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DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS; 
 
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 Storits of our ^iiastors. 
 
DANES, 
 
 SAXONS, AND NORMANS; 
 
 MmtB d mx %nmUx$, 
 
 BY 
 
 J. G. EDGAR, 
 
 AVTUOR or "boyhood of great MENi" "cavaliers KW KOI'KDKF.An?, " £11' 
 
 Lihrary^ 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 S. 0. BEETON, 248, STRAND. 
 1863. 
 
-^^-^ 
 
 
P E E F A C E, 
 
 In the following pages I have endeavoured to tell in a popular way 
 the story of the Norman Conquest, and to give an idea of the 
 principal personages who figured in England at the period when that 
 memorable event took place ; and I have endeavoured, I hope not 
 without some degree of success, to treat the subject in a popular 
 and picturesque style, without any sacrifice of historic truth. 
 
 With a view of rendering the important event which I have at- 
 tempted to illustrate, more intelligible to the reader, I have com- 
 menced by showing how the Normans under Kolfganger forced a 
 settlement in the dominions of Charles the Simple, whilst Alfred 
 the Great was struggling with the Danes in England, and have 
 recounted the events which led to a connexion between the courts of 
 Kouen and Westminster, and to the invasion of England by William 
 the Norman. 
 
 It has been truly observed that the history of the Conquest is at 
 once so familiar at first sight, that it appears superfluous to 
 multiply details, so difficult to realize on examination, that a 
 writer feels himself under the necessity of investing with im- 
 portance many particulars previously regarded as uninteresting, 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 and that tlie defeat at Hastings was not the catastrophe over 
 wliich the curtain drops to close the Saxon tragedy, but "the 
 first scene in a new act of the continuous drama." I have 
 therefore continued my narrative for many years after the fall of 
 Harold and the building of Battle Abbey, and have traced the 
 Conqueror's career from the coast of Sussex to the banks of the 
 Humber and the borders of the Tweed. 
 
 For the same reason I have narrated the quarrels which con- 
 vulsed the Conqueror's own family — have related how son fought 
 against father, and brother against brother — and have indicated the 
 circumstances which, after a fierce war of succession in England, 
 resulted in the peaceful coronation of Henry Plantagenet, and the 
 establishment of that great house whose chiefs were so long the 
 pride of England and the terror of her foes. 
 
 J. G. E. 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 RoLFGANGER AND HIS CoMRADES : — Rolfgaiiger's banishment — Settles in 
 France — Ludicrous incident during the ceremony of Rolfganger's 
 taking the oath of fealty to Charles the Simple 1 
 
 CHAPTER n. 
 
 William the Conqueror : — His birth and parentage— Duke Robert's 
 pride in him — Is declared successor to Robert the Devil — Duke 
 Robert's death — Opposition to William's succession — Conspiracy 
 headed by Bessi and Cotentin — William flees from them — Defeat of 
 the consjiirators, and accession of William to the ducal throne of Nor- 
 mandy—His cruelty — Good qualities of William 8 
 
 CHAPTER m. 
 
 The Danes in England : — The Saxons come to the assistance of the 
 Britons — Seize on Britain — Formation of the Kingdom of England — 
 The tirst inroad of the Danes — Death of Ethelred, and accession of 
 Alfred the Great to the throne of England — Alfred in the swineherd's 
 cottage — Visits the Danish camp — Drives the Danes from England — 
 Sweyn, King of Denmark, invades England — Is bribed to retire — 
 Massacre of St, Brice — Sweyn again invades England — His sudden 
 death — Canute succeeds him — Treachery and punishment of Edric 
 Streone — Canute's marriage — Deatli of Canute — Accession of Harold 
 Harefoot — His death — Accession of Hardicanute — His death ... 14 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 Earl Godwin : — Ulf and Godwin — Canute's partiality to Godwin — God- 
 win becomes Earl of AVessex — ilarries the daughter of Sweyn, King 
 of Denmark — Godwin espouses the cause of Hardicanute — Godwin 
 procures the crown of England for Edward the Confessor .... 21 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Edward the Confessor :— His parentage — Deatli of his brother Alfred 
 — Edward demands justice of Hardicanute — Ascends the English 
 throne — Edward and the leper — Edward marries Edith, daughter of 
 Godwin 25 
 
VUl ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 TuE Kino and the King-maker : — Edward's Norman friends — Dislike 
 of the Normans by the English — Quarrel between Eustace of Boulogne 
 and the townsmen of Dover — Godwin's quarrel with Edward — Godwin is 
 outlawed — William of Normandy visits England — His reception— God- 
 win returns to England — Is restored to power— Godwin's awful death 29 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Matilda of Flandeks : — William of Normandy determines to marry 
 Matilda of Flanders— Matilda's pedigree — Her father's acquiescence in 
 William's proposal — Her refusal to the espousal — William's love- 
 making— Matilda's consent is obtained — The Pope's opposition to the 
 marriage — William overcomes the Pope's scruples — Obtains a dispen- 
 sation — Marries Matilda of Flanders 36 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 SiwARD THE Dane : — His appearance — The mystic banner— Siward's re- 
 ceptioti by Hardicanute — Tostig's raillery and its punishment — Battle 
 between Eadulph, Earl of Northumberland, and Siward — Siward is 
 sent by Edward the Confessor to defend the Northumbrian coast — 
 Death of Siward 40 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Hakold, the Saxon King: — Harold's personal appearance — Harold's 
 first appearance in national affairs — His great military reputation — 
 Harold pro^wses to visit Normandy — King Edward tries to dissuade 
 him — He sets out — His cordial reception by Duke William — Harold 
 accompanies William in a war against the Bretons — William extorts a 
 promise from Harold to aid him in obtaining the English crown — 
 Death of Edward the Confessor 45 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Duke Williaji and his Difficulties : — William has news of Harold's 
 accession to the English throne — Harold is summoned by the Court of 
 Rome to defend himself on the charges of perjury and sacrilege — He 
 refuses to acknowledge the jurisdiction of the See of Rome — William 
 is ordered by the Pope to invade England — He prepares to set out — 
 William Fitzosborne overrules the objections of the Norman nobles . 53 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Tostig, son of Godwin: — Tostig is made Earl of Northumberland — His 
 cruelty— The Northumbrians force him to flee — Harold is sent against 
 the insurgents — Tostig is deposed — His anger is turned against Harold 
 — The massacre of Hereford — Tostig repairs to Flanders — Obtains aid 
 from William of Nf>'"mandy — Tostig's unfavourable reception by 
 Sweyn, King of Denmark 58 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 IlAiiOLD Hardkada: — His personal appearance— Harold at the battle of 
 Stiklestad is wounded — Harold with his companions goes to Constan- 
 tinople and takes service as a varing — The varings— Goes to Africa 
 and Sicily, and makes an armed pilgrimage to Jerusalem— Drives out 
 the Moslems — Returns to Constantinople — Is enamoured of Maria, 
 niece of the Empress Zoe— The Empress in lave with Harold — 
 Magnus, the illegitimate son of Olaf, usurps the throne of Norway — 
 Harold, wishing to assert his superior claim, is detained in Constan- 
 tinople by the Empress — Is delivered by a Greek lady — Rouses his 
 companions, carries off Maria, and seta sail for Denmark — Hardrada 
 shares the throne with Magnus — Death of Magnus — Tostig applies to 
 Hardrada for assistance against Harold, King of England— Tostig 
 makes a descent on England — Hardrada sails for England — The 
 apprehensions of the Norwegians 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 The Alarm in England : — Harold's indefatigable exertions for the wel- 
 fare of England — Duke William claims fulfilment of Harold's promise 
 — Harold's refusal — Duke William sends again to Harold — His offers 
 again refused — William's threat — The alarm — Tostig lands in the 
 North — Harold goes against him 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 The Battle of Stamford Bridge : — Tostig and Hardrada burn Scar- 
 borough, take York, and encamp on the river Derwent at Stamford 
 Bridge— The approach of the English— Harold's proposition to Tostig 
 — Tostig's refusal — The battle — Hardrada is slain — Harold a second 
 time offers peace— Is refused — Tostig is slain— The defence of the 
 bridge — Termination of the conflict — The Norwegians leave England 
 — Harold claims the booty as his own— Discontent in the army — 
 Harold receives news of William's landing 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Philip of France : — William of Normandy seeks the assistance of 
 Philip, King of France — The French barons refuse to aid him in his 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 The Norman Armament : — William decides to invade England in 
 August, 1066 — William's treatment of the Saxon spy— The weather 
 not being favourable, the Normans are filled with superstitious fears — 
 William's strategy to calm their apprehensions — The Normans set sail 
 — William's ship sails away from the rest — The landing — William 
 burns his fleet — Overruns the county of Sussex — Receives intelligence 
 of the Saxons' approach 76 
 
 62 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Harold's Host: — Harold arrives in London — His ill-timed rashness — 
 Not being able to attack William unawares, Harold halts at Epiton, 
 and fortifies his position— The Saxon chiefs advise a retreat— Harold 
 refuses to listen to them— William denounces Plarold as a perjurer 
 and liar — The effect of ^Villiam's message on the Saxons— Gurth 
 advises Harold to quit the arm}' — The night before the battle ... 8L 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 The Battle of Hastings: — Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, blesses the Norman 
 arm_v — Anangement of the Norman arm}' — AVilliam in 1066— Super- 
 stitious fears of the Normans — William's address to his soldiers — 
 Taillefer, the Norman minstrel — The attack— The Norman first 
 division is repulsed — They renew the charge — Obstinate resistance of 
 the Saxons — William's strategy — Its success — Harold and Leofwine 
 are slain — Gurth's courageous resistance — Gurth is slain — Rout of the 
 Saxons— William pitches his camp for the night 85 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 The Body OF Hakold : — William returns thanks for his victor}' — Calls 
 over the muster-roll — The Saxons seek to bun,' their dead — William 
 refuses to allow the body of Harold to be buried — At the intercession 
 of the monks of Waltham he relents — The search for the body — 
 Harold's burial 91 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 The Coxqcerob and the Kentishmen : — William finding no allegiance 
 }iaid him, takes Dover and marches towards London — Is opposed by a 
 large body of Kentishmen — The advancing wood — Parley with the 
 Kentishmen — William turns towards the west, and crosses the Thames 
 at Wallingford — The Saxon Wigod's treachery — Berkhampstead is 
 taken 93 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 Edgar Atueling : — The Londoners determine upon crowning Edgar 
 Atheling— Edgar's birth and parentage — His popularity with the 
 people — Harold, afraid of Edgar's popularity, treats him with great 
 respect and honour— Edgar is proclaimed king — Ansgar, the standard- 
 bearer of the City of London, excites the people to deliver the keys 
 of London to the Conqueror— Edgar Atheling, the archbishops, and 
 chief citizens pay homage to William 95 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Coronation of the Conqueror: — William marches towards London — 
 The Abbot and inhabitants of St. Albans oppose him — William, 
 doubting the propriety of accepting the crown, holds a council of 
 war— The speech of Aimery de Thouars decides the council— Christ- 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. xi 
 
 PAGE 
 
 iiias day, 1066, is fixed for the coronation — The ceremony is performed 
 by Aldred, Archbishop of York; Stigand, Arclibishop of Canterbuiy 
 <lecliiiing to crown him — Tumult during tlie coronation — The lion 
 banner of Normandy is planted on the Tower of London, and the soutli 
 and east of England given to William's followers — He embarks for 
 Normandy— His enthusiastic reception -He refuses to take the oath 
 of fealty to the Pope 'J'J 
 
 CHAPTER XXin. 
 
 The Siege of Exetek : — During William's absence in Normandy, the 
 Norman barons treat the Saxons with great cruelty — Saxon leagues 
 are formed — William, receiving notice of the state of affairs in Eng- 
 land, returns liome — He ingratiates himself with the chiefs and tlie 
 populace — William proceeds westward — Is opposed at Exeter — He 
 attacks the town — Desperate resistance of the besieged — Exeter is 
 taken — Somerset and Gloucester subjugated — Escape of Gitlia, 
 Harold's mother — Bad treatment of the Saxon women 103 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Matilda and Brihtkik : — Matilda's arrival and enthusiastic reception in 
 England — Origin of Matilda's popularity— Iler vindictive spirit — In 
 her early years becomes enamoured of Brihtrik — Brihtrik does not re- 
 ciprocate her affection — Brihtrik leaves Bruges — Matilda's indignation 
 at his coolness— Probability of Brihtrik's speaking too freely about the 
 Duchess Matilda — Matilda, after the siege of Exeter keeps Brihtrik's 
 possessions as her share of the spoil— Brihtrik is imprisoned — His death 106 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 The Normans in Northumberland : — State of the county of Northum- 
 berland in 1068 — The Conqueror marclies nortli ward— York is taken — 
 Robert Comine is deputed to extend the conquest as far as Durham — 
 Eghelwin, Bishop of Durham's advice to Comine— The vengeance of 
 the Northumbrians — The King of Denmark sends a fleet to the assist- 
 ance of the English — The Saxons and Danes march upon York — The 
 Normans are driven into the citadel — The citadel is taken — William's 
 wrath at tlie death of Comine and tlie destruction of York— He bribes 
 the Danes to depart — William again marches upon York — York is 
 once more taken by the Normans— After ravaging Northumberland, 
 the Normans reach Durham-^ The bishop and clergy of Durham set 
 out for Holy Island — William enters Durham, and surprises the 
 Saxons — William's guides, marching io Hexham, lose the way, and 
 are separated from the rest of the army — The army is regained — 
 William halts at Hexliam — The subjugated territory is divided 
 amongst William's nobles — The Normans erect castles for the better 
 governance of the Northumbrians lO'J 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVL 
 
 Casi'ATRicK AND THE CoxQUEuoR : — William determines to conciliate the 
 Northumbrians— Cospatriok— His birth and parentage — The crimes 
 of the house of Godwin— Cospatrick's enmity to Harold— Cospatrick 
 claims the earldom of Northumberland — William's bargain with 
 Cospatrick 115 
 
 CHAPTER XXVn. 
 
 Saxon Saints and Nokman Soldiers : — The saving of the church of St. 
 John of Beverley — The inhabitants of Beverley take refuge in the 
 church of St. John — The Normans hear reports of the riches lodged 
 within the walls of the church— Toustain heads the Normans in the 
 pillage of the church — Toustain's misadventure — Superstitious terror 
 of the Normans 118 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 The Reduction of Chester : — William determines to take Chester — 
 The soldiers murmur — William marches into Chester— Gherbaud, a 
 Fleming, made Earl of Chester — Gherbaud, finding the earldom too 
 much trouble, resigns — Hugh le Loup is appointed in his stead — His 
 parentage — Nigel joins Hugh le Loup at Chester — Gilbert de Lacy is 
 granted the domain of Pontefract — Blackburn and Rochdale succumb 
 to him 121 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 Lanfrano of Pa via : — The Pope's legates arrive in London — Deposition 
 of tlie Saxon bishops — Lanfranc is appointed to the Archbishopric of 
 Canterbury — Lanfranc's birth-place — His fame at Bec-Hellouin — Lan- 
 franc gains the friendship of William the Norman — Lanfranc opposes 
 William's marriage — He gains a dispensation for William — Is restored 
 to favour — Is made Abbot of Caen — William's delight at Lanfranc's 
 appointment to the province of Canterbury — The Pope's letter to Lan- 
 franc — Lanfranc's entry into Canterbury — The church in ruins — Lan- 
 franc gains the primacy of England for Canterbury — Undertakes a 
 revision of the Scriptures — The Saxons averse to the revision — 
 Lanfranc the people's champion 124 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Edwin and Morkak: — Their personal appearance — Edwin the hand- 
 somest man of his age — They took no part in the battle of Hastings — 
 Aspire to the throne — Edgar Atheling's adherents too strong — Go to 
 York — Their plans — William attempts to conciliate them — William 
 promises his daughter in marriage to Edwin — Edwin and Morkar ac- 
 company William to the Continent — William refuses to give his 
 daughter to Edwin — Edwin and Morkar escape from Court — Their 
 enterprise fails — Reconciliation to William — A mighty conspiracy 
 formed — The camp of refuge— Morkar is deluded by William's pro- 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. Xlll 
 
 FAOE 
 
 mises and imprisoned — Edwin resolves to leave Ely — Is betrayed by 
 three of his officers — Is attacked by the Normans— Attempts to escape 
 —Edwin's death— William's grief 128 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 Ivo Taille-Bois : — His unpopularity — His marriage to Lucy, sister of 
 Edwin and Morkar — His tyranny — His various modes of annoyance— 
 His oppression of the monks of Spalding — The monks leave Spalding 
 — Some Angevin monks are substituted in their place 133 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 Herewaed the Saxon: — Hereward, living in Flanders, is told by some 
 exiles of the spoliation of his liome — He sets out for England — As- 
 sembles his friends and retakes his paternal home — His popularity — 
 Is made captain of the camp at Ely — Is admitted a member of the 
 high Saxon militia — Is sneered at by the Norman knights — Turauld, 
 the fighting churchman — Turauld is appointed Abbot of Peterborough 
 — Hereward makes a descent on the abbey and carries off the crosses, 
 sacred vestments, &c. — Turauld arrives at Peterborough — Ivo Taille- 
 Bois proposes to Turauld to attack the camp of Ely — Hereward at- 
 tacks Turauld's soldiers- at the abbey, seizes upon the abbot and his 
 attendants, and detains them prisoners — Sweyn, King of Denmark, 
 fits out a fleet for the assistance of the Saxons — Sweyn joins Here- 
 ward at Ely — William bribes him to return— Departure and sacrilege 
 of the Danes — The Normans commence siege operations — Hereward 
 attacks the workmen — Hereward is suspected of being in league with 
 the Evil One — Ivo Taille-Bois procures the services of a witch to dis- 
 enchant Hereward's operations — Hereward's bonfire — Blockade of the 
 Isle of Ely— Treachery of the monks of Ely— Rout of the Saxons— 
 Hereward's escape — His daring attack on the Norman station — Ex- 
 ploits of Hereward and his followers — Hereward's marriage— Here- 
 ward accepts the king's peace — His treacherous assassination — Valor- 
 ous defence — Asselm's remark 137 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 Building of Battle Abbey : — William begins to build Battle Abbey — 
 Deficiency of water— William's promise — The abbey built — Endow- 
 ment of the abbey 147 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 JIalcolm Canmore : — William determines to invade Scotland — Malcolm's 
 parentage— Siward, upon Malcolm's flight from Scotland, protects him 
 — Edward the Confessor's court— The Scots request the restoration of 
 Malcolm — Malcolm prepares to attack Macbeth— Defeat of Macbeth — • 
 His death— Lulach attempts to usurp the throne— His death- Malcolm 
 is crowned at Scone — A conspiracy is formed to dethrone Malcolm — 
 The conspirators defeated— Malcolm's ingratitude to the English— 
 
XIV ANALYSIS OF CONTEXTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Northumberland devastated by the Scots — Malcolm shelters Edgar 
 and Margaret Atheling — Malcolm marries Margaret Atheluig— 
 Malcolm raises an army to vindicate Edgar Atheling's right to the 
 English throne — Treaty with William 148 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 The Death of Cospatrick :— Cospatrick attempts to draw Malcolm 
 from Northumberland — Durham cathedral in disorder — Deposition of 
 the Bishop of Durham — Cospatrick is deprived of the earldom of 
 Northumberland — He goes to Flanders— The clergy' enemies to Cos- 
 patrick — Cospatrick's pilgrimage to the Holy Land — His illness — 
 Sends to Melrose for the hermits Aldwin and Turgot — Cospatrick's 
 gifts— His death — His son— Burial in Norham church— Norham a 
 memorial of his greatness 153 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 AxHELraG AND HIS ALLIES : — Malcolm Canmore promises to aid Edgar 
 Atheling — Malcolm's inability to do so — Atheling seeks a reconciliation 
 with William — Obtains it — Atheling being suspected, again flies to 
 Scotland — Personal appearance of Edgar Atheling — Atheling seeks 
 allies in Flanders — Is disappointed — Philip of France offers his assis- 
 tance—Offers Atheling the fortress of Montreuil — Atheling's mis- 
 fortunes — His fleet lost at sea — Determines to seek peace with WiUiam 
 — Joins William at Eouen — His amusements lo7 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 
 FiTZOSBORNE AND De Gael : — The marriage at Norwich — WiUiam's 
 disapproval thereof— The marriage feast— Signs of a coming storm — 
 The conspiracy — The conspirators apply to Swej'n, king of Denmark, 
 for aid— Roger B'itzosborne raises an army at Hereford — Is stopped at 
 Worcester — Fitzosborne escommmiicated — The battle at Worcester — 
 Defeat of Fitzosborne — De Gael raises his standard at Cambridge — Is 
 defeated at Fagadon — De Gael escapes— Flies to Norwich— Goes to 
 Brittany for aid — The Bretons expelled from England — Sweyn's 
 descent on the eastern coast — Fitzosborne refuses William's present at 
 Easter — William's anger 162 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 Waltheof, son of Siward : — Tostig usurps the earldom of North- 
 umberland — Waltheof figures as Earl of Huntingdon— Waltheof sub- 
 mits to the Conqueror — He joins the Northumbrians in their insurrec- 
 tion — His share in the death of Comine— Prodigies of valour — Recon- 
 ciliation with WiUiam— Marriage to Judith— Friendship with Vaulcher 
 — Fitzosborne and De Gael trj' to persuade him to join their con- 
 spiracy — Promises secrecy — Is betrayed by his wife — Is confined in 
 Winchester Castle — Sentenced to death — -Fearing a riot, Waltheof is 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. XV 
 
 PAGE 
 
 privately executed — Judith, Waltheof s wife, is destined for Simon de 
 Senlis— Her dislike to the match— Judith repairs to Croyland — Her 
 death in poverty I'jT' 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 WuLSTAN, Bishop of Worcester: — Wulstan accompanies Edgar Atheling 
 to make his submission to WiUiam— Wulstan a simple weak-minded 
 man— Wulstan is confirmed in his diocese— His services to the Norman 
 king— Lanfranc reports Wulstan incapacitated— Is summoned to the 
 great council in Westminster church — Is commanded to give up his 
 robes and staff— Resigns his staff at the tomb of the Confessor— 
 Wulstan is entreated to resume his episcopal robes — Wulstan beloved 
 by the Saxons 1 ' 3 
 
 CHAPTER XL. 
 
 Robert Curthose: — William's dismal forebodings— Robert, his eldest 
 son — Robert recognised as heir of Normandy — Badly trained — His 
 good qualities — His nickname— Robert claims Maine— William refuses 
 to cede it to him— Robert's indignation —WiUiam Rufus' and Henry 
 Beauclerc's practical joke— Its evil consequences —Robert attempts to 
 seize Rouen — His failure —Robert's bad counsellors— Robert asks Nor- 
 mandy, or part of England, of his father — Being refused, he leaves 
 Normandy and goes to Flanders — Is everywhere well received— His 
 ■waste of money 1~6 
 
 CHAPTER XLI. 
 
 The Cokqueror axd his Heir :— Curthose craves support from Philip of 
 France — Repairs to Gerberoy — Curthose's reception at Gerberoy — 
 llatilda sends money to Curthose — William's displeasure — Matilda 
 stiU sends to Curthose— William upbraids her — Matilda's maternal 
 affection— William orders Samson the Breton to have his eyes put out — 
 Samson escapes — Curthose raises an army — William besieges Curthose 
 in Archembrage — Curthose's sally — His success — Hand to hand with 
 his father — WiUiam unhorsed — His rescue — WiUiam refuses to be re- 
 conciled with Curthose — Forgives Curthose — Malcolm Canmore invades 
 England — Curthose is sent to repulse him — Malcolm retreats into 
 Scotland — Curthose founds Newcastle— Matilda of Flanders dies — 
 WiUiam's quarrel with Curthose again breaks out ISO 
 
 CHAPTER XLII. 
 
 Odo, Bishop of Bayeux : — Odo, regent of England — William enriches liis 
 relations on his mother's side — Odo, no shaveling — The warrior- 
 monk — Odo celebrates mass at Hastings — Leads tlie cavalrj^ at that 
 battle — Odo is created Grand Justiciary of England — Earl of Hereford 
 — Odo, during William's absence, behaves badly — The murder of 
 Liulf— Vaulcher attempts to mediate between Leo f win and Gislebert, 
 
XVI ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 and the relations of Liulf— Meets tlie Saxons at Gateshead — Eadulf, 
 the Saxon spokesman — Eadulf incites the Northumbrians to slay the 
 bishop — Odo marches nortliward to punish the murderers — The 
 Saxons, unable to take Durham, disperse — Odo's cruelty — Odo prepares 
 to leave England for Italy — Reasons for doing so — William much dis- 
 pleased at Odo's intention — Odo intercepted off the Isle of Wight — 
 Arraigned before the council of barons — William's impeachment of 
 Odo — William sentences Odo — Odo defies his authority — Odo is 
 carried to Normandy and imprisoned 184 
 
 CHAPTER XLIII. 
 
 Doomsday Book : — William begins to think about casting up his subjects' 
 accounts — His commissioners — Bad understanding between the king 
 and the barons — The manner of carrying out the undertaking — The 
 council for the discussion of the Doomsday Book — The Goddess of 
 Discord in the council — William asserts himself proprietor of all the 
 land that belonged to Edward the Confessor, Harold, and the house of 
 Godwin — Several barons renoimce their allegiance — Their descendants 189 
 
 CHAPTER XLIV. 
 
 The Conqueror's Death : — Louis le Gros — Curthose and Beauclerc at 
 Conflans — The quarrel between Louis and Beauclerc — Philip ravages 
 Normandy — William goes against him — Christina Atheling is per- 
 suaded to take the veil — Edgar is sent on a pilgrimage — The bone of 
 contention — William's lying-in — Curthose joins Philip — William 
 reaches Mantes — The town on fire — The accident — William is re- 
 moved to the priory of St. Gers'ase — Conscience-stricken — William's 
 bequests — Death of William 192 
 
 CHAPTER XLV. 
 
 The Burial at Caen : — Consternation in Rouen — Inside the priory of 
 St.Gervase — The conqueror's body deserted — The Archbishop of Rouen 
 attends to tlie funereal honours — Interruption of the ceremony — Fitz- 
 arthur is recompensed — The Anglo-Norman barons decide for Robert 
 as King of England 199 
 
 CHAPTER XLVI. 
 
 The Red King : — William Rufus — Personal appearance— Gains the sup- 
 port of Lanfranc — Wulnoth and Morkar committed to prison — Odo, 
 bishop of Bayeux, at the head of a conspiracy to dethrone William — 
 Lanfranc as prime minister — Rufus conciliates the Saxon Thanes — 
 The insurgents repulsed at Rochester — Curthose is bribed to let 
 William remain on the throne — William forgets his promises to the 
 Anglo-Saxons — Lanfranc's disgust at his perfidy — Death of Lanfranc — 
 Rufus a bachelor — His dissolute morals — Ravages committed by 
 William's followers — London Bridge built — Westminster Hall founded 
 — Discontent in the land 203 
 
ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. Xvil 
 
 CHAPTER XL VII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 PiUFus AND THE Jews : — The Jews in England — Favour with Rufus — 
 Tlie disputation — Conversion of the young Jew — William's avarice . 210 
 
 CHAPTER XLVIII. 
 
 liUFus AND THE ScoTS : — William's longings for Normandy — Atheling 
 being expelled from Normandy, once more takes refuge with Malcolm 
 Canmore — Canmore invades England — William patches up a peace 
 with Curthose, and prepares to march against the Scots — Malcolm 
 falls back — Everj-thing ■\\Tong with the English — Malcolm's defiance — 
 Peace — Rufus being sick, sends for Malcolm to settle disputes — Rufus 
 treats liim badly — Malcolm ravages Northumberland as far as Alnwick 
 — The castle of Ivo de Vesci besieged — Hammond 3Iorael — His de- 
 liverance of the garrison — Malcolm's death — Morael's escape — The 
 sally— Rout of the Scots — Malcolm's burial — Donald Bane usurps the 
 Scottish throne — Atheling returns to England 213 
 
 CHAPTER XLIX. 
 
 Robert de Moubrat: — Possessions of Moubray — The conspiracy — 
 Moubray suspected — The King marches northward — Tynemouth 
 taken — Baniburgh impregnable — Erection of Malvoisin — Moubray 
 captured — Moubray's wife defends the Castle of Bamburgh — Surrender 
 ofBamburgh — Moubray imprisoned at Windsor — His death , . . , 218 
 
 CHAPTER L. 
 
 Henry Beaucxero: — Personal appearance of Beauclerc — A native of 
 England — His manners — His learning — Military education — Addicted 
 to gaming — Beauclerc's avarice — Beauclerc lends money to Curthose 
 — Lord of Cot ent in — Selection of a chaplam — Takes part with Curthose 
 in the defence of Normandy — Firm dealing at Rouen — Curthose comes 
 to terms with Rufus — They besiege Henry in the Castle of Mont St. 
 Michael — The Red King in danger — Defence of the saddle — Want of 
 water in the fortress — Curthose grants permission to Beauclerc to get 
 water — Beauclerc defeated — Departs to Brittany — Beauclerc feels 
 assured he will ascend the throne of England — Is elected governor of 
 Damfront — Rufus, jealous of Beauclerc, invites him to England — Joins 
 his brother — Fondness for the chase — " Deersfoot" — Presentiments . 221 
 
 CHAPTER LI. 
 
 The Death of Rufus : — Rufus at Malwood — His vision — The Abbot of 
 Gloucester's despatch — The breakfast — The six arrows — Departure for 
 the chase — Tyrel and Rufus hunt together — The King's bow-string 
 breaks — Commands Tyrel to shoot — The King's death — Tyrel escapes 
 to France— The King's last ride 227 
 
XVIU ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER LII. 
 
 PAiiE 
 
 A Change of Fortune : — Beauclerc goes to Winchester — William de 
 Breteuil protests against Henry having the keys — Beauclerc secures 
 the public money and regal ornaments— Is crowned at Westminster 
 — Curthose's adherents — Beauclerc marries Edith, daughter of Mar- 
 garet Atheling — Edith changes her name to Maude — Godrick and 
 Godiva — Where is Curthose? 231 
 
 CHAPTER LIII. 
 
 Curthose at the Ckcsade : — Peter the Hermit — Success of his preach- 
 ing — Curthose and Atheling resolve to fake part in the Ci'usade — 
 Rufus supplies them with money — Curthose's popularity — Edgar 
 Atheling does not go with Curthose — Atheling sets out for Scotland, 
 to dethrone Donald Bane — Curthose meets the other princes at Con- 
 stantinople — Curthose's valour — At Antioch — Edgar Atheling joins 
 Curthose — Atheling and Curthose the terror of the Saracens — Election 
 of the King of Jerusalem — Curthose declines the honour — Death of 
 Odo, Bishop of Bayeux — Curthose at Conversano — The territory of 
 Conversano — Curthose marries Sybil, daughter of the Count of Con- 
 versano — Waste of time 23-t 
 
 CHAPTER LIV. 
 
 Beauclerc and Curthose : — Ralph Flambard, " the fighting bishop," is 
 imprisoned — Flambard incites Ciu-those to invade England — Curthose 
 embarks for England — Curthose sells his birthright — Resigns his 
 pension in favour of the queen — His indignation at finding himself 
 duped — The castle of Rouen — Beauclerc proposes to purchase Nor- 
 mandy — Being refused, he prepares to take it bj' force — Tinchebray — 
 The battle — Fortune against the English — Treason ! — Nigel de Al- 
 bini — Curthose and Atheling captured — Curthose imprisoned in Car- 
 diff — Attempts to escape — Is subjected to a rigorous dui-ance — Edgar 
 AthelLng's old age 242 
 
 CHAPTER LV. 
 
 After Tinchebuay: — William Clito — Louis of France attempts to place 
 Clito on the throne of Normandy — Death of Clito — Beauclcrc's repu- 
 tation not so good — The Queen Maude's populai-ity — Death of Henry's 
 son— Geoffrey of Anjou — His marriage to the daughter of Heury — 
 Stephen of Bouillon seizes the crown of England — The treaty of Wal- 
 lingford — Henry II. — Conclusion 247 
 
IXDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 ALTAR 39 
 
 AXDIKON 212 
 
 APPEAL TO HAROLD HARFAGHER, HILDA's 1 
 
 ARCHERS, ENGLISH 247 
 
 ARMS 235 
 
 BARGACAK 52 
 
 BATTLE ABBEY, HASTINGS 84 
 
 BATTLE-FIELD, THE 90 
 
 BAYEUX TAPESTRY, FROM THE 184 
 
 BODY OF RUFUS, BRINGING HOME THE 227 
 
 BONDMAN, SAXON (fROM STRUTt) 98 
 
 BOOKS, THE DOOM'S-DAY 189 
 
 BOSS 127 
 
 BOSTON, FEN COUNTRY NEAR 146 
 
 BOUILLON, GODFREY DE, ELECTED KING OF JERUSALEM . . 239 
 
 BOWS 73 
 
 BRACKET 147 
 
 BRINGING HOME THE BODY OF RUFUS ........ 227 
 
 BROTHER HAROLD, TOSTIG's PARTING SPEECH TO HIS ... 58 
 
 BRUGES, BELFRY AT lOG 
 
 BUTTRESS 91 
 
 CHARLES THE SIMPLE, ROLFGANGER PAYING HOMAGE TO . . G 
 
 CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE, JERUSALEM 236 
 
 CHURCH PORCH 120 
 
 CLOISTERS 202 
 
 COMMOTION DURING THE CROWNING OF WILLIAM .... 99 
 CONQUEROR, EDWIN, EARL OF MERCIA, AND THE DAUGHTERS 
 
 OF THE 128 
 
 COOKS FROM BAYEUX TAPESTRY 188 
 
 CROSSBOW 73 
 
XX INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CROZIER 173 
 
 CRUSADE, PETER THE HERMIT PREACHING THE 234 
 
 CURTHOSE AND THE SARACEN 237 
 
 DEATH OF MALCOLM CANMORE 213 
 
 DEATH OF SIWARD WITH HARNESS ON HIS BACK .... 40 
 
 DEATH, SWEYN STRUCK BY THE HAND OF 14 
 
 DELIVERANCE FROM HIS EASTERN DUNGEON, HARDRADA's . . 62 
 
 DISTAFF, WOMAN WITH 226 
 
 DOOM's-DAY BOOKS, THE 189 
 
 DOOR OF WESTMINSTER ABBEY 06 
 
 DOVER, Shakespeare's cliff 203 
 
 EDWIN, earl OF MERCIA, AND THE DAUGHTERS OF THE CON- 
 QUEROR 128 
 
 ENGLISH ARCHERS 247 
 
 FEN COUNTRY NEAR BOSTON 146 
 
 FERN ISLANDS, OFF THE COAST OF NORTHUMBERLAND . . . 152 
 
 FLINT CASTLE, ON THE ESTUARY OF THE DEE 123 
 
 FOREST LAWS, OLD 133 
 
 FOREST, THE ^3 
 
 FORUM AT ROME, RUINS OF THE 124 
 
 GIRDLE AND PURSE 105 
 
 GODFREY DE BOUILLON ELECTED KING OF JERUSALEM . . . 239 
 
 GODWIN, THE JUDGMENT OF GOD ON 29 
 
 GOOD SHIP MOIRA, THE, WILLIAM OF NORMANDY, OWNER . . 76 
 
 HAND OF DEATH, SWEYN STRUCK BY THE 14 
 
 HARDRADA's DELIVERANCE FROM HIS EASTERN DUNGEON . . G2 
 
 HARFAGHER, HILOa's APPEAL TO HAROLD 1 
 
 HAROLD HAS NEWS OF WILLIAM's LANDING 80 
 
 HAROLD, TOSTIG's PARTING SPEECH TO HIS BROTHER ... 58 
 
 HAROLD, WILLIAM EXTORTING A PROMISE FROM 45 
 
 HART, THE 231 
 
 HASTINGS, BATTLE ABBEY 84 
 
 HAWK 117 
 
 HAWKING 221 
 
 HAWK STRIKING THE QUARRY 161 
 
 HENRY BEAUCLERC AND LOUIS LE GROS, THE QUARREL OF . 192 
 
 HERALDIC VANE 233 
 
 HERDSMAN (fROM STRUTT) 175 
 
 HERMIT, PETER THE, PREACHING THE FIRST CRUSADE . . . 234 
 
 HEXHAM, WILLIAM'S MARCH ON 109 
 
INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS. XXI 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Hilda's appeal to harold harfagher 1 
 
 holy sepulchre, jerusalem, church of the 236 
 
 homage to charles the simple, rolfganger paying . . g 
 
 HUNTING 218 
 
 INITIAL LETTER A 81, 148, 214, 242 
 
 INITIAL LETTER I 53 
 
 INITIAL LETTER 8, 21, 162, 199 
 
 ISLANDS, FERN, OFF THE COAST OF NORTHUMBERLAND . . . 152 
 
 JERUSALEM, CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE 236 
 
 JERUSALEM, GODFREY DE BOUILLON ELECTED KING OF . . 239 
 
 JERUSALEM, PILGRIMS IN SIGHT OF 238 
 
 JUDGMENT OF GOD ON GODWIN, THE 2d 
 
 KNIGHTS JOUSTING (fROM STRUTt) 209 
 
 LAWS, OLD FOREST 133 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE, TATTERSHALL CASTLE 137 
 
 LOCH LOMOND 157 
 
 LONG BOW 73 
 
 LOUIS LE GROS, THE QUARREL OF HENRY BEAUCLERC AND . 192 
 
 LOVE-MAKING, WILLIAM's 36 
 
 MALCOLM CANMORE, DEATH OF 213 
 
 MINERVA 102 
 
 MOIRA, THE GOOD SHIP, WILLIAM OF NORMANDY, OWNER . . 76 
 
 MUNDANE TREE OF THE SCANDINAVIANS, YGGDRASILL ... 44 
 
 NORMAN PRELATES BLESSING THE TROOPS, THE S5 
 
 NORMAN RUSTIC (fROM STRUTT) 136 
 
 NORMAN RUSTIC, ELEVENTH CENTURY 191 
 
 NORWEGIAN CHAMPION AT THE BATTLE OF STAMFORD BRIDGE, 
 
 THE 69 
 
 OLD FOREST LAWS 133 
 
 PARTING SPEECH TO HIS BROTHER HAROLD, TOSTIG's ... 58 
 
 PEASANT, WILLIAM AND THE 13 
 
 PETER THE HERMIT PREACHING THE FIRST CRUSADE . . , 234 
 
 PILGRIMS IN SIGHT OF JERUSALEM 238 
 
 PROMISE, WILLIAM EXHORTING A, FROM HAROLD 45 
 
 PURSE AND GIRDLE j 05 
 
 QUARREL OF HENRY BEAUCLERC AND LOUIS LE GROS, THE . 192 
 
 QUARRY, HAWK STRIKING THE 161 
 
 'RAVEN OF EARTHLY TERROR," THE 172 
 
 ROCHESTER 205 
 
 ROLFGANGER PAYING HOMAGE TO CHARLES THE SIMPLE . . 6 
 
XXll INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 laiNS OF THE FORUM AT ROME 124 
 
 EUFUS, BRINGING HOME THE BODY OF 227 
 
 RUSTIC, NORMAN (fROM STRUTt) 136 
 
 RUSTIC, NORMAN, ELEVENTH CENTURY 191 
 
 SARACEN, CURTHOSE AND THE 237 
 
 SAXON BONDMAN (FROM STRUTt) 98 
 
 scandinavians, yggdrasill, the mundane tree of the . 44 
 
 sepulchre, church of the holy, jerusalem 236 
 
 Shakespeare's cliff, dover 203 
 
 SHIELDS 114 
 
 SIWARD, DEATH OF, WITH HARNESS ON HIS BACK .... 40 
 STAMFORD BRIDGE, THE NORWEGIAN CHAMPION AT THE BATTLE 
 
 OF 69 
 
 SWEYN STRUCK BY THE HAND OF DEATH 14 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER 1 7 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER V 28 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER VIII 57 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER XV 74 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER XXXV 156 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER XLI 183 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER XLIV ]98 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER LI 230 
 
 TAILPIECE TO CHAPTER LIV 246 
 
 TAPESTRY, FROM THE BAYEUX 184 
 
 TATTERSHALL CASTLE, LINCOLNSHIRE 137 
 
 THOR 167 
 
 TOSTIG'S PARTING SPEECH TO HIS BROTHER HAROLD ... 58 
 
 TRIESTE 241 
 
 troops, the norman prelates blessing the 85 
 
 tynemouth 217 
 
 vane, heraldic 233 
 
 westminster abbey, door of 66 
 
 william and the peasant 13 
 
 william, commotion during the crowning of ... . 99 
 
 william extorting a promise from harold 45 
 
 William's landing, harold has news of 80 
 
 William's love-making 36 
 
 William's march on hexham 109 
 
 woman with DISTAFF 226 
 
 YGGDRASILL, THE MUNDANE TREE OF THE SCANDINAVIANS . 44 
 
Lihrary. j 
 DANES, SAXoSmD NOEMANS ; 
 
 OR, 
 
 Stories d mx %\\mUxs. 
 
 Hilda's appeal to Harold Harlagher. 
 I. 
 
 ROLFGANGER AND HIS COMRADES. 
 One day towards tlie close of the ninth century, Harold, Eling of 
 Xorway, exasperated at the insubordination and contumacy of the 
 chiefs among whom that land of mountain, and forest, and fiord 
 
2 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 was divided, vowed not to cut his fair hair till he had reduced the 
 whole country to his sovereign authority. The process proved, as 
 he doubtless foresaw, somewhat difficult and slow. Indeed, the 
 chiefs of Norway, who were, in fact, petty kings, disputed the 
 ground inch by inch, and Harold was occupied for so many years 
 ere consummating his victories, that his hair, growing ridiculously 
 long and thick, led to his receiving the surname of " Hirsute." 
 
 Even after having sustained numerous defeats on the land, the 
 fierce chiefs — all Viking-s, and, like their adversaries, worshippers of 
 Odin — taking to the sea, ravaged the coasts and islands, and ex- 
 cited the Norwegians to rebellion. Harold, however, resolved to do 
 his work thoroughly, went on board his war-fleet, sailed in pursuit 
 of his foes, and, having sunk several of their vessels, forced the others 
 to seek refuge in the Hebrides, where the exiled war-chiefs — many 
 of them ancestors of the Anglo-Norman nobles — consoled themselves 
 with horns of potent drink, with schemes for conquering kingdoms, 
 and with the hope of better fortune and brighter days. 
 
 It appears that in the long and arduous struggle which gave 
 him the sole and undisputed sovereignty of Norway, Harold had 
 been faithfully served by a Jarl named Eognvald ; and it was to 
 this Jarl's timber-palace, in jMore, that the victorious King repaired 
 to celebrate the performance of his vow. Elate with triumphs, 
 perhaps more signal than he had anticipated, Harold made himself 
 quite at hoine ; and having, before indulging in the Jarl's good 
 cheer, refreshed himself with a bath and combed his hair, he re- 
 quested Eognvald to cut off his superfluous locks. 
 
 " Now, Jarl," exclaimed Harold, when this operation was over, 
 "methinks I should no longer be called 'Hirsute.'" 
 
 " No, King," replied Eognvald, struck with surprise and pleasure 
 at the improvement in Harold's appearance ; " your hair is now so 
 beautiful that, instead of being surnamed ' Hirsute,' you must be 
 sumamed ' Harfagher.' " 
 
 It happened that Eognvald, by his spouse Hilda, had a son named 
 Eolf, or Eoll, who was regarded as the foremost among the noble 
 men of Norway. He was as remarkable for his sagacity in peace, 
 and for his courage in war as for his bulk and stature, which were 
 
ROLFGANGER AND HIS COMRADES. 3 
 
 such that his feet touched the ground when he bestrode the horses 
 of the country. From this peculiarity the son of Rognvald found 
 himself under the necessity of walking when engaged in any enter- 
 prise on the land; and this circumstance led to his becoming 
 generally known among his countrymen as Rolfganger. 
 
 But the sea appears to have been Rolfganger's favourite element. 
 From his youth he had delighted in maritime adventures, and in 
 such exploits as made the men of the north celebrated as sea-kings ; 
 and one day, when returning from a cruise in the Baltic, he, while 
 off the coast of Wighen, shortened sail, and ventured on the exer- 
 cise of a privilege of impressing provisions, long enjoyed by sea- 
 kings, and known as " strandhug." But he found that, with Harold 
 Harfagher on the throne, and stringent laws against piracy in force, 
 the rights of property were not thus to be set at defiance. In fact, 
 the peasants whose flocks had been carried away complained to the 
 King ; and the King, without regard to the offender's rank, ordered 
 him to be tried by a Council of Justice. 
 
 Notwithstanding Rognvald's services to the King and his personal 
 influence with Harold Harfagher, Bolfganger's chance of escaping 
 sentence of banishment appeared slight. Moved, however, by ma- 
 ternal tenderness, Hilda, the spouse of Rognvald, made an effort 
 to save her son. Presenting herself at the rude court of Norway, 
 she endeavoured to soften the King's heart. 
 
 " King," said she, I ask you, for my husband's sake, to pardon 
 my son." 
 
 " Hilda," replied Harold, " it is impossible." 
 
 " What !" exclaimed Hilda, rearing herself to her full height ; 
 " am I to understand that the very name of our race has become 
 hateful to you 1 Beware," continuued she, speaking in accents of 
 menace, " how you expel from the country and treat as an enemy a 
 man of noble race. Listen, King, to what I tell you. It is dan- 
 gerous to attack the wolf. When once he is angered, let the herd 
 in the forest beware !" 
 
 But Harold Harfagher was determined to make the laws re- 
 spected, and, notwithstanding Hilda's vague threats, a sentence of 
 perpetual exile was passed against her tall son. Rolfganger, how- 
 
 b2 
 
4 DANES, SAXOXS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 ever, was not a man to give way to despair. Fitting out his ships 
 in some rocky coves, still pointed out, he embarked at an island 
 off the mouth of Stor-fiord, took a last look at his native country, 
 with its rugged scenery, its rapids, cataracts, and fiords, forests of 
 dark pine and mountains of white snow, herds of reindeer and 
 clouds of birds, and, sailing for the Hebrides, placed himself at the 
 head of the banished Norwegians, who speedily, under his auspices, 
 resolved on a grand piratical enterprise, which they did not doubt 
 would result in conquest and plunder. 
 
 Having cut their cable and given the reins to the great sea-horses — 
 such was their expression — the Normans made an attempt to land 
 in England, where Alfred the Great then reigned. Defeated in this 
 attempt by the war-ships with which the Saxon King guarded the 
 coast, they turned their prows towards France, and, entering the 
 mouth of the Seine, sailed up the river, pillaging the banks as they 
 proceeded, and, with little delaj'-, found themselves admitted into 
 Kouen, on which they fixed as their future capital. 
 
 It was the year 876 when Rolfganger and his comrades sailed up 
 the Seine; and on becoming aware of their presence in France, 
 Charles the Simple, who then, as heir of Charlemagne, wielded the 
 French, sceptre with feeble hand, summoned the warriors of his 
 kingdom to stop the progress of the Normans. An army, accord- 
 ingly, was mustered and sent, under the command of the Duke of 
 France, to encounter the grim invaders. Before fighting, however, 
 the French deemed it prudent to tempt the Normans with offers of 
 lands and honours, on condition of their submitting to King Charles, 
 and sent messengers to hold a parley. But the Normans treated 
 the proposals with lofty disdain. 
 
 " Go back to your King," cried they, " and say that we will submit 
 to no man, and that we will assert dominion over all we acquire by 
 force of arms." 
 
 With this answer the ambassadors returned to the French camp, 
 and ere long the Normans were attacked in their entrenchments. 
 But Rolfganger and his comrades rushed to arms, and fought with 
 such courage that the French suffered a complete defeat, and the 
 Duke of France fell by the hand of a fisherman of Rouen. 
 
ROLFGANGER AND HIS COMRADES. 5 
 
 The Normans, after vanquishing the host of King Charles, found 
 themselves at liberty to pursue their voyage ; and Kolfganger, avail- 
 ing himself of the advantage, sailed up the Seine, and laid siege to 
 Paris. Baffled in his attempt to enter the city, the ISTorman hero 
 consoled himself by taking Bayeux, Evreux, and other places, and 
 gradually found himself ruling as a conqueror over the greater part 
 of Neustria. At Evreux, he seized as his prey a lady named Popa, 
 the daughter of Count Beranger, whom he espoused ; and, becoming 
 gradually more civilized, he rendered liimself wonderfully popular 
 with the inhabitants of the district subject to his sway. 
 
 Meanwhile the French suffered so severely from the hostility of 
 the Normans, that Charles the Simple recognised the expediency of 
 securing the friendship of warriors so formidable. With this object 
 he sent the Archbishop of Eouen to negotiate with Eolfganger, and 
 the result was that the Sea-King consented to become a Christian, to 
 wed Gisla, the daughter of Charles, and to live at peace with France, 
 on condition that the French monarch ceded to him the province of 
 Neustria. 
 
 Matters having reached this stage, prejiarations were made to 
 ratify the treaty in a solemn manner, and for that purpose Charles 
 the Simple and E-olfganger agreed to hold a conference at the village 
 at St. Clair, on the green-margined Epte. Each was accompanied 
 by a numerous train, and, while the French pitched their tents on 
 one side of the river, the Normans pitched theirs on the other. At 
 the appointed hour, however, Eolfganger crossed the Epte, approached 
 the chair of state, placed his hand between those of the King, took, 
 without kneeling, the oath of fealty, and then, supposing the cere- 
 mony was over, turned to depart. 
 
 " But," said the Frenchmen, " it is fitting that he who receives such 
 a gift of territory should kneel before the King and kiss his foot." 
 
 " Nay," exclaimed Eolfganger ; " never will I kneel before a 
 mortal ; never will I kiss the foot of any man." 
 
 The French counts, however, insisted on this ceremony, and Eolf- 
 ganger, with an affectation of simplicity, made a sign to one of his 
 comrades. The Norman, obeying his chief';3 gesture, immediately 
 stepped forward and seized upon Charles's foot. Neglecting, how- 
 
b DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 ever, to bend his own knee, lie lifted the King's foot so high in the 
 cflfort to bring it to his lips, that the chair of state Avas overturned, 
 and the heir of Charlemagne lay sprawling on his back. 
 
 Eoli'ganger paying hcmage to Charles the Simple. 
 
 At this ludicrous incident the ISTormans raised shouts of derisive 
 laughter, and the French held up their hands in horror. For a few 
 moments all was confusion, but fortunately no serious quarrel re- 
 sulted ; and soon after, Eolfganger was received into the ChristiaTx 
 Church, and married to Gisla, the King's daughter, at Kouen. 
 
 Eolfganger, having begun life anew as a Christian and a Count, 
 divided the territory of Neustria among his comrades, and changed 
 its name to Normandy. Maintaining internal order by severe laws, 
 and administering affairs with vigour, he soon became famous as the 
 most successful justiciary of the age. Such was the security felt 
 under his government, that mechanics and labourers flocked to esta- 
 blish themselves in the newly-founded state, and the Normans 
 
ROLFG ANGER AND HIS COMRADES. 7 
 
 applied themselves to the arts of peace with as much ardour as 
 they had proviously exhibited in their predatory enterprises. 
 
 Gradually adopting the French tongue, and refining their manners, 
 Rolfganger's comrades and their heirs were metamorphosed from a 
 band of pagan sea-kings and pirates into the most refined, the most 
 chivalrous, and the most religious race in Christendom — orators from 
 their cradle ; warriors charging in chain mail, with resistless courage, 
 at the head of fighting men : and munificent benefactors to religious 
 houses, where holy monks kcf)t alive the flame of ancient learning, 
 and dispensed befitting charities to the indigent and poor. 
 
DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 II. 
 
 WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 
 
 ^V"^ '^ ^-^ glorious 
 ~ afternoon 
 m tlie au- 
 tmnn of the year 
 1023, some dam- 
 sels of humble rank 
 ■tt ere maLmg merry 
 and dancing joy- 
 ously under the 
 shade of trees in 
 the neighbourhood 
 of Falause, ^Yhen, 
 homeWfiid from 
 the chase, accom- 
 panied by knights, 
 squires, and grooms, with his bugle at his girdle, his 
 hawk on his wrist, and his hounds running at his 
 horse's feet, came, riding with feudal pride, that Duke 
 of Normandy whom some, in consideration, perhaps, 
 of substantial favours, called Robert the ]\Iagnificent, and whom 
 others, in allusion to his \T.olent temper, characterized as Robert 
 the Devil. 
 
 Not being quite indifferent to female charms, Duke Robert reined 
 up, and, as he did so, with an eye wandering from face to form and 
 from form to face, the grace and beauty of one of the dancers arrested 
 his attention and touched his heart. After expressing his admiration, 
 and learning that she was the daughter of a tanner, the duke pursued 
 his way. But he was more silent and meditative than usual ; and, 
 
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 9 
 
 soon after reacliing the Castle of Falaise, lie deiDuted the most 
 discreet of his knights to go to the father of the damsel to reveal 
 his passion and to plead his cause. 
 
 It appears that the negotiation was attended with considerable 
 difficulty. At first, the tanner, who had to be consulted, treated the 
 duke's proposals with scorn ; but, after a pause, he agreed to take 
 the advice of his brother, who, as a hermit in the neighbouring 
 forest, enjoyed a high reputation for sanctity. The oracle's response 
 was not quite consistent with his religious pretensions. Though 
 dead, according to his own account, to the vanities of the world, the 
 hermit would seem to have cherished a lingering sympathy with 
 human frailty. At all events, he declared that subjects ought, in all 
 things, to conform to the will of their prince; and the tanner, 
 without further scruple, allowed his daughter to be conducted to the 
 castle of Eobert the Devil. In due time Arlette gave birth to a son, 
 destined, as "William the Conqueror," to enrol his name in the 
 annals of fame. 
 
 It was the 14th of October, 1024, when William the Normau 
 drew his first breath in the Castle of Falaise. Arlette had previously 
 been startled with a dream, portending that her sou should reign 
 over Normandy and England ; and no sooner did William see the 
 light than he gave a pledge of that energy which he was in after 
 years to exhibit. Being laid upon the floor, he seized the rushes iu 
 his hands, and grasped them with such determination, that the 
 matrons who were present expressed their astonishment, and con- 
 gratulated Arlette on being the mother of such a boy. 
 
 " Be of good cheer," cried one of them, with prophetic enthusiasm ; 
 " for verily your son will prove a king ! " 
 
 At first Robert the Devil did not deign to notice the existence of 
 the boy who was so soon to wear the chaplet of golden roses that 
 formed the ducal diadem of Normandy; but William, when a year 
 old, was presented to the duke, and immediately won the feudal 
 magnate's heart. 
 
 " Verily," said he, " this is a boy to be proud of. He is wonder- 
 fully like my ancestors, the old dukes of the Normans, and he must 
 be nurtured with care."' 
 
JO DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 From tliat time the mother and the child were dear to Duke 
 Eobert. Arlette was treated with as much state as if a uuptial 
 benediction had been pronounced by the Archbishop of Rouen ; and 
 William was educated with more than the care generally bestowed, 
 at that time, on the princes of Christendom. At eight he could 
 read the " Commentaries of Caesar;" and in after life he was in the 
 habit of repeating a saying of one of the old counts of Anjou, 
 " that a king without letters is a crowned ass." 
 
 It happened that, about the year 1033, Robert the Devil, reflecting 
 on his manifold transgressions, and eager to make atonement, resolved 
 on a penitential pilgrimage to Jerusalem. A serious obstacle, how- 
 ever, presented itself The Norman nobles, with whom the de- 
 scendant of Rolfganger was in high favour, on being convened, 
 protested loudly against his departure. 
 
 " The state," they with one voice exclaimed, " will be in great 
 peril if we are left without a chief" 
 
 " By my faith ! " said Robert, " I will not leave you without a 
 chief I have a little bastard — I know he is my son ; and he will 
 grow a gallant man, if it please God. Take him, then, as your liege 
 lord ; for I declare him my heir, and bestow upon him the whole 
 Duchy of Normandy." 
 
 No objections were raised to the Duke's proposal. In fact, every- 
 thing seems to have gone more smoothly than could have been 
 anticipated. William was formally presented to the assembly, and 
 each feudal lord, placing his hand within those of the boy, took the 
 oath of allegiance with such formalities as were customary. 
 
 Having arranged matters to his satisfaction, and placed his son 
 under the protection of the court of France, Duke Robert took the 
 pilgrim's scrip and staff, and, attended by a band of knights, set out 
 for the Holy Sepulchre. On reaching Asia Minor he fell sick, and, 
 dispensing with the company of his knights, hired four Saracens to 
 carry him in a litter onward to Jerusalem. When approaching the 
 Holy City, he was met by a palmer from Normandy, and waved his 
 hand in token of recognition. 
 
 " Palmer," cried the duke, " tell my valiant lords that you have 
 seen me carried towards Paradise on the backs of fiends." 
 
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 11 
 
 The fate of Duke Eobert was never clearly ascertained ; but from 
 his pilgrimage to Jerusalem it is certain that he did not return to 
 Normandy. Within a year of his departure, indeed, news reached 
 Rouen that the pilgrim-duke had breathed his last at Nice ; and the 
 Normans, though without implicitly believing the report, gradually 
 came to think of him as one who had gone to his long home. 
 
 With news of the death of Robert the Magnificent came the crisis 
 of the fate of " William the Bastard." Notwithstanding the oath 
 taken with so much ceremony, the Norman barons were in no humour 
 to submit to a boy — and to a boy, especially, who was illegitimate. 
 
 It was in vain that the guardians of young William exerted aU 
 their energies to establish his power. One pretender after another 
 was put down by the strong hand. But the old Norman seigneurs, 
 who had submitted with reluctance to the rule of legitimate princes, 
 steeled their hearts against the humiliation of bending their knees to 
 a bastard. 
 
 Among the nobles of Normandy, by far the haughtiest and most 
 turbulent were the seigneurs of Bessi and Cotentin. These men 
 were proud to excess of their Norwegian descent, and very tenacious 
 of their Scandinavian traditions and customs. Indeed, they treated 
 with something like contempt the conversion of the Normans to 
 Christianity, carried pagan devices on their shields, and rode into 
 battle with the old Scandinavian war-cry of " Thor aide ! " Rejoicing, 
 above all things, in the purity of their blood, these ancient seigneurs 
 not only talked with ridicule of the idea of submitting to the son of 
 Arlette, but formed a strong league, marshalled their fighting men, 
 and prepared to display their banners and seize William's person. 
 
 When this conspiracy was formed, William had attained his seven- 
 teenth year, and, utterly unconscious of his danger, was residing in 
 a castle unprepared for defence. The Counts of Bessi and Cotentin 
 were making ready to mount their war-steeds and secure their prey, 
 when one of their household fools stole away during the night, 
 reached the castle where William was, clamoured for admittance in a 
 loud voice, and would not be silenced till led to the young duke's 
 presence. On getting audience of William, the fool hastily told him 
 of his peril, and warned him to fly instantly. 
 
12 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 " Wliat say you 1" asked William in surprise. 
 
 " I tell you," answered tlie fool, " that your enemies are coming, 
 and, if you don't fly without delay, you'll be slain." 
 
 After some further questioning, William resolved to take the fool's 
 advice, and mounting, spurred rapidly towards the Castle of Falaise. 
 But he was imperfectly acquainted with the country ; and he had 
 not ridden far when ho missed his way. William reined up his 
 steed, and halted in perplexity and dismay; and his alarm was 
 increased by hearing sounds as of enemies following at no great 
 distance. Fortunately, at that moment, however, he met a peasant, 
 who, by pointing out the way to the fugitive, and setting the pur- 
 suers ojfF in a wrong direction, enabled the duke to reach Falaise in 
 safety. 
 
 At that time, Henry, grandson of Hugh Capet, figured as King of 
 France, and wore the diadem wliich his grandsire had torn from the 
 head of the heirs of Charlemagne, In other days, Henry had been 
 protected against the enmity of an imperious mother and a turbulent 
 brother by Eobert the Magnificent ; and when William hastened to 
 the French court, Henry, moved by the young duke's tale of distress, 
 and remembering Eobert's services, promised to give all the aid in 
 his power. Ere long he redeemed his pledge by leading a French 
 army against the insurgents. The result was the defeat of the rebel 
 lords in a pitched battle at the " Val des Dunes," near Caen, and a 
 victory which, for a time, gave security to Arlette's son on the ducal 
 throne of Rollo. 
 
 William's youth was so far fortunate. His friends regarded him 
 with idolatry ; and his enemies, forced to admit that he seemed not 
 unworthy of his position, became quiescent. The day on which he 
 mounted his horse without placing foot in stirrup was hailed with 
 joy ; and the day on which he received knighthood was kept as a 
 holiday throughout Normandy. 
 
 As time passed on, William showed himself very ambitious, and 
 somewhat vindictive. He made war on his neighbours in Maine and 
 Britanny on slender provocations, and resented without mercy any 
 offensive allusion to his maternal parentage. One day, when he 
 was besieging the town of Aleu^ou, the inhabitants, to annoy him, 
 
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 
 
 13 
 
 beat leather skins ou the walls, in allusion to the occupation of his 
 grandfather, and shouted, " Hides, hides !" William, in bitter 
 rage, revenged himself by causing the hands and feet of all his 
 prisoners to be cut off, and thrown by the slingcrs over the walls into 
 the town. 
 
 But, whatever William's faults, he was loved and respected by his 
 friends. Nor could the duke's worst enemy deny that he looked a 
 prince of whom any people might well have been proud. In person 
 he was scarce above the ordinary height ; but so grand was his air, 
 and so majestic his bearing, that he seemed to tower above ordinary 
 mortals. His strength of arm was prodigious ; and few were the 
 warriors in that age who could even bend his bow. His face was 
 sufficiently handsome to command the admiration of women, and his 
 aspect sufficiently stern to awe men into submission to his will. No 
 prince in Europe was more capable of producing an impression on a 
 beholder than, at the age of twenty-five, was the warrior destined to 
 attempt and accomplish that mighty exploit since celebrated as the 
 Norman Conquest of England. 
 
14 
 
 bweyn struck ty the hand of death. 
 
 III. 
 
 THE DANES IN ENGLAND. 
 
 At the time wlien William the Norman was making good his claim 
 to the Dukedom won by Eolfganger, the Saxons had been settled in 
 England for nearly six centuries. During that long period, however, 
 the country had frequently been ^posed to the horrors of civil war 
 
THE DANES IN ENGLAND. 15 
 
 and to the inroads of those ruthless Northmen, who " replunged 
 into barbarism the nations over which they swept." 
 
 It was about the year 451 that the Saxons, with huge axes ou 
 their shoulders, set foot on the shores of Britain. At that period — 
 when the ancient Britons, left by the Roman conquerors at the mercy 
 of the Picts and Scots, were complaining that the barbarians drove 
 them to the sea, and that the sea drove them back to the barbarians 
 —there anchored off the coast of Kent three bulky ships, com- 
 manded by Hengist and Horsa, two Saxon chiefs, who claimed 
 descent from "Woden, their god of war, and boasted of some military 
 skill acquired when fighting in the ranks of Rome. From Hengist 
 and Horsa, still worshippers of Thor and Woden, the Britons im- 
 plored aid against the Picts and Scots; and the Saxon chiefs, calling 
 over a band of their countrymen, speedily drove the painted Cale- 
 donians to their mountains and fastnesses. 
 
 After having rescued the Britons from their northern neighbours, 
 the Saxons did not exhibit any haste to leave the country which they 
 had deliverdi Indeed, these mighty sons of Woden rather seemed 
 ambitious of making Britain their own ; and Hengist, having settled 
 in Lincolnshire, gave a great feast. Among other guests who on 
 this occasion came to the Saxon's stronghold was Vortigern, a King 
 among the Britons, and, his eye being arrested and his heart in- 
 flamed by the grace and beauty of Piowena, the daughter of Hengist, 
 while she presented the wassail-cup on bended knee, he became so 
 desperately enamoured that he never rested till the fair and fasci- 
 nating Saxon was his wife. After the marriage of Vortigern and 
 Eowena, the Saxons plainly intimated their intention of being 
 masters of Britain, and, the sword having been drawn, the two races 
 — the Saxons and the Celts — commenced that struggle which lasted 
 for more than a hundred and fifty years, during which King Arthur 
 and the Knights of his Piound Table are said to have wrought those 
 marvellous exploits which have been celebrated by chroniclers and 
 bards. 
 
 At length, however, the Saxons, in spite of prolonged resistance, 
 established their supremacy, and, during the existence of the Saxon 
 Heptarchy, which included the whole country, subject to seven 
 
k 
 
 J 6 DANES, SAXOXS, AND NORMAXS. 
 
 Princes, the conquerors of Britain became converts to Christianity, 
 and members of the Catholic Church ; and, abandoning the worship 
 of Thor and Woden, they endeavoured to show their zeal by erecting 
 churches and monasteries. 
 
 As time passed on, Egbert, King of Wessex, in 827 prevailed 
 over all rivals, formed the separate provinces into a single state, and 
 reigned as King of England. But whUe the Saxons were still en- 
 gaged in putting down the Celts and cutting each other to pieces, a 
 band of grim adventurers one morning sailed into the port of Teign- 
 mouth. In the discharge of his duty, a Saxon magistrate proceeded 
 to the shore to learn whence they came and what they wanted, 
 "Without deigning an answer, the strangers slew the magistrate and 
 his attendants, plundered the town, carried the booty to their ships, 
 and then, hoisting their sails, took their departure. This was the 
 first appearance in England of those Danes who Avere, ere long, to 
 rend the Anglo-Saxon empire in pieces, and place their King on the 
 English throne. 
 
 In fact, from the time of this their first visit to the English coast, 
 the Danes were constantly finding their way to England, and sig- 
 nalising their inroads by every kind of barbarity. They were the 
 most reckless of pirates and pagans, calling the ocean their home 
 and the tempest their servant, and delighting to shed the blood of 
 Christian priests, to desecrate churches, and to stable their steeds 
 in chapels. In their cruel inroads, thej"- tossed infants on the points 
 of their spears, and mocked the idea of tears and mourning. For 
 them, indeed, death had no terrors, for they believed themselves 
 secure, especially if they fell in battle, of being conveyed to Val- 
 halla ; and gloried in the prospect of feasting in the halls of Odin, 
 waited on by lovely damsels, and quafiing beer out of huge cups of 
 horn. Settling gradually in jSTorthumberland, East Anglia, and 
 Mercia, the Danes occupied the whole country north of the Thames. 
 Only one province remained to the Saxons, that of Wessex, which 
 then extended from the mouth of the Thames to the Bristol Channel. 
 Such was the state of afiairs when, in 871, a Saxon King, named 
 Ethelred, was slain in a conflict with the Danes, and was succeeded 
 by his son, Alfred, afterwards Alfred the Great, but then a youth of 
 
THE DANES IN ENGLAND. l7 
 
 twenty-two. At first, the courage and ability of the young King 
 inspired the Saxons with high hopes. But Alfred, pufied up with 
 conceit of his superior knowledge, despised those whom he governed, 
 and his contemptuous indifference to their opinions and wishes ren- 
 dered him ere long so very unpopular that when, after having reigned 
 seven years, he was under the necessity of preparing against an 
 inroad of the Danes, he found himself, to his mortification, almost 
 unsupported. In vain the King, after the fashion of his ancestors, 
 sent messengers of war to town and hamlet, bearing the arrow and 
 naked sword, and proclaiming, ',' Let each man that is not a nothing 
 leave his house and come !" So few obeyed the summons that Alfred, 
 deeply mortified, abandoned his throne, and sought refuge in Cornwall. 
 
 It was at this dismal period that Alfred found shelter in the hut 
 of a swineherd, and, while examining his arrows, allowed the cakes 
 to bum. " Stupid man !" cried the swineherd's wife, unaware of 
 his quality, " you will not take the trouble to prevent my bread 
 from burning, though you're always so glad to eat it." 
 
 But, ere long, Alfred emerged from his obscure lurking-place, 
 visited the Danish camp disguised as a harper, and, while enter- 
 taining the rude Northmen with music and song, became so well 
 acquainted with the situation of affairs that he took immediate steps 
 to restore the old Saxon nationality. Summoning fighting men of 
 the Saxon race from every quarter, Alfred met the Danes in the 
 field, vanquished them in eight battles, and finally reduced them to 
 submission and obedience. 
 
 After the death of Alfred the Great, who had, after his restora- 
 tion, reigned with lustre and glory, Ethelstane, pursuing Alfred's 
 conquests, recovered York, crossed the Tweed, defeated the Danes and 
 Cambrians at Bamborough, and brought the whole island under his 
 dominion. For some time after Ethelstane's triumphs, the Saxons 
 were allowed unmolestedly to sow and reap, to buy and sell, to 
 marry and give in marriage. 
 
 In 994, however, Sweyn, King of Denmark, turned his eyes covet- 
 ously towards England, where Ethelred the Unready then reigned; 
 and forthwith, in company with Olaf, King of Norway, undertook 
 an expedition. Despairing of opposing the invaders with success, 
 
 c 
 
18 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Ethelred bribed them with a large sum of money to retire, and both 
 of them withdrew, after having sworn not again to trouble England. 
 Nevertheless, in 1001, Sweyn, in whom the spirit of the pirate was 
 strong, reappeared ; and the Saxon King, seeing no way of getting 
 rid of such a foe except by bribery, agreed to pay an annual tribute, 
 to be levied throughout England under the name of " Dane-gold." 
 
 Sweyn, to whom an arrangement that was every year to replenish 
 his treasury seemed satisfactory, returned to Denmark. Many Danes, 
 however, remained in England, and conducted themselves with such 
 intolerable insolence that the Saxon§ projected a general massacre of 
 their unwelcome guests, and fixed on St. Brice's Day, 1002, for the 
 execution of their hoarded vengeance. Ethelred, who, having lost his 
 first wife, Elgira, the mother of Edmund Ironsides, had espoused 
 Emma, sister of the Duke of Normandy, and who deemed himself 
 secure in the alliance of the heir of Rolfganger, unhappily consented 
 to the massacre, and, on the appointed day, the Saxons applied 
 themselves to the work of extermination, little dreaming what wou.ld 
 be the consequences. 
 
 No sooner did Sweyn hear of the massacre of St. Brice, than he 
 vowed revenge, and, embarking with a mighty force, lauded in 
 England, and commenced a work of bloodshed, carnage, sacrilege, 
 destruction, and every kind of enormity. Ethelred, after a vain 
 attempt at resistance, fled to Normandy, with Emma his wife, and 
 their two sons, Alfred and Edward; while Sweyn, left a victor, 
 caused himself to be proclaimed King of England. But he did not 
 live long to enjoy his conquests. One day, while feasting at Thet- 
 ford, drinking to excess, and threatening to spoil the monastery of 
 St. Edmund, he suddenly felt as if he had been violently struck, and 
 the chiefs, who sat around in a circle, observed that his face under- 
 went a rapid change. 
 
 " Oh !" exclaimed Sweyn, gasping for breath, " I have been struck 
 by this St. Edmund with a sword !" 
 
 " Nay," said the Danish chiefs, who did not share their King's 
 superstitious feeling, " there is no St. Edmund here." 
 
 Death, however, seemed written on Sweyn's face, and horror took 
 possession of his soul. After suffering terrible tortures for three 
 
THE DANES IN ENGLAND. 19 
 
 days, lie breathed his hast, and left his daims and pretensions to his 
 son Canute, who, coming victoriously out of that struggle with 
 Edmund Ironsides, in which the royal Saxon, after repeatedly de- 
 feating the Danes, perished by the hand of an assassin, succeeded 
 to the English throne, where he was destined to render his name 
 memorable and his memory illustrious as Canute the Great. 
 
 It appears that, during these unfortunate struggles with the 
 Danes, Ethelred and his son Edmund Ironsides relied much on the 
 services of a man whom the Saxon King delighted to honour, and 
 whom English historians have since branded as one of the most 
 infamous traitors that ever breathed English air. This was Edric 
 Streone, who had obtained from Ethelred the Earldom of ]\Iercia, and 
 who evinced his gratitude for that and countless favours by betraying 
 his benefactor and suborning a ruffian to stab his benefactor's son. 
 
 After Ironsides' murder, Edric hastened to Canute and claimed a 
 reward. Not unwilling, perhaps, to profit by the treachery, but 
 abhorring the traitor, the Danish conqueror had recourse to dissimu- 
 lation, and spoke to Edric in language wliich raised the villain's hopes. 
 
 " Depend upon it," said Canute, " I will set your head higher than 
 any man's in the realm ;" and, by way of redeeming his promise, he 
 soon after ordered the traitor to be beheaded. 
 
 " King," cried Edric, in amazement, " remember you not your 
 promise 1" 
 
 " I do," answered Canute, with grim humour. " I promised to 
 set your head higher than other men's, and I will keep my word." 
 And having ordered Edric to be executed, he caused the body to be 
 flung into the Thames, and the head to be placed high over the 
 highest of the gates of London. 
 
 After having won considerable popularity among the Saxons by 
 the execution of Edric Streone, Canute, who figured as King of 
 Denmark and Norway, as well as England, endeavoured to strengthen 
 his position by a matrimonial alliance. With this view the royal 
 Dane wedded Emma of Normandy, the widow of Ethelred ; and it 
 was supposed that, at his death, Hardicanute, the son whom he had 
 by this fair descendant of Rolfgangcr, was to succeed to the English 
 throne. 
 
 c2 
 
20 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 In 1035, however, wlien Canute the Great went the way of all 
 flesh, and when his remains were laid in the Cathedral of Win- 
 chester, there was living in London one of his illegitimate sons, named 
 Harold, who, from his swiftness in running, was surnamed Harefoot. 
 Immediately, Harold Harefoot claimed the crown, and a contest took 
 place between his adherents and those of Hardicanute, who was then 
 in Denmark. Harold Harefoot, however, being favoured by the 
 Danes of London, can-ied the day ; and finding that the Archbishop 
 refused to perform the ceremony of coronation, he placed the crown 
 on his head with his own hand, became an avowed enemy of the 
 Church, lived as one " who had abjured Christianity," and displayed 
 his contempt for religious rites by having his table served and 
 sending out his dogs to hunt at the hour when people were assembling 
 for worship. 
 
 After reigning four years, however, he breathed his last, and was 
 buried at Westminster. 
 
 When Harold Harefoot died, Hardicanute was at Bruges with his 
 mother, the Norman Emma, and he immediately sailed for England. 
 No attempt seems to have been made to restore the Saxon line. 
 Indeed, Hardicanute found himself received with general joy, and 
 commenced his career as King of England by causing the body of 
 his half-brother to be dug out of his tomb at Westminster and 
 thrown into the Thames. Hardicanute then abandoned himself to 
 gluttony and drunkenness, and scandalously oppressed the nation 
 over which he swayed the sceptre. His career, however, was brief, 
 and his end was so sudden, that some have ascribed it to foul play. 
 
 It was the 8th of June, 1041, and Hardicanute was celebrating 
 the wedding of a Danish chief at Lambeth. Nobody expected a 
 catastrophe, for he was still little more than twenty, and his constitu- 
 tion was remarkably strong. While revelling and carousing, how- 
 ever, he suddenly tossed up his arms and dropped on the floor a 
 corpse. Some ascribed the death of Hardicanute to poison, but none 
 lamented his fate ; and, by the Saxons, the event was rather hailed as 
 a sign for the restoration of the Saxon line and the heirs of Alfred. 
 
21 
 
 IV. 
 
 EARL GODWIN. 
 
 NE morning, at the 
 time •when Edmund 
 Ironside and Canute 
 were struggling des- 
 perately for the king- 
 dom of England, and 
 when the son of Ethel- 
 red had just defeated 
 the son of Sweyn in a 
 great battle in War- 
 wickshire, a Danish 
 captain — Ulf by name 
 — separated from his 
 men, and, flying to 
 save his life, entered a wood with the paths of which he was quite 
 unacquainted. Halting in one of the glades, and looking round in 
 extreme perplexity, he felt relieved by the approach of a young 
 Saxon, in the garb of a herdsman, driving his fathers oxen to the 
 pastures. 
 
 " Thy name, youth," said Ulf to the herdsman, saluting him after 
 the fashion of his country. 
 
 " I," answered the herdsman, " am Godwm, son of AVolwoth ; and 
 thou, if I mistake not, art one of the Danes." 
 
 " It is true," said Ulf. " I have wandered about all night, and 
 now I beg you teU me how far I am from the Danish camp, or 
 from the ships stationed in the Severn, and by what road I can reach 
 them." 
 
22 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 "Mad," exclaimed Godwin, "must be the Dane wlio looks for 
 safety at the hands of a Saxon." 
 
 " Nevertheless," said Ulf, " I entreat thee to leave thy herd and 
 guide me to the camj^, and I promise that thou shalt be richly re- 
 warded." 
 
 " The way is long," said Godwin, shaking his head, " and perilous 
 would be the attempt. The peasants, emboldened by victory, are 
 everywhere up in arms, and little mercy would they show either to 
 thee or thy guide." 
 
 " Accept this, youth," said the Dane, coaxingly, as he drew a gold 
 ring from his finger. 
 
 " No," answered Godwin, after examining the jewel with curiosity, 
 " I will not take the ring, but I will give you what aid I can." 
 
 Having thus promised his assistance to Ulf, Godwin took the 
 Danish captain under his guidance, and led him to Wolwoth's cottage 
 hard by, and, when night came, prepared to conduct him, by bye- 
 paths, to the camp. They were about to depart when Wolwoth, with 
 a tear in his eye, laid his hand in that of the Dane. 
 
 " Stranger," said the old man, " know that it is my only son who 
 trusts to your good faith. For him there will be no safety among 
 his countrymen from the moment he has served you as a guide. 
 Present him, therefore, to Canute, that he may be taken into your 
 king's service." 
 
 " Fear not, Saxon," said Ulf, " I will do more than you ask for 
 your son. I will treat him as my own." 
 
 The Dane and Godwin then left Wolwoth's cottage, and, under 
 the guidance of the young herdsman, the Dane reached the camp in 
 safety. Nor was his promise forgotten. On entering his tent, Ulf 
 seated Godwin on a seat as highly-raised as his own, and, from that 
 hour, treated him with paternal kindness. 
 
 It was under such romantic circumstances, if we may credit ancient 
 chroniclers and modern historians, that Godwin entered on that mar- 
 vellous career which was destined to conduct him to more than regal 
 power in England. Presented by Ulf to Canute, the son of Wolwoth 
 soon won the favour of the Danish king ; nor was he of a family 
 whose members ever allowed any scrupulous adherence to honour to 
 
EARL GODWIN. 23 
 
 stand in the way of ambitious aspirations. Indeed, he was nephew 
 of that Edric Streone who had betrayed Etheh-ed the Unready, and 
 whom Canute had found it necessary to sacrifice to the national in- 
 dignation; and it has been observed that, "even as kinsman to 
 Edric, who, whatever his crimes, must have retained a party it was 
 wise to conciliate, Godwin's favour with Canute, whose policy would 
 lead him to show marked distinction to any able Saxon follower, 
 ceases to be surprising." 
 
 But, however that may have been, Godwin, protected by the king 
 and inspired by ambition, rose rapidly to fame and fortune. Having ac- 
 companied Canute to Denmark, and afterwards signalized his military 
 skill by a great victory over the J^orvvegians, he returned to England 
 with the reputation of being, of all others, the man whom the Danish 
 King delighted to honour. No distinction now appeared too high to 
 be conferred on the son of Wolwoth. Ere long he began to figure as 
 Earl of Wessex, and husband of Thyra, one of Canute's daughters. 
 
 Godwin's marriage with the daughter of Canute did not increase 
 the Saxon Earl's popularity. Indeed, Thyra was accused of sending 
 young Saxons as slaves to Denmark, and regarded with much anti- 
 pathy. One day, however, Thyra was killed by lightning ; soon 
 after, her only son was drowned in the Thames; and Godwin lost no 
 time in supplying the places of his lady and his heir. 
 
 Again at liberty to gratify his ambition by a royal alliance, he 
 wedded Githa, daughter of Sweyne, Canute's successor on the throne 
 of Denmark ; and the Danish princess, as time passed on, made her 
 husband father of six sons — Sweyne, Harold, Tostig, Gurth, Leofwine, 
 and Wolwoth — besides two daughters — Edith and Thyra — all des- 
 tined to have their names associated in history with that memorable 
 event known as the Norman Conquest. 
 
 Meanwhile, Godwin was taking that part in national events which 
 he hoped would raise him to still higher power among his country- 
 men, when Canute the Great breathed his last, and was laid at rest 
 in the cathedral at Winchester. Then there arose a dispute about 
 the sovereignty of England between Hardicanute and Harold Hare- 
 foot. The South declared for Hardicanute, the North for Harefoot. 
 Both had their chances ; but Harold Harefoot being in England at the 
 
24 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 time, as we have seen, while Hardicanute was in Denmark, had 
 decidedly the advantage over his rival. 
 
 Godwin, however, favouring Hardicanute, imdted Queen Emma 
 to England. He assumed the office of Protector, and received the 
 oaths of the men of the South. But for once the son of Wolwoth 
 found fortune adverse to his policy; and, having waited till Emma 
 made peace with Harold Harefoot, the potent Earl also swore 
 obedience, and allowed the claims of Hardicanute to rest. 
 
 But when time passed over, and affairs took a turn, when Harold 
 Harefoot died, and Hardicanute, ha-ving come to England, ascended 
 the throne, excited the national discontent by imposing excessive 
 taxes, and was perpetually alarmed, in the midst of his debaucheries, 
 with intelligence of tax-gatherers murdered and cities in insurrection, 
 it became pretty clear that the Danish domination must, ere long, 
 come to an end. Then Godwin, who had ever a keen eye to his in- 
 terest, doubtless watched the signs of the times with all the vigilance 
 demanded by the occasion, and marked well the course of events 
 which were occurring to place the game in his hands. Accordingly, 
 when, in the summer of 1041, Hardicanute expired so suddenly at 
 Lambeth, while taking part in the wedding festi^ities of one of his 
 Danish chiefs, Godwin perceived that the time had arrived for the 
 restoration of Saxon royalty. With his characteristic energy, he 
 raised his standard, and applied himself to the business. His success 
 was even more signal than he anticipated. Indeed, if he had chosen, 
 he might have ascended the throne of Alfred and of Canute. But 
 his policy was to increase his own power without exciting the envy 
 of others. With this view he assembled a great council at GiUing- 
 ham. Acting by his advice, the assembled chiefs resolved on 
 calling to the throne, not the true heir of England — the son of 
 Edmund Ironsides, who resided in Hungary, and probably had a will 
 of his own — but an Anglo-Saxon prince who had been long absent 
 from England — an exUe known to be inoffensive in character as well 
 as interesting from misfortune, and with whom Godwin doubtless 
 believed he could do whatever he pleased. At all events, it was as 
 Kmg-maker, and not as King, that the ennobled son of Wolwoth 
 aspired, at this crisis, to influence the destinies of England. 
 
[( 
 
 Of 
 
 
 EDWAED THE CONFESSOR. 
 
 While Duke William was overcoming his enemies in Normandy, 
 and Earl Godwin was putting an end to the domination of the 
 Danes in England, there might have been observed about the Court 
 of Rouen a man of mild aspect and saintly habits, who had reached 
 the age of forty. He was an exile, a Saxon prince, and one of the 
 heirs of Alfred. 
 
 It was about the opening of the eleventh century that King 
 Ethelred, then a widower, and father of Edmund Ironsides, espoused 
 Emma, sister of Richard, Duke of Normandy. From this marriage 
 sprung two sons and a daughter. The sons were named Edward and 
 Alfred ; the name of the daughter was Goda. 
 
 Edward was a native of England, and drew his first breath, in the 
 year 1002, at Islip, near Oxford. At an early age, however, when 
 the massacre of the Danes on the day of St. Brice resulted in the 
 exile of Ethelred, Edward, with the other children of Ethelred and 
 Emma, found refuge at the Court of Normandy. It was there that 
 the youth of Edward was passed ; it was there that his tastes were 
 formed ; and it was there that, brooding over the misfortunes of his 
 country and his race, he sought consolation in those saintly theories 
 and romantic practices which distinguished him so widely from the 
 princes of that fierce and adventurous period which preceded the 
 first Crusade. 
 
 When Ethelred the Unready breathed his last, in lllG, and Canute 
 the Great demanded the widowed queen in marriage, and Emma, 
 deUghted at the prospect of still sharing the throne of England, 
 threw herself into the arms of the royal Dane, her two sons, Edward 
 and Alfred, remained for a time securely in Normandy. Indeed, 
 they do not appear to have been by any means pleased at the idea of 
 
26 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 tlieir mother uniting lier fate with a man whom they had regarded 
 as their father's mortal foe. However, as years passed over, the sons 
 of Ethelred received an invitation from Harold Harefoot to visit 
 their native country, and they did not think fit to decline. At all 
 events, it appears that Alfred proceeded to England, and that he 
 went attended by a train of six hundred Normans. 
 
 On arriving in England, Alfred was immediately invited by Harold 
 Harefoot to come to London, and, not suspecting any snare, he 
 hastened to present himself at court. No sooner, however, had the 
 Saxon prince reached Guildford than he was met by Earl Godwin, 
 conducted under some pretence into the Castle, separated from his 
 attendants — who were massacred by hundreds — and then put in 
 chains, to be conveyed to the Isle of Ely, where he was deprived of 
 his sight, and so severely treated that he died of misery and pain. 
 
 Edward, who had remained in Normandy, soon learned with 
 horror that his brother had been murdered; and when Hardicanute 
 succeeded Harold Harefoot, he hastened to England to demand 
 justice on Godwin. Hardicanute received his half-brother with 
 kindness, promised that he should have satisfaction, and summoned 
 the Earl of Wessex to answer for the murder of Prince Alfred. 
 But Godwin's experience was great, and his craft was equal to his 
 experience. Without scruple, he offered to swear that he was en- 
 tirely guiltless of young Alfred's death, and at the same time pre- 
 sented Hardicanute with a magnificent galley, ornamented with 
 gilded metal, and manned by eighty warriors, every one of whom 
 had a gilded axe on his left shoulder, a javelin in his right hand, 
 and bracelets on each arm. The young Danish king looked upon 
 this gift as a most conclusive argument in favour of Godwin's inno- 
 cence — and the son of Wolwoth was saved. 
 
 Edward returned to Normandy, and passed the next five years of 
 his life in monkish austerities. But when the Danish domination 
 came to an end, and the Grand Council was held at Gillingham, 
 Godwin, as if to atone for consigning one of the sons of Ethelred to 
 a tomb, hastened to place the other on a throne. Edward, then in 
 his fortieth year, was accordingly elected king, and, on reaching 
 England, was crowned at Winchester, in that sacred edifice where 
 
EDWARD THE CONFESSOR. 27 
 
 his illustrious .ancestors aud their Danish foes reposed in peace 
 together. 
 
 It is related by the chroniclers of this period, that when Edward, 
 arrayed in royal robes, and accompanied by bishops and nobles, was 
 on the point of entering the church to be crowned, a man afflicted 
 with leprosy sat by the gate. 
 
 " What do you there I" cried the king's friends. " ^Move out of 
 the way." 
 
 " Nay," said Edward, meekly, " suffer him to remain." 
 
 " King !" cried the leper, in a loud voice, " I conjure you, by the 
 living God, to have me carried into the church, that I may pray to 
 be made whole !" 
 
 " Unworthy should I be of heaven if I did not," Edward replied ; 
 and, stooping forward, he raised the leprous man on his back, bore 
 him into the church, and prayed earnestly, and not in vain, for his 
 restoration. Roger Hoveden even asserts that the king's prayers 
 were heard, and that the leper was made whole from that hour. 
 But, in any case, there can be no doubt that on the fierce nobles and 
 people of his realm such a scene as this must have produced a strange 
 impression. It was believed that Edward's sanctity gave him the 
 power to heal; and belief in the influence which his hand was in 
 this way supposed to have, led to the custom of English sovereigns 
 touching for the king's evil. 
 
 In fact, however, people soon discovered that Edward was more 
 of a monk than a monarch; and far happier would he have been if 
 he had remained in Normandy, and sought refuge from the rude 
 and wicked world in the quiet of a cloister. It soon appeared, 
 moreover, that the son of Ethelred was intended to be king but in 
 name ; and that the son of Wolwoth was to be virtually sovereign 
 of England. The plan was not unhkely to succeed. Indeed, 
 Edward was so saintly and so simple, that Godwin might, to the 
 hour of his death, have exercised all real power, had he not, with 
 the vulgar ambition natural to such a man, risked everything for the 
 chance of his posterity occupying the English throne. 
 
 It appears that Godwin, by his marriage with Githa, the Danish 
 princess, had, besides six sons, two daughters, Editli and Thyra. 
 
28 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Editli, at tlie time of the restoration of the Saxon monarchy, is de- 
 scribed as having been young, beautiful, and remarkable for her 
 learning. It can hardly be doubted that her character and dispo- 
 sition contrasted favourably with the other members of the family 
 that then domineered in England ; and she was praised for not re- 
 sembling them. "As the thorn produces the rose," people said, "so 
 Godwin produced Edith." 
 
 The idea of making his daughter the wife of a king, and perhaps 
 living to sec his grandson wear a crown, fired Godwin's imagination } 
 and it is even said that Edward, before leaving Normandy, was 
 forced to swear, in the most solemn manner, that, if elected, he 
 would marry Edith. But however that may have been, the imperious 
 Earl insisted on the meek king becoming his son-in-law ; and a man 
 who, even in the days of his youth, had been much too saintly to 
 think of matrimony, was compelled, when turned of forty, to espouse 
 a woman on the hands of whose father was his brother's blood, and 
 to whose family he had, naturally enough, a thorough aversion. 
 
29 
 
 The judgment ot God on Godwin 
 
 THE KIXG AND THE KING-MAICER. 
 
 It was 1042 when Edward — afterguards celebrated as^hc Confessor 
 — found himself placed by the hand of Godwin on the throne of 
 his ancestors, and provided with a wife and queen in the person of 
 
30 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Edith, Godwin's daughter. At first, matters went pleasantly enough, 
 and, indeed, appeared promising. But no real friendship could exist 
 between the Anglo-Saxon king and the man whom he regarded as 
 his brother's murderer. Ere six years passed, Godwin and the king 
 were foes, and England was the scene of discord and disorder. 
 
 At that time the prejudice of the Anglo-Saxons against foreigners 
 was peculiarly strong. Before returning to the land of his birth, 
 therefore, Edward was under the necessity of promising that he 
 should bring with him no considerable number of Normans. The 
 condition was observed in so far that few Normans did accompany 
 Edward to England. But no sooner was he seated on the throne, 
 and in a position to grant favours, than his palace was open to all 
 comers ; and guests from the court of Rouen flocked to the court of 
 Westminster. 
 
 When Edward's Norman friends presented themselves, they met 
 with the most cordial welcome ; and being, for the most part, men 
 of adventurous talents, they soon began to look upon the country as 
 their property, and grasped at every office which the king had to 
 bestow. Ere long, Norman priests found themselves bishops in 
 England; Norman warriors figured as governors of English castles; 
 and the court became so thoroughly Normanized, that the national 
 dress, language, and manners, went wholly out of fashion. 
 
 The Anglo-Saxon nobles do not appear to have manifested any 
 jealousy of the king's friends. In fact, their inclination was quite 
 the reverse. The polish and refinement of their new associates 
 excited their admiration, and they hastened to adopt the Norman 
 fashions. Throwing aside their long cloaks, they assumed the short 
 Norman mantle, with its wide sleeves; they neglected their native 
 tongue to imitate, as well as they could, the language spoken by 
 Norman prelates and warriors ; and, instead of signing their names, 
 as of old, they began to affix seals to their deeds. The Anglo-Saxon 
 dress, manners, and language were no longer accounted worthy of 
 men who pretended to rank and breeding. 
 
 Meanwhile, Godwin not only steadily abstained from adopting the 
 Norman fashions, but looked upon the king's foreign friends as mortal 
 foes, and regarded everything about them with hatred. He felt, with 
 
THE KIXG AND THE KING-MAKER. 31 
 
 pain, that they kept alive the memory of Prince Alfred and their 
 murdered countrymen, and he perceived with uneasiness that each 
 new arrival had the eflfect of weakening his influence with the 
 king. It was under such circumstances that he set his face against 
 foreigners, and found means of exciting the popular prejudices 
 against the man whom, for selfish purposes, he had, to the exclusion 
 of the true heir, placed on the English throne. The multitude, 
 ever ready to be deluded, took precisely the view Godwin wished, 
 and began to speak of the pampered and overgrown adventurer as 
 a neglected and long-suffering patriot. 
 
 " Is it astonishing," said one, " that the author and support of 
 Edward's reign should be indignant at seeing new men from a 
 foreign nation raised above him 1" 
 
 " And yet," observed another, " never does he utter a harsh word 
 to the man whom he himself created king." 
 
 " Curse all Norman favourites !" exclaimed a third. 
 " And," cried a fourth, " long life to the great cliief — to the chief 
 magnanimous by sea and land !" 
 
 "While such was the situation of affairs, Eustace, Count of Bou- 
 logne, happened, in the year 1048, to come as a guest to England. 
 Eustace was husband of Edward's sister, Goda; and the king natu- 
 rally strove to make the visit of his brother-in-law as pleasant as 
 possible. After remaining for some time at the English court, how- 
 ever, Eustace prepared to return home; but on reaching Dover, 
 where he intended to embark, an awkvrard quarrel took place between 
 his attendants and the townsmen. A fray was the consequence; and 
 in a conflict which took place, twenty of the count's men were un- 
 fortunately slain. Angry and indignant at the slaughter of his 
 followers, Eustace, instead of embarking, turned back to demand 
 redress, and hastened to lay his complaint before the king, who was 
 then keeping his court in the castle of Gloucester. 
 
 Edward, ashamed of the riot, and horrified at the bloodshed, 
 promised that condign punishment should be inflicted on the perpe- 
 trators of the outrage, and deputed the duty to Godwin, in whose 
 earldom the town of Dover was included. 
 
 " Go without delay," said Edward, " and chastise by a military 
 
32 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 execution, those who have attacked my relative with arms in their 
 hands, and who have disturbed the peace of the country." 
 
 " Nay," said Godwin, " it is not right to condemn, without hearing, 
 men whom it is your duty to protect." 
 
 Nettled by the tone of Godwin's refusal, and aware of the re- 
 fractor)' spirit by which the earl was animated, Edward gave way to 
 anger, and convoked a great council at Gloucester. Before this 
 assembly Godwin was summoned to answer for his conduct. Instead 
 of appearing, the Earl of Wessex mustered an army with the object 
 of setting Edward at defiance, England seemed on the verge of a 
 civil war, but a peace was patched up by the mediation of Siward, 
 Earl of Northumberland, and Leofric, Earl of Mercia, husband of 
 that Godiva whose equestrian feat at Coventry the grateful citizens 
 have since so often commemorated. But the efforts of Siward and 
 Leofric proved vain. The king and Godwin indeed pretended to be 
 reconciled. But neither was sincere. Ere long, the quarrel broke 
 out afresh with great bitterness ; and the earl, finding the king much 
 more resolute than could have been expected, consulted his safety by 
 escaping with his wife and family to Flanders. 
 
 Freed from the presence of his imperious father-in-law, and feeling 
 himself at length a king in reality, Edward passed sentence of outlawry 
 on Godwin and his sons, seized on their earldoms, and confiscated 
 their property. Even Edith, the queen, did not escape her share of 
 the adversity of her house. After being deprived of her lands and 
 money she was sent to a convent in Hampshire, and condemned in 
 a cloister to sigh with regret over the ambition that had united her 
 fate with that of a man who had regarded her with a sentiment 
 akin to horror. 
 
 " It is not meet," said Edward's Norman friends, ironically, " that 
 while this woman's family undergo all the evils of exile, she herself 
 should sleep upon down." 
 
 " But the King's wife !" remonstrated the Anglo-Saxon nobles. 
 
 " Tush !" answered the Normans, significantly ; " she is his wife 
 only in name." 
 
 While Godwin was an exile in Flanders, William, Duke of Nor- 
 mandy, paid a visit to the King of England. Edward received his 
 
THE KING AND THE KING-MAKER. 33 
 
 kinsman with great affection, entertained him magnificently, and 
 treated him with such distinction as encouraged the Norman Duke's 
 most ambitious hopes. Indeed, it has been said that " William ap- 
 peared in England more a king than Edward himself, and that his 
 ambitious mind was not slow in conceiving the hope of becoming 
 such in reality." Nor did William return to Normandy without 
 tokens of Edward's good will. Magnificent presents of armour, 
 horses, dogs, and falcons were the substantial pledges with which 
 the monk-king accompanied his assurances of friendship for the 
 warrior-duke. 
 
 But, meantime, Godwin grew weary of exile and eager for re- 
 venge. Impatient to return to England, and to wreak his fury 
 on the Norman favourites, the banished earl resolved, at all hazards, 
 on leaving Flanders. Having obtained ships from Count Baldvrin, 
 he sailed from Bruges ; and, soon after Edward had witnessed the 
 departure of his martial kinsman for Normandy, the fleet of his out- 
 lawed father-in-law sailed up the Thames and anchored at South- 
 wark. 
 
 Edward was in London when Godwin's fleet appeared in this 
 menacing attitude; and, assembling his council, the king, with a 
 flash of ancestral spirit, evinced a strong desire to oppose force to 
 force. But, though the Norman courtiers were anxious to come to 
 blows with their mortal foe, the king was the only Englishman who 
 participated in their sentiments. Not only were the citizens of 
 London all ready to take up arms for the outlawed earl ; but even 
 Siward and Leofric, the chiefs who had ever stood in opposition to 
 Godwin, were in favour of his restoration; and the soldiers who 
 formed the royal army were animated by such an antipathy to the 
 foreign favourites, that it was felt they could not be depended on in 
 the event of matters being pushed to extremity. In these circum- 
 stances, the king reluctantly consented to refer the question to a 
 council of nobles; and this council, presided over by Robert Stigand, 
 Bishop of East Anglia, decided that the whole case should be sub- 
 mitted for judgment to the Witenagemote, the National Council of 
 the Anglo-Saxons. 
 
 On learning what had occurred, the Norman courtiers perceived 
 
 D 
 
St DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS, 
 
 that there was no hope for them but in escape. Without hesitation, 
 therefore, they mounted their horses, and spurred from the palace of 
 Westminster. Headed by Robert, Archbishop of Canterbury, and 
 William, Bishop of London, a troop of Norman knights and gentle- 
 men dashed eastward, fought their way through the city, and, making 
 for the coast, embarked in fishing-boats ; others fled to northern 
 castles, held by Hugh the Norman, and Osbert, sui'uamed Pente- 
 cost ; and thence, with Hugh and Osbert, made for the north, crossed 
 the Tweed, and sought security on Scottish soil. No mercy, they 
 well knew, could be expected at the hands of Godwin, and quite as 
 little at the hands of a multitude believing in his patriotism and 
 exasperated against his foes. 
 
 Meanwhile, the Witenagemote having been convoked, and all the 
 best men in the country having assembled to take part in the delibera- 
 tions, Godwin spoke in his own defence. The proceedings, as had been 
 foreseen from the beginning, resulted in the revocation of the sen- 
 tence of outlawiy against the earl and his sons, and restoration to 
 their lands and honours. An exception was, indeed, made in the 
 case of Godwin's eldest son, Sweyn, who, having debauched the 
 abbess of Leominster, and murdered his kinsman, Earl Beorn, was 
 deemed unworthy of the company of Christians and warriors. But 
 Sweyn relieved his family from all awkwardness on this point by 
 voluntarily undertaking a penitential pilgrimage on foot to the Holy 
 Sepulchre. 
 
 Matters having been thus arranged, the king accepted from God- 
 win the oath of peace ; and Godwin, as hostages for his good faith, 
 placed his youngest son, Wolnoth, and Haco, the son of Sweyn, in 
 the hands of the king, who sent them to the court of Eouen. At 
 the same time, William, the Norman Bishop of London, was, by the 
 king's wish, recalled to England; but Eobert, the Norman Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, was not so fortunate. Stigand, instituted as 
 Robert's successor, took possession of the pallium which the Norman 
 prelate had left behind in his sudden flight. 
 
 When her kinsmen were restored to England, Edith, the queen, 
 brought from her convent in Hampshire, once more appeared at the 
 palace of Westminster; and the house of Godwin seemed more 
 
THE KING AND THE KING-MAKEK. 35 
 
 firmly established than ever. Tlie king, ceasing to struggle against 
 the earl's influence, occupied his attention with completing the abbey 
 which he had been building at Westminster, and Leofric and Siward 
 seemed to bow to their great rival's power and popularity. But the 
 days of Godwin were numbered. 
 
 It was the spring of 1054 ; Edward was holding his court in the 
 castle of Winchester; and Godwin and his sons were among the 
 guests. One day, when the feast was spread, and the king and the 
 earl were seated at the board, an attendant, who was stepping for- 
 ward to pour wine into a cup, happened to stumble with one foot, 
 and quickly recovered himself with the other. Edward smiled ; 
 and Godwin, willing to give a hint to his sons, who were perpetually 
 brawling with each other, turned towards them. 
 
 " Well," remarked the earl, " you see how the brother has come 
 to the support of the brother." 
 
 " Ay," said the king, in a significant tone ; " brother needs the 
 aid of brother; and would to God my brother Alfred yet lived to 
 aid me 1" 
 
 " Oh, king !" exclaimed Godwin, startled and irritated, " why is it 
 that, on the slightest recollection of your brother, you ever look so 
 angrily on me V 
 
 Edward deigned no reply ; but his pale brow grew stem, and his 
 withered cheek flushed with resentment. 
 
 " If," continued the earl, taking a piece of bread in his hand — " if 
 I contributed, even indirectly, to your brother's death, may the God 
 of Heaven grant this may choke mel" 
 
 With these words Godwin put the bread into his mouth ; and, as 
 he did so, and as the eyes of the king were bent intently on his 
 countenance, the earl fell from his seat. 
 
 " It is the judgment of God !" muttered the courtiers with a 
 shudder. 
 
 Tostig and Gurth, two of Godwin's sons, rushed forward, raised 
 him in their arms, and bore him from the hall ; and, five days later, 
 the Earl of Wessex was a corpse. 
 
 d2 
 
36 
 
 €^'S 
 
 ^^^^^^= 
 
 -'"-* ^ ' "'''-^^C' '"""* 
 
 
 William's loTe-making. 
 
 
 VII. 
 
 
 MATILDA OF FLANDERS. 
 
 On the memorable day on which William the Norman, during the 
 exile of Earl Godwin, appeared as an honoured guest in the halls of 
 Westminster, and speculated on the probability of figuring, at no 
 distant period, as King of England, the crown worn by Edward the 
 
MATILDA OF FLANDERS. 37 
 
 Confessor was not the only prize on which the young duke had set his 
 mind. In fact, love was blended with ambition in William's heart. 
 He had determined, somewhat in defiance of canon and precedent, 
 to espouse Matilda of Flanders; and no one who visited Bruges and 
 looked upon the fair and intelligent face of that graceful Flemish 
 princess could have wondered that a warrior-duke, not yet tliirty, 
 should meditate the indiscretion of defying popes and prelates to 
 enjoy the privilege of calling her his own. 
 
 Matilda's pedigree was such as to make her a desirable bride for 
 the struggling son of Duke Kobert. She was one of the daughters 
 of Baldwin, Count of Flanders, by Adele, daughter of Kobert, King 
 of France; and, through an Anglo-Saxon ancestress, she had in her 
 veins the blood of Alfred the Great. But even with a much less 
 illustrious descent, Matilda would have been highly distinguished 
 among the princesses of the eleventh century. I^ature had gifted 
 the daughter of Count Baldwin with beauty and talent, and careful 
 education had rendered her one of the most attractive and captivating 
 among, the high-born maidens of whom Christendom could boast. 
 William's ambition and his heart were naturally enough fascinated 
 with the idea of wedding a princess of such rank and beauty; and 
 while yet he found the coronal of Normandy sitting somewhat uneasily 
 on his brow, he sent ambassadors to the Court of Flanders to de- 
 maud Matilda's hand. 
 
 Notwithstanding WUliam's illegitimate birth and disputed title, 
 Count Baldwin expressed no objection to accept him as a son-in-law. 
 Indeed, the count, feeling that William could prove a valuable friend 
 or a formidable foe, hailed the proposal Avith gratification. But two 
 obstacles immediately presented themselves — one difliculty was the 
 repugnance of Matilda, the other was the laws of the Church. 
 
 Matilda had no stronger objections to being led to the altar than 
 other ladies of her age. In fact, she is understood to have already 
 dreamed of the bridal veil and the marriage vow, and to have 
 been eager to become the spouse of a Saxon nobleman named 
 Brihtrik, who had appeared at her father's court. Perhaps ]Matilda'3 
 thoughts had dwelt on Brihtrik longer than prudence warranted. In 
 any case, when the ambassadors from Kouen presented themselves at 
 
38 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Bruges, she set herself decidedly against the proposal of wliicli tliey 
 •were the bearers. 
 
 "Why," said Baldwin, "do you object to. the Count of the Nor- 
 mans?" 
 
 " ^Mention him not !" exclaimed Matilda, with a disdainful toss of 
 her finely-shaped head. " I will not have a bastard for my husband !" 
 
 But William, who feared not man's wrath, was not to be daunted 
 by woman's scorn. Every day he became more convinced of the 
 necessity of uniting himself with some princess capable, by her rank 
 and lineage, of giving dignity to his position. It appears, moreover, 
 that the warrior-duke really entertained a strong affection for Matilda ; 
 and he seized an opportunity of manifesting the excess of his attach- 
 ment by a violent kind of love-making, which has long been out of 
 fashion. 
 
 It is related that one day, when !Matilda had been at mass, and 
 was quietly walking with her ladies of honour along the streets of 
 Bruges on her w-ay to the palace, to employ her hands with the em- 
 broidery work for which she was destined to become famous, and 
 perhaps to occupy her thoughts with the fair Saxon noble who had 
 won her young heart without giving his in return, William, arrayed 
 as if for battle and mounted on horseback, suddenly and unex- 
 pectedly made his appearance. Alighting with a bound, he seized 
 the princess in his strong arms, shook her, beat her, rolled her on the 
 ground, and fearfully damaged her rich garments. After this extra- 
 ordinary exhibition, he sprang into his saddle, set spurs to his horse, 
 and rode away at full speed. 
 
 It might have been supposed that William's violent conduct would 
 have increased Matilda's aversion to the match. The reverse, how- 
 ever, was the case. The princess, in fact, appears to have been over- 
 whelmed by such a proof of affection. 
 
 " I am now convinced of the sincerity of his love," she said, " and 
 I will offer no further objections to taking him as a husband." 
 
 Ere Matilda began to conquer the repugnance she had expressed 
 to a union "SAith the son of Duke Kobert, William found, to his 
 annoyance, that the Church opposed his marriage with the fair 
 Flemish princess, on the ground of their being within the prohibited 
 
MATILDA OF FLANDERS. 39 
 
 degrees of relationship. It would seem, in fact, that Adele, Countess 
 of Flanders, had, in early youth, been betrothed to "William's uncle, 
 Pdchard, Duke of Normandy ; so that the mother of ]\Iatilda stood 
 in the relationship of aunt to the Norman duke, " an affinity," as has 
 been observed, " quite near enough to account for, if not to justify 
 the interference of the Church." 
 
 Nevertheless, William did not despair. Indeed, he had thoroughly 
 made up his mind to be jMatilda's husband and Baldwin's son-in-law, 
 and to permit no priest to baffle him in a matrimonial scheme which 
 ambition and love alike rendered dear to his heart. It was in vain 
 that Pope Nicholas set himself in opposition to the marriage, and 
 that the legitimate heirs of Eolfgauger prepared to take advantage 
 of a rupture between the sou of Arlette and the See of Ptome. 
 William's perseverance and policy overcame all obstacles, and at 
 length, with a dispensation in his hand, he claimed and received the 
 bride he had so long wooed. 
 
 It was after his visit to the Court of Westminster, in 10J2, and 
 after the restoration of Godwin and his sons to their country, that 
 William the Norman led Alatilda of Flanders to the altar, and 
 flattered himself that, by espousing a descendant of Alfred, he had 
 smoothed his way to the throne from which Alfred had ruled 
 Eusland. 
 
40 
 
 Death, of Si-ward with harness on his hack 
 
 VIII. 
 SIWAED THE DANE. 
 
 At the time when Godwin and Edward were at feud, and when the 
 earl was browbeating the saintly prince whom he had placed on the 
 English throne — among the Saxons and Normans who assembled 
 around the king to discuss a grave question, or strike a great blow, 
 
SIWAED THE DANE. 41 
 
 might have been observed an aged warrior of gigantic stature, leaning 
 on a two-handed sword, and regarding Saxon thane and Norman 
 count with an expression indicative of some degree of cahu contempt. 
 His dress recalled the days of Canute and Hardicanute ; his hair was 
 white with years ; his frame was bowed with time ; but his spirit 
 was such as time could neither bend nor break ; and his eye still 
 glanced at the sight of battle-axe and shield. " Gray and vast, as 
 some image of a gone and mightier age, towered over all Siward, 
 the son of Beorn, the great Earl of Northumberland." 
 
 Siward was one of the most remarkable men who figured in the 
 reign of Edward the Confessor, and he had a history still more re- 
 markable than himself. A Dane, and of noble birth, he had, at an 
 early age, left his native shores, with an idea, perhaps, of emulating 
 the feats of Hasting or Haveloke. Landing in the Orcades, he 
 engaged in single combat, and put to the rout a large dragon, which 
 had long been the terror of the rude islanders. After performing 
 this exploit, Siward put to sea, left the Orcades behind, and, guiding 
 his ship as a horseman does a steed, reached the northern coast of 
 England. Having sprung ashore, and wandered into the forest in 
 quest of adventures, he met a venerable old man, with a long white 
 beard, who entered into conversation with him, presented him with 
 a mystic banner, and gave him some sage advice. 
 
 " This banner," said the venerable man, " is called ' the raven of 
 earthly terror ;' take it as thy standard ; direct thy voyage south- 
 ward to the mouth of a river called the Thames, which will lead thee 
 to a city called London, where reigns the son of Canute, who will 
 bid thee welcome, and aid thee to become great in this land." 
 
 Siward does not appear to have disdained the idea of exchanging 
 the pine plank for the rush-strewed hall. At all events, he took the 
 mystic banner and the advice of the venerable man, steered his 
 course towards the Thames, and, reaching London, presented him- 
 self to the king. It was an age when men of huge proportions and 
 fearless hearts were in great request ; and Siward's reception was all 
 that could have been wished. 
 
 The favour shown by the Danish king to Siward naturally made 
 him the object of envy. Many abiurd stories wwe consequently 
 
 '^-^ ^^< ^. 
 
42 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 circulated about his origin and parentage. He was described as the 
 grandson of a bear ; and Tostig, Earl of Huntingdon, took occasion 
 to affront him before the whole court. But the adventurous Dane 
 gave his enemies a lesson which they never forgot. Defying Tostig 
 to mortal combat, he signalized his prowess beyond all dispute, and 
 terminated the duel by cutting oif his antagonist's head. More 
 convinced than ever of Siward's value as an adherent, Hardicanute 
 bestowed on him the earldom which Tostig had enjoyed. 
 
 After being installed as Earl of Huntingdon, Siward played his 
 j)art with energy and wisdom. The ability he displayed seemed 
 fully to justify his sudden rise to importance, and a circumstance ere 
 long occurred which gave him an opportunity of still further advancing 
 his fortunes. 
 
 It happened that Uchtred, the great Saxon Earl of Northumber- 
 land, ha\ing been gathered to his fathers, Eadulph, the son of 
 Uchtred, ruled from the Humber to the Tweed. Not content, how- 
 ever, with this territory, Eadulph undertook an expedition against 
 the Welsh, and committed fearful depredations. Enraged at the 
 northern earl making war without his consent, Hardicanute resolved 
 on a severe chastisement, and entrusted Siward with the duty of 
 inflicting it. A. ware of his danger, Eadulph mounted, and hastened 
 towards London to implore the king's clemency. But it was too 
 late. While Eadulph was on his way south, Siward, going north, 
 met him face to face. A conflict ensued. Eadulph fell, and Siward 
 carried his head to Hardicanute. 
 
 It was shortly after the encounter which terminated in the death 
 of Eadulph, that Edward the Confessor ascended the throne of his 
 ancestors. At that time the fortunes of Siward, as foreigner and 
 Dane, were probably in great peril. The event, however, proved to 
 his advantage. There Avas some dread of a Danish fleet appearing 
 on the Northumbrian coast ; and the new king, in considerable 
 alarm, took counsel with his great men. 
 
 " What is to be done ?" asked the king. 
 
 " It is best," answered the thanes, " that the little devil should be 
 first opposed to the great devil. Let Siward the Dane be sent to 
 rule that part of your realm likely to be invaded by the Danes." 
 
SIWARD THE DANE. 43 
 
 The king listened, and, as he was advised, nominated Siward 
 Earl of Northumberland. Siward, repairing to York, the capital of 
 the North, won the favour of the province by espousing Alfleda, 
 granddaughter of Uchtred, and then governed the inhabitants with 
 an ability and a vigour that excited the admiration of Leofric, and 
 roused the jealousy of Godwin. The Danes, considering, perhaps, 
 that their gigantic countryman would be a formidable antagonist to 
 encounter, refrained from any attempt at invasion, and, moreover, 
 sent messages of peace and friendship to Edward. " We wUl," said 
 they, " allow you to reign unmolested over your countiy, and con- 
 tent ourselves with the lands which God has given us." 
 
 Years passed over, and Siward was keeping his court at York, 
 and ruling Northumberland vdih complete success, when tlie unfor- 
 tunate conflict between the townsmen of Dover and the train of 
 Eustace of Boulogne brought the quarrel of Edward and Godwin to 
 a crisis. Siward and Leofric were then summoned to the king's aid, 
 and commanded to lead their fighting men against the forces of the 
 refractory earl. Both obeyed, and, at their call, the inhabitants of 
 Northumberland and !Mercia took up arms. Hostile, however, as 
 Siward and Leofric were to Godwin, they could not help perceiving 
 that the country was whoUy on his side. Indeed, the murmurs of 
 their own soldiers convinced the Earls of Northumberland and 
 Mercia of the utter impolicy of pushing matters to extremity. Gene- 
 rously sacrificing resentment to patriotism, they raised their voices 
 in favour of Godwin's restoration and against Godwin's foes. 
 
 Scarcely had Godwin gone to his account, when Siward became 
 aware that his own end was drawing nigh. The Danish earl had just 
 returned from that expedition into Scotland which resulted in the 
 overthrow of Macbeth, when he was prostrated with sickness at 
 York. Feeling that the great destroyer was upon him, Siward 
 became horrified at the prospect of dying in bed, and in night-gear. 
 
 " Raise me," he said to those who watched his uneasy couch. 
 " Let me die like a warrior, and not huddled up together like 
 a cow !" 
 
 " What wouldest thou, great earl ?" asked the attendants. 
 
 " Put my coat of mail on my back," said Siward ; " place my 
 
44 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORJIANS. 
 
 helmet on my head, my shield on my left arm, and my gilt axe in 
 my right hand, that I may expire as a warrior should." 
 
 The command of the dying earl was obeyed. Clad, by his own 
 desire, in all the habiliments of war, and sitting up in his bed, 
 Siward, with calm courage, awaited the last enemy, and died with 
 the same martial dignity which had characterized his life. His 
 remains were laid in the monastery of Galmanho, which he had 
 founded at York; and, as a memorial of his prodigious prowess, 
 there was long afterwards shown a rock of granite which he was said 
 to have split with one blow of his mighty battle-axe. 
 
 rggdrasill, the llundane Tree of tlie Scandinavians 
 
45 
 
 William extoiting a promise ii-om. Harold 
 
 IX. 
 
 HAROLD, THE SAXON KING. 
 
 When Earl Goiwin breatlied Ids last, under circumstances so memo- 
 rable, his second son, Harold, succeeded to his earldom, and inherited 
 his influence. A robust and active man, of tall, though not gigantic 
 stature, with long fair hair, a pleasing countenance, dignified man- 
 
46 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOKllANS. 
 
 ners, and popular address — sucli appears to liave been Harold, the 
 son of Godwin. 
 
 It was when Hardicanute died so suddenly, at the niai-riage feast 
 at Lambeth, that Harold began to figure in public, and to take a 
 prominent part in national affairs. At that crisis, Harold was one 
 of the first to raise a standard against the Danes, and he is even 
 said to have contributed to the triumph of the Saxon cause, by in- 
 viting many of the Danish chiefs to a banquet, and causing them to 
 be put to the sword while over their cups. But, whatever truth 
 there may be in such a story, it seems that Harold shared in the 
 prosperity of the house of Godwin at the opening of Edward's 
 reign, and that when Godwin, outlawed and exiled, in 1048 escaped 
 to Bruges, Harold, with his brother Leofwin, fled to Bristol, and 
 there took shipping for the Irish coast. When Godwin returned 
 from Bruges, Harold and Leofwin, coming from Ireland, joined their 
 father at the Isle of Wight, and took part in that formidable demon- 
 stration which startled King Edward and his Norman courtiers in 
 the halls of Westminster. 
 
 After the restoration of Godwin, and the banishment of the Nor- 
 mans, Harold would seem to have been higher in Edward's favour 
 than any of his kinsmen; and after the death of Godwin, Harold 
 was quietly put in possession of the vast earldom south of the 
 Thames which his sire had so long enjoyed. Both as regarded 
 military reputation and territorial power he was now foremost 
 among the Anglo-Saxons, and he immensely increased his fame by 
 the sMll he displayed in a war with the refractory Welsh. 
 
 The originator of this war was Algar, son of the great Leofric, 
 who, becoming discontented, gave his daughter Aldith in marriage 
 to a Welsh prince named Griffith, and encouraged that crowned 
 Celt to make an incursion into the English territories. During this 
 inroad the city of Hereford was sacked and much mischief done ; 
 but Harold, on being sent with an army, speedily put the Welsh to 
 the rout, and forced Griffith to submit. Untaught, however, by his 
 severe experience of the superiority of the English, Griffith once 
 more rebelled ; and Harold, marching back to the borders of Wales, 
 caused such terror, that, to pacify him, the Welsh sacrificed Griffith 
 
HAROLD, THE SAXON KING. 47 
 
 to save themselves, and sent the head of the murdered prince to the 
 English camp, on the point of a spear. 
 
 After his victories over the Welsh, Harold returned to London, 
 and found himself hailed by the multitude as a conqueror. His 
 popularity was now immense, and wherever he appeared his name 
 was shouted with enthusiasm. 
 
 '•' Harold ! Harold the Earl !" was the cry. 
 
 '• Since Edward the king has no heirs," was the saying, '•' no man 
 is so worthy to succeed to the crown." 
 
 While such was the popularity of tlie son of Godwin, and while 
 all rivalry with him was so completely out of the question that 
 Algar died of despair and regret, Harold, with a view of recovering 
 his brother Wolnoth and his nephew Haco, who had been sent as 
 hostages to Duke W^illiam, and who were still retained at the court 
 of Eouen, proposed to visit ISTormandy. On intimating his intention 
 to Edward, however, the king hesitated to grant permission. 
 
 "Your journey," said the king, "will certainly bring some evil on 
 yourself, and on your country." 
 
 "In what way, king?" asked Harold in amazement. 
 
 *' I know Duke William and his crafty mind," replied Edward ; 
 " he hates you, and will grant you nothing unless he gain greatly by 
 it. The only way to obtain the hostages from him were to send 
 some one else." 
 
 " I fear it is otherwise," said Harold. 
 
 " Well," said Edward, " I will not prevent your going ; but, if you 
 do go, it will be -without my consent." 
 
 Not much influenced by Edward's warnings, Harold departed for 
 Normandy. As if going on an excursion for pleasure, he set out, 
 surrounded by his gay comrades, with his hawks and his hounds. 
 
 But a circumstance soon occurred to make him serious. Having 
 sailed from one of the ports of Sussex, Harold's vessels were driven 
 by contrary winds towards the mouth of the Somme ; and the earl, 
 forced to land on the territories of Guy, Count of Ponthieu, was 
 seized by that feudal personage as a captive, despoiled of all Ms 
 property, and placed securely under lock and key, in the castle of 
 Beaurain. 
 
48 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 One day, -wlien William the Norman was at Rouen, a messenger 
 from Harold arrived hurriedly and in haste, with intelligence of his 
 captivity. William expressed high indignation, and demanded 
 extradition of the Saxon earl with a menace, which was meant to 
 serve for ransom. Guy of Ponthieu, however, demanded a fine 
 estate and a large sum of money, and would listen to no proposal 
 less advantageous to himself. William was, in consequence, obliged 
 to grant what the count demanded ; and, the matter having been 
 arranged, Harold was sot free and conducted to Rouen. 
 
 On reaching the Norman capital, Harold met with a reception 
 which soon efiaced the remembrance of his captivity in the strong- 
 hold of Count Guy. At the same time William intimated that the 
 hostages were at Harold's disposal ; but he pressed the earl to remain 
 for a time as his guest, and see something of the land. Harold, who 
 was bold and confident, accepted the invitation ; and having, with 
 his companions, been admitted into the Norman order of knighthood, 
 he began to figure prominently in the festivals and pageants of the 
 Norman court. 
 
 While Harold the Saxon was in this position, William the Norman 
 undertook an expedition against the Bretons. Before setting out, 
 the martial duke requested Harold's company ; and Harold, con- 
 senting without hesitation, went with his Saxon comrades to take 
 part in the war. During this campaign, William treated Harold 
 with the utmost consideration ; and the Norman duke and the Saxon 
 earl slept in one tent, ate at the same table, and conducted them- 
 selves towards each other like men on terms of the most intimate 
 friendship. 
 
 In this expedition against the Bretons, Harold and his Saxon 
 companions bore themselves with a courage which excited high 
 admiration ; and, in spite of Edward's prophecy, everything seemed 
 to go smoothly ; when one day, as the duke and the earl rode along 
 side by side, enlivening the way with friendly coUoquy, WiUiam 
 artfully turned the conversation to his early acquaintance with the 
 King of England, and suddenly revealed the ambitious project which 
 was occupying his mind. 
 
 " In the days of my youth," said WiUiam, turning on his saddle, 
 
HAKOLD, THE SAXON KING. 49 
 
 playing -witli his bridle-rein, and looking Harold in the face, " your 
 king and I lived under the same roof like brothers ; and he then 
 promised that, if ever he came to be King of England, I should be 
 nominated heir to his crown." 
 
 Harold, in perplexed surprise, muttered some words. 
 
 "Whel-efore, Harold," continued William, "if thou wouldst aid 
 me in realizing this promise, be sure that, if I obtain the kingdom, 
 whatever thou askest thou shalt have. What is thine answer ?" 
 
 " Be it as thou sayest," murmured Harold, taken by surprise, and 
 finding it impossible to answer otherwise than with some vague 
 words of compliance. 
 
 " Then," added William, growing bolder in his proposals, " since 
 thou consentest to serve me, thou must engage to fortify the castle of 
 Dover, to dig there a weU of fresh water, and when the time comes, 
 to deliver up the place to my people. Moreover, to make the bond 
 between us the stronger, thou must give thy sister Thyra in marriage 
 to one of my barons ; and thou must take to wife my daughter 
 Adeliza. On thy departure, thou must leave me, as guarantee for 
 thy promise, one of the two hostages thou hast come to reclaim, and 
 I wiU restore him to thee in England when I come there as king." 
 
 " I acquiesce in your demands," said Harold, eager to get rid of a 
 subject which every moment became more embarrassing, and, with- 
 out pursuing the conversation further, the duke and the earl rode 
 on side by side towards Bayeux. 
 
 But it soon became appareiit that William the Norman was by no 
 means satisfied with the promise he had wrung from his Saxon 
 guest. No sooner had the duke reached Bayeux than he prepared 
 to exact a more solemn and ceremonious pledge ; and, having caused 
 such sacred relics as bones of saints to be brought from the churches, 
 placed in a vessel in the council haU of the castle, and covered with 
 a rich cloth of gold, so as to have the appearance of a table,§he con- 
 voked his barons and prelates on a certain day, and intimated to 
 Harold that his presence would be required. 
 
 At the hour appointed, baron and bishop crowded to the council 
 hall; and William, with a sword in his hand and the coronal of 
 Normandy on his brow, took his seat on the throne, caused two 
 
 E 
 
50 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 small reliquaries to be placed on the cloth, of gold, and intimated, 
 by a gesture, his desire that Harold should approach. 
 
 " Harold," said the Duke, '' I require thee, before this noble 
 assembly, to confirm, by oath, the promises thou hast made to me — 
 namely, to aid me to obtain the kingdom of England after the death 
 of King Edward, to marry my daughter, and to send thy sister, that 
 I may give her to one of my lords." 
 
 " I swear," said Harold, extending his hand over the two reli- 
 quaries, " to execute my promise as far as lies in my power, if I live, 
 and if God aid me." 
 
 " God aid him !" repeated the barons and bishops who stood 
 around. 
 
 The ceremony being thus complete, William made a sign; the 
 cloth of gold was raised ; and before Harold's eyes lay bones and 
 entire skeletons of saints, upon which he had, without suspecting 
 their presence, so solemnly sworn. With a shudder and a change of 
 countenance, which did not escape notice, he turned away from the 
 sight. But the oath which he had sworn appeared to the Normans 
 far too sacred ever to be broken ; and he was allowed to depart for 
 England with his nephew, the son of Sweyn. William accompanied 
 them to the seaside, made them valuable presents, and repaired to 
 Rouen, rejoicing in the thought, that the man most likely to have 
 baffled his aspirations after the crown of England, was bound, by the 
 most solemn oath, to aid him to the utmost. 
 
 Meanwhile, Harold's ships went tilting over the waters; and, on 
 reaching England in a mood the reverse of serene, he hastened to 
 London, presented himself to Edward, and related what had passed 
 between the duke and himself. The saintly king heard the tidings 
 with sadness, and expressed himself in words of woe. 
 
 " Did I not warn you," he said, after a painful silence, " warn 
 you over and over again, that I knew Duke William, and that thy 
 journey would bring evil on thyself and on thy country ?" 
 
 " It is true," said Harold. 
 
 " Heaven grant," continued Edward, " that these evils happen not 
 in my time !" 
 
 Aud^ in truth, there was little danger of Edward living to witness 
 
HAROLD, THE SAXON KING. 51 
 
 the troubles in store for the land of his fathers. The king's days 
 were now " dwindling to the shortest span." Aware that he was 
 hourly sinking, Edward occupied himself more and more with reli- 
 gious devotions, and manifested much anxiety for the completion of 
 the Abbey of "Westminster, which, under his auspices, had risen on 
 Thorney Island in the form of a cross, with a liigh tower in the 
 centre. Intending to consecrate this edifice with great splendour at 
 the Christmas of 1065, Edward summoned all the nobles and clergy 
 to be present. But before the appointed day he became too weak 
 to leave his chamber. 
 
 Edith, the queen, consequently presided at the consecration; and 
 scarcely was the ceremony over, when Harold became aware that 
 his royal brother-in-law could not survive many days. In fact, 
 Edward, stretched on a bed of sickness, and haunted by terrible 
 visions of fiends wandering over England, was looking, almost with 
 impatience, for the hour that was to deliver him from the evils to 
 come. Xor was the patience of the royal saint put to any long or 
 severe trial. 
 
 It was Thursday, the 5th of January, 1066, and the king lay in 
 that chamber of the palace of Westminster long afterwards, when 
 known as " The Painted Chamber," associated with his memory. 
 Eobert Stigand, Archbishop of Canterbury, with many nobles and 
 prelates, stood by his couch ; for Edward was on the eve of going 
 where the weary are at rest ; and nobles and prelates were, doubt- 
 less, anxious to hear his last will. He was, however, entirely ab- 
 sorbed in melancholy forebodings; and, as passages of Scripture 
 denouncing woe to nations occurred involuntarily to his memory, he 
 repeated them with a wild energy which horrified those who sur- 
 rounded his couch. 
 
 " The Lord has bent his bow," exclaimed the dying king, '• the 
 Lord has prepared his sword; he brandishes it like unto a warrior; 
 his wrath is manifested in steel and flame." 
 
 " The saints defend us !" muttered those present, terrified at the 
 king's ejaculations. 
 
 " Tush !" exclaimed Archbishop Stigand, A^ith a sneer of con- 
 tempt ; " why tremble ye at the dreams of a sick old man ?" 
 
 e2 
 
52 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 In sucli a frame of mind, Edward the king breathed liis last ; and 
 it is said that, having been asked whom he wished to succeed to his 
 throne, he named Harold, son of Godwin. But whether or not such 
 was the case, Harold was elected on the day after Edward's funeral, 
 and allowed himself to be crowned at once, in violation of his oath 
 to William the Norman, and in defiance of the claims of Edgar 
 Atheling, grandson of Edmund Ironsides, and heir of the Saxon 
 kings. In order to bind the chiefs of the House of Leofric to his 
 interest, and to render his throne more secure, Harold espoused 
 Aldith, daughter of Earl Algar, and widow of that Griffith whose 
 head the Welsh had sent to him on the point of a spear. 
 
 Nevertheless, the position of Harold was encompassed with 
 danger, and the minds of his subjects were filled with gloom and 
 apprehension. As men reflected on the dying words of Edward the 
 king, they recalled to mind old prophecies which increased their 
 alarm. One of these predicted such calamities as the Saxons had 
 never experienced since they left the Elbe ; and another, which was 
 more to the point, predicted the conquest of England by a people 
 from France. While vague tenrors preyed upon England, the 
 appearance of a comet daunted all hearts, and was regarded, as it 
 seemed to come, as a herald of woe. 
 
 " Thou hast then returned," said a monk of the period j " thou 
 hast returned at length, thou who wilt cause so many mothers to 
 weep ! Many times have I seen thee shine ; but thou lookest to me 
 more terrible now that thou announcest the ruin of my country." 
 
53 
 
 DUKE willia:^ and his difficulties. 
 
 T was early one clay, about the opening of the 
 year 106G, and the ground was hard with frost, 
 when William the Norman left the palace of 
 Eouen, and crossed the Seine to test seme new 
 arrows in the park of Rouvray. While the 
 duke was occupied in stringing that mighty bow 
 which, save himself, no man then living could 
 bend, a messenger from England reached him 
 with tidings of such import, that his colour 
 changed, and his lip quivered with emotion. 
 It was to the effect that Edward the Confessor 
 was dead, and that Harold, son of Godwin, 
 had seized the English crown. 
 
 Giving his bow to an attendant, William 
 walked to the margin of the Seine, stepped into 
 his barge, and, without speaking, indicated by 
 a gesture his wish to return to Eouen. On 
 reaching the castle, he entered the great hall, 
 and paced up and down with a restless and excited step, " often," 
 say the chronicles, " changing posture and attitude, and oft loosening 
 and tightening the strings of his mantle." Such, indeed, seemed his 
 agitation, that no member of his household ventured for some time 
 to ask the cause. 
 
 ^leantime, rumours of the intelligence brought by the messenger 
 from England began to creep about, and a Norman noble, probably 
 William Fitzosborne, the duke's seneschal, and the proudest of 
 Norman magnates, presented himself to learn the actual state of 
 
54? DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 affairs. Fitzosborne, who was Count of BreteuU, and destined one 
 day to higher rank, had such a reputation for hauteur that he was 
 surnamed " The Proud Spirit." Without any of that hesitation ex- 
 hibited by others, he approached William the Norman, and inquired 
 the cause of his emotion. 
 
 " My lord," said he, " pray communicate your news. It is bruited 
 about that the King of England is dead, and that Harold, breaking 
 faith with you, has usurped the crown." 
 
 " They say truly who so report," answered the duke ; " and my 
 grief is touching the death of Edward, and my anger is touching the 
 wrong done me by Harold." 
 
 " Sir," said Fitzosborne, " chafe not at what may be amended. 
 For Edward's death, it is true, there is no remedy ; but there is a 
 remedy for the injury done you by Harold. Yours is the right, and 
 yon have stout warriors. Strike with courage : the work is already 
 hall done." 
 
 Genius, however, is generally patient ; and William was too crafty 
 to spoil his game by indiscreet haste. He went cautiously and 
 gradually to work ; and not till he had twice, in courteous phrase, 
 required Harold to fulfil the treaty so solemnly concluded, did he 
 threaten the Saxon with invasion and punishment. Then, however, 
 he cast hesitation to the winds, and resolved on inflicting a signal 
 chastisement. " I doubt not," he said, " of finding that man a feeble 
 foe, who has proved so faithless a friend." 
 
 In the meantime negotiations were vigorously commenced at 
 Eome, and Harold was charged before the pontifical court with 
 perjury and sacrilege. The Saxon king was summoned to defend 
 himself, and endeavoured to escape by refusing to acknowledge the 
 jurisdiction of the court. But this did not serve his purpose. The 
 conclave assembled at the Lateran, under the inspiration of the 
 famous Hildebrand, decided that William should enter England, and 
 bring that kingdom back to the Holy See ; and a papal bull, directed 
 against Harold and his adherents, was presented to William, along 
 with a consecrated banner, an agnus of gold, and a ring which con- 
 tained a hair of St. Peter, set in a diamond of great price. 
 
 A council of high I^orman nobles was now convened at Piouen ; 
 
DUKE AYILLIAM AND HIS DIFFICULTIES. 55 
 
 and William, addressing his friends, demanded counsel and aid. 
 There was no difference of opinion. All were ready to take part 
 with their duke in the invasion of England, and each man present 
 delighted his soul with visions of rich manors on the Thames or the 
 Mersey. However, they advised him to consult the general feeling 
 of the community; and, accordingly, the merchants and traders of 
 Normandy, as well as the lords and knights, were summoned to 
 confer with the duke. 
 
 LiUebonne was the place appointed for this memorable assembly, 
 and thither came all the wealthiest and most important subjects of 
 Normandy. WilUam, after opening his heart to them, explained 
 his views and craved pecuniary aid, and they then withdrew to 
 deliberate in freedom. The result was not quite satisfactory. The 
 Normans were greatly divided in opinion. Some were anxious 
 to aid the duke with men and money; but others positively ob- 
 jected, declaring that they had already more debts than they could 
 pay. 
 
 It was now that William Fitzosborne did better service than a 
 hundred knights could have rendered to his liege lord. Raising his 
 voice above the tumult, he exerted that eloquence for which the 
 Norman nobles were so remarkable. 
 
 " Why this confusion and discord ?" asked Fitzosborne. " Why 
 dispute thus among ourselves 1 The duke hath need of us, and he 
 is our lord " 
 
 " William is our lord ; but we owe him no aid beyond the seas," 
 interrupted the assembly. 
 
 " It is our duty to make offers of aid, rather than to wait his 
 requests," continued Fitzosborne. "He hath need of us now; and 
 if we fail him, and he gains his end, he will remember it to our dis- 
 advantage. Let us, then, prove by our acts that we love him, and 
 let us entitle ourselves to his gratitude." 
 
 " Doubtless, WiUiam is our lord," cried the Normans ; " but is it 
 not enough for us to pay him his dues ? We owe him no aid beyond 
 the seas. He hath already oppressed us enough with his wars ; let 
 him fail in this new enterprise, and our country is undone." 
 
 " Well," said Fitzosborne, changing his plan, " let us return to the 
 
56 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORSIANS. 
 
 duke ; and I, as knowing tlie position of each man present, wUl take 
 upon me to excuse the limited offers of the assembly." 
 
 " So be it," was the answer ; and the Normans, with Fitzosbome 
 at their head, returned to Duke William's presence. 
 
 " Sire," said Fitzosborne, addressing William, " I do not believe 
 that there are in the whole world people more zealous than yours. 
 You know the aids they have given you — the onerous services they 
 have rendered. Well, sire, they Avill do more. They offer to serve 
 you beyond the seas as they have done here." 
 
 " JSTo, no !" cried the Normans, " we did not charge you with such 
 an answer." 
 
 " For my own part," continued Fitzosborne, " I will, out of love 
 to you, give sixty well-appointed ships, each charged with fifty fight- 
 ing men. Forward, then, and spare us in nothing ! He who hath 
 hitherto only supplied you with two good mounted soldiers will now 
 supply four." 
 
 " We did not say that," cried the Normans, " and it shall not be 
 so. In things within his own country, we will serve the duke, as is 
 due; but we are not bound to assist him to conquer another man's 
 country. Besides, if once we rendered double service, and followed 
 him across the sea, he would make it a right and a custom for the 
 future ; he would burden our children with it." 
 
 " It shall not be — it cannot be !" shouted the assembled Normans 
 vociferously ; and, after forming themselves into groups of ten, twenty, 
 and thirty, they declaimed tumultuously, and then separated. 
 
 William was enraged beyond measure — the blood of Eolfganger 
 boiled in his veins — and the spirit of Robert the Devil flashed from 
 his eyes. Nevertheless, by such an effort as only such a man is 
 capable of, he exercised sufficient command over himself to control 
 his temper, bow his pride, and resort to artifice. Summoning sepa- 
 rately the men with whom in a body he had failed, he requested the 
 support of each as a personal favour. This plan of proceeding 
 proved completely successful. No Nonnan, when alone with the 
 duke, and under the influence of his eloquence and his eye, had the 
 courage to refuse ; and every one of those who had shouted " It can- 
 not be !" consented to give to the full extent of his means. 
 
DUKE WILLIAM AND HIS DIFFICULTIES. 57 
 
 With the papal bull in his hands, and promises of aid from his 
 subjects, carefully registered when they had been made, William 
 summoned the Normans to the consecrated banner, and published 
 his ban in the neighbouring countries, with promises of pay and 
 pillage. Both Normans and foreigners answered his call. From all 
 directions martial adventurers crowded to his standard. The papal 
 bull and the promises of plunder did their work. From France and 
 Flanders ; from Maine, and Aquitaine, and Brittany, and from 
 Aujou, ruled by the ancestors of the Plantagenets — from the Alps, 
 and from the banks of the Ehine — multitudes crowded, with sword 
 and cross-bow, to range themselves under the consecrated banner, 
 and to aid in the conquest and share in the plunder of England. 
 
58 
 
 Tostig's parting speech to his hrother Harold. 
 
 XI. 
 
 TOSTIG, SON OF GODWIN. 
 
 In the spring of 1066, wlien tlie crown of Edward the Confessor 
 was placed on the head of Harold the Saxon ; and when the news 
 of the coronation, carried to Eouen, kindled the ire of WiUiam the 
 Norman, there was living in Flanders, musing over the past, watch- 
 ing events with a keen eye, an English exile, who was Harold's 
 brother and his sworn foe. This exile was Tostig, the third son of 
 Godwin and Githa. 
 
 "When the riot between the townsmen of Dover and the train of 
 Eustace of Boulogne resulted in the dispersion of the family of 
 Godwin, Tostig, then in the pride of early manhood, accompanying 
 his father to Flanders, wedded Judith, daughter of Count Baldwin, 
 
TOSTIG, SOX OF GODWIX. 59 
 
 and sister of Matilda, whom William the Norman, after vanquishing 
 so many obstacles, received as his bride. This high alliance would 
 seem to have rendered Tostig's pride intolerable ; and he returned to 
 England with ridiculous notions of his hereditary claims, and absurd 
 ideas of his personal importance. It was a period, however, when 
 the members of Godwin's house were encouraged to conduct them- 
 selves as if England had existed solely for their advantage ; and 
 when Siward died, leaving one son too young to succeed to his au- 
 thority, Tostig claimed and received the earldom of Northumberland. 
 
 Accustomed to the sway of such chiefs as Uchtred and Siward, 
 the men of the north were not perhaps particularly pleased with 
 their new earl. But whether or not, Tostig soon gave them cause 
 to be discontented. Cruel and tyrannical in his notions, he appeared 
 at York with the tas-gatherer on one hand, and the executioner on 
 the other, and treated the Northumbrians as if he had been a con- 
 queror, and they had been the inhabitants of a conquered province. 
 Brooking no restraint, he violated old customs and laws, levied 
 enormous imposts, and violently put to death those who refused to 
 submit to his exactions. Gamel, the son of Orm, and Ulf, the son 
 of Dolphin, are mentioned as among the thanes of high rank whom, 
 with fell treachery, he allured to the castle of York, and caused to 
 be put to death, under his own roof, and in his own chamber. 
 
 Of all people, the Northumbrians were the least likely to tolerate 
 such tyranny. Meeting at Gamelburn, Dunstan, son of Agelnoth, 
 and Gloricern, son of Eadulf, with two hundred soldiers, raised the 
 standard of insurrection ; and, under the command of their native 
 chiefs, the men of the north sprang to arms to avenge their slaugh- 
 tered countrymen and fight for their ancient liberties. Marching to 
 York, Dunstan and Gloricern prepared to seize the tyrant in his castle. 
 
 Tostig was in the capital of the north, when he suddenly became 
 aware that armed men were approaching with hostile intent. Un- 
 prepared for resistance, and shrinking from the peril he had defied, 
 the son of Godwin resolved to fly ; and, escaping with some of the 
 chief ministers of his violence and injustice, he left his officers and 
 servants to contend with the men whom he had exasperated. The 
 Northumbrians, taking possession of York, seized the arsenal and 
 treasury, and, assembling a council, formally dej^osed Tostig, and 
 
60 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 elected !Morkar, one of the sons of Algar, and one of the grandsons 
 of Leofric and Godiva, in Ms stead. 
 
 When news of the tumult in Northumberland, and of the expul- 
 sion of Tostig, reached the Confessor's court, Harold mustered an 
 army and marched northward to deal with the insurgents. This, 
 however, he soon found would be no easy operation. The North- 
 umbrians met him at Oxford, and in such a way as convinced him 
 of the expediency of listening to their complaints. A conference 
 was consequently held, and Harold endeavoured to exculpate his 
 brother and to soften the Northumbrians. 
 
 " If," said Harold, " you will receive Tostig again as your earl, I 
 promise that he will govern with equity, and according to law." 
 
 "No!" cried the Northumbrians with one voice, and with that 
 Danish burr which their descendants have inherited ; we were born 
 free ; we were brought up free ; and a haughty ruler we cannot 
 abide. We have been taught by our ancestors to live free or to die. 
 We have said. Bear thou our answer to Edward the king." 
 
 Harold could not dispute the justice of the complaints of the 
 Northumbrians. Without delay he went to explain their grievances 
 to the king ; and Edward sent him back to give the royal sanction 
 to Tostig's deposition, and to the election of Morkar, the grandson of 
 Leofric. 
 
 Henceforth, it was not so much against the Northumbrians as 
 against Harold that Tostig's wrath burned fiercely ; and when the 
 brothers soon after met at Windsor, at Edward's board, a scene was 
 enacted which made the blood of the saintly king run cold. Harold, 
 it appears, pledged Edward in a cup of wine ; and Tostig, exclaim- 
 ing that such familiarity with the king was unseemly, pulled Harold 
 by the hair of his head. A scufiie immediately ensued, and but for 
 the presence of the king would have ended in bloodshed. 
 
 " It is notorious," said Edward, raising his hands in holy horror, 
 "that all the sons of Godwin are so transcend ently wicked, that if 
 they see any house which they covet, they will murder the owner in 
 the night-time, and destroy his children, to get possession. Verily, 
 they will one day destroy each other." 
 
 After this outrageous scene at Windsor, Harold and Tostig were 
 at deadly feud ; and when Harold, somewhat later, was on his way 
 
TOSTIG, SON OF GODWIN. 61 
 
 to Hereford witli the king, Tostig, going tliither and entering liis 
 brother's house, attacked the servants, who were preparing a great 
 feast. Killing the unoffending men, and severing the heads and 
 hewing the limbs from the bodies, he put the corpses into the wine- 
 casks, and then, riding forth as if to meet the king and his party, 
 he hinted at the brutal enormity he had perpetrated. 
 
 " Harold," he said, as he turned away, " you wUl find the meat 
 for your feast well powdered." 
 
 And, as Tostig spoke these words, the brothers parted, not to meet 
 again till that day when they met face to face as foes, each with 
 a weapon in his hand and an army at his back. 
 
 After the massacre at Hereford, Tostig, with revenge gnawing at 
 his heart, and threats on his lips, saUed from England and repaired 
 to the court of Flanders. For a time he remained brooding in 
 silence over his wrongs, and watching his opportunity. No sooner, 
 however, did he receive intelligence of Edward's death and Harold's 
 coronation, than he sprang to action, and cried that the time for 
 vengeance had arrived. Mounting in haste, he made his way without 
 delay to Normandy, and urged Duke William, his brother-in-law, to 
 lose no time in hurling Harold from the throne. 
 
 "Be not so impatient, brave Tostig," said William. 
 
 " Why," asked Tostig, excitedly, " should a perjurer be allowed to 
 reign in peace ? Have not I more credit and power in England 1 
 Yea, and I can assure possession of the country to any one who will 
 unite with me to make the conquest." 
 
 But WUliam was not the man to be imposed upon by vain boasts ; 
 and Tostig was somewhat mortified at the reception with which his 
 proposals were met. Willing, however, to test the banished Saxon's 
 influence, the duke furnished him with some ships to make a descent. 
 But Tostig, instead of sailing for England, sailed to the Baltic 
 trusting to secure the aid of his uncle, Sweyn, King of Denmark. 
 This attempt, however, failed. Sweyn gave Tostig a harsh refusal ; 
 and the nephew, leaving his uncle in discontent, but stdl breathing 
 threats of revenge against his brother, made for Norway, where a king 
 reigned more likely than Sweyn to take part in a bold adventure, 
 and better qualified to conduct a bold adventure to a triumphant 
 conclusion. 
 
Hardrada's deliverance 
 
 eastern dungeon. 
 
 XII. 
 
 HAROLD HAEDRADA. 
 
 When Tostig's ships came to anchor, and when Tostig, landing at 
 Drontheim, presented himself at the rude palace of the old kings of 
 Norway, the crown of that northern realm was worn by the last of 
 those heroes who called the ocean their home and the tempest their 
 servant. This was Harold Hardrada, a warrior of high renown, who 
 had fought countless battles on the sea as well as on the land, who 
 had probably seen more of the world than any man then living, and 
 who, in every respect, looked worthy of the fame he had won. His 
 height exceeded seven feet ; and, though the hands and feet appeared 
 somewhat large, the whole person was fairly proportioned. He had 
 a short beard, a long moustache, and fair hair falling over his shoul- 
 
HAROLD HARDRADA. 63 
 
 ders. His aspect was, on the whole, pleasing, and would always 
 have been so but for the circumstance of one eyebrow being some- 
 what higher than the other, and giving a sinister expression to his 
 face when he frowned. 
 
 Hardrada was son of Sigurd and brother of Olaf — that King of 
 Norway who established Christianity in his kingdom by the strong 
 hand. Hardrada, however, appears to have been more of a sea-king 
 than a saint. 
 
 At an early age, Hardrada fought by the side of Olaf in the san- 
 guinary battle of Stiklestad. The elder brother fell, but the younger 
 escaped, after his body had been covered with wounds, and his blood 
 freely poured out. Taking to the forest, he was received into the 
 cottage of a woodman, and there lay concealed till his wounds were 
 healed and his spirits revived. 
 
 Restored to health and hope, Hardrada left his lurking-place, and 
 turned his face eastward. Faring forth with a brave band of com- 
 rades on a career of adventure, he set font, after many romantic 
 wanderings, on the banks of the Bosphorus, and, halting with his 
 comrades at Constantinople, took service, as a varing, in the body- 
 guard then maintained by the Emperor of the East. 
 
 The varings were of high account at the Imperial Court. Gene- 
 rally Danes, Swedes, or Germans, they exhibited the courage charac- 
 teristic of ISTorthmen, and wore their hair long, after the fashion of 
 their native countries. Armed with huge axes, which they were in 
 the habit of carrying on their shoulders, they stood as guards at the 
 door of the emperors chamber, and paraded his capital, imposing 
 respect and awe. 
 
 Among the varings, Hardrada, though the brother of a king, did 
 not disdain to enrol himself and his comrades. But his wild and 
 free spirit could ill brook the necessaiy subordination, and, after 
 some quarrel with a Greek commander, he repaired to Africa. Fight- 
 ing there with the Saracens, and despoiling them of gold and jewels, 
 he became celebrated and rich. Turning to Sicily, he increased his 
 fame and his wealth ; and then, as if to consecrate his deeds of vio- 
 lence, he made an armed pilgrimage to Jerusalem, not yet visited by 
 Peter the Hermit ; and, sweeping Moslem and marauder from his 
 path, ascended Mount Calvary, and knelt at the Holy Sepulchre. 
 
64 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOmiANS. 
 
 From Jerusalem Hardracla returned to Constantinople, and there 
 became enamoured of Maria, a niece of the Empress Zoe, while he 
 himself became dear to the heart of the empress. The predicament 
 was perplexing, and might have baffled the ingenuity of another 
 man. But Hardrada was equal to the occasion, and freed himself by 
 a romantic elopement from the snares by which he was surrounded. 
 
 It appears that Olaf, the brother of Hardrada, though deemed 
 worthy of canonization, had been somewhat general in his attentions 
 to the fair sex; and, among other consequences of his amours, was 
 an illegitimate son, named Magnus. In the absence of Hardrada, 
 Magnus contrived to win the sovereignty of Norway from the heir 
 of Canute ; and no sooner did Hardrada hear of his nephew's eleva- 
 tion than he determined to assert his own superior claim. 
 
 But Hardrada had scarcely intimated his intention of returning 
 to Norway, when he found there was a lioness in the way. Eager 
 to detain the varing who had won her heart, the empress caused 
 him to be charged with some irregularity, and imprisoned. Har- 
 drada was accordingly incarcerated. But a Greek lady, incited by a 
 dream, resolved to attempt his deliverance, and lowered ropes from 
 the roof of a tower to the dungeon in which he lay. Escaping 
 in this way, Hardrada hastily roused his varings, proceeded to the 
 palace of j\Iaria, niece of the empress, bore off the princess in his 
 strong arms to the quay, embarked with her in his galley, and gave 
 his sails to the wind. 
 
 At length, Hardrada, with the bride and the wealth he had won, 
 set his foot on the shores of Norway, and, raising an army, made an 
 effort to grasp the crown. Magnus, however, proved a formidable 
 adversary; and Hardrada, perceiving the difficulty of a complete 
 triumph, made a compromise, and agreed to share the kingdom with 
 his nephew. 
 
 On the death of Magnus, however, Hardrada became king of all 
 Norway. Such he was, and highly considered among European 
 sovereigns on account of his experience, his prowess, and his wealth, 
 when Tostig, with the proposals which had been coldly treated in 
 Normandy and scornfully repelled in Denmark, reached Drontheim, 
 appeared at the log palace, and approached him with honeyed words. 
 " The world knows well," said the banished son of Godwin, " that 
 
HAROLD HARDRADA. 6-3 
 
 there lives no warrior worthy to be compai-ecl to thee. Thou hast 
 only to will it, and England will be thine." 
 
 . Hardrada was neither insensible to such flattery, nor proof against 
 such a temptation. Allowing himself to be persuaded, he promised 
 to put to sea whenever the ice should melt and the ocean become 
 navigable, and commenced preparations for the grand expedition. 
 
 Tostig, however, was much too impatient to await the convenience 
 of his IS'orwegian ally. "With his own fleet he set out to prepare 
 the way, and, with a band of men recruited in Flanders, Holland, 
 and Friesland, he made a descent on the northern coast of England. 
 But the inhabitants, roused at the news of villages pillaged, and 
 granges burned, rose in such numbers that he was compelled to 
 niiike for Scotland, and, anchoring off the Orkney Islands, he waited 
 till the winds should blow the Norwegian ships to his aid. 
 
 Hardrada, meanwhile, fitted out several hundred ships of war; 
 and the jSTorwegians, encamped on their coast, waited the signal to 
 embark. Their enthusiasm was not excessive. Vague presentiments 
 of evil pervaded their ranks, and the sleep of many of the warriors 
 was broken by ill-omened visions. One dreamed that, the fleet having 
 put to sea, flocks of vultures perched on the masts and sails ; and that 
 a woman, sword in hand, sitting on a rock, cried to the birds with 
 a loud voice, " Go without fear; you shall have enough to eat and 
 to choose from, for I go with them." Another dreamed that he saw 
 his comrades land in England, and encounter an English army, in 
 front of which was a woman of gigantic stature, riding on a wolf, 
 and giving it human bodies to devour. 
 
 The imaginations of the JN'orwegian warriors were disagreeably 
 influenced by these presages ; and more threatening than either of 
 the dreams appeared an incident that occurred as the Norwegian 
 king, with his son Olaf, and his war-steed black as a raven, and his 
 banner, " The Eavager of the World," embarked. As Hardrada set 
 foot in the royal barge, the weight of his body pressed the boat so 
 much down in the water, as to cause general apprehension. But, 
 undismayed, Hardrada set sail, touched at the Orcades, and joined 
 his fleet with that of Tostig, who was all impatience for carnage 
 and revenge. 
 
 F 
 
66 
 
 '■'"^.^r^- 
 
 Door of Westminster Abbey. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 THE ALARM IN ENGLAND. 
 
 It was the summer of 1066, and William the Norman was gathering 
 continental warriors to his standard, and Harold Hardrada was 
 manning his lofty war-ships with grim Norwegians, and Harold the 
 Saxon king was applying his energies with diligence and care to the 
 difficulties of his position, when the people of England were seized 
 with alarm at the prospect of an invasion. 
 
 From the day of Harold's coronation at Westminster, he devoted 
 himself ably and vigorously to his regal duties. Never, indeed, had 
 English monarch shown himself more considerate for the people's 
 feelings, or more ardent for their welfare. The new reign was 
 marked by a complete return to the national customs, by a dimi- 
 
THE ALARM IN ENGLAND. 67 
 
 nution of the taxes previously levied, and by a more decided im- 
 partiality in the administration of justice. By all means in his 
 power Harold endeavoured to render his reign popular. " Ever active 
 for the good of his countrj'-," says the chronicler, " he spared himself 
 no fatigue by land or by sea." 
 
 Notwithstandmg his vigour and energy, clouds soon began to 
 gather around the Saxon king. In the midst of his efforts to keep 
 together a decaying empire, Harold was disagreeably interrupted by 
 the arrival of a messenger from Duke WilKam to claim fulfilment 
 of the promise made at Baj-eux. 
 
 " William Duke of Normandy," said the messenger, " reminds thee 
 of the oath which thou didst swear to him upon good and holy relics." 
 
 " It is true that I swore such an oath to Duke William," replied 
 Harold, " but I swore it under compulsion. I promised that which 
 did not belong to me, and which I could not perform. My royalty 
 is not mine, nor can I divest myself of it without consent of the 
 country. As for my sister Thyra, whom the duke claims, to marry 
 her to one of the chiefs, she died this year. Would he have me 
 send her body?" 
 
 The Norman with this answer departed, and hastened to Duke 
 Wniiam. But, with as little delay as possible, he was sent back, 
 and appeared at Westminster with a new message, couched in terms 
 of gentle remonstrance. 
 
 " Duke AYilliam," said the messenger, " entreats you, if you will 
 not abide by all the conditions, at least to execute one of them, and 
 take, as wife, his daughter Adeliza, whom you promised to marry." 
 
 " I could not marry," said Harold, " without the country's consent ; 
 and besides," he added, " it is now impossible for me to wed the 
 daughter of Duke William, since I have already wedded another 
 woman." 
 
 " Is this thine answer ?" asked the Norman. 
 
 " It is," replied Harold. 
 
 " Then," said the Norman, " Duke William swears that, witliin 
 the year, he will come and demand the whole of his debt, and pur- 
 sue ygu, as perjurer, to the very places where you think you have 
 the surest and firmest footing." 
 
68 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Eumours of WilKam's projects crept about England, and the 
 country was soon in serious apprehension. The appearance of tlie 
 comet, coming, it was believed, as a harbinger of woe, added to the 
 general alarm ; and while thousands nightly went out to gaze at 
 " the blazing star," merchant and pilgrim carried to castle and 
 cottage intelligence of the formidable preparations raaldng by Duke 
 William for the subjugation of England. 
 
 In the midst of the alarm which prevailed, Harold at first dis- 
 played a vigUance worthy of the crisis. All summer, and far into 
 autumn, he remained steadily at his post, guarding the southern 
 coast. Even when news of Tostig's ravages came, he did not leave 
 London, but left the chastisement of his brother to the Northum- 
 brians and their earl. 
 
 But events baffled Harold's plans. When summer passed and 
 autumn came without an invasion, men, wise in their own conceit, 
 began to ridicule the idea of the peril being imminent; and Harold, 
 not uninfluenced by the general impression that William would not 
 attempt to land before winter, allowed his army to disband, and the 
 fleet to run short of provisions. 
 
 Such was the position of afi"airs, when news reached London that 
 Hardrada, in company with Tostig, had landed in the North, defeated 
 the Northumbrians in a sharp battle, and taken measures for forcing 
 York to yield. 
 
 No sooner did Harold become aware of the new danger than he 
 roused himself to action. Convincing himself, perhaps reluctantly, 
 that the peril which he left behind was not extreme, the Saxon king 
 hastily drew his men together, and prepared to crush the host of 
 grim Norwegians. Turning his face northward, Harold pushed on, 
 by forced marches, to York, and succeeded in reaching the capital of 
 the North on the very evening before Hardrada and Tostig antici- 
 pated placing on its walls " The Eavager of the World." 
 
69 
 
 The Isior-wegian Champion at Stamford iiridge. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 THE BATTLE OF STAMFORD BRIDGE. 
 
 The moutli of September, lOGG, was drawing towards its close, and 
 £0 far all liad prospered witli Tostig and liis Norwegian ally. After 
 burning Scarborough, they had sailed up the Humber, advanced 
 towards York, fought a tough battle, and placed themselves in such 
 
70 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 a position before the capital of the J^orth, that the citizens recognised 
 the necessity of yielding. Indeed, they had agreed to open the gates 
 on the morning of the 25th, and on that morning Tostig and Har- 
 drada — who had broken up their lines, and encamped on the river 
 Derwent, at Stamford Bridge, seven miles from York — were to 
 march in triumph into the city, and hold a grand council to regulate 
 the affairs of the province. 
 
 It was a Monday; and early in the morning, Hai'drada and Tostig, 
 leaving part of their army encamped on the other side of the Der- 
 went, rode side by side towards York, accompanied by some thou- 
 sands of their soldiers. The weather being warm — for it was " one 
 of those autumnal days in which the sun is still in all its vigour' — 
 and no resistance being anticipated, the Norwegians laid aside their 
 coats of mail, and dispensed with all defensive armour except hel- 
 mets and bucklers. When approaching York, however, they suddenly 
 perceived clouds of dust, and, through the clouds, steel glittering in 
 the sun. 
 
 " Who are these men V asked Hardrada, in surprise. 
 
 '' They must be Northumbrians," answered Tostig, " coming either 
 to crave friendship or to ask pardon." 
 
 The Norwegians, however, had not advanced many paces, when 
 Tostig was disagreeably vmdeceived. The approaching mass grew 
 more distinct, and the sun revealed an army in battle order. 
 
 " It is King Harold," said Tostig, scarce mustering voice sufficient 
 to speak the words. 
 
 "Kide!" said Hardrada, turning to three of his horsemen — "ride! 
 and, with all haste, bring our warriors from the camp." 
 
 The horsemen darted off with the speed of the wind ; and Har- 
 drada, unfurling " The Eavager of the World," on the folds of which 
 a vast raven was depicted, ranged his men round the banner in a 
 long, narrow line, curved at the extremities. Pressing against each 
 other, with their spears planted in the ground, and the points turned 
 against the foe, the Norwegians stood ready for conflict ; and their 
 king, mounted on his coal-black steed, his helmet glittering with 
 gold, rode along the line, singing, as was his wont on such occasions, 
 extempore verses, to excite the valour of his men. 
 
THE BATTLE OF STAMFOED BRIDGE. 71 
 
 "Let us fight," he sang, " though without our cuirasses; let us 
 forward to the edge of bkie steel. Our helmets shine in the sun. 
 For brave men that is enough." 
 
 While Hardrada thus sang, about twenty mounted warriors — 
 horses and riders clad in steel — dashed out from the Saxon ranks. 
 Approaching the Norwegian lines, they suddenly halted, and inti- 
 mated their wish to hold a parley. 
 
 " Where," cried one of them, " is Tostig, the son of Godwin f 
 
 " Here," answered Tostig, spurring forward his steed. 
 
 " If thou art Tostig," said the Saxon, " thy brother greets thee by 
 me, and offers thee peace, with his friendship, and thine ancient 
 honours." 
 
 '•' These are fine words," said Tostig, bitterly ; " but if I accept 
 your offers, what shall be given to the noble King Hardrada, son of 
 Sigurd, my faithful ally V 
 
 " He," replied the Saxon, " shall have seven feet of English land, 
 or a little more, for his height exceeds that of other men," 
 
 " Then," said Tostig, " go back and say to my brother that he may 
 prepare to fight ; for none but liars will ever say that the son of 
 Godwin deserted the son of Sigurd." 
 
 The parley ended; and the Saxon warriors rode back to their 
 host. The iSTorwegians and Saxons then closed in the shock of war, 
 and the conflict immediately became fierce and sanguinary. But, 
 from the first, the invaders had the worst of the encounter. With 
 their huge battle-axes, wielded with both hands, the Saxons rushed 
 furiously on their foes, cleaving down all opposition, and breaking 
 the first rank of the Norwegians. Hardrada, pierced with an arrow, 
 fell in the heat of the strife ; and, as his gigantic form disappeared 
 from the black steed, the banner he had brought from Norway was 
 trampled in the dust and captured by the foe. 
 
 No sooner did Hardrada fall than Tostig took command of the 
 Norwegians, and prepared to continue the strife. Harold, however, 
 paused in his assault, and sent once more to ofier peace. But the 
 Norwegians would not listen to terms. 
 
 " We will rather die," said they, " than owe our lives to those who 
 have killed our kiuo." 
 
72 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 On receiving this answer, the Saxon king led on liis men to the 
 attack, and fearful was the carnage that ensued. In vain did bands 
 of the Norwegians, roused in their camp by Hardrada's riders, hurry 
 lip to the aid of their fast-falling comrades. Fatigued with their 
 liasty march under a burning sun, they fell in heaps before the axes 
 of their foes. Ere long, the struggle ceased : Tostig lay dead on the 
 ground, and around him the Norwegian chiefs who had followed 
 their king to minister to his vengeance. 
 
 But, meanwhile, the Norwegians who had not passed the Derwent 
 drew together to make a desperate defence; and the Saxons ad- 
 vanced to consummate their victory. This, however, proved no 
 easy achievement. In fact, the strength and resolution of one man 
 long kept the Saxons at bay. 
 
 At that time the Derwent was crossed by a wooden bridge. Long 
 and furiously was this bridge contested ; and when the Norwegians, 
 yielding to overwhelming press of numbers, retreated, one warrior, 
 of tall stature and mighty strength, remained to defy, single-handed, 
 the might of his foes. Armed with a battle-axe, which few men 
 could have wielded, he struck down every one who ventured within 
 his reach ; and, when forty men had fallen by his hand, the boldest 
 Saxons recoiled in dismay from a foe who appeared armed witli 
 supernatural power. 
 
 But at length the Norwegian was taken unawares. Perceiving 
 the certainty of death in attempting an encounter hand to hand, one 
 of the Saxons seized a long spear, leaped into a boat, and floated 
 quietly under the bridge. Availing himself of a favourable ojipor- 
 tunity, the Saxon dexterously thrust his spear through the planks 
 right into the Norwegian's body; and the huge champion, without 
 even seeing his new adversary, fell mortally wounded. Harold then 
 became master of the bridge, and led his soldiers to the Norwegian 
 camp. 
 
 Nothing that could be called resistance was now attempted. The 
 Norwegians had given way to despair ; and when Harold, for the 
 third time, sent to offer peace, the proposal was gladly accepted. 
 Accordingly, a treaty was hastily concluded ; and after Olaf, son of 
 Hardrada, had sworn friendship to the Saxon king, the Norwegians 
 
THE BATTLE OF STAMFORD BRIDGE. 
 
 73 
 
 took to their ships, and, with sad hearts, set sail for their northei'ii 
 liomes. 
 
 The victory at Stamford Bridge placed much booty, and a con- 
 siderable quantity of gold, in the hands of the Saxons. All this 
 Harold, as king, claimed as his own ; and deep was the discontent 
 which the avarice, or economy, of the son of Godwin, on this occa- 
 sion, created in the ranks of the victorious army. Many of the 
 Anglo-Saxon chiefs took mortal offence, and ridiculed the idea of 
 serving a king who had not sufficient generosity to share the spoil 
 of a vanquished enemy with those by whom the enemy had been 
 vanquished. 
 
 The discontent of the Anglo-Saxons was at its height, when 
 Harold suddenly became aware that he was in no position to lose 
 friends and adherents. The breezes in w^hich his banners waved at 
 Stamford Bridge liad filled the sails, and impelled to the English 
 shores, the fleet of an invader more formidable than the adventurous 
 Hardrada. While Harold the Saxon was wrangling with his earls 
 and thanes in the city of York, William the ISTorman had landed 
 with his counts and vavasors, on the coast of Sussex. 
 
 Alarm now appeared on the fiice of every Saxon, and confusion 
 added to the discontent that pervaded Harold's ranks. But no time 
 was to be lost. Without even taking time to bury the slain, the 
 Saxon king turned his face southward. For many years after, the 
 bones of the slaughtered Norwegians whitened the scene of the 
 battle of Stamford Bridge; and, so late as the nineteenth century, 
 swords, heads of halberds, and horseshoes, have often been turned 
 up, and excited interest, as memorials of the day on which the great 
 Hardrada was overthrown, and the " Eavager of the World'' trampled 
 in the dust. 
 
 Library^ 
 
 9s c-Jif(jm\»-..^ 
 
74 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 XV. 
 
 PHILTP OF FRANCE. 
 
 While Duke William was preparing for tlie invasion of England, 
 and the nobles of Xormandy were mustering their fighting men, and 
 adventurous warriors were flocking from all quarters, with eager 
 anticipation, to take part in the daring enterprise, he bethought him 
 of repairing to the court of France, with the object of enlisting the 
 sympathies, and securing the support, of the French king, 
 
 Philip, the son of Henry, and great-grandson of Hugh Capet, was 
 then a boy of fourteen, and reigning under the guardianship of 
 Baldwin, Count of Flanders. He was residing at St. Germain when 
 William appeared to ask his aid and salute him with a degree of 
 feudal deference seldom shown by the Dukes of Kormandy to the 
 Capetiau kings. 
 
 " You are my seigneur," said William, addressing the young king ; 
 " and if it please you to aid me, and I, by God's grace, obtain my 
 rights over England, I promise to do you homage for it, as though I 
 held it from you." 
 
 " Well," answered Philip, " I will assemble my council of barons ; 
 for, without their advice, I cannot decide an aflair so important." 
 
 A council was accordingly called, and the expediency of assisting 
 William was discussed ; but the French barons, one and all, pro- 
 nounced strongly against rendering any aid. 
 
 " You know," said they to the king, " how ill the Normans ob^ 
 you now." 
 
 "True," said Philip. 
 
 "It will be worse if they possess England," said the barons. 
 " Besides, it would cost us a great deal to assist Duke William ; and, 
 if he fail in his enterprise, the English will be our enemies for ever." 
 
PHILIP OF FKANCE. 
 
 75 
 
 Tlio council, having determined on giving William no aid, rose ; 
 and Pliilip, repairing to the JSTorman duke, communicated the decision. 
 
 " My barons," said he, " are of opinion that they ought not, in any 
 way, to aid you in the conquest of England." 
 
 "Are they?" exclaimed William, much disappointed. "Then, by 
 the splendour of God ! I will show them that I can conquer England 
 without their help." 
 
 " But," asked the boy-king, with a sneer, " vv'ho will take care of 
 your duchy while you are grasping at a crown ? " 
 
 "My duchy," answered William, fiercely, "shall not trouble my 
 neighbours. I have a spouse of prudence, who can take charge of 
 my duchy, and could take charge of much more, if it were necessary." 
 
 And King Philip parted with his great subject, whom he was 
 never henceforth to think of but as a formidable foe. 
 
76 
 
 The good ship Moira, William of Normandy, owner 
 
 XVI. 
 
 THE NORMAN ARMAMENT. 
 
 All througli the summer of 1066, wliile England was ringing with 
 alarm, Normandy was resounding with preparations j armourers 
 were busy forging weapons and coats of mail j shipwrights were 
 occupied with the construction of vessels ; and men were continually 
 employed carrying arms from workshop to port. Everything, mean- 
 time, seemed to favour William's project of conquest ; and he fixed 
 on a day about the middle of August as the time for his departure. 
 
 The mouth of the Dive was appointed as the rendezvous ; and 
 there, in good time, William's mighty armament was ready for the 
 enterprise. Sixty thousand men came to the Norman standard ; 
 
THE XOEilAN ARMAMENT. 77 
 
 and tlie fleet consisted of four hundred ships and a thousand other 
 vessels, great and small. For a month, however, the winds, proving 
 adverse, detained the fleet in port. An Anglo-Saxon was caught 
 making observations, taken into custody, and carried before William. 
 
 " You are a spy," said the duke. 
 
 The man, with William's terrible eye upon him, could not muster 
 courage to deny the charge. 
 
 " Nevertheless," said the duke, " you shall see everything ; though 
 Harold need not trouble himself to ascertain my force ; for he shall 
 both see and feel it, ere the year has run its course." 
 
 At length a southern breeze sprang up, and the Normans set sail. 
 But they soon found the impossibility of proceeding on their voyage. 
 Carried as far as the roadstead of St. Valery, at the mouth of the 
 Somme, they were under the necessity of landing and submitting to 
 a further delay. 
 
 William's patience was now severely tried. The weather was 
 stormy ; rain fell in torrents ; some ships, shattered by the tempest, 
 sank with their crews ; and the men began to lose heart. The fearful 
 difficulties that beset the enterprise forced themselves on every mind ; 
 and while conversing wiih each other under their tents, dripping 
 with water, they talked of the ships that had been lost, and exagge- 
 rated the number of the bodies cast ashore. 
 
 " The man is mad who thus seeks to seize the laud of another,' 
 said some of the soldiers. 
 
 " And, doubtless," suggested others, " God is offended with such 
 designs, and proves it by refusing us a favourable wind." 
 
 Not unaware that such conversations were held, William became 
 uneasy and restless. He plied the men with strong drink to stimulate 
 their courage, and was frequently observed to enter the church of St. 
 Valery, to remain long in prayer, and to gaze anxiously, as he left 
 the building, at the weathercock that ornamented the belfry. 
 
 On Tuesday, the 26th of September, while William was occupied 
 with somewhat sad thoughts, a brilliant idea crossed his brain, and 
 filled his heart with hope. Either prompted by sincere faith, or by 
 a desire to dissipate the gloom that hung over his mighty host, he 
 caused a cofi"er containing the bones of St. Valery to be taken from 
 the church and solemnly carried through the camp. The duke made 
 
78 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 rich offerings ; every soldier gave his mite ; and the adventurers in 
 a body joined in prayer. This ceremony had the effect of calming 
 superstitious fears ; and when next morning dawned, it seemed as if 
 their prayers had been answered and a miracle wrought ; for the 
 weather was fine, and the wind was favourable. 
 
 No time was now lost. At daybreak the sleepers were roused 
 from their repose ; orders for immediate embarcation were given ; 
 the soldiers, cheered by the change of weather, joyfully hastened on 
 board ; and the mariners made ready to haul up their anchors and 
 spread their sails. 
 
 William's own ship — a gift of Matilda the duchess — was named 
 the Moira, commanded by a skipper of skill, known as Stephen, the 
 son of Gerard, and ornamented by a figure-head representing William 
 Kufus, then a little boy, with a bent bow in his hands. On the sails 
 of divers colours were painted the arms of Normandy, and at the 
 masthead flew the consecrated banner sent to William by the pope. 
 Large lanterns, fixed on poles, were intended to serve as a rallying- 
 poiut for the whole fleet. 
 
 After much bustle and exertion, everything was in readiness for 
 sailing ; and, William having embarked, the Moira, followed by four- 
 teen hundred vessels, great and small, made for the open sea, while 
 a cheer rose from sixty thousand tongues. The voyage was, on the 
 whole, prosperous. But the Moira, sailing much more swiftly than 
 the other ships, outstripped them during the day, and at night left 
 them far behind. In the morning William found to his dismay that 
 his friends were not to be seen. 
 
 " Go to the masthead," said the duke, addressing Stephen ; and 
 the skipper obeyed. 
 
 " I see only sky and sea," said the skipper. 
 
 " Never mind," said William, affecting a gay countenance ; " cast 
 anchor till they come in sight." 
 
 At the same time, to keep away fear and anxiety, he ordered a 
 copious repast, with spiced wines ; and, this having been disposed of, 
 he caused the skipper again to go aloft. 
 
 "What do you see now ?" asked William. 
 
 " Four vessels," answered the skipper. 
 
 " Look again," said William. 
 
THE NORMAN ARMAMENT. 79 
 
 "All !" cried the skipper, "I see a forest of masta and sails." 
 
 "Our fleet!" exclaimed William, joyfully ; and ere long, the 
 fourteen hundred vessels having come up, the Moira was once more 
 at their head, and gallantly leading the way to the coast of Sussex. 
 
 On that September day, the Norman fleet, without encountering 
 the slightest opposition, sailed into the Bay of Pevensey, and cast 
 anchor hard by that ancient castle, whose foundations were then 
 washed by the waves, though the sea is now a mile distant from its 
 stately ruins. The process of disembarking the troops was imme- 
 diately commenced. First landed the archers, clad in short coats, 
 with their bows in their hands ; then the horsemen, in steel helmets 
 and coats of mail, with long lances and double-edged swords ; and 
 then the armourers, smiths, carpenters, and pioneers. Everything 
 was done in perfect order, and with a degree of precision which must 
 have pleased William's eye. 
 
 The duke was the last to land ; and, as he did so, a slight acci- 
 dent occurred, which some were inclined to regard as a presage of 
 evil, but to which, with his wonted tact, he contrived to give an in- 
 terpretation highly favourable to the fortunes of their enterprise. 
 When his foot touched the shore, he slipped and fell on his face, and 
 a murmur instantly arose. 
 
 " God preserve us !" exclaimed some in horror. 
 
 " This is a bad sign," cried others. 
 
 " Lords, what is it you say ?" exclaimed William, rising with a 
 spring. " Why are you amazed 1 See you not that I have taken 
 seizin of this land with my hands, and all that it contains is our own ?" 
 
 It is said that after landing, William ordered the ships forming 
 his fleet to be burned, that the Normans, seeing all hope of retreat 
 cut ofi', might be induced to fight the more desperately; and then he 
 marched towards Hastings. 
 
 On a broad plain, between Pevensey and Hastings, the Normans 
 pitched their camp. Having erected two wooden castles, brought 
 with them to serve as receptacles for provisions during the campaign, 
 or as places of refuge in case of disaster, they sent out bodies of 
 troops to overrun the neighbourhood. The inhabitants, terrified at 
 the approach of foes whom they were utterly unprepared to meet, 
 fled from their dwellings to the churches; and the country seemed 
 
80 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 to lie so open, that many of the invaders indulged in the anticipation 
 of taking possession without resistance. 
 
 Far othervN'ise, however, was it ordered. In f;ict, the Anglo- 
 Saxons were rising from the Thames to the Tweed; and Wniiam 
 soon received warning from one of the Normans settled in England 
 not to trust to appearances. 
 
 " Be upon your guard," was the message, " for in four days the 
 son of Godwin will be at the head of a hundred thousand men." 
 
 The warning was well meant, but somewhat unnecessary. William 
 was not the man to be taken by surprise, as Hardrada had been. 
 His camp was carefully guarded ; and his outposts, extending to a 
 great distance, kept watch night and day with unceasing vigilance. 
 At length, on the morning of Friday, the 13th of October, horsemen 
 galloped into the camp in such haste, that they had scarcely breath 
 sufficient to communicate their intelligence. 
 
 " With what tidings come you ?" asked the Normans eagerly. 
 
 " With tidings," answered the horsemen, " that the Saxon king is 
 advancing furiously." 
 
 Harcld has news ol' Vriiliam s landing. 
 
XVII. 
 
 HAROLD 'S HOST. 
 
 S Harold, after liis victory over 
 the Norwegians, left York to has- 
 ten to London, he summoned the 
 men of the provinces through 
 which he passed to arm in defence 
 •i['-i- of their country. The Anglo-Saxons 
 
 obeyed the summons with the utmost possible cele- 
 rity, and bands of armed men were soon on their 
 way to the capital. But Harold's conduct ruined 
 all. With a rashness of which even Tostig Avould 
 hardly, under such circumstances, have been guilty, 
 he resolved to venture on a battle before the great 
 Anglo-Saxon nobles and their fighting-men came up ; 
 and, accompanied by his brothers, Gurth and Leof- 
 wine, he left the capital at the head of an army com- 
 posed mainly of Kentishmen and Londoners, utterly 
 inferior both in numbers and discipline to the force arrayed under 
 the banner of his potent foe. 
 
 Elate with the success of his arms at Stamford Bridge, and pro- 
 bably deluding himself with the idea that he could conquer William 
 as he had conquered Hardrada, Harold marched with fierce rapidity 
 till he was within seven miles of the Norman camp. But convinced, 
 at that stage, of the impossibility of coming on William unawares, 
 he changed his tactics, halted near the village then known as Epiton, 
 took possession of some hilly ground, and fortified his position with 
 
 G . 
 
 V 
 
82 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 ditches, palisades, ramparts of slates, and willow liurdles. Thus 
 strongly intrenched, he resolved to stand on the defensive. 
 
 Meanwhile, some spies, sent to make observations on the hostile 
 army, and bring intelligence of the disposition and force of the 
 Normans, returned to the camp, and gave their report. 
 
 " There are more priests," said the spies, " in Duke William's 
 camp, than there are fighting men on the English side." 
 
 " Ah," said Harold, with a smile, " you have mistaken warriors for 
 priests, because the Normans shave their beards, and wear their 
 hair shoi-t. Those whom you saw in such numbers are not priests, 
 but brave soldiers, who will soon show us what they are worth." 
 
 " It seems to us," said some of the Saxon chiefs, on whom the 
 report of the spies, doubtless, was not without effect, "that we 
 should act prudently in avoiding a battle for the present, and re- 
 treating towards London, ravaging the country as we go, and thus 
 starving out the foreigners." 
 
 " I cannot ravage the country which has been committed to my 
 eare," answered Harold. " By my faith, that were indeed treason ; 
 and I prefer taking the chances of battle with my courage, my good 
 cause, and the few men I have." 
 
 But ere long the Saxon chiefs had reason to doubt the goodness 
 of Harold's cause. While this conversation as to the expediency of 
 a retreat was taking place, a monk from William arrived with a 
 message for Harold, and found his way to the presence of the Saxon 
 king. 
 
 " William, Duke of Normandy," said the monk, addressing Harold, 
 " requires thee to do one of three things : either to surrender to him, 
 the crown of England ; or to submit your quarrel to the arbitra- 
 tion of the pope ; or to refer its decision to the chances of a single 
 combat." 
 
 " And my answer," said Harold, briefly, " is, that I will not resign 
 the crown ; I will not refer the matter to the pope ; and a single 
 combat I will not fight." 
 
 " Then," said the monk, solemnly, " Duke William denounces thee 
 as perjurer and liar; and all who support thee are excommunicated. 
 The papal bull is in the Norman tent." 
 
HAROLD'S HOST. 83 
 
 The mention of excommunication produced an instantaneous effect 
 on the Saxon chiefs, and they looked at each other like men sud- 
 denly seized with superstitious terror. 
 
 " This is a business of great danger," they murmured. 
 
 " Whatever the danger may be, we ought to fight," said a thane ; 
 " for here is not a question of receiving a new lord as if our king 
 were dead ; the matter in hand is very different. William of Nor- 
 mandy has given our lands to his barons and his people, most of 
 whom have already rendered him homage for them. They come not 
 only to ruin us, but to ruin our descendants also, and to take from 
 us the country of our ancestors." 
 
 " It is true," cried the Saxons, recovering their courage. " Let us 
 neither make peace, truce, nor treaty with the invader." 
 
 " Let us swear," cried all, " to drive out the ISTormans, or die in 
 the attempt." 
 
 An oath was accordingly taken by the Saxon chiefs. But when 
 their enthusiasm evaporated, the thought of fighting for national 
 existence under the auspices of a man branded as " perjurer and 
 liar" troubled every conscience. Even Harold's brothers could not 
 conceal their uneasiness, and Gurth frankly and honestly expressed 
 his sentiments. 
 
 " Harold," said Gurth, " let me persuade you not to be present in 
 the battle, but to return to London and seek fresh reinforcements, 
 while we sustain the Norman's attack." 
 
 " And why T' asked Harold. 
 
 " Thou canst not deny," replied Gurth, " that, whether on com- 
 pulsion or willingly, thou hast sworn an oath to Duke William upon 
 the relics of saints. Wliy risk a combat with a perjury against thee 1 
 For us, who have taken no oath, the war is just : we defend our 
 country. Leave us, then, to fight the battle. If we retreat, thou 
 canst aid us ; if we fall, thou canst avenge us." 
 
 " My duty," said Harold, " forbids me to remain apart while others 
 risk their lives." 
 
 The night of Friday, the 13th of October, had now come, and by 
 the Saxons little doubt was entertained that the Norman duke 
 would attack them on the morrow. Nor was their anticipation in- 
 
84 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 correct. Indeed, William had intimated to his army that next day 
 would be a day of battle ; and, while the Norman warriors prepared 
 their arms, Norman monks and priests prayed, and chanted litanies, 
 and confessed the soldiers, and administered the sacrament. 
 
 The Saxons passed the night in a far different and much less 
 devout manner. It seems that the 14th of October was the day of 
 Harold's nativity, and that the Saxons, eager to celebrate such an 
 occasion, or hailing it as a fair excuse for carousing, dedicated the 
 night to joviality. Around their fires wine and ale flowed in abun- 
 dance, and men, grouped in large circles, sang national ballads, and 
 filled and emptied horns and flagons with a reckless indifference to 
 the probability that next morning their ideas would be confused and 
 their nerves disordered. 
 
 And thus, almost face to face with the Normans, and soon to be 
 hand to hand, the Saxons, under King Harold's standard, beheld the 
 break of that day on which, against fearful odds, they were to fight 
 a battle for the sovereignty of England. 
 
 iBattle Attey, Hastir.gs. 
 

 The Norman prelates blessing lae crooiji 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS. 
 
 On tbe morning of Saturday, tlie 14th of October, 1066, the day of 
 St. Calixtus, William the Norman rose from his couch, and prepared 
 to tear the crown of Edward the Confessor from the head of Harold, 
 son of Godwin. 
 
86 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Before forming into battle order, tlie Normans went tlirougli an 
 impressive religious ceremony. Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, and Geof- 
 frey, Bishop of Coutance, celebrated mass, and solemnly blessed the 
 troops; and then Odo, who was warrior as well as prelate, and wore 
 a hauberk under his rochet, mounted his tall white charger, and, 
 with a baton of command in his hand, aided to marshal the cavalry. 
 
 The Norman army was ranged in three divisions. In the first 
 were the men of Boulogne, Ponthieu, and most of the continental 
 adventurers, whom the prospect of pay and plunder had brought to 
 the invading standard ; in the second appeared the auxiliaries from 
 Brittany, Maine, and Poitou ; while the third was composed of the 
 high Norman chivahy, and comprised hundreds of knights and 
 nobles, whose names were afterwards registered in the roll of Battle 
 Abbey, and whose descendants ranked among the mediasval mag- 
 nates of England. Gallantly they mounted — Fitzosborne and War- 
 ren, Gourney and Grantmesnil, Percy and Peverill, Montgomery and 
 Mortimer, ]\Ierley and Montfichet, Bruce, Bigod, and Bohun, De 
 Vere, De Vesci, De Clare, De La Val, and De Roos — completely 
 covered with linked mail, armed with lances and swords, and with 
 crosses or dragons and wolves painted on their shields. 
 
 But, while warriors were mounting, the proudest and grandest of 
 these barons attracted little attention. It was on the chief of that 
 mighty host that all eyes were turned — on the martial duke, under 
 whose auspices was now to be fought one of the greatest battles of 
 the world — a battle the result of which has ever since exercised no 
 unimportant influence on the destinies of the human race. 
 
 William vv^as now in his forty-third year, and time had left its 
 traces behind. But, bald as he was, and worn with the cares of four 
 decades, the Norman duke had all the vigour, energy, and martial 
 enthusiasm of youth. Never, perhaps, had he appeared more worthy 
 of his high fortunes than when, with some of the relics on which 
 Harold had sworn, around his neck, he stood in view of the great 
 army of which he was the soul. 
 
 This display having served its purpose, William hastened to com- 
 plete the process of arming ; and his squires, while handing him his 
 hauberk, in their haste presented him with the backpiece first. 
 
THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS. . 87 
 
 " Tliis is an evil omen," said tlie lords around. 
 
 " Tush !" exclaimed William, laughing their fears to scorn. " Re- 
 thinks it is rather a good omen : it betokens that the last shall be 
 first — that the duke will be a king." 
 
 Having completely armed himself, with the exception of his hel- 
 met, William intrusted his standard to Tonstain le Blanc, a young 
 warrior, and sprang upon his magnificent Spanish charger, which the 
 King of Castile had sent him as a gift. Thus armed, and thus 
 mounted, with the consecrated standard waving over his head, he 
 raised his voice to address his soldiers ere they marched upon the foe. 
 
 " Normans and warriors," said the duke, " you are now about to 
 encounter your enemies. Fight your best, and spare not. What I 
 gain, you gain ; if I conquer, you conquer ; if I take the land, you 
 will share it. We shall all be rich. Know, however, that I came 
 here not merely to take that which is my due, but to revenge our 
 whole nation for the felon acts, perjuries, and treasons of these 
 Saxons. In the night of St. Brice they put to death the Danes, 
 both men and women. Afterwards they decimated the companions 
 of my kinsman, Alfred, and put him to death. On then, in God's 
 name, and chastise them for all their misdeeds !" 
 
 As William concluded his address, the jSTorman priests and monks 
 retired to a neighbouring hill to pray for victory ; and the Norman 
 warriors, with a shout of " Dieu aide !" began their march to the 
 Saxon camp. In a short time they came in sight of the place where 
 Harold and his men, aU on foot around their standard, and strongly 
 posted, stood ready, with their huge axes, to fight to the death. 
 
 While such was the position of the hostile armies, a Norman 
 minstrel, named Taillefer, rendered himself prominently conspicuous. 
 Giviug the spur to his horse, he rode out in front of the Norman 
 array, and, in a loud voice, raised the song of Charlemagne and 
 Eoland, then so famous throughout Christendom. As he proceeded, 
 he j)layed with his sword, tossing the weapon far into the air, and 
 then catching it in his right hand with wondrous dexterity ; while 
 the warriors behind vociferously repeated the burthen of his song, 
 and loudly shouted, " Dieu aide !" 
 
 When the Normans approached the Saxon intrenchments, their 
 
88 DANES, SAXON?, AND NOEMANS, 
 
 archers began the conflict by letting fly a shower of arrows, and the 
 crossbowmen discharged their bolts. But neither arrows nor bolts 
 did much execution. In fact, most of the shots were rendered use- 
 less by the high parapets of the Saxon redoubts, and the archers 
 and bowmen found, with dismay, that their efforts were in vain. 
 
 But the infantry, armed with spears, and the cavalry, with their 
 long lances, now advanced, and charging the gates of the redoubts, 
 endeavoured to force an entrance. The Saxons, however, forming a 
 solid mass, encountered their assailants with courage, and swinging 
 with both hands their heavy axes, broke lances into shivers, and cut 
 through coats of mail. 
 
 It was in vain that the Normans forming the first division of 
 "William's army perseveringly endeavoured to tear up the stakes and 
 penetrate the redoubts. Foiled and dispirited, archers and bowmen, 
 infantry and cavalry, fell back on that column where the duke, in 
 person, commanded. 
 
 But AYilliam was not to be baffled. Spurring his Spanish charger 
 in among the archers, he ordered them to shoot, not straightforward, 
 but into the air, so that their arrows might fall into the enemy's camp. 
 
 " See you not," said the duke, " that your shafts fall harmless 
 against the parapets ? Shoot in the air. Let your arrows fall as if 
 from the heavens." 
 
 The archers then, advancing in a body, profited by William's sug- 
 gestion ; and so successful proved the manoeuvre, that many of the 
 Saxons, and, among others. King Harold, were wounded in the fiice. 
 
 In the meantime, the Norman horse and foot renewed the attack 
 with shouts of " Notre Dame !" " Dieu aide !" and an impetuosity 
 which seemed to promise success. But if the attack was fierce, the 
 resistance was stubborn. Notwithstanding the execution done by 
 arrows and bolts, and their frightful wounds, Harold and his men 
 fought with mighty courage. Driven back from one of the gates to 
 a deep ravine, which was concealed by brushwood and long grass, 
 the Normans found their situation deplorable. Horses and men 
 rolled over each other into the ravine, perishing miserably; and, 
 when William's Spanish charger was killed under him, and the great 
 war-chief for a moment disappeared, alarm seized the invaders. 
 
THE BATTLE OF HASTIXGS. 89 
 
 " Tlie duke is slain!*' was the cry; and the Normans, giving way 
 to panic, commenced a retreat. 
 
 "Xo!" exclaimed William, in a voice of thunder, as he disen- 
 tangled himself from his fallen steed ; " I am here. Look at me. 
 I still live, and, with God's help, I will conquer." 
 
 And taking off his helmet that he might be the more readily 
 recognised, "William threw himself before the fugitives, and threat- 
 ening some, striking others witlx his lance, he barred their passage, 
 and ordered the cavalry to return to the attack. But every effort to 
 force the redoubts proved fruitless ; still the charge of the Normans 
 was broken on the wall of shields ; and, in spite of the fearful odds 
 against them, the Saxons still held gallantly out. 
 
 It was now that "William determined on a stratagem to lure the 
 Saxons from their intrenchments, and ordered a thousand horse to 
 advance to the redoubts and then retire. His command was skilfully 
 obeyed ; and when the Saxons saw their enemies fly as if beaten, 
 they lost the coolness they had hitherto exhibited, and, with their 
 axes hanging from their necks, rushed furiously forth in pursuit. 
 
 But brief indeed was their imaginary triumph. Suddenly the 
 Normans halted, faced about, and being joined by another body of 
 cavalry, that had watched the manoeuvre, turned fiercely upon the 
 pursuers with sword and lance, and quickly put them to the rout. 
 
 Evening was now approaching; and William, availing himself of 
 the confusion and disorder which the success of his stratagem had 
 created among the Saxons, once more assailed the redoubts, and this 
 time with success. In rushed horse and foot, hewing down all who 
 opposed them. In vain the Saxons struggled desperately, over- 
 throwing cavalry and infantry, and continued the combat hand to 
 hand and foot to foot. Their numbers rapidly diminished ; and at 
 length the king and his two brothers were left almost without aid to 
 defend the standard. 
 
 No hope now remained for the Saxons, and soon all was over. 
 Harold, previously wounded in the eye, fell to rise no more. Leof- 
 wiue shared his brother's fate and died by his side ; and Gurth, 
 courageously facing the foe, maintained a contest single-handed 
 against a host of knightly adversaries. But William, pushing for- 
 
90 DANES, SAXON'S, AND NORMANS. 
 
 vv'ard, mace in hand, struck the Saxon hero a blow of irresistible 
 violence, and Gurth fell on the mangled corpses of his kinsmen and 
 countrymen. 
 
 Ere this the sun had set, and still the conflict was continued ; and 
 the Saxons, vain as were their efforts, maintained an irregular 
 struggle till darkness rendered it impossible to know friend from foe, 
 except by the difference of language. The vanquished islanders 
 then fled in the direction of London. But when the moon rose, the 
 victors fiercely urged the pursuit. The Norman cavalry, flushed 
 with triumph, granted no quarter. Thousands of Saxons, dispersed 
 and despairing, fell by the weapons of pursuers, and thousands 
 more died on the roads of wounds and fatigue. 
 
 Meanwhile, William ordered the consecrated standard to be set up 
 where that of the Saxons had fallen, and, pitching his tent on the 
 field of battle, passed that October night almost within hearing of 
 the groans of the dying. 
 
91 
 
 XIX. 
 
 THE BODY OF HAROLD. 
 
 NO sooner did Sunday morning dawn than William, 
 having first evinced Ms gratitude to Heaven for the 
 victory gained, applied himself to ascertain the extent 
 of his loss. Having vowed to erect on the field of 
 battle an abbey, to be dedicated to St. Martin, the 
 patron saint of the warriors of Gaul, the Conqueror 
 drew up his troops, and called over the names of all 
 who had crossed the sea, from a list made at St. Valery. 
 While this roll was being called over, many of the 
 wives and mothers of the Saxons who had armed in 
 the neighbourhood of Hastings to fight for King 
 Harold appeared on the field to search for and bury 
 the bodies of their husbands and sons. William im- 
 mediately caused the corpses of the men who had 
 fallen on his side to be buried, and gave the Saxons 
 leave to do the same for their countrymen. 
 
 For some time, however, no one had the courage 
 to mention the propriety of giving Christian burial 
 to the Saxon king; and the body of Harold lay on the field without 
 being claimed or sought for. At length Githa, the widow of Godwin, 
 sent to ask the Conqueror's permission to render the last honours to 
 her son, but William sternly refused. ^ 
 
 " The mother," said the messengers, " would even give the weight 
 of the body in gold." 
 
 " Nevertheless," said William, " the man, false to his word and to 
 his religion, shall have no other sepulchre than the sands of the 
 shore." 
 
 William, however, relented. It happened that Harold had 
 
92 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOKilANS. 
 
 founded aud enriclied tlie abbey of Waltham, and that the abbot 
 felt liimsolf in duty bound to obtain Christian burial for such a 
 benefactor. Accordingly he deputed Osgod and Ailrik, two Saxon 
 monks, to demand permission to transfer the body of Harold to their 
 church ; and the Conqueror granted the permission they asked. 
 
 But Osgod and Ailrik found their mission somewhat difficult to 
 fulfil. So disfigured, in fact, were most of the dead with wounds 
 aud bruises, that one could hardly be known from another. In vain 
 the monks sought among the mass of slain, stripped as they were of 
 armour and clothing. The monks of Waltham could not recognise 
 the corpse of him whom they sought, and, in their difficulty, they 
 resolved to invoke female aid. 
 
 At that time there Avas living, probably in retirement, a Saxon 
 woman knowu as Edith the Fair. This woman, who was remarkable 
 for her beauty, and especially for the gracefulness of her neck, which 
 chroniclers have compared to the swan's, had, before Harold's coro- 
 nation and his marriage with Aldith, been entertained by him as a 
 mistress ; and, on being applied to, she consented to assist the monks 
 in their search. Better acquainted than they were with the features 
 of the man she had loved, Edith was successful in discovering the 
 corpse. 
 
 The body of Harold having thus — thanks to the zeal and exertions 
 of the monks — been found, was, with those of his brothers, Gurth 
 and Leofwine, placed at the disposal of their mother, the widowed 
 Githa. With her consent they were buried in the abbey of Waltham. 
 The Conqueror sent William Mallet, one of his knights, to see the 
 corpse honourably interred : and at the east end of the choir, in a 
 tomb long pointed out as that containing the remains of the Saxon 
 king, were inscribed the words — 
 
 • " HAROLD INFELIX." 
 
 " But here," says Sir Eichard Baker, " Giraldus Cambrensis tells 
 a strange story, that Harold was not slain in the battle, but only 
 wounded and lost his left eye, and then escaped by flight to Chester, 
 where he afterwards led a holy anchorite's life in the cell of St. 
 James, fast by St. John's Church." 
 
93 
 
 XX. 
 
 THE CONQUEROR AND THE KENTISHMEN. 
 
 After his victory at Hastings, William remained for some time on 
 the field, waiting for the men of the country to appear at his camp 
 and make their submission. Finding, however, that nobody came, he 
 marched along the sea coast, took Dover, and then advanced by the 
 great Roman road towards London, 
 
 . While passing through Kent, the conquerors, for a time, pursued 
 their way without interruption, Suddenlj^, however, at a place 
 where the road, approaching the Thames, ran through a forest, they 
 found their passage disputed by a large body of Kentishmeu. Each 
 man carried in his hand a green bough, and at a distance they pre- 
 sented the appearance of a wood in motion. 
 
 " This," said the Normans, crossing themselves, " is magic — the 
 work of Satan." 
 
94 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 On drawing near, however, the Kentishmen threw the green 
 boughs to the ground, raised their banner, and drew their swords; 
 and William, aware that the naen of Kent were not foes to be 
 despised, asked with what intent they came against him in such a 
 fashion. 
 
 " We come," cried the men of Kent, " to fight for our liberty, and 
 for the laws we have enjoyed under King Edward." 
 
 " Well," answered William, whose object it now was, if possible, to 
 conciliate, " ye shall have your ancient customs and your laws which 
 ye demand, so that ye acknowledge me king of England." 
 
 The Kentishmen, on hearing this, consented to lay down their 
 arms, having concluded a treaty by which they agreed to offer no 
 further resistance, on condition that they should be as free as they 
 had before been. William sent forward five hundred horsemen 
 towards London ; and learning that the citizens were likely to stand 
 on their defence, he resolved to turn towards the west, and passed 
 the Thames at Wallingford. 
 
 On reaching Wallingford, which had been regarded by the Saxons 
 as a stronghold of the first importance, William was struck with the 
 capacity of the place, and eager to secure it as one of his strongholds. 
 On this point there was no difficulty. In fact, Wallingford was in 
 possession of a Saxon thane named Wigod, who had neither the will 
 nor the power to resist, but who had an only daughter named Aldith, 
 with no insuperable objection to become the bride of a Norman 
 kniffht. The Conqueror immediately provided the fair Aldith with 
 a husband, in the person of Eobert D'Oyley, one of his favourite 
 warriors ; and the marriage ceremony having been performed without 
 any unnecessary delay, D'Oyley was left, in the company of his bride 
 and his father-in-law, to make the castle as strong as possible; while 
 the Conqueror, marching to Berkhampstead, cut off all communica- 
 tion between London and the north, and continued so to hem in the 
 city that the inhabitants became every day more apprehensive of 
 being exposed to the horrors of famine. 
 
EDGAR ATHELING. 
 
 News of tlie Norman victory at Hastings speedily reached London ; 
 and the city became the scene of commotion and debate. So strong, 
 however, appeared the necessity for doing something decisive, that 
 men calmed themselves to consider their position ; and, by way of 
 dealing with the crisis, they resolved on placing the Confessor's 
 crown on the head of Edgar Atheling, the Confessor's kinsman, and 
 the undoubted heir of the Saxon kings. 
 
 Atheling was grandson of Edmund Ironsides, and a native of 
 Hungary. In fact, it seems that when Canute the Dane, in 1017, 
 made himself master of England, he found in the kingdom two sons 
 of Ironsides, who bore the names of Edmund and Edward. Wishing, 
 it is said, to have the Saxon princes put to death, but apprehensive 
 of the consequences of ordering their execution, Canute sent them to 
 the King of Sweden, with a request that they might be secretly 
 made away with. Not caring, however, to have the blood of two 
 innocent boys to answer for, the royal Swede sent them to Hungary ; 
 and the king of that country, after receiving them with reluctance, 
 reared them with kindness. As time passed on, Edmund died 
 without heirs; but Edward, known as The Exile, espousing Agatha, 
 daughter of an Emperor of Germany, became father of a handsome 
 and fair-haired boy, known as Edgar Atheling, and two girls, named 
 Margaret and Christina. 
 
 During the reigns of Harold Harefoot and Hardicanute, the son 
 of Ironsides remained forgotten in exile. But the Confessor, in his 
 old age, finding himself childless, and knowing that his end was 
 drawing nigh, turned his thoughts towards his expatriated kinsman, 
 and despatched Aldred, Archbishop of York, to escort the heir of 
 
96 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 Alfred from the German court. The result was, that Edward the 
 Exile, bringing with him his wife and three children, returned to 
 the country of his ancestors, with high hopes of wearing the crown. 
 But not long after arriving in England he went the way of all 
 flesh, leaving his son much too young to assert his own rights, and 
 without adherents sufficiently influential to cope successfully with 
 the wealthy and popular chief of the House of Godwin. 
 
 At the time when the Confessor drew his last breath, in the 
 Painted Chamber, Edgar Atheling was a boy of ten ; and Harold 
 had very little difficulty in excluding him from the throne. It has 
 been asserted, indeed, that, from the earliest period, minors had been 
 set aside, as a matter of course, by the Saxon customs ; and that the 
 Atheling's nonage positively disqualified him from wearing the 
 crown. Nevertheless, the youth, the beauty, the hereditary claims 
 of the boy, won him many friends ; and he was much beloved by 
 the people, who, in their loyal aff"ection, called him their darling. 
 
 " He is young and handsome," said they, " and descended from 
 the true race, the best race of the country." 
 
 It would seem that the Atheling's claims caused Harold con- 
 siderable uneasiness. In fact, historians state that the son of Godmn 
 was kept in constant dread '-'of anything being contrived against 
 him in favour of Edgar by those who had a great aff"ection for the 
 ancient royal family." However, Harold, to keep them quiet, 
 showed the boy great respect, gave him the earldom of Oxford, and 
 "took care of his education," says one historian, "as if he would 
 have it thought that he intended to resign the crown to him when 
 he should be of fit age to govern." 
 
 . But whatever may have been Harold's motives or intentions, no 
 sooner did he fall at Hastings than the popular cry rose in Edgar's 
 favour. Opinions, however, were divided as to the person most 
 worthy of being king. Edwin and Morkar, the grandsons of 
 Leofric, claimed the honour for one of themselves; and men in- 
 fluenced by the papal bull, stood up for Duke William. But both 
 Stigand, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Aldred, Archbishop of 
 York, declared strongly for the Atheling ; and at length, after much 
 hesitation and much dispute, the boy was publicly proclaimed. 
 
EDGAR ATHELING. 97 
 
 Sucli was tlie stage at which affairs had arrived in London, when 
 William, from his camp at Berkhampstead, found a way of com- 
 municating with Ansgar, the standard-bearer of the city, an officer 
 whom, in 1051, he had seen at Edward's court; and when Ansgar, 
 assembling the cliief citizens, without informing them of William's 
 message to himself, impressed upon them the expediency of nego- 
 tiating with the invaders. 
 
 " Honourable brothers," said Ansgar, " our resources are nearly 
 exhausted. The city is threatened with assault, and no army comes 
 to our aid." 
 
 " True," murmured the citizens. 
 
 " Such," continued Ansgar, " is our situation; but when strength 
 is exhausted, when courage can do no more, artifice and stratagem 
 still remain. I advise you to resort to them." 
 
 " In what way ?" asked the citizens. 
 
 " The enemy," answered Ansgar, " is not yet aware of our miser- 
 able position : let us profit by that circumstance, and send them fair 
 words by a man capable of deceiving them, who will feign to convey 
 your submission, and, in sign of peace, will lay his hand in theirs if 
 required." 
 
 " Yes," cried the citizens : " we will, in that case, be able to obtain 
 a suspension of hostilities, and protract negotiations until the arrival 
 of succours." 
 
 After this scene, in which Ansgar skilfully acted his part, his 
 counsel was enthusiastically adopted. But the messenger sent to 
 delude William returned to London devoted to the Norman duke's 
 cause, and gave so flattering a report of the Conqueror, that the 
 citizens became eager to acknowledge such a man as King of Eng- 
 land. The feeling proved marvellously contagious, and London was 
 soon under the influence of one of those popular outbursts which 
 nothing can resist. 
 
 " What should be done ?" asked Ansgjir. 
 
 " Let the keys of the city be carried to Duke William," was the 
 answer. 
 
 The warriors and prelates who surrounded Edgar Atheling were 
 probably somewhat surprised at this sudden resolution, and they 
 
98 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 were certainly in no position to restrain or counteract it. They 
 therefore yielded to the current ; and the young king, accompanied 
 by the two archbishops, Stigand and Aldred, by Wulstan, Bishop of 
 Worcester, and by the chief citizens, proceeded to Berkhampstead to 
 make their submission. On presenting themselves to the Conqueror 
 they swore fidelity, gave hostages, and received his promise to be 
 gentle and clement. William regarded the grandson of Ironsides with 
 interest, kissed the boy tenderly, and spoke to him with kindness. 
 Doubtless, in the eye of a prince of Edgar Atheling's age, a dog and 
 a pony would have seemed more to be desired than the crown and 
 throne of England ; nor can it be said that, in after years, when his 
 valour and his capacity had been proved, he ever looked back with 
 excessive regret to the crown he had lost and the throne from which 
 he had been excluded. 
 
 Sason Bcndman (from Strutt). 
 
99 
 
 Commotion during the crowning of William. 
 
 xxir. 
 
 CORONATION OF THE CONQUEROR. 
 
 After Edgar Atheling and the Saxon cliiefs and prelates liad made 
 tlieir submission to the conqueror of Hastings, and given hostages 
 for their fidelity, William — having previously sent forward a strong 
 
100 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 body of soldiers to construct a fortress in the heart of London — left 
 Berkhampstead, and marched towards the wealthy city on the 
 Thames, ere long to become the capital of England. 
 
 It seemed as if the progress of the Normans would now be easy. 
 Most men of rank and worldly discretion, especially the bishops — 
 whose influence was strong — believed that the national cause could 
 not be maintained, and were inclined to support Duke William as a 
 matter of duty. 
 
 " It is needful," men said to each other, " to fall in with the 
 times, and not to oppose the will of God, by whom the powers of 
 the world are raised up." 
 
 .But all Saxons did not take this view; and while the ISTormans 
 were on their way from Berkhampstead to London, an incident 
 occurred which gave William an idea of the hostile spirit by which 
 many of the natives were animated. On approaching the ancient 
 abbey of St. Alban's he found, with surprise, that numbers of huge 
 trees had been cut down, and so disposed as to intercept the march 
 of his army. William immediately sent for the abbot, whose name 
 was Frithrik, and demanded the reason of this attempt to intercept 
 his passage. 
 
 " Why," asked the Conqueror, " hast thou thus cut down tby 
 woods ?" 
 
 " I have done my duty," answered the abbot, boldly ; " and had all 
 of my order done the same, as they ought to have done, thou wouldst 
 not have advanced so far into our country." 
 
 After having advanced near London, William, pondering the pro- 
 priety of assuming the crown, held a council of war, ostensibly to 
 discuss the means of promptly completing the conquest, but in reality 
 to get nearer the object on which his heart had so long been set. 
 
 "It appears," said some of William's friends, addressing their 
 chief, " that, in order to mitigate resistance, it is politic that thou 
 shouldst assume the title of King of the English." 
 
 " No," said William, feigning an indifference which he was far 
 from feeling; "I demand, at least, some delay. I have not come to 
 England for my own interest alone, but for that of the whole Nor- 
 man nation. And besides, if it be the will of God that I should 
 
CORONATION OF THE CONQUEROR. 101 
 
 become king, tlie time has not yet arrived. Too many countries and 
 too many men have yet to be subjected." 
 
 "Yes; it is not yet time to create a king," said the Norman 
 nobles, interpreting William's scruples literally. 
 
 " This is too modest of Duke William," said Aimery de Thouars, a 
 captain of auxiliaries, rising and speaking with much energy. " It 
 is too modest of him to appeal to soldiers, whether or no they will 
 have their lord a king. Soldiers have nothing to do with questions 
 of this nature ; and our discussions only serve to retard that which, 
 as a matter of feeling, we all so ardently desire." 
 
 After the speech of Aimery de Thouars, the Norman nobles felt 
 bound to support the opinion he had expressed ; and it was unani- 
 mously resolved that William should be crowned before proceeding 
 farther with the work of the conquest. Accordingly, he entered 
 London, took up his residence at the Tower, and ordered the neces- 
 sary preparations to be made for the ceremony. 
 
 Christmas was the day fixed for placing the Confessor's crown on 
 the Conqueror's head, and the church of Westminster was decorated 
 for the occasion. The Archbishop of Canterbury was invited to 
 perform the office ; but Stigand declined. The Archbishop of York 
 was then invited; and Aldred consented. The Norman cavalry, 
 posted around Westminster, carefully watched over the safety of 
 those who took part in the ceremony; and William, walking between 
 two ranks of soldiers, entered the abbey, accompanied by two hun- 
 dred and sixty of his counts and captains. ^ 
 
 When everything was ready for the ceremony of coronation, Geof- 
 frey, Bishop of Coutance, and Aldred, Archbishop of York, ascended 
 a platform ; and Geofirey asked the Normans, and Aldred asked the 
 English, whether they would have William for their king. Those 
 present answered by acclamations so loud as to produce awkward 
 results. The Norman cavalry posted in the vicinity, mistaking the 
 meaning of the cries, and hastily concluding that a riot had taken 
 place, drew their swords, spurred towards the church, and, in their 
 confusion, set fire to some houses. The noise and tumult reaching 
 the interior, caused Normans and Saxons hastily to disperse, and 
 William was left alone with Aldred and the Saxon and Norman 
 
102 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 priests. The ceremony was, however, completed ; and William 
 somewhat hastily took the oaths to treat the Saxon people as well 
 as the best king ever elected by them. 
 
 Having planted the lion banner of Normandy on the Tower of 
 London, and portioned out the south and east of England among 
 his followers, William embarked at Pevensey to visit his continental 
 dominions, taking with him as hostages, Edgar Atheling and several 
 Saxon chiefs, and more gold and silver than could have been found 
 in all Gaul. 
 
 In Normandy he was received with boundless enthusiasm. Crowds 
 flocked from Rouen to the seashore to welcome his return. The 
 Normans and the French vied with each other in doing him honour. 
 William's vanity was gratified, and he displayed his munificence by 
 presenting his guests with the chased gold and silver plate, and the 
 massive drinking-cups, of which the Saxons had been despoiled. 
 
 No one dared now to allude to his illegitimacy, or to mention his 
 gTandsire, the tanner. William had, in fact, made himself the most 
 independent of European sovereigns; and even the great Hilde- 
 brand, when exalted to the papal throne as Gregory the Seventh, in 
 vain asked for the oath of fealty. 
 
 " I hold my kingdom of God and of my sword," was the stern 
 answer of the Conqueror. 
 
103 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 THE SIEGE OF EXETER. 
 
 After having seated himself on the throne of Edward the Confessor, 
 and attained the object of his ambition, William was not, perhaps, 
 unwUKng to pursue a policy of clemency and conciliation towards 
 the Saxons. The Norman barons and knights might have been 
 satisfied with the lands of the Saxons who had fallen at Hastings. 
 But the numerous adventurers who had followed the Norman stan- 
 dard had yet to be gorged with plunder. "VVlule the Conqueror was 
 on the Continent, these men were guilty of indiscreet severity ; and 
 the Saxons, unable to brook their insolence, formed leagues, and 
 vowed to assert their liberty or die in its defence. 
 
 Messengers, hastily despatched, carried to Rouen intelligence of 
 the state of aflairs ; and William in alarm hastened to Dieppe, and 
 on a cold December night embarked for England. On reaching 
 London he found that city in a ferment; and conscious that his 
 military force was not as yet sufficient to keep down a whole 
 nation, he resorted to artifice — called around him Saxon chiefs and 
 prelates, promised all they asked — celebrated, in their company, the 
 festival of Christmas — and having in this way gained over the 
 leaders, addressed to the populace a proclamation, couched in the 
 Saxon language, and engaging to maintain the laws of King Edward. 
 
 After making these and other promises, never intended to be 
 kept, William left London, and proceeded westward, to pursue the 
 •work of conquest. At Exeter, where Githa, the widow of Godwin 
 and mother of Harold, had resided since Hastings, the citizens, bent 
 on resistance, fortified their walls, repaired their towers, and, sum- 
 moning fighting men from the neighbouring country, indicated their 
 determination to bid the Conqueror defiance. 
 
104< DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Informed of tlie attitude assumed by tlie men of Exeter, William 
 halted at a place four miles distant from the city, and sent, summon- 
 ing the citizens to surrender and swear the oath of fidelity. 
 
 " No," answered the citizens of Exeter ; " we shall swear no oath 
 of fidelity to this pretended king, nor admit him within our walls. 
 But if he thinks proper to receive, by way of tribute, the impost we 
 pay to our kings, we will give it to him." 
 
 "I require subjects," was William's scornful reply, "and I will 
 have them on no such conditions as are offered." 
 
 Without further parley, William ordered his banner to advance 
 forthwith, and the Norman army speedily invested Exeter. Ere the 
 assault began, however, some of the chief men, in pursuance of a 
 secret negotiation, came to the king, demanded peace on terms of 
 surrender, and delivered hostages. But on returning within the 
 walls, the bulk of the citizens exclaimed against their treaty, kept 
 the gates closed, and stood to their arms. William, who was not to 
 be trifled \vith, caused one of the hostages to be brought in sight of 
 the ramparts, and had his eyes put out. But the determination of 
 the inhabitants was inflexible ; and it was not till the siege had 
 lasted nearly three weeks, and till forty-eight houses were destroyed, 
 that their courage gave way, and they repaired to the Norman camp, 
 in the attitude of suppliants, with their priests bearing missals and 
 sacred vessels. 
 
 Having gained possession of Exeter, William ordered a strong 
 fortress to be constructed out of the houses that had been destroyed 
 during the siege, and proceeded with the subjugation of the west ; 
 adding Somerset and Gloucester to the conquered territory ; dividing 
 the land among his warriors ; and on almost every eminence erecting 
 strong and gloomy castles to keep the Saxons in awe. Recognising 
 the importance of Gloucester as a barrier against the incursions of 
 the Welsh, William fortified the north and south with embattled 
 walls and gates, and selected its castle for his residence in winter, as 
 he had already made the Tower of London his residence in summer, 
 and the palace of Winchester his residence in spring. 
 
 Ere Exeter surrendered, Githa, the widow of Godwin, and a 
 number of other women, escaped to one of the islands of the Severn ; 
 
THE SIEGE OF EXETER. 
 
 105 
 
 then to Bath ; and from Bath gained the western coast, and embarked 
 for Flanders. Fortunate, comparatively speaking, were those who 
 thus betook themselves to exile. Cruel, indeed, if we are to believe 
 historians, was the fate of those who remained. While thanes of 
 high name and great descent were supplanted by men who had been 
 weavers in Flanders and drovers in Normandy, their wives and sisters 
 were degraded to the dust. 
 
 " Ignoble grooms, the scum of armies," says the chronicler, " did 
 as they pleased with the noblest women, and left them nothing but 
 to weep and wish for death." 
 
 i Library. 
 
106 
 
 'Mlh'n^'hHhri''t 
 
 Beliry at liruges 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 MATILDA AND BEIHTKIK. 
 
 While William the Norman was occupied with the subjugation of 
 the west, Matilda of Flanders arrived in England to share her 
 husband's triumph. It was in the spring of 1068, after the siege of 
 Exeter, that Matilda, with her children, set foot on English ground. 
 Her reception was all that she could have desired. Her grace and 
 majesty quite charmed the people ; and when, with great state, she 
 was crowned at Westminster, she was cheered enthusiastically. 
 
 The popularity of Matilda arose from a belief that her counsels 
 often softened the heart of the Conqueror towards the Saxons, and 
 disposed him to clemency. Such was probably the case. On one 
 occasion, however, the royal lady manifested a most vindictive spirit, 
 
MATILDA AND BRIHTRIK. 107 
 
 and exercised the influence she possessed with her husband to avenge, 
 in a signal manner, a slight which she deemed had been put upon 
 her in the days of a somewhat wayward youth. 
 
 It appears that when the daughter of Count Baldwin was a girl 
 at Bruges, with nothing particular to occupy her attention, a young 
 and noble Saxon, named Brihtrik, arrived at her father's court as 
 ambassador from Edward the Confessor, and brought with him the 
 reputation of being enormously rich. Matilda was then passing her 
 time in exchanging sharp sayings with her sister, Judith, going to 
 mass with her ladies of honour, working at the embroidery in which 
 she had such skill, and applying her fine intelligence to the studies 
 which rendered her one of the most accomplished of European 
 princesses. Captivated with Brihtrik's handsome person, long hair, 
 and fair face, and being at an age when ladies are supposed to fall in 
 love without profoundly calculating the consequences, the Flemish 
 princess soon found her heart full of a romantic kind of affection for 
 the interesting stranger. 
 
 Brihtrik, however, does not appear to have evinced excessive joy 
 at his good fortune. In vain the daughter of Count Baldwin in- 
 dulged in dreams and in hints of uniting her fate with his. The 
 Saxon lord, either from having another bride in view, or not relishing 
 the idea of ladies taking the initiative in love, proved insensible to 
 allurements, and left the court of Bruges, and the beautiful Matilda, 
 without having given proof of anything like reciprocity of sentiment. 
 
 Matilda was by no means gratified with Brihtrik's coolness. In- 
 deed, she would seem to have brooded over the memory of the 
 Saxon for many long years. In any case, when time passed over, 
 and she became the bride of William the iSTorman, Queen of England, 
 and the mother of sons destined to wear crowns and coronals, she 
 had not forgotten Brihtrik the Saxon, 
 
 It is just probable that Brihtrik might not always have spoken of 
 the daughter of Count Baldwin with the discretion which he ought 
 to have exercised. When the alarm of invasion was agitating 
 England, and the name of Duke William was on every tongue, the 
 Saxon, over his cups in his own hall, or even in the palace of West- 
 minster, might have been tempted, under the influence of repeated 
 
108 DANES, SAXOXS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 potations, to speak too freely of liis early acquaintance witli Matilda 
 the duchess ; and his words might have been carried to the palace 
 of Rouen. At all events, she still sighed for vengeance on the man 
 who had trifled with her affections, or treated her advances with 
 indifference. 
 
 Matilda had an early opportunity of proving to Brihtrik that he 
 had riot been forgiven. The possessions of Brihtrik, which included 
 Tewkesbury and Thornbury, lay in the south-west of England ; and 
 after the taking of Exeter, the lands of the vanquished in that 
 quarter were divided among the conquerors. One of the first names 
 inscribed on the partition-roll was. that of Matilda of Flanders ; and 
 her portion of the plunder was all the land of Brihtrik the Saxon. 
 But Matilda's resentment was too deep to be satisfied with impover- 
 ishing Brihtrik; and the potent queen still further avenged her 
 outraged vanity by imprisoning the object of her youthful love after 
 she had plundered him. 
 
 Accordingly, Brihtrik, having been arrested at his manor-house, 
 was incarcerated in the castle of Winchester. In a dungeon of that 
 palatial stronghold, with misery for his mate, and precluded, pro- 
 bably, from looking on the face of day, save through the iron bars of 
 a prison house, Brihtrik had the prospect of leisure to lament the 
 coolness of which he had been guilty towards the daughter of Count 
 Baldwin, and to curse the fate that had made the offended fair one 
 the spouse of a king and conqueror of England. 
 
 But Brihtrik did not long survive the date of his incarceration. 
 Whether he died a natural death, or fell a victim to Matilda's re- 
 lentless vengeance, does not clearly appear. It is certain, however, 
 that the Saxon lord drew his last breath in prison, and that he was 
 buried with a degree of secrecy which suggested suspicions of foul 
 play. 
 
109 
 
 William's mairch on Hexham 
 
 XXV. 
 
 THE NORMANS IN NORTHUMBEKLAND. 
 
 It was the autumn of 1068, and the south, east, and west of England 
 having yielded to the Conqueror, and been portioned out among his 
 adventurous followers, the theatre of English independence became 
 somewhat limited. William, however, had not yet reason to sigh 
 
110 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEjMANS. 
 
 for another country to conquer. IsTortli of the Humber was a vast 
 province, -where no Norman banner had yet waved, where no Norman 
 horseshoe had left its print, but where tall Danes and wealthy 
 Saxons, who were prepared to do battle fearlessly for their liberty, 
 were leaving their houses to sleep in tents, or in the open air, 
 swearing never again to repose beneath the shelter of a roof till they 
 had freed their country. 
 
 At length, however, the Conqueror marched northward, and, ad- 
 vancing upon York, slaughtered all who attempted resistance, and, 
 sword in hand, entered the capital of the north. Feeling that the 
 struggle was hopeless, many of the chief Northumbrians descended 
 the Humber in boats, and sought refuge on Scottish soil, there to 
 watch events; and William, after erecting a strong castle, and ap- 
 pointing William Malet as Governor of York, returned southward. 
 But the aspect of affairs speedily became so alarming, that the king 
 prepared for a second expedition, and reached York at the very 
 time when the citizens and the inhabitants of the countrj' had formed 
 a league, and were besieging the Norman fortress. Attacking them 
 with his wonted energy, William succeeded in killing or dispersing 
 the insurgents, and, determined on extending his sovereignty at least 
 as far as Durham, he entrusted the task of doing so to Kobert 
 Comine, whom he by anticipation created earl of the county that 
 was to be subdued. 
 
 With an army of nine thousand men, twelve hundred ot whom 
 were horsemen, Robert Comine ventured on his perilous enterprise. 
 At first all seemed to go prosperously ; and he became quite confident 
 when he found himself approaching Durham without having seen 
 the face of a foe. At that point, however, he was met by Eghelwin, 
 Bishop of Durham, who hinted that there was danger in the way, 
 
 " I advise you," said the bishop, " to be prudent and beware of a 
 surprise."' 
 
 " Who would attack me T asked Comine, with contempt, " None 
 of you, I imagine, would dare to do so." And with these words the 
 Norman warrior rode into the city and took up his quarters in the 
 bishop's palace, while his troops encamped in the square. 
 
 Everything, so far, seemed secure; but after nightfall a wonderful 
 
THE NORMANS IN NORTHUMBERLAND. Ill 
 
 cliange occurred. On every hill a signal-fire was lighted, and armed 
 men, gathering from the banks of the Tyne, assembled in great 
 numbers, and hastened towards Durham. By daybreak they were 
 before the walls, and, forcing the gates, they entered with a mighty 
 rush, and fell ferociously upon the Normans. Dismayed, but not yet 
 despairing, Comine attempted to rally his soldiers in the bishop's 
 palace, erected barricades, and showered arrows from the roofs ; but 
 every efibrt proved vain. The Northumbrians, resolutely pressing 
 on, set fire to the episcopal mansion, and Comine and every man 
 within the walls perished in the flames. 
 
 After this successful attempt at revolt, the Northumbrians sum- 
 moned allies to their side. They implored aid from the King of 
 Denmark, and they recalled the Saxons who had exiled themselves 
 to the Scottish frontier. Both responded with alacrity. A Danish 
 fleet, sent by the King of Denmark, under the command of his 
 brother, entered the Humber; and Edward Atheling, Siward Beorn, 
 and Merlesweyn, and Waltheof, son of the great Siward, who had all 
 taken refuge in Scotland, hastened to Durham. 
 
 It was the autumn of 1069, when the Saxons and Danes, after 
 uniting their forces, marched upon York, the Saxons forming the 
 van, the Danes the main army. Messengers went before, announcing 
 deliverance from the invaders ; and, ere long, the Normans were sur- 
 prised to find the city invested on all sides. For several days the 
 garrison off'ered a brave resistance, but on the eighth day — it was 
 Saturday, the 19th of September — the besiegers had made such pro- 
 gress that the Normans, seeing that they must depend on their 
 citadel, and fearing that the neighbouring houses might be used as 
 materials for filling up the moats, set them on fire. The flames, 
 leaping from house to house, made rapid progress; and the North- 
 umbrians and their Danish allies, guided by the light, penetrated 
 within the walls. 
 
 The Normans now took to the citadel, and still hoped to save 
 themselves. The assault of the besiegers, however, proved irre- 
 sistible. The citadel was taken. A conflict of the most desperate 
 character took place : the Northumbrians and the Danes sought to 
 excel each other in deeds of valour; and thousands of Normans fell 
 
112 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 in the sanguiiaaiy encounter. The victors granted quarter to William 
 Malet and his wife and children, who were conveyed on board the 
 Danish fleet, and then imprudently proceeded to destroy the fortifi- 
 cations erected by the Normans, in order to efface all vestiges of the 
 invasion. This done, they raised the shout of triumph, and expressed 
 their impatience for the arrival of spring to march southward, and 
 drive the conquerors from the land. Meanwhile, as King of England, 
 Edgar Atheling concluded a treaty of alliance with the citizens of 
 York, and had the gratification of being recognised from the Humber 
 to the Tweed. 
 
 William was hunting in the Forest of Dean when he received 
 intelligence that the Northumbrians had killed Robert Comine at 
 Durham, and taken possession of York. The wrath of the Norman 
 king burned fiercely. 
 
 " By the Divine splendour !" he exclaimed, " I will never again 
 lay aside my lance till I have slain all the Northumbrians ;" and he 
 prepared forthwith to execute his threat. But, resolved to facilitate 
 operations by buying off the Danes, he sent messengers to the Danish 
 king's brother, with offers of a large sum of money ; and the Dane, 
 yielding to temptation, agreed to take the bribe, and withdrew 
 without striking another blow. 
 
 Having thus deprived the Northumbrians of their allies, William 
 assembled an army composed of picked soldiers, and, by forced 
 marches, suddenly appeared at York. The Northumbrians, taken 
 by surprise, and dispirited by the departure of the Danes, neverthe- 
 less girded themselves up for the combat, resisted with the courage 
 of despair, and fell by thousands while attempting to oppose the 
 Conqueror's passage through the breaches of the walls. But long as 
 was the struggle, and dearly-purchased as was William's success, his 
 victory was complete. Edgar Atheling left as a fugitive the land of 
 his ancestors, and all who could, made their escape northward. 
 
 Finding himself once more master of York, William determined 
 to extend his conquest to the Tweed. Cruelly and savagely the 
 ■work was begun. Precipitating themselves on Northumberland, the 
 Normans wreaked their fury on all that the land contained. Flocks 
 and herds were massacred as well as men ; corn-fields'were burned 
 
THE NORMANS IN NORTHUMBERLAND. 113 
 
 with tlie towns and hamlets they surrounded ; and the devastation 
 seems to have been pursued on such a scale as to render the country 
 uninhabitable. "Wasting, burning, slaughtering as they went, the 
 Normans at length reached Durham, which in the previous year had 
 witnessed the death of Eobert Comine. 
 
 When, one winter's day, news of the Conqueror's approach reached 
 Durham, the bishop and his clergy were well-nigh in despair. It 
 was the very depth of the season. Nevertheless, they resolved to 
 be gone. 
 
 " Let us fly," they cried, " to some place where neither Norman, 
 nor Burgundian, nor brigand, nor vagabond can reach us." 
 
 Accordingly they set out for Holy Island, carrying with them the 
 bones of St. Cuthbert and all their moveables of value. They left, 
 however, a crucifix, richly adorned with gold and silver gems, which 
 had, in other days, been presented to the church by Tostig, the son 
 of Godwin, and his haughty countess, Judith of Flanders. This 
 crucifix appears to have been too heavy for the monks to carry. But 
 they consoled themselves with the idea that, instead of tempting 
 sacrilege, it would act as a protection to the church, and to the sick 
 and infirm persons who had crawled to seek refuge within the sacred 
 precincts, and who, overcome with pain, and misery, and fatigue, lay 
 in crowds on the bare stones. 
 
 While the bishop and clergy were flying, William entered Durham, 
 and the Normans took possession of the city, without being disturbed 
 in their slumbers as Eobert Comine had been. Indeed, resistance was 
 now scarcely thought of, even by the most desperate ; and the con- 
 quering army traversed Northumberland in all directions, killing 
 the unresisting. The sufi"ering3 of the inhabitants were fearful. 
 Between the Humber and the Tweed, more than a hundred thousand 
 human beings perished by famine and the sword; and many, bidding 
 farewell for ever to the fields and homesteads of their fathers, hurried 
 northward, and sought safety in the IMerse and Lothian. 
 
 But the expedition proved infinitely more fatiguing than any pre- 
 viouslj' undertaken by the conquerors. Their march was through ter- 
 rible roads, across rivers, and over hills covered with snow. On reach- 
 ing Hexham, William's army had suffered severely. Horses sank never 
 
 I 
 
114 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 to rise again, and tlie riders complained of the LardsliiiDS as intole- 
 rable. One dark night William was horrified to learn that his guides 
 had missed their way, and that he was separated from his army. 
 Tha Conqueror found himself in the awkward predicament of being 
 in a strange and hostile country, with not more than six attendants. 
 The circumstance caused him some pensive reflection; and when, 
 with the aid of the morning light, he regained his army, it appeared 
 that the danger he had passed had produced considerable effect on 
 his mind. 
 
 On reaching Hexham, William halted ; and ordering his captains 
 to overrun the country to the north and west, he returned to York, 
 and caused himself to be crowned in the northern capital. At the 
 same time he endeavoured to confirm his conquests by planting 
 Norman warriors of high rank throughout the territory that had 
 been subjugated. William de Warren, William de Percy, and others 
 were gifted with manors and villages in Yorkshire ; William de Lacy 
 obtained the great domain of Pontefract ; Robert de Brus was settled 
 in Durham; Ralph Meschines took possession of the mountainous 
 district of Cumberland ; Robert de Umfraville had a grant of 
 Prudhoe and Redesdale ; William de Merley obtained the lands of 
 Morpeth, on which he and his heirs built the castle of INIorpeth and 
 the abbey of Newminster ; and Ivo de Vesci became lord of Alnwick, 
 and husband of the heiress of a Saxon chief who had fallen at 
 Hastings. All these N'orman warriors erected strong castles, manned 
 the walls with foreign soldiers, and applied their energies to keep 
 down the Northimibrians. 
 
115 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 COSPATRICK AND THE CONQUEROR. 
 
 It would seem that William's taste of Northumberland during his 
 campaign made him pause and ponder. Perceiving the difficulty of 
 retaining such a district in subjection against the inclination of the 
 inhabitants, he recognised the policy of conciliation. Under such 
 circumstances he bethought him of the claims of a Saxon of illus- 
 trious birth, whom the Northumbrians regarded with pride as the 
 heir of their ancient earls. 
 
 At the time when Harold reigned at Westminster, when Tostig 
 was tempting the King of Norway to invade England, and when 
 William the Norman was preparing that mighty armament the 
 accounts of which filled the minds of the Saxons with dismay and 
 alarm, without rousing them to preparations for a patriotic resistance, 
 there might have been seen, in the north of England, riding some- 
 what discontentedly to the Northumbrian earl's court at York, or 
 stalking about the woods of Raby, with a spear in his right hand, a 
 hawk on his left wrist, and greyhounds running at his heels, a young 
 man with fair face and blue eyes, whose dress was the short garment, 
 reaching to mid-knee, of the Normans, but v.'hose moustache, long 
 hair, and speech, strongly tinctured with the "burr" which the 
 Danes introduced into Northumberland, indicated, in a manner not 
 to be mistaken, his genuinely English birth. He was a Saxon thane 
 of high consideration, and was known as Cospatrick. Frank and 
 tasty was this personage, ever too ready to trust foes and to quarrel 
 with friends; but with all his faults, he was destined to play in his 
 own day a conspicuous part in the affairs of struggling England 
 north of the Humber, and to figure in history as male ancestor of 
 the two mighty mediaeval families of Neville and Dunbar. 
 
 i2 
 
116 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 The fatlier of Cospatrick was Malred, the sou of Crinian ; and 
 his mother was Algitha, daughter of the great Uchtred, Earl of 
 Northumberlaud. Moreover, the blood of the Saxon kings ran in 
 Cospatrick's veins ; for Uchtred had married Elfgiva, King Ethelred's 
 daughter; and of that marriage Algitha was the issue. It was 
 natural that, with such a pedigree, Cospatrick should be somewhat 
 discontented ; that he should look with discontent on the domination 
 of the House of Godwin ; that, as grandson of Uchtred, he should 
 grow indignant at the sight of Tostig figuring as Earl of North- 
 umberland ; that, as great-grandson of Ethelred, he should boil with 
 indignation at the sight of Harold on the throne of his young kins- 
 man, the Atheling. 
 
 It is necessary, in order to comprehend the course taken by the 
 great Anglo-Saxon Houses at the time of the Conquest, to remember 
 that the members of Godwin's House appeared to them wholly 
 different beings from the personages represented to our generation 
 by the writers of romantic histories and historic romances. Almost 
 every one of them stood charged Avith some fearful crime. Edric 
 Streone was the worst of ingrates and traitors. Godwin had on his 
 hands the blood of the young Alfred. Sweyn had debauched a nun 
 and assassinated a kinsman. Harold had the weight of perjury and 
 usurpation on his soul. Tostig's name was associated with blood- 
 shed, savagery, and treason. Even Edith, the queen, was not free 
 from reproach. Chroniclers tell how, on the fourth night of Christ- 
 mas, 1065, while the Confessor was on his death-bed, starting rest- 
 lessly from dreams of woe and terror, Edith, for love of her brother, 
 Tostig, caused some Northumbrians, who were dependents of Cos- 
 patrick, to be murdered in the king's court. 
 
 Such being the idea entertained of the House of Godwin, Cos- 
 patrick was probably in no mood to pray for the usurpation of 
 Harold being attended with success. More probably, indeed, the 
 Saxon magnate, rich, potent, ambitious, and surrounded, in his halls 
 at Eaby, by a huge household of warriors, coerles, serfs, and adhe- 
 rents of every description, who fed at his board, lived on his hospi- 
 tality, and ministered to his pride, reflected with bitterness on being 
 excluded from the government of that magnificent province, which 
 
COSPATRICK AND THE COXQUEROR. 117 
 
 from infancy lie had been tauglit to regard as his birthright, and 
 only awaited a favourable opportunity to enforce his hereditary 
 claim to these fair domains. 
 
 Thus it came to pass^ that when the enterprise of the Normans so 
 prospered, that the Saxon prelates and chiefs carried Edgar Atheling 
 to Berkhampstead, Cospatrick claimed the earldom of Northumber- 
 land, as heir of Uchtred. William the Conqueror, however, proved 
 as unaccommodating as Harold the Usurper had been; and Cos- 
 patrick not only saw the government of Northumberland bestowed 
 upon another, but found that he was no longer safe on the south 
 of the Tweed. 
 
 However, when William perceived the necessity for cultivating 
 the good-will of the Northumbrians, he entered into negotiations 
 with Cospatrick, and indicated his readiness to come to terms. A 
 bargain was soon struck between the Conqueror and the grandson of 
 Uchtred. Cospatrick paid William a large sum of money, and 
 William invested Cospatrick with the earldom of Northumberland. 
 
118 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 XXVII. 
 
 SAXON SAINTS AND NORMAN SOLDIERS. 
 
 At the time when William the Conquerov was north of the Humber ; 
 when the aSTormans were ruthlessly ravaging Northumberland with 
 fire and sword; when the bishop and clergy of Durham were carry- 
 ing off the body of St. Cuthbert to Holy Island ; and when the 
 invaders were slaughtering man and beast without a thought of 
 mercy, one spot of ground escaped, as if by miracle, from devasta- 
 tion, and remained cultivated and covered with buildings, when 
 every other part of the country around was laid waste or given to 
 the flames. The land thus miraculously saved from the spoiler's hand 
 lay around, and belonged to, the church of St. John of Beverley. 
 
 It appears that, in 1070, when the Normans were encamped 
 about seven miles from Beverley, many Northumbrians, in utter 
 despair of resisting the invaders with the slightest success, remem- 
 bered, in the hour of darkness, that St. John of Beverley Avas a saint 
 of Saxon race, and, in accordance with the ideas prevalent at the 
 time, believed he was jjotent enough to afford them protection. 
 Alarmed beyond measure at the approach of the Conqueror, and at 
 the accounts of atrocities perpetrated by the victorious Normans, 
 many women of rank whose husbands and brothers had fallen, and 
 old men on the verge of the grave, taking with them their most valu- 
 able property, gathered to the church of Beverley, and prostrating 
 themselves at the shrine of St. John, prayed to their canonized 
 countryman, " that he, remembering in heaven he was born a Saxon, 
 might protect them and their property from the fury of the foreigners." 
 Having thus committed themselves to the care of St. John, the refu- 
 gees awaited the issue, with fear and trembling indeed, but not 
 without hope of salvation. 
 
 In the meantime, there reached the Norman camp tidings that 
 many Northumbrians of great riches- had sought shelter in the 
 
SAXON SAINTS AND NORMAN SOLDIERS. 119 
 
 church of Beverley, and that most of the wealth of the neighbour- 
 hood had been lodged in safety within the walls. This report 
 roused the avarice of the invaders; nor did any thought of the 
 sacred character of the edifice, or of the saint to whom it was dedi- 
 cated, restrain their aspirations after plunder. Whatever au Umfra- 
 ville or a ■\Ierley might think of sacrilege, the crime was one which 
 the majority of the conquerors I'ghtly regarded. Every considera- 
 tion, however holy, vanished in presence of the temptation presented 
 by the prospect of booty ; and the warriors of the Conquest had as 
 little hesitation in robbing a church as in plundering a henhouse. 
 
 Among the military adventurers encamped near Beverley was a 
 soldier named Toustain. This man, who seems to have had neither 
 scruples nor fears, on hearing that spoil was to be easily come by, 
 immediately resolved on a foray. Buckling on his mail, calling out 
 his men, and mounting his horse, Toustain, at the head of his troops, 
 rode from the camp, and dashed across the country to Beverley, 
 eager to commence the work of pillage, and only uneasy at the pos- 
 sibility of any one being before him. 
 
 But Toustain was destined to disappointment. Entering Beverley 
 with his band at his back, he rode on, and jDursued his way towards 
 the church without encountering resistance, and found that the 
 people had taken refuge and crowded together in the cemetery. 
 Giving his horse the spur, Toustain leaped the wall ; and running 
 his keen eye along the crov.'d, he was attracted by an old man, Avhose 
 attire was of the richest description. 
 
 The individual on whose fig-ure the eye of Toustain thus rested 
 was an aged thane — so advanced in years, indeed, that he probably 
 remembered the days of Earl Uchtred. With his long, loose robe, 
 long white hair, and long white moustache, the aspect of the man 
 was venerable and striking. But what attracted Toustaiu's attention 
 was not the white beard, nor the long robes, but the bracelets with 
 which, according to the custom of the countrj'-, the arms of the aged 
 thane were loaded. In fact, the sight of the bracelets caused Tous- 
 taiu's eye to gleam with avarice ; and drawing his f.word, he spurred 
 forward with the intention of making them his own. 
 
 But, according to the proverb, there is much between the cup and 
 
120 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 the lip ; and the truth of this Toustain now found to his cost. Ter- 
 rified at the Norman's drawn blade and menacing manner, the old 
 thane tottered hastily to the church, to place himself under the pro- 
 tection of the patron saint of the place ; and Toustain, who had no 
 more respect for the Saxon saint than for those who invoked his 
 aid, pursued sword in hand. Scarcely, however, had the Norman, 
 with avarice at his heart and blasphemy on his lips, spurred through 
 the doorway, when liis horse, touching the pavement, slipped, lost 
 its footing, and fell, bearing its rider to the ground Avith a crash 
 which seemed sufficient to break every bone in his body. 
 
 On seeing their leader fall, and lie as if dead, the Norman sol- 
 diers were seized with superstitious terror. It seemed as if the 
 Saxon saint had, in his wrath, struck Toustain down. Hurriedly 
 turning their horses' heads, they left Beverley at a gallop), hastened 
 in terror to their camp, and related to the companions of their 
 enterprise the terrible example which St. John of Beverley had just 
 given of his power. The accident produced a lasting effect on the 
 invading army; and when the Normans again marched to slay and 
 plunder, not one soldier in their ranks was daring enough to expose 
 himself to supernatural vengeance by molesting any person under 
 the protection of St. John of Beverley. 
 
 iiiii'i'llfiiii III I 
 
121 
 
 xxviir. 
 
 THE REDUCTIOX OF CHESTER. 
 
 While the conquerors of Northumberland passed the winter of 
 1070 at York, and rested from the fatigues they had undergone in 
 their campaign north of the Humber, William occupied his mind 
 with schemes for the reduction of the country around Chester — 
 " the one great city of England that had not yet heard the tramp of 
 the foreigners' horses." When winter passed, and spring began to 
 bring back the grass to the fields and leaves to the trees, the Nor- 
 man king intimated his intention of setting out on the important 
 expedition. 
 
 But the effect produced by William's orders, that war-steeds 
 should be saddled, and warriors should mount, to encounter new 
 perils, was such as he could hardly have anticipated. Loud murmurs 
 immediately arose in the army, especially among the auxiliaries from 
 Anjou and Brittany. Exaggerated accounts of the ruggedness of 
 the province of Chester and of the ferocity of the inhabitants cir- 
 culated through the camp; and the terrible hardships suffered in 
 Northumberland utterly disinclined the soldiers for a campaign on 
 the banks of the Dee. 
 
 " This service," said they, " is more intolerable than slavery. We 
 demand leave to return to our homes." 
 
 " Wait awhile," said William, coaxingly : " after victory I promise 
 you repose ; and with repose, great estates, as the reward of your 
 exertions." 
 
 After some difficulty the murmurs of the Normans were silenced ; 
 and William, leading his army over the intervening mountains by 
 paths till then deemed impracticable for cavalry, entered the city of 
 Chester as a conqueror. Having erected a strong castie to keep the 
 
122 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOKMANS. 
 
 natives in awe, he gave the command of the province to a Fleming, 
 named Gherbaud, with the title of Earl of Chester. 
 
 Elate, doubtless, with his good fortune, Gherbaud entered on his 
 duties with vigour. His ardour, however, was speedily damped. 
 It appeared that the accounts of the ferocity of the men of Chester 
 that had reached York were not altogether without foundation. 
 The English and Welsh, hitherto sworn foes, and continually at 
 strife, seemed to vie with each other in their attacks on the invaders. 
 Harassed on every hand, and exposed to continual anxiety and 
 peril, Gherbaud grew tired of Chester, abandoned his earldom, and 
 intensely disgusted with his taste of the conquered country, retired 
 to Flanders. 
 
 It now appeared necessary to place the earldom of Chester in the 
 hands of a man who, while gifted with the governing faculty, could 
 laugh at danger, and fatigue, and ferocious foes. Accordingly, Wil- 
 liam, duly weighing the circumstances of the case, conferred the post 
 of danger on that feudal personage who figures in the history of the 
 period as Hugh d'Avranches, and who, from bearing a wolf's head 
 painted on his shield, was familiarly known among his contempo- 
 raries as Hugh le Loup. 
 
 Hugh le Loup was son of Ptichard Gosse, and, on the mother's 
 side, stood to William in the relationship of nephew. Full of 
 courage and ambition, he shrunk neither from the perils nor the 
 toils that had disgusted and dismayed Gherbaud. Passing the Dee 
 with his two lieutenants, Eobert de JMalpas and Eobert d'Avranches, 
 Hugh conqixered Flintshire, and built a castle at Ehuddlan, which 
 was occupied by Robert d'Avranches; while Robert de Malpas having 
 built a castle on a high hill, gave the place his name, which it still 
 bears. Both of these warriors exhibited high courage, carried on a 
 fierce war with the natives, and fought sanguinary battles, in which 
 they dyed their spears in Welsh blood. 
 
 When Hugh le Loup found himself installed as Earl of Chester, 
 but surrounded on all sides by implacable foes, he naturally felt 
 desirous of having some of his countrymen at hand to share his 
 fortunes. With this view he sent to Normandy for an old friend, 
 named Nigel, who brought with him five brothers, to whom Hugh 
 
THE REDUCTION OF CHESTER. 123 
 
 granted lands in the earldom of Chester. Besides appointing Nigel 
 Constable and Hereditary j\Iarshal of Chester, Hugh granted him 
 the town of Halton, near the Mersey, and all four-legged beasts of 
 more than one colour taken from the Welsh, besides other privileges ; 
 and the five brothers were all provided for. One was gifted with 
 the office of Constable of Halton, and the lands of Weston and 
 Ashton, with all the bulls taken from the Welsh, and the best ox for 
 the man-at-arms who carried his banner ; the second of the brothers 
 received as much land as an ox could plough in two days; the third, 
 who was a priest, was gifted with the church of Runcorn ; and two 
 others became lords of a domain in that village. 
 
 About the time that Hugh le Loup was consolidating his power 
 in Chester, Gilbert de Lacy, to whom William had granted the 
 magnificent domain of Pontefract, passed the mountains west of 
 York, advancing boldly into the county of Lancaster, which then 
 formed j)art of Chester. Gilbert took possession of this immense 
 territoiy, extending south and east to the borders of Yorkshire, 
 forcibly expelled the ancient proprietors, and constituted himself 
 lord of the towns of Blackburn and Kochdale, and all the land which 
 he overran. 
 
 ilint Castle, on the Estuaxy oi' the Dee 
 
124 
 
 luins of the Fcruni at Kome 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 LAN FRANC OF PA VI A. 
 
 About Easter, 1070, three ecclesiastics of high rank, sent by the 
 Pope, at King William's request, arrived in England in the capacity 
 of legates. One was bishop of Sion, the other two were cardinals, 
 and their errand was to set the Church of England in order. After 
 being received by William with great honour, and magnificently 
 entertained in the castle of Winchester, the legates convoked a great 
 assembly of Norman priests and warriors, and summoned to it the 
 Anglo-Saxon prelates and abbots. Having opened the business of 
 the assembly by solemnly placing the Confessor's crown on the Con- 
 queror's head, they proceeded to the discharge of their harsh duties, 
 and pronounced sentence of deposition on many abbots and prelates. 
 
LANFRANC OF PAVIA. 125 
 
 Among those who were deposed, the most important, from liis 
 position and influence, was Robert Stigand, Archbishop of Canter- 
 bury, The difficulty of finding a proper successor to Stigand was 
 not overlooked. "Without delay, the legates prejpared to bestow the 
 archbishopric of Canterbury on Lanfranc of Pavia, one of the 
 greatest scholars and most remarkable men of the century in wliich 
 he lived. 
 
 Lanfranc was a native of the city of Pavia, and a man of gentle 
 blood. A scholar by nature, he early applied himself to those 
 studies which enabled him to figure as the leader of the intellectual 
 movement of the age. It has been said that, " to comprehend the 
 extent of his talents, one must be Herodian in grammar, Aristotle 
 in dialectics, Cicero in rhetoric, Augustine and Jerome in scriptural 
 lore." 
 
 Becoming a monk of Bec-Hellouin, Lanfranc rapidly raised that 
 humble monastery to the dignity of a university, and came to be 
 acknowledged as the great teacher of Latin Christendom. So signal 
 was his success, and so high his reputation, that, from the remotest 
 parts of Western Europe, and even from Greece, students resorted 
 to Bec-Hellouin as to a new Athens. 
 
 While at Bec-Hellouin, Lanfranc had the gratification to gain the 
 confidence of William the Norman, and he became zealously at- 
 tached to the ambitious duke's fortunes. But a serious difference 
 arose. Lanfranc happened to set himself in opposition to William's 
 marriage with Matilda of Flanders, as being within the degrees of 
 relationship prohibited by the Church; and as, in regard to this 
 affair, the duke would brook no contradiction, the priest of Pavia 
 was commanded to depart. It is related that William, to speed 
 Lanfranc on his way back to his native land, sent him a horse so 
 lame of one foot, that it might be said to go on three legs, and that 
 Lanfranc, meeting William on the road, begged at least to have a 
 quadruped, and not a tripod, for his journey. But however that 
 may have been, Lanfranc found his way to Rome, and placed him- 
 self under the wing of the Pope. 
 
 Once at Rome, Lanfranc began carefully to examine the case of 
 William's relationship to Matilda in all its bearings. Ere long, his 
 
126 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 opinion as to its merits underwent a change. After examining canon 
 and precedent, lie arrived at tlie conclusion that, though the letter of 
 the law was against the union of the duke and the Flemish princess, 
 yet that the alliance came under the category of those to which the 
 Church should accord dispensation. Having convinced himself on 
 this point, Lanfranc exerted his efforts earnestly as "William's advo- 
 cate, and though dealing with a Pope decidedly averse to the mar- 
 riage, he managed matters so skilfully as to obtain a formal dis- 
 pensation, which not only restored him to the Norman duke's good 
 opinion, but gave him a higher place in the martial magnate's favour 
 than he before occupied. 
 
 Eemoved from the cloisters of Bec-Hellouin to figure as Abbot 
 of Caen, Lanfranc became the soul of William's councils and his 
 plenipotentiary at Eome. He it was who, in that capacity, brought 
 to a successful issue the negotiations regarding the invasion of Eng- 
 land. 
 
 When the papal legate proposed Lanfranc as Stigand's successor 
 in the archbishopric of Canterbury, William gladly approved of the 
 selection. Lanfranc was then at Caen. No time, however, was lost 
 in sending him to England. Matilda hastened his departure ; and 
 his arrival was celebrated by the Normans with joy. " He is," said 
 they, "an institutor sent from God to reform the habits of the 
 English." 
 
 The gratification which the elevation of Lanfranc caused was not 
 confined to the conquerors of Neustria and England. The Pope 
 evinced his high satisfaction by sending his own pallium to the new 
 archbishop, with an epistle worded in the most complimentary strain. 
 
 " I long to see your face," wrote the Pontiff, " and am only con- 
 soled for your absence by reflecting on the happy fruits which Eng- 
 land will derive from your care." 
 
 When Lanfranc made his entry into Canterbury, the condition to 
 which the church was reduced filled his heart with sadness. Duiing 
 the Conquest the edifice had met with rough treatment. It had 
 been pillaged, despoiled of its ornaments, and even set on fire, and 
 the high altar was half buried beneath a heap of rubbish. 
 
 It was not difficult for a man of Lanfranc's influence to repair the 
 
LANFRANC OF PAVIA. 127 
 
 church; but there Avas a grave question, -whether Canterbury or 
 York should possess the primacy of England, which had long fur- 
 nished matter for dispute. It was a serious controversy, and one 
 from which Lanfranc felt that it would ill become him to shrink. 
 
 By this time the Saxon Aired, boAved down with sorrow, had gone 
 where the weary are at rest, and Thomas, one of William's Norman 
 chaplains, figured as Archbishop of York. Thomas was naturally 
 reluctant to give up his claims ; and some of the earlier evidences 
 were so ambiguous, that he had a fair excuse for being pertinacious. 
 After a long process, however, Lanfranc established his claim to the 
 primacy; became, as such, first member of the Grand Council of 
 State, and by his success established the great principle, "that 
 whatever rights had legally subsisted before the Conquest were to be 
 preserved and maintained, unaffected by the accession of a new 
 dynasty," 
 
 After thus being recognised as primate, Lanfranc was hailed as, 
 " by the grace of God, father of all the churches," and as such 
 undertook a task of great delicacy. Owing to the ignorance of 
 Anglo-Saxon transcribers, the text of the biblical books had become 
 much corrupted ; and Lanfranc employed himself in a new edition 
 of the Holy Scriptures, diligently occupying himself with the work, 
 and executing much of it with his own hand. The Saxons, in- 
 capable of comprehending the necessity that existed for such re- 
 vision, raised a cry that the primate was falsifying the sacred books. 
 But Lanfranc went on with his labours, and without heeding the 
 hostile attitude assumed towards him by the vanquished islanders, 
 was ever zealous in standing up for their rights. He endeavoured 
 to enact the part of a father to the conquered populace ; he devoted 
 his whole energies to the service of his adopted country, and he ever 
 rejoiced in the name of Englishman. 
 
 library. 
 
128 
 
 Edwin, Earl of Ivlercia, and the daughters of the Conqueror. 
 
 XXX. 
 
 EDWIN AND MORKAE. 
 
 While Lanfranc was, as Arclibisliop of Canterbury, establisliing his 
 claims to the primacy of England, the year 1071 witnessed the utter 
 ruin of that great Saxon House of which, in the days of Edward the 
 Confessor, Leofric, Earl of Mercia, had been the head. 
 
EDWIN AND MORKAR. 129 
 
 Edwin and Morkar, the sons of Algar, and grandsons of Leofric 
 and Godiva, were fair to look upon and pleasant to converse with. 
 They were proud, indeed, but their pride did not detract from their 
 popularity. The people rather thought it became them ; for it was 
 well known that, while the immediate forefathers of most Saxon 
 thanes had held the plough or enriched themselves by trade, the 
 Mercian earls could justly boast of a long pedigree. Leofric, the 
 husband of Godiva, was sixth in descent from his renowned an- 
 cestor of the same name ; and his heirs were all the prouder of the 
 circumstance, that their position had been maintained with honour 
 and dignity, while other families, yielding to wars, revolutions, and 
 confiscations, had ceased to exist or degenerated into ceorles. 
 
 Edwin, Earl of Mercia, was considered the handsomest man of 
 his age. With the earldom of Leofric, he had inherited the beauty 
 of Godiva. His frank features, valiant spirit, and engaging manners 
 made him a great favourite with men; and few women, whether 
 peasant girls or princesses, could look without admiration upon his 
 fair face, blue eyes, handsome figure, and the long light hair that 
 flowed over his manly shoulders. 
 
 Edwin and Morkar had taken no part in the battle of Hastings. 
 That, however, was no fault of theirs, for Harold, rashly as it would 
 seem, had left London to encounter the Normans before his brothers- 
 in-law could possibly bring up the men of the north to his aid. On 
 reaching London they heard of his defeat and fall. 
 
 The idea of aspiring to the vacant throne was not unnatural to 
 men situated as Edwin and ]\Iorkar were. They accordingly 
 appeared as candidates for the difficult post of King of England. 
 \Vhat might have been the result if one of them had been elected it 
 would be useless to speculate. Sufficient it is to say that the adhe- 
 rents of Edgar Atheling were too resolute to be influenced and too 
 numerous to be overawed. Finding their claims disregarded, Edwin 
 and Morkar took their sister Aldith, the wido^v of Harold, from the 
 palace of Westminster, escorted her to Chester, and then repaired to 
 York with some dream of separating the northern provinces from 
 
 the rest of England, and defending them to the deartir-agftiBst.the 
 Norman invaders. . . ^'^^ j,^. j. ^ "^ ^" \x 
 
130 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS, 
 
 Events speedily opened the eyes of tlie northern earls to the 
 absurdity of their project. Almost every day brought to York such 
 intelligence as convinced them that they were pursuing an impolitic 
 course; and when they learned that William the Xorman had 
 obtained possession of London and the Confessor's crown, they 
 deemed it prudent to hasten southward to present themselves to the 
 Conqueror, to profess their friendship, and offer their allegiance. 
 
 William, well understanding the importance of being recognised as 
 king by such men as Edwin and Morkar, treated the sons of Algar 
 with distinction. ]\Ioreover, to insure the fidelity of the two 
 brothers, William promised Edwin one of his daughters in marriage ; 
 and, fascinated by the prospects opened up to their view, they re- 
 mained quietly and submissively at the Conqueror's court. It does 
 not appear to have occurred to them that they were regarded in the 
 light either of captives or of hostages. 
 
 As months passed on, however, and William, anxious to display 
 himself on the Continent in his new character, prepared to embark 
 at Pevensey for JSTormandy, Edwin and Morkar suddenly learned 
 their real position. The Conqueror peremptorily commanded the 
 attendance of the two Saxon earls, and they were fain to obey. But 
 it was with sullen reluctance; and when, after having been duly 
 admired and criticised by the dames and damsels at the court of 
 Eouen, they returned to England, it was with a determination to 
 break their chains without delay. 
 
 Matters were soon brought to a crisis. Edwin reminded William 
 of the promise of his daughter's hand, and demanded her in mar- 
 riage. William made a reply which sounded like a refusal, and 
 seemed to savour of insult. The Saxon earl tossed back his head 
 with an air of defiance, as if to indicate his opinion that the grand- 
 daughter of Arlette would have been highly honoured by becoming 
 the wife of the gi'andson of Godiva. Soon after, it was publicly 
 known that Edwin and Morkar, having escaped from the court, had 
 departed for the north ; and the prayers of the people accompanied 
 them in their flight, while monks and priests offered up fervent 
 orisons for their safety and success. 
 
 The prayers and orisons, however, cannot be said to have proved 
 
EDWIN AND MOEKAE. 131 
 
 of mucli avail. The enterprise of Edwin and Morkar resulted iu 
 failure; the Saxon earls were fain to retreat to the borders of 
 Scotland; and events ere long seeming to render the Saxon cause 
 hopeless, the chiefs, after William's coronation at York, lost heart 
 and hope, and consented to capitulate. On the banks of the Tees, 
 where William was encamped, a formal reconciliation took place. 
 Edwin and ]\Iorkar, with other Saxons of high name, made their 
 peace with the Conqueror, and with a sigh for the freedom they left 
 behind, returned to his court. 
 
 Brief, however, was the residence of the Saxon earls in the halls 
 of the Norman king. In fact, the deposition of the Saxon bishops, 
 and the sufferings they had to endure, fired the soul of every Saxon 
 with fierce indignation. A mighty conspiracy was formed, with 
 ramifications over all England; and men, driven to the last stage 
 of despair, determined to establish an extensive armed station. 
 
 At that time the district to the north of Cambridgeshire, of whicli 
 Ely and Croyland formed part, was almost a moving bog, intersected 
 by rivers, overgrown with rushes and willows, clouded with fogs and 
 vapours, and presenting the appearance of a vast lake interspersed 
 with islands. On these islands there stood, as monuments of the 
 piety of the Saxon kings, religious houses, built on piles and earth 
 brought from a distance — here an abbey, there a hermitage. 
 
 It was to this district, wholly impracticable for cavalry and 
 heavily-armed troops, that Saxon chiefs despoiled of their lands, 
 and Saxon priests deprived of their livings, repaired in great 
 numbers. Constructing intrenchments of earth and wood, they 
 formed what was called the Camp of Kefuge. Thither, from Scot- 
 land, came Eobert Stigand, the deposed Archbishop of Canterbury, 
 and Eghelwin, the deposed Bishop of Durham ; and thither, from, 
 the court of the Norman, after having escaped countless perils, and 
 wandered for months in woods and solitary places, came Edwin and 
 Morkar, the Saxon earls. 
 
 William was startled at this second escape of his long-haired 
 captives, and by no means easy at the idea of their being at liberty. 
 He immediately contrived to convey to them promises never intended 
 to be kept, and Morkar was sufficiently credulous to listen. Yielding 
 
132 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 to the temptations held out, the young earl abandoned the camp at 
 Ely. Scarcely, however, had he left the intrenchments when he 
 was seized, bound hand and foot, carried to a Norman castle, put 
 forcibly in irons, and left under the custody of Robert de Beaumont 
 — one of those men from whose keeping there was small chance of 
 escaping. 
 
 Edwin, hearing of his brother's imprisonment, became somewhat 
 desperate. He resolved to leave Ely, not to surrender, but to 
 struggle so long as life remained. With a few adherents he 
 Avandered for six months from place to place, vainly endeavouring 
 to rouse his countrymen to a great effort for their deliverance. 
 "While thus occupied he was betrayed by three of his officers, who 
 basely sold him to the Normans. Warned of his danger, Edwin 
 was one day riding, with twenty attendants, towards the sea, with 
 some notion of reaching the coast of Scotland, when a band of Nor- 
 mans suddenly rushed upon him. Endeavouring to escape, the 
 Saxon earl galloped on ; but stopped by a brook so swollen with 
 the tide that it was impossible to cross, he dismounted from his 
 steed and turned desperately to bay. 
 
 Nor in that hour did the young and popular Saxon earl bear him- 
 self in a manner unworthy of his position as one of the great race 
 which for six centuries had given kings and war-chiefs to the British 
 isles. For a long time he defended himself with heroic courage 
 against a host of assailants ; and at last — when overborne by numbers 
 and forced to his knees, he fell as, in such circumstances, a brave 
 man should — he died without fear, as he had fought without hope. 
 
 The death of Edwin was lamented by Normans as well as Saxons ; 
 even the grim Conqueror's heart was touched to the core. When the 
 head of the Saxon earl, with its long, flowing hair, was carried to 
 London, WiUiam could not restrain his tears. The king, says the 
 chronicler, wept over the fate of one whom he loved, and whom he 
 would fain have attached to his fortunes. 
 
133 
 
 — ^? 
 
 XXXI. 
 
 IVO TAILLE-BOIS. 
 
 Among the martial adventurers of the Continent whom William the 
 Norman, before sailing to the Conquest, allured to his standard, and 
 whose services he rewarded with the lands and lordships of the 
 
134 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORIIANS. 
 
 Saxons, slain, imprisoned, or expatriated during his progress from 
 the coast of Sussex to the verge of " mountainous Northumberland," 
 one of the most unpopular with the vanquished islanders was Ivo 
 TaHle-Bois. 
 
 Nevertheless, Ivo Taille-Bois was a remarkable man in his way. 
 A native of Angers, he came to the Conquest as a captain of Angevin 
 auxiliaries, with a spirit equally mercenary and unscrupulous. For- 
 tune favoured his career ; and having done much work from which 
 a, Norman noble would have shrunk, he found that his aspirations 
 after wealth and power were likely to be realized. It was on the 
 ruins of the great House of Leofric that Ivo eventually contrived to 
 exalt himself. 
 
 When Edwin was killed, under circumstances so touching, and 
 Morkar was imprisoned, under circumstances so melancholy, Ivo 
 Taille-Bois received in marriage Lucy, the youngest sister of the two 
 earls, and with her a large part of their hereditary domains. This 
 immediately made Ivo a man of importance ; and as the bulk of 
 his land was situated about Spalding, towards the borders of Cam- 
 bridge and Lincoln, he called himself Viscount of Spalding, and 
 began to let the inhabitants feel his territorial power in such a way, 
 that they cursed the chance which had metamorphosed a captain of 
 mercenaries into a feudal lord. 
 
 Among a band of conquerors such as accompanied William the 
 Norman to England, there must always be many more or less tyran- 
 nical to the vanquished; but the tyranny of Ivo Taille-Bois was 
 something by itself He was so fond of outraging the feelings and 
 invading the rights of the populace, that he seemed to indulge in it 
 as a luxury ; and no humility on their part could in the slightest 
 degree mitigate his violence. It was in vain that they paid all the 
 rents he demanded ; that they rendered all the services he required ; 
 that they appeared in his presence on bended knee ; and that they 
 addressed him in the most deferential tone : he only became the 
 more cruel and more exacting. 
 
 The account given by a contemporary chronicler of the oppressions 
 practised by Ivo Taille-Bois on the inhabitants of the district subject 
 to his sway is sufficient, even at this distance of time, to excite 
 
IVO TAILLE-BOIS. 135 
 
 strong indignation. Tliougli they rendered liim all possible lionour, 
 he showed them neither affability nor kindness ; on the contrary, he 
 vexed them, imprisoned them, tormented them, and tortured them. 
 Often he hounded his dogs on their cattle while quietly grazing, 
 drove their beasts into the marshes, drowned them in ponds, broke 
 their backs or limbs, and by mutilating them in various ways, 
 rendered them unfit for service. 
 
 Ivo seemed to delight in cruelty for cruelty's sake; and under 
 such treatment, the people who were his victims gradually gave way 
 to despair. Selling what little they still possessed, they sought in 
 other lands the peace no longer to be found at home. Ivo, how- 
 ever, feeling the necessity of somebody to oppress, and looking 
 round, fixed his eyes on some Saxon monks. 
 
 It happened that there stood near Spalding, and by the gates of 
 the terrible Angevin, a religious house which was dependent on the 
 abbey of Croyland and inhabited by some of the Croyland monks. 
 Ivo, having forced the peasantry of the neighbourhood to decamp, 
 turned his attention to this religious house, and soon succeeded in 
 making it an earthly purgatory. The monks attempted to save 
 themselves by refraining from giving the slightest ofi"ence ; but this 
 only added to his bitterness. He lamed their horses and cattle, 
 killed their sheep and poultry, attacked their servants on the high- 
 way, and oppressed their tenants in every way which his ingenuity 
 could invent. 
 
 Nevertheless, the monks held on. Xot by any means inclined to 
 yield their home without a struggle, they did all they could, by 
 jDrayers, supplications, and presents to his dependents, to soften 
 Ivo's heart. But they were utterly unsuccessful. They found that 
 matters became worse and worse. Their patience and long-suffering 
 came to an end. They packed up their books and their sacred 
 vessels, and committing their house to God's keeping, prepared to 
 depart. " We have tried all, and suffered all," said they; "now let 
 us begone ;" and shaking the dust from their feet, they repaired to 
 €royland. 
 
 On the departure of the monks Ivo was rejoiced beyond measure. 
 He immediately despatched a messenger to his native town of 
 
136 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Angers, and requested to have some holy men sent over to England. 
 A prior and five monks soon appeared, and took possession of the 
 religious house at Spalding. The Abbot of Croyland, who was an 
 Anglo-Saxon, protested against their installation, and complained to 
 the king's council against proceedings so lawless. But no redress 
 could be obtained ; and Ivo Taille-Bois continued in the daily per- 
 petration of enormities, for which, had he lived two centuries later, 
 he would have been tried before a jury at Westminster, and hanged 
 at the Nine Elms. 
 
 1. orman rustic (froia Strutt) 
 
137 
 
 Tattershall Caslle, Lincolnshire. 
 
 XXXII. 
 
 HEREWARD THE SAXON. 
 
 While Edgar Atheling was seeking refuge in Scotland, and while 
 Edwin and Morkar were, by their wavering, bringing ruin on the 
 House of Leofric, and rendering the Saxon cause utterly hopeless, 
 there was living in Flanders a native of England, who bore the 
 name of Hereward and a high reputation for courage and prowess. 
 Hereward, having long been settled in Flanders, had taken no 
 
ISS DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 part in the earlier struggle between Normans and Saxons. Some of 
 the vanquished islanders, however, flying from the Conqueror's sword, 
 sought their countryman, and intimated that they brought him bad 
 news. 
 
 "Your father," said the exiles, "has been dead for a year; your 
 mother has been exposed to many indignities and vexations ; and 
 your heritage is in possession of a foreigner." 
 
 "By the Holy Rood!" exclaimed Hereward, "if such are the 
 tidings you bring from England, it is high time for me to be there." 
 
 After this, Hereward was not guilty of any delay. He prepared 
 for a voyage, embarked for England, reached the coast, and made 
 his way to Lincolnshire, where, surrounded by woodland and 
 marshes, with a wide avenue in front, and an orchard in the rear, 
 near the abbeys of Croyland and Peterborough, and near the Isle of 
 Ely, stood the rude wooden mansion which his fathers had called 
 their own. The sight of his birthplace fired Hereward's patriotism ; 
 and making himself known to such of his friends and kinsmen as 
 had survived the struggle, he induced them to arm. Having, without 
 exciting the suspicion of the Normans, assembled them in a body, 
 he attacked the foreigner who had evicted his mother, and conducted 
 the enterprise with such courage, that he was enabled to take pos- 
 session of his property. 
 
 But scarcely had Hereward installed himself in his paternal 
 property, when he found that he could not, with safety, limit his 
 operations to a single exploit. Accordingly he commenced a par- 
 tisan warfare in the neighbourhood of his dvv'elling, and at the head 
 of his little band encountered the garrisons of towns and strong- 
 holds. Such were the skill and courage he displayed, that his name 
 soon became celebrated over England. Songs in his praise were 
 sung in the streets, and the Saxons turned their eyes towards him 
 with hope long unfelt. 
 
 On hearing of the exploits of Hereward, the Saxons who had 
 formed the Camp of Refuge at Ely requested him to become their 
 captain ; and Hereward, most readily consenting, passed, with the 
 comrades of his victories, to the Isle. His arrival excited the cou- 
 rage and revived the hopes of the Saxons. Before taking the com- 
 
HEREWARD THE SAXON. 139 
 
 mand, however, lie desired to become a member of the high Saxon 
 militia, and to be admitted with the proper ceremonies into that body. 
 
 The demand was suggestive of some difficulties, for it was neces- 
 sary to have the services of a priest of high rank to bless the arms, 
 and at this stage of the Conquest few priests of high rank were 
 sufficiently courageous to defy the wrath of the conquerors. Among 
 those, however, who regarded Hereward as the hero destined to save 
 his country was Brand, the Abbot of Peterborough. This abbot, a 
 man of high temper and indomitable spirit, consented to perform the 
 ceremony ; and Hereward repaired to the abbey. Having confessed 
 at evening, and watched all night in the church, he laid his sword on 
 the altar at the hour of mass in the morning, received, while kneeling, 
 his blade from the hand of the abbot, took the sacrament, and rose 
 to go forth and wield it in the cause of his country. 
 
 The ceremony that was performed in the abbey of Peterborough 
 was no secret to the ISTormans in the neighbourhood. The knights 
 with whom Hereward had crossed swords soon learned that he had 
 repaired to the abbey, and sneered scornfully at the idea of a 
 warrior's belt being girded on by an abbot. 
 
 " He who has his sword girded on by a priest," said they, " is not 
 knight, but a degenerate burgess." 
 
 But it was against the Saxon abbot, in the first place, and not 
 against Hereward, that the wrath of the conquerors was directed. 
 No sooner did news of the ceremony at Peterborough reach the ears 
 of those high in authority, than Brand was doomed ; and ere long 
 soldiers appeared to seize him in the king's name. They, however, 
 were too late. Before their arrival he had breathed his last ; and 
 a foreigner was, without delay, appointed to fill the bold Saxon's 
 place. 
 
 Among the fighting churchmen whom the Conquest had introduced 
 to England was a native of Fecamp, named Turauld. Accommodated 
 with an abbey at the expense of the vanquished, this man had ren- 
 dered himself notorious by the stern method he used of drilling the 
 Saxon monks into discipline. Whenever they proved refractory he 
 was in the habit of crying, '-'A moi, mes hommes d'armcs;" and he 
 made his abbey the scene of military violence. 
 
140 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 The system pursued by Turauld in his abbey soon became a matter 
 of notoriety, and reached the king's ears. William thought himself 
 bound to interfere, but was at some loss to decide in what way such 
 an offender should be punished. On the death of Abbot Brand, 
 however, the difficulty vanished, and Turauld was immediately ap- 
 pointed to the abbey of Peterborough. 
 
 " That is somewhat near the Saxon Camp of Refuge," remarked 
 Turauld. 
 
 " It is a dangerous post, doubtless," said William, smiling grimly ; 
 '•'but very fit for an abbot who is so good a soldier." 
 
 Attended by Norman warriors, Turauld in due time approached 
 Peterborough to take possession. But apprehensive of danger, he 
 halted some leagues from the abbey, and sent men forward to ascer- 
 tain the position of the refugees. 
 
 The monks of Peterborough, in the utmost trepidation, determined 
 to admit the foreigner; and Hereward, not unaware of their intentions, 
 made a descent on the abbey. Finding that the monks could not be 
 relied on, he resolved on a desperate expedient. While the scouts 
 of Turauld were making observations, he carried off the crosses, 
 chalices, sacred vessels, and whatever valuable ornaments the abbey 
 contained, and conveyed them by water to the camp. 
 
 " Now," he said, " we have hostages for the fidelity of the monks." 
 
 Soon after Hereward left the abbey of Peterborough, Turauld, 
 encompassed by Norman lances, presented himself at the gates. 
 The monks, trembling for their lives, bent their shaven crowns, and 
 admitted their new abbot without hesitation ; and Turauld, having 
 taken possession, was forthwith installed. At the same time he 
 appropriated sixty-two hides of land belonging to the abbey to his 
 soldiers, to reward their services and encourage their zeal. 
 
 Meantime, Ivo Taille-Bois, clad in his linked mail, and followed by 
 armed men, rode to the abbey of Peterborough. On being admitted 
 to the abbot's presence Ivo proposed an expedition to the Isle of 
 Ely, to destroy the Camp of Refuge and crush the insurgents. 
 Turauld sanctioned the expedition, but declined to take an active 
 part in it ; and everything having been arranged, the Angevin vis- 
 count advanced boldly with his men through the forests and wiUows 
 
HEREWARD THE SAXON. 14)1 
 
 ■wMch served tlie Saxons as intrencliments, while tlie abbot, sur- 
 rounded by Normans of high rank, remained at what he considered 
 a safe distance. 
 
 But Ivo Taille-Bois was destined to miss his foes, and Turauld to 
 meet those whom Ivo sought. Aware of the projects of the Normans 
 and of their movements, Hereward was on the alert. Contriving to 
 escape unobserved from the wood by one side whUe Ivo entered by 
 the other, the Saxon chief, leaving the Angevin viscount to pursue 
 his search in vain, fell suddenly upon the abbot and the abbot's 
 Norman attendants, seized them without difficulty as prisoners, and 
 kept them securely in the marshes till they paid a large ransom. 
 
 Nevertheless, the position of Hereward and his comrades became 
 every day more perilous. About this time, however, they were rein- 
 forced by allies, whose presence inspired them with some hope of 
 accomplishing their country's deliverance. Indignant at his brother's 
 conduct at York, Sweyn, King of Denmark, fitted out a new fleet, 
 and came in person to the aid of the vanquished islanders. But the 
 royal Dane soon tired of an enterprise which he found was much 
 less promising than he had anticipated. After sailing up the Hum- 
 ber without receiving any particular encouragement, he returned to 
 Denmark. 
 
 But, however disappointed he might have been, Swejii, while 
 departing from the shores of England, did not withdraw his fleet. 
 Entering Boston Wash, the Danish ships, by the mouth of the Ouse 
 and the Glen, succeeded in reaching the Isle of Ely. Hereward 
 hailed with joy the arrival of the Danes, and welcomed them as 
 friends and liberators. 
 
 William was startled at the arrival of Danish auxiliaries, but he 
 was not particularly perplexed. Perfectly comprehending how to 
 deal with King Sweyn, the Conqueror hastened to send ambassadors 
 to Denmark with artful messages and costly presents. The successor 
 of Canute, completely won over to the Norman cause, did without 
 scruple that which he had, some months earlier, punished his brother 
 for doing ; and Hereward and his comrades soon learned to their 
 dismay that they were once more betrayed by their Northern allies. 
 When the Danes at Ely, on whose powerful aid Hereward had 
 
142 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 built such hopes, received orders to return home, they were far from 
 manifesting any reluctance. They seemed determined, however, not 
 to go empty-handed. In fact, the temptation of carrying off the 
 ornaments and sacred vessels which Hereward had brought from the 
 abbey of Peterborough was more than the grisly Northmen could 
 resist ; and seizing everything in the way of treasure upon which 
 they could lay hands, they embarked, and turning the prows of their 
 ships homewards, gave their sails to the wind, laughing grimly at 
 the ridiculous plight in which they left the men they had come to 
 save. 
 
 Affairs now hurried to a catastrophe. Ivo Taille-Bois and Abbot 
 Turauld rejoiced in the hope of triumph and revenge ; and Hereward 
 could not but confess that the prospects of the Saxons at Ely were 
 dismal in the extreme. By-and-by news reached the Camp of Eefuge 
 that William was assembling forces, and that a great blow was to be 
 struck, and as weeks passed on, the Camp of Refuge was invested by 
 land and water. On every side workmen were set to form dykes and 
 causeways over the marshes ; and on the west, over waters covered 
 with reeds and willows, the Normans commenced the construction 
 of a road three hundred paces in length. 
 
 But most of the labour was found to be in vain. The Normans 
 had no rest. Hereward and his friends, incessant in their attacks 
 and artful in their stratagems, constantly interrupted the work ; and 
 the workmen, finding themselves disturbed in the most sudden and 
 unexpected manner, gave way to superstitious terror. 
 
 " Assuredly," they exclaimed, " this Hereward is in league with 
 the EvH One." 
 
 " Think you so V cried Ivo Taille-Bois ; " then we must fight him 
 with his own weapons." 
 
 The idea of the Angevin viscount was highly approved of; and 
 he soon procured the services of a witch, whose enchantments, he 
 declared, would disenchant Hereward's operations. Accordingly this 
 woman was brought to the scene of action, and posted in a wooden 
 tower at the place where the work was in progress. The result, how- 
 ever, was not such as Ivo had predicted. In fact, while the Norman 
 pioneers and soldiers were all confident in the potency of the witch's 
 
HEREWAED THE SAXON. 143 
 
 cliarms, Hereward suddenly made a sally, set fire to tlie osiers that 
 covered the marsh like a forest, and gave witch, workmen, and 
 warriors to the flames. 
 
 At this fresh misfortune the Normans began to consider their en- 
 terprise hopeless, and the blood of Ivo Taille-Bois boiled at the 
 thought of being baffled by a " degenerate burgess" like Hereward. 
 The address and activity of the Saxon chief really seemed to preclude 
 the possibility of success. Nevertheless, the Normans persevered ; 
 and for months the Isle of Ely was blockaded so closely that pro- 
 visions were with extreme difiiculty obtained from without. 
 
 When the operations reached this stage, WilKam bethought him of 
 the monks of Ely, and devised a scheme for enforcing their aid. 
 Without warning he seized all the manors belonging to the abbey 
 situated without the Isle ; and the monks, unable to endure poverty 
 and misery, and the famine that stared them in the face, resolved to 
 put an end to the contest. With this view they sent to the Norman 
 camp, and ofi'ered to show a passage, on condition of being left in 
 possession of their property. Gilbert dc Clare and William Warren 
 having plighted their faith, and a treaty having been entered into, the 
 monks fulfilled their promise, and the Normans prepared to pene- 
 trate into the Isle. 
 
 Hereward and the Saxons, utterly unsuspicious of the treachery 
 of the monks of Ely, were resting from their arduous exertions, when 
 the sound of arms and the war-cry of Normans intimated that their 
 foes were upon them. Completely taken by surprise, the Saxons 
 were in no position to resist ; and after a thousand of them had 
 fallen, the camp was closely surrounded, and the majority were forced 
 to lay down their arms. But better far would it have been for them 
 to fight to the last. Many of those who submitted had their hands 
 cut off and their eyes put out, and were then turned adrift as warn- 
 ings against future revolts ; others — and among them Archbishop 
 Stigand and Bishop Eghelwin — were incarcerated and sentenced to 
 imprisonment for life. 
 
 But in the midst of carnage and disaster, Hereward was un- 
 daunted. When others laid down their arms, he still disdained the 
 thought of yielding. Closely attended by a few zealous adherents, 
 
144 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 the Saxon cliief broke from tlie assailants, retreated by paths into 
 which the Normans did not venture to follow, passed from marsh to 
 marsh, and overcoming every obstacle, made his way to the lowlands 
 of Lincolnshire. 
 
 It happened that the Normans had a station in the immediate 
 neighbourhood of the place where Hereward and his friends found 
 themselves after their hair-breadtb escape. The temptation of a 
 daring adventure was, under the circumstances, irresistible. Here- 
 ward made himself known to some fishermen, who were in the habit 
 of every day taking fish to the garrison ; and the fishermen, sympa- 
 thizing with his views, were induced to lend their aid. Receiving 
 Hereward and liis companions into the boats, and concealing them 
 under straw, the fishermen, next day, approached the station as 
 usual; and the Normans, who were just sitting down to dinner, pre- 
 paratory to riding forth on an expedition, were not in the least 
 apprehensive of danger. Suddenly strange voices were heard, and 
 Hereward and his men entering with their axes in their hands, 
 rushed upon the Normans, and hewed down many before they knew 
 what was taking place. Alarmed and despairing, the survivors fled, 
 leaving their horses, which were ready saddled, a prey to the victors. 
 
 After this exploit, which struck dismay into the hearts of his 
 enemies, and considerably modified the joy with which the Normans 
 announced their success at Ely, Hereward resumed operations wdth 
 his old spirit. With a band of patriotic men, which gradually 
 swelled to the number of a hundred, the indomitable Saxon per- 
 formed countless feats of valour. Ever lying in ambush, and 
 granting no quarter, he exerted his skill and energy with such efiect, 
 that he well avenged, if he could not redeem, the disaster of Ely. 
 His comrades, all well armed and inspired by his example, encoun- 
 tered the foe with a degree of courage seldom equalled, and ap- 
 pearing suddenly at various points, never shrunk from odds save such 
 as appeared overwhelming. Not one of them was known to have 
 declined a conflict with fewer than four Normans ; and Hereward, 
 on his part, often fought with as many as seven. 
 
 While Herew^ard was signalizing his prowess and courage in such 
 a way that his name was idolized all over England, a lady of large 
 
HEREWARD THE SAXON. I io 
 
 property, named Alswitlie, liearing of his fame and admiring his ex- 
 ploits, offered him her hand. Grateful for such a mark of esteem, 
 Hereward accepted the proposal, and married her without delay. 
 But Alswithe, dreading her husband's continual exposure to danger, 
 employed all her influence to induce him to make his i^eace with the 
 Conqueror ; and Hereward, who loved his wife tenderly, gradually 
 yielded to her entreaties, and at length accepted the king's peace. 
 
 Having exchanged peril for security, and glory for ease, Hereward 
 indulged in dreams of peace and comfort. But the Normans were 
 not disposed to spare so foi'midable a foe. Determined to rid the 
 country, by some means, of one who might again prove a mighty 
 adversary, they several times attacked his house without success. One 
 day, however, Fortune placed him in their power. 
 
 It was a summer afternoon ; and, after having dined, Hereward 
 stretched himself in his orchard, with his hound at his feet, to enjoy 
 some repose. He was without a coat of mail, but beside him lay 
 his sword and a short spear, which Saxons of his rank always carried 
 with them. As Hereward slept, a band of armed men, led by 
 Asselm, a Norman, and Raoul de Dol, a knight of Brittany, cau- 
 tiously penetrated into the orchard ; and he, suddenly awakened by 
 the barking of the hound, found himself hemmed in. But even in 
 this emergency the heart of the hero did not fail him. Rising with 
 a bound, before which the armed band recoiled, he faced his foes and 
 demanded their errand. 
 
 " Whom seek you r he asked, sternly. 
 
 " You," was the significant answer. 
 
 "False traitors!" he cried; " the king has granted me his peace. 
 Seek you me for my goods or my life ?" 
 
 " Both." 
 
 " Then," exclaimed Hereward, " ye shall pay for them dearly !" 
 and with these words he thrust his short spear with such force against 
 a Norman knight who stood near, that it pierced through the hauberk 
 into the heart, and came out dripping with life's blood. 
 
 The Normans, startled, but confident in their numbers, now at- 
 empted to close with Hereward, and inflicted numerous wounds. 
 But the Saxon hero returned blow for blow. When his spear broke 
 
 L 
 
146 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 he drew his sword, and made so desperate a resistance, that, at times, 
 the issue of the combat appeared doubtful. Even when his sword 
 broke on the helmet of one of his antagonists, he continued to fight 
 with the pommel ; and fifteen Normans had fallen beneath his hand, 
 when he, at once, received four lance thrusts, and felt himself borne 
 to the ground. Still he continued to struggle. Seizing a buckler, 
 he struck Kaoul de Dol so fiercely in the face, that the warlike 
 Breton fell dead on the spot. But strength and life were now spent, 
 and Hereward sank and expired. 
 
 As Hereward lay dead, Asselm, the Norman, cut off the hero's 
 head, but not without an emphatic expression of admiration. " By 
 the virtue of God !" he exclaimed, " I swear that I have never in my 
 life seen so valiant a man !" 
 
 Fen ccuntry near 13:ston. 
 
147 
 
 XXXIII. 
 
 BUILDIXG OF BATTLE ABBEY. 
 
 While pursuing his victorious career, William the Conqueror did 
 not forget the vow which, immediately after the battle of Hastings, 
 he made to erect an abbey, to be dedicated to the Holy Trinity and 
 to St. jMartin, the patron of the warriors of Gaul. 
 
 It is related that, when the foundations were dug, and the first 
 stones of the edifice laid, the architects discovered that there would 
 be a deficiency of water. Somewhat disconcerted, they repaired to 
 William, and acquainted him with the untoward circumstance. 
 
 " Never mind," said the Conqueror, in a tone more jovial than his 
 wont ; " work away, and, if God give me life, there shall be more 
 wine among the monks of Battle Abbey than there is in the best 
 convent of Christendom." 
 
 According to William's orders, the work was proceeded with : the 
 outer walls were traced round the hill which Harold and his men 
 had covered with their bodies ; and the adjacent land was granted to 
 the abbey. 
 
 When the building of Battle Abbey was finished, William ofiered his 
 sword and the regal robe he had worn at his coronation; and seven- 
 score monks were brought from the great convent of Marmontiers, 
 near Tours, to inhabit the edifice and pray for the souls of all who 
 held died on the field. This magnificent structure is now in ruins, 
 and the altar-stoue, standing amid stagnant water, marks the spot 
 where the Pope's consecrated banner was planted by William in the 
 hour of carnage and victory. 
 
 
 l2 
 
148 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 XXXIV. 
 MALCOLM CANMOEE. 
 
 mi 
 
 FTEE devastating Northumber- 
 land, reducing the men of Chester, 
 and entirely crushing the refugees 
 in the camp of Ely, William turned 
 ,his attention towards the reduc- 
 tion of Scotland, where reigned a 
 I Wvjjilr king who had some power and much inclination to 
 work him annoyance. 
 
 Malcolm Canmore was son of Duncan, King of 
 Scots, whose murder by Macbeth, Buchanan has nar- 
 rated and Shakspeare immortalized. In danger of 
 being destroyed by the usurper, Malcolm and his 
 brother, Donald Bane, after lurking for awhile in 
 Scotland, resolved to fly — one made for Northum- 
 berland, the other for the Western Isles. 
 At that time Siward the Dane ruled Northumberland ; and of 
 that great and sapient earl the mother of Malcolm had been a near 
 kinswoman. This circumstance was sufficient to insure the Scottish 
 prince a friendly reception ; and, on reaching York, he had the con- 
 solation of being treated with every possible kindness. Moreover, 
 when Siward carried him to the court of Westminster, the Confessor 
 — who could not help comparing IMalcolm's circumstances to his own, 
 while an exile in Normandy — after expressing a strong spnpathy 
 with his misfortunes, and a strong interest in his welfare, bade him 
 be of good cheer. 
 
 ^. 
 
MALCOLM CANMORE. 149 
 
 At the Confessor's court, among Saxon thanes and Norman che- 
 valiers, Malcolm might have learned to forget the crown which he 
 had lost and the rude land from which he had been forced to fly ; 
 but it happened that Macbeth, after forfeiting the popularity by the 
 aid of which he had usurped the Scottish throne, became a cruel and 
 rapacious tyrant. The Scots, in disgust, manifested a decided desire 
 for Malcolm's restoration; and Macduff, thane of Fife, abandoning 
 !Macbeth's cause, espoused that of Malcolm with enthusiasm and 
 energy. 
 
 About the time of Godwin's restoration to England, messages of 
 encouragement from the north of the Tweed reached Malcolm in his 
 exile ; and, without much hesitation, the young prince, now grown 
 to be a man of huge stature, resolved on an expedition to regain his 
 father's crown. Powerful was the aid on which he had to rely ; for 
 the Confessor readily lent his countenance to the enterprise, and 
 Siward undertook to conduct it to a successful issue. 
 
 A fleet was soon fitted out to land soldiers on the Scottish coast; 
 and an army of horse, commanded by Siward and his son, escorted 
 IMalcolm across the Tweed and through Lothian. The enterprise 
 proved perfectly successful. In vain Hugh the ISTorman, Osborne, 
 surnamed Pentecost, and other foreigners who had fled into Scotland 
 at the time of Godwin's return, drew their swords in favour of the 
 usurper. A battle was fought ; the son of Siward fell, and many 
 Anglo-Danes. But Malcolm was victorious; and Macbeth, who in 
 the battle had lost all his Norman allies, was deserted by his army, 
 forced to fly, and overtaken and slain at Lanfanan in Aberdeenshire. 
 An effort was then made by some of Macbeth's friends to raise a 
 kinsman of the usurper, named Lulach, to the throne; but the 
 friends of Malcolm soon put an end to Lulach's pretensions and his 
 life, and the son of Duncan was, without farther opposition, crowned 
 at Scone. 
 
 Nevertheless, a plot was soon after formed to put Malcolm to 
 death, and of this the chief author was a nobleman who frequented 
 the court. Malcolm early became aware of the existence of the 
 plot, but affected ignorance, till one day, when out hunting, he took 
 the chief conspirator aside, and severely reproached him. 
 
150 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 " But," said Malcolm, " liere is a fit place and time to do that 
 manfully wliich you have intended to do treacherously ; and here 
 draw your sword, if you dare." 
 
 The nobleman, however, fell on his knees, confessed his fault, 
 asked forgiveness, and ever afterwards served his king faithfully. 
 
 It cannot be said that Malcolm Canmore, when seated securely on 
 the Scottish throne, displayed any particular gratitude to his bene- 
 factors. Indeed, the nation under the protection of Avhich he had 
 found safety in the day of adversity, and by the aid of which he 
 had gained his crown, had more than once strong reason to complain 
 of his enmity and denounce his ingratitude. But it Avas chiefly in 
 the third year after the landing of William the N"orman that ]Malcolni 
 offended. When the Northumbrians drew together at York, to make 
 head against the Conqueror's power, Malcolm mustered an army to 
 lead to their assistance. Ere he was ready to take the field, how- 
 evei', the Northumbrians were put down ; but, unwilling to be baulked 
 of carnage and plunder, he marched by way of Carlisle, which, with 
 Cumberland, he then held from the English crown, into Northum- 
 berland, and let loose all the fury of his barbarous subjects on the 
 land where he had found rest in his weariness and consolation in his 
 despair. 
 
 The Scots proceeded with energy to the work of destruction and 
 bloodshed. Cleveland was savagely overrun ; Wearmouth was 
 sacked ; St. Peter's Church was burned ; the banks of the Wear 
 were ravaged without mercy ; and everywhere the inhabitants were 
 treated with barbarous cruelty. Able-bodied men and women were 
 driven off captive, like flocks of sheep, and in such numbers, that, 
 for many years after, there was scarcely a tenement in Scotland 
 without English slaves of one sex or the other. Blood, meanwhile, 
 flowed like water. Grandfathers and grandmothers, on the verge of 
 the grave, and infants torn from their mothers' arms, were ruthlessly 
 slaughtered. Warriors, calling themselves men and Christians, ex- 
 hibited neither humanity nor religion. Never had Pagan Danes or 
 Norwegians been guilty of such atrocities as were perpetrated on this 
 memorable occasion. 
 
 One day, while the church of St. Peter was in flames, and while 
 
MALCOLM CANMORE. 151 
 
 the Scots were revelling in carnage and cruelty, Malcolm, as he rode 
 along and witnessed savage outrages which it is charitable to suppose 
 he could not prevent, received intelligence that Edgar Atheling, with 
 his mother Agatha, and his two sisters, Margaret and Christina — 
 whom the chronicler describes as "comely young women" — were on 
 board a ship in the harbour, waiting for a fair wind, but scarcely 
 knew whither to steer their course. The tale of their distress appears 
 to have touched the heart of Malcolm ; he sent messages of kindness, 
 invited them to repair to Scotland, and assured them that they might 
 there reside in safety as long as they pleased. In their despair, the 
 royal exiles grasped at this invitation, and the mariners steered for 
 Scotland. 
 
 Accordingly, when Malcolm Canmore returned to his own do- 
 minions, he found that the heirs of Alfred and of Ironsides had 
 sought refuge on the Scottish shores. The young king hastened to 
 make their acquaintance ; and the result was important in its in- 
 fluence on the destinies of England. The sweetness and piety of 
 JNIargaret Atheling, endowed as she was with all the comeliness 
 characteristic of Saxon women, produced a strange effect on the royal 
 Scot, and he soon arrived at the conclusion that the opportunity of 
 securing such a bride ought not to be neglected. A marriage was, 
 in due time, celebrated ; the Saxon Queen of Scots, by her precepts 
 and example, exercised a softening and civilizing influence on her 
 fierce husband and his savage subjects ; their daughter Maude be- 
 came the wife of Henry Beauclerc ; and from their ancestress — the 
 heiress of Henry and Maude, married to Geoftrey, the brave and 
 accomplished Count of Anjou — the Plantagenets inherited royal 
 Saxon blood, and that sympathy with the vanquished race which 
 made them, when kings, the favourites and heroes of the English 
 people. 
 
 William the Conqueror was not, of course, inattentive to what 
 was passing in the north ; nor, indeed, did Malcolm allow the 
 Norman to overlook his existence. In 1073, the Scottish king 
 gathered an army, and crossed the Border to vindicate the claim of 
 his wife's family to the English crown. By this time, however, 
 William had put the Saxons throughout England under his feet, and 
 
152 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 resolved to bring Malcolm to reason by demanding the extradition of 
 those who had taken refuge in Scotland. 
 
 With this object William placed himself at the head of his army, 
 and, for the first time, crossed the Tweed. Not inclined to try con- 
 clusions with an antagonist so formidable, Malcolm presented himself 
 to the Conqueror at a place near the frontier, which is supposed to 
 have been Berwick ; and, though declining to surrender the Saxon 
 emigrants, " met King William in a peaceful attitude, touched his 
 hand in sign of friendship, promised that William's enemies should 
 be his also, and freely acknowledged himself his vassal and liegeman." 
 
 Fern Islands, off the Coast of iN orthumberland. 
 
153 
 
 r^V-V,*';^ 
 
 XXXV. 
 
 THE DEATH OF COSPATRICK. 
 
 It "was the year 1072, when the destruction of the camp of Ely- 
 ruined the last hope which the Saxons entertained of making head 
 against the Conqueror ; and the year 1073 witnessed the exile of the 
 last Saxon of illustrious lineage whom the Conqueror allowed to 
 occupy a high position and exercise important functions. 
 
 It appears that after the installation of Cospatrick as Earl of 
 Northumberland, the peace of the North was unbroken save by the 
 terrible inroad of Malcolm, King of Scots. On that occasion, Cos- 
 patrick, having no force sufficiently powerful to oppose that of the 
 
154 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Scottisli king, endeavoured to draw Malcolm from Northumberland 
 by making an incursion into Cumberland in tbe direction of Carlisle, 
 which then lay in ruins. But finding the Scots too intent on carnage 
 and plunder to move, he was fain to return, to shut himseK up ia 
 Bamburgh, and in that fortress to listen, with unavailing regret, to 
 accounts of the barbarous atrocities perpetrated by the invaders. 
 
 At length affairs began to settle ; and the Bishop of Durham and 
 his clergy, hearing that William had departed for the South, ventured 
 back to their church. They found everything in disorder. Even 
 the magnificent crucifix, the gift of Tostig and Judith, was stripped 
 of all its ornaments, and tossed upon the floor. Nor was this the 
 worst that was to befaU. Ere long the bishop was degraded, and a 
 native of Lorraine, named Vaulcher, instituted in his place. 
 
 When Vaulcher, accompanied by a numerous train of Norman 
 knights, reached York, Cospatrick presented himself, and conducted 
 the new bishop to Durham. Perhaps, by this attention to Vaulcher, 
 Cospatrick hoped to escape such a fate as had befallen every other 
 Saxon of high rank. But if so, he was mistaken. Between the 
 Norman king and the Saxon earl no real confidence existed. Every 
 movement in Northumberland hostile to the Normans had exposed 
 Cospatrick to suspicion ; and, after having received Malcolm's 
 homage, WilHam, thinking he could dispense with the aid of the 
 grandson of Uchtred, alleged that he had taken part in the murder 
 of Piobert Comine and in the siege of York, and formally deprived 
 him of his earldom. 
 
 Cospatrick was now at his wits' end. Mortified at his own re- 
 verses, and grieving at the oppression under which his countrymen 
 were labouring, but against which it seemed vain to struggle single- 
 handed, he left England and passed over to Flanders, to which the 
 Saxons still looked with hope of aid. But all efforts proved vain ; 
 and he returned to die in poverty on the verge of the great northern 
 province which he had lately ruled. 
 
 It would seem that Cospatrick had, by advising the flight of the 
 bishop from Durham, lost favour with the clergy, and that they used 
 all their efforts to terrify him with threats of the wrath of St. Cuth- 
 bert. An aged priest of Durham, while in Holy Island, professed to 
 
THE DEATH OF COSPATRICK. loo 
 
 have had a dream, in wliicli lie saw a great jSTorthumbrian tliane, 
 who had maltreated the bishop and his company during their flight, 
 sufiering the torments of hell, and in which St. Cuthbert appeared 
 denouncing woes against Cospatrick. This dream derived im- 
 portance from the circumstance of the Northumbrian thane having 
 died at the very time; and when related to Cospatrick, now grown 
 old and infirm, it caused him much trouble of spirit. Indeed, he is 
 said to have forthwith taken the shoes from his feet, and set out on 
 a pilgrimage to Holy Island, to propitiate St. Cuthbert by prayers 
 and offerings. 
 
 After his pilgrimage to Holy Island, Cospatrick found rest for a 
 time at ISTorham, on the Tweed. At that place, weary with ad- 
 versity and woe, he soon felt himself sinking under his infirmities. 
 At length, sick unto death, he bethought him of religious consola- 
 tion, and intimated his wish to have the spiritual aid of Aid win 
 and Turgot, two monks in whose piety and prayers he had great 
 confidence. 
 
 At Melrose — not on the spot occupied by the magnificent ruins of 
 that great abbey, to which Sir Walter Scott has, in our day, given 
 so wide a fame, but in a flat peninsula, described by Bede as " almost 
 inclosed by the windings of the river Tweed" — the Culdees had, in 
 the seventh century, erected a religious house. After flourishing for 
 two hundred years, this edifice had suffered at the hand of King 
 Kenneth, and gradually dwindled down to a chapel sacred to St. 
 Cuthbert. In this chapel Aid win and Turgot were "living in 
 poverty and contrite in spirit for the sake of Christ." Oil receiving 
 Cospatrick's message, these holy men hurried down the Tweed, eager 
 to comfort the expiring sinner. 
 
 On reaching Norham the monks found the Saxon earl loudly 
 lamenting his shortcomings, and expressing penitence for his sins, 
 and they confessed him with all the ceremonies usual on such occa- 
 sions. Before their departure he gave them two dorsals, or pieces of 
 tapestry which were hung against walls as screens for the back, and 
 begged that, in whatever place the monks might chance to take rest, 
 they would hang the dorsals up in memory of him. This scene 
 over, Cospatrick yielded up his breath. 
 
156 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 It was destined that the posterity of this great Saxon, who passed 
 his last days hovering between two countries, in neither of which he 
 could find a home, and who died in misery, and with lamentations 
 on his lips, should exercise the very highest authority in centuries 
 then to come. He left two sons. One of these was Cospatrick, 
 founder of the House of Dunbar, whose chiefs were so great in war 
 and peace; the other was Dolfin, male ancestor of the Nevilles, who 
 became famous for making and unmaking kings. 
 
 Meanwhile, Cospatrick was laid at rest in the porch of the church 
 of Norham. In the chancel of that ancient edifice, a recumbent 
 effigy, in the decorated style of the fourteenth century, when his 
 descendants on both sides of the Tweed were in all their glory, still 
 recalls his memory, when the places that once knew them know 
 them no more — when the castle of Dunbar is desolate, and when 
 Eaby no longer owns a Neville as its lord. 
 
XXXVL 
 
 ATHELING AND HIS ALLIES. 
 
 Whex Edgar Atheling, after the disastrous defeat of the Saxons at 
 York, took refuge in Scotland, he found himself treated with great 
 respect. Malcolm Canmore, saluting the exiled prince as true King 
 of England, assured him of a secure asylum, and influenced, doubt- 
 less, by the charms of the fair Margaret, still further evinced his 
 sympathy with the Saxon cause by bestowing offices and lands on 
 the expatriated chiefs. Moreover, he promised Atheling every aid 
 to regain the throne of his ancestors. 
 
 The King of Scots was probably quite sincere in his professions 
 of friendship and promises of support ; but his power to assist the 
 Saxons was by no means equal to his will. Besides, the mighty 
 energy of William, bearing down all opposition, was calcvdated to 
 daunt the boldest foe. Malcolm was brave as a lion; yet he might, 
 without exposing himself to the imputation of cowardice, feel some 
 
158 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 degree of alarm as he conjured up visions of Norman warriors 
 crossing tlie river Tweed, sweeping tlirough the Merse and Lothian, 
 and pursuing their victorious career as far north as to cool the hoofs 
 of their horses in the waters of the Tay, and plant their standard on 
 the towers of the palace of Scone. 
 
 At all events, it is certain that, after a brief residence in Scotland, 
 Atheling recognised the necessity of seeking a reconciliation with the 
 Conqueror. This was, without difficulty, obtained. Then, as ever, 
 William was kind and forgiving to the heir of Alfred. But, as the 
 work of the Conquest went on, and as the Saxons, exasperated by 
 the deposition of their bishops and abbots, indicated their intention 
 of making a great effort to recover their liberty, Atheling discovered 
 that he was the object of suspicion. Indeed, it was natural that 
 such should have been the case ; for his name was in the mouth of 
 all ardent patriots, and songs were sung in which he was described 
 as " the brave, the beautiful darling of England." Perceiving that 
 snares were set for him, Atheling effected his escape from court; 
 and, with all the haste he could, made for Scotland. 
 
 "Curse him !" exclaimed the Normans; "he is the most fickle of 
 human beings." 
 
 " Ah !" cried the Saxons, " he is young and handsome, and de- 
 scended from the true race — the best race of the country." 
 
 It must be admitted that, so far as appearances went, the Saxons 
 had reason to be proud of the heir of their ancient kings. Atheling 
 was now approaching manhood, and looked worthy, indeed, of a 
 nation's regard. His person was handsome, his figure tall and 
 graceful, his manner courteous to excess, his temper serene to a 
 fault, and he spoke with taste and eloquence. Brave he was beyond 
 question, but somewhat slow in action; and while ever and anon 
 giving proof that he inherited the courage of Ironsides, he con- 
 stantly showed symptoms of having in his veins the sluggish blood 
 of Ethelred. 
 
 Indeed, the prospects of Edgar Atheling were at no time so 
 encouraging as to tempt him to heroic ventures to regain the crown 
 which had, for a brief season, been his. After the day on which 
 Malcolm Ganmore did homage to William the Norman, aid from 
 
ATHELING AND HIS ALLIES. 159 
 
 Scotland could not reasonably be expected. Not yet content, how- 
 ever, to submit tamely to circumstances, Atheling, in 1075, repaired 
 to Flanders, probably when Cospatrick, after being deprived of 
 Northumberland, went thither to crave the alliance of Count Robert, 
 who, though Matilda's kinsman, was William's political enemy, and, 
 moreover, a descendant of Alfred the Great. But Atheling's appli- 
 cation was not attended with success, and he returned to Scotland 
 with the impression that the Saxon cause was too hopeless to enUst 
 the alliance of any European prince, when, somewhat to his surprise, 
 he was favoured with a friendly message from the King of France. 
 
 Philip, though young, was no longer the mere boy whose counte- 
 nance and support William the Norman had asked before under- 
 taking his expedition against Harold. The heir of Hugh Capet was 
 now in his thirty-third year, perfectly capable of comprehending his 
 position, and of estimating the power of a Duke of Normandy who 
 was also King of England. In fact, he had somewhat recent evidence 
 of Wniiam's strength and his own weakness. While William, who 
 had left England in 1073, was on the Continent, cai-rying on war in 
 Maine with signal success, Philip had taken up arms against the 
 Count of Flanders, and sustained a shameful defeat before Cassel. 
 The idea of a man who had been vanquished by Count Robert of 
 Flanders having to encounter William the Conqueror was not 
 pleasant ; and the French king, eager in the extreme to multiply 
 William's enemies on the English side of the Channel, resolved to 
 afford the Saxons such encouragement as to enable them to keep 
 their conqueror in his insular dominions. 
 
 It was under the influence of such apprehensions, and with a view 
 of accomplishing such an object, that Philip invited Atheling to 
 France. 
 
 " Come hither," wrote the French king to the English prince — 
 " come and aid me with your counsel. I will give you the fortress 
 of Montreuil, which is so situated that thence you can either make 
 a descent on England or ravage Normandy." 
 
 Atheling was not proof against such temptation. On receiving 
 Philip's message, he prepared, with the companions of his exile, to 
 embark for France, and made arrangements for his voyage. Mai- 
 
]60 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 colm, as "William's liegeman, could not openly lend liis countenance to 
 the enterprise of his brother-in-law. Nevertheless, he secretly sup- 
 plied Atheling with money, and furnished the companions of the 
 exiled prince with arms. 
 
 But the expedition, and all the projects to which it was to lead, 
 were destined to come to nought. The voyage of the adventurers 
 proved the very reverse of fortunate. Scarcely had Atheling's fleet 
 lost sight of the Scottish shores when a violent tempest arose. The 
 vessels were scattered like leaves in autumn. Some sank, and 
 others, going to pieces on the northern coast of England, left their 
 crews at the mercy of the Norman officials, who made them pri- 
 soners. Atheling, and those who sailed in his ship, were wrecked, 
 but escaped captivity. However, they lost everything; and in sad- 
 ness and gloom they made their way, some on foot, others miserably 
 mounted, back to the Scottish court, where Atheling, with his 
 wonted eloquence, narrated to Malcolm and Margaret the misfor- 
 tunes of the voyage. 
 
 " And now," asked Atheling, in conclusion, " what is to be done?" 
 
 " It seems to me," answered Malcolm, " that fortune is decidedly 
 against you. Wherefore, struggle no longer with fate, but seek 
 peace, once more, of William the Norman." 
 
 At all times Atheling was easily persuaded; and, on this occasion, 
 he was in no frame of mind to dispute the wisdom of Malcolm's 
 counsel. Accordingly he sent a message to William, who was still 
 on the Continent; and William, responding franldy, asked him to 
 repair to Normandy. Entering England by the north, passing 
 through the country escorted by Norman counts, and entertained by 
 them in the tall and turretted castles which already crowued every 
 height, and which contrasted strangely with the low, irregular build- 
 ings, surrounded by woods, in which dwelt such of the Saxons of 
 rank as had escaped death or banishment, Atheling could not fail to 
 be impressed with a conviction of the fact that the work of the 
 Conquest had gone much too far to be undone by force of arms, 
 and that any thought of resistance was absurd. 
 
 Embarking for the Continent, he reached Rouen in safety, and 
 was received by the Conqueror with kindness. A pension was 
 
ATHELING AND HIS ALLIES. 
 
 161 
 
 granted to the banished prince to defray his personal expenses ; but, 
 taking a fancy to a charger in the stables of the palace, he afterwards 
 parted with his pension in order to become master of the animal. 
 For years Atheling remained at the palace of Rouen, amusing him- 
 self with hawks, dogs, and horses, and reflecting, with philosophic 
 calmness, on the crown he had lost and the land from which he was 
 exiled. 
 
 Hawk striking the quarry. 
 
162 
 
 XXXYII. 
 
 FITZOSBORNE AND DE GAEL. 
 
 ^ ^ ^J7=^ dayintlie 
 ^ ^^ course of 
 ' ^ ^^^the year 
 1074, vflieii William 
 the Conqueror was 
 m Normandy fight- 
 ing with his Conti- 
 nental foeSj and while 
 Archbishop Lanfranc 
 governed England in 
 the king's absence, a 
 great marriage took 
 place in the castle 
 of Norwich. Many 
 guests of high lank were bidden; and the occasion 
 was rendered memorable by the circumstance that 
 the feast with which it was celebrated proved fatal to 
 almost every individual who happened to be present. 
 About the year 1073, William Fitzosborne, the 
 Conqueror's famous comrade in arms, departed this life, leaving two 
 sons, named William and Roger, and a daughter, named Emma. Wil- 
 liam, succeeding to his father's lands in Normandy, was known as 
 Lord of Breteuil ; Eoger, inheriting his father's English possessions, 
 became Earl of Hereford ; and Emma was sought in marriage by a 
 young Breton, who figured as Earl of Norfolk, and naturally felt 
 ambitious of allying himself with the high Norman nobility. But a 
 union between Ralph de Gael and the daughter of Fitzosborne did 
 not meet with the Conqueror's approval. In fact, William set his 
 
FITZOSBORNE AND DE GAEL. 163 
 
 face decidedly against the matrimonial project, and, being at the time 
 in Normandy, sent a messenger to forbid, in the most peremptory 
 tone, the celebration of the marriage. 
 
 The interference of William was more than the high spirit of 
 Eoger Fitzosborne could brook. He resolved at once to set the 
 Conqueror's prohibition at defiance ; and, on a day appointed for the 
 wedding, conveyed his sister to Norwich. 
 
 The ceremony was performed with a pomp worthy of the rank of 
 the parties ; and when the feast was spread in the castle hall, Nor- 
 man bishops, and lords of high degree, both Norman and Vv'elsh, 
 and ladies fair to look upon, gathered around the board. So far all 
 went smoothly. But as dishes were carved and cups emptied the 
 master of the feast and his guests became rapidly excited and frank 
 to excess. The habitual respect displayed by the Norman nobles for 
 the great war-chief who had led them to conquest and plunder 
 vanished as wine flowed in abundance, and the two earls especially 
 vociferated in a strain which caused many present to stare in silent 
 surprise. 
 
 " What is this man 1" asked Roger Fitzosborne, in accents of 
 supreme contempt — " what is this man, who dictates who are to be 
 the husbands of ladies descended from the comrades of EoUo ? — A 
 bastard, owing this kingdom to my father, to whose memory this 
 interference is an insult." 
 
 " He is a bastard, and a man of low birth," cried the Normans. 
 *•' He may call himself a king ; but 'tis clear that he is not made for 
 one, and that he is not agreeable in the sight of God." 
 
 " And," exclaimed the Saxons, " he invaded England, he massacred 
 the legitimate heirs of our kings and nobles, or obliged them to 
 expatriate themselves." 
 
 " What is worst of all," roared the military adventurers who had 
 followed William's banner in hopes of high reward, " he has not 
 honoured as he might those vfho came to his aid — those who raised 
 him higher than any of his i^redecessors." 
 
 " Yes," cried others ; " what has he given to us, the conquerors 
 covered with wounds? Sterile tracts of land, of which he deprives 
 us whenever he sees them improving." 
 
 US 
 
164 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 " It is trae !" sliouted the guests, tumultuously ; " tlie man is 
 odious to all ; liis deatli would gladden tlie hearts of all. Let him die 1' 
 
 After further vociferation, the two earls, several bishops and 
 abbots, many Normans and Saxons, and the Welsh chieftains, bound 
 themselves by oath to rise against William, and arranged to ask the 
 aid of Sweyn, King of Denmark, to insure the success of their 
 perilous project. Perhaps, with the morning, repentance came, and 
 many rued the words they had spoken and the promises they had 
 made over wine at the festive board. But it was too late to retreat ; 
 and the two earls, to lessen the danger of being betrayed, resolved 
 on immediate action. Roger Fitzosborne hastened home to raise 
 his banner at Hereford ; and Ealph de Gael prepared to shorten his 
 honeymoon, leave the company of his bride, and raise liis banner at 
 Cambridge. 
 
 On reaching the province of which he was earl, Roger Fitzosborne 
 lost no time in rallying his friends around him. Not only did he 
 gather the discontented Normans to his standard. The Welsh on 
 the Marches rose at his summons, and, with wild and vague hopes of 
 recovering independence, rushed with enthusiasm to his aid. Hav- 
 ing assembled a force which he deemed sufficiently formidable to 
 inspire foes with terror, he commenced his march eastward, with the 
 intention of joining De Gael. But, on reaching the Severn, and 
 attempting to pass that river by the bridge at Worcester, he found, 
 somewhat to his surprise, that preparations had been made to stop 
 his progress. 
 
 In fact, the conspirators at Norwich had not very faithfully kept 
 their secret. By some means or other, Lanfranc had become ac- 
 quainted with the whole project; and when in possession of such 
 intelligence the great archbishop was not the man to sleep at his 
 post. He despatched soldiers from London to throw themselves in 
 Roger's path ; and he so far made use of the spiritual artillery at 
 his command as to level a sentence of excommunication against the 
 Norman earl. 
 
 Meanwhile, the king's friends were not idle in the west. Walter 
 de Lacy, a Norman baron, and Eghelwig, the Saxon abbot of Eve- 
 sham, roused the people of the country to take arms against Roger 
 
FITZOSBORNE AND DE GAEL. 165 
 
 Fitzosborne and his Welslimen ; and the people, regarding the Welsh 
 as their natural enemies, obeyed the call of Walter and Eghelwig, 
 and crowded to the royal standard. 
 
 At length the royal soldiers and the insurgents met face to face. 
 It was on the banks of the Severn that the hostile armies encoun- 
 tered and fought a sanguinary battle. The Welsh, however, were 
 defeated, and with such slaughter that the river was crimsoned with 
 their blood. Eoger Fitzosborne was made prisoner, and with him 
 many adherents were taken with arms in their hands. The chief 
 was . kept in secure custody till the Conqueror should decide what 
 was to be his fate. But the inferior captives were summarily dis- 
 posed of. Some were hung on gibbets, some had their eyes put out, 
 and others underwent such mutilation as to render them incapable 
 of further mischief. 
 
 While such disasters attended the adventure of Roger Fitzosborne 
 on the Severn, Ealph de Gael did not yield to the temptation of 
 lingering with his fair bride at Norwich. Leaving that city, the bold 
 Breton encamped in the neighbourhood of Cambridge, and succeeded* 
 in alluring a multitude of Saxons to his standard. But Ralph de 
 Gael's part of the enterprise proved little more successful than that 
 of Roger Fitzosborne had been. While the Breton earl was still 
 gathering men to his camp, William de Warren, with Odo, Bishop 
 of Bayeux, and Geoffrey, Bishop of Coutance, took the field, and 
 the insurgents found themselves menaced by a force decidedly supe- 
 rior to them in number. Not shrinking, however, from a conflict, 
 they bravely faced the royal force at a place named Fagadon. There 
 a stubborn battle was fought ; but Ralph de Gael's men were com- 
 pletely defeated ; and the chief escaped from the lost field, while 
 many of his adherents were taken and treated with the utmost 
 cruelty. Indeed, the victors are said to have been so merciless as to 
 cut off the right foot of every captive, no matter what his rank or 
 nation. 
 
 In the midst of this operation, Ralph de Gael had the fortune to 
 reach Norwich. He threw himself into the citadel with some vague 
 and desperate notions of defending himself to the last. Seeing, 
 however, the impossibility of holding out, he left the fortress under 
 
]66 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 the charge of his bride, and sailed to Brittany to implore the aid of 
 his friends. The daughter of Fitzosborne made a brave defence, but 
 her resistance proved vain. After a somewhat protracted struggle, 
 the men-at-arms, seeing famine staring them in the face, recognised 
 the necessity of yielding, and agreed, not only to surrender Norwich, 
 but to leave England in case of their lives being spared. Almost 
 every Breton who had come to England with the Conqueror was in- 
 volved in the ruin of Ealph de Gael, and departed from the English 
 shores. " Glory be to God in the highest !" Lanfranc wrote joyfully 
 to King William, "your kingdom is freed from the filthy Bretons." 
 
 On returning to England, William, at Christmas, held a great 
 council of barons, and dealt with the rebel chiefs. Both were con- 
 demned to lose their estates. De Gael, being absent, could not, of 
 course, be punished in person ; but Fitzosborne, who appeared before 
 the assembly, was sentenced to perpetual imprisonment. 
 
 When matters had reached this stage, a son of Sweyn, King of 
 Denmark, unaware of the ruin of those who had craved assistance, 
 ♦approached the eastern coast. But the Danes made no attempt to 
 land. On learning what had happened they turned their helms 
 towards Flanders, and left Fitzosborne to his fate. 
 
 But even captivity and chains could not break the strong spirit 
 nor humble the haughty pride of Fitzosborne. Even in his dungeon 
 he found a way of braving and insulting the king whom he had 
 attempted to dethrone. One day, during Easter, the Conqueror, 
 according to a Norman custom, sent him a magnificent suit of pre- 
 cious stulT, as if he had been at liberty. Fitzosborne received the 
 vestments with a smile, examined the coat and mantle of silk, and 
 handled the jacket, trimmed with foreign furs, as if highly pleased. 
 Having done so, however, Eoger ordered a fire to be kindled, and 
 committed coat, mantle, and jacket to the flames. 
 
 "Thus," said he, "does the son of William Fitzosborne treat the 
 gifts of the bastard to whom his father gave a crown." 
 
 "By the splendour of God!" exclaimed the Conqueror, boiling 
 with anger, Avhen informed of this scene, " the man Avho has thus 
 insulted me shall never leave his prison alive." 
 
1G7 
 
 XXXVIII. 
 
 WALTHEOF, SON OF SIWAliD. 
 
 SiWAED the Dane, when he expired at York, exhibiting his martial 
 spirit to the last — clad, at his own request, in all the habiliments of 
 war, with his helmet on his head, his coat of mail on his back, his 
 gilt battle-axe in his hand, and that mystic banner, " The Raven of 
 Earthly Terror," waving over his head — left, by his wife, the daughter 
 of Earl Aired, one son to inherit his renown. The name of the son 
 of Siward was Waltheof, and his career was anticipated with hope 
 by the inhabitants of the provinces which his great father had ruled. 
 At the time of Siward's death, however, Waltheof was too young 
 to succeed to Northumberland. Indeed, Tostig, as one of the sons 
 of Godwin, immediately grasped at the earldom. Waltheof, how- 
 ever, soon began to figure as Earl of Huntingdon, and gave evidence 
 
]GS DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 of inheriting Ms father's courage and prowess in the conflicts of the 
 Northumbrians with Tostig and Harold Hardrada. 
 
 After the battle of Hastings, Waltheof made his submission to the 
 Conqueror. As a consequence, when William visited the Continent, 
 the son of Si ward was taken, with Edwin and Morkar, to grace the 
 Conqueror's triumphant return to Eouen. But the sympathies of 
 Waltheof were with the vanquished ; and when the spirit of the 
 country rose against the invaders he left London, and hurried north- 
 ward, to take part in the operations of the Northumbrians, He was 
 still very young ; but, like his father, he was remarkable for his tall 
 stature, his physical strength, and his strong arm ; and the presence 
 of the son of Siward was hailed with delight by those whom Siward 
 had so often led. 
 
 When the Northumbrians, after the tragical death of Eobert 
 Comine, and the landing of the Danes, marched from Durham 
 and besieged York, Waltheof performed prodigies of valour. Placing 
 himself in ambuscade at one of the gates, battle-axe in hand, he 
 fell upon some Normans who were attempting to escape, and laid 
 twenty of them dead on the ground. A hundred men, who hoped 
 to save themselves by flight, took refuge in a neighbouring wood ; 
 but Waltheof, who pursued them closely, was in no humour to allow 
 them to escape. 
 
 " I will save myself further trouble," he said, " by setting the wood 
 on fire." 
 
 Putting his threat immediately into execution, Waltheof gave the 
 wood to the flames ; and a Danish poet, who was also a warrior, 
 celebrating Waltheof's deeds in verse, compared his valour to that of 
 Odin, and congratulated him on having given the English wolves an 
 ample repast on Norman corses. 
 
 When William was interrupted, while hunting in the Forest of 
 Dean, with news of the outbreak beyond the Humber, and swore 
 never again to lay aside his lance till he had slain all the Northum- 
 brians, and marched suddenly with his choice troops to York, 
 Waltheof once more fought like a hero of romance. Planting him- 
 self in a breach, through which only a single person could enter at a 
 time, he cleft Norman after Norman with his ponderous battle-axe. 
 
WALTHEOF, SON OF SIWARD. 1G9 
 
 His prowess on tlie occasion moved the admiration of his anta- 
 gonists ; and William was unable to refrain from expressions of 
 surprise. 
 
 " By the Divine splendour !" he exclaimed, " I must make a friend 
 of the man who dare do such deeds." 
 
 Accordingly a reconciliation was proposed ; and a meeting was 
 appointed at the Norman camp on the banks of the Tees. Every- 
 thing went smoothly. Waltheof, in token of homage, placed his 
 bare hand in that of the Conqueror, and William bestowed the 
 earldoms of Huntingdon and Northampton on the son of Siward. 
 
 After this submission Waltheof received Judith, one of the Con- 
 queror's nieces, in marriage, became the father of two children, and, 
 after the deprivation of Cospatrick, had his highest ambition grati- 
 fied by being installed as Earl of Northumberland. In that capacity 
 the Anglo-Dane lived in the closest friendship with Vaulcher of 
 Lorraine, Bishop of Durham. Sitting with Vaulcher in the synods 
 of his clergy, Waltheof humbly and obediently put in execution the 
 decrees of the bishop for reforming religion within the diocese. Nor 
 did he by such conduct lose the favour of the English. All appeared 
 prosperous ; and Waltheof, united to the king's niece, and occupying 
 his father's seat, enjoyed the favour of the Conqueror without having 
 forfeited his popularity with the vanquished, when the conspiracy of 
 Norwich, for which he cannot be considered to have been responsible, 
 involved him in ruin and cost him his life. 
 
 On that day, when Norman counts, Saxon thanes, and Welsh chiefs 
 assembled at Norwich to celebrate the marriage of Ealph de Gael 
 with the daughter of William Fitzosborne, conspicuous, by his high 
 head and gigantic stature appeared Waltheof, the Anglo-Dane. It 
 would seem, however, that Waltheof took no part in the abuse 
 lavished upon the uncle of his wife. But when the tumult was at 
 the loudest, one of the Norman earls, rising suddenly, hushed the 
 assembly to silence, and solemnly appealed to Waltheof to take part 
 in the revolt. 
 
 " Brave man," said the earl, with that eloquence for which the 
 Normans were so famous, " this is a great moment for your countiy ; 
 this is, for you, the hour of vengeance and fortune. Join us, and 
 
170 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 we Avill re-establisli the kingdom of England in every respect as it 
 was in tlie time of King Edward. One of us three shall be king, 
 the other two shall command under him, and all lordships shall be 
 held of us. William is occupied beyond sea ; we are satisfied that 
 he will not again cross the Channel. Now, brave warrior, adopt our 
 plan ; 'tis the best for thee, for thy family, and for thy crushed and 
 fallen nation." 
 
 " It is ! it is !" shouted the guests in chorus. 
 
 But Waltheof hesitated and remained silent. Warned by former 
 failures, and with the fate of Edwin and Morkar before his mind's 
 eye, he shrunk from embarking in an enterprise which he felt must 
 terminate in disaster. At length he allowed himself so far to be 
 drawn into the league that he promised secrecy. 
 
 It would seem, however, that Waltheof did not keep his word. 
 The secret preyed on his mind. Uneasy, restless, and sleepless, he 
 revealed the conspiracy first to his wife, Judith, and then to Arch- 
 bishop Lanfranc. It is even said that he was persuaded by the 
 primate to repair to Normandy and warn the Conqueror. 
 
 At all events, Waltheof did not escape punishment. When, in 
 due time, the fleet invited from Denmark, commanded by the son of 
 King Sweyn, approached the coast, Waltheof was accused of having 
 invited the Danes over, lodged in the Castle of Winchester, and, ere 
 long, broiTght to trial. He denied the charge. But the evidence 
 given by Judith against her husband, whom she disliked, appeared 
 conclusive, and the court was only divided in opinion as to the 
 punishment to be inflicted. 
 
 " He deserves execution as a revolted Englishman," said some. 
 
 " No," argued others, " it should be perpetual imprisonment as a 
 revolted oflficer of the king's." 
 
 AVhile Waltheof remained a prisoner in the Castle of Winchester, 
 his fate hung in the balance for nearly a year. But his enemies 
 were eager for his destruction. Judith was eager to be a widow ; 
 Ivo Taille-Bois had set his heart on some of Waltheof 's land which 
 adjoined his own; and many Normans had a keen eye to the great 
 earldom which had been enjoyed by the son of Siward. William 
 did not resist the pressure, and sentence of death was j)ronounced. 
 
WALTHEOF, SON OF SIWAED. 171 
 
 The 29tli of April, 1075, was appointed for the execution of 
 Waltheof. But such was his popularity that the Normans appre- 
 hended an insurrection as the consequence of openly beheading him. 
 It was, therefore, determined that the utmost secrecy should be 
 observed. Before daybreak, accordingly, while the citizens of Win- 
 chester still slept, ISTorman officers, appearing in Waltheof s prison, 
 informed him that his hour was come ; and Waltheof, rising, arrayed 
 himself in his earl's robes and walked forth to execution. Escorted 
 by soldiers, attended by priests, and followed by some of the poor 
 whose home was the street, the son of Siward directed his steps to a 
 hill outside the city. On reaching this place, where the last scene 
 was to be enacted, he prostrated himself on the ground, and, for a 
 few moments, prayed in a low and earnest tone. 
 
 " Bise, that we may fulfil our orders," said the Normans, alarmed 
 at the thought of the news spreading and a rescue being attempted. 
 
 " Wait," he replied calmly, " till I have said the Lord's Prayer for 
 myself and for you." 
 
 " Yes," said they, consenting. 
 
 Waltheof, rising from his prostrate attitude, but remaining on his 
 knees, said, in a loud voice, " Our Father, which art in Heaven." 
 However, when he reached the words " lead us not into temptation," 
 the executioner, growing impatient and uneasy, suddenly drew his 
 large sword, waved it in the air, and with one blow severed the earl's 
 head from his body. Alarmed at the approach of day, the Normans 
 hastily dug a hole between two roads, threw in the body, and 
 covered it with earth. 
 
 The possessions of Waltheof, and the earldom of Northampton, 
 devolved upon Judith, his widow; and that lady consoled herself in 
 her bereavement by regaling her imagination with the idea of sharing 
 her wealth and power with a husband of her own choosing. But it 
 soon appeared that in this respect the widow of Waltheof had made 
 a serious miscalculation. William, in fact, without consulting her 
 taste, destined her hand for Simon de Senlis, a French knight of 
 unquestioned courage, but lame and somewhat deformed ; and Judith 
 expressed her utter horror of the match. 
 
 " What !" she exclaimed, " I marry a man who is lame and ill- 
 shapen? Never!" 
 
172 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 " As you will, madam," said the Conqueror, grimly ; " but, at all 
 events, Simon de Senlis shall be Earl of Northampton." 
 
 MeanwhUe, the body of Waltheof was removed from the place 
 where it had been hastily buried to the Abbey of Croyland, and 
 interred in the chapter-house. Judith, disappointed in her hopes of 
 a second husband, and mortified at the spectacle of Simon de Senlis 
 'figuring as Earl of Northampton, repaired to Croyland, and, as if 
 to appease the spirit of the man whom she had betrayed, offered a 
 silken cloth at his sepulchre. Left with her two children in poverty 
 and obscurity, the widow of Waltheof passed the remainder of her 
 life mournfully in a remote corner of England. 
 
173 
 
 XXXIX. 
 
 WULSTAX, BISHOP OF WORCESTER. 
 
 N that memorable day wlien Edgar Atlieling appeared 
 at the Norman camp at Berkhampstead to make his 
 submission to the conqueror of Hastings, one of the 
 Saxon prelates who accompanied the grandson of Ed- 
 mund Ironside was Wulstan, Bishop of Worcester. 
 
 Wulstan had taken part in the election of Edgar 
 Atheling, and probably felt as anxious as any of his 
 neighbours to maintain the national independence. But 
 after having arrived at the conclusion that the game was 
 up, and sworn allegiance to William the Norman, he 
 continued faithful to his oath ; and, in doing so, earned 
 the distinction of being described by a modern histo- 
 rian as " a simple, weak-minded man, who, after a momentary 
 impulse of patriotic enthusiasm, became heartily reconciled with the 
 conquerors." 
 
 It appears that long after the other prelates of Saxon race were 
 somewhat summarily deposed, Wulstan was, in consequence of his 
 fidelity to William, allowed to remain Bishop of Worcester, In 
 that capacity he rendered to the Norman cause services which only a 
 Saxon churchman could have rendered. When the violence shown 
 towards the Saxon clergy raised so much resentment throughout 
 England that in some provinces no Norman bishop durst show his 
 face, Wulstan made pastoral visitations, calmed the popular excite- 
 ment, and proclaimed the amnesties of the king ; and when Roger 
 Fitzosborne, raising the standard of revolt, marched from Hereford, 
 in hopes of crossing the Severn and joining Ealph de Gael, Wulstan 
 not only rallied the natives of Worcester around the royal standard, 
 but marched in person to oppose the rebel earl's progress. 
 
174 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOKJMANS. 
 
 Wiilstan, after tliesc events, doubtless considered his position 
 secure. Indeed, it was quite natural that lie should. But he was 
 deficient in that kind of erudition which Lanfranc deemed that a 
 bishop ought to possess — and Lanfranc, being no respecter of persons, 
 reported him as " insufficient for his place for want of learning." 
 
 It was the year 1076; and a great council of barons and bishops 
 was held in the church of Westminster, under the auspices of Lan- 
 franc and under the presidency of William. Before that assembly 
 Wnlstan was cited; and by the assembly he was unanimously 
 declared incapable of exercising episcopal functions. When this 
 judgment was pronounced, William ordered Wulstan to take off his 
 pontifical robes, and resign his staff and ring, the ensigns of his 
 ecclesiastical dignity. Wulstan, however, was so amazed and in- 
 dignant, that, instead of obeying quietly, as was anticipated, he rose, 
 turned towards the Conqueror, and exclaimed, with energy — 
 
 " A better man than you, O king! bestowed these robes upon me, 
 and to him I will restore them !" 
 
 As Wulstan spoke, the Norman barons and bishops stared in 
 mute surprise, and they were astonished when the venerable man, as 
 if under Divine inspiration, walked to the Confessor's tomb. 
 
 " Thou, holy Edward," said he, " gavest me this staff, and to thee 
 I return and confide it !"' 
 
 Suiting the action to the words, Wulstan energetically struck the 
 tombstone with the end of his pastoral staff; and then turning back 
 to the Normans, he said, Avitli calm scorn — 
 
 " I received my staff from a better man than any of you ! I have 
 returned it to him. Take it from him if you can !" 
 
 At this distant period it would be impossible adequately to de- 
 scribe the effect produced on the assembled Normans by this scene. 
 Had all the heroes, saints, and martyrs of that great regal House 
 whose throne the son of Arlette so unwortliily occupied come out of 
 their graves, and walked in procession before the council, the bishops 
 and barons could not have been more astonished. The air of 
 Wulstan, his unexpected energy, and the circumstances under which 
 it was displayed, produced a feeling of wonder mingled with super- 
 stitious awe. The king did not repeat his demand; but Lanfranc 
 
WULSTAN, BISHOP OF WORCESTER. 
 
 175 
 
 mustered voice to entrccat Wulstan to put on his robes and remain in 
 his bishopric. 
 
 But the effect produced on the bishops and barons within the 
 church of Westminster was trifling compared with the impression 
 produced throughout the country. According to popular report, 
 something resembling a miracle had been wrought. It must be 
 confessed, indeed, that the story lost nothing in the telling. The 
 rumour ran, that when Wulstan struck the tomb his staff penetrated 
 into the stone as into soft earth, and that no one was able to draw 
 it but the bishop himself. The story spread far and wide, and was 
 told by many an oppressed peasant at the cottage hearth, by many a 
 bold outlaw under the greenwood tree, and by many a sad-hearted 
 Saxon, driven from his countrj^, dressed as a Varing, and guarding 
 the palace of the Emperor of Constantinople. 
 
170 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 XL. 
 
 EGBERT CURTHOSE. 
 
 The conquest of England having been accomplished, and the Saxons 
 completely reduced to submission, the Conqueror, instead of enjoying 
 his triumph, became sad and uneasy. Doubts as to the fidelity of 
 his barons, and dismal forebodings as to the fate of his sons, haunted 
 him day and night ; and he even went so far, in his intense anxiety, 
 as to consult some " wise men," who were supposed to have the gift 
 of divination, as to the future of his line. Had any magician really 
 had the power of revealing to him the fortune of his descendants in 
 an enchanted mirror, as conjurers in another age revealed to Cathe- 
 rine de Medici the fortunes of her posterity, his worst apprehensions 
 would have been confirmed. As it was, the conduct of his son 
 Robert filled his heart with sadness and his mind with gloom. 
 
 Robert was the eldest son of William and Matilda. He drew his 
 first breath about the year 1053; and his appearance was hailed 
 with delight by his parents. Both William and Matilda appear to 
 have indulged young Robert in such a way as utterly to spoil him ; 
 and when he passed from childhood to boyhood he acquired most 
 dangerous notions of his importance. 
 
 When William sailed to conquer England, Robert had reached his 
 thirteenth year. Ere that period he had been formally recognised 
 by the Norman barons as heir of the duchy, and affianced to the 
 heiress of the Counts of Maine ; and when William sailed in the 
 Moira, Robert was associated with Matilda in the administration of 
 affairs. Flattered, complimented, and allowed to exercise enormous 
 influence in Normandy during the absence of his sire, Robert early 
 assumed the airs of an independent sovereign, and began to treat 
 the parental authority with undisguised contempt. 
 
 Notwithstanding the influence which unfortunate training produced 
 on the heir- apparent of Normandy, Robert, as he grew up to man- 
 
ROBERT CURTHOSE. 177 
 
 hood, displayed qualities which recommended him to the hearts of 
 the Norman chivalry. Brave and eloquent, intrepid and generous, 
 he was just the person to secure the affection of a martial and high- 
 spirited race of nobles. In war his prowess reminded men of the 
 heroes of romance. But his appearance was in no respect heroic. 
 He was under the ordinary height, fat to excess, and large in the 
 bones. Rollo would have been astonished at the aspect of his heir; 
 and William was so impressed with the shortness of Kobert's legs, 
 that the father, in ridicule, called the son " Curthose." 
 
 While Curthose was emerging from his teens, the death of the 
 heiress of Maine and the annexation of that province to Normandy 
 resulted in a quarrel between William and his heir. Eager to have 
 a dominion of his own, Curthose claimed Maine as husband of 
 the heiress ; and the inhabitants, eager to have a lord of their own, 
 supported Curthose's claim heart and soul. William, however, 
 treated the idea with cold contempt; and while Curthose was 
 brooding over this as a serious injury, circumstances occurred to fire 
 his indignation. 
 
 It was the year 1077, and the Conqueror, Queen Matilda, and 
 their sons happened to be on a visit to Laigle. One day, about 
 noon, Curthose, with his friends around him, was standing in the 
 courtyard of the house in which he lodged, expatiating with his 
 wonted eloquence on his wrongs, and his brothers, William Rufus 
 and Henry Beauclerc, who had been in the habit of taking part 
 against Curthose in the domestic feud, coming thither, ascended to 
 the upper rooms, where, making a great noise, they began to play at 
 dice, after the manner of the soldiers of that age. Suddenly Rufus 
 and Beauclerc conceived the idea of varying their amusement, and, 
 without calculating the consequences, they threw a quantity of water 
 on Curthose and those with whom he was in earnest and animated 
 conversation. 
 
 This insult stung Curthose to the quick. Giving way to irrita- 
 tion, he swore that no man on earth should so treat him with im- 
 punity; and, drawing his sword, with a gesture of menace he sprang 
 to the doorway, and rushed upstairs to inflict chastisement. Fortu- 
 nately, his fi'iends interfered in time to prevent bloodshed. But high 
 
178 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 words passed, defiances -were exclianged, and tlie scene was so 
 tumultuous that the Conqueror's presence became necessary to pre- 
 vent the disputants from coming to blows. 
 
 At length order was restored. It was even supposed that the 
 quarrel was at an end. But, all the time, the blood of Curthose was 
 boiling in his veins, and his high spirit was swelling with anger and 
 grief. Next night he left Laigle with a choice band of friends, and 
 proceeded to Eouen. AVith some vague notion, he attempted to 
 surprise the citadel. The enterprise, however, failed, and many of 
 his adherents were arrested. Curthose, however, escaped, passed 
 the frontier of Normandy, took refuge in La Perche, and found 
 shelter in the castle of Sorel. 
 
 The conduct of his heir naturally excited the Conqueror's wrath. 
 Curthose, however, had a powerful advocate in his mother, Matilda, 
 and a reconciliation took place. But this domestic peace was not of 
 long duration. The adherents of Curthose, generally gay and 
 thoughtless young men, exercised all their art to stimulate his ambi- 
 tion ; and he yielded somewhat too readily to their suggestions. 
 
 " Noble son of a king," said they, " thy father's people must take 
 good care of his treasure, since thou hast not a penny to bestow on 
 thy followers. Why endurest thou to remain so poor when thy 
 father is so rich ?" 
 
 " But what can I do ?" asked Curthose. 
 
 " Ask him for a portion of his England," they answered ; " or, at 
 least, for the duchy of Normandy, which he promised thee before all 
 his barons." 
 
 Curthose did as he was advised. Excited and discontented, he 
 went to William, and demanded to be put in possession of either 
 part of the kingdom of England or the duchy of Normandy. Wil- 
 liam, instead of complying, exhorted Curthose, in a paternal tone, 
 to amend his life, and to behave in a manner more worthy of the 
 position^^he was destined to occupy. 
 
 " Return to your duty as a son," said the Conqueror, " and then 
 make choice of better counsellors than you now have. Make choice 
 of wise and grave persons of mature age to guide you — such a man, 
 for instance, as Archbishop Lanfranc." 
 
 " Sir King !" replied Curthose, so sharply that William started, 
 
ROBERT CURTHOSE. 179 
 
 " I came here to claim my right, and not to listen to sermons. I 
 heard enough of them, and wearisome enough they were, when I 
 was at my grammar. Answer me, therefore, distinctly, so that I 
 may know what I have to do ; for I am firmly resolved not to live 
 on the bread of others, and not to receive the wages of any man." 
 
 " Know, then," exclaimed William, angrily, " that I will not divest 
 myself of Normandy, to which I was born, nor share England, which 
 I have acquired with so much labour." 
 
 " "Well," said Curthose, " I will go and serve strangers, and per- 
 haps obtain from them what is refused me in my own country." 
 
 Without further ceremony, Curthose summoned his adherents, 
 mounted his horse, and, with a soul glowing with pride and a spirit 
 swelling with indignation, rode out from Kouen and away towards 
 Flanders. Passing from country to country, from castle to castle, 
 and from court to court, Curthose travelled over Europe, publishing 
 his grievances and demanding aid. Nor was his story, told in elo- 
 quent language, without influence on the magnates whom he visited. 
 Counts, dukes, and princes testified their sympathy, and drew their 
 purses. Their liberality, however, had no beneficial influence on the 
 wanderer's circumstances. In fact, Curthose was one of those men 
 who can give the most sapient advice as to the afiairs of their friends, 
 while their own afi"airs are going to ruin as rapidly as their enemies 
 could wish. All that he received to support his cause slipped 
 through his fingers. Mountebanks, parasites, and women of equivocal 
 reputation perpetually preyed upon him. All that Curthose ob- 
 tained from barons and princes to buy arms and equip men passed 
 into the hands of those who ministered to his amusement or contri- 
 buted to his pleasure. Hard pressed for money, inconvenienced by 
 poverty and all its concomitant evils, compelled to beg afresh, but, 
 probably, with less success than on the first occasion, he found him- 
 self under the necessity of going to the usurers, and borrowing gold 
 at exorbitant interest. Such were the steps by which Curthose 
 entered upon that fatal path which finally, notwithstanding his 
 great fame as^a prince and soldier, and as a champion of the Cross, 
 conducted him to disaster and defeat, and to a long and dismal cap- 
 tivity in the dungeons of Cardiff. 
 
 n2 
 
180 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 XLI. 
 
 THE CONQUEROR AND HIS HEIR. 
 
 While Robert Curthose was journeying from castle to castle and 
 from court to court, Philip, King of France, now in Hs twenty- 
 seventh year, and William the Conqueror's sworn foe, was offering 
 bribes and protection to all the discontented Normans. After wan- 
 dering about Flanders, Lorraine, and Aquitaine, Curthose at length 
 turned his horse's head towards France, made for St. Germain, and 
 craved sympathy and support from the great grandson of Hugh Capet. 
 
 Never did monarch listen to exiled prince with more eagerness 
 than Philip of France listened to the heir of Normandy. Fearing 
 and hating William as he did, Philip smiled with delight at the idea 
 of setting the son to pull down the father, and readily promised his 
 utmost aid. After much conversation on the subject, Curthose formed 
 his plan of action, and, under the auspices of the French king, re- 
 paired to Gerberoy, a castle on the frontiers of Normandy. 
 
 At that period it was the custom that the castle of Gerberoy 
 should be occupied by two viscounts, equal in authority, and that 
 fugitives from all nations should find protection -^yithiu its walls. 
 The reception of Curthose at this stronghold was all that he could 
 have wished. He was courteously received at the gate by EUe, one 
 of the viscounts, and afterwards cordially welcomed by Elie's colleague. 
 
 Ere this, Matilda of Flanders became aware of the pecuniary em- 
 barrassments of her son, and, eager to administer relief without 
 informing William, she contrived, by means of a Breton named 
 Samson, to send Curthose sums of money. Hearing of this, the 
 Conqueror forbade her to hold any communication with a son who 
 had forfeited all title to consideration. ]\Iatilda, however, had a will 
 of her own. Her maternal anxiety proving, in this case, infinitely 
 
THE COXQUEROR AND HIS HEIR. 3 81 
 
 stronger tlian respect for lier liusband's mandate, she continued 
 secretly to assist Curtliose in the midst of his multitudinous difficul- 
 ties. William, learning that he had been disobeyed, was highly in- 
 dignant, and addressed his spouse in language somewhat reproachful. 
 
 "Behold my wife," said the Conqueror; "she whom I have loved 
 as mine own soul — to whom I have confided the government of my 
 realms, my treasures, and all that in this world I possess of power 
 and greatness — she hath supported mine adversary against me ; she 
 hath strengthened and enriched him with the wealth 1 confided to 
 her keeping ; she hath secretly employed her zeal and subtlety in his 
 cause, and done everything she could to encourage him against me." 
 
 " My lord," answered Matilda, " be not surprised if I feel a 
 mother's tenderness for my first-born son. By the virtue of the 
 Most High ! I protest that if my son Kobert were dead, and hidden 
 far from the sight of the living, seven feet deep in the earth, and 
 that the price of my blood would restore him to life, I would cheer- 
 fully bid it flow." 
 
 "But," said William, "you support my enemy with the very 
 money I have committed to your keeping." 
 
 "And how," asked Matilda, "can you suppose that I could enjoy 
 the pomps and luxuries with which I was surrounded when I knew 
 that he was pining in want and misery? Far from my heart be 
 such hardness !" 
 
 On hearing this, William grew pale with vexation. In his rage 
 he bethought him of Matilda's messenger, and gave peremptory 
 orders that Samson should be arrested and deprived of his sight. 
 But the Breton, hearing that his eyes were to be put out, made his 
 escape, and sought safety in the cloister. The old chronicler deemed 
 the circumstance one in regard to which he had a right to be jocular, 
 and remarked that Samson turned monk to save at once his body 
 and souL 
 
 jNIeanwhile, Curthose hoisted his flag and invited mercenaries to 
 repair, without delay, to the castle of Gerberoy. Thither they flocked 
 as eagles to the carnage. From France, from Flanders, and from 
 Normandy they hastened, on foot and on horseback, with sword and 
 with spear. Even men-at-arms who had served in William's court. 
 
182 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEilANS. 
 
 who had lived under his protection, and -who had partaken of the 
 finiits of his successes, willing to worship the rising sun, left Kouen 
 and galloped to Gerberoy. Curthose ere long found himself at the 
 head of a formidable force, and Philip of France rejoiced in the 
 triumph which he anticipated from having set the son against the 
 father. 
 
 WiUiam was startled at the menacing attitude which Curthose had 
 assumed, but he acted with all the energy of his earlier days. 
 Landing in Normandy, the Conqueror prepared to encounter his 
 refractory heir as he had encountered other foes, and, attended by 
 his son, William Rufus, appeared in hostile array, and at the head of 
 a numerous army, before Archembrage, where Curthose then was. 
 
 It was now Curthose's turn to feel some degree of anxiety. In- 
 closed within the walls of Archembrage, he saw himself hemmed in 
 by a force with which his own was too weak to cope. But the 
 chivalrous spirit of the heir of JSTormandy was not to be daunted by 
 the odds arrayed against him ; and making a sally, with his lance 
 in rest, and his best warriors at his back, he bore down opposition 
 and carried confusion into the enemy's camp. 
 
 It was on this occasion that Curthose and the Conqueror en- 
 countered hand to hand. Unaware who was his adversary, Curthose 
 so strenuously exerted his marvellous prowess that William, who 
 had never before been worsted in close conflict, was wounded and 
 unhox'sed. Alarmed at disasters which to him were quite novel, 
 William bellowed out much more loudly than was consistent with 
 the dignity of a conqueror, and the Norman knights, spurring in to 
 the rescue, shouted out that it was the king. On discovering who 
 was the wounded knight, Curthose dismounted, lifted William from 
 the ground, aided him to regain his saddle, and left him at liberty 
 to depart. 
 
 After the afii-ay at Archembrage, the Norman counts and bishops 
 used their utmost endeavours to reconcile William and his son. At 
 first their eflbrts were unavailing. The Conqueror would scarcely 
 listen to their entreaties, and, even after listening, he resisted sternly 
 and stubbornly. 
 
 " Why," he asked, " do you solicit me in favour of a traitor who 
 
THE CONQUEROR AND HIS HEIR. 183 
 
 Las seduced from me those soldiers wliom I have fed with my bread 
 and whom I have supplied with the arms they bear ?" 
 
 As time passed on, however, William's heart softened. Perhaps, 
 when cured of his wound, he recovered from the mortification of 
 spirit caused by the remembrance of his overthrow and affright at 
 Archembrage. At all events, he yielded to the solicitations of the 
 Norman counts and bishops, expressed his willingness to forgive the 
 past, and granted Curthose full pardon for his rebellious exploits. 
 
 While the good understanding consequent on this reconciliation 
 between father and son lasted, William departed for England, and 
 not, perhaps, deeming it safe to leave Curthose in Normandy, re- 
 quested the honour of his company. In England, however, there 
 was work for a warrior to do. Malcolm, King of Scots, crossing the 
 Tweed, began once more to ravage Northumberland, and Curthose, 
 placed at the head of an army, was sent to repel the invader. But 
 in this expedition the heir of Normandy had no opportunity 
 of winning new laurels. Malcolm, alarmed at the approach of 
 so redoubted a champion, retreated rapidly to his own dominions; 
 and Curthose, to leave some memorial of his northern expedition, 
 erected a strong fort on the Tyne, to which was given the name of 
 Newcastle. 
 
 Matters so far went smoothly; but in the year 1083 MatUda of 
 Flanders died; and soon after the queen's death, the quarrel between 
 the Conqueror and his heir broke out afresh. 
 
184 
 
 From the Bayeus Tapestry. 
 
 XLII. 
 
 ODO, BISHOP OF BAYEUX. 
 
 During the time that King William was on the Continent fighting 
 •with Robert Curthose, the government of England was committed to 
 Odo, Bishop of Bayeux. Before this period Odo's arrogance had 
 been sufficiently conspicuous, and during the time he exercised vice- 
 regal functions events occurred to minister to his pride to such a 
 degree that he became altogether intolerable. 
 
 It was one of the great objects of William the Norman to elevate 
 those to whom he was related on the mother's side. After the death 
 of Robert the Devil, Arlette, probably ambitious of figuring in a less 
 equivocal position than that which she had previously occupied, 
 united herself in marriage with Herluin de Couteville, and found 
 herself the mother of two legitimate sons. William did not neglect 
 their interests. One of them, Robert, became Earl of Mortain ; the 
 other, named Odo, and dedicated to the Church at an early age, 
 became Bishop of Bayeux. 
 
 But, though Bishop of Bayeux, Odo was no meek shaveling nor 
 
ODO, BISHOP OF BAYEUX. 185 
 
 pale-faced student. He was a daring warrior and a cautious liber- 
 tine, and is pictured with defiance in his eye and rings on his finger ; 
 at one time leadmg a fiery charge of Norman cavalry, at another 
 inditing love epistles to the dames of Eouen whUe pretending to be 
 occupied with a treatise on some such relic as the finger of St. 
 Thomas. His addiction to sinful pleasures was, in fact, notorious ; 
 and one of the results of his amours was a son, named John, who 
 distinguished himself in the reign of his kinsman, Henry Beauclerc. 
 
 In the scenes with which the Norman invasion of England com- 
 menced, Odo of Bayeux enacted a prominent part. When Edward 
 the Confessor expired, and Harold usurped the throne of young 
 Atheling, and William calculated the chances of success in the 
 event of undertaking an enterprise, Odo was one of the Normans 
 who met at Eouen, who tendered the hesitating duke their support, 
 and who promised to serve with money and goods, even to pledging 
 or alienating their inheritances. On that day, also, which witnessed 
 the battle of Hastings Odo was a prominent personage. In the 
 morning he celebrated mass and blessed the troops; and, having 
 performed this duty, he mounted his tall white charger and dis- 
 played his military skill by setting the cavalry in order for battle. 
 
 Hastings having been won, and the work of the Conquest pro- 
 ceeding, Odo's services did not go unrewarded. While his brother 
 Eobert became Earl of Cornwall, Odo became Grand Justiciary of 
 England, and obtained the earldom of Kent ; and at a later period, 
 having meanwhile shared the whole of Archbishop Stigand's pro- 
 perty with Adeliza, wife of Hugh Grantmesnil, he, on the forfeiture 
 of Eoger Fitzosborne, received a grant of the earldom of Hereford. 
 
 Never had fortune been more favourable to a human being than 
 for years she seemed to Odo. Unluckily for the warlike Bishop of 
 Bayeux, his pride swelled as his power and possessions increased ; 
 and at length, when invested, during William's absence from 
 England, with viceregal authority, he lost all sense of discretion, and 
 acted like a man whose head prosperity had turned. 
 
 It happened that, after the execution of Waltheof at Winchester, 
 the earldom of Northumberland was purchased from the Conqueror 
 by Vaulcher, Bishop of Durham, and that his government was some- 
 
186 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 what unsatisfactory. Vaulclier, indeed, appears to liave been a 
 learned, pious, and well-meaning man, and to have shown his re- 
 spect for poj^ular sentiment by the high consideration he paid to 
 Liulf, a Saxon thane connected by marriage with the wife of Siward. 
 and with the mother of Cospatrick. But Leofwin, the bishop's 
 chaplain and chief confidant, and Gislebert, a kinsman who acted as 
 the bishop's deputy in administering the affairs of this province, re- 
 garded Liulf with envy and malice. After frequent exhibitions 
 of ill-will, they conspired to murder Liulf; and Gislebert, entering 
 the Saxon thane's house by night, put him and his family to the 
 sword. 
 
 Vaulcher was naturally much enraged at this atrocity. Such, 
 however, was his position that he was fain to pass over the crime, 
 and even to continue his countenance to Leofwin and Gislebert. 
 The Northumbrians, deeming that this was adding insult to injury, 
 held nocturnal conferences, as in the time of Eobert Comine, and 
 were so evidently bent on mischief, that Vaulcher recognised the 
 necessity of doing something to allay the ferment. With this object 
 he announced his intention of holding a court, and mediating 
 between the relatives of Liulf on the one part and Leofwin and 
 Gislebert on the other. 
 
 It was on the 14tli of May, 1080, and at Gateshead, that 
 Vaulcher met the Northumbrians. The bishop was attended by 
 Leofwin and Gislebert, and about a hundred men of foreign birth; 
 and the Northumbrians, all secretly armed, were headed by Eadulf, 
 surnamed Pais, a great-grandson of Earl Uchtred, and a connexion 
 by marriage of Liulf. Knowing the French language, Eadulf acted 
 as spokesman, and conferred with the bishop on the business of the 
 day, and then stated that he must consult his followers as to the 
 terms proposed. But instead of doing so, he cried out — "Short 
 reed, good reed, slay ye the bishop ;" and the Northumbrians, who 
 had come with weapons concealed under their clothes, instantly 
 brandished them in the air. In order to encourage his followers, 
 Eadulf struck down Vaulcher with his own hand; and the Nor- 
 thumbrians, rushing on the bishop's attendants, slaughtered them 
 without mercy. Only two servants, men who were natives of 
 England, escaped the massacre. 
 
ODO, BISHOP OF BAYEUX. iS7 
 
 News of this outrage at Gateshead was carried to Odo. The 
 Bishop of Bayeux smiled grimly, and, girding on his armour, 
 promptly marched northward to punish the perpetrators of the 
 murder. ? But, meanwhile, the Northumbrians had marched to 
 Durham, attacked that city, and, after finding their efforts vain, dis- 
 persed in all directions. Eadulf and the ringleaders fled the country ; 
 and, when Odo's approach was announced, few remained at home 
 except those who had taken no part in the insurrection. 
 
 But Odo had ridden northward indulging in visions of carnage 
 and plunder ; and he was not to be baffled in his expectations by 
 considerations of justice. Aware that the murderers of the bishop 
 had fled, he avenged their crime on the whole province, ravaged the 
 country, executed many of the inhabitants, mutilated others in the 
 most revolting manner, plundered the church at Durham of the 
 sacred ornaments which Bishop Eghelwin had formerly saved by 
 removal to Holy Island, and gained a high reputation among the 
 most disreputable class of the Norman conquerors, who proudly 
 described him as " one of the greatest queUers of the English." 
 
 On learning what had occurred in Northumberland, William was 
 doubtless surprised to hear of his brother acting so like a madman. 
 But his astonishment was still greater when he learned that Odo was 
 on the point of leaving England and proceeding to Italy. In fact, 
 the queller of the Northumbrians, relying on some prediction of an 
 Italian soothsayer that the next Pope should be named Odo, had 
 bought a palace in Rome, and, in order to secure his election to the 
 papal chair, was not only preparing to go thither, but had engaged 
 his nephew, Hugh Le Loup, Earl of Chester, and many other 
 Ncfrman knights and barons, to form his court. 
 
 The idea of Odo aspiring to the chair of St. Peter proved in the 
 highest degree displeasing to William. Sailing from Normandy 
 without delay, he contrived to intercept Odo off the Isle of Wight. 
 Assembling a council of Norman barons, he presented Odo to them, 
 and accused him of having abused his power as judge and earl. 
 
 " This man," explained William, " has despoiled churches ; he has 
 maltreated the Saxons to the danger of the common cause ; and he 
 has attempted to seduce and take with him beyond the Alps the 
 
188 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOKMANS. 
 
 warriors on whose fidelity the safety of the country depended. Con- 
 sider these grievances," said William, in conclusion, '•' and tell me 
 how I ought to act towards such a brother." 
 
 The barons looked at each other ; but no one ventured to reply. 
 
 " Ha ! " exclaimed William, " offensive foolhardiness must be 
 restrained in time. Therefore," continued he, after a pause, "let 
 this man be arrested and put into safe custody." 
 
 But the idea of Odo being a bishop daunted the boldest. None 
 present had the courage to put out a hand. At length William ad- 
 vanced and sei2;ed Odo's robe. 
 
 "I am a priest — I am a minister of God!" cried Odo. "The 
 Pope alone can judge between us." 
 
 " It is not as priest or prelate that I judge," exclaimed William, 
 grasping the bishop's robe more tightly than before ; " it is as my 
 vassal, my earl, and my false viceroy." 
 
 Odo, finding all protests unavailing, was fain to yield to his 
 fate. Carried to Normandy, he was lodged in a strong fortress, and 
 made to suffer for the sins committed in the days of his prosperity. 
 In fact, the licentiousness for which he had been notorious was urged 
 as a reason against his release, and he remained in durance almost 
 without hope of seeing his prison-doors opened. 
 
 Cooks — ii'om Bayeus; Tapestry. 
 
1S9 
 
 The Doom's-day Books 
 
 XLIII. 
 
 DOOMSDAY BOOK. 
 
 The House of Godwin having been overtlirown ; the son of Siward 
 executed ; one grandson of Leofric in the grave, the other in a dun- 
 geon ; and one son of Cospatrick relegated to obscurity in Durham, 
 the other condemned to exile in Lothian ; William the Conqueror 
 shook off all feelings of apprehension in so far as concerned the 
 vanquished, and bethought him of casting up accounts with the 
 companions of his victories. With this view he commissioned Walter 
 Gifford, Henry de Ferrars, Kemi, Bishop of Lincoln, and other 
 uersons of distinction, to traverse the country in all directions, and 
 ascertain what amount of property each man possessed, and what 
 proportion each should contribute towards the revenue. 
 
 This process, however necessary, does not appear to have been highly 
 gratifying to those whom it chiefly concerned. Indeed, the Norman 
 
]90 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 king and the Norman barons liad, ere this, begun to regard each 
 other with distrust and hostility. William accused them of caring 
 more for their private interests than the general welfare ; and they 
 retaliated by reproaching him with greediness of gain and a desire 
 to appropriate to himself, under the pretext of public utility, the 
 wealth that had been acquired by their united exertions. 'No forcible 
 opposition, liowever, was offered to the inquest which "William ordered; 
 and the Eoyal commissioners proceeded to the execution of their 
 laborious duties. 
 
 Making progresses through the various counties of England, the 
 commissioners established a court of inquiry in each place of im- 
 portance, and caused the results of their investigations to be regularly 
 registered in a book. The king's name was placed first, with the 
 lands and revenues he enjoyed ; then the names of the chiefs or 
 smaller proprietors, according to their military rank and the value of 
 their territory. The whole business was conducted with the utmost 
 regularity, and with sucli care as rendered the lapse of years inevi- 
 table before the completion of their inquiry. 
 
 When this territorial register, described by the ISTormans as the 
 " Grand Roll," but talked of by the Saxons as " Doom's-Day Book," 
 was completed, all the Norman chiefs, clerks as well as laymen, were 
 convoked, in 1086, to discuss and decide the various claims that had 
 been made and disputes that had arisen during the inquest. It 
 was a magnificent assembly, presided over by William, and consisting 
 of prelates, barons, and knights, glutted with the blood and gorged 
 with the spoil of the slaughtered and banished Anglo-Saxon lords. 
 But many of them came thither in no amicable mood ; and the 
 Goddess of Discord availed herself of their frame of mind to cele- 
 brate a festival. 
 
 It appears that William asserted himself proprietor, by inheritance, 
 of all the land that had belonged to Edward the Confessor, to Harold 
 the Usurper, and to the various members of the House of Godwin, 
 and thus interfered with the claims of many Normans who had 
 served him most zealously at the time of the invasion. Much dis- 
 content was felt in consequence, and expressed without hesitation. 
 Men deprived of their estates held strong language ; and, finally. 
 
DOOMSDAY BOOK. 
 
 191 
 
 unable to obtain redress, they renounced their allegiance, left the 
 country they had helped to conquer, passed the Tweed, and ottered 
 their homage to Malcolm Canmore. 
 
 This circumstance was destined to exercise considerable influence 
 in after ages. The Normans crossed the frontier with feelings the 
 reverse of tender towards the country thej^ were leaving, and taught 
 their children to turn the points of their spears southward. Two 
 centuries later it was the perfidy of their descendants that baffled 
 the genius of the first Great Edward ; and it was the courage and 
 prowess of their children's children which enabled Eobert Bruce to 
 Avrest from Edward's son the crown of Scotland on the field of 
 Bannockburn. 
 
 Morman Eustic, 11th century (from Strutt) 
 
192 
 
 1h.e quariel oi Heniy icducleic and Louis Ic Gio 
 
 XLIV. 
 
 THE CONQUERORS DEATH. 
 
 It was the spring of 1086, and Philip, King of France — weak as 
 ever, and with a reputation decidedly the worse for wear — was at 
 Conflans, on the Seine ; and with him was his son, afterwards, as 
 Louis le Gros, distinguished as the foremost man of his time, but 
 
THE conqueror's DEATH. 193 
 
 then scarcely out of Ms teens, and showing no signs of the talent 
 and energy which history has associated with his name. In fact, 
 this prince was "gay, conciliating all hearts to him, and of such 
 extreme good-nature," says his biographer, " that to some men he 
 seemed almost weak." 
 
 While Philip was at Conflans with his court, Conflans was doubt- 
 less an attractive place. Indeed, the court of Philip included so 
 many young men sent to be instructed in knightly accomplishments, 
 under the royal auspices, that they almost formed an army. At the 
 same time, weary, perhaps, of Rouen, and eager for change of scene 
 Robert Curthose and Henry Beauclerc — whom the Conqueror had 
 recently invested with joint authority as governors of Normandy — 
 repaired to Conflans on a visit, " entertaining the time with a variety 
 of sports." 
 
 One day, when the three princes were in the palace, Henry and 
 Louis commenced playing chess, while Curthose sat looking out on 
 the banks of the Seine, or paced the room, pondering some vague 
 project connected with love or war. Henry appears to have had 
 marvellous luck ; and Louis, perhaps not quite satisfied of having 
 fair play, lost not only his money but his temper also. High words, 
 and a quarrel not remarkable for princely dignity w^ere the conse- 
 quences. Louis, getting into a rage, perhaps for the first time in his 
 life, called Henry the son of a bastard, and threw the chessmen in 
 his face. Henry, provoked in the highest degree, reproached Louis 
 with being the heir of usurping, eflfeminate, and priest-ridden kings, 
 and feUed him to the floor with the chessboard. In the vehemence 
 of his passion, Henry would have slain Louis on the spot ; but 
 Curthose, recovering from the amazement produced by the scene, 
 hastily interfered, dragged his brother away, and hurried to the 
 stables. Mounting, the Norman princes spurred off" with the speed 
 of the wind, and scarcely halted till they were beyond the French 
 frontier. 
 
 On learning what had occurred, Philip swore to be avenged. 
 Rousing himself from apathy, and availing himself of William's 
 absence from the Continent, the French king made a hostile incursion 
 into Normandy ; and, ere long, the Conqueror, while in England, 
 
194 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 learned tliat liis liege lord was ravaging liis territory and besieging 
 his towns. 
 
 William was, by tbis time, in his sixty-third year, and by no 
 means so energetic as in days gone by. Nevertheless, his spirit was 
 high as ever. Resolved to go in person to face the danger and punish 
 the aggression, he prepared to cross the Channel. Before doing so, 
 however, he determined to remove from the vanquished islanders the 
 temptation of making a last desperate effort to restore their national 
 royalty. 
 
 At this time, Edgar Atheling, and his sister, Christina, were both in 
 England. The Atheling, with some touch of sentiment for the land 
 over which his sires had reigned, had, in the previous year, returned 
 from Normandy ; and Christina, having perhaps exhausted the 
 patience of King Malcolm, had returned from Scotland. The pre- 
 sence of the royal Saxons could hardly, under all the circumstances, 
 have been of vital consequence. But suspicion had now become a 
 disease with the Conqueror, and he could not embark without 
 having first disposed of them to his satisfaction. Accordingly, he so 
 strongly impressed upon Christina the propriety of becoming a reli- 
 gious, that the princess, albeit not yet forty, still comely to behold, 
 and perhaps by no means averse to the veil of a bride, was fain to 
 take the veil of a nun in the convent of Eumsey ; and he demon- 
 strated so clearly to Atheling the propriety of undertaking an 
 expedition to the Holy Land, that the prince, after being promised 
 money to support his dignity, consented to set out on a pilgrimage. 
 
 Matters having thus been settled, William, with Edgar Atheling 
 under his wing, and Rufus in attendance, embarked for the Continent. 
 Having set his iron heel once more on Norman soil, the Conqueror 
 first shipped off the grandson of Ironside to Apulia, with a retinue of 
 two hundred knights, and then aj^plied himself to his dispute with 
 the heir of Hugh Capet. 
 
 It appears that the real cause of debate between William and 
 Philip was the country of Vexin, situated between the Epte and the 
 Gise. This territory had been wrested from Normandy and united 
 to France during the troubles consequent upon the rumoured death 
 of Robert the DevU. William, less inclined than of yore to submit 
 
THE conqueror's DEATH. 195 
 
 the question of possession to the arbitrament of the sword, flattered 
 himself that he should be able to regain the Vexin by peaceful means, 
 and with this hope opened negotiations. 
 
 While negotiations were pending, William, whose corpulence had 
 caused him serious inconvenience, felt the necessity of placing himself 
 in the hands of his physicians and, by their advice, he kept his bed, 
 and attempted to reduce himself by a rigorous diet. Philip, deeming 
 that he had little to fear from such an adversary, returned evasive 
 replies to William's demands, and found that the Conqueror bore the 
 delay so patiently, that he ventured one day, at Paris, to indulge, at 
 William's expense, in a coarse jest, which was faithfully repeated at 
 Rouen. 
 
 " By my faith !" said Philip, " our cousin, the King of England, is 
 very long about his lying-in ! What rejoicings there will be when 
 he gets up ! What a number of candles I must provide for his 
 churching !" 
 
 " Ha !" angrily exclaimed William, when told what Philip had 
 said, "no cost shall the King of France incur on that day for 
 candles or lights. For," added he, his anger rising and swelling into 
 fury, " by the splendour and birth of God ! I will be churched at 
 !N^otre Dame de Paris with ten thousand lances for my candles." 
 
 While the blood of William was boiling with indignation at his 
 liege lord's insulting jest, an incident occurred which must have 
 added much to his annoyance. Curthose, falling under Philip's in- 
 fluence, and allured by Philip's promises, broke once more with his 
 father, and prepared for the third time to leave the ^Norman court. 
 William stormed as was his wont on such occasions, cursed his son's 
 folly, and heaped maledictions on his head. Curthose, however, 
 paid no regard to the reproaches of a sire with whom he could not 
 agree ; though it could hardly have been without reluctance that he 
 left the duchy of which he was the recognised heir, to sit at the 
 hearth, and feed at the board, and climb the stairs of strangers. 
 But, whatever his feelings, Curthose did go; and the grim Con- 
 queror cursed him as he departed. 
 
 William now shook off sickness, discarded his physicians, rose 
 from his bed, mustered his men-at-arms, buckled on his mail, and 
 
 o2 
 
196 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 entered tlie territory of Philip. More than threescore years had 
 passed since the son of Arlette drew his first breath ; but he proved, 
 in a manner not to be mistaken, that time had not bent his spirit 
 nor softened his heart. It was late in July, the harvest was at 
 hand, and the summer's sun shone on fields of yellow corn, on vine- 
 yards rich with grapes, and orchards laden with fruit. William 
 spared nothing. He ordered his cavalry to burn the corn, to tear 
 up the vines, and to cut down the fruit-trees. Slaughtering, de- 
 stroying, and ravaging with all the fury he had seventeen years 
 earlier displayed in Northumberland, William reached Mantes, on 
 the Seine. 
 
 It was Sunday, the 15th of August, when the Conqueror ap- 
 peared at Mantes; and, on effecting an entrance, he immediately 
 ordered the town to be set on fire. His orders were promptly 
 obeyed; and as the flames leaped from roof to roof, seizing on 
 cottages, and castles, and churches, and shot crackling upwards like 
 a serpent's tongue, William, as if in a frenzy, shouted at the top of 
 his voice, galloped through the conflagration, and seemed to enjoy 
 the terrible scene. But suddenly his haughty spirit was brought 
 low. While riding through the ruins, he spurred his horse towards 
 a ditch which crossed his path. While in the act of springing, the 
 animal set its foot on some burning embers, started, plixnged 
 furiously, and came to the ground, throwing the corpulent rider 
 with such violence against the saddle as to cause a severe wound in 
 the stomach. 
 
 It soon became apparent that William was not destined to reach 
 Paris or to appear at Notre Dame ; in fact, the Conqueror was in no 
 slight danger. Weak from recent confinement, heated by excite- 
 ment, by the fire, and by the weather, he became feverish, and 
 ordered himself to be conveyed back to Eouen. But when laid in 
 his own chamber he could not rest ; and so great was the annoyance 
 he experienced from the noise of the streets, that it was deemed 
 expedient to remove him to the priory of St. Gervase. In that 
 religious house, which belonged to the monks of Fescamp, and stood 
 on a hill outside the city, William, under the care of Gilbert, Bishop 
 of Lysieux, and Goutard, Abbot of Jumieges, who tended him as- 
 
THE conqueror's DEATH. 197 
 
 ptysicians, languislied for weeks. But his condition daily became 
 worse, and, not deluding himself with hopes of recovery, he prepared 
 for death. 
 
 When stretched on a bed from which he felt there was no proba- 
 bility of his rising, William reflected seriously on his past life, and 
 regarded many actions in a very different light from that in which 
 he had been in the habit of viewing them during the years of health 
 •and vigour. Eager to make atonement, he caused money to be 
 given to the poor, and to be sent to the religious houses of England 
 and Mantes to rebuild the churches which, by his orders, had been 
 burned. At the same time he ordered the prison doors to be 
 opened, and freedom to be given to captives, among whom were 
 Wulnoth, brother of Harold; Morkar, brother of Edwin; and 
 "William's own brother, Odo of Bayeux. 
 
 It was now Wednesday, the 8th of September, 1087, and the 
 Conqueror became aware that he was on the point of passing that 
 bourne from which no traveller returns. But still he seems to have 
 remained somewhat unconvinced of the vanity of sublunary great- 
 ness. Ordering the ofl&cers of his household to repair to his 
 chamber, he, weak as he was, delivered an harangue of some length 
 on his military achievements, dilated on the renown he had acquired 
 as a ruler of men, and dictated his last will to his sons. Robert 
 Curthose was at Abbeville ; but William Rufus and Henry Beau- 
 clerc were by the bed of their dying father. 
 
 "I leave Normandy," said the Conqueror, "to my eldest son 
 Robert, in accordance with the wishes of the Normans; but 
 wretched will be the land subject to his rule. As for England, I 
 leave it to no one, because I acquired it by force and bloodshed. I 
 replace it in God's hands, wishing that my son William, who has 
 ever been obedient to me, may, if it please God, obtain that kingdom 
 and prosper in it." 
 
 " And," said Henry, stepping forward and speaking with energy, 
 " what, then, will you give me, my father ?" 
 
 " Give thee Y' replied William ; " I give thee five thousand pounds 
 in silver from my treasury." 
 
 " But," said Henry, " what can I do with this money if I have 
 neither house nor land V 
 
198 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 " Be content, my son," answered the Conqueror, '•' and liave con- 
 fidence in God. Allow thine elder brothers to precede thee. Thy 
 time will come after theirs." 
 
 This scene having been enacted, William awaited that pale 
 spectre which comes with impartiality to the cottages of the poor 
 and the castles of kings. Nor was his patience severely tried. At 
 sunrise, on Thursday morning, he awoke from the feverish slumber 
 in which he passed the last night his spirit was to spend on earth. 
 It was bright and clear; the rising sun shone on the storied windows 
 of the priory, the bells were ringing, and the monks were singing a 
 Latin hymn to the hour of prime. 
 
 " What means that noise V inquired William, in faint accents. 
 
 "They are ringing prime at the church of St. Mary," was tLe 
 answer. 
 
 " Ha !" faltered William ; and then adding, " I commend my 
 soul to Mary, the Holy Mother of God," he raised his hands to 
 heaven, and instantly expired. 
 
199 
 
 XLV. 
 THE BURIAL AT CAEN, 
 
 ^.^ g ^Thursday 
 ^ ^^tlie lOth 
 ^ ^ ^^-^ Sep- 
 
 tcmber, 1087, con- 
 sternation and dis- 
 may pervaded the 
 city of Rouen. ISTei- 
 tlier Granada after 
 Boabdil's fliglit, nor 
 Edinburgh after the 
 death of King James 
 at riodden, presen- 
 ted such a scene of 
 confusion as did the 
 capital of Xormandy on that morning when it became 
 known that William the Conqueror had breathed his 
 ^^^^^^U^"^ last. Fear fell upon all men who had anything to 
 lose, and they ran wildly about, beating their breasts, 
 tearing their hair, and imploring advice, as if a hos- 
 tile army had been before the gates. 
 
 Meanwhile, within the convent of St. Gervase and the castle of 
 Eouen were enacted such scenes as, when reflected on, make human 
 beings blush for human nature. No sooner did AVilliam breathe his 
 last than his physicians, and the attendants who had watched his 
 couch during the night, hastily left the chamber of death, and 
 mounting their horses, rode away to look after their property; and, 
 when the news reached the castle, the servants carried off plate, 
 armour, clothes, linen, and everything that was not too hot or too 
 
 :^. 
 
200 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 heavy, and fled from the place. It is even said that the body of the 
 great warrior-statesman was left on the floor with scarcely a shred of 
 covering, and that it remained in that position for several hours. 
 
 It is most discreditable, indeed, to the memory of William's two 
 sons, Kufus and Beauclerc, that such should have been the case. 
 But these young men were wholly intent on their own interests. 
 Eufus was already on his way to England, and Beauclerc was busy 
 receiving the five thousand pounds, seeing the silver carefully weighed, 
 and depositing the treasure in a chest, fastened with bands of iron, 
 and secured with strong locks. Never was there a more thorough 
 display of intense selfishness. Even Curthose, with all his faults, 
 would not have been guUty of such filial impiety. 
 
 It almost seemed as if the Conqueror was to be denied Christian 
 burial. But William, Archbishop of Rouen, had the decency to 
 think of the dead king, and ordered a procession to be arranged. 
 Dressed in their habits, monks and priests, with cross, candles, and 
 censers, repaired to the chamber to pray for the soul that had de- 
 parted, and the archbishop gave orders that the corpse should be 
 conveyed to Caen, and buried in the cathedral which William had 
 built and dedicated to St. Stephen. But nobody showed the least 
 inclination to take an active part in the obsequies. 
 
 At length a Norman knight, named Herluin, probably a kinsman 
 of Arlette's husband, William's stepfather, volunteered to take the 
 trouble and bear the expense. Having hired a hearse and men, 
 Herluin removed the body to the banks of the Seine, and, having 
 caused it to be placed in a boat, attended it, by the river and the 
 sea, to Caen. On reaching that place the corpse was met by the 
 Abbot of Caen, with aU his monks, and by many other priests and 
 laymen, among whom appeared Henry Beauclerc. But a fire sud- 
 denly breaking out in the town dissolved the procession, and the 
 corpse, deserted by all but the monks of St. Stephen, was borne by 
 them to the cathedral. 
 
 Between the altar and the choir of the Cathedral of Caen a tomb 
 was prepared; and when the time appointed for the inhumation 
 arrived all the bishops and abbots of Normandy assembled for the 
 ceremony. Mass was then said; and the body, without a coffin, but 
 
THE BUKIAL AT CAEN, 201 
 
 clothed in royal robes, was about to be lowered, when suddenly a 
 man, advancing from the crowd, stepped forward and interrupted 
 the process. 
 
 " Priests and bishops," said he, in a loud voice, " this ground is 
 mine. It was the site of my father's house. The man for whom 
 you have now prayed took it from me by force to build his church 
 upon it." 
 
 " It is true," said several voices. 
 
 " I have not sold my land," continued the man ; " I have not 
 pawned it — I have not forfeited it — I have not given it. Mine the 
 ground is by right, and I demand it." 
 
 "Who art thou?" they asked. 
 
 "My name," he answered, "is Asselin Fitzarthur, and in God's 
 name I forbid the body of the spoiler to be laid in this place. Here 
 was the floor of my father's house — it was violently wrested from us ; 
 and I charge you, as ye shall answer for it before the face of God, 
 not to cover this body with the earth of my inheritance." 
 
 "He hath the law of Normandy on his side," muttered those 
 present. 
 
 Perceiving how the matter stood, the bishops caused Fitzarthur to 
 approach, and a bargain was hastily struck. The bishops agreed to 
 pay sixty pence for the immediate place of sepulture, and to give 
 equitable recompence for the rest of the ground ; and Fitzarthur, 
 contented with their assurance, withdrew his protest. The body was 
 then placed in its narrow receptacle, and, the ceremony having been 
 hastily completed, the grave closed over the remains of William the 
 Conqueror. 
 
 The right of Robert Curthose to the coronal of N"ormandy was 
 not disputed, and when that prince arrived at Eoueu he quietly 
 took possession of the dominions of EoUo. But the succession to 
 the crown of England was a question which the Anglo-Norman 
 barons deemed themselves entitled to decide. A council was ac- 
 cordingly held for that purpose ; and at this assembly the majority 
 of those present gave it as their opinion that crown and coronal 
 should go together — that the two countries should have one and the 
 same government — and that the crown of England should be placed 
 
202 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 where the coronal of Normandy already was, on the head of Duke 
 Eobert. But, in the midst of their deliberations, the dignity of the 
 assembled barons was rudely shocked. News, in fact, came across 
 the Channel which seemed to indicate that their wishes on the sub- 
 ject of the succession were not thought worthy even of being con- 
 sulted, and which, by creating bitter animosities, Avas destined to 
 produce an alarming and not altogether unimportant civil war. 
 
203 
 
 Shakespeare's Cliff, Dover. 
 
 XLVI. 
 
 THE EED KING. 
 
 About the time when news that the Conqueror had commended his 
 soul to the Virgin Mary and expired at the convent of St. Gervase 
 was causing consternation and affright in the city of Rouen, there 
 might have been seen, at the port of Wissant, near Calais, a thick- 
 set and rude-mannered man, of twenty-seven or thereabouts, who 
 
204) DANES, SAXONS, AND NOR:iIANS, 
 
 stammered in Norman French, swore "by the face of St. Luke," 
 and went blustering about in the excess of his eagerness to embark 
 for the shores of England. 
 
 The appearance of this person was the reverse of prepossessing. 
 His stature was mean, his figure was ungraceful, his face florid, 
 his forehead shaped like a window, bis hair fiery red, and his 
 countenance, which had not a redeeming feature, was deformed by a 
 disagreeable defect in the eyes. It was William Eufus, the Con- 
 queror's second son, on his way to seize the English' throne. 
 
 On setting foot in England, Kufus hastened to Winchester, pre- 
 sented himself to the treasurer, and gained that officer over to his 
 views. Having obtained the keys of the treasury'-, he found much 
 silver and gold, and a quantity of jewels. Upon weighing these 
 carefully, and taking an inventory, he succeeded in gaining the 
 support of Lanfranc ; and, having prevailed on the Norman barons 
 then in England to recognise him as king, he was crowned by the 
 archbishop in the cathedral of Winchester. 
 
 It would seem that at this stage Rufus apprehended some danger 
 from the enmity of the Saxons. At aU events, his first act of royal 
 authority was directed against men of the vanquished race. In 
 accordance with the Conqueror's dying command, four captives of 
 high rank had been restored to liberty. These were Roger Fitzos- 
 borne, Odo of Bayeux, Wulnoth, brother of Harold, and Morkar, 
 brother of Edwin. Of these, Rufus ordered Wulnoth and Morkar 
 to be seized, and again committed to prison at Winchester. 
 
 Events soon occurred to convince the Red King that he had mis- 
 taken the quarter whence danger was to come. In fact, the Norman 
 barons, who had assembled at Rouen, were furious at the intelligence 
 of a coronation having taken place without their consent, and, ere 
 long, they reached England, breathing defiance and threatening ven- 
 geance. Soon a party was formed with the avowed resolution of 
 pulling Rufus from the throne, and placing the crown of England on 
 Curthosc's head. 
 
 At the head of this party figured Odo, the fierce and haughty 
 Bishop of Bayeux, now released from prison. Owing Lanfranc an 
 old grudge, and willing to pay the debt with interest, Odo exerted 
 
THE EED KING. 205 
 
 all his influence to destroy the settlement of -which the archbishop 
 was author, and proved so successful in his efforts that a formidable 
 conspiracy was formed with that object. Day by day it was strength- 
 ened by the names of powerful nobles and influential churchmen. 
 Hugh de Grantmesnil, Robert Mortain, Earl of Cornwall ; Eobert 
 jMontgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury ; Robert IMoubray, Earl of North- 
 umberland ; and William Carilif, Bishop of Durham, were among 
 the many eminent personages who vowed to place Curthose on the 
 Conqueror's throne. With the object of perplexing the movements 
 of Rufus while awaiting the coming of Curthose, they fortified them- 
 selves in different parts of the country, Hugh de Grantmesnil forti- 
 fied himself in Leicester ; the Earl of Cornwall posted himself at 
 Pevensey ; the Earl of Shrewsbury held Norwich ; the Earl of 
 Northumberland seized Bristol ; William'^ Carilif occupied the castle 
 of Durham ; and Odo himself took possession of the castle of 
 Rochester. The banners of the insurgents waved from hundreds of 
 
 other strongholds ; and they only awaited the arrival of Curthose to 
 strike a decisive blow. 
 
 The position of Rufus appeared somewhat perilous. Left to his 
 own resources he must have fallen from the throne he so unworthily 
 occupied. But the circumstance of having a minister of such 
 wisdom and experience as Lanfranc at his side considerably altered 
 the case ; and, acting under the auspices of the archbishop, Rufus 
 took the only step likely to save him from impending rum. 
 
 In passing through England, as it then was, foreigners were sur- 
 
206 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 prised, after passing the Norman fortresses, whicli on every height 
 frowned with heavy, massive, and gloomy turrets, to come, ever and 
 anon, on two-storied houses, quite unfortified, and standing in the 
 midst of parks, through which, watched by the herdsmen, herds and 
 flocks grazed in security. These were the seats of such Saxons of 
 consideration as had escaped the Norman sword ; not mighty chiefs, 
 like Edwin or Cospatrick, but thanes who, perhaps, had been too 
 proud to march under the banner of the son of Godwin ; men who 
 had not, for years, wandered out from the shadow of their paternal 
 oaks ; whom isolation had rendered eccentric, and whom oppression 
 had rendered irascible. 
 
 In the hour of need, Rufus was reminded of these Saxon thanes, 
 who had long been exclaiming over their cups against Norman 
 tyranny, summoned them to his court, asked their counsels, and pro- 
 mised, in the event of their rendering aid, to restore to them the 
 right of carrying arms, and the privileges of the chase. The simple 
 Saxons fell into the snare, gave credit to bis frank assurances, and 
 issued to the natives a proclamation couched in the words to which 
 the Saxons had been long accustomed. 
 
 " Let every man," such were the words — " let every man that is 
 not a nothing, whether in the town or country, leave his house and 
 come." 
 
 The appeal was not made in vain. At the time and place ap- 
 pointed thirty thousand Saxons rallied round the Eed King's banner. 
 
 It was at the head of this body of men, who were mostly on foot, 
 that William, with some Norman cavalry, marched towards Rochester, 
 where Odo of Bayeux was strongly posted. The Saxons, to whom 
 Odo was peculiarly odious, displayed great eagerness for the strife, 
 vowed vengeance against the oppressors, and beleaguered Rochester 
 on all sides. Closely pressed, the Bishop of Bayeux and his friends 
 soon offered to yield, and to acknowledge Rufus as King, on con- 
 dition of being allowed to retain their honours and their lands. 
 Rufus, who was brave, though his courage somewhat resembled that 
 of a wild beast, at first refused to listen to such terms. But the 
 Normans in his army, having no mind to slaughter their friends and 
 kinsmen, pressed him to accede. 
 
THE RED KING. 207 
 
 "We, wlio liave aided thee in tliis danger," said they, "pray thee 
 to spare our countrymen and relatives, who are also thine, and who 
 aided thy father to conquer England." 
 
 " Well," said Kufus, yielding to their representations, " I will grant 
 them liberty to depart with arms and horses." 
 
 " But," said Odo, " we must stipulate that the king's military 
 music shall not play in token of victory at our departure." 
 
 " By St. Luke's face !" exclaimed Eufus, fiercely, on hearing of 
 this demand, " I will not make any such concession for a thousand 
 gold marks." 
 
 Accordinglj^, when Odo and his friends left Ptochester, with 
 colours lowered, the royal trumpets sounded in token of victory ; 
 but far louder were the clamours that arose from the assembled 
 Saxons. 
 
 " Bring us cords !" some cried ; " we will hang this traitor bishop, 
 with all his accomplices !" 
 
 " king !" cried others, " why dost thou let him go free 1 He is 
 not worthy to live — the traitor, the perjurer, the murderer of so many 
 thousand men." 
 
 The war, after raging for some time longer, was terminated by a 
 treaty. Curthose was bribed with a grant of land and with a pro- 
 mise of succeeding to the crown in the event of his surviving Uufus ; 
 while his adherents were pardoned and returned to their estates. 
 But how did Rufus treat the Anglo-Saxons who had secured him 
 victory 1 How did he fulfil the promises made to the Saxon chiefs 
 who had brought their countrymen around him in the hour of need 1 
 
 No sooner was the war at an end than Rufus became infinitely 
 more tyrannical than ever his father had been. In vain Lanfranc, who 
 had, as it were, stood sponsor, reminded the Red King of the pledges 
 he had given. 
 
 " Remember your promises," said the venerable prelate. 
 
 " Tush !" stammered out Rufus ; " how can a king keep all the 
 promises he makes ?" • 
 
 Lanfranc was horrified. Dumb with amazement at the idea of 
 solemn engagements, for which he had stood security, being thus re- 
 pudiated, the archbishop retired into privacy, and soon after went the 
 
208 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOR^IANS. 
 
 way of all flesh. The death of Lanfranc was regarded as a national 
 calamity ; and the Eed King, freed from all restraint, and pursuing 
 his career without scruple and without fear, lived like a scoundrel, 
 and reigned like a tyrant. 
 
 Eufus seems to have had as little sympathy with the sentiments 
 of that gallant French monarch who said that " society without 
 ladies would be like the year without the spring ; or, rather, like 
 spring without the flowers," as with the sentiment of another French 
 monarch, who said that, " if good faith were banished from all the 
 rest of the world, it should still be found in the breasts of kings." 
 No gentle wife had the Red King to exercise a softening influence on 
 his harsh heart. From the first he was a confirmed bachelor, and his 
 morals were dissolute in the extreme. It is true that at the court of 
 Winchester no mediaeval Diana of Poictiers or Madame Pompadour 
 scandalized the grave and decorous by the spectacle of an abandoned 
 woman, arrayed in purple and fine linen, enjoying a degree of royal 
 favour not vouchsafed to a wedded wife. But Rufus indulged with- 
 out restraint in amours with females too obscure to be mentioned by 
 chroniclers ; and such was the reputation of the king's court that, 
 when he made progresses through England, women who had not 
 discarded decency left their homes to save their honour, and took 
 refuge in the depths of the forests. 
 
 At the same time the country through which the Red King passed 
 was ruthlessly ravaged by his train. Goods and provisions were 
 lawlessly seized ; and such was the spirit of the courtiers that, when 
 they found in the houses of the Saxons more than they could con- 
 sume, they amused themselves by giving articles of food to the 
 flames, and using wine to wash the feet of their horses. 
 
 Another kind of oppression was heavily felt by the vanquished 
 race. The king deemed it necessary to construct a new wall round 
 the Tower, to build a bridge over the Thames, and to add a great 
 hall to the palace of Westminster. AU around London men were 
 taxed, and bands of labourers were forcibly compelled to take part 
 in the works. Murmurs and complaints were frequent ; but mur- 
 murs were useless and complaints unavailing. 
 
 In fact, under the government of the Red King, the affairs of 
 
THE RED KING. 
 
 209 
 
 England were conducted without the least reference to the feelhigs 
 of those to whom he owed his throne. Deep, of course, was the 
 discontent. 
 
 " Every year that passed," says the chronicler, " was heavy and 
 full of sorrow, on account of the vexations without number, and the 
 multiplied taxes." 
 
 Knights jousting itrom Strutt) 
 
210 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 XLVII. 
 RUFUS AND THE JEWS. 
 
 M ONG the evils wliicli the Saxons 
 associated with the Norman Con- 
 quest, not the least was the intro- 
 duction, by William the Conqueror, 
 of a considerable number of Jews 
 into England. Doubtless, ere that 
 event, the fame of their wealth, and of the atrocious 
 means by which it had been acquired, had preceded 
 them. But their arrival from Eouen caused much 
 dismay. Accounts of their usury, their traflBc in 
 human beings, and the insults offered by them to the 
 Christian religion, were carried through the land, and 
 so influenced the popular mind, that, of all the nations 
 of modern Europe, the Anglo-Saxons learned most 
 thoroughly to despise the degraded remnants of the 
 chosen people. There was something about the appearance of men 
 of Hebrew race which raised involuntary antipathy in the breasts of 
 the inhabitants of England; and wherever the face of a Jew ap- 
 peared, with the sensual lip, the sharp, hooked nose, and features the 
 reverse of beautiful, hands instinctively clenched and Kps curled 
 with scorn. 
 
 The Red King did not share the prejudices of his Saxon subjects. 
 Being an infidel, he could not think the worse of them because they 
 
r.UFUS AND THE JEWS. 211 
 
 were not Christians ; and being a spendthrift, lie was glad to avail 
 himself of their wealth, without particularly inquiring into the ne- 
 farious means by which it had been acquired. In any case, Rufus 
 gave the Jews considerable encouragement in matters of religion ; 
 and, whenever an opportunity occurred, he showed that he was not 
 above pocketing their gold. 
 
 It appears that on one occasion the Red King even consented to 
 a disputation being held in his presence between Jews and Chris- 
 tians. Before the arrival of the day appointed, the Jews came to 
 Rufus, laid rich presents at his feet, and implored him to insure 
 them a fair and impartial hearing. 
 
 " Doubtless," he answered ; " and joii must quit yourselves like 
 men." 
 
 " Assuredly," said the Jews. 
 
 " And if you prevail in argument," exclaimed Rufus, " I swear 
 by St. Luke's face that I myself will turn Jew, and be of j'our 
 religion." 
 
 This disputation, like most disputations of the kind, came to 
 nought, and Rufus was not called upon to redeem his pledge of be- 
 coming a convert. He did, however, contrive to turn the conver- 
 sion of others to account. When a Jew happened to be brought to 
 a knowledge of the truth, Rufus was quite ready, on certain terms, 
 to lay his commands on the convert to return to Judaism. In this 
 way, which ill became the king of a Christian people, he obtained 
 considerable sums of money. 
 
 On one occasion a wealthy old Jew, whose son had seen the error 
 of his ways, and embraced Christianity, appeared at the king's court, 
 told his tale of woe, and entreated assistance. 
 
 "I am sore troubled," said the Hebrew; " I am bowed down with 
 grief. O king," he continued, presenting Rufus with sixty marks, 
 " command my son to return to the faith of his fathers." 
 
 "Ay," said Rufus, clutching the money; "bring your son to me, 
 and I will bring him to reason." 
 
 The old Jew retired, and soon after returned with his sou. The 
 young Israelite, however, was unabashed as he entered the Red 
 King's presence, conscious of the goodness of his cause. - 
 
2J2 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 " Young man," said Eufus, by way of settling the business in as 
 few words as possible, " I command you, without delay, to return to 
 the religion of your nation." 
 
 " King," said the young Israelite, in a tone of mournful reproach, 
 " I marvel that you can give such advice. Being a Christian, you 
 ought to feel it your duty rather to persuade me to remain steadfast 
 to Christianity." 
 
 " Dog !" stammered out Rufus, in a loud tone ; " get out of my 
 sight without delay, or it will be the worse for thee." 
 
 The convert went his way, and the old Jew remained, deeply 
 mortified at the result of the royal mediation, for which he had paid 
 so high a price. But even at that instant his intense love of gold, 
 prevailing over all considerations of propriety, prompted an attempt 
 to recover his sixty marks. 
 
 " Since, king," he said, " you have not persuaded my son to re- 
 turn to his religion, it would be but fair to restore to me the gold I 
 gave to that end." 
 
 " ISTay," answered the king, with his usual oath; "I have taken 
 trouble enough, and have done work enough, for the gold, and more. 
 And yet I would like to show you how kindly I can deal. Therefore 
 you shall have one-half of the sixty marks, and in conscience you 
 cannot deny me the other." 
 
213 
 
 
 Death, of Malcolm Canmore, the Scottish King 
 
 RUFUS AXD THE SCOTS. 
 
 While William Eufus, having set honour and decency at defiance, 
 •was playing the part of a tyrant and oppressor in England, he ever 
 and anon gave indications, not to be mistaken, of a desire to play 
 the part of a usurper in Normandy. 
 
214) DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Eepairing to the Continent, with some idea of taking possession 
 of his brother s duchy, Rufus expelled from ISTormandy the unfor- 
 tunate heir of the Saxon kings, who had returned from Apulia, 
 Homeless and well-nigh desperate, Edgar Atheling once more sought 
 refuge in Scotland ; and Malcolm Canmore, irritated, perhaps, at the 
 treatment with which his brother-in-law had met, resolved on making 
 Piufus feel his enmity. 
 
 " Years since," said the King of Scots, " I was fain to recognise 
 William the Norman as my liege lord ; and I acknovv'ledge Robert 
 Curthose as the heir of William the Norman ; but as for this Red 
 King, I can only recognise him as a usurper, and he shall only know 
 me as a foe." 
 
 Rufus was still in ISTormandy, when intelligence reached him that 
 Malcolm, accompanied by the Atheling, had, in the month of Jlay, 
 1091, crossed the frontier; and he was seriously alarmed at tidings 
 of an invasion that might lead to important consequences. Under 
 such circumstances he perceived the policy of going craftily to work ; 
 and, after patching up a peace with his brother Robert, prevailed on 
 the Norman duke to attend him to England, and aid in bringing 
 Malcolm to reason. It was in the autumn of 1091 when, with Curt- 
 hose by his side, an army at his back, and a fleet at sea, Rufus 
 moved northward to try conclusions with the royal Scot. 
 
 On hearing of the approach of the King of England, Malcolm fell 
 back in some dismay. Nevertheless, Rufus was not quite in a posi- 
 tion to congratulate himself on the success of his expedition. In 
 fact, everything went wrong. The weather proved altogether unfa- 
 vourable. Before the close of September, the English fleet Avas 
 destroyed by a storm ; and, soon after ]\[ichaelmas, the army began 
 to suffer so fearfully from cold and want, that there appeared little 
 prospect of the enterprise having other than a disastrous termination. 
 
 While such was the state of affairs, Malcolm Canmore, turning to 
 bay, sent a messenger to the English camp with expressions of 
 friendship to Curthose, and of scornful defiance to Rufus. Curt- 
 hose, however, with characteristic generosity, stood firmly by Rufus 
 at this crisis. Mounting his steed, he rode to the Scottish camp, 
 had an interview with Edgar Atheling, persuaded the Saxon prince 
 
EUFUS AND THE SCOTS. 215 
 
 that, for all parties, peace was the wisest policy, and finally succeeded 
 
 in negotiating a treaty between the two kings. 
 
 Rufus now deemed himself secured against Malcolm's hostility ; 
 
 and scarcely had Curthose rendered this service when the Norman 
 
 duke began to experience the gross ingratitude of the Red King. 
 
 In utter disgust, Curthose resolved forthwith to leave England, and, 
 crossing the sea, he established himself at Eouen with the intention 
 of securing himself against further hostility. 
 
 Meanwhile Rufus, while keeping his court at Gloucester, fell so 
 sick, that physicians despaired of his life. Stretched on a bed of 
 suffering, the Red King became extremely penitent and anxious to 
 atone for his sins. While in this frame of mind, "William invited 
 Malcolm Canmore to come and settle all disputes. But ere the King 
 of Scots reached Gloucester, Rufus was in a fair way of recovering, 
 and in no mood to sacrifice either to justice or righteousness. With- 
 out even condescending to see Malcolm, he disdainfully ordered him 
 to submit his disputes to his peers, the Anglo-Norman nobles; and 
 Malcolm — his blood boiling at the treatment with which he had 
 met — returned home, vowing to make the Red King repent his 
 insolence. 
 
 No sooner, accordingly, did Malcolm reach Scotland, than he 
 assembled a great army, and marched towards England. Attended 
 by his eldest son, Edward, he entered Northumberland, ravaged the 
 country with fire and sword, advanced as far as Alnwick, invested 
 the castle of Ivo de Vesci, and besieged that stronghold so closely 
 that the garrison lost all hope. 
 
 It was the month of November, 1093 — a Sunday, and the day of 
 St. Brice. The rain had fallen in torrents ; the river Alne was in 
 flood ; and the garrison had given way to perplexity and despair. 
 No chance of the siege being raised, or of escape by any other means, 
 could be entertained ; and the remembrance of the savage cruelty of 
 the Scots under Malcolm, twenty years earlier, fiUed every heart with 
 consternation. In this emergency, Hammond Morael, of Bamburgh, 
 a soldier of courage and determination, undertook to deliver the 
 garrison, or die in the attempt. Mounting a fleet steed, he_issued 
 from the castle, and, carrying the keys on the point of his spear, he 
 
216 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 rode towards tlie Scottisli camp. On being challenged, lie professed 
 Lis willingness to surrender the keys of the fortress, but demanded 
 permission to present them to the King of Scots in person. Malcolm, 
 informed of Hammond's approach, immediately came forth; and 
 Morael, spurring forward, pierced the Scottish king through the 
 heart. 
 
 A loud cry arose as Malcolm fell, and the Scotch camp was in 
 commotion. Hammond, however, had well calculated his danger 
 and his chances of escape. Turning rein without the delay of an 
 instant, he gave his horse the spur, galloped towards a wood, made 
 for the Alne, then swollen with rain, and, dashing in at all hazards, 
 escaped by swimming the river at a place long afterwards known as 
 " Hammond's Ford." 
 
 WhUe the Scots, amazed at the unexpected fall of their king, 
 were in confusion, the soldiers forming the garrison of Alnwick 
 availed themselves of the circumstance. Sallying, they made a fierce 
 attack ; and the Scots, put to the rout, either fell by the sword, or 
 were drowned in attempting to pass the river. Among the warriors 
 slain on this occasion was Malcolm's son Edward, a young prince of 
 great promise. 
 
 The rout of the Scots was so sudden, and their dispersion so 
 complete, that the victors, without opposition, took possession of 
 Malcolm's body. But though left in the hands of the foe, the corpse 
 was not denied a Christian's grave. Placed in a cart by the North- 
 umbrians, it was conveyed to Tynemouth, and there laid, with 
 funereal honours, in the priory of St. Oswin, a famous religious 
 house, which Eobert de Moubray had wrested from the monks of 
 St. Cuthbert, and bestowed on the monks of St. Alban's. 
 
 In the meantime, news that Malcolm and his son had fallen at 
 Alnwick reached the Scottish court, and overwhelmed Queen Mar- 
 garet with grief. Nothing seemed sufficient to console the royal 
 lady for the loss she had sustained. Indeed, she is said to have 
 prayed that she might not survive them, and to have expired within 
 three days of the catastrophe which made her a widow. 
 
 The children of IMalcolm Canmore and Margaret Atheling, when 
 thus deprived of both parents, were in no enviable plight. The 
 
EUFUS AND THE SCOTS. 
 
 217 
 
 courtiers, being for tlie most part Normans and Saxons, were re- 
 garded and liated by the Scots as strangers or foreigners ; and the 
 only man capable of protecting the royal children was their uncle, 
 Donald Bane. But that prince proved the reverse of generous. 
 Instead of maintaining the interests of the eldest of his nephews, he 
 resolved on availing himself of his nephew's nonage to seize the 
 crown. 
 
 It was not difficult for Donald Bane to realize his aspirations. 
 The prejudices of the Scots as to the laws of succession, and the 
 claims of Magnus, King of Norway, were in his favour. Without 
 scruple he gratified the patriotism of the Scots by declaring for the 
 banishment of all Normans and Saxons ; and at the same time he 
 purchased the support of tlie Norwegian king by ceding to him the 
 Western Isles. Having thus strengthened his claims, Donald Bane 
 mounted the Scottish throne. 
 
 When affairs reached this stage, the Normans and Saxons escaped 
 from Scotland with all convenient speed. With Normans and 
 Saxons to England went Edgar Atheling; and with Atheling, to 
 the country over which his sires had reigned, went the children of 
 Malcolm and ]\Iargaret, to seek refuge in the land of their maternal 
 ancestors till the occurrence of events calculated to lead to their 
 restoration to home and country. 
 
 Tynemoulh. 
 
 (|^ Lihrary. J 
 
218 
 
 XLIX. 
 
 EGBERT DE MOUBRAY 
 
 About tlie spring of 1095, William Eufus was menaced with ruin. 
 It was Eobert de Moubray, Earl of Nortliumberiand — a man who 
 possessed two hundred and eighty manors — whose influence the Eed 
 King now had to dread. 
 
 Not without bitter grumbling had the Norman barons hitherto 
 
ROBERT DE MOUBRAY. 219 
 
 submitted to the law by -wliicli tlie Norman king retained the ex- 
 clusive right of hunting in the forests of England. Nevertheless, 
 this privilege was maintained by Eufus as vigorously as ever it had 
 been by the mighty Conqueror. The Saxons contemptuously called 
 him " The Wild Beast Herd," while the Normans conspired to take 
 off his croAvn, and place it on the head of Stephen, Earl of Albe- 
 marle, sou of the Conqueror's sister. At the head of this conspiracy, 
 which included several of the highest Norman nobles, Eobert de 
 Moubray nobly placed himself. 
 
 Eufus was not altogether unaware of the conspiracy formed by the 
 Anglo-Norman barons to overturn the throne. Indeed, Moubray drew 
 suspicion on himself by failing to appear at court on the occasion of 
 a great assembly of knights and barons at Easter. In order to bring 
 matters to a crisis, Eufus issued a proclamation that, at the feast of 
 Whitsuntide, every great landholder should attend, or be excluded 
 from the public peace. Moubray, instead of presenting himself, sent 
 Eufus a message, which sounded like a defiance. 
 
 " I will not attend," said the Norman earl, " unless the king 
 sends me hostages, and a safe-conduct to protect me going and 
 returning." 
 
 " By St. Luke's face ! " cried Eufus, stammering with rage, " if he 
 will not come to me, I will go to him ! " 
 
 According to this threat, the Eed King mustered an army and 
 marched northward. Besieging the castle of Tynemouth, which was 
 held by a garrison commanded by ]\Ioubray's brother, he, after two 
 months, took that fortress, and then marched on to Bamburgh, 
 where Moubray was spending his time in the company of a young 
 woman of great beauty, whom he had recently married. But 
 Eufus, discovering that Bamburgh was quite impregnable, erected 
 near it a stronghold called Malvoisin, or "111 Neighbour," and, 
 placing therein a strong garrison to keep tJiat of Bamburgh iu 
 check, returned southward with the bulk of his army. 
 
 Meanwhile Moubray had established communications with the 
 garrison of Newcastle, and conceived the hope of making himself 
 master of that stronghold. With this object, he one night set out 
 from Bamburgh, attended by thirty horse ; but, unfortunately for his 
 
220 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 scheme, lie was observed by the garrison of Malvoisin, closely- 
 pursued, and forced to take refuge in the priory of Tynemouth. At 
 that jjlace, after being besieged and wounded in the leg, he was 
 taken prisoner with his comrades. 
 
 Eufus, on hearing of Moubray's capture, sent orders to secure 
 Bamburgh without delay. But this was no easy business. The 
 garrison, under the auspices of Moubray's young countess, and 
 Hammond Morael — that warrior who had slain Malcolm Canmore — 
 proved as stubborn as ever, and the besiegers were well-nigh in 
 despair. Eufus, however, was not to be baffled by a woman. 
 
 "Carry her husband before the castle," he cried, "and let his 
 eyes be put out if it is not immediately surrendered." 
 
 The king's orders were promptly obeyed. The soldiers left by 
 Ptufus at ]\Ialvoisin led Moubray in chains before the castle of 
 Bamburgh, and summoned the countess to a parley. 'No sooner did 
 she appear than they intimated their intention of putting out 
 Moubray's eyes unless she instantly yielded the castle. The fair 
 countess could not hesitate ; without delay she threw the keys over 
 the walls; and the soldiers of Eufus entering, took all prisoners. 
 Morael, however, earned his pardon by revealing the names of all 
 the conspirators; and Lfoubray, sentenced to perpetual imprison- 
 ment, was conveyed to the castle of Windsor. 
 
 After long captivity, however, Moubray was permitted to retire to 
 the Abbey of St. Alban's. In that great religious house, the once 
 haughty Earl of Northumberland assumed the monastic habit, and 
 became a meek shaveling. He appears to have survived his un- 
 fortunate rebellion fully thirty years. 
 
 " You must know," says the chronicler, " that Eobert de Moubray, 
 the brave knight and Earl of Northumberland, was deprived of 
 sight some days before he died. He was a very old man, and de- 
 voted to God, and became a monk at St. Alban's, where, after living 
 a holy life for some time, he departed to the Lord, and was 
 honourably buried in a place not far from the chapter-house." 
 
221 
 
 -^ 
 
 Hawking. 
 
 HENRY BEAUCLERC. 
 
 At the time when Eufus became King of England, and Curthose 
 took possession of Normandy, Henry, third son of the Conqueror, 
 was in his twentieth year. Both in personal appearance and intel- 
 lectual capacity he was decidedly superior to his brothers. He was 
 a princely personage, of tall stature, and firmly built, with brown 
 hair, a brilliant complexion, and clear, penetrating eyes, thoughtful 
 rather than dreamy, which ever seemed to be looking to the future. 
 He thought much, but spoke little, for his mind was occupied with 
 projects of ambition, which he would not have whispered even to the 
 winds. 
 
 Henry had the advantage of being a native of England. It was 
 
222 DANES, SAXOXS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 at Selby, in Yorksliire, where an abbey was aftenvards founded by 
 tlie Conqueror, that ^Matilda of FLanders, during 1068, the first year 
 of her residence in England, became the mother of her third son. 
 But though a native of " the proud isle of liberty," Henry can hardly 
 be described as an Englishman. His manners were foreign; his 
 habits were those of a Norman ; and it does not appear that he 
 could even speak the English language. But he never failed, when 
 such was his interest, to profess ardent love for his native land, 
 and strong sympathy with the struggles of those who were its 
 inhabitants. 
 
 In critical moods, William the Conqueror was in the habit of 
 repeating a phrase of one of the old counts of Anjou, as to a king 
 ■without learning being a crowned ass ; and the words sank deep 
 into Henry's mind. The prince, thus strongly impressed with the 
 necessity of acquiring knowledge, exhibited exemplary diligence ; 
 and, in 1084, William, when keeping his court at Abingdon, left 
 him under the care of Robert D'Oyly, to be educated by the monks. 
 Subsequently Henry was instructed beyond seas in philosophy and 
 the liberal sciences, and won such renown for his knowledge that he 
 was distinguished by the honourable surname of Beauclerc. 
 
 Meanwhile, Henry's military education was not neglected. It was 
 an age, as the grim Conqueror knew full well, in which no prince 
 could hope to prosper who was not prepared to lead fighting men to 
 the field, and ride boldly, through all dangers, into the thickest 
 ranks of foemen. Henry was carefully trained in all the warlike 
 exercises of the period ; and, in 1086, he was, with the ceremonies 
 befitting his rank, admitted to the honour of knighthood. 
 
 The accomplishments of Henry were not confined to arms and 
 letters. The scene at Laigle, when he and Rufus were playing at 
 dice, after the fashion of soldiers at the time of the Conquest — the 
 scene at Conflans, when he won so much money from Prince Louis 
 that the heir of France lost his temper — lead to the suspicion that 
 Henry was addicted to gaming; and there is evidence that his 
 success in playing for money, if not miraculous, was quite equal to 
 his success in playing for kingdoms and crowns. 
 
 When the Conqueror, on his death-bed, left Beauclerc five thou- 
 
HENRY BEAUCLERC. 223 
 
 sand pounds in white silver, and gave the assurance that, after his 
 brothers had their turn of sovereignty, his would certainly come, 
 Beauclerc, who probably valued the legacy more than the assurance, 
 hastened to secure the treasure. He immediately went to receive 
 the money, had it carefully told and weighed, packed it in chests, 
 strongly locked, and bound with iron. But the silver did not long 
 remain in the strong boxes. Curthose came to Normandy poor, and 
 eager to borrow from any one who would lend on any terms ; and 
 Beauclerc was not unwilling to advance on good security. A bargain 
 was accordingly struck between the brothers. Curthose received a 
 sum which gladdened his heart ; and Beauclerc, in consideration 
 thereof, took possession of that part of Normandy known as Co- 
 tentin. 
 
 One morning, when Beauclerc was hunting near Caen, he entered 
 a church to hear mass. The priest, whose name was Roger, compre- 
 hending the taste, and consulting the convenience of his visitor, 
 made the service so brief that Beauclerc was impressed with a high 
 admiration of his sense. 
 
 "By Heavens!" he exclaimed, "this is the most sensible priest I 
 ever knew. I must attach him to my fortunes." 
 
 Roger, who evinced no unwillingness, immediately became Beau- 
 clerc's chaplain, and lived to flourish as Bishop of Sarum, and first 
 minister of England. 
 
 Beauclerc was figuring as lord of Cotentin, when, in 1090, Rufus 
 invaded Normandy, and threatened Curthose with ruin. The cir- 
 cumstance, doubtless, caused him alarm, and interfered with his 
 plans. With a keen eye to his own interest, however, he took part 
 with Curthose, and exerted himself to prevent Rufus taking pos- 
 session of the duchy. 
 
 It appears that, when the Red King seemed likely to conquer, 
 some of the inhabitants of Rouen, influenced by threats, promises, 
 and bribes, conspired to surrender the city. Beauclerc, informed of 
 their scheme, resolved to bafile it ; and, suddenly entering Rouen, he 
 proceeded to a tower, where the chief conspirator was, and, throwing 
 him headlong to the ground, caused such terror among the con- 
 federates that the city was saved. But Curthose soon after came to 
 
224 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 terms with the invader ; and Eufus was in no mood to spai-e the 
 man who had disappointed his hopes of complete success. 
 
 Not unaware of his danger, Beauclerc threw himself into Mont 
 St. Michael, and in that fort, situated on a rock, determined to bid 
 the Eed King defiance. Eufus, however, induced Curthose to join 
 in bringing Beauclerc to submission ; and the two princes, with a 
 powerful army, appeared at Mont St. Michael, and commenced a 
 close siege. 
 
 For a time Beauclerc seems to have resisted bravely, and on one 
 occasion the Eed King was in the utmost peril of death or captivity. 
 Eidicg carelessly along the shore one day, Eufus was attacked by 
 three horsemen, who bore him to the ground, and his saddle with 
 him. He was, of course, in extreme danger. But seizing his saddle 
 in one hand, and drawing his sword with the other, he managed to 
 defend him^self till his soldiers came to the rescue. 
 
 " king ! " exclaimed the soldiers, " how could you be so obstinate 
 to save a saddle?" 
 
 "Nay," cried Eufus, "it would have angered me at the very 
 heart if the knaves could have bragged they had won my saddle 
 from me." 
 
 Meanwhile, the siege was so closely pressed that provisions ran 
 short, and every man in the fort was suffering from the want of 
 fresh water. Beauclerc, however, sent a messenger to beseech the 
 besiegers not to deny him the enjoyment of that which belonged to 
 all men ; and Curthose, touched with compassion, ordered that the 
 garrison should be allowed to take in a supply. Eufus, who, when 
 this occurred, was possibly on the shore fighting about his saddle, 
 was highly enraged on hearing of this permission, and took Curthose 
 to task in no courteous terms. 
 
 " You show your warlike skill," stammered the Eed King, " in 
 letting your enemy help himself to drink. By St. Luke's face ! you 
 have now only to supply him with meat to make him hold out for 
 twelve months." 
 
 " And how," asked Curthose, " could I leave a brother to die of 
 thirst 1 What other brother have we if we lose him V 
 
 Notwithstanding the supply of fresh water, Beauclerc could not 
 
HENRY BEAUCLERC. 225 
 
 mucli longer liold out. After enduring a rigorous siege he was com- 
 pelled, for want of provisions, to submit to fate. Rufus despoiled 
 him of all he possessed, and it was with difficulty he obtained leave 
 to depart to Brittany. His escort consisted of one knight, three 
 squires, and a chaplain ; and with these adherents, who either dis- 
 dained to desert him in his distress, or felt strong faith in his destiny, 
 Beauclerc wandered about, sometimes in want of the necessaries of 
 life, and utterly hopeless of reaching any place that could be called 
 a home. 
 
 But genius is generally prophetic ; and Beauclerc scarcely required 
 to recall his father's dying words to feel assured that he was yet to 
 reign in the land of his birth, and over the land he had just quitted 
 for poverty and exile. The consciousness that he was one day to be 
 great gave the Conqueror's son a dignity in all- that he said or did. 
 Even as a vagrant, Beauclerc was an influential personage ; and he 
 impressed strangers with so high a notion of his talents and his poli- 
 tical wisdom, that he was, ere long, elected by the people of Dam- 
 front as governor of their city. 
 
 It happened, however, that Beauclerc was soon tempted from the 
 government of Damfront. His high reputation for intellect and 
 decision filled the mind of Rufus with jealousy, and the Red King, 
 deeming, perhaps, that his gifted brother would be much less likely 
 to work mischief under his own eye than when rambling about- 
 Europe and ready to head any movement promising a change of 
 fortune, expressed his desire for a reconciliation. Beauclerc, who 
 perfectly comprehended the motives of Rufus, calculated his chances, 
 and, trusting to the chapter of accidents, came to England. 
 
 Beauclerc now suffered all the inconveniences likely, in the eleventh 
 century, to surround a prince without land and without money. 
 Even for abilities he got no credit ; he was sneered at as " having 
 little in him." He was fond of the chase ; and, having no horses, 
 lie was forced when hunting to follow the game on foot, but such was 
 his speed that the courtiers of the Red King surnamed him " Deers- 
 foot." Beauclerc, however, bore all inconveniences and taunts with 
 patience ; perhaps, remembering the paternal assurance that, after 
 his brothers', his turn w^uld surely come, he hoped he might, by 
 
 Q 
 
226 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 patience, conquer adversity. If so, lie was not doomed to disap- 
 pointment. It has been remarked that generally there is in human 
 affairs an extreme point of depression, from which they naturally 
 ascend in an ojjposite direction ; and Beauclerc's case was not to 
 ])rove any exception to the general rule. 
 
 j^^*?: 
 
 Woman -wicn disuaff 
 
Uringmg home the body of Ku;as 
 
 LI. 
 
 THE DEATH OF RUFUS. 
 
 On the evening of Wednesday, the 1st of August, 1100, William 
 Hufus, intent on chasing the deer of the New Forest, stretched 
 his limbs to rest in the hunting-seat that then crowned the height of 
 Malwood. » 
 
 q2 
 
228 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 At dead of niglit, a loud voice roused the royal houseliold from 
 repose ; and the officers, starting to their feet to listen, with surprise 
 heard the king invoking the aid of the Virgin ^Mary, and calling for 
 lio-hts in his chamber. On entering, they learned that his rest had 
 been disturbed by a fearful vision, in which he himself figured with 
 the veins of his arms broken and blood flowing in streams. Such 
 Avas the effect produced on the King's imagination, that he would 
 not allow them to leave the side of his couch till the sun rose, and 
 the light of day streamed into the chamber. 
 
 Kevertheless, on the morning of Thursday, a grand breakfast was 
 spread in the hall of the hunting-seat, and Rufus rose to indulge in 
 the good cheer. As he was dressing, however, a messenger arrived 
 with a despatch from the Norman Abbot of Gloucester, warning the 
 king that danger was at hand. 
 
 " One of my monks," said the abbot, " has had a dream of evil 
 omen. He has seen Jesus Christ seated on His throne, and at His 
 feet a woman supplicating Him in these words — ' Saviour of the 
 world, look down with pity upon this people, who suffer under the 
 yoke of William.' " 
 
 " Tush !" cried Rufus, breaking into a loud laugh ; " do they take 
 me for a Saxon with their dreams 1 Do they think I am one of the 
 idiots who tremble because an old woman sneezes 1 But I warrant 
 the monk would have something for his dream. Let him have a 
 hundred shillings, and bid him look that he dream more auspicious 
 dreams in future." 
 
 With these words, Rufus tied his shoes, left his chamber, and 
 seated himself at table with his friends around him. It was a gay 
 party that feasted that morning in the hunting-lodge of ^lalwood, 
 and included many personages of high degree. Among them were 
 the king's brother, Henry Beauclerc; his bosom friend, Walter 
 Tyrel; his bow-bearer, Nigel de Albini; his treasurer, William de 
 Breteuil, who was eldest son of the great Fitzosborne, and hardly 
 less proud than his father had been. Perhaps Rufus, with the scene 
 of the previous night preying on his mind, felt unwontedly depressed. 
 At all events, he ate more than usual, and drank copiously, as if to 
 banish sadness. The potations, of course, soon took effect. The. 
 
THE DEATH OF RUFUS. 229 
 
 king's spirits rose. He blustered and swore with characteristic 
 indecency. 
 
 While Rufus was still passing round the wine-cup, an artificer 
 brought him six arrows for cross-bows, which seemed so sharp and 
 strong as to excite much admiration. The king received the arrows, 
 praised the workmanship, took four for his own use, and handed the 
 others to Walter Tyrel. 
 
 " There, Tyrel," said he, " take two ; for you know how to shoot to 
 some purpose. Sharp arrows for the best shot ! And now to horse !" 
 
 The king and the Norman knights, excited with wine, strung their 
 hunting-horns round their necks, called for their horses, sprang into 
 their saddles, and with huntsmen in attendance, their hounds run- 
 ning at their feet, rode down the steep of Malwood, and entered the 
 New Forest. According to the custom of the period, they then 
 dispersed through the wood to pursue the game. Walter Tyrel, 
 however, remained with the king, and all day their dogs hunted 
 together. 
 
 At length, as the sun was setting, the king and the knight found 
 themselves at a place known as Charingham, where were the ruins 
 of a chapel which the Conqueror had dismantled. At that instant, 
 a large hart, roused by the huntsmen, came bounding up between 
 Piufus and Tyrel, who were on opposite sides of the glade. The 
 king instantly pulled his trigger; but, the cord of the cross-bow 
 breaking, the arrow did not fly. The stag, however, hearing a sharp 
 sound, halted abruptly ; and Rufus, after making a sign to his com- 
 rade to shoot, without being understood, cried out impatiently — 
 " Shoot, Walter, shoot, in the devil's name !" 
 
 The knight bent his bow, and at that instant an arrow, whistling 
 through the air, pierced the king's breast. In another moment he 
 dropped from his horse, and expired without having time to utter a 
 word. 
 
 When Rufus fell to the ground, Tyrel, in great alarm at what he 
 saw, leaped from his horse and rushed forward. But the king was 
 already a corpse. Perceiving that life was quite extinct, Tyre] sprang 
 upon his horse, spurred through the glade, rode hastily to the coast, 
 embarked for France, and soon set foot on continental soil. Pro- 
 
230 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 testing his innocence, but horrified at being suspected of killing a 
 king, even by accident, the knight afterwards went to Palestine, 
 
 A rumour that the king was killed ran through the forest; but 
 none of the knights or nobles deemed it their duty to pay any 
 attention to the corpse. For hours the body remained among the 
 rank grass that grew over the ruins of the chapel of Charingham, as 
 completely abandoned as that of the Conqueror had been in the 
 convent at Eouen. 
 
 However, as the evening advanced, a charcoal-burner, passing by 
 with his cart, observed the body pierced with an arrow, and recog- 
 nised it as that of the king. ]\Iore humane and considerate than 
 Norman knights and nobles, the charcoal-burner wrapped the corpse 
 in rags, placed it in his cart, and conveyed it to the castle of Win- 
 chester. Soon after, Rufus was buried in the choir of that cathedral, 
 where Anglo-Saxon kings and their Danish foes reposed in peace 
 together. Scarcely a tear, however, was shed over the grave of the 
 Red King. The Anglo-Xormans felt no grief at his death, and the 
 Anglo-Saxons openly rejoiced that the destroyer had struck down 
 their oppressor in the midst of his pride. 
 
A CHANGE OF FORTUNE. 
 
 WflEN a rumour ran through the New Forest that Rufus had fallen, 
 never again to rise, Henry Beauclerc, far from manifesting any ex- 
 cessive grief at the death of his rude brother, sprang upon his horse — 
 which was probably a borrowed one — and, with a resolution to turn 
 the circumstance to the best account, spurred off to Winchester, to 
 secure the royal treasure, as a preliminary step to seizing the crown. 
 
 On reaching Winchester, Beauclerc rode straight to the castle, and 
 demanded the keys of the treasury; but, while the officials were 
 still hesitating, William de Breteuil galloped up breathless and in 
 haste, and, in his capacity of treasurer, protested against the keys 
 being surrendered. 
 
 " Thou and I," he said to Beauclerc, " ought loyally to remember 
 the fealty we swore to the Duke llobert, thy brother. He has 
 received our homage, and, absent or present, he is entitled to the 
 crown." 
 
232 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 " Nevertheless," answered Beauclerc, who observed that the popu- 
 lace had gathered, " no man shall have possession of the crown of 
 England but whom the people appoint." 
 
 As he spoke these words, Beauclerc, seeing it was no time to be 
 squeamish, drew his sword, and a scuffle ensued. But it was not 
 serious. Indeed, Breteuil and other lords, seeing the mob on 
 Henry's side, deemed it prudent to retire; while he secured the 
 public money and the regal ornaments. Hastening then to London, 
 and gaining the support of the bishop, he was elected as king, 
 and solemnly crowned before the high altar in the abbey of West- 
 minster. 
 
 Nevertheless, many of the Anglo-Norman barons continued faithful 
 to the cause of Curthose, and prepared to support his claims to the 
 crown. But Beaixclerc was not a man to surrender, without a 
 struggle, the prize he had so boldly grasped. Feeling his inse- 
 curity, he determined on adopting measures of safety. He set him- 
 self to win the hearts and to secure the aid of the Saxons ; he re- 
 minded them of his being a native of the country, and promised, as 
 their king, to guide himself by their counsel, to maintain their 
 ancient liberties, and to grant them a charter confirming the laws in 
 force during the reign of Edward the Confessor. The Saxons, on 
 hearing Beauclerc's promises, consented to befriend him ; and he, to 
 consolidate the alliance, engaged to marry a woman of Saxon race. 
 
 At that time there was in the convent of Rumsey, in Hampshire, 
 where she had been educated under the care of her aunt Christina, a 
 daughter of Malcolm Canmore and of Margaret Atheling. The 
 hand of the princess, whose name was Edith, had been sought by 
 Norman lords of high rank; and Beauclerc and she had loved in 
 other days. But a somewhat serious objection was made to their 
 union. It was said that she had taken the veil of a nun. An in- 
 quiry, however, was instituted, and it appeared that she had never 
 been consecrated to God. 
 
 "I must confess," she said, "that I have sometimes appeared 
 veiled, but only for this reason : in my youth, when I was under the 
 care of my aunt Christina, she, to protect me, as she said, from the 
 Normans — who then assailed the honour of every woman they met 
 
A CHANGE OF FORTUXK. 233 
 
 — used to place a piece of black stuff on my bead; and when I 
 refused to wear it, she treated me harshly. In her presence I wore 
 this cloth, but as soon as she left me I threw it on the ground, and 
 trampled on it in childish anger." 
 
 In order, however, that the position of Edith might be formally 
 investigated, an assembly of clergy and lay lords was convoked at 
 Rochester, and this assembly decided that "the girl was free to 
 marry." Accordingly she was united to Beauclerc, and exchanged 
 her name of Edith for that of Maude. Even envj itself could not 
 discover a flaw in her conduct as wife ; but it is said that the Anglo- 
 Norman barons favourable to Curthose affected to regard Henry's 
 marriage with a princess in whose veins ran the blood of the van- 
 quished race as a mesalliance, and, in derision, nicknamed the regal 
 pair Godrick and Godiva. Beauclerc, perhaps, did not relish the 
 joke, but, like a man of sense, he laughed at the allusion. 
 
 In fact, Henry had more serious business to think of, for the 
 partisans of his brother were watching their opportunity, and only 
 awaiting the presence of Curthose to do their utmost to overturn 
 Beauclerc's throne. And where, in reality, had that eccentric son of 
 chivalry been at the time of the crisis of his fate ? Had he been 
 carried away to Fairyland, between death and life, like King Arthur, 
 or borne to another region on the backs of fiends, like his grandsire, 
 Eobert the Devil ? In order to ascertain his " whereabouts," we 
 must follow his steps on an expedition which at that time excited 
 universal interest, and which was destined to exercise no slight in- 
 fluence on the destinies of Europe and of Asia. 
 
 s 
 
284- 
 
 J-eter the Hermit preaching the first Crusade 
 
 LIU. 
 
 CURTHOSE AT THE CRUSADE. 
 
 In the autumn of 1095, a little man, of mean aspect and eccentric 
 manners, arraj'ed in a coarse woollen mantle, and mounted on a 
 mule, rode about Europe, exhorting Christians to arm for the rescue 
 of the Holy Sepulchre. Sometimes he preached in a church, or at 
 the market-cross; at others, under a tree by the wayside; and 
 wherever he went people crowded round him, hung on liis eloquent 
 words, and seemed delighted if they could touch the hem of his 
 mantle, or pluck a hair from the mane of his mule. This remarkable 
 man was known as Peter the Hermit, who had recently visited 
 
CURTHOSE AT THE CRUSADE. 
 
 235 
 
 
 Jerusalem as a pilgrim, and 
 vowed to deliver the Holy- 
 Land' from the domination of 
 the Turks. 
 
 The preaching of Peter the 
 Hermit was marvellously suc- 
 cessful. Peasant and peer 
 alike confessed the grandeur 
 of his idea; and, as the con- 
 quest of England by the Nor- 
 mans had inspired feudal war- 
 riors with a desire for adven- 
 turous enterprise, multitudes 
 expressed their willingness to 
 take part in a crusade. ^Many 
 men of princely rank, among 
 whom the chief was Godfrey 
 de Bouillon, Duke of Lorraine, 
 assumed the cross, alienated 
 their possessions, and mustered 
 armies to fight in Palestine. 
 At length the idea which was 
 agitating all Christendom, pe- 
 netrating to the castle of 
 Piouen, excited the ardent 
 imagination of Robert Curt- 
 hose, and stirred the some- 
 what sluggish blood of Edgar 
 Atheling. 
 
 Both princes resolved to 
 take part in the Holy War. 
 But a serious obstacle pre- 
 sented itself. Money was necessary, and neither the heir of the 
 Conqueror nor the heir of the Saxon kings had the means of 
 defraying their expenses. The difficulty, however, was overcome. 
 Ptufus, who was glad to hear of his brother's wish to leave Europe, 
 
236 DANKS, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 agreed to furnish ten thousand marks on condition of being put in 
 possession of Normandy for five years ; and Curthose, having re- 
 ceived the sum, made his preparations, and set up his white banner 
 embroidered with gold. 
 
 In spite of his faults, few men of that period were more 
 popular than the Norman duke ; and, eager to fight under a chief so 
 brave and generous, a goodly band of warriors, led by feudal barons 
 of great name, came around his standard. Aubrey de Vere, Everard 
 Percy, Girard Gourney, Conan Montacute, Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, 
 
 Church ot the Holy Sepulchre Jerusalei 
 
 and Stephen, Earl of Albemarle, were among those who attended the 
 Conqueror's heir. Edgar Atheling, who was on the point of setting 
 out for Scotland to dethrone Donald Bane, and seat his youthful 
 nephew on the Scottish throne, did not accompany his friend. But 
 he promised to join Curthose in the Holy Land, with a host of 
 Saxons, which he was about to lead against the Scottish usurper. 
 
 Meanwhile, Curthose, at the head of his army, and attended by 
 his chaplain, Arnold de Bohes, made his way eastward, met the pious 
 Godfrey de Bouillon, and other pilgrim-princes, under the walls of 
 
CURTHOSE AT THE CRUSADE. 
 
 237 
 
 Constantinople, and, after causing much alarm to the Emperor 
 Alexis, crossed the Bosphorus, and marched towards Nice. 
 
 Xo sooner was Curthose on Asiatic soil than his valour and 
 prowess excited general admiration. At the siege of Nice he re- 
 pelled the fierce onset of the Sultan's cavalry ; at the battle of 
 
 ^5=^^^ 
 
 ^-^!'i^-\ 
 
 (--'urthose and the .Saraccn 
 
 D()gorgan he performed prodigies of valour, made the most magni- 
 ficent charge of the day, spurring into the midst of the foe, with his 
 banner flying and his sword flashing, and cutting down three Emirs 
 with his own hand ; at Antioch he led the van of the Crusaders, 
 seized the bridge, defended by towers masked with iron, and during 
 one of the subsequent skirmishe when fiercely attacked by a 
 
238 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOEMANS. 
 
 gigantic Saracen, who figured as chief in command, he cleft him with 
 his battle-axe from crown to chest. 
 
 Fi:grims in sight oi Jerusalem, 
 
 " Pagan dog !" exclaimed Curthose, as the Saracen fell lifeless to 
 the ground ; " I devote thy impure soul to the powers of hell." 
 
CURTHOSE AT THE CRUSADE. 
 
 239 
 
 At Laodicea, Curtliose was joined by Edgar Atheling. Faitlifiil 
 to liis promise, the Saxon prince, after seating his nephew on the 
 Scottish throne, brought the flower of the Saxon race to fight for the 
 Holy Sepulchre. Side by side, like brothers, Curtliose and Atheling 
 
 Uudirey de Bouilion elecced Eing of JeruBalem 
 
 marched to Jerusalem ; side by side they fought at the siege of the 
 Holy City ; and side by side, in the hour of victory, they scaled the 
 walls, Saracens bearing back in terror before the Norman's falchion 
 and the Saxon's axe. 
 
 After taking possession of Jerusalem, the Crusaders assembled for 
 the purpose of electing a king ; and it is understood that Curthose 
 
240 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 miglit, if lie had chosen, worn the crown of Jerusalem. However, 
 Curthose declmed the high honour, which fell to the lot of Godfrey 
 de Bouillon ; and, after taking part in the battle of Ascalon, where, 
 at the head of the European cavalry, he broke the Saracens' ranks, 
 penetrated to their centre, and seized the Moslem standard, he left 
 the Holy Land, and returned to Europe. 
 
 When Curthose was at Palermo, on his way home, Odo of Bayeux 
 breathed his last. The Xorman duke, having buried his uncle in 
 St. Mary's Church, pursued his wa^^, and found himself quite at 
 home among the Normans, whose families had been settled by war- 
 like adventurers in Southern Italy. All these Norman warriors 
 treated the heir of the great William with high honour ; and all 
 their daughters manifested interest in a hero who had won such fame 
 as a Champion of the Cross. But of all the Normans of Southern 
 Italy, none showed Curthose so much hospitality as William, Count 
 of Conversano, a kinsman of the Guiscards, founders of the Norman 
 dynasty in Naples. 
 
 The Count of Conversano was the most powerful lord in Lower 
 Apulia. His possessions extended along the shores of the Adriatic, 
 from Otranto to Bari. His castle was situated on an eminence, 
 amid olive groves, and was replete with all those means for rendering 
 life pleasant which the feudal system brought into existence. Curt- 
 hose thought Conversano a terrestrial paradise, and was delighted 
 with his host's fine hounds, choice hawks, and mettled steeds ; but, 
 above all, he was delighted, charmed, and fascinated with his host's 
 daughter, Sybil, who was still in her teens, and as beautiful as she 
 was young. 
 
 It could not be concealed that Curthose was verging on fifty, and 
 that Sybil was just seventeen. But that was no conclusive objection 
 to a match. In fact, such fame as that of a Crusader, and such rank 
 as Duke of Normandy, were strong recommendations; so, when 
 Curthose told his enamoured tale, Sybil smiled on her lover; and, 
 ere long, the daughter of the Count of Conversano was led to the 
 altar, and became Duchess of Normandy. 
 
 Even after his marriage Curthose found himself too comfortable 
 to move. Perhaps he was averse to change the splendour of Con- 
 
CURTHOSE AT THE CRUSADE. 
 
 241 
 
 versano for the irksome poverty of Kouen. At all events he liugeiod 
 in the scene of his courtship, and among the olive groves on the 
 shores of the Adriatic wasted months, which, if judiciously spent, 
 might have secured him a duchy and assured him a crown. 
 
:t2 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 LIV. 
 
 BEAUCLERC AND CURTHOSE. 
 
 MONG the ministers wlio enjoyed 
 
 tlie favour of Paifus, and ministered 
 
 to his tyranny, none liad rendered 
 
 himself more odious to the people 
 
 of England than Kalph Flambard, 
 
 •'l-^- Bishop of Durham, known as " the 
 
 fighting bishop," and celebrated as founder of the 
 
 castle of Norham-on-Tweed. Immediately on taking 
 
 possession of the throne, Henry caused Flambard to 
 
 be arrested and imprisoned in the Tower. Flambard, 
 
 however, contrived to escape; and, passing over to 
 
 "m. .^^ Normandy, he exerted his eloquence to persuade 
 
 Curthose to invade England and seize the English 
 
 crown. 
 
 For some time Curthose, who had just arrived from 
 Italy with his bride, remained inactive. Indeed, the Norman duke 
 was so much occupied with showing off Sybil of Conversano, and 
 devising pageants on which to squander her fortune, that he had no 
 leisure "to play for kingdoms and crowns." In 1102, however, 
 when the young duchess was dead, and her money spent, Curthose 
 lent a willing ear to tbe tempter, roused himself to energy, made 
 preparations, and embarked for England. 
 
 It now appeared that Beauclerc would have to fight desperately 
 
 ■^S 
 
 ^<l& 
 
 T 
 
BEAUCLERC AND CURTHOSE. 243 
 
 for the tlirone he tad so boldly seized ; and, summoning the Saxons, 
 he marched to Pevensey, where he anticipated his brother would 
 land. Curthose, however, landed at Portsmouth. But the brothers 
 gradually approached each other, and a sanguinary conflict appeared 
 inevitable. Ere Beauclerc and Curthose met, however, the quarrel 
 had been adjusted. Instead of a bloody battle there was a hurried 
 treaty. Curthose, who was in want of money, sold what he deemed 
 his birthright for an annual pension of three thousand marks ; and 
 the brothers embraced with all the semblance of genuine affection. 
 
 Returning to Normandy, Curthose scrupulously maintained the 
 treaty. Nevertheless, to his surprise, he found that his pension was 
 not regularly paid. Feeling, no doubt, extreme inconvenience from 
 the circumstance, he paid a visit to England to make arrangements 
 for regularity in future. But, ere this, the Norman duke had yielded 
 to the temptation of indulging too frequently in the wine-cup, and, 
 when at Beauclerc's court, he was often drunk for days together. On 
 such occasions, of course, nothing was too absurd for him to consent 
 to ; and one night, when intoxicated, he was easily prevailed on to 
 resign his annual pension in favour of the queen, who was his god- 
 daughter. On recovering possession of his faculties, and becoming 
 aware of the advantage taken of him while under the influence of 
 wine, he expressed high indignation, and, much exasperated, returned 
 to Normandy. 
 
 By this time the castle of Rouen was the most miserable of ducal 
 palaces, and Normandy was the most wretched of duchies. Poverty 
 reigned in the palace ; disorder prevailed in the duchy. While 
 Curthose, for want of fitting raiment, lay in bed for days, Robert de 
 Belesme, Earl of Shrewsbury, whom Beauclerc had exiled from 
 England, ravaged Normandy at his pleasure ; and matters soon 
 reached such a stage that the Norman nobles entreated the King of 
 England to interfere. Beauclerc, who only wanted an excuse, re- 
 ceived their message with gladness, and, by way of settling affairs, 
 proposed to purchase the duchy. 
 
 " Thou hast the title of lord," he said, addressing Curthose, " but 
 thou art no longer a lord in reality ; for they scorn, who should 
 obey thee. Yield to me thy duchy, and I will give thee money." 
 
244* DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 Curtliose declined the proposal witli disdain; and Beauclerc, 
 having prepared to take Normandy by force of arms, fitted out an 
 armament, and soon appeared on continental soil with a determina- 
 tion to conquer. For a time, however, Beauclerc and Curthose pro- 
 ceeded with caution, and not till the autumn of 1106 did they put 
 their fortunes to the chance of a decisive engagement. 
 
 It was Friday, the 28th of September— the vigil of St. Michael, 
 and just forty years after William the Conqueror had landed at 
 Pevensey; and Beauclerc, with a great army, was besieging the 
 castle of Tinchebray, situated about three leagues from the town of 
 ]Mortain. Curthose, however, having promised speedy relief, the 
 garrison made a brave defence; and the Norman duke, having allied 
 himself with De Belesme, came to redeem his pledge, accompanied 
 by Edgar Atheling, who by his side had fought so gallantly beneath 
 the Cross in Palestine. 
 
 On learning that a hostile force was approaching, Beauclerc turned 
 to give battle ; and the trumpets having sounded an onset, Curthose 
 began the conflict by a charge so hot, that for a time the English 
 Avere thrown into confusion. Bearing down all opposition, William 
 Crispin, Count d'Evreux, fought his way to the English standard, 
 and dealt the king so violent a blow on the head that blood gushed 
 from his mouth. Beauclerc, indeed, was in extreme peril, and his 
 army in danger of being scattered in dismay. At a critical moment, 
 however, a cry of "Treason!" arose to turn the fortunes of the day; 
 and De Belesme was observed leading away his men, and basely 
 deserting his allies. 
 
 AVhile Curthose and his friends were still under the influence of 
 surprise and indignation, Beauclerc recovered himself, and, showing 
 himself to his army, encouraged them by words and gestures to 
 encounter the foe, weakened by desertion. But meanwhile Curthose, 
 rallying his broken forces, made another onset; and never in his 
 younger days, neither on the plain of Antioch nor on the plain of 
 Archembrage, had his courage and prowess been more conspicuous. 
 Foe after foe went down before his weapon, and it seemed for a 
 moment that his single arm was about to retrieve the day. 
 
 At Beauclerc's side, however, was Nigel de Albini, a Norman 
 
BEAUCLERC AND CURTHOSE. 245 
 
 warrior, who, more than thirty years earlier, inarched with the 
 Conqueror on the terrible expedition into Northumberland, and who 
 had since figured as bow-bearer to Eufus. For a captain who had 
 faced the tall Danes of Northumberland even the prowess of the 
 bravest champion of the Cross had no terrors; and Albini followed 
 Curthose through the battle as keenly as he had ever chased a stag 
 in the New Forest. At length, availing himself of an opportunity, 
 he killed the duke's horse, and found the redoubted Cnisader at his 
 mercy. At that moment forward rushed Ealdric, the king's chap- 
 lain, by whom Curthose was disentangled from his prostrate steed, 
 and conducted to his victorious brother. With Curthose were cap- 
 tured several men of high rank, the most distinguished of whom was 
 his friend Edgar Atheling, who, by some strange destiny, was ever 
 leagued with the unfortunate. 
 
 The captive princes were forthwith conveyed to England. Curt- 
 hose was committed as a prisoner to the castle at Cardiff. Atheling 
 was allowed to go at large, having no longer sufficient influence to 
 endanger the king's throne. The captors, meanwhile, were well re- 
 warded — Nigel de Albini having a grant of the lands forfeited by the 
 great Robert de ]\Ioubray ; while Ealdric, the king's chaplain, was 
 promoted to the bishopric of Llandaff. 
 
 At first Curthose was indulged with some measure of freedom, 
 and allowed to walk along the banks of the Severn. For a time he 
 seemed content with his lot. One day, however, his old spirit of 
 adventure seized him, and, leaping on a horse, he broke from his 
 keepers, and rode off at full speed. Unfortunately for him, his horse 
 floundered in a morass, and having been secured, he was subjected 
 to a rigorous durance. Some even say his eyes were put out. But, 
 however that may have been, he remained in his prison at Cardiff 
 till 1135, and tlien dying, was laid at rest in the cathedral of 
 Gloucester, where his tomb is still to be seen. 
 
 Edgar Atheling long survived his comrade-in-arms. Indeed, the 
 life of the Saxon prince far exceeded the term of years ordinarily 
 allotted to mortal man. Well-nigh a century after the battle of 
 Hastings, and his coronation as king, when the first of our Planta- 
 genet sovereigns was on the English throne, Atheling was still 
 
246 
 
 DANES, SAXONS, AND NOKMANS. 
 
 alive in England, in full possession of his faculties, and probably 
 telling old stories of the Norman Conquest, and the First Crusade, 
 and of William the Norman, and Rufus, and Curthose, and Beau- 
 clerc, and a hundred other warriors and statesmen who had gone the 
 way of all flesh, and who were known only by name to the genera- 
 tion amid which he found himself lingering out the last years of his 
 strange and diversified career. 
 
247 
 
 English Archers, 
 
 AFTER TINCHEBRAY. 
 
 V>^HEX Curtliose was defeated at Tincliebi'ay and carried captive to tlie 
 castle of Cardiff, the son whom he had been left by Sybil of Cc - 
 versano was a little boy, known as William Clito. Not relishing the 
 spectacle of so ambitious a prince as Henry Eeauclerc figuring at 
 once as King of England and Duke of Normandy, Louis, King of 
 France — ^he who, in his earlier years, had quarrelled with the Con- 
 queror's sons over their game of chess at Conflans — suj^ported the 
 pretensions of the son of Robert, and formed a league, with the 
 object of putting him in possession of the duchy which Rolfganger 
 had wrested from Charles the Simple. This, however, proved a much 
 more difficult matter than Louis had anticipated. In fact, Eeau- 
 clerc exerted himself with such effect that all efforts to diminish his 
 power proved vain; and when, in 1132, WiUiam Clito, who had been 
 
248 DANES, SAXONS, AND NORMANS. 
 
 invested vdih the earldom of Flanders, died of a wound received 
 while besieging Alost, Louis gave up tlie struggle in despair. 
 
 Meanwhile, Beauclerc had not improved his reputation in the 
 country where he reigned as king. He had been faithless at once to 
 the Saxon people who had placed him on the throne, and to the 
 Saxon princess who, for the sake of her race, had, somewhat against 
 her inclination, united her fate with his. Every promise made to 
 the English had been so unscrupulously violated, that they began to 
 speak of royalty as synonymous with crime ; and Maude died with 
 the melancholy reflection that she had sacrificed herself for her race 
 in vain. 
 
 Ere " the good queen" was laid at rest in the cathedral of Win- 
 chester, she made Henry father of two children — a son, William 
 Atheling, who married a daughter of the Count of Anjou, and a 
 daughter, Matilda, wife of Henry, Emperor of Germany. The son, 
 however, was drowned while on his voyage from Normandy in a 
 vessel called The White Ship ; and the daughter, on the death of 
 her imperial husband, returned to England a young and beautiful 
 widow. 
 
 About that time, Eulke, Count of Anjou, bowed down with grief 
 at the loss of his wife, undertook a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to seek 
 consolation at the Holy Sepulchre. Before going, Fulke gave Anjou 
 to his eldest son, Geoffrey, who, from wearing a sprig of flowering 
 broom in his hat instead of a feather, was surnamed Plantagenet. 
 Being an accomplished and handsome prince, Geoffrey Plantagenet 
 had the good fortune to secure the friendship of Henry Beauclerc 
 and the hand of the Empress Matilda, who was expected to succeed, 
 on her father's death, to the crown of England and the coronal of 
 Normandy. 
 
 It was, however, otherwise ordered. When, in 1135, Henry 
 Beauclerc, having eaten lampreys to excess — such is the story — 
 breathed his last in Normandy, his martial nephew, Stephen of 
 Bouillon, claimed the English crown, and seated himself on the 
 throne. But Matilda was not the woman to submit tamely to 
 exclusion under such circumstances ; and a war of succession between 
 her and Stephen was the consequence. A long and sanguinary 
 
AFTER TINCHEBRAY. 249 
 
 struggle resulted, and continued, with varying success, till 11^53, 
 when it was agreed, by the treaty of Wallingford, that Stephen 
 should be allowed to reign during his life, on condition of recognising 
 young Henry Plantagenet, the son of Geoffrey and Matilda, as his 
 heii-. Next year, on the death of Stephen, Henry, who, by his 
 marriage with Eleanor of Aquitaine, had extended his continental 
 dominions from the Channel to the Pyrenees, was crowned King of 
 England in the cathedral of Winchester. From the first he seems 
 to have been in high favour with the nation. In fact, the people, 
 remembering that he derived his descent, through his grandmother, 
 " the good queen Maude," from the ancient monarchs of England, 
 called him " the Saxon king," described him as the natural foe of the 
 Xorman nobles, and believed him favourable to such a system of 
 laws as popular tradition ascribed to Edward the Confessor. 
 
 But the day for the rise of the vanquished race had not yet come. 
 Nor was it, indeed, till more than a century later, when Simon de 
 Montfort had fallen at Evesham, and the third Henry had gone to 
 his grave, that the monarchy of the Plantagenets, having passed 
 through that terrible struggle celebrated as the Barons' "War, was 
 enabled to emancipate itself, in some measure, from the trammels of 
 feudalism, and associate its fortunes with the nation. It was then 
 that the first Edward, already famous as the conqueror of Evesham, 
 returned from romantic adventures and hair-breadth escapes in the 
 East to rule England with justice and righteousness — to give pros- 
 perity to the country and protection to the people — to win, by his 
 admirable laws, the title of the English Justinian ; and, by his pro- 
 found and patriotic policy, to unite hostile races into a nation capable 
 of great achievements in war and peace. _ 
 
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