'. It is, however, difficult to conceive that a man ambitious of a crown, would, for the freedom of two captives, trust himself and the success of his projects, to the mercy of a rival. Perhaps it were more safe to rely on the authority of those writers, who appear ignorant of both these reports ; and who describe the voj-age of Harold as an occasional excursion along the coast, from which he was driven by a storm on the barbarous territory of Ponthieu'^ It was about the end of summer, when the earl returned to England", when his services were immediately required by an insurrection of the Northumbrians. Tostig had governed that people with the rapacity of a despot, and the cruelty of a bar- barian. In the preceding year he had perfidiously murdered two of the noblest thanes in his palace at York : at his request Editha had ordered the assassination of Gospatric in Edward's "' Guil. Pict. 77. Order. Vit. 492. Wil. Gomel. 'i85. ■' Eadni. 4. Sim. Duncl. 195. Heming- ford, 466. " Mat. Paris, 2. West. 218. Malm. 52. " No writer lli.it I know has fixed the date of Harold's di'lentioii in Norinaiuly : but we learn Ironi Plctavioiisis, that ibc corn in Bre- tagn(> was almost ripe (Pict. 81. 85). ANGLO-SAXONS. 319 court: anc! the recent imposition of an extraordinary tax, as it CHAP, was universally felt, had armed the whole population against his ' government. In the beginning of October the insurgents sur- prised York. Tostig fled : his treasures and armoury were pil- laoed : his puards, to the number of two hundred, both Danes and English, with their commanders, Amund and llavenswarth, were made prisoners, conducted out of the city, and massacred in cold blood on the north bank of the Ousc. Elated with their success the insurgents chose for their future earl Morear, the son of Alfgar : and that nobleman, with the men of Lincoln, Notting- ham, and Derbyshire, and his brother Edwin with those of Lei- cester, and a body of ^^'elsh auxiliaries, advanced as far south as Northampton. Here they were met by Harold. AVhcn he inquired into the nature of their demands, they replied, that they were freemen, and would not tamely submit to oppression : that they required the confirmation of the laws of Canute, and the appointment of Morear to the earldom of Northumberland. Harold returned, and obtained the royal assent to their requests : but during his absence and at their departure, they plundered the country, burut the villages, and carried away several hundreds of the inhabitants, who were destined to a lite of slavery, unless their ransom should be afterwards purchased by their friends. Tostig, dissatisfied with the pacification, repaired to Bruges, the usual asylum of his family ^°. If, on this occasion, Harold appeared to desert the cause of his brother, we may attribute his moderation, not only to the formidable appearance of the insurgents, but also to a prudent regard for his own interest. The king was hastening to the grave : and the success of the earl's projects I'equired his pre^ "" Cliron. S;n-. !71. Cliron. Lamb, ad aim. 1065. Flor. C33. 320 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, sence in London; a period of tranquillity, and (he good will of " the people. He returned to the metropolis on the 30th of VMrd. Death of Ed- Novembcr, five weeks before Edward breathed his last. The monarch previously to his decease had the satisfaction of wit- nessing the dedication of the church of Westminster, which had been the great object of his solicitude during his latter years. When the witan opposed his journey to Rome, Leo IX. autho- rized him to commute his intended pilgrimage for some other work of piety. With this A-iew he set apart the tenth of his yearly revenue, and rebuilt from its foundation the church of St. Peter, at the western extremity of the capital. On the vigil of Christinas he was attacked by the fever which ultimately proved fatal. For three days he struggled against the violence of the disease, held his court as usual, and presided with affected cheer- fulness at the royal banquets. On the festival of the innocents, the day appointed for the dedication of the new churcli, he was unable to leave his chamber. The ceremony was, however, performed. Editha took the charge of the decorations, and represented the royal founder. But his absence, and the idea of his danger, diffused a deep gloom among the thousands who had assembled to witness the spectacle. After lingering a week 1066. longer, Edward died on the 5th of Januar}', and was buried the following day with royal pomp in the church which he had erected"'. " Chron. Sax. 171. Spelm. con. C28— sioii began to be enterlaiiird (spes regii san- 0.>7.- Cum insigni regio. Hist. Ham. 400. guinis deint'eps deticereca'pit, Ing. 66. Malm. Ailred Hrev. .398, 399. Here it may bo ii. 2): but that it was not till 1065, the last yeiir asked whether Edward, befoie his death, did of his reign, that Edward abandoned the hope or did not appoint a successor ? It is evident of placing on the throne Edgar, the son of his that he had looked on his nephew, Edward nejihew (lug. 68). AVhether during that the outlaw, as the rightful heir, and on that year he appointed cilher William or Harold, account sent for him from Hungary to Eng- nm.st for ever remain uncertain. They both land. At die death of tbat prince in 10.')7, asserted it : but it was so niucli for the in- Tve are told that fears concerning the succi.-s- terest of each lo have it believed, that neither ANGLO-SAXONS. 321 If we esliinatc the character of a sovereign by the test of chap. popular aflcclion, we must rank Edward among the best princes _ of his time. The goodness of his heart was adored by his subjects, who lamented his death with tears of undissembled grief, and be- queathed his memory as an object of veneration to their pos- terity. The blessings of his reign are the constant theme of our ancient writers : not, indeed, that he displayed any of those brilhant qualities, which attract admiration, while they inflict misery. He could not boast of the victories Avhich he had Avon, or of the conquests which he had atchieved : but he exhibited the interesting spectacle of a king, negligent of his private interests, and totally devoted to the welfare of his people ; and by his labours to restore the dominion of the laws, his vigilance to Avard otV foreign aggression, his constant, and ultimately successful solicitude to appease the feuds of his nobles, if he did not pre- vent the interruption, he secured at least a longer duration of public tranquillity, than had been enjoyed in England for half a century. He was pious, kind, and compassionate: the father of the popr, and the protector of the Aveak : more Avil- hng to give than to receive ; and better pleased to pardon than to punish'^-. Under the preceding kings, force generally sup- can deserve credit. It is observable that In- of claiming the succession, and hence was gulf, who was at the time absent on a pil- supposed to have ofl'ered it by the commission grimage to Jerusalem, tells us, not that of Edward ? Harold, but that Robert of Canterbury, was '^ An uninteresting story told by Malms- sent to announce to William his appointment bury has been brought forward to prove that (p. 68) : and yet Ingulf could not have been the simplicity of Edward bordered on child- ignorant that Robert had been driven from ishness, and that he was so ignorant as not to England thirteen years before. William of know that kings possessed the power of pu- Poitou (p. 44), another contemporary writer, nishing offenders (Hist, of Anglo-Saxons, assigns the same mission to Robert, when, by vol. iii. p. 315). The inference would not the advice of tlie witan he conducted Wulf- have been drawn, had not the original been noth and Haco as hostages to William. But misunderstood. The story is merely this. ^ve know that Robert, instead of conducting To a peasant who had broken the king's nets, hostages, fled for his life : and that the host- Edward angrily said : " I will do as much to ages were given by Godwin after his depar- " you, if 1 have an opportunity." Tantun- ture. Can it be that Robert on his return to dem tibi nocobo, si potero. Malm. 44. Normandy first suggested to William the idea VOL. I. T T VI. 322 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, plied the place of justice, and the people were impoverished by ^^' the rapacity of the sovereign. But Edward enforced the laws ~~~~~~" of his Saxon predecessors, and disdained the riches which were wrung from the labours of the subject. Temperate in his diet, unostentatious in l)is person, pursuing no pleasures but those which his hawks and hounds atforded, he was content with the patrimonial demesnes of the crown : and was able to assert, even after the abolition of that fruitful source of revenue, the Dane-gelt, that he possessed a greater portion of wealth, than any of his predecessors had enjoyed. To him the principle that the king can do no wrong, was literally applied by the gratitude of the people, who, if they occasionally complained of the measures of the government, attributed the blame not to the monarch himself, of whose benevolence they entertained no doubt, but to the ministers, who had abused his confidence, or deceived his credulity ^^. It was, however, a fortunate circumstance for the memory of Edward, that he occupied the interval between the Danish and Norman conquests. Writers were induced to view his character with more partiality from the hatred with which they looked on his successors and predecessors. Thej/ were foreigners, he was a native: they held the crown by conquest, he by descent: they ground to the dust the slaves whom they had made, he became known to his countrymen only by his benefits. Hence he appeared to shine with a purer light amid the gloom with which he was surrounded ; and whenever the people under the des- potism of the Norman kings had an opportunity of expressing their real wishes, they constantly called for the " laws and cus- " toms of the good king Edward." He was the first of our princes, who touched for the king's " Hist. Ram. 460. Elien. 515. Malm. 44. Ingul, 69. ANGLO-SAXONS. 323 evil. The surname of " the confessor" was ffivcn to him from CHAP. VI the bull of his canonization, issued by Alexander JII., about a ' century after his decease. HAROLD. By the death of Edward, Edo;ar the ethelinc; became the last Sncwssion of surviving male of the race of Cerdic : but, if his claim were ever locc. mentioned, it was instantly abandoned^*. A report had been circulated that Edward, on his death bed, had appointed Harold to be his successor ^'. He was proclaimed king in an assembly of the thanes and of the citizens of London ; and the next day witnessed both the funeral of the late, and the coronation of the new, sovereign. On account of the suspension of Stigand, the ceremony was performed by Aldred, the archbishop of York ^^. To Edgar, in lieu of the crown, was given the earldom of Oxford. The southern counties cheerfully acquiesced in the succession of Harold : he was alarmed and perplexed by the hesitation of the Northumbrians. Their pride refused to be bound by the act of those whose military qualities they deemed inferior to their own ; and they looked around for a chieftain, who would solicit their aid, and accept the crown from their hands. Harold has- " Quia puer tanto honori minus idoneus In a fact, which publicly took place in Eng- videbatur. Alur. Riev. 366. land, the native writers are more entitled to " I am much inclined to believe this report, credit than foreigners. The Normans say not only on the testimony of the English Harold was crowned by Stigand (non sancta writers (Chron. Sax. 172. Hoved. 449. Ead- consecratione Stigandi, Guil. Pict. 105) : and mer, 5. Sim. Dun. 193. Al. Bev. 126. the statement is supported by the figures on Flor. 633. Hist. Elien. 515): but because the tapestry of Bayeux (Lancelot, 421). But its truth is acknowledged by the enemies of they give us only the reports prevalent in Harold. Edvardi dono in ipsius fine. Guil. Normandy : and William, anxious to intereft Pict 135. jEgrotus princeps concessit. the religion of his subjects in his own favour. Order. Vit. 492. would readily countenance the notion that his " Ingulf, 68. Flor. C33. Hist. Elien. 515. rival had been crowned by a suspended prelate. T T 2 S24 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. vr. William elniais tbe crown. Invasion by the king of Norwaj-. tened into the north : instead of an army he was accompanied- by Wulstan, the venerable bishop of Worcester; by whose in- fluence, combined with his own concihatory conduct, he soon won the affections and secured the obedience of the Northum- brians. His marriage with E(Htha, the daughter of AHgar, bound to his interests her two brothers, the powerful earls, Morcar and Edwin ^''. The intelligence both of the death of Edward, and of the im- mediate coronation of Harold, had been conveyed to Normandy by the same messenger. William assembled his council, inform- ed them of the event, and expressed his determination to pursue by arms his pretensions to the crown of England. An envoy was dispatched to remind Harold of his former oath of fealty, and promise of assistance. The king replied : that the oath had been extorted from him by force : that a promise to give a crown which did not belong to him, could not be binding : that he had been elected king by the free suffrage of the people : and that, when it should come to the trial, he would prove himself worthy of their choice. The message was such as Harold, the answer such as William, expected. Each had already determined to appeal to the sword : and the English no less than the Normans were astonished at the mighty preparations making to decide the important quarrel ^®. It was unfortunate for Harold that he had to contend at the same time, not only with William, but with his brother Tostig, the exiled earl of Northumberland, in Avhom he experienced a most bitter and enterprising adversary. The outlaw visited Normandy, and arranged a plan of co-operation with the duke : he sent messengers to the northern princes, and engaged the " Ang. Sac. ii. 263. Ing. 68. Eadm. 5. Matt. Paris, Malm. 56. ANGLO-SAXONS. 325 assistance of Harald llardrada, the king of Norway : he col- chap. lected a fleet of sixty sail at ]irugcs, and entering the channel ' began the war by levying contributions in the isle of Wight. But he retired upon the approach of his brother, and sailing round the south foreland, directed his course to the north. In Li ndescy he was defeated by Edwin: his mariners abandoned lum in his distress: and Malcolm, king of Scotland, aflbrdcd him an asylum till the arrival of his Norwegian ally ^^ The armament under Hardrada was not ready for sea till the month of August ; when the Norwegian monarch, leaving the regency of the kingdom to his son INIagnus, enibarked with his family and a gallant army in a fleet of three hundred sail. His queen Elizabeth and her two daughters, fearing the dangers of the campaign, were set on shore at the Orkneys: and Hardrada, according to agreement, was joined by Tostig with a few ships at the mouth of the Tyne. Their first object was to obtain pos- session of York ; and accordingly they entered the Humber and ascended the Ouse. A .desperate attempt to save the capital was made by the earls Edwin and Morcar. The Norwegian had drawn up his men with their right flank to the river, and their left to a morass. The impetuosity of the English burst through the line : but they in their turn were overwhelmed by a fresh l)ody of forces from the ships : and more of the fugitives perished in the water, than had fallen by the sword. Edwin and Morcar escaped to York : negociations were opened ; and the mutual exchange of one hundred and fifty hostages shews, that the province was conditionally surrendered to the invaders ^'^. Harold had completed his preparations, and having selected a wi.o fails k battle. " Chron. Sax. 172. Malm. 52. Hunt. "" Chron. Sax. 172. Snorre, 153— V56. 210. Snorre, iii. 140. Order. Vit. apud Flor. 634. Higden, 284. Duchesne, 469. 492. Gemetic. 285. 326 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, position between Pevcnsey and Hastings, awaited with confi- ^'^- dence the threatened descent of the Norman. The unexpected ^^'^'^ invasion of Hardrada disconcerted his projects. Trusting, how- ever, to his fortune, and encouraged by the tempestuous state of the weather, he lost not a moment in marching against the aggressor, and arrived in the neighbourhood of York within four daj's after the late battle. Unconscious of danger Hardrada had left one part of his forces on board the fleet, while he march- ed with the other for the purpose of dividing and regulating the province which he had conquered. In this employment he was overtaken by the indefatigable Harold. Surprised, but not dis- mayed, the Norwegian sent three messengers to the fleet to has- ten the march of his men, while he retired slowly to Stamford- bridge on the Derwent. There he drew up his warriors in a compact but hollow circle. The royal standard occupied the centre: the circumference was composed of spearmen. The whole Avas surrounded by a line of spears firmly fixed in the earth, and pointed outwards in an oblique direction. The Icelandic historian has preserved some curious anecdotes respecting this celebrated battle. Hardrada wore a blue mantle and a glittering helmet. As he rode round the circle, his horse fell. " Who," exclaimed Harold, " is that chieftain on the ground?" Being told it was Hardrada, " He is," returned the king, " a gal- " Jant warrior : but his fall shews that his fate is approaching." Soon afterwards a messenocr came from the Enolish monarch with an offer of tlie earldom of Northumberland to Tostig. " The proposal," said the outlaw, " should have been made some " months ago. But if I accept it, what will my brother give to " the king of Norway ?" "Seven feet of land for a grave," was the contemptuous reply. Tostig scorned to abandon his friend. ANGLO-SAXONS. 327 Tlie Enirlisli cavalry were accustomed to charge in irreVe are bound by no oaths. We know nothing of the Nor- " man except as the enemy of our country." The king laughed at their apprehensions ^°^. Battle of The spot which he had selected for this important contest "''^' was called Senlac, nine miles from Hastings, an eminence opening to the south, and covered on the back by an extensive wood^"*. As his troops arrived he posted them on the declivity in one compact and immense mass. In the centre waved the royal standard, the figure of a warrior in the act of fighting, worked in thread of gold, and ornamented with precious stones, ^y its side stood Harold and his two brothers Gurth and Leofwin ; and around them the rest of the army, every man on foot. In this arrangement the king seems to have adopted, as far as circumstances would permit, the plan Avhich had lately proved '"-' Taylor's Ann. 192. blood, in allusion to the carnage made in tlii^ '" Order. Vit. 176. Malm. 56. buttle. ]Jat Orderic assures us that Senlac "* Some writers have supposed the n.ime was the ancient name. Locus, eath of ■^ Harold. He instantly fell ; and the knowledge of his fall relaxed the efforts of the English. Twenty Normans undertook to seize the royal banner : and effected their purpose with the loss of half their number. One of them, who maimed with his sword the dead body of the king, was afterwards disgraced by William for his brutality. At dusk the English broke up and dispersed through the wood. The Normans followed their track by the light of the moon, w'hen ignorance of the country led them to a spot intersected with ditches, into which they were precipitated in the ardour of pursuit. The fugitives, recalled by the accident, inflicted a severe vengeance on their adversaries. As William, attracted by the cries of the combatants, was hastening to the place, he met Eustace of Boulogne and fifty knights fleeing with all their speed. He called on them to stop : but the earl, while he was in the act of whispering into the ear of the duke, received a stroke on the back, which forced the blood out of his mouth and nostrils. He was carried in a state of insensibility to his tent : William's intrepidity hurried him on to the scene of "'« Pict. 128—131. Orderic, 179, 536 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAR danger. His presence encouraged liis men : succours arrived : " and the English, after an obstinate resistance, Avcre repulsed ^°^. Thus ended this memorable and fbtal battle. On the side of the victors almost sixty thousand men had been engaged, and more than one-fourth were left on the field. The number of the vanquished and the amount of their loss, are unknown. B3' the vanity of the Norman historians the English army has been exaggerated beyond the limits of credibilit}' : by that of the native writers it has been reduced to a handful of resolute war- riors ^°^ : but both agree that with Harold and his brothers perished all the nobility of the south of England; a loss which was never repaired. The king's mother begged as a boon the dead body of her son: she offered as a ransom its weight in gold '°' : but the resentment of AVilliam had rendered him callous to pity, and insensible to all interested considerations. He ordered the corpse of the fallen monarch to be buried on the beach ; adding with a sneer ; " he guarded the coast while he was alive ; let " him continue to guard it after death." By stealth, however, or by purchase, the royal remains were removed from this un- hallowed site, and deposited in the church of Waltham, which Harold had founded before he ascended the throne"". '" Pic*. 132—134. Orderic, 182 — 185. a century afterwards. If we may believe Hunt. 211. Malm. 57. him, two of the canons, Osgod Cnoppe, and '"' See Pict. 128. Orderic, 178, and in Ailric, the childe-maister, were sent to be Opposition, Ingulf, 69. Chroii. Sax. 172. spectators of the battle. They obtained from Flor. 634. Malms. 53. William, to whom they presented ten marks "" Baron Maseres has calculated the ave- of gold, permission to search lor the body of rage weight of the human body at somewhat their benefactor. Unable to distinguish it less than 11,000 guineas. Pict. 138. not. among the heaps of the slain, they sent for "" Pictaviensis (135), and Orderic (1H5), Harold's mistress, Editha, surnamed "the say that he was buried on the beach ; most of " fair," and the " swan'sneck." By ho»- his our historians (Malm. 57. West. 224. Pa- features wore recognised. The corpse was in- ris, 3), that the body was given to his mother terrcd at Waltham with regal honours, in the without ransom, and interred by her orders presence of several Norman earls and gentle- ot Wallliam. A more romantic story is told men. — Mr. Turner first called the attention by the amhor of the Waltiiam MS. in the of his readers to this MS. Hisl. of Eng. i. 60. <.'otton library, Jul. D. 6, who wrote about APPENDIX I. 337 CHAP. VII. (APPENDIX I.) POLITY OF THE ANGLO-SAXONS — FEUDAL CUSTOMS — RANKS IN SOCIETY — COURTS OF LAW — CRIMES — SLAVES. JiiVERY account of the civil polity of the Anglo-Saxons must chap. necessarily be imperfect. We can only view the subject through ^^^' the intervening gloom of eight centuries : and the faint light which is furnished by imperfect notices, scattered hints, and partial descriptions, may serve to irritate, but not to satisfy curiosity. It would be in vain to seek for information in the works of foreign writers : and the native historians never ima- gined that it could be requisite to delineate institutions with which they had been familiarized from their childhood, and which they naturally judged Avould be perpetuated along with their posterity. Of the military character and predatory spirit of the Saxons Manners of an accurate notion may be formed from the Danish adventurers of the ninth and tenth centuries. Both were scions from the same Gothic stock : but the latter retained for a longer period the native properties of the original plant. Hengist and Cerdic, and their fellow chieftains, were the sea-kings of their age, animated with the same spirit, and pursuing the same objects as the barbarians, whose ferocity yielded to the perseverance of Alfred, but subdued the pusillanimity of Ethelred. The VOL. I. XX 338 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VII. Feudal cus- toms. reader has only to transfer to the Saxons the Danish system of warfare, its multiphed aggressions, its unquenchable thirst of plunder, and its unprovoked and wanton cruelties, and he will form a correct picture of the state of Britain, from the first de- fection of Hengist to the final establishment of the octarchy. The adventurers did not think of colonizing the countries which they conquered, till the}^ had become weary of devastation : and then they introduced institutions, to which they had been habituated in their original settlements. Of these the most important, and that which formed the groundwork of all the rest, may be discovered among the Ger- mans in the age of Tacitus. From him we learn that every chieftain was surrounded by a number of retainers, who did him honour in time of peace, and accompanied him to the field in time of war. To fight by his side they deemed an indispensable duty; to survive his fall an indelible disgrace^. It was this artificial connexion, this principle which reciprocally bound the lord to his vassal, and the vassal to his lord, that held together the northern hordes, when they issued forth in quest of adven- tures. They retained it in their new homes : and its consequences were gradually developed, as each tribe made successive ad- vances in power and civilization. Hence sprang the feudal system with its long train of obligations, of homage, suit, service, purveyance, reliefs, wardships, and scutage. That it was intro- duced into England by the Norman conqueror, is the opinion of respectable writers : and the assertion may be true, if they speak of it only in its mature and most oppressive form. But all the primary germs of the feudal services may be descried among the Saxons, even in the earlier periods of their government : and they flourished in full luxuriance long before the extinction •Tac.Germ. 13, 14. APPENDIX 1. S39 of the dynasty. As the subject is curious, I may be allowed to CHAP, enter a little into detail. !__ That the feudal relation between the lord and his man or Lord and va«- vassal, was accurately understood, and that its duties were *^* faithfully performed by the Anglo-Saxons, is sufficiently evident from the tragic tale of Cynewulf and Cyneheard, which has been already narrated in the history of the kings of Wessex '^. When Cynewulf was surprised in the dead of the night at Merton, his attendants refused to abandon, or even to survive their lord : and when on the next morning tlie eighty-four fol- lowers of Cyneheard were surrounded by a superior force, they also spurned the offer of life and liberty, and chose rather to yield up their breath in a hopeless contest, than to violate the fealty, which they had sworn to a murderer and an outlaw^. An attachment of this romantic and generous kind cannot but excite our sympathy. It grew out of the doctrine, that of all the ties which nature has formed or society invented, the most sacred was that which bound the lord and the vassal ; whence it was inferred that the breach of so solemn an engagement was a crime of the most disgraceful and unpardonable atrocity. By Alfred it was declared inexpiable : the laws pronounced against the offender the sentence of forfeiture and death'*. It was not, however, an institution which provided solely for Homage. the advantage of one party. The obligations were reciprocal. The vassal shared with his fellows in the favours of his lord, and lived in security under his protection. It was a contract, cemented by oath, for the benefit of each. " By the Lord," said the inferior, placing his hands betAveen those of his chief, " I promise to be faithful and true ; to love all that thou lovest, ' See history, p. 151. to have been known in England as early as ' Chron. Sax. anno 750, p. 57. the reign of Alfred. Asser, his instructor, * Chron. Sax. 58. Leg. Sax. p. 33, 34, calls the thanes of Somerset, nobiles T«salli ?5. 142, 143. Even the word vassal seems Sumertunensis plagas. Asser, 33. X x 2 340 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. « and shun all that thou shunnest, conformably to the laws of VII ' " God and man ; and never in will or weald (power), in word or " work, to do that which thou loathest, provided thou hold me " as I mean to serve, and fulfil the conditions to which we agreed " when I subjected myself to thee, and chose thy wilP." This last proviso furnished the usual pretext for the dissolution of these engagements. To it every powerful chieltain appealed as often as he dared to disobey the orders of his sovereign, the " king-lord," as he was called, in contradistinction to inferior lords. The sub-vassal, indeed, could not be compelled by the tenor of his oath to bear arms against the head of the state : but he never presumed to doubt of the rectitude of his imme- diate chief, and always accompanied him to the field, whether it were against the enemies, or the sovereign of his country. We are told that Godwin and his sons were " loath to march " against their king-lord :" yet their " men" followed them in sufficient numbers to render doubtful the issue of the contest ; and on the submission of their leaders were only required to transfer their homage to " the hands" of the king. It should, however, be observed that these vassals were divided into two classes ; vassals by choice, who chose their own lord, paid him an acknowledgment for his protection, and at his death gave their fealty to some other superior" : and vassals by tenure, who held of their lord, estates for life, or estates of inheritance, with the ob- ligation of military service'. Of both descriptions several notices ' Leg. 401. 50. 63. Bromp. 859. We often find them described in Domesdny, ' In Latin they were called commendati. as free men, who could go with their land.s They were common in France (Baluz. capit. to whomsoever they pleased. They are most i. 443. 536), and seem to have been very frequently mentioned in Norfolk and Suffolk, numerous in England. Thus when Alfred Thus in Shotley were 210 socmen. Of these bequeaths several of his lands to his son four were the commendati of Harold, two of Edward, " lie prays the families at Chedder Gurth, the rest of different barons under king " in Somersetshire to choose Edward on the Edward. Domes. 287. a. " same terms, as had formerly been agreed ' The possession of land by military tenure " between Alfred and them" (Test. M\l). is noticed by Bede in his latter to Egbert APPENDIX I. .341 imiy be discovered amono; the relics of Anfflo-Saxon anti- CHAP. .•: '^ VII. quit J. ^^^^ Whatever may have been the conduct of the other northern Division of tribes, there cannot bea doubt that the con(iuerors of Britain shared '*°*'^' among themselves the lands of the conquered. This is sufficiently attested by the state of landed property among them in every sub- sequent stage of their history ; and by the general surveys which had originally been taken. Every district and every kingdom had been distributed b}' computation into so many lands of fami- lies, otherwise denominated hides or sowlings. Of these we are informed by venerable Bede (720), that the isle of Wight contain- ed twelve hundred, the kingdom of Sussex seven thousand, that of Mercia, north and soutli of the Trent, twelve thousand. It appears that in such divisions much the larger portion was given to the king, and the remainder was sliared among the chieftains, his immediate vassals. A subdivision then took place. Each principal proprietor, acting in the same manner, erected a petty empire for himself, and retaining a considerable part for his own use, allotted the rest, in different proportions, and on different tenures, to his followers^. Though in the progress of several centuries this distribution must have been considerably dis- turbed, its original features were still retained ; and if on the one hand the royal demesne was diminished by frequent grants, its losses were as often repaired by the extinction of families, (p. 309). Allusions to vassals of that de- " and chattels, and shift them most rightfully" scription frequently occur in the laws (23. 69. (Leg. 143). Thus yElfred, the ealdorman, and 22. 144): they are expressly mentioned bequeaths to his son only one manor of his by Canute. " If a ' man' desert his lord on bockland, because he hoped the king would " service by sea or land, he shall forfeit all that give him the folcland (the fee) : but incase " he has, and his ovin life. Let the lord take the king should refuse the folcland, lie leaves " his chattels, and the land ichich he gave to him him another manor (Lye, App. No. ii). Thus. " (his fee) ; and the king take his bockland, if also Turketul on the death of his father re- " he have any (land not held of a lord) ; but if ceived his paternal inheritance from the gift of " he fall in presence of his lord in battle, let the the king. Ing. 36. See Ileming. Chart. 81. " heriot be forgiven, and his heirs take the land ° See Bed. iv. 13.16. Edd. c. 40. 342 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VII. Military ser- vice. and the forfeitures of criminals. As' the princes of Wessex _ gradually suppressed the independence of the other tribes, they claimed for themselves the lands allotted to the different crowns ; and at the close of the dynasty their possessions M'ere imn)ense in every division of the kingdom. That this is not merely a fanciful theory will appear from an inspection of Domesday. That authentic record presents a cor- rect picture of the state of the country, not only under the Norman William, but also under his Anglo-Saxon predecessor, Edward. Taking the county of Kent as a specimen, we find that out of four hundred and thirty places described as lying within its precincts, not fewer than one hundred and ninety-four, nearly one-half, belonged to the crown ; and that the remainder was unequally divided among the archbishop of Canterbury, the bishop of Rochester, the two abbots of St. Austin's and St. Martin's, the queen Editha, the earls Godwin, Harold, and Lewin, Alnod child, Brixi child, and Sbern Biga. These eleven were the great tenants in chief, the king's principal thanes, the real peers of the county. But besides the property and privi- leges, which they claimed in that capacity, most of them were in possession of parcels of land which they held in connnon with many inferior thanes, as sub-tenants, some under the crown, some under its immediate vassals, thus pointing out by the difference of their tenures, what originally was the king's de- mesne, and what was the demesne of the great lords in whose places they now stood ". If exceptions in favour of particular persons prove the ex- istence of a general rule, it Avill follow that all the lands of the Anglo-Saxons were originally burthened with the obligation of ' See Ilensham's summary table of lands in Kent, compiled from the autograph of Domes- day. It is observable, that the conqueror, when he distributed the county among his follovrers, still kept up the same number of eleven tenants in chief. Ibid. p. 20, APPENDIX I. 343 military service. The barbarians had ac(uured their new settle- chap. . VII nients b}' the sword ; and they were expected to retain thetn by " the same means. But after their conversion to Christianity, a broad distinction was drawn between the clergy and laity, " the " mass-thanes and the world-thanes." As the former were the servants of God, it was their duty to be employed in the offices of devotion and of charity ; and they were consequently for- bidden to mingle in the fray of arms, or shed the blood of their fellow-men. Hence, in numerous instances, their estates were successively exonerated from every species of service. This indulgence in Northumbria speedily degenerated into a danger- ous abuse : and laymen, assuming the habits of monks, obtained from the weakness or the covetousness of the prince the grant of similar exemj)tions. Venerable Bede (anno 734) made an effort to check the evil : he described in a letter to the arch- bishop of York and brother of the king, its probable conse- quences ; and expressed his apprehensions that the continual diminution of the military tenures would leave the kingdom without a competent force for its defence^". The Mercian princes were less improvident; and while they abolished all other burthens in favour of the ecclesiastical bodies, generally reserved the three important obligations of the faesten-geweorc or reparation of fortresses, the bryge-geweorc or construction of bridges, and the fyrd-faerelde or military service". But even these were annulled by the more easy piety of Ethelwulf (855) not only in his own dominions but in those of the kings his vassals. The clergy, however, during the invasions of the Danes, had the patriotism to wave this valuable privilege: and there is still ex- tant a charter, in which Burrhed, king of Mercia (8()8) publicly " Epist. ad Egbert. Antist. 309. " Wilk. Con. i. 100. Hemicg. Chart. 109. Bed. App, 767- .1 344 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, thanks them for having spontaneously furnished that miUtary • aid, to which they were no longer liable by law ^^. These exemptions sufficiently shew the existence of military services towards the commencement, while Domesday fully con- firms it at the close, of the Saxon government. They seem to have been exacted from all vassals, both those who chose their own lords, and those who held lands of others ^^. By what ririe they were originally imposed, it is impossible to discover : but at a later period they were fixed on the basis of immemorial usage, which appears to have varied in almost every county and borough. Perhaps we shall not recede far from the truth, if we judge of the rest of the kingdom from Berkshire, in which we learn that one miles was furnished for every five hides of land : that he served during two months ; and that, if his own posses- sions did not amount to the legal quantity, he received pay at the rate of four shillings to the hide from the other proprietors. It may be observed that the same number of hides was required by the law for the dignity of thane, who by the Norman com- pilers of Domesday is called in their feudal language, miles regis doniinicus. Firdwite, The performance of these services was enforced by numerous enactments in the laws of the Saxon kings, from the timeof Ina (700) to the reign of Canute (1030). On some occasions the de- faulter was punished with the forfeiture of his lands, at others with the payment of a stated fine. In Worcestershire if he were a vassal by choice, his real property was placed at the mercy of the king; if the tenant of another, his lord was bound to find a substitute, or pay a fine of forty shillings, which in either case he levied on the defaulter. The burghers of Oxford were at liberty to send twenty soldiers, or to " Ingulf, 17. 21. " Gale, iii. 763. APPENDIX I. 345 pay twenty pounds : at Warwick wlioever disobeyed the sum- CHAP, mons, was mulcted one hundred shilhngs : in Colchester every ' house paid six pence in lieu of all military service. In these and numerous other instances of a similar description, we may easily recognise the rudiments of the prestation, called scutSge by the Norman feudalists ^'K Nor were the three great services already mentioned the only purveyance burthens to which landed property was subjected among our Saxon ancestors. In diti'erent charters we read of sheritis-aids, of the hidage or land tax, of the fees of ealdormen and public officers, and of a variety of impositions, the nature of which it is now hopeless to investigate. But among the number was a grievance, which bears a near resemblance to the purveyance of later times, the obhgation of furnishing forage, provisions, and lodging to the attendants of the king in his progresses through the country, and not only to them, but also to their servants, horses, hounds, and hawks. Other prestations were fixed and certain : this was indeterminate and occasional, and on that account was more galling and oppressive ^^ Canute attempted to abolish it towards the close of his reign, and ordered his reeves to supply from the demesne lands Avhatever might be necessary for the support and comfort of his household ^*'. The king appears to have claimed the poAver, not only of dis- Heiiots. posing of the benefice or fee after the death of the tenant, but also of controling the distribution of his other possessions. Hence the vassal in his will was always anxious to obtain the confirmation of his superior, and to make provision for the payment of what was termed by the Saxons the heriot, by the Nor- mans the relief. Of both these practices we meet with numerous "Leg. 23. 135. Domesday, passim. '^ Leg. 143. " Ingulf, 17. 35. Heming. Chart. 31. 58, VOL. I. Y T 346 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, instances. Thus Elflielm, after leavino- his heriot to the kino-, VII. . . o ' concludes his will in tnese words : " and now I beseech thee 5' " my beloved lord, tliat my last testament may stand, and that " thou do not permit it to be annulled. God is my witness " that I was always obedient to thy father, faithful to him, both " in mind and might, and ever true and loving to thee^^." So also archbishop ^Elfric first " bequeaths to his lord his best ship, " and the sail-yards thereto, and sixty helmets, and sixty coats " of mail," and then wills, //" it were his lord's zdll, &c.^^. By the lav\'s it was provided that the heriot should be paid within twelve months from the death of the last possessor ; and was apporticmed to the rank which he bore in the state. That of an eail was four horses saddled, four unsaddled, four helmets, four coats of mail, eight spears, eight shields, four swords, and one hundred mancuses of gold : of a king's thane one half of the last : of an inferior thane his horse, his ainis, and an offer of his hounds or hawks^^ If he died intestate, the payment of the heriot preserved the estate in his family : if he fell in battle for his lord, the heriot was remitted "^ Marriage !i- Thcrc is rcasou to belicve that the Saxon like the Norman kinos cences. ~ (and their example was probably imitated by the inferior lords) claimed occasionally the wardship of heiresses, and disposed of them in marriage^\ The laws, though their language is not suffi- " Lye, App. ii. Elflielm, -vvliose licriot lias b.-'eii already men- '" Mores /Elfric, 62. See many other in- tioned, lived many years bctore Ethelrcd. stances of presents left to the king. Hicks, Longo retroacto tempore. Ibid. 408. Edgar dissert, epist, .51, Thus /Elfric leaves two himself describes them as an ancient institu- uiarks of gold to " his king-lord Harol, and tion in the charter, in which he frees the nio- " one to his lady." Mores, p. 92. nasteries from the dbligatiDii. " Solitus cen- '" Leg 14 i. 223 245. It has been said " sus. quern indigenae Heriotua usualiter vo- that heriots were introduced by Canute, be- " citant, qui pro hujus pairias poieniibiis post cause they are not mentioned in the laws of " obitnm rcgibus dari solet." Scldeni, Spirileg. liis predecessors. But he seems merely to ad F.adui. p. 153. record an ancient custom. They are noticed '•'" Leg. 144, 145. as such undor Edgar (Hist. Elieu. 480) : and =' Hist. Kames. 403, 441. APPENDIX I. 347 cicntly explicit, seem to allude to such a custom. They provide chap. that no maid or widow shall be compelled to marry against her .. n will, and v(iry inconsistently forbid the female to be sold in marri age, while they allow a present to be accepted iVom her husband'^ This custom prevailed also in the royal burgh's. In Shrewsbury no woman could marry without a licence from the king. With her first husband she paid a fine of tea shillings : if she took a second, the sum was doubled'''^. From the tenures of land we may pass to the distinction of Ranks, ranks, and the administration of justice. With a few shades of accidental difierence both these were substantially the same in all the nations of Gothic origin. Among the Anglo-Saxons the free population was divided into the eorl and ceorl, the men of noble and i"noble descent'^. The former were said to be ethel- born : and with a people acknowledging no other merit than martial prowess, it is probable that this distinction attached to those only, whose fathers had never exercised the occupations of husbandry or of the mechanical arts. It was merely personal : it conferred neither propcity nor power : but it served to gratify pride : and numerous complaints attest the arrogance with which the noble Saxon looked down on his inferior, and the reluctance with which " the full-born" bore the superiority of the " less- " born," whom merit or favour had raised above them-^ The termination ing added to the name of the progenitor designated his posterity. The Utfingas were the descendants of Uifa, the Oiscingas the descendants of Oisc^^. But the more lofty title of etheling, the son of the noble, was reserved for the members of the reigning family ; and these in each of the Saxon "Leg. 109. 122. 114, 145. tors of tlio Saxon laws have made several " Domesday, Sciropescire. passages unintelligible. See Lesr. 3. 35. 65. " By not attending to this meaning of the " Leg. 83. 111. )3ed. 296. ' ivcrd eorl; and rendering it carl, the transla- -' Bed. ii. i. 16. y Y 2 S4b HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, dynasties pretended to derive their pedigree from Woden, a real ' or fabulous conqueror, who was adored by his votaries as the god of battles. The supposed divinity of their parent secured to them the veneration of their pagan followers : and when Chris- tianity had dissipated the illusion, the superiority of their earthly descent was still acknowledged by all their contemporaries*''. King. Among the ethel-born the first place was occupied by the cyning or king. In the succession to the crown the reader must already have observed occasional deviations from the direct line of hereditary descent. But whether the new monarch were the imme- diate or the collateral heir of his predecessor, he was always elected by the witan before his coronation. The Saxons could not comprehend how a freeman could become the dependant of another, except by his own consent : but the election rendered the cyning the lord of the principal chieftains, and through them of their respective vassals. As his estates were nearly equal to theirs all together, so was his annual revenue and the number of his thanes : forming in the aggregate a power suffi- cient to humble the proudest, or to reduce the most factious of his subjects. Thrice in the year the great tenants of the crowai were reminded of their dependence. At the festivals of Christ- mas, Easter, and Whitsuntide they were summoned to pay him their homage. They appeared before him in the guise of de- pendents, while he was seated on his throne with the crown on his head, and a sceptre in each hand. During eight days they were feasted at his expense, and on their dismissal received presents from his bounty -^ He exercised an undisputed autho- rity over the national forces by sea and land. He was the "Chron.Sax. 13. 15. Gale,iii.l34. Vodcn, " Chron. Sax. 163. Hiet. Ram. 395. Seep- decujus siirpe inultarum proviiiciarum regiuin tris simul et coroni. Ailrod, Riev. 398. Re- genus origineia fiusit. liud.i. 15. ,• galia iiistrumenta susliiiuit. Id. 399. 3 APPENDIX I. 349 supreme judge : and was accustomed to receive appeals from chap. every court of judicature. Of the fines whicii were levied on ' offenders the principal portion was paid into his treasury : he could conmiute the punishment of death, and was accustomed to liberate a prisoner in every burgh and jurisdiction into which he entered ^^. The ealdorman, sheriffs, borough-reeves, and judges were appointed by him : they held their offices at his pleasure ; and might be displaced as his caprice might suggest or his justice might direct ^. His " peace" or protection secured the man to whom it was granted from the pursuit of his enemies. At his coronation and for eiglit days afterwards it was extended to the whole kingdom : each year it was equally observed during the octaves of the three great festivals, in which he was accus- tomed to hold his court : and at all times it was enjoyed by every person within the circuit of four miU-s from his actual residence, by travellers on the four highways, and by merchants or their servants as long as they were employed on the navigable rivers. Some infractions of this peace subjected the offender to a heavy amercement : others of a more heinous description placed his life and property at the mercy of the king- si =" Leg. 20. 65. 109. 201. the eleventh (Leg. 108, 109). Li England it '° Chron. Sax. 49. Asser, 70. included the Ember days, Advent, Lent, the ■'" Leg. C3. 199. The real distance to which vigils and festivals of Christ, tlie Virgin the king's peace extended from his actual re- Mary, the apostles and of all saints, and sidence was whimsically fixed at three miles, every Sunday, reckoning from the hour of three furlongs, three roods, nine feet, nine nine on Saturday to the dawn of light on the hands (inches?), and nine barley corns. Leg. Monday morning (Leg. 108, 109. 121. 197). 63. The object of this institution, as also of In France it began every week on the evening another called " the peace of God," was of the Wednesday, and lasted till the Monday to diminish the number of outrages perpe- (Glaber apud Du Gauge in voce Treva). trated under the pretext of retaliation. The During these days it uas forbidden under latter is said to have been first established in severe penalties for any man to slaVi maim, or Aquitain about the year 1032: though its assault his enemy, or to distrain or plunder rudiments appear in the decrees of several his lands. Ut nuUus homo ahum assaliat, councils belore the clo retained it during the whole reign of *" We read of Wulfnoth child of Sussex William the conqueror. Chron. Sax. 173. (Chron. Sax. 1.37), Edric child in Hereford- 182. Chron. Lamb, ad ann. 1068. 1075. It shire (Chron. liamb. ad ann. 1007), Alfric was something like the present Spanish title child in East-Anglia (Hist. Elien. 470), Al- of ' Infant.' nod child in Kent, Brixi child in Kent " Leg. 47. 118. 144. (Domesday, Chonth). I suspect the appel- ** Bed. iii. 14. iv. 13. v. 13. lation merely denotes a person, who from his " Leg. 70. childhood was heir apparent to some high APPENDIX I. 35i a helmet, a coat of mail, and a ffoklen-hilted sword, he was still chap. . . VII. condemned to remain in the subordinate and Innnble condition oia ceorl. A politic exception was admitted in favour of the merchants, who were accustomed to form companies or gilds, and possessed iheir lands in common. To sail thrice to a foreign land with a cargo of his own wares, intitled the merchant to the rank and priviieges of the ihaneship^*^. Of these privileges the most valuable was the amount of the were, an advantage, which will be more fully explained hereafter. The gerefas or reeves were officers of high importance ap- Gerefa. pointed by the king and the great proprietors in their respective demesnes. They were to be found in every separate jurisdic- tion : but the principal were the reeves of the shires, ports, and boroughs. It was their duty to collect the tolls, to apprehend malefactors, to require sureties, to receive the rents, and on several occasions to act in the place of their lords ^\ They wi3re assessors, sometimes the chief judges in different courts; and were commanded under a severe penalty to regulate therr deci- sions by the directions of the doom-book **. The lowest class, of freemen was that of ceorls, or husband- The ceoii. men. Of these some possessed bocland, but not in sufficient quantity to raise them to the rank of thanes : others held lands of their lords by the payment of rent, or other free but inferior services. The relief of the latter was fixed at one year's rent. As long as they were exact in the performance of the customary services, they could not be expelled from their estates : though thej were at liberty to return them to their lords whenever it suited their convenience *'. In many charters, and in Domes- '" Leg. 71. These regulations have been " Leg. 9. 12. 48. 69. attributed to Athelstan, but the text describes " Leg. 48. them as the ancient customs of the nation. " Leg. 225. Bracton, i. 11. VOL. I. z Z 354 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. (Jay, may be seen the different species of services, vhich pre- ' vailed in different districts. As a freeman a ceorl could not be put in bonds, nor subjected to the ignominious punishment of whipping^*. His life was protected by a were of two hundred shilHngs. tio™(!f 'ult^ce Among a people but lately emerged from barbarism the administration of justice is always rude and simple : and though the absence of legal forms and pleading may casually insure a prompt and equitable decision, it is difficult without their aid to oppose the arts of intrigue and falsehood, or the influence of passion and prejudice. The proceedings before the Anglo-Saxon tribunals would not have suited a more advanced state of civi- lization : they were ill-calculated to elicit truth, or to produce conviction : and in many instances which have been recorded by contemporary writers, our more correct or more artificial notions will be shocked by the credulity or the precipitancy of the judges. The subject, however, is curious and interesting. These ancient courts still subsist under different names : and the intelligent observer may discover in their proceedings the origin of several institutions, which now mark the administration of justice in the English tribunals. The lowest species of jurisdiction known among the Anglo- Saxons was that of " Sac and Soc," the derivation of which has puzzled the ingenuity of antiquaries, though the meaning is sufficiently understood. It was the privilege of holding pleas and imposing fines within a certain district, and with a few variations was perpetuated in the manorial courts of the Nor- man dynasty. It seems to have been claimed and exercised by all the greater and by several of the lesser thanes : but was dif- ferently modified by the terms of the original grant, or by im- " L«g. 3. 11. 15. The penalty for binding a freeman was 20 shillings. APPENDIX I. 355 memorial usage. Some took cognizance of all crimes committed chap. within their soke : the jurisdiction of others was confined to " offences of a particular description : some might sunnnon every delinquent, whether native or stranger, before their tribunal, Avhiic others could inflict punishment on none but their own tenants. From the custom of holding these courts in the hall of the lord, they were usually termed the hall-motes ^^. Superior to the hall-mote was the mote of the hundred, a large Hundred moteg. division of the county. It was assembled every month under the presidency of the ealdorman or the reeve, accompa- nied by the principal clergymen and freeholders. Once in the year was convened an extraordinary meeting, when every male above the age of twelve was compelled to attend : the state of the gilds and tythings (or associations of ten families) was ascertained : and no man Avas permitted to remain at large, who could not provide a surety for his peaceable demeanour. In these courts offenders were tried, and civil causes decided. But their utility was not confined to their judicial proceedings. In a period when few possessed the humble acquirements of reading and writing, the stability of pecuniary transactions Avas principally dependent on the honesty and character of the wit- nesses; and the testimony of the hundred was deemed on that account conclusive in questions of litigated right or disputed obligation. Hence men frequented these meetings in the course of private business : and contracts were made, exchanges rati- fied, purchases completed, and monies paid, in the presence of *» Leg. 241, 242. 256. Hist. Elien. 490. of the hundred and county, and from them 501. Domesday, passim. These courts ab- are derived our present courts baron with ciril, sorbed much of the business, whick would and courts lest with criminal, jurisdiction, otherwise hare been carried before the courts z z 2 356 ^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, the court. But sometimes, when interests of greater importance ^ Avere at stake, or the parties belonged to different districts, the authority of a single hundred Avas thought insufficient. On such occasions, that the controversy might be brought before a more numerous and less partial tribunal, the ealdorman convoked an assembly of the contiguous hundreds, or of the third part of the county. The former Avas termed the court of the lathe, and the latter of the try thing ■''^. shireraotei. Qf gi^jn higher dignity and more extensive jurisdiction was the shire-mote, or court of the county. It Avas held twice in the year, in the beginning of May and October. Every great pro- prietor was compelled to attend, either in person or by his stew- ard, or to send in his place his chaplain, bailiff, and four princi- pal tenants. The bishop and ealdorman, or earl, presided with equal authority, and their assessors were the sheriff and the most noble of the royal thanes. In their proceedings they began Avith those causes Avhich related to the dues and immunities of the church ; passed to the fines and forfeitures belonging to the crown ; and ended with the controversies of individuals. In the last case it Avas the duty of the court to attempt a reconciliation by proposing a compromise: or, if the proposal Avere rejected, to pronounce a definitive judgment^'. It was also on these occa- sions that the laws Avere recited, Avhich had been enacted in the great council of the nation. We have still extant a letter to king Athelstan from the members of a county court, the bishops, the thanes, and the meii of Kent, avIio recapitulate the laws Avhich "Leg. 50. 60. 78. 117. 203, 204, 205. third part of a county. In burghs were held 240. Hist. Elien. 473. 475. 484. The burglimoles, corresponding with the motes of lathes still exist in some of the southern coun- the hnntlrtd. Leg. Sax. ^8. ties. From the trythings is sujiposed to be " Leg. 78. 204, 206. 240. derived the local denomination of riding, the APPENDIX L 357 he had notified to thcni, promise obedience, and conclude with CHAP. . . r VII the most Ibicihle expressions of attachment to his person''®. ' That the shires and hundreds, with their respective courts, oriirin of were originally established by the policy of Alfred, is asserted ""**" by a well-informed writer, who hved at the time of the Norman conquest ^^. There is, however, reason to doubt much, if not the whole, of his statement. Alfred might improve, but he cer- tainly could not invent, a system which existed some centuries before his reign. 1. The division of shires was common to all the northern nations'*: some are known to iiave existed in England under their present names since Jthe first settlement of the Saxons" : and others are mentioned in the laws and by the writers prior to the supposed division by Alfred ^^. The great inequality in their measurement, and the great irregularity in their distribution, prove that they were not the uniform work of one monarch : but that they owe their origin to different princes, who divided the country as necessity might require, or policy might suggest. 2. The hundreds also appear to have been a ofiiimdreds. continental institution. From Tacitus we learn that the Germans of his age divided their territories into pagi ; that each pagus furnished a band of one hundred combatants for battle : and that each band was termed " the hundred of the pagus" by which it was furnished^'. Whether in the establishment of hundreds the Saxons followed this or any other particular rule, is uncertain. It has been supposed that the name was given to the district occupied by a hundred families of freemen. This " Bromp. 860. The decisions of the witan " Leg. 16. 20, 21. Chron. Sa.x. .^6. 74, in civil causes were also sent to the shire- 75. 78. Asser, 3. 8. 14. Assor was the con- »ote. Hist. Elien. 469. temporary and instructor of the king. It i« *' Ingulf, 28. He has been followed by evident from his silence that he was ignorant Malitisbury and others. of any new institution of shires or hundreds o" Baluze, capit. i. 19. 39. 103. " Tac. Germ. vi. " Kent, Sussex, Essex. 358 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VII. Tjthings; King's court. hypothesis has been generally admitted, because it satisfies the mind, and spares the trouble of ulterior investigation ; but it will appear very questionable to those who have examined the notices in Domesday, and compared the disproportionate limits of even neighbouring hundreds^*. Ingulf has also attributed to Alfred the institution of tythings, which by the very name import either a subdivision of the hundred, or an association of ten neighbouring families. By law every freeman Avas to be enrolled in one of these associa- tions, all the members of which were made perpetual bail for each other. If one of the number fled from justice, the remain- ing nine were allowed the respite of a month to discover the fugitive : when, if he were not forthcoming, the pecuniary penalty of his crime was levied on his goods, and, in case of deficiency, on the goods of the tything, unless it could be proved that its members had connived at his escape ^'. From these local courts, the hall-mote, the hundred-mote, and the shire-mote, appeals were allowed to the superior autho- rity of the monarch. Alfred was accustomed to inspect the minutes of their proceedings, to confirm or annul their decisions, and occasionally to punish the judges for their partiality or By his office the king was the supreme magistrate Ignorance. •* Hundreduscontinet centum villas. Bromp. and ten manors a hundred. Whit. Manches- 9.'56. It is plain from Bede that villa, which ter, ii. 114 — 120. But it will be difficult to his translator always renders time, compre- reconcile this opinion with the statements in hended not only the mansion of the pro- Domesday. I will take for example the hun- prietor, but also the cottages of his tenants dreds iu the lathe of Sutton in Kent. All the and slaves. Whitaker maintains that ten of others are similar, these townships formed a tything or manor, Hundred';. Sowlings. Acres of Meadow. Manors. Greenwich 8| 131 9 Lcsnes 19| 52 4 Bromley 8 14 2 Rokesley 27| 78 14 Axtane 6b\ 476 36 Westorham 4\ 16 2 •' Leg. Sax. 136. 201, 202. 241. APPENDIX I. 359 of the state: but he had other duties to perform; and it was chap. forbidden to bring any cause before him, till it had been previ- ' ously submitted to the decision of the inferior judges. This prohibition was, however, frequently disregarded : and few princes refused to exercise their judicial functions, as often as they were solicited by a favourite, or tempted by a present. Wherever the king was present, a court might be speedily assembled. To the thanes and clergymen who attended on his person, he added the prelates and nobility of the neighbourhood, and with their assistance either pacified the parties, or pro- nounced a definitive judgment. But these occasional courts, Witeaa- respectable as they might be, were eclipsed by the superior ^'""'' ' splendour and dignity of the "mickle synoths or witena- " gemots," the great meetings, or the assemblies of the counsel- lors, which were regularly convened at the festivals of Christmas, Easter, and Whitsuntide, and occasionally, at other times, as difficult circumstances or sudden exigencies might require. Who were the constituent members of this supreme tribunal, has long been a subject of debate: and the dissertations, to which it has given rise, have only contributed to involve it in greater obscurity. It has been pretended that not only the its members, military tenants had a right to be present, but that the ceorls also attended by their repiesentatives, the borsholders of the tythings. The latter part of the assertion has been made ^vith- out a shadow of evidence, and the former is built on very falla- cious grounds. It is indeed probable that in the infancy of the Anglo-Saxon states most of the military retainers may have attended the public councils : yet even then the deliberations •were confined to the chieftains ; and nothing remained for the vassals but to applaud the determination of their lords. But in later times, when the several principalities were united into one 560 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, monarch}', the recurrence of these assemblies, thrice iu every " year within the short space of six months, would have been an insupportable burthen to the lesser proprietors : and there is rea- son to suspect that the greater attended only when it was required b}^ the importance of events, or by the vicinity of the court. The principal members seem to have been the spiritual and temporal thanes, who held immediately of the crown, and who could command the services of military vassals. It was •necessary that the king should obtain the assent of these to all legislative enactments : because without their acquiescence and support it was impossible to carry them into execution. To many charters we have the signatures of the witan. The}' sel- dom exceed thirty in number; they never amount to sixty. They include the names of the king and his sons, of a few bishops and abbots, of nearly an equal number of ealdormen and thanes, and occasionally of the queen, and of one or two abbesses ''^ Others, the fideles or vassals, who had accompanied their lords, are mentioned as looking on and applauding : but there exists no proof whatever, that they enjoyed any share in the deliberations^'^. Tts autiifflity. The legal powers of this assembly have never been accurately ascertained : probably they were never fully defined. To them, on the vacancy of the crown, belonged the choice of the next sovereign : and we find them exercising this claim not only at the decease of each king, but even during the absence of Ethelred in Normandy. They compelled him to enter into a "' See Ingulf, 32. 44, 46. Gale, iii. 517. ciae, at Edmundo Estangloriim rege, abbatum Ilemingford, passim. From a passage in the et abbatissarum, ducum, comitum, procerum- history of Ely (p. 513), it has been inferred que totiua terrae, ii\\oimnqui; Jidelium infinita tliat an estate of forty hides intitled its posses- luultitiidine, qui omnos regium chirogiaphum sor to a seat in the witan. laudaverunt, dignitatos vero sua noniina sub- •' Praesentibus archiepiscopis et episcopis, scripserunt. Ing. 17. Angli» universis, nee non Beorred.o rege Mer- APPENDIX I. 361 solemn compact with the nation, before they would acknowledge ^^!f' him a second time for king of England ''^ Inordinary cases ' their deliberations were held in the presence of the sovereign : and as individually they were his vassals, as they had sv/orn " to " love what he loved, and shun what he shunned," there can be little doubt that they generally acquiesced in his wishes. In the preambles to the Saxon laws the king sometimes assumes a lofty strain. He decrees : the witan give their advice. He denominates himself the sovereign : they are his bishops, his caldormen, his thanes. But on other occasions this style of royalty disappears, and the legislative enactments are attributed to the witan in conjunction with the king*'. The same diversity appears in treaties conchuled with foreign powers. Some bear only the name of the king : in others the witan are introduced as sanctioning the instrument by their concurrence'^^ In their judicial capacity they compromised or decided civil controversies among themselves : summoned before them state criminals of great power and connexions ; and usually pronounced the sen- tence of forfeiture and outlawry against those whom they found guilty ^^. As legislators they undertook to provide for the de- fence of the realm, the prevention and punishment of crimes, and the due administration of justice'^. In all these tribunals the iudges were the hee tenants, owintr Judicial pro- *' ^ ' o ceedings. suit to the court, and afterwards called its peers. But the real authority seems to have resided in the president, and the prin- cipal of his assessors, whose opinion w^as generally echoed and applauded by the rest of the members"^. Their proceedings were simplified and facilitated by a custom, which has already " Chron. Sax. 145. " Ingulf, 10. 16. Chron. Sax. 126. 130. " Leg. 14. 34. 48. 73. 102. 113. 165. ■" Leg. 47. 51. 104. Chron. Sax. 132. " Qui liberas in eis terras habent, per qnos " Chron. Sax. 164. 194. debent causa singulorum alterna prosecutione VOL. I. 3 A 362 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VII. In citU ac- tions. been mentioned. In all cases in which property, whether real or personal, was concerned ; if a man claimed by gift or pur- chase ; if stolen goods were found in his possession, or he had forcibly entered on the lands of others ; he w"as bound to pro- duce the testimony of the court and witnesses, before whom the transaction, on which he grounded his own right, must, if it had been lawful, have taken place. On this testimony in civil actions the judges frequently decided ; but if either party advanced assertions of such a nature that they could not be proved by evidence, he was put on his oath, and was ordered to bring forward certain freeholders, his neighbours, acquainted with his character and concerns, who should swear that, in their consciences, they believed his assertion to be true. The number of these was in many cases fixed by the law, in others left to the discretion of the court. Sometimes four or five sufficed : sometimes forty or fifty were required : occasionally men came forward spontaneously, and offered themselves by hundreds to swear in behalf of a favoured, or much injured individual '^ But it should be observed that the value of each oath was estimated by the rank and opulence of the individual. The oath of a king's thane was equal to the oaths of six ceorls, the oath of an ealdorman to those of six thanes. The king and the archbishop, tractari. Leg. Sax. 248. If the judges dif- fer in opinion, the decision is in one law Ifft with the majority, in another with tho.se of highest rank. Si in judicio inter pares oria- tur dissensio, vincat sententia pliirimorum. Ibid. 237. — Vincat sententia meliorum. Ibid. 248. On this subject I do not hesitate to appeal to the treatise called " Leges Henrici " primi." Though compiled under the Nor- mans, it gives ill reality an account of the Saxon jurisprudence. This is asserted by the author. De his omnibus pleniorom suggerunt ▼entura (the sequel) notitiam, sicut Edvardi ^eatissimi principis extitisse temporibus certis indiciis 6t fida relatione cognovimus, p. 241. Tlie same appears also from the numerous passages which are evidently translations from Saxon laws still extant: whence it is fair to conclude that much of the rest has been drawn from other documents which have perished in the long lapse of seven hundred years. " Thus a thousand persons ofl'ered to swear in behalf of the thane Wolfnoth. "Hist. Elien. 479. It was called by the Saxons the lada, by later writers wager of law. How iar it is allowed in modem times may be seen io lilackstone, 1. ii. c. 22. sect. vi. APPENDIX I. 363 as their word was deemed sacred, were exempted from the ^!!^.^" obligation of swearing: and the same indulgence was sometimes ' extended to the higher orders of the nobility". If the matter still remained doubtful, a jury was selected of twelve or of six- and-thirty free tenants, who left the court, deliberated among themselves, and returned a verdict, which decided the question '^^ I will mention an instance in Avhicli recourse was had to each mode of proceeding, and judgment was given on grounds, that to us must appear irregular and unsatisfactory. In a court held at Wendlebury, in which the ealdorman Ailwin, and the sheriff Edric presided, an action was brought against the monks of Ramsey, by Alfnoth, for the purpose of recovering the posses- sion of two hides at Stapleford. After much htigation the decision was left to a jury of thirty-six thanes, who were chosen equally by the plaintiff and the defendants. While they were out of court deliberating on their verdict, Alfnoth publicly challenged the monks to prove their claim by oath. The chal- lenge was accepted ; but when they were prepared to swear, the ealdorman arose, observed that he was the patron of the abbey, and offered himself to take the oath in its favour. This decided the cause. The court, through respect for its president, was satisfied with his word, adjudged the two hides to the monks, and condemned Alfnoth in the forfeiture of his lands and chattels. By the interest of his friends the latter part of the judgment was revoked, on condition that he would never more disturb the abbey in the possession of Stapleford ''''. In criminal prosecutions the proceedings, though grounded ^n criminal prosecutions, " Leg. Sax. ii. 72. 262. Much ridicule furthest removed from the ordinary tempta- has been thrown on this custom : but where tions to perjury. inquiry was excluded, it was perhaps wise to ™ Hist. Ram. 415,416. Regist. RofT. 32. attach a greater value to the oaths of persons, " Hist. Kam. ibid, who by their rank and opulence were the 3 A 2 364 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, on the same principles, were in many respects different. It ^ was ordered by Jaw, that as soon as the hundred-mote was assembled (the same probably held with respect to other similar tribunals) the reeve with the twelve oldest thanes should go out to inquire into all oftcnces conmiitted within the, jurisdiction of the court, and should be sworn " not to foresay (present) any " one who was innocent, nor to conceal any one who was " guilty ''^." On their presentment the accused was frequently condemned ; if he pleaded not guilty, and the plea were ad- mitted, there remained two ways by which he might prove his innocence : the purgation of lada or swearing, and the ordeal or judgment of God. In cases in which the law had not deter- mined, he was at liberty to choose either: but to check the presumption of the guilty, it was provided that if the trial failed, the criminal should be subjected to a more rigorous punish- Purgationby mcnt. In the purgation by oath, he began by calHng on God to witness that he was innocent both in word and work of the crime laid to his charge. He then produced his compurgators, who swore that " they believed his oath to be upright and "' clean ^^" It was rec^uired that these compurgators or jurors should be his neighbours, or resident within the jurisdiction of the court, freeholders who had never been arraigned for theft, nor ever convicted of perjury, and who were now acknowledged for " true men" by all present. According to the custom of the district, and the magnitude of the offence, their number " Leg. Sax. 117. This is evidently the at the request of the bishop, faciei jurare duo- origin ol eur grand jiirins. Mr. Reeves ill his decim logales homines de vicineto, seu de villa, valuable lustory of the Engliili law, says, that quod in de veritatem secundum conscientiam the earliest mention of a trial by jury, that suam manileslabunt, p. 87. This appears to bears a near resemblance to that which this nie to be no more than an inquest resembling proceeding became in after times, is in the that of the Saxon times mentioned in the pre- coHslitution of Clarendon under Henry II., ceding law of Elhelred. which orders that if nobody appears to accuse " The oaths are in Wilkins, Leg. Sax, 63; an ofR-ndcr before the archdeacon, the sheriff, 64. APPENDIX I. 365 varied from four to scvcntv-two. They were sometimes ap- chap. . VII. pointed by the judges, sometimes (h-awn by lot, often brought ' into the court by the party himself, an indulgence which enabled him to rest his fate on the decision of his friends and dependents, whom he might already have prejudiced in his favour. In Wes- scx he was permitted to choose thirty jurors, of whom fifteen were rejected by the judges : in East-Anglia and Northumbria he produced forty-eight, out of whom twenty-four were ap- pointed by ballot®''. If they corroborated his oath by their own in the form established by law, his innocence was acknow- ledged. If, on the contrar}^, recourse was had to the ordeal, pledges ^rdea?""" ^^ were given for the trial, and the time was fixed by the court. As the decision was now left to the Almighty, three days were spent by the accused in fasting and prayer. On the third he was adjured by the priest not to go to the ordeal, if he were conscious of guilt ; he was then communicated with these words : " may this body and blood of Christ be to thee a proof of inno- " cence this day :" when he again swore that he was guiltless of the crime of which he had been accused. The ordeals, which were most in use, were those by hot water and fire. For the former a fire was kindled under a caldron in a remote part of the church. At a certain depth below the surface, which was aug- mented in proportion to the enormity of the crime, was placed a stone or piece of iron of a certain weight. Strangers were excluded : the accuser and the accused, each attended by twelve friends, proceeded to the spot ; and the two parties were ranged in two lines" opposite each other. After tlie litanies had been recited, a person was deputed fiom each line to examine the •° Leg. Sax. 8. 12. 27. 47. 125. 262. 264. covered our petit juries, in their rudest state, In these conjuratores may, I think, be dis- 366 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VII. Obstacles to the admini- stration of justice. caldron, and if they agreed that the water boiled, and the stone . was placed at the proper depth, the accused advanced, plunged in his arm, and took out the weight. The priest immediately wrapped a clean linen cloth round the part which was scalded, fixed on it the seal of the church, and opened it again on the third day. If the arm were perfectly healed, the accused was pronounced innocent: if not, he suffered the punishment of his offence. In the ordeal by fire, the same precautions were em- ployed in respect of the number and position of the attendants. Near the fire a space was measured equal to nine of the prisoner's feet, and divided by lines into three equal parts. By the first stood a small stone pillar. At the beginning of the mass a bar of iron of the weight of one or three pounds, according to the nature of the oftence, was laid on the fire ; at the last collect it was taken off, and placed on the pillar. The prisoner immediately grasped it in his hand, made three steps on the lines previously traced on the floor, and threw it down. The treatment of the burn, and the indications of guilt or innocence, were the same as those in the ordeal by hot water ^^ Before I dismiss this subject, I may observe that the national manners opposed many obstacles to the impartial administration of justice. The institution of lord and vassal secured to the litigants both abettors and protectors : and the custom of mak- ing presents on all occasions, polluted the purity of every tribu- nid. In criminal prosecutions conviction was generally followed "Leg. Sax. 26, 27. 53. 61. 131. It is evident from our ancient writers, that many persons established their innocence by these trials, whence it has been inferred that the clergy wore in pos.session of a serref , by which they either prevented, or rapidly cured, the burn. Yet it is difficult to conceive that such a secret, so widely diffused, and so frequently applied, could have escaped the knowledge of judges and legislators, anxious to prevent the commission of crime; or if it did not, to ac- count for the conduct of such persons in con- tinuing for several centuries to enforce the trial by ordeal for the discovery of guilt, while they knew that the whole process was an imposture. APPENDIX I. 367 by pecuniary punishments : of whicli a part, if not the whole, chap. was the perquisite of the principal judge, or of the lord of the court. In civil causes the influence of money was employed to retard or accelerate tlie proceedings, to defeat the u()nglit, or support the iniquitous, claimant. Bribery, under the disguise of presents, found its way to the prince on the throne, as well as the reeve in his court. When Athelstan the priest was pro- secuted for theft and sacrilege by his bishop, he sold an estate at a nominal price to the ealdorman Wulstan, on condition that he would prevent the trial : and when Alfwin,abbot of Ramsey, despaired of protecting the interests of his monastery against the superior influence of Alfric, he gave twenty marks of gold to king Edward, five to (picen Editha, for the interposition of the royal authority in his favour "^ We repeatedly meet with complaints of the expense and uncertainty of judicial proceed- ings; and many individuals deemed it more prudent to sit down in silence under their present losses, than to injure themselves still more deeply by purchasing the protection of their friends and judges ^^ The crimes to which the Anglo-Saxons were principally ad- Crimes of the ° . Anglo-Saxons. dieted, were homicide and theft. Among men of violent pas- sions, often intoxicated, always armed, quarrels, riots, and mur- ders were inevitable: and as long as the laws refused to exact blood for blood, the right of inflicting punishment naturally Homicide, devolved upon the family of the slain. Hence arose those deadly, and hereditary feuds, which for so many centuries dis- graced the legislation, and disturbed the tranquillity, of the European nations. One murder provoked another : the duty of revenge Avas ti'ansmitted as a sacred legacy to posterity : and the chieftains of the same people often regarded each other as more " Hist. Ram. 457. Hist. Elien. 482. " Ibid. 414. 4S7. 458. 368 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. deadly enemies than the very invaders against whom they were ^ arrayed. Of this the reader has already seen a memorable in- stance in the alternate mnrders, which for several generations harassed two of the most powerful tamilies in Northumber- land. To an evil so deeply felt, and so loudly lamented, the legislature wanted courage to apply any other remedy than Punished by that of pecuniary compensation: the usual expedient of the savage, who has committed homicide, and is reduced to the necessity either of constantly trembling for his own life, or of purchasing with presents the forbearance of his adversary. This inadequate species of atonement had been discovered by Tacitus ^iiong the ancient Germans ^^ : it was matured into a complete but singular system by our Anglo-Saxon ancestors. Every freeman was numbered in one of the three classes termed twyhind, syxhind, and twelfhind. The first comprised the ceorls, the third the royal thanes : under the second were numbered Weres. the intermediate orders of society. The were of these classes, the legal value of their lives, and legal compensation for their nmrder, advanced in proportion from two to six, and from six to twelve hundred shillings. But that of an ealdorman was twice, of an etheling three times, of a king six times the acre of a royal thane ^^. To explain the manner in which the were was demanded and paid, let us suppose that a thane of the twelfhind class had been nmrdered. The homicide might, if he pleased, openly brave the resentment of those whose duty it was to revenge the mur- der: or he might seek to fortify himself against their attempts " Sufcipere tarn inimiritias pcu patris, sou propinqui, quam amicitias necesse est. — Liii- tur etiam homicidium certo armentorum ac peconim numero, recipitque satislactionem universa domus. Tac. Germ. xxi. " Le;j. 63. 64. 71. On account of the progressive rise of the v:eie,i\\ above the rank of coorls were called dear-born. Leg. 20. The icere was the great privilege of the liigher classes. For every offence against tiieni was punished in proixirtion to their were, and in consequence their persons and properties were better secured than those of their infuriors. Leg. 25. 37. 39, 40. APPENDIX I. 369 CHAP. VII. within the walls of his own house ; or he might flee for protection to one of the asylums appointed by the laws. In none of these cases were his enemies permitted to proceed immediately to the work of vengeance. I'he object of the legislature was to gain time, that the passions might cool, and the parties be reconciled. If he were found in the open air, it was unlawful to put him to death, unless he obstinately refused to surrender. If he shut himself up in his house, it might indeed be surrounded to pre- vent his escape, but a week must be suffered to elapse before any hostile attempt could be made. If he sought an asylum, the palace of a king, etheling, or archbishop, afforded him a respite of nine days, a consecrated church, and the house of an ealdor- man, or bishop, a respite of seven days. Sometimes he prefer- red to fiffht, and much innocent blood was shed : for it was the duty of the vassal on such occasions to succour his lord, and of the lord to hasten with his retainers to the aid of his vassal. Sometimes he surrendered himself a captive into the hands of his enemies, who were compelled to keep him unhurt for the space of thirty days. If, during that interval, he could procure sureties for the payment of the were., he was set at liberty : other- wise his person and his life were abandoned to the mercy of his captors ^^. AVhen the vcere was offered, the following was the Mode of pay- proceeding according to law. Twelve sureties, of whom eight were paternal and four maternal relatives of the murderer, gave bond for the faithful payment of the mulct : and immediately both parties swore on their arms " to keep the king's peace" towards each other. After the lapse of three weeks, one hundred and twenty shillings, the healsfang, or price of liberation from captivity, were divided among the father, the sons, and the •« Leg. 43, 44. 1 10. VOL. I. 3 b ment. 370 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VII. Theftaud rob- bery. brothers of the slain. Three weeks later an equal sum, under _ the name of manbote, was paid to the lord, as a compensation for the loss of his vassal ^\ After another interval of three weeks the fight- wite, or penalty for fighting, which differed in its amount accoruing to circumstances, was received by the king,or the lord within whose jurisdiction the murder had been committed. Auother delay of twenty-one days was allowed before the first general payment of the were to all the relations of the deceased : and then terms were amicably adjusted for the liquidation of the remainder by instalments in money or cattle. When the atone- ment was completed, the families were reconciled, and all re- membrance of the offence was supposed to be obliterated^. Robbery was another species of crime, the constant repetition of which disturbed the peace of society, and bade defiance to the wisdom and severity of the legislature. It prevailed among every order of men. We meet with it in the clergy as well as the laity ; among thanes no less than ceorls. These depredators fre- quently associated in bands. Within the number of seven they were termed in lawtheofas: above that number but below thirty-six they formed a hlothe : if they were still more numerous, they Avere denominated an army : and to each of these difterent designa- tions a diflerent punishment was assigned ^^. In an open and thinly inhabited country it was easy for plunderers of this de- scription to drive away by stealth, or carry off" by force, the cattle from distant farms. To impede the disposal of property which had been stolen in this manner, the legislature encumbered every legal sale with a multiplicity of oaths and forms : and to promote its discovery, offered to the owner every facility, which might enable him to pursue the offenders through the neighbour- " The manbote for one of the twyhind class was thirty, of the sixkind, eighty shil- ling's. Lee. a,*). "» Leg. 53, 54. 75. <569, 270. - Leg. 17. APPENDIX I. 371 ihg counties '". But the frequency proves the inutility of these CHAP, enactments : and from the increasing severity of the punishment ' we may infer tliat the evil was stubborn and unconquerable. At first the thief was condemned to make threefold reparation : after- Their punish- ment. wards to pay the amount of hiswere,or suffer banishment or death : then his property was confiscated to the crown, and his life was placed at the mercy of the king: lastly he was ordered to be put to death without the possibility of pardon, and one-third of his property was to be given to the king, a second to the gild or tything from which he had stolen, and the remainder to his widow and children ^^ This severity was however mitigated by Athelstan ; and the life of the thief was spared, if he were under the age of fifteen, or had stolen to a less amount than the value of a shilling^*. Canute abolished the punishment of death alto- gether. His object was to chastise the offender, but at the same time to allow him time to repent. On the first conviction the thief was condemned to make double reparation to the man whom he had injured, to pay his were to the king, and to find sureties for his future behaviour. A repetition of the crime subjected him to the loss of a hand, or a foot, or of both. If he reverted again to his former practices, the incorrigible offender was either scalped, or suffered the loss of his eyes, nose, ears, and upper lip. So strangely blended were lenity and cruelty in the judicial punishments of our ancestors"^. The several classes, whose manners have been hitherto de- Number of scribed, constituted the Anglo-Saxon nation. They alone were possessed of liberty, or power, or property. They formed, how- ever, but a small part of the population, of which, perhaps, not less than two-thirds existed in a state of slavery ^*. That "Leg. 18. 41.48. 58. 66. 69. 80, 81. " Leg. 138. "' Leg. 2. 7. 12. 17. 65. '* The number of freemen in the county of " Leg. 70. Kent, according to the enumeration in Domes- 3 B 2 372 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, ai] the first adventurers were freemen, there can be little doubt : ' but in the course of their conquests it is probable that they found, it is certain that they made, a great number of slaves. The posterity of these men inherited the lot of their fathers : and their number was continually increased by the free-born Saxons, who had been reduced to the same condition by debt, or had been made captives in war, or had been deprived of liberty in punishment of their crimes, or had spontaneously surrendered it to escape the horrors of want ^^. The degradation and en- slavement of a freeman were performed before a competent number of witnesses. The unhappy man laid on the ground his sword and his lance, the symbols of the free, took up the bill and the goad, the implements of slavery, and falling on his knees, placed his head in token of submission under the hands of his master^''. Tbeirdifferent All slavcs Were not, howcvcr, numbered in the same class. In the more ancient laws we find the esne distinguished from the theow; and read of female slaves of the first, the second, and the third rank. In later enactments we meet with boidars, cocksets, pardings, and other barbarous denominations, of which, . were it easy, it would be useless to investigate the meaning. The most numerous class consisted of those, who lived on the land of their lord, near to his mansion, called in Saxon his tune, in Latin his villa. From the latter word they were by the Nor- mans denominated villeins, while the collection of cottages in which they dwelt, acquired the name of village. Their re- spective services were originally allotted to them according to day, amounted to 2,424; of villeins to 6,837 ; to that of slaves will be 4,415 toll,3i9, of bordars to 3,512. The burghers were To thesi; ought to be added thi-ir wivos and 1,991 : and of these the greater pan were families. only a privileged kind of slaves. Taking " Leg. l.'i, 16. 22. tliese only at 1000, the number of freemen "Leg. 2<»l. APPENDIX I. 373 the pleasure ofthcir proprietor. Some tilled his lands, others ex- ercised lor hiin the trades to which they had been educated. In return they received certain portions of land with other per- quisites, for the support of themselves and their families. But all were alike deprived of the privileges of freemen. They were i'orbidden to carry arms ; they were subjected to ignominious punishments ; they might be branded and whipt according to law^. Their persons, families, and goods of every description, were the property of their lord. He could dispose of them as he pleased, either by gift or sale : he could annex them to the soil or remove them from it: he could transfer them with it to a new projjrietor ; or leave them [)y will to his heirs. Out of the hundreds of instances preserved by our ancient writers, one may be sufficient. In the charter by whicb Harold of Buckenhale gives his manor of Spalding to the abbey of Croyland, he enu- merates among its appendages Colgrin his bailiU', Harding his smith, Lefstan his carpenter, Elstan bis fisherman, Osmund his n)ilier, and nine others, who probably were husbandmen; and these with their wives and children, their goods and chattels, and the cottages in which they live, he transfers in perpetual pos- session to the abbey ^^. It should, however, be observed, that the hardships of their condition were considerably mitigated by the influence of re- •' Leg. 15. 53. 103. It appears that slave.s, slaves, each of whom brought tliree billets of no less than freemen, were sureties for the wood to the execution. If she failed, she was behaviour of each other. In the reign of likewise subjected to the punishineiit of three Athelstan, when ihe punishment of theft was whippings. Alter tlio death of the oireiider, the most severe, a law was made respecting the each slave paid three; pennie? as a fine, to the offences committed by slaves against others proprietor. Leg. Alhel. apud Brompt. 849. than their masters. A man thief was ordered =" Ingulf, SO. John hought Gunilda from 10 be stoned to death by twenty of his fel- Gada for half a pound of silver, and gave her lows, eacli of wliom was punished with three to the church of St. Peter. Lye, j.pp. v whippings, if he failed thrice to hit the culprit. Wulfric bought Elfgiiha for half 'a pound. A woman thief v^ils burnt by eighty women Egilsig bought Wynric for an yre of "old. lb CHAP. VII. 374 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, ligion. The bishop was appointed tlie protector of the slaves ' within his diocese, and his authority was employed in shielding them from oppression. Their lords were frequently admonished that slave and freeman were of equal value in the eyes of the Almighty : that both had been redeemed at the same price ; and that the master would be judged with the same rigour as he had exercised towards his dependants ^^ In general the services of the slave were fixed and certain : if he performed them faithfully, he was allowed to retain his savings, and many of those who cultivated portions of land, or had received permission to exer- cise their trades in the burghs, acquired a comparative degree of opulence, which enabled them to purchase their liberty from the kindness or the avarice of their lords ^''°. Even the laws suppose some kind of property in the slave, since they allow him to commute the legal punishment of whipping for a fine of six shillings, and fix the relief of a villein on a farm at the price of his best beast ^°\ Manumission. The ppospcct of obtaining their freedom was a powerful sti- mulus to their industry and good behaviour. Besides those who were able to purchase it themselves, many obtained it from the bount}' of benefactors ^^'. Some were emancipated by the justice and gratitude of their masters : others owed their freedom to motives of religion ^'^^. When the celebrated Wilfrid had re- ceived from Edehvalch, king of Sussex, the donation of the isle of Selsey, with two hundred and fifty male and female slaves, the bishop instructed them in the christian faith, baptized them, '* Rpolm. Con. 405. "^ Siwin bought Sydefleda into perpetual '°° Thus " EU'y liie red bought himself out freedom for live shillings and some pence. " for one pound." Lye, app. v. BrightmEer ^gilmar bought Sedirytli for three mancuses purchased the freedom of himself, his wife to be free after the death of himself and his ./iilgiva, their children and grandchildren, for wife. Lye, app. v. two pounds. Hicks, Diss. Epis. 9. "" Hicks, Dissert, p. 12, 13. "" liCg. ii. 224. APPENDIX I. 375 and immediately restored them to liberty ^**. Their manumission chap. was an act of charity freciueiitly inculcated by the preachers ; ' and in most of the wills, which are still extant, we meet with directions for granting liberty to a certain number of slaves. But the commiseration of the charitable was more excited by the condition of the wite theow (those who had been reduced to slavery by a judicial sentence) than of such as had been born in that state, and had never tasted the blessings of liberty. By the bishops in the council of Calcuith it was agreed to free at their decease every slave of that description ; and similar provisions are inserted in the wills of the lady Wynfleda, of Athelstan son of king Ethelred, and ^Elfric archbishop of Canterbury "'^. Their manumission, to be legal, was to be performed in public, in the market, in the court of the hundred, or in the church at the foot of.the principal altar. The lord taking the hand of the slave offered it to the bailiff, sheriff, or clergyman, gave him a sword and a lance, and told him that the ways were open, and that he was at liberty to go wheresoever he pleased ^°^. Before I conclude this subject, it is proper to add tiiat the Trade in sale and purdiase of slaves publicly prevailed during the whole of the Anglo-Saxon period. These unhappy men were sold like cattle in the market : and there is reason to believe thai a slave was usually estimated at four times the price of an ox^°^. To the importation of foreign slaves no impediment had ever been op[)ose(i : the export of native slaves was forbidden under severe penalties ^'^^. But habit and the pursuit of gain had taught the Northumbrians to bid defiance to all the efforts of the legis' "" Bed. iv. 13. "" The toll in the market of Lewes was one '"Willi. Con. 171. Mores, p. 63. Lye, penny for the sale of an ox, four pennies for app. V. Hicks, praef. xxii. See also Hist, that of a slave. Domesday. Ram. 407. '<" Leg. 17. 93. 107. 134, '"■ Leg. ii. 229. 270. >76 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VII. Burghers. lature. Like the savages of Africa, tliey are said to have carried off, not only their own countrymen, but even their friends and relatives; and to have sold them as slaves in the ports of the continent ^°^ The men of Bristol were the last to abandon this neftirious traffic. Their agents travelled into every part of the coimtry : they were instructed to give the highest price for females in a state of pregnancy : and the slave ships regularly sailed from that port to Ireland, where they were secure of a ready and profitable market. Their obstinacy yielded, hoM'ever, not to the severity of the magistrates, but to the zeal of Wulstan, bishop of Worcester. That prelate visited Bristol several 3'ear3 successively : resided for months together in the neighbourhood : and preached on every Sunday against the barbarity and irre- ligion of the dealers in slaves. At last the merchants were con- vinced by his reasons, and in their gild solemnly bound them- selves to renounce the trade. One of the members was soon after tempted to violate his engagement. His perfidy was pu- nished with the loss of his eyes"". AVe have still to consider a class of men, partly free, and partly slaves, the inhabitants of the cities, burghs, and ports, which were the property sometimes of one, sometimes of several opulent individuals. The burghers were in general tradesmen and mechanics, divided into two classes: the one of men, who held their houses by a fixed rent, and were at liberty to quit them when they pleased : the other of villeins, or the descendants of villeins, who had been permitted to migrate from the country for the benefit of trade, and lived in houses, which were con- sidered as portions of the manors to which the original settlers had belonged. These burghers were still annexed to the soil, '" Malms. 8. "" Ang. Sac. ii. ^.W. APPENDIX I. 377 and transferable with it: and were still compelled to do service in like manner with their brethren in the country. But all pos- sessed superior advantages. They were better protected from the attack of an enemy : they enjoyed the benefit of a market for the sale of their wares. Tiiey formed gilds, or corporations, which guaranteed the good conduct of their members, and were under the government of the reeve of the chief lord. But the privileges and burthens, the customs and services of the inhabi- tants of different burghs, and frequently of those in the same burgli, were so various, complex, and contradictory, that it is impossible to arrange them under distinct heads, or to describe them with accuracy. They originated in the wants, the caprice, the favour of the several proprietors ; and those who desire a more ample gratification of their curiosity on this subject must have recourse to the authentic pages of Domesday CHAP. VII. Ill '"I will add a few instances. Several burghs possessed a common pasture for the use of the inhabitants : others lands and houses which paid rent to the guild. — In Lincoln were 12 citizens, called lawmen, who pos- sessed the jurisdiction of Sac and Soc in par- ticular districts. — Oxford originally belonged to the king, and the earl Algar. The bur- gesses farmed the customs, fines, tolls, &c. of them both, by the payment of a yearly rent of £10. and six casks of honey to the king, and of £lO. to the earl, besides the profits arising from his mill. They sent 20 men to the army, or paid £iO. Those of Dover were free from all suit, service, and fines to king's court, and from toll throughout the realm : and in return furnished him once every year with 20 ships, each manned with 21 mariners, to serve during a fortnight. Vide Domesday passim, or Gale, iii. 759 — 778. TOL. r. 3 e 378 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. WILLIAM I. CONTEMPORARY PRINCES. EMPEROR OF GERMANY. Hf.nry IV. KING OF SCOTL.\ND. Malcolm III. KING OF FRANCE. Philip I. KINGS OF SPAIN. Sanciio II. died in 1073. Alphonso VI. POPES. Alexander II. died in 1073. GuEGoiiy VII 1085. Victor III 1087. William, Duke of Normandy + 1087. Matilda, + 1083. Daughter of Baldwin V. Earl of Flanders. I.Robert, : Duke of Normandy. + 1134. Sibylla, Richard, of Con- versana. + 110-.>. 2. William, = Joan, Earl of of Flanders. Savoy. + 1126. WntiAM II. + 1100. Matilda, of Scotland. + 1118. = Henry I, = Adelais, + 1133. of Louvain. William, = Matilda, Duke of of Normandy. Anjou. + lllil. Emperor of Germany. + 1126.' + 1107. of Anjou. + 1150. Adela. = Stephen, Ear! of Blois. Henry IV'. = Matilda isGeoffry, Wdliara. Several other Daughters. Theobald, Henry, Stephen. = = Maud, Earl of Bishop + 1151. of Bou- Blois. of Win- logne. + 1151. chester. + 1171. + 1151 3.HENr.Y II. + 1189. Eleanor. + 1202. Geoffry, Earl of Nantes. + 1157. William. + 1163. Baldwin. Eustace, = Constantia, William, Earl of of Earl of Boulogne. France. Boulogne. + 1152. +I15!>. Two Daushters. ■4. William. + 1156. Henry. = Margaret, + 1182. Daughter of Louis VII. + I l'J8. Richard I. = Berengaria, + IIO'J. of Navarre. Geoffry, = Constance, Earl of Bretagnc. + 1186. of l>reta:;ne. + 1201. Arthur. John. = Isabella, + 12IG. of Angou- liJmf. Henry III. Matilda. Eleanor. Joan. WILLIAM I. 379 CHAP. VIIL WILLIAM L SURNAMED THE CONQUEROR. WILLIAM IS CROWNED— RETURNS TO NORMANDY— INSURRECTIONS- TOTAL SUBJUGATION OF THE KINGDOM— DEPRESSION OF THE NATIVES— KNIGHTS FEES— INCIDENTS OF MILITARY TENURES- INNOVATIONS IN JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS— DOMESDAY— KING'S REVENUE— INSURRECTION OF NORMAN BARONS— REBELLION OF ROBERT, THE KING'S SON— WAR WITH FRANCE — WILLIAM'S DEATH— AND CHARACTER. Among the most fonnidable of the sea-kines in the beginning CHAP. • . • VIII of the tenth century was Rollo, who, from his activity, had ■ acquired the surname of " the ganger." The north of France ggtiig^jgnt „f was the theatre of his exploits : and the maritime provinces which [J,'gj°™^"^ had ah'ead}^ been ravaged by Hastings, were laid desolate by the repeated invasions of this restless barbarian. But the man, before whom so many armies had fled, was subdued by the zeal, or the eloquence of an ecclesiastic. In 912, Franco, 3 c 2 380 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, the archbishop of Rouen, persuaded him to embrace the faith VIII of the gospel, and to acknowledge himself the vassal of the French crown. As the price of his acquiescence he received the hand of Gisla, the daughter of Charles the simple, and with her that extensive tract of land, which is bounded by the ocean, the river Epte, and the two provinces of Maine and Bretagne. From its new settlers this territory acquired the appellation of Normandy, or the land of the Northmen. Rollo left his dominions to his posterity, a race of able and fortunate princes, who assumed indifferently the titles of earl, or marquess, or duke. The necessity of cultivating a desert introduced habits of industry and subordination among the colonists. Their numbers were repeatedly multiplied by the accession of new adventurers ; and that spirit of enterprise and contempt of danger which had distinguished their fathers in the pursuit of plunder, soon enabled them to reach, and even to outstrip their neighbours in the career of civilization. For their rapid improvement they owed much to the wisdom and justice of their princes: still more to the influence of religion, which softened the ferocity of their manners, impelled them to cultivate the useful and ornamental arts, and opened to their curiosity the stores of ancient literature. Within less than one hundred and fifty years from the baptism of Rollo, the Normans were ranked among the most poHshed, as well as the most warlike, nations of Europe. The fifth in succession from Rollo was Robert II., who con- tributed to restore to his throne PIcnry, king of France, and received from the gratitude of that monarch the Vexin as an addition to his patrimonial dominions. In the eighth year of his government curiosity or devotion induced him to undertake WILLIAM I. 381 a pilgrimage to the holy land. Plis reputation liad gone before chap. him. In every country he was received with respect: at Con- ^"'^' stantinoplc the Grecian emperor paid him distinguished honours: on his approach to Jerusalem tlie gates of the city were gra- tuitously thrown open by the command of the emir. But his constitution sank under the fatigues of the journey, and the heat of the climate. He died on his return at Nice in Bythinia. To Robert, in the year 1027, Ilerleva, the daughter of an officer nirtii ..r wii- of his household, had brought an illegitimate son, William, after- ''"'"1027. wards duke of Normandy, and king of England. This child strongly interested his affections ; and before his departure, in an assembly of the barons at Fescanip, he had prevailed on them to acknowledge the young prince, who was then in his eighth year, as heir apparent to the duchj^. The earl Gilbert was appointed his guardian ; and the king of France solemnly en- gaged to protect the rights of his orphan vassal. But the guardian was slain : the interests of William were neglected : and his dominions, during the time of his minority, exhibit one continued scene of anarchy and bloodshed, originating in the lawless violence, and conflicting rapacity of the barons. At the age of nineteen Wilham first took the field, to support his claim to the succession against the legitimate descendants of Richard II. the father of Robert: and with the aid of Henry defeated, in the valley of Dunes, Guy of Burgundy, his most formidable competitor. But during the campaign the French king learned to feai' the growing abilities of his pupil. He turned his arms against the young prince, joined his forces to those of William of Arques, a second pretender to the duke- dom, and afterwards on two occasions inarched a numerous array into Normandy to the assistance of different insur- gents. But the activity and bravery of William baffled all the 1 382 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, cftbrts, and at last extorted the respect, of his adversaries • his alHance was courted by the neighbouring princes : Baldwin ot Flanders gave him his daughter Matilda in marriage : and when he undertook the invasion of England, he was universally consi- dered as one of the boldest knights, and most enterprising sove- reigns, in Christendom^. AViiiiam 'pj^g progress of that invasion, from its orisjin to the battle of marches to r o ' o Dover. Scnlac, has been related in the preceding chapter. From Senlac 1066. ' I ^ r WilHam returned to Hastings. He had fondly persuaded him- self that the campaign was terminated ; and that the natives, disheartened by the fall of their king, and the defeat of their army, would hasten to offer him the crown ~. A few days dis- sipated the illusion. London was put in a state of defence by the industry of the citizens ; the inhabitants of Romney repulsed a division of the Norman fleet, which attempted to enter the harbour : and a numerous force, which had assembled at Dover, threatened to act on the rear of the invaders, if they proceeded towards the capital. The first object of WiUiam was to disperse the latter ; and in his march he severely chastised the town of Romney. The force at Dover melted away at his approach ; and the fears of the garrison induced them to ofter him the keys of the place ^. Aiid to Lon- rpj^jg acquisition was an invaluable advantage to the Normans. The dysentery prevailed to an alarming degree in the army ; and the castle of Dover, which at that time was deemed impregnable, offered a secure receptacle for the multitude of the sick. Eight days were employed in adding to its means of defence, and ' Guil. Pict. 40 —104. Ed. Maseres. dique ad lioc ferraiuentis elaborate incisa, in '' Chrou. Lamb, ad ami. 1066. spceiem miiri directissima alliUidiiie, (jiianlum M'ict. 137, 138. He thus describes the sagittcBJaetus permeliri potest, consurgit, qao castle of Dover. Situm est id castellum in in latere luida marina alluilur. nipe niari contigua, qua; naturaliter acuta, un- WILLIAM I. 383 in repairing the damages caused by an undisciplined soldier}-, ^".^!'' Avho, in defiance of theii- leader, had set fire to the houses, ______ that during the confusion they might plunder the inhabitants. At length, having supplied his losses by reinforcements from Normandy, the concpieror commenced his march in the direc- tion of London. By some writers we are gravely told, that during his progress, he saw himself gradually enveloped by what bore the appearance of a moving forest : that on a sudden the branches, which had been taken for trees, fell to the ground, and in their fall disclosed a host of archers with their bows ready bent, and their arrows directed against the invaders: that Stigand, archbishop of Canterbury, and Egelnoth, abbot of St. Augus- tines, advancing from the crowd, demanded for the men of Kent the confirmation of their ancient laws and immunities, and that the demand was readily granted by the fears of the asto- nished Norman 'K This story is the fiction of later ages, and was unknown to the more ancient writers, from whom we learn that, on his departure from Dover, William was met by the inha- bitants of Kent with offers of submission, and received from them hostages as a security for their obedience^. The witan had assembled in London immediately after the Eii?arap- ■^ pointeu king. death of Harold. The population of this capital was numerous and warlike ; and the numijer of its defenders had been increased by the thanes of the neighbouring counties. By their unanimous choice, the etheling Edgar, the rightful claimant, was placed on the throne. But Edgar was young, and devoid of abilities ; the first place in the council devolved on Stigand the metropo- litan ; and the direction of the military operations was com- mitted to the two powerful earls, Edwin and Morcar. Their * Thorn. 178G. Dovera, jurunt fidelitatem, dant obsides. — ' Occurrunt ultro Cantuarii haud procul a Pict. 138. He was with the army at the time. 384 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. But submits to 'VVilliam. first effort was unsuccessful ; and the confidence of the citizens was relaxed by the feeble resistance which a numerous body of natives had opposed to an inferior force of five hundred Norman horse. William contented himself with burning the suburbs; he was unwilling or afraid to storm the walls ; and resolved to punish his opponents by destrojang their property in the open country. Leaving London, he spread his army over the counties of Surry, Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire. Every thing va- luable was plundered by the soldiers; and what they could not carry away, was committed to the flames. In the meantime mistrust and disunion reigned amono; the advisers of Edgar. Every new misfortune was attributed to the incapacity or the treachery of the leaders. It was even whis- pered that Edwin and Morcar sought not so much the libera- tion of their countr^s as the transfer of the crown from Edgar to one of themselves. The two earls left the city ; and their depar- ture, instead of lessening, augmented the general consternation. The first who threw himself on the mercy of the conqueror was Stigand, who met William as he crossed the Thames at AV ailing- ford, swore fealty to him as his sovereign, and was received with the flattering appellation of father and bishop. His defec- tion was followed by that of others : and the determination of those who wavered, was accelerated by the rapidity with which the Norman pursued his plan. . Buckinghamshire and part of the county of Hertford had been already laid waste, when a deputation arrived, consisting of Edgar, Edwin, and Morcar, on the part of the nobility, of the archbishop of York, and the bishops of Worcester and Hereford on that of the clergy, and of the principal citizens of London in tiie name of their fellows. At Bcrkhamstead they swore allegiance to the conqueror, gave hostages, and made him an offer of the crown. WILLIAM L SSo He iificcted to pause: nor did be formally accept the proposal chap. till the Norman barons had latificd it by their applause. lie ' then appointed lor his coronation the approaching festival of Christmas ". Tiie Normans, proud of their superior civilization, treated the TumuUatthc -,,r.,,. , ,. kiiifj'scoronji- natives as barbarians . \vilham placed no reliance on their tioo, Dec. 2». oaths, and took every precaution against their hostility. But most he feared the inhabitants of London, a population brave, mutinous, and confident in its numbers. Before he would expose his person among them, he ordered the house, which he was to occupy, to be surrounded with military defences; and on the day of his coronation in Westminster abbey, stationed in the neighbourhood a numerous division of his arm3\ As Stigand had been suspended, the ceremony was performed by Aldred, archbishop of York ; and that prelate put the question to the English, the bishop of Constance to the Normans, whether they were willing that William should be their sovereign. Both nations expressed their assent with loud acclamations : and at the same moment, as if at a preconcerted signal, the troops in the precincts of the abbey set fire to the nearest houses, and began to plunder the city. The tumult within the church, was not exceeded by that without. The Normans pictured to them- selves a general rising of the inhabitants : the natives imagined that they had been drawn together as victims destined for ^ I am aware that this account is very dif- them. Caeteri Edgarum eligeretit, si episco- ferent from that which is generally given, in pos assertatores haberent (Malm. f. 57). The which Stigand appears to act the part of a narrative in the text is founded on the testi- patriot, and the success of V^^illiam is attri- monyof Pictaviensis(p. 141),0rderic(p. 187), buted to the influence of the bishops, unwilling the Chronicon Lambardi (ad ann. 1066), to offend the pope. But for all this there is Malmsbury (De Pont. i. f. 116), and the an- no other authority than the mere assertion of cient writer quoted by Simeon (col. 195), Malmsbury, that after the departure of Edwin Florence (p. 634), and Hoveden (f. 258). and Morcar, the other nobles would have ' Pictaviensis terms them without cere- chosen Edgar, if the bishops had seconded mony feri ac barbari, p. 150 — 153, VOL. I. 3 D 386 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. Its cause'. slaughter. William, though he trembled for his life, refused to interrupt the ceremony. In a short time he was left Avith none but the prelates and clergy at the foot of the altar. The Eng- lish, both men and women, had fled to provide for their own safety : and of the Normans some had hastened to extinguish the flames, the others to share in the plunder ^ The service Nvas completed with precipitation : and the conqueror took the usual oath of the Anglo-Saxon kings, with this addition, that he would govern as justly as the best of his predecessors '. To William, who sought to reconcile the two nations, this un- fortunate occurrence was a subject of deep regret. It inflamo. which in the language of the age did not necessarily involve the idea of subjugation, but was indifferently employed to desig- nate a person who had sought and obtained his right. In this sense it coincided with the policy of the new king, who affected to owe his crown not to the power of his arms, but to the nomi- nation of Edward, and the choice of the natives. He has been represented as of a temper reserved and morose, more inclined to acts of severity than of kindness : but if such were his natural disposition, he had the art to conceal, or the reso- lution to subdue it. All the first measures of his reign tended to allay the animosity, and to win the affections, of the Eng- lish. No change was attempted in their laws or customs, but what the existing circumstances imperiously required. The citizens of London obtained a grant of new and valuable pri- vileges : and the most decisive measures were employed to put doMu the bands of robbers, which began to infest the country. In the collection of the royal revenue the officers received orders to avoid all unauthorized exactions, and to exercise their duty with lenity and moderation. For the protection of trade the king's peace was granted to every traveller on the highway, and " Pict. 149. He adds : Etiam ilia delicta, " It was not deemed a term of reproach, quae fierent consensu impudicarum, infamiae William gave it to himself in many of his prohibendcE causa vetabantur. Ibid. — Orde- letters. Ego Willielmus cognomento bastar- ric, p. 195. dus. See Spelman, Archaiol. 77. 3r)2 VI IT, 388 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. GHAP. to every merchant and his servants resorting to any port or market. Access to the royal presence was refused to no one. AVilliam listened graciously to tlie complaints of the people; heard their causes in person; and, though his decisions were directed by the principles of justice, they were tempered by the feehngs of mercy. From London he retired to Barking, where liis court was attended by crowds of English thanes. At their request he received their homage: and in return granted to ail the confirmation, to several an augmentation, of their estates and honours-'. But nothing was more grateful to the national feelings than the attention which he paid to the etheling Edgar, To console the young prince for the loss of that crown to which he was intitled by his birth, he admitted him into the number of his intimate friends, and bestowed on him an extensive pro- perty, not unfitting the last descendant of an ancient race of kings. From Barking he made a progress through the neigh- bouring counties. His route was distinguished by the nume- rous benefits, Avhich he scattered around him : and his aflabihty and condescension to the spectators proved how anxious he was to procure their favour and to merit their esteem ^^ The constitution of the feudal armies was ill adapted to the preservation of distant conquests. The duration of tiieir service was limited to a short period : and William was aware that, at the expiration of the term, his followers would expect to be discharged, and re-conveyed to their own country. It was, however, manifest that the obedience of the natives could be secured only by a strong military force. At the king's solicita- " Pietaviensis mentions by name Edgar, dred; the sons of Ethelgar pronepotis regis, Edwin, Morcar, and Coxo, quem singular! et Edric the wild, the grandson or nephew of fortitudine et probitate regi et optimo cuique Edric the infamous, and many other noble- Normanuoplacuisse audivimus, p. 150. Orde- men, p. 195. ric adds Turchil de Limis, Siward aud Al- "Pict. 1*0. Ordsric, 194— 196. And rewards to his eflkers. WILLIAM L 389 tion several chieftains consented to remain Avith their retainers, <^^IAP. and their compliance was rewarded with grants of valuable ' estates, to be holden by the tenure of military service. Whence the donations were made, whether from the royal demesnes, or from the lands of those Avlio fell at the battle of Senlac, is uncer- tain : but we are told that the transaction was conducted according to the strict rules of justice, and that no Englishman could reasonably complain that he had been despoiled to aggrandize a Norman^'. This force was distributed among the more populous towns and districts. Wherever the king placed a garrison, he erected a fortress for its protection. But London and Winchester were the chief objects of his solicitude. He would not leave Barking, till a castle had been completed in London, probably on the very site which is now occupied by the Tower : and the care of raising a similar structure at Winchester Avas intrusted to the visilance of Fitz-Osbern, the bravest and most favoured of his officers. " For that city," says his biographer, " is noble and " powerful, inhabited by a race of men opulent, fearless, and " perfidious *\" Yet, if we recollect that these Norman castles were built in the short space of three months, and that too in the depth of winter, we must consider them as little better than temporary defences, which had been hastily erected in favourable situations. '* Pict. 150. At the same time he ordered the metropolitan and of the bishop of the dio- the foundations of a monastery to be laid on cese, declared it in a full assembly of prelates the spot, where he gained the victory over and barons exempt from " all episcopal rule Harold : from which circumstance it was " and exaction." It became, in the language called Battle abbey. As it was there that he of later times, nuUius diocesis. ?ee the char- won the crown, he wished the new establish- ter, Brady, ii. app. p. 15. ment to enjoy all the privileges of the royal " Id. ISl. cbapel : and having obtained the coniient of 390 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Some writers have indulged in speculation on the motives which could have induced William, immediately after these The kinn- re- arrangements, to quit the kingdom which he had so recently mandv" ^°' acquircd, and to revisit his patrimonial dominions. It has been supposed that his" real but secret object was the ruin of the English nobility. While he was present, their obedience ex- cluded every decent pretext of spoliation : but during his absence they might be goaded to arms by the oppression of his officers, and at his return he might with apparent justice punish their rebellion, and satisfy his own rapacity and that of his barons. Such indeed was the result : but we often attribute to policy events, Avhich no deliberation has prepared, and which no foresight could have divined. There is nothing in the ancient writers to warrant a supposition, so disgraceful to the character of William. The men of Normandy were anxious to welcome their victorious sovereign : they had repeatedly importuned him to return : and vanity might prompt him to grant their request, and to exhibit himself with the pomp of a king among those, whom he had hitherto governed with the inferior title of duke. In the month of March he collected his army on the beach near Pevensey : distributed to each man a liberal donative, and embarked with a prosperous wind for the coast of Normandy. He was received by his countrymen with enthusiastic joy : wherever he proceeded, the pursuits of commerce and agriculture were suspended : and the solemn fast of Lent was universally transformed into a season of festivity anil merriment. In his train followed, not only the Norman barons, "the faithful companions of his victory, but also many English thanes and prelates, the proudest ornaments of his triumph. The latter appeared in the honourable station of attendants on the WILLIAM I. 391 king of England ; in reality they were captives, retained as chap. securities for the fidelity of their countrymen "^. Wc are told ' that they attracted the admiration of the spectators, among whom were many Frencii noblemen whom curiosity had drawn to the Norman court. In their persons the English were thought to exhibit the captivating elegance of female beauty. Their hair (long hair was a mark of birth with the northern nations) flowed in rinolcts on their shoulders: and their mantles of the richest silks were ornamented Avith the profusion of oriental magnificence ^'^. To enhance in the eyes of his guests and sub- jects the value of his conquest, William displayed before them the treasures which he had either acquired as plunder after the battle, or received at his coronation as presents. Of these a considerable portion, with the golden banner of Harold, was destined for the acceptance of the pope : the remainder was distributed among the churches of Normandy and the neighbour- ing provinces. The remark of the continental historian on this occasion, will amuse, perhaps surprise, the reader. Speaking of the riches brought from England, he says, " that land far " surpasses the Gauls in abundance of the precious metals. " If in fertility it may be termed the granary of Ceres, in riches 'i it should be called the treasury of Arabia. The English " women excel in the use of the needle, and in the embroidery " of gold : the men in every species of elegant workmanship. " ISloreover the best artists of Germany reside among them : " and merchants import into the island the most vafuable speci- " mens of foreign manufacture ^^" By exaggerating the ad- '" They were Sligand, archbishop of Can- Order. 197. terbury, Egelnoth, abbot of St. Augustine's, " Nee enim puellari venustati cedebant. Edgar the elhcling, Edwin, earl of Mercia, Pict. 161. Mirac pulchritudinis. Order. Morcar, earl of Northumbria, Waltheof, carl 197. of Northampton and Huntingdon, and " com- '" Pict. 157, 158. He appears to have been " plures alii altae nobilitatis." Pict. 153, astonished at the wealth of the English. He 3 392 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, vantages of the country, Pictavicnsis may perhaps have sought to _ add to the fame of its conqueror : but one part of his description is fully supported by other evidence. The superiority of the Eng- lish artists was so generally acknowledged, that articles of delicate workmanship in embroidery, or in the precious metals, were usually denominated by the other European nations " opera " Anglica," or English work'^ The regents, During his abscucc the king had intrusted the reins of govern- ment to William Fitz-Osbern, and Odo, bishop of Bayeux. Odo was his uterine brother, the son of Herleva by her husband Herluin-°. The favour of William had promoted him at an early age to the see of Bayeux : and he soon displayed extraor- dinary abilities both in the administration of his diocese, and in the councils of his sovereign. He possessed a splendid revenue, and spent it in a splendid manner, in beautifying his episcopal city, and in rewarding the services of his retainers. In obe- dience to the canons he forbore to carry arms : but he con- stantly attended his brother in battle, and assisted with his advice in every military enterprise. " He was," says a histo- rian, who had probably shared in his bounty, " a prelate of such " rare and noble qualities, that the English, barbarians as they " were, could not but love him and fear him "^." On the other hand we are assured by another Norman, but a less partial writer, that his character was a compound of vice and virtue : and that, instead of attending to the duties of his station, he made riches and power the principal objects of his pursuit' 2'-' calls them filios Anglorum tarn stenimatis of Robert. Her children by this marriage qiiam opum dignitate reges appellandos. were Robert, earl of Mortagne, Odo, bishop Ibid. of Bayeux, and a daughter, countess of Albe- " Leo ^^arsican^Irt apud Muratori, Antiq. iiiarle. Will. Gem. vii. 3. riii. 37. Med. Eevi, diss. Iviii. " Pict. 153. '• Herleva married Iferluin after the death " Orderic, 255. 5 AVILLIAM I. SOU To Odo had been assigned the Q-ovemmcnt of Kent: tho chap. • . VIII nihabitants of which, fi-oni their fre(|Lient intercourse with the ' continent, were deemed less savage than the generahty of their ^^j p;,,. countrymen-'. The remainder of the kingdom was committed •^*''*"'- to the vioihince of Fitz-Osbern, a Norman baron, rehited on the mother's side to the ducal family. William and he had grown , up together from their infancy: and the attachment of their childish years had been afterwards strengthened by mutual services. In every civil commotion Fitz-Osbern had supported his sovereign : to his influence was attributed the determination of William to invade England : and to the praise of consummate wisdom in the cabinet he added that of unrivalled courage in the field. He was considered as the pride of the Normans and the scourge of the English^"*. The previous merits of these ministers must be received on insurrections. the word of their panegyrist : but their subsequent conduct does not appear to merit the confidence which was reposed in them by their sovereign: and to their arrogance and rapa- city should be attributed the insurrections, forfeitures, and massacres, which so long afflicted this unhappy country, and which at last reduced the natives to a state of beggary and ser- vitude. As soon as they entered on their high office, they departed from the system of conciliation, which the king had adopted, and assumed the lofty mien, and the arrogant manners of conquerors. The complaints of the injured were despised : aggression was encouraged by impunity ; and the different gar- risons insulted the persons, abused the wives and daughters, and rioted at free quarters on the property, of their neighbours ^''. The refusal of redress awakened the indignation of the English: " Unde a minus feria bominibus incolitur. "Pict. 151 Pict. 152. "Orderic, 2QS. VOL. I. 3 K 394 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, and, in this moment of national effervescence, if an individual ' had appeared able to combine and direct the general hostility, the Norman ascendancy would probably have been suppressed. But the principal chieftains were absent : and the measures of the insurgents, without system or connexion, were the mere result of sudden irritation, and better calculated for the purpose of present revenge than of permanent deliverance. Neither were the natives unanimous. Numbers attended more to the suggestions of selfishness than of patriotism : the archbishop of York and several of the prelates, many thanes, who had hitherto been undisturbed, and the inhabitants of most of the towns, M'hose prosperity depended on the public tranquillitv, remained quiet spectators of the confusion around them. Some even lent their aid to put down the insurgents^**, jiurder of Amoug the stauuchcst friends of the Normans was Copsi or *arlCopsi. ® ^ ' . Coxo, a thane who under Edward had governed Northumbria as the deputy of Tostig. With the title of earl, Wilham had intrusted to his fidelity the government of the whole country to the north of the Tyne ; nor Avas Copsi faithless or ungrate- ful to his benefactor. It was in vain that his retainers ex- horted him to throw off the yoke of the foreigners. For a long time they wavered between their attachment to their lord, and their attachment to their country. The latter prevailed : and Copsi fell by the swords of his vassals. By William his death Avas lamented as a calamity : by the Norman writers he is de- scribed as the most virtuous of the English ~'^. =' Orderic, 206. surrender it to Copsi. Five weeks afterwards, " Simeon, Hist. Dunel. iii. 14. Pict. 164. on the 12lh of March, he surprised his com- Orderic, 206. The native writers give a more petitor in Nevvburn. Consi ran to the church, circumstantial, and probably more accurate, which was set on fire. The flames drove him accouut of his death. Osulf had enjoyed the to the door, where he was cut down by ' same appointment from tiie gift ofAIorcar, Osulf. Sim. 204. Hoved. 243. but had been compelled by the Normans to WILLIAM I. 39-5 In the Avcst the conqueror had bestowed on Fitz-Osbern the f^HAP. . VJU. earldom of Hereford. Edric the wild, or the savage**, whose possessions lay in that count}^ refused to acknowledge his autho- E.iric raragc* rity. As often as the Normans attempted to enforce obedience, "^''^'"'^•'' he repulsed them with loss : and as soon as the king had left England, called to his aijd Blethgent and Rithwatlan, princes of the Britons. Their united forces shut up the enemy within their fortress, while they ravaged with impunity the western division of the county, as far as the river Lug •^. In the east the people of Kent solicited the support of Eustace at- Eustace, count of Boulogne. That nobleman had quarrelled with ^ * ****'" William : a court of Norman barons and English thanes had decided in favour of the king: and Eustace had left the island in sullen discontent. At the invitation of the insurgents, he un- expectedly crossed the channel ; and a combined attack was made on the castle of Dover at a time Mhen the larger portion of the garrison was absent. Unfortunately a panic seized the assailants, and they fled before a handful of men. Eustace reached his ships : most of his followers were taken : by their more perfect knowledge of the roads the natives escaped from the paucity of their pursuers ^. These desultory conflicts might indeed harass the Normans, Ens:i!sh exile* but they contributed little to prevent the entire subjugation of noiiie. the countr}', or to promote the great cause of independence. The more prudent reserved their efforts for a fairer prospect of success: and deputies were sent to Denmark to offer to Sveno TiuflVeskeg, a crown which had been already worn by two of his predecessors, Canute and Hardecanute. In the meanwhile " Cognomento Guilda, id est silvalicus. " Simeon, 197. Flor. 635. Oideric, 195. From silvaticus the French •" Pict. 163. Orderic, 205. formed the word sauvage. Se 2 396 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, a body of natives, impatient under the yoke, adopted a plan, which wears the appearance of romance. They bade adieu to their country, sailed to the Mediterranean, and ultimately otfercd their services to the emperor Alexius. By him they were settled at Chevetot beyond the strait, and afterwards transferred to Constantinople, that they might assist in repelling the incur- sions of their common enemy, the Normans. For, while the princes of that nation laboured to extend the limits of their do- minions at the expense of their neighbours, a few private adven- turers had founded in the south of Italy a poAverful kingdom. It was now ruled by Robert the Guiscard, the sixth of the twelve sons of Tancred of Hauteville, Avho, .ifter establishing himself in Calabria, had, at the death of his eldest brother, been chosen also count of Apulia. His daughter had been betrothed to Constantine the heir of the emperor Michael : and when Alexius assumed the purple, Robert declared war against the usurper. The English exiles fought under the imperial banner in ever}"" action from the siege of Durazzo to the final retreat of the Nor- mans from the walls of Larissa. At Castorio three hundred of their number were killed or taken. The remainder received for their residence a palace within the imperial city : their posterity loi' many generations served in the body guard of the emperors : and at the fall of Constantinople, in the thirteenth century, the Ingloi witli the battle-axes of their ancestors, added to a body of Danes, formctl the principal force, Avhich the eastern successors of Augustus could oppose to the toirent of the crusaders '*. The king re- The mind of William was exasperated by frequent messages from Odo and Fitz-Osbern : and he returned to England in De- comber with a secret resolution to crush by severity a people, '" Ordcric, 204. Anna Comnena, AU'X. v. Villehardouin, kxxix. turns, Dec. 6. WILLIAM I. 397 whom he could not win by kindness. Durino: the Christmas f'HAP. . ^ VIII. hohdajs the Kn<;lish thanes waited on their sovereign. lie em- _ tec. braced them as friends, inquired into their grievances, and grant- ed their requests. IJut his hostihty pierced through the veil low which he had thrown over it : and the imposition of a niost grievous tax awakened well-founded apprehensions^*. Though the spirit of resistance, which had so much annoyed his deputies, seemed to disappear at his arrival, it still lingered in the northern and western extremities of the kingdom. Exeter from the time Rciuces F.re- of Athelstan had gradually risen into a populous city : it was surrounded with a wall of considerable strength : and the inha- bitants were animated with the most deadly hatred against the invaders. A band of mercenaries on board a small squadron of Norman ships, which was driven by a tempest into the harbour, had been treated Avith cruelty and scorn by the populace. Sensible of their danger the burgesses made preparations for a siege; raised turrets and battlements on the walls: and dispatched emissaries to excite a similar spirit in other towns. When William sent to require their oaths of fealty, and the ad- mission of a garrison into the city, they returned a peremptory refusal : but at the same time expressed a willingness to pay him the dues, and to perform the services which had been exacted by their native monarchs. The conqueror was not accustomed to submit to conditions dictated by his subjects : he raised a nume- rous force, of which a great portion consisted of Englishmen ; and marched with a resolution to inflict severe vengeance on the rebels. At some distance he was met by the magistrates, who implored his clemency, proiiered the submission of the inhabi- tants, and gave liostages for their fidelity. With five hundred *' AUir Bev. 127. •598 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, horse he approached one of the gates. To his astonishment it was barred against him : and a crowd of combatants bade him o defiance from the walls. It was in vain that, to intimidate them, he ordered one of the hostages to be deprived of his eyes. The siege lasted eighteen days : and the royalists suffered severe loss in different assaults. The citizens at last submitted, but on conditions which could hardly have been anticipated. They took indeed the oath of allegiance, and admitted a garrison : but their lives, property, and immunities were secured ; and to prevent the opportunity of plunder, the besieging army was re- moved from the vicinity of the gates ^^. Having pacified Corn- wall, the king returned to Winchester, and sent for the dutchess Matilda to England. She was crowned at the ensuing festival of Whitsuntide. F.dwiu rebels. But the prcscnce of William was now required in the north. No Englishman had rendered him more important services than Edwin, whose influence had induced one-third of the kingdom to admit his aiithority. The Norman, in the warmth of his gratitude, promised the earl his daughter in marriage : an engagement which he refused to fulfil as soon as he felt himself secure upon the throne. Inflamed with resent- ment, Edwin flew to arms : the spirit of resistance was diffused from the heart of Mercia to the confines of Scotland : and even the citizens of York, in opposition to the intreaties and predic- tions of their archbishop, rose in the sacred cause of independ- ence. Yet this mighty insurrection served only to confirm the power of the Norman, whose vigilance anticipated the designs of his enemies. Edwin and Morcar were surprised before they Submits. were prepared : and their submission was received with a pro- mise of forgiveness, and a resolution of vengeance. York opened " Compare Ordcric (p. 210, 211), with the Chronicon Lombardi (ad ann. 1057). WILLIAM I. 39D its gates to the con(|ueror : Archil, a powerful Northumbrian, t^HAP. and Egelwin, bishop of Durham, hastened to offer him their ' homage : and Malcolm, the king of Scotland, who had prepared to assist the insurgents, swore by his deputies to do faithful service to William. During this expedition and in his return, the king fortified castles at Warwick, Nottingham, York, Lin- coln, Huntingdon, and Cambridge^'*. In the spring of the same year, Githa the mother of Harold, Githaescapes. and several ladies of noble birth, fearing the rapacity and the brutality of the Normans, escaped with all their treasures from Exeter, and concealed themselves for a while in one of the little isles of Stepholme and Flatholme in the mouth of the Severn ^\ Thence they sailed for the coast of Flanders : and eluding the notice or fi-ustrating the pursuit of their enemies, found a secure retreat at St. Omer. Githa's grandsons, Godwin, Edmund, and Magnus, the children of the unfortunate Harold, had obtained a protector in Dermot, king of Leinster; and, to revenge the suf- ferings of their family, landed with a body of men in the mouth of the Avon, made an unsuccessful attempt on Bristol, killed Ednoth an opponent in Somersetshire, and after ravaging the counties of Devon and CornAvall, returned in safety to Ireland ^. A more illustrious fugitive was the ethehng Edgar, who under- E* "^ of York rose upon the Norman garrison, and killed the governor with many of his retainers. They were immediately joined by Cospatric with the Northumbrians, and by Edgar with the exiles from Scotland. William INIallet, on whom the command had devolved, informed the king that without immediate succour he must fall into the hands of the enemy. But that prince was already on his march ; he surprised the besiegers. Several hun- dreds perished, the city was abandoned to the rapacity of the soldiers ; and the cathedral was profaned and pillaged. Having built a second castle, and appointed his favourite Fitz-Osbern to the command, the king returned in triumph to Winchester "^^ This was the most busy and eventful year in the reign of William. In June, the sons of Harold, with a fleet of sixty- four sail, returned from Ireland, and landed near Plymouth. While occupied in the pursuit of plunder, they were surprised by Brian, son of the earl of Bretagne. The leaders escaped to their ships ; almost all their followers perished in two engage- ments fought the same day ''*. In July arrived the threatened expedition from Denmark. ^"'"''^ of '^^ Sveno had spent two years in making preparations : he had summoned to his standard adventurers from every nation inha- biting the shores of the Baltic ; and had intrusted the command "Sim. Hist. ccc. Dunel. iii. 15. De gest. of Harold's sons retired to Denmark : their reg. 198. Orderic, 218. Alur. Bev. 128. sister, who accompanied them, was afterwards *' Chron. Lamb, ad ann. 1098. Orderic, married to the sovereign of Russia. Saxo 218. Gram. 207. '■ Chron. Lamb. ibid. Orderic, tJ19. Two VOL. I. 3 F 402 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, of a fleet of two hundred and forty sail to the care of his eldest ' son Canute, aided by the councils and experience of Sbern his uncle, and Christian his bishop. The Normans claim the praise of having repulsed the invaders at Dover, Sandwich, Ipswich, and Norwich : perhaps the Danes only touched at these places to inform the natives of their arrival, or to distract the attention of their enemy. In the beginning of August they sailed to the Humber, where they were joined by Edgar, Cospatric, Waltheof, Archil, and the five sons of Carl, with a squadron of English ships. Archbishop Aldred died of grief at the prospect of the evils which threatened his devoted countr3\ The Normans at York, to clear the ground in the vicinity of their castles, set fire to the neighbouring houses ; the flames were spread by the wind ; and in a conflagration of three days, the cathedral and a great York taken, part of the city were reduced to ashes. During the confusion the Danes and English arrived, and totally defeated the enemy, who had the imprudence to leave their fortifications, and fight in the streets. Three thousand Normans were slain : for the sake of ransom, William Mallet with his family, Gilbert of Ghent, and a few others, were spared ^^. wiiiiaminihe The kins was huntino- in the forest of Dean, when he received north. * n , ■ f- Ti /-I- the first news of this disaster. In the paroxysm* or his passion he swore by the splendour of tlie Almighty, that not one Nor- thumbrian should escape his revenge. Acquainted with the menaces of Svcno, he had made preparations adequate to the danger : auxiliaries had been sought from every people between the Rhine and the Tagus; and to secure their services, besides a liberal allowance for the present, promises had been added of future and more substantial rewards. It was not the intention " Orderic, 221—223. Chron. Lamb, ad aim. 1068. Alur. Bev, 128. WILLIA:M I. 403 of the confederates to hazard an cnG;aejement with so numerous chap. VIII. and disciplined a force. As it advanced, they separated. Wal- theof remained for tlie defence of York : Cospatric led his Northumbrians beyond the Tyne ; the Danes retired to their ships, and sailed to the coast of Lindesey. To surprise the latter, William with his cavalry made a rapid march to the [lumber. They were informed of his design, and crossed to the opposite coast of Holderness. But if the strangers were un- willing to meet him in battle, they were accessible to money : and Sbern, the real leader of the exj)edition, is said to have sold his friendship to William for a considerable present. The report perhaps originated in the suspicions of a discontented people; but it is certain that irom this period, the Danes, though thej lingered for some months in the waters of the Humber, never attempted any enterprise of importance : and that Sbern, at his return to Denmark, was banished by his sovereign on charges of cowardice or treachery**. The transient gleam of success, which at first attended the Defeats tee arms of the confederates at York, had rekindled the hopes and the hostility of the natives. The flames of insurrection burst forth in every district which William left in his march to the north. Exeter was besieged by the people of Cornwall : the malcontents in Devon and Somerset made an assault upon IMontacute : the men of Chester and a body of Welshmen, to whom were soon added Edric the wild and his followers, took the town, and attempted to reduce the castle of Shrewsbury. The inactivity of the Danes fortunately permitted him to retrace his steps. At Stafford he defeated a considerable body of in- surgents ; and Edric, hearing of his approach, set fire to Shrews- " Orderic, 223. Malm. 60. .3 F 2 404 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, bury, and retired towards Wales. Exeter held out till the VIII .... arrival of Fitz-Osbern and Brian to its relief; and others of the royal lieutenants displayed their zeal and activity in restoring- tranquillity in different counties. The sufterings of both parties in this desultory warfare were severe : the troops in their marches and countermarches pillaged the defenceless inhabitants without distinction of friend or foe: and the interruption of agricultural pursuits was followed by an alarming scarcity during the ensuing years. From Nottingham the king turned once more towards the north. At Pontefract he was detained for three weeks by the swell of the river Are : a ford was at last discovered : he reached York, and ordered it to be carried by assault. Though Waltheof defended the city with obstinacy; though he slew with his own hand several Normans, as they rushed in through the gate-wa3% he was compelled to aljandon it to the contjueror, who immediately repaired the castles, and appointed garrisons for their defence. Still the natives flattered themselves, that the winter would compel him to return into the south: to their disappointment he sent for his crown from "Winchester, and during the Christmas kept his court with the usual festivities at York «. Lays waste Elatcd witli victor}^ and unrestrained by the motives of Durhlm"" religion, or the feelings of humanity, William on this occasion devised and executed a system of revenge, which has covered liis name with eternal infamj'. As his former attempts to enforce obedience had failed, he now resolved to exterminate the refrac- tory natives, and to place a wilderness as a barrier between his Normans and their implacable enemies. With this view he led his retainers from York : dispersed them in small divisiont^ over « Orderic, 223—225. Malm. 58 AVILLIAIM I. 405 the country, and gave them orders to spare neither man nor chap. beast, but to destroy the houses, corn, implements of husbandry, '__ and whatever might be useful or necessary to the support of human life. The work of plunder, slaughter, and coiiHagration commenced on the left bank of the Ousc, and successively reached the Tees, the ^Vere, and the Tyne. The more distant inhabitants crossed over the last river: the citizens of Durham, mindful of the fate of Cumin, did not believe themselves safe, till they were settled in Holy island, the property of their bishop. But thousands, whose flight was intercepted, concealed them- selves in the forests or made their way to the mountains, where they perished by hunger or disease. The number of men, women, and children, who fell victims to this barbarous policy, is said to have exceeded one hundred thousand. For nine years not a patch of cultivated ground could be seen between York and Durham : and at the distance of a century eye-witnesses assure us, that the country was strewed with ruins, the extent and number of which still attested the sanguinary ambition and implacable animosity of the conqueror^. The "English chieftains, terrified by this severe infliction, submission of abandoned themselves to despair. Edgar, with the bishop of """"fwo.' Durham, and his principal associates, sailed from Weremouth ""'■ to Scotland : Cosj^atric by messengers solicited and obtained his pardon : A\ altheof, who by his valour had excited the admi- ration and merited esteem of the Normans, visited the king on the banks of the Tees ; received from him the hand of his niece " Orderic, 2'i 5. Miilm. .58. Simeon, l'J9. doleo, quam frivolis ;ululatioaiL)us inutiliter \lur. Bev. ri8, I '29. I may add the ob- studeo. Praiterca indnbitantcr assero, quod sorvation of the first writtr, who was himself impune non remittetur tam t'eralis occisio. a Norman. In multis Guillelnmrn nostra li- Sumnios enim et iraos intuutur omnipotwns bpiiter e.^tulit relatio : sed in hoc landare mm judex, a;que omnium facta discutiet, et puiiitt andeo misericordia motus, miserabilis districlis.siraiis vindex. Ibid. populi mocroribus et anxictatibus niaijis con- 406 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Judith in marria2;e ; and recovered his former honours, the VIII T ' earldoms of Northampton, and Huntingdon*^. From the Tees, William, on what account we are not informed, returned by a road, which had never been trodden b}^ an armed force. It was in the heart of winter: a deep snow covered the ground: and the rivers, mountains, and ravines continually presented new and unexpected obstacles. In the general confusion, order and discipline disappeared ; even the king himself wandered from the track, and passed an anxious night in total ignorance, both where he was himself, and what direction the army had taken. After surmounting numerous difficulties, and suffering the severest privations, the men reached York ; but most of the horses had perished in the snow ^. This adventure might have checked the ardour of a less resolute leader : but William professed the most sovereign con- tempt of hardships : and within a few weeks undertook a longer and more perilous expedition. In the beginning of March, amid storms of snow, sleet, and hail, he led his army from York to Chester, over the mountains which divide the two coasts of the island. The foreign mercenaries began to murmur: by degrees they burst into open mutiny, and clamorously demanded their discharge. " Let them go, if they please," answered the king, with apparent indifference, " I do not want their services." At the head of the army, and frequently on foot, he gave the example to his followers, who blushed not to equal the exertions and alacrity of their prince. At Chester he built a castle, pacified the country, and received Edric the wild into favour. Thence he proceeded to Salisburj", where he rewarded, and " Juditli was the daughter of the countess Hexham has inadvertently been admitted of Albemarle, William's uterine sister. Will, instead of York. It is cvidoiit that the latter Gemet. viii. .'17. is the true reading. " Orderic, 296. In the text of this writer WILLI AAr I. 407 disbanded the army. The only punishment inflicted on tlie GHAp. mutineers was, that they were compelled to serve forty days ' longer than their fellows*^. The departure of the Normans did not nut an end to the R'lyasres of • ... 3Ialco)m. calamities of the northern counties. While the natives opposed William, Malcolm of Scotland considered them as friends : the moment they submitted, he became their enemy. Passing through Cumbria, he poured his barbarians into the north of Yorkshire, to glean whatever had escaped the rapacity of the Normans. Cosj^atric, who watched his motions, retaliated b}'' a similar inroad into Cumbria, and returned Avith a jilentiful harvest of plunder to his castle of Bamborough. Malcolm had marched from Cleveland, along the coast as far as Were- mouth, when he received the intelligence. From that moment the war assumed a more sanguinary aspect. The Scots, who were impelled not only by the hope of plunder but also by the thirst of revenge, crossed the Tyne ; burnt the churches and villages ; massacred the infants and the aged ; and forced along with them all the men and women able to bear the Ihtigue of the journey. So numerous were the captives, that according to a historian, who was almost a contemporary, they furnished every farm in the south of Scotland with English slaves. ^Vhen Malcolm had terminated this expedition he offered his hand to JNIargaret, the sister of Edgar. The princess, ^vho Avas in her tAventy-second 3'ear, turned Avith disgust from a husband covered Avith the blood of so many innocent victims. She pleaded an inclination to embrace a conventual life : but her objections Avere overruled by the authority of Edgar and his counsellors: *'• Orderic. 2"27— 231. Simeon, <20<2. 408 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, and the mild virtues of the wife insensibly softened the ferocity . " and informed the mind, of her husband^". All places of William was now undisputed master of England. From the is^rinans^." ° channel to the borders of Scotland his authority Avas universally acknowledged: in every county, with the exception of Cos- patric's government, it was enforced by the presence of a pow- erful body of t3i*oops. In each populous burgh a strong fortress had been erected '''^ : in case of insurrection the Normans Ibund an asylum ivithin its walls : and the same place confined the principal natives of the district, as hostages for the obedience of their countrymen ■^^. It was no longer necessary for the king to court popularity. He now made it the principal object of his government to depress the natives, and to exalt the foreigners : and within a few years every dignity in the church, every place of emolument or authority in the state, and almost all the pro- perty in the land, had passed into the possession of Normans. From the commencement of the invasion the Enoiish had been accustomed to deposit in the monasteries their most valuable effects. They vainly hoped that these sanctuaries would be respected by men, who professed the same religion : but on his " Simeon. 200. Flor. 636. Cliron. Lamb. their eight children three were kings of Scot- ad ami. 1067. Alur. Bev. 130, 131. Vit. land, one was queen, and one mother to a S. Marg. in vit. SS. Scotia;, ed. Pink. Of queen, of England. Malcolm = Margaret. \ . ! ' 1 i i I Edgar. Alexander. David. Matilda, Mary, to Henry I. to Eustace, of Boulogne. " The erection of the following castles is at York, one at Chester, and another at mentioned hy ancient writers : of Pcveusey, Stafford, in 1070. See Orderic, Vit. edit. Hastings, and London, and the reparation of Maseros, p. 228. — Note, that ot Dover in 1066 : of Winchester in »' This fact, sufficiently probable in itself, 10C7 : of Chichester, Arundel, Exeter, War- is confirmed by the history of Turgot in wick, Nottingham, "V'ork, Ijincoln, Hunting- Simeon (206), and Hovedcn (261). don, and Cambridge, in 1068: of a second WILLIAM L 409 return iroin the north William confiscated the whole, under the CHAP. pretext that it belonged to his enemies. The royal commis- sioners carried off not only the plate and Jewels, but, what was felt still more severely, the charters of immunities and evidences of property : and not only these, but also, in many instances, the treasures of the monasteries themselves, their sacred vessels, and the ornaments of their churches •''^. At the king's request pope x'\lexander had sent three legates English pre- to England, Ermenfrid, bishop of Sion, and the cardinals Peter ^^°^^ ' and John. Ermenfrid was no stranger to the country. He had visited in the same capacity the court of Edward tho confessor^'. The purport of their commission was the reforma- tion of the English clergy : the object of the king was to remove from situations of influence the native bishops and abbots. Councils were held at Winchester and Windsor. Stigand, who had attempted to annex the see of AVinchester to that of Canter- bury, and had been suspended for many years from his func- tions, was deposed ■'^: two or three other prelates were justly deprived of their churches on account of their immorality : and several experienced the same fate for no other crime than that of being Englishmen. Wulstan, the celebrated bishop of Wor- cester, was not molested, a favour, which probably lie owed less to his unblemished character, than to the protection of Ermen- frid, whose friend and host he had been on a former occasion ^^ " Chron. Lamb, ad aim. 1070. Simeon, 116) to have been treated Vfith great severity : 200. West. 226. Matt. Paris, 5. but hi.s account is refuted by Rudbome, who " Flor. 631. Ang. Sac. ii. 250. It is informs us that the deposed primate was con- Mngular that Hume should describe Ermenfrid fined at large within the castle of Winchester, as the first legate, who had ever appeared in and permitted to take with him all his trea- England, when, besides some other instances sures. These at his death fell into the hands in the Anglo-Sa.xon times, that prelate himself of the king, who presented a small portion to had many years before come to England in the church of that city. Ang. Sac. i. 250. the same capacity. " -A-ng. Sac. ii. 260. " Stigand is said by Malmsbury (De Pont. VOL. I. 3 G 410 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. By the Norman writers that legate is applauded as the inflexible mainlainer of ecclesiastical discipline; by the English he is cen- sured as the obsequious minister of the royal pleasure. Norman pre- Nof was this systeni of proscription confined to the bishops. *'^^' In the succeeding years it gradually descended to inferior situations in the church, till hardly a single native remained possessed of influence or wealth. Of their successors many were needy and rapacious foreigners, indebted for their promo- tion not to their own merit, but to the favour or gratitude of their patrons ^^: but to the praise of WiUiam it should be ob- served, that with one or two exceptions he admitted none to the higher ecclesiastical dignities, who were not distinguished by their talents and virtues ^'^. On the whole this change of hierarchy, though accompanied with many acts of injustice, was a national benefit. It served to awaken the English clergy from that state of intellectual torpor in which they had so long slum- bered, and to raise them gradually to a level with their foreign brethren in point of mental cultivation. The new bishops introduced a stricter discipline; excited a thirst for learning; and expended the wealth which they acquired in works of public magnificence, or of public charity. Lanfranc. The most illustrious of the number, both for his abilities and for his station, was Lanfranc, a native of Pavia, and during many years professor of laws in that city. From Pavia he travelled into Normandjs opened a school at Avranches, and diff"used a taste for knowledge among the clergy. In 1042, motives of piety induced him to withdraw from the applause of the public, and to sequester himself in the poor and lonely abbey of Bee. But talents like his could not be long hidden in obscurity : the " Orderic, 262—264. »• Id. 233, WILLIAM 1. 411 commands of the abbot Herluin, compelled liim to resume the ti'HAp. VIII. office of teachino- ; and more than a hundred scholars attended ' his lectures. In 106.3 William made him abbot of the monastery of St. Stephen, which he had lately founded at Caen ; and in 1070 appointed him, Avith the assent of his barons, to the archi- cpiscopal see of Canterbury. Lanfranc objected his ignorance of the language and the manners of the barbarians ; nor could his acquiescence be obtained without the united solicitations of the legate, the queen Matilda, and the abbot Herluin. The new archbishop was constantly respected by the king and his successor : and frequently employed the influence which he pos- sessed, in the support of justice, and the protection of the natives. To his firmness and perseverance the church of Canterbury owed a great part of her possessions, which he wrested from the tena- cious grasp of the conquerors ^^. He rebuilt the cathedral, which had been destroyed by fire ; repaired in many places the devas- tations occasioned by the war, and founded, without the walls of the city, two opulent hospitals, one for lepers, the other for the infirm. At his death in 1079 he was nearly one hundred years of age *". The monk Guitmond, the celebrated disciple of Lanfranc, re- Guitmond. fused to imitate the conduct of his master. When he was solicited by William to accept an English bishopric, he boldly replied, that after having spontaneously abandoned wealth and distinction, he would never receive them again from those who pretended to give Avhat was not their own : and that, if the chance of Avar had placed " While Stigand was in disgrace, Odo had the church. See the proceedings in Selden't taken possession of many of the manors be- Spicilegium ad Eadm. p. 197. With equal longing to the archbishopric. At Lanfranc's success the archbishop contended for the su- request a shire-mote was held at Pinneden, in periority of his see over that of York, against which Geoifry, bishop of Coutance, presided Thomas lately promoted to the latter. Malm, by order of William. After a hearing of three 112 — 117. days, the lands in question were adjudged to ^° Orderic, 241 — 245. Malm. 117, 118. 3 G 2 412 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. Ingulf. the crown on the head of WilHam to the prejudice of the legi- timate lieir, it still could not authorize him to impose on the English ecclesiastical superiors against their will. The freedom of this answer displeased the barons : and when the king offered him the archbishopric of Rouen, they not only prevented his promotion, but expelled him from Normandy. He sought an asylum in the papal court, and died archbishop of Aversa in Italy ". Among those who were thus promoted by the partiality of the conqueror, I may mention another individual, whose autho- rity has been frequently adduced in these pages. Ingulf was an Englishman, born in London, and studied first at Westminster, afterwards at Oxford '^-. When William visited Edward the con- fessor, Ingulf attached himself to the service of the duke, an'd was employed by him as his secretary. From Normandy he travelled a pilgrim to Jerusalem, returned, and received the mo- nastic habit at Fontanelles. It chanced that Wulfketul, abbot of Croyland, was deposed and imprisoned at the instance of Ivo Tailbois. The king bestowed the abbey upon his former secre- tary. But though Ingulf was indebted to foreigners for his pro- motion, he always retained the heart of an Englishman. He firmly resisted the pretensions of the Normans in his neighbour- hood : obtained several indulgences for his predecessor : and to «' Orderie, 264—270. " Primum Westmonasterio, postmodum Oxoniensi studio tiaditus eram. Cumque in Aristolele arripiendo profecissem, &c. In- gulf, 73. This passage is found in every manuscript: yet Mr. Gibbon doubts its au- thenticity, because Oxford in 1048 lay in ruins, and the works of Aristotle were un- known (Posthumous Works, iii. 534). But 1". It was in 1010 that Oxford was burnt. Three years after it rose from its ashes, and became a place of importance. See the Saxon chronicle, p. 139. 143. 146. 151. 154, 155. 2". In another place Ingulf tells us that he had studied logic (p. 62) : and instead of doubting his assertion, I would rather believe from him that Aristotle was known more ear- ly than is generally thought. Alcuin, who wrote two centuries before Ingulf, inlornis us that Aristotle was studied at York (De Pont. Eborac. v. 1550), and wrote a treatise himself on the Isagogac, Categoria;, Syllogisnii, 'J"o- pica, and Periermenia;. Canis. ii. part i. p. 488. WILLIAM 1. 413 sooth the feelino;s of the old man, always assumed the modest title CHAP. . VIII of his vicegerent. He has left us a detailed account of the abbey ' of Cropland from its foundation : and has interwoven in his narrative many interesting particulars of national history^. In 1071, the embers of civil war were rekindled by the jealousy Death of of William. During the late disturbances Edwin and Morcar ' **^io7i. had cautiously abstained from any communication with the insurgents. But if their conduct was unexceptionable, their intiuence was judged dangerous. In them the natives beheld the present hope, and the future liberators of their country : and the king judged it expedient to allay his own apprehensions, by securing their persons. The attempt was made in vain. Edwin concealed himself; solicited aid from the friends of his family; and eluding the vigilance of the Normans, endeavoured to escape towards the borders of Scotland. Unfortunately the secret of his route was betraj'cd by three of his vassals : the temporary swell of a rivulet from the influx of the tide, inter- cepted his flight : and he fell, with twenty of his faithful adhe- rents, fighting against his pursuers. The traitors presented his head to William, who rewarded their services by a sentence of perpetual banishment. The fate of his brother Morcar was different. He fled to the protection of Hereward, who had pre- sumed to rear the banner of independence amidst the fens and morasses of Cambridgeshire ^\ The memory of Hereward was long dear to the people of opposition of England. The recital of his exploits gratified their vanity and resentment : and traditionary songs transmitted his fame to succeeding generations. His father, the lord of Born in Lin- '"" Ingulf, p. 73. Morcar were persecuted by William : I have ''Ordeiic, 249. Ing. 70. Hunt. 211. selected such circumstances ai appeared the Chron. Lamb, ad arm. 1072. All ancient most probable. writers concur in the fact that Edwin and 414 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, colnshire, unable to restrain the turbulence of his temper, haci obtained an order for his banishment from Edward the con- fessor : and the exile had earned in foreign countries the praise of a hardy and fearless warrior. He was in Flanders at the period of the conquest : but when he heard that his father was dead, and that his mother had been dispossessed of the lordship of Born by a foreigner, he returned in haste, collected the vassals of the family, and drove the Norman from his paternal estates. The fame of this exploit increased the number of his followers : every man, anxious to avenge his own wrongs, or the wrongs of his country, hastened to the standard of Hereward : a fortress of -wood was erected in the isle of Ely for the protection of their treasures : and a small band of outlaws, instigated by revenge, and emboldened by despair, set at defiance the whole power of the conqueror*'''. He plunders Hcrcward, with several of his followers, had received the ^ 1070°"^ ' sword of knighthood from his uncle Brand, abbot of Peterbo- ""^^' rough. Brand died before the close of the year 1069: and William gave the abbey to Turold, a -foreign monk, who, with a guard of one hundred and sixt}' horsemen, proceeded to take possession. He had already reached Stamford, when Hereward resolved to plunder the monastery. The Danes, who had passed the winter in the Humber, were now in the Wash : and Sbern, their leader, consented to join the outlaws. The town of Peter- borough was burnt : the monks Avere dispersed : the treasures which they had concealed, were discovered : and the abbey was given to the flames. Hereward retired to his asylum: Sbcrn sailed towards Denmark '^*^. MakesTuroid To removc tlicsc importunate enemies Turold purchased the pnsoner. gervices of Ivo Tailbois, to whom the conqueror had given the " Ingulf, 67. 70, 71. « Ing. 70. Chron. Sax. 176, 177. WILLIAM L 415 district of Hoy land. Confident of success the abbot and the CHAP. Nornian commenced the expedition with a numerous body of ' cavalf}'. But nothing could elude the vigilance of llereward. As Tailbois entered one side of a thick wood, the chieftain issued from the other; darted unexpectedly upon Turold ; and carried him off with several other Normans, whom he con- fined in damp and unwholesome dungeons, till the sum of two thousand pounds had been paid for their ransom'''. For a whih; the pride of William disdained to notice the wiiiiam be- efforts of Horewaid : but when Morcar and most of the exiles warl^ from Scotland had joined that chieftain, prudence compelled ''^'" him to crush the hydra, before it could grow to maturit\'. He stationed his fleet in the Wash, with orders to observe every out- let from the fens to the ocean : by land he distributed bis forces in such manner as to render escape almost impossible. Still tlie great difliculty remained to reach the enemy, who had retired to their fortress, situated in an expanse of water, which in the narrowest part was more than two miles in breadth. The king undertook to construct a sohd road across the marshes, and to throw bridges over the channels of the rivers, a work of considerable labour, and of equal danger, in the face of a viofi- knt and enterprising enemy. Hereward frequently dispersed the workmen : and his attacks were so sudden, so incessant, and so destructive, that the Normans attributed his success to the assistance of Satan. At the instigation of Tailbois, William had the weakness to employ a sorceress, who was ex- pected, by the superior efficac}'" of her spells, to defeat those of the English magicians. She was placed in a wooden turret at the head of the work : but Hereward, who had watched his «' Pet. Blesen. p. 126. 416 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. Gets posses- sion of Ely. Subdues Scot land. 1072. opportunity, set fire to the dry reeds in the neighbourhood : the wind rapidly spread the conflagration : and the enchantress with her guards, the turret with the workmen, were enve- loped, and consumed in the flames^. These checks might irritate the king : they could not divert him from his purpose. In defiance of every obstacle the work advanced : it was evident that in a few days the Normans would be in possession of the island : and the greater part of the out- laws voluntarily submitteil to the royal mercy. Their fate was different. Of some he accepted the ransom, a few suffered death : many lost an eye, a hand, or a foot ; and several, among whom were Morcar and the bishop of Durham, were condemned to perpetual imprisonment. Hereward alone could not brook the idea of submission. He escaped across the marshes, con- cealed himself in the woods, and as soon as the royal army had retired, resumed hostilities against the enemy. But the king, who had learned to respect his valour, was not adverse to a reconciliation. The chieftain took the oath of allegiance, and was permitted to enjoy in peace the patrimony of his an- cestors ^^ William was now at leisure to chastise the presumption of Malcolm, who had not only afibrded an asylum to his enemies, but had seized every opportunity to enter the northern counties, exciting the natives to rebellion, and ravaging the lands of those who refused. With a determination to subdue the whole country, the king summoned to his standard all his retainers, both Nor- man and EngUsh : and while his fleet crept along the coast. " Ibid. •' For the siege of Ely see Ingulf, p. 71. Flor. 637. Sim. 203. Hunt. 211. Paris, (5. Chron. Sax. 181. Chron. Lamb, ad ann. 1072. Some writers say that Morcar, like his brother, was killed by treachery : but the preponderance of authority is in favour of his imprisonment. See also Ordtric, p. 247. and Ing. 68. AVILLIAM 1. 417 tlirected his march through tlic Lothians. Opposition fled before him. He crossed the Forth: he entered "Scotland:" he penetrated to Abernethy on the Tay : and Mulcohn thought it better to preserve liis crown as a vassal, than to lose it by braving the resentment of his enemy. He made an offer of sub- mission, the conditions of which were dictated by William: and the Scottish king, coming to the English camp, threw him- self on the mercy of the conqueror. He was permitted to retain the government as a vassal of the English crown : and in that (quality swore fealty, performed the ceremony of homage, and gave hostages for his fidelity '". The king in his return halted at Durham, to erect a castle for the protection of Waleher, the new bishop : and summoned before his tribunal Cospatric, the earl of Northumberland. He was charged with old offences, CHAP, viir. '° I am fully aware that several Scottish writers, anxious to save the honour of Mal- colm, seek to persuade us that the Abernethy in question is some unknown place on the borders, not Abernethy on the Tay ; that the two kings settled their differences in an ami- cable manner, and that the homage of Mal- colm was not performed for Scotland, but for lands given to him in England. It is, how- ever, impossible to elude the testimony of the original and contemporary historians. 1. The king's object was to conquer Scotland (ut earn sibi subjugarel. Sim. 203. Flor. 637). 2. He advanced to Abernethy on the Tay (" He led "ship-force and land-force to Scotland ; and " the land on the sea-half he beleaguered with " ships, and ledin his army at the ge-wade" — not the Tweed, as Gibson unaccountably translates it, but " the ford" or wading-place. Chron. Sax. 181. This ford was over the Forth, the southern boundary of Scotland in that age. Thus Etlielred tells us that the king passed through Lo4hian, and some other place, and then through Scotland to Aber- nethy. Laodamam, Calatriam — a word alter- ed in copying — Scotiain usq\ie ad Abernethy. Ethel. 342). 3. All opposition was fruitless. " Hetliere found naught that him better was." Chron. Sax. 181. This pa.ssagc has been explained to signify that he found nothing of service, neither provisions nor riches : but the real meaning is that he found no man better than himself, that is, no man able to resist him with success, as Siward is said to have slain of his enemies " all that was best." Chron. Lamb. ann. 1054. 4. At Abernethy Malcolm came and surrendered himself (De- ditione factus est noster. Ethelred, 342. Se dedidit. Malms. 58). 5. Scotland was sub- dued (Scotiam sibi Subjecit, Ingulf, 79). Malcolm was obliged to do homage and swear fealty (Malcolmuni regem ejus sibi hominium facere, et fidelitatem jurare coegit. Ing. ibid.) ; and in addition to give hostages for liis fide- lity (Obsides. Sim. 203. Gislas Seaidc, and his man was, Chron. Sas. 181). It should be observed that of these writers the Saxon annaUst had lived in William's court. Ingulf had been his secretary, Ethelred was the inti- mate acquaintance of David, the son of Mal- colm, and the rest lived in the next century,- They could not all be mistaken. VOL. I. 3h 418 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, which it was supposed had been lone; ago forgiren, the mas- " sacres of the Normans at Durham and York. Banished by the mits sentence of the court, Cospatric retired, after several adventures, to Malcolm, and received from the pity or policy of that prince the castle and demesnes of Dunbar. His earldom was be- stowed on Waltheof, who took the first opportunity to revenge the murder of his grandfather Aldred'\ He surprised and slew the sons of Carl at a banquet in the villa of Seterington'^^. Edgar sub- Hcrcward was the last Englishman, who drew the sword in 1075. the cause of independence. The natives submitted to the yoke in sullen despair : even Edgar the etheling resigned the hope of revenge, and consented to solicit a livelihood from the mercy of the man, whose ambition had robbed him of a crown. He was still in Scotland, when the king of France offered him a princely establishment at Montreuil near the borders of Normandy ; not that Phihp cared for the misfortunes of the etheling, but that he sought to annoy William, who had become his rival both in power and dignity. Edgar put to sea with the Avealth which he had brought from England, and the presents which had been made to him by the king, queen, and nobles of Scotland. But his small squadron was dispersed by a tempest: his ships were stranded on the coast : his treasures and some of his followers were seized by the inhabitants : and the unfor- tunate prince returned to solicit once more the protection of his brother-in-law. By him he was advised to seek a recon- ciliation with William, who received the overture with pleasure. At Durham the sheriff of Yorkshire met him with a numerous escort, in appearance to do him honour, in reality to secure his person". Under this guard he traversed England, crossed the "See the reign of Ethdred in the fifth " Alur. Bov. 132. Sim. 203, 204. .-hapter. "^ Chron. Lamb, ad ann. 1075, WILLIAM L 419 sea, and was presented to William in Normandy, who granted chap. him the first place at court, an apartment in the palace, and a ' yearly pension of three hundred and sixty-five pounds of silver. For several years the last male descendant of Cerdic confined his ambition to the sports of the field : in 1086 he obtained per- mission to conduct two hundred knights to Apulia, and from Apulia to the holy land. We shall meet him again in England during the reign of William Rufus'^'*. We may now pause to contemplate the consequences of this Consequences mighty revolution. The conqueror was undisputed master of conquest, the kingdom : opposition had melted away before him ; and with the new dynasty had arisen a new system of national polity, erected on the ruins of the old. I. England presented the Depression of singular spectacle of a native population with a foreign sove- reign, a foreign hierarchy, and a foreign nobility. The king Avas a Norman : the bishops and principal abbots, with the exception of ^Wdstan and Ingulf, were Normans : and, after the death of Waltheof, every earl, and every powerful vassal of the crown, was a Norman. Each of tliese, to guard against the disaffection of the natives, naturally surrounded himself with foreigners, who alone were the objects of his favour and |iatronage : and thus almost all, who aspired to the rank of gentlemen, all who possessed either wealth or authority, were also Normans. Individuals who in their own country had been poor and unknown, saw themselves unexpectedly elevated in the scale of society : they were astonished at their own good fortune ; and generally displayed in their conduct all the arrogance of newly acquired power. Contempt and oppression became the portion of the natives, whose farms were pillaged, females ^ Malm. 58. Hoved. 264. 3 H 2 420 - HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, violated, and persons imprisoned at the caprice of these pettj ^ and local tyrants". " I will not undertake," says an ancient Avriter, " to describe the misery of this wietched people. It " would be a painful task to me ; and the account would be " disbelieved by posterity ^*^." Miiiiam'b The first donations which the king made to his followers, were taken either out of the demesne lands of the crown, or the estates of the natives who either had fallen in battle, or after the victory had refused to submit to the conqueror. The rest by taking the oath of allegiance to the new sovereign, secured to themselves^ for the present the possession of their property. But most of these engaged in some or other of the rebellions which followed : the violation of their fealty sul^jected them by law to the forfei- ture of their estates : and new grants were made to reward the services of new adventurers. Nor were the grantees always satisfied with the king's bounty. Their insolence trampled on the rights of the natives : and their rapacity dispossessed their innocent but unprotected neighbours. The sufferers occasionally appealed to the equity of the king ; but he was not eager to displease the men, on whose swords he depended for the posses- sion of his crown, and if he ordered the restitution of the pro- perty which had been unjustly invaded, he seldom cared to enforce the execution of the decree which he had made. Harassed, however, by the importunate complaints of the English on the one hand, and the intractable rapacity of the Normans on the other, he commanded both parties to settle their disputes by compromise. The expedient relieved him from the performance of an office, in which his duty was opposed to his interests : " Ex infimis Normannorum clienlibus tri- Eadmcr, 67. Hunt. 212. bnnos ct tenluriones ditissimos erexit. Or- " Hist. Elien. 516. deric, 250. 263, 264, 256. 257. 259—262. WILLIAM I. 421 but it uniformly turned to the advantage of the oppressors. The chap. Enghsiiman was compelled to surrender the greater portion of ' his estate, that he might retain the remainder, not as the real proprietor, but as the vassal of the man, by whom he had been M'rono;cd ^'^. II. Thus, partly by grant and partly by usurpation, almost Elevation of all the lands in the kmgdom were transferred to the possession of Normans. The families which, under the Anglo-Saxon dy- nasty, had been distinguished by their opulence and power, suc- cessively disappeared. Many perished in the different insur- rections : others begged their bread in exile, or languished in prison, or dragged on a precarious existence under the protec- tion of their new lords. The king himself was become the prin- cipal proprietor in the kingdom. The ro3^al demesnes had fallen to his share : and if these in some instances had been diminished by grants to his followers, the loss had been amply repaired from the forfeited estates of the English thanes. He possessed no fewer than one thousand four hundred and thirty- two manors in different parts of the kingdom'". The next to him was his brother Odo, distinguished by the title of the earl bishop, who held almost two hundred manors in Kent, and two hundred and fifty in other counties. Another prelate, highly esteemed, and as liberally rewarded by the conqueror, Geoffry, bishop of Constances, left by his will two hundred and eighty manors to Roger Mowbray, his nephew. Robert, count of Mortaigne, the brother of William and Odo, obtained for his "Compare the words of Gervase of Til- denoted an extensive parcel of land, with .1 bury (Brad. i. 15), with the correct extract house on it for the accommodation of the from the MS. of the Sharneburn family apud lord, and cottages for his slaves. He gene- Wilk. Leg. Sax. 287. rally kept a part in his own hands, and be- "" Manor (a Manendo, Orderic, 255) was stowed the remainder on two or more tenants, synonymous in the language of the Normans who held of liim by military service, or rent, with villa in Latin, and Tune in English. It or other prestations. 4m HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, share nine hundred and seventy-three manors ; four hundred and ' forty-two fell to the portion of Alan Fergant, earl of Bretagne; two hundred and ninety-eight to that of AVilliam Warenne ; and one hundred and seventy-one to Richard de Clare. Other estates in greater or smaller proportions were bestowed on the rest of the foreign chieftains, according to the caprice dr the gratitude of the new sovereign'^. In addition to the grant of lands, he conferred on his principal favourites another distinction honourable in itself, profitable to. the possessors, and necessary for the stability of the Norman .power. This was the earldom, or command of the several coun- ties. Odo ^was created earl of Kent, and Hugh of Avranches earl of Chester, with royal jurisdiction within their respective earldoms. Fitz-Osbern obtained the earldom of Hereford, Roger Montgomery that of Shropshire, Walter Giffard that of Buck- ingham, Alan of Bretagne that of Richmond, and Ralph Guader that of Norfolk. In the Saxon times such dignities were usually granted for life: William made them hereditary in the same family ^". 'f heir retain- Jt should, howcvcr, bc obscrvcd that the Norman nobles were as prodigal as they were rapacious. Their vanity was flattered by the number and wealth of their retainers, whose services they purchased and requited with the most liberal donations. Hence the estates which they received from the king, they doled out to their followers in such proportions, and on such /conditions, as were reciprocally stipulated. Of all his manors in Kent, the earl bishop did not retain more than a dozen in his '* Orthe legitimate heir, was universally admitted : but considerable doubts were entertained, whether at the death of the second, the fee should descend to his son or his brother : for, if the former were the nearest in blood to the late possessor, the latter was nearest to the original feoffee. This uncertainty is the more deserving of the reader's attention, as in the descent of the crown it explains the occasional interruptions, which he has beheld in the line of representation, and the part which the thanes or barons took in the election of the sovereign. If the son of the last king were a minor, the claim of the young prince was often opposed by that of his uncle, whose appeal to the great council was generally sanctioned by the national appro- bation ^°". 7. The descent of fees brought with it two heavy grievances, Wardships " Leg. 266. Glanv. vii. 3. manner Edred succeeded his brother Ed- """ Thus though Ethelred left two sons, mund, in preference to his nephews Edwy and Alfred succeeded to the throne. In the same Edgar. 432 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. Marriages. wardships and marriages, which were unknown in most feudal constitutions, and in England experienced long and obstinate opposition. That attempts had been made to introduce them at an early period, is not improbable : from the charter of Henry I. it is certain that both had been established under the leign of his brother William Rufus, perhaps even of his father, the con- queror -°^ After a long struggle it was finally decided that, when the heir was a minor, he should not hold the fee, because his age rendered him incapable of performing military service. The lord immediately entered into possession, and appropriated the profits to himself, or gave them to a favourite, or let them out to farm. Nor was this all. He separated the heir from his mother and relations, and took him under his own custody, on the ground that it was his interest to see that the young man was educated in a manner which might hereafter fit him for the performance of military service ^°^. He was, however, obliged to defray all the expenses of his ward : and to grant to him, Avhen he had completed his twenty-first 3'^ear^ the livery of his estate without the payment of the relief ^''^. 8. But frequently the heirs were females; and, as they could not perform military service, every precaution was taken to guard against the prejudice, which might be suffered from their succession. Their father was forbidden to give them in marriage without the consent of the lord ; who, however, was bound to grant his consent, unless he could shew a reasonable cause of refusal. When the tenant died, the fee descended to the daughter, or if they were more than one, to all the daughters '•' Chart. Hen. I. apud Wilk. Leg. 233. From the words of the charter the reader would not infer, that they were recent institutions. '" Quis, says Fortescue, infantem talem in actibus bellicis, quos facere ratione tenurae suas ipse astringitur domino feodi, melius instruere poterit aut velit quam dominus ille, cui ab eo servitium tale debetur, &c. De Land. Leg. Ang. p. 105. ">« Glanv. vii. 9. Spelm. 5&5. \VJJ,LIAM I. 435 in common. The lord had the wardship: as each completed chap. VIII her fourteenth year, he compelled her to marry the man of his " choice; or, if he allowed her to remain single, continued to act as her guardian, and could prevent her from marrying without his advice and consent. After marriage the husband exercised all the rights of his wife, die! homage in her place, and performed the accustomed services. Tlie })rete.\t for these harassing regulations, was a necessar}' attention to the interests of the lord, whose fee might otherwise come into the possession of a man unable or unwilling to comply with the obligations : but avarice converted them into a constant source of emolument, by selling the marriages of heiresses to the highest bidder ^"^. IV. From the I'eudal tenures I may be allowed to pass to a ciianges i» - 1 • ■ 1-11-/1 11 !•• • juilicial pro- few other innovations, wlncli chietly regard the administration ceediiigs. of justice. 1. In the king's court all the members, in the inferior courts, the president and principal assessors, were Normans, who, while they were bound to decide in most cases according to the laws, were unable to understand the language of the natives. For their instruction and guidance the statutes of the Use of the _ ^ Norman lau- Anglo-Saxon kings were translated into Norman. But where tlie guage. judges were unacquainted with more than one language, it was necessary that the pleadings should be in that idiom. In inferior tribunals much business was of necessity transacted in the lan- guage of the people : but in the king's court, which from its supeiior dignity and authority gradually drew all actions of im- portance to itself, causes were pleaded, and judgments given in the Norman tongue. This, added to the consideration that all '" Glanv. vii. 12. This grievance, with the " in capite, and soccage in capite of the kino-, ■whole system, was at last abolished by the " and the fruits and consequences thereof were statute of the 12th of Charles II. by which " taken away or discharged, and all tenures of " all tenures by knight-service of the king, or " honours, manors, lands, &c. were turned " of any other person, and by knight service " into free and common seccage." A'OL. I. S K 434 HISTORY OF KNGLAND. Excessive mulcts. CHAP, persons enjoying influence and patronage were foreigners, made ' the study of that language a necessary branch of education : and those who hoped to advance their children either in church or state, were careful that they should possess so useful an ac- quirement ^"*. 2. If the Anglo-Saxon laws abounded with pecuniary penalties, in the Norman code they were equally numerous and still more oppressive. By the former these mulcts were fixed and certain, apportioned with the most scrupulous exactitude to the supposed enormity of the offence : in the latter almost every transgression subjected the delinquent to an amerciament : that is, placed his personal estate at the mercy of his lord, who might take the w hole, or only a part, at his pleasure. The king, indeed, ordered the Anglo-Saxon customs to be observed : the prejudices or interest of the judges led them to impose the amerciaments of the Normans. This was an evil grievously felt by the people : and to procure a remedy for the abuse seems to have been one of the principal objects of those, avIio so frequently, for more than a century, petitioned that the laws " of the good king Edwaixl" might be inviolably observed. 3. Though the natives were at last compelled to submit to the invaders, they often gratified their revenge by private assas- sination. To provide for the security of his followers, the king did not enact a new, but revived an old, statute : and the same pe- nalty which Canute imposed for the destruction of a Dane, was imposed by William for the violent death of a Norman. If the Penaltj; for murder. '" Ingulf. 71. 88. He attributes the pre- Anglice traderentur, ji. 71. Their ignorance ference which the Normans gave to their own of the English tongue appears to ine a much tongue to their hatred of the English. Ip^um belter reason ; but slill less can I believe etiam idioma tantum abhorrebant, quod leges with Holkot that the king entertained the terrae, staiutaque Angiicorum regum lingua absurd idea of abolishing the English lan- Gallica tractarenlur, et pueris etiam in scholis guage. Ead. Spicil. 180- principia literaruro grammatica Gallic* et non WILLIAM 1. 4.35 assassin was not delivered to the oflicers of justiee within the space CUKP. of eight days, a mulct of forty-six marks was levied on the lord ' of the manor, or the inhabitants of the hundred, in which the dead body had been found. ]3ut the two nations by inter- marriages gradually coalesced into one peoi)le : at the close of a century it was deemed unnecessary, because it would have beea fruitless, to inquire into the descent of the slain : and the law, which had been originally framed to guard the hfe of the fo- reigner, was enforced for the protection of every freeman *°^, In legal language the penalty was denominated the " murder," a term which has since been transferred to the crime itself. 4. Both nations were equally accustomed to appeal in their Wapfemf courts to the judgment of God: but the Normans despised the fiery ordeals of the Enghsh, and preferred their own trial by battle as more worthy of freemen and warriors. The king sought to satisfy them both. When the opposite parties were countrymen, he permitted them to follow their national cus- toms : when they were not, the appellee, if he were a foreigner or of foreign descent, might offer wager of battle, or, should this be declined, might-clear himself by his own oath, and the oaths of his witnesses according tl5 the provisions of the Norman law. But if he were a native, it was left to his option to offer battle, to go to tha ordeal, or to produce in his defence the usual number of lawful compurgators^*"^. 5. In all the other christian countries in Europe the bishops were Separation of ] . . . ... ... the socular accustomed to give judgment m spiritual causes in their own and spiritual particular courts : in England they had always heard and de- cided such cause's in the courts of the hundred. William disap- '"* Leg. 224. 228. 280. Sic permixtE sunt Dere. Dial de Scac. 26. Of course villeins nationes, ut vix discerni possit hodie, de liberis or slaves were slill reputed Englishmen. Ibid loquor, quis Anglicus quis Normanmis sit ge- '" Ibid. 218. 230. 3 K 2 courts. 436 - HISTORY OF I:NGLAND. CHAP, proved of this custom, and bj advice of all his prelates and _ priaces forbade the bishops and archdeacons to hear spiritual causes for the future in secular courts, authorized them to esta- blish tribunals of their own, and commanded the sheriffs to compel obedience to the citations of the ecclesiastical judge. By some writers this innovation has been attributed to the policy of the clergy, who sought by the establishment of separate tri- bunals to render themselves independent on the secular power : by others to that of the barons, whose object it was to remove from the civil courts the onl}^ order of men, who dared to oppose a barrier to their rapacity and injustice. Perhaps the true cause may be found in the law itself, which merely seeks to enforce the observance of the canons, and to assimilate the dis- cipline of the English to that of the foreign churches ^'*^. But whatever might be the design of the legislature, the measure was productive of very im[)ortant consecjuences. The separation created a strong rivalry between the two jurisdictions, which will occupy the attention of the reader in a subsequent chapter, and by removing so respectable a magistrate as the bishop from the courts of the hundred, became one of the principal causes, why they gradually sunk into disrepute, and ultimately into desuetude. >i.ichof the V. These innovations will perhaps dispose the reader to con- Pf"fty pre-"" cludc that the partiality or interest of William led him to new- model the whole frame of the Anglo-Saxon polity. But the inference is not warranted by the fact. As the northern tribes were all propagated from the same original stock, so their insti- tutions, though diversified by time, and climate, and accident, bore a strong resemblance to each other, and the customs of the conquerors were readily amalgamated with those of the con- "" Ibid. 292. WILLIAM I. 437 quered. Of all the feudal services enforced by the Normans, chap. there is not perhaps one of which some obscure traces may ' not be discovered among the Anglo-Saxons. The victors might extend or improve, but they did not invent or introduce, them. The caldormen of former times, the greater and lesser thanes, the ceorls and theowas seem to have disap- peared : but a closer inspection will discover the same orders of men existing under the new names of counts or earls, of barons, of knights and esquires, of free tenants, and of villeins and neiis. The national council, though it hardly contained a single native, continued to be constituted as it had been for- merly, of the principal landed proprietors, the immediate vassals of the crown : it assembled at the same stated periods : it exercised the same judicial and legislative powers. The admi- nistration of justice was vested in the ancient tribunals, the king's court, the shire-motes, hundred-motes, and hall-motes : the statutes of the Anglo-Saxon kings, with the provincial cus- toms known by the names of West-Saxon law, Mercian law, and Northumbrian law, were repeatedly confirmed ^'*^; and even the rights and privileges of every smaller district and petty lord- ship were carefully ascertained, and ordered to be observed. VI. It could not be supposed that the Normans in the pro- SomSay vinces, foreigners as they were, and indebted for their possessions to the sword, would respect customs which they deemed bar- barous, which they thought prejudicial to their interests. But, while they tyrannised over the natives, they often defrauded the crown of its ancient rights; and the king, treading in the foot- steps of the great Alfred, to put an end to all uncertainty, or- dered an exact survey to be made of every hide of land in the kingdom. Commissioners were sent into the counties, with '" Leg. Sax. 219. Ing. 88. Hov. 343. 438 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. The king-'s rerenue. authority to impanncl a jury in each hundred, from whose pre- sentments and verdicts tl}e necessary information might be obtained. They directed their inquiries to every interesting particuhir, the extent of each estate, its division into arable land, pasture, meadow, and wood : the names of the owner, tenants, and sub-tenants, the number of the inhabitants and their condition, whether it were free or servile : the nature and the obligations of the tenure, the estimated value before and since the conquest, and the amount of the land-tax paid at each of these periods "". The returns were transmitted to a board sitting at Winchester, by which they were arranged in order, and placed upon record. The commissioners entered on their task in the year 1080, and completed it in 1086. The fruit of their labours was the compilation of two volumes, which were depo- sited in the exchequer, and have descended to posterity with the appropriate title of the Domesday, or book of judgment"'. Vll. From the prececHng notices the reader will be able to form some notion of many of the sources, from which the king's revenue was derived. 1. The rents of the crown lands were generally paid in kind, and allotted to the support of the royal household. 2. From his mihtary tenants he received consi- derable sums under the different heads of reliefs, aids, ward- '" In these inquiries the king was often de- ceived by the partiality of the jurors. Ingulf observes that this was the case with respect to the lands of his abbey. Taxatores penes nostrum monasterium benevoli et amantes non ad viTum pretium nee ad verum spatium nos- trum monasterium librabant, miserecorditer prEcaventes in fuluruiu regiis e.xactionibus, et aliis oneribus piissima nobis benevolentia providentes, p. 79. He gives several other instances of false returns. See also Orderic, 67«. '" The first volume is a large folio of vel- lum, and in 382 double pages, written in a small character, contains thirty-one counties, beginning with Kent, and ending with Lin- colashire. The other is a quarto volume of 450 double pages in a large character, but contains only the counties of Essex, Norfolk, and Sussex. There is no de.scription of the four northern counties : but the VV'est Riding of Yorkshire is made to comprehend lliat part of Lanca.shire which lies to the north of the Ribble, with some districts in Westmoreland and Cumberland : while the southern portion of Lancashire is included in Cheshire. Rut- land is similarly divided between Nottingham- shire and Lincolnshire. WILLIAM L 439 ships, and die marriages of heiresses. For unless the female ward purchased at a considerable price the permission to wed . the man of her own choice, he always disposed of her in mar- riaii-c by private sale, and obtained a greater or smaller sum in proportion to the value of her lee "'^ 3. Escheats and forfeitures continually occurred, and, whether the king retained the lands himself, or gave them after some time to his favourites, they always brought money into the exchequer. 4. The fines paid by litigants for permission to have their quarrels terminated in the king's courts, the mulcts, or pecuniary penalties imposed by the laws, and the amerciaments, which were sometimes customary, generally arbitrary, according to the caprice or discretion of the judges, amounted in the course of each year to enormous sums. 5. He levied tolls at bridges, fairs, and markets, exacted certain customs on the export and import of goods, and received fees, and rents, and tallages, from the inhabitants of the burghs and ports "^. Lastly, William revived the odious tax called the danegelt, which had been abolished by Edward the confessor. It was frequently levied for his use, and, in some years at least, at the rate of six shillings on every hide of land. From all these sources money constantly flowed into the exchequer, till the king was reputed to be the most opulent prince in Christendom. His daily income, even with the exception of fines, gifts, and amer- ciaments, amounted, if we may believe an ancient historian, who seems to write from authentic documents, to ^1061. 10s. Hcl.^^*: "' As an instance Gcoffry tie Mandeville in which was occasionally refused. Thns in the the second year of Henry 111. gave 20,000 S9th of Henry III. the citizens of London narks to marry Isabella, countess of Glocesler. ofi'ored two thousand marks; but were coin- Madox, .322. pelled to pay a tallage of three thousand. "' Orderic, 258. The tallage was an aid Brady, i. 178. Other lords raised tallages in raised by the king's own authority on his a similar manner. The word has the same demesne lands. The burghs and cities fre- meaning as our present ' excise,' a cutting off. qucntly offered a gift in lieu of the tallage, '" Orderic, 258. CtUP. VIIL 440 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. Rebellion of Norman ba- rons. 1075. a protligious and almost incredible sum, if we reflect that the pound of that period was equal in weight to three nominal pounds of the present day, and that the value of silver was per- haps ten times as great as in modern times. After the surrender of Morcar, William had led an army into Normandy to support his interests in the province of Maine. His absence encouraged the malcontents in England to unfurl the banner of insurrection. Vtut the rebels were no longer natives : they were Normans, dissatisfied with the rewards which they had received, and offended by the haughty and over- bearincp carriage of the kins;"^ At their head were Roger Fitz-Osbern, who had succeeded his father in the earldom of Hereford, and Ralph de Guader, a noble Breton, earl of Norfolk. The latter, in defiance of the royal prohibition, had married the sister of the former : and the two earls, aware of WiHiani's vengeance, resolved to anticipate the danger. It was their object to prevent his return to England : to partition the kingdom into the three great divisions of Wessex, Mercia, and Northumbria ; to take two of these for themselves, and to give the third to Waltheof, whose accession to the confederacy would, they expected, secure the co-operation of the natives. Waltheof refused to engage in the enterprise : but imprudently suffered himself to be sworn to secrecy. The plan of the conspirators was soon discovered to William de Warrenne, and Richard de Bienfait, the grand justiciaries : in a battle at Bicham in Norfolk, the rebels were defeated, and every prisoner made in '" They accused him of having banished for life Warleng, earl of Morta^ne, for an of- fensive expression, and of having procured by poison the death of Conan, earl of Bretagne, and of Walter, earl of Pontoise. Orderic, p. .'JO.J, 30 1. But it appears from William of Jumiege (vii. 19) that the words of Warleng were sufficient evidence of a conspiracy against his sovereign ; and the other charges were but reports which liad never been substantiated. See Maseres, Orderic, 305. Note. WILLIAM I. 441 the pursuit was punished with the loss of his right foot. The chap. victors besieged Guader in his castle of Norwich during three ' months : at length, despairing of succour, he consented to quit the kingdom with his followers within a certain period ; and after visiting Denmark, returned to his patrimonial estates in Bretagne "^ William had now returned from Normandy, and summoned Their fate. a council of his barons at London. In this court Guader was outlawed : Fitz-Osbern was convicted of treason, and sentenced, according to the Norman code, to perpetual imprisonment, and the loss of his property. His father's services indeed pleaded forcibly in his fiivour : but his proud and ungovernable tem- per disdained to ask for mercy "^. Waltheof was next ar- raigned. His secret had been betrayed by the perfidy of Judith, who had fixed her aftections on a Norman nobleman, and was anxious to emancipate herself from her English husband. By the Anglo-Saxon law treason was punished with death and for- feiture : but the guilt of Waltheof was rather of that species, which has since been denominated misprision of treason. He had been acquainted with the conspiracy, and had not as a faithful vassal disclosed it to his sovereign. His judges were divided in opi- Execution of nion : and the unfortunate earl continued during a year, a close ^lorc. prisoner in the castle of Winchester. Archbishop Lanfranc laboured to procure his release : but the intrigues of his wife, and of the noblemen who sought his estates, defeated the efforts of the primate. Waltheof was condemned to die, and executed "" Lanfran. ep. 318. The battle was fought were distinguished by a particular dress (Id. in campo, qui Fagaduua dicitur, which I con- p. 327). It is probable the articles sent to ceive to be a translation of the English name Fitz-Osbern were of that description. They Beccham. Ordoric, 318. consisted of a vest of silk, interula serica, a '" When the king sent him a valuable pre- mantle, chlamys, and a shorter cloak of the sent of clothes, he kindled a fire in his prison, skins of martens, rheno de pretiosis pellibus and burnt them (Ord. p. 322). From another peregrinonun murium. Ord. p. 322. passage in the same writer we learn that earls VOL. I. .3 L 442 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. VIII. The murder of Walcher. at an early hour the next morning, before the citizens could be apprized othis intended fate. By the natives his death was sin- cerely deplored. They deemed him the victim of Norman injustice, and revered his memory as that of a martyr"^. The reader will be pleased to learn that the perfidy of Judith experienced a suitable retribution. AVilliam ordered her to marry a foreign nobleman, named Simon : but she refused to give her hand to a husband that was deformed. The king knew how to punish her disobedience. Simon married the eldest daughter of Waltheof "^, and received the estates of her father : Judith was left to languish in poverty, unpitied by the Enghsh or the Normans, and the object of general hatred or contempt ^^''. The remaining transactions of the king's reign may be divided into those which regarded his English, and those which regarded his transmarine, dominions. I. He led a powerful army into Wales, established his superiority over the natives of that countr}^ ; and restored to freedom several hundreds of Eng- lish slaves ^-\ Malcolm of Scotland had renewed his ravages in Northumberland ; and Robert, the eldest son of the conqueror, was sent to chastise his perfidy. But the two princes did not meet : and the only result of the expedition was the foundation of Newcastle on the left bank of the Tyne ^^-. The earldom of the country had been given, after the condemnation of Waltheof, to Walcher, a native of Lorraine, who had been lately raised to the episcopal see of Durham. The bishop was of a n)ild and "' I have chiefly followed Orderic (p. 302 — 327), who minutely describes the whole affair. According to some of our chroniclers Waltheof was more guilty, having at first embarked in the conspiracy. Malm. 68. Hunt. 211. "° This lady's name was Matilda. After the death of Simon she married David, who became king of Scotland in 1125. In her right he was earl of Huntingdon, which dig- nity for some centuries afterwards was annexed to the crown of Scotland. Script. Nor. p. 702. '■"> Ingulf, 73. '•" Chron. Sax. 184. Hunt. 212. '" Simeon, 211. Bromp. 977. Wesl. 228. WILLIAM I. 443 easy disposition: his humanity revolted from the idea of op- CH\P. pressing the inhabitants himself: but liis indolence prevented ' him iVom seeing or from restraining the oppressions ol liis officers. Liulf, a noble Enghshman, had ventured to accuse them before the prelate: and in the course of a tew days he was slain. Walcher publicly declared his innocence of the homi- loso. cide; compelled the murderers to offer the legal compensation, ^^' and engaged to act as mediator between them and the relations of Liulf Both parties met by agreement at Gateshead : but the bishop perceiving indications of violence among the natives, retired into the church. It was set on fire. He first compelled the murderers to go out, who Avere immediately slain. Unable to bear the violence of the tlames, he wrapped his mantle round his head, and appeared at the door. A voice immediately ex- claimed : " Good rede, short rede^"'^; slay ye the bishop!" and he fell pierced with a number of wounds. The king commis- sioned his brother Odo to avenge the fate of Walcher. The guilty absconded at his approach: but Odo thinking it unne- cessary to discriminate between guilt and innocence, executed without investigation such of the natives as fell into his hands, and ravaged the whole country ^^^. This prelate, who had so long enjoyed the friendship, was at imprisonment last destined to experience the resentment, of his brother. Odo, '°^^- not content with the rank which he held in Normandy and England, aspired to the papacy. The fortune of the Guiscard had excited the most extravagant expectations in the minds of his countrymen : and it was believed that with a Norman pope, the whole of Italy must fall under the yoke of the Normans. By what means Odo was to obtain the papal dignity, we are not '" An old proverb— meaning that the '" Sim. 47. Malm. 62. Chron. Sax. 184. shortest counsel is the best. Flor. 639. Alur. Bev. 1.15. 3 L 2 444 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, told : but several of William's favourite officers had pled 1 /. 1 ^^^^ Rouen. Norujandy. Conan, the wealthiest and most powerful of the citizens, had engaged to deliver it up to William, and the duke, to defeat the project, solicited the aid of Henry, whom he had lately released, and of several of his barons. On the third of November at the same hour Gilbert de L'aigle was seen to the south of the city leading a body of men to the assistance of Robert : while Reginald de Warrenne appeared on the north with three hundred knights in the service of the king of Eng- land. The adherents of Conan instantly divided to receive their friends, and repulse their foes: Robert and Henry descended from the castle with their followers ; and the streets of the city were filled with confusion and bloodshed. So doubtful was the issue, that the duke, at the request of his friends, withdrew to a - place of safet}' : but at last the English wereexpelled ; and Conan was conducted a captive into the fortress. By Robert he was condemned to perpetual confinement : but Henry, who was well acquainted with the lenity of his brother, requested and obtained the custody of the prisoner. He immediately led him to the highest tower, bade him survey the beauty of the surrounding '« Alur. Bev. 138. 464 HlSTOPxY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, scenery, and then seizing him by the waist, hurled him over the IX battlements. The unhappy Conan was dashed to pieces: the prince turning to the by-standers coolly observed, that treason ought never to go unpunished". Peace be- In the following January William crossed the sea with a tween the two '" _ _ i • i i brothers. nuuicrous amiy. J^y the JNormans, who derived advantage 1091. \ . \ . . from the calamities of their country, his arrival was hailed with welcome : but the barons, who held lands under both the brothers, laboured to effect a reconciliation ; and a treaty of peace was negociated under the mediation of the French monarch. The policy of William again triumphed over the credulity of Robert. He retained possession of the fortresses which he had acquired in Normandy : but promised to indem- nify his brother b}' an equivalent in England, and to restore to their estates his friends, who had been attainted for the late insurrection. By an additional article it was stipulated that, on the decease of either of the two princes, the survivor should succeed to his dominions ^^. Expulsion of The principal sufferers by this treaty were Edgar theetheling, *°'^' and prince Henry. Edgar had been the confidential friend of Robert : at the demand of William he was deprived of his estates in Normandy, and compelled to seek an asylum with his brother-in-law, the king of Scotland. The abihties and preten- sions of Henry had long been subjects of alarm to both the king and the duke. They now united their forces, took possession of his castles, and besieged him on mount St. Michel, a lofty rock, which by the influx of the tide was insulated twice in the day. The place was deemed impregnable: but the want of water caused it to be evacuated bj the garrison at the end of a fort- " Compare Malmsbury. (p. 88), with Orde- '= Chron, Sax. 196, 197. Al. Bev. 1 38. lie (p. 690). 2 WILLIAM II. 465 night ; and Henry with difficulty obtained permission to retire chap. into Bretagne. For two years he wandered in the Vexin, " suffering the privations of poverty, and attended only by a knight, a chaplain, and tlirre esquires. At length he accepted from the inhabitants of Damfront the government of their town : and gradually recovered the greater part of his former possessions ^ '. The siege of mount St. Michel was distinguished by an oc- currence, which has been celebrated by our historians as a proof of William's magnanimity. Riding alone he espied at a distance a few cavaliers, belonging to the enemy, whom he immediately charged with his usual intrepidity. In the shock he was beaten to the ground : and his horse, which had been wounded, dragged him some paces in the stirrup. His adversary had already raised his sword to plunge it in the breast of the fallen monarch, when William exclaimed : " Hold, fellow, I am " the king of England." Awed by his voice, his opponents raised him from the ground : a fresh horse was offered him : and the king vaulting into the saddle, inquired which of them was his conqueror. The man apologized for his ignorance. " Make " no excuse," replied William, " you are a brave and worthy " knight. Henceforth you shall fight under my banner ^*." By what pretexts the king eluded the execution of his ^^^^ renewed _ in Normandy. treaty with Robert, we are ignorant. It was in vain that the duke accompanied him to England to receive the promised indemnity ; in vain that he repeated his demand by successive messengers. At length he dispatched two heralds, who, having 1094. obtained an audience, renounced, in the name of their master, the friendship of William, and declared him a false and perjured knight. To defend his honour the king followed them to Nor- " Ordetic, 696. 698. " Malip. 68. VOL. I. 3 o 466 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. IX. Robert mort- gages his dominions. mandy, and pleaded his cause before the twenty-four barons, who, at the signature of the treaty, had sworn, twelve on the one side, and twelve on the other, to enforce its execution. They decided in favour of Robert: and from their decision William appealed to the sword. Success attended his first efforts t but the balance was turned by the arrival of the king of France to the assistance of his vassal, and by the subsequent surrender of Argentsey and Hulme, with fifteen hvmdred knights, their esquires and followers. William had again recourse to his usual expedient of bribery : and the manner in which he raised the money de- served the praise of ingenuity. He had demanded reinforce- ments from England : and twenty thousand men were assembled : but when they had been drawn up to embark, each soldier was ordered to pay ten shillings for the king's use, and to march back to his own home^^. With the money thus acquired Wil- liam purchased the retreat of the French king, and despising the unassisted efforts of his brother, returned, after an inglorious campaign, to his English dominions^''. But that which the king had so long endeavoured to obtain by force, was at last spontaneously surrendered by the chivalrous spirit of Robert. It was the era of the crusades. Urban II., who filled the papal chair, had received tlie most urgent letters from the patriarch of Jerusalem, and the emperor of Constanti- nople. The former painted in lively colours the sufferings of the oriental christians under the yoke of their mohammedan masters: the latter sought to alarm the western nations by describing the danger to which the imperial city itself was exposed from the near approach of the Saracens. Their representations were suc- " This sum was what each had received unicuique decern solidos, abstulit. from his lord, or was supposed to carry with Bev. 141. him, for his support during the campaign. " Chron. Sax, 198. 200, 201. Pecuniani, quae ipsis ad victum data fucrat, Alur. WILLIAM II. 467 cessiiil ; and the pontiff determined to oppose the enthusiasm of CHAP, the christiiins to the enthusiasm of the infidels. The spirit of " adventure, Avhich had distinguished the tribes of the north, was still alive in the breasts of their descendants : and he judged rightly that it would prove invincible, if it were sanctified and directed by the impulse of religion. When, in the council of Clermont, he advised an expedition for the recovery of the holy land, the proposal was received with the unanimous cry, that it was the will of God. Those who had listened to the ani- mating voice of the pontiff, in their return to their homes diffused the same fervour among their countrymen : and thousands hastened from ever}'' corner of Europe, to shed their blood in the cause of the cross, and to rescue from pollution the sepulchre of Christ. The adventurous mind of Robert burnt to share in i096. the enterprise: but to appear among the confederate princes with the splendour due to his birth and station, required an expense to which his poverty was unequal. As his only resource he applied to the avarice of his brother: and in consideration of the sum of ten thousand marks offered him the government of his dominions during the five following years. The proposal was instantly accepted. William summoned a great council, and, alleging his poverty, appealed to the generosity of his faithful barons : they, on their return home, required in the same manner the aid of their tenants : and the whole amount, wrung in reality from the lowest orders in the state, was paid into the exchequer, and transmitted to Normandy. Robert departed with a joyful heart in quest of dangers and glory : William sailed to the continent, and demanded immediate possession of Normandy, and of Le Maine ^'^. " Chron. Sax. 204. Order. 713. 764. Al. Bev. 142. Malm. 70. 3 o 2 468 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. By the Normans he was received without opposition : the ' Manfeaux unanimously rejected his authority in favour of Helie TViUiain op- de la Fleche. Helie was the nephew of Herbert the last earl, Maftfe.'" by the youngest of his three sisters. The eldest had been mar- ried to Azo, marquis of Liguria ; and the second was betrothed to Robert, the son of the conqueror. Though she died before the marriage could be celebrated, Robert claimed the succession, conquered Le Maine with the aid of his father, and did homage for the earldom to Fulk of Anjou, the superior lord. The Manpeaux rebelled : the son of the eldest sister sold his claim to Helie for ten thousand shillings : and the young adventurer l)y his own prowess and the favour of the natives obtained posses- 1099. sion of the earldom. Though he had taken the cross, the claims and menaces of William detained him at home : but one day, having incautiously entered a wood with no more than seven knights, he was made prisoner by Robert Talavace ; and the king immediately marched at the head of fifty thousand horse- men into his territories. Fulk had already arrived to protect his vassals : a few skirmishes were succeeded by a negociation : and Hehe obtained his liberty by the surrender of Mans. The earl, dispossessed of his dominions, offered his services to William : at the instigation of Robert earl of Mellent they were indig- nantly refused. " If you Avill not have me for a friend," ex- claimed Helie, " you shall learn to fear me as an enemy." " Go," rephed the king, "and do thy worst ^^" Hastens to The ncxt summer William was hunting in the New Forest in a province. |^jjp-,pgjjjj.g^ Avhcu a messcngcr arrived to inform him, that Helie had defeated the Normans, and surprised the city of Mans : that the inhabitants had again acknowledged him for their earl : and " Orderic, 769. 771—773. WILLIAM II. 4(59 that the garrison, shut up in the castle, would soon be reduced ^"i^^- to extremity. The isnpaticnce of the king could hardly wait for ______ the conclusion of the tale, when, crying out to his attendants, " Let those that love me, follow," he rode precipitately to the sea shore, and embarked in the first vessel which he found. The master remonstrated that the weather was stormy, and the pas- sage dangerous. " Hold thy peace," said William, " kings are " never drowned." He landed the next day at Barfleur, assem- bled his troops, and advanced with such rapidity, that Helie could scarcely find time to save himself by flight. The king ravaged the lands of his enemies, and returned to England ^^. II. Of the hostilities between England and Scotland the ^Var with n Scotland. blame must rest with the king of Scots, who lost his life in the io9i. contest. William was in Normandy prosecuting his designs against Robert, when Malcolm suddenly crossed the frontiers, and gratified the rapacity of his followers with the spoil of the northern counties. After the reconciUation of the two brothers, the king of England undertook to revenge this insult. As he marched through Durham, he restored the bishop of that see. His fleet was dispersed in a storm ; but his cavalry traversed the Lothians, and penetrated as tiir as the great river, which the Scots called " the water" -°. The hostile armies were ranged on the opposite shores, and the two kings had mutually defied each other, when a peace. was concluded through the mediation of Robert of Normandy on the one side, and of Edgar, the ethel- Submission of ing, on the other. Malcolm submitted to do homao;e to the ' * " ' " Orderic, 774. Chron. Sax. 207. Malm. " you get the better, by the face of Lucca 70. This writer tells us that Helie was again " (his usual oath), I will demand no return taken, and being addressed by the king in " for your freedom." This appears to me no these words: " I have you at last, sir;" re- more than a second version of the conversation plied, " Yes, chance has been in your favour : mentioned above. On the death of William, " but were I at liberty, I know what 1 would Helie recovered his earldom. Orderic, 784. " do." " Go then," said William, " and if " Order. 701. 470 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. English monarch, and to render him the services which he had rendered to his father ; and Wihiam engaged to grant to the Scottish king the twelve manors, and the annual pension of twelve marks of gold, which he had enjoyed under the con- queror -^ Nor was the interest of the etheling forgotten in the negociation. He was permitted to return to England, and ob- tained a distinguished place in the court of William. The war re- Two huudrcd jcars had elapsed since Carlisle was laid in ruins ^"ui92. by the Northmen. When the conqueror returned from his Scottish expedition, he found it in the possession of one of his barons, and admiring the situation, ordered it to be fortified. William adopted the policy of his father. He visited the spot, expelled Dolphin, the lord of the district, peopled the city with a colony of Englishmen from the southern counties, and built a castle for their protection ". It is possible that, as Cumberland was formerly held by the heir of the Scottish crown, Malcolm might consider the settlement of an English colony at Carlisle, as an invasion of his rights : it is certain that a new quarrel Avas created between the two nations, of which we know not the origin or particulars. The Scottish king was invited or sum- 1093 monad to attend William's court at Gloucester ; and at his arrival found himself excluded from the royal presence, unless he would consent to plead his cause, and submit to the judgment of the English barons. Malcolm indignantly rejected the proposal. The kings of Scotland, he said, had never been accustomed " to " The mention of these twelve manors will Chronicle says, that Malcolm " came out of bring to the reader's recollection the twelve " Scotland into Lothian in England." Chron. villsE, which Edgar liad given to Kenneth, p. 197. Perhaps the difficulty will disappear, that he might have habitations of his own when we recollect that by the writers of this when he was on his journey to attend the age the name of Scotland was confined to the English court (See the reign of Edgar, territory lying north of tlie Forth, p. 241). Some question has been raised as " West. 227. Cliron. Sax. 198. to the pla«e where the kings met, because the Aiiff. 8, WILLIAM II. 471 " do right" to the kings of Enghmd but on the borders of the chap. two reahns, and according to the joint decision of tlio barons of both countries ^^. He retired in anger, assembled his retainers, and buist with a numerous force into Nortliumberhind, where he perished, a victim to the wiles of his enemy, perha[)s to the treachery of his own subjects. The Scottish army was surprised by Robert Mowbray. Malcolm fell by the sword of Morel, Nov. la. Mowbray's steward : his eldest son Edward shared the fate of his father ; and of the fugitives who escaped the pursuit of their foes, the greater number was lost in the waters of the Alne and the Tweed. The bodies of the king and his son were buried by peasants in the abbey of Tinmouth, and the mournful intelli- gence hastened the death of his consort queen Margaret, who survived her husband only four days ^*. The children of Malcolm, too young to assert their rights, Succession ta ,. t ■ 11 11- n 1 ^ • 'he crown of sought the protection oi then* uncle the ethehng bdgar m Scotland. England : and the Scottish sceptre Avas seized by the ambition of Donald Bane, the brother of the deceased monarch. He found a competitor in Duncan, an illegitimate son of Malcolm, who had long resided as an hostage in the English court. The nephew, with the aid of William, to whom he swore fealty, proved too strong for the uncle, and Donald secreted himself in the highlands, till the murder of Duncan by Malpcit, earl of 1094. Mearns, replaced in his hands the reins of government. He " Rcctitudinem facere. Alur. Bev. 139. at the end of a spear, pushed the spear into Sim. Dun. 218. Flor. 645. This expression his brain. It may be granted that tiiere was has been explained to do homage. It means something disgraceful in the transaction from to answer for any alleged failure in the per- the expressions of Orderic (701), and of the formance of feudal services. Chronicle (beswykene 199): but the Scottish =' Chron. Sax. 197 — 199. Sim. 218. account seems inconsistent wit li the fact, that Orderic, 701. The Scottish historians pre- the bodies of Malcolm and Edward were tend that Malcolm was killed at the siege of found on the ground by peasants, and buried Alnwick by the perfidy of the governor, who, by them at Tynemouth, a considerable dis- aflecting to present him the keys of the place tance from Alnwick. 472 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, held them only three years : and the ethelins; with the consent of IX • ^ ' the English king conducted an army into Scotland, seated his 1097^ nephew Edgar on the throne, and restored the children of his sister Margaret to their former honours. Donald, who had been taken in his flight, and committed to prison, died of grief ^^. Incursions of HI- Evcr siucc Harold had effected the reduction of Wales, the WeisU, ^^^ natives had acknowledged themselves the vassals of the king of England : but their ancient hostihty was not yet extinguished, and the prospect of plunder, with the chance of impunity, led them repeatedly to ravage the neighbouring counties. To repress their inroads the conqueror had ordered castles to be built on the borders, which he intrusted to the care of officers, de- nominated marquesses, or lords of the marches ^^. These marches were the constant theatre of predatory warfare, and barbarian revenge. But in 1094 the natives of every district in Wales rose in arms : the isle of Anglesey was reduced : and Cheshire, Shropshire, and Herefordshire, from one extremity to the other, 1095. were desolated with fire and sword. The next year the insur- gents surprised the castle of Montgomery, and massacred the inhabitants. The resentment of William urged him to retaliate : and, in imitation of Harold, he undertook to traverse the whole principality at the head of an army. But the heavy cavalry of the Normans was ill adapted to the invasion of a rugged and mountainous country. The Welsh had the wisdom not to oppose his progress : but they hovered on his flanks, drove fbrAvard his rear, and cut oft' his detachments : and when the =» Chron. Sax. 199. 201. 206. Malm. 89. concederet, petiit et irapetravit ; illique fide- Sim. 219. Flor. 646. The contemporary litatem juravit. Sim. Dun. 219. Flor. 646, chroniclers represent Duncan as soliciting and Sec also Ethelrcd, 343. obtaining from William a grant of the king- "^ Orderic, 670. doiH of Scotland. Ut ci regaum sui patris WILLIAM II. 473 kiDo, after a slow and tedious march of five weeks, had reached ^"^P- the mountains of Snowdun, he found to liis mortification that the . .. , loss of the conquerors exceeded that of the vanquished. The next year the lords of the marches prosecuted the war by ravao-ino- the lands in the neighbourhood : and the following summer the king resumed his operations, but with similar results. The loss of men, of horses, and of baggage, convinced him of the inutility of the enterprise. He retired out of Wales in despair, adopted the policy of his father, and by drawing a chain of castles round the country, endeavoured to put a stop to the incursions of these restless and inaccessible enemies ^''. IV. The most powerful of the Anglo-Norman barons was ^^""^^^ llobert Mowbray, earl of Northumberland. He had inherited ""^^y •_, •^ ' 1095. from his uncle the bishop of Coutances no fewer than two himdred and eighty manors : the first families in the nation were allied to him by blood or affinity : and his command in the north had placed at his disposal the services of a numerous and warlike population. By his orders four Norwegian merchant- men of considerable value had been detained and plundered : and when the king, at the petition of the owners, summoned him to answer for the offence, the royal mandate was repeat- edly slighted and disobeyed. William resolved to chastise the insolence of his vassal : his rapidity disconcerted the friends of the earl : the principal of the Northumbrian chieftains were surprised and made prisoners ; and the strong castle of Tinmouth after a siege of two months was compelled to surrender. Still from the walls of Bamborough Mowbray continued to defy the arms of his sovereign : nor did William undertake the hopeless task of reducing that impregnable fortress : but, in the vicinity erected another castle, which he appropriately denominated " Chron. Sax. 203, 4, 5. Sim. 219. Malm. 68. VOL. I. 3 P nnof Mow- 474 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, IMalvoisin, or the bad neighbour. At length the earl was IX. decoyed from his as^dum. An insidious ofter to betray into his hands the town of Newcastle, induced him to quit Bamborough in the dead of the night with no more than thirty horsemen. The garrison of Malvoisin immediately followed : the gates of Newcastle were shut : and the earl fled from his pursuers to the monastery of St. Oswin. During five days he valiantl}'^ de- fended himself against the repeated assaults of a superior enemy : on the sixth he was wounded in tlie leg, and made prisoner. The captive by the royal order was conducted to Bamborough, and his countess Matilda was invited to a parley. From the walls she beheld her lord in bonds with the execu- tioner by his side, prepared to put out his eyes, if she refused to surrender the fortress. Her affection (they had been married only three months) subdued her repugnance : the gates were thrown open : and Morell, the governor, to ingratiate himself with the conqueror, revealed the particulars of an extensive and dangerous conspiracy to place on the throne Stephen of Albemarle, brother to Judith of infamous memory. Hugh, earl of Shrewsbury, purchased his pardon for three thousand pounds : Walter de Lacy escaped to the continent : Odo, earl of Holder- ness, forfeited his estates and was imprisoned : Mowbray him- self was condemned to perpetual confinement, and lived near thirty years in the castle of Windsor. William, count of Eu, a near relation of the king, fought his accuser, was vanquish- ed, and lost his eyes. The fate of William of Alderic, the king's godfather, excited more commiseration. He was sen- tenced to be hanged : but the integrity of his life, and liis assever- ations at the gallows, convinced the public that he was innocent '^, =" Chron. Sax. 202—204. Sim. 221. Bromp. nfl2. The count D'Eu caecatus et OrJcric, 703, 704. Alur. Bev. 141, 142. exto6ti«alalus est. M alto. 70. WILLIAM 11. 47 V. At the death of the conqueror the royal treasury at Win- chap. Chester contained sixty thousand pounds of silver, besides gold, ^^^^^ and precious stones '^' : and if to this sum we achl the annual riiekiug-H revenue of the crown, we may safely pronounce William to have '^''''^*^' * been at his accession a most opulent monarch. But no accu- mulation of wf;alth however large, no supply however abundant, could equal the waste of his prodigality. He spurned at restraint : and in his dress and table, in his pleasures and presents, left be- hind him the most extravagant of his contemporaries*^. Immense sums were lavished in purchasing or rewarding the services of fo- reigners, who, whatever might be their country or their character, were assured of receiving a gracious welcome from the king of England ^^ When his resources began to fail, the deficiency was supplied by extortion : nor was there any expedient, how- ever base or unjust, which he hesitated, for a moment, to adopt if it sensed to replenish his coffers. The authority which arch- bishop Lanfranc derived from his age and station, contributed to check for a few years the royal extravagance ; but the death of that prelate in 1089 removed every restraint ; and, in the place of an iuiportunate monitor, the king substituted a rapa- cious and remorseless minister. Ralf (afterwards surnamed the thai-acter of Half Flam- Flambard, or devouring torch) was a Norman clergyman of '"'r'' obscure birth, of ready wit, dissolute morals, and insatiable am- bition. He had followed the court of the conqueror, and first attracted notice in the capacity of a public informer. From the service of Maurice, bishop of London, he passed to that of Wil- liam : and the king soon discovered his merit, and gradually '^ Ingulf, 100. cost a mark. Ibid. ™ Malm. G9. He telld U3 that the king re- ^' He was, according to Suger, mirabilis fused a pair of hose because they had cost only militum mercator et solidalor, Vit. Lud. three shillings ; and put on a worse pair, when Grossi, 2S3. his chamberlain assured him that they had 3 p 2 476 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, raised him to the highest situation in the kingdom, by appointing " ' him to the offices of royal chaplain, treasurer, and justiciary. The minister was sensible that to retain the favour, it was neces- sary to flatter the vices, of his master: and his ingenuity was successfully employed in devising new metliods of raising money. The liberty of hunting was circumscribed by additional penal- ties : to multiply fines new offences were created : capital punishments were commuted for pecuniary mulcts : and another survey of the kingdom was ordered, to raise the land tax of those estates which had been under-rated in the record of Domesday. By these arts Flambard earned the eulogium, which was pronounced on him by the king, that he was the only man, who to please a master, was willing to brave the vengeance of the rest of mankind ^^. Conspiracy If, howcvcr, he cludcd that vengeance, his preservation was against hiin, . ,. ••ij^i ^i- owmg more to fortunate contmgencies tlian to the protection of William. One day, as he was walking by the side of the Tliames, Ceroid, a mariner who had formerly been in his ser- vice, but now pretended to be a messenger from the bishop of London, requested him to step into a boat, and visit that prelate, whom he represented as lying at the point of death in a villa on the opposite bank. Unsuspicious of danger Flam- bard complied : but when the boat had conveyed him a little way down the river, he was forcibly put on board a ship, and carried out to sea. Fortunately a storm arose : the men, who had engaged to murder him, quarrelled ; Ceroid was induced by promises and intreatics to put him on shore ; and on the third day, to the terror and amazement of his enemies, he appeared in his usual place at court. As a compensation he obtained " Malm. 09, 1.58. Oideric, 678. 786- WILLIAM II. 477 the bishopric of Durham : but the king was not in the habit of chap. conferrinsi- benefits without a return : and the favourite, to prove j;^;^^;;^^^ his gratitude, matlc him a present of one thousand pounds ^^. In the payment of this sum Flambard had been caught in T'"''''",^^ his own toils : thouuh, if any man could expect gratuitous pro- bisi'"?"" ■ . , vacant. motion under a prince like William, it was one, who to his other claims of remuneration added the merit of having dis- covered a new and productive source of revenue in the custody and sale of the vacant abbeys and bishoprics. Before the con- quest, on tiie demise of an abbot or prelate, the care of the tem- poralties devolved on the diocesan, or the archbishop : under the conqueror it was intrusted to a clergyman who was appoint- ed by tlie king, and compelled to render an exact account of his administration to the next incumbent^. Flambard pro- nounced both these customs an infringement of the rights of the crown. He contended that the prelacies were tlefs held of the kino;, the revenues of which, on the death of the actual te- nant, ought to revert to the sovereign, till he, of his special grace, bestowed them on a new abbot or bishop. Acting on these principles he took every vacant prelacy under his own cai-e. Inferior officers were appointed to administer the tcmporalties for the benefit of the crown : by these the lands and profits were farmed out to speculators by public auction : and the existing tenant, sensible that he might at any moment be ejected at the suit of a higher bidder, lost no time in converting his bar- gain into a source of the greatest possible advantage. The reader may readily conceive tiie extortions and dilapidations, which were the invariable consequences of so inicjuitous a sys- tem. The monks and the clergy belonging to the church " Ang. Sac. i. 706. KnyghtOD, 2,309. =• Ordoric, 516. 079. Pit. Ble?. contlq. Simeon,224. 111. Alur. Bev. 143. 478 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, were oftea compelled to seek a precarious subsistence from the " charity of strangers ; and the men of the prelate, the ecclesi- astical tenants, were generally reduced to the lowest degree of penury. Nor did tlie mischief end here. Wealth so easily acquired, was not easily surrendered : William kept the vacant bishoprics and abbeys for several years in his own possession : and, if he consented at last to name a successor, it was pre- viously understood that the new prelate should pay a sum into the exchequer, proportionate to the value of the benefice^. Names An- During Lent, in the fourth year after the demise of Lanfranc, terbury. '" the king was taken dangerously ill : and he, who in health had set at defiance the laws of God and man, began to tremble at the probable approach of death. The celebrated Anselm, a native of Aoust in Piedmont, and abbot of Bee in Normandy, had at this period accidentally arrived in England, where he had been invited by Hugh, earl of Chester. His reputation induced William to send for him to Gloucester : and by his advice the sick monarch engaged to amend his conduct, restored to dif- ferent churches the estates of which he had unjustly deprived them, forgave by proclamation all offences committed against the crown ; and promised to his people, in the event of his reco- very, an upright administration of justice. During his health he had frequently been solicited to nominate a successor to Lan- franc ; and had as frequently replied that he would never part with the temporalties of Canterbury till his death. The bishops seized the present moment to renew their importunities : and William, in the fervour of his repentance, exclaimed that he gave that office to Anselm. The pious monk at this unexpected declaration was filled with alarm and sadness : the vexations " Orderic, 763. 774. The king at his four bishoprics, and eleven ablieys, all of «leath had ip his hands one archbishopric, which had been let out to farm, tiles. 111. WILLIAM II. 479 and inquietudes to which he was likely to be exposed, rushed on chap. his mind : and he felt himself unequal to a perpetual contest " with a prince of insatiable avarice, and impetuous passions, and without any principles of morality, or any respect for rehgion. But it was in vain, that he repeatedly refused to acquiesce in the royal choice. He was dragged to the bed of the king: a crosier was brought into the room : this emblem of the archiepiscopal dig- nity was forced into his hand ; and the Te-deum was sung in thanksgiving for the event. Anselm still protested against the vio- lence of his election, and declared that it was of no avail, since he was the subject not of the king of England, but of the duke of Nor- mandy. But the consent of Robert was easily obtained : the arch- bishop of Ilouen ordered him to obey, and the reluctant abbot, after a long and violent struggle, submitted to the advice of his friends, and the commands of his superiors^*. What Anselm had Ibretold was soon realized. William reco- vered, became ashamed of his weakness, revoked the pardons which he had granted, and displayed his former rapacity and despotism. Nor were his morals less reprehensible than his system of government. His court had become a constant scene of debauchery. In order that he might indulge his passions with less restraint, he refused to marry : the young nobility courted the favour of their sovereign by imitating his example : and in the society of flatterers and prostitutes the decencies of life and the prohibitions of religion Avere equally exposed to out- rage and derision ^'^. Such conduct added force to the objec- tions of Anselm, who, though he was already invested with the " Eadmer, 15 — 19. Sodomae scelus noviler in hac terra divulga- " Malm. 69. Orderic, 682. 763. Luxu- fiim, jam plurimum puUulavit, multosque sua lice scelus tacendura exercebat, non occulte, imnianitate fadavit. Ead. '24. From this sed ex impudentia coram sole. Hunt. 216. passage I should infer that it was introduced Paris, 46. Anselm adds : nefandissimum by the Nonnans. 1 480 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. IX. Persecutes Anselm. temporalties of the archbishopric, allowed seven months to elapse before he could be induced to do homage to the king, and re- ceive the archiepiscopal consecration. He had previously required that all the lands of his see should be restored, and that William should follow his advice in matters regarding the welfare of his soul. To these requests an evasive answer was returned : " That the just expectations of the archbishop should " not be disappointed ^^." From the subsequent treatment of Anselm a plan appears to have been already arranged for subduing the independent spirit of the ncAv archbishop, and for rendering him the obsequious slave of the king. On the very day in which he entered Canter- bury, and as he was going in procession to his cathedral, Flam- bard arrested him in the street, and summoned him to answer in the king's court for some imputed breach of the royal prero- gative^^. His tenants, during several months, were compelled to pay their rents into the exchequer: and those to whom Wil- liam had alienated the archiepiscopal manors, were encouraged to retain them under the authority of the crown*'. Though Anselm found himself reduced to such poverty, that the ex- penses of his household were defrayed by the abbot of St. Alban's'*\ he was given to understand that the king expected a present in return for his promotion. With great difficulty he raised the sum of five hundred pounds : but it was scornfully refused as unworthy the royal acceptance. " Do not, my lord,'' said the primate, " spurn my ofter. Though the first, it will " not be the last, present of your archbishop. Use me like a " freeman, and I devote myself, with all that I have, to your "Ead. 19,20.23. *■ Ead. 20. By similar threats and pro- secutions lie extorted from Bloet, bishop of Liilcoln, no less than 5000 pounds of silver. Bromp. 988. '" Bromp. ibid. Ead. 20. Ep. Ansel, iii. 24. *' Paris, Vit. Abbat. 1004. WILLIAM II. 481 CHAP. IX. " service : but if you treat me as a slave, you will have neither « me nor mine."—" Go," replied the king in a rage, " I want " neither thee nor thine." Anselm departed ; and, to prove that he was not actuated by a spirit of parsimony, distributed the whole sum to the poor"*^. He was now, in the phraseology of the court, out of the kino-'s favour : but it was privately intimated to him, that on the offer of one thousand pounds all former causes of offence would be forgotten. The mind of Anselm, superior to the temptations of hope and fear, neglected the suggestion. The bishops had assembled at Hastings, to take their leave of the king previously to his departure for Normandy : and the primate earnestly requested them to reconcile him with his sovereign. AVilliam dictated the terms : that he should pay five hundred pounds immediately, and engage to pay five hundred more within a certain term. Anselm replied that he was without money him- self, and that his vassals, impoverished by the royal exactions, were unable to supply him with the sum required. " Then," ex- claimed the king, " as I hated him yesterday, so I hate him more " to-day, and will hate him still more bitterly the longer I live. " He shall never be acknowledged by me for archbishop. Let " him go. He need not wait here to give me his blessing when " I sail. I will not receive it '*^." There were at the time two competitors for the papacy, the Dispute aW *■ . tile succession antipope Clement, and Urban 11. the legitimate successor of to the papacy. Gregory. This was a favourable opportunity for William, who, affecting to hesitate between the two, refused to acknowledge "Ead. 21,22. It was, according to Anselm state that it was three years before ho was himselt in his letter to the archbishop of Lyons, able to maintain the usual archiepiscopal pecunia non parva. Ho probably borrowed establishment. Ead. 108. it: for the lands of his church were in such a " Id. 23 — 25. VOL. I. ^ 3 Q 482 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, eitlier, that he might enjoy with less restraint the revenues of ___^J___ the vacant prelacies**. But Anselm, in common with the Nor- man clergy, had admitted the authority of -Urban : before he consented to his election, he notified the circumstance to the king : and now solicited permission to receive from the pontiff the pallium, the distinguishing badge of the archiepiscopal dignity. At the very mention of Urban, William burst into a paroxysm of rage. " Could he be ignorant that to acknowledge " any prelate for pope, before he had been acknowledged by the " sovereign, was a breach of allegiance ? This was the peculiar " prerogative of the kings of England : it distinguished them from " other monarchs, none of whom possessed it. To dispute this " right was to tear the crown from his head. Anselm should " answer for his presumption before his peers '^." The enemies of the archbishop now predicted that he would either be com- pelled to resign the mitre, or to disgrace himself by abjuring the authority of the pontiff. The court was held at Rock- ingham. Every artifice was employed to shake his resolution : he was assailed with threats and promises : he was accused of ingratitude : he Avas reviled with the appellation of traitor. The last charge called him from his seat. " If any man," he exclaimed, " pretend that I violate the faith which I have " sworn to the king, because I Avill not reject the authority " of the bishop of Rome, let liim come forward, and he will " find me prepared in the name of God to answer him as I ■" It was not that tlie English church re- dissensionem, et propter dubitationem ilium jectcd the papal supremacy, but that the suscipere quasi certum dilTerebant. Epis. bishops had not been permitted to inquire Ansel, iii. 36. into the claims of the competitors, and there- " Ead. 25, 26. Of this prerogative, though fore suspended their obedience. Quis eoruni it liad sprung up under his father, Flambard canonice, quis secus fuerit inslitutiis, ab said, that it was praecipuum in omni domi- Anglis usq\ie id temporis ignorabatur. Ead. natione sua, et quo eum cunclis regibiis prss- 'i% Dubitabant propter illam quie nata est stare certum erat. Id. 29. WILLIAM II. 483 " ought '^." The challenge Avas not accepted : but the king, <^hap. turning to the bishops, ordered them to depose him. They , answered tliat it was n(jt in their power. lie commanded them to abjure his authority, and they complied. He then called on the lay barons to imitate the example of the prelates, but they, to his utter discomfiture, refused. Disconcerted and enraged, he put off the decision of the question for two montlis, and calling the bishops around him, successively interrogated each in what sense he had abjured the authority of Anselm. Some replied unconditionally ; and these he called his friends, and ordered to sit down. Others said that they had abjured it only inasmuch as the primate acknowledged a pope, who had not yet been acknowledged by the English church. These were commanded to quit the hall, with the assurance that they had forfeited the royal favour. To repurchase it, each was compelled to make the king a valuable present ^^. If I have entered into these details, it was that the reader Tbekir.? is re- might the more easily appreciate the character of William, Anseim. and notice the proceedings in these arbitrary courts of justice. There was something ludicrous in the result of the contest. The king sent clandestinely a messenger to Rome, acknowledged without solicitation the authority of Urban, privately procured fi'om him the pallium, and after several fruitless attempts to sell it, at last allowed it to be given to the archbishop. But, though Anselm was in this instance successful, he had still reason to regret the tranquillity of his cell. The hatred which rankled in the breast of the king Avas often visible in his conduct : and he " Id. 28, 29. Anselm has been blamed convinced that the charge has been made by for having given to the pope, during the de- mistake. It is to Christ, not to the pope, that bate, the titles of bishop of bishops, prince of the archbishop has applied these expressions, all men, and angel of the great council. See Eadmer, p. 27. Whoever will peruse the original, will be " Id. 30, ol. 3q 2 484 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. IX. Archbishop goes to Rome. 1097. Oct. 15. suffered no opportunity to escape of thwarting the endeavours, and wounding the feehngs, of the primate. In defiance of his remonstrances William retained possession of the vacant bene- fices ; prevented the convocation of synods; refused to restore the manors belonging to the see of Canterbury ; and after an expedition into Wales, cited the archbishop before him, for having sent his retainers to the army without a competent supply of arms and provisions. The charge is said to have been false '*^. But Anselm, exhausted by groundless provocations, instead of pleading his cause, solicited permission to retire to Rome *^. An answer was returned that he might use his own discretion : but that if he left the realm, the king would imme- diately take pos.session of his revenues. The primate entered thechamber, and approaching William, said : " Sir, I am going: " but as this is probably the last time that Ave shall meet, I " come as your father and archbishop, to offer you my blessing." The kino; bowed his head : Anselm made over him the sion of the cross, and instantly retired. At Dover the royal oflicers treated him with studied indignity : in France and Italy he was received with every demonstration of respect ^°. *' Falso a malignis dicebatur. Eadmer in " Tit. Ansel. 883. " The conqueror had required that no " bishop should visit Rome without his permis- " sion : a regulation which excited the loud " complaint of Gregory VII. Nemo omnium " regum etiam paganorum contra sedem aposto- " licam hoc praesumpsit attentare. Epis. Greg. " VII. 1. " Ead. 32—34. 36—41. The archbishop " in his letter to the pope thus sums up his rea- " sons for leaving the kingdom. " The king " " would not restore to my church those lands " *' belonging to it, which he had given away " " after the death of Lanfranc : he even con- " " tinned to give more away notwithstanding " " my opposition : h« required of me grievous services, which had never been required of my predecessors : he annulled the law of God, and the canonical and apostolical de-. cisions by customs of hi;: own creation. In such conduct I could not acquiesce without the loss of ray own soul : to plead against him in his own court was in vain : for no one dared to assist or advise me. This then is my object in coming to you: to beg that you would free me from the bondage ot tlie episcopal dignity, and allow me to serve God again in the tranquillity of my cell : and that in the next place you would pro- vide for the churches of the English accord- ing to your wisdom and the authority of your station." Eadin. 43. AVILLIAM II. 485 After the departure of Anselm William persevered in the same chap. rapacious and voluptuous career, till he was suddenly arrested —-^^j^j^j^;;^ by death in the New Forest, where his brother Richard had The kinff's • 1 1 n i- 1- ■ r 1 • 1 ileath ia the formerly perished, lor some time predictions or his approach- Nt« Forest. ing fate had been circulated among the people, and were readily believed by those, whose piety he had shocked by his debauche- ries, or whose hatred he had provoked by his rapacity ''*. Nor M'as he without apprehension himself. On the first of August he passed a restless night : and his imagination was so disturbed by dreams, that he sent for his servants to watch near his bed. Before sunrise Fitz-Hamen entered the chamber, and related to him the vision of a foreign monk, which was interpreted to pre- sage some calamity to the king. " The man," he exclaimed with a forced smile, "dreamslike a monk. Give him a hundred shillinss." He was, however, unable to conceal the impression which these portents had made on his mind : and, at the request of his friends, abandoned his design of hunting, and devoted the morn- ing to business. At dinner he ate and drank more copiously Aug. 2. than usual : his spirits revived : and shortly afterwards he rode out into the forest. There most of his attendants successively left him, separating in pursuit of game : and about sunset he was discovered by some countrymen, lying on the ground, and weltering in blood. An arrow, the shaft of which was broken, had entered his breast. The body was conveyed in a cart to "Winchester, where it was hastily buried the next morning ^^. Out of respect to his rank a grave was allotted him in the cathe- dral : but it was deemed indecent to honour Avith religious rites the obsequies of a prince, whose life had been so impious, and whose death was too sudden to encourage a hope that he had found time to repent ^^. •■' Orderic, 781. =' Malm. 71. " Orderic, 782. 486 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. By whose hand tlie king fell, and whether the arrow was di- _ rected against him by accident or design, are questions whicli cannot be satisfactorily answered. The report, which obtained credit at the time, was, that William, following a wounded deer with Ins eyes, held his hand near his face to intercept the rays of the sun, and that at the same moment an arrow from the bow of Walter Tyrrel, a French knight, glancing from a tree, struck liini in the breast. It was added that the unintentional homi- cide, spurring his horse to the shore, immediately crossed to the continent: and a pilgrimage which he afterwards made to the holy land, was attributed to remorse, and construed into a proof of his guilt. But Tyrrel always denied the charge : and after his return, when he had nothing to hope or fear, deposed upon oath in the presence of Suger, abbot of St. Denis, that he never saw the king on the day of his death, nor entered that part of the forest in which he fell'^*. If William perished by treason (a supposition not very improbaVjle) it was politic in the assassin to fix the guilt on one, who was no longer in the kingdom. This at least is certain, that no inquiry was made into the cause or the manner of his death : whence we may infer that his suc- cessor, if he were not convinced that it would not bear investi- gation, was too well pleased with an event which raised him to the throne, to trouble himself about the means by which it was effected. Hischaiacttr. Qf the violcut character of William, his rapacity, despotism, and voluptuousness, the reader will have formed a sufhcient notion from the preceding pages ''^ In person he was short and "* Quem cum nee timcret nee speraret, jure- "I ■will only udd the charaetor given of jiirando saepius audivimus quasi sacrosanclum him by a celebrated foreign, but contempo- asscrere, quod ea die nee in earn partem sylva>, rary, writer. Lascivia; et animi dcsideriis in qua re.x venebatur, venerit, nee e\im in deilitu?, pauperum intolerabilis oppre.ssor, sylva omiiino viderit. Suger, vit. Lud. Gros. ecclesiarum crudelis exactor, ct irrcverentissi- p. 283. Tyrrel was an inhabitant of Pon- mus rcten'.or et dissipator. Suger. ibid, toise. Ord. 78. 4 WILLIAM II. 487 corpulent, with flaxen h:iir, and a rudely complexion : from chap. which last circumstance he derived the name of Ruflis, or the ' red king. In ordinar}' conversation his utterance was slow and embarrassed : in the hurry of passion precipitate and unintel- ligible. He assumed in public a haughty' port, rolling his eyes with fierceness on the spectators, and endeavouring by the tone of his voice and the tenor of his answers to intimidate those who addressed him. But in private he descended to an equality with his companions, amusing them with his wit, which was chiefly pointed against himself, and seeking to lessen the odium of his excesses, by making them the subjects of laughter. He built at the expense of the neighbouring counties a wall His buildings. round the Tower, a bridge over the Thames, and the great hall at Westminster. The latter was finished the year before his death : and when he first visited it after his return from Nor- mandy, he replied to his flatterers, that there was nothing in its dimensions to excite their wonder: it Avas only the vestibule to the palace which he intended to raise. But in this respect he seems to have followed, not to have created, the taste of the age. During his reign structures of unusual magnificence arose in every part of the kingdom : and the most opulent proprietors sought to distinguish themselves by the castles which they built, and the monasteries which they founded. 488 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. HENRY I. SURNAMED BEAUCLERK, OR. THE SCHOLAR, CONTEMPORARY PRINCES. EMPERORS OF GRRMANY. KINGS OF SCOTLAND. KINGS OF FRANCE. Henry IV. ..1106. IIenrt V 1125. LOTHAIRE II. Edgar 1106. Alexander I. 1124. David I. Philip I. 1108. Louis VI. KINGS OF SPAIN. Alpiionso VI. 1109. Alphonso VII.1133. Alphonso VIII. popes. Paschal II. Ilia. Gelasius II. 1119. Calixtus It. 1124. HONORIUSII. 1130. Innocent II. CHAP. X. Robert in Palestine. ACCESSION OF HENRY— INVASION BY DUKE ROBERT— HENRY IN NOR- MANDY— MAKES ROBERT PRISONER— DISPUTE CONCERNING INVES- TITURES—WAR IN NORMANDY— STORY OF JULIANA, THE KING'S DAUGHTER— SHIPWRECK OF HIS SON WILLIAM — SETTLEMENT OF THE CROWN ON MATILDA— HIS ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE —RELIEF TO THE TENANTS OF THE CROWN LANDS -EXTORTION OF MONEY — DISPUTE RESPECTING LEGATES — DEATH AND CHA- RACTER OF HENRY— HIS MINISTERS— STATE OF LEARNING. r OUR years were noAv elapsed, since Robert of Norniandy had abandoned his dominions to earn a barren wreath of glory in the fields of Palestine. Accompanied by Hugh of Verman- HENRY 1. 489 dois, and Robert of Flanders, he had passed the Alps, received CHAP, the benediction of the pontift'at Lucca, and joined the crusaders " under the walls of Constantinople. At the siege of Nice he held an important command : in the battle of Dorylaeum his exhortations and example sustained 4,he fainting courage of the christians : at the reduction of Antioch the praise of superior prowess was shared between him and Godfrey of Bouillon ^ : and if, during a reverse of fortune, he slunk with several others from the pressure of famine and the prospect of slavery, this temporary stain was effaced by his return, his exploits in the 6eld, and his services in the assault of Jerusalem. The crown of that city was given to Godfrey, the most worthy of the confederate chief- tains : but if we may believe the English historians, it had been previousl}' offered to Robert, who, with more wisdom than he usually displayed, preferred his European dominions to the pre- carious possession of a throne surrounded by hostile and infidel nations ^. ]3y the priority of birth, and the stipulation of treaties, the coronation of Henry. crown of England belonged to Robert. He had already arrived in Italy on his way home : but, ignorant of the prize that was at stake, he loitered in Apulia to woo Sibylla, the fair sister of 'i^*' William of Conversana^. Henry, the younger brother, was on the spot : he had followed Rufus into the forest : and the mo- ment that he heard the king was fallen, spumng his horse, he rode to Winchester, to secure the royal treasures. William dc Bre- teuil, to whose custody they had been intrusted, arrived at the same time, and avowed his determination to preserve them for ' It was believed that Godfrey with a strolie adversary from the crown to the breast, of his sword had divided the body of a Turk ° Gerv. Tilb. apud Bouquet, XIV. 13. froni the shoulder to tlie opposite haunch ; ° Her father Geoffry was the nephew of and that Robert by the descent of his faul- Robert the Guiscard. Orderic, 780. chion had clovea the head and armour of his VOL. I. 3 R 490 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. Aug. 5. His charter. Robert, the rightful heir. Tlie prince immediately drew his sword ; and blood would have been shed, had not their com- mon friends interposed, and prevailed on Breteuil to Avithdraw his opposition. As soon as Henry had obtained possession of the treasures and castle, he was proclaimed king : and riding to Westminster was crowned on the Sunday, the third day after the death of his brother. The ceremonial was the same as had been observed in the coronation of the Anglo-Saxon kings, and was performed by Maurice, bishop of London, in the absence of Anselm and the vacancy of the archiepiscopal see of York ^ On the same day care was taken to infoim the nation of the benefits, which it would derive from the accession of the new monarch. To strengthen the weakness of his claim by con- necting it with the interests of the people, he published a charter of liberties, copies of which were sent to the several counties, and deposited in the principal monasteries. Li this instrument, 1°. he restored to the church its ancient immunities, and pro- mised neither to sell the vacant benefices, nor to let them out to farm, nor to retain them in his own possession for the benefit of his exchequer, nor to raise tallages on their tenants. 2°. He granted to all his barons and immediate vassals (and required that they should make the same concession to their tenants) that they might dispose by will of their personal property : that they might give their daughters and female relatives in marriage without fee or impediment, provided the intended husband were not his enemy : that for breaches of the peace and other delin- quencies they should not be placed at the king's mercy, as in the davs of his father and brother, but should be condenuied in the sums assigned by the Anglo-Saxon laws : that their heirs * Orderic, !^82. Malm. 88. Cbron. Sax. 208. HENRY I. 491 should pay the customary rchefs for the livery of their lands, chap. and not the arbitrary compensations which had been exacted ' by his two predecessors : that heiresses should not be compelled by the kin<5 to marry without the consent of tiie barons : that widows should retain their dowers, and not be given in marriage against their will : and that the Avardship of minors should, to- gether with the custody of their lands, be committed to their mothers, or nearest relations. S". To the nation at large he promised to put in force the laws of Edward the confessor, as they had been amended and published by his father : to levy no moneyage which had not been paid in the Saxon times : and to punish with severity the coiners and venders of light monies. He exempted from the Danegelt the demesne lands of all his military tenants, forgave all fines due to the exchequer, and the pecuniary mulcts for " murder" committed before his coro- nation ; and ordered, under the heaviest penalties, reparation to be made for all injustices committed in consequence of the death of his brother. Such are the provisions of this celebrated charter : which is the more deserving of the reader's notice, be- cause, as it professes to abolish the illegal customs introduced after the conquest, it shews the nature of the grievances which the nation had suffered under the two Williams. Henry, however, retained both the royal forests and the forest laws : but as a kind of apology he declared, that in this reservation he was guided by the advice, and had obtained the consent, of his barons. He added at the same time a most beneficial charter in favour of the citizens of London ^ "Leg. Sax. 233. Ilic. Hagul. 310, 311. reddo cum emendationibus quibus earn pater Henry's charter is a very important document, meus emendavit consilio baronum suorum. as it professes to restore the law to the same Leg. 234. Hence we may infer that at that state in whicli it liad been settled by William period the crown derived no emolument from the conqueror. Lagam regis Edvardi vobis the custody of the vacant benefices : that it 3 R 2 492 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. Hitherto the moral conduct of Henry had been as question- able as that of his late l)rother : policy now taught him to His reforma- assumc tlic zcal and severity of a reformer. He dismissed his "' mistresses, drove from his court the men, who had scandaHzed the public by their efi'erainacy and debaucheries*^: and sent to hasten the return of arclibishop Anselm with expressions of the highest regard and veneration for his character. At the solicit- ation of the prelates he consented to marry : and the object of and mariiage. his choice was Matilda or Maud, the daughter of Malcohii, king of Scots, by Margaret, the sister of Edgar the ethehug : a prin- cess whose descent from the Anglo-Saxon monarchs was expect- opposed no impediment to the marriages of the female relations of its tenants : that the great council of tenants decided on the mar- riages of heiresses : that widows were allowed to marry according to their own choice : that the custody of the heir and his lands was given to the mother and his near relations : that the amount of reliefs was fixed by law, and that there were estates, called rectae iiareditates, which paid no relief at all : that the disposi- tion of personal property by will was vahd without the consent of the sovereign : that the personalty of intestates was divided by the nearest relatives : and that amerciaments, by which tlie personal estate of tlie delinquent was placed at the mercy of the king, were en- tirely unknown. All the contrary practices had grown up during the last years of the conqueror, and the reign of Rufus, particu- larly under the administration of Flambard. To the charter is added a law treatise in 94 chapters, drawn up by an unknown writer, evidently with the intention of instructing the judges in the law, as it stood in the time of Edward the confessor, and as it was amended by William the conqueror, and had now been restored by Henry. Leg. Sax. 23G — 283. It is hardly necessary to add, that when the king found himself firmly seated on the throne, he renewed all the grievances which he had previously abolished. * EfToeminatos curia propellens, lucernarum usum noctibus in curia restituit, qui fuerat tempore fratris intcrmissus. Malm. 88. Why lights had been prohibited in the palace of William, or were now restored by Henry, I am unable to explain. But the cffbeminati are so frequently mentioned by our ancient wri- ters, that they demand some notice. They were thS fashionable young men of the time, and received that appellation from their man- ner of dressing, which approached to that of women. They wore tunics with deep sleeves, and mantles with long trains. The peaks of tlieir shoes (pigacicE) were stuffed with tow, of enormous length, and twisted to imitate the horn of a ram or the coils of a serpent; an improvement lately introduced by P'ulk, earl of Anjou, to conceal the deformity of his feet. Their hair was divided in front, and combed on the shoulders, whence it fell in ringlets down the back, and was often lengthened most preposterously by the addition of false curls. This mode of dressing was opposed by the more rigid among the clergy, particu- larly the manner of wearing the hair, which was said to have been prohibited by St. Paul : " if a man nourish his hair, it is a shame to " him." 1 Cor. xi. 14. But after a long struggle fashion triumphed over both the clergy and the apostle. .See Malmsbury (88. 99), Eadmcr (23. 106), and Orderic (GS2). The latter adds, that they were addicted to the most abominable viees; sodomiticis spurcitiis foedi catamitae. Ibid. HENRY I. 493 ed to add stability to his throne, and secure the succession to CHAP, his posterity. An objection was, however, made to their union, ;______ which nearly defeated his hopes. The princess in her child- hood had been intrusted to the care of her aunt Christina, abbess of Wilton, who, to preserve the chastity of her niece from the brutality of the Norman soldiers, had compelled her to wear the veil, and to frequent ihe society of the nuns. Hence it was con- tended that according to the ecclesiastical canons she was no longer at liberty to marry : but in a synod of the prelates the objection was over-ruled in conformity with a former decision of archbishop I^anfranc on a similar occasion. The marriage Nov. n. was celebrated, and the queen crowned with the usual solemnity by Anselm,who had now returned to England, and resumed the administration of his diocese ^ 'J'o satisfy the clamour of the people, Henry had committed Confinement and escape " to the Tower Flambard, bishop of Durham, the obnoxious minis- Fiambard. ter of the late king. The prelate lived sumptuously in his con- finement on the allowance which he received from the exchequer, and the presents which were sent him by his friends : and by his wit, cheerfulness, and generosity, won the good will, while he lulled the vigilance, of his keepers. In the beginning of Febru- ary he received a rope concealed in the bottom of a pitcher of wine. The knights, who guarded him, were as usual invited to ' Eadmer, 56 — 58. Alured Bov. 14-1-, pudori metuentes monasteria virginum peti- Ffom the proceedings in the council heid on vere, acceptoque velo sese fnter ipsas a tanta this occasion it appears, that at the time of infamia piotexare. Ead. ibid. Matilda traced ihe conquest there was no security for females, her descent from the Anglo-Saxon kings ia unless they took refuge in a convent. Suo this manner; Edmund, Ironside. 1 Edward. Edgar. Margaret, Matilda 494 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, dine : they drank copiously till it was late in the evening : and • soon after they had lain down to rest, Flambard, with the aid of Robert claiQis tlie crown. his rope, descended from the window, was conducted by his friends to the sea shore, and thence escaped into Normandy ^. In Normandy he found duke Robert, who had married Sibylla, and returned to his dutchy within a month after the death of his brother. By his former subjects he had been received with welcome : but his claim to the English crown, though he meant to enforce it, was postponed to a subsequent period. Pleasure, not power, was his present object : he Avished to exhibit to his Normans the fair prize which he had brought from Apulia : and her fortune, a very considerable sum, was consumed in feast ings and pageantry ^. But the arrival and suggestions of Flambard awakened his ambition, and turned his thoughts tVoni pleasure to war. His vassals professed their eagerness to fight under a prince, who had gained laurels in the holy war : tenders of assistance were received fi'om England : and a powerful force of men at arms, archers, and footmen, was ordered to assemble in the neighbourhood of Tresport. On the English barons, who had eno-aged to espouse his cause, Robert de Belesme, William de Warenne, Ivo de Grentesmenil, and Walter Giffard, he bestowed some of the strongest fortresses in Normandy. His object Avas to secure their co-operation : but he had reason to regret a mea- sure, which weakened his power, and ultimately caused his ruin^". "^•ations!"^" Henry beheld with disquietude the preparations of his brother: but trembled still more at the well known disaffection of his barons. By Robert de Meulant, the most trusty and favoured of his ministers, he was advised to make every sacrifice for the • Ordcric, 786. ambitious to share the honours, of the duke. ' Mahns. 86. Sibylla died in 1102 of Orderic, 810. Malmsbiuy's account is dlf- poison administered, it was believed, by feront. Agnes, dowager countess of Buckingham, '" Idem, 787. who, as she possessed the aflectioiis, was also HENRY I. 495 preservation of his crown ; to promise whatever should be asi and of Constantinople in 869, the nomination of bishops by lay authority had been condemned : in 1067 the former prohibitions " Eadiner, 90. Malm. 89. Hunt. 217. incurred the hatred of the citizens, and was Orderic, 820—822. The duke was made murdered in a field with five of his preben- prisoner by Galdric the king's chaplain, who daries. Orderic, 821. was rewarded for his services with the bishop- ^i Orderic, 823. 833. ric of Landa£r. But this warlike prelate soon HENRY I. 501 were renewed by (Jregory VII.; and ten years afterwards CHAP. Victor III. in a synod at Bcneventuni added the sentence of excommmiication both against the prince who should presume to exercise the right of investiture, and the prehile who should condescend to receive his temporalties on such conditions. But it was in vain that the thunders of the church were directed against a practice enforced by sovereigns, who refused to sur- render a privilege enjoyed by their predecessors, and defended by prelates who Avere indebted to it for their wealth and import- ance. The contest between the two powers continued during half a century : nor was it without mutual concessions that claims so contradictory could be amicably adjusted. It should, however, be remembered that the right for which its abuses, the sovereigns contended, had at this period degenerated into a most pernicious abuse. The reader is already acquainted with the manner in wjiich it had been exercised by William Rufus, who for his own profit refused on many occasions to fill the vacant benefices, and on others degraded the dignities of the church by prostituting them to the highest bidder. In France and Germany similar evils existed even to a greater extent. In Normandy the indigence of Robert had suggested an improve- ment on the usual practice, by selling the reversion of bishoprics in favour of children, and granting for a proportionate sum more than one diocese to the same prelate '^*. Every good man was Anseim op- . , . rt- poses it. anxious to suppress these abuses ; and the zeal of the pontifis was stimulated by the more virtuous of the episcopal order. Amono; these we must number Anseim. During his exile he had assisted at the councils of Bari and Rome, in which the custom of investiture had been again condemned, and the sentence of " Ivon. Camot. epist. 178, 179. l8l. 502 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. Final settle- ment. exconiiDunication against the guilty had been renewed. At his first interview with Henry, he intimated in respectful terms his inflexible resolution to observe the discipline approved in these synods : and the king avowed an equally fixed determination to retain, what he conceived to be, the lawful prerogative of his crown. He stood, however, at that moment on very slippery ground. Without the aid of the primate he knew not how to put down the partisans, or to resist the forces of his brother Robert : it was more prudent to dissemble than to throw the clergy into the arms of his competitor : and by mutual consent the controversy was suspended, till an answer could be procured from the pope ; which answer, as both had foreseen, was un- favourable to the pretensions of the monarch. It would exhaust the patience of the reader to descend into the particulars of this dispute : to notice all the messages that were sent to Rome, and the answers returned to England ; the artifices that were em- ployed to deceive, and the expedients suggested to mollify, Anselm. At last by the king's request he undertook, aged and infirm as he was, a journey to Italy, to lay the whole con- troversy before the pontiff': on his return he received an order to remain in banishment till he should be willing to submit to the royal pleasure. The exile retired to his friend the archbishop of Lyons, under whose hospitable roof he spent the three following years. In the interval Henry was harassed by the intreaties of his barons and the murmurs of the people : his sister Adela, countess of Blois, and his queen Matilda, importuned him to be reconciled to the primate : and Paschal II. who had already excommunicated his advisers, admonished him that in a few weeks the same sentence would be pronounced against himself. The king, who was not prepared to push the dispute to this extre- mity, discovered a willingness to relent : Anselm met him at the HENRY I. 503 abbey of Boc : and both, in the true spirit of conciliation, con- CIJAP. sentcd to abandon a part of their pretensions. As fealty and . homacre were civil duties, it was agreed that they should be exacted from every clergyman before he received his temporalties: as the ring and crosier were considered to denote spiritual jurisdiction, to which tlie king acknowledged he had no claim, the collation of these emblems was suppressed'"'^. On the whole the church gained little by the compromise. It might check, but did not abolish, the principal abuse. If Henry surrendered an unnecessary ceicmony, he still retained the substance. The right which he assumed of nominating bishops and abbots was left unimpaired : and though he promised not to appropriate to himself the revenues of the vacant benefices, it was an engage- ment which he never hesitated to violate"*. The possession of Normandy soon involved the king in hosti- WarinNor- ... ... m»ndy. lities with the neighbouring princes. William, the only son of the captive duke, was but five years old at the time of the battle of Tenchebrai : and Henry, after caressing the boy, gave him to the custody of Helie de St. Saen, who had married an illegitimate daughter of Robert. But it was suggested by his advisers that the 3'oung prince might at some future period claim the domi- " Radmer, 56 — 91. severely condemned; provincial synods were "This controversy continued to imbitter assembled; the emperor was excommunicated; the life of pope Paschal. About three years and the pope was harassed by complaints and after the compromise with the king of Eng- reproofs. Unable to exculpate himself to the land, Henry IV. of Germany, consented to satisfaction of the more zealous of the prelates, abandon the right of investiture on condition he conde.=cended to appear in the council of that the pontitf would crown him in Rome. Lateran in 1112 without the ensigns of his But as soon as he was admitted within the dignity, and to submit his conduct to public walls, he seized on Paschal, conveyed him to inquiry. By order of the fathers the charter a castle in the neighbourhood, and kept him granted to Henry was burnt, and that prince in confinement for two months. To obtain was excommunicated. But Paschal himself, his liberty the pope confirmed to Henry the out o'. reverence to his oath, refused to pro- contested right, and solemnly swore never to iiounce the sentence, and persisted in that excommunicate or molest him for his exercise refusal till death. Baron, adann. 1111,111^ of it. This acquiescence of Paschal was Malm. 94. 504 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. 1108. 1113. It is con- cluded. 1115. And renewed. 1118. nions of his father: and a trusty officer ^Vas dispatched to sur- prise the castle of St. Saen, and secure the person of WiUiam. Hehe was absent: but the ingenuity of his servants defeated the diligence of the royal messenger; and the tutor readily aban- doned his estates to insure the safety of his pupil. The son of Robert was conducted by him from court to court: and every where his innocence and misfortunes gained him partisans and protectors. Of these the most powerful were Louis, king of France, and Fulk, earl of Anjou. Louis engaged to grant him the investiture of Normandy, Fulk to give him his daughter Sibylla in marriage : promises, the performance of which was for the present suspended, on account of his minority. In the meanwhile Helie de la Fleche died. Henry claimed his earldom of Mans as an appendage of Normandy : Fulk seized it in right of his wife, the only daughter of Helie. The former was assisted by his nephew Theobald, earl of Blois, the latter by his superior lord the king of France. During two years victory seemed to oscillate between these competitors : and each ephe- meral success, by whomsoever it was gained, invariably pro- duced the same effects, the pillage of the country, and the op- pression of the inhabitants. At length a peace was concluded, by the conditions of which the interests of the Norman prince were abandoned, Matilda, a daughter of Fulk, was promised in marriage to William, the son of Henry, and the earl was permitted to keep possession of Mans, as the feudatory of the English monarch. During the war the king had arrested Belesme, and confined him for life in the castle of Wareham ^^. As William of Normandy advanced in age, the hopes of his partisans increased. Baldwin, earl of Flanders, with whom he "Orderic, 837—841. HENRY I. 505 had found an honourable retreat during the last five years, en- chap. gaged to assist him with all his power : Louis, notwithstanding ' the peace, was induced to draw the sword in the same cause; ev.en Fulk of Anjou agreed to join the confederates. All tiiesc princes had individually reasons to complain of Henry: they were willing to sanctify their resentment by espousing the in- "terests of an injured orphan. Thus the embers of war were rekindled, and the flame stretched from one extremity of Nor- mandy to the other. During more than three years fortune seemed to play with the efforts of the combatants. At first Louis was compelled to solicit the forbearance of the king of England : then success upon success waited on his arms : after- Avards Baldwin died of a slight wound received at the siege of Eu : next Fulk of Anjou, induced by a considerable bribe, and the actual marriage of his daughter to Henry's son, withdrew from the allies; and at last the decisive though bloodless victory of Brenville, gave the superiority to the king of England. By ac- Battle of cident Henry and Louis met in the vicinity of Noyon. Henry had iu». five, Louis four hundred knights. The French fought on horse- back : the English, with the exception of one-fifth of their number, fought on foot. During the engagement both princes displayed the most determined courage, and both were in the most imminent danger. Henry received two blows on the head : but though the violence of the shock forced the blood from his nostrils, such was the temper of his helmet that it re- sisted the edge of the battle-axe. The horse of Louis was killed under him, and it was with difficulty that he escaped on foot in the crowd of fugitives. His standard and one hundred and forty knights remained in the hands of the conquerors. • William of Normandy was in the battle, but saved himself by flight''^. =' Orderic, 342— 854. Cliron. Sax. 821. Hunt. 217. Malm, 90. VOL. I. S T 506 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. An end was put to hostilities by the paternal industry of the ' pontiff, Calixtus II. Louis, attended by the son of Robert, had Mediation of appeared in the council of Rhemes : and in a speech of some the pope. eloquence had accused Henry of cruelty, injustice, and ainttition. The royal orator had been answered by the archbishop of Rouen: but this prelate was heard with impatience, and frequently in- terrupted by the partisans of France. At the termination of the council, Calixtus himself visited Henry, to whom he was allied by descent, and the king of England attempted to justify or palliate his conduct in the presence of the pope. He denied that he had taken Normandy from his brother. That brother had previously lost it by his indolence and folly. All that he himself had done was to wrest the ancient patrimony of his family from the hands of the traitors and rebels, into whose pos- session it had fallen. " Nor was it true that Robert was kept in prison. He was treated as a prince who had retired from the cares and fatigues of government. He lived in a royal castle, was served with princely magnificence, and enjoyed every amuse- ment that he desired. As for William, Henry assured the pontiff that he felt the affection of an uncle for the young prince : that it had been his intention to have educated him with his own son, and that he had frequently offered him an honourable asylum and three earldoms in England : offers which William had con- stantly refused at the suggestion of men, Mho were equally the enemies of the nephew and the uncle. Such flimsy reasoning could not deceive the penetration of Calixtus: but unwilling to urge a request, in Avhich he foresaw he should not succeed, he diverted the conversation to the subject of the war, and obtained from Henry an avowal of the most pacific sentiments. The intel- ligence was immediately communicated to the different bellige- rents, and a treaty of peace was concluded under the auspices HENRY I. 50? of the pontift'. Henry retained what he principally sought, the CHAP, possession of Normandy, and the king of France, as sovereign ' lord, received the liomage of William, Henrj^'s son, in lieu of ''''«»^y "*" thatofthef£lther^^ ^''^'' In perusing the history of this war, written by the pen of Remarki. Orderic, the mind is surprised at the opposite instances of bar- barism and refinement, of cruelty and humanity, with which it abounds. I. The number of slain in the celebrated battle of Brcnville amounted to no more than three : for, says the historian, christian knights contend not for revenge but for glory ; they seek not to shed the blood, but to secure the person of their ene- my '^^. Their great object was to throw him on the ground : and when this was effected, whether by a blow or by the death of his horse, the knight, enchased in ponderous armour, was unable to help himself, and lay the unresisting prize of his adversary. II. Offices of civility were interchanged in the midst of hosti- lities : and the captive, who had signalised his courage, was often released without ransom by a generous conqueror. The king, after his victory, restored to Louis his charger, with the trappings of gold and silver : and his son at the same time sent to the son of Robert valuable presents, that the young exile might appear among foreigners with the splendour due to his birth ^^ III. But their passions were violent and implacable: and in the pursuit of revenge their breasts seemed to be steeled against every sentiment of humanity. Eustace, story ot lord of Breteuil, who had married Juliana, one of the king's ille- gitimate daughters, had solicited the grant of a strong fortress, " Orderic, 858, 859. 865, 866. Malm. 93. Orderic, 848. The grandmother of CaUxtus was Alice, "' Orderic, 854, daughter of Richard II. duke of Normandy. " Id. 855. 3 T 2 508 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, which was part of the ducal demesne. Henry entertained suspi- ' cions of his fidehty, but was unwilhng to irritate him by an absolute refusal. It was agreed that two children, the daugh- ters of Eustace and Juliana, should be given to Henry as hostages for the allegiance of their father : and that the son of Harenc, the governor of the castle, should be intrusted to that nobleman as a pledge for the cession of the place at the close of the war. Eustace was, however, dissatisfied: he tore out the eyes of the boy, and sent him back to his father. Harenc, frantic with rage, and impatient for revenge, demanded justice of Henry, who, unable to reach the person, bade him retaliate on the daughters, of Eustace. Their innocence, their youth, their royal descent, were of no avail : the barbarian deprived them of their eyes, and amputated their noses : and Henry, with an affectation of stoic indifference, loaded him with presents, and sent him back to re- sume his command. The task of revenge now devolved on Juliana, who deemed her father the author of the sufferings of her daughters. Unable to keep Breteuil against the royal forces, she retired into the citadel : abandoned by the garrison, she requested a parley with the king: and as he approached the wall, pointed an arrow and discharged it at his breast. Her want of skill saved her from the guilt of parricide : and necessity compelled her to surrender at discretion. Had Henry pardoned her, he might perhaps have claimed the praise of magnanimity : but the punishment, which he inflicted, was ludicrous in itself, and disgraceful to its author. He closed the gate, removed the draw-bridge, and sent her a peremptory order to quit the castle immediately. Juliana was compelled to let herself down without assistance from the rampart into the broad moat, which sur- rounded the fortress, and to wade through the water, which rose HENRY I. 509 lo her waist. At each step she had to break the ice around her, chap. and to sufl'er the taunts and ritlicule of the soldiers, who were ' drawn out to witness this singular spectacle^". The ambition of the kins: was now gratified. His foreign foes «i;'p^'Teck of ~ '^ ~ |>nn('e Wil- had been compelled to solicit peace: his Norman enemies had '''""• 20 been crushed by the weight of his arms ; and if further security ^"'■'- 26. were wanting, it had been obtained by the investiture of the dutchy which had been granted to his son William. After an absence of four years he resolved to return in triumph to Eng- land. At Bai"fleur he was met by a Norman mariner, called Fitz-Stcphen, who offered him a mark of gold, and solicited the honour of conveying him in his vessel " the White Ship." It was, he observed, new, and manned with fifty of the most able seamen. His father had carried the king's father when he sailed to the conc^uest of England : and the service by which he held his fee, was that of providing for the passage of his sovereign. Henry replied that he had already chosen a vessel for himself; but that he would confide his son and his treasures to the care of Fitz- Stephen. With the young prince (he was in his eighteenth year) embarked his brother Ilichard and his sister Adela, both natural children of Henry, the earl of Chester and his countess the king's niece, sixteen other noble ladies, and one hundred and forty knights. They spent some hours on deck in feasting and dancing, and distributed three barrels of wine among the crew : but the riot and intoxication which prevailed about sunset, in- duced the more prudent to quit the vessel, and return to the shore. Henry had set sail as soon as the tide would permit. William, after a long delay, ordered Fitz-Stephen to follow his father. '" Id. 854, 855. Eustace was a bastard, rnent inflicted on his grand-daugliters. Nep- and had seized the lands of his father, to the lium suarum oculoB erui fecit. Ang. Sac. ii. prejudice of the lawful heir. Id. 810. Hun- C99. tingdon attributes to Henry himself the punish- 510 HISTORY OF ENGLAND, CHAP. Immediately every sail was unfurled, every oar was plied : but amid the music and revelling the care of the helm was neglected, and the " White Ship" struck against a rock called the Catteraze. The rapid influx of the water admonished the gay and heed- less company of their alarming situation. By Fitz-Stephen the prince was immediately lowered into a boat, and told to row back to the land : but the shrieks of his sister recalled him to the wreck, and the boat sank under the multitude that poured into it. Soon after the vessel itself went down, and three hun- dred persons were buried in the waves. A young nobleman, Geoffry de L'aigle, and Berold, a butcher of Rouen, alone saved themselves by clinging to the top of the mast. After a few mi- nutes the unfortunate Fitz-Stephen swam towards them, inquired for the prince, and being told that he had perished, plunged under the Avater. Geoffry, benumbed by the cold of a No- vember night, was soon washed away, and, as he sank, uttered a prayer for the safety of his companion : Berold re- tained his hold, was rescued in the morning by a fishing boat, and related the particulars of this doleful catastrophe. Henry had arrived at Southampton, and frequently expressed his surprise at the tardmess of his son. The first intelligence was conveyed to Theobald of Blois, who communicated it to his friends, but dared not inform the king. The next morning the fatal secret was revealed by a young page who threw himself in tears at his feet. At the shock Henry sank to the ground, but recovering himself, affected a display of fortitude, which he did not feel. He talked of submission to the dispensations of Pro- vidence : but the wound had penetrated deep into his heart : his grief gradually subsided into a settled melancholy ; and it is said that from that day he was never observed to smile ^^ Matilda, by ■" Id. 867—869. Chron. Sax. 222. Simeon, 242. HENRY I. 511 the death of her husband, became a widow at the age of twelve, ^'"AP. within six monllis allfr lier marriage. By Henry she was treated ' Avith the affection of a parent: but at the demand of her father returned to Anjou, and ten years afterwards put on the veil in the convent of Fontevraud ^^ liy the generality of the nation the loss of the prince was not ^"1^*^^ "][" regretted. From the arrogance and violence of his youth men Nonnaniiy. had learned to fear the despotism of his maturer years. He was already initiated in all the mysteries of iniquity : and had pub- licly avowed on every occasion his contempt and hatred of the English '^. But Henry, deprived of his only legitimate son, had new plans to form, new precautions to take, against the preten- sions and attempts of his nephew. On that prince every eye was now fixed : his virtues and misfortunes were the theme of general conversation : and few men doubted that he would ultimately succeed to the throne. Fulk of Anjou, whom the king had offended by refusing to return the dower of Matilda, affianced to him his younger daughter Sibylla, and gave him the earldom of Mans ; while the most powerful barons of Normandy, Amauri of Montfort, and Walleran, the young earl of Mellent, under- took to assist him on the first opportunity with all their forces and influence. Henry by his spies was informed of the most secret motions of his enemies. In the court of Anjou he em- ployed threats, and promises, and bribes, to prevent the intended marriage : he even undertook to prove that the two parties, William and Sibylla, were relations within the prohibited degrees of consanguinity ^, In Normandy he suddenly landed with a " Orderic, 875. Omnes aut fere omnes sodomitica labe dice- " Displicebat autem mihi, says a writer bantur, et erant, irretiti. Hunt. 218. Filius who knew him, nimius circa cum cultus, et regis et socii sui incomparabili superbia ta- nimius in eo fastus —semper de fastigio super- midi, luxuriae et libidinis omni tabe maculati. bo tumidus cogitabat. Huntingdon, in Ansj. Gervas. 1339. Sac. ii. 696. I will add what he and another " Chron. Sax. 231. Malms. 99. Ord. 883. ancient writer say of him and his companions. According to him they were related in the sixth 513 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, numerous body of English forces ; summoned his barons to ' attend him ; and without communicating his intentions to any Warin Nor- onc, marchcd out of Rouen on a Sunday after dinner, with the uh. whole army. Hugo of Montfort, one of the chief conspirators, was immediately called before the king, and ordered to surrender his castle. He assented with apparent cheerfulness, and was dispatched with an escort to give orders to the garrison : but iu passing through a wood, he suddenl}' turned down an un- frequented path, escaped his pursuers, reached Montfort, and ordered his retainers to hold it against all the power of Henry. For some time they complied with the will of their lord : but at Icno-th despairing of succour, surrendered upon terms. From IMontfort the king proceeded to Pont-Audemer, a strong fortress defended by one hundred and forty knights : but a tower of Mood was constructed twenty-four feet higher than the walls : and the archers from its summit so annoyed the besieged, that after a defence of seven weeks, they were compelled to open the gates. The next year he was still more fortunate. As the insurgent barons were returning from a successful expedition, they were opposed by Ranulf of Bayeux, and William of Tankerville, with i'24. a body of men selected from the neighbouring garrisons. The battle was gained, and the war terminated by forty English archers. These, as the enemy charged, drew their bows : the foremost horses were slain : others fell over them : and the rest of the insurgents, seeing the confusion, immediately tied. Eighty knights in their armour were found lying on the ground : and among them Avere captured the chief promoters of the degree. But the allegation was most impudent ried his son to one of Fulk's daughters, and on the part of the king. In whatever relation afterwards married his daughter to one of Robert stood towards Falls, Henry must have Fulk's sons, stood in the same. Yet he had already mar- HENRY I. 513 rebellion. Fulk immediately abandoned the cause ofliis intended chap. - son-in-law, and peace was once more restored ^^. " The life of William, the son of Robert, was an alternating wiiiiammade c3 earl of Flan- series of elevation and depression. If the sudden fate of his 'i^'^s- cousin had awakened his hopes, they were soon defeated by the sagacity and pron)ptitude of his uncle : but he was amply repaid for the disappointment by the bounty of Louis, who in lieu of Sibylla, bestowed on him the hand of his sister-in-law, and gave for her portion Chaumont, Pontoise, and the Vexin on the borders of Normandy; whence, by his proximity, he was enabled to encourage his partisans, and to keep alive the spirit of opposition to Heni-y^. Soon afterwards Charles the good, j^.^'.'^. earl of Flanders, and the successor of Baldwin, was assassinated. He Avas at his devotions in a church at Bruges, when Burchard de L'isle suddenly assailed him with a body of armed men, and murdered him at the foot of the altar. On the first intellioencc of this event, AVilliam of Ipres surrounded the walls with his retainers : the king of France followed with a formidable force : and after a siege of five weeks the gates were burst open, and the assassins were precipitated over the battlements of the castle. William had accompanied his benefactor, and received from him tlie investiture of the earldom, Avhich he could justly claim as the representative of Matilda his grandmother, the daughter of Baldwin V."^. Thus again by the caprice of fortune was he raised to a high degree of power, and placed in a situation the most favourable for the conquest of Normandy. Henry began to tremble for the safety of his continental possessions^^. It is now time to notice the measures by which that monarch De»thof queen M»til- da. " Orderic, 875-8SO. Simeon, 250. "Ibid. Hunt. 919. Chron. Sax, 227. " Se diadema regni amissunim pro certo "■ Ord. 884. putabat. Hunt. Ang. Sac. ii. 699. VOL. I. 3 V SU HISTORY OF ENGLAND. ' CHAP, had sought to perpetuate the succession in his own family. ■ Matilda had brouoht him two children, a son, William, whose premature fate the reader has already witnessed, and a daughter, Alice, who afterwards assumed the name of her mother ^^. For the last twelve years of her life the queen resided at Westminster, deprived of the society of her husband, but surrounded with the parade of royalt}^ and an object of veneration in the eyes of the people, by whom she was generally denominated Molde, the good'"'. The purity of her character was beyond the reach of suspicion : acts of benevolence, and exercises of devotion, occupied her time: and to listen to the chants of minstrels and the verses of poets formed her principal amusement. One fault she is said to have had. She was liberal beyond her means : and her officers, to supply the current of her munificence, were 1118. occasionally compelled to oppress her vassals ". By her death *^ " in 1118 the king found himself at liberty to contract another marriage: but the restraints of wedlock did not accord with his love of pleasure, and inconstancy of affection ; nor did he think of a second wife, till the loss of his son the etheling, had brought the succession within the grasp of his nephew. To defeat the King's second hopcs of that priucc he offered his hand to Adelais, the daughter "*'^nli.' of Geoffry, duke of Louvain, and niece to pope Calixtus, a princess, whose chief recommendation was her beauty and youth ■*^. Their union proved without issue : and after a delay " She is called jEthelice in the Saxon Chro- contemporary poet, calls her, " mult bcle nicle (230) ; the same name with Adela, " femme," MS. Nero. A. 5. Huntingdon Adelais, and Alice. About this period Ma- sings her praise in the following not inelegant tilda became a favourite appellation, probably lines : because it was that of the conqueror's consort. Quid diadema tibi, pulcherrima, quid tibi The original name of Henry's queen was gemmae '{ Editha, which she afterwards exchanged for Pallet gemma tibi, nee diadema nitet : Matilda. Ornamenta cave : nee quidquam luminis " Rudborne, 276. inde ♦' Malms. 93. Accipis: ilia micant luminc clara Inc. "Eadmer, 136. Philippe de ThauD, a UuiU.^\8. Feb. 2. HENRY I. 515 of three years, he formed the resolution of settling the crown on chap. his daughter Maud, who had married Henry IV. of Germany, ^^^^ and by the death of her husband was lately become a widow. In the pursuit of this object it was necessary for the king to subdue the reluctance both of the princess herself, and of the English barons. INIaud was unwilling to quit a country in which she possessed a noble dower, for a precarious and disputed succession : and the barons revolted from the idea of a female reign, a species of government new in the annals both of Eng- land and Normandy. The empress, however, submitted to the peremptory commands of her father, and was met on her arrival by her uncle David, king of Scotland. The acquiescence of the more powerful barons had been prepared by presents and promises: for greater security, Robert, the captive duke of 1126. Normand3% was removed from Devizes to Cardiff, from the custody of the bishop of Sarum to that of Robert of Caen, earl of Gloucester, the king's natural and favourite son: and a general assembly was summoned of the prelates, and chief tenants of the crown. Before them Henry lamented the premature death ^q Matilda!^^ of his son, and proposed his daughter Maud as presumptive heiress to the succession. She united, he observed, in her veins the blood of the Anglo-Saxon, with that of the Norman, princes. By her mother she was descended, through a long line of sovereigns, from Egbert and Cerdic : her father was the reigning king, and her uncle and grandfather had been the two last monarchs of England. Whatever might be the sentiments of his hearers, no one ventured to incur his resentment by hazarding an objection : the empress was unanimously pronounced the next heir, in the event of her father dying without male issue : and first the clergy, then the laity, swore to maintain her succession. Among the laity the precedence was given to her uncle David on ac- 3 u 2 1126. Dec. 25. 516 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, count of his regal character. The second place was disputed , between Stephen, earl of Boulogne, and Robert, earl of Glou- cester. The former was the king's nephew by his sister Adela, and had been born in lawful wedlock : the latter was Henry's son, but of spurious birth : and the point to be decided was, whether precedence was due to legiti.. acy of descent, or to proximity of blood. In the present times this would not admit of a doubt: even then, though the reigning family derived its claim from a bastard, the question was determined in favour of Stephen. But these noblemen had in view a secret, and more important object. Notwithstanding the precautions of Henry, the succession of Maud was considered as very uncertain : both Stephen and Robert looked forward to the crown : and on that account each was anxious to be declared the first prince of the blood •^. She is married The reader has noticed the constant solicitude of Henry to to tlie earl of _ '' Anjou. secure the friendship of Fulk, count of Anjou. That nobleman had lately resigned his European states to his eldest son, and had accepted the more brilliant but precarious dignity of king of Jerusalem. Henry offered with eagerness the hand of Matilda to Geoffry the reigning earl. The marriage was nego- tiated in secret : its publication excited the loud comi)]aints of the English and Norman barons. They claimed a right to be consulted in the disposal of their future sovereign : and many declared that they looked on themselves as released from the obligation of their oath by the duplicity of the king. He disre- garded their murmurs, and applauded his own policy, which had thus connected the interests of the Plantagenets with the inte- rests of his own family . 44 " Malm. Novel. 99. Chron. Sax. 231. called Plantagencts from their device, a sprig ♦•Malm. 99. Hunt. 219. They were of broom, or plante de gen6t. HENRY 1. 517 Still it was impossible for him to contemplate without disqui- CHAP, etude the increasing fame and power of his nephew the earl of ' Flanders, whose rum he deemed necessary both for his own Death of tbe tranquillity, and the future security of his daughter. William ders. had justly, but perhaps imprudently, punished the murderers of his predecessor. Their friends sought to be revenged on the new earl : at their suggestion Thierry, landgrave of Alsace, ad- vanced a claim to the succession : and Henry engaged to sup- port him with all the power of England and Normandy. Lisle, Ghent, and several other places were perfidiously surrendered to Thierry ; but William displayed his wonted activity and cou- rage, and completely defeated his antagonist under the walls of Alost. Unfortunately, after the battle and at the very gate of the town, he received a thrust in the hand from the pike of a foot-soldier. The wound was slight, and therefore neglected : a mortification ensued : and the expiring prince was conveyed to the monastery of St. Omer. There, from his death-bed, he Ju'y 27. wrote to Henry, recommending to the clemency of his uncle, the Norman barons, who had followed the fortunes of him, whom they deemed their legitimate prince. The king, when he had nothing znore to fear from the pretensions of his nephew (for William left no issue) granted his request, and by this affectation of generosity, won the attachment of his Norman subjects^. Thus, by the aid of accident and the resources of his own Quarrel be- _ tween Henry genius, had the king triumphed over every obstacle that appear- andhisson-in- ed to oppose his wishes. Still it was not his lot to reap the fruit of his labours. The very measure on which he had founded his expectations of tranquillity, proved a constant source of disc^uictude. It was with reluctance that Maud had conde- « Hunt. 219. Ang. Sac. ii. 697. Chron. Sax. 232. Orderic, 885, 886 518 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, scended to marry GeofFrj. To exchange the state of an empress ' for the lower condition of a countess of Anjou, and to be sub- jected to the Avild and wayward caprice of a boy of sixteen, hurt and irritated her feelings. Geoffry, on the other part, had inherited the uncontrollable spirit of his progenitors : he dis- dained to sooth, and made it his aim to subdue, the pride of his wife. They quarrelled, separated, and Maud repaired to Eng- land to solicit the protection of her father, A year elapsed in fruitless negotiations. At length the earl condescended to express a wish for the return of his wife, and a reconciliation was apparently effected. If the successive births of three grand- sons, Henry, Geoffry, and William, were to the king subjects of joy, he was equally chagrined by the conduct of his son-in-law, who demanded the present possession of Normandy in virtue of a previous promise, and manifested his displeasure at the refusal of Henry by repeated insults. Neither did Maud act the part of a mediatrix. Disliking her husband, she endeavoured to widen the breach by offending Geoffry herself, and seeking by her reports to irritate her father. These family broils detained the king in Normandy, and occupied his attention during the last years of his reign ^, His adminis- But though he rcsidcd so frequently on the continent, and trationof jus- . , i • , • ■ i !■ i ^ tice. was SO anxious to secure his transmarine possessions, he did not neglect the government of his kingdom of England, by far the most valuable of his dominions. The administration of justice, and the preservation of the public tranquillity, were objects which he had constantly at heart, and Avhich he earnestly recom- mended to the vigilance of his officers. I. The severity, with which he punished the more flagrant violations of the laws, " Malm. 100. Hunt. 229. Hor. 275. Orderic, 900. HENRY I. 5iy was a source of terror and amazement to his subjects, who be- chap. lieved him to be the " lion of justice," described in the pretend- ' cd prophecies of Merhn '"'. When he came to the throne rob- bery and rapine were crimes prevalent in every province of the kingdom : before his death they became so rare, that " whoso- " ever," says the Saxon chronicle in the language of the time, " bore his burthen of gold and silver, no man durst say to him " aught but good^." On one occasion, when the justiciary Ralph Basset held a court at Huncot in Leicestershire, no fewer than forty -four robbers were condemned and executed "**. This was in the year 1024, when neither interest nor presents could save the malefactor from death or mutilation : but afterwards, whether it was that the necessity of rigour had decreased with the frequency of crime, or that the love of money began to pre- dominate over the love of justice, pecuniary compensations, which had been abolished in the beginning of Henry's reign, were again accepted in lieu of corporal punishment ■'^. II. Under the Saxon dynasty the licence to coin money had h« punishes ... . . . the comers. been farmed out to different individuals in the principal bo- roughs, who with the dies received their instructions from the royal treasury. By the conqueror and his son Rufus the same custom had been continued : and these persons, by debasing the quality, or diminishing the weight, of the silver pennies, amassed considerable wealth, and at the same time screened themselves from punishment by frequent and valuable presents to the monarch. Henry, in the charter which he granted at his accession, had engaged to redress this grievance. By the Saxon laws the offender was condemned to suffer the amputation of the right hand, which, as a memorial of the crime, was affixed *' Bromp. 998. Joan, Salis. Polycrat, vi. 16. ■" Id. 928. «• Chron. Sa.x. 237. " Malm. 91. 520 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, with nails to the door of his house. To the loss of the hand or ' that of the eyes, which he sometimes substituted in its place, jjog the king added the punishment of castration. The inhabitants of boroughs, the principal merchants of the time, were sworn to watch over the purity of the coin, and to prosecute delinquents : and the same penalty was denounced against those who at- tempted to pass, as against those who fabricated, pennies of inferior value ^^ Still the evil continued to increase, till m the twenty-fifth year of his reign, it had become so universal, that hardly one penny in twelve was taken in the market. The royal 1126. indignation now fell on the coiners. By a general precept they were all summoned to appear at the court of exchequer in ^Vin- chester. Each in rotation was examined before the bishop of Sa- lisbury, the treasurer, who, if he judged him guilty, ordered him to be taken to a neighbouring apartment, where he immediately suf- fered the punishment prescribed by law. Of more than fifty, who obeyed the summons, four only escaped ''-'. This severity would, it was hoped, intimidate the future fabricators of money : and we may presume that to remedy the evil of the moment a new coinage was issued, and the old withdrawn from circu- lation ^^. And the foi- HI. Another grievance, which had been constantly increasing 'court.* "^ ^^"^^ during the two last reigns, had grown out of the royal claim of purveyance. Whenever the king moved from place to place, he was attended by a number of prelates, barons, and officers; " Leg. Sax. 305. Hov. 274. take good silver after the penny had been cut, " Chron. Sax. 228, 229. the king ordered, that for the ftiture both " The pennies had hitherto borne on the half-pennies and farthings should be coined reverse the impression of a cross, which di- circular, like the pennies, and be in that form a vided them into halves and quarters, and for legal tfiidtr which no one should refuse with conveniencetheywereoccasionally cut accord- impunity (Eadmer, 94. Sim. 254. whos* ing to the lines of this cross into half-pennies text should be corrected from Hoveden, 270). and farthings. As many persons refused to HENRY I. 521 each of whom was followed by a long train of dependants. All '^i^P- these expected to be maintained at tiic expense of the country _____^ through which they passed. Hence the progress of the court was like the progress of a hostile army : and the devastation Avliich the king's followers arc said to have caused would hardly deserve credit, had it not been attested by contemporary and unexceptionable writers. They were accustomed to enter without ceremony the houses of the farmers and husbandmen ; to live at free quarters; and in the insolence of superiority, to sell, burn, or waste, what they could not consume. The miserable inhabitants saw their corn and cattle carried awa^'^, and their wives and daughters insulted before their faces ; and, if they dared to re- monstrate, their presumption was punished, often by the confla- oration of their houses, sometimes by mutilation, and occasionally by death. Hence the approach of the king to any district, was a signal to the natives to conceal their effects, and flee to the woods ; and the solitude of the country wherever he turned, at length convinced him of the magnitude of the evil, and warned him to apply an effectual remedy. A commission of judges was appointed : the attendants on the court were exam- ined beibre them : and the more guilty were punished by the loss of an eye, or of a hand, or of a foot. The fate of these delinquents impressed a salutary terror on their fellows : and similar enor- mities were seldom repeated during the remainder of the king's reign ^*. '' Chron. Sax. 212. Malm. 91. Eadmer, the sight of it was confined to few, and the 94. QuiE justitia in pluribus visa, creteros in- impression, which it made, was soon obli- tegritatem sui amantes, ab aliorum l^sione terated. But the culprit, who had suffered delorrebat. Ibid. From this and similar ex- mutilation, carried about with him the evi- pressions in our ancient writers it would dence of his punishment during life, and daily ••ippear that the punishment of mutilation was admonished all who saw him, of the coo":?- ihoiight more useful than that of death. The quences ©f violating the laws. latter might strike more at the moment : but VOL. I. 3 X o22 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. Relieves his own teaants. ills method of raising' money. IV. If Henry thus relieved his subjects in general, he was equally just to the complaints of his own tenants. It has been already observed that in most counties a considerable portion of land was the property of the crown, the occupiers of which were bound to pay their rents in kind for the support of the royal household. This obligation imposed on the tenants, what they deemed a heavy burthen, the necessity of transporting in many cases, the produce of their farms to a considerable distance : but it was soon commuted for another, which they found it still more difficult to support. After the king began to reside principally on the continent, payments in kind were no longer wanted, and payments in money were demanded. Had these been deter- mined according to an equitable rate, the change would have been a benefit : but they were left to thq discretion or caprice of the royal officers, who were careful to enrich themselves bj' the oppression of the tenants. The latter harassed the king with repeated remonstrances, and on some occasions surrendered to him their ploughs, as a proof of their inability to continue the labours of agriculture under the existing burthens. Henry con- sulted his ministers, and a remedy was easily devised. A new survey was made of the royal demesnes : a certain and equitable rent in money was fixed by the commissioners : and the tenants were ordered to account annually with the sheriflfof the county, whose duty it was to pay the receipts into the exchequer ^^. V. It should, however, be observed, that the equity and hu- manity of the king were of a very questionable description. As long as his own interests were not concerned, he shewed no reluctance to check or punish the exactions or rapacity of others: but in the pursuit of his own aggrandizement, he scrupled not « Via. Seld. Spicil. ad Euclm. 21 C, 217. HENRY I. 52ii to trample on every consideration of justice, and to sport with (^HAp. the fortunes and happiness of his subjects. His system of conti- " nental policy involved him in enormous ex{)cnses : for money was the principal Aveapon with which he i'ought ; and he had seldom recourse to arms, till he had tried the efficacy of bribes and promises. Hence he was constantly haunted with appre- hensions of poverty ; and his ministers were employed in de- vising the means to acquit his past, and to provide for his future engagements. The danegelt, at the rate of twelve pennies in the hide, was continued during the whole of his reign : an ad- ditional aid of three shillings per hide was required on occasion of tlie marriage of his daughter Matilda : and yearly complaints of new and excessive exactions may be read in almost every page of the Saxon annalist ^°. The science of taxation was then in its infanc}'. To ease, by equalizing the burthen, never entered into the thoughts of the financiers of the age : a certain sum of money was wanted by the king ; it was wrung by the strong hand of power from the reluctant grasp of the subject. The collectors, says Eadmer, seemed to have no feelings of humanity or justice. If a man were without money he was cast into prison, or forced to flee from the country ; while his goods were sold, the doors of his house carried away, and the slender remains of his property exposed to the mercy of every passenger. If a man had money, he was harassed with threats of prosecution for imaginary offences, till he had surrendered all that he possessed. For no one dared to enter into litigation with his sovereign, or by refusing to pay the present demand, subject himself to the immediate loss of his whole property. Yet, adds the historian, there are many, Avho will think little of " Chron.Sax. 211,212,213. etseq. Hunt. 217, 218, 219. Bromp. 1001. 3x2 524 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, such enormities : so much luive we been habituated to them under the two last moiiarchs^'. From eccie- The ecclesjastical history of this period furnishes numerous s.asticai ene- jjjg^.y,-j(,gg of rojul rapacitj. In the charter which the king had pubhshed at his accession, he had solemnly engaged neither to sell the vacant benefices, nor to apply their profits to his own use. This promise was violated as soon as it could be done with impunity. That the crown might enjoy the episcopal revenues, the bishoprics of Norwich and Ely were kept without prelates for three, those of Canterbury, Durham, and Hereford, for five, 3^ears. At his coronation he had promoted to the see of Win- chester his chancellor, William Gift'ord, Soon afterwards he extorted from the new prelate the sum of eight hundred marks. He valued the revenue of Lichfield at three thousand marks, and compelled Roger the nephew of Geoffry Dedington, to pay that sum before he would name him to the bishopric. Gerold had been made abbot of Tewkesbury. Unable to satisfy the repeated demands of the king, he was necessitated to resign his abbey. Gilbert bishop of London had acquired the reputation of a careful and opulent prelate. At his death all his treasures were seized for the benefit of the crown '". From the manner in which these iniquitous proceedings are casually mentioned by the contemporary writers, we may reasonably infer that they were not of very rare occurrence. Anil the cano- I wiU add auothcr, and more singular instance. The reader preslionrof Has already noticed the attempt of archbishop Dunstan to re- store, during the reign of Edgar, the ancient discipline of the " Ead. 83. " God knows," says the Saxon " it is taken from liim : if he luis nothing lie is chronicle, " how unjustly this miserablo •' loft to perish by famine." Chron. Sax.228. " people is dealt with. First they are de- '' Sim. Dunelin. 02. 25C. Aug. Sac. i. " prived of their property, and then they are 297. 301. 408. 60SI. li. 098. Ead. 109. " p\it to death. If a manposscsses any thing, nical trans- pressions the cleig'v HENRY 1. 525 celibacy of llic clergy. The execution of the canons which he t,"lUP. published on that subject, was suspended during the invasion of the Danes under Sweyn, and was afterwards neglected under Canute and his successors. AVhen Lanfranc had been promoted to the see of Canterbury, he resolved to imitate the conduct of Dunstan, but at the same time was careful to temper his iceal with moderation. In a synod, which he convened at Winches- ter in 1075, the village curates, who were married, received permission to retain their wives; but the obligation of celibacy was imposed on the higher and conventual clergy, and a vow of continency was required from all future candidates for the orders of deacon and priest. At the distance of six-and-twenty years another synod was held at Westminster by archbishop Anselm. Here it was enacted that every priest and deacon should be obliged to observe the promise which he had made at his ordi- nation, and that all future sub-deacons should be subjected to the same restraint '^^. To Henry it was suggested that this canon might be converted into a source of revenue. A commission Avas in consequence appointed, with orders to inquire into the conduct of the clergy, and to impose a heavy fine on every individual, who might be found to have transgressed the regu- lation of the synod. It Mas, however, soon discovered, that the number of oftenders was too small to raise any considerable sum ; when the king, that his expectations might not be de- feated, ordered a certain fine to be levied on every parochial clergyman, without regard to his guilt or innocence. With its amount we are not acquainted ; but the consequences prove that it must have been excessive. Some, through indignation at the injustice of the measure, refused, others, through poverty were -■• Ead. «7. 526 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, unable, to pay. Both classes Mere imprisoned and tortured. Their brethren, who were still at liberty, appealed to the cle- mency of the king. To the number of two hundred, with their feet bare, and clad in the appropriate dress of their respective orders, they met him in one of the streets of London. He turned from them with expressions of insult. They next implored the intercession of the queen : but ISIatilda, with tears in her eyes, assured them that she did not dare to interfere *'°. Dispute re- 'j'^g most important controversy in which Henry wasen2;ao;ed ipecting papal ' "^ _ o o legates. -vyjtii the court of Rome, regarded the admission of the papal legates. On the one side it was contended that the pope, in quality of universal pastor, had the right to inquire by con- fidential ministers into the state of the church in distant countries ; and that the abuses which had arisen from the prevalence of simoniacal elections, imperiously required the exercise of that right. On the other it was alleged, that by the grants of former popes the archbishop of Canterbury was entitled to the authority of papal legate within the kingdom: and that no instance was known of such authority having been exercised by a foreign ecclesiastic, unless it were at the express request of the sovereig•n^^ This answer was but partially correct. In the earliest ages of the Anglo-Saxon ciiurch we find the archbishop of Canterbury invested with the title of envoy of the apostolic see^^ : but the history of the same ages furnishes several instances of legates, who M^ere sent from Rome to reform the English clergy, and who in virtue of the papal commission assembled councils and pro- " Ead. 83, 84. Some years later he sold to any, wlio were willing to buy, the adopted a dift'erent plan. The bishops in a licence to transgress the canons, IIov. 27 1. council at London, requested him tp enforce Hunt. 220. Chron. 23-1 the celibacy of the clergy by royal authority. " Ead. .08. 118.. 126. He accepted the office, and abused their con- " Edd. vit. Wilf. c. li. fidence. In order to raise money, ho publicly 1 HENRY I. 527 mulgated laws of ecclesiastical discipline *^^ The question was ^^^^'' debated during a great portion of Ilenrv's reign. Some legates ss===:z Avere induced by threats or promises to return without attempting to land. Others were received, and introduced to the king, who by gifts and remonstrances prevailed on them to wave the exercise of their authority. Perhaps they were unwilling to offend a prince, who loaded them with presents ; perhaps they feared to compromise their character, by entering into a contest of doubtful issue. At length Paschal II. sent an earnest expos- tulation to the king and the prelates. He complained that without the royal licence neither his letters nor envoys were admitted into the kingdom : that no causes or appeals were carried before the apostolic sec ; and that in consequence men of worthless characters were pi-omoted to benefices, and by their conduct encouraged the growth of those abuses, which it was their duty to extirpate*^. This expostulation was followed by a legate of the name of Anselm. On his arrival in Normandy, the ins. English bishops were hastily assembled : and by their advice Ralph, the metropolitan, undertook a journey to Rome, to plead in person the privileges of his church. After an absence of two years he returned. Sickness and the vvars in Italy had prevented him from seeing the pontiff, and he brought with him no more than an evasive letter, in which, though the privileges of the church of Canterbury were confirmed, no mention was made of the real point in dispute ''^ If we may believe our national . historians, the king was more successful than his archbishop : and in an interview with Calixtus, one of the successors of 1120. Paschal, at Gisors, obtained the confirmation of the privilege for which he contended ^'^. There is, however, reason to doubt ^' Bed. iv. 18. Wilk. Con. i. 146. " Ead. 120. " Ead. 112. 116. "« Ead. 125, 126. 528 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, tiie accuracy of this statement : for after a short interval, the ' cardinal Peter, the son of a powerful Roman prince, arrived in 1122. France with the lofty title of legate of the apostolic see in the Gauls, in P>ritain, in Ireland, and in the Orkneys. Henry received liim with much ceremony in London, but observed to him, that he would never surrender the rights of his crown : that were he inclined to do so, still it Avould be necessary to obtain the consent of the prelates, the barons, and the whole kingdom ; and that it was impossible to convene such an assembl}' as lono- as the nation was engaged in hostilities with the Welsh. Peter assented to the reasons of the king; and on his return to the coast was attended by a numerous escort, and gratified with valuable presents*'. Calixtus appears to have been dissatisfied with the conduct of this legate ; and appointed the cardinal John of Crema to succeed him in the same capacity. His mission was dela3'ed by the death of the pope ; but on u renewal of the appointment by Honorius II. he advanced as far as Normand}^ where he was detained by the orders of Henry. 1125. After a long negotiation he obtained permission to proceed ; traversed the kingdom in great pomp, and met the king of Scotland at Roxburo-h. There he held a svnod of Scottish bishops, to inquire into the controversy between them, and the archbishop of York, who claimed nietropolitical jurisdiction over Sep. 8. their churches'*. In his return he presided at Westminster in a council of the English prelates, with fort}' abbots and most of the other dignitaries. Seventeen canons of discipline were enacted at his suggestion, the object of which Avas to enforce the celibacy of the clergy, and to abolish simoniacal elections and contracts *''•'. William, archbishop of Canterbury, accompanied " Ead. i;{7, 138. " The name of Crema has bcf^n rrndrred " Sim. 252, infamous by the pen of Ilijntingdon, who HENRY I. 529 Crema in his return to Rome : and, thougli ho could not prevail on the pontiff to surrender his claim of sending envoys to the English church, obt.'dned for himself a grant of the legatine authority both in England and Scotland ^°. Soon afterwards he convoked a national synod, and published several canons of discipline, similar in substance to those of Crema; but Avith some variations, that they might not appear to rest on the authority of that cardinal. When Honorius died, the succession to the papacy Avas disputed between two competitors, Innocent and Anaclet : and Henry, in opposition to the advice of his bishops, Avas persuaded by the celebrated St. Bernard, to espouse the cause of the former. He met Innocent at Chartres, fell at his feet, and promised him the obedience of a dutiful son^^ This pontiff confirmed the grant of his predecessor to the archbishop of Canterbury, Avho, in quality of metropolitan and legate, con- tinued to sovern the Ensjlish church during the remainder of the reign of Henry '^'^. CHAP. X. Sep. 29, 1130. maintains in the most positive terms, that on the very night of the dissolution of the council he was detected in the commission of the of- fence, which he had so severely condemned in others. Cum merctrice interceptus est. Res apertissima negari non potuit. Hunt. 219. The same story is told on the authority of Huntingdon by Hoveden (274), Brompton (1015), and Hemingford (276). It is, however, singular that he should be the only contemporary writer, who mentions the fact. It seems to have been unknown to the con- tinuator of Florence, who relates in detail the acts of the synod (661); and to Simeon, who adds many other particulars of Crema's lega- tion (252) ; ,ind also to Gervase, whose en- mity to the cardinal paints itself in the strongest colours (1663). The tales of the later wri- ters, Westminster (240), and the monk of Winchester (Ang. Sac. i. 291), are too ridi- culous to deserve mention. '° See the bull in Wharton (Ang. Sac. i. VOL. I. 3 Y 792), though he supposes erroneously that i* was prior to the legation of Crema. " Bern. Bonaeval. inter op. S. Bern. 1991. Suger, vit. Lud. Cras. " Wharton (Ang. Sac. i. 792), is very severe on the memory of this prelate, whom he accuses of having, by the acceptance of the legatine authority, subverted the inde- pendence of his church, and enslaved it to that of Rome. Had William indeed believed, with AVharton, that the pope previously pos- sessed no jurisdiction in England, he would have deserved this censure : but he professed, like his predecessors, to derive his own au- thority from the pope (See Malm. 112 — 116), and, if he objected to the admission of foreign legates in England, it was, not because the church of Canterbury was independent, but because the authority of legate had been pre- viously granted by the popes to the archbishop of Canterbury. Inauditum scilicet in Britan- nia cuacti scientes, querolibet hominem supra 530 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Ptobert, the unfortunate duke of Normandy, had now spent ' eight-and-thirty years in captivity. According to some histo- Delth ofduke li^ws hc borc his confinement with impatience : and by an un- Robcrt. successful attempt to escape, provoked his brother to deprive him of sight ''^. For the honour of human nature we may hope that the latter part of the account is false : the more so, as it is not supported by con temporal y authority. If Henry may be beheved, the reader has aheady heard him boast of the splen- dour and comfort enjoyed by his captive : and Malmsbury (but Malmsbury wrote to the son of Henry, and therefore was dis- posed to panegyrize the father) seems to confirm this statement, when he assures us that the duke Avas allowed every indulgence 1134- compatible with his security '^*. Robert died at the age of eighty in the castle of Cardiff in Wales ". Death of Hcnry did not survive his brother more than a year. He had ^^7izo. been hunting near St. Denis le Froment in Normandy, and at his return was seized with an acute fever. On the third day, despairing of his recovery, he sent for the archbishop of Rouen, from whom he received the sacraments of the eucharist and extreme unction. The earls of Gloucester, Surrey, and Leices- ter, and the rest of the nobility assembled round his bed : and in their presence he pronounced his last will. I bequeath, he said, all my lands on both sides the sea to m}'^ daughter Ma- tilda and her heirs for ever : and I desire that, when my debts have been discharged, and the liveries and wages of my retainers have been paid, the remainder of my effects may be distributed Dec. 2. to the poor. On the seventh day of his illness he expired. His bowels were deposited in the church of St. Mary at Rouen, se vices apostolieas gerere nisi solum archiepis- " Paris, 52. copum Cantuariae. End. 38. See the grants '* Malm. 87. to the archbishops Tatwine, Plegmund, and " Orderic, 893. 900. Dunstan, in Malmsbury de Pont. ii. 116. HENRY I. 531 which had been founded by his mother : his body was conveyed CHAP, to England, and interred in the abbey of Reading '^^ ' minis- tration of e. A contemporary Ma-iter has left us the character of Henry as HLscharacter. it was differently drawn by his friends and enemies after his death. By the former he was ranked aniong the wisest, richest, and bravest of our monarchs : the latter loaded his memory with the reproach of cruelty, avarice, and incontinence". To an in- different observer at the present day his reign will ofter little worthy of praise, unless it be the severity with which he punished offences. This was a real benefit to his people, as it not only His ad contributed to extirpate the robbers by profession, but also j'^slZ checked the rapacity and violence of the barons. Still his merit will be very equivocal. As long as each conviction brought with it a fine or forfeiture to the royal exchequer, princes were stimulated to the execution of the laws by a sense of personal interest '^''. Henry, at the same time that he visited the injustice of others, scrupled not to commit injustice himself Probably in both cases he had in view the same ol)ject, his own emolu- ment. The great aim of his ambition was to aggrandize his family by Policy. augmenting his possessions on the continent. His success in this favourite project obtained for him the reputation of political wisdom : but it was purchased at the expense of enormous sums wrung from a suffering and impoverished people. If, however, the English thus paid for acquisitions in Avhich they had little interest, they derived from them one advantage, that attention " Malm. 100. Orderic, 901. Epist. Pet. quatn velint aut valeant imitari. Bouquet, xir. Yener. ad Adelard. apud Bouquet, xv. 632. 248. " Hunt. 221. Rex maximus cujus adjus- '" The reader will hereafter see this fully titiara omnesfereprinoipes invitanturexemplo, exemplified in the commission given to the cujus in pauperes munificentiam, liberalitalem king's justiciaries. !ii omnes, cuncti reges mirari possunt potius 3 Y 2 532 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, to foreign politics rendered the king anxious to preserve peace ' with his more immediate neighbours. He lived on the most friendly terms with Alexander and David, successively kings of Scotland. The former had married his natural daughter Sy- billa ; both were the brothers of his wife Matilda. It was more difficult to repress the active and predatory disposition of the Welsh : but as often as he prepared to chastise their presump- tion, they pacified his resentment by submission and presents. As a check to this restless people he planted among them a powerful colon}' of foreigners. Many natives of Flanders had found settlements in England under the protection of his mother Matilda : and the number was now doubled by a crowd of emigrants, who had been driven from their homes by an inundation of the Rhine. Henry placed them at first on the right bank of the Tweed : but afterwards collecting the old and new comers into one body, allotted to them for their 1100. residence the town of Haverfordwest with the district of Ross in Pembrokeshire. They were a martial and industrious people : by attention to the cultivation of the soil and the manufacture of cloth, they grew in numbers and opulence : and under the pro- tection of the English kings, to whom they always remained faithful, defeated every attempt of the Welsh princes to root them out of the country "^. " Malms. 68, 89. Gerv. 1349. Bromp. much reluctance. Sometimes, by appealing 1003. Giral. Itin. Camb. 848. Henry on to the pope, they reclaimed their ancient two occasions had entered Wales with an rights, but were always defeated by the su- army : on both his presence alone was suffi- perior power of their adversaries. The present cient to subdue all opposition (Chron. Sax. bishop of St. David's, Dr. Burgess, appears 217. 223. Sim. 245). He carried the ex- to have mistaken the nature of this contro- ercise of his sovereignty further than any of versy. He complains that Henry subjected his predecessors, naming to the Welsh bishop- the Welsh church to the church of Rome : rics, and compelling the new prelates to receive but in the pleadings the Welsh bishops com- consecration from the archbishops of Canter- plain that the king had subjected their clHirch bury. The bishops of St. David's, who had to the church of Canterbury, whereas it had long exercised metropolitical jurisdiction over never before been subject to any churcii but the greater pari of Wales, submitted with that of Rome. Usque ad Regem Henricum HENRY I. 533 Henry was naturally suspicious ; and this disposition had chap. been greatly encouraged by his knowledge of the clandestine _'___ attempts of" his enemies. On one occasion the keeper of his Suspicions, treasures was convicted of a design on his life : on another, while he was marching in the midst of his army towards Wales, an arrow from an unknown hand struck him on the breast, but was repelled by the temper of his cuirass®". Alarmed by these incidents, he always kept on his guard, frequently changed his apartments, and, when he retired to rest, ordered sentinels to be stationed at the door, and his sword and shield to be placed near his pillow ^^ The suspicious are generally dissembling and revengeful. Revenge. Henry seldom forgot an injury, though he would disguise his enmity under the mask of friendship. Fraud, and treachery, and violence, were employed to insnare those who had greatly offended him ; and their usual portion was death, or blindness, or perpetual imprisonment ^'^ After his decease it was disco- vered that his cousin, the earl of Moretoil, whom he had long kept in confinement, had also been deprived of sight ^^. Luke de Barre, a poet, who had fought against him, was made prisoner at the close of the last war, and sentenced by the king to lose his eyes. Charles the good, earl of Flanders, was present, and remonstrated against so direful a punishment. It was not, he observed, the custom of civilized nations to inflict bodily pu- nishment on knights who had drawn the sword in the service of their lord. " It is not," rephed Henry, " the first time that he qui ecclesiain Walensicam ecclesis Anglicae •" Malm. 89. 91. supposuit, totam metropoliticam dignitatem "' Suger, vit. Lud. Gross. 112. praeter usum pallii ecclesia Menevensis obti- " Blandus odii dissimulator, sed pro tem- nuit, nuUi ecclesiae prorsus nisi Romanse tan- pore immodicus retributor. Malm. 88. Mul- tum, et illi immediate, sicut nee Scotica, sub- tos proditione cepit, raultos dolose interfeciu jectionem debens. Giral. de jure Menev. Hunt, in Ang. Sac. ii. 699. eccl. 541. " Hunt. 221. 2 534 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. « lias been in arms a2;ainst me. But what is worse, he has made ' " me the subject of satire, and in his poems has held me up to " the derision of my enemies. From his example let other versi- " fiers learn what they may expect, if they oflend the king of " England." The cruel mandate was executed : and the trou- badour, in a paroxysm of agony, bursting from the hands of the officers, dashed out his brains against the wall ^*. Dissimuia- jjjg dissimulation was so well known that he was mistrusted even by his favourites. When Bloet, bishop of Lincoln, who had for many years been one of his principal justiciaries, was told that the king had spoken of him in terms of the highest commendation : " Then," he rephed, " I am undone: for I never " knew him praise a man whom he did not intend to ruin." The event justified his apprehensions. In an unguarded moment the prelate had boasted that the monastery, which he was build- ing at Eynsham, should equal that which Henry had founded at Reading. The words were carried to the king, and the fall of the favourite was consummated. He was immediately deprived of the office of justiciary : vexatious prosecutions were com- menced against him : by fines and extortions all his wealth was drawn to the royal exchequer : and the bishop would probably jaii.^to. have been compelled to resign his dignity, had he not died by a sudden stroke of apoplexy, as he was speaking to Henry ^^. Incontinence. Malmsbury lias allotted to the king the praise of temperance and continency ^^. Perhaps his claim to the first, certainly his claim to the second, of these virtues, rests on no other ground than the partiality of his panegyrist. If, as many writers affirm, his death Avas occasioned by the excess with which he ate a dish of lampreys, wc may fairly doubt of his temperance : nor '' Ordcric, 880, 881. " Malm. 91. '■ Hunt. Ang. Sac. 605. Pet. Bles. 127. 1 HENRY 1. 535 can the continency of that man be much commended, who is chap. known to have been attached to several mistresses, and of whose " illegitimate children no fewer than seven sons, and eight daugh- ters lived to the age of puberty "'. Of the sons, Robert of Caen, earl of Gloucester, was chiefly distinguished by his father. He will, claim the attention of the reader in the following reign. The king's principal ministers were Roger, bishop of Salisbury, nis ministers, and Robert, earl of Mellent. Roger had constantly adhered to Henry in all the vicissitudes of fortune, which that prince ex- perienced before liis accession : it was natural that he should The bishop of rise to eminence, when his patron became a rich and powerful monarch. By the chapter of Salisbury he' was chosen for their bishop : by the king he was appointed grand justiciary of the kingdom. On the plea that the two offices were incompatible with each other, he declined the latter, till his scruples Avere removed by the joint authority of the pontiff and the metropo- litan. To his episcopal duties he devoted the more early part of the day; the remainder was given to the affairs of state: and it is no weak argument of his merit, that though he was many years the minister of a rapacious monarch, he neverpncurred the hatred of the people. Whenever Henry left the kingdom, the bishop of Sarum was appointed regent; and in that capacity discharged the duties of government for years together, to the satisfaction of his sovereign ^^. While the internal administration was confided to this prelate. The earl of Mellent. the department of foreign politics exercised the abilities of the earl of Mellent. He attended the king in all his expeditions into Normandy, and acquired the reputation of being the first "See their names in Speed (481), I)u- '• Chron. Sax. 224, 5, 6. Malms. 91. chesne (1072), and Sandford (Geucal. Hist. Hunt. Aug. Sac. ii. 700. 30-33). 536 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. Henry's pre- judices ag^ainst the English. His riches, statesman in Europe. Princes and pontiffs courted his friend- ship : Henry himself, though he perceived it not, was supposed to be governed by him : and his possessions in England, Nor- mandy, and France, received daily augmentations by his violence and rapacity. Nor Avas his authority confined to the concerns of government : he had usurped the empire of taste ; and every fashionable courtier imitated the dress and manners of the earl of Mellent. His last illness was induced or irritated by vexation of mind. He had resolved to augment his wealth by the mar- riage of an opulent heiress : his expectations were defeated by the superior address of a rival. On his death-bed he sent for the archbishop of Canterbury ; but when that prelate exhorted him to prepare for a future life by repairing the injustices which he had committed in this, he hastily replied : " I will leave to " my children, whatever I have acquired. Let them do justice " to those whom I have injured." It is superfluous to add, that justice was never done ^^. These two ministers, as well as every other officer trusted by the king, were foreigners. He felt no gratitude for the services, and held in no estimation the abilities, of his native subjects. If in the hourof danger he appealed to their fidelity, during the time of prosperity he treated them with the most marked con- tempt. They were carefully excluded from every office of power or emolument, Avhether in church or state. The most slender recommendation was sufficient to qualify a stranger, were he Italian, French, or Norman ; no services, no talents could expiate in an Englishman the original sin of his nativity^. Henry, if we consider the value of money at that period, was immensely rich. On occasions of ceremony, when he wore his •" Malms. 90. Hunt. Aug. Sac. ii. 698. aliquo digous judicarctur, eum poterat adju- '" Si Anglus erat, nulla virtus ut hoiiore vare. Ead. 94. 110. HENRY I. 537 crown, he imitated the parade of the eastern inonarchs : and CHAP, before^ him on a table were displayed the most precious of ' his treasures, particularly two golden vases of extraordinary dimensions, and elegantly enchased with jewels^^ After his death, his successor found in the exchequer, besides the plate and gems collected by himself and his two predecessors, one hundred thousand pounds of pennies, all of just weight, and of pure silver^". So nmch Avealth had enabled him to indulge his and buildings, taste for architecture : and while the castles, which he raised on the borders of Wales, contributed to the protection of the country, by repairing or rebuilding most of the royal palaces, he provided for the comfort and sj)lendour of himself and his successors. At Woodstock he enclosed a spacious park for deer, and added a menagerie for wild beasts, among which Malmsbury mentions lions, leopards, lynxes, camels, and, what appears to have chiefly attracted the notice of the historian, a porcupine ^^ But his religious foundations principally displayed his magnificence. These were three monasteries, two for regular canons at Chi- chester and Dunstaple : and one for monks of the order of Clugni, situated at Reading, near the conflux of the Thames and the Kennet, where the great roads of the kingdom intersected each other. The wealth with Avhich Henry endoAved this estab- lishment did not seduce the monks from the rigid observance of their rule. It was their custom to offer hospitahty to all who passed by their convent : and it was believed that in the enter- tainment of strangers they annually expended a much larger sum than was devoted to their own maintenance^*. "' They afterwards fell into the hands of " Malms. 91. Rad. Die. 505. Theobald, earl of Blois. Bern. Boneeval. in " Malms. 92. Pet. Bles. 126. Joan. Vit. S. Bern. 2011. Hagul.258. Cliron. de Dunstap. 677. ■' Malms. Novel. 101. VOL. I. 3 z 538 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. Before I close the history of this prince, and proceed to the ' turbulent reign of Stephen, it will be proper to notice the rapid State of learn- improvement of the nation in literary pursuits under the con- '"=■ queror and his sons. Lanfranc and Anselm, the two arch- bishops of Canterbury, had proved themselves worthy of their exalted station. The superior knowledge of the former was universally admitted : the attainments of his successor were of a still higher class. Both in their more early years had exercised the profession of teachers : and their precepts and examples had awakened the curiosity of the clergy, and kindled an ardour for learning which can hardly be paralleled in the present age. Nor did this enthusiasm perish Avith its authors : it was kept alive by the honours which were so prodigall}' lavished on all, who could boast of literary acquirements. The sciences, which formed the usual course of education, were divided into two classes, which still retained the appellations of a more barbarous age, the trivium, comprising grammar, logic, and rhetoric, and the quadrivium, or music, arithmetic, geometry, and astronomy. It was from the works of the Latin writers, which had survived the wreck of the empire, that students sought to acquire the principal portion of their knowledge : but in the science of medicine, and the more abstruse investigations of the mathe- matics, the ancients were believed inferior to the mohammedan teachers: and many an Englishman, during the reign of Henry, wandered as far as the banks of the Ebro in Spain, that he might listen to the instructions, or translate the works, of the Arabian philosophers^^. tTie^chliois"^ To the praise of the popes it must be said that, even in the " See Pel. Clun. ep. in BibliothecaClunia- naturales perdificiles. MS. Galba, E. 4. censi, 1109, ni8,aiid AthelheardiquKstione? HENRY I. 539 inicldlc ages, tlicy were generally attentive to the intciests of C^HAP. learning, 'J'iie first schools had been established in monasteries " and cathedrals by the zeal of their respective prelates : that they •were perpetuated and improved, was owing to the regulations issued by different pontifls. liut now tlie ancient seminaries began to be neglected for others opened by men, who sought for Avcalth and distinction by the public display of their abilities ; and who established their schools wherever there was a prospect of attracting disciples. The new professors were soon animated with a spirit of competition, which while it sharpened their faculties, perverted the usefulness of their labours. 'J'here was no subject on which they would condescend to acknowledge their ignorance. Like their Arabian masters % they discussed with equal warmth matters above their comprehension, or be- neath their notice. As their schools were open to every hearer, they had to support their peculiar oj^inions against all the sub- tlety and eloquence of their rivals: and on many occasions Avere compelled to argue in despite of common sense, rather than alloAv themselves to be Aanquished. Hence the art of reasoning came to be valued as the first of intellectual acquirements. The student applied assiduously to the logic of Aristotle, and the subtleties of his Aral)ian connnentators : words were substituted in the place of ideas : multiplied and unmeaning distinctions bewildered the understanding : and a system of scholastic dis- putation was introduced, which the celebrated abbot of Clair- vaux sarcastically defined to be " the art of ahvaj's seeking, " without ever finding, the truth." " Thus we learn from Alhelheard, that if why horns are not generated on the human he had studied among the Moors the causes forehead, whether the stars are animals, of earthquakes, eclipses, and tides, he had whether in that hypothesis they have any also been employed in investigating the rca- appetite, with many other questions equally sons why plants cannot be produced in fire, singular and important. See Athelheard's >vhy the nose is made to iiang over the mouth, Quaestiones, ibid. 3 7. 2 540 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP. X. Course of studies. 1110. Galto-Nor- tuaD poet9. As the principal ecclesiastics in England were foreigners, they imported the foreign course of studies. Thus JofFrid abbot of Crojland, procured teachers from Orleans, where he had been educated, and estabhshed them at Cotenham, a manor belonging to his convent. His object was to open, with their assistance, a school in the neighbouring town of Cambridge. At first a large barn sufficed for their accommodation : in the second year their disciples were so numerous, that separate apartments were allotted to each master. Early in the morning the labours of the day were opened by brother Odo, who taught the children the rules of grammar according to Priscian : at six Terric read lectures on the logic of Aristotle : nine was the hour allotted to brother AVilliam, the expounder of the rhetorical works of Cicero and Quintilian : and before twelve master Gilbert explained to the theological students the difficult passages of the Holy Scriptures. This account, if it be genuine, discloses the real origin of the university of Cambridge ^^. There were few among the scholars of Henry's reign who did not occasionally practise the art of composing in Latin verse. A few of them may certainly claim the praise of taste and ele- gance; but the majority seem to have aspired to no other excel- lence than that of adulterating the legitimate metre by the admixture of middle and final rhymes. Latin productions, however, were confined to the perusal and admiration of Latin scholars. The rich and the powerful, those who alone were able to reward the labours of the poet, were acquainted with no other language than their own, the Gallo-Norman, which since " Pet. Bles. 1 14. From the mention of the Arabian Averroes, whose works were not then in existence, it has been suggested, that the whole passage is a forgery, designed to exalt the antiquity of Cambridge. I am, however, inclined to think that for such a purpose an earlier date would have been chosen ; and that the name of Averroes may have originally been added in tlie margin, and thence have slipped into the text. HENRY I. 541 the conquest had been introduced into the court of the prince, ^haP- and the hall of the baron, and was learned and spoken by every ' candidate for office and power. To amuse and delight these men arose a new race of versifiers, who neglected Latin composition for vernacular poetry. In their origin they were fostered by the patronage of the two queens of Henry, Matilda and Alice. Malmsbury assures us that every poet hastened to the court of Matilda at Westminster, to read his verses to that princess, and partake of her bounty : and the name of Alice is frequently mentioned with honour by the contemporary versifiers Gaimar, Beneoit, and Philippe dcThaun. The works of these writers are still extant in manuscript ^ : and shew that their authors knew little of the inspiration of poetry. The turgid metaphors, the abrupt transitions, and the rapid movements, so characteristic of the Anglo-Saxon muse, though conceived in bad taste, shewed at least indications of native genius: but the narratives of the Gallo-Norman poets are tame, prosaic, and interminable: and their authors seem to have known no beauty but the jingle of rhyme, and to have aimed at no excellence but that of spinning out their story to the greatest possible length. These poems, however, such as they were, delighted those for whom they were written, and, what was still better, brought wealth and popularity to their authors. During the reign of Henry, Geoflry of Monmouth published origin of his history of Britain, which he embellished with numerous tales respecting Arthur and his knights, Merlin and his prophecies, borrowed from the songs and traditions of the ancient Britons. This extraordinary work was accompanied by another of a si- milar description, the history of Charlemagne and his twelve " Cotton Lib. Nero, A. 5. Bib. Reg. 13. A. 21. MSS. Harl. 4482. 542 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. CHAP, peers, supposed to be compiled by archbishop Turpin, from tlie ' songs of the French trouveres ; and about the same time the adventures of Alexander the great, by the pretended Dares Phrygius, and Dictys Cretensis, were brought by some of the crusaders into Europe. These three works supplied an inex- haustible store of matter for writers in verse and prose ; the gests of Alexander, and Arthur, and Charlemagne, were repeated and embellished in a thousand forms: spells and enchantments, giants, hypogriphs and dragons, ladies confined in durance by the power of necromancy, and delivered from confinement by the courage of their knights, captivated the imagination of our ancestors; and a new species of writing was introduced, which retained its sway for centuries, and was known by the appella- tion of Roma7ice, because it was originally written in the Gallic idiom, an idiom corrupted from the ancient language of Rome ^. m Q See the Archaiologia, toI. xii. xiii. NOTES. 543 NOTE [A], Pages 233, 234, and 235. X HE object of the present note is to investigate the nature of some transactions ia the reign of Edwy, which have been differently represented by different writers in later times. For this purpose I shall have recourse to the most ancient authorities, and shall transcribe such as are not of easy access. 1. Was Edwy married at the time of his coronation? This question has been decided in the negative by the anonymous biographer of archbishop Dunstan, who was contemporary with that prelate, and wrote about fifteen years after his death. The work is extant in manuscript in the British Museum, Cleop. B. 13, and has been published by the Bollandists, torn. 4. Maii, p. 344. This writer says : Huic quxdam, licet natione prascelsa, inepta tamen mulier, cum adulta filia per nefandum familiari- tatis lenocinium sectando inhxrebat : eotenus videlicet quo sese, vel etiam natam suam, sub conjugali titulo illi innecteudo sociaret. Quas ille, ut aiunt, alternatim, quod jam pudet dicere turpi palpatu, et absque pudore utriusque libidinose tractavit. MS. Cleop. 76. Act. SS. p. 353. The same is asserted by Eadmer, who wrote about the year 1 100. Wharton has published one third of Eadmer's life of St. Dunstan, in the second tome of his Anglia sacra : the whole was published by Surius under the name of Osbert, Coloniae Agrippinse, 1618. The words of Eadmer are these. Erat mulier qusedam ex magna et alta progenie nata, fiiiam adultam liabens .... Hae praefatje regi Edvino assiduae adherebant, suis blanditiis et nutibus illecebrosis pro viribns operam dantes, quatenus unam illarum sibi in conjugium copularet. Ad quas ille iinpudico illiciti amoris desiderio fervens iudecenti amplexu nunc banc nunc illam, neutrius adspectum in hoc erubescens, destringebat. Eadmer, apud Sur. p. £36. 2. The transaction, which occurred on the day of the king's coronation, may be seen in Osbern, Ang. Sac. ii. 104. It is thus described by the contemporary biogra- pher. Cum tempore statuto ab universis Anglorum principibus comniuni clectione ungeretur et consecraretur in regem, die eodeni post regale sacrse institutionis un- guentuni repente prosiluit lascivus, linquens laeta convivia et decibiles optimafum 3 544 NOTES. suorum consessiones ad piaedictiim scelus lenociiiii (ad praedictum luparutn palpa- ineiitam Act. SS. p. 353). After some debate, Dunstan and Kinsey were chosen, qui omnium jiissis obtemperantes regem volentem vel nolentem reducerentad relictani sedem. Ingressi juxta principum suorum praecepta invenerunt regiam coronam, quae miro metallo auri et argenli, gemmarumque vario nitore conserta splendebat, procul a capite ad terrani usque negligenter avulsam, ipsumque more maligno inter utrasqne velut in vili suillorum volutabro creberrime volutantem. They requested him to return. At Dunstanus primum increpitans mulierum ineptias inanu sua, dum noUet exsurgere, extraxit eum de maechali ganearum accubitu, impositoque diademate duxit euni secum, licet vi a mulieribus raptura, ad regale consortium. Tunc eadem ^thel- giva, sic erat nomen ignominiosae mulieris, inanes orbes oculorum contra veneraudum abbatetn ferventi furore retorsit, inquiens hujusmodi hominem ultra modum esse man-nanimum, qui regis in secretum temerarius intraret. MS. Cleop. 76. On com- paring this account with those of Wallingford (p. 542), and Westminster (p. 195), it will be seen that they have done nothing more than abridge it, generally preserving the very same words. The account by Eadmer is similar to the preceding. Die quo ipse Edvinus itt regem est consecratus, a loco convivii in quo cum archiepiscopis, episcopis, abbatibus, totiusque regni principibus sedebat, jam pransus exilit, et relictis omnibus in caraeram, iibi praefatse femince erant, solus secedit, capitique corona sublata, se inter illas in medium jecit. Quod optimates agnoscentes, oppido indignati sunt. They then chose Dunstan and Kinsey, qui ex praecepto summi pontificis et aliorum omnium ad regem ingressi, ilium, ut dixi, in medio illarum duarum decubantem rcpererunt. Tunc Dunstanus primo in ignominiosas mulieres asperae increpationis verba vultu et voce contorquens, lascivias earuni, sicut verum castitatis amatorem decuit, detestatus est. Deinde regem ut se tanti opprobrii exortem faceret monens, ad proceres cum redire, eosque sua prsesentia exhilarare summissa voce precatus est. Qui animi sui furore simul et vultus sui rubore perfusus, dutn se rediturum omnino negaret, Dunstanus manum illius arripuit, et a loco violenter abstractum, imposito capiti ejus diademate, ad convivantes introduxit. Quod mulieris ignominia nullatenus aequanimiter ferens, ssvis verborum increpationibus in virum surrexit, et se eurn confusioni perpeluae traditurum garrula contestatione devovit. Eadmer, ibid. — Mr. Turner is unwilling to believe the indecent part of this history, because the MS. Cleop. introduces it with a suspicious " ut aiunt" (Hist. iii. 155. not. 7)- But to me it is evident that the words " ut aiunt" refer to the conduct of Ethelgiva and her daughter on previous occasions, not on the day of the king's coronation. 3. On what account, and at wliose solicitation, was Dunstan driven into banish- ment ? A writer in the Edinburgh Review for October, 1815, pretends, that according NOTES. 545 to many respectable authors he was accused and convicted, probably unjustly, of hav- ing embezzled the royal treasures. In proof of this statement he quoted Florence, Simeon, Hoveden, and Wallingford. But the three former do not contain the remotest allusion to any such charge or conviction. The passage which he has trans- cribed from them, " exilio pro justitia ascriptus, mare transiil" is meant to praise his conduct, not to censure it. They copied it from the eulogium of the archbishop, composed by Adalard about twenty years after the decease of the prelate, and ap- pointed to be read every year in the church of Canterburj' on the anniversary of his death. It describes him as sutfering persecution, not for peculation, but " for righte- "ousness sake : pro justitia." Adalard, Blandin. MS. Nero, c. 7. Lect. 7. Neither does Wallingford any where say that the abbot of Glastonbury was accused or convicted of peculation. lie only tells us that the king all along had entertained suspicions of Dunstan, because he had been intrusted with the custody of the royal treasures. Suspectus enini erat Eadwino Dunstanus omni tempore, eo quod tem- pore Eadrcdi thesauros patrum suorum custodisset. Walling. 342. But what was the real nature of these suspicions, he has not informed us. Ed wy regarded all the friends of his uncle invido oculo (ibid.) : and it is not improbable that he blamed Dunstan for the loss of those sums which Edred had given to the poor and the church. But the obscure language of Wallingford cannot outweigh the positive testimony of all the more ancient historians. Those historians unanimously attribute the exile of Dunstan to the resentment of Ethelgiva for his conduct on the day of the coronation : the modern writer mentioned above attributes it to the persuasions, not of Edwy's mistress, but of a lady whom he mairies to the king, and calls Elgiva. The following extracts will decide the question. The contemporary biographer, after mentioning the answer of Ethelgiva on the day of the coronation, proceeds thus: H€bc impudens virago ex hac die praedicta virum Dei Dunstaniun consiliis inimicabilibus persequi non quievit, quousque pestiferam execra- tionis sua; voluntatem cum adaucta regis inimicitia adimp}eret. Tunc ilia ex praedicti regis consensu omnem illius ordinis honorem supelleclilisque suse substantiam suis legibus subjugavit. Quin etiam urgente regis imperio ipsum ad incolatum calamitatis celentcr ire prtescripsit. — Quicumque amicorum post haec eum, injusto arhitrio crimi- nantis femince ejcctum, causa charitatis et coinpatientiae hospitio susceperunt, fremen- tem regis iram graviter incurrerunt, et propterea msanos fluctus turbidi asquoris pericu- loso navigio transire, et incerta Galliarum exilia adire coactus est. Et dum velis in altuni extensis quasi tria milliaria maris ingressus fuisset, venerunt nuntii ab iniqua muliere, qui, ut ferunt, oculos illius, si in his maris littoribus inveniretur, eruendo dempsissent. MS. Cleop. 77- Eadmer in like manner describes the resentment of Ethelgiva. Et hoc quidem detestabile votum (her threat on the day of coronation) VOL. I. 4 A 546 NOTES. non tepescente malitia ejus, facto exercere solicita postmodum fuit. Effecit iiamque apud regem, ut cuiicta quae in nionasterio Dunstaui habebautur, diripi, ac devas- tari, et ipsiim a regno eliminatum turn in exilium pelli juberet .... Igitur adbuc mulieris ira, in immanem vesaniam acta, missis nuntiis ubi Dunstanus esset, perquui fecit, et si comprehendi valeret, sine ullo respectu misericordise ociilos ei eiui prajce- pit. Eadiner, p. 237. Tiius also Osbern attributes his exile to the same nefanda me- retrix, and furens mulier. Ang. Sac. ii. 103, 104. In opposition to these ancient testimonies the reviewer appeals to two more recent historians, Westminster and Wallingford. I . But Westminster actually abridges the contemporary biographer of Dunstan. After relating the occurrence ou the day of the coronation, he says : Tunc meretrix ilia Algiva nuncupata (Algiva or Ethelgiva are the same name in the Saxon language) contra virum Dei ferventi furore consur- oens dixit ilium nimis fuisse temerarium, dum regis secreta non vocatus intravit — Algiva supradicta, raulierum nequissima, ex Eadwii regis consensu .... tandem ipsum aregno proscripsit. West. p. 196. 2. Wallingford also agrees with the writers before him. Invenerunt ipsum medium inter duos, Ethelgivam nomine et filiarn — Algiva ut erat procacis lingu£e Dunstano ex parte regis malevolenter illusit. — Non distulit impu- dens ilia mulier, sed omne irae suje venenum in santum abbatem evomuit — ipsa mti- Her impudens licentiam a rege acceperat omnes facultates saucti proscribendi .... eonsque rem deduxit, ut ipsum sanctum proscriptioni appelleret. Quid enim inter tot hostes faceret ? Regis iram sensit erumpenteni ab ocultis, et reginee manum exte- rius et aperte flagellantem. Though in the last line he gives her the title of queen, it is plain from the whole context that he meant the king's mistress. She was the same impudens ilia mulier inter quam et filiam ejus invenerunt regem medium, &.c. Walling- ford, p. 542. — In conclusion it appears to me hardly possible that any person can read the preceding extracts, and still entertain a doubt as to the person who was the cause of Dunstan's exile. 4. From the preceding authorities it is evident that Edwy was not married at the time of his coronation, and from tlieir silence, and the unbounded influence of Ethel- giva after that event, we may fairly infer that he remained unmarried till the banishment of Dunstan. There is in the British museum a manuscript life of St. Oswald, arch- bishop of York (Nero, E. 1,), written at the same time, probably by the same author, as the anonymous life of St. Dunstan. From this, however, we learn that Edwy had married before the revolt of the Mercians, that he at the same time kept a mistress in one of his villas, and that he had obtained possession of her by force. " Rex inique, " ut insolens juventus solet vitam duceus, sub uxore propria alteram adamavit, quam et " rapuit, sacra decreta christianae legis negligens, oblitus mente tribulationes Davidici " regis, quas pertulit patrato scelere." He then mentions her banishment by arch- bishop Odo. " Antistes autem Fineatico zelo (like that of Phiueas, Numb. xxv. 7.) 2 NOTES. 547 " stiinulatus, et ira Dei iiritatus,' repente cum sociis equum asccndit, ct ad villain, " qua inulier niansitabat, pervcnit, €am