Walsingham Chronica Majora

In the year of our Lord 1299, which was the 26th year of the reign of King Edward, son of Henry, from the Conquest, the same King was at Christmas in Flanders, at Ghent. On the Feast of the Holy Innocents (28 December), the Master of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans) and the Minister General of the Friars Minor (Franciscans) came to him. In the same manner as they had done before the King of France, they humbly petitioned him, on behalf of the Lord Pope, to send solemn envoys to the Roman Curia—having full power to negotiate, arrange, and conclude all matters pertaining to the restoration of peace; and that the Pope, not as a judge, but as a good mediator of peace, would act without prejudice to either side, to restore the friendship of the Kings to its former state. And because the Pope judged that this could not be done without a truce, he therefore, through these envoys, proclaimed a new truce of two years—which he had already sought through the Cardinals—under penalty of excommunication and interdict of their lands. The King of England, realizing that his position in Flanders was perilous, and that he had been drawn there imprudently by the advice of the Count of Flanders; that his own kingdom was troubled by internal strife; and that his trust in the King of the Romans (who was less favorable to him due to papal influence, and who was disturbing the kingdom of Germany) was in vain—agreed to the proclaimed truce. It was agreed that prisoners, after their ransom was set, would be released on both sides, under the condition that if peace were not made, they would return to captivity or pay the already set ransom. Thus, both Kings sent solemn envoys, with full authority, to the Roman Curia, that through the mediation of the Pope, not as a judge, but as a friendly arbitrator, the matters might be examined and peace and concord between the Kings restored.

Anno Domini millesimo ducentesimo nonagesimo nono, qui est amius regni regis Edwardi, a Conquæstu Primi, vicesimus sextus, fuit idem Rex ad Natale in Flandria, apud Gandavum; ad quem venerunt, in festo Sanctorum Innocentium, Magister Ordinia Prædicatorum et Minister General is Fratrum Minorum; sub eadem forma qua ante Regem Franciæ, ex parte Domini Papæ rogaverunt supplicantes, quatenus nuncios solemnes ad Curiam Romanam, concessa eis plena potcstate tractandi, ordinandi, et perficiendi omnia, quæ pacis reformationem tangerent, destinarent; et ipse Apostolicus, non tanquam judex, sed ut bonus pacis mediator, in nullius præjudicium satageret ad paoem et tranquillitatem regnorum. Regum amicitiam in statnm pristinum reformare. Et quia hoc absque treugis fieri non posse judicavit Dominus Papa, ideo per hos nuncios biennales inducias, quas per Cardinales imploraverat, indixit de novo, sub pœna excommunicationis et interdicti terrarum suarum. Rex Angliæ, perpendens se in Flandria periculosc commorantem, illucquc per informationem Comitis Flandriæ minus prudenter attractum; regnumque proprium intestina seditione turbatum, fiduciamque suam de Rege Romanorum per Papam sibi minus benevolum, regnum Teutoniæ turbantem, frustratam, consensit in trcugas indictas. Convenitque inter eos, ut captivi interim, taxata eorum redemptione, liberarentur hinc inde; ea conditione, ut si pax non fieret, redirent ad suas custodias, vel redemptionem solverent jam taxatam. Transmittunt igitur Reges utrique solemnes nuncios, cum plena potestate, ad Curiam Romanam, ut per mediationem Apostolici, non tanquam judicis, sed amicabilis compositoris, discussis negotiis, pax inter Reges et concordia reformetur.

Thus, on 26 August, the kings met each other with their armies at Crécy in Ponthieu, where a very fierce battle was fought, and much blood was shed on the French side. For King Philip of France was defeated there, with an innumerable army of mercenaries, and put to flight. Two kings also, who had come to the aid of the King of France, namely the kings of Bohemia and Majorca, were killed there. They say indeed that the King of Bohemia was losing his sight and could not see things placed at a distance. He asked his men how the English were arrayed. They answered him that they were finely arranged in battles, and that they had placed all their baggage behind them. “They,” said the Bohemian, “intend either to die in the field this day, or certainly to be victors.” It was also reported to the King of Bohemia that many birds, namely ravens, crows, jackdaws, and other followers of corpses, were flying above the French army. “This is a prodigy,” said the Bohemian, “and a dreadful sign. It signifies,” he said, “that the army is to be slaughtered. Nevertheless,” he said, “bring me to some nobleman with whom I may be able to fight, if you can.” And at once his knights placed him in a place where he could have the opportunity of fighting with Edward, the eldest son of the King of England. And when he fought steadfastly and warlike, surrounded and overwhelmed by the English, he was killed. There also fell the Duke of Lorraine, with two bishops, eight counts, and many other nobles, whose names it would be long to write one by one. Two thousand knights were overthrown there, and common people, whose number is unknown, were killed in this battle. Those who were able to escape the swords, lances, axes, and arrows of the English fled with their king. But Philip, King of France, while he was urging on his men and trying to encourage them, while he raged against the English like a wolf among lambs, while he struck down and killed many, was wounded both in the throat and in the thigh, and twice was thrown from his horse by the King of England. He would have been captured there, had he not more quickly taken counsel for himself by flight. When he fled, full victory passed to the English.

Rex Franciæ Philippus audiens et cognoscens animositatem et constantiam Regis Edwardi, cum jamdudum comparatis et conducetis exercitibus parat ire obviam Regi Edwardo. Igitur, vicesimo sexto die Augusti Reges sibi obviant cum suis exercitibus apud Oressy in Pontino; ubi commissum est bellum atrox valde, et multum sanguinis effusum ex parte Gallicorum. Nempe Rex Franciæ Philippus ibi devictus est, cam innumerabili exercitu conductitiorum, et fugatus. Duo etiam Reges, qui in auxilium venerant Regis Franciæ, scilicet Boemiæ et Majoricarum, ibi perempti sunt. Ferunt utique Regem Boemiæ cæcutientem fuisse, et res positas a remotis cernere non potuisse; qui quæsivit a suis qualîter Anglici collocati essent. Cui responsum est, quod dispositi erant pulchre per bella, et quod statuissent a tergo omne cariagium eorundem. "Ipsi," inquit Boemius, "vel mori volunt in campo die ista, vel certe victores existere." Relatum cest præterea Regi Boemiæ, quod multi alites, scilicet corvi, cornices, et monedulæ, et aliæ cadaverum sectatrices, supra Francorum exercitum volitarent; "Prodigium," inquit Boemius, "est hoc, et dirum signum; significat," inquit, "exercitum fore mactandum. Attamen," inquit, "applicate me ad aliquem nobilem, cum quo congredi valeam, si potestis." Et mox ejus milites collocaverunt eum in loco ubi copiam habere potuit pugnandi cum Edwardo, Regis Angliæ primogenito. Cumque constanter et bellicose pugnaret, cireumclusus et oppressus ab Anglicis, est peremptus. Cecidit ibi præterea Dux Loteringiæ, cum duobus Episcopis, octo Comitibus, et [pluribus] aliis nobilibus, quorum nomina singillatim scribere longum foret; duoque millia militum ibidem prostrati sunt, et vulgus, cujus numerus ignoratur, in hoc bello necatur. Qui gladios, lanceas, secures, sagittas Anglorum potuerunt evadere, cum Rege sno fugerunt. Philippus vero Rex Franciæ, dum suos hortabatur et animare conatus est, dum in Anglos, ut lupus inter agnos, desævit, dum multos prosternit et perimit, et gutture et femore vulneratur, et bina vice per Regem Angliæ equo suo dejicitur. Captusque fuisset ibidem, nisi citius sibimet fuga consuluisset. Qno fugiente, plena victoria cessit Anglis.

In the year of grace 1347, which was the twenty-first year of the reign of King Edward, the third since the Conquest, when the King of England was besieging Calais very closely, the King of France, according to the promise which he had made to those under siege, gathered an army and approached Calais, to raise the siege if he could by any means. But on the day after his arrival, at daybreak, he secretly fled, leaving behind his tents, which were abundantly filled with provisions, clearly fearing the boldness of the English king, which he had experienced a little before, to his own loss. Those who held the town of Calais against the King of England, seeing that the King of France had fled, and now utterly despairing of relief, especially because they were wasting away from hunger and starvation, surrendered the town to the King of England, saving their lives and limbs. The king, having entered the town, devoted himself entirely to its arrangement and ordering, remaining there for about the space of one month.

Anno gratiæ millesimo trecentesimo quadragesimo septimo, qui est annus regni Regis Edwardi, a Conquæstu Tertii, vicesimus primus, cum Rex Angliæ strictius obsideret Calesiam, Rex Franciæ, juxtæ promissionem quam obsessis promiserat, collecto exercitu, Calesiam appropinquat, ad dissolvendum obsidionem, si quoquomodo valeret. In crastino vero adventus sui, clam aufugit diluculo, relictis tentoriis, cum victualibus abunde refertis, metuens nimirum Anglici Regis audaciam, quam expertus fuerat parum ante, damno suo. Qui in Calesia villam tenebant contra Regem Angliæ, viso quod Rex Franciæ aufugisset, jam omnino desperantes de suceursu, et eo maxime quod fame et inedia tabescebant, villam Regi Angliæ reddiderunt, salvis vita et membris. Rex autem ingressus villam, ejus dispositioni et ordinationi totaliter intendebat, quasi per spatium, unius mensis manens ibidem.

[Before 16th December 1379]. When, as we have previously mentioned, Lord John of Arundel [aged 31], along with his companions, had arrived at [the sea], and the favourable wind had not yet blown for them, he decided, as he desired, to wait for a more favourable wind. Meanwhile, he went to a certain [monastery] of virgin nuns not far from there, and, entering with his companions, he requested from the mother of the monastery that she allow his fellow soldiers, laborers in royal matters, to stay there as guests. However, the holy woman, weighing the dangers that such guests might bring, and because this request was completely contrary to her religious duties, with the reverence and humility due, explained to him that there were many young men who had come with him, and they could easily be led into an unforgivable crime; that this would not only bring disgrace and infamy to that place, but would also lead to the destruction and ruin of him and his companions, who would not only avoid attacking the camp of chastity, but would also struggle to avoid all kinds of sin if they did what they were asking. In response, he began more fervently to persist in his purpose, saying that she was mistaken in her suspicions, and that it was not likely that he was contemplating anything imaginary. To which she, kneeling down, said, 'I know, Lord, that your men are likely unchaste, since they perhaps do not fear God, and it is entirely unsuitable for us, nor for you, that they enter our cloister. Therefore, with joined hands, I beg your generosity, advise and counsel you, that, abandoning this proposal, you seek shelter elsewhere, where it is abundant in the neighboring land.'

Cum igitur, ut praediximus, Dominus Johannes de Arundel cum suis complicibus ad [mare] pervenisset, et necdum aura secunda flaret eisdem, statuit, ut optabat, opperiri tempus gratioris venti. Perrexit interea ad quoddam [monasterium] monialium virginum non procul situm, et, cum suis ingrediens, petiit & matre monasterii, ut ibidem suos commilitones, in negotiis regiis laboratores, permitteret hospitari, Sanctimonialis autem fœmina, mente librans pericula qum per tales hospites possent: emergere, et quia ommino religioni talis petitio contraibat, cum reverentia et humilitate qua decuit, exposuit sibi juvenes [esse] plures qui cum eo venerant, et impelli posse de facili in scelus inexpiabile; quod non solum in opprobrium et infamiam illins loci, sed in perienlum et perniciem sui et suorum redundaret, qui non modo castra pudicitiæ impugnare vitarent, sed etiam omne genus peccati effugere laborarent, si id agerent, obtinerent, quod viros ad bellum profecturos, oporteret. E contra, ille insistere magis fervide ccepit in proposito, dicens illam falli in suis suspicionibus, et non esse verisimile quod mente imaginarie pertractaret. Cui illa, solo prostrata,— "Scio," inquit, "Domine, viros tuos effrienos esse, "utpote qui Deum forsitan non verentur, et omnino non expedire nobis, nee tibi, ut ingrediantur claustra nostra, Quapropter, et junctis manibus, tuam generositatem oro, convenio, consulo, ut, hoc dimisso proposito, alibi tibi tuisque requires hospitia, quæ superabundant in patria convicina.

[Before 16th December 1379]. He, persisting in his purpose, contemptuously ordered them to rise, swearing that he would not be deterred in any way and that he would provide lodging for his men in the same place. Therefore, he immediately commanded his men to enter the houses and occupy both the public and private rooms until the time for sailing arrived. Soon after, as it is believed, they were driven by a demonic spirit and broke into the cloister of the monastery. As is common with such undisciplined crowds, one of them entered this room, another that one, breaking into the chambers where virgins, the daughters of the leading families of the province, were being kept to study letters, and many of them were already prepared to receive the sacred habit of religion, having fixed their minds on the vow of virginity. These women, with the reverence for the place and the fear of God set aside, were violently overwhelmed and defiled. And not only was their lust raging in these women, but they did not even hesitate to violate the widows' chastity and the marital bond, polluting them. For many widows had gathered there for hospitality, as is customary in such abbeys, either due to the poverty of their families or to better and more securely maintain their chastity. They also committed public adultery, but a violent one, with married women who had come there for the aforementioned reasons. And not content with such wickedness, as it is said, they subjected the nuns to their luxury, disregarding the stigma of incest and rape. Initially, those who endured this outrage were patient, but soon all those who lived in the neighborhood, upon hearing of such a great evil, gathered and cursed them with terribly horrible curses, praying to God to bring them any misfortune or adversity they might deserve.

Ille vero, persistens in proposito, contemptibiliter præcepit ut surgeret, jurans se nullo modo flectendum quin in eodem loco suis hospitia provideret. Confestim ergo jubet suis ut domos ingrediantur, et cameras publicas occupent et privatas, donee velificandi tempus insistat. Qui mox, ut creditur, diabolico spiritu agitati, irruunt in claustra monasterii, et, ut assolet in tam indisciplinato vulgo, ille istam, iste illam, irrumpit cameram, in quibus virgines filiæ majornm provinciæ servabantur ad discendas litteras, et plerisque jam paratæ fuerant ad suscipiendum sacra religionis habitum, et in proposito virginitatis mentem fixerant. Quas, spreta loci reverentia et Dei timore postposito, opprimunt et polluunt violenter; et non solum in istis eorum libido furit, sed et vidualem continentiam et conjugale vinculum pollutioni tradere minime verebantur. Nam plures illuc viduæ confluxerant hospitandi gratia, ut moris est in talibus abbathiis, vel pro rei familiaris inopia, vel pro perfectius et securius servanda continentia. In mulieres etiam conjugatas, quae illuc ex causis preemissis convenerant, adulterium commiserunt publicum, sed violentum. Nec tantis contenti nequitiis, ut fertur, ipsas sanctimoniales suæ luxuriæ substraverunt, parvipendentes incesti et stupri notam. Qua de re primo patientes injuriam, mox universi qui in vicinia morabantur, ad quos notitia tanti mali pervenerat, maledictiones congerunt super eorum capita satis horribiles, et eis quicquid infortunii, quicquid adversi, Deus eis suscitare valeat, imprecati sunt.

[Before 16th December 1379]. These are few, indeed small, compared to what follows. For on that day, when they were about to board the sea, along with him, they violently seized a newly married woman, who that very same day had been joined to her husband through the hands and prayers of the priest. They took her, coming out of the church after the Mass and the wedding had been celebrated, and forcibly dragged her away from the middle of those who were leading her, and brought her to the ships, intending to commit a foul deed on her after they had boarded the ship. They did not consider or think that such wicked deeds should be swiftly punished. From the abbey, it is said, they also abducted married women, widows, and virgins, and placed them on their ships. Not satisfied with these, some of them even extended their hands to sacrilege. After hearing the Mass, as appeared irreverently, before the priest could remove his chasuble, they rushed in, seized the chalice from the altar, and with great haste, gleefully as if plundering, ran to the ships, the priest pursuing them in his sacred vestments, namely, the alb, stole, and chasuble, and under threat of excommunication, calling them back to restore the chalice. And when they had not heeded, and had received no other threatening words or terrifying threats, he decided not to remain silent. But, calling upon neighboring priests, he went to the shore, with lit candles, bells, books, and other items necessary to proclaim such sentences; and there he demanded that the chalice be restored under penalty of excommunication. Since they still would not satisfy the demand, he thundered a sentence of excommunication upon them terribly and publicly, and threw the wax candle into the sea to extinguish it.

Pauca sunt ista, immo parva sunt ista, respectu eorum quæ sequuntur. Die namque illo quo mare ingressuri erant sui, et ipse cum eis, quandam novam nuptam, et illo eodem die per manus et orationes sacerdotis viro de provincia copulatam, de ecclesia post Missam et sponsalia celebrata revertentem, violenter rapiunt de medio et manibus eam ducentium, et ad naves usque deducunt, operaturi in ea opus nefarium post ingressum eorum in mari; non considerantes nec putantes tanta scelera celeriter punienda. Ex abbathia etiam, ut fertur, prædicta fœminas conjugatas, viduas, et virgines, abduxerunt, et in suis navibus collocarunt. Nec istis saturati, quidam ex ipsis ad sacrilegia manus extendunt. Nempe post auditam Missam, ut apparuit indevote, antequam sacerdos casulam deponere potunisset, accedentes, et calicem de altari rapientes, cum summa festinatione, letabundi quasi de præda, currunt ad naves, sacerdote eos in sacris vestibus, scilicet, alba, stola, et fanone, persequente, et sub interminatione censuræ calicem repetente. Cumque nisi sannas et terribiles minas, nisi retrocederet, accepisset, non sic quidem silere decrevit; sed, accitis convicinis sacerdotibus, ad littus usque processit, cum candelis accensis, campanulis, libris, et hiis quæ sententiis hujusmodi promulgandis requiruntur; ibique petiit, sub pœna [excommunicationis, ablata restitui; cum autem nec sic curarvent satisfacere, in eos] excommunicationis sententiam terribiliter et publice fulminavit, et jactu in mari cereum extinguendo.

Therefore, they were uncertain what to do amidst the winds and storms on one side, and the waves and the cries of women on the other. First, they tried to lighten the ship, throwing out the worthless cargo, and then, piece by piece, the more valuable goods, in the hope that this might somehow raise their chances of survival. But when they realized that this did not lessen their desperation but rather increased their distress, they turned the blame for their misfortune on the women. In a spirit of fury, they threw the women into the sea with the same hands that had once caressed them, and with the same arms that had fondled them lasciviously. These women, reportedly around sixty in number, were cast into the water to be devoured by fish and sea creatures. But the storm did not cease, instead it worsened, taking away any hope of escaping the dangers of death. After several days and nights, not only in danger of death but in the very jaws of death, and after enduring great anxiety, they finally saw a shore and an island in the region of Ireland, the shore being situated amidst the waves of the sea. Overcome with sudden joy, Lord John Arundel immediately ordered the sailors to head for that shore, hoping they might somehow land. But the sailors, reluctant and asserting that in such turbulence it would be safer to stay in the open sea rather than risk the winds driving them onto the sand or rocks of the shore, were violently opposed by Lord John. In a fit of rage, he cruelly killed some of them, as it is reported.

Ideirco, quid inter hæc agerent dubitabant, cum hine ventis et procellis, illinc fluctibus et fœminarum clamoribus, urgerentur. Tentavit ergo primo alleviare vasa, projicientes vilia, dehinc quaque pretiosa, si forte vel sic eis exsurgeret spes salutis. Sed cum ita non minus desperationem, sed potius angeri cernerent, refundunt causas infortunii in ipsas fœminas, ac, in spiritu furoris, eisdem manibus quibus ante illas blande attractaverant, eisdem brachiis quibus eas libidinose demulserant, arreptas in mare projiciunt; ad numerum, ut fertur, sexaginta fœminarum, piscibus et marinis bellnis devorandas. Sed ita quidem non cessavit tempestas, sed execrevit per amplius, ut cunctis omnem spem adimeret mortis pericula evadendi. Cumque diebus aliquot atque mnoctibug, non tantum in mortis periculo quantum in mortis faucibus, non sine trepidatione maxima transegissent, tandem vidit quoddam littus, et quandam insulam, in regione Hiberniæ, ecirea littus illud in fluctibus marinis sitam; unde momentaneo gandio perfusus, Dominus Johannes Arundelle mox jubet ut nautæ se transferant ad littus illud, si forte eis terram contingere donaretur. Nautis autem reluctantibus, et asserentibus in tantis turbinibus magis tutum fore maris alta tenere, quam vi ventorum illidi arenæ vel scopulis appropinquando terra, irruit in eos dictus Johannes furibunde, et quosdam ex eis ecrudeliter, ut fertur, interfecit.

The King followed them, mounted on a great warhorse suited to so exalted a person and richly caparisoned in royal fashion. Lord Simon Burley rode before him, carrying the King’s sword raised in his hands, while Lord Nicholas Bond led the horse by the bridle on foot. Behind the King came knights of his own age, together with members of the royal household. Nor was there any lack of trumpets and clarions among so great a multitude, for each group had its own trumpeters marching before it. The Londoners had also stationed trumpeters above the conduit and upon the tower erected in the same marketplace in honour of the King, so that they might sound their instruments at his approach. When all these trumpeters sounded together, they produced a marvellous noise for those who heard it. That day was therefore a day of joy and gladness, a day, so to speak, of trumpet blasts and fanfares, a day long awaited for the restoration of peace and of the laws of the realm, which had for some time been banished by the indolence of the aged King and the greed of the servants who pandered to him.

Rex autem, insidens magnum dextrarium, tantæ personæ aptum, stratumque regaliter, sequebatur illos. Cujus gladium, manibus elevatum, portabat ante eum Dominus Symon Burlee; Dominus quoque Nicholaus Bonde ejus frænum duxit, incedendo pedes. Regem vero sequebantur milites et coætanei sui, atque domus regiæ familiares. Nec defuit tantæ turbæ magna vis lituorum et tubarum; nam quælibet turba seorsim suos tubicines præcedentes habebat, statutique fuerant per Londonienses super Aquæductum, et super turrim [in eodem foro quæ] in honorem Regis facta fuerat, tubicines qui clangerent in adventu Regis. Qui omnes simul juneti clangentes, sonum mirabilem audientibus reddiderunt. Fuit igitur dies ille jocunditatis et lætitiæ, dies, ut ita dicam, clangoris et buccinæ, dies diu expectatus renovationis pacis et legum patriæ, quæ jam diu exulaverant, desidia Regis senis et avaritia obsecundantium sibi servorum ejus.

To honour the King, the citizens had also arranged for wine to flow abundantly through the pipes of the conduit, and to run continuously throughout the whole procession, that is, for three hours or more. A certain castle with four towers had also been built at the upper end of the market called Cheapside, and from two sides of it wine likewise flowed in abundance. In its four towers were placed four exceptionally beautiful maidens, one in each tower, of the King’s own age and stature, dressed in white garments. While the King was still approaching from a distance, they blew golden leaves towards his face, and, when he came nearer, they scattered golden florins, though counterfeit ones, over him and his warhorse. When he reached the castle, they took golden cups, filled them with wine from its pipes, and offered them to the King and the lords. At the summit of the castle, raised like a tower between the four turrets, stood a golden angel holding a golden crown in its hands. It had been constructed by such ingenious means that, as the King approached, it bowed and offered him the crown. Many other displays were devised throughout the city that day in the King’s honour, which it would take too long to recount individually. In every street and square, people competed to show him the greatest possible reverence. Amid such rejoicing by the people and citizens, and such joy among the lords and nobles, the King was escorted to the royal palace beside Westminster Abbey, where he rested that night.

Ad honorem insuper regium, cives ordinaverant ut per fistulas Aquæduetus efflueret abundans vinum, eb per totum tempus equitationis, id est, per tres et amplius horas, jugiter emanaret. Factum etiam fuerat quoddam castrum habens turres quatuor, in superiori parte Fori venalium, quod "Chepe" nuncupatur; de quo etiam per duas partes vinum defluxit abundanter. In turribus autem ejus quatuor virgines speciosissimmæ ‘collocatæ fuerant, staturæ et ætatis regiæ, vestibus albis indutæ, in qualibet turri una; quæ adventanti Regi procul aurea folia in ejus faciem efflaverunt, et propius accedenti, florenos aureos, sed sophisticos, super eum et ejus dextrarium projecerunt. Cum autem ante castellum venisset, ciphos aureos acceperunt, et implentes eos vino ad fistulas dicti castelli, Regi atque Dominis obtulerunt. In summitate castelli, quæ ad modum tali inter quatuor turres elevata fuerat, positus erat angelus aureus, tenens auream coronam in manibus, qui tali ingenio factus fuerat, ut adventanti Regi coronam porrigeret inclinando. Adinventa sunt illo die in civitate et alia multa in honorem Regis, quæ numerare per singula longum foret. Nam singuli per vicos et plateas decertarunt, quis ei propensiorem reverentiam exhiberct. Igitur cum tanto plebis civiumque tripudio, cum tanto dominorum procerumque gaudio, perductus est ad Palatium regium prope Monasterium Occidentale, ubi illa nocte quievit.

When these things had been completed, the Archbishop, preceded by the Marshal of England, Lord Henry Percy, turned towards every part of the church, announced the royal oath to the people, and asked whether they were willing to submit themselves to such a prince and ruler, and to obey his commands. The people replied with a very loud cry that they were gladly willing to obey him. The Archbishop then blessed the King with the following prayers: “Almighty and everlasting God, bless, O Lord, this our King. Thou who rulest the kingdoms of all men throughout the ages, glorify him with such a blessing that he may hold the sceptre of David’s majesty and, being glorified, may be found worthy of his favour. “Grant him by thy inspiration so to govern his people with gentleness, as thou didst cause Solomon to possess a kingdom of peace. Let him always be subject to thee in fear, and serve thee in tranquillity. Let him be protected by thy shield, together with his nobles, and by thy grace be victorious everywhere. “Exalt him above all the kings of the nations. May he rule happily over his peoples, and may the nations honour him with joy. May he live magnanimously among the multitudes of the nations, and be distinguished for equity in judgement. “Enrich him with thy abundant grace. May his country be fruitful, and grant prosperity to his children. Bestow upon him length of days, so that justice may arise in his time. May he hold from thee a strong throne of government, and with joy and justice be glorified for ever in the kingdom.” The foregoing blessing was sung by the Archbishop after the first prayer, in the manner of a preface. When it had been sung, another prayer was said over him, beginning, “O ineffable God”, together with the antiphon, “Be strong, and show thyself a man of courage”, and so forth.

Quibus expletis, Archiepiscopus, præcedente eum Marescallo Angliæ, Domino Henrico Percy, convertit se ad omnes plagas ecclesiæ, indicans populo regium juramentum, et quærens si se tali principi ac rectori subjicere, et ejus jussionibus obtemperare, vellent. Et responso a plebe altissono clamore, quod libenter sibi parere vellent, Archiepiscopus Regem hiis orationibus benedixit, videlicet:— "Omnipotens et sempiterne Deus, benedic, Domine, hunc Regem nostrum; qui regna omnium moderaris in sæculo, tali eum benedictione glorifica, ut Daviticæ teneat sublimitatis sceptrum, et glorificatus in ejus propitius reperiatur merito. Da ei tuo inspiramine, cum mansuetudine ita regere populum, sicut Salamon fecisti regnum obtinere pacificum. Tibi cum timore semper sit subditus, tibique militet cum quiete; sit tuo clypeo protectus, eum proceribus, et ubique, tua gratia, victor existat. Honorifica eum præ cunctis regibus gentium. Felix populis dominetur, et feliciter eum nationes adorent; vivat in gentinm catervas magnanimus, sit in judiciis æquitatis singularis, locupletet eum tua prædives gratia, fructiferam habeat pa‘ triam, et ejus liberis tribuas profutura. Præsta ei prolixitatem vitæ per tempora, ut in diebus ejus oriatur justitia; a te robustum teneat regiminis solium, et eum jocunditate et justitia æterno glorietur in regno." Ista præmissa benedictio post primam orationem, ad modum præfationis, ab Archiepiscopo cantabatur; qua cantata, dicta est et alia oratio super eum, scilicet,— "Deus ineffabilis," cum Antiphona,— "Confortare, et esto vir fortis, etc."

The Archbishop then approached him and, tearing open his garments with his own hands from top to bottom, removed them, leaving him clothed only in his shirt. The Barons of the Cinque Ports, by virtue of their office, continually held over him a large silk canopy of a sky-blue colour, fastened at its four corners to four poles, both during the procession and during the anointing and Mass, and afterwards, when he went from the church to the palace. Notwithstanding this canopy, immediately before the Archbishop removed the King’s garments, the earls brought a cloth of gold, beneath which he was concealed while receiving the sacrament of anointing. When the King had been stripped, as described above, the Archbishop anointed his hands with consecrated oil, saying: “Let these hands be anointed with consecrated oil, with which kings and prophets were anointed, and as Samuel anointed David as king, so that thou mayest be blessed and established as king in this kingdom over this people, whom the Lord thy God has given thee to rule and govern.” He then said the prayer beginning, “Look down, Almighty God.” Afterwards, the Archbishop anointed his head, breast, shoulders and both joints of his arms, saying: “Let this head, breast, shoulders and the joints of the arms be anointed with consecrated oil”, and so forth, as above. Meanwhile, the choir sang the antiphon: “Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anointed Solomon king, and, going up rejoicing, they said, ‘Long live the King. Alleluia.’” The Metropolitan then continued: “May God the Son of God, Jesus Christ our Lord, who was anointed by the Father with the oil of gladness above his fellows, himself pour the Spirit, the Comforter, upon thy head through this present outpouring of sacred oil, and cause this same blessing to penetrate even to the depths of thy heart, so that through this visible and tangible gift thou mayest receive invisible grace, and, having governed this temporal kingdom with just rule, mayest be worthy to reign eternally with him.” As soon as the prayer had ended, the Archbishop and a bishop began the hymn, “Come, Creator Spirit”, while the King lay fully prostrate, with the Metropolitan and his suffragan bishops around him.

Tunc Archiepiscopus accessit ad eum, et vestimenta sua discindens manibns suis à summo usque ad imum, exuit eum, præter camisiam, vestimentis suis. Custodes vero Quinque Portuum ex officio, tam in processione quam in unctione et Missa, et, post Missam, dum iret ad Palatium ab ecclesia, semper tenuerunt umbraculum sericum magnum, coloris aerii, quatuor hastis per quatuor angulos colligatum. Sed non obstante umbraculo supradicto, mox antequam Archiepiscopus eum suis vestibus exuisset, allatus est pannus aureus a Comitibus, sub quo latuit, dum unctionis perciperet sacramenta. Archiepiscopus, ut diximus, co nudato, unxit manus ejus de oleo sanctificato, [dicens; — "Ungantur manus istæ de oleo sanctificato] unde uncti faerunt Reges et Prophetæ, et sicut unxit Samuel David in Regem; ut sis benedictus et constitutus Rex in regno isto super populum istum, quem Dominus Deus tuus dedit tibi ad regendum et gubernandum." Item dixit orationem,— "Prospice, Omnipotens Deus." Post hæc, unxit Archiepiscopus caput ejus, et pectus et scapulas, ambasque compages brachiorum, dicens,— "Ungantur caput istud, pectus, et scapulæ, et compages brachiorum, de oleo sanctificato, etc." ut supra. Et interim, chorus cantavit Antiphonam,— "Unxerunt “ Regem Salomonem in Gyan Sadoch Sacerdos et Nathan Propheta, et ascendentes læti dixerunt, 'Vivat [Rex]. Allelluia.'" Postquam subjunxit Metropolitanus,— "Deus, Dei filins, Jesus Christus, Dominus noster, qui a Patre oleo exultationis unctus est præ participibus suis, ipse per præsentem sacri unguiuis infusionem spiritum Paracleti super caput tuum infundat, benedictionem eandemque usque ad interiora cordis tui penetrare faciat; quatenus hoc visibili et tractabili dono invisibilia percipere, et, temporali regno justis moderaminibus executo, æternaliter cum eo regnare, merearis." Mox, finita oratione, Archiepiscopus cum Episcopo hymnum,— "Veni Creator, Spiritus," [inceperunt], Rege interim prostrato in longa venia, et circa eum Metropolitano cum Suffraganeis suis.

When the hymn had ended, the Archbishop raised the King and clothed him first in Saint Edward’s tunic, and afterwards in Saint Edward’s dalmatic, placing the stole around his neck while reciting the appropriate prayers. The Archbishop and the bishops then presented him with the sword, saying: “Receive this sword, placed upon you in royal fashion by the hands of the bishops, unworthy though they be, yet consecrated in the office and authority of the Holy Apostles, and ordained by God through the ministry of our blessing for the defence of Holy Church. Remember the words of the Psalmist, ‘Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty’, so that with it you may exercise the power of justice, mightily destroy the burden of iniquity, and defend and protect the Holy Church of God and its faithful people. “May you likewise abhor and destroy those who are false to the faith, as well as the enemies of the Christian name. May you mercifully assist and defend widows and orphans, restore what has been laid waste, preserve what has been restored, avenge injustice and confirm what has been rightly ordered. Thus, by accomplishing these things, may you be glorious in the triumph of virtue and distinguished in the service of justice, and may you be worthy to reign without end with the Saviour of the world, whose likeness you bear in name.” Two earls then girded him with the sword. After this, the Archbishop gave him the bracelets, saying: “Receive these bracelets, as a sign of sincerity, wisdom and divine protection, so that you may understand that all your actions can be strengthened against enemies both visible and invisible.” The Archbishop then clothed him in the royal mantle, saying: “Receive this mantle, fashioned with four corners, by which you may understand that the four quarters of the world are subject to divine power, and that no one can reign happily upon earth unless the power to reign has been granted to him from heaven.”

Expleto hymno, erectus est Rex ab Archiepiscopo, et indutus est primo tunica Sancti Edwardi, et post, ejusdem dalmatica, projecta cirea collum ejus stola, Archiepiscopo orationes competentes interim prosequente. Post hæc, Archiepiscopus, cum Episcopis, tradidit ei gladium, ita dicens;— "Accipe gladium, per manus Episcoporum, licet indignas, vice tamen et auctoritate Sanctorum Apostolorum consecratas, tibi regaliter impositum, nostræque benedictionis officio in defensionem Sanctæ Ecclesiæ divinitus ordinatam; et esto memor de [quo] Psalmista prophetavit, dicens, 'Accingere gladio tuo super femur tuum, potentissime;' ut per eundem vim æquitatis exerceas, molem iniquitatis potenter destruas, et Sanctam Dei Ecclesiam ejusque fideles propugnando protegas, nec minus sub fide falsos quam Christiani nominis hostes execreris ac destruas, viduas et pupillos clementer adjuves ac defendas, desolata restaures, restaurata conserves, ulciscaris injusta, confirmes bene disposita; quatenus hæc in agendo, virtutum triuampho gloriosus justitiæ cultor egregius, cum mundi Salvatore, cujus typum geris in nomine, sine fine merearis regnare." Tunc duo Comites eum gladio accinxerunt; quo facto, Archiepiscopus armillas dedit ei, dicens,— "Accipe armillas, sinceritatis et sapientiæ, divinæquæ circumdationis, indicium, quibus intelligas omnes operationes tuas contra hostes, visibiles et invisibiles, posse esse munitas." Postea induit eum Archiepiscopus regali pallio, ita dicens,— "Accipe pallium quatuor nunciis formatum, per quod intelligas quatuor mundi partes divinæ potestati esse subjectas, nec quenquam posse feliciter regnare in terris, nisi cui potestas regnandi fuerit collata de cœlis."

Immediately afterwards, Lord Furnival came forward and, by virtue of his office, presented the King with a red glove. The Archbishop blessed it and placed it upon the King’s hand, then gave him the sceptre with these words: “Receive the sceptre, the emblem of royal power, namely the upright rod of the kingdom and the rod of virtue, by which thou mayest govern thyself well. By royal authority, defend Holy Church, that is, the Christian people entrusted to thee by God, from the wicked, correct those who do wrong, bring peace to the upright, and guide them by thy aid so that they may keep to the right path, and thus pass from the temporal kingdom to the eternal kingdom.” The Archbishop then placed in the King’s other hand the rod surmounted by a dove. The sceptre he had already received rose from a round golden orb, which he held in his gloved hand, and bore the sign of the cross at its summit. He received the rod with these words: “Receive the rod of virtue and justice, by which thou mayest understand that it is thy duty to comfort the righteous and terrify the wicked, to show the way to those who stray, and to stretch out thy hand to those who have fallen, to humble the proud and raise up the lowly, so that Jesus Christ our Lord may open the gate to thee.”

Statim post hæc, accessit Dominus de Furneval, ex officio offerens ei rubeam chirothecam, quam Archiepiscopus benedixit, et imposuit “manui regiæ, dans ei sceptrum hiis verbis, dicens, — "Accipe sceptrum, regiæ potestatis insigne, virgam scilicet regni rectam, virgam virtutis, qua teipsum bene regas; Sanctam Ecclesiam, populum videlicet Christianum tibi a Deo commissum, regia virtute ab improbis defendag, pravos corrigas, rectos! pacifices, et ut viam rectam tenere possint, tuo juvamine dirigas, quatenus de temporali regno ad æternum regnum pervenias." Tunc dedit ei Archiepiscopus virgam in alia manu, habentem in summitate columbam; nam sceptrum quod susceperat, consurrexit de rotundo globo aureo, quem tenebat in manu chirothecato, et habebat in summitate signum crucis. Et accepit virgam prædictam cum hiis verbis;— "Accipe [virgam] virtutis et æquitatis, qua intelligas te mulcere pios et terrere reprobos; errantes viam doce, lapsisque manum porrige; disperdasque superbos et releves humiles, ut aperiat tibi ostium Jesus Christus, Dominus noster."

After this, the Archbishop blessed the King, saying: “May God bless thee and preserve thee. As he has willed thee to be King over his people, so may he grant thee happiness in this present age and make thee a partaker of eternal blessedness.” When these rites had been completed, the King kissed the bishops and abbots. They then conducted him to the royal throne, while the bishops began the hymn, “We praise thee, O God.” When the hymn had ended, the Archbishop addressed him in these words: “Stand firm and henceforth retain the place which thou hast hitherto held by hereditary succession from thy forefathers, and which I declare to be entrusted to thee by the authority of Almighty God and by this present act of investiture performed by us, namely, by all the bishops and the other servants of God. “Remember that, inasmuch as the clergy stand nearer to the sacred altars, thou shouldst grant them the greater honour in all fitting circumstances, so that Jesus Christ our Lord, the mediator between God and mankind, may confirm thee as mediator of the people upon this royal throne and cause thee to reign in the eternal kingdom.”

Post hæc, benedictus est Rex ab Archiepiscopo, ita dicente;— "Benedicat te Deus, enstodiatque te; sicut te voluit super populum suum esse Regem, ita in præsenti sæculo felicem æternæ felicitatis tribuat esse consortem." Hiis itaque peractis, osculatus est Rex Episcopos et Abbates; a quibus statim ductus est postea ad regale solium, Episcopis inchoantibus hymnum,— "Te Deum laudamus." Finito hymno, Archiepiscopus ita eum allocutus est:— "Sta et retine amodo locum, quem hucusque paterna successione tenuisti hæreditarie, indico tibi delegatum per auctoritatem Dei Omnipotentis, et præsentem traditionem nostram, scilicet omnium Episcoporum, cæterorumque Dei servorum; et quanto clerum sacris, altaribus propinquiorem, tanto ei potiorem in locis congruis honorem impendere memineris; quatenus mediator Dei et hominum te mediatorem plebis in hoc regni solio confirmet, et in regnum æternum regnare faciat, Jesus Christus, Dominus noster."

Meanwhile, a certain knight, Sir John, surnamed Dymoke, had prepared himself, claiming that he possessed the right to defend the King’s title on that day and, should it prove necessary, to fight in single combat against anyone who dared to assert that the King had no right to the kingdom of England. Lord Baldwin Freville had previously claimed the same office, but had failed to obtain it. Towards the end of the Mass, Sir John approached the doors of the church, most splendidly armed and mounted on a magnificent warhorse with rich trappings, its head and breast also protected by armour. He had taken the horse from the royal stables, exercising the ancient privilege of choosing both his horse and armour from the King’s stores. For the performance of this office, he was entitled to select, as he pleased, the best horse apart from one, and the finest suit of armour apart from one. He therefore came to the entrance of the abbey, preceded by two men carrying his lance and shield, and waited there for the Mass to end. The Marshal, Lord Henry Percy, who was to clear the way before the King, came to the knight accompanied by the Steward of England, namely the Duke, the Constable, Lord Thomas of Woodstock, and the Marshal’s brother, Lord Thomas Percy. All were mounted on great warhorses. The Marshal told him that he ought not to have come at that hour, but should have delayed his arrival until the King’s banquet. He therefore advised him to return, lay aside the heavy burden of his armour, and rest until then. The knight, intending to follow the Marshal’s advice, withdrew.

Interea præparaverat se quidam miles, Dominus Johannes, cognomento "Dymmok," qui clamabat se habere jus ad defendendum jura Regis illo die, et etiamsi opus esset duello confligendum, si aliquis præsumeret affirmare Regem non habere jus in regno Angliæ; quanquam per ante, Dominus Baldewynus Freville idem officium calumniasset, sed minime obtinuisset. Iste ergo Dominus Johannes memoratus circa finem Missæ! accessit ad valvas ecclesiæ, armatus decentissime, insidens dextrarium pulcherrime phaleratum, caput etiam et pectus armatum; quem idem Dominus Johannes assumpsit de stabulo regio, utens videlicetavita consuetudine tam in equo quam armis eligendis de thesauro Regis. Nam et optimum equum præter unum, et præter unam præcipuam armaturam, facturus dietum officium “eliget ad vota sua. Veniens igitur ad ostium Monasterii, præequitantibus duobus, qui ejus lanceam et clypeum portaverunt, expectavit ibidem finem Missæ. Marescallus autem, Dominus Henricus Percy, facturus viam coram Rege, cum Senescallo Angliæ, scilicet Duce, et Constabulario, Domino Thoma Wodestok, atque fratre ejusdem Marescalli Domino Thomaæ Percy, qui omnes magnos inequitavere dextrarios, venit ad dictum militem, dicens non debere eum en hora venire, sed quod usque ad prandium Regis distulisset adventum suum. Quapropter monuit ut rediret, et, deposito tanto onere armorum, quiesceret ad illud tempus. Miles vero, juxta consillum Marescalli facturus, abcessit.

When these ceremonies had been completed, the King took his place at the table, where bishops, earls and barons feasted splendidly with him. An immense crowd of common people had gathered there from every part of the kingdom. So great was the press within that enormous hall that, had the Duke of Lancaster, Steward of England, the Earl of Buckingham, Constable of the realm, Lord Henry Percy, the Marshal, and many others not ridden through the hall on great horses to keep the way clear, those carrying the dishes would scarcely have been able to reach the guests. Were I to attempt to describe the preparations for the banquet, the richness of the vessels and the variety of the dishes, the reader might perhaps hesitate to believe me, astonished both by their cost and by their scale. I shall therefore mention only one feature, omitting the rest, which had been devised to display the King’s magnificence. In the middle of the royal palace there had been erected, upon several steps, a hollow marble column. At its summit stood a great gilded eagle, and beneath its feet, from the capital of the column, different kinds of wine flowed in four directions throughout the whole day of the coronation. No one, however poor, was forbidden to draw from it. This coronation took place in the eleventh year of the King’s age.

Quibus expletis, ascendit ad mensam, ubi epulabantur cum eo splendide Episcopi, Comites, et Barones; et innumera multitudo plebis [a cunctis regni finibus congregata; tanta enim multitudo plebis] confluxerat in illam Anlam prægrandem, quod nisi Dux Lancastriæ, videlicet Senescallus Angliæ, et Comes Bokynghamiæ regni Constabularius, eb Dominus Henricus Percy, Marescallus, cam multis aliis, viam super grandes equos servientibus in Aula fecissent, ferentes fereula ad convivas minime penetrassent. Si numerare contenderem convivii apparatum, divitias utensilium, varietatem ferculorum, forsitan lector, perculsus tam tantarum rerum pretio quam magnitudine, credere formidaret. Unum solum, quod, ad magnificentiam regiam ostendendam, fuerat ordinatum, aliis omissis, æstimo proferendum. In medio regalis Palatii elevata fuerat quædam columnaæ marmorea concava, super certos gradus, cujus summitatem occupabat grandis auratæ aquila, sub cujus pedibus in capitello columnæ, per quatuor partes, vina diversi generis decurrebant per totum diem Coronationis regiæ; nec erat qui aliquem, vel pauperrimum virum, haurire vetaret. F'acta est coronatio hæc anno undecimo ætatis ipsius Regis.

On the following day [17th July 1377], a general procession was held for the King and for the peace of the realm. All the prelates took part in their vestments, namely the Archbishop, the bishops and the abbots who had attended the coronation, together with the Duke himself, the magnates and a great multitude of the people. During the procession, the Bishop of Rochester preached to the people, urging that the disputes and divisions which had arisen and long persisted between the commons and the lords should be brought to an end. He showed by many arguments that such dissensions were deeply displeasing to God. He also urged the lords not to burden the people in future with such heavy taxation without good cause. At the same time, he warned the people that, where there was reasonable cause requiring them to support the King and the realm, they should patiently do what was necessary, without murmuring or any inclination towards sedition. He further exhorted all those who would be attached to the King, still a child and innocent, to abandon the vices to which they were addicted, namely sexual immorality, fornication and adultery, and to strive to conform themselves to his purity and innocence. He declared that this was altogether necessary for the father of the realm, for it would be very easy for the King to stray from the right path, and for the kingdom and people to be placed in danger, if those who constantly attended him and served on his council were men of such a kind. When the sermon had ended, the lords and all the prelates departed to their respective lodgings.

In crastino facta est generalis processio pro Rege et pace regni; cui revestiti interfuerunt omnes Prælati, videlicet Archiepiscopus, cum Episcopis et Abbatibus qui Coronationi interfuerant, necnon ipse Dux cum magnatibus et plebis multitudine copiosa. In progressu autem processionis concionatus est ad populum Episcopus Roffensis, hortans ut dissensiones et discordiæ, ortæ et diu continuatæ inter plebem et Dominos, sopirentur, probans per multa argumenta hujuscemodi dissensiones Deo plurimum displicere. Hortatus est insuper Dominos, ne tantis de cætero ‘sine causa taxationibus populum apporiarent. Monuit etiam, ut si causa subesset rationabilis, qua oporteret eos omnino juvare Regem et regnum, ut patienter, et sine murmure atque seditionis scrupulo, facerent quod oporteret. Insuper, exhortatur cos generaliter, qui Regi, puero et innocenti, adhærerent, ut relictis vitiis quibus inserviebant, videlicet stupris in fornicationibus [et] adulteriis, cjus puritati et innocentiæ se conformare studerent; asserens hoc omnino patri patriæ opportunum, perfacileque Regi a recto deviare, regnum et populum periclitari, si tales essent, qui ei sedulo et ejus consilio ministrarent. Sermone finito, Domini et universi Prælati ad sua secedunt.

For he [Wat Tyler] had first of all desired to obtain a commission for himself and his followers to behead all lawyers, escheators, and everyone who had either studied the law or had dealt with it by virtue of their office. For he had conceived in his mind that, with the learned in the law slain, everything thereafter would be governed according to the common will of the people, and that no law would exist—or, if it did, it would be established solely according to his own whim. Indeed, it is reported that in his great pride he said—this was the day before these things happened—that, putting his hand to his lips, within four days all the laws of England would proceed from his mouth and lips. So, as we have said, when Sir John Newton urged him to hurry, he replied disdainfully: 'If it is urgent for you,' he said, 'then return to your lord the King; as for me, I will come when it pleases me.' After the knight had departed, Wat followed on horseback, though somewhat more slowly. And when he had come near the place where the King was—called Smithfield—the same knight was sent to him again to hear and report his demands. The knight, sitting on his horse, approached him to hear what he had to say. But Wat Tyler, angered that the knight had come mounted rather than on foot, furiously declared that it would have been more fitting for him to approach on foot. The knight, not yet having forgotten the dignity of his former knighthood, at once replied: 'Since you are sitting on a horse, it is no offense that I approach you likewise mounted.' At this, the villain, enraged at the words, immediately drew a dagger (which we commonly call a "dagger") and threatened to strike the knight, adding words in which he called him a traitor. But the knight, hating that name, boldly declared that he lied, and drew his own dagger against him. In turn, the ruffian, unable to bear the insult among his rustic followers, prepared to attack the knight.

Voluit namque, ante alia, commissionem pro se et suis obtinuisse, ad decollandum omnes juridicos, escaetores, et universos, qui vel in lege docti fuere, vel cum jure, ratione officii, communicavere. Mente nempe conceperat, doctis inlege necatis, universa juxta communis plebis scitum de catero ordinari, et nullam omnino legem fore futuram, vel si futura foret, esse pro suo arbitrio statuenda. Fertur revera cum superbin magna dixizse, pridie quam ista fierent, apposita manu sua suis labiis, quod ante quatriduum omnes leges Anglie de ore suo et labiis cmanarent. Igitur cum, ut diximuy, Dominus Johannes Newton pro acceleratione in. staret penes eum, indignando respondit;—"Si tii," ait, "multum festinandum fuerit, redeas ad dominum tuum Regem; ego vero veniam cum placebit." Post regressum vero militis, et ille vectus equo subsccutus, sed tamen paulo tardius; cumque venisset ut esset non procul a lcco in quo Rex constitutus fuerat, "Smythfeld" appellato, destinatus est ad enm sceundo prædictus miles, ad audiendum et referendum vota sua. Miles autem, dextrarium insidens, accessit ad cum, auditnrns quid dicere proponebat. Ile quidem indignatus quia cquo vectus miles accesserat, et non pedes, mox cum furore dixit, decere cum potius pedes quam equum insidens sw presenti: propinquare. Miles vero, nondum oblitus ommnino militin sue veteris probitatis, illico sic repondit;—"Sedenti," inquit, "tibi in equo non est injuriosum me cquitem accessisse." Ad quod verbum indignatus ncbulo, mox extracto cultello, quem "duggere" vulgo dicimus, ictum militi minabatur, cum adjectione verborum quibus! cundem militem proditorem appellavit. At miles, ablorrens illud nomen, eum mentiri asseruit animose, extracto contra eum eque tali cultello. E contrario, ribaldus non ferens inter suos rusticos illatam contumeliam, paravit in militem irruisse.

The knights, therefore, having accepted members of the commons’ company, hurried to carry out the command laid upon them. And when they had come to the town of Ickingham, which is not far from the town called Newmarket, they were unexpectedly met by the Bishop of Norwich, Lord Henry le Despenser, a man quite suitable for handling the weapons of war, and himself armed from head to foot. For he had heard, while he was staying at his manor of Burley, near the king’s castle of Oakham, in the region of Stamford, of the disturbance of the men of Norfolk. Therefore he intended to go down there, to see whether they had fulfilled, or were fulfilling, their outcry by deed. At that time he had in his company no more than eight lances, and a very small number of archers. Seeing the knights and certain men from the commons, he commanded the knights, under their allegiance, to declare whether any of the king’s traitors were present with them. But the knights, whom rustic fear had lately swallowed up, pretended not to answer, thinking that the bishop, because he was young and bold, had spoken such words rashly, and had no one who would help him if they betrayed the traitors. But the bishop, perceiving and considering the matter as it was, urged them to act confidently and, if any were present, to hand over the traitors. Then the knights, wiping away their cowardice and taking up courage, answered that two of the greatest stirrers-up were there among them, while a third had gone elsewhere to buy their dinner. They also related in order the purpose of their journey. The bishop therefore immediately had those two beheaded, and took pains to seek out the third himself: his own sheep, that is, which had gone astray when it had departed from royal loyalty, and which was now to perish, to be punished with death by episcopal decree. Their heads were then fixed up at Newmarket.

Milites ergo, acceptis comitibus de comitiva communium, ad exequendum properant injunctum mandatum; et cum pervenissent ad villam de!Igingham, quæ non multum distat a villa quæ dicitur "Novum Forum," inopinate fit eis obviam Episcopus Northwicensis, Dominus Henricus le Spencer, vir idoneys satis armis gerendis bellicis, et ipse armatus ad unguem. Audierat namque famam, cum moraretur apud manerium suum de Burlee, prope castellum Regis de Okam, in partibus Stanfordiæ, tumultuationis Northfolkensiaum; quare proposuit illue descendere, ad videndum utrum clamorem opere compleverint, vel complevissent. Habebat tune in comitatu suo non plures quam octo lanceas, et sagitfariorum numerum perexilem. Videns autem milites et quosdam e communibus, præcepit, sub ligeantia sua, militibus, ut edicerent, si qui ex proditoribus Regis præsentes essent cum illis. Milites vero, quos dudum rusticalis timor absorbuerat, dissimulabant respondere, æstimantes Episcopum, quiaæ juvenis erat et audax, inconsulte talia verba protulisse, nec habere qui adjuvarent, si proditores prodidissent. Episcopus autem, cernens et considerans rem, ut erat, hortabatur eos ut confidenter agerent, et, si qui adessent, traderent proditores. Tune milites, detersa ignavia et sumpta audacia, responderunt, duos ex maximis concitatoribus inter eos adesse, tertium, pro eorum coemendo prandio, alibi concessisse; sed et causam eorum itineris per ordinem narraverunt. Episcopus ergo statim illos duos decapitari fecit, et tertium ipsemet requirere studuit; ovem suam, quæ videlicet perierat, et dum à regia fide desciverat, et quæ peritura fuerat, tune episcopali decreto capite punienda. Fixis ergo capitibus eorundem apud Novum Forum.

[Around April 1381] He [John Ball [aged 43]] had also sent to the common leaders in Essex a certain letter full of riddles, to encourage them to carry through with what they had begun; which was later found in the sleeve of a man who was hanged for the aforementioned uprising. Its contents were as follows:

Letter of John Ball, sent to the Commons of Essex.

"John Shepp, once St. Mary's priest of York and now of Colchester, sends greetings to John Nameless, and John the Miller's Wife, and John Carter, and urges them to beware of treachery in the town, and to stand together in God's name. He tells Piers Plowman to go to his work, and to punish well Hob the Robber. Take with you John True-man and all his fellows—and no others—and be sure you are united in one purpose, and no more.

Johan the Muller hath ygrownde smal, smal, smal;

The Kyngis sone of hevene shalle pay for alle.

Be ware or ye be wo,

Knoweth your frende fro youre foo,

Haveth ynowe, and seythe 'Hoo:'

And do welle and bettre, and fleth synne,

And seketh pees, and holde therynne.

And so biddeth Johan Trewman and alle his felawes."

Miserat insuper ductoribus communibus in Estsexia quamdam litteram ænigmatibus plenam, ad hortandum eos ut incepta perficerent; que expost inventa est in manica cujusdam suspendendi pro turbatione prefata, cujus tenor talis est:—

Littera Johannis Balle, missa Communibus Essexiæ.

"John Schep, som tyme Seynt Marie prest of Yorke, and nowe of Colchestre, greteth welle Johan Nameles, and Johan the Muliere, and Johan Gartere, and biddeth hem that thei ware of gyle in borugh, and stondeth togiddir in Goddis name, and biddeth Peres Ploughman go to his werke, and chastise welle Hobbe the robber, and taketh with you Johan Trewman, and alle his felaws, and no mo, and loke scharpe you to on heued, and no mo.

Johan the Muller hath ygrownde smal, smal, smal;

The Kyngis sone of hevene shalle pay for alle.

Be ware or ye be wo,

Knoweth your frende fro youre foo,

Haveth ynowe, and seythe 'Hoo:'

And do welle and bettre, and fleth synne,

And seketh pees, and holde therynne.

And so biddeth Johan Trewman and alle his felawes."

Thereupon they proceeded to deal with the affairs of the kingdom and of the king in the present parliament. But much time was spent there to no purpose, and nothing was brought to any effect, although the delay there had not been without great expense. And when it was thought that some result was now about to follow, news arrived of the coming to Calais of the new queen, namely the sister of Wenceslas, king of Bohemia, son of the late king of Bohemia and emperor, who himself too expected to be crowned emperor, and everywhere in his letters styled himself emperor. The king had therefore chosen to have this woman, bought at great price and with many labours, although the daughter of Lord Bernabò of Milan had been offered to him with an inestimable sum of gold. When, therefore, as we have related, the arrival of the future queen was heard of, parliament was dissolved, to be begun again after the royal wedding and the Lord’s Nativity. Moreover, each man laboured according to his means to honour so great a wedding with gifts, and also with services worthy of favour. A party was therefore sent to meet so great a maiden, and she was conducted, with all the glory of the world, as far as the port of Dover, accompanied by many nobles, both of her own country and of this land.

Processum est perinde ad tractandum de regni Regisque negotiis in Parliamento præsenti; sed immoratum est inaniter in eodem diu, nec ad aliquem effectum quiequam productum, quamvis non sine magnis fuisset ibidem sumptibus demoratum. Et cum jam effectus aliquis successisse putaretur, supervenere nova de adventu novæ Reginæ Calesiam, sororis videlicet Regis Boemiæ, Wynceslai, filii quondam Regis Boemiæ et Imperatoris, qui et ipse expectavit in Imperatorem coronari, et se Imperatorem ubique litteraliter nominavit. Hanc igitur magno pretio, multisque coemptam laboribus, habendam Rex præclegerat, quanquam cum inæstimabili auri summa oblata fuisset ei filla Domini Mediolanensis Barnabonis. Audito igitur, ut retulimus, de adventu Reginæ futuræ, solvitur Parliamentum, reincipiendum post regales nuptias et Natale Dominicum. Et insuper laborat unusquisque pro viribus tantas nuptias honorare muneribus, insuper et obsequiis favore dignis. Missum est ergo in obviam tantæ virgini, et conducitur cum omni gloria mundi ad portum usque Doveriæ, comitantibus eam multis nobilibus, tam suæ patriæ quam istius terræ.

The earl of Suffolk, William Ufford, in this present parliament, after he had been chosen by the knights of the shires to pronounce on their behalf the affairs of the commonwealth, on the day and at the hour when he was to have carried out the business he had undertaken, as he began to climb the steps leading to the chamber in which all the nobility of the realm had assembled, suddenly collapsed, and at once breathed out his spirit in the hands of his men, although, cheerful and feeling no illness, he had entered Westminster Hall a little before, indeed almost immediately before. At his sudden death no small consternation fell, not only upon all the nobles of the realm, but also upon all those of middling rank and the poor, because throughout his whole life he had shown himself lovable to all. After his death, an end was put to the parliament, after the merchants of England had granted to the king, as a subsidy, the customs on wool once again, which common people call the "maltolt", for the four years next following. It was also ordained in this parliament, at the request of the magnates and commons, that Richard Scrope, knight, should be chancellor, as a man who, by conspicuous knowledge and inflexible justice, had no equal of his fortune in the kingdom. To the office of treasurer Lord Hugh Segrave, knight, was appointed.

Comes Sowthfolciæ, Willelmus Ufforde, in isto præsenti Parliamento, dum a militibus Comitatuum fuisset electus ad pronunciandum ex parte illorum negotia reipublicæ, die et hora quibus executus fuisset susceptum negotium, cum gradus ascendere incepisset ducentes ad cameram in qua regni nobilitas tota concesserat, repente corruit, et inter suorum manus illico spiritum exhalavit; quamvis jocundus et nihil mali sentiens Aulam Westmonasterii parum ante, et velut immediate, subintrasset. De cujus morte subitanca non parum consternati sunt, non tantum cuneti regni proceres, sed et omnes mediocres et pauperes, quia cunetis se in omni vita amabilem exhibuerat. Post cujus mortem, finis est impositus Parliamento; postquam mercatores Angliæ concessissent Regi pro subsidio consuetudines lanarum iterum, quas "maltot" vulgares appellant, per quadriennium expost sequens. Ordinatus est etiam in hoc Parliamento, petentibus hoc magnatibus et communibus, Ricardus Scrop, miles, Cancellarius, utpote vir qui spectabili scientia et inflexibili justitia non haberet ex sua fortuna parem in regno. Ad officium vero Thesaurarii Dominus Hugo Segrave, miles, subrogatur.

The French, however, were unwilling, on account of the muddiness of the ground, to advance far out into the field; rather, they wished to see what the English, whose small numbers they held in the utmost contempt, intended to do. Between the two armies the field stretched widely, to a distance, it is said, of nearly a thousand paces. But the movements of the two forces were not alike; for while the French maintained their first position without stirring, the English, if they wished to join battle with the enemy, were obliged to cross on foot the intervening ground, encumbered as they were by their armor. Meanwhile the king, perceiving the stratagems of the French, namely that they stood thus immobile in one place so as not to tire themselves by marching on the muddy field,

"Borne on his noble steed he flies around the ranks,

Encouraging the leaders and strengthening their hearts for battle.

O most faithful companions," he said, "we go forth into the field

'To a mighty deed of courage, and to the utmost labors.'

Behold! The very day which your valour has so often demanded! Now, therefore, pour forth all your strength. Let your lances, your axes, your swords, your arrows prove their worth in the hand of the mighty. Whoever among you longs for wealth, for honours, or for rewards, here shall he find them; indeed

Non tamen voluere Frauci, propter loci lutositatem, procul in campum procedere, sed videre cupiebant quod Angli, quorum paucitatem maxime contemnebant, lacere proponebant. Inter utrumque cuneum campus late patuit, ad spatium, prout fertur, pene mille passuum; sed non utrinque pari procurrunt agmina motu, quia, Gallis immobiliter primam servantibus stationem, Anglis necessc fuit, si cum hoste vcllent couserere, spatium medium armis onustos pedibus emetiri. Rex interea, Gallorum perpendens astutias, quod sic perstabant immobiles in uno loco, ne peditando per campum lutosum fatigarentur,

"Sublimi vectus cquo volat agmiiia circum,

Hortaturque duces, et animos ad prœlia firmat.

"O fidissimi," inquiens, "socii, vadimus in campum

"'Ad magnum virtutis opus, summosque labores. — '

En! ipsam diem quam flagitavit sæpius vestra virtus; totas ergo vestras effundite vires. Experiamini quid laucea, quid securis, quid gladius, quid sagitta, valent, in manu potentis. Quisquis ergo census, hunores, aut præmia cupit, isthic reperict hæc; nempe

Therefore, Charles, King of France, upon hearing of the death of his son-in-law, the aforementioned King of England, after the solemn funeral rites and Masses for his soul were solemnly celebrated in his chapel, summoned by his decree a large number of his prelates and other lords who had recently agreed to the peace between the kingdoms of France and England. He had the same peace read aloud in their presence and confirmed anew both by his own oath and theirs, sworn on the Body of Christ and the Holy Gospels of God. Then, wasting away in grief and desolation, he too bade farewell to the fleeting light of this world on the thirteenth day following. But almost all the French, who had experienced the just and fair rule of the same King of England after the tumultuous and wicked tyranny of others, mourned with the greatest lamentation. Especially the Parisians and the people of Rouen honoured the body of the same King with lawful funeral rites and offerings, according to their means, giving large sums of gold for the honour of burying his body among them, for their unique honour and comfort. But this could not be done, because he had previously bequeathed by his will that he should be buried at Westminster, which was later accomplished with great honour, as will be related below.

Rex itaque Franciæ Karolus, audita morte sui generi Angliæ prænotati, post solemnes exequias et Missas in sua Capella pro ejus anima solemniter celebratas, accersito ejus edicto, suorum prælatorum et aliorum dominorum, qui concordiæ nuper pridium¹ inter regna Franciæ et Angliæ consenserant, numero copioso, fecit eandem concordiam coram ipsis perlegi, et tam suo quam illorum juramento super Corpus Dominicum et Sancta Dei Evangelia denuo confirmari. Deinde dolore et desolatione contabescens, tertio-decimo die subsequenti et ipse instabili luci sæculi valefecit. Sed et omnes pene Francigenæ, qui ejusdem Regis Angliæ æquum³ et discretum regimen, post tam turbulentam et improbam aliorum tyrannidem, experti fuerant, planctu maximo condolebant; præcipue Parisienses et Rothomagenses, ejusdem Regis corpus in funeralibus obsequiis legitime, et oblationibus, pro eorum viribus multipliciter honourantes, offerentes auri summas maximas pro ejus corpore inter eosdem tumulando, pro eorum honoure et solamine singulari. Sed hoc fieri non poterat, pro eo quod testamentarie primitus legaverat se apud Westmonasterium tumulandum; quod postmodum, ut sequitur, satis honourifice est completum.

Note 1. pidiū in orig. and in (5) MS. Corp. Chr. vii.: its meaning seems doubtful.

Note 2. sæculo in orig., by inadvertence.

Note 3. omnis in the printed texts.

Note 4. Apparently parium in orig. corrected from the printed texts.

If one wishes to know the funeral arrangements of this dead King, they were as follows: An effigy, very similar in stature and face to the deceased King, was placed upon the casket in which his body was held. The effigy was dressed in a long and wide purple cloak lined with ermine fur, holding a sceptre in one hand and a golden orb with a cross affixed in the other; a golden crown was placed on the head, over the royal cap, and royal sandals were on the feet. The effigy was elevated on a carriage so that it could be seen by everyone, increasing mourning and sorrow, and that his friends and subjects might more fervently pray to the Lord for his soul. It is also said that a thousand large torches were carried by venerable persons around his body, and gold and silk cloths were offered for the same purpose. Three war horses were brought to the high altar of Westminster, with their riders, as is customary, fully armed with the arms of the King of England and France, and the riders were disarmed there. The arms were entirely removed, and banners were carried around the body of the deceased, continuously displaying the arms of Saint George, England, and France, as well as images of the Holy Trinity and Saint Mary.

Cujus Regis mortui apparatus si scire libeat, talis erat.— Superposita namque fuerat cistæ, in qua corpus ejus habebatur, quædam imago stature et faciei Regis mortui simillima, chlamyde purpurea satis longa et larga, cum furrura de ermyn induta, sceptrum in una manu, et pila rotunda aurea, cum cruce infixa, in altera; corona aurea in capite, super capellum regium¹, et sandaliis regiis in pedibus, impositis. Et taliter elevatur in curru, ut a singulis videri potuisset, ut per hoc mœror et dolor accresceret, et ejus amici et subditi pro ejus anima Dominum tenerius exorarent. Fertur etiam mille torticios magnos per venerabiles personas circa ejus corpus delatos, et pannos aureos et sericos pro eodem oblatos. Adducti etiam fuerant ad majus altare Westmonasterii tres dextrarii, cum eorum sessoribus², ut moris est, armis Regis Angliæ et Francæ optime armatis, et sessores inibi inde expoliati. Arma vero integre ablata, vexilla insuper, circa corpus defuncti ferebantur, arma Sancti Georgii, Angliæ, et Franciæ, ac imaginum Sancte Trinitatis, Sancte Marie, continenter³.

Note 1. regni in the printed texts.

Note 2. cessoribus in orig.

Note 3. continentur in the printed texts.